InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The 500 Year Engagement ❯ The 500 Year Engagement - It Ain't Exactly Fantasy Island ( Chapter 14 )

The 500-Year Engagement

It Ain't Exactly Fantasy Island

By Majicman55

 

Disclaimer: The characters from “InuYasha” are not mine; they are the intellectual property of Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan, Yomiuri TV, Sunrise, and Viz. I do not benefit financially from these writings. I just like to play with the characters.

 

 

The place was a chunk of rock sticking up out of the sea. It didn't even look big enough to have a good source of water…and the shoals around it made for a hazardous approach.

 

“Why would anyone ever come here?” thought Mr. Sato. He looked at the chart again. The place was marked “private,” and he had the sudden feeling that he should have checked just who owned it. If it was Mr. Sesshoumaru…well, he didn't like the idea of going onto someone else's territory, but at least his dozen well-armed men would give him the upper hand.

 

No one crossed Katashi Sato.

 

“There! Land there.” He pointed to a landing that had just come into view…although it seemed odd that there was a mist surrounding it at this time of day.

 

“I'd swear that wasn't there before,” muttered the pilot. “This place gives me the creeps. You sure you want to put in, boss? ”

 

“I'm payin' you enough, ain't I?” growled Katashi. The truth was that he had thought about leaving, too, but now that he had come this far, he wasn't going home empty-handed. “You just bring us in so I can get a little `surprise' ready for Mr. Sesshoumaru.”

 

“Yes, sir.”

 

 

******************

 

 

The boat had been partially beached and anchor lines put in place. “I want this treated like a military operation!” barked Mr. Sato. “You guys, set up a perimeter! You, unload the explosives!” He pointed to the last two men. “You two, find me a good place for an ambush.”

 

“Boss?”

 

“A place where I can trap the bastard and blow him to kingdom come if he tries anything. Now, scout the place!”

 

“Right, boss!”

 

Katashi muttered something about not being able to find good help anymore, and looked at his watch. Coming two hours early ought to give him a jump on Mr. Sesshoumaru. But then, how tough could the “Lingerie Lord of Japan” be?

 

He checked to see that the perimeter had been set up properly. Then he watched the men unloading the explosives. One crate, two crates. He smiled. One wrong move and Mr. Sesshoumaru would be having tea with the kamis.

 

“Boss!”

 

“Hey, boss!”

 

“Boss!”

 

Katashi looked to the source of all the shouting. The men he had sent to find a good spot for an ambush were waving at him, trying to get him to walk their way.

 

“Come on! You've gotta see this!”

 

Katashi started walking. “Maybe for once one of these idiots actually did something right.” As he passed the boat, he motioned for the guys with the explosives to follow him.

 

 

******************

 

 

Mr. Sato checked out the narrow defile. He stopped walking and looked around. “Not bad, you guys. Not a bad spot at all.”

 

Yet the men were urging him on. Katashi grumbled, but followed. After all, it was strategically sound to know what was behind you.

 

“Where are we…?”

 

He stopped, and stared. The defile had debouched to reveal a large valley. A river ran through it, along which there were two separate villages. There were rice paddies outside the villages, and he could see tiny figures in them. “What the hell?”

 

Mr. Sato looked back up the defile; then he turned and looked over the valley again. “This island ain't that big. There's no way this can be…” Katashi paused. He blinked once, then again, then yet again. Were his eyes fooling him? Not only were the figures in the paddies not moving, but there also was something visually wrong.

 

He picked up a small rock and threw it.

 

The rock seemed to sail completely over the valley, hitting one of the “mountains” on the other side. From the destruction it caused, you would have sworn it was a huge boulder when it landed.

 

“It's an optical illusion, boys.” Katashi laughed and started back the way they came. “Mr. `Lord' Sesshoumaru really has some issues if he's building things like this on his island.” He walked partway back along the defile, and then stopped to talk with the explosives man. He pointed to a number of spots. “There, there, there and I want one there, too…and I want remote detonators so I can blow that bastard up if I feel like it.”

 

The man got to work.

 

Off on one side of the defile, the opposite side from where the man was setting explosives, a small red-brown animal sat on its haunches, using one paw to scratch itself under its chin. When the man moved to the next location, the animal sniffed around where the man had been working, appeared to bury something, and then moved to watch the man working at the next spot.

