InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Ano Fugato Tama ❯ Episode 1: Tragedy in the Past ( Chapter 1 )

Ano Fugato Tama

~By fictionqueen1 (A.K.A Angel Kisses) and her little buddy Andy~

Episode 1: Tragedy in the Past

It had been eight years since the completion of the Shikon no Tama, and all had been peaceful. In using the jewel to change Inu-Yasha into a human, it had been purified. But something strange had happened: When they did this, the jewel had become two smaller crystals, one clear and pure, and the other dark and malevolent. The pure half, as it was called, stayed with Kagome, but the other disappeared, as if searching for an owner as tainted as itself.

Since then, Miroku and Sango had gone their separate ways, leaving Kagome and Inu-Yasha. They heard from them frequently, though. Miroku, still on his quest to destroy Naraku and break the curse on his right hand, met a young demoness by the name of Orinda, and settled down with her. This Orinda had power over fire, and also had great abilities in magic. This was enough to keep his kazanna from growing any larger, as well as the one that belonged to their seven-year-old son, Zefirino.

They had not heard from Sango in a few months, for she was still searching for her younger brother's body. But they had heard that she was currently dwelling near, or perhaps even with, the remaining members of the eastern Wolf Demon Tribe. Why she had decided to travel there, they had no idea. Perhaps it was to visit their young chieftain, Koga, with whom she seemed to grow quite close. At this point, though, what had become of the demon slayer was up to the imagination.

There had been not a sign of Naraku, nor Inu-Yasha's elder half-brother Sesshomaru, and thus, Inu-Yasha, his new wife Kagome, and their eight-year-old son Saionji could live in peace…

Kagome walked around the exterior of their large hut, calling her son's name. "Saionji? Saionji? This isn't funny anymore!" she yelled. Inu-Yasha walked up behind her, his wild black hair tied behind him. "What is it?" he asked. She turned around, and then he noticed the concerned look on her face. He looked down quizzically at her, his purple eyes staring into hers. "What's wrong?" he asked again. "I can't find Saionji anywhere…" she said, her eyes darting about. Without a passing glance, he peeked his head into their hut.

"Get your ass out here, Saionji!" he yelled. Kagome shook her head. "That was the first place I looked. He's not in there," she said. But Inu-Yasha did not look back at her, but instead, walked inside the hut. Before she knew it, Kagome was hearing his angry shouts. "Dammit!" he shrieked, "That little bastard took the Tetsusaiga again!" Kagome walked in to see Inu-Yasha collecting his knives. Her eyes widened to phenomenal proportions.

"What are you doing?! You aren't going to use them, are you?!" she demanded angrily. Inu-Yasha shook his head. "No, no! I'm just gonna scare him, that's all," he said. Kagome sighed a little in relief as he walked out the door. Maybe Saionji does need to be taught a lesson, she thought. Smirking a little, she picked up her full quiver and bow, quickly following the path Inu-Yasha had taken.

A young boy with short, grayish hair and dog ears of the same color walked along a narrow, shaded forest path. He was dressed in red, in a robe nearly identical to his father's. Strapped over his back was his father's fabled sword, the Tetsusaiga. He was going to find his old friend, Shippo, and practice using the blade. His father had been teaching him, but he wanted to practice when no one was around, so he went to find his friend. He wasn't necessarily supposed to have the sword without his father's permission, but as long as he had the sword back in its place before he returned, he was fine.

As he walked down the path, daydreaming as he usually did, he tripped over a root and fell to the ground. Groaning a little, he felt blood drip down his arm. Sure enough, there was a large cut on it. As the little quarter-breed felt the pain, tears formed in his eyes. But he promised himself he wouldn't cry. Then he heard an ominous chuckling behind him.

Growling, he stood up. A richly-dressed man stood before him, looking like a young, well-born noble who had gotten lost. But young Saionji could smell demon. "W-who are you?" the boy demanded, "And why are you in my forest?" The demon chuckled again. "Your forest? I thought this was the domain of the kitsune, Shippo," he said. Saionji blushed a little. This guy was good. But he held his own. "just answer the question!" he yelled. The demon's smirk faded. "My name? Simply call me Naraku," he replied. Saionji gaped. He had heard stories about this demon, from both Shippo and his parents.

"You're…him! That Naraku!?" he asked, an astonished look on his face. The demon laughed. "In the flesh," he scoffed. Then, little Saionji got an idea. He reached back and swiftly drew the Tetsusaiga. He quickly transformed it into its true form as one of his grandfather's fangs, although it was much smaller in his hands. "I'll get rid of you," he said bravely. Naraku gave an all-out laugh at the little boy's statement.

"Do you think you, the little quarter-breed son of Inu-Yasha, can destroy me? If that miserable little half-breed couldn't kill me, what makes you so confident?" he asked. Without waiting for a reply, Naraku raised a clawed hand, ready to strike. As if it was instinct, little Saionji leapt forward, nearly striking him with the sword. But Naraku quickly dodged, and received only a bad haircut.

Naraku turned and glared down at the boy. "Don't worry, boy. It will all be over soon," he said. Naraku then threw a ball of energy at the young boy, knocking him back against a tree. He was unconscious, but still gripping the Tetsusaiga for dear life. Naraku took a few steps toward the boy. "Hmph. So his bark was worse then his bite," he chuckled. He held out his hand listlessly, a ball of black energy forming in his palm. At such close range, this attack would have killed him. If it had hit.

