Disclaimer: I don't own the bloody hanyou and his pals, iight? And I'm sorry for the long, long wait... it won't happen again. I won't explain... I'll only say it won't be this long ever again.
ATTENTION: I have drawn Ryoko and Kyoko from this story! That and when Naraku kills Kagome! If you want to see their pictures, e-mail me at I hope to see your e- mail in my inbox!
Chapter 11
Recap: "Our souls-s-s...into-to her-r-r..." he stuttered out. He took another sutra piece out and wrote again. "Our health-th...in-into her..." he finished. With his last ounce of strength, he slapped the sutras onto Kagome's wound and collapsed.
-----------------------
The parts of Sango and Kouga's souls that drifted around her silently overhead began to glow brightly and swirl over her. A piece of Miroku's soul left her body and swirled around with the parts of Sango and Kouga's entities. The bright lights swirled faster and faster, lowering to the wound.
Without warning, a fourth orb appeared above Kagome's wound and swirled around with the other three. It was silvery in color and larger than the pieces of the trio's souls.
In a blinding flash of light, the orbs flew into Kagome's body. She spasmed and opened her eyes wide. Her upper body rose and she coughed violently. She slumped back down to the ground, unconscious. Sango and Koga's bodies fell to the ground in a cloud of dust.
-----------------------
As her unconscious form laid there, she began to dream, though it was more of a vision than a dream.
She was in the silver wolf tribal area. She walked along the brook and laid down in the tall grass, looking up at the azure sky. Her silvery ears flicked backward as she heard someone approach, however, she didn't move. She was at an unimaginable trance-like state where her mind was at ease, oblivious of the goings on outside of her body.
The footsteps came to a halt and she looked upward to see Naoko. Her face turned from placid to utter ecstasy in seeing her long-lost friend. She jumped up and bounded into his arms.
"Naoko, I've missed you!" she shouted, tears pouring down her gleeful face.
"I've missed you too, my dear," he muttered, his voice distant and echoed as though his vocals were inside a canyon. After a few more moments of holding each other, Kagome stood back.
"How are you here?" she inquired, looking at him in a puzzled manor.
"I have been dead, love," he explained with a calm look upon his face. She then noticed something she didn't before.
"You're all healed!" she exclaimed, looking into two eyes for the first time. His eye patch was gone along with all the bandages he normally had upon him.
"I'm healed because I am no longer alive to have wounds," he murmured. Kagome just realized what he had said and her eyes began to fill with saddened tears.
"I'm sorry I wasn't there for you!" she shouted and hugged him, crying profusely.
"You were being chased by Masahiro. It wasn't your fault-"
"But I could have saved you! I wasn't there!" she interrupted and sobbed into his chest.
"Kagome, listen to me," he muttered, holding her shoulders firmly so she'd look at him. "We're not really at the caves. We're inside your mind." He released her arm and waved his hand up and down as though he was wiping steam from a window. Her body lain inside the image along with Koga, Miroku, and Sango's.
"But how-" Kagome began before her three friends appeared behind Naoko in a ghostly form. She went over to hug them but fell right through the trio.
"That is only a portion of their souls, Kagome," Naoko stated.
"Does that mean you're whole soul is in here?" she questioned. The wolf demon nodded and looked over at the three.
"We are here to give you the strength to fight Naraku," he replied.
Kagome looked at him puzzled. "How-"
"By waking up!" he shouted and pushed her through the 'window' he had created. There was a sound of shattered glass as Kagome fell into blackness.
-----------------------
Kagome's lifeless body seemed to bounce as she regained consciousness. She lolled her head to the side to see Miroku's lifeless body draped on the steps and the other two toppled onto each other. She sat up and moaned, the pain in her stomach still aching horribly. Fortunately, she had her voice back.
She stood up weakly and looked down at her blood-soaked body. She spied the sutras and picked at the sides of them, the blood fusing them to her body. They stung like fire licking at her sides, so she decided against removing them.
She looked into the palace with hatred in her eyes. Why did all this happen? The sutras began to burn again and she looked down to see them glowing with an eerie purple hue. Sparks began to emit from the sides and swirl around the Kagome's body.
As soon as they reached her right arm they shot directly at her hand, forming a gapping hole in the palm: Miroku's kazaana. The blessed cloth and prayer beads that were around his hand appeared one thread at a time around her hand. She looked at it in shock then glanced over to Miroku's hand. Everything was gone from his hand, including the wind tunnel.
More sparks fumed from her stomach, this time they were red and pink. The sparks concentrated on her knees, elbows, and shoulders. They materialized what appeared to be Sango's armor, only golden. The embers continued along her body and her apparel changed. She now wore black hakama and a white haori that was handsomely decorated with golden kanji: the demon slayers' blessing.
Her silver hair flew upward and was brushed from any mats and knots and braided beautifully in crescents and wrapped in gorgeous yellow ribbons. Her petite inu ears perked up from the top of her head as the hair was finished styling itself. Her feet were now in black kendo slippers with silky white socks that lead up to her knees.
Though the sutras were covered underneath the haori, they began to glow a third time with a blue haze. As the glittering sparks wrapped around her, she could feel her muscles growing and her strength increase. The sparks began to fade, but not before feeling a warm and tight embracing feeling. Her heart sank when she realized it was Koga's embrace and that she will no longer feel it again.
And at last, the sutra erupted with a burst of silver embers that bounced and scattered around the porch and her body. Before her laid Naoko's four long spears and two chained sickles. Her eyes filled with tears for a few moments before an agonizing yelp erupted from her mouth as her tail emerged from her lower back and out a hole in her hakama. She smiled through gritted teeth and shook the silver appendage free from blood.
"Domo arigato, my friends," she whispered, bending down to pick up her new weapons. She attached the sickles to her hips and the spears to her back. She turned to face the ominous palace doors. With a final breath in and anger filling her eyes, she slid the doorway open and quietly slinked inside.
-----------------------
Inu Yasha, Ryoko, and Shippo realized hours ago that they had followed the wrong trail. They split up after this; Ryoko was with Shippo and Inu Yasha was alone. He head for the wolf tribe while the others started forth on a different path.
"Do you think she's getting close?" little Shippo asked wearily from his perch on Ryoko's shoulder.
"I'm not sure but I can smell the scent of Kagome's blood not far from here," she replied, ever vigilant. Her eyes gazed about as she sniffed the air delicately. Without warning the kitsune, she bolted in the direction she smelled her friend. Shippo lost his balance and fell off her shoulder and onto the ground.
Inu Yasha arrived at the dens of the Brown Wolves. The wind picked up and the metallic scent of blood flooded his sensitive nose. It was so abrupt and potent it nearly made him dizzy. He walked out of the woods and into the clearing where the guards were normally at post.
To his horror, countless bodies were mauled and shredded at his feet. He walked over to the nearest carcass and noticed it was the spiky-haired Hakkaku. He bent down and felt his cheek; it was ice cold. Inu Yasha closed his eyes and shook his head. This didn't make sense at all. Why would Koga go insane and slaughter all of his tribe? Women and children included? Then take Kagome off to god knows where. The inu hanyou stood up and trudged back into the shadows of the forest.
Ryoko didn't notice that Shippo was absent from her presence until she reached the edge of a vast globe-like barrier. Deep within the obstruction was a barely visible stonewall hidden within trees and bushes: Naraku's palace. She smelt Kagome's blood especially strong here and knew that it wasn't Koga who took her friend, but one of Naraku's henchmen disguised as their companion.
-----------------------
Again, I'm sorry for the wait. I love you guys!
Next Chapter: 101 Ways to Get into a Magical Barrier