CHAPTER FIVE
Sango finished tightening a dressing on her body, and then placed her mask back over her face. This would at least provide some protection. She was still sore, but she wouldn't wait. Kirara would be avenged tonight, assuming Inuyasha hadn't already finished off that miko. Miroku was nearby, also patting his still-puffy eye. It was black now and swollen, but he could see out of it well enough. Nearby, Kagome sat in expectation, still looking sad and nervous. Shippo was at her side, while Kaede kept a watch at the window awaiting some news.
"Are you sure you guys should go without Inuyasha?" Kagome asked.
"Kirara's spirit won't wait." Sango coldly answered.
Shippo hesitated a moment, then offered a suggestion. "Hey, maybe Inuyasha already took care of him? I mean…even if he did beat you both within an inch of your lives…while you were fighting him together…" His hope quickly turned to worry as he said that.
"I won't hold back this time." Miroku added. "He may be a human, but I won't hesitate to suck him into my Kazanna this time. I'd like to see him overpower that."
"I don't get it." Kagome finally asked. "What is this Saphsaiga anyway? Why were they guarding it if only humans could use it, and why'd this miko take it?"
"Well, I don't know about the human, but I know a bit about Saphsaiga."
The group turned their heads to that. Bouncing along, barely visible from a distance, was Myoga. It seemed as if he had finally come back. And while he still stank a bit…he looked rather clean now.
"Hey, where'd you go to, Myoga?" Shippo asked as he saw him.
The flea landed and promptly frowned as he formed a sullen face. "It takes a while for me to wash of some stench, thank you very much."
Sango pinched her nose at him and waved her hand in front of her face. "Smells like you didn't do that good of a job…"
"Anyway, I can tell you about Saphsaiga." Myoga promptly offered.
The others, remembering this initial greeting, quickly forgot about the stink and turned in on Myoga. "Really?" Kagome asked.
"What do you know?" Miroku chimed in.
"Why does it make the user so powerful? Are there any weaknesses?" Sango also asked.
The flea looked upset at this. "One at a time! Really!" He complained. He coughed for a moment blustered a little, but then grew calm enough to speak. "As I was saying, I do know about Saphsaiga. Lord Inuyasha's honorable father researched it when he was trying to learn how to give Tetsusaiga the special property to protect his wife. I happened to pick up a bit from it.
"Apparently, years before there was any Japan that we know of, or any of the kind of demons you see running around today, there was a somewhat unremarkable one named Saphomitso. He wasn't much better than any of the kind of monsters Inuyasha deals with on a daily basis, but he did have one outstanding skill. He was the greatest sword craftsman in the country, perhaps even the world. He forged the most powerful blades of his time using techniques none rediscovered until years later.
"He set out to make the ultimate weapon toward the end of his life, and it was to be a weapon for him personally. It was supposed to make him ruler over all others of his kind. He named it the Saphsaiga even before he completed it. The blade had numerous unknown properties about it, supposedly, but it contained a very special property in it in order to make it lethal. The blade would swallow the spirit of any one whom it stabbed. Once that happens, the memories of the victim instantly become the wielder's."
"Making it instantly lethal." Sango darkly answered. "No wonder he was able to kill Kirara. But how does it make him so strong, or fast?"
"That's just it, the blade doesn't make the user stronger, at least as far as I know." Myoga answered. "But as for the speed…I think your eyes may have deceived you. You see, the blade doesn't just take the life force of the victims. Using the spirit, the blade can reproduce both itself and the wielder. It's like an artist carving another sculpture, and the spirits of the victims are the stones to work with. But rather than allow reproductions to be summoned at will, the opponent of the blade wielder must first be attacked. Then once anything happens…blood spilled…a hand removed…decapitation…" Here, Myoga focused on Sango and Miroku. "Not only does the old injury regenerate, but the piece that came off grows into an entirely new wielder with a new Saphsaiga. So you see, the miko didn't put himself underneath Kirara in a blink of an eye. His headless body was still underneath Kirara, and he simply grew another head."
The group stared in stunned silence. This was a shocking revelation indeed. It made perfect sense now as to why such a blade would be terrible. The only question that lingered now was why Naraku didn't take it. That would have only given him more power, considering all the people he killed on a monthly basis.
