Oooh, fluff and philosophy in this one. Hope you have fun with it, cause I did.

Chapter 14: Purpose

Paralyzing pain possessed Inuyasha's every thought and movement. His hands trembled as he reached to grasp for something, anything to hold himself up so he could keep fighting. But his fingers couldn't even grasp at the air, the pain was so great. He squeezed his eyes tight, trying to somehow force out the pain. He inwardly kicked himself for not getting up, 'Stop being such a weakling! You can get through this. You just have to stand up and keep fighting. You have to protect Kagome.'

He rolled onto his stomach and tried to bring his knee up so he could use it as support to lift himself. He finally managed to stand. Naraku looked at Inuyasha's eyes so full of hatred and lust for power, and he knew that he was close to finally achieving what he desired. Inuyasha hissed, "I'll never let you get away with what you did to Kagome!"

Inuyasha charged at Naraku himself, thinking that the power of the sword wouldn't be able to reflect the Tetsusaiga itself. It was a desperate attempt, and he knew it. Naraku merely swung his sword into the Tetsusaiga. Summoning the inner power of his sword once again, Naraku blew the Tetsusaiga and Inuyasha back once more. The hanyou panted for breath as he lay on the ground. No strength would come to him. That sword of Naraku's seemed to not only reflect his own power, but amplify it as well. And it had some kind of power of its own that Naraku could summon that was more powerful than any other attack he had ever seen before. More blood spilled from his mouth. He reached a hand up to his neck, trying to locate the locket to give him hope, but it wasn't there. He glanced around, and saw it a few feet away. The chain of it had been broken off in the last blow. Inuyasha eyed it longingly. Somehow, even if he had nothing else, he lived for Kagome. It was her love that gave him strength above all else. Desperate for help, he reached with all his might towards the locket. He practically wormed his way over to where it rested, falling down with every movement, and making little progress at a time. He took in deep breaths as he strained his arm to reach for it. Naraku noticed this, "Puh. You'd give up your remaining strength just for a locket? Just for love?"

The broken hanyou finally made it and grasped the locket in his hand. He then pulled his hand to his chest to hold it next to his heart. He lay on one side of his body, fighting to stay alive, if only to see his dearest Kagome again. Every breath he inhaled was shaky and uneven. One hand still grasped Tetsusaiga, the last thread of him still hanging onto the hope that he could somehow win. He had to win! It just couldn't be any other way. "Kagome…" he whispered.

In the background, Naraku had restored his body to his youkai state. He towered high in the air above the slimy roots that were his abdomen. More limbs immerged from his back, taking on the resemblance of arms and hands. One hand still held his new sword close by. He smirked as some of his root-like limbs reached for Inuyasha. They wrapped like a python around his broken body and lifted him into the air. Inuyasha let out a ground as he was squeezed within his new prison. His hands still clutched the locket and the Tetsusaiga to his best abilities, but his strength was fading quickly. His eyes stared in fright at Naraku, who was smirking, 'I see the demon lurking inside you, begging to come out. The Tetsusaiga will not be able to hold it back for long. Once you transform, you may see the full power of my sword.'

Inuyasha grunted as he was squeezed more, and let out an anguished sound. Naraku spoke, "Your power will become mine, Inuyasha. That is my true plan. I will absorb your power, and then move on to the powers of Kagome. With both your powers enhancing my own, I will be unstoppable."

Inuyasha sputtered a whisper, "N-no… Ka-Kagome… Don't… hurt…"

"You act as if love can save you from pain. Open your eyes, Inuyasha. You have failed your beloved Kagome, and now you will die… all alone… as the nothing you truly are."

Did the wind pause suddenly in the world around them? It is said that when someone is about to die, their life flashes before them in a matter of seconds. As an act of pity, the universe stops time so that the dying may recall their lives, both the good times and the bad. For a few moments, they can experience the true beauty of life, and what a gift it was to have. All becomes clear in those few moments. The purpose of living… is to live. Just to live… happily and sadly… to feel hatred and most especially love. Such a task serves no purpose except to realize the purpose of everything in existence. For everything, the purpose is survival, and to incubate the most powerful force of all. For all of eternity, the cycle of life and death, hatred and love keeps the purpose of existence in motion.

