[Haruka5] Yuki's story: desolation and hope
Marathon'ed and completed chapters 3-5 within a night, with some grinding. I think my party is pretty much invincible now, lol over-levelling is a bad habit of mine when it comes to any RPG-like game. Some log of my thoughts from where I left off till my most current playthrough.
chapter 2: 邂逅
Chapter 2 was the LONGEST ever, as it introduces most of the cast and how they're related to each other and also Yuki learning about her duties as the Ryuujin no Miko. The timeline in this chapter is when the famous Ikedaya-jiken happened.
You meet Chinami, Okita, the Shinsengumi, Ryoma and Fukuchi in this chapter... all of which belong to different factions, but in the end come together. I can't remember what happened in full detail anymore, but at this point of time I felt that Yuki's character was pretty flat. It's like she's just はい、そうですか to everyone without much of a backbone UNTIL Miyako or Shun have a say. :/ I understand that in general most of the mikos have been nice but... not THIS nice. Or it could just be her constant 困った顔 sprite that's been in this chapter most of the time lolsobs I still think that Nozomi's the most iron-willed among all.
This chapter pretty much covers them looking for Suzaku, who was in fact held by none other than the Shinsengumi's Okita Souji. Yuki has a couple of chance meetings with him, like seeing him cough up his lungs and blood in a back alley. 8D; He drops his omamori charm and Yuki keeps going back to the Shinsengumi tonsho to give it back to him but they obvs won't let a simple missy waltz into their HQ. There was one point where Hijikata's like "What's so good about that Souji, aren't I better" LOLLLL IT'S REALLY HARD TO SWALLOW HIS CHARACTER. I'm too used to the mayo loving Hijikata in Gintama and Hakuouki's tsun Hiji. T_T;
Eventually they get caught up in the Ikedaya raid because Yuki wants to stop Suzaku, and she successfully did before Suzaku ate all of Okita's life force. Unfortunately she didn't get the seal, but Suzaku was at least cleansed.
After Ikedaya, she bumps into a very stricken looking Ryoma and ask him what's wrong, in which Ryoma's allies and some acquaintances (including his teacher) were killed in the raid. They talk for a bit, then Ryoma reveals that he's been holding onto Seiryuu (untainted) because it's a family heirloom of sorts. He gives the seal to her, in hopes that Yuki may be able to restore her world and the fact that he can't shake it that she is his...... AND THE CONVERSATION ENDS. Damn you for the cliff hangar!
Back to present time they go, Sou greets you and says that when one of the Shishin get purified, a part of their world returns when they place the seal onto a giant rock. So they did that for the Southern Seal, and wa-lah! A part does return. At this point Sou complains that they always abandon him but Yuki, being the nice girl she is, comforts him that they're not and until they get all four seals, they'll stay with him. Hah, this is when my alarm bells start ticking... you'll see why later.
chapter 3: 予兆
The motley band of Yuki, Chinami, Shun and Miyako set out to look for Suzaku and this time, they're followed by a ~*STALKER*~. Yuki gets the creeps and after the third time, on the count of three when all four turned around, they find Fukuchi stalking Yuki from behind loool However in a flash, he disappears.
In another place, they split up and Yuki goes on her own... absentmindedly, she bumps into someone and that someone is Fukuchi, who hugs her lol. At THAT exact moment, the remaining three spot their embrace and Miyako EXPLODES. I feel that Miyako and Chinami are the manzai combo in Haru5, they tend to argue a lot yet feel disgusted/creeped out by the same things. They're creeped out by Fukuchi, but Yuki says it's her fault for bumping into him and after some exchange, they find out that he's sort of an information monger and he sort of... invites himself to tag along (just to get close to Yuki). I find Fukuchi really odd, he's this really bashful person with SUPREME do-M tendencies when Yuki is nice to him brrrrrr o_o Super contrasting compared to his looks.
More stuff happens, you bump into Ernest (who recognises you) and Chinami leaves the party at the sight of Yuki speaking to a foreigner. Some tension happens, and Ernest conveniently speaks in English, talking about the people like they're barbarians. I'm pleased with the English... there are no grammatical errors and by far correct. Yuki understands him of course, because she studied in a foreign country and counters him XD Ernest is taken aback, haha!
You learn that the Choushuu faction are in town, and then the Hamaguri Rebellion takes place with Takasugi using Genbu to wreck havoc. Okita is seeing battling with Suzaku, and Yuki calms it down and returns it to its sealed state. Suzaku seal get! However at that point, Takasugi retreats and they set out to find him again.
