Part 24: Ah, Gods and Mortals on the Grounds of the Divine Lake

You know, when I was starting this update I was planning on actually going back to the two week schedule. The fact that it's March now says about all you need to know on how that went!

Seriously though, sorry this took so long.

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Alright, so my team is... not ideal, but this chapter is actually easy enough it doesn't matter. I'll still need to distribute some upgrades though.

I debated buffing Cirno or one of the Three Fairies, but decided I'd get more bang for my buck upgrading Reimu's damage.



Also, skills. Alice picked up Predict a bit too late to help with Sanae, but at least she has it. Patchy got Support Attack, because everyone wants Support Attack.



Now in all honesty, Marisa would benefit from Kanako's Blessing more than Reimu. But Reimu pried this off of Sanae's corpse and damn it she's going to keep it.



As a final note before I start the chapter proper, now that I have Nitori I can access the main menu's Frame Switch option. Much like the Huckebein Boxer in OG2, FA Nitori is the only character who will use this. And also like the Huckebein Boxer, there is absolutely no reason to use regular Nitori.
_{Okay there's probably reasons to use the regular versions but I don't care.}


Music: Bizarre Smile

Full Text

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Music: Wind Interlude



What a team.

Wh-what are those creepy giant things...?

They're quite the spectacle. These must be the onbanshira Sanae mentioned.

...Which means this is probably the place.

Yeah, come on out already!





Most of these animations are from my Lunatic runs, so things might look a little off.

...You must be the boss of this incident.

Indeed. I am Kanako Yasaka, the god of this shrine, and, after countless trials, the new god of this mountain.



Kanako casts Spirit, and does in fact start the battle with 10 extra Power.

Judging by this pressure... there's no doubt she's our foe.

Yeah, she's different from the jokes of gods we've faced so far.

...You're the one who said she wanted to take over my shrine, right? That'd be bad for me, so could you please stop?

Hmm. So you're the shrine maiden from the foot of the mountain, Reimu Hakurei... which means you must be her followers.

Nah, we just came to help tell you off.

You plan to steal the Hakurei shrine and monopolize Gensokyo's faith. There's no way we can let that happen!

...Hoho, so you're here to protect the shrine. Sanae was right after all.

Shrine maiden from the foot of the mountain, you associate with youkai, scaring human worshippers away from your shrine... And now you command them! How blasphemous!

Wait, are we actually going to get divinely punished?!

Don't be scared, we should be strong enough to fight her!

...Whether or not the shrine at the foot of the mountain becomes the Moriya shrine's property is a matter for a god to decide.

You who would oppose a god's will. You are free to prostrate yourselves against Yasaka's divine might!

Oddly enough the writer didn't use much of Kanako's actual stage 6 dialogue for this.



Music: Headwind's Advance

Music: The Sound of a War God's Footsteps

Instead of a medley, chapter 23 gets two arranges of MoF Stage 6, one for each phase. You can probably guess which is which.

Both songs also override most player themes; I think even Blessed Light and The Moment Dreams Reach the Stars fall prey to this unless you adjust the BGM priority.



There's nothing special about the grunts, so cut to the boss.



Though I would like to note that Marisa decided dodge rates are just for show and got hit by damn near everything. Even a 10%!



I fed most of the enemies to the fairies, so by the time I hit Kanako they were at fairly acceptable levels. One of the nice things about SRW games is that it's really easy to catch up underleveled characters.



If I were feeling cheeky I'd surround Kanako like normal, but I already know what's going to happen here and don't feel like playing dumb.

A god like you who can't read the mood ought to be scolded. If you were on better terms with the mountain, Nitori and the tengu would have lent you guys a hand.

So Gensokyo even has strange humans who care about youkai.

You're the weird ones. I guess I'll just have to teach you how we do things around here.

Music: The Restless Spirit and the Virtuous Wind



Before you even ask, no she doesn't ape the Guncannon. I was disappointed too.



Unlike Remilia and Flandre, Kanako is supposed to be a tank. She's even got a barrier that decreases solid damage by 500. This is Normal difficulty though, so she's a complete chump.



She's primarily a long-ranged unit, so theoretically I'd want to attack her from up close.





