Bakumatsu Kourinden ONI Complete Walkthrough

📍 Iida Town · Mt. Maru

Yamato comes home from a hunt in Iida Town. An errand for his mother turns into a rescue: youkai have carried the village children off to Mt. Maru. After the rescue a youkai attacks the town, and a mysterious swordsman, Juurouta, saves Yamato and tells him he has a talent for hunting youkai.

Walkthrough

1. MainAfter the opening, you’re at home in Iida Town with 3 Herbs. Your house is the one in the south-west corner of town. Mayuki, your mother, asks you to fetch Mom’s Box from the storehouse. It’s the small white building just south of your house.
2. MainGo into the storehouse and open the chest in the top-left corner. You get Mom’s Box, and Yamato finds an Odd Bundle tucked under it. Take both back to Mayuki.
3. SideOptional (not recommended): search the shelves on the left wall of the storehouse for a Pill. It isn’t yours, so it costs 1 karma. → checklist
4. MainMayuki takes the box and gives you your late father’s sword, a Katana. Tarou bursts in: youkai have taken the children, and he begs you to save them at Mt. Maru, north-west of the village. Equip the Katana right away. Mayuki reminds you if you forget.
5. TipFrom now on, talk to Mayuki whenever you’re hurt. Answer Yes to ‘Will you rest for today?’ to fully recover for free. Iida has no inn.
6. SideOptional: Naozane stands by the tree in the north-east corner of town. Now that Tarou has asked for help, he offers to come to Mt. Maru with you. Answer Yes and he joins as an NPC ally. Your karma must be 20 or higher, or he attacks you instead. → checklist
7. TipShops: the long building at the top of town has the weapon shop (left door) and the armor shop (right door). The item shop is the house with the sign on the east side. A Silk Robe (140) or Leggings (110) helps a lot before Mt. Maru.
8. TipThe ronin near the south stairs warns that taking things from people’s homes lowers your karma. That’s true: any ‘Found X!!’ in a house or storehouse costs karma. Also save at the Jizo statues.
9. MainLeave town and head west-north-west on the map to Mt. Maru. Climb to the cave mouth in the middle of the mountain. Two chests sit outside: a Pill near the summit on the left and a Herb on the right-hand shoulder.
10. MainInside the cave, the ghost has the children locked in a cage. Answer Yes to ‘Will you fight?’. Fighting at once gives +1 karma. Each No (‘I’ll prepare a little more first’) sends you back outside and costs 1 karma.
11. MainBeat Biwabokuboku. It calls you a ‘Shadow’ as it dies, and the children are freed. Losing here means Game Over, so heal first.
12. SideAfter the rescue, go back into the cave for two chests you couldn’t reach during the event: a Herb in the right-hand alcove and a Dogu Shard in the left-hand alcove. Keep the Dogu Shard. It’s one of three pieces for a summon later (Niigata Village).
13. MainWalk back into Iida Town. A youkai ambushes you at the entrance to avenge its comrade. You can’t win this fight. Just when it goes for the finishing blow, Juurouta cuts it down. He tells you that you have a talent for hunting youkai, then leaves.
14. MainGo home and talk to Mayuki. That night Yamato asks about his father and says he wants to go with the stranger. Mayuki makes him wait until morning. Next morning you say goodbye and set off. This farewell is what Juurouta is waiting for in Ch. 2.
15. SideBefore you leave, talk to Jiiya, the old retainer in your house. He gives you the Suzukake he wore as a young man, a good body armor this early. → checklist
16. WarningTalk to Kisuke (the boy west of the well) before you walk out of town. He gives you a farewell Herb. If you leave town first, this gift is gone, but he still has a Herb for you next time you come back. → checklist
17. SideOptional: Yachiho is in the house on the east side, just right of the well (upper door). Now that you’re setting out, she asks to come along. Answer Yes and she joins as an NPC ally. She heals a little. → checklist
18. SideOptional (not recommended): the little jars on the floor just below Yachiho hold a Herb. Taking it costs 2 karma. → checklist
19. MainLeave Iida Town and go north to Toyama Village (Ch. 2).
20. TipAfter you’ve left once, talk to Mayuki when you come home. She offers to cook for you: answer Yes to ‘Stay the night?’ for a free full heal. Kisuke also gives you a second Herb the first time you come back.
21. TipStaying the night with Mom at karma 100 teaches Yamato the Seven Gods summon. At karma below 21, Binbougami (the God of Poverty) visits your dreams once; below 1, Yakubyougami (the God of Plague) does. These two visits are only warnings. They don’t change anything.

Checklist

Treasure chests (5)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (4)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Kisuke — gives Herb checklist
• 2Naozane — joins checklist
• 3Tanujou — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• 4Mayuki (inside) — summon Seven Gods checklist
• 5Jiiya (inside) — gives Suzukake checklist
• 6Search spot (inside) — take Herb (theft), karma −2
• 7Yachiho (inside) — joins checklist
• AArmor shop
• IItem shop
• WWeapon shop

• 1Search spot — take Pill (theft), karma −1
• 2Kooni — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• A Mom’s Box

• A Herb
• B Pill

• A Herb
• B Dogu Shard

📍 Toyama Village · Mt. Minakami · Checkpoint

Juurouta waits for you in Toyama Village and joins the party. The two of you follow the youkai to Mt. Minakami, open its hidden door and break up a gathering of youkai deep inside. Then Juurouta takes you to Kyoto.

Walkthrough

1. MainToyama Village is north of Iida Town on the map. Juurouta is down in the dry riverbed, just west of the big bridge. Talk to him and answer Yes to ‘Join Juurouta?’.
2. TipIf you come here before the night talk with Mayuki in Iida (Ch. 1), Yamato says he wants to say goodbye to his mother first. Go home, talk to Mayuki, then come back; Juurouta joins at once. Answering No (‘I still can’t trust you’) costs nothing, and he simply asks again.
3. MainJuurouta joins the party for good. With him along, the checkpoint west of Iida will let you through, but first finish the youkai trail at Mt. Minakami, east of Toyama.
4. TipToyama has no weapon, armor or item shop, only an inn (10 gold) and a pet shop. Stock up on Herbs in Iida before Mt. Minakami.
5. SideThe inn is the house in the north-west, next to the well. An old man inside coughs and asks for a Herb. Answer Yes to ‘Give him a Herb?’ for +2 karma. → checklist
6. SidePet shop: the house east of the bridge on the south bank. Talk to the Owner and answer Yes to ‘Will you keep a pet?’. Talk to one of the three animals at the back (puppy, kitten or chick) and answer Yes to choose it. Then talk to the Owner again; if you try to leave first, Yamato reminds himself to tell the Owner. The pet joins free. You only ever get one, so choose carefully. → checklist
7. TipThe old guide describes the pets like this: the puppy (Shiba) does a weak attack that can poison, the kitten (Cat) does a weak attack that can put enemies to sleep, and the chick heals you after battle. Much later (Ch. 22) the Owner can make your pet grow up.
8. SideOptional (not recommended): in the house just north of the bridge, a Speed Orb is hidden in the upper room near the bully. Taking it costs 2 karma, and Kongouyasha remembers it. → checklist
9. MainMt. Minakami is east of Toyama. Outside chests: a Herb on the far-west upper ledge, and a Pill and Leggings on top of the eastern peak.
10. MainAs you arrive with Juurouta, you watch a youkai slip through a hidden door in the rock face in the middle of the mountain. Walk up to the spot and examine the rock just left of the door (‘There’s a handle here!!’). Answer Yes to ‘Pull the handle?’ and the hidden door opens.
11. MainFirst cave: go to the bottom-right corner and examine the wall. Yamato finds a contraption. Answer Yes to ‘Push it?’ and a passage opens to the exit in the top-right.
12. WarningSecond cave: before you head east, open the H. Water chest in the centre-left, below the pond. Once you fight the youkai at the east end, the cave collapses and you can never come back. The game data also places a Reviver and a second H. Water by the pond, but both sit beyond the youkai’s trigger line, so they can’t actually be reached.
13. MainGo to the east end of the second cave, where youkai are gathering around a pit. Step up to them to start the fight. Losing is Game Over. After you win, the rest of the youkai leap into the pit, something explodes, and you find yourself outside. The hidden door is buried. Juurouta says Kyoto lies to the south-west.
14. MainGo back past Iida Town to the checkpoint at the western edge of the map. Until Juurouta joined, the samurai there turned everyone back ‘by order of the Shogun’. Now they let you pass. Past the checkpoint you’re on the western map, and Kyoto is the big town just south-west of where you come out (Ch. 3).
15. TipSamurai and ronin all over Japan attack you if your karma is below 20. In Toyama, beating the street ronin by the west riverbank costs 3 karma. Beating the ronin in the north-east house or the two checkpoint samurai costs 2 each.
16. SideFor later: once Natsume is in your party, a boy in Toyama talks about a giant bird at Mt. Minakami. Karura waits on the eastern peak. He refuses you until someone in your party has learned Naraenten (Yamashiro Village, Ch. 13). Then Natsume can call down Karura. → checklist

Checklist

Treasure chests (4)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (3)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Juurouta — joins your party checklist
• 2Yukihime — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• 3Old Man (inside) — karma +2 checklist
• 4Search spot (inside) — take Speed Orb (theft), karma −2
• 5Owner (inside) — joins
• RInn

• 1Karura — summon Karura checklist
• A Herb
• B Pill
• C Leggings

• A H. Water

📍 Kyoto · Nue Shrine · Kyoto Temple

Juurouta brings Yamato to the Shinsengumi headquarters in Kyoto and introduces him to Kondo, Hijikata and Okita, the ‘Shadow’ who hunt youkai for the Shogun. To prove himself, Yamato goes on six youkai hunts around the city, one with each of six troopers. When the last is done, the Shogun’s Spirit Hole flame goes out and new orders send you west.