"Naraku!!!!!" Inu-Yasha yelled. The demon turned, completely disregarding the boy. As soon as he did, a sharp knife went flying past his head. "A human, eh? You don't even have good aim anymore, Inu-Yasha," he chided. Inu-Yasha pulled two more knives from his belt. "Dad…"

Inu-Yasha looked down. Saionji, his little son, was lying half-conscious on the ground at Naraku's feet. "You bastard!" he yelled. Naraku smirked. "He challenged, and I accepted," he said sadistically. Fueled by rage, Inu-Yasha threw the knives in both of his hands at Naraku, both of them missing terribly. Naraku shook his head a little. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. You can't even hit me when I'm standing still," he said in a low tone. Inu-Yasha gave a low growl, grabbing the last knife in his belt. He prayed that Kagome would find them soon.

He aimed carefully, and quickly threw the blade at Naraku. The demon stood still, smirking slightly. As the small knife neared him, aimed right for his face, he caught the blade in his hand. As a small trickle of blood ran down his forearm, he took it into his cut hand. In one swift movement, he sent the dagger hurdling toward Inu-Yasha. He couldn't move quickly enough, and was struck right above his heart.

Inu-Yasha fell to his knees, clutching his chest. He let out a yell of pain as Saionji watched, utterly terrified. Dad, he thought desperately, if I don't do something…Naraku will kill him! Saionji stood silently, the Tetsusaiga clutched in his hands. He leapt, this time striking Naraku in the shoulder, although it didn't do much damage. Naraku turned and attacked knocking the boy against a tree and the sword into the forest. "Don't move!!!!!!"

Naraku turned. There stood Kagome, an arrow drawn in her bow. "Move another inch and I'll kill you!" she shrieked. Naraku smirked. "You threaten to kill me and yet you've brought the Hikari no Tama right into my hands," he said cruelly. "Hikari no…the pure half of the jewel? Is that…a trap! This is all a trap!" she yelled. His smirk grew. "Exactly. Now, you die!" He charged forward, ready to strike her. As he neared, Kagome released her arrow, and it flew right for him. In a swift action, he dodged, leaving the next target Kagome's own son: Saionji.

Kagome called out his name, but there was nothing she could do. The boy was petrified, and if he didn't move, doomed. Ina moment of desperate selflessness, Inu-Yasha lunged over and pushed his son out of the way, only to have the arrow strike him in the side. Kagome gaped in terror, before screaming out his name.

Little Saionji crawled over to where his father lay in a puddle of blood. "Daddy," he said, tears falling down his cheeks. Inu-Yasha smiled as best he could, struggling to laugh a little. "Little man," he said, "Don't cry, dude. Everything's gonna be alright." Saionji kneeled down next to him. "Dad," he said again. Inu-Yasha cringed in pain. Saionji looked down at his father's wounds. It's all my fault, he thought, chiding himself, It's my fault that dad's so hurt!

Kagome glared at Naraku, who was walking toward her, a malevolent look in his eye. "I already know where the other half of the jewel is. I just need yours…and then you won't have to watch your little Saionji die as well," he said. If she handed it over, only the gods knew how many people she would be damning. But if she didn't, she would be killing Saionji. Before she had to make such a terrible decision, she heard a low growl coming from the forest. Both she and Naraku looked up, and there, shrouded by trees, was a giant fox. Shippo.

The fully transformed demon lunged at him, forcing him to jump back. Even the most powerful of demons feared the lord Shippo. Naraku gave a low growl at the fox, but then looked back at Kagome. "We will finish this on another date," he stated simply. With that, the infamous demon disappeared into the woods. Without a thought, Kagome and Shippo ran to Inu-Yasha.

Kagome kneeled down next to him, resting his head on her lap. "Please…Inu-Yasha…are you alright?" she asked. He groaned in pain, trying his best to look calm for Saionji. Just looking into his dark eyes broke Kagome's heart. "Inu-Yasha…" she pleaded, "Please…don't go! I need you so much!" Shippo already knew that Inu-Yasha, his mentor from childhood, didn't have the slightest chance at recovering. For both the child's and Kagome sake, he took the little boy off to find the Tetsusaiga.

Kagome gently cradled Inu-Yasha on her lap. "No…Inu-Yasha…please!" she pleaded. A single tear ran down Inu-Yasha's cheek. "Kagome…these past eight years have been amazing…" he started. Kagome cried even more. "No! Inu-Yasha, don't talk like that!" she sobbed. "I'm so sorry I won't be there Kagome…I'll miss everything. Just…keep me in…your heart," he said. Kagome shook her head, tears flying from her cheeks. "No…NO!!!!!! INU-YASHAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!" she cried. She held him close, his breathing slowing and his heartbeat fading. She never thought it could happen, but Inu-Yasha, her immortal, invincible Inu-Yasha, had died in her arms.

Three days later, Inu-Yasha's funeral was at hand. Saionji had barely been able to cope with loosing him. He had been a best friend as well as a father. Having to say goodbye like this was heartbreaking. But worst of all, the small boy blamed himself…

Kagome clutched her son's hand desperately. He was all she had left. She was so heartbroken. She felt like some kind of shell. Especially after finding out she was expecting. Before her husband was buried, though, there was something she had to do. She walked up to where he was laid out, and took something from her pocket. It was a piece of blue silk, folded up quite nicely, with something clanging inside. She opened it up, revealing purple beads and white fangs. The necklace that he had worn for so long.

She walked over and gently set the beads on his chest. "Oh, Inu-Yasha, my love," she whispered, "Why did you have to leave?" She started to gently cry, and after one last loving glance, looked up at the young village man who had dug the grave, and gave a nod. With that, he and another man lowered Inu-Yasha's body into the hole, and started filling it in.

He was being buried in front of their temple, and nearly the whole village had come to give their condolences. He had been such a friend to all of them, but now, he had died in such a pointless battle…

To be Continued…