Morning had arrived in the forest where Inuyasha's group rested along with Asahiko, while the grass takes on an intense green color, as small drops of water slide across its surface due to the remaining dew from the previous night.
All of this was beautiful and almost poetic, but what truly mattered was that Totosai was being seen off by part of the group.
"Inuyasha, are you sure about letting the old man go like this?"
"Let him go, Miroku. I don't need him to learn about the power that Steel Fang holds, I can do it myself without help"
"But Lord Inuyasha, I beg you to reconsider your opinion on this matter. Only Totosai knows the secrets held by the powerful Steel Fang, such as controlling its amazing power and drawing out its full potential"
Completely ignoring Myoga who remains on his shoulder, Inuyasha lets out a snort before leaning his body against a tree, letting the rest of the group say goodbye to Totosai.
"Hmph, ignorant boy. You'll know what you're missing out on!"
Starting with some words in a low voice, Totosai mounts the back of his ox before hitting it on the rear with his hammer, and once he is at a distance he considers safe, he raises his voice to shout at Inuyasha like the coward he is.
"That Totosai really is quite the coward"
"Good morning, sleepyhead"
"That was terrifying, Miroku. Please don't do it again… Unless you want me to stab you"
Twisting his expression into one of disgust, just like the guys when he used charm on them the previous night, Asahiko threatens Miroku without mercy.
"I was just greeting you!"
"Yes, I understand, but imagine if I were the one doing that, how would you feel?"
"Ugh… You're right, I'd only want to hear that from the mouth of a beautiful woman"
"Toche "
Making a finger gun and shooting Miroku while letting out a "toche", Asahiko lets out a sigh and tries to wipe the sleep from his eyes with his hands, though upon seeing the impossibility of the task he finally gives up.
"Here, take this"
"A canteen of water?"
"Yes, there was a nearby river and together with Sango we brought some this morning"
"Thank you, Kagome. You're an angel, unlike that idiot dog!"
Dodging Inuyasha's incoming blow thanks to the fact that it wasn't a serious attack, Asahiko returns it and sends him flying toward a tree. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, the Sumerians say… But perhaps Asahiko went a bit too far.
"Now you've really asked for it!"
"Sure, sure, but according to the old sayings; a barking dog doesn't bite, Inuyasha"
"They're starting again, Your Excellency"
"Just ignore them, Sango. Sometimes the way of showing love is… strange, to put it mildly"
Watching how Inuyasha and Asahiko begin to argue verbally, since due to Kagome's gaze they don't intend to come to blows, both Miroku and Sango go off to do their own thing, while Shippo simply watches the spectacle along with Kirara.
"You two… That's enough, both of you!"
"¡Agh!" x2
"How dare you—"
"Shut up, Asahiko. I was the one who let you come with us and now I'm responsible for you, so you're going to behave like a normal person. And you Inuyasha… you… Ha, ha"
Drawing in air through her mouth like a furious bull, Kagome's eyes begin to burn with flames and she cracks the fingers of her hand, terrifying everyone nearby.
But luckily, thanks to divine grace or perhaps a twist of fate, a familiar voice cuts through the atmosphere, guiding everyone's attention toward the known old man and his three-eyed ox.
"Help! Help! Someone save me!"
*Boom* *Boom* *Boom*
"Run faster, Totosai. It will be much easier to kill both of you together and thus waste less time"
"But you promised me that—"
"You're still alive, aren't you?"
Striking the ground with the semi-solid whip while seeming to mock Totosai, Sesshōmaru appears again from the distance, although this time he carries something extra… An arm with greenish scales, a dragon limb.
"Is that the old man?"
"It certainly is, Your Excellency"
"Get up Inuyasha, we have to go save him before he kills him!"
"Of course, I was already wanting to teach Sesshōmaru a lesson!"
Hitting his right fist against his left palm, Inuyasha grabs the hilt of Steel Fang and rolls up his red robe, all to then move forward aggressively.
That was clearly seen by Sesshōmaru who continued tormenting Totosai with his whip, although he ignored it until he fixed his gaze on Asahiko.
"Step aside Inuyasha, I came for him"
"Him?"
"Me?"
Both showing surprise at Sesshōmaru's words, so much so that they look at each other and even point at themselves, the two remain doubtful of what they heard.
"Inuyasha, is it possible that by some twist of fate I am transformed into you and he is confusing me?"
"No… Not really, Asahiko"
"Then has he just gone crazy? Hey, Sesshōmaru, isn't your target supposed to be Inuyasha and his sword? Go after him and leave me alone, man"
Pushing Inuyasha forward without hesitation, Asahiko casually greets Sesshōmaru and begins to walk away, although before taking a few steps the ground in front of him is blown apart.
