| Episode 46: Juuroumaru and Kageroumaru (Juuroumaru to Kageroumaru) : The Yasha gang are casually enjoying a walk as they search for more Shikon no Tama shards, and Kagome suddenly calls out that she can sense a shard. Before they can do much after that, a strong wind blows around them, and the one guy who always does this as his calling card is none other than Kouga! (Since he has two Shikon shards in his legs, Kagome could sense them...just in case you didn't remember, and...yeah) Kouga and Inuyasha exchange their usual insults, and Shippou puts his foot in his mouth (not literally). After the title eyecatch, we see that Kouga has come to ask where Naraku's castle is, and Inuyasha explains that they can't find it due to Naraku's barrier, which hides his scent and his source of power. Inuyasha then commands Kouga to give them the Shikon shards in his legs and pulls out Tessaiga. He swings it at Kouga, who easily dodges it and flippantly comments that Inuyasha's swing is slower (remember, Inuyasha's sword is heavier now). Kouga runs off, confidently spouting off insulting things and saying not to pull any moves on "his woman" while he's off killing Naraku. Inuyasha is jealous and angry, of course, so he says something a bit mean to Kagome, and she says out loud that "this is stressful," so Inuyasha takes it that he's being stressful for her. He gets all pouty (kawaii!), and Kagome tries to comfort him, but it doesn't quite work. @_@ Later, Kouga is standing atop a cliff with his wolf gang, and he sees saimyoushou [Hell's Insects] in the distance. Smelling the same scent as Kagura (which indicates that Naraku is nearby), he runs off by himself. Finding Naraku pulling a nice carriage along (this looks a little weird), Kouga declares that he'll have his vengeance on him now. Naraku, instead, sends his newest detachment on Kouga as his opponent. This opponent, a chained, purple-haired humanoid, looks incredibly menacing. Naraku keeps the chains and mask on him, saying that "he's enough for Kouga," which proves true. The detachment and Kouga parry for a bit, but Kouga ends up losing pretty badly, having felt an extreme, unseeable danger around this detachment. The Yasha gang are quickly running in their direction, trying to keep up with an impatient Inuyasha. Inuyasha catches up to Kouga as he runs away from something and suddenly the detachment is there running next to him. The detachment slashes at Inuyasha, missing him, and Inuyasha looks up to see that Kouga has run away. Naraku appears from behind the detachment, announcing that his latest detachment's name is Juuroumaru. Juuroumaru is so violent that when Naraku releases him from the chains and mask that Juuroumaru slices off Naraku's head (it's just his kugutsu [puppet] so... don't start cheering). The Yasha gang are surprised that Juuroumaru doesn't distinguish friend from foe, and Juuroumaru starts the fight. Inuyasha and he fight for a bit, and all the time Juuroumaru's mouth is glowing/sparkling (not his lips--his mouth is open and he's kinda breathing like Vader). In another scene, Kouga is explaining his reasons for running from Naraku to his two best minions, Hakkaku and Ginta, saying that the "air-headed" one was extremely dangerous. Hakkaku and Ginta point out that if Kagome is with Inuyasha, then she's probably in danger right now, and Kouga realizes that it was probably stupid of him to run away then. So off he goes! Back with Inuyasha, he's fighting Juuroumaru, but notices that even though he's hitting something, Juuroumaru doesn't look injured. That's when a small object bursts from the ground and punches a hole right through Inuyasha. This small, ugly little dude is a "fifth" detachment from Naraku, who lives inside Juuroumaru. His name is Kageroumaru. He's the one who talks, and he's a nasty piece of crap! They start a long, kewl fight, and Miroku and Sango try to help. Kagome runs after Inuyasha since she doesn't think he should be moving with a hole in his stomach, and behind her, Inuyasha sees Kageroumaru--about to cut off Kagome's head. Kouga arrives just in time to be useful!!--and kicks the thing away. Inuyasha is mostly upset that Kouga was the one to help, but grudgingly thanks him. Kagome doesn't even know that she was in danger. @_@ Inuyasha explains to Kouga who Kageroumaru is, and Miroku says that Kageroumaru is too fast for them. Kouga says mostly to himself that this Kageroumaru was probably what was giving him that funny feeling earlier. So Kouga boasts that he's fast enough to get it, and we get some more fighting! Eventually, Inuyasha and Kouga aren't doing so well, and Kageroumaru goes after Kagome again, insisting that he'll "try out her liver" (sounds like Hannibal Lector, now). Kouga is about to help her, but Juuroumaru gets in his way, and when it seems that Kagome's about to lose a limb to Kageroumaru, Inuyasha dives forward to slice its arm-thing off before it can get the chance. Go Yasha! Miroku comments to Sango that he probably "forgot" about Tessaiga's weight since he was target-fixated on Kageroumaru, and Inuyasha overhears him (a kinda funny scene). There's more fighting (and it's actually very, very well choreographed). Sango realizes that they could help by preventing Kageroumaru from attacking from underground, so she borrows Miroku's staff, rubs some poison onto the base and throws it like a javelin to the center of the "fighting ground." The poison spreads quickly, turning the earth red. Due to the poison, Kageroumaru can no longer go underground, and he's slower since he's now sick. Inuyasha gets hit again, so he's down for a bit, and Kouga runs at Juuroumaru (the "shell" youkai). Inuyasha can't see Kageroumaru, and suddenly realizes that he's probably hiding inside Juuroumaru again. Inuyasha yells at Kouga to turn back, but Kouga doesn't listen, of course. So Inuyasha draws Tessaiga again, runs after Kouga and tells him to duck. Juuroumaru, right when Kouga is close, turns from his crouching position to open his mouth, and let Kageroumaru jump out to get Kouga. Kouga, that fast little sucker, dives out of the way, and Tessaiga slices clean through both Kageroumaru and Juuroumaru. WAI! Go Yasha! Kagome is amazed (I'd be, too), and Inuyasha and Kouga start arguing again. Kagome comes in to stop them, sitting Yasha in the process. Kouga starts pulling some moves on her again, getting Inuyasha jealous. He does leave, though, saying he'll always "come to save her," and Kagome and Inuyasha start arguing. It's a cute conversation. ^_^ However, Kagome declares that she's going home, and Sango, Shippou, and Miroku sort of shake their heads. Sango and Miroku walk off to take care of Miroku's wounds, and Shippou says that they, at least, are grown-ups. Kagome and Inuyasha look at each other (wai!!). End of episode!!! Episode 47: The Heart of Onigumo that Remains in Naraku (Naraku ni Nokoru Onigumo no Kokoro) : At the start of this episode, Kagome has announced that she is headed home, and Inuyasha jerkishly tells her to hurry up and go. Kaede notes that everytime they come back, Inuyasha and Kagome fight. Kagome leaves, mad at Inuyasha, and Shippou goes after her since Inuyasha won't (Kaede is mending his wounds from the fight with Kageroumaru and Juuroumaru). Kagome seethes to herself that she only stopped the fight between Inuyasha and Kouga because she was worried about Inuyasha's wounds. Just as she's about to jump down into the well, Shippou catches up and tries to explain that Inuyasha is only being pouty and rude because he's jealous of the way Kouga always calls Kagome "his woman." Kagome admits that she knows that Inuyasha is just jealous, but that she's only going back to her world for more supplies and medicines. Saying she'll be back, Kagome hops down the well. After the episode title flashes on the screen, we cut to a scene of Kikyou tending to some wounded/sick soldiers (you see her doing this quite a lot), and she happens to be hanging laundry at the time. She suddenly gets tense and looks behind her to the treeline at the edge of the camp. Walking out to the forest, she sneeringly asks Naraku what he wants, and Naraku's voices floats down from the tree canopy. She says that she knows that he has been coming here several times to "check up on her," and begins to laugh, saying that it "must be hard." Naraku asks why she's laughing, and Kikyou explains that he must be thinking of her all the time since Onigumo's heart still resides within his body. Naraku leaves in an angry rush, blowing about leaves, and Kikyou smirks evilly. I like it, at least, when she pesters Naraku. ^_^ We get a new scene again, and Kagome has arrived home. Her family is shocked to see her (guess it's been awhile), and her mom prepares a bath for her. After the bath, she tells them that she'll leave the next morning, and asks Souta to get the medicine and other supplies that she needs. Later, she flops down on the bed, probably pretty tired, and muses to herself about whether or Inuyasha is worrying about her. Scene change! In Naraku's dark and lurky domain, he is brooding over what Kikyou said, and tells himself that he could have killed Kikyou at any time, but that he somehow can't because Onigumo's heart (which still loves her--eww) prevents him from doing so. He tells us again how he was made. He also says to himself that Kikyou is foolishly underestimating him. Since he now has almost all of the Shikon no Tama, Onigumo's influence over him is rapidly waning, and it will be completely gone once he has the rest of the Shikon. Dum-dum-dumm!! We then see the Shikon no Tama chunk that Naraku has in his hand glow brightly, and a scene of some Saimyoushou flying over a lake. From beneath the lake's surface, a very, very large Shinidamachuu [Soul-Snatching Demon] bursts from the lake. The soldiers at Kikyou's little temple notice a dark cloud overhead, and Kikyou realizes that the lights she sees floating about are dead souls, being eaten by something within the cloud. She knows that it's Naraku's challenge, and runs to get her bow and arrows. She borrows one of the soldiers' horses and rides off. Her own smaller Shinidamachuu flank her, and they go up to the larger one (a red colored demon) in an attempt to fight it. It doesn't really work too well, though. Kikyou arrives at a cliff and gets off the horse. Launching an arrow at the large demon, it flies past it, missing. The demon then comes after her, and begins to steal the souls housed within her fake body, which certainly isn't good for Kikyou. Her arrow misses again, and she gets back on the horse, riding along the edge of the cliff. The demon catches up quickly, though, and Kikyou is tossed from her horse down the cliffside. ...I think Kikyou has a problem with cliffs. @_@ Back with the Yasha gang, Miroku and Sango discuss Juuroumaru and Kageroumaru (while Inuyasha restlessly twitches, looking out the door). They all agree that they should keep their guards up, and Miroku asks Inuyasha if he'll go retrieve Kagome, but Inuyasha flippantly announces that it's better off without her. Sango asks him to leave then, since he's being annoying. ^_~ Sango and Miroku say aloud that Kagome shouldn't have to put up with a guy like Inuyasha, who shouldn't even have to worry about Kouga since it's a one-sided love. Inuyasha tenses up, angry. Shippou thinks to himself that he could tell them that Kagome will be back in the early morning, but since Kagome asked him to keep it a secret, he says nothing out loud. Inuyasha leaves angrily, saying that he won't apologize, but he ends