Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction / Bleach Fan Fiction ❯ Mayakashi ❯ Chapter 15 ( Chapter 15 )

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, Bleach, or YuYu Hakusho, or any of the anime/manga characters.

Warnings: None

Return

 

Kagome slowly came awake, a jaw-cracking yawn coming from her. Slowly, her senses spread out, and her eyes widened, her head turning toward the people in her room.

“Good morning, Urahara,” she said, sitting up. “And Yoruichi.”

“Well, good morning, sunshine,” Yoruichi said, hanging from her bed's headboard with a large grin on her face.

“So, today's officially the last day of your training, then?” Urahara asked, going right to business.

“Yep… I can't believe it. It's been six months, and we haven't gotten attacked once.”

“We know. There's barely been a hint of any strong Hollows since you started, as well.”

“I take it this is your report that I asked for from the start?” Kagome growled, quickly waking up.

“Well, the old man figured that if you were taking half a year off work to train, you should really have off, and told us not to bug ya,” Urahara responded, smirking.

“Okay… So what's been going on?”

“Nothing. Soul Society's been quiet. There's barely been any activity. The grunts have been going for the weak Hollows that keep appearing, but there's barely even been any of even those.”

“Aizen's planning something,” Kagome said, beginning to get to her feet.

“We know… But we don't know what he's planning, or when he's going to implement the newest Hell he's planning. We decided to stop by, and see how you were doing.”

“Hope the newest training's been worth it. Poor Nanao,” Yoruichi said, sitting beside her friend.

“Oh, trust me. It's been worth it,” Kagome said, building power around her body.

Yoruichi jumped a few feet away, eyes wide in shock.

“Damn! Six months got you that much of a boost? With just one old human psychic?”

“She's not that old,” Kagome complained. “And it wasn't just her. There was also Yusuke, Hiei… and Kurama. I've gotten so many new ways to kick ass, once I deliver this kid, I'll be able to handle anything that's thrown at me.”

“Wow… And it looks like it's not just your reiatsu that you've worked on. You've got all kinds of power in you,” Urahara mused, staring at her brilliant corona of an aura.

“Oh, you have no idea. Reiatsu, youki, spirit energy, reiki… I've gotten access to every single fiber of my being.”

“Well, that's got to be convenient. Sounds like you can fight in any form.”

“I could… But I'd rather wait a few more days, until this child's in the world,” Kagome said, smiling as she gently rubbed her surprisingly small stomach.

“How are you doing that? I've never seen a pregnant woman, but shouldn't you be much… bigger… in your ninth month?”

“Well, yeah. But I'm in top physical shape, even if I am pregnant. I just make it up by eating ridiculous amounts of foods. I have to be in top condition, or Genkai'd kill me.”

“Maybe we should ask her for aid as a Shinigami… once she's passed on.”

“I doubt that'll happen anytime soon,” Kagome said flippantly. “Anyways, are you both going to stick around? We're having a kind of celebration tonight, for my passing.”

“Sorry, we can't. We were sent to catch you up and find out when you can be expected back,” Urahara said. “But we'll be sure to give you a celebration when you get back.”

“Oh… Well, catch me up, then.”

“Nanao is running things smoothly, as usual. But she let it slip that she's looking patiently forward to your return, my dear Captain,” Yoruichi said, smirking. “And, I've gotta' say, you seem to be in such brighter spirits than six months ago.”

“You have no idea, Yoruichi,” Kagome said, wrapping her arm around her friend. “Things have been going so well.”

“Well, we've got a while of free time. Why don't you catch us up?” Urahara asked, taking a seat on the chair across from the miko's bed.

“Okay. Well, I've gotten some good friends in Yusuke's wife, and the ice maiden who lives here with Genkai, Yukina. It's so refreshing to be able to hang out with some girls, while I'm usually surrounded by guys. Have I mentioned I miss you?” she asked, looking at Yoruichi, who simply smirked.

