Puzzle Solutions in New Game+ Mode: “Sacred Sword” and “Crimson Water”

Sacred Sword
This artifact plays a key role in two different endings — “Ebisugaoka in Silence” and “The Fox Got Its Tail Wet.”

• If you already completed the story with the “Fox” ending, the blade will appear much earlier in New Game+. You’ll be able to find it at the second Jizo statue on the road leading to Rinko’s house.

• If the weapon is still locked, you must fulfill a more difficult requirement: locate all five Jizo statues and make an offering to each one.

Offerings for the five Jizo statues:

• First statue — before Hinako heads to town. On the slope, look for a red mailbox near a bicycle and a wooden fence. The statue is on the corner. Offering: Faded Bride Doll (inside the house up the slope; locked in first playthrough, unlocked in NG+).

• Second statue — on the path to Rinko’s house. North of the rice fields, the road splits: left goes to the Shonnenshugi shrine, right to a dead end with a fenced area. The statue is in the grove beyond. Offering: Rusty Flask (near the stone structure at Shonnenshugi shrine).

• Third statue — near the middle school, among houses in the southeast corner of the district. Offering: Broken Geta Sandals (across the ruined bridge). ⚠️ If you enter the school before making the offering, you can’t return to this statue.

• Fourth statue — on the way to Shu’s house. After defeating the Mist Monster and reaching the hokora shrine, head north. The statue is beside a wooden fence on the right. Offering: Cracked Hibachi Brazier (behind Shu’s shed).

• Fifth statue — in a small village to the west, on the road back to Ebisugaoka. It stands behind one of the houses. Offering: Father’s Old Kitchen Knife (stuck in a tree east of the statue).

However, simply obtaining the sword is not enough — it must be purified to unlock its true power. This condition is easy to miss, especially if you never reached the “Fox” ending. Without purification, the path to that ending will remain closed.

• The means to purify the blade is located in Ebisugaoka, but it can only be activated through the Otherworld.

• The ritual must be performed before the first time you acquire the sword. If you already unlocked the weapon in a previous save, finding and preparing it will be much easier.

Crimson Water (NG+)

• In the ritual hall, go back through the corridor and open the locked door. To do this, you’ll need the Brooch, which is only awarded after finishing your first playthrough. This cannot be done in a regular New Game.

• Head to the second floor, into the room with the hole in the floor (the place where you received the Kuzu emblem during the second ritual). Inside is an inventory upgrade and a wall you can now interact with. Use the brooch to unlock the path to the Sanctum of Crimson Water.

On the small island with the Inari statues and the massive stone, examine the stone to receive a clue. The inscription reads:

“When the shishi-odoshi strikes for the first time, the bell shall ring.
Three times the bells must recount the legends of this land.
Beneath the great stone lies the water dragon, born in the age of gods and sealed by the ancestors.
When its spirit was taken, the once-mighty tree withered.”

The meaning is in the first line: each time the shishi-odoshi strikes, you must ring a bell — a total of three times.

Shishi-odoshi is a traditional bamboo water feature: when filled, it tips over and strikes a stone with a deep sound. The strike can be heard from afar, so you don’t need to see it — just listen carefully.

• Every time you hear the strike, ring the correct bell.

• You have a short interval between strikes, but missing one resets the sequence.

There are five bells on the island, each tied to an element:

• Water — near the stone and Inari statues,

• Fire — at the end of the hill,

• Wood — along the path linking the left and right sides of the island,

• Metal — on the right, at the bottom of the slope,

• Earth — on the balcony of the building at the hilltop.

The correct sequence comes from the legend:

• The great stone = Earth,

• The abyss beneath the stone = Water,

• The withered tree = Wood.
  
• Order: Earth → Water → Wood.

⚠️ Timing matters: strike slightly after the shishi-odoshi sound, not at the exact moment or too early. A mistake forces you to restart.

If performed correctly:

• a unique sound will echo,

• the water around the island will turn crimson.

This is the confirmation of success. Returning to the real world, you will then be able to purify the Sacred Sword at the thousand-year-old cedar.