Nightmare Fuel / hololive ERROR

"Wh-What... in the world..."

Dark secrets lurk in the town of Aogami, and some of them can get downright horrifying...

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General

• On August 1, 2021, ERROR Cover teased the horror projectwith it featuring none other than Tokino Sora herself (later revealed to be cast as Misora Shino), playing up the creepiness factor that she's established in moments such as in the holoGra series.
  Video Description: "We'll be friends forever, won't we?"
  • To further add to the creepiness factor, audio glitches accompany the final shots of the PV with the first being Sora surrounded by desks in the middle of a classroom, with a stoic expression. The shot changes after a few seconds to a happily smiling Sora in the midst of a ruined classroom, seemingly oblivious to the broken window that opens itself with some force.
• The initial appearance of Aogami High in game form, as seen in this promotional stream from August 15 2021 as played by Matsuri (who's joined on-screen by Lamy and Nene):
  • The corridors are bleakly dark in palette, with the lighting itself being quite dim compared to later; this makes the atmosphere as tense as the public demo, without any of the scares that were introduced there.
  • A lot more of the classrooms are obscured from view compared to the public demo.
  • Shino's silhouette moves at the first locked door segment before disintegrating, not glitching, out of sight.
  • Through the dimly lit corridors are ever-present dust clouds, seemingly an allusion to what's to come later in the story.
  • Much like in the public demo, the windows in the third stretch rattle, but lack the gliding silhouette. It is still disarming enough as it just happens because of walking by them.
  • The absence of any ambiance that's present in the public demo and Complete Edition.
  • Albeit a brief glimpse when the trio panic at her appearance, Shino can be seen wearing the Modern Aogami High uniform. Perhaps the same nebulous entity from Chapter 19 of the manga?
  • When the school starts falling apart, in this version of the demo, the classroom doors come clean off their hinges, whilst detritus and glass shards fly around in the chaos.
  • The notion that something is pulling the Player Character into one of the holes in the floor is punctuated here compared to the public demo, as there's a bit more force and their last view is the ceiling before they black out.
• There is something very unsettling about Nanase during the Past Episodes and Chapter 7; She is a heavy contrast to her actress, Suisei Hoshimachi; while Suisei's sociopathic behavior is Played for Laughs, Nanase's behavior is certainly not.
  • At first, she appears to want to get close to the protagonist, even at the expense of Shino, but as the Past episodes progress, it becomes increasingly clear she either has some psychological issues, or is possessed.
  • Starting Episode 5 with her in the viewpoint instead of Sakura as is default, she is staring intently towards the Transfer Student (or Sakura, or worse, you).
  • Her conversation with Yae in Episode 6 implies that she's very jealous/angry of something that happened between Yae and the protagonist during the previous P.E. class and, reasoning that someone she considers a friend to be interfering with her goal, somehow brings about an intense glitch as detailed below.
  • Chapter 7 brings about her worst yet; after a very amicable and pleasant conversation with Shino, a far cry from everything detailed above, she falls into some sort of decline, with the most we know about it being a headache (previously indicated in Chapter 6 as a result of so much as looking at Shino). A Freeze-Frame Bonus with most of the girls arriving at the window Honoka's waiting at shows Nanase much more muted compared to the previous scene, and she even outright questions what's wrong with her as she comes down with a severe headache, and Sakura's warning to her implies that Nanase is affected by the inhabitants of the woods. Then she has her malicious outburst at Shino which makes the oddity in Episode 6 and her previous cold attitude towards Shino and Yae look heartwarming in comparison, as well as the implication of it being the cause of what happens afterwards...
• The Truths Arc webpage which also doubles as the title screen for the final game. A tired-looking, forlorn Shino is stood holding a laptop that displays all the other characters on its screen, with various other computer monitors also switching between the character mixed among red-stained scenery of Aogami's ruins. All seems normal until Akane shows up with a Face Framed in Shadow Death Glare, at which point the Ominous Visual Glitch kicks in and Shino's expression becomes a very deep Un-Smile with her eyes darkened to the point of being hollow like those of the girls in Chapter 5, with more glitches making it even more unsettling to behold as there's a few blink-and-you'll-miss-it moments of Shino's eyes and mouth being replaced with glitchy black scribbles. The last student that appears on the laptop screen is Sakura, who's the only other student who doesn't smile — instead, she's seen keeling over in despair and clutching her head. When the screen reaches Shino's portrait, the glitches make her disappear and the laptop falls. The hauntingly sombre background music punctuated with school bells drives home the bleak state of affairs that Shino is in for this arc.

The 3D VR Series

• Aogami High School 02: Modern "A Day Like Any Other" has Inari discuss with Touka that she's noticed "a lot of people are absent lately", including students from the class next door, and that nobody's heard from them. Touka tries to explain it away with it being a summer cold, but Inari's response doesn't make her seem convinced. Considering what's learnt from the game's notes and the manga, as well as how much stock she's placed in the rumour, Inari has every right not to be.
  Inari: A summer cold... that would be a relief...
• Aogami High School 03: Modern "Shattered Illusions":
  • The episode starts with Touka and Suzune talking to the protagonist. Innocent enough, right? Then Shino's ghost suddenly pops out of nowhere, spiralling what appears to be an innocent high school miniseries into a full-on horror one, especially with the screen becoming black and glitchy while Suzune can be heard screaming in abject terror/fear as Touka appears to realise something horrendous, all while a low rumbling noise drones amidst the static.
  • Hanabi and Saki's conversation isn't any more uplifting. Before Shino appears, the two talk about how the library lacks any-to-all information on "the rumour" that Inari (whom spends all the time she's visible just staring at you) is convinced about, and become determined to talk to family members who have lived in Aogami/attended the school in the past. However, after Touka is interrupted by Shino's appearance, the two go absolutely silent in contrast to Suzune and Touka.
    • The reporter's fifth note in the game states that they checked the local history, before running afoul of whatever made their final notes have Rapid-Fire "No!" and Laughing Mad. It is implied that the reason for the information not being accessible is a result of the reporter carrying out the will of "the God of Aogami or the spirit", thus possibly placing Hanabi and Saki on Shino's radar to keep the entire thing a secret - the timing of their decision to investigate things themselves relative to Suzune and Touka's conversation with the Transfer Student isn't very comforting.
• Aogami High School 05: Classic "Scary School Stories":
  • Yae explains to Sakura and the Transfer Student about the reclusive art student who loved to paint, and that she ended up using her own blood to paint, to the point of literally bleeding herself dry. Her ghost supposedly haunts the painting, and this makes Sakura extremely interested in it, to Yae's horror. Said painting can be found within the game demo, as detailed below.
  • Honoka and Nanase discuss the same topic in the back of the classroom, the former eagerly seeking information and looking to perform a test of courage. Earlier in their conversation, however, Honoka presses Nanase for information about the school being built on a burial ground; the latter asserts that the "necessary cleansing rites were performed" and that the school isn't tainted. Considering what happens involving Nanase twice later, it is heavily implied that the rites weren't performed.
