InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Special delivery ❯ Riposte ( Chapter 63 )

Chapter 63: Riposte

 

 

A/N: Hello! I just started my senior year in college, and it's not going to be a piece of cake. Only the second week and some of my classes are already confusing me. In other words sorry dear readers, but I doubt I'll be able to increase my number of updates, at least not any time soon. We'll see as the semester progresses.

 

Thank you to my beloved reviewers

 

Syzhale

Sesshkagufan13

Little25victor

Roguereader (Your praise makes me blush. I had a feeling it was a little bit abrupt, but not too bad I hope. Hum Kagura's character will be something to delve into and Sesshy's too. They each have a good influence on each other.)

XelaKitsune (x2) (Good to see you're back)

Kagura's number one fan (Hum we shall see what Myouga's plan is, and if it can help Sesshy out)

Lots of love to Dogsfang as well for the nice PM.

 

On MediaMiner.org

 

Zetsuii (Ha ha you should know me well enough to know that this crisis was just the beginning of the drama. I have plenty more coming ku ku ku)

 

 

Disclaimer: If I owned Inuyasha, Sesshy and Kagura would be happily mated and working on silver haired baby number three by now…

 

 

 

“Talking”

`Thoughts'

 

 

 

 

“It will be alright I will get the shares back then, we will be rid of Naraku. Why is it you came to see me? I have a hard time believing that you came all the way her for no reason. You are supposed to be working at the center right now.

 

“Well let's just say I had quite an interesting visitor at the center today…” She was interrupted by the sudden shrill of the dog demon's phone.

 

“Hold that thought.” He bent over his desk, and took his phone from its cradle.

 

“Takahashi.” He spoke.

 

“Please forgive me master Takahashi. I would have returned your call sooner, but an important development has occurred!” None other than his lawyer, Myouga, squealed in his ear.

 

“If it is about Kanzaki selling his shares, you are too late, I already know, and I am working towards getting them back.” Sesshoumaru growled. He would anyways rather have his lawyer work on his adoption of Rin than worry about getting the shares of the Takahashi agency back. Just because Naraku had decided to pop back into his life, didn't mean that he would have to put on hold his plans for his family.

 

“Oh no Master, you have no need to do that.”

 

“What do you mean?” Sesshoumaru asked his lawyer.

 

“Kanzaki's sell was illegal, and all the shares go back to you.” Myouga paused, hoping to get some feedback from his employer. He had not expected Sesshoumaru to roar in joy, but a word of praise would have been welcomed. When it did not come, he added “Your illustrious father the great late Master Takahashi…”

 

“Get to the point.” Sesshoumaru cut him. The ever present reverence the retainers and employees he had inherited from his father always showed for the late Takahashi never failed to get on Sesshoumaru's nerves.

 

“Well your great father had made plans for such an eventuality. If one of the original share holders wishes to sell, he or she will need to consult, and get the permission of either you or your brother, but Kanzaki did neither. Of course having the shares go to you and your brother will cause you to exceed the 45% of shares you are legally allowed to have, but you could always put them in the name of a trusted friend of yours, who would still give you free reign over the shares as you did not too long ago with Mr. Houshi.” Myouga pointed out.

 

“I will think of someone... Go back to the issue.” Sesshoumaru murmured even as his eyes rested on Kagura; a plan was hatching in his mind. He knew his girlfriend would not like it, but he would find a way to convince her, of that he was sure.

 

“By selling his shares, Kanzaki violated the agreement, and has therefore forfeited them.”

 

Myouga's words brought a smile to Sesshoumaru's lips. “Did Kanzaki know of this clause my father made?”

 

“Well… his lawyer did.” Myouga finally admitted feeling incredibly uncomfortable.

 

“Hum is your law firm not in charge of his affairs as well?” The dog demon asked his lawyer.

 

“Well it is my wife Shouga who is in charge of his files, not me.” Myouga gulped. It was a well renowned fact that the old flea youkai was deathly afraid of his wife.