“Well, anyway, there's that, and I've finally gotten at least a semblance of respect from the Spirit Detectives. I've been getting so much more training than I thought I would. While Genkai and Hiei's training me to the bone in all things psychic, I've been learning more ways than just Hollowfication to control my youki from Kurama, and I've been learning how to access my spirit energy from Yusuke. Yukina's been helping me learn how to heal even better than I could before.”

“Well, you have been busy? And I thought the Vizards' training was tough,” Urahara mused.

“They've got nothing on Genkai… Some of the things I've had to do are going to give me nightmares into the foreseeable future,” Kagome said, shuddering. “Yusuke's finally forgiven me for the… err… mishaps when we first met, though he still hits me without holding back. This whole time, I've been getting to be really good friends with Kurama, too. He's even started training Shippo to use his real kitsune abilities.”

“Well, you sound like you've become rather close. I take it Uryuu's not on your mind anymore?”

“Nope! Not even a little.”

“That's good. So, where's your brother?”

“Oh, he's recovered, completely… Finally. Yukina's been teaching me to heal, and we've both been working on helping him. Since I'm legal, he's now legally my child. It was really weird to have a lawyer show up here the other day…”

“Well, if anyone can manage three kids, it'd be you,” Urahara mused.

“Yeah… And this whole time, I've been learning to control myself better, so I might really make a good parent. I hope… On another not, guess what.”

“What?”

“It turns out that my youkai blood had something to do with my bizarre Hollowfication.”

“Oh? Mind if I take some notes on this part?” Urahara asked, a curious gleam in his eyes.

“Whatever. As it turns out, I did have an Inner Hollow. And a powerful one, at that. But, it was lying dormant, right next to my youki, feeding off of it. So I never experienced the raw power that that evil being could bring… until a short time ago.”

“Really? What happened?”

“Wellll… I was training with a technique that Genkai taught me, and I couldn't get it down. Still haven't, but that's besides the point,” she added in a grumble. “I was getting more and more annoyed, and finally, Yusuke thought that maybe I'd be able to use it if I had to. So, we fought. And as we fought, I kept getting hurt and angrier with all the times I screwed up using it. Finally, I just kind of snapped, and power exploded around me… I didn't get very far in the transformation before Hiei and Genkai knocked me out of it, but it was enough to find out what I'm capable of. And there was all the blood, too. Genkai was pissed,” Kagome sighed.

“Blood?”

“Yeah… My entire upper torso had begun transforming, and I had a completed mask before Hiei and Genkai stopped me… When they stopped me, it just kind of shattered. And it was attached to my skin.”

“Damn, that musta' hurt,” Yoruichi winced.

“Oh, it did. But Kurama stopped the pain with some kind of demon plant, and then Yukina healed me… I still had to spend hours cleaning the mess up, though, and then I had to work double hard for the time missed and screwing up. Genkai told me that I was lucky that I'd never transformed before, because my youki was at least somewhat tempered now, whereas it wasn't before, and who knows how much destruction I would've caused…”

“Hopefully you're taking it easier, now,” Urahara sighed, pointing at her stomach.

“Yeah. I'm still getting pummeled, but we've never done anything in the past three months that could be considered legitimately dangerous to me or my baby. I'm kind of scared of what it'll be like when I'm not pregnant anymore, though, because Genkai has a penchant for making the training that much harder to make up for lost time,” she finished, whispering conspiratorially.

“I see… So you'll still be training once you've delivered?”

“No. At least, not a lot. I may stop in from time to time when I'm in the Ningenkai, but I'm going back to my job as Captain once I'm back up to my game, after a few days' rest.”

“I see… You sure you want to come back? You seem to like the other job much more,” Urahara said, his tone instantly going serious.

“Oh, come on, Kisuke. I'd miss you all too much, if I just decided to up and quit. I can do both jobs.”

“You're going to work yourself to death, girl,” Yoruichi sighed in mock sadness, wrapping an arm playfully around the miko's neck.

