Chapter 77: A Three-Sided Battle to the Death

With the scorpion tail piercing through Inuyasha's chest, said dog demon would be vulnerable to being pinned to the ground, the impact causing Coraline to lose her grip on him and fall to the dirt, shooting more nerve pain into her new injury:

"Gh!"

Damn, scales...

"What's the matter, Inuyasha? Can't move?"

Inuyasha pushes himself up, and glances down at Coraline, noting the cut on her side:

"Uh! Coraline, are you-"

"Y-Yeah, I'm okay...Looks worse than it is..."

The dog demon flashes a look of concern at the girl, before turning to glare and growl at Onigumo, shoving the tail out of his chest:

"Aw, save it!"

He then runs at the incarnation with Tessaiga raised in the air, but Onigumo stretches his whip arm at the other, trapping Inuyasha in a vice-grip! Everyone else widens their eyes, and Coraline struggles to stand upright while muttering,

"Gotta, get him, down...!" Inuyasha's focus was on the incarnation, hateful glare set:

"W-Why, you...!"

"Inuyasha. This time, I'm going to slice you to pieces!"

Onigumo takes his other arm and prepares to thrust it at Inuyasha, but:

"Not on my life, you're not!"

(Clang)

Coraline manages to block the arm with her ShatterSoul sword!

"Uh!"

"The, only way, you're killing him, is by going, through me!"

(Sheen)

Her eyes begin to glow, her blade following similarly with ice blue rings billowing up and down, before she pushes the arm away while leaping back, readying her next attack:

"Inuyasha: Let's try both our attacks together, like last time!"

He widens her eyes at her, before nodding firmly:

"G-Got it!"

The Tessaiga's blade is then blanketed by a vortex wind, before both teens unleash their respected techniques:

"Wind Scar!" "Soul Shatter X!"

(SLASH) (SLASH)

The three-clawed slash and X-shaped slash meld together about halfway, forming the ice blue/yellow claw-X, blasting Onigumo to pieces!

(BOOM)

...The pieces of flesh rain to the ground, and Inuyasha lands safely before pulling the arm on his neck off:

"Tuh, hands, off..."

Coraline rushes to his side:

"You alright?"

"Yeah, I'll live...And you?"

"I'm hangin' in there..." Coraline wipes some sweat from her forehead:

"But that last attack did drain me some...grh!"

She then presses her hand to the cut on her side, feeling the sting:

"I didn't, expect the scales to be sharp enough to claw me. On his tail, I mean..."

Inuyasha just stares at her...before his attention is drawn to the flesh of Onigumo, when it began moving on its own to a specific origin:

"Damn it...He's not dead yet."

(Cloth ripping)

"Hm?"

He then watches as Coraline tears a piece off of the shirt she was wearing, before wrapping it around her side where her cut was. She replies,

"We'll just have to keep going until something sticks. He's gotta have some sort of Achilles's Heel."

"Hm?"

"It's another way of saying weakness."

"Ah...You sure you can keep going?"

"I'll be fine...After all...(Smile) I'm fighting alongside you."

Inuyasha was taken aback...but then smiles a bit at the determined redhead. Meanwhile, Kaede watches the moving demon flesh and remarks,

"This will never come to an end..."

It was then that Miroku noticed something:

"...Uh! Look at that!"

(Ba-Bump...Ba-Bump...)

His gaze was on a large piece of flesh the rest was moving towards...A spider mark glows briefly on it, to which Miroku and the twins would note:

"A spider...!"

"Just like the mark on all the other incarnations!"

"...But there's something about this one that seems, different..."

Onigumo was then back in full form, but with more spikes growing from his back, as Sango would note:

"He's transforming again!" Kaede wonders,

"What do you think his body is made of?" Miroku replies,

"Naraku is basically an amalgamation of demons, bonded into one by the bandit, Onigumo. If Naraku was created from his flesh, then perhaps..."

Freeman finishes:

"Yeah! Naraku must've released some other demons while he ejected Muso!"

Kagura continues to observe from atop the cliff, wondering,

Is he different from us?

Is he special somehow, even to Naraku?

Miroku's thoughts on Onigumo were different:

Why is Muso able to regenerate? What is his secret?

Inuyasha and Coraline stand at the ready, the former growling,

"Why, you...!"

"I told you you'd never be able to destroy me."

Inuyasha springs forward at Onigumo:

"Curse you!"

But the incarnation saw the move coming, and uses his tail to smack the other to the ground:

(SLAP)

"Guh!"

"Inuyasha!"

As Coraline rushes to help the dog demon up, Shippo (who's sitting on Besa's shoulder) grasps his skull with worry and shuts his eyes:

"I can't watch this! Isn't there something we can do?!"

"I wish I knew..."

Kaede notes,

"Inuyasha is starting to fatigue, which is to be expected after using the Wind Scar so many times."

