Bleach Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ New Life ❯ Devastation ( Chapter 8 )

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or Bleach or any of the anime/manga characters.

Warnings: Mild Language and Violence

Devastation

 

With their fear for Kagome hurrying the group along, it took the group less than a quarter of the time it had taken to find camp to return to Inuyasha's Forest, heading straight for the well.

As soon as they reached the forest's edge, Kagome got off of Inuyasha and ran, her speed making her appear to vanish into thin air.

By the time they reached the clearing, Kagome was on her knees, sobbing. In front of her, the Bone Eater's Well sat charred and almost completely destroyed. Half of the wood lay around the clearing in destroyed bits, while the rest was blackened, some still smoking from whatever had damaged the well.

After several moments of the group staring in a horrified silence, Kagome finally stood, her tears dried.

She found that her pain was gone, but she was filled with a pure terror at a sudden realization. Whatever had done this to the well wasn't there. Only a small trace of the energy was there, and it vanished into the well.

“Oh, god! Inuyasha, my family! Something went through,” she said, staring at the well in horror.

And then, without a second more of hesitation, she dove into the well, Inuyasha close behind.

Kagome came up from the well with a single jump, and stared in horror at the destruction. The well house lay in ruins, smoke and debris still falling where the roof and walls had been.

She felt a presence nearby and ran out of the hole, and right into Ichigo. Behind him stood a man the size of a small mountain, a Shinigami robe covering what was obviously all muscle. In his hand was a long, jagged, very used sword. He stared at her with the eye not covered with an eye patch, his expression saying he was unimpressed by her.

“What the hell happened?” Ichigo asked, looking at the well.

Before Kagome could respond, Inuyasha suddenly lunged into the air, snarling as he drew the Tetsusaiga.

“Wind-”

“Sit,” Kagome sighed.

Inuyasha slammed into the ground as a long string of creative insults and curses slipped from him.

“Were you here when it happened?” Kagome asked Ichigo, ignoring the irate hanyo.

“No. We just got here,” Ichigo said, staring at Inuyasha in wonder.

Finally, Inuyasha was able to force himself up, a deadly glare aimed at Kagome.

“So… this is Inuyasha,” Kagome said, making a sweeping gesture to the hanyo. “And who's he?” she asked, turning her attention back to the massive man.

“Captain Zaraki Kenpachi. I figured that if he had you to wail on, he'd stop trying to get me into a fight. And he uses nothing but his unreleased sword, so I thought he'd be helpful.”

“I see… Why does he look like he doesn't want to be here?” she asked, frowning at the man.

Before Ichigo could respond, the Captain suddenly swung his sword. Kagome felt the power that was coming with the swing, and she brought her Zanpakuto out on instinct, the curve of her right blade holding his attack off.

Suddenly, he pulled back, an almost child's gleeful expression on his face as he let out a deep bellow of laughter.

“She ain't bad! Alright, Kurosaki, I'll work with her. But don't think I still won't be comin' after you!” the man laughed.

They suddenly became aware of Inuyasha's feral growl, and this seemed to amuse Zaraki greatly.

“Down, Inuyasha,” Kagome sighed as her sword vanished. “Go check on my family.”

Inuyasha was about to give her a smart-ass reply, but then he saw her eyes. And the absolute fear in them. She didn't want to go into her house if her family was dead.

“Alright,” he said, taking off before she burst into tears.

Kagome felt yet another presence approaching, and sighed.

“My shrine's so busy tonight. Wonder if anyone else is going to show up?”

The presence approached faster, and suddenly, Uryuu appeared, his bow drawn.

“Hello, again, Uryuu,” Kagome said, watching as he spun to stare at her in shock.

“Why're you here?”

“I live here,” Kagome said with a shrug.

“What the hell happened? There was suddenly a huge explosion of energy. I've never felt anything like it. Even Ulquiorra's power wasn't that bad.”

“I really don't know what happened,” Kagome sighed, staring sadly at the well house.

