Disclaimer: Don't own Inuyasha!

A/N: I am still fairly new to this anime, so please bear with me as I may make a few mistakes that may seem obvious to you die-hard Inuyasha fans. Don't fret though; I am not a completely new writer. I have other fanfics that I've written in the past, but that's another story. Also, just a side note, whenever I do this '…' it means that the scene will skip from one group of people to the next. Confusing? You'll get the picture once you start reading. So, without further ado, on with the show!

Chapter 1

"The sacred arrow!" yelled Miroku over the high winds that were starting to engulf the group.

"Do it, Kagome," urged Inuyasha as he readied his Tetsusaiga for his most powerful attack, the Backlash wave. The sword started to glow an eerie gold as Inuyasha powered up his trusty weapon.

The battle had lasted for nearly five hours, with no end to the destruction. Naraku was relentless in his attack against the nearby villages, and had no intention of stopping. The dark aura that surrounded him started to grow until it had almost engulfed anything within a mile radius. At the last second, Miroku had summoned a barrier to protect them, but with the length of the battle, he was beginning to weaken. Kaede, the elderly priestess, was also aiding them in the war against Naraku. She had aided Miroku and had put up a barrier of her own, but, like the young monk, she was also starting to weaken.

All the while, feeling helpless against the situation, Sango and Shippo encouraged Miroku and Kaede to keep the barrier up for as long as they could until they thought of a strategy. Kirara growled menacingly at the demon, ready to pounce the second the barrier was dropped. Myoga, the elderly flea and aid to Inuyasha, despite his fear of everything, also decided to help the group because of a promise made to Inuyasha's father long ago. Giving helpful advice to Inuyasha, the elderly flea advised the only strategy that it could think of in a situation like this.

"Right," nodded Kagome as she removed an arrow from the pack that was hanging on her shoulder. She adjusted the arrow and aimed it as best she could.

"Now remember, you must aim for his heart or it may not work," advised the flea as it jumped off of Inuyasha's shoulder and into the paws of the young fox-demon, Shippo.

"What if it doesn't work?" cried Shippo, as he climbed onto the back of Kirara.

"Well then my friends, I bid you farewell," whimpered Myoga as he did a Japanese style bow while also removing his hat.

"What is that supposed to mean, you blood sucking pest?!" growled Inuyasha as Myoga cowered back in fear.

"M-Master Inuyasha, I meant nothing by it, but, well, you must feel it. You feel it, don't you?" asked Myoga.

Growling to himself, Inuyasha turned away and ignored the flea.

"Feel what? What do you feel?" asked Shippo curiously.

"Inuyasha?" questioned Kagome.

Kagome, Shippo, Myoga, and Sango all fixed their gaze upon the young half-demon with looks of wonder on their faces. Inuyasha, it seemed, had been a bit preoccupied throughout the whole battle, considering he was usually on top of his game in life or death situations. Everyone knew that something was wrong, especially Kagome, but they all knew better than to bring it up at such a time.

"What are you all staring at?! Are we gonna do this or not?!" growled Inuyasha, raising his weapon once more.

Kagome nodded confidently. "Right," she announced, "Let's finish this."

"Now, that's more like it," smirked Inuyasha.

He looked up at the demon that was Naraku and stared at him menacingly. The full blooded demon was almost three times the height of Inuyasha and he towered over them threateningly.

"You're going down, Naraku!" yelled Inuyasha, "I'll make you pay for the pain you've caused us. You'll never hurt a single soul ever again!"

'The pain in his voice,' thought Kagome, 'He's must be talking about Kikyo.'

"Fools," Naraku hissed, "Don't you know by now that I cannot be defeated?"

"We'll just see about that. Kagome!" screamed a voice.

She shook her head and looked up to see Inuyasha staring at her.

"Now's not the time to be spacing off. You have to be prepared and stay focused," he explained.

Nodding her head, Kagome readied her bow and arrow and prepared to shoot.

'He's right, now's not the time to be day dreaming,' she thought to herself, 'I have to stay focused if I'm gonna do this.'

"You…must…hurry," strained Kaede as her powers were beginning to weaken.

"We cannot hold it much longer," added Miroku as he pushed to keep his barrier up.

"You better keep that barrier up Miroku, if you know what's good for you," Inuyasha warned, "Ready, Kagome?"

"Ready!" she announced as she tenderly pulled the string of her bow back and released the arrow.

