Chikane, Himeko, and Orochi all stared in awe at the great, earthly god that stood before them. "Susanou...?" said Orochi's second head. "How can you be here?" the first head asked. "The seashell," Chikane realized, seeing the pink bivalve imbedded in the hilt of the ten-bladed sword that Susanou held. "That has to be it," said Himeko. "Susanou is the God of the Sea. The bivalve came from the sea, so he must have reacted to the joining of the two halves." "You're half-right," Susanou said in a deep, strong voice. "Were it an ordinary bivalve, it would have meant nothing to me. And it would have been an ordinary bivalve too were it not in your hands, the Solar Priestess and the Lunar Priestess." "It was us..." Himeko said. "It was our bond that summoned you." "It's just as Tsukuyomi said," said Chikane, tears coming to her eyes. "We're just like that bivalve, neither of us complete without the other." "Each other's other half," Himeko finished, tears of joy in her eyes as well. "Your love summoned Susanou?!" cried Orochi's eight heads. "Damn it," the eighth head groaned. "How could I have not anticipated this?" "Tsukuyomi," said Susanou turning to the purple mech, "thank you for protecting and guiding my descendant." Tsukuyomi's voice came from the mech, "Of course, Brother Susanou." "It does not matter," decried Orochi's eighth head. "You had us at a disadvantage the last time we fought, Susanou no Mikoto. You intoxicated us with those eight vats of eight-times brewed rice wine. You tricked us all those centuries ago. But we will not be fooled a second time! And even if you wanted to intoxicate me again, you wouldn't be able to. You don't have any sake!" "I am still an earthly deity," Susanou said, pulling his mask over his face. "That means that I still have the power to hurt you!" Susanou turned to the Priestesses and said, "We all attack him together as one." "Right," said Chikane. "Right," said Himeko, right behind her. The three smaller gods took stances at Orochi. Orochi coiled his eight heads, ready to strike at his attackers. Susanou, Tsukuyomi, and Amaterasu all charged at Orochi and Orochi threw his heads toward them. Several of Orochi's heads collided with the ground as the three smaller gods dodged them. Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu fired bolts of energy from the tips of their swords, trying to distract the eight-headed serpent from Susanou, who was preparing to strike at Orochi with the Ten-Fisted Sword. One of Orochi's heads struck at Susanou, but the earthly god jumped into the air, barely dodging the attack. As Susanou fell from the sky, he swung his blade at Orochi, leaving ten large cuts in the snake's body. Orochi roared in pain and swung at Susanou with his tail. Susanou blocked the tail with his sword, but was still thrown several hundred meters away. Tsukuyomi struck at Orochi with Ame no Murakumo's blade, but Orochi shot chains from his third head's mouth. The chains wrapped around the sword, keeping Chikane from using it to strike Orochi. Then, Amaterasu jumped onto the scene and sliced through the chain with the blade on its left wrist. Chikane jumped toward Orochi and swung at him, leaving another cut in his body. However, in his true form, Yamata no Orochi was much faster than Gattai Orochi. Before Himeko and Chikane could react, two of Orochi's heads struck at them. They held out their Priestess Blades, colliding with Orochi's teeth so that he would not swallow them whole. However, two more of Orochi's heads came at them. Susanou jumped in the heads' path, blocking both of them with the ten-bladed sword. However, four more heads still towered over the three smaller gods. "Ha ha ha ha ha," Orochi's eighth head laughed. "I still outnumber you, eight to three." "You think that numbers will decide this battle?" Susanou asked. "How naive you are." The Ten-Fisted Sword surged with electricity, then shot bolts of lightening into the two heads that Susanou was holding off. The electricity quickly spread through Orochi's monstrous body, causing his eight heads to spasm, allowing the three gods to free themselves from Orochi's teeth. Susanou and Tsukuyomi struck at Orochi again while he was still stunned, leaving eleven more cuts in his body. "You forget that I am also a Storm God," said Susanou to Orochi. "I do not only have power over the seas, but power over the sky as well." "You can be sure then," said Orochi's eighth head, all of the heads regaining their senses, "that I will not let myself be hit with your lightening attack again." All eight of Orochi's heads called out, "Blazing Earth Tremor!" Orochi started spinning his tail around, the sword embedded in the long member kicking up burning pieces of Earth. The tremors created by Orochi's body caught the three small gods off-balance, but Susanou held up his sword toward the skies. Lightening fired from the sword into the heavens. The sky suddenly was filled with storm clouds and rain started in seconds. Even though it was difficult for the gods to move due to the tremors, the rain extinguished the fire that Orochi's tail threw at them, turning them to ordinary pieces of