up going to the well and pouting over the fact that she's not back yet. Before Inuyasha can pout for very long, though, the giant demon that Kikyou was fighting flies overhead, having been sniffed out by Inuyasha. Kikyou appears from the treeline, "leaking" souls and looking the worse for wear. Inuyasha is immediately concerned (oh, geeeez), and grabs her. He sees Saimyoushou behind him, and deduces that Naraku came after Kikyou, which is why she has a severe wound. The giant demon bears down upon them, and Inuyasha gets Kikyou out of there, setting her against a tree while he goes back to fight it. He brings out Tessaiga and basically slices the demon in half...vertically. Ewwww!!! All of the souls entrapped start to rise out of the body, and Kikyou's Shinidamachuu immediately start catching them and bringing them back to her. Inuyasha asks Kikyou why she's there, and she explains that the demon chased her there. He asks if she came for his help, but Kikyou rudely says that she only happened to be passing through. How mean!!! Back with Kagome, it's evening and Kagome has slept the afternoon away. She wakes up to find that she's way late getting back and scrambles to get her stuff together. Inuyasha, having stayed with Kikyou while her Shinidamachuu harvested the souls, starts to think aloud about the fifty years that have gone by. Kikyou admits that she has changed ever since she sealed him to the tree (which she happens to be sitting against), and Inuyasha goes over again how Naraku tricked them into hating each other. He says some mushy lines that I wish he had projected towards Kagome, who at least doesn't try to be mean to him, and Kikyou seems to be reacting to the affection he's showing. However, she rejects his affections and says that he's just like Naraku. I didn't hear her ever explain why, though. She goes over how Onigumo has affected Naraku's behavior (50 years ago), and says that Onigumo's jealousy, reflected in Naraku, is a very human feeling. Inuyasha therefore concludes that Naraku then must also still have feelings for her (ewwww!!). The last of the souls that she needs are absorbed, and Kikyou gets up to leave. Inuyasha asks if she's going to try to fight Naraku by herself, and confesses that the fact that Naraku loves her makes him sick. Just then... Kagome gets back... Ohhhh, nooo... Kagome is walking back and happens to see some of the dead souls floating above the trees within the forest. She follows the lights and, upon seeing Inuyasha and Kikyou, hides behind a tree to eavesdrop. (Like you wouldn't?) This is an important conversation that she hears, so I'll basically write it word for word: Inuyasha--"I don't care how you feel now. Do you think I will leave you to Naraku? The only one who can protect you from Naraku is me!" He's yelling this, advancing on Kikyou, who backs up to the tree. Inuyasha grabs her shoulders and pulls her into a tight hug, which Kikyou resists at first. Kikyou--"What?! Get away from me! Let go of me, now!" Now, Kikyou stops resisting and returns his embrace, and you can practically hear Kagome's heart breaking. Kagome stops watching and turns away, still behind the tree. Inuyasha--"I will kill Naraku...so you don't have to fight anymore. I will protect you." Kikyou--"Inuyasha." Inuyasha--"Kikyou." (Heh, that was weird to type.) Even more crappy is when Kikyou, from behind Inuyasha's back, pulls a knife from within her voluminous sleeve. She presses it to Inuyasha's neck, and says that it's stupid of him to think that he can make everything better with just this. She says that as long as Onigumo's heart is still inside Naraku, she has a chance to kill him. She can purify Naraku and make his existence in this world completely void. Kikyou's Shinidamachuu come down to get her then, and they lift her away. Inuyasha is upset, obviously. Here's something very, very important. Kikyou says to herself that "The red string of fate, once broken, cannot be mended again." The red string is an Asian myth (I think) that says that two souls are joined by a ...well, by a red string. I think Kikyou is admitting to herself that she and Inuyasha are no longer connected, and cannot be ever again. Good!!! More for Kagome! Over with Naraku (and believe me, this part is gross), he's upset about Onigumo and is repeatedly slicing the spider-shaped scar off of his back in one big chunk. It's pretty disgusting. With the Yasha gang again, Miroku and Kaede notice the souls of the dead, and realize that Kikyou is probably there (as well as Inuyasha). Finally back with Inuyasha, he hears something behind him, and turns around to see Kagome come out from behind the tree. He balefully asks himself if she was watching. Kagome wonders why he doesn't look away from her (he's pretty much staring at her with an apologetic but resolved look on his face). Kagome pretty much already knows what he's thinking, and it's really tearing up her heart. Poor baby! End of episoooode!! Ha ha ha! Episode 48: I Want to Go Back to Where We Met! (Deatta Basho ni Kaeritai!) : Just to warn you, most of this episode is introspective thinking on the parts of Inuyasha and Kagome, and is generally quite angstful and hard to digest. We pick up right where we left off in episode 47--the staring contest between Inuyasha and Kagome. Kagome, guessing what Inuyasha is probably going to tell her, isn't ready to hear it yet, so she runs away, back to the village. Inuyasha doesn't follow her. When she gets back, she tries to act cheerful in front of the Yasha gang, but her voice is wavering and they can tell that something is wrong. Kagome gives them the supplies that she brought back, and gets up to leave. They're confused as to why she's leaving again, and Kagome explains that she only came back to give them the medicinal supplies. Sango suggests that Kagome make up with Inuyasha before leaving, and it galvanizes Kagome to remember that their fight was fairly trivial. We get another flashback of what Inuyasha said to Kikyou in episode 47, and then a cut over to Kagome, who is traveling back through the Bone-Gobbling Well, having not spoken to Inuyasha. Sango and Miroku, standing at the mouth of the well, comment on Kagome's lack of cheerfulness, and Miroku rightly guesses at to what happened (he did see the lights of Kikyou's dead souls from the village the night before). They see Inuyasha walking back from within the forest, and Miroku informs Inuyasha that Kagome went back to her own world. He asks Inuyasha if his guess is correct, and Inuyasha confirms it. In a funny little scene, Miroku asks why Inuyasha looks like he has been enlightened by Buddha, but Inuyasha just walks away. Cutting over to Kagome, who's sitting on her bed, she is mulling about what happened, and says to herself that "He has made his decision." She explains again how Naraku managed to trick Inuyasha and Kikyou. She then wonders if there's any room in his heart for her. Inuyasha, standing atop a hill, thinks about his decision, solidifying it in his head. And Kagome, back in her realm, realizes that she can't compete with Kikyou, who went through so much more than she did. The next morning, Kagome wonders what she's going to do about the Shikon shards that she brought back with her. She knows that if she takes them back, and then leaves again, there would be no way for her to get back through the well, ever. At breakfast, Jii-chan and Souta wonder about Kagome's silence, and Jii-chan rightly guesses that it's "guy trouble." He's about to ask when Mama interrupts, asking if he wants some food. This happens several times (with Jii-chan never getting to ask). Mama is so great. ^_^ At school, Kagome's friends ask her about her "boyfriend," and Kagome says that he dumped her...with a big smile on her face. Her friends quickly realize that Kagome, despite her face, still loves this "boyfriend," and are sure not to talk about it anymore. Back with the Yasha gang, Shippou tells Inuyasha off, saying that despite the fact that he got jealous over Kagome becoming friends with Kouga, he's still getting back together with Kikyou. Sango and Miroku tell Inuyasha to go see Kagome, but Inuyasha says no. Miroku stomps him on the head, saying that they need Kagome's Shikon shards back. Sango and Shippou wonder if Miroku is being insensitive, but he says that they have no choice since Inuyasha chose Kikyou. It'd be cruel to ask her to come back. Inuyasha goes to see Kaede about it, and she explains that since Kikyou isn't of this world, he can't really exist with her in the normal sense. He sadly agrees, but says that he'll do as Kikyou wishes and accompany her to Hell. (Nyaaaaa! Dammit, Inuyasha, don't do it!) Kagome, standing in front of the well, looks at the bottle of Shikon shards in her hand and makes to jump in. However, she's still too scared and upset to see Inuyasha right then. She starts thinking about Kikyou, and starts crying, hating Kikyou and wishing that she would just disappear. Knowing that she wouldn't want Inuyasha to see the hate on her face, she decides to hold off on returning, and walks away. As she walks by the temple's tree (the one Inuyasha was pinned to five-hundred years ago), the Shikon shards react a little, glowing inside the bottle. Kagome looks at the tree, and thinks of Inuyasha again, and how they met. She stays there awhile, getting herself worked up, and starts crying, saying to herself that she wants to see Inuyasha again. She admits to herself that she loves him (waiiii!!!)--that some time during their adventures, she fell deeply in love with him. Her mother comes home right around that time, and Kagome runs to her, sobbing. Her mother doesn't really ask what's wrong, which is pretty cool in my regard, but they sit beneath the Sacred Tree, and her mother tells Kagome of how Kagome's father proposed to her. They had been in a trivial fight the day before, but her mother sat beneath the tree and calmed down--so she now holds a certain reverence for it. (By the way, this is the only time that Kagome's father is ever mentioned.) Back in Inuyasha's time, Shippou is still pestering Inuyasha, and Inuyasha thinks to himself that he has to tell Kagome what he couldn't tell her the night before. Sango and Miroku walk up, saying that Kagome is probably suffering more. It's perfectly great for Inuyasha since his heart is made up, but Kagome's heart is still troubled. They make fun of him for a bit, telling him how un-manly and hesitant he is. He yells at them, "Why do you guys want us to break up so badly?" And they reply, "You don't want to break up?" (Haha! Gotcha, Inuyasha!) He turns away a bit, flustered and stuttering. When he turns back to say something, they've already left, and they all decide to call Inuyasha a 'two-timer' from now on. Inuyasha fumes at them from where he stands. Hehehe... Well, he does decide to go back and break up with her properly, knowing that it won't end for him either if he doesn't. As he breaks through the treeline and approaches the Bone-Gobbling Well, he sees Kagome, sitting on the edge but turned slightly away from him. It's a very, very pretty scene, and Inuyasha is sort of captivated by her as she turns her head to look at him. She tells him about all of the things she thought about while over there, and that since she knows how he feels, she thought that she couldn't ever come back to his time. Inuyasha tells her that until he met her, he didn't trust or believe in anyone. She cried for him, and she was always there by his side. She sets his heart at ease, and lets him laugh despite the