Later that night, some place is set ablaze and the gang meet the Satsuma clan at the place. Komatsu appears to be very cold, and doesn't believe that Yuki is strong enough to be the miko as she is reluctant to cleanse the kagerou; people-turned-demons because they just cannot rest. Eventually she does, with a heavy heart. They then part ways. At this point of time you've got Okita and Fukuchi in your party :)
chapter 4: 対決
Everyone sets out from Kyou to Choushuu, to negotiate with the Satsuma clan on obtaining Byakko... after Fukuchi finds out that Komatsu is holding it. At an inn, they bump into Ryoma and his teacher (who was alive), and his teacher tells Ryoma to follow Yuki (YAAAAY :D)... as Ryoma's got connections with Komatsu, so dealing with the Satsuma clan might actually be easier.
Upon reaching the Satsuma HQ, Komatsu tells them that Byakko ran away. Yes, somehow. He doesn't understand either. He makes a deal with Yuki that if she gets to Byakko first, she gets to keep his seal and vice versa. They head to the port area and there are rumors that a white cat demon (LOL SO OBVIOUS) terrorizes Yamaguchi at night, so they stake out that very night. Turns out it is Byakko, they give him a nice beating and claim ownership.
Everyone gathers back at the Satsuma HQ and after Komatsu makes a proposal to Yuki in joining forces, their hourglass blinks and it's time's up for the modern day gang. They're then spiralled back into present time. Rinse repeat the same action for the seals, and all that's left is Genbu.
chapter 5: 崩壊
There is unrest as the Four Western Powers (America, England, Holland and France) are advancing at Shimonoseki with their warships. Everywhere, the foreigners are running for their lives and
everyone's all like "OWH YEAH LET'S GO BEAT TAKASUGI AND TAKE HIS PET TURTLE AWAY", including the Shinsengumi who sent out their forces (with Hiji).
While heading towards the battlefield, Ernest is escaping with a few delegates and they bump into each other. Apparently Komatsu knows Ernest and offered to protect him and his men, on condition that Ernest stays and sees that the Japanese people aren't barbarians as he thought they are. So now you almost have everyone already... Neways, it's off to Odaiba they go.
The battle's begun, and Takasugi tells them that all this while the Bakufu's the one that's been manipulating the onryou and kagerou. Yuki is doubtful, and they fight Genbu anyway. Upon sealing Genbu and cleansing him, Takasugi is like "DON'T DO THATTTT" but TOO LATE. The ground starts shaking violently, and in the sky you see both the Black/White dragons... dying. The death of a god? How is this possible? NOBODY HAS ANY IDEA. But the world grows unstable and everyone is thrown into a vacuum.
The entire party return to Yuki's desolate world, and this is where shit hits the fan. Big time.
I knew something wasn't right with Sou. The minute everyone appeared and are in a daze, Sou steals Genbu's seal from Yuki and runs off. Everyone chases after him and pleads him (like a child) to give it back, and then you see Sou turn yandere and hell freezes over. He places the seal on the rock, and instead of restoring the world to it's original balance, it destroys it further. He then summons the Shikyou 「四凶」, the four inauspicious beasts in Chinese mythology... they're beasts from the Magatsukami in this, apparently. Yuki is reeling in from the shock of everything going to pieces, from the fact that suddenly Miyako collapses from being chosen by the (new) Kokuryuu and that Sou and Shun are descendants of the Hoshi no Ichizoku (was quite surprised they brought this back!). Sou wants to run away from his fate of serving the miko, and wants to create his own world-- a desolate and empty one. Shun reproves and says that even if it's his little brother, he has to be taken down.
Sou runs amok with the beasts and beats everyone to a pulp, while going insane from the sound of a bell that keeps ringing louder and louder. Turns out that the bell is the reborn Hakuryuu's calling to Yuki, and Yuki accepts herself as the Hakuryuu no Miko. Hakuryuu uses her power (yes, both dragons are females this time! :D) and Sou retreats with his minions. Yuki blacks out.
She regains consciousness in their own house, and Shun finally spills the beans about his ancestry and explains about the whole Ryuujin, Hoshi no Ichizoku and Hachiyou business. It's nice that they don't shove this fact into your face straight away unlike the previous ones... it's like everything happened by chance, or by a chain of events. Upon realizing that there are exactly 8 of them (minus the mikos) in the room, everyone is like "what WHY am I exactly a Hachiyou?" and they give reasons NOT to follow Yuki. Which is understandable, because they all have their loyalties and they didn't even come from their world... so they won't exactly help out. Although crestfallen, Yuki agrees and calls upon Hakuryuu to send them back to their original world.
