Update (August 2020): Chapter edited and lengthened!
Chapter 27: The Clandestine Plans of an Insidious Hellion
Shortly after receiving the devastating news regarding the fate of her village and its people, Sango sets out from the young lord's castle to take rightful revenge, despite her maimed body's protests. Upon Kagewaki's direction, Naraku would be appointed as a guide, leading the vengeful woman on twin mares down a mountain forest path...
"We cannot travel any further by horse."
The deceitful demon ties the reins of the horses to a tree, then turns his eyes down at Sango as she rests against another slab of bark nearby, dressed in her armored bodysuit and with Hiraikotsu on hand...
But was she actually resting?
"...Is Sango dead?"
Seeing no signs of life, Naraku prepares to walk away...until Sango's eyes snap awake, proclaiming with a fighter's will,
"I will not die! I will not die until I kill Inuyasha!"
"Hmm, good. But are you in any condition for a decent battle?"
Gritting her teeth a little, the brunette struggles lifts herself up from the ground by using her weapon.
"Slaying demons...is my sole duty in life..."
(Flash)
"I assume you cannot be deterred?"
She says nothing in return to the young lord's question, only slipping her sword under her obi as she prepares to leave...
"Very well. Then I shall send Naraku with you...He is my advisor and well-versed in the ways of demons. His knowledge will prove useful...When your mission is complete, here upon return to me."
Sango glares slightly at Kagewaki's attempt to order her, but that hardly fazes him.
"You have lost all of your family and your fellow villagers. I am much saddened for you and your plight."
(Flash)
As they continue to move up the next hill, the brunette warrior stops to kneel as her exhaustion and pain take its toll on her being.
I, will not return to this place...I do not have much time left...
Please body, hold up a little longer. Hold fast until I can complete my final task!
...
...
At the same time the single survivor makes her slow journey back to her place of birth, we return to said decimated village as Inuyasha and company finish their work on the graves as well as cleaning up most of the more demonic carnage. The half-demon himself is seen pulling a wagon of wrapped body parts as he chats with his flea demon subordinate about the jewel partly responsible for tempting the entities into attacking the area.
"So this the cave where the Shikon-no-Tama was created..."
"Yes. We are currently heading to the outskirts of the village, to the limestone cave. This village has actually served as a sort-of, factory."
Coraline asks as she walks beside Inuyasha's left,
"Factory, you say?"
"Yes. They made armor and weapons from the skins and bones of slain demons."
By this time, the gang have reached the entrance of the natural void.
"The villagers threw all of the unused portions into this limestone cavern."
The silverette turns the wagon around and knocks the pile of demon parts into the cave, before pushing the carting device inside as well...
"This place is filled with a collection of demon remains. It is fabled that deep inside this particular limestone cave, lies the carcass of a gargantuan beast."
Coraline notes,
"And ye', this is where the Shikon-no-Tama formed, correct?"
"Yes, according to the local legend, at least..."
"...Good work, Myōga."
"Thank you for the compliment, Master Inuyasha. Anything to help; I am more than just a parasite."
A sarcastic smirk curves onto the half-demon's lips as he retorts,
"Yeah, until the going gets rough, then your big talk about loyalty and courage dries up and you take off on me again."
"Master! How could you doubt my loyalty?!"
"Oh, you're right, how could I?"
Miroku cuts in before the conversation diverts into territory unrelated to current affairs.
"So, do you think that we should venture in?"
"Yeah, definitely. Let's go in."
...But as the half-demon begins walking inside the cave, Myōga suddenly shouts,
"Wait, hold on a minute, Master Inuyasha!"
"What now?"
(...Bzzzt, whoosh)
"Gah!"
Inuyasha is suddenly sent backwards by an invisible barrier!...As he lifts himself up, the flea demon explains,
"A strong barrier has been placed over the entrance of the cave, to prevent trespassers like us from casually wandering in and out."
"Be quicker with that kind of information next time, okay?!"
