Chapter 4: Collapsing

Okay… First things first.

I'm SO SO SO SO SO SO SOOOOO sorry about not updating sooner! After I published chapter 3, my mind kinda went into overdrive, so the beginning kinda stinks… sorry…

And then after THAT, my mind went completely blank and so I didn't even bother for like a month. And THEN, at the beginning of spring break, my inspiration came back… but then my younger sister gave me the flu and I was sick for two days. X_X

But after THAT, I got better and, well, here's the update!

*Normal POV*

After a few minutes of soaring through the sky, Kagome and Shippo finally caught up with Sango, Miroku, and Kirara. They'd greeted, talked shortly, and then went on their way.

After a while of soaring through the sky, Kagome yelled out, "Guys! Is it just me, or does this route look kind of… familiar?"

At this, Sango looked closely at their surroundings—and paled considerably. "Sango? What's wrong? Sango?" Kagome asked nervously.

"I… I think… I… I do believe… I do believe you're… right, Kagome," Sango stuttered out shakily.

"Sango? SANGO?"

"I believe this is my home. This… this is the path to the Village of the Demon Slayers," Sango stated dully, looking calm; likely more so than she felt.. "Umm… Shippo…"

Shippo (as a balloon, since now Kagome, Miroku, and Sango were all on Kirara's back) bounced up at his name. "Yeah?"

"Are… are you sure this is the way Inuyasha and Naraku's scents went?"

"Well…" Shippo looked nervous.

"Just answer!" Sango shouted, making Shippo jump back several paces at Sango's tone.

Coming back up to Kirara's side, Shippo answered reluctantly, "Well… yeah. This is the way they went, yeah. I'm positive; there's no mistaking it."

Sango didn't react in any way. As if she hadn't even heard him, she turned away and, just as dully as before, said, "Alright, guys. Let's go."

Kagome looked at her friend sadly, but didn't say anything. She must be worried that the same thing that happened the first time with Naraku will happen again… I'm so sorry, Sango, she thought forlornly.

They continued to fly, although slightly faster now, through the air.

Several silent minutes later, Kagome shouted over the wind, "Hey! Guys! I can see the walls of the village! We're nearly there!"

Sure enough, the wooden walls of the Village of the Demon Slayers could be seen on the horizon.

With newfound speed, the group raced across the sky to the village, all half-expecting the entire village to be demolished once they got there. The last thing they expected was what they saw. They froze in the sky.

"It… It hasn't even been touched!" Sango cried out in the sky, her voice full of glee.

Shippo took this opportunity to change back to his normal state and hop onto Kirara. He sniffed the air. "Uh… guys?"

"Yeah?" they all said in unison.

"They… they didn't go to the village…"

They all stared intently at him, waiting for him to finish.

"They… the two of them… they…" Shippo growled childishly and threw his hands into the air. "Gah! Oh, for crying out loud!" He glared at them irritably, then sighed in defeat. "They went around it. They're at Midoriko's cave!"

*Inuyasha's POV*

There I stood, in front of the cave. "Naraku!" I snarled. "Come out, you coward! We fight now!"

A chuckle echoed from everywhere at once. "Kukuku… I see that you haven't changed a bit since our last meeting, Inuyasha. You're just as impatient—and weak—as ever."

"Why, you sorry—come out! Do you have a death wish?"

"I would say the same to you, Inuyasha. Dancing and screaming when you can't even see your enemy—not wise, Inuyasha. Although, you aren't exactly well-known for your intelligence."

"I'll make you eat those words!" I unsheathed Tetsuseiga and held it in its transformed state in battle position. "Naraku! This ends now! Come on out and fight like a man!"

The chuckle echoed again. "Patience, Inuyasha. You should know by now that yelling gets you nowhere—especially not when it's a half-demon like you."

"YOU HYPOCRITE! DIE!" I spun around and swung Tetsuseiga at the trees behind me, not wanting to disturb Midoriko's grave. Besides, he couldn't go in there anyway.

"Kukuku… Missing already? And I thought this would be a challenge."

