A Shard in Kyoto chapter 15

the attack part 1.

At the inn . . .

Kagome frowns as she walks down the corridor to the room. 'My senses are feeling something. Like someone I've felt before?'

Sango, noticing as Kagome missing a step, asks, "Kagome?"

Kagome shakes her head, "nothing, Sango."

Sango nods and opens the sliding door.

"Come on in, girls." Kagura announces from inside the room. "I've been waiting for you, two."

She smiles behind her fan . . .

In her other hand is Shippo. He is unconscious.

Sitting against one is Inu-yasha, Miroku and Kirara. They appear to be unhurt and free to move.

"Kagura!" Kagome gurgles in surprise.

Sango pulls her sword.

"Wait!" Miroku yells.

"I do have a proposition for you." Kagura states, still hiding her face.

"Not a fight?" Kagome's eyes widen in surprise.

"Shut the door, please." Kagura motions with her fan. "And then we will talk."

Kagome and Sango look at each other. Sango nods, sharply. Kagome sighs . . .

They both enter the room and Sango, after making sure that no one is watching, closes the sliding door.

Sango remains standing at the door. Her sword is still out. She is swinging it, slowly in front of her, obviously prepared for a fight.

Kagome moves over and sits next to Inu-yasha.

"Inu-yasha." She whispers.

He shakes his head. "She popped in." His eyes look up. Kagome can see a hole in the roof.

Kagura interrupts, "I was surprised to see that Inu-yasha and the others didn't have any protection against the humans' magic that weakens Demons."

Inu-yasha bares his teeth at Kagura as he growls, "When we leave this damn city, bitch, I'll get you."

Kagura smiles, and flicks her fan in front of her face, as she says, "Inu-yasha, you poor deluded weak fool."

Inu-yasha purples. His claws scrap the ground.

"You said you have a proposition." Kagome says, as she places a hand on Inu-yasha's shoulder. Her eyes are looking at Shippo.

Kagura looks down at Shippo. She looks at Sango. "Here Sango. Something to occupy you." Her wind powers lift up Shippo and fly him to Sango.

Sango has to put up her sword and gathers up Shippo into her arms and she holds him to her chest.

"Sango?" Kagome whispers/asks.

"He's fine." Kagura states. "Tried and hurting from this city, but otherwise fine. I haven't hurt him." She pauses. "Of course, you do know, that I could have easily killed everyone in this room, before you two returned."

Kagome and Sango look at the two boys. Miroku nods, sharply, "When she appeared, she knocked me unconscious and by the time that I woke up . . . "

"I could have killed him."

"Ok." Sango growls. "You had the upper hand."

"Have." Kagura says.

"And you say that you have a proposition," Sango continues, ignoring the interruption. "What is it?"

Kagura nods. "All of us in this room want the shard in the possession of the Yuki family. Want I propose is that we combine forces to acquire it."

"And if we think that we can get it on our own?" Kagome asks.

"Can you?" Kagura smiles, "There is nothing to prevent me from leaving, my dear child. I can always tell them about you. Or perhaps, I can tell the couple of monasteries that are after you. Or just tell anyone about Inu-yasha." Her fan points to him.

"Fine." Inu-yasha growls, "you think that you've got us over a barrel."

"I think?" Kagura smiles. She sighs, "As much as I would love to make you eat those words, little puppy, I will forgo that pleasure for now."

Kagome squeezes Inu-yasha's shoulder. "Ok. You can screw us up."

"Screw?" Kagura frowns. She waves her fan, ignoring the modern slang, its meaning from the context, is obvious.

"What is your scheme?" Miroku asks.

Kagura nods to him. "Finally someone that wants to get down to business."

She pauses, "I've scouted the Yuki family compound. To be honest, there are a couple of powerful anti-demon spells around the compound. While I can break them, the effort would be noticed, and I'm unsure about what would happen next."

Sango pulls out a piece of paper and flips it to Miroku. "I copied that from the inside of the gate. Anti-demon spells, I think."

Miroku looks at the piece of paper. "Standard." He says. "And breakable."

"What the fuck do you want, Kagura?" Inu-yasha growls, he is tried of waiting.

