Episode 175

   Among the Twinkling Stars is 8th episode of final act

Plot
Kagome falls from the sky, but InuYasha catches her. Naraku recaptures Kikyo, who has been connected to her through his spiderwebs, rendering her spiritual powers useless. He intends on taking Koga's shards, but is dusturbed to discover that his spiderwebs are purified when he makes contact with Koga's pure shards. InuYasha and Kagome arrive and while InuYasha battles Naraku with his dragon-scaled Tetsusaiga, Kagome aims her bow at Kikyo to save her life, but Kikyo tells her to wait before firing her arrow. Naraku drops Kikyo from his grasp, and his body opens, revealing the Shikon jewel inside. Inuyasha catches Kikyo, but Kikyo tells Inuyasha to leave her in order to save Koga's life. Koga tries to get the sacred jewel from Naraku's body, but the jewel disappears and Koga is trapped. Miroku uses his Wind Tunnel to suck away the miasma to free Koga, while Inuyasha helps Koga break free from Naraku's grasp. Koga loses his shards, but he remains alive, as Kikyo intended. With the Shikon Jewel now inside Kikyo, she has Kagome shoot her with the bow from Mount Mizuriyo. Kikyo purifies the jewel, and fires the jewel from her body at Naraku to try to purify him as well. However, He succeeds in defiling the jewel, and Kikyo is left dying. Kikyo is able to purfiy the core of the jewel, which Naraku is unable to defile, but at the expense of her life. She tells InuYasha that she is a normal woman now, and she kisses him one last time before she dies in his arms. Inuyasha tells Kagome when she goes towards him that he doesn't want Kikyo to suffer any more sorrow, and that he will protect her forever, before a scene of the Twinkling Stars ends the episode.

Regrets...
Inuyasha: He regrets that his heart was weak enough for Naraku to tear Kikyo and him apart fifty years ago. And that he wasn't strong enough to protect Kikyo against Naraku this time too.

Kagome: She wished that she had enough power to help to defeat Naraku and heal Kikyo. That way Inuyasha and Kikyo wouldn't suffer the same thing fifty years ago again. Kagome was also jealous of Kikyo and Inuyasha.

Koga: Of his Shikon no Tama shards; but he regrets that he didn't listen to Kikyo in some ways, that he didn't run when they were at Mt. Mizuriyo.

Sango: Just like Kagome and Inuyasha, she also regrets that she, a mere human and demon slayer, couldn't help the process of defeating Naraku avoiding the death of Kikyo. She also regrets that she didn't see that Kikyo merely wanted to save people when she can from the trap of the Shikon Jewel. (Kikyo also wanted to heal Sango's brother's wounded soul but apparently she was unable, because the Shikon Jewel shard was transmitted in his body---the only pure shard---the only light to defeat Naraku.)

Miroku: Just like Kagome, Inuyasha and Sango, he regrets that his wound in his Wind Tunnel held him back to help them more.

Shippo: Shippo regrets that he is childish and could not help due to his age and ignorance.

Kirara: Although she is a full fledged demon she still nods her head in grief of unbreakable bonds. She sympathizes Kikyo because of her previous human companion, Midoriko. Midoriko seem to have similar tradgedies, so it is most probable she sympathizes Inuyasha and Kikyo. This possibly means that Midoriko and Inuyasha are soulmates.