InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Sayonara, Kanashi Houshi ❯ Kieski to Ai ( Chapter 7 )

Sayonara, Kanashi Houshi

(Goodbye, Sad Monk)

By Golden-sama

Rated: PG-13, for Mild Language, Violence, and Miroku's usual habits

Summary: Miroku discover he has only one week to live before his Kazanna devours him. How will he live his last week alive? Read it! You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll get to read one dam' good story. So what are you waiting for?

Chapter Seven

Kiseki to Ai

(Miracles and Love)

Miroku's eyes scanned the burning red sky as he watched the great balls of flame fall all around them. The city and the forest and the plains were all burning. The entire mountain that Tsune's castle was once built on was now engulfed by Naraku's venomous flames. And Miroku watched it all as the poison gripped his system; he watched it from the loving arms of Sango.

He was dying now, from the curse of Garudomaru's yellow eye, from the poison of the bees, and if that did not kill him, then from the fire of the shards from Onikage, that would soon burn everyone.

No one was speaking, save Shippou, who was crying loudly from where he was hugging Kagome's leg beneath the Fire Rat cloak. Kagome's eyes were filled with the same tears, for she alone would survive the flames. She didn't want to, she didn't want to go out like this, but Inuyasha would not allow her to remove that cloak.

No one else would take it, either. Kouga was as stubborn as Inuyasha, and was at last agreeing with him that Kagome should wear the cloak. Sango was too involved with the dying houshi to have even taken notice. And Sesshoumaru and Kikyo were both so quiet they could die and not be noticed.

Jaken, Rin and Kohaku had taken refuge under Aun, but the Dragon could not protect them from the rain of fire. Rin was leaking silent tears, and Jaken was crying loudly about all the things he had still yet to do in his life. Kohaku was even more silent than Kikyo or Sesshoumaru; he just sat there with a silent grin on his face, knowing that now he would burn as he should for what he did to his father.

"Sango."

The houshi's voice was so timid and quiet that Sango wouldn't have been able to hear it if not for the silence by everyone. The teary eyed Taijiya looked down at Miroku's face, which was wearing an odd sort of grin.

"Sango, can you help me raise my arm?"

Sango did not understand at first, but Miroku struggled with his right arm. She suddenly understood: Kazanna. The Air Void may be able to absorb these flames, as long as Miroku's life held out. Yet the monk was too weak to move, much less suck in a rain of fire.

"Sango, if you can just prop me up with the Kazanna open, it could give you all the time you need to escape."

Kouga turned his head at this and looked at the houshi with a strange look on his eyes. Humans were funny creatures; he didn't like them, most of them. Kagome was the exception. And yet somehow Kouga knew that this houshi had some kind of nobility to him. Hell, if the guy was going save their lives, he didn't care if he was human or youkai.

Yet not everyone thought in the way of Kouga. Sesshoumaru did not care for Miroku's aid. He had chosen to stay here and die. Why, the great Western Lord did not know. He was unsure of the true reason, perhaps it was because of Rin, perhaps because he knew now that Naraku had the fur of his father, and he could never stop him.

It was then that the Lord of the West gazed his emotionless eyes at Miroku, and noticed that a small scarp of dirty fur was lying on his chest. The fur of Inutaishou. It dawned on Sesshoumaru then that Naraku had not gotten the fur, and he was not yet too powerful to be killed. Something deep inside Sesshoumaru became angry. He was now going to die for no reason. With the smallest of sighs he lifted his head back to the sky. Yes, he could live if the houshi's plan worked, but to owe his life to a human, much less a friend of Inuyasha, was nothing that he desired.

"Sango, please. You have a chance to save yourself and the others. Please do as I ask."

Sango nodded grimly, and she bent down low and placed a kiss on the houshi's face. Then she lifted his right arm to the sky and Miroku uncurled his hand. The Kazanna shot open and began to suck, just in the right time too, for large flames had already burnt most of the mountain side around them, and now they were on their way to burn them.

Naraku's flaming rain fell in a pattern; it first burnt to all sides of the group of his enemies, and then began falling inside the ring of flames that it had created. It was then that the Kazanna burst forth and began to take it the flames that would have been the end of their lives.

"Miroku-sama. . ." Kagome whispered. Even as death began to take him, he was still helping his friends. It was then she felt Inuyasha's hand on her shoulder.

"Let's go Kagome. He'll be dead any minute and we don't have time to mess around."

Inuyasha's words sounded cold in her ears, but Kagome knew they were the cold truth. Miroku would die now no matter what happened, and he had decided to die saving their lives. Sango lay next to Miroku and smiled as she held his arm up.

"Yo, houshi." Kouga said. "You're not too bad for a human."

Kouga then shoot a loving glance at Kagome, which infuriated Inuyasha, and took off towards the ring of fire, with one good jump from his Shikon shard infested feet he made it clear over the flames and to safety.

