Watching the tsunami formed by yōkai of every possible size and color, all of which unexpectedly poured out from inside Naraku's sleeve, the tiny figure standing beneath it could only stare with wide eyes in shock.
That tiny figure compared to the absurdly disproportionate number of yōkai was none other than Asahiko, who, for a few moments, was unable to even react until the "wave" was already upon him, blotting out his vision.
"My... God."
Accompanied by the dull roar that could easily be heard along the shores of a vast sea as waves crashed against the coast, the tsunami composed of countless yōkai slammed into the ground, spreading throughout the surroundings and flooding every inch of the village with their twisted forms.
Within that flood of distorted bodies, fangs, and indescribable shapes was also Asahiko, who had failed to escape in time because of his surprise. Worst of all for him, the yōkai seemed capable of sensing the "purity of his bloodline," throwing themselves at him with an unrestrained craving for his flesh and blood.
"What a childish trick... Tsk."
Lowering the bow she had already drawn in preparation to fire after witnessing everything that had happened, Kikyo called both Kochō and Asuka back to her, for at some point a disgusting dark purple miasma had begun spreading throughout the area.
It was obviously a technique belonging to Naraku, who, satisfied with having reshaped the battlefield to his liking, prepared to attack. However, at that very instant, a powerful crimson trail shot toward the heavens.
Every trace of miasma touched by that crimson streak was erased, while at the same time the horrified screams of the yōkai below spread in every direction, drawing everyone's attention.
"First a disgusting worm tried to eat me... And now this cannon-fodder trash wants to do the same?!"
Swinging, Clouded Fang downward after cursing everyone nearby, Asahiko reshaped the crimson energy of the streak once more, launching it forward in the form of a crescent moon that mercilessly swept away everything in its path.
*¡Booooom!*
Finally exploding in a powerful crimson flash after exhausting all of its energy, Asahiko's slash cleared away Naraku's miasma before the latter could even make use of it, restoring the battlefield to how it had looked at the very beginning.
"Impressive, Asahiko. A display worthy of a true demon... Although that sword..."
"No, don't even think about it. I've already got enough trouble with the two albino brothers without you joining the party because of my sword too."
"Hahaha, saying it like that only makes me even more interested, Asahiko. Can't you see we're in the middle of a conversation?"
Using the fleshy, hairy body of a nearby yōkai to stop the priestess's incoming arrow, Naraku truly seemed to have every yōkai present under his absolute control. Waving his hand toward Kikyo, another dense mass of yōkai flew toward her.
Naturally, he could not personally harm Kikyo because Onigumo's heart was still beating within his chest, but only his real body was directly bound by that restriction. If he used a borrowed knife instead... hahaha, anything was possible, so long as he didn't dirty his own hands.
Of course, why was Kikyo still "alive" then? Simple, she was absurdly strong for an ordinary human, so much so that even that swarm of yōkai was effortlessly stopped by the barrier created by her shikigami.
"Hmph, a bunch of ignorant brutes."
"Well said, Sister Kochō!"
"Do it."
"Yes, Lady Kikyo! ×2"
Receiving the order both verbally and mentally, Kochō and Asuka raised their hands forward, causing the circular barrier that had previously only protected Kikyo to gradually expand in every direction.
As it spread, every yōkai touching the barrier was purified almost instantly, clearing away the obstacles that had concealed Kikyo's view and granting her a perfect shot at Naraku.
Naturally, she did not waste the opportunity. The moment the opening appeared, she immediately fired the arrow she had already had drawn for quite some time, the projectile shining like a pink comet as it crossed the sky.
"Protect me."
Pointing at the arrow bathed in an intense pink glow that was flying toward him, Naraku calmly issued the order, and every yōkai below that was still capable of moving threw itself in front of him.
That wall of flesh could truly do little against Kikyo's fully charged arrow. Some of the yōkai were purified before the arrow even physically struck them, but those few precious microseconds were enough for Naraku to escape.
To put it nicely, he detonated the miasma beneath his feet to gain a burst of speed. In reality, however, all he managed to do was blow up the miasma beneath himself and send his own body flying sideways like a soaked rag.
"Heh, we're a team of two~"
Speaking from right behind Naraku, who was still in midair after his "evasive maneuver", Asahiko lunges at him like a bird of prey and plunges his sword into Naraku's back.
That final strike redirected both of them toward the ground below, where they crashed violently, raising a dense cloud of dust that was soon dispersed by a crimson flash.
