InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Redemption ❯ The Things We Do for Love ( Chapter 16 )

Characters owned by: Rumiko Takahashi, Viz Entertainment, ECT.

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Redemption

Chapter 16: The Things We Do For Love

 

 

Once they get to the other side, Inuyasha clues them in on what he's up to. “I think that it was Naraku that caused Sesshoumaru and Tensei to disappear.” “How?” Sango asks utterly perplexed. “Naraku can become awakened and take control of Tensei's mind…whenever Tensei is in physical danger. I also think that he has some kind of supernatural ability during that time as well.” “So what are you going to do?” Kagome continues. “I believe I know where he took Sesshoumaru. I overheard Sesshoumaru mumbling a location in his sleep…the old castle…I think what he meant was…Naraku's old castle. I'm going there.” “Why would he take Sesshoumaru to his old castle?” Kohaku asks. “I don't know, but the only way we're going to find out is if we head there as soon as possible.” Nibiru clears his throat loudly before saying, “Excuse me…What is this connection between your former nemesis and this ningen my mother was trying to kill?” Miroku replies, “Inuyasha believes that the guy, Tensei is his name, is Naraku's reincarnation.” “Oh, I see…thank you for that very helpful information.” “OK-let's go,” Inuyasha concludes. They take off as quickly as possible. It isn't long before they reach Naraku's old castle. Once they all land, after getting off of Kirara and looking around, Sango utters nostalgically, “It feels so strange…being back here…so many memories I long to forget.” They proceed to walk through the crumbling, dilapidated entrance…everyone accept for Nibiru, who unlike Sesshoumaru, prefers to float or fly everywhere and only walks when it's absolutely necessary.

 

- Naraku's very sensual and pleasurable kisses cause Sesshoumaru to go completely weak in the knees. Finally he releases Sesshoumaru's mouth but continues to hold onto his waist for fear that he might just fall over. Sesshoumaru gazes with enchantment and light-headedness into Naraku's dark red tented eyes. He laughs breezily before uttering smoothly, “Only you could inspire these kinds of reactions in me.” Naraku smiles with satisfaction. After letting go of Sesshoumaru's waist, Naraku lovingly caresses his cheek before saying, “Are you ready?” Sesshoumaru pauses for a moment as he gazes into Naraku's eyes. He responds with an emotional and confident whisper, “Yes.” - As Inuyasha and the gang continue to walk past building after building surrounded by eerie silence and darkness with only the moon and stars to light their way, Inuyasha suddenly perceives a scent in the air. He looks up and catches a glimpse of a man with long dark hair carrying another man with white hair on his back. `Sesshoumaru!' he exclaims in his mind. Then he says out loud, “I saw them.” “Where,” Miroku asks urgently. “They were above me.” “So it looks like you were right after all Inuyasha,” “Yea, I'm going to try and catch up to them.” “Right - just go on ahead of us. We'll catch up to you,” Kagome adds. Inuyasha wastes no time jumping over one of the roofs in order to follow the scent in his nostrils. After a few moments of Inuyasha being gone, as everyone continues to walk, Kagome says, “Nibiru-Sama, On behalf of everyone I just wanted to thank you for deciding to help us.” There is silence. “Hm?” She turns around only to discover that he is no longer there. “You guys, Nibiru is gone,” Kagome utters with confusion. “Really?” Sango questions. Everyone looks back. As they turn back around not being able to find one trace of him, Miroku mumbles contemplatively, “Hm…That's strange. I guess he's more like Sesshoumaru-Sama than we thought."

 

- Inuyasha traces Naraku and Sesshoumaru's scent to a field right outside of the castle walls. There he sees them standing as they face each other. He decides to perch atop the nearest roof. He uses his extremely sensitive ears in order to listen in on their conversation. “She is here…It is time…Are you sure you want to do this? Do you really want to sacrifice your Daiyokai lineage and all of the power that comes with it…just to be with me as a reincarnated human who won't even have any memories of our time together? Sesshoumaru, it's very hard going from being a yokai or hanyou, to being a human. Trust me…I know what I'm talking about. If Tensei dies…as a Daiyokai, you'll have plenty of time to find someone else to love…I just want you to be happy, Sesshoumaru. If I am not, that is just a small sacrifice to make. I'll die if it'll insure your happiness.” Sesshoumaru whispers, “Naraku?” “Yes Sesshoumaru?” “Just look me in the eyes and tell me that you love me.” Naraku gazes deeply into Sesshoumaru's eyes as he lightly holds his hand against Sesshoumaru's neck. He whispers with deep emotion and reverence, “I…love…you…Sesshoumaru. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you.” Sesshoumaru gazes into Naraku's eyes for a few moments. He suddenly bursts into teary eyed laughter, “I wish we could stand here with you continuing to say that to me for all eternity.” Naraku leans in before kissing Sesshoumaru lightly on the lips. After they finish kissing, they hold each other's hands as they continue to face each other with warm grins on their faces. They start to move back without releasing each other's hands. Then out of nowhere a wind begins to surround Sesshoumaru causing his clothes and hair to be manipulated by its currents. “No!” Inuyasha shouts as he lands not too far from where they are standing. The wind goes away just as quickly as it came.

