Chapter 110 – The feeling of carrying a heavy burden is when a thousand people await every word you say!
"Yo, long time no see, my foolish onii-chan!"
Renji entered the camp without any obstacles, and the first person he saw was Sesshomaru's sour face. Honestly, this version of Sesshomaru actually made Renji want to tease him a little.
Looking at him, and considering the fact that Sesshomaru probably already knew about him being with a human, Renji guessed Sesshomaru was once again thinking, 'only a foolish half-demon would be with a human.'
Sesshomaru had never understood it. Back when their father did the same, he thought Inu no Taisho had fallen from grace. Who would have thought, not long after, Renji would also choose to be with a human woman.
But didn't their youkai clan have perfectly good matches for them?
Why choose a human, and a shrine maiden at that—the sworn enemy of all youkai!
"Heh."
Sesshomaru's face showed a cold smile. Hearing Renji call him a foolish onii-chan only made him more annoyed.
At this time, Sesshomaru still didn't get it, but he wouldn't say much—at least, he wouldn't object as much as before.
"Renji, so you've come to understand what it means to have a heart that protects?"
Compared to Sesshomaru, Inu no Taisho was more curious whether Renji had truly comprehended the heart of protection.
Youkai didn't have to be cold-blooded. Those who understood the heart of protection were stronger, because they had something to protect in their hearts.
If Renji possessed it, Inu no Taisho could rest assured handing over the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi to him.
He absolutely couldn't give the sword to Sesshomaru, since Sesshomaru's heart was too domineering. While that could suppress the sword, it would also make him vulnerable to its temptation.
And Inuyasha was out of the question—born a half-youkai, he could never master Tenseiga. So, all things considered, Renji was the only suitable heir.
That's why Inu no Taisho was so eager for Renji to develop a heart of protection.
"Who knows?"
Renji shrugged, not giving a direct answer.
He wasn't even sure if he had it himself. Right now, the only one he wanted to protect was Suiko—he didn't feel like anyone else was within his scope of protection.
"Forget it, you've grown up. I really shouldn't keep asking. Just remember, her identity isn't as simple as just being a woman."
Inu no Taisho didn't dwell on the answer. He didn't care what Renji said—he wanted to see what Renji would do.
But he made a point to mention something else—Suiko's identity.
She wasn't just any woman; she was a shrine maiden.
Later, there would definitely be voices of dissent within the clan. Renji would have to handle those himself. Just like he'd said—Renji was grown up and should learn to deal with problems on his own.
"Hmph. Humans only live for a hundred years, and in the end, they're left with nothing but separation from death. Have you really thought this through?"
"Yo?! My foolish onii-chan is worried about me?"
A smile appeared at the corner of Renji's mouth as he looked at Sesshomaru with a strange expression.
Unexpected.
Wasn't that a sign of concern?
Come to think of it, Sesshomaru really could care.
It was actually pretty interesting—on the one hand, he wanted to show concern, but on the other, he didn't want Renji to see it. Just like in the anime, he really was a secret tsundere.
"Heh, who'd worry about a foolish guy like you?"
Sesshomaru snorted, clearly unwilling to admit that he actually cared about his family. Even back when their father was gravely injured, he'd thought about snatching Tetsusaiga for himself, but ultimately didn't. Deep down, he did care about family.
"Alright, let's talk about the rest later. For now, we need to resolve the war with the panther tribe first."
Inu no Taisho cut off their conversation. He actually had a lot he wanted to say—he hadn't seen Renji in so long, and most news had come to him through others.
But with war looming, there was no room for relaxation. The panther tribe was indeed weaker than the dog youkai clan, but the gap wasn't large.
This was really a war between east and west—two nations, two factions.
With the dog youkai clan leading the western youkai and the panther tribe leading the east, each had their own interests, and neither was willing to yield. So this war was inevitable. And unlike before, this time a victor had to be decided.
