InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Centre ❯ Seek and Destroy ( Chapter 22 )

Ok, my best bud gave me an evil glare after the last chapter so here's the next one….I flipped through the 33 volumes of Inuyasha I have (in Japanese, takes a while) for inspiration. I hope you enjoy.

Chapter 21: Seek and Destroy

Rin felt like her world was being pulled into a dark hole, away from everything she loved and knew. It was like the greatest sorrow was magnified a hundred times and she was left alone and afraid to face her inner demons. Somewhere in the distance she heard the rustle of chains and a door opening. A thin beam of dim light reached out to her, a figure in the doorway.

"Sesshoumaru?" she asked, surprised as her voice croaked.

"So sorry to disappoint you," a familiar female voice piped. Kagura's figure began to solidify in front of Rin. "Naraku will see you now. Be a good little girl and you might not suffer," Kagura said with a small laugh, "much."

Rin dimly remembered the bathroom…and a boy. A strangely familiar boy. Who was he? He had been collared, another one of Naraku's victims. Who did he remind her of? Sango? No way. Did she have other relatives? Well, too late to ask her now.

Rin was picked up by invisible forces as Kagura flipped her fan. Not even someone to struggle against. They were getting too smart for their own good. Dammit.

"Ah, Rin, how good of you to join us," Naraku cooed, looking down from a rather lofty position above them. His body was covered in shadow so that only his face looked down, a nasty grin upon his face as his eyes narrowed to focus on her.

"Sesshoumaru will kill you for this," she snarled, her voice cutting off as the collar around her neck tightened, choking her. Black spots appeared before her eyes before it released her, leaving her to gasp in gulps of air.

"You know all about collars, don't you? I mean, you did manage to break a demon out of one. Pretty handy trick. The question is how did your miko friend do it?"

Rin didn't answer, chest still heaving as she tried to stop the burning sensation in her lungs. In all her years she'd never felt as helpless as she did at this moment. Sesshoumaru probably doesn't even know where to start looking for me, she thought. A tear formed in her eye, but she blinked it back, ignoring the stinging sensation it left.

"Hmm?" Naraku said, his low chuckle filling what seemed to be a vast cavern. "So the demon's pet won't talk? We have ways of making you talk. Kohaku, bring me the miko," he ordered. The boy from earlier ran off.

Kagome is here? Rin thought. Oh shit! Inuyasha will go crazy for sure! No way he'll survive stealing two women from under their noses. And she can purify our way out of here…if she's alive.

"Kanna, why don't you show the demon's pet your little mirror? I'm sure she'd love to see where she is now." The small girl with white hair stepped forward, a small mirror in her hands. As she stopped before her Kohaku returned, a woman emerging from the shadows behind him. She had on miko robes, her long black hair falling straight down her back. Two black eyes reflected a soulless woman, a collar around her neck.

K-k-kikyou?" Rin thought in panic. She's alive?! Then she made the mistake of looking into the mirror. Nothing moved but she felt a pull, sucking her toward it as she saw her reflection. A small girl with a handful of flowers, lost. Then everything went black.

"Kagura," Naraku said as the life drained from the girl before him. "Set up fortifications. The white demon is cunning. He will figure out where we are sooner or later. I don't want him to get in too easily."

Kagura bowed and left with a flick of her fan. Kikyou stepped forward, needing no instructions. She knelt before Rin, her hands outstretched.

"So what does the little minx know?" Naraku asked.

<Sango's apartment>

"K-kidnapped?" Sango asked in shock. Everyone, including Shippou and Souta were sitting in her newly decorated front room…courtesy of her expectant father.

"Now not only do we have no idea where Naraku is, he has Rin," Miroku said, running a hand through his hair. "Maa, this has become quite complicated." Sesshoumaru ignored the rest of them, seeming content to stare out the window. Whatever he was thinking about, it was an engrossing thought.

"Kagome, any chance that dried up miko mummy in the government building knows where he is?" Inuyasha asked.

"She was a statue, not a mummy, and no. The cabinet only relays records. If no one recorded where Naraku is, she won't know."

"Dammit," Inuyasha swore. "Another dead end." Everyone fell silent, fresh out of ideas.

"You know what you guys need?" Souta said as the silence stretched on too long. All eyes turned to him, some dubious, others surprised. "An old person."

"An old person…" Kagome said, rubbing a finger on her temple in exasperation. "And what is that supposed to accomplish?"

