A/N: This is a re-write of my original brain child. It's my first "real idea", even if it wasn't my first fic… and I just want to emphasize, right off the bat, that no matter what, I AM GONNA SEE THIS BABY THROUGH TO THE END. Yeah!
Now, I am proud to present to you this brand-new, edited, beta'd, re-written prologue to Siblings of the Sand. Another big thanks to elemental neko, for going over this chapter for me!
I decided that I wanted to make this story more of a crossover then it actually was. Everything's planned ahead this time... all I have to do is write.
There are many more familliar faces in the story this time around... a list for your reading pleasure: InuYasha, Miroku, Sango, Kagura, and Sesshomaru will all be making important appearances… there will be other, more minor characters making appearances too, but we'll get there when we get there. Also, our favourite baddy, Naraku, will show up; he plays an important role. As from the Naruto-verse, the Akatsuki, Jiraiya, the whole rookie nine, and Naruto's resident baddy, Orochimaru will be making appearances throughout the story.
You'll also be pleased to note that I've added in quite a few secondary pairings; none of which are cannon. The main pairing is Kagome/Naruto, but it's the only one that I'm gonna share~! More information on the pairings will be revealed in short interlude-chapters.
Last little tidbit of information regarding the revamp of SoS… it's looking to be approximately 55 chapters, if all goes according to plan. HOW EXCITING. And now… (drum roll, please) I am pleased to present the prologue of my new-and-improved-brain-child!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto... or InuYasha...
Siblings of the Sand – Prologue
ancient-relic
Kagome marched ahead of her team, her hands wound into her hair at the base of her neck.
"Where are you taking us, Kagome?" InuYasha grumbled from somewhere behind her, sound irritable, as always.
"Wouldn't you like to know," Kagome remarked, a sly grin hidden on her face by the face that she hadn't bothered to turn around to face him.
"Of course, Kagome… InuYasha wouldn't have asked you otherwise." Miroku stated simply, as if he was talking to little children.
InuYasha, 18, was the tallest of the group- stretching almost six feet tall. However, despite his height and age- he was probably the most immature of the group- the most childish.
Kagome was the youngest- 16, having passed the genin exam very young. However, she was just as strong as anyone else their age that Miroku knew.
Kagome and InuYasha were like yin and yang. If Kagome liked something, InuYasha hated it. He could only think of a few things that they actually both liked… ramen, and sword fighting. That was their weapon of choice.
InuYasha always had a way of bringing someone else down to his level… and Kagome was no exception. Once he began his favourite pastime- which was bugging the hell out of Kagome- then he was gone. So was she. The trick was to catch Kagome and keep her out of InuYasha's grasp before she got pissed. It ended up with a severely beaten InuYasha, and some nasty damage to the wildlife.
"Don't be fresh." Kagura reprimanded, smacking Miroku across the back of his head.
"Oww!" he moaned. Kagura hadn't smacked him that hard… but her nails were like steel. And he was pretty sure that there were four horizontal gashes dripping blood on the back of his head.
Kagome snickered from her place ahead of the group. Kagura-sensei always knew how to break the tension… but sometimes, things were just too far gone for her help.
"But InuYasha does raise a good point," Kagura continued, looking to the only other female on the team. "Where are you taking us? I hope it's nowhere that we shouldn't be going."
InuYasha and Miroku suppressed a shiver at the thought of the last time that Kagome had led them somewhere. They'd gotten lost, and ended up in a gay bar, where the boys had quickly been scooped up by some pole dancers.
"Relax. I know where I'm going. Nothing bad," Kagome grinned, flashing a thumbs-up over her head, and marching on.
"And this, coming from the girl with the world's worst sense of direction?" InuYasha muttered under his breath, rolling his eyes.
"Hey! I heard that." Kagome shouted, and stopped, brandishing a fist in InuYasha's direction.
"So she's got ears like a hawk, and a sense of direction like an ass." InuYasha continued to mumble. "Because they have to get led around everywhere…"
"Why I oughta…" Kagome threatened, her eyes narrowing into a dark glare.
