hi! sorry for the long wait, the passage with the Shichinin-tai and Mount Hakurei was very difficult to write, and life got in the way. Nothing bad happened, since my mother is better by now, but so many things were going on at once that I had difficulties keeping up with everything, so once again, sorry for the wait.
I also had this chapter finished for a while but I wanted to finish all th Mount Hakurei Arc before starting to post the chapters, so here is the first part...
Chapter XVI. The Shichinin-tai
The pack hadn't managed to reach Edo when Naraku's scent started to leak agin – only this time, the hanyou was plotting once more, they realized.
Because as they rushed toward the once more unmasked scent, hoping to catch it long enough to get to his lair, they soon realized they weren't the one targeted by this plot – as Tsukiko, whose soul sense reached far further than the youkai acute sense, was soon worriedly stating that she could feel her father too heading toward the hanyou.
Something Sesshoumaru wouldn't do in normal time, given the Cardinal Lords decision regarding their enemy – only a direct offense from Naraku would now allow him to attack the hanyou under those directives.
And the Lord of the West didn't have his ward with him.
Now worried, the pack hurried along the road, the girls soon recognizing they weren't too far from the place they'd saved Kouga – and both Sesshoumaru and Naraku's scent suddenly disappearing.
But this time, the hanyou had made a mistake – while he could mask his scent and hide his lair with youjutsu strongly enough that the pack could be at his door and not realize it was him they were seeing, he had once more underestimated pack-bonds.
Tsukiko's father, the Head of her House and the first alpha of the Lands of the West was behind Naraku's barriers, and nothing could hid this to her, nor to her pack.
[Goal complete! +25XP
Goal update: make use of Naraku's weakness before it disappears]
Kagome eyed the notification – while the shield she now had thanks to Kaede was working, as they had confirmed when faced with Tsubaki, this didn't mean they knew how to make use of it against the hanyou.
"Rin isn't too far!" Tsukiko realized, eyes straying toward a place too far for human eyes to see "And she's with Kagura..."
"Right." InuYasha nodded, not too surprised – for his brother to seek out Naraku, the hanyou had to have a mean of pressure after all, and their alpha had said the little girl wasn't with the daiyoukai "Let's split up then."
"Shippou, Kanna."
The two youkai nodded, and went by their alpha's side, soon speeding toward the simple traditional house hiding in the forest where Rin was held – a house protected by a swarm of countless youkai.
As for the part of the pack that stayed with InuYasha, it was Kagome who took charge there, naginata humming with reiki.
Naraku's barrier was far stronger than before, the teenage girl confirmed for herself – no wonder the basic version of Kaze no Kizu hadn't been enough to cut it earlier. Still, she hadn't been training so hard for no reason, and so her aura focused, light empowering the blessed weapon, making it nearly blinding for those around them, and the path was open...
Even without Chaos Interface, it would have been clear this was Naraku's main base, the pack realized.
The ground and air was tainted heavily with the hanyou's malicious youki, making the soil barren and the air nearly unbreathable, the humans probably only protected by their pack-bond.
All went to work with easy efficiency, Hiraikotsu and Tessaiga not hampering each other once despite both weapon felling dozens of enemies with each strike, both holy servants while having smaller scale attacks no less dangerous to the youkai around them as they needed but a touch to purify them.
Soon, they were deep in the blood and gore – and as she nearly didn't even bother with side-stepping a bloody puddle, Kagome wondered when she had become used to such violence.
The girl dispatched another youkai that had tried to take advantage of her seemingly lapse in focus to creep up on them – and they suddenly were in the shiro's main courtyard.
It was no wonder the evil hanyou hid himself under his baboon pelt, the futuristic girl had to admit, if this was what he looked under it.
The hanyou was a conglomeration of multiple youkai – but she hadn't realized it was quite this literal, even when Musou had been incessantly changing his form.
But right now, facing Sesshoumaru, Naraku wasn't hiding for once, attacking relentlessly despite the lack of success all his attacks were met with, yet surprisingly not looking put out in the least by his apparent failure. Which, knowing the cunning hanyou, meant that for now all was still going according to his plans.
Or rather, all had been going according to plan until their arrival, the miko mused – for the monstrous creature who had been smirking in amusement as it struck again and again against the daiyoukai's pristine silhouette had wide eyes when it realized they weren't as alone as they'd been before, and the wave of low-level youkai around them multiplied suddenly.
Clearly, Naraku hadn't thought they'd be able to enter his barrier that easily.
"Ah," the hanyou recognized reluctantly "I guess there's no more time to play?"
Suddenly, all the discarded bits of flesh that had been scattered around the courtyard while Naraku was fruitlessly trying to attack Sesshoumaru took a life of their own – and Kagome gasped as she understood why the hanyou had been smiling; why he hadn't looked phased with his lack of success in fighting the daiyoukai...
"This powerful youki of yours," Naraku affirmed as he struck "I'll be taking it for my own, Sesshoumaru!"
"As if we'd let you do as you please!" InuYasha was the one to protest, wind swirling around Tessaiga
Of course, the dark-haired hanyou wasn't afraid, a cocky grin on his face as the dark poisonous barrier he'd showed off before appeared around him.
What Naraku hadn't expected was that InuYasha didn't unleash the Kaze no Kizu – but the Bakuryuuha that he'd learned against Ryukossei – and so a swirling vortex of cutting winds and youki tore at the unsuspecting hanyou, the grotesque construct that was his body blowing in a rain of bloody pieces.
Naraku should have been dead with such an attack, the pack knew – but the large, corrupted piece of the Shikon no Tama pulsing in his chest clearly didn't want to let go of its host, and the ridiculously good survival instincts of the hanyou had made him unleash a powerful wave of miasma when his body had been teared apart.
"Well," Naraku had the gall to still laugh "I guess this is where I'm taking my leave!"
"Don't think we'll just let you run away, you bastard!" InuYasha hotly protested, Tessaiga once more ready to attack
But while he'd been surprised by the attack, Naraku wasn't going to just let himself get struck a second time, and with a pulse of his youki, wave upon wave of low-level youkai disgorged from the castle, effectively stucking the pack in place.
Kagome let her reiki surge, her naginata unleashing a large blade of light and power and cutting down multiple youkai in front of her – the miko mentally kicking herself for not having thought to do so earlier.
Naraku's eyes widened as he realized she was on the battlefield – he hadn't seen her cut the barrier after all, and with Sango and InuYasha going thought his ranks, her contribution had looked rather modest up until now. But now – the hanyou's eyes were on her, cold and hateful, yet still somehow wary and calculating.