Freeman adds,

"And Cor's barely keeping upright from her injuries and the amount of Soul Power she unleashed earlier..."

Sango comments,

"Both have withstood Muso's relentless attacks. Neither can take much more of this..."

We zoom in on Inuyasha, who was panting heavily while Coraline knelt by him in front of a large boulder:

"Hang in there, Inuyasha. (Turns right) Lumos, assist!"

The Will O' Wisp hears her call, and flies over quickly to the teen's sides. Coraline then asks him,

"Please, Lumos, lend us your strength."

"(Ghostly moan)"

Lumos floats over each teen, and releases some of his energy:

(Twinkle...)

Inuyasha's breathing becomes less heavy, as does Coraline's, and both thank the Will O' Wisp, before the latter sends the orbed creature away...Onigumo jeers at them, specifically the dog demon:

"Look at your pathetic self, Inuyasha, relying on aid from the maiden. Had enough already?"

Both teens snap at the incarnation:

"Shut up!"

Shippo then calls,

"Inuyasha: Use the Backlash Wave! Use it on Muso to blast him to bits!"

Inuyasha rises to a stand and growls back a bit irritably,

"Don't you think I would've done that already if I could, Shippo?"

"It won't work on him?" Sango realizes why:

"The move utilizes the opponent's demonic Aura. But Muso's been only using brute strength."

As Onigumo closes in on Inuyasha and Coraline, Sango begins moving to help, but is stopped by Miroku, who calls out,

"The Wind Scar is the answer, Inuyasha!"

"But, Miroku..."

"Try striking him one more time with your Wind Scar!"

Inuyasha starts charging forward:

"Don't need to tell me that!"

(Leap)

"Wind Scar!"

(SLASH, Boom)

"(Pant, pant) How's that?"

(...Ba-Bump)

Unfortunately, while the hit was dead-on, the flesh of Onigumo's body begins forming up at the piece with the spider mark again, before regenerating in full form once more!

"He's coming back! This is going to go on forever as long as he can regenerate..."

Miroku runs to Inuyasha's side to inform him,

"Inuyasha! The pieces of Muso's flesh all accumulate towards the spider marks."

"What're you talkin' about, spider marks?"

Coraline was also confused, until she uses her Aura Sight to peer into the flesh mass, and narrows down the area:

..I see it!

She runs over to the men, and points to the area in question:

"Right there, on his back!"

Miroku nods, and adds,

"Muso regenerates by gathering his flesh towards that scar. The mark was pulsating; that's probably where his heart is."

"It's so strange, though..."

"Hm?"

Inuyasha and Miroku look at Coraline confusingly, as her glowing eyes narrow at the scar:

"He's made from demonic energy on the outside, but...I'm sensing the Aura of a human underneath. And it's fighting to break out. (Eyes return to normal) That's probably another reason why you can't use the Bakuryūha, Inuyasha: His Aura's acting as if it's still in a human body, so by some weird technicality, he's not using demon power."

The men hm, before Inuyasha says,

"Well, whatever's going on, it's worth a shot to aim right there."

By this time, the incarnation was back in full form, and he jeers,

"You're wasting your time, Inuyasha. You're already out of breath, and we've only just started."

Inuyasha ignores Onigumo, as he goes into thought on how to execute his next move:

The track of the Wind Scar goes straight to Muso...I'll use it to strike straight into his heart!

"Die, Inuyasha!"

(SLASH)

Said dog demon unleashes the Wind Scar, and it travels down the track straight at Onigumo!

"This is it..."

...But suddenly:

"Dance of Blades!"

"Kagura!"

(Slice, boom)

The wind sorceress cuts into the battle, using her wind blades to momentarily collide with the Wind Scar! But it would not save Onigumo from the bulk of the attack:

"Aaaaaargh!"

...Once the light and dirt cloud cleared, Miroku steps up and asks aloud,

"...Is it over?" Inuyasha replies,

"Hardly. Kagura used her Dance of Blades to divert my Wind Scar so it wouldn't strike Muso's heart."

"At least we've discovered one thing: Muso's vulnerability is his heart."

"Keh, and he's not hiding that fact, either."

Coraline then points out a small swarm of the Insects of Hell buzzing down to the flesh mound:

"Maybe not, but they might!"

The swarm carts the spider-scarred flesh off, causing the rest of the flesh to float after it...

"Come on, let's follow 'em."

"Right behind you!"

"Right...Sango, Freeman, Besa, stay here and look after things."

As the three teens rush off, Sango calls back to Miroku with a reassuring smile,

"Will do!" Freeman adds,

"We got things here! And Cor, be careful of you cut!"

"(Distant) Right!"

As she watches the three teens run off for the forest where the poisonous wasps fled to, Kaede comments in some surprise,

"I can't believe, that the bandit, Onigumo, has come back after all these years..."

