InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Journey of the soul: The panther devas' plot ❯ Enter Sesshomaru ( Chapter 15 )

Disclaimer: Most of the characters in this story are the actual work of Rumiko Takahashi. I do not own them in any way.

 

Special acknowledgment: Many thanks to Neko Kiki for correcting this chapter :).

 

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Chapter 14: Enter Sesshomaru

 

In the sky, the moon shone brightly, surrounded by a myriad of twinkling little stars and not a cloud could be seen tarnishing this picture of perfection. It was as if the night sky had somehow decided to make up for what the ground lacked by putting on its most beautiful display.

 

Indeed, the scene on the ground was currently the exact opposite of the sky. Near a small stone mausoleum lay a circle of at least four meters wide covered in the blood and innards of some creatures that could no longer be identified. At the center of it all stood a tall individual richly dressed in a kimono as white as his hair. His amber eyes scanned the carnage around him dispassionately before he allowed himself a small snort that sounded halfway between disdain and irritation.

 

"Foolish creatures," he commented emotionlessly before turning his attention to the structure in front of him. "Jaken, is this it?"

 

At the call of his name, a small toad youkai that had been hidden behind the youkai's tall form emerged into the open and planted a staff that was at least three times his height into the ground. After a few seconds of waiting, both the woman's and the man's head began to laugh hysterically.

 

"The two heads are laughing, Sesshomaru-sama. This has to be it!" exclaimed the diminutive toad enthusiastically.

 

"Step aside."

 

With a respectful bow, the youkai named Jaken did as ordered and watched as his master approached the tomb. When he was about to enter the stone circle however, energy crackled around him as a barrier sprung to life. Pausing in his progression to contemplate this new development, Sesshomaru merely huffed before continuing onward as if nothing had happened at all.

 

Obviously, the spell hadn't been meant to repel someone as strong as Sesshomaru because it shattered away in a bright flash of light under the youkai's intrusion. His last obstacle thus vanquished, Sesshomaru was able to gaze at his prize in peace. On a small wooden altar lay a sword surrounded by sutras designed to contain the enormous power of the weapon sleeping there. With a frown of confusion, the youkai grabbed the sword and studied it carefully. Finally, in one fluid motion, he drew it from its sheath... and watched in utter surprise as it dissolved in his hands, leaving only the scabbard behind.

 

"An imitation!?" he thought in confusion. "But the staff of two heads..."

 

And then the truth hit him, bringing a small smile to his lips. "I see. Father, you hid this scabbard here in order to fool those who might look for your fang. However, the real blade, you have hidden elsewhere. How clever. Jaken!"

 

"Yes, my lord?"

 

"What does the staff of two heads have to say now?"

 

Not fully understanding what was going on, but not willing to question the orders of his lord, the toad youkai planted the staff into the ground and watched in utter surprise as it started to spin on itself until the man's head faced east. Almost immediately after, the woman's head began to weep.

 

"The man faces east and the woman cries? My lord, I do not understand. This means that the sword is now east of us... and quite far away at that. How can this be?"

 

Of course, the greater youkai paid no heed to his subordinate's question. He merely contemplated this new, unexpected turn of events.

 

"Far to the east... that will bring us straight into panther territory. Father, what is the meaning of this? Have you fallen into such disgrace that you would have your fang fall into a cat's hands?"

 

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Kikyo sat back against a rock and gazed at the peaceful nighttime sky, trying desperately to let its calm permeate through her being. However, she simply couldn't. Too many things whirled around in her mind. Too many things in her were changing, she hardly recognized herself anymore. In the past, she wouldn't even have dreamed of kissing Inuyasha so intensely... yet she had. In the past, she never would have dreamed that she could lead a group like she was currently doing... and there she was, officially the alpha female.

 

While she was with the others, she did her best to mask her confusion, to appear strong to everyone. A leader couldn't afford to appear weak, after all. However, the truth of the matter was that she wanted nothing more than to turn tail and run for her life.

 

"But I cannot. The jewel is my responsibility... I have to get it back, I have to defeat Naraku," she reflected sadly.

 

"You know, no one's forcing you to bear all this alone," said a familiar feminine voice.

 

Whirling around, the miko was confronted with the sympathetic face of Karura. She couldn't help but feel a blush of embarrassment creep to her cheeks when she realized she had spoken her thought aloud without even realizing it.

