AN: Well...I didn't really wanna update today coz I just updated Stealing Four Souls and a Few Hearts the other day (SFSFH for short). But, alas my reviewers have persuaded me to do so. I'm afraid they'll start a revolt and storm my house for not updating, so here's the new chapter which I have no idea what it will be about! That's the price to pay for updating earlier than wanted. Sowwie!
Disclaimer: Some of you are expecting me to say I don't own Inuyasha, and that's what I'm sposed to do, but I have good news...I just saved a bunch of money on my car insurance by switching to Geico! BWAHAHAHAHAHA, sorry couldn't resist!
NOTICE: I now have a notify list! Just follow the link, enter your email and press go! ok? Alrighty then! And if this link doesn't work, it's also in my profile!!!
And sorry if there's a bunch of mistakes. I sent it to my beta reader but I didn't feel like waiting till she responded, so I went ahead and updated. SORRY KIT!!! Hehe.
Last Chapter:
"I want you to make sure Kagura does her job properly," he said as he waved her away. The youkai backed away and turned her mirror to her. She brought up an image of Kagura flying on her feather.
"Soon, Inuyasha, you will be dead," said Naraku to the empty room. He laughed as he held up a black jewel. "And to think, this used to be a pure jewel. Well now the Shikon no Tama belongs to me and I will have absolute power."
A Mistake Gone Right
Chapter 5: New Friends, New Enemies
Kagome suddenly awoke, hearing a loud yell that sounded oddly like "HENTAI," to her sleep-fogged mind. She opened her eyes and saw Sango standing over an unconscious Miroku with Hiraikotsu in her hand. She looked rather angry but was blushing at the same time. Kagome realized she felt extremely warm and looked for the source. She found it soon enough and discovered that Inuyasha's haori was on top of her, yet said person was nowhere to be found. She stood up, keeping the haori wrapped around her. She began stretching and yawning when Sango realized she was awake.
"Hey Kagome, how'd you sleep?" she asked with a smile as she put Hiraikotsu back on her back. Kirara mewed as she jumped onto Sango's shoulder.
"Pretty good for sleeping under the stars," she said with an equal smile. "How about you?"
Judging by Sango's suddenly twitching eye, she should not have asked that question. "Ask him," was all she said as she jerked her thumb in Miroku's direction and stormed into the forest.
"Wait, where are you going?" asked a startled Kagome to the retreating Sango.
Sango didn't stop or turn as she answered, "To help Inuyasha find breakfast." And with that, she was lost to Kagome's sight. Kagome decided since Inuyasha and Sango were hunting food, she would start a fire to cook it. She left Miroku alone in the clearing, intent on finding some firewood. She walked into the forest, picking up sticks and such when she heard rustling in the trees above her. She ignored it, thinking it was probably just a bird or something. But when the thing from the treetops landed directly in front of her, she knew it was no bird.
"What are you doing in this forest?" asked the ball of fluff.
"I'm gathering firewood," Kagome responded, knowing the small youkai was no threat.
The little demon looked Kagome over, as if sizing her up. At first he was a little hesitant about her, but then he realized that she wasn't a threat.
"Would you like some help?" he was asked with a big smile on his face.
"Sure, that'd be great!" she replied. "By the way, my name's Kag-uh...Kaitou," she said, almost forgetting about hiding her identity.
"I'm Shippou!" he said, puffing out his chest. "And I'm a powerful kitsune youkai!" he added.
"Pleased to meet you Shippou," she said as he jumped up on her shoulder.
"Are you a royal?" questioned Shippou with wide eyes as he looked her over. She was wearing an expensive looking kimono under a just as expensive haori that looked to be too big for her.
"Uh...yes," she replied, making sure to keep up her fake identity.
"What's a royal doing in the forest?" pondered Shippou out loud.
"We're just passing through. It's quicker through the forest."
"We?" repeated Shippou with interest.
"Yes, I'm traveling in a group with 3 other people," she explained. Shippou decided that was enough information as they traveled through the forest, finishing collecting the firewood. Suddenly Kagome stopped and looked around, not recognizing her surroundings.
"What's wrong, Kaitou?" asked Shippou, sensing her uneasiness.
"Well...uh...I can't remember which way it is to get back to camp," she said a little shakily.
"Is the person who owns that haori you're wearing at the camp?" asked Shippou with a smirk.
"Uh...he went out to get food, but he might be back now," replied Kagome.
