InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Difference a Little Time Can Make ❯ Chapter 15 ( Chapter 15 )

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. Rumiko Takahashi does. I am not making any money from this story.

 

Author's note: Thank you to everyone who has reviewed. Please continue to review and let me know what you think. The changes from canon will continue to ripple out, though some things will remain the same.

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Inuyasha sighed as the cold water finally seemed to do it's job. He hadn't meant to go so far from the camp site but he didn't want Kagome to come across him and get the wrong impression. Just thinking about her made him start to harden again. Cursing he tried to think of anything else, Kaede, Sesshomaru, Sesshomaru's toad Jaken, anything to get his body under control. Once he was sure he was under control he exited the stream and pulled his hakama on. “Why is this happening?” he wondered aloud not expecting any answer. His body had reacted like this in the past but he was always able to make it go away. This time his body didn't seem like it would cooperate. He sighed again before he noticed something.

 

Slap! “Ouch!” A small object fell from his cheek to land in his palm before re-inflating itself. “Inuyasha-sama, is that any way to treat your loyal servant?” Myouga asked.

 

“Keh! What are you doing here Myouga-jiji?” Inuyasha asked.

 

“I heard from Kaede-sama that you had left on a journey with Kagome-sama. I was merely in the area and thought I would check in with you. But there is something different about your blood Inuyasha-sama. It tastes even better than usual. I would almost say you had claimed a mate or were ready to.” Myouga paused. “You haven't taken Kagome-sama as your mate yet, have you?”

 

He was flattened for his question. “N-no, of course not. Why would I do something like that?” Inuyasha sputtered. “Mind your own business anyway.”

 

“As you wish, Inuyasha-sama.” 'Hmm. I think I struck a nerve. I wonder how close I am to the truth.' “But I believe you should know that this area isn't very safe. There is a dangerous pair of youkai in the area known as the Thunder Brothers. I don't think you should leave Kagome-sama alone for very long. It is said that they kidnap desirable women and devour them.”

 

Inuyasha gave a start at that. He had had a bad feeling since leaving the camp but had put it off as fear of Kagome's reaction to his body's reaction. Now he had a sinking realization that that wasn't it. He cursed as he realized just how far from camp he really was and he shot to his feet as he hurried in the direction of camp. He cursed when he reached it and Kagome was nowhere in sight. Sniffing he frowned when the only other scent he smelled besides Kagome was a kitsune. “Oi Myouga-jiji, these Thunder Brothers aren't foxes, are they?”

 

“No Inuyasha-sama.” He replied.

 

Inuyasha let a sigh of relief escape him upon hearing that. But it still didn't explain why she had left the camp. Swearing as he began to follow her scent, he started planning the lecture he was going to give her for disobeying him, when his bad feeling increased dramatically. Inuyasha increased his pace and nearly felt his heart stop when he came out of the trees into a field. There was Kagome but she was on the ground being strangled by an ugly looking youkai. Inuyasha launched himself forward with a growl, taking the youkai by surprise and throwing him off of her. He snatched her from the ground and leaped back to put some distance between them as he quickly checked her over. He noticed another youkai some distance away as well as two fox youkai.

 

“Inuyasha-sama, those are the Thunder Brothers” Myouga spoke up from his shoulder.

 

Inuyasha glared at the two. “Keh, bastards don't look so tough.” Just then Kagome stirred in his arms and he focused his attention on her while keeping an eye on the two youkai. Thankfully she didn't seem injured other than the bruises that were already appearing on her neck. “You alright wench?” he asked.

 

Kagome slowly opened her eyes. Her throat felt like it was on fire. “Inu-Inuyasha” she rasped out. Her eyes widened, that had hurt. She could barely recognize her own voice.

 

“Hush wench. I've got you. Don't try to talk.” He growled at the pain he could see in her face and vowed he was going to make those bastards pay. The ugly one chose that moment to get up from where he had tossed him. Inuyasha noticed the arrow sticking out of his face and thought 'Why the hell didn't the bitch purify this guy if she was able to hit him with an arrow?!'

