Background:
My name is Kagome Higurashi. When I was fifteen years old I fell into the bone eater's well at my family shrine, bringing me to the past and into the Feudal Era. There I met a half demon named Inu Yasha who I awoke after he had been sealed to the Sacred Tree. Unfortunately an accident occurred and the Sacred Jewel, which was hidden inside my body, was broken into hundreds of shards and spread across the Feudal Era. Inu Yasha and I set out on a journey to collect all the shards and complete the jewel once more, and along the way we met a lecherous Monk named Miroku, a young fox demon named Shippo, a Demon Slayer named Sango and her demon cat Kirara to help on our journey and to destroy an evil demon named Naraku. Today is my Eighteenth birthday which I spent in my time with my friends. And this is where our story begins…
Present Day Tokyo, Marunouchi Mall:
"I don't see why you insisted on taking me to the mall…" Kagome told her friends, as she looked at yet another stylish jacket which she knew she couldn't afford. "Kagome, it's your birthday! You need to get out of your house and have some fun!" Yuka exclaimed, as she walked towards a cute summer dress she spotted in the next aisle. "But I just want to stay at home and see my family…" sighed Kagome, putting another jacket back on the rack. Eri looked to Kagome, a little confused. "But your always at home sick. Don't you see them then?" she asked. "Well yeah, but we don't really get to spend any time together because I always have to stay in bed." Kagome lied quickly. "Just relax and have some fun Kagome. We'll stay here another hour and then head back to your house ok?" Ayumi assured her with a smile, as she held out a nice pair of pants for Kagome to try on. Kagome smiled back at her, Ayumi was always the most sincere out of her three friends. Kagome took the pants with a nod and headed towards the dressing room.
After another hour of browsing and trying on clothes, Kagome and her friends headed on back to Kagome's house for some tea and sweets. As they reached the top of the shrine steps Kagome noticed that there were no lights on in her house. "I wonder where everyone went?" Kagome asked, a little disappointed. "I don't know, lets go inside and relax a bit before they come back." Yuka said, as she slid open the front door allowing Eri and Ayumi to go inside before her. Kagome followed after Yuka, taking off her shoes and putting her slippers on before entering into the kitchen. She searched the wall for the switch before turning it on. "SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAGOME!" her friends and family screamed in union, throwing confetti and streamers. Kagome jumped as she instinctively reached her hand back to grab for an arrow, before realizing that it was her family. Luckily no one had noticed the strange hand gesture and put her hands down quickly to her sides. She smiled at her mother who was walking towards her with her arms outstretched to hug her daughter. She held out her arms and accepted her mothers hug as she heard her mother whisper, "Happy birthday dear." into her ear. Easing out of her mother's hug she took a look around the room, seeing her Grandfather and her little brother Souta on one side of the table, and her Aunt and Uncle on the other. But the one she was most surprised to see, was Hojo standing behind a chair at the end of the table that had three balloons attached to it with the number '18' on each. Kagome walked towards Hojo, giving hugs and thanks to each family member and friend as she walked passed them, and gave him a look of surprise. "Hi Hojo, it's good to see you. I haven't seen you in a while." she said with a smile. "It's good to see you too Kagome, I hope your feeling better. Eri and Yuka invited me, they said that you would be happy to see me." he said smiling back, as he held out her chair and motioned for her to sit down. Kagome took the seat with a 'thanks', and gave a tired knowing glance to Yuka and Eri who were giving her the 'thumbs up'. The evening had turned out great. Her brother and grandfather had put on some music and starting dancing in an embarrassing, yet hilarious, manner. Then her mother brought out her birthday cake as they all sang 'Happy Birthday' to her and watched her blow out the candles. After the cake was devoured and their stomachs were full, she opened up her presents and noted yet another unusual gift from Hojo. He explained to her that it was a bottle of Japanese Red Pine Pollen Extract, in which she could boil and drink to rid her of her terrible leg cramps. Although of no use to her, her grandfather seemed thrilled. As the party ended she thanked her guests for the presents and said her goodbyes as they left for their own homes.
Kagome packed her bag and filled it with all the necessary items needed for her stay in the Feudal Era. Her bag was much lighter now that she had graduated from High School and no longer needed to bring her books back to study. Her family gathered around her saying their goodbyes as she leaped into the Well and back into the past.