"This miko had a vendetta against Youkai…" Miroku mused. "It makes sense now. He's been going around, killing them, absorbing their spirits, and then using them to make more of himself. That's probably why he wanted Inuyasha. He's the most famous Hanyou in this part of the world, plus he's got a notorious reputation."
"That still doesn't settle why he got so powerful…" Sango darkly put in. "Even a hundred humans wouldn't be a match for me and Kirara. That one nearly killed us all."
"What about this Saphomitso or whatever?" Shippo asked. "Why didn't he use his blade?"
"Probably the same reason Naraku didn't take it." Myoga answered. "Saphomitso apparently made his weapon too good. He was allegedly absorbed by the sword himself. No one in that miko tribe was allowed to touch it. They probably all feared that they would be absorbed as well."
"Well, one of them debunked that myth." Sango darkly answered, and quickly rose to his feet. "So to kill this boy, all we have to do is exhaust his supply of lives, then kill them all?"
"All we have to do…?" Shippo whined.
"No, it can't work like that." Myoga sadly answered. "He wouldn't be able to make more of himself, that's true, and any damage he took to a copy would be lasting…but the spirits can't be freed like that. They're eternally bound to Saphsaiga by then. And the sword itself can't be destroyed because it too replicates. At that point, if you killed another copy, then that would only give the wielder of the blade another available spirit in its 'pool'. Then it could let another regenerate while spitting out another copy."
"Then how do you kill the blade's user?" Sango angrily asked.
Myoga bowed his head and looked meek. "No man can say…"
"I know a way." Miroku offered. "My Kazanna. I'll just suck in whatever copy he throws at us until I have them all."
"That could work…" Myoga spoke with a shrug.
Sango frowned. "Thanks for the encouragement." She sarcastically answered. Then, she turned to Miroku. "Alright, we're leaving."
"Be careful, you two." Shippo quickly informed them, as Miroku rose to his feet, using his staff for support. With both up, they both began to head for the doorway.
"I wish you'd wait for Inuyasha." Kagome spoke to them.
"If he's facing Saphsaiga…he might already be dead…" Myoga quivered.
Kagome instantly smashed him flat. "Don't talk like that!" She snapped. "What kind of friend are you, anyway!"
Shippo rolled his eyes. "I don't think Kagome's mad at Inuyasha anymore…"
"Of course I'm still mad!" She shot back, sending Shippo flying over. "But I don't want him dead!"
"Only that miko is going to die." Sango darkly answered. "If we meet up with Inuyasha, we'll go with him. Come on, Miroku."
The two warriors promptly exited, Miroku turning and giving one last smile of encouragement to Kagome. After that, both of them soon were running off toward the forest once again. The rest of the group was left behind afterward, as they waited and listened for them to leave. Soon their sounds faded, and the rest of the group was quiet. Shippo picked himself up and dusted himself off, while Myoga was a bit more slow in peeling himself off the ground.
"Perhaps you and Lord Inuyasha have more in common than you think…" He moaned.
Kaede finally spoke up herself. "I do not like this. This is hitting far too close to home. And this seems very unusual as well. Why would this one miko turn out in this way? Our honor is unquestionable. There would have been no light circumstance that would have made him take the Saphsaiga, or turn to this madness. I never thought that one of my fears would be that of a fellow human."
Kagome didn't answer. She picked herself off the floor as well, and looked to her neck. She still had the Shikkon shards in a small bottle, hanging down from it. She felt a chill and grew nervous. In truth, she was worried about Inuyasha. How could he stop a person who could keep making more of himself? How many demons had he already absorbed to make more of himself? Just this morning, she was fretting over adding another shard to the little bottle around her neck. Now they seemed to have much more to worry about at this point. None of this boded well at all.
Abruptly, a knock was heard on the door. Kagome turned to it at once, for a moment thinking of Inuyasha. But then, she realized it couldn't be him. Inuyasha didn't knock before barging in on a situation. He didn't even give warning when he showed up at her house in the 21st century. At any rate, Kaede moved over to the door quickly, to see what the mess was about. The others looked to the door and waited, and watched as she opened it up.
They all immediately froze.
A boy miko wielding a rather elegant sword was standing there, smiling darkly as he looked in.
"Is Kagome within?" He asked.
Kaede stiffened at that. Everyone in the room froze. Shippo quivered with fear, and Myoga dove for the nearest exit for one of his size. At last, the old woman began to shut the door. "Leave us be!" She ordered.