sorrows he carries. He feels guilt for it, and says that he has to answer Kikyou's sacrifice with his own. Kagome agrees, saying that she can't compete with Kikyou since she, herself, is alive. But she also says that she and Kikyou are different. She may be Kikyou's reincarnation, but her heart is her own, and she is a separate entity from Kikyou. They do have one thing in common, though--both want to be with him. Knowing that they shared this feeling, Kagome felt some relief. She tells him that she wants to stay with him, that she can't forget about him, and they both fall silent for a bit. Inuyasha isn't sure how to answer her, but Kagome doesn't make him. She gets up from her seat and walks to him, asking him if she can stay by his side. Inuyasha says, "You'll stay with me?" And Kagome smiles and nods--super-pretty scene here. Kagome thinks to herself that she knows that she can't break the bond between Inuyasha and Kikyou, but silently says to him that she believes their meeting wasn't by chance. She wants Inuyasha to live. Grabbing his hand, she says it's time to go, and pulls him along, walking back to the village. At first, his hand is kind of lax in her grasp, and Kagome thinks to herself that she wants him to laugh and have fun. Then the camera returns to their hands, and Inuyasha closes his fingers. They stop for a second and look at each other (shoujo breeze right here), and then they smile! So cute! Kagome says her final thought: "I'll always be by his side." Episode 49: Kohaku's Lost Memory (Ushinawareta Kohaku no Kioku) : At the start, the Yasha gang is riding Hachiemon's squash form. Shippou tells Kagome that he's glad she came back, and rudely asks Inuyasha if he apologized, but Inuyasha tells him to shut up. Sango and Miroku, up front, wonder how Kagome and Inuyasha worked it out, and Miroku rightly guesses that Kagome caved, which shocks Sango into incredulously asking if she's really going to let Inuyasha two-time her. With Sango saying that Kagome shouldn't have to put up with it, Miroku comments that Kagome must have known that Inuyasha had made up his mind as to how he would proceed with the odd relationship he holds with Kikyou, and that Kagome probably didn't want to pressure him anymore. After the episode title goes by, the Yasha gang has arrived at the remains of Naraku's castle. They wonder if there was even a real castle here, considering the false ones that they had seen before. Sango shakes her head, having found the remains of her father's armor in some of the disturbed earth. She recalls what happened the night he was killed. Knowing that they buried all the taijiya who had died, Sango explains that this really was Naraku's castle, but that he is now gone. Miroku, in a rare display of monk-ness, decides to move the bodies of Sango's father and comrades to a different location. Amazingly enough in this next scene, we see Kohaku, looking normal and chopping up some wood for an elderly couple while showing off some tricks. Confused? Well, after the three of them eat, the elderly couple asks him if he remembers anything, like where he was from, but he admits that he can't remember a thing. The couple think that he may have once lived near the castle, and when he asks about it, they tell him that the castle of "Hitomi-sama," who I'm going to assume is Kagewaki, the young lord that Naraku was posing as, disappeared about ten days ago. They tell him that they believe he must have suffered through something tragic, and that he's blocking his memories...which is sorta true. He's sitting outside by himself later that evening, thinking about it, when suddenly clouds of Saimyoushou appear in the distance. He runs back to the elderly couple's home, telling them that he has to leave, and to not go outside. Thanking them for their hospitality, he runs off. As he runs, he remembers that he ran away from the castle that night, and that Naraku (though he doesn't know Naraku's name) had told him that he was no longer of use, but before he can get too reminiscent, a large youkai bursts from the ground in the path in front of him. Kirara, lying next to the Yasha gang at a fire, smells that Kohaku is nearby, and Sango thinks that Kirara is reacting to the scent of youkai, which I suppose could also be why Kirara stands up. Kagome tells them that she can feel the presence of a Shikon shard, so... off they go! As they go, they see Saimyoushou above them. Finally having caught up, the Yasha gang amazingly deduces in practically a split second what the large demon intends to do and know that removing the Shikon shard in Kohaku's back would kill him. Sango launches her boomerang, dispatching the demon. Yay! Kohaku, a little amazed, asks Sango if she knows him. That certainly shocks the Yasha gang. Kagome and Sango later ask him about his memories, and Miroku and Inuyasha sit outside, discussing whether or not Kohaku is pretending that he can't remember anything. Kagome comes outside with Shippou on her shoulder, leaving Sango and Kohaku alone to work a few things out. Sango basically tries to delicately remind Kohaku of their past together. Something interesting in her memories, though, is how she says that the more fearsome demons are those that wear a human form. Sounds a lot like Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru, and...I suppose Naraku, too. Pretty cool, ne? Outside, Kagome, Inuyasha, and Miroku are still talking about Kohaku, wondering if it's a trap to hurt Sango's feeling and possibly get the Shikon shards they have. Inuyasha, when Sango comes out of the hut where she and Kohaku were speaking, confronts her with what he thinks is going on. Sango tries to defend Kohaku, but Inuyasha rightly points out that Naraku will take advantage of the trust she may show to Kohaku. They're arguing a little loudly, and Kohaku hears them inside. He doesn't want to cause Sango trouble, so he sneaks out the back way, deciding to leave them. Before Inuyasha and Sango can argue much more, though, a swarm of youkai pour from the clouds above. Sango runs to the hut to check on Kohaku, and boy is she in for a surprise. Since Kagome can sense where Kohaku is, she decides to help Sango find him. They grab their weapons and follow the direction Kohaku left in as Miroku and Inuyasha slash at the youkai. It's then that Kagura appears, saying that they're hiding Kohaku. She admits that she only came for his shard, and that she was ordered to give the body to Sango afterwards. Of course, this gets Miroku and Inuyasha pretty ticked. With Kohaku, he's trying to outrun some pursuing Saimyoushou, and not doing too well, but Sango comes to save the day. He screams at her for coming after him, asking why she's trying to keep him, and a somewhat emotional scene occurs when she tells him that it's because he's her one and only little brother. Aww... Anyway, Kirara smells more youkai coming, and she and Sango go off to take care of them, leaving Kagome and Kohaku together. They run off to hide, and Kagome actually kicks some ass, shooting down stray demons with her purity arrows. When she runs out of arrows, she decides to hide them in a tree hollow, kinda like a small cave. While waiting inside, they discuss Sango, and Kohaku admits that though he doesn't remember her, he somehow likes her a lot. Aww! Kohaku thinks to himself that he does want to remember her, and everything else in his past, but he does feel something dark in his memories that he doesn't want to surface (I think we all know what). However, thinking of this ominous feeling, his want to push it away lets Naraku regain a bit of control over him, and Kohaku is commanded to kill Kagome. The Shikon shard in his back sort of pulsates with evil energy, making Kohaku gasp with pain, but Kagome unfortunately isn't paying attention. He asks her if it's true that all of her arrows are gone, and as Kagome turns around, she sees that his arm is raised, ready to strike her down. Cliffhanger! Episode 50: The Face that Doesn't Fade from His Heart (Ano Kao ga Kokoro kara Kienai) : Kagome does a brief summary of the events in episode 49. After the episode title goes across the screen, we see Sango kicking some youkai ass. Kirara is helping, of course. Once they've taken care of most of the demons, Kirara and Sango ride off to find Kagome and Kohaku. Inuyasha, Miroku, and Kagura are exchanging insults and exchanging blows... still. We hear a bit of Kagura's inner dialogue, though, saying that the Yasha gang has been tricked. Meanwhile, with Kagome, we see her running by herself, and her right arm is hanging limply from her shoulder. Ouch. Kohaku is slowly following, but poor Kagome trips and finds it too hard to get up again. She stares at Kohaku as he catches up, noticing that he now resembles the lifeless puppet she had seen earlier. Kohaku slashes at her with his weapon, but Kagome dives out of the way. Kohaku is still looming, though, and obviously trying to fight the constant "Kill her, Kill her" that's inside his head. Sango catches up then, looking at Kohaku and knowing that she really had been tricked. (Not by Kohaku, though, remember that.) Kohaku runs off, and Sango sees the wound on Kagome's right arm. She tells Kirara to stay with Kagome, and runs off to find her brother, telling her that she's sorry as she goes. Kagome rightly guesses as to what Sango plans to do, but the scene switches to Inuyasha and Miroku, who are actually doing okay against Kagura and her swarm of demons. Kagura notices that Inuyasha is not drawing his sword, and Shippou stupidly yells out the reason why (he hasn't mastered it yet--remember that it's still too heavy for him). Inuyasha decides to take his sword out anyway, showing that he's slow with it, but ... well, what are ya gonna do? Miroku is tiring, so some of the youkai are starting to get by him, going for the hut behind him where they think Kohaku is. Inuyasha gets distracted by Miroku's plight, and has to rush to block Kagura's Fuujin no Mai attack. The hut gets destroyed, revealing that it's empty, and Kagura wonders out loud if they were wasting their time here. Inuyasha says that she won't get past them, but Miroku yells out that he's suddenly suspicious that Kagura was actually keeping them there. Oops... Inuyasha is instantly worried about Kagome (how sweet). Despite the fact that there are Saimyoushou about, Miroku uses his Kazaana to speed up the process, knowing that they now had to hurry to hopefully save Kagome. Inuyasha runs off to find Kagome, and Kagura leaves since she can't do anything with Miroku threatening to use his Kazaana on her. Once she's gone, Miroku closes up his Air Void, and sinks to the ground in pain, but Shippou comes to help him. We get a short scene of Inuyasha running in the forest, and then see Kohaku, doing the same thing. Sango catches up to him, though. Seeing that he still isn't free of Naraku's control, and knowing that she'd rather kill him than let Naraku use him, she draws out her sword, and runs at him. He runs at her, blindly fighting this new enemy, and wraps the end of his weapon's chain around her sword. She swipes at him with her boomerang, still holding onto her sword, and says to herself that he won't die alone. Inuyasha finds Kagome, and squats down to look at her injury. She admits that he only grazed her, and that he didn't kill her even though he could have. She asks him to go after Sango, thinking that she'll kill him. He does so (good boy!), and thinks to himself as he goes that Kohaku must still have his human heart inside if he disobeyed Naraku's order. Back