hello dearies! due to some major real life events, nichiki will be absent for a little while and i will be picking it up on my own until she is able to return. sorry for the late update, but hopefully i can get right back into it

...

Kaede peered over the scroll that Kagome and Inuyasha had brought her. The two were convinced that in this ancient text was a clue to help them solve the current jewel problem they were having now. It was very old, and felt like it would crumble in her hands. But the language was extinct it looked like, very archaic. She had never seen anything like it before. She frowned as her eyes rolled over each letter, word. Here lied the clues they needed but there was no way for her to figure it out. The would need someone who had lived much longer, and so far the only person she knew of would be Sesshoumaru himself. If the demon would just tell them what's going on then they wouldn't have to resort to this.

"I'm sorry, but this is beyond my years," said Kaede, defeated.

"Whaddya mean beyond your years?!" exclaimed Inuyasha.

"It was written long before my time, long before anyone I know. Ye have better luck seeking out a demon of the time."

"A demon of that time?" inquired Sango.

Kaede nodded, "A demon much older than Inuyasha might suffice."

"Let me guess, a demon like Sesshoumaru," said Miroku, deep in thought.

Inuyasha scoffed, hating that it just pointed back to his full demon brother. Their last encounter with him was not so positive. All he really said was that this demon was powerful and he needed help killing it. Who was the mystery warrior? And why was Sesshoumaru so secretive about it? The only way to find out would be to ask the hayou, wherever the bastard went.

"A demon of his age, yes."

"Inuyasha, do you know any?" asked Shippo.

"None come to mind," he said angrily. Kagome looked at him with concern in her eyes.

"Then it appears we'll have to enlist his help, despite our feelings towards it," said Miroku. His words echoed in the minds of the others, the room silent and ominous. No one really wanted to involve the demon, simply because they could never really be sure of what side he was really on. However from what he was saying, it was doubtful they could do it alone. If only they knew who had helped him, then it would be easy to bypass the uneasy task of trying to get help from the hayou.

Inuyasha's ears twitched, and he was suddenly very alert. He shot to his feet, stepping outside, concentrating. It was faint, almost like it was trying to be hidden, but it was there, no doubt about it. It felt similar to when he left Kagome's temple. He narrowed his eyes in suspicion. There really were demons there, and they found the well. This was not a coincidence with what was happening, someone was trying to find something, maybe Kagome. Multiple someone's, and demons at that. Demons that had gone to the other side without using the well. Powerful demons, demons that he would probably need help fighting.

"What is it Inu?" asked Kagome, joining him at his side.

"Some very powerful demons crossed over from the well," he spoke carefully, trying to pin point where they had gone.

"There were demons from Kagome's time?" asked Sango.

"Maybe. It's power I can't get yet. They're masking it."

"Probably best we follow them," suggested Miroku.

"I can try to track them, but they're long gone now. One thing's for sure, if they were after Kagome like I had thought then they would have been here by now."

"Or maybe they are here, and we just can't see them. If you say they can mask their power, then we're blind."

Inuyasha growled, not liking this one bit, "Everyone stay on guard. Once nightfall hits we'll go find my stupid brother and end this once and for all."

...

Sesshoumaru came to the edge of the forest he used to dwell in. Centuries had passed since he lived here, he deliberately avoided it since the very last time he was in here. His golden eyes hardening, he walked inside the tree cover. He could instantly tell that everything was as he left it. He could smell corpses rotting from idiots trying to defy the sanctity of this place, but he was indifferent to all of that. With the moon's glow guiding his footsteps, he walked towards the edge of the cliff line, stopping in a very familiar and specific spot. There was no evidence that anyone had been there in years, the overgrow on the forest floor a clear indication of that.

The memories washed over him, reminding him of all the feelings transpired and thought to be gone. But they were fresh as if it had all happened merely an hour ago. He wasn't going to bring her back into this, he would keep her identity a secret. Besides, it was rumoured that she wasn't even in this world anymore, that she had perished decades ago. He wasn't one to believe in rumours, but he would cling to this one if it meant that he didn't have to see her again. He was much more powerful now than last time, he was sure he wouldn't need her help again.

As he left that spot, her image forced itself upon his mind. Despite how much he hated it, there was always a small portion of him that thought of her, that kept him awake once in a while in speculation of her fate. But that was so long ago, there was no need to go poking around in the past. He defeated that enemy once, he could easily do so again. Perhaps his half demon brother would prove more useful, the sword at his side a very powerful weapon. Once he was out of the forest, he summoned his cloud, having it gently lift him into the night sky. An ominous wind blew, and with it brought a very sweet and powerful scent among it. He stopped dead in his tracks, looking in the direction it was coming from. He frowned slightly, though he was starting to get lightheaded as another fresh whiff caught in his nostrils. There was no doubt about it this time, it was certain. Still, he couldn't believe it, Moriko Chie had returned to this part of the world.

