It had been nearly a month since Uchiha Retsu left the village where he was resurrected.
During this time, he had basically confirmed that he had crossed into another world once again.
Incidents like suddenly running into demon attacks had become nothing unusual to him.
It wasn't just demons.
Bandits, rogue soldiers, and all kinds of chaotic forces appeared everywhere. Even the katana in his hand had been "picked up" from a wandering swordsman who tried to use him as practice.
He discovered that ordinary people in this world could only huddle inside human settlements, surviving under the protection of shrine maidens, priests, monks, and other supernatural figures.
As for demons, they didn't possess chakra.
Instead, they directly absorbed natural energy from heaven and earth, converting it into demonic power.
Out of curiosity, Retsu even tried using his Sharingan to observe how natural energy circulated inside demon bodies, then attempted to replicate the process himself.
Since he was in an Edo Tensei body, he couldn't die no matter how much he experimented.
The good news was that, after countless attempts, he actually succeeded in converting natural energy into demonic power.
The bad news was that demonic power wasn't suitable for humans.
After experimenting on bandits, he discovered it drove people insane.
"There's a town up ahead? Perfect. I can sell the bear corpse and get some money."
As dawnlight pierced through the forest mist, Retsu spotted a fairly large town in the distance.
He stopped, thought for a moment, then decided to head over.
He retrieved the sealing scroll from Kamui space and released the bear's corpse. Then he formed hand seals.
"Transformation Technique."
With a puff of smoke, his appearance changed into that of a monk he had seen in a village before—gray robes, plain features, perfectly ordinary.
Someone who could blend into any crowd.
Shouldering the bear's body, Retsu followed the dirt path toward the town.
Over the past month, he hadn't had any specific destination.
He went wherever his feet took him.
Whenever he encountered human settlements, he used the Transformation Technique to wander around. The rest of the time, he stayed deep in uninhabited mountains.
Because he had discovered something—
The more remote the mountains, the more demons there were.
And the stronger they were.
Near human villages, there were indeed demons that preyed on people, or monsters born from human resentment and tragedy. But most were weak and easily eliminated by nearby priests and shrine maidens.
They weren't worth harvesting.
If he wanted life force for resurrection, he needed powerful demons.
After selling the bear corpse in town, Retsu wandered around.
He sampled some local snacks and bought a few daily necessities, though he barely needed any of them. Even his clothes were formed from dust by Edo Tensei.
By dusk, he left the town.
After traveling some distance, he dispelled the transformation and returned to his original appearance.
Unless necessary, he disliked changing his looks.
Most demons in this world had keen senses of smell. The Transformation Technique was just a low-level illusion that used chakra to alter appearance.
It might fool ordinary people.
But against demons, it was mostly useless.
Just as he was about to head back into the mountains, Retsu suddenly looked up.
A blazing white point of light burst into existence in the sky.
Before he could wonder what it was, the light exploded like fireworks, scattering into countless shimmering fragments that shot in all directions like a rain of stars.
"This scene… demons everywhere… ancient Japan…"
"Inuyasha?"
Watching the familiar "fireworks," realization finally dawned on him.
"So those streaks of light are… fragments of the Shikon Jewel?"
The thought had barely formed when one streak flew straight toward him, trailing a faint glow.
Chakra burst from his feet.
Retsu leaped upward and reached out, catching it precisely.
He landed lightly on a treetop and opened his palm.
A translucent pink shard lay quietly in his hand.
It looked like an ordinary piece of glass, yet it radiated a strange, mysterious energy.
"A fragment of the Shikon Jewel…" Retsu murmured, understanding flashing in his eyes. "So this really is the Inuyasha world."
"Not bad."
"The power ceiling isn't too outrageous, and I can even see my old anime crush—Priestess Kikyo."
"Compared to the Naruto world, which turned into a chaotic family drama thanks to the Ōtsutsuki clan, this place is much better."
With that thought, he placed the fragment into his ninja pouch and felt a sense of relief.
In the Fourth Shinobi War, he had barely been a top-tier gatekeeper.
But Inuyasha was closer to a romance-adventure series than a pure battle shōnen.
Even late-stage monsters like Sesshōmaru, famous as they were, only had destructive power comparable to tailed beasts.
With his Mangekyō Sharingan, he could easily rank among the strongest in this world.
"Oh right. The Shikon Jewel attracts demons."
A smile curved Retsu's lips.
"With this thing, I finally don't have to wander through mountains aimlessly. Waiting for demons to come to me is much more convenient than hunting them down."
As for clashing with Inuyasha's group over collecting fragments?
He didn't care.
In the original story, all the fragments they worked so hard to gather ended up being delivered to Naraku anyway.
He might as well make use of them first.
Having made up his mind, Retsu turned and headed toward the direction where the jewel had shattered.
That area had the highest chance of producing fragments—and of encountering Inuyasha's group.
Since he was already here, he might as well meet the protagonists.
"Hand over the Shikon Jewel!"
A shrill roar suddenly rang out.
A demon with a human head and snake body burst from the bushes. Its jaws gaped open, fangs gleaming as it lunged at Retsu.
Before it could get close, chakra gathered in Retsu's hand.
"Wind Release: Wind Cutter!"
A condensed blade of wind shot forth.
It sliced cleanly through the demon's body from head to tail.
With a miserable scream, the creature split in two and crashed to the ground, still twitching.
"Trash like this dares to show up?" Retsu glanced at the corpse, disdain in his eyes.
Ever since he started carrying Shikon Jewel fragments, his progress in collecting life force had increased dramatically.
So had the trouble.
Weak, useless demons kept coming one after another, annoying him endlessly.
The three tomoe in his eyes rotated slowly as he scanned the corpse.
Suddenly, a familiar pink glow caught his attention.
Inside the mangled remains, another fragment lay hidden.
"Oh? An unexpected bonus."
He raised an eyebrow lazily.
"Guess I misjudged you. My apologies."
While offering an utterly insincere apology, he walked over, retrieved the fragment, and placed it into the bamboo tube in his pouch reserved for storage.
In just a few days, he had already collected four fragments.
His efficiency was impressive.
As the fragment was removed, the demon's body quickly lost its luster and crumbled into ash.
A gust of wind scattered it into nothingness.
"Mindless trash."
Retsu wasn't surprised.
Weak demons simply couldn't withstand the Shikon Jewel's power. Their bodies had long been corroded by it.
Once the fragments were taken away, they would immediately turn to dust.