• Aogami High School 06: Classic "Ghost Hunting":
  • It looks to be one of the usual Japanese high school hijinks with Honoka suggesting to hide after school once the janitors leave from work and Shiina thinking showing interest, despite some logical fallacies that Honoka hadn't considered. Cue the screen glitches. When you look around, you see Sakura taking to Shino and Yae talking to Nanase. The latter pair's exchange is what brings about the glitch, and, considering what comes in later releases in ERROR, one can only wonder how much worse things could've become had Yae not interrupted Nanase's disturbing train of thought as the glitch increasingly manifests:
    Nanase: Oh, I see how it is. You're trying to steal them from me too.
    Yae: What?
    Nanase: Ah... Everywhere I look... people trying to get between us... I must make you all go away... [Glitch starts] Go away... Go away... Go away!
  • In particular, the glitch itself has a Freeze-Frame Bonus that brings about its own specific bout of horror; as the glitch starts to take shape, there is a very brief window where copious amounts of red overlay Shiina, Honoka, Yae and Nanase (barely visible but can be seen on her back). Parts can be dismissed due to obviously being blocky glitch artifacts, but the appearance and general placement of red on the characters and their clothing (as well as most of the classroom furniture, walls and the ceiling) looks akin to blood splattering and, in Honoka and Yae's cases, deep stab wounds, which offers a clue that the poor girls met a very terrible and violent fate. Curiously, only Shino lacks any of the overlay or artifacting; Sakura has a slight artifact cover her, but like Shino she too lacks any blood splatter.

The Game Demo

• Throughout the entire demo, there is a constant, low, droning sound that is nearly ever-present throughout the entire journey through the corridors. Investigating it leads to nothing, as it is always around the Player Character, and it even carries over into the manga as ambiance there.
• Shino's Jump Scare moments and eerie speech and movement in places do nothing to abate the atmosphere of the school in either time period, and her appearances and dialogue change the more times the game is played, thus preventing the notion of getting used to things.
• The Apocalyptic Log that is detailed throughout various notes that can be read the further into the corridors and classrooms you progress:
  • Various notes are left by a reporter between the two time periods, starting out with their reticence in carrying out the task given to them and documenting the disappearance of students in the first couple of notes, which changes to their describing Being Watched, and later, Sanity Slippage in the last couple of notes which contain Rapid-Fire "No!" and Laughing Mad. It is implied in the final note that they gave in to Shino's offer to "go home/back".
  • The Aogami Landslide Event Report notes allude to the destruction of the school in the Past, at 10:10PM, and the unnumbered report alludes to two possibilities: natural circumstances or supernatural phenomena. The second report notes about the presence of student casualties being found in the rubble; now remember what Honoka was planning in Episodes 5 and 6.
  • Notes found in the Past allude to disappearing students, whom are discussed in Episode 2 and Chapter 2 - that is, the Present - with said students, and potentially more people from the town, having last been seen in the vicinity of Aogami Station with a heavily implied Uncertain Doom. This is brought to the forefront in Chapter 8.
  • Article on the Destruction of Aogami High #4 remarks on the student directory received by authorities not matching the IDs of those whom were put into the missing persons reports. While it is fairly obvious that students who have disappeared via Aogami Station wouldn't have been caught up in the collapse of the school, it carries its own dark implication for the girls who exist in 20XX - are the student IDs belonging to Inari, Hanabi, Touka, Suzune and Saki the ones that were found?
• The third corridor of the Present Aogami High sees two moments:
  • A rattling can be heard partway along this stretch, and a silhouette of someone flies by the window. Glancing at it might just make you think it's Shino, but when actually watching it go by, it becomes apparent that it's one of the entities detailed below, and implies that Shino isn't working alone.
  • A little further along from that sees a point where Dissonant Laughter can be heard from disembodied voices. Inspecting the classrooms reveals the classmates of the Present School, who appear to look at each other while they're sat at desks/stood around them, before they glitch and vanish.
• Likewise, the third corridor of Past Aogami has two moments:
  • Just before the classroom of the Signature Scene, a light flickers on and an old film projector can be heard. Whether you cautiously observe the room or try to get a good view as quick as you can, nothing important shows up, and nothing of significance exists inside it, yet it's made to feel that something purposely wants your attention drawn to it.
  • The classroom at the end of third corridor in the Past Aogami High School has the students introduced in the 19XX-set episodes naturally there, with some faceless girls that aren't portrayed by the talents... and the girls from the Present Aogami on the other side of the classroom from the door, dressed in the 19XX uniform. On the wall between the rear door and the window looking into the classroom is a note, and getting too close to it causes the girls to glitch out for a split-second, followed by all of the girls turning to your position/the note in perfect synchronisation to a Scare Chord, which is followed by the classroom being replaced by a solid black void as you hear the sound of Dissonant Laughter. The note also disappears along with them, preventing you from reading another piece of information like the notes and reports you've come across up to that point. Additionally, standing too close to Honoka at certain angles when the girls' heads turn can make her eyes appear as empty sockets at first glance thanks to the lighting; this appears to be utilised for even greater chilling effect in the animated manga (as pictured above). But Thou Must! is also in full effect - thanks to an invisible wall, you cannot progress further than Honoka's position and be able to look at the girls from the front. You have to look at the note.
    • Working your way through the Present Aogami High corridors earlier has you come across three notes labelled as Article on the Destruction of Aogami High. However, they are numbered 1, 2 and 4, leaving the implication that the Schmuck Bait is 3, and going by how the second note ends, Shino or something else really don't want you to read it.
      Article on the Destruction of Aogami High 2: "Yesterday, Aogami High School was reported to have collapsed. However, townsfolk are saying some oddities exist in this incident. Some are saying that the cause may not have been due to a gas leak as previously published, but instead..."
    • The girls who share desks with the established characters are creepy in their own way. Looking at them generally in the brief moment they're looking towards you/the note, they appear to have Hidden Eyes, but a closer look shows that beyond a nose, they have no eyes or discernible lips. The skin stops at where the bottom of the eye sockets should be, and a void is present in the space between the cheeks and the hair. Further to this, a Freeze-Frame Bonus occurs whenever Shino, the Present Students, Nanase and Shiina disappear at certain points, as their models are replaced with silhouetted versions of these unknown entities.
• Towards the end of the Demo, you come across the Art Prep Room that Sakura, Honoka and Yae discussed out of interest (the former two) and apprehension/fear (Yae) in Episodes 5 and 6. Interacting with the only whole canvas the first time has a description that "looking at it makes your head hurt", and coming back to the scene turns the entire room an ominous blood red lighting, with the canvas filled with the painting of a Nightmare Face as if its subject is screaming. A second interaction with the canvas states that "looking at it fills your chest with pain", and after returning to the scene, the room is dark for several seconds until a dim light snaps in and the painting split in half like the other canvasses nearby.
• The three variations of meeting Shino at the end of the Demo:
  • The first encounter has her trying to hurry the protagonist along, but is refused. She has a Freak Out as she screams that they "need to come back", and the entire scene shifts to a blood red scheme as the first chase begins.
