"Did it work?!" Inuyasha asked urgently the moment he saw the Shadow Clone vanish in a puff of smoke.
Kikyo also stepped forward, her eyes filled with curiosity.
"Yes," Kagetsu nodded calmly. "I felt the summoning just now. Now we just wait for the Shadow Clone to relay information back."
"I'm going to check myself!" Inuyasha couldn't hold back any longer. He leaped straight into the Bone-Eater's Well, his figure instantly swallowed by darkness.
Kikyo walked to the edge and looked down. At the bottom, only fallen leaves and dirt remained,there was no trace of him.
She sighed softly.
"Every time I see them travel like this… it feels almost unreal."
After a pause, she added quietly,
"That only the two of them can pass through this well… it really does feel like fate."
"What about us?"
Before she could react, Kagetsu suddenly stepped beside her. With a swift motion, he lifted her into a princess carry, earning a small startled cry, and walked over to sit cross-legged on the grass.
Holding her securely in his arms, he lowered his gaze to meet hers.
"Two people like us,who crossed life, death, and even worlds to meet… isn't that also fate?"
Kikyo gave him an exasperated look and gently poked his cheek, her tone soft, almost teasing.
"Yes, yes. A fated connection… exclusive to two 'dead people.'"
Kagetsu chuckled, then leaned back, pulling her with him onto the grass.
The scent of earth and fresh greenery filled the air. The sky above was clear, the breeze gentle.
Holding Kikyo close, he closed his eyes.
Kikyo's lips curved into a faint smile as she followed suit.
No words were needed.
For a brief moment, the world grew quiet.
Meanwhile , The Modern World
A puff of smoke dispersed in the courtyard.
The Shadow Clone appeared, greeted immediately by Kagome's bright, excited face. She still held the snapped summoning plaque in her hand.
"Kagetsu! Welcome to the modern era!"
"We meet again," the Shadow Clone said with a faint smile.
His gaze swept across the surroundings,tall buildings in the distance, faint car horns echoing through the air.
"It seems my hypothesis was correct. This is indeed another world."
He quickly assessed the environment.
An old wooden shrine stood within the courtyard,this was the Higurashi Shrine, Kagome's home.
A massive sacred tree towered nearby, its trunk thick, its leaves lush and vibrant.
"That must be the Time Tree," he said, already walking toward it.
"That's right!" Kagome hurried after him. "Sorry it took a bit,one of my friends showed up right after I got home."
"It's fine," he replied casually. "This was only an experiment."
Then, as if remembering something:
"Inuyasha should arrive any moment."
"Kagome!!"
Right on cue, Inuyasha's voice rang out.
"Inuyasha!" Kagome turned with a smile, her expression lighting up.
The Shadow Clone ignored their reunion and focused entirely on the tree.
This tree…
…was identical to the one in the Sengoku era.
Even the indentation,the mark left when Inuyasha was sealed,was present.
He reached out, touching the surface.
There it was.
The exact point where Kikyo's arrow had once pierced.
Closing his eyes, he extended his senses inward.
Just as expected,
A vast, gentle flow of space-time energy surged within the trunk.
"Kagetsu, is something wrong with the tree?" Kagome asked as she and Inuyasha approached.
"This tree is likely the real reason you can travel through the well," the Shadow Clone said.
Kagome blinked.
"Not the well itself?"
"The Bone-Eater's Well was made from this tree's wood," he explained, resting a hand on the trunk.
"The true source is the Time Tree's space-time power."
He gestured toward the mark.
"I've confirmed one thing,the Sengoku world and your world are not the same timeline."
"Then why does this tree have the same mark?" Kagome frowned.
"Yeah… that doesn't make sense," Inuyasha added.
"They're connected," the Shadow Clone replied.
"Think of it like this,two rooms connected by a single door. No matter which side you're on, it's still the same door."
"These two trees are 'anchors' linking the two worlds."
"That's why the mark exists here as well. Otherwise, something like this would've been erased long ago."
"I think I get it!" Kagome nodded.
"Yeah," Inuyasha agreed, though still half-processing.
Then he suddenly remembered,
"Kagetsu! Can Kagome still travel between worlds without the well?"
His voice carried urgency.
Kagome also looked at the Shadow Clone, nervous anticipation in her eyes.
"Actually…" the Shadow Clone said calmly,
"I can send Kagome back to the Sengoku era right now."
"And I can also bring Kikyo here."
Both of them froze.
"What?!"
The next moment, his eyes shifted,
The Mangekyo Sharingan activated.
A swirling пространal vortex formed,
Kamui.
A small package dropped out into his hand.
"By using this dimension as a transit point," he explained, opening it, "I can move objects,or people,between both worlds."
He took out a strip of dark, dried material and casually bit into it.
Then he handed one piece each to Kagome and Inuyasha.
"This is demon jerky,made from demonic mycelium. It only exists in the Sengoku world."
He smiled faintly.
"But as you can see… I just brought it here."
"So naturally…"
"I can send you there,or bring Kikyo here."