Just a heads up here, I think I can keep the T rating for "some violence", but some of these chapters are getting more violent. So, warning: language, violence, angst, and death mentioned in this chapter. Not that the anime was peaceful.
Disclaimer: I still don't own the characters in Inuyasha.
Chapter 25: Kyokotsu
Inuyasha sat in his chair towards the back of the plane, sulking.
"Shut up, mutt."
He growled, "I didn't even say nothin'!"
"You didn't have to. The sooner we catch this Kyokotsu the sooner we can be rid of each other."
He turned his gaze out the window. After his conversation with Kikyo, he'd spoken with his brother and told him everything. His brother was annoyed he hadn't even tried to stop Kikyo from leaving, but at least they had new information. Kanna was a name his brother could investigate if it was true. The story about the Shikon no Tama was also real, and his brother confirmed their shard was in a special vault his father engineered. Even Sesshomaru didn't know how to get inside, but he'd certainly add additional security. It was then decided that Sesshomaru would investigate Kanna and the possible location of the shard in Naraku Inc., and Inuyasha would continue handling the Shichinintai. That's why he and Koga were flying to Osaka, where there were police reports indicating people had bites taken out of them. Based on what Kikyo said, there was a possibility it was Kyokotsu, at least that was the hope.
So here he was, stuck on a plane with Koga, because his brother was concerned about whatever tricks this Kyokotsu might have.
"All right!" the wolf shouted.
"What?"
"My contact with the local police came through. We got the police reports."
He moved closer to the wolf. "What do they say?"
He was answered with an annoyed glare from the wolf. "Not good. The police found a connection to an old case, but the criminal was never caught… Definitely not good. In that case, all the victims died."
"So he's sparing them this time?" He didn't have to ask why. If the victims were left alive, they could talk about their encounter. It was to draw him out.
The wolf fiddled with his headband. "Looks like it. All of the eyewitness reports claim they were attacked by a giant… Oh shit. That bastard!"
"What?" Inuyasha insisted, grabbing at the computer.
The wolf blocked him. "I recognize these names. Two of the victims were a pair of western wolf youkai. They claim he was like 8 feet tall and uses a flail for a weapon."
Sango cut in, having been trying to avoid the two feuding youkai. "He attacked two youkai and we're only just catching his case?" Inuyasha had asked her to tag along due to the restrictions about youkai attacking humans, just in case. Although many details were left out, Sango knew enough that someone was after a relic from the Inu no Taisho and that Inuyasha was caught in the middle. She accepted the request readily knowing that any relic belonging to the Inu no Taisho, was better left with him. She was also plenty happy to get a jump on a case of illegal spiritualist weapons being used.
Koga sighed. "The wolves would've scented him. If he were just human like we suspect, then they wouldn't report it except to human authorities. The concern, however, is that we would've heard about this sooner if he was reported to the spiritualists. But they didn't. That means, this Kyokotsu isn't using any illegal spiritual enhancements like Jakotsu."
Sango considered that. "That makes the laws tricky. You really have to be careful not to maim him while fighting."
Inuyasha sat back down. "We'll see. There's probably some trick."
x
The short flight soon landed and the trio continued closer to the area where the attacks were reported.
"I'm starting to smell a human blood trail," commented the wolf who was only cloaked by an illusion. "These back alleys are a good place to hide, and a location for a quiet fight. We should come up with a plan to -"
"Keh!" Ignoring the wolf's glare for interrupting, Inuyasha continued, "there's no point in coming up with a complicated plan, we already know we're likely walking into a trap. I'll just follow the scent of blood and let him come to me."
"Dumb mutt! If we know we're walking into a trap, then we should prepare for it," suggested Koga.
Sango shook her head. "No. Inuyasha's right. We simply don't have enough information to prepare, but this Kyokotsu also doesn't know you and I are here. In theory, he doesn't even know youkai exist. If Inuyasha springs the trap, we can back him up."
Koga looked at the hanyou, "you realize mutt how badly Jakotsu went? We don't know what we're walking into, and it could be your head." He was met with a shrug.
Moving forward with the 'plan', Inuyasha changed into his crimson vigilante attire, sans beanie, since his ears were already photographed once. Besides, everyone knew him as Inu-shinku too. He followed the scent of human blood littering the area. Come out, come out, wherever you are.
