Treatment and the Final Point

The Sengoku era, in the Kanto region.

Deep within the dense forest on the outskirts of a village, the fires of battle had died down, leaving only a ravaged battlefield. Under the sweeping strikes of the hyper-long sword formed by high-pressure water, the gathered swarm of yokai had been completely severed at the waist, their bodies falling to the ground in pieces. The lush forest had also been largely leveled by that single strike, with countless trees crashing down, leaving only a vast expanse of uniform stumps stretching into the distance.

The blood of the monsters stained the earth, severed flesh lay scattered everywhere, and the remains of the losers awaited decay upon the soil. Meanwhile, the figure of the victor stood in the center of the battlefield, its appearance forming a stark contrast to the surrounding carnage.

"Are they... are they all dead? This... this is too incredible," Kagome murmured in shock as she looked at the surrounding scene. Even having spent some time in this Sengoku era, she had rarely encountered such a bloody scene—let alone one caused by a seemingly ridiculous emoji.

'No... the yokai summoned by the divine fox might look hilarious, but it's just that strong,' Kagome thought to herself. She recognized the fox standing not far away; it was the same one released by that powerful and strange deity she had encountered at her family's shrine in the modern era.

While she was lost in thought, the little fox walked to the back of the battlefield, toward the spot where the enemy "commander" had been. The reckless spray of the high-pressure water jet had indeed reached this area as well.

At this moment, lying before Miketsu was a tattered silver-white baboon skin. Under the sweep of the water pressure blade, most of the hide had been obliterated, leaving only shredded scraps scattered about. However, they were only scraps; there wasn't a single trace of flesh or blood among them. This proved that the object covered by the silver baboon skin earlier had not been a creature of real flesh and blood.

"A puppet substitute, huh? His abilities aren't much, but he's certainly a coward," Miketsu said leisurely, wagging her tail as she looked at the ruined baboon skin. Just then, a voice came from beside her.

"Um... Lord Divine Messenger..."

Hearing the voice, Miketsu turned her head and saw Kagome standing there silently, her expression full of hesitation.

"Yes? It's nothing much. What is it?"

"Well... that... the very important Shikon Jewel shards. Do you... do you intend to keep them yourself?" Kagome asked, gathering her courage as she spoke to the one she believed to be a divine messenger. Now that the Shikon Jewel was in the hands of this divine fox, its fate was for her to decide.

"Shikon Jewel shards? Oh, those. I didn't take them. They should still be lying where they were. Just go back to where I was standing and dig them up yourself."

Kagome was stunned by Miketsu's words.

'She didn't take them? Just left them there? Those are precious Shikon Jewel shards! The ultimate treasure every yokai craves! Even a divine fox shouldn't ignore them. How can she just leave them lying around so casually?' Kagome thought, but she didn't dare say a word of it aloud. She could only nod quickly, say thank you twice, and look toward where the little fox had been standing. Then, her expression instantly froze.

Not far in front of her, amidst the thick grass, a massive Saimyosho was hovering with its wings buzzing. In its appendages, it was clutching the small bottle containing the Shikon Jewel shards.

"A poisonous wasp yokai is still alive!"

Kagome cried out in terror. Seeing itself discovered, the Saimyosho carrying the Shikon Jewel shards suddenly beat its wings faster, accelerating into a high-speed flight toward the sky. This caused Kagome to panic.

"Don't think you're getting away!"

Kagome immediately notched an arrow and fired toward the Saimyosho escaping into the sky, attempting to shoot it down. However, because the target was moving too fast, the arrow narrowly missed.

"Oh no!" Seeing the arrow miss, Kagome's heart raced. She hurriedly pulled more arrows and fired several shots in quick succession. But facing the Saimyosho that was already flying further and further away, these subsequent arrows were even less likely to hit. Kagome could only watch in frustration and helplessness as the lone survivor vanished into the distance with the Shikon Jewel shards.

'Ah... how could this happen! We clearly crushed the invading yokai army and broke all of the opponent's tricks. Why did we end up losing to such a tiny wasp yokai at the very end?!' Anxiety filled Kagome's heart, causing her to turn her head toward the little fox on the other side. "Um... the Shikon Jewel shards were taken!"

"Ah, I saw that. Is there a problem?" Miketsu replied while letting out a big yawn and a long stretch.

"But those are Shikon Jewel shards!"

Kagome continued to speak urgently to Miketsu, who simply yawned again.

"Uwaaa~ It's just a few shards. If they're lost, they're lost. Besides, Naraku won't be able to do much with them anyway."

In Miketsu's divine intuition, she could foresee that letting those shards be delivered would actually bring the affairs of the Sengoku era to a close much faster. Kagome, looking at the leisurely grey-white little fox, murmured, "So... you came here specifically to help me?"