The destruction was due to the strike of Sesshōmaru's semi-solid whip, which cuts off Asahiko's retreat and makes his intentions more than clear.
"Hand over Clouded Fang , and then I will consider letting you leave alive"
"Damn Totosai… He really has a loose mouth, that idiot. Inuyasha, truce?"
"Yes, truce"
Both nodding at the same time, Inuyasha and Asahiko come to an incredible agreement, thus starting the confrontation. The first, Inuyasha, launches himself head-on into the fight without hesitation, while the second, Asahiko, moves as far away as possible and fires fireballs as a distraction.
Such a situation does not seem to surprise Sesshōmaru, as he disperses the fireballs with a movement of his whip, then stops Inuyasha's strike with his dragon arm and even takes the time to mock him.
"You are disappointing, Inuyasha. Did you learn nothing from last time?"
"¡Agh!"
Headbutting him and making him step back briefly, Sesshōmaru makes a smooth hip movement before landing a low kick on Inuyasha, sending him into the distance.
With that "nuisance" cleared, he strikes the ground with his feet and appears in front of Asahiko, forcing him to defend himself with his sword against the incoming attack.
*Boom*
The sheer power contained between both causes the ground to collapse, while sparks fly from the clash between the dragon limb and Clouded Fang.
"Tsk, he didn't even last a minute"
"You expected too much from Inuyasha, he always disappoints at the most important moments"
Retracting the dragon limb he used like a rapier before, Sesshōmaru feints and charges again with his normal arm, causing a toxic cloud to burst when it makes contact with Clouded Fang.
Surprised, Asahiko is forced to retreat while coughing several times due to the toxic cloud, although unlike Inuyasha, he cuts off the follow-up attack from Sesshōmaru by creating an explosion of flames around himself.
That creates a momentary stalemate between them, which is broken the second Inuyasha rejoins the fray and attacks Sesshōmaru mercilessly, managing to draw his older brother's attention back to him.
"Ahhh!"
"Weak, Inuyasha. You're still swinging the sword as if it were a log!"
Finding the opening in Inuyasha's movements more easily than expected, Sesshōmaru tries to push him out of the fight again with a quick blow, but is stopped by multiple fireballs flying toward his face from the side.
Such fireballs were small, agile and filled with unpleasant illusions, which can range from sharp pain to intense dizziness, although Sesshōmaru seems to sense something wrong and dodges them by stepping back.
That allows the momentary regrouping of Inuyasha with Asahiko, but both do not hesitate to curse each other as soon as they see each other's faces, all due to being "useless" and "worthless" during the fight.
"Anyway, putting everything aside, did you really come from the same place as him, Inuyasha?"
"What does that mean!"
"Just look at him… He is… God, he's completely broken. But you… Let's just say you leave much to be desired if we speak seriously"
"I was the one who cut off the arm he's missing, Asahiko! Besides I've always won, and this time won't be any different!"
Propelling his body forward with a certain delay in his actions, Inuyasha charges head-on again like a wild animal, using his sword as if it were a knight's lance.
Obviously Sesshōmaru dodges it with almost absurd ease, he only had to take a step to the side, although he also takes the opportunity and makes a sideways cut with his dragon limb, although… Surprise!
*¡Boooom!*
Out of nowhere golden flames completely consume Sesshōmaru's figure, making him step back unsteadily and look around in surprise, something both Inuyasha and Asahiko take advantage of.
The first, now the real one, aims directly at Sesshōmaru's chest, while multiple figures of Asahiko also join in and try to impale him from all sides.
"Ah… Ahh!"
Regaining awareness at the right moment, Sesshōmaru strikes the ground with his fist at a speed that almost leaves afterimages, cracking the ground for dozens of meters as if it were glass, but the worst part is the greenish energy that comes out from the cracks and surrounds him completely.
Thanks to that, due to the clearly toxic energy surrounding him, Inuyasha is forced to flee and Asahiko's clones are eradicated, completely ending the momentum of their counterattack.
"Hahaha, is that all you've got, Sesshōmaru? If so, why don't you return to your true form, maybe then you could give us a good fight, right Asahiko?"
"… I don't think that's—"
"Very well, now I can take a new arm from the corpse of one of you"
Smiling in a way that could make anyone's hair stand on end, especially the unfortunate Asahiko who seems to feel what's coming, Sesshōmaru cracks the fingers of his dragon limb and bluish lightning seeps from the scales of the arm.
These "lightning" are clearly not an ability or technique of Sesshōmaru, since they only extend along the scaled dragon arm, which probably in life could have controlled the weather on a small scale.
"Oh, damn, it's Godrick"
"What does that mean, Asahiko!"
"Relax, the last words of the chapter don't make sense~"