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"This is the Land of the Rising Sun! Your desecration shall not be allowed! Hear me! I am the god Yato! I now lay thee waste with the Sekki, and expel thy vast defilement! I cleanse thee!...REND!"

Though he lacks any kind of shrine or following, Yato dreams of becoming the most revered deity in the world. To this end, he assists people with whatever task they ask of him in exchange for five-yen. After one such excursion, his current shinki calls it quits and leaves Yato to find a more sensible god.

Despite this setback, Yato moves on to his next task of finding a missing cat. When he finally spots it, the cat is in the middle of a street. He goes to grab it, but is pushed out of the way of a speeding truck by a schoolgirl named Iki Hiyori. While Hiyori survives the hit, the incident gives her an unusual condition: whenever she falls unconscious, her soul slips out of her body. She doesn't have any control over when this happens, and this condition is most likely permanent... unless Yato can help her.

Thus, the minor god and the schoolgirl make a deal: if she can assist Yato with becoming a better god, he will find a way to fix Hiyori's condition and return her to normalcy. With the additional help of his new shinki, Yukine, Yato seems to be one step closer to his dream.

Noragami (ノラガミ, lit. Stray God) is a supernatural shōnen manga by Adachitoka. It was serialized in Monthly Shonen Magazine from 2010 to 2024. Kodansha is in charge of handling the manga's English release.

The anime adaptation was handled by Studio Bones. The first season premiered in January 2014 and the second, titled Noragami Aragoto, was released in October 2015. Funimation holds the license for the anime's home video release.


This work contains examples of:

  • Above Good and Evil: Yato says that gods are not bound by concepts like Good and Evil. Thus everything they do is just. It is the job of the shinki to guide the god, since they know such concepts. So wherever the God does something wrong, usually their shinki (especially the lead shinki) is the one who will take the fall.
  • Absurdly High-Stakes Game: Covenant, a process that can be used to overturn verdicts decreed by Heaven. There are three rounds and for each round, both sides place one Shinki on the line. Salt is then thrown at the Shinki while the judge asks if Heaven's decree is right or wrong. Whoever loses the round has their Shinki beheaded. There are more high stakes for those who oppose Heaven, since it's revealed that even if Heaven loses, they get all of their shinki back anyway. Not so much for the opposing side.
  • Abusive Parents:
    • Yato's "father" meets the entire checklist. For example, Yato admits if his father found out he has a shrine, his father would destroy it. In general, Yato is terrified when in his father's sight.
    • Ebisu's mother Izanami abandoned him at birth because he was deformed. When Ebisu went to the underworld, she didn't even recognize him though he still remembered her, and remarked he was happy to see her, even as she and her beldams attempted to kill him.
    • Yukine's father buried Yukine alive inside a refrigerator when he was a living human child.
  • Accidental Misnaming: Why Yato is called "Yato" and not "Yaboku". When he was young his father forbade him from speaking to other people, so when Sakura, his first shinki, asked him his name, he wrote it out for her instead. Sakura misread "Yaboku" (夜卜) as "Yato" (夜ト), began calling him that, and Yato was unable to speak to correct her.
  • Actor Allusion: This isn't the first time Micah Solusod has played a teenaged weapon shapeshifter.
  • Adaptation Distillation: Naturally occurs in the transition from manga to anime. Many stories are shortened, in particular, Mutsumi's, the first girl Yato is shown aiding. In general, the pacing of the anime is much better, fitting entire arcs into episodes without missing any major emotional beats.
  • Adaptational Heroism: A minor example, Yukine in the manga is much more a jerkass than in the anime. In the manga he regularly stole, extorted and conned people.
  • Alternate Character Reading:
    • This is the entire basis of how shinki/regalia are named. Their "person" name uses the kun-yomi (Japanese reading/native reading) of the symbol they're branded with, while the weapon name uses the on-yomi (Chinese reading/sound reading).
    • Yato is this to his true name, Yaboku. This becomes a plot point in the Underworld arc when Hiyori's realization that his name must have been written correctly on the shrine she made, even though Yato was the only name she knew, allows her to guess his real name and recall him by reading the second character of his name in Kanji and not in Katakana.
  • Animal Motifs: Cats are very important in this series. Most notably, one of the main heroes is a Cat Girl,
  • Another Man's Terror: When a god names a new shinki, he sees the shinki's memories, including how they died.
  • Answer Cut: In chapter 40, Hiyori wonders who Yato's father is. Cue a shot of Fujisaki.