"It's obvious that Muso is not just another incarnation of Naraku."

Sango agrees with Besa:

"I agree: Muso has Onigumo's heart."

"It's strange, though..." Shippo asks Freeman,

"How?"

"Why would Naraku let him go? Does he not need the heart of Onigumo to live...or..."

Zooming in on Inuyasha, he thinks as he chases the Insects of Hell,

Naraku tried to get rid of Onigumo's heart because it still loved Kikyō. Then Naraku could try to destroy her, for to him, Onigumo was a liability.

That's must be why he cast Onigumo from his body!

As Coraline ran alongside Miroku, she thinks to herself on the situation,

If he truly is trying to rid himself of the heart that gave birth to him, why is Naraku using Kagura and his wasps to protect Onigumo?

He doesn't seem to be that attached to his other incarnations, anyhow...

"Does this mean...Naraku still needs Onigumo?"

Small Time Skip, Muso/Onigumo's POV

Thanks to those insects, I was able to get away from Inuyasha and his companions before they could attack me again...I'm now kneeling by a pond deep in the woods, washing my face while brooding about how close I was to meeting my demise:

"Damn that Inuyasha! I was so close to killing him...(Looks around) Where am I? What is this place?"

(...Rustle)

"Rgh!"

I hear something coming up behind me, and I turn around, only to find some strange...but vaguely familiar character wearing a baboon pelt cloak around his body:

...Who is that? Wait...is he...

"Onigumo...or should I say, Muso. Imagine, meeting eachother like this face-to-face."

"You...I know you!"

The man laughs, and I stand up in the water before asking,

"Are you Naraku?"

"Did you enjoy the outside world after fifty year's absence?"

"Fifty years?! Is that what you said?"

"Muso: I demand that you return to me."

"You must be joking!"

"The thought repulses me as well, but you were released too early, I'm afraid. And that is why you must come back to me now."

"Too early?! How dare you say that after keeping me locked away for fifty years!"

"It couldn't have seem more than a second to you."

The arrogance!...Wait...It was him!

"I remember everything now: You're the one who killed Kikyō fifty years ago!"

He doesn't deny, but counters,

"And in your twisted greed, you summoned the demons right to your side. Those same demons that devoured your flesh, wished to kill Kikyō."

Does...does that mean...her death is my-No! No, it was his fault!

"It was your desire, not theirs!"

"...I was not the one to blame. I, am Naraku, and you should know that by now."

"I have heard enough! The only thing I desired was to make Kikyō my woman!"

Yet as I said that, my memory recalls when I, cut her down...

"Damn it!"

"Kikyō has been resurrected. She looks exactly as she did before."

That news caught me off-guard, and I turn back to Naraku to ask uncertainly,

"She's...back?"

"Yes, although she's not exactly the same as before."

That piece of the news mattered not to me:

"...Kikyō is alive?"

"(Chuckle) Want her?"

"Where is she? Where is Kikyō?!"

"I'm afraid I cannot grant your wish...Return, to me."

Next thing I knew, several tentacles came springing from the demon, and I am forced to run and dodge, determined not to submit to his ways again:

"I'll never go back to you!"

I make it back into the tree cover and add,

"This time I'll make Kikyō my woman!"

...Unfortunately, he was faster than I imagined he'd be:

(Dash)

"I don't think so."

"Rgh! Persistent bastard! (Stretches out his whip arms) Go away and leave me alone now!"

"Not this time."

No POV

As Naraku and Onigumo kept up their battle, Kagura watches from behind some trees, all the more intrigued by the second's origins:

Muso is trying to escape from Naraku? Is he planning to defy him?

...I see: Naraku doesn't control Muso's life!

So that's the difference between him and me...

After another few minutes, Naraku finally manages to pierce Onigumo through his back, and pin him to a pine!

"Gah!"

"You will return to my body."

"...What's goin' on, Naraku?"

The demon glances to his right, and sees Inuyasha:

"Inuyasha..."

"What's the deal? You couldn't possibly have any use for Onigumo's heart. (Looks at incarnation) You don't need him. That's why you dug him outta your flesh and cast him out, so tell me: How come you're tryin' to take him back now?"

"I thought Muso would be able to kill you, but it seems I was mistaken. So he's coming back; it's as simple as that."

But Inuyasha saw through the lie:

"Nothing's that simple with you. Somethin' very precious got mixed in and accidentally got released with Muso, otherwise there's no way you'd take back his heart after all that trouble to get rid of it."

"(Sneer) Oh my, how clever. Don't tell me you're actually using that head of yours to think."

"...Don't you dare insult Inuyasha like that, you arrogant bastard!"

"Hm?"

Suddenly, Coraline comes running from the tree canopy, bending down to catch her breath!

"Coraline? Where's Miroku?" She replies to Inuyasha,

"(Pant, pant) He's coming. I just, wound up sprintin' faster than him this time..."