with Sango and Kohaku, they're still duking it out, but Sango knocks away his weapon, losing her own in the process. All that's left is her sword, with the chain of his weapon still wrapped around the part of the blade near the hilt. She pushes him to the ground, sitting over him with the sword pointed at his chest. He looks lifeless, lying there, and she yells his name, but gets no response. Telling him that the only way she can get him back is to kill him and herself, she raises the sword. Inuyasha knocks away her sword, though, and it goes flying away. Kohaku, no longer pinned, retreats quickly. Inuyasha tries to nab him, but Kagura shows up. They argue about what Naraku's intentions are, and Kagura reveals that it's not just Naraku manipulating Kohaku's mind, but Kohaku himself doesn't want to remember what he did that night. Inuyasha grabs Kohaku, yelling at him that he has to remember. Sango tells him to stop, but Inuyasha rightly points out that unless Kohaku faces those horrible memories, he'll always be under Naraku's control. Kagura laughs at him, throwing a small attack to shoo him away from Kohaku, and then rides off on her feather with Kohaku next to her, saying that it would be more humane to let Kohaku die without remembering. Somewhere in here, Kagome has arrived with Kirara, and the group of them watch Kagura leave. Inuyasha is brash, but yells at Sango not to try killing her brother again, because he can still be saved. This gives Sango some hope, and of course wins a point with Kagome. Off with Naraku (*shudder*), he asks Kohaku why he disobeyed his order. Touching his head, he asks if he wants his memories back, and Kohaku yells 'no!' as he feels a flash of them. Naraku takes his memories away again, seeing that Kohaku will still serve him, but as Kohaku's eyes lose their shine (he's goin' Puppet again), he can still see Sango's face in his mind. Episode 51: Inuyasha's Consumed Mind (Kokoro o Kuwareta Inuyasha) : Sesshoumaru and his two minions are venturing deep in a forest to visit "Sesshoumaru's father's friend." A deep voice welcomes Sesshoumaru, saying that he was waiting. The voice is that of Bokusenou, a tree demon who is very, very old, and very powerful. The voice guesses that Sesshoumaru is there to ask about the swords, and his face presses out from the trunk of a tree. Eww... Miroku is still recovering from being poisoned by Naraku's saimyoushou. Sango reminisces about what happened in episode 50, but is interrupted when Miroku starts to stir. He wakes up long enough to tell her that she shouldn't be sad, and then closes his eyes again. Sango thinks that he has either fainted or died, and tries to shake him awake, only to find that her booty is being groped. @_@ Back with Sesshoumaru, the tree says that he must be there to inquire about his father's "memento" swords, Tessaiga and Tenseiga. He tells Jaken, who's curious, that his branches were used to create the scabbards for both swords. (Remember how Hiten's lightning attacks were repelled by Tessaiga's scabbard? Pretty strong wood, ne?) Sesshoumaru gets to the point, asking about the relationship between Inuyasha and Tessaiga and saying that his blood changed--the first time being when the sword had been shattered by Goshinki, and the second time when Inuyasha had been separated from it while fighting Sesshoumaru. The smell changed from that of a half-demon to that of a full-demon. Swwwweeet!! Bokusenou is nice enough to explain this phenomenon. Sesshoumaru can do something that Inuyasha cannot--that is to keep a control on his demonic blood, no matter how close to death he may be--he doesn't "lose" himself. Demonic blood is too strong for a half-demon to control. If Inuyasha is close to death, his demonic blood takes over his mind, forcing his body to protect itself, even if it means fighting until his body is destroyed from the exertion--he'll fight until there's nothing else to kill, or until he dies himself. It will consume his mind, leaving nothing but the urge to slaughter, not even memories or a sense of right and wrong. If he loses control too many times, he will not be able to regain himself, ever. Of course, Inuyasha's father did not wish this to happen, so Inutaisho created, from his own fangs, a guardian sword, sheathed by a scabbard made from Bokusenou's branches, to seal the blood inside Inuyasha's body. All this time, within the Black Pearl hidden inside Inuyasha's eye, the sword has been silently protecting him. Now that he wields it, Inuyasha can lose it, and himself, if he's not careful. In another scene along a river, Inuyasha and Kagome discuss Kohaku and the fact that Kohaku and Kagome both survived Naraku's plan. Inuyasha says a couple cute things, blushing a bit. When he asks to see her wound, Kagome tells him that she's fine, but they kind of fight over it. Sango shows up with Shippou, smiling to herself, and says that she wanted to say thank you to Inuyasha and Kagome "for being together." Inuyasha is a little confused, but Kagome gives him this knowing smile. It's funny... They're all walking along later when a young boy comes screaming up the path behind them, yelling about his grandfather. Inuyasha takes off, thinking it's another demon, but it turns out that the old guy just fell down. He carries the old man back, anyway, frowning the whole time, and they drop off the old guy and his grandson at a nice-looking village. Going on, they're a bit away from the village when Inuyasha suddenly stops, saying that he can smell human blood. They look back, thinking the worst, and see smoke rising up from a few hills away. They find the same young boy as they're returning, who has an arrow protruding from his back. He collapses onto Kagome, asking her to save his grandfather, and then passes out. Inuyasha and Miroku go on ahead. They find that a war gang has set fire to the village, killing all the men and children, and gathering the women in one group. Inuyasha yells out that he wants to see the leader, and he and Miroku both comment to each that they can smell/sense a demon among the group of thieves. Riding up on his horse, on cue, the demon shows up, hefting a large axe. (By the way, this guy shouldn't wear make-up.) He tells Inuyasha that he wants his sword, but Inuyasha just picks a fight and they start to go at it. Since he's a jerk, the boss demon uses a woman to toss at Inuyasha as a shield, and while Inuyasha is trying not to break one of the girl's bones as she hits him and falls to the ground, the boss demon breathes out a noxious cloud and swipes with what's left of his axe, poisoning Inuyasha with both hits. Since Inuyasha can't swing quickly, he can only make a show of the sword and not hit the guy. Miroku comes to the rescue, trying to hold off the web-like substance now being spat out using his holy powers, but gets stuck in a cocoon of poison with Inuyasha. Inside, Miroku's holy powers are the only thing keeping them both from melting, and Inuyasha is not looking so great. We can see that Inuyasha has dropped his sword outside the cocoon--not a good sign. Inuyasha can't move because of the poison, but at least the boss demon can't use his sword against him--he has no human blood, so it won't even let him touch it. Since the boss demon has one of his human thieves retrieve the sword for him, he deduces that Inuyasha must be a hanyou, and laughingly introduces himself as Gatenmaru. Kagome, Sango, Shippou, Kirara, and even the kid, are racing back towards the village, having tended the boy's wound and feeling that Inuyasha and Miroku must be in trouble since they've been gone so long. Back in the village, Gatenmaru just sits down to wait until Miroku's strength runs out. He can't help Inuyasha, who isn't healing but bleeding even more, and Inuyasha can't do anything because of the poison, especially without his sword. The boy's grandfather is lying off to the side of the area, wounded, and knows that he has to get the sword back to Inuyasha. Gatenmaru commands the men to bring the girls to him, and their frightened screams begin to get a reaction out of Inuyasha. I'm thinking that he's not only reminded of his own mother and of Kagome, but of the fact that he.. has been cornered.. and is close to death. Ooooops... We see Miroku reacting to the way in which Inuyasha is slowly changing, and Inuyasha's eyes begin to pulsate towards red in time to his heartbeat. A big "oh, shit!" is coming, but... cliffhanger!! Episode 52: Unable to Stop! A Demon's True Nature (Tomerarenai! Youkai no Honshou) : As this episode starts out, Inuyasha and Miroku are still inside the acidic cocoon, struggling to stay alive. As the situation gets more and more desperate (the lord youkai kills one girl; the rest of the Yasha gang come to help but are quickly getting outnumbered; the child's grandfather is getting beaten; and Miroku is having great difficulty keeping the holy barrier up), Inuyasha, without Tessaiga, finally reverts to his youkai form, which startles Miroku. The cocoon bursts open as Inuyasha uses a claw attack, and the lord youkai changes into his true youkai form--a big, ugly moth. Inuyasha very quickly disposes of him, and then turns to slaughter the youkai's men, who are trying to run for their lives. Kagome, now with Tessaiga, is desperate to help, but can't get near him. Though the Yasha gang is no longer in danger from the soldiers, they now have to save Inuyasha from destroying himself. As Inuyasha, oblivious to Kagome's cries, is about to kill three men on their knees, begging for mercy, Inuyasha senses the presence of his older brother. Sesshoumaru, who has come to see if what Bokusenou has said is true, battles with his younger brother until Inuyasha is finally knocked out. The Yasha gang confronts Sesshoumaru with the fact that he could have killed Inuyasha, but didn't--and they ask him why, but Sesshoumaru gives a roundabout answer, and leaves. Kagome, who has returned Tessaiga to Inuyasha, leans over Inuyasha as he comes to. He's later finally able to get up, and surveys the damage he has dealt. Very remorseful, Inuyasha grows embittered when the villagers that he just saved shun him for being a monster. Meanwhile, Sesshoumaru has returned to where he left Rin and Jaken. Jaken makes an idiot out of himself when he demands to know why Sesshoumaru left without him, and Rin makes a saint of herself by only answering Sesshoumaru's question, "Did you behave?" O_o However, Sesshoumaru looks off into the distance, much to Rin and Jaken's confusion. Later, Miroku and Sango chat about Inuyasha's predicament by the riverside as Miroku washes his hands. Sango declares that because the Yasha gang has stuck by her despite the trouble she caused with Kohaku, she'll stick with Inuyasha, even if he turns into a youkai. Miroku agrees with a smile. Inuyasha, unable to get the smell of the men he killed off of his hands, wades back to the shore in frustration. Sitting down a bit away from the shore, Kagome offers him a towel, but he rebuffs her for her concern. Kagome, always understanding and trusting (unlike someone we all know), lays her hands on his shoulders for comfort--and Inuyasha, feeling better I'm sure, thinks to himself that if he transforms again, his claws might slash through Kagome... Episode 53: Father's Old Enemy, Ryuukossei (Chichi no Shukuteki, Ryuukossei) : Inuyasha, as he walks over what looks like crusted lava (ouch), recalls the events of episodes 51 and 52. Hoping that he can master Tessaiga in an effort to prevent ever transforming into a full youkai again, he is