But who am I to pass up a beam war?

Okay, not having Koa around means spamming finishers this early is kind of dumb.

If you monopolize Gensokyo's faith, your own powers will likely be altered.

There are no better methods to preserve the future of faith. I am willing to do anything for the sake of our goal.

...Gods certainly aren't what I thought they'd be if they're willing to use such forceful methods. Someone that loves all life equally... that's the kind of god I'd believe in.



So I have Alice stick to Proto Malice.

Your overflowing self-confidence and ambition reminds me of Remi.

Oh? That person must have a bright future ahead of them then.

Though if you two were to meet, you'd probably fight... allow me to test if your power compares to Remi's.



Kanako can attack from even farther than Patchy, but not yet. So may as well take advantage of her superior range while I still can!

...I expected you'd all be about this lively. Humans, youkai, fairies, and devils. You faithless beings have caused quite a bit of chaos.

Heh, thanks for the compliment!

In any case, this is what happens when you worry about faith too much.

Is faith really so important that you'd steal other people's shrines...?

Steal? I'm rescuing it. A shrine that has lost its faith is nothing more than a shed. I intend to gather humans there and revive that shrine.

I think it'd be great if more people came to my shrine! But I'm going to do that on my own. I don't need your help!

Silence. Shrines don't exist for the benefit of their shrine maidens. A shrine exists to be a sanctuary, to be the home of the gods. If you don't even understand that... then it'd be best for you to experience the raging soul of a god until you reconsider the meaning of a shrine!

The writer combined Kanako's pre-fight one liners from both Reimu and Marisa's stories. It's... not as snappy in english.






Expanded Onbanshira buffs Kanako's damage by 20%.

Woooaaaah, you look cool! But isn't that heavy?

It is, yes. They represent the duties that as a god I must bear.

Huh, I don't really get it but I don't think I could do that.

The idea of a mere fairy using objects as sacred as these is so ridiculous it isn't even funny.





Not that it matters with Grit. And yes, she literally just throws the things.

You have quite the intimidating presence. It's a somewhat dignified feeling.

Oh? In that case, why don't you surrender to us?

I'd rather not. You're a little too dignified. You'd have to be darker, and send a shiver down my spine if you want me to work for you.

So you've been enthralled into becoming a devil's plaything. Allow me to return you to your true character.



Sakuya actually isn't very good for this chapter since Kanako's accuracy is high enough that casting Focus won't guarantee dodges. Private Square helps, at least.

Also here's Kanako's barrier.



The damage buff actually hurts on enemy phase, where your units probably don't have Alert or Grit up to avoid damage. I was hoping Marisa would get "hit" again so Rumia could tank the laser with her barrier, but no dice.



Once I get Kanako down to critical, I start moving all my units to the right.



Then Marisa kills her on enemy phase.

Hmph, there's much more to come. I haven't even begun to tap into my divine power yet.

...She's skilled. Worthy of reporting to the mistress.

But with the tengu gone, now is our best chance. We have to keep pushing on!

Fools. Even without the help of the denizens of this mountain, something as simple as cursing you lot isn't difficult at all.

On that note, it seems the hearts of the youkai lie separate from Moriya shrine. Isn't that proof enough of the problems with your methods?

If they don't understand our motives, then we will simply have to teach them one by one. But first I must deal with your group. I shall discipline you with my absolute power and take your faith.

...Just like I expected, we're not going to be able to talk this out.

Then this'll be easy. There's only one opponent, let's just keep this up an-

Hold on a second! Let me join in too~!

Music: A God Plays with Their Whole Heart and Soul
_{The song name is a pun; instead of "全心全霊" (zenshinzenrei), it has "全神全礼" (also zenshinzenrei, but it uses the characters for god and ceremony)}



Suwako?! Why did you come out?!

Er, what? A... kid?

Huh, where have I seen that weird hat?

Suwako, what are you doing? The plan was that I would be the one to settle things.

I won't take too long. We finally have visitors, don't just send them away like that!

Hey, who's that kid? It looks like she knows that god...

...She's the god who came out when I fought with Sanae last summer.

