InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Chronicles ❯ Tetsusaiga ( Chapter 48 )

~~Chapter 48~~

~Tetsusaiga~

 

InuYasha growled as he stared into the darkness ahead.

 

“Youkai,” Kagome mumbled as she slipped off his back and started to step forward.

 

InuYasha caught her hand and dragged her back. “Are you stupid, wench? Stay behind me!” he snapped.

 

“But—”

 

InuYasha shoved her behind his back as Kouga burst out of the trees and skidded to a halt before the two.

 

“Well, if it isn't mutt-face.” Standing on tiptoe to look over InuYasha's shoulder, Kouga grinned. “Oi, Kagome. Haven't ditched the dog-shit yet, I see.”

 

Kagome put her hands on InuYasha's shoulders, trying to peek over to see her friend. “Hey, Kouga . . . how've you been?”

 

Kouga rolled his eyes but smiled. “She ought to keep you on a leash, mutt. Why don't you let Kagome come over here and give me a big ol' hug?” He held out his arms.

 

Kagome started to walk around InuYasha, who grabbed her around the waist and deposited her behind him once more and tweaked her nose with his index finger for good measure. Kouga looked momentarily surprised then laughed. “Fat fucking chance, mangy wolf,” he remarked tightly as he turned back to face Kouga again.

 

Kagome blinked in surprise. `What was that? He didn't even raise his voice—yet. What's gotten into InuYasha?' She wrinkled her nose a few times. `And why did he do that?' she wondered about his abuse of her nose. “InuYasha, it's fine, you know. Kouga went to find a, err, mate, right, Kouga?”

 

“You didn't tell him before?”

 

Kagome made a face. “You asked me not to,” she reminded him.

 

InuYasha snorted. “Keh! Like that matters. Fucking wolf, what the hell do you want?”

 

“Relax, relax . . . I smelled your rancid stench and figured you'd have Kagome with you, is all.” He craned his neck back, trying to see over InuYasha's shoulder again. Pity I gotta deal with dog-shit just to say hi to you, Kagome. You sure you don't want me to kill him for kicks?”

 

InuYasha drew Tetsusaiga in a flash of light, brandishing it before himself as he glowered at Kouga. “I'd like to see you try.”

 

Kouga glanced at the sword then looked back again with a frown. “When'd it turn blue?”

 

“When did what turn blue?”

 

“That.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“Baka dog-shit . . . your sword is blue . . . .”

 

Kagome stared at the blade with a frown. True enough, the aura surrounding the blade was bluish. What in the world . . . ? “InuYasha?”

 

“Keh! Who the hell cares? Blue, silver, red, fucking pink with polka dots, I can still beat the shit out of him with it,” he snarled.

 

“Oh, put it away, will you?” Kagome argued. “Kouga's not here to fight you!”

 

“I could be persuaded,” Kouga volunteered.

 

“No, you can't,” Kagome snapped, rounding an incredulous glare at Kouga. “This is why you and Sesshoumaru can't get along,” she went on, stabbing InuYasha with a dark look. “You can't even play nicely with Kouga.”

 

“Who said anything about playing?” InuYasha asked. “I'm gonna hack him to bits . . . .”

 

“Don't make me say `it',” she warned.

 

InuYasha stared at her then sighed, dropping Tetsusaiga back into the scabbard.

 

“So what gives, mutt-face. What happened to your precious sword?” Kouga pressed.

 

InuYasha shot him a sidelong glare. “You think I'm gonna tell a bastard like you?”

 

Kouga snorted. “So you really don't know, do you? You'd better get that checked out. I hear that things have a tendency to fall off and die once they've turned blue.” He turned on his heel and sped off, tossing a, “See ya, Kagome!” over his shoulder as he disappeared into the trees.

 

“I—fucking—hate—him!” InuYasha growled.

 

“It's because you and he are so much alike, you know,” Kagome remarked as she sank down on a boulder beside the path. “They say that when two people are that much alike that they normally can't stand one another.”

 

“I—he—wha—No way!” InuYasha blustered. “That's not even slightly funny, sneaky wench!”

 

Kagome rolled her eyes. “The truth rarely is, InuYasha. Anyway, aren't we almost to Totosai's?”

 

InuYasha snorted. “Keh. Come on.”

 

She blinked in surprise. “You're not going to carry me?”

 

“Go find that fucking wolf. He's just like me, ain't he?”

 

Kagome sighed and fell in step beside him. “Well, I'm sure he's not just like you . . . at least, not completely like you . . . .”

 

She saw his eyes slip to the side to stare at her. “Oh?”

 

“Sure,” she quipped. “He doesn't have a blue Tetsusaiga . . . .”

