Her cries echoed in his ears, while his mind's eye replayed the anguish he'd seen upon her face. Sesshomaru could not understand the deep emotion that had ravaged the small miko he held before him, yet something within him had tightened. Kagome's pain had moved him. A shocking realization. He knew he would have saved his fool of a half-brother if his aid had been necessary, but given the fact that their father's sword was no longer in Inuyasha's possession, he'd been certain the half-breed's demon blood would emerge to save the pup's life.
He had not been disappointed.
Shadow demons were tricky foe, one of the most powerful clans because of their ability to become like shadow. Would Inuyasha have won had he wielded the legendary sword, Tetsusaiga? Given the boy's lack of knowledge of his enemy, and how he'd stumbled around the cage with such lack of form or strategy, Sesshomaru didn't think so.
Then, in hindsight, another thought came to him. What if Inuyasha's bloodlust had been intentional? Surely Naraku was aware of how important the blade was at sealing away the demon within. If that was the case, what were the vermin's plans?
Kagome's other companions, the monk and demon slayer, were easy target. Naraku could have dispatched them before they had arrived, or in the ensuing violence within the cage, but he had not. The puppet—for surely the real Naraku hid far from here, the coward—knelt upon a cloud of purple miasma, seemingly content to wait, to watch.
Because he was watching the half-breed above rather than the one trapped before him, Sesshomaru saw Naraku lower his baboon pelt covered head to look at his companion. He spoke one word commandingly.
"Kohaku."
Instantly, the boy Rin was so fond of stood and jumped from that great height. Instead of plummeting to the ground to his death, the demon slayer used his kusarigama, a demon bone sickle on a chain. With an expert spin and throw, the sickle wrapped around a wooden bar of the cage confining Inuyasha, and swung inside. The motion was so smooth, it was obvious the spell around the cage allowed a select few to cross.
Or…did he cage allow one to enter but not leave, he wondered.
"Kohaku, no!"
The heartfelt scream came from the woman demon slayer. Worry etched itself on her face. He could not remember the woman's name, but he did know that the boy that now faced a feral Inuyasha was her little brother. A sibling who was dead. A corpse brought back to life with the power of a single shard from the Shikon Jewel. And controlled by Naraku. A sad tale. One that did not move him.
"Sango…"
At Kagome's murmur, he learned two things. One, the woman slayer's name, and two, that while he felt nothing for the two siblings' plight, the miko did. And because she was affected, he was, too. Why he felt this profound connection with this human, he did not know, but what he did know was that he disliked Kagome sad.
Within the cage, Inuyasha growled. Eyes on the two combatants, he witnessed Kohaku make the first strike. Lashing out with his sickle, the boy's aim was to take off Inuyasha's head; however, the blow never landed. With lengthened claws, Inuyasha deflected. A brief show of sparks and screeching erupted on contact.
Hands clasped the arm he held around Kagome, and he lowered his eyes to the top of her dark head.
"Sesshomaru, you must stop them," she begged. "With how Inuyasha is now, he'll kill Kohaku."
He was puzzled by her wish. "The boy is already dead. Nothing more than a mindless puppet."
She shook her head. "You don't understand. Sango would be crushed if anything more were to happen to him. Kohaku is her brother!"
While they spoke, the fighting continued, along with the shouts and struggles of the other two humans held captive.
"This Sesshomaru understands the situation perfectly."
"Do you?" Kagome challenged. She struggled to turn around in his arm, which he allowed. He did not lower his arm, but kept her loosely pinned to his armored chest, reluctant to let her go. "Then please save him."
He did not see how that was a good strategy. "That is not wise, Kagome. The boy is Naraku's puppet, used to manipulate your human emotions against you, as well as your companions'. Has he not done so numerous times in the past?"
The painful truth of his words entered her eyes. She knew he was correct, but she was stubborn.
"There's already been enough death. Maybe we can save him!"
He spoke gently. The truth was harsh enough without his tone making it harder to hear. "You cannot bring back the dead."
Her small hands clung to him. "But you can!" Her small fingers grazed his armored hip, not touching either of his blades, but bringing focus to them. "Tenseiga is capable of such miracles!"
It was his turn to slowly shake his head. "That boy's soul entered the afterlife long ago. It is beyond Tenseiga's power. Only with the Jewel can he retain a portion of the humanity he once possessed."
"So you won't try? You'll do nothing?" she charged, a tear falling.
He tried to make her see reason, not wanting to give Naraku a future way into Inuyasha's pack by allowing the boy to live his false life, as that would put Kagome into great danger. Yes, he'd allowed the boy to live on past occasions. He'd found that he'd been unable to let the boy die before Rin's eyes. Though Rin was familiar with tragedy, Sesshomaru had wanted to spare her more sorrow, but he could no longer allow this weakness to be exploited.
"His continued existence brings only weakness to your party."
Didn't Kagome understand that he was trying to save her by allowing the boy to die, for good?
As if she understood, she whispered, "You want him to die…?"
"He's already—"
She interrupted him. "Stop! Fine. You want Kohaku to be dead, truly dead. Not an animated corpse."
"It is not what I want but what must be," he corrected.
"You're not human…" she whispered.
How she said it sounded like an insult, not as if she were commenting about his demon blood.
"Kagome—"
Just then, Sango screamed her brother's name. Both he and Kagome turned back towards the fighting, only to see Kohaku being held in the air. Inuyasha held the boy aloft with a hand in the boy's chest cavity. Blood was everywhere. A dark crimson that was nearly black.
In his bloodlust, Inuyasha laughed up at Kohaku. A second later, he violently flung the boy away like a ragdoll. The boy fell in a heap, a hole gapping in the center of his chest.
"How about a last family reunion before the boy dies?" Naraku unexpectedly asked at large. Before waiting for a reply, a boyish scream filled the air. It was Kohaku, and he was no longer being controlled by Naraku. Which meant the poor boy felt everything. His wounds were extensive, yet still he lived due to the jewel shard embedded in the back of his head.
It wasn't until that moment, when Kagome's full attention was on the tormented boy, that she gasped in realization. "He has Tetsusaiga. Sesshomaru! Kohaku has Tetsusaiga!"
She turned to him once more. "If we could just get the sword in Inuyasha's hand, then all of this will stop!"
Even as she spoke, it was far too late.
"Inuyasha, no! Stop it!" screamed Sango with anguish and fury. "I swear to all the gods out there that I will kill you if you do this!"
Kagome gasped at her friend's threat. The sound morphed into a muffled wail as Kohaku tried to crawl away from an out of control Inuyasha, his bloodied hand outreached towards his sister, as if beseeching her to help him.
"Sister…"
Even as he crawled away, leaving the battered Tetsusaiga behind, Inuyasha walked right passed it, too far gone to pick it up and regain his senses. As if growing bored with cat and mouse games, Inuyasha struck.
A foot crushed downwards, severing the boy's spinal cord. Then with a downwards arch of his arm, Inuyasha severed Kohaku's head from his body. Even as the women screamed, Sango's cries being the louder of the two, Miroku's harsh curse, and the insane laughter coming from Naraku, who was obviously enjoying the drama and carnage, Inuyasha reached down to pick up the severed head. He held it up by Kohaku's black hair. His manic laughter joined in with Naraku's.