InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Blackout ❯ Brotherly Love ( Chapter 40 )

Disclaimer: I don’t own Inuyasha or any of the publicly known characters, plot, etc. I’m just renting them from Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, etc. I do own the plot of this story and any original characters I’ve created. I will make no money from this fic; I write for my own enjoyment and the enjoyment of my readers.


Brotherly Love


“Kagura-sama, look! I turned Jaken-sama into a flower yosei!”

Kagura grinned and shook her head. To say that Rin had warmed up to her would be an understatement. Nowadays it was a rare occurrence when the little girl left her alone. Not that she minded; to the contrary, she had come to enjoy her time with the precocious youngster. Rin was always ready with a bright smile, and her constant exuberance never failed to raise Kagura’s spirits. Especially since she liked to play with Jaken, ‘play’ being the operative word though the toad would probably use ‘torture’ instead. His head was currently adorned with a floral crown which Rin had spent the better part of the morning assembling. Though Kagura wasn’t sure about the girl’s description of her unwilling model. He’s the ugliest damn yosei I’ve ever heard of.

Jaken reacted with his typical frustrated bluster, flinging the crown to the ground and stomping on it a couple times for good measure. With Sesshoumaru gone, the little toad felt that he could get away with this, even though Rin’s expression turned downtrodden and her bottom lip quivered. He should have known better.

Unfolding her fan, Kagura wielded it with natural grace, manipulating the wind with short, precise motions. Jaken screamed in surprise as a whirlwind rose around him, picking up flowers from the field and imprisoning him within a swirling vortex of brightly colored petals. He swung his staff ineffectually, but knew better than to deploy his flame attack with Rin nearby. If he did that, Kagura had every intention of taking that staff and shoving it up his ass. Literally.

A targeted gust of wind ripped the staff from his hands and sent it flying. Another silenced his outraged protests by yanking his hat down to cover his beak-like mouth. And for the final touch, Kagura assembled a solid tower of flowers at least a half dozen meters tall and dropped it on his head. Her wind maintained the tower’s form but did nothing to support its weight, so Jaken stumbled and swayed under the pressure. He pulled the hat away from his mouth and demanded that she stop this at once. So, after a few more seconds of torment, she did just that. The imp’s scream as the entire mass of flowers collapsed on him was most satisfying.

Rin’s joyous laughter brought a bright smile to Kagura’s face. She found the girl rolling on the ground, kicking her feet with uncontrollable mirth. Jaken crawled out of the side of his floral mound moments later, dusting himself off with feigned dignity. But a few petals still clung to his clothing, the sight of which caused Rin to laugh even harder. Jaken was not amused, however, and slunk off to be alone for a while. That was fine with Kagura. Perhaps next time he would think twice about making Rin sad.

Kagura flopped down on the grass next to the still giggling girl and waited for her to regain her composure. She gazed up into the sky and smiled, each of Rin’s melodious notes like sweet birdsong to her ears. Finally the girl’s mirth subsided, and she sat up, staring after Jaken anxiously.

“Is Jaken-sama mad?”

Kagura snorted. “He’s always mad about something. It was funny, right?”

Rin snickered a bit at that. “Yeah. Your fan is so cool. I wish I could do that.”

“Well, I wish I could make flower crowns like you. Will you make one for me?”

Rin’s eyes lit up and she set to excitedly running about the field gathering her building materials. Kagura chuckled and shook her head. She was going to look absolutely ridiculous in whatever Rin put together, and would probably have to wear it for a week to avoid hurting her feelings, but somehow she didn’t mind. She did wonder what Sesshoumaru would say about it, or rather, what his eyes would say. His mouth would likely say what it usually did–nothing.

Kagura’s expression turned contemplative, but her soft smile remained. Sesshoumaru remained somewhat of an enigma, but one she was ever so slowly beginning to unravel. Most of the time he carried himself in silence, communicating with body language or not at all. But she had learned to read his subtle signals, even after only a few weeks of traveling together. For example, when he was not averse to conversing around the campfire at night, he would sit with just a slightly more open stance than usual. That was her cue to engage him in conversation. Most of the time it was pretty one-sided, but on a couple occasions he had shared with her stories of his past. She lived for those moments, when Sesshoumaru lowered his stoic façade just a little and opened up to her. It made her feel special, since in all likelihood he had never shared such intimacy with anyone, perhaps not even his own parents. And especially not Jaken, which was probably one of the reasons why the imp resented her so much.