  • Artistic License – Biology: A minor one - both pupils should constrict if light is shone into one eye. If only one pupil does, it usually means there is some kind of nerve or brain damage. The blu-ray release fixed this. Both of Hiyori's pupils contract.
  • Astral Projection: Hiyori's spirit frequently leaves her body against her will. While in her spirit form, Hiyori cannot be detected by the living, but can still interact with her physical environment, and has enhanced physical strength and agility.
  • Bad Guys Do the Dirty Work: Noras, or stray shinki, are often employed by gods to perform less savory tasks that they wouldn't want to use their usual shinki for.
  • Barbie Doll Anatomy: If someone is shown naked, their entire body will be featureless.
  • Beauty Equals Goodness: This is shown with the real Ebisu. When Ebisu first appears, he is not very attractive and appears to be an antagonist. But as he is revealed to be Good All Along, his appearance improves. Not so much in the anime, where he looks the same consistently.
  • Belligerent Sexual Tension: Yato is a self-centered Jerk with a Heart of Gold and Hiyori is a Type B Tsundere that usually gets annoyed around him. They constantly bicker and she beats him up, but they soon develop obvious feelings for each other.
  • Big Damn Kiss: (Indirectly) between Yato and Bishamon of all people, complete with glowing surroundings and flower petals, when they get piss-faced drunk. The manga even dedicates an entire page to it. The shocked reactions of everyone watching are a sight to behold.
  • Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Kouto Fujisaki, a senpai at Hiyori's school, is Yato's father. He is actively trying to get Hiyori away from Yato.
  • Bittersweet Ending: At the end of the manga, Yato kills Father, allowing him and Nora to be truly free for the first time in their lives. However, Yato cuts his ties with Hiyori and makes her forget about him because being close to him exposed her to death too many times. He does continue watching over her from afar to make sure she stays safe and she eventually remembers him after ten years of being apart from him, allowing her to regain the ability to see him. Also, while Yukine has reconciled with Yato, becoming Father's Nora made him remember his human death and Yato can only console him as Yukine keeps struggling with PTSD.
  • Blood Knight: Takemikazuchi. The guy loves to fight any opponent that might be strong, especially Blessed Vessels, in the hopes of turning Kiun into one.
  • Body Horror:
    • It's in the running for the title BODY HORROR: THE MANGA, due to Yasumi/Blight. When a spirit starts to corrupt, eyes grow all over their body.
    • This is a shinki's fate, if they learn their true name. They become corrupted and turn into an ayakashi.
    • Blight is also caused by Shinki to themselves and their master by doing or thinking things with ill-will for their master.
    • Hiyori almost goes full-ayakashi in Chapter 51, which starts to change her whole body and twist it.
  • Born-Again Immortality: Applies to the gods. If they die and have enough believers, they are immediately reincarnated. This isn't necessarily a good thing, as at least Ebisu takes quite some issue with the fact it doesn't really matter if he dies since he will be replaced right away. Additionally, they seem to lose all memories of their previous incarnation.
  • Bunnies for Cuteness: Okuninushi is a gruff and rough character but absolutely adores bunnies.
  • Butt-Monkey:
    • Yato, being a poor stray god, doesn't get respect from just about everyone.
    • Kuraha seems to be a running gag as a training target for Yukine.
  • Casual Danger Dialogue: Whether it's in the middle of a fight or plummeting from a building, Yato will always make time for banter.
  • Casual Sports Jersey: Yato is rarely seen without his tracksuit on.
  • Character Development: Yukine goes through a good amount of it. Shortly after getting picked up by Yato, he begins stealing money from people (including Hiyori), which by extension damages Yato's body due to their Synchronization. This goes on until Yato has been corrupted to the point of death, at which point three other shinki have to step in to punish Yukine for his sins to save Yato. Fortunately, Hiyori gives Yukine a good talking to and gets him to repent his wrongdoing, saving both Yato and himself. He becomes much more well behaved after this.
  • Chekhov's Gunman: One of Yato's customers who seemed to be a oneshot character is revealed a chapter later to be Hiyori's older brother.
  • Chronic Hero Syndrome:
    • Hiyori risked her life to save Yato, a complete stranger to her at the time, and repeatedly endangers herself trying to protect humans from the ayakashi spirits.
    • Bishamon has a lot of shinki because she will never hesitate to save a soul from being eaten by ayakashi.
  • Clap Your Hands If You Believe: How powerful a shinki can make their attacks is based on their confidence. If they get scared, or feel inferior to their opponent in any way, it weakens them.
  • Clingy Jealous Girl:
    • Nora is an extreme version of this trope towards Yato.