After that, Miyako and Shun asks her what she wants to do now. Miyako said she'll help out in any way she can, as the Kokuryuu no Miko (that nasty bell she was hearing as a kid was actually in fact, Kokuryuu calling out to her). I chose the option of 「私たちの世界を取り戻したい」, and then with a new determination, they set out to go back to the ancient world to settle things.
chapter 2: 邂逅
Chapter 2 was the LONGEST ever, as it introduces most of the cast and how they're related to each other and also Yuki learning about her duties as the Ryuujin no Miko. The timeline in this chapter is when the famous Ikedaya-jiken happened.
You meet Chinami, Okita, the Shinsengumi, Ryoma and Fukuchi in this chapter... all of which belong to different factions, but in the end come together. I can't remember what happened in full detail anymore, but at this point of time I felt that Yuki's character was pretty flat. It's like she's just はい、そうですか to everyone without much of a backbone UNTIL Miyako or Shun have a say. :/ I understand that in general most of the mikos have been nice but... not THIS nice. Or it could just be her constant 困った顔 sprite that's been in this chapter most of the time lolsobs I still think that Nozomi's the most iron-willed among all.
This chapter pretty much covers them looking for Suzaku, who was in fact held by none other than the Shinsengumi's Okita Souji. Yuki has a couple of chance meetings with him, like seeing him cough up his lungs and blood in a back alley. 8D; He drops his omamori charm and Yuki keeps going back to the Shinsengumi tonsho to give it back to him but they obvs won't let a simple missy waltz into their HQ. There was one point where Hijikata's like "What's so good about that Souji, aren't I better" LOLLLL IT'S REALLY HARD TO SWALLOW HIS CHARACTER. I'm too used to the mayo loving Hijikata in Gintama and Hakuouki's tsun Hiji. T_T;
Eventually they get caught up in the Ikedaya raid because Yuki wants to stop Suzaku, and she successfully did before Suzaku ate all of Okita's life force. Unfortunately she didn't get the seal, but Suzaku was at least cleansed.
After Ikedaya, she bumps into a very stricken looking Ryoma and ask him what's wrong, in which Ryoma's allies and some acquaintances (including his teacher) were killed in the raid. They talk for a bit, then Ryoma reveals that he's been holding onto Seiryuu (untainted) because it's a family heirloom of sorts. He gives the seal to her, in hopes that Yuki may be able to restore her world and the fact that he can't shake it that she is his...... AND THE CONVERSATION ENDS. Damn you for the cliff hangar!
Back to present time they go, Sou greets you and says that when one of the Shishin get purified, a part of their world returns when they place the seal onto a giant rock. So they did that for the Southern Seal, and wa-lah! A part does return. At this point Sou complains that they always abandon him but Yuki, being the nice girl she is, comforts him that they're not and until they get all four seals, they'll stay with him. Hah, this is when my alarm bells start ticking... you'll see why later.
chapter 3: 予兆
The motley band of Yuki, Chinami, Shun and Miyako set out to look for Suzaku and this time, they're followed by a ~*STALKER*~. Yuki gets the creeps and after the third time, on the count of three when all four turned around, they find Fukuchi stalking Yuki from behind loool However in a flash, he disappears.
In another place, they split up and Yuki goes on her own... absentmindedly, she bumps into someone and that someone is Fukuchi, who hugs her lol. At THAT exact moment, the remaining three spot their embrace and Miyako EXPLODES. I feel that Miyako and Chinami are the manzai combo in Haru5, they tend to argue a lot yet feel disgusted/creeped out by the same things. They're creeped out by Fukuchi, but Yuki says it's her fault for bumping into him and after some exchange, they find out that he's sort of an information monger and he sort of... invites himself to tag along (just to get close to Yuki). I find Fukuchi really odd, he's this really bashful person with SUPREME do-M tendencies when Yuki is nice to him brrrrrr o_o Super contrasting compared to his looks.
More stuff happens, you bump into Ernest (who recognises you) and Chinami leaves the party at the sight of Yuki speaking to a foreigner. Some tension happens, and Ernest conveniently speaks in English, talking about the people like they're barbarians. I'm pleased with the English... there are no grammatical errors and by far correct. Yuki understands him of course, because she studied in a foreign country and counters him XD Ernest is taken aback, haha!
You learn that the Choushuu faction are in town, and then the Hamaguri Rebellion takes place with Takasugi using Genbu to wreck havoc. Okita is seeing battling with Suzaku, and Yuki calms it down and returns it to its sealed state. Suzaku seal get! However at that point, Takasugi retreats and they set out to find him again.