The arrow shot straight through Miroku and Kaede's barrier and straight at Naraku. In mid-flight it started to glow an icy blue as it seemed to gain speed with every intention of striking Naraku's heart. The sacred arrow had formed a blue aura in the sky that seemed to diminish the darkness that was being released from Naraku's body. It cut straight through the demon's barrier and was mere inches away from his heart.

"Backlash wave!" called Inuyasha as he brought his Tetsusaiga out and swung it forcibly at the giant demon. The power within the mighty weapon was unlocked as it emitted a bright gold aura, seemingly making Inuyasha invincible.

The wave of power followed Kagome's arrow and also shot directly through the demon's barrier. Looking on in hope, the group held their breath as the sacred arrow and backlash wave collided and formed a mighty explosion into Naraku's body.

"Please work," prayed Kagome as she clutched her bow in her shaking palms.

"Fools, you think you could defeat the great Naraku so easily?" he laughed.

"Oh no! It didn't work!" cried Shippo as he hid behind the legs of Kirara.

'Damn,' thought Inuyasha, frustrated with himself that he couldn't finish the job.

"L-Look!" cried Myoga as he pointed at the demon.

Everyone had looked just in time to see the aura of Kagome's sacred arrow. The blue aura had started to spread and the purification process had begun to take place throughout Naraku's body.

"No! This-This can't be happening! How can this mere mortal girl contain the power to strike down a full-blooded demon?!" screamed Naraku in complete rage as he fell to his knees.

He screeched in agony as the blue light continued to spread throughout the depths of his body. The Shikon jewel shards were being forced out of his body causing Naraku to crumple over in pain and weakness.

"No, my precious shards," roared the demon as he reached out to try to grasp them back. The jewels emitted the same aura as Kagome's arrow and reflected Naraku's hand right back at him. He fell back into the field behind him as he started to slowly return to normal size.

"No! My jewel shards!" screamed Naraku as the shards started to float towards the group. As the jewels made their way to Kagome, it left a path of purification where Naraku had once destroyed the life.

"I can't hold it anymore," announced Miroku, as both he and Kaede dropped the barrier in complete exhaustion. Sango ran over to them both to see if they were okay.

The shards then floated delicately into Kagome's open hands where they came to rest.

"It's amazing that these little stones could cause so much power and destruction," said Kagome as she put the shards into the glass jar that she wore around her neck.

"You cursed mortal! You will pay for what you've done!" yelled Naraku as he readied a final blast and aimed it at Kagome.

The blast formed around Naraku and began to gather energy.

"We have to get out of here!" yelled Inuyasha as he picked up Kagome, "It's not safe."

"I agree!" whimpered Myoga as he jumped onto Kirara's back, along with Sango.

"Master Miroku!" yelled a voice in the distance.

Miroku turned to see where the voice was coming from and saw his loyal friend, Hachi, in his flying form.

"Hachi! Perfect timing," smiled Miroku as he hopped onto his friend's back while also helping the weak Kaede as well. The apprehensive Shippo jumped on as well.

"Master, I was looking everywhere for you. And then I saw the explosion and rushed over here," panted Hachi as he explained his story quickly.

"Excellent deduction, my friend," said Miroku as he watched the ever growing orb that was starting to form around Naraku.

Inuyasha also hopped onto Hachi, Kagome safe in his arms. He set her down and sighed in exasperation.

"Get us out of here, Hachi," demanded Inuyasha.

"Yes, sir," nodded Hachi as he sped off in the opposite direction of Naraku.

"Hold it you wretched mortal! You won't escape my power!" he wailed as he threw the blast directly at the group. Upon releasing his ball of energy, he disintegrated into nothing.

"Brace yourselves!" yelled Inuyasha as he held onto Kagome tightly. Miroku held onto Kaede with one arm and Shippo with the other.

"Hachi!" yelled Miroku as the blast made a direct hit.

"Master! Hold on everybody!" screamed Hachi as he tried to steady himself, but it was too late.

After the initial shock of the blast had passed, the group slowly stood up to investigate the damage.

"Is everyone okay?" asked Miroku as he checked up on Kaede and Shippo.

"I don't know how much more this old body of mine can take," announced Kaede as she stood up and brushed herself off.

"Yeah, that was way too close for comfort," said Shippo as he looked over the edge at the height at which they were currently sailing, "That's some drop."

"Hey, where's Inuyasha and Kagome?!" announced Sango as she came within talking distance of Hachi.

"Master Inuyasha!" wailed Myoga.

Miroku carefully looked over the edge.

"You don't think they…" Miroku stopped himself before he could finish his sentence.

"That's probably exactly what happened," explained Kaede as she too looked over the edge.

"Do you think they made it?" asked Shippo, scared of the answer that he might receive.

