Update (December 2021): Chapter edited and lengthened!
Chapter 70: The Abasement of the Dark Priestess
Continuing from when we last left our main cast, Inuyasha, Kaede, Coraline, Sango and Lumos have just entered the courtyard of the shrine where Tsubaki once trained at in her younger days. Meanwhile, Miroku, Freeman, Besa, Shippō and Kilala would stay behind in the grass plains outside the first barrier to keep an eye on Momiji and Botan, the two mikos-in-training that were fooled into thinking the dark priestess was on their side...
"Show yourself, Tsubaki!"
Stopping to look around the area, Kaede mutters as her memories fall into line,
"Just as I feared...It is the same woman after all."
Inuyasha turns around to ask her,
"Who are you talking about?"
"The priestess who was passed over by my sister, Kikyō."
(Flash)
Rewinding about fifty years past, we witness a day in Kaede's youth when she and her sister were taking a walk through the Goshinboku Village. Their walk is put on hold when Tsubaki and her master from the Ying and Yang Shrine come wandering down the same path cutting near the village border. The sisters step aside to allow the other pair passage...
Watching them leave, Kaede asks Kikyō,
"Sister, who was that priestess?"
"Her name is Tsubaki."
"Hm..."
(Flash)
"I never imagined that she would turn to the dark side..."
Coraline puts a finger under her chin in thought with regards to Kaede's knowledge.
So Besa's earlier theory may be more 'r less correct...
"Who the heck cares about what happened in the past? I wanna know where she is now!"
Just as Inuyasha makes such a demand, the redhead tenses considerably.
"U-hh!"
"What's the matter, Coraline?"
She turns to the inner buildings of the shrine, and uses her innate abilities as an Aura Reader to better sense for what they were all after.
"(Sheen, point) The jewel is further in, and I c'n sense Tsubaki's aura in the same proximity."
"Alright!"
But the aged miko warns,
"Wait. This area could be dangerous."
Sango asks her,
"What do you know about this place, Kaede?"
"Legend tells of an oni that was sealed away in this region."
Coraline hums more to herself,
"Oni...Tha' means 'Ogre' translated from Jap'nese te English...Hm?"
She and everyone else then focus a few feet ahead on Lumos as he circles the distant shape of the pagoda in a frantic manner...
"What's wrong with him?"
Kaede theorizes,
"It would seem our Will O' Wisp companion senses a shift in dark energy."
Coraline nods,
"Aye. I c'n sense a slow rise of darkness in Tsubaki's aura. We best hurry."
Our small group begins heading for the treeline at the back of the main shrine grounds, with Inuyasha leaping ahead while Coraline, Sango, Kaede and Lumos rush not too far behind...The so-called forbidden pagoda would soon be in view.
"Tha' way! Tha's where the source of dark energy is!"
...Suddenly, several demons come out from the tree canopy on the sides of the path, forcing them to stop.
"Crap...!"
Inuyasha scoffs,
"Figures they'd be here," before pulling out his Tessaiga.
"Get outta my way!"
He leaps up and slices apart one large worm demon down the middle, before cutting down several others. Sango lends a hand with her weapon:
"Hiraikotsu!"
(Toss, za-za-za-za-za-tok-tok-tok-tok...)
Contrary to blood and entrails, however, Coraline notices that the inside framework of these demons is more artificial.
"...Paper?"
Shikigami, then...Ugh, these malarkey monsters are really starting to scunner me.
She senses another trying to round up on her and Kaede, and grits her teeth while pulling out her combat knife.
"Take, (swing) this!"
She stabs right into the demon's skull, the impact causing it to explode into paper scraps...
"Your senses have become sharper, child. Good work."
"Thanks, Kaede. (Turn) Bu' the fight's only getting started."
Her gaze is on the more demons coming out to attack:
Let's do this!
...
...
Meanwhile, back on the greener plains outside the thicker forest, Shippō and Freeman have wandered to a nearby stream to gather some water into a bamboo and stainless steel water bottle each while Kilala looks on. A couple feet back, Miroku and Besa keep a close watch on Momiji and Botan, the latter pair now having two dry towels folded under their heads, and a dampened cloth on each of their foreheads.
"They should be coming to any minute now..."
Miroku nods to Besa...before widening his eyes a bit when he sees a shift of movement from the miko with dark chestnut red hair.
"Mmm...mmm-uh..."
As her vision readjusts, she sees the monk hovering over her.
"You've finally come to."
She yelps and retreats back in surprise:
"You again!"
"Calm down. I have no intention of harming you, (glance) and neither does my companion over there."
Momiji glances over where he's looking, spotting Besa sitting near Botan's unconscious form.
