Disclaimer and warning: I don't own anything from this story but the plotline. Inuyasha and Naruto characters belong to other people, not me. I write for the fun of it and if you don't like my work just remember that I'm not making you read this. Please keep flames to yourself. Compliments are welcome. Criticism is a little pointless because I'm not going to go back and edit anything in this.

Please enjoy the fruits of my labour.

Chapter 11

Naruto and the Baby-bag

"Kagome?" Sakura interrupted her friend's thoughts.

"Hm?" Kagome looked up, blinking her large blue eyes.

"I asked if something was wrong. You've been zoning out all day,"

"Oh, nothing's wrong, with me at least," She smiled and checked how many bottles she had prepared for Nishiko, "I just have this strange feeling that Hatake-san will be coming back soon," her smile faded into a worried frown.

"Worried about him?" Sakura asked lightly. Kagome smiled ruefully and nodded.

"Silly of me. He's a grown man and in most cases I wouldn't be so worried, after all he is trained as a shinobi and I've heard he's pretty good,"

"He's one of the best," the pink-haired medicnin apprentice boasted.

Kagome's sad facsimile of a smile grew a fraction, "But he's trained to fight against other humans. Youkai are another case entirely,"

"But you said you gave him that sword of yours, right? The one that you always had propped up in the corner of your apartment?"

"True," Kagome conceded, "But I don't know if it will do him any good. After all, all Sesshoumaru told be when he gave it to me was that I was to give it to the one I trusted enough to protect me… for the rest of my life," she trailed off slowly, thoughtfully. "I trust Sesshoumaru that he would have all the bases covered but sometimes I'd like to know just what is going on."

Sakura rested a hesitantly comforting hand on Kagome's shoulder. Hesitant because Kagome sometimes radiated emotions though her aura that could be picked up though touch. Most of the time that was no problem but Sakura was unsure what was running through her friend's head and heart at the moment.

Kagome looked up into the tender eyes of Sakura, startled by the unexpected touch. Automatically she shoved down her worry so she would not project. She focused herself and concentrated on raising up her positive outlook on life. It was a well-practiced move since Kagome had no desire to alert her family to the great burden that was wearing on her very soul.

"I guess I'll just have to trust that Hogosha aids Kakashi well and that either Sesshoumaru, Shippou-kun or Taisho-sama will watch his back and make sure he come back in one piece," she smiled brightly, the vision of trust and confidence.

"Hogosha?" Sakura quirked an eyebrow, "That the sword? Appropriate name,"

"That's what I thought when I saw the seal on the pommel. I guess between Sesshoumaru and Totosai they actually settled on a name that's not a terrible mouthful and sounds so cliché," Kagome laughed.

"True," Sakura nodded, "Nice and to the point,"

"A sword that protects. Hogosha, the protector," Kagome smiled fondly and stared down at Nishiko, sleeping peacefully in the crook of her arm. "Let it live up to its name and protect Kakashi as well as me," she whispered to the child.

Tsunade frowned at Naruto. Naruto stood across from her in front of her paper-covered desk. Even after all these years he hadn't managed to gain full control over how he presented himself. Just the way he was toeing the carpet was enough proof that he knew what something on what was going on, more than he had already let slip.

"And why is Kakashi not in the Village?" she repeated patiently.

"Because," Naruto hedged, not looking her in the eyes. Instead his gaze roamed the wall behind her. Nothing much to see there but it was better than having to face her deadly glare.

"Naruto." She growled dangerously.

"He's gone with Sesshoumaru-sama, Taisho-sama and …Takemoto-sama," the jinchuuriki grimaced. They had been at this for an hour. He had put up quite the fight. It wasn't his information to tell and Kakashi could get in a lot of trouble for not requesting permission to leave the Village for so long before he left.

"And why did Kakashi leave with three youkai?" Not once did her voice change from the deceptive calm Naruto found so very terrifying.

"To find the people that hired the shinobi to kidnap Kagome-sama," he said slowly, grimacing, "Hatsuharu-sama managed to get one of the shinobi to reveal who had hired them. Sesshoumaru-sama and him had planned on leaving by themselves but Taisho-sama wouldn't let them leave without her. Kakashi-sensei convinced them to let him come too," he had gotten this all from Kagome. She had known something was up when Taisho-sama asked her to care for little Nishiko the day after the child had been born. Kagome had, of course, demanded why Taisho-sama was leaving her child so soon after birth and, as Naruto had found out a couple weeks back when they had been talking about something – he couldn't remember – it was very hard to deny Kagome information when she put her mind to extracting it. It was the strangest thing he had ever experienced. She didn't raise her voice, life a finger or even narrow her eyes at him. But something about her aura demanded that he spill all. And spill all you would!