"Good," said Shippou as he began sniffing Inuyasha's haori. Kagome was about to ask what he was doing when he suddenly pointed to the left.
"That way," he said assuredly.
Kagome went in the pointed direction and within 10 minutes, they were back at the campsite where Sango and a very annoyed looking Inuyasha were waiting.
"Oi, wench, where were you? You could have been killed, you know that? Do you know what kind of demons are out there? Why didn't you take Miroku? What is that thing on your shoulder?" he bombarded her with questions as she came within sight.
"I was out gathering firewood and I was very aware of the consequences. I know what kinds of youkai are out there and Miroku was unconscious when I left. And this is Shippou, he helped me find the way back," she said, answering all his questions one by one. The said kitsune jumped off Kagome's shoulder onto Inuyasha's head.
"Why'd you call Kaitou a wench, you meanie?" he yelled while pulling on the hanyou's ears.
"Get off, ya little runt!" said Inuyasha as he pulled the kit off his head and threw him on the ground. As soon as he got up, Shippou hid behind an angry Kagome's legs.
"Be nice to him, Inuyasha. If it weren't for him, I'd still be wandering around in the forest instead of here, safe and sound!" she yelled while dropping the firewood and taking off his haori. When she finished, she threw it at him and proceeded to attempt to start a fire. Inuyasha just Feh'd and jumped in a tree branch. Miroku was leaning against a tree, deep in thought and Sango was searching for something in the clearing. After several minutes of failed attempts at lighting a fire, Shippou spoke up.
"Need some help?" he questioned as he stepped from behind her.
"Yeah, I do," she responded as she put down the sticks she had been working with. Shippou smirked and performed one of his attacks.
"Foxfire," he said as Kagome stared in wonder at the now lit firewood. Before Kagome could question any further, Sango interrupted.
"Where are our horses?" At this question, Inuyasha looked down and saw that they were indeed gone. He jumped from his perch and ran into the woods, leaving the 4 confused companions (five if you count Kirara). He came back minutes later as fast as he had left.
"They're not in the woods anywhere," he reported, referring to the previously mentioned horses. Everyone looked at each other, pondering the same question. What force of nature would have kidnapped their horses?
----Naraku's castle----
Kagura had returned about an hour after she had left the night before, her job having been completed. Naraku had commended her on the job, but afterwards scolded her on the amount of time taken. She had scoffed and walked away, awaiting the next time she would be needed, which would be sooner than expected.
Naraku now gazed into Kanna's mirror, much like he had the previous day. He surveyed the confused group and chuckled evilly.
"Kukukukuku, they are now a much easier target on foot." (AN: Sorry guys, kyuuka has no idea what she's typing...she just had a really good idea for her other story so she wants to write that one, but I'm not gonna till I finish updating this one.) Naraku looked at one of wooden puppets with a smirk. He returned his attention to Kanna's mirror to see the action that was soon to begin.
----The clearing with Inu's group----
Inuyasha froze, sniffing the air intently. Seeing this, Shippou also sniffed the air and immediately paled with fear.
"A big youkai's coming this way!" he shouted while jumping on Kagome's shoulder, shaking with fear.
Kagome, Sango, and Miroku looked to Inuyasha for confirmation. He nodded and unsheathed the sword at his side, immediately transforming it. Sango and Miroku took the hint and she pulled Hiraikotsu off her back while Miroku held his staff in front of him. Kirara jumped off Sango's shoulder and onto the ground in front of her, transforming into her large cat form. Kagome, having nothing to do, backed away to give the fighters some room. Soon the large youkai made its way to the clearing. It looked like a mix between a bear and a wild boar. It had the head of a boar but the body of a bear. The claws and tusks looked very deadly. Appearing behind the strange youkai was another youkai. It was a wind youkai, known to us as Kagura, but to the group she was unknown.
"If you surrender now, your death just might be painless," she said with a threatening voice.
"Who the hell are you and why would we surrender?" snarled Inuyasha.
"I am Kagura, a servant of Naraku's. Naraku plans to kill you one way or another, so I suggest giving yourselves up," she explained.
"Naraku, the stable boy?" questioned Inuyasha incredulously.
"He's more than just a stable boy. He took on that guise to find you. You see, you are an obstacle on his path to supreme ruler," she explained, but Inuyasha swore he could sense a faint trace of resentment in her voice.
"And I suppose you're one of his minions? Doing everything he tells you because he promised you a share of this 'supreme' ruling?" Inuyasha taunted, hoping to get more information out of her.
