As a witch, I find the issue of curses highly annoying. They're considered a malevolent form of magic, and therefore most of those who want to identify as good and light tend to distance themselves from the practice of cursing. On the other hand, those edgy shallow douchebags who think wallowing in despair gives them dimension throw curses at just about anyone who gives them a questionable glance. The result is the majority of those suffering from curses being happy shiny people holding hands for the terrible crime of being related to the pretty girl at school, while the real dickwads of society are allowed to prance around spreading misery, perpetuating oppression, and stealing everything they can from weaker individuals unable to fight back.
Case in point, Tsubaki could be cursing the shit out of Naraku right now for his numerous crimes, but she's decided to do exactly what she's told by said criminal so she can curse the soul-twin of her formal cat-fight partner.
Ugh, curses are so wasted on the accursed.
Brow knitted seriously, Kaede suggests this is likely the work of a dark miko, which is either a remarkably convenient guess, or evil mikos have a remarkably identifiable style distinct from all the other supernatural assholes in this setting. Either way... remarkable. Kaede gets all the more specific with her hypothesis, supposing that what bit Kagome was the dark miko's familiar, a shikigami. I feel like the sensation of being bitten could be any number of fanged fuckers throughout feudal Japan, but maybe I'm just an ignorant white girl.
Inuyasha is still stuck on the phrase "dark miko", repeating it in disbelief. Kaede asserts that Inuyasha has heard of dark mikos before, yet proceeds to describe this being anyway as an evil priestess for hire specializing in curses, like a badass mercenary of discord. Oh man, I hope someone uses that term as a dope screenname. Kaede says that the Shikon shards are made impure due to this dark miko's power, despite the fact that this is probably the only time a dark miko could have gotten her hands on a Shikon shard at all.
Kagome lays there with the Shikon fragments emitting a murky aura from where they're buried in her neck. Shippou hops up on her chest to peer at the spot and confirms that they are indeed completely in there. There's no point in grabbing the tweezers to yank on the exposed end like an evil splinter. Kneeling next to Kagome's head, Sango looks up at Kaede and says that the poison of the corrupted shards will kill Kagome at this rate. So, Miroku steps forward and suggests that Sango and he go, which at first elicits some confusion from her. He elaborates that they should go find that dark miko and beat the shit out of her, since it's the only way to break the curse. Inuyasha wants to come too because he's of course very eager to beat someone's head in, since this is the way he solves MOST of his problems, but Miroku tells him to stay at Kaede's place instead, even if it's only to hold Kagome's hand. Sango also says that his place is at Kagome's side. Why? Well how the hell else is Kagome going to make an attempt on his life???
As Inuyasha's only real protest to being told to sit and stay is to mutter curses in less boisterous a style than his usual way, the dark Shikon shards under Kagome's skin let off an eerie glow.
You know, that perpetually angry weirdo with the animal ears and the phallic sword? I'VE had a hard time forgetting about him over the past decade of my life, and I don't even fancy the guy.
When the voice in her head repeats the order to kill Inuyasha, Kagome tells it to stop, weakly, but with resolution. Elsewhere, Tsubaki scoffs at Kagome's impudent resistance. Without any compunctions about saying "I told you so", Naraku reminds Tsubaki that Kagome is Kikyou's reincarnation, and warns that ordinary methods probably won't work very well. Tsubaki considers the Kikyou angle here, and is quickly irked by the memory of her old foe, who had her heart stolen by a hanyou and diminished spiritual powers as a result. Her mind was on, ahem, other things, clearly. Tsubaki admits to herself that it should have been an ideal opportunity to steal the Shikon no Tama from Kikyou, and yet...
She recalls Kikyou telling her to vanish, and that her life will be spared at least. Insult to injury, I'm sure. And the injury is resurfacing with the memory, it seems, with a pattern of snakeskin appearing over her glaring right eye. Tsubaki simmers in anger over Kikyou's smug face, making her sick even now. While she lies paralyzed on the floor of Kaede's hut, Kagome seems to experience a jolt corresponding with Tsubaki's stewing.
Meanwhile, she's been covered in a blanket/kimono, and Inuyasha sits watching her quietly. Bizarro to be sure. Kaede and Shippou have gone outside to gather some water in a bucket, and Shippou nervously asks if they'll save Kagome. Kaede answers in the affirmative, but in a trailing sort of way, like a "but" is hiding somewhere behind it. Cut to Sango and Miroku whooshing through the air on transformed Kirara, Miroku directing the expedition to where the vague sense of evil is getting stronger, and Sango urging Kirara to hurry. Cut back to Kaede, who hangs her head in intense thought, assuming that Kagome is fighting the good fight herself. However, she's not confident Kagome will be able to endure a drawn-out battle.
Dammit lady, you jinxed it! Now this is going to take forever just to show she can handle it! You dingus!
In the hut, Inuyasha has taken to pacing impatiently, having traveled to the doorway to lift the reed curtain and peer outside, asking no one in particular if his useless friends haven't found the asshole casting the curse yet. He curses, pounding the doorway with his fist, and mopes about how unbearable it is that he can only watch Kagome being in pain. Because there was just NO WAY he could have tagged along on the quest to hunt down the douche-miko.