Feeling her stare, he looks up with a small smile:
"Hi. Your friend should be up shortly."
"Uh..."
The redheaded miko-in-training then focuses back on Miroku as he says,
"I just..."
"Just what?"
He then takes her hands into his and asks the all-too-familiar question.
"I just, want to ask if you will bear my children."
She gives him a rather, perplexed if dumbed expression, just as the bluenette priestess wakes.
"Mm...huh?"
She gasps lightly at seeing the young man with cornrowed hair, and he holds his hand out and says gently,
"Easy now; I mean you no harm. (Smile) How are you feeling?"
She takes his offered hand, and replies as she's pulled up into a sitting position,
"Um, okay, I guess..."
"That's good...Huh?"
Miroku suddenly slides over and asks the same question he did Momiji.
"How about you; would you be willing to bear my children?"
Besa sweatdrops and mutters,
"Miroku, is this really the time?"
The other young miko is obviously not pleased by how much the monk wears his heart on his sleeve.
"Not very choosy, are you?!"
"There's enough of me to go around..."
Besa sighs, then pulls the bluenette's hand out of Miroku's before slapping the latter's forehead with the heel of his palm.
(Thwap)
"Ow! H-Hey!"
"We're trying to show them we have morality, doofus!"
"...He's at it again, is he?"
Both men turn to see Freeman, Kilala and Shippō returning with the water.
As the Brownlee with plain coarse hair rolls his eyes at the monk, the fox demon says to the girls in greeting,
"You're both finally awake."
Momiji turns around to see him, and she and Botan immediately go on the defense, pulling out a sutra each.
"There's the little demon!"
"Keep your distance!"
Shippō gapes at them in shock, and Miroku says,
"You're mistaken. Shippō is the one who has taken care of you all this time."
"This demon has?"
"I was ordered by Coraline and the others not to touch you, so that left Shippō to take care of the both of you ladies."
Freeman adds,
"Yeah, I mean, Besa and I did lend a hand, but this little dude was the main man workin'."
The fox demon mutters to himself indignantly,
"Maybe I shouldn't have bothered," and the mentioned Brownlee ruffles his hair gently while chiding,
"Don't take it personally, kiddo. Keep in mind that these girls haven't been outside the shrine alot. They likely haven't encountered enough demons to know how to tell the good from the bad."
Proving his point, Momiji asks as she and Botan cautiously step closer to Shippō,
"You mean he's not a bad demon?"
Freeman smiles knowingly and whispers,
"See?"
Shippō smiles a touch, but turns his back on the girls while stating with a proud frown,
"I have never hurt a human."
"Are you certain?"
The mikos-in-training look to one another with a mix of curiousity and uncertainty, and Miroku moves to a stand while saying,
"It's completely understandable that priestesses such as yourselves would consider all demons were bad."
The girls suddenly let out matching cries, causing him to look at them with worry.
"What's wrong?!"
...His expression then shifts into a gape of disbelief, when he sees Shippō being hugged tightly by Momiji, while Botan squeezes Kilala into her own arms!
"So cute!"
"Adorable!"
Freeman barely holds in his laughter at the sight, while Besa sighs with an amused smile,
"Well, their hostility went out the window real quick..."
Botan then pulls the dumbstruck fox child into her arms beside the twin-tail, while Momiji tugs his tail a bit.
"I love his tail!"
"And these ears!"
The final straw would be when the bluenette tries to peck his head with her lips, and Shippō breaks out of her grip while running desperately towards his three male companions.
"Mirokuuu! Besa, Freeman!"
But he's caught by Momiji, who pinches his cheeks while cooing adoringly at him. Miroku shrugs,
"That's the price you'll have to pay in order to prove you're not a bad demon."
He then mutters to himself in envy,
"Lucky you..."
So it would fall to Freeman to come to the fox demon's rescue.
"Alright, easy there. Shippō can only take so much dotting."
He gently pries the boy from the redhead's fingers, and stands back up while holding the former in his arms.
"Haaah, thank you..."
"No prob."
The priestesses then ask,
"Tell us: why do you hunt down Tsubaki?
"Yes, isn't that Inuyasha fellow a really bad demon?"
Freeman argues with a smile,
"The only thing bad about Inuyasha is when he lets his temper fly, and that's mostly when a truly bad demon hurts the people he cares about."
His brother adds,
"He has a good heart; he just doesn't like being seen as one of those, sensitive types."
The girls hum over the knowledge, then Miroku says,
"Listen: Tsubaki cursed Coraline to send her to her death."
"Impossible!"
"She wouldn't!"
"Now I don't know what Tsubaki told the both of you, but she's a dark priestess and she curses innocent people."