Walkthrough

1. MainKyoto is just south-west of the checkpoint on the western map. Enter through the south gates. The Shinsengumi headquarters is the large building in the upper half of town, left of centre, with four troopers at the door. With Juurouta along they let you in (‘Ah, Master Mibu. Welcome back.’).
2. MainInside, Okita runs up to greet Juurouta. Walk up to Kondo’s room in the top-left. Kondo, Hijikata and Okita introduce themselves and explain the ‘Shadow’ Shinsengumi. Kondo tells you to patrol the town with one trooper at a time. The door guards won’t let you out until this talk is done.
3. TipThe cook in the main hall (the big room on the left) offers you a meal any time after the greeting. Answer Yes for a free full heal. The Kyoto inn costs 30 gold, so use the cook instead.
4. SideHijikata’s sword sits on a stand by the left wall of the upper-right room, where Hijikata and Okita are. Examine it and answer Yes to ‘Take Hijikata’s sword?’ to get Izumi Kami, but it costs 10 karma, and Kongouyasha remembers the theft. Answer No to leave it. → checklist
5. MainThe six trials: talk to a trooper and answer Yes to ‘Will you go?’. He joins for that hunt only. While you’re on one hunt, the others tell you to come back later. Refusing costs nothing. Do them in any order. Losing any of these fights is Game Over, so heal with the cook between hunts.
6. MainOkita (upper-right room): a ghost is said to appear in the middle of town. Walk into the open square just south-east of the HQ entrance. A mysterious voice wants to devour your spirit power, and the Oni attack. Beat them and the town returns to normal.
7. MainGenzaburou (main hall, right side): a woman’s ghost haunts Shijou Bridge. That’s the wooden bridge over the central wall on the west side of town. A woman asks you to come to her house. Answer Yes (No only makes her ask again). She shows her true form and attacks.
8. MainShinpachi (main hall, upper left): the child next door is possessed. It’s the house right next to the HQ on its east side. Talk to the mother. Juurouta pulls the youkai out of the child, and you fight it.
9. SideAs you step out of that house, you catch Shinpachi pocketing a fee. He asks if you want a cut. Yes gives 500 gold but costs 11 karma. No costs nothing (Shinpachi just walks off). Answer No. → checklist
10. MainSaitou (top of the right-hand corridor): a monster rat plagues a temple. Leave town by the road in the north-east corner (‘Ahead: Kyoto Temple’). Talk to the Monk in front of the main hall, then examine the hall’s front door just behind him. Juurouta senses something inside. Inside you face Raigou, and Yamato fights him alone, so make sure Yamato is healed and well equipped.
11. MainSanosuke (main hall, bottom left): he wants to check the Nue Shrine. Leave by the road out of the top-centre gate (‘Ahead: Nue Shrine’). As you walk up to the shrine with Sanosuke, the Nue appears. The old guide says it shrugs off physical attacks, so bring Juurouta’s arts and spells.
12. MainToudou (main hall, lower left): a monster haunts the item shop to the west. That’s the west-most building in the upper half of town. Talk to the Proprietress, then examine the shelves in the back-right corner behind her. Chawankozo appears and attacks.
13. MainFinishing the sixth hunt starts a cutscene. The flame of the Shogun’s Spirit Hole dies out and a stranger appears before the Shogun. Back at HQ, the Shogun’s messenger arrives, Kondo agrees, and Juurouta says it’s time to go. The blocked bridges on the western map are now open. Head west (Ch. 4).
14. SideOptional, long-running: a ronin master stands by the east road, at the right end of the wall that splits the town (‘A man lives by bushido!’). His eight pupils are spread across Japan. Talk to all of them (karma 20 or higher, or they attack), then come back for +7 karma. Two are here in Kyoto (see next step). → checklist
15. SidePupil ‘money’: a samurai in the house on the same row as the inn, just to its west (lower-left quarter of town). Pupil ‘compassion’: a ronin in the long building in the south-east, through its left door. Just talk to each. → checklist
16. TipShops: the weapon shop is the right door of the long building along the top of town. The armor shop and item shop are the left and right doors of the long building along the bottom. The inn is the building with a sign just north of that, towards the garden. The weapon shop already stocks the Hozutsu (3,000). You’ll need one for Richard in America (Ch. 19).
17. TipThe west item shop (Toudou’s hunt) sells Pills, Sandalwd. and Wake Dust, and also a Ranjatai for 50,000 gold.
18. TipSora stands outside the north-east corner of the Nue Shrine’s wall. For now she only laments her power. She joins much later (Ch. 22). After Natsume joins (Ch. 4), Kanpei the merchant waits in the Kyoto inn.

Checklist

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (2)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Shinpachi — karma −11 checklist
• 2Bushido master — hidden quest, karma +7 checklist
• 3Bushido pupil (inside) — ‘money’ (bushido master’s quest) checklist
• 4Okita (inside) — joins checklist
• 5Genzaburou (inside) — joins
• 6Shinpachi (inside) — joins checklist
• 7Saitou (inside) — joins
• 8Sanosuke (inside) — joins
• 9Toudou (inside) — joins
• 10Search spot (inside) — gives Izumi Kami, karma −10
• 11Kanpei (inside) — joins checklist
• 12Bushido pupil (inside) — ‘compassion’ (bushido master’s quest) checklist
• AArmor shop
• IItem shop
• RInn
• WWeapon shop

• 1Sora — joins checklist

📍 Izumo Village · Okayama Village · Mt. Yatsuka

With the Shinsengumi’s trust earned, head west to Izumo, home of the Saigami clan of sealers. You find the clan’s last survivor, Natsume, hiding under the ruins. She joins you at Mt. Yatsuka, but its sacred cave is sealed, and a Shinsengumi messenger sends you back east.

Walkthrough

1. MainAfter Kondo’s thanks at the end of the Kyoto missions, new bridges open on the western map. Izumo Village is far to the west-north-west of Kyoto. Okayama Village is due south of Izumo, and Mt. Yatsuka sits between the two, a little to the west.
2. TipIf you walk into Mt. Yatsuka before meeting Natsume, Juurouta senses something ominous and you turn back. Go to Izumo first.
3. MainIzumo Village: the villagers tell you the Saigami family was attacked by youkai a few days ago and is believed dead. The big house in the north-west is the inn (20 gold), the big house in the south-west is the weapon shop and the big house in the south-east is the item shop. There is no armor shop here.
4. SideOptional: enter the house just south of the burned estate (right of the village centre). A boy there broke his father’s kabuto. If you carry a Kabuto (420 gold in Kyoto, Okayama or Edo), give it to him for +3 karma. → checklist
5. SideOptional: the middle house on the west side holds the yokozuna Kouryuzeki. He joins as the NPC ally Kouryu if you hand him a Power Orb. A Power Orb sits in the pot by the back wall of the upper house on the west side, but taking it from their home costs 2 karma. → checklist
6. MainGo to the burned Saigami estate behind the fence in the north-east corner. Examine the round lid in the floor near the top of the ruins. Yamato notices something odd about the floor, and Juurouta spots a hidden passage. Step onto it to climb down.
7. MainIn the underground passage, walk toward the girl lying on the floor. As you reach her, you see her memory of the night the Saigami house burned. Her father, mother and brothers Seishuu and Shunki stay behind to fight the youkai, and they send her through this passage to find her eldest brother, Touya.
8. MainShe is Saigami Natsume. She is wary of Yamato but warms to Juurouta. She suggests Mt. Yatsuka, the sacred mountain south of the village that the Saigami guard, but she stays behind in the passage for now.
9. SideOptional: once Natsume joins you on Mt. Yatsuka (see below), Kanpei, a travelling merchant, appears in the Kyoto inn. He isn’t there before that. He joins for free. → checklist
10. SideOkayama Village: the armor shop is the best one in the region, and the item shop sells H. Water and Reviver. Takeaki stands in the north-west corner by the fence. He wants a Magoroku sword, which you can’t buy yet. Keep your karma at 20 or higher, or he attacks you instead. → checklist
11. TipOkayama’s Ferryman sits by the gap in the east wall. He won’t take you to Shikoku because he’s ‘drinkin”. Leave him for now; he matters much later (Ch. 13).
12. SideOptional: talk to the ronin in front of the long central building while your karma is 20 or higher (‘A man’s got to have guts!’). He is one of the eight pupils of the bushido ronin in Kyoto (see Ch. 3). → checklist
13. WarningLast chance: if you never got the Suzukake from Jiiya at home in Iida Town, he stops offering it once the Shinsengumi messenger at Mt. Yatsuka (below) has spoken to you. Fetch it before climbing Mt. Yatsuka.
14. MainMt. Yatsuka: as you set foot on the mountain, Natsume runs after you (‘Waaaait! Take me with you!’) and joins the party for good. She insists on not being called ‘girl’.
15. SideMt. Yatsuka has four chests: a White Garb on the plateau right of the lower meadow, a Feather on the west ledge at cave level, a Herb near the east side of the summit, and a Dogu Shard at the very top. Keep the Dogu Shard; it is one of three pieces for a summon later.
16. MainClimb to the cave mouth in the middle of the mountain, below the summit. It is sealed by Natsume’s father’s sealing spell, and she can’t undo it. Only her brother Touya might. You’ll return in Ch. 10.
17. MainHead back down. Near the foot of the mountain a Shinsengumi messenger reports that the youkai are gathering near the big rock close to Toyama Village. Yamato fears for his mother in Iida Town. Head back east (Ch. 5).
18. TipWith Natsume in the party, the way east of Toyama Village is open on the central map. This leads to Ooishi Shrine, Nikkou and Edo.

Checklist

Treasure chests (4)

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (3)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Ayashibi — Youkai Village checklist
• 2Search spot (inside) — take Power Orb (theft), karma −2
• 3Kouryuzeki (inside) — joins checklist
• 4Boy with the broken helmet (inside) — give a Kabuto, karma +3
• IItem shop
• RInn
• WWeapon shop

• 1Bushido pupil — ‘guts’ (bushido master’s quest) checklist
• 2Takeaki — joins checklist
• 3Ayashibi (in disguise) — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2
• AArmor shop
• IItem shop
• WWeapon shop

• A White Garb
• B Feather
• C Herb
• D Dogu Shard

📍 Toyama Village · Ooishi Shrine

Back in the east, a priest in Toyama has lost his shrine to youkai. At Ooishi Shrine a Mysterious Voice guides you to a Spirit Hole, where you defeat the Stone God and Natsume performs her first seal.