But that was fine; she wasn’t very fond of Jaken either. She could tolerate him in order to travel with Sesshoumaru and Rin, but she didn’t think they would ever like each other. For the first week or so, he had berated her repeatedly for not referring to Sesshoumaru with an honorific, even in his presence. The daiyoukai never said anything though, one way or the other. Finally she gathered up the courage to ask him directly. An affirmative answer would have changed the nature of their relationship, and Sesshoumaru knew it. But instead of demanding formality from her, he had simply replied that it was not necessary, embracing the more casual nature of their relationship in his own way. Jaken nearly had a conniption, but he had shut up about the honorific at least. Though it didn’t take him long to find something else to harp on, whether it be her crude mannerisms, ‘unladylike’ behavior, or just some bullshit he made up because he didn’t like her. After a while, it all became white noise to Kagura. Sesshoumaru didn’t mind any of her flaws, imagined or otherwise, and that was all that mattered to her. Especially when she was the only one he allowed to be so familiar with him. Jaken’s own experiment of addressing his master without an honorific had ended with Sesshoumaru’s boot planted in his face.

Kagura grinned at the memory and lay down in the grass, lulled by Rin’s gentle humming as she went about her business. Yes, life was good. She was grateful for each day. Initially, she had spent her time wandering the skies, searching for…well, she hadn’t really known what she was searching for at the time. Now, she knew that she had found it. What had started as a brief rendezvous to ask if Sesshoumaru knew where his bastard half-brother was had quickly turned into a steady companionship. She’d been tired of being alone, and it had taken her only a few more hours of flying off by herself for her to realize that she was making huge mistake. She’d tracked Sesshoumaru’s down, and had been by his side ever since. The daiyoukai had never expressly given her permission to stay, but he had never asked her to leave either. His behavior since that first encounter told her all she needed to know about his feelings.

Well, perhaps not all she needed to know. There was, after all, plenty to wonder about in that regard. What exactly was she to Sesshoumaru? It had occurred to her that she was a fully matured–and in her own opinion quite attractive–woman, who had never shared relations with a man. It was something she wanted to experience someday, but she was in no hurry. Right now, she was simply enjoying the freedom of doing what she wanted, and traveling with whom she pleased. Hopefully that level of intimacy would come someday. It was obvious to her that she desired Sesshoumaru in that manner, and he probably knew it too. Perhaps he was afraid to open himself up so far, to be so vulnerable, or perhaps he simply wasn’t ready to take a mate. Either way, there was no rush. They both had centuries left to live, after all.

If Kagura was sure of one thing, it was that whatever held Sesshoumaru back did not originate from her. It was not her problem; it was his. That issue had been settled very early in their journey together, on the second day, in fact. He had been cold to her for a span of about twenty-four solid hours, though in retrospect he had simply been repressing his residual anger toward her–she had failed to protect Rin from Naraku as promised, after all. They cleared the air about that little issue later that same evening, in a conversation which became quite heated even from the daiyoukai’s side. But initially, his hostility gave her the impression that he was repulsed by her scent, which was still so similar to that of Naraku. It was an insecurity she’d always held, that people would be unable to see her as her own person, that they would always view her as an incarnation of Naraku and nothing more. Finally she had confronted Sesshoumaru about it, prepared to storm off with dignity if her fears proved correct. The daiyoukai’s last image of her would be of a strong woman, no matter how she vented her emotions afterwards, while she was alone.

Instead Sesshoumaru blinked at her, showing genuine surprise for a brief moment. It was as if he realized for the first time what his unnatural coldness was doing to her. So when she demanded to know whether her scent repulsed him, he responded with four words she would never forget as long as she lived.

“You are not Naraku.”

It was such a simple statement, yet it did so much more than answer the question she had voiced. Instead, it addressed the unspoken insecurities she tried so hard to hide. Sesshoumaru did see her as her own person, and didn’t care that she smelled like a hated enemy. It probably bothered him to some degree, at least at first, but not enough to cause him to drive her away. She never caught him wrinkling his nose around her, so either he was very discreet or her scent was not as onerous as she feared. Either way, she had put those insecurities to rest. And as her journey with Sesshoumaru continued, she experienced a new level of freedom, more incredible than anything she’d ever felt before. She was happy, truly happy.

