InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Tomorrow ❯ Chapter 29 ( Chapter 29 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

The rain and wind hit them like a fist.

InuYasha yelped as he was almost bowled over. They'd kept running, even as the rain had gotten heavier, but only now did they realize that the rain hadn't calmed down because it was over. It was the calm before the...

“Tsunami,” SesshoMaru called. “We must find shelter before it gets bad.”

“This isn't bad?!” Miroku sputtered. The wind had been too strong for him and InuYasha had grabbed him before he was blown away.

“No, it'll get bad when-” Sango began, but her words turned into a scream as, suddenly, the wind was coming at them from all directions at once. Kirara howled as she was caught in the wind and thrown into the sea.

“NO! SANGO!” Miroku yelled, instinctively slipping from InuYasha's grip.

“Miroku!” InuYasha yelled. “No, dammit-”

But he was too late. Miroku, a human, wasn't strong enough to stand up to the wind. InuYasha lunged after the monk as he was flung into the air.

“InuYasha, stay on the ground!” SesshoMaru called. It was the last thing InuYasha heard before, flying in the air, the wind blasted him and he plunged into the sea, remembering before he blacked out only to hold on to Kagome and Miroku for dear life.

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“Wow, it's pounding it down,” Yuki commented, looking up at the large red dome that encased them. “Michio, if you do that again I'm going to hit you.”

Michio stuck his tongue out at his sister and wandered away. Shiori's shield, amazingly, had held true for the past two days. They hadn't felt a drop of rain or a puff of wind, although the Tsunami sure had made a racket. The main problem was that, while they all fit inside of it, it wasn't really big enough to run around in and as a result the boys were going stir crazy. Yuki idly wondered why boys got bored so easily when girls didn't. Kiki and Hitomi, for example, had been happy telling Momo and Hotaru stories, and occasionally fiddling with each others' hair. The boys had been reduced to staring contests, seeing who could hold their breath longest, and to pick a victim and see who could drive theirs insane first.

“Can we make them calm down?” Takumi whined. He kept doodling in the dirt, and was clearly being driven just as mad by the other's actions as the adults were.

“I don't know. They're even bored of my Kitsune Yojutsu,” Shippo complained, making a dragon dance over their heads, to absolutely no reaction from the kids.

“So get back to the stories,” Mitsuko said, idly rubbing Akira's hair where he slept in her lap.

“Oh, I've got an idea!” Kazeko said. “Shippo-san, you can make your illusions appear however you want, right?”

“Want to use them to tell a story?” Shippo asked.

“Hey, that sounds cool!” Asagi said. “Here, tell us about what happened when that Naraku guy died. You know, the one that was a bastard?”

“Yeah, you were there, right?” Kazuki asked, picking up the idea. “Sounds cool.”

“Lemme see...” Shippo held up his hands like a little stage. Above them, colours formed and swirled. The kids didn't look up. The swirling colours formed into a black orb.

“It was like this...” he began, then stopped, looking up. So did everyone else. Yuki wondered what he'd heard. Then she realized that it was the quiet.

“Ai-chan?” Shiori asked. Ai nodded. Shiori sighed in relief and the red dome faded away.

“Whoa,” Kazuki said. “Major destruction...”

A number of the various heaps of rubble had been torn up or knocked down. Whole trees were lying on their sides. Many more heaps were looking very unstable. Isamu got up and ran off, presumably to make sure that the rest of the youkai had survived. Evidently they had, though when he returned, he reported that a lot of the remains of the mountain were in bad shape.

“This place's gonna pretty unstable `til it's worn to the ground,” Shippo said. “We can still move north safely, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Isamu said. “I saw that eagle searching out safe routes. They've picked one from a choice of one, it seems.” He glanced up at the full moon which was now scaling the dark sky. It wasn't even midnight yet. “We're all gonna move at first light.”

“Then we'll be at Hokkaido, and this'll all be over,” Haruka said with a huge sigh. Isamu put his arm around her reassuringly.

“Once Otou-san and everyone get there, we can get married,” he promised. Out of the corner or her eye, Yuki caught Kazuki eyeballing her and stuck her tongue out at him.

“Still, we wanna hear that story,” Dai said.

“I've got a better stage now,” Shippo said, looking up at the clear sky and the huge amount of empty space where the mountain used to be. “I can show you the battle like you were really there.”

He raised his hands and closed his eyes. Colours began swirling in the sky again.

“Wow,” Momo said. “Papa's making a big one.”

“A big one” was a pretty apt description for the huge black ball that formed in the sky. As Shippo drew up his memories and power, Yuki noticed odd fracture lines, shiny globes within the globe. With a start, she realized that it was a...

“A spider!” Hitomi screamed. “Eewww!”

“Yeah, what she said,” Kazeko said, staring in disgust up at the black ball. Her fist was twitching.