This was probably her last chance to use the former human infatuation against him, Kagome realized as her mind desperately tried to give her a way, an attack, anything that could hurt the despicable being in front of her before he ran, before once more he slipped between their finger...
But her mind was blank, and she could feel the chance slipping through her fingers by the second – making the miko angry.
For once, she wished – for Kikyou's cool mind, for her years of training where she had had but months; for Mirdoriko's formidable talent with reiki and weapons, who'd earned her the reputation as the greatest warrior miko in history; for all that power and knowledge she knew that was held in her soul yet so direly failed her right now...
"We'll help..."
The miko startled at the two ethereal voices that whispered to her ears only – and it was as if possessed that she took out the bow she rarely used, notched an arrow, and struck just as Naraku was fleeing.
The power swirling around the arrow glowed in three different shades of unique reiki, going through the hanyou's barrier as if it wasn't there, and sinking in his chest right in the Shikon no Tama large shard he owned – not destroying the jewel but purifying a large amount of it, and leaving behind a sun shaped burnt mark as the arrow turned to dust, just as the bow in Kagome's hands.
[Goal complete! +25XP
Goal update: find back Naraku before he completes his transformation
Hidden Goal complete!
Kagome's resolve was heard by her previous incarnations
Hidden Reward:+100XP, +1 beginner Tail perk tome]
The miko couldn't help but smile in triumph as when fleeing, the malicious hanyou had finally lost his usual smugness. While Naraku's ability to get away fast enough to cling to life was frustrating, there was no mistaking it – between InuYasha's Bakuryuuha and Kagome's arrow, this time hanyou had barely managed to step out alive of their confrontation, something he clearly hadn't expected given his recent power ups.
¤.¤.¤
While InuYasha and Kagome had forged ahead toward Sesshoumaru and Naraku, Miroku and Sango had stayed together to hold back the brunt of the youkai guarding the outside of the shiro.
As such, when Naraku let out his potent cloud of miasma, the two humans were soon caught between poisonous mist and a multitude of youkai.
Miroku had opted to raise a shield for the tajiya and himself, while Sango took over his share of the fighting against the swarm. Comparatively weak the youkai may be, there were still no end to them, while the two humans' endurance had its limit, and both the tajiya and the houshi were nearing to their.
By the time their two pack-mates caught up with them, the tajiya was bleeding from countless of small wounds, while the priest was on the last of his reiki, spiritual fatigue starting to settle in.
"The bastard managed to flee," InuYasha explained after he and his brother dispatched quickly the remaining youkai in the courtyard "but he's been badly hurt by Kagome."
"This Sesshoumaru's ward isn't too far." the daiyoukai by his side added by way of explaining why he hadn't pursued the hanyou – while he may know Tsukiko was heading that way, Rin was still his charge, and as an alpha youkai, protecting his pack took precedency on getting rid of Naraku, Shadow's pack understood that quite clearly
"We're heading toward the brat," InuYasha stated toward his own pack-mates, taking charge as his role of beta dictated "But I want the both of you at the back, if there's a shield needed Kagome will do it."
Neither human protested, a clear sign of how tired they were, and with both riding with Kirara, Kagome was soon on InuYasha's back – something that didn't happen all that often since they usually had Padfoot with them.
Rushing in the direction Tsukiko had left toward with Shippou and Kanna, the number of youkai was soon on the rise again, or rather, the left-over of youkai, and clear proof their alpha had gone that way.
Sesshoumaru, the pack was rather surprised to note, kept pace with them rather than rushing ahead – though if it was because he trusted enough his daughter to rescue Rin, or felt the responsibility as an alpha to see the pack reunited with Tsukiko, or even both, then couldn't say.
The scorched marks on the battlefield were clear proof that the young ookami had made use of her fiery nature, but they were rather surprised to realize there also were Kanna's arrows to be found, and of course Shippou hadn't been left behind, as cut wounds could attest to.
They caught up with the trio as Kagura was making her escape from the house where Rin had been held captive – the last of the youkai swarm used as cannon fodder to let the wind spirit escape.
An eyebrow raised, Sesshoumaru observed her ward – the little miko didn't have a hair out of place and was cheerfully waving Kagura goodbye...
"Hi Sesshoumaru-sama!" a loud whisper "You know I don't think the pretty lady was very happy to take me, she didn't let the mean youkai who wanted to eat me approach me, and she was asking all kind of questions about Sesshoumaru-sama and Tsuki-chan!"
"At first I thought it was only Kagome, but then I realized the brat was the same, and now this brat too..." InuYasha thoughtfully mused "I think there's something wrong with females from all species that makes them become friends with their enemies!"
The daiyoukai lips twitched at the affirmation – and from the way he was eyeing said females, he seemed to be in complete agreement with his brother...
From the trio, the rest of the pack soon found out that while Tsukiko had indeed fought, she had been rather restrained, principally using claws and fire, in order to let the two younger youkai present with her gain some precious fighting experience. And while the alpha would have liked to talk to Kagura – her master clearly didn't trust her as far as he could throw her, as there had been saimyoushou around in near permanence.
With a look around, she flared her reiki, purifying all the youkai remains around the house Rin had been held in before gesturing to her pack to enter – there were wounds to be dressed, and weariness to be slept of, so why not take advantage of the place?
Soon, the pack plus Sesshoumaru and Rin were settling down for the evening, each recounting his part of the fight, since they'd ended up in three groups.
There wasn't a lot to be said about Miroku's and Sango's fight – only their lack of endurance had hampered them, and the youkai swarm hadn't had anything particularly noteworthy, the weak enemies falling easily under both Hiraikotsu and Miroku's water and reiki enhanced hakujou, only their number a real problem.
Tsukiko, along with Shippou and Kanna, had faced about the same situation, with the only notable difference of Kagura's presence – but since she was supposed to hold Rin prisoner, she had used this to stay inside while the swarm was whittled down, only coming out at the end when she was called back by Naraku, after but a token attempt of an attack.
What really stood out was Naraku's gall at trying to absorb the Western Lord – and the important set back he'd suffered. There was no doubt the hanyou would know all about Bakuryuuha by the next time they found him again, the attack hadn't been kept secret by the Inu no Taishou back in the days.
But Kagome's attack – that was a surprise for everyone.
More importantly, even Tsukiko and her soul sense had something to say about it...
"Because those two previous incarnation of your soul and you found yourself in such similar situation, an echo of their life, that can always be found in a soul, but is seldomly awakened, responded to your strong wish to act against Naraku." Tsukiko explained "Right now I can feel both yours and two others reiki, dormant for now, but that you could probably learn to tap into at will with some training. One I'm sure is Kikyou's, and the second without a doubt Midoriko's."