That realization always made her wonder if she deserved it. With all of the terrible things she’d done, was it right for her to be happy? Was she allowed to enjoy life when she had failed to save her own sister? Then she would recall the final visit Kanna’s spirit had paid to her in that field, and her heavy heart would lighten. Her sister’s bright smile said it all. Kanna wanted her to be happy, to live the life she had always longed for. It was a desire she could not ignore. And if she had not yet done enough good in the world to atone for the sins of her past, then she still had centuries to rectify the imbalance. One day at a time. She was living for–

Kagura bolted upright, her hands automatically grasping her fan and feather respectively, as she turned her searching gaze to the west. For just an instant, she had felt a foreign presence brushing against her youki, likely someone lurking beneath the distant trees. It vanished before she could identify the owner, but it had seemed familiar, and the hairs on the back of her neck instantly stood on end. Stretching out her senses now proved fruitless, as the mysterious intruder had obviously moved away. Never had she more ardently wished for Sesshoumaru’s sense of smell. A cold, foreboding wind blew in, causing Kagura to shiver. Her intuition supplied one possible scenario which seemed more likely than the rest, but she prayed that she was wrong. She had hoped for this confrontation, but now that the time might have arrived, she felt only dread. She moved closer to Rin and spent the remainder of the afternoon near her side and on high alert, while trying to avoid alarming the girl. In this she succeeded; if Rin noticed her distraction, she was too innocent to guess the reason behind it.

Sesshoumaru returned just as the sun was beginning to set below the western horizon, much to Kagura’s relief. Her night vision wasn’t much better than a human’s; the only way she could hope to keep Rin truly safe would be to transform her feather and keep the girl airborne until dawn. With Sesshoumaru here now, she could finally relax a bit. He hadn’t expected to return before nightfall, so what she liked to call his ‘daiyoukai business’ must have gone well. Today he’d been asked to mediate between two rival youkai clans, though it was likely that he’d done more ordering people around than actual mediating. But as long as the two clans didn’t continue to kill each other, why should it matter how peace was attained? That’s what they got for involving an arbitrator who was used to having his commands followed without question. Now that Naraku was dead and he’d unofficially given up his claim on Tetsusaiga, Sesshoumaru had started to resume some of the duties he’d inherited from his father, duties which he had selfishly ignored while hunting enemies and heirlooms. Kagura for one was glad to see the change. It was much easier to imagine a future with the widely-respected daiyoukai of the western lands than a loner who shunned the rest of the world as inferior to him and pined after his half-brother’s inheritance.

Sesshoumaru’s gaze lingered on her, his eyes widening just slightly. Kagura’s cheeks tinted under the scrutiny, but she honestly couldn’t tell if he thought she looked like a fool in her enormous floral crown or if she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. She actually found herself leaning toward the latter, which did not help her composure one bit. But Sesshoumaru seemed to sense that there was more to her nervousness than mere embarrassment, and his expression turned serious–well, more serious than usual.

“What is it?” he asked.

“I…I sensed someone earlier,” Kagura replied after a brief mental scramble. “I thought it might have been–”

“Inuyasha,” Sesshoumaru declared. It was not a question. At her curious look, he elaborated. “I caught his scent as I returned. He is in the area. He has likely been waiting for this Sesshoumaru.” The daiyoukai’s eyes narrowed, his formidable youki flaring around him. “It is a decision this ‘Hakago’ person will come to regret. Kagura, take Rin on your feather and do not come down for any reason.”

The wind sorceress nodded automatically, knowing better than to argue. If Hakago wanted to pick a fight with her, she would go after him with everything she had. But if that had been his goal, he could have attacked her this afternoon. The only theory which made any sense was Sesshoumaru’s. Therefore, this was not her fight. She didn’t want Sesshoumaru fighting her battles for her, so she would not interfere with his. Unless it’s absolutely necessary, she added in her head, wisely keeping that thought to herself. She grabbed Rin and took off on her feather, whispering a few soothing words to reassure the frightened girl. The two of them hovered several dozen meters over the potential battlefield, and waited.

Hakago did not delay his approach for long. Just minutes later Kagura spotted him across the field, striding confidently forward. And when she saw the infant’s typical arrogant smirk splayed across Inuyasha’s features, she had to clench her fist and grit her teeth in order to refrain from flying over and tearing him a new one. Some might call her grudge against the hanyou petty–Kagome obviously thought it was–but Kagura begged to differ. She had been helpless for most of her life, completely at the mercy of the whims of a deranged master. And just when she had gained her freedom, and started to feel like an actual person for the first time in her life, Inuyasha had gone and made her feel completely helpless all over again. No one who had never been a slave could possibly understand how devastating that was. The memory still haunted her to this day. So no, she would not simply let the matter go as Kagome would like her to. She would, however, give Inuyasha a chance to apologize. If he did a damn good job with his groveling, and satisfied her desire for revenge, then and only then would she forgive him.

But that was a concern which she needed to push to the back of her mind. It assumed that Sesshoumaru would prevail in this fight, and that Hakago could be defeated without killing his host, neither of which were guaranteed. Not even the former, as loath as she was to admit it. Sesshoumaru had acted as confidently as ever, but she knew him well enough now to perceive the small element of doubt he harbored. He knew what his own abilities were, but what Hakago could do with Inuyasha’s body…that was the mystery.