“I'll see you all later. I promised to spend some time with my younger sisters,” Ichigo said, making to leave.

“You have sisters?”

“Yeah, Karin and Yuzu. I don't get to spend nearly enough time with them, though Karin's too proud to admit that she doesn't like it,” the Shinigami sighed.

“Well, get going then,” Kagome said, her tone light.

Kagome vanished, and Uryuu released his hold on the bow.

“So, what the hell happened here?”

“Don't know. Something came through the well, and it blew the building apart…”

“You should be a little more concerned. The power I felt was big enough to feel from ten full miles away, and I've never felt anything like it.”

“What you're feeling is youki,” Kagome said, staring from the well house to the sky.

Before Uryuu could ask what she was talking about, the door opened and Inuyasha jumped out, his expression grim.

“What… What is it?” Kagome asked, her heart spiking with adrenaline.

“Souta and your mother are fine, but your grandfather… Your mother said he was near the well when the explosion happened… Sorry.”

Kagome stared at the ground, tears falling from her eyes despite her desperately not wanting them to.

“What the hell coulda' done this?” Inuyasha asked, staring at the well house in wonder.

“You can't tell?”

“Tell what?” Inuyasha asked, looking up to find Kagome's fists bleeding from how tightly they were clenched.

“Take one smell of the place, and you'll know.”

Inuyasha did as instructed, and his eyes narrowed dangerously, a low growl forming in his throat.

“Naraku!”

Kagome nodded, her eyes going up to the air.

“Inuyasha, could you go and tell the others?”

“The fuck-”

“Inuyasha, do it,” she hissed, the command in her voice actually making the hanyo jump back.

“Keh!”

He took off, jumping into the well without another word. As soon as the blue light signifying his departure was gone, Kagome snarled and drew her dagger, which instantly began to glow.

Both Uryuu and Zaraki stared in wonder as her entire body began to glow along with the blades that formed without a word.

“I'm coming after you, bastard,” she snarled.

Power exploded outward, and the two suddenly found themselves staring at blank air where she'd been seconds ago.

Kagome could feel the path Naraku had gone, and she was following it with all the speed she had in her. Unfortunately, the trail ended with such a sudden abruptness that Kagome almost slammed into a building because of the distraction.

She focused all of her senses on the trail, but still sensed him no further than before. It was as though his energy had literally just vanished from existence.

Just as she began to consider all the possibilities, she suddenly sensed a surge of power nearby. She would've just ignored it, but just as she began to head back home, she felt Ichigo's energy. And despite how new her acquaintance with him was, she somehow felt that his energy was seriously depleted.

Without another second wasted, she took off. She soon found herself on a beach, and was instantly on edge.

She got to the scene just as Ichigo flew down into the concrete, debris blowing upward from the force he crashed with. And he was clearly unconscious, blood rolling from his forehead and his Zanpakuto buried deep into the ground at his side.

“Ichigo! Ichigo, wake up!” a voice young-sounding feminine voice desperately cried.

Suddenly, a small girl with black hair appeared from the other side of the street, running at Ichigo. She buried her head in the Shinigami's chest, sobbing.

“Ichigo!”

Kagome walked up to the girl, eyes constantly scanning for whatever hit him.

“Don't worry. He'll be fine,” Kagome said, drawing her dagger as a precaution.

The girl's head came up and she glared at Kagome with red, puffy eyes.

“How the hell would you know?”

“I've only known him for a few days, but I seriously doubt he'd die from this. Besides, he's just unconscious now.”

“And who the hell're you?” the girl growled, staring at Kagome with open hostility.

“My name's Kagome. You must be Karin, right?”

The girl's eyes widened slightly, and Kagome nodded.

“Is your sister around here?”

“She's hiding,” Karin said, glaring at Kagome.

“Alright. I get the feeling that you see ghosts, too.”

Karin nodded, though it hadn't been a question.

