Ok, this is definitely a Mai x Naru moment. I knew the directors are jealous of Masako and refuse to let her in for any part of this last arc. Why? Why? I want my Masako like now, now and now.
This arc is the file of the haunted house, and even though the build up is not as scary as the previous arc, it does open up to some really disturbing scenes. I am going to probably start panicking in the later stages of this arc and refuse to blog on it until my fear has subsided.
Note: I made use of honeysempai’s proposed names that are probably close to the actual names. Thanks to her!
Episode summary
Akufumi, the requestor, brought his niece to the SPR, as she had neck bruises and bruises that spelled out the word for people who were going to hell. The words, as explained by Bou-san, was “a message that the girl will be going down to hell soon” and Bou-san said that it was done by someone very malicious. The host of the family, Taizo and his wife, Hiroe greeted the Ghost Hunters and told them about the history of their lineage. Thirty two years ago when their great grandfather died, eight family members died while when their grandfather died, their grandmother and five other siblings of their grandparents died subsequently very soon. Then, when the host’s father died, Hazuki started having the mark on her back.
Mai started to remember the family members and found that everyone was quiet. Suddenly, Ejiro, the husband of the oldest daughter, screamed out and asked why they brought the ghost hunters in. He added that the host should have clarified and that it was not only the eight people that died. Hiroe then explained that three other guests died as well and they had spiritual power. He would not blame them if they left right now. The Ghost Hunters went to their rest room as Akufumi apologized for the behavior of Ejiro and said he was usually quite jovial. It seemed that after Taizo’s father died, everyone was having a short fuse and losing their temper after the burial. Akufumi’s three dogs also died, and they were found at the shore within three days of the burial. and the kids were the strangest.
The two other kids (Tazuki and Takako) in the house were inseparable suddenly and often whispered and mumbled things between each other. When asked when they were discussing, they simply glared and left. Mai was setting up the camera in a room and walked in the dark hallway. A young voice started calling her but she saw no one. A hand suddenly reached out, scaring Mai until she realized it was the two kids. The two kids asked Mai about how many people were here and Mai answered five. The two kids started mumbling toward each other and Mai asked why they questioned about the people count. The two kids told her not to worry as they walked away, with Mai realizing that Akufumi’s strange description of behavior was apparent and even though she could not pinpoint out the strange behavior, it just felt wrong.
A scream then rang out, as everyone rushed over to see the family members trying to hold Ejiro, who had bloodshot eyes and was holding a knife manically. Lin came forward and struck the man down. Naru asked about why Ejiro was feeling awful but they said that he was feeling good until very recently, and there was no particular reason. Naru continued to question the ghost hunters on who could try exorcising as he said it would be better to wait for John. Still, he asked Ayako whether she had confidence, and Ayako asked if Bou-san could do it. Bou-san said he had no confidence and the last time he tried on an urn, he was able to exorcise the spirit but the urn also broke. He added that one of the logics was that spiritual energy should never enter a living body. Lin was unable to do anything to exorcise the spirit if he did not know the true identity of the particular spirit. Naru asked Ayako to try it out, as Ayako said she could not promise what would happen.
Ayako started her ritual against the tied up Heijiro and it seemed that it was not working. Suddenly, a purple fox-like spirit emerged from the body and flew right pass her and through Naru’s body, as it escaped into the wall. Naru immediately slumped down, and Heijiro seemed to go back to normal. When they went back to HQ, none of the equipment captured the scenes as Lin said that the spirit had interfered and stopped all transmission. Naru clearly looked uncomfortable, and Ayako brought him back to his room for a rest. Mai regretted the chance to be close to Naru. As the two left the room, Bou-san questioned the authencity of Ayako’s powers as a Miko and wondered if she had ever successfully exorcised anything.
It was clear that she had some training before but the attempt to exorcise was a complete failure. Bou-san wondered if the miko name was self-styled. As they viewed on screen, it seemed that Ayako and Naru were hugging but Bou-san suddenly realized something was amiss as Naru was in fact strangling Ayako. Lin rushed out and struck Naru unconscious. Naru was possessed by the purple fox-like spirit rather than the spirit escaping. Lin told Ayako that she was lucky because the spirit had not known how to fully control Naru. If the spirit could control Naru properly, Ayako would have died earlier on. Lin told them that Naru was now a very dangerous character, completely out of expectations. Bou-san asked if Lin was good at fighting and whether he could beat Naru. In terms of resilience, Lin said Naru was possibly better.
Bou-san said that it left no choice but to try exorcising the spirit somehow, and try to identity the spirit so that Lin could do something. Lin said he would live his five spirits to guard and protect Naru, but that would leave him with zero. Bou-san asked Mai and Ayako about their plans, as there was no Naru to direct them. He told them that either to trust fate in their plans or to escape with Naru. Mai said they could not leave everyone this way and Ayako said no matter the bickering they had, they could not leave their compatriot behind. Mai was suddenly seen to be running in a “dream” and we see Naru with a stained knife and a fallen body. Naru had killed the person. Naru said that Mai had betrayed him, as only Mai would know about him meeting at this place. Mai said that there was a switch in the letters and she waited at a different place. Naru replied that he had to surrender since he killed someone but he would also be lynched if he surrendered. Mai told him that if they were to die, she would die together with Naru.
Naru brought Mai along to run, as they ran toward a shrine with the Yoshimi family giving chase. Mai wondered why they did not run toward the beach and everyone was there. The whole ghost hunter group was there as they had no place of escape. They were surrounded by the Yoshimi family as the swords came down. Mai woke up, only to see ghost lights around. It seemed that it was a dream within a dream, and she saw Dream Naru waving to her to come down. Mai asked if Dream Naru made the dream, but Dream Naru said that he simply guided Mai to it. Mai said she never noticed of such a path as they walked down into the cave and found the gathering of spirits and an altar that was slanted. Dream Naru told her that this place had gathered spirits who died in this place. Even though there was nothing malicious as yet, it was not a good place as it could be considered a spirit burial ground. Mai asked what Dream Naru meant when he said that he was guiding the dream but Dream Naru simply smiled as the lights faded off.
