InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Hanyou Wars ❯ The Hunters and the Hunted ( Chapter 10 )

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10. The Hunters and the Hunted  

Sango, Miroku, and the others circled the empty campsite for more than an hour, searching for any trace of the direction in which the hanyou and the miko had been taken. It was not a particularly successful effort: as students of the taijiya, they had grown skilled in concealing their presence from the acute senses of youkai--evading human pursuers would be much easier.

There was no real indication of the direction in which they had gone. They eventually found the site from which the slavers had released the poisonous smoke that had sickened the two little youkai and the hanyou. Sango nodded. That explained how the slavers were able to take the adult hanyou without arousing his suspicions: inuyoukai were particularly sensitive to strong odors, so the smoke would have incapacitated him easily without alarming him unduly.

Still, this information did nothing to explain how they had managed to take Kagome as well. The miko would not have been affected by the smoke. Sango shook her head in confusion, remembering how she had been overwhelmed by a sudden wave of fatigue the night before. Clearly, her former students had learned some new techniques aside from those traditionally belonging to the youkai taijiya.

It was near sunset when the first hint of what had happened was found. Kirara, Shippou, and Takara had been circling the campsite when the hanyou child suddenly got wind of something distinctly unpleasant. Rubbing at his nose in irritation, he muttered, “I know this stink….” Turning to where he could hear the kitsune moving around in the forest a short distance away, he called to the older child.

When the kit arrived he found the hanyou boy standing still in the trees, turning slightly from side to side in an effort to determine the precise source of the disturbing odor. “This isn’t good,” Takara whispered. “Do you smell that--like death, and dirt? I used to smell that once in a while when I was with them. I never saw what caused it, though.”

A single sniff was enough for the kitsune. Grabbing the other boy’s arm, he raced through the trees. “Come on. We have to tell Sango and Miroku right away.”

The taijiya and the monk had started preparing a campsite for the night close to that abandoned by their companions. The two looked up in surprise as the children crashed through the brush. That surprise turned to pure shock as Shippou gasped out a single word, “Kikyou.”

Once the two had regained their ability to breathe, they explained what they knew about the disturbing scent in the forest. When it became clear that the undead miko had apparently formed some kind of relationship with the slavers, Miroku nodded, finally understanding how they had all been taken so completely by surprise. “It was very clever, really. While the slavers used their taijiya knowledge to incapacitate the youkai and hanyous among us, Kikyou must have placed a spell on the human members of our party to put them into a deep sleep. I wonder,” he said, looking suddenly thoughtful, “Why she didn’t just kill us all.”

Sango shook her head, poking at the small fire with a stick. “What would have been the point? She has no particular grudge against any of us--aside from the three little ones, that is. Her power can’t be inexhaustible. No matter how strong she was in life, her present existence is maintained by absorbing dead souls, and that can’t possibly make her as strong as she used to be.”

Shippou nodded slowly. “At least that explains why they took both of them--she probably told them they could have Kagome if they helped her catch Inuyasha so she could take him to hell with her.”

Takara shook his head. “I don’t think so. They’ve only been allowed to continue because they deal in hanyous--something that’s hated by both youkai and humans. If there was ever a hint that they were branching out by capturing humans as well the humans would hunt them down until there was nothing left. Maybe,” he said, “They plan on using threats against her to help them control him.”

Sango nodded in agreement. “Or maybe she offered her to them as payment for their help in capturing Inuyasha.” She smirked a little, knowing her friend’s fiery temperament. “I feel a little sorry for whichever of them tries to take her on.” She passed around the cups of instant ramen. “Hurry up and eat. We have a lot to do in the morning.”