InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Small Moments ❯ Shady Situation ( Chapter 8 )
[ A - All Readers ]
By: ladygriddlebone 
It's not long before the travelers find themselves in a rather shady situation.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Romance / Angst | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 03.07.2010 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.6K | Visits: 543 | Status: Completed
It's not long before the travelers find themselves in a rather shady situation.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Romance / Angst | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 03.07.2010 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.6K | Visits: 543 | Status: Completed
Traveling with Inuyasha and the others, Sango found, could be quite overwhelming. It was almost as if, in their efforts to be respectful of the healing process and give her a little peace, they had allowed themselves to fill up with enthusiasm and were overflowing with it now. They had been walking for most of the afternoon, and she did not think there had been a moment of quiet the entire time.
She was unaccustomed to traveling with other women. The Taijiya hunting parties had mostly consisted of men, even though the women were also trained for battle; however, most of the women were trained in defense and expected to keep the village safe while the men were away. Sango had been an anomaly, but it had been decided early on that her skill was too great to confine her to merely a defensive role. She could do a lot more good for the village and its clients by going out into the world and fighting.
It was a strange sort of melancholy she felt, listening to Kagome chatter and supplying the occasional noncommittal response. It was all so very different from what she had known before.
The men from her village might have considered her their little sister, and treated her as such, and they might have made ribald jokes from time to time... but they knew to be focused and aware of their surroundings and to put their duty first. This was ridiculous. She knew the other girl might have the best of intentions, but Kagome's comparative noisiness was giving her a headache.
So she watched Inuyasha for a while. He did have the look of a leader about him, sometimes. With maturity, the hanyou might someday be a good leader, but right now she saw mainly jealousy in his face and posture. He kept looking back at Kagome, instead of focusing on what was ahead of and around them. She supposed that with his keen sense of smell, it was assumed that he did not need to watch as carefully as a human might. She thought of the scent beads she carried in her pack, and did not like being so dependent on something so easily misled.
But for better or worse, Inuyasha was the leader of their group right now. It wouldn't do to question his authority right away; she had only just joined them, after all. For now she resolved to be as aware as possible to make up for any lack, though it was difficult to focus - and listen - with Kagome constantly demanding her attention.
Sango sighed and hoped that Houshi-sama was being more vigilant.
As the afternoon wore into evening, they came upon a main road. There were many men about, and it looked as if there had been a great deal of destruction recently. Sango's first thought was that Naraku may have been behind it, but a closer inspection revealed the damage to have most likely come from a flood.
Without saying a word, the group had bunched closer together. Even Kagome and Shippou had fallen silent.
They paused at the crest of a hill to listen to the hustle and bustle below. The men working to clean up the area were talking amongst themselves; a procession of some sort, carrying a palanquin, passed by. The discussion turned dark as the procession went past, giving Sango a chill.
"Almost all the children in the village have been given up as sacrifices now..."
"Whose child is it this time?"
"... To protect the village from Suijin-sama's curse..."
Sango stood a short distance away from the others, watching uneasily.
"Did you hear that?" Houshi-sama asked.
"Sacrifices..." Kagome confirmed sadly.
"Hey," Inuyasha interrupted, speaking loudly to address the men in the procession. "You call it 'Suijin', but it's really just a demon, isn't it?"
Sango was stunned by his audacity, though she found herself agreeing with his assessment of the situation; Houshi-sama, more accustomed to Inuyasha's antics, stepped in as the leader of the local men sputtered indignantly. "Don't mind him," the monk said smoothly. "If it is acceptable to you, please allow me to appease this god."
"You can do that?" one of the men asked, his expression a mixture of awe and hope.
"Don't be fooled!" the leader snarled. "He's just a trickster dressed like a monk. If we trust him, Suijin-sama will surely be angry enough to destroy the entire village!"
"But Nanushi-sama, won't you even let them talk..."
The man looked suddenly distraught, large tears spilling out of his eyes as if on command. "Now that it's my own child's turn, don't you think I just want this to be over with? Come on, we don't have all day! Let's get moving!"
"What's going on?" Kagome whispered. She was watching the palanquin, where a child in a sacrificial mask had just peeked from between the curtains.
Sango shook her head; it was not a good time to try to explain. The entire situation was no good. These villagers had been pushed to the point where they would willingly sacrifice their own children to some supposed 'Suijin-sama' in the hopes of ending the hard times... a Suijin-sama that was, no doubt, nothing more than a clever demon. And that Nanushi-sama, the headman... he was up to something.
The Taijiya would not have allowed something like this to continue, and she felt a strong urge to step in and stop the foolishness, but it was not her place to do so.