Once she got her breathing on track, she straightens up, and watches as Naraku removes his tentacles from Onigumo, causing the incarnation to collapse to the ground.

...Is he...

(Sheen)

"No. (Frown) He's not dead yet. Rgh!"

Coraline then clutches her injury, feeling it throb again. Naraku sees the blood darkening her makeshift bandage and chuckles a bit:

"I see that Muso did accomplish something: That's quite a cut you have there, woman."

"(Glare) Yeah, so what?" He merely smirks at her, before turning to Inuyasha to ask,

"What will you do now?"

"I can destroy Muso anytime, (Pulls out Tessaiga) which means you're at the top of my to-do list."

(Leap)

"Hrrah!"

(Swing)

With that, Inuyasha began his assault on Naraku, who backs away and uses his tentacles to block each of the dog demon's thrusts...Meanwhile, Coraline's eyes were on Onigumo...as she watches the wounds on his back begin to heal over!

She gasps, and he rises on his arms, glancing eye-to-eye with the redhead for a moment, then watches a bit of the battle between both half-demons...

"Onigumo?"

He grins, before grabbing Coraline's wrist and running off from the area, taking her with him:

"You're coming with me."

"Uh!"

Kagura watches the incarnation take off with the girl:

Is he serious?

...And taking Coraline with him...What does he want with her?

As he continues to block Inuyasha's Tessaiga, Naraku calls to Kagura,

"...Don't just stand there: Kagura, go after Muso."

She looks at him, and he adds,

"Don't let him escape...As for the girl...she is not a priority, this time."

With that, Kagura boards her feather and begins chasing after Onigumo, who kept pulling Coraline along down a path into the forest:

"Rgh, O-Onigumo, where are we going?! Let me go!"

"You're the only link I have to Kikyō right now! You will help me find her, once we elude Naraku!"

"...Onigumo..."

He's really become that desperate...

Meanwhile, the wind sorceress thought to herself,

Muso and I were both created from Naraku's flesh...

I act according to Naraku's wishes, but Muso is escaping...

Suddenly, Onigumo stops, prompting Coraline to do the same:

"...Onigumo?"

He says nothing...before he smiles and says,

"Change of plans. Come."

He turns around and heads back to the area where Inuyasha and Naraku are, taking Coraline along with him, much to Kagura's shock:

What is he doing now?

Back in the small clearing, the fight between Inuyasha and Naraku continues, with the former cutting down on the tips of the latter's tentacles:

(Slash)

However, that proved to be an unwise move, when the opened tentacles began expelling Naraku's miasma, forcing Inuyasha to leap back...It was then that Miroku finally caught up:

"(Pant, pant) Inuyasha!"

"What took ya?"

"What's Naraku doing here?"

"He's tryin' to take Muso back." Miroku gasps, and Inuyasha smirks while saying to Naraku,

"I'll bet releasin' Muso made you alot weaker than you used to be, Naraku. Am I right?"

Naraku's hair flies up in the air and shoots towards Inuyasha in an infuriated response, but the dog demon readies his sword:

"Die!"

(SLASH, Boom)

Naraku was able to leap out of the way of the Wind Scar, jeering,

"Don't presume to understand me, Inuyasha. You are nothing."

(...SHOOM)

...It was then that a whip-like tentacle shot into Naraku's chest, courtesy of Onigumo!

Inuyasha and Miroku exclaim:

"Muso!"

"It can't be: He killed Naraku!"

Kagura was equally as shocked:

He did it! He killed Naraku!

"(Laugh) You fool! You didn't think I'd let you get away, did you?"

...Naraku suddenly grins, and Coraline gasps, realizing:

"...No...He still lives!"

Onigumo looks at her with disbelief, but then his attention would be on Naraku, as the demon suddenly zooms in on him!

"Uh! My, arm's being absorbed!"

He releases Coraline's wrist from the shock, and she runs over to Inuyasha and Miroku to get out of danger:

"Coraline!"

"Guys!"

The three look back to the scene, as Naraku says to Onigumo,

"You saved me the trouble, Muso. I need you to come back to me now."

"Rgh, d-damn, you!"

More tentacles spring from Naraku and envelop Onigumo, destroying all possible options of escape, and began to slowly pull him into the other's body:

(Glow...)

"Rgh! No! I've lost, control of my body! Grrah! Let me go! Release me at once!"

Kagura watches on from her spot behind the trees, wondering with some fear,

Will that be the fate I suffer, if I should choose to defy him as well?

Onigumo's pleas become more desperate:

"Stop! Let me see Kikyō! I must see Kikyō!"

He turns his head and meets Coraline eye-to-eye one last time:

"P-Please, girl: Help me! You have her within you! Help me reach Kikyō!"

She could only remain frozen, knowing that there was nothing she could do to help:

...I'm sorry, Onigumo.

