InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The New Student and Kagome's Secret ❯ Chapter 40: Purification is the Only Way ( Chapter 40 )

A/N: Hello everyone! I am back! Sorry for the extreme delay! I was placed in the hospital, then my grandpa got placed in the hospital, then I had some trouble with school because I was placed in the hospital so it feels like it has been forever since I wrote a chapter to my story. But I promise to continue writing. My health is fine, my grandpa is fine, and I sorted everything out with my school. NO MORE EXCUSES! I PROMISE! Okay so where was I….ah yes….thanks to all of my loyal readers who did not abandon me in my time of crisis…*blows kisses to them*….I love you all! And just for being so great, I am immediately going to start working on the next chapter so you all can have another one to read tomorrow….everybody say "YAY!" Okay so here is the next chapter!

Chapter 40

"Bankotsu!" Jakotsu yelled. Bankotsu lay motionless face down on the ground. Inuyasha stood over him with a triumphant grin on his face. Jakotsu clinched his fists angrily as he stared at Inuyasha's arrogant disposition. He reached for his sword.

"Don't even think about it!" Kagome said. Jakotsu looked at Kagome out of the corner of his eye to see that she had an arrow drawn back on her bow ready to fire at any given second. He scowled at her then looked towards Bankotsu.

"Wh-What?" Inuyasha stuttered as he witnessed Bankotsu's wound begin to heal all on its own. Jakotsu and Renkotsu grinned then turned to face Kagome and the others.

"But how…" Kagome said, then Myouga's words flashed back through her mind, `purification is the only way'. She gasped.

`Miroku and I are the only ones with purification powers! It's practically two against three!' Kagome thought. Sango looked at Kagome. She knew what she was thinking. She was facing the same reality only she was one of the ones who could fight and fight and accomplish nothing. They all knew it. Inuyasha, Miroku, Myouga, Shippo, everyone knew that the only ones capable of disposing of these guys were Kagome and Miroku.

Inuyasha looked towards Kagome. `They'll be after her,' he thought. `I can't let them get to her!' He glanced down at Bankotsu to see that his wound had almost completely healed. Before Bankotsu could heal completely, Inuyasha took a mighty swing with his sword that would have sliced any normal human in half. His sword dissected Bankotsu's middle. Inuyasha looked down on Bankotsu once more. The healing process was already starting.

`Shit!' he thought. `I've got to get to Kagome!' Inuyasha jumped over Bankotsu only to have something grab his ankle causing him to fall flat on his face. Inuyasha looked up to see Bankotsu had a grip on his ankle and a smirk on his face. Inuyasha growled at him and swiped his claws across Bankotsu's arm, causing Bankotsu to release Inuyasha's ankle. Inuyasha took the opportunity to run towards Kagome as fast as he could.

Meanwhile, Kagome still had her bow and arrow pointed at Renkotsu and Jakotsu. They turned and smirked at Kagome and the others.

"You do realize that you won't even be able to release your arrow before I have sliced you into bits," Jakotsu said with a smirk. He then scowled. "Now act like the bitch you are and submit! You are wasting my Inuyasha time!"

With that, Jakotsu jumped in the air. Kagome fired her arrow, but it whizzed by Jakotsu's shoulder. Kagome's eyes grew wide with fear as she saw Jakotsu bring his sword down upon her. She closed her eyes and clenched her hands together in a praying position as she awaited her fate.

"KAGOME!!!" Inuyasha screamed as he blocked Jakotsu's attack on Kagome. Jakotsu's sword flew back towards him, forming one sword once again.

"Inuyasha!" Jakotsu beamed.

"You okay?" Inuyasha asked Kagome over his shoulder. She nodded. "Good. Now be careful. We're counting on you, Kagome."

Kagome's heart skipped a beat. Had Inuyasha just said what she thought he had said? He was giving words of encouragement? And believing in her? Where had his pride gone? Kagome blinked a couple of times in disbelief, then nodded her head. She turned towards Jakotsu and Renkotsu, a determined and evil grin on her face.

