"So that's the situation... Inuyasha, we need you to go find Sesshomaru."
After dawn, everyone finally awaited Inuyasha's return. Miroku wasted no time explaining the circumstances.
"Absolutely not!! Beg Sesshomaru...? I'd rather die!!"
Sure enough, Sango and Shippo had already anticipated Inuyasha's contorted expression and fierce resistance.
"Sigh... Inuyasha, please, can you go ask Sesshomaru? After all, this is the only way."
Pressing her palms together in supplication, Kagome walked to his side and pleaded softly.
"Ugh..."
When Kagome treated him like that, Inuyasha really couldn't hold his ground.
"That guy really does look like a dog! Hahaha!!"
"Are you one to laugh?"
"But—going out for an entire night before returning—what exactly was Inuyasha-san doing?"
Compared to the others, Cu Chulainn, Koga, and Rikuo each harbored different thoughts.
Koga was purely helping for Kagome's sake. Were it anyone else, he'd have already dragged Cu Chulainn off to start a fight.
Meanwhile, Rikuo found himself curious why Inuyasha had taken so long to get back.
"Don't worry. Despite how Inuyasha looks... since Kagome asked, he definitely can't refuse."
Sango cast a calm glance at the uneasy Kagura as she spoke.
"You people really are a bunch of hopeless fools. But perhaps because of that... I don't dislike you."
This farce looked utterly ridiculous, yet Kagura felt an incredible sense of relief.
At least she wasn't at Naraku's place anymore—living in constant terror, always dreading which day might be her last.
"Relax. Even if this method fails, I'm genuinely grateful for your kindness. At the very least, you've already won me a moment of freedom... That alone is enough."
Clearly they'd been enemies, yet here they were like this now. Kagura didn't know what had changed her.
Sesshomaru's face flickered through her mind, and a bitter smile crossed her lips.
Perhaps from the moment of her birth, she was fated to have no freedom.
But fortunately... she'd met this group: Inuyasha and Sesshomaru.
At least in the end, she wouldn't die meaninglessly like Goshinki and the other incarnations.
"Fine!! I'll go find Sesshomaru! But whether he'll actually agree to save Kagura—don't hold your breath!!"
Unable to refuse Kagome's gentle plea after all, Inuyasha spoke with visible irritation, sweat beading on his brow.
'Damn it! Should've had the old man come by first.'
He really hadn't expected to get saddled with something like this. Inuyasha felt a twinge of regret.
'I need to search for whoever made Kirinmaru disappear. This war might not be as straightforward as I imagined.'
'This parting is only temporary. We'll meet again next time, Inuyasha.'
'If necessary, you and Sesshomaru may need to join forces to stop me.'
Recalling his parting conversation with Toga, Inuyasha truly hadn't anticipated things here being in such a state.
"Kagura and Koga's whatever-his-name-is... you guys follow along!"
"Lancer."
"Shut up! I don't understand that crap!"
Cu Chulainn glanced at Koga. At his nod, Cu Chulainn patted his rear and rose to his feet.
'Really, this war is strange. Are the Masters' relationships this good?'
Letting your own Servant leave your side to help someone else—in a normal Holy Grail War, no Master would be that carefree.
He admitted Koga had some skill himself, but that pretty girl named Kagome and her Servant were no pushovers either.
If he left and that wolf got himself killed, it would really make him look like a sucker.
Still, complaints aside, Cu Chulainn could grasp this group's nature well enough.
To put it simply... they were folks with good hearts.
"Let's move!"
"Coming."
"I'll just follow on my feather."
Watching the three depart, Kagome silently prayed from the bottom of her heart.
She hoped Kagura could overcome this ordeal.
...
"Moroha..."
"Hyah!!"
A gentle voice made Moroha jolt awake from sleep. She sat up halfway from the ground, drool at the corner of her mouth, looking completely dazed.
"You can't be like this in the future."
Reaching out to wipe Moroha's face clean, Kikyo spoke warmly.
That tender scene made Kohaku, watching from a distance, find it quite peculiar.
'Kikyo-sama... was never this gentle even to Inuyasha-sama, was she?'
He'd noticed since arriving here last night. Kikyo and Moroha's relationship seemed somehow extraordinary.
But given his position, he couldn't bring himself to ask.
After freshening up by the river, the three gathered some wild fruits and set off once more.
"Um... Kikyo-sama, are we going to look for Naraku now?"
Walking along the road, Kohaku posed the question.
"No... there's no need now."
"Eh?"
Kikyo's answer left Kohaku confused.
"Even if we don't actively seek him, he'll come to us in the near future. I sensed those two corrupted Shikon Jewel fragments yesterday—they must be Koga's. To complete the Shikon no Tama, only the piece in Kagome's possession and the shard embedded in your body remain."
One hand stroking Moroha's head, the other peeling the skin from a fruit before handing it over, Kikyo explained in a soft tone.
That nurturing manner was something Kohaku still wasn't quite used to seeing.
But he forcibly suppressed his doubts and focused on what she'd just said.
'In other words, Naraku will definitely come soon to collect the remaining fragments.'
'With only two left, he won't approach Kagome-sama first—Inuyasha-sama and the others are all there.'
'So Kikyo-sama is seeking a secluded place to await Naraku's arrival. That way, I can use the fragment in my body to destroy him!'
Already prepared to sacrifice himself, Kohaku's resolve had never wavered.
If his life could be traded for Naraku's destruction, he would do it without hesitation.
Not just for his slain clansmen, but also for his still-living sister.
"Hey, if that bastard called Naraku dares to show his face, I'll definitely take him out!"
Moroha puffed her cheeks while chewing her fruit, then spoke with absolute confidence.
She understood this was the villain who had hurt this mother of hers.
If they truly met, Moroha would at least land a few good punches.
"Hehe, too bad... Naraku won't be coming."
But at that instant, all three felt a bone-chilling cold wash over them.
'When did—?!'
Kohaku whirled around in shock. A bizarre woman stood on the road behind them, her deathly pale complexion hauntingly unnatural.
"!"
Kikyo's expression shifted immediately, recognizing the visitor's true identity.
"You are... the Shikon no Tama?"
"Hmph hmph, worthy of being an exceptional Miko after Midoriko. You saw through my true form at a glance?"
Utterly unsurprised, the Shikon no Tama let out a creepy laugh.
"You seized a Servant's body through this ritual. What's your purpose?!"
Extending an arm to stop Moroha, who was ready to spring into action, Kikyo spoke with grave intensity.
"Purpose? Hmm... right now it's naturally to reclaim my fragments—and take your Dragon Ball!"