InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The New Student and Kagome's Secret ❯ Chapter 38: A Roadblock? ( Chapter 38 )

A/N: Hi guys! Sorry for the delay! I got writer's block for a while! I didn't know what to write! I just kind of sat there and stared at the screen for like a half-hour before writing anything and even then I only wrote the first paragraph…then stared at the screen again. LOL! AGH!!! I was ready to pull my hair out!

Thanks to all of my reviewers!

Chapter 38

The group had finished breakfast quickly and got on the road shortly after. It was now in the early afternoon and the group had already covered a great deal of ground. It was almost as if everyone knew they were so close to getting to the castle and wanted to hurry up and get there.

The group walked in their usual formation of Myouga leading the way followed by Inuyasha and Kagome with Shippo in Kagome's arms, then Miroku and Sango with Kirara on Sango's shoulder. Kagome breathed in a big breath of fresh air and let it out. To say she was excited was an understatement. She couldn't wait to see Inuyasha's old home. She had never seen a castle before.

"Myouga, how much further?" Kagome inquired.

"Well, we still have a ways to go Lady Kagome," Myouga said. "But we should end up at the castle by tomorrow night or the following morning. The Western Lands are enormous. That is why they govern the entire country."

"What?" Kagome exclaimed stopping in her tracks. "They govern the entire country?" Inuyasha looked at her.

"Used to!" Inuyasha said quickly giving Myouga a glare that told him to shut up. "They used to govern all the lands. The Northern, Southern, and Eastern Lands ruled their own respective areas, but the Western Lands had the final say. Besides, I thought you knew that." Kagome blushed and placed a hand behind her head.

"I never was big on politics," she said with a sheepish grin. Inuyasha rolled his eyes and continued walking. Myouga smiled and looked back at Kagome.

"But what do you mean by used to?" Miroku asked. Inuyasha frowned and gulped.

"Well, obviously they don't any more seeing as how no one is on the throne," Inuyasha said flatly. "Sesshomaru was dethroned and the Eastern, Northern, and Southern rulers were killed. Basically, the entire country is in chaos. I have no idea what's going to happen now."

Miroku and Sango smiled to themselves while Kagome and Shippo still looked at Inuyasha in a confused manner. That had definitely only confused Kagome more. Of course, she still didn't know that Inuyasha was the heir to the Western throne. Sango and Miroku did. However, they too were confused. They had no idea what Inuyasha was going to do now.

"Don't worry, Lady Kagome," Myouga said with a smile. "We will arrive in due time."

Myouga hurried ahead to catch up with Inuyasha as Kagome, Miroku and Sango exchanged confused glances. Inuyasha looked at Myouga out of the corner of his eye.

"Keep your mouth shut flea!" Inuyasha whispered so low that only a demon would have been able to hear.

"Forgive me, Lord Inuyasha," Myouga said. "It slipped."

"Well, make sure you don't slip any more," Inuyasha said. "There is no need in everyone knowing that information. It is important to keep everyone in the dark on that little tidbit of information. Sango and Miroku already know too much. I want to be able to make a wise decision about all of this regarding what is best for my father's people and land. If they know that I would rule the entire country, they might start treating me differently, and I don't want that."

"Yes, Master Inuyasha," Myouga said. "I will say nothing more."

"I want you to know that the only reason I am even considering the idea is out of respect for my father," Inuyasha said. "He was betrayed and defiled by Sesshomaru and it is only right that I restore some type of order to the country." Myouga beamed.

"That's right, my Lord," Myouga said with a smile. "You are the only one with the power to give out orders and restore civilization to this country. You would be a great Lord of this great nation."

"I didn't say I was going to become the ruler!" Inuyasha retorted. "I just said that I would attempt to get civilization back on its feet. That doesn't mean I will accept the position as Lord of the Western Lands."

"But you do understand, sire," Myouga began. "That, technically, you are the ruler of the Western Lands right now." Inuyasha nodded.

"I know," Inuyasha said with a sigh. "But that is only because of my blood. The formal ceremonies and contracts haven't been laid out yet. The people haven't been addressed either. There is still a lot to be done before anyone takes the throne."

"Yes, my Lord," Myouga said. "The people have to accept you first. I mean, technically, they don't have to, but I know you take after your father. Had the people not adored him so, he would have never taken the throne, but he truly treated everyone as equals. They feared and respected him. Sesshomaru, on the other hand, didn't care whether the people accepted him or not. He just took over the throne because of its power. Everyone in the kingdom knew to either obey Sesshomaru or be killed."

Inuyasha began growling. He couldn't stand the thought of the way Sesshomaru had probably treated his father's people. He didn't understand how someone could be so cold-hearted and disrespectful.