Now that I think about it, I haven't introduced myself yet. It's nice to meet all of you, I'm Suwako Moriya. I'm Moriya shrine's other god.

Another god...?

Yup, we've got two. There's me, Suwako, and her, Kanako. Together we're the two pillars of Moriya shrine!

Nitori, did you know about this?

Well I've heard rumors, but this is my first time seeing her too. Wow, who would have thought that girl I saw back at the Hakurei shrine would be a god...

Anyway, Kanako, let me switch with you. I could hold back before, but there's no way I'm doing that this time.

...I suppose I have no choice. But you'll have to let me switch back.

Kanako withdraws.

Hold on a second, why are you just coming and going as you please?

Oh don't worry about it, just do your best to drive me out. More importantly, now that that stick-in-the-mud Kanako is out of the way, we can continue the festival!

What festival?

Don't tell me you don't know! A festival is just another name for the playtime of the gods. After all, it's when gods have fun with humans!

So what you're saying is that now that you're here...

Yep! You're playing with a god, so it's a festival. And this time it's my turn to have a danmaku festival! If you get that, then follow my lead and play as hard as you can!



So yeah, now we're fighting Suwako!

I remember you, Reimu. Last summer you beat Sanae black and blue while she was weak.

Oh yeah, that happened. I beat her black and blue again when she was strong too though.

Good, good. If you couldn't do that you'd be boring. You're a shrine maiden, so act like one. Amuse me, a god!



She has some weird attacks.



Fittingly enough, she's the exact opposite of Kanako: dodgy and frail. She also has a barrier, but instead of solid attacks it lowers laser damage.

She's not a complete joke on Normal just because dodge tanks are more annoying to deal with, but she's still much easier than her Hard/Lunatic incarnations.



Normally I'd need a few turns to move my army over to her, but as is I can hit her now. Though the short breather would have been appreciated if I had Dai or Koa.



Alice hits 20 on the way over and learns Danmaku Brains. This oddly named skill (it's a contraction of "Danmaku is all about brains") is the counterpart to Marisa's Danmaku Power, and it buffs Alice's critical damage. It's her best PS by a country mile and shoots her back up to best Support Attacker in the game.



Suwako moves, so priority one is to pin her in. The fact that this helps deal with her first spell is a total coincidence.

If you haven't noticed yet, this is a chapter where prior knowledge dramatically changes your experience.



Komachi uses her final Trust on Meiling. From here on out I'm flying without a safety.

I definitely wouldn't have pegged you as a god with a hat like that.

Please don't hat shame.

You won't be able to recognize my true strength with just your eyes alone. Maybe you'll understand the meaning of a god if you play a game with me?

Sure, I've got time for a round. You'd better put your heart into it!



Marisa missed a 88%.

Are you a doll user? What kind of dolls do you make?

...We've just met and you're already acting so overly familar. Well, my usual dolls were foreign, western clothe-

Wooow, there are all kinds of youkai in Gensokyo, huh. I'd like it if you made me an oshirasame this time, okay?

Excuse me...?



Being at close range kind of cripples Alice's damage, but Suwako has low enough defenses it doesn't matter.

You two are a strange pair.

I guess, but a god's body doesn't show the whole picture.

You remind me of a frog, while that other god's shimenawa is like a snake... well, something like that. Anyways, it looks like you two have a complicated relationship.



Meanwhile Patchy can use Forest Blaze from two panels away, so ironically she's the best of the three magicians at point blank. Getting her through the stage can be a pain, but once you get her firing away at the boss she can do pretty well for herself. As long as she has insurance against damage, at least.

Great! With this, the opening is over!

Tch, first she pops in out of nowhere and now this. Get your act together.

Your attitude is completely different from Kanako Yasaka's. Are you really both the god of the same shrine?

Speaking of that, what kind of relation do you have with the other god? Are you friends?

Ugh, no, not even close! That woman is an enemy, an enemy! She's a savage who took over my shrine by force!

Pardon...?

Aauu~. This used to be my shrine, but because Kanako beat me it's hers now.

That's a lot like what's happening now too, huh.

So are you just a freeloader at this shrine?