  • She's much more assertive in trying to get the protagonist to join her in the second run, stepping up to the protagonist as she states that "class is over now", immediately starting the second chase.
  • In the third run, the encounter with her has her retain her strength from before, as she chastises the protagonist for "running away from their sin" and that "it's the end of the dream", before Vocal Dissonance sets in. At the end of the chase, she asks the protagonist who they think they're helping with "these fantasies", implying that at least part of the project is a twisted Lotus-Eater Machine or All Just a Dream.

The Animated Manga Series

• In principle, the series initially acts as an Adaptation Expansion of the 3D series and the game, but with Rewatch Bonus and looking at the various and subtle nuances present throughout the manga chapters, it is very much clear that the manga is just a further branch of the story taking place after the events that occurred in the previous forms of media based on where it is original (which is the majority of Chapters 1-7), and dramatically raises the eeriness that is the town of Aogami.
• Chapter 1: Welcome to Aogami High!:
  • Akane just standing near a wall, which on its own, isn't anything terrifying, but after the protagonist decides to carry on to Aogami High instead of talking to her, the screen glitches out and while Akane is seen speaking, nothing is heard due to the static sounds. She also appears to be standing outside what is confirmed in Chapter 8 to be Aogami Station, which, if the notes read throughout the game demo are any indication, foretell she's about to meet with a dark fate, or that Yuka already has...
  • Touka and Saki's explanation of the red spider lilies and insistence to the protagonist that they check out the floowers is eerily reminiscent of Higurashi: When They Cry, not helped by the fact that mere moments earlier, after their and Suzune's introductions, each girls pleasant facial expressions are muted under the sound of white noise and they gaze upon the protagonist with The Un-Smile.
  • The glitches happen again at the end of the episode, when the protagonist, Hanabi and Inari are having an otherwise amicable first conversation, completely drowning out most of Hanabi's words and all of Inari's, all while more white noise can be heard through the glitches.
• Chapter 2: The Rumour about Transfer Students:
  • Touka and Inari are showing the protagonist around the town as the latter enjoys the scenery. Then Inari brings up that the classroom next door has less students "again", reflecting their conversation in Episode 2, with Touka describing that nobody can get in touch with them; a shot of Aogami Station from the previous chapter momentarily cuts in, inferring it to indeed be the cause of the students' disappearances, and maybe also that of Akane, who was last seen standing outside it. Inari and Touka continue their conversation, with the latter asserting that it's only a stubborn summer cold the former posits; the protagonist wonders if it there could be another reason, to which Touka, looking back with a chilling Death Glare, insists that it's only a summer cold.
  • The protagonist was thinking of the previous day when Hanabi and Suzune are talking about the upcoming festival, to which Hanabi invites the protagonist. Suzune then tackles the protagonist with a bit of gusto, asking not to be forgotten, and the protagonist quickly confirms that she's invited too. That's all innocent enough. However, Touka and Saki have a Freak Out, worrying Suzune, then despite Hanabi's protests, Inari, suddenly sounding as if she's possessed, states "Transfer students must be treated well, or bad things will happen" as glitches overlay her, and Shino, with a cold Death Glare and looking as if she's watching everybody closely and judgementally, cuts in a couple of times.
• Chapter 3: The Fall of Aogami High:
  • The chapter follows the flow of Modern "Shattered Illusions" as detailed above, but like that episode, Shino appears through a glitch following Touka's words on a dime; however, greater emphasis is placed upon her appearance here, as not only does she cut-in mid-conversation, she has Glowing Eyes of Doom and is zoomed in on, all while she maintains The Un-Smile. As the Transfer Student tries to explain what they just saw to Touka and Suzune, the school begins collapsing around them, seemingly killing everyone in the classroom except the Transfer Student.
    • When the scene focuses back on Suzune and Touka, a faint clattering sound can be heard along with the sounds of a crowd. While it's not unfeasible for the clattering in the background to be the eventual collapse of the school, given what comes later, it sounds not too dissimilar to a train moving along its tracks...
  • The protagonist wakes up in a corridor and notices Shino before them after another glitch, and calls to her with questions about her situation and the status of Aogami High. If Shino's colors weren't already established in the game demo, they were here.
    Shino: So you... must be the transfer student. [Starts grinning] Hee-hee.
  • A subtle, easily-missed moment that occurs for a few seconds - when Shino glitches in at the end of the chapter, the shot remains panned on her back from a distance, and her shadow can be seen to slowly and steadily encroach towards the wall opposite the windows, where light has already flooded that part of the corridor; Shino should already logically be casting a shadow thanks to such light, but it adds to her unsettling, nebulous nature in that the shadow is pretty small initially, only to grow away from her as the shot remains panned on her.
• Chapter 4: Let's Go Home, Transfer Student sees copious amounts of The Un-Smile, Empty Eyes, Emotionless Girl and Uncanny Valley:
  • After starting where the previous episode ended, the protagonist is confused about the still-standing school they can see when they know that the school has collapsed from the earthquake. Cue Hanabi opening a door, eyes as lifeless as her expression, and after a few moments, the protagonist realises that something's wrong: Hanabi's clothes and body are unblemished from a building coming down on their heads, and notes that that she seems more doll-like, which isn't helped by the classmate rattling off a self-introduction and introducing Inari, who's not there.
  • The protagonist is unsettled enough to step away from Hanabi's repetitive speech, only to bump into Inari who's appeared out of nowhere behind her, and the white-haired girl restates "Transfer students must be treated well, or bad things will happen" as a tone of white noise sounds in the background. Asking the two questions only has them silently stare upon her with unsettling expressions, before a rain of rubble comes down between the protagonist and the duo.
  • As the protagonist says she's going to save the two, Shino appears behind her, asking if she's having fun at school, then telling her it's time to go home and, urges them to do so as her Glowing Eyes of Doom resurface, ignoring the protagonist's plea to ask questions again.
  • A glitch-covered hand of darkness coming out of the floor grabs the protagonist's leg, and pulls them off their feet, in turn answering the strange movement that occurs as the scene fades from Present to Past in the game. They wake up in the school of the past, where Shino's face flashes over her vision, making her turn around to face Shino, who's gazing upon the protagonist with Empty Eyes and The Un-Smile once again, and addressing them with the tone of a Yandere trying to be as kind as possible, while insisting they follow her very questionable request.
    Shino: What's keeping you? Let's go back already... [almost growling] Transfer Student.
• Chapter 5: Misora Shino's Curse:
  • One of the core scenes of the chapter is the surprisingly creepy classroom moment from the game demo, and much like in the game, the girls of the Present are mixed in with the Past girls (sans Shino and Sakura). However, the scene is much more disturbing this time around, as the synchronised turn to the protagonist is punctuated with some sort of wet gurgling sound and film reel-like static as Honoka's face turns, and her, Inari, Hanabi, Saki, Touka, Yae, Shiina and Nanase^note Suzune is in the scene, just barely Out of Focus in the seat behind Inari, and not included in the shot as seen in the page image; spuriously, Sakura, who was in the game version is also absent; Shino is absent from this version of the scene too but considering her role in the manga it's more justified with her. all having blank, hollow black eyes in place of their actual eyes, and this time around, they explicitly focus on the protagonist. Then the classroom follows up with its disappearing-into-the-void act as the window explodes in the protagonist's face. Notably, as seen in the page image, part of the window frame is artistically rendered transparent if just to drive home the weight of the girls' creepy, lifeless stares.
