I in no way shape, shape, or form own Inuyasha and it's respective characters and settings.
I retain all rights to the OC character Kaikotsu.
I in no way gain profit from the production of this story.
This story is rated Mature for adult language and situations. Possibly some sex scenes later on, not sure yet.
Ch III
*FLASHBACK*
Renkotsu stood over Kaikotsu's sleeping form, looking from his leader to the shallow grave he'd dug for him. He'd had enough of all this non-violent do-gooder mercenary crap and had a plan to take care of the problem. With one more look around the campsite to make sure the others were still sleeping, Renkotsu lifted the Banryu he'd taken from Bankotsu's sleeping area and swung it down with one sure stroke.
The blade was so sharp that there was no sound as it sliced through Kaikotsu's neck. In fact, it took his head a few seconds to realize it had been severed before it rolled off a bit.
Setting Banryu aside, Renkotsu snatched up Kaikotsu's head and tossed it into the grave. Then he hauled his murdered leader's corpse over to the grave and shoved it in with his foot. "Damn you're a heavy bastard," he grunted as he wiped sweat from his forehead despite the cold night air. Grabbing up his shovel, he began filling in the grave. "Right where you belong. Now maybe I can start enjoying this damn job."
Once he'd smoothed out the soil on top of the grave and wiped away the drag marks from hauling Kaikotsu's body over, Renkotsu set Banryu back down beside it's rightful owner and settled down for a good night's rest.
The next morning, as they were packing up their gear to move on to their next destination, Bankotsu frowned as he noticed Kaikotsu's gear was missing, unaware Renkotsu and tossed it away last night with one of his grenades attached. More to the point, their leader was absent as well. "Where's Kaikotsu?" he asked, looking at them all.
"Guess he's up and ditched us," Renkotsu said, packing fresh powder into a few grenades that he tucked into his robes.
"Why in the world would he do that?" Bankotsu asked with a frown. It wasn't like Kaikotsu at all, but it certainly looked that way.
Jakotsu said nothing, but merely watched Renkotsu. Kai had been teaching him a lot about how to read body language, and while the effeminate male wasn't too bright, that was one lesson he'd picked up on well. And he could tell by the way Ren's eyes kept darting towards a patch of ground near where Kaikotsu had been sleeping the night before that something was off.
He waited until the others had already begun moving out before he moved over to the patch of soil and knelt down. Looking carefully, he noticed that the earth had recently been disturbed. It could only mean one thing that even Jakotsu caught right away. Fighting back tears, he plucked the blue lily he wore in his hair and planted it in the soil before him. Without a word, he rose and hurried off to catch up before the others figured out what he was doing.
He couldn't even look back as the Band of Seven rode on. All he could risk sparing for Kaikotsu was a single tear down his cheek. Kai, you broke your promise, he thought as he wiped it away before anyone saw.
*FLASHBACK*
As the sun rose on our merry band of adventurers and their new associate, Inuyasha stirred first. He opened his golden eyes and looked about the hut where they'd slept to find Kaikotsu standing in the doorway, looking out at the decimated village. The hanyou got to his feet and moved up beside the warrior. "You really shouldn't stand with your back to people you just met. I could have easily killed you just now," Inuyasha said.
"Look down," Kaikotsu said. Doing as was suggested, Inuyasha's gaze dropped to see a kunai dagger pointed at his stomach, just touching the loose material of his billowy clothes.
"Shit," he said. He hadn't even seen the mercenary move.
"I trust very few persons in this world, demon. And none of you are on that list. Gather your party, we need to leave."
"And why the hell should I do that?" Inuyasha snapped.
"Because I need to resupply my weapons and check on a few things. And I can teach you how best to fight the remaining members of my team. Kyokotsu and Mokotsu were nothing compared to the others."
That got Inuyasha to shut up enough that he went to rouse the rest of their troupe without complaint.
Kaikotsu led the way out of the village, Inuyasha keeping a close eye on him, Tessaiga drawn and resting against his shoulder. No matter how much Kagome snapped at him to put it away and that Kaikotsu posed no threat, the hanyou refused to listen to her.
"I'm not taking any chances Kagome," Inuyasha said. "I don't give a damn what story he sold us, he's still one of the Band of Seven. For all we know, he's leading us into a trap."
The mercenary looked over his shoulder at the group, brushing that blue shock of hair out of his face and tucking it behind his ear. "And you've every right to be cautious, Inuyasha. You don't know me, I don't know you. You have the instincts of a true warrior." He didn't bother correcting the hanyou on not leading them into a trap, because he personally couldn't guarantee that. For all he knew, he was. It had been fifty years since he'd died, and he didn't know the whereabouts of his former teammates. They could be waiting in their lair, ready for combat.
With a deep breath, he faced the road again and continued walking, palming a shuriken and a senbon needle out of reflex. The cold metal was comforting to him, and as he walked, he could almost feel like he was back to the way things used to be. Him leading his group of warriors about the countryside on various missions. But that was only a dream now, he had nothing to his name anymore. That bastard Bankotsu would pay for ruining the name of the Band of Seven.
It took nearly half the day to reach the area where the Band of Seven had made their base of operations. The journey took them to the base of a mountain range near Mount Hakurei. This road was so familiar to him, that even now he could have walked it blindfolded. After all, though fifty years had passed, to Kaikotsu it had been only weeks.
As they passed a patch of wildflowers near the hidden entrance, a glint of metal caught Kaikotsu's eye. Frowning, he knelt down and brushed aside some of the flowers until he exposed part of a saddle, the glint coming from the buckles for the straps. And he thought... he thought he recognized the saddle. Upon looking closer over the patterns etched into the saddle rim, his eyes widened and he began digging furiously into the soil around the half buried saddle.