Just as he thought that, there was a sudden rumbling in the distance. Looking towards it, he noticed the door to a large warehouse opening, and Who the, what the, heh? What is that thing?!
There was a man… a youkai… Kikyo called him oversized?! He's like 25 feet tall and buffed out! How did the wolves say 8 feet? The wolves were right about his weapon though, he was carrying a flail. He reached up to the earpiece clipped to his ear. "Are you guys seeing this?"
"I don't think anyone's not," replied Sango.
He swallowed, "Sango… he can't be pure human right?"
"No." There was a pause. "Inushinku, he's moving towards the city. I'm sure the local slayers have already taken notice, but it'll take time for them to get here… I can't imagine it's a coincidence that he's at the end of this blood trail. So… under my authority, you and Koga have permission to engage, stop him by any means necessary. Try to keep it contained until the slayers set up a perimeter."
"Copy." He's big, but I don't sense any power.
Climbing across rooftops, he approached the giant. Out of the corner of his eye, he also noticed Sango and the wolf approaching on foot.
x
He was staring right at him from the closest rooftop. "Hey ugly! How'd you get to be so big?" There were still people right under the giant fleeing. He couldn't risk a sneak attack and having the body collapse on top of them.
The giant laughed. "I eat the flesh of my enemies to grow stronger!" The flail came right towards his rooftop, so he leapt away. Flesh of his enemies… Inuyasha gave a very dead stare, and touched his earpiece. "Sango, are there any reports of what happens to a human when they eat youkai, perhaps wolves?"
He could hear her running through the earpiece. "That's a rhetorical question right? Who would want to know?"
Jumping away from the giant collapsing the whole freaking building he was standing on, he heard the wolf's voice. "Wait, if that's what turned him into this, then technically he's using youkai power." He heard the wolf laugh. "No holding back mutt!"
"Just get your slow ass here and help, wolf." He was about to leap with a Sankon Tessou, until a scent caught his attention. I recognize that scent. It took him longer than it should've to place where from. Dodging yet another attack, he reached to his earpiece, "I smell poison! A fuck ton!" Before he had visited Suikotsu, Sesshomaru had him memorize those kinds of smells. Looks like I memorized them for the wrong band member.
Glancing to the side, he finally saw Koga arrive, and Sango following shortly behind, wearing her mask. Damn it, we didn't expect Mukotsu here so she wouldn't have a spare. "Sango, can you take Mukotsu?"
"Don't be stupid," came Koga's response. "I've been watching you effortlessly toy with Kyokotsu. He's big, but slow. I'll take him. Sango may be immune to Mukotsu's poison with her mask, but she'll need you above to search him out."
He knew that this time, Koga was the one who was right. "Wolf, did the scent get stronger or weaker as you approached here?"
"Weaker," came the reply.
He's back the way we came then. "I'll shit on your grave if you die, wolf."
He heard the scoff, "I'll spray febreeze on your already stinky grave if you suffocate, mutt."
A small smile tugged at his lips. It only took him a few jumps back to realize the scent of poison was getting dangerously close to affecting him even in the free air of the rooftops, Mukotsu was approaching Kyokotsu. "Sango, we're already almost on him. We need to keep them apart." A part of him did question though what would happen if Kyokotsu was exposed to the poison, weren't they allies? Before she could reply, a thick black fog appeared out of nowhere. It was poisoned. Using his sleeve as a cover, Inuyasha approached as close as he thought he could. He was concerned about his judgement though when a dead bird landed next to him.
"Come out vigilante, I want my 50 million yen." 50 million?! "If you don't come out, I have several poison bombs located throughout the city, all designed to give the victims a slow and painful death. I can't stop them, but I do have several vials of antidote in my bag." Inuyasha froze. That means… no matter what, the bombs will kill. There won't be enough.
"Inushinku!" If she was calling him that, she must've been concerned about being overheard by Mukotsu and couldn't see through the black fog. "You have to tell me where he is. Focus on one thing at a time."
He heard where the voice had come from. Taking a deep breath, and holding it, he approached. Listen for the footsteps, the breathing… Heavy steps, that sounds like Sango with Hiraikotsu… There! Digging his claws into his own arm, Inuyasha quickly approached the source of the footsteps. Hijin Kesso! He aimed for the straps on the small man's shoulders. He jumped down before the man could react, and grabbed the bag. Finally, he took out his sword and aimed it towards the nearby river. Wind scar! Thanks to Sesshomaru's new grueling training, he could now release a weak version whenever he wanted, even without an opposing youki. It dissipated the poisonous fog.