meeting Toutousai again. After the subtitle flashes, the entire Yasha gang, riding Kirara, are trying to find Inuyasha's sneaky little hide. I guess he left without telling anyone. Miroku guesses that he went somewhere to try to make Tessaiga lighter, but Shippou doubts that Inuyasha would do something so productive. They decided to continue looking anyway. Toutousai is giving Inuyasha a hard time about not figuring out how to lighten Tessaiga, but Inuyasha is honest about his reasons, showing that he's very serious, so Toutousai cuts him some slack. Just in time to interrupt their conversation, Myouga starts sucking on Inuyasha's neck, and gets himself flattened for it. Inuyasha yells at him for not warning him of the connection between Tessaiga and his transformations, but it's obvious that Myouga still wouldn't have told him if it weren't for Kagome having already spilled the beans. Toutousai then finally cuts in, telling him to kill Ryuukossei. Inuyasha, of course, asks what that is, and why he has to kill it. Ryuukossei is a demon that Inuyasha's father (Inutaisho) sealed when he was still alive. Inutaisho was unable to actually kill Ryuukossei. Toutousai says that since Tessaiga had to be mended with one of Inuyasha's fangs, it is heavy because the magical power in Inuyasha's fang is less than that of his father's. If Inuyasha kills Ryuukossei, he will have surpassed his own father, and the sword will become lighter again. While on their way to this supposed Ryuukossei, Myouga tells Inuyasha that he only has to cut out Ryuukossei's heart while the youkai is still sealed, and it should work. Inuyasha feels disppointed that he won't actually fight (like it'll be cheating), and above him we see one of Naraku's saimyoushou following along behind. Naraku watches from afar (that sly little bastard), and comments to Kanna that though none of his detachments could kill Inuyasha, but that perhaps Ryuukossei can. This, of course, means all kinds of "no good!" After watching Inuyasha travel quite a ways, the scene cuts over to Toutousai, who's riding his three-eyed cow (don't ask). The Yasha gang find him, and Kagome actually shakes Toutousai in her desperation to find Inuyasha (pretty funny scene), and once Toutousai has fallen off his three-eyed cow (don't ask), he tells them where Inuyasha went. Back with Inuyasha, we get a nice good glimpse of Ryuukossei. We can see where his heart is based on where Inuyasha's father's claw is sticking out. (Ouch.) As they stare at the claw, Naraku, of ALL people, shows up, standing on the claw. The Yasha gang are talking to Toutousai about the method Inuyasha must use, and they all discuss Inuyasha's guilt over killing humans, even if they were thieves. Toutousai is glad for this, thinking that his guilt will make it even easier for him to properly wield Tessaiga once he has lightened it. But back to the real situation! Naraku, that little bastard, pretty much breaks Ryuukossei's seal, and even points out for Ryuukossei that Inuyasha is the son of his hated rival. So now Ryuukossei even has incentive! What ensues is basically one big cool fight. At one point, Ryuukossei annihilates Naraku's kugutsu. Smart guy, ne? From where the Yasha gang is sitting, pretty far away, they can ALL see the great youki [demon energy] coming from beyond the hills in front of them. Even Shippou and Kirara are upset. Of course, Inuyasha's fight isn't easy. It seems that nothing he does will hurt Ryuukossei. During the fight, Myouga does reveal that Ryuukossei is the demon who mortally wounded Inuyasha's father...right before Myouga runs away. Also, as Toutousai and the Yasha gang head over to find Inuyasha, Toutousai says that the only way to defeat Ryuukossei is if Inuyasha uses Tessaiga's Baku Ryu-ha, the sword's ultimate attack. They pick up Myouga on their way. More fighting is going on, but something bad happens--Inuyasha drops Tessaiga. The Yasha gang show up right around this time, and they can all see that his body is undergoing the transformation (so Ryuukossei is confused, obviously). Kagome screams Inuyasha's name (I've never heard her scream that loud, actually), and Inuyasha opens one RED eye, grating out Kagome's name. Cliffhanger!! Episode 54: Tessaiga's Hidden Purpose, Baku Ryuu-ha (Tessaiga no Okugi, Bakuryuuha) : Kagome gives us a nice summary of the situation at the beginning of this episode, and after the episode title flashes by, we see Ryuukossei about to laughingly "end Inuyasha's misery" as he lies there, looking dead. Kagome yells at him to open his eyes, but when he does, we see that he has transformed, and can barely hear her. Getting up and turning around, Inuyasha glares at Ryuukossei, who assumes that Inuyasha's blood has awakened. Man, he really is a smart guy, ne? Inuyasha takes a swipe at Ryuukossei, actually penetrating the demon's steely hide for the first time. They fight a bit longer, but Toutousai wants to leave, saying that if he somehow finishes off Ryuukossei in his youkai form, he will not have made Tessaiga any lighter, and very well may come after them next. Kagome shakes Toutousai again, saying she wants to stay, and he eventually concedes, but that's when Miroku directs their attention back to Inuyasha, who is actually trying to force himself to pick up Tessaiga! He's about six feet away when Ryuukossei launches another lightning ball attack, and the Yasha gang thinks he's done for, but once the smoke clears away, we see Inuyasha almost casually holding up Tessaiga's sheath, which has already proven to be enough to withstand powerful lightning attacks. However, the sheath won't take another hit, and Ryuukossei launches off another lightning ball. Miroku, that awesome, wonderful monk, opens up his Kazaana in order to divert the lightning ball's path, and it works! Finally, Inuyasha takes up Tessaiga, reversing his transformation. Ryuukossei and he exchanges insults, and Inuyasha transforms Tessaiga. As Inuyasha stands there, ready to fight again, he and his sword both pulsate, and Inuyasha has the shocking realization that Tessiga is getting lighter. Taking advantage of this, he stabs Ryuukossei right in the heart (and boy, does it hurt). After backing away again, Inuyasha is amazed by how light his sword is compared to how heavy it was before. However, it's not enough to kill Ryuukossei. Toutousai tells the Yasha gang that Ryuukossei's body must be shattered completely. The fight continues, with not much progress. Of a sudden, Inuyasha is surprised to smell his Kaze no Kizu attack surrounding the blade of his sword. Seeing this, he launches that attack against Ryuukossei. It successfully hits, and everyone believes that Inuyasha has successfully beaten the other demon. Now, Inuyasha can use Kaze no Kizu anytime he wants! However, it's STILL not enough. Aargh! Ryuukossei gets back up, fighting for real this time, and it's obvious that he's about to deal a heavy blow. Toutousai even tells Inuyasha that he should run away. However, we know Inuyasha too well. He dives right at the incoming lightning ball attack, knowing that he can't go around it. Resolved to cut through it, he suddenly sees within Ryuukossei's lightning ball (which is basically a big lump of youki) a "dangerous spot." He decides to hit that spot with Kaze no Kizu. Cutting at the "dangerous spot," he successfully performs the attack, Baku Ryu-ha [Grand Sword Style]. It creates giant tornadoes of demon energy that rip Ryuukossei to shreds. As the smoke and body parts dissapate, Inuyasha is confused as to what happened (he doesn't know about Baku Ryu-ha). Toutousai and the Yasha gang come down to check on him. Inuyasha believes that Toutousai did something to the sword to improve it, but Toutousai incredulously asks him if he "did it without knowing what he was doing." Toutousai explains that he performed Tessaiga's ultimate attack, which takes an enemy's youki and forces it to backfire (or counterflow), even emphasizing the youki's power with Tessaiga's own power, Kaze no Kizu. It's not exactly a new power, just a new way of using an old power. Thus the term "Grand Sword Style." Toutousai realizes, to himself, that Inuyasha surpassed the theory of Baku Ryu-ha, counting him as truly talented if he was able to do that. The Yasha gang puffs up Inuyasha's ego a bit too much, praising him for a job well done, so he decides to show off that he can use Kaze no Kizu whenever he wants to...by shattering the small hills around them. Of course, he's just destroying stuff and acting stupid, so what does Kagome do? Osuwari! Episode 55: The Stone Flower and Shippou's First Love (Ishi no Hana to Shippou no Hatsukoi) : The Yasha gang are about to pass through a town at the beginning of this episode. They sorta suspect that a Shikon shard might there and begin to split up (more like R&R time rather than "let's-search" time). Sango and Miroku go off together (with her chasing him to make sure he doesn't go girl-hunting), Kagome and Inuyasha relax next to the town's creek, and Shippou goes off by himself. At some point, Shippou observes three young boys picking on a young girl, accusing her of thievery, and overhears that her brother (her only caretaker) has been missing for some time due to the wars. Shippou comes to her rescue, scaring off the three boys with a fox trick. The girl is grateful and shares some of the food that she actually did steal, telling him her name (Satsuki) and asking him for his. Shippou begins to blush... ^___^ They hang out for a bit, talking about Satsuki's lack of parents, or a brother who's assumed to be dead. She shows him the precious item that her brother gave her before he left, saying that she could wish upon it if she needed to (it's...a Shikon shard!). Later that night, Miroku swindles some mansion lord into letting the Yasha gang stay at their home for the night, or rather...that's what the Yasha gang thinks. It's pretty funny when they learn that he really was trying to purify the mansion lord's home, which really was possessed by a demon spirit. Hehehe... Just then, Shippou comes running up, telling the Yasha gang about the shard he found. Satsuki has followed him (and the mansion lord recognizes her). Kagome asks her to please show them the Shikon shard, and when Satsuki asks if they'll take it, Inuyasha replies with "if it's real, we'll have to take it." Kagome sits him for that one. ^_^ Shippou, of course, didn't think about this, and feels like crap now. Kagome looks at the shard, though, and then Satsuki makes to leave, which confuses Shippou. The mansion lord asks Satsuki if she's sure that she doesn't want to live there with him, but she firmly believes that her brother is coming back, and keeps going. The Yasha gang ask what happened, and Kagome tells them that the shard is fake. Over dinner, the mansion lord discusses Satsuki with the Yasha gang, and we also watch Satsuki walking home. A large green lizard peeps out to watch her, verifying to us that he was the demon spirit banished from the mansion lord's house. Later that night, Shippou lays awake, thinking that Satsuki's wish to have her brother back might come true if he lent her one of the real shards that Kagome has. While everyone is asleep, he yoinks the little bottle she keeps the shards in, but...gets picked up by the tail by Inuyasha. Oops...guess that didn't work. Inuyasha lectures Shippou for a bit, rightly guessing that Shippou has a widdle crushy-wushy. Miroku is also awake, helping Inuyasha tease Shippou, but Shippou turns the conversation back on Inuyasha, pointing out his double-timing