InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Demon's Diary ❯ The Needs of the Many ( Chapter 20 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
Chapter 20: The Needs of the Many
Inuyasha was getting frustrated. He had lost the scent for the third time and no matter what he couldn't pick it up again. Damn Sesshoumaru, he must have flown from here. “Sango, can you try looking from the air?” he asked the slayer.
Sango and Kirara flew off, using a circular search pattern that got larger and larger until they were out of view. The rest sat on the ground to rest as Kagome with the help of Rin and Koneko prepared some food for the hungry travelers to eat. There was not much conversation as they waited for Sango to return.
A few hours later Kirara landed by the group. “I found them,” cried out Sango sitting atop her cat friend. “They are in a battle.”
“Let's go,” yelled out Inuyasha to the kids who had gone off to play in the woods.
“Maybe we should leave the kids here,” Kagome said.
“That would be best,” Sango agreed.
“Who's going to stay back here with them?” questioned Inuyasha. He felt that anyone who could fight should be there and he didn't want to split up their group.
“I'll stay,” replied Sango. “Kirara can go with you to help.”
The older two kids argued, and finally Inuyasha relented. Kagome was not happy but Koneko made a point of saying she was a hanyou the same as Inuyasha and therefore could fight. Bougumaru just outright refused to stay behind, saying he would follow on foot if he had to. Inuyasha, seeing the stubborn set to the boys jaw, knew he would make good on his threat.
“I'm not going to babysit you two,” Inuyasha grumbled at them.
“No one asked you to,” replied Koneko giving a good impression of one of Sesshoumaru's famous disdainful stares.
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“Getting tired, Sesshoumaru?” mocked Naraku as he again brought his body back together. “You know you cannot kill me,” he chortled.
Sesshoumaru said nothing but brought his sword Toukijin again to bear upon the spider hanyou. They had been fighting non-stop for two days and it was taking a toll on the demon lord. He had expended a lot of energy trying to defeat the insidious spider and was nearing exhaustion. The only thing that kept him upright was his anger and hatred for the being that mocked him so casually. He had many wounds and his healing ability had slowed considerably since the start of their battle, leaving him slightly light headed because of the loss of blood. Most of the wounds were not life threatening and Sesshoumaru had the idea that Naraku was simply toying with him.
“Why don't you join me? We could easily defeat Inuyasha, isn't that what you want? To see him dead?”
“Perhaps it is you that is getting tired,” replied Sesshoumaru, ignoring the questions and panting slightly. “I will not stop until I see your death.” He threw out the power of his sword again demolishing Naraku's body only to see it knit itself back together once more. He was gratified to see that the spider was taking longer to fix himself each time. One of these times you will be unable to pull yourself together.
Naraku again laughed at the demon lord trying not to show his own weakness as he watched his nemesis stagger slightly. He was getting frustrated by this game and try as he might he could not seem to get a killing hit in on the demon lord. He sent his tentacles out and was gratified to feel one of them bite into Sesshoumaru's flesh as he twisted, trying to avoid them. The demon lord swung his sword managing to cut off most of them.
Your getting slower my pet, it's only a matter of time before you'll be one with my flesh, Naraku thought with glee
Finally, Naraku gave a cry of victory as he managed to snag Sesshoumaru with one of the tentacles that he had not managed to slice away. He quickly wrapped the flesh around the demon lord pinning his arm to his side and brought him closer to him. “Now, you are mine,” he snickered with an evil smirk.
“Don't be so sure, Naraku,” came a cry off to his left. The spider demon growled in frustration when he saw Inuyasha and his group. He hugged Sesshoumaru closer to him.
“If you use your weapons, you might hit your brother.” Naraku had a feeling that Inuyasha would not allow harm to come to the demon lord. Your feelings of compassion will be your undoing today, hanyou. Naraku was so busy paying attention to the newcomers to the battle that he was stunned when he began to feel some pain. He looked to the demon he had in his clutches and saw that Sesshoumaru had freed his arm and had it wrapped around him, holding him as tightly as he held the battered dog demon. Sesshoumaru's whole body glowed green as he pressed himself to the spider demon, his poison eating away at the grotesque flesh.