"What's with him now?" Inuyasha frowned as the party stopped just behind him.
"It looks like he's found something important to him," Sango said, taking a few steps closer. "Kaikotsu? Is everything alright?"
Kai simply continued digging out a large area around the saddle for a few more minutes until his fingers began to bleed. When he finally stopped to catch his breath, the others gathered close behind him to see the partially exposed skeleton of a horse. "Everything is fine Sango," the warrior said in a tone that said he was anything but fine.
Gently, he lifted the horse's skull from the soil. "This was my horse. After I was killed, they must have simply let him go to do as he saw fit. It seems at some point he came home. And never left." Reburying the horse, Kaikotsu placed a small mound of stones at the head of the grave as a memorial to his fallen comrade.
"Come, the entrance is just around the bend here." Not even glancing back at the grave he'd made for his horse, Kaikotsu continued around a fork in the path that seemed to lead to a dead end at a cliff face.
"Guess being in the dirt for fifty years ate away too much of brain, there's nothing here," Inuyasha smirked, earning him a slap across the back of the head from Kagome.
"I would be a very poor mercenary if I left my home out in the open for anyone to find it," Kaikotsu said, pushing in a stone on the cliff face and turning it clockwise until a dull clang sounded within the rock. Stepping back, he watched the others' faces with satisfaction as a large section of the cliff pulled away- a hidden door. "Shall we?" he asked, stepping into the shadows inside the cliff.
They followed Kaikotsu into utter darkness, Inuyasha and Shippo using their noses to locate their host who'd completely disappeared. Once everyone was inside, the door slid back into place, completely drowning them in pitch black. "I was right, it was a trap," Inuyasha snarled.
"Calm yourself boy, not every dark place is a trap. I simply have not lit the torches yet," Kaikotsu's voice carried out from the shadows. There was a sudden spark as two pieces of flint were struck together and seconds later the mercenary was illuminated by a torch on the carved out wall. Within moments of him lighting the torch, others flared into life along set intervals leading down a lengthy hallway.
The lair went deep into the mountain, with rooms branching off to the sides of the main tunnel. As Kaikotsu led the way deep into his home, the other looked around. One chamber near the entrance was filled to almost overflowing with treasure, another was clearly an armory. Some were merely tunnels leading no doubt to other chambers.
The one Kai led them to was at the end of the main tunnel where it opened up into an expansive, well throne room for lack of better term. It had to be where the Band relaxed between missions. Directly across from the tunnel entrance was a large stone chair with furs draped over it. Kaikotsu swiftly crossed the room and settled onto it, looking more relaxed than he had been since encountering our heroes. Around the room were other places to relax, one for each member of the band it seemed.
As everyone got settled, Miroku was the one who spoke up first. "You said you could give us information about the rest of the Band of Seven?"
"We'll get to that. For now, let an old warrior relax where he feels at home. I've been long away from my home and need to collect myself," Kai said from his "throne". His eyes were closed, almost as if he were trying to sleep.
"There's no time for that now," Miroku protested. Normally he was one of the calmer members of the group, but this close to Naraku and the hope of ending his family's curse, he was anxious. "Every minute we waste here, Naraku grows more powerful. We need to get moving."
He approached the throne and reached forward to pull Kaikotsu from it, only to suddenly cry out in pain and pull back, cradling his good hand to his chest.
The others rushed to his side to inspect what had happened. Sticking out of the back of Miroku's hand was a senbon needle. And where it penetrated his hand, black lines course out under his skin. Kaikotsu must have stabbed him with a poisoned needle; they never even saw the warrior move.
"What the hell did you do?" Inuaysha growled out, leveling Tessaiga at Kaikotsu.
"I defended myself," came the reply. As everyone looked at Kaitkotsu, he had his fingers interlaced in front of his face and was looking at them all with the same cold, murderous gaze they'd seen on Jakotsu's face when they'd first met him. But somehow Kai's silvery gaze made the look all the more sinister. "The poison isn't fatal. A simple healing balm will ease the effects. But I will not be attacked in my own home. If you wish my knowledge and my cooperation, you will give me a few damn minutes to take everything in."
Though they were all certainly more wary of Kaikotsu now, everyone backed down, eventually. Inuyasha took longer but he still complied. "We're sorry Kaikotsu," Kagome said, trying as usual to broker peace. "We're just really anxious to hopefully finish off Naraku before he becomes any greater a threat."
"I understand, but those who rush into such dangerous conflicts often wind up much worse for their efforts. So rest for a bit, eat if you need to and gather your strength. Once we've all gotten a bit of rest in, I'll beg-" Kaikotsu stopped in mid-sentence as they all heard the grinding of the front door sliding open.
Faster than any of them, save perhaps Inuyasha, could move, Kaikotsu was on his feet and rushing down the tunnel, prepared to fight whichever of those traitorous bastards had decided to rear their head. Of course, he wasn't prepared in the least for who it was he did encounter.
Kaikotsu skidded to a halt a few feet away from the youngest member of the Band of Seven, the one person in this world he still trusted.
Jakotsu couldn't breathe as he took in the sight before him. Yeah, he'd seen the empty grave, but he hadn't fully believed it possible. "Kai?"
Author's Note: Yeah I know guys, this took forever. I am sorry it's been so long since I've posted anything, but I am going to try and get things flowing a bit more smoothly again.
So as for this chapter, some nice developments don't you think? Renkotsu that sneaky a-hole, not even using his own weapon to do his boss in. I'm just really curious as to how this reunion between Kaikotsu and Jakotsu will go. Please read and review as always. Smell ya later.
