Chapter Sixteen: White Winter
Hmmm…I'm back after much busy work. Anyway, I'll be posting quite often if I have the time to write new chapters. For those who had patiently waited for this story, I'd like to thank you again for waiting for such a long time. (More than 3 months!) Okay, here goes the chapter!
Chapter Sixteen
The temperature had become too cold for crops to thrive. Frozen rain fell on the once emerald grasslands of the vast land. The area had become enveloped in white snow, with not a single sign of plant life to be found with the exception of the pine trees. The Japanese winter had arrived.
Kikyo trudged through the thick snow layers covering the ground. Wearing a straw hat with some other stalks of straw to insulate herself, she continued her way while a certain half-demon watched her from a distance. The priestess stopped for a moment.
"Inuyasha," she spoke slowly with calmness in her tone, lowering her head for a second. "Thank you."
"Huh?"
"Thank you for coming along to help me complete this task," she replied back, turning her head towards him with a slight smile.
"Shut up," he snapped back instantly, folding his hands with a huff. "I just need to polish my skills as a demon." Kikyo gave a small chuckle for a brief moment before turning her head back and continuing to trudge across the deep snow. Her eyes suddenly spotted something sinister moving through the snow.
It's here.
"Kikyo-sama!" One of the villagers came running towards the priestess who had just finished her ritual bath in cold water among the cold winter climate. In his hand was a brown parchment scroll, which seemed to contain something urgent from his mannerism. The priestess looked at the approaching villager with an unsurprised look. "A pigeon just came with this scroll attached to one of its feet." He handed out the parchment scroll.
"Thank you, Takahashi-san," came the priestess' reply. She took the scroll into her own hands, and unrolled it. The piece of paper revealed several characters which only the most literate of people could read. Moving her eyes from left to right for a few moments, she closed back the scroll and looked at Takahashi. "Please tell the others to guard Kaede." Within less than five minutes, Kikyo turned to the north and began walking off with her bow and arrows.
"B-b-but mikosama," the villager shouted back to her. "Who will take care of the sacred jewel?"
"It'll be safe, rest assured," her only reply as she maintained her path into the deep forest.
The villager gave a quick bow to the departing priestess. "Yes, mikosama."
"This is killing me!" the half-demon felt a sharp aura stinging his body. He awoke from his slumber on a tall leafless tree branch to find the place filled with blue aura. It was anti-youkai aura, and it warded any demon even that of half-demons.
I must get out of here before I die of the crazy aura here!
Inuyasha jumped off the tree branch to the other, finding the boundary of the aura created.
It must be that stupid Kikyo who did this! Is she out to destroy me?
His sharp amber eyes caught the sight of a certain lone figure walking across the snow, with much straw covering her shoulders, and a straw hat. In her arms were the famous bow and arrows of the priestess he knew.
I better follow her unsuspected!
The half-demon continued to jump from tree to tree to track the walking priestess down.
The priestess stopped for a moment. She turned back to check for any followers. Behind a tree trunk she spotted red cloth flowing along with the strong cold wind. Giving a small smile, she turned back to continue on her path. Shortly after, a certain half-demon followed after her.
"Inuyasha."
The half-demon froze.
"Can I ask you a favour?" The priestess asked. There was no reply. She closed her eyes for a moment and gave a small laugh.
What the heck is this priestess doing?
"There's been a report in the north of a certain demon terrorizing the villagers, and attacking travelers. Can you assist me in assailing this threat, even if you are a demon too?"
There was no reply from the half-demon still. Kikyo gave another short smile, and continued to trudge through the thick white snow, with a certain half-demon following her yet again.
Kikyo's eyes spotted the moving thing. With one swift arm, she took out one arrow and stretched it against the bowstring. Her eyes turned from calm to bellicose. The arrow's rear pushed against the stretching bowstring.
Her fingers released its grip on the bow.
With a quick move, the arrow's pointed end thrusted towards its target. It was not long before something howled in pain, with crimson substance beginning to stain the white snow. The object ran off again quickly without being seen by the priestess' eyes. Kikyo's eyes widened from her failure to subjugate.
Impossible…how did it do with such swiftness?
"Sankou tessou!" Came the famous war cry of the half-demon. Inuyasha's claws glowed as they shot out the yellow projectiles which instantly damaged the demon. It created a large explosion as snow was threw over the area like dust was whipped up in a desert storm.
"Impressive," the demon spoke sinisterly as a dark figure began to reveal itself through the wake of the explosion. It revealed itself in human form with dark purple streaks striking across its face, and with red pupils. An evil smile stretched across its dark-looking face. "To think a HANYOU can touch me." The stressed words sounded an angry instinct within Inuyasha.
"Be gone, demon!" Kikyo shouted at the enemy, pointing another arrow at it. The arrow began to glow with an azure color, that of purification. "To be able to take a thousand human lives will you deserve your punishment!"
"Miko-san," he spoke sinisterly turning his terrifying gaze towards the priestess. "I congratulate you on your courage to confront me, a top-notch demon. This is my turf of terror, and I am surprised the villagers can be so discrete enough to summon a priestess from another region."
"Stop your boasting," Kikyo swept away his flattery of the priestess. She pulled the bow string further back. "I'll now end your terror in this world. Be gone to the nether world!"
"Oh? Try me."
Kikyo closed her eyes. Her fingers slowly released their grip on the bow string, one by one. The arrow began to glow more intensely with the blue purifying aura it contained within, given by the special power of the priestess herself.
The arrow began its rapid move towards the demon that simply stood there on the snow, continuing to bellow a loud laugh. It produced a sudden thin pinkish aura around itself, as the arrow neared it. An explosion followed by after the impacting of the blue aura onto the pink aura.
Was he vanquished?
The explosion cleared. The specks of snow dust cleared, revealing an empty scenery with no sign of the demon who had been standing there minutes ago. Suddenly, it dawned on Kikyo that Inuyasha's presence was missing. Her eyes widened with shock.
"Miko-kisama," the youkai's voice sounded through the entire area. "I'm so sorry that your companion was substituted with my skill." A red piece of cloth revealed itself among the resultant heap of snow created by the fusion of the purifying aura and the aura which the demon had put up. A chilly wind blew again, blowing Kikyo's priestess clothing, and revealing something that was actually impossible.
"INUYASHA!"
Okay, end of chapter. Well…I suppose to make it end like some short chapter. And it did. I put kinda' a cliff-hanger on this one. Hmmm…see ya' soon around!
Glossary:
Nothing much today, right? ;)
