InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ 9 Lives ❯ One-Shot

9 lives

It has come down to this…. The final stand off to decide the fate of the Shikon no Tama and coincidently the rest of the world.

The battle wages on, warriors form both side dropping like flies under the strength of their opponents leaving only two from each side standing.

The only difference between the two is one side loves each other like family and the other could care less about the comrades who lost their lives.

If still clinging to consciousness the fallen watch on as flashes of light collide almost to fast to track with the human eye. The battle suddenly falls stills, a young man with white hair and a red kimono stained with crimson, stands protectively in front of his loved ones who have fallen, he breaths harshly resting his sword in the dirt as he takes a reprise from the battle he faces. Across from him is the mocking smirk of a man with dark black tendrils of hair cascading down his back, if his is as tired as his opponent he dose not let it show.

Laughing maliciously at his white haired adversary who is raising his sword in an attempt to charge. "Naraku you will die" he yells charging forward blindly, sweat and blood clouding his vision, his acute since of smell eradicated by the overwhelming smell of blood, his own, his comrades, and that of his enemy. Now relying only on his heart he continues to charge, raising his sword he shouts "Kaze no Kizu" hurling the blade towards the packed earth.

The yellow fire shoots out connecting with the target, but Naraku simply brushes the attack off as nothing… His skin holds not even a scratch, even though his shirt lays tattered at his feet, reveling the spider shaped scar on his back.

"Inuyasha you don't truly hope to defeat me. I'm much more powerful then you could imagine, I have nearly all of the Shikon no Tama aiding me." The enemy cackles happily. "Your not even using the power of the shards you have collected, you let the miko wench carry them."

"Leave Kagome alone, she is not part of this. It's between you and me." Inuyasha yells back risking a quick look over his shoulder to check on the relatively unharmed miko girl behind him as she cradles Shippo to her chest, nursing his wounds as well as the deadly abrasions of their friends, Sango, Miroku, and the large amount of wolf youkai lead by Kouga who had fought with them in the beginning.

Looking back he observes the woman standing beside Naraku, long black hair tied back with a white strip of material, clothed in the traditional red and white miko clothing. "Inuyasha it's meaningless to continue, just surrender and come to hell with me." She calls to the Hanyou.

"Kikyou I owe you everything and it will be repaid, but not until Naraku is dead." Inuyasha shouts back.

Naraku just laughs, "I will not die." Naraku smiles "But I am getting bored" He says balling up a huge mass of youki effortlessly.

'Perfect' Inuyasha thinks 'If I can get my youki to overwhelm Naraku's I can use Bakuyuuha' Inuyasha raised his sword to prepare to meat the youki that would inevitably tossed his way. But with the though he became distracted…. Making for the perfect plane to unfold before Inuyasha's own eyes.

In Inuyasha's peripheral vision he saw a blur of white and red fly past him. He turned around from Naraku as a familiar shriek echoed through the woods. What he saw turned his blood cold. Kikyo was at a point blank distance an arrow positioned directly at Kagome's heart. Before Inuyasha could even register the events unfolding he watched Kikyou release the string of her bow, the arrow flying the short distance forward, lodging itself in Kagome's chest.

Inuyasha finally found his motor skills and lunged forward as Shippo fell from Kagome's limp arms. Inuyasha yelled "Sankontessou" as he leapt at Kikyou slicing her body of dirt and bone with the free hand that wasn't holding the hilt of Tessaiga.

But turning to Kagome his sword was forgotten, the sound of the metal hitting the ground echoing in his ears as Kagome's sunk to her knees, blood sputtering up over her lips.

And at that moment the world stopped turning.

Inuyasha's world had ended and his blood boiled as the rage built.

In his arms he held Kagome, her heartbeat was fading fast and her breathing was shallower then anything Inuyasha had ever heard. Her skin was paling, and her eyes were glazed over, lacking the passion for life they usually carried.

"Inu....Ya.... sha....." Kagome choked around the blood polling in her lungs and throat.

"Please, don't go." Inuyasha said panicky his rage ebbing away at Kagome's voice.

"....Ai....Shi....Teru....." She whispered, her eyes drifting shut, and the faint beat of her heart stopping.

A single tear slid down Inuyasha's cheek, as he lay Kagome's body down on the unforgiving earth below. He reclaimed his sword and stood up walking past Kagome's body and Shippo's semiconscious form, past the fallen wolves, and past the front line of Miroku, Sango and Kirara's unconscious forms. Taking a stand only meters away from Naraku, his youki had grown to enormous proportions while Inuyasha was morning and Naraku was chuckling knowing he had the hanyou beat.

