InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Brother My Brother ❯ Chapter 14 ( Chapter 14 )

Kanna's mirror glowed a ghastly white as it focused in on the former shrine priestess, Kikyo. As Naraku's crimson eyes watched closely, she walked confidently through a crisp forest. It was midday and sunny, but Kikyo's simple presence was enough to darken the area in Naraku's view.

"That woman…" Naraku muttered, narrowing his eyes.

"She ails you, my master?" Kanna inquired.

"Aye," he replied. "But she will not be a nuisance for much longer." He watched for a moment more as Kikyo continued walking along the forest trail, silent and stoic as she always was. Then, he said, "She is unknowingly approaching her own demise."

In the mirror, Kikyo strode from the forest into a clear meadow. The warm sun shone down on her as the grass bent beneath her feet. She walked into the middle of the meadow when suddenly she felt an evil presence approaching quickly. She looked toward the surrounding trees in time to see a huge creature emerge from them. Its body was bulky and large, covered in a grisly fur from head to toe. Its four, powerful legs ended in giant paws containing sharp claws that pierced into the ground where it stood. Its long neck held up a rectangular head with two large glowing eyes and dripping fangs. Five long tails waved in the air, ending in sharp looking spikes. Kikyo looked blankly up at the creature, her face revealing no fear or intimidation. She simply reached behind her to her quiver and brought out an arrow, readying her bow for attack. The creature roared and stepped forward and she released the arrow, sending it sailing toward the creature's head. Kikyo kept a keen eye on her soaring weapon as it approached it, but suddenly she realized that the creature was no longer there.

"What…?" Kikyo gasped as she looked around, finding the creature standing behind her, its fangs dripping with saliva. One of its tails lunged forward, its spike reflecting the bright sun as it came crashing down. Kikyo had barely enough time to leap out of the way before it broke through the ground, sending rock debris flying in all directions. A sharp piece of rock sliced into Kikyo's right arm and she cried out as she fell to her knees. The creature gave her no time to recover as it lashed out again with another of its tails, breaking into the earth with tremendous force. Kikyo rolled as well as she could out of the way, landing on one knee. She reached behind her for another arrow, feeling the strain in her arm as she brought the arrow to her bow. But as she stretched the arrow back, the pain intensified and she could no longer hold onto it. She gave a cry of pain as she let go of the arrow, sending it flying blindly to the side of the creature. Kikyo dropped her bow and held her arm, the blood staining through the white fabric and wetting her fingers.

The creature roared again and lunged toward her. Its claws came speeding toward her and Kikyo cringed on the ground, bracing herself for the force of contact. Just when it was about to crush her, a familiar form dashed forward, slicing up the creature's leg with a huge sword.

"Inuyasha…?" Kikyo inquired, watching as the half demon landed on his feet a few meters away.

"Kikyo, are you all right?" he called to her.

"I… Yes," she answered. "I'm fine."

"Good," he nodded at her, then turned his attention away. "Sesshomaru! You see its weak spot?"

A blur of white that Kikyo assumed was Inuyasha's older brother dashed past her and landed atop of the creature. His claws glowed a misty green as he plunged his right hand deep within the flesh between its shoulder blades. The creature bellowed in pain and reared onto its hind legs. Sesshomaru leapt from its back and landed neatly on the ground near his brother.

"It seems different than most other demons," Sesshomaru reported.

"Think it's got a jewel shard?" Inuyasha asked.

"More than likely," the elder demon replied.

"Inuyasha," Kikyo said through clenched teeth. "The creature has a large fragment of the jewel in the middle of its chest."

"Kikyo…" Inuyasha said. "You're hurt, aren't you? I can smell your blood."

"Never mind me," she responded. "Concentrate on defeating that monstrosity."

"Right," Inuyasha nodded. "C'mon, Big Brother, let's show this thing what we're made of."

The two of them leapt into the air and came down toward the creature, Inuyasha unsheathing his Tetsusaiga and Sesshomaru baring his long poison claws. The creature roared and raised its face toward them, releasing a thick cloud of smoke from its mouth. The brothers were forced backwards, shielding their faces from the toxic smoke with their sleeves. The creature roared and lunged at Inuyasha, its fangs dripping with saliva. The half demon leapt back up into the air, the blade of the Tetsusaiga gleaming with the brightness of the sun. The creature avoided his swing and sent one of its spiked tails straight toward Sesshomaru. The dog demon leapt into the air as well, slicing through the creature's left shoulder with his Whip of Light. Its foreleg spurted blood in all directions as it began to fall to the ground, straight toward Kikyo. She saw the limb falling, but could do nothing as her injury hindered her from moving.

"Kikyo!" Inuyasha shouted, leaping to her side and pulling her out of the way just as the huge limb crashed to the ground. "Are you all right?"

Kikyo cringed in pain. "I'm fine," she replied.

"Hey Sesshomaru!" Inuyasha shouted to his brother. "Watch what you're doing! You almost hurt Kikyo, you idiot!"

Sesshomaru glared toward the half demon. "Then keep your wench out of the way. I cannot keep an eye on her and the enemy at once."

"Wench? How dare you!" Inuyasha snarled. "Don't disrespect her like that!"