    • Shinki, both female and male, usually have a non-romantic version of this. Usually like children wanting attention from their parents.
  • Color Failure: Happens to Yato anytime someone disrespects him. Which is often.
  • Comically Small Demand: Justified. Yato charges a measly five yen (approximately five cents) for his service because five-yen coins are a traditional offering at Shinto shrines. The money isn't as important as the offering.
  • Cool Car: Mostly pops up in the background, but Kofuku and Daikoku drive around in a Hummer H2 (which could also count as Improbably Cool Cars for them) whereas Bishamonten is seen riding in a Toyota Century, which, among other things, is the official car of the Japanese Royal Household.
  • Cooldown Hug: Yato gives one to Hiyori as the latter undergoes transformation into an ayakashi in the aftermath of Yato's father unleashing ayakashi into the Iki family hospital.
  • Cue the Sun:
    • After Yukine's ablution is completed.
    • Happens again at the end of the second season, after Yato releases Nora.
  • Decoy Protagonist: The entire first chapter is about Mutsumi, a girl struggling to fit in at school, who calls Yato to fix her problems. Only after Yato has killed an enormous ayakashi surrounding Mutsumi's school and severed her negative emotional ties to her classmates does Hiyori Iki, the actual protagonist, appear on the very last page. The anime omits this almost entirely, dedicating only the first few minutes of episode 1 to this chapter before focusing on the events of chapter 2.
  • Deep Sleep: In chapter 18, Hiyori was kidnapped while in spirit form, leaving her physical body behind. Her parents, not knowing what was happening, could only watch helplessly as their daughter slipped deeper and deeper into a coma.
  • Disappointed in You: Takemikazuchi expresses this every time Kiun seems to have a chance to become a Blessed Vessel but fails.
  • Divine Date: Well, Divine Unresolved Sexual Tension at the very least between Hiyori and Yato.
  • Does This Remind You of Anything?: The scorn Noras face for having more than one master/mistress at a time draws heavy parallels to Slut-Shaming, particularly the double standard of gods being able to have numerous shinki at once.
  • Dramatic Irony: Since they have more than one master, Noras are reviled by gods, who see them as shifty and untrustworthy. Hafuri, on the other hand, are seen as the most loyal shinki there is; the kind of shinki who would never leave their master. It's therefore incredibly ironic that Kazuma and Yukine, two of the only three hafuri to ever exist, willingly became Noras. And most characters are completely unaware of it.
  • Dream Walker: Hiyori does this to Yato, and that's how she discovered her past with Sakura.
  • Driven to Suicide: Plenty of humans, usually due to a depressive ayakashi spirit. Many of Yato's cases involve saving people from their despair.
  • Evolving Credits:
    • In the anime's first season opening:
      • At episode 4, still images start moving, and they improved the animation quality at some parts.
      • Until Episode 7, when introducing the gods and their shinki, Yato's shinki is Nora. Near the end of the opening, Nora and Yato face each other in front of a big tree. From Episode 8 onward, Rabou takes Yato's place as Nora's master, and near the end, faces Yato in front of the big tree as Foreshadowing.
    • In episode 13 of the second season, Yato is smiling at the end of the opening sequence instead of his previous serious expression.
  • The Exile: Noras are shinki that have been either abandoned by their god (through the death of the God or other means), ran away from them or had a name forced upon them. Having never been formally discharged by any of their former masters they still retain their past weapon tattoos, which carry a negative stigma, and they are seen as untrustworthy by most gods.
  • Eyes Are Mental: In the first OVA, Yato decides to occupy Hiyori's body, and while in it, his eyes remain the same.
  • Eye Motifs: Eyes are heavily focused on in the manga. In the anime opening, eyes are one of the few things given color, the rest is mostly monochrome.
  • Fall Guy: Yato's father sets up a situation that Ebisu appears to be the Sorcerer (although Ebisu was attempting to tame ayakashi for well-intention reasons), leading to heaven to issue his execution. Later, he pulls the same thing against Bishamon by ensuring she'd come after him and having Heaven unleash an execution squad on her for being a traitor.
  • Fire-Forged Friends: Ebisu and Yato become close after their adventure to the underworld. Sadly cut short due to Ebisu's unjust execution by heaven. Despite this, Yato retains a good relationship with Ebisu's reincarnation.
  • Gods Need Prayer Badly: To become a great god, you must have a lot of worshipers. Gods themselves are born from wishes, and are dependent on them to stay alive. A god with no worshipers will die, and if a god/goddess dies for any other reason, they are only reincarnated if they have a sufficient number of believers praying to them. This is the reason Yato is so reluctant to fight his father.
