Welcome to Projectile, for those of you just joining us! I used to have a lot of notes up, but as this is an updated version of chapter one, I can't quite remember everything I wrote. However, these are the important things you need to know before reading:

1. If you have read this story before and and you are re-reading, catching up, whatever, then you probably know that the agency that Inuyasha and the others work at in this story was called the FBIJ but that is now changing to the Japanese Task Force. It's more accurate to how law enforcement really is in Japan, as the FBIJ was made up by me in the first place. Nothing else will be changing other than the name; the premise remains the same. I'm sorry I'm changing it now!

2. I'm still learning about the investigation process and the justice system myself from the classes I am taking at my university. So, please, do not take me as the end-all-be-all of knowledge on this subject. I research as I go for things I may be unsure on, so you guys are learning as I learn!

3. Also, the Japanese government system is pretty complex so I'm narrowing it down a lot. Once again, please don't think I'm all-knowing on the subject. Some of it I just have to make up though I try to remain as accurate as possible.

Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha and do not profit from this story.

Date: February 1, 2016

7:00 A.M.

A disgruntled figure stepped out of his car, slamming the door with such force that the car shook slightly, shrinking further into his trench coat as Tokyo's chilly February air hit his face. He hated being called into the office this early in the kami-forsaken morning when he should be passed out in bed. He just wasn't a morning person. In fact, he wasn't an any-time-of-day person but he still liked to come into the office on his own terms. Unfortunately, in this line of work, no one got choose when duty called. But he knew that when he was offered the official position of, "Special Investigator Takahashi".

Takahashi Inuyasha threw the door open to the Japanese Task Force building. There were only one or two people in the break room making their morning coffee so he wouldn't frighten too many people with his stomping around. When the scent of the warm, chocolate-smooth coffee grounds hit Inuyasha's olfactory system, he desperately wanted to stop and make himself a cup, but he relented, knowing if he wasn't in his brother's office at 7:00 a.m. sharp, the elder brother would have the younger one's ass. As much as Inuyasha loved getting under Sesshy's fur, it was a bit too early to hear his bitchy nagging.

But Inuyasha showed up to the office at 7:01 just to be a dick, nevertheless.

Sesshy barely looked up from his papers when his half-brother entered and let out a curt, "Good morning, Takahashi"

Inuyasha grumbled out a quick, "G'mornin'," as he plopped into the worn-out chair across from his brother.

Takahashi Sesshomaru was Inuyasha's older half-brother and agent-in-charge of the Task Force at the age of forty-one. The full dog-demon was perfect for the position he was in: With his icy cold demeanor, emotionless eyes, an engulfing hunger for precision and power, and an aura that dominated every room, Sesshomaru was, plain and simple, terrifying. Well, to everyone else except Inuyasha, who was a part of his brother's investigation team. He had a few pictures back from their adolescent and college days that Sesshy would do anything to keep from being seen, so Inuyasha had some leverage against him. However, the bastard held the key to Inuyasha's career, so the younger brother had to tread carefully on just how much he pissed Sesshomaru off these days. Others thought there was bias involved when Inuyasha was offered the position of special investigator, the youngest in history at age thirty. Little did they know that Sesshomaru hated his younger brother's guts and wouldn't have offered Inuyasha the position if he didn't feel like he deserved a shot at it - even if Inuyasha was only a half-demon.

The chief sat up in his chair, his golden eyes lifting up from the papers. Straightening out imaginary wrinkles on his crimson tie, Sesshomaru fixed Inuyasha with a piercing, golden gaze.

"Another case has come in. I received the call this morning."

Inuyasha grunted in response, remaining slumped in the chair. "Yeah? Who kicked the bucket this time?"

Sesshomaru ignored his brother's nonchalance and instead dropped a file on the desk in front of Inuyasha. "Fujiwara Hakudoshi, one of our government's cabinet members, was found dead in his home by his wife, Fujiwara Abi. Their daughter was over at a friend's house, so she was spared from the sight. Evidence specialists are headed over there now. I suggest you get there as well."

"You're so sure it's a murder already?" Inuyasha asked.

"It was fairly obvious," Sesshy replied in monotone.

Grabbing a post-it-note with a flick of his hand, Sesshomaru scribbled across the paper then held it out to Inuyasha when he was finished. "The address to the Fujiwara's residence. You're dismissed."

