At that moment, the entire tower was engulfed in a surging yōkai aura, so dense it made the air feel heavy. The ground trembled faintly beneath their feet.
"The yōkai is about to break free," Kikyo said, gripping her longbow tightly. She turned to Uchiha Kasage, her voice steady but tense. "I'll support you from a distance. The direct fight is yours."
"Mm." Kasage nodded—but just as he was about to activate his Mangekyō Sharingan, his eyes flickered with a different idea. A faint, sly smile curved his lips.
"This time… let's have someone else do the heavy lifting."
Before Kikyo could react, he bit his thumb, smeared blood across his palm, and swiftly formed hand seals before slamming it onto the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
A black summoning array spread instantly beneath him. With a loud *bang*, white smoke burst outward—
A small figure appeared within it.
"Kasage, why did you call me?" a clear, youthful voice rang out even before the smoke cleared, filled with curiosity.
"I figured you might be bored," Kasage said casually, raising his chin toward the tower. "So I found you an opponent."
Xia Lan blinked, then looked toward Kikyo, tilting her head.
"The opponent… is this shrine maiden?"
"No." Kasage shook his head lightly. "This is Kikyo—the shrine maiden I told you about before."
Then he turned to Kikyo.
"And this is Xia Lan. A leopard cat yōkai—from the same lineage as Tōran, Shūran, Karen, and Shunran. She's under a spiritual contract with me."
Kikyo studied her carefully. Xia Lan looked no older than ten—a small, seemingly harmless child. Still, Kikyo could sense the yōkai energy hidden beneath that appearance.
"I am Kikyo," she said politely.
"Oh! Hello, I'm Xia Lan!" Xia Lan smiled brightly—then suddenly froze. Her eyes widened in shock as she stared at Kikyo.
"Wait—Kikyo? The priestess who guarded the Shikon Jewel fifty years ago?!" She whipped her head toward Kasage. "Didn't you say she was dead?!"
"I did die once," Kikyo replied calmly.
Kasage patted his chest with a faint smirk.
"And now she's back. Don't you notice anything different about me?"
"Different…?" Xia Lan leaned in closer, sniffing him carefully. A moment later, her eyes lit up.
"You don't smell like a dead person anymore!" she exclaimed. "You're alive—completely alive!"
"That's right." Kasage nodded, clearly satisfied. "I used some methods to bring her back."
"Really resurrected…?" Xia Lan muttered in disbelief, then frowned. "But didn't you say reviving someone with the Shikon Jewel is dangerous?"
"It is," Kasage admitted. "There's always a cost. But… someone kind took that burden for us."
Xia Lan's expression softened instantly.
"That's amazing! Kasage, congratulations!"
She beamed, her eyes curving into crescents.
"And… thank you to that kind person, too."
Kikyo couldn't help but smile faintly.
"Yes… I owe them my thanks as well."
Xia Lan then glanced toward Tsubaki, frowning slightly.
"So… who exactly am I fighting? It's not this white-haired woman, right?"
Before anyone could answer—
**BOOM!**
A deafening explosion shattered the moment.
The Pagoda of Many Treasures collapsed in a storm of debris. From the ruins, a massive crimson claw burst forth, digging into the earth. A monstrous figure followed—towering nearly ten meters tall, with jagged horns, blood-red eyes, and a mouth full of savage fangs.
A suffocating yōkai aura flooded the area.
Kasage pointed forward calmly.
"There. That's your opponent."
Xia Lan slowly turned her head… then looked up.
Her entire body stiffened.
"…Me?" she said weakly. "You want *me* to fight that thing?"
"That's right," Kasage replied without hesitation. "It was just unsealed. Go give it a good beating—don't kill it. I still need it alive."
"Alive?!" Xia Lan exploded, instantly pouncing at him mid-air, claws flailing. "Are you insane?! That thing could squash me with one hand!"
Kasage calmly caught her by the back of her collar, lifting her effortlessly.
"Relax. I'll support you. You won't lose a single hair."
"…Really?" she asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes.
"I promise," he said simply.
At that moment—
"ROOOAR!!"
The yōkai fully emerged, its voice shaking the ground.
"You dared seal me away?! Unforgivable! I'll tear you all apart!"
It charged forward, each step cracking the earth beneath it.
"Xia Lan—transform!" Kasage shouted, tossing her forward.
"Kasage!! If you're lying, I'll never forgive you!!"
Mid-air, Xia Lan's yōkai energy surged violently. Her eyes turned crimson as her body expanded rapidly—
In an instant, she transformed into a massive leopard cat, her fur blazing red with black spots, her size rivaling the monstrous yōkai itself.
"Awooo—!"
With a thunderous roar, she lunged forward.
At the same time, Kasage vanished—reappearing atop her head in a flash.
Feeling his presence, Xia Lan steadied herself. Confidence surged through her as she raised her massive claws and struck down at the yōkai's head.
"Hah! A mere cat yōkai?" the creature sneered, completely disregarding her attack. "Pathetic!"
It raised its own massive claw, slicing through the air with deadly force—aimed straight for her exposed belly.
Xia Lan instinctively hesitated—
"Don't dodge!" Kasage's voice rang out sharply. "Attack with everything. You won't be hurt!"
Hearing him, she gritted her teeth.
"Fine—trusting you this once!"
Her power surged. Flames ignited around her claws—bright orange-red, blazing with intense heat—as she brought them crashing down.
At that exact moment, Kasage's Mangekyō Sharingan spun violently.
"Susanoo!"
A pale blue aura erupted into existence—instantly enveloping Xia Lan.
It didn't fully manifest, but instead fused with her form.
*Crack!*
Armor formed over her body—solid, radiant, and unbreakable. A fierce helmet covered her head, her eyes glowing crimson beneath it.
Kasage stood within a crystalline structure on her forehead, controlling everything.
"…Not bad," he murmured, a faint smile forming. "Even without something like the Nine-Tails… using Susanoo this way works just fine."
Originally, he had considered manifesting a full upper-body Susanoo to crush the yōkai outright—like the legends of Uchiha Madara.
But that would've been too overwhelming.
This way—
The fight would be far more interesting.