A New Leaf
Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. I hope you all enjoy this chapter.
Chapter 9
A month had passed since that wretched human had taken Midori's eye and in that month, she had made real progress. Her people were now targeting Japan. Unfortunately, it was very hard to move an entire army.
"What is the latest news from the front?" She looks at Tenji.
Which meant they had to be smart about this. They were attacking small villages, burning crops, and poisoning wells. Small things like these could make a big difference. Even the mightiest army was powerless without food and water.
Tenji looks at her. "We've poisoned the water sources of five villages this past week." Good. Good. "Human and demon villages alike. There should be must unrest starting in the Western Lands by now."
It was a start. It would take more than that to bring someone like Sesshomaru to heal. Truly, Midori had originally envisioned him as being perhaps her greatest ally in this noble crusade, but alas it was not to be.
All because of that human. Damn her. What was it about that pathetic creature that brought out Sesshomaru's paternal instincts, anyway? Midori could see nothing special about her. Well other than the bitch apparently had excellent aim for a human.
"Good." She could hear screams in the distance.
The sound of screams and the scent of smoke. They were burning another village. This wasn't how Midori had wanted things to go, but she would do what was necessary to save her people.
They should have joined with her willingly. Didn't the demons of his country understand what was happening? The humans were growing more numerous and their weapons were growing stronger.
Sooner or later, a clash was inevitable. It was important to strike while they still had a chance of victory. If they delay for too long, all would be lost.
He nods at that. "Unfortunately, there has been a complication." A complication? What complication?
"What complication?" She could feel a growl forming in her throat.
The more complications there were, the harder it would be to achieve victory. Why couldn't anything ever go smoothly?
Tenji sighs and looks at his feet. "Lord Sesshomaru's mother has entered the fray." Wonderful. That was the last thing they needed.
Sesshomaru was now physically stronger than her and he was younger, but Lady Inukimi was a shrewd one. Her ruthless cunning made Sesshomaru seem almost 'kind' in comparison.
"And what did she do?" Because Midori knew that the woman had done something.
Tenji warily glances around. It was as if the man was thinking about running. Obviously, Inukimi had done something suitably horrible.
The fact that her advisor wasn't answering Midori made her even angrier. "I don't like repeating myself." That growl that had been halfway formed in her throat was now audible. "What did she do?"
"She had her army lay siege to some of our ships and they were carrying infected blankets with them." Infected blankets? What madness was this. "That had been wrapped around recently dead humans. They had died from an outbreak."
She did what?! That woman actually destroyed some of her ships and had made some of Midori's soldiers sick?! How absolutely vile. Midori could now see where Sesshomaru got his charming personality from.
Something would have to be done about this. "How many ships and soldiers did we lose?" Clearly, a lot.
They must have lost a lot of people. Otherwise, Tenji would not be this nervous. That scheming shrew!
"We lost about two dozen ships and fifty demons have perished with many more sick." His voice was barely above a whisper, but Midori heard it.
She wished that she didn't hear it, but she did. So the Inu did the only thing that she could do in a situation like this. She slams her fist into a tree and absolutely crushes it.
"We'll send for more then." As long as Inukimi hadn't sunk all their ships, they could always send for more.
It would set them back more. The ships would need to be made ready and the journey needed to be made. Not only that, but the soldiers and the like would need time to prepare as well.
He bows to her. "Yes, My Lady." It wasn't Tenji's fault and she knew that.
That was why Midori had taken her anger out on the innocent tree. Tenji was still too useful to kill. Though he was rapidly testing her patience on some days.
"Good." That was the last straw. "I want you to send for a thousand ships." They'd take Japan by force.
They'd force the demons to submit and then after that, they would restore the natural order of things. Humans were not meant to rule the world. That was their job.
Humans used to be annoying insects. They were far too weak to be a threat, unless they swarmed you. Now, that was changing. It was changing far too rapidly for her likely.
"A t-thousand ships, My Lady?!" Tenji looks at her in shock.
This was the time to act. She wouldn't let any other pup go through what she had. This was her kind's last stand.
Other demons might not know that yet, but she did. Midori knew it in her bones. She could feel it in her very soul. This was a war that they couldn't afford to lose or it would spell their doom.