(Pulse)

"Huh?"

Coraline looks down at herself, feeling something beat within her, that did not feel like a heartbeat:

...Was that...No. Not my Soul...It was...the light half of Kikyō.

...Is she just as saddened by this turn for him as I am?

"Kikyō...! Kikyō...! Kikyōōōōō...!"

And with that final cry, Onigumo was fully absorbed into Naraku...The demon laughs darkly and comments,

"Such bitterness...Such festering greed...Give it up, Muso. Kikyō is exactly the same as you, made of nothing but clay and dirt. Her Soul is a mere phantom of the past."

Once the light had died down, no trace of the incarnated thief would be found...Inuyasha exclaims,

"...He absorbed Muso!"

"(Chuckle) You see, I require Onigumo as a link to my own body. Your conjecture was indeed accurate, Inuyasha."

"A link?"

Miroku takes a half-step forward and asks Naraku with a stern tone,

"Answer me this, Naraku: You've swallowed Onigumo's heart again, so does that make you, a half-demon?"

"Why would you ask that?"

"A while back, the impenetrable barrier around your castle weakened. Inuyasha and Kōga...in fact, anyone with a keen nose can find it. (Side-glances Coraline) And given opportunity, I am sure Coraline could've easily tracked your Aura. (Focuses up front) You couldn't have wanted that."

Inuyasha eyes the monk with confusion:

What's Miroku trying to figure out?

"I see, monk. So you wish to know if even I have a period of weakness, don't you? If I am indeed like all half-demons?"

"I know that your powers had weakened at that time, Naraku."

Inuyasha and Coraline look to Miroku in surprise at his deductions, while Naraku just chuckles before replying,

"But when that event occurs is a half-demon's deep dark secret...Let's hear about you, Inuyasha."

"What?!"

"Do you, like so many other half-demons, lose your powers and hide in fear from your enemies during such times?"

"Gh! Why you...!"

Coraline moves to grip Inuyasha's arm in a protective gesture, her hand reaching to her combat knife:

One more bad quip against Inuyasha, and I swear to god, I'll decapitate him...!

...But you know...thinking on that comment...does this mean Naraku doesn't know...

Miroku raises a mental brow at the change of direction in the subject, also noting the lack of knowledge:

Interesting...Judging from Naraku just said, Kagura hasn't told him about Inuyasha's night of weakness during the New Moon...

"...Monk."

"Huh?"

"As you surmised, I have periods when I cannot move. However, I choose that time myself, at my own free will."

That caught the three teens off-guard:

"What?!"

"There's no way you can do that!"

"Impossible!"

"You are vastly different from me, because you were born from a human and a demon, Inuyasha. (Looks back) Don't you agree, Kagura?"

She gasps, recalling what she saw in the deeper basement of Naraku's castle before:

When I found him in the cellar, it looked like he was reconstructing his body...

As a drone of the Insects of Hell appear behind Naraku, he explains what happens during his drop of power:

"During my time of weakness, I experiment. What is strong, I take to make stronger. I then cast out the weak, and become even more powerful."

Miroku asks within his mind,

He can reconstruct his own body?

Inuyasha curses almost in time with Coraline's cuss, and Naraku chuckles again before adding,

"I'm a half-demon right now. There's no mistake...but unlike some other half-demons, I don't lose my powers and cower in fear."

Inuyasha growls, and replies back,

"Keh, you sure can talk about yourself for days, but I got better things on my mind!"

(Leap)

"Die!"

(Swing, CLANG)

But when Inuyasha goes to try and cut down on Naraku with his Tessaiga, a barrier suddenly erupts around he and Kagura, blocking the dog demon's attack!

"Guh!"

Inuyasha is forced to jump back, and the light dissipates a bit, leaving the barrier a coloured mix of dark fushia and light blue...

"What is that?" Miroku and Coraline reply respectively,

"A barrier!"

"And a strong one at that. (Sheen) I can see Naraku using his Aura to construct it, along with the power of the demon bits that he uses to make his body."

Inuyasha scoffs,

"It won't stop me! Wind Scar!"

(SLASH)

...But despite it being a direct it, only the ground around the two demons is upturned, and not even a dent was made in Naraku's barrier! Miroku exclaims,

"The Wind Scar didn't work! I'm pretty certain that Naraku's barriers weren't that powerful before..."

Coraline grits her teeth, before pulling out ShatterSoul:

"Then maybe my blade will work!"

But before she could charge up her attack, Inuyasha stops her by placing a hand on her shoulder:

"Huh?"

"You've already used too much of your spirit power before against Muso, and I have a bad feeling that even your attacks won't work."

"Inuyasha..."

"I'd listen to him if I were you, woman."

They both focus back up front with hateful glares at the smug Naraku, who adds,

"I'll say it again: I only continue to grow in power."

(Boom, whoosh...)

