InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Inoku ❯ Chapter 1

Inoku

"Oh, look! A hot spring!" Kagome cried, excitedly pointing to somewhere off the road, amongst the trees. Her weary companions turned to look hopefully in the direction that she was pointing. Sure enough, nestled right there amongst the rocks and trees, was a lovely spring with white steam rising in curls off of it's waters.

"A nice hot bath…" Sango sighed wistfully. It had been many days since they'd been able to rest, let alone bathe. Even Inuyasha felt that it was indeed time to stop, so they turned off the dusty path and set up a small, impromptu camp a few yards from the spring. Once everything was settled, and a cheery little fire was blazing, Kagome grabbed her toiletry bag in one hand and Sango in the other.

"We're off to take a bath!" She called happily to the boys.

"I'm going, too!" Shippou sang out, bounding after them.

"Wait a second!" Inuyasha hollered. In a flash he had overtaken the little party and was blocking their way. "Haven't you forgotten something?" He asked, pointedly. Kagome smiled at him sheepishly, but feigned ignorance.

"Uh, no!" she said, her voice cheerful, with a tiny hint of guilt. "Everything's here! Soap, shampoo, towels, loofa…"

"Yeah!" he snorted, "Nice try. You know damn well it's me and Miroku's turn to go first."

"He's right." Miroku agreed, coming up behind them. The girls jumped at his voice; it was never a good idea to let Miroku sneak up from behind.

"But I feel so icky and dirty!" Kagome whined, turning back to Inuyasha. "Can't you make an exception this time? You can go first next time."

"I might have, if you hadn't said that the last three times we've come across hot springs!" Inuyasha yelled at her.

"Boy!" Kagome fumed, stomping her foot. "In my time, all the stories you hear about the middle ages say that men were chivalrous to ladies. Apparently we've been misinformed!"

"Well I'm not a man, and you sure as hell ain't a lady, so there's your answer!" Inuyasha shouted back at her. Kagome crossed her arms and gave him a deadly look.

"Osuwari." Unfazed, Miroku stepped over Inuyasha and put his arms around the girls.

"My good ladies," he said gently, "Some men are sensitive to a woman's needs. I believe that I have an answer to our dilemma that will please everyone." Kagome and Sango eyed the monk suspiciously. "If we simply bathe together," he continued, "then no one will have to wait-" Miroku was cut off by two hands slapping him across either cheek, simultaneously, in a criss-cross motion. Grabbing Sango's hand in her own, Kagome stalked back toward the campsite, leaving a twitching Miroku holding his face, and Inuyasha muttering curses on the ground.

"Come on Sango," she said angrily, "Let's leave the pervert and his mutt to their bath! After that, I can see that they need it more than we do! One has a dirty mind and the other has a dirty mouth!" As the girls sauntered off, Shippou stayed back a moment, watching the two young men. Then suddenly and gleefully, he burst out laughing. He rolled onto his back, holding his stomach, and laughed just until the point where it looked like Inuyasha was regaining some control over his extremities. Then he hopped away, following the girls back to camp.

A few minutes later, Miroku stepped gingerly into the hot water, checking the temperature with his bare feet before walking into the waist-deep water. On the banks, Inuyasha was disrobing.

"Bitch!" he cursed, flinging his fire-rat haori to the ground angrily. Looking up at Miroku, however, put him into a better mood.

"He he." he chuckled. "Hey Miroku! Your face is still red!" Miroku sighed, gently and carefully touching his face. He winced as he applied a tiny bit of pressure to his cheek with his fingertips.

"Yes," he agreed, "They were very angry."

"I can't imagine why." Inuyasha said sarcastically. "Maybe it's that perverted mind of yours. If you don't knock it off, you're in for a lot more bruises." as he said this, Inuyasha pulled his white inner-kimono off of his body, revealing huge, purple and yellow bruises running the entire length of his torso.

"Inuyasha…" Miroku exclaimed, eyes wide with wonder. "You should talk about bruises! Look at yourself. Those are clearly the marks of Kagome-sama's anger."

"This stupid ward!" Inuyasha cursed, pulling at the rosary around his neck. "I say the smallest thing and she brutalizes me!"

"The smallest thing? Miroku said doubtfully, raising one eyebrow.