"Hiraikotsu!" While he was catching his breath, Sango had apparently used the distraction to take out the poison user. "Watch out!"
She must have been trying not to hurt him and didn't throw it full force, because he didn't stay down. "If a girl won't have me for my looks, then she'll have me for my money. Here's my strongest poison!" He reached for one more reed around his belt.
Just as he was charging his claws to use Sankon Tessou, a blade flew past him from behind. It landed in Mukotsu's hand, causing him to drop the reed. Using his superior speed, Inuyasha got to it first. "Ha! Nice going Sango!"
She was breathing hard, "A slayer… must always… be alert." She collapsed.
Mukotsu laughed, in both humor and pain. "That's my special poison, it enters through the eyes and skin as well. Your mask wasn't enough. I, however, am immune to all poisons. Nothing at all can harm me." He ran off.
Inuyasha looked down at the bag he held. At the same instant, he heard a loud screech coming from every direction. Mere moments later, he could see several clouds of black fog rising throughout the city. No!
Sango's cough drew him back. Antidote. Antidote. He looked in the bag, there were only 2 vials, and they did smell similar to anti-venom. She continued to cough harshly. Damn it. She was exposed for too long. He realized he could smell some other anti-venom-like-smell on her breath, but it was obviously not effective on this poison. Decision made, Inuyasha grabbed one of the vials. It was then that he realized his own shaking wasn't just nerves. He figured his youkai blood was protecting him, but he couldn't know how much. He poured the liquid into Sango's mouth and made sure she swallowed.
He took out his phone. "Sessh?"
"Koga has informed me of the situation. I am on route."
"Sessh, Koga wouldn't have known, but there is a vial of antidote that Mukotsu had. B-but it's only one dose and there are probably hundreds poisoned." He coughed.
"You are susceptible?"
He coughed again. "Seems so."
"You have one dose, take it. I have informed Jinenji to be prepared. A local doctor is collecting a sample of the poison for me to bring back to him. Depending on how fast the poison kills, he may be able to make his own antidote in time."
He hung up, there was nothing else to discuss with his brother except to hope he made the antidote in time. He broke into a full coughing fit. Take the one dose? He considered it. I might be able to survive hours longer than any human to wait for Sessh's antidote. He looked down to Sango, her heart rate and breathing were returning to normal. She was safe. This is all because of Mukotsu. He growled, and his eyes flashed red.
He felt faint, and like his lungs were struggling, but as long as he could breathe slightly, his nose would work. He pocketed the one dose and followed the scent of Mukotsu and poison. The man hadn't gotten very far, as the panicking crowd and police presence were making things difficult. His ears twitched as he picked up the coughing of countless more humans. "You fucker!" He jumped straight into the crowd and grabbed Mukotsu and lifted him by the throat, with his claws beginning to dig in. The scent of Mukotsu's blood only made his boil more. "Nothing at all can harm you, huh?" The crowd went silent at the tone of his voice and flinched at the coughing that followed the words. Even Mukostu knew he was in trouble. Inuyasha growled and gave him a hard shake causing the claws to dig even deeper. The man's fear delighted his youkai.
"Please spare me! You already have the antidote!"
"Not enough for everyone!" The words were barely understood past the growl.
The grip on his throat left the man barely breathing, but he forced the words out. "The formula. I have the formula for the antidote. You can make more! Ack."
Inuyasha stilled at the words. He knew that he was close to turning, and didn't trust himself. Instead, with his free hand, he called Sesshomaru again, who he knew had a perfect memory. "Talk, NOW!"
And he did. Mukotsu recited the exact chemical formula of all the compounds needed to make an antidote.
"You will regret it later if you kill him, I will repeat the formula to Jinenji." He hung up.
Before he could really make up his mind whether to kill Mukotsu or not, he broke into a coughing fit, bad enough to start coughing up blood. Fortunately, the police had arrived during the commotion and immediately approached to grab Mukotsu. He didn't really see what happened next, as he passed out.
x
"Inu." Something banged his cheek. "Inu," he heard a little louder.
He jumped up, only to be met with Sango's face, and what appeared to be a hospital room around him. A wave of dizziness hit him and he fell back.
