InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Simple Legacy (II) ❯ Chapter 5 ( Chapter 5 )

Disclaimer: Inuyasha and its characters are created by Rumiko Takahashi, not me, but the new plots are mine. This fanfiction had been written for entertainment purposes only and without intention of infringing upon any copyright.

A Simple Legacy II by elle6778 - Chapter 5


Silence hung thick and heavy in the air as the miko frowned in deliberation. She was obviously torn between the two promises she had made. Sesshoumaru frowned slightly, his patience growing thin.

“I can't break my promise to Inuyasha,” she mumbled dejectedly without looking at him.

Sesshoumaru's lips tightened. “Do not forget that you also owe this Sesshoumaru,” he said, injecting a hint of threat in his words.

She glared at him. “Yeah, I know. But you're making things real difficult for me.”

He had expected her to react adversely but it seemed that he had underestimated her loyalty to Inuyasha. Even after what the hanyou had done to her when he had transformed into his demon self, she was still willing to keep her promise to him. As furious as she had been with Inuyasha for his latest foolish accusations, her loyalty still remained intact. Sesshoumaru did not know whether he should be furious at her or to respect her for it. After all, her honor was the only thing which held her back from going with him.

“Miko. You do not have a choice. Willingly or not, you are assisting this Sesshoumaru,” he stipulated calmly.

When she glared at him, he was treated to a flash of her annoyance. “You can't force me like that!” she protested vehemently.

Unperturbed, he replied, “It is within this Sesshoumaru's right to do so.”

She sighed heavily and stared down at the ground. Her indecision and confusion reached him clearly through their strange bond. He felt no deceit in her. The miko was genuinely troubled by the decision she had to make. But she was wavering, he realized as he looked into her flickering eyes.

Knowing that she needed a little push, he said quietly, but with authority, “You know that this Sesshoumaru's plan would benefit your cause.”

“What plan? You haven't told me anything,' she grumbled.

“It will be explained when it becomes necessary for you to know.”

“Then how would I know if it'll work?” she asked warily.

“You doubt this Sesshoumaru?”

She just continued to stare at him wordlessly. Finally, when he was about to lose the small amount of patience he possessed, he was hit by a wave of acceptance from her.

“Alright. But I have to…talk to Inuyasha.”

Letting out the breath that he did not realize he was holding, Sesshoumaru nodded curtly. He frowned inwardly, confused now that he realized that he had been anxious. There was no reason for him to feel that way. In the end, he would have simply forced her along if she had refused.

Perhaps he did not relish the thought of what he had to do if she had decided to fight him. His victory would be assured but he was honest enough to realize that he would not escape a real fight with the miko completely unscathed. It was just as well that she had accepted so…graciously.

Waves of disquiet continued to emanate from the miko. Now that he had gotten the answer he wanted, perhaps he should sate his curiosity. Making sure that his features expressed nothing but disinterest, he asked, “What is the nature of your promise to the hanyou?”

She let out a heavy breath, sagging into herself as she did so. “That I will not leave him.”

“It is not specific to the jewel hunt?” he asked, slightly astonished that the miko had been foolish enough to promise Inuyasha something so open-ended.

Did she not consider her own life important enough without Inuyasha's presence? Did it not occur to her that her generosity might be taken advantage of? Then again, this was the same miko who had granted him an open-ended boon. And this Sesshoumaru had every intention of taking advantage of it, whether she liked it or not.

The moment that thought crossed his mind, something unsettling rose within him. The same feeling had happened to him several times in her presence. He could not quite place what it was but it made him feel somewhat uncomfortable.

The miko shook her head forlornly. “No. It's not specific to anything.”

Tamping down on the edginess that refused to leave, he said, “This Sesshoumaru has no intention of keeping you away from the hanyou permanently. What you choose to do after you've completed your task does not concern this Sesshoumaru.”

She did not look convinced. “I suppose…”

He gave her a firm look. “It is so, Miko. You will not be betraying your promise to Inuyasha if you return to him later,” he insisted, wondering why he was inclined to soothe her worries.

Groaning, she buried her face in her hands. “He's not going to be happy.”