  • Good All Along: Ebisu. His desire to manipulate ayakashi and use of Noras made him antagonistic. He later revealed his manipulation of ayakashi was to help humans, and he truly cares for his Noras, taking them in when they have nowhere else to go.
  • Good Angel, Bad Angel:
    • At one point in the manga, Yato (good angel) and Father (bad angel) become this to Yukine. Father wins.
    • Not long after, Hiyori (good angel) and Father (bad angel) become this to Mizuchi. Once again, Father wins.
  • Grand Theft Me: Yato pulls this on Hiyori and takes her body for a joyride. Hiyori is stuck without a body for most of the episode while Yukine tries to put a stop to Yato's antics, which almost include taking a shower.
  • Grey-and-Gray Morality: Yato's father abuses and kills for own gain, but heaven isn't much better for killing the ones that suggest they're not just in the most cruel ways possible, with personal Ironic Hells for the shinki and everything. It's even implied this sort of morality was Yato's father's Start of Darkness.
  • He Is Not My Boyfriend: Hiyori insists this with her friends Yama and Ami every time she brings up going to meet Yato and Yukine, along with their insistence she's dating them (or one of them).
  • Hellish Pupils: All the gods have these, possibly to indicate their supernatural abilities.
  • Homemade Sweater from Hell: Yukine ends up wearing the hakama Yato made from scratch. It's pretty well made except for the fact that it says "hafuri". Yato also gives him a sweater made from the wool of a sheep Yato sheared himself, and Hiyori a wedding dress made from silk Yato spun from silkworms. It's heavy with love.
  • Hope Crusher: The malevolent ayakashi/phantoms, which instill depression onto humans. Once they detect a miserable person, they all congregate to the individual, eventually making them so depressed they commit suicide.
  • Hope Spot:
    • In episode 12 of Aragoto, there is a moment where it seems like Yato and Yukine successfully stopped the Purification Ring from killing Ebisu. They hadn't.
    • In chapter 71, it seems like the head of the heavens, Amaterasu, will hear Yato's plea regarding Bishamon... only to call Yato a traitor and seal Yukine into a box that causes him to start remembering his death. Thankfully, it all works out in the end, though everyone is still shaken from it.
  • I Fell for Hours: Happens in Episode 4 when Yato, Yukine, and Hiyori are talking to a client as they're falling from the top of a building. Yukine even lampshades it.
    Yukine: [Original Japanese] Is it just me, or has this been a really long fall?
    Yukine: [English Dub] How long have we been falling, now?
  • I Know Your True Name: A god's "greatest secret" is their shinki's real name. If the god reveals the name or their shinki remembers it the shinki will immediately become corrupted and become an ayakashi.
  • "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: After Father names Yukine, he starts attacking Yato while in his new vessel form. Yato tries to reason with him, apologizing for leaving him behind. He also refuses to fight back, even though Kazuma keeps urging him to. He still believes that the boy who became his hafuri is still in there. He's wrong. At this point, Yukine has completely given up on Yato, and doesn't believe anything he says.
  • Imagine Spot: Yato has them about his future shrine, sometimes with an Art Shift to bright palettes with colored outlines.
  • Imagine Spotting: In Episode 4, both Yato and Hiyori are able to witness and even criticize the memories of a suicidal man as he explains them.
  • Immortal Immaturity: Kofuku, despite being a goddess, acts very childishly most of the time.
  • Immortality Begins at Twenty: Seems to apply to most of the gods. Yato, Bishamon, Ebisu, and Kofuku are all depicted as initially manifesting in the form of children, then at some point growing to adulthood at which point they maintained their young adult form for the rest of their lives. Should they die, they're reincarnated as children and the process starts over (provided they have enough believers).
  • Immortal Life Is Cheap: How the real Ebisu views himself. If he dies, another Ebisu will take over.
  • Interspecies Friendship: Sort of. Hiyori is a human who befriends Yato and Yukine, a god and a shinki respectively.
  • It's Personal: Bishamon and Ookuninushi both make it clear that they want Yato's father's head for what he did to Ebisu and Bishamon's clan.
  • Jerkass Has a Point:
    • Bishamon may have delivered it brutally but she was right that Yato's case of Poor Communication Kills regarding his father could have saved the others a lot of grief. She also called him out for continuing to see Ebisu if Yato was still contacting his father (indirectly betraying Ebisu and invoking the wrath of the Seven Gods of Fortune, which includes Bishamon), especially since Ebisu's last interaction with Yato's father led to Ebisu's death.
