Sakura no Shouki (Cherry blossoms in the Miasma)
Sho ichi – Deai (Chapter one - Meeting)

Sakura stumbled through the miasma-choked forest looking for a suitable place to rest. The thick miasmaof the forest did not bother her at all as she leaned against the bark of a rough pine tree nothing more than a rotting carcass. What did bother her was the deep slash in her right shoulder. Sakura took a deep breath and winced as the action caused a stab of pain in her shoulder.

"It's rare that I get taken off guard like that." Sakura mused as she looked at her badly bandaged shoulder, blood soaked with trickles of escaped bloodrunning down her arm. Another ragged breath and Sakura pushed herself away from the dead treeand grasping her wounded arm headed towards the castlethat she sensed up ahead.

Naraku frowned as he sensed someone pass though his barrier. He sat within the darkness of his room next to the shoji that lead outside. His frown deepened when after a while that aura did not dissipate do to the miasma.

'Kanna.'

A few minutes later the little girl who was always cloaked in white appeared across the room on the other side of the shoji. 'Hai, Naraku?'

'Hairu.' (Enter)

Kanna quietly slid the door open then close and came to kneel in front of Naraku, her mirror held out for him to see. 'Show me the intruder.' Naraku instructed watching the mirrorintently. The milky whiteness of the mira cleared showing a young woman with long dark tresses and light lavender eyes, dressed in a dark purple and black kimono with small dark blue flowers across it, stumbling through the foresttowards his fortress. Her shoulder was bandaged and dark with blood.

'Kagura.'

Naraku waited a few minutes until the wind witch was standing outside the shoji. 'Go and greet out uninvited guest.'

Kagura half bowed and went outside, pulling a feather from her hair she sailed through theforest towards Sakura.

Sakura tensed as she felt the approach of another youkai and searched for one of the more solid dead trees to lean up against. Just as she had found one and had made herself as comfortable as she could a woman dropped out of the sky to land a few feet in front of her. 'Yo.'

Sakura nodded to the woman. 'Hai?' (Yes?)

Kagura opened her fan and mildly fanned herself with it. 'What is your business here?'

'To find a nice place to rest and tend to my wounds.'

'And what makes you think you will find any help here?' Kagura asked eyes narrowed.

Sakura mentally sighed she did not have time for this. Already her mind was growing heavier and she felt close on the verge of passing out. She had hoped on finding a safe haven by now.

'Well then, if you're going to be no help begone.' Sakura waved a hand towards the woman and gathered what magic she could around herself expecting an attack. She was not disappointed though she wished she would have been. A simple throw back spell deflected the woman's wind blades and bounced them back to her. Kagura brushed the blades aside with her fan and glared at thewoman across from her. Although she looked minutes away from collapsing she still had enough magic left to defend against her. 'That's enough, Kagura.'

Kagura whirled to see Naraku standing behind she turned back again when she heard a groan and a soft thump. The stranger had finally collapsed. Naraku walked over to her and looked her over. He could not sense what type of youkai she was only the strong smell of sakura and blood. He bent down and scooped her up. 'How interesting.'

Kagura narrowed her eyes at Naraku's back wondering what had caught his attention and followed him back to the castle.

Naraku laid thewoman down on a futon in a room next to his and watched as Kanna tended to her wounds. They were deep and slightly infected from a small amount of poison presumably from the miasma. Kanna removed her torn and bloodied kimono and stitched her wound together. She then placed herbs upon it and wrapped it in a clean white bandage. Afterwhich she pulled the sheet up over her and stood up with the woman's kimono in her arms along with her mirror.

'What shall I do with her clothes?' She asked softly.

'Have them mended and cleaned.' Naraku replied.
Kanna bowed and left.
After she was gone Naraku sat down beside the woman and leaned close but still no scent of what youkai she was made itself known. Still the same smell of sakura. Naraku sat back and watched the woman for a while then returned to his room.

The next evening Sakura awoke to find her self in a dimly lit room, naked under a sheet, bandaged and in thecastle she had detected early.

"Hmmmm, looks as though they decided to help me after all." Sakura opened up her senses and felt the presents of a male in the next room.

"How strange. He seems to be made up of a multitude of youkai, though he has a human heart. What strange secrets have I stumbled upon this time?"

Sakura pushed herself upright by use of her left arm and looked around for her clothes. They were no where in sight and Sakura hoped that they had not been burned. Slowly she rose and walked over to the closet where she found a few kimonos hanging there. She chose one of a medium shade of green with golden birds across it and a darker green under kimono. She tied it with a green/gold obi and opened the shoji leading outside.

