In this crossover anime, Yoshikage Kira longs for a peaceful life.

"Even if the written language has disappeared, traditions must not be forgotten. This is an important mission of our Miyamizu Shrine."

Sakura nodded as if she understood, while Miyamizu Ichiyo smiled and looked at Kira Yoshikage opposite her:

"Perfect timing! Would you like to come with me to the shrine to offer prayers?"

"May I?"

"Of course you can. Even if you just go for a trip or a visit, the gods will never blame you."

"but,"

After a brief pause, Miyamizu Ichiyo smiled kindly and reminded him:

"The journey is a bit long, so it's best for very young children to stay here and not miss out on their precious time."

Yoshikage Kira seemed lost in thought:

"Then, Amber, Emerald, and Sakura, you stay here and wait for me. Fujino, you stay here and take care of them until I return."

Asagami Fujino initially wanted to volunteer, but after a long silence, she chose to compromise and obediently nodded:

"it is good."

Miyamizu Ichiyo stood up, supporting herself on the table. Miyamizu Futaba quickly handed her her cane and helped her out the door.

Before leaving, Miyamizu Ichiyo gave him some instructions:

"Futaba, remember to bring the offerings."

Miyamizu Shrine is not located in Itomori Town; it can only be reached by crossing mountains and valleys.

Just as Miyamizu Ichiyo said, it was a very long journey.

The first half is within the town, where there are still some open mountain paths to walk on, but the second half is entirely through the mountains and forests.

Because no one usually comes here, there is naturally no road that has been built by human hands.

After all.

For over a hundred years, only Miyamizu Ichiyo has come to the shrine to offer prayers.

Do you know about the spirit of birth?

Her voice was old, yet strangely persuasive.

"That is the guardian spirit of the land, called MUSUBI 'Muraku-ryo' in ancient language. This name has a profound meaning."

"What binds the threads together is the spirit, what binds people together is also the spirit, the flow of time is also the spirit—all of it uses the same language. This is the divine name, the divine power. The knots I weave are also God's masterpiece, containing the flow of time!"

The brook flowed gently, making a splashing sound as they traveled.

"Gather the threads, shape them, twist them, rewind them, sometimes they return to their original state, break them, and then reconnect them. This is time, this is the creation of spirit."

The clear stream water washes over the pebbles, splashing and dancing on the surface.

But no matter how the stream branches out, it will always converge downstream.

unless--

Wow!

Beavers build dikes downstream using branches, stones, and soft mud, which remain unmoved no matter how the stream erodes them.

Only a small amount of stream water manages to splash out of the dam when it washes over it, but most of the stream water is still firmly blocked by the dam, hitting the dam and bouncing back, in a never-ending cycle.

Gradually, the stream downstream became smaller and smaller.

As more and more stream water was blocked by the dam upstream, it began to erode the dam more forcefully, trying to create a breach.

But the beaver refused to give up, and continued to build the dam higher and higher with stones, and filled all the gaps in the dam with mud, until all the stream water was blocked by the dam, until there was no more water downstream, until this once vibrant stream completely lost its future.

The trees ahead disappeared without us noticing, and half of the town, where the lake, the size of a sketchbook, was located, was now covered by clouds. The thin, transparent, and shimmering clouds overhead dissolved little by little in the strong wind and drifted into the distance at a speed visible to the naked eye, surrounded by rocks covered only by moss.

Finally, we reached the summit.

The mountaintop is not flat; below it is a depression resembling the interior of a volcano.

The interior of the depression is a wetland covered in green, with a towering tree standing near the center.

"Right there, the sacred body of Miyamizu Shrine."

Standing atop the mountain, Miyamizu Ichiyo pointed to the giant tree in the depression, her eyes filled with longing.

At the bottom of the depression, a stream flows around the giant tree.

The clear stream flows around the giant tree in a closed loop, with no visible source or end, yet it flows gently and full of vitality.

"The hidden world lies ahead."

Miyamizu Ichiyo stopped in front of the stream. "To return to this side, you must exchange your most precious possession, Futaba."

