InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Unexpected Circumstances ❯ The Bait ( Chapter 3 )

CHAPTER THREE-THE BAIT

 

 

“Wha…where am I?”

 

Kagome had finally come to weak, disoriented, and still unable to move her body. Her throbbing head felt like it was in a vice and she could swear that it had its own separate heartbeat. She was not sure how long had she been out and at first she couldn't remember where she was. The place she was in looked so dark that her eyes had to adjust to the lack of light. She scanned her surroundings slowly, taking everything she saw in. It was damp and cold and the windows were of almost no use in letting light through. The only thing that mimicked light was a dark shade of purple of the perpetual miasma. After a few moments of collecting her thoughts she let out a desperate sigh when she realized that she was still in the confines of Naraku's castle.

 

Her thoughts became desperate as she wished for a savior, but it seemed as though she would be waiting forever in hopes of someone finding her. `This is awful, why hasn't anyone come yet?' she thought. `I don't know how much more of this I can take.'

 

Tears started rolling down her cheek and with every drop she fell deeper into hopelessness. She couldn't tell how long she had been in Naraku's possession; the days seemed to melt together. All that she knew was that she had been captive far too long for her liking. She had also been rendered unconscious, a few more times than she thought necessary in her opinion, so she wasn't exactly sure how many days went by that she had failed to see. Thoughts of her friends, which once were so incredibly comforting in her position, were starting to come to her few and far between. She missed them greatly and she hoped that they were still alive and well. She missed Inuyasha and his pride; the way that he looked at her with a friendly love when he thought she wasn't watching. She missed Shippou and his loving embraces when he jumped upon her shoulders. She missed Sango and her undying friendship that they had developed; the nice long baths in the hot springs after a long journey. She missed Miroku and his perverted ways; the way that he made everyone laugh even when times got tough. She missed Kirara and her cute purrs and her adorable face. She missed and longed for them all.

 

She let her tears fall harder, thinking of her friends. When had everything gone so wrong? They had been happy, serene even. She could remember the day before she was taken, everything seemed so peaceful. They had continued on their quest for the jewel shards like normal. She watched as Inuyasha placed his hands behind his head and walked with pride in his step as he relaxed. That day seemed so long ago as she tried to remember more. At this point, she didn't care who came to her rescue, Kouga would even be a welcome site, and she would gladly put up with his possessiveness. She closed her eyes and gave a depreciating smile. `Hell, I would even bow to Sesshoumaru if he got me out of here…maybe'. As dreary as her situation was, that last thought made her giggle a little bit.

 

Kagome sighed audibly and was broken away from her inner musings as the sound of footsteps rang in her ears. She slowly opened her eyes and then heard the footsteps come to a stop. She could see through the thin paper doors two shadowed figures just outside the room. She recognized one of the shadowed figures standing outside of the room as Naraku, and then another smaller shadow appeared as she recognized the form of Kanna.

 

“…what about the girl?” she heard Kanna ask in her creepy and monotonous tone that never failed to send shivers down her spine.

 

“She can still be of some use to me,” Naraku said. “Inuyasha is taking too long to find me; my barrier seems to have worked well this time, a little too well. Perhaps he needs some incentive to get him here faster. Dispatch Kagura, I will be in need of her shortly,” he ordered.

 

Kagome then saw Kanna leave to do as she was told. Upon hearing their conversation Kagome searched the room hastily for something to help her undo her chains, but there was still nothing to be found in the barren room. She cringed when she heard Naraku slide open the door and look to where Kagome was sitting. His eyes grew dark and a malicious smile crept upon his lips.

 

“So you're awake? Too bad for you, this would've been easier on you if you had been unconscious. No matter, follow me,” Naraku demanded. With a snap of his fingers, the manacles that had been binding her wrists and ankles evaporated into thin air. She looked at him inquisitively and glowered at him, keeping her place on the floor.

 

“You will follow willingly or you will be forced to do so. It is your choice,” he said in a deadpan voice.