"Well, that's all fine and good, but do you honestly think that a little girl and a monk can defeat the three of us?" Bankotsu said as he joined his comrades.

`Can Kagome handle this?' Inuyasha thought. `I know Miroku is used to it, but what about Kagome? She just found out about her powers not long ago and doesn't have the experience Miroku has. She is powerful. I'll give her that. But that power is of no use if she doesn't know how to use it properly. I better stick by her as much as I can.'

Inuyasha glanced at Sango. She read Inuyasha's mind loud and clear. Sango knew Miroku could handle this. She had seen him in action before. But she was just as concerned about Kagome as Inuyasha. Kagome lacked experience and training. Sango and Miroku were used to fighting as a team so naturally, she had planned to stick by him during the fight. After reading Inuyasha's expression, she decided she would keep an eye out for Kagome as well. Miroku could last longer than Kagome.

As Kagome stared at the evil zombies in front of her, a thought crossed her mind that both frightened her and made her nervous. Inuyasha was half-demon. There was no way he was going to stand there and watch while Kagome and the others battled it out. What if she accidentally hit Inuyasha? She was still working on her accuracy, and had never had to shoot someone while they fought with someone she cared about. If she hit Sango or Miroku, her purifying powers wouldn't have much effect on them. They would be severely injured, more so than if she didn't have spiritual powers, but they wouldn't die from it. Inuyasha, however, could be merely grazed by her arrow and die within minutes. She didn't know what to do. She turned to Inuyasha to ask him something, but wasn't even able to get a word out of her mouth before he leapt and attacked Bankotsu.

Kagome gasped. Now what was she going to do? She glanced at Sango and Miroku. They glared at Renkotsu and Jakotsu then attacked. Kagome froze. She didn't know what to do. Physically, she was incapable of fighting. All she could really do was shoot arrows, but she was afraid she would hit one of her friends.

Meanwhile, Myouga and Shippo stared at Kagome in confusion. They noticed she seemed tense and confused and even scared.

"What's wrong with Kagome?" Shippo asked Myouga. "She's just standing there. What's she doing?"

"I-I have no idea," Myouga replied as he stared blankly at Kagome. Then it hit him. He then understood why she was afraid. He glanced at the others as they continued to fight. They weren't in one spot for more than a split second at the time. She had about a 50/50 shot of hitting the right target when she released an arrow. "Oh, no!" he said.

"What? What is it?" Shippo asked eagerly.

"It's Kagome," he said. "There's no way she can hit the Shichichintai without hurting the others." Myouga jumped up and ran towards Kagome.

"Hey wait!" Shippo said as he scurried behind him.

Kagome stared at her friends fighting. She stood there helplessly. She had no idea what to do. Myouga ran up beside her.

"Myouga!" Kagome exclaimed.

"Kagome," Myouga said. "You okay?"

"Oh Myouga! I don't know what to do! I'm afraid I'll hit Inuyasha, Sango, or Miroku if I shoot!" Kagome exclaimed in a panic.

"Now just calm down and let's think about this," Myouga said.

Myouga and Kagome watched as Inuyasha and the others fought frantically. Kagome was right. There was no way she could have a guaranteed shot on any of the Shichichintai. She was just going to have to watch them carefully and wait for the opportunity to strike. She watched as Inuyasha swung at Bankotsu and jumped away. She raised her bow and was about to fire when Bankotsu jumped towards Inuyasha. She let down her bow and shook her head. Her eyes quivered with worry as she witnessed her friends receive injuries and punches. She felt helpless to do anything. Miroku knocked Renkotsu back and through some talismans at him. Renkotsu whipped out a knife and sliced through them effortlessly. He smirked at Miroku. Miroku frowned and charged him again. Meanwhile, Sango wasn't doing too well herself. She was fighting as best as she could, but she spent most of the time blocking Jakotsu's sword with her giant boomerang rather than attacking. Kagome looked from each friend to the others. A frantic look spread across her face. Even if she did get a shot, for all she knew, the Shichinintai would know of some way to reflect the arrow back at them. She had to try. This fighting was getting no where. She decided she would try Miroku first since he was a monk. She aimed her arrow at Renkotsu and waited patiently. Miroku slammed his staff into Renkotsu's head. Renkotsu staggered back from the blow.