"And what did the attack do?" Miroku wondered
The alpha couldn't help but shrug helplessly "I would have to see Naraku to know for sure." she reminded them "But from what Kagome-chan is saying, I can guess that the attack was focused at purifying the Shikon no Tama, because it's the fact it's corrupted that grants Naraku so much power."
The next morning, they headed back to the shiro – meeting Kouga along the way.
"Whatever happened here last night, the repercussions are already felt around," the wolf alpha was soon explaining "we were on our way back from the Eastern Lord's shiro when we felt it."
"It was as if a malicious aura that had been all around since so long we could no longer feel it suddenly disappeared." Ginta took over
"And a lot weak youkai who'd apparently been hiding from this presence are coming out of the woods." Hakkaku added "We've had to fend of three different attacks on our way here!"
"Anyway, if this was Naraku, then his presence has completely disappeared." Kouga noted "But before that, he was clearly headed north, and moving so fast even I couldn't keep up with him."
"Well, north we will go then." Tsukiko nodded "Thankfully we're not too far from Edo. We'll have to stock up winter clothes and more food, with the cold coming hunting won't always be an option." turning toward Kagome "You'd better inform your parents that we'll probably be gone for longer than usual, and pick up more studying material from Mahoutokoro."
She turned toward Kouga "We should keep your pack hooked up on the hunting party too, this way if you're heading north from the Eastern Land while we go through the Western Lands, we will be able to cover more ground."
"You seem rather intent on finding Naraku?" InuYasha pointed out "Not that I'm complaining, but why so suddenly?"
It was Kagome who answered rather soberly "From the size of the shard he had, and the size of our shard... Between those two pieces, I think the Shikon no Tama is nearly complete."
The beta's eyes widened at the affirmation. With a decisive nod, he concluded "Well, no use in wasting time, eh?"
Tsukiko nodded, the hunting party invite soon sent to Tsume's pack and accepted.
After that, they still spent a bit of time in the abandoned castle Naraku had left behind, finding nothing but discarded bits of youkai in the basement – soon after, Kouga was on his way, ready to head north from the Eastern side of the country while the pack headed back to Edo to prepare for their own journey, while Sesshoumaru and his ward went their own way too.
"Most of the supplies we'd be better off getting in our era," Tsukiko was soon pointing out "so you should take advantage of that time to train or relax."
"It's too bad we can't come," Shippou complained "I'm sure there's so many interesting things to see!" a pout "Why is it that only InuYasha managed to go through that well?"
"Probably because of that subduing necklace around his neck." Tsukiko explained "It is attuned to Kagome-chan's reiki after all."
"But Ryo-dono and Tsuki-chan can come and go as they will..." Kagome protested
"Well, since the well is Fate's way to send you to us, it' not to surprising that alpha can use it too." Miroku pointed out
"Then, does it mean..." Kagome's eyed widened "Not only Tsuki-chan but Ryo-dono too is a god?"
Seeing her pack stare inquisitively at her, the hime couldn't help put point out "I thought it was rather evident once you found out what I was... I mean I told you we met several life-times ago!"
"So the guy managed to ascend as a god to follow his wife?" Miroku summed up, awe in his eyes "That's some devotion. Or is it stubbornness?" he wondered
"Both." Kagome-chan couldn't help but state with assurance – one just had to know the odd couple to be sure of that "Still... What kind of god is he? I mean your job is to help Fate's Chosen, yet you're Death's sister..."
"He's Life brother."
This time, the young miko was laughing so hard she nearly fell from her spot on Padfoot, making the Grimm huff and nudge her back in place, while even InuYasha couldn't help but snort in disbelief "That man? A god for Life? He's about as suited to it as my brother is!"
"And yet Tenseiga accepted chichi-ue." Tsukiko reminded, making both the hanyou and the rest of the pack stop in their track at that reminder "Understanding when to take a life is important as an assassin. But knowing when to save one..."
"Wow. Why is it that he always seems like such a great guy when you talk about him, yet when I saw him he was so annoying?" Shippou couldn't help but complain, entertaining the whole pack with that affirmation
"Still, getting back to the well and powers, Ryoichi has already taken plenty of people to your era with his own project in our era..." InuYasha reminded
"So does it mean we could all come?"
While the rest of the pack didn't have the same begging puppy eyes Shippou had – and which Kanna was already developing her own version of – Tsukiko could read hope even in Miroku and Sango's eyes, even if it was better hidden.
While common sense said that taking people traipsing through time for one-afternoon of shopping wasn't a good idea – well for one, common sense was boring, as she was sure Chaos would agree, and to be honest she didn't think it would be that huge of a risk.
Time traveling in your own life-time was dangerous because changes had greater effect in the immediate past and future, but once you went as far as centuries, the time-line tended to be rather solid, adapting itself at any change thrown it's way to still end up the way it was supposed to...
What was the worse that could happen?
¤.¤.¤
In the end, it turned out even simpler than they had anticipated to open the well's to the pack – after all the last time Shippou had tried to hop off in said well, they hadn't even been pack. Since then, Padfoot had let a rather visible reiki imprint on all of the pack – and while they tended to forget about his holy nature, the Grimm still remained an Inugami...
As predicted, the pack-mark acted as all the authorization the well needed, and they were soon coming out in the Sunset Shrine and welcomed by Daisuke and a Souta enthusiastically working on his kata with the old priest.
"Akane-san and Saiyuri-chan will regret taking that hunting job near Hokkaido." the elder Higurashi commented as the pack was presented to his family around tea
As they explained why they'd come, it was soon decided that the Higurashi would come too, turning the afternoon into an impromptu family outing – Tsukiko had called her own father, but the Lord was held by work, stuck in a meeting with foreign dignitaries.
Going through the bustling city that was Tokyo had been a rather strange experience for the pack, humans and youkai alike – this highly technological future looked nearly alien to them, and made them wonder just how the two girls from the future had managed to adapt so well to their era.
Then, they'd gone through one of the numerous hidden passage – and arrived in the bustling wizarding and youkai market.
The place to them, was both more familiar, and even stranger.
On one hand, the look of the shops and other stalls was far more traditional – but on the other hand, technology was present too, mixed in some strange harmony with all the preternatural they could see around. But even stranger was the way all seemed to cohabit – youkai of all species, a multitude of hanyou, holy servants of all kinds and even witches and wizard, something clearly seen badly in their own era.
Shippou, Kanna, and even Souta, were taking the wonders of the place with wide eyes – the human boy was still getting used to his own place in this world, but for the two youkai child...