The other youkai scattered around the mountain could see the illusion too. They stared up at it, pointing out figures, yelling in shock and surprise. Some began laughing as they realized what it was.

More figures formed; a white cat with two figures on its back was flying towards the cloud, with a red figure alongside it. On the opposite side of the spider, Yuki could vaguely make out a tall white figure. The white one swung a sword, destroying a mass of youkai that were attacking him.

Now the whole valley was watching as the figures flew towards Naraku, cheering and screaming as the battle began. Shippo just sat there with his eyes closed, making complicated little motions with his hands, smiling vaguely. Yuki turned her attention back to Naraku as Michio yelled “They're goin' in!”

In the jubilant evening, no-one noticed the dark shapes slipping past the camp, laden with dark burdens, towards the pass through the rocks which was now the only way north.

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Kagome blinked groggily. She shivered. She was soaking wet, and cold. She remembered clinging on to InuYasha's back as they fell after Miroku, but after that...

She blinked again and sat up. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she realized that they were inside a dilapidated shrine. The huge noise sorted itself out as rain and wind. The odd thing was, none of it was coming into the shrine, despite the huge hole in one wall that ran up to the ceiling. Kagome could see only white through it. With a gasp, she stood up, and nearly toppled as her legs gave way. InuYasha caught her.

“You all right?” he asked gently. “We really got tossed around out there...”

“InuYasha,” Kagome said, staring at the white surrounding the shrine, “Is that...?”

“Yeah, I think he pulled us outta the sea, too,” InuYasha said, following her gaze to the gigantic white dog which had curled itself around the shrine, concealing it from the tsunami. “I tellya, he's been acting weird lately...”

Kagome stared at SesshoMaru for another long moment, and then knelt down and dug around in her pack. “Oh, I hope they're dry...”

“What're you lookin' for?” InuYasha asked. Kagome pulled out the small stack of paper.

“Ofuda,” she explained.

A few minutes later, SesshoMaru was sitting against the wall as Miroku and the various Taijiya slowly woke up. A blue dome of holy energy had encased the shrine, powerful enough to keep the rain and the wind away. It was even a bit quieter inside the shrine, and completely dry and still.

“Why've you been acting so weird lately?” InuYasha asked bluntly. “I mean, ever since Yamazaki started up his shit, I dunno, it's like you're... totally different, really. Why? And what's it got to do with that hairpin? It smells familiar, and don't try to tell me it's not involved.”

“InuYasha-” Kagome was prepared to light into him, but was shocked into silence as SesshoMaru reached into his armour, pulled out the threadbare little bag, and tipped a little blue hairpin onto his palm. Kagome saw the reddish-brown stains on the pin and realized, in revulsion, that they were bloodstains. Ancient bloodstains.

“SesshoMaru-sama...” Rin asked tentatively. “Whose... whose was it?”

SesshoMaru was silent for a long time. He seemed to be thinking something over.

“This hairpin,” he finally said, “belonged to Hanako.”

“Who the hell was she?” InuYasha asked. SesshoMaru smiled a cold, pained smile.

“Baka,” he said, using his usual address for InuYasha, “does the name `InuYama' mean anything to you?”

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It was before dawn when they struck.

The first thing Isamu heard was a scream. He sat bolt upright, already awake, some deep instinct knowing that he had to be ready to run or fight. Many others had responded to a similar reflex. The source of the screaming was Mitsuko, who was staring to the south in horror.

Isamu smelt humans, and horses, and the burning scent of gunpowder, coming closer. As did every other youkai and hanyou with a working nose.

The response was instantaneous. More people screamed and yelled, those alone already running, those with family or friends waking up their companions or picking up children. They began running towards the path.

“Haruka!” Isamu yelled as Ryoichi ran past him, holding onto the hand of his wife, who was holding the still-sleepy girl. The sons were directly behind. As the massive bulls passed Isamu, he lost sight of his friends momentarily.

“Isamu-kun!”

Yuki and Haruka were pushing their way towards him. Isamu felt something smash into his throat as Michio jumped up and wound his arms around his neck. Isamu ran over to the others, grabbing up Hitomi and Kiki. Shippo had already changed, Satsuki grabbing up the children as she ran towards him. Kazeko and Kazuki were shaking Mitsuko, who continued screaming. Haruka grabbed up Yoshinori and Takumi, who had already woken up and grabbed Tsukiko.

“Mitsuko!” Kazuki yelled. “We have to move! Now!”

Kazeko picked up the whimpering Akira, who reached for his sister. She stopped screaming and grabbed him, but tears were pouring down her face.

“But which one?” she whispered. “Which?”