"Whoa there, Kagome-chan," Miroku said gingerly, placing his hands up meekly and stepping between InuYasha and where she was preparing to charge. "Aren't you taking us somewhere? We do want to get there as soon as possible, right?"
"Right…" Kagome sighed, turning away, rather disappointed that she didn't get to pound InuYasha. Continuing on, Kagome led her team off the path, and into the foliage that surrounded them.
"And where are we going again?" Miroku broke the silence, repeating InuYasha's first question.
"To Suna…" Kagome replied sharply, obviously fed up with the boys' nagging.
"What?" InuYasha exclaimed. "Why are we going back to that country?" he growled.
"So I can see my family, dumb-shit." Kagome snapped, turning to face him, making his stop walking abruptly.
InuYasha held back a 'meep' at the dangerous look on her face, and wisely shut his mouth. There was no arguing with Kagome when she looked like she did now… because arguing only brought a powerful smack.
"She's got you two so whipped," Kagura laughed from a tree, where she had jumped up to. Kagura was like the wind… but since they were traveling stealthily, she couldn't quite travel the way she wanted to. To be closer to the sky though, Kagura liked to keep to the trees when she could. She was like a monkey or something…
"Shut up." InuYasha grumbled, crossing his arms huffily. He hated the truth.
"Bondage, eh? Hmm… I've never really thought of Kagome like that. But it's interesting, that's for sure," Miroku thought out loud, earning him a smack, a punch, and a pinecone in the head, courtesy of his sensei.
"SHUT UP, PERV!" Kagome and InuYasha chorused. Right… that was the other thing that they agreed on… that he, Miroku, was the biggest pervert on the face of the planet.
"Way to be stealthy." Kagura grinned. "Weren't you heading for the secret entrance, Kagome? That'll be awfully hard, now."
"Heh…" Kagome grinned, blushing in embarrassment. "I'll get us in though… not to worry."
"I'm not worried," Kagura smirked right back, her red eyes flashing in amusement.
She and Kagome grinned some more, and the boys watched them intently. "So," Miroku whispered conversationally. "Have you figured out how come they can have conversations like that yet?"
"Nope." InuYasha replied. "But I have a theory… I think that it has something to so with smiling, eyes locked, and some other girly crap that we couldn't possibly begin to comprehend."
"Ah," Miroku said, rubbing his head. "Hey, wait up!"
The girls were already heading on without them, and Kagome had joined Kagura in the trees. InuYasha and Miroku leapt up to the branches with ease, and were right behind the girls in moments.
"Now's where we really have to be ninja," Kagome said sullenly. "Follow my lead." She didn't need to look back to know that the others were prepared to follow and copy every move that she made, so she continued on, increasing her pace.
Gaara was ready to bang his head on the nearest wall. Kankuro and Temari were bickering, and they had not stopped since they had left their house earlier that morning.
Of course, he'd never, ever, not in a million years, let anyone know that he was ready to bang his head. Because Gaara of the Sand did not go around banging his head.
Pausing a moment, Gaara had to wonder just where that thought had come from. How uncharacteristic of me.
Looking over his shoulder, he saw that Kankuro and Temari were paying him absolutely no mind whatsoever, as they continued arguing about something that he didn't care about. It quickly escalated into a full out glaring/staring competition, and he just had to draw the line.
"Cut it out. Now." He growled, not bothering to face them. He could practically smell their discomfort as he felt their eyes on his back. Temari was the first to speak.
"Sorry," she apologized, wringing her hands. It didn't matter that she was his sister… and it didn't matter that she was his older sister, either. Gaara would kill her without a second thought. She knew it, and Kankuro knew it too.
It was always best not to bother Gaara… lest he fall into one of his moods.
Kankuro was silent beside her, though as soon as Gaara started walking again, Temari immediately felt his eyes, and she glared at him only to find him glaring right back.