This was hope, given form in front of their eyes. Hearing about Kagome and Tsukiko's stories was one thing – but seeing that future they were promising would exist one day was another thing of its own.
Clothing were soon taken care of, with all finding clothes to their own taste which were given over to the seamstress to give a whole treatment of enchanting and enhancing, and after being told to come back the next day to take up their order, the pack was soon indulging the younger of the group by letting Shippou and Souta, both as excited as the other, drag them from the magical menagerie to the sweet shops, without missing the toys and pranks store.
After the children had their fill of amusement, the hime took them to one last stop – and the pack recognized the familiar youki before even entering the store "He's in the middle of the city?" an incredulous Kagome realized "I thought he didn't like people!"
"Bah! Mount Nikko is even more crowed nowadays with all those damn pilgrims and tourists!" a grumpy Totosai stated as he saw the pack enter his shop
The pack couldn't help but smile at how unchanged by the centuries the youkai seemed, as he expectantly turned toward Tsukiko "So you want me to make weapons for children now?"
"They will need them to survive what is to come, as you know better than I do, I suspect."
"Of course." Totosai grumbled "It's not as if they weren't ready, age aside." he admitted reluctantly "I've seen centuries old youkai with less power and maturity!"
With that, he grasped Shippou by an ear, making the kit protest loudly in surprise, and taking advantage of his opened mouth promptly puling out a sharp fang before turning out toward Kanna. Eyeing the youkai warily, the little girl nonetheless dutifully opened her mouth, barely wincing as here too the blacksmith took possession of a teeth – and while she was still focusing on her missing tooth, a lock of hair...
"Out now! And don't go back before dropping by to take your weapons!" then as if changing his mind "And give me that too!" with that he snatched Miroku's hakujou
Not bothering protesting, Tsukiko took her pack out.
"What is he going to do with my hakujou?" couldn't help but wonder Miroku "I mean, can a youkai even work with a holy weapon?"
"No, he can't." was quick to confirm Tsukiko "Except if there's youki too in the weapon, he could only do Kagome's naginata because he used my fang in it. But he's probably simply going to give your hakujou to Talbot. The old Tengu can enchant about anything."
"Talbot?" InuYasha repeated the unfamiliar name
"You wouldn't know of him, he's not in Japan in your era."
As for Shippou, he was worrying for something completely different "It... doesn't mean we're going to take the Trial, right?" the kit asked timidly
The hime smiled softly at the visibly worried child "Of course not." a wink "Even thought you could pass it easily!"
"Of course!" he boasted cheerfully at the reassurance
"It's just that you've improved enough that you're ready to bond with a weapon of your own, rather than a temporary one." Tsukiko explained, adding "And Kanna is going to need a good weapon too, if she wants to stand up to Naraku and save Kagura."
The shadow spirit nodded and a smiled at that – she had been wondering too, why their alpha was commissioning something usually reserved for adults when both her and Shippou were clearly still treated as the pack's children even if they were never looked down upon.
Once more – their alpha wasn't disappointing in her answer, both giving them the mean to stand on their own and reassuring them about their place in the family at the same time...
The pack had headed back to the Sunset Shrine for the evening – then spent the night at Tsukiko's house, since it clearly had more space to welcome half a dozen of unexpected guests without a problem.
As the house of canine youkai – the humans of the pack were rather surprised to realize that the bedroom setup was rather different from what they were used to..
"It's a den!" Shippou had realized with shiny, happy eyes, unhesitatingly diving in the large pile of furs, wool blankets and cotton sheet
Indeed – it was a den, the canine youkai concept of a bedroom, with the whole floor covered in futon and different sheets for all to sleep together as they wanted – Kagome remembered that her childhood friend had indeed mentioned that pack did everything together, so of course the bedroom was shared...
There we a couple of discrete shoji doors around the room, that Tsukiko pointed toward "You can use those if you're not comfortable with the den. They're private rooms."
The humans wondered briefly why there would be private rooms when clearly all slept together – then seeing a blushing Shippou realized the answer was rather evident.
"Isn't it... inconvenient?" Miroku couldn't help but wonder, having realized those were the room used by couples in need of intimacy "I mean with your senses..."
"They are warded!" quickly explained Tsukiko, even the young hime blushing this time
In the end, the humans did opt for the rooms, while the youkai, even Kanna who wasn't a particularly pack oriented one by nature, but had soon adopted her new family's ways, made their place in the den.
When Sesshoumaru arrived, rather late, Tsukiko opened a bleary eye and smiled warmly – and the daiyoukai neatly side-stepped around the children crowding his daughter to make his own place by her side, the ookami sleepily nuzzling against him before settling back to sleep. InuYasha, on the other side of his alpha, opened an eye to before going back to sleep peacefully – happy to now understand so fully the simple acceptance his niece had given him since their first meeting.
Being among pack and family – was the warmest kind of acceptance he'd ever found.
The situation was only made better by their three humans pack-mates each giving up on sleeping alone at some point and silently entering the den at different points of the night, under Sesshoumaru's approving eyes.
This – had been the best sleep in their life, both humans and hanyou realized wistfully the next morning. All had grow used to sleep near each other on their travel, even if they hadn't realized it before being given once more the option to sleep apart – and being in the heart of Tsukiko's childhood home, making their alpha so utterly relaxed, as she knew nothing there would harm her or her pack, had in turn made all of them let go of any tension.
Even waking up and realizing they'd just spent the night in the same room as the Lord of the West didn't dampen that feeling – and really, as cold as the daiyoukai looked, it was hard to be afraid of him when his daughter was curled in his side and using his tail as both pillow and blanket...
Soon, the pack plus one were huddling around the low table for breakfast, the meat-heavy spread a clear indication once more that the house was one where canine lived.
Tsukiko was soon updating her father on the latest happening in the past, and their current project to head north, and introducing her new partner to the daiyoukai, who just like his daughter widened his eyes in recognition
"Blanche." he greeted the pup who amicably licked his face "How unexpected..."
"I was rather surprised." Tsukiko nodded with soft eyes "I mean, we talked a bit when I used dream-walking to visit Death Islands, but I didn't expect her to give up her place in the reincarnation cycle for me."
The daiyoukai was less surprised – after all, even if he hadn't known at the time that Blanche was Tsukiko's mother, he had talked quite a bit about his daughter from the future with the beautiful European wolf, as much more than lovers, they had been good friends, so much that the ookami probably felt as if she already knew the young goddess not yet born. And Blanche he knew had sorely regretted her supposed inability to have children.
No – Sesshoumaru wasn't surprised in the least with the White Wolf's decision to stay by their daughter's side.
