Chapter 24-No More Words.

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The gang stared in shock as Naraku revealed himself before them, his mouth, the only visible human part of him, was turned up into an evil smile.

Inuyasha was the first to move. He raced at Naraku, his claws outstretched, his face deadly serious. As Inuyasha leapt, Naraku merely brushed his hand, causing Inuyasha to go crashing into the wall. The rest of the gang watched in horror, their most powerful ally had just been smashed into a wall.

Naraku began to take slow steps towards Kagome. Miroku, finally able to move, released his kazaana. Naraku began floating towards it, being drawn in, but instead of being sucked into oblivion, he grasped Miroku's hand and, with one smooth movement, broke Miroku's arm. The first sound since Naraku had revealed himself was of Miroku's screech of pain as his hand was bent back.

It was now Sango's turn. Filled with blind hatred and rage, she threw her Hiraikotsu at the enemy, it missed him by inches, the same thing happened as the weapon flew back into Sango's hands. Kirara roared and, in a swish of flames, grew its tallest height. Charging at Naraku, the only damage Kirara was able to make was to rip some fur off the monkey cloak. The animal was then grabbed by one of its many tails and smashed into the wall opposite of the unconscious Inuyasha.

Kagome was now left alone, with Shippou quivering on her shoulder, Naraku was getting ever closer, the same smile on his lips. Whimpering, Shippou launched himself at Naraku, landing on his face and began scratching with all his might. Using this chance, Kagome rushed over to the unconscious Inuyasha. She shook his shoulders violently but to no avail.

"Inuyasha!" She wailed. "Wake up! Onegai!"

But he was out cold. While Kagome was trying to rouse Inuyasha, Shippou's time was up. Naraku grabbed the kitsune and threw him out the shrine. Now Kagome was alone.

Giving up on trying to wake Inuyasha, Kagome faced Naraku.

"So," She began, trying not to show her fear while also trying to buy time. "You're Naraku eh?"

Naraku's smile just got wider as he stepped closer to Kagome.

"You're buying time, Kagome, it won't work." He muttered. His voice was low and husky.

Kagome shifted her weight from one leg to the other uncomfortably.

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not." She said defiantly. "Why are you trying to kill us?"

Now, Naraku laughed a deep, throaty laugh.

"That, I will explain for you." Suddenly, he grasped Kagome's neck and pinned her against the wall.

"I was once a...human like you." He spat the word out like it was something vile. "Then, one day I was attacked. As I lay, dying, on the road, a young miko found me and took care of me. She nursed me back to health. After a while I found that I was quite smitten by her. I confessed my feelings of love, only to find that she was in love with ANOTHER." He turned to Inuyasha. "So, basically, I sold my soul. I replaced my weak, mortal body." He tensed his free hand and examined it. "With a better, demon body."

Kagome squirmed in Naraku's grasp, her air supply becoming short.

"Once I had this new body and soul, I was complete! Using my newly acquired skills, I managed to trick the two 'love birds' into hating each other." His sinister smile came creeping back. "If I couldn't be happy, no-one could."

Kagome's vision was becoming blurred and she could feel her head getting lighter.

"And that's why," Naraku said, poising his claws in the air. "I've decided to kill you all!"

"Shi-it."

Naraku stopped, mid strike. Inuyasha was kneeling there; blood and cuts covered his face and arms.

"Still alive dog-filth?" Naraku asked amusedly.

Wincing, Inuyasha steadied himself on the Tetsusaiga. "That was pretty powerful for just one move."

Naraku's grip hardened on Kagome's neck. "I'd just love to watch you suffer before you die, Inuyasha." He laughed as Kagome let out a small whimper.

"So that you'll feel my pain!" He yelled before he leaned into Kagome.

Kagome snapped out of her drowsiness as she felt Naraku's ice-cold lips on hers. She struggled as she began to lose consciousness again. She could hear Inuyasha yelling something and she could just about feel Naraku's teeth biting down on her bottom lip. Then everything went black.

"Naraku! You bastard!" Inuyasha yelled. He knew that the demon was only doing this to aggravate him, but still, he couldn't help the surge of anger running through his veins. He watched as a drop of blood fell from the small gap between Kagome's mouth and Naraku's. Cursing silently, all he could do was watch.

Eventually, Naraku pulled away, Kagome's blood all over bottom lip and teeth. He slowly licked the blood away as he looked Inuyasha in the eye.

"That anger you feel Inuyasha." He began. "Isn't even the beginning of the anger I felt when Kikyo chose you over me."

Inuyasha's became scarily dark. "Just you and me, Naraku. Just you and me."