"I didn't come for the Shikon Jewel. It was simply because innocent lives were being threatened. Besides, that last wave wasn't for nothing. Look, isn't our harvest lying right over there?" As she spoke, Miketsu turned her head to look in another direction. Kagome followed her gaze and saw Kagura and Kanna; one large and one small figure were lying there silently.

Amidst the grass, Kagura remained unconscious on the ground, while Kanna was curled into a ball, her body trembling slightly as if she were still suppressing laughter. Around them, pale yellow mists—the energy left behind by the Smirking Emoji—drifted about.

"Those are... those are the subordinates of that baboon yokai from before..." Kagome murmured, looking at the scene. Miketsu then responded.

"They aren't just subordinates. Those two have a much deeper connection with that arrogant mastermind."

"Mastermind? Do you mean the one hidden inside the baboon skin?"

"Mhm~ Just watch. If we don't handle this connection properly, something very interesting might happen."

As Miketsu spoke, she looked at the pale yellow aura surrounding Kagura and Kanna. This aura had been left by the Smirking Emoji and had yet to completely dissipate. Looking at the lingering yellow mist, a hint of curiosity appeared in Kagome's eyes. Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Naraku was gradually revealing a gleeful smile.

"Heh heh... I never imagined that such a powerful yokai would be so careless. Thinking they had won and letting their guard down... heh heh. You destroyed all my yokai, but so what? In the end, it is I, Naraku, who has the final laugh!"

Naraku murmured to himself. He had originally thought this operation was a failure, but who would have expected the opponent to commit such a blunder, leaving the critically important Shikon Jewel lying around and giving the Saimyosho he left at the scene a golden opportunity.

Initially, Naraku had commanded the Saimyosho to attempt a snatch with a "might as well try" attitude, but he hadn't expected to succeed so easily. When he saw the Saimyosho flying away from the battlefield with the shards, Naraku could hardly believe his eyes.

"Heh. This way, aside from the ones Kikyo has, almost all the Shikon Jewel shards are now in my hands. Now I can finally concentrate on dealing with that Miko."

Naraku spoke slowly in his usual voice. Having received help from the Shikon Jewel's own will, he was able to accurately locate all the shards, making the collection process extremely convenient. In a short time, he had gathered everything; except for the shards held by Kikyo and Kagome, every other piece scattered about had been claimed by Naraku.

"Hmph, then it's time for the final battle to begin."

As Naraku spoke, his thoughts returned to the previous fight. He suddenly realized that his two hard-won clones, even as yokai, were valuable resources.

"For the battles to come, I must find a way to reclaim Kagura and Kanna."

As he spoke, Naraku attempted to use the master-servant link to regain control over Kanna and Kagura. However, at that moment, Naraku suddenly felt a jolt through the other end of the clone link. His expression froze instantly.

"This... guh!"

This energy was the soul energy of the Smirking Emoji. Clearly, after eroding Kagura and Kanna, this energy was now following the link between Naraku and his clones, invading him all the way back to his source.

"Ha... Hahaha..."

For a moment, Naraku's expression management seemed to spiral out of control. A ridiculous, laughing expression tried to manifest on his face, causing his originally handsome features to shift erratically between darkness and light. He tried to use his demonic power to suppress it, but it seemed utterly useless. Finally, to keep himself from being corrupted by that power, he was forced to take the only option left: severing the link with his clones, making them completely independent.

However, there was a problem with doing this. To prevent rebellion, the hearts of Kanna and Kagura had been removed and kept with him, using the link to connect the hearts to their bodies to sustain their lives. Now that the link was severed, the hearts would stop beating, and the clones would die.

Despite this factor, Naraku still resolutely abandoned these two pawns in his hand.

"Haha... pfft... almost... god... damn it..." Trembling, Naraku completed the action. He knew that if he were even a step or two slower, he would be finished.

Back in the largely cleared forest, Miketsu, in her fox form, was sitting atop a tree stump. Watching the expressions of Kagura and Kanna as they showed signs of immense pain even in their sleep, she couldn't help but sigh.

Miketsu could see that Kagura and Kanna were both recently created beings, and their hands were not yet stained with innocent blood. They hadn't committed any great crimes, so they were somewhat worth saving.

'After all, anyone who takes a liking to my fox form at first sight definitely isn't a bad person deep in their soul!'

With this thought, Miketsu decided to lend a helping hand. However, what could be done for a yokai who had lost their heart?

At that moment, another card appeared beneath Miketsu's paw. Printed on it was a woman with a long white braid, wearing a white lab coat.

"Secret Lore Summoning: Lunar Sage."

On a certain desolate mountain, a Miko dressed in red and white stood tall. Beneath her feet was a large divination array drawn in the sand. Standing in the center of this array, the Miko gazed toward the unknown distance.

"Of the final two targets, it has now become one... But that is for the best. Next is the final point."