Gaara walked on, either oblivious, or just not paying attention. Temari was pretty sure that it was the latter.
However, she did not expect him to stop walking moments later, and she almost walked right into his gourd. "What? Why did you stop?" Temari asked, confused.
Gaara turned his head over his shoulder, and looked her dead on. His green eyes almost seemed hollow as he stared at her… and Temari fought back a shudder. What happened?
"Did you sense someone?" Kankuro asked, as if he had read Temari's mind.
Gaara did nothing… he only turned to face the east, where the little forest on the borders of the city sat. Trees and desert didn't sit well together, after all.
"There. Four figures… at least one of them is jounin." He stated, as he struggled to read their auras. It was handy skill he was quickly gaining talent at… though he suspected it was mostly Shukaku's influence.
Temari was wide eyed. How did he possibly know that? She couldn't sense any-
Her eyes widened further, if possible.
There it was- four huge energy signatures… how could she have missed it?
"Oh, god! He's right." Temari gasped, turning to Kankuro, who had a hand on Karasu.
"Can you tell if they're enemies?" Temari asked, turning back to Gaara.
He narrowed his black rimmed eyes for a minute, assessing the four auras. All he could tell was that they were distinctly familiar… as if he recognized them from somewhere.
The strangest part about them was their unique colours. Most people's auras were simple… not very colourful, and rather drab. However, he knew that he himself had a golden aura that licked around his frame like a fire.
Similarly, Naruto Uzumaki –an acquaintance who was a demon's host, like himself- had a rusty, almost orange-red aura that flared about him in a similar form. Was it because they both had a tailed beast inside of them? He wasn't sure.
Sasuke Uchiha, another member of Konoha (where Naruto resided) had a deep maroon aura- and Gaara was fairly certain that it had something to do with his heritage… since he possessed the Sharingan, and was a member of the Uchiha clan.
The four auras were very close now- and he could distinctly see the invisible shapes of the people in his mind… their auras almost giving him a template of sorts… though it was dark where the body was.
There were two girls… one was the jounin he sensed, and one was young and small. The other two people were both boys- both rather tall, and both older than the girl.
Their auras were strange… the oldest, (the jounin) had a strange white aura that had small amounts of red and gold that would appear and disappear with swirls and eddies. The boys were simple; it seemed… one brick red, and the other a royal purple.
Glancing at his brother, Gaara quickly compared the colours of the auras. Kankuro's was a darker purple, and it was almost black. Temari's aura was a pale yellow, with little bits of lavender and rose pink. It reminded Gaara of spring. He hated spring.
The last aura- the one of the smallest girl, caught his attention. Her aura was a dark blue- though it appeared black at first glance. However, there was what looked like lightning bolts of an almost aqua green that constantly flashed through her aura, of their own accord. It was nothing like the auras of the people that had multiple colours.
The jounin aura moved lightly, and curled around her form. Temari's moved gently, like flowers dancing in the wind. It was a rather disgusting comparison, but Gaara could think of nothing else.
The other thing that struck him as strange was the way her aura curled about her form- flickering like fire. It was he same as his aura, and the same as Naruto's aura.
"No. I can't say for sure… though there is no mal intent visible." Gaara stated matter-of-factly. Temari looked a little confused… but she played along. Whatever Gaara was seeing was probably going to turn into something that they would be able to use to their advantage.
"Secrecy. But no mal intent." Gaara said, crossing his arms. They were almost here… he'd wait.
"Are we there yet?" InuYasha grumbled.
"Shut up!" Kagome hissed- her voice high and panicked. "There are three people waiting for us!"
"So? Kill them. Or knock them, out, if you don't want to be extreme." InuYasha said, shrugging his shoulders as best as one could while tree-jumping.
"I can't do that!" Kagome wailed, coming to a stop on all fours like a cat on the tree. Kagura, Miroku, and InuYasha followed- one branch each.
"And why not?" InuYasha demanded, glaring at Kagome.
