Walking among the tall pillars that darken the little/almost nonexistent amount of light that manages to pass through the thick clouds, a group made up of two figures faces the powerful wind currents head-on.
The latter do not seem to be a simple creation of nature, but instead coordinate themselves with abnormally precise accuracy to strike the travelers, reducing their speed through sheer force.
"Can't you turn into something that helps us with your transformation, Asahiko?"
Shielding his amber-colored eyes with his hands so that bits of rock or dust do not get into them, a young man with long white hair and fiery red clothing advances only through sheer willpower, since the world itself seems to be against him.
Fortunately for him, he does not have to face this great challenge alone, for beside him can be seen a young man with golden hair, who, by the way, seems to be having even greater trouble moving forward.
"Are you stupid or are you just pretending, Inuyasha? If I make myself bigger, the wind will hit me harder, besides it seems to have a mind of its own... I don't want to challenge it or become the main target like when we arrived flying."
Giving an explanation that clarifies why they are now walking with their feet on the ground, Asahiko grabs a rock flying nearby and transforms it into a spear, then uses it as a support point to secure his position while advancing.
Thanks to that, he slowly begins to get closer to Inuyasha, who had been walking ahead for some time, proving that his plan was an incredibly useful madness. So much so that the dog boy finally joins the group, using Steel Fang as support to move forward.
"I can see the base of the mountain...!"
"W-What's wrong...?!"
"This... This has to be a joke." x2
Stopping in their tracks and raising their eyes toward the imposing mountain before them, both young men reach the same conclusion without even needing to exchange a glance; they are screwed.
What stands before them is simply absurd, a mistake of nature, something that seems to have come from the mind of a madman. Well, maybe that last part was a bit exaggerated, but it must be admitted that "natural" seems to have been forgotten somewhere along the way when it came to this mountain.
Abnormally sharp edges, rockslides that fall in a coordinated manner every so often, dry roots that lash the surroundings like whips, and even the wind tearing apart the surface as if it were simple paper.
"Inuyasha... I'm also going to face an old enemy of your father, don't you want to join me on that campaign instead and leave aside the obviously super powerful dragon?"
"...Don't be a coward, Asahiko! If my father managed to defeat him, then I will too! Besides, only then will I prove that I'm worthy of wielding Steel Fang!"
"Sure, sure, whatever you say, genius~"
Taking the first step onto the mountain's actual surface, Asahiko slowly enters what will undoubtedly become a headache... And it certainly did!
At first everything went smoothly, the mountain squeezed but did not strangle, although everything soon changed. From the very first second they began climbing the surface, the winds became absolutely insane and tried to throw them downward, forcing both young men to cling tightly to the mountainside.
But that only seemed to awaken another dormant problem within the mountain, which now, in addition to the winds, also had incredibly well-timed rockslides, cornering the two young climbers even further.
"Relax, they're just a few setbacks... We're almost at the summit."
"We haven't even started, Inuyasha!"
...Some time later...
On one of the strangely flattened peaks infested with dry roots of an imposing mountain, the very place from which a spotless blue sky can be seen for dozens of meters before a barrier of gray clouds begins, two unfortunate young men crawl along.
"...Inuyasha?"
"...Asahiko?"
"Are we alive?" x2
Slowly moving their heads so they can look at one another, since they are quite close together, both Inuyasha and Asahiko begin touching their faces as if they believed everything was a lie.
They had survived! The mountain had not been able to defeat them, the winds, those rockslides, the self-aware roots... Nothing had managed to beat them!
"We have to kill that dragon..."
"Just kill him, Asahiko?"
"Heh, hehehe... ¡Hehehe!" x2
Both laughing at something completely incomprehensible, since they have neither named nor mentioned it, the two young men make an effort to stand up, only to fall silent at the imposing sight before them.
In front of them, at a considerable distance and casting a psychological shadow over everyone present, rises another peak of the same mountain. But there were no more roots there; instead, that rocky peak is completely inhospitable, while a serpentine figure remains embedded into the wall by one claw.
That thing was... Enormous. Not merely compared to a human, but even when compared to the great buildings from Asahiko's era, or the great yokai Inuyasha has seen throughout his life, the creature before them easily surpasses them.
"Fifty, maybe one hundred meters or more long at first glance?"
"Can it even move at that size?"
"May God hear you and may you be right, Inuyasha. Because if it can move, with those scales and those claws..."
Falling completely silent as he first points toward Ryukotsusei's scales, which appear stained with dirt and moss, Asahiko then shifts his gaze toward the eastern dragon's thick arms.
They have only three fingers with enormous sharp claws, pointing upward and drying out by time; it seems that the battle with Inu no Taisho was absolutely lethal.
"Hehehe, if you're harboring such doubts... How about we find out, boys?"
"Naraku!"
"Oh, what a great coincidence to meet you here, Inuyasha."
Sliding out from the shadows cast by Ryukotsusei's motionless body, an unpleasant figure dressed in white makes his appearance atop the monstrous claw that keeps the dragon asleep, while mockingly addressing those below.
The figure, just as Inuyasha had said before, is obviously Naraku. Well, actually it seems to be another one of his puppets, since that man would never place himself in such a dangerous situation.
