Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Inuyasha; they are the property of Rumiko Takahashi.

Chapter 11: The First Assassin of the Order of the Claw

Inunobu and Sayuri

'Ok Inunobu I think its safe to transform now,' Sayuri said peering down a long ornate hallway in the palace, checking for any signs of approaches.

Inunobu encased himself in a ball of light and emerged in his humanoid form. He looked worried; the time was nearing and the first assassin was due to arrive soon. The target would be Sesshomaru. Not that Inunobu would be saddened by the death of his brother, but the bloodline needed to be preserved. Inunobu grunted as he stretched his back, tired of walking around in his canine form. Soon enough he would be able to reveal himself.

Inunobu and Sayuri walked alone down the hallway, Inunobu rested one arm protectively around her waist. I will not have her taken from me, especially not now when her father has not objected and given us his approval.

'Inunobu?' Sayuri asked, looking concerned and off to the side.

'What is it?' he responded gently.

'I…I'm worried for my father, do you think he will be ok? Do you think that the Order of the Claw can get to him?'

Inunobu looked at the sad gaze she was giving him. I would never let anything happen to Sayuri, or anyone she cares for. He stopped walking and embraced her forcibly yet softly. He placed his teeth on her neck and gave her a light bite. Her emotions got the better of her, and she started sobbing uncontrollably into his chest.

'Sayuri, I won't let anything happen to Susumu, I promise.'

She sobbed slower, regaining her composure. She looked at Inunobu, tears in her eyes, and kissed him once before returning her head to its buried position in his chest.

In a Private Room with Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku, Sango, Shippo, and Kirara

'Inuyasha it's getting to be time for the first attack,' warned Miroku. 'We had best be prepared.'

'Keh. I don't know what you're worried about; it's not like its something that we can't handle.'

'That isn't the point, Inuyasha!' Kagome said irritably. 'It's always best to be prepared. Besides,' Kagome added, 'Sayuri seems really worried, and not taking the situation seriously might offend her.'

'Kagome has a good point,' Sango chimed in.

There was a knock at the door. The group became very silent as Inuyasha cautiously opened it. The suspense in the room continued to build up as Inuyasha opened the door to reveal…an incredibly bored looking Sesshomaru.

'What do you want Sesshomaru? I don't remember wanting you around.'

'What a pleasant greeting, little brother. I have news concerning the first assassin that both you and Inunobu need to hear.' Sesshomaru then noticed that Inunobu was not in the room, and his expression became one of even more boredom mixed with irritation. 'Where, may I ask, is Inunobu?'

'Behind you,' said a voice coming from a person who Sesshomaru was blocking.

Sesshomaru's expression turned to one of annoyance. Kagome began to burst out laughing. Sesshomaru turned to Kagome to see what was more important than his presence.

'Excuse me, but what is so hilarious that you would stop giving the Lord of the Western Lands your full attention.'

'Your….facial….expressions….I can't stop laughing,' Kagome managed to squeeze out between breaths. Sesshomaru dropped his head into one hand, while the other one turned into a fist. This of course made Kagome laugh more.

Sesshomaru looked to Inuyasha as if to say "control her". Inuyasha just shrugged and continued looking at Kagome, who by now had calmed down. Sesshomaru began to speak.'

'Inunobu…and Inuyasha, I have news regarding the assassin. An unknown demon was reported in one of the border towns of this castle, which is a town that Kichiro has frequently visited. I have no doubt that this is the assassin who plans to strike today. He is said to be can excellent fighter who prefers to use his claws.'

Inunobu was standing in the corner of the room, with Sayuri leaning against him. She seemed apprehensive as ever now that the ordeal was about to begin. Inunobu looked at Sayuri and gave her a reassuring gaze. Her lips turned up in a very slight smile. I will protect you, Sayuri.

Sesshomaru turned to leave, but halfway across the door he stopped. 'Inunobu, follow me, it has been at least 200 years since I have had someone decent to spar with.' Inunobu acknowledged and rose from his leaning position on the wall. He took Sayuri out of his arms carefully and placed one hand on the side of her face before leaving the room.

The Sparring Arena

'It has been a while hasn't it, little brother. I hope you are not expecting a victory; you still lack the strength to defeat me.'

'We will see Sesshomaru.'

They took their positions on opposite sides of the arena. There were at least fifty people who had come to see their Lord fight. They were too young to know who Inunobu was, or what his capabilities were. The onlookers had merely come to see Sesshomaru beat up on another helpless challenger.

Both opponents tuned into the sounds around them, waiting for the perfect distraction to lunge at each other.

'Begin,' commanded Sesshomaru. I must gauge Inunobu's abilities to know whether or not he can be counted on in these upcoming attacks.

Within moments of Sesshomaru's command Inunobu was gone in a blur, almost melting into the air. Several of the onlookers gasped, never having seen anyone close to Sesshomaru in speed. Sesshomaru barely flinched as he moved his arm to block Inunobu's incoming punch. Inunobu was visible for only a few moments before disappearing again. This time Sesshomaru would not wait for him to strike, but instead let loose a light whip from his fingertips in a giant circle. The green whip crashed with a red one above it. Sesshomaru casually gazed at the roof where Inunobu was crouched with one clawed hand imbedded in the ceiling to anchor him there.

