Once Inuyasha had entered the coverage of trees, he broke into a run, becoming just a blur among the otherwise tranquil forest scenery.
Within a few minutes, he arrived at a lake. It was there, that he decided to stop. Sitting near the water's edge, he leaned back and stared up at the sky.
*
Sango was running through the forest, trying her best to find where Inuyasha had gone. Though she wasn't doing too well at that. Something was telling her to turn back, that it was dangerous to travel in the forest without being prepared for a battle. But the taijiya ignored that voice, wanting to find her hanyou companion.
*
A gently breeze blew across the surface of water, spraying Inuyasha with a light mist. Sitting back up, the hanyou looked into the glassy water.
For a brief moment, he saw Sango's face appear, instead of his own reflection. But when he closed his eyes and looked again, it was his own image again. The hanyou shook his head slightly, "How am I supposed to wait? I can't…I can't just wait…Its like…" Sighing, he looked down slightly, "Its like when I lost Kikyou…Sango's here…but…she's not really here…"
"Talking to yourself now, Inuyasha?" Came a well known voice. And a second later, a gust of wind signaled the arrival of the wind-user, Kagura.
"Kagura?!" Inuyasha was instantly on his feet, with Tetsusaiga drawn. "What the hell do you want?!"
"I came because my master wishes for your head." She replied coolly, fanning herself lightly. "Now, prepare yourself!" Drawing her hand back, she gives a quick wave of her fan, "Fuujin no Mai!"
*
Sango stopped and leaned against a tree, trying to catch her breath, "Inuyasha-san…where are you?" The taijiya looked around, trying to see anything that would give her a clue to where the hanyou was. But she didn't see anything. So, hoping that she was going in the right direction, she once again began running.
And luck must've been with her because she soon found him. Only…he wasn't alone. He was fighting someone.
But unluckily for her, Kagura was first to notice her, "Oh? Its that woman you were all fussing over last time. Have you come back for more?" The wind-user taunted.
"Sango?" Inuyasha glanced back to the taijiya, "Sango, get out of here before you get hurt again!"
"If she didn't want to get hurt…" Kagura began, "…she shouldn't have come unprepared!!" She finished, sending several wind-blades at the other woman.
Inuyasha turned and jumped towards Sango, bringing both her and himself to the ground as he used his body to shield her.
Seizing the opportunity, Kagura sent more of the deadly wind-blades towards the two. Many of the blades cut through nothing but dirt, throwing up clouds of dust and rocks. But some of them ripped at Inuyasha's back.
Even though the blades sliced mercilessly at his body, the hanyou kept one arm securely around Sango, making sure she wouldn't be hit. His free hand held tightly onto Tetsusaiga.
"You're only prolonging your death, Inuyasha. Why don't you just stand up and take it?!" Came Kagura's voice again as she sent more of the wind-blades towards them.
Once the blades had stopped, for the moment, Inuyasha leaned up slightly with the help of Tetsusaiga, "San…go…g-get out of here!" He managed to say through clenched teeth. Blood was beginning to trickle out of the corners of his mouth and the back of his haori was ripped and also soaked with his blood. The hanyou would stay and fight as long as he was able to, but he needed to know that Sango would be safe first.
"Inuyasha-san, I can't just--" Sango began.
But Inuyasha didn't let her finish, "Sango…just…p-please go."
The taijiya nodded slowly, through teary eyes. She didn't want to leave him here to battle Kagura alone. But…if that was what he wanted…Pushing her body back with her arms, sliding herself from underneath him, she hesitantly stood up and ran for the shelter of the forest.
Once Sango had started running, Inuyasha pulled himself back to his feet and turned to face the wind-user, "You…you f-filthy bitch…I didn't think there was anything I could hate more about you than the fact that you have the same stench as Naraku…But that was before you tried killing Sango!" He tightened his hold on Tetsusaiga as he now gripped it with both hands. Then, ignoring the pain of his wounds, he ran towards Kagura, "But that's something you won't live to regret!!"