  • Shino approaches the protagonist again, insisting they go with her. Instead, the protagonist begs for a response on what Shino wants from her and states her refusal to do so until she gets that answer. Instead, Shino well and truly losing her composure, making the protagonist flee as per the chase scenes in the game, all while Shino asks questions similar to the third chase sequence, culminating in her very strongly declaring "enough of this already" as she picks up Saki's favourite flower after the protagonist escapes.
• Chapter 6: The Role Model is otherwise a Breather Chapter relative to everything that preceded it, but has a couple of moments:
  • With what we saw previously in Episodes 4 to 6, and what we see in the next chapter, Nanase's stance on Shino is that she's a nuisance, no matter what. When she actually has her attention on the unsuspecting girl, Nanase appears as haggard as she is after her arrival at the school in the next chapter. Then Sakura comes into shot, appearing to know something.
  • The last shots of the Transfer Student stood at the shrine. She doesn't meet up with the others and it's not shown later when or where she does, but the abrupt focus on her is both jarring and rife with implications about whom she is.
• Chapter 7: It All Began with the Test of Courage:
  • Within the school grounds, and especially after entering the school, Nanase falls unwell, complaining of headaches, during the Test of Courage, prompting concern from Shino. Sakura approaches, reminding Nanase of a conversation to Don't Go Into the Woods from the previous year, and to warn her father the same - stop cutting the trees down and stay out of the woods in future. The conversation that Sakura alludes to reflects the Special Report: A Town of Oddities #3 note in the game:
    "Shrouded in Mystery: They say those who step into the forest in the dead of night see children wandering through the trees. And if you foolishly approach them, you are taken forever from this world into theirs."
  • Earlier on in the chapter, Nanase treats Shino very warmly and outright invites her to that movie and dinner along with the transfer student, a complete contrast to her Jerkass attitude in the 3D Episodes and the previous chapter. After the end of the Test of Courage, with nothing having happened, Shino tends to Nanase again to make sure she's alright, only for Nanase to have a complete Freak Out similar to that seen in previous chapters, lashing out at the poor girl, labelling her a nuisance and that she should disappear, while Yae and Sakura look on in concern; the latter in particular sensing that "something terrible is about to happen" besides Nanase's abrupt change in nature. And then...
  • The landslide that struck at 10:10PM, almost as if right on cue to Sakura's thoughts. As sirens blare in the background, the game's unnumbered Aogami Landslide Event Report is typed out on screen, detailing the damage done to Aogami, and that it appears to be as a result of heavy rain having weakened the soil in the previous days. It also notes, as Shino is displayed on-screen amongst the school's ruins, that some believe it to be the work of "vengeful spirits that haunt Aogami".
    • That last line adds some Fridge Horror to Shino’s actions in 20XX: there are spirits in Aogami that are just as bad, if not worse than her. And if that theory is to be believed, they made her into one of them.
• Chapter 8: The Journey Back:
  • Following the aftermath of the previous chapter, the series cuts back to February 20XX, where the transfer student of the Present awakens from what she feels is a strange dream, and sees Akane and Yuka after taking in the view of Aogami. However, she appears to recognise Akane, when it doesn't - or chronologically shouldn't - seem as if she's met her yet when looking at the scene in Chapter 1. Then it cuts back to that scene where Akane says something to the student, this time with her face fully viewable with Empty Eyes, and it becomes clear that either something horrible has happened to Yuka and she's distressed and warning the transfer student, or she's being manipulated by something and uttering words that yet remain unknown.
  • Shino's appearance on the train, and she's back with her Empty Eyes, The Un-Smile and Uncanny Valley nature. Aogami High School isn't her only playground, and her very presence on the train is foreboding of her also being responsible for the disappearing students; then details appear on the screen from the first two Aogami Station Incident Report notes in the game. A stubborn summer cold it is not.
• Chapter 9: The Ghost of Aogami Station:
  • As the Transfer Student, Saya, Miku, Kaoru and Yuka talk about Aogami Shrine, various glitches flicker on the screen, culminating in one interrupting Kaoru showing Inari and Touka at the river bank like back in Chapter 2, surprising the Transfer Student.
  • Later, Yuka posits in conversation with Kaoru that their classmates are not absent because of a summer cold, which is odd when it's February, and when she posits that they're among the other missing people, Touka's voice comes out of nowhere, bluntly stating that it is indeed a summer cold again over a black screen. Then it cuts back, and the summer-uniform-clad Inari and Touka are stood behind the winter-uniform-clad Kaoru and Yuka, respectively, maintaining a massive Glowing Eyes Death Glare at the Transfer Student, the latter two girls seemingly none the wiser, before carrying on away from the five newly introduced girls and fading out of reality.
    • Particularly, the conversation between Yuka and Kaoru is initially between the latter and the Transfer Student, and everything Kaoru says when she brings up the disappearing students is a repeat of the two sides of the conversation that Inari and Touka had in both Episode 2 and Chapter 2.
    • Further to this, with the implications dropped at the end of Chapter 12, the contextual implications of the scene changes when reviewing Chapter 2 and comparing it with Chapter 9, as Touka appeared to be addressing multiple characters (the Transfer Student at both points in 20XX and Yuka), making it apparent that the riverbank scene intersected with the street scene, and it's implied Inari and Touka are holding the Transfer Student to account over something she's not yet aware of in either July or February.
  • While the Transfer Student is stunned by the abrupt appearance of the girls she just saw in the unfamiliar memory, her hand is then taken by Yuka as she and Akane offer to show her around while they apear to be possessed, right before the background disappears and leads into the biggest Ominous Visual Glitch cuts in with a Blue Screen Of Death reading An exception occurred. This then cuts back to Aogami Station at 11:44 PM, with Yuka lifelessly approaching an expressionless Shino...
    • Like with Inari and Touka's scene having new implications, Chapter 12 offers new context implications to the final scene, implying that Shino's appearance in front of the Transfer Student in Chapter 8 culminated in some sort of merging that resulted in a Jekyll & Hyde situation, and that the Transfer Student, under Shino's visage, is indeed responsible for Yuka's disappearance, and that the Ominous Visual Glitch transition is the Transfer Student blacking out into Shino's persona by being directly touched by the affected Akane and Yuka.
  • A couple of subtle moments exist in the jump from 11:30 AM to 2PM; it's effectively the same conversation between the Transfer Student and the five girls, but at most, it would take five minutes for the topic of her business in Aogami to be answered, and the weather appears to be more summer-like with the cicadas audible, Foreshadowing of Inari and Touka's abrupt appearance as detailed above.
• Episode 10: ERROR in Normalcy:
  • The video thumbnail alone displaying Kaoru, Saya and Miku each with Empty Eyes and what appears to be The Un-Smile is chilling.