Feudal Era, Bone Eater's Well:
When Kagome arrived back into the Feudal Era, all was quite in the small field surrounding the bone eaters well. Kagome climbed up out of the well and placed her bag into the clawed hand of the man who quickly appeared before her, knowing well that it was Inu Yasha's. "Oi, what took you? I thought you were suppose to be back sooner?" Inu Yasha asked irritably. "Sorry, my family threw a party for me so I stayed longer than I thought." She replied, brushing the dirt off her new pants that Ayumi had bought her at the mall. Inu Yasha gave a grunt of annoyance but swung the bag onto his back as he followed Kagome back to Kaede's Village.
As they entered Kaede's hut, Shippo gave Kagome his usual greeting of leaping into her arms. The little fox had grown in the past few years and almost knocked Kagome off her feet, but she quickly regained her balance and gave him a hug. "Where's Kaede?" Kagome asked, as she let Shippo down. "She went to see one of the villagers, but she said she would be back soon. Miroku and Sango still haven't returned from Asai Village yet." Shippo informed her. There was a fresh pot of tea resting in the fire pit, so Kagome sat down and poured them all a cup as they waited for the others to return.
Not long after they had finished their tea, Kaede walked through the door. "Ah Kagome, ye have returned. Did ye have a pleasant stay home?" Kaede asked pleasantly. Kagome nodded as she helped the elderly priestess put away some medicinal herb jars. Kagome sat back down near the fire pit and poured some tea for Kaede, and the old priestess eagerly took a sip. She set her cup down and pulled something wrapped in cloth from behind her, then handed it to Kagome. Kagome gave her a surprised look then unwrapped the object to find a beautifully crafted bow and quiver with a symbol of a mirror carved onto it. "Oh Kaede, it's beautiful!" She exclaimed in awe. The elder priestess smiled as she took her cup into her hands and started drinking her tea. "It is a gift, to celebrate the day of ye birth. It is a family heirloom that was given to us by a God many centuries ago. It was said to have belonged to the Goddess Amaterasu before she disappeared. We were told to keep it safe until the Goddess's return, and I want ye to have it." Kaede explained, sipping her tea quietly. "My family has kept it safe all these years and I want ye to use it in the fight against Naraku, It's powers will surely aid ye." Kagome's eyes filled with tears as a smile crept onto her face. She walked around the fire pit and knelt beside the other priestess. Giving her a hug, she whispered "Thank you…" into her ear.
The sun was slowly setting across the village, when Sango and Miroku had returned from their trip. "Ah Kagome, you've returned. How was your stay in your time?" Miroku asked, as he sat down and poured himself a cup of tea. "Hello Miroku. I had a lovely time at home, how did the trip go?" Kagome asked, looking up at Sango as she walked into the hut. "It went well, the rumors were true." Sango replied, setting her Hirakotsu down against the wall before sitting down next to Miroku and pouring herself some tea. "We met a family seeking refuge in Asai who said their village by the sea was being terrorized by a Giant Oni. They said the Oni had lived peacefully in a nearby cave until recently, and had seemed to grow in size and strength." she explained, sipping her tea. "Sounds like a jewel shard to me…" Inu Yasha replied. "We'll leave tomorrow, let's just get some rest for tonight." Miroku stated, as he looked for a comfortable spot to sleep. The other's nodded as they set in for sleep. Kagome laid down her sleeping bag and snuggled in next to Shippo. "Tomorrow we head for Tajima Village."
Tajima Village, A Few Days Later:
After traveling for a few days, they finally arrived at the small village by the sea. The village was in semi-ruin, and there were no villagers in sight. "This place looks deserted, have the villagers all gone?" Kagome asked, as she searched the nearby huts for signs of life. Before anyone could answer, a group of villagers had appeared before them with spears clutched in their hands. An elderly man stepped up, "State your business here." he said quickly. "We came here to help rid you of the demon plaguing your village." Miroku stated, as he bowed to the other man. The man glanced cautiously towards Inu Yasha before looking back to Miroku with a smile. "I am the Headman of this village. Follow me to my mansion, we shall prepare you a hot meal and I'll inform you of our situation." The Headman stated, as the villagers cleared a path to let them through.