She scoffed, "I'm not doing this to gain anything except my life. He holds my heart and if I refuse him, he'll kill me in an instant." That sentence was fully dripping with resentment and Inuyasha knew that she didn't want to work for the scumbag.
"Feh! I didn't want to know your life story!" he ground out, "I just wanted a reason for this attack. But if you're still going to attack, I guess I have no choice but to kill you."
Kagura narrowed her eyes while turning around and walking away, leaving the bear/boar demon to kill the group. Inuyasha growled and held up Tetsusaiga.
"Where do you think you're going? I'm not through with you yet," he yelled. She stopped but didn't turn around.
"My job was to guide this youkai to you, not fight you. My job here is done, so I'm leaving," she said and pulled out her feather from her hair. She threw it in the air and jumped on it, making her way back to Naraku's castle.
As soon as she was out of sight, the youkai attacked, slashing its claws in Inuyasha's direction. He dodged easily, noting how slow the beast was. He slashed Tetsusaiga at it and got a direct hit and cut off one of its front legs. But to his surprise, it regenerated! Inuyasha was taken aback and therefore hesitated. The youkai then attacked Miroku, who failed to dodge because of his own surprise. Miroku only managed to put a hand up in defense. One of the youkai's claws went right through his right hand and caused it to bleed profusely. While Miroku cradled his injured hand, Sango flung Hiraikotsu at him, cutting off another of his legs which again regenerated. She caught the boomerang as it came back to her.
"Inuyasha," called Kagome, gaining his attention, "His forehead is growing with a strange light," she said, obviously confused. Inuyasha focused his attention back to the youkai. He couldn't see the glowing, but it was worth a shot. He swung his Tetsusaiga downward, yelling "KAZE NO KIZU!" His wound of the wind attack caught the youkai in the head and he disintegrated. Where the youkai used to be was a wooden puppet cut in half and a small black jewel shard. Inuyasha walked over to the items while Sango and Kagome helped bandage Miroku as best as they could. Unfortunately, they had no bandages, so all they could do was apply pressure to the wound. Shippou and Kirara looked on worriedly. Inuyasha picked up the items but immediately dropped the shard. It seemed it had shocked him or something. Kagome came over, wondering what the items were.
"What are those?" she asked.
"I don't know, but that black thing shocked me," he replied, pointing to shard on the ground. Kagome looked at him in skepticism before bending over to pick up the shard. As soon as she touched it, it turned pink and began glowing.
"This shocked you?" she asked, holding it in front of her. He looked in amazement at the tiny pink jewel.
"But...But wasn't that just black?" he queried. She shrugged.
"I don't know, but if it made that youkai regenerate, it must be powerful. We should probably keep it," she advised, depositing it in a small gold pouch hanging from her kimono. They then walked back to Miroku, Sango, Shippou, and Kirara. When they reached him, something strange happened. The hole made by the youkai in his hand began to slowly then faster suck in air. The group backed away from him, not knowing what to do. Miroku seemed just as perplexed, before thinking of something to do. He pulled out some prayer beads from his robes and quickly enchanted them, putting them on his hand. It got the desired effect, keeping the hole from sucking in anything. He studied his hand. 'Well at least it's not bleeding anymore,' he thought grimly. He knew it had to be the work of some dark magic.
"Wha-what just happened?" queried Sango.
"I-I don't know, but there are dark forces at work," he responded before noticing the two wooden pieces in Inuyasha's hand. "What are those?" he said, unknowingly repeating Kagome's question. Inuyasha looked at his hand before passing the items to Miroku.
"I found these where the youkai was when he disintegrated," he explained. Kagome began digging in her pouch for the jewel shard. She took it out and passed it to Miroku.
"This was there too. Inuyasha said it was black and it shocked him though before I picked it up," she said.
Miroku studied the wooden items first. "This is a puppet to control demons," he explained. "It's cut in half because we defeated the youkai it controlled." He then studied the jewel shard closely. "But this...this is...no...it can't be!" he exclaimed.
"What?" asked a curious Shippou, jumping on Kagome's shoulder to get a better view.
"This appears to be a shard of the Shikon no Tama, the Jewel of Four Souls," he explained. "But if what you said is true about being black and shocking Inuyasha, then an evil entity must have it in their possession. The Shikon no Tama is a very powerful jewel and is deadly when in the wrong hands. Unfortunately, it appears to already be in the wrong hands," he said grimly.
"But they can't have the whole jewel," argued Kagome, "because we have this shard. If this Naraku guy only has part of it, it can't be as powerful as it is when it's whole."
