jigokulogs | APRIL 2022 EVENT

1. HANAMI

The week of the Night Parade is marked by the traditional symbols of Spring in Japan. Somehow, several city blocks have been turned into cherry blossom groves as a show of goodwill by the Sutoku Alliance. These cherry trees don't feel normal. They are more like spectral manifestations. Rumor has it they grew so quickly because they're planted on top of a graveyard. That's just a rumor, though. Don't pay it any mind! Don't listen to any whispers you might hear if you walk through the rows of trees alone and certainly don't dig under them for proof of their provenance.

Accompanying the hanami are copious amounts of food and drink. Such as dango, specialized bento, sake, and festive drinks. They are all available to purchase from stalls near the spectral grove. The refreshments may have a little something special added to them:
Ingredients that promote peace (calming any angry or upset feelings)
Ingredients that promote romance (gives soft, warm feelings towards the first person you see).
These effects are mild and only last as long as you're in the boundary of the grove. Eat, drink, and be merry with your fellow lost souls.

2. KANAMARA MATSURI (NSFW IMAGERY)

In addition to the simple joys of flower viewing and the cherry blossoms blooming, new festivals pop everywhere. They are inspired by various regional festivals from all over Japan. Some of these are benign and feature your normal festival fair. Others are a little more unusual, such as the Kanamara matsuri-inspired treats. You can thank the Tamamo Clan for this. Don't mind the giant phallus being carried down the street or the wooden phalluses you can ride on or the interesting mascots walking down the sidewalk, or the suggestive vegetable carvings.

Surprisingly, none of these foods are spiked, at least not more than the experimental recipes had been during the parade preparations. The spirit of the thing is more just the amusement of genital-based foods rather than anything meant to entice a sexy sort of good time. That will come as the parade rounds out onto the bath district...

3. HADAKA MATSURI

cw: nonsexual nudity

If that cheeky festival isn't your kind of fun, maybe the hadaka matsuri is more your speed. The Department of the Enma are probably the most stressed out faction in the entire city, so the Enma has allowed them to put on a festival to blow off some steam! It's a bit different from the traditional celebration: it's not contained to just men and it's not contained to a shrine.

This event is a mobile mob of nearly naked people and youkai running after a cart with a masked person throwing out small sticks. They represent good luck for the people who manage to nab them. There are far fewer sticks than there are people present and everyone will do a lot to get one of the coveted prizes. Try not to get in their way!

Or you can get caught up in it all and try to snag one yourself to see what your fortune holds. (No, the Enma isn't participating. Too dirty, for his tastes.)

4. FESTIVE FUN

A. SUMO
Some other festivities you might come across are miniature sumo tournaments put on by the Shuten Clan. Raised dirt circles with chalk rings on the outer perimeter pop up seemingly everywhere. Two people are allowed in the ring at one time and there are strict rules to be followed. If you disobey the rules, you may find yourself suddenly ejected from the ring with magical or physical means, and at the mercy of a Shuten enforcer.

Play by the rules to beat your opponent and victors will find themselves rewarded with a strong bottle of booze. The winners of each bout are handed out a commendation by Toraguma himself, which comes in the form of a commemorative sake gourd. This is probably the kind of prize you'd expect from an Oni at a festival like this.

B. FOOD RUNNERS WANTED
If you're in the mood to pad your pockets, maybe you want to help the Tamamo Clan out by running food delivery. This opportunity is available to anyone regardless of affiliation. Runners will be fitted with a contraption to carry the food orders on their person and may proceed either on foot or on a small motorbike. Be careful and make sure not to drop anything! Any ruined or undelivered orders will come directly out of your pay.

It's harder than it looks not to drop the food with all the excitement going on and your delivery recipient may be similarly hard to locate.

C. HOT BATHS (NSFW + cw: optional aphro)
The Tamamo Clan has set up a sanctioned orgy in one of their larger brothels. Rooms are available for whatever your heart desires, including one with exposed windows if you like being watched or if you want to watch in kind. Baths and pools are available for all your indulgent fantasies. Everything you could need is at your disposal: toys, restraints, costumes, lubricants, condoms, aphrodisiacs in many forms. It's a proper bacchanal celebration!

All that matters is your consent and enthusiasm.

5. NIGHT PARADE

One of the primary highlights of the Night Parade are the fantastical floats depicting scenes of legendary events. Keen-eyed observers may note that the humans are portrayed as the bad guys in most of them. While a few of these are mounted on motorized vehicles, most of them are carried by people. That means you'll probably be called on to help carry one along the parade route. It's a fun job, if exhausting.

If you're not the type to wear yourself out carrying a float, ride on one instead! There's plenty of things to toss out into the crowd along the street; candies and trinkets. Dress up in a fitting costume and walk around the float. Have fun scaring bystanders or just have fun hamming it up and celebrate the peaceful night.

5. FIREWORKS

The parade's central stop is the festival square in the heart of the city, just under the shadow of the Kaigo no Bou Tower. There is a stage set up here where the four faction leaders and their personal entourages have assembled. All of them are giving pretty typical speeches. The Enma has declined to give one, having no patience for unnecessary oration. Tenkohime gives praise to the unifying factors of love in the city, while Toraguma rallies the crowd like a sports hero; encouraging them to get stronger and do better in the coming year.

The Daitengu is the last to speak and they also seem to have the largest entourage. The entourage is quite conspicuous: White Wolf Tengu, each standing well-taller than the Daitengu themselves. They are carrying massive broadswords strapped to their backs and hunting about the area for anything suspicious with keen eyes that seem to see right through the crowd and the heat of night.

