InuYasha Fan Fiction / Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction / Saiyuki Reload Gunlock Fan Fiction ❯ The Gunslingers ❯ Chapter 3 ( Chapter 3 )

“Well, come on in and grab yourself a seat. There are some people I think you should meet. Listen to the voices, look at these eyes. Some places, you might recognize. You are one of us.”

Inuyasha growled as the music played. He and two of the other males, one Genjo Sanzo and one Kenshin Himura, had been pulled to side by Danali as soon as their ragtag had found a place to camp for the night. As soon as he'd awoken, he'd been filled by everyone as to what had happened, who and what Danali was, and that they were on some mission to a place called Sadaiko. However, before they could reach this Sadaiko, they had to pick up one more person then travel to a temple. After that, it was still more traveling. Inuyasha didn't like the sound of it. After all, the more time they spent away, the more chances Naraku had to gather the rest of the Shikon no Tama.

“Relax,” Danali murmured as she handed each of them a large white box. “This won't take long.”

“What are these for?” Sanzo inquired once she had finished and perched herself in a tree branch.

“They're disguises,” she replied. “Once we reach our intended ethereal plane, it won't be very hard for the enemy to pick up on your auras.”

“What about Kagome's aura? Won't they pick up on that, too?” Inuyasha inquired, feeling slightly alarmed. She was, after all, a priestess.

“Her aura will be rather muffled once we are there,” the vampiress assured. “And the enemy does not see her as a threat.”

“Isn't she the reincarnation of a powerful priestess?” Kenshin asked.

“Hai,” Inuyasha nodded. “She is. I knew her former incarnation.”

“Why wouldn't the enemy see her as a threat then?” Sanzo demanded. “If she has such great abilities . . .”

“That will be taken away from her once we are there,” Danali stated firmly. “At least, her purification powers towards demons will be. She'll still be able to detect demonic auras but she won't be able to harm them. Just like Miroku's wind tunnel will disappear and Sango's weapon will be heavier. All of your friends' normal weapons will be rendered useless. Except for whatever weapons you will wield. Your auras are strong, powerful, and the enemy fears this. It'll very difficult if we don't disguise them before we get to the ethereal plane.”

“Why would the enemy care about me?” Inuyasha snorted. “I'm just a hanyou."

“No,” she shook her head. “You're not just a hanyou.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Sanzo raised an eyebrow at her. “Goyjo is a hanyou. Yet, he isn't over here, needing to disguise himself.”

Inuyasha looked from the priest to the vampiress, also curious as to what she meant. The priest had a point. He wasn't the only hanyou along on this mission.

“It means this, Sanzo. Inuyasha isn't just any hanyou. In his era, his father was the ruler over the Western Lands of Japan, and a very, very powerful demon. Only one could truly stand up to him in battle.”

“Ryukotsusei,” the silver-haired hanyou interjected flatly.

“Yes. Ryukotsusei,” she nodded. “A demon your father couldn't destroy, that he could only seal before he took his final breath. A demon that you did. You are a prince among demons, Inuyasha. You've inherited a lot from your father. The enemy knows this and will do whatever it takes to kill you. All of you. Now. It would be best if you were to open those boxes then go put on your new clothes. Taika and Shei will help you. Then take some rest. In the morning we pick up Kouga.”

“Kouga?!” Inuyasha blurted out, his eyes narrowed in anger. “Why are we picking up him?!”

“Because,” she smirked. “I need something to sustain me on this journey. Let me know if you need anything.”

With that, she leapt gracefully off the tree branch and landed behind them. Winking and blowing kisses, she dashed back towards the main camp.

* * *

“Turn around . . . every now and then I get a little bit lonely and you're never coming round . . . Turn around . . . every now and then I get a little bit tired of listening to the sound of my tears.”