The girls take in sharp breaths, and Botan turns to Momiji with intent as both contemplate the words of these well-meaning strangers...
Inuyasha's POV
Rrh, these hafta be the most irritating demons I've ever fought...
Second most-irritating if I count that jerk Kōga.
Another annoying round of minutes come and go, and I use my claws to take out the last of these paper demon-rejects Tsubaki obviously set up to try and slow us all down...
"Keh, that was hardly worth the effort."
Kaede nods in agreement:
"Indeed, those Shikigami were not strong at all."
Sango wonders,
"Does that mean Tsubaki's power is beginning to weaken?"
"Hmph, if i' were tha' simple, we would've found her by now."
I look over at Coraline as she sheathes her combat knife, before bending down to pick up one of the damaged sutras with a neutral expression.
"These sort-of remind me of s'm old charms Grandfather still has from back durin' h's more active days as'a shinshoku. They're no' mean'ta be powerful, but act as a distraction...Tsubaki has tha' large jewel shard, so she could easily create someth'n' with more power, but didn't...which means..."
I clue into where her trail of thought was going.
"(Nod) Right. She probably doesn't know how to use it properly. (Sheathes Tessaiga) Come on, let's keep moving."
The others follow behind me as we fast-jog down the path leading towards the pagoda in the distance...Along the way, I notice some if not all the shredded remains of those demon-rejects fly past us in the same direction.
So the witch isn't gonna bother regenerating her minions, huh?
Must be getting desperate...
Eventually, we reach the clearing where that tall structure stands.
I check with Coraline to make sure we're in the right spot.
"This is it?"
She nods in confirmation, and Sango wonders aloud while staring at the tower,
"What is that pagoda?"
"...The place where you'll die."
We all tense up from the answering voice, and the door creaks open to release a huge gust of wind.
"Rgh!"
That voice...This energy...It can only mean one person.
I look up as soon as the gust settles, and confirm my suspicions.
"Kagura! You again!"
Sango mutters,
"I knew it: Tsubaki and Naraku have both joined forces!"
"Naraku's with her, huh? That's all the more better: I'll kill all three of you while I'm here!"
...I feel a hand on my upper arm, and turn to see Coraline looking ahead with those glowing eyes.
"Hold on...I don't sense Naraku's presence. It's just Kag'ra and Tsubaki."
I know by now that this girl's sensory is as sharp as they come, so if she says that bastard isn't here, he isn't here...Still didn't stop me from grumbling in frustration,
"Figures he wouldn't actually be here, the spectating coward...But ya know what? That's fine. (Focuses on Kagura) I'll settle for just takin' out the demon who shares his scent."
The wind witch holds up her fan and retorts,
"Don't be so hasty. I'm not the one you should be battling, Inuyasha. I merely came here today to witness your tragic deaths."
She then leaps out of the entrance way, removing herself from the path of what I'm assuming is another corpse puppet of hers. Not much to say about it other than it looks like they might've been a breathing human once, their skin dried out and hollow, making their glowing red eyes stand out, and dressed in samurai armor.
...Creepy, yes, but not enough to faze the likes of me. I step up to the silent challenge and pull out my sword to point at the reanimated body.
"Kauh, this'll be easy. Just another brain-dead crony; is that all you got for me, Kagura? (Leap) Hrrrraaaah!"
(...Clang)
Unfortunately, I would be proven wrong when the undead freak pulls out a katana at the last second, and not only blocks my attack but counters by shoving me backwards through the air! I hear Coraline cry out my name in concern as I hit the ground and slide against the packed dirt, barely keeping my balance to avoid falling on my ass.
"Tuh, (smirk) he's a little stronger than I figured."
But even a zombie won't be able to withstand Tessaiga's strongest attack.
"Try and stop, (slash) this!"
I unleash the Wind Scar on a straight course for the enemy...only for it to be stopped by Kagura's damn fan!
"Dance of Blades!"
The wind blades collide with the claw-shaped energy, creating an explosion of power and smoke...The zombie samurai then charges out of the dust cloud, and punches me to the ground.
"Gaaah!"
I hear Sango shout at Kagura angrily,
"You're hardly an observer! Hiraikotsu!"
(Toss, za-za-za-za-za-za...)
"Just staving off boredom."
(Whoosh)
My demon slayer friend's weapon is thrown off by the dark magic wind gusts, before Kagura catches me off guard with another attack.
"Dance of Blades!"
The wind blades meet their mark, cutting against a small part of my body and making me cry out in pain as the impact throws me even further backwards...Grinding my teeth, I look up, only to see the samurai zombie right in front of me and getting ready to slay me with their katana! Luckily, I'm faster and leap backwards to dodge...but I wasn't out of danger yet.
