Satokowashi-hen

Satokowashi-hen 郷壊し編
Anime Manga
Information
Original Air Date(s)	February 4 - March 18, 2021
Number of Episodes	7
Number of Chapters	4
Previous Arc	Nekodamashi-hen
Following Arc	Oniakashi-hen

Satokowashi-hen (郷壊し編, Village-Destroying Chapter) is an anime only arc that serves as the fifth arc of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Gō, the third season of the anime series. An alternate version of this arc servers as the first arc of the manga Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Meguri The arc is told from Hōjō Satoko's point of view as she drifts away from Rika throughout the years and becomes an antagonistic figure after she gains her time looping powers from Eua.

Plot

Satokowashi-hen reveals major details about the events of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Gō, and the aftermath of Matsuribayashi-hen, namely the Club's future in 1984, Satoko's and Rika's life and conflict in St. Lucia Academy in 1987-88, Satoko gaining her looping powers and, and the strange effects of her newfound powers on the worlds as she continues to loop more and more. The arc also marks the first appearance of Eua, the mysterious, supernatural being who grants Satoko her supernatural abilities.

Anime Episodes

• Village Destroying Chapter Part One
• Village Destroying Chapter Part Two
• Village Destroying Chapter Part Three
• Village Destroying Chapter Part Four
• Village Destroying Chapter Part Five
• Village Destroying Chapter Part Six
• Village Destroying Chapter Part Seven

Manga Adaption

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Meguri (ひぐらしのなく頃に巡, When the Cicadas Cry: Tour) is the currently ongoing Tomato Akase's manga reconstruction of anime series which promises differences. These will be described in that main article.

Disappearances and Deaths

All deaths and disappearances are listed only as they are shown in Satokowashi-hen. Since Satoko chooses to experience Rika's past lives, deaths from, for example, Watanagashi-hen are shown but not included in this list. Spoilers only for the individual arc, not the overall series.

Satokowashi-hen 1

Disappearances

• Hōjō Satoko, disappears when lured into the Saiguden then enters subsequent worlds as a looper.

Satokowashi-hen 2

Deaths

• Hōjō Satoko, committed suicide by activating a trap that made St. Lucia Academy's chandelier fall on her in 1987.
• Furude Rika, murdered by Satoko via the aforementioned chandelier trap.

Satokowashi-hen 3

Deaths

• Hōjō Satoko, committed suicide by jumping in front of a truck at the Okinomiya book store in 1984.

Satokowashi-hen 4

Deaths

• Hōjō Satoko, committed suicide by slitting her neck with a kitchen knife on the 17th of June, 1984.

Satokowashi-hen 5

Deaths

• Hōjō Satoko, committed suicide by stabbing herself in the throat with Rika's pencil in the Hinamizawa Branch School in 1984.

Satokowashi-hen 6

Deaths

• Hōjō Satoko, fell into the Hinamizawa river with Rika during their fight and drowned in 1984.

Satokowashi-hen 7

Deaths

• Takano Miyo, commits suicide by shooting herself – technically in the face! – under the orders of Okonogi on June 19, 1983.

Trivia

• The name of the arc is a reference to Hōjō Satoko's name, but it is written with different kanji: 沙都子・Sa-To-Ko versus 郷壊・Sato-Kowa.
• Strictly speaking, Satokowashi-hen only starts at episode 20, the moment Satoko loops back in time. The world we see until then is actually Matsuribayashi-hen
• In the kakera world, after the fifth loop, eight kakera are seen floating around Featherine. This means the fifth loop was actually the eighth one, while three other kakera were not shown.
• The circumstances of Satoko's death in loop 5 are ambiguous. She falls into the river with Rika, but Satoko falls into it a bit sooner, head-first, so it is possible that she had hit her head, lost consciousness, and drowned.
  • To reinforce this theory, when Satoko wakes up in the kakera world, she holds her head in pain.
  • It is also unknown whether Satoko pulled Rika into the river, or Rika pushed her.
    • If Satoko pulled Rika, then this was a murder-suicide attempt. If Rika pushed Satoko, then she most likely accidentally killed her
  • Rika's fate is unknown in this kakera, but it is possible she drowned together with Satoko.
• During the Concentration card game scene at the beginning of Episode 23, Satoko snaps her fingers 6 times, reliving the time whenever she does not get a pair right. It is highly possible each snap represents a suicides. Thankfully, the Episode does not depict every single new life she requires to memorize the position of all 52 cards!
  • To reinforce this theory, in the kakera worrld, numerous kakera are seen replaying scenes from the card games
  • A more subtle hint is the last card shown during the game: the King of Hearts, which is also know as the "suicide king".
• Similarly, Satoko snaps her fingers as she brute force determines the combination to Takano's briefcase in Episode 24. See that page where When They Cry Wiki tries to calculate roughly how many lives that took, and how long it took, for Satoko to accomplish it.
• Right to an Answer: while this arc provides some major answers to overall season, its exact nature is yet to be revealed since it will be followed by a fourth season.