Final Counterattack.
A work of InuYasha fan fiction.
By RyogaBirth
Author's note: I know that the story has not ended yet, nor has Naraku been defeated yet. This work of fan fiction was created so that I could tell my own series ending alternate story. That way I wont be giving away many spoilers for my friends and internet readers who haven't seen the entire series yet. I hope you enjoy reading this story as much as I did writing it!
Prologue: A Desperate Retreat.
The dense forest of trees at the base of Mt. Fuji rose high into the dark night sky, their branches connecting with each other like gnarled fingers, shielding the ground from the bright full moon above. It was a quiet night save for the sound of the occasional wolf or other creature stalking through the darkness in search of food. The rule of survival of the fittest was ever present in this place, and the creatures who dwelled here either became quick, or they became dead. This environment was ideal, especially to predators who could hide without leaving a trail, and strike without warning.
That was why Naraku had come to this place.
He need a place of solitude to regain his strength, a place to hide away at until he was ready to strike again at his foes when the time was right. His close brush with fate mere hours ago had shattered all of his current plans and nearly ended his existence right then and there. He needed a place to rest and regroup, and he knew that even the slightest misstep in his flight from danger could be fatal. If Inuyasha, or even worse, Sesshoumaru caught scent of him, or if that Kagome girl sensed the nearly complete Shikon jewel he was carrying, the game would end very quickly indeed.
The branches above acted as natural camouflage, hiding him as the pinkish barrier carrying his shredded form darted across the ground, mere inches above the grass. Only his head was intact and while his face displayed it's normal sense of quiet calmness, his mind was in utter chaos. Hours before he had nearly met his end, and it had been only his direct involvement that had thwarted Inuyasha's stroke of good luck. As he darted across the forest, he thought back to the events that had transpired.
His heart which had taken on the form of a baby and placed in the care of Kanna and her giant monster guard, Mouryoumaru had been discovered by Kikyou after they had tumbled off the cliff. At that same time, Inuyasha and his friends fought for their survival in the stomach of the Ogre's Rock that he had lured them into. Following the trail of his scent, Kouga and his two sidekicks had happened onto Kanna and her giant guardian by chance and attacked. At first, Naraku hadn't been worried, but when Sesshoumaru, who had been wandering the area had appeared as well, the odds began to stack against him. To make matters worse, at that same time Inuyasha managed to free himself and his friends from the trap below, completely shattering his perfect plan. From there things had erupted into a sea of confusion. With the giant winged monster guarding his heart badly damaged by Kikyou's holy arrows, he had sent Hakudoushi and Kagura to deal with the threat she posed while he hastily planned to attack Inuyasha with the added help of Kohaku who was supposed to be awaiting commands from a nearby location.
But Kohaku, strangely enough, hadn't responded immediately to his summons. Caught off guard, Naraku had taken a powerful dose of Inuyasha's Kongousouha
which had torn through his barrier and his body like fangs through meat. Minutes later, with Sesshoumaru on the verge of overpowering him completely and Hakudoushi and Kagura making no headway against Kouga, possibly because she had been growing more and more traitorous and rebellious over the last few weeks, Naraku had found himself personally driven to arrive on the scene of the battle and save his heart from harm.
In mid process of reforming himself, he had dropped his barrier to take his heart into it's protective sphere, and that's when Kikyou had fired an arrow made from the dirt of his grave, and struck him dead in the chest, and shattered his body once more.
It was then he had vanished amidst a cloud of dark energy into the sky above with his urgent care package in grasp, issuing orders for his minions to scatter until called for.
Hovering within the protective shell of the barrier, the heart child looked up at Naraku with its inhuman, pupil-less eyes that shone with evil. Chunks of Naraku's once powerful body swirled around them in a disgusting, pulsating display, but the powerful half demon paid no attention as he scanned the forest around him intensely, wondering when and if Inuyasha or his comrades would strike. Already his mind was getting itself back under control and he began to formulate his next offensive. This, coupled with adrenaline rush of the battle and his glee at having survived a yet another near fatal experience, drove his confidence and arrogance back up to their usual levels.
But that was no cause for carelessness or stupidity. Naraku possessed neither of these two faults and more than ever, he couldn't afford to slip up now.
Most of the animals that inhabited the forest gave him a wide berth as he passed. Those that didn't died with one sniff of the potent evil energy his crippled form was unleashing into the air around him. Unable to mask it completely with his body such as it was, the grass plants around him withered and died seconds after he passed forming a trail of wilted vegetation many miles long. He would have been more worried about leaving such an easy trail to follow, if his final destination wasn't so close at hand. His last planned place of residence was where he planned to form his greatest trap yet, one that was sure to eliminate the many fools who opposed him once and for all.
Before him, even closer to the mountain's shadow, lay a shrine that had been more than halfway covered by a landslide from the mountain above. It was here that an ancient battle had occurred between a priest of some renown and a formidable demon. The clash had taken the lives of both combatants, and the clash between dark energy and holy power had created a sort of dead zone that would completely hide him and all who went inside the temple from detection. The truth was that despite it's usefulness, he loathed this dilapidated old structure, and for good reason. That fool Onigumo had once used the place as a hiding spot after a raid, shortly before he had joined with the bandit gang that would ultimately change his life. Despite being a different creature now and totally unattached to the few things that Onigumo had once loved, he still carried the memories of the man within him, and they would surely resurface and block his concentration once he returned to the ancient building that was full of old memories.