However, another young hand easily reached out and stopped the door from closing. Easily overpowering the woman, it calmly pushed the door open…revealing an additional boy outside. Soon, more stepped up from the sides, until about eight of them were framed in the doorway, all bearing that smile and the swords at their hips. Totally ignoring Kaede, the one in the lead pushed his way in, lightly shoving her aside as he did so. His eyes focused entirely on Kagome now, looking her over.
"Ah." He noted. "You must be her. You look exactly as you did in Inuyasha's mind."
Kagome's eyes expanded at that, remembering what Myoga had said. "No…you couldn't have…"
The boy looked down at Shippo, seeing him quivering and starting to cower behind Kagome's leg. His look turned into a frown as the other youths began to fill into the house. Kaede staggered back, staring at them. Her bow was nowhere nearby, not like it would matter. It was over behind Kagome, who was backing up as the boy stared at her. The miko scowled at Shippo, and the smiles turned to anger soon enough. "Why am I not surprised that you would have made friends with more than one stinking rat?" He snarled. "You're a disgrace to the miko."
Kagome's eyes quivered, tears coming, and growing angry. "You…you k-k-killed…"
"Oh, your precious Lord Inuyasha still breathes." The boy answered, snorting at this and seeming to hate the fact that Kagome liked another demon. "Although I sent him running away with his tail between his legs. Anyway, we haven't been properly introduced." He immediately bowed. "My name is Sanhou."
Kaede kept backing up, continuing to look shocked…but secretly feeling behind her for a weapon. The eight had filled the room now, some of them folding their hands behind their back, others looking around simply.
"What do you want?" Kagome asked.
"Shikkon shards." Sanhou readily answered. "You weren't the only one who was gathering them. And don't think I killed Inuyasha just to learn all this. I can take one look at you and realize you're one of our race. And I've offed enough Youkai to deduce that you were all hunting their Shikkon shards. You must have by now quite a collection. And I'm looking to add those to my own. Hand them over, and no harm will come to you." Sanhou looked down at that, and glared at the quivering Shippo. "I'll even spare that vermin."
Kagome gaped and stared a moment longer. However, in the end, she managed to bolster her own courage. Bravely, she turned her back on Sanhou only to grab for Kaede's bow and arrows. She quickly seized one along with the bow, turned around, knocked it, and aimed it right at Sanhou's head. "Don't come any closer!" She warned.
Sanhou snickered and this, and the others joined in. "You really think even a miko arrow can stop me?"
Kagome didn't answer. She pulled back harder, keeping the arrow aimed right at his head. The tip began to shimmer and turn a hue of blue. She held for a moment longer, as the other mikos calmly waited. At last, Sanhou took a step forward, and on instinct Kagome released.
The arrow instantly transformed into a massive beam of blue energy, headed straight for Sanhou. The other Sanhous quickly stepped aside, but the arrow kept sailing right for the first one. His look abruptly shifted and turned puzzled, but that was the last look he was able to make. Abruptly, the beam struck him, and instantly enveloped his head and his upper body in blinding blue light. The other Sanhous turned and smiled at this for a moment…but then their smiles faded and turned to surprise. The Sanhou's body went limp and flailed out as he was ripped off his feet, and sent flying backward. The beam continued to shoot forward, ripping right through him and going out to door to obliterate itself elsewhere. Sure enough, the beam sailed into the forest and soon exploded. But as for the Sanhou it went through, all there was left was the lower half of his body, smoldering and smoking up above. That half quickly fell to the ground.
Kagome, shocked at what she had done, gaped at the body with the others. It didn't regenerate or come back. Instead, it continued to smoke for a moment…but then suddenly crumbled. It dissolved as if it was made of dust, and crumbled into a pile on the ground. But then, even the dirt crumbled, and became only a cloud of smoke and haze in the air. Only then did a dark blue flame emerge. It seemed to lift up from the ground and form a wisp. It sailed into the sky and danced a moment, before sailing out of the open doorway as well and taking off. To Kagome, it almost looked like a spirit…
But the girl's thoughts were cut short as either side of Kaede's house was bashed in. She turned to either side, and saw that sixteen more Sanhous were now literally breaking into the house and swarming in on either side. Their faces were not happy. One immediately shot in to Kagome, and before she could react snatched the bow out of her hand. With one easy gesture he snapped the bow in two as the walls were knocked down to accommodate more of himself.