She nods at him. "Yes, a thousand and as quickly as possible." The best way to overtake this island was to launch an all out assault. They simply no longer had time to do it the slow way.
Midori's original plan had been to weaken it by striking strategic locations. With Inukimi involved though, that was no longer possible. She was a clever one. Midori would give her that, but not clever enough…
"As you wish, Lady Midori." Tenji bows, once more and quickly scurries off.
She could tell that he thought she was mad. Maybe, Tenji was correct about that. It didn't matter though. This had to be done though for the sake of demons everywhere.
Rin blushes as Sasuke tries to show her the proper way to grip a sword. "You don't want to grip it too gently or too tightly." She wasn't sure why, but when he said things like that…it conjured up very forbidden images. "If you're too gentle, it will slip out of your hand. Too firm and it will hurt." Yes, Rin imagined that was the case.
Maybe, it was because he had saved her. That or because Sasuke had always been so patient with her when teaching her about this strange magic he called chakra and these strange spells he called Jutsus. She wasn't sure, but Rin knew that she had never really reacted to someone this way before.
"I think I understand." He wasn't her husband or her lover though.
Rin knew that much, but she liked to believe that they were something more than friends. What that was, the flower lover wasn't really sure. More than friends, but not lovers. They weren't even courting. Not really.
"Good." He smiles at her. "Why don't you show me then?" He takes his hands away from her own.
His hands had been on top of hers. As soon as he removed his, Rin missed the warmth they provided her with. She had never met someone with such rough and warm hands before, but the young woman liked it.
She liked it more than she should really. Thank goodness that Lord Sesshomaru seemed to like Sasuke. Well he seemed to like Sasuke as much as he ever liked anyone who wasn't her or Kagura, anyway.
She smiles at Sasuke and grips the sword. "Alright." Sesshomaru took awhile to warm up to people, but he and Sasuke seemed to get along well enough.
She wouldn't call them friends, but Lord Sesshomaru was very curious about Sasuke's Jutsus. Particularly the Amaterasu and Chidori. Unfortunately, the Amaterasu could only be performed by people with something called a Mangekyo Sharingan.
Rin didn't really understand what that meant. Not entirely, anyway. Something about his family having special eyes. Sesshomaru wasn't happy about being told he couldn't do something, but it looked like her lord had finally accepted that he would never be able to produce those black flames.
"Very good." Sasuke nods approvingly at her as Rin begins swinging the sword around.
She wanted to test it. A dagger and a kunai was far lighter than this thing. That much Rin knew for sure. Though a sword was supposed to have more power to it.
That's why Rin wanted to learn how to use one. Midori was going to be coming back soon. She just knew it.
The young woman wasn't a warrior, but she wasn't deaf. "Not bad. Your balance is better than most beginners." She could hear the whispers that the servants were engaging in.
The burned villages. The poisoned wells. The small battles that were breaking out here and there. Midori was testing the waters and Rin wanted to be ready when the woman finally played her full hand.
"Thanks." So that meant she had been training with Sasuke and Sesshomaru every day.
There were even days when Lady Kagura would try to train her. Unfortunately, Rin couldn't really do wind attacks. Still, the woman was rather good at teaching her where to strike her opponent and it was better to go over such things than to be idle.
Being idle was only going to drive Rin crazy at this rate. She didn't know what she would do, if it wasn't for Sesshomaru, Sasuke, and Kagura.
"I never thought that I would see the day when Rin was wielding a sword." Sesshomaru chuckles as he watches from the entrance to the palace.
He could see Sasuke and Rin training, but they couldn't really see him. Their attention was on each other. Which was just as well. Sesshomaru wasn't certain how his mother would react to Sasuke and she had lukewarm feelings towards Rin at the best of times.
Inukimi raises an eyebrow as she watches. "Her form is decent, but she's too new to swordsmanship to have any prayer of taking on someone like Midori." That was true, but it was something.
Any little thing that he, Sasuke, or Kagura could teach Rin before the final battle was a good thing in Sesshomaru's mind. Even if such tricks would only buy the woman precious seconds, sometimes that was all that was needed to mean the difference between life and death.