But this wasn't something he'd explain to Tsukiko – Blanche herself would do so in time if she so wished. So instead he let his youki swirl around the Inugami, a blue moon now marring her fur to identify her in this new life as the Lady of the West she never got to be before dying, already knowing his past self wouldn't realize the significance of the mark, simply taking it for an acknowledgment of the pup's link with his daughter...
As for InuYasha – the hanyou clearly realized what the gesture meant, even if he didn't say anything, simply eyeing the latest addition to their pack with renewed interest. Sesshoumaru smiled in amusement at his brother rather uncharacteristic show of restrain – Tsukiko really had done wonders for the younger inu's comportment.
A few days latter, the pack was back to the past, food stock-piled in their Inventories, warm clothes ready to be equipped in the Wardrobe System, and with new weapons for Kanna and Shippou, and an improved hakujo for Miroku.
To say they'd been surprised by Totosai work would be an understatement – but like always, the old blacksmith had been on spot with his choices...
Most of the pack had been rather dubious when the old youkai had handed Shippou his new weapon, kit included – but a few moves later, and all could see that the wavy blade of his fire kriss did work surprisingly well for the young kitsune.
Similarly Kanna's weapon, while a bow just like what she had been training with, wasn't a traditional Japanese one but a Native Indian one to their surprise – but there was no mistaking the flat cut of the wood. They had also realized that said weapon hadn't been made by Totosai at all but by Talbot, who'd also been the one to improve Miroku's hakujo...
¤.¤.¤
Back in the past, the pack had checked via the written chat how things were on Kouga's side, to learn that the power void caused by Naraku's disappearance, that had already been making waves when they left, was getting worse.
Quite a bit of low to mid-level youkai had come out of hiding with the malevolent hanyou's departure from the region, making the countryside unsafe and ripe with strife between youkai.
As such, the holy servants of the pack had spent a bit of time establishing the same wards around Edo they'd already put around Sango's village before leaving, not banning access to youkai, but making it harder to approach the town for those intending to harm anyone – they didn't want to bar the village from the peaceful merchants, or the friendly Rouyakan and Jinenji after all...
It was a few days into their trek north that they heard back from Kouga.
The wolf tribe youkai had just grown into his daiyoukai status, changing into a true form for the first time...
Tsume pack, still heading north along the Eastern coast, had started hearing rumors from numerous youkai fleeing from the North – there was something unknown, coming from even further North, eating and attacking humans and youkai alike.
Something that didn't look human, nor had any youki to speak of.
Something that smelled of corpse and burial ground...
Of course, they had directly headed to investigate – but when they found the enemy, he surprisingly didn't bear Naraku's smell, despite obviously being a part of his click one way or another, as the saimyoushou buzzing around were more than proof enough.
The thing had once been human, and dead – then revived by a rather powerful Shikon shard. It was something Kouga had never seen before, even if he'd heard about it from Tsukiko during their hunting days – a corrupted human, one made even more dangerous that he no longer was powered only by the dark shard, but had also been eating any youkai he could to steal their powers...
Thankfully, with how big and deformed Kyoukotsu, as he'd introduced himself, had grown, the undead wasn't very quick on his feet. But, as Kouga had fast realized after breaking the monster's neck without result, Kyoukotsu wasn't living, and as such couldn't be killed easily.
The only way to put back the mad thing to eternal rest was to take out the Shikon shard behind his brow...
The fight hadn't been going too well, as Kouga couldn't feel the shard like Kagome could, and so the pack had been attacking again and again fruitlessly until by a strike of luck, the undead thing managed to hurt Hakkaku and was on his way to try and eat Ginta.
The young heir of Fang had seen red – and the next moment, a large brown wolf had cut Kyoukotsu's body clean in half, the shard flying out of his skull under one of the new ookami's large claws, the undead's body turning back to a pile of large bones. The saimyoushou had taken advantage of Tsume's pack rather understandable confusion and surprise at their alpha new status to steal back the Shikon shard right from the pile of bone's, but at least the encounter had given them a lead.
Asking around in the villages, it took Shadow's pack a few more days to find out just who Kyoukotsu had been...
The Shichinin-tai had been a band of seven mercenaries from hire, working for no one lord, wandering from war to war, battle to battle. Soon, the daimyou all started to fear the strength of the small band of warriors, who were known to be as strong as an army of a hundred and lacking any mercy, enjoying bloodshed and mayhem and showing mercy to none, be them women or children. In order to put a stop to the group's threat and exactions, an army was raised.
While in the end the several daimyou's armies were victorious – it had been a costly victory, the shichinin-tai routing their pursuers toward a mountain and killing hundreds before they were finally caught in an abandoned village to the North, and finally, they were decapitated and burned.
The inhabitants from the neighboring villages, afraid of being cursed by the seven spiteful spirits then erected a grave and a shrine to appease their souls – a shrine that had recently been found destroyed...
Soon after that, Kyoukotsu had started his rampage toward the East, and the people were afraid – after all, if one of the seven was back to life, then it was no hard leap to make to guess that the six others had come back from the grave too.
And with Kyoukotsu clearly having been revived by Naraku, it wasn't too hard for Shadow's pack to guess that the shichinin-tai would soon be coming after them to prevent them from finding the hanyou...
As such, their next destination – not that it really changed anything, since they had already been heading North, was the seven's grave, and from there, hopefully, a way to find Naraku once more.
Nearly two weeks of fast-paced travel after leaving Edo, they finally found themselves in front of the famous broken shrine, meeting up with Tsume's pack, that hadn't been waiting for them for more than a few hours, as crossing the mountain range that was the spinal cord of the country wasn't an easy trip by any mean – but then again, the wolves pack had been able to follow the first shichinin-tai's trail of destruction.
As soon as Shadow's pack found itself standing in front of the now empty burial site, Chaos Game came alive.
[Life Quest! The Seven Undead...
First goal: meet all the shichinin-tai (0/7)
Second goal: send back the shichinin-tai back to the afterlife (0/7)
Reward: +100XP per shichinin-tai, +1 beginner skill tome upon first goal completion, +1 Stone Enhancement upon second goal completion, all Shichini-tai added to Boss List in the Arena System upon quest completion]
[First goal update (1/7): +100XP]
[Second goal update (1/7): +100XP]
"Well," InuYasha pointed out "Now we can be sure about those seven being an important part of whatever Naraku's current plans are..."
"For them to warrant a Life Quest they must be." Miroku agreed
The two packs had left the empty shrine, behind – not before the three miko of the group pointed out that it was already cleansed, something rather impressive when you knew the seven buried in there were corrupted, but easily explained by the looming form of a nearby mountain.