Thoughts
I apologize ahead for not going to say anything trivial at the start because I have a pressing concern. My first qualm about this episode is the dream within the dream. I do wonder what the significance of the dream, as most of you will have wondered right now. It definitely is not a dream about an experience like the past, compared to what has happened in the arc. It seems to be some form of foreboding, guided by Dream Naru. However, there are some points in the dream that does not make logical sense.
Something in the dream does not correspond to me in which I do not see John in the picture. If he is going to be around, the dream should have him around in my opinion. The fact that Naru will kill someone makes no sense to me too, since Naru is calm enough to think of such things before anything happen. The letter that he sends to Mai only is an interesting thing nevertheless, and I am curious what this symbolism actually means for the future. What exactly is supposed to be true in the dream within the dream, if the dream was a direction pointed out by Dream Naru for Mai.
If you are confused, it’s ok. I am too.
To add on, the fact that everyone is acting queerly and the altar seems to be related. Here comes my speculation time! I know it sounds obvious but I speculate that it must be the job of the spirit that resides in the house. I remember watching and reading Japanese folklore that believes that every house has a spirit living in it. In general, such spirits are benevolent, as long as suitable offerings are given (think a bit of food). I believe that somewhere down the line, the grand great father might have caused something that might be extremely offensive to the spirit in the altar.
When spirits are displeased, they can probably land a curse on the house that they reside in and turn their back against the very people living in it. When the spirit has lived for a long time and consumed the other spirits that have gathered in the vicinity, it will result in the curse being totally awful. This logic will actually work with the fact that Dream Naru said the place itself around the altar isn’t evil, yet isn’t good. The spirit itself is not evil in that sense, but it does lay a curse on the family residing in it.
The two kids does disturb me since their eyes looked totally vacant when they talked to Mai. The purple fox spirit seems to be powerful enough to possess even Naru, one who has probably at least some form of resistance. I cannot remember where I said this in the summary, but Bou-san did say that the more spiritual a person is, it will be harder to get the spirit out from the body. This will spell a lot of trouble, since Naru will become exceptionally dangerous. Ejiro is but a common man, yet has so much power that a few men had to tie him down. Imagine what happens when you have someone as resilient as Naru and martial arts not exactly too inferior to Lin possessed by this spirit. It’s like total carnage and I wonder what happens when Naru awakens.
The Dream Naru and Naru relationship really puzzles me, and I am slanting toward the twin speculation, since Naru is no longer under his own control, which means his sub-conscious is unlikely to have strength to pass the message to Mai, and extend his message. Ayako also disappointed me and I agree with Bou-san’s statements that she is probably trained before in some exorcism arts but definitely not a real miko by any sense.
And yes, to end off. WHERE’S MY MASAKO?
p/s: Rdrake is having his birthday! His birthday thread is here.
106 Comments
Masako is coming in the next episode, Impz.
And the dream within the dream is a big big hint of who dream-naru should not be.
Besides, remember that in the last episode, Bou-san said that it seems that one of Mai’s powers is spirit-travelling, so her dreams are not entirely real dreams, but spirit travelling. So … what does that make dream naru be? If she were spirit travelling and she bumped into dream-naru….
BTW, the first dream is really a dream.
Mai is actually communicating with the spirit….? is it her dead brother?
hmm, maybe her feet got dirty as she was travelling in her sleep. sleepwalking!
“is it his dead brother? ”
*gome, grammer error
Man, this episode left me with more questions than answers. I wonder if the curse on the family was due to a murder the family commited or something. Either way i just don’t get why a fox spirit is doing the possessions. And worst of cases Naru has been taken over O_O no good.
Naru is resilient as you have said impz so maybe Naru can still fight back in the subconcious level and win over the spirit/demon/whatever creature???
finally i wonder how would lin and naru’s fight would be if there was ever to be one. Kinda interesting thought.
thsnx for the summary impz ^^
Impz says: “It definitely is not a dream about an experience like the past, compared to what has happened in the arc.”
I personally don’t see why not… Mai could be imposing herself on the memory/experience of the past, so that she’s calling “Naru” and “Bou-san”, but in reality these are figments of the past and not really Naru and Bou-san.
Also, a lot of the dream doesn’t ring true, in that it doesn’t seem real, reflective of the relationship between the people. Ok, as much as I like Mai-Naru, there is NO WAY that Naru would suddenly hug Mai like that. The undertone between them also hints of lover relationship, which we all know isn’t true. Unless Naru and Mai became bf-gf in the near future (and how likely is that?), there’s no way they will act like that. And of course, I too don’t believe Naru can kill a person and not have much of a reaction at all. And since when do we lynch murderers in the present? (At least in relatively affluent society, which Japan is, completely)
Also, I believe John (and Masako) are not in the dream because they aren’t immediately in the picture yet. ie he hasn’t arrived yet. The 5 of the ghost hunters (Naru, Mai, Lin, Bou-san, Ayako) are presented in the episode, so they are presented in Mai’s dream.
“Imagine what happens when you have someone as resilient as Naru and martial arts not exactly too inferior to Lin possessed by this spirit. ”
I think Lin actually says: In a fight of life and death, Naru will win”; I’m not sure if this refers to martial arts. Personally, I’m attracted to martial artists *blushes*, but Naru doesn’t give off that vibe at all. I think he’s more of a psychic power.
“The Dream Naru and Naru relationship really puzzles me, and I am slanting toward the twin speculation, since Naru is no longer under his own control, which means his sub-conscious is unlikely to have strength to pass the message to Mai, and extend his message.”