Hakago stopped before Sesshoumaru, and the two sons of the Inu no Taisho sized each other up from a distance of less than a dozen meters. Then, after a brief conversation which Kagura could not quite make out over the deafening sound of her own pounding heartbeat, Hakago charged.

* * *

Hakago swore under his breath. He’d caught Kagura’s scent on the breeze, but in his excitement he’d wandered too close and the wind sorceress had sensed his youki. Now she was on high alert, ready to grab the little girl and take to the air at a moment’s notice. His chance to sneak up on her and force her to fight him on the ground was lost. Although, perhaps that was for the best. That young girl did look awfully familiar… That’s Sesshoumaru’s little brat! He recalled how protective of her the daiyoukai had become during the battle against Naraku. The cold, calculating Sesshoumaru he’d met just prior did not comport with the desperate man who’d fought like a father trying to save his own daughter. His goal had completely shifted from the destruction of Naraku to the single-minded desire to save his precious ‘Rin.’ And the way he’d shouted her name…it was as though her death would hurt him more than anything an enemy could do to his physical form.

Clearly there was more to Sesshoumaru than met the eye, and what the daiyoukai tried to hide might be an exploitable weakness. It was an intriguing possibility, far more interesting than a potential battle against Kagura. He knew what the wind sorceress was, and that she stood no chance of defeating him on her own. He could dodge or repulse all of her aerial attacks and hopefully close to within his own striking range. The only way she would survive would be if she turned tail and ran. Sesshoumaru, on the other hand, was one of the most powerful youkai in existence–his own impression and Inuyasha’s memories told him as much. But those same memories revealed that the daiyoukai was far from invincible. If someone as mentally weak as Inuyasha could manage to lop off Sesshoumaru’s arm and nearly blow him away with the Kaze no Kizu on separate occasions, then clearly the daiyoukai was not that strong. Goose bumps rose on Hakago’s skin at the thought of testing Sesshoumaru’s strength for himself. It was a battle which he was not sure he could win, a thrilling prospect in and of itself. He was also uncertain that Inuyasha would allow him to kill his only sibling, despite the grudge the hanyou held. But the potential rewards were great. If he could slay Sesshoumaru, not only would it prove his own strength, but it would be a major blow to his host’s resistance and a tremendous step toward complete autonomy over this body.

After contemplating carefully for several minutes, Hakago made his decision. He would wait for Sesshoumaru. Based on Inuyasha’s memories and his own experiences with this body, he put his chances of winning at well over fifty percent. Sesshoumaru surely held the opposite opinion, but could not possibly know what Hakago was capable of in the form of his half-brother. He was without a doubt more dangerous than Inuyasha had ever been. Given that assessment, he determined that the risks were worth the rewards. Either way, one of them was going to have his delusions of strength shattered today. And if that unfortunate individual turned out to be him, then at least he would have one hell of an entertaining final battle.

But he didn’t think that would be the case. If he wasn’t reasonably assured of victory, he would not seek battle. He was neither stupid nor suicidal. But he was excited, his heart already beating rapidly in anticipation of Sesshoumaru’s return. He hoped the daiyoukai didn’t make him wait too long. In the meantime, he would probe Inuyasha’s memories in greater detail, and practice some tactics which might prove useful. Preparation might be the difference between victory and defeat, and he had some time to burn.

Not too much time, as it turned out. Just before sunset, the flaring of Sesshoumaru’s aura announced his return. He’s summoning me, Hakago realized. Heh, Sesshoumaru, your arrogance will be your downfall. Nevertheless, he resisted the urge to sprint to his destination. He had waited hours for his opponent; now the daiyoukai could wait for him. He approached with a cool, confident saunter, taking several minutes to move a distance which could have been crossed in a matter of seconds. He didn’t even try to conceal his smirk, as he drank in Kagura’s impotent rage and Rin’s fear. Sesshoumaru appeared as composed as ever on the outside, but Hakago didn’t believe for an instant that his emotions were nearly as calm. He wondered how long it would take for that stoic façade to crack, and had every intention of finding out. Finally he came to a halt before his opponent, each of them sizing the other up for a few moments.

“So, I suppose you’ve realized who I am by now,” he observed, recalling how easily Sesshoumaru had identified him as the ‘spawn of Naraku’ while he was inside Kagome.

“Indeed,” the daiyoukai replied.

Hakago chuckled. “As conversational as ever, I see. Well, I imagine you will do most of your communicating through your sword.”

“It is doubtful that this Sesshoumaru will even be required to draw his blade to deal with a mongrel whelp such as yourself.”