 

“You little bastard! I'm going to make you pay!” He opened his mouth wide and Inuyasha could see lightning gathering there. He tensed, preparing to dodge when the other youkai interrupted.

 

“No Manten. I let you have the girl and the kitsune but the hanyou is mine.”

 

Manten seemed to deflate at that. “Alright Hiten.”

 

Inuyasha watched as the other youkai moved from where he had been lounging, pole-arm resting on his shoulder. He carefully set Kagome down and noticed the small kitsune settle down beside her. “I'm sorry Kagome” the kit cried as he threw himself into her arms. Seeing Kagome hug the kit to her and try to soothe him, Inuyasha felt he had a pretty good idea what had happened. He walked forward to meet the youkai, drawing a transformed Tessaiga as he went.

 

“So the hanyou has a demonic weapon. Can you even wield that thing?” Hiten taunted him. Inuyasha growled and lunged at him, swinging Tessaiga only to be met with his pole-arm. Hiten leaped into the air, the wheels on his shoes spinning to keep him in the air as he brought his strike down. “You think your little sword is going to be of any use to you? Don't make me laugh. Raijekin (Blade of Lightning)” he called as lightning surrounded his weapon to lash at Inuyasha.

 

Inuyasha gritted his teeth as he blocked with Tessaiga. 'Damn it' he thought as the lightning surged at him. He continued to hold off Hiten as he taunted him.

 

“Well hanyou? How long do you think you'll be able to hold me?!”

 

Inuyasha growled with anger as Hiten continued to taunt him and call him a hanyou. He hated that. Gathering his strength he used the Tessaiga to force Hiten back, pushing him into the air.

 

Hiten glared down from his position in the air. “So you have brute strength, hanyou. But it won't save you.”

 

Inuyasha glared up at him. 'This battle isn't going to be easy' he thought as he prepared for another attack.

 

“Oh, stubborn are you?” Hiten asked with a laugh. “The better to amuse me.”

 

Inuyasha growled. “Plenty of youkai have thought that in the past, asshole. And trust me, none of them have ever left thinking of me as amusing.” He raised Tessaiga and lunged forward but Hiten easily dodged.

 

“Enough.” Hiten raised his weapon. “I shall end this with my Thunderbolt.” Lightning shot out of his weapon to impact on the ground, narrowly missing a dodging Inuyasha. “Block it fully, hanyou, or die.” Hiten laughed maniacally.

 

'Fuck' Inuyasha thought. 'It's lightning. All it has to do is brush me and I'm done for.' He remembered Kagome then. 'No, I can't let that happen, Kagome needs me.' He continued to dodge the attacks.

 

Meanwhile, Kagome had been watching the battle from the sidelines. She felt her heart leap into her throat as she saw the trouble Inuyasha was in. 'I have to do something' she thought. She looked for her bow but it was too far away. She contemplated going for it when she became aware of another presence. She let out a gasp as she realized that Manten was before her.

 

“Hehehe” he laughed. “Hiten did say that you and the foxes were mine.” He reached for her and she scrambled away. “You aren't going to escape me so easily.” He was stopped as a large spinning object landed on his head.

 

“Try my spinning top, jerk” Shippou yelled. “Come on Kagome, this way.” He led her up some rocks, trying to put distance between them and Manten.

 

“Thanks Shippou-chan. You really got him” she managed to rasp out.

 

A voice from her shoulder drew her attention. “Don't let down your guard yet Kagome-sama.” She turned her head and Myouga. She wondered when he had arrived. “Fox magic is only deception and illusions, after all.” Glancing behind her, she saw that the large spinning object had turned into a child's spinning toy. Gulping, she ducked behind the rocks to hide. She couldn't help the fear that arose when she heard Manten's outraged roar.