Kagura waves her fan at the group. "Since you are weakened by the city, I'll help you acquire the shard in the possession of the Yuki family. I'm sure that, it'll come to a fight."

"And in return, you'll want that shard." Inu-yasha growls.

"Of course."

"Just the shard in the possession of the Yuki family?" Miroku asks.

A pause, a Kagura fans herself, as she looks at the group. "The answer to that question, Monk, will depend on the results of the fight against the Yuki family." She says, bends her head toward him.

Kagome shakes her head, no. "Kagura, if we are going to work together, then we must trust each other."

"Trust! Ha! Ha! Ha!" Kagura Laughs. "Trust is for fools."

"No, Kagura, it's not." Kagome states. "If we are watching for a time and a place to backstab each other, things will go bad." She pauses. "How many times have you seen us succeed, while our foes are fighting along themselves?"

Kagura opens her mouth. She shuts it, and covers her face with her fan. She pauses. "I must return with a shard." She states.

Kagome thinks, 'what to do? If we don't team up, then she'll fight against us. Can we win that fight?' her eyes flick to Inu-yasha, his face strained and pained.

'Probably not. Sango is a great warrior, but she is only one person. That leaves the shard in the hand of Kagura, or more likely, in the hands of the Yuki family. And, if it remains in their hands, they will ignite a major war, which will kill thousands.' She grimaces.

Kagura's eyebrows raise, as she waits for Kagome to speak.

'If Naraku gets another shard that won't kill thousands within weeks. And, we will fight him again, and we will take the back shard when we win.' Kagome purses her lips and nods.

"You can have the shard, Kagura." Kagome states.

"What!?" Inu-yasha screams. "Motherfucking bitch! You can't do that!"

Kagome turns to Inu-yasha, "It's better that she has it. I don't want the Fuki family to have it."

"You want to try to stop the war that is growing." Miroku says in a calm voice.

Kagome nods. "IF the choice is Kagura or Fuki family. I'll choose Kagura." She eyes flick to Kagura, as she continues, "We will beat her and Naraku, so, Inu-yasha, just think of it as a temporary loss."

Kagura's eyes narrow at Kagome's confidence.

Inu-yasha curls his lips. "Once I get it in my hands, I ain't giving it up."

Kagura and Kagome look into each other's eyes. They nod.

Inu-yasha's eyes narrow. He pats his chest. He can feel the jar where Kagome keeps the shards. 'Why didn't she take this when I was unconscious? Yeah, she has to know that Kagome always keep the shards, so she didn't look for them.' He thinks.

"Then we are agreed?" Sango asks. "WE team up to take the shard for the Yuki family. Kagura will get it."

Inu-yasha growls.

"But, only after everyone is out of the city and we've shaken the pursuit." Miroku adds. "I'm sure that the Yuki family, and maybe more will chase after us."

Everyone nods, as they understand that unlike most of their adventures, there are a huge number of people that want the shard. And since, Inu-yasha and Kagura are part of the attack team, the chance of any attack being sneaky is insignificant.

"Acceptable." Kagura agrees. "Let's discuss the details of the attack."

Inu-yasha, Miroku, Sango and Kagome look at each other. They nod. Kagome digs through her bag for some paper and pens. Everyone gathers around, looking and commenting as Miroku begins to draw the compound, so they can plan.

A few minutes later.

SNAP!

"Touch me, again, pervert." Kagura growls at Miroku. Her fan just hit his wrist.

Miroku blinks and reaches out to grope her ass, again.

Kagura slaps him across the face, then pointedly moves away from Miroku.

"You asked for it." Sango remarks to Kagura in a dry voice.

"I did not!" Kagura.

"Yes, you did. You told him to touch you again." Kagome adds in, also in a dry voice.

Kagura looks at Miroku, the oil lamp behind him, makes it seems like a halo is surrounding his head. "I was only doing what you asked me to do." He says in a very clam, peaceful voice.

She snorts, and looks at Sango and Kagome. "Why haven't you two castrated this pervert?" she asks in a deadly serious voice. The edge of her fan glistens as she wills it into razor-sharpness.

Miroku's hands twitch as he instinctively covers his groin.