She kept her opinion to herself until night had fallen. In the comfortable silence after camp had been set and everyone fed, it came spilling out almost of its own accord. "That village headman was suspicious," she said. "He seemed almost anxious to sacrifice his own child..."
Such a thing would never have happened in her village. And it should never have been allowed to happen here.
"It certainly does look like trouble," Houshi-sama agreed. Sango wondered what he thought of the situation, but Kagome did not give her the opportunity to ask.
"Say," the other girl was saying, "This probably sounds weird, or stupid, or something, but... inside that palanquin, there was this strange creature..."
So that was what had been bothering her. "It's a mask," Sango supplied.
"A mask?"
"For the sacrificial ceremony," Houshi-sama confirmed.
The atmosphere of the camp had grown tense. It was clear, at least to Sango, that they all wanted to do something about the situation, but no one was willing to get it out in the open. Except, of course, for Inuyasha. "So, what are we gonna do? Just leave it alone?"
He was toying with a small rock and looked almost bored. The fidgeting was the only outward sign that he was not at ease. Suddenly, he stiffened and tossed the rock into the trees. The motion looked almost random, but it earned a loud, "Ouch!" from within the forest.
Kagome and Shippou made sounds of surprise, peering into the trees in an attempt to see who - or what- was out there. Even Sango was chagrined; she had been lost in thought after their encounter with the sacrificial procession, and had not even noticed that they were being followed. She snuck a glance at Houshi-sama, but his expression was impassive and it was impossible to tell if he had been aware or not.
"You've been following us for a while now," Inuyasha said. "Why don't you come out and tell us what you want."
A figure emerged from the forest. It was a boy, a young boy that reminded her rather painfully of her brother when he had been that age. He had the same determination as Kohaku, though he seemed more confident and self-assured. And, it turned out, he was also a great deal less polite than her brother had ever been.
As he came into the camp, he tossed a large bundle into their midst. It landed with a clank between Sango and Houshi-sama.
"Take it! It's all yours!" the boy shouted.
Curious, Sango watched as the monk opened the bundle, revealing expensive-looking jewelry and tea sets, and quality rolls of fabric. It was an impressive selection, especially for a child so young. Even as she examined one of the bolts of fabric, Sango had to wonder where all this had come from. The boy certainly didn't look wealthy; he was covered in dirt and wore tattered clothing. Had he stolen it, then?
"There, now I've hired you guys," the boy continued. "You're gonna help me exterminate the Suijin."
As Inuyasha and Kagome descended into an inevitable argument over whether or not they were, in fact, hired, Houshi-sama looked up from the fancy tea pot he was holding and caught Sango's gaze. She got the impression, even without words, that he was wondering the same thing she was: what were they getting themselves into?
She was unaccustomed to traveling with other women. The Taijiya hunting parties had mostly consisted of men, even though the women were also trained for battle; however, most of the women were trained in defense and expected to keep the village safe while the men were away. Sango had been an anomaly, but it had been decided early on that her skill was too great to confine her to merely a defensive role. She could do a lot more good for the village and its clients by going out into the world and fighting.
It was a strange sort of melancholy she felt, listening to Kagome chatter and supplying the occasional noncommittal response. It was all so very different from what she had known before.
The men from her village might have considered her their little sister, and treated her as such, and they might have made ribald jokes from time to time... but they knew to be focused and aware of their surroundings and to put their duty first. This was ridiculous. She knew the other girl might have the best of intentions, but Kagome's comparative noisiness was giving her a headache.
So she watched Inuyasha for a while. He did have the look of a leader about him, sometimes. With maturity, the hanyou might someday be a good leader, but right now she saw mainly jealousy in his face and posture. He kept looking back at Kagome, instead of focusing on what was ahead of and around them. She supposed that with his keen sense of smell, it was assumed that he did not need to watch as carefully as a human might. She thought of the scent beads she carried in her pack, and did not like being so dependent on something so easily misled.
But for better or worse, Inuyasha was the leader of their group right now. It wouldn't do to question his authority right away; she had only just joined them, after all. For now she resolved to be as aware as possible to make up for any lack, though it was difficult to focus - and listen - with Kagome constantly demanding her attention.
Sango sighed and hoped that Houshi-sama was being more vigilant.
As the afternoon wore into evening, they came upon a main road. There were many men about, and it looked as if there had been a great deal of destruction recently. Sango's first thought was that Naraku may have been behind it, but a closer inspection revealed the damage to have most likely come from a flood.
Without saying a word, the group had bunched closer together. Even Kagome and Shippou had fallen silent.