Naraku looked up from his musings as he caught the hiss of the shoji door opening from the room next to his. He rose and opened his open door to find the strange woman leaning against the porch railing. 'Konbanwa.' (Good Evening)

Sakura turned at the sound of the deep voice and nodded to him before returning her attention back towards to miasma-choked forest.

'Feeling better?' Naraku asked as he came to stand beside her.

'I'll live.'

'So glad.' Naraku replied. 'Perhaps I might know your name.'

'Sakura.'

Naraku chuckled. 'Appropriate. How is it that your scent is only that of the sakura and not that of the youkai?'

Sakura turned and looked at him. 'I know not what I am. I am an orphan. Hai I suppose it is strange I have not the normal scent of a youkai. But you yourself are not normal. I have answered your question. Now will you answer mine?'

Naraku smirked. 'Naraku. Are you hungry? There is food prepared.' With that he turned and walked back to his room.

Sakura followed him. 'Not willing to share your secrets?'

Naraku did not turn. 'No.'

'How rude of you.'

Naraku snorted and sat opposite the table from her to finish his interrupted meal. Kanna brought in another tray and set it in from of Sakura.

Sakura nodded to her. 'Arigatou.' (Thank you)

Kanna bowed and left.

Naraku sneered. 'How polite.'

Sakura ignored him and, though she was starving, politely ate her meal of rice and raw fish instead of wolfing it down, as she would have liked to. It had been a week since her last good meal. Which had been a small dull bowl of white rice. As she ate she took the opportunity to look her host over. Long black, wavy hair. Piercing red eyes that glowed with malice. A cruel twist of the mouth and a strong masculine body. He was dressed in a dark blue haori with matching hakama and a white under kimono. Sakura found him rather handsome. They ate dinner in companionable silence and Naraku was surprised at how calm she was. It was his experience that women feared him and a woman in her position should at least be nervous of his intentions. After all she did owe him her life. Naraku smirked as a few interesting ideas as to how she could repay him entered his thoughts. Finished with his dinner, Naraku sat back and watched her eat.

Sakura ignored him until she was finished. 'Arigatou.' She said rising from the table.

'I did not excuse you.' Naraku said narrowing his eyes.

'I suppose you didn't.' Sakura replied opening the shoji and stepping outside to sit on the porch stairs.

Naraku followed her. 'You should be nicer to your host. After all you do still owe me for your life.'

Sakura turned her head to look at him. 'I'm letting you live. Is that not enough?'

Naraku narrowed his eyes. 'You think that you can destroy me? Many have tried and all have failed.'

'Obviously they did not know where to attack.'

'Oh, and you think that you can defeat me?'

Sakura smiled. 'It would be only a simple matter of extracting your human heart and destroying it. After which the rest of your body would not have control over itself.'

Naraku growled. 'And what, witch, would you know of my body?'

Sakura grinned wickedly. 'Possibly not as much as I'd like.' Her smile faded and she grew serious again. 'I can scene that your body is made up of hundreds of youkai and one human heart. The heart holds everything together and the demons feed off it. Much like plants feed off of the sun. Take the heart away and you will lose control of the youkai in your body. I suspect that is why you have such a large piece of the Shikon no Tama. I've heard that it grants its owner any wish.'

Naraku nodded mentally, he had found this out when he had torn out Onigumo's heart in the hopes of being rid of it forever. But much to his annoyance he had found himself losing control of the youkai that made up his body. It disturbed him that this woman knew so much about him. 'Hmmmm, and what will you do with this information?'

Sakura heard the threat in his voice and looked him straight in the eye. 'Nothing so long as you don't piss me off.' She smiled pleasantly then. 'So, now we are even. I will be going.' Sakura stood up and descended the stairs.

'And what makes you think you are free to go?'

Sakura turned back to him. 'Am I not?'

'No.'

Sakura crossed her arms. 'Oh? Do tell.'

'You have in your possession a valuable piece of information about me that you could give to my enemies.' Started Naraku as he descended the stairs and came to stand next to her. He leaned over and whispered into her ear. 'You also intrigue me.'

Sakura watched him out of the corner of her eye. 'Hmmm. And what were you planing on doing with me? Locking me up in a dungeon?'

Naraku's eyes reflected amusement. 'An interesting idea. I've had a good deal of fun with people down in those dungeons. Would you like me to show you?'

Sakura put on a bored face. 'Not especially.'

'Pity.' Naraku took her arm and led her back to her room, once more he leaned close. 'Be a good girl or I shall have to show you anyways.' As the door shut behind her and Sakura took in her new room she wondered just what would come of all this.

Glossary:

Shoji: Paper & wood sliding door
Hai: Yes
Hairu: Enter
Youkai: Demon
Konbanwa: Good evening
Arigatou: Thank you
Haori: Jacket worn over kimono
Hakama: Pants