At the mansion, the headman lead them to a large sitting room and motioned for them to sit. "How did you hear of our problem?" The Headman asked sitting down in front of them. "We met a refuge family in Asai Village who told us of your situation." Sango answered. "I see, so you've heard that the demon is a Giant Oni?" he asked, motioning for his servant to bring them some tea. "Yes, we heard that it was only until recently that he started attacking. Is there any reason why he chose now to harm your village?" Miroku questioned, as he smiled at the beautiful servant girl serving them tea. The young woman giggled as she handed him his cup. Sango grabbed Miroku by his ear "Behave Monk, remember our task at hand." she whispered to him. "No, we haven't done anything to warrant this kind of behavior. He just appeared one day and started attacking our small village. He seems to have grown in size too, and his powers seem stronger than that of an average Oni." replied the Headman, with a look of worry. "Where does this demon live?" Inu Yasha asked impatiently. "He lives in a cave just to the south of the village. He sleeps during the day and only comes out at night to attack our village. Please help us, he tortures our village livestock, dismembers our men, and rapes our women all before devouring them! He must be stopped before he has destroyed our entire village!" The Headman pleaded with tears in his eyes. Kagome closed her eyes in horror, as tears fell down her cheek. "Don't worry Headman, we'll destroy this demon and bring peace to your village!" she assured him, as he clutched her hands in his. "Oh thank you! Thank you!" The Headman replied with a watery smile. Kagome looked to the others and knew they were in for a tough battle.
They left the mansion and headed south in search of the cave in which the demon dwelled. It took a few hours, but when they finally reached the entrance to the cave Kagome could immediately sense the power of a Sacred Jewel Shard. "This is definitely the place…" she stated as she grabbed a flashlight from her backpack. She turned it on and started to enter the cave. "Let's go."
The walls of the cave were smeared with blood, and the ground was filled with bones of all kinds. It was quiet, and a slight breeze seemed to be emanating from the end of long large tunnel towards the back of the cave. As they traveled down the tunnel, the breeze became stronger and was blowing a foul smell of rotting flesh towards them. A faint snoring sound could be heard in step with the breeze and Kagome realized that what she thought was the wind, was really the Oni breathing as he slept. "Ugh…What's that smell?" Shippo asked in disgust. "It's the demon's breath…" Kagome stated, holding her nose. "I think some of the flesh he's consumed became stuck between his teeth before rotting." Sango explained, fastening her mask to her face. Kagome turned towards Inu Yasha to see how he was holding up, and noticed that he was using his sword as a crutch. It took every ounce of Inu Yasha's strength to keep himself from falling over and hurling, unfortunately he was fighting a losing battle. "Poor Inu Yasha… I would hate to have his keen sense of smell, especially in this type of situation." Miroku stated, wincing against the sounds of his friend losing his lunch. "Ugh, let's just kill this bastard and get out of here…" Inu Yasha pleaded, wiping his mouth. At the end of the tunnel was a large cavern with a tall mount of dirt piled in the center, but there was no sign of the demon. As they climbed to the top of the dirt pile they could see that there were no more exists leading out of the cave, and that they were utterly alone. "Where the hell is he?" Inu Yasha muttered angrily, as he thrust the sheath of his sword into the dirt. The ground started shaking beneath their feet as something burst from beneath the dirt, and threw them against the side of the cavern. The Oni had been sleeping underneath the dirt pile in which they had been standing on, and didn't seem to happy to have been woken from his peaceful sleep. They stood up from where they had landed and watched as the Giant Ogre towered before them. He was definitely larger than the average Oni demon and obviously using the power of a Sacred Jewel Shard. The Oni was at least 30 feet tall with long wild hair as black as coal, and a short beard that was matted with blood and dirt. He had thick bushy eyebrows, a big bulgy nose, and two pointed ears on either side of his face. His eyes were narrow and blood red while his teeth were long sharp and covered in grime. The demon wore only a loincloth and carried a large blunt weapon. The only thing worse than the Oni's appearance was the terrible odor emanating from him. "Who disturbed my sleep?!" the Oni asked in a dark deep voice that shook the cavern walls. "Keh, I guess he's not a morning person…" Inu Yasha mumbled sarcastically as he wiped the dirt off his hatori. "We have come to destroy you demon!" Sango stated bluntly while Kirara transformed. "And while we're at it we'll take your jewel shards too!" Inu Yasha yelled. He lunged towards the demon, unsheathing his sword in the process, but the Oni swiftly dodged Inu Yasha's attack and swung his large weapon towards him. Inu Yasha tried to block the demon's attack but was hurled towards the ground. The impact his body made as it hit the ground caused dirt to fly everywhere, filling the cave in a cloud of dust. "Inu Yasha!" Kagome screamed, as the dust blocked her view of him. The sounds of fighting and the clashing of weapons could be heard from the other side of the cave. "Sango can you use your Hirakotsu to clear the dust?" Miroku asked, coughing. "No, it could make things worse. Besides I can't see where Inu Yasha is and I don't want to take a chance in accidentally hitting him." She stated, feeling helpless. They stood there for a few minutes, waiting for the cloud of dust to disappear, when Kagome had an idea. She raised her bow and arrow and searched the cloud of dust for the Sacred Jewel Shard. "There!" Kagome yelled, as she shot the arrow through the dust and towards the demon.
