Where'd the Magic Hammer Go?

Reaching Matsue Castle, Momo is surprised the Uchide-no-Kozuchi is stashed in such a spot. She, Seiko, Bamora, and the priest hurry inside, leaving the Evil Eye outside so they can get back to the shrine and lift Momo's curse ahead of the Hour of the Ox. As the phone-tracking priest leads them on, Bamora asks what makes the mallet special, and Momo finds it odd that so mighty a relic sits in a tourist site. Seiko suddenly stops, sensing a stranger nearby, and they turn to find the priest held at knifepoint by a ninja warning them not to move, with more ninjas closing in. Momo thinks they have cornered the Phantom Ninja Thief, then realizes there are several. The ninja demands surrender in exchange for their lives.

Momo readies an attack, meaning to stall the enemy so Seiko can strike, but Seiko halts her and tells Momo and Bamora to flee to the taxi before the ritual's deadline passes. Confused given the priest's danger, Momo hesitates until Seiko orders the man to drop his act. Exposed, the priest dispels the ninjas he conjured along with his clothes, left in only his underwear. As Momo brands him a pervert, Seiko berates herself for not catching on sooner, revealing the man is no holy figure at all, that the mallet remains secure, and that his entire aim was to bait them into an ambush and seize their abilities. After redressing, the fake priest's chameleon partner appears and asks what they should do next, suggesting they could have simply slain the group and turned the bodies over to the Serpo. Such a move, the pseudo-priest admits, would have been too reckless, hence the elaborate ruse, and asks how the chameleon will fix the botched plan, drawing its scorn. Seiko tells Bamora to slip through a gap and dash to the cab waiting below while Momo insists on staying to fight beside her. Seiko refuses, saying this is their lone chance to break the curse, and clears a path through the ninjas. The chameleon merges with the floor and raises a wall over the exit as more ninjas swarm Bamora. The floor then collapses, dropping her to a lower level; Momo grabs her with her powers but both get stuck below. With everyone else gone, Seiko is left to confront the pseudo-priest, who lowers himself into a bow before her.

Seiko, Momo, the priest, and Bamora enter the castle, only to be ambushed by ninjas. Seiko deduces the priest is a foe using smoke who tricked them into leaving the Izumo Taisha. The chameleon partner then seals every exit of the castle and cuts Momo and Bamora off from Seiko. Now isolated, Seiko squares off against the pseudo-priest, who bows low to her.

Chapter 202 spans 19 pages and continues the Shimane Arc under the Ultimate Yokai Saga, debuting on July 15, 2025, in Volume 24. It carries the Japanese title 打出の小槌はどこ行った.