 

 

******************

 

 

“Kagome!”

 

A small bundle of red fur bounded straight for the miko, who, out of habit, caught the diminutive creature in her arms.

 

“Got some pocky for me?”

 

Kagome looked down and smiled. “Hello, Shippo.”

 

<THUMP>

 

The kitsune found himself on the ground at the miko's feet, a lump rising on his head. “Hey! What did you do that for?”

 

There was a poof and in place of the child kitsune was a fully-grown version of Shippo.

 

“Feh! First of all, you're too old to do that to Kagome. Secondly, you have your own mate now. You can jump on her.”

 

Shippo grinned. “And I do, with great regularity.” In truth, the island they were all on was a sort of kitsune preserve...and Shippo and his mate were themselves responsible for a minor population explosion.

 

“I have a couple of surprises for you, Shippo,” said Kagome, who pointed into the air.

 

The kitsune looked up. “Kirara! Sango!” The two landed and Shippo immediately hugged the fire neko. “I haven't seen you in so long!” He let Kirara go and turned to the taijiya. “It's good to see you, too, Sango.”

 

Sango, dressed once again in her taijiya outfit, nodded back to Shippo. “Nice to see you.”

 

“Sesshoumaru told me you and Miroku were around, although not how you got here, but somehow he neglected to tell me about Kirara.”

 

Lord Sesshoumaru joined them. “Now you know.”

 

The kitsune noted that the Great Lord of the Western Lands had dressed in his old traveling outfit, complete with mokomoko, armor and kitanas.

 

“Impressive, but I don't think that armor will be much use against modern guns…and they've got assault rifles.”

 

“Hn. This Sesshoumaru is not so foolish as to stand there and let the humans blast away at him. Now, you will tell this Sesshoumaru all that you observed.”

 

“Right.” Shippo turned serious. He picked up a stick and drew a rough outline of the defile. “There are twelve men and a leader…your Mr. Sato, I assume. They are all heavily armed and one of them is an explosives expert.” Shippo used the stick to mark several points. “They have planted charges here, here, here and here…and their leader is holding on to the detonators, himself.” The kitsune grinned. “I have buried…something that might help…at each location.”

 

“Kitsunes,” mumbled Lord Sesshoumaru. “Did they find the valley?”

 

“Yes, but they don't know what it is yet. Their leader threw a stone over it. I believe he thinks it's an elaborate model of some kind.” The kitsune, looking thoughtful, paused a moment. “How did you know they would come early?”

 

“Mr. Sato is not an honorable man.” Sesshoumaru showed the slightest of grins. “I will teach him honor.”

 

“You're not going to just slaughter them all?”

 

InuYasha stepped forward. “Oi, that's why I'm here.”

 

Shippo was confused. “You're going to slaughter them?”

 

“Feh. No, I'm here to make sure Sessh, here, doesn't.”

 

“Watch yourself, InuYasha. You should be more respectful.”

 

“Feh. Lord Sesshoumaru, then.”

 

The tai-youkai glared at his brother.

 

Kagome stood with Sango. “And we're here to make sure Sesshoumaru doesn't kill InuYasha.”

 

“Feh! Like I need your help!”

 

Shippo sighed. “Arguing again?”

 

 

 

******************

 

 

Mr. Sato grimaced. “What was that?” It had sounded like a large boulder hitting the ground…but what could have dislodged it?

 

He put his reaction down to nerves. It was practically time for his meeting with Mr. Sesshoumaru. He reminded himself that there were earthquakes around Japan all the time. Some tremor had dislodged a rock. That was all.

 

He and ten of his men waited in the defile. He had stationed two men on the beach with instructions to bring Mr. Sesshoumaru with them, making sure he wound up standing where setting off the explosives would bury him under tons of rubble. Mr. Sato smiled and reminded himself: “Just don't do it before you get the money.”

 

 

******************

 

 

The two men, weapons at the ready, scanned the ocean for the approach of another boat. It was already time for the man their boss was waiting for to arrive, and they hadn't seen anything.

 

“Ya think he's showing?”