NOOO!!! The subconsious is almost independent of (but always connected to) the conscious; you could even say that the subconscious commands over the conscious. Dream Naru isn’t affected by sleep/unconsciousness, because a lot of time Real Naru is probably sleeping when Mai is dreaming of Dream Naru. Even if Real Naru’s sleep is magically induced, Dream Naru will still be able to appear, maybe because Dream Naru’s magical/spiritual power is greater than magically induced sleep.
That said, I totally agree with regards to the kids. They are CREEPY. I also thought that it should be immediately apparent that the purple fox spirit went INTO Naru instead of THROUGH him… I can’t believe they didn’t suspect it at all!
Altogether, a very intriguing start, although overall I still think the last arc is better.
lys– wow complicated…I was never too good at taking hints, and that was no exception. “And the dream within the dream is a big big hint of who dream-naru should not be.” that really confuses me, so I’ll just do what I always do, pretend I didn’t see it and keep on believing what I made myself believe, that DreamNaru is Naru’s dead twin.
Impz– did you intentionally skip the parts where Naru hugged Mai, and where they held hands? I actually noticed how Mai held hands first with the Naru in the first dream, and also with *the* DreamNaru
It’s ok to live in denial, we all do it once in a while. But the truth always manages to come through mwahahahahah
When I first saw the scene where Naru was standing over a dead body with a bloody knife in hand, the first thought I had in mind was that Naru killed his twin brother. I’m glad it’s not true though.
So far this arc is still very confusing to me, so I refuse to make any speculations at this point. The one Impz had about the house spirit sounds pretty reasonable, but a little plain, kinda reminds me of the second arc about the doll house. I hope it’s a little more exciting than that.
About Ayako’s ability…I’ve actually been a little spoiled with information regarding Ayako and Naru’s abilities, and I mean “a little” since I’ve only read two panels of the manga, so I don’t really know the context, so I won’t say anything at this point.
eek, seems like a pretty useless comment. But isn’t this episode just sooooooooooo exciting????? if not for the ample NaruxMai-ness
And oh, I forgot to add: Even if it’s just a dream, I LOVE the scene when Naru hugs Mai… *grins uncontrollably*
I think the first dream was Mai reliving something that happened in the past, similar to how she was the maid in the dream in Urado’s house. Because she was acting in the place of the actual person, in her mind she substituted the man the woman loved with the man she loves (Naru of course). The same thing occured when the rest of SPR showed up. Instead of seeing the original people, the woman’s friends, she saw her own. To me this seems even more plausible since to me, it looked like the people chasing them were wearing old fashioned clothing.
I think DreamNaru acts as a spirit guide to lead her both to helpful dreams and to give her information she might not be able to understand on her own. And yes, I am in the twin camp. They really don’t seem that much alike personality wise!
I agree with Briar about Mai’s first dream. I think she’s experiencing a memory sent to her by dream!Naru of a historical event and has superimposed herself and her friends on key persons at the event. Mai and Naru as the lovers; Bou-san, Ayako, and Lin as the close friends or family members. The formerly possessed man as the head of the lynch mob. (John, Yasuhara, and Masako are absent from the dream because they haven’t arrived on the job site. Yet.) The SPR gang are recreating the events that happened in the past which is why they (especially Naru) are behaving in an out of character way.
And as much as I support & want Naru x Mai, I don’t really count the first hand-holding and hug as a Naru x Mai moment although I loved it a whole lot. Now the dream!Naru x Mai hand-holding in the second half of the dream … that counts!
I thought Bou-san was being unusually cruel to Ayako. She *was* able to exorcise the man and drive out the fox spirit. That takes power and ability. I don’t care what Bou-san says.
~sigh~ my poor Naru T_T
I screamed. I jumped. I got my “pantsu
First off: *Waves NaruxMai banner in the air and sounds battle horn*
…Let me save everyone the trouble by revealing how to solve the current case: Kill the two kids! Mwahahahahaha! Bratty kids! XO (My apologies. I’m feeling very sick right now and not entirely in the right state of mind…)
It wasn’t really a dream within a dream, as others have already pointed out. Well, I’m of the opinion that it’s not, anyway. Say DN is a twin, then he guided Mai to Naru’s dream, and when she woke up, she was actually having an out of body experience. The altar is probably a real place, and I agree with Impz that the family’s ancestors might’ve done something terrible to anger the house spirit.
Did anyone notice Naru not moving from his place? If Ayako really was a semi-fake, Naru would most likely know, so he’ll know that the exorcism won’t be successful. Nice person that Naru is, he willingly took on the kitsune (inari? yoko? Kurama?) so that no one else would have to suffer. Either that or his plan was to get the thing into him in the first place. Since Naru is spiritually strong (as has been revealed), he can control himself to a point, and prolly even protect his sanity, more than your average person.
I just realized something, dense as I am. I’ve been watching raws for some time now, and I just noticed how the typed intro (a few days ago, july 1, etc) are in English. Bigger chance that Naru and Lin came from the West. Or English literacy in Asia is getting higher. (I’m asian, so I know what I’m talking about. In my country alone, so many Koreans, Chinese, and Japanese students are migrating to learn better English at a cheaper price. Yes, migrating is cheaper than hiring an English tutor/teacher in Korea/China/Japan.)
I love how Naru said: “Koroshite shimatta” without much feeling. XD Translation: “Damn, I killed him.” (
(forgive my nursery-level Japanese.)
It was in a dream, so Naru hugging Mai is not really out of synch. Hmm, weird though, how Mai didn’t go “Oh, it’s a dream” and didn’t think twice about the things happening… My other theory was that the fox was controlling Naru at this point (ergo the “Damn, killed him” and the “I love you Mai! Let’s elope and have babies together!”) and bringing Mai to the temple will make Mai more vulnerable to be eaten. (I don’t know why I keep thinking of Mai as food. I must be really hungry.) Although, now that I read Ari-san’s post, I totally agree with everything she/he said. Makes much sense. *nods*
LKK-san, Bou-san’s just jealous ’cause he wants Ayako to go somewhere/anywhere with him instead of Naru. ^^ But still, though. It’s only right for him to speculate. Besides, he didn’t harass Ayako by asking her in an impertinent way and positively embarrassing her in front of the others.
