Yo-kai Watch: Forever Friends

**Yo-kai Watch: Forever Friends** (Japanese: 映画 妖怪ウォッチ　FOREVER FRIENDS Eiga Yōkai Wotchi Forebaa Furenduzu) is the fifth theatrical film in the Yo-kai Watch franchise. The movie made it's debut in Japan on December 14, 2018.

The movie's plot is set in the 1960s, which revolves around about a boy named Shin Shimomachi who loses his mother in an accident. He meets Itsuki Takashiro and Tae Arihoshi, who have a way to save the captured souls of humans, including Shin's mother. They meet Yo-kai like Nekomata, Zashiki-warashi, Kappa, and Shin's guardian spirit Suu-san, that help them along the way.

## Plot

### Synopsis

“Everyone is watched over by a protective spirit.  This spirit is actually that of a person such as an ancestor, a member of our family, or a friend.  Who could watch over you?  "

―The first sentences of the Movie.

This feature film immerses us in the Sakura Motomachi (Sprindgale) of the 1960s. It tells us the story of Shin, a little boy aged 11 living with his mother Sachiko Shimomachi who is plagued by illness.

### *1.The death of a mother*

The story opens with an old man, in the last moments of his life: he has just been diagnosed with cancer.  He looked at the horizon, as if he was waiting for someone to come.  Then we are immersed in the childhood of a young boy by the name of Shin.  He worked as a young postman.  The latter saves his meager salary in order to be able to pay for his mother's medicines.  From the start of the film, we notice a little Yo-kai accompanying Shin in his every move: it is his protective spirit. One day

when he came home from work, his mother began to behave abnormally, almost bestial.  As she fled the house not without causing damage, Jules pursued her in the hope of bringing her to her senses.  Unfortunately, he arrived too late, and helpless, he saw her throw herself under the wheels of a car, dying instantly.

### *2.The meeting with Itsuki and Tae*

This loss was a cold shower for Shin, who consequently attempted to commit suicide by throwing himself from the top of the bridge.  But he was saved at the last minute by Itsuki, a young boy also affected by the sufferings of a loss.  They will then meet the young Tae Arihoshi, a little girl able to see Yo-kai with the naked eye.  Together, they will go in search of the souls of the members of their respective families.

Itsuki will offer them to come to his mansion, where they will learn more about the existence of the Yo-kai Watch and its powers, at the same time as the presence of Tamamo-no-mae, the Yo-kai having provoked  the death of Shin' mother and incidentally the death of Itsuki's sister.

### *3.Find the Yo-kai Watch*

To retrieve the Yo-kai Watch, Itsuki, Shin and Tae go to Arihoshi Mansion, a dismal place known to be haunted.  There, they will find out that the house belonged to Tae's grandmother suddenly transformed into a hideous witch.

After weakening the so-called witch by the name of Yamamba, Tae's grandmother becomes herself again, separating her body from that of the Yo-kai who bewitched her.  She reveals to them where the Yo-kai watch was and it is to everyone's surprise that Shin will be chosen as the rightful holder.

With the watch in their pocket, they decide to set off once and for all in search of Tamamo-no-mae and recover the souls of their loved ones.

### *4.* All aboard the Yo-kai train!

It is after defeating Tamamo-no-mae that the three friends discover with amazement that the fox Yo-kai has already sent all collected souls to Enma.  Also revealing to them that it is located in the Yo-kai World.  Itsuki, Shin and

Tae waste no time and immediately go to this world aboard the Yo-kai train. There, they will directly face Zazel and the albeit Enma the Elder who denies stealing human souls.  Indeed, after reflection it was a stunt by Shien, the son of Enma the elder, who had taken it into his head to surpass his father in power.

A tournament was also planned, playing on the fragile fate of Yo-kai World: *it was a question of crowning the winner as the new king.*

To retrieve the souls, Itsuki, Shin and Tae decide to face Shien directly after the tournament is over.  Enma the elder warns them, Shien is violent, they are only humans, the slightest misstep could be fatal to them, and it is ultimately Zazel who will convince him to let them participate.

## *5. The tournament*

Shien is seen alongside Shutendoji, who strongly encourages him to defeat Enma, inflating him as he

passes many flatteries. At the start of the tournament, Shutendoji to see humans on the side of their enemies, but doesn't worry too much about them, believing them to be harmless.

Shien displays great cruelty in combat, even letting one of his allies destroy his own camps in order to accumulate more power before taking on the enemy.  Distraught, Itsuki and Tae appeal to Tamamo-no-mae, from whom they have obtained the Yo-kai Ark.

