Disclaimer and warning: I don't own anything from this story but the plotline. Inuyasha and Naruto characters belong to other people, not me. I write for the fun of it and if you don't like my work just remember that I'm not making you read this. Please keep flames to yourself. Compliments are welcome. Criticism is a little pointless because I'm not going to go back and edit anything in this.

Please enjoy the fruits of my labour.

Chapter 2

Allies and Friends

Kagome seemed to run into Kakashi often when she was out walking the streets. If she thought it to be strange she did not say a word to anyone. She was, however, seen quite often with Ino and Sakura, as the two kunoichi had taken it upon themselves to show her the ropes around Konoha, capital of the Fire Country. She even found a small shrine that was in need of a trained miko. They agreed that she would work there on weekends.

It was a month later, after meeting up with Lee and Sakura – who he was still dating – that Kagome had a wonderful idea.

"Lee-kun," she said one day over a cup of tea, "mind if I try an experiment on you?"

"An experiment?" Lee asked, swallowing the last of his tea in one gulp, "What kind of experiment, Kagome-chan?"

"Nothing dangerous," she assured, "I just want to try something to see if it would work on you. It worked on Souta,"

Lee did not even think over the proposition, agreeing with his sensei's famous 'nice guy' smile and thumbs up. Kagome hid her inward cringe with a bright smile. How on earth could she have a cousin this nerdy? Oh well, that did not matter. Too much.

"Great! Tomorrow at one of your training grounds? I don't know which one would be free so how about we meet up here around six. I'm off work by then," she suggested.

"Sounds wonderful, Kagome-chan," Lee declared, standing up, "I, Rock Lee, would be honored to be able to assist you in your youthful endeavors,"

Kagome patted his shoulder, standing as well, "Thanks Lee-kun, thanks. See you tomorrow. Say 'hi' to Sakura-kun for me," and with that she paid their bill and left the little café. With the ease of the city-born-and-bred Kagome melted into the crowds of people going about their business. Idly, she wondered how many of them were ninja and how many were just common civilians. What a surprise to find out that the city she had moved to was one of the largest, most influential ninja centers in the world. Not that ninja spread much further than the borders of Japan, but the point was the same.

She passed the library where she worked, tossing it a momentary baleful glare. Really, it was not that bad but after years of traipsing around the countryside fighting youkai kind of spoiled a girl for the more sedate side of civilian life. On the plus side, working at the library paid while wandering around the countryside did not. Usually.

She walked into someone, almost knocking her back. Large hands steadied her before she could fall.

"Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she nodded, looking up.

"Kagome-san!"

"Naruto-san! What are you doing here?" she exclaimed, surprised. Even though they lived in the same building and Sakura and Ino had ordered him to keep an eye out for her Kagome had not seen much of the blond kitsune-host.

"Heading out for a bite of ramen," he shrugged, "Iruka-sensei promised to take me out for a meal when I made captain and I got it last week. He's late,"

"Captain?" Kagome cocked her head to the side, not understanding. Naruto shook his head and waved her question aside.

"So how are things for you at the library? Lots of… books there, right?" he asked hesitantly, almost unsure. Kagome smiled.

"It's been just fine. Quite, but fine,"

"Quiet?"

"Well, let's just say that I'm used to more activity," she shrugged, "But you have to go and I have to buy dinner. I'll see you later?"

"Sure thing. Bye Kagome!" and he was off, waving over his shoulder. Kagome waved too before starting back down the street. She had found a cute little market just a couple of streets down from her building that she went to almost religiously. Already several of the shopkeepers recognized her by sight and one even had started flirting with her, not that she paid any attention to him. She was not ready for another romance in her life just yet. But she was ready for Italian pasta of any kind. She had a couple of cans of tomatoes at home, now all she needed was, well, everything else. Everything else and the pasta. Oi.

"Out shopping, Kagome-chan?"

"It is getting to that time of day, Hatake-san," Kagome shrugged, not turning around as she inspected a green bell pepper before purchasing it and moving on to zucchinis.

"What are you cooking?" he asked, peering into her basket at the assortment of fresh produce.

"Why? Want some?" she asked archly. The jounin just smiled. Well, she assumed he smiled since she could not see his mouth for his mask. "I'm making spaghetti, and you can come over if you want,"

"Don't mind if I do," he accepted gleefully. Kagome felt like shaking her head, but she settled for a smile. Honestly, what was it about this man that made her want to smile and laugh as she had not since… since before she left the shrine and the past.

