"NARAKUUUUU!!"
The high-pitched, hysterical scream echoed across the mountaintop, a sound of absolute betrayal and impotent rage. Muzan's eyes were wide, his pupils dilated in a mix of fury and dawning realization.
Naraku didn't even bother to look him in the eye. A faint, ghostly smile played across his lips.
From the moment Muzan had started acting on his own, Naraku had already assigned him the same status as one of his disposable incarnations.
Bait. A tool. A momentary distraction. These were the only roles Muzan had ever been meant to play.
Naraku had spent his time observing, watching as the "King of Demons" integrated the flesh of legendary creatures. That power to transform and mutate biological life was rare--and highly valuable. If it could be controlled, it could be used to forge an unstoppable army of youkai.
Even Naraku had found the ability fascinating.
When he had first learned of Muzan's "transmigration" plan, he and the Shikon Jewel had decided to step back and watch. But Muzan's lack of subtlety had been his undoing. In a world where Naraku and the Jewel had learned the hard way to hide and wait, Muzan had thrown himself into the spotlight like a moth to a flame.
His frequent and indiscriminate hunting of youkai had acted as a beacon.
Every Master, every Servant, and every faction in the war had found themselves drawn inevitably toward his location.
To put it bluntly, Naraku had never seen anyone so remarkably efficient at causing their own downfall.
While Naraku and the Jewel had benefited from the distraction the "new" Demon King provided, Muzan's arrogance had forced their hand earlier than planned. Had he been patient--had he moved slowly and quietly--Muzan could have delayed the convergence of these heroes by weeks. He might have reached his perfect form before ever facing his enemies.
That "incomplete" form had already been staggering. Aside from a low resistance to spiritual energy, it had been nearly perfect.
But Muzan had been either too impatient or too paranoid about Naraku's shadow. He had prioritized rapid expansion over strategic silence, and the result was this inevitable siege.
Even in his youth state, Muzan had possessed the strength to face them. But he hadn't accounted for the variables.
The egg had been shattered by Moroha.
His "perfect" birth had turned into a nightmare as Sesshomaru systematically overloaded his capacity.
And then there were the priestesses. A combination strike from Kikyo and Kagome was a force that even Naraku would hesitate to face head-on.
Everything had conspired to bring him to this moment.
If not for that final, desperate explosion of energy, those two spiritual arrows would have been his ticket to hell. But for Naraku and the Shikon Jewel, Inuyasha's group had done the heavy lifting.
They had weakened the prey. They had stripped away Muzan's demonic reserves.
They had made the Shikon Jewel's meal very easy to catch.
"AAAAGGGHHH!!"
"I... I can't...!!"
Muzan's essence was being forcibly dragged into the humanoid body of the Shikon Jewel. From her position on the ground, Kagome could see the complete Shikon Jewel pulsing with a dark, rhythmic heart within the grey man's chest.
"No!!"
But it wasn't the Jewel that terrified her. It was the sound--the faint, spiritual scream of a soul being unraveled.
"His... his soul is being eaten by the Jewel?"
She watched as the luminous essence of the Servant was absorbed into the dark gem, vanishing entirely.
"What did you say?" Inuyasha barked, his eyes wide.
Beside him, Rikuo stared in disbelief. As a Servant himself, the revelation was a cold spike of ice in his gut.
"Did you Servants truly believe that the death of your physical vessel would be the end of it?" the humanoid Jewel asked, its voice a hollow, metallic echo. "An existence as unique as an 'Otherworldly Soul' is far too precious a resource to waste."
"The systems differ, but for me, you are all the same: fuel. I very much look forward to the taste of the rest of you."
The Shikon Jewel opened its mouth, its gaze sweeping over Rikuo, the unconscious Akame, and Moroha.
"That's... that's disgusting," Moroha spat, her hand tightening on her blade.
"Indeed," Naraku agreed, his head still floating near the Jewel's shoulder. "If I had my way, I would finish you all right here and now. But... it seems I won't have the pleasure."
"Why not?"
Naraku's eyes drifted toward the sky, trailing a figure that was descending through the clouds.
"Dad!" Inuyasha shouted.
"Grandpa!!" Moroha's face lit up with relief.
Kagome blinked, staring at the figure. She had heard the stories, but to see the legendary Great Dog Demon in the flesh was staggering.
He was a Servant, too.
"Now you're in for it!" Moroha laughed, her energy returning as her confidence flared. The group was battered and broken, but with a powerhouse like Toga on their side, Naraku and the Jewel were outmatched.
"Hahaha! Look at them," the Shikon Jewel mocked, its voice dripping with amusement.
"They think the Great Dog Demon is their savior."
"I wonder... how long will that joy last before it turns into absolute despair?"
Naraku didn't join in the laughter. He simply watched the descent.
"It's the way of all living things, isn't it?" Naraku mused. "They cling to what they see on the surface, blissfully ignorant of the poison underneath. It's a pity, really."
"So this was your plan?" Toga asked, his voice low and heavy as he landed several yards away from the group. He didn't look at his sons; his eyes remained fixed on Naraku.
"You used me as a shield to keep me away from them while you finished your harvest."
"Oh, my role here is done, Toga. I have much more important things to attend to than brawling with you," the Shikon Jewel replied.
"I'm going to take a moment to properly digest our 'guest.' I have no desire to get caught in the crossfire."
With those cryptic words, the Shikon Jewel and the head of Naraku simply vanished into thin air.
'A pocket dimension? Inside the Jewel itself?' Toga thought, his brow furrowing as the malicious energy vanished.
"Grandpa! You arrived just in time!" Moroha cheered, running toward him.
"Those bastards were talking so much trash, but they ran the second they saw you coming!"
She was smiling, oblivious to the "insane" ramblings Naraku had left behind.
But Kagome couldn't share her daughter's joy. Her intuition was screaming. Naraku was many things, but a coward who ran for no reason was not one of them. He had been far too confident.
'Beware... Naraku...'
Kikyo's final warning rang in her ears. She looked at Sesshomaru, who was standing silent and motionless. She looked at Inuyasha, who was reaching out to his father. Something was wrong. Very wrong.
And then, a new presence made itself known.
High above the battlefield, a new figure appeared in the sky, silhouetted against the dark storm clouds. The air grew cold, and a weight settled over the mountain--the weight of absolute authority.
A cold, mechanical voice echoed across the summit.
"By my Command Seal, I order thee..."
Inuyasha and Moroha froze, their eyes widening in shock.
"Saber... slaughter every Master and Servant on this field!!"
"Kill them all!!"
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika_Kagura]