But nothing to do, their opponent is too powerful.  So it is Abyssinyan who is summoned.  This one takes its

Shadow form and managed to slay the opposing tornado and bring down the enemy. Furious, Shien intervenes, he defeats his father in single combat in a short sword battle which he emerges victorious.  He seizes the power of Enma and proclaims himself King of Yo-kai World.  Finally, to take revenge on the humans who supported his father, he uses his blade to kill them.  In a twist, Itsuki gets cut in two ... By the edge of the sword that only goes through it.

### *6.Itsuki*

**Itsuki is not mortal**. Indeed, this one declares that his memory suddenly returned to him.  Wanting to catch

up with his sister under the influence of Tamamo-no-mae wanting to throw her from the top of the building site, Itsuki had fallen with her.  He hit the ground hard, but still had time to see his sister's soul being taken away, before succumbing. After his death, Itsuki After his death, Itsuki regains

consciousness abnormally in a strange place where colors, features and shapes mix in a euphoric spectacle.  This is the world of Kukuri-Hime a Yo-kai that little is known about, the point is that she offered Itsuki a chance to make up for it.  She sent him back to earth in a ghostly and amnesic form, with the idea that he could leave without regrets once his mission was accomplished;  in other words, she allowed him to recover by himself the soul of his deceased sister.

After this revelation, during an attack by Shien, Itsuki is protected by a mysterious shield.  It turns out that the protective spirit of Itsuki finally reveals himself: it is about Kenshin Amaterasu, a god who led the masses in the Yo-kai world when it was still shaken by wars.  Amaterasu donates the Ancestral God Yo-kai Watch to his patron and defeats Shien by asking Itsuki to use his power, the boy does not need to be prayed for.

### *7.Soranaki*

Shien is defeated when a dark, slimy mass envelops him.  This then transforms into a filthy and shapeless creature, revealing that he has been possessed by Soranaki all this time.

Itsuki asks Enma to help him penetrate the creature in order to free all souls as well as Shien's consciousness, which he will succeed in accomplishing.

From then on, Soranaki mutates and comes back to life.  It flies over the Yo-kai World before being teleported to the Human World, not without doing massive damage. Shin and Tae are distraught not to see Itsuki come back.  They knew that his sacrifice was not in vain that he had done it in his soul and conscience.  But to their surprise, their friend does reappear, but he seems to have merged with Shien's consciousness, becoming Yasha Enma.

### *8. The final fight*

A long and interminable battle ensued, during which, Suu-san the small and mediocre protective spirit of Shin was revealed to be first Gunshin Susanoo the god of war, but also his late father.  It was finally with the help of the sword of the gods Amenomurakumo that Yasha Enma slaughtered Soranaki, putting an end to her short hope of resurrection.  Following this, Yasha Enma passes out and falls into the river, Enma the Elder will use his powers to bring him to the surface before disappearing.

However, as Yasha Enma came to his senses, a Soranaki remnant wanted to attack Tae, refusing to go back alone.  It is without counting on the protective spirit of the young girl who ensured her rear, and momentarily repelled the danger.  Tsukuyomi, the moon goddess was his protector for a long time, she was also the Godside form of Yamambaa.  Finally, Yasha Enma resumes the form of Itsuki bidding farewell to his two friends, promising that one day they will meet in the same place.

For his part, returning to the palace, Enma the elder learns of the birth of a new heir.  He concludes with Zazel that this little one was born from the amalgamation between Itsuki and Shien.

### *9.The promise*

At this point in the film we go back about sixty years later.  The doctors diagnosed Shin with cancer and he has very little time left to live.  We learn that throughout his life, the boy never got discouraged at the idea of ​​seeing Itsuki again and regularly returned to their place of meeting and separation, but never received a sign in return.

As he was about to leave, having also said goodbye to Itsuki, let the river light up with shimmering gold.  An ark blessed with light floats above the water and slowly approaches him.  At this point Tae, also aged, gets out of the car to see the return of their friend.

Itsuki is there, in his new skin of Lord Enma.

Shin describes the situation to him, while thanking him for not having put a bunny on him yet.  And currently, asks him to end his life and take her with him to the Yo-kai World.  His body can no longer hold, and he is

 File:Promesse.jpg
morally tired.But Itsuki refuses, announcing that a new past would present itself to him.  He erases all traces of Shin' illness, to allow him to continue to spread the good around him.

Shin thanks him and Itsuki leaves on his side.

## Characters

### Major Humans

* **Shin Shinomachi**
* **Itsuki Takashiro**
* **Tae Arihoshi**
* **Usata-san**

### Major Yo-kai

* **Nekomata**
* **Suu-san**
* **Kappa**
* **Zashiki-warashi**
* **Tamamo**
* **Shien**

### Humans

* **Nathan Adams** (Cameo)
* **Nathaniel Adams** (Cameo)

## Trivia

* This will be the very first Yo-kai Watch film to completely focus on a new cast of characters.
* It's unknown how Nate and Nathaniel appear in the movie, as the first movie takes place in the 60s, while this movie takes place in the 50s.