 

InuYasha's mouth fell open in disbelief, and he stomped ahead. Kagome stifled her giggles behind a hand to her lips. “Come on, wench. Stop lagging behind.”

 

She ran to catch up with InuYasha but didn't stop until she was standing before him. When he didn't stop moving, she had to walk backward along the path. “So why is Tetsusaiga suddenly blue?”

 

“Dunno.”

 

“Not even the slightest idea?”

 

“Nope.”

 

She considered that then shrugged. “Did you fight anything lately? Or maybe absorb something, like you did to get the red Tetsusaiga?”

 

“Uh-uh.”

 

She grinned impishly. “Do you want me to be quiet?”

 

He heaved a sigh and rolled his eyes. “Absolutely.”

 

Her grin widened. “Make me, Dog-boy.”

 

His eyebrows shot up. “You asked for it, sneaky wench.”

 

His golden eyes brightened, and he growled at her. With a shriek, she sped off, knowing full-well that there really wasn't a hope in the world she'd be able to outrun him, even if she wanted to.

 

She was right. Seconds later, he hooked her around the waist and leaped into a nearby tree. “Now . . . how do I make the sneaky wench stop talking . . . ?”

 

Kagome reached up and tugged lightly on his ear. He tweaked her nose again as he kept considering. She wrinkled her nose again and shifted so that she could reach his ears better.

 

“Knock that off, wench. I can't think when you're playing with my ears.”

 

“Really.”

 

A look of unadulterated panic crossed his features as he leaned away from her grabbing hands. “Nope. I lied. Back off!”

 

Kagome rose up on her knees and grabbed at his ears again.

 

He kept trying to duck away but time and again she caught him. “Damn it, wench! Are you an octopus youkai or something?” he growled then laughed as she captured his ear securely and rubbed.

 

She stopped suddenly and stared at him with a smile on her face and the start of tears in her eyes. InuYasha leaned away as his laughter died away and instant worry invaded the depths of his gaze. “Why—what'd I do?”

 

She shook her head quickly as her smile widened. “You laughed. You really laughed . . . .”

 

“I've laughed before,” he argued as an embarrassed flush crept up his cheeks.

 

“Not like that. I liked it.”

 

He frowned at the branch beneath them then slowly lifted his gaze to lock with hers. “Keh. Now about making you be quiet . . . .”

 

“What about Totosai?” she asked in a breathless whisper as he leaned forward, his eye closing, eyelashes fanning over his cheeks.

 

“He's old. If he ain't dead now, a few more minutes won't kill him.”

 

`No . . . I don't guess they will . . . .' Kagome giggled as his lips claimed hers. “InuYasha?”

 

He sighed. “Be quiet, will ya?”

 

She giggled again. “But—”

 

“Wench!”

 

“But . . . we're in a tree, and you said—”

 

He chuckled. “Sneaky hentai wench.”

 

`Hentai?' She frowned in confusion as he kissed her again. “Hentai? What do you mean?”

 

“Will you shut up and let me kiss you?”

 

She sighed as he nipped at her lower lip. “Oh . . . okay . . . .”

 

 

:::8::8::8::8::8::8::8::8::8::8:::

 

 

“InuYasha . . . is something wrong?” Totosai asked as he scratched his head thoughtfully.

 

InuYasha held out Tetsusaiga two inches in front of the swordsmith's face. “Make it stronger, old man.”

 

Kagome rolled her eyes. “InuYasha . . .”

 

Totosai leaned away and stared up into InuYasha's face with a frown. “Could have sworn I already did that . . . didn't I?”

 

“Don't you think I'd know if you did something to my sword?” InuYasha asked pointedly.

 

Totosai nodded slowly. “You'd think . . . .”

 

“The only thing you did was put some sort of weird blue barrier on it. What is that, anyway?”

 

“Barrier?” Totosai repeated, scratching his belly. “Is there a barrier on it?”

 

InuYasha thumped the old swordsmith over the head with the sheathed sword. “Listen, you, I—”

 

“It should have been on her . . . or did I mess it up?”

 

“Barriers are nice and all,” InuYasha remarked, struggling to keep his tone even, “But it don't make the bloody thing stronger, does it?”

 

“Doesn't it?” he scratched his chin. “What were we talking about?”

 

“Ow,” InuYasha grumbled, slapping his hand against his chest. Peeling back the haori, a flattened Myouga fell out onto his palm. “Oh, it's you. I should have known.”

 

“Ohh, InuYasha-sama . . . a pleasure, as always.” Puffing himself back into his normal shape, the flea youkai sat up and shook his head quickly to dispel any lingering dizziness.

 

“InuYasha,” Totosai interrupted, “draw Tetsusaiga.”

