Don't force me to use my right fist.

Kikyo's delicate brows furrowed. The condition that would make Saga even give up the Shikon Jewel must be something incredibly difficult, right?

However, precisely because of this, Saya's actions became more justifiable. If he had some special requirements and conditions for her, then his previous unusual behavior made sense.

Well, it shouldn't be anything particularly difficult for you, if it is.

Sawa snapped his fingers and loosened his wrists slightly.

"Please forgive me, but I need to hear your request before I can give you a reply."

Kikyo can no longer hand over the Shikon Jewel shards to Sasuke and Yuuki. However, it's unrealistic to expect her to blindly agree to Sasuke's demands. Kikyo has her own bottom line and limits, so it depends on what Sasuke actually says.

"Don't worry, I won't make things difficult for you."

Sōyū gave a thumbs up. He wasn't the type to take advantage of others' misfortunes, and it wasn't his style to use other people's gratitude to do anything excessive.

"Before that, I need to ask you something, something very important."

"Kikyo, have you ever heard of the demon Naraku?"

The name was mentioned very solemnly, which shows that Saya collected the Shikon Jewel mainly for this monster. It's obvious that such a big boss would drop something good that would satisfy him.

He's a pretty pragmatic person. He doesn't have any grand principles or other reasons to support him; he's simply after the loot he drops, nothing more.

"Naraku? How do you know this demon's name?"

Upon hearing the name from Saya's mouth, Kikyo's demeanor instantly tensed up. She looked at Saya with wary eyes and questioned him directly.

"Don't worry, I'm not on that side of the stick. What I mean is, I'm really interested in killing this guy, and I wonder if you could help me out."

Chapter 429 Can't we just make do?

"Before that, I still hope you can explain why you know this monster, so I can judge what your purpose is in approaching me."

Kikyo didn't lower her guard against Saya's seemingly friendly gesture. After all, it involved that cunning demon, and who knew if Saya was part of a trap?

Furthermore, to be honest, Naraku has only been around for less than a year since his birth, so he shouldn't be widely known yet.

"Hmm, is Naraku a very private name for this demon?"

Seeing her reaction, Sōyu didn't know how to explain it to her. He couldn't very well say that he had watched an anime called Inuyasha, and that the final boss in that anime was Naraku.

"If I really had some grudge against it, to the point where I had to kill it, would it be because it killed someone I really liked?"

After carefully considering the question for a while, Saya pinched his chin and finally gave Kikyo a serious answer.

In a sense, Sayu wasn't lying. To be honest, he quite liked the character Kikyo, and he was genuinely saddened for a long time when she died because of Naraku.

It was precisely because of this that Saya's heartfelt reason, which had no element of lying, made the girl in front of him relax her vigilance towards him a little.

She had been chasing that monster for some time and naturally knew about the inhumane things it had done on its escape. If that was why the boy in front of her hated it, then that would be understandable.

What the priestess in front of her didn't know was that the person Saya mentioned liking very much was herself.

"So what exactly do you want from me? If it's to ask me to eliminate that monster, then forget it. Even if you don't say it, I would do it myself."

Kikyo withdrew her questioning gaze from Saga and instead asked him in a puzzled tone.

"It's nothing really. I just wanted to team up with you. Anyway, I don't have anything I absolutely have to do right now. Defeating that monster is what interests me most for the time being."

Saya casually patted a wooden block and sat down, then seriously analyzed the situation with Kikyo.

As he said, for the time being, besides going back, what Zuoyou most wants to do is definitely find a few powerful bosses to fight and see if he can gain any additional rewards.

Saku couldn't just stand by and do nothing about Naraku, such a famous monster.

Rather than collecting the corrupted Shikon Jewel and waiting for it to be delivered to him, following this priestess who has a connection with that yokai is obviously much more convenient.

As for Tamamo-no-Mae's matter, she certainly won't begin her ascension to godhood so soon. During the time she's preparing, Saga can find something to do on his own.

"Team up? What do you mean? You want to come with me?"

After hearing Saya's explanation, Kikyo frowned. The memories of fighting monsters with the other Onmyoji and priestesses were not pleasant at all.

Rather than forming a team, it would be more accurate to say that those people were simply dragging her down. Not to mention that after defeating the ear monster, they even tried to compete for credit, which Kikyo considered meaningless.

Therefore, Kikyo's first thought upon hearing Saga's suggestion was to reject it.

"Yes, if I'm not mistaken, you're probably also searching for that monster's trail. I'm fine in other areas, but I'm really not good at finding people."

Sawa scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly. Asking someone as directionally challenged as him to find someone was indeed a bit of a challenge.

Not to mention that the opponent is an extremely cunning monster, which makes things even more difficult.

"Can I refuse? I'm really not good at working with other people."

After carefully examining Saya, Kikyo finally gave her answer.

Although Saga seems somewhat mysterious, and the fact that he can produce so many Shikon Jewel shards proves that he is definitely not someone to be trifled with, Kikyo simply doesn't like what she doesn't like, and she doesn't want to force herself to do so.

Tsk, can I follow you then? You can do whatever you want, you don't need to care about me at all. Just treat me like I don't exist, I only need to see that monster.

Saya scratched his head in distress. He had guessed to some extent that Kikyo would reject him. Putting aside everything else, this kind-hearted priestess was most likely worried about her safety. Of course, there was also the matter of her own personality.