 

“It seems this Sesshoumaru is lucky that she is not as cowardly as you are, and is fiercely loyal to us Takahashi.” The dog demon knew it had something to do with his father helping Shouga snag the ever reluctant Myouga as a husband.

 

“Oh now Master, you know how dedicated I am to you and your family. I would do any…”

 

“Silence. If you are so dedicated, work on the project I have assigned you this morning.” Sesshoumaru's words caused Myouga to let out a gasp of pure pleasure.

 

“Master Sesshoumaru, it would be my pleasure and honor to do so. When I heard your message, and was told that you were looking into adopting a child, it brought tears of happiness to my eyes. I promise to do…”

 

Without waiting for Myouga to finish his sentence, Sesshoumaru hung up the phone; having Jaken blabber about his greatness was enough.

 

“Why in the hell could you be smiling right now?” Kagura suspiciously eyed the upturned lips of her lover.

 

“Keh! He must have gotten Myouga's message.” None other than Inuyasha stated as he strolled inside his brother's office, his clawed hands buried inside his pockets.

 

“What are you doing here little brother? Besides have you ever heard of a thing called knocking?!” Sesshoumaru glared at his younger half sibling.

 

“I smelt something foul, and came to investigate.” The hanyou stated, ignoring the glare Sesshoumaru was sending him.

 

`It must have been Naraku he smelt…' Kagura snorted to herself.

 

“Since when do you have such a keen sense of smell?” Sesshoumaru mocked his brother, whose smelling abilities were inferior to his due to him being half human. Ever since their younger days, this had been a source of continuous teasing and argument between the two.

 

“Feh! My nose is fine enough to smell your fucking arrogance from across the hallway.” Inuyasha stated with his trademark scowl on his face.

 

“Could you stop your stupid pissing contest for one second, and fill me in?” The exasperated wind sorceress sighed. Her words killed the retort Sesshoumaru was about to issue to his brother.

 

The hanyou snickered openly at how Kagura was able to control his brother so easily. `Then again that wench of Kagome can do the same to me...' He remarked thoughtfully to himself.

 

“Yeah well it seems that whoever that asshole of Kichiro Kanzaki was actually not supposed to sell shares of the company without my or Sesshy's consent, so the sale is void, and the shares go back to Sessh and me. Whoever bought them should get his money too I guess… A fucking waste of time.” The hanyou crossed his arms over his chest.

 

`That's amazing news!” Kagura rejoiced, relief at the idea that Naraku would not be able to hold something over Sesshoumaru spreading through her.

 

“Yeah we'll still have to find someone's name to put on the shares. We already used Miroku last time, so that's out of the question. I was thinking of giving half to Kagome since we're going to be married and all… You can do whatever you want with the other half Sessh.” The younger Takahashi remarked thoughtfully.

 

“What are you talking about?” Kagura asked, truly confused. Inuyasha was about to enlighten her, when with an almost imperceptible shake of the head Sesshoumaru interrupted him. The older demon was planning to explain everything to Kagura when the timing was right.

 

“Feh! You'll find out soon anyways.”

 

“Why do I have the feeling you're hiding something from me?” This time Kagura turned to address her boyfriend when she spoke. The look of determination in her crimson eyes let him know she wanted an answer, and soon.

 

“Miroku reporting for duty. Wow everyone's here, how come I wasn't invited to the party?” None other than the young human asked, faking a pout as he walked into the office of his boss and friend.

 

`For once the lecher has impeccable timing.' The dog demon thought, relieved. He was planning to tell Kagura all about his little plan, but he would need Myouga to start working on the paperwork beforehand.

 

“I asked you to stop by because I have an errand to run. Since Kagura is here, she might as well accompany me, Inuyasha can stay behind.” Sesshoumaru walked over to his chair to retrieve his coat before walking back to stand next to his wind sorceress.

 

“Wow! You're taking your wench… I mean woman…” Inuyasha quickly corrected himself for fear of Kagura's wrath “to see her?!”

 

“Indeed? What an interesting development… it's at times like these that I wish I were a small mouse so I could weasel inside a room, and watch the fireworks go off.” Miroku sighed dejectedly.

