Tomoe is hired by a grieving mother to snip a "Grief-Thread" that is keeping her tethered to a deceased child. However, the job goes sideways when Issei, hunting a shadow-demon in the same Gion district tea house, crosses Tomoe’s line of sight at the exact moment she closes her rusted scissors.

Tomoe drags the unconscious Issei back to her cramped, low-rent apartment above a 24-hour arcade. When he wakes, his first instinct is to kill the mortal who dared touch his destiny, only to find that his divinity is leaking through the bond.

The Celestial Guards, sensing the massive energy spike from the tea house, descend on the city. Tomoe and Issei are cornered in a neon-drenched alleyway in Shinjuku and must fight as one unit for the first time.

On the run and leaking spiritual energy, they seek refuge in a "Love Hotel" with a Shinto-warded basement. The forced proximity of the tiny, pink-lit room forces them to confront the physical reality of their bond.

They head toward a hidden shrine in the mountains to find a way to sever the bond, but the journey takes a toll. Tomoe realizes that every time she uses her "Thread-Cutter" eyes to navigate their path, she is inadvertently siphoning Issei’s life force to fuel her sight.