Let's Settle It! Japan's Strongest Master of Tea Ceremony
Komahime is practicing making tea, but it's still really bad. Even having good ingredients, the best tools, and Rikyu teaching her doesn't seem to help. She figures she has absolutely no talent for this stuff, and just wants to give up and get tea from a vending machine instead (which Rikyu feels ashamed of). Suddenly Yamanami enters the room all stressed. On the bridge, they explain to you that the Singularity has somehow reappeared, even though it was supposed to have collapsed completely already. Da Vinci says it's probably something to do with the remaining black blood, but a bit different this time. She also shows you an image:
The whole place has been flooded by tea. Mashu points out that the thing in the middle looks like a "tea pillar" (茶柱), which is basically when you have a tea stalk which floats upright in your cup, and is considered a lucky sign. Regardless of what it is, someone appears on the intercom (using that Nazgúl sprite and no nameplate). It greets the Servants of Chaldea, thanking for their help in New Yamataikoku. Nobu remarks that the voice sounds pretty robotic, and Da Vinci seems to think they're modulating their voice. You ask who they are, and they say you can just call them "Mysterious Tea Master X". Nobu is (just like me fr) getting sick of all these mysterious X's and whatnot. TeaX says that in this reinstated world, they'll hold the "Grand Kitano Tea Ceremony Budō Gathering" (北野大茶湯武道会)!
Mashu explains what the Grand Kitano Tea Ceremony is (just check the link above) and says she learned about this because she became interested in tea when you were out fighting the ancestral beast, so she just went to the library and hit it up. However, she didn't find anything related to Budō (basically refers to martial arts) with it. TeaX says it'll be an event to determine the strongest master of tea ceremony. Nobu says there's no way she'll go to something as shady as this, but TeaX tries to lure you in by showing another Grail. But this is a grail which has been used to hold tea, so it's a Holy Tea Grail. Anyone who drinks tea from this would surpass Servants by a landslide (titledrop almost).
Rikyu gives some more info on this, among other things how it was supposed to last 10 days but ended up only lasting 1 for unknown reasons. Rikyu basically says that the reason was actually because the fighting was so fierce the tea masters were injured. That competition was a fierce battle of spirits, so you can't just go at it as some normal tea brewing. Still, she's surprised anyone nowadays know about that. Regardless, your only real choice here is to enter into the competition, and you at first think Rikyu should go for obvious reasons, but she declines. She's already retired, and it's time for newcomers to pave the way. That means Gudao, but of course she'll send someone she trusts to know a lot about tea with you: Komahime. She's shy and doesn't want to go, but Rikyu keeps swapping her back, and eventually Da Vinci just reishift you before she has a chance to object further.
(I'll add in the JP titles of the nodes if you want to read along in the same order, or just know which is which)
The Iron Man of Ochazuke (「お茶漬けの鉄人」)
Hijikata is going crazy because he wants some pickled daikon radishes on his Chazuke (rice with green tea poured on it), and he will accept nothing else. Komahime is unsure though, since it seems even his eyes are glowing red from overdosing on salt. Yamanami thinks there's something wrong too. No matter how much Hijikata might like this food, he'd never go this far, and Komahime thinks it's the power of the Holy Tea Grail. Basically, it's turning people into "mad tea masters", and she also thinks it's warped his facial features to something really ugly. But Okita clarifies that's just what he looks like. Hijikata keeps screaming for his daikon on tea so you fight him.
The Master and Expert (「達人と達人」)
Li Shuwen and Rikyu are just staring at each other. Eventually, Rikyu makes some tea, and Li drinks it. He says it's very good, so good that he wouldn't care if it was poisoned. To show his gratitude, he'll beat you up. Rikyu thanks him, and says Komahime will be the one to take the hit, and then the two girls bicker about that, since Komahime obviously neither wants to get hit, nor is she particularly good at fighting. You ask Iyo what she thinks, and she just says that both she and Himiko had to make use of their fists (and feet) now and then too, so Komahime better just step up.
