Inuyasha: Blade of Imprisoned Souls

by Piccolo Sky

ReEdited. Complete. A man's obsession with revenge has become a curse upon all youkai of Feudal Japan. How can you stop an enemy for whom death means more power?

9. Chapter 8

CHAPTER EIGHT

Inuyasha kicked over a fruit that had fallen out of a window. He grimly stared at the sight of Kaede's village. He could still see rather well despite nightfall. But he didn't like what he saw. The place was as quiet as a tomb. There weren't even birds or animals running around. There wasn't a sound around him. The air seemed stagnant, and the wind seemed to die. It was as if the life of the world itself was being drained. And he didn't like the sight of it one bit. It made his hair bristled and his injuries throb.

Everyone was fallen. Sanhou had obviously been there, and there had been a massacre. Inuyasha looked left and right, but all he saw was one fallen body after another. Seeing this, his heart filled with fear and his mind filled with anger. Kagome had been here…along with the others. What if Sanhou had already come to her? What if she had shared the fate of the rest of the demons that Sanhou had absorbed? The thought drove him full of anger once again, and he balled his hand in a fist as he walked through the town. He searched for any sign of life, but could find none. As he passed through the Kaede's house, he only saw more death and desolation. Sanhou had been like a locust. He had killed everything, leaving nothing but waste in his wake.

The Hanyou finally made it to Kaede's house. But as he came there, he slowed to a stop. He stared silently at what was before him, and felt his anger rise again. Nothing was there. The house was barren too, smashed up and also dark and lifeless like the rest of the place. Inuyasha felt his hands tighten, and he grit what teeth he had left in his face. More anger than ever fueled him now, and he felt more rage toward Sanhou than ever before.

"I…Inuyasha…?" A weak voice suddenly called out.

At that, the dog demon looked over to the house again. He didn't see anything at first, until he noticed an overturned basket against the wall of the house. Two small eyes looked out of it, gleaming like a fox's in what mild light still remained at night. However, the basket was soon thrown aside, revealing a rather messed up and bruised looking Shippo. Two arrows were wielded in his hands like spears, his only weapons. He looked panicked and frightened, but far more relieved when he saw the Hanyou. His face formed some joy.

"You're alive! Boy, am I glad to see you!" The fox demon bounced out and started to run over to him right away. A few dried tears were on his cheeks, and he wiped them away. "I thought you were gone…I thought that monster had taken you too."

Inuyasha gave him no greeting, but looked coldly down at Shippo. "Where's Kagome?" He demanded.

The fox demon swallowed. "It was horrible, Inuyasha! After Sango and Miroku left…" He trembled here, looking nervous and frightened. "…he showed up. He killed Kaede…he said he'd kill me if Kagome didn't go with him and give him the shards."

Inuyasha bristled even more.

"I was going to follow…but he left behind…other ones. They beat me until I fell unconscious, then by the time I woke up they were all gone. He said he wouldn't come back…but he lied. He showed up again, and he went through the town…killing everything. He even killed animals and birds. And the more he killed, the more of him came out. He was going to kill me too…but he wanted me to live so I could meet you when you came back. He wanted me to tell you something."

"What?" The dog demon coldly demanded.

Shippo swallowed and trembled again. "He wants you to meet him tonight at midnight…or…he said something about turning Kagome into his collection of wraiths, or something."

Inuyasha grit his teeth again. Furious, he swung his fist against the wall nearby, instantly smashing it inward and nearly breaking the whole wall down in one blow. "Only wanting to kill demons? Yeah right…asshole…" He thought aloud, thinking over Sanhou. "What the hell does he want now?" He fumed. "He has my damn shards!"

"Isn't it obvious? He wants everything."

Inuyasha turned his head to the sound of that. But when he did, his anger only increased and he reached for the Tetsusaiga. A moment later he yanked it out of its sheath and brandished it in front of him. He tightened up his body for battle. Shippo looked as well. He soon gave a yell, and quickly shot behind Inuyasha's leg for defense. Angry that he was treating him like Kagome, Inuyasha kicked him away with one swift movement, and then turned his attention fully ahead.

Sesshomaru stood before them, cold and deadly as always. His sword was in his own sheath, but a small human girl was at his side, her head crooked in one of the demon's taloned hands.

"You…" Inuyasha hissed. "I really don't have time for this, but if you want to warm me up for Sanhou, then let's get it over with right now!"

"Put your little knife down before you poke your eye out." Sesshomaru coldly answered. "I'm not here to fight you."

"Yeah right." Inuyasha sneered in response. He kept Tetsusaiga at the ready…although without Kagome around all it was was a useless withered katana. He looked around a bit at Sesshomaru for a moment, waiting for him to try to revert into his monster dog form and bite his head off. However, such wasn't the case. Instead, he focused in on the girl that he held not-to-gently in one hand. "Who's that supposed to be?"

"A late night snack." Sesshomaru darkly replied.

"Well what are you, or she, doing here now?"

"That answer should be obvious, Inuyasha. The answer is the same for both of us. In case you haven't noticed, there's nowhere else for us to go. This place alone now is not under the watchful eye of that monster you saw. I too was one of his prey. Or so he thought. He stabbed me and ripped my very spirit from my bones. The little fox at your feet was right. That thing plans to send your precious human into a Hell on earth, where she won't remember herself or you and live in cold darkness forever. I know, because he sent me there as well. He must have underestimated me though, for somehow I managed to free myself. Your little human sweetheart won't be nearly strong enough on her own. She'll go mad within an hour."

Inuyasha continued to sneer at this, only growing angrier at Sesshomaru's latest comments. However, he began to lower his blade slightly, and kept glaring at the demon.

"I don't know what that thing is or where he came from." Sesshomaru continued. "But by now, you must realize what he wants. He's not content with merely hunting us anymore, Inuyasha. His pallet has expanded to include humans. But he's not satisfied with that either. He's killing animals, birds, fish… Soon he'll start sucking the lives from insects…then trees… He'll take the life out of everything in this land, all to add to his own power. In another few hours, he might very well turn this entire countryside into a wasteland, and the only thing that will be left will be a hellish legion of nothing but him. I'd say that's more than good enough cause to give me reason to be concerned."

Inuyasha growled in response. After that, he replaced Tetsusaiga and, after thinking about the potential consequences a moment, turned his back on Sesshomaru. "…Leave me alone if you're not planning on getting in my hair."

"Your human will die tonight." Sesshomaru darkly stated. "And all you will be able to do is bleed as you watch her die."

The dog demon hissed, and snapped his head to look over his shoulder. "If you're just here to piss me off, do me a favor for once and get lost. Better yet, go find one of those stupid guys and get yourself absorbed."

"I'm not here to make you angry, although that is an added bonus." Sesshomaru calmly responded. "I'm here to tell you that you'll be dead within seconds tonight if you try and challenge him. You're nowhere near his equivalent in power now."

"And since when do you care if I get myself killed?" Inuyasha hissed.

"You are mine to kill." Sesshomaru hissed back possessively. "But moreover, my interest is in killing that thing. And I take a look at my situation, unlike you, and deduce that I too have no chance of victory."

"Hmph." Inuyasha retorted, turning his head back in front of him. "So you want to go run and hide somewhere?"

"No." Sesshomaru simply answered. "Though I want to vomit at the thought of working next to something so filthy and nauseating…I want a truce."

Inuyasha froze at that. His annoyance cut off for a moment at the sound of that. Never before had he expected to hear those words come out of Sesshomaru's mouth. It sounded as if his half-brother was spitting them out practically, nearly choking himself to say it. Yet in the end, Inuyasha called a bluff. "Yeah right. I'm not as stupid as you think I am."

"I doubt that." Sesshomaru answered, making Inuyasha snarl again. "But this is no joke. If either of us go alone we will certainly die. I've already tasted his sting once and know I'm inadequate to defeat him. We are probably the last demon folk still running about in this country by now. Quite honestly, I'm stuck with you."

"Whatever. You'd sooner pair with Naraku than me." Inuyasha snapped back.

"In many ways, that might be true. Except I know your human half makes you weak. Where Naraku would double-cross me in the middle of our alliance, I know you picked up too much honesty from that ape mother of yours to act that way. I may be revolted at the sight of you, but I know I can trust you."

"If that was an attempt to flatter me, it failed miserably." Inuyasha growled. "Get lost. I'm not walking down the road alongside you, let alone fighting that human."

"Do try to use your feeble, half-human brain for a change, Hanyou." Sesshomaru answered. "Look at you. I can't tell where your bloodstains end and your rodent-hair begins on your komono. You're a pathetic mess. If you think for one second you can win on your own, you're more foolish than I thought."

"Pheh…" Inuyasha spat. "Knowing you, you're probably siding with Sanhou in order to kill me."

"I need no one's help to kill you." Sesshomaru shot back, almost sounding insulted. "And he's a larger threat to me than you at the moment. Rest assured…the moment he's dead, I'll kill you this very night. But before you die, I want to ensure that he is dead first. So yes, you are correct in not assuming that this is some attempt for me to acknowledge you as my kin. I can't even stand the smell of you. And you're correct in thinking that I shall attempt to kill you before tonight is over. But if you are willing, then I too am willing to stomach the mere sight of you until the thing is dead. What say you?"