 

“Inuyasha,” Sesshoumaru utters with slight surprise. Inuyasha protests, “You can't do this Sesshoumaru…I mean…what…what if this is some kind of trap? What if you become human and then he tries to kill you…and then maybe us?” “Inuyasha I…” “I'm talking to my brother, Naraku…you're lucky I don't just kill you right here and now. Now you decide to reveal yourself. I knew you were up to no good all along. But your wishes will not be carried out, not as long as I'm around. So tell me Naraku, who did you convince to help you carry out your sinister plan of turning Sesshoumaru into a human?” “Inuyasha, I really do love Sesshoumaru. That's why I came back as Tensei, so that I could have the opportunity to give him what I never could before…” “…Don't give me that bullshit! You never loved my brother. That is the reason why you went after the Shikon No Tama instead of him. That's because you're a selfish, power hungry bastard...always was…always will be. You were always full of shit Naraku, but this time it isn't going to fly.” Sesshoumaru interrupts him, “Inuyasha…you don't know the whole story. You're just making assumptions about things based on your personal issues with him. But in this situation, your issue is not with Naraku, it is with me. I am the one making the decision to do this. Naraku is not forcing me to do it in anyway. Sure, being in love may block my ability to judge things accurately but even with that taken into consideration, it is still my decision to determine whether I will act based on my current state of thinking.” “But that's the problem right there, Sesshoumaru. You aren't really thinking, so I'm here to think for you.” “Inuyasha, I've taken care of myself for over five centuries. Do you not believe I am more than qualified to think for myself?” Inuyasha's voice becomes more distressed in tone, “But Sesshoumaru, what about everyone else who will be impacted by you making this decision!” He says his last words quietly, “What about me?”

 

There is silence for a few moments. Finally, Sesshoumaru replies as he moves closer to Inuyasha and presses his hand against his arm, “Just because I am becoming a human, doesn't mean that I will be completely helpless. I will always be your elder brother. I will always love you as a brother. I will be more capable of loving you as a human, than I ever could as a Daiyokai. When I die, I will always be with you, Inuyasha.” Inuyasha looks Sesshoumaru in the eyes, still not completely accepting of things. Sesshoumaru senses that Inuyasha is still not completely at peace with the idea of him becoming human, along with other things that have remained unspoken. Suddenly, Kagome along with everyone else who came with Inuyasha and her arrives with the exception of Nibiru. “Sesshoumaru Sama,” Rin calls out. “Inuyasha,” Kagome calls out. Sesshoumaru turns around and stands beside Inuyasha before they reach them. When they finally do, Sango looks at Tensei and realizes that his eyes are a different color, dark red actually. “Naraku?” she says at first not sure if her eyes are deceiving her. `Kami, what do I say? No matter what I do, it will be seen as coming from a malicious place.” He decides to just wave. It comes out sheepishly. “Naraku!” Sango spits venomously. Inuyasha's eyes grow big and so does Naraku's as Sango proceeds to bomb rush him with Hiraikotsu in hand. Inuyasha quickly jumps in front of her, stopping her before she manages to reach him. “Why are you stopping me…hhh…Inuyasha?! He has to die!” He almost has to use all of his strength to keep her at bay as she continues to charge like a raging bull. “Sango!” Miroku calls out. “Let me at `em!” “Sango!!” She finally stops before turning around sharply. “What?!” she replies completely out of breath. “Why is he here, Sango? Why hasn't he tried to harm Inuyasha?” She looks down in thought. After a moment, she looks back up with a glare directed towards Naraku. “That's a good question. Why are you here Naraku?!”