 

"I am the guardian of the jewel. Giving this task to another would be shameful and cowardly," she finally shot back, returning to her contemplation of the stars.

 

"True, but it doesn't mean you have to suffer through this alone."

 

"We all have our own suffering to battle right now... as leader, I must be an example to everyone and be strong in our most difficult moments."

 

"You have a surprisingly good grasp of what it means to be a leader... however, your concept of strength is wrong."

 

"What?"

 

"Suffering in silence isn't strength... it's weakness. It's obvious your heart feels heavy right now... and if you stay this way, you might falter at the most critical moment. However, if you share your burden with someone, then you'll feel lighter and be one step closer to full recovery."

 

"So you're saying I should just break down and cry?"

 

"If that's what you feel like doing, then yes... and I'll be there to bring you whatever comfort I can give."

 

Kikyo couldn't help but snort at this. "Somehow, I find this prospect less than encouraging."

 

"Why don't you try me then? You'd be surprised at how good a listener I can be."

 

The miko turned her attention back to Karura and looked intently at her. A few seconds of scrutiny revealed no sign of treachery whatsoever, not that she had expected to find any. Karura was wild, hot headed and also more than a little infuriating at times, but she wasn't the type to deceive or put up a false front. If she didn't like someone, she said so immediately and quite honestly. So now that she knew the other woman was serious, Kikyo was faced with a choice. Should she confide... or should she keep her pain to herself?

 

On one hand, if she remained silent, she wouldn't have to face her pain fully, she could just leave it dancing there in the back of her mind. Yet, if she left it alone like that, it wouldn't go away, it would stay there, tormenting her and teasing her for who knows how long. However, if she talked, she would have to face her demons... and share her deepest concerns with someone else. This could lead to embarrassing if not downright shameful situations... yet this could also lead her to salvation.

 

"You know I'm not one to betray a secret, right? After all, I've kept yours up till now."

 

At those words, Kikyo abruptly stiffened and looked left and right carefully before allowing herself a small breath of relief. "I told you not to mention it ever! My sister's safety depends on this!"

 

"I know, I know... and sorry. I just wanted you to know that I'm not one to babble. Private stuff is private stuff. I might be a bit... difficult at times, but I know the difference between teasing and taunting."

 

"Fine, you've made your point," sighed the miko in irritation. "The truth is that I don't recognize myself anymore."

 

"What do you mean?"

 

"Well, first thing... me being alpha female. I don't know how it happened, but suddenly I'm the leader and everybody looks up to me for guidance. I'm no leader... I can't even lead myself down the right path! How can I possibly lead others if I don't even know where I'm going!?"

 

"Well, for one thing, I think you're wrong. You're not just a good leader, you're an excellent one," countered Karura seriously.

 

"Say what!?"

 

"You bind everyone together. When there's feud, you're always there to resolve the matter. Remember when Shunran arrived? You put everyone right back in their proper place... and when Inuyasha thought Shunran was attacking me, you settled everything with only a sentence. You might not want this position, Kikyo, but you have it in you to lead... and we're all sensing it, that's why we're turning to you for guidance."

 

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

 

"I don't know... but it's the truth. You are a good leader, one that I'm even proud to follow."

 

"You're proud to follow me!?" exclaimed the miko disbelievingly.

 

"Hell yeah! And what's more, you're like me, you've drunk youkai blood. Do you have any idea how good it feels to know I'm not the only person in the world like that?"

 

"I can imagine. Loneliness has been my companion for quite some time now."

 

"Well, you don't have to be alone anymore, you have me and Inuyasha to back you up... and maybe Shunran if we can alleviate our suspicions."

 

At the name of the hanyou, Kikyo's cheeks abruptly turned bright red and she turned away.

 

"What's wrong, did something happen between you two?" questioned Karura, puzzled by the reaction.

 

Kikyo did not answer, she merely fidgeted nervously with her sleeves, carefully avoiding looking at Karura. Of course, her silence spoke louder than any words and the miko could practically feel the wicked grin spreading on her companion's cheeks.

 

"Oh? Sounds like you had quite the private moment," she teased mercilessly. "Tell me, how far along did you two go? Did you two go all the way?"

 

"Karura!!!" exclaimed Kikyo, her voice strangled with both embarrassment and indignation. "How can you even suggest such a thing!?"

 

"Well, you two love each other, so it's only natural to want to... be together," snickered the woman, her grin never leaving her face.

