Disclaimer: The characters of InuYasha are not mine; they are property of Rumiko Takahashi, Shogakukan, Yomiuri TV, Sunrise, and Viz. The following story is for entertainment and not profit.

Chapter 10: What You See…

Inu Yasha disliked her even more now that she was wearing his half-brother's clothes and it didn't help that they still reeked of the full blooded jerk's scent. From his place by Kagome's bed, he watched the enigmatic woman. As the other's fell asleep her eyes would dart around the room, as if she were waiting for something. Hoping that she would make her move, Inu Yasha slowed his breathing and relaxed his body. Not long after his eyes had fallen shut, he heard the soft shifting of the mats of the floor as she got up. He continued to feign sleep as her footstep approached the hide door covering. A quick gust of cold air and he knew she was gone. Gripping the fabric wrapped handle of his sword, Inu Yasha stood to follow her. Tonight he would get what he needed to prove his suspicions, one way or another.

It be would easy enough to track her, the thin covering of snow on the ground making it simple to find her footprints, or so he thought. Scanning the ground around the hut he found nothing. The snow lay undisturbed, except for his own careless markings. Then, just as he was to give up, the cloud that had been blocking the moon passed and there they were. The footprints weren't nearly as deep as he would have expected for a human of her size, but there in the snow were the slight indents of her passing leading towards the forest.

She crossed the ground just as her mother had taught her, leaving as little evidence of her movements as possible, the last thing she needed was to be followed. If all went well, no one would even know she had been gone. As she stepped into the tree line, she slowed her pace so as not to startle her prey. Straightening her posture, she took on the air of authority as she entered the clearing at the base of the God Tree.

"Show yourself!" Her tone was commanding, her face expressionless.

As Naraku's servant stepped from the shadows her mirror caught the light of the full moon. "Kanna of the Void. I should have known that he would send you with your mirror to watch over me."

"Naraku wishes to speak with his offspring." The flat ghostly words of the child confirmed what Naosu had been concerned about. He knew.

"If he wants to learn the contents of my mind he will have to come to me himself." Naosu knew that the less control she gave him the more irritated and single minded he would become. "Now return to your master and inform him of this."

Inu Yasha tracked the faint indentations to the edge of the forest. Great, he thought, the cold ground probably didn't give enough. Lifting his nose he began to sniff the crisp air, but instead caught the sound of voices. With one quick movement he was into the trees and moving silently towards the origin of the sound.

Landing near the edge of a familiar clearing, he heard the meek, toneless voice of Kanna. "Naraku wishes to speak with his offspring."

There at the base of the tree that had served as his prison for fifty years stood Naosu, her back to him. Before her was the child-like detachment of Naraku. Curiously he studied Naosu, something seem different about her. She seemed taller and stronger than the woman he was use to seeing, almost as if she were not-quite human. It took a moment for the words he had heard to register.

Naraku's offspring?

"If he wants to learn the contents of my mind he will have to come to me himself."

She wasn't disputing it. Naraku's offspring!

"Now return to your master…"

Inu Yasha had heard all that he needed to. Not only was she one of Naraku's offspring, she had command of his other children. He watched as the spirituous child obeyed Naosu's words and disappeared into the shadows. The world took on a reddish hue as Inu Yasha felt his blood heat. He had been right, she was evil, and now he had proof!

Naosu turned with a start to face the hanyou that landed behind her. Why hadn't she sensed him? She shrank back from him, trying not to stumble over her own feet.

"I knew you were no good," he spat at her as he moved to close the distance she was attempting to keep between them. "You would run to Naraku now that you have been discovered? Would you, bitch?"

She noticed his moment just in time to duck as he made a lunge for her throat. Using his weight to her advantage, Naosu made sure that his body cleared her. As she heard his impact with the ground behind her, she realized that dodging his attacks was only going to hurt his pride and increase his anger. But could she really afford to let him hit her? Things were moving too fast and killing him now would only make things worse.

"Why did he send you here? What does he want?" Inu Yasha growled as he climbed to his feet. "Are you here to find weaknesses? Huh? Are you? Speak up already!"

Naosu stood her ground. She could bear this. Her great grandmother had bore far worse. She reached back for the memory to give her strength. Her instincts screamed at her to move, to avoid his attack, but she remained still. The force of his punch lifted her from the ground and sent her flying into the thick trunk of the tree. Her knees gave as she doubled over in pain and nausea. Hopefully, he wouldn't feel the need to hit her again. She didn't know if she would be able to take another blow like that and not retaliate.

As the ache in her stomach began to subside, she heard the draw of a sword. Naosu realized the vulnerability of her position as Tetsusaiga's weight came to rest on the back of her exposed neck. Her ears rang with the pounding of her blood as the fluttering muscle in her chest raced. When she felt the blade lift in preparation for the fatal swing it was as if her body was vibrating with fear. It seemed an eternity she waited, but the blade never fell. Hesitantly, she opened her eyes. She was conscious, but she had lost all sense of her body. Looking down she saw her legs moving faster than she would have thought possible, carrying her away from the wood.

Inu Yasha looked down at her bowed figure. Gone was the strong, confident woman he had seen dealing with Kanna, and all it had taken to break her had been one well placed shot to the gut. He had confirmed his suspicions; she was a spy, an enemy, and one of Naraku's offspring. Of course! He had figured that it had been because of her kidnapping, but even now she still smelled faintly of Naraku. Inu Yasha smirked.

Slipping Tetsusaiga from its sheath, he lowered the transformed blade to rest on her bared neck. He was going to take pleasure in this. Her whole body seemed to be shaking and he could smell the waves of fear rolling off of her. 'Yes,' he thought, as he raised his sword to strike, 'much pleasure.'

He only noticed the light seconds before it surrounded her shivering form. It seemed to grow from within consuming her body in a blinding flash. Before he could react she was gone and so was the odd light.

'Kagome!' his first thought was for her safety.

Swinging Tetsusaiga up to rest on his shoulder, Inu Yasha took off in the direction of the village. 'Don't worry Inu Yasha, she's a good person. She would never do anything to hurt us,' Kagome's trusting words ran through his head as he ran. She would know soon enough just how wrong she had been.