InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Madman ❯ Chapter 8 - Searching for Answers ( Chapter 8 )

Madman

By Rinseternalsoul

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, and I make no profit from writing fanfiction..

Chapter 8 - Searching for Answers

A/N's:

IYFG Nominations for 1st Quarter 2006 Fanfiction Awards

A special thanks to sesshys_jaded_samuri for nominating, RhiannonoftheMoon for seconding, and nami_the_ronin_inu for thirding, 'Madman' in the Inuyasha Fanguild Society's 1st Quarter 2006 Fanfiction Awards for Best Original Character, Matsuno Hotaka! I am deeply honored that you three think him worthy of recognition, and I hope that others will think so as well. He's a wicked, horny man, with a world domination plan. Let's hope he wins the Award, but loses against our hero's.

Strangely enough, 'As Death Gives Life' is also up again for Best OC. I guess that means that I'm running against myself. Hehe! Anubis is in the running once more and sends his thanks out to RhiannonoftheMoon for the nomination, Priestess Skye for seconding and Vyncent for the third. I'm tickled pink that everyone still loves my InuGod!

'As Death Gives Life' is also up for Best Action/Adventure! That is really great. I would soooo love to see it win! That would be awesome. For this nomination I must thank Tainted, as well as RhiannonoftheMoon for seconding and Vyncent for thirding. It is so rewarding to see that you all enjoyed it so much that you think it worthy of the Best Action/Adventure title. I'll keep my fingers crossed for the win.

So far 'Pure Extasy' (from 'The House of Lemons') is in the running for Best Lemon. My thanks to Beccaatoo for the nomination and A Lover of Love for the seconding. It's good to know there are some of my hentai pals out there voting for the smut!

I have some pretty stiff competition out there in all the categories. There are some quality pieces up for awards, and just as deserving of the titles. I wish all those authors good luck for a job well done!

Thanks, everyone, for the wonderful reviews and support that I have received for Madman! I'm sorry that I can't always respond to each individual review, but time just isn't to my advantage these days. I've been working on my vampire romance novel quite a bit and it has taken up most of my free time. I guess that I just wanted you all to know that I've read each review and it does my heart good to know that you like the story. The nominations are wonderful and a real ego boost, but it is your daily kindness, by reviewing, that keeps me smiling.

Now, on with Madman!

Detective Kobayashi looked around the hidden room with wide bewildered eyes. It was like stepping into another world. The items in this room did not belong here in this immaculately kept penthouse apartment. No. Most definitely not. These fine things deserved to be in a museum, where all could look upon this piece of ancient history.

Fine silk Kimono's, preserved, yet still showing age, hung decoratively inside glass cases that appeared to be designed just to hold them. Swords nestled snuggly in stands atop dark velvet cloths were displayed beneath strategically placed lighting. He paused to appreciate the beauty of the blades. The hilts were wrapped to perfection and the blades shone in the light. As he hovered so close above the swords he felt an odd sensation, strangely enough, as if they were alive. One sword looked well worn, and full of nicks in the steal, but the other was impeccable in its pristine beauty.

There was armor lining one wall. Armor from the ages. Each style just a little different from the next. There was a long fur stole, too thick to be worn by a woman, but unusual for a man. Gold coins and strange jewels lay in shimmering piles. A short, wooden staff rested in an airtight case. The smooth surface was carved into an intricate design of an old man's face while the opposite side was fashioned into that of an old woman. There were magnificent paintings on the walls of strange mythical creatures twisting their way to life. One large painting in the middle was of a two-headed draconic beast docilely staring at the painter, while a little girl sat smiling happily on its back. In one corner there was a wooden crate, built to contain dozens of ancient scrolls, which he dared not touch for fear they would crumble in his hands.

All in all the room was nothing short of breathtaking.

And he smelled danger here. His cop instincts were screaming it. Naoaki had little doubt that there were protective devices keeping these things safe, but strangely enough, he couldn't spot any of the wiring. Someone was good. Very good. It would be best not to touch anything.

What the hell was all this stuff doing here?

Were these artifacts stolen, black-market artifacts that the wealthy businessman purchased on the illegal auction circuit?