Sesshomaru is indeed a fighter, the royal life of a noble does not suit him with his abilities. It suits his personality perfectly though.

Sesshomaru decided to stop playing around and literally flew upwards and struck Inunobu in the face with his fist, pushing him into the ceiling, producing cracks around the indentation of his body in the roof. The watchers cheered as the saw their Lord's opponent plummet to the ground and land hard on the sparring mat.

'Damn you…where did that come from?'

Sesshomaru smirked. 'You never change, always arrogant without anything behind it.' Sesshomaru landed gracefully on the floor.

'Me? Arrogant? That's a bold statement coming from you.'

Inunobu barely had time to stand up before Sesshomaru was in his face again with one hand wrapped around his neck. Inunobu was slammed into a wall at full force. The older demon stood, pinning Inunobu against the wall by the neck.

'Tell me, little brother, I am curious.' I must find out how strong my younger brother really is. Spending time with those humans has taught him to control his emotions while suppressing his demon power. He must learn both the control himself and his power, not merely keep it suppressed.

'What is it Sesshomaru, that you are so curious about?' Inunobu managed to choke out through breaths.

'What will you do, if they kill her?'

Inunobu's eyes widened and he met the cold gaze of his older brother. He could see in his mind the sight of Sayuri lifeless on the floor, and could already feel the guilt wash over him from something that had not happened, that he would not let happen, even if it meant his life. His arms relaxed and dropped from trying to resist Sesshomaru's hold on him. His shoulders slumped low. Inunobu's raw emotions came flooding back to him, and his eyes refocused and became angry.

'No.'

In an immense feat of strength, Inunobu broke his older brother's grip. Once free he threw his fist as hard as he could into Sesshomaru's face and at the same time grabbed him with the same type of neck hold and hurled Sesshomaru across the arena into the wall on the other side.

The spectators had all fallen silent. Sesshomaru had not yet risen from where he had been thrown, and Inunobu was advancing steadily towards him, claws glowing green, with every intent to end his older brother's life for even suggesting such a thing.

'How dare you, Sesshomaru? I'll kill you and beat the assassins to their target,' he said so low that only Sesshomaru could hear him. Sesshomaru was faking unconsciousness, which Inunobu soon found out as he got a two-footed kick in the gut which threw him across the room back to the other wall.

With Inuyasha

Inuyasha had decided to follow his two brothers to the arena to see what they were capable of. He was almost to the door when he smelled two things. One he had expected; Inunobu's blood, but the other was a complete surprise. Sesshomaru was bleeding almost the same amount that Inunobu was, which meant that they were exchanging blows relatively equally.

Inuyasha arrived at the battle scene a few moments later to see both demons staring menacingly at each other. The look on Inunobu's face was different than his usual angry expression.

Sesshomaru must have said something really infuriating to get Inunobu into a rage like that.

The Rest of the Group

'Sayuri stop worrying everything will be fine. There isn't much that can stand in the way of Sesshomaru, Inunobu, and Inuyasha fighting together. There is nothing to worry about; your father and the other targets will be fine.'

Sayuri looked blankly at a very expensive painting in the room on the wall. Not much had been said since Inunobu and Inuyasha left. Kagome felt horrible that she couldn't do anything to stop Sayuri from being so sad. She looked over at Sayuri for long enough to see one tear roll down the demoness' cheek.

'I have to find him,' were the only words Sayuri said before leaving the room. The only people that remained were Kagome, Shippo, Sango, Miroku, and Kirara, who was curled up in the corner.

Kagome thought to herself, Sayuri was thinking of Inunobu that whole time, not her father. She must care for him so much. I bet the fact that he is fighting Sesshomaru is not helping to ease her fears either.

At the Arena, Sayuri and Inuyasha Watching

The blows from each fighter were being exchanged completely evenly, despite Sesshomaru's early lead. Inunobu had calmed down and come to his senses, and both demons were trying to minimize the damage so that it would be easy to recover before the assassin arrived.

Sayuri saw Inuyasha watching the fight on another side of the arena so she made her way over to him.

'Inunobu I believe this is enough, you should return to your room and prepare for the upcoming battle. I will do the same.'

Inunobu could not believe his ears. 'You are actually calling a fight before it's over. What has gotten into you Sesshomaru?' Inunobu smirked.

Sesshomaru walked by Inunobu, and when he was close enough to his younger brother so that only Inunobu could hear him he said, 'Look behind you, little brother.'

Inunobu wasn't sure what he meant until he caught the soft gentle scent of Sayuri. Sesshomaru had stopped the fight because of Sayuri. He had known she would not want to see Inunobu being hit. Inunobu faced Sesshomaru until the demon Lord had walked from the room, followed by his subjects. This left only Inuyasha and Sayuri in the arena room. Inuyasha was also walking towards the exit. Sayuri however was standing a few feet behind Inunobu, who still had not turned around.

