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Teardrop Three

"Ah, what a perfectly beautiful, normal day. It makes me sick." Kagome sighed from her spot at the top of the shrine steps as she stared at the cars that passed by on the road.

'These people just don't know how lucky they are to not know about the youkai that are around them every day. Like the two that are coming up right now. Wait a moment, two youkai approaching my shrine right now with auras I am not familiar with. Just when I had hoped that I could rest for sometime before I had to do battle again. Perhaps they are simply passing by and mean me and mine no harm. I suppose I should warn them that I am here so they do not make the mistake of assuming that this shrine is easy prey, but since they are a ways aways they could just be passing by..'

Grumbling Kagome swiftly moved from here position at the top of the steps and moved until she was standing underneath the Goshinboku. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath she quickly jumped straight up into the boughs of the trees sweet embrace. She was not worried about anyone seeing her amazing jumping skills since there were seldom any visitors at her shrine. The fact saddened her that the once busy tourist attract that the shrine had been, was now reduced to only being frequented by those that had special needs. She knew that most of the people who frequented the shrine were wary of her now. Most had either heard of her supposed illnesses in school or had come to find her quiet and often emotionless form unsettling. It did not, however, prevent them from coming to her for medicine and charms, sometimes even exorcisms. The only exception to that rule was on today, the only day of the year when the shrine was full of people, the first were expected to arrive within the hour. Their fear did not bother Kagome as it once would have for she believed if everyone were frightened then no one would try and get close to her. If nobody got close there would be nobody there when the youkai came after the tama again, and come they would.

Kagome was under no illusions where her own personal safety was concerned. She knew that youkai would come for her constantly until she found a way to destroy the tama and they would probably come after that because of her power. At least that is what she had once believed. She was now aware of the fact that the tama would never be destroyed. So the youkai would come no matter what she did. She had long ago made peace with the fact that she would die one day, but because of the tama's hold on her, not any time within the next millennium.

This was one of the reasons that she had started training Shippou as early as she had. She had known that at the time Shippou would not be able to count on InuYasha for protection if she died. Miroku and Sango would have tried to protect the kit but they had only been ningen. Many youkai had come for Shippou knowing that he was the kit of the guardian of the Shikon no Tama. So with these thoughts in mind Kagome had personally trained her kit so that she would not have to worry for his safety.

She had trained Shippou to the best of her ability. Since the kit now possessed some of her own blood in his viens he had so much more potential than he once had. He had mastered the art of kitsune magic and the manipulation of plants better than any youkai they had come across over twice his age. Even though he was still young, Shippou was able to take care of most youkai that he come across, and as time went on and he continued to grow, so would his powers. But no matter how powerful he was he was still a child and he needed his okaasan. Kagome vowed she would always be there for him.

Deciding that a small show of power was all that would be needed to scare away or at least warn the two approaching youkai of her whereabouts she marginally dropped the spell that concealed her powers, allowing her inner purity to spill forth and blanket the shrine grounds. None with evil intentions would be able to stand the sheer amount of holy powers that radiated from the very ground. She would see just how brave these two were in the face of one as powerful as she. As her power expanded further she picked up on a third and fourth aura, one of which made her freeze in place.

She took her examination one step further and sending out trendles of her power she cautiously poked at the third aura she had discovered. When she made contact she growled out loud in pure anger. Unless she was mistaken there was someone approaching her shrine that was forbidden to even approach unless in dire circumstances, but she was hardly ever mistaken.

With Yusuke, Kurama, Botan, and Hiei.

"Hey you guys do ya'll feel that?"

"What is it that you feel Yusuke?" Botan asked the Toushin.

"Well you know that ever since I inherited Kuwabara's spirit awareness I can sense auras right?"

"Of course." Botan

"Well I sense this massive aura up ahead."

"Is it evil Yusuke?" Questioned a calm and collected Kurama

"Surprisingly no. It's more like its warning us away from the area, not really threatening us or anything." Yusuke replied.

"Could it be the one that Koenma-sama told us about? Hiei can you sense anything? My senses seem to be too dull in this form." Kurama asked turning to the smaller fire apparition.

"Hn. Yes I can sense this person. It's female and it's probably the person the toddler told us about." Hiei replied.

"How strong is this aura, Yusuke?" Botan questioned him timidly.

Yusuke widened his spirit awareness powers slightly and scanned the area to try and get a handle on just how strong this aura really was. At the exact moment that he extended his own powers, the aura seemed to explode with power and what he sensed amazed even him.