Naoaki decided to find out. This discovery could very well be the reason behind Taisho's abduction. There was literally billions of yen sitting around him in the forms of highly sought out collector's pieces, and if the kidnappers wanted it, they would go to great lengths to get it. He reached in the breast pocket of his coat and pulled out his cell phone. He flipped it open and started taking pictures. A little research should tell him everything that he wanted to know.

Kagome soared through the bright blue sky on a pink flying carpet. Her long ebony hair whipped out behind her as if it were alive. She laughed and leaned to the right, sailing through a big puffy white cloud and giggled when the soft fluff tickled her skin.

Far below she could see the Higurashi shrine, and she swooped down to wave hello, but when she got closer she could see that the woman, cheerfully hanging clothes on the line, was not her mother at all. Curiously she maneuvered her weightless craft around for a second look and gasped in shock to see that it was a younger version of herself. The clothes in her hand was now a longbow and she turned, pointing the arrow at herself, with sharp determination in her eyes.

With a gasp of shock, Kagome pulled up, barely missing the arrows' deadly pass. The wind ripped through her hair and the abrupt climb set her heart racing madly in her chest. Another white cloud blocked her path, but she only smiled and headed straight for it. Again she passed through the softness, and found herself shivering from the light caress.

When her pink magic carpet burst through the fluffy cloud, Kagome found herself without her clothes. Some tiny part of her nagged that this was wrong, but the feeling was not strong enough to persist. The flight through the sky was too fast and too glorious to ponder such things as missing clothes.

Kagome raised her hands high above her head while a broad smile brightened her happy face. The ride was like a roller-coaster with limitless combinations of turns and loops, but Kagome felt no fear, only exhilaration.

Until it began to chase her.

She looked behind her, feeling frantic now, and very sure that something ominous was trying to catch her. She leaned forward and raced as fast as she could toward the forest below.

But the forest was not a forest anymore; it was a bustling city of towering steel, blotting over the landscape like living things snapping at her passing form. She dipped to the side, barely missing the gnashing teeth of one hideous swaying structure, before looping to the right in order to miss another. Snarling fangs protruded from monstrously huge mouths intent on devouring her whole. Her pulse beat with a rapid rate and she silently cursed the lack of her bow and arrows.

Where was he? He should be here to save her! He was always there to save her!

Inuyasha!

The congestion of hungry steel titans was becoming too thick too fast and she knew that she had to find a way out.

The well!

She could see the Bone Eater's Well, sitting large and bright, in the middle of a crisp green clearing, deep in the forest of Inuyasha. If she could make it to the well she would be able to leap through just in time! She pulled her curvy form up on bent knees and leaned forward with a look of deep determination on her face. She knew that she could make it! She was so close!

The wind passed by so rapidly that it stung her soft creamy flesh, but Kagome refused to give in. She would escape the dark presence chasing her!

The well was so close that she could see the grain in the ancient weathered wood, when suddenly, without warning, it changed into a gaping white beast that opened its massive jaws and devoured her completely!

Kagome's scream of terror tore from her throat, but never reached crescendo, before transforming into a cry of raw ecstasy. The incredibly long fangs of the wellmouth magically melted into soft white fur, wrapping around her gently. A thousand fingers of this new, mysterious lover worshiped every inch of her body, fueling a great heat that coursed through her core. She threw her head back and issued a low, throaty moan that only echoed the pulsing desire now coursing through her veins.

And Kagome's dreamed on...

Sesshomaru's eyes were closed one minute, and opened wide the next. There was no mistaking the scent of terror hanging thick in the air. In a fraction of his youkai heartbeat, the taiyoukai abandoned his rest to engage in combat. The miko was being attacked, and he feared that their enemy had her in their grasp.

With the silence of a stalking cat, the demon lord eased up to the door separating his room from the bathing room. He could hear her heart beating wildly and listened for the sounds of others, but the absence made him pause. He could only hear Kagome's racing heart. There was no one else.

