Clash of the Swords

Chapter four: Lost in thought.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Inuyasha gang, or Sesshoumaru, because they belong to Rumiko Takahashi. 'Nuff said.

Note: An extra long sorry for the delay, I had big birthday things to do, movies to see, you know, that kind of stuff. So here is a chapter for your patience, though I cannot guarantee it'll be any good. n.n;;

Also, there will be a Japanese glossary at the end of the story, so if you're confused about something, the bottom shall explain it all!

The moon had continued it's path in the sky, it's rein over the area coming to an end, as it set in the distance. The mood seemed to lighten as the moon disappeared beyond eyesight, as the cold of the night seemed to ease.

The sun peaked up from beyond the trees, a warm sensation falling over the earth's surface. The birds that inhabited the surrounding lands seemed to have awakened from their slumber, giving a vocal reminder. The nocturnal animals retreated to their homes, the rest greeting the morning with signs of relief, to see cold night absent.

Alike most of animals, Rin gave a warm smile to the sun.

"Ah! Taiyou, ohayou!" She smiled softly, her face lighting up as the rays of sun projected on her skin. She gave a small yawn, and surveyed her surroundings.

Jaken was leaned against a youkai entitled Ah-un, the demon inhaling deep breaths, causing the little toad's body to move up and down. His snores were quite small, but were visually apparent to the eye. This arms were folded over his chest, his nintoujou resting between his forearms and body.

Her eyes rested on him for a time, before curiosity about her master overcame her. She scanned the area, to see Sesshoumaru gazing off into the sky. This, to Rin's eyes, was indeed a rare sight. Her eyes continued to watch him for a time, before she raised herself from where she was sitting. Her feet carried her to his side, her hair pushing past her face.

The inu youkai took notice to Rin's presence, his eyes adjusting themselves, so she was in sight. The two stood, side by side in the sun rise, not a word of curiosity escaping from Rin's lips. Her eyes did not meet his, for she knew accompanying him in this state, that he revealed to few, may have been pushing it. Angering her leader would not do well. Though, Sesshoumaru did not allow silence for a long period of time.

"Yes, Rin." His tone was somewhat soft, but very strong, and did not waver. She glanced into the distance, her teeth biting down on her tongue, her mind searching for a correct response to give.

"Sesshoumaru-sama, why're you all alone here?" There was a pause, the girl shifting her weight uncomfortably. A gust of wind pushed it's way between the two, it's uproar causing an uncomfortable silence to befall the air. "Why don't you come sit with Jaken-sama and I?" She asked, after a period of time.

"I await the two of you to awaken, so we may continue to hunt down Naraku."

"You don't appear... ready to leave." She said, turning her face away from the inu youkai. He turned his head slightly, to look her up and down, his eyes narrowing.

"And what is it, you mean by that?"

"You look... like you're mind is set on your thoughts." After the continuance of silences that occurred, the unsettling nature that would usually come of it, did not happen quite as often. Sesshoumaru grunted, throwing a look up to the sky. "May I ask, what it is you're thinking of, Sesshoumaru-sama?"

"The death of a woman, that someone I know loved."

A thick layer of fog has already spread itself across the area, like a knife that would spread butter. The ground was barely visible, to one with great height. There was nothing for him to see, for his path forward was blank, and his trail behind was that he didn't want to face. The houshi stepped forward, pushing his weight onto his staff, giving himself a moment to grieve.

"Father died right before my eyes." The monk sighed, kneeling down to face the damp dirt. He pulled his knees to his chest, and brought his staff into a hold between his body and arm, so he could run his finger into the dirt.

He ran his finger over the mud, engraving the words:

"Shi,

Otoosan,

Itte shimau."

He glanced at his poor writing, grimacing in pain. Inuyasha was not the only one who had witnessed a loved one's demise.

"Did Inuyasha see his mother die, too?" The houshi's eyes narrowed, a bitter feeling overtaking him. He shut his eyes in pain, and clenched his fists in anger. "What kind of person am I, to say such a thing." Drops of rain plummeted onto his back, pain searing through his body. It was not the rain that hurt him, it was his own words. "Gomen, Inuyasha." He opened his eyes, to see the rain washing away his little engravings in the dirt.

He teetered over his ruined piece of work, thoughts of his father's death rushing through his mind.

"Perhaps," He said calmly, "It is time I pay a visit to my father's grave. I'm sure he'd appreciate that." He nodded, picking himself up from the mud.

The sky remained clouded, taunting the villagers of Kaede's village, as they worked vigorously to repair their destroyed homes. They'd noted that they'd need homes to stay at before nightfall, for youkai had a tendency to scout around the area during the moon's rein.

Regularly, at this state of destruction, Inuyasha would willingly involve himself in the reconstruction of their homes. But, the hanyou did not come to anyone's aid, for he'd disappeared all together.

"Kagome-chan," the slayer said with a struggle, as she heaved a piece of wood into place. "Where's Inuyasha?" The school girl sighed.

"I made a comment about how he yelled out 'father' when I found him, and I haven't seen him since. Probably mourning in some tree." Kagome hung her head in sadness, shielding her eyes from her friend.

"And... why does that make you so upset? I mean, I'm sure we all hold sympathy for Inuyasha, but-"

"I just, I hope I didn't hurt him. He looked upset, and I..."

"He looked fine to me." Shippou butt in. His little tail swirled behind him as he made his way to Kagome's shoulder. Kagome did not respond to his comment, but stood frozen for a moment.

