SPOILERS for episodes 51 & 52.
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There was nothing out of the ordinary in his lands, which was pleasing, if just a little bit boring. Probably because he had just been there not too terribly long ago. If Sesshoumaru didn't have something else to do here, he most likely wouldn't have found reason to come back so soon. But the person he wanted to see happened to live in the oldest and centermost part of his father's lands.
They had entered the ancient forest the previous night, and were still in it this morning. Rin had marveled at it all--how tall the trees were, how wide their trunks were, how far they all went. She had probably never seen anyplace like it before. Indeed, even Sesshoumaru couldn't think of a forest anyplace else that was quite as old or deep as this one. Though he could never recall being quite as amazed as she was. At any rate, she was probably the first human in a fair amount of years to come this deep into the trees. Most humans seemed to have some sort of unnatural fear of the place, though there was really nothing in the forest. Well, a few things, and himself occasionally. But people generally didn't like being in ancient places like this one; they didn't like feeling the possibility that there was something older, smarter, and more dangerous than themselves around. It was just as well, though, as it was much more pleasant without them in it.
~
Bokusenou had had plenty to say. Sesshoumaru wasn't quite sure what to make of it yet, but it was all very interesting, at least. And it had put the prospect of the Tetsusaiga in a different light. It seemed that his father knew something about what he had been doing. Inuyasha was to have the sword's power to lean on, to keep him from falling back to his own power and going insane. Though it still didn't explain why Sesshoumaru hadn't been given equally powerful sword for his own use. He could see no logic in him getting the Tenseiga to that of Inuyasha's getting the Tetsusaiga. He suspected that his father had been trying to make a point about something, though he didn't care to think about it.
Sesshoumaru wanted to see Inuyasha transform again, though. Inuyasha had seemed almost formidable when first changed, but if it was true that he lost his mind, he was nothing. And it seemed that while Inuyasha was having problems using the Tetsusaiga, there was a better chance of Sesshoumaru seeing what he wanted to see. They needed to leave this old forest, get out of these lands, and find the hanyou.
By the first part of the afternoon, they had cleared the forest, and were in an open meadow. "Jaken."
"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama?"
"I want to see where Inuyasha is. Now. We're flying."
"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama!"
Sesshoumaru sat down on the back of the dragon, and Jaken perched himself at the base of it's neck, holding the reins in his hand. "Come on, Rin," Sesshoumaru said to Rin, who was running around behind them. She came over and climbed up in front of him.
"Sesshoumaru-sama is riding on Ah and Un, too?"
He nodded. "Hold on, Rin."
Then he nodded to Jaken. With a certain tug of the reins, the dragon leapt into the air. Rin gasped. In afterthought, Sesshoumaru supposed that he should have given her more warning. But he took things for granted that she found new and amazing, and hadn't really thought to tell her.
"Wow! Ah and Un can fly!" she exclaimed after a moment. Soon she was leaning to the side, not at all troubled by the height, looking over at the land beneath them. Once she leaned almost too far, and he had to pull her back. She didn't lean out after that, but only sat and looked to either side.
"Rin's never been flying before," she informed him, halfway turning around.
Sesshoumaru just nodded, amused. She said it so simply, as if flying were something that every child expected to get to do at some point or another. The same way that she might say 'Rin's never been swimming before,' or 'Rin's never seen snow before.'
The rest of the trip was uneventful, except for Rin's slightly annoying inquiry about who Inuyasha was. Later, Sesshoumaru caught Inuyasha's scent, and directed Jaken to steer the dragon in the correct direction. They landed a short time after that, and Sesshoumaru had started in Inuyasha's direction. Rin didn't want him to leave, but she had again reluctantly stayed; though this time she had somehow managed to extract his definite promise to return.
Sesshoumaru went to where Inuyasha was, and found that the hanyou had already transformed. Which was rather lucky, as Sesshoumaru could observe the change for a moment without being a direct participant. Where Inuyasha had before been almost at death, he now had a new and wild strength. Sessshoumaru watched as the hanyou killed the other youkai and then proceeded to rip apart the men. Now was as good a time as any to make his presence known. Sesshoumaru approached.
~
The fight had been interesting, Sesshoumaru mused as he walked back to where Rin and Jaken were. It was just as Bokusenou had said--Inuyasha was nothing more than a crazed animal. He had no sense, no reason, not even any fear. Just the drive to kill. Pathetic. That was even worse than what he was normally.
After seeing what he wanted to see, Sesshoumaru had knocked Inuyasha out and left. He did make a passing comment, though it seemed that Inuyasha's little group already had an idea of what was going on.
Inuyasha was like anything else. Sesshoumaru could care less about what he was doing, as long the hanyou didn't annoy him or get in his way. When Sesshoumaru had been after the Tetsusaiga, Inuyasha had been in the way. Now he wasn't. It was as simple as that. And while Inuyasha's transformation had piqued his curiosity momentarily, there was no longer anything mysterious or interesting about it. The hanyou could do whatever he wanted. Sesshoumaru didn't have any interest in him, dead, living, or otherwise.
Rin was the first to spot him when he returned.
"Sesshoumaru-sama!" she cried.
Excited as always to see him, she came running over. Jaken also came over, though he seemed a bit less pleased. Obviously Jaken had not taken him seriously when he had said that Jaken might have to watch Rin.
They left after that, though Sesshoumaru had no particular destination in mind. It would have been fine just to stay there, except that he didn't care to be that close to Inuyasha's location.
"Did Sesshoumaru-sama go fight?" Rin asked, walking next to him.
"More or less."
"With Inuyasha?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Sesshoumaru thought of several answers, though he didn't really think that any of them would satisfy her. So he said nothing.
"Rin doesn't like it when Sesshoumaru-sama fights," she continued. "Sesshoumaru-sama might get hurt. Then Rin might not have Sesshoumaru-sama."
"I wouldn't be hurt," he said after a moment.
"Does Sesshoumaru-sama promise? Sesshoumaru-sama?"
"Yes, fine."
"Thank you, Sesshoumaru-sama!"
His mind thought back to what Bokusenou had said about the Tetsusaiga. His father hadn't randomly given one of them one sword, and the other another. There was a carefully thought out plan behind it. Which meant that there was also a specific reason that he had been given the Tenseiga. His father had had a purpose. And he suspected that the aim of that purpose was closer than he would have preferred.