His face tightened in irritation. “There's more at risk here than the hanyou's happiness.”

“I know,” she mumbled before she stared wordlessly into the distance.

Unused to seeing her so quiet and dejected, he decided that a change of subject would be prudent. “How much more?”

Startled, she jumped. “Huh?”

“How much more before the jewel is complete?” he elaborated impatiently.

Kagome frowned. “I have a quarter. Naraku has almost half. The rest are out there somewhere.”

“Hn.” So, it seemed that he had not done too badly after all. There should not be too many more out there.

“What do you need the shards for?” she asked curiously.

“No questions, Miko.”

She rolled her eyes in response, but he had no intention of telling her just yet. As it was, he had already told her too much. He should have picked a more secure location for this discussion. However, it was too late to do anything about that now.

She continued to question him. “Why are you so sure that we can find the shards faster without help?”

He gave her an appraising look. There was only one way he could convince her that they would be successful in finding the shards. Glancing warily around them, he erected a solid barrier around the two of them, blocking the outside world from them.

The miko's eyes widened. “Uh…Sesshoumaru-”

He interjected smoothly, “The barrier is necessary.”

She did not look convinced but thankfully, she did not question him further. There was a limit to his tolerance. Reaching into the folds of his clothes, he pulled out a pouch. It was glowing with an eerie greenish gold hue.

Her curiosity clear on her face, she asked gingerly, “What's that?”

Without a word, he loosened the tie at the top of the pouch and shook out its contents. Then he glanced at her for her reaction. The miko's eyes were wide in surprise as she took in the sight of the nine slivers in his palm. Although they were glowing green from the barrier, there was no mistaking what they were.

“Where did you get all these shards from?” she asked in a hushed, almost awed voice.

“This Sesshoumaru gathered these shards in two weeks.”

“Alone?” she gasped, her eyes still trained on the shards. “Those nine shards would form about one-eighth of the whole jewel. This means that there was only around one-eighth left out there somewhere.”

As she tried to touch them, he closed his fist, preventing her from doing so. “No. Your touch will destroy the wards.”

Speechless, the miko continued to stare at his hand. Her astonishment washed over him in waves. He resisted the urge to smirk. Did she think that he, Sesshoumaru would take as long as years to find the shards?

“Um…Are you sure you need my help with this, Sesshoumaru? It looks like you're doing fine by yourself.” Her voice was hesitant.

“You will assist this Sesshoumaru as promised,” he demanded flatly. It was not necessary for her to know the reason behind his demand for her assistance.

A short pause followed before she prodded, “You can't find the rest?”

His expression turned stony. After the nine shards, he had searched all over his lands and further to no avail. It was beyond infuriating.

Detesting the idea of admitting his failure to the miko, he finally decided that he would not grace her with an answer. She could think whatever she wished.

She quirked an eyebrow and then to his consternation, she laughed. “I see. Admit it, Sesshoumaru. You can't find the rest of the shards by yourself and it's annoying you.”

He gritted his teeth as her amusement washed over him. The miko was testing his patience. “You will cease your laughter, wench!” he snapped.

“Oh, it's back to wench now, huh?” she teased.

“Miko…” he growled, glowering at her. How dare she mock him? No one else dared to laugh at him. He had obviously been too lenient in his interactions with her. She was letting it get to her head. Her attitude towards him was simply unacceptable.

Unsuccessful in stifling her laughter, she choked out, “Oh, come on, Sesshoumaru. It's just a little joke.”

He gave her a look which threatened death if she continued to mock him.

“We will discuss the strategies further at a more secure location,” he said in a clipped tone.

Lips pressed tightly together, he dissolved the barrier and with stiff steps, removed himself from the infuriating sound of her chuckles.


***


Kagome sat at the mouth of the cave, staring absently at the new dawn. She had not been able to get back to sleep after her conversation with Sesshoumaru.

Turning over her shoulders to flick a glance at the sleeping Inuyasha, she sighed. She had no doubt that her hanyou friend would not react well to her decision. But after thinking about it over and over again, she realized that she had made the right decision.