 

He answers with hesitation, “I'm…here…to,” Sesshoumaru finishes his sentence. “He's here to be with me. He incarnated as Tensei in order to be with me. He agreed to go through tremendous hardship as a human in order to be with me. If I didn't receive his love when it was time, he agreed to die as Tensei soon after because he wouldn't be able to be with me. In order for there to be balance with his karma, I have agreed to become a human so that he can be with me. He has endured all of your onslaughts in order to be with me as well as my families' onslaughts. If he was out to hurt anyone of you, I'm sure he would have done so by now. The only one who could possibly seriously end up hurt in this is me. He no longer has the motivation to be with Kikyo. He loves me exclusively. She's long gone and cremated anyway, reincarnated and married to Inuyasha. Now all we desire to do is move on with our lives. The past is the past.” There is silence for a moment. “We respect your decision Sesshoumaru Sama,” Sango responds calmly. “If you need me, I'll be here,” Kohaku ads. “I'll love you no matter what, Sesshoumaru Sama,” Rin concludes. “Thank you.” After taking a deep breath, Sesshoumaru walks over to Naraku before grabbing on to his hand. They continue to hold hands as they walk a few paces away from everyone. Then finally, they resume their former positions, facing each other with both hands clasping the others. They move back some. Then suddenly wind currents begin to encircle Sesshoumaru…then Naraku.

 

Gradually, Sesshoumaru begins to lift up off of the ground as a color prism of light begins to encompass him. They continue to hold hands until they can no longer hold hands any longer. Naraku looks up at Sesshoumaru with joy and amazement as wind continues to encircle him. Everyone else there looks up with complete awe as Sesshoumaru beams with every color in the rainbow. Then Kagome notices something peculiar. “You guys…look! There's a woman standing right next to Sesshoumaru!” Everyone see's the almost translucent woman, with skin like gold, eyes that beam with blinding white light and a golden kimono. Even her hair is golden. The vibrantly colorful energy around Sesshoumaru continues to grow as the brightness becomes more and more vivid. Finally it becomes so intense, that only Naraku is able to gaze upon it without affect. During the last vestiges of Sesshoumaru's transformation, the energy surrounding him, pulses out dramatically. Then afterwards, it slowly becomes dimmer as Sesshoumaru begins to drift back down to earth. Once his feet touch the ground again, a hazy film of the colorful energy remains as it shimmers around him enchantingly.

 

After a little while longer, all of the rest of the energy disappears, until nothing is left but a bewitchingly handsome and tall human male: With a chiseled face, very long, charcoal black hair, fair, creamy skin, a beautifully sculpted body, no claws, no pointy ears, no markings, vibrant hazel green eyes and no clothes. As the colors of early morning feel the sky above, everyone gazes upon the newly human Sesshoumaru as if they'd just been struck by lightning. “He looks perfect even as a human,” Kagome utters dumbfounded. Surprisingly, Inuyasha doesn't disagree with her. “You guys, he's naked,” Rin says breaking everyone out of their trance. “Here, give him my Fire Rat robe,” Inuyasha says before handing it over to Kagome. She rushes over in order to cover him with it. In a daze, Sesshoumaru absent mindedly allows her to place it over him as he lifts his arms so that she can get them through the sleeves. She continues to stand by Sesshoumaru as all the others walk over towards him. He eventually snaps out of his trance before gazing at his hands. He turns his palms up and then back down again and then he repeats the action. `I can't believe it…I'm a…human…This Sesshoumaru…is…a…” He swiftly becomes light-headed. Kagome's, “Sesshoumaru, what's wrong-are you alright?” is followed by similar sentiments from everyone else surrounding him. Inuyasha helps Kagome in holding him up so that he doesn't fall to the ground. Naraku continues to watch them in the back ground as Sesshoumaru slowly begins to regain his equilibrium. He looks past everyone and see's his beloved quietly and humbly standing there with his hands behind his back and his gaze directed towards the earth beneath him. Naraku feels Sesshoumaru's gaze upon him and looks up swiftly. Sesshoumaru gently pulls away from everyone so that he can walk towards Naraku. He constantly stumbles to the ground in his endeavor, but he persistently stands back up before continuing his trek towards Naraku.

 

Once Sesshoumaru finally reaches him they hold on to each other's arms. Sesshoumaru gazes into Naraku's sparkling ruby red eyes as Naraku gazes back into his luminescent light green, emerald and gold speckled ones. Naraku whispers, “Sesshoumaru…you are...so beautiful.” Sesshoumaru blushes as he smiles softly. A breeze surrounds them causing their hair to flutter in the air more dramatically. Naraku closes his eyes for a moment. When he opens them again, they have become Chrysocolla blue. “Tensei,” Sesshoumaru whispers. “Do you remember?” Tensei is quiet as he begins to smile. “Yea…it was as if I was outside of my body, watching myself. I agree, you look lovely as a human Sesshoumaru.” “Thank you, Tensei…I did it for you.” Suddenly everything hits Sesshoumaru all at once and he breaks down into tears. Tensei pulls Sesshoumaru towards him, before hugging him softly, “Ssshhh…sssshhh…I will take care of you…you'll be fine…I love you Sesshoumaru.”