What stood out most in Inuyasha's mind was the image of his mother. He remembered her touch, her face, and her voice, but most especially her eyes. They held her soul for everyone to see. There was something in his mother's eyes that he would never see again until Kagome arrived in his life. There was a look of eternity and of purpose. He didn't know what it was back then, but as he recalled now, he knew… in his mother's eyes, there resided life's purpose. 'And does my purpose end once I die?' he could hear himself saying.

'The purpose of life never ends,' he heard his mother's voice respond.

Inuyasha gave a sad reflective smile. Yes, the purpose of life would go on in him, even if in body he no longer existed. The purpose of love was immortal, and therefore was so he. But there was still regret. The nature of his being wouldn't let him forget that he would be leaving behind the one he loved more than anything, his purpose. Perhaps he would not miss her if he didn't have a mind to think of her anymore, but that wouldn't mean the spirit of his heart would fade away along with the rest of him. His heart would always ache for her, even in his next life. He found a little comfort in hoping that maybe his reincarnation would meet Kagome and fall in love with her all over again 500 years in the future. But his heart still wouldn't let go of what he had to lose now. The idea of leaving Kagome behind to grieve for him was unbearable. He gently massaged the locket in his hand, 'Be happy… Kagome… be happy…'

Inuyasha's consciousness was slowly slipping away from him, and the flame of life in him had almost gone out. He was ready now, to accept his death. But then something happened that he did not expect.

Although his eyes were closed, he could distinctly make out a flash of blue light coming forth. As it got closer and closer, he felt a warmness engulf him, as if he was in the presence of heaven. But as the light came even closer, he realized it was not heaven he was seeing… it was an arrow… her arrow.

The arrow hit something… he didn't know what. But it had definitely hit. A voice, which was tense and yet still sweet, invaded his ears and caused his heart to beat faster and faster, "So much for that theory, Naraku!"

All sound stopped for but a few moments, waiting for the half-demon known as Inuyasha to respond, to wake, to do anything. He could distinctly feel the Tetsusaiga doing something he had never felt before. It was feeding him with some kind of nourishment. He could feel something happening with his wounds. It took him a moment before he realized, they were healing. '……… Kagome………'

His eyes flew open and glanced over to her. "Kagome!"

She stood on top of one of the balconies with another arrow drawn to her bow. The last arrow had pierced one of Naraku's main limbs. Her eyes looked angry and determined. Naraku smirked, "Stupid girl. You should never have come here alone."

"Never alone! EVERYBODY GO!" She screamed.

Out of the shadows behind her, Sango, Miroku, Shippou, and Kirara emerged ready for battle. They all leaped off of the balcony and landed safely on the ballroom floor. Sango swung her weapon, "Hiraikotsu!"

At about the same time, Miroku launched his staff into the air. His staff headed straight for Naraku while the Hiraikotsu curved around to come back towards him. Now being confronted in opposite directions, Naraku was only able to deflect Miroku's spear with his sword, but the boomerang plowed into him hard and ripped through him. He let out a groan. At a time when he was vulnerable, Kagome shot another arrow towards the limb that had a hold on Inuyasha. Inuyasha breathed in deep as he was freed and landed on the ground unharmed. He quickly glanced at his wounds. There were almost completely healed, but how? He couldn't afford to wait to find out. Naraku swung his limbs for Kagome. "Kagome!" Inuyasha shouted.

He grabbed Kagome and dodged the attack just in time. He ran with her in his arms, "Baka! Why the hell did you come?"

"Don't be like that, Inuyasha. You know why, now let's defeat Naraku together, just like we should," Kagome protested.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, but he didn't have the energy to argue now. All that mattered was keeping Kagome safe. They landed beside the others, and they finally stood as a team once again. Inuyasha was standing up on his own two feet. Naraku eyed him suspiciously, "How in the hell can you suddenly stand again?"