Miyamizu Futaba opened the bag she was carrying and took out a white porcelain bottle.

The white, glossy pottery has a base about five centimeters in diameter, wider at the bottom than at the top. The lid is sealed with a knotted rope, and liquid swirls and tinkles inside.

The girl's cheeks flushed slightly, because this was wine she had made herself.

Chewing wine.

What if I don't want to pay the price?

Miyamizu Futaba looked at Kira Yoshikage in surprise, completely bewildered as to why he would suddenly say such a thing.

Miyamizu Ichiyo's smile remained kind:

“It’s alright, the gods will answer your questions; you’ll find the answers you seek there. But,”

Miyamizu Ichiyo looked up at the already yellowing sky and solemnly warned:

"Remember to leave before dusk, otherwise the other side you reach will no longer be the present."

"dusk?"

Kira Yoshikage seemed to understand something, and stepped across the stream. He seemed to have a special connection with dusk.

"I understand, Grandma."

Holding the porcelain bottle, Futaba Miyamizu followed Yoshikage Kira toward the towering tree in the center. The tree stood majestically, its roots wrapped around a huge rock, making it impossible to tell whether the tree was a divine entity, the rock a divine entity, or both.

There are small steps in the gaps between the roots and the rocks, leading down to a small shrine.

On the small stone altar of the shrine, two bottles of kuchikami-zake (a type of sake made by chewing rice) are neatly arranged.

"Hey, why is that..."

Miyamizu Futaba was somewhat surprised. No one else but the Miyamizu family would come here, so why were there two bottles of kuchikamizu (chewed rice wine)?

Despite her deep bewilderment, Miyamizu Futaba respectfully placed the sake she had brought on the altar and prayed sincerely with her hands clasped together.

Kira Yoshikage glanced discreetly at the girl's clasped hands, while muttering to himself:

"Killer Queen!"

The pink cat floated in the air and, at Kira Yoshikage's command, stretched out its 'abs' to reveal its hollow abdomen.

Clang!

The big pink cat grabbed all three bottles of kuchikami (chewed sake) from the altar, making a clattering sound as they collided.

The pink cat handed one of the bottles to Yoshikage Kira, and then ate the other two.

No confirmation is required.

His intuition told him that this bottle of kuchikami (chewed sake) was from Mitsuba.

Although Mitsuha has not yet been born, this is indeed a sacrifice placed here by the future Mitsuha.

In theory.

Yoshikage Kira only needs to take Mitsuha's kuchikami sake to achieve his goal.

Since we've already come all this way, we can't just leave empty-handed, can we?

Furthermore.

This doesn't count as him stealing offerings from the gods.

It's at most ten.

Snapped!

Untie the knot and remove the wooden peg.

The aroma of rice wine wafts out, and with the help of a dim light, the wine is crystal clear, with tiny granular substances floating everywhere.

Yoshikage Kira took a sip.

It has a sweet and fragrant taste, and tastes excellent.

So he drank it all in one gulp.

Snapped!

The pristine white porcelain bottle slipped from his palm, and the pink cat quickly caught it, stuffing it into the cavity of his abdomen.

At the same time, Yoshikage Kira's consciousness gradually detached from his body.

It felt like rising into the sky, or falling into the sea, with the sound of water filling my ears.

And then there was the girl's ethereal, melodious, gentle whisper, like a murmur or a cry:

"Father...time...will be over soon...wake up...please wake up as soon as possible."

In an instant, the sky and the sea disappeared.

The world began to spin, as if to turn into a vortex and pull his soul into it.

Inside the shrine, Miyamizu Mitsuha still had her eyes closed, while Miyamizu Futaba was still praying sincerely.

Snapped!

It sounded like a crisp snap of fingers, or like the explosion of a balloon being punctured, mixed with the crisp sound of a mirror being shattered.

"Huh?"

Miyamizu Mitsuha opened her eyes, looking somewhat confused and bewildered.

Where is this place?