Author's Notes: Hello all! Just a heads up and then I'm outta here. An alternative ending is fast approaching. It's not going to be in the commentary corner like I thought, but it'll definitely be at the end of a chapter in the footnotes. I'm hoping to involve you all with a small piece of interaction that might look something like this...

"[Character name]'s hurt, me lord! What should we do?" Jaken asks in a panic.

A: Let them die

B: Talk to Grand Monk Shishido

C: Heal them yourself

D: Revive them with Tenseiga

Obviously, the actual choice in order to continue Hell Doctor and 100% this story will be written without a hitch, but I'll reveal the correct answer or response at the top of the next chapter, accordingly. The other choices will essentially result in getting the alternative ending, but there might be two as we get further along with the choices being heavier. The more you get involved in the story, the greater the consequence to the characters and their relationships if you leave. As stated before, once we get to these kinds of moments, you have the option of completely leaving this story and reading others or referring to Yashahime for what happens next. That'll be all from me, so you all can enjoy this new chapter. I am legit struggling with this segment. Goodness! X3

The sacred mound of the Akabeko Temple, in truth, was more than a pyramid of architectural wonder. Inside of it was a half-mile long bridge built over water forming an ovular pool at the entrance. Overhead were crystals that protruded from the ceiling like unsheathed swords but were typically illuminated from whichever light source that penetrated the holes at the top of the pyramid. The cave was known for being very hot and humid during the summer months, but the winters and autumns were the best times to view the inside. Toward the back of the cave was both the exit and the entrance to the Twin Pillar entryway of the temple. The Twin Pillar was a garden entrance into the temple, but this coupled with the openings at ceiling height of the sacred mound was what made the journey through it bearable. For a typical human, they would be cooked alive from the harsh temperature and high humidity, but demons had no such sensitivities to the climate of the cave, only the divinities of the crystals, waters, and stones. The akabeko and kudan youkai were a holy people for a reason. They were perhaps one of very few races who were unaffected by reiki energy in the slightest and were true guardian spirits. Surpassing any of their trials through the sacred mound without weakening was a badge of honor the likes of which many wouldn't see. By that point, you were practically an ordained monk or apprentice monk.

Sesshomaru and Reijiro had the unfortunate luck and luxury of having to walk through this ridiculous mound to find a spear. While Sesshomaru typically was fine at the entrances of the sacred mound, he had never physically walked through the entire cave. It was one of very, very few places that Sesshomaru feared traversing. He had seen some mischievous teens playing in it to collect the stones or crystals that could be found and sold for quite a high price, but only two of the four or five teens that went in ever came back out and they were traumatized from whatever transpired inside of the mound. His father took great care to keep him away from the cave and to play out in the meadows instead. It was safer outside than in.

"This place gives me the creeps," Reijiro whispered, eyeing his surroundings carefully. "It's so quiet in here."

"The silence isn't meant to be feared," Sesshomaru said coolly. He looked up and scanned the ceiling briefly before continuing, "The coming winter has dismissed most of the climate within this place. It is the hanging blade above that kills the unworthy."

"The crystals kill?" Reijiro questioned, reaching for his weapons and looking up to gasp at the expanse of intimidating but beautiful crystals reaching to touch the floor below. "How often do they break or drop?"

"At least once a month between the spring and summer," Sesshomaru said, leading the way in slow steps to find a spearhead potentially disguised among the crystals.

"... Ri~ight, and why are we coming here again?" Reijiro asked, following Sesshomaru with some trepidation.

"For the Naginata of Light. Among the crystals is the key. The old man said, 'In order to find this warrior of the sun, listen for a voice that brings tears to your eyes and a smile to your face. It forms in an instant and has been here for a lifetime, but you have forgotten it.' This is the second time I've had to solve a ridiculous riddle!" Sesshomaru hissed, narrowing his eyes at his misfortune.

"Yeah, that definitely sounds annoying," Reijiro said with a sigh. He took a minute to think clearly and repeated Sesshomaru's words, "I can bring tears to your eyes and a smile to your face. I form in an instant and last for a lifetime, but I can be forgotten. Hm... Oh! Duh! It's a memory. Sad memories make you tear up, good ones make you smile, and they appear at random. Ones that you don't care about are typically forgotten. This voice you have to find must be someone you knew in the past. Do you remember anyone who had control over fire or light?"