Turning to the rest of the group Yusuke whispered in awe, "It's bigger than anything I've ever sensed before. It's massive and for some reason it seems like most of its power is being withheld. I'm pretty sure that this is just a taste of what's to come."

"Well let's go and see where it's coming from shall we?" Kurama offered.

"Great idea Kurama." Botan commented smiling. Then as suddenly as she spoke her face turned an ashen gray and her knees began to shake. Her hands flew upwards to her mouth to try and hold in the gasp that escaped her.

"K-Kagome-sama!" The words escaped her in a hushed and frightened tone as the reaper made the connect that had previously escaped her mind.

The others swung around to face her as Yusuke shot forward to catch her before she hit the ground.

"Botan!!"

"S-She knows we are here..."

"What!?!" Yusuke barked. "How is that possible! We have to be too far away for her to sense us!! Even with Kuwabara's powers I only caught the ass end of her aura and he was one of the strongest psychics we knew!!"

"You do not understand Yusuke! Kagome-sama is not a normal ningen! She is beyond anything you, any of you, have ever seen. She has the power within her to bring even the Reikai to its knees!"

"Impossible!" A shocked and now wary Kurama responded.

"I'm afraid not! We have to be extra careful when we approach her. Clear your minds of any thoughts of malice and anger because she will pick up on them. You do not want to test the strength of her holy energy."

"I don't care if she has enough power to take down Enma himself! Koenma said that we need to find her and we are going to go find this Kagome and see if she will come with us!" With that Yusuke turned away intent on finding the person who would try and take the place of Kuwabara, the one who had died to save them all.

The closer they came to the shrine that was supposed to house this mysterious miko the stronger the aura that radiated from the place became. The holy ki was so strong that the hairs on the back of Yusuke's neck had begun to rise in warning that this was a sacred place and disrespect would not be tolerated.

Hiei could not with hold his snort of disdain at the very thought that a mere onna would have the amount of power that Botan spoke of. While he was not sexist like most youkai, Hiei still had a hard time believing Botan. Though he was aware that there were females that possessed even more power than he did, namely that bitch named Mukoro, he refused to believe that a mere ningen was one of them.

Overall though he was bored. After being under the control of the Reikai for so long he had experence complete freedom again for a short period of time when the team had been disbanded. Then that incident had occured and Enma had recalled his bounty on Yusuke's head and had instead placed them on his own and Kurama's. Thus they had been forced to once again work for Reikai in order to have the bounties removed and for Yusuke to remain a free youkai.

However since they had been reinstated there had been little action to be had for Hiei and frankly he was eager to kill again. But sadly enough he was walking down this road on the way to some ningen bitch's house instead of off killing lesser youkai in Makai. It was all Koenma's fault...

Flashback

"There has been a major mix up in the reincarnation halls of the Reikai. Let us just say that a soul that was never supposed to be released has escaped. This soul was so powerful that we had no were in the Reikai to place it that would hold it and as such we had to create a special chamber for its contaiment."

"Does this soul have a name Koenma-sama?" Kurama asked quietly.

"Yes Kurama it does. You may have heard of Rubito?"

Kurama was visably shocked by the mere mention of the name and suprise was even evident on the face of Hiei.

"Koenma-sama you can not mean the Rubito Toukagawa!?! The one from the legends that circulated ever since even Youko was a small kit."

"I am afraid that you are correct Kurama. That is exactly who I mean."

"The Reikai is even more foolish than I had first thought."

"Hey now hold on a minute! While Hiei is probably right it would be nice if you guys would educate the member of the team that isn't a couple of hundred years old!"

"Right sorry Yusuke. I think that I will allow Kurama to tell the tale since he seems to be so well acquainted with it."

Kurama inclined his head at the young kami before turning to Yusuke and begining his tale.

"I am not sure of the time period exactly, I just know that this story was already a legend that many did not believe when even the Youko was but a small kit. It was said that during one of the first dynasties to ever rule over the country of Japan there was a son born to the emporer. The childs name was to be Rubito Toukagawa. According to legend the emporer was unusually fond of the child, it was supposed to be the fact that he looked so much like his departed okaasan, the emporers favorite concubine. But no matter how great the emporers love was for his son it could not stop the fact that the other children in the castle were terrified of the young Rubito. It was said that outside of the presence of his father the child was freakishly strange in his mannerisms. He would often speak to voices that the others could not hear, and would appear to do battle with creatures that others were unable to see."

