21 kinds characters of Yo-Kai Watch and Level-5 CEO prayed at Shinto shrine

On January 8, Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino and 21 kinds of Yo-Kai Watch characters went and worshiped at Kanda-Myōjin(神田明神) which is one of the representative Shinto shrines of Tokyo. It is really cute!

They prayed for the big hit of their movie "映画 妖怪ウォッチ エンマ大王と5つの物語だニャン！(Yo-Kai Watch the Movie 2: King Enma and the 5 Stories, Nyan!)". It beat Star Wars in a box-office records, but they aim at the further hit.

How ‘Yo-Kai Watch’ beat ‘Star Wars’ at the box office in Japan(The Japan Times)

via http://natalie.mu/eiga/news/171840

You may see these oddly. However, this is a serious holy ritual. When we pray for something to gods, we have the Shinto priest of the Shinto shrine advance Norito(祝詞: ancient Japanese Liturgy) for gods in place of us. The Shinto priest must read names of all attendants of the ritual aloud on this occasion. The Shinto priest of Kanda-Myōjin would be desperate to stifle laughter. Because he had to read aloud names of 21 kinds of Yo-Kais.
Another photos are here.

via http://www.cinemacafe.net/article/2016/01/08/36887.html

via http://www.sanspo.com/geino/news/20160108/geo16010814500028-n1.html

via http://news.mynavi.jp/news/2016/01/09/236/

via http://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2065038/full/