Walkthrough

1. MainTravel back east past Kyoto and Iida Town to Toyama Village. A Priest now stands just west of the Jizo statue in the south of the village. He laments that youkai took his shrine. You must talk to him; without his story Juurouta turns you away from Ooishi Shrine (‘We have no business in a place like this’).
2. MainOoishi Shrine is east of Toyama, past the newly opened crossing, and south-west of Nikkou. As you arrive, a Mysterious Voice calls to ‘you of righteous heart’. Yamato repeats what it tells him: the second tree from the left, of the five behind the shrine.
3. TipYoukai crowd the fenced plaza east of the shrine, around the great sacred rock. If you step toward them, Natsume stops you. You don’t need to fight them.
4. MainWalk around the outside of the shrine wall to the row of five trees on its north side. Stand below the second tree from the left and examine it. Natsume confirms it’s the one; answer Yes to ‘Push it?’. A hole opens in the ground.
5. MainStep into the hole. The Voice says ‘Go… see with your own eyes what is happening to this land’, and you drop into a cave.
6. SideThe cave winds down from the entrance in the north-east. Three chests: an N. Pill at the west end of the upper stream, a Herb on the east side of the middle level, and Leggings by the pond in the south-east. Save the N. Pill if you want Midori as an ally later (Ch. 7).
7. MainAt the bottom left, Natsume admires a glowing spot and the Voice says ‘Come below’. Step onto the glowing spot at the bottom of the cave.
8. MainBelow lies a glowing Spirit Hole. The Voice explains that the Spirit Holes that feed the land’s prosperity have begun running wild, and this is why the youkai rampage. If they aren’t sealed, the land will slowly die.
9. MainThe Stone God, guardian deity of Ooishi Shrine, awakens, revived by the spirit power. It wants more power to make all humans its believers. Boss fight.
10. MainAfter the battle, the Voice gives you the Soul Stone, the Stone God’s crystallized power, and tells you to hold it up before the Spirit Hole and pray. Natsume steps up and seals it.
11. MainThe Voice says many Spirit Holes are running wild, and the next one is at Mt. Houju, north-east of here. Nikkou Village is on the way (Ch. 6), and Mt. Houju is covered in Ch. 7.
12. TipThe cave stays open afterwards, so any chests you missed can be picked up later. The Toyama Priest returns to his shrine.

Checklist

Treasure chests (3)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (1)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• A Herb
• B Leggings
• C N. Pill

📍 Nikkou Village · Edo

On the way to Mt. Houju you pass Nikkou, a village living in fear of a sacrifice-demanding demon. A short detour south to Edo pays off: an escort job for karma, three hireable allies and the biggest shops so far.

Walkthrough

1. MainNikkou Village lies north-east of Ooishi Shrine. The villagers talk about a demon that demands a sacrifice every year, and the elder (house in the north centre) turns outsiders away. The village’s story comes later (Ch. 9).
2. TipNikkou has a weapon shop and an inn (20 gold) but no item shop.
3. SideIn the house in the north-west of Nikkou, next to the samurai, an Old Woman asks you to take her to Edo. Answer Yes. She doesn’t fight; she simply travels with you. → checklist
4. SideOptional: talk to the samurai in the north-west (‘A man’s life is honor!!’) while your karma is 20 or higher. He is another of the Kyoto bushido ronin’s pupils (Ch. 3). → checklist
5. MainEdo is south-south-east of Nikkou; you enter from the south. If the Old Woman is with you, she thanks you as you arrive (‘Now I can see my grandchild’s face’) for +2 karma.
6. SideHire the firemen in this order. Densuke of the Ha brigade stands in the far north-west corner of town, by the moat. He costs 400 gold, and he refuses to join if Kotarou is already in the party. → checklist
7. SideKotarou of the I brigade is in the house in the south-east corner of town. He costs 200 gold and has no objection to Densuke. → checklist
8. SideThe sumo wrestler Kamonoseki is in the middle house of the central row, just east of the main street. He joins for free. → checklist
9. SideTasuke the merchant is in the house on the west side, just south of the well. He only joins in exchange for a Bishamon spear, which you can’t get until late in the game. → checklist
10. WarningIn the western house of the pair one row south of Tasuke’s, a woman and a girl guard a jar with their savings. Searching it gives 200 gold, costs 2 karma and counts as theft when Kongouyasha questions you later. → checklist
11. TipEdo’s shops stock almost everything from Kyoto plus ChainPill and Haze Bell. The shops and inn (20 gold) are in the south of town. Stock up before the long trip north.
12. MainWhen you’re ready, head north past Nikkou to Mt. Houju (Ch. 7).
13. TipMuch later (after Tanukichi’s request in Beppu, Ch. 13), two youkai appear in Nikkou: Korobo by the elder’s house and Tanumi in the north-east. Spare them for the youkai village.

Checklist

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (2)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Bushido pupil — ‘honor’ (bushido master’s quest) checklist
• 2Korobo — Youkai Village, karma +2 checklist
• 3Tanumi — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• RInn
• WWeapon shop

• 1Densuke — joins checklist
• 2Savings jar (inside) — take 200 gold (theft), karma −2 checklist
• 3Tasuke (inside) — joins checklist
• 4Kamonoseki (inside) — joins checklist
• 5Kotarou (inside) — joins checklist
• AArmor shop
• IItem shop
• RInn
• WWeapon shop

📍 Mt. Houju · Mt. Hiei

Mt. Houju’s Spirit Hole lies under a locked storehouse. To borrow the key you must fetch holy fire from Mt. Hiei near Kyoto. Below the storehouse, a vision of five heroes from long ago leads Juurouta to the sword Oodenta.

Walkthrough

1. MainLeave the central map heading north past Nikkou. Mt. Houju is on the northern map. Two chests on the way up: an N. Pill on the western summit and Chain Legs on the west ledge.
2. MainAt the eastern summit stand a white storehouse and a temple. Examine the storehouse door: it’s locked, and Juurouta senses tremendous spirit energy leaking out.
3. MainEnter the temple and talk to the Monk: youkai attacked and the holy flame went out. Ask him about the storehouse (talk again if needed). It isn’t a storehouse but the entrance to an underground cave. He’ll lend you the key if you bring holy fire from Mt. Hiei in Kyoto.
4. SideOptional: Akane trains alone in a tiny closed-off room at the east end of the temple, reached by a hidden passage. Talk to her and answer Yes to take her along. She joins for free. → checklist
5. MainTravel to Mt. Hiei on the western map, just north-west of Kyoto. It’s a long trip, so a Feather (you have found at least one) warps you to a town you’ve visited. Mt. Hiei has three chests: H. Water on the west ledge, Reviver on the east ledge and a Cloak low in the middle.
6. MainEnter the temple on the summit. The Monk in the main hall gives you the Holy Flame.
7. SideIn the west room, Saikaku gives you food that restores your party (‘Strength restored!!’). It’s free and you can come back for more any time.
8. SideAt the west end of the corridor, Midori offers to fight with you for one N. Pill (‘Ninja Pill’). You got one from Ooishi Shrine or Mt. Houju. → checklist
9. MainReturn to the Mt. Houju monk and hand over the Holy Flame. He gives you the Store Key.
10. MainUnlock the storehouse. In the north-west room, Natsume reads a talisman: ‘The path ahead was made by beings other than humans. Those without the resolve to die shall not pass.’
11. WarningThe storehouse holds two chests: a Kunai in the small middle room and a Gold Pin in the lower-left room. They belong to the temple, and each costs 2 karma. Kongouyasha later asks whether you ever took what belonged to another, and he knows about these. → checklist
12. MainStep onto the cave entrance where the talisman hangs. A vision plays: long ago, Hokutomaru, Yoritoo, Akoya, Hourin and Hidaka entered this very cave to face something evil. Then you wake up in the cavern.
13. WarningTake the three cave chests now: S. Dew in the west, an N. Pill in the middle and a Feather in the north-east. Once you leave the cave with Oodenta, you can’t come back in.
14. MainThe Spirit Hole is at the big pit in the eastern cavern. Walk up to its south edge and Natsume seals it.
15. MainA second vision follows, and you control Hokutomaru’s party through a long cave. At the dead end, a Nurikabe bars the way. Boss fight. If you lose, you only restart at the start of the vision’s cave; it isn’t game over.
16. MainBack in the present, Yamato spots a sword down in the pit. The visions were its memories. Juurouta hears its name, Oodenta, and it lends him its power. You get Oodenta.
17. MainLeave through the entrance at the top of the cave. In the storehouse, a Shinsengumi messenger reports youkai running rampant in Rokkou Village, Juurouta’s birthplace, west of Kyoto (Ch. 8).
18. SideBefore leaving Mt. Houju, return the Store Key to the monk for +5 karma. Keeping it has no penalty, but you miss the bonus. → checklist
19. TipThe Okayama Ferryman now remarks that he has seen Oodenta somewhere. He still won’t sail.

Checklist

Treasure chests (10)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (6)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• A N. Pill
• B Chain Legs

• 1Head monk — gives Store Key, karma +5
• 2Akane — joins checklist

• A Gold Pin (−2 karma)
• B Kunai (−2 karma)

• A S. Dew
• B N. Pill
• C Feather

• A Reviver
• B Cloak
• C H. Water

• 1Monk — gives Holy Flame
• 2Midori — joins checklist

📍 Rokkou Village · Rokkou Wasteland · Awaji Island Wasteland

A Shinsengumi messenger reports youkai around Rokkou Village, Juurouta’s hometown. At the Mibu family home you learn a secret about Juurouta, then cross the Rokkou Wasteland by its stone warp circles to seal a Spirit Hole on Awaji Island and claim the second of the Five Great Swords, Juzumaru.

