Some time later.
"Hey, Sanji, should I skin this boar?" Inuyasha hauled a massive wild beast, twice his size, into the firelight.
"Thanks. Cut it into ten even portions."
"Got it. Sankon Tessō~!"
"Sanji, Shippo, Chopper, and I gathered some veggies and mushrooms!" Nami called out, returning with the two small creatures, their arms full of fresh produce.
"Thanks, Nami-san. Have Moss-Head wash them and put them on that plank."
Zoro, still recovering on the ground, grumbled loudly.
"Hey, I'm injured here!"
Sanji scoffed, lighting a cigarette. "What, are you gonna make the ladies do all the work, you useless lump?"
Zoro: o(▼皿▼メ;)o "You're dead!"
"Hahaha, everyone's in good spirits. Nice." Luffy grinned broadly from his seat—until Sanji hurled two empty buckets at him, knocking him over.
"No freeloading! Go fetch water!"
Luffy: ヽ(ー_ー)ノ "Fine, fine."
Kagome and Sango watched the bustling scene with smiles.
"Who'd have thought we'd meet such interesting people while searching for the Sacred Jewel?"
Sango agreed. "They dress like you, Kagome, and their habits are similar too. Could they be from the future as well?"
Kagome shook her head. "But in my time, pirates don't exist anymore."
Just then, Robin joined them while taking a seat.
"We're from a place called the Grand Line. It's a world of seas and islands. Heard of it?"
Kagome and Sango shook their heads. "Our world has oceans too, but it's made of seas and continents. Must be different."
Robin pondered. "Ever heard of the Age of Pirates?"
"No, we use the Gregorian calendar here."
Afterward, Robin asked Kagome many more questions about this world.
Kagome felt as if she were conversing with a history teacher, finding the woman's intellectual curiosity quite marvelous.
After some time, the banquet began.
Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango, Shippo, and Kirara all expressed that they had never tasted such delicious food before.
Even Kagome praised Sanji's exceptional cooking skills, remarking that he was likely better than any five-star chef in her world.
Later, led by Luffy, Usopp, and the others, the bonfire party grew increasingly lively.
Even Inuyasha started dancing around the fire.
Though he had initially refused vehemently, he couldn't withstand Luffy's persistent pestering.
Slowly, they all grew wild with excitement.
By now, Inuyasha and Usopp were arm in arm, already calling each other brothers.
"Inuyasha my brother, our voices sound so similar—it must be fate!"
"Usopp my brother, I think you're right!"
Usopp suddenly had a brilliant idea: since Inuyasha was so powerful, he absolutely had to latch onto him.
"Then, let's swear brotherhood!"
Inuyasha looked utterly confused. "What's swearing brotherhood?"
In the end, Usopp dragged him along, and they ended up haphazardly pledging loyalty as sworn brothers.
Meanwhile, Kagome and Sango were discussing their respective clothing and style preferences with Nami and Robin.
Glancing sideways at Inuyasha's joyful expression, Kagome felt genuinely pleased.
Aside from getting along with their own group, she had never seen Inuyasha harmonize so well with strangers he had just met.
That human named Luffy seemed to possess some kind of miraculous power.
...
After the banquet ended, most people fell asleep.
Only a few remained awake.
Inuyasha was keeping watch in a tree.
Whenever Kagome wasn't in a safe environment, he would vigilantly protect her.
Especially since Sesshomaru had come looking for trouble earlier that day.
As for the other three still awake, they were Zoro, Robin, and someone entirely unexpected—Monkey D. Luffy.
The three of them headed toward the cliff at the back, and Inuyasha secretly followed them.
Even though they had gotten along well today, he was still the cautious dog who had been wary for a hundred years. His guard was always up.
Hiding in the grass about 50 meters away, Inuyasha could clearly hear their conversation.
"Luffy, do you think that Sesshomaru we met today is Ray?"
"I'm not sure, but I have a feeling something must have happened to the real Ray."
"I think the same. If Ray weren't in danger, he would definitely come find us."
Inuyasha continued eavesdropping.
The three of them discussed many things, with Robin and Zoro doing most of the analyzing.
If Sesshomaru and Ray were the same person, it would mean they were different consciousnesses within the same entity.
In any case, the one who appeared today was definitely not Ray.
If they weren't the same person, Ray would likely be targeted by Sesshomaru as well.
After all, Sesshomaru had already found Chouchou, who carried a similar aura to Ray—there was no reason he wouldn't be able to locate Ray, whose aura was far stronger.
"Whatever the case, we must go find Ray and Chouchou first thing in the morning." Luffy's expression was unusually serious.
Zoro nodded with a smile. "Yeah. Ray got into trouble because he was protecting us."
Robin smiled as she looked at Luffy, feeling a deeper appreciation for his sincerity and kindness.
The captain, deep down, was also very worried about Ray and Chouchou.
But to let everyone rest peacefully, he had resolutely chosen to hold a banquet to soothe everyone's emotions.
As for Luffy himself, he couldn't sleep at all.
"Captain, you should go rest too... Huh?"
Robin was initially moved, but suddenly heard the sound of snoring.
After making his decision, Luffy had already fallen into a deep sleep like a log.
He was dragged back to the banquet platform by Zoro.
The gravel and dirt along the way didn't affect his sleep in the slightest.
"Pfft~" Robin covered her mouth and chuckled, thinking how amusing her captain was.
On her way back to the camp, Robin saw Inuyasha under a tree, arms crossed and holding Tessaiga.
"Hey, I don't recommend you all to go find Sesshomaru."
"Why?"
"You're too weak. In Sesshomaru's eyes, human lives are no different from ants."
Robin sighed. "But there are some things we can't avoid just because we can't win. That's our captain's order, after all."
Inuyasha carefully studied Robin's expression. "Tch, do whatever you want."
Robin smiled and then headed toward the camp. "Thank you, Inu-san."
"You damn..."
...
As for what Ray—whom they were discussing—was doing at that moment...
In a forest about 20 kilometers away from Luffy, Inuyasha, and the others, Rin and Jaken were peacefully asleep, leaning against A-Un.
Ray stood by a small stream in the distance with the now-awake Chouchou.
"Master, are you sure you want me to act?"
"Yes, just do as I say."
Chouchou's dog face drooped, and he let out a human-like sigh of frustration.
"But if we do this, when the truth comes out in the future, Luffy and the others might blame you, Master."
"That's still better than them dying in the future," Ray replied calmly.
"I understand. I'll do as you say, Master. Please take care of yourself."
"Mm. Rest for one more day, then we'll head back."
"Understood."
-----
A-Un (阿あ吽うん) is Sesshōmaru's beast of burden. Despite traveling with Sesshōmaru for centuries, he has no name until Rin gives him one, calling the right head "A" and the left head "Un".