Beneath the dark clouds now scattered and drifting across the tapestry that is the night sky, which is devoid of any trace of the moon and decorated only by the stars, an extensive green plain can be seen.
Crossing such a wonder of nature are multiple sword scars, deep trenches, and even golden flames that remain upon the ground without burning anything.
"You already look like a cockroach."
Twisting his body in the air and striking the right side of Kaijinbo's skull with his foot, a golden-haired figure makes a slash with his sword while a reddish aura completely surrounds the blade.
This "aura" does not remain static upon the blade, but is immediately fired toward Kaijinbo, who has been sent flying, all with a simple movement of the young man's wrist, and thus another scar is once again created upon the extensive plain.
*Boom*
Together with the bloody light that illuminates the surroundings for a few seconds, grass and rocks are sent flying into the night sky, creating a new wave of destruction when they fall. But that still does not satisfy Asahiko, so upon touching the ground with his foot, he regains his balance and points forward with his finger.
Ten, thirty, eighty, perhaps even more than a hundred weapons made of semi-solid flames form instantly under his direction, easily stealing the place of the stars in the nocturnal firmament.
"So that you never get back up again!"
Locating the fallen Kaijinbo, who had been lost from sight for a few seconds, he does not hesitate and sends the dozens of weapons created from semi-solid flames in that direction, thus falling like divine punishment upon the blacksmith.
*Boom* *Boom* *Boom*
With each weapon that falls upon Kaijinbo or his surroundings, a strip of earth is mercilessly gouged out, although there are no traces of flames or anything similar because these weapons do not explode, but are truly used as blunt weapons.
"TO… KI…"
"Save that story for someone else!"
Making the semi-solid form of some weapons that had just collided with his enemy disappear, Asahiko guides those flames into the sky above Kaijinbo and adds even more energy of his own, thus creating something simply absurd in the dark sky.
It was a sword, no, rather a damn great sword in every sense. Its length was easily fifteen meters, while its width managed to exceed five meters, and it shone like the only thing existing between heaven and earth.
"TO. KI. JIN!"
"JUST DIE ALONG WITH THAT SWORD!"
Tired beyond measure of Kaijinbo's resilience, and with a pale face covered in sweat from overexertion, Asahiko sends the enormous greatsword downward like the Sword of Damocles.
The clash between the negative energy coming from Tokijin and the enormous greatsword was instantaneous, creating a shockwave that swept away the clouds even before the earth began to tremble violently.
Cracks of every size and shape spread across the plain when the greatsword finally swept away every trace of Kaijinbo's existence, sinking into the depths of the earth and becoming an imposing golden figure.
"Are you there, Asahiko?!"
"Down there, Sango! Look, he's making hand signals to us."
Pointing with his finger toward the humanoid figure observing them from below, since the two of them are riding on Kirara, the monk Miroku quickly helps Sango by indicating the path to follow.
Due to the aforementioned, they had to make a turn around the enormous golden sword, mainly because they had already passed Asahiko and it would be faster than walking, and thus after one or two minutes they were finally able to land near him.
"You idiots, can't you see I was telling you not to come!"
"What are you saying ye-"
"It doesn't matter, now get out of the way."
Climbing behind Miroku and onto Kirara's back, quite quickly if it has to be described, Asahiko looks toward the golden greatsword and urges Sango to leave.
Noticing Asahiko's concern, which is even more prominent due to his pale face, Sango does not hesitate and quickly has Kirara fly into the depths of the night sky, moving away from the place at full speed.
"Why are we escaping? Aren't those golden flames your ability, Asahiko?"
"They are, but… Let's just say I used a little too much strength, so now think about what will happen when all that energy is suddenly released."
"And you complain about Inuyasha!"
"It's not my fault, they left me abandoned here and I had to do what was necessary to survive, Miroku."
Creating a handkerchief from some mysterious place, Asahiko quickly wipes the sweat from his face and relaxes his breathing, resulting in the greatsword rapidly beginning to lose its clearly defined shape.
