The god Susanoo-no-Mikoto, ruler of storms and the seas, was a wild and unpredictable deity. His tempestuous nature often brought him into conflict with his sister, Amaterasu, the glorious sun goddess who ruled the High Celestial Plain. Following a series of disruptive, destructive acts that culminated in Amaterasu sealing herself in a cave and plunging the world into darkness, the council of heavenly kami chose to banish Susanoo from the heavens. Stripped of his grand status and cast down to the mortal realm, Susanoo descended to the land of Izumo, landing near the headwaters of the Hi River on Mount Sentsu.
As the disgraced storm god wandered along the banks of the rushing river, he heard the sound of weeping. Following the sorrowful cries, he came upon an elderly couple comforting a young girl who wept bitterly between them. The elderly husband was Ashinazuchi, a son of the earthly deity Oyamatsumi, and his wife was Tenazuchi. The beautiful maiden clinging to them was Kushinadahime, their last remaining daughter. Intrigued and moved by their profound grief, Susanoo approached the family and inquired about the cause of their weeping.
Ashinazuchi looked up and explained their tragic plight. He revealed that they once had eight lovely daughters, but every year, a terrifying monster known as the Yamata no Orochi came from the neighboring province to devour one of them. The time of the beast's annual return was now at hand, and Kushinadahime was the eighth and final daughter left to them. Knowing she would be taken next, they could do nothing but mourn her inevitable fate.
Susanoo asked the old man to describe the monster. Ashinazuchi shuddered as he spoke, describing the Yamata no Orochi as a colossal, nightmarish serpent of unimaginable size. The beast possessed eight heads and eight tails. Its eyes burned with a menacing, bloody-red light, resembling bright Chinese lanterns. Along its massive body, moss, firs, and cypress trees grew, making it look like a rolling mountain range, and its belly was perpetually inflamed, dripping with blood as it slithered across eight valleys and eight hills.
Upon hearing this description, Susanoo felt his divine power stir. He saw an opportunity not only to perform a great deed but also to find a place of belonging in this mortal land. He looked at the beautiful Kushinadahime and made a proposal to her parents: if he could slay the terrible eight-headed beast, he would take their daughter as his wife. Recognizing his divine authority and desperate to save their daughter, Ashinazuchi and Tenazuchi eagerly agreed to the bargain.
To ensure Kushinadahime's safety during the coming battle, Susanoo used his divine powers to transform her into a fine-toothed comb, which he carefully tucked into his hair. This allowed him to keep her close and protected while keeping his hands free to face the monster. He then instructed the elderly couple to prepare for the confrontation. He ordered them to brew a highly potent, refined sake, distilled eight times over. Next, they built a large circular fence around their home, complete with eight gates. At each gate, they erected a sturdy platform and placed a large wooden vat filled to the brim with the extra-strong sake.
With the preparations complete, they waited. Soon, the earth began to tremble, and a foul, sulfurous stench filled the air. The massive Yamata no Orochi emerged from the deep forests, its eight pairs of red eyes glowing like lanterns in the dusk. The monstrous serpent slithered toward the homestead, its immense body covering hills and valleys. Sniffing the air, the beast immediately detected the rich, sweet aroma of the refined sake waiting at the gates.
Driven by insatiable greed and thirst, each of the serpent's eight heads approached a different gate. Without hesitation, each head dipped deep into one of the eight vats, drinking the potent sake. The beast drank greedily, emptying the vats to the last drop. Before long, the highly concentrated alcohol took effect. The enormous serpent began to stagger, its giant heads drooping to the ground. Dumbfounded and completely intoxicated, the Yamata no Orochi collapsed into a deep, helpless slumber, its massive coils lying motionless across the terrain.
Seeing his opportunity, Susanoo drew his mighty ten-span sword, the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi. With a thunderous battle cry, he leapt upon the sleeping monster. He began to systematically slice the beast to pieces, cutting off its eight heads and hacking its enormous, serpentine body into segments. The sheer volume of blood from the severed necks turned the nearby Hi River into a deep, crimson torrent of red.