A/N:well, kags, you should be happy to know that you were the first one to review that chapter, actually, as of right now, you're the only one to have reviewed, but oh well. i'm gonna post this anyway...maybe i'll just wait another week...

Scroll 4 – The Capering Corpse

"Uh…what Jewel?" Inu Yasha asked desperately.

The boss burped and groaned as he swayed from side to side before he replied. "The Jewel…of Four Souls—" Faster than Inu Yasha believed possible for the big man, Inu Yasha was grabbed by the collar and roughly thrown back down. He looked up and saw that the boss had grabbed the string that held the Shikon Jewel.

Kaede's words flashed through his mind. But also men. Sometimes men can be worse. He reached for the Jewel. "Give that--!" He stopped short of cutting his face. The boss had slammed his sword point down into the wood in front of Inu Yasha's face. Using the sword for balance, the boss levered himself up.

"H-hold 'im," he told his men. The two who had grabbed him in the first place latched onto his arms.

"There, now what?" the one on the left asked.

The boss didn't reply except to raise his sword over his head.

"Oh, he's gonna kill 'im." "At least he wasn't planning on—" the other men began.

The boss slashed down at Inu Yasha.

"Uh…" "Boss?" "Sick!"

The big man had missed Inu Yasha and had slashed the man holding Inu Yasha's right arm. The boss looked down at his fallen comrade. "Uh…made a mistake," he murmured. He raised his sword again. "This time...your neck!" The other man holding Inu Yasha began to step back out of harms way as the boss advanced towards them.

What is with this guy? Inu Yasha thought, also taking a few steps backwards. He darted around two of the other men just as the boss swung his sword. Inu Yasha shuddered as the heads of the two men rolled towards him.

"Uh, boss, could you be a little more careful where you swing that?" asked one of the other men, cowering off to the side and trying not to get between his boss and his target.

As Inu Yasha backed away, he stumbled over something. He looked down and saw a spear. Grinning he picked it up and brandished it. "Stop! Stay there!" he told the big man who was still advancing. "This spear is longer than your sword, so I'll stick you before you can even—" Inu Yasha watched in horror as the boss chopped off the end of the spear in one swing. Not good! Inu Yasha cringed as the sword came down again.

There was a snap and a clank. Inu Yasha opened his eyes. Kagome!

"What the…?" "Who would…?" the reaming men wondered.

"You came…looking for…me?" Inu Yasha asked in surprise.

"The Jewel, boy, where's my Jewel!" Kagome asked franticly. "Don't think I came for your sorry ass, I came to keep you from losing my Jewel!"

"Oh."

Kagome ignored Inu Yasha and addressed the big man staring at her blankly. "So, this is where you decided to hide." She wrinkled her nose. "Ugh. What a vile scent. Even viler than the smell of that annoying Sesshomaru wanna-be—"

"Hey!" Inu Yasha protested, but Kagome ignored him as usual.

"—is the scent of a half-decayed corpse!" Inu Yasha and the bandits looked at the boss in surprise. "Show your ugly three-eyed face, crow demon!" Kagome yelled slashing at the armor covering the big man's chest. As the pieces fell away, three slitted eyes and a sharp beak poked out of a hole in the boss' chest. The bandits gasped and a look of horror flashed across Inu Yasha's face.

"That's just nasty," Inu Yasha said, trying not to lose his lunch.

"So you've made yourself a nasty little nest, I see," Kagome said, keeping her nose and mouth covered to keep the smell of decay to a minimum.

"So the boss is dead?" "I knew he wasn' actin' like hisself." The few remaining bandits whispered among themselves.

The demon cawed and screeched at them. "You're too weak to fight your own battles, eh?" Kagome laughed. "Looks like you can barely manipulate the dead, much less the living," she taunted.

The 'boss' bent down and picked up another sword and began to attack Kagome. She easily avoided the attack and responded with an attack of her own. She went directly for the crow demon, but it flew out of the back of the corpse. Throwing the big corpse away, Kagome tried to hit the demon again, but it was already flying away, the Jewel in its beak.

"Hey! That's my Jewel!" Kagome yelled, grabbing the broken spear beside her. "Get back here, you coward!" She threw the spear at the demon, but it was just out of range. Growling, she looked around. Off to one side she spotted a bow and a quiver of arrows.

"C'mon!" she told Inu Yasha, grabbing him and handing him the bow. Easily throwing him on her back, Kagome ran out in pursuit of the crow demon. "He's not takin' my Jewel," Kagome muttered. "Well, what are you waiting for?" she asked Inu Yasha. She flew from tree to tree, jumping from the top of one to the top of the next. "Shoot the damn thing!"

"Easier said than done," Inu Yasha replied angrily. "I've never even held a bow, let alone—"

"Crow demons only eat humans," Kagome cut him off. "What do you think is going to happen when he gets stronger?" Inu Yasha's eyes widened. "Damn! He swallowed it already!" Kagome raged.

"Fly steady!" Inu Yasha instructed.

"I am," she muttered over her shoulder. This is perfect. Once he shots that wretched crow demon, I can just leave him and take back what is mine! she thought triumphantly. And these trees are rather tall. She gave a small smile. "You've got one shot, boy! Sesshomaru was a master of all weapons, especially the bow!" Kagome said over her shoulder.

"How many times have I told you? I'm Inu Yasha!" he replied. Course, it would be nice if I was Sesshomaru right about now, he thought as he drew back the bow. He released the arrow with a twang. Inu Yasha grinned as the arrow flew straight at the crow demon. Kagome rolled her eyes and Inu Yasha stared as the arrow fell several feet short of the quickly escaping demon. "Are you sure Sesshomaru had mastered the bow?" he asked.

"What was I thinking? Obviously your not him, you aren't even half as good has he was," Kagome replied in irritation. Ahead of them the crew demon continued in its search for food.

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well, i suppose i procrastinated enough before posting this...i wish some of these chapters/scrolls weren't so damn short...then mine wouldn't be as short...oh well...enjoy...