  • In a complete deviation to previous chapters, the start of the chapter replays the ending of Chapter 9, before cutting to the Transfer Student waking up in her hotel room. As she gets up to get ready to meet the students, the entire scene cuts to the key visual animatic of the opening sequence via Ominous Visual Glitch.
  • When the Transfer Student meets up with Kaoru, Saya and Miku, she notes the obvious absence of Akane and Yuka, and asks where they are. Cue the same conversation lines as in Chapter 9: "Is there anywhere in particular you would like to visit?" from Miku, "If you're looking for a shrine, I recommend Aogami Shrine" from Saya and "That would be the name of the local shrine" from Kaoru, all while glitches flicker over the trio and the Transfer Student tries to focus back on the absent students, but is quick to pick up on the fact that something isn't right after Kaoru's line. Then Kaoru repeats "Sure we do. Same class, as a matter of fact", in spite of the question that led to the answer not being asked. Then the Transfer Student manages to get her question through about Akane and Yuka; Akane will be there soon, so they should wait a bit longer. Yuka?
    Kaoru: What I want to know is... who's this Yuka person?
  • All three students suddenly sport Empty Eyes, completely leaving the Transfer Student taken aback. Saya asks Miku in a lifeless tone if Yuka's a friend of the latter, whom just as lifelessly denies it. Then another glitch cuts in to the trio energetically offering to take the Transfer Student around in Akane and Yuka's stead, but the Transfer Student, creeped out, declines, deciding to find Yuka. Kaoru then grabs the Transfer Student, warning her not to do so, and with that the Transfer Student flees. After apparently nine and a half hours, she arrives at Aogami Station, having not been able to locate either Akane and Yuka, the latter implied from the earlier exchanges to have become an unpersoned or Ret-Gone...
• Chapter 11: Ghost Train:
  • As the Transfer Student rushes into the station to find Akane, Uzuki wonders out loud to herself what is a cold implication as to the nature of the upcoming scene and later chapters.
    Uzuki: She does realise the last train left ages ago, right?
  • The duo find Akane on the titular train. Except, her tone is cold and thoroughly hostile as she declares that she's found the Transfer Student, and she has Glowing Red Eyes, Take Warning as she focuses on the Transfer Student. The vinyl scratch effects that herald Shino's appearances in Chapters 4 and 8 litter the screen as the Transfer Student and Uzuki are confused, before it cuts back to Akane, flanked by multiple static and popping glitches and a very familiar, if not harrowing red glow to the scene behind her. The very eerie nature of Akane's appearance and the scene implies that Shino can perform Grand Theft Me to reach her nebulous goal...
    Akane(?): Found you. And now you're not getting away.
• Chapter 12: It Wasn't Me:
  • Picking up where the last chapter left off, the train is even more distorted behind Akane, with the walls not even looking like the carriage's walls not looking anything like they should be or having windows, and the ceiling appearing to be from the school corridor.
  • Throughout the chapter, and especially after Uzuki manages to get the Transfer Student away from Akane, there's a red-orange glow that is ever-present from the end of the carriage and outside. When Akane reappears, part of the carriage behind the Transfer Student looks burnt, and embers float around Akane. Something is burning, and it's ambiguous as to what.
    • Additionally, as the Transfer Student and Uzuki recollect themselves and walk down the carriage, a window inexplicably shatters with enough force for the shards of glass to land in the walkway around their feet. Both girls are surprised, with the Transfer Student wondering what's going on; the last time a window broke, was when the classroom with the staring girls disappeared from reality.
  • Akane's final lines, which give some dark implications about the identity of the Transfer Student. Both the Transfer Student and Uzuki are rendered silent from it.
    Akane: I saw... with my own eyes. Late last night... you boarding a train with Yuka!
• Chapter 13: Traces of Yuka:
  • Akane's hostile, judgemental and convinced expression that the Transfer Student is completely at fault for Yuka's disappearance. Behind her, the vermilion glow shimmers, as if there really is a fire behind her. As Uzuki tries to calm the situation, the train grinds to a halt in a tunnel. Then, Akane notices Yuka's ribbon, and appears to silently and dejectedly wander off.
  • Miku, Kaoru and Saya return, and in spite of trying to keep the Transfer Student away from searching for Yuka earlier, none of their appearances bode well for the three girls.
    • After the train stops, but before Akane sees Yuka's ribbon, Miku flickers in, staring straight at the Transfer Student and/or Uzuki. After Uzuki offers to help the Transfer Student explain things to Akane, Miku appears again, watching them.
    • In the next carriage, the two find Kaoru sat on one of the seats... but she's The Faceless. When Uzuki starts to remark on her appearance, her face reappears and just like Hanabi in Chapter 4, she's reciting her "name of the local shrine" line from Chapters 9 and 10 without pause or end. Having seemingly grown tired of the strangeness, the Transfer Student leads Uzuki onwards, but once the two are past her, just like Miku, Kaoru, having already been Uncanny Valley incarnate, loses every last ounce of human quality about her when she Blank Stares after them.
    • When the two catch up to Akane, she appears to have lost all her original aggression, focusing entirely on finding Yuka on the train. Then there's banging from off-screen, surprising the trio. Saya is seen at the window, which is covered in smudged handprints, and in full Dissonant Serenity, urges them to play.
    • Miku and Saya each have an extra layer of horror when one notes that in the tunnel shot, the carriage windows and floor are quite high above the ground, thereby making it impossible for the girls to be peering in through the windows unless they were levitating.
• Chapter 14: Forgotten Memories:
  • Picking up where Chapter 13 ended, Saya continues slapping against the glass, unnerving Uzuki and Akane. Then she disappears in a cloud of smoke, appearing to disintegrate to dust. The two, along with the Transfer Student, remain confused as to what they just witnessed.
  • The yearbook that the Transfer Student and Uzuki find. A lot of the text is gibberish, with the only words visible, in Latin Script, being hololive ERROR. Then the page is turned. Of a roster of 28 students, 23 have their faces scribbled out, leaving only Shino (conspicuously dressed in 20XX uniform), and characters in the likeness of Flare, Kanata, Towa and Luna. The Transfer Student isn't fond of the sight of the scribbled out faces.
    Transfer Student: This is horrible...
  • As she notices and fixates on Shino's photo in the book, the Transfer Student begins to recall something, uttering "Kana-san... Kanade-san...", and doesn't even recognise the names when Uzuki inquires. After Yuka's affirmed to be safe, the Transfer Student appears to be overtaken with pain similar to Nanase from Chapter 7, with the scene shifting from a worried Uzuki to two unfamiliar students addressing the Transfer Student in a classroom, which is heavily implied to be July 20XX...
• Chapter 15: Why?:
  • With Yuka having been found, albeit with Empty Eyes, she starts to smirk and chuckle sinisterly before standing up and facing the Transfer Student as she recovers from her headache, and cryptically speaking several messages with no emotion, making Akane become increasingly concerned about her; during the whole conversation, she doesn't seem to hear anything Akane says either. Implications indicate it might be Shino or the Aogami God pulling a Grand Theft Me on Yuka's body as if they're trying to speak to the Transfer Student's soul, and not only that, the latter lines imply that the Aogami God is taunting the Transfer Student for her "sin" remarked on in the game and Chapter 5, and Shino's wish in Chapter 8.