One leader had to die, or the war would never end—it would go on until the very end. That was why Inu no Taisho couldn't afford to relax.
It wasn't just the panther tribe that was a threat—even among his own side, there were enemies lying in wait. If the war dragged on and his side was too weakened, those youkai would never just sit and watch.
That's why Inu no Taisho placed so much importance on this war.
"I can handle the panther chief. The four heavenly kings under her—can you two deal with them?"
Inu no Taisho had a plan. At present, the Four Heavenly Kings shouldn't be a match for Renji and Sesshomaru together, and the other panther youkai could be handled by the lower-ranking dog youkai. As long as he could defeat the panther chief, the balance of war would tip in their favor.
He himself was confident, but he wasn't sure how strong his two sons were.
"Sure, they'll be easy."
"Tch."
Sesshomaru sneered, but didn't argue—his face showed he was certain it could be done.
Renji didn't bother to add anything else after his answer.
"Alright, then find your opponents and fight them. And be careful—this isn't like before. War is cruel!"
Inu no Taisho didn't say much more. As long as they were confident, that was enough, but he still offered a reminder. This wasn't a one-on-one fight or a small brawl between youkai. On the battlefield, you could be attacked at any time—your back was the enemy's last resort, and no one would pass up that chance.
After that, Inu no Taisho carefully explained the battle plan again. He had to make sure the losses were minimized. Meanwhile, on the other side, the panther tribe was also preparing for the final battle.
"Inu no Taisho is mine. You two can handle his sons, right?"
The chief's gaze swept across the Four Heavenly Kings. Haruran, Natsuran, Akiuran, and Fuyuran exchanged glances, then all nodded seriously.
The four of them, even against two opponents, still felt confident of victory.
"His two sons have never shown their real strength, but they shouldn't be especially powerful—at most, they're at your level. And one of them is even in love with a human, probably useless by now. Those dog youkai actually fall for humans? They don't deserve to rule such a vast territory!"
A cold smile tugged at the chief's lips. In his heart, he couldn't recognize such enemies at all—if you've already fallen to the point of being with a human, then you're no longer a true youkai.
A youkai who's lost their youkai heart—how could such a being possibly be their match?
"That's right, how could a youkai and a human ever fall in love? It never works out. They stopped being true youkai a long time ago!"
Akiuran agreed. There were countless examples over the years showing that humans and youkai were doomed from the start, and the dog youkai clan had truly fallen.
Even the clan leader and his sons had chosen to be with humans.
Besides, youkai bloodlines had to be kept pure—children of youkai and humans would never be as powerful as those born to two youkai.
"A true youkai, huh?"
Haruran murmured, but she was still thinking—why couldn't humans and youkai be together? Of the Four Heavenly Kings, she was the most gentle and wouldn't see things as so absolute.
But everyone around her seemed to think this way.
"Alright, let's just follow the plan. Tomorrow we attack the Western Lands and flatten Inu no Taisho's castle in one go!"
The chief waved a hand, clearly not wanting to dwell on this question. He wanted to defeat Inu no Taisho in triumph and seize all his territory.
By then, the panther youkai would be the strongest youkai clan in the world, and his kingdom would only become more powerful!
Both sides prepared for the final battle. Aside from a few scout youkai, even the usual minor skirmishes disappeared. The air was tense with the feeling of an approaching storm.
The next day, at the front lines where the two sides confronted each other, countless youkai gathered, their auras surging to the sky. Leading the dog youkai clan were Inu no Taisho, Renji, and Sesshomaru. On the panther youkai side, the chief and the Four Heavenly Kings stood at the front.
"The Four Heavenly Kings don't seem to be at their peak, but they're not weak, either…"
Renji sized up their strength—together, they should be stronger than Sesshomaru. Had Sesshomaru really surpassed them now?
He thought of the chief's death; maybe the search for a way to revive her had made them neglect their training.