Inuyasha bristled and held. He couldn't stand Sesshomaru even now. Even hearing him made him want to slice him into pieces. He still was as condescending as ever to him, and he was still insulting both Kagome as well as his mother. He knew he was a bastard and he wished for nothing more than to rip him to pieces the same day he became a full demon, proving who was the weaker of the two once and for all. However…he also knew enough to know Sesshomaru wasn't a fool. He wouldn't be stubborn like some of the other opponents he faced. He would use his brain, and in the past he did put their grudge aside momentarily. Of course, it was never for anything like this before. Never before had Inuyasha dreamed of suggesting this thing, let alone imagining Sesshomaru being the one doing it. He wondered if his old man had a hand in this somewhere…and was smiling on the whole thing…

Hmph…dream on, dad. It's never gonna happen.

…But I think Sesshomaru might be right for a change.

Inuyasha hated this probably as much if not more than Sesshomaru. He bore not even the slightest bit of unconditional love for him that blood could afford. To him, Sesshomaru was just another demon to get decapitated in his search for jewel shards, if not worse. He had his own vendettas against him. And yet…at the same time, the thought of losing Kagome dug at him… Much as he hated to feel it, he couldn't shake his connection with her. And he knew that Sesshomaru was right. She would die now, and he'd probably torture her in front of him just to make him mad for whatever sadistic reason ran through his head. If she did die…he didn't know what he would do. Not just in terms of finding the shards, but what he would do with the rest of his life. Anything after that, even becoming a full demon…seemed empty. Much as he hated her, much as she annoyed him…she was more than worth one night of a truce with his demented older brother.

…I can't believe I'm going to do this.

"…Fine. Just try and keep up with me."

---

Inuyasha felt as if he was passing into some strange section of hell right about now.

Wind whipped in the trees now. Terrible force tore at his clothes and at his hair as he walked down the dirt road, heading farther and farther into the mountainside town. He tried not to think of Sesshomaru slightly behind him, still irritated at him coming along. However, there was plenty for him to keep his eyes on as he walked down the road. Flaming braziers now were set up and lighting Inuyasha's way, leading him and Sesshomaru deep into the town and to the mountainside. Yet none of these held his attention. Only the landscape did…

Sanhous.

Nothing but an endless living sea of Sanhous.

There were thousands now…tens of thousands…millions, perhaps. Inuyasha couldn't possibly count them, for they stretched far beyond where the eye could see. On the mountain ahead, every branch in every tree had Sanhous perching on it. Every roof on every house had them lounging there. Every Cliffside had one of their snide faces leaning over it and smiling. They were literally everywhere, filling every place. They didn't attack at all, but some grinned, some laughed a bit, some sharpened their swords darkly before Inuyasha, and some waved at him mockingly. As the dog demon walked on, they only closed in behind him, moving in to cut off any escape. But there was no escape anymore. There was nowhere to run except into more Sanhous. This exceeded Inuyasha's worst fears by far. He couldn't see anything but their brown-haired heads poking over white shoulders everywhere. They moved and ebbed as if they were one monolithic juggernaut now. Already, to anyone else, it was hopeless. Assuming they wouldn't simply break into more copies of themselves when they were hit, it was impossible for Inuyasha to kill them all even with Sesshomaru's help. There was no way of victory.

However, Inuyasha and Sesshomaru walked on anyway. Shippo and the girl had been left behind, despite the fact of the danger that was evident. However, there was no less danger here, obviously. This place was even worse. At last, both of them reached the foot of the mountainside. It was there that Inuyasha froze and perked up his eyes and ears. Ahead of him, the Sanhous formed a semi-circle. But at the edge of that circle, being held on either shoulder on either side by two Sanhous, was Kagome. She looked panicked and frightened, but otherwise unhurt. If Inuyasha hadn't been so full of pride, even before his half-brother, he might have called out to her. But he merely clenched his teeth and fists and stood there.

Slowly, one single Sanhou stepped out of the crowd. He moved calmly and without fear, coming out into the center of the cul-de-sac of Sanhous. Inuyasha glared at him, seeing how calm and carefree he was, but also looked a bit above. Just above this rear area, there was a place in one cave that was still lit on the mountainside. It looked like some chamber had been made in the rock, and had banners hanging down from it. However, it was covered and no one could see inside it at the time, and so Inuyasha looked back down and focused on the new Sanhou.

This miko looked over them, a mad gleam in his eye and a wicked grin on his face. "Lord Inuyasha, you made it." He spoke with an air of pleasure. "And you've even brought big brother. So, I take it you two have found a common cause."

"Yeah." Inuyasha hissed back. "We both want to rip your heart to pieces and eat it."

Sanhou merely chuckled in response. "I was thinking more along the lines of you both preferred committing painful suicide to being my prey until I grew bored of you. By the way, Inuyasha…I have a little present for you."

With that, Sanhou reached behind him, and calmly pulled out a bundle of some fabric. After doing that, he nimbly tossed it forward, right at Inuyasha. The dog demon hesitated and watched it, saw it flap through the air for a few moments, before it collapsed right at his feet. He looked down…and immediately recognized it. Amazement filled his mind, and he grew a bit surprised at the idea. Normally, he would rejoice now…but it was hardly the time, or the executioner he wanted.

He was looking down on Naraku's baboon skin.

"My tribe is avenged." Sanhou beamed. "Naraku is no more than another tortured soul within Saphsaiga now. Oh, and by the way, they were sort of exaggerating when they said he was made of thousands of demons." He made a play laugh at that. "I only counted 1,894. They're all up over there." Here, he held a hand, and gestured to a part of the mountainside. Immediately, one large group of the Sanhous raised their hands and waved pleasantly down at the group below. "I think I'll call them Naraku's boys from now on." He suggested.

"Did you hurt Kagome!" Inuyasha demanded, cutting off Sanhou's boasts.

"Use your eyes, idiot." Sanhou answered. "She's unmarked."

"Run away, Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed out at him all of the sudden, desperately pleading and now straining against those who held her. "You can't kill him! Get out of here!"

To this, Sanhou crossed his arms and laughed coldly, his voice deep and sharp and biting to any and all who heard him. "Stop wasting your breath, stupid girl. He's too mad at me at this point to use his tiny brain to escape. Just like his flea-bitten brother next to him. Both of them and their foolish ideas of revenge are going to get them killed. Then again…I suppose it doesn't really matter. You both only had a few more hours of life on you before I tracked you down and finished you. I wanted only you, Inuyasha, but apparently the one spirit that was freed was you, Sesshomaru." He grinned here. "So now I get the joy of seeing this once-in-a-lifetime pair-up as well as beating you both to death."

Sesshomaru merely snorted a small laugh…but it wasn't at Sanhou. It was at Inuyasha. "I always knew you had a thing for that stinking bitch."

"Unless you want me to warm up on you, shove it." The dog demon coldly snapped back.

"Sesshomaru, you fool." Sanhou laughed back. "You should know better. I expected it from the foolish human, but not you. The only thing this Hanyou cares about is the shards regarding the girl. It's just a means to get power. Honestly, he cares more about killing you than keeping her affection."

"It doesn't matter." Sesshomaru answered. "If you're through wasting time talking, we'll-"

"You will listen to me talk as much as I damn well feel like talking, and there's nothing you can do to silence me." Sanhou coldly cut off. "You stupid imbeciles. Don't you realize the only reason you both aren't dead at my feet is because I'm entertaining myself with your lives? You still haven't realized that I'm your superior? You still haven't realized that you're talking to someone more than both mortal and demon now? I now rule not only over both human kind and your kind but over all life. By dawn tomorrow there won't be a spirit in Japan that isn't a part of me. I and I alone will be everything on this continent. But I'm not satisfied with that alone. Oh no… At first I wanted to save humanity from demons. Then I wanted to be their master and destructor. But now I see that my power can be much, much more. I can be everything and everyone. With each new spirit I absorb my spirit grows and my knowledge increases."

Sanhou turned and glared wickedly at Inuyasha. "Kagome has been kind enough to tell me about what kind of world she comes from."

Inuyasha's eyes expanded a bit.

"Oh yes." He went on slyly. "I absorbed the initial knowledge about the well from Kaede. But Miroku and Sango added to it considerably." Here, he gestured behind him again. This time, it was back against the rows. Two of the Sanhous stepped out, both smiling. They stood there a moment, then suddenly began to act out what appeared to be a stupid play. One of them turned, and to Inuyasha's disgust…the other one grabbed his ass.

"Oh Sango! I'm such a nervous twit about you that I'll do stupid perverted stuff to you!" One spoke in a mockery of Miroku, before slapping the other on the ass.

"Oh, you nasty Miroku!" The other said in a falsetto tone. "I'll still think you're charming but I'm so insecure I'll just blather like a retard!" He then slapped the other across the face.

The crowd of Sanhous immediately began to laugh darkly at this little skit, thinking it was hilarious. All Inuyasha felt was disgusted, while Kagome felt both disturbed and disgusted. The lead Sanhou turned back to Inuyasha at that.

"Yes, Sango, Miroku, Kohaku, and even Naraku's life get to live together now, as a part of me. All people get to be a part of me, a part of an ever-growing, ever-wiser, ever more powerful being. But I digress. Yes…I know where Kagome comes from. I know that there is a place called China in that world…with nearly two billion more people waiting to become my members. Another, called India, has a billion more people to become Sanhou. Not to mention trees…air…grass…the wind…as I continue to grow, as I continue to obtain shards, Saphsaiga grows stronger and stronger as well. It will soon be able to drain the life from the world itself. And all the time, it will make more and more…and more…and more…of me. There is no limit to how powerful I can become now…to how much I can control and dominate…to how much I can know about everyone. Lies…secrets…valuables…fighting techniques…observations… I know more about you two than you'll ever know about yourselves. And I'll only continue to learn more and more from now on. Already, I've transcended any possible way I could ever be beaten. I'm invincible in every way. But now, my power is just going to continue to grow, transcending god-like to become something beyond mankind's dreams of what godhood can be.