Inuyasha placed his sword in front of him, "Keh. Beats me."

Myouga-jiji watched from a safe location at the scene before him, "I see… his wounds have almost completely healed again. Could it be? Is he about to discover the hidden power of the Tetsusaiga?"

Inuyasha smirked at Naraku's failed attempt to absorb him. He grasped the Tetsusaiga tightly. He didn't know what had happened, but he was pretty sure that his sudden healing as something to do with the Tetsusaiga, or at least, it was responding to his fear for Kagome. But his relief was short lived as he saw Naraku's face break into a smile, and then a laugh. "You think you've won? You know nothing. Must I demonstrate its power again?"

He lifted the sword into the air and the familiar white light began forming around it. Inuyasha gasped. None of his moves could stop the power coming from it. "Run!" He shouted to the others.

He pulled Kagome back into his arms and made a run for it as fast as he possibly could, but knowing that escape was practically impossible. Kirara swung by the others and picked them up in an instant. She flew alongside Inuyasha towards the exit. Inuyasha could hear Naraku's chuckle behind him as the power of his sword charged up higher than it ever had before. But Naraku did not aim for the team. He aimed above them at the ceiling and let his sword release.

When the light hit, large pieces of rock came tumbling down like an avalanche. Kirara and the others fell to the floor as the rocks banged into them repeatedly. Inuyasha and Kagome soon met the same fate. As the boulders collided with their bodies, they were thrown from each other's grasps. Before they disappeared from sight and mind, their screams ran through each other's ears. "KAGOME!"

"INUYASHA!"

When the dust settled, their unconscious bodies lay sprawled out on the floor among the boulders that had been their undoing. Naraku become his human form again, and the first body he approached was Kagomes. He pulled her up by the hair, and her blood soaked his fingers. It was flowing so heavily onto his arm, it could only mean one thing. "Dead."

He dropped her once again and stood up. "She's completely useless now. So be it."

He checked the others bodies and found the same result. One body however, he knew was still alive… Inuyasha's. He approached the hanyou. Although still unconscious, Naraku could see that the Tetsusaiga was healing his wounds. 'Puh, so you've gained healing powers, have you Tetsusaiga, and you fight to keep your master alive?'

With a wave of his hand, he encased Inuyasha's body in a transparent pink sphere which lifted him off the ground. It followed Naraku as he left the ballroom. "Pity you will not be able to save his friends."

The destroyed ballroom regained its silence as Naraku left. After a few moments, soft footsteps could be heard on the tile. It spoke softly, "Perhaps not, but someone else can."

To be continued…

CLIFFIES AND FINALS BE GONE!.!.!.! Next chapter is long :)

InuyashaGal: Yeah, me and my cliffies. I try so hard not to let them happen, but they just do for some reason. Yeah, totally add me to your AIM. That's awesome. (hugs)
Jamie Underworld: I'm glad you like it. And I update fast, so there's a nice bonus. (hugs)
Senceless: Wow, am I blonde… for a second I was like "what's FF?". Haha! Thanks a lot for your support. (hugs)
Andreea: I don't think I could live without this story ending either, so you have nothing to worry about. (hugs)
orangepencils: Just so you know, he discovers two new things about the Tetsusaiga, one of which was in this last chapter. So there's another one coming up. (hugs)
SlummyRedDragon: Glad you enjoyed it.
HorridlyTruthful25: Yeah, more answers get revealed over time. I just think it's unrealistic to have one scene that explains absolutely everything. Then again, Inuyasha ain't exactly realistic, but shh… they don't know that. (hugs)
a100rinchhead: Hey, wouldn't it be interesting if I let him win? Hahahaha……. No. (hugs)
LanierShazar: Well something has to happen to him. Otherwise nothing would happen to him. Teehee. (hugs)