"They're her family." Kagura stated, when Kagome didn't answer.
"What?" Miroku asked, his eyes wide. InuYasha's face mirrored the shocked expression on Miroku's.
"You can't tell them. The might not remember me, you see." Kagome explained. "Promise you won't say a word."
InuYasha looked a little skeptical, but agreed. "I promise."
"Me too," Miroku said.
"Swear on your Tetsusaiga. And your Kazanna." Kagome said, glaring, her hands of your hips.
Wow, she's really serious about this then, InuYasha thought, resting a hand on his beloved sword.
"We promise." The boys chorused, looking at Kagome grimly.
Kagura listened silently, sending her senses out towards Kagome's three siblings. She trained her mind to the girl's frequency, and was not too surprised at what she 'heard'.
Gaara thinks that the people who are coming are powerful… can we take on three chunin and a jounin? He said at least one jounin. This means that there's a possibility that there's more than one…
And what about the fact that he can't tell who they are, or anything? What if they're scouts for an invading force? And if they're all jounin…
She was freaked out. Kagura exited the girl's mind as silently as she had slipped in, and tuned back in to her students' conversation.
"Ready?" Kagome asked, looking expectantly at Kagura. Kagome was the only one who knew about Kagura's Kekkei Genkai… because she had helped Kagura discover it.
It was some kind of clan thing… not unlike the Sharingan. Unfortunately, her clan had wiped itself out, and with it went virtually all records of her special ability. So she and Kagome simply called it her 'Silent Mind' technique. The strangest part about it was that though Kagura had to initiate the mental contact, she and Kagome could have conversations… though Kagome hadn't the same power as Kagura. She had her theories… but they were all rather loose.
"Yes. And try not to scare them too much, you three." Kagura grinned. If it was one thing that she knew- it was that the team liked to be exuberant.
Kagome, Miroku, and InuYasha sent her almost identical grins, before dashing off, leaving Kagura standing on the tree. She had to report to the Kazekage's tower, now that she had actually come back into the area.
Gaara scowled. The fourth one- the jounin, had disappeared. Where she went? He didn't know. And he was pretty sure he didn't care. But it just might turn out to be a problem. And he hated problems. Though… they were easily corrected, and quite often done so with a well directed and executed blow.
The three auras bounced about some, before landing with three silent thuds behind the foliage. They were deep enough in the trees that he couldn't see anything… but he knew that they were there. He could sense them.
"They're here!" Temari whispered. Her hand rested gently on her fan, as Kankuro still had his own one on Karasu. Gaara fisted his hand as he uncrossed his arms, and the plug on his gourd vanished. Sand eagerly trickled out… though he wasn't entirely sure if he would need it or not. He wasn't in the mood for trouble. Perhaps he could leave and let Temari and Kankuro take care of it?
All thoughts of walking away left his mind when the three walked through the foliage, and Gaara felt his eyes open minutely. There was the young girl, who looked to be no older than he was, walking at the point of the formation.
Long, shimmering black hair that reached her knees was tied up in a braid at the back of her neck, and it flicked back and forth as she walked, like a tail. Simple black hakama were tucked into dainty little boots at her feet- though the boots were studded with what looked like strange golden armor.
Her hakama were tied by a golden obi, and it dangled almost as long as her hair. Her pants were slung gently over her slightly tanned skin, and her top stopped short enough to give Gaara a glimpse of a little dangling jewel hanging from her belly-button. A piercing.
Her top was a deep maroon, and it hugged her lithe form like a second skin, stretching up to wrap around her neck, stopping just short of her chin. It was sleeveless, and there was what appeared to be gold threaded fishnet over top. Black arm warmers stretched up to just above her elbow, and were secured with a golden band. It tapered elegantly down to her wrist on each arm, and was bound around her middle finger with a golden ring.