How rude, I just leave all the public stuff to Kanako. I'm the highest of native gods, so show some respect or I'll curse you, got it?

Whatever, I'll just shut you up too then!

Looks like you're ready to go. Okay then, I'll have my subordinate fight too.

Now then, Long Arms and Long Legs... come forth!


I missed recording the animation for this, and honestly it's a bit hard to explain. A central V forms in front of Suwako and then danmaku spreads everywhere?

Also I have no idea if the name of this spell is Long Arm and Long Leg or the plural form, but the animation has two soooo



The gimmick to Long Arms and Long Legs is that your characters can't cross the danmaku. This makes getting into formation really annoying, so good thing I already did that.

That funny hat and those clothes... are you a frog? If you are, then you're my specialty! I'll turn you into a frozen frog!

Looks like somebody wants a curse. Just for saying something like that, I'm going to show you something painful, okay?



I had Cirno and Kurumi (who doesn't have dialogue with Suwako) attack as a joke. I wasn't actually expecting them to hit.

Should have used Freeze.

Does the Moriya shrine have a lot of food?

Pretty much. We have the faith of the mountain youkai so we basically live in luxury. We have a scary amount of cucumbers too, so much that it's practically a monopoly...

I'm getting really interested now.



Suwako is apparently the Nobel Gundam.

Seeing you two gods reminds me of those sisters from earlier.

Oh?

The gods called the Aki sisters. They governed autumn for some reason.

Ah, I think I know who you're talking about. I saw them once while I was taking a walk. But because of Kanako's rules I've never talked with them myself.



Private Square causes the animation for Two Bows, Two Claps, and One Bow (yes it's really called that) to bug out. The giant hand thing vanishes while Sakuya freezes time.



Meiling (who also doesn't have dialogue with Suwako) clinches the finish and gets two levels out of it.

Wait, Star had Cheer. Shoot, I haven't used the fairies in so long I've forgotten what they could do.

...Huh, so that's what you can do. That's enough, Long Arms and Long Legs.

That was weird, even for a god. Is she going to keep sending stuff like that out...?

The proud one from earlier is still here too. What a headache.

Oh hey, couldn't you convince Kanako for us? You had your shrine stolen yourself, so you should know where we're coming from.

...Me? Persuade Kanako?

Y-yes. Fighting's no good so...

Ahahaha! Sorry, but I think you guys have the wrong idea. I believe in Kanako's determination. Don't even bother trying to stick your nose between us.

...Well, in the end you're both the gods of the same shrine.

Bingo. We've lived together up till now and it's going to stay that way.

...Exactly. All of that was but ancient history.

Kanako pops in again. Same dramatic entrance too.

Look who's back!

While we may have lost them for now, our dominions once covered great lengths. Allow us to demonstrate my divine power of qian, the ability to create the vast heavens...

...and my divine power of kun, the ability to shape the firm earth. Together, we have the power to create countries. Even if we've come to Gensokyo, that hasn't changed!

Looks like this time they're in the mood to work together!

Come! Witness the combined power of the creator gods of heaven and earth!








Despite what the victory condition says, you can take down either god. Which one you choose actually determines the last phase of the battle!

I'll be taking down Kanako first this run mostly because that is the natural order of things.



Kanako is kind enough to start right next to me too.

I realized something while I was fighting my way here.

Oh? Has the greatness of my divine virtues finally sunk into your head?

It's true that the Moriya shrine's power is incredible... but I definitely can't work with your methods.

I'll do something about my shrine with my own two hands. I don't need your help!

A shrine maiden who conspires with youkai is mouthing off in front of me...

In that case, I'll have to give you a direct demonstration of my might.

There goes 75% of Kanako's health. I'd show a picture but I kind of... accidentally took a bunch of screenshots of my text editor instead?



I do have this picture of Kurumi dodging an attack thanks to Alert though! And we all know how important she is.

I guess I should have expected I'd need to psyche myself up for something like fighting a god...

If you're afraid, then you can run away. Puny fairies like you are of no interest to me.

Grrrr, if I ran away after you say that, then I'd be disgracing the name of the three fairies of light! I'm Sunny Milk, and my best trait is my spirit! Now let's do this fair and square!