"Good. If you have nothing to do then you can help me cook,"

Kakashi blinked. "But I can't cook," he protested weakly.

"You're a wiz with a knife, right? That's good enough for me," she argued, settling the debate before it even arose. She purchased a choice zucchini and moved on. Kakashi followed.

"So how was your day?" he asked after a long pause filled with silence.

"Boring. I'd never realized how… passive it is to have a peaceful life," she sighed, "Not that I'm complaining, I just think that I'm going to get horribly out of shape lifting books all day. It's just not what I had gotten used to, you know,"

"What's your idea of 'in shape?'" he asked, picking up a pea pod to inspect it.

"Oh, you know," Kagome shrugged indolently, "Being able to run for a couple of miles, being able to pull a bowstring a couple hundred times before my arm starts to burn and my aim fails. Stuff like that,"

"Only a couple hundred?" Kakashi asked, arching an eyebrow in amusement.

Kagome mock-frowned up at him, "Well, it's not like I was trained since before I could walk, unlike some people we know,"

"Guilty," he led up his hands in defeat, "so what spurred you onto archery?"

Kagome paused, hesitating, "Nothing much at the beginning. It wasn't until a little later that it became more important. And it was an easy way for me to channel my holy powers without intense training,"

"Ah,"

Kagome looked over at her jounin companion, "'Ah' what?"

"Ah, I understand," he clarified.

"Good," she eyed him warily, "After all, it wasn't like I expected to have holy powers. They're rare as it is, even in my family. I was the only one with them until my younger brother started sparking whenever he was around…" she looked away, "whenever he was around a friend of mine,"

"I take it that your friend wasn't…"

"Wasn't fully human? Yes. He was half inuyoukai and a really sweet guy if you could get past all the bark and bluster," she smiled wistfully, "But he had a promise to fulfill and nothing else really mattered to him," she fingered a strand of hair, still smiling sadly, "He was a man of his word. I just hope he made the right choice, that's all,"

Kakashi wisely held his tongue. He carried Kagome's purchases and walked her home when she had finished shopping. He looked around her tiny apartment with mild amazement – probably at the very idea that someone could live in a room so small. There was a little refrigerator, a hotplate with two elements, a folded futon, a low desk, a plain-looking sword propped up in one corner and a dresser. Spartan and small. He watched as Kagome pulled out a cutting board from behind the hotplate as well as two pots that had been stacked beside the dresser.

"Mind cutting up the veggies for me?" she asked.

The jounin looked around, at a loss, "Do you have a knife I could use?" he asked.

Kagome quirked an eyebrow at him, "A ninja without a knife on him? I'm shocked Hatake-san,"

"I hardly think a kunai would be appropriate for slicing vegetables," he said, amused. Kagome shrugged and fished a knife out for him to use.

"I've seen worse," she said, "When you've seen a powerful youkai sword used to cut firewood then you can talk about inappropriate uses for blades,"

Kakashi blinked, "Youkai… sword? What kind of sword is that?"

"A sword forged from the fang of a youkai by a Master Smith, also youkai. They are really very powerful. I have come across only four in all of my travels and I never want to be on the receiving end of any of them. Two of them because i know that they'd kill me in an instant and the other because it only works when you're dead,"

"Dead?" he looked up from the onion he was dicing.

"Yes. The Tenseiga is a sword that can resurrect a soul, providing that the body is intact. It belongs to a Taiyoukai who inherited it from his father in hopes that he would learn compassion," Kagome smiled, "It must have worked because he was able to bring a little human girl back to life after she had been savaged by wolves. You can put the onions in this pot when you're done," she said, motioning to the larger pot which she had heating with some oil on the hotplate.

"Thanks," Kakashi dumped the diced onions into the pot and watched as Kagome started stirring them so they would not burn. He got started on the peppers. "So why did a youkai bring a human back to life?"

Kagome thought about it, "He would never admit it, but I think it's because Rin-chan was the only person, human or youkai, that did not fear him. He claims that he was intrigued, whatever that is supposed to mean. But I guess I can't expect anything more from him, at least not at that time. Even bringing Rin back to life was a big step for him since Tenseiga would only work if he felt some sort of compassion for the one dead,"

"What about the fourth?" he asked. Kagome pointed to the sword in the corner.

"A gift. I can't use it, mainly because it's not meant for me to wield," she shrugged, "But if it's anything like the others it's more than impressive,"

"Not meant for you? What do you mean?" Kakashi looked up from his work.