...
By this time, Sango's stamina had begun to seriously dwindle, to the point where she's forced to use Hiraikotsu as a crutch, her breath heavy with each inhale and exhale...Her mind flashes back to the horrific scene where her injuries came from, namely, the anguish on her dear brother's face...
She falls to her knees, her emotions adding to her physical pressures...
"Are you in great pain, Sango?"
She glances up at Naraku between pants, then mutters insistently,
"I am fine..."
"Poor thing. You couldn't die even if you want to, could you?"
The disguised demon then holds out a familiar shard.
"Would you care to try this?"
Sango rises to a half-stand, her shock at seeing another piece of the sought-out jewel giving her another wind of strength.
"But that's...a Shikon-no-Tama shard...!"
Naraku moves to kneel in front of the brunette as she then asks,
"But, how did you get a hold of it? Where did you get it from?"
"I've had it for a long time...I'm willing to lend it to you."
"To...To me?"
"I imagine you have come to believe that the Shikon-no-Tama is only used for evil, but it may be used for good as well..."
...
...
"Hrrrraaaaahhh!"
(Clang, whoosh)
"Gyah! (Wham) Uuuh..."
"Inuyasha!"
As Sango contemplates using a shard of the jewel with a checkered track record, we return to the limestone cave set outside her former village as the visiting half-demon tries to use Tessaiga to break the barrier, but with no success.
"Rgh, damn it..."
As the silverette gets back up, Shippō wonders aloud,
"You think it may be hopeless?"
"Well I can't force my way in, and any villagers who may have known how to get passed the barrier are now gone."
"Not all of them were killed."
"What?"
Eyes turn to Miroku as he continues his thought.
"I remember: the best of their slayers were at some castle during the attack."
Myōga chimes in,
"Right. The demons decimated the village because it lacked their most talented slayers. Otherwise, their attack would've been easily thwarted."
Inuyasha needed no more details to form a basic plan of action.
"Got it. So we have to find out where that castle is, and see if there are any surviving slayers who can tell us more about the secret of the Shikon-no-Tama. Hopefully, one of them also knows the magic trick for opening this stupid cave...Let's go. We don't have all day."
...But just as she turns to join everyone else in seeking out the missing slayers, Coraline - who had Kilala sitting on her right shoulder - stops and pivots back towards the cave, sensing something strange.
...Hm...
"Hurry up, Coraline, or we'll leave you behind!"
"Uh!...Righ', comin'!"
She hurries to jog after her friends, prompting the twin-tail to hop down and bound beside her...Still, the redhead couldn't help but steal another glance at the natural void behind her.
...That's th' birth place of the jewel...bu' what caused it to be born, and for wha' purpose?
Soon enough, the group of seven will have entered deep into the forest away from the village, slowing down near a clearing when they begin to realize the disadvantage in a fair plan of action...
"Myōga, a little help? Where exactly is this castle?"
"Hm? Don't tell me you're lost. Master, with all due respect, I assumed you knew where you were going."
"Grrrh, listen, flea: you're the one whose suppose to know. I can't think of everything!"
Miroku makes a suggestion before an argument could start.
"Why not follow your nose, Inuyasha? The castle can't be too far away. You're a demon; you should be able to sniff it out from here."
"Yeah well, I can't get a whiff of anything from here."
...Suddenly, Kilala's ears twitch, and her fur rises slightly on alert from a foreign source, a reaction that wasn't unnoticed by Coraline.
"Hm? What is it, Kilala? Trouble?"
...Hang on. I sense...a human-
(Whizzzzz...,ZA-ZA-ZA-ZA-ZA-ZA-ZA-ZA-ZA-ZA, CRASH, ZA-ZA-ZA-ZA-ZA...)
That's when a familiar giant boomerang comes swinging through the trees, and everyone ducks only just in time to avoid it!
...
The weapon rebounds through the air back to their wielder's waiting hand, namely, Sango...
