Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha . . .
ROCK ON!!
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"Bokutachi wa shiawase ni naru tame kono tabiji wo yukun da
Hora egao ga totemo niau . . ."
Listening to Kagome sing a song, Junichiro smiled, his heart lifting as he walked with the others towards the village. The sun hadn't risen when they left their campsite, and now it was shining bright directly over their heads as they walked non-stop.
"Iro aseru koto naku yomigaeru hakanaku utsukushiki hibi yo
Mabushii umi kogareta kisetsu mo
Yuki no maiorita kisetsu mo
Itsu datte furimukeba anata ga ita . . ."
She really does have a beautiful voice . . .
"Bokutachi wa shiawase ni naru tame kono tabiji wo yuku
Daremo mina ienu kizu wo tsureta tabibito nan darou
Hora egao ga totemo niau . . ."
Sneeking a glance at the hanyou walking beside him, he was surprised to find a rather serene look on his face. It was a face of peace, one that Junichiro had never seen before.
Must be Kagome's voice . . .
Junichiro had to admit, he had never heard a voice like the one Kagome had. His uncle had told him stories of his sister's beautiful singing abilities, but he didn't realize it was like . . . this. Her voice was so pure, so free, so emotional, he couldn't help but fall deeper into her melodious spell.
"Nando michi ni mayotta no darou
Sono tabi ni atatakai te wo . . .
Sashinobete kureta no mo anata deshita . . ."
There were a few moments of silence after Kagome faded off, before she spoke softly,
"Inuyasha?"
The hanyou didn't respond, a far-away look on his face as he kept his eyes on the path in front of him.
"Inuyasha?"
"Hmm . . . uh . . . what?!" He sputtered, stopping to send the miko a half-hearted scowl.
"Can we stop for awhile? I'm kind of tired . . ."
"Feh, that's what you get for singing most of the damn way," he snapped, resuming his pace. Junichiro watched as Kagome sighed, but the look of hope didn't disappear from her face. Noticing that he was looking at her, the young girl winked at him. "He'll stop," she mouthed.
Sure enough, Inuyasha led them off the main road and onto a smaller path, which Junichiro, with his keen sense of smell, realized the he was leading them towards a small lake.
"We'll stop here for a bit," the hanyou gruffed, plopping down under a tree. Giving everyone the evil eye, he leaned back and blended in with the shadows.
Sango and Miroku offered to refill the water containers while Shippou wandered off to play in the cool, refreshing water. Glancing around, Junichiro noticed that Kagome had taken a seat under a tree nearby to the one Inuyasha sat in. Finding nothing else to do, he slowly ambled towards her.
"Hey."
"Hello," Kagome smiled, patting the dirt next to her. "Take a seat."
The two sat in silence for awhile, each admiring the scenery. Junichiro immediately felt at ease, his mother's presence calming him.
I wonder . . .
"Hey . . . um, Kagome?" he started, his mother's name foreign to his tongue.
"Hmm?"
"You and Inuyasha . . . are you two a couple?"
Kagome stared at him for a moment before turning a distinct shade of red and averting her eyes to the ground. "Iie . . . we're not together."
"But why not? You two clearly have feelings for each other," Junichiro said softly. This is strange . . . getting my parents together . . .
The young miko remained silent for a moment, before replying quietly, "There . . . there are things that get in the way . . . Inuyasha has sworn his heart to another . . . not me."
Junichiro felt a mixture of emotions surface inside him. Sadness . . . his parents had problems . . . curiousity . . . who was this 'other' . . . and anger . . . why was Inuyasha such an idiot?
He thought a moment, a vague memory of his uncle telling him of a story . . . a story of how his father fell in love with another miko, before his mother . . . and how they were set to betray each other . . .
Her name . . . what was her name?!
Fingering a pebble nearby, he quietly asked, "You love him though, don't you?"
He felt the young woman at his side tense before releasing a soft sigh. "With all my heart," she whispered.
Junichiro felt his blood boil as he saw the pain this was causing her. "Inuyasha's a jerk for not se--"
"No."
Kagome looked up, her eyes shining with tears as she gazed at the young man next to her. "No. He's not a jerk. He's the most honest and faithful person I know."
She paused a moment to catch her voice before resuming. "He . . . he is fulfilling a promise he made over fifty years ago. To uphold a promise for that long is . . . amazing."