Things had changed. How or why, Sango couldn't figure out, but they had. The wolf youkai that walked ahead with the vampiress was nothing like the wolf youkai that they had recently encountered in the Feudal Age of Japan. Kouga looked the same. Same dark hair, same blue eyes, same charming smile . . . but none of the mirth. He seemed older somehow . . . and sadder, as if he'd witnessed a tragedy to great to bear. Since they had picked up him two days ago, he had yet to flirt with Kagome or say anything to set Inuyasha off. If anything, he'd been . . . nice, especially after he and Danali had disappeared into the forest before they had continued on their journey.

'And he wouldn't say why when Kagome asked him, either . . . He just keeps giving Inuyasha funny glances.'

“Miss Sango?”

Kenshin's voice interrupted her thoughts and she turned to face the red-haired man. She did her best to try and ignore the cross-shaped scar on his cheek.
“Yes, Kenshin?” she replied politely.

“Forgive me for asking,” he smiled, “but I couldn't help noticing the tension between Miss Kagome, Inuyasha, and Kouga. Was there an argument between them at some point?”

“You could say that . . .” she trailed off, casting a worried glance at the inu hanyou. He had an uncanny knack for hearing things that no one really wanted him to hear. Then she immediately looked away, a blush tinging her cheeks. The outfit Danali had given Inuyasha did everything to show off his well-chiseled body and legs. Even Kagome kept blushing whenever she looked at him. Something about the dark clothing made him radiant. With what, Sango couldn't say. Quickly, she met Kenshin's eyes, dutifully ignoring the houshi walking right next to her.

“I see . . .” He, too, cast a glance at Inuyasha, frowning some. Then his face split back into its usual cheerful smile. “Well, whatever it was, I hope that it gets cleared up soon and before we reach this Sadaiko. It doesn't do any good to doubt your ally's abilities.”

“No,” Sango chuckled. “It doesn't.”

“We're almost there,” Shei called out. “We'll stop here for the night.”

“Shouldn't we keep going?” Kagome inquired.

“No,” Danali shook her head. “Too dangerous. To enter through the Temple of Eternal Night, we need to be well-rested. Shei's right. We're almost there. It won't hurt to rest here.”

 

“How long will it take us to get there?” Goku yawned then stretched.

 

“Not much more than an hour, I'd say,” Danali replied.

 

“So why don't we just continue?” Kagome piped in. “I'm sure we could rest outside the temple.”

 

“We could but it isn't advisable. Demons hunt around the edges of the temple after the sun goes down. At least here, we'll be safe.”

 

“What kind of demons hunt around a temple?” Miroku murmured, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. To that, Danali smirked.

 

“The kind that are entrusted to protect it from thieves. No one is safe sleeping outside the temple at night. We'd be picked off before we knew it.”

“Is there something wrong?” Sango inquired. She'd noticed a change in Danali's stance during this exchange. The vampiress seemed . . . worried in her opinion.

“No. Everything's fine. I just need to have one more word with Sanzo, Inuyasha, and Kenshin before we arrive there. That's all.” Then she glanced at the three she had called out by name. “Come with me.”

Without another word, she strode towards the outer edge of the forest they'd been skirting along for five days. Inuyasha, Sanzo, and Kenshin followed, having gotten used to the undead woman's quirks. As everyone set up camp, Sango made her way to Kouga. The wolf demon glanced up from pitching a tent as she approached and offered her a wane smile.

“Hey, Sango.”

“Hey, Kouga,” she nodded, kneeling before him. “What's happened since we last saw you?”

“Not much,” he smiled. “Just . . . been through a lot . . .”

“Do you want to talk about it?” she offered. Kouga shook his head.

“No . . . Thanks for offering, but I can't. To do so would be to jeopardize Inuyasha, Sanzo, Kenshin, and Danali . . . and everyone else. Just know that a lot of time has passed and things haven't been the same.”

“I see . . . Could you tell me why you're here, Kouga?”

“Yeah,” he nodded after a moment's hesitation. “I can do that . . .”

“Then why are you here?” she prompted, leaning towards him.

“To kill Danali once we're in Sadaiko.”