I still say they should kill the kids. That or have Masako as a sacrifice to the fox spirit next ep. ^.~!
“I guess this is where the fans will see the final showdown of the Mai x Naru love-love vs. Masako x Naru love-love battle. So all pairing-supporters out there should take their sides now and hold on tight cause I have a feeling that we’re all in for quite a show. ^^ ”
There is no need to hold on tight, because there’s just no contest.
Mai x Naru is the clear, uncontestable winner, after all.
“Did anyone notice Naru not moving from his place? If Ayako really was a semi-fake, Naru would most likely know, so he’ll know that the exorcism won’t be successful. Nice person that Naru is, he willingly took on the kitsune (inari? yoko? Kurama?) so that no one else would have to suffer. Either that or his plan was to get the thing into him in the first place. Since Naru is spiritually strong (as has been revealed), he can control himself to a point, and prolly even protect his sanity, more than your average person. ”
From what I understand, Naru was about to DO something as he wanted the purple fox rushed towards him. Right at that juncture, though, Lin went “Yamete” (Stop! OR Don’t!) [ok, there may be spelling errors in my Japanese romanization, which is extremely bad), which stopped Naru from doing whatever he was going to do (flatten the purple fox in to purple mincemeat, maybe?). Instead, he got possessed. So my question is why Lin stopped him, and if Naru getting possessed is actually not as bad as whatever Naru was about to do.
~MadHatter~ “t wasn’t really a dream within a dream, as others have already pointed out. Well, I’m of the opinion that it’s not, anyway.”
The thing that makes it a dream within a dream is because after Mai went with DreamNaru, there was a sudden change of their location without even making a single move, (I think it was before they went down some steps to the altar but I’m not too sure.)and there was also the part when Mai touched the glowing light and it turned into something that looked like fish I think. ^^ So even if Mai had astral projected herself, she still would’ve had to move in order to go from one place to another.
“LKK-san, Bou-san’s just jealous ’cause he wants Ayako to go somewhere/anywhere with him instead of Naru. ^^ But still, though. It’s only right for him to speculate. Besides, he didn’t harass Ayako by asking her in an impertinent way and positively embarrassing her in front of the others.”
That is a very good point I missed to think. ^^
“That or have Masako as a sacrifice to the fox spirit next ep. ^.~!”
LOL
“(I’m asian, so I know what I’m talking about. In my country alone, so many Koreans, Chinese, and Japanese students are migrating to learn better English at a cheaper price. Yes, migrating is cheaper than hiring an English tutor/teacher in Korea/China/Japan.)”
Why do I have a hunch that I know exactly which country you’re from. ^^
~Briar~ “There is no need to hold on tight, because there’s just no contest. Mai x Naru is the clear, uncontestable winner, after all.”
Well said! ^^
“So my question is why Lin stopped him,”
I think MadHatter’s “he willingly took on the kitsune (inari? yoko? Kurama?) so that no one else would have to suffer. Either that or his plan was to get the thing into him in the first place. Since Naru is spiritually strong (as has been revealed), he can control himself to a point, and prolly even protect his sanity, more than your average person.” answers the question. ^^
And as usual, Lin saw his plan like when Naru assigned everyone in groups back in the Haunter House arc (I forgot the name of the last arc lol) that was why he stopped Naru.
Correction–> “Haunted House arc” (sighs)
I’m “speculating” based on Mai’s first dream, that there is a couple involved in this anomaly and it had something to do with how the curse started within the family. I say the two kids who “suddenly” got real close are possessed by that couple and are now cursing people around them. *nods* It’s going to be painful seeing my speculations shot down later on though, since I know how tricky and twisted these arcs can be. =_=
Few reasons why I can’t think Dream Naru is Naru’s dead twin is that he dresses exactly similar as Naru, that black number that only Naru can wear. If they were twins, then what happened to individuality that twins always are so sensitive about? lol Second, why Mai? When did he meet Mai? Through Naru’s eyes or something? XD Why would a spirit of his dead twin rise from his grave and haunt Mai and not Naru himself? Moreoever, he even responds to Mai when she calls him Naru. You can say DN is using Mai to help Naru solve his cases, but it’s more like DN is more concerned on Mai’s welfare than Naru, his supposedly living twin. Don’t you think so? Frankly, I’m more open to the idea that dream Naru is another spirit who unusually has taken a liking to Mai when she got in contact with Naru. Naru has something up on his sleeve and Mai picked up something special from him that awoke her spiritual potential. >[ Yea, sounds more plausible to me.
I can’t wait for Masako and John to show up on the next episode, but I want to see Naru thrash around and attack more people. I want to see some drama swathe in suspense haha But in fairness, I really felt bad for Naru when he got hit by the spirit. I went “awww” when he got hit by the fox spirit then thought of images of Naru drooling and thrashing around lol I’ve always seen Naru as very fragile so I was shocked when Lin said he’ll lose to him when it comes to resiliency. Ah well, maybe the fox spirit works wonders.
Aww man, waiting for the next episode is such a pain. I don’t want to jinx it, but I have a feeling this is going to be the best arc ever. And THAT is saying something.
~Ricaryx~ “I’m “speculating
I know this won’t be popular with the MasakoxNaru crowd (sorry Impz) but maybe the reason DreamNaru, RealNaru and Mai are connected is the idea of soul mates. I have heard the theory that twins are one soul split into two bodies. Perhaps Mai is Naru’s “soul mate” and DreamNaru can recognize that. Naru’s abilities so far don’t seem to include the ability to see spirits, and maybe because it is painful, he is blocking contact from his twin.