The Daitengu's speech is also pretty typical, although much more humble than their fellows. Mostly, they just wants to hurry up and get to the fireworks. Just as they finish speaking, the sky lights up.
There are a few peaceful moments beneath this spectacle as the crowd enjoys the display of unity and phantasmal wonder that this unique and strange world has created.

But the explosions aren't just in the sky. One particularly loud boom seems to rattle the very earth beneath the crowd. That is the only warning anyone gets before...

6. A NIGHT PARADE TO REMEMBER

Every manhole cover on the street bursts open, injuring anyone that was standing nearby. Far worse is the deluge of steam that rushes out from the underground. Pillars of hot, blinding steam spill into the air, quickly filling the streets. The luminescence of the festival lamps and city lights are diffused and blurred into singular blobs of color, obscuring all vision and making it impossible to see what's going on. The panicked cries of the crowd also make it impossible to hear. Everything happens so suddenly, so violently, that ascertaining what's going on takes time.

Too much time.

In the chaos, gunshots are heard. They seem to come from several directions. Fighting is breaking out. It's difficult to tell from where and who is in the brawl. Previously unseen figures in full-body black coverings appear from nowhere, rushing the stage. They zoom past any Lost Souls nearby, ignoring their presence. They are focused on a singular goal. The barking of the White Wolf Tengu further indicates the goal of the attack.

Struggle in the steam, help others get to safety, get caught up in fighting the other factions, try to protect the Faction leaders, or try to keep up with the black-suited youkai rushing the stage; do as much as you can.

When the steam finally begins to clear, however, there will at least be one thing that is certain: the Daitengu has been killed.

Welcome to the April event!

If you have any questions about event content, please ask them here!
We also have OOC top levels for Shuten Sumo Results, Tamamo Partner Cards, and Hadaka Luck Draws!
If you have questions about the game itself, please check out the premise, FAQ, and rules pages.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[if it was truly the sutoku that removed their own daitengu, then yes, it would be treachery. but nehan thinks it's an inappropriate word to use if someone from another clan or even someone unaffiliated did so.

things to think about, as he finally tapes patches of gauze onto the wounds.]

And you? Where will you be? [an important question that he must know the answer to, in case his clan decides to make a move during the chaos. if he knows where some of the pieces are, then he can plan for his own survival. he doesn't want to tip his hand too early and reveal to the enma officers he knows that he's not actually one of them. how none of them know he hasn't been to any meetings yet, the erune hs no idea. then again, does enma even have meetings? is the police station just a farce?]

Once the dust has settled and the higher-ups have definitely called officers to rally, what will you do?

My duty, obviously.

[ Van Zieks does not think this is much of a question, though he does clarify further after a beat: ]

I feel no particular loyalty to the Enma, but I share his commitment to keeping order. The culprits behind this assassination need to be apprehended and I will do my part in ensuring as much.

[ He has yet to be confronted with orders that actually go against his moral codex and he hopes that it will still be a bit before he has to try and rules lawyer himself out of such a thing... ]

[nehan doesn't think that's a good answer-- but it's an answer for a typical meatheaded do-gooder. not a new one, not a surprising one, but a disappointing one, he doesn't get a lot of mileage or information out of it.

oh well.

with his work almost done, all he needs to do now is cover up the wounds, and he presses gauze on them, sticking them to the skin with tape and bandaids.]

I wish you good luck, then, and I'll do my part. A person or group brazen enough to attack during the Night Parade... I believe those sorts will strike another leader again. I'd rather not see the city fall into chaos.

They certainly will, if we prove that we cannot respond adequately to this.

[ Even if this might have been a matter internal for Sutoku, the organization of the city cannot show weakness now. As much as van Zieks does not find the current structure of Jigoku-Chou to be worth protecting, he does not want to see it toppled through violent means and resulting civil war. ]

Do you actually believe there is any chance that a single person planned this?

[ He does not sound credulous. ]

No. I feel it was too sophisticated-- too much planning involved. No single person can think of all the possibilities when something of this scale is what they're working towards.

[then the erune shakes his head, ears swaying with the motion, as he starts to pack up what's left of his meager supplies.]

This was a group of people working together. That makes this even more dangerous, given we don't know who they are.

[ Van Zieks meanwhile is very glad to be putting his layers of clothing back on. He is not the type to enjoy showing any skin that isn't just his head. ]

My thoughts exactly. And I doubt that it is as simple as a conspiracy that centers the Kappa - they were involved with something, but it appears more likely than anything that they are the designated scapegoat for this event.

[nehan huffs. of course talk is centered around the kappa.]

I'm not surprised. They were involved in the planning of the Parade, and were not the most gracious to any assistants.

I assisted in marking out the route, but that particular tribe refused to even let me anywhere near their area of... work, even if it was part of the whole affair. If there are rumors flying, it's either because there's a grain of truth to them, or the kappa have brought it on themselves for acting like they have something to hide.

It is exactly that they were acting so obviously suspicious that makes me doubt their position as the masterminds. This assassination was meticulously planned. Leaving such an obvious trail to the culprits would be nothing but foolish.

And I do not believe the Kappa are capable of the level of deception where they would factor in that level of reasoning and intentionally scapegoat themselves for the crime they actually committed in order to claim having been framed.

[ He might just be really species-ist here (he is), but he simply does not think they look that conniving... ]

APRIL 2022 EVENT

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