Sesshomaru was quiet for a moment, but he was coming up short on people he knew in the past regardless. Totosai would have been a good option, but he wasn't a warrior. He simply was a talented blacksmith... and a senile, old man.

"I am the sword that guards the heavens..."

Sesshomaru and Reijiro's ears perked up before they both looked up to the direction of the voice. Unfortunately, the words bounced throughout the cave, and it looked like the lights trapped in the crystals were flickering, but... Sesshomaru's eyes widened a bit when he realized something. The akashita demon put these lands in darkness. Where was light coming from? When Meioshi approached him at the gazebo camp, the night sky had a moon. There shouldn't have been any visible light if this creature was terrorizing the lands. That would make the moon that they saw a sort of decoy! Or... no, the moon was a source of light. It had to be the source of illumination in the cave.

"Oh, look at that, gentleman! The sun is rising!" Sesshomaru remembered hearing the Green Pheasant say. "The rising sun means there has been an agreement between oath keepers... a bond has started. You should be able to clearly see a gate or fence signifying the nature of the bond. The gateways down here move to different locations if you wander off too many times."

The moon is the gateway! Sesshomaru thought.

"Let me be your sword and shield, and, when you're ready, you can form a pact with me if you truly trust me..."

Sesshomaru's body slackened, if only for a brief moment. There were very few people in this world who had the distinct privilege of being a light to his world. If this voice belonged to someone in the past before he took up the reigns as king in his father's place, then he was out of luck, but he could do something else in order to settle this unfinished business with his father. Reaching for the left side of his obijime cord, Reijiro watched the western lord pluck a string of protection beads from it with a lugubrious expression on his face. They're too close to the end now.

"At some point during your travels, you and the wolf formed a mutual bond that ascended the initial intentions of the pact while it was active. Remember, my nest is always the starting point. It is the first of the parallel doors accessible to any plane of existence; meaning, anyone involved in this pact during the time of initiation can enter the Blood Oath's Circle."

"The power of the sun..." Sesshomaru said, stopping his walk. He looked into the sky for a moment, hearing wagons rolling in the distance, and then took notice to something offensive. He called out after a moment, "Witch. Get this barrier off me. I don't need your protection."

Smiling shrewdly, Meioshi looked at Sesshomaru and asked, "Has anyone ever told you that you have a sexy undertone to your voice when you're angry like that, Lord Sesshomaru?"

'I'm not ready...' Sesshomaru thought, remembering times that Meioshi either annoyed, impressed, or amused him. His envy only grew. Whereas he had very few people who'd care enough to pay their respects should he perish one day, his dandelion seed would have so many more mourners... He, like the day he watched her dance for a fallen warrior, would silently be among them. At least, if he perished, he was confident that Meioshi would honor him. Jaken might even request it.

"How would you define someone who is worth honoring, young Sesshomaru?" Morihei once asked him.

'We never had our true battle yet. You still owe me a fight. You haven't located the Meido Stone yet. You never found a cure for Jaken. What about your children? They're waiting for you.' Sesshomaru thought, hearing that feminine travel through the cave walls over and over. 'What about your friends? Your family? Kirameku Ha will miss you.'

"It is my honor to protect those who have felt like nothing because I have felt that way, my privilege to aid those who feel defeated because I can help them train, my greatest joy to watch those who have failed pick themselves to march to their victory. Guilt reminds me that the fight isn't over, that the nightmares have a little more life in them, that my sword needs to be sharpened before it can cut through barriers. My source of power is elsewhere. Is yours so tied to your unspoken past, Sesshomaru?"

Clutching the beads in his hand with a new resolve, he placed the protection beads back on his person and thought with some fire in his eyes, 'Your life's not over. You're not getting a single flower or coin from me! I refuse... to let you back out of our final battle!'

Because, in truth, Sesshomaru was not ready... to lose his new friend...

"Right then," Meioshi said with a light nod. "Let's light it up!"

