Running among the twisted trees while dodging the roots thanks to what can only be called a "magical" sixth sense, Kagome hides behind the trunk of a nearby tree and tries to steady her breathing.
Which achieved little to no success, since before she could even control her breathing rhythm, several arrows strike the tree's bark and make her hair stand on end.
"You are disappointing, and you call yourself my reincarnation?"
Emerging from the thick fog that crawls through every corner and crevice of the forest, a young woman dressed as a priestess once again aims her longbow at the tree.
She has her long black hair loose from any form of restraint, making it dance in the wind and allowing a few strands to cover her face… Which frankly makes her look a bit terrifying.
"I am Kagome Higurashi! I never called myself your reincarnation, everyone else says it as if it were so. Ah!"
Losing all the courage that made her stick her head out from behind the tree, Kagome dodges the arrow again by throwing herself to the ground and, without caring about decorum, rolls across the dirt before running off again.
At this point it was almost obvious that Kikyo was playing with her, in a truly "dark" way if one has to admit it, but it is only thanks to that that Kagome is still alive.
"Hmm…? So they've saved Inuyasha too"
Stopping what can only be called a hunt for a moment, Kikyo pulls from inside her clothing a gray rose, withered and almost completely dried.
This was obviously the flower Asahiko had given her, although unlike the previous time, when she looked at it after destroying Naraku's puppet, now it is on the verge of death… Completely drained of any trace of power.
"You're right, Asahiko just saved him… Just like everyone else. So maybe it's time to stop playing games, Kikyo"
"Annoying nuisance"
"Hahaha, I really want to see what brought you to that extreme, K—"
Piercing the head of what is obviously another of Naraku's puppets, but in the shape of a bird perched on a branch, Kikyo moves her pale hand before several shikigami spread throughout the surroundings.
They track Kagome, and in less time than it takes a rooster to crow, they already had her in their grasp without her being able to resist. Yes, it's all because she hadn't been able to go very far, whether due to accumulated exhaustion, or fear of being struck from behind by an arrow.
"Enough, let me go!"
Kicking like a fish out of water, Kagome writhes and tries to escape from the shikigami without success, creating an amusing image for those watching.
"Stop whining, you're really annoying"
"Oh, forgive me, but you're not the one to talk, because I'm the one who is about to die… So I'll scream all I want and more!"
"Do it if you wish, since no one is going to hear you anyway"
Revealing her strangely calm eyes despite all the "madness" she has committed, Kikyo extends her hand toward Kagome and rummages through her clothes until she takes the jewel shards she has in her possession.
Surprisingly, there were quite a few more than those Asahiko and Kikyo had, perhaps even forming a sixth of the total Pearl of Shikon, although what surprises the priestess most is their light pink color.
"Give them back, they're mine and Inuyasha's! We've suffered too much for you to come and steal them!"
"Originally the Pearl of Shikon was mine, and although now I have no interest in it, that will never change"
"You are… You are… So arrogant, egocentric, and self-victimizing, great priestess Kikyo!"
Taking several breaths in rapid succession, Kagome switches to her "demon mode" and begins throwing truths in Kikyo's face, strongly reminiscent of when the latter gets angry.
"You—"
"You come and go whenever you want without ever speaking clearly! Do you think this problem with Naraku is only yours? No, we've all suffered it! Sango with her younger brother, Miroku because of his curse, Inuyasha due to what happened fifty years ago… And you now y—"
"Enough, shut your mouth already!"
Stepping back a few paces while a white glow covers her entire body, Kikyo clearly loses control for a moment, causing her firm grip over her souls to waver and a pink glow to emerge from her body.
Well, actually it wasn't from her body itself, but rather it comes from the shard embedded within her, which seems to be reacting to Kagome's will and gradually making her weaker.
Much of the latter is due to it beginning to purify the negative energy inside Kikyo's body, the same which was generated by the previously contaminated shard. Yes, an internal and external attack at the same time.
"No, I won't, you must. Wait, what's happening to you!"
"The shard, why?… You are nothing special"
"Hey! I… No, that doesn't matter, let me go, you need help"
Seeing Kikyo fall to the ground with her body trembling, Kagome tries to offer a helping hand, but is quickly stopped by the shikigami surrounding her body.
The cause of the problem wanted to help solve it, which is quite amusing, at least for Kikyo who can feel how her "main soul," a piece of Kagome's, tries to separate from her.
Obviously that was impossible to ignore, it is the basis of everything that is "Kikyo," losing that soul would be losing everything… Memories, feelings, desires… Everything!
So in a last moment, both desperate and contemplative, Kikyo takes the withered flower beneath her clothes and eats it directly. It was sheer madness to use it as a battery, if there had been even a trace of the negativity typical of yokai inside it only God could have saved her, but no… Her madness worked, although it came with an extra "gift."
"No, I… What did I do? No, what did that stupid illusion do!"
"Kikyo, you are—"
"Shut up, stop talking already!"
Losing the composure and indifference that had protected her until now, Kikyo backs away while looking around in a paranoid manner, all while her face changes color several times in succession.