However, Mai, who is sensitive to spirits, was recognized by DreamNaru as connected to them. Therefore he tried to help and protect her, both out of caring for her and because he knows that RealNaru and Mai belong together.
I think he doesn’t tell her who he is because 1. At first he didn’t think Mai would stick around with RealNaru being such a jerk. So he let her think he was RealNaru, only a nicer part of him to keep her from leaving. 2. Now that she likes Naru for Naru’s sake, he doesn’t tell her because Mai can’t keep a secret and he is afraid if she tells Naru it will hurt him because his death is recent.
Of course, for the MasakoxNaru fans, maybe DreamNaru is Mai’s soul mate, and RealNaru is Masako’s. DreamNaru doesn’t tell Mai who he is because he knows her attitude towards him will change when she discovers he is dead…
A simple explanation Ricaryx’s questions (and Ari’s theory) is that Dream Naru IS Real Naru. They are essentially the same entity. *nods fervently*
13sugars says: “I think MadHatter’s “he willingly took on the kitsune (inari? yoko? Kurama?) so that no one else would have to suffer. Either that or his plan was to get the thing into him in the first place. Since Naru is spiritually strong (as has been revealed), he can control himself to a point, and prolly even protect his sanity, more than your average person.
~Briar~ “Now, suppose Naru really did intend to take that thing into him, and Lin saw through his plan. So he says: “Don’t!
Nice explanation thirteen sugar ^.^ I can’t say you’re wrong too, so we’ll just have to see. I HOPE they put an end to dream Naru’s mystery in this arc and not leave it open-ended. =_=
@Briar “A simple explanation Ricaryx’s questions (and Ari’s theory) is that Dream Naru IS Real Naru. They are essentially the same entity. *nods fervently*”
Heh, this is what I’ve been ‘wishing’ secretly ever since dream Naru appeared. I was just being pessimistic and try to be all “Naaaah, can’t beeee XD” cause it’s too good to be true. LOL But it does makes sense too though. The only problem I had with DN being Naru himself is that compared to DN Naru is clueless of what is going on. However, Naru does seem to know everything dream Naru points out, so it could be that he knows them subconsciously.
Also, I just noticed that when Dream Naru appeared to Masako, Naru had her comb with him, meaning that he WAS worried about Masako. Hmmm….Is DN a subconscious soul or some dead twin? I still tend to stick on the former.
Lol, I went to school early today and I came back with so many comments ^+^
@Lys: Good to hear that, and Masako definitely has to appear because without her, Ghost Hunt is just less attractive. The prettiest, cutest and most jealous induced spiritual medium ever in Ghost Hunt, Masako
So, the first dream is really a dream huh. I do not know, it feels to me like a dream within another. I am confusing myself quite a bit.
@-_-: I wonder too. Lys is confusing me more than helping.
@MinervaArnauld: Hmmm, well, the thing is that he is resilient in terms of fighting, but not fending off spirits. That means that if he is possessed, he will have a strong ability to fight off anyone, but defensively against the spirit from within, Naru has nothing.
@Briar : I wonder why when I reply to Briar, I address her as Lin. Must be her fangirling. Also, I am curious about the subconscious connection since I know that it’s almost independent. However, the conscious and subsconsicous behavior of Naru should be binded by the spirit, hence it will not be true that Naru is in fact controlling Dream Naru. I feel that Dream Naru is a complete different entity, yet somehow connected to Naru nevertheless.
Well, Briar, there are still 3 episodes to go. I have no clue where this arc will go, so praying ^^
@Ohpive: Huh, what hug? I do not know what you are talking about? Are you watching a different show from me? *Acts innocent* Well, the person who died seems to be one of the family members, the …ermm Akufumi?
@Ari: A person of the past? Well, I do not think it is of any similiarity. If anything, the person in the maid dream was Dream Naru and in no point of time do we see any foreign instances. I also realize that the people that are chasing them are of recent age, not of the past, so I hardly doubt your speculations that it is talking about the past. To me, I feel that it’s a forewarning of sorts.
@LKK: NOPE. I do not think Ayako did anything to drive the fox spirit out. It was more like it decided to escape and attack them due to the antagonizing effect. I bet it’s more like a malicious act on the part of the fox spirit rather than Ayako driving it out. I am on the side of Bou-san on this that Ayako is a fake miko.
Impz says: “I wonder why when I reply to Briar, I address her as Lin. Must be her fangirling. Also, I am curious about the subconscious connection since I know that it’s almost independent. However, the conscious and subsconsicous behavior of Naru should be binded by the spirit, hence it will not be true that Naru is in fact controlling Dream Naru. I feel that Dream Naru is a complete different entity, yet somehow connected to Naru nevertheless.
Well, Briar, there are still 3 episodes to go. I have no clue where this arc will go, so praying ^^”
*shocked* Ehm… excuse me, I’m not a Lin fangirl, I’m a Naru fangirl!
I don’t fangirl Lin; that’s 13sugars’s prerogative. I’m a through and through Naru fan. *bats eyelashes* You can address me as Naru-fanatic-and-hysterical-fan, if you like… Just don’t call me Naru, because I have no desire to *be* Naru, only… [censored] … … if you know what I mean. *winks*
Yeah, we have three more episodes to see whether I’m right (practically the only person here who believes it… except now we have Ricaryx! Ricaryx, wanna join my fanclub of one member so far [me] with the slogan of Dream Naru = Real Naru??
) or the rest of the commentators and of course, our lovely blogger are right.
I do believe that Dream Naru is part of Real Naru, however it is hard to say which control which. If Dream Naru is the subconscious, then according to Freud (I think) Dream Naru will affect a lot of Real Naru’s actions, which also means that at some degree, Dream Naru has some control over Real Naru. But my poor mind can’t comprehend such complexities, so I’m just going to say that Naru is very powerful, so that even when (magically?) sleep-induced part of him (his power?) can roam free.