"He was a psychic like Sensui!" Yusuke whispered.

"He was, but at the time ningen were not so aware of the existance of youkai, and the powerful roles of houshi and miko had not yet been developed to a great enough extent where his powers would be recognized. Instead the child was ostricized by the other tenents of the castle. As such he grew to be a lonely child with a shrouded heart that held love only for his father since he had been the only one to be kind to him. But that would all change when war came to the emporers gates."

Kurama walked softly to the window sill where Hiei sat and leaned his back against the wall beside the fire apparition.

"One day while the young Rubito was away on a hunting expedition the castle was attacked. What followed was a massacre of giant proportions. Everyone in the castle was killed and the buildings were set to the torch. The screams of the people were heard from miles away. Able to feel that something was amiss the young prince turned around and headed full speed to his home. When he arrived it was to find his castle in flames. They say that he was mad for he ran without hesitation into the inferno screaming his fathers name. When he reached his fathers chambers it was to find a single masked man standing over his corpse. What happened next was clouded in inuendo and superstion, but somehow Rubito found out that the single man had destroyed his entire castle and slain the emporer. His name was Ryu Hayabusa, and he was a member of a clan of assassins hired to destroy Rubito's clan. They apparently battled, with Ryu coming out on the upper hand, for when the young Rubito finally emerged from the ruins of the castle he swore revenge upon the entire clan."

"The emporers son chose a dark path after that. He began to study any kind of magic that would help him to over come an entire village of assassins. He attacked many times but was each time defeated. Finally after once battle when he lay close to death, Rubito made a choice. He offered up his body and soul to the youkai in the surrounding area for the power to destroy the clan. The youkai eagerly accepted. A ningen body and soul that possessed that amount of power would be perfect for them. And as such Rubito became what he had spent most of his life killing. The newly made hanyou went on a killing spree, he destroyed everything in his path until he reached the village. The assassins were not foolish people, they had heard of the evil that was roaming the country side and they knew that it would be only a matter of time before it reached their gates. They tried to send all of the women and children away from the village but it was too late. Rubito had already sent youkai ahead of him and they killed off all that attempted to leave the village gates. The clan resisted and killed many youkai but even their might could not last forever. Finally when he reached the village he sent out an awesome assualt and eventually all that were in the village died, including the assassin named Ryu. His mission complete Rubito wished to expell the youkai from his body but found that he could not. Instead they further corrupted him and twisted his mind into something even more unholy. He continued to travel the countryside aimlessly killing all that he saw."

"Wait a minute I thought Koenma said that his soul escaped from Reikai!? That means that he died. Who killed him then?"

"Well while Rubito killed all that he could see move in the village he overlooked one very important person. There was a young onna who was heavy with child that had been sent from the village with the last group of people. She had been attacked like the others and left for dead. But a mothers love for even her unborn children is legendary. The onna managed to drag herself further into the woods were she managed to give birth to her child alone. Around her the woods seemed to rejoice in the birth of the child, as if they could tell that there was something special about the infant. The mother wept with joy but she knew that she was dieing. The wound in her back and the blood lost in the birth was too much for her ningen body to handle. So she begged the forest to take care of her child so that her daughter would survive and grow to be strong. As if in answer to her prayers the giant tree underwhich she lay seemed to sway its branches down until they wrapped around the babe. It gently lifted the sleeping child up into its boughs until it was hidden from all that would seek it. The mother seeing that her child was safe died at the base of the tree and her blood and bones provided nurishment that helped the tree to flourish. This Tree of Ages took care of the child with the help of the creatures of the forest. She was taught about her own ancestory using the memories gained from the corpse of her mother. She learned the ways of the forest and the customs of the youkai. It was said that she was beautiful and wild and had a love for everything that surrounded her. She was also a fierce warrior with immense powers. But one day she came across the hanyou who had destroyed her clan and they battled. For days the struggle continued. The woman called upon the forest and the elements to aid her while the hanyou called upon the darkness of the youkai that he contained. Finally the battle ended and the woman was the victor. But her victory did not come without a price. Her soul was ripped from her body in the battle and was barred entrance to the afterlife. Instead her spirit traveled back to the place of her birth and was once again shielded in the boughs of the Tree of Ages. It is said that when the spirit of Rubito returns so shall she."