 

She thought about her options and came to a quick conclusion: she could either stay her ground and be choked again and rendered unconscious, or she could follow and hope that Inuyasha or somebody would come quickly. Decision made, Kagome got up and steadied her shaky legs before following as she had been told. She looked around the castle as they walked trying hard to force the panic down she felt growing inside of her. Naraku kept behind her closely, not that she had much of a chance to escape anyway. They passed many rooms, most of which were sealed off, but some of which whose doors had been left open carelessly by the demon servants that occupied them. In the distance she heard the faint taunting of jeers and whistles and she steeled her nerves a bit more. The hallway was long and it seemed that no matter how far they walked, they didn't make any progress of movement, but soon he directed her to round a corner to the left and found a doorway being guarded negligently by two small lizard-looking demons. They glanced in her direction and upon seeing Naraku behind her they quickly bowed to him and opened the doorway which led to the front of the castle. Naraku led her to the outside of the doorway and wasted no time in throwing her in the soggy dirt of the front courtyard.

 

Kagome looked at him scathingly and spat the dirt from her mouth. A gust of wind came up and blew some of the dry surrounding dirt into her face once more. When the wind died down Kagura, the wind sorceress, stood in front of her no more than ten feet away. Her red eyes locked with Kagome's as she brought her fan up towards her head, shielding the bottom half of her face to hide her small smile. Naraku looked on with a bored expression; she always had to make such a `grand' entrance.

 

“Kagura, if you're quite finished trying to show off, a little bait if you will,” Naraku said in an annoyed tone as he rolled his eyes.

 

Kagura looked a little put out that her master had the gall to embarrass her in front of a lowly human such as Kagome. However, Kagome could have cared less about the entrance Kagura made, or the lack of awe that it produced. She had more important things to worry about, such as her safety at the moment. Naraku and his servants could go to hell for all she cared. Kagura stretched her arm out to her side and lifted it, along with the fan so that it was parallel to the ground.

 

“Nothing personal against you, Kagome, just doing my job,” Kagura commented. She let her fan fall open with grace and brought it back behind her head before thrusting it forward towards Kagome.

 

“Dance of blades!” Kagura shouted.

 

Kagome looked up in horror as blades of wind came for her. They seemed to gracefully fly through the air, picking up speed as they flew. There were many of them and it was all Kagome could do to stand up and try running. Unfortunately, the blades were far too fast for her and one by one they began cutting deep into her flesh. The first blade pierced the back of her leg, leaving a deep gash on her thigh. She cried out a shriek of pain as another blade swept across her cheek, and yet another cut her on her side. The last blade that connected cut the side of her neck; it was then that the blades stopped coming and Kagome's world became wobbly. She felt warm thick liquid on her hands as she finally caught up with her thoughts. She brought her hands in front of her face and fell to the ground before clutching her leg as her blood spilled from the fresh wounds. Nothing had ever felt so excruciating to her before, it was an all consuming white hot pain that left bright flashes of light in front of her eyes. She could not even catch enough of a breath to scream her torment. Time seemed to slow down for her as she looked around at her surroundings. Her vision began to cut in and out and distinct figures started to become blurry. Kagome made a last ditch effort to take a deep breath of air as she felt darkness start to consume her.

 

“Someone…help…me,” she whispered hoarsely just before her world went black. A wicked laughter could be heard across the courtyard of the castle as Naraku and his minions looked on in anticipation.

 

 

****

 

 

The group had been trying their best to keep their pace, they opted for running to cover more ground when Inuyasha had explained his dream to them, but exhaustion was once again beginning to take over the weary group. They had been running for hours, stopping only to drink water and for Sango and Miroku to switch off and on riding on Kirara. They still were unable to trace anything, and they all agreed that this was getting old, fast. Panting, they slowly came to a walking pace while Miroku put his hand on his shaky knees and bent over to catch his breath. Kirara gracefully landed on the ground and Sango hopped off allowing the demon cat to transform into her small body in order for her to rest. Inuyasha skidded to a halt and looked back at them. With a huff he walked over to them and crossed his arms over his chest.