Earth. The pieces of land simply bounced off of the gods' armor, causing no damage to them. "Fine then," Orochi's eight head said. "You want to use rain? I can use that to my advantage!" Orochi's second head opened its mouth and fired lightning at the three gods that were still shaken by Orochi's Earth Tremor. The falling rain acted as a conductor for the lightening, Orochi's electric attack jumping from rain-drop to rain-drop, straight toward Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, and Susanou. Susanou, held up his sword again, and drew all of Orochi's lightening to it. The ten blades absorbed the lightning, nullifying Orochi's attack. "I thought you were smarter than that," Susanou said smugly. "The alcohol must be getting to you." "Alcohol?" asked Orochi's eighth head. "What are you talking about?" "I'm surprised you didn't notice the scent," Susanou said, getting to his feet. He took the comb out of his hair and threw it into the air. In a flash of light, the comb transformed into a beautiful woman, only slightly shorter than Susanou. She had black hair, dark brown eyes, and wore an elegant kimono, white as rice. She wore a face mask, similar to that of a ninja, and she held a large tub in her hands, filled with sake! "My lovely wife brewed this eight-times distilled rice wine before we came here and she has been spreading it through the air as a vapor while we were fighting!" "Kushinada-Hime..." Orochi's fourth head growled. "The masks!" Chikane realized. "Susanou and Kushinada weren't intoxicated by the fumes because of their masks!" "And we're not effected either because of Tsukuyomi's and Amaterasu's face plates!" realized Himeko. "I will never forgive you for killing my sisters," said Kushinada, her eyebrows curved inward in a hateful glare. "Susanou made sure that I, the last of my parents' eight daughters, would not become fodder for your eighth head." "Damn you," groaned Orochi's second head, his speech taking on a slight slur. "I may be drunk," said Orochi's third head, "but I will not be defeated by you again!" The third head struck at Kushinada. "No, you fool!" Orochi's eighth head cried. But it was too late. Kushinada threw the entire tub of sake at the third head. The alcohol burned the third head's eyes and he recoiled in pain. Most of the sake, however, had entered the third head's mouth. "Don't swallow!" cried the eighth head in vain. "I'm sorry," the third head slurred as he swallowed the sake. "I just can't resist rice wine." "Damn it," said Orochi's other heads, now fully feeling the effects of the alcohol. Tsukuyomi summoned an arrow from Ame no Murakumo's wing and aimed at Orochi. "One more strike should do it," said Chikane. Chikane fired the arrow and Orochi was too intoxicated to react quickly enough. The arrow hit the third head squarely in the forehead and exploded, throwing his head back so violently that it broke his neck. The force of the blast knocked the other heads unconscious as well. Susanou approached the inebriated Yamata no Orochi and raised his sword. With Orochi out cold, there was nothing stopping Susanou from hacking off each of Yamata no Orochi's heads. ---------- When he was finished decapitating each of the eight heads, Susanou removed his mask and wiped his brow. "Are you all right, Susanou-sama?" Kushinada asked, walking to his side. "I'm just fine, my darling wife," said Susanou, putting an arm around Kushinada. Just then, the eight decapitated heads of Yamata no Orochi started stirring. Himeko and Chikane readied themselves for another battle, but Susanou raised his hand, motioning them to stop. The mouths of Orochi's heads opened, and out of the mouths climbed the eight bodies of Orochi. Take no Yasukunazuchi climbed from Orochi's first head, Yatsu no Onokoshizuchi came from Orochi's second head, Hi no Ashinazuchi from the third head, Ooube no Senazuchi from the fourth head, Ho no Shuraizuchi from the fifth head, Izuhara no Tamazuchi from the sixth head, Take no Yamikazuchi from the seventh head, and Yokusemi no Mizuchi from the eighth head. All of the Orochi bodies were in their sealed forms, in their original colors with their mouth plates firmly closed. The eight bodies kneeled and the Orochi members exited through the circular portals in their other selves' chests. Tsubasa exited from Take no Yasukunazuchi, Miyako from Yatsu no Onokoshizuchi, Girochi from Hi no Ashinazuchi, Korona from Ooube no Senazuchi, Rehko from Ho no Shuraizuchi, and Nekoko from Izuhara no Tamazuchi. Then, Himeko saw someone exit from the circular portal on Take no Yamikazuchi's chest. "Ogami!" she cried, recognizing the teenaged boy that had exited from the blue mech. Himeko exited Amaterasu Oomikami and ran toward Souma. "OGAMI!!" Himeko cried. Souma raised his head to look at the girl running toward him. "Kurusugawa?" he said, not fully comprehending what had happened. As he regained his senses, Souma realized that he was actually there and that Himeko actually was running toward him. "Kurusugawa!" cried Souma. Himeko ran into Souma's arms and they held each other tightly. The other six Orochi got to their feet, attempting to make