"Momiji, Botan,this land soaked in demon blood will need to be purified later," Kikyo said calmly.
"If left alone, it could easily give birth to new evil spirits."
The two young priestesses had already been released from the Immobilization Technique earlier. Now they clung tightly behind Kikyo, their faces pale from the gruesome battlefield.
Hearing her instructions, they nodded quickly.
"Yes, Lady Kikyo!"
"Alright," said Kagetsu's Shadow Clone as he looked at the demon lying motionless on the ground.
"It looks like this guy doesn't have the strength to resist anymore."
"Next comes the real step."
Kikyo nodded and glanced at him.
"Did you obtain the item?"
"Yes."
The clone nodded.
"I already have it."
While Natsume had been fighting the demon earlier, the clone had quietly slipped away and visited the burial site of Tsubaki's master.
Following the location Kikyo had described, he retrieved the remains needed as a medium for Edo Tensei.
Naturally, this wasn't something that could be revealed to Tsubaki,or Momiji and Botan.
None of them would ever agree to someone digging up their master's grave.
Kikyo's plan was straightforward:
Kagetsu would use Edo Tensei to summon Tsubaki's master back from the Underworld.
Then the master himself could deal with Tsubaki's problems.
But there had been one important question earlier.
Would Edo Tensei even work in this world?
Kagetsu had already tested it out of curiosity before he revived himself from the Edo Tensei body.
And the answer was:
Yes. It worked.
But there were important differences between worlds.
In the Naruto world,Most souls remain in the Pure Land after death.
As long as the remains exist, Edo Tensei can summon them.Only special cases like the Sage of Six Paths' chakra reincarnation are exceptions.
But the Inuyasha world works differently.
If a person has been dead for too long, their soul reincarnates.
Once reincarnated, Edo Tensei cannot summon them anymore.
For example,Kikyo.
Even though she had only been dead for 50 years, Edo Tensei still failed.
Because her soul was no longer in the Underworld.
When Kikyo asked about this earlier, Kagetsu actually tested it.
He tried performing Edo Tensei using Kikyo's blood.
At first, he believed it should fail because her soul had already reincarnated as Kagome Higurashi.
But then he remembered something strange about the timeline.
Kagome comes from 500 years in the future.
Meaning:
There is a 500-year gap between Kikyo's death and her reincarnation.
By that logic,
Kikyo's soul should still be in the Underworld right now.
Even the soul that revived her through Rinne Tensei actually came from Kagome's future soul.
So theoretically,
There should still be a Kikyo soul available in this timeline.
But when they tried Edo Tensei,
It still failed.
Kagetsu eventually concluded one of two possibilities:
Kikyo's soul had already reincarnated earlier than expected
Edo Tensei requires the original remains, which no longer exist
After all,Kikyo's body had been cremated together with the Shikon Jewel.
There was no usable medium.
Later experiments confirmed something else:
If someone had died more than about ten years ago, Edo Tensei would fail.
Meaning Kikyo's soul had already completed reincarnation.
Meanwhile on the battlefield,
Seeing the demon completely motionless, Natsume lazily swung her claws one last time.
Pale blue Susanoo chakra still flickered faintly around them.
Her crimson eyes sparkled with excitement.
Her tail swished happily.
"Stop playing."
Kagetsu's voice came from the Susanoo crystal above her head.
"I'm dismissing Susanoo."
"You should change back."
The Susanoo armor quickly faded away.
Natsume glanced regretfully at the disappearing power.
Then she withdrew her demonic aura.
Her giant leopard-cat body shrank rapidly.
Soon she returned to the form of a young girl,
"So?" Kagetsu asked with a smile.
"Did you enjoy it?"
"Super fun!"
Natsume nodded enthusiastically.
Her tail wagged nonstop.
"Next time you have something fun like this,call me!"
She glanced at the half-dead demon again with lingering excitement.
"Alright, I'm leaving!"
"Wait," Kagetsu called out.
"I haven't given you the sea fish I prepared."
"I'll eat it next time!"
She waved.
"I'm going to show off to Big Sister Leader!"
Before her voice faded, her body turned into white mist.
She returned through the Summoning Technique to the Leopard Cat territory.
Kagetsu sighed.
"That girl…"
He had wanted to ask about the Leopard Cat Clan's plan to resurrect their lord.
Kikyo approached with Tsubaki, Momiji, and Botan.
"Kagetsu," she said calmly.
"The item has been obtained."
"We can begin."
The Shadow Clone handed a scroll to the original Kagetsu.
Then it dispersed into smoke.
Kagetsu stepped toward the demon's giant body.
"I'm starting now."
"You all stand back."
Tsubaki's voice trembled.
"Kikyo… what exactly are you planning?"
She was genuinely afraid now.
Originally she thought releasing the demon would kill everyone.
But instead,
It had been completely crushed by Natsume.
Thinking back to her earlier arrogance made her face burn with embarrassment.
She almost wanted to say:
"I might have been… a little too loud earlier."
"I told you before," Kikyo said softly.
"I would find someone who could convince you."
Tsubaki forced a smile.
"That's not necessary anymore!"
"Kikyo,you already convinced me!"
"I've decided to inherit the temple properly and train Momiji and Botan seriously!"
But inside she had another plan.
She would simply stay here quietly.
After all,She had a demon inside her and a long lifespan.
She could easily wait until Kikyo and Kagetsu died of old age in a few decades.
Then she could do whatever she wanted again.
"Too late."
Kikyo lifted her chin slightly.
"That person is about to appear."
Tsubaki felt her heart skip.
She looked toward Kagetsu.
Kagetsu rapidly formed hand seals.
Then slammed his palm to the ground.
"Edo Tensei!"
Black sealing formulas spread across the earth.
A massive summoning array appeared beneath the demon's body.
Chakra poured into the formation.
A brilliant white light burst forth.
"AAAAAAAH,!!"
The demon screamed.
Its dying body struggled violently.
But gray-white dust surged upward like a tidal wave.
It wrapped around the demon completely.
The screams grew weaker.
Then vanished entirely.
The dust slowly dispersed.
Standing there now,
Was a white-haired elderly man wearing priest robes.
His face was aged, but dignified.
The moment she saw him,
Tsubaki froze.
Even though he looked older than she remembered,
She recognized him instantly.
Her pupils shrank.
Her voice trembled.
"Ma… Master?!"