"In fact, trying to fight both of you head on frankly isn't a challenge anymore. Absorbing you is rather boring. Therefore, I'm going to try an alternative. You two will have the privilege of being the last two on this world or any world who will ever die naturally. From now on, no one will ever die again…they will merely become a part of me. But you two…I will test the full limit of my current strength against you two. I won't even bother using Saphsaiga, and I trust neither of you will use your swords. No…this is going to be a traditional demon battle. I'm going to rip you all to pieces just as you both enjoy ripping humans to pieces. It's the only fitting death for your kind. What more, I'm not even going to call in anyone else. I've divided myself again to my limit, so you may injure me all you can and I will not be able to reproduce. As for the rest of them, they're just here to enjoy the fun." He snickered a moment after that. "You have no idea how many lots we had to cast before we finally selected me to be the one who kills you."

Inuyasha could hardly believe what he was looking at. He had never seen a human so insane and wicked before in his life. Hate and evil seemed to drip off of his body now. A madness burned in his eyes, almost seeming to hold him and drive him onward. Even Sanhou's words no longer sounded like his own…but almost like that of another demon as well. Could a man have changed so much? Had all those memories flowing into his head turned him demented? For some reason, as he searched for answers to those questions, his head turned his attention to the small covered area overhead.

"…Seems as if not all of you are willing to be spectators in this sport." He spoke up, gesturing to it.

Sanhou, and all of his copies, turned and looked up to the place in question. They soon saw it, and then calmly turned back to Inuyasha. "That is where our original copy is kept. All of us issued from him. He alone looks different from the rest of us. He alone bears the Shikkon shards inside him, and the power is transferred to the rest of them."

Inuyasha saw a possibility in this. "Well, seeing as he's the original, why don't I just fight him instead? Don't you think it's his privilege to be the one who enjoys this fight to the death?"

Sanhou looked puzzled at this. "Why does it mat-" However, he caught himself, and thought a moment. Then, he suddenly smiled. "Oh, I get it." He spoke with a smile. "You think you can reclaim the shards from him during the fight, eh? Forget it. The shards turned his skin hard as a rock's. Or perhaps you think by simply killing him you can kill us all? Sorry. Not only will you not be able to kill him, not only would you still be unable to claim the shards if you did kill him, we would all still remain and our powers would be unchanged."

Inuyasha stiffened at that, a cold sweat running down his spine. Sesshomaru wouldn't show it, but he thought much the same. Sanhou laughed at them both evilly. "So you get it, boys? I'm not giving you a chance to stop me. I'm just playing with you until I kill you. You wandered right into a deathtrap. There is no possible way for you to win."

The two didn't answer right away. Inuyasha looked around again, seeing all of the malicious little stares from the multitude all staring at him with one hive murderous mind. Then he looked back to Kagome, seeing nothing but fear for him in her own expression. She didn't even have to say anything. Her look continued to plead to him to run. At last, he turned back to Sanhou. "Hmph…you think you're so in control of the situation that you can't even make yourself grant a last request? You sound to me like you're scared."

Sanhou's smile turned to a frown at that, and the rest of the copies soon spread the same look. There was a moment of silence as Inuyasha and Sesshomaru stared him down. But at last, a voice…much deeper and…animal-sounding…than Sanhou called up from overhead.

"Alright…why not? You can have your pitiful last request."

The half brothers looked up, and were just in time to see the curtain brushed to one side. Moments later, a huge hulk of a body lunged out from the opening, leapt off of the rock face, sailed through the night sky for a moment, and then finally touched down right in front of the two, in between them and the Sanhou they had been talking too. That Sanhou backed up a bit in response to allow him to land, and then continued to back up into the crowd of the others. As for the new arrival, he landed in a squat, but quickly drew himself up to his full height and looked down on the other two. Inuyasha reacted in a bit of surprise. Sesshomaru, emotionless as always, nevertheless looked up and stared at him.

Sanhou was right about one thing. His body did look different. It stood a good seven feet tall…perhaps eight. It was wide and ripped, pulsing with muscle. The external white shirt had long since ripped, and the red pants were barely hanging onto rags on his massive calves. His hair had changed…receeding a bit and now a bright brown color. His nails and teeth were sharp, almost like claws. His eyes were red and pulsing with violence and bloodlust. He had grown sideburns besides his age, and they had come down to the sides of his head. Coupled with his voice, he didn't even look like the same person anymore. In fact…he was starting to look like a youkai himself…

The monstrous Sanhou turned his neck slowly, cracking it. He held up his knuckles and cracked them as well. "Here I am." He flatly stated in his deep voice. After doing so, he undid his own Saphsaiga from around his waist, scabbard and all, and held it to his side. But he didn't drop it. First, he called out to the others. "Now, are we ready to begin?"

Inuyasha and Sesshomaru paused a moment. But then, the full youkai reached down to his own side and undid both of his swords. He held them to the side and dropped them to the ground readily. Inuyasha saw this and paused, but then finally grudgingly undid his own weapon and dropped it to the ground. Sanhou flashed his sharp teeth, and then dropped his own weapon.

"No, Inuyasha! He'll kill you!" Kagome pleaded.

"…We're dead if we don't fight, human." Sesshomaru uttered under his breath, and then slid into a ready position, brandishing his claws. Inuyasha did the same, trying to remember what the best hand-to-hand techniques were after wielding a sword for so long. The monster himself merely crossed his arms and grinned. A pause of silence went by, as the other Sanhous straightened themselves and prepared to enjoy the fight. But then, the two youkai took off together for the monster as one.

In an instant, they were on him. Sanhou uncrossed his massive arms just as they arrived, but he was still too slow for both of them to put all of their strength into smashing their palms into his face. The monster, however, merely snapped his head back an inch, and then bounced back and swiped his fist at them. They both quickly ducked under it, and Sesshomaru shot forward and pounded his fists into Sanhou's stomach. As for Inuyasha, he sprung back up and gave the thing an uppercut to its face, but other than make its head go up slightly it didn't react. It swung its own fist down at Inuyasha next, who quickly sprung back out of the way. Sesshomaru also jumped up and back, and then came forward to give a raking claw against the thing's face, snapping it one way. Inuyasha quickly came in and did the same, only snapping his head back the way it came. Sanhou answered by lashing out to punch Sesshomaru in the face, but he quickly dipped his head to one side and seized the fist. Holding it up in its position, he ducked under and drove his own fist forward into Sanhou's kidney. To cause more pain, Inuyasha raised his leg in the air and twisted around to shove his heel into the same spot. Such a move would have made anything else double over in stunned pain. But Sanhou merely swung the arm that Sesshomaru was holding onto to the side, ripping the full demon off his feet and smashing him into his brother with such force that both of them were flung away from the monstrous creature and flew back twenty feet before landing on the ground. Even then, they slid a few additional feet before grinding to a halt.

However, both were reasonably unhurt from the blow, and both quickly snapped back up to their feet. Inuyasha dashed forward, snarling all the way, to attack again. Sanhou braced himself, and just as Inuyasha seemed in range, he swung his fist down to pound him into the ground. Luckily, however, Inuyasha stopped just in front of his target point, and after Sanhou had swung forward and punched the ground, Inuyasha leapt up and drove his knee into the face of the creature. It was raised back up a bit, enough to expose its chest, and Sesshomaru quickly rushed back in and cross slashed with his claws, cutting a large gash across the thing's chest. But unfortunately, the cuts only went skin deep. The thing quickly recovered, and took another swipe at Sesshomaru. He managed to dodge back, and Inuyasha used the opening to come in and punch the thing across the face. It snorted, and responded by swiping back up with a backhand to try and catch the Hanyou. Inuyasha managed to dodge by bending back sharply, almost turning his body into an arch, Again, he was left open, and Sesshomaru came in to give him another chain of blows to the side that he hoped was weakening. The thing again lashed out at him, but missed again as Sesshomaru ducked. Abruptly, both he and his brother snapped back to the thing, and both turned their claws into iron palms to hit the thing under the chin together. But despite the blow being so loud that even Kagome heard it, the thing was stunned only for a moment. It promptly lashed its fist out again, and this time Sesshomaru, expecting it to be stunned, was caught off guard. The blow smashed him in the face, and sent him flying thirty feet before smashing down to the ground. Inuyasha snarled and lashed out both of his fists to box the ears of the creature, but the normally painful move didn't even stun it, and it swirled its own body around and brought up its own massive foot for a roundhouse kick, which caught Inuyasha in the stomach and flung him away an even farther distance than Sesshomaru.

Both landed with a heavy thud and slid across the ground. Both also shook their heads, and quickly coughed and got back to their feet. But as Inuyasha coughed, he noticed a splat of blood came out of his mouth and landed on the ground. One blow…and he was already bleeding internally. He also felt a bit rubbery from that strike, and it continued to radiate through him as he rose to his feet. He looked over to his brother, only to see him already up, but also spitting a wad of blood to the side. As for Sanhou, he calmly returned to his previous position, crossed his arms, and grinned.