"Shut up!" Inuyasha said, letting the remainder of his clothing fall to the ground. "Who the hell are you to judge? I don't care what that stupid girl thinks of me, but you at least should learn how to deal with women properly. You're never gonna get one of 'em to bear your child at the rate you're going now!" He walked into the spring, then sat at a distance from Miroku, facing him.

"You don't have to sit so far away from me." Miroku laughed. "I only grope women."

"Hmph!" Inuyasha laughed darkly. "If you ever so much as looked at me funny, you'd loose the eye."

"Hmmm." Miroku pondered. "Then it amazes me that Kagome still has such a beautiful face."

"Don't talk about her that way." Inuyasha said quickly and menacingly. "And what does that mean?"

"It means that she gives you 'funny' looks all the time." the monk stated simply.

"That's because she has it out for me." Inuyasha grumbled sullenly. "If Kikyo doesn't kill me first, she will."

"Well, she has something for you, anyway." Miroku said evasively.

"What are you talking about now?" Inuyasha demanded.

"I thought you were supposed to be extra perceptive with those youkai senses of yours." Miroku teased. "The girl obviously cares for you." Inuyasha glared at the monk for a moment, silently brooding. It was a few minutes before he had a suitable retort.

"Well, if you weren't so busy minding MY business, then you might have noticed how Sango practically trips over herself every time you look at her."

"S-Sango?" the monk choked.

"S-Sango?" Inuyasha smiled, enjoying Miroku's reaction. "Yeah, you remember her, don't you? Demon exterminator? Lot's of family problems? You're at least well acquainted with her ass, I know that much."

"Do not speak of such things when you refer to Sango-sama." Miroku said gravely. "She has lead a troubled life and deserves your respect."

"Oh, sorry if I offended her honor!" Inuyasha barked sarcastically. "At least I don't grab her private parts every chance I get!"

"Yes, I've been wondering about that." Miroku said without missing a beat. "Are you sure you DON'T want me to grope you? Because you don't seem at all interested in Kagome-sama." Inuyasha bristled, then lunged at the monk, teeth and claws bared. Miroku cleverly ducked under the water and dodged the blow, resurfacing moments later on the other side of the spring. Inuyasha turned, preparing to charge him again, when Miroku pulled at the rosary covering his right hand.

"Shall I suck you in and put you out of your misery?"

"I'll have ripped your arm off before the beads leave your hand! But then you won't have to worry about that Kazaana sucking you in anymore, will you?" the hanyou chuckled evilly.

"Let's find out!" Miroku laughed, pretending to pull the beads off slowly and dramatically. Inuyasha grinned and cracked his knuckles. They never found out, however, because at that moment, they heard the sound of screaming coming from the campsite.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha cried, jumping out of the water and racing for the camp.

"Inuyasha, wait for me!" Miroku cried, debating whether or not to throw his robes on first or just go. He opted for the latter, due to the urgency of the situation, but he couldn't help but think grimly 'When this is over, we are going to have some explaining to do…' as he ran after the hanyou.

Racing ahead, Inuyasha crashed through the underbrush and ran at full tilt into the camp.

"Kagome! Sango!" he called.

"Inuyasha!" he heard Kagome scream, "Look out!" At that instant, something huge, black and shiny came flying at his head. He dodged to the right and it embedded itself into the trunk of the tree behind him, splintering the wood.

"Huh!" he exclaimed. "That was almost my head." As it struggled to remove itself from the trunk of the tree, Inuyasha had a precious few seconds to see what it was that was attacking him. His eyes followed the length of what appeared to be a long, black, armored tail up to where it connected to the rest of a giant scorpion.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed.

"Kagome! Where are you?" he called back.

"Up here!" she cried to him from above. "On Kirara!"

"Stay up there!" he called back. "This won't take long!"

"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled, "He has a shikon shard in his tail!" But at that instant, the scorpion freed it's tail from the wood with a splintering crack.

"What?" Inuyasha yelled back, but was soon distracted as an enormous mandible claw swiped at him. Again he dodged, then reached for the Tetsaiga at his hip, only to realize that he had left it back at the spring underneath his clothing.

