Chapter 369

Hakudōshi's Scheme is the 369th chapter of the InuYasha manga.

Summary

 * Sango goes after Kohaku.
 * Kagura tells Inuyasha and group about Hakudōshi and The Infant's plan to supplant Naraku, as well as the fact that The Infant is inside Mōryōmaru.

Synopsis

 * InuyashaProtectsKagura-C369.jpg herself riding on Kirara, Sango chases after Kohaku. She is concerned because Kagura sent him away as if to save him from Hakudōshi. What in the world is going on?
 * Inuyasha asks Kagura what's going on; why is she fighting with Hakudōshi? The sorceress says she doesn't have time to explain, jumping out of the way just as Hakudōshi reflects Inuyasha's Windscar back at him. Out from of the chaos of the attack, Hakudōshi leaps out and aims his naginata at Kagura. She sweats, saying "Trying to shut me up, eh?". Hakudōshi only stares, telling Kagura that she's lived for far too long already. Inuyasha intervenes on the attack, saving Kagura and using the windscar again, though the attack still fails to break through the child's barrier. The half-demon tells the elder incarnation she better not try anything funny while his back is turned. Kagome says she doesn't think Kagura will do anything hostile, because it looked like she was protecting Kohaku from Hakudōshi. Miroku agrees, because there's only one reason either Naraku or Hakudōshi would attack the boy: to get his Shikon shard.
 * HakudoshiUsesKaguraAsAShield-C369.jpgsha tells Kagura to just spill any information she has. The wind sorceress says Hakudōshi is trying to kill her because he doesn't want her to reveal The Infant's location. Miroku then realizes that earlier, when they noticed that the crystals of demonic energy's power vanished around Mōryōmaru, they completely forgot about the Infant; they assumed Mōryōmaru was now Naraku's heart. Then, Inuyasha notices that Hakudōshi's shield is fading, so he must be getting ready to vanish. Inuyasha raises his sword as it gets coated in diamonds, using Kongōsōha, but when the diamond spears fire, the child has disappeared. Then, Hakudōshi suddenly appears behind Inuyasha, with Kagura now trapped in his barrier with him. He arrogantly then tells Inuyasha to try cutting him down again, and the half-demon hesitates with a curse under his breath, not wanting to harm Kagura in the process. Kagura becomes surprised when Inuyasha won't do it, thinking to herself that Inuyasha is a naïve fool. Hakudōshi laughs, saying he never expected to be using Kagura as his own personal shield. With a scowl, Kaguracuts the white-child in half with her fan, shouting down at Inuyasha. "Listen! The Infant is inside Mōryōmaru! Hakudōshi is scheming with it to make Mōryōmaru stronger so they can take out Naraku!" The group is shocked to hear this, and Inuyasha asks to confirm that both The Infant and Hakudōshi have turned against Naraku.
 * Instead of Kagura, Hakudōshi responds to the question. He says that Naraku made a fatal mistake when he removed his heart. He gave the Nulling stone to the infant to erase all signs of its demonic presence to keep it safe. But then the infant had a clever idea to get an armor of its own; Mōryōmaru. "And then we realized something. As Naraku made Mōryōmaru stronger and stronger, always thinking that he was protecting his heart, he only pushed it farther from his own reach... until finally, we knew that we held the power." Kagura calls Hakudōshi a fool, certain that Naraku is already well aware of he and the Infant's traitorous intentions. The child retorts that Kagura should be more worried about herself than others, because unlike himself and the Infant, Naraku actually possesses Kagura's beating heart.
 * Meanwhile in his hideout, Naraku holds Kagura's heart in his hand, staring at it coldly.

Trivia
The earliest differences between Volume 37 and 38 of the Manga and its equivalent in InuYasha The Final Act are as follows:

1. In the Final Act, Hakudōshi is the one who steals Kagome's sacred jewel shard, not Mōryōmaru.

2. In the Final Act, in the scene where Hakudōshi and Kagura are fighting, Gōryōmaru shows up and transforms into Mōryōmaru. For the anime, this is how the group learns that the two are one and the same, instead of during a separate battle like they do in the Manga.

3. Hakudōshi simply gives Mōryōmaru the jewel shard.

4. In the anime, Mōryōmaru attacks Kohaku first, not Sango.