Snarling, both youkai shot forward again. This time, Sesshomaru was first and shot straight for the creature. It uncrossed its arms sooner this time, and shot out a jab to meet him as he approached. However, Sesshomaru raised his own hands to seize the fist, and then used his momentum to flip himself up and over the beast and land behind him. In the meantime, the moment Sesshomaru was clear, Inuyasha appeared in Sanhou's view and shot straight for the thing. With tremendous power, Inuyasha drove his head forward and smashed it into Sanhou's face. Yet the monster didn't so much as shift weight, and not a single drop of blood resulted. The thing didn't have time to gloat, however, as Sesshomaru, now behind it, brought down both hands to chop either side of the thing's neck. It didn't react in pain, but hissed in anger, and quickly swirled around and aimed another backhand at Sesshomaru. The full demon quickly ducked, and then drove his own fist forward into what he believed was the solar plexus. At the same time, Inuyasha drove his own fist forward into the thing's side. Snarling, Sanhou turned around again, aiming another backhand for Inuyasha's face. But the hanyou ducked, and then sprung back up to give two jabs to the thing's own face. Sesshomaru lunged forward and struggled to drive his own claws deep into the thing's back for another cross slash, but again he only got a light dermal cut. Annoyed, Sanhou first shoved his face forward to drive his forehead into Inuyasha's own skull, letting out a sickening crack and sending the Hanyou flying back. Then as it felt Sesshomaru continuing to beat him in the side, it swirled around like lightning and drove its palm forward into his chest. The impact immediately shattered Sesshomaru's chestplate, and then sent the full demon flying away again from the impact.

Inuyasha shook his head…hoping he was just imagining the feeling of something loose inside, and sprung back to his feet. Immediately, he felt dizzy and sick. He hadn't recovered from the last blow either. But he wasn't finished yet. His rage was only being fueled. And as long as it continued, he'd make his body go with it. Quickly, he dashed forward to attack again.

The thing again tried to lash out to hit him, but speed once still on the hanyou's side. He smacked that hand away with one of his own, and then slashed up with his own claws into the creature's face. The thing shook its head, but then swung its other fist at the hanyou. Quickly, Inuyasha ducked down, and then raised his own foot to hit the creature twice in the stomach and once in the head with kicks. He had to roll back a moment later, as Sanhou came forward and brought his foot down to crush the hanyou. But at that point, Sesshomaru had recovered. The full demon came in behind Sanhou with a leap in the air, and bringing it down he smashed his hand into the base of the neck of the creature. It would have snapped the neck of the mightiest demon…and yet Sanhou only made a slight gesture of discomfort. As for Inuyasha, he used the pause to roll back forward and spring up, giving the thing another uppercut with one hand, and then giving him another with his other hand. As he did, Sesshomaru began to try and dig into the thing's back with his talons, but met with little success. Finally, Inuyasha drove his hands forward in a series of blows again into the thing's solar plexus. At this, Sanhou had taken enough. Abruptly, he brought both of his hands up, formed one fist with them, and then brought them down on Inuyasha's back. A sound like thunder went out, and the hanyou collapsed to the ground. With that, the creature merely kicked him away. Then, it focused on the annoyance behind it. In a flash, it snapped around with both hands out, going faster this time. Either back hand struck against Sesshomaru's face, one after another, wrenching his head painfully to one side. He was stunned by the power of the blow, and so Sanhou righted himself, and then drove his fist into his stomach before palming him in the face. This time, when Sesshomaru went flying, he shot through the air and all the way to the crowd surrounding them before landing.

Inuyasha's body was now aching through and through. He felt very dizzy, and pain radiated from everywhere he had been hit. It was a miracle his bones weren't broken yet. He found it hard to focus, but moreover he realized he couldn't sustain this level of fighting much longer. He was struggling to make every hit count against the thing, and they hadn't even made him take a step backward yet. If Inuyasha wasn't always blinded with anger and rage…he might have started to fear the futility of this.

Sanhou merely crossed his arms and smiled down at his adversary. "Oh come now…tell me you've got more than that. I wouldn't have bothered fighting if that small bit would kill you. Your blows are starting to weaken, however. I might not get much more fun out of you two…"

Sanhou trailed off, and Inuyasha looked up, as they heard something. It was a monstrous, deep throated growl. It sounded as ferocious and loud as thunder itself. The creature looked confused at this, but seemed to hear where it was coming from. Slowly, he turned around, and saw what the others were seeing. Sesshomaru had changed. Now, instead of the humanoid, a monstrous, pale-haired, demon dog was standing behind him on three legs. Its jaws dripped acidic drool. Its red eyes blazed ravenously. Its forked tail flashed about, striking up earth with each strike. Its claws, big as swords, extended from itself.

Sanhou merely smiled. "Bad dog."

The monstrous dog roared a sound that seemed like the earth itself was breaking open. Then, it shot toward its opponent, raising up its one good leg to strike at him. Yet as it brought it down, the huge creature did something unexpected. He reached out and seized it. Despite Sesshomaru's animal rage…the monster seemed confused at this. But that was nothing compared to a moment later, as Sanhou tightened his muscles, focused, and threw the entire demon canine over his shoulder and to the ground, smashing him so hard into it that the ground fractured and cracked beneath him.

The monster snarled angrily, and quickly got back on its three feet. Moments later, it shot its head forward, snapping angrily at the humanoid. Sanhou merely smiled and jumped back. It darted forward and snapped again and again, but the hulkish brute, despite his size, had speed to match, and kept moving back. Finally, as Sesshomaru darted inward, Sanhou threw himself onto his back on the ground, and then shot both legs up for a dual kick underneath the thing's jaw. The monster's mouth was slammed shut, and three teeth flew out, along with splurts of blood, from the sheer power of it. Stunned, the huge dog staggered back.

Sanhou merely grinned and gave a cry, then shot inward and punched Sesshomaru's other foreleg with all the strength he could muster. It was a vulnerable point…and soon the huge monster's leg gave a mighty snap as it was fractured. Despite its hideous and frightening appearance, the monster gave a rather pathetic-sounding whine as its huge body fell forward, bending the broken leg horribly. Yet even down, it struggled to turn its head around and snap again at Sanhou. The former miko simply leapt back, and then shot its fist forward again to smash into Sesshomaru's face so hard that the entire demon flipped over and onto its back. That done, Sanhou quickly squatted and leapt into the air. He twisted himself around in mid-air, put both fists below him, and moments later came crashing down right into Sesshomaru's own lower rib cage. Two massive snaps were heard, and the creature blasted out a gurgle as blood erupted from its mouth.

With that, the huge dog began to shrink. The hair began to fall out around it, save for the head. The red glare in its eyes dulled down to a yellow. Its appendages bend the other way around the elbow and lowered. The tail swept itself around over Sesshomaru's shoulder, and then shrank and became more controlled as it turned into what appeared to be clothing. More clothing went over his body as he shrank, and his huge bleeding mouth shrank and pressed itself against his face. Within moments, he was back to his human form, but could only groan and lay pathetically against the ground.

Sanhou readily walked up to his fallen victim. He stood right below him, and gazed down for a moment with a smile. Then, he spoke.

"Here's how you break a wild dog…"

With that, he shot out one of his huge feet and brought it down on Sesshomaru's knee. Immediately, a monstrous snap came out as it was broken. He quickly turned to the other knee and did the same, making the youkai stiffen in agony. Even if he was still conscious at this point, the trauma would soon drive him into shock. However, it didn't seem to please Sanhou to finish his helpless victim, and instead he turned and began to look behind him.

"One down, one to go…"

He trailed off just as Inuyasha came forward and punched him across the face, making his head snap slightly. He quickly gave him more blows across the face, putting all his strength and ferocity into it. But all he got was Sanhou turning his head to one side and the other. He grit his teeth in rage, hopped back, and then shot back forward to slash furiously across the monster's chest. However, Sanhou cut him off by simply driving his fist forward into Inuyasha's own throat. Soon, the hanyou's airway was closed off, and he collapsed to the ground and began to gag for air. To add to it, Sanhou drove his knee up and smashed him in the face. Again, Inuyasha went flying backward, and tumbled to the ground a few moments later.

Inuyasha paused for a moment before pushing himself back up. One of his fangs was loose, and his mouth was filled with the coppery taste of blood. His muscles were tiring. His body ached all over. A massive lump was forming on his forehead, and blood was oozing down from it to cloud his vision. Yet somehow, he was able to get on all fours, and look up to see a blurry version of Sanhou, walking slowly toward him.

"You understand yet, Inuyasha?" He asked him in a sinister undertone. "Is your body telling you it yet? Are your muscles starting to break down? The blood starting to effect your senses? Can you feel yourself dying yet? I've felt death many, many times, Inuyasha…only I've only grown stronger by enduring it. I'm afraid you'll only get to feel it once. This is one of the reasons I wanted to fight you last, Inuyasha. I knew you wouldn't disappoint me. And I knew your anger and savagery would keep driving you after I've broken every bone in your body. Now keep coming. Show your quality."

Inuyasha's mind began to swim with anger. His rage began to bubble up at this latest mockery. It made his pain more bearable, and fueled his muscles with new strength. He seethed and breathed in and out a few times, summoning more strength to him. He tightened his muscles and spat out what blood was in his mouth. After that, he quickly shot back to his feet, and brandished his claws.

"I hate to break it to you…" The hanyou snarled. "But you're about to feel death one more time."