 

InuYasha sighed, dropping Myouga onto the ground as he pulled Tetsusaiga out of the sheath and pointed the blade at Kagome. Just as before, the blue barrier surrounded her in a brilliant hue, and, just as in the forest, InuYasha noticed that the blue was a little brighter.

 

“Oh, impressive, InuYasha-sama!” Myouga remarked enthusiastically. “Very impressive . . . .”

 

“Huh?”

 

Totosai stared at Tetsusaiga, blinking in surprise. “Oh . . . looks like I did better than I thought . . . .”

 

“Well, I'm sure that InuYasha-sama did do some of it, himself,” Myouga commented with a cough.

 

“What are the two of you talking about?” Kagome cut in with a puzzled shake of her head.

 

Totosai was back to scratching his chin. “I forgot . . . .”

 

InuYasha growled and slammed Tetsusaiga back into the scabbard again. “Can you strengthen Tetsusaiga or can't you?”

 

Myouga hopped onto Kagome's shoulder, edging closer to the collar of her shirt. “Master Totosai already did that,” Myouga remarked. “It's up to you to figure out how to unlock its true power.”

 

InuYasha snorted. “Keh. I hate it when geezers talk in riddles,” he remarked as he flicked the flea off Kagome's shoulder. “And stay away from Kagome's blood, damn it.”

 

Myouga hopped back. “It's the truth! You've already started to unlock its potential! Just finish it, and you'll have done it!”

 

“Finish what?”

 

Myouga shook his head. “Alas, InuYasha-sama . . . that's something we cannot tell you.”

 

InuYasha rolled his eyes. “Fat lot of help you are, Myouga. You're completely useless, you know it? My old man should have squashed you long ago.”

 

“Maybe you should ask Kagome for help. She's got a more logical brain than you do,” Totosai spoke up at last.

 

InuYasha thumped the old man with his fist for his unnecessary opinion. “Come on, Kagome. These two are useless.”

 

Myouga hopped onto Totosai's knee as the hanyou and miko left. They watched in silence as InuYasha carefully settled Kagome against his back before taking off at an all-out run. Myouga sighed. “If only the Inu no Taisho could see him now . . . I think he'd be proud.”

 

Totosai nodded slowly. “Do you think he'll figure it out?”

 

Myouga sighed again. “Not a chance . . . .” He suddenly chuckled, “Then again, I must admit that the barrier's color did surprise me . . . .”

 

 

:::8::8::8::8::8::8::8::8::8::8:::

 

 

“Maybe you just have to use it more in battles?”

 

“Keh! What do you think I've been doing?” InuYasha demanded with a snort.

 

She sighed. “It doesn't really make sense, you know. You've not done anything different, have you?”

 

InuYasha sighed, too. “Not a fucking thing.”

 

She pushed herself further up to rest her chin on his shoulder. “We'll figure it out. I'll help you.”

 

He shrugged. “I dunno. I have a feeling this is something I should figure out for myself.”

 

“But you don't have to.”

 

`She really is more than I deserve,' he thought with a smile as she laid her cheek against his shoulder. He sped up. He wanted to get her back to the village before nightfall. His smile faded into a frown. `She trusts me to keep her safe, but she's right . . . as much as I want to protect her all the time, there've been too many times when no one's been there to save her . . . .'

 

“Kagome?”

 

“Hmm?”

 

He could tell from her tone that she was almost asleep. He smoothed out his movements to aide her. “I want you to have Kaede train you.”

 

“I thought you said you didn't want me to do that.”

 

“I changed my mind. I just . . . .”

 

She giggled softly. “I know.”

 

“Keh.”

 

She squeezed his shoulders. “Thank you.”

 

“Keh.”

 

“I don't want to train, but I think I should.”

 

`She has to be safe . . . . Then I can try to make sure she never has to use what she learns.' His frown darkened as he remembered what had brought her back early, in the first place. “We need to go to your time,” he remarked.

 

“We do?”

 

“Keh. If I can't find Katosan here, I'll just find him there.”

 

“Is that a good idea?”

 

“I don't have a choice, Kagome. He's not going to threaten you. No one is. Don't be scared.”

 

She snuggled closer, and her voice was tinged with the drawl of sleep. “I'm not scared when I'm with you.”

 

His smile returned as he ran through the forest with the miko.

 

 

 

 

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A/N:

 

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Blanket disclaimer for this fanfic (will apply to this and all other chapters in Chronicles): I do not claim any rights to InuYasha or the characters associated with the anime/manga. Those rights belong to Rumiko Takahashi, et al. I do offer my thanks to her for creating such vivid characters for me to terrorize.

 

~Sue~