"Kohaku… and the little girl he took?"
Hearing Kagome's words, Inuyasha's expression changed instantly.
"That's bad! That girl is a hostage Naraku captured to threaten Sesshomaru!"
"If we don't catch up to Kohaku, Sesshomaru—after being played by Naraku—will definitely kill him!"
"Sango, I'll go after Kohaku!" Sango, who had just arrived, turned pale and immediately prepared to move.
"Sango, Inuyasha and I will go!" Kagome suddenly stopped her. She quickly jumped onto Inuyasha's back and urged, "Hurry! There's still time—I can sense the Shikon Jewel shards nearby!"
Inuyasha didn't waste a second. Hoisting Kagome onto his back, he said firmly, "We'll go ahead. Don't worry—I'll stop Sesshomaru!"
"Inuyasha… I'm counting on you!" Sango said seriously, her eyes filled with worry.
"Yeah!"
Without hesitation, Inuyasha dashed off, following Kagome's guidance.
Sango watched them disappear into the distance, then gritted her teeth, raising her Hiraikotsu as she rode Kirara straight into the remaining demons.
The giant boomerang whistled through the air, shredding everything in its path—her anger turning demons into scattered flesh and fragments.
Not far away, Miroku was also fighting, sweeping demons aside with his staff. Seeing Sango's furious state, he instinctively shrank back and quietly sped up his movements.
Before long, all the demons left behind by Naraku were completely wiped out.
"Miss Kikyo, since you came with Inuyasha… does that mean you went to Naraku's castle? Did he escape again?"
Sango landed beside Retsu and Kikyo on Kirara, jumping down as she asked.
"We did encounter him in the castle," Kikyo nodded. Then she turned toward Miroku and asked directly,
"Monk Miroku—does your Wind Tunnel still exist?"
"What?" Sango froze, her face filled with disbelief.
"Does that mean… Naraku is dead?"
"He was heavily injured by Sesshomaru and Inuyasha," Kikyo explained.
"Then, while escaping, he was struck by a combined attack from Retsu and me. His presence disappeared… but so did the Shikon Jewel's aura. So we came to confirm with Miroku."
Hearing this, Sango looked at Miroku with hope in her eyes.
Miroku paused, his expression turning grave.
He slowly removed the seal from his Wind Tunnel and extended his hand toward empty space.
The Wind Tunnel appeared—
A powerful suction instantly stirred up a violent gust.
Seeing it still there, the hope on Sango's face vanished.
"…So he's still alive."
Kikyo had already expected this. She remained calm.
"Sango, go find your brother first," Retsu said, breaking the silence.
"Don't let Sesshomaru kill him."
"Right—Kohaku!" Miroku resealed the Wind Tunnel and added reassuringly,
"Even though we didn't kill Naraku this time, we've proven he can be defeated. Next time, we'll succeed."
"…Yeah."
Sango steadied herself, picked up Shippo, and mounted Kirara.
"Monk, get on—we're going after Inuyasha and Kagome!"
Miroku climbed on behind her, then turned to Retsu and Kikyo.
"Retsu, Miss Kikyo—we'll be going. Thank you for the information about Naraku."
"No problem." Retsu nodded.
He watched as Kirara soared into the sky, chasing after Inuyasha's direction, then turned to Kikyo.
"Let's head back too."
"Mm."
Kikyo nodded, summoning her shikigami Blackmaru. She mounted it, then turned back and extended her hand with a soft smile.
"It's almost dawn. Let's take our time going back."
"Alright."
Retsu took her hand, climbed up behind her, and wrapped an arm around her waist.
"Let's go. Back to the shrine."
Blackmaru carried them through the forest as the first light of dawn painted the distant mountains red.
Leaning against Retsu, Kikyo suddenly asked:
"Sesshomaru is different from Inuyasha. He's a full demon, not a half-demon… which means his mother is also a demon, right?"
"Exactly," Retsu replied. "Sesshomaru's mother is a great dog demon. Inuyasha's mother, on the other hand, was human."
"…So Inuyasha's father had two wives?" Kikyo was slightly surprised—she had never known much about his family.
"Yeah. The Dog General had two wives," Retsu explained casually.
"One was a dog demon of his own kind—Lady Lingyue. Sesshomaru is their son. The other was a human princess, Izayoi… Inuyasha's mother."
"I see…"
Kikyo nodded, then suddenly turned to him, her eyes carrying a hint of curiosity.
"Do you… also want two wives?"
Retsu didn't expect that question.
He looked down at her and smiled.
"If my wife is Miss Kikyo, then I promise—I'll only have one in this lifetime."
A trace of amusement flickered in Kikyo's eyes, but she didn't respond. Instead, she shifted the topic.
"That girl Naraku used to threaten Sesshomaru… Rin. She's human, right?"
After a pause, she asked curiously:
"I remember you said Sesshomaru dislikes humans. But from what I saw, he clearly cares about her. Why?"
Retsu chuckled.
"He only looked down on humans because he hadn't met someone he cared about yet."
He continued, smiling:
"Sesshomaru perfectly inherited the Dog General's bloodline. And don't forget—his father fell in love with a human too."
Kikyo blinked, a hint of curiosity lighting up her face.
"You mean… Sesshomaru and that girl, Rin?"
"It's pretty obvious," Retsu raised a brow.
"He talks about hating humans, yet ends up caring deeply about a seven-year-old human girl."
"…Seven?!" Kikyo exclaimed, a look of disbelief flashing across her face.
"…That's… perverted!"
Retsu laughed.
"For demons, waiting until she grows up is nothing—it's just the blink of an eye. It doesn't really matter."
Kikyo shook her head, still amazed.
"A proud demon who despises humans… falling for one—and a child at that. That's really…"
"Not strange at all," Retsu said calmly.
"That's just bloodline at work."
He added:
"His father fell for a human princess. So isn't it natural for Sesshomaru to do the same?"
After a brief pause, he grinned.
"Besides… dogs are humanity's best companions. Isn't it only natural for dog demons to like humans?"
Kikyo couldn't help but laugh.
Thinking it over, Inuyasha's entire family really did have deep ties with humans.
In the end, she sighed softly.
"…Fine. Maybe you're right."
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