 

“Gettin' slow already, Miroku?” Inuyasha taunted. “We've got a lot more ground to cover so get your old man body movin'.”

 

“Very funny Inuyasha,” panted Miroku, “but I must say that had I not stopped you would probably be carrying me right now.”

 

“Feh, like I'd carry you, you'd have an easier time convincing Sango to let you touch her ass,” Inuyasha said tastelessly. Sango glared at Inuyasha and then let her gaze shift to meet Miroku's. He looked as if he were deep in thought with his finger gently tapping his cheek and one eyebrow raised.

 

“Don't even think about it monk!” Sango warned him, clenching her fist so he knew she meant business. Miroku shrugged his shoulders and began walking again but then suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked around him. He tried to pinpoint what he felt, so he closed his eyes and stretched his arm out in front of him with his fingertips facing the sky. He moved slowly in circles, trying to find the source of his uneasiness. Sango, Inuyasha, Shippou, and Kirara looked on at him trying to figure out what caused his sudden apprehension.

 

“It appears as if Naraku has lowered his barrier, I can sense his strong demonic aura. However, I'm having a hard time locking it,” Miroku explained with furrowed brows.

 

Inuyasha's head snapped up after a couple of minutes and he allowed a small growl to escape from his throat. He lifted his nose to the air and took a deep breath. He caught the very faint scent of freshly spilled blood and the scent of his enemy, Naraku. His heart pounded as his olfactory senses registered with his brain that the scent of the blood was one he knew all too well. It was that of Kagome.

 

“I smell Naraku and I smell fresh blood,” he scowled. “Come on guys, we had better get moving, Kagome's in trouble!” He quickly resumed his sprint, leaving the others behind to comprehend what had just happened. Miroku, Sango, and Shippou quickly hopped onto the once again transformed Kirara and took off after the half-demon. Sango hurried Kirara's pace as they made their way closer to Inuyasha. He held the look of fear and determination on his face while he ran towards her scent.

 

`Damn it to hell, why do I keep doing this to her?! I swear if she dies…no, I can't think like that, she's not going to die, I'll make sure of it!' Inuyasha assured himself and continued on his way.

 

 

****

 

 

“Lord Sesshoumaru?! Lord Sesshoumaru?! Where are you milord,” squeaked the small toad demon desperately. When he could find neither hide nor hair of his glorious master, Jaken turned to what he believed was the source of his problems. “Rrrr, this is all your fault Rin! You bother our lord with too many questions and songs, he's probably left us for good this time!” the toad cried.

 

“Please master Jaken, don't be upset,” pleaded the young ward. “Lord Sesshoumaru will be back; he always comes back for us, you'll see.”

 

Completely ignoring her, the toad demon continued his ranting, his eyes filled with tears. He walked a little ways before falling to his hands and knees and bowed his head down, tears shaking his tiny body. “Lord Sesshoumaru you fool, I am your servant! How could you just leave me?! It's not my fault you allow a human girl to follow along with us!” he bellowed.

 

Without warning Jaken was smashed in the ground by a foot resting upon his head. It held him there for a few seconds before it was forcefully withdrawn. The little toad looked up in anger and then surprise as he recognized the figure in front of him as that of his Lord Sesshoumaru. The demon lord was glaring down at him with narrowed eyes and a calm but threatening face.

 

“Jaken,” said the dog demon, “why is it you feel the need to insult me when not in my presence?”

 

“L-L-Lord Sesshoumaru?! Please forgive this lowly Jaken, I was merely frustrated that you had left me behind once again!” the servant exclaimed as he bowed profusely.