 

Manten had gotten up as soon as the illusion had ended. “That's it, I'm going to make them both pay.” A sudden sensation on top of his head drew his attention. Reaching his hand up, he felt as the last of his hair fell out. “NOOO!” He roared. He started to let lightning blasts out, shooting them wherever he thought the two were hiding.

 

Kagome and Shippou huddled behind an outcropping of rock. They could hear Manten raging behind them. 'Now what?' Kagome wondered. 'I wish I still had my bow and arrows. If he finds us we're both dead.'

 

Manten continued to rage for a few more minutes before realizing that his approach wasn't working. Spotting the injured adult fox, an idea came to him and he grinned evilly. He grabbed the fox and yelled “Hey brat, if you don't want your father to die, you better come out quick. The girl too.”

 

Shippou peeked around the rock and spotted his father in Manten's grip. “No, Pa!” he cried as he threw himself out of his hiding spot too fast for Kagome to stop him. “D-don't hurt him, please!” he begged as he ran forward.

 

Kagome watched as Manten threw the adult fox aside before kicking Shippou and knocking him out. As she saw him approach the child, murder in his gaze, she could stay hidden no longer. She ran out and jumped on his back, clawing at his head as she tried to get him away from Shippou. Her hand grasped the arrow she had shot him with earlier and she pulled it free. 'If I can just use it one more time' she thought. She cried out as he threw her off of him. Seeing him leaning over her, she raised her arm to drive the arrow into his chest, only for him to knock it out of her hand and send if flying to land a fair distance away. He reached down and wrapped his hands around her neck for a second time. “There will be no one to save you this time. You're rescuer is in trouble himself.”

 

Kagome felt the darkness encroaching on her again as she struggled. She knew that this time there would be no waking up again. 'Inuyasha' she thought desperately.

 

As Inuyasha continued to dodge the lightning, he became aware of Kagome's predicament. “KAGOME!” he yelled as he spotted her. His lack of attention cost him as Hiten launched an attack at the ground in front of him. The backlash from the attack knocked the Tessaiga from his hand and it resumed it's rusted form once it lodged itself in the ground.

 

“Distracted are you hanyou? Don't worry, you'll be seeing her in hell soon enough. But for now, I'm your opponent.”

 

Inuyasha glared at him, torn. He needed to help Kagome but he had to get past Hiten first. His eyes traveled to Kagome again. A sudden pain flared in his shoulder as Hiten managed to graze him with the blade of his weapon.

 

“Truly, I am disappointed. I had hoped for more of a fight from you hanyou. You talk like a warrior but fight like a fool.” Hiten shook his head as he leveled his weapon in Inuyasha's face. “Tell me fool, do you think I would be amused if I wrenched your limbs from your body one at a time?”

 

'Damn it. I have to save Kagome. I can't fight if I can't concentrate.' His thoughts were again interrupted by Hiten.

 

“Look Manten, the little dog has lost his bite.”

 

“Isn't life sweet big brother?” Manten called from where he continued to strangle Kagome. “You have the hanyou and I the girl.” He lifted Kagome so that her face was more easily seen by the others. “Have you ever seen a more lovelier sight than the face of a dying woman? Hehehe.”

 

“Bastards!” Inuyasha snarled out as he lifted his hand to his wounded shoulder and coated his claws with his own blood. “Hijin Kessou” he cried as he flung his hand forward. He then took his chance to reclaim the Tessaiga.

 

Hiten dodged back from the attack and used his weapon to block the energy and blood. “Daggers of blood?” He smirked upon seeing Inuyasha reclaim his weapon. “Yes, much better. This is more like it.” He prepared to meet in a clash of weapons only to be shocked when Inuyasha proceeded to throw the transformed fang. “What?” The sword passed below Hiten's position and he laughed as he told Inuyasha “I guess I was wrong again. Foolish hanyou, throwing away your only weapon like that only to miss your target. Pathetic.”

 

It was Inuyasha's turn to smirk. “Who said I missed asshole?”