Walkthrough

1. MainRokkou Village lies west of Kyoto on the world map, on the way toward Izumo. When you arrive, Natsume muses about Juurouta’s birthplace.
2. MainA scream comes from the large mansion at the north end of the village. Walk up to its door (above the stone steps in the middle of town) to go in. This is Juurouta’s family home: a youkai is going after Otoki, the housekeeper, and the party drives it off in a cutscene.
3. MainJuurouta’s father, Ichirouta, and his three pupils welcome her home. After she changes clothes comes the big reveal: Juurouta is a woman. The heir of the Mibu house always takes the name “Juurouta”.
4. MainBefore you leave, Ichirouta mentions a rocky wasteland south of the village. Nobody goes there, but it was once said to heal wounds and illness. He also offers to lend you his pupils.
5. SideOptional: Pupil 1, Pupil 2 and Pupil 3 are standing around the house. Talk to each one and answer Yes to take them along as NPC allies. It costs nothing. → checklist
6. TipTalk to Otoki and say Yes to her amazake. It fully restores the whole party for free, and you can come back for more at any time. That makes the Mibu house a free healing spot near Kyoto for the rest of the game.
7. SideThe man by the north wall, behind the mansion, is Kaishuu. He will join if you give him a Masamune. You can’t get one yet (it’s sold much later, in Hill Village in America), so just remember where he is. → checklist
8. SideThe ronin in the north-east part of town shouts “A man’s life is romance!!” He is one of the pupils of the ronin master in Kyoto, so talking to him counts toward that quest. → checklist
9. TipShops: the item shop is in the west house on the middle row, the weapon shop is in the south-east long house, and the inn (30 gold) is in the south-west long house.
10. WarningIf your karma is below 20, the samurai and both ronin in Rokkou (and Kaishuu) attack you instead of talking. Winning gives gold but costs 2 karma each, and they are gone for good.
11. MainLeave through the south gate. The Rokkou Wasteland is the small brown patch just south of the village. If you try it before the scene at the Mibu house, Juurouta refuses to go in.
12. MainOn your first visit the Mysterious Voice speaks again. Some of the rocks here form a pattern, and stepping onto one moves you instantly to the matching pattern elsewhere. The Voice confirms that a Spirit Hole lies ahead and breaks the seal for you.
13. MainThe warp circles are the flat spots ringed by four stones. The pad in the centre of the wasteland takes you to the north-west corner. From there, follow the northern ledge east to the pad in the north-east, which leads to the Awaji Island Wasteland. The other two pads (south and east) just take you back and forth.
14. MainOn Awaji Island, a huge stone door blocks the way north. Examine it: Juurouta’s Oodenta reacts and the door swings open.
15. WarningThe fight starts the moment you step through the door, and losing it means Game Over. Heal up first. You can walk back through the warp pads to Rokkou for Otoki’s free amazake.
16. MainA youkai has been lying in wait to take the Spirit Hole’s power for itself. Beat it, then Natsume seals the Spirit Hole. A sword much like Oodenta is lying there, and more youkai show up for revenge…
17. MainThe sword shows you its memory. You now control Hokutomaru and his friends Yoritoo, Akoya, Hourin and Hidaka in a cave long ago. Head east through the cave and defeat Hyousube. If you lose, you’re simply sent back to the start of the flashback. Afterwards the group finds an injured girl with no memory, who names herself Minami.
18. MainBack in the present the sword speaks: Got Juzumaru!! It explains the Five Great Swords. Three more sleep in Spirit Holes around Japan. The next one, Mikazuki, is at the bottom of Takachiho Falls in Kyushu, but you need the Blue Orb from Nikkou Village and the magatama from Mt. Yatsuka to get there.
19. TipJuzumaru says none of the current party can wield it properly. Keep it in your inventory; its owner joins in the next chapter.
20. MainThe magatama is a Saigami heirloom kept in the sealed cave on Mt. Yatsuka, so Natsume needs her brother Touya to break the seal. Juurouta suggests starting at Nikkou. After a short scene with the Shogun, you’re back on the world map beside Rokkou. Head east to Nikkou Village (Ch. 9).

Checklist

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (1)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Bushido pupil — ‘romance’ (bushido master’s quest) checklist
• 2Kaishuu — joins checklist
• 3Kappa — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• 4Pupil 1 (inside) — joins checklist
• 5Pupil 2 (inside) — joins
• 6Pupil 3 (inside) — joins
• IItem shop
• RInn
• WWeapon shop

📍 Nikkou Village · Mt. Futara

To get the Blue Orb you return to Nikkou Village, where the elder’s daughter has been picked as this year’s sacrifice to the youkai of Mt. Futara. Natsume stands in as bait, and the rescue brings in someone unexpected: her eldest brother, Touya.

Walkthrough

1. MainTravel east to Nikkou Village (north of Edo). The villagers now talk about the Blue Orb, a treasure kept by the village elder, and about his daughter being chosen as this year’s sacrifice.
2. SideIf you never took the old woman in Nikkou to Edo back in Ch. 6, she is still waiting in her house and the offer still stands (+2 karma when you deliver her).
3. TipThe samurai here who shouts “A man’s life is honor!!” is another pupil for the ronin master’s quest in Kyoto. Talk to him if you haven’t yet (karma 20+).
4. MainThe elder lives in the house at the top of the village. Talk to him: every year a youkai on Mt. Futara, north of the village, demands a sacrifice, and this year it’s his daughter Sawa. He wants to grab her and run.
5. MainJuurouta suggests Sawa pretend to be the sacrifice under the party’s protection. The elder instead demands that Natsume take Sawa’s place, and Natsume agrees. The scene moves to the foot of Mt. Futara, where the elder promises to give you anything you ask if you beat the youkai.
6. SideOn the way up, grab the two chests if you haven’t already: a Gold Pill on the lower-left ledge near the entrance, and a Quilt Robe on the upper-left peak. Keep the Gold Pill; an old woman in Kagoshima (Ch. 11) asks for one. → checklist
7. MainClimb to the plaza at the summit (top middle of the mountain, just below the highest peaks). Natsume is tied up as bait while the others wait in hiding. When it gets dark, a Sarugami appears and you charge it. Losing this fight is Game Over.
8. MainAfter the win, a second, bigger Sarugami grabs Natsume. It says you killed its little brother. A passing stranger kills it with the holy art “Reihyouha”. Natsume recognizes the voice: it’s her brother Touya. When he hears the word “sacrifice”, he storms off to deal with the elder.
9. MainYou’re taken back to the elder’s house, where Touya is throttling him. Yamato offers help in exchange for the Blue Orb, and Natsume gets her brother to calm down. Sawa keeps her father’s promise: Got the Blue Orb!!
10. MainOutside, Natsume asks Touya to break the seal on Mt. Yatsuka. He agrees because you saved his sister: Touya joined the party!! Juzumaru announces that this man can wield it.
11. TipEquip Juzumaru on Touya. The Five Great Swords are the party’s ultimate weapons, and Juzumaru is his.
12. TipNikkou’s inn (20 gold) is in the big south-west house; the weapon shop is in the north-east house.
13. MainNext stop: the sealed cave on Mt. Yatsuka, south-west of Izumo Village on the western Honshu map (Ch. 10).

Checklist

Treasure chests (2)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (2)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Bushido pupil — ‘honor’ (bushido master’s quest) checklist
• 2Korobo — Youkai Village, karma +2 checklist
• 3Tanumi — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• RInn
• WWeapon shop

• A Gold Pill
• B Quilt Robe

📍 Izumo Village · Mt. Yatsuka · Mt. Yatsuka (cave) · Boatman to Kyushu

With Touya in the party, you return to Mt. Yatsuka so he can break his father’s seal on the Saigami clan’s cave. Natsume retrieves the magatama from a spider’s web, and a boatman at the western tip of Honshu takes you across to Kyushu.

Walkthrough

1. MainTravel back to western Honshu. Mt. Yatsuka is south-west of Izumo Village and north-west of Okayama Village.
2. SideOptional: with Touya in the party, walk into Izumo Village and Natsume asks if you’d like to stay the night. Answer Yes to rest in the village. Sometimes this plays a short dream about the Saigami family before the attack: the brothers practising their arts, a wedding-day tease, or Touya leaving on his training journey. There is no item reward. → checklist
3. MainClimb Mt. Yatsuka to the cave mouth on the upper terrace, in the middle of the mountain. This is the seal Natsume couldn’t open back in Ch. 4. Face it and Touya dispels the seal.
4. TipIf you missed any of the mountain’s outdoor chests on your first visit (White Garb, Feather, Herb, Dogu Shard), they are still here.
5. MainInside, Touya explains that the Saigami clan has guarded this cave and the magatama hidden deep inside. The first floor has two chests (Javelin, Kunai), and the next floor has two more (Reviver, Cloak).
6. WarningThe event at the end of the cave is three fights in a row, and losing any of them is Game Over. Heal before you walk onto the ledge over the pit.
7. MainAt the back, the magatama hangs in a huge web over a pit. Natsume insists on crawling out along the thread to get it herself. A monster spider appears, and Touya, Juurouta and Yamato move to cut it off. You fight three spider battles back to back.
8. MainNatsume grabs the prize: Got the Magatama!! The web gives way and she falls, but on reflex she casts the Saigami “barrier” art and lands safely. It’s the first time she has used an art, and Touya says she’s no failure anymore.
9. MainWith the Blue Orb and the magatama in hand, it’s time for Takachiho. Walk out of the cave. If you go back to the web, Juurouta just says it’s time to leave.
10. MainGo to the dock at the far south-western tip of the western Honshu map. The boatman only shows up once you have the magatama. He charges 100 gold for the trip to Kyushu (Juurouta thinks that’s a rip-off). Answer Yes to board.
11. TipThe boatman on the Kyushu side charges 150 gold to bring you back. Keep some money in reserve, and remember that Kagoshima’s fox event (Ch. 11) needs 2000 gold on hand.