"That's correct, but if just one shard was that powerful, just think of how powerful the nearly completed jewel must be. I'm afraid we're in danger," he said solemnly, looking at his injured hand. If this was just the beginning, he was afraid to think of what was to come.
----Naraku's castle----
Naraku watched the fight with a smirk. So far, Inuyasha and his friends were losing. One of them had even gained a hole in their hand. But then that girl with the kitsune, she had told Inuyasha where the jewel shard was located and he had killed the youkai. He then watched as the girl picked up the shard and purified it! 'So...the girl's a miko,' he thought. 'No matter, I will just have to continue with my plan. No girl is going to stop me.' He then smirked as he tightened his grip on the remaining Shikon no Tama. He watched desired effect as the hole in the man's hand began to suck in air. Unfortunately he was smart enough to enchant some prayer bead to seal the hole for the time being. He waved his hand at Kanna, implementing that her job was done. The image faded from the mirror as Kagura walked in. He didn't bother to look at her as he spoke.
"The youkai failed to kill Inuyasha," he said simply.
"I told you that you underestimated him," she growled, knowing he would say it was her fault. Naraku scowled and picked up an item, giving it a small squeeze. Kagura cried out in pain.
"Do not forget that I own you. I could kill you in an instant so remember your place." Kagura narrowed her eyes as Naraku released his hold on her. "Go. Find the miko girl he travels with and bring her to me, she could prove very useful," he said as she made her leave.
AN: Another chappie down. That was better than I'd hoped! . Go me! BWAHAHAHAHAHA ::ahem:: Anyway, sorry it took a week to get out. And before some of you exit out without reviewing, STOP RIGHT THERE!!!! YOU MUST TAKE A VOTE!!!!! I want your opinion!! Don't look at me like that, it's just a simple poll, all you have to write is 'yes' or 'no' okay? It's not that hard for all you simple-minded people like me out there. Okay, the question is, should Okibi be in this story? Okibi is my character. If you read my other story, SFSFH, then you'll find her in there. It develops her character and gives a pretty good description. So, PLEASE give me your opinion. Okay? TANKYA!! Onto Reviewer Responses!!!
Lil kat- Hehe, sorry this chappie took so long! Thanks for getting me back on track and keep reviewing and VOTE!!!!
Catkit- Yay, you love my story! BWAHAHAHAHA, I feel special. I've been told by everyone that Kirara's a girl, so I just went with that. Don't know if that helps any, but I sure hope it does! You even put me as a fav author and fav story!? Wow! ::sniffle, sniffle:: kyuuka feels so loved! Oh and btw...I LOVE SUGAR TOO!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHA!! VOTE PLEASE!
unknown- Well the later chappies are usually posted whenever I get around to typing them. Hehe, sorry, I procrastinate! Sorry it took a week, but here's the next chappie! Hope ya like and please review!!! AND VOTE!!
Xessive- Naraku does NOT seem like a pervert with the mirror!! He seems like an evil guy!! GAH! geez cheesecake, is your brain broken or something? BWAHAHAHAHAHA, just kiddin! Yay!!! You gave me ramen!!!! ::eats all the ramen in 2 seconds flat:: More would be nice!! REVIEW, CHEESECAKE!!!! you know you want to! VOTE, CHEESECAKE, VOTE I SAY!!!
crazy-kitsune- My psychopathic beta reader, what would I do without you!? Besides not having my ramen stolen and not having someone to piss off the creepy guys that try to talk to me...BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Anyway, even if you're my beta, you gotta review anyway!!!!! kit, you gotta VOTE too. hehe.
obsessiveIY-psycho-girl92- Hey, I rememorized your name! BWAHAHAHHAHA!!!! Yes, clowns are very evil!!! Especially the ones in Poltergeist!!! ::shudders:: And, yeah, they probably made cosmetics out of flowers and stuff, but anywho, here's another chappie!!! review please!! and remember to VOTE!!
michael- sorry I didn't email you last time. I actually DID email but I guess something happened and you didn't get it. evil computers!!!! anyway, I'll try again and I hope you get it this time. Anyway, please review and VOTE!!!! thank ya berry much!!
Well, that's it...7 reviews. That's pretty good if I do say so myself! Please remember to review and VOTE people!!! please?? The first 10 people to vote get ramen and an email sent to you as a notification of when I update my next chapter!!!! That's a pretty good deal if I do say so myself!! Ready...and....GO!!!