 

At that a pained yell came to Hiten's attention. He turned only to freeze as he spotted Manten, completely run through by the giant fang. “M-Manten” he stuttered as his brother's body slowly fell forward. The girl, free from Manten's grip, moved aside before she could be crushed by his body.

 

Kagome stared at the body. 'I'm still alive?' she thought as she picked up Shippou before spotting the Tessaiga as it changed back into its rusted form. 'The Tessaiga? Inuyasha saved me again. Oh no, I need to get it back to him.' She grasped the hilt and began to tug it free. A whimper from Shippou drew her attention and she paused in her movements to grab his wounded father and hold them in the same arm. She again started to pull on the sword only to become aware of Inuyasha's yelling.

 

Hiten had not take the death of his younger brother well at all. With a roar of rage he flew towards his brothers body, shouting his name. Upon spotting where he was heading Inuyasha had started swearing and running himself. “Kagome, get the hell out of there!”

 

Kagome looked up to see Hiten bearing down on her. He released a lightning strike at the ground and she felt herself flung through the air as the Tessaiga was torn from her grasp. Suddenly a pair of familiar arms wrapped around her, holding her close. She looked up to spot Inuyasha's worried face. “Inu-Inuyasha” she rasped out.

 

Inuyasha let a sigh of relief escape him as he realized she was alright. “You baka! Why didn't you run when you had the chance?”

 

“I'm sorry Inuyasha. I wasn't able to retrieve the Tessaiga.” She managed to say painfully.

 

That stopped him cold. 'That's why she took so long?'

 

She ignored his motions for her to be quiet. “You saved me again, and I couldn't do anything. I'm sorry.”

 

“Enough already. Be quiet already will you. You shouldn't be talking right now. Besides, I don't need a weapon to beat a weakling like him.”

 

Their attention was drawn by a horrible wail. They turned and saw Hiten sobbing over his brother's body. “Manten, no. Not my Manten, not my Manten, no, no, NOO!” They were shocked to see tears streaming down his face. Suddenly, he put his body down and drove his hand into it's chest, tearing out the heart. “I swore, my brother, we would be together forever.” With that he tore into the heart, devouring it.

 

'He's eating his own brother's heart?!' Kagome thought with horrified disgust. She stared with horror, unable to look away until Inuyasha stepped in front of her and blocked her view. “Don't look” he told her. “You don't need to see that.” She tried to smile at him but it came out as more of a grimace as she couldn't shake the sight from her mind. 'How could he eat his own brother's heart?'

 

Her thoughts were interrupted when Myouga made his presence known. “He is ingesting his brother's demonic powers. Be careful Inuyasha-sama, Hiten has added Manten's powers to his own.”

 

Inuyasha glared at the flea. “Now you tell me. Where have you been anyway?”

 

At the flea's stuttering Kagome said “I guess he found a safe place to hide.”

 

That just pissed Inuyasha off more. “One of these days my dog-biting friend, you won't have the luxury of turning up after the danger has passed.”

 

“Now, now Inuyasha-sama” the flea stammered “is this really the time to be arguing over this?”

 

Inuyasha suddenly grabbed Kagome and leaped away from where they had been standing as a powerful lightning strike hit the ground. He turned to look at the imposing figure of Hiten. 'Damn, his power is much greater than it was before. Looks like Myouga-jiji was right about him devouring his brother's energy.' He set Kagome on her feet and told her “Kagome, take the kitsune and run as far away from here as you can.”

 

Kagome shot him a startled look. “Inu-Inuyasha?”

 

“GO!”

 

She turned and started to run with the two kitsune clutched in her arms but glanced back at him. 'Inuyasha, please survive this' she thought as she forced herself to run. Her last glimpse of him showed Inuyasha standing there prepared to face the attacking youkai with nothing but his own claws to protect him. 'Please Inuyasha, please survive and come back to me.'

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Again, sorry for the cliffhanger. I will try to get the next chapter out as soon as possible. It will finish off the encounter with the Thunder Brothers. So please review and let me know what you think.