"Don't do that again." He calmly ordered.
Rin continued to wipe tears from her eyes for a while. She had started up again, right in the middle of digging a grave for Lord Sesshomaru. She was too small to do a good job, and had no tools, but she did it anyway. Since last night, she had only managed to dig a small foot-deep spot big enough to fit his human body. But she managed to sniffle and buck up, and struggled to dig some more as she constantly moistened the ground with her tears. She tried not to look up to the side, where his unmoved body still lay from last night. She didn't know how she would place him in there, but she would have to try…and then she'd have to try and live on her own from now on…
But at that moment, Rin heard a sparkling. It sounded like wind chimes. The girl immediately perked her head up to the noise, and soon she gasped a little. A specter had come. A little blue ribbon of light now danced through the sky, and spun and swarmed over the ground where she was. She gazed at it a moment, forgetting her sadness and instead being amazed at what she saw. But then, the light spun back around and descended. Moments later, it came to a rest on the fallen Sesshomaru, and then seeped into him like water into the ground, spreading out and flooding into his body. After that, the chime sounds vanished, and Rin was alone and quiet.
The girl didn't move or say anything for a moment, staring at all that had happened. But then…she heard another sound. A sound from Sesshomaru. It sounded like a grunt of some sort. She immediately looked to him. A hope leapt in her heart. It didn't seem possible…but was it? She kept watching, and sure enough Sesshomaru grunted again, and he began to shift. Immediately, Rin's eyes filled with tears again, but this time of a different sort.
"S…Sesshomaru?"
The demon shifted again, and this time put his hands underneath him. With a push, he shoved himself over into a seated position, and then sat up all together. He winced once, and then opened his yellow eyes. He looked over his body silently. That was all Rin needed to see.
"Sesshomaru!" She burst out, her voice half choked with tears. She quickly dashed forward and flung her arms around the middle of the monster, pressing her head against him. "You're alive! Sob I thought you were dead! I was going to bury you… I thought I was all alone again… Sniff"
Sesshomaru, very much alive now, looked down at Rin a moment. He didn't do anything to halt her immediately. His mind was elsewhere. He had felt…terrible agony…just moments ago. It was vague and hard to focus on, but it was terrible. He was in a cold place of misery and darkness…and he was not alone. Other souls seemed to flow around in it, moaning and lamenting, unable to find anyone but themselves as he could. He couldn't remember who he was there. He couldn't remember Rin, or Jaken, or father, or even his bastard brother Inuyasha. He could think of nothing…feel nothing…he was a mad, thoughtless wraith banished into a dark void. He had thought he had gone to Hell. But evidently, that had either not been the case or he had another chance at life. Now he was here…
Immediately, he knew that something had happened. It was daylight now. And Rin was covered with dirt. He looked a bit ahead, and sure enough saw that she had been digging a grave for him, and given the human's weak body it must have been a work that had been in progress for some time. As he kept thinking, he remembered why he had nearly died. It was that human. He didn't know what he did to him, but not only had that human somehow managed to stab him, impossible enough in itself, but somehow that single blow had killed him.
No…not killed him…ripped him from his body…robbed him of not only his senses but his memories… That sword…no human had made that sword. It had to be a demon weapon, like Tetsusaiga or Toukijin. And it gave that human incredible power. Realizing that…an idea came to Sesshomaru's head…
He turned down to Rin at last. "Where is Jaken?"
The girl looked up from him at that. She wiped her nose and eyes, sniffled, and then managed to speak more calmly. "He left with the man who killed…who I thought killed you."
Sesshomaru bristled secretly at that. Sniveling coward as Jaken was, was he also a traitor? Or was there something else here? "Where did they go?"
"He said he'd kill him if he didn't take him to Inuyasha." Rin went on. "He didn't know where they were. He only knew where a lady named Kaede lived. He said his friends were there. So he wanted him to take him there."
Sesshomaru paused at that. Perhaps the goblin was only being self preserving, if cowardly. Not to mention foolish. Sesshomaru knew well enough that human probably would have sent him to join him the moment he did what he wanted. Was he fantasizing this…or did he almost imagine hearing the wraithful cry of a certain familiar goblin?
At last, Sesshomaru rose. "We're leaving, Rin."
The girl sniffled again and then rose as well. "Where to?"
"First to see if Jaken is around anywhere." He answered. "Then we find my would-be killer."