Something was wrong with the miko, but now he questioned the presence of an enemy. Perhaps she was in the throws of a nightmare? He opened the door, slowly, and silently, just in case it was a trap. He crossed the small bathroom to the door leading into her room, and listened. Her breaths were harsh and soft desperate whimpers spilled from her mouth, but still he could not detect the presence of another being in the room besides Kagome.

With a low growl of aggravation, Sesshomaru opened the door, silently cursing the wench for disturbing his rest. He gave the room a sweep, checking for intruders, but finding all in order. There was no one in the room except for himself, and the writhing miko, lying sprawled on the bed.

With the threat of attack pushed behind him, the woman who woke him up captured Sesshomaru's full attention. She was wearing his cotton shirt, and the darkness did nothing to hide her form from his youkai eyes. Her long raven hair was mussed about her head, spread over her pillow like a waterfall of black silk. The T-shirt, did little to hide the tight peeks of her nipples, swollen and teasing, atop full round breasts, and as his eyes followed the curve of her smooth hips, he realized that the scent in the air was changing at a rapid pace.

May the Ancestor's help him.

He was enveloped in her strong, female arousal, which was now spicing the air. He sniffed lightly, inhaling the inviting fragrance, before his mind was fully aware of the consequences from doing such. The heavy allure invaded his senses, pulling him dangerously closer to the edge of her bed.

Deeply ingrained youkai instincts were screaming at him to answer the mating call of the powerful female in need. This was no light scent the bitch was emitting. This was thick and heady. It spoke of lust and heat, and it was alarming, the strength of the pull.

While the beast stirred, rumbling and roiling within, Sesshomaru was also forced to acknowledge that the simple male in him wanted the woman as well. It had been a very long time since he bedded a female. A very long time indeed.

The taiyoukai stood frozen, staring down at the vision of moaning feminine flesh. A mortal. Kami above, he never thought to stoop so low, but he could hardly ignore the effect that she was having on his body. He could not deny the pulsing hardness resting flush against his belly, aching to enter her warmth.

'She is not mortal, in the true sense of the word,' he argued with himself. 'The Shikon no Tama has seen to that.' This line of reasoning seemed logical enough, but that dark stubborn side of his mind brought up another vexing issue, 'She once belonged to Inuyasha.' This brought a deeper frown to his stern face. The cerulean moon, painted gracefully on his forehead, wrinkled just a bit, in the furrows of his inner debate.

The thought of Inuyasha touching her, brought on a sudden stab of anger. It was enough to shake him back to a more reasonable state of mind. His lust for the opportunity to bury his length into Kagome's soft depths subsided enough to bring up other points of concern with this particular woman. Inuyasha being the most bothersome.

There was also her miko blood. As far back as he could remember there was never made mention of a youkai bonding with a miko. There could be explosive results. Mainly to him. And that was not a very pleasant thought at all.

Her snappy attitude was another consideration. While he quite enjoyed goading her into a tiff, he found that her resulting attitude would almost always ignite his temper in the end. Was she worth it? Would becoming closer to Kagome be worth the sheer aggravation of her verbal displays of anger? Hmmm... while they were mostly humorous, she sometimes touched a little too close to home. 'The wench really knows how to press my temper.' On the opposite side of that coin, he had to admit that he enjoyed her reactions to a certain extent, and knowing her as he does, he could stand to lessen his needling of her pride for the sake of getting along. If he wanted to get along.

'She possesses great loyalty and compassion.' Even in times of war she stood strong and never wavered from her duty. Her loyalty to Inuyasha, as much as it rankled his nerves, was unwavering, even when he was somewhat undeserving of it. Of all the youkai and humans that he knew, only one other matched her strength of character. Rin. She was completely devoted and unquestioningly loyal to those she loved. Rin always looked up to the miko Kagome, and missed her when she was gone.

These traits had to be adding to this uncanny attraction. It was rather un-nerving.

'What in the nine levels of Hell am I doing?' Sesshomaru cursed himself. His head tilted back and his eyes grew wide when he realized how close his hand was to actually touching the miko's smooth cheek. Her dreams were easing now, and the heat of her call was beginning to lessen. It helped to clear his head enough to step away from the temptation.

