The Oni's Evil

The Oni's Evil is the first part of .
==Steps==
# Talk to Katheryne in Inazuma City
# Get news of Arataki Itto (0/3)
#* Speak to the locals - Furuya Noboru, Ogura Mio and Uesugi
# Ask Sango for more information
#* Head to the Bantan Sango Detective Agency
==Dialogue==
;(Talk to Katheryne in Inazuma City)
: Paimon: Hi Katheryne, it's us! Was there something we could help with?
: Katheryne: Yes, I'm afraid that I have another task that requires your assistance. The Adventurers' Guild has recently received a commission directly from the Tenryou Commission. The assignment is both urgent and dangerous.
: Katheryne: After assessing the assignment, the Guild has concluded that seasoned adventurers are required. Naturally, you came to mind.
: Paimon: Hee-hee, just another day on the job for us.
: Dangerous, you say?
: Why can't the Tenryou Commission resolve it on their own?
: Katheryne: Allow me to explain. The Tenryou Commission recently issued an arrest warrant for a young oni by the name of Arataki Itto.
: Paimon: An oni? You mean those big tough-looking guys with horns on their heads?
: Katheryne: That's correct. This particular oni is quite vocal and audacious, so he already has quite the reputation on the streets. That said, he has never been caught up in major trouble of any kind.
: Katheryne: So it came as a surprise to learn that he has recently been accused of stealing things and sometimes even whisking away the people themselves...
: Katheryne: But it doesn't end there. When the Tenryou Commission dispatched a doushin to apprehend him, he assaulted the doushin before making a getaway with his accomplices.
: Sounds like a real ruffian.
: Paimon: So let Paimon guess, it's up to us to bring this oni in!
: Paimon: No problemo, this does sound like a job for the Traveler. 'll be back with that oni in no time!
: Katheryne: I have complete confidence you will succeed. However, please exercise caution. This oni also happens to hold a Vision and is the leader of an organization known as the Arataki Gang.
: I'm not too experienced with gang fights...
:: Paimon: Hmm, you're right... We have no idea what we'll be up against. Better to play it safe.
: He has a gang, but I have Paimon.
:: Paimon: Hehe, on second thought, Paimon will leave the fighting to you. The last place Paimon wants to be is in a gang fight...
: Katheryne: We are still investigating Arataki Itto's potential motives behind these incidents as well as his current whereabouts.
: Katheryne: But please ask around in the streets as well. There will likely be others more familiar with Itto's circumstances than I am, who can provide you with useful information.
: Okay. We'll go ask around.
: Katheryne: Thank you. I will await your return. Ad astra abyssosque!
: Paimon: Well, let's start asking around on the streets! Hopefully, we'll learn a little more about this Arataki Itto guy and figure out where he might have run off to.
;(Talk to Katheryne again)
: Katheryne: The Guild does not routinely have dealings with the Tenryou Commission, but since they have commissioned us on this occasion, we must lend them our full support as we would any of our clients.
: Katheryne: Thank you once again. I will await your return.
----
;(Talk to Furuya Noboru)
: Furuya Noboru: Arataki Itto? Yeah, I've heard of the guy. Word is that he did something monumentally stupid then ran off before they could catch him...
: Furuya Noboru: To be completely honest, I was a little surprised when I first heard it. Okay, well... I mean, not THAT surprised.
: Paimon: Wait, you mean he already had a bad reputation?
: Furuya Noboru: No, not exactly... *cough* He's just... very overbearing in everything he does. Big and brash and always making a ruckus.
: Furuya Noboru: So on the one hand he's a larger-than-life kinda guy, but on the other hand, he's emotionally volatile. When he's in a good mood, he's the happiest man alive, but when he gets upset, he gets completely enraged.
: Furuya Noboru: I don't personally see him as a bad guy, but I guess I wouldn't put it past him to get all riled up and lose control.
: What is he usually up to?
: Does he have a stable job of any kind?
: Furuya Noboru: Hmm, I'm afraid that I'm not too sure myself. *cough* I keep a pretty good eye on what's happening in the city and as far as I can tell, he just idles the days away...
: Furuya Noboru: When someone asks for it, he's willing to lend a helping hand, but other than that, he's just out making a scene with the kids on the street or his gang.
: Furuya Noboru: *sigh* If I had to guess, his lack of income finally drove him to do something more drastic to make ends meet.
: Paimon: Is it just Paimon, or is this Itto fellow starting to sound pretty weird?
: Furuya Noboru: I'm afraid that I don't have much else to tell you. He tends to spend his time with people a little more lively than myself.
: Furuya Noboru: Perhaps you can try asking around some more.
: Paimon: Okay, thanks!
;(Talk to Furuya Noboru again)
: Furuya Noboru: *cough* Keep asking around, you might be able to find out more.
----
;(Talk to Ogura Mio)
: Ogura Mio: Arataki Itto? Oh, yeah, I heard about that whole thing. I'm sure it must have been a mix-up on the Tenryou Commission's end. He could never do anything so dastardly.
