Chap 12.
Inuyasha had known as soon he'd felt the first blast of Yayano's magic that she was more powerful than she looked. Although he'd been able to recover quickly, he'd felt like he been struck by lightning; his skin felt hot and his whole body was buzzing with a strange, electrical aftershock that made his ears rings and left a metallic taste in his mouth like blood.
It left him breathless but invigorated by adrenaline, and he was unable to hold back his smirk. "Now this is more like it," he said smugly. He lifted the Tetsusaiga up to sling it over his shoulder. "Let's see what you've got, witch!"
Inuyasha rushed forward and swung his sword again, but this time the witch moved quicker, sending out another volley of blue magic. Inuyasha leapt from right to left, tumbling out of the way of each one, though a few passed a little too close for comfort.
Sango had joined him by then, tossing her throwing weapon with well-trained accuracy at Yayano. Yet the witch held up a seemingly frail arm and battered the spinning weapon away as if it were a pestering fly, sending it skidding back to land at Sango's feet. Sango and Inuyasha shared a momentarily look of disbelief, shocked that this corpse-like thing had some strength in her after all.
They didn't have much time to be confused over it though, because Yayano gave a hiss and quickly went in for another attack. This time, rather than small bursts of magic, she sent out long bolts that sparked as if they really were lightning. The crackling blue tendrils shot out towards Inuyasha and Sango, who were luckily both able to roll to either side to safety. The ground where they had been standing only a moment before was blown apart, sending chunks of dirt flying in a cloud of ashen dust. The scorched earth smoldered and smelled of sulfur.
"Inuyasha, be careful," Sango called out as she ran around the edge of the pond toward the witch.
"Take your own advice," Inuyasha grunted as he mimicked her, running the opposite direction. Inuyasha knew what she was trying to do - split up so that they couldn't both be targeted at once. Whatever else he could say about Sango, he had to admit her fighting tactics were impressively smart.
Yayano watched the two running toward her from either side, and seemed panicked for a moment, glancing back and forth between them as if having trouble deciding which to attack. As they drew close enough, Inuyasha lashed out with the Tetsusaiga at the ground to send another shock wave, while Sango took another shot with her weapon. It looked as though both attacks would hit the witch at once, but at the last second the hag leapt into the air with startling speed and hovered there out of reach. Sango's weapon passed through the spot where Yayano had been standing and continued on to collide with Inuyasha's face, sending the surprised half-demon crashing to his back. Meanwhile, the blast from Inuyasha's sword also continued on, and Sango just barely managed to dive to the side to avoid a direct hit. The edge of the wave still sent her tumbling, and she ended up on her backside as well, panting in frustration.
"Inuyasha!" She growled. "Maybe you should give it a rest with the sword!"
Inuyasha rose to his feet, clutching the growing bump on his head. "Well, excuse me!" He shouted. "Maybe you should be more careful where you're throw-"
Inuyasha was interrupted by a burst of blue from above that crashed into his chest, once again hurling him backward, though this time he was able to land more or less on his feet. Unfortunately, his sword was knocked from his grasp and skittered across the ground to lay at the edge of the clearing. It flickered red, then the large curving blade diminished into its small, dormant form once again. Meanwhile, Yayano floated back to the ground, cackling in satisfaction.
"Dammit," Inuyasha cursed, dragging himself to his feet again. "Alright, now I'm angry!"
"Come…" The witch snarled. "Face your doom, fools!"
"I don't think so lady," Inuyasha said as he bounded at her. He gave a final leap and slashed with his razor sharp claws. "Iron Reaver!" He roared. His blow fell only inches short of Yayano's face, shearing off a few wayward strands of her hair. For a fleeting moment they were face to face, close enough to feel one another's breath, then the witch retreated back and glared with her cold, cloudy eyes.