 

“What are these two idiots talking about?” Kagura turned towards Sesshoumaru, curiosity plain in her gaze. Instead of explaining, he merely let out an exasperated sigh before speaking.

 

“I promise all will be clear soon. Until then, trust me.”

 

“Kagura, if you want a good advice, remember that things aren't always what they seem.” Inuyasha's remark made a sense of worry grow inside the wind sorceress.

 

“Do not worry. It will all be okay; simply ignore them.” Sesshoumaru took her hand, and gave it a small reassuring squeeze.

 

“I'm not worried… I trust you. I'm just curious to see where we are going, that's all.” Sesshoumaru was pleased beyond words not to see a nasty cloud of doubt in his beloved's bright red eyes.

 

“Good. The let us go.” Without offering his brother and friend a farewell, the dog demon walked towards the door of his office. His progress was halted by Inuyasha.

 

“Wait a sec' I don't want your repulsive Jaken to call me again about the arrangements. If you don't want to talk to him, which I understand, you could at least let him know what you want, so he'll stop calling me.” Inuyasha said before the demon couple had a chance to leave the room.

 

Not needing to be told more, Sesshoumaru knew what his brother was alluding to. “If he calls tell him he can make arrangements similar to last year's. There is no reason to be fancy. On the other hand, do remember to bring your clothes to the cleaners this year before showing to the memorial.” Sesshoumaru's last comment brought a scowl to his brother's face.

 

“A memorial?!” Kagura could not help but gasp.

 

“Ah dear beautiful Kagura, did our boss forget to mention that it will soon be the anniversary of his illustrious father's passing? It is a family tradition to have family members and close friends gather for a memorial service; I am sure you are to be invited. After all I am convinced Sesshoumaru could use all the help and support he could get.” Miroku quickly explained. His last sentence caused Sesshoumaru to send him a nasty glare.

 

“Oh dear. I believe I hear my phone ringing… it could be my fair Sango calling, so I better leave… see you guys soon.” Without waiting for his boss to give him a reprimand, Miroku took it upon himself to quickly flee the office.

 

“Feh! What a damn coward.” Inuyasha commented as he too left the room, meaning to let Sesshoumaru and his girlfriend a little bit of privacy.

 

“You don't need to start sweating bullets or whatever. I know you were going to tell me. There's been so much going on lately that I don't really see when you would have had the time to slide this info in, so I can't say I blame you for keeping silent. On the other hand, I wouldn't mid hearing more about your dad. He seems to have been quite a formidable man.” Kagura could have cried at seeing the pain suddenly displayed on her boyfriend's face. He quickly put his indifferent mask back in place, but despite his best efforts, he was unable to fool her like before. Despite how stoic he wanted to appear, he was clearly hurting at the memory of his father's passing, and she could see right through him.

 

“That is an adjective that could be applied to him indeed.” He murmured under his breath then after a pause added “What this Sesshoumaru would like to know is why you skipped work, and came to see me at the office today. Not that I mind.” Without waiting for her answer, he walked out of his office.

 

`It's no wonder Sessh is so willing to do anything to keep his agency; it is his father's legacy after all. He seems to miss his dad even if he won't talk about it. Maybe later I'll get him to open up…' She thought to herself as she started walking, and did her best to keep up with his fast walking pace. She took pity on him, and accepted his sudden change of discussion topic.

 

“Well like I was saying earlier, I got a visitor at the center. My half brother Byakuya. And before you ask, no it does not seem like he was sent by our mother Sakura Fujibayashi to do her bidding.” She was startled when Sesshoumaru suddenly stopped walking, and turned to face her. It was so unexpected that she almost crashed into him.

 

“Are you okay?” He asked her, his cold mask and previous disturbed expression gone and replaced by genuine concern.

 

“Yeah. I came to see you because I just needed a friendly presence to help me figure out what to do…” She said as she kept on walking towards the parking structure in search of a private place to speak. She did not like one bit to be ogled by the diverse employees of the Takahashi agency who happened to be in the hallway at the moment.

 

“Do you know what you want to do?” The dog demon asked her as he resumed walking as well.

