InuYasha Fan Fiction / Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Of Retribution and Passion ❯ Chapter Three ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer: I claim no ownership of Naruto or Sengoku Otogizoushi - InuYasha. InuYasha belongs to Takahashi Rumiko, Shogakukan, Viz Media, ShoPro Entertainment, and Shounen; while Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi, Shueisha, Viz Media, and Madman Entertainment. No copyright infringement is intended with this purely fan-made crossover, especially since no money is being made from this.


Their laughter filled the almost empty bathhouse. They had chosen a good time to bathe as all the other women were off having lunch. The knowledge that Jiraiya was far away from the hidden village also alleviated their fears. It had been years since they had last been able to bathe together like this, but then they were without Kikyou and Rin. The lack of their presence didn’t go unnoticed by Kagome or Sango.

“Did he really do that?” Kagome tried to suppress her giggles, but failed miserably.

Sango didn’t have much luck with her own laughter either, “Yes! Needless to say, it took Kouga’s hair three months to grow enough for the pink to be removed!”

The silence of the bathhouse would have been oppressing if they didn’t try their hardest to fill it up with laughter and stories of the past. Kagome shook her head, her shoulder shaking with laughter, “That’s Shippou-chan for you! I wonder if that has anything to do with what he told me yesterday.”

The older woman leaned forward, “What did he say?”

“That Kouga started ‘acting like an adult which takes away from his fun’!”

“Yeah,” Sango agreed, “That’s about when that happened.”

Kagome’s expression became wistful as she worked the lather more into her hair, “I almost have to wonder how Inuyasha would have reacted to that… Probably like a child younger than Shippou…”

“Which would have ended with him bopping Shippou on the head,” Sango continued.

“And then either Kikyou or myself would have stepped in.”

“Or both of you…”

They both sighed heavily, lost to thoughts of what life would have been like had the events of the past not taken place. Silence surrounded them as memories pressed down upon them.

Sango broke the silence first, nudging the younger woman, “All this time we’ve been talking about what’s been happening here in Konoha… But we haven’t spoken about what your time in Demon Country was like.”

Kagome dunked underneath the water, washing out the soap and using it as an excuse to gather her composure. She wiped away the water from her face, trying to delay the inevitable for a second longer. Talking about Demon Country and her family brought back even more painful memories of her clan trying to get her to emulate her older sister. It was nearly impossible, as Kagome had never been brought up to be a miko, only a kunoichi.

“Heading back to Demon Country was…interesting… It’s very different from here, very different. As soon as I brought forth her ashes and told them what happened, I was thrust into the world Kikyou had inhabited. Trying to learn to be a miko was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. But thankfully, I didn’t have all responsibility that she did as clan heir.”

“You’re not the clan heir?” Sango interrupted, her curiosity getting the better of her. “But I thought you and Kikyou were the only children of the Higurashi clan!”

Kagome smiled softly and shook her head, “We were the only children, but I had been gone from Demon Country for twelve years before I returned. I had been three, and Kikyou six, when we were sent away due to the civil war that gripped the country about twenty-two or three years ago… However, when I went back, my parents had, had two more children.

“My little brother, Souta, is now the clan heir, and my little sister, Kaede, is a far better miko than I am… It’s strange… Souta reminds me so much of Kohaku, and Kaede is similar to how Kikyou was at her age.”

With a sad understanding smile, Sango place a comforting hand on Kagome’s arm. If her little brother was like Sango’s deceased brother, then she knew how hard it had to be for Kagome to watch him take on so much responsibility. “When does he become clan head?”

“Next year, on his twentieth birthday. I think my grandfather can’t wait to be able to step down and retire again,” Kagome joked.

Sango chuckled at her attempt to lighten the mood. They were supposed to be having fun and rejoicing in the fact that they were together again, not reminiscing over sad memories.

Their laughter died as soon as they heard the door open behind them. “Himura-san, Higurashi-san,” the soft voice of the woman working the front room of the bathhouse caught their attention. “Tsukino-san is waiting for you both outside. He says there’s been an attack and Higurashi-san’s knowledge may be helpful at the hospital.”


Without bothering to head back to Sango’s apartment, the three of them headed straight to the hospital. Both women were uncaring that all they wore were their bathing robes, and so long as Miroku made no comment, they didn’t even notice that anything was off about how they were dressed. Getting to the hospital was far more important especially if Kagome was called in.

It was rare for Konoha hospital to call in outside help, even when Kikyou had been alive. With Tsunade no longer in the village, only in extreme cases did they call in Kikyou and Kagome. Though the younger Higurashi child had never been trained as a miko, only as a kunoichi, Kikyou had taught her a little about herbs and used those visits to teach her more. However, for some reason, none of the knowledge truly stuck with her.

Even now, Kagome only had a basic knowledge of herbs and miko techniques. She just couldn’t remember anything dealing with her older sister’s position.

Miroku led them through the halls of the hospital, knowing which room held the fallen jounin. It had been the first time Kagome had seen Miroku dressed completely in his ANBU gear, and wouldn’t have known it was him if not for Sango. Like most others in the elite assassination squad, he was dressed in black with arm guards and a chest plate. His rooster-faced mask hid his normally teasingly calm violet eyes from view. The only two things that didn’t change about him were the purple arm glove and rosary that sealed his kekkai genkai, and his shakujo strapped to his back.

He stopped abruptly in front of a door, sounds of frantic doctors hardly muffled by it. Sango placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, “We’ll be here waiting for you when you finish.”

Kagome gave her a bright smile, “Don’t wait around for me, you can head home and get changed. Who knows how long this will take?”

“Kagome-sama,” Miroku said his voice serious, “don’t worry if you can’t do anything. Jiraiya took Naruto to find Tsunade-hime this morning.”

Her eyes dulled slightly at his words. While she knew she wasn’t the best when it came to anything miko related, did they really have such little faith in what she did know? “Alright, but I’ll still try my best to heal Hatake-senpai. Before I do though, will you tell me now what happened?”

He pushed back his mask and for the first time that day, she was able to see into his eyes. “He suffered a genjutsu attack.”

“Oh, that doesn’t sound so bad… I thought Hatake-senpai’s sharingan eye counter-acted genjutsu, though?”

Miroku and Sango shared an uneasy look. They had forgotten again that she had been gone for a little over a decade, something that was so easy to do with how easily she slipped back into their lives.

“Kagome-chan,” Sango said, “when you are done, we’ll tell you everything… But Uchiha Itachi did it. A lot has happened when you were gone, especially to the Uchiha clan.”

Shock appeared on her face at hearing that. Apparently they weren’t lying when they said a lot had happened. Yet what could have happened for the sweet, peaceful boy that was once Itachi become one who attacked members of the same hidden village?