Akai Ito

A Visual Novel created by Success, it is essentially a supernatural adventure with some Girls Love thrown in.

The story is about a girl named Hatou Kei who, as a result of a dead mother, heads to her father's house in order to claim her inheritance. However, she soon finds herself caught up in supernatural happenings after a dream concerning a huge tree and a mysterious girl...

It has a sequel of sorts called Aoi Shiro.

This game contains examples of:
" Mom and Dad: Fufufu... That's right... Kei is a bad girl."
 * Action Girlfriend: Kei rarely, if ever, fight the enemies herself.
 * The Alliance: The cooperation between the Mizuki and the exorcists sent to defeat Nushi, long time ago. By now, it's completely fallen apart.
 * All Myths Are True: Indeed.
 * All There in the Manual: The Akai Ito JIVE Guidebook.
 * All Your Base Are Belong to Us:
 * Ancient Tradition: Sakuya is a one-woman ancient tradition who watch over the Nie no Chi.
 * And I Must Scream: Nozomi.
 * And Your Little Fox Too
 * Arc Words: "Taisetsuna hito // inakunatta". Rough translation: "Someone important to me // have disappeared."
 * The Atoner: KEI-kun.
 * Back From the Dead: KEI-kun
 * Backup From Otherworld: Yumei, all the time, no matter what route you're on (save for Nozomi's). This doesn't apply on Yumei's own route, where she becomes physical again (and for all purpose, alive) due to drinking your blood.
 * Barrier Maiden: Yumei
 * Battle Aura
 * Battle Couple:
 * Battle Harem: A Yuri Genre example: Kei has four women (OK, 2 women, 2 girls) who are seriously interested in her, ready to fight to death to protect her. It's very noticeable because Kei herself is not an Action Girl.
 * Beastess: Sakuya is big, has Cute Fangs, and has an animalistic aura about her.
 * Beautiful Dreamer: Inverted. It's Kei who is seen sleeping by spoiler: Uzuki and Yumei, in their respective route. For the former, it's the result of the [[But Thou Must!, below. Because of this, fandom often depicts Uzuki as a creepy stalker.
 * Big Bad: Nushi-sama
 * Big Brother Instinct: KEI-kun, who does all he can protecting his twin Kei. Well, it's not like he is older than her.
 * Big Damn Heroes: Yumei-san, all the time.
 * Big Fancy House
 * Blood On These Hands:
 * Blood-Splattered Innocents
 * Bloody Hilarious: Kei just keep on feeding Yumei during the later's route. Affectionately. While being watched and commented by Sakuya and Tsudura. The game even make a small sub-screen during the CG to display them commenting!
 * Broken Bird: Uzuki. The stress of being a morally-upright onikiri really gets to her nerve.  She literally never smile except in her route.
 * But Thou Must!: After Uduki over-exert herself chasing away Nozomi and Mikage, Kei bring her to her room. There Is Only One Bed. "Option 1: Sleep next to her." "Option 2: Sleep next to her." "Option 3: Sleep next to her." Lampshaded.
 * Butterfly of Death and Rebirth: Ohashira-sama's standard attack. Probably also qualify as More Dakka.
 * Is she Yuyuko?
 * Boobs of Steel: Sakuya and Uzuki kicks ass physically more than Tsudura or Yumei.
 * Cat Smile: Nozomi, of all people. Mikage doesn't have one, though.
 * Cherry Blossoms: Averted. The tree where Ohashira-sama dwells is not a Sakura, despite obviously being cast in similar light . It's an Enju, or Japanese Pagoda Tree.
 * Cell Phone: Kei's. In her Happy Ending, Uzuki also gets one, much to Kei's surprise.
 * The Cell Phone is also a "destroy all enemies onscreen" item in the spin-off Mini Game "Onikiri no Oni"
 * The Chick: Kei.
 * Cool Big Sis: Yumei
 * Cool Sword
 * Crazy Prepared:
 * Creepy Twins: Nozomi and Mikage
 * Cute Ghost Girl: Yumei-san, Nozomi-chan, Mikage-chan. The first is basically Kei's guardian angel, the other two... want to eat Kei.
 * Cute Little Fangs: Tsudura, Sakuya. Nozomi and Mikage aren't exactly cute.
 * Dark and Troubled Past: For each character. Some more disturbing than the others.
 * Date Crepe: Kei and Uzuki.
 * Dead Big Brother: Senba Akira.
 * Death By Origin Story: Senba Akira, whose death is a very major element in Uzuki's  background.
 * Demonic Possession: Poor KEI-kun.
 * Devour the Dragon:
 * Distant Finale: The "Onikiri no Oni" ending, where
 * Does This Remind You of Anything?: Although Akai Ito is not an eroge, all the blood-drinking scenes are EXTREMELY obviously stand-ins for sex. There's even have a special soft, romantic-porno style BGM track reserved for those scenes only.
 * Driven to Suicide:
 * The Dragon: Nozomi and Mikage, for Nushi-sama.
 * Emergency Transformation
 * Emotional Maturity Is Physical Maturity: Played straight and subverted.
 * Emotionless Girl: Mikage.
 * Eyes of Gold: Sakuya.
 * Even the Girls Want Her: Kei seems to be rather popular with the ladies, don't you think?
 * Evil Gloating
 * Explaining Your Power to The Enemy: Some characters (especially Nozomi) are more prone to this than the others.
 * Fake Memories: To the point that Kei's past seems to be disturbingly similar to Cloud Strife's.
 * Familiar: Obana, Tsudura's white fox.
 * Fighting Down Memory Lane: It takes great courage for Kei to . Also an Epiphany Therapy for her.