Inuyasha didn't look at the slip of paper as he stood from the chair, shoving his hands into the worn-out pockets of his coat. As he gave Sesshomaru one more glance, Inuyasha noticed there were dark circles under his eyes, something that was unusual for the well-kept demon. The older brother also had a cup of steaming coffee sitting on his desk.

Inuyasha frowned slightly. Sesshomaru never drinks coffee.

"What's up, Sesshy? I haven't seen you look this shit-faced since you were in college," the younger silver-haired man noted.

With a deep sigh, Sesshomaru surrendered to the tiredness in his bones and fell back into his chair. "Rin was having contractions again. We rushed to the hospital, for sure this time was it, but they subsided after a couple of hours. We stayed all night so they could watch her. She was released only two hours ago. This is the third night I haven't had any sleep. It's beginning to catch up with me."

Inuyasha couldn't help the sympathetic gaze that crossed over his face. Unlike his feelings towards his older brother, Inuyasha actually liked Sesshomaru's wife. She was sweet and innocent, with big brown eyes that said she would make you your favorite meal whenever you wanted her to. Inuyasha took full advantage of that whenever he was too lazy to make ramen himself or go buy something. He couldn't cook worth a shit so he didn't even try, and Rin was more than happy to oblige his hunger.

Now, she was expecting her and Sesshomaru's first child, and her pregnancy hadn't been an easy one. She had morning sickness often at the beginning, which led to many contractions and back pain towards the end. Rin was due any minute, leaving the couple on their toes as to when she would finally go into labor. It hadn't been easy on either of them, Inuyasha could see that now. Sesshomaru never admitted to any sort of weakness. So if he was saying that the stress and late nights were catching up with him, Inuyasha sure as hell believed him.

The hanyou gave it a shot at encouraging his brother, "Rin's strong and she's excited to have your child, though no one knows the fuck why. When the time is right, it will happen." It felt half-assed but it was better than saying nothing, Inuyasha guessed.

Sesshomaru didn't smile, didn't even look at his brother, but simply nodded. "I suppose you're correct."

Sensing that the short-lived bonding conversation was over, Inuyasha turned on his heel to head towards the door.

"Takahashi?"

At the call of his title, Inuyasha froze in the doorway and looked at his superior, signaling he was listening.

"A new recruit has been assigned to our team," Sesshomaru informed. "I picked her personally from the applicants. She'll be joining you at the scene as soon as she can."

The half-demon couldn't helped the annoyed flick of his ear and the growl that reverberated through his chest. "Are you fucking joking, Sesshomaru? What are you thinking, putting a rookie on a high profile case like this? They won't know what the hell they're doing!"

The agent-in-chief fixed the investigator with a glare. "I suggest your lower your tone and use more professional language. This student has made top marks in all of her classes at our training facility, as well as her excellent college record. Her internship with the NYPD in America is astounding. I want her insight on this case. I understand the scrutiny I will be under for assigning such a newcomer for a case such as this but I am taking responsibility. Part of it, anyway."

Inuyasha's golden eyes narrowed. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means I am placing her under your watch and advisement. Now that you have been promoted to a higher position, I feel you could help her become as good an investigator as you are. You have been here long enough to take on an apprentice."

The perturbed man snarled. "Fuck you, Sesshomaru. This is only my first case as a special investigator and you're already dumping this on me? Fuck. You."

"If you would like to ague, I will gladly take the promotion from you. I'm sure that extra one million yen you now make per year would not be missed," Sesshomaru hissed back warningly.

Narrowing his eyes, Inuyasha realized he was in a corner. Sesshomaru knew damn well that Inuyasha worked his ass off to pass all the tests required in order to become certified. He wanted that position and made sure he got it. Plus, his rent just went up so the raise wasn't exactly something Inuyasha would complain about.

With an undignified huff, the hanyou wordlessly told his brother that he surrendered, beginning to stomp down the hallway.

"Oh, and for the thousandth time, please call me Takahashi-sama while we are in a formal setting such as this," Sesshomaru called after the annoyed male.