But what was she doing here? This was no longer a coincidence. Her return at this moment just ensured the fate he had predicted for himself. Wherever she was, she must have sensed the return. This only meant he had to speed up his quest to seal the evil. He was not going to involve her, whether she was here or not. He couldn't look upon those tawny eyes, not again. His face set, he knew that the best and quickest way to seal the evil that was released would be to enlist the miko and find all the jewel shards. The fact that the jewel had shattered, the seal on the evil was broken and Moriko had returned were not just a coincidence. He knew better than to simply find his foe, that would surely guarantee his death. No, he had to work with his half human brother. Use the miko to find the shards, and then kill the evil beast once and for all. And he had to do it quick, or else his path would cross once more with Moriko.

...

"Inuyasha, how do you know you can find him?" asked Kagome, yawning for umpteenth time. She wasn't quite sure they had to search for him at night.

"'Cause he likes to sneak around. Best time to do that is at night," replied Inuyasha, annoyed. He didn't like the idea of being near his full demon brother at any time ever. But it appeared they wouldn't have a choice in the matter.

"It would be best to keep our eyes to the sky. He travels frequently on his cloud," said Miroku, hoping to ease some of the tension.

"There is no need, Monk, I am here," Sesshoumaru spoke, coming to land in front of them gently.

Inuyasha growled, "How convenient," he said dryly, "Okay Sesshoumaru, no more games! Tell us what you know and what to do about it!"

Sesshoumaru's expression of intensity did not change as his younger half brother yelled at him. He could still smell her, which was a huge distraction in the back of my mind. He couldn't pinpoint the exact location, she was hiding herself, and she was with others. But that was of no matter.

"We have no time for talk, only action. Find Naraku, we find the source of the disturbance," said the full demon.

"You won't have much luck finding Naraku until he reveals himself," said Myoga. The flea was perched on Inuyasha's shoulder, surprising all of them with his appearance.

"Myoga!" exclaimed Kagome.

"I came as soon as I heard that Naraku walked in the world of the living once more. He's already causing devastation throughout the land."

"But he's not working alone," said Miroku.

"That's right. Inuyasha said that there were two other scents he didn't recognize along with Naraku's in Midoriko's cave," said Sango.

"One of which, Sesshoumaru has battled before."

"And the bastard won't tell us anything!" said Inuyasha.

"There's nothing to tell. We find the shards of your jewel which lead us to Naraku and the source of this evil," said Sesshoumaru coldly.

Inuyasha growled while the others flinched visibly at the intensity of the full demon's voice. Kagome saw something, something she couldn't quite pinpoint. It was the same thing she saw when they had spoken before. He was angry, that was for sure, but there was something else. What was it? What was he hiding? He appeared to feel very strongly about it. Perhaps it was admitting that he was almost defeated, wounding his own pride. What else could it be? She sighed, continuing to try and study him for any more information she could get out of him.

"Sesshoumaru is right," said Miroku, "Naraku specifically came back for the jewel, which means that because it is shattered he will be searching for the shards. We should be doing the same and beat him to the punch.

Inuyasha wasn't happy about that answer, but he turned his back and started leading them away from the area. The rest of the party followed, except for demon lord. He looked up into the moon, vaguely wondering where she was. He was hoping that his journey here with these people wouldn't lead him anywhere near her. He tore his golden gaze away from the moon, proceeding forward, guided by the miko towards what he was hoping was a jewel shard. But then he stopped. He would need to locate Jaken and Rin, to ensure that the two of them would not be used against him in battle. He summoned his cloud then, taking off unnoticed into the night.

...

"WHERE DID THAT BASTARD GO!?" demanded Inuyasha. The party had been walking for a while, but had just noticed Sesshoumaru's absence. It was strange since it was his idea to start looking for jewel shards. But ever since this whole situation was spilled on their lap, even the demon lord was acting more odd than he usually was. His direct involvement with the demon of his past made it so. But they had never seen them like this. Come to think of it they had never seen him show any kind of emotion besides annoyance and indifference.

"He seems to have his own agenda," said Miroku.

"Sesshoumaru will be back," said Myoga.

"What are you doing here anyway, Myoga?" asked Inuyasha in annoyance.

"I had heard that Naraku was back from the grave and immediately sought you out to assist you Lord Inuyasha."

"You know there's danger on this road right?"

"But of course! I will serve as your guide."

"Until the going gets tough," said Kagome dryly to Sango. But then Kagome blinked, "There's a jewel shard nearby."

"Which way wench?" asked Inuyasha, looking happy to spring to action.

"This way!" she shouted, running South.

