Village of Destruction

The sun had completely set sometime ago and Kenshin was getting tired. They could see a bright light in the distance.

Kenshin eyes went wide in disbelief, "That light is coming from the village! KAZUKI!" He ran even faster now. He and the others arrive at the village. It was in ruins and what was left was on fire. Kenshin's eyes darted around the village trying to search for life. He heard Kagome scream.

"MEIA!" She screamed as she knelt down and shook the girl's limp body.

"Oh no…" Sango gasped. She walked over to a hut where Chika and her fiancé were. They were holding each other but both were dead and covered in blood.

"Who would be sick enough to do this?" Sanosuke growled. He pounded his fist into the ground. "This is disgusting!"

Inuyasha sniffed the air and his eyes went wide. He started walking towards the center of the village and the others followed. "I don't smell his blood…" He sputtered nervously. "Why can't I smell his blood?"

In the center of the village stood a figure staring at his masterpiece, just standing there silently and smiling. He was covered in blood, but none was his own. His hair tie had come undone and his long red hair blew violently in the wind. His eyes met with Inuyasha's and his grin grew wider.

"Kazuki…." Kenshin whispered.

"Oh," He said as he faced them all. He still had a smiled plaster on his face. He waved a bloody hand in the air and laughed. "I guess I didn't see you there!"

"What's wrong with you!" Kagome shouted. She clenched her fists in front of her. "Why did you do this?"

"How do you know I did it…?" He said smiling. He then looked at the blood all over his hands and clothes. "Well, I guess the evidence is quite apparent…" He started walking towards them. For every step he took the group took another cautious step back. "What's wrong? Doesn't anyone want to greet me?"

"Kazuki! What happened?" Kenshin demanded. "This is a heinous crime! Why would you do such a thing?"

Kagome started crying. "It's my fault! I should have taken out that stupid shard! I should have known it was messing with his head!"

Sango glared at Kazuki. "So he's just like Kohaku…" She bit her lip. "What do we do?" They continued to walk backwards as he slowly made his way towards them.

Kazuki stopped and he stared at them caringly. "I guess you'll just have to kill me…" His voice sounded sad. He lowered his head and held himself firmly. "It's the only way…" He looked up slightly to see if anyone had made a move. Everyone just stood there unable to speak and motionless. He smacked his forehead and started laughing again. "That's right! You guys wouldn't be able to live with yourselves!" He tilted his head curiously. "I wonder what Mother would say, what Father would say…Knowing you killed me…" He started suppressing another laugh. "Liked I'd let you…"

"Kazuki! You must take out the jewel shard! You don't know what you're saying or doing!" Miroku shouted.

"Try and take it!" He growled as he charged at them. His speed matched Kenshin's and he was aiming for Inuyasha. Inuyasha blocked with his sheath and threw the boy back. Kazuki landed on his feet and slid backwards. He smiled and charged again.

Miroku looked at Kagome and his voice was stern, "You have to purify that shard!"

"HOW!" She screamed. She watched as Inuyasha helplessly blocked with the sheath of his sword. "The shard is all the way in his back!"

Sanosuke came up from behind and grabbed Kazuki's arm trying to prevent him from moving. "Come on kid! Stay still!"

Inuyasha sighed in relief when Sanosuke took control. He remembered when Inuyasha had tried hurting Kazuki and Sanosuke had stopped him easily. "Thank…"

Kazuki broke free and punched Sanosuke in his lower jaw, Sanosuke then went flying into an old wagon.

"NO WAY!" Inuyasha growled.

Kagome hurriedly put an arrow on her bow and aimed directly at Kazuki. The arrow was going directly for his face. She gasped realizing this. The arrow struck.

"That's sickening…" Inuyasha growled.

"What?" Kazuki questioned. He tossed Akako's body aside with the arrow still intake to her face. "She was dead anyway…and besides…." He spat on her body making sure to hit her face. "I never liked the bitch anyways. Now where did that incarnation of mine go…?" He held his hand behind his back and grabbed onto Kenshin's sword in an instance. "That's not where the shard is Kenshin…" He said cockily. He glided the sword a little higher and to the right. "It's right there…" Kazuki glided his finger along the side of the sword cutting his finger on the blade. "You flipped the blade…"

Kenshin pulled his sword back and stepped back a few feet. "Yes, that I did."