`Now's my chance!' Kagome thought. She released her arrow.

Everyone looked up when they heard a scream. To their disbelief, Renkotsu had been pierced through his left chest by Kagome's arrow. Kagome gasped as Renkotsu glared at her. He screamed in pain as his body disintegrated into ash, dust, and bones. His bones lie in a heap where he had Renkotsu had once stood and the ash and dust blew in the breeze.

Bankotsu flamed red. He was furious. He glared at Kagome with a sinister look on his face. Inuyasha stepped in front of him, blocking his view of Kagome. Inuyasha growled at him, warning him to stay away from her. Bankotsu then acted as if he had realized something and smiled an evil grin.

"Don't worry, priestess!" Bankotsu yelled. "You will regret you ever did that! I am going to hurt you in the worst way possible!"

Kagome couldn't help but flinch at those words. She had no idea what he meant by that. She glared back at Bankotsu and readied her bow and arrow. She looked over at Renkotsu's remains. She couldn't believe that she had just done that. She couldn't believe she was responsible for that. It was a little easier taking the life of a demon for some reason, but when they were evil humans or even a demon that looked like a human, it just tore here apart to take their life. She sighed and sucked it up. She knew she would never hit her targets with that kind of attitude.

Meanwhile, Miroku ran to Sango's side to lend some assistance. Sango had already been cut severely by Jakotsu's sword. Miroku ran behind the boomerang with Sango.

"Ah! Miroku!" Jakotsu beamed.

Behind the boomerang, Miroku checked to see if Sango was okay. He examined her wounds. There were only a couple of severe ones, but he knew that Sango was in no condition to fight. He couldn't let her get injured any more than she already was, even if it meant…

"Stay behind your weapon, Sango," Miroku said. "Don't come out no matter what you hear!"

"But, Miroku…I…" Sango began, but it was too late. Miroku jumped from behind the boomerang and began charging Jakotsu. "Miroku, no!"

"Oh, monk!" Jakotsu beamed. "You're going to be really fun to play with!"

Miroku had a determined look on his face. He loved Sango. He would do anything for her…including risk his life. Sango was no match for Jakotsu's sword, but he also knew that he wasn't either. He didn't know what he could do, but he wasn't going to allow Sango to take this abuse any more. He jumped in the air and through a few talismans in the air. Jakotsu laughed heartily.

"You think that useless trick will work on me?" Jakotsu said with an arrogant laugh, releasing his sword towards Miroku.

But then Miroku did something different. He spun his staff in front of him so quickly that it seemed to disappear. The talismans turned into orbs of blue light and shot out towards Jakotsu.

"NANI?!" Jakotsu cried out as the talismans pierced through his skin. He hadn't been expecting that. Jakotsu had purified holes throughout his entire body that slowly began to spread. Jakotsu dropped to his knees. Miroku landed on the ground with a breath of relief. Sango peeked out from behind her boomerang. Miroku smiled and began walking towards her. She smiled back, but then a look of horror overwhelmed her face. The sword that Jakotsu had released earlier had had an almost boomerang effect and was heading straight towards Miroku.

"MIROKU!!!" Sango shouted jumping up. She through her boomerang in the path of the snakelike sword, but it was too late. Sango's boomerang had helped out a little, however. Instead of slicing Miroku in half, the sword grazed his back. Miroku screamed and fell forward to the ground.

"Miroku!" Kagome, Myouga, and Shippo yelled.

"Mi-Miroku!" Inuyasha yelled leaving Bankotsu to run to his friend's side. Bankotsu took the opportunity to run to Jakotsu's side as well. Only Jakotsu's head remained, but it too was slowly disintegrating into the wind.

"Bankotsu," Jakotsu coughed. "It wasn't supposed to be like this."

"Don't worry, Jakotsu," Bankotsu said. "I will avenge your death! I will kill the priestess and the monk! They will suffer!"

"I always enjoyed following your lead," Jakotsu said with a weak smile as he blew away entirely into the wind leaving nothing but a pile of bones.