Inu-yasha growls at Kagura, as his hands cover his groin.

Sango pulls her sword. She taps Kagura's fan with it. "No."

Kagura eyebrows rise. "Why not?"

Sango blushes and sputters.

Kagome moves in front of Miroku, protecting him. "Because we are not going to do it. Neither of us wish to really hurt him."

Miroku opens his mouth, 'no. I'm not going to say that. It would just throw more fuel on this fire. I will not remind Kagome and Sango about all the bruises that I've suffered.'

Kagome spins around and slaps Miroku's face, as he pulls back his hand from her rear end. "But, he just keeps asking for it."

Miroku sputters, "can we talk about tomorrow?"

The three girls look at each other. "You two are the ones that have to put up with him." Kagura states as her fan changes back into a normal fan. She glares at Miroku's groin. "You will not touch me, again. I do not desire your affections. And, if you do, I will make sure that you will not desire any female, ever again."

"Let's stop with the threats," Sango says. "And talk about tomorrow."

Everyone nods. And, with Kagura far away from Miroku, they begin to seriously plan the next day's actions.

Later. In the middle of the night.

"Are you sure that you want to do this?" Kagome asks as she stands in the middle of the open doorway. "Tomorrow will be a busy day, and you need your rest, Sango."

Sango, dressed in her combat armor, with Kirara's and Shippo's head sticking out of her backpack, replies. "Kagome." She sighs. "Do you think that we'll be able to return to this room?"

Kagome shakes her head, no. 'the plan is fairly simple, but, it's not subtle, and it will cause people to notice us.'

"And there is no way that you're going to take, or allow any of us to take, Shippo along. Not in his condition, that's far too dangerous."

Kagome nods, yes.

"So, I'm going to leave the city and take Kirara and Shippo with me. I'll find some cave, tree, some place safe. Kirara can watch and protect Shippo, and tomorrow as we leave the city, we can pick them up."

"But, what about your rest?"

Sango shrugs. "I will be fine, Kagome."

Kagome purses her lips, and then she hugs Sango hard. "Be safe. And come back in one piece."

Sango hugs her friend. "Don't worry about me. Any thief that I meet tonight, won't live to regret it."

Sango lets go of Kagome and vanishes into the darkness of the night.

"You know," Kagura says after she silently moved up behind Kagome. "I wonder. Attacking you through the Kitsune or maybe . . . " She stops talking.

You have to when . . .

Kagome spins around, her hand glowing, grabbing Kagura by the throat and shoving her against the doorjamb. Kagome's eyes are blazing. Her voice is low and angry. "Touch Shippo and I will lose my temper." Smoke from Kagura's burning flesh, as Kagome's hand burns her throat, rises.

Kagome releases Kagura and spins, stalking into the room.

Kagura's eyes are wide, her free hand going to her throat as she feels the burns, and winces from the pain, stares at Kagome.

Inu-yasha, relaxes, he had tensed up when he saw Kagome spin, and remarks, "If I was you, I'd forget about that."

Kagura eyes flick to him.

"I can smell your fear."

Kagura slowly nods. 'Now, I know why Naraku fears her more than anybody else. The look in her eyes . . . There might be something worse than attacking a mother's child, but I can't think of what though.'

Miroku sighs, deeply, 'and the girls wonder why I chase after them, even though they keep saying no. How many other women would travel through some of the nastiest neighborhoods in Kyoto, at night, alone, knowing that tomorrow, without rest, that she'll be major combat? Or she is powerful enough to cause some of the most deadly creatures in japan to fear her, without even trying? What man wouldn't want their love?'

later, soon after dawn . . .

Sango, dressed in her combat armor, but with a man's kimono draped over it. Kagome, dressed in the same clothes as yesterday, approach the Yuki family compound.

Sango places her hand on Kagome's shoulder. "Are you sure, Kagome? I can make up some excuse to go down there and help you."

Kagome shakes her head, no. "No. Sango, they'll need you up here, once the boys and Kagura begin their attack. That'll cause enough confusion that I can sneak to where the shard is and take it. I want you to be able to help them."

"Don't you trust Kagura?"

