That raises a strange question: what IS Naraku's scent? It's referenced quite a bit throughout the story, but none of our characters with enhanced youkai senses of smell have ever hinted at what it might resemble. I get that it can be difficult to describe sensations like that, and I can't imagine how the task might be complicated by the fact that a dog-man might pick up on hints of scent that a regular man couldn't, but usually one can at least give a general idea. Is it maybe earthy? A kind of sickening sweet type of smell? Perhaps it's kind of sour, since Naraku took the form he uses most off a perpetually ill dude. Then again, if that were the case, I think we'd see a lot more of Inuyasha wrinkling his nose and complaining about the nasty scent he always has to follow.
Creepy as it may seem to speculate on the intricacies of a fictional shape-shifter's scent, these are the kinds of sensory details that add to the depth of a world and make even the unreal parts of it seem real, or at least plausible. Just give me a little Fleming Effect in here, RT, that's all I ask.
Maybe a better idea of what sensing a jewel shard is like?
She depicts instead a couple of shouts at Kouga to wait up and pleading to take a break, whined by the panting and wheezing Two-Tone and Mohawk wolves. I can't really complain, since that does hit pretty close to my actual experience with distance running, but it also feels like somewhat personal attack after my cold open. I'm sure it's just my imagination. Two-Tone complains that his body can't take this level of cardio, and Mohawk points out that the numerous wolves are pretty beat too, heaving with the effort of keeping up with Kouga.
... Why not? Seriously, has this guy ever wondered why he seems to have to chase a CASTLE like it's a deer darting through the forest and run the damn thing down to catch up to it? Then again, this is a guy who claims to rely on an intuition that failed to warn him when he was given a fake Shikon shard to put in his arm and when he found Inuyasha covered in the blood of his fellow wolves in quite the convenient scenario. Boy is THICK, and not as the young folk say.
Indeed, Two-Tone has to reveal his assumption that Kouga has just been running around at random this whole time, and Kouga very clumsily avoids actually addressing this by stating that he smells a suspicious scent. He's convinced that Naraku's castle is nearby, wearing a snarl as he recalls the friends he saw lying bloodied and lifeless at the castle, vowing silently to avenge them.
We are once again eased into a new scene with disembodied speech bubbles against a backdrop of sky, one asking Inuyasha what's wrong and if he wasn't indicating another direction before, and the other, presumably from Inuyasha, telling the querent to shut it.
Kagome begins to protest, but is distracted by the sight of a dust-devil heading in their direction. Fast. Miroku and Sango twist around to look curiously on too, instead of trying to get the fuck out of the way like I might have done - I really HATE getting dust in my eyes. No, they casually watch Kouga appear out of the center of the small storm, skidding to a stop on bent and angled legs.
And he managed it without running back and forth aimlessly and exhausting his companions. Go figure.
Inuyasha scoffs, pushing himself off the ground slowly at first, and then lunging while yanking Tessaiga halfway from its sheath and he declares he'll waste the wimpy wolf. Kouga gives him an exasperated look while Kagome tells him to sit, and he's planted in the dirt face-first again. Inuyasha fetal faceplant is ignored as Miroku casually asks Kouga if he's managed to track Naraku's castle. Kouga says he has, indicating his nose with his thumb. Though he doesn't know why, Kouga suggests Naraku is letting his stink leak out when it hasn't before. Sango begins state her thoughts on what this means with a critical expression, but Miroku finishes her sentence by declaring that the barrier has slackened. For fuck's sake, Miroku, can you let anyone else talk for half a second? Can you BE any more of a misogynistic prick?
While Kouga turns back to where he last saw Kagome and reaches for her hands, he tells her not to worry, because he's going to waste Naraku.
Kagome has gone to kneel next to Inuyasha as he drags his sorry ass back out of dirt, telling her not to stop him because he wants to settle this little rivalry his and Kouga's this very minute. She holds onto his arm to both steady and restrain him, insisting that he should stop this nonsense. Kouga suddenly adopts a look of confusion, making a questioning noise, and asks what's up with Inuyasha. He squats in front of him and sniffs rapidly, saying that Inuyasha's normal irritating dog smell is gone. Kouga asks if Inuyasha went for a cleansing swim, but Inuyasha can only "urk" in response, Kagome staring at Kouga with wide eyes. I'm not surprised they're not prepared to tell Kouga a damn thing. The information would probably ricochet off the inside of his empty skull and back out his big mouth.
Luckily, Kouga is distracted by Inuyasha's suspicious lack of dog smell by his slower companions and their trailing wolves waving and calling to him as they approach between the trees. Mohawk pants with relief that they've finally caught up, but Kouga lets out an almost disappointed "oh". He turns quickly to salute to Kagome, claiming not to have time for this shit, and wishing her farewell. While he kicks up another dust storm, Two-Tone reaches out impotently, stuttering at Kouga's retreating back to wait a second. He only just seems to realize Kagome and company are there as they continued their marathon run past them, Mohawk greeting Kagome tiredly as well. She says hello, but they have even less time to chat than Kouga.
