Disclaimer: I do not own them. I only own Taro.

The Plot Thickens

The gang, plus Kouga had been on the move all day. Naraku had conveniently weakened his barrier enough to let his scent lead them to his new location. They had to travel as fast as possible. Miroku and Sango rode Kirara while Inuyasha ran with Shippo. Kouga carried Kagome on his back. Kagome hadn't said much since she had found out her son was missing. Mostly, she just sat with a vacant expression on her unusually pale face. Every one was worried, but they weren't really sure how to comfort her.

After what felt like days of traveling, they came upon their goal. Looming before them was one of the many evil looking castles that Naraku used. As expected, the barrier was weakened just enough for them to get through. As the group prepared to enter, Kagome scanned the area and then seemed to stiffen suddenly. She said nothing, thinking no one had noticed, but the entire group had been keeping an extra close eye on her all day.

"Kagome, are you ok?" Kouga asked, his eyes filled with concern. He put his hand on her forehead to check for a fever, but found none.

"Hai. I'm fine. It's just…" She looked at the forest around them a second time. "I just can't shake this feeling of déjà vu." If she didn't have everyone's attention before, she had it now.

"What 'déjà vu'? Like we've been here before?" Miroku inquired.

"No. Like we have been in this…situation before." She stiffened as some invisible sensation coursed through her body.

"Kagome! What the fuck are you talking about?" Inuyasha snapped. He was starting to get annoyed with her lack of information.

"There's a jewel shard near by. It's not in the castle. It's… There!" She pointed a little ways into the forest.

"Maybe we should split up and check out this shard. Last time, where the shard was located was where Naraku hid the girl that travels with Sesshomaru." Sango said. She seemed a bit sad as she said it, since Kohaku had been Rin's guard and the source of the Shikon shard aura.

"No. It might be a trap." Kagome said, "Plus, even if that's where Taro is, Naraku isn't just going to hand him over to us." She added, more to herself then to the others. Kagome shuddered and put her head in her hands. She felt like she was going to cry, but knew she had no more tears.

"Are you sure?" Kouga asked. He put his hand on her shoulder to comfort her. He knew that this small gesture wouldn't be enough to make her feel better, if her grief was similar to his own, but hoped it might help. Kagome sighed and finally nodded.

After some last minute checks, the group turned and entered the barrier. They figured the only way to get Taro back was to end this business with Naraku once and for all. They hoped he wouldn't use one of his puppets, as the fighting of just another one of his minions, not him, would get them nowhere. It wasn't even an option to hand over the shards. (A/N: like I said I don't remember if they lost them already I'm just assuming they haven't.) Before, when the initial shock of losing Taro to Naraku was over, Kouga and Inuyasha had both agreed that they would go and finish Naraku. No one questioned Inuyasha's motives for coming along. Both he, and Kouga blamed this entire incident on their own pig-headedness. For if they hadn't been fighting like two stags in rut, they could have stopped Kagura.

Kagome couldn't shake her feelings of déjà vu as they entered the courtyard. She remembered the time when Naraku had kidnapped Rin to lure in and absorb Sesshomaru. She had sensed the shards and that was where Rin had been. But what if she was wrong? What if Naraku was playing on what had happened before, and had turned it into a trap?. She knew she couldn't just go and take her son. But the whole situation just didn't seem right to her. Something was off, but she couldn't figure out what. Kouga took her hand and squeezed it, bringing her out of her reverie.

"Don't worry. He's fine." He whispered. She smiled weakly and nodded. She wanted to believe things would go smoothly, but could not ignore her small, persistent feeling that something was not as it seemed.

In a Small Hut in the Woods

Taro lay sprawled on the dusty hut floor. His eyelids flickered and he sat up. He scanned the small room and took in his surroundings. He saw that he was in a tiny hut that was dimly lit with candles. In the corner there was a little girl, who was at this moment, looking at him. She held a baby wrapped in a blanket in her arms. A strange mirror sat at her feet. Her entire body was a shade of ghostly pale white. Taro looked her and wondered if she was the only person keeping him there.