Checklist

Treasure chests (4)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (4)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• A White Garb
• B Feather
• C Herb
• D Dogu Shard

• A Javelin
• B Kunai

• A Reviver
• B Cloak

• 1Ayashibi — Youkai Village checklist
• 2Search spot (inside) — take Power Orb (theft), karma −2
• 3Kouryuzeki (inside) — joins checklist
• 4Boy with the broken helmet (inside) — give a Kabuto, karma +3
• IItem shop
• RInn
• WWeapon shop

📍 Kyushu · Stray Ittan shrine · Takachiho Village · Kagoshima Village · Komainu shrine · Waterfall (Spirit Hole) · Underground Waterway

On Kyushu you pick up a flying youkai friend and several optional summons and karma events. Then you take on the white snake of Takachiho Falls. With the Blue Orb and the magatama you dive to the Spirit Hole beneath the falls, where the third Great Sword, Mikazuki, is waiting for Natsume.

Walkthrough

1. MainThe boat drops you at Kyushu’s north-east dock. Takachiho Village is to the south-west, with the big waterfall just north-east of it.
2. SideJust south of the dock is a small shrine. Go in and examine the little youkai hiding at the back. Yamato wants to cut it down, but Natsume calms it: Got Stray Ittan!! Press START on the world map to ride her and fly. → checklist
3. MainEnter Takachiho Village. Natsume confides that she still can’t use her art on purpose. Touya and Juurouta cheer her up, and Touya gets carried away as usual.
4. TipTakachiho has the best gear so far. The weapon seller is in the north-east of the village, the armor seller in the north-west and the item seller in the south-west. The inn is the big house in the middle (20 gold).
5. SideIn the inn, Okuni offers to come along for 800 gold, because there’s “a fine man” in your party. Natsume disapproves, but you can hire her anyway. → checklist
6. SideKagoshima Village is at the far south of Kyushu. In its north-west corner, a man is about to turn a girl’s fox into a scarf because it ate his prize chicken. He wants 2000 gold. If you have 2000 gold and pay, the fox turns out to be a messenger of the god Inari: +4 karma, you choose who learns the Inari summon, and the 2000 gold is given back. If you refuse, the fox is killed (−4 karma) and the summon is lost for good. If you don’t have 2000 gold, nothing is lost; come back when you do. → checklist
7. SideIn Kagoshima, go into the small south-west house. An old woman who feels sluggish asks for a Gold Pill. Give her one for +3 karma (Mt. Futara in Ch. 9 has one in a chest). → checklist
8. TipKagoshima’s item seller stocks Kunai, Maelstrom and Reishi. Its armor seller has the same stock as Takachiho’s. Kagoshima has no inn.
9. SideThe Komainu shrine is in the north-west of Kyushu (easiest with Stray Ittan). Examine the guardian-dog statue: a sleepy Shisa pops out, claims it was waiting for you all along, and you choose who learns the Shisa summon. → checklist
10. WarningWith karma below 20, the samurai and ronin in Takachiho and Kagoshima attack you instead of talking.
11. MainEnter the Waterfall north-east of Takachiho. An eerie voice tells you to go home. Then the Snake Yokai bursts out of the falls and attacks. Losing is Game Over.
12. MainOnce beaten, the snake changes into a girl and begs for mercy (she even offers to marry Juurouta, and gets a surprise). Natsume feels sorry for her: Snake Yokai joined the party! You’re put back on the world map outside the falls.
13. WarningPoint of no return until the Spirit Hole is sealed. On your next entry the party is swept into the water, and inside, the Blue Orb crumbles, so you can’t go back out the way you came. There’s no inn below. Rest at Takachiho’s inn and stock up on healing items before you go back in.
14. MainEnter the falls again. The orb shines and you’re pulled underwater, but the Blue Orb lets everyone breathe. Swim toward the light in the north-east.
15. MainYou surface in a cave (the Underground Waterway). The Blue Orb crumbles away. Explore for three chests: a Dream Robe north-east of where you arrive, a Genji Armr on the west side and an N. Pill in the middle passage.
16. MainHead south down the west side to the spot by the underground pool. The magatama glows and is used up, and another sword memory begins.
17. MainFlashback: you control Hokutomaru’s party again, with Minami along. Work your way down through the cave. Youkai ambush you at set spots (“Fooound you!!”), and Kiyohime waits at the bottom-left. Losing any of these fights only restarts the flashback. Afterwards Hidaka openly suspects Minami, because Kiyohime seemed to know her.
18. MainBack in the present, the sword introduces itself and joins you: Got Mikazuki!! It is Natsume’s sword. Equip it on her. Mikazuki then leads you toward the Spirit Hole in the eastern chamber.
19. WarningThe fight at the Spirit Hole is Game Over if you lose. Heal before you walk up to the glowing hole in the east chamber.
20. MainAt the Spirit Hole a voice orders you not to seal it. It belongs to a cloaked man who draws on the Spirit Hole’s power, turns into a monster and attacks.
21. MainAfter the battle, the real Mysterious Voice speaks up. The man was a former comrade of its people, a traitor corrupted by the Spirit Holes, and its people are a different race from humans. It refuses to show itself because you serve the Shogun. Natsume then seals the Spirit Hole.
22. SideOptional: examine the note the cloaked man left behind. It describes his plan to take the Spirit Holes’ power from “THEM”.
23. WarningLast chance for now: once you leave, the falls stay closed. You won’t be back in this cave until very late in the game, when the Ihika route reaches it. Grab the Dream Robe, Genji Armr and N. Pill before you leave.
24. MainWalk back to the ring of rocks just south-east of where you arrived (it looks like the warp circles in the Rokkou Wasteland). Step on it to return to the basin of the falls. Juzumaru and Mikazuki say the next Great Sword that knows about the cloaked man sleeps at Mt. Towari in Tohoku (Ch. 12).
25. TipThe boatman at the Kyushu dock takes you back to Honshu for 150 gold.
26. TipTwo places on Kyushu don’t do anything yet. The cave west of Takachiho pushes you back with an invisible force, and the pond in central Kyushu has no effect. Both matter much later.

Checklist

Treasure chests (3)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (3)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Tsurube — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• 2Okuni (inside) — joins checklist
• RInn

• 1Man with the fox — karma +4 / −4
• 2Old Woman (inside) — karma +3 checklist

• A Dream Robe
• B Genji Armr
• C N. Pill

📍 Herai Village · Mt. Towari · Derarezu Forest · Hiramitsu Tower · Hachinohe Village · Niigata Village

The swords point you to Mt. Towari in the far north of Honshu. An old woman in Herai Village says the mountain is really Hiramitsu, a tower built by people long ago. Trade her four stalks of Fluffy Grass for the tablet that opens it, wake the Great Sword Doujigiri deep inside, seal the Spirit Hole and run for your lives.