Kagome's hands slowed down a little. "I don't think I'll ever find the one it's supposed to have wielding it. I don't think I can allow myself to drag anyone into the responsibility of having it," she sighed sadly. Kakashi let the subject drop.

"So, I take it that you know a lot about youkai?" he scraped the peppers into the pot as well.

"You could say that I'm something of an authority, I guess," she shrugged, opening a can of diced tomatoes and emptying it into the pot as well to simmer down. "It comes as something of a side effect for being the sort of miko I am,"

"And what kind of miko would that be?"

"Oh, you know, the 'run around the countryside to go and fight hundreds of low-class youkai just to protect a village' type. Nothing fancy just a lot of boredom with short intermissions filled with intense showers of youkai aimed straight for your head,"

"Sounds interesting,"

"Most of the time? Not. But I finished what I had to do and now I'm here trying to pick together a somewhat normal life. And with any luck the people of this village won't need my services too much," she smiled brightly. Kakashi nodded slowly. The look in her eyes, the look that was strictly banished from her bright smile, was one of a fighter who had seen too much. He knew that look all too well. It haunted his eyes more often than he would like.

"Would have been nice to have someone with your abilities around a couple decades ago," he murmured to himself.

"That attack," she sighed, nodding, "Sorry. I wasn't even born then but if I could have I would have helped. Even if just to spare Naruto-san the pain of being ostracized for something that was not even his fault,"

"You know about Naruto?" he looked up sharply.

"It was a secret?" Kagome blinked innocently, pausing in her stirring, "I'm sorry. It's just so obvious to me that I didn't even think about it, I'm sorry,"

Kakashi regarded the little miko thoughtfully.

"What? It's a miko thing. We're trained to sense youki anywhere. We have to in order to perform exorcisms and things like that," she insisted.

"I thought you said you never got trained,"

"Well," Kagome conceded, "not formally. I was kinda trained on the fly. Tossed headfirst into the fight and if I survived all well and good. If not, well, at least someone could tell my family. If anyone else survived that is,"

"So, Kagome-chan," Ino started, smiling slyly, "I hear you've been hanging around Hatake Kakashi a lot lately,"

Kagome blinked. Ino had invited her over for breakfast before she had to go to work at the library. She should have known that there was more to the invitation than what met the eye.

"What do you mean?" she asked innocently.

"Is something going on between you two?"

The little miko blushed, "Something going on between us? You have got to be kidding!" she stammered, "Hatake-san is a good friend. I hardly even know him, for crying out loud! And he's got to be at least ten years older than me,"

"So?" Ino arched a perfectly sculpted platinum eyebrow, "What does age have to do with it?"

"It… well…" Kagome could not seem to stop blushing as she tried to come up with an explanation. Nothing seemed to come to mind at the moment.

"You like him?"

Cherry, fire engine, dynamite, and tomato red; Kagome's face ran through all the shades.

"Hatake-san is a very good friend and nothing more," she insisted.

"You know you suck at lying, right?"

Kagome settled her eyes on her hands, clasped on her lap, "Nothing will ever come of it, even if I did like him as more than a friend. The life of a miko is not one that many people can adjust to. It's too dangerous,"

"Excuses," Ino waved a hand, "You think the life of a shinobi is any better?"

"And you want to try putting the two together?" Kagome asked wryly, amused despite herself, "May the thousand gods have mercy on our souls as we petition Enma-sama to judge fairly even as we pass into the control of Izanami, goddess of death and the land of darkness as a result of compounding the poor situation,"

Ino laughed, "You really are something, you know that Kagome? So what do you have planned for today? You're working, I know that but do you have anything planned for when you get off?"

"I'm meeting up with Lee-kun to run a diagnostic on him. Why?"

The blonde was deep in thought for a second or three before she answered, "Oh, no reason,"

"Right," Kagome clearly did not believe Ino for a scant second, "Anyways, I have to get going. Thank you so much for breakfast, Ino. You and Choji-san will have to come over for dinner sometime,"

"Think you can afford to provide what Choji eats?" Ino smiled, "I love the guy, but I know how much he eats and you're barely scrapping by as it is right now. Don't worry about it, although I'll probably hold you to tea some afternoon. Deal?"

"Deal,"

The two women shook on it.

"Just sit there and breath, Lee-kun," Kagome instructed, pacing around her cousin, "just breathe and let me do all the work,"

Lee sat on the grass in a small meadow with a sutra pasted to his forehead. The sutra confused him and Kagome admitted to herself that it made him look even stranger than normal. The bowl cut, the thick eyebrows (that Kagome still had not convinced him to pluck), and the sutra combined made for quite the interesting picture. If only she had a camera handy.