Naraku was preparing to release his youki upon the passive figure before him when suddenly he felt a wave of power.... A youki building....

Inuyasha's rage built again, he would not let Naraku win, not let Kagome die, his only hope now was the shikon.....

The ball of youki was released and Inuyasha met it mid air slicing it open and watching the swirling forms of power from inside, waiting for the wound of the wind to form. And once the swirl of light permeated his vision he released the Kaze no Kizu. With one last thought of Kagome his youki flared, overwhelming that of Naraku. Inuyasha's attack and Naraku's own youki combining and killing the fiend himself.

This was the end, the end of Naraku's reign. 'I did it' Inuyasha thought, even though he always believed this moment would be filled with an emotion of happiness and relief.... But now that he was here there was only a hollow pain pulling at his heart as he looked out at the defeated enemies.... Naraku's many detachments that had been defeated slowly by the opposing forces much earlier in the battle by Inuyasha many fallen comrades.... Forcing Naraku to fight his own battle.... And lose.

Inuyasha walked up to what was left of Naraku and retrieved the main piece of the Shikon no Tama. Trudging wearily back to where he had left Kagome's prone body he knelt down, fishing the bottle of shards from the neck of the fallen woman.

'Now, one problem. I'm no miko, I can't join the shards together' he thought sadly pounding his fists into the dirt as tears streamed from the corners of his tightly shut eyes, his brow furrowing in anger suddenly wishing he had let Naraku's youki kill him.

Inuyasha sniffed audibly trying to hold back the tears that threatened to continue to fall. But over the scent of blood Inuyasha found something else..... Sesshoumaru. Normally Inuyasha would have tensed and prepared to battle, but a thought hit him..... 'Tenseiga.'

Bundling Kagome's body in his arms carefully removing the arrow protruding from her chest, Inuyasha takes to the air following the familiar scent to a clearing in the forest.

Inuyasha feels his brother's eyes on him as he lands before the youkai, laying Kagome at his feet and kneeling behind her facing Sesshoumaru. He looks up to see the little girl Rin tear up and run behind Sesshoumaru's leg at the sight of the brutally murdered girl

"I'll do anything Sesshoumaru, anything even give you Tessaiga….Please just save her….. She's all that matters to me, please..... Sesshoumaru......" Inuyasha says trying to conceal his tears under his bangs, knowing full well that Sesshoumaru can spell the salt water.

"Sesshoumaru-sama please." Rin wailed, yanking on Sesshoumaru's pant leg peering around the fluffy material at the girl laying lifeless on the ground and the man kneeling beside her.

Sesshoumaru did nothing just stood staring at his hanyou half brother and the woman at his feet.

"If you wont save her at least take my life." Inuyasha whispered, his head still bowed.

There was a slow rub of metal as Sesshoumaru unsheathed his sword. Inuyasha looked up expecting to see the ogre fang, but to his astonishment Sesshoumaru was holding Tenseiga. There was a quick flash of light as the sword was swung killing the hell demons clinging to Kagome's form.

Inuyasha's heart caught in his chest as Kagome took a sudden breath of air, her eyes opening wide at the pain in her inactive lungs. The wound over her heart closed, and Inuyasha quickly scoped her up pulling her to his chest, where he cradled her to him, tears still falling from his face as he nuzzled his nose into the base of her neck just to feel the strong heart beat that was now there.

Inuyasha pulled away and planted a small tender kiss on her lips, before laying her back against a near by tree. As he stood up wiping the tears from his eyes, he walked up to the proud figure of Sesshoumaru proceeding to remove Tessaiga from his hip and holding it out for Sesshoumaru to take.

But rather then tell Rin to take the sword the he himself could not hold, Sesshoumaru turned away. Turned and walked towards the edge of the clearing, much to Jaken's dismay.

"Jaken, Rin time to go." he called as he continued to walk away from the stunned hanyou and past the barrier of trees where his form could no longer be seen, his comrades scurrying after him.

"Inuyasha" came a weak call from behind him. Inuyasha spun around and returned to where he had left Kagome. "Aishiteru" she said smiling.

Inuyasha smiled back, picking up the lithe form before him and sitting her in his lap as he rested his back against the tree where Kagome had been only seconds before. "Aishiteru." he responded pressing his lips to her forehead.

Inuyasha placed the shards of the Shikon in Kagome's hand and watched as she rejoined them back into the complete Shikon no Tama.

They sat like that for a while Inuyasha just gazing at the miracle that was Kagome.

"Look." Kagome said pointing to the felid where they were reuniting.

Inuyasha looked up to see the filed of crimson roses surrounding them.