He then begins releasing a poisonous smoke cloud from the bottom of the barrier, prompting Miroku to push Inuyasha and Coraline back:

"Get back! It's a miasma!"

The poison then swirls into a cyclone around Naraku and Kagura, carrying both demons away and out of sight...

"He's gone...!"

"It seems that Naraku was speaking the truth about his powers..."

"Yeah. I turn into nothing but a weak human on the Night of the New Moon, but Naraku's, different from me?"

"Yes...If Naraku is able to reconstruct himself and get stronger...then I'm afraid that we might be in real trouble."

Coraline frowns seriously at the men's words, before replying,

"...Then we'll just have to get stronger than him in kind...(Smile) I know we can do it, too."

"Huh?" "Hm?"

She turns to face them and adds softly,

"It's like Freeman said before: We'll always have the one thing Naraku will never have...Something worth fighting for."

Inuyasha and Miroku look at Coraline with surprise...before smiling faintly and nodding.

Time Skip, Campsite of Injured Soldiers

As the evening comes rolling in over the landscape, one of the soldiers resting by an open campfire feels a shift in the atmosphere inside a passing breeze:

"...I feel an ominous wind."

Kikyō, who was carrying a basket of herbs, pauses in her step when she feels the change too:

"Hm?"

She turns her eyes to the sky...and watches as a faint, spectral cloud of miasma rolls by...

It's Naraku...I know it is him.

"...What is it, Lady Kikyō?"

She snaps out of her daze, and smiles softly before replying,

"It's nothing to worry about, so I think it's best you rest at ease, old man."

"Of course."

Scene Shift: Goshinboku Village

Once they all gathered up again, Inuyasha and company would return to Kaede's hut so the more injured of their party could have their injuries tended to...

"No way! Naraku can now project a barrier strong enough to block the Wind Scar?!"

Coraline, whom after having her side bandaged, pauses her medical attention on Inuyasha's torso and nods to Freeman, while he scoffs. Miroku confirms what the three witnessed:

"Yes, Naraku is definitely becoming stronger. On top of that, he's a half-demon, but unlike Inuyasha, he doesn't lose his powers during the New Moon. Instead, Naraku says he can choose his day."

"Are you saying we can't know when his powers will be weakened?"

He nods at Sango and replies,

"Correct...I thought we'd be able to defeat him if we only knew when he was powerless."

Besa puts in his thoughts:

"Well it's not like there was a guarantee his demon strength would be lost during that specific time anyhow. After all, everybody functions differently, and it's more likely that every half-demon has their own unique time-frame for when they become mortal...Still, I agree: Being able to choose a random date does make this whole war all the more dangerous..."

Inuyasha pulls his white haori back on, frowning a bit at the dismal outlook:

"Huh, what's everyone gettin' all serious about? At least we know now that he does have a period of weakness. It's like Coraline said earlier: I just have to get stronger than him. Just let me handle things."

Everyone looks to him in mild surprise at his optimism, with Coraline smiling a bit and muttering,

"I actually meant we as in all of us, but whatever keeps your chin up..." Miroku comments,

"Inuyasha, I've never heard you sound so positive."

"I'm always positive, ya creep!"

While the twins snicker, Sango whispers to Coraline,

"If this is his good side, I'd hate to see him gloomy..."

"Yeah...By the way, Sango: I'm, sorry about that icy glare I sent your way earlier today. That was mean of me."

"Oh, that? (Reassuring smile) It's okay, Coraline."

"No, it wasn't. I...I was being childish. It's just that with how everyone kept saying I'd be better off staying in my era where Onigumo couldn't reach me, it felt like, you all forgot about my opinion, that I wasn't, you know, defenseless..."

Sango gapes a bit at Coraline with surprise, but then shakes her head with a gentle smile:

"Uh...Oh Coraline...of course we'd never forget your opinion, and we all know you're not to be taken lightly. But, I am sorry if you felt like that."

"It's okay. I should've known that wasn't the case. I think this round of fighting was just more intense than usual for all of us..."

"Mhm."

After a little while, Coraline then remembers some other business she wanted to take care of:

Oh! I just remembered: The Seven Light Crystal...Cipher said that it should be in Onigumo's Cave...

Hm, the only question is how am I going to go down there without anyone tailing me?

...Ah: I got it!

She then stands up, and begins walking towards the flap door, prompting a few of her friends to ask,

"Coraline?" "Where you goin', sis?"

"...I just remembered: I accidentally left my satchel on the field near where we first fought Onigumo today. I better go get it."

"Do you want one of us to go with you?"

"Nah, that's okay, Miroku: I have my knife with me incase I run into trouble, and it's not too far away."

After receiving a borrowed flashlight from Besa, she sends a small wave, before leaving the hut, then starting her jog...to the direction where Onigumo's Cave would be...