"Dance of the Dragon!"
(Whooooosh...)
I'm forced to switch up my strategy from offense to defense as that spawn of Naraku sends out several small vortexes of wind my way...
Unfortunately, this would mean leaving myself wide open for her little undead soldier.
(Swash, CLANG)
...But instead of Sango coming to my aid this time, Coraline goes direct and to the point by meeting in a clash with her own sword.
"Not on my watch, ye bloody corpse!"
"C-Coraline?!"
She then lets out a determined cry, and shoves the corpse back before unleashing her own attack.
"Claw Spiorad!"
That giant, icy blue talon flies fast like a hawk on the hunt, meeting its mark with the undead soldier and throwing them backwards.
"Yes!"
"...Dance of Blades!"
(Swoosh-slash)
Acting quickly, I get up and rush over to snatch up my fellow swordsperson before leaping us out of the line of fire from Kagura. We get away just as the wind blades make contact with the ground and upturn the dirt, and Coraline offers me a small smile of gratitude once we settle a safe distance back.
"...Thank yeu."
"Keh, no problem. Just remember to watch yourself."
She nods just as we hear something whistle through the air, and I turn my head to watch one of Kaede's arrows fly straight for Kagura! The latter does cut it down the middle, but one half manages to knock the corpse's sword out of his hand!
I don't waste the opportunity:
"Time for my, Wind Scar!"
(Swash)
This time, my sword's power meets their target, and the corpse samurai howls in pain before disintegrating into shredded paper. I hear Coraline mutter in light surprise,
"Another shikigami," and I shrug,
"Looks that way..."
I then turn to point Tessaiga at Kagura:
"You're going down next!"
The wind witch takes off one of her feathers, and tosses it into the air just as a strong gust of wind surrounds her...
"Stop!"
I try to go after her, but I'm stopped by the wind pressure.
"Tsubaki should be your next victim!"
I curse to myself as Naraku's lackey disappears, before Coraline steps forward to remind me of our current problem.
"Nevermind her, Inuyasha. We should focus on goin' inside th' pagoda. The longer we stand here, the more time Tsubaki has to find a way to use tha' damn jewel f'r her own nefarious purposes."
She's got a point...Rrrh, alright, you survive this round, Kagura, but next time we meet, you're dead.
We all enter the pagoda, and the first thing we see is a stairwell that lead to the underground.
Kaede takes note of the damaged protection spells that once kept this place shut tight.
"There was a barrier here to keep something sealed within...but the seal has been broken."
"You mean like those shikigami?"
She nods at Sango,
"Yes, though a seal this strong wouldn't be needed for those spirits."
I say to everyone,
"We'll find our answers inside. Come on!"
Besa's POV
Once the guys and I convince Momiji and Botan that they were siding with the wrong person, we all make our way for the shrine, with Freeman and I choosing to jog on foot while the girls, Miroku and Shippō ride Kilala not too far above us...
"Tsubaki truly is a dark priestess?"
"It's almost impossible to believe..."
Miroku replies to the girls,
"You studied under the same master as Tsubaki, so I don't blame you for being skeptical. Now why don't you come with us and see for yourselves what Tsubaki is truly like?"
I add to myself with a hum,
I suppose we can't all graduate from school with the same agenda...
"We better hurry. Hang on tight, ladies."
I don't miss the tone my monk friend uses at the end of that sentence, and groan a bit as Freeman calls up with a wry smile,
"Oi, Miroku: keep it in your robes and focus on catching up with everyone to take down Tsubaki!"
I widen my eyes over his choice of words, despite knowing full-well that my twin has less of a filter than I do.
"Brother!"
"What? It's the truth."
I sigh in exasperation before calling up,
"Let's speed up, 'kay, Kilala?"
I hear her growl in confirmation, and she picks up her pace airborne while my brother and I break into a run down the forest path...
I sure hope Cora and the others aren't having too much trouble with Tsubaki yet.
No POV
By this time, deep within the innermost level of the pagoda, where the walls run high with rough garnet, Tsubaki will have approached a large slab of slate with sutras tied on with thick rope, and began a series of chants and prayers to undo their sealing magic...
Her eyes suddenly blink open, and the rope fibers snap, removing the final seal!
"Open, Oni Gates! Come forth, Golden God!"
...The stone begins glowing a foreboding blood, and cracks form on the surface...before crumbling open completely, leaving behind a bottom piece with a dark crimson liquid oozing from within...A deep, raspy voice with the chill of a gravestone abandoned in the autumn rain then emits from the remains, belonging to the great ogre that's been trapped for decades on end.
"How dare you seal me within! (Snort) You shall pay with your life!"
