Chapter 62:
"Damn you, Sesshomaru…exposing us like this!"
The demon complained, which Sesshomaru only scoffed at.
"Did you truly think I wouldn't see through your disguise?"
The demon laughed, impressed at his intuition.
"You certainly got us, Sesshomaru. Sara was just a medium for us. Our true aim…was you!""
Sesshomaru sliced every demon that went towards him, as the demon continued to spit words.
"We made use of Inuyasha and Tetsusaiga to get you, and it seems we were right on the spot."
In that exact moment, Sango, Miroku, Kagome with Shippo and Kirara landed on the area; and made things clear.
"So that nun was possessed by a demon?" Miroku voiced out for confirmation, and earned an affirmative nod from both Sango and Kagome. The area was filled with demons though, so Sango started eliminating them with her Hiraikotsu. Miroku followed, intending to finish the job at once using his Wind Tunnel.
Most of the demons were gone, but the demon general continued to unleash his unending bunch.
"We used this woman's spiritual energy, and once we get yours, we'll be indestructible…!"
"Hmph. Trash." He commented plainly and gave him a powerful strike. However, the effects were only mild, and it made him sneer.
Just then, the real Sara was able to make an appearance on the demon's chest, teary-eyed. The demon general tried to shut her down, but she stayed strong until she apologized for her foolishness, and asked Sesshomaru to defeat the demon alongside her.
Nevertheless, he was the least bit affected and continued to strike, slicing away the demon general's arm that held the Tetsusaiga until it was tossed to the ground.
So she wasn't completely taken over.
The dog demon thought as he considered her words and waited for a perfect opportunity to deal a blow. Then, he heard Kagome say that she wanted to rescue her and fired a sacred arrow right away in the hopes of purifying her. But, it didn't entirely work, as the demons have only doubled in number. That was the signal for him to land a hit, but to no avail.
"It's no use, Sesshomaru. That sword is full of anger and hatred…which only strengthens us!" the demon general incited and it left him with no choice but to use the Tetsusaiga.
He knew it would reject him, but his mind was currently filled with slaying the enemy, letting Sara free and… to keep Arisa from using her powers - if it would escape and follow him. The moment he grabbed hold of the sword, it reacted violently at first, but it soon gave in, letting him wield it for the purpose he had.
Tetsusaiga…lend me your strength as you are capable of defeating demons in a single blow.
He was permitted, and swung the sword with full force, demolishing the demon general and his fellow demons into glittering pieces. But right after that, he threw the sword away. He looked into the inflicted burn into his hand, and he was surprised that it was not that severe, compared to before.
Inuyasha finally got his Tetsusaiga back, and together with Kagome's sacred arrow, he delivered his Wind Scar upon her suggestion. Their unison raid successfully got rid of the remaining demons, and purified the forest. It was back to its clear and refreshing ambience.
Sesshomaru approached the purified dust of Sara, as her soul hasn't completely vanished yet. She was able to speak to him one last time.
"Thank you…Sesshomaru-sama. I finally have no regrets…I have told my true feelings to you…"
He looked at her with a glint of empathy in his eyes as she disappeared. Then, he picked up her flute and placed it on her remains. After that, he walked away from the scene with a thought in mind.
…all that ruckus just for your feelings. Go and play your flute in the other world.
'Shiroi-san, thank you. You may have your rest.'
'That was nothing, Arisa. I merely observed a demon.'
Arisa laughed shortly at her shikigami's remarks.
'He's mostly a good demon…nowadays.'
'Really? I can tell he's that sensible and merciless type.'
With that, Arisa cut off her connection with Shiroi and sent her back to the spirit world, while she was back to herself. She was satisfied with how they handled the situation, but she sighed deeply upon confirming that there was nothing going on between Sesshomaru and Sara. In fact, she felt guilty for thinking bad about Sara, when she was just another human like her…who fell in love with Sesshomaru and was contented to keep it all to herself; but was happier to be able to confess.
I wonder…if Sara didn't die, will Sesshomaru give her a chance? By the looks of it…he probably would. He didn't hesitate to save her and even listened to her…
She paused on her thoughts and opened her eyes, then looked at the surroundings. Suddenly, Jaken's thoughts about the matter on her feelings hit her.
Or…what if I should confess too…and see what happens?
However, she dismissed that thought immediately and stood up, intending to go where Jaken and Ah-un were as she was sure that Sesshomaru was on his way back. Just then, she felt the presence of someone familiar coming towards her. She quickly went on guard and waited for that someone and when it appeared, she was flabbergasted to see who it was.
"Kohaku…?"
The young boy was startled, and looked at her nervously.
"I was wandering aimlessly…and it led me here…"
She couldn't feel anything bad from him, and when she focused, there really was nothing dark coming a out of him. Though this time, he had a strange aura…and it does not belong to a living being.
So he's still bound to the sacred jewel shard…
"Is it possible that you are free from Naraku's grasp?"
"I…don't know about that...but I have met you somewhere before, right…?"
She let out a relieved sigh, seeing that Kohaku is doing okay and seemingly uncontrolled by Naraku anymore. Yet, she had to be wary, because of the jewel still embedded in him and could be corrupted anytime.
"…yes. I am Arisa, and I am friends with Sango, your big sister."
"Big sister…Sango…uhmm, if it's alright with you… can you take me to her, Arisa-san? I want to make sure if she's okay…"
She smiled softly at him, and then patted his head.
"Sure, why not?"
If I tell Jaken about this, I'm certain he would react terribly and tell Sesshomaru…I should do this alone, and fast before he comes.
"We should sneak out quietly."
"Alright…"
Arisa grabbed Kohaku's hand, and carefully, with quiet steps, they were able to get out of the rocky valley without fail. She thought about summoning Shiroi once again to track down Inuyasha or Kagome, but then she just told her to rest. She found it insulting, so she had to go with plan B, and that was to go first at Kaede's village and inquire where the group had possibly passed by after that incident with Sara.
Here's hoping they really did pass by at the village…
By the time they were already quite a distance away from the rocky valley; a small, white-haired girl in white clothing, and holding a mirror, though it was missing one piece. She stood a few meters away, most likely waiting for them.
She quickly stopped in her tracks and pushed Kohaku behind her. She focused at her immediately, and to her surprise, the girl didn't emit any aura at all.
"Y-you don't have to worry, Arisa-san! She's Kanna, a friend of mine."
She was still suspicious of her and turned half-way to ask further from Kohaku, but noticed that his eyes glinted back to being empty. She realized that it was all another trap laid by Naraku so she abruptly tried to release his hand and escape. But, she was too late as he quickly wrapped her wrist with chains and kicked both of her legs with brute force, causing her to stumble on the ground. He then grabbed her other hand, completely locking her up.
That was the only time when Kanna spoke, and gave orders to Kohaku.
"Secure her, Kohaku. I'm going to make her inhale this incense."
She said and lighted the candle she was holding, which apparently contained drowsing effects.
Arisa did her best to hold her breath, but she eventually gave in and slowly lost her consciousness.
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A/N: I'm very sorry about another incident of Arisa being sort of 'kidnapped'. It's necessary for this next arc I had in mind...and I apologize in advance as the incoming chapters would be dramatic and may be cringey...I hope you'd all bear with it :