 

“Who cares? As long as we get paid.” The man flipped the safety off on his weapon. “Just stay sharp.”

 

“Hn.”

 

Both men spun around and opened up on pure instinct. Just as they did, they thought they saw both a white and a red blur rising into the air and passing over their heads.

 

“Oi. I wouldn't do that again, if I were you.”

 

The voice had come from behind them. They spun around with their weapons. Standing before them was a figure all in red and a second figure in a white kimono, heavily decorated and armored. Both figures carried kitanas.

 

“I don't know how you did that, but the boss wants to see you and I ain't takin' you to him with those fancy swords.”

 

`Yeah,” said the other man, as they both brought up their weapons. “Lose `em.”

 

The figure in white moved faster than they could see. They both recoiled while pulling their respective triggers.

 

Nothing.

 

They looked at their own hands and discovered they were holding half their weapons. The other halves were on the ground. The figure in white was sheathing his kitana.

 

“This Sesshoumaru wishes to see Mr. Sato, now.”

 

InuYasha smiled, showing his fangs. “If I were you, I'd do what my brother wants.”

 

 

******************

 

 

Mr. Sato was nervous. He had heard the gunfire from the beach, and now his men reported that his “reception committee” was proceeding into the defile without their weapons and being marched ahead of two figures in archaic costumes, carrying kitanas.

 

“What the hell is going on?” He spoke into the radio. “Just keep your guns on `em.” He hoped the two men would remember their job.

 

He watched as they came to correct spot, and stopped. “Ha.”

 

One of the men spoke without turning. “We're here.”

 

“Hn.”

 

Katashi called out, “Are you holding my men hostage?”

 

“This Sesshoumaru needs no hostages.” The tai-youkai spoke to the men. “Go.”

 

“Yes, sir!”

 

Both men charged up the path, eager to get away.

 

“Who's the guy with you?”

 

`He is my brother.”

 

“Just keep your hands in sight.” Katashi frowned. The two each had kitanas…but what was it with the old costumes? His eyes narrowed. You could hide a lot of weaponry in those. “Just remember: my men are covering both of you.”

 

The two brothers spoke softly to each other.

 

“Oi. I count Mr. Sato and twelve other men.”

 

“Agreed. However, I have not pinpointed the explosives yet.”

 

As if on cue, there was a series of small pops and a host of small, mushroom-like creatures popped up and started a loud keening.

 

“Thanks, Shippo,” InuYasha said to himself. Then, to his brother, “Well, we know where they are now, and we're standing right in the middle of `em.”

 

“Then we should…move!”

 

Mr. Sato's jaw dropped as he watched the figure in red leaping high into the air. Of more concern was the other figure, who was heading towards him at such a rapid pace that he barely had time to detonate the charges.

 

He pressed the buttons. “One, two, three, four.” There were four explosions. He looked up to see the white figure still coming, the figure in red just behind him. His men gathered in front of him, pointing their weapons at what had to be Mr. Sesshoumaru.

 

The figure halted his rapid approach, but kept advancing. As Katashi and his men retreated, he had the uncomfortable feeling they were being herded.

 

If he had looked up, he might have seen what looked like a large cat with flaming paws flying above him with two girls and a red-haired figure on its back. But his attention was on the threat in front of him.

 

They kept retreating back the defile…until they felt the ground sloping down beneath them. Not having much choice, they kept moving.

 

Was it his imagination, or were the two figures getting larger? In fact, they seemed to be getting much larger…although they were no longer following him. They seemed, rather, to be…smiling. It really creeped him out…especially Mr. Sesshoumaru's expression. It was like the expression a hunting animal got when it knew its prey had nowhere to go.

 

Mr. Sato decided it was finally safe to look around. There were rice paddies, and a village…and they were all life-size.

 

“What the hell?”

 

 

******************

 

 

“What are you going to do with them?” asked Kagome.

 

Kirara had landed and now everyone was looking into the “valley” where they could see the tiny figures of Mr. Sato and his men darting this way and that…much like ants after someone disturbs their nest.

 

“This Sesshoumaru could just leave them there.”

