Disclaimer: I love Inuyasha but sadly I don't own him. T_T
One More Night
Chapter 4: Race Against Time
"Inuyasha!" screamed Kagome as loud as she could, hoping that he would hear her. She, Sango, and Shippo had been caught off guard by the huge demon that had jumped out at them while they were splashing in the hot springs. They all jumped out of the water to get out of the way of the raging, huge, black demon. From the sheer size of him alone Kagome knew they would definitely need help. She then realized something. 'Oh no! Neither Sango nor I have our weapons! We left them at the hut!'
By this time Sango, who was on the other side of the clearing, had also realized their predicament. 'Great, not only are we defenseless but there is not a chance that we will be able to get to our clothes. This situation couldn't possibly get any worse!' but of course she was wrong. The demon took a swipe at Kagome leaving a deep gash in her stomach and throwing her backwards into the water.
"Kagome!" shouted Shippo and Sango together.
Kagome surfaced, and the others who had been holding their breaths, sighed in relief. The feeling was shot lived when they saw the claw marks in the flesh of her abdomen. Sango gasped in horror at the sight of the wound. It was bleeding badly. However, Kagome shook off the pain and the nauseous, dizzy feeling that threatened to overcome her. She knew she had to remain conscious if they were to have any chance of getting away with their lives. It was then that something caught her eye.
"Sango! Shippo! Look out! That demon has a jewel shard in its left shoulder!"
'How did I not notice before? I didn't even sense the jewel shard while he was sneaking up on us. It was probably because we were goofing off. I wasn't paying attention. Inuyasha was right; I need to be more aware of my surroundings.' Kagome shook her head. She wasn't going to allow herself to cry. 'I have to be strong. We are going to get out of this alive.'
As if on cue, the demon took a swipe at Sango flinging her backwards into a large boulder, and knocking her out.
"Sango!" screamed Kagome. Her friend was lying unconscious but outside of a few scrapes appeared to be alright. However, Kagome's own sudden outburst over her concern for her friend had caused her wound to open more. The pain which had subsided slightly was now too much for her to bear. The bleeding had worsened as well. Her breathing came in shorts gasps and the nauseous, dizzy feeling returned. 'What am I going to do?' thought Kagome. 'There is no way I can beat the demon in this condition, especially not without my arrows.'
From behind Kagome, a small figure jumped up and attached itself to the left side of the Shadow Demon's neck. Kagome instantly recognized the ball of reddish brown fur as Shippo. She was in complete shock when she realized what he was attempting to do. He sunk his teeth deep into the tough flesh drawing a decent amount of blood. The Shadow Demon shrieked in pain as the kitsune's teeth lodged themselves deeper. It shook itself violently trying to knock the persistent Shippo off. However, Shippo held firm. 'I won't let go! Even if it kills me! I have to help Kagome and Sango. Inuyasha and Miroku aren't here so I am the only chance we have! I have to be strong. I can do this!'
"Shippo!" screamed Kagome finally overcoming the shock of Shippo's actions. Unfortunately this caused her wound to throb more than ever and she doubled over in pain. She was scared beyond belief, but she didn't have time to cry. She had to come up with something, anything, some sort of a plan; but nothing was coming to her. She was dizzy from the immense blood loss and the only thing that kept running through her mind was that her two friends were in trouble.
"Inuyasha!" she managed to say with a great amount of effort. "Where are you? We need your help! I…need you!"
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Meanwhile in the Forest
Inuyasha ran faster than he ever had before. The hot springs were on the opposite side of the forest from the Sacred Tree. 'Damnit! The smell of blood is getting stronger. It's Kagome's! I would know her scent anywhere. She must really be hurt and I wasn't there to protect her!' A wave of guilt hit him as he realized the amount of blood that he was smelling was too much for a human to loose. He had to get to Kagome, and fast!
The village was coming into view. 'Miroku's scent is old. He must have left already. I'll pick him up when I catch up to him.' Inuyasha, if at all possible, increased his speed. He passed through the village and headed in the direction of the hot springs.
He then caught sight of Miroku who was also running as fast as he could. Inuyasha easily caught up with him and in one fluid motion Miroku was riding on Inuyasha's back.
"Inuyasha, so nice to see you," said Miroku sarcastically.
Inuyasha ignoring Miroku's comment stated "We've got to hurry, Miroku."
"Yes, I heard the screams."