"Shit!" he cursed. "Oh well, sword or no, I'll have no trouble taking a big idiot like you down! Sankon Tessou!" Inuyasha slashed at the scorpion, but due to the armored exoskeleton of the beast, his attack was rendered useless. It was at that moment that Miroku ran into the clearing.

"Inuyasha!" he cried, "Get behind me! I'll suck it in with my Kazaana!"

"No Miroku!" Kagome called down to him. "There's a shikon shard in his tail!"

"What?" Miroku yelled, but his moment of hesitation proved to be a fatal error. The scorpion turned at the sound of his voice, and with lightening quickness, it's deadly tail whipped out at the monk.

"MIROKU, LOOK OUT!" Inuyasha yelled, diving to place himself between the monster and the monk. At the precise moment that Inuyasha jumped in front of Miroku, the stinger hit home, impaling him through his torso and coming out his back.

"Ugn!" he moaned, but managed to choke out, "Miroku, run." As his vision began to blur, both from shock and the scorpion's poison, he turned his head as far as he could to see if Miroku had escaped. He couldn't see him anywhere. Then he felt something large and warm land fully across his back. His head fell onto his chest as his muscles began to weaken and he noticed a gloved hand dangling near his hip. His body went limp from horror and exhaustion as he realized what had happened. The scorpion's tail had impaled him, gone through, and impaled Miroku as well.

"Dammit Miroku!" he choked, tasting his own blood in his mouth, "Why did you hesitate?"

"MIROKU!" a woman's voice screamed from somewhere far off. It was followed by the unmistakable sound of Hirakotsu whirling through the air.

"Sango…" Miroku breathed against Inuyasha's back as he desperately clung to life. Both men tensed and cried out as the scorpion drew back it's tail, the stinger scraping their insides and leaving gaping holes through their midsections in it's wake. Blood trickled from Inuyasha's eyes and mouth as the pain left his body entirely and the world went blindingly white.

Before the tail could fully retract, Hiraikotsu cut through it, severing it from the scorpion's body. From up high on Kirara, the women and Shippou watched in amazement as an instant later, the scorpion disintegrated in a cloud of smoke.

"What happened?" Kagome asked.

"You said the shard was in the tail?" A tiny voice said in her ear. "Once the tail was separated from the shard, the youkai must have died." Kagome turned to look at the flea demon on her shoulder.

"When did you show up, Myoga-jiichan?" she asked.

"I've been here the whole time!" he said indignantly. "Watching from a little distance."

"That sounds about right, you old coward." Shippou said.

"I am tired of all of you calling me a coward! You need to learn to respect you elders." Myoga fumed, crossing all four of his tiny arms over his chest.

"There's no time for this!" Sango cried suddenly, her voice choked with emotion. "We have to get down there and find Houshi-sama and Inuyasha, they're hurt!"

"You're right." Kagome said, biting her lip nervously. "We need to find them." Reading the subtle movements of Sango's body, Kirara swooped down into the dense smoke… only to come up seconds later, choking.

"It's no good!" Kagome wheezed. "We'll have to wait until the smoke dissipates."

"It must be the scorpion's deadly poison that makes it so toxic." Myoga reasoned. Sango leaned forward, resting her head on Kirara's as they flew in search of safer ground. 'Oh Houshi-sama.' she thought to herself as silent tears rolled down her cheeks. 'What chance do you have now?'

Eventually, they settled on a hill not too far, but far enough, from the smoke. They sat in silence, listening for any indications of life amidst the ruin. They stayed for hours, hope hanging by a thread that got steadily thinner as time wore on. Then, almost as suddenly as it had appeared, the smoke began to dissipate. Hopping back onto Kirara, they returned to the battlefield in search of their friends. As they approached the clearing, they began to hear the sounds of labored breathing and struggling footsteps. A lone figure emerged from the thinning smoke. Kagome and Sango rushed forward, desperate to see, yet terrified of what they would find. As they drew closer, the figure's face became clear. It was the face of a stranger. Kagome dropped her eyes from the nude male form before her, shocked and embarrassed. Sango's gaze never wavered as she tightened her grip on Hiraikotsu.

"What treachery is this?" she cried.

"…Kagome…" the man said uncertainly. Then extraordinarily, the timbre of his voice changed, and he added "…-sama…", before dropping like a stone at their feet.