"I'm almost positive they did," nodded Kaede confidently, "That young demon is a strong one. They will be just fine, but either way, we should waste no time in trying to locate them."

"Right," Miroku nodded, "Hachi, let's head downward and see if we can spot them from the air."

"Yes, Master," answered Hachi as he started his descent into the forest…

"Inuyasha? Can you hear me?" asked Kagome as she tried to wake the unconscious half-demon.

"Ugh," stirred Inuyasha as he held his head in pain.

"Are you okay?" asked Kagome worriedly, "That's quite a fall we took. I'm surprised we even made it."

"Of course we did. My body's a lot tougher than yours is," snapped Inuyasha as he felt for his Tetsusaiga.

"I know," smiled Kagome.

"Are you hurt?" Inuyasha asked in a small voice as he turned away to look elsewhere.

"I'm just fine. I'm glad you cared enough about me to ask," she said, knowing that Inuyasha's soft side didn't show too much.

"Yeah, well, who do you think I am just some heartless half-breed?" he snapped back.

"No, of course not," answered Kagome as she tried to carefully climb down the tree that they were stuck in. She reached down to step onto a branch, when it snapped under her weight.

"Ahh!" she screamed as she closed her eyes in fear, but something was wrong, she wasn't falling.

"Stupid," announced Inuyasha as he held onto Kagome by her arm and lifted her back onto the stable tree branch, "And just what do you think you're doing?"

"I'm trying to get down from here! If I can avoid it, I'd like to not spend the night in a tree," Kagome shot back.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes and sighed.

"What would you do without me?" bragged Inuyasha as he picked Kagome up and easily hopped from one branch to the next until they finally reached the ground.

"Oh please," Kagome said as she rolled her eyes and began to walk away.

"Just where do you think you're going?" asked Inuyasha in pure annoyance.

"I'm going to find the others," announced Kagome as she walked off.

"Wait up…," called Inuyasha as he ran after her…

"You know guys, I was just thinking," said Shippo out loud as they continued to search for Inuyasha and Kagome, "Well, do you think that Naraku is really defeated?"

"Who knows?" answered Sango, "He may turn up again. The only thing we can do is stay sharp and be prepared for the worst."

"It would be nice though if Naraku was truly defeated, then we'd be able to continue our search for the rest of the jewel shards," sighed Miroku.

"The jewel shards?" asked Sango, "What do you want with the jewel shards? I thought you were only in with us to defeat Naraku."

"Well, that is my primary objective, but after all that's over and done with and you all use the shards for your own purposes, then I was thinking about keeping it to lure some beautiful damsel into my nest and then asking her if she'd bear…"

"Yes, yes, bear your children, we know," Sango interrupted the monk.

"Well, aren't we bitter today," snapped Miroku.

"Now, now, now's not the time to be starting an argument. We must find Inuyasha and Kagome before nightfall or else they could be in terrible trouble," warned Kaede.

"Why is that?" asked Shippo, "I'm sure they'll be fine if we camp out until tomorrow."

"Tonight is the night in which Master Inuyasha will lose his demon powers and become a full human," explained Myoga.

"Tonight's the night of the full moon?" asked Miroku.

"Yes, that is why it is imperative that we find them as soon as possible," sighed Kaede as they continued their search…

"Kagome, wait up!" yelled Inuyasha.

"What is it?"

"We should think about setting up camp soon. It's getting dark," explained Inuyasha as he looked up into the sky.

"I know. That's what I'm doing," said Kagome as she continued to walk.

Inuyasha looked at Kagome in utter confusion, Kagome, picking up on this, explained herself.

"I know you lose your powers tonight, that's why I'm trying to find a place for us to spend the night. It needs to be safe and away from danger," said Kagome as she examined an empty cave.

"What do you mean by that? You think I'm not strong even without my power?" growled Inuyasha as he crossed his arms.

"No, I know you're strong, but it's just for tonight," smiled Kagome as she walked into the cave.

"And just what do you think you're doing?" he asked as they walked into the cave together, "There might be demons in here."

"What are you, scared?" smirked Kagome as she went a little further into the cave and then sat down on a relatively flat stone.

"Ha! Me, scared? You've got to be kidding me. I'm not scared of nothing," answered Inuyasha as he sat down next to her and attempted to light a fire.

Kagome took out a few matches from out of her backpack and started to light a few dry sticks on fire as Inuyasha looked on in amazement.

"What the heck are those?" he asked curiously as he picked up one of the matches and examined it.