"COWARD! Come out of hiding, now!" I turned again and swung my sword, this time to my left.

"Swinging blindly will do you no good," came his irritatingly mocking voice.

"Shut up and just DIE ALREADY!" Now, I swung to the right. Deep indents were left in the ground where my Wind Scar hit.

I heard a fake sigh of disappointment. "I thought you would have figured it out by now. Such a shame…"

I froze. "W-whaaaa…?" I turned around in the direction of his voice; it was no longer coming from everywhere at once.

I stared straight into the mouth of the cave.

"You're finally catching on, Inuyasha."

I gasped unintentionally. "B-but how? Evil like you isn't allowed to enter!"

I could hear the grin of amusement in his voice. "Well, It's actually quite simple, really. If you used your brain once in a while, then you could probably figure it out; then again, thinking isn't your forte."

I growled angrily.

He laughed. "Ah, Inuyasha. Obviously you aren't in any mood to work what little brain you have, so I'll give you a little push in the right direction."

I snarled.

Completely ignoring my growl, he said, "Since you are a half-demon, surely you have a period when you are a human."

I froze. D-does he… does he know…?

But he continued on. "Well, that time period is likely the monthly anniversary of your birth, am I correct?"

I said nothing, not wanting to tell him anything.

He went on as if I had answered him. "I thought so. Well, if you have a weak period on every monthly-interval anniversary of your birth, then why do you think I am able to enter a place like this—a place that allows no evil?"

My mind was racing to process everything he was telling me. Suddenly, it dawned on me. "Wait…" I said slowly. "Then… this is the anniversary of her death?"

Just then, I heard a voice behind me. "Inuyasha!"

I spun around.

For a moment, joy completely filled my senses. I stared for a few moments at my priestess riding on Kirara's back, and felt more thrilled than I knew I was capable of as I saw Kagome waving at me, trying to catch my attention… and smiling, looking as radiant as ever. She's…she's back… and she doesn't even look mad at all…

Then that moment of happiness was over. Fear struck me right through my entire being and into my core. "Wench? What are you doing here? Get away from here! Now!"

Kagome's smile faltered, and her hand lowered. "Wha—"

A crash came from behind me. I spun around. "Naraku's in Midoriko's Cave! Come on!"

I could hear the surprise in her voice. "Wait—"

"No time for questions! We HAVE TO GO!" Then I took off towards the cave without waiting for an answer.

*Normal POV*

Naraku grinned as Inuyasha yelled at the priestess, and then crept even further into the depths of the cave.

He smiled as he reached the light in the center of the cave. He observed the body of the deceased priestess and the surrounding demons, not overlooking the strange white-ish liquid that coated their bodies.

Naraku smirked and stepped carelessly on top of and over the demons' carcasses. He climbed, grinning even wider when he was at Midoriko's side.

"Hello, Midoriko," he whispered in a slightly mocking tone. He reached out with his hand and gripped her chin with his fingers. As he did, purifying energy sparkled all around him.

Naraku chuckled. "Not happy that I'm intruding, are you?" He frowned. "Ah, don't be that way, my dear."

The energy around them sparkled even more furiously. One particular bolt burnt a good portion of his arm.

He sighed. "Oh well… It was worth a shot. But I guess that this isn't going to get my any favors… so…" Naraku grinned wickedly. "Then I guess I'll just have to do this by force!"

He began to raise his arm, but stopped when he heard a voice call out, "Naraku! Come outta here, ya coward! FIGHT ME!"

He whipped around. Inuyasha! he thought with a growl. But… He wasn't supposed to be allowed in here! My newest incarnations were supposed to buy me some time! Why— The scents reached his nose. Hnn… I miscalculated… I didn't expect that they would come here, too…

He spun back around and snarled, frustrated. "Well, Midoriko, time is short. So I have to make this quick."

Naraku leapt into the air and, with a quick slash of his hand, shot out a large, golden attack at the corpses.

Just then, Inuyasha bounded out angrily from the shadows and was about to continue shouting, but was cut off when he saw Naraku's body begin to mutate.

