The Man With A Staff


The day was hot and humid, with rain clouds hanging low across the horizon all around the mountain. But, for some magic of elevation or wind currents the sky above the mountain was almost clear, allowing the sun to basically toast the forest. Luckily, the forest was thick, offering some solace from the heat. Tree lings shadowed the road that zigzagged up the mountainside.

The man walking up the mountain road wasted no time to whisper a short prayer of thanks when he noticed that. In his dark clothing he would've been sweaty and smelly long before he reached his destination. That would've been a bad first impression, no lady liked a sweaty man - correction - a dust-covered sweaty man who was a stranger. He'd made a small stop along the way to refresh himself a bit, wiping his face and neck with wet tissues, pulling out and assembling his shakujō and drinking some of his water. As he resumed walking, the six metal rings of his staff tinkled pleasantly.

The man was almost there, at the destination of his long journey. He saw the red gate when he turned the last road bend and a smile appeared on his lips. When he finally got past the gate and onto the sacred ground, he went to cleanse himself and pay his respect to the kami. He was a buddhist, but it was the kami's house, as a guest it was just right to say hello.

The sound of the bell and the clap of his hands seemed to hang in the thick, hot air, not interrupted by other noise. He looked around after his prayer, trying to see if anyone was around. It looked like the heat scared off other visitors, but the gift shop was open... And there was a person sitting on top of the gift shop counter.

The visitor winced inwardly in sympathy for the man who was busy reading from a plain looking notebook. The man was wearing a kimono, long and with at least three layers draping down his legs as he sat on the counter. His hair was pulled in a top knot, but Miroku still felt a borrowed overheating when he approached the man, who now lifted his eyes from his reading.

"Good day," the visitor bowed. "I'm Kaze Miroku. May I ask you politely where I can find the shrine keeper?"

A fond smile spread across the face of the man. He had this rare type of face that was hard to point how old he was. He could easily be Miroku''s age or as old as his father would've been.

"Of course. You're looking for Higurashi Kagome," he replied in a kind tone. "She is currently in the forest. You can wait for her here or follow that path," he added, pointing a finger towards the edge of the forest, where a small opening showed the start of a narrow path.

"Thank you, sir. I will go and look for her, if you don't mind?" Miroku bowed again.

"Oh, it's alright." the man waved a hand. "If you want to, you can leave your bag here, I'll keep an eye on it."

"Thank you," the young man sighed in relief and placed his backpack on the ground next to the gift shop. All the valuable items he had, he had in his smaller bag or in his pockets, so he felt alright leaving his other stuff there.

Besides, the man, who was probably the shrine employer, had a nice, warm, welcoming aura.

As he walked into the forest he never looked back, so he didn't see the playful twinkle in the man's eye before he resumed his reading.

Miroku was walking down the forest path, admiring the lush trees and undergrowth around him. He could sense traces of youki in the area, but there was no evil feeling to it. The shrine seemed to be in perfect condition and not tainted, even if some youkai frequented it. The supernatural beings visiting a place wasn't immediately a bad sign, it all depended on what type of a youkai it was and if it wasn't malevolent or tainted.

Whatever had made Yuka weary had probably been a one-time occurance. Maybe she'd felt some youki and hadn't been able to contemplate its nature? His dear cousin hadn't ever shown any kind of reiki user ability, but she was his blood, so maybe she had some hidden potential that had manifested itself during her visit?

It sure piqued Miroku's interest and when his cousin had called him a few weeks ago he had promised to come and investigate. She'd told him there was a pretty miko living here, which only had made him more curious. As a traveling exorcist and fortune teller, a true student to Master Mushin, Miroku would never pass a chance to meet a pretty girl, get a free drink or con a person who needed some karmic justice to be brought to them in this life.

Suddenly, walking around a thick tree, Miroku paused. A wave of powerful youki washed over him, making goose flesh cover his skin. The youki was red and potent, coming from nearby. And from the same direction, just a fraction of a second later, came a feminine cry of distress.

His musings forgotten, Miroku ran the rest of the way towards a big meadow hidden in the forest, where a woman was in need of assistance of a traveling monk such as himself.

He paused on the edge of the glade, taking in the trampled grass, the flattened bushes and the giant white dog that stood in the middle of the wreckage. The dog was easily bigger than a bus, its fur standing up and making it look fearsome. Its tail slashed as the beast lowered its massive, purple stripe adorned head to the beautiful young woman that struggled under one of the giant front paws of the dog. Big golden and red eyes looked down at the woman, sharp teeth the size of a man's forearm glistening in the half-opened maw.

"Let me go!" the woman demanded, her voice strong and showing little fear despite her being a mere meter away from the dog's fangs. Miroku looked in awe as she freed one arm and sent a punch straight at the dog's nose. The canine yelped in surprise, forgetting about attempting to intimidate the girl.

But it didn't let her go, no, it hovered its head above her, not paying any mind to her hitting her fist against its paw. A big pink tongue lolled out of the side of the dog's mouth, saliva slowly moving down the appendage.

"No!" the woman shrieked at the sight of the dog's saliva beading into a terrible drop on the tip of the dog's tongue. "You won't dare!"

The dog looked at her with wicked mirth in its blazing eyes.

Miroku was about to step in and save the poor girl from the youkai's mischief, but as he reached for an ofuda in his pocket, a new fighter rose to challenge the youkai.

A miko literally rose from where she'd been laying in a ruined patch of wild flowers. Her black hair was in disarray, her miko robes stained with dirt, but she wasted no time to fix her looks. With a battle cry she charged the dog, hands outstretched.

That bizarre action made Miroku pause. There was no bow, no sacred papers in her hands. Was she seriously planning to wrestle the beast? That was a desperate move, and one that wouldn't do her any favors. The youkai was clearly of higher level, a mere touch of reiki wouldn't purify it.

"Sango, no!" The miko didn't attack the dog, no she threw herself over her trapped comrade, shielding her from the terror of the growing drop of doggy saliva.

The dog tried to retract its tongue, but it was already too late.

The drop fell.

"Ew! Gross!" Both women screamed when the substance flowed down them. The youkai's ears laid back on its head as it backed away, low on its haunches, tail tucked to the side of its hip.

The women picked themselves from the ground, grabbing handfuls of grass to wipe themselves off as much as they could, both glaring at the suddenly docile youkai.

"You shouldnt've done that, Kagome," the woman with a high ponytail stood up, her clothing clinging to a nicely shaped body as she bent down to pick up a huge boomerang. The miko was still sitting on the ground. "You have to attack. Like this."

With that being said she sent the weapon flying, aiming for the youkai's head...

...Just for it to fly over the youkai's ears.

It wasn't for her poor aim or the beast dodging. No, to Miroku's surprise, the youkai decided to shrink down to the more manageable size and shape.

A man in red kimono, his hair long and white, stood in the place of the dog, canine ears perking up when he glared at the ladies.

"That was all you could do?" he barked, his golden eyes looking at his opponents. "You ain't getting any wins in this way! I'm taking the sacred object and you both..."

"Shit up!" the miko leaped to her feet. "It's mine to keep!"

"Keh!" the youkai barked a short laugh. "Will you throw yourself at my feet again? Good defense plan, wench!"

Miroku had no need to hear more. When the youkai was busy dodging the returning boomerang, the monk made his decision. With his staff held with both hands, he charged the dog-eared man, who was certainly up to no good, probably attacking the shrine to get this sacred object the miko and her sexy friend were protecting.

A/N: Miroku joins the party! What will happen next!