Sanhou merely snorted in reply, and readied himself for the attack. However, Inuyasha was on him with blinding speed, lunging at him and putting all his strength and ferocity into a jab right into Sanhou's face. At long last, the blow struck good, snapping Sanhou's head back and making him stagger back a step. Inuyasha didn't let up, but quickly began to pound him in the stomach again, giving so much strength that Sanhou actually exhaled a bit with each blow. The thing sneered, however, and tried to swing at him again. Inuyasha merely darted to one side, and drove his fist hard into his kidney. The monster actually gave out a cry of pain at that, and swept his backhand around to hit him. But Inuyasha ducked again, and then shot up to give him another uppercut to the face, making him stagger back another step. Using that new distance, Inuyasha brought up his leg, grabbed both of Sanhou's shoulders, and then drove his knee repeatedly into his stomach. He quickly snapped back after that, and brought his clawed foot up to Sanhou's face underneath his nose as hard as he could, hoping to break it off and shove it into his skull. He didn't, but the attack still drove his opponent into more pain.

Furious now, Sanhou shot out an arm and grabbed Inuyasha by the neck with his huge, meaty hand. He picked him up off the ground, but the hanyou wasn't done. He lashed out violently with his foot again, driving it forth to smash it into Sanhou's face again and again. The power was so strong this time that at long last, after the third strike, a trickle of blood actually came out of the thing's nose.

This pushed the monster over the edge. Immediately, it lashed out with its other fist and smashed Inuyasha in the side. Two more ribs snapped as the thing connected, and Inuyasha's fierce face turned to agony as he gagged up blood. However, he couldn't gag long…for Sanhou closed his fist and crushed his throat, cutting off his air and the blood to his brain. The hanyou was soon struggling to stay conscious. Sanhou, face full of rage, drove his head forward and smashed it not once…twice…three times…four times…but five times into Inuyasha's face, until his own nose was broken, gushing blood, and two more of his teeth were knocked out. He then reached over and seized Inuyasha with his other hand, making sure to tear into his kimono and drive his talons deep into Inuyasha's flesh, and then flung the hanyou as hard as he could into the air. Soon, Inuyasha was flying into the sky, but could do nothing. Blood was just returning to his brain, and he was so dazzled and stunned that he couldn't move. Sanhou, meanwhile, crouched and then leapt into the air. With his new power, he quickly outstripped his foe and sailed high above him in the sky. He brought his hands together again…and again brought them behind his head as he waited for Inuyasha's body to reach him… Then, as it did, he brought both down and smashed both into Inuyasha's body, bending him back the other way and sending him flying back down to the ground like a bolt of lightning.

But Sanhou wasn't done. He soon was falling after the hanyou, and he quickly twisted around so to make sure that both of his knees landed first. Moments later, Inuyasha's form smashed into the ground so hard that an eruption of dirt and rock went around him…but only for a moment before Sanhou brought his own knees down on top of his fallen form, shaking the earth itself and causing an even larger eruption of dirt and rock to result.

Kagome's eyes were filled with tears, and she gripped her mouth in horror at what had happened. The other Sanhous merely looked on in devilish delight. The dust slowly cleared in the middle of the field, and no one said a word. As it began to die down, however, the monstrous Sanhou calmly walked out from it and stood to one side. He turned and looked down into the wreckage as well. As the smoke cleared, it revealed a shallow crater had been made in the ground, just big enough to fit its one occupant…Inuyasha. His clothing was torn and ragged now. His body was bruised and blood-stained. He was still twisted in a painful position. But he lay there…and did not move.

Then, after a moment, somehow…he managed to stretch out his quivering hand and put it in a position to push himself up. He began to do so with his other hand next.

"Look at you." Sanhou spoke in a tired, casual way. "Look at yourself. You're a mess. You're a mass of blood and broken bones. Yet still you're trying to get up to kill me. Even at this point Naraku tried to trick me." Pause. "Why are you getting up? Why don't you just lay there? Lay there until you die?"

"Shut…up…" Inuyasha managed to choke as he put his other hand underneath him, and began to push.

"Just stay down. Just lay there. Just die." Sanhou went on. "You can't get the shards. It's not worth this pain to try for them."

"I said…shut-up…" Inuyasha hissed as he pushed himself off the ground, and began to bring his legs underneath him.

"You damned imbecile." Sanhou hissed. "Your stupid obsession with these shards is costing you your life. Even there, as you lay there dying as you speak to me, you won't give them up." A pause for a moment. "You're not trying to tell me you're here for her, are you?"

Inuyasha snarled and kept standing. "All I'm telling you is that you're dead."

Sanhou snorted. "Are you so desperate for them? Do you want them so badly? Do you think they'll give you the power to beat me? Nothing can beat me, fool. Certainly not some conceited, selfish dog like you. Look at yourself. Awash in your own rage and blood, and still your stupid greed and lust after these shards keeps you going. And is that all? Is that all that's making you fight?"

"Shut-up…about things…you don't understand!" Inuyasha gagged as he put his legs underneath him.

"You're a fool." Sanhou stated. "Don't you have anything better than that? Don't you have any decent reason or excuse? All of those demons and people who challenged me had some decent reason to fight, and yet you, filthy little thing…all you care about it your own greed and power. Some damned obsession of yours it what brings you to me. Some stinking obsession is what gets you up."

With that, Sanhou turned his head to the sky, so that Kagome could hear behind him. "You understand, stupid child? You understand what this thing is at my feet? He doesn't care for you or his so-called friends. He wants the shards. That's all. And you…insipid little wretch…you actually loved him for this, didn't you? He's as greedy and foolish as the rest of his race. He's as foul and heartless and cold as any of them. He came for his shards and not for you! His obsession is what drives him and no love for you!" The monster turned and glared at the standing Inuyasha.

"Go ahead, Hanyou! Say it, if I'm lying! Spit it out! I'll even kill you quickly if you do! If you have any so-called care in your rotten heart for this girl then profess it now! You won't get another chance! You're a heartless killing machine, Inuyasha! You're a monster! A beast! An unbroken creature waiting to be bent under an intelligent master! You and the rest of your kind! What's there to understand about you? The only thing that needs to be understood is that you care only for yourself and your own power, just like the rest of your worthless, pitiless, unloving, greedy race! You're below the common dog! And you think that I would ever let you have these shards just to fulfill your own close-minded desires for power? You think you could just take them from me foaming at the mouth like an idiot? You think I would bend to such a lowly, narrow, selfish vision? I can use these shards for more than you ever dreamed. I actually have a purpose. What do you have? Your own selfish desire? Do you even care about anything else besides that? Do you even care if I have the world if you get the shards? Do you care that your friends are gone? Do you care if I spill that girl's blood? Do you love anything else besides yourself? Do you even have the capacity for it, you brainless beast? Or are you a shallow excuse for a creature, just like I always thought you were? Would you just lay down and die if I didn't have the shards!"

Inuyasha's face tightened into rage. Now on his feet, he flashed around angrily and screamed in fury. "I said shut up!"

Inuyasha punched out again and smashed Sanhou across the face. He snapped his head back and made him stagger. He did so again, making him go back again after that. But as he tried to punch again, Sanhou held out a hand and blocked it…and then drove his fist forward into Inuyasha's gut. Immediately, all the air went rushing out of Inuyasha's lungs, and his vision blackened. He began to wobble and wave, but he didn't get far. Abruptly, Sanhou's hands came out and grabbed him around the throat, squeezing and throttling him again.

Inuyasha, despite the lack of air, quickly snapped to his senses. He reached up and seized the fists and tried to pry them off. But it was no use. Soon after, however, Sanhou grinned evilly, and then began to push forward, bending Inuyasha down as he did so. He continued to push and choke the hanyou, pushing him back and back until he couldn't bend anymore. Inuyasha gasped, and planted his own feet, struggling to push himself back. But Sanhou was too strong…too big… Soon, he felt his spine begin to bend as the monster continued to bend him back.

"What will come first, Inuyasha?" The thing hissed. "Will you last long enough to suffocate…or will I fold you in half?"

---

You idiot…why didn't you say anything?

Why can't you say it? Why can't you ever say it?

Do you even feel that way? Is Sanhou telling the truth? If he's not, why can't you just say it for once?

Kagome was angry again. The cut in her face hurt, and she was frustrated at the Hanyou. But despite it all…her heart filled with pain and fear. Inuyasha was being beaten to death now. He couldn't fight back at all. The hulking version of Sanhou was pounding him into nothing. If Sesshomaru was conscious, he might have helped, but right now the demon looked dead. Everything was dead. For all Kagome knew, she and Inuyasha might be the only living ones in all of Japan. She had filled with anger and distress at seeing Sanhou's grotesque play, and looking around told her that a lot of people were dead. Why had he done this? He had almost seemed human earlier, but he had reverted into a monster. What was he doing?

"Stop it! Please!"

Kagome's words fell on deaf ears. None of the Sanhous would hear her. They merely continued to stare at the sight with ravenous delight. Kagome was behind a row of them, and powerless to get through. She tried leaping forward and breaking past them, but it was useless. They wouldn't let her pass. They held her back as if they were a stone wall. She was helpless to do anything…except watch Inuyasha be tortured to death.

Her eyes continued to brim with tears. She had to do something…anything…anything to save his life. But she was helpless. She couldn't get past the Sanhous. And she had no weapons. All she could do was scream for him to hold on. But that wasn't helping. He was dying right now in front of her…and she could do nothing to save him. She could only watch him die…

Please God…help me to think of something…don't let him die!

As if in response to her desperate plea, Kagome suddenly felt something under her feet. The ground seemed to be swelling beneath it. Despite her desperation and fear, she formed a look of puzzlement at this. She looked down to the ground and stepped back a bit. As she did, she saw the ground swell beneath her, and suddenly crack open. An overly large mole suddenly popped out of the ground, holding two arrows in its teeth. However, the mole had a familiar look to it…and it was confirmed a moment later as the mole suddenly erupted into a puff of smoke. When it cleared, it revealed a tiny little fox spirit. Kagome recognized it instantly.