    • Father is unquestionably the villain, but given what we saw of some gods so far, his hatred of them might be entirely justified. He's also not wrong when he points out how selfish it is of Yato to expect Yukine, a traumatized and vulnerable child, to take care of him if he reincarnates.
  • Kangaroo Court: Heaven. There is no logic, reason, or presenting of evidence allowed. Once the "majority" comes to a decision, it is carried out with brutal and unrelenting "efficiency." When Yato successfully calls them out, and shames them, on their cowardice for hiding their faces as they're delivering "justice" on Bishamonten, as they did to Ebisu, Amaterasu simply declares him "a traitor" and delivers swift, immediate, and horrifying punishment on Yukine, before preparing to execute Yato, expecting him to be reborn and then brainwashed into a loyal minion, and then "to decide if Heaven is Right or Wrong" starts spinning around and randomly beheading Shinki.
  • Kind Hearted Cat Lover: Both Hiyori and Yukine.
  • Knight Templar: Completely and irreversibly fused with Tautological Templar. Heaven, in a nutshell. Not only do the gods think they are always just, but heaven as a whole immediately responds to any form of dissent, no matter how peaceful, justified, or sound, by terminating the god or gods in question with extreme prejudice then going on to brainwash the reincarnation (if any) into obedience, and the Shinki are cursed to suffer a Fate Worse than Death. No hearings, no appeal, no leniency.
  • Laser-Guided Amnesia:
    • Yato can "sever" relationship ties and certain memories, allowing people to forget their problems and start over.
    • Reincarnated gods seem to be afflicted with this, losing all memories of their previous incarnation.
  • Like an Old Married Couple: Some of Yato and Hiyori's arguments are like this.
  • Little Bit Beastly: Hiyori's astral projection has a long cat tail. It's actually a chord that anchors her spirit to her real body, and she will die should it be severed.
  • Maybe Ever After: The final chapter gives an open ending to Yato and Hiyori's relationship. After Hiyori nearly dies in the final battle against Yato's father, Yato stays out of her life for several years. As a result, Hiyori forgets all about Yato and the supernatural, eventually becoming a doctor, but one day, she suddenly remembers Yato. The manga ends with a happy Hiyori meeting Yato again.
  • Mayfly–December Friendship: Discussed when Suzuha tells Yukine about the girl he met every summer who would forget about him every year. Yukine then wonders to Yato if Hiyori will eventually grow old and forget about them, too.
  • Mayfly–December Romance: Discussed when Fujisaki berates Hiyori for making Yato rely on her when she'll die long before him.
  • Meet Cute: Hiyori meets Yato by pushing him out of the way of an oncoming bus... and quickly discovers that she's left her body behind in the process.
  • Morality Pet:
    • The shinki for their patron gods, in a particularly grim sense. See Synchronization below.
    • Hiyori seems to be becoming this for Yato, as well, in his dealings with Yukine and his driving force for becoming a God of Happiness instead of a God of Calamity.
  • Never Mess with Granny: Hiyori's grandmother is elderly and not in the greatest health, but is a surprisingly good archer and is able to sense supernatural beings with good enough accuracy to nearly hit them.
  • Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: After the battle with Heaven and the Covenant, Yato decides to embark on a potentially suicidal mission to defeat Father and takes a vengeful Kazuma with him, leaving Yukine under the care of Kofuku and Daikoku. While his plan was intended to keep Hiyori and Yukine safe, it ends up backfiring big time as both of them end up in danger trying to look for him. Hiyori gets attacked by Kazuma while looking for Yato and when she tries to get information out of Father, he also attacks her and damages her cord to the point that her health begins deteriorating. Yukine's imprisonment during the Covenant has caused his memories before his death to begin surfacing and the other gods quickly return to Heaven with their shinki to protect them from questioning their own pasts, abandoning Yukine to his fate. Father takes this opportunity to step in and begins offering to answer Yukine's questions, while also secretly plotting to steal him from Yato. Predictably, Father eventually names Yukine, turning him into a nora.
  • No Body Left Behind:
    • Ayakashi spirits, upon being defeated, disintegrate into nothing.
    • Ebisu's body disappeared with a splatter of blood upon their death, leaving only their bloodied clothes behind.
  • Nobody Poops: Yato mentions that gods actually don't poop, so they can binge eat as much as they want.
  • No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Hiyori delivers an epic one to Fujisaki, though he was holding back.
  • Nonindicative First Episode: The first chapter of the manga revolves around Mutsumi, whose detailed character design makes it seem like she is originally meant to be the protagonist. However, she is Dropped After the Pilot and never mentioned again. The anime adaptation acknowledges the general irrelevance of the first chapter and only uses a single scene from it as the first episode's pre-credits sequence, then bases the remainder of the pilot episode on chapter 2.