Inuyasha and the witch stood silently, both breathing heavily from exertion and waiting for the other's next move. Inuyasha knew he needed to hold himself back like he had promised Kagome, but he wasn't sure how long he could do that for. Yayano definitely wasn't pulling any of her punches. As the two continued to stare at one another, Inuyasha saw her expression slowly grow strange. She appeared lost looking at his face, and her anger seemed to dissipate into a look of surprise, or even recognition. She took a slow step forward and pointed a shaky finger at him.
"You…" She muttered, narrowing her eyes. "Your face…it's the same..."
"What?" Inuyasha asked, confused at the sudden change of tone.
"You're…" Yayano took another step forward. As she looked upon Inuyasha's face, she took note of his long hair, his golden eyes, the curve of his jaw and the glare set in his brow. She gaped at him, and the glints of tears formed at the corner of her eyes. "Mizuko…" She whispered, almost too quietly to hear.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Inuyasha snapped, crouching back into a defensive stance. "Don't go getting distracted in the middle of a fight!"
He was about to go in for another swipe at her, but his eyes caught sight of movement in his peripheral. He saw a glimpse of Kagome and Miroku creeping through the bushes not far from him, and for a moment was lost in the relief of seeing that Kagome was safe. She was going to make it.
In his distraction, Inuyasha almost didn't realize that a blue light had begun to glow all around him. He looked down to see that he had become encircled by a ring of blue fire that seemed to swirl like a whirlwind. Before he could move, the flames grew high enough to be at level with his shoulders, the winds whipping by his face so quickly it stole his breath away.
"What the…" He gasped as he felt himself being forced down on his knees. The air in his lungs was forced out and he coughed trying to catch his breath. What was happening?
In front of him, Yayano spoke again. "It's you…" She cackled. "You're perfect."
"Inuyasha, are you alright?" Sango had jumped back to her feet and was rushing toward her friend. She tried to reach for her weapon, which had landed not far from her, but before she could retrieve it, she felt a searing pain in her leg. She yelped and looked down to see a tendril of Yayano's blue lightning snaking around her ankle, searing her skin. In an instant, it cracked like a whip, sending Sango flying through the air until she landed with a violent splash in the center of the pond.
"Stay out of this!" The witch snapped. "Or else you die, little brat."
Sango resurfaced quickly, coughing and gasping. Her leg burned as if on fire, with no relief given even by the icy cold water that was making the rest of her limbs grow stiff. She could only barely force herself to make the swim to the nearest shore, where she lay shaking as her leg throbbed. Through her pain-clouded vision, she could see Yayano advancing toward Inuyasha, who was now also laying on the ground, clutching at his chest and groaning.
The witch stood over him, raising her arms high as her hands held glowing orbs of blue magic. "You will be the perfect vessel," Yayano said. "I know this time... my Mizuko will return."
Before she could make another move, there was a flash of fur and fire, and before the witch knew it she found herself with her back on ground at the edge of the pond. The ring of flame around Inuyasha died out, and as he inhaled deeply to fill his lungs with much needed air, he looked up to see Kirara standing between him and the fallen Yayano, hackles raised high. Shippo, who had been riding atop Kirara's back, jumped down and rushed to Inuyasha's side.
"Inuyasha, are you okay?" He cried, grasping at the half-demon's red robes.
Inuyasha coughed a few more times, but then forced himself to his feet. "Yeah," he groaned, though it wasn't very convincing. "She's stronger than she looks, I'll give her that."
He looked down at Shippo, and cracked a tiny smile. "I thought you were too scared to fight?"
Shippo stuck out his lip defiantly and crossed his arms. "I'm not a complete coward!" He snapped, but then looked away sheepishly. "Also... Kirara decided to come help before I could argue…"
"Yeah, you're not a coward at all," Inuyasha said with a roll of his eyes.
"Hey, I'm just a kid!" Shippo whined. "Can you blame me!"
Their banter was interrupted by the sound of groans nearby, and they both remembered that Sango was still laying at the water's edge. Kirara had already gone to her side, nuzzling at her face with concerned yips. Inuyasha and Shippo quickly ran to her as well.