But back to the project at hand. Kagome stood before Lee, holding another sutra. She started chanting a quiet Buddhist prayer and clean, blue power blossomed around her. The sutra on Lee started glowing in response.

Sudden she stopped, rocking back on her heels.

"What's wrong, Kagome-chan?" Lee asked, worried.

"Nothing, Lee-kun, nothing. Congratulations, you've just been identified as the third living member of our family to possess holy powers,"

Lee blinked. Kagome waited for a reaction. Lee blinked again.

"What?"

"You, Lee-kun, have the power to hold the balance between youkai and human. You have what is called houriki, the power granted by Buddha and the gods to purify and protect," she explained patiently.

Lee sprang to his feet, joyous cries filling the air as he spouted off some nonsense about the power of springtime and the power of… no, wait. That was not right. Oh well. She was not listening anyways. Eventually she had to catch his arm and jerk him back to the ground.

"Listen up," she said seriously, "You have a decision to make now. You can train under me to gain control of these powers or you can let them lay latent,"

Lee looked appalled at the very notion. "Not train these wondrous gifts? Why would I want to do something like that? If I have been bestowed with such bounty it is only my solemn duty to train it to its fullest,"

"Right. Then when's a good time for you? You know my schedule so let's work from there," she smiled.

"Every day!" Lee declared, "In order to train properly I must practice every day!"

"Right, every day. What time, Lee-kun?"

"Whenever is good for you,"

Kagome considered it, "After six. I can spare about an hour-hour and a half,"

"Wonderful!" he gave her the thumbs up, "And if I have a mission I shall be sure to inform you so that you are not left waiting!"

"Thanks Lee-kun," she patted his shoulder, "As it is I have to get home to make some dinner,"

"Of course! Kagome-chan must eat in order to maintain her-" he was cut off.

"I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Of course!" another thumbs up.

Add another thing to her busy schedule. Kagome shook her head as she walked back home, alone now since Lee had to meet one of his friends somewhere else and she refused to let him walk her home. She shoved her hands into her pockets as she sauntered down the streets, smiling and nodding to people as she passed. For a village of contract killers people were remarkably friendly. Odd that.

"Kagome-chan!" Kakashi appeared right in front of her, scaring her out of her wits. Blue lightening sparked up as her hands flew up in a defensive position. The jounin held up his hands, "Whoa! Calm down, it's just me,"

Kagome relaxed, "Hatake-san, you scared me,"

"Sorry," he apologized, sounding genuinely contrite.

"It's okay. Just… give a girl some warning next time. My powers might not be fatal for humans but it can sure pack a punch if you get hit," she warned sternly.

"I guess I'll just have to make sure not to get hit then," he smiled winningly. Well, she guessed he did at least.

"Good luck on that. What are you doing here?"

"Ducking out on a meeting," he shrugged.

"Well," Kagome sighed, rolling her eyes a little, "at least you admit it. I hear that's the first step in breaking the habit," she joked.

"Heaven forbid," he clapped his hand over his chest and mimed a heart attack, "It's one of the few pleasures left to me in life, being able to torment my peers with my perpetual propensity towards tardiness,"

"Big words," she teased playfully. Suddenly she paused in her steps and breathed an amazed "Holy cow,"

"What?"

"I can't believe he's here,"

"Who?"

Kagome spun on her heel and dipped into a respectable ninety degree bow, "Sesshoumaru-sama, it has been a while,"

"Miko-san," the Taiyoukai nodded.

Kakashi blinked. He had not even sensed the man Kagome was addressing. Just who was this tall, silver-haired young man, anyways? And how did Kagome know him? A little green monster reared its ugly head – and said green monster wasn't Jaken for once.

"Sesshoumaru-sama, it's Kagome not Miko," Kagome reminded gently.

"It has also been many years since this Sesshoumaru has seen you. What are you doing in a shinobi Hidden Village?" he arched a perfect, sliver eyebrow at her. Kagome smiled sadly.

"I had to get away from the past. But what are you doing here? I would have thought you would be in Osaka or Tokyo on business,"

Kakashi was lost.

Sesshoumaru frowned slightly, "I come here on business. In fact, Miko, I came here looking for you,"

"Is that right? Why?" she tensed.