    Yuka?: We'd better get back to Aogami soon.
    It's almost time for school.
    Can't wait to see Kana-san and Kanade-san again.
    And why are you trying to go back to all that pain? Wasn't this what you wanted? The perfect friends. The perfect world... So let's go back to where we belong.
  • As if that wasn't bad enough, as the train stops in an unknown location, Shino then appears in front of the four students, clearly still not over what happened in Chapter 5 as she asks if the Transfer Student is having fun; Uzuki and Akane's expressions are as horrified as they are startled by her appearance. The Transfer Student tries to ask what she did to Yuka. Her only response? Revealing to the Transfer Student that there are other forces at play than just her, and more particularly, the implication that she's not nearly as antagonistic as she has appeared to this point, just misunderstood.
    Shino: Me? I didn't do anything.
  • The Reveal, full stop. As the Transfer Student tries to challenge Shino over Akane's worry, she realises that Uzuki and Akane have each come down with a headache, struggling at what they're beholding in shock as the latter asks why there are two Transfer Students, before her head and face is finally revealed with Shino bluntly saying it to the Transfer Student, who is revealed to be Shino herself, albeit with brown eyes instead of blue as she is rendered speechless. The Dissonant Serenity of Regrets of Dark Blue playing while this happens does nothing to help in the slightest.
    Shino: It's time to face the truth.
• Chapter 16: Who I Really Am:
  • Picking up where the previous Chapter ended, the Blue-eyed Shino's first unique facial expression is unsettling, as if she's both unimpressed and annoyed that she has to continue highlighting what's wrong regarding the Brown-eyed Shino. Cut to the latter noticing that Uzuki and Akane have each become lifeless, echoing "Gotta go back" similar to Yuka in the previous chapter, and repeating lines we've heard (Uzuki) and not heard previously (Akane). Yuka, still in her trance, urges that the four go back together, though her expression carries a sense of sinister intentions.
  • The Blue-eyed Shino begins to leave the train after her Brown-eyed counterpart tries to repeat her intentions in Chapter 5, the former unimpressed and remarking that the latter will just forever keep running away; when the Brown-eyed Shino tries to question this, Uzuki, Yuka and Akane grab her arm, staring her down with Empty Eyes punctuated by the red glow around them, with Yuka urging they go back. Recalling the same situation with Kaoru, Saya and Miku in Chapter 10, Brown-eyed Shino breaks free, piquing her Blue-eyed counterpart's interest and amusement, as glitches render the other three girls into lifelessly staring after the Transfer Student.
  • For her to get the answers to her questions, the Brown-eyed Shino is told to follow her Blue-eyed counterpart off the train. They do... and Shino appears outside of a train station, face-to-face with a badly damaged sign reading Aogami Station, and is confused. She notices the train and her Blue-eyed counterpart are gone... until she looks sees her reflection and realizes that she has become the Blue-eyed form, complete with the 19XX Aogami uniform. She flees from the station while questioning how she's become like this, only to stop when she finds herself in the middle of a ruined, overgrown street at night. On the floor is an open newspaper, indicating what happened to those caught in the landslide in Chapter 7, with Shino seemingly amongst the deceased while Sakura and the 19XX Transfer Student survived...
• Chapter 17: Shattered Fantasies:
  • The general state of Aogami as Shino wanders through it. The town is lifeless, with its buildings and structures such as the wall at the riverbank having fallen into ruin or disrepair, and nearly all visible trees are dead.
  • Aogami High of 19XX is still standing, which indicates this reality is one alien to Shino as her school is shown to have come down by way of natural disaster. As she beholds the sight of the place and wanders through its corridors, Shino also appears to come down with a headache just by being there, much like Nanase earlier; as seen in the Art Prep Room, Shino appears quite rundown similar to Nanase at various moments of Chapters 6 and 7.
  • The Painting. Even before Shino notices the canvas, one can see from the wide angle that it is no less disturbing than its game counterpart. Then Shino's attention is drawn to it as she wonders about the state of the room. An inhuman scream (independent of Shino's own) punctuates the camera focus on it, all while it warps and distorts in shape; as Shino yelps at the sight of it, a sound similar to the one that punctuated Honoka turning her head in Chapter 5 can be heard. It appears that during its creation, the eyes were attempted but its creator ran out of blood, leaving its Nightmare Face nature as an Eyeless Face, whereas the mouth and teeth are realistic. Following the first description from interacting with the canvas in the game demo, it appears this is the source of Shino's headache.
  • When Shino reaches out to the canvas, the scene cuts to the artist, Akagane Mari, responsible for the painting, and from her interaction with her classmate, it is clear that she was a very pleasant and amicable individual, making it harrowing that she eventually descended into the state in which she creates the piece. However, a further implication is raised from the classmate - they bear the same bell accessory as the Transfer Student of 19XX, inferring that more than just Shino has been living a fantasy...
• Chapter 18: Memories of the Woods:
  • The chapter opens on Mari taking a walk through the woods of Aogami, and they're gorgeous, which makes the implications regarding them raised in Chapter 7 and this chapter all the more insidious. Several days later, it's revealed that Sakura's warning to Nanase isn't her first attempt at keeping people away from the places, whilst making implications towards the nature of Sakura herself when one considers the groups of students are always relatively small.
  • The fact that Mari recounts the "Rumour of the Forest", in which to appease the God and stop being caught up in landslides, the town's populace would sacrifice children to them by burying the poor souls alive. These children would then become vengeful spirits, while the landslides stopped, and still wander around the forest in 19XX; anyone who didn't heed the warning to Don't Go in the Woods, such as the people who harvested the trees (implied to be the Furukawas), used the wood from the fallen trees to develop Aogami from a village to a town. A horrific implication in of itself: someone's own house, the place where they're meant to feel most safe, is just as dangerous. And almost every house and facility in Aogami is made from this haunted wood, so nowhere is safe. Now consider Aogami High in 19XX and who was in it at a certain moment...
  • As she finishes recounting the rumour, Mari is overcome with a headache, and reaching for her fallen brush, she states that she can feel "the perfect painting coming to her". A matter of hours later, her classmate whom she noted to have bonded with over art earlier, finds Mari in a horribly weak state, with various paint tubes scattered around her as she struggles to breathe. The easel is also covered in blood, as are Mari's face and neck, and much like in Yae and Sakura's exchange over the matter and the game demo's notes, she collapses with a smile on her face, implied to have died painting it. Then we get a nice close-up of The Painting itself as a Jump Scare.
  • Shino remarks that the entire situation she just observed with Mari is similar to Nanase... whom she's lost her memories of. She's quick to note the parallel between Mari and Nanase, with both seemingly Driven to Madness by the woods, and decides to inspect the library, which is implied to be the same source of information that Hanabi couldn't rely on in the 3D series...
