Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ One for the Ages ❯ Chapter Twelve: Unexpected Visitors ( Chapter 12 )

One for the Ages

By Gan Xingba

Chapter Twelve: Unexpected Visitors

 

It had only been two days since the group had begun their stay in the cave, and Yusuke was positive that he was on the brink of insanity. Anyone who knew the boy well knew that he had little patience, and he had even less when there was something out there that needed a good ass kicking, something Naraku definitely qualified for. To make things worse, he had failed utterly in his attempts to use the Spirit Wave to heal himself, meaning that he was going to have to rely on Kuwabara and Sango if an attack came. The fact that the demon slayer would take some of the glory away from the big lug now that she was better helped ease the pounding his pride was taking, but that he was being protected at all was still humiliating. At least he'd been able to occupy himself with the mission of irritating every other person in the cave until they became as angry with him as he was with their current situation.

 

Kagome, of course, had been his first victim, and while it was certainly hilarious, he knew he could do even better. So, he set the bar even higher by going after two targets at once. He'd found a fruit that became an almost paint like substance when it was smashed up, and he had managed to get it all over Miroku's hands without the monk noticing. All that was left to was sit back and watch as the lecherous monk predictably groped Sango's butt when the opportunity presented itself. The end result was Miroku suffering a hard hit on the head from Sango's boomerang and the furious demon slayer walking around with a large, red handprint on her butt for almost an hour before someone finally let her know of its existence. Yusuke had to dodge a few rocks thrown his way afterwards, but it had been most assuredly worth it.

 

Unfortunately, that had been the highpoint. The rest was amusing, but overall very standard for Yusuke. Helping Shippou beat Kuwabara at cards and then taunting his friend about his losing streak when it came to competing against small children, and even throwing a stick at Inuyasha repeatedly and telling him to “fetch” hadn't been able to top his second prank, but that was all about to change. He'd found an excellent co-conspirator in Shippou. Shape shifting, it turns out, is the perfect skill for being an all around pest, as Hiei was about to find out. The little fox demon had transformed into a replica of Hiei, complete with sword, and was now making his way to the fire demon as he sat in a far corner of the cave.

 

“Rarr! I am Hiei!” declared the fake Hiei with a humorous looking scowl as he waved his sword about in the air. “I'm a huge loner and big party pooper! Don't talk to me or I will cut you up with my sword and eat babies! Grrr! I hate people and so on!”

 

`Damn, I'm good,' gloated Yusuke inwardly as he and the rest of the cave began to laugh uproariously as the fake Hiei continued to wave his sword around and growl. `I should start writing some of this stuff down.'

 

Hiei, however, did not find it amusing in the least. Death was in his eyes as he rose off the cavern floor and slowly stepped towards his impersonator, unsheathing his sword. Now trembling with fear, Shippou quickly transformed into his normal form and began to plead with the enraged fire demon.

 

“You wouldn't hurt a little kid, would ya'?” he begged, unable to control his shaking.

 

Without saying a word, Hiei brought his foot back and gave the little fox demon a swift kick. While he had been holding back to avoid giving the little demon any serious injuries, it had sufficient force to send Shippou flying across the cave and through the vines that covered the entrance, wailing rather comically the whole way. This caused a new wave of laughter from everyone else, but an icy glare from Hiei was enough to get most everyone to stop laughing. Even Yusuke and Kurama reduced their laughter to a chuckle. They knew Hiei's business glare, and that was it. Yusuke was a little surprised that Sango was joining with them, though. Reasoning that her continued chuckling was due to the greatness of his joke, Yusuke made to cash in on Hiei's escalated bad mood.

 

“Admit it, Hiei,” he voiced flashing his signature smirk. “That was dead on.”

 

“Funny how you should use the word `dead',” retorted Hiei with a snarl, the Jagan glowing from behind his headband as he turned to face the boy.

 

“You really ought to develop a sense of humor, Hiei,” advised Kurama, though he was unable to hold back a smile.

 

“Yeah, lighten up a little,” seconded Sango, causing Hiei's incensed gaze to shift in her direction.

 

Hiei opened his mouth to retort with what would undoubtedly be a death threat, but before he could emit a sound he abruptly stopped. Shutting his jaw and narrowing his eyes, he turned to the cave entrance. His Jagan glowed as it gazed outward through the vines.

 

“There are two Sacred Jewel shards approaching,” he stated. “I'm going to kill whatever has them.”

 

“Good idea!” agreed Inuyasha with a little too much enthusiasm. “Go kill him!”