*Boooom*
The powerful crimson streak, naturally created by Clouded Fang, caused the once-solid ground to crack like glass, spreading countless fissures throughout the area and erasing every trace of life at the center of the impact.
Of course, that only applied to the enemy, for Asahiko remained perfectly unharmed at the center of the devastation. In fact, he was even smiling as he gave Kikyo a thumbs-up.
"Done! He was literally vaporized by my attack!"
[I think- ]
"Be quiet, Souga. When I say 'proud dragon,' then you can wag your tail."
Silencing Souga by throwing a hidden insult at him that left him pondering for a few moments, Asahiko looked around and finally realized something… Throughout the entire battle, both the bowl and Naraku's other puppet had disappeared!
Yes, the village had also been completely destroyed, the "bald man" had escaped, and a group of yōkai was still roaming nearby... But none of that was nearly as important as what had just happened!
"Ki-Kikyo..."
"Relax. The puppet was destroyed during the battle, and the bowl was taken by that man. He's currently running through the nearby forest."
"How do you know that?"
"Obviously... a hunch. The bowl contains a fragment. I can feel it perfectly from this distance, without any margin of error."
Starting off in a teasing tone before ultimately backing down because Asahiko actually seemed to believe her, Kikyo simply told him the truth while gazing toward the distant forest.
From where she stood, she could sense the fragment's movements down to the smallest detail. She could even shoot it with her longbow and… Yes. Why not?
Drawing the string of her crimson bow into the shape of a perfect full moon, Kikyo narrowed her brown eyes and focused on her target. During that brief preparation she had already calculated the trajectory, the wind direction, and the arrow's drop, all in less than a second.
"Wouldn't it be better if-"
"Be quiet, Asahiko. I'm thinking."
"Sorry..."
"Phew."
Releasing the breath she had been holding, something completely unnecessary considering she was undead and did not even need to breathe, Kikyo released her arrow that very instant.
Ten, one hundred, five hundred meters... The arrow crossed the distance within seconds, vanishing from both of their sight, only to become the nightmare of a certain individual as it struck him in the back and threw him to the ground.
"Done."
"Are you kidding? That forest is almost... What, five hundred or eight hundred meters away?"
"Since when do I joke?"
"Well, since... Hahahaha, we'd better go find that bowl!"
Closing his mouth after noticing Kikyo's piercing gaze, she was, incidentally, still holding her bow, strangely with another arrow already knocked, Asahiko wiped the nonexistent sweat from his face before heading toward the forest.
You had to know when to take a step back, just like Naraku; he came, caused a disaster, and left…Without taking anything? No, he was far too clever for that.. The bowl!
Accelerating from zero to one hundred in an instant without the slightest discomfort, blessed were the advantages of being a demon, Asahiko ventured deeper into the forest and, thanks to his keen sense of smell, quickly found his target.
"Wow... It looks like before dying he became an alchemist or something."
Laughing at his own terrible joke, he picked up the bowl lying beside the emaciated bald man, who had ultimately been nothing more than a minor nuisance throughout the entire affair.
Incidentally, the joke came from the fact that the moss-covered stone bowl had now become a wooden one, which Asahiko toyed with for a while until Kikyo finally arrived.
"So he really did switch the bowls at some point."
"But he left the fragment behind. And yes, I know you would've noticed immediately if he'd taken it with him... although if none of this was really about the fragments..."
"It was all about the bowl. The fragment was always embedded in its surface; it was never truly under that man's control. It must be some sort of artifact, most likely a sacred one. Naraku was trying to corrupt it using the Pearl power."
Catching the dark pink fragment that Asahiko tossed toward her, Kikyo enclosed it within her pale hands, and little by little a pure pink glow emerged from between her slender fingers.
Satisfied with herself after managing to purify the fragment, surely not merely because she had fulfilled her duty as a priestess, Kikyo tossed it back to Asahiko, leaving him slightly stunned.
"Naraku also trusts no one, not even his own puppets, much less the yōkai that serve him. It's preferable to lose a fragment than to increase the power of a potential rival."
"But isn't he the one controlling the puppets?"
"Strictly speaking, yes... But there are many ways to do so. Considering how much autonomy those things possess, I wouldn't be surprised if he had split his own consciousness... Or did something even worse."
"Haa... Great. Besides being a stalker, Naraku is paranoid about himself too. Perfect."
Shaking his head at so many twists and turns, Asahiko merged the newly purified fragment with the others, and a small current of energy flowed through his body.
Little by little, he was drawing closer to obtaining his third tail, something that would prove extremely useful after the beating Sesshōmaru had given him.