The boys were not so elegantly dressed, and they flanked the girl on either side. The one with the red aura was wearing red clothes to match- red hakama, an open red haori that had the ends tucked into the ends of his haori, and was protected only by a black fishnet shirt underneath that. He went barefoot, and there was a sword in a glistening ebony sheath resting at his left hip. He wore his headband like a bandanna, and it covered the top of his silver hair, which trailed down to his mid back. Golden eyes glared defiantly at the other group of three, daring them to say something.
The other one- with the purple aura had also dressed in purple- and it was not that different from the red one's attire. Purple hakama were tucked neatly into the standard black sandals, though silvery shin guards covered most of the sandal and his calf. A three quarter sleeve haori was bound closed with a short silver sash, the black material highlighted by purple edging and silver stitching. Silver wrist guards protected his wrists as well, and the palms of his hand were covered with a deep purple fabric, the same as his hakama. Short black hair was pulled into a small ponytail at the back, and black bangs framed inquisitive purple eyes. His headband was tied around his neck.
Gaara watched the girl silently. She seemed to be the leader, he noted. However, that was rather strange, because she was obviously the youngest. However, even if not physically, she seemed to be the strongest. If he could base strength on her strange aura. The strangest part about the group was their headbands. The boys wore Suna headbands- though the girl did not appear to wear one at all.
"Beautiful!" Temari and Kankuro sighed, Temari at the boys, Kankuro at the strange little girl. She looked at Kankuro strangely, and Gaara caught a flicker of disgust pass across her face. The boy in purple looked rather pleased, though the one in red huffed, and crossed his arms.
"Who are you, and what is your business here?" Gaara asked, looking to the group. Temari and Kankuro flanker their brother in the same way that the boys flanked the girl, and they stood, facing each other, but Kagome and Gaara waiting for the other person to make a move first.
"Is it not customary to state your name first?" the girl questioned, her voice light. Gaara sensed the real statement beneath her words, carefully masked in her tone. What do you want? And what do you think that you are going to do to us?
"Gaara." He said, and pointed at Temari and Kankuro in turn, saying their names as he pointed.
Kagome nodded, silently laughing. Not one of them recognized her! Gaara really has grown up, she sighed. But I must wonder what has happened to him to make him so cold!
"My name is Kagome. This is my team; InuYasha, and Miroku. Team 13, third generation shinobi to Sunagakure."
Gaara was rather surprised. Five years ago, they had implemented a strange new way of judging the years of teams- by calling them through generations. He himself was in the fifth generation. So they were third generation? How old did that make them, then?
"They wear the mark of Suna. You do not." Gaara stated, his eyes narrowing at the girl. There was still something not right about her, and it was bothering him.
"I have many headbands… from many villages, Gaara-san. Instead of wearing them all, or pledging my allegiance to one place, I keep to myself. After all, this village exiled me when I was much younger."
"Then you are a missing-nin?" Kankuro asked, mystified.
"No. I was too young at the time to be of any threat. Rather, they just tricked me into leaving, and then forbade me to re-enter. Until now, that is." Kagome explained, her voice, and face remaining emotionless.
Strange… Gaara stared at this girl some more, before continuing on in his interrogation.
"And your age?" he asked.
"We are not required to give you this information, you know." Kagome said, looking rather solemn.
"Do you have passports or documents of legal entry?" he responded, countering her statement easily.
"No."
"Then you do."
"Miroku and I are eighteen." InuYasha spoke up, his voice rather gruff. "Kagome is sixteen, and a little pip-squeak."
"Shut up, Inu-baka!" Kagome growled, turning and glaring at InuYasha. "I'm doing the talking!"
"I still don't see why you get to do all the fun stuff. You know I'm only here for one reason." InuYasha stated.
"You may be looking for a fight, but sensei told me we have to be diplomatic. We don't want you-know-who alerted of our presence!" Kagome whispered, having the sense to lower her voice.
"Whatever." InuYasha shrugged.
"Kagome has a point," Miroku pitched in. "We don't want any trouble here."
Gaara shifted, and Kagome turned again. "Please excuse my outburst." She apologized.