 

At this everyone turned towards Inuyasha and threw suspicious glances his direction. Realizing his error, Inuyasha clumsily tried to rectify the mistake

 

“Of course that's just if it actually is a guy,” he continued ineptly. “I mean it could be a girl, I guess. It's just that most demons that we fight are guys and…”

 

“Save it Inuyasha,” intervened Kagome, letting out a sigh. “I bet I know who it is.”

 

Before anyone could ask who Kagome was referring to, Shippou darted into the cave as quickly as the vines would allow him, panting a little from the effort. Apparently, Hiei had kicked him a very long way.

 

“Hey guys, I think I saw Kouga heading this way!” announced the minute fox demon, pointing back outside the cave for emphasis.

 

“I knew it!” exclaimed Kagome triumphantly. “Don't worry, he's an ally of ours.”

 

Despite this new piece of information, Hiei still stood with sword drawn, as if he still had to make a difficult decision. Not wanting to take any chances, Kurama spoke up.

 

“I believe she's right, Hiei,” he assured his volatile friend. “Stand down.”

 

With his usual grunt, Hiei sheathed his sword and retreated back into the far corner of the cave. Whoever this newcomer was, Hiei wanted no interaction with him. That is, if he wasn't allowed to kill him. Just as the fire demon had assumed his seat, a sudden gust of wind blew back the vines that covered the cave entrance, and a wolf demon male stepped inside. With the confident grin, his ponytail blowing in the wind and a posture that made him look like he was posing for a picture, Hiei knew immediately that he would regret not killing this demon.

 

“It's a good thing my sense of smell is so good, Kagome, or else I might not have noticed that you were in the area,” Kouga greeted Kagome, clearly trying to act as charming as he possibly could before he noticed that Kagome had a few more companions then last time. “Well, it looks like you've gained a few more followers since the last time we met. Can't say I blame `em for wanting to be around you.”

 

“Hey, if you're gonna' try and insult me, say it to my face, wolf-boy!” bellowed Yusuke angrily, rising and clenching his fist in challenge to the offending party.

 

“Sit down, human. Don't embarrass yourself,” he snorted dismissively before walking up to Kagome and kneeling before her. “I only came to see how my lovely lady was doing.”

 

Though the Spirit Detectives had never been informed of the situation with Kouga, the image before them told all that was necessary. Kouga gently holding Kagome's hand in his, flashing a charming smile, the awkward half-smile that Kagome was doing her best to keep from turning into a grimace, and the barred teeth and twitching eyelid of Inuyasha gave them a more clear perspective than words could manage. In a moment, though, Kouga halted his fawning and sniffed the air near Kagome's side. His eyes now alive with shock, the wolf demon abruptly lifted her shirt slightly to reveal the slightly bloody bandages that covered the wound Youko had dealt her. Gritting his teeth and furrowing his brow in anger, Kouga shifted his gaze towards Inuyasha and glared death at the half-demon.

 

“You worthless mutt! How could you let Kagome get hurt?” he demanded accusingly.

 

“I'm fine Kouga, really,” voiced Kagome diplomatically, sensing the inevitable conflict brewing.

 

“Yeah, and you're not helpin' her get better pestering her like that, you mangy wolf,” butted in Inuyasha, either ignoring or unaware of Kagome's attempt to diffuse the situation.

 

“Shut up, you stupid mutt! Can't you see that I'm having a moment with my woman?” retorted Kouga, causing Kagome's phony cheerful expression to look even more awkward.

 

For a while, this back and forth continued as the rest of the cave's occupants looked on with exasperation. There was no legitimate purpose to the debate other then to call the other party as many crude things as possible, yet it kept the two locked in verbal combat. After a while, something set off Kuwabara's senses, but he was unable to concentrate with all of the background noise.

 

“Hey!” yelled Kuwabara, suddenly interrupting the back and forth as he rose and looked towards the cave entrance. “Shut up! I think I felt something.”

 

Both bickering demons paused and sniffed the air. Their expressions quickly turned serious, and they both rose abruptly at the same time.

 

“It's that damned witch. I'd know her scent anywhere,” growled Kouga, cracking his knuckles in anticipation. “And she's got a bunch of lesser demons with her, too.”

 

“You idiot, I bet she followed you here!” reprimanded Inuyasha crossly. “We were trying to stay hidden, but you messed it up!”

 

“What's the matter mutt, afraid?” taunted Kouga, eager to show up the half-demon.

 

“Actually, Kouga, almost everyone here is injured,” corrected Kagome, trying to end the argument. “We needed time to recover, so we decided to hide in this cave.”