"Are you Inuyasha?...I have come to get my revenge."
Narrowing his eyes at the brunette, said half-demon retorts,
"Oh yeah, and who are you?"
The flea demon recognizes the young demon slayer instantly.
"Sango!"
Coraline forms an expression of confusion at Myōga's exclaim.
Sango?...I see! She must be one of th' missin' demon slayers...
But, why is i' only her?
"Master Inuyasha, trust me, you mustn't fight her."
Yet even as the flea demon warns his charge, the brunette raises her weapon at ready, very intent on bringing down her object of vengeance.
"...Hiraikotsu!"
(Toss, za-za-za-za-za-za-za-za...)
"You really gotta work on your timing!"
Inuyasha then quickly pulls out Tessaiga, blocking the boomerang...but would be sliding backwards on the dirt surface from the opposing warrior's strength.
"The Tessaiga was pushed back!"
"Oh no...Inuyasha..."
The silverette tries to inquire Sango's intentions, having no idea of the false tale she was fed.
"Hey, what're you comin' after me for?"
"Silence! I am here to avenge my people!"
She throws Hiraikotsu forward again, and Inuyasha leaps out of its path just in time, landing back on the ground while asking the flea demon on his shoulder,
"Hey Myōga, what's she talkin' about anyway?!"
"I haven't the faintest idea! Gah, here it comes again!"
Watching as her friend barely ducks and rolls out of the giant weapon's line of attack, Coraline forms a serious glare and says to the others,
"We have t' do somethin' abou' that weapon!"
Miroku is one step ahead of her:
"I am ready...Wind Tunnel!"
(Whooooooosssssssshhhhhhh...)
The monk's cursed power is released, and the suction wind manages to catch the Hiraikotsu mid-air!
"I got it!"
...But the victory would be short-lived, when a swarm of the Saimyōshō comes soaring into the area above!
"Watch'i', Miroku! It's Naraku's wasps! You'll be pois'n'd if you suck 'em in!"
Seeing no other choice, the young monk quickly stifles his Wind Tunnel upon the redheaded woman's warning.
"W-What are they doing here?!"
Inuyasha turns to see the insects for himself, just as surprised as the more vulnerable male.
"What?! No way!"
Sango catches Hiraikotsu on the somewhat wobbly rebound, and zooming a couple yards behind her, we see cloaked demon responsible for unleashing the Saimyōshō as well as manipulating the sole survivor of the demon slayer village.
"Naraku..."
"Inuyasha, she will destroy you. So you may as well accept your fate."
"Keep dreaming, monkey! It's you that's going down!"
...Of course, while the half-demon manages to make a mad dash and leap for the deceitful entity, his ankle is caught by a chain, forcing him to drop hard against the ground...
"I am your opponent, not him!"
He turns to glare at the young demon slayer.
"If you keep interfering like this, I'm gonna have to take care of you!"
"Just try it! Maybe my defenseless village was quick for you to slaughter, but I won't die so easily!"
On the sidelines, Shippō exclaims,
"Hey! That slayer believes Inuyasha attacked her village!"
The other ginger quickly deciphers the deception.
"Naraku must'a tricked her somehow. Bastard..."
She'd then notice a familiar glow within Sango's back as the slayer makes another grand toss of their signature weapon.
Hh! Oh god...She has'e jewel shard embedded in 'er back!
Inuyasha barely manages to block Hiraikotsu again with Tessaiga, before starting a new charge at the former weapon's wielder.
"Now, before her weapon returns...!"
...But given her experience with several species of demonic creatures, Sango would be more than prepared for such a move.
"Poison Powder!"
She throws a few pellets to the ground, which explode and create a translucent mist that Inuyasha would cringe at.
"Gh! A miasma..."
"It's easy to to overwhelm the delicate senses of an overgrown mongrel such as yourself."
"Damn, I can't get close..."
Naraku watches the battle from afar, remarking,
"Ha. The slayer shall finish him off in no time. (Turn) Now what-We~ll, if it isn't the holy monk."