"Nushi: So, what are you going to do?
 * Finger-Suck Healing: Subverted. Kei deliberately hurt her finger with a sewing needle so that Yumei has a moral reason to suck her blood; otherwise Yumei will be too shy to do so. Cuter than it sounds.
 * Finishing Each Other's Sentences: Nozomi and Mikage.
 * Flashback Nightmare: Kei.
 * The Four Faces of Eve/Hecate: From Kei's viewpoint:
 * Crone: Sakuya and Nozomi
 * Mother: Yumei and Sakuya
 * Companion: Uzuki and Yumei(!)
 * Daughter: Tsudura and Nozomi
 * Also, Kei herself can fit into any of the above role, depending on the route:
 * Sakuya: Daughter
 * Uzuki: Companion
 * Tsudura: Mother
 * Yumei: Daughter and Companion
 * Nozomi: Mother
 * Freak-Out: During Sakuya route, Kei's mind can't bear the sudden revelation of so many supernaturals right in front of her. She snaps, it got worse, and then . To be fair, before that happen you are given the option to simply escape Hemizuka and return to mundane life.
 * Friendless Background: Tsudura's only friend, she says herself, is Obana.
 * Frozen Fashion Sense: Subverted, Inverted, Justified, and even Played Straight. Let's see... Nozomi and Mikage has been trapped inside Ryugetsu for a long time that the change in people's way of dressing doesn't affect them. Yumei, on the other hand, only began wearing traditional kimono when she became Ohashira; in the flashback when she was still alive she wore normal clothes. On the other hand, Sakuya dresses liberally, despite being 1000+ years old (just look at her huge tract of land!). But then Nozomi, Mikage, and Yumei are ghosts, so it's not like they have a set of wardrobe.
 * Furo Scene: An ample opportunity for Sakuya to show off her assets.
 * Fur Against Fang: Of the Individual Battles variety: Tsudura versus Nozomi and Mikage.
 * Genki Girl: Tsudura
 * Ghost Shipping: Choose one: Yumei or Nozomi.
 * Girls Love
 * Go Out with a Smile:  Also Nozomi at the end of her route, but she got better.
 * Half-Identical Twins
 * Heroic Willpower
 * Heterosexual Life Partner: The Happy Ending for each character, except for Tsudura. Well, more like, "not immediately" in Tsudura's case. And not exactly "life" partner for Nozomi. In Sakuya route, the house plate was even changed to "(residence of) Asama Sakuya and Hatou Kei"!
 * Hidden Eyes
 * Huge Schoolgirl: Uzuki, at about 170 cm tall.
 * Human Aliens: If the myths are to be believed, the Mizuki Tribe originated in the moon and are either related or are the basis for the folklore of Kaguya-hime.
 * The Hunter: Uzuki. Being a hunter is pretty much the job of the onikiri.
 * Hypnotic Eyes: Seems to be the standard ability of Nushi and his right hands.
 * Impaled With Extreme Prejudice:
 * "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: Averted. KEI-kun does his best to contain Nushi-sama, but when the evil snake god is out, KEI-kun is gone.
 * Incorruptible Pure Pureness: Yumei-san. She never take Kei's blood without the latter's consent, she never snaps, she never gets angry at Kei, she stands vigilant as an Ohashira-sama for about ten lonely years, she saves Kei all the time, etc etc and so on. She stands in stark contrast to another vampirism-capable ghost, Nozomi, who is sometimes a Complete Monster.
 * In fact, Yumei's theme song was later made into an Image Song (with vocal!), which nicely sums Kei's story in Akai Ito. It's a shame that the song isn't featured in the game. Definitely a Missed Music of Heartwarming.
 * Intergenerational Friendship: Kei and Sakuya. Kei calls Sakuya, "Sakuya-san".
 * In the Blood (haha): The lineage of the Nie no Chi. From Emiko to Kei's father to Kei.
 * Intrepid Reporter: Sakuya, whose job is a reporter/writer/photographer. Her field of specialty is folklores, occasionally branching to the occults.
 * Invisible to Normals
 * I Will Definitely Protect You: Said by Uzuki to Kei. This is even the central premise of their relationship, with Uzuki doing her absolute bestest to protect Kei and Kei believing in her against all odds. See Just in Time below.
 * Japanese Mythology
 * Just in Time: Nozomi and Mikage comes storming with Nushi, the paper charms from Uzuki doesn't work, neither Sakuya nor Yumei is fit for fighting, and Uzuki herself is still unconscious from her previous battle with KEI-kun. Kei is forced to take up a sword and desperately pointing it at Nozomi, who laughs sinisterly.
 * Karma Houdini: Nozomi
 * Knight Templar: The onikiri (exorcists) are very prone to this. The tenet of the Senba is basically "if it's an oni, it should die. No exception". Just how far Uzuki is willing to carry this creed vary between routes.
 * Laser-Guided Amnesia: Tsudura, to Kei. See Save the Day Turn Away below.
 * Last of Her Kind:  And you wonder why she doesn't get along with Uzuki.
 * Laughing Mad: Part and parcel with the Freak-Out, above.
 * Leitmotif: "Itsuka no Hikari" for Yumei, and "Utakata" for Nushi, both of which were later made into full-fledged Image Song.
 * Lesbian Vampire: While none of the characters are vampires and more like oni, their drinking Kei's blood definitely invokes this image. Lampshaded, too, with Kei comparing
 * Lethal Chef: Kei cannot cook at all and her food is described as a biohazard.
 * Life Meter: Kei's blood. There is no way to recover it in-game, since the game only take 4 days.
 * Loners Are Freaks: Seems to be a recurring theme amongst the "romanceable" characters.