@13sugars: Ayako didn’t prove herself in my opinion since she did not exorcise the spirit, only to antagonize it to escaping. Perhaps, she does have some power, but it really is too little for a miko. Her character wise is fitting for the group dynamics though, the onee-san role
The first dream by the way is clearly not Dream Naru, since you can feel the difference, as you said. I still think that it’s not the past but the future, a future that might come true if Mai is not able to solve this in time.
I am still swinging aimlessly without much information and I am sure that the second episode will give me more ideas on where this is going. By the way, I still have no clue what you talk about the fanservice. What fanservice?
~lalalalala~
@madhatter: -_- you are a sadist desu~ Well, you brought up a very good point about Naru not moving. I think he probably knows that Ayako has limited power and hence will only be able to antagonize the spirit to come out, yet believe enough to stand there.
Hmmm, eaten? What are you with eating kids and killing Mai (wait, I got that confused).
Your last statement about Masako is itching for me to press the edit button and change it to “That or have MadHatter as a sacrifice to the fox spirit…” I wonder why.
And meh, when I re-clicked the send button, you guys replied again, slow down for me desu!!!!
@13sugars: To start off, I have emailed you why your comment lands in the spam thread. If anyone has that problem and hopes to solve it to make sure that it never happens, please email me with these particulars
Username
First Name
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Email
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Password
I will add anyone as a subscriber. All you have to do is to login and you will be subscribed.
1. The benefits are perhaps that you will likely not be banned…Also, you can see the scheduled posts that are coming up, so you have a sneak preview of what’s coming up in THAT anime blog. So email me at thatblog@gmail.com if you need to.
@Briar”(practically the only person here who believes it… except now we have Ricaryx! Ricaryx, wanna join my fanclub of one member so far [me] with the slogan of Dream Naru = Real Naru??)”
Sure sure. ^__^ From now on, my standpoint will be Dream Naru= Real Naru or Kindred spirit [in case the Real Naru theory backfired haha] I bet a lot of MaixNaru fans are also secretly wishing for Dream Naru to be the Real Naru XD There’s no need to be shy. Come and admit lol
Oh, about Ayako. I really came to like her and I thought Bou-san’s comments were pretty mean. >[ First of all, she wouldn’t be called a priestess if she couldn’t perform the ritual that drove the fox spirit out. If you think about it, she did separate Eijiro and the fox spirit safely. Isn’t that a success? Bou-san needs to give her more love. When he thought Naru was kissing Ayako and his idiotic expression changed, I thought he finally got jealous but alas… -_-
@Ricaryx: HAHAHA, I think he was more lecherous, and then he went into OH SHI- mode. Cute though, I will think Bou-san and Ayako will make an interesting couple ^^
Ricaryx says: “Sure sure. ^__^ From now on, my standpoint will be Dream Naru= Real Naru or Kindred spirit [in case the Real Naru theory backfired haha] I bet a lot of MaixNaru fans are also secretly wishing for Dream Naru to be the Real Naru XD There’s no need to be shy. Come and admit lol”
YEAH!!!
From now on, it’s the fan club of two!
Real Naru = Dream Naru, united!
@ Impz: “@Ricaryx: HAHAHA, I think he was more lecherous, and then he went into OH SHI- mode. Cute though, I will think Bou-san and Ayako will make an interesting couple ^^”
That’s pretty much how I saw Bou-san’s reaction to watching Naru and Ayako. I got the feeling Bou-san was saying to himself “Way to go, Naru-bou!” and then the realization struck as to what was actually happening.
And Impz, I respectfully disagree with you about Ayako’s exorcism. I think she drove out the fox spirit not angered it enough that it would leave the man’s body.
i’m confused…so its a dream inside a dream? o.0
I’m back! So many things to read! *happy*
I feel that Lin was shouting to Naru ‘no’ and that silent implied words were: ‘It’s more powerful than you think. Get out of the way you idiot.’ hahaa.
I’m not sure if the anime included this: But when Bou-san questioned the authencity of Ayako’s powers as a Miko, he also mentioned that there must be something about Ayako otherwise why would Naru still get her to come. This one is very important actually. *hint hint*
I also disagree with Impz. I don’t think the fox spirit was angered and left the man’s body. I believe she successfully drove out the spirit but not powerful enough to exorcise it. Hey, John also had this problem before remember? He drove out Kenji’s spirit but did not exorcise it and it went to possess Mai. Does that make John any less? So this fox spirit was probably looking out for another host. If everyone can see it, it must definitely be very powerful. And in Chinese folklore, fox spirits are supposed to be mischievous and/or evil spirits. NOt sure about Japanese folklore.
Oh, I forgot. It’s definitely Mai and Naru!! Impz, Masako no chance already. See Naru held Mai’s hands. And hug her! So what if it’s a dream? I don’t care!! He also held her hands and walk with her into the cave! Get it! He held her hands willingly!!!! So sweeeeeet! *waves Naru and Mai’s banner*
All Masako does is CLING onto Naru’s arm. He doesn’t even hold her hand or LOOK at her. Not even when they were sitting next to each other on the bench.
And Naru stood in front of Mai to protect her when the fox spirit appeared!! What more evidence do you need, Impz? 
oh yeah did u noticed hw Naru was concerned about Mai wn the fox (spirit)appeared (kyaaaa) tht was soooooo sweet.
and there’s somethin tht really z bothering me, why did lin stopped naru from doin anything, i mean it was like naru was ready to do somethin, bt lin stopped him, and naru actually listened to him and did nothing… hmmm
and in the second dream, where naru took mai, i think its a secret cave or somethin, tht got a hidden door in the shrine,aaaaah too many speculations o_O my head z spinning from thinking, oh yeah i dreamed about naru yesterday,lol,^^ bt unfortunately it seems tht i cnt remember anything, tooo bad, bt if i remembered i’ll tell u. oh god ths z really started to get in to me. bt hey no complains.
and impz: its always a pleasure reading ur explinations and thoughts, keep up the good work.
ooh i wrote tooo much, need to hv some sleep
byeeeeeeeeee
There’s a lot of this show that’s confusing still.