Yamatai Teahouse (「邪馬台お茶屋敷」)
Okuni is here! Apparently she fell asleep in the cold mountains and wound up here somehow, and Okita thinks she basically just died. Komahime recognizes Okuni and is apparently a huge fan, though she never got to see a performance in life. She'd be super happy if Okuni had some discounted tickets for sale. Okuni asks if Komahime would like two go on stage with her, since she obviously appears to be a diamond in the rough, and while she's apprehensive at first, Komahime soon agrees.
Komahime plays some ghost who's come back to haunt Yamanami because he broke some cherished tea cups, and even Iyo has some (halfassed) lines. But Komahime isn't hooked on playing a grudgeful spirit. She would've more liked to be a tragic heroine or something. Yamanami also isn't sure about this script, but Hajime and Okita, watching from the side, seem to really enjoy his part in this. Okuni tells them to shut up, because it's time for the big climax: the fight between Komahime and Yamanami.
Tea Ceremony without Virtue (「仁義なき茶の湯」)
Ryoma and Oryou are here, and they've set up a branch of their business here too. Actually, they came here shortly after you did, and was part of the tea distribution chain. They were part of why Mitsunari was able to gather up all the tea so quickly. Ryoma explains that Mitsunari was fair under his own law and respected the people of the land, to the point where a lot of people helped out with the tea in the end. He also explains that he's here mostly because (and it cuts to a scene to explain this actually) Izou has set up the "okada clan" to take over the tea business after Mitsunari is gone. He has some chibi nobbus to help him, and says he was tricked by Ryoma into coming here to help them move tea. But now Mitsunari is gone and he can sell all the tea and not even pay taxes. You're in the same room as him all of a sudden, and while you think he was a bad guy for this, he says he did it to fight the oppressive regime of Mitsunari (or at least, that's what the robed guy who gave him a power boost said). Oryou says if he just worked hard he would've paid off his debt by now, but he won't have it. He'll be rich selling bootleg goods here, so then you fight.
Visitors from a Meteor (「流星からのお客様」)
Somehow, you've gotten lost in a desert. You're really thirsty, and Iyo is about to give you some tea when Ranmaru pops out of nowhere and says it's her duty to serve tea to her Lord. Komahime thinks Ranmaru is cute, and introduces herself. Either way, Ranmaru just came here from a few galaxies over and brought some Metero Matcha for you. Rikyu wonders what kind of tea it is, but before you can get an answer, Iyo sees something in the sky heading towards you. It's something shiny falling. You duck, and one of those black giants from GudaGuda3 appear, except it's green and screaming about matcha. It's the legendary meteoric tea beast that destroyed the matcha galaxy long ago. Ranmaru thinks maybe it followed the scent of the tea she brought. Nobu thinks these developments are just too out there, and you should just get this over with. Komahime on the other hand is just happy to see how eccentric everyone at Chaldea is.
Come Home, Alter-Chan (「帰ってきてオルタちゃん」)
You find yourself in a white space, which Rengoku explains is basically like the mental space of Majin. Basically, Majin hasn't come back yet precisely because this place is all blank. Apparently she's actually stuck in some rock instead, which they show a picture of. It's probably because of the Holy Tea Grail, but you can't access this thing from the outside, so you have to deal with it from inside here. Chacha just walks up to the picture and knocks on the rock, calling Majin down for dinner like a good mom. There's no response, so you think of other ways to get her out. You assemble a musical group of summer Nobu, Komahime, and Iyo. They play some incredibly dissonant music (unfortunately I can't find it on atlas), mostly because of Nobu's guitar being real out of place. But suddenly, Majin comes out. And then another one. And another one. The music was just too much and it messed with her internal systems, like white blood cells attacking a virus. You just have to beat them up to reduce the available resources. Also, Rikyu tells you that they might look the same but if you pay close attention you can notice a slight difference (basically the E one has a glimmer at her feet).