Actually, Renji always felt that, in this war, the battle strength provided by Sesshomaru wasn't as great as the Four Heavenly Kings—in the anime, it was obvious they had the upper hand over Sesshomaru.
After all, it was four against one, and the reason Inu no Taisho got injured was probably because Sesshomaru couldn't hold back all four, and others would occasionally attack Inu no Taisho.
The chief's strength was almost equal to Inu no Taisho's as well—no wonder she later went after Ryūkotsusei, truly a great youkai of the era.
Renji sighed inwardly, but this time, with himself and Sesshomaru taking on these youkai together, things would be different from the anime.
"Are we just going to fight like this?"
Renji glanced at Inu no Taisho. The two sides were facing off, saying nothing—wasn't this a bit weird?
Inu no Taisho looked at Renji strangely. "Are you saying we should talk some trash first?"
"Isn't that how it goes?"
Start with a bunch of talk, then fight—that's how it always went, right?
But it was Renji's first time here, and he was just going by his imagination.
"What are you thinking? We can't wait to kill each other—what's there to say? You'd better pay attention out there."
With that, Inu no Taisho drew Tetsusaiga and swung it in one slash. Instantly, tens of thousands of youkai were wiped out in front of everyone. Sesshomaru, seeing Tetsusaiga, felt a flicker of longing in his eyes.
If only he possessed that weapon…
"What's wrong, can't take your eyes off Tetsusaiga?" Renji said with a grin, watching Sesshomaru, who had always been obsessed with the sword. Even though Renji had always told him his own blade was the best, Sesshomaru still only had eyes for Tetsusaiga.
"Hmph, you said you didn't need Tetsusaiga. Regretting it now?"
Sesshomaru turned to Renji, obviously wary—if Renji wanted to fight for the weapon, he knew his chances weren't great.
"Of course not. I have my own youkai blade."
Sesshomaru had already noticed Renji's sword yesterday. He hadn't asked, since he couldn't sense much youki from it, so it didn't seem very powerful.
He figured it was just a temporary weapon—he'd heard Renji had asked Tōtōsai to forge a sword, but maybe it wasn't done yet.
"That's good."
Sesshomaru, relieved, said no more and leapt into battle.
Inu no Taisho was already facing the chief, and the Four Heavenly Kings, taking advantage of the brothers' conversation, entered the fray as well. Their overwhelming power put the dog youkai clan under tremendous pressure.
But with Sesshomaru joining in, the battle evened out a bit, and many of the dog youkai felt a sense of relief. All eyes turned to Renji—they clearly believed that with Renji, who was even stronger than Sesshomaru, on their side, the tide of battle would shift.
Inu no Taisho and the chief were old rivals—neither would bother probing for weaknesses, both were here to kill.
The same was true for Sesshomaru and the Four Heavenly Kings—they already understood each other's strength.
As for Renji, everyone was curious—why hadn't he made a move yet?
Noticing the gazes of the surrounding youkai, Renji felt a wave of emotion and stepped onto the battlefield, a strange feeling welling up in his heart: 'The feeling of carrying a heavy burden is when a thousand people await every word you say.'
That feeling of being expected by everyone—it wasn't so bad after all.
Renji's youki soared, and the surrounding youkai all sensed an overwhelming pressure.
What terrifying power!
"Renji's improved a lot," Inu no Taisho thought, glancing over at Renji with a faint smile, clearly satisfied with Renji's recent progress. He seemed even stronger than when Inu no Taisho last left.
And this aura…
He really was paving his own path now—Renji!
Inu no Taisho felt a surge of joy for Renji and was even more at ease.
"He got even stronger!!"
Sesshomaru looked over at Renji, his desire for Tetsusaiga even stronger—he desperately wanted to close the gap between them!
"Hey, what's with that guy? Isn't he supposed to be a fallen youkai?!"
Akiuran's eyes widened in disbelief. Wasn't this guy supposed to be weakened?
Why did he still seem so strong?
(End of Chapter)
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