"Another one I've never heard about." complained Kagome as she glared at said mountain as if it was at fault
"Well," Tsukiko admitted "I've only heard of it too if it makes you feel better." a shrug "From what I know a powerful holy servant was enshrined there, and his disappearance was followed by the whole sacred site's destruction..."
"And when did that happened?" wondered Kagome, suddenly having a bad feeling about the story
"Probably around this era." Tsukiko confirmed, guessing at what her friend was wondering – the pack finding its way to this place, knowing it would soon be destroyed didn't feel like a coincidence
"Still, there is a powerful reiki barrier around the mountain," Miroku pointed out "so it's not possible for Naraku to go through it, right?"
"Yet at the same time, it would be the perfect way to hid him from youkai sense if he was behind it, wouldn't it?" Sango had to contradict
"And holes can be made even through the most powerful barriers." concluded Tsukiko
"If it exists, we'll find it." Kouga nodded – and so, after a few hours of companionship, the two pack were soon going their separate way once more, Tsume to circle the mountain by it's Eastern side while Shadow would do the same on the Western one
They weren't that far from the broken shrine when Tsukiko and her pack encountered a small group of farmers, who were quick to advise them not to follow the road ahead – apparently, word was spreading of the Shichinin-tai's awakening, and with it the daimyou who'd condemned them ten years earlier were feeling once more the familiar fear of the terrible band of mercenaries...
As such, the landlord of the shiro where the great halberd that had once been the weapon of choice of the seven's leader was kept was raising an army, forcibly enlisting anyone coming his way – while the other daimyou's were sending their men too, leaders thirsting for glory just enough to forget about the fearsome reputation of their prey.
After thanking the men for their warning, and informing them that the shrine was clean – something that seemed to greatly reassure them – the pack was on it's way, the scent of blood soon making them hasten their pace.
¤.¤.¤
A few minutes at full speed, and they found themselves facing a lone human-looking figure surrounded by dead and bloody bodies. It was clear from the scene that there hadn't been much of a fight, the Shichinin-tai member – his scent impossible not to recognize – not having a speck of blood on himself... while the large scimitar like blade negligently propped on his shoulder was dripping it.
Spotting their arrival, the corrupted human's face lightened in excitation, and he greeted them enthusiastically – or rather, he greeted InuYasha, to the hanyou's despair...
"Oh! You must be InuYasha! You are even cuter than I expected!" the shinning eyes took a sinister gleam "I'm itching to see your despairing face as I cut you! And after that... I'll take those ears of yours as a souvenir!"
"Tch. Creepy bastard."
"Ah! This aloof look is so sexy! I'm Jakotsu-sama, let's see whose sword is the best!"
[First goal update (2/7): +100XP]
With that, the undead had moved swiftly for the size of the weapon he was carrying, aiming at the pack's beta without paying attention to the rest of them at all. They shared surprised glances, no one having expected the flamboyant character in front of them as their next enemy, and wondered about whether to help their beta.
Jakotsu was good, very good for a human – for one thing, despite the corruption the holy servants of the pack could all clearly felt, the man was thinking clearly, even if it may have been a side effect of the shard – the second important point was that where Naraku's spawn had all been newborn, the human had been a mercenary for decades before his death and subsequent resurrection. What Jakotsu may lack in youki and strength compared to Naraku's children, he compensated for in spades with his own fighting experience...
And that was clearly shown as it was only InuYasha's sharpened reflexes and instincts that allowed him to jump out of the way as the blade of the mercenary's weapon seemed to twist and blur in the air, revealing that it hadn't been a simple blade but a chained one, the multiple segments making up for a difficult weapon to control but with a much better range than a simple sword – a finicky weapon Jakotsu used perfectly.
Miroku and Sango decided to help at the same time – and it was rather impressive to see the human parry Tessaiga, then dodge Miroku's hakujou to finally reflect Sango's Hiraikotsu violently, the tajiya able to jump out of the way of her own boomerang thanks only to her intensive training.
A bit more disturbing, was the undead's reaction at the two interference in his fight – eyes nearly heart-shaped as his attention was on Miroku, and deeming the houshi "cute" too, then face distorting in disgust and anger toward Sango, with his retaliation much more violent against her, when he saw the woman.
Jakotsu, Tsukiko realized – was very much like Lussuria once upon a time – a frightfully skilled warrior with sadistic tendencies toward his preferred opponent, someone who was prone to toy with his prey rather than attack seriously, and was powerful enough to get away with it...
Still, each time the two fighter's swords clashed, it was becoming more and more apparent that InuYasha was more powerful, and while he may have been more of a brawler for quite a long time, the hanyou was the only one in his pack, alpha excluded, who could boast to have more fighting experience than the human mercenary – and so, bit by bit, he was pushing back Jakotsu, grazing his clothes in several places.
Luckily for the undead, he wasn't as alone as he'd thought, as he realized at the same time as the pack did when the bodies around them started to dissolve to the ground as a cloud of toxic fumes invaded their battlefield. Taking advantage of InuYasha's distraction, he jumped back "We'll see each other again I'm sure! Bye!"
As for the pack – they shared glances. The way to follow Jakotsu was barred by clearly toxic fumes, but from Tsukiko's and the other youkai's face, the poison wasn't that toxic to them, and after exercising his new senses a bit, Miroku could soon affirm that both Jakotsu and his ally weren't that far away.
"No point in letting them get away, then!" InuYasha decreed
"Indeed." Tsukiko agreed easily, looking around her at her pack "Shippou, Kanna." both young youkai were already by her side "We'll go after the poison user, You get Jakotsu."
The humans nodded, not too surprised – for one thing, Tsukiko being more powerful, it only made sense for her to go with the smaller and less experienced group, and to top it the youkai weren't affected by the poison at all, contrarily to the humans of the pack, who simply had an increased resistance to it...
It was also a clear show of trust in their skill from their alpha – after all, if she'd been worried about them getting badly hurt, she'd never had let them split up. The group couldn't help but smile at the realization the countless hours of training were paying enough that Tsukiko was clearly acknowledging it.
As such, InuYasha was leading Miroku, Sango and Kagome around the toxic cloud to give chase to Jakotsu while Tsukiko, Shippou and Kanna simply forged ahead in it.
The youkai half of the pack had soon tracked down the poison-maker – between their senses and their alpha ability to see she Shikon shard, it was just that easy.