"I just don't understand how Sesshomaru could disrespect father like that. Father would have sacrificed his own life if it meant save his people," Inuyasha said. "Damn him! If he isn't dead, I am going to kill the bastard! I hate him! I hate the way he disrespected father and our lands. Everything was perfect until he came along."

Inuyasha growled deeply and clenched his fists in an effort to relieve his pent up anger. Myouga flinched at the sight of his master's enraged face. He rested a hand on his shoulder.

"`Tis true, Master Inuyasha," Myouga said. "I know you still mourn the loss of your parents, and I also know how you hate Sesshomaru for making you flee for your life and survive on your own at such a young age. However, have you ever thought that things might just work out for a reason?" Inuyasha calmed and looked at Myouga. "You needed to be strong. You were an only child and probably would have grown up to be spoiled rotten. Now, you are strong because you know how to survive on your own. Look at it this way, if you had never been banished, you would have never met such great people." Myouga motioned towards Kagome and the others. Inuyasha followed his gaze and sighed.

"I guess you're are right once again, Myouga," Inuyasha said. "I just hate the circumstances everything had to happen under. Why couldn't father have just made me live in the wilderness or something for a while? That would have been better than seeing their deaths."

"I understand, my Lord," Myouga said. "But you know as well as I do that your father died protecting your mother, and your mother died protecting you. So far, you are following his footsteps." Inuyasha gave Myouga a skeptical look. "You would gladly give your life for Lady Kagome. As I said before, you are more like your father than you realize."

With that, Myouga began leading the way once more. Inuyasha watched Myouga walk on ahead. He then looked back at his friends who were still standing there talking amongst themselves.

`He's right,' Inuyasha thought. `Kagome, I would gladly die for you. Maybe some day I can tell you the real reason why. In the meantime, I need to focus my efforts on restoring the Western Lands. Father would have wanted it this way.'

"Come on, guys!" Inuyasha shouted. "Let's keep moving!"

They all nodded and ran to catch up with Inuyasha and Myouga.

* * *

A few hours later, the group had traveled a lot further than they thought they would. It was growing dark and Inuyasha's old city was only a few miles away now. They had arrived a lot quicker than Myouga had thought. Their trip had been rather quiet with the exception of Kagome and Shippo asking a few questions every now and then. Inuyasha was seriously beginning to wonder if Kagome ever went outside.

"So, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked. "What does a castle look like any way?"

Everyone's mouth dropped open in disbelief when they heard Kagome's question…except for Shippo who was just as eager to get an answer to the question. The idea of visiting a castle intrigued him, and other than the fact he had no where else to go, it was one of the main reasons he decided to join the group. He thought that maybe he could find somewhere to settle down in Inuyasha's old town.

"Yeah, Inuyasha!" Shippo said enthusiastically. "What does it look like?"

"Keh!" Inuyasha huffed and folded his arms turning back around. "We will be there soon enough and you can just see it for yourself."

"Aw come on, Inuyasha!" Kagome pleaded. "PLEEEEASE!"

"Keh!" Inuyasha said folding his arms tighter and sinking his neck down into his shoulders as he blushed. "We'll probably be there by tomorrow! Just wait to see it for yourself!"

"Fine," Kagome said sighing. Inuyasha's ears flattened slightly when he heard the sadness in Kagome's voice.

"Besides," Inuyasha said matter-of-factly. "I am going to be just as surprised as you are. All I remember about the castle is the way it looked when I was growing up. From what Myouga said, Sesshomaru has made a few changes."

Kagome, Sango, and Miroku gulped. They knew that Inuyasha wasn't going to be too happy about Sesshomaru completely changing the entire castle. They wondered just how much of the castle Sesshomaru had changed.

`I wonder what he's done to it,' Kagome thought as she yawned.

Inuyasha glanced at her and realized that everyone was starting to grow tired. He knew they would have to stop and make camp shortly. It was almost dark and they had yet to come to a decent spot.

They continued traveling for a little while longer until they soon came to the top of a large hill. Myouga walked up first and breathed a sigh of relief. Inuyasha walked up behind him and tensed as soon as saw what lay before him. Kagome, Shippo, Miroku, and Sango came to the top of the hill next and they all gasped at the sight before them.

"Oh, wow," Kagome breathed.

There below them, just a few miles away, lay Inuyasha's old city. It was quite large, but very simple. It wasn't quite as business oriented with the tall skyscrapers and business buildings like Kagome's town had. This town had simple, but elegant and beautiful architecture. It appeared, from a distance, that there weren't really any tall buildings in the city at all. It was mostly made up of homes, marketplaces, and other buildings that were three, four, or five stories high. In the center of the city were a few tall buildings, but everything else seemed really exquisitely simplistic. A crystal clear river wound its way around the city, and a beautiful marble and cobblestone bridge had been built as a way to cross the river, serving as an entrance into the city.