“Ah, still with that superiority complex. Good! It will make it that much sweeter when I tear you to pieces!”

Hakago charged, moving at great speed but not recklessly so. If Sesshoumaru drew his sword, he wanted the opportunity to alter his course. He didn’t much relish the thought of bludgeoning himself against Tokijin’s kenatsu as full-youkai Inuyasha had done in the past. To his surprise, however, Sesshoumaru made no move to reach for his blade. Instead, he materialized his youki whip and with a flick of his wrist sent the thin, glowing strand carving through the air with eye-gouging force. Hakago ducked his head just in time, his ears lowering against the angry burst of youki from the near miss. He stumbled back, shielding his face with his arms as the whip struck repeatedly in rapid succession. It was more of an irritant than a danger now that he knew what was coming, but it caused cold fury to settle in his belly. He did not much appreciate being whipped like a common dog.

Deciding to do something about it, Hakago slipped his right hand inside his robes and grasped the Shikon no Tama. Then he waited, still shielding his head with his left arm. When one of Sesshoumaru’s strikes traced a path which was slightly too predictable, he lashed out and snatched the end of the whip out of the air. A pained growl emanated from his throat as the concentrated youki burned the flesh of his hand, but he bore it, locking eyes with his enemy as he brought his other hand to the whip and summoned the power of the Shikon no Tama. Within moments, the overstressed strand of youki shattered into a thousand shards which quickly dispersed into nothingness. Hakago replaced the Shikon no Tama inside his robes and tested his left hand, clenching and unclenching the fingers. The wounds were mostly superficial; he had probably lost a little functionality, but nothing more. It was worth it for the satisfaction of destroying that damn whip. Let that bastard look down on me now!

He was. Sesshoumaru’s opinion of him had obviously not increased significantly, judging by the bored and disdainful look gracing his features. His hand lowered to his side, as if in mocking derision for a waste of effort. Hakago felt his brow twitch in annoyance.

“You’re going to have to do better than that, Sesshoumaru!” he exclaimed.

“That was child’s play, boy. And you were still helpless against it until you used that jewel. Try fighting with your own strength, so that you may at least die with a speck of dignity.”

Hakago barked out a laugh. “A hypocrite to the end, eh Sesshoumaru? Or will you next tell me that your beloved sword, Tokijin, was not forged from my brother Goshinki’s fangs?”

“This Sesshoumaru has mastered Tokijin,” the daiyoukai replied evenly, though Hakago did note the slight narrowing of his eyes.

“And I have mastered the Shikon no Tama,” he replied. “Just as I have mastered your brother’s bo–”

“You have mastered nothing,” Sesshoumaru snarled, his composure wavering for just a moment. Hakago smirked. Ah, how interesting. No matter what he says, me possessing Inuyasha’s body is a sore spot with him. As if in confirmation, the daiyoukai’s claws began to glow a menacing shade of green, the telltale sign of his dokkaso. Sesshoumaru was apparently finished with ‘child’s play.’

This time the daiyoukai took the initiative, launching himself into a blur which suddenly materialized less than a meter in front of Hakago’s shocked form. Sesshoumaru aimed for his head once again, but his target’s reflexes were good enough to ensure that only a few strands of hair were cut. Hakago countered with an upward slash which Sesshoumaru deftly avoided. The next phase of the battle was a frenzy of motion, claws and youki slicing through the air in a violently beautiful spectacle. Hakago could not be sure exactly how much time it actually took, but it surely felt longer than it was. His main concern was preventing Sesshoumaru from landing a clean hit with dokkaso. His body could handle minor scratches, and the small amounts of poison injected with them. In fact, Inuyasha’s fire-rat deflected many near misses where Sesshoumaru’s claws would otherwise have grazed his flesh. But if he suffered a significant wound, even one which would normally not hinder him very much physically, the large influx of poison would force him to fight in a weakened state, a condition which would likely spell the end of him.

Fortunately, Hakago held one crucial advantage which Sesshoumaru could not hope to match–his left arm. Having two arms and two sets of claws made all the difference in the world. It allowed him to deal with the daiyoukai’s superior speed and combat experience. Because no matter what Sesshoumaru did, when he attacked there was always a necessary delay for him to retract his arm and prepare for the next strike. Hakago could focus solely on dodging his opponent’s single weapon, and counterattack when the opportunity presented itself. If Sesshoumaru still had both arms, he would probably be in big trouble. But then, if Sesshoumaru had both arms, he likely wouldn’t have picked this fight in the first place. Again, he was neither stupid nor suicidal.