At the same time the redhead began her trek, we find Kikyō walking alongside her shinidamachū in an open field, her mind wandering:

I understand now: I am Kikyō, yet not Kikyō. That's why I resisted...

Yet, why?

She pauses to gaze up at the star-filled sky:

Why does my heart yearn so?

"...Inuyasha...Which does my heart wish for?"

Coraline's POV

Wow...the sky is so clear tonight. If I wasn't so focused on my secret mission, I'd probably be stargazing by the river right now.

After a good deal of jogging/running, I made it back to the old cave where the thief, Onigumo once resided...before he became the half-demon we know now.

I walk up to the entrance, feeling that old energy that was there before, except it seemed, weaker than before:

Must have something to do with the poor fool gettin' reabsorbed into Naraku...

I felt my face form a sad look, remembering the desperateness in his voice during his last stand:

(Flash)

"P-Please, girl: Help me! You have her within you! Help me reach Kikyō!"

"Kikyō...! Kikyō...! Kikyōōōōō...!"

(Flash)

Even if he did somehow escape Naraku, his wish would remain out of his reach no matter what he did...

(Pulse)

"Mm?"

I feel that beat inside my Soul, and place a hand over my heart, smiling sadly, knowing what it really was:

"...I know. You feel bad for him too, don't you, Kikyō?"

Shaking my head with a sigh, I focus back on my true objective, and walk inside, using the flashlight my brother lent me to navigate the dark, rocky walls:

"Okay...Now where could it be hiding?"

Maybe a change in perspective will help...

(Sheen)

Using my Aura Sight, I comb my eyes all over the area, waiting for some little detail to jump out at me...After about fifteen minutes, I finally spot it:

"Uh! There...in that far corner."

I quickly make my way over to the right corner of the cave, and could see a heart-shaped outline shining beneath some rock...

"That has to be it..."

I cancel out my power, and wrack the spot with my knuckles:

"Hm...Doesn't seem too thick...If I use the handle of my knife, I should be able to chip the rock away and get the crystal out."

Nodding to myself, I stand the flashlight up on a flat part of the cave floor so I could still see what I was doing, before unsheathing my knife:

"Okay, here goes. (Swing) Hrh!"

(Crack)

"Mph!"

(Crack)

"Hrah!"

(Crack...Tok, CRA-Crumble...)

After a few good hits, I was able to chip the loose rock away, revealing the object of my quest:

"(Grin) There you are..."

I put my knife back (brushing the rock dust off in the process), and tug on the crystal to pry it out:

"Mmph...Rrr-gah!"

(TOK)

I cough a bit from the rock dust, before looking down at the heart-shaped crystal now in my possession:

"Finally...I found the second one."

Now all that's left, is to wait for Cipher to give word on when we'll finalize our deal...

Soon...Soon, this'll all be worth it.

I wrap the crystal in a light green cloth, then place it in my back pocket of my jeans, before starting my way out...Yet as I made my way back outside, I found myself gazing at the inside of this cave with normal eyes, finding myself, captivated by its symbolism:

To think...This is the birthplace of that bastard demon, Naraku...

This is where the whole story began.

I pause over at the spot barren of moss and grass, where Onigumo had laid twice now:

"This is the area, where Onigumo had been forced to lay, his body too horribly scarred and burned to ever move again...I wonder what happened to him to cause him such pain? What did he do?"

Well, whatever happened, he must've pissed someone off real bad to receive such a revenge attack...

"...Despite his injuries, however, Onigumo's desires kept him alive, as well as Kikyō's tentative care. (Sad smile) That was incredibly kind of her to do, but, maybe she saw something in the thief that suggested he wanted to rise from his past ways...But maybe I'm giving Onigumo too much credit. After all...(Frown) he was foolish enough to sell his Soul to demons for a moving body, just so he could steal the Shikon-no-Tama...and Kikyō's heart."

...I turn away from the spot, and make my way to the entrance...only to end up meeting with someone outside:

"...What are you doin' back here?"

"Huh?"

I look up, and see Inuyasha standing off to the right side with his arms folded and his usual scowl on his face.

"Inuyasha...Did you, follow me here?"

I should've known I wouldn't be able to evade him...

"I could smell your scent heading in the wrong direction for where the well was, so I went out to tell ya, only to see you joggin' this way with a look that said this was your real plan."

I widen my eyes a bit at his sharpness, and he walks up to me to add,

"Now I'll ask again: What are you doin' back here? This isn't a good place to go explorin' by yourself..."

I keep a straight face, but inside I was almost on the verge of a panic attack:

Damn! What do I do?!

I can't tell him my real reason for being here; he'll go ballistic!

...Wait...okay, I know what to do.

Technically, this won't be lying, because this is partly why I wanted to come here, but...I can't reveal my pact with Bill.

I take a deep breath, before replying calmly,

"I know...but, my curiousity got the better of me. I, wanted to see this entire place for my own eyes without interruptions..."