 

“I do not need your permission to leave, nor do I need to explain my actions to you. You are my servant and as such, you should know your station,” Sesshoumaru said without compassion. Before the toad could answer further, the demon lord snapped his head up and turned it quickly to the side. He closed his eyes and took in a small breath before opening his eyes again to slits. He pursed his lips ever so slightly and quickly slipped on his mask of indifference once again.

 

`That smell is familiar, where have I come across it before?' Sesshoumaru pondered. `There's another scent entwined with it that I am positive belongs to Naraku.'

 

He stayed silent for a minute while he thought on this new development. Naraku's barrier seemed to have weakened immensely, allowing the vile scent to once again overwhelm him. Unlike the other times however, the scent did not seem to be fading and Sesshoumaru immediately took this as the invitation he had been waiting for. But what of that scent of blood he smelled?

 

“Hn, I see that blood belongs to that human girl that travels with Inuyasha. Naraku must be using her as bait to lure him in as well,” he stated to no one in particular. `No matter, Naraku's life is in my hands, I will be the one to end his residency in the world of the living.'

 

“Lord Sesshoumaru? Are you going to be leaving us again?” Rin asked innocently.

 

“Indeed. However, you will have Ah-Un and Jaken in your company. I trust that is sufficient?” he asked looking down at her.

 

“Oh yes Lord Sesshoumaru!” Rin replied with a toothy grin. “Please return to us soon!” she added as she ran off to play with the two-headed dragon.

 

“Hn. Jaken…” Sesshoumaru started.

 

“Yes milord?” replied the toad servant.

 

“I will be gone a number of days. See to it that Rin is well kept, do not leave her side,” he commanded.

 

“Y-yes milord,” Jaken replied in defeat. The poor toad grudgingly walked back towards the child with his head hung to the ground.

 

Glowing a bright white, the demon lord, Sesshoumaru collapsed his form into a glowing orb of light and left the camp. In this form, he was able to travel great distances in a short amount of time. This was not his preferred form of travel; usually he took to the skies on top of his demon cloud. But however more comfortable the cloud may be, it was nonetheless slower in his journeys and therefore more of an inconvenience to his goal of reaching Naraku before his brother did, or before Naraku decided to hide himself again.

 

`That girl's scent of blood bothers me more than I care to admit,' Sesshoumaru admitted to himself. `She is indeed an enigma. How is it that one so petite harbors such extensive powers? Not many humans can capture this Sesshoumaru's attention, and yet I now have two humans that have done so. Inuyasha is a fool if he cannot even protect a small woman, yet he thinks to try and defeat a being such as Naraku? It is indeed laughable.'

 

Sesshoumaru had no desire to think further upon the young miko whose blood had soaked his senses. `It is out of simple curiosity that I have thought of her this much'. Yes, simply curiosity.

 

 

****

 

 

Two wolf brothers, who had been giving chase to their leader earlier on in the day, now rested against the bark of a massive tree panting. They slumped as low as they could without lying down in an effort to regain some of their energy but still give the impression of being alert. The one on the left, Ginta, wiped the back of his hand across his brow and shut his eyes. Hakkaku, the other wolf demon, laid his arms to the sides of him in a most undignified manner with his palms facing the sky. They had been chasing their pack leader, Kouga, for the majority of the week, and with each rest he put even more distance between himself and them.

 

“Man Ginta, I don't know why we even bother chasing after him sometimes, it's not like we ever catch up to him,” Hakkaku complained.

 

“Yeah I know, but we are his right and left hand men; although we rarely see battle ourselves I think that he appreciates the thought at least,” Ginta declared smugly. The two brothers closed their eyes in relaxation, but were soon startled out of their break.

 

“Oi! What do you think you two are doing lying down on the job, we've got work to do!” yelled Kouga who had just sprinted back to them after realizing they were no longer in sight.

 

“Sorry Kouga, we tried to keep up, you're just too fast for us,” Ginta explained.