He was, however, engaged in the fight of his life. It was just as intense as the final battle against Naraku, but in a different way. Sesshoumaru was relentless, never standing still for an instant, and even in evading his enemy’s attacks, his intent was always aggressive. It was as though fatigue was a foreign concept to him. Hakago certainly wasn’t in dire straits in that regard, but he was at least breathing somewhat heavily and sweating a bit. Nevertheless, the former infant found himself savoring every moment of mortal combat. Nothing in life had ever been this much fun. And now, it was finally time to demonstrate to his opponent just how far he’d come in mastering Inuyasha’s body.

The first time he used Sankon Tetsusou, Sesshoumaru reacted with understandable surprise. Beyond the fact that the ‘spawn of Naraku’ was able to utilize Inuyasha’s youki in such a manner, that an enemy had enough confidence to hold back such an ability for so long must have come as a real shock. The previously unflappable daiyoukai hesitated for barely a fraction of a second, but that was all the opening Hakago needed. He had timed the Sankon Tetsusou for maximum effect, and followed up immediately in anticipation of the desired hesitation. His right hand streaked in toward Sesshoumaru’s chest, his fingers trailing golden youki as they passed the point of no return, becoming unavoidable even for the daiyoukai. Sesshoumaru twisted his body to take the blow on his armour, but the metal cracked and shattered, allowing Hakago to sink his claws into the flesh underneath. Sesshoumaru grunted as the scent of his own blood filled the air, but withdrew before his opponent’s other hand could be brought to bear. He moved back with measured leaps, putting some distance between them.

Hakago let him go, knowing that to follow recklessly would be to court death. Sesshoumaru’s armour had deflected his strike enough so that the resulting injury could reasonably be called a ‘flesh wound.’ A significant blow, to be sure, but not one which would seriously hinder the daiyoukai. It had, however, seriously irritated him, if his formidable glare was any indication. And that was exactly what Hakago wanted. It was time to play a little poke the bear–or dog, as the case may be.

“What’s the matter, Sesshoumaru? I thought you said child’s play was over? Or could it be that you’re having second thoughts?”

The daiyoukai did not respond with words, but his aura flared with renewed intensity, becoming noticeably more feral. His hand reached for his opposite side, grasping Tokijin’s hilt and drawing the sword with a flourish.

“Ah, so you’re truly going to kill me now,” Hakago mocked. As if you hadn’t been trying to this point. “But would you really murder your own broth–oh, I see! You plan to kill me, then revive Inuyasha with Tenseiga. How incredibly noble of you, Sesshoumaru!”

“This Sesshoumaru will kill you for defiling Chichi-ue’s bloodline, and Inuyasha for allowing it to happen. If Tenseiga deems the half-breed worthy of being revived, then it shall be so. You, on the other hand, will rot in the depths of hell.”

Hakago chuckled wickedly. “How convenient, to lay your brother’s life before the sword forged from your Oyaji’s fang. So you can pretend that you don’t care whether Inuyasha lives or dies, when we all know that you want him to li–”

“Silence!” Sesshoumaru growled. “Do not speak as though you know me. The time for pointless conversation is over. Prepare yourself. From here, this Sesshoumaru shall not stop until you are dead!”

It appeared that Sesshoumaru had every intention of keeping that vow. His first strike with Tokijin set Hakago’s teeth to chattering as he blocked with Tetsusaiga. The sword in its rustic form was not much good for offense, but it could stop attacks well enough. Some of Tokijin’s kenatsu struck him with every clash, but he could deal with that for a time before the accumulated damage became a problem. A casual observer might wonder how he intended to win when all he could do was hold off his enemy’s sword swings with a rusty old katana, especially when doing so required both hands and all of his energy, and he was gradually taking damage in the process. But in Hakago’s mind, he had Sesshoumaru right where he wanted him. This phase of the battle was not about landing a winning blow; it was about getting under his adversary’s skin, a process he had already begun.

“So, Sesshoumaru, you think you can kill me and revive your brother’s corpse?” he repeated in a strained tone, his words broken by grunts of exertion. “Don’t make me laugh. Let me tell you what’s really going to happen here.” A particularly fierce blow from Tokijin knocked him back, but he somersaulted gracefully and planted his feet in time to receive the next one.

“First I’m going to slice you open and leave you lying face-down in a pool of your own blood. Then I’ll disembowel that Kagura bitch and see if she bleeds like the rest of us. And then, once she’s watched both of you be butchered, I’ll take that little girl and–”

The sheer malevolence of Sesshoumaru’s snarl stilled Hakago’s tongue for a brief moment, but the sight of the daiyoukai’s eyes flashing red inspired no fear.

“Oh, did I hit a sore spot? Well, let me correct myself then. I think I’ll leave you alive to witness the demise of your precious females. I could hack off your arms and legs, and maybe run Rin through with your own claws. Then perhaps I could draw out her entrails and strangle you with them. Would you like that, Sesshoumaru?”