It was Shippo.

Quickly, Kagome looked up and to the sides. Miraculously, the Sanhous were all looking to the battle. They were so fixated and confident, not one of them saw what had happened. They didn't know he was there. Quickly, Kagome looked back down. Shippo's face was creased with worry and tension, and he looked ready to be inquisitive. Quickly, Kagome reached a finger to her lips and shushed him.

Shippo responded by looking to either side. Seeing that Sanhous were everywhere…he quickly turned a shade pale, but covered his mouth with his hands.

Kagome looked down to him, and back up to Inuyasha. She looked down again, and tried to think. Shippo was here, and as luck would have it…he had arrows. Immediately, a thought occurred to Kagome. Earlier, her miko arrow had permanently killed one of the Sanhous, releasing the spirit trapped within. She had no idea if this would work…but maybe….if she shot the original one with one…it would release the others. She didn't know for sure if it would do any good. But at any rate, it would free Inuyasha, and save his life if only for a few moments. Really, there was nothing else she could do.

Immediately, Kagome looked back down, and as secretly as possible she mouthed a phrase to Shippo. Change into a bow.

The fox spirit looked confused for a moment, but then suddenly opened his eyes wider, understanding. He gave a nod, and immediately vanished into a puff of smoke. Moments later, a large, oddly shaped bow with a familiar face resulted. Kagome looked up and to the sides for a moment, making sure no Sanhou was looking at her. She knew she had to be quick. There was only limited time to get an arrow, knock it, and fire it. The glow would no doubt get attention too… But there was no helping it. She made her move.

Kagome shot to the ground and quickly scooped up Shippo and an arrow. As she rose, she quickly righted them in her position and knocked and arrow. By the time she was standing, the bow was already ready and the arrow in it. She quickly pulled back, and while doing so turned and aimed for the monster Sanhou, still bending Inuyasha over. Immediately, the tip of the arrow began to glow a light blue as the power of her aura went into it. She wasted no more time after that. Immediately, she fired.

The arrow shot from her bow like a ray from heaven, trailing a magnificent blue line behind it. The shot was straight and true. It shot right for the head of the creature. It continued to glow with more power, and the trail behind it became like a bolt, pushing it faster and faster as it went on. It began to cut through the air and leave a sound of burning energy as it drew closer and closer to its target… Sanhou never looked up. His head stayed down even as the glow began to envelop him…as the arrow sailed nearer and nearer to its target…only three feet from his head…

Then, without ever looking up, Sanhou removed a hand from Inuyasha's neck, shot it up, and seized the shaft of the arrow, stopping it immediately.

Kagome's eyes widened in horror, and her mouth dropped in fear, as she stared at the impossible.

Sanhou continued to glare at Inuyasha as a smile spread across his face. Inuyasha, on his part, was struggling to breathe. However, he merely snorted at him, and released him, letting him drop into a gasping, agonized pile against the ground. With that, he tightened his fist, and immediately snapped the arrow in two. As he did, the blue arrowhead faded and vanished, and the weapon became a regular arrow again. Then, in a flash, he snapped his head around and glared at Kagome. He held up a finger and waved it in a "tsking" motion, before turning around and beginning to walk to her.

The other Sanhous turned and glared at Kagome now, and they too began to wickedly smile. Kagome panicked. She began to tremble and started to step backward, as the huge beast began to come near her. But then, somehow, she got ahold of herself. She quickly bent down and scooped up the arrow…but in her nervousness she soon dropped it. The creature had closed half the distance by now. Quickly, shaking and sweating, Kagome picked up the arrow again, and this time raised it to her bow. Her fingers fumbled madly with it, struggling to knock it. The monster only had a quarter distance to go by now, and was closing fast. Finally, she managed to knock it, and quickly pulled back. The thing was nearly on top of her. The Sanhous in front of her parted to let him come forth. At last, she aimed for his head, and released.

In a point blank motion, the arrow immediately charged itself blue and became a massive bolt of energy once again. It shot forward like a thunderbolt straight for its target…just as Sanhou came in range of Kagome. However, never losing his smile…he merely turned his head to one side and let the arrow shoot harmlessly past his head.

Kagome's skin turned white. Her pupils shrank, as her legs and arms turned to water. Her stomach turned and her heart froze. The arrow missed its intended target entirely, the deadly bolt shooting straight past it. However, other Sanhous looked up in surprise as the bolt shot right for them. Moments later, the huge blast cut right through a line of them, blazing right through their bodies, ignoring buildings or rocks or anything else so that it could shoot right into them and go off into the horizon. As it did, a hundred Sanhous could only look in shock as they were enveloped in the blast and immediately vaporized. In an instant, each one of their bodies was blown into nothingness, and they and their swords vanished. In response, a trail of blue lights, freed spirits, floated up from the damage and into the air, and then scattered in all directions.

Kagome didn't notice…but all of the other Sanhous except for the monster seemed to wince for a moment and shake their heads…as if something confused them…before returning to their malicious selves.

What she did notice was Sanhou swiping his hand out and smacking the Shippo bow out of her hand. Immediately, he shot his hand forward again and seized the entire forearm of the girl, for the hand easily encompassed it. He immediately clenched it like a vise, and Kagome gave a cry of pain.

"Still trying to save your dog…" Sanhou spat at her. "I warned you not to shoot at me again. Now, I'll just have to make sure you don't."

With that, Sanhou clenched his fist tight. Kagome immediately felt a bit of resistance in her arm…but then felt breaking in five different places. She felt sharp shards come out and pierce her muscles and flesh on the inside…right before mind-numbing pain flowed through her mind. Kagome immediately snapped her head back and screamed in agony. The pain was too unbearable, and she immediately fell to her knees. Blood began to ooze out from Sanhou's fist, as he grinned in glee at what he had done to her, watching her collapse and writhe…

"You son of a bitch…"

Moments later, Sanhou's head snapped up in surprise…and then turned into a look of pain, as he felt talons dig into his shoulder. Inuyasha was on his feet again, bloody…bruised…swollen…and enraged. More rage than ever pumped through him. His eyes flashed on and off to a red color. But now, he dug his fingers into the shoulder of Sanhou, drawing blood from deep wounds…and then with a tremendous effort flung the creature over and behind him and back into the battleground. The shock was so much that he released Kagome, letting the girl fall to the ground…quivering and struggling not to go into shock herself from the pain. As for Sanhou, he smashed into the ground a moment later, and slid a bit himself.

The thing grunted, but then immediately snapped back to its feet. It looked up and glared at Inuyasha, just as the hanyou drove his own fist deep into his throat. Immediately, the creature gagged and spat out blood, before Inuyasha laid into him. He smashed his fists into the thing's face, snapping his head violently one way to the other as he did so, pushing him back as well. Blood flew away from each hit, and on the last one a bloody tooth shot out of his mouth. Inuyasha then dug his nails into his shoulders again and drove his head forward again and again, smashing it again and again into Sanhou's skull, causing more blood to fly up and another tooth to be smashed in. After that, Inuyasha leapt back and drove his talons deep into and up Sanhou's side, digging in with each strike, before bashing him in the side as hard as he could. He did not stop, each one of his blows getting stronger and stronger, until he finally heard a crack of one of Sanhou's own ribs. Then, he put both of his hands together, swung them up, and gave Sanhou a two-fisted punch across the skull, snapping his head violently to one side.

Inuyasha flashed in rage. His body boiled over with anger. His fury had never been so strong while he was still in control. His own blood flew everywhere and his own injuries tore open. His clothing fell off him in rags, but still he beat the monster before him. His energy faded…his stamina disappeared…but still he fought him with everything he had.

"Keep…" Pound. "Your hands…" Pound. "Off her!" Pound.

Finally, he seized the creature's shoulders again and drove his knee deep into his stomach again and again. But Sanhou, despite all his pain…was not finished. Immediately, he made both of his hands into chopping gestures, and drove both forward into Inuyasha's sides at once to hit him in his kidneys. Inuyasha weakened and gagged in pain, as Sanhou pushed him back and violently smacked his head one way to the other, causing more blood to fly and smear across his face. Finally, he drove his fist forward and smashed it into his face, sending him flying away from him and to the ground again. Once there, Inuyasha moved no more. His strength was gone. He could only pant for now, and struggle to stay alive.

Sanhou's smile had faded, and as he wiped blood from his lips a clear look of anger was on his face. However, he was not yet tired, and his pain was nothing compared to Inuyasha's. He walked forward straight to the hanyou, watching to see if he would rise again. But he didn't, and finally, he reached him. He quickly bent over and seized him by his hair, yanking him off the ground. However, here he gave pause, and turned and looked to Kagome. She was still on the ground writhing in pain and clutching her broken arm, but she managed to weakly look up to Sanhou with tears of pain and sadness in her eyes.

Sanhou smiled a bit, and then gestured to her. "Her annoyances make me lose my patience. Kill her." With that, he turned and looked down to Inuyasha. With an evil grin, he once again clenched his neck in his hands, and began to bend… "Oh? The Hanyou has life in him?" He mocked, panting. "Too bad I have over a million in me. Now, where were we?"

---

Kagome continued to pant and recoil in pain, but now she had another reason to worry. All of the nearby Sanhous turned and looked down on her. They grinned evilly at her, and promptly drew out their swords, ready to stab her and finish her off. Fear gripped her immediately. They were going to do it. They'd kill her, and then they'd know everything about the future, including where to find the time tree. And her? She'd be locked in the oblivion the others were…and she'd be used to make another one of them…

No…this is a nightmare… This can't be happening!