The calmness returned to Naraku. His creepy smile returned. Dropping Kagome to the floor, he stepped to Inuyasha. "You think you can handle me?"

Putting both hands on the Tetsusaiga, Inuyasha began to slowly get up. He grunted as his muscles argued with him about ever moving again. He knew he was no match for Naraku now that he had the Shikon no Tama, but still, he was going to try.

He finally stood up vertically after a long struggle that would've made anyone but Naraku weep. Looking dead into the eyes of his enemy, the half- demon, half-human boy drew out his Steel-cleaving fang and tensed his muscles. "The question is," He heaved. "Can YOU handle ME?"

The fight began with Naraku launching at Inuyasha, who dodged and swung the Tetsusaiga, which was deflected by Naraku's power, sending Inuyasha crashing back, who regained his balance and charged again.

Though Kagome was the last to fall unconscious, she was the first to wake up. Looking to her left, she saw the battle raging between Inuyasha and Naraku. Being as quiet as a mouse, she crawled over to where Miroku was lying, half conscious. Quickly, she grabbed Miroku's twisted hand and popped in back into place. Before Miroku could scream in pain, she covered his mouth, motioning with her head to the fight. Kagome went to get Shippou while Miroku went to wake up Sango. When Kagome returned with Shippou, the fight was still going. None of them seemed to be winning, it was just attack-deflect-attack-parry. Sango, who got her Hiraikotsu ready, looked at Shippou, who whimpered and looked at Miroku, who grabbed his prayer beads and looked at Kagome, who grabbed her bow and arrow and nodded.

And they all went charging in.

Kagome was the first to strike; using an arrow she had found near the burning bowl, she hit Naraku on the leg. Naraku screeched as he clutched the wound. Sango, who was riding Kirara, threw her Hiraikotsu as hard as she could, taking off Naraku's other leg, which Miroku sucked into his kazaana. Naraku stumbled a bit, but kept his balance. Shippou used his foxfire and in a flash, the gang had disappeared. Looking around desperately, Naraku bumped into something. Turning around, he was Miroku, Sango and Shippou looking down on him. Miroku then pointed politely in front of Naraku. Turning around again, there was Kagome and Inuyasha, both holding the Tetsusaiga. Before Naraku had time to react, they charged.

"You."

"Are."

"So."

"DEAD!"

The blade hit home and Naraku's eyes widened as blood spilled out of his mouth. Where the Tetsusaiga had hit, the Shikon no Tama came flying out, landing at Kagome's feet, where she picked it up.

Naraku gurgled and then slumped onto the floor. Dead.

After a few seconds of silence, Inuyasha fell onto his knees, completely exhausted. Kagome grabbed his shoulders, trying to support him.

Miroku and Sango started laughing and whooping as the realization hit them all. Shippou was hugging Kirara lovingly and Inuyasha put his hand on Kagome's.

And, of course, as Sango and Miroku danced around in a mad circle, Miroku plucked up the courage to quickly give Sango a kiss on the cheek, in which she replied by jumping on him and covering him with kisses.

A loud thump from the other room stopped everything. Crawling along the floor, Inuyasha pushed the door ajar. There, lying on the floor was the REAL miko Himitsu, her hands tied to her feet.

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"I would like to thank you all for making the journey here." Miko Himitsu said, her voice as light as a lullaby. She took the Shikon no Tama from the wary Kagome and placed it inside the blue fire. A loud bang came from the bowl and the fire blew up, lighting the whole room, it then settled and turned into a normal, orange-red, fire.

"The Shikon Jewel has been destroyed." Himitsu said, smiling happily.

"Yaaaaaay!" Miroku yelled, flexing his now kazaana-free hand about the place. "No more youkai!"

Miko Himitsu gave him a confused look. "What do you mean Miroku san?" She asked.

Miroku looked at her. "The war's over now right? The jewel has been destroyed, so the war's over."

Himitsu shook her head. "Of course it's not over! The jewel was destroyed, so now we won't have to worry about it getting into the wrong hands!"

They all stared at her, gob smacked. She sighed and rubbed her temples.

"You mean, you thought that if you destroyed the Shikon no Tama, all the youkai would be destroyed too?"

They all looked around nervously at each other until Kagome coughed.

"Well...yeah."

Miko Himitsu slapped her forehead. "That would mean that Shippou would disappear wouldn't it? The Shikon no Tama was destroyed because it's a terrible thing in the wrong hands. So it wouldn't be used for evil!"

The gang nodded. Then looked at Shippou, who was clinging to Kagome's leg at the thought of disappearing.

"Well, it doesn't matter now." Miko Himitsu said, hugging them all. "It's gone now. Thank you." Taking Kagome's chin into her hands, much like Naraku did, Himitsu raised her eyebrow.