“Well, I'm certainly not going to go of old age,” Kagome quipped. “With Shinigami and Mazoku blood in me, I'm petty near immortal in the age department.”

“Well, you're only 20, now, so eternity's a long time for you,” Urahara said, smirking.

“Yeah… Well, I need to get ready.”

“Ready? I thought that your celebration was tonight. It's only noon, now,” Yoruichi said, frowning when a slight blush crept onto Kagome's cheeks.

“Umm… Yeah. But, I've got some plans for the daytime, today.”

“Oh?”

“Y… Yeah,” Kagome said, her blush growing even darker.

“What kind of plans, hmm?” Yoruichi goaded, smirking.

“Kurama and I are going into town. Genkai wants some supplies, and says I need to get whatever exercise I can… And I tend to attract trouble the few times I've left the wards, so she wants Kurama to be there, as a sort of trial run to see what'll happen when the inevitable occurs and I get attacked.”

“Oh… I see. So, you've finally stepped back into the dating scene, then?” Yoruichi asked, smirking as the miko somehow, impossibly, seemed to get even darker.

“N… No! It's not a date. It's just a trip into town,” Kagome assured, fighting her blush for all she was worth.

A series of light knocks came at the door, and Kagome sighed, sitting back down on her bed.

“Yeah?”

“Ah, good. You're awake. Genkai wants to know, and I quote, `what the hell's stinking up her home like death,' or something of the kind,” Kurama's voice said from behind the door.

Kagome fell backward, laughing at the horrified looks on her friends faces.

“That's because it's death. So to speak. Come in,” Kagome said after finally regaining her composure.

The door opened, and the redhead stepped in, eyes wide when he saw the inhabitants.

“Oh, my apologies.”

“Good to see you, again, too, fox boy,” Yoruichi said, smirking.

“I'll be ready to go if you give me five minutes to change,” Kagome said, focusing on the kitsune.

“Ah. Excellent.”

As he began to leave, a nagging sense of something hit Kagome's senses, and she frowned.

“Kurama, where's Shippo?”

“With Yukina, I believe. Why?” he asked, picking up on her odd tone.

“No reason… I just felt… weird, for a second there…”

“Weird how?” Kurama asked, focusing in on her with laser intensity.

“Just… weird… I don't know how to explain it. It felt like there was something nearby, for a second… and I can't sense Shippo.”

“Can't sense him? Isn't that unusual, for you?” Urahara mused, eyes narrowed.

“Maybe he's practicing his illusions,” Kagome said, frowning.

“Kitsune illusions are powerful, but considering you're not only linked to him through a blood bond, but you also have spiritual awareness and that strange miko radar that you have, it wouldn't hold up. Do you mean you can't sense him at all, or that he's barely there?”

Kagome closed her eyes, clearly getting more upset as she sensed it again. And now, she understood what it was.

“Do you guys feel that?” Kagome asked, getting to her feet.

The three looked at each other, their gazes all the same masks of confusion.

“Feel what?” Yoruichi asked, focusing her senses on the off chance she was missing something.

“Shippo's out in the forest… And he has a lot of company,” Kagome said, slipping on her shoes.

Suddenly, a massive explosion went off in the distance, and Kagome was moving, faster than any of her friends could believe possible. Slowly, the solid afterimages of her travel vanished to nothingness, and the three took off after the miko.

She hadn't made it very far, however, as they found her standing near where the entrance to Genkai's complex had previously stood, smoke rising high into the air. And in front of her stood a small army.

The horde of strong youkai and Menos Grande completely encompassed the complex's entrance, forming a wall of bodies that went far into the distance.

At the front of the group stood a small, pale man who radiated evil energy so potent that the ground around him melted beneath his feet. Half of his face was covered by a curvy, viciously marked mask. In one hand was a long, jagged Zanpakuto, which had a chain that wrapped around the entirety of his arm. And in the other, Shippo hung limply, blood rolling from his head.