• Chapter 19: Terrible Knowledge:
  • In the Aogami High Library, as Shino tries to find any information about the forest, to no avail, she then turns a page in the book she's reading, with a headline that suggests a heavy rain is to blame for the landslide in Chapter 7, as well as her remembering the incident from her 19XX self. Her attention then turns to the casualty report in the same page, seeing her face amongst her classmates' from 19XX, as she experiences a Heroic BSoD as the screen glitches before saying...
    Shino: It can't... but then... I [redacted] that day.
  • Shino, now in disbelief of what she just learned, is now In the Dreaming Stage of Grief as she's in denial once more, moments after leaving the Train in Chapter 16, before the Brown-eyed Shino appears, successfully convincing her that this Aogami is indeed a dream, and the Brown-eyed Shino tempts her to return to the Perfect World with the promise of happiness with her friends, which Blue-eyed Shino accepts with doubt in her heart. What's truly unsettling is how both Shinos differ in bringing the other to their preferred world, while Blue-eyed Shino is blunt and to the point without telling Brown-eyed Shino why she has to return to reality, Brown-eyed Shino is cunning and exploits Blue-eyed Shino's weakness from the inside before gently taking her back to the Perfect World. As if that's not enough, this Chapter makes an Ambiguous Situation of who the real Shino is, and who's the good or evil one out of the two.
    Brown-eyed Shino: That's where I belong... not here.
• Chapter 20: A Happy World, or if you prefer, Ominous Visual Glitch: The Episode.
  • The opening scene alone with Shino walking towards her first day at school again, parallel to Chapter 1, but the sky appears similar to it had prior to her arrival in this "Perfect World", complete with Ominous Clouds. Besides the timestamp indicating that it is still a form of 20XX, the text on-screen is thoroughly corrupted. Then it's bright daylight when she meets up with Hotaru, Mitsuki and Yuki, and she's suddenly wearing the winter uniform jacket.
  • After the panning shot of the school, the scene cuts to another Ominous Visual Glitch with blurred lines of coding briefly visible as a form of Shino, implied to be the one who had been chasing after the real Shino in several earlier chapters, questions "how many times it's been".
  • Kanade takes up Suzune's role from Chapter 1, questioning if Shino is used to Aogami High yet, and this is the tip of the iceberg. Hotaru, Mitsuki and Yuki are overlayed by Kaoru, Saya and Miku, even going so far as to bring up the disappearing student situation, which is the last thing to say in front of a new classmate. Instead, while Shino notices something is off about it, she dismisses it as her imagination, and doesn't otherwise react or comment on the situation. Then the true state of the "Perfect World" becomes more apparent when the broken windows are focused on.
  • Kanade is then likened to Inari by Kana, being labelled as the Class Representative. To add to this, she's even acting like Inari once did, while Kana is more like Hanabi. Then more glitches overlap them, replacing the Angel and Devil with Inari and Hanabi, and filling in the missing section of the conversation from Chapter 1. The scene cuts back to Shino, in her 19XX uniform with a backdrop of a ruined set of curtains and windows, writing it all off as her imagination again, and for the remainder of the chapter, the uniforms change on a dime per focal shift.
  • Mitsuki outright referring to Kanade as Inari, with the Angel and Kana being outright replaced by Inari and Hanabi again without anyone being any the wiser, implying that the "Groundhog Day" Loop is breaking apart the more it continues to go around and around under Shino's desire for friends. After she warmly engages with her new friends, Shino falls into such a state of bliss that she's unaware that the other five girls, per the implication of the final scene with the key visual animatic, were never real. She's so blinded by her own happiness that she cannot see the sad reality around her of the ruined 19XX Aogami High classroom.

The Game: Complete Edition - Versions 1 to 1. 2

• The release trailer alone has its moments has our Featureless Protagonist waking up to some audio playing from his computer detailing one pretty significant detail the animated manga left out: the people of 19XX Aogami engaged in Human Sacrifice (specifically, with the town's children) after the disastrous landslide that decimated Aogami High. Although the sacrifice worked, the spirits of the sacrificed continue to haunt Aogami High well into the 20XX era. The protagonist decides it's a good idea to investigate the school despite this information, and he's greeted by hallways lit by dim red lights and Shino stalking him. As they try to make their escape, Bloody Handprints are left on the sliding doors in Shino's wake. When they get caught by her, they find themselves waking up in bed again, listening to the same audio from before.
• The entire implication that Shino's desire towards the end of Chapter 23 and seen in Chapter 24 are more like band-aids to issues that plague Aogami, and that Sakura's conclusion of them being as a result of deforestation and pollution are still insufficient. The protagonist's grandfather remarks in the notes found towards the second ending that he intended to investigate the woods and as more notes are found, he underwent Sanity Slippage. Just what is the ultimate cause behind the events throughout the story?
• The mysterious ghost girl; it's very heavily implied that it was really her, and not Mari, who made the Blood Painting and that she could be the protagonist's great-grandmother. She shows up every so often in Chapters 2 to 6, typically punctuated by an Ominous Visual Glitch and a Scare Chord, where her body can contort to impossible positions quite violently, she seems to struggle to walk (at one point even just moving like the errant silhouette early in the demo version), speedily drops to the floor and scuttles just as quickly at the protagonist, and will charge at them out of nowhere while screaming, twice. The last time she's seen is when she gets herself worked up over not making the painting as she intended, while Shino glitches in, walks around the canvas and stares at her curiously.
• Chapter 5. As the protagonist shakes their head from the headache they've come under, an entity can be seen staring at them peripherally, with the entity depending on the route you selected in Chapter 4. Unlike Chapters 1 and 3, the door to the toilet opens on its own once you've inspected the objects on the desk, and inside you find a school desk topped with a vase bearing a spider lily and two photos of the girls introduced in the Train Arc; inspecting the photos shows the Akane and Yuka photo that Uzuki once took... with Shino in the background, staring, the girls none the wiser. Putting them down and picking them up again, and Shino is now missing from the photo. Then, if you took the 'left' path in Chapter 4, what follows is the door opening to lead to the shrine grounds, only for the protagonist to be assaulted by the ghoul-like entity that sent him to Aogami High for Chapter 2. This leads to the first ending, 404 Not Found, in which Shino (or her reincarnation) finds the protagonist's watch on the floor at school and places it in the window, seemingly aware of their existence as she pauses to look back at it before following her friends.
  "Next time... be sure to free yourself."
• Shino in Chapter 6 as of Version 1.2. Once you witness the above, you're taken back to the final stint of the Aogami High corridors from Chapter 2, where she will glitch in and question how the protagonist is there, to the point of getting right up in your face. Once you turn the corner and step on the first fallen door, she'll gain your attention by glitching across the corridor while speaking, warning you not to proceed with the rest of the dirt/rock-strewn corridor. However, But Thou Must! is in effect as there's nothing back in the first half of the corridor to change course, and the following cutscene shows the door at the end of the path blowing a violet wind that sends chairs and desks flying past you, while the ghoul-like entity glitches in and out, followed by Shino who turns towards the door, and then a panicked Shino screaming from behind for the protagonist not to go through the door as another Ominous Visual Glitch fades everything out.
