Kitsune and Yokai Island
Kitsune and the DragonKoi Tournament
The journey to Yokai Island begins with a ferry that cannot leave. Kappa ninjas have boarded Cap'n Herlock's ship and stolen its sailing permits. The hero clears the vessel and recovers a permit, allowing Herlock to take them to Akiba for the DragonKoi Tournament. Elsewhere, Kitsune prepares to meet the visitor with deception rather than strength alone.
At the tournament entrance, Daisuke refuses to recognize the hero's invitation until Princess Ai No Miko intervenes. Her letter contains a concealed appeal for help. The hero has overlooked it, but Miko cannot safely explain everything in public: she does not know whom she can trust. Advancing through the tournament will give them a chance to speak privately.
The hero fights through the opening opponents and reaches Ryoku, whose ultimate attack takes an absurdly long time to charge. With Ryoku still preparing, the hero goes to speak with Miko. She explains the tournament's prize, the Hanzamune Blade, and the story behind its name: a koi that overcomes the impossible climb up a waterfall becomes a dragon. The tournament winner is entrusted with guarding the ancient sword for a year.
Before the contest can be settled, Kitsune appears and takes the blade. The hero's attempt to stop him fails. Miko insists that her father, Emperor Daisho, will oppose the theft, but Kitsune doubts that the Emperor will care. The tournament is suspended, leaving Ryoku's challenge unfinished while Miko asks the hero to meet her at Hachiko Tower.
Miko's fears extend beyond the missing sword. Her father has raised taxes harshly and sent trusted soldiers against a village that cannot pay. When the hero questions the tower's ninja and samurai, the supposed soldiers attack and reveal themselves as faceless Nopperabo. A note signed DT exposes the substitution: the real guards are imprisoned on the roof. The hero gathers the four pieces of the Zodiac Puzzle Key, reaches the captives and defeats Dai Tengu. For Miko, the rescue confirms that Kitsune has gained control over her father.
Their search turns toward the island's shrines. In the bamboo forest, the Jinmenju Tree has lost the human-faced fruit on which its survival depends. Miko warns that the loss threatens the balance of Yokai life. The Tanuki have eaten some fruit, but the recovered cores show that they have taken only enough to survive. A charred paper talisman points instead toward Wanyudo, the fiery SoulTaker. With the talisman's protection, the hero defeats him and returns the hoarded fruit so that the tree can flourish again.
The junkyard brings them among the Tsukumo-Gami, spirits of discarded household objects. Miko believes Kitsune's influence has deepened their resentment at being thrown away. The hero pays tribute at their shrine and gathers neglected objects for cleaning and reuse, giving the spirits a place in human life again. Defeating the hostile Mountain Hag, Onibaba, removes another threat to their refuge.
Beside the river, the journey includes a less solemn task. At Miko's request, the hero obtains recipes and ingredients from the local Yokai and prepares Kappa Maki at the Funa-yurei Shrine. The river also shelters Nure Onna, a dangerous creature whom the hero defeats. Beyond this point, Miko cannot accompany the hero into the graveyard. Before they part, the bridge maiden Hashi Hime has a story that explains how the island's guardian became its enemy.
Kitsune and the Rift to the Yokai World
Hashi Hime remembers Kitsune as a guardian who once protected Yokai Island, even against Chaos. In her account, his hostility grew when Emperor Daisho welcomed outsiders to a land shared by humans and Yokai. Drakath offered him power, and the former protector accepted Chaos as the means to drive the newcomers away. Kitsune placed the Emperor under his influence and sought the Hanzamune Blade to open a rift and release O-dokuro. Hashi warns that the creature's destruction would reach beyond anything Kitsune could control.
In the graveyard, Neko Mata presents herself as a helpless resident troubled by undead creatures and invading Nopperabo. The hero deals with both, only to discover that her requests have been a diversion. She has been delaying the hero while Kitsune prepares the summoning. The hero defeats her, but the time she bought has already served its purpose.
O-dokuro rises as a gigantic skeleton above the rooftops. The hero defeats the Chaos Beast's body, yet its fallen head remains active among the bones. Yokai continue pouring through the rift. Hashi Hime sends the hero through their ranks to fight the head as well; only when this second battle is won can they pass toward Kitsune.
With the head defeated, the hero recovers the Hanzamune Blade that Kitsune has discarded. Miko directs the hero to use it against the opening he made: the sword that opened the rift must now close it. Reaching the breach requires another seemingly impossible ascent, through the Yokai streaming down from it.
The hero climbs the torrent and seals the rift. Watching from below, Miko and Obaasan connect the feat with the legend of the koi overcoming the waterfall, calling the hero the Legendary Dragon. Kitsune refuses to accept the closure. He intends to reopen the passage, but first turns on the hero who has stopped him.
Even after the battle, Kitsune insists that Yokai should rule over humans. The hero challenges his claim to speak for an island whose people still honor its spirits. Kitsune vanishes to attack unseen. Using the Hanzamune Blade, the hero opens another rift, and Kitsune is drawn back into the Yokai world despite his protests. The opening closes behind him.
Emperor Daisho regains himself and asks Miko what has happened. She welcomes her father back and thanks the hero for saving both the people and spirits of the island. With Kitsune gone and the Emperor freed from his control, the interrupted tournament finally returns to the hero's attention.
Ryoku appears, still trying to finish charging his attack. The hero knocks him down, forcing him to start again. Miko declares the hero the DragonKoi Tournament Champion at last. The farewell closes a contest that had become a struggle over who could belong on Yokai Island.