 

“Actually… thanks to you, yes I do. I am going to call Byakuya and arrange a meeting with him and Sakura.” Her statement made him almost gasp in surprise. He could still remember how upset she had been when she had first found out that Naraku was not her father.

 

`After talking with Jakotsu I already had doubts about my closeted attitude towards the Fujibayashi family, but now I don't have any more doubts. Now I've just come to realize that unlike Sesshoumaru, whose father had passed away, I still have a chance to spend time with my family. I could get to know them, share family traditions and stuff… Not to mention that it would be good for Kanna to actually have family…And besides I've always wanted to know why my mother would have abandoned me with a despicable monster like Naraku.' The wind sorceress thought as she settled in the passenger seat of the dog demon's luxury car.

 

“I do not know how much help I have been, but I am glad to see you came to a decision.” Sesshoumaru stated as he started his car.

 

“Sessh…” She paused unsure of how to phrase her question. “When I meet with them…”

 

“Of course I will come with you.” He finished her thought then removed one of his clawed hands from the wheel to give one of Kagura's hands a firm squeeze. She smiled up at him, and the two of them stayed in contended silence until they reached their destination.

 

 

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000

 

 

“This is her? This is the woman you've been all crazy about?!” Touran asked, wrinkling her nose in annoyance. Her light blue eyes had been trained on Kagura, for the past several minutes. She was actively trying to make the wind sorceress back down and cower under her cold blue gaze, but to no avail.

 

“Sorry to be such a source of disappointment.” Kagura snickered as she laced her fingers with the ones of Sesshoumaru's hand that was closest to hers. The two of them were seating across from the beautiful panther demoness in an upscale bar.

 

Her simple tender gesture unnerved the other demoness, but what annoyed her beyond words was the fact that Sesshoumaru, who she knew hated public displays of affection, was letting Kagura openly touch and caress him.

 

“This is truly sickening. I hear that Inuyasha is getting married as well. You two are a far cry from what you used to be.” The young demoness huffed, throwing in a graceful gesture some of her long blue hair over her shoulder.

 

“Touran. Instead of insulting my brother and me, you would do well to tell me about your findings.” Sesshoumaru commented, his glare letting Touran know he would not stand to be mocked anymore.

 

As if a switch was suddenly flicked inside of the young demoness, she suddenly took on a more professional attitude. She swiftly fished a thick folder out of her large purse, and placed it in front of her employer. “I am sorry to have taken so long to get back to you, but here is compiled all the information I could gather on Naraku Onigumo's business. It may not seem like it at first glance, but it is quite a neat and organized operation he is running. I had quite a hard time finding people willing to betray him. Seems like his employees are quite loyal; the ones that are not are apparently disposed off. Unfortunately I was unable to find any tangible proof of that.”

 

To prove her point, Touran opened the folder, and placed a few papers under Sesshoumaru's nose. He could feel a thin cruel smile appear on his lips at seeing the names of Yamashita and Kanzaki appear several times in the summary of the financial branch of Naraku's operation. However when he felt Kagura, whose hand was still firmly placed in his, shiver, Sesshoumaru turned towards her, and was surprised by how wide her crimson eyes were. While he was looking for a connection between Naraku, Kanzaki and Yamashita, in Touran's papers, Kagura's eyes were stuck on her own name in print.

 

“What is this? You had my past researched?! How could you do that without telling me first? I told you all about what I used to do. I thought you trusted me.” Kagura spat accusingly, her face suddenly pale, and tears of anger and frustration pooling in her crimson eyes. She quickly broke the hold, he had on her hand.

 

Kagura's crimson eyes moved from Sesshoumaru to the demoness seating across from them. She could feel her anger grow then. The wind sorceress really felt like slapping away the self-satisfied smile displayed on Touran's lips.

 

 

 

To be continued…

 

 

A/N: Wonder how Sesshy will get himself out of this one. Will he be able to use the information Touran gave him to get revenge on Naraku, Kichiro Kanzaki and Sousuke Yamashita? We shall see next time in Family matters.