"And they let him?" Tsunade leaned forward in her chair, frowning, "But they're youkai…"

"Kagome gave him her sword. It's a powerful weapon. Kyuubi says he'd rather surrender before facing something with an aura like that,"

"An aura like what?"

Now it was Naruto's turn to frown as he turned inwards and consulted with his tenant. After several minutes of outward silence Naruto looked back up. "Kyuubi says that the sword is one of the rare, and very old, youkai swords. He says that there have only been a handful created and each have massive powers and a quirky personally to match. He says that the two extremes are a sword called So-unga which literally opens a portal from this world to Hell--"

Tsunade looked alarmed. "You're joking!"

"No," Naruto shook his head, "But Kyuubi says that it's been sealed for good in a place where no one can reach it until the end of the world,"

She nodded, taking the blond's word on the matter, "What about the other one?"

"The Tessaiga. It raises the dead. But apparently it's personality quirk is that the wielder, who has to be youkai, must feel compassion for the one he want to raise. Apparently, according to Kyuubi again, the only detailed record of all the most powerful youkai swords in youkai history can be found in the recounting of the legend of the Shikon,"

"And what about the one Kagome gave to Kakashi. What does the fox know about it?"

"He says… he says that he felt a very powerful seal on it and that beneath the seal was more power than he even dreamed of possessing even before he was sealed inside my body,"

Kakashi had drawn Kagome's sword and was twirling it idly. Time had not changed its flow as of yet but Shippou's eyes kept flicking back and forth between him and the guilty kitsune anyways.

"Why?" Shippou demanded harshly of the much younger youkai.

He scowled fiercely, hate and malice radiating off his aura in waves palpable even to the weaker senses of the only human present. "Because we need the power it grants!" he exclaimed, a strange light in his eyes, "Because those filthy humans dared seal our father away!"

"You're father is safer where he is now than he would be if he were free," Shippou snarled, reacting purely to the adolescent's aura.

"They sealed him inside one of their own children!" he spat, "The shame is unbearable and the dishonour to our family is too great."

"Shuuichi--" his younger sister looked alarmed.

"Would you rather take his place on trail?" Sesshoumaru asked coldly, hand on the hilt of tessaiga, which rested familiarly on his hip alongside tenseiga. "This Sesshoumaru will gladly allow you to take your father's place if you so desire,"

The youth stepped back, clearly picking up on the danger his Taiyoukai exuded. "What's so great about one human miko anyways? Their kind kill us all the time."

Kakashi had just about had enough but Shippou wasn't done yet.

"That was my mother, you piece of filth." He growled, "You dared attack one of the most powerful miko in the history of this world and you think she does not have allies close to her, of both races? You are a fool."

"She's still a miko! Sworn enemies of youkai!"

"Mediators!" Kakashi barked, his mind swimming with all the information Kagome had imparted to his about her fate, "Miko are mediators between youkai and humans, gifted with the power to protect the helpless against those that would prey upon them. How can she be the enemy of youkai if she raised a youkai son? If she is allied to your Taiyoukai? The only youkai whose lives I have seen or heard of her taking were those who had evil intent in their hearts." his eyes narrowed dangerously and the sword in his hands reacted, humming in tune. The air around the blade wavered strangely.

"Just so," Lady Taisho said coolly, "You have hired humans, a disgrace to your name, to do your dirty work. You wished harm on one of the worlds few pure souls." Her eyes narrowed and a spark lit up her eyes, "You have been found guilty by your own words and thoughts. Stand and be judged,"

Shuuichi growled. He pushed his siblings ruthlessly out of the way and fled into his forest.

"Hokage-sama wants to talk to me?" Kagome frowned, confused and in a little pain. She hadn't set Nishiko down in hours and her arms were starting to feel the strain. "Why?"

Naruto shrugged, "Dunno, but she was just drilling me on everything Kyuubi knew about your past, especially the youkai swords,"

"Youkai swords?" Kagome looked up sharply, "Why them?"

"I… uh," he scratched the back of his head nervously, "I let slip that you'd given your sword to Kakashi-sensei,"

Kagome groaned. No. She could not blame Naruto. It wasn't his fault. It wasn't like Hogosha was all that great a secret but there were some things that she just didn't want to get into right now when she was tired and her arms hurt as much as they did.

"Fine. I'll come with you and see Hokage-sama," she sighed and bent to scoop up her bag filled with baby-care supplies. Naruto, without a word, took it from her and shouldered the bag nonchalantly.

"I'll walk you,"

Tsunade frowned out of habit when Naruto entered with only one brief knock of warning. She frowned even more, in confusion this time, when she noticed a pastel pink and green striped bag sung over his shoulder. That was a baby-bag, she didn't even have to bet on that one, she knew it just by the style. What was Naruto doing with a baby-bag? Then Kagome came into view. Strange that she still could not sense the miko.