As Kagome thought that latest fear, however…she began to think again. She considered all that had happened, and what was going on. The Sanhous had changed. They were almost friendly to her before, but now they wanted to kill her as if she was nothing more than trash. They had left humans alone, but now they were freely killing them. Sanhou had wanted to kill all youkai, but now he wanted domination. None of this made any sense…none of it. They even seemed to be taking orders from the huge one. Before, they just operated as a collective… But how? Something had changed…that was true. Something was different. It was like…that evil personality. It was as if it had come out again, but this time it wasn't going away. It was dominating all of his actions. But what was it? Why had they become this way? Why were they changing?

Why would this one miko turn out in this way? Our honor is unquestionable. There would have been no light circumstance that would have made him take the Saphsaiga, or turn to this madness.

But Saphsaiga showed me a way…and made me realize the truth.

Saphomitso apparently made his weapon too good. He was allegedly absorbed by the sword himself.

At once, it began to make sense to Kagome. She turned up to the Sanhous. They were still malicious, and still closing in on her. She swallowed, but spoke to them.

"What are you doing, Sanhou? Are you going to kill me?"

"That's the idea." One simply answered, still grinning.

"But then the miko will be extinct!" She immediately cried back.

The Sanhous paused only a moment, but then grinned wider. "Not to worry. There is no more need for any miko in the new order. Everything is me now. There's no need for anything but me to exist anymore."

"Is this…what you wanted to do with your freedom, Sanhou?" She managed to weakly ask. She was sore and it hurt to talk, but she had to keep talking. "Kill helpless people? Absorb everyone in the world?"

Sanhou happily shrugged in reply, still grinning menacingly. "I have to get stronger, after all. I have to become the best. I have to ascend beyond all people."

"Why?"

Sanhou hesitated at that. He didn't seem to have an answer. In the end, however, he merely shrugged. "It's what I'm meant to do. It's what we can do with Saphsaiga. I'm already so strong. Shouldn't I be the strongest? Shouldn't I dominate all life? I can have ultimate power then…"

Kagome persisted. "Is that why you took the sword? Is that why you went on this quest? To become all powerful? To replace everyone with you?"

The Sanhous paused again at this, but then they smiled and shrugged. "It wasn't, but that's irrelevant now. We've realized our full potential. We've realized what we can do. We've realized what we can become. We have more than the power to kill all youkai. We have the power to rule everything."

"So I suppose it's not just youkai that aren't worthy of living now." Kagome responded, forcing herself to grow cross through the pain. "It's all humanity. And not just that. All the birds. The trees. The water. All things? You're the only thing that's worth being alive?"

A Sanhou frowned at that. "I can ascend beyond all things. I and I alone deserve to live and have this power. I can make the most of it. I can know more and be more than any other form of life. Who cares so long as it expands what I am?"

"Would you listen to yourself!" Kagome immediately shot back. "Do you hear what you're saying! Do you honestly believe that!"

Sanhou paused in response to that. The others around him hesitated as well. Their evil looks faded a bit.

"Listen to you!" Kagome managed to shoot back. "You talked about demons exploiting humans…you sound like a demon yourself!"

Sanhou immediately went into a rage at that. "I'm more than any demon! I'm better than them! I'm purer than them!"

"How? What have you done except kill and hurt people?"

Sanhou caught himself there. He hesitated, but then repeated his old defense. "I…have to become stronger. I have to become more. I can become more…"

Kagome hesitated a moment longer. She had got him to pause...but he was still unsafe. She had to keep trying, before he relapsed. Immediately, despite the pain, she made her voice softer and spoke more gently.

"You once told me…a story about an innocent boy who had a great tragedy who befell him. You told me how he was alone and uncared for. He longed for someone to help him. He wanted to help other people as well. He didn't want to be alone and he didn't care for this power. He just wanted to be loved and accepted, and serve other people. You said you were doing this for humans, Sanhou. You were doing it because you felt that people needed to be defended. You wanted people to understand that more than anything. It was because you wanted to be loved, wasn't it? Your parents…they loved you so much they refused to even kill you to save themselves. They thought you were worth that much. I know that they dreamed of a day you'd be free and you'd keep doing what they did. That you'd make them proud."

Not only did Sanhou falter at that. The others around him faltered as well. They all looked to the ground. They breathed and stared, seeming to be thinking. Inside, they realized that Kagome was telling the truth. Strange…they all so much knowledge from everyone now, and yet she had realized something that they hadn't thought of. They winced after a moment. "…Mom…dad…" He spoke to himself. "…Why…is it so hard to remember them?" Sanhou paused at this. He bowed his head a bit, and seemed to wince. It looked as if he was trying to remember saying these things. However, he shook it off, and quickly raised his head again. "My…my goals have changed. It's no longer necessary for that."

"You said the youkai were a plague on the earth." Kagome went on. "But look at this. Look at what you are. You're consuming more life everywhere you go, so that you can sustain yourself. You don't care for love or happiness or well-being or anything. All you care about is yourself…this greed. You've changed. You're the plague now."

Sanhou's face turned to anger, but laced with softness. "No! I-"

"You know it's true! Listen to what you're saying! When I met you, you still cared about other people! You still loved! But look at this! Look at this sword, what it's done to you! It's turned you into a monster! It's made you what you hate! It's made you only care about satisfying it! You can't even remember who you are anymore! Do you think your parents would be proud of this? Do you think they wanted you free to do this? This sword is destroying you and feeding itself! It absorbed the spirits of so many...but it's destroying your soul! It's made you something worse than Naraku could ever make you! You had no choice then…but look what you're doing willingly now!"

Sanhou's eyes filled with wonder and amazement, as if he was waking up again after another long time of nightmares. He looked around at himself, and looked up and down at the surrounding Sanhous. However, after a moment, his face turned and went malicious. "I need more power…" He spoke darkly. But then, his face turned soft again. "But…I…I never wanted…" His face then went violent and mean once more. "They're just items of power…just things to turn me into a god! They don't matter!" He held a moment, but then bit down and turned soft again. "I…I don't want to…hurt anyone…" Again, he turned mean. "But they make me so strong!"

The Sanhou who spoke to Kagome winced again, looking as if something was wrong. It seemed like his head hurt. It looked as if he was confused. But Kagome understood this as well. "Don't you get it? The more you split yourself up, the less there is of you! Your body is splitting, but who you are is breaking up! You're becoming the sword! You're turning into what it wants!"

The other Sanhous were glaring darkly at Kagome now, but the closestone turned and looked up and around it, confused and seeming hurt. Somehow…she was getting through to him. He was breaking. Kagome noticed that a war seemed to be going on in Sanhou's mind. Some part was trying to consciously control him now. That's what those headaches were. She understood now. Each time he split, there was less of him in an individual mind and more of whatever monster was there controlling him. The sword was doing it. Or was it? At that, she realized the truth now. She turned and looked behind her, toward the battlefield. Yes…there was one Sanhou who didn't wince or falter. It was the monster in the center. She was right. That wasn't a Sanhou copy. That was something else, and it was coming to life with more Shikkon shards…

But he was still torn, still looking confused. Finally, he turned back to her and shook his head. "I…I just wanted to make the world a safe place… I wanted to help people… I wanted to make sure my family…my tribe…didn't die for nothing!"

"They didn't die for nothing, Sanhou." Kagome continued, more softly. "They died not harming you, because they had hope you'd one day break free and live again. But do you think this is what they wanted? Do you think they died so that you could become this?"

Abruptly, a loud voice called from the battlefield. "What are you all waiting for? Finish her already."

The Sanhous turned and looked up to the one that hesitated at that. They seemed to stare in anticipation. This one looked down at her, still frowning and twisting, seeming to be confused and not knowing what to do. A war was going on inside him, but still he didn't move. But finally…he drew out Saphsaiga. He placed both hands on it, and hovered them over her. Kagome paled again and swallowed. This was it. He wasn't stopping. She continued to gaze at him, however, her eyes pleading for him to regain his senses. He looked back, and did not smile. He held and quivered on, the sword shaking, but did not make a move. He swallowed and licked his lips, struggling to think.

"Do it!" The one in the center blasted.

Then, at last, he moved.

He snapped up, turned the sword around, and plunged it into the chest of the nearest Sanhou.

The others immediately snapped up. On the battlefield, the monstrous Sanhou dropped his victim and turned and looked to what had happened. As for the stabbed Sanhou, he looked down in shock. Then, he opened his mouth and began to gurgle. But as he did, his voice was cut off. Abruptly, his body began to glow. Its details vanished, and a blue light began to shine all around. Then, at once, the part that was Sanhou suddenly seemed to swirl around and vanish into a puff, leaving behind a Sanhou shaped cloud of blue light. The puff was immediately drained into the sword, but the blue light shone out and forth, and immediately went into the sky. It went into a ball next, and the spirit that had made that Sanhou shot away through the sky and off to find its owner.

Kagome gaped in awe. She turned to the Sanhou, and saw that his eyes were too open in shock. He blinked in astonishment for a moment, but then…slowly smiled a little.

"My head…feels a little clearer…"

The creature on the field snarled and turned around. He gestured to the others. "Finish her! Now!" He ordered.

The other Sanhous paused, but then one of them drew his sword readily. Kagome looked to him, and paled in fear again. But as this new Sanhou raised his sword to strike, the first one gave out a cry and drove his own sword into his chest. Soon, this one gaped in shock as he too vanished, and another spirit was released. Another Sanhou looked up in confusion, but then moved to strike Kagome as well. Yet the first Sanhou quickly stepped in and sliced his head off. Soon, he vanished and released another spirit too.