At the same time, on the other side of the cave Inu Yasha was being over powered by the Giant Oni. His attacks seemed to be getting nowhere and he was worried that one of their attacks might hit the others. He needed to end this now, before anyone got hurt. Inu Yasha raised his sword as the wind started swirling around it. "Windscar!" Inu Yasha screamed, slashing his sword down. As the Windscar made contact with the Giant Oni, so did Kagome's purifying arrow. The combined attacks created a bright light that cleared away the dust and filled the cave. "Is everyone alright?!" Inu Yasha asked as he ran towards the others. Before anyone could answer, the light became brighter and everyone shielded their eyes as an eerie silence filled the cave. After a few seconds the walls started to disintegrate and a loud bang echoed through their ears. The Giant Oni disintegrated as well and from where his body had stood came a large explosion that blasted everyone away from the cave in separate directions.
Inu Yasha and the others got up from where they had landed a few yards away from the cave and headed towards the direction they were thrown from. The cave had been completely destroyed and all that was left was a small jewel shard in the middle of where it had stood. "All that for this tiny shard? What a waste…" he stated as he put the shard in his hatori. "Is Everyone alright?" Miroku asked, looking around. "Where's Kagome?" Sango questioned holding her head. Inu Yasha took a worried glance around, "Kagome!?" he screamed. "She can't have gone too far right? Let's split up and search for her." Miroku stated. They each went in separate directions but still couldn't find her, after a few hours had gone by they met up again where the cave had been. "It's getting dark, we should set up camp and search some more at day break." Sango stated, as she started getting a campfire ready. "She's ok right? We'll find her?" Shippo asked with tears in his eyes. "Of coarse we will Shippo… She probably just got thrown a little farther than us and got lost, she's probably making camp right now and waiting for us to find her." Miroku assured him with a smile. Shippo wiped the tears from his face and smiled back at his friend. While the others set up camp, Inu Yasha jumped to the top of the tree and searched the surrounding area for signs of another campfire. "Where are you Kagome…" he whispered, as the sun finally set.
A.N.
Some of the things mentioned in this chapter are true. For instance Marunouchi Mall is a real mall in Tokyo and Asai and Tajima Village were real places in the Feudal Era. Also The goddess Amaterasu is a real goddess in folklore. She is the Shinto goddess of the sun and the leader of the Shinto Pantheon. Her name literally means "That which illuminates Heaven". Amaterasu was born from Izanagi-No-Mikoto's Left eye. She was also accompanied by her siblings Susanoo-no-Mikoto, the storm deity, and Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, the moon deity, who were born from Izangi's nose and right eye respectively. Most of her myths revolve around an incident where the goddess traps herself in a cave because of her brothers actions. For a while, everything among the three revered gods was peaceful and all of the world ran smoothly. One day, Susanoo-no-Mikoto, in a drunken rampage, trampled Amaterasu Omikami's rice fields, filled all of irrigation ditches and threw excrement into her palace and her shrines. The Omikami asked her brother to stop but he ignored her and even went so far as to throw the corpse of a skinned horse at her hand-maidens who were weaving at the time. The women were killed by the splintered wood from the looms piercing their bodies. Amaterasu was greatly angered and in protest she shut herself in the Heavenly Cave and sealed it shut with a giant rock. As a result, the world was consumed with darkness. Without her, everything began to wither and die. Countless Kami gathered in front of her cave and devised a way to lure her out. They all sat around the cave and set up a mirror across from the entrance. Ame-no-Uzume, the voluptuous goddess of merriment turned over a wash-tub and began a sensual dance, tapping the beat on the tub. She exposed her breasts and lifted her skirts as she danced. All of the gods made a great noise of yelling and cheering and laughing. Amaterasu peeked out to see what the noise was about. She asked the nearest god what was going on and he replied that there was a new goddess. When Amaterasu asked where she was, he pointed to the mirror. The Omikami had never seen herself before and when she caught her reflection, she stared at the radiance of her own form. She was so surprised she said "omo-shiroi", which means both "white face", which the Omikami had, and "fascinating". When she was out of the way, Tajikara-O shut the rock behind her. Having lured her out of the cave, the gods convinced her to go back into the Celestial Plain and all life began to grow again and become strong in her light. Once back in the Celestial Plain, she made sure that she was ready for her brother's harsh actions again by having a bow and quiver at her side. After that, the mirror became her symbol to represent her.