No matter. That was the price he had to pay for survival, so it didn't really matter. He was more than confident that Inuyasha and his friends would never find him here, especially after he took certain precautions.
Upon inspection, Naraku saw that the skeletal pillars and cracked walls of the old temple barely kept the roof over head. The entire eastern half of the shrine, including the long dead priest's living quarters were crushed under rubble. Slowing his travel almost to a slow hover, he brought himself through the half temple gate and into the building's main room. The dank air inside did not bother him, nor did the mostly rotted floor. While not as luxurious as his castle had been, this place would do, for now.
A small swarm of Saimyosho wasps trickled in, summoned via an almost unconscious call from the depth of Naraku's mind. These minions were his eyes and ears, his messengers and spies. They took the to the rafters and walls of the building, uttering the occasional buzz as they settled into their new home, waiting to be called upon.
Long unused candles decorated with cobwebs throughout the vast room twinkled to life as if by magic adding a glow to the room that was anything but pleasant. At last Naraku's barrier settled to the ground. Slowly he began the process of regenerating his body, but he realized from the start that the going would be slow. Kikyou's arrow had played havoc with his abilities. While unable to kill him with the absence of his heart, it had utterly disrupted his Shikon enhanced Hanyou powers. and he knew he would have a harder time reconstructing himself than before. But that didn't matter either, he had all the time he needed now that he was safe. As bits of flesh began to reattach to his head to form the beginnings of a neck, Naraku heard a chuckling behind him. He didn't turn, he knew who it was.
"And what do you find so funny, Hakudoushi?" he asked. His deep quiet voice filled the empty room around them.
Hakudoushi. His strongest incarnation was also the most like him, and therefore utterly loyal to his ideas and thoughts. He stepped forward, his little bare feet padding loudly across the half rotted floor. He raised his hand and a Saimyosho wasp came and landed on his fingertip, as loyal and still as any trained bird. "Just a little amused by how badly our perfect plan went so quickly. You hadn't anticipated that string of events, had you?"
Now Naraku turned to face him, as the muscles in his neck slowly started to reform he felt them twitch as he experienced a phase of mild irritation. "It was minor setback, nothing more. We will recover from it, as we did during ever other setback. There were too many unexpected variables this time. It will not be that way next time."
Hakudoushi nodded his head ever so slightly, picking up on the subtle hint when Naraku had mentioned variables to his plan. "Kagura again. She should be eliminated, or reabsorbed. She could become a threat."
"Kohaku responded slowly to my call as well," Naraku commented. "He hesitates to do my bidding more so than before. But I dare not remove either of them from my service just yet, not with all my foes gathered together in the same region. I need those two to act as shields until I am ready to strike once more."
"So what is the plan then?" Hakudoushi asked, sitting down on the edge of the temple's entrance. He let his little legs dangle over the edge and kicked them back and forth with an almost childlike air to him. The Saimyosho he had been admiring rose up off his hand with a steady beat of its wings and rejoined its brothers in the darker corners of the room.
"I haven't finished formulating one just yet," Naraku admitted. "I think we must devote our greatest attention on Kouga. I want his shards. Having those in my possession could make all the difference in this battle to come. I'll work out the details later, after I've rested. Once I have those shards I can work at my leisure to destroy Inuyasha and his pathetic little band."
Hakudoushi nodded. "As you wish. Though we should not underestimate them. Every opponent we've sent against them so far has been defeated. In my opinion the Hanyou mutt is more of a threat than his brother. At least Sesshoumaru's pride and thirst for revenge keeps him predictable. On the subject of revenge by mutts, are we safe here?"
"We will only be completely safe when the annoyances are all dead. But we should be safe from detection here, for at least a while."
"Glad it has one redeeming quality," his minion commented, looking the room over. "This place is a dump."
Naraku closed his liquid red eyes for a moment as the sickening squirming sound of flesh reattaching itself continued to fill the room like a form of morbid music. When he opened his eyes again, a ghost of a smile touched his lips. "I've just had a revelation. I know how we will defeat them all now. Summon the others immediately. We have work to do."
"Yes…" Hakudoushi nodded and glanced at the wall out of the corner of his eye. A few Saimyosho reacted to this subtle gesture and took off out into the sky above to accomplish the errand. The swift forces of evil were gathering once more, and this time there could be no room for error this time. A final battle was coming, one that could decide not only the fate of the world, but of the future world as well.
"While we wait on the others I want you to go out and burn a path with your energy in many different directions to throw them off. My entrance into this place will be easily discovered otherwise."
Hakudoushi rose to his feet and nodded, brushing a lock of his solid white hair from in front of his eyes. "Very well." With a mere thought he rose up off the ground and flew out into the warm night air to accomplish his chosen task.
Utterly spent, Naraku closed his eyes and grew silent as he continued to piece himself together again like a living jigsaw puzzle. This time, Inuyasha, you will die…
Warmed by these thoughts, the powerful half demon drifted off to sleep, nestled in safely within the confines of the powerful barrier. His heart slept also, a separate entity and yet a piece of Naraku none the less. Cruel smiles adorned each of their faces, smiles that promised untold suffering to their enemies and allies alike...