for an inordinate amount of time. Marou's voice is heard, telling Hikage that being a human is "so boring". Characters Hikage The main protagonist of the series, Hikage is a young ninja who is sent on a mission by the Takeda clan to eliminate Marou. Though loyal to the ninja clan he was raised in as well as following orders to the letter, he still deeply cares for his childhood friend and is greatly troubled and confused by his sudden betrayal. The night of the betrayal, Hikage received a small scar under his left eye due to being scratched by a poison shuriken that his friend threw at him. He finds a love interest in a young village woman named Aya and later a kunoichi by the same name. Despite his young age, Hikage is greatly skilled in the use of swordsmenship, as well as the usage of several other weapons. Marou / Kikuga no Miko The series' main antagonist, Marou was Hikage's childhood friend and fellow ninja in the Takeda clan. According to him, he was born from the start as the demon king of the land, Kikuga no Miko, by taking the form of an infant human body as well as being "born of the ground". However, needing human sacrifices to fully awaken as Kikuga, Marou fled his village and had the spider yōma gather human sacrifices to feed him while he slept in a cacoon. He emerges just when Hikage disturbs his rest and departs. Kikuga plans on fusing with Majumi no Miko so that the world will be taken over by yōma as well as for humans to "transcend humanity". Though the two demon kings merge into a wolf-centaur hybrid powerful enough to destroy the world, they are still defeated and killed by Hikage during the final battle. He is reincarnated as a baby by his deceased lover Kotone, whom he killed after losing control as Marou, and is taken in by Hikage and Aya. Aya Aya refers to two women depicted in the OVA series. The first is a young woman who lives in the village where nobody can remember their past. She has a large scar on her cheek. Its origin is never exactly revealed, but it was apparently traumatic enough for her to lose her will to live. Hikage develops romantic feelings for her, but it is never expressingly stated that she feels