Keeping her promise to Inuyasha would result in the potential delay of gathering the shards. And gathering the shards, keeping them out of the hands of evil beings like Naraku, was her first priority. As she was born with the jewel inside her, protecting the Shikon jewel was her responsibly, her legacy.

At one time, she would have put Inuyasha above that but she realized now that those actions had been a manifestation of her crush on Inuyasha. She had been simply overwhelmed by the feeling of first love. But now that the feeling had faded somewhat, it was not hard to see what was her priority.

However, all this thinking only made her feel more apprehensive about broaching the subject with the surly hanyou.

The sound of soft footsteps reached her, drawing her away from her thoughts. Turning around, she found a yawning Sango walking towards her.

“Sango-chan,” Kagome greeted softly, giving her friend a smile. “You slept well?”

Sango nodded, sitting down beside her. “I woke up last night and you weren't around.”

Kagome turned back to look at the orangey sky. “Oh…I was out here, talking to Sesshoumaru,” she said, hoping that Sango would not prod her about the details. Inuyasha should be the first one to find out, although Sango and the rest would need to know as well at some point. She felt a sinking feeling in her stomach at the thought of being parted from her companions for an unspecified amount of time.

A moment of thoughtful silence followed before Sango spoke. “You seem very comfortable around him.”

“Huh?” Kagome exclaimed, glancing over at her friend in surprise. “Around Sesshoumaru? Well, I guess I did spend a lot of time with him when I was healing his arm.”

Smiling knowingly, Sango said, “Yes. And I have to say that the time was well spent, considering what we saw yesterday. If I didn't see it with my own eyes, I would never have thought that it is possible for someone to improve so much in such a short time.”

Kagome grinned at her friend's compliment. “Sesshoumaru's a good teacher.”

Sango's lips twitched. “I'm surprised that you survived his training. I can only imagine how ruthless he can be, considering what I've seen of him in the past.”

With an easy chuckle, Kagome replied, “He's really not that bad. He's strict, but he did not injure me or anything. I even got to keep my life after hitting him a few times. Surprising, huh?”

Sango was dumbstruck for a moment, her rounded eyes displaying her incredulity. Then she remarked dryly, “It's quite clear that you don't fear him anymore.”

“I guess not,” Kagome said with a small smile. “He's really not such a bad guy. I think we might have misjudged him in the past. Sesshoumaru always seems to have reasons for everything he does.”

Sango quirked an eyebrow. “I swear, you sound as if you like him,” she teased.

Kagome's eyes bugged. “Sango! Don't joke like that. Especially not in front of Sesshoumaru.”

Sango simply laughed. Then she stood up. “Come on, let's get some wood to start breakfast. I'm hungry.”


***


Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed as he watched the miko pack her belongings into her bag. It was clear that she was avoiding Inuyasha. The reason was obvious; she had not worked up the courage to broach the subject of leaving the hanyou.

Gritting his teeth in annoyance, Sesshoumaru deliberated whether he should simply drop the news on Inuyasha to save himself the trouble of waiting. He was anxious to leave the company of the large group, now that the miko had agreed to fulfill her debt. But something told him that it would be better to let the miko deal with it in her own bumbling manner.

At least until this Sesshoumaru reached the end of his tolerance.

As he continued to watch the miko and her companion prepare for departure, his senses nudged at him. It began as an uncomfortable prick at the back of his neck. Then, the edgy feeling grew and Sesshoumaru tensed. Although the presence was some distance away, his senses were keen enough to recognize it.

Naraku.

Sesshoumaru's eyes flickered with determination. He was certain that the hanyou was heading straight at them, which meant that his target would be close by. It was much sooner than he had anticipated but he could not let the opportunity slip. Since he had lost Kagura's support to her death at Naraku's hand, he had been searching for a replacement. And now, his replacement was close. Knowing that he had no time to waste, he zipped towards the miko.

The miko jumped in surprise when he appeared at her side. “Miko. Naraku's approaching,” he stated evenly.

Her eyes widened in shock. “Now?” she squeaked.

He inclined his head. “It is best that you prepare yourself.”

The miko looked around frantically. “Inuyasha! Miroku! Sango! Shippou! Naraku's heading this way.”