on Kagome and Kikyou. Hehehe... The next morning, Satsuki wakes up to find that her brother has returned home. They have a joyful reunion. Shippou is walking over to her hut to say good-bye, and meets Satsuki on the way, who has come to tell him the good news. Kagome notices that Shippou is gone, and the Yasha gang speculate as to where he went. With Shippou, he is introduced to Satsuki's brother, and almost immediately knows that the brother is a youkai in disguise. He tries to get Satsuki away from him, but she's a bit slow to realize what's going on, and her "brother" gets a hold on her. He tells her to give him the real Shikon shard, but when she tries to hand him the fake one she has (after he punches Shippou away, owie), he tells her that it's worthless and crushes the shard with his fist. Shippou uses his kitsune bi [fox fire] attack to reveal her "brother's" real form, and we see the demon from the night before as being the perpetrator. Shippou is now pretty angry, and uses a fox trick to get Satsuki away from the youkai. Grabbing the little teeny pieces of the shard that the lizard demon crushes, Shippou grabs Satsuki's hand and they run out of the hut. The lizard demon learns of his trick quickly, though, and crumbles Satsuki's house as he exits, following Shippou and Satsuki. Shippou sends Satsuki further ahead on another fox trick, sorta like a pony-thing, and stays behind to face the lizard demon. The Yasha gang have arrived at Satsuki's hut, and seeing it crushed to pieces, run off to find Shippou and Satsuki. They see her coming towards them eventually, on Shippou's fake pony, but the magic wears out just then, and Kirara has to catch her before she falls to the ground. Back with Shippou, he is dodging the lizard demon's lashing tongue, and they pause to insult each other for a bit. Then they fight for a bit, each using their own kinda wimpy powers (but compared to each other, this is a tough fight). We see Shippou have an inner moment where he really feels useless, and he thinks about how all the other Yasha gang members can fight so much better than him. By the way, they're fighting in some tall grass, so at this point, the lizard demon can't see Shippou. However, Inuyasha comes waltzing out, and the lizard demon thinks that Shippou has transformed into this new foe. Inuyasha decides to let the lizard demon pick a fight with him so that he can test out Baku Ryu-Ha on him. Just when he's about to do so, Tessaiga turns back into a normal sword, and Inuyasha curses to himself because the lizard demon's youki is too weak for the attack to work. (Now that's sad.) Inuyasha just punches the demon really hard, and its size automatically reduces down to that of a normal lizard. Miroku traps it underneath his staff, commenting that it's the same demon he expelled last night. Just then, Shippou comes out of his funk and looks up at Inuyasha, who says that he must have taken out the lizard demon with his magic. Shippou is kind of stunned. Kagome and Satsuki come over to check on him, asking if he defeated the youkai, but Shippou says that Inuyasha must have. However, Inuyasha says that the lizard demon was already beaten up when they arrived. Miroku says that it probably used Satsuki since it was too weak to go up against any of the Yasha gang members. Shippou still feels bad, though, and hands Satsuki the fake shard...shards. She tosses them away, having decided to live with the mansion lord (also the village leader), and that at least makes Shippou feel better. That evening, the Yasha gang head off again, leaving Satsuki at the village leader's house... ah... love... ^_^ Episode 56: The Temptation of the Beautiful Woman in the Garden's Mist (Kiri no Oku ni Bijo no Yuuwaku) : This episode starts off with some really old flashbacks, and Kagome explains who she is and how she got to the Sengoku Jidai. She introduces Inuyasha again, and talks of the demon enemies they have fought, as well as the friends they've found. She talks about Shippou, Miroku, and Sango, sometimes discussing their pasts or powers. She then introduces Naraku, and states their ultimate goal of defeating him. After the title flashes by, we see Miroku hitting on (and groping) a young lady, but she manages to walk away from him before he does much more than ask her to bear his child. Later on when they see a place to stop and rest, Miroku reaches in to find their money, but can't find it anywhere! They realize that the woman that morning must have stolen it, and she probably only let Miroku continue to grope her because she had taken his cash. Hehehe... They walk on, bypassing the resting place, but later on that day, they realize that Miroku isn't with them. Sango runs back to check up on him (making Kagome smile ^_^), and finds him speaking with a young woman. The scene flashes over to the nearest town, where the women explain that all of their men have gone missing in the mountain (Miroku seems upset that all of them are married, hehe). The Yasha gang is about to walk off to take care of the problem when one of the village women says that they must be careful despite the fact that the demon is said to be a rare beauty. Miroku immediately says that he'll go alone, getting Sango and Kagome's suspicions up real fast. They let him go off by himself, staying at a somewhat secluded hut near the village, but it's not too long before Sango and Kirara leave, knowing that they'll have to save Miroku from his own lust. Kgaome and Shippou try to convince Inuyasha for a while that Sango must be in love with Miroku, but the scene changes again! With Miroku and Sango, who are walking through some kinda dark forest-y area, they are discussing the story behind the demon, who was a princess that died alone after those who protected her died off as well. Miroku laments over the wiley ways of women, but before Sango can smack him for it, he sees the barrier of the demon's realm in front of them, and asks Sango to wear a green rosary that will help her. They both run at the barrier, but Sango is having a much harder time getting through. Miroku runs ahead (I guess he can't hear Sango yelling at him or notice that she's not keeping up with him). After he gets through, he wonders if they were forcibly separated, but is immediately accosted by the youkai they are looking for, who invites him to come inside her mansion (she's very pretty, but ... floats wherever she goes ... creepy). Sango, herself, finds a bunch of old men, just sitting out in the middle of nowhere, but they firmly deny that they are really old men. Kagome and Inuyasha are still discussing Sango and Miroku. Kagome wonders if Miroku has the same feelings as Sango, and Inuyasha comments that "well, he especially likes touching her butt." Hehehe. Shippou is tired of their conversation. @_@ Back with Sango, she learns from the old men that the beautiful demon lured them into her home, and must have taken their life energy (they're the missing men from the village). With Miroku, he is learning the princess's story, and offers his sympathy, but she immediately begs him to stay the night with her (in that sense) because she "cannot leave this place." Then she asks him to look into her eyes, and we see the old men telling Sango that her gaze makes men feel light-headed, like nothing matters anymore. Sango runs off, knowing that Miroku must be in trouble, and tells Kirara to stay with the old men. As she runs, the demon has supposedly taken control of Miroku, and they're about to kiss, but Sango runs like an Olympian and gets there in time to yell at him. The demon hears Sango's voice (unable to see her), and backs away really fast, obviously angered. She transforms, revealing that the princess's sad spirit was possessed by a female wild dog. Sango, realizing that she can't be seen, is about to launch hiraikotsu, but Miroku stops her, wanting to take care of it himself. (He really wasn't under the demon's control!) Miroku had wanted to gently exorcise the demon, but now he has to fight more roughly, and asks the princess to bear with it as well as she can. They fight for a bit, and Miroku manages to extract the princess from inside the wild dog demon. Sango can now fight the demon, and hits it once with her boomerang. However, the demon manages to use its powers to shatter the rosary that Miroku gave her, and now Sango is no longer invisible. Sango blocks the demon's hit with her boomerang, but it starts to crack in the middle because of the force of the demon's hand (oops). Miroku throws more holy seals upon the demon, and Sango throws her boomerang again, finally defeating the demon (but hiraikotsu cracks even more). The mansion disappears along with the youkai, and as Sango looks around to find the monk, she sees him holding the princess, apologizing to her for being rough about the exorcism. Sango doesn't feel so happy... :( The princess thanks Miroku, and her spirit rises to the sky, finally free. Later, Miroku has moved the princess's remains to the outskirts of the town, and tells the villagers (including the now young-again men) that if they offer the grave gifts and maintain it, the princess will protect their town. Kagome comments to Miroku that Sango has been a bit depressed ever since they got back. We then see Sango sitting next to a small creek, calling herself stupid, and Miroku finds her, asking her what's wrong. She feels that her presence wasn't needed that day, that Miroku would have been okay by himself, but reassures her that she did help. (The rest of the Yasha gang are spying from atop the hill, hehe.) Miroku asks Sango if she was worried about him, and she says that she was only worried because he kind of loses it when it comes to women, but firmly denies that she was jealous. Miroku takes a hold on her hand, and says that it makes him happiest to know that she worries about him (and Sango gets this pretty blush). Turning away in embarrassment, Sango isn't sure what to do, but before she can say anything...Miroku's roaming hand is on her butt again. SMACK!! Later, when they've begun to travel again, Miroku tells them that he couldn't help it, and Inuyasha tells Kagome that she must be wrong (referring to the feelings that supposedly exist between Miroku and Sango). Shippou calls him an idiot. Sango, walking far ahead, sighs to herself and thinks silently that she should get her boomerang fixed. Episode 57: Everything that Happened One Night in Eden--Pt. 1 (Subete wa Tougenkyou no yoru ni (Kouhen)) : At the beginning of this episode, Kagome is dreaming that she has passed a test at school, but when she grudingly wakes up, all she sees is a sleeping Yasha group, and a waning moon. After the episode title goes by, Inuyasha is complaining about Kagome wanting to go back to her time. She tries to explain that the tests she needs to take are important, but kind of fails at it. Sango, looking at her boomerang, says to Inuyasha and Kagome that she also needs to take about three days to go fix Hiraikotsu. Miroku, as he watches Sango leave, says that it's like taking a break when she leaves (probably because he's always busy trying to find a chance to grope her). Kagome wonders why Inuyasha is so desperate-sounding when saying that she can't go back now, but they start back towards home, anyway. In a new scene, we see a man running through a rocky area, and he bumps into what must be his assailant--a REALLY fat guy. The obese man basically says to the other man that he's being ungrateful, and the scared man begs for forgiveness, but Fatty decides to uncork a peanut-shaped