Kagome looked down at the shikon no tama that hung around her neck. She knew it was only going to bring more trouble once they got in the city. She had no idea what awaited them in the city, but as she stared down into the beautiful city that lay before her, she couldn't help but compare it to a beautiful enchantress. It was almost as if the city was beckoning them to come in so it could trap them somehow. Kagome glanced at Inuyasha out of the corner of her eye. She could see how tense he was. He was almost holding his breath. She knew he had to be nervous. The last time he was in that city, he had been abused, treated as a worthless hanyou, and his parents had been brutally murdered in front of him…when he was only a child. Kagome walked over to Inuyasha and stood next to him. He still stared into the city as if he was almost in a trance. He didn't even recognize that she had moved next to him until she gently placed a hand on Inuyasha's shoulder causing him to whirl his head around quickly to look at her. She had broken through his thoughts and startled him. She smiled up at him.

"I'm right here with you," Kagome said so softly that only Inuyasha could hear.

Inuyasha smiled slightly and placed his hand over hers. He sighed and stared back into the city. He was nervous. There was no doubt about that. But he was more nervous because he didn't want to put his friends in danger and he knew there was danger ahead. Inuyasha didn't care what happened to him as long as nothing happened to Kagome and the others.

"We'll make camp here tonight," Inuyasha said. "Let's go ahead and get some rest. We will need it for tomorrow. There is no telling what awaits us."

* * *

The next morning, everyone woke up earlier than usual. They were excited. They knew today was the day they were finally going to be entering Inuyasha's city to see his castle. Kagome was the first one ready followed by Shippo then Sango then Miroku then Myouga. Inuyasha took his time. He was in no hurry. In fact, he dreaded going to the castle to see the horrible things Sesshomaru had probably done to his father's castle.

Finally, everyone was ready and on the road again. Myouga stared down at the city below him and with a reassuring nod from Inuyasha, began leading the way towards the city in their usual formation. As they traveled down the hill, the city disappeared behind the trees in front of them. Soon, they were on level ground with the city and continued their march forward. Silence befell the group as they grew closer and closer to the city. Kagome was so excited she was about to bust. Shippo stared wide-eyed in anticipation. Sango and Miroku, however, kept their guard up looking this way and that making sure there were no traps. Myouga was unaffected, but Inuyasha grew tense as he got closer to the city. He even began emitting a low growl when the city came into view once more. Kagome gasped when the glorious bridge came into view. It was even prettier than she thought it would be. Its marble and cobblestone architecture stretched across the river in a graceful manner, and perfectly manicured shrubbery lined the river. Kagome beamed with excitement. Sango and Miroku even stopped to admire the beauty of the bridge and the city behind it. Kagome was about to walk forward to cross the bridge when Inuyasha extended his arm out in front of her to stop her.

Inuyasha began growling furiously. He got into his fighting stance as his ears twitched. He flicked tetsusaiga free from its scabbard with his thumb. Sango and Miroku walked forward ready to fight at a moment's notice. Kagome then realized that there must be danger somewhere and readied an arrow on her bow.

"Come out!" Inuyasha barked. "I know you're there!"

"Very well," a voice said. "We have no reason to hide."

The group looked on in anticipation as three men emerged from behind the shrubbery. The first, and obviously leader of the group, had a long, black braid and huge sword that he rested on his shoulder. He was dressed in clothing similar to Sesshomaru's except his was mostly blue and white and he had a red piece of cloth tied around his waist. The second had a bandana tied on his head and wore the armor of ancient Japan. He carried what looked like a small cannon on his shoulder. The third had dark hair pinned back a little with barrettes and wore a pale purple outfit similar to a kimono. He carried a sword as his weapon.

"Identify yourself!" Miroku commanded. The leader smirked and stepped forward.

"I suppose an introduction would be suitable," he said arrogantly. "My name is Bankotsu. I am the leader of what once was the Shichinintai."

Myouga gasped and Inuyasha looked at him.

"Heard of them, Myouga?" Inuyasha asked.

"Why, yes, my Lord," Myouga explained. "But they have been dead for years!"

"WHAT!!!" everyone said in unison.

"They were killed. These humans ravaged and pillaged village after village," Myouga explained. "Your grandfather is the one who finally beheaded them! How are they alive?!" Bankotsu smirked.

"I have no idea why we are alive," Bankotsu said. "But we are here for revenge!"

Inuyasha growled and drew tetsusaiga.

"Bring it on!" Inuyasha commanded.

