Natori is tasked with the job of finding and breaking the seal of Houzukigami, a god that was to participate in the Moon-Splitting Festival done every 10 years against Fuzukigami, another god. The festival is used by the youkai around the mountains to determine whether the harvest would be bountiful that year or not. Without Houzukigami, the match would end in a default win for Fuzukigami, causing the land to become barren. Natori tries to find the seal but is surprised to find Natsume at the festival disguised as Houzukigami, having been asked by Houzukigami’s servants to stand in for their god. The match to be the winner is to catch a beast that was released from a pot.
Houzukigami’s servants tell Natsume to look for the real Houzukigami while they track down the beast. Joined by Natori, Hiiragi, Nyanko-sensei, and one of the servants, they look in a building by a waterfall. The beast suddenly appears and Natsume and Hiiragi are knocked off the deck of the building. After recuperating from being dragged down the river, they try to run back to the building but are caught in a trap by Fuzukigami’s servants which was meant for the beast. While unconscious, one of the servants is able to pick up a human scent from “Houzukigami”, making them wonder if it’s truly the god or not.