sense of the situation. "What happened?" said Korona. "It seems that Orochi tricked us," said Tsubasa. "He didn't care about us at all. All he cared about was regaining his former strength." Then, someone started emerging from the portal in Yokusemi no Mizuchi's body. "Who's that?" wondered Himeko. "Ame no Murakumo was the Eighth Neck," said Souma. "She's too large to come from a portal that size." Chikane suddenly emerged from the portal in Tsukuyomi no Mikoto's chest. She started walking toward the bird-shaped mech, her eyes wide with anticipation. She ran toward Yokusemi no Mizuchi, hoping that the person emerging from the eighth Orochi body was who she thought it was. And sure enough, the person exiting Yokusemi no Mizuchi was her father, Takeshi Himemiya. Exhausted from Orochi's control over his body, he collapsed to the ground in front of his daughter. "Father!" cried Chikane, throwing herself on top of Takeshi. Takeshi looked up at his daughter, his soft brown eyes just as hazy as the Seven Necks were when they first exited their other selves. "Chikane?" he said. "Yes, Father," said Chikane, embracing Takeshi and burying her face in his chest. "It's me." "Chikane, my daughter!" Takeshi cried, embracing Chikane as well. While the Priestesses and Orochi's followers reunited with one another, Susanou went to the remains of Yamata no Orochi and sliced open the tail. Out of the tail he pulled the Ame no Murakumo, which was much smaller than its original size due to the loss of its power to Orochi. "Priestesses, Orochi members," said Susanou. "There is only one way to end this fight once and for all." Chikane, Himeko, Takeshi, and the Seven Necks looked at Susanou. "How?" asked Souma. "You must become the power of the Ten-Fisted Sword," Susanou answered. "When I defeated Orochi so many centuries ago, I only had my own power to defeat Orochi with. When I drew the Ame no Murakumo from Yamata no Orochi's tail, I knew that it was dangerous for it to remain in this world. But the Ame no Murakumo was so sturdy that I could not destroy it with my Ten-Fisted Sword. Piece of my sword was even chipped when I tried to slice Ame no Murakumo like I had sliced Orochi. All I could do to make sure that Ame no Murakumo would not revive Orochi was to use her power to seal both her and Orochi inside the Lunar Shrine." "So that's why Ame no Murakumo is always locked away when her duties are fulfilled," Himeko realized. "She was too dangerous to remain in this world for too long. That's why we have to awaken her every time we reincarnate." "The revival ceremony is also necessary to prove that you are the Shrine Maiden of the Sun and the Shrine Maiden of the Moon," Susanou continued. "But now that I have all of you beside me, you can use your powers to increase the power of the Ten-Fisted Sword. Then it may be strong enough to destroy the Ame no Murakumo and make sure that Orochi never returns again." "Brother Tsubasa," said Souma, walking to the tall First Neck. "Kurusugawa and Himemiya have suffered enough. It's time to stop fighting." Tsubasa turned to the other Necks, who were looking at him intently. "Whatever you decide, Master Tsubasa," said Miyako, "we will follow you." Tsubasa looked back at Souma, who was looking at him with a very serious expression. Tsubasa closed his eyes and made a deep sigh. "I cannot condone a monster that would use us as pawns for his own selfish agenda. Besides, no matter how hard I try," he said, opening his eyes and looking at Souma, "I can never refuse my little brother." "Everyone," Susanou commanded, "gather around me." Himeko, Chikane, Takeshi, and the Seven Necks all gathered around Susanou in a circle. As Susanou held up the Ten-Fisted Sword, the ten humans gathered around the earthly deity started glowing. Their bodies turned into beams of light, each beam entering a blade, causing the blades to glow as well. Susanou swung his empowered Ten-Fisted Sword at the Ame no Murakumo. After several swings, the legendary sword began to crack. Finally, after several hard swings, Susanou's Ten-Fisted Sword shattered the Ame no Murakumo. With the first seven Necks on the side of good and with the Eighth Neck destroyed, simply hacking Yamata no Orochi's body into tiny pieces was enough to destroy the dark aura that was Orochi's spirit. And without Orochi's power sustaining them, the eight Orochi mechs turned to stone and crumbled. After bowing to the vanquished Ame no Murakuno and Yamata no Orochi, Susanou held out his sword and the ten beams of light exited the blades, regaining their human forms around Susanou. "That's it," said Himeko, a large smile coming to her face. "It's over," said Chikane, a smile coming to her face as well. Souma turned to Tsubasa and said, "Thank you, Brother." "I wonder just how much good I did," said Tsubasa, looking around himself. "The world was destroyed anyway." Souma gasped and turned to the Priestesses. "Then that means..." Himeko and Chikane looked at each other, the same horrified expressions on their faces. Himeko turned to Susanou and said, "Susanou, is there some way that we can restore the world without sacrificing