InuYasha, Kagome, Hiroshi, Kouga and Sesshomaru left the village at first light. Kikyo stayed behind with Sango to help protect the villagers that had survived the onslaught of the night before. Shippo was left behind as well, along with Rin and a gravely injured Miroku, whose condition wasn't improving at all. Kikyo erected a barrier to keep any wayward yokai from wandering too close.

They headed west, following the meager trail left by Tokijin.

"So what you are saying is, in the distant future, where you all were just at, I was reduced to a weak human?" Sesshomaru spoke up over the roar of the wind. Kagome griped InuYasha's shoulders slightly as he leapt into the air.

"More or less, yes," Hiroshi replied.

"Inexcusable," Sesshomaru said, his expression grim.

"I'm pretty sure we already covered this…" InuYasha murmured.

"Well, whoever finds Naraku first is kind of priority right now." Koga spoke up.

"We find them, we find Naraku, and vice versa." Kagome added.

"I smell blood everywhere," Hiroshi murmured. Below them the land burned, and villages smoked into the sky. Damage was already being done.

InuYasha dropped to the ground and halted his flight through the air. Hiroshi landed beside him.

"Wow, what reeks?"

"It smells like…"

Sesshomaru and Koga backtracked to where they were.

"Why did you stop?" Sesshomaru demanded.

"You can't smell that?" InuYasha asked.

Koga and Sesshomaru each sniffed the air tentatively.

"I smell smoke and blood on the air," Koga replied.

"InuYasha?" Kagome asked.

oOo

Kagome slid off InuYasha's back as his grip under her knees slackened, and his arms dropped limply to his sides. Hiroshi was likewise transfixed, both of them in a daze, and unaware of them.

"InuYasha?!" she said more urgently, shaking his shoulders.

Sesshomaru walked up to InuYasha, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"What sorcery is this?"

"Whatever it is it's only affecting the half demons…" Koga murmured.

"How do we snap them out of it?" she said, frantic.

Sesshomaru reached back, and swung his fist at InuYasha. Kagome yelped, ducking away but she tripped when InuYasha moved out of the path of Sesshomaru's quick strike.

"Okay, that's just weird," Koga spoke up. InuYasha and Hiroshi both turned at the same moment, and lunged at Sesshomaru, their claws extended, but their eyes focusing on nothing. Sesshomaru dodged, but the sleeve of his haori was not so lucky.

He leapt away again, his hand gripping his swords hilt, only to have it violently shock him. Sesshomaru fell to the ground on his back, his eyes wide in alarm. Kagome never saw him brought down like that before. Tokijin's blade shimmered and shook in his sash.

"Tokijin of the future and yours must be resonating with one another!" she exclaimed. Sesshomaru managed to roll away as InuYasha and Hiroshi simultaneously lunged at him.

"That's what they smelled," Koga murmured, his hands on his hips.

"Are you going to stand idle the entire time or are you going to help me teach these worthless hanyou their place?"

"Are you actually asking for help?" Koga asked, blinking in surprise. Sesshomaru dove at him, his irritation redirected at the wolf that was just playing bystander, and swung at him with his claws.

"Cut it out!" Kagome exclaimed as the two possessed hanyou dove at them. They drew their swords midflight, both demon swords pulsing with power. She never saw an actual terrified expression on Sesshomaru's face before.

"InuYasha SIT!" she screeched without thinking. The necklace began to glow, and tears streamed down her face as she spoke the word she vowed never to use against him ever again. InuYasha face planted into the ground, and didn't move. Hiroshi swung at Sesshomaru. The elder yokai dodged the attack. Kagome hurried to InuYasha's side, and could hear him moaning.

"InuYasha?"

"Oi…I thought you promised…"he murmured, lifting his head slowly. He looked up to see Hiroshi and Sesshomaru dodge around the clearing.

"Uhh, what did I miss?" he asked.

"You and Yukio were being controlled by the enchanted Tokijin of this era, you have both been attacking Sesshomaru." She explained quietly.

"Just toss the stupid sword!" InuYasha yelled at Sesshomaru.

"Do not presume to tell me what to do, you whelp!" Sesshomaru replied.

"He tried once already, it repelled him!" Koga shot back. Kagome watched InuYasha stand up, brushing himself off slightly.

"You're a load of help as usual," he muttered.

"I agree with you on that point," Kagome added.

"Hey!"

InuYasha leapt up into the air towards Hiroshi. As he sailed through the air, swinging his fang at Sesshomaru, InuYasha swung his fist, hitting his brother in the face, sending him careening into the trees away from Sesshomaru. Kagome flinched as she listened to the sound of breaking tree branches as he met little resistance.

"Was that a little bit much?" she squeaked. InuYasha flexed his hand a bit.

"Eh, he's tough, he can handle it."

Kagome hurried over to Sesshomaru, whom was wincing at the sword that was jolting him with its youki. She pretty much acted without thinking, and grabbed the hilt, and watched the energy recoil, rather than lash out as her hand gripped the hilt, and she carefully pulled it free of his sash before throwing it off to the side to the dirt. InuYasha hurried off into the trees after Hiroshi.

"This is vexing," Sesshomaru murmured.

"That's putting it mildly," she agreed.

Tokijin shook from its position on the ground, before it rose into the air. It shuddered a few seconds before it shot through the air like a bullet from a gun towards the west. It left a strong trail in its wake.

"Well, we can guess where it's going," Koga said.

"Makes tracking them easier," InuYasha spoke up. Kagome spun around as they walked out of the tree line. Hiroshi was holding his left cheek with a slight pout on his face.

Sesshomaru turned, and dashed off in the direction his sword went, Koga hurried after him.

"That was embarrassing," Hiroshi murmured.

"Perks of being hanyou, we get to let loose once in a while and pick on Sesshomaru, and get to play the 'was-out-of-my-mind-couldn't-help-it card, and he can't do anything about it," InuYasha said with a smirk.

"This is hardly time to be making light of this situation!" Kagome exclaimed, hurrying off after the two other yokai.

"You being so serious is freaking me out!" he shot back, picking her up around the waist mid run, and tossing her up into the air. She let a slight squeak escape as she came down, and grabbed his shoulders, effortlessly falling onto his back.

Kagome held on tight, looking off into the distance. She could feel the horrible energy that they followed, worried, very worried at the danger they were knowingly rushing towards. Her mind was a flurry of thoughts and memories. Just a few mere months ago, her hear had been broken, shattered into pieces, and she said goodbye to what she thought was forever to InuYasha when he had been laid to rest. Now she clung to his back, and he was alive, he was with her, and he was heading towards the same danger that stole him from her in the first place. Shame washed over her as she let the thought cross her mind, the thought of asking him to run away, to keep himself safe.

It didn't last long, but the thought did cross her mind.

"I'm sorry if I seem serious more than I normally do InuYasha, but I will NOT watch you die in front of my eyes again." She said lowly so only he could hear her. His grip on her legs tightened slightly.

"I doubt fate brought me back to you just to tear us apart again, I'll fight like hell to keep that from happening!" he replied, throwing her a confident smile over his shoulder. Kagome hugged him tight from behind.

"I'm holding you to that,"

"Good grief! Get a room!" Hiroshi teased them from behind.