Sango was starting to regret her foolish actions. He had tried to warn her, tried to stop her, but she had been so enraged that is words hadn't even registered.
"Inuyasha...Kagome...please forgive me..." she whispered, blood pouring from her chest where his claws had torn her flesh apart. She was dizzy and nauseas, completely unable to stop him from finishing her off. She closed her eyes and felt a hand wrap tightly around her throat. She struggled for a moment and then went still, one last breath being driven from her lungs. The end had come, finally, and she would feel no more pain...
Earlier...
"Sango, are you insane? You can't go after Naraku alone, you don't stand a chance!" Inuyasha grabbed her arm tightly. "Just wait, we'll all be ready to go soon. Kaede said that Kagome only needs a few more days to regain her strength!"
The taijiya pulled her arm away from him and glared at the hanyou. "I don't have a few days! Kohaku was with him, I saw my brother! The longer we wait, the less chance I have of ever finding him again. You don't understand, Inuyasha, and you never will!"
He growled and threw his hands up in disgust. "You're going to get yourself killed, you idiot. We can't even beat Naraku together, what makes you think you're going to be able to do it on your own?"
"Because I won't have any distractions, I won't have to worry about any of my friends getting hurt. And I need to save Kohaku, even if it means losing my own life. He doesn't deserve to spend the rest of eternity as Naraku's puppet!" She was screaming now, at the top of her lungs, her voice carrying through the village. She bent down and picked her Hirakotsu up, throwing the strap over her shoulder. "You guys keep Kirara, and catch up with me when Kagome is ready. I can't just stand around and do nothing anymore!"
He let out a sigh, his arms dropping to his sides. "Sango, look...I know that losing Miroku has you all upset and whatever, but getting yourself killed isn't going to bring him back or save Kohaku. You need to stop and think. You don't have to do this!"
Sango cringed at the mention of the houshi's name. Their last battle with Naraku had been brutal, and Miroku hadn't made it out alive. She would never forget the look on his face as he had finally succumbed to the poison coursing through his body from sucking Naraku's bees into his wind tunnel. And he had done it to save her. She felt hot tears stinging at the back of her eyes and turned her face away from the hanyou. "Don't talk about that. It's over. He's gone. End of story. I'm not doing this for him. I'm doing this for me. I am not going to let that bastard get away again!"
Inuyasha reached out and put his hand on her shoulder but she jerked back, and he just shook his head. "Sango, do you really think that this is what he would want you to do? To risk your own life in such a stupid, pointless way? I don't want to let Naraku get away either, but we have to stick together. We can't afford to lose anyone else!"
She laughed. A cold, cruel, almost mournful laugh. "Easy for you to say. Kagome is still breathing, isn't she? She's going to be OK. I have no one left, don't you understand that? No one! So what does it matter if I die, as long as I take Naraku out with me? At least I will leave this world knowing that I did everything I could!" As soon as the words passed her lips, she turned around and ran, disappearing into the dark woods.
"You better come back alive, Sango!" he called after her, and was about to follow the taijiya when he heard Kagome calling for him from inside the hut. For a moment Inuyasha was torn, but he finally decided that Sango could take care of herself. He shook his head, staring after the taijiya for a moment before going inside to tend to the miko. Everything was falling apart around him, and Kagome was all he had to hold on to.
Sango ran until her lungs were burning and her legs could no longer hold her up. She was breathing heavily, sweat running into her eyes and making it very difficult to see. She dropped to her knees, gasping for air, finally allowing the tears to run down her cheeks. She had never felt so alone. What was she thinking, taking off on her own? She didn't really want to die, not at all. The taijiya sobbed, holding her face in her hands. Time seemed to stand still.
Finally, her eyes burning and puffy, she managed to stop crying and got to her feet again. "I should go back," she said aloud, and picked up Hirakotsu once again. She turned to head back to the village when she felt something prickling at her senses. Immediately she turned around and found herself face to face with the man she had been looking for. "Naraku..." she said, gasping in fear.
"Well, well, well, look what I have found myself. You seem to be quite alone, taijiya. What's the matter? Your friends didn't want to stand by you after you caused the houshi's death?"
That was all she needed to hear. Sango growled in anger and jumped backwards, gripping her weapon tightly in her hands. "Shut up, you bastard! I didn't kill him, you did! This is all your fault! I left Inuyasha and Kagome so that I could kill you with my own two hands! Now you will pay for everything you have taken away from me!" She raised Hirakotsu and swung wildly, but he dodged the blow easily.
"You are a fool. The only one who will die here tonight is you!"
He raised himself off the ground, hovering easily and moving quickly around her. She circled, trying to keep him in her sight. She paused, eyeing him and then raised her weapon, throwing it as hard as she could. At first she thought she was going to hit him, but he deflected the bone boomerang at the last second with simply a wave of his wrist. She gasped in shock, losing control of herself for a moment, and then quickly drew her katana. He smirked, closing in on her, and she swung the blade, laughing out loud as she felt it connect with his flesh, blood spraying over her. Her confidence grew, and she pressed forward.
"Who's going to die, Naraku?" she said, her voice shrill. She swung again expecting to be successful, but felt something wrap around her wrist. She pulled back, and felt her bones snap, screaming out in pain.
"You are," he said, tightening his tenticle around her arm and pulling her in close to him. He raised his arm and slashed his claws across her chest, her taijiya armor shredding like silk. She screamed again, her free hand coming up to grasp at her chest. Her blood flowed through her fingers, and she felt sick.
"You bastard! You took everything away from me, I am not going to let you kill me too!" She twisted her arm in his grasp, feeling the ends of her bones grinding together and bit her bottom lip. Slowly, the color drained from her face. She was doomed.
"Oh, you will die, taijiya. You are no match for me. You will meet your family in hell. You should be happy!" He raked his claws across her chest again, and then across her stomach. He licked her blood from his claws and stared at her.
Tears were falling down her face, and Sango began to regret her foolish actions. She never should have left Inuyasha and Kagome. She tried to lunge forward, to strike him once more, but her body was weak and wouldn't respond. She never should have come alone. Now, she was going to die. "Inuyasha...Kagome...please forgive me," she whispered, her eyes rolling back in her head. Then she felt him wrap another tenticle tightly around her throat, and the world went black.
Naraku let go of her wrist and watched her broken, lifeless body fall to the ground in a heap. He kicked her ribs hard, and she didn't move. She was no longer breathing. The taijiya was dead.
"Good riddance, foolish human. You had to know that it would end this way." With a satisfied smile on his face, Naraku disappeared in a cloud of miasma, leaving Sango's body lying cold.