"Think, sis. Jii-chan knew tons of random shit about everybody. Old people remember the craziest stuff."

"And….?" She asked, motioning for him to elaborate.

"Well someone is bound to have noticed something weird going on for decades, maybe even centuries. And old people love to talk."

"Right, Souta…and we'll just magically conjure this old person from where?" Kagome asked. "Just stay out of this. You're just a kid. Enjoy that while you can." Souta sat back down in a huff, muttering about big know-it-all sisters.

"Wait," Sesshoumaru said, his golden eyes refocusing on the group. "He's right. And I know just who to ask."

<Naraku's crib>

"Yo, Bankotsu, why are we here again? I'm bored!" A thin man with stripes from the underside of his eyes to his jaw stood and stretched.

"Stop yer whining, Jyakotsu. You sound like a girl," Bankotsu answered, a large sword at his feet.

"You are so mean, brother. Where's everyone else?"

"They are coming. Be patient," Bankotsu ordered.

"I know, but patience is so hard. Mou, I think I broke another nail. So what are we like guarding the fortress or something?"

"Something like that. Naraku is expecting company….unfriendly company." Jyakotsu jumped up, hands clapping like a small child told their birthday was tomorrow.

"Oh, I hope they're cute! Does my hair look alright?"

"Shut up and sit down before I commit fratricide."

"Oooo, aniki (brother)! Oh my, are those the bat youkai flying over there? What's got Naraku so scared he'd use them?"

<In a forest with lots of trees>

"Tell me why we are standing in the middle of fuck nowhere staring at a huge tree," Inuyasha asked, arms crossed. Sesshoumaru was standing there, face expressionless. He was flanked by Kagome, Sango and Miroku, Inuyasha bringing up the rear.

"Have you ever wondered where the sheaths for our swords came from?" Sesshoumaru asked his brother. "From the expression on your face I'd think not. This is Bokusenou, the oldest known youkai. When Totousai forged the twin blades he needed a strong power to contain them."

"So….what? You want a new sheath to go into battle with?" Inuyasha jeered. "I didn't realize you'd become that vain!"

"Hahaha," a deep chuckle resounded, startling everyone except Sesshoumaru. "Impatient pup, isn't he? Much like his father was at his age. So good to see you again, Sesshoumaru-sama. I was almost afraid you'd be stuck in that facility forever. Funny how a supposedly weak human came to your rescue."

"The tree….it talks!" Miroku whispered.

"Talk? Of course I talk! How else would you hear me, fool!" The seemingly smooth bark suddenly moved like a ripple on the water. Slowly a nose began to emerge, followed by a mouth and pair of eyes that blinked and looked down at the group before it. "Hmmm," he said slowly. "I certainly never expected you to travel with such unusual companions. A demon slayer, an ex-monk, a marked miko and a hanyou. What next, Sesshoumaru-sama? A flea circus? Whatever happened to that horrible toad?"

"He's shopping. We need information," Sesshoumaru said, ignoring the jibe. If it meant saving Rin he would sacrifice a little pride.

"Information? Well, that's interesting. Not many people come and talk to me. What makes you think I would know anything? And if I did, why should I give it to you for free?"

"You knew about Sesshoumaru being locked up!" Inuyasha yelled, annoyed at the tone the tree was taking. "You probably know a whole lot more shit too so cough it up! We don't have time to barter!"

"Inuyasha," Sesshoumaru said, not looking at his brother. "Shut up."

"What do you want?" Kagome asked the tree. "What can we give you?"

"Ahhh, now there's a smart girl. No wonder the Hanyou likes you. You make up for his inequalities. Why you like him is the real question." Kagome gave a nervous laugh, a deep red blush on her cheeks. "What do I want, you ask? Why, exactly what you want."

"Huh?" Inuyasha asked, stupefied. What the hell sort of nonsense was this?

"He means information, Inuyasha," Miroku supplied.

"Keh, I knew that!" the hanyou snapped.

"Information? But what would we know that you do not already?" Kagome asked.

"A very smart girl. Just like little Rin. Now, my dear, what sort of information do you think would be closed off to a sedentary youkai such as myself? Information that you all carry…"

"Sex?" Miroku offered and was promptly hit on the head by Sango. "Hey, it didn't look like he'd had any in a while. No hot little Cyprus around or anything."

"Honestly, thinking of sex at a time like this," Sango muttered.