“Mitsuko, come on!” Kazuki yelled, pulling her by the arm as Kazeko ran along beside him. They joined the hordes already running. Behind him, Isamu heard a battle-cry and turned. He growled as he smelt the scent of the man on the lead horse, a scent much like Kazeko's. Yamazaki. He felt a dreadful pang of fear for what had become of his parents, but there was no time. They had to move.

They ran through the pass. Suddenly, Isamu smelled the fiery stench of gunpowder, huge amounts. His heart stopped when he noticed, concealed behind rocks so that they could not be seen from within the pass, barrels that stank of gunpowder, surrounded by piles of grenades. And a short distance away from them, men pulling out grenades, ready to set off the lot and bring the pass down on the heads of those too busy fleeing to notice.

“Yuki-chan!” he yelled, noting the only one of them who was not carrying children. “Gunners!” Yuki followed his line of sight and gave a shriek of rage. She ran up the cliff edge, flicking her wrist to bring out the hidden blade, as Shippo ran up the other side, electing not to use illusionary fox magic but the simpler yet more effective method of his teeth to remove the man's arm. The grenade fell from his limp grasp, but Satsuki reached out and grabbed it before it hit the ground. Yuki was already dropping back down to them with the other man's bomb in her hands. The entire episode had only taken a few seconds, but already they were almost the last ones left, many of the other having already passed through, running for the sea. And yet, the last ones they saw were slowing.

“We're too close to the sea and not everyone can fly!” Shippo called from his elevated position. From his back, Satsuki screamed and pointed south.

“Never mind that, they're coming!” She yelled. “Let's move! There's all sorts of fishing villages up here, we'll steal a boat if we have to!”

They ran on, reaching the back of the crowd. Yes, many were flying, but many could not and, in the darkness of the pre-dawn, it was too dangerous to swim. Isamu could see those that could fly returning from the islands in the hope of carrying the others, but there were too few, too slow. His blood ran cold. They were going to have to fight, and they were going to be slaughtered. He looked down at his little sister. Kiki was trembling and holding Hitomi, who was crying. Michio was holding so tightly that it hurt. Haruka was also trembling. Isamu walked over to her and reached out his arms a little, as far as he could holding the girls. She leaned against his side.

“Satsuki,” Yuki suddenly said. “You got that guy's grenade?” she held out her hand and Satsuki, nodding, passed over the weapon. Haruka and Kazuki looked confused, but Isamu was sure that he must look terrified. He wasn't sure what most made his heart want to throw in the towel, however; the fierce determination on Yuki's face, or the pre-emptive grief on Mitsuko's.

“Ane-ue,” Kazuki said sharply. “What are you doing?”

“Buying us time,” she said. “Use it well, all right?”

Then she was running.

“But which one? Which?”

The realization sank into Isamu like a drug, numbing his thoughts. Slowly at first, his movement speeding up, he put down Kiki and Hitomi, and pried Michio's hands from his neck. Kazuki, judging by the look on his face, was thinking the same thing. Haruka tremblingly put down Yoshinori and Takumi.

“Go on ahead,” Isamu said, and then ran after Yuki. He vaguely registered Haruka and Kazuki following as the thin rim of trees surrounding the cursed mountain flew past, and they were within view of the pass.

Yuki was fast, almost as fast as any youkai, Isamu knew. She was already running into the pass, a grenade in either hand. Isamu heard the distant yells of the incoming armies.

“YUKI!” Haruka screamed.

Yuki turned her head and flashed them a devilish smile. She slid her thumbs under the pins of the grenades. The men were within view now, Yamazaki at the lead, raising his sword. Isamu began to run again.

“YUUUUKIIIIII!” he yelled. This time, she didn't look back. She looked Yamazaki straight in the eye as he drew closer.

Straight into the heart of the pass.

Isamu saw, as if in slow motion, the pins fall to the ground as she flung the grenades into the huge piles of explosives on either side.

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Hanako means “flower child”.

Thanks to Kawaichan for her kind comments! I have to say, I totally agree with you. The final chapter felt a little odd, a little anti-climactic...I know Takahashi-sensei is capable of much better. Still, i'm highly anticipating her next series! (Although maybe one a little shorter? Collecting this one's gonna break my wallet, on top of Meitantei Conan T_T)

InuYasha is the property of Takahashi Rumiko-Sensei, and I claim no ownership of any of it. All couples not involving original characters will be strictly canon. Aside from Haruka, Yuki and Kazuki, I made up all of the kids, though since birthdates other than Kazuki's were never really stated in the manga, nor names, I've made these up as well. This fanfic will make little sense if you have not read the entire manga, and I'm afraid that to read the last twenty or so volumes you will have to (at the time of writing) venture into the internet, but I strongly suggest that you do buy the Tankoban volumes for yourself, so that Takahashi-sensei can afford to continue gracing us with her imagination. Anyway, hope you enjoy the fic. ^_-