"Even though he runs to meet her . . . even though he leaves me to go to her . . . even though it hurts me, I can never hate him," she whispered, her voice soft and shaking. "I could never . . ."
Junichiro felt his heart go out to Kagome. Even through all the pain she went through, her courage was extraordinary, her will to go on remarkable.
Glancing a few yards away, he noticed Inuyasha was staring at them, his golden eyes gleaming under the shade of the tree.
He should've heard every word she said . . . with his hearing . . .
His attention was drawn away when the young kitsune came stumbling towards them, his eyes half-open.
"K'gome," he murmured, "I'm tireeeeeed."
Junichiro watched as Kagome previously depressed attitude immediately changed to a loving, caring one. "I wouldn't be surprised," she sighed, "Inuyasha didn't let us rest before this."
Yawning, Shippou collasped in her lap, curling his tail around his body. "Stupid Inuyasha . . ."
"Take a nap, Shippou; I'll wake you before we leave."
"Kay." Closing his eyes, he muttered, "Kagome?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you finish that song you were singing? It was pretty . . ."
The young miko smiled, stroking the young demon's hair. Junichiro sat back against the tree, dozing off as he listened to Kagome voice sing once more.
"Bokutachi wa kono nagai tabiji no hate ni nani wo omou
Daremo mina ai motome samayou tabibito nan darou
Tomo ni ikou akiru hodo ni . . ."
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"Here."
Junichiro stared as Kagome thrust twin daggers in his hand, each with strange engravings. "Wha-what are these?"
The young miko smiled at him, cocking her head to the side. "You don't think we would lead you into danger without any means of protecting yourself, do you?"
"Da-danger?" the dark-haired man gulp. Are they going to make me fight?!
The monk at his side chuckled. "When you're with us, Junichiro, you're always in danger. Best be prepared if the worst comes."
Staring at the weapons in his hands, he noticed that one of the handles were blue, while the other was a fiery red. "They're different colors . . ."
Sango nodded, stepping forward from the bushes in her black uniform. "Blue is for spiritual powers, while red represents demonic. We thought it was fit considering you hold both in you."
Junichiro felt his heart stop at the demon slayer's words. "You . . . you know?"
Shippou jumped out of Kagome's hair, startling the dark-haired man. "Kagome sensed them in you the first time we met," he piped up, bounding over to the young man.
"That's right," the miko confirmed, giving him another genuine smile. "So there's no use hiding who you really are."
The young man felt the eyes of the group on him, knowing what they expected him to do. Lifting a shaking hand, he released his ears from his hair, the feeling foreign to him.
He heard everyone gasp as they stared at the apendages on his head. "So it's true . . ." Sango murmured, "You do have dog ears . . ."
Junichiro slightly bowed his head. If they know I have spiritual powers as well as demonic, do they know who my parents are?
"Don't be ashamed, kid," Inuyasha spoke up, his golden eyes staring into his brown ones. "Being a dog demon ain't a bad thing. Your parents would've wanted you to be proud of who you are, whoever they might be," he muttered the last part to himself, but Junichiro heard it.
So . . . they don't know who my parents are . . . whew . . .
"Let's get a move on," the hanyou gruffly announced, heading down the path. "We got a lon--"
Inuyasha stopped, his eyes narrowing as he sniffed the air. "Damnit," he hissed.
"What is it?" Kagome asked, Shippou on her shoulder. "What's wrong?"
"Naraku," he muttered, unsheathing his sword. "Be on your guard."
Junichiro watched as the Tessaiga transformed into a large fang, gleaming in the sunlight. Glancing around, he noticed that Sango had her Hiraikotsu ready, and next to her Kagome had notched an arrow. Miroku too was ready for battle; he was holding the wrap around his right hand, prepared to suck anything and everything into the void.
Taking a deep breath, he slowly unsheathed the two daggers, watching in amazement as they began to glow their respective colors. "What the . . ."
"Miroku put some incantations on it," Shippou answered, hopping onto his shoulder. "So that they would respond to your powers."
"Oh . . . I see." Hearing Inuyasha growl, he faced the front as a breeze blew past them, containing the stench of something awful and disgusting.
"He's here," the hanyou ground out.
As soon as he had spoken, a large swarm bees headed their way, their buzzing deafening. Sango launched her weapon, taking more than half of them out.