"Damn. Did she have a name?" The fascination for this woman could be heard clearly in the tone of Yusukes voice.

"That Yusuke is something that I am afraid neither the Youko or myself know." Kurama stated softly.

"She was called Higurashi, or Sunset, after the time of her birth and her death." Suprisingly it was Hiei that offered up the information.

"Well Hiei I am suprised that you are familiar with the legend of the Sunset Maiden." Koenma exclaimed.

"Her survival always intrigued me." Was the suprising reply.

There was a silence around the room as the meaning behind Hiei's words sunk in. The apparition had overcome similar odds of survival to become the strong youkai warrior he was today.

Koenma cleared his throat loudly, "Right well anyways on with the mission. I need you for to go to a shrine in Tokyo and bring back to me two people. Botan will accompany you so as to open a portal here. I will warn you that caution is neccesary when dealing with these two particular people. Their names are Kagome and Shippou Higurashi"

"Higurashi? Like in the legend?" Yusuke exclaimed.

"Yes. As a matter of fact they live in Sunset shrine which contains the very tree from the legends and was named for the Sunset Maiden. Now all that I am allowed to tell you is that looks are decieving. While a child may be a warrior, and an innocent a killer, kitsune can do more than steal, and miko can do more than kill, if given the correct motivation."

Kurama jolted visibly at those words as they stirred something deep inside of him and he could suddenly feel the Youko clawing at his mind before he settled down again.

The screen went blank after that cryptic message and no amount of pounding or yelling at it would bring Koenma back.

"What the fuck kind of mission is this! He has kitsune-boy over there tell us this long ass story and then he gives us a place to go and two names but nothing else to go on except that lame ass riddle!!" Yusuke raged.

"Now now Yusuke I am sure that Koenma-sama has a good reason for not telling you more than what he did." Botan attempted to soothe the flustered toushin.

"Well it had better be a damn good one because once we get done with this he is so getting his ass kicked!" Yusuke stated as he stormed from the room.

Far away in his office where no one could see him, Koenma paced across the floor worrying loudly at his pacifier. He was pale and worry lines could easily be seen across his brow.

"Dear sweet Kami, please Kagome forgive me for what I have done. But there was no other choice, the realms need you once again."

Flashback Ends

And so here he was stuck headed to a shrine that reportedly would be full of ningens on this day, that had come to pay respect to their Kami. It was pitiful in his opinion, he himself had faith in only himself, though he did believe in the kitsune most of the time.

As they reached the steps of the shrine the full extent of the holy ki that blanketed the area hit them all full force. It was massive, like nothing they had ever seen and they could understand now the reaction that Yusuke had to it. As they climbed the stairs the sounds of many voices became more and more obvious as did the smell. Apparently the shrine was full of ningen and they had no idea where to start looking for this Kagome and Shippou. It appeared as if they would have to split up and search.

Hiei decided that the sooner he accomplished this task the sooner he would be able to leave this foul smelling place. As with that thoughts in mind he allowed his Jagan to open itself a tiny bit beneath his bandana and scan the area, peaking into the minds of all the ningen that surrounded him. He was easily able to pinpoint his team members locations by the thoughts that circled through the people that surrounded them. For Kurama there were thoughts of his beauty and rumors of his identity that circulated through the crowd, for Yusuke his reputation still preceded him, and for Botan her hair color and unusual eyes were subject to debate.

Snorting he continued his scan until the most unusual thing happened. He came upon, quiet suddenly a blank spot in the crowd. It was as if someone had suddenly turned the volume down on the crowd and all that could be heard was the static of silence. Intrigued he proded deeper into the mind of the person that he had come across. For some reason he could not wait to peer inside this mind, he felt as if he needed to dive inside of this person and learn everything he could.

Opening his third eye a bit wider he prepared himself to look, and wondered briefly who this person was. He was mildly surprised when his first gentle touch was rejected but he was not totally shocked. Some people had naturally strong mental barriers and would reject his initial intrusion into their minds, but noone could stand strong against the Jagan. Smirking slightly he allowed the Jagan to open a little bit more and was completely stunned when the Jagan was thrown back and he could feel his own mental barriers being ripped down suddenly. He barely kept his feet as the pain tore through his skull. Then just as suddenly as it began it stopped and instead a soothing aura replaced where before there had been only pain. Suddenly there was inside his mind, the voice of a onna.

