Chapter 304

The Village of the Holy Woman is the 304th chapter of the InuYasha manga.

Summary

 * Inuyasha and friends hear rumors about a Holy Woman.
 * Hakudōshi uses the Holy Woman to lure humans out so the demon birds can suck their blood.

Synopsis

 * Two guards at the castle talk about how everyone in the birthing room was found dead, but the lady of the castle and her baby miraculously survived. The lady of the castle has amnesia over what happened that night. She remembers seeing a young boy (Kohaku) and a girl clad in white (Kanna), but thinks maybe it was all just a dream.
 * Meanwhile, Inuyasha and friends are looking for the nest of demon birds, but since Naraku has given Princess Abi a barrier, the scent of the nest is cloaked and Inuyasha can't find it by scent. The group wishes they had more clues as to the nest's whereabouts. They then come upon an old man and woman who fled their village after it was razed by the demon birds. Miroku asks them where they're going, and the old couple says there is a village over the mountain where a holy woman lives. No one has ever seen her face, as she only communicates through two assistants, so no one has heard her voice either. They say the Holy Woman will help protect them from the birds. Miroku asks them if they're the only ones heading to see the holy woman, and the couple says people are coming from all over to see her. The group realizes this is probably a trap to gather lots of people in one place so the birds can feed on them.
 * Hakudōshi, accompanied by Kagura, looks down at the mass of people flocking toward the holy woman. The birds arrive and start to attack some of the travelers, but Inuyasha saves them. Hakudōshi tells him it makes no difference if he kills the demon birds because their numbers are practically infinite. Inuyasha asks the incarnation what he's scheming, but Hakudōshi says the half demon should pay more attention to the birds, because if he gets distracted more innocent humans will die. The group slays countless bird demons and tries to gather the travelers and get them to safety, but Hakudōshi doesn't allow them to. They see that neither Hakudōshi nor Kagura are actually attacking, they're just watching the group slay the birds. Then, they realize that there are probably a lot more people at the holy woman's village than there are traveling to it. Hakudōshi has been keeping them preoccupied while Princess Abi and the main force of demon birds attack the Holy Woman's stronghold. Miroku asks Hakudōshi if he was the one spreading rumors about the Holy Woman, but the incarnation denies it, saying it was just a human rumor he took advantage of.
 * Inuyasha uses his windscar on Hakudōshi, but he's protected by a barrier and reflects the attack back at Inuyasha, similarly to the way Naraku did at Mount Hakurei.
 * The Holy Woman is riding a horse, and one of her assistants tells her they have found the other force of demon birds. The holy woman sets an arrow on her bow and aims at Hakudōshi.

Trivia

 * In the anime, the holy woman is called "Saint Hijiri", and the traveling old couple says that no one knows if the saint is male or female because they never show their face. In the original manga it is explicitly stated that it is the Holy Woman.