After the barrier atop Mount Hakurei vanished, the spiritual energy dissipated, replaced by a thick, malevolent demonic energy.
Hordes of demons swarmed out from the mountain's crevices, scrambling and jostling as if in a desperate bid for survival. Looking at the dense, writhing mass of monsters, the group at the foot of the mountain finally understood what Aomori meant.
Though these were low-level demons, their sheer numbers made them a nuisance to handle. If the group were to charge into the fray, there was a high likelihood of sustaining injuries.
"But, Aosora-sama, how do you plan to eliminate all these demons?"
Aomori took two steps forward, positioning himself at the very front. "You'll find out soon enough. Fall back for now; I'm starting."
"Oh, okay!" Kagome and the others hurriedly retreated dozens of meters, keeping their eyes fixed on his back.
Gazing at the surging wave of demons, Aomori's expression remained as calm as still water. His hands moved in a blur, forming signs with phantom speed. In an instant, a small black sphere condensed between his palms, which he then flicked high into the air.
"What's that?" Inuyasha asked, staring at the tiny black orb nearly vanishing into the sky. "You're going to wipe out the demons with just that little thing?"
"It's obviously like gunpowder. It'll fly into the mountain, explode, and level the whole place," Shippo shouted, finally regaining his energy now that the barrier's suppression was gone and eager to assert his presence.
"No, it's not that simple," Kikyo said, shaking her head. She sensed a mysterious, unprecedented aura emanating from that black sphere.
After launching the orb, Aomori turned back toward the group. Hearing their discussion, he said with a smile, "This is the first time I've used a technique of this caliber. Please, stay tuned."
After days of intense study, he had reached a sixty percent mastery of this technique. This was his first live attempt, and fortunately, the activation was a success.
"But... nothing's happening?"
"Don't be impatient. Let it fly for a moment." Aomori's right hand, hidden behind his back, silently formed a seal. He chanted the name in his heart: Chibaku Tensei!
The moment the thought crossed his mind, a low rumble like muffled thunder echoed from the sky, and a strange ripple of energy expanded outward.
The ping-pong-ball-sized black orb, having reached its optimal position, suddenly expanded to the size of a house, becoming clearly visible to Inuyasha and the rest. Then, they watched as the demons began to fly uncontrollably toward the massive black sphere.
It wasn't just the demons. Rocks, boulders, and vegetation from Mount Hakurei began to rise bit by bit, drawn into the giant orb as if it possessed the gravitational pull of a black hole.
The group watched the scene, utterly dumbfounded.
"This is?!" Shippo felt the scene was hauntingly familiar. Suddenly, a spark of inspiration hit, and he slapped his palm. "Isn't this just like Miroku's Wind Tunnel?!"
Recalling the sight of Miroku opening his Wind Tunnel, the others realized, "It really is similar!"
"It's much stronger than my Wind Tunnel," Miroku added, touching his right hand.
"Wait!" He recalled Aomori saying this was his first time using the move. Shocked, he asked, "Could it be that Aosora-sama created this technique himself after seeing my Wind Tunnel?"
"No, I only used it as a small reference," Aomori said, shaking his head.
To the others, however, this sounded more like a humble lie meant to spare their feelings.
"Aosora-sama is truly a genius... to create such a terrifying technique in less than five days."
"As expected of Kami-sama!"
"Tch!" Inuyasha clicked his tongue, watching the sphere grow larger as it continued to absorb material. "When is it going to stop? What if Naraku gets sucked in too?"
'Good question. Honestly, I don't know either,' Aomori thought to himself.
Once the technique was successfully launched, he couldn't exactly control its further development. Since it was his first time, he was afraid the spectacle would be too small, so he had used nearly eighty percent of his energy. Looking at it now, he had overdone it. Mount Hakurei probably wouldn't survive this.
As for Naraku, surely he wasn't so weak that he'd fall to this move while hiding under the cover of the mountain?
Meeting Inuyasha's questioning gaze, Aomori said nonchalantly, "Don't worry. It'll stop once Naraku is forced out. If he's the cunning demon you say he is, he must have laid countless traps in the depths of Mount Hakurei. Our best course of action is to destroy the mountain and flush him out."
"Exactly!" Miroku agreed. "The terrain inside is complex. Having hidden there for so many days, Naraku could have set traps at his leisure. Aosora-sama's approach is a wise and steady one."
"But is it really okay to destroy the whole of Mount Hakurei?" Kagome asked. "Isn't it a sacred site to many people?"
