They left the following morning after a light breakfast. Sesshoumaru had told her there would be two more stops before they would make their way over to Hiroshima and that they would stay overnight at each stop. He also told her that next on their mourning itinerary would be his half brother and the undead miko. He explained that he had laid InuYasha to rest on the spot where the miko had met her definitive end. It had been the hanyou's request.
They drove for about three hours, stopping only briefly to stretch out. Sesshoumaru guided the bike to a small ryokan on the outskirts of one of the many towns surrounding lake Biwa. They were each shown to their room, as the inn only had two. The okami told them that they were free to dine in of the restaurants nearby, as the inn only served breakfast.
After a short exploration of their lodging, Kagome was anxious to get to the grave of her first love. Sesshoumaru again led the way into the forested area around the inn. They walked onto the grounds of a small shrine and passed the main buildings. Without checking to see if she was keeping up, Sesshoumaru walked on towards a small clearing some ways beyond the sanctum. There, he showed her two similar markers to the ones they had visited the day before, but now, there was a distinct difference in age. One of the stones had been worn down, almost completely smooth.
The bellflowers growing at the base of it were another giveaway that this one belonged to her previous incarnation. Beside it, less eroded than Kikyou's, but more than either Sango or Miroku's marker, was InuYasha's. His name was still clearly carved into the stone. Before she could ask, Sesshoumaru told her he habitually came back once every five decades or so to redo the markings. This brought on an overpowering wave of fresh tears, and Kagome realized she had been crying since entering the woods.
Like the day before, she didn't have to request a moment alone. Knowing Sesshoumaru trusted her to find her way back, she sat down on the forest floor and reminisced. Both Kikyou and InuYasha appeared across her minds' eye, happy together in the afterlife. She was convinced that everything they did in the fight against Naraku had absolved them of anything that would condemn to hell.
She didn't know how long she sat there, but when she finally felt done, dusk had fallen. She clumsily tripped her way back to the shrine and the inn, where she found her companion waiting for her patiently in the small common area. They went to dinner at a nearby soba-restaurant and ate in companionable silence before walking back over to the inn and retiring for the night.
Despite the events of the day, let alone the days before, being very taxing, Kagome found she could not sleep. She tossed and turned in her bed, took a hot bath in the private bathroom, tossed and turned again, but sleep would not come. Finally, after what felt like hours, she got up and went for a walk.
Initially, she thought she would make the trek back up to the small gravesite, but the darkness of the woods made her decide against it. So, she retraced their steps to the restaurant and, seeing it was obviously closed, discovered the 7-eleven across the street. A small nightcap would surely help, she thought, and Sesshoumaru would be none the wiser. She knew how he felt about drinking. Opting for a locally brewed sake, she made her way back over to the inn and sat down in the traditional garden.
'Here's to you, InuYasha,' she murmured, and took a big swig.