: Paimon: Huh? How can you be so sure? Is he really as trustworthy as all that?
: Ogura Mio: No, perhaps you misunderstand me. When I said he could never do anything dastardly, I meant... he literally doesn't have what it takes.
: You mean he's not strong enough?
: You mean he's not smart enough?
: Ogura Mio: Maybe a story will explain it better. So, he used to spend a lot of time playing rock paper scissors and hide-and-seek with the kids on the streets.
: Ogura Mio: Kids, being kids, aren't exactly the most difficult to outsmart... I'm sure you can see what I'm getting at here. He used to lose all the time. Sometimes catastrophically.
: Paimon: On purpose, though... right?
: Ogura Mio: No, not at all. The one time I saw him win, he started jumping around and yelling, "I won! I finally won!" ... "I'm unbeatable!" And so on.
: Ogura Mio: Then he took the kid's candy as his prize and ate it right there in front of him.
: Paimon: Ugh, that's just plain wrong!
: Ogura Mio: He did take it way too far that time. The poor kid started crying, so I stepped in and gave Itto a scolding.
: Ogura Mio: He was pretty quick to admit that he was fully in the wrong, and it wasn't long before the kid had stopped crying and was laughing and playing again as if nothing had ever happened.
: Ogura Mio: In fact, the children quite like playing with him because he's always serious about the stakes and never throws a game on purpose.
: Ogura Mio: So I suppose what I'm trying to say is... Is a guy who can't even beat kids at a children's game really gonna be capable of these kinds of diabolical deeds?
: I think I understand your point now.
: That's not at all what I expected to hear.
: Paimon: Huh, he doesn't sound like a bad guy at all. In fact, he kinda sounds like a man of integrity.
: Ogura Mio: Yes, my thoughts exactly. Still, the Tenryou Commission's evidence against him is supposed to be irrefutable.
: Ogura Mio: So I'm not trying to condone his actions or anything. If he really has messed up bigtime, then he should face the consequences just like anyone else.
: Paimon: Thanks for the info! We'll keep asking around.
;(Talk to Ogura Mio again)
: Ogura Mio: I'm sure my story probably gave you more questions than answers. But I think you'll see what I mean if you meet him. He's quite the character...
: Ogura Mio: ...And definitely not the kind of character that everyone's going to get along with...
----
;(Talk to Uesugi)
: Uesugi: Arataki Itto? Heh, of course I know him. We've been trying to apprehend him recently.
: Uesugi: We know he's already left Inazuma City, but with no clues to follow, we have no choice but to commission others for help, including the Adventurers' Guild.
: Paimon: Katheryne says that Arataki Itto hasn't done anything seriously bad before, so it seems pretty strange.
: Paimon: Paimon's curious, is there any evidence of all this stuff he's accused of?
: Uesugi: Yes, of course. Otherwise, we'd never have put so many people on the case.
: Uesugi: For starters, most thieves will try to devise a way to conceal their identity, but for an oni... the horns are a dead giveaway. I mean, the whole city could have recognized it was him.
: How do you know it wasn't a different oni?
: Uesugi: At first, he was just one of our suspects, but when we went to investigate, he personally confessed to everything and started trying to provoke the officers.
: Uesugi: What's most frustrating is that he then managed to escape along with his entire gang... He must have been planning the whole thing right from the start!
: Did he have a motive?
: Uesugi: Of course he did, whether material or psychological, there is plenty of evidence either way.
: Uesugi: He's never had a Mora to his name his entire life and he's never kept down a real job. Word is that he also takes care of someone in his gang and that the burden of it takes quite the toll on him.
: Uesugi: After scrounging for a living all these years, maybe he thought that being the bad guy would be an easier ride.
: Uesugi: As for his psychological motives... it's a bit embarrassing to talk about, but we, ahem, confiscated his Vision during the Vision Hunt Decree.
: So he was exacting revenge on the Tenryou Commission.
: Uesugi: At the time, Arataki Itto put up quite a fight. It took a huge amount of manpower and resources, and in the end, we had to enlist the help of Kujou Sara to finally secure his Vision.
: Uesugi: The Vision Hunt was a mistake, but we never expected that he would go to such extreme lengths to take revenge on us.
: Paimon: He does sound a little unstable, just like people have been saying.
: The motives seem valid enough.
: The evidence is solid.
: Uesugi: If the two of you are able to capture Arataki Itto, please bring him straight here. We'll handle him from there.
: Paimon: Thanks for all the info!
;(Talk to Uesugi again)
: Uesugi: If you're able to capture him, just bring him back here.
: Uesugi: Though I'm sure he'll be quite a handful in custody as well...
----
: Paimon: Hmm, too bad we still don't know where he could have run off to. We already got the word on the street, so maybe it's time to talk to a real specialist.
: Paimon: Paimon remembers that there's a detective agency here in Inazuma. Maybe we can try asking there?
;(Ask Sango for more information)
: Paimon: Hello, we'd like to ask some questions about Arataki Itto.
