Chapter two

Kagome stood behind the whole group in complete shock and silence. Just like everybody else. Inuyasha began to set Kikyo's body down with his eyes hidden behind his hair. Suddenly out of Kikyo's chest, a orb of light came out and floated directly to Kagome and entered her body. Inuyasha and the other's, including Naraku, watched the orb in wonderment. Kagome, still standing, lowered her head as the group backed away from her.

"Shippou, take Kikyo's body and Kagome somewhere safe." Inuyasha broke the silence that had trapped the small clearing.

"You got it, Inuyasha", Shippou answered as if he was given the biggest task of all. Miroku and Sango began to prepare themselves to attack as they saw Inuyasha do the same.

"NO!" Kagome shouted with her head still lowered, "I know how to bring Naraku down." This made Naraku laugh again as he thought, "This little girl… bring me down!"

"What?" Miroku and Sango said with a quick turn and an awkward look towards Kagome. She slowly looked up with nothing, but pure fury written on her face. A passion that seemed to come from nowhere.

"No, Kagome", Inuyasha yelled back at her as he turned to face Naraku, "I won't lose you, too!"

"This time it's not up you, Inuyasha." Shocked at what Kagome had just said, everyone turned to look at her with a "Huh?" in unison.

Naraku immediately understood that Kikyo's spirit had returned to Kagome and with it some important information that Kikyo knew. And if she knew some of what Kikyo knew, then she probably had Kikyo's powers as well. Naraku couldn't afford a mistake.

So quickly that no one was able to react, Kagome took an arrow and shot it directly towards Naraku's chest with such an amazing power that it lit up the night and blinded everybody. The entire group's jaws dropped in awe.

"Did Miss. Kagome's power double?" Miroku didn't really ask it to anyone in particular.

Naraku was surprised by the arrow's power as it shredded through him. He could feel it painfully carving a path towards the Shirkon no Tama in the middle of his body. He immediately stepped back as fast as he could and pulled the arrow out before it went in any deeper. Looking down he could see the damage it had caused and took action to protect himself. Naraku's poisonous insects doubled in amount and out from underneath his tentacles, hundreds and hundreds of demons came rushing out and attacked. Both Miroku and Sango were thrown yards away by the sudden blast of demons that appeared. Inuyasha jumped out of the way and towards Kagome to save her only to see that she had a barrier around her protecting her. So he lifted Tetsaiga up and in one sweep, killed hundreds, but it wasn't enough to make a dent. Miroku and Sango stood up and began to fight.

"Inuyasha, Naraku's trying to escape", Kagome informed him as she shot another amazingly bright arrow that killed hundreds of demons.

"We'll take care of these demons. You two go after Naraku", Sango grunted out while she split a demon's head in half with her weapon. Inuyasha didn't need to be told twice. He grabbed Kagome and swung her on to his back before racing passed the demon horde and toward Naraku, who by this time, had made it to the edge of the clearing.

Without hesitation and with as much power as he could find, Inuyasha swung the Tetsaiga towards Naraku. Kagome could see from where she stood, the flesh from Naraku's chest tearing into pieces and exposing a part of the polluted Shirkon no Tama. She grabbed an arrow and attempted to shoot it, but Naraku, suspecting that she would do that, sent a tentacle their way. Only to be surprised by the fact the Kagome had a barrier up protecting her and Inuyasha. She look straight into his eyes and smiled as she let go of the arrow in her hand that was aimed at the Jewel. It flew through the air with such power and speed that it seemed as if time itself slowed. In a moment, the very tip of the arrow hit the Jewel and purified it instantaneously with a bright burst of blue light. Naraku fell into large chunks on the ground and his horde of demons and insect suddenly disappeared.

From across the clearing, Sango fell to her knees in exhaustion and Miroku, blood dripping from his sleeve on to the ground, turned around towards Inuyasha and Kagome to see what was going on. Sango struggled to stand up. Her body felt like it was about to give way at any moment.

"No! This can't be happening!" Naraku tried to gather himself up, but was interrupted. Sango grabbed the last bit of energy that she had and flung her hirokostu (sp? ignore the spelling) at him; slicing him in half.

"That's for killing my brother", she screamed. Miroku came right behind her and seized the opportunity and opened his Wind Tunnel, sucking Naraku's broken body up. The moment that Miroku sucked every last piece into his Wind Tunnel, it disappeared. He fell back onto himself in amazement.

Sango asked quietly, "Is it… finally over?" before she collapsed onto the ground.

"It looks like it", Inuyasha answered as he finally set Kagome down and looked up to see the purified and completed Shirkon no Tama floating down from the sky. Inuyasha extended his hand as the Jewel landed softly into it. Kagome instinctively turned around and ran to the rest of the group in the clearing.

"Is everyone O.K.?" she asked kneeling down next to Sango. Sango just gave an unconscious moan and Miroku just stared in a daze at his hand. Inuyasha turned to say something to Kagome when he remembered something, "Kikyo…"

He ran to the middle of clearing as he felt the blood run down his leg. The pain was sharp, but he had to find Shippou. "Shippou! Shippou! Where are you?"

"I'm over here!" Shippou jumped out from behind a bush at the edge of the forest. He stood there for a second with tears in his eyes. As if he had failed the mission Inuyasha had given him or failed Inuyasha himself. Then he added, "I couldn't save her body. It turned to dust and I couldn't stop it. She's gone, Inuyasha!"

Inuyasha felt something inside himself burn and it wasn't just the pain from his wounds. Kikyo had meant so much to him and Shippou's words- She's gone, Inuyasha! - started to sink in a lot deeper than before.

"Miroku, take Shippou and the girls back to Kaede's hut." Inuyasha walked up to him. He was still sitting on the ground by Sango and Kagome. "Do you understand?"

"Yeah, but what about you? Aren't you going, too. You're hurt pretty bad, Inuyasha", Miroku answered, but he just turned around without saying anything and ran into the forest.

"He's gone to mourn, hasn't he?" Kagome said with such sadness. Miroku nodded.

Kagome felt an awful sorrow for him and a bit of guilt, too. If she hadn't run off from the group, Kikyo might've still been alive. She didn't deserve to die and Inuyasha didn't deserve to see her die.

"Come on. We should get going", Miroku said as he began to stand up.