Kagome grimaces, "I trust that she was telling the truth last night. Whither or not, she'll remember that promise in combat." Kagome shrugs. "That I don't know. I hope so. And I think she will." She sighs. "Truthfully, Sango, I'm afraid that Inu-yasha will try to attack like he's at full strength."

"Ahh. I see." Sango says. She nods. "Yes. He will, won't he. No, matter what he promised last night."

They walk up to the entrance of the compound. Sango meets a couple of the guards yesterday, so they wave 'Hajake' and 'Hojo' through the gate. Sango pauses, though, as she enters. 'Hmm. Most of the people are acting like normal. But, something seems odd. Something . . . ' she thinks.

"I'll see you later." Sango says to Kagome. Her eyes flick to the other guards, watching them.

Kagome nods. "Yes. I will see you later."

Kagome thinks, as she walks down to the dungeon. 'The boys and Kagura are supposed to attack in little while. Miroku will use his mystic powers to negate the anti-demon spells. Then, Kagura and Inu-yasha will attack the compound.'

She nods and says 'hello', 'good morning,' etc. as she walks. She thinks, 'yesterday, Sango noticed that a lot of the samurai and guards were hung-over during the morning. There is a lot of saki around, so, that's certainly possible. And, during the morning, a lot of people are busy doing things like, taking a bath, stretching/exercising, cleaning up before the lord of the family comes around, so, we hope that attacking early in the morning is the best time.'

Kagome delicately shudders. 'Kagura thought about if I volunteered to watch the prisoners at night. That way they could attack at night, and get an even greater advantage. I said no. If I volunteer, I'm sure that will cause my boss to get even more suspicious of me. And, there is no reason to think that he'd do it. Besides the thought of walking that dungeon, at night, frightens me.'

She pauses, and shudders again. 'If I'm afraid, and I'm walking outside the cells . . . what must it be like too be in the cells? At night? And knowing that if the guards wanted to have fun, by beating up a prisoner, there is nothing to stop them. They can always claim that the prison tried to escape, and they had to beat him up to stop him.'

Kagome frowns, and she starts to pay attention to the guards around her. They are nervous. "Akio?" 'Hojo' asked the second the command. "Is there something wrong?"

Akio, who had been talking to a couple of the other guards, turns around and nods. "Yes, Hojo. There is." He frowns. He pauses. "And you slept outside the compound, too, didn't you."

"Sir?" 'Hojo' asks, surprised. "You were aware of that, sir."

"And are you aware that there are rumors that we will be attacked today?"

'Hojo's eyes widen, "no. sir. I did not know anything about that."

Kagome thinks, 'did Kagura double cross us? But, how could she? She stayed with us last night, to prevent that from happening. Inu-yasha made sure about that.'

"There are strong rumors that the Adachi, Iga, and other families are preparing to attack." Akio replies.

'He thinks that I'm part of it.' Kagome thinks.

'Hojo' bows, deeply, as 'Hojo' say, "Sir, what do I have to do to prove that I'm not spying for those families."

"First, you'll come with me to Nejiru's office." Akio orders. 'Hojo' purses his lips, nods and follows Akio into the office.

"Here he is, boss." Akio says to Nejiru. Nejiru looks up from the paperwork that he was working on. He stands up. Both of them, place their hands on their weapons.

"Good." He looks at 'Hojo'. He sighs. "Personally, I think that my orders aren't good, boy. I saw you yesterday, and I don't think that you're a spy." He shrugs. "But orders are orders."

"Sir, I am not a spy." 'Hojo' pleads, earnestly.

"My orders say that you are. You are new. And, yesterday you were seen talking to someone in the crowd, and you passed along something between the two of you."

'Somebody must have seen me and that woman talking, and misunderstood it.' Kagome thinks.

"So, I've got orders to place you into a cell, Hojo." Nejiru states. "Nothing personal. I think that you're a good young man, actually, but."

'Hojo's jaws work. "How come the guards at the gate didn't stop me?" he asks.

Akio shrugs. "We just got the orders. It probably hasn't gotten to them yet."

"Who and what, exactly, am I supposed to be spying for?" 'Hojo' asks.