After all, if Saya remembers, in the original work she basically only acted with a certain Er Gouzi, and most of the time she was a lone wolf.

"Don't you think such a request is even stranger?"

Kikyo's delicate brows furrowed even more, and her fingers gripped the wooden longbow in her hands with slight force.

What's the difference between what Saya said and him forcibly clinging to her side? He couldn't be her companion, so he became her stalker. Is his obsession with that demon really that deep?

"I think it's fine, it definitely won't affect you. Of course, if we encounter any monsters along the way, I'll definitely take action before you do, and I hope you can understand that."

Sawa tapped his finger on the wooden block beneath him, confident that this wouldn't bother the shrine maiden before him, and then began to speak to her in a serious manner.

"This will only trouble me more. I hope you can understand that eliminating monsters is no child's play."

Kikyo refused Saya's request again; it was definitely strange to have someone follow behind her.

"Of course I know that, that's why I'm following you. Isn't a shrine maiden's duty to eliminate monsters and protect people's safety? Since we share the same goal and starting point, why can't we work together?"

Chapter 430 What exactly is your identity?

In the end, Kikyo did not agree to Saya's request. She simply shook her head silently and did not say anything more.

"Could I go and see the remains of that monster inside? I don't want its remnants to continue affecting this land."

Skipping over that topic, the girl pointed to the charred trunk of the Saigyou Ayakashi tree behind Saya and asked for Saya's permission, as he was essentially the temporary owner of the house.

"Go ahead if you want. This isn't my home. As long as you don't tear this house down, I have no objection."

Sōyū shrugged. He had no say in this matter and didn't want to. The only reason he was still here was to rest for a while, as he was planning to leave anyway.

His legs are an extension of his body; if Kikyo disagrees, he won't follow her. That doesn't make sense, right?

Moreover, Saya was confident that she wouldn't notice him. If you can follow someone without being discovered, then it's not really following them, right?

Perhaps what I'm saying could be called covert protection.

Of course, there's no need to hide anything now; it's not time to part ways yet, and the matter of protecting each other secretly can be postponed.

"Was this all your fault?" whl

Knowing that Saya had followed her, Kikyo looked at the traces left by Saya after his battle with Saigyou Ayakashi and pointed to the huge sword marks that seemed to penetrate deep into the earth, asking Saya a question.

"It's alright. I wasn't paying much attention when I hit it, but since no one lives in this house anymore, it's not a big problem."

Sōyu waved his hand. If the damage was truly severe, Yōki should be the first to come after him. However, Kikyo's question clearly indicated that she still suspected him.

"Are you an Onmyoji? Or perhaps a half-demon?"

Kikyo looked at Saya seriously once again, genuinely curious about how he could cause such widespread destruction in his current state.

Judging from the traces on the battlefield, the original monster must have been a formidable opponent even for her, and the one it fought must have been a giant at least ten meters tall.

It's hard to believe that someone as small and weak as Sawa could claim that he was the one who dealt with the monster.

"No, that's not it. I'm human, a human with special abilities. You should understand that, right? To put it bluntly, aren't priestesses the same?"

Sōyū sighed. After thinking it over and over, he still didn't know how to explain it to her, so he could only reach his hand towards the sky.

The massive obsidian sword that was once held within Saya's Susanoo slowly materialized in mid-air. As Saya lowered his hand, it pierced the ground in front of him like a meteorite.

"No explanation is as convenient as taking action directly," Saya shrugged and demonstrated to the priestess in front of him how these sword marks were created.

"There is no fluctuation of spiritual energy, nor any aura of demonic power. This feeling is far too strange."

Kikyo, slightly shocked by the sudden appearance of the black greatsword, looked at Saya with even more confusion. He clearly showed no signs of power fluctuations, so how could he unleash such a terrifying technique?

"Actually, are you really not going to consider taking me along? I can help you with anything to deal with the monsters, and you don't need to worry about anything else."

Saya grinned at Kikyo, looking somewhat like a salesperson trying to sell their product.

"I can also help you with collecting the Shikon Jewel fragments. Keeping them safe is a problem, right? If you leave it to me, you won't have to worry about that."

Saya once again pointed out his strengths; he was indeed an expert in keeping things safe.

There was no safer place than his backpack. Compared to the risk of these people carrying it on their bodies at any time, entrusting it to him for safekeeping was obviously a much more prudent thing to do.

Especially the Shikon Jewel, which practically comes with a taunt buff, is perfect for him.

"I'm entrusting it to you for safekeeping?"

Kikyo looked at Saya in confusion, and only realized it when he brought it up. It seemed that she had only sensed the aura of the Shikon Jewel shard after Saya himself took it out.

But for her, a priestess whose original duty was to protect the Shikon Jewel, this should not have happened.

She was extremely familiar with the aura of this thing, and even from a great distance, she could vaguely sense its location.

This is why she was able to track Naraku down; after all, it carried the most fragments.

The fact that Saya could collect those fragments without her noticing them at all is quite remarkable.

"Just think of me as having a really powerful storage space, basically like storing it in another world." whl

Saya casually pulled an apple out of his backpack and started eating it, explaining to Kikyo as if it were magic.

"I'm sorry, the Shikon Jewel has such a profound impact that I cannot entrust it to anyone else for safekeeping."

Despite the tempting offer from Saya, Kikyo still refused his suggestion, decisively shaking her head and rejecting his request to team up again.