 

"You damn irritating... no we did not go all the way! We merely kissed... rather heatedly," shot back the miko, her voice turning to a quiet mutter at the end.

 

"Now we're talking! Tell me, how did it happen?"

 

"I... I don't know."

 

"You... don't know?" repeated Karura, somewhat taken aback by this unexpected answer.

 

"It know it sounds strange... but one minute I was furious at him... and the next, my blood was roaring and I couldn't restrain myself."

 

"Tell me, how was it? Did it feel good?"

 

It took a long time for the answer to come as Kikyo couldn't find any words to describe what had passed between her and Inuyasha at that particular moment.

 

"We... both almost passed out," she finally answered, her cheeks flaming.

 

"Wow, I never thought things could get so intense," chuckled Karura, making Kikyo feel even more embarrassed than she already was. "In any case, why don't you two try to go all the way next time, I'm sure you'd..."

 

"KARURA!!!!!" screeched the miko, unable to take the teasing anymore.

 

"Fine, fine, I'll leave it for the two of you to decide," laughed the woman heartily. "But just make sure to warn me first... with a voice like yours, I'll want to plug my ears if I want to keep my hearing intact."

 

And Karura couldn't help but explode in another bout of laugher when she saw her companion's outraged expression.

 

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Naraku couldn't help but be extremely confused as he stared at the board and two pots of stones sitting in front of him. He was even more confused when he saw Toran's determined expression.

 

"Do you know what this is, Naraku?" questioned Toran coldly.

 

"Unless my eyes are mistaken, this is a stone board. However, I'm afraid I do not fully understand why you had it brought here."

 

"That's quite simple Naraku... I want us to play a game."

 

"Play a game? But Toran-sama, surely you must have better things to do than waste your time playing stones with me."

 

"Actually, I am quite unoccupied at the moment... and since you obviously have time to spare as well, I figured we might play a game and see which one of us would come out on top."

 

"Well, if it is your wish, Toran-sama, I would be ill-placed to refuse," answered the evil hanyou with a respectful bow.

 

"Excellent, then let us begin."

 

Not wasting time, the panther youkai comfortably settled down in front of the board and gestured for Naraku to do the same. After a quick draw to decide who would play first, the match finally began.

 

Paying only half a mind to his moves, Naraku allowed himself to ponder on Toran's true purpose. He couldn't for the life of him figure out what she had in mind. Obviously, this game was meant to gage him in some way... though he wasn't sure exactly how. Seeing how this particular train of thought lead to a dead-end, he instead started to examine the best course of action.

 

If he allowed Toran to crush him, he had a feeling all it would accomplish was to have the panther ask to play another game. No, she was expecting him to perform... and as long as he wasn't up to her expectations, he wouldn't be off the hook. So, with that thought in mind, he turned his full attention to the game, only to realize that, while he had been lost in thoughts, Toran had managed to gain control of a good two-third of the board.

 

Despite being dire, the situation was far from hopeless. The youkai's rapid advance had left her vulnerable on several flanks, leaving him plenty of loopholes to maneuver through to regain his lost ground.

 

"Or maybe not," he realized with no small amount of surprise.

 

Indeed, a closer examination of the board led him to a startling discovery. All of the weaknesses left behind by Toran were false ones. One step into these weaknesses would cause him to lose whatever was left of his ground. No, if he wanted to turn things around, he had to find another way.

 

"Is anything the matter, Naraku? You look troubled."

 

"My apologies, Toran-sama, I merely did not expect you to be such a skilled player. I believe my miscalculation has just placed me in quite an uncomfortable situation," answered the evil hanyou.

 

"Are you actually resigning the game?" questioned the panther, not bothering to hide her disappointment.

 

"Not at all, Toran-sama. It would be a shame to stop a game that barely started to get interesting," he shot back while placing his next stone.

 

Toran couldn't help but frown. The move was quite an unexpected one. Naraku hadn't gone after one of her intentional weaknesses as she had expected, instead he had played a seemingly useless move that did not advantage him at all.

 

"Is he really that bad... or is there something I'm missing?" she couldn't help but ask herself.

 

As it turned out, it was three turns later that she understood what Naraku had prepared... and by that time, it was already too late. Through a clever array of moves, her opponent had bypassed her defenses completely and regained control of more than half of the board.

