God of the Mountain

* Manga
* Anime

The **God of the Mountain** (山の神様, *Yama no Kamisama*) is a malevolent entity encountered by Miko Yotsuya and Hana Yurikawa in an abandoned shrine in the mountains. According to Mitsue, it is only referred to as a "god" in folklore, but its origins are currently unknown.

## Appearance

The God of the Mountain is a colossal entity, towering over ordinary humans. Its initial form is a large, multi-tailed beast with an eyeless, fox-like head. Two conical horns sprout out normal to the head and its mouth unfolds into five fang-lined sections. It can further expand its jaws, separating its body in half, revealing a larger collection of teeth on both sides.

Upon its transformation after attempting to consume Miko, the entity becomes significantly more monstrous. It appears as an equally-massive quadrupedal spirit with gaunt arms and digitigrade legs wrapped in talismans. Its head becomes more human in appearance being covered in matted, long hair and multiple rows of square teeth, though in place of eyes are two large bells. Two ear-like projections project outwards on either side of the head, with bells hanging from the tips. The earlier jaws completely split into two, forming two tails lined with two rows of long teeth.

Its torso is elongated and covered in light-coloured fur. The skin on its underside appears to have peeled off, revealing large teeth on the inside of the skin. The belly of the spirit contains a multitude of bells which are held in by a network of arms similar to a ribcage. The bells emit a sound that causes most spiritually sensitive hearers to blank out. It also appears to have a functional arm inside its mouth.

The God of the Mountain is intrinsically linked to an old skull within the shrine, the shattering of which lead to the destruction of the spirit. Her original form was that of a woman with dark hair cut into a bob and wearing a light-coloured yukata. A square cloth, fixed around the head with a rope, obscured her face.

## Personality

The only thing it seems to do is give a shrine wisher their wishes before collecting their payment. However, it seems to be more malicious in nature than the Shrine Spirits as it menacingly threatened Miko and her group.

It is generally hostile to other spirits with the exception of the Shrine Spirits, devouring a spirit that was following Hana.

In contrast, The God of the Mountain's human form bears no animosity and appears grateful to the point of tears. It is heavily implied by Romm Shindou that her existence as a spirit was involuntary or even forced and she desired nothing more than to move on.

## History

Prior to becoming a spirit, the God of the Mountain was an ordinary woman affiliated with the local shrines. Her past is shown through vague flashbacks, but at some point in her life a famine occured, claiming the lives of animals and humans alike. While it remains unclear, one of the flashbacks shows a falling katana, suggesting that was how she died. For reasons yet unknown, her disembodied skull was placed within a shrine.

At some point following the God of the Mountain's liberation, a massive, tumorous spirit manifested and exited the mountains.

## Powers and Abilities

During its first appearance, the God of the Mountain is shown to have tremendous strength, able to easily overpower the malevolent spirit that was following Hana.

It shows a considerable degree of durability, being able to withstand blasts from Shrine Spirits that were capable of obliterating lesser spirits in a few hits. At the same time, the God of the Mountain easily bisected a Shrine Spirit.

## Trivia

* The original human who became the God of the Mountain may have been a shrine maiden.
	+ This is corroborated by flashbacks of similarly-dressed individuals praying in unison.
	+ The presence of an *Ōnusa* implies this may have been a Shinto purification ritual.

### *Manga*

* Chapter 11
* Chapter 23
* Chapter 31