"You may have Miko Kikyo's image." She said, smiling. "But that's all it is. Her image." Then, bowing slowly to them, she stepped back into the little room.

As they gang stood there, not really knowing what to do, Kaede walked into the shrine.

"Ah, there you all are." She said, smiling. "Follow me." Then she was out again.

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They had followed Kaede into a small shrine near the edge of Kyoto; there they sat drinking tea and recalling moments of their travels. After a while, Kaede put her tea down and looked at Kagome.

"Go into the next room Kagome chan." She said.

Nervously, Kagome got up from her place at the table and opened the screen into the other room. It was empty.

"I mean the room next to that one." Kaede said.

Kagome walked across the floorboards and pulled the screen back.

She nearly fainted.

There was her mother, her grandpa and Sota, all sitting there, drinking tea and talking. They stopped when they heard the screen opening. Kagome's mother was the first to move. She got up and ran to her daughter and they both fell on the floor, hugging, crying and laughing. Sota and grandpa followed with tears in their eyes.

"Kagome." Her mother whispered, stroking Kagome's hair. "My dear Kagome."

Kagome just cried. She cried until her mother's shirt was soaked with her tears.

After a while, Kaede and the others came into the room.

"The priest I met in Osaka is a friend of your grandfather's." She explained. "He had moved them to his shrine before the house was wrecked."

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Later that night, Kagome woke to find Inuyasha leaning against her bedroom door. Sitting up in bed, she rubbed her eyes.

"Inuyasha?" She grumbled.

Starting, Inuyasha lifted up his head. "Kagome chan, I....I thought you were asleep."

"I was." She replied, motioning for him to sit on the bed. "Something up?"

Sitting down, Inuyasha turned his face away from Kagome's. He put his hands inside his sleeves and grunted.

Kagome's mouth slowly dropped open. "You were going to leave weren't you?"

Inuyasha turned to her, his eyebrows raised. "How did you know that?"

"I don't know..." She suddenly grabbed Inuyasha's haori. "Don't go!"

Inuyasha blushed deeply, but felt the need to retain some manliness. "I have to Kagome," He said, gently taking her hands off his clothes. "There's still a war going on, and I gotta go."

"That's a crappy reason." She whimpered.

Inuyasha stood up. "It's still a reason." He left the room.

Kagome's family was still up when they heard Inuyasha going down the stairs, closely followed by Kagome, who was struggling to put some socks on. (She had fallen asleep in her clothes.) They got up as Inuyasha opened the door.

"Something wrong Kagome chan?" Her mother asked.

Kagome faced her family with tears running down her eyes. "He's going!" She sobbed. Inuyasha just stood in the doorframe, his face unreadable. After a few minutes of silence, Inuyasha mumbled a good-bye and walked out of the shrine.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled, being held back by her Grandpa. "Matte!!!!"

But Inuyasha kept on walking. Tears were beginning to well up in his eyes but he refused to let them fall.

Kagome turned to her mother. "Okaasan!" She pleaded, "Okaasan, let me go with him."

Her mother looked nervously at her daughter, then at the retreating figure of Inuyasha.

"He told me I had too much to stay for!" Kagome yelled. "But I have nothing except my family! And I know you're safe! Let me go PLEASE!"

The grip on Kagome loosened, she looked at her grandfather. "You'll always have us Kagome chan." He said.

Kagome's mother smiled and nodded. "Go with him." She whispered. Sota grabbed onto Kagome's leg. "Promise you'll come back?"

Kagome smiled. "Promise."

So she ran.

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Inuyasha was silently arguing with himself, He wanted Kagome so badly, but she had family. That was what she needed. Family.

Footsteps broke Inuyasha out of his trail of thought. Looking behind him, he saw Kagome running up to him.

"Inuyasha!"

She jumped and landed straight in his arms.

"K...Kagome?" He stuttered.

"YOU'RE what I need Inuyasha." She said into his chest. "My family is safe, that's all I need to know." She looked at him.

"B....But..." He was cut off by Kagome's finger on his lips.

"I won't tell you more now." She whispered. "Because the words are so weak against time."

Smiling, Inuyasha placed his lips lightly on hers. When they parted, he took her hand and, with happy faces and renewed spirits, they walked off into the sunrise.

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There! Did you like it? The ending was a bit rushed and random because I had it all in my head, I just couldn't put it down in words!

I might take a little break from writing now, especially seeing as I can't think of a plot! Who knows.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. ^.^

Thanks for all your reviews! They really helped to inspire me!

Je Ne!

Sakura Clover