"So were you trying to kill me or take out the shard?"

'There's no way the shard gave him that much power…' Inuyasha pondered. He looked frantically on the ground and found a small rock. While Kenshin was distracting Kazuki, Inuyasha chucked the rock as hard as he could. He caught it easily and studied it.

"A rock?" Kazuki blurted. "What the hell were you trying to do with a rock…" He studied it. "This thing is about the size of an ant!" He turned around the face Inuyasha. "At least throw a big one!"

"Something else is affecting him…"

"That's right Inuyasha, how very clever." A male voiced echoed in a distance.

"Naraku!" Inuyasha hissed.

"Wow, he's on a roll…" Kazuki joked flicking the rock aside. "Can I kill them now? I haven't killed anything in at least ten minutes…"

Sango and Shippo were on Kirara above. Sango was furious. She had already had this fate to her brother she couldn't stand the thought of him controlling someone else she cared about. "Why are you doing this Naraku? Can't you find a way to get to us on your own?"

He walked closer into view. "Actually…" He rubbed his chin. "I find this much more amusing…" He was now at Kazuki's side.

Kenshin narrowed his eyes at Naraku. "I don't believe we've been introduced."

"He's called Naraku…" Miroku seethed. "He's after the jewel shards and our number one enemy."

"Why are you using Kazuki?" Kagome shouted. "He hasn't done anything to you!"

"Actually…" Naraku pondered aloud while he studied Kazuki. "It was you Kagome I had originally planned to kill off the others…" He frowned in disapproval. "I have no idea how the wench screwed up but she assured me that you would receive the jewel shard."

"Kagura?" Inuyasha questioned as he steadily held his sword ready to strike.

Naraku let out a soft chuckle, "You and I both now she wouldn't be able to control Kazuki unless he was dead and I assure you that if you stab him he will bleed." He smiled. "No matter, this is more amusing anyways, he's much faster and stronger then Kagome. Besides, this way everyone part of your little group can watch each other die off one by one." He looked at Kazuki and nodded, "Pick whichever you like, but save Inuyasha for last no matter what. I'm leaving now, if anyone follows, kill them." He left and no one dared to move, all of them were currently targets.

Kazuki stared at them boringly. Already his opponents bored him. "Well?" He picked up a bloody blade off the ground. He studied it and laugh. "I love irony…" He held it in Kenshin's direction. "This blade look familiar?"

Kenshin studied it from a distance but it was hard to recognize it with all the blood. Then it hit him. "That's the sword you borrowed from Hiroshi!"

He smiled and nodded, "And I gave it back…well I put it in his back, same difference." He began walking towards them his eyes looked crazed and were bright with the fire reflecting off them. "Ever hear Chika scream? The girl had some lungs on her…to bad I punctured those…she didn't die so gracefully I suppose."

"Kazuki! Enough!" Kenshin growled as he took a few steps toward the boy.

Kazuki began laughing again. "What? The battousi can't stand to hear it?" He stopped laughing and glared. "How is this any different then you?" He spat on the ground. "Hypocrite. Akako would have been nice for you." He grabbed his ribs and started laughing even harder. "She actually attacked me!" He steadied himself on a burning building. "I had already killed some other people and she attacked me! WITH A BROOM!" He held his cheek. "The bitch sure can hit hard. I got startled and just stabbed her in the heart…I saved Toyo for last…I decided I wanted her to suffocate. So I just simply held my hand to her mouth, I just let her suffocate…" His voice was growing quiet. "I got to tell her how it was all her fault…"

Kenshin couldn't take anymore and he charged at the boy. Kazuki stood there just glaring at him his eyes piercing his. He raised his sword up to Kazuki's face and slashed the boy across the face. Kenshin jumped back and stared in amazement. "Why didn't you dodge that?"