  • Odd Friendship: Yato and Ebisu. Yato is loud, goofy and often self-centered. Ebisu is calm, solemn and seeks to improve humanity. This friendship starts after their trip to the underworld. It continues with Ebisu's newest incarnation after his execution by heaven, with the two influencing each other's decisions.
  • Offerings to the Gods: Hiyori makes a small, portable shrine to Yato as a small offering to him.
  • Our Gods Are Different: Gods are numerous and born from the wishes of humans. They exist to fulfill theses wishes. The more followers they have, the more their godly status is cemented and they will be reincarnated if they die. However, if a god dies while no human recognizes them anymore, they will disappear forever.
  • Pals with Jesus: Hiyori becomes acquainted with quite a few Shinto deities, and Yato would technically count, too.
  • Parental Abandonment: It was stated Yukine had troubles with his father, and the anime gives us flashbacks showing this. Also hinted at later on in the manga after Yukine is touched by Nora as Father's shinki (which causes shinki to slowly learn their death and name) and he starts having dreams and occasional flashbacks of being locked in somewhere dark.
  • Perception Filter: Yato. He's surprised that Hiyori can see him. He later explains that people can see him if they focus but they'll forget him, similar to a random stranger that walks past.
  • Perpetual Poverty: Yato, and by association his shinki, Yukine.
  • Phone Word: Yato's phone number is 080-0919-8100. This phone number spells ku(9)-i(1)-ku(9)-ya(8)-to(10), or "Quick Yato".
  • Physical God: Most of the gods that appeared so far are more akin to this.
  • Pietà Plagiarism: Ebisu is held like this by Bishamon before the former's death. In the anime, it was Yato who held them.
  • Piggyback Cute:
    • Yato carries Hiyori on his back at the end of the first episode.
    • Hiyori also carries Yato like this when his blight gets too serious because of Yukine's bad behavior.
  • Poor Communication Kills: This is practically Yato's defining character trait. He takes matters into his own hands, doesn't ask for help, doesn't tell anyone what he's doing and ends up making things a lot worse.
  • Power of Friendship: Shinki can change form and grow stronger if they are absolutely loyal to their god/goddess, becoming hafuri vessels. It is extremely rare, and only 3 shinki have ever been known to do it.
  • Power Tattoo: While contracted, shinki receive a brand somewhere on their person.
  • Pre-Asskicking One-Liner: Well, multiple lines, but it's said every time when Yato kills an ayakashi. (see page quote, as well)
    Yato: This is the land of the rising sun. Your desecration shall not be allowed! Hear me! I am the god Yato; I now lay thee waste with the Sekki and expel thy vast defilement. I cleanse thee! Rend!
  • The Promise: Hiyori vows to Yato that she will never forget him. Inevitably called back when Yato is dragged back to work for Nora and his father and Hiyori really does start forgetting both him and Yukine. She gets better and feels awful for forgetting about them. Naturally, the upholding of this promise becomes a regular plot point.
  • Punny Name: Hiyori's potential soulmates during the matchmaking ceremony. There's Homalé Subamu, Culto Fanata, and Pachinko Junki. Charming men.
  • Really 700 Years Old:
    • Obviously all the gods are much older than they look, most look to be in their early 20s and even those that look older (such as Tenjin) still have many more years on their shoulders than their appearance suggests.
    • Also accounts for Shinki, who retain their physical age upon death for the rest of their afterlife. Yukine will always have the body (and hormones) of a 14 year-old boy regardless of how long he lives and Daigo would have forever remained a young child. Other adult shinki will also never age anymore.
  • "The Reason You Suck" Speech:
    • Yato delivers a big one to Kugaha after his Motive Rant.
    • Yukine basically has to give one to Yato every few days.
  • Red String of Fate:
    • In one of the colored illustrations, a red thread is tied to Yato's pinky finger and it winds its way to what looks like a silhouette of Hiyori.
    • Also done canonically at the meeting of the Gods that Yato, Hiyori and Yukine attend where they all connect 'soulmates' by tying (presumably) red strings together.
  • The Reveal: Yato was actually asked to kill Bishamon's shinki by Kazuma, who begged for his help when he realised that the Ma clan's fighting was killing Bishamon.
  • Revenge:
    • Initially, Bishamon wants this against Yato because he killed all but one of her previous clan of shinki.
    • She currently wants revenge against Yato's father for his corruption of Tsuguha which eventually led to her death and for the injustice Ebisu faced.
