InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Small Moments ❯ Into the Water ( Chapter 10 )

[ A - All Readers ]

Sango hung back from the group, listening with utter disbelief as Inuyasha seemed dead set against helping the subjugated villagers - and the child that had been offered up as a sacrifice. Was he really that callous, or was he just arguing for the sake of appearances? Sango frowned, her grip tightening reflexively on Hiraikotsu. For better or worse, she was ready.

"Let's go get that ship," she said, just as the boy admitted that the sacrifice was his friend and that he was, in fact, the headman's son. She hated to interrupt, but had seen no better opportunity to announce her plans. "I can't speak for the others," she continued, "but I'll help you."

Inuyasha made a face.

"Come on, Inuyasha," Kagome said with a pointed look at the hanyou. "Let's go!"

"Remember, we're also saving a person," Houshi-sama added. Sango smiled; the monk sounded suspiciously like the conscience Inuyasha liked to pretend he didn't have.

"Bah. God or demon... it doesn't matter," Inuyasha decided. "If he eats children, I'm not going easy on him." It seemed all he needed was the right push to admit he wanted to do the right thing, after all.

The headman's son, Taroumaru, looked a bit surprised at the sudden turnaround. Inuyasha didn't let that last long. "Hey, kid, you got a boat around here, or do we have to swim?"

"Uh," Taroumaru stuttered, "I think there's a boat hidden in the reeds over this way." He led them a short distance along the shore of the lake. It was really more like a swamp than a shore, Sango thought as she trudged along behind the others, grimacing at the way the muck pulled at her boots.

"There, I see it!" Kagome said. They followed where she had pointed and, sure enough, there was a small boat concealed nearby. "It's kinda small, though... I don't think we'll all fit..."

Sango glanced to Kirara. "I hate to ask, but..."

Kirara mewed, understanding what was asked of her. She leaped from her place on Sango's shoulder and transformed. Sango ran her fingers through Kirara's long fur, ignoring Taroumaru's fear and Kagome's whispered explanation of what was going on, and smiled. "I know you hate water, but we can't risk being seen," she murmured. "We're going to have to swim."

"Ah, that's right," Kagome said. "Without Sango we'll fit in the boat."

Inuyasha hauled the boat into the water. "Come on then, it's not like we've got all night."

As the others got into the boat, Sango took her place on Kirara's back. She could feel the chill of the water seeping through her armor - and she was glad she did not have to swim in it. Without waiting for orders, she urged Kirara to take the lead, moving in front of the boat to scout the way.

The dense reeds alone were enough to put her on edge, and the fog that rolled in after a few moments only heightened her wariness. It seemed that ominous figures surrounded them, fading in and out with the fog. But up ahead, there was definitely...

"Something's coming up," she announced. As they drew closer, a torii loomed out of the shadows.

She heard Taroumaru whisper that it was the Suijin's torii, and kept her gaze focused straight ahead. It was good to know they were heading in the right direction and that she had not somehow gotten them all lost. As they passed through the gate, an enormous building came into view. It could only be the Suijin's mansion... but there was no sign of a boat or the child sacrifice.

As if reading her thoughts, Houshi-sama said, "The sacrifice must already be inside..."

"Then hurry up!" Taroumaru ordered. "You have to save him before the switch is found out!"

Kirara moved aside to let Inuyasha pull the boat up to the edge of the mansion; they scouted along the front for a while, looking for an opening. There wasn't one. The only door was guarded by several fishy looking men, a fact which made Taroumaru balk but had Inuyasha flinging himself straight for them.

Sango sighed. She should have known he would be too rash to attempt a more strategic attack. She expected the others to be similarly unimpressed by his brute force approach, but they simply followed in his wake. Frustrated by the blatant lack of coordination - and planning - Sango could only hurry after them and hope that there was no ambush lying in wait inside.

But as they hurried into the compound, it became obvious that there was no ambush waiting and that the guards outside were mostly for show. The suijin - whatever it was - apparently believed the villagers to be so cowed that no one would dare investigate. Well, it was about to find out differently, if only they could find it.

