The miko, dressed in white robes and red pants, calmly stepped out from behind a tree.
She regarded them calmly yet cautiously. "You two—no, not just you two. All four of you feel... very different from the living beings of this world."
Inuyasha leaped out as well, standing protectively beside her.
"Should we kill them?" Indra asked, glancing toward Kaguya and Hiroki.
At his words, Inuyasha bared his fangs immediately.
"Brother, don't be so impulsive. Why are you always rushing into battle? Maybe they can actually help us."
Ashura quickly laughed and clapped Indra on the shoulder in a friendly manner, subtly blocking him to prevent any rash action.
Indra was left speechless once again.
Why was he always talking about forming alliances?
Too naive!
Kikyo cast a glance at Ashura before returning her gaze to Hiroki and Kaguya.
She continued, "What are you planning to do?"
"To be honest, we're a demon extermination squad. We heard that many demons have gathered on Penglai Island, so we're heading there to eliminate them."
Hiroki replied casually.
Kaguya suddenly burst into laughter.
At the sound of that laugh, both Inuyasha and Kikyo instantly realized he must be lying.
Inuyasha frowned in irritation.
Kikyo's expression remained unchanged.
As they were still open to conversation, she saw no need to resort to violence — not yet, anyway.
She voiced her underlying suspicion.
"What exactly did you do with the Shikon No Tama?"
"I already told you—I had it take me to the future world. Miko, since you've asked so many questions, won't you finally answer one of mine?" Hiroki said.
Kaguya was confused. Why was he being so patient with those two?
Kikyo remained silent for a moment but neither refused nor responded directly.
"When was the Bone-Eating Well constructed?"
After hesitating briefly, Kikyo shook her head. "No one knows exactly when it appeared. Perhaps it was created by a powerful miko long ago."
Hiroki was left completely speechless.
Why were mikos in this world always so strong? Compared to this half-baked miko, Shion, whom he'd met earlier, paled significantly.
"Do you know that the Bone-Eating Well allows time travel?"
Kikyo's expression didn't change in the slightest.
"The Bone-Eating Well is an eerie place where bones vanish when thrown inside. No one has ever done what you two attempted before."
"Perhaps you awakened its dormant power, causing it to resonate with the Chrono Tree."
"Kikyo, why are you telling them so much?" Inuyasha muttered unhappily.
"Chrono Tree?" Kaguya questioned.
This well was made from the wood of the Chrono Tree. The Chrono Tree exists across completely different eras—it grows by absorbing energy from various time periods...
Kaguya was stunned. This sounded somewhat similar to the Divine Tree.
"So that's why the Bone-Eating Well possesses space-time abilities?"
A sudden realization sparked inside Hiroki. Wasn't this exactly what he needed?
"Oi, Shikon No Tama!"
Inuyasha grumbled discontentedly.
Why was Kikyo chatting with these strangers like this?
He charged toward them in a rage.
Indra stepped from behind Ashura and placed a hand on Inuyasha's shoulder.
"Lightning."
Blue electricity surged through Inuyasha's body.
There was a burnt smell coming from him.
Even so, Inuyasha looked unharmed, showing no sign of weakness or injury.
Internally, Indra couldn't help but admire—this guy's physical constitution was truly extraordinary.
Suddenly, Inuyasha grinned.
[Scattering Iron Claw.]
[Shinra Tensei.]
Indra sprang back.
Withdrawing his claws, Inuyasha muttered inwardly—these guys' jutsu sure are strange...
"The Shikon Jewel won't be returned to you, nor will it fall into anyone else's hands. Stop following us. If you're looking for me, head to Penglai Island."
After speaking, he led Kaguya and the others forward once more.
"Kikyo, why aren't you chasing after them? Isn't the Shikon Jewel important?"
Inuyasha asked, somewhat confused.
As Hiroki and the others made their way toward Penglai, White Zetsu had already infiltrated a demon tribe.
Given his appearance—grass growing from his head—he even took on a demonic name: Luo Greenleaf.
In a valley littered with white bones, lesser demons gathered together. White Zetsu sat among them like one of the group.
He spoke earnestly, "Listen to me—you must know about this mysterious place called Penglai Island. On it stands a miraculous tree—the ancestor of all life, the origin of everything..."
"Pfft, I swear, little Luo, you sure love making stuff up." One small demon spat out the bone it was chewing, clearly unconvinced.
"I'm not lying! I actually escaped from Penglai Island myself."
White Zetsu continued.
"The God Tree holds tremendous power; it can consume everything in the world. Once you gain its recognition or merge with it, you'll obtain that power and become the strongest being in existence."
"Hmph..." The demon who questioned earlier still sneered, "If something so powerful really existed, how come nobody knows about it until now?"
"Because they can't communicate with the God Tree! I'm a tree demon myself, and I trained on Penglai Island, harnessing my powers through cultivation, so I occasionally sensed the tree's consciousness."
"Unfortunately, Penglai is now occupied by some great demon, and our brethren's sanctuary has been destroyed..."
After saying this, White Zetsu wore a sorrowful expression.
The other demons remained half-convinced at best.
"If we really obtained the God Tree's power, just how strong would we become?"
"Didn't I just say?" White Zetsu replied, "the strongest being in the world!"
"Have you personally seen it?" another demon pressed.
Thinking for a moment, White Zetsu shook his head. "I've never seen it myself. There were demons on the island who recklessly tried in the past, only to end up drained dry by the tree and turned to dust. Their power was simply too weak..."
"Pfft, then you're just making stuff up."
The demons scattered noisily, turning instead to discuss the matter among themselves.
"That Penglai Island's God Tree… It's impressive because…"
The valley fell silent.
A small village just across the sea from Penglai Island lived in constant fear—due to frequent demon sightings, no one dared to leave their homes at night.
Hiroki and the other three remained at this location.
He had shared Mineo's findings on Ushiki with Indra and his brother.
It can absorb chakra (a mystical energy used by shinobi).
Its eyes can shift between the Byakugan, a blue Rinnegan, and a crimson Six-Tomoe Rinnegan.
It is equipped with ninja tools that can steal chakra.
It can use Kekkei Mora techniques like [Otsutsuki Teleportation], and is also proficient in Yin-Yang Release jutsu.
Indra was feeling really frustrated and helpless.
If this kept up, what good would many of his techniques be?
"Hiroki's grandfather, when will we land on the island?" Ashura asked.
"I've sent White Zetsu to lead more yokai there. We'll wait until more yokai show up and the island descends into chaos before we enter."
After saying this, Hiroki turned his head to look at Kaguya. "Moon, you wait here for now."
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