Disclaimer: I totally own Inuyasha. Whoa, flying pigs!

Most of the characters in this fanfic are original, although their names were stolen from one of my favorite books of all time, Memoirs of a Geisha.

Chapter 1

"And now, to the next order of business..."

Sesshomaru idly tapped one long nail against the polished wood of the table that he and the other members of Inutashio's council were currently seated around.

Dear gods, I'm so bored, he thought, looking longingly towards the window. He wanted to be outside, maybe hunting, or sparring with another youkai, not sitting in this stuffy room listening to some droning councilor.

"Sesshomaru, would you care to oversee this assignment?" Inutashio's voice suddenly interrupted his daydreams. "I think as the heir to the Western Lands, it would be a suitable task for you." The councilors nodded their agreement. His father looked expectantly at him while Sesshomaru tried to recall what they had been talking about. Something about training females...

"I will do my best, respected father." Sesshoumaru said, trying to look as though he had been paying attention. He'd have to ask Umeko later. Umeko, like the other aides, sat behind Sesshoumaru, writing neatly on a sheet of paper. He snuck a glance backward, and she nodded at him, to let him know that she had taken notes and would fill him in later. The movement shook a few strands of glossy brown hair loose, which she absently brushed off her face and tucked back into the prim knot at the base of her neck.

"Very well, Sesshomaru. I will send my aide to help you out, so you are not overwhelmed by this project." Inutashio said. "You may leave now and begin with your work. I will send Chiyo down to your quarters later."

Sesshomaru bowed and left the room, inwardly fuming. Chiyo was a nosy, bossy, whiny bitch who thought too much of her station as the lord's aide. Umeko hurried out after him. He didn't say anything to her as he walked through the winding halls until they reached his quarters. Once inside, he shut the door with a bit more firmness than was necessary.

"Lord Sesshomaru," a voice greeted him. Matsunaga, his military advisor, rose from the desk where he had been working on some papers. He was a distant cousin of Inutashio, with thick white hair that dangled past his shoulders and piercing amber eyes. Relatively young and ambitious, he was a cunning and ruthless warrior and strategist. "I see the meeting went well."

"Oh, very well." Sesshomaru answered. "Umeko, what exactly am I supposed to be doing?"

"Your respected father gave you the task of overseeing the introduction of training the female inu youkai to fight," Umeko said. "You have four years to implement and carry out their training."

"Quite a task," Matsunaga commented.

Sesshomaru let out a long breath. "All of them?"

"Except the babies and the grandmothers-" Umeko replied, her topaz eyes calm.

"How?"

"Your respected father left that up for you to decide."

He paced around the room. "Umeko...we haven't had a female warrior besides Sayuri in five hundred years. Where am I supposed to find someone to train all of these females?"

If anyone in the court had heard him speaking so familiarly with his aide, they would have been shocked, but he considered the intelligent and kind hearted Umeko to be one of his few friends. She was also an excellent aide; she possessed an incredible memory and was efficient and precise in everything she did.

"To be honest, I don't know, Lord Sesshomaru." she said at last. "The only thing I can think of would be to speak with Sayuri herself."

"I'll go do that, then. Matsunaga. I want you to begin preparing a preliminary plan for the training."

"With pleasure. What are my resources?" the general asked. Sesshomaru smirked slightly.

"Why, my father's resources, of course. They are all at your disposal."

Matsunaga half-smiled, distracted by the challenge of the task at hand. "Very well." His considerable intellect was already focused solely on the plan he was formulating. "Oh, my lord. There is one thing I should warn you about." Sesshomaru paused, about to slide the door open.

"Yes?"

"Sayuri is famed for being...rather...eccentric."

"Thank you for the warning, but I think I can handle it." Sesshomaru opened the door.

Chiyo was standing there.

"Lord Sesshomaru," she said, bowing slightly. With one hand, she smoothed a wrinkle from her expensive kimono, and with the other, she held a few sheets of parchment and a writing tablet. Like Umeko, she wore her light brown hair pulled back into a bun. On Umeko, it looked crisp and professional; on Chiyo, it only served to emphasize her severe features.

Sesshomaru gritted his teeth and directed his glare at the floor. Umeko seemed to sense his discomfort, because she smiled at the other aide and said politely, "Lord Sesshomaru is on his way to a private meeting. If you wish, you may discuss things with Matsunaga while we are there."

Chiyo returned the smile, although it didn't reach her golden brown eyes, and there was a hard edge to her voice. "I'd rather go with Lord Sesshomaru and see things for myself." She turned to Sesshomaru. "Where were you headed, my lord?"

"I was on my way to speak with Sayuri." he replied. Hopefully without you, he added silently. Chiyo nodded.

"An excellent idea. I will accompany you, then."

Sesshomaru struggled to keep the scowl off of his face and shrugged. "Very well," he said, turning and striding out the door, Chiyo and Umeko close behind him.

