Part 2
Later that day, Sango returned with Kirana.
With long black hair and wearing a full-body suit with pink highlights, Sango was every bit a goddess Miroku could ever image. She was so beautiful.
Kirana landed like a swan on a lake and Sango jumped off the large cat demon's back. This large, white, fang-tooth, two-tail, demon-cat, was one of the gentlest demons the company had ever come to know. But it was in battle, that Kirana showed her true make. She was ruthless, cunning, and powerful.
From the expression on Sango's face she brought bad news.
"I'm sorry, Miroku," she said. "But Naraku had the doctor killed before I got there." She sighed. "I got to his village too late. All the villagers were slaughtered. It had all the signs of The Band of Seven. There are huge rips in the earth caused by a powerful surge of energy. I believe Bankotsu and his barbaric Dragon Sword."
Miroku sighed. "Thank you, Sango," he said. "I appreciate your help, but I fear there may be no solution to this problem. I've been mediating about it, but no answer has come to me."
"And no answer will," a mysterious voice spoke from no-where but everywhere at once. It was a familiar voice, one their company had heard before. Nakaru appeared in his Baboon skin disguise, just out of attack range. "I'm causing your discomfort, monk," he revealed. "The seal on your prayer beads is rotting away from a spell I cast upon during out last encounter. Soon, your family line will end and I'll have the satisfaction that you'll no longer be a thorn in my side! You've caused me much grief, but I trust you are ready to die like your father and his father before him, drawn into your own wind tunnel, and cast into an unending, empty void."
Inuyasha pulled out the Tetsusaiga from its protective sheave. The magical sword grew to ten times its size sporting a huge metallic blade. "Restore Miroku's seal or else, Nakaru!"
"Or else what, Inuyashu?" Naraku said steadily. "There's nothing you can do to stop it. Soon Miroku will die. There is but one thing that can save his life, however."
"And what is that? Tell me! Or I'll cut your head off!"
"Miroku's life for your fragments of the Shikon Jewel."
"Never!" Inuyasha said outright. "We'll find another way!"
"There is no other way," Nakaru said. "And you have no choice. In order to save Miroku's life, you must make a decision. Are the Shikon Jewel shards more important to keep than Miroku's life or will you allow your friend to die to keep them from me?"
Kagome stepped forward, she looked like she was about to hand over the jewel fragments, but Miroku stopped her. "The shards are more important, Kagome," he said. "I'm but one person. The jewel can save millions of lives when it's whole again. I won't allow it to fall into the hands of Naraku to be used for evil! If I die and he gets it, then no one will be safe."
"Very valiant of you, monk," Naraku said. "But gallantry won't save you. If you won't give them to me freely, then I'll take them from you and watch as you die a horrible death before this day is out. I sense the end is near for you already, and if you use your wind tunnel, well, you will surely fall prey to its effect when you do."
"I'd surely use it one last time if only to suck you into the void with me," Miroku said. He readied to use it.
"You can't hope to take the jewel fragments away from us," Sango said, wielding her oversized bone boomerang weapon.
Inuyasha came between Naraku and Kagome. "Yeah, and I'll slice you down with one blow with the Tetsusaisa," he said. "Six against one; unfair odds, but hey, they work—for us!"
"True, but I won't be battling you."
Naraku waved a hand in the air and two of the seven assassins from The Band of Seven appeared before him. Their names: Bankotsu and Jakotsu, brothers in arms and brothers by blood, and evil incarnate.
The Band of Seven warriors were considered zombies because they were reborn from Nakaru's demon magic, but each has a mind of their own, yet subjugated by their past lives. Each assassin has a piece of the Shikon Jewel implanted in their body to make them powerful.
Both brothers were dressed in selective decorative battling hakama with their own added touches, customized to the period. It was the Sengoku Period, an era in Japan marked by social upheaval, political intrigue, and many military conflicts. Bankotsu had black hair and a long pony-tail with a four-pointed star across his forehead, and Jakotsu, had dark hair, and had two talon, tattoo-like markings proceeding downwards on both cheeks.