The daiyoukai’s rage boiled over then, his eyes going fully red as his aura spiked and his muzzle began to lengthen. Hakago’s smirk widened. Go ahead, Sesshoumaru. Transform! Putting down a giant dog will be ‘child’s play.’ But Sesshoumaru did not transform; after a moment of hovering on the brink, his face reverted back its fully humanoid shape, though his normally golden eyes maintained their crimson hue. Hakago was sure that the dual pleading exclamations by Kagura and Rin had a lot to do with the change; hearing them had obviously helped return Sesshoumaru to his senses. But Hakago was not deterred; it was but a minor setback, after all. The daiyoukai was still downright furious, and resumed his attacks in earnest. Rather than cold and calculating, however, the strikes were wild, imprecise and not nearly as effective. It occurred to Hakago that he had completely turned the tables on Sesshoumaru. Whereas in their past battles, Inuyasha had fought as the rogue warrior, swinging Tetsusaiga like a club while his elder brother danced around him with superior swordsmanship, now the daiyoukai was the one fighting with his heart rather than his head. Sesshoumaru was lost in a semi-deranged state where saving those he cared about was the only thing that mattered, and where minor details could escape one’s notice. One such ‘minor detail’ in particular…

When he judged the time was right, Hakago surged forward and met Sesshoumaru’s strike before it gained its full power. He received a nasty backlash from Tokijin’s kenatsu as a result, due to the proximity of his face to the clashing blades. But Sesshoumaru’s momentum had been stopped cold, and the daiyoukai bared his fangs, exerting pressure against Tetsusaiga. Clearly he intended to finish this with a contest of brute strength. Even using two arms, Hakago doubted he could win, with the damage his body had suffered to this point. But he didn’t need to prevail; all he needed to do was hold this position for a few more seconds…

“Fool,” he rasped, his voice rough with exertion but thick with excitement. “You haven’t even noticed yet, have you?”

Sesshoumaru’s eyes widened in alarm at the same instant that the Shikon no Tama’s blackness finished its gradual journey up Tetsusaiga’s blade. He launched himself backward as the sword and its wielder suddenly transformed, the explosion of dual auras of pure evil sending a shiver down even the daiyoukai’s spine. At last he understood his peril, but it was far, far too late to escape the trap.

“Kaze no Kizu!”

Sesshoumaru altered course in an instant, knowing that the best way to avoid the expanding swath of youki was to sidestep. But with as close as he was to the source of the conflagration, he lacked the time to evade its wrath completely. The outermost blade of youki struck him squarely, and though he attempted to block it with Tokijin, the blade could not deflect all of Tetsusaiga’s energy. The onrushing youki caught his left side, slicing him from heel to shoulder. After the deflection it was no longer potent enough to tear him asunder, but his clothing immediately darkened with a great discharge of blood. The force of the blow spun him to the side, but he somehow maintained his footing and leapt back in retreat, leaning heavily on his right leg.

Hakago supposed he could simply fire another Kaze no Kizu and finish this, but that would be rather anticlimactic. He fully intended to follow through on his threats–the one about leaving Sesshoumaru limbless and throttling him with Rin’s intestines sounded especially entertaining. Beyond that, he desired the tactile pleasure of tearing the arrogant daiyoukai to pieces with his bare hands, or Tetsusaiga’s blade. Besides, Sesshoumaru could be fairly slippery when he wanted to be, and Hakago did not wish to allow any opportunity for a miraculous escape.

He charged after the retreating daiyoukai with Tetsusaiga raised, closing the distance with powerful thrusts of his legs. Seeing the futility of his retreat, Sesshoumaru stopped abruptly and swung Tokijin in a bid to catch his onrushing enemy off guard. Hakago took the strike on Tetsusaiga’s blade and swung for the daiyoukai’s exposed side. Sesshoumaru parried gracefully and danced to the side, deflecting the attack without engaging most of its force. The shift in tactics reflected the drastically altered situations of the combatants. In his wounded state, Sesshoumaru could no longer overpower his adversary, who despite his own injuries now came on like a crazed monster, wildly wielding a blade of pure night. If Hakago’s glowing red eyes and malicious aura frightened the daiyoukai, he gave no indication. The infant’s throat resonated with a constant snarl, as he channeled the rebellious ferocity of Inuyasha’s caged beast into his muscles, feeding off the unadulterated bloodlust and his own desperation to finish this before the stress became too much to bear. Still, he loved every moment.