: Sango: Oh, him again... Sure, I have answers. We've already done some investigating for the Tenryou Commission. But first — do you have enough Mora to cover the fee?
: Sango: I've heard all about your travels. After everything you've been through, I'm sure you understand the way these sorts of things work.
: Paimon: Uh, how much Mora are we talkin' about here?
: Sango: A one-off payment of 397,000 Mora up front, plus a further 5% of your Adventurers' Guild remuneration as my commission if Arataki Itto is successfully caught and brought to justice.
: Paimon: Whoa, that's crazy expensive! How did you even come up with a price that high?
: Sango: Hehe, hold on, I wasn't finished. It just so happens the initial fee has already been paid in full by the Tenryou Commission. All you'll need to pay is the small commission fee.
: Sango: And as for that amount, I'll settle things with the Adventurers' Guild once we have Itto. So, from the way I see it, you guys are getting a pretty nice deal.
: Sango: Now then, to give you the full picture in this case, we must first recount a well-known Inazuman fairytale...
;(A cinematic starts)
::A long, long time ago, in a village lost to time
::There lived a crimson oni and a blue oni. They were the best of friends
::The crimson oni looked fierce, but was gentle like the humans
::The blue oni looked human, but was reclusive like an oni
::The crimson oni wished to befriend the humans, but they were scared
::And threw beans at him whenever he came near
::So the blue oni said to the crimson oni:
::"Aka, I'll cause trouble in the village, you come and stop me"
::"Then the humans will accept you"
::As planned, the crimson oni chased the blue oni away
::The crimson oni's deeds spread throughou the land
::And people finally accepted him
::But when the crimson oni went to tell the blue oni the good news
::He was gone, and left only a letter behind:
::"I went traveling. Don't come find me, or they'll treat you as a naughty little oni"
::"But don't worry about me. No matter where I go..."
::"We'll always be friends"
:;(Cinematic ends)
: Paimon: Huh? That's it? What about the little blue oni? Whatever happened to him?
: Sango: I suppose the blue oni simply disappeared, never to be seen again. Only the crimson oni remain now.
: Paimon: *sobs* B—But... The blue oni was just an innocent little kid...
: ...Does this story have anything to do with the situation at hand?
: Sango: Of course, it does! Otherwise, I wouldn't go to all the trouble of telling it. One interpretation is that the story is actually broadly based on historical events and that Arataki Itto is, in fact, a descendant of the crimson oni.
: Sango: What I'm trying to tell you is that the oni have sacrificed a lot in the past in order to finally integrate themselves into human society. But there are still some volatile personality traits in the oni bloodline.
: Sango: Every generation of oni inherits these traits. So while Arataki Itto has never been known to commit a wrongful act in the past, can we ever completely rule out the possibility of him one day allowing this side of him to take over?
: Paimon: But... how could he do that? After the blue oni's sacrifice, that would be such a betrayal...
: Sango: That's a very old story. Nobody knows how long it's been since the blue oni disappeared. We can only assume that they have long since died out, in which case, it would be quite a stretch to say it still counts as a betrayal at this point.
: Sango: Besides, the suspect has already confessed. What is there left to discuss?
: Sango: According to my investigation, he was headed southwest. I would bet he's already made it to by now.
: Sango: The Tenryou Commission is unable to enter territory controlled by Sangonomiya troops. No doubt that's the reason Arataki Itto chose to flee in that direction.
: I understand, thanks for all the information.
: Sango: Don't mention it, I'm just doing my duty.
: Paimon: Wait, Paimon still has a question. If Arataki Itto has given in to his bad side, won't that mean he's extra mean and violent now?
: Sango: I could only assume so. Judging from his previous bouts, he is a skilled fighter with a lot of brute strength. Whether or not you'll be able to handle him, that I do not know.
: Paimon: Okay, but what's up with people throwing beans at oni? What use is that?
: Sango: Ah yes, now that you mention it, I seem to recall that Arataki Itto is allergic to beans.
: Sango: In fact, all oni will avoid beans, but especially Itto. I heard that just touching a bean is enough to incapacitate him.
: Sango: If you could weaken him a bit by triggering his allergies, perhaps you would have better luck subduing him.
: It seems like our only option.
:: Paimon: Right, knowing our target's weakness will make things a whole lot easier.
: Seems a bit unfair to me.
:: Paimon: Ah, it's fine! He's the bad guy, remember!
: Sango: It just so happens that I have a bag of beans right here. I was planning to use them to make some porridge, but I think you will find a better use for them.
: Sango: ...Of course, I will charge the Adventurers' Guild a fair and reasonable rate for the beans.
: Paimon: Sneaky! But, also... thanks.
: Paimon: Let's head to and start looking for Itto!
;(Obtain A Bag of Beans)
==Soundtracks==
==Gallery==
Story Teaser - The Farewell Between the Crimson and Blue Oni - Genshin Impact
==Other Languages==
==Change History==
es:El mal de un oni
pt-br:Maldade Oni
vi:Tội Ác Của Quỷ