It was the moment in Sesshomaru's life that he realized how very dangerous Kagome was to him.

The power of the Shikon Miko, was nothing to fear compared to this. This power that she held over him was a dangerous weapon indeed. He would not fall to this woman. He, Sesshomaru Taisho, heir to the Western Lands, and owner of the most lucrative blade yielding weapons industry in the Eastern Hemisphere, Taisho Arms, Taiyoukai and Aristocrat, would not fall to this one small human woman. He would have to guard himself well against her, or he would surely lose this battle.

With a twist of his foot, Sesshomaru turned away from the sleeping girl, daring not to look back, before closing the door quietly behind him.

The moment the door closed, Kagome sat straight up in bed. Her eyes wide and her slender hand placed over her heart. 'Sesshomaru'. He was in her room. 'What was he doing here?' She had been having this crazy dream, where she was flying and being chased, but in the end she was having this wonderfully intimate moment with...

"Oh my God," she whispered into her fingertips.

The dream was insane, but it had felt so real. The man she had... lain with, was Sesshomaru. The only difference was that his hair had still been incredibly long. Why would she dream such a thing?

The most confusing thing was being drawn out of the dream state, almost as if something were pulling her back to reality. Pulling and tugging at her senses until she was slightly awake. Awake enough to recognize Sesshomaru's aura standing right next to her. She felt no threat, but she did feel a tingling against her own aura that was disturbingly nice. But before her sleep addled mind had a chance to process the gist of the situation, her watcher left the room.

Why was Sesshomaru standing by her bedside while she slept? That question was almost as disturbing as her dream.

General Matsuno Hotaka leaned over his desk, studying the map before him with intense focus. Somewhere in this wilderness, lay the key to his dreams for a better world. Somewhere... hiding. He would find them. Juria claimed to be unsure of the miko's life. His Colonel was under the impression that the youkai would kill the miko, but he knew better. If the youkai wanted the miko dead, he would not have swept her away from the cemetery, nor the park. No. The youkai had reasons to keep the woman alive.

He turned his attention from the map to the open file on the small table against the wall. Along with paperwork, there were snapshots spread out of those persons who were related in some way to the missing miko.

Higurashi Kagome

Female

Age: 22

Address: 825 Higurashi Shrine Lane, Tokyo, Japan

Work: Higurashi Shrine as Resident High Miko.

2nd place of Work: Heritage Library as Assistant Librarian

Living relations: Mother, Higurashi Maya. Brother, Higurashi Souta. Grandfather, Higurashi Orito

Hotaka sighed deeply and shuffled the photos of smiling relatives and oblivious co-workers. His surveillance team had little to offer as far as the girl went. It appeared that her social life was rather limited and her family small. There were no suspicious relationships, which would lead back to the host youkai that slipped his grasp.

The mother, brother and grandfather were being watched by the police twenty-four hours, but he suspected that they were unaware of the fact. It would be hard to get to one of them, and he would risk exposure or losing an operative by trying. That would mean going after someone else dear to the miko.

He pulled a picture of a young smiling woman with a bobbed hairstyle and big brown eyes. Best friend of Higurashi Kagome, Wannabe Eri. Oddly enough, this very woman was the one his people eliminated in order to get to the youkai, Shuusaku Taisho. The connection was there, but nothing put them together. The powerful businessman was the boss of her friend, but nothing more. There were no reports of any other connection. How could the youkai have known they would come for her at the cemetery? Had he discovered more about their operation than they had first thought? If so, how?

Coincidence? Hotaka did not believe in coincidence. No, there was more to this connection, but that was not a priority. Getting the miko back alive was.

Juria was currently scouring the mountainous terrain where the taiyoukai was suspected to have disappeared, hopefully with the miko. However, he had decided not to place all of his eggs in the same basket. It was time to gain an ace in the deck. The miko simply needed the right push and she would turn herself over to him without the need for a chase.

He pushed the picture of the dead woman away and slid another forward.