"Where are mommy and daddy?" Taro asked. He stood up and stretched.

"They are not here." said the little girl. Her voice lacked diction and inflection.

It had the monotonous sound of a machine.

"Who are you?" Taro asked. He was interested in this little girl. He wanted to know more, especially about her appearance, which seemed only to be a 2-D image.

"I am Kanna." The girl replied in the same eerily soft voice.

"Well, I'm Taro. Why are you holding that baby?"

"Because I have to."

"Oh. Well…I don't want to stay here. My parents will come for me. My daddy's strong. He'll come and take me home." Taro smiled as he thought of Kouga jumping in, kicking butt, and saving the day.

"He won't save you." Kanna said as she crouched in the corner, watching him.

"Well, then I'll leave. You're just a little girl. You can't keep me here". Taro said as he started toward the screen that probably led to the door.

"You can not leave. He will kill you." Kanna turned slightly towards the screen.

At that same moment, a figured appeared outlined in the screen. He was standing and looked to be a little taller then the girl. 'Another kid' Taro thought. 'He's not going to stop me. I'm a youkai. I can handle him.' The screen slid open. In front of Taro stood a young boy. The mask he wore covered his face. 'He has the same mask and outfit as Sango.' thought Taro. The boy's suit was black and yellow. At his side he carried a deadly looking sickle attached by chain to his wrist. His brown eyes were as emotionless as the girl called Kanna's voice had been.

'He can't stop me. He's just a kid too.' Taro started confidently towards the boy when, with a slight flick of the boy's wrist, the sickle flashed out and grazed Taro's small arm. Taro winched in pain and asked, through gritted teeth, "What are you doing?"

The boy easily caught the sickle and held it above his head. His empty brown eyes didn't even register Taro. Taro froze. He didn't have anyway of blocking the sickle. He thought maybe he could outrun it, but knew that the boy, with his obvious skill with the weapon, could probably take him down with a single throw. The boy readied the weapon again. The sickle cut through the air towards Taro, leaving the boy's hand with an unnatural fluid grace. All Taro could do now was throw his hands in front of his face, close his eyes and wait for the curved blade to bite into his flesh.

Outside in the Courtyard

After searching for what seemed like forever, the group was just about ready to give up and head to where Kagome had sensed the shards. Naraku didn't seem to be anywhere about the dim courtyard they now were located in. But then, just as their desperation reached its peak, the aforementioned hanyou appeared. Naraku lurked in the shadows near the edge of the courtyard and addressed them. "Did you bring my shards?"

At the sound of his voice, the small party silently readied themselves. Swords were unsheathed, claws readied, boomerangs poised, and staffs drawn. He stepped out of the darkness and walked towards them. After a quick scan, and without even a twitch of his face, one of his dangerous tentacles erupted forth and flew towards Kagome. She stood transfixed, forgetting to arm herself with her bow and arrows as she stared at the creature that had her son. Naraku had noted the damage her purifying arrows had caused his body during their last encounter and decided that it would be wise to take her out first. Inuyasha and Kouga were quick though, and they both leapt into action to save the woman they loved. Kouga scooped Kagome up and ran, while Inuyasha swung with Tetsusaiga and rendered the tentacle harmless.

After she was out of harm's way and completely alert, Kouga gently deposited Kagome on the ground. She was immediately ready to fight. With a miko's grace, she drew and notched an arrow as she charged toward Naraku. He was caught unaware by her sudden aggression and found himself with her arrow pointed at his body.

"I will not forgive you Naraku. Now give me back my son." Kagome growled. She strained back for just a bit more power and let the arrow fly. Time seemed to slow as the blinding light of the arrow neared Naraku. He knew there was no way the arrow wouldn't hit and destroy him. But as the arrow was just upon him it was hit and buffeted away by a blast of strong wind.

"Die!" Kagura screamed as she swooped above them on her feather. She waved her fan and threw a gust of wind at Kagome. "Fuujin no Mai" she yelled.

