Together with the sudden dark clouds that devour the night illuminated only by the stars, since it is a new moon night and the firmament is without its principal jewel, an ecological disaster is being carried out in the forest.
Ancient trees that easily reach one or two hundred years of age are cut down without mercy, causing their thick trunks to raise great clouds of dust upon touching the ground and making the forest tremble from the impact.
"Where... Where is it?!"
Swinging once again the sword that seems glued to the flesh of his hand, a hunched humanoid figure lets out an almost monstrous scream toward the cloud-covered sky.
That figure was a bearded man with a completely distorted expression. Two small horns grew from his forehead, and a necklace of human skulls hung from his thick neck, fitting for his height of two meters.
He was obviously not a good person in the slightest, and he also seemed half-crazy if one considered how he spoke to his sword and muttered to himself.
"Hehehe, so it's over there, Tokijin?"
Pressing his ear against the blade of the sword called Tokijin, as if expecting an answer, Kaijinbo laughs maniacally once again and begins walking forward.
During his advance, rocks are cut apart, trees are sliced into pieces, and every yokai unfortunate enough to cross his path is killed, making it clear that Kaijinbo has a pathological need to cut things.
Thanks to everything mentioned above, the path before him becomes a walk in the park, so much so that after a few minutes he manages to leave the forest and enter a vast green plain, ending up face to face with a single person.
"You are... Surprisingly human?"
Looking carefully at Kaijinbo's appearance from top to bottom, the only living being standing on the vast plain previously bathed in starlight strokes his pale chin, narrows his eyes, and then shakes his head without taking any action.
Even so, his penetrating and cold gaze alone leaves Kaijinbo speechless for several seconds, until his sword soon begins to pulse like a heart pumping blood. That brings him back to reality, though not before leaving him drenched in cold sweat, especially when the young man from before suddenly appears beside him.
The latter is clearly surprised by Kaijinbo's sudden reaction. He had obviously assumed him dead already, and the bloodied arm in his hand was proof of that.
"My God, this thing about escaping my illusions is starting to become a—"
"AAAHHHGG!"
"Uh... If you had stayed inside the illusion, it wouldn't be hurting, you know?"
Throwing Kaijinbo's severed arm aside as if it were trash, the golden-haired young man distances himself from the pain inflicted upon the other with a few insensitive words, seeming for a few seconds like a true psychopath in the making.
Of course, that was not actually the case. Asahiko had aimed for Kaijinbo's neck in search of a clean and lethal strike, basically wanting to end the battle before it even began, but his plan had been ruined by that strange sword.
Which was actually the true cause of poor Kaijinbo's current pain. If it had not interfered, everything would already be over and this moment's suffering would not exist! Yes, perhaps Asahiko's thoughts are a little self-centered, much like a certain black-haired priestess.
"Roar, Tokijin!"
Roaring far more than the sword itself, Kaijinbo unleashes a downward slash at the human figure before him, and a trail of white lightning follows the blade, releasing a sound like the cry of a thousand birds along with a dangerous glow.
Surprised by the sudden attack, but taking advantage of the fact that it clearly has little area of effect and is far too straightforward, Asahiko slides backward with quick steps and then places one hand over his eyes.
That turns out to be a good idea, because the lightning soon strikes the ground and creates an enormous scorched scar, sending a huge cloud of dirty dust into both the night sky and the surrounding area.
"Nice sword you've go—"
"Enough! I don't have time for— Yes, yes Tokijin, I can smell the lingering scent of that disgusting half-demon too... Inuyasha is nearby!"
Going from wanting to curse Asahiko to talking to himself, Kaijinbo sniffs the air with his pig-like nose and begins completely ignoring the person standing before him despite the danger he represents.
That greatly angers Asahiko, but not merely because he is being ignored. It is because once again the source of the problem is Inuyasha; that damn idiot is not even here right now and is still creating problems!
With those thoughts and plenty of "righteous" fury flowing through his veins because of the "evil" creature before him, Asahiko propels himself forward and almost instantly appears in front of the still-confused Kaijinbo; grabbing him by the face, slamming him into the ground, and even having time to raise his hand.
Right there, in that raised hand, a spear of semi-solid flames is quickly created, and its tip twists until it takes the shape of a drill. Satisfied with it, Asahiko grips it tightly and instantly drives it into the back of the fallen Kaijinbo.
"Aghhh!"
"So you want Inuyasha, huh? Too bad, he was the first one to leave... More or less forced to, but the important thing is that he's no longer here."
"To... Ki... JIN!"
Shouting into the green grass being forced into his mouth, Kaijinbo tightens the hand holding Tokijin and a malevolent aura spreads through the surroundings, rapidly draining the vitality from both the grass and the earth nearby.
But it does not remain merely a visual effect. That sinister energy quickly transitions into a strange solid state and forcibly blasts Asahiko off his back.
Now free from all pressure, the flame spear is also expelled from his back. Kaijinbo swings toward Asahiko's direction, and a trail of blue lightning flies after it with a slight delay.
"Tsk, more lightning?"
Twisting his expression while trying to adjust his position, Asahiko raises a hand toward the incoming attack and a wave of golden flames erupts outward in a cone shape, intercepting what appears to be a lightning attack.
*Boom*
Both attacks scatter across the surroundings in a dance of blue and golden lights, and a dense cloud of dust takes their place, obscuring the vision of both combatants.
The first to act upon seeing this is Kaijinbo, who explodes forward with overwhelming physical power, crossing through the dust cloud and slashing with Tokijin—his sword—toward what appears to be Asahiko's indistinct figure.
What emerges from the recently cut figure is not blood but liquid golden flames overflowing with insidious illusions, all of which fall toward Kaijinbo.