Later that night, some place is set ablaze and the gang meet the Satsuma clan at the place. Komatsu appears to be very cold, and doesn't believe that Yuki is strong enough to be the miko as she is reluctant to cleanse the kagerou; people-turned-demons because they just cannot rest. Eventually she does, with a heavy heart. They then part ways. At this point of time you've got Okita and Fukuchi in your party :)
chapter 4: 対決
Everyone sets out from Kyou to Choushuu, to negotiate with the Satsuma clan on obtaining Byakko... after Fukuchi finds out that Komatsu is holding it. At an inn, they bump into Ryoma and his teacher (who was alive), and his teacher tells Ryoma to follow Yuki (YAAAAY :D)... as Ryoma's got connections with Komatsu, so dealing with the Satsuma clan might actually be easier.
Upon reaching the Satsuma HQ, Komatsu tells them that Byakko ran away. Yes, somehow. He doesn't understand either. He makes a deal with Yuki that if she gets to Byakko first, she gets to keep his seal and vice versa. They head to the port area and there are rumors that a white cat demon (LOL SO OBVIOUS) terrorizes Yamaguchi at night, so they stake out that very night. Turns out it is Byakko, they give him a nice beating and claim ownership.
Everyone gathers back at the Satsuma HQ and after Komatsu makes a proposal to Yuki in joining forces, their hourglass blinks and it's time's up for the modern day gang. They're then spiralled back into present time. Rinse repeat the same action for the seals, and all that's left is Genbu.
chapter 5: 崩壊
There is unrest as the Four Western Powers (America, England, Holland and France) are advancing at Shimonoseki with their warships. Everywhere, the foreigners are running for their lives and
everyone's all like "OWH YEAH LET'S GO BEAT TAKASUGI AND TAKE HIS PET TURTLE AWAY", including the Shinsengumi who sent out their forces (with Hiji).
While heading towards the battlefield, Ernest is escaping with a few delegates and they bump into each other. Apparently Komatsu knows Ernest and offered to protect him and his men, on condition that Ernest stays and sees that the Japanese people aren't barbarians as he thought they are. So now you almost have everyone already... Neways, it's off to Odaiba they go.
The battle's begun, and Takasugi tells them that all this while the Bakufu's the one that's been manipulating the onryou and kagerou. Yuki is doubtful, and they fight Genbu anyway. Upon sealing Genbu and cleansing him, Takasugi is like "DON'T DO THATTTT" but TOO LATE. The ground starts shaking violently, and in the sky you see both the Black/White dragons... dying. The death of a god? How is this possible? NOBODY HAS ANY IDEA. But the world grows unstable and everyone is thrown into a vacuum.
The entire party return to Yuki's desolate world, and this is where shit hits the fan. Big time.
I knew something wasn't right with Sou. The minute everyone appeared and are in a daze, Sou steals Genbu's seal from Yuki and runs off. Everyone chases after him and pleads him (like a child) to give it back, and then you see Sou turn yandere and hell freezes over. He places the seal on the rock, and instead of restoring the world to it's original balance, it destroys it further. He then summons the Shikyou 「四凶」, the four inauspicious beasts in Chinese mythology... they're beasts from the Magatsukami in this, apparently. Yuki is reeling in from the shock of everything going to pieces, from the fact that suddenly Miyako collapses from being chosen by the (new) Kokuryuu and that Sou and Shun are descendants of the Hoshi no Ichizoku (was quite surprised they brought this back!). Sou wants to run away from his fate of serving the miko, and wants to create his own world-- a desolate and empty one. Shun reproves and says that even if it's his little brother, he has to be taken down.
Sou runs amok with the beasts and beats everyone to a pulp, while going insane from the sound of a bell that keeps ringing louder and louder. Turns out that the bell is the reborn Hakuryuu's calling to Yuki, and Yuki accepts herself as the Hakuryuu no Miko. Hakuryuu uses her power (yes, both dragons are females this time! :D) and Sou retreats with his minions. Yuki blacks out.
She regains consciousness in their own house, and Shun finally spills the beans about his ancestry and explains about the whole Ryuujin, Hoshi no Ichizoku and Hachiyou business. It's nice that they don't shove this fact into your face straight away unlike the previous ones... it's like everything happened by chance, or by a chain of events. Upon realizing that there are exactly 8 of them (minus the mikos) in the room, everyone is like "what WHY am I exactly a Hachiyou?" and they give reasons NOT to follow Yuki. Which is understandable, because they all have their loyalties and they didn't even come from their world... so they won't exactly help out. Although crestfallen, Yuki agrees and calls upon Hakuryuu to send them back to their original world.
After that, Miyako and Shun asks her what she wants to do now. Miyako said she'll help out in any way she can, as the Kokuryuu no Miko (that nasty bell she was hearing as a kid was actually in fact, Kokuryuu calling out to her). I chose the option of 「私たちの世界を取り戻したい」, and then with a new determination, they set out to go back to the ancient world to settle things.