“Alright. If Ichigo were dead, you'd see his ghost, right? I feel that he and I are similar. We don't stay down even when we are dead. I could be wrong, but that's the impression I get from him,” Kagome said, eyes still moving erratically around them.

“Y… You're right,” Karin sniffed.

“Alright. Listen carefully, Karin. Whatever hit Ichigo is still around here. I'm assuming that, as you're currently hanging on to him, you know about Shinigami?”

“For a long time,” Karin said, her crying apparently done.

“Alright. Karin, we're going. If something happens, try to get your brother to your sister, and hide until I get you. Can you do that?” Kagome asked, staring intently into the younger girl's eyes.

“I'll do it,” she said, determination glowing in her eyes.

“Good.”

Kagome lifted the downed Shinigami with ease and together, they ran. They quickly got to a small cave opening, and Kagome quickly slid Ichigo in before Karin slid inside.

“This is a good spot to hide,” Kagome commended. “I suggest you don't watch. I have a feeling that what's going to happen next isn't going to be pretty.”

As if on cue, six people with broken Hollow masks appeared from nowhere, walling Kagome in with the cave opening.

Out of the six, Kagome could somehow immediately tell which one was the leader. She was a tall woman with bright, silver hair that curved around the back of her head and came down to her stomach. Dark, hungry black eyes glared at Kagome, and a small sneer was etched into her face.

“Get out of the way, bitch,” the woman growled.

“Now why would I do that?” Kagome asked, her Zanpakuto releasing.

“We're not interested in some weak little random Shinigami. We're here to kill the one that destroyed Grimmjow and Ulquiorra.”

“Don't know who they are,” Kagome said, shrugging.

“Doesn't matter. We're here to kill that bastard hiding behind you. He got away from us when we hit him before.”

“And why do you want to kill him?” Kagome asked, surprised that the woman was being so open.

“When Aizen attacked Karakura Town, he lost the Hogyoku. He believes the Shinigami's responsible.”

“I see… Well, I don't know who Aizen is, and I don't really care. I'm new to all this. But I won't let you hurt him anymore,” she said, taking an offensive stance.

In unison, all six of them broke into laughter, making Kagome tense.

“Oh? You're not going to let us, huh? What the hell do you think you can do about it!?” the woman snarled.

“Why don't we find out?”

The woman snapped her fingers, and four of them launched, swords drawn and killing intent obvious.

Kagome tightened her grip on her right blade, and lunged. Her sword went through all four of them, and she ended up behind them. After a moment, they began laughing hysterically.

“What the hell was that!? Your sword didn't even cut us!”

“You're right.”

Kagome turned the blade and sliced the air in front of her. Black, crackling energy rolled from the blade's edge and sparked around her entire body.

“Shinikage.”

Their laughter died as power suddenly filled the ground below them. And then, their shadows moved independently of them. Before any of them could react, their shadows suddenly solidified and grew pointed. And then, they were dead, the shadows ripping them apart before they could even scream.

“That's four. Ready for another try?” Kagome asked, turning to the other two.

“Shit! She's not some two-bit patroller,” the other survivor growled.

“Tch. Relax. Just don't let that sword cut you. She's not that strong,” the leader growled.

With a nod, they both drew their blades. Kagome felt unbelievably strong evil auras begin to take hold of the two, and she watched as their weapons began to glow and spark with power.

“Prepare to die, you bitch!” the leader growled.

Suddenly, Uryuu's power appeared again, and thousands of arrows assaulted the unsuspecting people. The leader managed to get out of the attack's path with only a few hits, but the other one wasn't nearly as lucky.

“Tch. I'm out of here,” the leader growled. “I'll be back, and you can bet your ass that I'll kill you all!”

Suddenly, the woman vanished, the last thing Kagome noticed being a black number nine on her left shoulder.

“We have to stop meeting like this,” Kagome said, smirking as Uryuu appeared.

Kagome then turned to the cave, poking her head inside.