[First goal update (3/7): +100XP]
Small, flat-faced and with skin greasy from his concoction making, the third shichinin-tai wasn't a model of beauty by any mean – but most of all, he had been unlucky in the draw. Or, more probably, Naraku hadn't even bothered with telling his latest pawn that humans and youkai alike were part of the pack they were sent to chase...
As such, the poison user eyes widened as he saw the trio step out of the deadly fumes without a hair out of place, and he stumble in both surprise and fear at their lack of reaction to his mixtures.
"He feels dirty." Kanna commented first with a small frown of distaste, her new found hold on Soul Sense still not refined enough for her to really analyze what made her dislike the man that much behind his clear flaunting the laws of life and death
"This Mukotsu is a perfect example of a corrupted human." Tsukiko explained "Dark mind caring only about himself, he would kill even his team-mates if he stood to gain for it." her eyes darkened with disgust "His favorite victims are young girls."
As the ookami had stated his name, and preferences, she hadn't stopped prowling toward the poison user, the man trying to sent another vial of poison, even more potent than the previous, without any visible results – throat cut out with a swift movement of sharp claws, the Shikon shard grabbed out of the air by the daiyoukai before his body had even crumbled back to dust under the nearby saimyoushou's angry buzzing.
Not need to let the children dirty themselves by killing this waste of space, the alpha mused – not even realizing that technically she was barely older than said children.
[Second goal update (2/7):+100XP]
"Talk about anti-climatic." Shippou quipped
Tsukiko, quickly fishing an empty vial in her Inventory to stock the newly gained shard, let her senses blanket the area at the same time.
"Where to, now?"
The two younger youkai shared a long, guessing that like often their alpha was testing their abilities – and so both let their senses blanket the area too "I can feel Inu-nii and the others against a corpse." Shippou soon stated "But there's the same annoying scent of death coming from another way too..."
Kanna, frowning, confirmed "I can't smell as well as Shippou-chan, but I can feel several recently departed soul in the same area, and a soul past it's time too."
Tsukiko nodded in satisfaction, and confirmed their deductions, adding to it "From what the villagers were saying earlier, that area is that of a large temple. I'm afraid the priest have already encountered someone from the shichinin-tai."
"Then let's go!" Shippou commented decisively "We can't save them anymore, but we can at least stop those damn zombies from killing anyone else!"
¤.¤.¤
InuYasha and the rest of the pack had soon left the poisonous area to follow a rapidly going away Jakotsu, heading deeper into the surrounding forest – then InuYasha's nose alerted the pack a split second before a rain of deadly chakram sailed toward them, cutting the trees around them to pieces.
While Miroku had his water barrier and Sango her Hiraikotsu to act as protection, Kagome's light manipulation wasn't up yet to the level where she could bend it enough to her will to deflect the attack, and so the teenage girl had no choice but to jump out of the way, a nasty gash appearing on her back and shoulder as she was nicked by one of the cutting disks.
By the second wave of the attack, InuYasha was ready, his Kaze no Kizu unleashed against the weapon blowing all of them off course while the hanyou jumped toward the direction the attacks were coming from, followed immediately by Sango while Miroku stayed back to help the bleeding Kagome.
The enemy InuYasha and Miroku found themselves facing was barely human looking compared to Jakotsu – a grappling hook instead of a left hand, a weapon launcher charged with chakram on his back, a large arquebus stored beside it along with a no less large war-axe, not to mention his stitched face with only one eye visible and his jaw replaced by a metal and leather contraption...
[First goal update (4/7): +100XP]
Seeing the pack-mates approaching him, the Frankenstein monster like creature let out a deep laugh "Geh he he, I am Ginkotsu, and you InuYasha, and your friends, are not going to escape me!"
A new wave of chakram were sent toward them, hanyou and tajiya each avoiding on a side to corner the shichinin-tai mercenary – except this time, steel wire had been hidden among the cutting discus, hampering both of the pack fighter's movement, as their weapon were rather large.
"I was told not to let you wave this thing around!" Ginkotsu laughed, gesturing at Tessaiga – and the next moment it wasn't the weapon-launcher but the nearby arquebus that was firing, sending burning projectiles at them
Still – neither InuYasha nor Sango were helpless, the tajiya dodging behind her weapon while getting out the ninjato she owned but seldomly got to use while InuYasha himself sheathed his blade to jump toward the large zombie all claws out. Meanwhile Kagome, realizing that she would be a liability if she stayed in the way and unable to heal her own wounds, climbed on Kirara, the fiery cat taking to the air to keep her out of the fight.
The next few moments were spent dodging the sharp chakram among the tree while trading blow with their large opponent, each of the pack member taking advantage of the others move to attack.
But Ginkotsu, proving that he was indeed an experiment fighter even if he didn't look all that bright, was used to fight outnumbered, and while too slow to fully dodge, knew exactly how to move in order for the blow to be less effective, encountering the armored pieces of his outfit or his weapon rather than flesh – and even when Miroku's water halberd finally managed to land a clean blow, the priest was surprised to leave a simple wound when he expected a much deeper wound.
"The shard's strengthened his skin!" he warned his fellows pack fighters
Sango and InuYasha acknowledged the new information, understanding that it meant Miroku would only be able to harass the tank fighter since he didn't have the strength necessary to land heavy attack – the houshi himself immediately adapting his approach to the fight.
As the fight went on, InuYasha soon realized that their opponent, while indeed skilled at his form of combat, wasn't used to long skirmishes in the forest, probably more used to an open battlefield. As such, while he'd hampered their best weapon at the start of the battle thanks both to his metal wire and the trees around them, he had neglected to take into account that his own gunpowder powered weapon and sharp chakram were far from the ideal fighting tools for this situation – and indeed he had created a clearing in the dense forest.
The hanyou conveyed his realization via the chat, Sango and Miroku's eyes both widening as they realized that indeed – a few more well aimed attack, and both Hiraikotsu and Tessaiga would be once more free to be used.
With that realization made, the trio was quick to aim their attack and movement to lead their opponent to attack where they wanted – and a few moments later, the gunner's eyes widened when he realized InuYasha was once more rushing toward him with his large sword, while the tajiya's boomerang was flying in the same direction. The large man managed to avoid surprisingly well the two attacks – only to find himself facing Miroku who this time wasn't shaping his water but simply unleashing a powerful wave, that made Ginkotsu stumble back right in the Kaze no Kizu's path.
[Second goal update (3/7):+100XP]
"We should look for the shard that was maintaining him alive or he could be revived." a tired Miroku pointed out – the last wave had taken a lot out of him
"Good point." Sango agreed, walking cautiously about the scattered remains of the forest – between Miroku's water attack and InuYasha's Kaze no Kizu, they had effectively completed the destruction of the part of the forest they had been fighting in, even the ground appearing unstable by places...