Sesshoumaru's eyes flicked over to glance at Kakashi before he answered, decisively choosing his words, "Word that the jewel has moved locations has gotten out. The power-hungry are getting near,"

Kagome paled so quickly Kakashi's heart almost stopped. "So soon? But I just moved here," she breathed. Sesshoumaru nodded.

"You cannot run for long, Miko," he warned.

"I know," she said weakly, "I just hoped that I'd have more time,"

Kakashi decided now was a good time to interject, "Kagome-chan, what's going on?"

"Kagome-san, who is this?" Sesshoumaru asked pointedly.

Kagome closed her eyes, "Sesshoumaru-sama, this is Hatake Kakashi-san, a jounin shinobi here in Konoha. Hatake-san, this is Sesshoumaru-sama, Taiyoukai of the Western Lands and a very good friend of mine,"

"Youkai?" Kakashi tensed, hands inching towards his weapons.

"Yes youkai. And do not bother with your puny weapons, this Sesshoumaru is not here for battle," Sesshoumaru snorted and turned from Kakashi.

"It's alright, Hatake-san. Sesshoumaru-sama is one of the most honorable youkai I have ever met. He will not harm anyone in this village without just cause," Sesshoumaru arched a questioning eyebrow at her when she made the promise for him, challenging her without words. Kagome just smiled benignly back.

"Of course not," he slowly agreed at length.

Oh yes, Kakashi was feeling ever so comfortable now. Yeah. Right.

"Thank you for the warning, Sesshoumaru-sama, I shall take the necessary precautions,"

"Or you could accept a position under my protection," the Taiyoukai offered.

Kagome nodded, "I could, but that might bring more harm that good, all things considered. I have thought about it, considered the possibilities and all, and I think that staying on my own would be better. If I have to then I can disappear quicker this way, and less people will get hurt,"

"Kagome-chan! What is going on?" Kakashi asked, his one visible eye wide. Kagome sighed and Sesshoumaru frowned at his rudeness.

"Remember when I told you that I was trained in a sink or swim kind of way?" she asked. Kakashi nodded. "Well, that's because I had something, a jewel, that youkai wanted because it would grant even the weakest immeasurable power. And I had to stop them from gaining possession of it,"

"I see," Kakashi nodded slowly, "And now they know that you're not in Tokyo anymore and have tracked you to Konoha,"

"About that," she agreed.

"And you're not wanting protection… why?"

"The chain of command slows things down and puts more people in the line of fire,"

"Ah,"

"Foolish mortal," Sesshoumaru chided, "better slow than dead,"

"I agree with him," Kakashi said, jerking a thumb at the Taiyoukai. Kagome scowled at the two men.

"Yeah, well, what do you two know? Just because you've both been trained in the art of war and stuff like that," she said, her voice laced heavily with sarcasm, "and I'm nothing more than a humble miko who hardly passed junior high. I mean, what do I know?"

"Kagome-san," Sesshoumaru said, placing a hand on her shoulder to gain her full attention, "you have my protection, desired or not. This Sesshoumaru swears on the fangs of his father,"

Kakashi was lost on the finer points of the promise but the look on Kagome's face told him all he needed to know. This Sesshoumaru fellow was dead serious.

Kagome bowed, "I give you my thanks, Sesshoumaru-sama, and beg your forgiveness for my rudeness,"

"Forgiven. We shall meet at a later date, miko-san," Kagome sighed, not missing the fact he had returned to calling her by her title rather than her name, "We have many things to catch up on. I wish to ascertain how long it has been on your side of the well,"

"As you wish, Sesshoumaru-sama," she smiled at him, "I hope that your family is doing well. By the way, how many children do you have now?"

"Twenty. And my Lady is expecting another pup soon," the Taiyoukai sighed, running a hand through his long hair. Kakashi choked at the outrageous number.

"Twenty! Well, I suppose that would make sense. How long have you two been mated now?"

"Three hundred and forty years, give or take a decade or so,"

"And you're here not just because of me but because you wanted to get away from a hormonal wife," Kagome nodded, ignoring the glare Sesshoumaru shot her, "Not that I can blame you,"

"We shall speak again soon, miko-san," he stated, closing the conversation definitively. Kagome smiled brightly.

"Until then, Sesshoumaru-sama. Give your mate and the children my love," she waved as Sesshoumaru walked smoothly down the street, unconsciously making the crowd part before his magnificent presence.

"And just who was that?" Kakashi asked again, this time sounding very lost and pathetic. Kagome took pity on the poor lost jounin and explained.