Sesshoumaru said nothing; he merely stood in the same spot. He turned his silver haired head to the east and glanced over to Aun.

"Rin, leave."

Rin did not have time to argue, but the teary look on her young face asked all the questioned she needed too. `What about you?' And the expressionless eyes of Sesshoumaru were all the answer she needed. She knew he would survive, how she didn't know, but she knew he would.

Rin and Kohaku both climbed on the back of Aun and Jaken quickly grabbed onto the tail. As the two headed dragon began to fly away Kohaku looked back down to his sister, and he wondered if he'd ever see her again. He hoped so.

"Ain't you going with them?" Inuyasha growled rudely to his brother.

"I do not need a human to save my life, little hanyou. I shall leave after the houshi is dead."

Inuyasha was filled with fury, but he didn't have the time to argue or fight with his brother. He had to get Kagome out of here. He had to protect Kagome, and also . . . His eyes glanced back to the terrace, where Kikyo once stood. To his surprise he found her walking away, already on the other side of the wall of flames. As if sensing his stare the miko stopped and turned her head over her shoulder. The lifeless eyes of his former love held no words for him before she broke the gaze and continued walking away.

"Inuyasha, hurry."

It was Sango's voice. The Kazanna was sucking slower and slower, and more and more of the flames from the sky were crashing around them in small puddles of fire. Miroku was slipping from the world and their window of safety was vanishing.

"Sango-chan?"

Kagome had been wondering something. She knew that without Sango's help, Miroku could not continue sucking in the flames from above. So then, Kagome wondered, how would Sango escape? One look at her friend told Kagome the grizzly answer, and she didn't want to believe it. It was horrible beyond all horrors that she was losing Miroku-sama, that never again would she see the monk smile, or think, or hit on the pretty village women, but to lose Sango as well was more than Kagome could take.

Kagome quickly took off the fire rat's robe and threw it over Sango.

"That way you'll survive too, Sango-chan." Kagome said, but before she had even finished speaking, Sango threw the robe back to her.

"Kagome-chan, Gomen nasai."

If he had the strength, Miroku would have argued with Sango and forced her to leave. Yet his time was ending and he had but moments left to live. He couldn't stop her if he tried. And part of him wanted her with him in the end.

"Damn it!" Inuyasha punched the ground, a lone and silent tear leaking from his face. "I don't get this, this isn't supposed to happen!"

It was then Sesshoumaru let out a low laugh that caught everyone's attention. Inuyasha was growling from the ground and he looked ready to kill his brother. He looked down at Inuyasha and his face was twisted into a cruel grin.

"You truly want to save their lives, don't you hanyou?"

Sesshoumaru's hand moved to his sword's hilt, and in a second Inuyasha drew Tetsusaiga. Yet to his utmost surprise, it was Tenseiga, not Tokuijin that was in his brother's hand. Walking past Inuyasha and ignoring him completely, the Lord of the West slammed Tenseiga into the Kazanna. Miroku screamed out as his body was filled with pain, and Sango stared up at the lord of the west with hatred in her eyes.

Then Miroku felt it, he could feel the poison that was consuming his body vanish. He could feel it leave him and he could feel strength returning. With a satisfied grin on his face, Sesshoumaru removed his sword. Something flashed with a deadly yellow lightning bolt from the end of his sword, and to Miroku's utmost amazement the small yellow orb that Kagura had tossed into his Kazanna was stuck to Tenseiga. The orb shattered, and suddenly Miroku realized that his life was saved.

With newfound strength, Miroku pulled himself to his feet. The last of the flaming orbs of the sky were falling now, and he opened his fist once more. The Kazanna began to suck with a newfound fury, and the last flames flew into the void of air. Sango could not believe what she saw.

Then Sesshoumaru began to walk away, but as he did Inuyasha stopped him.

"Why did you save him?"

No one spoke as the Western Lord turned around to face his brother. "To teach you a lesson you should have learned a long time ago." With a satisfied smirk, Sesshoumaru kicked Inuyasha in the stomach with lightning relaxed. The hanyou fell to the ground and began to cough.

"You used every bit of your power to try to save your friend, Inuyasha. Yet you are hanyou, and you could not. Let this be a lesson that only a real youkai has the power to decide life and death. Do not forget your place ever again, dog. Do not forget that in the end, now matter how powerful you become, you are still a human."

And Sesshoumaru turned around once more without another word to any of them and began to walk away. Inuyasha stood to his feet and prepared a Kaze no Kizu, but Kagome put a hand on his shoulder and shook her head. Even if it had only been to humiliate Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru had saved Miroku's life.

--------

"Disappointing, isn't it?"

Far away from the mountain where Tsune's village had once stood, was an old forest, filled with the darkest youkai to wander the planet. And among them in this place of horror were Naraku and his servants, Kanna and Kagura.