  • Sacred First Kiss: Fujisaki kisses Hiyori unexpectedly during the Electrical Parade. Deconstructed, given that Hiyori is horrified by what happened (to the point of continually trying to rub it off her lips afterwards in the anime) and Fujisaki was just doing it to be an asshole dad to Yato, ultimately showing the effects of how violating such a thing in Japanese culture can be horrific. Even later, Hiyori is still traumatized to the point it affects Yato and Yukiné.
  • Sadistic Choice:
    • One of Ebisu's shinki Takami was forced by Heaven's sentinels to choose to either betray his master's whereabouts and know that they will execute him or allow the Mi clan to die one by one while allowing Ebisu to feel the deaths of each of his shinki.
    • Done twice to Kazuma. He was forced to ask Yato to Mercy Kill the corrupted Ma clan or allow Bishamon to die. And again, he had to choose to either kill the corrupted Tsuguha (who had turned into an ayakashi due to regaining her memories) or let Tsuguha kill Bishamon.
    • Fujisaki forces this upon Yato when he has to make the decision between killing Hiyori and turning her into a shinki, or cutting their ties and never meeting again, forcing Yato to be bound to his father. In the he's able to Take a Third Option.
  • Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!: The real Ebisu doesn't care for common opinions, as long as he can help people. A large number of his shinki are Nora, despite the widespread stigma attached to them, and he treats them very kindly and they are loyal to him in return. He is also actively attempting to control ayakashi, something that's perceived as dabbling in dark arts and a criminal act, for the sake of manipulating them away from the living.
  • Second Episode Introduction:
    • We meet Yukine in the anime's second episode.
    • Similarly, we don't (properly) meet Hiyori until the second chapter in the manga.
  • Secret Test of Character: Yato issues one to two clients in the manga, as well as to Yukine, allowing himself to be corrupted to the point of near death to make the kid realize his desire for money is born of his resentment about being dead. It takes a good speech from Hiyori to make Yukine turn a new leaf, though.
  • Senseless Sacrifice: Hiyori throws herself in front of a bus to save Yato... without knowing that the bus couldn't have hurt him anyway, since he's a god.
  • Shapeshifter Weapon: Shinki, which are Equippable Ally spirits contracted to be used by gods.
  • Ship Tease: A ridiculous amount, considering that basically none of the below are official official.
    • Yato and Hiyori are essentially the main 'couple' that aren't technically a couple.
    • Bishamon and Kazuma also have their fair share.
    • Kofuku and Daikoku are effectively a married couple, to the point where she's screaming and crying for him not to risk his life to acquit Yato and Bishamon from Judgment. They even once took in a child shinki and lived as a family for 100 years.
    • Tsuyu and Tenjin, especially around Yato and Bishamon's trial.
    • There's a bit between Yato and Bishamon, though it's mostly played for laughs and in-universe both of them think the notion is ridiculous.
    • Yukine and Nora after Nora begs him to stop Bishamon and later kisses him.
  • Sleep Cute: Yato and Yukine during the Ending Theme.
  • Sleepyhead: Hiyori after she gets hit by a bus in the first episode; played for laughs, but Truth in Television as head trauma can cause narcolepsy.
  • Small Name, Big Ego: Yato, as demonstrated in his Imagine Spot scenes.
  • Stalker with a Crush:
    • In the spinoff, Yato gets one. It is not played for laughs.
    • However, when Yato becomes this to Hiyori, it is played for laughs. And he does stop later.
  • Stock Sound Effects: Kazuma's screens close with the Star Trek TNG comm chirp.
  • Suicide is Shameful: Yato is disgusted by suicidal individuals. He sees them as wasting a life a shinki desperately wished to have.
  • Superpowerful Genetics: It's eventually revealed that Hiyori being able to see Yato before her accident wasn't a fluke: Hiyori's older brother can see gods and spirits too. Additionally, their maternal grandmother has a strong ability to sense the supernatural, although her ability to see them varies. According to her, their mother has some ability as well although it had been stronger when she was a child.
  • Sword Beam: Yukine can produce these by using borderlines in his sword form. It's unclear if this is a unique ability to him, or if all bladed shinki can do this.
  • Sword Lines: Bladed shinki always give off this effect.
  • Synchronization: Whenever a shinki commits a sin of any sort (i.e. Yukine's stealing), their patron god's body is corrupted with blight. If not stopped, this can lead to the god's death unless a.) The god expels or kills the offending shinki, or b.) the shinki confesses their sins during a punishment ritual, which requires 3 other shinki to perform, all of whom are corrupted if the ritual fails. Additionally, if the shinki feels sadness or pain the god will feel the same emotions but not get blight.