 

“Yeah, we just needed a short break; we were just getting up to start again when you came here,” said Hakkaku as he discretely gestured for Ginta to follow his lead and rise from the ground. Both standing now, they waited for their leader to give them the next series of orders on finding Naraku. However, instead of looking at them, Kouga had his nose held high in the air. He took in a deep breath and then another; and as if not believing what he had smelled, he allowed himself one final inhale before snapping his head towards his comrades.

 

“The bastard has Kagome and he's using her blood as bait! I'll kill him!” Kouga screamed.

 

Hakkaku and Ginta looked at each other in disbelief at the realization their `sister' was in trouble. Kouga gave an angry howl before once again sprinting off at lightning speed, this time, with the knowledge of where to go. Ginta and Hakkaku did not need orders to understand where he was going. They only briefly hesitated while their bodies caught up with their brains before taking up after him once again. Their `sister' was in trouble, and that is all they needed to know!

 

“Kouga is almost a force to be reckoned with when Kagome is concerned,” Hakkaku panted as they ran.

 

“You're right, he's never in his right mind when she's in trouble, and he goes into battle blindly. I hope he doesn't get himself killed!” replied Ginta.

 

The two gave each other knowing glances and then hardened their faces before turning their eyes back towards where they were going. Into the horizon went the two wolf brothers, following along as best as they could after a whirlwind named Kouga.

 

 

****

 

 

Naraku watched as his bait succumbed to unconsciousness once more, a smile teasing his lips with the thought of the upcoming battle. He knew now that he had weakened his barrier, Inuyasha would be there in no time to seek revenge for kidnapping his wench. He had almost been disappointed to know that even though his barrier was not very strong before, Inuyasha had not been able to pick up on his scent. He really didn't want to have to do more work than necessary to get him here, but apparently he had underestimated his own strength. He watched as his incarnations slowly gathered outside of the castle patiently waiting for Inuyasha and his companions to arrive so that they could begin their battle.

 

However, Kagura was never one to hold much patience so she began pacing back and forth slowly from one side of the castle to the other, playing with her fan between her fingers. Her red eyes scanned the surrounding area, looking for any sign of movement. “Naraku, can't I just go and see where-” she began.

 

“Silence! You will stay where you are until I say otherwise,” snarled Naraku. “And stop that infernal pacing, it is becoming tiresome.”

 

Kagura snarled, but did as she was told; Naraku still held her heart in his hands and could, at any moment, decide to end her life. Since he'd gone into hiding, Naraku had taken it upon himself to build up his army of demons and incarnations. Kagura hadn't met them all, for there were far too many, but the one's that she did meet had her doubting Inuyasha and his companion's ability to kill Naraku and therefore set her free.

 

One such demon that had her worried was one known as Atoshi. Atoshi, although small in size, roughly the size of a ten year old boy, had the ability to reach into people's minds and dig deep into their subconscious. In doing this he was able to take the form of the person his opponent holds most dear to them, making it harder for them to fight him. He proved himself once already while fighting a member of the Southern wolf tribe. He had taken the form a long, lost mate of the wolf and had easily cut him down.

 

Another incarnation that proved worthy of fighting in this battle was one named Micharata. This particular incarnate was able to dissolve itself in one place to appear again in another. She was tall and slim and had the strength of three demons put together and could easily hold her own. The last incarnation that made it onto Naraku's battle list was a being known as Hukio, Ikkaku, Hiagi, and Ruki. This particular incarnation was a sketchy one. Naraku almost resisted putting it into battle because of its split personalities; yes, personalities. Four to be exact. He was one body with four minds controlling its actions; sometimes simultaneously.

