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Inu Yasha was the first one awake the next day. He always was. It was the youkai in him, always prepared for battle, never really sleeping, just resting enough to be able to fight the next day. He sat on a limb of a nearby tree, his hands rested in the sleeves of his kimono as he watched over his comrades as they slept. Then suddenly he smelled it in the air.
Youkai…coming this way.
Inu Yasha jumped down from the tree and landed softly on the ground. He nudged the monk awake and signaled to him that a demon was coming toward them. Miroku jumped to his feet, his staff in hand. The stood ready to defend the rest of their companions against whatever was headed their way.
"What do you think it is?" asked the monk.
"I don't know, but it's coming this way… and FAST!"
"What's coming this way?" asked a sleepy Kagome. She stood behind the two men rubbing the sleep away from her tired eyes, "You said something was coming and I wanna know what it is."
"Great, you woke her up monk!" snapped Inu Yasha.
"What! No I did not!"
"Hey what's going on?" asked Sango apparently still tired as she tried to stifle a yawn.
"Great, now everyone's awake… "mumbled the hanyou.
"Well, not everyone," replied Kagome as she looked over to her sleeping bag. Shippo was still fast asleep, oblivious to the commotion going on around him.
Inu Yasha's ears twitched a little as he put his nose in the air, "The scent… it's fading… it's not coming this way anymore…"
"Or it stopped" finished Sango, "What do you think Kagome-san?"
But Kagome wasn't paying attention to the demon hunter. Her eyes were focused toward one part of the forest, "Shards… of the Shikon jewel… there are some nearby, and I can feel it!"
Miroku's eyes widened, "Perhaps the youkai that Inu Yasha sensed is carrying some fragments of the Shikon jewel."
"If it is," began Inu Yasha, "we gotta find it fast before it gets away. Kagome, which way do you sense the shards are at?"
Kagome pointed toward a grove of trees that lay to the south of their camp.
"Alright then, let's get going." Inu Yasha grabbed Shippo by the tail and began walking in the direction Kagome indicated.
"Eh… what's going on?" Shippo asked sleepily, "Is it time for breakfast already?"
Akemi reached a grove of trees and slumped onto the ground. She was tired from traveling all night. Her chest heaved heavily as she breathed in and out to catch her breath.
Phew…I'm so tired… I have to find Inu Yasha, but I suppose it wouldn't hurt if I rested…for a bit…
Akemi fell asleep for only a few moments before the ground around her began to shake. She jumped to her feet and leapt into a nearby tree, eyeing the ground below her with intense eyes. Suddenly the earth broke open to reveal a huge mutated caterpillar. Its mouth gaped open exposing millions of sharp teeth. As it continued to crawl out of the ground, its legs sprawled out around it, taking down many trees in the process.
What… in the world?!
"Where are you kitsune!" the creature hissed, "I have a message for you from Lord Naraku."
Akemi's eyes widened. She dropped down from her perch and faced the monstrosity, "What is it?"
"Sssss… did you think you could escape that easily from Lord Naraku, especially when you carry such…," it paused for a moment as it looked at her clenched hand, "precious cargo."
Akemi pulled them closer to her body, "I will NEVER give them to you!"
The creature growled menacingly, "YOU HAVE NO CHOICE!"
The caterpillar like monster lunged at the vixen as she deftly dodged its attack. She sprang away from it quickly and leapt up towards a nearby branch. "Think you can get away from me that easily you wench!?" The demon-spawned messenger grabbed the trunk of the tree within its enormous mouth, biting off a large chunk of wood. The tree wobbled under the strain and finally came crashing to the ground, but not before the kitsune could escape. She pounced onto the ground and rolled away from the creature.
For a creature so big it sure is fast… I gotta do something!
"Did you guys hear that?!" exclaimed Sango as the group headed in the direction of the shards.
"Yeah it sounded like it came from over there," Miroku pointed toward a grove of trees, "isn't that where Lady Kagome said she sensed the shards?"
Inu Yasha's brow furrowed, "It sounds like a battle! Come on, we gotta hurry!"