  • Talking Is a Free Action: Yato manages to hold a rather lengthy conversation with a man as they plummet off a building. It's lampshaded and played for laughs.
  • Theme Naming: All gods do this for their shinki, using a common letter. Yato uses Ne, Tenjin uses Yu, Bishamon uses Ha, Ebisu uses Mi, Takemikazuchi uses Un, Kofuku uses the prefix Dai and Father seems to use Chi. Bishamon once used Ma, as shown in Kazuma's name. She switched after Yato killed her shinki except Kazuma.
  • Took a Level in Badass: A shinki can become a hafuri changing their shape and growing stronger. This is extremely rare, as only 3 shinki (including Yukine and Kazuma) have even been known to do this. Most gods desire this to happen, with Ebisu willing to buy Yukine from Yato in order to have one, and Takemikazuchi constantly fighting so his can become one. Though when not working for the master they became a hafuri for they lose their excess in power, as Bishamon finds out after rescuing and using Nana/Hafuru-mono.
  • Took a Level in Kindness: Yukine becomes much kinder after admitting his sins.
  • True Companions: Yato, Yukine and Hiyori become this by the end of the first arc. Forming a family of sorts, with Yato and Hiyori acting like parents to Yukine.
    • Also expands to Kofuku, Daikoku, Tenjin, and later Kazuma, Bishamon, Ebisu, and now even seemingly Takemikazuchi. The cast is forming quite a big family.
    • The Seven Lucky Gods are all portrayed as having been this for centuries, often lingering together in a group after major meetings and being quite protective of each other.
    • Yato's relationship with Bishamon in particular improves enough that he personally cites her being his drinking buddy for why he could never abandon her.
  • Unwitting Pawn:
    • Aiha to Kugaha. He manipulated her depression from not getting attention from Bishamon, to kidnap Hiyori to start a war between Yato and Bishamon with the added bonus of corrupting Bishamon to weaken her enough that Yato could kill her.
    • Ebisu to Yato's father, being tipped off by him to get the Word of Yomi, only for Yato's father to manipulate events so that 'he' could get it instead.
  • The Virus: Blight. It can turn shinki into ayakashi and can affect Gods as well. For Gods, it can be easily cured by using divine water from a shrine unless it comes from a shinki.
  • Weirdness Magnet:
    • Malevolent spirits are attracted to Hiyori while she's in her spirit form.
    • Ayakashi are attracted to Gods, as their smell is very appealing to the spirits. As a half-ayakashi, Hiyori begins using this ability to track people
  • Wham Episode: The second half of Chapter 81. Yukiné becomes utterly obsessed with discovering his past and smiles at the thought of it, even after Nora burns his stuff, with no one to stop him. Father's original face is finally revealed. Kofuku and Takemikazuchi disappear to prevent their shinki from being infected. Hiyori tries to attack Fujisaki only to be attacked by ayakashi and left for dead. And Yato is oblivious to all of this.
  • What Have I Done: After realizing Kugaha's plans, Aiha goes through this, and assists Kazuma and Hiyori to stop Yato and Bishamon.
  • What the Hell, Hero?:
    • After finding out that Suzuha is dead, Yukine lets Bishamon have it for not noticing his troubles and letting him die despite the fact he and the rest of her shinki are always forcing themselves to put on a smile for her.
    • Bishamon ends up giving this kind of lecture to Kazuma, when she finds out that he forced Yukine to reveal information about Yato's father behind her back. She doesn't appreciate that his actions could cause a rift between their allies.
  • Who Wants to Live Forever?: After talking to another shinki, Yukine starts feeling this way. He is scared of the idea that one day Hiyori will grow up and forget him.
  • Yandere:
    • Nora, a shinki to many Gods/Goddesses, is this to Yato. She has asked for Yato to kill Yukine and has tried to cut Hiyori's tail. Later, she tries to kill Yukine herself after Yato releases her.
    • It's played for laughs in his case, but Yato sometimes shows signs of this towards Hiyori during the moments when he gets childishly possessive of her, once even trying to ask Hiyori about names of other guys she knows so he can do 'pest control'.
  • Year Outside, Hour Inside: Heaven and Yomi work like this. So when Yukine and Yato are in Heaven and Yomi, respectively, Hiyori nearly forgot about both of them due to time flow difference.

 
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Alternative Title(s): Stray God

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"No! Not Her!!!"

Kofuku, the Goddess of Poverty, comes to visit Yato at work. Yato is not thrilled to see her to say the least.

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5 (6 votes)

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