The wind-user merely smirked, unmoved by the hanyou's threats. "I've heard your talk before, Inuyasha. Try making good on it once in a while!" With that, she created a gust of wind, forcing Inuyasha to the ground once more. And, before the hanyou had a chance to stand up, she hit him with more wind blades. And this time, one of the blades hit his wrist, causing him to drop Tetsusaiga.
Sango, as she ran, was still battling the urge to stay with Inuyasha. But, he had told her to leave…and she decided to do what he wanted. The taijiya had no sooner reached the sheltering foliage, when Kagura's voice reached her ears.
"Hmm? Are you going to leave him alone to die, woman?"
That stopped Sango dead in her tracks. Spinning around, her brown eyes automatically scanned the area for Inuyasha. And it didn't take long to see him…motionless…on the ground…Tetsusaiga about a foot away from his outstretched hand. The taijiya felt her blood run cold as she feared the worse. "I…Inuyasha-san?" She asked meekly, her voice barely above a whisper. Taking a step forward, her voice came again, a little louder this time, "Inuyasha-san?" Tears began to roll freely down her cheeks as the taijiya began running back to the hanyou, "INUYASHA!!!"
His name echoed throughout the otherwise silent forest, sending several birds flying into the air. And at the same time, a pair of eyes opened; two red eyes. Claws dug into the soft earth, as Inuyasha pushed himself up off of the ground.
Sango once again stopped, staring at the hanyou. Something wasn't right about him. Her instincts were telling her to be afraid, but this was Inuyasha…wasn't it? "I…Inu…Inuyasha?"
Inuyasha turned to face Kagura, ignoring the tajiya calling to him. Growling, he rushed towards the wind-user, claws ready to slice up anything and everything in his path.
Crimson eyes narrowed, as Kagura tried to make sense of what just happened. Inuyasha should've been dead, shouldn't he? Not taking any chances here, the wind-user closed her fan slightly, causing the winds to pick up, "Ryuuja no Mai!" Instantly, a few tornadoes formed.
Inuyasha fought against the wind, growling even more. His pace was slowed, but he still kept on towards Kagura.
One of the tornadoes landed near Sango. The wind forced the taijiya to the ground, but she tried her best to keep her eyes on Inuyasha. Though that was a difficult task with all the dirt and such flying around. "Inuyasha…be safe…"
'This isn't Inuyasha…' Kagura thought, as she began to back up, seeing the red-eyed hanyou advancing closer to her. "That bastard can kill you himself!" She said, speaking of Naraku. Then, she tossed a feather in front of her. And, as it transformed, she took to the air, glancing over her should once to look at the transformed hanyou.
As Kagura disappeared, so did the tornadoes she had created. Sango stood up and brushed some dirt off of herself. Then, seeing Inuyasha still standing, she smiled slightly, "Inuyasha, are you okay?" She questioned, beginning to walk to him.
Inuyasha slowly turned around to face Sango. He growled, crouching down slightly.
Sango stopped. Earlier, when he first got up, she hadn't been able to get a clear look at him, since he had been facing away from her. But now…he was definitely different. His eyes were red and he had strange jagged marks on either side of his face. His claws dug into the earth, as his red eyes watched her every move. The taijiya was trying to figure out what to do. She was afraid to move, and yet she was afraid to remain still as well. Slowly, she began to walk forward, "Inuyasha…its okay. That person is gone…calm down…" She said softly.
The hanyou continued to claw at the ground, his eyes never leaving Sango's form. He had an overwhelming urge to attack her as well; to cover his claws with her blood. But something else was holding him back. Something that the demon part of him couldn't quite understand. "Stay away from me!!"
Sango hesitated, but continued towards him slowly. "Inu…yasha…its me…its Sango."
"San…go…" Inuyasha said quietly. And, for a brief second, his eyes returned to their golden-amber color. But just as quickly, they were once again red. "Unless you want me to sharpen my claws on you, stay the hell away!!" He demanded, holding up one of his hands. But his claws were shaking, almost as if something in his mind was trying to protect the taijiya.
"Inuyasha…please…calm down…" Sango said quietly, stopping to stand in front of him.
The transformed hanyou looked at her, no longer growling but dangerous nonetheless.
