Inuyasha struggled against the shackles that held him. He'd been at it for what felt like hours. The simple metal bindings were nothing, they shouldn't be able to hold him, and for a few moments he'd been baffled by his predicament - until he'd noticed the sutras wrapped around the bands, the chains and even the plates that bolted them to the wall. He growled his frustrations, and the moments before his capture made him feel sick - sick because he was so angry at himself for falling for such a trap.

Keh, it's my own fault. He berated himself silently, looking over his shoulder at the sunlight that spilled into his cell. He could easily leap the distance from the floor to the window, if he wasn't chained up.

Lingering too long in Naraku's miasma had cost him. Usually he could feel the effects begin to seep into him. He'd lost his cool however, and hadn't realized how strongly the poison had affected him until he was too weak to stand. Inuyasha had sent Kagome away on Shippo's bloated pink form, telling the demon to make sure she returned to her own time so she'd be safe.

Naraku knew that the only one capable of following Kagome to her own time was Inuyasha, and he couldn't kill the hanyou if he wanted the shards she'd be taking back with her. Which, hopefully, would give Shippo enough time to get Sango and Miroku to help free him, or let him free himself.

Inuyasha watched as the burn marks on his hands began to heal. He pressed his feet against the stone wall and pushed away with all his strength, trying to release the chains from the wall, and thusly himself from this cell. Grabbing the chains had proved foolish, as the sutras had torn through his flesh and sent flesh searing pain through his arms. Without his demon strength he couldn't hope to break his bindings, but unless he was mortal he couldn't put enough oomph behind his attempts to have it matter.

The whole area stunk of Naraku and death. He hadn't seen anything on his way into his cell, but he could smell the stench of miasma and rotted bodies. Even with the sunlight that came into his cell he couldn't smell the scent of wildflowers or life - just him.

The sound of approaching footsteps put him on edge. His golden eyes practically bore holes through the heavy metal door as the lock creaked its release and the rusted metal scraped against the stones. His entire body tensed, his claws begging for release from his bindings, to tear the flesh from the bastard that stood in the doorway before him.

"Naraku," he growled, almost spitting the name in disgust.

"Inuyasha. I hope you're finding these accommodations pleasant enough?" Naraku replied, that cold mirthless smile on his face.

Inuyasha's reply came in the form of him piercing the flesh of his palm, and attacking Naraku.

"Blades of blood!" Inuyasha growled, pleased to learn that the sutras that bound him didn't suffocate his demonic aura completely.

The fruitless attack broke apart against the cold man's shield, and with a wave of his hand Inuyasha's bindings retreated into the wall, slamming him against the cold stone harshly. The hanyou's arms were now splayed outward, pinned tightly against the wall. Despite his situation he glared defiantly at his captor.

Pieces of demons slithered across the cold stone floor and began to wrap themselves around Inuyasha's feet, crawling slowly up his legs. He tried to shake them off, the wet slimy feeling making his stomach churn, but as he'd manage to cast off one or two, three or four would take their place. They stopped as they reached his knees, and he grit his teeth against the pain as he felt the minor demons pierce his flesh, pinning his feet and calves to the floor and walls.

He growled at Naraku through his pain, damned if he'd let the bastard know just how bad it felt to be impaled this way. The form of the dead human Lord moved toward him, the cold crimson eyes of his enemy obviously enjoying this setting. Slender fingers reached out and traced a line from the center of the hanyou's chest up to his necklace. Naraku ran his fingers over the beads, seeming to admire the feel of them.

The closeness was making Inuyasha very uncomfortable. He couldn't read Naraku's intentions on a good day, and given his situation there was nothing he could do about it if the coward decided to kill him right then and there.

As long as Kagome's safe, that's all that matters. He held onto that thought desperately, using it to strengthen himself.

Crimson eyes locked onto his golden ones, and he managed to glare back unflinchingly. The slender fingers that had been stroking his necklace began to wrap around his neck. Inuyasha paid them no mind, baring his fangs at the soulless beast before him.

Slowly, the grip tightened.

"Baka," Naraku berated quietly. "You can't keep her safe forever. Before your friends can save you, the foolish young girl will become worried about you." His grip on the hanyou's neck tightened gradually while he spoke.

"Don't… you touch… her," Inuyasha growled, struggling to breathe. Metal shrieked against itself, despite the length of chain being pulled into the wall he was struggling enough to grind the cuffs into the plates that held him against the cold stones.

"She'll return here of her own freewill in days, weeks, or months," Naraku assured him as Inuyasha struggled to breathe, his clawed hands fighting to break free. "And will either find you a broken, obedient version of your former self," he stated, emphasizing his point by gently stroking the captured half-breed's face gently. "… Or dead."

"I'll…. Never…" The hanyou struggled, not finding enough air in his lungs to continue his statement.

Naraku's eyes said even more than his words, indicating that he truly didn't care which was the outcome. His grip on Inuyasha's throat was far too tight for the half-breed to breathe. Spots began to explode in his field of vision, and his head swam. Even as the suffocating feeling threatened to swallow him whole he managed to glare at Naraku until his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he went limp.

Naraku grunted, turning and leaving the cell, taking the tendrils that had impaled Inuyasha in place back into his body, and leaving the open wounds to close on their own.