Amaterasu (5e Deity)

Amaterasu

By Isvoc

Alignment. Lawful Good
Domains. Light, Life,
Divine Rank. Greater Deity

Amaterasu originally existed in and from the Celestial Plain, home of the Celestial Brush gods and the Celestials. As ruler of the Plain, it was a time of peace and tranquility, and Amaterasu enjoyed playing with the Celestials in the fields of the Plain. One day, however, they received a mysterious visitor: Waka, a member of the mysterious Moon Tribe which inhabited the moon. A great catastrophe had wiped out the Moon Tribe, leaving Waka believing that he was the last one, although there are two others of the moon tribe who were alive during the time. Waka and Amaterasu became friends, and things were peaceful once more.

However, disaster came to the Celestial Plain unexpectedly: Orochi appeared from nowhere and attacked the Plain. Many Celestials were killed in the onslaught. Along with Waka, Amaterasu rushed to their rescue, but Orochi was protected by a mystical barrier that repelled their attacks. Waka was forced to flee with the surviving Celestials on the Ark of Yamato he had arrived in. As he fled, he used his clairvoyant powers to look into the future to Orochi's defeat and discovered that Orochi could only be slain by the chosen one: Nagi. Amaterasu understood and pulled Orochi down to the mortal realm of Nippon to await the birth of Nagi, who would eventually bring the end of Orochi.

After Amaterasu dragged Orochi to the mortal realm, they wound up near the human settlement of Kamiki Village. Orochi made his residence in the Moon Cave near the village and summoned demons from across the land to serve in his army. Orochi soon imposed his reign of terror over the village. Using his mighty powers, he threatened to destroy the village unless a young maiden was given to him as a sacrifice every year on the night of the Kamiki Festival. Orochi consumed the soul of the sacrificial maiden, ensuring his extended longevity. Amaterasu ended up in the village proper. There she met a young Poncle, a tiny person, named Ishaku. Ishaku was the current Celestial Envoy, a missionary sent by his people to spread the teachings of the gods throughout the land. Ishaku teamed up with Amaterasu and accompanied her on her adventures.

Things would not be easy for Amaterasu, however. The villagers believed her to be a familiar of Orochi and dubbed her "Shiranui." They believed Orochi sent the wolf to spy out a beautiful girl to be the sacrificial maiden, and she was attacked many times by the villagers. Despite this, she kept a close eye on any villagers entering or leaving the village, and patrolled the streets in an effort to protect the villagers. 99 maidens and 99 years would pass until Amaterasu would finally get the chance to slay Orochi.

Finally, one of the chosen bloodline, the swordsman Nagi, was born. Unfortunately, like all the other villagers, he attacked Amaterasu and thought she was a demon. Amaterasu dodged these assaults and waited for the night of the festival.

Finally, the night of the accursed festival arrived. A white-plumed arrow would strike the house of a young maiden, marking her as Orochi's sacrifice. This year, however, the arrow struck the house of Nami, Nagi's beloved. Nagi, enraged, ran to the Moon Cave to end Orochi once and for all.

Nagi reached the Moon Cave. Orochi appeared to consume him, but Nagi fought back with his sword and battled the demon. The battle raged long throughout the moonless night, but Orochi's mystical barrier repelled every attack. As Orochi prepared to devour the weakened Nagi, Amaterasu appeared and shielded the injured warrior. Orochi then started to attack Amaterasu. The two fought wildly. Amaterasu used her Celestial Brush techniques to assault Orochi's hideous form, but his barrier held fast, blocking all attacks, and during the battle, he severely wounded Amaterasu. With her last bit of strength, the goddess used her Crescent Brush Technique to summon forth the moon into the dark sky. The moonlight infused Nagi's sword with power, turning it to gold. Intoxicating Orochi with Nami's 8 Purification Sake, Nagi defeated the beast and chopped off its heads. He then plunged his sword into its back, sealing its dark spirit away. Victory came at a price, however: Amaterasu had been poisoned by Orochi and was slowly but surely dying. Nagi carried the dying goddess back to the village. The village elder patted Amaterasu on the head as a sign of forgiveness and affection. Amaterasu then took her last breath and passed away. A statue was built in her honor in front of the divine tree Konohana, protector of Kamiki Village. Nagi's sword was dubbed Tsukuyomi and a shrine was set up in and in front of the Moon Cave to keep Orochi sealed.

After her death, her Celestial Brush Powers split into 13 different gods who were scattered across Nippon. The fight had left her drastically weakened, to the point where she was only left with her original ability, Sunrise. The people's dwindling faith in the gods didn't help either, as she grew even weaker in the afterlife.

Appearance

Amaterasu takes the shape of a white wolf with crimson markings across her body, a tail shaped like a calligraphy brush and a Divine Instrument floating above her back. Only particular beings, such as other Gods and spirits, and presumably most animals and demons can see her true form. Also, humans with a strong belief in the gods can see her markings and instrument. When Amaterasu's ink pots are empty, she will temporarily revert to a plain white wolf. This is how most people see Amaterasu.

Worshipers

Those who follow Amaterasu's divine light tend towards gentle and caring nature, with a select few taking on her more vengeful, authoritative side. This divides the faithful in to two categories: The Children and The Keepers

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Credit: https://okami.fandom.com/wiki/Amaterasu

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