Chapter 375

The Hole In Her Chest is the 375th chapter of the InuYasha manga.

Synopsis

 * Kikyō learns that her spiritual powers are weakening.
 * At the Yōkai taijiya village, Sango tries to make Kohaku at peace with his sins, but he still can't forgive himself.
 * The group investigates Midoriko's cave, and find a pupa inside the hole in Midoriko's chest. A barrier also blocks them from getting too close to Midoriko's mummy.
 * The pupa in Midoriko's chest blossoms into one of Kikyō's soul collectors. Inuyasha chases after it by himself.

Summary

 * A monk and his disciple are wandering in the forest. The disciple says they should find shelter soon because villagers have said that an unusually large amount of demons have been appearing at night. The older monk tells his student that they can't worry over rumors. The two of them see a light coming from up ahead, and upon investigating it, they find Kikyō in a tree. The older monk calls her a demon, and Kikyō is surprised that the two humans can see her. The monk tries to ward her off with Sacred sutras, but the priestess is unaffected, so the two men run away. Kikyō worries over the fact that two mortals were able to breach her barrier, and she concludes that her powers must be weakening. "At this rate, I may not last long enough to take Naraku down!"
 * Inuyasha and group, still accompanied by Kohaku, come to the Village of the Demon-slayers. Kagome and Miroku express their sadness that the village has been completely abandoned, unkempt, and much of the outer gate has been destroyed. Meanwhile, Sango shows Kohaku the graves where she buried their father and the other slayers. She says that they're all resting peacefully now, and she urges Kohaku to also be at peace and let go of the past. The younger slayer refuses, thinking to himself that he'll never be able to forgive himself for his sins. Sango wonders if she's brought Kohaku to the village too soon.
 * Myōga tells Inuyasha that something strange is going on at Midoriko's cave, so the group (minus Sango and Kohaku) go to investigate. At the entrance to the cave, Kagome reminisces about how Midoriko fought with many Yōkai, and when she tore out the Yōkai's soul and combined it with her own, she expelled it from her body, and the object that was expelled was the Shikon no Tama. Upon seeing Midoriko's mummy, the group discovers that there's something occupying the hole in Midoriko's chest (the hole that the Shikon Jewel was cast from). The thing in the chest looks like a pupa or a cocoon. Miroku tries to get a closer look at the hole, but is blocked from approaching the mummy by a barrier. Myōga says that whoever erected the barrier must have immense spiritual power, as Midoriko is the birth-parent of the Shikon Jewel, no novice could erect a barrier around the mummy. Inuyasha detects a scent he recognizes coming from the hole in Midoriko's chest.
 * Later, the group is inside a hut, and Kagome says that Inuyasha stayed in the cave to keep watch for anything suspicious. Shippō says that it seemed like Inuyasha really wanted to be in the cave by himself. Myōga says he wanted to stay in the cave too, but Inuyasha chased him out. Kagome expresses her doubts, thinking that the flea probably just ran away from possible danger as usual. Miroku states that there was something off about the shield around Midoriko's mummy, it was strangely pure of demonic presence.
 * Inuyasha is in the cave, when suddenly the pupa-looking thing in Midoriko's chest blossoms and breaks free of its cocoon, transforming into one of Kikyō's Soul-Collectors. It flies away while holding a massive soul in its clutches. Inuyasha chases after it, thinking to himself "I was right about the scent, it was Kikyō!" He wonders what she's planning this time.
 * Kikyō is and she thinks to herself "There's no turning back now."

Trivia

 * Kagura makes her final appearance in the manga as concept-art on the first page of this chapter.