[ The tanuki pops out of the bushes at being addressed. It doesn't speak, but motions for them to follow through the worn stone path. The cobblestones branch off towards a giant statue of a tanuki, the first of his kind to actually speak to them. ]

Ah, visitors! Have you come to pay homage to the great Ioroi, guardian of Chinju Forest?

[ A talking statue. That's new to him, but then again, most things in this world are. Louis figures that being polite would be the best course of action. ]

Greetings... we were sent here by a priestess named Kazari to perform the Sacred Sakura Cleansing Ritual. We need a ward to enter the area. Do you know where it is?

[ There is a pause, and then: "A ward, hmmm? Is that the trinket that the nasty kitsune left? I suppose I could lend it to you for a while... if you play with the kids." ]