Nejiru shrugs. "The orders don't say. I got the idea, though, you're supposed to be working for the Iga family." He pauses. "Now. Are you going to resist?"

Kagome thinks, as her flicks around the room. 'Resist? They are two real warriors, and I've got a sword that I can barely swing. But, if I don't, they'll throw me into a cell? But, maybe, I got to know a couple of the guys yesterday. Maybe with a little luck.'

"Sir, is my friend, Hajake, also to be captured?" 'Hojo' asks. 'If Sango is thrown into the same cell. Then we can escape together.'

Nejiru shrugs, "he wasn't mentioned. But, I'd expect him to joining you soon."

'Hojo' nods. "I'll go peacefully. I am not a spy. And that should prove it better than anything else I can do."

"Hand over your weapon, then." Nejiru orders. "I would normally order you to strip and give you a loincloth, but, since you worked for me yesterday. I won't"

Kagome suppresses a sigh of relief. 'If I stripped in front of them, and they found out that I'm a woman, who knows what they might do?' she thinks.

"Come on Hojo." Akio says, as he hands Kagome's sword to Nejiru. "I'll put you in an empty cell."

'Hojo' nods and follows Akio into the dungeon.

Kagome thinks, 'Hurry Sango. I'll need your help to escape one of those cells.'

Outside, with Sango . . .

Sango is walking around, near the entrance, greeting and trying to make friends. 'I want to stay near the entrance. Miroku will show up first. He'll put on his wandering monk routine, get inside and then he'll destroy the anti-demon spells. Once Kagura and Inu-yasha see him go inside, they are to count to one hundred, then attack.'

As she talks with the people milling about, she hears the rumors of the new day. The main one is that the compound might be attacked today. Sango breathes a sigh of relief when she hears it is from another human family, not by demons.

She thinks, 'judging by the rumors, I'll say that someone else started to do some investigating like we did. And, they decided that, no matter how many shards are in the city, the Yuki family has, at least, one.'

She pauses, rubbing her chin, 'Although . . . that rumor that the god Hachiman planted the rumor is a good one. The god of war would want the city at war with itself. That way, every family, to gain his support, would make offerings to him. I could see his priesthood spreading the knowledge of a shard around. It would be to their benefit.'

Time passes . . .

'Hurry up, boys!' Sango thinks, 'you guys should have acted by now?'

She moves to the gate and looks out. She conceals a sigh. She can see Miroku. She shakes her head. 'He's talking to a woman. And there comes Inu-yasha to get him to stop talking. I'm sure. No wonder he is late.'

"Hajake?" a person from behind her says.

"Yes?" 'Hajake' spins around. There is a group of a six or seven samurai around her. Sango remembers a couple of them from yesterday. She doesn't remember the names, but if they were good enough to be part of the lord's bodyguards, they should be good warriors.

"I've got orders to bring down to the dungeon. You're a spy." The samurai says.

'Hajake' frowns, fiercely. "And who has been spreading that lie?" 'His' hand goes to the hilt of his sword.

They all grab their hilts. The people around the gate, stop, turn and look at the confrontation.

Miroku, approaching the gate, can see, and he can recognize Sango anywhere. 'What's going on? I'd better hurry up!' he thinks.

"Are you refusing to come?" The leader states in a menacing voice.

She pauses as she thinks, 'I need to be up here. But, do I start a fight?'

"Grab him." The leader says to the samurai next to him.

Sango's sword leaves its sheath with a zing.

All of the samurai's swords leave their sheath's with a zing.

Sango shifts her stance, putting her sword over her head, and stares at the leader. 'I'll force him to act first. None of his men are going to backstab me.'

Time pauses, as Sango and the samurai stare at each other.

'Good.' Miroku thinks, as he jogs up to the gate. 'All the guards are watching her, not me.' He sneaks into the compound, without a problem.

He shakes his head at the anti-demon spells, and places his spell scrolls onto top of them. A flash of light occurs and the scrolls vanish.

He turns to watch Sango's confrontation.

"Sango!" he cries, as he sees one of the samurai, slowly, quietly, sneaking up next to Sango's back, sword raised.

Sango spins, her sword slices the hands off the samurai that was sneaking up on her. His sword and his hands fall to the ground.