Kagome rolled out of the way just as Inuyasha jumped in front of her. He gave a powerful swung with Tetsusaiga. "Kaze no Kizu" he yelled. Golden streaks of power blasted towards Kagura's oncoming blades of wind. Inuyasha's attack cut through the blades and rushed towards Kagura, throwing her off balance enough for Miroku and Sango to join the fight against her.

With Kagura occupied with the monk and exterminator, Inuyasha and Kouga were free to fight Naraku and protect Kagome. Naraku could see he stood at a disadvantage and so summoned a large swarm of youkai to deal with his assailants. As the ranks of demon rushed towards the three, Inuyasha sliced and Kouga guarded Kagome. Naraku also made sure to send a number of his insects to hinder Miroku and his Air Rip.

As they fought, Kagura laughed at the monk and the youkai exterminator. "You'll never kill me. Don't you even try. You'll die here." She flicked her fan and called "Shikabanema!" At her command, a number of half decayed palace guard corpses rose from the shadows of the courtyard and flew towards them, weapons poised.

Slashing and parrying, Sango and Miroku fought off the corpses. During a lull in the attacking, Sango hurled her boomerang along with youkai dehabilitating poison gas at Kagura. Kagura coughed and chocked as the noxious gas filled her lungs and stopped her breathing. She fell unconscious and hit the ground with a hard thud and the crack of a bone. Miroku and Sango ran forward to where she lay. They made sure Kagura was really unconscious, possibly dead, before rushing over to help Kouga and Inuyasha with Naraku.

"Inuyasha behind you" Sango yelled.

At her warning, Inuyasha whirled around in time to catch Naraku's attack from behind. With Tetsusaiga dripping demon blood, he sliced through another tentacle, and then slashed through an encroaching youkai in front of him. Kagome readied another arrow and shot through one of Naraku's tentacles. She then pointed her arrow at Naraku.

"Naraku, where is my son?" Kagome yelled.

"Ku Ku Ku" Naraku laughed. He addressed her as he simultaneously deflected a swing from Inuyasha and a boomerang throw from Sango with his tentacles. "You know the deal, human. I'll give you back the pup when you give me my shards."

"I will not bargain for my son's life!" Kagome let her arrow fly but Kagura once again deflected it, this time looking much worse. Blood trickled out of her nose and one of her arms appeared to be broken. She attempted to raise her fan again, but was stopped by an arrow through her palm. With a strangled cry she dropped her fan, which was promptly snatched up by Kagome. But then one of the many poisonous wasp youkai swung by and snatched the fan out of her hands and returned it to the battered Kagura. With all this commotion, Naraku's focus wavered the slightest bit. This gave Kouga and Inuyasha the slight edge they needed to attack with renewed ferocity.

With Kagura temporally decommissioned and Naraku busy with the canines, Miroku and Sango ran into the castle to look for Taro. Kagome still had a bad feeling about the entire situation. 'Why do I get the feeling that Naraku is stalling?' she thought to herself as she loosed arrow after arrow, felling a great deal of Naraku's random youkai, making sure they didn't hassle her mate or Inuyasha as they fought.

Back in the Hut

Taro threw his hand above his head and waited for the pain. It never came. He waited and cautiously opened his eyes. What he saw shocked him, to say the least. The sickle lay on the floor in front of him, harmless. His hands were still in the air and he looked frantically around him. Somehow, in his desperation, he had put up a protective barrier. It wasn't an ordinary barrier, either. There was power behind it. Kohaku, eyes still blank, drew his sword and leapt at the barrier. He was repelled with force. He flew across the small room and smashed into the hut wall, sliding to the ground without as much as a grunt of pain . He threw his sickle, but as before, it was deflected and Taro stood untouched. Kanna watched emotionlessly as Kohaku tried to breach the barrier.

"Stop. The boy has put up a protective barrier. He has miko powers." Kanna said. She rose and set the baby down, picking up her mirror as she did so. She stepped closer and examined the barrier. "I can use the mirror to break it."

