"Because my feelings for you are pure."
Kagetsu looked at Kikyo with deep affection, his tone utterly serious.
Kikyo rolled her eyes, though a faint blush still crept across her cheeks.
"I'm glad you said that,but don't treat me like a child. Just explain it properly."
Seeing she wasn't fooled, Kagetsu chuckled and gave in.
"Alright, it's actually simple. I'm maintaining Sage Mode,keeping my mind clear and empty, becoming one with nature."
He gestured lightly around them.
"No matter how strong the purification here is, it can't affect the natural world itself."
"…Is it really that simple?" Curiosity flickered in Kikyo's eyes. She immediately closed them, trying to sense the natural energy around her.
A moment later, she opened them again, frowning.
"The barrier's spiritual power is interfering with me. All I can feel is its purification energy,I can't detect any natural energy at all."
"That's probably because you're a priestess," Kagetsu said, then reached out and lightly pinched her cheek. "You're naturally sensitive to spiritual power. And also…"
He gave her a teasing look.
"How did you suddenly get this slow? We're still inside the barrier's range,the interference is too strong. Try again after we go deeper."
He continued more seriously,
"Once you fuse natural energy with your spiritual power,form true Sage-enhanced spiritual power,you won't be affected anymore."
"I just didn't think of it for a moment," Kikyo said, grabbing his hand and pulling it away from her cheek with a glare. "And this barrier is uncomfortable."
Seeing her expression turn serious again, Kagetsu stopped teasing.
"Are we going in?" she asked, looking deeper into the mist.
"Of course." He nodded. "You promised to bring Kansuke's hair here. Even if Mount Hakurei isn't what the legends claim… a promise is still a promise."
"…Mm." Kikyo nodded.
She turned back toward the others.
"We'll go ahead and investigate. Wait outside the barrier."
"Sango and I will come with you!" Miroku stepped forward immediately.
"No need."
Kagetsu casually drove a kunai into the ground at his feet and cut him off without hesitation.
"You're too weak. You'd just slow us down."
That single sentence left them speechless.
"…Then be careful," Kagome said, watching the two of them step into the deeper layers of the barrier.
"I still can't sense any demonic aura," Kikyo said softly as they moved through the mist-covered forest.
"That's just on the surface," Kagetsu replied, glancing up at the towering mountain ahead. "The inside of Mount Hakurei has been hollowed out. It's crawling with demons."
He could clearly feel it,dense, suffocating demonic energy hidden within the mountain itself.
He could even sense the Flying Thunder God marks he had placed on Kagura and Kanna.
They were here.
"…Inside the mountain?" Kikyo's eyes widened slightly. She looked at the serene, sacred peak before them.
Covered by the barrier, she couldn't detect anything unusual within.
"Yes," Kagetsu confirmed. "The entire interior has basically been turned into a nest."
He glanced at her.
"What about you? Still feeling the barrier's effects?"
Kikyo shook her head, a hint of quiet excitement in her voice.
"No. After fusing natural energy with my spiritual power… the interference is gone."
"Is that so?" Kagetsu smirked mischievously. "I don't quite believe it…"
He reached toward her,mimicking Miroku's usual wandering hands.
"Don't imitate that lecherous monk!" Kikyo flushed instantly and stepped back, glaring at him.
Before she could say more,
Kagetsu stepped forward and scooped her up by the waist.
"What are you thinking?" he said with a straight face. "I'm just taking you to the summit faster."
Kikyo snorted softly but didn't argue. Instead, she instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck.
Kagetsu focused chakra into his feet and surged upward along the cliffside, moving swiftly toward the peak.
Held in his arms, Kikyo felt the spiritual pressure intensifying.
"Are we heading for Saint Hakushin?" she asked quietly.
"Yeah. We handle the main task first," Kagetsu replied. "Naraku can wait."
"…Alright." Kikyo nodded gently. "I'll follow your lead."
Before long, a temple built into the cliffside came into view, shrouded in mist and radiating an air of solemn mystery.
Kagetsu landed lightly in the courtyard and set Kikyo down.
"This should be Saint Hakushin's temple," she murmured.
"Most likely." Kagetsu nodded.
He reached into the Kamui dimension and retrieved a small bundle,Kansuke's hair,and handed it to her.
"He only asked you to bring it to Mount Hakurei. But since the saint's remains are here… it's better to place it properly."
Kikyo accepted it silently.
At the same time,
A vortex twisted open behind Kagetsu.
Boom!
A massive blade crashed out of the distortion and slammed into the ground, shattering the stone beneath it.
The Banryū.
The moment it appeared, arcs of crackling light erupted across its surface,the violent clash between its demonic aura and the barrier's overwhelming spiritual power.
Kagetsu stepped forward and grasped the hilt, channeling chakra into it to stabilize the weapon.
"Has it already become a true demonic sword?" Kikyo asked, sensing the ominous aura surrounding it.
"Yeah," Kagetsu replied. "Which is perfect,I can use this place to temper it a bit. Let the barrier's power strip away some of that excess malice."
Resting the massive blade on his shoulder, he walked toward the inner sanctum.
Not far ahead, a vermilion Sumeru altar came into view.
Atop it, seated on a lotus pedestal,
Was a mummified figure clad in ornate purple robes, a golden brocade cloth draped over its head.
Saint Hakushin.Or rather,His preserved body.