 

Three of the personalities were just as vile and ruthless as any other of his incarnates, having no discrimination for its opponent whether it be male, female, child or adult, human or demon. These three personalities could very well be described as how Inuyasha acted while under the control of his demon side, with close to the same amount of strength. These three personalities carried with them three separate and distinct powers. The first personality, Hukio, was an elemental demon with the power to manipulate air, fire, water, and earth. The second personality, Ikkaku, had the power to be able to take on his opponent's abilities, giving them matching strength of their opponent as well. The third personality, Hiagi, was a manipulator, able to turn ally and against ally as if they were mere puppets. However, as twisted as his first three personalities were, his fourth personality, Ruki, was an extreme opposite; having compassion beyond reason for everyone and everything and the ability to heal wounds. While it seems as if this would not be a big problem, the fourth personality made itself known more often than not, slipping into place every two minutes or so for brief periods of time. It could be used both as advantage and disadvantage by Naraku. With the fourth personality slipping in and out of control, it could give Inuyasha and his group a small sense of false security, thus resulting in bringing down their guard.

 

These incarnations were only the lead warriors in his new and vast army. Kagura had been sent out about a week and a half ago to dispatch any and all demons that were ready and willing to fight against Inuyasha and his group in hopes of gaining shards of the Sacred Jewel of Four Souls. It didn't take much enticing on Kagura's part; one word of the sacred jewel and their were all scratching and tearing at each other to get to Naraku's palace first in order to make a good impression. During her travels to gain supporters in Naraku's army Kagura had traveled in every direction, gaining more and more demons the further she went; it was amazing what some creatures would do for the possibility of gaining a little more power. Word traveled quickly that Naraku was in search of an army, and a couple of days later, demons started descending upon the castle in hoards. Thousands of demons took up occupancy around Naraku's castle, all waiting for their shot at power.

 

The scene at the stronghold was one of anticipation, anger, and greed. All of the incarnations and demons kept focused eyes on the forest around them, and on the black-headed girl lying motionless in the middle of the courtyard. Slowly the ground beneath her was stained red with her blood, but as they continued waiting, it had begun to dry a little. She still had not come to but it was no matter, she was just here as bait. Every being in the castle was quiet, waiting for the impending battle; just one sign was all they needed. Kagura let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding with all the tension hanging in the air. A few moments pass by with everyone on edge. A slight rustling came from the trees and as if all attached to each other, each demon and incarnate snapped their heads up to the right of them. As if on queue, a silver haired half-demon in a red fire rat robe leapt from the tops of the trees to land just outside of the courtyard. Following close behind him, a large demon cat with fire at her feet protruded from the forest with a monk, demon slayer, and a young fox demon atop it.

 

A loud roar erupted with the excited crowd of demons and incarnations, startling the group that had just arrived.

 

“What the…” was all that Inuyasha could say when his eyes met the surrounding army.

 

“I've never seen so many demons before; where did they all come from?” asked Sango bewildered.

 

“It appears that in his absence Naraku decided to build up his army. This was clearly a trap from the get-go, Kagome just so happened to be in the middle of it,” Miroku explained. The group stood there in awe, taking in the sight of thousands and thousands of demons all waiting for a signal to start maiming their targets.

 

“Wise observation, Monk. Indeed I have built up my army, and as you can see, you are clearly outnumbered,” Naraku snickered.

 

“Damn it Naraku, give Kagome back! You better not have hurt her!” screamed Inuyasha. That was just before he saw her lying in the dirt unconscious covered in her own blood. It took a minute for his brain to register what his eyes were seeing; he didn't want to believe them. She seemed so lifeless, but, she wasn't dead, she couldn't be dead. He felt his blood turn cold with every passing second he looked at her. She was in a heap on the ground somewhat on her side, with one of her arms underneath her, the other bend out in front of her, and her legs were bent together as if she was merely sleeping. Rage was building up inside of him, screaming to be let out. The other members of the group stood their in disbelief as they eyed their friend's seemingly lifeless body. Shippou was crying loudly but as they stood there looking on, all the noises seemed to have been drowned out. A dark, sinister laugh was what brought them all back to reality.

 

“Ku ku ku. What's the matter Inuyasha? Cat got your tongue?” Naraku provoked.

