I've read several arguments that Kagome is Kikyo in another life as her chance to live as a normal woman alongside Inuyasha, and that the clay Kikyo that appear in the series isn't the real Kikyo. However in Rumiko's story that's not how it works. Kagome is Kikyo's reincarnation, but that doesn't mean she's Kikyo's another life simply because she isn't Kikyo. Kagome is her own person and she has her own purposes, feelings, and desires. Kagome and Kikyo are two separate individual identities, which is why Kikyo could never live her second life through Kagome. As Rumiko wrote, Kikyo was revived and lived her second life in the clay body. She fulfilled almost all her purposes, and when she was freed from the responsibility of the jewel, she could finally be a normal woman. She died in Inuyasha's arms, and her soul was saved.

I'll try to explain it as best as I can. A single soul can only have one identity per lifetime. In past life it was Kikyo, but upon reincarnation that identity is erased to make way for a new identity, Kagome. And these identities don't mix because they possess their own consciousness, feelings, and purposes. Kikyo cannot be Kagome, and Kagome cannot be Kikyo. When the witch revived Kikyo, her soul regained its erased memories and feelings. Kikyo was completely resurrected and saw Inuyasha again with the same hatred and resentment she felt when she died. Kikyo didn't experience being a normal girl through Kagome, simply because Kagome is another identity; she is NOT Kikyo. But when Kagome regains her soul back, what makes Kikyo's identity, her memories, and feelings are erased once again. In the manga it's shown Inuyasha asking Kikyo to return the souls to Kagome's body, but Kikyo gets angry, saying that returning the souls to Kagome's body means that she would die again, as her identiry would be completely erased again.Because of that Kikyo thought that Inuyasha wanted her to die and attacked him, saying that she would die when he does and ending up falling off a cliff. Then, Kikyo decides to live her second life in the clay body with the part of her soul that she managed to retain, since Kagome took the most of it. In the manga, Kaede mentions that Kikyo's powerful soul cannot win against Kagome, and that she is not simply a reincarnation.



Obs: I apologize if the translation isn't entirely accurate in some parts; I have the pages of the book in spanish, and this time I tried using a translator. If you have any questions, just ask.

Kikyo's second life