"I must say, I'm surprised." One of the Sanhous spoke, and taking the former ones place in front of Kagome. He backed her up more threatening like now. "I didn't even think a miko arrow could affect us. But you actually made us lose one of our demons on that one. I even forgot all he knew. Too bad. I was just going over his incident with you and Inuyasha over Tetsusaiga. Now I'll never know how it ended…unless you'd like to tell me."
Kagome, unarmed, only continued to look scared and back up.
"Now if you're quite finished," Sanhou restated, his look turning irritated. "Perhaps you'd like to give us the Shikkon shards."
Kagome bristled, but then shot back defiantly. "No!"
"Yeah! She'd never betray Inuyasha by giving them to you!" Shippo added.
Unfortunately, Sanhou looked down to Shippo at that. A change came over him. A look of evil flooded into his eyes, as if a strange humor had taken control. He smiled dangerously at the fox demon, sending him cowering back behind Kagome again. With that, the miko drew the Saphsaiga and held it down at his side. "I'm curious…how devoted are you to these little demons?" He asked Kagome, but kept staring at Shippo.
Kagome felt her heart fill with fear at that. "Leave him alone!" She insisted.
"Even a little one would still make a good copy. And I need a replacement now." Sanhou went on with a mischievous voice, staring at Shippo.
Shippo clutched Kagome's leg harder and hid his eyes behind it. "Kagome…don't let him get me!"
Sanhou's smile faded. He scowled at him at that. "Stupid demon…begging a human for help now, eh?"
"Stop it!" Kagome shot back. "He's just a kid!"
"And he'll grow to be another sore on this land." Sanhou simply replied. "But want to save him? Give me the shards. Now."
Kagome hesitated at that. She began to realize the truth. The sword didn't make him stronger. The shards must have. That was why she sensed another shard yesterday. He had it. She said nothing and did nothing.
"You have to the count of three." Sanhou stated. "One…"
Kagome shook, not knowing what to do. Was he serious?
"Two…"
"Kagome, help me!" Shippo begged.
"Three."
Immediately, the miko stabbed forward, aiming right for Shippo's head. The fox demon gaped in terror, unable to do anything as the blow sailed inward. It seemed as if it would have certainly got him. Kagome was petrified and unable to move.
But then, right before it could, Kaede suddenly stepped in front of Kagome and Shippo, and the blade sank into her shin instead.
Sanhou's eyes grew. "No! Not you!"
But it was too late. Kaede immediately went stiff as a board. Her skin turned pale. As the other Sanhous looked on in as much shock as Kagome and Shippo, the old miko quivered and her breath ceased as the voice was choked out of her. She continued to hold for a moment and be still, until at last Sanhou pulled the blade out. It seemed as if he couldn't before. He seemed almost as breathless and stunned as Kagome on doing so, and he stared in fear at Kaede. But once it was out, Kaede immediately collapsed to the ground. She formed a lifeless pile, and moved no more. There was a stunned silence in the room. The group of Sanhous as well as Kagome and Shippo stared in utter shock at this.
At last, Kagome's eyes filled with tears as she gaped in horror at the ground. She cupped her hands to her mouth as she glared at Kaede's fallen body. "No!"
But before she could grieve further, Sanhou came forward…and slapped her across the face so hard that she went flying to the ground.
"You stupid, stupid girl!" He cursed. He face flashed with pain, and her brain was wracked with sadness and shock at what happened. But she managed to look up…and saw that Sanhou looked enraged at what had happened. He too seemed sad, the evil aura gone for now, and he was now furious at Kagome. "Look what you made me do! I never wanted to kill a human! All because you wanted to defend that worthless rat!"
At that, Sanhou turned and angrily kicked Shippo as hard as he could, sending the pint-sized Youkai flying across the room. Sanhou himself glared down at Kagome, now reeling from the blow as well as crying from Kaede, devastated at what Sanhou had done. She gasped and half-cried, staring at him, but then turned and looked back down to the fallen priestess. However, after a moment, Sanhou looked into the sky, and began to smile a little. That strange wave of darkness seemed to come over him, and his eyes flashed evil for a moment.