Tsubaki remains calm and laughs a bit before replying,
"I will give you power! I hold the ultimate power of the Shikon-no-Tama!"
The oni growls with surprised interest, and the dark miko's cursed eye glows as she urges,
"Surely you desire this power, don't you?"
"...Give it to me! Give it!"
A large, brick red hand with clawed fingers shoots out of the dark red pool.
"Give it to me!"
The hand reaches to Tsubaki...but that's what she was waiting for. As soon as the appendage is close enough, she proceeds to suck the oni into her being through her eye!...Once the deed is done, she clutches the side of her face with a near-hysterical laugh over her success.
"Hehahahaha, Oni. What power...What incredible power!"
(Slam)
It was then Inuyasha and company bursts through the wooden doors.
"We finally found you, Tsubaki!"
"(Turns) You again. I've been waiting for you."
"Give us the Shikon-no-Tama back!"
"Is that what you're after?...Hehnhnha, this is incredible..."
Coraline narrows her eyes in suspicion...before gasping when she senses,
"She-H'r Aura is melding with a demon's. A powerful one...and the jewel is inside her righ' eye!"
"In her eye?"
Tsubaki's muttering only confirms the redhead's observations for the silverette.
"I never imagined it would be this powerful. If only it came into my possession fifty years ago..."
That caught Kaede's attention:
"Fifty years ago?...Tsubaki, what happened between you and my sister, Kikyō?"
"Kikyō? You know of her?"
Just the name of her old rival alone sends a shiver of anger and disgust through the dark priestess, and she makes her revulsion all the more plain.
"It's all Kikyō's fault! Kikyō, that cold and heartless priestess!"
Inuyasha growls and barks at her,
"Nobody's gonna smear her name!"
"Silence!"
Tsubaki sends a gust of power at the half-demon, causing him to fly high into the air and hit the wall above the doorway. He falls down in a crouch, wincing from the impact as Coraline rushes to his side.
"Are yeu okay?"
He grits his teeth and sends her a subtle nod, before looking up at the enemy with a new question or two.
"So what's next after those demons? What're you hiding in that eye of yours?"
"Hehnhahaha, I'm overflowing with demonic power! It's coursing through my veins!"
Her hands then metamorphose from being pale and human...to red and demonic.
Sango mutters in surprise over the dark energy, and Coraline widens her eyes when she realizes,
"She absorbed the oni tha' w's sealed here!"
Lúdramán! All tha' hell-ridd'n power; no way she c'n handle it!
The young Croft's judgement seems to be failing thus far based on the strong laughter emitting from the triumphant Tsubaki, but only time shall tell...
Meanwhile, back outside the pagoda, the other half of our group arrives, and Botan takes note of the damage already performed by their so-called 'sister disciple'.
"What happened to the pagoda?!"
Momiji exclaims,
"Impossible! The gates of the Forbidden Pagoda must never be opened!"
Miroku asks them,
"You say it's forbidden?"
The young woman with dark blue locks nods while wondering with worry,
"Who could've done this?"
Before a reply could be made, the whole area starts to rumble alongside a loud crash!
"What was that?!"
"Look, there!"
"The pagoda!"
Our small group of four boys and three girls watch as a wave of power erupts from within the crumbling ground, the impact causing the tall structure before them to collapse like a child's tower of blocks!...Fortune is on the side of their friends, however, when they spot Inuyasha and company rushing out from the smog of dirt.
"Inuyasha!"
"Sis!"
"They're okay!"
Zooming over that way, we see that the half-demon took the aging priestess Kaede on his back, while Coraline and Sango stay close to his heels, and the Will O' Wisp Lumos flew ahead them all...
Next to rise out of the smoke would be the source of everyone's current troubles, Tsubaki...However, her countenance has been completely altered thanks to the combined power of the ominous oni previously sealed away for a century, and the warped energies of the Shikon-no-Tama. Now standing over thirty feet tall, the now half-oni dark priestess sports a more beastly appearance, complete with vermilion brick red skin, clawed hands, two horns protruding from the edge of her forehead, and glowing pale yellow eyes! Even her voice reflects the union of her soul and the ogre's.
"Behold, the power of the Shikon-no-Tama! Witness the true might of the Oni!"
Everyone in our mixed group stands dumbstruck by the sight of this new and dangerous enemy, their expressions causing the abomination to laugh.
"What's wrong? Has my power left all of you speechless?"
Botan and Momiji each mutter with wobbly tones,
"The seal has been broken...!"
"Oh no, that's Tsubaki! She wouldn't have dared broken the seal!"
"Now with this power, I shall have eternal life!"