The same time that the three arrived, Genkai and Yusuke also appeared, Genkai's face a mask of irritation.

“Get the hell out of my home,” Genkai growled. “And try not to blow anything else up.”

A tall, mountainous woman slid out of the horde, a pair of horns crowning her skull and blood-red eyes glaring at Kagome.

“We're here for the bitch. Aizen says he'll give us a position in his private army if we can stop the brat from being born,” she said, her voice like an Arctic night.

One of Kagome's hands went instinctively over her stomach, her eyes narrowed in anger as she drew her Zanpakuto with the other.

“If you come near me, I can promise you, not a single one of you will escape with your lives,” she said, her calm tone making all those around her surprised.

“You think you can take on all of us, bitch?” the youkai sneered.

“She's hardly alone,” Kurama mused, stepping up beside the miko.

“Who knows? Maybe the old man'll give us a day off if we bring down Aizen's numbers,” Urahara added, drawing the blade from his cane.

“If it's all the same, I'd prefer my house not be demolished,” Genkai added, glaring at the Shinigami.

“Relax, grandma. I doubt they'd get very far,” Yusuke said, smirking as his power began to ramp up off the scale.

“I'd say that you're going to need more forces,” Yoruichi said, slowly walking toward the army.

“Can I kill them?” the youkai asked, turning to the pale man.

In response, the man simply snapped his fingers, and the army moved. Faster than thought, the group was under attack from all sides. The Hollow and youkai weren't even close to being prepared for the counterattack.

In the same instant, the group unleashed a powerful assault unlike anything seen before. Their voices rose in unison, power flooding the entire city and giving anyone with even an inkling of spiritual sensitivity a serious hit.

“Scream, Benihime!”

A massive wave of red energy launched forward from Urahara, slicing through a mass of the army.

“Shotgun!”

Yet more of the attackers were decimated by the dozens of miniature blasts, Yusuke smirking as they turned to ash.

“Oh, they're not too bad after all!” a youkai exclaimed, lunging over the Detective and heading for Kagome, claws at the ready.

Instantly, Kurama turned, a rose breaking apart in his hand.

“Petals and Thorns!”

The youkai screamed as he was torn apart by the youki-infused rose bits, and the kitsune quickly got to work with another, taking out a third of the remaining army.

The entire time their forces were being slaughtered, the pale Arrancar stood back, his visible eye never once leaving Kagome.

“Shunko!”

Yoruichi suddenly vanished, and screams filled the air as their numbers were drastically lowered more and more by the second. When she reappeared by the group, there remained only ten of the original several thousands.

Kagome let out a sigh of relief when Yoruichi showed up with Shippo in her arms, and quickly ran toward the temple before coming back empty handed.

“The little blue haired girl said she'll watch him,” Yoruichi said, gently patting the miko's head.

“Oh, damn… Maybe we should retreat,” a youkai murmured, eyes wide in fear.

In response, the unmoved Arrancar's hand flared outward, and the youkai fell to the ground, screaming and writhing in agony. Slowly, the youkai's body flared with a red glow, and then he was ash.

“So, do you have vocal cords, or what?” Yusuke asked, glaring at the Arrancar.

“You're not the same as the rest of these pawns, are you?” Kagome mused, her Shikai coming up to bare.

In answer, the Arrancar's lips twitched, and he raised a hand, palm-up in the air. Slowly, a wall of purple energy rose around him, and all nine of the survivors were surrounded by an even darker energy.

“Sanmai,” he said, his voice like cracking glass.

And in the next second, the others let loose screams as their bodies exploded into balls of brilliant, purple energy. Slowly, the balls coalesced and floated into the Arrancar's open palm.

The second it made contact with his skin, it vanished and the already dark energy surrounding him became even more potent, turning the very air around him to ash and poison.

“Well, that's a new trick,” Yusuke mused, frowning.

“And it's definitely not good,” Kagome said, watching as the power built more by the second.

 

A/N:

Sanmai- absorption