"Where I come from, they're called matches. We use them to light things on fire," explained Kagome as she took another match from out of the matchbox, "Here, watch."

She held the match tightly and struck it against the rock next to her and it instantly caught fire. She held it in front of him to see and then threw it into their campfire.

"Let me try," said Inuyasha as he grabbed another match.

He attempted to strike it on the ground, but to no affect. He tried several more times before finally giving up.

"What the hell is wrong with this stupid thing?" yelled Inuyasha as he glared at the match.

Kagome gave out a laugh and held Inuyasha's hand, which was holding the match.

"Here, I'll run you through the steps," she said as she took his hand.

'His hand, it's so warm,' thought Kagome as she lifted it off of the ground.

She took his hand and went through the motion in which to strike the match. Then, she took his hand next to a rock and struck it roughly with the match. The tip of the match lit and the flame illuminated Inuyasha's face as he brought it up to examine. He looked at it, turning it every which way and smiled.

"Ha! Told you I could do it," smiled Inuyasha proudly as he stared at the match.

'Just like a kid in a candy store,' smiled Kagome as she watched the flame travel down the match.

"Uh, Inuyasha…"

"What is it Kagome, can't you see I'm busy?" snapped Inuyasha as he continued to stare at the match.

"But Inuyasha!" warned Kagome as the flame neared the bottom.

"What is it already?!"

"The flame on the match!" yelled Kagome as the flame barely singed his fingers.

"Ahh! Ow! Damn it!" he yelped as the flame burned his fingers, and then extinguished. He threw the match on the ground in pure anger.

"Are you okay?" asked Kagome as she started to tend to his singed fingers.

"Hmph! I'm fine!" he grumbled, pulling his hand away from her to tend to it himself, "Stupid match!"

Kagome smiled, but was interrupted when she heard a sound. All of a sudden, it started to rain outside. As the rain fell, Kagome got up from her seat and walked towards the entrance of the cave. The sky was a dark, angry black and the clouds had shifted over the forest that they were inhabited in. The wind blew harshly and made the trees bend over from the force. Sighing, Kagome sat back down next to Inuyasha.

"I guess we're sleeping here tonight," sighed Kagome as she started to get comfortable.

"That's just fine with me," grumbled Inuyasha as he continued to tend to his burned finger.

"Are you sure you're okay?" asked Kagome as she laid down in front of the fire.

"I told you, I'm fine. It's just a small burn," he snapped.

"Okay, whatever you say," shrugged Kagome as she brought a blanket out of her backpack.

There was silence for several moments. The only thing that could be heard was the rain falling against the walls of the cave that they shared. The fire continued to burn as Kagome stared aimlessly into its flames. Thought after thought went flying through her head. What had happened back there? The battle with Naraku seemed different, much different than what she expected it to be. Inuyasha wasn't himself, but she seemed to be the only one to notice that. She had always felt a strong connection, a strong bond with the half-demon, almost as if they were connected. She knew something was wrong because of his fighting style in battle. His mind just wasn't focusing hard enough, his eyes seemed glazed over, and, above all, it seemed to strike a chord with him when Myoga mentioned something about Naraku. What exactly did he mean by it? What could Inuyasha feel that the rest of the group couldn't? She had to find out.

"Hey Inuyasha," she whispered while continuing to keep her gaze at the fire.

After hearing no response, she turned her head to see that he was at the end of the cave, staring out into the forest. His dark form held something different. He had already transformed into a human. Kagome knew how much he loathed that one day of the month when he transformed into a fully blooded human, even if it was only for one day. She got up and sat down next to him.

"Hey, you should get some rest. We have a big day ahead of us," Kagome smiled.

"I'm not tired. You should get to sleep," he answered as he continued to stare into the darkness.

Before Kagome could say anything, he spoke up, his gaze still within the depths of the forest.

"I'm just thinking."

With that, Kagome knew that he wanted to be alone with his thoughts. She briskly turned away and started to head back to her spot next to the fire.

"Kagome," he whispered.

She turned around and looked in his direction.

"About what Myoga said earlier…did you read into that?" he asked, his back still turned.

"No, I just figured that it was between the two of you. I didn't want to pry," she responded.

Without any response, she, once again, turned away and headed to her spot.

"My parents," he whispered.

She stopped in mid-step and slowly turned her head. He was about to tell her?

She walked back over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm listening, Inuyasha."

A/N: Well, that was the end of my first chapter. How did you like it? Now, remember, I am still kind of new at this, so please be nice with the reviews. However, I do love to receive and read whatever it is that you send, so please review this chapter so I know what to do better in the next chapter. Thanks!