Yamata-no-Orochi and the sword

From the Izumo country of western Japan, one of the oldest legends in the culture: the storm god Susanoo slew Yamata-no-Orochi, an eight-headed, eight-tailed serpent, and found inside its tail the sword Kusanagi, which became one of the three Imperial Regalia of Japan and is said to be enshrined to this day. This is deep Shinto myth, and Shimane is dense with the shrines that carry it, including Izumo-taisha, one of the oldest and most important in Japan. Told as the foundational folklore it is.