They paused at the crest of a hill to listen to the hustle and bustle below. The men working to clean up the area were talking amongst themselves; a procession of some sort, carrying a palanquin, passed by. The discussion turned dark as the procession went past, giving Sango a chill.
"Almost all the children in the village have been given up as sacrifices now..."
"Whose child is it this time?"
"... To protect the village from Suijin-sama's curse..."
Sango stood a short distance away from the others, watching uneasily.
"Did you hear that?" Houshi-sama asked.
"Sacrifices..." Kagome confirmed sadly.
"Hey," Inuyasha interrupted, speaking loudly to address the men in the procession. "You call it 'Suijin', but it's really just a demon, isn't it?"
Sango was stunned by his audacity, though she found herself agreeing with his assessment of the situation; Houshi-sama, more accustomed to Inuyasha's antics, stepped in as the leader of the local men sputtered indignantly. "Don't mind him," the monk said smoothly. "If it is acceptable to you, please allow me to appease this god."
"You can do that?" one of the men asked, his expression a mixture of awe and hope.
"Don't be fooled!" the leader snarled. "He's just a trickster dressed like a monk. If we trust him, Suijin-sama will surely be angry enough to destroy the entire village!"
"But Nanushi-sama, won't you even let them talk..."
The man looked suddenly distraught, large tears spilling out of his eyes as if on command. "Now that it's my own child's turn, don't you think I just want this to be over with? Come on, we don't have all day! Let's get moving!"
"What's going on?" Kagome whispered. She was watching the palanquin, where a child in a sacrificial mask had just peeked from between the curtains.
Sango shook her head; it was not a good time to try to explain. The entire situation was no good. These villagers had been pushed to the point where they would willingly sacrifice their own children to some supposed 'Suijin-sama' in the hopes of ending the hard times... a Suijin-sama that was, no doubt, nothing more than a clever demon. And that Nanushi-sama, the headman... he was up to something.
The Taijiya would not have allowed something like this to continue, and she felt a strong urge to step in and stop the foolishness, but it was not her place to do so.
She kept her opinion to herself until night had fallen. In the comfortable silence after camp had been set and everyone fed, it came spilling out almost of its own accord. "That village headman was suspicious," she said. "He seemed almost anxious to sacrifice his own child..."
Such a thing would never have happened in her village. And it should never have been allowed to happen here.
"It certainly does look like trouble," Houshi-sama agreed. Sango wondered what he thought of the situation, but Kagome did not give her the opportunity to ask.
"Say," the other girl was saying, "This probably sounds weird, or stupid, or something, but... inside that palanquin, there was this strange creature..."
So that was what had been bothering her. "It's a mask," Sango supplied.
"A mask?"
"For the sacrificial ceremony," Houshi-sama confirmed.
The atmosphere of the camp had grown tense. It was clear, at least to Sango, that they all wanted to do something about the situation, but no one was willing to get it out in the open. Except, of course, for Inuyasha. "So, what are we gonna do? Just leave it alone?"
He was toying with a small rock and looked almost bored. The fidgeting was the only outward sign that he was not at ease. Suddenly, he stiffened and tossed the rock into the trees. The motion looked almost random, but it earned a loud, "Ouch!" from within the forest.
Kagome and Shippou made sounds of surprise, peering into the trees in an attempt to see who - or what- was out there. Even Sango was chagrined; she had been lost in thought after their encounter with the sacrificial procession, and had not even noticed that they were being followed. She snuck a glance at Houshi-sama, but his expression was impassive and it was impossible to tell if he had been aware or not.
"You've been following us for a while now," Inuyasha said. "Why don't you come out and tell us what you want."
A figure emerged from the forest. It was a boy, a young boy that reminded her rather painfully of her brother when he had been that age. He had the same determination as Kohaku, though he seemed more confident and self-assured. And, it turned out, he was also a great deal less polite than her brother had ever been.
As he came into the camp, he tossed a large bundle into their midst. It landed with a clank between Sango and Houshi-sama.
"Take it! It's all yours!" the boy shouted.
Curious, Sango watched as the monk opened the bundle, revealing expensive-looking jewelry and tea sets, and quality rolls of fabric. It was an impressive selection, especially for a child so young. Even as she examined one of the bolts of fabric, Sango had to wonder where all this had come from. The boy certainly didn't look wealthy; he was covered in dirt and wore tattered clothing. Had he stolen it, then?
"There, now I've hired you guys," the boy continued. "You're gonna help me exterminate the Suijin."
As Inuyasha and Kagome descended into an inevitable argument over whether or not they were, in fact, hired, Houshi-sama looked up from the fancy tea pot he was holding and caught Sango's gaze. She got the impression, even without words, that he was wondering the same thing she was: what were they getting themselves into?