Sango asks Miroku if they should go after the wolves, but Miroku says it's best they remain inactive tonight. Inuyasha is on his feet again in no time, spitting in protest that the wolves will get ahead of them, but Miroku snaps back at him to calm his excited ass down. He says Kouga is one thing, but asks Inuyasha if he really wants to expose his vulnerable human form to Naraku, and this seems to shut him right up, sweatdropping something fierce. Miroku reminds him that if the day of the month he loses his powers is found out, Inuyasha will be in danger, even more so if it's Naraku who finds it out. Inuyasha hangs his head and stews in his surliness, wondering why this has to happen NOW of all times.
In a cloud of marbled poisonous atmosphere, a mansion sits quiet and full of skeletons slumped along the hallways. Kagura walks between them, speechless a moment.
Sheesh, did these guys die just because no one wanted to crack a window? As a matter of fact, Kagura actually confirms that all the human retainers brought there with the castle were poisoned by the miasma of the barrier. They really got the raw end of that deal, didn't they?
Kagura turns to find creepy little Kanna lurking behind her, mirror glowing. Kagura demands to know the meaning of Kanna sneaking up on her, but trails off when she takes a closer look at that mirror to see the fuzzy image of Kouga and his pack of wolves wading through some waist-high grass. She vaguely recalls his name, and that he's the leader of the wolf-youkai, wondering if he's actually gotten close to the castle. She also starts wondering if this is a coincidence, or if there's something more to it. After thinking on it a moment, Kagura kneels in front of Kanna, asking if Naraku knows about this. Kanna says she doesn't know, because that jerk isn't even here. Kagura hums thoughtfully, realizing that Naraku DOES just kind of disappear periodically. Kanna addresses Kagura as she turns to leave, fan rested on her shoulder. She promises to kill Kouga, reasoning that she shouldn't have to wait for Naraku's order to defend the home front.
Outside, Kouga is cursing as he stalks around the swirling barrier, insisting the castle is definitely in this direction. Two-Tone and Mohawk seem to have caught up to him at last while he's slowed to a walk, and the former questions the fact that they can't see anything. Mohawk makes a surprised sound at the sky, and draws Kouga's attention to a big, dark, WRIGGLING cloud high up in the air. Out of the center of this descending cloud, a single crescent gust shoots out and Kouga has to leap out of its way. When Kouga stands back at his full height, he finds Kagura crouched in front of him, just landed from her jump out of her demon-cloud. She smarms that it's been a while, and Kouga displays a glare of rage he can't begin to articulate.
Mohawk and Two-Tone gape, the latter asking what the deal is with the skeletons. Kagura scoffs, saying they're countless guards from the castle in a nice little payoff from her note of the dead retainers a couple of pages ago.
Too bad the setup was awkward and entirely too cognizant of the audience.
Oh well. Kouga has found his tongue again, correctly identifying Kagura and her wind powers, claiming there hasn't been a single day when he's forgotten her face, and not in a flattering way. Because she's responsible for the deaths of his friends and allies, he charges her, telling her to prepare to die and promising to pay her back for their previous fight. Kagura flips open her fan, sharing the same sentiment. She acknowledges her failure to get the Shikon shards in his legs before, but she'll take them for sure this time.
Especially considering this guy demonstrated multiple times during this chapter alone that he's none too bright. No doubt there's little he can do that's NOT easily countered.
So, what did I think of this chapter overall? On the one hand, I'm very disappointed in Kouga writing so far, and I wasn't quite able to articulate it until now; the "intuition" that he's supposed to rely upon for survival is incredibly inconsistent. He hasn't shown up a lot in the story yet, and there are more times than not when that character trait just... doesn't manifest. This is another instance of that, since MOHAWK was the one who had to warn Kouga that Kagura's demonic cloud was approaching. The close call with Kagura's wind blade shouldn't have been nearly as close as it was, but if it wasn't, then there wouldn't be as much tension in the scene. This is a major problem with Kouga's characteristics as RT has set them up - I love the idea of a guy using intuition to skirt around danger, given that's traditionally a feminine trait and it kind of sets the trope on its head. Yet, Kouga wouldn't get into the massive messes that he got into the last time he showed up at this castle, and this one, if RT were to utilize this trait. She has to actively IGNORE Kouga's characterization in order to get him into tense, desperate situations, and that's not a good sign for the possibility of character development later on when he's basically made to be Inuyasha 2.0 in recklessness and overexuberence.
On the other hand, the subtlety of Kagura's dissatisfaction with her life is done well here. She didn't need to outright TELL us that she's cooped up because Naraku forbids her to leave; it's in how she whines that this place is stuffy, how she mentions the retainers and guards were locked in the castle as well to their very demise, how she finds an excuse to leave the castle and justifies why she shouldn't need permission from the absent Naraku. It paints a picture that not only shows her as a prisoner under house arrest, but also that she's a bit more willful than perhaps Naraku is prepared to deal with. Naraku, by proxy, is implied to be tightly controlling everyone in his proximity, from which a number of extrapolations about the level of caution and even fear there can be drawn. It's a very well-executed bit of writing, if not a tad awkward in the part where RT set up our skeleton fodder for Kagura to use.
Also a tad awkward: I thought the dangly beads at the sides of Kagura's head were earrings, but they just look like they're threaded on some thin locks of hair in the final panel up there? I'll have to keep an eye on that and see if it changes, because I really could have SWORN otherwise...
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