Sayuri was gone when they arrived at her quarters, and they were told politely but firmly by one of her personal servants that she was out attending to some business, and that they should return in a few days.

Sesshomaru spent those days holed up in his room with Umeko and Matsunaga, feverishly trying to concoct a plan. They were all sharp minds with centuries of intelligence, strong teamwork, with all the resources of the Lord of the Western Lands to work with.

Currently, things did not look good.

Sesshomaru tossed the crumpled up sheet of paper on the ground behind him, where it joined the others.

"Large scale training camp? Too expensive. Private training for each female? Too few trainers. Assigning each female to a male warrior to learn the fighting art? Obvious problems. Bringing in female warriors from other clans? They won't share their secrets. How in the hells am I supposed to do this?" he demanded of a smoky glass paperweight, slamming it down on the desk and denting the smooth wood.

"That's your father's favorite paperweight," Umeko said absently, reviewing a list of all the resources they had. Sesshomaru glared at her and threw it out the open window with all his might. He received a stern look from Umeko, but it made a truly satisfying crash when it landed in the courtyard below. Matsunaga looked over at him and they both laughed, while Umeko mutered something that sounded remarkably like "Males."

"Sesshomaru." a low voice spoke from the door. "What was that?"

The three rose to their feet and bowed low to the woman who had just entered the room. Lady Murasaki was tall and elegant, with long ebony hair done up in an ornate style and cool blue eyes that took in everything and revealed nothing.

"It was father's paperweight...Mother." Sesshomaru answered quietly.

"You would do better to control your temper, my son." she said. "You are far too emotional." Sesshomaru nodded, trying to keep his face the blank mask she taught him. She looked at him for a few moments longer, then nodded her approval of his expressionless face. "Better."

She left as silently as she had come.

There was a long, slightly awkward silence broken only by the shuffling of papers.

"You could impose a heavy tax on the villages to pay for the training of their females," Matsunaga suggested wearily. "But eventually they would rise up in rebellion against you, and your father wouldn't be too happy."

There was a sudden knock on the door. Umeko opened it, to see Chiyo.

"Sayuri has returned," Chiyo informed them briskly. Sesshomaru had never been so happy to see her.

"Don't forget what I told you," Matsunaga reminded him as Sesshomaru stepped out into the halls after Chiyo. Umeko brought some papers over to Matsunaga.

"Here," she said, placing them in front of him. "I updated the list of resources. We got a new shipment of weaponry, listed here, and some of the villages have sent in their taxes, shown here. And these," Umeko plunked a heavy stack of records on the desk, "are the records you wanted. Everything I could find about female warriors."

"Thank you, Umeko." Matsunaga said sincerely, smiling up at her.

She returned the smile and hurried out the door to catch up with Sesshomaru and Chiyo. He sighed after she was gone. The room seemed emptier without her gentle smile.

Sayuri was sharpening her sword when they arrived at her rooms, and the grinding sound could be heard throughout the halls. "Come in," she said quietly when Sesshomaru rapped on the door, and the three of them entered.

Sesshomaru had seen her only once before at court, and she hadn't changed since then. Her sable hair was pulled off her face in a single braid and her plain gray robes were slightly faded. Her simple appearance, however, did nothing to diminish the warrior's grace with which she moved.

The female warrior didn't turn around, or acknowledge their presence, but continued sharpening her sword. Umeko cleared her throat and announced, "The Lord Sesshomaru,"

"I know who you are." Sayuri said, continuing her task. There was an awkward silence broken only by the rasping of the sharpening stone against the sword. Sesshomaru looked at both of the aides, and they only shrugged helplessly. "Sayuri," he started.

"I will only speak with a warrior," she interrupted coolly. "Which you are not, so there is not point in you trying to speak with me."

"I am a warrior!" he protested, anger coloring his tone.

"I have been training longer than you have been alive. You are not a warrior." Her statement had a tone of finality.

"I will fight you." Sesshomaru offered. "You don't scare me."

In a swift, fluid movement, the warrior rose to her feet, bringing the sword up and around in a blur. When the sword swept past the two females, they both cringed, but Sesshomaru forced himself to remain still, although his heart was pounding. The point of the sword stopped just in front of his eyes, and he stared straight down the blade into Sayuri's eyes.

One of her eyes was hazel, like many inu youkai. The other...was bright green.

For a moment, they stared at each other, challenging the other one to look away. Then Sayuri laughed, and slid her sword into her sheath. She bowed slightly to him, and he returned the bow.

"You have the heart of a warrior, Sesshomaru. For that, I will speak with you." Sayuri indicated that they should kneel at the small table while she prepared the tea.

"You know the task that has been given to me," Sesshomaru said. "You are the only female warrior we have, and I need your help to train these females." Sayuri poured the tea.