"Suck a dick, Sesshy!" Inuyasha barked back and he threw him the middle finger as he sauntered out.

xXx

When Special Agent Takahashi pulled up to the victim's house, the grandeur of it all smacked him right in the face. The blaringly white house displayed large columns on the front porch, with a pointed roof and at least two stories tall. Windows dotted the exterior of the house, indicating many rooms within. It was definitely not your typical Japanese- style home; Americanization was becoming more evident in upper-class neighborhoods such as this. However, Inuyasha wasn't intimidated by the obvious high-end living of the Fujiwara's. It only further reminded him that not even the most powerful people in the world were immune to the evil that resided in the world.

He could see Agent Ōkami car also parked in the unnecessarily long driveway; he assumed Agent Tachibana had ridden with him. Inuyasha wondered if they had to fight through the bothersome reporters gathering around the front gate like he did.

Fucking vultures, the lot of them, Takahashi thought to himself. How did they find out Fujiwara was dead already?

Pushing the thought aside, the hanyou entered the residence. He didn't bother knocking; the bastard was dead and the wife was at the police station by now. While still in the foyer, Inuyasha slipped the protective booties over his shoes to keep from contaminating the crime scene with outside debris. The inside of the house was just as beautiful as the outside; everything look clean and crisp and overly expensive.

Inuyasha ignored it all. It wasn't important to the problem at hand. The sound of feet moving around upstairs indicated where the two evidence specialists were. Making a bee line for the stairs, he moved over the plush, cream carpet and strode into the room Ōkami Koga and Tachibana Sango were working in. They didn't look up nor they did they speak to each other as Inuyasha stopped in the doorway to observe the scene before him.

This was obviously the couple's bedroom, and it was the only room in the house that was no longer perfectly white. Fujiwara Hakudoshi's body could almost make it seem like he was still asleep, spread out naked on his stomach like that. The only thing ruining the perfect image was the blood splattered all over the pillows and headboard around Hakudoshi's head, the too-dark red reaching like malicious fingers across the perfectly white bed. Nothing else in the room was disturbed; this indicated there was no sign of a struggle. Whoever killed him either caught the Cabinet member off-guard or was welcomed into the house.

The wife, perhaps? It was definitely a possibility and Inuyasha was set to question her the next day anyway. It would do no good to question her today; she was probably too shaken to speak. Fujiwara Abi was the one that found her husband, after all.

"What's the cause of death?" Inuyasha finally addressed the other two agents.

"Bullet wound to the head," Agent Tachibana answered. "It's a pretty clean shot, too. We had to turn the body slightly over to see it. We'll have to find out the time of death after the medical examiner examines the body. The van is just waiting on us to call to come collect the body."

"We swabbed under his fingernails in case there could be anything under them but I highly doubt it," Agent Ōkami continued. "The body will have to receive a full swab at the lab. We're also collecting carpet fibers in case anything was tracked in."

Inuyasha nodded. The murder scene before him was clean . . . too clean. Whoever did this wasn't new to the idea of killing, but they probably wouldn't have a record either, so fingerprints wouldn't help narrow down suspects in AFIS. This case was going to have to be handled the old fashioned way: Through questioning and good ol' detective work. Also, with the way the body was laying, the victim was shot standing up and from behind. So he wasn't asleep when he was killed; he possibly saw his assailant.

"Hello?" a female voice fluttered from downstairs.

"That must be the new girl," Sango stated. "I'll bring her up." With that, Sango disposed of the rubber gloves she was wearing and put them into a plastic baggie.

Koga glanced up from writing on his log at the hanyou. "You look more irritated than usual today."

Inuyasha shrugged in nonchalance. "Just annoyed how Sesshy threw a rookie on a case like this. I don't want our asses plastered all over the news for botching this case because they screwed something up."

The wolf demon rolled his eyes. "You know Chief Takahashi-sama wouldn't have hired her on if he didn't think she could do it. He's not a dumbass. Besides, she got top marks in all of her classes, I've heard. Apparently, she's not a dumb cookie either."

The annoyed agent snorted in disdain but didn't bother to comment further. Did no one else see the risk in this?

As if on cue, Inuyasha heard the women ascending the stairs behind him. He didn't bother to acknowledge their presence but did move away from the doorway to let them through. The special investigator didn't spare a glance as the new girl breezed past him. He avoided looking at her at all. That didn't stop her scent from hitting his nose, though.

The hanyou's brow creased in confusion. Jasmine fragrance, definitely, but beneath that there's something familiar about it. Why?