"No worries." Temari grinned, her attention focused on the boys, rather than Kagome. Kagome glared, but Temari didn't catch it.
"And your rank?" Gaara stated, leveling his stare at Kagome, who turned her attention back to him.
"Well, Inu-baka and Miroku are chunin… and though technically I'm still only a genin, I could beat them any day. They know it too, you see. So we may as well all be chunin. I don't see as how it matters, though." Kagome rambled a bit, shrugging her shoulders.
Gaara remained silent for a minute, and that minute was all it took. A smoke bomb suddenly obscured their vision, and Gaara immediately sensed several unfamiliar auras of several masked ninja rush into the area, and surround Kagome, InuYasha, and Miroku.
Was this another one of his father's sad attempts to kill him? Perhaps not- as no one came after him. Gaara merely stood with his arms folded, watching the auras dance and wave as faint sounds of fighting reached his ears, along with a string of curses from who he suspected to be InuYasha.
Kagome cursed to herself. Why hadn't she seen this coming? She knew that as soon as she stepped foot in Suna again that they'd be after her again.
Only, it wasn't supposed to have happened this fast.
"InuYasha! Miroku! Are you guys all right?" Kagome yelled, rubbing the grit from her eyes and turning around.
"Damn son of a bitch! What in the hell do they think they're trying to pull! Frigging, no good crap-ass sons of bitches!" InuYasha swore violently.
Kagome reached out into the grime, and grabbed InuYasha, and tugged him towards her. "Shit! One of them nasty little buggers has got me!" He roared. Kagome grabbed his fist before it hit her, and slid back a few inches.
"It's me, dumb-shit." Kagome grumbled, and InuYasha blinked and looked at her sheepishly.
"Right. I knew it all along."
"Liar. Where's Miroku?" Kagome asked, looking past InuYasha and into the smoke, but seeing nothing.
"Right here, Kagome!" Miroku chuckled, and Kagome felt a hand of her butt.
"PERVERT!" Kagome shrieked, spinning and smacking Miroku across the face.
"Oh Kagome-chan…" Miroku chided. "I was merely using some happy thoughts to help myself find a way back to you, and was rewarding myself in a job well done!"
"No excuses." Kagome growled, her eyes flashing with anger. "Now listen. There's something that I have to check on real quick- do you think that you guys can handle these guys? There's six or seven."
"Hell yeah!" InuYasha laughed. "Don't underestimate us now, Kagome."
"InuYasha's right, Kagome. We know what we're doing. Leave everything to us."
Kagome grinned at her boys, before nodding. "All right then. They're all yours- two closing in at seven-o-clock." With that, she disappeared leaving eddies of the smoke bomb swirling in her wake.
Kagome grinned from her spot in the trees. The Suna nin sent by her father were circling the cloud of dust that was slowly dispersing. Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro were watching from a little ways off, all looking rather interested.
Kagome kept her eyes trained on Gaara for a moment longer, and she smiled as he looked up and met her eyes with a fierce glare. Sure, Gaara-nii. Whatever you say, Kagome thought. It was like he was projecting that he wanted to see her fight, and that she should be down there helping her comrades fight. But what you don't know is that they can handle themselves.
Kagome's eyes narrowed though, when she caught sight of a figure clothed in black, a few rooftops away. He was setting up some kind of contraption, and it was aimed at her siblings.
This is…? Kagome wondered, looking down to Gaara, who was staring at her curiously now. Temari and Kankuro were not paying attention- because the smoke had cleared, and Miroku were standing back to back, with the two ninja flat on the ground, having been thrown though the air, thanks to Miroku's Kekkei Genkai.
Kagome looked down at Gaara one more time, and watched as he sensed the person that she'd just been staring at. Glaring up at Kagome, Gaara watched as she nodded, winked, and disappeared with a ripple of wind.
Kagome landed silently behind the ninja who was setting up some kind of launching device… and watched for a moment before clearing her voice.