Perfect Day for GudaGuda Tea Ceremony (「ぐだぐだ茶の湯日和」, unlocks after all the others)
You head to the place where the tea ceremony competition is to be held for real, but you don't see any signs of TeaX. Suddenly they appear, congratulating you on beating all the other strongest candidates. Komahime demands them to reveal themselves, and they say they are the original champion of the contest: "Super Sen no Rikyu". But wait, that doesn't make any sense, does it? Rikyu is supposed to be fused with Komahime? Turns out, when she checks, Rikyu is nowhere to be found inside her. Using the power of the Holy Tea Grail, Rikyu no longer needs to borrow the body of Komahime. She'll use its power to wipe out all these trash teachers and leave only the best of the best around. They're still sorry about the whole ancestral beast thing, the only reason they're doing this is because of that damned matcha latte that Komahime drinks from the vending machines all the time. She tried to be accepting and patient of new forms of tea, but no matter how you look at it, matcha latte is matcha latte. Such a thing just shouldn't exist in this world. Even though it's all about flexibility, there's definitely a limit to what should be done. So, she will defeat you here and wipe out matcha latte from the world! Of course, you'll oppose her since matcha latte is delicious, but you have to stop shortly of killing her, so Komahime isn't dragged down to hell with her.
You beat her, and she collapses to the ground. But it's all in vain.
Super Sen no Rikyu:
As long as matcha latte exists in the world, another will take my place.
Nobunaga:
No, I really don't think there is anyone else who hates matcha latte this much.
Okita asks Nobu to shut up for a bit even if she's totally right, and Rikyu asks Komahime that, when the time comes, she protects the world with proper tea. In the end, she asks that Komahime serves her teacher tea one last time. And so, Komahime prepares some tea while Rikyu waits patiently. She serves it, and... Rikyu perks up, then turns to Iyo and Yamanami, ordering them to taste it. They too perk up. It's delicious! She's done it! Gudao tries some too and it really is amazing! Komahime doesn't think she was doing anything differently, but Rikyu can tell she finally relaxed her body that was all stiff and stressed out over trying too hard to make a good cup of tea. No matter how good you are, you can't make good tea like that. She says that this was all a charade for this purpose (obviously there's no such thing as a grand tea ceremony martial arts battle), and it was so elaborate so that you could have some fun in the meantime, though she might have gotten carried away slightly. But Komahime doesn't think you can just leave it here. Even if the intent was to get her to relax, there are just some things that cross the line. Rikyu turns to you, and clinging to you, begs you to help her out of this situation. But you throw her under the bus, and Komahime bids her a nice trip to hell.
Some time later, somewhere else.
You're all having a picnic. Himiko asked the sun-related servants of Chaldea to make sure the weather was nice today, and you've found a nice blanket to sit on. Nobukatsu has laid down his cloak for Nobu to sit on, while Mori serves the food, and Majin pulls Rengoku around, full of energy after sleeping so long. Rikyu thanks you all for coming to her grand tea ceremony. People drink tea and eat food and have a good time talking, while Gordolf complains about sitting with his legs like the Japanese people do on the ground. At least he gets to enjoy his afternoon tea. Yamanami remarks on how strange it is to finally have tea with the Sakamoto, and Oryou tries to serve them tea made from frogs, but he just says to go feed it to Izo. Chacha also made some tea, with some added sugar for those who don't like the bitterness. Some others also made their own tea, and they all have their own unique qualities (though Rengoku would rather people just say it tastes bad if it tastes bad).
Majin also takes the opportunity to thank Rengoku for helping Shusha, even if she herself wasn't able to be there. Mashu also made some tea for you, and some biscuits too. Even Medusa shows up(!) wanting in on the tea action. Iyo wants to go try some other tea with Komahime, who says she'll catch up shortly. Once Iyo leaves, Komahime takes the opportunity to wholeheartedly thank Rikyu for this. And not just this as in the picnic. She is someone so frail they could never be a Servant, and now the day has come when she got to experience all of this. It's truly been a once-in-a-lifetime thing that made her heart soar. Mashu comes over to tell them Gudao pushed over the kettle, and they go to help. As the cherry blossom petals swirl around them, Komahime thinks back on her family, on the sorrowful things she left behind in life, and how despite all that has happened...Komahime is having a good time.
THE ACTUAL END
Originally Posted by Mcjon01
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