"Woah don't push yourself. Sesshomaru got you set up in this hospital."
"What happened?" he forced past a dry mouth.
She sighed. "Your transformation to youkai. Although it makes you stronger, it also sends your body into hyperdrive. The poison took effect far more quickly and you and I had been heavily exposed to begin with." She sat back down. "Baka Inu, why didn't you take the antidote?"
"I thought my blood would buy me more time than humans, not less." He swallowed nervously. "Did… did Mukotsu's formula work?"
She nodded, "yah, it's been a few hours and the hospitals have been absolutely flooded, but Taisho Industries managed to near instantly produce a bunch of doses. The worst cases got the first doses and it seems the casualty count is going to be low. They're still figuring out the details."
He was relieved but commented, "I didn't think chemical manufacturing could be done that fast."
She looked at him and laughed, "I imagine Sesshomaru recruited several youkai and cheated. Most likely, they used an equivalent treatment as opposed to the exact chemical composition." Right, youkai magic, and Kikyo wanted to wish it all away? "Good PR for the company though."
"What happened to Kyokotsu?" he asked.
She cringed. "The slayers are having a field day with that. Koga, well, he killed him."
He suddenly turned to her, "he, wolf boy's not going to get in trouble for it, right?"
She shook her head, "No. Most likely it'll be a massive investigation, but if he got his powers from eating youkai, then it's concerning, but technically he needed to be stopped, and only could be by our kind. I already spoke with the local slayers and told them my role too. They're not exactly pleased, but understanding. At least Kyokotsu was contained before the city had both threats to deal with at the same time."
He nodded, totally drained, but he had to ask, "And me? I bled Mukotsu even once he was finished. He wasn't innocent, but he was still an ordinary human."
She looked away, "I honestly don't know, Inuyasha. Under our laws, you didn't maim or kill him, but your uncontrolled hanyou blood has shown itself as a risk. Ordinarily, that would have groups of slayers watching you, but this wasn't an isolated incident. Several slayers were poisoned too and needed the antidote. Since you didn't specifically break any laws, they can choose to turn a blind eye."
x
He was afraid to watch it, but needed to know how bad things were now.
Welcome to News 6 with a special report. Earlier today, Osaka was the scene of a massive chemical poisoning attack. The perpetrator is now identified as Mukotsu Shichinintai, who is also being investigated for the possible involvement in the poisonings of over 30 women in the past several years. Thousands fell victim to the attack, with around 200 suffering far more severe effects, likely due to proximity to the gas' release. Thanks to the intervention of Taisho Industries, all the victims have now received antidotes, with only a few dozen remaining hospitalized for lingering effects.
Also involved in this incident was the crimson vigilante, who was apparently away from home and willingly sporting his cosplay dog ears this time. As many saw in the videos posted earlier today, the vigilante is the one who captured Mukotsu and physically forced the man to give up the secret to the antidote. Eyewitnesses reported the vigilante to be highly agitated, and that he had bloodshot eyes. Many have expressed displeasure at seeing the vigilante being so aggressive, but far more are supporting their actions as they were necessary to get the lifesaving antidote in time. In addition, many are defending the vigilante's more violent actions on the fact that they were clearly under the poison's effect during the encounter and collapsed soon afterwards. During the argument, Mukotsu also revealed that they had already given the vigilante an antidote, but apparently not enough to protect the city. Taisho Industries has thus far refused to comment on how the vigilante had a direct line to give them the formula.
Lastly, most of the details remain unknown, but many in Osaka reported seeing a giant emerge from a warehouse and go on a rampage. Officials are blaming this incident on hallucinations being the first stage of the poison's effect.
Sessh is going to kill me. And hallucinations? He shook his head. At least they think the aggression was the poison's effect, not just me. Damn it, I really need to get a handle on that. Still, he looked down at his claws. They still reeked of the human's blood. Even more, he knew he was thankful the poison took effect when it did. Any longer and I… I might've killed him with these claws.
AN: If you want to see the Koga v Kyokotsu fight, let's just say go watch episode 102. I believe Kyokotsu's size is never specifically stated, so I'm guessing him off the ratio of his to Koga's height of about 6ft. There's one scene where it looks like Koga reaches to about Kyokotsu's knee, so yah, he's big. Till next time!
