Thanks to Freelance for the scans.

Chapter 466

Ginta and Hakkaku join the group and talk with Miroku and Sango about recent events. Kouga asks Kagome if she’s going to be OK and remarks on how heavy his legs are without the shards. He walks over to Inuyasha and puts a foot on his head, but instead of Inuyasha’s normal reaction, he remains calm. Kouga is leaving because he doesn’t want to be a burden on them. Since Inuyasha isn’t doing his normal bickering back at Kouga, Kouga yells at him for thinking he’s the only broken hearted one. While this causes a reaction among the group, Inuyasha remains calm and depressed. Kouga tries to provoke Inuyasha but only gets a weak response.

Kouga turns to Kagome and tells her Inuyasha will need a lot of work to return to normal. He leaves the matter to her and after embracing her, he and the rest of his pack take off. Before Kouga can leave, Inuyasha tells him that his desire to fight Naraku wasn’t in vain. Saying his final goodbye to Kagome, he takes off in a run and is still much faster than Ginta and Hakkaku.

Meanwhile, Sesshoumaru-sama is apparently looking for something, which causes some speculation between Rin, Kohaku, and Jaken. Kohaku appears to know that Kikyou has passed away and wishes he were stronger. As Sesshoumaru observes the sky, a giant dog youkai appears there. He transforms himself into his giant dog youkai form and joins the other youkai. The two return to the ground and transform into human form, the other youkai into a woman. The woman addresses Sesshoumaru without an honorific, much to Jaken’s irritation. However, the woman has a good reason to not use an honorific since she’s Sesshoumaru’s mother.

Chapter 467

Kagome suggests the group go look for Kohaku-kun because of Kikyou’s last words to her. The group discusses this while Inuyasha notes the scent of Sesshoumaru and another youkai.

At a large Japanese estate (palace?), Sesshoumaru’s mother asks him if he intends to eat the two human children with him. He doesn’t and changes the subject to the Meidou attack of Tenseiga. She produces a Meidou-seki (a stone) and tells Sesshoumaru that she had been instructed by his father to use it if Sesshoumaru came by and that Sesshoumaru would be in danger. She decides to test Sesshoumaru and summons a hell hound. Sesshoumaru uses the Meidou attack, but it is only a crescent and not a full circle.

The hell hound goes toward Rin and Kohaku and takes them into the crescent and into hell. Sesshoumaru goes to follow and is stopped by his mother. She wonders if he’s become soft to save human lives, but he states he’s just going to kill the hound. He enters the Meidou and it closes behind him, leaving his mother to say he’ll not be able to return to the land of the living.

Sesshoumaru finds the hound on a path and attacks. Within the body of the hound, he sees Rin and Kohaku. Back on the estate, Sesshoumaru’s mother sits on her throne and remarks that to improve the sword, sacrifices will have to be made.

Chapter 478

Sesshoumaru uses Tenseiga to defeat the hell hound, using the same power that kills the “pallbearers” from hell. Rin is still alive, something Sesshoumaru’s mother observes via the Meidou-seki. She then asks Jaken what Rin means to Sesshoumaru. He can’t really answer beyond saying that Sesshoumaru treats her better than he. Sesshoumaru’s mother states that Rin will die. Kohaku has the power of the shards which keeps him alive. Various hell creatures attack and Sesshoumaru orders Kohaku to take Rin and run. He fights the creatures but ends up having to save Rin and Kohaku. He chastises Kohaku for making him waste time as his remaining arm was meant to hold a sword.

As they journey, the cliff-path they are on begins to break up behind them. Sesshoumaru’s mother continues to observe their progress, noting that only hell is before them and they cannot return the way they came. She notes to Jaken that once they enter the true darkness of hell, not even Sesshoumaru can return. As they proceed, Kohaku notices that Rin has stopped breathing and is apparently dead. Before them lies the darkness of hell.

Thoughts

With Kouga gone and shardless, I keep wondering if this is a further sign that Takahashi-sensei will end things sooner rather than later. However, the big item of interest is Sesshoumaru’s mother. It’s nice to get some information on Sesshoumaru’s family and maybe we’ll learn something more about their father.