"Agent Higurashi-san, it's a pleasure to meet you," Koga greeted cheerfully as he shook the young woman's hand. "I've heard impressive things about you. I'm Agent Ōkami Koga, evidence specialist."

"It's nice to meet you as well," the new agent said while shaking Koga's hand. "Please, just call me Higurashi-san. You don't need to call me 'Agent'. I don't think I've earned the right to that title yet," she blushed.

Inuyasha snorted at her words. Damn right she hasn't.

He could practically feel the glare Sango shot him.

"That lovely creature is Agent Takahashi. He's just been promoted to Special Investigator, but he's been investigating with our team for years," Sango spoke for him.

"Thanks for the introduction, Sango. Now why don't you get back to collection?" Inuyasha barked in annoyance. It's not like they had all damn day.

Wordlessly, the Higurashi girl moved over to the brooding man leaning against the doorway. The young woman couldn't help but note his beautiful silver hair that reached his waist and the deep scowl etched across his face-at least, from the side that's all Kagome could make out.

Deciding to kill it with kindness, Kagome walked over to her superior and offered her hand. "I'm Higurashi Kagome. It's nice to put a face to a name, Takahashi-sama."

Inuyasha stared out the outstretched hand. Something inside him told him not to touch her. But could he do that now? He would look like even more of a dick to not shake her hand and even Inuyasha had a limit. Biting the bullet, the agent accepted the wench's hand reluctantly, instantly feeling the warm radiating from her body and he was forced to look at her. What he saw was not expected. He expected to see a dorky little twit with too-big glasses and messy, unkempt hair that went in fifty different directions, if only because the image amused him.

That is not what was in front of him, though. Higurashi Kagome was . . . cute, in a young sort of way. Her bright blue eyes looked at him so expectantly it made him feel bad for ever thinking a single bad thought about her. Her hair was the opposite of messy: Jagged bangs framed her heart-shaped face and the glossy tendrils that reached past her shoulders waved delicately. A nervous, kind smile curved her full lips upward and her small nose lift slightly. The young woman still had that hopeful, excited look about her that all agents had at first. The more cases that piled up over the years and the more murder you're subjected to fades that hope quickly.

Finally responding, Inuyasha managed to say, "Yeah, thanks. Nice to meet you, too."

Kagome could feel those golden eyes of his bore into her, making her suppress a shiver. Though his face was somewhat bored-looking, that didn't take away from his uniquely striking features. His dark eyebrows framed those sun-kissed orbs perfectly, but she couldn't help but notice that while he was trying to keep his features passive, his eyes spoke volumes. He seemed . . . confused? Kagome couldn't quite place it but she definitely wanted to know why he was looking at her so intently.

Dropping his hand, the young woman watched as he quickly shoved it back into his coat pocket. Odd, she thought. Turning around, Kagome quickly scanned the scene before her.

"I read in the file that Fujiwara-sama was a Cabinet member. Has he done anything to put a target on his back?"

Koga shrugged. "I know that he and a few other members were working with the Prime Minister on developing some sort of bill from what I heard on the news. Got a few people riled up but that's really nothing new. Not everyone is going to be content with everything the government does."

Kagome nodded in agreement. "We'll look in to it, definitely. We should also place the Prime Minister and the other Cabinet members under stricter security until we get this sorted out."

Sango sealed up her last envelope of evidence and smiled at Higurashi. "Of course, you're absolutely right. We'll let Chief Takahashi-sama know as soon as we return."

Kagome gave her fellow agent a small smile and moved towards the bed. She was a bit nervous of over-stepping her boundaries as a newly hired agent but she also wanted to make a good impression to her fellow team members. Kagome had worked her ass off in college and at her internship, missed out on so many opportunities to get where she was now. She was not going to throw it all away because she was nervous!

Staring at the bed, Kagome analyzed the tousled sheets, the near-perfect blood splatters, and the naked dead man spread out before her. Her brow creased in confusion.

"Was he shot standing up?" she asked anyone available to answer.

"Yeah," Takahashi-sama answered. "How could you tell?"

"The way he's laying," Kagome pointed out. "His legs are in the position as if he were standing and then plopped over. Was he supposed to go into work this morning?"

"No, his wife mentioned he was off today," Tachibana-sama responded.

"And she is the one that found the body?"

"That's right."

Kagome hummed in curiosity. "Do we have an UV light?"