The hanyou took off ahead of the group while the others mounted the demon-cat Kirara and followed behind him. Inu Yasha swiftly leapt through the trees with grace and ease until he finally reached the area of the commotion. He landed quietly atop a branch as he spied the huge Caterpillar beast attacking some other demon. His eyes concentrated on the smaller figure darting in and out of danger.
A kitsune…
Akemi couldn't stop moving for a second with that monster attacking her. Its moves were swift and deadly, one wrong step and she would be killed instantly.
I gotta find an opening for an attack…
The creature lunged toward her once again, this time however it stopped in mid-leap and spat an enormous amount of fluid at her. It caught the fox on her legs and as soon as it made contact it began to solidify.
"Ugh… what the hell is that stuff!" she screamed as the monster inched closer.
"It makes it easier to trap my prey and devour them alive!" the creature cackled as it sprang forward for the kill.
"That fox is a goner if she doesn't get out of there quick," Inu Yasha mumbled to himself as he watched the caterpillar pin her down. Then something caught his eye, in the girl's hand.
Shikon shards!
Inu Yasha sprang forward and landed deftly at the girl's feet. His sharp claws swiped away the substance that held the girl to the ground. The kitsune sprang away but not before she looked back at her savior. Her green eyes widened as she saw the man who stood before her.
"Inu Yasha!"
The hanyou looked at the vixen for a moment before he realized who she was, "A..Akemi? How…where…?"
"No time for that now, that monster's attacking! Look out!" Akemi pushed Inu Yasha out of the way as the monstrous caterpillar attacked their spot. The girl was knocked viciously to the side, barely out of the way of danger. The monster growled ferociously, disappointed at the fact that all he managed to swallow were the bushes that surrounded them.
The agile female rose to her feet quickly, "Now's my chance!" thought Akemi as the demon caterpillar seemed to be distracted by the enormous amount of leaves that occupied its mouth, "Kitsune bi!" A bluish flame escaped Akemi's hands and surrounded the caterpillar.
"FOOL! Do you actually think your fox magic can work against me?!" bellowed the beast, "I will crush you!" The demon began to rush towards the young kitsune.
Good he's charging… I gotta time this right… 3…2…
"AKEMI! Get out of the way!" yelled Inu Yasha as he ran toward his friend.
"Now!" with that Akemi jumped high into the air and pulled out four kunai blades, "alrighty then, let's see if this'll work." She threw the kunai blades at the monster just as the caterpillar itself spit out more of its hardening fluid at the girl. The female kitsune couldn't dodge the impending attack and was hit full force by the substance. It covered her whole body this time and as it hardened, Akemi found it hard to breathe, let alone move. She began to fall toward the earth.
"HA!" proclaimed the demon spawn, "those little blades won't stop me! HAHAHAA!"
But during mid-flight the kunai blades lengthened to the size of long swords. As they raced toward their intended target, they increased in speed and pierced the caterpillar through the head and abdomen. The monster writhed in pain as the elongated kunai pinned it to the earth, "Why you… you… bitch…"
The demon caterpillar began to disintegrate into dust, leaving behind only the kunai blades that had already returned to their normal size. Everything had happened so quickly that Inu Yasha barely had time to react. He was still in shock from seeing his long lost friend. Just then the rest of Inu Yasha's companions reached the area. Kagome noticed Inu Yasha sitting on the ground, dazzled by the recent events.
"Inu Yasha! What happened?!" exclaimed Kagome as she threw herself into his arms, "You didn't get hurt did you? Was there a battle?"
"There was a battle… Akemi was here. She killed that huge pile of dust which used to be a demon caterpillar."
"AKEMI!" exclaimed the others in unison as they stared in amazement at the huge pile of ashes that once had shape and form.
"She was here?!" asked an excited Shippo, "Where is she now?" The tiny kitsune looked around feverishly trying to catch a glimpse of his new idol.
"Inu Yasha… are you sure she was here or that it was even her?" asked Sango, "I mean, I don't see anyone else around here."
"No! I know what I saw and she was here!" screamed the hanyou, "SHE was the one fighting the demon. But I can't find her scent anywhere… it's like she disappeared."