bottle, which sucks in the frightened man. Back with Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku, and Shippou (who are on their way home), they suddenly feel a "strong presence." Shippou picks up a giant peach floating down the small stream that's right in front of them, and Miroku recognizes the peach as being ninmenka [human-faced fruit], which have a depiction of the human face on them. The Ninmenka tree feeds on living flesh, and Miroku guesses that the number of peaches floating downstream indicates a massive slaughter upstream. Inuyasha says that they shouldn't be surprised considering the number of wars that happen all the time, but Miroku and Kagome wonder why a war is occurring in the mountains. It's obvious that Inuyasha doesn't want to get involved, but they make him get involved anyway. The sun is setting as they go along, and they eventually see the Ninmenka tree above them. Inuyasha quickly decides to ascend the cliff-face and destroy the tree, which Miroku has already commented as being the largest Ninmenka tree he has ever seen, and when they ask Inuyasha why he doesn't want to wait for them, he says that the sun will have set by the time he gets everyone to the top. That's when Shippou (who shows a bit of intellect for once!) says that the New Moon occurs that night. It's Inuyasha's night of being human!!! At the top of the cliff, we see the fat guy "watering" the tree using the juices from his peanut-shaped bottle. A new peach grows, but the fat guy is frustrated that the peaches have not yet ripened. He starts to walk away just as Inuyasha jumps to the top of the cliff. Without hesitation, Inuyasha asks if he is the one growing the tree, and the fat guy is pretty sassy with Inuyasha. Inuyasha, who's impatient, draws out Tessaiga, and swings the sword at the fat guy's belly, but it just bounces off! Inuyasha then tries Kaze no Kizu, but the fat guy evidently has the powers of a sennin [hermit or wizard], and disperses Inuyasha's attack. We get to hear his name, Toukajin (do not confuse it with Toukijin, Sesshoumaru's evil sword), right before he sucks Inuyasha into his peanut-shaped bottle. What's worse is that Inuyasha drops Tessaiga as he shrinks, meaning he's way too tiny to lift it now! Meanwhile, Shippou is trying to float Miroku and Kagome up using his pink balloon form, but it's difficult for him and he doesn't quite make it to the top. As they fall back down to earth, Miroku jumps Kagome and himself off into some brush on the mountainside. However, it turns out that the brush was hiding a secret staircase, and they use it to enter a small room. Inside they see what looks like a very detailed diorama (a little playhouse, if you will) sitting on top of a table, and Kagome is surprised to find tiny men walking around inside the diorama! Before they can decide what to do, Kagome notices that her bottle of Shikon shards is growing huge (and it falls out of her pocket), and Shippou notices that the box is getting very big, too, but Miroku guesses rightly that it's they who are growing smaller! They, of course, realize pretty quickly that they're inside the box, but as to how to get out, they have no clue what to do. They try to ask the men inside the box for information, but they tell them to go away because they are "under the Sennin's training." Toukajin is trying to figure out how Inuyasha was able to make his sword transform, but he, of course, cannot wield Tessaiga. Inside Toukajin's bottle, which has fluids inside that can "digest" humans, Inuyasha wakes up, so far unaffected since he still has his youkai powers (his clothing is starting to take a beating, though). There's room to walk around, and Inuyasha, despite only having Tessaiga's scabbard rather than the actual sword, uses his claws to try to scratch his way out of the bottle. It's not working, though, and the sun is setting as he tries over and over again to break out. His demon powers start to fade, and Inuyasha realizes that he's in some deep trouble now! Toukajin has entered the room with the diorama, and puts Inuyasha's sword against the wall. He notices Kagome's bottle on the floor, and is delighted to see that he now has three shards in total! He pushes his shirt open to fit the two new ones into his belly button (man, he is FAT)! Meanwhile, Inuyasha is desperately trying to figure out what he can do. Inside the diorama, the Yasha gang find a lone soldier lounging about who tells them that it's impossible to get out of the box. The gang learns that the soldier overhead Toukajin and the Ninmenka tree talking to each other, and for eavesdropping was placed in the box to be later used as fertilizer. Toukajin had made a deal with the tree (which has a Shikon shard its bark) that he would fertilize it with human flesh if it would grow for him ripened ninmenka, which have the power to grant eternal youth. They had argued for a bit, and Toukajin removed the shard so that the tree would stop "jabbering" at him. This is where the shard in his belly button came from. Inuyasha is trying to break out of the bottle using his scabbard, but it's not going so well and the fluids inside the bottle are burning his feet. That's when he feels his scabbard calling for Tessaiga. Pointing the scabbard at the wall, he commands his sword to return to him, and it does! Toukajin, as he's standing there in the diorama room, suddenly has a sword flying at him and it stabs into his peanut-shaped bottle. He pulls it out, wondering what happened, and Inuyasha escapes though the crack, returning to normal size. He starts a fight with Toukajin, who's now ticked off at him, and Inuyasha realizes that he must have gotten the Shikon shards from Kagome (time to worry!). Inuyasha is literally crushed by Toukajin (he must be forgetting that being human means being weaker). The Yasha gang inside the diorama are becoming more anxious since they can't find a way out of the box, and the episode ends with Kagome getting very worried about Inuyasha as she yells out "I'm sorry!" Episode 58: Everything that Happened One Night in Eden--Pt. 2 (Subete wa Tougenkyou no yoru ni (Zenpen)) : Picking up where we left off, Inuyasha wakes up to find that he's ensnared in some large green vines. Toukajin is there in front of him, preparing a large pot, and tells Inuyasha that his hanyou blood is good fertilizer for the Ninmenka tree. We see that he's trying to pickle the ninmenka and when Inuyasha struggles against the vines, we see that they're thorned vines, and Inuyasha is only wounding himself more. Toukajin is using the vines to drain Inuyasha's blood from him! Inuyasha looks to a table and sees the Kagome's bottle for the Shikon shards. He asks where Kagome is, and Toukajin, happy to hear that a girl is somewhere in the house (he was pretty stupid to think that the shards got there by themselves), goes to look for her since the tree's favorite fertilizer is young female flesh (now Inuyasha is really worried!). Inside the diorama, the Yasha gang has come up with a plan. They put three bottles of what looks to be hairspray beneath a large boulder that's resting against the side of a hill. Shippou lights them on fire using his Fox Fire magic, the bottles explode, and Miroku uses his Kazaana to make the now-moving boulder roll towards him and Kagome, who are standing in front of a wall of the diorama. When it comes close, they dive out of the way, and the boulder smacks into the wall, creating a hole in the diorama! Shippou happily declares their success, but screams in fright as he looks up and sees a giant eyeball in the sky of the diorama. A hand reaches down, and Kagome is kidnapped from the rest of the Yasha gang! Kagome threatens Toukajin even though she is still small and sitting in his hand. He squeezes her until she falls unconscious, and a tiny Miroku and Shippou chase after them once Toukajin leaves the room. Inuyasha is still struggling with the green vines, but Toukajin comes in to harass him, tossing Kagome's now-full-sized clothing onto the floor and saying that he and "that dirty little girl" will reunite in his belly once they help produce the Elixir of Life. Miroku and Shippou, who pop out of Kagome's clothes, decide to help, and Miroku opens up his Kazaana. It pulls enough to loosen the vines from the ceiling of the room, causing it to cave in on everyone. Inuyasha is up first, and learns from tiny-Miroku/tiny-Shippou that Kagome is downstairs. Inuyasha goes to look, and finds her having just woken up from soaking in some sort of strange bath. So...she's naked...and he sees her bare chest... Inuyasha kind of turns around and flops down, just grateful that she's alive, and gives her his red coat. He gets up from the floor, but has lost too much blood and falls back down, unconscious. Kagome half-lies over him, very worried (and very naked), and this is when Miroku and Shippou pop out of a tuft of Inuyasha's hair to let Kagome know that they're there. She screams with embarrassment... ^_^;; Kagome dons the coat and ties it real perty (looks like a funny dress now) and asks Inuyasha if he can move (by the way, Toukajin is awake again, too). Kagome refuses to let Inuyasha fight when he's still human and wounded, so they're now hoping to get away for a bit. Kagome grabs a bow and arrows before they leaving the soaking room, but outside on the cliff behind the Ninmenka tree, they realize that they can't get down the cliff. As Kagome and Inuyasha argue about it, they hear the voice of an old man, and go to the base of the tree. There, they see what look like the bust of an old man growing from the bloom of a white flower. He tells them that he was Toukajin's former master, also a sennin. About a month ago, back when Toukajin wasn't fat, he had been frustrated by how slowly his sennin training was going, and happened to find a Shikon shard. Not knowing what it was, he tossed it behind him into the bark of the Ninmenka tree. The tree was thankful for the shard, and gave him the powers of a sennin by having Toukajin eat his peaches. However, the tree was now able to possess Toukajin, who turned on his master and made him into the flower form. Since Toukajin doesn't know how to make the Elixir of Life out of the ninmenka, he still needs the old man. As if on cue, Toukajin shows up. They argue for a few seconds before Toukajin launches an attack on Kagome using his sennin staff. Inuyasha blocks the attack by getting in front of her (how brave!), and (after he gets up) tells Toukajin that as a hanyou, he also wants to be stronger. However, Inuyasha is digusted by Toukajin because of his methods. He throws a barrel of pickled peaches at Toukajin to try to distract him as he dives for the Shikon shards in his belly, but Toukajin knocks him away. The real sennin tells Inuyasha that if he has no evil will, he can drink some of the juice inside the other pickled peaches barrel to heal some of his wounds, but Inuyasha can't drink something made from human flesh, and gets up on his own. They fight for a bit, but it's obvious that he's not doing so great. Kagome decides to help with her bow and arrow (and the old man is astounded by the energy that he sees in her as she aims), but before she can launch the arrow, the low-quality bow breaks in half! The old man sees that she needs a bow, so he becomes one!! Meanwhile, Inuyasha has stabbed Toukajin in the eye with a thorn from the vines he controlled with his sennin staff, and Toukajin has retaliated. Kagome, from behind Toukajin, can see the light of the shards through Toukajin's body, and fires an