The samurai screams, but shoves his wrists into Sango's face, trying to blind her as his blood spurts out.

Sango ducks under the red stream of blood (it does get into her hair, though), her leg kicks out, hitting him in the stomach, throwing him against a couple of the other samurai.

She spins blocking a couple of swords, sparks fly as the sword hit each other. She begins to aggressively attack the other samurai. None of which can match her speed or strength.

"Monk!" one of the gate guards, his spear pointing at Miroku, yells. "I'm going to skewer you!"

Miroku dodges the spear point, grabs the spear, just behind the sharp head, and using his strength pulls the spear out of the grasp of the guard. He smashes the butt of the spear over the guard's head, knocking him unconscious, and shattering the spear.

"Monk!" Sango cries, as she spins, "Do you need help!?"

Miroku yells back, as a couple of guards begin to menace him with their spears and swords. "No!" He begins to unwrap his hand. "I don't need a hand!"

The unique vacuuming sound of his curse is heard as he opens the palm of his hand, pulling the spears and swords out of the grasp of the guards.

In the time it takes to count to twenty, the guards nearest Miroku are disarmed. They are either, running away, grabbing the gate, or laying on the ground, scraping the ground, trying to avoid being pulled toward Miroku.

The half-dozen or so samurai near Sango are down. Most are unconscious, but a couple are bleeding heavily and will die from blood loss in a few minutes.

Then . . .

"What the fuck!" Inu-yasha yells. He and Kagura, on her feather, are overhead. "You two weren't supposed!"

Kagura spins the feather cloud, violently, knocking Inu-yasha off. "Bitch!" Inu-yasha yells looking up at her, as he lands.

Kagura points her fan at the entrance of the main house.

Next to the entrance are two pony sized bronze lion-like dogs, known as Jishi's. Most people, looking at them, assume that they just decorations. But. They are not.

They are magical creatures that were made to fight demons.

Their jaws screech as the bronze hinges move. Their heads turn. Their metal claws tear up the wooden platforms that they were on.

They jump on the compound ground, to defend the house, like they are supposed to . . .

One of them looks at Kagura.

The other looks at Inu-yasha.

Flame begins to curl from their metal mouths.

'We are in trouble!' Kagura thinks. 'These are very powerful creations! Defeating them will be difficult!'

Inu-yasha, with Tetsusaiga in his hands, growls at the Jishi. 'I feel like crap. And using my full powers hurts like a son of a bitch.' He thinks.

Sango looks around the compound. More soldiers are coming out of the house. She shifts the grip on her sword. 'I'm not going to be able to be kind to these soldiers. I will have to attack to kill, not hurt.'

Miroku frowns. 'My mystic senses? I felt something?' he spins around and looks at where the mystic scrolls were at.

His eyes open. 'Concealed spell!' A symbol glows in the wood of the gate.

A symbol of bad luck.

Miroku screams! He looks at his cursed hand. He looks at the top of the wall. An archer just fried an arrow into his cursed hand.

He cannot use it . . .

In the dungeons . . .

'What's happening!?' Kagome thinks. 'I'm hearing a lot of shouted orders. The fight must have started.'

She stares at the closed cell. 'How can I escape?'

Akio opens the door. "I'm going to find out what you know." He growls.

"Nothing! Akio. Nothing!" Kagome cries at she backs up in the cell. She stops. Her back is against the wall.

'He's alone. The confusion of the guy's attack must have started.' Kagome thinks. Her eyes flick around Akio. 'Maybe I can get around him and escape?'

Kagome tries to run around Akio.

Akio grabs Kagome's sleeve and pulls, ripping the kimono. Kagome trips over the torn kimono.

"You're a girl!" Akio cries, as he looks at Kagome. Kagome is sprawled on the ground, her clothes ripped and exposing her breasts.

Akio's face changes, becoming beastly. "You are a spy! I'll rape the truth out of you!"

He looms over Kagome . . .

The end chapter 15.

About the new families mentioned in this chapter. There were dozens of families in Kyoto. And, the group is not the only people looking for the shard/shards. So, there are things happening that the group has no knowledge of...

Thank you for reading

jeff shelton