“What?” Inuyasha exclaimed as he unsheathed Tetsusaiga. He looked around jerkily, his nose high, sniffing the air. “Where? I don't smell his stink.”

“Your senses are inferior to this Sesshoumaru's,” the taiyoukai remarked, amused at the flash of indignation in the hanyou's eyes.

As Inuyasha took a threatening step towards him, the miko held him back. “Not now!” she snapped.

With an irritated growl, Inuyasha turned away abruptly. The packing continued in a frenzy for the miko, the houshi and the taijiya. Seated on top of the nekomata, the kitsune took off into the air to act as a lookout.

As the rest of them continued to scramble around in preparation, Sesshoumaru stilled the miko's agitated movements with his hand. “When you're fighting Naraku, do not overuse your powers,” he instructed firmly.

Frowning in confusion, she just blinked at him. “What do you mean?”

“This Sesshoumaru will require the assistance of your powers shortly.”

With that he walked off.

Her anxious voice reached him. “Hey, aren't you going to stay to fight?”

Yes, he was going to fight. But this time, it was a different kind of fight.


***


Naraku appearance, as expected, was preceded by his usual youkai swarm.

At least this time they were not caught unawares, Kagome thought darkly. Standing firm in the clearing not far from the cave they had spent the night in, she and her companions were already prepared long ago, thanks to Sesshoumaru's warning. Raising her bow, she pulled back and released the arrow straight at the howling mass. Screams of rage rang through the air as the glowing arrow purified a large chunk of the youkai swarm.

As the youkai swarm scattered, Kagome looked around to find her companions splitting up. Wielding the transformed Tetsusaiga, Inuyasha slashed at the youkais around him, quickly decimating their numbers. Sango and Miroku stood back to back with Kirara close to them. The taijiya took care of the ones further from them using her Hiraikotsu, leaving the closer ones for the houshi to deal with.

Standing next to Kagome, Shippou released his foxfire, his chubby face scrunched up with determination. As the youkais came one after another, getting so close that shooting her arrows would be pointless, Kagome unsheathed her kodachis.

Her blades sliced through the air, taking down more of the low level youkais. To her distress, some of them almost managed to harm the little kitsune beside her.

“Shippou, you need to get out of here,” she urged, flicking a quick glance down.

“I can't leave you here alone,” Shippou protested.

Her eyes swept the area. To her relief, she found that the low level youkais were destroyed. However, the moment the thought crossed her mind, she spotted the approach of a new group of youkais. To her consternation, this time the youkais were human in appearance, signifying that they were stronger than their predecessors. There were not as many of them this time but they would be harder to defeat. No doubt Naraku would be joining them soon.

“Shippou. Go now!” she instructed firmly. Shippou would be in too much danger standing beside her.

The kitsune only hesitated a moment before he ran off without a further protest. As he reached the edge of the forest, Kagome directed a protective barrier towards him. Protected within the pearlescent sphere, Shippou stood hidden amidst the trees and scrubs.

Kagome turned around just in time to counter an attack from something which looked like a large beetle youkai. Her kodachis hit him in his chest but protected by its beetle shell armor, the blades did not penetrate. Its yellow, jewel-like eyes glared evilly at her as it swiped down with its own katana.

Raising her weapons Kagome quickly blocked and deflected the other katana to one side. Realizing that it would be useless to try to stab the youkai again, she infused her miko energy into the kodachis and aimed them at her opponent. Twin beams of energy shot out and hit the beetle youkai in the chest. Its yellow eyes bulged a moment before it let out a soundless yell and disintegrated into nothing.

Panting slightly, she lifted her eyes to find Inuyasha engaged in a furious battle with Naraku. It looked as if it had just begun, but the evil hanyou was rapidly gaining the upper hand. His tentacles kept coming no matter how many times Inuyasha hacked at them.

“Inuyasha, watch out!” she yelled just as three tentacles waved over the top of Inuyasha's head.

Inuyasha showed no signs of hearing her but he managed to dodge one tentacle before slicing it off. Two other tentacles came at him.

Kagome quickly replaced her kodachis with her bow. Notching an arrow into her bow, she aimed at Naraku and fired. The glowing arrow hit the writhing appendage and it exploded into dust. To her dismay, another tentacle immediately replaced it. Naraku did not even bother to look at her.

