Chapter 307

Kagome instinctively reached out and caught the two Shikon Jewel shards flying toward her.

She stared down at the faint purple glow in her palm, then looked back up at the perfectly calm Kagura.

For a moment, her mind went completely blank.

What... was going on?

"Why?"

Inuyasha looked just as confused and could not stop himself from asking.

Kagura had always helped Naraku collect Shikon Jewel shards. She had even fought them repeatedly over them.

Yet now she had returned two shards without the slightest hesitation.

There was no way that was normal.

Was this some kind of trap?

"I’ve decided I’m not working for Naraku anymore."

Kagura answered calmly, with a faint sense of release in her voice.

"So there’s no reason for me to keep collecting Shikon Jewel shards."

With that, she ignored everyone’s stunned expressions, closed her eyes again, and returned to contemplating her Nen ability.

The wind around her resumed its gentle flow.

Inuyasha and the others were left speechless.

They exchanged looks, each seeing the same disbelief reflected in the others’ eyes.

Kagura—one of Naraku’s own incarnations—was betraying him?

None of them had ever imagined something like this could happen.

As for Koga, he was still furious about Kagura stealing his shards and had no intention of simply forgetting what she had done. But now that she had returned them to Kagome, and Haruto was clearly standing between them, he no longer tried to attack.

Koga might be impulsive, but he was not stupid.

He already knew he was no match for Haruto.

Continuing to push the issue would accomplish nothing.

Inuyasha scratched at his now-black hair and shifted his attention from Kagura to Haruto.

"Hey, Haruto. What the hell happened here? Why did Kagura suddenly decide to betray Naraku?"

Kagome nodded immediately.

"Yeah. She was helping Naraku steal Shikon Jewel shards before, and more than once she nearly got us killed."

"Now she’s returning the shards and saying she won’t work for him anymore. This is way too sudden."

Sango still held Hiraikotsu tightly, some caution lingering in her expression, but confusion clearly outweighed it now.

Miroku rested one hand against his chin, studying Haruto thoughtfully.

Shippō sat on Kagome’s shoulder, blinking curiously.

There was no question that Haruto knew what had caused such a dramatic change in Kagura.

Haruto glanced at Inuyasha’s group, then at Kagura, who was still deep in thought.

He gave them a brief explanation.

"Kagura was created from Naraku’s own flesh, but she’s still an individual with a will of her own."

"The only reason she has to obey him is because Naraku possesses her heart."

Inuyasha opened his mouth, seemingly ready to say something, but nothing came out.

He had always assumed Kagura served Naraku willingly.

He had never realized the truth was so different.

Sympathy appeared on Kagome’s face as she let out a quiet sigh.

Her gaze toward Kagura softened considerably.

Now she finally understood why there had always been that lingering resentment in Kagura’s eyes.

Sango’s grip on Hiraikotsu loosened slightly, and much of her wariness faded.

Miroku shook his head.

"Naraku truly will use any means necessary to get what he wants. Even the beings he created himself are nothing more than tools to him."

Only Koga remained leaning against a tree with his arms crossed, his expression openly disdainful.

So what if Kagura had been controlled?

She had still personally killed many members of his tribe.

Koga had no intention of pretending that debt no longer existed.

Haruto glanced at him and noticed the hostility in his eyes, but said nothing.

Some hatred could not be resolved with a few words.

"Right now, Kagura is trying to find a way to break free from Naraku’s control."

Haruto briefly explained her current situation.

"Break free from Naraku?"

Inuyasha’s eyes lit up.

He immediately dropped into a squat and plucked a blade of grass from the ground, sticking it between his teeth.

"Then I’m staying to see whether she can actually pull it off."

Anything that made Naraku’s life more difficult was something Inuyasha was happy to support.

And if Kagura truly escaped Naraku, it would effectively deprive him of one of his most useful subordinates.

That could only benefit them.

"I hope she succeeds."

Kagome spoke sincerely.

"She fought us before and put us in terrible danger, but if she was being forced into it... then I’d rather see her become free."

Sango and Miroku exchanged a glance before nodding.

Their true enemy was Naraku, not Kagura if she had only been acting under his control.

If Kagura really managed to escape him and reclaim her freedom, they had no reason to continue treating her as an enemy.

Even Koga’s gaze toward Kagura now carried a faint trace of curiosity beneath the hostility.

