demon lord yōma of the land) revival after revealing the fact that he was the spider yoma from before. On the verge of death from a short battle, the priest/yōma warns Hikage about the suicide of the entire village should he die, which Hikage proceeds to kill him anyway. Aya wakes up and remembers how she got her scar, the priest's spell having worn off when he died. It was assumed that she drowned herself. Hikage finds a seemingly unconscious Ito and rushes to her aide. However, she wakes up and restrains Hikage but he was able to kill her also. Hikage enters the shrine and destroys the buddha statue to reveal an egg that he quickly cuts open. The egg opens to reveal Marou feasting on Taichi's severed head. A speechless Hikage approaches him, but Marou attacks him, causing the entire building to come crashing down. Outside, a fully dressed Marou walks away, giving the broken building a final glance before departing. The next morning it is pouring rain. Reflecting on the night's events, Hikage suddenly remembers Aya and finds her body in the river only to find her dead. He returns to the village to find it wrecked and all of the inhabitants dead. An acquaintance of his, Kazami, arrives, telling Hikage that the Oda and Uesugi clans have found out about Shingen's death and that he does not need to pursue Marou anymore. Despite this, due to feeling guilt over not being able to save Aya and still seeking answers to why Marou betrayed their clan and became a yōma, Hikage leaves to continue his quest in search for his old friend. Maoru with Crazy Fang Two years have passed since Hikage traveled to the west in pursuit of Marou, yet has not had any leads on his whereabouts. While on a beach, a kunoichi approaches him but Hikage quickly learns she is being chased by a group of ninja from the Kōga clan, led by Shiranui, who accused the kunoichi for killing their leader. She denies having anything to do with it, and soon Hikage ends up fighting them as well. Shiranui stumbles into the ocean from the defeat and is trampled to death by Majumi no Miko, the demon lord of the sea. Hikage asks for Marou's whereabouts, only for Majumi to mock their friendship. Angered, Hikage attacks Majumi and barely manages to escape. Meanwhile,