"Don't chase him,Naraku's already escaped."
The chakra tachi beneath Kagetsu's feet dissolved into motes of light as he landed smoothly, one arm still wrapped around Kikyo. Seeing Inuyasha and the others about to pursue, he spoke up, cutting them off.
"Tch… that bastard!" Inuyasha skidded to a halt, fists clenched, glaring in the direction Naraku had vanished.
"He's stronger now," Kagetsu said calmly. "Even if you catch up, you won't win."
"Like hell I won't!" Inuyasha snapped, gripping the hilt of Tessaiga. "That coward only knows how to run. Next time, I'll cut him down for good!"
"Mm. Sure." Kagetsu nodded absentmindedly.
"…What's that supposed to mean?!" Inuyasha bristled instantly.
"Inuyasha," Kagome tugged at his sleeve, trying to calm him.
Before the argument could escalate, Kikyo's voice cut through the tension.
"The soul of the Saint Hakushin is still bound to his mummy," she said quietly. "If we leave him like this, his obsession will only deepen… until he fully becomes a demon."
That reminder brought everyone back to reality.
"…Right. That monk," Inuyasha muttered.
"I've already found him," Kikyo continued.
One of her soul collectors drifted in front of her, circling once before gliding away into the distance.
Kikyo stepped forward. "This way."
Kagetsu followed without hesitation, and the others quickly trailed behind.
Before long, they found him.
Amid the scattered rubble, the Saint Hakushin sat upright on a broken slab of stone. His shriveled body looked no different from a corpse left to rot,skin clinging tightly to bone, hollow sockets staring into nothingness.
"Priestess… we meet again."
From those empty sockets, a pair of orange-yellow eyes slowly emerged, fixing on Kikyo.
Kagome shuddered and hid behind Inuyasha, clutching his arm. "He… he looks terrifying…"
Even Sango stiffened, instinctively stepping closer to Miroku.
"…So this is the Saint Hakushin?" Inuyasha frowned, openly staring. "He really is just a dried-up monk,and he's still talking."
Thump!
Miroku's staff struck him squarely on the head.
"Show some respect! That is a saint!"
The Saint Hakushin paid them no mind. His gaze drifted to Kagetsu.
"I did not expect one such as you… to possess the power to drive Naraku away."
Kikyo stepped forward, her expression calm but tinged with compassion.
"Naraku has fled. Will you continue to linger in this world like this?"
"Have you come… to destroy me?" the Saint Hakushin asked, his tone devoid of emotion.
"I want you to let go," Kikyo said softly. "To free yourself from this obsession… and truly find peace."
A flicker of something passed through those hollow eyes,bitterness, sorrow… regret.
"How ironic…" he murmured. "A man who preached salvation to others… died lost and afraid."
His voice trembled faintly.
"In life, I saved countless people. In the end, I was buried alive,praised as a living Buddha."
"…Yet as the earth closed in around me, I felt only fear."
The air grew heavy.
"I regretted… I clung to life… I feared the darkness."
His voice dropped to a whisper.
"I was never a saint."
Silence fell over the group.
Kikyo's gaze softened.
"So Naraku found that darkness… and awakened it," she said gently. "But is this truly what you wanted?"
The Saint Hakushin did not answer.
"Even if you protect this sacred place," Kikyo continued, "your soul will never find peace like this."
She stepped forward slightly, her voice steady.
"No one is free from doubt. No one is without impurity."
"You don't need to be perfect."
"…I had to be," he replied, voice heavy. "That was the path I chose."
Kikyo paused.
"…I understand," she said quietly. "I was the same."
Inuyasha froze.
Kagome and the others fell silent as well.
For a brief moment, they could see it,Kikyo as she once was. Alone. Burdened. Never allowed to falter.
Then,
A warm hand clasped hers.
Kikyo looked up.
Kagetsu smiled at her,steady, reassuring.
The heaviness in her eyes melted instantly, replaced by quiet resolve.
She turned back to the Saint Hakushin.
"People lose their way," she said firmly. "That's exactly why we strive to rise above it."
"There is no shame in fearing death… or cherishing life."
The Saint Hakushin trembled.
"…Do you intend to save me?" he asked.
"I can't save you," Kikyo replied, shaking her head. "Only you can choose that."
She met his gaze.
"But tell me,what is it you truly regret?"
The question struck deep.
"…What… do I regret…?"
His pupils shrank, his entire body trembling as if something long buried was beginning to surface.
Kikyo instinctively stepped forward,
,but Kagetsu caught her wrist.
"I'll handle this," he said quietly.
She looked at him, surprised,but he simply shook his head.
Then he stepped forward.
The Saint Hakushin slowly raised his head.
Their eyes met.
Scarlet light ignited.
The Mangekyō Sharingan spun.
"Tsukuyomi."