Miroku had stolen his way close to where the demon stands, determined to strike down the source of his family's curse.
"Naraku, prepare to die!"
"My apologies for not obliging you, but all I shall prepare to do, is gather the jewel shards."
"Whatever you've been scheming, it is all over!"
Naraku pulls out a sword as he retorts,
"Oh really?!"
And with that, monk and demon start their clash...and after barely half a minute, the former manages to rip off one of latter's hands!
"Ngah!"
Naraku barely dodges the next swing of the shakujō as his sword hand falls onto the dirt...Coraline and Shippō are impressed by how easily their friend managed to subdue his opponent.
"Whoa..."
"He did it!...Huh?"
But then, the older redhead senses something approaching from their left, and turns her head, only to bulge her eyes at the sight of Naraku's hand shooting towards them!
"Ah hell!"
"Coraline!"
She quickly grabs out her combat knife, and tries to swipe at the hand, but misses, allowing it to snatch up the large shard of the Shikon-no-Tama from her neck!
"Dammi', no!"
Naraku reattaches the hand to his socket, mission completed.
"Hehmhmhm, this shard is not for the likes of you. Now that I possess it, there's no reason to linger."
Inuyasha hurries to stand on Miroku's left, occupying a similar expression of scorn.
"Not without a fight, Naraku!"
"I bid you farewell."
The demon invokes a misty, Byzantium purple smoke to engulf his body...
"You're not going anywhere, Naraku!"
Unfortunately, the smog proved too much for the half-demon and human males to handle, allowing Naraku to flee while casting out the following message.
"Sango, I shall meet you at the castle...I trust that you shall not fail in killing Inuyasha before you return."
The brunette watches him go...and despite wanting to continue her quest for vengeance, her common sense regarding such a shady character began to resurface.
...Can I really trust Naraku?
(Mew)
"Huh?"
Sango then turns to see a familiar companion bounding towards her.
"...Kilala!...You're still alive!"
The twin-tail cat demon leaps into the girl's welcome arms, both happy to see the other...Yet as much as she wanted to revel in the good feeling of being reunited with her partner, the brunette felt her suspicions against Naraku grow.
He said there were no survivors...but Kilala is here.
What else is he hiding?
"Kilala, I want you to follow him. And if he does anything strange...kill him."
Said twin-tail tenses with a growl, understanding the request, before leaping off and transforming into her full form to fly after Naraku...
"I will not let you escape!"
"You're dead, Naraku!"
(...Za-za-za-za-za-za-TOMK)
"Gah!"
The silverette once again barely stops in time to avoid getting crushed by Hiraikotsu...
"Prepare to fight, Inuyasha, or die on the spot."
"Listen, why don't you back off! I'm not interested!"
Sango does not heed his attitude, and charges towards him.
I have to end him now, while I still have some life left in me!
"Hygyahh!"
She sends her boomerang against him again, and Inuyasha jumps away from the weapon's path, before throwing his Tessaiga back as a counter!
"Will you cut it out?!"
The impact of the sword sheathing into the earth causes some dirt to uproot in a small explosion, distracting Sango long enough that she misses catching her boomerang on the rebound.
"What? No!"
She tries to go after it, but stops when she sees her opponent charging at her.
"Not so tough now, are you?!"
She hops back, and throws out another bomb of her,
"Poison powder!"
...However:
"Rrrah!"
(SWIPE)
Inuyasha knocks off Sango's filter mask!
My poison-shielding mask!
(...Grab)
Though rather than being left to fend for her life within the poisonous smog, the half-demon seizes the brunette's upper arm and leaps out of the cloud!
...What's he doing? He-He isn't trying to save me, is he?
That's impossible...!
They land safely away from the noxious cloud...and Sango reaches for her wakizashi.
He's the one that attacked my village!