Inuyasha's eyes soon landed on the purple guy tugging on Bankotsu's sleeve. Inuyasha didn't like the way the guy was looking at him. He whispered something to Bankotsu and then flashed his eyes at Inuyasha. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes at him as if to say why the hell are you looking at me like that. Bankotsu stepped forward.

"Very well," Bankotsu said sitting down Indian-style. "I might as well let you two have some fun before I kill them."

Inuyasha growled at his arrogance. He wanted to run over there and kill him right then.

"Inuyasha, is it?" the purple guy asked. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes.

"What?!" he said.

"Oh! Inuyasha is so good-looking!" the guy said dreamily.

"Huh?" Inuyasha said as the others shrunk away. Kagome and the others' mouth dropped open. They couldn't believe what they were seeing. This guy had a crush on Inuyasha!

"What is your name, you pervert?!" Miroku said angrily. Everyone looked at Miroku in shock. Had Miroku just called someone else a pervert?

"Hmm," the purple guy said. "The monk is pretty sexy too." Miroku gritted his teeth.

"Can I kill him?" Miroku said angrily stepping forward.

"Sure," Inuyasha said flatly. "After I do!"

As Miroku and Inuyasha argued over who would get to kill the purple guy, Bankotsu was scanning the area. His eyes soon landed on Kagome's neck…the shikon no tama. Bankotsu stood, and Miroku and Inuyasha stopped their bickering to look at him.

"Seems I will kill two birds with one stone!" Bankotsu said with a laugh. He stepped forward and pointed his sword at Kagome. "You have the shikon no tama, little girl!"

"Little girl?!!" Kagome retorted balling her fists angrily at him.

"Easy Kagome," Sango coaxed, resting a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Like hell you are!" Inuyasha yelled as he jumped in front of Kagome. Bankotsu rolled his eyes.

"Fine!" he said. "Jakotsu, you take care of the women! It looks like I am going to be a little tied up with this worthless hanyou! Renkotsu, you take care of the monk!"

"Huh?" the purple guy, now obviously known as Jakotsu, said. "Why do I get stuck with the women?!" He sighed dreamily as he stared at Inuyasha. "I want Inuyasha!"

"You will do as you are told," Bankotsu ordered. "Besides, if you get that shikon no tama for me, I will let you finish off Inuyasha."

Jakotsu beamed and nodded his head. He drew his sword and stared evilly at the women. Bankotsu smiled, then looked at Renkotsu. Renkotsu sighed and stepped forward.

"Might as well get this overwith!" Renkotsu said as he fired a cannon ball at Miroku. Miroku jumped in the air, dodging the cannon ball at the last second.

"Miroku!" Sango yelled.

"I'm okay!" he said landing on his feet to stare a Renkotsu.

"You're fight's with me!" Jakotsu yelled swinging his sword. The sword lengthened to many joined blades and began maneuvering like a snake.

"What the…" Sango said as she witnessed the blade come flying towards her. Kirara immediately transformed and picked Sango up out of the way of the blade. "Good girl, Kirara!" Sango said as she straddled the cat demon's back. Sango and Kirara began dodging attack after attack from Jakotsu.

"Hold still!" he yelled.

Meanwhile, Bankotsu and Inuyasha stared each other down. Both of them had their swords resting on their shoulders. Each of them smirked arrogantly at the other. Inuyasha removed his sword and pointed it towards Bankotsu.

"So you gonna attack me or what?" Inuyasha asked with an arrogant smirk. "I don't have all day you know."

"I thought you would never ask, oh, Lord of the Western Lands," Bankotsu said.

Inuyasha frowned. `How did he…?' he thought. `It doesn't matter. This guy is starting to freak me out. He is way to arrogant and knows too much about us. I need to finish him off quickly so I can get to Kagome and the others.'

"Myouga," Inuyasha called.

"Yes, my Lord?" Myouga asked bowing slightly.

"Take Shippo and get out of here. Make sure you two stay out of danger. Help Kagome and the others when you can," he ordered. Myouga nodded and bowed, scooping Shippo up as he ran to a nearby safe place. Bankotsu laughed as he watched the two run away.

"You know I will only find them after I finish you off," Bankotsu said.

"But see, that's the part you keep missing," Inuyasha stated. "You have to get through me first!!!" Inuyasha swung his sword only for Bankotsu to dodge it.

"Very well, then," Bankotsu said spinning his sword. "Time for you to die!"

A/N: TADA!!! Okay now I probably won't be able to update again for a few more days. I have a competition Monday night that I am preparing for. Please read and review! I love you guys! You are the absolute best!

Oh and "spooning" is when (normally) a girl and a guy lay on their sides and the girl's back is to the guy's stomach with the guys arms wrapped around her.

Keep up the great reviews!