She no longer cares much about the miracle she just carried out, having survived something like eating a piece of energy from a yokai, but rather… What the hell did that illusion do!
"Kagome!"
"Miss Kagome, where are you!"
"Those… Those are Kikyo 's shikigami!"
Along with the various shouts that can be heard from beyond the fog, Kikyo lifts her head and an unfamiliar tremor runs through her body. What she felt was not fear, that emotion she can recognize easily, but something… Warm and uncomfortable, that makes her want to run.
And so she did!. She did not hesitate, she ordered the shikigami to release Kagome and then surrounded herself with them, disappearing from the place before anyone could see her or even stop her.
After her absurd and very abrupt departure, the entire group of Inuyasha along with Asahiko arrive at Kagome, surrounding her and looking around.
"Wasn't Kikyo here?"
"She was… But a few seconds ago she disappeared. Besides, your attention is on the wrong side, Inuyasha"
Doubting himself, Asahiko composes himself and smiles at his half-animal companion, then points toward Kagome who has a dark expression.
"Ka, ka… Kagome?"
"Inuyasha… Down! Down, down, down!"
"Agh, why is it— Ah!"
Slamming poor Inuyasha into the ground several times, thanks to her ability to control the magical necklace hanging from his neck, Kagome finally calms down and then goes to join Sango and Shippo.
"You're an idiot, Inuyasha. How can you talk about the priestess Kikyo in front of Kagome, and then see her like that… Clearly something happened between the two of them"
"I support the perverted monk, you are an absolute idiot"
"Shut up and speak clearly! Agh!"
Being buried into the ground again due to his lack of understanding and because Kagome's anger remains strong, Inuyasha finally crawls out of the hole with Miroku's help.
"Look at her closely, Inuyasha. Those cuts and bruises weren't done by her, and considering she was with the priestess Kikyo until now… It all—"
"Kagome!"
"Relax, as they say; You raise them and God brings them together"
"Yes… Our boy has grown up"
Patting each other's shoulders, Asahiko and Miroku watch as Inuyasha looks Kagome up and down, although he ends up being buried in the ground again for going too far.
"What do you plan to do now, Asahiko? It may be too soon to say, but the priestess Kikyo does not seem to be under Naraku's control…"
"Haa… That woman is an enigma. But I don't think she is on Naraku's side, even if they are using each other"
"Ah! Now that Asahiko says that, Kikyo took the shards!"
"There you have it"
Letting out the sigh he didn't even know he was holding, Asahiko puts on a "told you so" smile before walking toward Inuyasha and Kagome.
"Damn, is she thinking of giving the shards to Naraku?!"
"Probably, although only God knows why she does it. Even so, how many were there, eight or nine shards?"
"I don't remember… Maybe a sixth of the jewel?"
"Damn, she really is crazy"
…Elsewhere…
Finally with that emotion out of her sight, at least for now, Kikyo crosses the forest easily thanks to being able to fly above its surface with her shikigami.
Obviously the direction she is heading is not random, but she is returning to the place where Naraku is currently hiding. Such a place was a small wooden cabin in the middle of the forest, which has an energy field around it, and could even be called warm if a miasma as dark as tar were not coming out of it.
"Disappointing"
Letting out cold words, perhaps remembering how Naraku had said he obtained the technique, Kikyo passes through the energy field without even ruffling her hair.
With that done, and with no other obstacle in her path, she opens the sliding door and returns to the place she left that very night.
"I knew it wouldn't keep you away for too long, but this… was a bit unexpected"
"It was no different from a game, you really need to improve"
"Hahaha, good, good, I see you've returned to being the same as always, Kikyo"
Clapping at Kikyo while looking her up and down, Naraku continues acting arrogantly despite the unconscious nervous tics in his expression, as if everything were still under his control.
"More than you think, but a deal is a deal, so here are the jewel shards"
"You're handing them to me just like that?"
"Of course, I've thought about it and you are the one who needs them the most. The monster Naraku, or better yet… Naraku, the half-beast man"
Throwing the jewel shards toward Naraku, who is surrounded by suffocating miasma, a clear display of his negative emotions, Kikyo smiles with a certain satisfaction.
"Do you dare call me that even now?"
"Why wouldn't I? Or do you think you are a demon just because you fused your body with an amalgam of yokai, Onigumo"
"Grr… Watch your words, Kikyo"
Grinding his teeth, Naraku thickens the miasma in the room, but it recoils trembling before the pink glow that suddenly emanates from Kikyo.
"I can still feel your human origin, Naraku. Well hidden, almost nonexistent, but it is still there underneath… The heart of Onigumo, a small and cowardly bandit"
"Enough! Leave now before I lose my patience!"
"Hahaha, see you, Naraku. It was not a pleasure working with you"
Leaving with absolute victory in this verbal clash, Kikyo looks at the sky beginning to brighten and a smile pulls at her lips.
It had been a fruitful night for her, whether it was discovering the mysterious origin of Asahiko, the truth that Naraku is still controlled by Onigumo's heart, or that Inuyasha is a damn indecisive idiot.