"I… I…"
The words wouldn't come out.
Kagome felt something bitter rise from deep inside her chest. It wasn't anger. It wasn't jealousy alone. It was the painful realization of something she had always known but never wanted to admit.
Inuyasha had come here for Kikyo.
Not for her.
Kikyo watched her quietly. There was no hatred in her eyes now—no burning resentment like before. Instead, there was something colder.
Calmer.
She stepped forward and lightly touched Kagome's shoulder.
In the next second—
Kagome's body froze.
Her limbs refused to respond. She couldn't move her arms, couldn't step back, couldn't even properly turn her head.
"Kikyo… what are you doing?" Kagome asked in panic.
Kikyo's voice was steady.
"Kill him… and take him with me to the underworld."
As soon as the words fell, several Soul Reapers swooped down.
Soul Reapers
They wrapped around Kagome like white ribbons of light and bound her tightly against the tree trunk behind her.
"Kikyo, someone made you two hate each other on purpose!" Kagome cried desperately.
"The one who killed you wasn't Inuyasha! It was Naraku! You were both tricked!"
Naraku
For the first time, Kikyo's expression shifted slightly.
"Naraku…?"
The name lingered.
Then she gave a faint, distant smile.
"I have already died once. Who caused it… no longer matters."
"But Inuyasha still thinks about you!" Kagome shouted. "He loves you!"
Kikyo stepped closer.
She reached out and gently lifted Kagome's chin with her fingers, forcing her to look up.
"And you?" Kikyo asked softly.
"Does he love you?"
The question hit harder than any spell.
Kagome's mind went blank.
"I… I…"
She had no answer.
Kikyo released her.
"He's almost here," she said calmly.
"Let him answer for himself."
---
High above them, hidden among the treetops—
Uchiha Lie watched everything.
Uchiha
His expression was thoughtful.
This wasn't exactly how things had played out before.
Kikyo wasn't acting out of blind resentment.
She was clear.
Direct.
She wasn't here to drag Inuyasha to hell.
She was here to force a choice.
Moments later—
Branches snapped.
Footsteps thundered.
Inuyasha burst through the trees.
Inuyasha
He froze.
"Kikyo… Kagome…"
He stared at the two identical faces before him.
One pale and ethereal.
One flushed and trembling.
His mouth opened slightly.
He didn't know where to look.
If anyone else had been in his position, they might have fainted.
Uchiha Lie couldn't help but think—
This wasn't just being stuck between two boats.
This was the boat splitting in half.
"Kikyo!" Kagome shouted urgently. "Tell her what really happened back then! You were both deceived!"
Inuyasha shook his head, snapping out of his shock.
"Kikyo… I—"
But Kikyo cut him off.
"Inuyasha," she said evenly, "I now exist only because of my resentment toward you. This body is made from grave soil and bones."
She looked at him directly.
"Do you think I am hideous?"
"Don't say that!" Inuyasha shot back immediately.
His voice was fierce.
"Maybe you resent me… but I haven't forgotten you. Not even for a single day!"
Kagome felt her chest tighten painfully.
Not even for a single day.
He didn't hesitate.
He didn't struggle.
The words came naturally.
"No matter what you become," Inuyasha continued, "I'll never think you're ugly!"
Kikyo's eyes softened for a fraction of a second.
Then—
She grabbed Kagome by the collar and pulled her forward so that both girls stood side by side before him.
"Then what about her?" Kikyo asked calmly.
"What will you do about her?"
Silence fell.
Kagome's heart pounded so loudly she thought it might burst.
She looked up at Inuyasha.
Uchiha Lie, watching from above, raised an eyebrow.
This was it.
No more misunderstandings.
No more vague feelings.
Just one clear choice.
"I… Kagome… Kikyo…"
Inuyasha's voice faltered.
He looked from one to the other.
Sweat formed at his temples.
He opened his mouth—
Closed it.
Opened it again.
He wanted to say something safe.
Something that wouldn't hurt either of them.
But under their sharp gazes, he couldn't.
"Is it that difficult?" Kikyo asked quietly.
When he didn't answer—
She sighed softly.
"Then I will choose for you."
Suddenly—
The Soul Reapers tightened around Kagome.
She gasped in pain.
"Inuyasha!"
That was enough.
Inuyasha didn't think.
He didn't hesitate.
He moved.
In a flash, he was in front of Kagome.
His claws slashed through the Soul Reapers, dispersing them instantly.
He caught Kagome as she fell forward.
"Kagome! Are you alright?"
She looked up at him from within his arms.
And in that moment—
She understood.
Kikyo had never truly intended to kill her.
She had simply forced the truth to surface.
Kikyo stood a short distance away, watching quietly.
There was something in her eyes now.
Not anger.
Not hatred.
Just… faint disappointment.
Kagome noticed it.
She suddenly sat up from Inuyasha's arms, about to speak.
But Kikyo moved her lips first.
No sound came out.
Yet Kagome read them clearly.
"I leave him to you."
Kikyo's voice then rang out softly.
"It seems you have already made your choice, Inuyasha."
Inuyasha's head snapped up.
"Kikyo! I—"
But she was already rising into the air.
Soul Reapers gathered around her like a white storm.
"Kikyo!" he shouted.
He reached forward—
But grasped only empty air.
From above, she looked down at them.
"That woman… is more important than me now."
Her voice was calm.
There was no accusation in it.
Only acceptance.
She gave them both one last look.
Then turned away.
Her figure drifted into the night sky.
The Barrier dissolved.
The forest felt strangely quiet.
"Inuyasha…" Kagome whispered.
She had "won."
Yet her chest felt heavy.
"Kikyo… she's returned to being the true priestess of the Sengoku era."
Inuyasha blinked in confusion.
"Wasn't she always a priestess?"
Kagome stared at him.
"You really don't understand women at all."
"What? What are you talking about?!" Inuyasha snapped defensively.
Kagome's frustration finally overflowed.
"Sit, boy!"
Boom!
Inuyasha slammed face-first into the ground with a thunderous crash.
"You jerk!" he groaned from the dirt.
Kagome turned away, cheeks flushed.
She didn't feel victorious.
She didn't feel proud.
She just felt… complicated.
High above in the trees—
Uchiha Lie exhaled slowly.
This wasn't tragedy.
This wasn't hatred.
This was closure.
And for Kikyo—
It was the first step toward choosing her own future, instead of clinging to the past.
--------------------------------
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