"That's not all. I can smell blood…a lot of it."
"Blood! Whose?"
"Well there is some coming from a rather large demon, but…" Inuyasha's voice trailed off.
"But what? Inuyasha?"
"The rest of it is coming from…Kagome."
Miroku was silent for a moment. He was unsure of how to respond to this. He could hear worry in his friend's voice. Worry for the woman whom he insisted he did not harbor feelings for. He was worried as well. Finally he asked the question that had been prying at the back of his mind. "So, what type of demon are we dealing with?"
"Not sure. I've never sensed a demon like it before. But I can tell you this; it's big, very big.
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Meanwhile at the Hot Springs
Shippo held onto the Shadow Demon sinking his teeth deeper and deeper into the flesh. The coppery taste of the blood was almost too much to bear, but he remained firm. The Shadow Demon continued to howl in pain and thrash about. The combination of the blood and the Shadow Demon's attempt to shake him loose were giving Shippo a headache and making him very sick to his stomach. "I have to hold on. If I can just buy enough time for Inuyasha and Miroku to get here then Kagome and Sango will be safe. I can smell them. They're close!"
"Shippo!" shouted Kagome in a very weak voice. She could barely speak above a whisper. Her stomach throbbed and her vision was blurring. She was loosing consciousness. 'I have to stay focused! I have to stay awake! I have to help Shippo and Sango!' Kagome's breathing slowed. She began to fall forward. She felt herself slipping into darkness. 'Inuyasha, where are you?' was her last thought before her head hit the ground and she lost consciousness.
"KKKKKAAAAAGGGGGOOOOOMMMMMEEEEE!!!!!" Seeing his friend fall, Shippo released his hold on the demon and called out to her. The demon saw the opening and his chance to be rid of the little pest. He punched Shippo hard and sent him flying backwards into a tree. Shippo hit the ground, and was now unconscious himself.
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Meanwhile in the Forest
"Are we close Inuyasha?"
"Yeah, we'll be there quick."
"I hope so. This sudden silence has me worried."
Inuyasha continued running at the breakneck pace he had set. He had heard Shippo's scream, but after that everything had become quiet. He was very worried.
"There's the hot springs just up ahead," pointed out Miroku.
When they reached the clearing Inuyasha came to a sudden halt. Miroku cautiously climbed off his back. Both poised themselves for battle, but only in vain. The clearing was completely empty. The only things that remained were the heavy scents of blood and fear lingering in the air. This continued to further put Inuyasha on the edge.
Miroku fingered the beads that were wrapped around his right hand, preparing to release his Wind Tunnel if necessary. Inuyasha had his hand on the hilt of the Tetsusaiga ready to unsheathe it at the slightest noise or movement.
"I don't like this Inuyasha. Where is everyone? It's as if they just vanished." Miroku was speaking just above a whisper, but it was certainly loud enough for Inuyasha's ears to pick up. However, he didn't respond.
'Damnit,' thought Inuyasha. 'Where are they?'
Just then, something moved in the bushes behind them. Both turned around quickly to face the direction in which the disturbance had come from. It was there that they found a very scared and distraught Shippo.
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Sorry it has taken me so long to update. I have been so busy with finals that I didn't have time to type up this chapter. But now I am done with school and I am officially a SENIOR! (Does the happy dance!) Also for some unknown reason FanFiction would not let me upload! It took me forever to get this up! (Breath in, breath out. I'm better! ^_^). Anyways, how about this time we strive for 8 reviews. (Gives sad puppy dog eyes.) Thanks to all of you who have been reviewing.
Sorry for the confusion in Chapter One. I got a review from someone who was confused on some of the Japanese vocabulary. I will clarify them.
Youkai ~ This is a demon.
Kitsune ~ This is a fox. So a kitsune-youkai is a fox-demon. (This is what Shippo is.)
Hiraikotsu ~ This is Sango's giant boomerang made from the bones of a demon. It is her main weapon.
Houshi ~ This is a monk. Mostly it is just Sango who uses this term to refer to Miroku.
Hanyou ~ This is a half-demon. Inuyasha is half-dog-demon and half-human.
Once again sorry. I didn't mean to confuse anyone. If there are anymore confusions or just a term I forgot let me know!
Ok, one more thing. I'm thinking about starting a mailing list to let all my devoted readers know when this story is updated. If you want me to keep you updated then just (once again) let me know!