It was going to explode, something confirmed by how it began to shine and tremble continuously, making the hair stand on end for anyone who saw it. And just as had been foretold, the greatsword exploded with a blinding flash.
*¡BOOOOOM!*
The first thing to disappear was the plain, giving way to a "death zone"; literally there was no trace of life for dozens of meters around, and everything was reduced to an indescribable crater.
Meanwhile, the second most affected terrain was the forest at the edge of the plain, since the shockwave created by the explosion knocked down more than one tree, while many others lost their branches and leaves.
"Both of you hold on tight!"
"Ahhh, why did you make such a powerful attack, Asahiko!"
"And why are you shouting so loudly, Miroku!"
"Because you're pulling my hair out!"
"Hahaha, sorry."
Letting go of the black hair he had grabbed by reflex to keep himself stable, Asahiko laughs awkwardly and turns his eyes backward, or more precisely tries to, because a blue lightning bolt is fired toward them.
"Evasive maneuvers, Sango. Evasive maneuvers!"
"That's what I'm doing!"
"Damn it, now they're coming from the right side! Keep me steady, Asahiko. Black Hole!"
Dodging the blue lightning thanks to Sango's piloting, Miroku's technique, and the occasional intercepting strike from Asahiko, all of them finally manage to see the source of the problem.
The good thing is that it's not Kaijinbo, but the bad thing is that… It's Sesshōmaru. Yes, the one launching those lightning bolts is the mount beneath his feet, obviously under the former's orders.
"Sesshōmaru!" x3
"I see that you are not with Inuyasha, but now tell me… Where is my sword?"
Fixing his cold gaze upon each of the "humans" standing before him, Sesshōmaru narrows his eyes while a greenish energy surrounds the fingers of his hand.
Obviously it was a threat in every sense, although he had already attacked them and only now was threatening them… Perhaps the first attack was a test to see whether they were worthy of speaking with him?
"You said it yourself, Sesshōmaru. We are not with Inuyasha and much less do we have Steel Fang, so obviously we do not have what you so arrogantly call 'your sword.'"
"Are you trying to play word games with me, Asahiko?"
"Do you think I'm some deceitful kind of fo… Well, yes, I am a fox, but a good and just one, so. Run!"
Cutting the greenish whip with which Sesshōmaru does not hesitate to attack once his patience runs out, Asahiko raises his voice and shatters the pressure that had kept both Miroku and Sango motionless, finally causing the two of them to react.
The first thing Sango did once free from Sesshōmaru's supernatural pressure was urge Kirara to flee, while Miroku pulled out several talismans and threw them toward the two-headed dragon, sealing both mouths from which it had previously fired lightning.
"Trying to escape? Shoot them down!"
Using his mere presence to burn Miroku's talismans without even needing to look at them, Sesshōmaru gives a cold order and his mount follows it without hesitation.
Blue lightning bolts are fired from both mouths almost without pause, gradually trapping the opposing group and forcing them back toward the starting area in the face of clear aerial superiority.
"Why didn't you tell him about the sword, Asahiko!"
"Sure, and then our heads would be next, Miroku. Besides, I don't really even know whether that sword is still 'alive.' Why the hell do you think I attacked with so much force? By the way, that sword seemed to hate Inuyasha."
"Tsk, damn Inuyasha."
"Amen, brother!"
Recovering their camaraderie by cursing Inuyasha, the source of all known and yet-to-be-known problems, both Miroku and Asahiko can only sigh in clear resignation.
Obviously they were going to have to deal with the problem themselves, mainly because Inuyasha is now in his human form and because Sesshōmaru is not going to let them escape.
"Ready, Miroku?"
"Can I really say no?"
"Ha, ha, that's a good joke you just told."
"... Ah, let's do it!"
Nodding to each other in a strangely harmonious connection, Asahiko shoots forward as the vanguard while Miroku draws in the lightning with his Black Hole, thus creating an opening in the rain of attacks.