 

“Nahhh.” Shippo looked down into the miniature world. “My mate and several other kitsunes are down there. And although they know about guns, and much as they would enjoy tormenting those cretins, I don't think we want to put up with `em.”

 

“Besides,” said Kagome. “It doesn't get rid of the problem of those pictures. What if Mr. Sato has entrusted them to someone else?”

 

“Feh. He doesn't seem like the trusting type,” said the hanyou.

 

“Nevertheless, this Sesshoumaru agrees with your mate.” The Great Lord of the Western Lands watched the small for a moment. “It would be better to recover the files. Besides, this Sesshoumaru wishes to further enlighten Mr. Sato.” The tai-youkai turned to the miko. There will be no problem extracting everyone again?”

 

“I don't think so,” answered Kagome. It's pretty much like the sage's village…only, if you can get out past the barrier, you return to your normal size automatically.”

 

Kagome noticed that InuYasha had a dreamy smile on his face. “What's your problem?”

 

“That was the first time I saw your…”

 

“Osuwari!”

 

<WHAM>

 

 

******************

 

 

“Stop wastin' ammo!” Mr. Sato frowned. One of the men had shot up another of the statues they had found in the rice paddies.

 

“But, boss! Some of `em move!”

 

“They're statues.” Katashi looked around nervously. “We've gotta find a way out of here.”

 

“L-Look!”

 

Katashi looked where the man was pointing. A small, glowing sphere descended and floated in front of them.

 

A glowing outline appeared and solidified into what Mr. Sato knew as Mr. Sesshoumaru. “Mr. Sato, I presume.”

 

“What the hell are you?”

 

“If you knew your country's culture, you'd know what I am.”

 

“Youkai?” Katashi snorted. “The product of the imagination of ignorant men.”

 

A figure in red floated down to land beside Sesshoumaru. “Feh. And you're sayin' you're not an ignorant man?”

 

Mr. Sato stepped back as Kirara and her riders landed beside Sesshoumaru and InuYasha. “You again!”

 

“Hello, Mr. Sato,” said Kagome as she, Sango and Shippo dismounted. “I did not appreciate your treatment of us, before.”

 

Katashi stared at the young girl. “What did you do to me?”

 

“What did I…? Oh…that.” The miko smiled. “A minor physiological change. In case you're wondering, no, I didn't turn you gay. Your body just responds the opposite of the way it should.”

 

“And that's supposed to make me feel better?”

 

“I could reverse it.” There. She had offered the carrot.

 

“And maybe I'd go back to normal if you were dead!”

 

Kagome didn't like the sound of that. The man truly was a fool. While her mate and Lord Sesshoumaru took up fighting stances, she concentrated and a small shimmer appeared in the air between her group and Mr. Sato and his thugs. She and the others could see it, and the brothers relaxed. Mr. Sato and his people could not see the barrier and took the brothers' attitude as blatant disrespect.

 

Something snapped in him. “Shoot the bitch!”

 

Two things happened at once. The two thugs who had earlier confronted Lord Sesshoumaru and InuYasha skedaddled for cover. The other ten gunmen opened up as ordered.

 

Each place a bullet struck the barrier, there was a spark followed by a set of ripples spreading out the way they do in a pond when you drop stones into it. Three of the thugs were injured by ricochets before they all stopped firing.

 

Katashi sat where he stood. “Wh-What are you people?”

 

“It's time for the stick,” thought Kagome. She dropped the barrier and stepped forward to stand between her mate and Lord Sesshoumaru. I, Mr. Sato, am a miko.” She took InuYasha's arm. “This is my mate, a hanyou, Lord Sesshoumaru's brother.” She took Sesshoumaru's arm. “Lord Sesshoumaru is full youkai. You should be respectful of him, and grateful. He could have taken your life at any time.”

 

Mr. Sato had managed to rise to his feet again. “You expect me to believe that you're some kind of priestess?”

 

Kagome sighed. She reached out with her mind, found the gun in Mr. Sato's pocket and, once again, rendered the powder useless. Having lived for so long, she had no illusions about evil men.

 

“This man will not be missed, miko. Let me dispose of him.”

 

Kagome looked to Lord Sesshoumaru and, as she did, caught Katashi's move out of the corner of her eye. The man was quick for a human. Before InuYasha could react, the man had drawn his gun and pulled the trigger.