His agonizing is interrupted by a soaring arrow from the back of the hut, sticking into the door frame very close to where his fist was a moment ago. He is... somewhat alarmed by this, to say the least.
You think she's annoyed by his whining or what?
Kagome has another arrow nocked already and is glaring at Inuyasha through flat, shadowed eyes as Inuyasha stares back with eyes and mouth wide. He says her name, but all she seems to be hearing is the irritating voice in her head telling her again to kill Inuyasha. She sweats and pulls a weird half-smile while Inuyasha tentatively says her name once more. Kagome responds with the word "away", before being able to string a couple of others on there and produce a forceful demand that he run away, still hearing that damn command to kill.
Tsubaki says that Kagome is rather tenacious, considering her body is being controlled, but she's still hanging onto her mind. Naraku chuckles that this is getting interesting.
Just seems like the same shit on a different day to me, but I guess Naraku and Tsubaki are the kinds of high school football stars that constantly want to relive the glory days when everything was objectively worse for everyone, including themselves.
Naraku instructs Tsubaki to kill Kagome with the curse if Inuyasha runs away, since none of this matters if he does. It's no fun if Inuyasha doesn't care enough to get skewered. He seems to be hesitating enough that this shouldn't be much of a concern, though, standing frozen sight of Kagome's drawn arrow.
Meanwhile, again, there's a big crackle as Kirara flies right into a big dome of a barrier, and Miroku curses over the level of its strength. Sango exclaims in disbelief that the curse seems to be coming from inside. The curse coming from right where you were led by the trail of evil energy you've been tracing back?? You don't SAY. Sango is bummed that they've been stopped about FINALLY getting here over the span of a whole, I dunno, five pages or so, and asks Miroku if he can't break this pesky barrier. Though this frustrates him, he has to admit that it's impossible for him. At this moment, Sango points out to Miroku a figure hanging out on a nearby hilltop.
A big mood in this particular story, for sure.
Miroku identifies Kikyou, while Sango wonders aloud why SHE'S here. Kikyou notices them as well, recognizing them as Inuyasha's buddies, but she's more interested in what's going on inside that there barrier. She approaches it, and it crumbles at her proximity, sealing back up behind her once she's inside. Miroku and Sango are both floored that she just waltzed right on in there. It's like she bribed the bouncer or something.
It seems Naraku is blissfully unaware that Kikyou has infiltrated his and Tsubaki's base, because he's still giggling to himself, speculating on what Inuyasha will do; will he stay and be shot through, or will he leave Kagome to die?
Yeah, I don't think there's any ambiguity in that look. It's not like he can't fathom what will happen if he stays, and it IS the devil he knows, after all.
So, what did I think of this chapter overall? I really was hoping that I might be able to amend my original interpretation of this arc with a my more critical look this time around, but it's leaving even worse of an impression so far. The multiple switches between the fragmented cast trying to fulfill a fraction of the plot all at once made this one difficult to read. I'd say it's probably the worst example of one of RT's bad habits of poor transitions in between action, to the point where the sudden redirection of attention can produce as sort of mental whiplash, or the odd sensation of being pulled in a lot of different directions at once. You kind of get the impression that RT was thinking in terms of how the chapter might be animated, which doesn't translate very well to comic-format.
The big peeve I had around the actual content was the contrivance keeping Inuyasha by Kagome's side, though. Miroku and Sango just tell him it's better for him to stay than coming to help them in their quest, and there's not a single reason given. He's only JUST gotten unfettered access to Kaze no Kizu, which means that he can use it regardless of whether there's a youki/air division to slice in future confrontations, so it should make even human enemies easier to defeat. And he's got a tracker's nose, literally, so there's no reason he couldn't be an asset in FINDING the enemy. Besides, it's not like Kaede can't look after Kagome while she's fighting the curse at home. But no, Miroku and Sango urge Inuyasha to stay behind, with absolutely no reasoning behind this, and Inuyasha doesn't even ARGUE, which in itself is strangely out of character. This kid picks a fight over smaller things all the time, but for some reason he has no problem being left to feel powerless and impotent as he just watches Kagome suffer? Really?
It's very obvious there was little to no thought behind keeping Inuyasha in Kagome's vicinity - it was just forced in an effort to play out Naraku's silly little play of reminiscence. To top it all off, there's no explanation as to how Miroku and Sango are tracing the curse's origins, no checking in at the well to see if they could pick up the trail from there or mystery as to how to hone in on a vague feeling of evil that this was described as in the previous chapter. They just kind of ride off on Kirara and come across the source in virtually no time. Sure, Sango implies it took them a while, but it can't have been more than a day or so, given that it's sundown when the arc started and daylight again when they find the barrier. With how wild and swinging the narrative is, it feels like a hop, skip and a jump from one event to another, so it's impossible to tell how much time has passed here.
Forgive me, but this arc is STARTING as a hot mess. I shudder to think how much more disorienting it's going to be as it continues. Yikes.
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