Kishimoto Rishou

Male

Age: 23

Home Address: 1140 Yamamoto Square, Apt. 256B, Tokyo, Japan

Work: Owner, Anime Akushondorama. 3600 Saitou Drive

Relation to Higurashi: Intimate Friend

"Intimate..." The words echoed softly in his office. Hotaka picked up the picture of a smiling young man with the undisciplined look of a rebel. The man had piercing's in his ears, one over his eyebrow, and was wearing a sloppy T-shirt with an open button-down oxford thrown carelessly over it. He had a long dark trail of hair falling over his shoulder, and a sparkle in his dark eyes. Was that spark there for Higurashi Kagome?

He would soon find out.

Juria cursed the fucking wilderness around her, and even cursed the fucking man who sent her here. Hotaka knew how much she hated roughing it. Damn his hide. She brushed away a trail of sweat trickling down her forehead with a gloved hand, before placing that same hand on a fallen tree trunk before jumping over it with graceful ease. Her booted feet landed lightly and she righted herself before snatching the collar of the Tracker a little harshly. The beast stopped, as well as the other three men at her back, and turned toward her.

With narrowed eyes she growled, "You better be one hundred percent sure about this, Tomo, because you really do not want to drag me out on a wild goose chase. I do not like the damned woods, and I do not want to be here. So if you steer me wrong you will pay in blood. Got it?"

The Tracker crouched its misshapen body in fear, but did not redirect its course. It was on a scent, and it was leading to something of great power. Tomo was sure of it.

"Damn," Juria spat, before motioning to her soldiers to move out. She would follow this creature, because she trusted its nature to get her what she wanted. It would seek out the power and the power was the youkai male who had, so far, bested her in this game. She had her fingers crossed that the miko was with the male. It would make this all so easy if she were. They would take care of him first, and then she would be easy pickings from there.

Absently her hand made its way to the odd looking gun holstered at her side. The Doc cooked up some of his youkai tranquilizer from the same stuff he made the scent from. The modified Glock on her hip was stocked with enough juice to put the male youkai down for a nice long nap. A grin spread over her lush full lips when she thought about having the youkai in her grasp once more. He would pay for this inconvenience. She would make sure of that. He would pay with pain.

Juria slapped at a biting insect that was making a feast of her blood, and wiped the mess on a white linen from her camouflage pocket. She looked down and grumbled at the mud and debris caked to her normally shiny black combat boots. She then pulled her radio from her side and hit the button. "Come in Myth Search 2, this is Myth Search 1. Over."

The radio crackled a second before her call was answered by her second in command, Sasaki Masamichi. "Myth Search 2, here. Over"

"Are you on the trail of discovery? Over." Juria asked. The last time they had contact, the second group was having trouble catching a scent of anything suspect.

"It looks like the River to the Truth lies ahead. Shall we proceed? Over."

River? Juria wanted to scream. A river could throw them off track. Sometimes the Trackers mistook the innate power of the river as something more than it was. It was a gamble, but one she was willing to risk. "Ten-Four, Myth Search 2. You have permission to proceed. Myth Search 1 Over and Out."

"It's a go. Myth Search Two Over and Out."

The radio went quiet and Juria slipped it back onto her black leather belt. She glanced back at her men finding them navigating the thick underbrush with slightly less grace than herself, but managing just fine. Each one held a fully automatic weapon in hand, as well as several knives and stars sheathed on their persons. They were ready for a fight, but if things went her way, their prey would never have a chance.

Another bug decided to take a bite out of the smooth soft skin on her neck. She slapped it then flicked it carelessly aside. "Fucking bugs," she grumbled.

It would all be worth it to finally see General Matsuno Hotaka come into full power. He was the most aggravating, brilliant, amazing man that she had ever known. His vision of the future would change everything for every living person on the planet Earth. This world was in need of drastic change, and as the supreme overlord, Matsuno-sama would direct their path to prosperity for all.

With her standing by proudly his side.

A/N2: I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Let me know what you think.

Next update: Detective Kobayashi 's research into the hidden artifacts from Taisho Shuusaku's home comes back with some rather perplexing results. Sesshomaru speaks of the past, revealing the fate of Inuyasha, and Kagome comes face to face with her new enemy.

Until then~

Rinseternalsoul@msn.com