"Much clearer…" Sanhou remarked.

The thing snarled in the center. He quickly pointed to the rebel. "Kill that traitor!"

The Sanhou realized this, and quickly looked up…but it was too late. As Kagome watched in horror, a blade suddenly was thrust through his chest from behind. He gaped in shock, looked down to the sword, and then gave a gurgle as he too vanished like the others and gave up his spirit. As he vanished, she saw a rather villainous Sanhou grinning behind him, bringing up his sword after having freshly killed him. He then stepped forward to finish Kagome off, and the girl paled. It was over. That one had been her only hope. Now, she was finished.

But then, in mid-step, the Sanhou froze. It was as if the consciousness of the previous Sanhou had come upon him, and now was flowing into him. He stopped, and quickly softened his expression. A moment later, he brought his sword up and slashed through the nearest Sanhou. After that, the others immediately sneered and leapt onto this one, but he quickly began to slice through them as well and fought back.

The creature in the middle snarled. "Damnit! Kill him!" He yelled in fury.

Kagome watched as a strange thing took place. The Sanhou was now defending her, cutting down its own kind left and right. And with each new slice, his appearance became more committed, and his resolve grew stronger. It seemed as if he was more certain of his actions with each slice. Once in a while, one of the other Sanhous got in a hit and killed him…but that one would immediately take over for the old one, and continued to fight. All this continued until the fighting Sanhou locked blades with another one. They both held together, and glared at each other. They stared deep into each others eyes, both of them fierce and committed. But then, to Kagome's surprise, the attacker seemed to realize something, and nodded. Then, all of the sudden, both of them broke apart, and both attacker and defender began to strike down the Sanhous around them.

The situation quickly changed. Soon, there were three protecting Kagome. Then four. After that, all of the sudden another gasp went out from deep within the crowd. One of the Sanhous had spontaneously rebelled, and had killed one of his breathren. Indeed, all of them were changing. They were all growing less vicious-looking, and all of them were softening. Soon another rebel sprung up. And another. And another. Cells of Sanhous were soon everywhere, all fighting and killing each other. Spirits began to fly up from the multitude as more rebelled. And soon, the single rebels were joined by more. They gathered together until there was a battle going on between both sides. And the good side soon won out…because regardless of whether they won or lost they were unaffected, and another soul was released. And as this continued, the creature in the center flew into a rage. He yelled at them all to kill their companions, but it was useless. The moment they did, they took their place. And more and more Sanhous rebelled against him all the time. His face filled with rage as he looked at them all, watching them drop one after another.

"What are you doing, you fools!" It blasted.

"What we should have done long ago!" One of the rebels yelled back as it killed another.

"Now we understand!"

"You grew in influence as we multiplied…"

"…While we shrank in it."

"You idiots! I'm one of you!" The monster snapped back.

"No, you're not!" One answered.

"You want death…"

"You turned us to evil…"

"You stole our body and used it…"

"We thought you were our friend…"

"…but you were just another demon confusing us."

"Now, this ends."

The monster roared in anger at this, for he was losing more control all the time. One of the rebels moved to a group of Sanhous soon after, and prepared to strike them. At this, the creature yelled out again.

"You fools! Don't kill them! If you do, Naraku will be released! Everything will have been for nothing!"

The rebel paused…but only for a moment. Then, he drove his sword forward into the nearest one.

"…If it has to be Naraku or you…we pick Naraku."

The thing seethed. "Traitors! Demon lovers! You damned the world!"

"No…"

"We'll damn the world…"

"…if we don't do this!"

The thing hissed in anger and yelled out a stream of curses. But they were useless now. The Sanhous had changed. More and more of them turned, and they were growing in larger and larger groups. At last, their opponents themselves gave up, and merely stood there with their arms down, allowing themselves to be stabbed and their spirits released. More and more spirits poured out. The Sanhous dropped to half…then a fourth…then an eighth. They continued to vanish. They came off their mountains, out of the towns, and shrank more and more as they were released one after another. Until, at long last, there were only five of them left, surrounding Kagome. Here, they stopped and looked up to the demon in the center. They glared at him angrily. However, the monster glared even more hatefully at Kagome.

"You dumb bitch…" He hissed. "I was so close…but then you ruined it all…"

"Don't you dare touch her." One of the Sanhous coldly demanded.

The thing snorted. "And do you think you're going to stop me? A bunch of worthless children? I should have never assisted you. I should have left Naraku in you to rot the flesh from your bones."

Kagome managed to glare darkly at him from behind Sanhou. "You lose…Saphomitso." She spoke to him. The thing reacted to this, and looked down to her. "That who you are, isn't it? Myoga said you made the sword and you were absorbed by it. But you willingly went into it, didn't you?"

The hulk paused a moment. The other Sanhous looked to him for an answer, and waited for him to say something. However, in the end he smiled at her. "You're bright for a stupid twit." He sneered. "I built Saphsaiga to absorb any spirit, but I especially made it effective against demons. I couldn't very well have any old member of my brood come forth and take it to use it against me, could I? No, I infused myself into the sword, specifically so that when a human went into it I could dominate them. Their minds and lives are such petty, easy-to-break things. Luckily little Sanhou came by, all wrought with emotion and desperately seeking a reason to live, and I fed him it until he was good enough to be my servant."

All five snarled at him. "You filthy bastard. You used me even worse than Naraku did."

Saphomitso shrugged. "Your fault, Sanhou. You didn't follow your own advice and trusted demons. Not that it matters anymore. Your body, along with the Shikkon shards, belongs to me now. So keep slicing yourself up as small as you want. In the end, I'll absorb you and show you firsthand to the prison of Saphsaiga. Then I'll send your new little friend there to meet you. Then I won't bother with this world anymore. I'll go to hers, where they know nothing of demons…and are lambs waiting for the slaughter."

Sanhou hissed. "I'll never let you! I'm stopping you tonight!"

The thing hissed and snarled in reply. But in the end, however, he merely smiled. "This changes little, pathetic human." He growled. "I still have the shards."

One of them merely raised his sword. "Not for long. You forget…we know where they are."

With that, the five of them shot forward to the creature. They quickly spread out as they did so, so that they encircled the creature. As for the thing, it reached down and brought up its own Saphsaiga, and immediately drew it and held it before him. The Sanhous circled him for a moment, but then one of them shot forward for the beast. Immediately, he brought his own blade forward and countered…but the other four used that moment to come forward and slice away at certain key parts of the thing. As they sliced into his skin, Kagome saw little sparkles of light come flying from the wounds to the ground. The monster hissed, but then twisted its blade around and drove it into the Sanhou in front of him. Immediately, he vanished into a blue blast and disappeared.

The monster swiped to the side next, trying to kill another one. In response, the one ducked down, while the other three slashed down and cut into his arm. More shards poured out as a result. The thing snarled, and whipped back around to slice into another Sanhou, making him disappear as well. But the others used the moment to shoot down and slice into its leg, bringing out more shards. The thing roared in anger, and swept its blade down again at them. They quickly moved to the side and sliced out the shards in the other leg, then moved up and sliced out the shards in the other arm. But in doing so, they gave enough time for the monster to bring his sword around and run another through.

The last two Sanhous leapt back after this. They paused for a moment afterward. The monster's strength was fading with the loss of each shard, but so was theirs. They weren't sure if they had the power for this next blow. However, they risked it. Immediately, both darted forward on either side of the beast. As they neared him, they both crouched and then leapt into the air, doing a somersault over the thing's head. They brought their blades down as they did so, cutting another four shards free. But the monster also brought his blade up and stabbed another one, making him vanish as well. The other landed, and quickly put himself between the monster and Kagome.

The last Sanhou panted and sweat. So did the central monster, but despite that it managed to smile as well. They stared at each other a moment before it spoke. "Well done, little boy. But I still have three left. And I own your body now. Once I've killed you, they'll be nothing of you left. You'll take my place in this sword and live in a cold hell forever, more alone and desolate than you can dream. Now, are you sure you want to do something so stupid? Or would you rather reconsider your rebellion?"

The boy shuddered at this. He feared loneliness more than anything. He had been afraid and alone for so long, hated by everyone. And he knew what would happen if he came forward. However…he also turned and looked down to Kagome. He saw her…and thought again of his duties…his responsibilities. He was a miko, whether he liked it or not. And his tribe's duty was clear and absolute. He looked down on her for a moment, and smiled.

"…I'm sorry, Kagome. I'm sorry for everything. And…thank you."

With that, Sanhou turned back to the monster and glared again. In a flash, he shot forward toward the thing. The monster merely grinned and waited. With only one Sanhou left, he knew what he would do exactly. His thoughts were his. And so, right as the boy ran up to him and extended his sword, he plunged his own Saphsaiga forward and stabbed the miko right through the stomach.

Kagome gasped in shock. Sanhou did as well. However, despite the pain…despite the fact that he began to vanish, he looked up and gave the monster before him one last defiant look. Then, using the last of his strength before he vanished, he plunged his sword forward and made a horseshoe cut into the chest of the creature…spilling the last three shards. Only then did he close his eyes and release…vanishing into another spirit, and then flying off. His remnants sank into the main swords, and in a moment everything returned to normal. Kagome continued to stare in shock a moment longer, but there was nothing else that could be done. It was over.

Sanhou was gone.

---

This story has two different endings, just like before.

If you think Sanhou got what he deserved, read the first ending.

If you pity him, read the second ending.