She shot a few more arrows and detached a few more tentacles before Inuyasha turned over his shoulders to glance at her. His expression was an odd mix of unease and gratefulness.

A growl behind her made her spin around abruptly. Alarmed, her eyes widened at the close proximity of a bear youkai. Again, knowing that her bow and arrow was useless at such close distance, Kagome threw it to one side. Reaching down to her waist, she unsheathed both her kodachis again and swung it in front of her.

The youkai laughed and began to swipe at her with its massive paws. Gulping, she took a step back as the youkai swiped again. Finally irritated, her eyes narrowed and she raised her kodachis. In a quick move, she swung them down in a cross, catching one of the youkai's paws in the descending motion. The youkai howled in outrage and its eyes reddened.

Infusing her kodachis with her miko powers, she spun around in a rapid circle. The blades sparked and her purifying energy shot out from its tips. The moment the energy hit the youkai, it exploded into dust.

Panting heavily, her heart beating fast against her ribcage, she looked around for other immediate danger. Seeing none, she picked up her bow and arrow and began to aim for Naraku again.

Before she could release the arrow, she felt herself being grabbed from the back. Her eyes shot open in fear as she realized that her ribs were caught in an iron grip.

She screamed.

“Let me go!” she screamed, kicking her legs backwards. Then her entire body tensed, preparing to expel her purifying powers.

“Stop, Miko.”

A wave of relief washed over her at the familiar deep voice. Sesshoumaru, she thought as she twisted around. At least it was him and not some other youkai. Realizing that he still had her in his uncompromising hold, she frowned. Then, the wind sped past her as he streaked towards the forest. Where was he taking her?

Her feeling of alarm grew. “What are you doing, Sesshoumaru? I need to help Inuyasha.”

He shook his head. “It's a puppet. Inuyasha doesn't need your help,” he said levelly as he continued to leap over the boulders away from the fight scene.

She began to struggle again. “Yes, he does. Naraku is going to kill him. Sesshoumaru, let me go. Please,” she pleaded frantically.

His arm tightened. “You will cease your struggles. Your assistance is required elsewhere at present.”

“What?” Confused, she twisted over her shoulders to look at him. “I don't sense any shards around here, Sesshoumaru. I thought that we agreed-”

“Our agreement states the following; You will lend this Sesshoumaru all your power as required and accompany this Sesshoumaru to find the shards. Those were the exact words.”

Her jaw dropped as comprehension dawned. So he did not want just the shards. Shards or not, he wanted to use her powers as and when he pleased. “Why…You TRICKED me!” she yelled, trying to turn around to glare at him. “You sneaky-”

He cut in silkily, “Do not insult this Sesshoumaru. You will pay your debt as agreed.”

She could not believe she had fallen for that, she fumed. Scowling deeply, she made a mental note to be warier of Sesshoumaru in the future. The taiyoukai was simply too devious.

“Why are you dragging me along then?” she snapped irritably.

“Silence. You'll find out soon.” His voice was hard.

Knowing by now that he meant business by that tone, Kagome stilled. But what did Sesshoumaru want from her?

They jarred to a sudden stop. To her surprise, she felt the brush of his lips against the lobe of her ears. She sucked in a sharp breath at the intimate contact just as he whispered very softly, “Do not speak of this aloud as there are many ears around us. When the time comes, you are to distract the target with your attacks. Do not kill the target. Then, on this Sesshoumaru's call, you will form a barrier trapping the target. Do not hesitate, or you will regret it.”

She blinked at the seriousness of his tone. “Who?” she breathed out almost inaudibly.

He did not reply. Instead, he launched off swiftly until they landed in a clearing.

They were not alone.

Kagome's jaw dropped as her eyes took in a slender girl, dressed in a forest green dress and black fitted leggings. At their approach, she turned slowly towards them. Her eyes were as black as a moonless night, eerie and blank, framed by dark brown hair. She was some sort of youkai but Kagome could not put her finger on the type.

“What…Who…” Kagome whispered. And then she shot an apprehensive look at Sesshoumaru. Who was this and why did Sesshoumaru want to trap her?