"Its 'sacred' status was just an illusion. It long ago became Naraku's demonic nest," Kikyo said. Having been inside and seen the demons and Kagura, she fully supported Aomori's "root and branch" method. "With such thick miasma, leaving it standing would only be a curse."
"I suppose you're right." Kagome smiled sheepishly.
With the explanation given, Inuyasha settled down and waited for the conclusion of Chibaku Tensei.
As they talked, the black sphere in the sky had disappeared, replaced by a colossal sphere of rock.
The exterior was entirely composed of the stripped-away stone of Mount Hakurei. Most of the demons had been crushed into paste by the shifting boulders; the lucky few who survived were buried deep within.
Seeing Mount Hakurei being stripped bald, Naraku, hiding in the mountain's core, could no longer remain still.
"Who is it? Who is sabotaging my perfect plan?!"
Naraku, who was in the midst of reconstructing his physical body in the depths, was currently down to just a head. He had purged all useless "trash" demons from his body, the ones that had now become the colorful "paint" on the surface of the Chibaku Tensei. What remained was his essence.
As a collective of demons, Naraku grew stronger through this very process. This time, using Saint Hakushin's barrier as cover, he had secretly hollowed out Mount Hakurei and turned it into his own demonic flesh and blood.
His plan was to lure Inuyasha and the others inside. Once they entered the mountain, they would effectively be inside his body. Then, Naraku could easily seize their Shikon Jewel shards and use their power to condense a new, formidable body.
Most importantly, he intended to strip away his human heart during this process, allowing him to strike at Kikyo without hesitation. Kikyo was his Achilles' heel; eliminating her was his greatest desire.
That was Naraku's entire plan.
However, while he had successfully separated his heart, Inuyasha and the others hadn't fallen for the trap. Even the Shichinintai, used as bait, had been wiped out, and Kohaku had escaped his control. It was a total loss.
"Kanna, do you know who this new addition to Inuyasha's group is? Someone with such immense power?" Naraku asked the silent Kanna.
"It should be him." Kanna's mirror revealed Aomori's image, but it was blurred and distorted, as if influenced by some interference.
"Hmm?" Just as Naraku tried to look closer, the mirror cracked on its own and returned to normal.
Kanna looked down and whispered, "He found us."
"..." Naraku fell silent for a moment before tossing a bundle wrapped in a cotton coat to Kanna. "Give this to Kagura and have her take it away from here."
"Understood." Kanna took the bundle and slowly faded away.
Naraku's eyes deepened, and he gave a low chuckle. "Fine, fine. I'll let you go this time. Kikyo, Inuyasha... I will settle the score with your lives soon enough!"
The power threatening to demolish Mount Hakurei made Naraku uneasy. A firm believer in the "survival first" philosophy, he decided to retreat until he figured out exactly who, or what, this newcomer was.
Noticing that his demonic flesh throughout the mountain was being torn apart, Naraku wasted no more time and used his power to condense a complete physical form. He now wore a set of sturdy armor with a malevolent red eye on his chest and several large tails sprouting from his back. Demonic power surged around him, forming a spherical barrier.
Feeling the demonic power, significantly stronger than before, Naraku nodded in satisfaction. "Excellent. The current me is virtually invincible."
Once he dealt with Kikyo, he would have no more weaknesses. With a cold laugh, Naraku kicked up a demonic gale and flew toward the outside world.
…
The once sky-piercing Mount Hakurei now looked as if it had been sliced in half, leaving only a short stump less than fifty meters high. Floating in the sky was a massive rock sphere, its volume seemingly larger than what remained of the mountain.
"The suction seems to be weakening?" Miroku noted, his eyes fixed on the sky.
"Yeah. Which means Naraku is probably coming out soon." Inuyasha's expression was grim, his hand already resting on the hilt of the Tessaiga.
"Demonic energy is condensing. Is that Naraku? His strength isn't bad," Aomori remarked.
Following Aomori's lead, many in the group sensed a surging demonic energy awakening within the mountain.
"There's no mistake. This demonic energy... it's Naraku!" As Naraku's lifelong rival, Inuyasha spoke without hesitation.
Naraku had finally appeared. Inuyasha could no longer restrain his urge to cut him down.
"Naraku!" Inuyasha roared, sprinting toward the mountain.
As Inuyasha moved, the others followed suit.
"Inuyasha, don't be reckless! Naraku's demonic power is much stronger than before!" Miroku shouted from behind.