"It is not polite to try and poke into the minds of others without their permission, little firefly." Said the voice softly.

"Hn. Who are you?" Hiei questioned her.

"My name is not your concern."

"Stupid onna let me into your mind before I destroy you from the inside out."

Twinkling laughter was his only reply until he sent a small blast of power across the link.

"Hm you have spunk I'll give you that, but I never let anyone inside my mind unless they ask." The girl said in a sugary sweet voice.

"And I refuse to ask. I'll find a way past your defenses and then you will pay for your insolence." Hiei fairly snarled.

"If you say so."

"Hn."

The contact was abruptly cut off and Hiei found himself at a loss as to who it was that could have possibly had the power to not only block and repel the Jagan, but to also break past his own barriers. At that moment he felt the presence of someone standing directly behind him and he quickly spun around to confront the possible threat, cursing himself for not being aware of his surroundings. The purity in this place was throwing off his senses.

When he was finally facing the person who he had stupidly allowed behind him, he literally felt the breath be knocked out of him in shock.

Before him stood one of the most intriguing beings that he had ever locked his numerous eyes on. She was slightly taller than him, with pitch-black hair that while pulled up into a high ponytail still fell in soft strands almost down to her knees with two pink strips running the length and framing her face. Her eyes were a mixture of swirling blue and silver and were utterly entrancing. They also held a blankness that he found strangely disturbing. He knew this blankness well for he saw it every time he gazed at his own sorry reflection. It was the blankness of one who had seen or done things that they were not proud of, but had had no choice but to do. It was the blankness that came when one closed off ones feelings and showed no emotions.

She was clothed in what appeared to be traditional hakama and haori instead of the more appropriate kimono that most chose to wear when they visited the shrines. Her figure, or what he could see of it was small and nicely curved though if her face was to be a testement she was strong.

He could tell right away by the aura that surrounded her, that this onna was not a normal ningen. She briefly reminded him of Genkai in the way that she stood with her hands behind her back, and the overall way she carried herself. She was powerful, and she knew it. He knew that she was the one who had intrigued him so with her ability to block his Jagan.

"Onna tell me who you are and how you are able to block my intrusions." Hiei demanded.

"As I told you before who or what I am is of no concern to you. The only question that needs to be answered it what your business in this shrine is youkai." She replied calmly, so calmly that she reminded him of the kitsune and that irritated him.

"That is none of your concern either onna. Now you will let me into your mind so that I may find the answers I seek." Hiei fairly snarlded before he took a challenging step forward. She, much to his suprise, did not back down. Strangely enough he found himself pleased with that fact.

Leaning forward Hiei breathed in her aroma.

'She smell like honey and fire. So sweet.' Hiei thought.

'He smells like forest fires.' Kagome couldn't help but think.

Thinking that the onna could be easily fooled Hiei decided to change his approach.

"Let me in." He murmured softly trying to disguise his order as a request.

"Just because I am part ningen don't think that I am easily fooled apparition." Kagome snapped. She was starting to get angry since this little youkai thought that he could fool her so easily, especially in her own shrine. She had to admit though his voice was extremely sexy, like hot summer days and smokey summer nights.

'What does she mean by part ningen? And how does she know about youkai?' Hiei was slightly puzzled by the girl's statement.

Sighing softly he decided to go against his nature and actually ask a question.

"Girl, please tell me your name." He snapped exasperated.

"About time. My name is Ka..."

She was interrupted by the loud voice of a teenage boy.

"Kami am I hearing things or did Hiei just ask a girl for her name?" Yusuke questioned, stunned to see the tiny fire apparition so close to a human that he apparently was not trying to kill at the moment.

Kagome looked at the youkai that had traded barbs with her so intently. Surely the fates could not be so cruel. Here she was thinking that she had finally found someone who could hold her intrest for a long period of time and it had to be him. The man who killed her family.

Hiei.

Turning to the others that had appeared in the area they stood, Kagome spotted a familiar blue head.

"Botan," she snapped. "Take me to see Koenma , I need to speak with him now!"

Kagome waited impatiently for the ferry girl to open her portal. Stepping through Kagome only had one thought on her mind, 'Koenma you have a lot of explaining to do.'

AN: As I have stated before there have been some major plot changes in this story. That is one of the reasons that it has taken me so long to update. I simply was not able to continue the story while it went in its previous direction. So instead I took some time and I have revised a lot of stuff to bring about a whole new story.