Chapter 15

That Which Withers Away (れゆくもの, Kare Yuku Mono) is the 15th chapter of the ノラガミ Noragami manga series written by Adachitoka. It was released on February 6, 2012.

Short Summary
Kazuma questions his fellow Ha-clan shinki in the hopes of finding out who has blighted Bishamon. Yukine and Hiyori visit Suzuha's sakura tree, where Yato and Kugaha later have a confrontation.

Extended Summary
The chapter opens with Bishamon in her compound in Takamagahara. She sees a vase holding dead flowers in the hallway and realizes that Suzuha was the name that disappeared the previous night.

Yukine and Hiyori visit Suzuha's sakura tree to find that Suzuha hadn't wrapped it with the straw mat. Yukine reveals that Yato was okay with him being friends with Suzuha as long as he was careful when they were spending time together. Hiyori silently recalls Yato's recent Tweets, which were expressing frustration about Yukine's new friendship, suspecting that Bishamon was using Yukine to lure him out.

Yukine invites Hiyori to see the sakura tree once it blooms in the spring if she doesn't forget about them, to Hiyori promises she never will. Hiyori notices that Yato is tweeting at her, but also spying on them from a distance, so she grabs him and performs a wrestling move on him. She asks Yukine why Yato's been acting strange and "avoiding" her recently, but refuses to talk to Yato herself.

That night, Bishamon sees three of her young shinki crying, concerned that Suzuha still hasn't returned. When she asks them about it, they smile and tell her not to be concerned. She leaves and then runs into Tsuguha, who is inspecting her reflection in a window. Her hair is cut short, but she insists that she was just trying a new style when Bishamon asks what happened. Tusugha is then confronted by Aiha, who reveals that she was the one who cut off her hair, as well as her jealousy since Tsuguha has replaced her as Bishamon's number one shini (shinki that takes the form of clothing). Aiha leaves during their argument to see Kugaha, who confirms that she has now stung Bishamon. Aiha is distraught because she doesn't want to go through the humiliation of an Ablution, but Kugaha reassures her that he has medicine that can help her. Meanwhile, Kazuma, looking over Bishamon while she sleeps, notices the blight that Aiha caused.

The scene transitions to Yato and The Stray. Yato tries to say that he won't go along with what they want him to do, but Nora reminds him that a god is born and continues to exist because of wishes– so since a minor god like Yato doesn't remain in anyone's memories, he can't continue to exist without that "lifeline". She encourages him to do as Father says.

At Bishamon's house, Kazuma gathers all the Ha shinki and has everyone checked for blight, intending to perform a purification ritual. They don't find it on anyone, and when Bishamon appears, her skin is also clear of impurity. The Ha family becomes distrustful of Kazuma for suspecting them.

Yato visits the sakura tree and notes that it smells of the ayakashi which killed Suzuha. He's confronted by Kugaha, who indirectly speaks down on Yato's title as a minor god of calamity. He also refuses to name his master when Yato demands to know it of him. He attacks Yato with a borderline, but Yato successfully defends himself using a stick. In response Kugaha summons an ayakashi, but to Kugaha's shock, it obeys Yato when he commands it to leave. He remarks that only puppet masters should be able to control masked ayakashi. Yato shouts that he isn't his father's puppet, and that even if his "lifeline" were to die, he wouldn't disappear as long as there's one other person who remembers him. He thinks of Hiyori.