All Heavens: Transcending Dimensions Starting with the Uchiha

Chapter 256, I Compete with My Reincarnated Self for My Lover?

Upon receiving the information from Akechi Mitsuhisa that Kikyo had been resurrected, Uchiha Sō pondered for a moment before slowly speaking.

"Shi Kang! Kanto is our foundation. We will establish military settlements, train troops, and absorb refugees to steadily expand our sphere of influence, while monitoring the unusual movements of demonic energy in the Kanto Plain. If a powerful enemy attacks, we will activate the 'Divine Tree Barrier'."

"Yes, sir! Rest assured, my lord, we will certainly live up to your expectations!"

The Hojo brothers knelt on one knee, their voices resounding.

"Guangxiu, Tongzi, take the Yin-Yang Division's 'Fudo Myo-o' (blood warrior team), 'Fū-Rin-Kazan' (spiritual ninja team), and 'Soul-Suppressing Chant' (local monk team) with you on a trip to Izumo!"

A glint of wariness mixed with strange excitement flashed in Uchiha Zō's eyes.

"Go and see if the 'resurrection' of that legendary witch is a script of fate, or the work of some spider hiding in the gutter."

The group moved at an extremely fast speed. Uchiha Sho enveloped everyone with "spiritual chakra," combined with earth and wind release techniques for travel, and the spatial affinity faintly emanating from the nodes of the divine trees along the way, allowing them to traverse a vast distance within a few days and arrive at the era of Inuyasha and Kagome in the Izumo region.

As if by fate, they had just settled on a secluded hillside when they were suddenly confronted with a dramatic love triangle scene that transcended life and death in a clearing in the woods below.

Kikyo, dressed in her signature shrine maiden attire, stands silently with a pale face that carries the coldness of the dead and the obsession of the living.

Opposite her stood Inuyasha, a half-demon, his fiery red fire rat robe fluttering slightly in the wind, his face etched with struggle and pain.

A little further away is Kagome, a modern-day girl, gripping her bow and arrows tightly, her eyes filled with worry and resentment.

"...Choose, Inuyasha."

Kikyo's voice was as calm as a stagnant pool, yet it contained a chill that could freeze the soul.

"Should she follow me, a dead man, to the other side of the underworld? Or should she stay by my reincarnation's side and protect her for the rest of her life?"

The air freezes.

The dormant "love of watching excitement" gene within Uchiha Ei, belonging to his soul from his previous life as a Chinese, was instantly activated to its peak!

"Whoa!"

His eyes narrowed slightly, and a bright smile, utterly incongruous with his "Qilin Hall" status and brimming with gossip, appeared on his face. He even subconsciously rummaged inside his wide sleeves, seemingly trying to pull out a handful of melon seeds or peanuts.

"A memorable scene! Is this being broadcast live?!"

He grabbed the shrine maiden Hitomi, who was also captivated by the scene and somewhat stunned, and lowered his voice, barely containing his excitement:

"Tongzi, look! Look! Classic two-choice! Place your bet now! I bet five cents... uh, five strings of cash, that kid will definitely choose his lively little girlfriend!"

Tongzi was somewhat bewildered by his sudden, almost thuggish excitement, and a rare look of surprise appeared on her usually cool face:

"Your Highness...you..."

Looking into Uchiha Sho's sparkling eyes, she couldn't reconcile the image of this guy, who was now eagerly preparing to watch a melodramatic soap opera, with the same dignified and imposing figure who had founded a sect and stirred her heartstrings.

Akechi Mitsuhisa stood a little behind, his lips twitching slightly. He suppressed the urge to facepalm and whispered a reminder:

"My lord, please mind your manners... manners..."

At the same time, he quickly made a hand gesture, and the three demon-slaying teams immediately dispersed silently, forming a warning circle, perfectly blending their aura into the surrounding environment, and remaining vigilant against any possible accidents.

In the arena, Inuyasha's struggle reached its peak. He looked at Kikyo, his heart aching with the unforgettable love and the pain of her inevitable death.

Then look at Kagome, with her vibrant life, the bond of living together day and night, and the soul radiance that belongs to "Kikyo" yet is completely different.

Instinct, or rather, the deepest desire in one's heart, ultimately triumphed over guilt and pain.

"I'm sorry, Kikyo... I..."

Inuyasha's voice was hoarse, filled with endless apology, but his gaze remained firm as he looked at Kagome.

"I...can't give up...Kagome..."

boom!

It was as if an invisible thunderclap exploded in Kikyo's heart. Her body swayed almost imperceptibly, and her already pale face became even more translucent.

In those deep, abyss-like eyes, the last faint light was completely extinguished, leaving only boundless coldness and deathly silence.

She should have known... she should have known.

What right does a living dead, a clay doll that relies on the souls of the dead to survive, have to hope for the warmth of the living?

Perhaps his own reincarnation... is the destiny he was meant to have...

Without glancing at Inuyasha or Kagome again, Kikyo resolutely turned away, her white figure disappearing into the depths of the forest like mist, carrying a heartbreaking loneliness and desolation.

"Tsk, just as I expected."

Uchiha Zang smacked his lips, the lingering look of amusement still on his face, but his eyes had regained their clarity and sharpness.

"Alright, the show's over, and the main character's gone. Follow her, the real show... or rather, the trouble, is usually yet to come."

Like the most experienced hunters, Uchiha Sho and his group followed Kikyo silently behind.