"Sango, love, I guarantee it will be my last thought as I die."

Kagome frowned, trying to figure out what he was talking about. What information could they have possibly gotten that he would not already know? She looked around the area they were in. Here was this tall, huge old tree, all alone in the middle of a huge forest. He'd been there for centuries. He probably remembered this land at a far different time, having been forced to sit there and watch everything change.

"Life," she whispered. "You know nothing of life."

"Oi, he's ancient. How could he not know life?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well he knows this life, but think," Kagome said. "He has never lived any other life than as he is now. We can move freely, change and adapt if our environment does not suit us. He has to stay put. That is far different from us, and yet it is a knowledge we all carry."

"I must say, she figured that out a great deal faster than your father, Sesshoumaru-sama. He spent a whole day thinking of it." The dog demon did not respond. What was it with the tree trying to piss him off?

"So how do we give you this information?" Inuyasha asked. "We gotta sit here and play story time all day long?"

"Inuyasha, be nice," Kagome hissed. His ears flattened and he turned his nose away in a huff.

"No, my boy, it's far simpler than that. Everyone gather round, don't crowd….haha, just kidding," the tree joked as he received several glares. "Now reach out a hand, close your eyes and touch my bark. I will gain what I seek, and you shall gain what you seek."

Kagome felt a warm feeling overtake her as her fingers settled on the rough bark. Something gently brushed her mind, coaxing what it wanted from even the deepest memory. It was soothing. Then another sensation hit her, like a soft fuzzy feeling and suddenly years of information was at her fingertips. She tried to focus it, pin point the exact information she needed. She could see a gate, guards and a huge castle. Where the hell was a castle? Then the sensation released her and she was back, in the forest, her hand upon rough bark.

"What castle was that?" Sango asked. "I've never seen it before."

"Must be covered by a barrier. I recognized the area. It's near the mountains where I grew up," Miroku said. "Far far north of here."

"Good, no one had any problems? Not even the pup?"

"Keh," Inuyasha responded. "All ya have to do is concentrate. It's not fucking rocket science."

"You'd be surprised…" Bokusenou said with a chuckle. "It takes maturity to focus so intently to shut everything else out. I honestly didn't think you had it in you. Proved me wrong."

"Can we go? I'm sick of listening to a bunch of bark, bark," Inuyasha growled.

"Wait, I have one last thing for the miko," he said. A branch began to descend. Concerned, Inuyasha stepped in front of Kagome, his claws flexing in a warning. "Relax, pup, I mean her no harm. Midoriko would be greatly disappointed in me if I hurt one of her kind."

Midoriko? Kagome thought. He knew her?

The branch stopped just in front of them. Wrapped in leaves and smaller twigs was a simple wooden bow with intricate grain designs. It looked brand new and yet ancient. Kagome lifted it, feeling the strength of it as she tested the string. It was a bow meant for a miko. A quiver with long, slender solid wood arrows slide down the branch. Kagome picked it up, neatly swinging it onto her back.

"Midoriko gave that to me to keep a long long time ago. I believe it is time it was passed on. Trying to do everything by hand is a limitation on your powers."

"Oi, what good is this supposed to do?" Inuyasha asked. "There are only five arrows."

"And yet Midoriko never ran out," Bokusenou replied with a laugh. "You are too quick to judge, pup. Life is long. Step back and reflect every now and then. It'll be good for you. At this rate you'll have a chronic ulcer."

"Thank you Bokusenou!" Kagome said with a wave as they departed. "I'll promise to return this someday!"

The old tree chuckled and slowly the face receded back into the bark, leaving a camouflaged surface of illusion once again.

"North of here?" Sesshoumaru said, not looking back but everyone knew who he was addressing.

"Not a journey for a day. I suggest we plan more carefully this time, pack well and hit Naraku for all we are worth," Miroku said, rubbing his arm absently.

"First we gotta find the place," Inuyasha said, flexing his claws with a grin.

"Then destroy it," Sesshoumaru growled, red flecks in his eyes as a gust of wind blew past them.

Sango was more silent than the rest, focusing on what she had learned. It had been a great shock for her to learn. Not only had her father lied, she had been ignorant for decades!

Kohaku was alive…trapped at the age of twelve. A collared laky of Naraku. Not only had he been the one to kidnap Rin, he'd been the cause of the clan's downfall.

No matter what she had to release him from that. Even if it meant his death.