"Inuyasha, it's been fun, but I have to take my leave." Naraku, in his newly-mutated stated, flew out at a stunning speed out of the cave and out of sight in a matter of seconds.

Just then, the entire cave began to glow and the ground shook violently. "Wha—wha…?"

Inuyasha leapt out of the cave as fast as he could, dragging the rest of the group with him.

"What's going on?" Kagome cried.

Suddenly, the cave behind them collapsed. The surroundings continued to quake uncontrollably as a bright light covered the bodies, almost like a barrier. Everyone watched in a mix of shock, horror, awe, and confusion as lights swirled around the area of the gravesite.

"Time…"

"Space…"

"Everything…"

"Nothing…"

"The world…"

"The universe…"

"The rulers…"

"The peasants…"

"The war…"

"The peace…"

"The love…"

"The hate…"

"Shikon…"

A light brighter than anything than any of them had ever seen erupted, and they all recoiled in shock. Without warning, the lights shot up into the sky and disappeared.

They were snapped out of their trance when they heard soft footsteps. Blinking, they watched as a little girl walked in the rubble of what used to be Midoriko's Cave it total silence. At some point, she got to a particular spot, kneeled down, and began to dig with her hands until she uncovered a good portion of Midoriko's face. She rested one hand on her face.

"You have served this world well," the strange girl murmured. "But you no longer have need to carry your burden."

A sigh seemed to echo through the air, and Midoriko's body dissipated and glided away into the breeze. She stood up, still staring at the place Midoriko's body had been. "So… the day has finally come…"

The child turned around to face the group. "Hello." Her voice was blank and robotic. "I am sorry for intruding."

She turned back away from them. Looking up at the top of the mountain the cave had been part of, she called gently, "You can come down now."

A figure fell down on to the ground with a THUD, stirring up an explosion of dust. When the dust cleared, a man wearing a blue robe with silver hair stood up with a smirk. "Yo."

Immediately, Inuyasha was on guard. He shoved Kagome behind him and raised his sword.

The person yawned and said, "Now, now, sheesh, no need to be so cold." Then, he got a strange expression on his face and raised his hands—which the group immediately noticed had claws—and began scratching intensely at the top of his head.

After a moment, a pair of dog ears sprung up from his head. He sighed and dropped his hands, looking relieved. "Aahh… That's better."

"You- you- you- you're- you're an Inuhanyou*!"

He grinned rakishly. "Ya. So?"

Inuyasha, obviously having had enough, demanded, "Oi! Who are you?"

The girl spoke, everyone a little caught off guard since she hadn't said anything during their exchange. "My apologies. You're right. How rude of me. I suppose we should introduce ourselves."

The Inuhanyou stepped forward, grin as wide as ever. "'Sup. The name's Puro. Inuhanyou, Lord of the Eastern Lands' son."

He put his hand lightly behind the little girl's back and gave her a gentle shove forward. He beamed as he said, patting his hand on her small head, "And I guess it's about time ya met the reincarnation of the Sacred Jewel's maker." He turned to the little girl and began nudging her playfully and rubbing her hair. "I'd like ya to meet Mikauri."

=_= You can give me hate comments if you want… I probably deserve them… Sorry for being such a bad author.

BUT IT IS NOT MY FAULT!

(You know what, I'll just stop now.)

Okay. So, does this chapter spark anyone's curiosity? Yes? No? Maybe? :/

Aaaaaaaanyyyyywaaaaayyyyy… I will probably change the summary… maybe even before this update reaches your email accounts… So don't be surprised… _ But DON'T WORRY! The story is STILL gonna be here! Just gonna be taking a slightly different direction from here on out. :D

*From now on, since I'm getting slightly used to all the Japanese terms that people said are from the anime, I will be using BOTH Japanese AND English terms for this story.

Chapter's Question: Look back to the end of last chapter. Who's nickname is "the Void"? (I would give you an episode… but I can't find it anywhere… sorry…)

Last chapter's winners: xXxAddicted2ChocolatexXx

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