Tokijin howled each time Sesshoumaru’s footwork proved a step too slow, forcing him to block Tetsusaiga’s brutal strikes rather than parry. And finally, the sword made from the fangs of the oni who had bitten Tetsusaiga in half reached its breaking point. Corrupted by the Shikon no Tama, Tetsusaiga took its revenge, smashing through Tokijin’s blade and biting deep into the flesh of its wielder. Sesshoumaru spun to the side and avoided being cleaved in two, but he collapsed to the ground and was unable to rise to his feet. He heaved himself to a knee, glaring at his enemy as blood flowed from his wounds and passed his lips with every exhale. Hakago set his stance and raised Tetsusaiga high above his head. One more blow…one more blow to inflict a mortal wound, before the already rising power of Tenseiga could spirit Sesshoumaru off again, as it had done all those months ago when Inuyasha had nearly killed him with the Kaze no Kizu. He would forcibly separate Sesshoumaru into two unequal pieces, then shatter Tenseiga and leave the daiyoukai to die in a pool of his own blood as promised. And if Sesshoumaru managed to cling to life long enough to witness his companions’ messy demise, all the better. His nerves afire with the impending climax of the battle, Hakago swung his sword.

Or tried to. The muscles in his arms spasmed, but Tetsusaiga refused to move even a centimeter. It was as though someone had tied an invisible rope around the blade, preventing it from swinging forward. Said rope snapped after perhaps a second or two, but by then Tenseiga’s energy had fully engulfed Sesshoumaru. And when the great black bade finally descended, its wielder hollering in dismay, all that remained to strike was vacant earth.

“Dam–hup!” Hakago cried, his intended curse cut off as he leapt to avoid the blades of youki aimed to slice him into a hanyou-shaped hunk of raw meat. It was Kagura, raining her wind blades down upon him from high above. She looked fiercer than Hakago had ever seen her, but with Sesshoumaru alive and making his escape, she wasn’t driven to throw caution to the proverbial winds and approach any closer. He had counted on her becoming crazed with anger and sorrow at Sesshoumaru’s downfall, her quest for vengeance carrying her into his range. But clearly that wasn’t going to happen. She could continue to shower him with death from above, and he could do little about it.

“Dammit,” he swore, the softly-uttered syllables dripping with unrequited malice. But he was no fool. If he pursued the rapidly vanishing bluish glow which was Sesshoumaru, it would end badly for him. His body was far from pristine shape; he would need the extra burst of speed which came with Inuyasha’s full-youkai transformation to have any chance of keeping up with his quarry. But that transformation was a double-edged sword; if he remained in that state for too long, the beast currently raging within would burst forth and consume him. And he sensed that he was rapidly approaching that tipping point, his mental defenses being steadily pushed back by the savage intensity of the predator inside him. Adding Kagura’s unassailable position and ranged attacks to the mix only provided more evidence to support the conclusion which he was forced to embrace–if he wanted to see another sunrise, he had to let Sesshoumaru go.

With one final livid snarl, Hakago dropped the Shikon no Tama. All of the vigor left him in an instant, the power and ferocity of Inuyasha’s full-youkai essence receding in a rush, leaving only the hanyou behind. A wounded, exhausted hanyou at that. But he stood tall, facing Kagura as the wind sorceress eyed him warily from afar, and the last trace of Tenseiga’s aura vanished over the eastern horizon. Deliberately, and with as much dignity as he could muster, Hakago sheathed Tetsusaiga and picked up the fallen jewel, tucking the now dormant sphere into his robes once more. With one final glare directed at his former sister, he turned and stalked off into the young night. Kagura made no move to follow; within moments, her aura had faded into the distance as well.

Hakago tiled his head to the sky and sighed. After such a wonderful battle, that ending had been extremely disappointing. But still, it was not all bad news. Inuyasha’s resistance had emerged at the crucial moment, but he had felt nothing from the hanyou before that. And that resistance had only been sufficient to still his sword for a moment or two. Without Tenseiga, Sesshoumaru would still be dead or dying at this very moment.

Clearly, he had engaged in this battle too soon. But how long should he have waited, before Inuyasha’s resistance would be unable to hinder his efforts to slay his elder brother? A day? A week? A month? It was impossible to say for sure. One thing Hakago did know was that his efforts to attain full autonomy over this body were slowly reaching fruition. It would not be long now.

Despite this evening’s setback, Hakago’s lips gradually curled up into a genuine smile. Be grateful, Sesshoumaru. The next time we meet, I will be the unchallenged master of this body. And you will not be so lucky.


A/N – So…does everyone hate Hakago yet? I didn’t originally intend to make him this evil, but he just sort of evolved that way. My worst villain ever, I think (Naraku included). I hope he’s at least as fun to hate for you guys as he is for me.