He wanted to see whether she could truly break the chains around her.

Haruto looked over at Kagura again.

The wind surrounding her had become increasingly gentle, yet at the same time somehow deeper and more profound.

Judging by the way things were going, she would probably need quite a while longer to settle on the concept for her Nen ability and begin developing it.

Since there was nothing else to do, Haruto decided to retrieve the plump rabbit yōkai he had only half-finished roasting earlier.

He cleared a space in the open ground, gathered some dry branches, and lit a fire.

Orange flames danced upward, spreading warm light through the forest and driving away the slight chill of the night.

Haruto set the rabbit yōkai back over the flames and resumed roasting it.

Before long, the fat began to sizzle.

Golden droplets slid down its skin and fell into the fire with soft pops, causing the flames to flare and sending even richer waves of aroma through the clearing.

The fragrance was different from ordinary roasted meat.

It carried a distinctive freshness from the mountains and wilderness, mixed with a faint trace of yōki, spreading boldly through the entire area.

"That smells amazing!"

Shippō was the first to lose control.

He jumped down from Kagome’s shoulder, stood on his toes, and craned his neck toward the roasting rabbit with his eyes practically glowing.

He was almost drooling.

Inuyasha spat out the blade of grass in his mouth and immediately moved closer.

He squatted beside Haruto and stared unblinkingly at the rabbit as its skin slowly turned golden.

"Haruto, your cooking really is incredible! It smells way better than Kagome’s food!"

"Inuyasha!"

Kagome glared at him.

Even so, she had to admit that Haruto’s cooking was easily the best she had ever tasted.

"All right, stop arguing."

Haruto laughed helplessly and continued turning the roasting spit.

"I’ll give you some when it’s ready. Kagome, you guys can try it too."

"But I’ll warn you now—this is another yōkai. If that bothers you, don’t eat it."

"Doesn’t bother me at all!"

Inuyasha waved both hands dismissively.

"Who cares if it’s yōkai meat as long as it tastes good?"

They had already eaten yōkai before, after all, and it had been delicious.

Koga had been standing off to the side sulking, but the rich aroma eventually made his stomach growl despite himself.

He secretly swallowed, turned his head away as though he could not care less, and tried to look indifferent.

His eyes, however, kept drifting back toward the roasting rabbit.

Another ten minutes passed before the rabbit yōkai was finally done.

Its entire body had turned a deep, appetizing gold. The skin was crisp and slightly puffed, gleaming beneath a thin layer of rendered fat.

The rich aroma of roasted meat mixed with the faint scent of yōki, making everyone’s mouths water.

Haruto lifted the rabbit from the fire and placed it on a large, clean leaf.

Then he drew Myriad Worlds.

With a light turn of his wrist, the blade traced a graceful arc through the air.

There was no resistance whatsoever.

It passed through the roasted rabbit as effortlessly as cutting tofu, dividing the entire body into evenly sized portions.

Every cut was smooth as a mirror.

Not even a drop of juice escaped, leaving all of the meat’s flavor perfectly sealed inside.

"All right. Dig in."

Haruto gestured to the others before taking the largest hind leg for himself.

He bit down gently.

Crunch.

The crisp skin shattered beneath his teeth, and immediately afterward the tender, juicy meat burst across his tongue.

The exterior was smoky and crisp, carrying just the slightest char from the fire, while the flesh underneath was astonishingly soft and succulent, almost melting in his mouth.

The rich flavor of the meat unfolded in layers, lingering pleasantly long after each bite.

Meanwhile, the mild yōki contained within the flesh was greedily absorbed by Haruto’s Gourmet Cells the moment it reached his stomach.

His cells stirred faintly in satisfaction.

"Not bad."

Haruto nodded.

In only a few bites, he finished the large piece of rabbit meat in his hand, crunching through the bones and swallowing those as well.

Beside him, Inuyasha and the others had already grabbed their own portions and were eating enthusiastically.

"This is incredible!"

Inuyasha mumbled around a mouthful of meat as he devoured it.

Kagome and the others were enjoying theirs just as much.

Even Koga, who had been pretending not to care, eventually picked up a piece and took a large bite.

His eyes immediately widened in shock.

He had never tasted roasted meat this good in his life.

Before long, every portion Haruto had handed out was gone.

Everyone was left staring at the empty leaves with obvious reluctance, wishing there were more.