Walkthrough

1. MainTravel to the northern Honshu map. Herai Village sits in the east of it. Mt. Towari rises just north of Herai, Derarezu Forest lies north-west of Herai (west of Mt. Towari), and Hachinohe Village is north of Mt. Towari.
2. MainHerai Village: the people call the northern mountain ‘Hiramitsu’ after Grandma’s old tales. The big north house is an item shop, the big north-east house is a second item shop (it also sells Reishi) and the big south-east house is the inn (20 gold). A Jizo statue (save point) stands on the east side.
3. SideOptional: the samurai at the west edge of the sunken square in the middle (‘A man’s life is courtesy!!’) is one of the eight pupils of the bushido ronin in Kyoto (see Ch. 3). Talk to him while your karma is 20 or higher. → checklist
4. MainWalk north to Mt. Towari. Near the foot of the mountain, left of a dark doorway in the rock, there is a square hollow. Examine it once (‘What’s this square hollow!?’), then examine it a second time so Touya wonders whether something should fit in it. Only after this second look will the old woman talk about her tablet.
5. SideMt. Towari has two chests: an S. Dew on the ledge just left of the summit and a Feather on the east side, about halfway up.
6. MainBack in Herai, enter the small house on the west side, just north of the west gate. The old woman there says Hiramitsu is man-made and that she has the secret tablet for getting in. She lends it only if you bring her four stalks of Fluffy Grass from the big forest west of the mountain.
7. TipDerarezu Forest won’t let you in before the old woman has asked for the Fluffy Grass: Natsume refuses to enter such a dense forest.
8. MainDerarezu Forest: the four Fluffy Grass plants (Puffgrass in the menu) are small plants you examine. One is in the north-west part, under the big clump of trees. One is just to its east, at the foot of the tree trunks in the north. One is in the centre, and one is a little further east of the centre. After the fourth, Juurouta says you can now borrow the tablet.
9. SideIn the same forest, a chest in the south-west part, half hidden by the trees, holds a Dogu Shard. It is the last of the three shards for the Dogu summon in Niigata (see below). → checklist
10. MainGive the Fluffy Grass to the old woman. You receive the Old Tablet and the Puff Sake (Puff Sake in the menu). She warns that a burning river runs inside Hiramitsu and that the sake protects you from the heat.
11. MainAt Mt. Towari, examine the square hollow again and fit the tablet in. A doorway opens. Step into it to enter Hiramitsu Tower.
12. MainHiramitsu Tower is long. On 1F, take the stairs up and climb through 2F, 3F, 4F and 5F to 6F. There are Jizo statues (save points) on 2F and B3F. Open every chest on the way; the full list is below.
13. Side3F has the Red Tachi (west part of the floor). Keep it: Kurama in Hachinohe Village joins you for it, and this is the only one in the game. → checklist
14. Main6F: Juurouta points at a contraption on the far wall. Examine the lever and answer Yes to pull it. The net over the opening lifts. Walk through: it is a lift down to B1F. From now on, the stairs on 1F lead straight down to B1F too.
15. MainGo down through B2F and B3F to B4F. On B4F the way into the hot inner chamber is in the west half of the floor.
16. WarningPoint of no return: when you walk into B4F’s inner chamber, the heat uses up the Puff Sake at once, and Juurouta won’t let you turn back. From here the story runs straight into an escape, and afterwards the tower’s upper floors stay closed. Collect every chest on 1F to 6F first.
17. MainIn the inner chamber, walk up to the stone tower in the middle: Juzumaru senses a comrade inside. Face the stone and examine it: Mikazuki calls on him, and the tower vanishes.
18. MainA memory of the ancient hero Hokutomaru plays: his party (with Yoritoo and Minami) fights the youkai Futachi for this Spirit Hole. If they lose, they are sent back and can simply try again.
19. MainThe Great Sword Doujigiri wakes up and joins you (‘Got Doujigiri!!’). He says the Spirit Hole is below and that the river of fire has kept the youkai away. Take the passage out of the room down to the Spirit Hole.
20. MainNatsume seals the Spirit Hole. The fires die down, and the youkai that the fire held back pour in. Run!
21. MainThe escape: you start on B4F. The way down is blocked (‘The floor below is overflowing with youkai!’). Each set of stairs up (B4F to B3F, B3F to B2F, B2F to B1F) starts a battle, and losing one is a game over. The B1F lift is dead now, so take the stairs from B1F up to 1F and leave by the 1F exit, which also starts a battle.
22. TipDuring the escape you still pass through B3F and B1F, so you can grab any chests you missed there (Herb Legs on B3F, Star Helm and H. Water on B1F). The B3F Jizo statue is on your route.
23. MainOutside, the party tries to shut the tower door. Touya and Natsume seal it, and Natsume collapses. You end up back in Herai, where the old woman takes you into her house.
24. MainCutscenes: the Shogun hears that the ‘Shadow’ Shinsengumi keep sealing Spirit Holes. Then a figure called Rishu takes over Lord Shimazu and orders him to overthrow the Shogun. Shimazu summons Sakamoto Ryouma and Izou.
25. MainThat night, walk toward the door of the old woman’s house. Touya is awake, and Doujigiri tells you about an ancient clan that lived underground and died out. Then a cheer outside: a traveller has just come home.
26. MainTalk to the traveller just inside the west gate (his wife and child stand next to him). He heard the samurai in Kyoto talk about a Spirit Hole at Mt. Tsurugi in Shikoku. Natsume has recovered, and Yamato decides to go to Shikoku. You can’t leave Herai until you have heard him.
27. MainTo reach Shikoku, take a ship from Okayama Village (Ch. 13).
28. SideOptional: in Hachinohe Village, Kurama waits in the back of the second house from the north on the west side. Give him the Red Tachi and he joins as an NPC ally. Keep your karma at 20 or higher, or he attacks you instead. → checklist
29. SideOptional: Tajikara stands in the north-west corner of Hachinohe. Answer Yes to ‘Test your strength?’ to fight him. Win and Yamato can call down Tajikarao. He hits very hard, so come back when you are much stronger; losing is not a game over, and you can challenge him again any time. → checklist
30. SideOptional: Niigata Village (south-west of Herai on the northern map). Talk to the man in front of the second house on the top row first; he tells you about the three Dogu Shards. Return with all three (Mt. Maru cave, Mt. Yatsuka summit, Derarezu Forest) and Juurouta can summon Dogu. → checklist
31. SideOptional: in Niigata, a woman cries on the west side of the village, left of the north-west house. She is to be sacrificed to a youkai. Answer Yes to ‘Fight the youkai?’ and win two fights in a row (losing is a game over). She is Princess Kushinada in disguise, and Yamato can then summon Kushinada. → checklist
32. SideOptional: the samurai in the north-west corner of Niigata (‘A man follows the way of the warrior!!’) is another bushido pupil for the Kyoto ronin (karma 20 or higher). → checklist
33. SideFor later: in Herai, the man in the north of the village, between the two big northern houses, tells you that a god lives in the village pond and appears if you throw in a spear. The pond is the water in the sunken square in the middle; stand below it facing up. Only a Gale Spear, Fire Spear, Tube Spear, Fudou Rod or Raijin Spr works, and weaker spears are simply lost. The first good spears turn up in Ezo (Ch. 16). Do this before Touya leaves the party (Ch. 21): Gundari becomes Touya’s summon. → checklist
34. TipYoukai-village note: once the youkai village exists (Ch. 13), Herai’s Pokkun and Hachinohe’s Tsurube-otoshi appear here. See Ch. 15 for the right order.

Checklist

Treasure chests (17)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (11)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Bushido pupil — ‘courtesy’ (bushido master’s quest) checklist
• 2Pokkun — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• 3Old Woman (inside) — gives Old Tablet, Puff Sake checklist
• IItem shop
• RInn

• A S. Dew
• B Feather

• 1Search spot — gives Puffgrass
• A Dogu Shard

• A Wind Hood
• B N. Pill

• A Maelstrom
• B Gold Pill

• A Red Tachi
• B S. Dew
• C Maelstrom
• D Kunai

• A ChainPill
• B Cloak
• C Herb

• A Star Helm
• B H. Water

• A Herb Legs

• 1Tajikara — summon Tajikarao checklist
• 2Tsurube-otoshi — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• 3Kurama (inside) — joins checklist

• 1Bushido pupil — ‘way of the warrior’ (bushido master’s quest) checklist
• 2Snake Youkai — summon Kushinada
• AArmor shop

📍 Okayama Village · Shikoku · Beppu Village · Youkai Village · Yamashiro Village · Five Mounds (relic shrines) · Mt. Tsurugi · Kyoto (Shinsengumi headquarters)

Doujigiri unmasks Okayama’s drunken ferryman, who takes you across to Shikoku. There, Lord Shimazu’s retainer Izou is hunting the secret of Mt. Tsurugi. Rescue the captive Yuuma, gather the five treasures of the Five Mounds, and seal the last Spirit Hole, where the fifth Great Sword, Onimaru, lies frozen.

Walkthrough

1. MainGo to Okayama Village and talk to the Ferryman by the gap in the east wall. Doujigiri recognises him: he isn’t human. The Ferryman admits he’s a harmless youkai who ferries boats because of his ancestors’ last wish, and he goes to wait at the pier.
2. TipBefore this chapter the Ferryman only says he’s ‘drinkin”. The earlier Great Swords make remarks about him, but only Doujigiri gets him moving.
3. SideYamashiro’s weapon shop (below) sells the Magoroku (1,350). That is what Takeaki in Okayama wants (see Ch. 4). → checklist
4. MainThe pier is on the coast just south of Okayama. Talk to the Ferryman there and answer Yes to ‘Go to Shikoku?’. The return trip works the same way from the pier on Shikoku’s north coast, as often as you like.
5. MainShikoku map: you land on the north coast. Beppu Village is to the south-west, Yamashiro Village is due south in the middle of the island, and Mt. Tsurugi is in the east. Five small shrines are scattered around (see the Five Mounds below).
6. MainBeppu Village: the villagers gossip that samurai have taken over Yamashiro and that there’s a treasure on Mt. Tsurugi. The item shop is the house in the middle of the village. Beppu has no inn.
7. SideOptional: the man in black on the benches in front of the big southern house is Sakamoto Ryouma. He mutters about Izou in Yamashiro, and Juurouta hurries you away before he realises you’re Shinsengumi. There’s no fight.
8. SideImportant: the man in the far north-west corner of Beppu is a tanuki in disguise. Stand directly below him and talk to him while facing up; from any other side he just says ‘Being human sure is nice.’ When he changes back, answer Yes to ‘Believe him?’ (+2 karma). Yamato takes him to a quiet spot in the middle of Shikoku, and Tanukichi founds the youkai village there. → checklist
9. WarningAnswering No to Tanukichi costs 5 karma and loses him for good, and with him the whole youkai-village side quest (Ch. 15) and its Furinkazan reward.
10. MainYamashiro Village: on your first visit you overhear women worrying about a young man called Yuuma, who was taken away by samurai four days ago. Samurai guard the front door of the biggest house (north-west).
11. MainEnter the big house on the east side, second from the top. Hifumi is crying there: samurai took her dear Yuuma to the biggest house. Juurouta notes that Yuuma knows Mt. Tsurugi well.
12. MainWalk round to the back of the biggest house (north side, near the north wall). Yamato finds a back door. Answer Yes to ‘Go inside?’. Inside, head through the corridors to the room where Yuuma is held; going out the front would draw attention.
13. MainIzou is interrogating Yuuma about the secret of Mt. Tsurugi. When he leaves for a break, two samurai guards doze off. Talk to one: you fight the guards (losing is a game over) and get the Jail Key. Talk to Yuuma to free him.
14. MainOn your way out, Izou catches you. Beat him (losing is a game over). Yamato locks Izou and the guards in the cell with the Jail Key. Leave by the back door.
15. MainReturn to Hifumi’s house. Yuuma is home and greets… his cat, Hifumi. As thanks he tells you the secret: set five treasures into the great rock at the top of Mt. Tsurugi to open a hidden passage. The treasures are hidden in the Five Mounds east of the village, and each must go on the rock in the same arrangement as the mounds.
16. SideOptional: if Densuke, Kanpei and Kouryu are all in your party, the ninja Saizou appears in the far north-west corner of Yamashiro. Talk to him: he hides somewhere in the village. Each time you enter Yamashiro he picks one of two hiding places at random. Find him and talk to him again and he joins. → checklist
17. SideOptional: a woman in the west house second from the top mentions a tree that shakes without wind. It is the tree by the east wall of Yamashiro. Face it from below and examine it: the god Naraenten asks you to bring the Kongoujou. Offer a Kongoujou later and Yamato can summon Naraenten. → checklist
18. SideOptional: the ronin near the weapon shop (‘A man’s life is courage!’) is another bushido pupil for the Kyoto ronin (karma 20 or higher). → checklist
19. TipYamashiro shops: weapon shop in the big north-east house, armor shop in the west house third from the top, item shop in the big east house third from the top, inn (20 gold) in the big south-east house. An old man and old woman drop hints: remember where each treasure was found, because a treasure only shows its worth once you put it in place.
20. MainThe Five Mounds: five small shrines around Mt. Tsurugi, each holding one treasure. Examine the object in each shrine. Relic Gem: north of Mt. Tsurugi. Relic Key: east of Mt. Tsurugi. Relic Book: south-east. Relic Ring: south-west of Mt. Tsurugi, east of Yamashiro. Relic Pot: north-west of Mt. Tsurugi, in the middle of the island. They only give up their treasures after Yuuma has told you the secret.
21. SideIn the Relic Book shrine (south-east), the monk Gennobou is looking for a God’sTear. Give him one and he joins as an NPC ally. The first God’sTear is in Asuka Underground (Ch. 14), so come back later. → checklist
22. MainMt. Tsurugi: climb to the summit. On the way, Doujigiri senses a pulse from below and calls out to ‘Onimaru’, the last of the Five Great Swords. At the top is a rock altar with five bumps arranged like a star.
23. MainPlace each treasure on the bump that points toward its shrine. Stand below a bump, face it and examine it; answer Yes to ‘Place a treasure on this rock?’ and then Yes only when the right one is offered (Crystal = Relic Gem, Jar = Relic Pot). Top bump: Relic Gem. Upper right: Relic Key. Lower right: Relic Book. Lower left: Relic Ring. Upper left: Relic Pot. The order doesn’t matter, and you can take a treasure back if you misplace it.
24. MainWhen the last treasure is right, Izou and his men arrive. He wants the Spirit Hole’s power to overthrow the Shogun. Beat them (losing is a game over). Izou flees, and the rock in the middle of the altar has moved aside. Face it and examine it to climb down.
25. WarningWhile any treasure sits on the altar, Juurouta won’t let you leave Mt. Tsurugi (take it back first). After Izou is beaten, you can’t leave at all until the Spirit Hole business is done, so come prepared.
26. MainThe cave below has two chests (Gold Pill, Holy Orb). Grab them now. Then follow the cave on to the Spirit Hole.
27. MainAt the Spirit Hole, Onimaru is frozen solid: all the spirit power that the sealed holes no longer release pours in here. Touya’s seal fails. Natsume decides to go into the Spirit Hole herself. Answer Yes to ‘Go with Natsume?’ and Yes again when it asks a second time (+2 karma). Yamato goes in with her, the seal holds, and ‘Natsume’s kiss restored your strength!!’.
28. WarningKarma: answering No to either ‘Go with Natsume?’ costs 10 karma. The Spirit Hole is still sealed either way.
29. MainExamine Onimaru. A poison mist knocks you out, and you overhear Lord Shimazu, Lord Mouri and Izou plotting to wake the other Spirit Holes. Mouri talks the others out of killing you. You come to and take the damaged sword (‘Got Onimaru!!’; it’s Broken Oni in the menu). Doujigiri says it won’t wake without more spirit power.
30. MainHijikata, Kondo and Okita arrive: the Shogun himself has come to the Shinsengumi headquarters, and you must return to Kyoto at once. You are taken straight there.
31. MainKyoto headquarters: Hijikata says the Shogun is in Kondo’s room. Walk up to the Shogun there. Yoshinobu explains that a new Spirit Hole has opened in Asuka and asks you to take the Shogun and him there. Talk to Yoshinobu to set off with them (the ‘Shoguns’ join as escorts). Only then do the guards at the gate let you out.
32. TipAt headquarters, the Shinsengumi cook offers a free meal that restores your strength. Yamanami tells you the new Spirit Hole is south-west of Kyoto, in Asuka (Ch. 14).
33. WarningHijikata’s sword still lies in the headquarters. Taking it gives the Izumi Kami but costs 10 karma, and the Kongouyasha Shrine counts it as theft (see Ch. 3).