Mai shows an innate ability early on to know certain things about what was going on in a situation. Even when spirits were not involved at all, she seemed to realize deep down who was NOT at fault. She’s progressively growing throughout the show, and is able to better establish what the situation means overall. I believe the ‘Dream Naru’ is merely a creation of her own, either that, or Naru shares her ability to a lesser degree.
If Naru shares Mai’s ability to a lesser degree; and is willing to act as her guide and point out clues to her; perhaps he’s unaware of it consciously, which is why he never mentions to her what happened in the dream.
The fact that Naru’s nice in it, shows his true feelings. It’s no secret that some idiot guys pretend they’re not interested, for more reasons then one. Namely in this case: he keeps business, business, and isn’t entirely sure of what he feels, or he’s just afraid to admit it.
If Dream Naru is a creation of Mai’s, it acts on its own, which is why Masako saw him; or perhaps, Masako dreamed the entire thing about Naru, the real part was merely with Mai; or perhaps, Masako lied about his presence before her, because of her jealousy of Mai.
It could also be that… the entire series is Naru finally finding and training his replacement. If this is true, then it can end very, very, sadly.
Hey everyone!
@Laboosh, eveything is fine thank you for asking. Its just been really busy work week and I’m bone tired. But I have had time to read all the comments, OMG, there are so many! But the Professor noticed I was doing a good job, so that makes me happy.
*cracks fingers, right, lets get down to speculating!*
@lys, its the same in Japanese folklore, Kitsune are generally mischievous, not evil in nature.
“Masako is coming in the next episode, Impz. And the dream within the dream is a big big hint of who dream-naru should not be.
Besides, remember that in the last episode, Bou-san said that it seems that one of Mai’s powers is spirit-travelling, so her dreams are not entirely real dreams, but spirit travelling. So … what does that make dream naru be? If she were spirit travelling and she bumped into dream-naru….”
Hmm, so Mai’s dreams technically aren’t dreams but spirit travelling… So… I’m going to say DN is real Naru. He has the same power to spirit travel as Mai, and when they meet in her ‘dreams’ it is simply the two of them in spirit form meeting up. Meh, I’m probably wrong, but part of what makes this series so much fun is all the speculating we get to do.
And I agree with those in the camp that Ayako did in fact drive the spirit out, but she was unable to completely exorcise it.
I also think everyone is spot on with the idea that in the first sequence, its a case of Mai not necessarily dreaming, but more like the situation in the previous case. She is seeing what is happening through someone elses eyes and she and DN are acting out something that already happened in the past.
Possibly the fact that she is seeing herself, and Naru and the others acting it out might be foreshadowing that the events of the past will reoccur, only with them this time round. Sort of like the past will repeat itself but through them. Unless of course they can stop it first.
I also concur that the two kids are VERY creepy, there is just not something right with those two.
Hopefully Madoka and Yasuhara will have some more info if they turn up. I also agree that they were not in the dream because they were not there at the time.
So I believe in the first instance, Mai was experiencing the past foreshadowing what might again occur in the future if they don’t stop it.
In the second sequence she was having one of her usual dreams.
Okay I think thats all my brain can handle for now.
Lys says: “Hey, John also had this problem before remember? He drove out Kenji’s spirit but did not exorcise it and it went to possess Mai. Does that make John any less? ”
I think at that time John wasn’t trying to exorcise Kenji; he was just getting Kenji out of the boy’s body. So it’s not that he couldn’t exorcise Kenji; it’s that he isn’t even trying to.
Although I do agree with everyone else (except our lovely blogger) that Ayako drove the fox spirit out of the guy.
DJ says: “I’m going to say DN is real Naru. ”
*Big, sloppy grin* DJ, have you finally been converted to the bright side?
Come join my fan club of two with the slogan of Dream Naru = Real Naru! LOL I’ve been saying it since the beginning, and I’m going to go on believing it until I’m proven wrong. Dream Naru cannot be anything other than Real Naru himself.
Although I have a slightly different speculation, in that Dream Naru is the subconsious manifestation of Real Naru’s power. But whatever. Dream Naru = Real Naru! Unite!
@Briar, yep I think so ^-^
And your other suggestion about DN being a subconcious manifestation of Naru’s power makes sense too. That might explain why he isn’t aware of the things DN is.
Dangit, I forgot to add.
@Alex, I like what you’ve written about Mai.
But much as I would like to believe that Masako might have lied about Dream Naru I know that can’t be the case. Because how would have known about him if she hadn’t seen him?
Unless that is indeed the secret she knows about, but I tend to think its something else about Naru that she knows.
~Briar~ “I think at that time John wasn’t trying to exorcise Kenji; he was just getting Kenji out of the boy’s body. So it’s not that he couldn’t exorcise Kenji; it’s that he isn’t even trying to.
@Lys: I will guess so but I expected her to be at least be effective to a greater extent. I guess it’s my own prejudice toward Ayako’s abilities in which if you remember correctly, she has not done one significant act that has succeeded. Not one.