The others followed her, not wanting her to run straight into danger. She ran into a forest nearby, Inuyasha easily catching up with her. She hopped on his back and directed him forward. The hanyo narrowed his eyes, sensing the demon energy not too far away. He caught a scent, but did not recognize it. It wasn't those demons that came through the well, so at least he wouldn't have to worry about that kind of power. Finally, they saw the demon they were looking for, stopping just before they were visible. Inuyasha growled, the stench of this demon very vulgar indeed.

Before them was a small yokai, with very pale skin. He was short, old looking, with long grey hair and very evil eyes. But what made him stop was seeing his arm extended and piercing a very ugly ogre looking demon. They watched as this ugly demon died instantly, and lost a jewel shard.

"That's three shards," said Kagome quietly.

Inuyasha growled, letting Kagome down and holding onto his sword. The others were mostly in awe of the strange human looking demon that killed in such cold blood. But not the dog demon, he knew this stench.

"Who are you?!" Miroku demanded.

"Who cares, he was one of the demons in the cave. Just tell me where Naraku is," said Inuyasha, narrowing his eyes.

The demon before them just laughed, a sickly laugh, one of only pure evil. It make Kagome shudder, which did not go unnoticed by Inuyasha. The tension was thick, as the rest of them were waiting, ready to make a move towards their weapons. They've already seen what can be done, and it would be hard to counter without a warning. The demon just stared at them with that evil grin, the jewel shards shining, almost as if they were taunting them.

"Why have you destroyed the shikon jewel?!" asked Kagome, her body shaking with rage.

"Destroying it was never the plan. I just wanted to take it to get some attention," said the demon.

"Give me back the shards!"

The demon laughed, "Sure, you can have them," and he extended his fingers, three of them with three shards piercing Kagome's right arm.

"Kagome!" yelled Inuyasha as the human girl screamed in agony. Inuyasha unsheathed his sword, chopping off connection. All the while the demon laughed as Inuyahsa's vision filled with rage at the smell of Kagome's blood, "Wind scar!" he yelled. The blade at his hand expelled the devastating wind scar attack, making a direct hit with the demon before them. When the smoke cleared they gasped, seeing there were three of the same demon, yet none of them were substantial.

They heard that sickly laughter yet again, "So that's the wind scar. I must say it's nothing like I've ever seen before. Too bad it's as useless as every other attack you can come up with," they watched in horror as the three fake demons deflated and then returned to their master, making evident that Inuyasha's attack was barely a scratch among the surface.

"Impossible!" yelled Sango, her eyes wild with disbelief.

"I am Toguro," he laughed, "I will be the last thing you see before your death," he laughed violently, as he once again extended his arms towards Kagome, retrieving the shards he placed there and then taking off with Naraku's demon insects. The faint laughter was all they had heard in the distance as they watched him disappeared.

Inuyasha was shaking, his anger overcoming him. He was about to follow when he caught a fresh whiff of Kagome's blood. Putting a lid on his rage, he sheathed his sword and came to look at her.

"Are you alright?" he asked, lifting her arm gingerly towards him.

"I'll be fine, it doesn't hurt that much. I was just shocked more than anything," she replied, trying to give him an assuring smile.

He helped her take her bag off of her back so she could rummage through it, looking for her first aid kit.

"So that was one of the three demons in the cave?" asked Sango.

"Yeah. I'd recognize that rotten stench anywhere."

"So Toguro, Naraku and a mysterious third demon that Sesshomaru has faced before. They storm the cave, shattering the barrier, the stalagmite and the jewel," mused Miroku.

"The combination of evil must have forced the jewel to shatter once they broke the barrier. He said that the jewel was never meant to be shattered," said Kagome.

"That's right, but the jewel would refuse all that evil since its been purified," Sango agreed.

"Keh. Who cares? Let's just find those jokers and put an end to them," said Inuyasha, as he kept his gaze upon Kagome. Sango was helping her apply bandages now.

"Have you been able to pinpoint the scent now that you've come face to face with Toguro?" asked Miroku.

Inuyasha shook his head, "No, they're hiding it. They don't want to be found right now."

"If they're looking for jewel shards then it seems they want to do it quietly. That isn't much like Naraku's style," said Miroku.

"From the sounds of things, I don't think Naraku is calling the shots. It must be the demon Sesshomaru faced in charge. The power he spoke of was much more than anything he had encountered before," said Sango.

"Had Sesshomaru had the chance to fight Naraku one on one I'm sure he would have won. But Naraku resorts to dirty tricks to win, and knew he had to in order to defeat not only Sesshomaru but Inuyasha," said Myoga.

"So we can guarantee that Naraku will be out to get revenge on us, and he'll be resorting to his usual tricks," said Miroku.

"Let him. I'll kill every last one of them," said Inuyasha, the demon in him shining brightly despite not being in true demon form. The same ominous win blew, making his words echo into the wind.

...

thanks so much! i'll try and get these out as much as i can!