"Behind me? Oh no, perhaps above? Or maybe I'm... to the sides?"
Speaking from multiple directions while the dust cloud serves as cover, and at the same time as the golden flames block Kaijinbo's path to either side, a golden shadow lunges at his unprotected back.
The attack is extremely simple yet lethal, a strike devoid of elegance or flourish that instantly pierces Kaijinbo's still-beating heart, causing him to open his eyes wide and collapse onto the dirt.
Along with that, the dust cloud begins to disperse and Asahiko stares at him with his blue eyes, controlling the golden flames overflowing with insidious illusions as they crawl toward Kaijinbo's body.
"...No reaction? I suppose I was expecting too much from him."
Mocking the fallen man while keeping his guard up, Asahiko watches as the flames continue "burning" over Kaijinbo. He then turns his blue eyes toward the surroundings before becoming slightly surprised by the absence of Miroku and Sango.
Either one of them should have returned by now as support, since they had only been securing Inuyasha and were supposed to come back to help. Yes, the dog boy had wanted to fight even in his weakened state, so they had to drag him away when they sensed Tokijin's malevolent aura.
"Ahh, damn Inuyasha. I'm sure he did something. Huh? You've got to be kidding."
Stopping his muttering due to the scene unfolding before him; Kaijinbo had risen back to his feet with the flames still "burning" across him, gripping his sword and smiling sinisterly. Asahiko could only sigh at the upcoming next round.
...Elsewhere...
"Where could Lord Jaken and Lord Sesshōmaru have gone?"
Placing a skinny finger beneath her pale chin, Rin, Sesshōmaru's young companion alongside Jaken, closes her eyes for a few moments to enter deep thought and, after getting tired of thinking, tosses another branch into the campfire.
*Crack* *Crack* *Crack*
The shift in weight distribution causes the flames to stir for a few seconds, and thanks to that the surroundings of the dark forest are briefly illuminated. In that short moment of light, a pair of shadows can be seen approaching.
"That damn scoundrel Kaijinbo! He disappeared with the sword and even every trace of him has vanished!"
Shouting so loudly that it sounds as though he has a megaphone attached to his mouth, one of the shadows walks into the light and reveals himself as Jaken, a small green imp carrying a staff with two carved faces at its top.
On the other hand, and obviously much quieter than the little imp, Sesshōmaru also steps into the light with an utterly cold expression.
"Lord Sesshōmaru has returned!"
"Do not move anymore, Rin!"
Seeing Rin freeze in place at his words, Sesshōmaru instantly blurs thanks to his superior physical abilities, reaching the edge of the forest. With a flick of his wrist, every tree within a three-meter radius is cut in half.
None of those severed trees ever reach the ground. Instead, a powerful current of wind lifts them upward and then lowers them neatly into a pile.
Above that pile, clearly enjoying the attention gained from her display of skill, Kagura smiles with her red lips and closes the elegant fan in her hand.
"Should I applaud you?"
Sounding condescending to the extreme, Sesshōmaru looks Kagura up and down and cracks the fingers of one hand, a very clear warning.
Not everyone catches the tension, however, because Jaken quickly begins muttering to himself, thus revealing some very interesting information.
"That scent is the same as that man who delivered a human arm, the very one that had a fragment of the Perl of Shikon embedded in it."
"I remember all too well the trouble we got into because of him. If we hadn't been smart, that arm would have eaten the great Lord Sesshōmaru, and that aggressive monk almost beat me to death... A little more and I wouldn't have lived to tell the tale."
Shuddering in place because of those dark memories, Jaken grips his two-faced staff tightly and rubs his bald head. But obviously none of that matters much to Sesshōmaru, who easily draws his own conclusions.
"Yes, this smell is familiar. It bears a great resemblance to Naraku, the fraudulent creature who attempted to trap me before."
"Having heard that, I suppose you're Sesshōmaru, Inuyasha's older brother, though you look so fragile and delicate. Hahaha, I am Kagura, the spirit who manipulates the winds, and you may also consider me an extension of Naraku."
"An extension?"
There was not the slightest trace of interest in Sesshōmaru's tone, but his attention certainly increases when she introduces herself as "the spirit who manipulates the winds," the same winds that have been working against him.
Not directly, of course, because if it had been direct, Sesshōmaru would have found whatever yokai or demon was responsible and beaten it to death.
No, the "wind's" moves had been subtler, such as dispersing Kaijinbo's scent far more than normal, creating strange noises among the trees, and erasing footprints from the ground.
"That's right, and so was the demon head you gave Kaijinbo to forge your new sword. The fangs you used belonged to Goshinki, another extension of Naraku and whom we could call my younger brother."
"And why should I care? Have you come to avenge him? Let me tell you now, that would be impossible."
Mocking her with a single glance, one that makes it very clear to Kagura that she means nothing to him, a greenish light begins spreading outward from Sesshōmaru's fingers.
Everything touched by that green light rapidly rots and decays, making its supernatural power abundantly clear.
"Not at all. We could even say that Inuyasha did me a great favor. So why not return the favor? Look, Tokijin is nearby... Closer than you think!"
Suddenly opening her fan, a powerful gust of wind lifts Kagura from the pile of logs and drops her onto a giant plume, all while a familiar scent reaches Sesshōmaru's nose.
"My, what an arrogant attitude. She seems like an incredibly vulgar woman."
"Rin, you may move now."
Ignoring Jaken's words, Sesshōmaru slightly turns his face and speaks to Rin, who had remained motionless the entire time.
"¡Yes!"
"Tokijin, huh."
"You're completely crazy..."
Mocking Rin for answering so loudly, Jaken shakes his head and takes hold of Sesshōmaru's mount's reins. That mount was the two-headed dragon, which had been protecting Rin from beginning to end.