"Why?"

"Well...this is where it all started, right? This whole mess with the Shikon-no-Tama."

He widens his eyes a bit at my statement...before asking,

"What do you mean?"

I walk back to the mouth of the cave, he following, and I repeat my thoughts from earlier to him:

"This is where Onigumo, the thief that was scarred and burned nine ways to hell was forced to spend the rest of his days, with Kikyō as his only real company...In the time he was cared for, his lustrous greed for the jewel fed to another desire, which was to steal away the said priestess who decided to give a damn about his life..."

I hear Inuyasha growl a bit at the thought of Onigumo's desire for Kikyō, but made no protest for me to stop speaking, so I continued:

"In that event, he was blinded by a love that could never be requited, and chose to sell his own being to demons in order to regain movement again...There enter Naraku: A half-demon who's only agenda was the same as the demons that played a part in his creation, which was to take out the guardian of the Shikon-no-Tama, and steal said jewel for his own nefarious purposes."

I smile bitterly as I thought of what has happened since then:

"But what Naraku didn't count on was the following: Kikyō choosing to follow the man she loved rather than save herself, my entrance to this world which would free you, the shattering of said jewel, her eventual resurrection, and then...Onigumo's return to the land of the living to try and reclaim what he lost."

"Hm...Speaking of Onigumo...I caught a glance of him taking you away earlier while I was fighting Naraku."

Inuyasha turns to me with a serious expression and places a hand on my shoulder before asking,

"He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"Oh, no, I'm fine. If he was gonna try anything, I would've had one of my blades in him like that...He, actually, wanted me to help him find Kikyō."

"What?"

"I think his desires were becoming more desperate at that point. He looked, prepared to try anything to escape Naraku and find the woman he became infatuated with so long ago...He, even called out to me to help him as he was being dragged into Naraku's body."

"Yeah, I remember that part. He said that, you had Kikyō within you or somethin'..."

"Mhm. I think, he could sense the part of her Soul that's inside me, and thought I would somehow be able to track down Kikyō for him...But, he changed his mind halfway down the path, likely wanting to try and finish Naraku off so he wouldn't be chased by the demon anymore...If only he knew that would be a grave mistake..."

Inuyasha could only stare at me in wonder, while I moved to sit down on the rock surface overlooking the tall grass leading to the river, a sad frown back on my lips:

"...I of course, can't do that. I don't have a clue where she is...and I didn't have the heart to tell him. I could only watch with pity as he was dragged into Naraku again...Heh, maybe I'm just goin' soft, though, feeling sorry for a thief who traded everything, only to get suckered by the demons...Still, insane though he was, Onigumo was certain of his wishes. I could, see it in his eyes."

I hear Inuyasha scoff a bit as he sat down beside me, before replying,

"Certain or not, he chose his own fate, and karma came to bite his ass in more than ways than one."

"Fair point...(Sad smile) And yet, her heart was bleeding as he was pulled into oblivion."

"Huh? Who's heart?"

"Kikyō's."

"Uh! What do mean by that?"

"...Her light half of Soul: It was, pulsing a bit as I watched Onigumo's last struggle, and it did it again once when I was standing at the mouth of the cave here a little while ago...She felt bad for him."

I hear no response come from Inuyasha, and I turn to look at the beautiful sky with a somewhat happier smile:

"That's something I kind-of admire about Kikyō: Before all this, she must've been one of the more compassionate priestesses, willing to see the good in all, human or demon."

I turn to look at Inuyasha and add,

"I mean, she obviously saw it in you, that you were more than just a half-demon. She saw a kindred spirit: Someone with a heart as equally lonely as hers."

"...Coraline..."

I just smile and shake my head, before turning back to the night sky, deciding to change the subject:

"...The stars are quite beautiful tonight, don't you agree? It's incredibly difficult to get a view like this in my era."

"...That right?"

"Yeah, but that's what happens when you have light pollution: Because we humans have invented and put so many electric lights on, it's dimmed out the natural lighting in those heavily-populated areas. You'd have to go out to where there's virtually no human activity to get a better view."

"Ah...That kind-a sucks."

"(Slight laugh) Just a bit...But I've come to see it as another excuse to have a nighttime adventure once in a while. Seek out what's not seen during daylight, and go where others dare not go."

"Heh, that does sound like you."

We both laugh a little, and sit in silence for a while...before we decided to start heading back for Kaede's. As we started walking through the tall grass, I say to my friend,

"Hey, Inuyasha..."

"Mm?"

"...We're gonna win this war. You know that like I do, right?"

He takes a few minutes to think...before he lightly grabs my hand and replies softly but determinedly,

"Yeah...I do. We will win."

And no more is said, as we enter the village, the crystal's weight feeding to my guilt in this secret pact...but not so much that I'd waver in my mission, for I knew in my heart...it would work itself out in the end...