They sat and drank the tea, and at Sayuri's summon, a servant came with a tray of noodles and spiced meats. Umeko did her best to keep the conversation going, and despite himself, Sesshomaru found himself enjoying the meal. Sayuri was as good a conversationalist as Umeko and she told them entertaining stories about a tournament that she had just fought in. Chiyo simply sat there, ate little, and said less. At last, Sayuri rose. They all looked at her expectantly.

"I have two swords," she told them. "The sword you saw me sharpening is my first sword, the sword I trained with. I use that sword for practice, and for fighting if I will not have to kill anyone. My second sword is my killing sword. I do not have to sharpen that sword because it is never dull. If I wanted to kill someone, I would draw my second sword, my sharp sword. I could kill someone with my practice sword, but it would be faster and more efficient to do it with my second sword."

"What does this have to do with me?" Sesshomaru asked. She looked directly at him.

"I am the first sword, Sesshomaru. You need the second sword. If you want me to train the females, I will do so gladly, but if I were you, I would find the second sword."

"Who is the second sword?" he demanded, his patience beginning to wear thin.

"Do you know where I learned to fight?" she countered. Umeko began to clear the cups away, but Chiyo watched the exchange intently.

"No, but-"

"I traveled to a far off land, a land whose warriors were known for their fighting prowess. Female warriors. It was there that I studied the sword."

"Then what do you suggest I do?"

"Take your females there and train them." Sayuri said. "If you would excuse me, I must train now."

"Wait!" Sesshomaru exclaimed. "I don't even know where it is!"

"Neither do I." the warrior replied.

"How did you get there, then?"

"By accident. A storm blew my ship off course. I was trying to go to a different race of warriors." Sayuri recollected, looking off in the distance. "They are famed for pulling the living hearts out of their enemies," she added.

Sesshomaru ran his nails through his hair, exhaling in frustration. "How does this help me?"

Sayuri smiled. "Fortunately for you, I do know who would know where it is."

"Who?" Sesshomaru all but shouted. Gods, Matsunaga was right about her being strange, he thought.

"Taro the Mapmaker," she answered, naming a well-known wind youkai. "I believe he is still residing in that hole in the mountains."

Sesshomaru wanted to scream, or better yet, destroy something. Taro was, if possible, more eccentric than Sayuri and harder to deal with. Instead, he bowed politely to Sayuri, followed by Umeko and Chiyo.

"Thank you for your help," he said as calmly as he could manage. "I will still call on you for the females' early training, if you would grant me your assistance again."

She smiled. "Of course." The door slid closed.

As Sesshomaru took a deep, calming breath, he noticed Chiyo writing on her tablet of paper. "Umeko, how far is it to Taro's?"

"At least half a day's journey," Umeko replied. "Do you want me to begin making preparations?"

It was past midday now. The trip would have to wait until tomorrow. "Yes," he said. "I want to leave early tomorrow. Come back to my quarters when you are done." Chiyo turned to him.

"I will go with you tomorrow as well. Tell her to make preparations for me as well."

"Tell her yourself," Sesshomaru said. Chiyo scowled at him and repeated the instructions to Umeko in a condescending tone.

Umeko looked at him. He gave her a slight nod, and she hurried off to take care of the arrangements. Chiyo made her excuses and left as well.

Sesshomaru wandered through the halls, lost in thought, and found himself somehow on the edge of the grounds. The forest looked tempting; he could smell the scent of deer and other game, just waiting to be chased. A good hunt would certainly ease his nerves.

As he was about to dash off into the forest, the glint of sunlight on metal caught his attention: Sayuri was practicing with her sword. Curious, Sesshomaru perchd on the branch of a nearby tree to observe.

The warrior slashed and stabbed, her blade blinding in the bright light. Her speed was amazing; she was already flowing into the next move while she was completing the first. Some of the moves she did would have been ridiculous for anyone else; they would have left themselves wide open for an attack, but Sesshomaru had no doubt that her skilled blade could fend off the attack. Other moves were simply a personal test of skill and speed. Sesshomaru watched in envy. Although he was considered to be a fine fighter and excellent swordsman, he knew that he would be no match for Sayuri in a battle.

"My warm up routine," she called to him. He jerked in surprise. Seeing his confusion, she laughed. "You're not exactly inconspicuous with that white hair."

Sesshomaru smiled ruefully. "It's still growing out," he said. The length of hair among many youkai—at least, those who had hair—was a sign of their station. Since he had only recently become the official heir to the throne, he was allowed to grow his hair out down to his waist.

Sayuri slid the sword into its lacquered sheath and tossed it gently aside. "You said you would fight me this morning. Does the offer still stand?"

He grinned, despite the fact that she would probably pound him into the ground, and jumped

down. Sayuri waited patiently as he took off his heavy outer robes, wearing only his undershirt and pants.

The two opponents faced each other, claws raised, eyes locked. As a male, Sesshomaru was bigger and stronger, but he didn't have her speed, or her experience, which more than made up for his advantages.

It would be an interesting battle.