The taijiya slowly lifted one hand and brought it closer to Inuyasha's face, "Inuyasha…"
Just when she was about to place her hand on his cheek, he hit her arm away, tearing her kimono sleeve and cutting her with his claws. "I told you to stay away from me!"
Sango winced as she drew her arm back and staggered back a few steps. She looked over at Inuyasha again, as tears began to well up in her eyes. It wasn't so much the sting from her freshly received wounds that made her cry; it was the fact that Inuyasha was the one to give them to her. "Inuyasha, what's wrong with you?" She whispered as the tears began to once again, fall from her eyes.
Inuyasha's red eyes narrowed slightly as he saw Sango's tears. The thrill of drawing blood from someone else, wasn't there. Though he had just scratched her, he could see a little blood beginning to seep through the arm of her kimono. The transformed hanyou looked at his claws, then back to Sango's crying face. And as he returned his eyes to his claws, something in his mind took over. His eyes widening, and his voice shaky, he stuttered, "S…Sango…" He reached up and grabbed his head, shutting his eyes. "T…Tet-Tetsusaiga…" He managed to say, his voice still holding a twinge of the demon-like growl.
"Tetsusaiga?" Sango repeated questionably. 'His sword.' The taijiya blinked as that thought hit her. But she wasn't about to argue with herself over whether 'Tetsusaiga' was really his sword or not. Looking around, she soon spotted his sword on the ground.
"Inuyasha, here." She said, running over to the sword and picking it up. She ran back to him and held the sword out to him.
The transformed hanyou reached out a shaky hand. And finally, his fingers wrapped around Tetsusaiga. Instantly, his eyes began to fade from red, to their normal golden-amber color. The jagged marks disappeared as well. He dropped down to his knees, the pain from his injuries finally effecting him since he no longer had the demon blood clouding his mind.
Sango kneeled as well and placed her hands on his shoulders to keep him from falling to the ground. "Inuyasha, are you okay? What happened?"
Inuyasha lulled his head to one side, feeling like he would pass out. Yet even with this fatigue threatening to take over, he noticed that she called him just plain 'Inuyasha'. he managed a small grin, "I'm okay. It'll take a…a lot more than that to…to get rid of me." His grin quickly disappeared as he began to cough, the blood once again beginning to trickle out of the corners of his mouth. He fell forward, but because Sango was right in front of him, he didn't hit the ground. Instead, he ended up leaning heavily against the exterminator. "What…what about you? You're bleeding."
"You don't remember?" Sango blinked slightly, then continued, "You scratched me…but…it wasn't you back there…was it?"
The hanyou laughed; a strained laugh, "No…no it wasn't really me. But it was…it was a part of me. Something that I once wished I could be. But now…" Another coughing fit interrupted his sentence. And once it had died down, he asked, "Did I hurt you?"
The taijiya looked away from Inuyasha's face. "It was…just a scratch. I've received worse wounds in battle before."
Inuyasha smiled slightly hearing that. She was remembering everything, and he was glad. But the smile faded as his expression changed to one of sadness, "Sango…I'm sorry…I would never hurt you…"
Sango looked back to the hanyou and nodded slightly, "I know, Inuyasha…I know…" She swallowed the lump that was beginning to form in her throat, fighting the urge to cry again. This wasn't like her. She didn't cry like this. She had cried enough that day. And yet…she wanted to cry again. He shouldn't be apologizing to her. It should be the other way around. If she hadn't followed him here, then he wouldn't have been injured by the wind-blades that had been meant for her…
"Don't…Don't cry…" Came Inuyasha's hushed voice as he looked up into Sango's tear-filled eyes.
The taijiya looked down slightly, as she put her arms around him and held him close to her, tears once again falling from her eyes, "Baka…you're the one who's crying."
And indeed, the hanyou was doing something he hadn't done for a long time; he was crying. ..crying because he knew very well that he could've ended up killing her…crying because she was safe…He was crying…because he knew then…that he loved her.
~*~
I look in the mirror, see your face if I look deep enough. So many things inside that are just like you, are taking over.
~*~
AN: Jeez…I don't think I've ever spent so long on a chapter before. This thing took me like…two weeks to write o.O Anyways, I think it turned out good and its my favorite chapter! ^-^ As always, please review!