• Ending 2: 403 Forbidden. When you go to look through the spy-hole, you see Shino raise her head towards your view, bearing a Slasher Smile that is momentarily replaced by a hollow mouth and eyes, with your vision fading to black as the game ends.
  Shino: You still haven't realised, have you? Hee-hee-hee...

The Game: Complete Edition - Version 2 onwards

• Version 2 changes Chapter 6 of the original Complete Edition to incorporate the Train elements of the story. Before you're even halfway down the first carriage, you can hear something hitting against a door (specifically, it's always the same door on each carriage), but nobody is there. Then in the second corridor, the ghoul-like entity can be seen facing the door, before disappearing and the rapping sound continues; reaching the end of the carriage results in Akane getting right up in your face and pushing you over while demanding Yuka's return, before she disappears after running off. When back in the first carriage, the train abruptly grinds to a halt and the lights go out - proceeding through the dark further, Shino can be spotted through the glass before disappearing as the door opens. After reaching the end of the third carriage, turning around reveals that it's Yuka continuously hitting against the door, but she never acknowledges your existence, and even after she disappears, the door-hitting continues, punctuated by a hand-print constantly appearing on the glass - inspecting this closely results in an arm appearing out of the darkness that slams against the glass. Towards the end of the carriage, you find familiar silhouettes of Miku, Saya and Kaoru, who also disappear as you get close. They leave behind a note, containing a Madness Mantra based on Kaoru's lines from Chapter 10 in the manga:
  "You can't go that way you can't go that way you can't go that way."
  "Who's this 'Yuka' person who's this 'Yuka' person who's this 'Yuka' person?"
• Following this, you're back in the school, and the second stretch contains the silhouettes of Saya, Miku and Kaoru, each facing towards the walls, with some unworldly voices chanting incoherently and endlessly until you reach Kaoru, when the girls and this Voice of the Legion disappear.
• Soon after, you find a silhouette of Uzuki, whose camera flashes and deprives you of the flashlight. As you go to pick up the camera left behind, there's also a photograph to inspect: Akane, in exactly the same pose as the photo with Yuka, only the latter is now entirely absent, lending to the earlier implications from the manga wherein Yuka was Unpersoned, but this time on a wider scale. This is furthered by the Diary of a Certain Schoolgirl found at the end of the next corridor, which details Akane's plight as she tries to find her friend, only for her to be the only one to have ever remembered her. She then starts to blame "that girl for coming to Aogami", but unlike the manga, which made it clear the entire Arc took place within a 48-hour period, the diary implies that the timeline involving Yuka's disappearance is quite longer than we were initially led to believe.
• Once the camera is picked up, the lights go out again, and you must maneuver in the dark relying on the camera's flash to create the path. After picking up the diary and encountering another locked door, you find Yuka leaning up against the doors, rapping against them just as she did on the train carriage, and she won't notice you or stop until you flash the camera, causing her to disappear. Returning to the train, the carriages are now littered with school desks. Using the camera to break the first barricade causes Akane to once again appear, crying out for Yuka, as she runs further down the carriage.
• In the third carriage, the more you use the camera to remove the desk barricades, the more the mysterious male entity appears, appearing to be dazed and in a state of despair as you proceed. After the final barricade is removed, a cutscene starts with the protagonist approaching the door, only for the entity to appear right in your face, groaning as he holds his head. Shortly afterwards, you find the flashlight, and picking it up results in Uzuki's silhouette appearing out of nowhere, looking down like the girls in the corridor, before disappearing in a final camera flash.
• At the end of the final carriage, you're treated to a pair of cutscenes that wouldn't feel out of place in Majora's Mask or Ben Drowned; Yuka, sitting on a chair with her back turned to you, flickers in and out of existence every few seconds as a light shows her, but she gets closer each time until she's directly in front of you. The protagonist is then seated in the middle of a carriage, as Ominous Visual Glitches flicker every few seconds, with Shino sat across from them. Looking to the right, Yuka can be seen banging on the glass yet again, as Akane, crying out for her and being completely oblivious to her friend's existence as she runs past her, Shino and the protagonist, disappearing and starting her motions over again from a point where she should be able to see Yuka. All while this is occurring, Shino raises a hand to her mouth and starts chuckling before it turns into an outright echoing Evil Laugh as disembodied arms begin to bang on the glass behind her... from outside the train. It's almost as if she has you right where she wants you, and there is nothing you can do about it - when the protagonist wakes up in their hotel room in Chapter 7, the chair has moved to right beside the bed, and as he shakes his headache off, Shino is sat there, staring at him with a smile.
• The recording in Chapter 7 highlights implications around the unusual circumstances of Aogami - earlier in Chapter 1, and before that in the demo, notes you pick up details how people left Aogami after the landslide; however, disappearances at the train station occurred, which could only have happened had the town continued to be populated, and Chapters 21 and 22 in the manga make it clear Sakura was likely to be the only one left in the town by 20XX - did the landslide occur in the midst of the disappearances, or is there something more insidious at work? Further to this, it raises further questions on how the grandfather disappeared - was it in the woods, as suggested by the notes in the previous version and Chapter 8, where he underwent Sanity Slippage, or was it at Aogami Station?
• Chapter 8, which is an expanded episode of the previous version's Chapter 6, truly kicks things off in the 1946 school, as a Call-Back to a note in the demo is offered when the four classrooms whose doors endlessly slam open and shut see desks and chairs floating around silhouettes of the four groups of characters^note First Left: July 1946; First Right: July 20XX; Second Left: February 20XX; Second Right: Perfect World, sans Shino. Back on the train, the disembodied arms greet you again by knocking against the glass, and it continues a plot point dismissed by the Fake Shino in Chapter 15 of the manga - she did have something to do with Yuka's disappearance and change in behaviour, as you can see the former leading the latter by the hand in the second carriage. In the third carriage, Akane once again flickers in and out of existence as she runs, calling for Yuka, but runs right through you. As you approach the end of the carriage, the train once again grinds to a halt, nearly knocking the protagonist off their feet, and as they look up, Shino Death Glares at them, saying "she'll never forgive this" and storming off the exit to the carriage as a white light places the protagonist back in the 20XX school.
• This time, the end-of-chapter sequence plays out differently: Shino is a lot more angry and morose when she appears before you, questioning how you're there, and her appearance right before the cutscene has her a lot more emotional as she tries to prevent you going down the corridor. The male entity flickers in as before, getting closer to the empty void at the door, implied to be the same space of nothingness from getting caught by Shino in the demo. Shino once again glitches in and turns to face it, before the protagonist faints while Shino calls for them (or something else) to stop.
• Ending 3: 202 Accepted. Shino addresses the protagonist in the shrine's pond, alluding to having committed an error, before directing them through the shrine doors back to Aogami High; there is an implication present that something went wrong with Shino trying to continue Sakura's work, or the events of the "Groundhog Day" Loop have/will seep(ed) into the Golden Ending she longed for. The protagonist is found by Shino and led through the school, while engaging in amicable conversation in spite of the morose topics, before Mood Whiplash sets in and Shino's tone takes a darker inflection as she talks about the scary stories of Aogami High and offers to tell them.