 

“Then never fear, my dear Kagome! I won't let a single demon into this cave!” declared the wolf demon, thumping his chest proudly.

 

By now, Sango had retrieved her boomerang, and had joined a waiting Kuwabara at the cave entrance. Upon hearing Kouga offer his support, Kuwabara turned around and snorted skeptically.

 

“If you wanna' do something useful, the guard the cave while we go out and beat the crap out of that witch and her stupid gang,” counseled Kuwabara condescendingly. “A skinny punk like you'll just get in my way.”

 

Before Kuwabara had even finished his sentence, however, Kouga had already sprinted past him, kicking up a trail of dust. Though shocked by Kouga's speed, Kuwabara's pride compelled him to give chase so as not to let the newcomer steal his glory. With Kouga long gone and Kuwabara running after him with obscenities pouring out of his mouth, Sango relegated herself to guarding the cave entrance. It was impossible for her not to let out a sigh as Kuwabara bowled over Kouga's winded followers that were wearily trying to turn around and follow their leader without success.

 

“Is it just me, or is everyone else just a little nervous that our lives may be in the hands of those two?” asked Yusuke rhetorically as Kuwabara's yelling began to leave earshot.

 

“Don't worry,” Miroku assured the boy. “Kouga can fight far better than he can take a hint.”

 

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By the time Kuwabara had managed to catch up with Kouga, the speedy wolf demon had already thrown himself into Naraku's lesser demons. He zigzagged through their ranks at breakneck speed, slamming his fists into every demon in his path. While many people would be awed by this display of martial skill, it only made Kuwabara angrier. As he saw it, this was his battle and his glory, and Kouga had no right to it. Calling forth twin Spirit Swords into his hands, the boy leapt into the fray with a thunderous battle cry, cutting down any and all demons that were in his path. Not wanting for a mere human to outdo him, Kouga resolved to take the fight to the next level, and put more force behind every blow and more speed into his movements.

 

Within minutes, the ground was covered in mangled demon corpses, so sliced into a varying amount of pieces by Kuwabara, and others simply crushed by Kouga's vicious punches and kicks. Still, though, Kagura had not shown herself, and Kouga was becoming anxious. As he laid a booming roundhouse kick into another demon, he took a quick sniff of the air, just to confirm that she was indeed present. However, his efforts were unnecessary, for a moment later, a small barrage of purple energy blades could be seen streaking for Kuwabara's back.

 

“Nice try, but you're not that sneaky,” he taunted as he whirled about and batted the energy blades back towards their owner with his swords.

 

Having no more choice in the matter, Kagura finally showed herself, leaping away from the energy blades and landing with a flourish. The rest of the demons backed away from the three slowly, forming a sort of ring for the three combatants.

 

“It's about time that I killed you, witch,” declared Kouga, stretching out his neck in preparation. “My comrades will be avenged!”

 

“Have you already forgotten the last time you tried, wolf?” retorted Kagura mockingly. “I practically killed you, and you had to be saved by Inuyasha and his friends.”

 

“Hey, wind lady!” yelled Kuwabara as he leapt at the wind sorceress with both Spirit Swords raised high above his head. “I'm the guy that's gonna' beat ya'!”

 

Kagura easily leaped away from the downward slice and let loose another Dance of Blades at Kuwabara. As Kuwabara was trying to send the attack back at her with his Spirit Swords, Kouga charged right towards Kagura. Smirking at her assailants' foolishness, she simply leapt back slightly as the blades Kuwabara had reflected slammed right into the spot where she had been, and Kouga now occupied. Fortunately, the wolf demon's great speed allowed him to avoid most of the blades, save one that clipped his left shoulder. His fortune did not do anything to quell his anger at the one who had sent the blades towards him, however.

 

“You moron! You hit me!” he yelled at Kuwabara furiously.

 

“Well I wouldn't have if you'd just stayed out of the way, stupid!” came back Kuwabara with equal rage. “I don't need your help to beat this lady!”

 

Both parties were forced to cut their argument short as another stream of blades came hurtling towards them. Kouga used his speed to dodge the attack easily enough, while Kuwabara dodged some, and used his swords to fend off others. Kouga attempted to move in for an attack, but Kagura unleashed a small tornado in his direction before he reached his target, forcing him to cut the attack short to avoid being trapped in the whirlwind like in their previous battle. Kuwabara attempted to take advantage of her momentary lapse in attention to strike her, but Kagura sent yet another whirlwind in his direction, forcing him to take the same course of action as Kouga.

 

“Can't handle my Dance of the Dragon, huh?” jeered Kagura while the two regrouped next to each other.