“They're gone. C'mon,” Kagome said, hefting Ichigo as the girls came out.

Karin looked at the blade still in Kagome's hand, and frowned.

“Who are you?” she asked, frowning.

“I told you. My name's Kagome. Hey, Uryuu, how long do you think it'll take for him to wake up?” she asked, turning to the mildly bored-looking boy.

“How the hell should I know? I just got here. Why?”

“It's nothing. He's just a little heavy,” Kagome said with a shrug.

“Can I ask you something?” Karin asked, bringing Kagome's attention back.

“Sure. But mind if we walk while we talk? I get the feeling that Ichigo wouldn't be very appreciative if he woke up being carried by a girl.”

“You're right about that,” Karin said, smirking.

“So… How were you so sure Ichigo was fine?” Karin asked as she began leading her to their home.

Uryuu, due to an almost childish curiosity, fell into step with the girls.

“Well, I'm kind of good with medicine. He had a head injury, but there wasn't really a lot of blood, so I just guessed. But the reason why I was so sure is actually kind of naïve. I feel that Ichigo's like me. And I get the feeling that he'd also never leave his family behind with those kind of people nearby.”

Karin's eyes widened at the reasoning behind the answer, though a smirk slowly pushed its way onto her face.

“You're right. That is pretty naïve. So what family do you have?”

“One that's far more complicated than I thought,” Kagome sighed. “Dad died when I was too young to remember him. Mom takes good care of me and my brother. Souta's probably around your age, actually.”

The rest of the walk was silent, and Kagome and Uryuu quickly left as soon as Ichigo was pawned off to his dad.

As soon as they were away from the Kurosaki house, Uryuu turned to her, his expression a blank mask.

“So, want to fill in the blanks? I only got there when those two were about to kill you.”

“Don't say that,” Kagome sighed.

“So what happened?”

“I showed up after Ichigo was unconscious. Then, these people with broken Hollow masks and swords showed up.”

“They're called Arrancar,” Uryuu interrupted.

“What are they?”

“Hollows that gain a lot of power and evolve. Eventually, they become Hollow with Shinigami powers, and they seal their powers into Zanpakuto.”

“Huh… Thanks. Having a name'll make talking much easier. Anyway, these six Arrancar showed up and attacked. They came because someone named Aizen apparently ordered them to kill him.”

“I see…”

Kagome didn't miss the dark glint to Uryuu's eyes, and she frowned.

“So… Who's Aizen?”

“Sosuke Aizen was a Captain with the Soul Society. All of it happened when I first met Ichigo and Rukia Kuchiki. Aizen betrayed the Soul Society. He planned on becoming a perfected union of Hollow and Shinigami using a stone called the Hogyoku.”

“Oh! That woman said he thinks Ichigo took that.”

“Really? Hmm… Well, this could be bad.”

“Why?”

“There are three levels of Hollow. The one you saw when we met is the bottom-level. At the top is the Vasto Lorde. And Aizen's army had the ten strongest Vasto Lorde in their world, known as the Espada. The Shinigami were more powerful than he thought, though.”

“I'm a little confused, Uryuu. Every time you even say the word `Shinigami,' you say it like they're enemies to you.”

“Well, they are. Kind of.”

“So… You're not a Hollow, which is what I understand to be the only enemy to Shinigami.”

“I'm a Quincy. There's only one other one alive besides me, and that bastard gave it up.”

“Quincy? So, does that have something to do with why you're so good at archery?”

“Yes, it is.”

“I see… So, why do you know about Aizen, if you don't really like the Shinigami?”

“Well, I was sort of dragged along to save Ichigo's Shinigami mentor, Rukia, after she'd been taken by Soul Society. I wasn't rally opposed to the idea, since both she and Ichigo were nothing like the ones that I'd heard stories about. We eventually managed to save her, but Aizen had escaped to the land of the Hollows, Hueco Mundo. A little time passed before the Arrancar showed up. Orihime caught Aizen's interest with her powers, and she ended up being kidnapped.”