The demon priestess raises her hands to the skies as lightning crackles through the gathering dark clouds. Sensing an attack fast-approaching, Miroku turns to warn the priestesses-in-training,
"Get back now!"
"Right!"
Besa and Freeman say to them,
"We'll lead you back a ways,"
"And protect you!"
As those four scramble, Tsubaki concentrates some of the lightning into her waiting left hand.
"This power is unparalleled!"
She then sends a large ball of the electricity at everyone, forcing them to scurry every which way to avoid getting fried.
(BOOM...)
Once the energy settles, Inuyasha leaps forward to launch a counterattack with his Tessaiga.
"You're, through!"
(Slwas-Clang)
However, this demonic miko proves to be a challenge for even the fabled dog fang sword. In which case, after blacking with her right arm, Tsubaki shoves her enemy away, the latter back-flipping as he lands on the ground with a curse. Shippō exclaims from atop Kilala's head,
"She's strong enough to throw off the Tessaiga!"
The silverette could only growl at the evil before him, who in turn jeers,
"Surrender! It's useless!"
"Don't be so sure about that! Have a taste, (swing) of my Wind Scar!"
(Slash)
...But despite their wielder's confidence, not even one of Tessaiga's strongest attacks would do damage, and is instead swatted away by Tsubaki like it was a fly on the wall! Everyone widens their eyes nervously at the enemy's power while Inuyasha mutters in disbelief,
"No way...My Wind Scar didn't kill her!"
"You fool!"
Another ball of lightning is hurled his way, and he leaps back to dodge, only to get knocked off his feet when a torrent of bolted energy breaks the ground under him! Coraline cries out his name in worry, and runs over to help just as Miroku readies to unwrap the prayer beds around his cursed hand.
"I'll get her! (Rattle) Wind Tunnel!"
(Whooooooosssssssssshhhhhhh...)
The black hole is unleashed, the intention being to suck the half-demon miko into oblivion, even with the risk of possibly taking the large jewel shard with her...But then, Tsubaki uses her new lightning attacks to break apart more of the ground, and sends a torrent of rocks to shield herself from the monk's power. He's forced to contain the seemingly endless vortex and jump out of the way...
On that note, Coraline prepares to try an attack of her own.
"Damn, her...!"
(Swash)
She sends an icy blue talon of energy at the colossal evil, which succeeds in slicing into the vermilion brick flesh and forces out a small howl of pain from Tsubaki. Freeman cheers,
"Nice one, Cor!"
But Besa isn't quite as ecstatic:
"...It might be too early to celebrate. (Point) Look."
"Huh?"
Zooming in on the oni miko, we see that while the spiritual energy did leave some damage, it wasn't enough to be considered fatal, a fact which Tsubaki cruelly points out.
"Hehahahuhuh, you may have power related to Kikyō's, but you're not much."
Her wound would then heal itself, much to Coraline's shock, and the large evil steps forward while proclaiming,
"Kikyō was a foolish priestess who squandered the power of the Shikon-no-Tama."
Kaede asks with disbelief in her tone,
"What are ye saying?!"
"I, Tsubaki, am the perfect match for the Shikon-no-Tama!"
(Flash)
The dark priestess recalls the day her pride was first wounded, watching from afar near the edge of her rival's village as she and her sister peer over the iconic jewel that was once whole...
"What is that, Kikyō?"
"The Shikon-no-Tama. I have been entrusted with the duty of keeping it pure."
An expression of scorn creases Tsubaki's face as she seethes to herself,
No...Why her? Why her?!
(Flash)
"Hehahaha, fifty years have passed, and at last, the power of the Shikon-no-Tama is mine!"
"Not for long! (Leap) You won't get your way, Tsubaki!"
(Whack)
"Gaaaah!"
Inuyasha falls hard into the ground after being slapped aside by the oni miko, so Sango attempts a move of her own.
"Hiraikotsu!"
(Toss, za-za-za-za-za-za-za-WAP)
But her weapon is also deflected, and Tsubaki calls out,
"Come for me! The Shikon-no-Tama can take on all of you, and more! Hehnhahaha, there are countless demons who have desired the power of this jewel! I will devour them all, and have their strength and eternal life!"
Kaede realizes,
"She intends to use the Shikon-no-Tama to absorb demons and gain their power!"
Inuyasha mutters lowly,
"Not if I can help it," and stands up once more...
"Half-demon, soon you will be mine."
"I doubt it!"
"Hehnhnhn, Inuyasha, aren't you the one that made Kikyō lose her way in the first place?"
"Why you...!"
"He did not, ye damn waggon!"
"Huh?"