"What do you think you're doing?" Kagome asked, crossing her arms, and standing stiff-legged behind the nin, who froze.
Turning around, he was surprised that the voice only belonged to a little girl. Gaining confidence in the fact that it wasn't someone dangerous, he grinned.
"I don't have to tell you anything, little girl. Now, run along, before I kill you." He chuckled, standing straight up and cracking his knuckles. "Or, we could always have a little fun before you leave- you look awfully flexible."
Kagome's glare darkened and she reached into a little pouch that was hanging at her lower back. Pulling out a little fang, she spun it around on her finger, before saying anything.
"Who is that contraption aimed at?" Kagome asked, looking up at the man again. However, before the man could say anything, Kagome moved like lightning, and grabbed his left arm while flipping him over her shoulder, and pinned him to the ground with a foot in his back, right between his shoulder blades.
With a sickening crack, his left arm gave, and Kagome let it flop uselessly to his back as he cried out in pain. "ARRGH- MY ARM!"
"Well?" Kagome asked, grinning down. She could feel his consciousness arousing at the smell of pain, and she knew that she was going to have to finish quickly before he was awake.
"G-Gaara of the Sand." The man stuttered, mumbling as best he could with his face pressed to the roof tiles.
"Gaara?" Kagome asked, not expecting the target. "Who sent you?" she questioned, pressing her foot down onto the man's broken arm, right above his wrist.
"AAH! T-the l-lord Kazekage did. It's his next attempt at assignation… testing the boy's limits. He wanted it done long-distance this time." The man said, his words becoming stronger the more he spoke.
Kagome was floored. How could her father order his youngest son to be assassinated? But then again… it hadn't stopped him from exiling her, and she was his second youngest.
"HOW LONG HAS THIS BEEN GOING ON?" Kagome growled, getting angrier and angrier the more that the man spoke.
"T-ten y-y-years" the man stuttered, thrown at the anger that was both shining through in her voice, and in her posture. He could practically feel it in waves.
Kagome moved off the man, standing there as he struggled to rise. Her eyes were flickering violently from green, to blue, and they did so for a moment longer, before finally settling on blue, and darkening to almost black.
"YOU!" Kagome growled, and the man froze in his hand seals. He'd been preparing to flee.
"You can tell my father that I know what he's up to. Tell him that I'm not pleased- not in the slightest. And tell him that if he ever, EVER, harms my little brother again in any way, shape, or form, I will hunt him down, torture him, and kill him. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"
The man gulped. The girl in front of him wasn't the same girl that had startled him when she first appeared- now, her hair was whipping about her form eerily, falling out of the neat braid. Her eyes were solid black- with no pupil, iris, or white. Black rings circled her eyes in a strange circle with a point, and her face was slowly becoming more and more sharp and angular. Her aura was whipping around her, through the man couldn't see it. However, it lashed out at his form, scratching his bare skin, and drawing blood. He didn't want to stay to find out what was happening, so he immediately ran.
Kagome placed a paper bomb on his back as he ran, and began marching, slowly and deliberately back to where her comrades were waiting. He was awake now- and someone was going to pay for that.
InuYasha grinned at the five men that still surrounded him, and placed a hand on Tetsusaiga. "Are you all sure that you really want to do this?" He teased, his teeth glinting.
The men didn't respond… and InuYasha flicked his blade out of the sheath. "Ready Miroku? Flip them all into the air, and I'll blow them into smithereens."
"Aye-aye!" Miroku laughed, and placed his hands together like he was praying. A moment later, he brought his hands apart, and the purple cloth began to unwind itself from Miroku's hands.
"Four-o-clock first." He said, pointing his right hand at the man, who stood waiting there uncertainly.
With a flick of his wrist, a great whoosh of air rushed through the forest, and began sucking into Miroku's palm. The man, caught totally off guard, was lifted right off the ground, and went hurtling through the air towards the two.