But as soon as they started the rather disgusting task, saimyoushou appeared seemingly out of nowhere, having apparently been spying on the battle but stayed out of it – before they could do a thing, the insects had swarmed around Ginkotsu remains, taking the Shikon shard and leaving a pile of bones and gore behind.
"So much for that." Sango sighed "At least they couldn't take the body with them." she shrugged, before turning worried eyes toward Kagome "How bad are you?"
"It's not that bad." the girl quickly reassured them – her pale complexion going against her words "Tsukiko shouldn't have any difficulty to heal me." she assured, it's just that since it's my back I couldn't even put any salve or bandaging myself..."
"Then let's hurry up and meet the rest of the pack." InuYasha decreed before tacking another look at the miko from the future "Then again, maybe Sango should put some salve on you before we go."
¤.¤.¤
While InuYasha and his half of the pack were fighting Ginkotsu, his niece's and her charge had arrived at the temple – surprisingly, all was calm.
Sharing concerned glances at the confirmation that it was too late to save the residents, they sped up the long stairs, to find a bald man in priest's clothes tending to burnt corpses.
Shippou, who didn't have Kanna's and their alpha's souls sense, looked confused – while their was indeed the characteristic burial ground scent that followed those brought back from the dead, the man in front of them still smelt alive...
"There's a lot of burial soil around the ground, since it's a temple," Tsukiko explained in a low voice as the false priest ambled peacefully toward them "so his scent is lost in it."
"And he's wearing the clothes of one of those he just killed to have that living scent..." the kit realized on his own now that he had half of the puzzle, nose wrinkling in disgust at the idea
"You know what's the strangest?" Tsukiko announced "He really was praying for them when we arrived..." a shrug "And yet he doesn't have a shred of regret, all that he does is for his own survival." she explained, having picked this up thanks to her Soul Sense
They pack didn't have time to say anything else, as the false monk was greeting them with a warm smile only belied by cold eyes, that Shippou knew he could have easily overlooked had he not known the man was an enemy.
[First goal update (5/7): +100XP]
"Travelers?" the monk asked – but by the way he was observing them, it was clear he was recognizing them, probably from descriptions given by Naraku "The region isn't safe I'm afraid, there are bandits around, and rumors are the shichinin-tai have come back from the grave."
"So we've heard." Tsukiko nodded, amused by the word game, and wondering what he could be looking for since he wasn't attacking
"Apparently, they are chasing a group of humans and youkai," the undead commented idly "I wonder why."
Tsukiko smile widened, as she now knew what the man was after – knowledge.
The shichinin-tai were after all far from stupid, to have survived for so long as they had, and being revived under the orders of Naraku wasn't sitting right with them – they knew that it wasn't out of the goodness of his heart that the hanyou had brought them back to life after all, and saw no reason to be loyal to Naraku, not even sure the man wouldn't back-stab them at the first occasion.
And in the mercenaries' mind, back-stabbing first was the best way to stay alive – but for that, they needed information...
Her smile grew wild as she answered "Easy enough. They're cannon fodder to slow us from tracking Naraku while he's licking the wounds we left him with the last time we saw each other and cook some new way to grow stronger." an amused smile "Naraku likes disposable tools after all."
"Disposable, uh." the false monk repeated with narrowed eyes "It seems rather strange to me to go through all the trouble of calling back from the grave seven powerful mercenary simply to use them as discardable troop..."
"Naraku looks down on humans," Tsukiko answered simply "and he's got enough resources that he doesn't see your resurrection as that big of a deal in the grand scheme of thing... as long as you buy time for whatever he's planning against us in before dying again."
The affirmation made the undead man eye's widen in surprise, but except for that he remain remarkably calm as he realized they knew what he was "I'm impressed." he commented "After all, no human should be able to tell what I am, and I chose the place specially for you youkai..."
"You were unlucky." Tsukiko answered "Naraku hasn't bothered to give you any information about most of us, he's blinded by his obsession against a few of us and forget about the rest of us..." her smile grew colder and her eyes glowed with power "Now that you've had your little chat, it's time for you to get back to your grave."
The man jumped back, swift enough to avoid Shippou's blade – something rather impressive for a human, be it a corrupted one enhanced by a tainted shard, but like Jakotsu he had been a renowned mercenary for years, something that wasn't a small achievement in this era...
"Well, I guess I won't get anymore information from you." the shichinin-tai member casually noted as his face suddenly changed – large dark rest mark forming under his eyes, as if to underline the dark feeling he was oozing, the front of the kindly priest definitely gone "I am Renkotsu of the shichinin-tai," he stated "and I'll be the one to take your lives."
"You can certainly try!" Shippou retorted with assurance – making Tsukiko inwardly marvel at how far the kit had come in a few month, from the lonely scared child from back then to the young kitsune ready to fight for his life and assured of his own competence
Kana was quietly but intently watching their opponent, not calling attention to her – and, Tsukiko noted with wide eyes, using, even if only barely, her Mist Flames to call off attention from her, something she realized only thanks to her own experience fighting against flames users and their pack-bond...
As for herself, she was still, knowing that for now Renkotsu's attention was divided between the clear aggressive one – Shippou – and herself simply because she'd called attention to her with their talk.
Seeing as she was older looking, he'd probably go for her, even though she was a women – the man seemed experienced enough to realize that as a youkai her gender didn't mean anything when it came to fighting prowess.
Sure enough, the undead was suddenly moving – and the attack was large enough to aim at both Shippou and his alpha, several razor-sharp wires hidden in an inferno that the kitsune side-stepped neatly, while the young ookami used the very flame her opponent had sent toward her to rush toward him like a fiery incarnation – and while stunned, the shichini-tai was good enough that he didn't freeze, instead jumping out of her attack reflexively once more, confirming his rather impressive survivor instincts, something rather ironic for a man who'd already died...
By now they were back near the long stair leading to the temple, which meant that Renkotsu had a clear view to the incoming remainder of Shadow's pack – and seeing how the small group in front of him had kept him on his toes, there was only solution left to him...
A wall of flames went up between him and the eclectic pack, and Renkotsu fled, hoping that the inferno, far bigger than the previous one, would be enough to stall the youkai that had literally walked through his first fiery attack.
Unknowing to him, the undead was in luck – because InuYasha had just used to the vocal chat to confirm to his niece what her senses were already saying to her... she had a hurt pack-mate needing healing, and seeing as the one hurt was Kagome herself, the Shikon Miko couldn't be the one to do the healing.
As such, no pursuit was given.