“Oh, man. Well, that explains why Ichigo didn't like me asking about her powers,” Kagome mused.

“Yeah, he got a bit… protective since we got her back. But this is all pretty irrelevant. By the time we finally got back to Karakura Town, all of Aizen's Espada were dead, as well as his general. Something very strange happened, just as Aizen began to go into some sort of transformation. Ichigo hit him with a lot more power than I ever knew he was capable of, and when the dust settled, the stone was gone and Aizen was running away with the only living ally he had left, Gin Ichimaru.”

“I'm confused. If all of the Espada are dead, then who was that before? I thought he was making the Arrancar.”

“No. They occur naturally. He just sped the process up considerably with the Hogyoku. They went back to Hueco Mundo to build up a new army… Did that woman have a tattoo of some kind?”

“A tattoo?”

“Like… a number?”

“She had a number nine on her shoulder,” Kagome said, frowning. “What's that got to do with anything?”

“The Espada all had tattoos signifying their rank and power. From what Rukia told me, the last number nine was really strong. She almost died fighting him, and I'll be the first to admit that Rukia's strong. But that one… she ran at the idea of being outnumbered. IT was just you and I, and neither of us were really releasing their power.”

“How'd you-?”

“Oh, please. I'm not that orange-haired moron. I can tell you have a lot of power, even with you trying to hide it. And you were only using your Shikai. Looks like Aizen can't manage the quality he did before.”

“Huh… Wow, I can't believe how distracted I got,” Kagome exclaimed, only now realizing they'd left Karakura and made a considerable distance toward her shrine.

“Yes, stimulating conversation's hard to come by,” Uryuu said, adjusting his glasses.

“Hey, would you want to go to a range some time?” Kagome asked, turning to Uryuu.

“A range?”

“For archery,” Kagome clarified.

“Well, that depends. Can you shoot?” he asked, brow raised in curiosity.

“Would my answer change yours?” Kagome asked, smirking.

“Well, I can't very well practice with someone that's never touched a bow, can I?”

“Alright, that's fair. Why don't you follow me, and I'll show you just how good I am,” Kagome said, her lips now pulled into a full smile.

They finally reached the shrine, and Kagome pulled Uryuu inside. Despite the oppressive and sad air, her mother looked at the boy with her usual motherly speculation.

“Who is this?”

“Uryuu,” she said absentmindedly as she disappeared up the stairs.

Before they could do anything, she soon reappeared, a wooden bow and a quiver of arrows in her hands.

“Alright, Uryuu, you pick the target. Just try not to make it too easy, okay?” she asked, smirking at the bemused expression on his face.

“Alright, then,” he said, walking back outside.

After a moment of scanning the area, he pointed at a small sign about a quarter of a mile into the distance.

“Really? Alright,” Kagome sighed.

She loosed an arrow, and it hit the sign dead-center. She then surprised him when she immediately followed through with four more arrows. The end result was a small cross on the sign, and Kagome smirking.

“That good enough?” she asked, smiling.

“I'd say so. Hitting it once was impressive enough,” Uryuu said, staring at her with bewilderment. “I certainly wasn't expecting such good accuracy,” he said, turning his gaze to the sign.

“I'll bet.”

“Well then, I don't think I could object to shooting with you sometime. But now, I have to head home. Be seeing you again,” he said, smirking.

And then, he was gone with such speed that Kagome didn't even feel like he'd been there.

At that moment, Inuyasha came up from the well, which Kagome now had a clear view of.

“How'd they take the news?” Kagome asked, as soon as she knew he was in earshot.

“They're pissed. They don't like that they can't cross the well.”

“Neither do I,” Kagome admitted. “I'll just have to do something about it, won't I?”

 

A/N:

Here's yet another chapter! Hope you enjoyed! As always, be sure to give me your thoughts, good or bad!