 * Madness Mantra: ..
 * Magi Babble: So... so much. There is even an in-game Encyclopedia Exposita.
 * Magic Mirror
 * Manipulative Bastard: Nozomi, so very much.
 * Masquerade: There are oni, insidious beings who corrupt and prey upon humans. And then there are the humans who hunt them. It's "better" for everyone if the humans don't know of this conflict. The Wakasugi is especially good at keeping this.
 * Mayfly-December Romance:
 * Miko: Uduki, even though she normally doesn't wear Miko attire. Kei seems to have a... wanting to see her in one.
 * Miss Exposition: Tsudura, Sakuya, and Uzuki each gets their turn. Sometimes all of them at the same time.
 * Mishmash Museum: Averted.
 * Missing Time: The result of Laser-Guided Amnesia, above. Lampshaded.
 * My God, What Have I Done?: Tsudura, while Uzuki.
 * Mysterious Waif: Yumei
 * Nice Girl: Kei. She even refer to the vampire twins as Nozomi-chan and Mikage-chan, even though they were trying to exsanguinate her just five minutes ago.
 * The Nose Knows: Tsudura gain super(-natural) scent ability
 * Scarily Competent Tracker: And she can track Nozomi and Mikage by, even though those twins are vampire-ghosts hiding in a mirror.
 * Not So Different: What Nozomi whispers into Uzuki's mind,
 * : Want to know who amongst the romanceable characters Kei is most attached to?
 * The whole story can be said to revolve around this trope. There is that bit about Kei's memory of . The memory is true,   And the plot starts with death of Kei's mother. The other character whose Happy Ending shows her living together with Kei?
 * It's worth mentioning that the maiden name of Kei's late mother was Senba Mayumi.
 * Onmyodo
 * The Order: The Onikiribe ("demon-slaying groups"), of which the Senba and the Wakasugi are two amongst many.
 * Orochi: Nushi.
 * Our Ghosts Are Different
 * Our Souls Are Different: The Wake-Mitama, houses a part of Nushi's divine soul. In most route, the Wake-Mitama is inside the Ryugetsu, which is sealed since long time ago. Nushi can manipulate those who gets too close to his Wake-Mitama into freeing his true soul. Works both way too: those who wield the Wake-Mitama can harm Nushi more easily... if they are of sufficient power.
 * Our Vampires Are Different: Let's look at the Sliding Scale of Vampire Friendliness...
 * Blood Requirement: N/A ! Nozomi, Mikage, and Yumei doesn't need human blood to survive, at all. They are more like spirits sustained with magic (and blood, especially blood of a Nie), than traditional vampires. Nozomi and Mikage only seek human blood to awaken Nushi.
 * Conversion: They can't convert the biting way. One becomes fettered spirit through powerful and rare magic. Bizarrely enough, only Sakuya can convert... although the converted one won't become a Mizuki.
 * Morality Shift: It really depends whether someone was already a messed-up person before conversion. However, Oni!Kei does seem to become less human after she ceases to be human.
 * Super Power: Oh yes, becoming an oni gives you super power.
 * Weaknesses: Nozomi and Mikage can only appear during the night, while Yumei can appear anytime.
 * Our Werewolves Are Different
 * Pinky Swear: Uzuki and Kei. It's also in the opening movie.
 * Post Dramatic Stress Disorder
 * Power Levels: In the JIVE Guidebook. Sakuya (in Ragou mode) is listed as higher than Nushi and thus highest in the ranking, while Kei is (obviously) the lowest.
 * The Power of Blood: The story revolves around the blood of the Nie no Chi. In this era, that means Kei.
 * Blood Magic
 * Really Seven Hundred Years Old: Sakuya is 17- old.
 * Subverted for.
 * Rie Kugimiya: Tsudura. Guess what.
 * Red Eyes, Take Warning: Nozomi and Mikage.
 * Red String of Fate: The literal translation of the title. When someone take Kei's blood (with her consent), there is a short FMV showing two blood-red sinusoidal wave synchronizing with each others into a straight line, showing adjoining of destiny.
 * Restored My Faith in Humanity: Kei, for Tsudura.
 * Patrick Stewart Speech: "Surely, while there are many bad people in the world, not everyone are bad, right? If humans are scary, then is Kei-nee-san scary?"
 * Save the Day Turn Away: Even though Tsudura . She does regret it.
 * Save the Villain: There is a Nozomi route. spoiler:However, it's rather short. It's at least partially canon, because Nozomi is hanging around Kei in the [[Aoi Shiro Kaeishou manga.
 * Secret War: The conflict between the Onikiribe and the Oni has been on-going since the beginning of time.
 * Soundtrack Dissonance: You would think that the final battle against Nushi will have Ominous Latin Chanting or something, but no. Well, it actually has its meaning
 * She Who Must Not Be Seen: Youko-chan, Kei's friend at the school. Also, Kei's father in the flashback; which is egregious because every other significant male characters (except Senba Akira) was seen.
 * Super Mode:
 * Super Mizuki-jin 1/2/3?
 * Supernatural Angst
 * Supernaturally Delicious and Nutritious: Kei's blood is very tasty and powerful. It's also an Amplifier Artifact.
 * Survivor Guilt:
 * Talk to The Fist: When Nushi have taken over KEI-kun's body and is now in his full form, a muscular man with snake tattoo:
 * Talk to The Fist: When Nushi have taken over KEI-kun's body and is now in his full form, a muscular man with snake tattoo:

Sakuya: THIS! *delivers a Ragou-empowered beatdown*"


 * Tall, Dark and Bishoujo: Uzuki, which may have contributed to her popularity.
 * Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Sakuya doesn't like Uzuki . Tsudura hates to be reminded of the duty of an onikiri. Uzuki hates oni with a passion  . But they do have to sweep personal issues under the carpet, because 1) it's the right thing to do, 2) if Nushi get his hands on Kei, things will go downhill fast, and 3) they do want Kei. And it worked.
 * Theme Tune Cameo: Kei use the opening theme as her cellphone ringtone. It sounds somewhat sinister, and in the OST CD, is titled "Wheel of Fortune".
 * Time Dissonance: To, the World War 2 was something that happened just recently. Granted, she is possibly 1000 years old...
 * Together in Death:
 * Took a Level In Badass:
 * Total Eclipse of the Plot: Nushi cause lunar eclipse to happen
 * Trauma-Induced Amnesia: Even Yumei-san beg to Kei to not remember things from her past. For good reason.
 * Undeath Always Ends: Different end for different character.
 * Yumei: Becoming alive again, physical body and all when someone take her position as Ohashira. . It's also possible to retire from being an Ohashira if there is a (very powerful) magic that can act as a seal,
 * KEI-kun: Dead, when Nushi completely took over his body.
 * Nozomi: Averted. At the end of her route, she doesn't get to be alive again. It's not known whether she's sent to Final Death when the Ryugetsu is destroyed in another routes.
 * Unstoppable Rage + Berserker Tears: Sakuya,
 * Vampire Invitation: Played with. It's exactly because Kei refuse to forget Yumei that the vampire-away charm is breached. Which means that Nozomi and Mikage become able to find Kei.
 * Vampire-Werewolf Love Triangle: Averted. There are vampire ghosts and were-people who are competing to get Kei, but the vampires are obviously villains who don't care about Kei's well-being.
 * What Measure Is a Non-Human?: The oni is a decidedly broad category. Dead people walking around? Oni! Ghosts appearing? Oni! Evil god who demand blood sacrifice? Oni! . Seriously, those onikiriyaku need to chill a bit.
 * When The Stars Align: The requirement for Sakuya to use her Ragou magic.
 * Who Wants to Live Forever?:
 * You Are Not Alone