"I don't care how strong he's gotten! It's all the same to me!" Inuyasha barked back.
"That's right! Hahaha! Inuyasha, I'll be the one to finish Naraku!" Koga's feet were a whirlwind of speed, instantly overtaking Inuyasha. He took the lead, intentionally kicking up a cloud of dust that covered Inuyasha.
"Stupid wolf!" Inuyasha accelerated again.
"Honestly, they're still competing at a time like this." Kagome trotted along behind them. Her bicycle was useless on the mountain path, while Sango had already hopped onto Kirara with Miroku, leaving even Kohaku behind.
Kikyo didn't move. She knew she couldn't keep up with Inuyasha, so she stayed put, partly because someone else was staying behind as well.
"You're not going?"
Aomori shook his head. "I can go whenever I want. For now, there's still work to do."
He raised two fingers before his chest once more and chanted: "Emerge from darkness..."
…
With effortless ease, Naraku broke through to the outside world. At this point, the weakened suction of the Chibaku Tensei could no longer hinder him.
His appearance immediately drew the attention of Inuyasha's group.
"Naraku! Give me your life!"
Koga, carrying the force of a hurricane, raised his legs and kicked savagely at the mid-air Naraku.
"Oh, it's you, Koga. Have you come to deliver your Shikon Jewel shards?" Facing a strike capable of shattering stone, Naraku chuckled, not even bothering to dodge.
THUD! THUD!
Koga's two hateful kicks struck the barrier in front of Naraku, but the shield didn't budge an inch.
"What?!"
"After all this time, Koga, you haven't improved at all." Naraku extended his right hand, his fingers morphing into tentacles that ensnared Koga.
"Naraku!" Another voice filled with hatred rang out. Inuyasha drew the Tessaiga and leaped into the air, swinging in a wide arc and slamming the blade against the barrier.
Feeling the recoil from the Tessaiga, Inuyasha gritted his teeth and kicked Koga away. Naraku's tentacles were torn apart, and Inuyasha landed on the ground alongside the rescued Koga.
"Inuyasha. Long time no see. You're as hot-headed as ever," Naraku mocked.
"You bastard!" Looking at the unruffled barrier, Inuyasha felt the situation becoming troublesome. Without looking back, he snapped at Koga, "Stupid wolf, you should get out of here so I don't have to waste my energy saving you again."
"Shut up!" Koga growled, clutching his stomach where Inuyasha had kicked him. He stood up. "I was just careless. His turtle shell is way too thick."
"Tch! I've broken his barrier before, and I'll do it again!" Inuyasha remained confident.
"Naraku!" Sango and Miroku arrived as well, their eyes flashing with fury at the sight of their enemy.
"And you lot as well. Fine. Come at me all at once. Let me show you the power of my new body." Naraku spread his arms, displaying his form.
He was currently immortal; he would occupy Inuyasha's attention here while Kagura made her escape with that thing.
"I have to say, Naraku, your taste has gotten even worse," Sango retorted before immediately hurling Hiraikotsu at him.
That signaled the start of the battle. Inuyasha and Koga charged forward together. Naraku, showing no fear, met them with a cold laugh.
…
At the same time, Kagura seized her chance. Clutching the cotton coat, she intended to flee in the opposite direction.
However, before she could make her escape, a black curtain suddenly fell from the sky. Within seconds, it had enveloped the entire vicinity of Mount Hakurei.
"A barrier?" Kagura frowned. She rode her feather toward the black curtain, snapping open her fan and launching dozens of silver wind blades.
The wind blades, capable of cutting through anything, struck the black curtain and vanished silently, like feathers falling into a marsh. Not a single ripple appeared.
Kagura's pupils shrank, and her heart sank.
"Naraku's incarnation, Kagura?" Sesshomaru, having returned to his noble lord appearance, appeared on the scene.
He had intended to ascend the mountain when the Saint's barrier vanished, only to be held back by Aomori's Chibaku Tensei. He had only just reached the mountainside, and he hadn't expected to run into Kagura.
Only Jaken was by Sesshomaru's side; Rin had been left in a safe place.
"Sesshomaru?" Kagura arched an eyebrow. 'What rotten luck. Not only did I fail to escape, but I ran right into this bringer of death.'
"Kagura, if you do not wish to die, hand over what you are carrying," Sesshomaru said. "It must be something very important to Naraku."
"And if I say no?"
"Then you will die."