Sesshomaru sent a cold glance his way, but did not say anything. His claws glowed a brilliant green as he lashed out at the creature, slicing through its left eye. It roared and stumbled backwards, struggling to maintain its balance with its lack of foreleg. It staggered and wavered for a moment before it began falling, right toward Inuyasha and Kikyo.

"Inuyasha…" Kikyo struggled out. The half demon reacted as fast as he could, however the creature's body came at them much too quickly. It came crashing down on the two of them before he had a chance to get out of the way completely.

"Damn it!" Inuyasha swore as he felt the weight of the body pressing down on his spine. He could feel his ribs being crushed against the ground. The pain overwhelmed him and he blacked out for a moment before he felt the pressure above him being lifted off. He coughed, blood dripping from his mouth as he sensed something landed next to him.

"Are you all right, hanyou?" Sesshomaru asked, kneeling next to him.

Inuyasha groaned. "I…" He stopped short. "Where's Kikyo?" He lifted his head, looking around to find her laying on her back. "Kikyo!" He scrambled to his feet, kicking up the dirt below him as he dove to her side. "Kikyo! Kikyo, are you all right?"

Her eyes were extremely cold and empty, but she turned her head to look at him. "Inuyasha… I am not ready to depart yet from this world. You were supposed to come with me."

"Don't talk like that," Inuyasha snapped. "Sesshomaru, get her some help!"

"And what, pray tell, am I supposed to do for her?" Sesshomaru responded. "Her body is false. How do you plan on saving it?"

Inuyasha turned on his brother, his eyes flashing with anger. "She's dying, damn it! Do something!"

"Inuyasha," Kikyo said quietly. "It is better this way. I desired to cast Naraku into oblivion, but I know that you will succeed in doing this. All I ask is that you follow me and that we find each other again in the next realm."

"Kikyo!" Inuyasha shouted to her. "Please, don't leave me! It's not fair!"

She regarded him coldly. "Nothing is fair, Inuyasha. That is what I have learned from this world." She closed her eyes and relaxed herself as a bright flash of light illuminated her body. A gust of wind knocked Inuyasha backwards, and a brigade of souls began pouring from the former priestess. Inuyasha shielded his eyes as he unsteadily got to his feet. Once the light died down, he looked at the spot she had occupied moments before. A slight breeze blew and picked up the remains of her second existence: Specks of sand and dried bones. It disappeared on the wind.

Inuyasha's eyes stung, but he felt more anger than sadness. He turned to his brother standing behind him and shoved him hard. "You bastard!"

Sesshomaru remained where he was. "What ails you now, half breed?"

"What ails me now?" Inuyasha retorted. "You! This is your fault!"

"I'm tiring of you blaming me for your friends' deaths," Sesshomaru responded.

"Damn it," Inuyasha snarled. "I told you to watch what you were doing!"

"And I told you to keep your wench out of the way." Sesshomaru turned to the dead creature laying before them. "I could not watch her and the enemy at the same time. I assumed you would do such. She was one of the multiple women you were courting, was she not?"

The rage in Inuyasha's eyes was evident as he growled and launched himself at his brother. "You bastard! Don't talk to me like that!" His claws came close to bloodying the demon's flawless face, but Sesshomaru easily avoided the attack.

"Control your rage, Little Brother," the demon stated smoothly.

"Rage? You ain't seen nothing yet!" Inuyasha snarled and leapt at his brother with his claws outstretched. "This is for Kikyo, you bastard!" He lunged forward with incredible speed and his long, sharp claws slashed through the flesh of Sesshomaru's left cheek and knocked him slightly backwards. Inuyasha landed on his feet a few yards away, breathing heavily. He glared in Sesshomaru's direction for a moment before looking down at his hand, the demon's red blood staining his fingers.

Sesshomaru remained where he was, his golden eyes never leaving his brother. "Are you quite finished? I do not desire to fight you now."

"I-- I hit you," Inuyasha stammered, looking at his brother. "What's up with that?"

Sesshomaru remained motionless. "I allowed you to so that you could release some of your anger," he replied. "If you are finished, we should continue our journey to find Naraku. He is near, I am picking up his scent quite easily."

Inuyasha looked his brother over. Blood was trickling down the side of his face onto the shoulder of his kimono, but he was completely ignoring it. "You let me hit you?" the half demon asked. "Are you that stupid? What if I had killed you?"

"Hardly," Sesshomaru replied, narrowing his eyes. "If you had come at me with a stronger attack, I may not have let you strike me. As it were, your offensive was quite weak." Inuyasha began to protest, but Sesshomaru silenced him. "We have no more time to waste, hanyou. Let us go." He turned from him and began walking in long strides toward the edge of the meadow.

"How interesting," Naraku said, watching as Inuyasha trailed after his elder brother like a lost puppy. "It seems the two of them have found a new alliance with each other."

"This concerns you, Master?" Kanna inquired softly.

Naraku's eyes narrowed. "They are approaching the fortress. Their combined power will be formidable indeed. And the way in which Sesshomaru fought that demon was very much different than the way he fought me. He seems… Motivated." Naraku rose from his seated position and watched the moving shadows outside. I must separate the two of them before they reach my fortress.