"Yeah, hold on," Koga said and rummaged through one of their bags of supplies. The wolf demon pulled out the item and closed the blinds so the room was a bit darker.

Kagome slipped on a pair of rubber gloves and took the device from Koga. Shooting him a thanks, she switched on the light and held it over the sheets. Scanning over the white linens, she went in horizontal lines until she found what she suspected would be there: human DNA. It couldn't be mistaken, it was glowing bright right under the blue light.

"There's semen here. Might want to swab it," the young woman called out.

Quickly moving, Sango grabbed a cotton swab from the pack and made her way to stand beside Kagome. Reaching down, she swirled the swab in the stain and immediately put it into an envelope for documentation.

"If the wife saw the body this morning, then she probably wasn't here last night. Someone else was here, but who?" Kagome wondered out loud.

Inuyasha thought through the evidence. The victim was naked, and unless he slept that way, then he had either gotten out of the shower before he was shot or he was doing some naughty business. However, there was no indication of a shower; Fujiwara-sama didn't smell like he had just taken a shower beforehand. In fact, he smelled of lingering sweat that death had yet to erase from his body. Inuyasha could see the scene in his mind now.

"A lover," the hanyou spoke through the silence. "Our victim had a lover and I think someone wanted revenge. We need to interrogate the wife as soon as possible."

"She'll be returning to her daughter when we release her from the office today, but we're having her come back in tomorrow," Koga informed.

"Good, and while we're at it, put an officer with them. If she's involved in any way, we're not going to give her any opportunities to cover anything up in the meantime. Is everything done here?"

"Should be," the wolf demon grunted as he packed away the UV light. "I'll call the medical team and let them know we're ready for pick-up." Disposing of his gloves in a plastic bag, Koga stepped out of the room.

As Sango finished packing up the rest of the supplies, she addressed Kagome. "Good call on using the UV light, Higurashi-san. I see you're going to live up to your reputation as best in your class."

Kagome let out a nervous laugh and slipped off her gloves.

"Feh, it's not that impressive, Sango," Inuyasha commented.

"Oh yeah?" Sango snapped, annoyed at his attitude. "Then why didn't you say something in the first place?"

Inuyasha shrugged, not giving that a dignified response. Yes, Fujiwara-sama having an affair was obvious, but when he entered the room, he smelled no scents besides the deceased's and the wife's from when she was here. So, was the semen from personal business that Fujiwara engaged in, or an affair? Also, Sesshomaru said that the wife found the body so where was she before and during the murder?

Kagome glared at the man in the doorway. He was gazing out the windows that Koga had re-opened, avoiding looking at anyone else in the room. She was a bit perturbed that he had written off her theory in such a rude way; was this truly the man everyone revered as a great detective?

"Look, I know I'm new to this, but Takahashi-sama hired me to help you. I'm going to give my insight whenever I am able because that's what I'm here to do. If you have a problem with that, take it up with your boss," Kagome spoke up to Takahashi.

"Ain't nothing for you to do besides sit back and shut up. Anything else you do will only fuck up this case, and then we'll have the media all over our asses," Inuyasha said while still looking out the window.

Kagome's eyes narrowed impossibly further. It was as if he could sense her insecurities and knew exactly where to hurt her. When she had gotten the call from Takahashi Sesshomaru early that morning to report to the crime scene of a murdered Cabinet member, Kagome was unsure of his decision. She was fresh out of her training at the academy, hadn't even received her badge yet, and he was still assigning her to a case like this? Kagome had questioned him to make sure he was correct, that he had mean to call someone else, but Takahashi-sama was adamant about her going. Of course she was afraid she would screw up; what new investigator wouldn't be? But with that said, she didn't going through an internship and her training for nothing!

Marching up to the older man, Kagome fixed him with an arctic glare and her words came out calm but cold, "You know, if you're really that disgusted by working with me, then you're welcome to move to another case. Because I'm staying right where I was assigned!"

As immature as it was, Kagome flicked her hair over her shoulder and stomped out dramatically.

Inuyasha couldn't help the pissed off growl that escaped him. How dare a rookie challenged him like that? The wench didn't know what she was getting herself into.

"What?" he snapped when he caught Sango staring at him. She just shook her head at him in disappointment, causing Inuyasha to ball his hands into fists and stomp out of the room in much the same childish manner that Kagome did.

Updated on: February 17, 2018