Checklist

Treasure chests (6)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (13)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Bushido pupil — ‘guts’ (bushido master’s quest) checklist
• 2Takeaki — joins checklist
• 3Ayashibi (in disguise) — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2
• AArmor shop
• IItem shop
• WWeapon shop

• 1Tanukichi — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −5 checklist
• 2Ayashibi (in disguise) — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2
• IItem shop

• 1Tanukichi — gives Rice Ball, gives Furinkazan checklist

• 1Bushido pupil — ‘courage’ (bushido master’s quest) checklist
• 2Saizou — joins checklist
• 3Kaparou — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• AArmor shop
• IItem shop
• RInn
• WWeapon shop

• 1Jail guards — gives Jail Key

• 1Search spot — gives Relic Pot

• 1Search spot — gives Relic Ring

• 1Search spot — gives Relic Book
• 2Gennobou — joins checklist

• 1Search spot — gives Relic Key

• 1Search spot — gives Relic Gem

• 1Relic stones — place the five relics
• A N. Pill
• B S. Dew
• C Gale Sword
• D Reishi

• A Gold Pill
• B Holy Orb

• 1Juzumaru — karma +2 / −10 checklist
• 2Onimaru — take Onimaru checklist

📍 Ishibutai · Asuka Underground · Hokutomaru’s cave (Kyushu, optional)

Escort the Shogun and Yoshinobu to the new Spirit Hole under the stones of Asuka. Solve the monkey-statue riddle, face Lord Shimazu and Izou, and learn the truth about the Spirit Holes when the Shogun turns on you. At the bottom your heroes awaken the power of the Kishin, and Onimaru, the last Great Sword, joins you.

Walkthrough

1. MainLeave Kyoto with the Shogun and Yoshinobu. Ishibutai stands south-west of Kyoto on the western Honshu map: a ring of stones with a row of monkey statues.
2. TipWithout the Shogun and Yoshinobu (set off from the Kyoto headquarters first, Ch. 13), Juurouta says you have no business here.
3. MainExamine the right-hand of the two big rocks in the middle. The carved words give a riddle about the ten monkey statues in the row above: find the monkeys dressed like the leftmost one, see how the monkey to the right of the second one from the right is dressed, and touch the third monkey from the left that is dressed that way.
4. MainThe answer: face the monkey statue that is 8th from the left (3rd from the right) and examine it. The ground opens just below the two big rocks. Don’t touch the other statues. Walk into the opening to enter Asuka Underground.
5. MainAsuka Underground has five floors (B1 to B5), each with a staircase down. Open the chests as you go; the list is below. B1’s chest in the north-west corner holds a God’sTear, the one Gennobou on Shikoku wants.
6. MainB5 has a Jizo statue on the east side. Save there. The way to the Spirit Hole is in the north-east part of the floor.
7. MainAt the Spirit Hole, Lord Shimazu, Lord Mouri, Izou and Ryouma are already waiting. The Shogun orders you to strike them down, and you are asked twice ‘Attack Shimazu and his men?’. Yes starts a fight with Izou (losing is a game over). If you say No both times, Shimazu seizes Natsume and Touya deals with Izou himself. The story is the same either way and neither answer changes karma.
8. MainShimazu is not himself: a strange technique flattens Yoshinobu. He tells you the Shogun has abused the Spirit Holes and thrown the land’s spirit energy out of balance. Beaten by the Shadows’ power, he withdraws, saying he’ll get ahead of you in Ezo. The Shogun then claims the Spirit Hole for himself. When Yamato refuses, the Shogun attacks and the party falls into the Spirit Hole.
9. MainAt the bottom, an Orb of Light speaks to Yamato like a parent and awakens the power of the Kishin sleeping inside him. When you come to, all four heroes have transformed. Natsume heard her mother’s voice, Juurouta her late grandfather.
10. MainThe four Great Swords (Juzumaru, Mikazuki, Oodenta and Doujigiri) fell in with you and lie on the floor, along with the broken Onimaru. Talk to each sword to take it back. Check everyone’s equipment afterwards, since the swords were taken from you in the fall.
11. MainAfter the fourth sword, you see Onimaru and slip into another of Hokutomaru’s memories: his party fights the Amanojaku, who dug a false Spirit Hole into the spirit veins. If Hokutomaru’s side loses, the memory restarts. Minami’s memory returns: she is a youkai.
12. MainOnimaru wakes and joins you (‘Got Onimaru!!’). He heard his father’s voice at the bottom of the Spirit Hole and says the man who forced his power to open this hole wasn’t human. He is after the Spirit Hole in Ezo. The Five Great Swords sealed their own souls in their blades to guard the land.
13. TipFrom now on your heroes can take the transformed form in battle; Juzumaru says it raises strength and speed.
14. WarningLast chance: walk back up through B5 to B1 and open anything you missed. Once you step out onto Ishibutai with Onimaru, the way down is closed for good (‘We have no more business here’).
15. MainBack on the surface, Yamato declares: ‘Next stop, Ezo!!’. Meanwhile the Shogun comes to, finds no spirit energy left in the Spirit Hole and swears revenge on the Shadows. Head north to Umibe Village (Ch. 15).
16. SideOptional: the cave south-west of Takachiho on Kyushu, which pushed you back before, now opens: Onimaru remembers it. It is a long five-part cave full of chests (listed below), and you cannot transform inside. At the far end, Minami’s voice asks you to protect the land and fully heals the party every time you return. → checklist
17. SideWith the God’sTear from B1, you can recruit Gennobou in the Relic Book shrine on Shikoku (Ch. 13). Take the ferry from the pier south of Okayama. → checklist

Checklist

Treasure chests (43)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (10)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• A Gold Pill
• B God’sTear

• A N. Pill
• B S. Dew

• A Shuriken
• B Kami Charm

• A Life Orb

• 1Juzumaru (inside) — gives Juzumaru checklist
• 2Mikazuki (inside) — gives Mikazuki checklist
• 3Oodenta (inside) — gives Oodenta checklist
• 4Doujigiri (inside) — gives Doujigiri checklist
• A Oni Orb
• B Feather

• A Haze Bell
• B Speed Orb
• C K. Cure
• D Luck Charm
• E Power Orb
• F D. Dew
• G Wonder Rx

• 1Hokutomaru — summon Seima Doji checklist
• A Herb
• B Pill
• C H. Water
• D N. Pill
• E Sandalwd.
• F Wake Dust
• G Smoke Bmb
• H S. Dew

• A Reviver
• B Feather
• C Gold Pill
• D Cloak
• E Reishi
• F ChainPill
• G Heart Orb
• H Kobu Herb

• A Life Orb
• B Remedy
• C Oni Orb
• D God’sTear
• E Rice Ball

• A Guard Orb
• B M. Water
• C Sage Pill
• D R. Salts
• E Holy Orb
• F Maelstrom

📍 Umibe Village · Ryuuga Forest · Youkai Village

With Onimaru in hand, head to Umibe Village at the northern tip of Honshu. To cross to Ezo you first need a boat of your own, and the only timber good enough grows in Ryuuga Forest, where a very old tree is waiting for you.

