Hitomi stared into those unfamiliar, eerie eyes, and her heart clenched violently.
The next second, the grip on her wrist suddenly loosened.
Just as she was about to retreat from this unfathomably powerful man, a scorching pain burst from her eyes, as if flames were blazing deep within her pupils.
"Ahhh—!"
The agony forced her to drop the kagura bell. She clutched her eyes with both hands and staggered to her knees, letting out a pained cry.
"Don't worry. It just hurts a little for now. It'll be fine soon," Uchiha Retsu's voice sounded beside her, casual and unconcerned. "Consider it a welcome gift. I hope you'll never have to use it."
Hitomi had no energy to respond.
She gritted her teeth and endured the burning pain. When it finally faded, she struggled to her feet—only to find that Retsu was already gone.
Only the fallen kagura bell remained, swaying gently in the breeze and chiming softly.
If not for the lingering ache in her eyes, she might have thought everything had been a nightmare.
"Live on… if you can."
Retsu murmured quietly as he walked away.
He knew Hitomi's fate.
She would be ambushed and killed by Naraku, then revived and manipulated, becoming a pawn to be used against Kagome.
That was why he had used his Mangekyō's transcription seal earlier, sealing two dōjutsu into her eyes.
If Naraku dared to make his move as in the original story, he would be in for a very unpleasant surprise.
With that small incident resolved, Retsu continued toward the direction where the Shikon Jewel had scattered.
At noon, voices suddenly echoed along the forest path.
He looked up.
In the distance, a crowd had gathered near a village's outskirts. At first, he thought it was another lord conscripting villagers.
He had seen it countless times.
Some foolish lords had even tried to force him into service.
They were all cut down with a single strike.
In this pseudo–ancient Japanese era, most armies were nothing more than mobs of a few hundred men—bandits in all but name.
But this time, something felt different.
He stopped and observed more closely.
A group of armored samurai were escorting over a dozen young girls.
Their hands were tied together with rope. Terror filled their faces as they were driven toward the village exit.
"Interesting."
Retsu's interest was piqued.
In an ordinary world, this might just be a lecherous lord collecting beauties.
But in a demon-infested land?
It almost certainly involved monsters.
He activated his Transformation Technique.
Puff.
When the smoke cleared, a scruffy, poorly dressed wandering swordsman stood in his place, his face covered in stubble.
One hand rested on the katana at his waist as he swaggered toward the village entrance.
Several villagers were still there, faces filled with grief—clearly relatives of the captured girls.
"Hey!"
Retsu mimicked the arrogant tone of a ronin and pointed his sword at a villager cowering in the corner.
"What are those guys taking those women for?"
The villager trembled at the gleaming blade and dropped to his knees.
"M-My lord, they're the lord's warriors… We don't know why, but lately they've been seizing young girls from the territory…"
Seeing this, the surrounding villagers also fell to their knees, not daring to breathe.
In this era, samurai were a privileged class. Burning, killing, and looting were common. Some even used commoners for sword practice.
No one dared provoke them.
"For what purpose?" Retsu pressed, pushing the blade closer.
"I-I don't know…" The villager shook his head, eyes reddening. "We've only heard that none of the girls taken into the castle ever come back alive…"
"I heard something," an elderly villager whispered hesitantly, lowering his voice. "They say the lord might be possessed by a demon."
"Possessed?" Retsu stroked his chin.
That confirmed it.
This was almost certainly the work of a demon.
"They're being taken to the lord's castle, right?" he asked calmly, sheathing his sword.
After receiving their confirmation, he ignored the trembling villagers and headed in the direction the convoy had gone.
He followed silently from a distance.
Before long, a castle perched atop a mountain came into view.
Long walls stretched along steep cliffs, radiating an oppressive aura—like a dormant beast.
Watching the girls being herded through the main gate, Retsu slipped inside under cover of the trees.
"There really is a demon inside… but it's weak."
He sensed the turbid demonic aura deep within the castle and frowned slightly.
The place was filled with soldiers, samurai, and servants.
That demon was almost certainly the lord himself.
If he barged in and killed him directly, he'd probably have to fight all these guards.
Too troublesome.
Besides, seeing this setup—the demon lord and the captured girls—he already knew where he was.
If he wasn't mistaken, this was the territory of that unlucky lord possessed by a toad demon in the original story.
Since that was the case, he might as well wait.
There was a good chance he'd run into Inuyasha and Kagome here.
"Still, I'll deal with the demon first. The protagonists can wait."
His hands flashed through seals.
"Genjutsu: Temple of Nirvana!"
In an instant, countless white feather illusions rained down from the sky, drifting gently into every corner of the castle.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Bodies collapsed one after another.
Patrolling samurai, stationed soldiers, busy servants—everyone closed their eyes and fell into deep sleep.
"A large-scale genjutsu really is efficient against ordinary people," Retsu muttered, clapping his hands.
He walked openly toward the demon's room.
When casting the illusion, he had deliberately avoided the demon, targeting only humans.
The creature must have noticed something was wrong.
Sure enough, as he reached the door, a figure burst out.
The "man" wore luxurious lordly robes.
Thick bandages wrapped around his exposed face and hands.
But his grotesquely swollen head and abnormally thick limbs made it obvious—
He wasn't human.
Looking at this ridiculous disguise, Retsu was speechless.
With that appearance, who did he think he was fooling with a few bandages?
"You dare trespass in my castle. Who are you?" the toad demon croaked angrily, glaring at him.
"You're about to die. Why ask so many questions?" Retsu sneered.
"Courting death!"
A sharp whoosh split the air.
A slimy, sticky tongue shot out from the toad demon's mouth, carrying a foul stench as it pierced straight toward Retsu's chest.