(STAB)
With no hesitation, she drives the blade into Inuyasha's arm! Coraline cries out his name in worry, unhinging her feet at the same time Shippō does...The half-demon of course, isn't fazed much by the blade, and only looks at Sango in annoyance.
"You idiot. Haven't you realized that maybe Naraku has been tricking you?"
He yanks the sword out of his arm and out of her hands.
"Give it up! I haven't even gotten started and you're covered in blood."
"What, do you mean?"
(...Drip...drip...)
Apparently, thanks to the jewel shard embedded in her back, the brunette didn't notice that her wounds re-opened from all the hard action.
"Uh!...I, didn't realize I lost so much blood during the fight. I, haven't even felt any pain from my wounds."
Coraline reaches her male companion's left.
"Inuyasha, you're not hur' too bad, right?"
"I'll live."
Sango looks down at herself in disbelief, her mind going back to a time before this chaos had began...
(Flash)
She remembers her brother and herself standing in a grassy field full of wild flowers, where butterflies were abundant...
"Kohaku. Are you, afraid of becoming a demon slayer?"
"N-No, of course not. I'm not afraid..."
She sees the truth in his eyes and smiles gently.
"Oh yeah? I'll let you in on a little secret...All of us are just a little bit afraid of fighting demons."
"Huh? Even you, Sango?"
"Yep. And not just me, but father and all of the others too. But we never fight alone; we're always with someone...We fight together side-by-side with our family and friends...The strength of our numbers gives us our courage."
...That innocent scene would then be shattered by a cold reality.
"Help me, Sango. I'm so afraid...!"
(Flash)
"...Ko-haku...Uuhh..."
The physical and mental weight becomes too much for the brunette, and she passes out, causing Shippō to exclaim,
"Is she dead?!"
Coraline narrows her eyes in concern, her eyes briefly flashing with her hidden power before replying,
"...No. She's still alive, barely. (Kneels down) It seems th' shard of the jewel embedded in 'er back was providing an extra sho' of endur'nce and stamina."
Inuyasha comments,
"No wonder: I could tell from the start that she was badly injured from the smell of her blood...Naraku must've used the jewel shard to manipulate her into fighting me to the death."
Coraline clenches one of her fists in anger at the deception.
That wicked bastard's gonna pay for th's.
...
...
By this time, Miroku had managed to catch up with the insect horde that Naraku had hidden within mid-travel...
"Hah, hah, you can't lose me that easy!...Huh?"
He suddenly stops, his path cut short courtesy of a small chasm...The monk then hears something coming from behind him, and the next thing he knew, he's hoisted atop Kilala's back!
"Gah! Uh...Thanks! I appreciate the ride!"
The cat demon's speed proved to be better than the human's, and she easily reaches a few feet behind the demon in the baboon cloak...
"Narakuuuuu!"
(WHACK)
Refusing to waste the opportunity, Miroku knocks Naraku hard in his side with his staff...
(Turn, Shoooooom)
But then, Naraku suddenly sends out wood-based tendrils, the ends forming into clawed hands!
"What's this?!"
Kilala and Miroku are forced to dodge each charging root...but were soon overwhelmed by the strength, falling to the ground below.
"Gh!"
"(Rowl)"
Naraku calls from up above,
"Do not take me lightly, monk."
"Damn you, Naraku!"
Sango's POV
...Where...What's, going on...?
"Hey, Sango!"
Huh?...Kohaku...We're, in that flower field...
"Sango!"
...Wait...The sky is darkening...
Uh! I can't, speak!
"Sango...!"
Kohaku...He's, fading away, getting farther and farther...No!
I have no voice; my body won't move...What's wrong with me?!
"(Jolt) Hm!...Mm-mmh..."
I'm, being carried...By who?
I open my eyes after what feels like ages...and see the half-demon, Inuyasha!
"Hh! It's you!"
"So you're conscious?"
"Put me down now! What are you up to?"
"Be quiet."
Suddenly, another person speaks up from beside me, and I turn to see as a young woman with long red hair and dressed in rather strange clothing.