I kinda feel half-way. I believe that the spirit has intentions of possessing others but Ayako also did just enough to drive it out of sorts. However, the purpose is in fact to exorcise it, not drive it out to someone else. Hence…. T_T Ya, i am evil. Also very importantly, MASAKO WILL BE HERE NEXT WEEK. Well, i was given that information anyway. Mai x Naru? What’s that? Huh, what protection @_@? *turns senile*
@Laboosh: Hmm, ya, i am actually curious why Lin was like trying to stop Naru. It is as though he knew Naru is going to try something to stop or something. No idea, but i believe it has some relationships with Naru’s powers, whatever it is
@Alex: I do not actually agree with the fact that Dream Naru is her creation but she’s more in a mind in which she taps onto a source, or perhaps an invasion by a foreign entity which is Dream Naru. I believe that it has something to do with spirit traveling, rather than her creating it. That should not be the case, if she is in fact an esp medium
@DJ: I see you have logined, i think
Heh, anyway, i do wonder what the secret is but I feel that it is in fact the manifestation of Dream Naru and the connection of it with Naru himself. She probably knows….But then, the admittance of Masako that she met Naru makes 0 sense then. She would probably hide that truth to Mai.
@13sugars: the person who speculated that was me ^^;;; Anyway, i will think exorcison as repelling the spirit from the body and destroying it from existence. I do not think that John is that great sadly as well. I wasn’t too impressed.
O_O HOW DARE YOU TURN APART A TSURUYA PLUSHIE T_T
*tears apart a lin-sama’s plushie*
-Waits for the flood of LIN’S FANGIRLS to kill me ;_; 13sugars forced me to!
The comments are so overwhelming over here!
I’ve just got time to watch the RAW version of ep22, and I can’t help but agree that this is really a great fanservice =D (although it’s a big disappointment for Naru x Masako fans). I’d love to see more of Naru x Mai, but I think up to this point, as some of you mentioned, there is no time to pair up the two. It’s only in Mai’s dream that we’re able to see them holding hands together. So, I think we’ll probably be disappointed at the end of this arc =.=
Secondly, I still have doubts as to why the rest of the ghost hunters will appear in Mai’s dream. Is that illusion created by DN? I know some of you attempted to explain their presence in Mai’s dream but I’m still doubtful.
As to Dream Naru and Real Naru, my ‘sensible’ and ‘logical’ side is still slanting to the twin theory because currently there is no *solid* evidence to show that Naru has a twin. However, my other self wish that DN = RN, because that would mean that RN DOES have some real psychic ability and it also indirectly shows that RN likes Mai LOL
well, until nw um not convinced tht DR Naru= real Naru,
i always believed tht he was his dead or sick brother, bt actually um starting to be a little uncertain bout this idea, to tell u the truth um between the 2 theories nw, so um not gonna say anything till the nxt ep. which z only 4 days away,loool, it’s nothin, piece of cake ^^’
well there’s another thing, those two vicious kids, whose their parents? and if the SPR were told tht these 2 children were acting strangely, why didn’t any one tried to investigate or follow them? usually Naru would go and investigate them or ask lin to do so.anyways i believe tht they’ll have a major part of the solution.
@laboosh, re the 2 children. The boy Katsuki is the little girl’s (Hazuki) sister, their father is the eldest son in the family, Taizo and mother Hiroe. The girl is Wakako whose parents are . Actually the two kids aren’t really acting wierd. Seems quite normal for kids if you really think about it. Just that we know this is a horror show and there’s something wrong with it. I would think Mai would have simply thought they’re just kids who always do what kids would do when strange things happen in their house. ne?
Anyway, if we were to put down all the facts we have:
1. Mai spirit travels.
2. She meets a boy in her travels.
3. That definitely doesn’t make him a dream person anymore does it?
4. Mai meets the boy again in this episode.
5. Naru is possessed. Lin has ‘locked’ him up with his powers so that he won’t be able to go anywhere. Does that include his spirit?
BTW, Impz, Lin uses his powers to keep Naru unconscious not so much to guard and protect him but also to keep him from harming the others. Well, at least that was the impression I’ve got.
Oh Jen-chan and laboosh, forget the other theory and embrace the bright side of Dream Naru = Real Naru. It’s the one and absolute truth. (to me)
Regarding exorcising vs. banishing spirits, I’m not sure, but I’m pretty sure it was explained earlier in the series that there’s two kinds of exorcising. I’m under the impression that driving the spirit out of the body is part of exorcising; part 1, maybe. Part 2 is either killing the spirit or cleansing it so that it can go up to heaven or whatever it is they believe.
I guess I wasn’t clear in my post. *blushes*
@ 13sugars: LOL from now on, Impz can call you Lin instead.
@Lys: This is discounting the fact though, that Akufumi had already warned Mai in advance that the two kids are already queer and whispering toward each other all the time. Akufumi actually said that the two kids are in fact the ones that acted the strangest in the whole family. However, since Naru has just arrived without any setup and without anyone in particular to exorcise (the pro is John, remember), he cannot deal with it.
Ya, you are right about that. He is putting it to defend against Naru as well. On a point, I am still curious why Lin actually wanted to stop Naru or something during the time when Ejiro is possessed and the fox spirit appeared. It is as though Lin expected Naru to do something…
What is that something?
My guess is that Naru will somehow use psychic power in an attempt to destroy the spirit and cause a distortion in the fabric of nature.
Ok, I am just sprouting rubbish but I hope to hear from you guys ^^
I was thinking abt the question the kids ask mai: how many ppl r here.
when mai ans 5 the girl replied oh thats bad or something like that… perhaps when masako or john arrives n the no. of ppl is no longer 5 naru will be better?! >.
@Impzy, yep I logged in, thank you! *As a thank you hands him a brand new Tsuruya plushie, and hands a new Lin plushie to ThirteenSugars, sorry you just can’t do tha to Lin-sama he’s too pretty to die.*
Hmm, Lin has always seemed unhappy about Naru using his powers. I’m really starting to believe that its because his use of them is detrimental to Naru’s health. If it really is true that Dream Naru is an extension of Real Naru’s powers, I’d imagine Lin would be really angry with him if he knew he’s been visiting Mai all this time and putting himself under strain.
Where did you guys watch from or dl from??