It was obvious that they had no real idea where they were going. Sango had been eager to help, but now their lack of planning and proper investigation of the situation were making her worry. She couldn't help but fear that there was some secret attack waiting around every corner. Her mind flashed unpleasantly back to a castle courtyard and a spider demon...

Clear your head, Sango... This is no time for dwelling on the past.

There was a commotion up ahead and to the left. Inuyasha headed straight for it, busting through a wall and a mob of fish-men to do it. He crashed through the wall and into a large room, flinging fish-men into the water on either side of the pathway.

As soon as they hit the water, the fish-men turned back into fish. Maybe there was something to Inuyasha's "no worries" approach, after all... "They're all just... fish!"

"It seems like it," Houshi-sama agreed. He leaped through the hole Inuyasha had left in the wall, as if the entire affair were an everyday occurrence. Sango followed. What else could she do, at this point?

The room was large and well built, but mostly empty. But there, when they stopped to look, was what must have been the Suijin: a tall, slimy looking man with a disgusting face, holding a small child up by the neck.

"So you're the man-eating Suijin, are you?" Inuyasha bellowed.

The Suijin did not answer. In fact, it ignored everyone except for Taroumaru, turning to eye him eagerly. "You, child," it said, its voice almost like a hiss. "You're filthy... but you're the headman's son, aren't you?"

At the sight of his friend, Taroumaru's resolve seemed to be breaking down. Sango took a defensive stance beside him even as he shouted, "Let Suekichi go, and then I'll be your sacrifice and -"

Inuyasha glared at the boy. "If that was your plan, why the hell did you bring us along, kid?" Turning back to the Suijin, he shouted, "Hey, you! You're really a demon, aren't you? I'll make you show what you really are!"

The Suijin said nothing, but reached with an arm that extended grotesquely, for a halberd that had been stashed against the back wall. It used the weapon to parry Inuyasha's attack. In a flash of holy light, he was flung to the ground, his sword's transformation was undone.

"Fool," the Suijin said finally. "Did you think a mere demon weapon could face my halberd?"

Back on his feet in an instant, Inuyasha countered, "So what?"

"Inuyasha, stop," Houshi-sama interrupted, but he had to physically stop the hanyou from attacking again. "This is worse than we thought. That halberd's the real deal. It's a true holy weapon."

"No way..." Kagome murmured. "So if he's holding that, he must be a god and not a demon, right?"

"What? You guys came all this way just to chicken out? So what if he says he's a god? He's acting just like a demon!"

Sango frowned. Inuyasha was at least partially correct. This Suijin was definitely not acting like a god, despite the evidence indicating that he was not a demon. However... she had a feeling this was no time for recklessness. "Don't be stupid. If this is a god we're dealing with, it's much more dangerous than a simple demon. Anger a god, and you'll be cursed for life."

"Right," Houshi-sama agreed. "It's too dangerous to just rush in."

"Too late," the Suijin said with a slithery smile. "You've already sinned against this holy place."

Inuyasha did not like the sound of that. "Oh yeah?" he growled. "Show me what you've got then, water god!"

Shippou cowered against Kagome's shoulder and whimpered, "Not a good idea, Inuyasha!" as the Suijin attacked. He waved the halberd wordlessly, almost casually, at the interlopers. Nothing happened for a moment, and then with a sudden, deafening splash the room filled with swirling water.

It rushed and pounded, sweeping them all up and out of the room, scattering their small group. Sango struggled against the current, searching amidst the white-rushing waters for any sign of her companions... but her focus was fading fast in the face of a rising wave of panic. She was reminded, horribly, of that other place where she had been unable to breathe - below ground, in her own grave.

She could not find Houshi-sama or Inuyasha or Kagome... She was abruptly slammed against something hard and solid. The ground? She could no longer tell which way was up or down, and allowed herself to be propelled by the current.

She did not want to die like this. As she fought against the steadily growing need for air, she looked, irrationally, for Houshi-sama. Vaguely, she knew it was foolish, a sign of delirium. Still... he had saved her life once before, maybe he could help her again.

But there was no sign of him, and when she tried to breathe, there was only water.