Music: The Tiny Future Shines Brightly



I moved the fairies in position to use S-Formation, and after two blasts Kanako went down. I wasn't actually expecting the fairies to be able to do 4500 damage, but I guess I underestimated just how pathetic Kanako is on Normal.







So you've finally figured out how strong we are!

We've made it this far, so you better not call us weak!

Indeed, with that much power gathering faith should be simple for you. But faith without respect for the gods is meaningless.

Well aren't you stubborn. Sorry, but I don't see you guys doing well either.

Yeah, your way of doing things is busted from the start. Gensokyo doesn't need people as stiff as you.

Stiff?

That seems accurate. All you want is faith, but you demand tribute, instate rules and swagger about. It's pitiful to be so concerned with your image.

Ahaha, pitiful, huh? Well, I can't deny that. What a laugh this all is. But with our shrine maiden so gallantly defending her shrine, we gods have to respond...

In the outside world, you lost your faith... that's what that shrine maiden said.

...I can no longer gather faith from the rains and the winds. Humans have decided that gods are unnecessary, so it was inevitable.

So you ended up in Gensokyo, clinging to your old position as gods.

What else could we do? Accept our fate and disappear? Watch our glory vanish together? Unacceptable, I am a god! And as a god, I will protect the Moriya's history, its shrine maiden, and its shrine.

...So in other words, you gambled everything on coming to Gensokyo.

But your methods show that you refuse to adapt to Gensokyo. If you fail, it's because your priorities are backwards!

Oh? Are you saying you lot have a better idea?

Figure that out yourself. Whatever you end up doing, what I have to do is obvious.

If someone disturbs Gensokyo's balance, I'll exterminate them. Even if they're a god!

...Very well then, shrine maiden of Gensokyo. Let that answer be your sword. Show me if you can reach me from the base of a mountain! Show me if you can reach I, who stand above the winds, above the rains! I, who stand atop of a mountain of faith!

Suwako leaves at this point.






Mountain of Faith pumps Kanako's defense and accuracy as her HP decreases. The outer fringes also drop your evasion rates. It's pretty intense on Hard/Lunatic, but like the rest of this fight it's a speed bump at best on Normal.

Music: The Restless Spirit and the Virtuous Wind



The animation is kind of funny since regardless of whether Kanako hits, the actual Mountain of Faith part of the attack always gets dodged.



So instead Kanako just fires a bunch of beams.



RIP Kurumi. You could have lived if I bothered to cast Alert, but eeeeeeeh. Kurumi.

I'm gonna tell Yuukaaaaa.



Anyways, thanks to the three fairies I had to spend two turns moving to get in range to finish things. Bombs were dropped and finishers were spammed.



Here's Kanako's cut-in.

Music: The Moment Dreams Reach the Stars






_{the joke is that once you beat someone in touhou, the damage is represented as scuffed up clothing}

This probably should have been a video, but I couldn't think of a good song.

Impossible, my divine power was repulsed...?



This time I didn't forget to cast Cheer. Marisa zooms up to level 24 and grabs Valor and Magician 4.



The game is kind enough to give you both of the gods' equipment. Kanako's Onbanshira buffs armor and Accuracy, while Suwako's Oshirasama raises a unit's Cost by 1.0 but also buffs their weapon damage by (Cost * 100).

W-we did it...!

Is this the end...?

...To think my divine power could be defeated... I suppose I'll have to accept your answer.

Woah, wait, are you saying what I think you are?

Indeed. You have won this battle.

Sheesh... why are you still so proud? Well, whatever.

Yes, let's head back to the shrine and discuss things further.

Very well. Have everyone come to the Moriya shrine's main temple.



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Tadaaaa, it's time for the Aki Sister's usual Autumn Only Shiritori~!
_{There's an english equivalent, but I don't actually know if "say a word starting with the last syllable of the earlier word" even has a name beyond "that awkward word game people play when they're totally starved for conversation".}

I'll start, then. Autumn.

Mashed sweet potatoes!
_{Shizuha says "aki", and Minoriko says "kinton". It's an amazing coincidence that the syllables actually kind of match up in english.}