"There's no need te be hostile. We're goin' after Naraku so we can get back the jewel shard he stole from us."
"He called you Sango, right? Well Sango, if you bug me anymore, I'll dump you off right here."
"What?!"
She quickly berates the half-demon for his rather blunt threat.
"Inuyasha! You're not helpin' the situation by bein' so rude! (Turns to me) Excuse him. 'e hasn't really opened to the whole 'helpin' others' concept quite yet. He acts tough, but he does have'a good heart."
"Keh, you wish..."
I then hear another voice on my shoulder, revealed as that flea demon who I remember visited my village a few hours prior to my leave with father and Kohaku. We were a little taken aback by his presence, but he obviously couldn't pose much of a threat even if he wanted to.
"Sango, Inuyasha and the rest of us didn't want to leave you behind. Your wounds are deep."
"You're Myōga..."
Inuyasha then says,
"Let's get this over with. You're not gonna get away this, Naraku!"
I hear Coraline add,
"Damn right," just as her eyes...start, glowing...!
"What the-"
"Hm? Oh, sorry. (Stops the glow) I guess you've never seen d'is before, have yae? I'm an Aura Read'a; human as they come, but with a stronger soul than most. I have the ability to see a person's Aura, or 'Energy of the Soul', an' can manipulate me own in defensive and offensive ways."
"...I see."
So strange. I've never heard of an 'Aura Reader' before...
This girl...I have this feeling she's from very far. Perhaps, farther than these lands stretch...
No POV
At the same time that group began their trek to catch up with Miroku, the monk would be trying to wrap his head around the recent battle style change from his enemy...
"Is Naraku's appearance an illusion?"
"Illusion or not, it is time that you find out for yourself first hand!"
The demon sends the roots straight at the human/twin-tail pair, who whack and claw in response to the attack...However, the pieces of these tendrils easily regenerate, much to the monk's frustrations.
"Gh! No matter how much I strike, it reverts back!"
Miroku barely dodges another shot...only to have his ankle ensnared by a root hand.
"Uh!"
(...STAB)
"GYH!"
Another root then shoots into his side!
I-It's, gonna pierce, through me!
"Hrrraaaaahh!"
(SLICE)
Luckily, Inuyasha comes swinging in with Tessaiga just in time, cutting the root in half and allowing his friend to land safely onto the ground...
"You okay, Miroku? What the heck are ya doin'? You're such a useless monk..."
Miroku knocks away the piece of root from his person and calls back,
"Inuyasha, behind you!"
The half-demon hurries to turn and hack away two more roots, shifting position so he and the young monk were standing together to face the dark entity responsible.
"So, you're still alive, Inuyasha?"
"Keh, you think a mere human can kill me? Think again!"
"The last time I looked, you were losing to a wounded slayer."
"Shut up! Admit it, Naraku: you're the one who turned that pack of demons onto the village and annihilated everyone!"
"All I did was mention to the demons that the village guard happened to be thinned that day."
On the sidelines, as Coraline held her up, Sango's eyes widen at what she hears.
Hh! So it was him!
"You were after the jewel shards in the village, weren't you?!"
Naraku does not deny it:
"Not as slow as you look, monk. (Smile) The villagers should've been prepared to defend such valuable bounty."
Inuyasha barks furiously,
"You could've just taken 'em! You didn't have to kill everybody!"
The brunette female emits Nraku's name from her weak stand, and he glances her way.
"Sango..."
"The demons in the castle and the demon spider were all part of your trap, weren't they?!"
"Trap? Is that what you call my simple diversions? I thought the slayers of your village could handle any sort of demon. They literally, did not live up to their boasts."
That would do as the final trigger.
"DAMN YOOOOUUU!"
(Ping...)
But just as she prepares to charge, the jewel shard falls out from her back, and Sango collapses...
"Sango!"
At the same time Coraline drops to the other girl's side, Naraku snatches up the shard he gave to the young slayer.