ourselves?" "There has to be something you can do," said Chikane. "I am sorry," said the earthly god. "If I use up any more of my power, I will not be able to perform my duties as the God of the Sea. The cosmic balance will become even more disrupted than it already is. There is a reason that all of the gods gather at Izumo during the month of Kannazuki." It was only then that everyone noticed the damage that Tsukuyomi, Amaterasu, and Susanou's absense from Izumo had caused. Up in the sky, they saw the moon falling and the sun dimming. And below them, the sea was beginning to dry up, sea level dropping by several centimeters a second. "As much as I hate to say it," said Susanou, "Ame no Murakumo was right. The blood of a Priestess must be spilled. The only way to restore both the world AND the heavens is through the sacrifice of the Kannazuki no Miko, the Priestesses of the Godless Month." Chikane stared at Susanou, her face overcome with an expression of fear and sadness. "It can't be..." she choked out. "I am sorry, my child," said Susanou with a sad look on his face. "There is no other way." "It's okay, Chikane," said Himeko, putting her hand on the taller girl's shoulder. "Even if we're locked away inside the Lunar Shrine, we'll be together." Chikane's head lowered. "You're right, Himeko," she said with a bittersweet smile. "We'll be together. That's all that matters." She then looked at her beloved through teary eyes. "I just hoped that we could live normal lives for once." "I know," said Himeko, her eyes full of tears as well. Himeko and Chikane embraced each other. They were sorry that they had to sacrifice themselves to remake the world, but at the same time happy that they could spend the rest of eternity together without having to worry about Orochi ever again. Susanou and Kishinada disappeared, the bivalve in Susanou's sword splitting back into its two halves, both of them finding their places around the Priestesses' necks. With the God of the Sea gone, the sea level stopped dropping. "I'm sorry that we caused you so much trouble," said Miyako, walking up to the Priestesses. "Our lives are actually not as bad as we thought," said Korona. "I may not be the best singer in the world, but I'm still in the top hundred on Oricon." "And I've actually begun to enjoy this manga that I'm working on," Rehko said, a surprising amount of emotion in her voice. "And people all over the world are working to stop animal testing, nya," said Nekoko. "Lunar Priestess," Girochi said, "I admit defeat. You've proven to me, and to all of us, that nothing is strong enough to rip Hime from your grasp." "I'm sorry about that, too," said Souma. "I knew that the bond that you shared couldn't be broken. I stopped persisting last year and I shouldn't have started persisting again this year." "It's okay," said Himeko. "You were all under the influence of Orochi's evil. Now that he's gone, you can all go about your lives as if nothing had happened. The world will be remade and you will live out your lives in a world free from the Orochi." "Chikane," Takeshi said, walking to his daughter. "I am more to blame than anyone else. I believed so strongly that I needed Orochi's power to maintain control over my business partners. And I shouldn't have dragged you into this mess." Chikane closed her eyes and put her hands together. "Father, I pray for the prosperity of the Himemiya family and its continued good fortune." Chikane opened her eyes and smiled at her father. "We're descendants of Susanou no Mikoto. I'm sure that he'll honor my prayer and watch over our family." "Thank you, my daughter." Takeshi took Chikane's head in his hands and kissed her forehead. With the Priestesses and the former Orochi followers reconciled, Himeko and Chikane went back to Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi, who flew the Priestesses back to Japan to begin the Last Rite of the Kannazuki no Miko. To be continued... ---------- TERMINOLOGY: Oricon is a weekly music hit-shart in Japan. It is the chart that Korona was placed 68th on. ---------- OMAKE: "The alcohol must be getting to you," said Susanou. "Alcohol?" asked Orochi's eighth head. "What are you talking about?" "I'm surprised you didn't notice the scent," Susanou said. He took the comb out of his hair and threw it into the air. In a flash of light, the comb transformed into a beautiful woman, only slightly shorter than Susanou. She had black hair, dark brown eyes, and wore an elegant yukata, white as rice. She wore a face mask, similar to that of a ninja, and she held a large tub in her hands, filled with sake! "My lovely wife brewed this eight-times distilled rice wine before we came here and she has been spreading it through the air as a vapor while we were fighting!" "Kushinada-Hime..." Orochi's growled. Just then, Susanou and Kushinada started feeling woozy. "What's happening to us, Susanou-sama?" Kushinada asked. "These masks must not be protecting us from the fumes," said Susanou. He removed his mask and looked at the label. "No wonder," he said. "These stupid masks were manufactured in Taiwan."
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