 

“Ya' know…maybe you could help,” whispered Kuwabara, being as silent as possible. “You go left, I'll go right.”

 

“You may need my help, but I don't need yours, human,” hissed the wolf demon angrily. “I can handle her without you.”

 

Without another thought, Kouga sprinted towards Kagura with all his speed, leaving Kuwabara growling in frustration behind him. Kuwabara had always been a bit of a team player, but since becoming part of Yusuke's Spirit Detective team, he had learned to recognize situations that absolutely required that sort of behavior. This was one of those times, but Kouga just was not getting it. His charge, consequently, met with failure as Kagura sent forth another whirlwind to throw him off his course and followed up with a torrent of energy blades. Leaping nimbly to and fro to avoid the attack, Kouga finally made his way back to Kuwabara when the blades at last stopped coming.

 

“Now you wanna' try it my way?” asked Kuwabara chidingly.

 

“Fine,” ceded Kouga begrudgingly. “But you'd better know what you're doing.”

 

“Don't worry, she can't take both of us at once,” assured the boy, readying himself. “All right, let's go!”

 

On Kuwabara's signal, both dashed off in their respective directions, setting up for a pincer attack. Recognizing that Kouga's speed made him the more immediate threat, Kagura tried to slow him with yet another whirlwind, but the wolf demon managed to skirt around it without slowing down much, forcing Kagura into desperate action. Just before Kouga reached her, she pulled a feather out of her hair and with a burst of wind took the skies on the now oversized hair accessory. However, even before she had made it above the trees, Kuwabara pulled a desperate maneuver of his own. Pointing the Spirit Sword in his left hand down towards the ground, he called for his blades to extend, and they obeyed. The sword in His left hand had propelled him high up into the air, but Kagura was slightly higher than he was, and she was still rising. As quickly as he could, he swung the Spirit Sword in his right hand, now also of gigantic proportions, desperately at the sky bound sorceress.

 

It turned out that the Spirit Sword was just long enough. The blade didn't hit Kagura, but it did slice her feather out from under her, sending her tumbling towards the Earth. She used the wind to slow her fall, but as she fell below the canopies of the trees, she noticed Kouga flying at her, fist extended to strike. Yet, the fist never connected, though she did feel a gust of air as it whizzed right by the left side of her head. Despite this close call, she had a confident smirk on her face as she landed upon the ground gracefully.

 

“Heh, all that work and you still missed,” she ridiculed the duo, reaching up to her hair for the spare feather she kept there.

 

Her confidence, quickly turned to panic, however, for where her feather was supposed to be, she felt nothing.

 

“Looking for this?” inquired Kouga, taking his own turn to smirk as he held up the feather in question in his hand, and then promptly ground it into nothing. “Oops. Doesn't look like you're gonna' be running away this time, are ya'?”

 

“Nice one, wolf boy,” congratulated Kuwabara as he decreased the length of his Spirit Swords back to normal to lower himself back to earth. “Now we got `er.”

 

Suddenly, a creature in a white baboon skin leapt out from the bushes towards the seemingly victorious pair. With a kick from Kouga and a slash from Kuwabara, the demon puppet was easily destroyed, but when they turned back to where Kagura had been, they found her gone.

 

“Damn! She's trying to run away on foot,” cursed Kouga, and then began to dash off in the direction of her scent. “I won't let you get away!”

 

Kuwabara at first thought to follow, but then he noticed that all the demons who had previously been observing were now closing in on him.

 

`If I don't kill these guys, they could go after the others,' he realized, hacking the head off of the first demon to get within reach. `I guess I'll have to let that guy get the witch.'

 

Before he could start to lay waste to the demons before him, however, he heard a female voice yell out a battle cry, and Sango's massive boomerang swooped in to do his job for him. Catching the returning weapon, Sango landed next to him and went to work on slaying the nearest demons.

 

“Kuwabara, don't let Kouga kill Kagura,” she ordered as she crushed the skull of another demon with her boomerang. “If we capture her, she can lead us right to Naraku.”

 

“Hey, good idea! I'll go after `em,” he agreed, with a nod, and then charged through the ranks of demons, using his senses to try and locate the wolf demon and his prey.

 

This was without a doubt the best opportunity to find Naraku that had yet presented itself, and even someone like Kuwabara, who didn't think far beyond what method would best beat up his opponent, realized this. Naraku was a genius in terms of strategy, and he had fooled some of the most cunning minds with his schemes. Now, his least strategic enemy of all, Kazuma Kuwabara, had the opportunity to turn the tables.