She held up her mirror and it started to glow. It started to shake. The barrier around Taro began to pulsate. From within, Taro watched the little girl concentrate on her mirror. A sharp noise suddenly split the air in the silent room.

CRACK

"The mirror is not strong enough. It will shatter if I go any further. The barrier is too strong." Kanna said. She glanced at Taro and then sat back down in the corner.

Although the barrier was keeping Kohaku and Kanna from getting in, Taro knew that it would allow him out. He knew guessed that if he put his hands down, or let his concentration waver, his barrier would break and he would face Kohaku and the sickle once more. He pondered this latest happening. He didn't know he even had the power to make such a strong barrier.

After a few moments of silence, Kanna turned to Kohaku. "The hanyou's sword can destroy the barrier." She held up her mirror to show Inuyasha.

"But we can not weld it." Kohaku replied.

"He will weaken. He can not control his powers." Kanna said, nodding towards Taro.

Kanna picked up the baby from where she put him down. She shuffled over to Kohaku to wait for Taro to tire and the barrier to fall. Taro watched the silent pair and felt sweat start to drip down his face 'The Kanna girl was right, this is hard work' he thought, 'I'm so tired. But if I put my hands down, I'll die. Mommy! Daddy! Help me!' The barrier began to crackle with energy. Kohaku drew his sword.

"Do not go any closer. He will kill you." Kanna said to Kohaku. So they stood in silence and waited.

Inside the Castle

As Miroku ran after Sango, he suddenly stumbled. He had just felt a huge energy jump from somewhere nearby. He closed his eyes and attempted to channel the specific energy.

"Houshi-sama, what's wrong?" Sango asked as she put her hand on his shoulder.

"Energy. I feel a great deal of holy energy. It's not coming from the castle." He closed his eyes again to concentrate on the energy. "Its coming from outside"

They exited the castle and hurried back out into the courtyard. "Houshi-sama, do you think it is Kikyo?" Sango asked quietly.

Miroku shook his head 'no'. "It too strong to be Kikyo-sama." He continued to concentrate.

Naraku noticed that the monk had picked up on the energy surge and knew that he was trying to pin point its location. Naraku couldn't have this happening. With a wave of his arm he sent a swarm of youkai charging at Miroku and Sango. They fought off the youkai and gained ground into the courtyard. Miroku swung and sliced with his staff and Sango used her trusty Hiraikotsu. Kouga was occupied with Kagura, once again mounted on her feather and in the air above them all. Inuyasha attacked Naraku. Kagome was in charge of killing the swarms of youkai Naraku sent forth to make the battle tougher. Even with all this fighting, they still were no closer to finding and rescuing Taro than they had been before.

As if on cue, Naraku stopped fighting and put up his own personal barrier. Kagura flew quickly inside to safety and slumped to the ground, breathing hard. Inuyasha just smirked and held Tetsusaiga as it began to take on the red hue that signified its barrier cleaving powers. He raised it above his head and swung mightily at the barrier. "Kaze no Kizu" he roared. Golden blades of energy streaked forth from the sword and coursed toward the barrier. They collided and seemed to be absorbed. The barrier flashed and the energy from Inuyasha's attack was reflected.

"It didn't work?" Kagome asked incredulously.

"Red Tetsusaiga couldn't break Naraku's barrier?" Sango said with disbelief. "But how? It broke it easily last time."

Miroku turned and gave the barrier encasing Naraku a close look. "I sense the same holy energy as before, but now it's around Naraku. It's strengthening his barrier. But where is it coming from?"

Kagome tried to concentrate on the energy. 'Something about this energy seems familiar.' She thought. "I can sense it too, Miroku. It seems strangely familiar."

Naraku smirked at the five companions from within the shelter of his barrier. "Ku Ku Ku…Of course it would seem familiar. And I'll tell you why…."

A/N: Three new chapters for everyone. I hope you enjoy them.