 

"Impressive, I never thought anyone could have turned this game around like you did," she commented, genuinely impressed. "However, I am not one to concede defeat so easily."

 

With that said, she placed a stone on the board in a move that successfully stopped the evil hanyou's advance dead in its tracks. After that, the rest of the game could only be described as an elaborate waltz of attacks and parries that went on for hours. The afternoon ticked away and the sun had long left to be replaced by the moon by the time Toran's strategies finally came to fruition.

 

"You have played well, Naraku... better than anyone I've ever met. However, all good things must come to an end I'm afraid," she announced and placed her final stone on the board.

 

The evil hanyou looked at the configuration and could only nod in acceptance. Even though he still controlled a bit less than half of the board, Toran's last stone had closed the circle around him completely and utterly. There was only one possible outcome for him now: defeat.

 

"I graciously accept my defeat, Toran-sama. Even though I have lost, I must say that I have thoroughly enjoyed myself. You are indeed a worthy opponent."

 

"I suppose I shall take this as a compliment... though don't think for a second flattery will get you out of this room until the ceremony."

 

"Of course not, Toran-sama. I was merely speaking my mind, that's all."

 

"Good, then I'll take my leave now. You may keep the board if you like. It might help you alleviate your own boredom."

 

"You are too kind, Toran-sama," bowed Naraku gratefully.

 

"Don't mention it," replied the youkai with a cryptic smile before closing the door behind her.

 

Naraku raised an eyebrow at this and immediately stared at the board suspiciously. Due to Toran's constant presence, he hadn't really been able to examine the object carefully. At first glance, it appeared to be a perfectly normal board. A polished wooden plank where the gaming zone was drawn, nineteen squares wide and nineteen squares high, nothing unusual there.

 

He turned the board around, examined the underside and still he found nothing out of the ordinary. It was only after having wasted more than half an hour over the wooden square that he realized exactly what was wrong with the board. With a growl of irritation, he drove his fist through the wood and watched the splinter shower through his room with murder in his eyes.

 

"I do not appreciate being turned into a laughing stock, Toran. Mark my words. I will get my revenge on you!"

 

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Leaning against the wall, Toran of the ice smirked when she heard the sound of wood snapping. Not saying a word, she walked away, only to be joined by Karan a few minutes later.

 

"So how did things go, sister?"

 

"Better than expected. Naraku's character is even more complex than I thought."

 

"You found that out just by playing stones?"

 

"Yes. The way a person plays is always a mirror of their soul. That's why I can easily say that Naraku's even more cunning than I am. He can easily see through even the most clever tactics... and he's the type to always have a backup plan in case his main scheme fails."

 

"Not your common bad guy then. He won't be easy to take care of."

 

"No... and what's more, I highly suspect he already knows we've sent for Kikyo... and even planned for it. Which means that we've been nothing but puppets to him so far."

 

"But sister... if even our counter-plan was part of his own plan, then how are we supposed to come out on top?"

 

"By doing things even he could not possibly foresee. For example, me playing a game of stone with him... or me making him waste half an hour looking for something that doesn't exist," replied Toran with a satisfied smirk.

 

"Something that doesn't exist?" repeated Karan, visibly confused. "What did you do exactly?"

 

"I left the stone board with him... and hinted that there might be something wrong with it when in reality, it was a perfectly ordinary board. I heard him snap it in half. I wager he must be fuming right now."

 

Karan looked at her sister for a few seconds before bursting into a giggling fit. "How I wish I could have seen his face. It must have been positively priceless!"

 

"That's right. And while he concentrates on getting even with me, he won't be thinking of his main scheme... meaning he's more likely to get sloppy."

 

"And when he does... we'll be waiting for him around the corner. Sister, you're absolutely brilliant!" exclaimed Karan in open admiration.

 

"Don't get ahead of yourself. We'll celebrate when Naraku has been taken care of and the jewel is definitively in our possession. Until then, we must remain vigilant and not make the mistake we want our opponent to make. This game is going to be tightly played. We cannot afford any miscalculation."

 

"Right, of course, sister. So tell me, what exactly do you have in mind? Surely you won't stand idly by to wait for Naraku to make his move."

 

And Toran's wicked smile was all the proof Karan needed to confirm that, indeed, her sister's mind had yet another plan in the works for the evil hanyou.

 

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Author's note: Well, another few chapters to post today. I intended to post them sooner, but I didn't have the time. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this one.