 

Inuyasha was stunned into a temporary paralysis. Along with the horrible sight before him of his friend's mangled body, flashes of Kikyo's face kept jumping before his eyes, giving him the image that it was her in the same position. He closed his eyes and snarled and then shook his head to rid him of the visions. Before Inuyasha could retort to Naraku's taunts, a dusty tornado flew into the courtyard next to the group. It quickly died down to reveal Kouga, who had been running as fast as he could as soon as he smelled Kagome's blood. Kouga scanned the castle with wide eyes, taking in the thousands of demons that scattered the grounds before he shifted his eyes to rest on the broken figure before him; that of which belonged to Kagome. His Kagome. While his mind register the sight before him, his two comrades joined him by his side. Like Kouga, they stood there looking at their poor `sister' and felt helpless.

 

“Naraku, you BASTARD! I'LL KILL YOU!!!” screamed Kouga like a madman.

 

Naraku smirked evilly at his new guest. “Kouga, what a surprise, I wasn't expecting to see you. Here to avenge your pack no doubt?” he said casually.

 

Naraku actually hadn't been expecting to see the wolf demon, let alone his right and left hand men. Although the odds tilted a little more, he still had more demons and incarnations than they could handle; or so he believed anyway. The demons and incarnations were getting restless waiting for someone to make a move, but Naraku had no intention of sending his minions in first, if he assumed correctly, Inuyasha always jumped into battle head on without a plan. Today would be no different. Coming out of his stupor, Inuyasha looked ahead at Naraku. Grinding his teeth, he raised his sword and screamed his first battle cry, charging straight for the evil half demon.

 

“Wind Scar!” Inuyasha roared. His assault went straight for Naraku, but dissipated when it hit his barrier, much to the distress of Inuyasha.

 

The demons surrounding the castle wasted no time charging into battle; it was the sign they had all been waiting for. Sango used her Hiraikostu to clear a path through the demons in an attempt to get to Kagome, but the demons were too numerous and she was only able to clear a few of them out of the way. Looking back over her shoulder, she screamed for Miroku to see if he was still behind her. Miroku himself had managed to suck in a few demons with his wind tunnel, but not long after Naraku released his poisonous insects to ward off the attack and Miroku was forced to seal it once again. Kirara was chomping and batting demons as fast as she could, but it looked as if she only scratched the surface. Shippou was even doing his part to get to Kagome by using his multiplying technique and foxfire. He was able to take out a few lowly demons, but like the others, the damage of his attack was minimal.

 

Kouga was using his speed to dodge and kick the demons surrounding him while Ginta and Hakkaku fought as many as they could. All of the warriors were trying to make their way to the woman still lying in the middle of the courtyard which was now being engulfed by demons. Inuyasha slashed his sword left and right, bringing down any demon that got in his way. As he killed them they let out screams of agony and defeat, drowning out nearly every sound around him. Inuyasha couldn't see Sango, Miroku, Shippou, or Kirara anymore, but he could faintly hear their war cries. It was better than nothing.

 

Naraku did nothing to hide his laughter; he openly embraced the looks of disgust upon the warrior's faces and their seemingly useless attempts. He would buy his time until the perfect moment arose to set loose his new incarnations. When Inuyasha and his companions thought they had won, then he would set them free to their own devices; that is, if they could live that long. No doubt this would be an interesting battle; they all want their `precious' Kagome and would unmistakably fight to the death for her return to them. He let his eyes fall on the young woman in the center of the courtyard. He didn't intend for Kagura to actually kill her, if she was indeed dead, but if she has done so then he wasn't one to complain; it was one less obstacle to overcome.

 

“Kagome!! Wake up Kagome! You've gotta fight, stay alive!!” Inuyasha screamed out as he cut down demons. He severed the arm off of one demon before slicing the belly of another, eyes only briefly leaving Kagome's form.

 

“Your efforts are in vain, Inuyasha. Give me the jewel shards and your deaths may be quick and painless,” Naraku bargained with him.