"Although…I can still make another copy of myself from her…even though it was only a human…"
Kagome didn't notice. She kept staring at Kaede. Slowly, she reached out a hand to touch her, only to find out she was cold and still. She couldn't sense any movement or life from her. Myoga had been right. He had killed her…or at least sucked out her spirit. But how would they get it back? What could they do now? She quivered, her eyes still tearing at the sight, and looked back up to Sanhou. The youth had stopped daydreaming at that point. His sword was out again, and now he aimed it right between Kagome's eyes. His anger had vanished, as had the evil, and he was cold again.
"Now are you ready to cooperate, or would you like me to stab that rat too?" Sanhou asked. "Give them to me. Right now."
Kagome quivered. He was serious. He wasn't going to stop at Kaede. He'd kill everyone to get the shards. He was obsessed with them. At last, Kagome realized she had no choice. If she didn't do what he said he'd kill Shippo too…or maybe he'd move on to the villagers next. In the end, Kagome bowed her head. She slowly reached around her neck, and pulled up the chain on it. Slowly, the vial full of shards came out from her shirt and was exposed. She ruefully handed this over to Sanhou.
The miko immediately snatched the vial from her hand. The others quickly looked over to see as well. Again, that wave of evil seemed to wash over them and warp them, and all of them formed a greedy stare as they looked at it. They almost seemed to salivate at the sight of it. "Yes…" One of them mused.
"It will more than double our collection…"
"Our power…it will grow incredibly… Not even Naraku will be able to stop us."
The Sanhou before her smiled, and calmly placed the vial around his own neck, tucking it into his own kimono. At that, Kagome got enough of her bearings to talk to him again.
"Now get out of here. You've hurt enough people. You've got what you want so leave us alone."
Sanhou looked back down to her at that. He hesitated a moment afterward, and as he did that evil wave seemed to vanish yet again. He grew calm again, but he kept a confident, calm air about him. He shook his head in response. "Sorry, Kagome. But you're going to have to stay in our time period for a little while longer."
Kagome's eyes grew at that. Of course…he now had Kaede's memories.
"I can't let you go now. I need you to help keep that dog friend of yours on a leash. Besides, maybe I can help you see these monsters for what they really are. So get up, we're leaving."
Kagome frowned in response. "I'm going nowhere with you."
Sanhou answered by shooting out a hand, seizing Kagome by the throat, and immediately cutting off her air supply. The girl's eyes went wide as she choked, and she grasped her neck desperately. However, Sanhou formed a sad look in his eye to all this, even as he easily held her up and in front of him.
"Don't make this any harder than it has to be, Kagome. I'm not going to have you frustrate me into killing more to make you come along. You're coming with me whether you like it or not. And you're going to stay right where I want you to until I'm finished with Inuyasha. So, again, unless you would like me to add little Shippo to my collection too, I suggest you cooperate."
With that, Sanhou released Kagome and let her fall to the ground. The girl landed hard and gave out a cry as she fell. She winced in pain for a moment from that, and raised a hand to her throat in order to clutch where bruises were. However…to her surprise, Sanhou immediately extended a hand to her in order to help her up. At first, she thought this was a mocking gesture. But as she looked up and stared at him…she noticed only sincerity in his actions. His eyes implored her to take his hand. For a moment, she thought of spitting in his face. But she knew that would accomplish nothing. Instead…she knew that if she wanted to get Kaede back, she would have to shoot one of him with another arrow. No, it might be better to follow him for now, and do so as an accomplice rather than an enemy. In the end, she raised a hand to take his, and he readily helped her back to her feet.
"That's better." Sanhou replied. He then looked down to Shippo, still in a disheveled heap on the floor. But he had recovered enough to stare at them now, and gazed at them in fear.
"Kagome!" He cried.
"Tell him to stay back." Sanhou ordered sharply, his look already turning angry at the mere sight of the fox demon.
Kagome swallowed, but managed to speak to the kid. "Don't follow us, Shippo. You'll only put yourself in danger. Look after Kaede and tell Inuyasha where I am when he comes back." She then turned to Sanhou at that, looking to see if he objected.
The miko merely smiled in response. That strange personality came over him again, twisting him to evil. "Oh, I want him to find you, Kagome. And you should too. The sooner I'm done with him, the sooner you can go back to your own time and forget this whole little trip ever happened. Now let's go."
He didn't yank her on, but gently led her forth from there. The other Sanhous turned and began to leave as well. The evil mood seemed to fade as quickly as it had come, and all of them became normal. In a few moments, all were beginning their mass exodus, and Kagome was racking her brain for an answer of what to do in this latest mess.