But what was Kagome doing with the youkai child?

"Hey Baa-chan," Naruto greeted brightly, "I brought Kagome-san,"

"Brat," the Hokage scowled at him for a second before giving Kagome a strained smile, "Kagome-san, please sit,"

"Hokage-sama," Kagome nodded, sitting, "Naruto-san lead me to believe you wished to know about youkai swords?"

"Among some other things," Tsunade nodded.

"What other things?"

"Things like what exactly it is you protect. A cursed jewel that grants youkai power, I know, but I don't want anymore piecemeal. I have a valuable jounin out fighting with youkai right now and I want to know the exact reasons that brought you to this Village."

Kagome regarded Tsunade with shuttered eyes. The Hokage stared back levelly. Naruto held his tongue, wisely not putting in his two cents. Experience had taught him it was best to stay on the sidelines for things like this.

"Do I have your word, Hokage-sama and Naruto-san, that what I tell you will reach the ears of no other living soul without the express permission from Sesshoumaru-sama, Shippou-kun or myself?" Kagome asked at last. Nishiko grimaced in her sleep, reacting unconsciously to the tension that crackled in the air. "If you promise then I swear I will tell you the true story of the Jewel of Four Souls and not the one I wrote five hundred years ago at Miroku-sama's asking."

"There's already a written record?" Tsunade blinked, distracted.

"Of course," Kagome frowned, "But it has been judiciously edited and romanticized. I purposefully left out many parts,"

"Wait," Naruto held up a hand, "You said you wrote it five hundred years ago?"

Kagome regarded him calmly, "Do you swear not to breath a word of this to anyone? Even under torture?"

"I swear," Naruto grinned.

"I do as well," Tsunade nodded, a little grudgingly.

Kagome took a deep breath and smoother her fingers over Nishiko's brow, calming the child before she woke. "Fine. Then let me being the tale of a miko, a jewel, her love, her enemy and the friends she made along her journey into her cursed destiny that started on her birthday…"

Kakashi blinked.

"Did he just run?" Shippou demanded, taken aback by the cowardly behavior of one of his own kind.

"He just ran!" Kakashi exploded. His grip tightened on the hilt of Kagome's sword and he was just about to sprint after the fleeing kitsune when Shippou held out his hand. "What are you doing?" he asked. Shippou grinned at him.

"Why waste your energy chasing him? The kit's in a forest and he's ticked off a master centuries his senior,"

"Shuuichi," the youngest kitsune child moaned, curling into the embrace of her eldest brother.

"He's the only one of you that got along with your father, is he not, child," Lady Taisho asked calmly. Both nodded.

"Rash, stubborn, impulsive, violent, near-sighted," Shuuichi's brother listed bitterly, looking away.

Kakashi noticed something strange happening to the forest. The air was still yet the leaves and greenery was swaying seductively. Shippou had his eyes closed and the fingers on his outstretched hand twitched chaotically in response to unseen stimuli. The kitsune siblings shivered as Shippou bared his fangs in glee.

"Got 'im," he growled, his voice laced with bloodlust.

"Bring him here." Sesshoumaru commanded.

Shippou nodded curtly and crooked his finger in a beckoning manner. Kakashi's scowl grew as the second ticked by. The plant-life around them quivered in response to the centuries old kitsune's power. Snarls and growls echoes off the trees as Shuuichi was dragged bodily backwards with complete disregard to his desires.

When the living vines and tree branches deposited the younger kitsune at their feet Kakashi was confused. There before them was a irate fox the size of a large dog, not the humanoid boy that had run from them.

As the grass leapt up, growing at impossible rates, and pinioned the fox to the ground in case he decided to run again the fox melted into Shuuichi and back again.

"What is wrong with him?" Kakashi asked Shippou.

"Nothing. He's just loosing his control over his youki. Since it's fluctuating his form is changing out of his control." Shippou stared down at the adolescent with distaste. "It's a pity. I hate passing judgment on another kitsune but I cannot forgive him for daring to harm Kagome,"

Kakashi felt Kagome's sword hum confidently and its aura flared for one brief instant. Suddenly the jounin knew what the sword wanted to do. Though he wanted revenge for Kagome's pain what her sword wanted would do. It was not the torture and dismemberment that he had been entertaining but it was a solution that would not make Kagome overly distressed should she hear of the deed.

He stepped forward, bringing the faintly glowing katana up as he moved. "Let me deal with him," he smiled grimly behind his mask.

AN: I have to admit i love the chapter title. A moment of sleep-deprived brilliance. And Ohh! What is Kakashi up to? Ha! You'll find out when i;m good and reay to tell you! chapter 11/17