Their focus turns to Coraline, who sends a seething glare at Tsubaki while yelling,
"He 'nd Kikyō were sharin' eachother's lonely hear's with someone who understood how i' felt like t' be an outsider! And I too understand th' feeling! Kh...I had to live me entire life with everyone lookin' at me like I was nothin' but a hallion; a changlin', a banshee!...What you call losin' her way w's Kikyō contemplating the consequences of duty. Everyone treats yeu like your their hero 'r heroine, but have no idea how truly hard it is to keep up the act! She was treated like a goddess, when all she wanted was someone to look a' her for her!"
The girl's expression relaxes into a sad frown as she adds in a softer tone,
"Which sometimes makes me wish, I could've me' 'er when things were, less chaotic...so I...I could've helped her. Be a friend for her to lean on."
Everyone was quite taken aback by her words, Inuyasha especially.
She...She wants to be a friend to Kikyō, even after nearly being killed by her?
...Coraline...
"The only one here who's lost her way is yeu, Tsubaki! Yur soul's been dipped in the mire with the jewel, taintin' it nearly as bad as Naraku!"
"W-Why, you, wretch!"
(Swipe, WHACK)
"Aaa-hhh!"
The redhead from beyond this era is struck hard by the oni miko's hand, and rolls several times before stopping on her side with new bruises and scrapes dusted by dirt...
"Coraline!" "Cor!"
"Oh no!"
Kaede hurries to help the girl get up, and Inuyasha turns to glare at Tsubaki with a new air of anger.
"You, bitch! You'll pay for that!"
"I shall devour you whole, the half-demon that Kikyō could not have!"
The cursed eye of the monster glows...before a vacuum of wind manifests, threatening to suck the silverette into the former!
"Come, and surrender yourself to the power of the Shikon-no-Tama!"
Inuyasha stabs his dog fang sword into the dirt to assist in bracing his body and stay ground-level.
"R-Ngh!...That thing is powerful...!"
"...Explain yourself, half-demon: why do you not give yourself to the power?"
"D-Gyh, b-because it's like Coraline said: you tarnished the Shikon-no-Tama, Tsubaki! Kikyō never did that!"
"Hh! How dare you!"
Stifling the power of her cursed eye, the oni miko would then send several lightning strikes against the half-dog demon in a fit of rage. Coraline murmurs her friend's name from afar as she struggles to stand upright again with Kaede's assistance...
"I sacrificed everything in order to possess the Shikon-no-Tama!"
(Flash)
Returning to over fifty years past, we witness Tsubaki leaving her shrine after learning what her master had done, despite his protests...
"Wait, Tsubaki, stop!"
She stops in the doorway to send a glare at her mentor.
"No, master! I can never accept this! Why did you entrust the Shikon-no-Tama to Kikyō and not to me?!"
"Well..."
"Why couldn't you have chosen me instead?"
Knowing that an answer wouldn't be given, the young woman continues her leave...
"No, Tsubaki!"
"I refuse to take second place to Kikyō!"
(Flash)
"Know the wrath of my power!"
Another torrent of lightning strikes is unleashed by the demonic miko as a way to attack both past and present frustrations...
"Duck and cover!"
Holding out their shards of the Seven Light crystal at ready, the twins call upon the power granted to them to create a large, curved shield to protect themselves and everyone else from any electricity coming their way...
"Gr-hh, th-this lightning is so strong!"
"Just, h-hang on, Freeman!"
As they continue to concentrate their strength in protecting the mass, Inuyasha would caught under a lightning strike, shocking his body to the core.
(BZZZZT)
"Aaaaaaaauuuuuhhhhhh!"
His allies cry out his name in worry, but luckily, his superhuman endurance holds out, and he starts his charge against the large evil once the energy dissipates...
"Pathetic fool!"
(Fwooom)
Tsubaki switches tactics and shoots out a fire ball at the dog demon, but he retorts,
"That demonic aura's the only thing keeping you alive!"
Wind twists around his Tessaiga, and the vortex collides with the power of the flames...
"Time for my, Backlash Wave!"
(SLASH)
The demnic miko's strength is twisted back her way, and she howls in pain as the wind vortexes slice her body to pieces...
"The oni!"
"The oni is disappearing!"
With the demon part of her eradicated, Tsubaki is forced back into her human form, and is harshly dropped to the ground like a stone in a lake.
"Noooo, but whyyy?!"
Inuyasha lowers his sword when he sees how weak his enemy has become from the loss of power...Nevertheless, she tries to lift herself to her feet once more, unwilling to accept defeat.
"Mm-n-nyh...I'm, not finished...I still have, the Shikon-no-Tama...GH!"
Her cursed eye suddenly glows...and a single Saimyōshō flies out with the large Shikon-no-Tama fragment in its legs!