Walkthrough

1. MainTravel to Umibe Village at the northern tip of Honshu. A man near the village entrance tells you to ask the village boatman if you want to cross to the island of Ezo.
2. MainThe Boatman stands on the shore in the north-east corner of the village. His boat is broken, so he tells you to build a ship yourselves; then he will take you. (This conversation only happens after the Asuka events of the previous chapter.)
3. MainTalk to the woman in the south part of the village again: she now tells you that Ryuuga Forest, south of the village, has timber good enough for a ship.
4. SideShopping: the large house in the north-west part of the village is an Armor Shop (Hood, Tokin, Silk Robe, Leggings). There is no weapon shop, item shop or inn in Umibe, so stock up before you come.
5. SideOptional: Katsura, a hungry samurai, sits in the back room of the small house just south-west of the Armor Shop. Give him a Rice Ball and he joins as an NPC ally. Rice Balls come from Tanukichi in the Youkai Village (he hands one out whenever you have none). Keep your karma at 20 or more, or he attacks you instead. → checklist
6. SideYoukai Village: the boy standing in the far south-west corner of the village is Bakebi in disguise. When asked “Exterminate the youkai?”, answer No (+2 karma) and he moves to the Youkai Village. He only reveals himself if you helped Tanukichi found the village in Beppu (Ch. 13) and have NOT yet talked to Korobo in Nikkou. See the Youkai Village entry for the full order. → checklist
7. TipThe man on the west side of Umibe (near the fence, north part of the village) is Korori, another youkai. He only appears late in the game, after the Kappa at the Kourai shrine has been given the Ranjatai. Answer No to “Exterminate Korori?” (+2 karma).
8. MainLeave the village and enter Ryuuga Forest to the south. Follow the path to the huge tree in the middle of the forest and examine it from its south side.
9. MainThe tree attacks: you fight the forest’s guardian. Losing is a game over, so heal and save first.
10. WarningAfter the battle Yamato wants to burn the forest down and the game asks “Burn it anyway?”. Answer No. Answering Yes makes the Sacred Tree punish you with a game over.
11. MainAnswer No and the talking Sacred Tree gives you the Raft, a raft imbued with its power.
12. MainReturn to the Boatman in Umibe. His “secret trick” is a mermaid: she tows your raft across the northern sea to Ezo. The chapter continues in Ezo (Ch. 16).
13. SideOptional: the small shrine just east of Umibe Village holds a treasure chest with a Tsukumogami inside. Beat it (a loss is a game over) and Hakushin, a youkai hunter, offers to join. The offering box here resets low karma (see the checklist). → checklist

Checklist

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (4)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• 1Bakebi — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• 2Korori — Youkai Village, karma +2 / −2 checklist
• 3Katsura (inside) — joins checklist
• AArmor shop

• 1Sacred Tree — gives Raft checklist

• 1Tanukichi — gives Rice Ball, gives Furinkazan checklist

• 1Kooni — joins checklist
• 2Yukihime — joins checklist

📍 Ezo · Hakodate Village · Hot spring · Gyuuki Cave · Abashiri Village · Kongouyasha Shrine

The mermaid lands you in Ezo. In Hakodate you cross paths with the foreigners Rishu and George and their servant Timba, find a Spirit Hole under a new hot spring, and fall out with the Shogun for good.

Walkthrough

1. MainThe mermaid drops your raft on the Ezo shore. Before leaving she gives you the Conch: blow it and she will tow you back once, and then she takes it back.
2. WarningThe Conch is a single trip back to Honshu. Juurouta offers to use it every time you step onto the landing spot; answer No until the hot-spring scene with Timba at the end of this chapter. Nothing in the event script brings you back to Ezo by sea afterwards.
3. MainYou walk straight into Hakodate Village. Enter the inn (the house with the sign, south-centre of the village). A foreign guest, Rishu, orders George to have their servant carry all the cargo in, and a girl (Timba) struggles with it alone.
4. Side“Help carry the cargo?” Answer Yes (+2 karma). Timba explains she was brought here from a land across the sea. Answering No costs 5 karma. → checklist
5. SideTalk to the inn girl twice. The second time Juurouta charms her and learns that the foreigners are searching Japan for some kind of hole. Rooms at the inn cost 20 gold.
6. SideShopping: the weapon shop is the top-centre house with two doors (Magoroku, Sun Sword, Kotetsu, Naginata, Tube Spear, Hourai Bow, Moon Bow, Tiger Claw, Shura Claw, Oni Claw, Matchlock). A travelling armor peddler stands in the north-east corner of the village. There is no item shop in Hakodate; Abashiri has two.
7. MainLeave town and visit the hot spring on the Ezo map (the pond near Hakodate that suddenly turned hot). The first dip fully heals the party.
8. MainCome back to the hot spring after the cargo scene: a villager leads George to the spring, and George kills him as his ‘reward’. Fight George, then Rishu right after. Losing either fight is a game over.
9. MainRishu is carried off by Shimazu and Mouri. Bathe once more and Juurouta realises the spring’s water carries spirit power: there must be a Spirit Hole below, reached through a cave. Timba is at the spring and thanks you for beating her masters.
10. MainBack in Hakodate a peddler now stands by the well in the fenced central square. Pay him 100 gold: he tells you about a cave in the mountains north-east of the village. Paying once is enough to open the cave.
11. TipIf you pay him a second and a third time (100 gold each) he names the youkai inside — the legendary Gyuuki — and says only the Five Great Swords can cut it. In the cave, Natsume reminds you of this hint if you bought all three parts.
12. SideYoukai Village: the easternmost of the four Jizo statues in Hakodate’s central square is the Running Jizo. Once you have talked to Korobo in Nikkou, examine it and answer Yes to “Believe what the Running Jizo says?”. → checklist
13. MainGo to the cave in the north-eastern mountains. Hijikata and the Shinsengumi are camped outside. Talk to Hijikata: the Shogun is here in person, angry with you, and waiting in the hut. Enter the hut and talk to the Shogun, who calls you traitors — until a Shinsengumi trooper stumbles out of the cave, dying.
14. SideThe Shogun orders the Shadow Shinsengumi to investigate. “Accept?” Yes gives +1 karma, No −3; you go in either way. → checklist
15. MainWalk into the cave past Hijikata. On the first floor, open the two chests (Gale Spear and Sleep Chrm).
16. WarningOn the lower floor, open all three chests (God’sTear, Gold Pill, BreezeRobe) BEFORE you approach the Gyuuki. Once it is beaten you are swept down to the Spirit Hole and cannot walk back out, and after this chapter the cave entrance is guarded.
17. MainChallenge the Gyuuki. After the fight the ground keeps sinking and the party ends up underwater — strangely able to breathe. Follow the light to the Spirit Hole, a calm and healthy one; Juurouta decides it must not be sealed.
18. MainTouya suggests stopping at the spring beside the Spirit Hole. Examine it and answer Yes to take a bath: you are sucked through a hole and pop out in the hot spring outside. Timba asks to come with you.
19. MainWalk back to the cave entrance. You overhear the Shogun planning to drain this Spirit Hole for himself, no matter what it does to the country. Yamato and Touya strike him; he declares you traitors and orders the troopers to attack. Win the fight (losing is a game over); Okita pretends to be knocked aside so you can flee.
20. MainYou regroup at the hot spring. Timba invites you to her country, where a ‘Guardian’ protects a holy land much like a Spirit Hole, and says the ship she came on is in Yokohama. Touya: Yokohama is west of Edo.
21. MainReturn to the landing spot where the mermaid dropped you and answer Yes to “Will you use the conch?”. She tows the raft back to northern Honshu and takes the Conch back. Head south to Yokohama (Ch. 17) with the Raft.
22. SideOptional, but best done now: the Kongouyasha Shrine on the Ezo map. Talk to the priest first, then step in front of the altar and answer Kongouyasha’s two questions truthfully. With no thefts on your record you also get Muramasa. See the checklist entry for exactly what is checked. → checklist
23. SideOptional: Abashiri Village on the Ezo map. Chuuta, a thief-for-hire, stands in the north-west corner inside the fence and joins for 1500 gold. The two left-hand doors of the long houses lead to an item shop (N. Pill, S. Dew, K. Herb, Gold Pill, Feather); the right-hand long house has a second item shop (Pill, Sandalwd., Wake Dust, Kunai, Maelstrom, Reishi).
24. SideAbashiri: in the right-hand small house, a boy has dropped his grandfather’s medicine. Hand over a Pill for +2 karma. → checklist
25. TipThe hot spring heals the whole party for free every time you examine it, for as long as you stay in Ezo.

Checklist

Treasure chests (5)

Bosses & key battles

🗺️ Maps for this chapter (4)

Numbers mark people and events worth a visit; letters A, B, C… mark treasure chests. A pin on a door means the person is inside that building. Pins show everything that can appear on the map over the whole game, so some people only turn up later in the story. Tap a map to open it full size.

• RInn
• WWeapon shop

• A Gale Spear
• B Sleep Chrm

• A God’sTear
• B Gold Pill
• C BreezeRobe

• 1Chuuta — joins checklist
• 2Search spot (inside) — take Ranjatai (theft), karma −5
• 3Boy who dropped grandpa’s medicine (inside) — give a Pill, karma +2
• IItem shop