"True, but we're doing what we can." He glances at his mother. "You say that you've targeted her ship and that some of her soldiers are now sick due to the infected blankets your people threw at them?"
His mother was very tactical. Had the woman not given birth to him, Sesshomaru would have found himself rather wary of her. There was almost nothing that Lady Inukimi wasn't capable of.
She nods in response. "That I did." The proud demoness sighs as she watches Rin swing around her sword.
"Good." It wouldn't be enough to stop her. "I imagine that she's furious now."
His mother nods in agreement. She knew that as well as he did. It was likely that Inukimi knew what was coming next.
Midori was likely going to lash out in a rage. "Most likely." The other Inu nods her head in agreement. "We will be ready for her though. This is our home." Indeed it was. "I'm not going to let some upstart pup take it from us." Good because never was he.
"Swing with your wrist." He vaguely hears Sasuke instruct Rin.
The man was a surprisingly good teacher. The Inu Lord had to give him that much. He was patient with Rin and as far as the snowy haired demon could tell, Sasuke had never behaved inappropriately towards her.
He wasn't a fool though. Sesshomaru might not have played much at finding a Mate, but he knew desire when he saw it and the demon certainly knew it when he smelled it. Sasuke was attracted to Rin and the feeling appeared to be mutual.
Sesshomaru was undecided, if he should encourage such a thing or not. Sasuke had another home. One that it seemed like he wanted to return to, but his feelings for Rin had kept him rooted here for now. How long would that last?
"How long have they been at it?" Kagura smiles as she strides towards them.
Kagura was skittish around his mother. Probably because the woman wasn't an idiot. Lady Inukimi was a dangerous woman. It didn't matter what your species or station was. She was not one to trifle with and everyone knew that, even Midori to some extent.
Sesshomaru turns his gaze towards her. "I'd say the better part of two hours so far." So Rin's progress was something of a marvel.
Hopefully, he would stay. Rin was going to need a Mate or husband at some point. Being pursued by a demon would only end in heartbreak for the demon though and humans tended to be too fragile for Sesshomaru's taste.
Sasuke in that respect was in theory the best of both worlds. The same lifespan, but with enough strength to rival demons. He could be a good match. If only there wasn't a war looming on the horizon, Sesshomaru would more thoroughly vet him.
After all, Rin was his only ward. "Well that's good." Kagura nods as Sesshomaru continues his internal debate. He couldn't hand her off to just anyone. That much he knew for certain.
He was getting way too attached to her. Sasuke knew that. He wasn't stupid. Whatever he felt for Rin was dangerous.
It was just hard not to like her. The woman was so kind and sweet. So damn innocent and pure and yet, she had thrown a kunai into the eye of Midori without any hesitation.
"Am I doing this right?" She smiles at Sasuke as she swings the blade around faster and faster.
Oh boy. Though her playful nature might get her in trouble. "If you had an opponent, sure. Be careful though." The woman might end up putting her own eye out at this rate.
Still, she was fast and agile. Rin was also clearly strong enough to hold up a sword. She was in a better position than most Academy Students would have been. Sasuke just worried that it wouldn't be enough.
Could he really save her? He didn't know. That Lady Midori was going to be targeting Rin specifically and that was more than a little frightening. This was the woman had had kindly tended to a stranger's wounds. She didn't deserve to be caught up in this.
Whatever this was. Some kind of war, he supposed. Why was it that no matter where he went, there was always conflict?
It seemed as though human and demon nature really weren't that different. "I will." They were both capable of love and hatred. It was just more often than not, hatred won out.
He knew that was a pessimistic view of the world, but that was what Sasuke had seen. "Very good posture though." Sometimes though, he could watch Rin train and think that maybe things would be alright.
If nothing else, he admired the view greatly. The curve of her hips. The way her tightly bound breasts would jiggle slightly underneath that kimono and her hair would pillow around her as if it was as crown of sorts and those legs. Those legs were starting to haunt his dreams far more than could really be considered healthy.
"Thank you." That's when Jaken interprets his little daydream and comes screaming into the courtyard.