The blood slowly dripped from Kazuki's face. Kazuki smiled and joked, "Trying to make me more like you?" He nodded towards Kenshin's own scar. "Only missing one thing…" He rose his own sword and slashed a parallel line to the other scar. "There…" He wiped away the blood on his face with the palm of his hand leaving a red smear.

Kenshin stopped. The scene scared him. Kazuki stood before him but he could only see was a modernized battousi, maybe even worse. Kazuki pulled out a hair tie from his pocket and took the opportunity to put his hair back up. There were only slight alterations between them. Kazuki was a tad bit taller and had slightly shorter hair. Kenshin stance at the moment was more serious while Kazuki stood there carefree just waiting for him to strike again.

Kazuki turned on his heel and started walking away. "You all bore me. Take the opportunity to stab me in the back if you must." He waited a moment and when no one replied he continued to walk away. "That doesn't necessarily mean with a sword…" He then jumped into a tree and they could hear him sprint away."

Kagome fell to her knees and held onto the ground. She began shaking uncontrollably and tears started welling up in her eyes. "What's wrong with him…"

Inuyasha crossed his arms and walked around the corpses of the very village people who took them in. "The jewel shard was tainted…Kagome! I thought you took that blasted thing out! How the hell were the rest of us supposed to tell that it was still in?"

Miroku knelt down by Kagome and patted her back sympathetically. "Inuyasha, you shouldn't be so hard. There was no way for her to make him take it out…" He stood up and glanced at some of the bodies. "The best we can do for them now is give them a proper burial."

While burying the bodies Kagome made sure to mark the people's graves she knew. Lucky for the group the bodies were still pretty intact. Miroku gave his blessings and by the time all the bodies were buried the sun was already starting to rise.

Kenshin looked towards the direction in which Kazuki had left earlier. "We should follow him."

"Do you think we can save him?" Miroku questioned. "He is under Naraku's control."

Sango glared at him and started heading toward the forest where Kazuki went. "Come on, let's go."

Shippo stood beside Miroku and tugged on his pant leg. "Uh, Miroku, isn't Sango's brother Kohaku in the same situation?"

The group was soon following Sango giving her some space. She seemed to be a little upset. Miroku hit a sensitive spot. Sango clenched her fists. 'What if nether one of them can be helped? At least I have the right to take care of Kohaku…but what right do any of us have to end Kazuki's life? I'm Kohaku's sister…but Kazuki…'

"Are you all right?" Kenshin asked her.

She stared at him blankly. When did he walk next to her? She looked behind her and the rest of the group was still a distance away. "It's nothing…"

"Alright…"

"Well…it's just how negative Miroku was…"

"Oh?"

"My brother Kohaku is in the same plight as Kazuki and how he…"

"Oh, I understand."

"And if it did take a turn for the worst I feel I'm the only one who can take Kohaku's life…but what of Kazuki?"

"Don't worry about it." Kenshin said encouragingly. "I'm sure that both of them will return back to normal, that I do."

Kenshin stopped and suddenly pushed Sango to the ground. A sword dug into Kenshin's shoulder. He screamed in agony. The rest of the group heard the scream and quickly caught up to their other two members. Kazuki withdrew his sword and jumped out of the way of Inuyasha's sword. He was now in front of them laughing.

"Hey, get it? Stabbed in the back?" Kazuki laughed. The rest of the group didn't find it as funny. He waved his held out his arm slightly and waved his hand up and down. "Never mind."

Kenshin tried standing up but he immediately collapsed from the pain in his shoulder. "Kazuki…stop this now…"

"Hey! I had a good few hours for you guys to catch up!" He chuckled. "You didn't have to jump in the way." He swung them sword with his hand like a baton. "Well, I thought it was funny." He stopped spinning his sword and held it in his hand ready to attack. "Now Kenshin…let's finish this!"

Next Time on Inuyasha: Naraku has control of Kazuki now and revealed his heinous plot, but first Kazuki must train to make sure he is powerful enough to destroy them all; also, Kazuki will get a training partner. With Kazuki under Naraku's control what will happen? Next Time on Inuyasha: A Dark New Family, see you soon.