“Naraku's detachment,” Sesshoumaru said tonelessly.

He extended his Whips of Light and snapped it close to the youkai in front of them. The youkai blinked and jumped back. Spinning around, she raised her hand and a flurry of green leaves began to swirl around him.

Kagome felt her heart sink. The youkai could control the vegetation around them and Sesshoumaru's right in the middle of its path.

“Sesshoumaru!” she called out in alarm.

Without a flinch, the taiyoukai unsheathed his katana in a move too fast for her eyes to follow. Toukijin pulsed in an attempt to disintegrate the leaves in the vicinity of the katana's youki. To Kagome's surprise, even before the leaves disappeared, the youki from Sesshoumaru's Toukijin sped at an alarming speed straight towards the youkai's pendant.

Kagome gasped, her eyes widening in horror as the bright light was sucked in by the pendant at the youkai's neck. The pendant was obviously some kind of device which sucked in youki.

“Sesshoumaru…” she whispered. How could he defeat someone who could absorb his youki?

“Why do you not attack Moriko?” the girl asked in a soft voice, giving Sesshoumaru a blank stare.

Moriko. That was the youkai's name. It meant forest child, which explained her ability to command the elements of the forest.

Sesshoumaru simply glanced away from her. His face set in his usual stoic mask, he ordered, “Miko. Now!”

Kagome blinked numbly for a second before she raised her hands. Feeling her power rise, she began to expel shots of purifying orbs, heeding Sesshoumaru's warning not to destroy the youkai.

A blinding mass of leaves and twigs began to swirl in the air, hampering her vision. But Kagome gritted her teeth and kept on delivering her attacks. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Sesshoumaru streak behind the youkai. In seconds, he raised Toukijin and slashed at the back of the youkai's neck.

Kagome gasped and her attacks instantly faltered.

But instead of falling like Kagome expected, the forest youkai's eyes simply widened in dismay as she clutched at her neck. “No…” she whispered.

The pendant was gone.

Sesshoumaru took a step forward, the pendant held in what looked like a piece of leather. The forest youkai erected a barrier around herself before he could reach her. Light green shoots weaved themselves, forming an orb around her. To Kagome's surprise, the eerie blankness was now gone. The youkai's eyes were no longer black. Instead, the pair of anxious eyes which stared out of the vine barrier was light brown.

Strangely enough, Kagome felt no malice from the youkai. Only fear and despair. This youkai was not evil, Kagome realized. But what was she doing with Naraku then?

“Miko. The barrier. Now.”

Kagome gave him an incredulous look. “Now? She has her own barrier around her!”

“NOW, Miko!” His tone was uncompromising.

Barrier…barrier…Kagome chanted to herself, trying to calm her frazzled nerves enough to call forth her strength. Everything seemed to be moving so fast, there was barely enough time for her to think. Taking a deep breath, Kagome let her power rise within her, filling her with a tingling warmth. Then she held her hand palm out, frowning in concentration. In a flash, a bright flight flew out of her palms and hit the youkai's greenish barrier. A thin pearlescent purple hue began to wrap around the green barrier.

“Stop…Please…” the youkai who called herself Moriko whispered as she tried to move, her agitated movements displaying her anxiety. The trees around them began to tremble in reaction.

Kagome watched apprehensively as their combined barriers wobbled a little. It was clear that it would not hold for long. Belatedly, she realized that she should have heeded Sesshoumaru's advice on restraining the use of her powers earlier.

“Again, Miko!” Sesshoumaru instructed firmly.

Kagome tensed and raised her arms again. This time her power was steadier, shooting a brighter arc of pure energy towards the glowing barrier. It hit and wrapped itself around the large orb, completely trapping the youkai.

The girl's light brown eyes were large in fear as she stared out of her prison.

A quick glance up at the taiyoukai beside her told Kagome that he was pleased with their success.

“Now what?”

“Now we depart.”

With that, Sesshoumaru grabbed her with his left arm and they rose together on his dust cloud. Turning to Moriko, he flicked his wrist once and his whips shot out to grasp Moriko's prison in the golden strands.

Higher and faster, they moved away from the area.


***