Then, Miroku closed his fist, and pointed his left hand at the man, and the winds changed direction, being pushed away from him instead of towards. The man was thrown high into the air, Miroku keeping his hand aimed at the man, who rose higher and higher on the air current.
InuYasha bent low to the ground, and drew out Tetsusaiga, rusty and nicked. "That's not going to do anything!" Temari yelled over the roar of the wind, watching with her eyes wide.
InuYasha smirked at her, and winked, doing his best to look sexy. It worked, and Temari blushed violently. With a flash, the blade was transformed into a huge curved sword, with an explosion of fur around the hilt. "Oh, my god!" Temari gasped, looking at Kankuro. He looked ready to wet himself.
With a mighty lunge, InuYasha propelled himself into the air, and jumped into Miroku's air current. It lifted him higher and higher, until he met up with the ninja who'd been tossed like a rag doll.
"Time to meet your maker," InuYasha grinned, and brought Tetsusaiga down in a quick sloping arc. The man was sliced in half- though InuYasha's blade never touched him. Instead, a single arc of yellowish light passed through his body, and disappeared after hitting his target.
"NEXT!" He roared, still up in the air.
With his hand still holding InuYasha in the air, he pointed his right hand at the next ninja, and quickly aimed at him, pulling him close, and blowing him upwards. InuYasha was falling now, and Miroku used his right hand to pull him down faster. InuYasha met up with the man who was going up on his way down, and landed with a thud, as four body parts from the two men he had halved landed around him.
"Nice!" InuYasha grinned, looking at Miroku. He grinned back. "Now, who's next?" he growled, looking at the men who were standing, kunai in hand, shivering.
"They're mine." Kagome growled, appearing before Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro, her back to them.
"K-Kagome?" InuYasha asked, faltering. "What- he-?"
Kagome nodded. Gaara watched her back curiously, but remained where he stood. What had she disappeared to do? The assassin… He was gone now, he noted. Did she know that he was after him, and not her?
Her hair was blowing wildly, having completely fallen out of her braid. Miroku clapped his hands together, and the purple cloth bound about his hands again.
Kagome's right hand twitched, and Gaara looked down to see something small get engulfed in a bright green chakra, before it grew into a gleaming, black sword. The hilt looked liked sapphire, with a rounded end, where a tattered string was held through a small incision. The blade itself looked like polished carbon, with strange silver carvings in it- too small to make sense of.
The blade was almost as long as Kagome was tall, and its tip rested on the ground. Kagome lifted it up, and pointed it at the closest ninja. "Ready to die?"
With a motion that was so fast he almost missed it, Gaara watched as she sped forwards, and completely disappeared. Her aura was moving too fast to track, and his eyes couldn't keep up with her speed.
Then, she re-appeared facing Gaara, her blade shining with blood. However, no one had moved except her. Her eyes were hidden by her hair, still blowing about her body in the after currents that Miroku's wind had created.
"What the hell?" Kankuro yelled, confused. "Nothing-"
His statement was cut short as the three men still standing, and the two on the ground, were slashed open, limbs falling off, until their throat split, and they drowned in their blood, crumpling to the ground.
With a flick of her wrist, the blade was gone. Gaara noted the strange bracelet that seemed to appear at her wrist- with a little fang hanging from it, seemingly stained a brackish red. Was that…?
Kagome was silent a moment longer, before she looked up at Gaara, her eyes fading from blue back to a green that seemed annoyingly familiar. Smiling, she winked again, before turning to InuYasha and Miroku, who were standing waiting.
"Kagura-sensei is on her way. Our time spent here is complete." Kagome said, lowering to one knee beside the boys, who mimicked her in the same triangular position that they had entered the clearing in.
A woman appeared out of nowhere, and landed with a small cloud of dust in front of the formation, on one knee. Then, in complete synchronization, they jumped into the trees, and sped away. Gaara blinked, and their auras disappeared.
Kankuro was the first to speak, looking at the dead bodies that littered the clearing. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?"
tbc
EDITED: 05/12/11