"Hey! My jewel!"
Coraline turns to her Will O' Wisp companion and orders,
"Lumos: after tha' wasp and get the jewel!"
He 'nods', and darts after the Insect of Hell, and begins a tug of war for the prized gem...This time round, he's the victor!
"Alright, Lumos!"
"Fly back down!"
...But just as he starts his journey back, a sharp gust of wind throws him off balance, causing him to lose grip on the jewel piece and allowing it to land in Kagura's hand! He tries to take it back, only to be sent flying with another swipe from her fan.
"Out of my way, you pest!"
The Will O' Wisp emits a choked moan as he barrels downward, and would be caught at the last second by Sango.
"I gotcha!"
Inuyasha calls up to the incarnation demon,
"You give that back!"
But she only offers a half-hearted 'so long' before escaping upon her enchanted feather...With the power of the Shikon-no-Tama and century-trapped oni gone, Tsubaki's youth erodes away like worn stone, and she collapses on her knees, her true visage exposed.
"Curse, you! Curse you all!...Uh-h! M-My, youth is evaporating. (Holds her face) My youth, my beauty...!"
Coraline mutters with surprise,
"She's, become an old woman..."
Kaede explains,
"Tsubaki has lost her original demonic powers as well as those of the jewel. Now she is returning to her original form."
The elder dark miko mutters to herself in desperation,
"Oh...exactly where did I go wrong?...Did I underestimate that half-demon, or was it Coraline...or was it perhaps the pact that I had made with Naraku?...Where did I go wrong...?"
Her mind falls prey to the final memories of her past years, stopping at the anguish against her master's decision...
"I, Tsubaki, am the greatest, priestess!"
...With that final proclamation, the miko's body withers into a pile of ash, blown away by a gentle gust and leaving behind her robes. Miroku grimly states,
"And that's the end of the Dark Priestess," while Momiji and Botan mutter with pity,
"Poor Tsubaki..."
...
...
With the miko formerly known as Tsubaki finally meeting her end, it would be time for our group of heroes and heroines to return to the Goshinboku Village for another spell before the main force breaks away from Kaede once more...Momiji and Botan see them all out of the Ying and Yang Shrine, bowing in apology for their earlier actions.
"Sorry for all the trouble."
Coraline smiles faintly and replies,
"Hey, no worries. This wasn't yur fault."
Momiji then says to the little fox demon,
"Take care, Shippō," who softly replies back,
"You too," before he and his comrades part ways with the mikos-in-training...
"Turns out we have once again, fallen victim to Naraku's evil tricks."
Inuyasha lightly scoffs at Miroku,
"Yeah, who did?"
"Tsubaki, and the rest of us."
Another soft snort escapes the silverette, and Sango grimly adds,
"And Naraku is the one who possesses the Shikon-no-Tama once again."
Smiling faintly, Freeman counters the negativity with a little positivity.
"Hey, come on, guys; this could've ended alot worse...At least we're all alive, right? Alive and rammin' to fight that bastard another day."
Everyone nods, almost smiling with him as Inuyasha vows more to himself,
"I'll get it back from him."
Coraline nods,
"I know so. Besides, as th' old saying goes, 'what doesn' kill yeu makes yeu stronger'."
The fox demon sighs from atop Besa's shoulder,
"I'm so tired," and Kaede hums,
"Well then, shall we head back?"
...Just as they reach the halfway point of the grand path leading to the shrine, Inuyasha pauses his steps when he hears a soft rustle from the bushes of the forest treeline.
"Hm?"
...Is that...
"Yeu alrigh' there, Inuyasha?"
He turns back to see a certain redhead waiting a few footprints ahead of him, and he looks back at the green for a second...before moving to follow the latter.
"Yeah; probably nothing...Guess I imagined it."
...
...
Unbeknownst to the duo, the source of that rustling, is in fact our wandering priestess caught between life and death, whose gaze follows their forms as they hurry to catch up with their friends.
Tsubaki was entirely obsessed with the Shikon-no-Tama, so she was doomed to failure.
"...Obsessed, (...rueful smile) just as I am obsessed...And yet, what she said before..."
(Flash)
"What you call losin' her way w's Kikyō contemplating the consequences of duty. Everyone treats yeu like your their hero 'r heroine, but have no idea how truly hard it is to keep up the act! She was treated like a goddess, when all she wanted was someone to look a' her for her!...Which sometimes makes me wish, I could've me' 'er when things were, less chaotic...so I...I could've helped her. Be a friend for her to lean on."
(Flash)
"...A friend to lean on...Hm...If only that were possible."
Kikyō turns to walk away into the forest canopy, her form fading between the leaves and tree trunks...