"Fool. No use in lending you the Shikon-no-Tama if all you do is choose to defy me..."
Sango grits her teeth as she tries to prop herself on her elbows, despite the redhead's protest.
"Careful, your injuries!"
"Gh, the jewel shard was suppressing my pain...NARAKU!"
A short chuckle emits from the demon.
"It would have been easier for you to die believing that Inuyasha was your sworn enemy, not me."
The brunette could not respond, her mind once again flooded with the dark memories of yesterday.
Gh...F-Father...
Kohaku...
Coraline turns a hateful glare at the deceitful demon.
"Grrh, of all th' low, dirty, sadistic...!"
Inuyasha wasn't far off in his own opinion.
"You really love to mess around with people's feelings, don'tcha, (Leap) ya creep!"
(Slash)
Naraku lunges backwards, dodging Tessaiga, and replies,
"Are you thinking about Kikyō when you say that?"
"You'll pay for that! Hrrraaaaahhh!"
(SLICE)
The silverette's luck prevails, and he successfully beheads his opponent!...As Miroku comes to Inuyasha's side, the latter grumbles,
"Damn him...and good riddance."
...Or was it? The monk was uncertain.
"Is this really the Naraku I was pursuing? No...no, it can't be!"
Even the half-demon was becoming skeptical.
"This was too easy. He couldn't have had the power to have Kikyō and all those other people suffer so much..."
Miroku then looks up, and flinches before shouting,
"Inuyasha, watch out!"
(Crash)
They both dodge one of the root limbs of Naraku's body...a body that was still moving!
"His body is moving without his head on!"
Just as Shippō shouts out the fact, said head of the demon begins to move as well.
"Hmph, I will not die so easily."
Miroku is understandably spooked by the fact that the detached cranium could still speak.
"I-Is that a talking head or am I imagining things?!"
With that, he and Inuyasha begin thrashing at the root appendages once more...But just like earlier, no matter how many times they sliced and hacked, the roots continued to reconstruct.
"Damn, he jus' keeps reverting back..."
Sango felt just as infuriated as Coraline, but for a somewhat different reason.
He's using the power of the Shikon-no-Tama...I can usually see jewel shards, so why didn't I notice it before?
...He's a demon and I didn't sense it at all. Even now, I can't sense any demon spirit in him.
...Wait a minute! That cannot be possible, so it must mean-
"Inuyasha, that's not him! It's a puppet!"
"A puppet?"
"In demon puppetry, the master controls the puppet with something hidden deep inside the body. His heart; aim straight for the heart!"
Naraku's head laughs:
"You figured it out."
Coraline narrows her eyes:
"The heart, eh?"
She then uses her Aura Sight to pinpoint the weak spot.
There! I see an object where h's hear's suppose to be!
"Got it."
Rising from the ground, the young Croft pulls out her combat knife at the ready, much to Sango and Shippō's surprise.
"Huh?"
"Coraline, what're you doing?"
That bastard is done!
"Naraku!"
Inuyasha and Miroku turn at the girl's call, and watch as her body starts to glow with a familiar energy...
"What the-"
"Coraline, wait, don't-"
"You're, (shoom) finished!"
She throws her knife - the weapon wrapped in the same icy blue energy - as hard as she could, sending it on a straight course for its target...
(TOK)
It hits dead-on where the heart is, the body splitting apart and evaporating while the head spins upward into the air, before exploding in a cloud of dust and fur!
...Everyone looks at the redhead with shock.
"She, did it..."
"Coraline..."
"How did she...?"
Snapping out of his daze first, Miroku then walks over to where the apparently fake body once was, picking up a wooden object...
"What is that?"
"This, is demon puppetry. The hair wrapped around inside belongs to Naraku."
"Well that was more than a doll we just fought..."
"It was a counterfeit Naraku. The real Naraku is probably somewhere safe while controlling this puppet."
The monk unhooks the short blade embedded in the doll.