"His front guard!" she yelled, catching the Hiraikotsu. "He's not far!"
Inuyasha began taking the poison insects on with his Kaze No Kizu, but as soon as he killed them, more came. "This is useless!" he yelled, blasting a few hundred more. "Naraku, you coward! Show yourself!"
Junichiro felt a strange type of energy flow through his veins as he watched Inuyasha fight. Hearing the buzzing noise near him, he turned and took out a few dozen angry bees with a single swipe, the disected insects falling to the ground.
"Hey, you're a natural!" Shippou admired, still on his shoulder.
The young man didn't answer, but took out a dozen more with dagger. Damn . . . they just keep on coming!
He dodged a bee who attempted to sting him, tripping over a rock and fell down near Kagome. "Damnit!"
"Are you alright?" Kagome shouted, shooting another sacred arrow at the bees. "Don't stay on the ground!"
Junichiro jumped up, and with renewed anger, lacerated nearly a hundred insects with a few blows. "Stay away from me!" he yelled, his daggers glowing in response to his anger.
Inuyasha killed off another few hundred as he glanced at fighting young man a few yards away. His fighting techniques . . . they're respondant to his emotions . . . who the hell is this kid!??!
A maniacle laugh was then heard, ringing throughout the forest. Junichiro glanced up to see a large baboon pelt-covered figure glide towards the ground, his face masked.
"Inuyasha, how glad of you to come," he cackled, sending more bees with a single motion of his hand. "To think, you all came running at the rumor of a shard."
"What?!" the hanyou growled, sending his backlash wave at the insects. "You mean this was a set up?!"
"Why of course," Naraku hissed, sliding out of the way of Sango's Hiraikotsu. "I want those jewel shards that wench protects!"
With a flap of his pelt, a slimy apendage wiggled its way out and slithered towards the unsuspecting miko.
"Kagome! Watch out!" Inuyasha shouted, unable to reach her through the swarms of bees. "Kagome!!"
Seeing his young mother helpless, Junichiro jumped in front of the woman, cutting off the apendage that threatened her life. "Stay away from her!" he growled, his daggers gleaming in the sun.
Naraku seemed to stare for a moment, his voice becoming low and dangerous. "Ah, a newcomer. Well, while I'm at it, I might as well possess the shard you hold as well, kid."
The group seemed to freeze at the demon's words. Kagome gasped, staring up at the young man at her side. "You . . . you have a jewel shard?!"
She watched as he slowly nodded his head, his face pale and eyes narrowed with anger. She felt her heart skip a beat, her mind racing.
Why didn't I sense it?!
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AN: this chapter was slightly longer than the previous ones . . . hehehe, couldn't stop writing.
The song used in this chapter is called "Voyage" by Ayumi Hamasaki, the same singer who sang Dearest and the theme song for the first Inuyasha movie. I thought the lyrics went well with the main Inuyasha story. Here's the English translation for those who are curious:
In the first part of the chapter, it's translated into . . .
"We're on this journey in order to become happy
Look, a smile really suits you
Oh those fleeting, beautiful days, brought back unfading
The season when we longed for the bright ocean
And the season when the snow fell
Whenever I turned around, you were always there
We're on this journey in order to become happy
I wonder if we are all travellers with wounds that can't be healed
Look, a smile really suits you
How many times did I loose my way?
Whenever I did, there was a warm hand
And you were the one who held it out to me"
And the last part of the chapter, when Shippou asks her to sing again, it translates into:
"What will we think at the end of this long journey?
I wonder if we are all travellers searching for love
Let's go together, until we've had enough"
Nice, eh? I really liked it . . .
anyway, I recieved a few questions from the last chapter, so let me answer them for you.
Sesshoumaru realized that Kagome and Inuyasha were his parents because unlike Inuyasha, he is full youkai, therefore his senses are more keen and sensitive.
The reason Inuyasha can't smell his blood in Junichiro, or Kagome's for that matter, is because Junichiro has developed a scent of his own, and like in the first explanation, his senses aren't strong enough to recognize the boy's actual parents, even though he was able to sniff out the demonic and miko powers inside.
Just like Kagome, Junichiro would go home to his time, not Kagome's, when he goes through the well.
Hope that cleared up some stuff for you! Thanks for the reviews, you guys are great!
Stay tuned!