"I'll be assured the jewel shards!" Naraku continued. "You may have beaten me in the past, but this time I've given each of them more shards of my collection of the jewel to increase their strength. So, no matter how powerful you think you are, you'll fail to defeat them!"
Inuyasha and the others readied for battle.
"Bring it on! We'll just see who's the victor!" Inuyasha said, angling the Tetsusaiga forward.
Bankotsu was Inuyasha's perfect match, and readied his Banryuu, a sword so huge and heavy that it would take three heavy muscular men to carry it. But thanks to the power of the Shikon Jewel, he handled it with ease. He welded it as if it was a part of his own body. And with its immense demon power and a piece of the Shikon Jewel imbedded inside the blade, the Banryuu was more then a match for Inuyasha's Tetsusaiga!
Or so Bankotsu would think, Inuyasha thought otherwise.
Jakotsu was the timid one of the two brothers and he also wielded a large, hefty sword. And like his brother Bankotsu, he was a masterful swordsman. He was also a practitioner of dark, demon magic, and a master illusionist.
"Defeat him, Big Brother, but do not scar that pretty face of his," Jakotsu said to Bankotsu, blowing a kiss at Inuyasha. Jakotsu was male, but he thought a different way, believing that emotions ruled the heart, and above all else he was honest with them.
He thought Inuyasha was cute.
Bankotsu didn't care for his brother's flirtations, but he didn't blame his brother for expressing himself openly. He loved his brother either way.
Inuyasha and Bankotsu launched equal attacks upon the other, clashing swords. Battle cries ensued. Their swords clanged with such loudness that it sounded like titans were battling it out for the fate of the world. In truth, that was exactly it.
The jewel held that fate. Much like Naraku's curse on Miroku's hand held the monk's.
Jakotsu moved towards the others and proceeded with his own strategy to obtain the Shikon Jewel shards. His brother Bankotsu fought with brute strength, but Jakotsu thought it was less dangerous to outsmart his opponent. He began an illusionary attack.
"Time to have a little fun!" Jakotsu said.
Jakotsu caused Inuyasha's friends to suddenly believe they were being attacked by skeletons, boney hands thrust through the soil of the ground, and grabbed at their feet. They shouted and attacked the skeleton warriors.
Shippo was small enough to run around them, but he was frightened by the nightmarish images. He screamed when one boney hand nearly grabbed him.
Kirana suddenly soared into the air.
Jakotsu, more involved with the others, didn't notice Kirana, and the flying cat demon crashed into him, head-butt him, and knocked him over, causing him to roll. Without Jakotsu to maintain the illusion, they ceased, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"They felt so real," Kagama said.
"Jakotsu's illusions are strong, he can reach into your mind and make you believe anything he wants," Miroku explained.
"Good going, Kirana!" Sango praised.
"Bad boney creatures!" Shippo said, smashing the ground with his fists.
Jakotsu shook his head and looked at Kirana.
Kirana snarled at him as she positioned herself between Jakotsu and the others. "You sly feline," he said, a drop of blood trickled from the side of his lip. "I may be able to fool the others, but your sense of smell cannot be tricked. However, every demon has a hidden fear. What's yours?" He smiled, as if he could read Kirana's mind. "Ah, yes! I see it now. I've seen it in your mind. The thing in the whole world that frightens you is the very thing you hold most dear."
Meanwhile, Inuyasha was having a difficult time with Bankotsu. Bankotsu was matching him strike for strike, almost as if he could read Inuyasha's mind, predicting his attack patterns. This wasn't the first time they had battled, so Bankotsu knew what to expect from the half-demon dog. But Inuyasha only pressed on. Bankotsu loved the fight.
"What's the matter, dog-breath?" Bankotsu said smirking. "Can't hold your own against me?"
"I seem to be doing pretty well, don't yer think?" Inuyasha said in reply.