"I must say, Coraline's aim with a knife is pretty good...And that power..."
"Agh!"
"Coraline!"
Both men turn around, and their eyes widen when they see said redhead on her knees, holding her head as her body pulsates with a ring of icy blue power that threatened to swallow the teen's body whole!
"Guh!"
"What's going on?!"
They hurry over that way, and Inuyasha asks a touch frantically,
"What's happening?! What's wrong?"
Shippō replies nervously,
"I-I dunno! One second she was fine, just exhausted. But then, she just, fell to her knees like this!"
Looking more closely, one could see that the girl was experiencing some strong discomfort, her expression set in a grimace as one hand slips down to grip the ground beneath her.
(Ba-bump...ba-bump...)
"Ggh, m-must, resist...Got'te ge' it, under contr'l...!"
That served to confuse everyone even more:
"Resist?"
"Get under control...?"
"Could it be that her power may be trying to overwhelm her?"
...After a few more minutes, the pulsing energy quiets down and fades away back into the source, allowing Coraline to relax if with a new heaviness in her breath.
"Hh, hah, hh...dammi'..."
So it's begun...I though' I'd have a' least another year or two...
"Coraline?"
"Hm?"
She looks up and sees her companions - though yet-to-be-officially-acknowledged in Sango and Kilala's case - looking at her with concern.
"Are you okay?"
"What happened?"
Nodding weakly, the redhead shuffles to her feet with a stumble - prompting the silverette to help steady her - and replies,
"I'm, okay...or I am now a' least...But, my aura...it felt like i' was, tryin' to take over me."
The monk gently inquires,
"Take over you?"
"Yes. It can happen to Aura Readers occasionally...Because our souls have 'e stronger energy concentration than most hum'ns, it can sometimes overpower us, and unless we're able to suppress th' power...the end result can be riddled with consequ'nces I can't even begin to describe."
"...Has this ever happened to you before?"
"No. This is the first fo' me...My father, though. He experienced it abou' four times before he mastered his abilities, one o' the lowest coun's in our family line. (Sad smile) It wouldn't be unreasonable t' wish for a similar fate...and preferably before other forces try to se' d'eir control."
Coraline then frowns morbidly as she confesses,
"Tha's likely the second reason behind Trinity's pursuit of me and previous Crofts, so they can use my power to every extent, and crea'e chaos for their own nefarious purposes."
Expressions of worry pass over Miroku and Shippō's faces, while Inuyasha's fixates into a protective version of anger.
So Trinity not only wants her for her father's knowledge, but to use her as a weapon?
...No...No, that's not gonna happen!
"But tha's a worry for another day."
A calmer smile forms on Coraline's face as she alliterates,
"Righ' now, we should focus on ge'n back to the village, and of course,"
She then kneels down to assist the brunette slayer to her feet, albeit in a lean.
"Ge'n you some medical help, Sango."
The other young woman stares at the redhead with wonder...before nodding firmly...
(Slice...tok)
Meanwhile, at the palace of the Hitomi Clan, a second copy of the demon puppet doll splits in half without warning...Kagewaki sits as its witness, his appearance in better health than before, and wearing a new violet-blue haori with gray hakami pants...
"My young lord. Neither the woman Sango nor Naraku have returned. Do you think they are slain?"
"...It is possible. Continue a strict guard around the castle."
"Yes, my lord."
The vassal takes leave down the hallway away from the rice paper door of the young lord's room...The latter then stands up, thinking to himself,
This castle and this body hide my true identity...
I will use them both to great satisfaction...my dear Kagewaki...
Yes: in a twist of disguises only this entity could master, Kagewaki is in fact Naraku! We can only assume the true member of the Hitomi Clan - like his father before - has been dead for quite a while, possibly since the poor demon slayers first entered the palace grounds...
Naraku looks over at the destroyed demon puppet doll, and smirks before walking out of the room,
his true nature seen among the shadows of the light...