"Hey, Sango!" Inuyasha called as he bent down to inspect her injured leg. "Are you alright, can you walk?"
He realized it was a wasted question as soon as he saw the wound. The fabric of Sango's jumpsuit had been scorched right down to her skin, and there was a jagged stripe around her ankle that was flared red with burnt, blackened edges. Her whole leg looked like it was swelling, and from the expression on her face the pain must have been intense.
"I'll be fine," Sango breathed, trying to hold back the cracking in her voice. "I can still fight."
"No, stupid, you can't," Inuyasha said sternly. He turned to Shippo. "You and Kirara need to take Sango away from here."
"Wait!" Sango cried, trying to sit up. "You can't fight on your own!"
"Watch me," Inuyasha said as he stood up.
Before his friends could protest any further, he turned back to face the witch, who was at last recovering from Kirara's blow. She was rising back to her feet, and her eyes were now aglow with the same blue that flared at her fingertips. She was furious now for sure.
"Get out of here you guys!" Inuyasha called over his shoulder. His eyes darted to the spot behind Yayano where the Tetsusaiga had come to rest. He wondered if perhaps he could make a dash for it. Moving as quickly as he could, and dove forward towards his sword. A flash of blue passed inches above his head, but he managed to tumble beneath it unscathed. He heard Yayano's frustrated cries as more bolts of blue zapped passed him, missing by only a few merciful inches.
Inuyasha continued his desperate scramble until finally he was within arms reach of his sword. He had to make one last dive away from an incoming blast, but as he tumbled forward he felt his hand connect with the hilt of the Tetsusaiga, and he grasped onto it for dear life. By the time he had rolled all the way over and pushed himself back onto his feet, his sword was back firmly in his grip and the blade had once more awakened to its true formidable size.
Smirking with renewed confidence, he stood facing the witch and brandished his sword out in front of him like a trophy. Yayano snarled back at him, but didn't make another move, waiting to see what he would do. As they once again faced off with one another, Inuyasha saw Shippo and Sango making their escape on Kirara. He couldn't help the small pang of worry he felt as they disappeared into the trees.
Something else caught Inuyasha's eye in that same moment, not far behind the witch - a sudden movement and a flash of white and green. He paused and glanced over in time to see Kagome again, this time standing up behind a cluster of dead bushes. He also noticed Miroku moving off in the other directing carry something on his back. What were they doing? Miroku wasn't just going to leave Kagome by herself, was he? That wasn't part of the plan! They were supposed to be working as a team and now suddenly everyone was leaving!
Inuyasha felt his cheeks growing hot with confusion and frustration, and before he could stop himself he was yelling. "Kagome!" He cried. He wasn't really sure what he was trying to do, but calling out to her was the only thing he could think of. Why was that the only thing his brain could manage to say?
Before he had time to ponder that question, pain exploded around his midsection. A lasso of blue lightning gripped him around his torso, pinning his arms to his sides causing him to once again lose his grip on the Tetsusaiga. He felt a forceful tug, and didn't even have time to brace himself before he felt his body arc through the air, flung at the end of the magical rope. He saw a glimpse of the sky pass over him, then the ground was rushing up to meet him and in an instant his face made contact with the dusty earth, which was as solid and unforgiving as if it had frozen over. He cried out, both from shock and pain, and felt as if all the energy had been knocked clean out of him. He lay unmoving, trying to force his eyes to stay open against the strengthening grip of unconsciousness. As darkness crept in from all sides of his vision, he saw Yayano leaning over him, her face curled into a grisly smile. He also saw someone else emerging from somewhere in the background, and could only just make out the details of their face; dark hair twirling in the wind, wide brown eyes, lips moving to form a word he knew but didn't really hear. One last thought passed through his head as he slipped beneath into that black slumber, the only thing his brain ever seemed capable of thinking at times like that. It echoed in the growing stillness of his mind like a fading whisper. Kagome…