 

Nothing.

 

“How many times do I have to tell you, Mr. Sato?” Kagome turned back to Sesshoumaru and whispered something into his ear. The tai-youkai nodded, and Kagome stepped away to give him room.

 

“Oi. Kagome. Let me kill the bastard.”

 

“Wait, InuYasha.”

 

Kagome faced Mr. Sato again. “I do not feel the need to tell you more than you need to know. Understand this. There are youkai, and mikos, and I am one. You are an evil man, but I take pity on you.” Kagome concentrated a moment and the change she had made in Katashi was reversed. “You are normal again.”

 

Mr. Sato looked around. He looked at Sango and started to get hard. He looked at InuYasha and it went away. He looked at Kagome and got almost painfully hard. He looked at Shippo and it subsided. He looked at Lord Sesshoumaru and got hard. “You lie!” He pointed at the Great Lord of the Western Lands. “I looked at Mr. Sesshoumaru and got hard again!”

 

Kagome frowned and waved at Lord Sesshoumaru as if to say “go ahead.” Immediately, the tai-youkai's eyes turned red and his face began to elongate.

 

Katashi stared as the figure dissolved into a ball of light and reformed into the shape of a huge dog. Where the dog's saliva dripped to the ground, rocks dissolved and a noxious green mist rose into the air.

 

“If you persist, Mr. Sato, Lord Sesshoumaru…”

 

The huge dog padded up to stand over Katashi.

 

“…will eat you.”

 

Mr. Sato sat down again.

 

“Still having that problem, Mr. Sato?”

 

“N-No.” He looked up.

 

The dog seemed to be grinning.

 

 

******************

 

 

“Mr. Sato.”

 

Mr. Sato looked up to where the miko, her mate and her friend floated in the air on the fire neko, above the boat. He and his men had been relieved of their guns and were being sent packing. “Yes, what is it?”

 

“You will dispose of all the pictures, of course, and you will stop preying on young girls. I do not care if you work with women who are of age and do so willingly, but there will be no more young girls and no more disappearances.”

 

“Yeah, yeah.”

 

“I do not wish to meet you again, Mr. Sato, so consider this. If you try to reveal us to the world, there is a very good chance you all will be committed. And even if you succeed in convincing the authorities that you are sane, you can rest assured that you'll regret it.”

 

“I have no desire to wind up in a dog's stomach.”

 

“Just see that you remember that.” Kagome concentrated for a moment; then spoke to Sango, who bade Kirara to fly for the mainland.

 

The men on the boat watched them going till they were no more than a speck in the sky. Finally, one of the men looked back.

 

“Boss!”

 

“What is it?” Katashi turned around.

 

There was no island.

 

 

******************

 

 

Sango looked back. “What did you do, Kagome? Where did the island go?”

 

“Oh. I put a barrier around it. It's sort of like the barrier Naraku used to hide his castle. It'll dissipate in a few hours.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Kagome pointed to a wake down in the ocean, below. “Shipping, Sango. Can't have them running into an island they can't see.”

 

“Oh.” Sango was about to ask something else when she noticed Kagome was lost in thought. “She's got a lot on her mind. Probably worried about those men and whether they'll do something stupid. I should leave her alone.”

 

Kagome furrowed her brow. “School, tomorrow. Did that teacher say we had a quiz, or not?”

 

 

******************

 

 

“Mr. Sato.”

 

Katashi looked around the boat. Who had spoken?

 

“Mr. Sato.”

 

It sounded like……Katashi looked over the side of the boat.

 

There was a large shark swimming beside them.

 

While he watched, the shark jumped into the boat, reforming into the shape of a man. “What? You think there are only land youkai?” The youkai smiled with a disconcerting display of teeth. “I am willing to help you. We sea youkai have a grudge against land youkai.”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“But first, could you spare one of your men? I'm feeling…peckish.”

 

 

 

A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed the return of Shippo. Looks like Mr. Sato's little blackmail scheme kind of backfired, but I'm not sure we've seen the last of him.

 

As always, please read and review. Thanks! Oh, and again, more reviews = more inspiration for new chapters.