"LORD SESSSHOMARU! LORD SESSHOMARU!" The imp was now screaming bloody murder and Sasuke knew precisely what that meant. "THERE IS A BATTLE RAGING NEARBY!" Lady Midori was making a major move and it was up to them to stop her.
Kagura's eyes narrow when she sees Jaken coming running. So it had finally happened. The Chinese Witch had made a serious move against them.
The woman must be out of her mind to attack in the heart of Sesshomaru's territory. He was going to tear that one eyed wrench to pieces. She had made it out of the last battle alive, but Kagura knew that wouldn't happen this time.
This time, Sesshomaru was out for blood as he strides towards Jaken and meets him halfway through the courtyard. "Jaken, tell me what has happened at once." She could see it.
The very air around them felt colder somehow. His demonic energy was at once, perfectly calm and spiraling into a rage.
It didn't look as though his Inner Demon was about to take over anytime soon, but Kagura could see it. Lord Fluffy was very, very angry. Gone was the slightly sarcastic and surprisingly caring demon she had known. He had been replaced by a ruthless demon.
"I know what you're thinking." Inukimi glances at her. "And you're right. Before the fortnight ends, I fully expect to see her head sitting upon a pike or on a silver platter."
Kagura could only nod and hope that Sesshomaru's mother was right. While the woman certainly made her feel uneasy, the Wind Mistress also knew that in her own way she cared for her son. She wouldn't have brought Rin back, if she didn't.
"Midori's people are attacking a nearby village, My Lord!" The toad demon's eyes were bulging with panic and for good reason.
This was serious. "Very well. I shall put an end to this." He strides over to Sasuke. "I want you to stay with Rin at all times and Kagura, that also applies to you." He turns his gaze back towards his mother. "Mother, you are in charge of the castle while I deal with this."
"Don't worry." Inukimi nods. "I shall ensure that no harm befalls the Western Castle." And if nothing else, Kagura knew the woman meant that.
She was a proud woman. Inukimi was. She was also still technically the Lady of the West. It was going to take nothing short of an act of the Gods and Goddesses to get by this woman while Sesshomaru was gone.
"Thank you." Sesshomaru sighs and briefly embraces Rin. "Stay safe." With that being said, he immediately summons an orb of green light and gets into it.
The light ascends into the sky and Kagura watches with baited breath. Sesshomaru was heading to the battlefield and he wanted her to stay behind. To stay behind and ensure that Rin was kept safe.
She should be going with him. Kagura was a Wind Sorceress. The raven haired demoenss could more than hold her own in battle. Sesshomaru might need help and yet, he had given her an order. For now, she wouldn't disobey it.
"Come inside." Sesshomaru's mother's voice rings throughout the courtyard. "We need to inform everyone else of what is going on and mount the necessary defenses."
Yes, that was right. If Lady Midori was crazy enough to attack a village that near to the castle, she might be crazy enough to attempt a siege. At the moment, Kagura truly wouldn't put anything past the one eyed witch. '
"Coming!" Rin quickly bonds over to Lady Inukimi and Sasuke wasn't far behind.
The imp was still watching the green light fly ever higher and faster into the sky. "JAKEN!" Clearly, Lady Inukimi was not in the mood to let him stand around all day though. "I said that we have to come inside and begin preparing our defenses. My son left me in charge and that means you will do as I say."
Jaken immediately rushes over to her. "I'm sorry, My Lady." He bows quickly and several times. "It's just that this is all so unbelievable. That woman actually has the audacity to take on all of Japan?"
For once, Kagura couldn't really blame Jaken. She was just as stunned as he was. Unfortunately, they didn't have time to sit around and gape at Lady Midori's insanity. They had to prepare.
"Yes, she does." Rin sighs sadly. "I should have stabbed her in the heart instead of in the eye."
Lady Inukimi smirks at that and nods at Sasuke approvingly. "You're a good influence on this girl." Which frankly disturbed Kagura. "Finally, she's beginning to understand things. In our world, it is kill or be killed." Oh boy.
Great. Now, Lady Inukimi was probably getting strange ideas into her head. Strange ideas about Rin being some kind of warrior. Honestly, the girl needed to learn self-defense, but she loved playing with flowers…not stabbing people to death. Unfortunately though, it seemed as though the latter task had just become something of a necessity.