"Well..." the miko's voice had lost all emotion. "Where is Miroku? I could use a monk to give me some comforting words, or at least grope your butt for some humor."

"I don't know where he is." She said, ignoring Kagome's last comment. "The last time I saw him was- er- we were..." She paused, for she knew the miko wouldn't like to hear the rest of this. Kagome just eyed her strangely, as if the slayer were about to tell her some disgusting thought.

"You were..." Kagome pursued.

"Well, okay. We were kind of spying on you and Inuyasha." She admitted, turning away from her friend, fearing her expression to be angered.

"S-spying! Well there was nothing to see..." She paused, recalling a long hug she'd had with the hanyou. "But- uh," Her eyes shifted back and fourth, before she brought the real matter back up. "Well anyway, about Miroku..."

'Aaah! She probably doesn't care... that we hugged, I mean, we hug all the time... right? And it's not like we don't see her and that monk making out twenty-four-seven!' Kagome comforted herself, within her mind.

'Wow. I can't believe she didn't slap me. I REALLY can't believe that! Had I been Inuyasha bringing this up, I would have been sat like, a hundred times. That Inuyasha is an unlucky one.' Sango laughed in her mind, if physically possible.

"Well," Sango coughed, "We were just um, watching your little talk with Inuyasha, yeah, he said something about his father, and Miroku just got up, and walked away. Kinda odd, I think." Kagome fixed her eyes on Sango's taking in every word as if it were valuable information.

"Perhaps," the miko said, entranced in thought, "Perhaps... Miroku recalled a difficult memory... something about his father?"

"Ah! You are observant, Kagome-chan." Kagome's face brightened at this remark, her mood lightening already.

"I hope he's not... upset... or, I hope he hasn't done anything stupid." Kagome said nervously. Sango simply shook her head.

"I'm sure Miroku mourns all the time. One time wouldn't be.. Well, not that much more painful then the other." Kagome nodded in agreement.

The wind picked up, large gusts thrusting into the houshi, as he trekked over the rolling hills. The sun appeared clouded, for the sky was dark, gray with warning. The clouds moaned from time to time, giving the atmosphere a scary mood. These conditions did not phase the monk, for his journey was an important one. His feet would not halt to any given person. Not even...

"Gomen, nasai." A small chirp came from Miroku's side, his attention drawing the a small woman, passing by him.

"It's quite alright, young maiden." He said, stopping his tracks, examining the woman. She looked about sixteen, but no one could really tell for sure. She was relatively thin, her complection pale, but welcoming. Her eyes glinted with a brown colour, her hair shining in that of the same tint. "May I ask your name?"

"It's Mika." She nodded. Her eyes darted down to see her hands, clutched in Miroku's.

"Please, would you consider baring my child?" He said, bearing no hesitation. Mika simply giggled, her eyes narrowing.

"I didn't expect that, you are obviously joking, though." She said, taking her hands back. The houshi merely sighed, his efforts worthless, again. "Where are you headed, anyway?" She asked curiously. He shook his head.

"To visit some people."

"Oh? Who?" The monk's eyes, for once, fell on the ground, instead of gazing at Mika's face, or chest.

"My father." He said bitterly, yet unintentionally. "And perhaps another."

"Ooh." She nodded, turning her head sideways. She noticed it was better not to pursue the topic any further. "I'll be off then. Until we meet again, I suppose." She smiled, bowed, and turned from the stationary monk. He peered down at the ground, her footsteps ringing in his ears.

"Mommy, what's a hanyou?" The boy peered up at her, his eyes round with curiosity. He examined his frail mother, her body lingering in one spot, her eyes fixed to a patch of dirt. He noticed a shine, amongst the darkness, trail down her cheek, her lips trembling slightly. She held her arms out, welcoming the hanyou into a warm embrace. He gladly fell into her arms, resting his head against her chest. Inuyasha could hear her heart beating against her rib cage, its pattern distressing to his ear. It's tempo was fast, too fast. Her lungs seemed to be trembling.

"Sesshoumaru-nii-san..." The boy stared longingly after his half brother, his body willing itself to move, but it would not. The tall inu figure stopped, his words directed at the hanyou.

"I am merely passing by." He said coldly, not even turning to face Inuyasha. "I wish for no contact, until you can at least fight. Then I may kill you with pride." Sesshoumaru's eyebrows burrowed into his eye lids, his mouth slightly folding into a frown. "Pride, of killing a hanyou?" He scoffed. "That's pathetic." He began walking again, his hair twirling in the wind.

"But I..." Inuyasha frowned, why did Sesshoumaru hold a grudge on him?

"Ah, Inuyasha." The woman whistled cheerfully, placing bags of some sort on a table. "I'm heading to the nearest town, to get some food." She surveyed her little son, who was leaned against the wall, his eyes relaxed, but his sense alert. "I know we've been having a bad month, and that you're hungry, but don't worry... It'll all be alright now."

Inuyasha's eyes snapped open, and he found himself gazing into leaves of trees. He was perched on top of a tree branch, his weight shifted to one side, for his arm rested on a near branch. His heart beat wildly, his dream so real and vivid.

"I remember..." Inuyasha's mind dug deep in his memories, these were real events, he knew it to be true.

Japanese Glossary:

Taiyou: Sun, Sunlight.

Nintoujou: Staff of heads, Jaken's staff.

Houshi: Monk

Shi: Death

Otoosan: Father (formal)

Itte shimau: To go away

Gomen: Sorry

Gomen nasai: Sorry, excuse me

And that is all. Please review, and sorry for the long delay! n.n