"Sesshoumaru-sama is an old friend of mine. He's one of the people I met while I was beginning my training. It's a good thing he's not after the jewel because I really like the guy. He's all cold and frigid sadistic murdererness on the outside but such a softie when you manage to get past the 'death to all huggers' shell he has on," she laughed brightly, "When I first met him he was trying to kill his younger half-brother for their father's sword and I managed to get in the way. Thank goodness the only thing that happened to any of us was that he managed to get his arm cut off,"

"He got his arm cut off? But he had two arms just now," Kakashi was confused.

"That's a long story that happened a couple of years after that first meeting," she shrugged, "after a while we got to know each other and he even admitted some measure of respect for me, which was saying something at the time considering he hated humanity as a whole with the exception on Rin-chan, who he ended up adopting. It was around that time that I offered to heal his arm as a gesture of thanks for helping out in a very… difficult war,"

"I see," Kakashi said slowly.

"But enough about that, it's been a long day and I have to get home to get something to eat. I have an even longer day ahead of me tomorrow. Lee-kun tested positive for houriki and he accepted my offer to train him in it,"

"Houriki? As in the power of priests and monks? Lee? Rock Lee? The one and only Konoha shinobi that cannot use chakra has houriki? A power so rare it has been relegated to legend?"

"Don't sound so surprised, Hatake-san," she advised, amused despite herself, "holy powers are rare, true, even in my family where they crop up more than almost any other shine family line in all if the islands of Japan. And when they do pop up they tend to override everything else, which is probably why Lee can't use 'chakra,' not that I know what that is,"

Kakashi thought it over, absently scratching his clothed chin. That would explain one mystery. Now he could check The Mystery of the Missing Chakra off his list.

"Anyways," Kagome said, stopping in front of the entrance to her apartment building, "thank you for walking me, Hatake-san,"

"Goodnight Kagome-chan,"

Tsunade frowned at the lottery numbers. She just won a couple hundred on this ticket alone. Not good. The last time she had won Naruto almost died. Any time the 'Legendary Sucker' won at gambling bad things happened.

She was just about to pack it in and go home for the day when Shizune scurried in looking quite nervous. "Hokage-sama, there is someone to see you,"

"At this time?" Tsunade raised an eyebrow, "Who is it?"

"Taisho Sesshoumaru," said a tall young man with long silver hair and the strangest gold eyes she had ever seen as he stepped into the doorway. The Godaime Hokage had to stop herself from shivering at the strange and very powerful aura she sensed from him. And he was suppressing it.

"Taisho-san? Please, sit down," she gestured to a waiting guest chair, "May I ask what your business is?"

Sesshoumaru sat down and leveled a serious stare at the buxom blonde Medicnin, "In your Village you have a one Higurashi Kagome, a very powerful and influential miko under my protection. She has come here in hiding but unfortunately her enemies have discovered her move and are swift to catch her scent," he paused. Tsunade took a wild mental leap.

"And you want to hire us to protect her?" she asked, taking a guess.

"This Sesshoumaru is not so desperate as to stoop to enlisting the aid of humans," he sniffed. The Hokage lifted an eyebrow at his strange word choice. "Rather, I am here to inform you that if any harm comes to Higurashi Kagome this Village will be razed to the ground and every living soul will be sent to the judgment of Enma of the Afterlife. And this Sesshoumaru will execute the deed himself,"

He said it with such finite confidence that Tsunade was forced to consider his words seriously. His eyes never blinked and his facial expression never wavered. It was the ultimate poker face. And it was very spooky to boot!

"And may I inquire as to how you would accomplish such a feat?" she asked slowly, her eyes never once leaving his.

Sesshoumaru allowed the illusion on him waver and fall revealing his birthright markings, his fangs, claws and cloud-like tail. "Because, mortal," he ran his tongue over his fangs to make a point, "I am the Taiyoukai of these lands and there are none who can challenge me,"

Tsunade's blood froze as his strange chakra rolled over her in paralyzing waves and she heard herself assure the youkai that she would make sure that no harm came to Higurashi Kagome. He nodded and stood, not even bothering with the formalities of goodbyes as the human illusion snapped back into place and he strode purposefully out of her office.

Silence ticked by in the office. Tsunade sat ridged at her desk, thinking. Nodding to herself she made her decision.

"SHIZUNE!"

AN: Yay! Chapter 2 out of 17 is up! Don't you all just Love Sesshoumaru? Gotta admit he's my favorite character a couple of cute moments between Kagome and Kakashi. Hope you enjoyed!