arrow at the exact spot. The shards burst from Toukajin's navel, landing in the bark of the tree behind Inuyasha. Toukajin sprints at Kagome, and Inuyasha has to tackle him to the side...and off the cliff. Both fall, and the tree, now equipped with Shikon shards, shoots its long roots down the mountainside to catch them (he can't lose such wonderful fertilizer, now can he?). Wrapping its roots around Toukajin entirely, he now has (sort of) a body to move around with. Ready to now do the same to Inuyasha, the tree doesn't seem to realize that it's almost sunrise. ^___^ He pretty much gets a nice big Kaze no Kizu, and is finally DEAD! Inuyasha catches the Shikon shards, and on top of the cliff, Miroku and Shippou return to normal size. However, they all believe that Inuyasha has died. Kagome is pretty upset, of course, but Miroku and Shippou keep lamenting that he's dead because he was so stupid. Inuyasha, who comes up to them from behind, doesn't appreciate their insults, and says so. Miroku and Shippou are certainly surprised and delighted that he's still alive, but Kagome grabs him and half cries that he worried her half to death because he pushed himself way too much. Inuyasha points out that she's crying, and Kagome tries to deny it, but Inuyasha is persistent. And gets himself sat!! Okay, now he's dead. ^_^ Stupid Yasha... Episode 59: The Beautiful Sisters' Aspirations for Apprenticeship (Bishoujo Shimai no Deshi-Iri Shigan) : At the beginning of this episode, Kagome has brought back several bags of stuff, most of it junk food and medicine. She gives Inuyasha some potato chips, Shippou a spinning lolly-pop, and Miroku a ...beer? Let's call it a soda pop. Anyway, she asks where Sango is, but Sango is still off fixing Hiraikotsu in her old village. Inuyasha says that she might not come back since there's a pervert among them (cough cough Miroku cough cough), but Kagome merely wonders if Sango is alright by herself after all this time. After the episode title flashes by, we catch up with Sango, who has just finished repairing her boomerang. She takes time to lay flowers by the graves of her family and friends, and says a few prayers. Remembering her father, she thinks to a time when he once told her that he did not train her to continue the business of demon-slaying, but to be able to "live strongly." She wonders what her father meant by it, but Kirara begins to hiss, and Sango looks to the side. Easily dodging a couple of rocks thrown her way, she sees that two young girls have entered the village. Believing that she was someone else, they attacked her, but once Kirara pins the eldest girl to the ground, they give up. Serina and Suzuna are very famished, so Sango makes some food for them, and once they've once again filled their bellies, they tell her that they left their village to find the hidden taijiya village in order to train as demon-slayers. Ever since their village cut away some forest in order to clear farming land, demons have come out by the dozens. Sango offers to go take care of the demons herself, but they say that they have no money to give her, and that their village is pretty far away. Sango says that to teach them to be demon-slayers is not an easy, quick task, but that she can teach a technique on getting rid of smaller demons. It turns out to be a powder that they must burn and fan outward to repel demons, but the girls don't seem very satisfied with this. They are quiet for the time being, though, and the sun sets for the day. The rest of the Yasha gang are still wondering where she is, and Miroku is starting to suspect that groping her all the time might really have driven her away. ^_~ That night, Serina and Suzuna sneak out to a locked warehouse in the village while Sango is sleeping, and begin to pack the youkai bones (made into weapons) in order to run off with them! Sango, of course, isn't fooled. She is outside waiting for them, and knows that they must be keeping something from her. Suzuna pulls some ninja-like moves on Sango, and she and her sister make it to the taijiya village entrance. Before they leave, Suzuna tells Sango that it's true: they're from a village of shinobi [spies]. Their village once got a job to kill a demon, which wasn't exactly how their techniques worked, but they managed to slay it. However, the demon's comrades attacked their village as revenge, and the shinobi couldn't handle them all. Afterwards, Suzuna and Serina emerged from hiding to look for their father, who lay dying nearby. He began to tell them something about being strong, but then passed away. His girls believe that he wanted them to rebuild the village by themselves. Before Sango can tell them what he probably wanted to say, they use more of their shinobi techniques to get away, and Sango goes to check the warehouse. Seeing that they took even parts that still hold youki [demon energy], she knows that they're in danger since other youkai will be drawn to it. She takes off after them on Kirara. She manages to catch up to them before any other youkai do, and warn them of what the youki in what they stole is doing. She tells them to ride with her back to the village, but before they get the chance, the demons show up, and GEEZ there's a lot of 'em! All three are braced to fight, and Sango finally gets her chance to tell Suzuna and Serina that there's no father who doesn't wish for his daughter's happiness--what he meant to say before he died was that he wanted them to live strongly and be happy! Sango stands in front of the two girls, telling them to stay with Kirara, and some ass-kicking ensues! The fight goes well for a bit, but Sango can't kill all of them and protect the two girls at the same time. It seems that they're about to go down when Miroku shows up!!! He crushes a few skulls, and then Inuyasha comes up out of the blue to Kaze no Kizu some demons. Miroku sucks up the rest into his Kazaana, and even Kagome shoots one down. They came to get her! Isn't that so sweet? Serina and Suzuna realize that they have to live on their own, but face it bravely and head off once everything settles down. Inuyasha tells Sango that Miroku was really worried about her, and Sango, with a blush on her face, asks Miroku directly if he was seriously worried about her. He says some sweet stuff, ...and then gropes her. *sigh* Shippou only hopes that he doesn't become that kind of adult, looking at the handprint on Miroku's face. Perverted monk!!! Episode 60: The Dark Priestess--A 50-Year Curse (Kuro-Miko Gojuunen no Noroi) : Ah, quite a good plot arc. We first see an elderly woman chanting over a fire, supposedly killing another man from afar. The lord's servants don't know how to help him, and he dies in bed. After the voodoo-like ceremony, Kagura shows up to ask the woman if she is the Dark Priestess Tsubaki. There to fetch her, Kagura easily blocks the attack that Tsubaki sends her way, having rightly suspected that Kagura was a demon. Asking the woman if she still bears a grudge against Kikyou, we can see merely from the look on Tsubaki's face that she does. After the episode title goes by, Kagome is at school, and has realized that she has missed so much of it that she doesn't know anything being done on the blackboard in any of her classes! After school, she looks so depressed that her friends wonder what's wrong with her, and believe that her "two-timing yet jealous" ex-boyfriend is the cause of it. They try to cheer her up, but she tells that she's back together with him, much to their surprise. Tsubaki and Kagura arrive at Naraku's well-guarded mansion, and he proposes a deal. If she uses her dark powers for him, he will give her the Shikon no Tama. As the ugly old hag softens in front of us, her wrinkles disappear, and she is once again as young as the time when she knew Kikyou--this is her real appearance. Having sold her soul to a demon for youth, she is very much interested in the Shikon no Tama, which would multiply her unholy powers. She agrees to Naraku's offer. Kagome is returning to the past and hauls along a TON of food and medical supplies, leaving her schoolbooks behind. As Inuyasha leaves the rest of the gang in the village to go meet Kagome at the well, a strange force suddenly blows over all of them, and they wonder about its origin. Inuyasha smells something funny, and Miroku and Kaede feel an evil energy sweeping towards their area. Kagome arrives through the well, and is almost immediately bitten by a snake-like creature on her ankle. She doesn't actually see it, and it gets away before Inuyasha, who arrives a few seconds later, can find it. Instead he rips through what looks like a demon conjured up by paper charms [ofuda or shikigami]. The snake returns to Tsubaki, who now has a sample of Kagome's blood, and she and Kagura retreat to continue their evil plotting! Back with the Yasha gang, they discover that there are no bite marks, and as Kaede inspects the leftover paper shreds that Inuyasha brought back with him, she sees that they're shikigami. Before any more discussion is to be made, Kagome feels something bad happen and checks the few Shikon shards that she still has. They've turned black!!! From far away, Tsubaki pours a black substance onto the Shikon no Tama, breaking Kagome's little bottle. The shards pierce her neck, digging in, and she falls back to a prone position, not feeling very good, of course. Because the shards in Kagome's neck are linked to the soiled Shikon no Tama within Tsubaki's hands, Tsubaki has the power to control Kagome, even kill her. Naraku, though he could order her death, has something else in mind. Kaede's age is certainly an asset now--she instantly recognizes what has happened, and knows who's behind it. Reminding Inuyasha of the Dark Priestess who often dueled and fought with Kikyou 50 years ago, Kaede attributes the curse to her. Miroku and Sango set out to find the priestess, and Inuyasha, Kaede, and Shippou stay to be with Kagome, who's now very ill. She's now hearing Tsubaki's voice in her head, commanding her to kill Inuyasha. She resists pretty well at first, and Tsubaki is reminded of Kikyou (she already knows that Kagome is her reincarnation). 50 years ago, she sought to steal the Shikon no Tama from Kikyou since her holy powers supposedly were weaker, now that her heart was distracted by Inuyasha. She failed miserably and had her shikigami-induced monster easily reflected back at her, damaging one eye and scarring it horribly. Miroku and Sango are nearer to the priestess now, and Kaede and Shippou go to the river to get fresh water, leaving Kagome and Inuyasha alone in the hut. Peering out from the hut, Inuyasha is worried about what's taking so long for Miroku and Sango to find Tsubaki. Feeling useless, he turns just in time to avoid getting hit in the shoulder by an arrow from Kagome's bow. He sees her standing on the other side of the hut, loading another arrow, and of course, he's flashing back to when Kikyou did the same to him. She barely manages to croak out that he should run away, and he realizes that someone is controlling her. Miroku and Sango have finally reached the barrier surrounding Tsubaki's hidey-hole, but they cannot breach it. However, emerging from the mists behind them (yet again), Kikyou arrives, knowing exactly who's evil energy this is. Still pointing her arrow at Inuyasha, Kagome continues to ask him to leave, but it seems that Inuyasha isn't going anywhere, and Naraku laughingly asks himself what is Inuyasha going to do now? Cliffhanger!!! |
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