"How'bout we take it up a notch!"
Bankotsu gave Inuyasha a smug grin and called upon the demonic powers of the Banryuu to drive Inuyasha and the Tetsusaiga back. He twirled it above his head like a spinning top, as if the size of the sword was nothing and completely weightless.
Bankotsu had awesome power. But Inuyasha didn't give up.
He managed to brake away from Bankotsu's attack and ran downhill to gain some distance. He turned, faced Bankotsu, saw the seemingly positive and negative parting energies, and used a Wind Scar attack, striking his sword forward.
The ground shook, and the surface cracked, sending a lightning strike of energy towards Bankotsu. Bankotsu used the Banryuu as a shield and it stopped most of it. But it was so powerful that it was too much to handle and The Band of Seven member caved under the pressure. Bankotsu was struck, but due to the low yield, mainly because the Banryuu blocked a great deal of the energy, he was only knocked down, and not seriously hurt.
Bankotsu looked back at Inuyasha. "Nice one," he said, impressed. "You managed to infiltrate my defences. But you were lucky. I have field advantage and I intend to use it!"
"No!" Naraku ordered. "I do not want Inuyasha killed!"
Bankotsu looked back at Naraku in his Baboon disguise. He hated serving Naraku. When he was ruler of this land many years ago, he didn't have to take orders—he gave them! But Naraku held the power and he controlled the Shikon Jewel shards implanted in his body that made him powerful, they forced him to obey him.
So, he would obey—for now. If he couldn't kill Inuyasha, then hurting him would do.
Bankotsu was planning to use dark demonic magic to win, the same powers he had used to rule before, but as he recalled he had once tried that tactic before against Inuyasha and he lost. Perhaps patience was a virtue. So, he'd try something else.
Jakotsu smirked. "Naughty, naughty, kitty cat," he said with an amusing tone. He looked at Kirana and concentrated in bringing to life one of his deadliest mind illusions. "I have you now!"
Suddenly in Kirana's mind, she was a cute little kitten again in the middle of a town square. The sky was dark and cloudy and the town was completely deserted. She was all alone. And when she turned to see around her, she saw Sango laying on the ground and her chest bloodied with multiple stab wounds from a sharp instrument.
Kirana cried out with a sorrowful meow and began to cry.
Outside her illusion, Kirana converted back to her cute little kitten form, taken in by her dark thoughts, and collasped. With her eyes glazed over, Kirana saw only the illusion, while in truth Sango, her keeper was very much alive.
Jacotsu smirked. "That's teach you to mess with me!"
"What have you done to her?" Sango cried out, running over and scooping Kirana up into her arms. Kirana was unresponsive. "Kirana, what's happening to you?"
"I have her in one of my illusions," Jakotsu revealed. "She believes you're dead, and it's paralyzed her." He smiled. "Normally with that kind of negative reinforcement, an animal will die broken-hearted. I feel her sorrow. She cares for you very much. She'd die for you in battle if the occasion arose. Curious, though—her mind is so complex for a demon such as she."
Jakotsu could now see Kirana in his illusion and it bewildered him that Kirana was no longer crying. Kirana was sitting calmly on Sango's chest now looking directly at him as he were standing in the middle of the town square.
"What is this?"
He then realized the illusion had failed. "You're a smart one and I had you for a moment," he said, clenching his teeth. "You can see through my dark illusions, you annoying fur ball. I'll just destroy you another way and be done with you."
It was then that the connection between the illusion and Kirana was broken completely.
Jakotsu pulled out his sword from its sheave on his back. "I'll strike you down!" he said to Kirana and Sango. "No one breaks one of my illusions." He raised his sword and was about to strike when Miroku stepped between them and stopped the blow with his staff, hitting the side of the sword and knocking it away. "How dare you block my strike, you insufferable monk!"
"If you want to take someone on, then I'll be that person!" Miroku said. "Fight me, you insufferable piece of—"
His last word was one that no monk should ever say in mixed company.
To be continued...