 

“What?! What are you talking about?! We don't have the damn shards and even if we did, we sure as hell wouldn't give `em to you!” Inuyasha yelled in reply.

 

“Don't patronize me half-breed! She doesn't have them on her person, and the only people she would entrust such a treasure to are you and your friends!” Naraku sneered. “You will DIE for your impudence!”

 

As Naraku and Inuyasha exchanged heated words, a group of demons bounded upon Inuyasha, taking him by surprise. He fell to his knees as two demons scraped their claws against his back. All he could do at the moment was keep his sword in front of him in an effort to ward off the oncoming assaults to the front of him. In the distance, Miroku was throwing his sutras with one hand at advancing demons and hitting them with his staff held in his other hand. Sango had been overtaken by a demon only for a moment and then threw her weapon as hard as she could, resulting in at least thirty demons to be split in half. Shippou had found a place, standing on top of Kirara, and was pitching out his best foxfire he could manage.

 

The young fox kit had been fighting with a tiger demon for the past few minutes and was gradually wearing it down. The tiger demon managed to give Shippou a few scratches on his shoulder and almost took a chunk of his hair. When Shippou released his latest foxfire the tiger demon swiped its claws at him which caused him to fall on his bottom. When he landed he fell on something hard which made him yelp a little in pain. Reaching behind in his pocket he pulled out the offending object that had poked him none-to-gently in the rear. A small glass vile with two glowing jewel shards was winking back at him. His eyes went wide with realization and he took in a quick gasp of air before he immediately replaced the vile back into his pocket. He quickly threw out one last attack which delivered the final blow to the tiger demon, making it turn to dust.

 

`When did Kagome give me the jewel shards? Why would she give them to me? Did she know Naraku was going to take her?' thought Shippou. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted when a bright flash of blue light engulfed the entirety of the courtyard, now bloodied from battle. The demons that happened to be in the path of the blue light's destruction were immediately annihilated; turned into nothing more than steaming piles of ash. The fighting demons grew quite and the battle seemed to come to a halt. Inuyasha, who had been under the submission of an eagle demon, took advantage of its distraction and sliced his sword through it before he too paused his fighting. Miroku had just beaten a demon with his staff and stabbed it through its chest when he saw the blue light. Sango just had time to catch her weapon and then shielded her eyes from the blue blast. Everyone on the battle field shifted their gaze to the direction in which the blue light had come from.

 

Standing there with an expression of utter disdain was the tall demon lord dressed in white silk. He never moved his head, but let his eyes wander on the scene before him. He took in the fallen demons and then looked upon his brother and his comrades who were a little worse for wear. He then gazed to the left, finding the wolf tribe leader and his two companions, Kouga having just punched out an offending demon. He then brought his eyes toward the center of the courtyard and saw the fallen body of the miko that traveled with his brother; the one which had been constantly on his mind ever since he met her.

 

He narrowed his eyes at the sight and sizing up his surroundings Sesshoumaru took slow, even steps toward the center of the courtyard. He stopped and looked down upon the unconscious miko and his eyes widened just a fraction when he could not make out her heartbeat. He then looked back up to his most loathsome enemy, Naraku. He sheathed his sword, Tokijin, which was the source of the blue power from earlier, and unsheathed another sword. He swiped his other sword, Tensaiga, effortlessly at the young woman's body and with that swing he struck down the pallbearers of the underworld trying to claim her soul. He drew and withdrew both of his swords so quickly that if one was not paying strict attention to him, they may have missed it.

 

Sesshoumaru didn't fail to notice the look of hatred and fear that crossed over Naraku's face. He tilted his head down slightly and to the side and let a small smirk cross over his usually stoic face. His thoughts were quick and deadly as he pictured making Naraku suffer for his transgressions against his pride. He moved his eyes back upward and then lifted his head. His voice pierced through the very core of Naraku as he uttered a single word.

 

“Vermin.”