"Right!" Jaken stomped confidently. He twirled Nintojo around for a moment then plunged the staff into the space where the silver star lay to cast flames inside of it. The silver star did absorb them, but it didn't respond to them. Jaken peeked into the hole curiously and asked, "Is it thinking about the flames like an offering?"

Abruptly, all of Nintojo's fire was shot back out with a groan and rocketed Jaken a few feet away from it. He yelled some obscure obscenity in the distance before he landed. This startled the group but made Meioshi curious. She cautiously walked over to the hole and looked inside of it carefully. She saw the silver star there. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Taking up a nearby rock, the doctor dropped it and heard a splash. It was water! Experimentally, she plucked a divine bead from her person and dropped it into the waters to watch what would happen. Sure enough, the water started to churn and the star became brighter. This star was a holy warrior's potential grave! Kneeling down into a seated position, Meioshi took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and sighed.

Inhaling, exhaling... inhaling, exhaling... Finding peace within herself to contact the spirit below. This holy warrior was different. He was trapped by something. Meioshi could feel warmth over her body. Her head was hurting like someone was squeezing or pressing it. The ground beneath her was heating up and grass started to catch fire. Sparks reached out to her and touched her knees. She allowed them to do so. Opening a reserve of holy power within herself, she let the pureness reach out and hold some of the sparks. The smell of tinder caught her nose. Inhaling, exhaling... inhaling, exhaling... inhaling, exhaling... A hand touched hers! She gasped at the feeling and felt warmth coursing through her body. It didn't belong to her but another. Someone was with her. Her eyes remained closed but involuntarily. They were being forced shut. When she went to touch the top of the spirit's hand, she felt hair pulling her back like a metal shackle. It startled her and made her gasp.

"Who...? Who are you?" Meioshi asked. "What is this hair?"

"I am Kouumoto. Wielder of the Taiyoko-sen Coin. State your name, young lady."

"Ah, yes, of course," Meioshi replied, letting her hand return to her lap. She placed a hand on her chest instead and greeted politely, "Pardon my informalities. I am Meioshi. A pleasure to meet you, Kouumoto. Where are we if you don't mind my asking?"

"We are in the night sky, young Meioshi," Kouumoto said.

"EH!?" Meioshi exclaimed, jumping back lightly. When she reached around her and started feeling the ground, she felt nothing! All wind and space! She practically jumped into Kouumoto's lap out of fear of falling straight down. She then said, "Splendid warning!"

Kouumoto chuckled a bit then said, "You're cute! How did find me, young Meioshi?"

"Huh? Oh! Right then," Meioshi replied, gathering herself but not leaving Kouumoto's arms. "I need your help. There's a little girl named Hasumi Fukuyama who's being hunted down by Azumamaro, a shadowy beast that's been using her to feed it. It's been searching for your weapon for some years now, seeking revenge on you from the sound of it."

"I know not this Azumamaro. Only the akashita demon that has consumed me. As for Hasumi, I know her."

"Was she alive during your time?" Meioshi asked.

"No. I've been trapped here for a while. Long before she was born. I passed down the bits of my weapon to the next generation to keep this akashita demon at bay. Hasumi was next in line to receive either the Korenaga Tate, wielded by her father, or the Naginata of Light, wielded by her mother. Young princesses, or apprentice wielders, wear the Himawari Jewel until they come into power. It was the only bit that could contain my power after death. Through it, I choose who takes my place in trapping this monster."

"That's the thing, Kouumoto. I don't know where any of the pieces are and this demon is covering the land in darkness. I don't even know where the Fukuyama clan is," Meioshi explained.

"Hasumi was with me for the past hundred years. She had a sleeping spell put on her. The only way she could be kept safe should something happen prematurely was by keeping her inside of the jewel. She was released from the jewel out of nowhere from my perspective, and the connection between us was severed."

"Severed? How?" Meioshi questioned.

"The Serizawa Chain. It was stolen by a demon. I assumed that it broke our bond."

"Is there no way to replace it? Or to even substitute it?" Meioshi asked.

"... There is, but it requires great power and an even greater sacrifice," Kouumoto replied.

The holy warriors were quiet until Meioshi lifted her head and said, "I'll do it."