Meanwhile, Sango had rushed to Miroku's side. She fell to the ground beside him and gently laid his head in her lap.

"Miroku! Are you okay?! Say something Miroku!" Sango begged, but all she received was a painful groan.

"Miroku!" Inuyasha shouted. He fell to his knees next to his friend's side. Miroku clenched his teeth in pain. Inuyasha looked at his friend and growled angrily. Kagome and the others soon arrived next to Miroku as well.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha said as he stood and angrily faced Bankotsu. "Heal Miroku as best as you can. Do whatever you have to do, but don't let him die."

Kagome looked up at Inuyasha. His voice was commanding and raging with anger. She wouldn't protest his orders when he was in a mood like this. She nodded and gently knelt next to Miroku. When he saw she was doing as he ordered, he glared at Bankotsu.

Bankotsu had stood as well. He was just as angry.

"You have nothing to be angry about hanyou!" Bankotsu shouted. "At least your friend has a chance at life!"

"Your friends were never living to begin with, jackass!" Inuyasha retorted. "We merely sent them back where they should have stayed."

Bankotsu flamed red and charged Inuyasha. Inuyasha smirked and charged Bankotsu. The two swords clashed time after time. Kagome could hear Inuyasha and Bankotsu fighting in the background, but tried not to pay attention to them. She gently removed his upper robe to examine his back. His wound was deep. She wouldn't have the strength to fully heal him.

"Wait a minute!" she said suddenly. She jumped up and ran over to her yellow backpack and retrieved a small canteen. She then returned and knelt next to Miroku again. She gently rolled him over and placed the mouth of the canteen to his lips.

"Drink this," she said. "It's that medicine you gave me when I overexerted myself. Maybe it will help with your healing."

Sango lifted Miroku's head and upper back so he could drink from the canteen. He sipped as much of it as he could and then laid back down on the ground clenching his teeth in pain. Kagome rolled Miroku over. She placed her hands on his back and closed her eyes. The scar on his back slowly began to heal. Soon, Miroku was able to speak, but what he said shocked everyone.

"Stop!" he ordered. Kagome gasped and looked down at Miroku.

"What?" she said.

"I said…stop," he said. "I should be fine now. You need…your strength. Inuyasha…can't win…alone."

Kagome looked towards Inuyasha just as he received a hard punch to his face sending him flying a couple of yards. Miroku was right. Bankotsu could only be defeated by purification methods. She had to save her strength or she wouldn't be strong enough to kill him. Kagome stood and stared at Bankotsu. She couldn't take it any more. It was obvious that in a normal match, Inuyasha would have had more endurance. He was apparently tougher than Bankotsu, but Bankotsu couldn't be defeated by normal means. He had to be purified. Kagome readied her bow and arrow and aimed it at Bankotsu, waiting for the opportunity to strike. Bankotsu noticed this out of the corner of his eye. He smirked to himself and allowed Inuyasha to get a punch on him sending him a few yards away. He pretended to be badly hurt. Even Inuyasha looked at him curiously. He had only punched him. He couldn't be that injured. Then it hit him. It was a trap. Inuyasha looked up at Kagome just as she released her arrow.

"Kagome, no! It's a trap!" Inuyasha yelled running towards Kagome. Bankotsu immediately jumped to his feet and took a swing with his sword sending the arrow back at Kagome.

Inuyasha, however, knew what was about to happen and was already half way to Kagome when Bankotsu reflected the arrow back at Kagome. Everything seemed to occur in slow motion. Inuyasha ran as fast as he could. Kagome watched in horror as the arrow headed straight towards her. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Inuyasha racing towards her.

`He can't be thinking he's going to…' she thought.

"NOOOO!" she screamed, but it was too late.

"KAGOME!!!" Inuyasha screamed as he leapt in front of Kagome taking the arrow to his chest.

A/N: Agh! *dodges evil arrows from angry readers* Okay, okay! You guys don't deserve the evil cliffy! I am a very bad authoress who should be lucky you are still even reading the dang thing! Okay, but I promise to post another chapter shortly.