Just think about it, Inuyasha, Asahiko, and Ryukotsusei. Two full demons, one Hanyō, and every possibility that they hate him. The first two hate him for various reasons, while Ryukotsusei would probably attack him for being partially a Hanyō, something all demons do because they consider Hanyō a disgrace to their "noble bloodlines."
So yes, truly every card is stacked against him, so there is very little he can do while standing here except... Become the villain of the story.
"Wow, your sarcasm is really subtle, Naraku~. So, are you another one of his puppets or do we actually have the honor of witnessing the true great demon?"
"...Tsk. I see Kikyo isn't with you, Asahiko. What's wrong, are you afraid of hurting your friend's feelings?"
"Meh, we've already gone on a trip all the way to Tordesillas, he stays with the reincarnation and I stay with the original. But by the way, you should do something about your fragile ego, it's a pretty obvious weakness."
Patting Inuyasha on the shoulder when he turns around in confusion to look at him, Asahiko simply smiles and points out Naraku's weakness; that man has an ego the size of a house but more fragile than glass.
"Interesting proposal, perhaps during my next round of 'hunting' I'll look for some yokai that have good control over emotions and absorb it to improve myself."
"Bastard, so you've come to absorb Ryukotsusei?!"
"Hahaha, I'd really like to be able to do that, Inuyasha. But let's just say I have other fronts to deal with, which are obviously more important than your miserable existence."
Removing the hand he had inside his robe, Naraku reveals a moss-covered stone bowl that seems to be overflowing with a black liquid, the same unknown liquid that he then pours over the claw.
"I already suspected it, but you really were the one who took that bowl, even though we smashed your puppet until there was nothing left."
"Hahaha, one, ten, one hundred... The numbers don't matter, I have eyes and hands everywhere."
"So you had another one nearby?"
"Of course, it was an important experiment I was carrying out. But what a shame, that woman is simply... Well, our time has run out, but I sincerely hope you enjoy my gift."
Giving one last glance at the claw that is already completely corrupted, the same one that quickly begins to crumble, Naraku puts away the bowl and wipes his hands clean.
Following that action, so clearly full of arrogance, the lower half of his body explodes and rises into the sky together with a purple trail, leaving the problem in the hands of the protagonists.
"Look on the bright side, Inuyasha. At least we weren't dumb enough to wake him up ourselves, nobody will be able to blame us for whatever happens next."
"And that makes it better?!"
"Of course it does! Now we're the light against the darkness, the heroes against the evil dragon, the Allies against the Axis!... And Kagome won't be able to say anything to you."
"Hahaha, now that last part I really liked!"
Slamming his right fist into his left palm, a fearless smile quickly and uncontrollably spreads across Inuyasha's face, proving that his battle meter is at 100%.
...Offstage...
Traveling peacefully atop his three-eyed ox, Totosai "the great blacksmith" suddenly scratches his bald head. He had heard something... Nah, who would come looking for him if those two had already left?
"Let's see... Asahiko gone, Inuyasha gone... Could it be Sesshōmaru?!"
Trembling to the core at that passing thought, Totosai quickly looks around in terror and clings to his ox's horns, obviously ready to flee at the slightest sign of danger.
Fortunately for him, that is not the case at all. The ones coming to look for him are not Sesshōmaru's group, but rather Inuyasha's group, flying atop a two-tailed nekomata.
"Old man Totosai!"
Landing nearby after waving her hand, Kagome is all smiles as she approaches the old man, obviously knowing he is a coward and that she should not frighten him.
"Ah, it's you! So, what do you want?"
"Uh, well... Do you know where Inuyasha is? We haven't found him in the places he usually goes and-"
"Of course I do, he went to Dragon Valley together with Asahiko."
"Dragon Valley... Did he go to fight a dragon?!"
Grabbing Totosai by the shoulders, Kagome begins shaking him mercilessly from side to side, causing the poor old man to fall off the ox and have to crawl across the ground to get away from her.
She cannot really be blamed, though. Dragons are always the final boss of the game, the great villains of the tale, the most dangerous beasts in stories... And now Inuyasha is going to fight one without being able to properly use Steel Fang!
"Relax, Ryukotsusei has been sealed for a long time. He only has to pierce its heart with Steel Fang and the job will be done."
"But... But..."
"That flea-ridden dog is far too stupid to do that!"
"Shippo is right, Inuyasha is never going to take the easy path."
Supporting Shippo's words with his own, Miroku lets out a sigh of defeat until he remembers that Asahiko is with him as well. The latter may be a bit unpredictable in his actions, but he is more reliable than Inuyasha. Surely he will stop that idiot if he tries to do something too crazy.
"Let's go find him!"
"Uh, I suppose good luck with that, young lady."
"You're coming too, old man!"
"What, why?"
"Because I said so!"
Using her devil mode to terrify Totosai with nothing more than her gaze, Kagome climbs onto Kirara together with Sango and sends Miroku with Totosai. This was not out of malice, but because she truly does not know where Dragon Valley is, and Kirara would not be able to carry everyone for very long, so it was killing two birds with one stone.