They did not deliberately conceal their whereabouts, but they also did not get too close, maintaining a distance that allowed them to observe and react at any time.

Uchiha Enoki's powerful mental energy acted like an invisible net, locking onto the target ahead who exuded a contradictory aura of intense resentment and pure spiritual power.

Sure enough, when they reached a secluded valley, something unexpected happened.

A cold, viscous, malicious, and ominous demonic aura spread out like tangible ink, instantly enveloping the path in front of Kikyo.

Countless tiny spider silks condensed in the air, shimmering with a dark luster.

A figure draped in white baboon fur and wearing a strange fox mask silently blocked Kikyo's path.

"Platycodon grandiflorus..."

A deep, hoarse voice, carrying a deliberately feigned gentleness yet chilling quality, came from beneath the mask. It was Naraku.

"What a nostalgic figure. You never expected this, did you... that you, resurrected from the underworld fifty years later, would be unable to... contend with your reincarnation... Heh heh... How laughable... and pitiful, priestess..."

Kikyo stopped in her tracks, her body instantly erupting with a chilling killing intent and extreme disgust, even colder and more piercing than when she faced Inuyasha choosing Kagome:

"Naraku...who...who are you...?"

"And why...why did you guide the shrine maiden, Oni Tao...to resurrect me...what is your true purpose?"

Naraku seemed completely unfazed by her hostility, instead taking a step forward, his voice carrying a nauseatingly probing tone:

Why be so hostile?

Kikyo, you and I are both outcasts, existing outside of life and death.

That half-demon chose your reincarnation and abandoned you.

Why don't you... stay with me, this "oddball"...

Perhaps we can find another meaning in each other's existence?

These extremely hypocritical and blasphemous words completely ignited Kikyo's anger.

"Shut up! You filthy thing, formed from the resentment and evil of countless demons!"

Kikyo's voice, like an icicle, contained the power to purify everything.

"Your very existence is a desecration of life!"

Do you want me to stay with you?

Go dream about going to hell!

Before she finished speaking, Kikyo had already drawn her bow and nocked an arrow!

Her movements were lightning fast and fluid, embodying the priestess's honed skills and the fury she was unleashing at that moment.

The bowstring trembled, and an arrow of light, imbued with immense demon-dispelling power, shot forth!

That arrow was not simply an energy object; it was imbued with Kikyo's powerful will and her deep-seated hatred for Naraku, transforming into a dazzling stream of light that tore through the gloom and shot straight into Naraku's heart!

Naraku clearly hadn't expected Kikyo's reaction to be so intense and decisive. In his haste, he only had time to condense a thick layer of miasma shield in front of him, mixed with the resentment of countless demons.

Pfft—!

The arrow that shatters demons is unstoppable!

The seemingly solid miasma shield was instantly pierced by the pure demon-dispelling power, just like snow under the blazing sun!

The arrow pierced Naraku's (clone's) chest!

"Ugh—!"

A shrill scream rang out, not Naraku's original voice, but the wail of countless demon souls being purified and annihilated at the same time.

The white baboon skin sizzled and emitted black smoke as it was burned by the light of the exorcising magic.

Naraku's body was struck as if by a heavy hammer, and he was sent flying backward, crashing through several large trees before landing awkwardly on the ground, his life force instantly waning.

"Hahaha... Kikyo... your heart is still so... cold and strong..."

Naraku struggled to his feet, his voice filled with resentment and a hint of barely perceptible sadness. His figure began to blur and dissipate under the erosion of the demon-slaying power.

He gave Kikyo a deep look, his gaze beneath the fox mask seemingly piercing through space and sweeping over the direction where Uchiha Sō and the others were hiding, before finally turning into a wisp of black smoke and disappearing completely from the spot.

Just as Naraku collapsed, Uchiha Zō, who was secretly observing, curled up a cold smile.

In the depths of his left pupil, the intricate and profound purple reincarnation pattern silently rotated. An extremely subtle spiritual imprint, almost integrated with the spatial fluctuations, adhered precisely to the deepest point of origin within the disintegrating energy core of Naraku's clone, like a maggot clinging to a bone.

This mark is like an invisible coordinate; no matter where Naraku hides, as long as he uses his power, he cannot escape Uchiha Zō's perception.

"Done, little spider. Let's see where you can crawl now. Once I find your true form, I'll take you down and end Inuyasha's 'fate'..."

Uchiha Xiang withdrew his gaze with satisfaction, clapped his hands, as if he had just finished a trivial matter.

Then, he stopped hiding and openly led the priestess Hitomi out from behind the bushes where they were hiding.

Akechi Mitsuyuki followed closely behind, while the three demon-slaying teams maintained their alert formation, appearing in the shadows not far behind them.

With a slightly mocking yet amused smile on his face, as if he had just watched a good show, Uchiha Elephant waved to Kikyo, who had just put away her bow and arrows and whose breathing had not yet fully calmed down, and said loudly:

"Yo! The famous guardian priestess Kikyo, nice to meet you!"

The drama just now, the 'heartless man's choice' and the 'toad lusting after a swan's flesh', was truly captivating! I... well, I thoroughly enjoyed it! I almost finished all the melon seeds!

He even touched his sleeve with great seriousness, as if he could actually find sunflower seed shells inside.

Kikyo slowly turned around, facing the group that had suddenly appeared. Her face showed no surprise, only an icy calm.

Her deep eyes, like an ancient well that can see into the soul, calmly fell on Uchiha Xiang, seemingly unconcerned about his flippant words.