The moment the name Kikyo left Master Harumi's lips, Inuyasha froze.
Then his expression changed violently.
In an instant, he lunged forward, grabbing Harumi by the collar and hauling him up despite the wound on the monk's chest.
"Say that again and I'll never forgive you!" he roared.
The young monk hurriedly tried to steady Master Harumi and stepped between them. "W-We're not lying! That priestess,she's surrounded by wandering souls!"
"I'm not talking about that!" Inuyasha snapped. "I'm talking about her name!"
Seeing that Master Harumi was truly injured, Inuyasha released him,but immediately seized the young monk instead.
"Why did you say her name is Kikyo?!"
"I,I heard it in the village last night!" the young monk stammered, trembling under Inuyasha's burning glare. "The children call her that too! There's no mistake,her name is Kikyo!"
"The one collecting souls… is Kikyo?"
Kagome's heart dropped. The words slipped from her lips in a whisper.
"Kikyo… You… you're still alive? You didn't die back then?"
Inuyasha demanded directions at once. Before anyone could react, he shot off into the forest like an arrow loose from a bow.
"Is it really alright to let Inuyasha go alone?" Miroku asked after the two monks had departed, glancing toward Kagome.
She sat quietly on a withered tree trunk, staring down at the ground.
"He took off like a cannonball," Shippō said, spreading his tiny hands helplessly. "No one could've stopped him."
Kagome's voice came out low and heavy.
"Inuyasha… he must still love Kikyo. So… maybe it's better if we don't interfere."
"Why wouldn't we go?" Shippō asked, genuinely confused.
Miroku folded his hands inside his sleeves and sighed, suddenly looking thoughtful.
"I understand his feelings," he said solemnly. "The woman he once loved may no longer be the same as he remembers. If that's the case… he probably doesn't want anyone else to witness it."
Shippō blinked blankly. "What are you talking about? What if things aren't that dramatic?"
Miroku stroked his chin and answered without thinking, "If it were me… I'd likely reconcile with her."
The instant the words left his mouth,
A killing chill swept over him.
"Oh? You would?"
Kagome's voice was dangerously calm.
Miroku froze stiffly.
He slowly looked up.
Kagome had already stood and was pushing her bicycle forward, her aura heavy enough to make the air feel oppressive.
"Just now… I felt the gaze of something very cold," Miroku muttered, wiping sweat from his brow.
"That definitely wasn't your imagination," Shippō said gravely.
The two hurried after her.
"Miss Kagome, wait," Miroku called awkwardly.
"What?!" Kagome spun around, eyes blazing with irritation.
"Perhaps… we should follow Inuyasha after all?" he suggested cautiously.
"I don't want to!" Kagome burst out. "Why should I chase after him?"
The grievance in her voice was impossible to hide.
At that moment, a wave of demonic energy swept through the air.
All three of them tensed instantly.
They looked up to see countless pale-white Soul Reapers drifting through the dim sky, carrying faintly glowing spirit souls as they moved deeper into the forest,as if guiding someone toward a destination.
"Those yōkai are carrying souls!" Miroku shouted. "After them!"
Without hesitation, the three gave chase.
Deep within the forest, in the direction the Soul Reapers were heading,
Kikyo sat quietly upon the branch of a towering tree.
Her long black hair swayed gently in the wind as she lowered her eyes, lost in thought.
Kagetsu's questions echoed in her mind.
"Kagome is your reincarnation. Which one of you is the real you?"
"If Kagome ends up with Inuyasha, is that your bond continuing… or has he already fallen in love with someone else?"
"If I resurrect you, will you fight her? Or let go?"
A flicker of uncertainty passed through her eyes.
Then her gaze shifted sharply.
She sensed someone approaching.
"You've finally arrived," she murmured softly.
A heavy thud followed by the crunch of grass breaking,
"Ow! That hurt!"
Kikyo looked down.
Kagome lay sprawled on the ground beneath the tree, clutching her knee and looking thoroughly disheveled.
Kikyo regarded her coolly.
"I refuse to believe my reincarnation would be this foolish."
She truly could not comprehend how someone so clumsy could be her next life,let alone the one who had won Inuyasha's heart.
"This place is…" Kagome muttered, pushing herself upright.
Then she looked up,
And met Kikyo's gaze.
Soul Reapers drifted silently around Kikyo like a pale halo. Her expression was distant, faintly disdainful.
"K-Kikyo…"
The name trembled from Kagome's lips.
Seeing the blank astonishment on Kagome's face, Kikyo felt reluctant to admit any connection between them.
Yet when she had first been resurrected by Onigumo's lingering malice,reborn through Naraku's schemes,her soul had told her clearly:
This girl is your reincarnation.
"Don't stare at me like that. Come here," Kikyo said coolly.
"Kikyo, you,"
Kagome found her feet moving forward almost against her will.
"You passed through my barrier to get here," Kikyo interrupted calmly. "That means you already sensed I wished to speak with you."
"B-Barrier?" Kagome looked around blankly. "There was one?"
"…If you didn't notice it, then forget it."
Kikyo pressed a hand lightly to her forehead.
Since Kagetsu had replaced the spirit souls sustaining her with chakra, something within her had changed.
Before, aside from her resentment toward Inuyasha's perceived betrayal, she had felt little. Her emotions had been hollow, muted.
But now,
She felt confusion.
Irritation.
Even disdain.
Was it the chakra?
She placed a hand over her chest.
Her soul felt stronger, steadier… more alive.
"You're the one who gathered those girls' souls, aren't you?" Kagome asked, looking up with earnest eyes. "If it's really you, please let them return."
Kikyo studied her for a moment.
Then, without hesitation, she raised her hand.
The Soul Reapers responded immediately, releasing the young girls' souls.
Freed, the spirits turned into ribbons of white light and soared into the sky, racing back toward their bodies in the distant village before fading from sight.
"I no longer need them," Kikyo said evenly. "I gathered them to draw you here."
"Me?" Kagome blinked in surprise.
Kikyo did not answer directly.
"Are you and Inuyasha not together?"
The question struck like a stone.
Kagome's eyes dimmed. She lowered her head.
"Inuyasha… said he was coming to find you."
"And you?" Kikyo's gaze sharpened. "What are you to him?"
"Me…?" Kagome faltered.
"Yes. You."
Kikyo glanced toward the forest beyond.
"Inuyasha is already outside. My barrier is holding him back."
She returned her steady gaze to Kagome.
"Shall I let him in?"
Her voice was calm.
But the meaning beneath it was anything but.
"Tell me… is he here to save you?"
A faint pause.
"Or to see me?"