Naraku tried to let go of his enemy but Sesshoumaru hung on and refused to be pried off.
“Inuyasha,” Sesshoumaru called out to his brother, “use your sword, cut him down.”
“Let go of him, I can't do it with you in the way,” the hanyou answered back.
Sesshoumaru was not about to let go, he could sense the spider beginning to panic as his demonic poison ran through the evil hanyou. He could feel Naraku's body weakening and knew that as long as he continued to pump his venom into him, he would not be able to regenerate. He knew that if he let go Naraku would take that opportunity to flee yet again. ”Never mind me, do as I say,” he commanded his younger sibling in his best authoritive voice.
Damn it, thought Inuyasha, I am not going to destroy you along with him. “Let go you stubborn bastard!” Inuyasha yelled using his sword to cut at Naraku's tentacles as they came towards him and his group.
Sesshoumaru growled in frustration and then caught sight of Koneko as she sidled up beside Miroku, unnoticed. Good girl, she remembers our talk in the woods that day. He looked to his kitten locking eyes with her and nodded.
Koneko grabbed the monk and turning him so everyone else was behind them, ripped open his gauntlet holding his hand out towards Naraku and her adopted father. Miroku yelped in surprise and tried to close his hand but the cat was quicker and forced his hand open gripping him tightly.
“No!” yelled Inuyasha as both his brother and his enemy were sucked into the vortex in Miroku's hand.
There was complete and utter silence as Koneko released the monk. She stood, tears in her eyes and then turned and started to walk away from the battle field.
Miroku dropped to the ground on his knees looking at his now normal hand. He soon gave a yell of pain as the shikon jewel ripped a hole through his hand where his wind tunnel had been, the power of the almost complete jewel rejecting the entrapment of Naraku's curse. It popped out and rolled on the ground towards Kagome who picked it up. The miko girl ran to Miroku and tucked the jewel into her pocket. She bandaged his bleeding hand, feelings of confusion and shock racing through her.
“What have you done?” Bougumaru asked angrily, running to catch up to the retreating form of the cat hanyou.
Inuyasha leapt in front of her, growling, his claws flexing. “Why did you do that, we could have found another way.” Tears were stinging at the corner of his eyes as he tried to control himself so as not to kill her.
“He told me to,” she replied quietly. “He told me to make sure Naraku was defeated at all costs. He said the best way to do it would be to suck him up into Miroku's wind tunnel because there would be no way he could escape.”
“When did he tell you this,” asked Miroku as him and Kagome walked over to them.
“That day in the woods, I saw the two of you,” answered Kagome for her.
Koneko nodded. “He made it quite plain that I was not to hesitate, even if it meant his own life. He made me promise,” she sobbed. “He said that the safety of everyone was more important than the safety of one being.” The cat child wiped the tears that were freely flowing down her face as everyone else stood in shocked silence. “I'll leave now, I know you'll never forgive me,” she said to Inuyasha as she again tried to walk away.
“No,” cried out Kagome, tears also falling from her eyes as she embraced the cat hanyou. “Inuyasha, she was only doing what Sesshoumaru told her to do, we can't blame her for his decision.”
Damn you, Sesshoumaru. We could have defeated him without losing you. Inuyasha let the tears flow freely at the loss of his brother, dropping Tetsusaiga to the ground in his grief.
“He left something for you,” Koneko told Inuyasha. “In case…” she began to cry again, holding onto Kagome as if she was her only lifeline.
Inuyasha reached down, picking up the Tetsusaiga and sheathing it. The saddened group left to return to Sango and the others to tell them what had happened. They did not tell the younger children that it had been Koneko to deliver the killing blow, instead making sure they knew that Sesshoumaru sacrificed himself for, not only their whole group, but the whole of Japan as well.
Authors note: If anyone has ever watched the original Star Trek you will recognize the title of this chapter and be able to finish the sentence. (I sort of borrowed it and it and Star Trek do not belong to me) There is one final chapter left after this, I hope every one will enjoy the ending.