"Kagura." Naraku said quietly from below his baboon skin. "If you speak again I shall kill you."

The trees in this forest were all dead already, and the ground was covered in a green slim that would burn humans to death. A large youkai was rolling around in this slop, enjoying itself. Above it in a tree sat the baboon.

"The houshi has survived." Kanna said in a voice that was filled with less emotion than Kikyo and Sesshoumaru both.

"I know that!" Naraku snapped. The small white haired girl still said nothing and just continued to stare. Naraku was furious today.

"It does not matter."

The baboon jumped down into the slop. The large youkai growled menacingly at him and charged. As he did there was a flash of light and the youkai had been devoured.

"This is only just getting started. Has Kohaku come back yet?"

"Not yet." Kanna spoke again in her voice. "But he will. Tsune's spell can not hold forever."

Naraku smirked behind the baboon skin. "Good. Kanna, when Kohaku is ready to become mine again, tell me. I have very large plans for him."

----------

The day had been long, giving burials to the dead of Tsune's village. There were no survivors. Everyone had been killed by youkai or burnt by Naraku's flames. Miroku and Sango had been so busy burying the dead that they hadn't had the time to speak to one another about anything that had transpired between them.

Now it was nightfall, and the two of them sat on the end of the scorched hill. Neither of them looked at one another, but slowly the gap between them closed and before long Sango was leaning against Miroku, his arm around her shoulders. Behind them Inuyasha and Kagome sat themselves by the dying camp fire. They pretending not to be watching, but they were.

"Houshi-sama . . ."

"Don't say anything." Miroku said at once. "Let's not ruin this moment."

Kagome let out a happy sigh as she watched her friends, but all too soon the sound of a slap echoed in the night.

"What the hell was that `let's not ruin this moment' crap, Houshi-sama!?"

"Ahh, how I have missed that slap. And that butt --"

A second slap and now Kagome just sighed and fell down to her back. She didn't want to watch the romance when it turned back into petty arguing.

"Feh, what a baka. He was torn in pieces worrying about losing her, and as soon as everything works out he ruins it." Inuyasha laughed.

"You've almost lost me before, and you never change the way you act." Kagome whispered. Inuyasha sweat dropped for a moment before something cleaver came to him.

"Well that's different Kagome; I'm not in love with you like he is with Sango."

Shippou winced and shook his head. He hoped he would never grow up, because it looked like grown up men acted like complete idiots. Kagome turned over on her side ignoring the dog demon and began to cry silently.

"Oh, that isn't what I meant Kagome!"

She ignored him, but he crossed over and grabbed her shoulder and pulled her so that she faced him.

"I just mean I don't love grabbing your ass like Miroku! I never said I didn't love you." Even as Inuyasha said these words, he had a look on his face that told Shippou if he made one comment that he'd be killed. Kagome apparently had forgiven Inuyasha, because she reached forward and hugged him.

"Hey! Kago-me! You're supposed to snuggle with me at night, not that baka!" Shippou complained.

"Why don't you just shut up raccoon?"

Haichi moved his head at this, but realized it was Shippou he meant. The small Kitsune became very mad at this.

"Sorry Inuyasha, I didn't know it was your turn to snuggle."

Inuyasha blinked. "I'm not snuggling. I don't snuggle."

"Then what are you doing?" Shippou asked.

"Err, umm, I. . . I'm groping her like Miroku!" And with that Inuyasha moved his hands from around Kagome's back to a place much lower. In an instant he regretted it.

"Oswari!"

"Oww, no it's not what you thi--"

"OSWARI!"

"Let me explain--"

"Oswari! Oswari! Oswari! Oswari! Oswari! Oswari! Oswari!"

"Would you stop a minute--"

"OS - WA - RI!!!!!!"

And so every truly was back to how it had been a few days ago when the entire mess had started. Kagome was sleeping peacefully with Shippou in her arms like a stuffed toy, Inuyasha was sitting in a large hole, not moving much, Miroku had a large red slap mark across his cheek, and Sango was sleeping with Kirara keeping her eyes on the houshi.

And yet even as it happened, Sango had a strange smile on her face. She was in love, even if Houshi-sama did act like a baka most of the time, it was still love.

"Oyasumi, houshi-sama."

-----------------------------

Oyasumi, houshi-sama = Goodnight, Master Monk

Author's Notes

Ok, now it's time for the most important part of this story.

Okay, well that's the end of this story.

However, not the end of this series.

I've already decided that I will be making and even better, even longer story next. A sequel, which will also revolve around Miroku and Sango.

If you guys want to see that sequel, then let me know. I'll wait till Monday, January 12, 2004. If you want to see a sequel, then let me know in your reviews.

Sayonara, for now

~ Golden-sama

Goldensama@aol.com