Finally he faced her. 'Sayuri, you should not be so worried, I will be fine. You have no need to be afraid, I will always be here to protect-'

He was stopped mid sentence when she pressed her lips to his. His response was immediate, and he wrapped his arms around her tightly. Both arms were still around her when they returned to the room, which promptly fell silent. Inunobu, feeling very at peace, guided their conjoined form over to one of the corners of the room where they sank to the floor.

Inunobu needs to rest, Sayuri thought, I need to make sure he gets all of his energy back. She allowed an incredibly calm energy to spread throughout her body and it seemed to enter Inunobu as well. He immediately became drowsy, but was completely willing to fall into this sleep. Minutes later Inunobu slept with Sayuri against him. The dog demoness had her eyes half open in an almost dreamlike state.

'Uh…what the hell just happened?' Inuyasha asked, extremely confused.

'Amazingly, my master, Mushin, was able to tell me about this,' Miroku stated. He waited for everyone to look at him before beginning again. 'Dog demons are very spiritual creatures. What you saw now was a bonding of spirits in some sense. Sayuri produced a calming aura and gave it to Inunobu. The range of this aura is not very wide, but I would guess it is large enough to influence Inuyasha,' said Miroku, who was now pointing to the half demon who was clearly getting sleepy.

Inuyasha rose to get away from the drowsiness and walked across the room. Kagome began to wonder if the aura was really just a powerful type of pheromone.

'If you notice,' Miroku continued, 'Sayuri is still awake, but she can neither hear nor see you. She is in the same state as Inunobu. This aura only affects dog demons, Shippo, so you are fine. I can only assume that Inuyasha is only affected a small amount because he is a half demon. I have also heard that only dog demonesses can produce this aura and they must be spiritually strong.'

Sesshomaru, with perfect timing, strolled into the room with his usual cold, serious look on his face. He looked extremely annoyed that Inunobu had not stood up to listen to his news and made his way over. Since Sesshomaru had such and incredibly strong demonic aura, the calming aura went unnoticed at first. Sesshomaru leaned down, getting more and more angry, and was about to lose his temper when he saw Inunobu was asleep, and that unmistakable blank stare on Sayuri's face. He immediately sprang backwards against the wall near the door.

'I came to inform all who are going to partake in this battle that the assassin has been spotted on the forest border, and will be in the palace at dark.' Sesshomaru turned and walked out of the room. Inuyasha noticed his movements were a bit more sluggish than usual.

One Hour Until Night

'Miroku it's almost time, how long are they going to stay asleep?' asked an impatient Inuyasha.

'Inuyasha be patient, they will be awake in time. Besides you could use this time to rest yourself.'

'Keh, I'm not weak like you!'

Kagome and Sango sat on the floor on opposite sides of the sleeping pair. Kagome was speaking to Sango about the upcoming battle, but stopped when Inunobu began to stir. His eyes were still closed, but his grip had tightened protectively around the demoness sleeping against him. Sayuri, who had by now fully closed her eyes, opened them a little, and gave a faint smile. The entire room was now staring at them, and had stopped whatever it was that they were doing.

'Oh, that is so adorable,' Kagome whispered to Inuyasha, who gave her a disgusted look.

Inunobu opened his eyes halfway to survey the room and curled his upper lip when he saw the others all staring at him. Shippo, sitting directly across from Inunobu, got a good look at this expression and hopped on Kagome's shoulder and whispered in her ear.

'Kagome I think Inunobu wants a little privacy.'

Kagome realized the young fox demon was right, and tried to think of something that would get the others to leave. The hardest to convince to leave would of course be Inuyasha, and being the self-elected leader of their traveling party, the others would follow him when he left. It only took Kagome a few more seconds to realize how to get Inuyasha to start leaving; food.

'Hey Inuyasha,' Kagome started, 'I'm getting kind of hungry, why don't we go get some food, Inunobu and Sayuri can catch up with us in a few minutes.'

Inuyasha's ears perked up when he heard the word food, and he immediately turned and walked out the door, followed by Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and Kirara. Kagome was the last to exit, and she turned to Inunobu, whose eyes were now open and staring at her, and gave him an all-knowing wink. Her breath caught in her throat when she saw him give a gentle smile. She smiled back and left.

'Sayuri,' Inunobu whispered in the demoness' ear, sitting upright and cradling her in his arms.

'Hm..' she replied, still sleepy.

'We should go to dinner; the assassin is most likely to strike at Sesshomaru while he is dining.' Inunobu smirked at Sesshomaru's arrogance in inviting an attack from a fellow dog demon that he had never seen before. Sesshomaru just assumed he was better skilled, which may well be the case. Inunobu started to lift Sayuri off of him so they could join the others.

'Inunobu wait.'

'What is it?' he asked tenderly, now seeing that something was troubling her.

'I…I'm scared. I don't want you to be hurt. I just couldn't live if I-'

'Sayuri stop. No enemy will defeat me. If I am to die, then it will be for you.'

He would give his life for me? Whoever came up with the legends about Inunobu, they were so mistaken. Sayuri had tears once again streaming down her cheeks. She couldn't be sure that everything would be okay, and that scared her. She wanted a future with Inunobu more than anything.

'Let's go,' Inunobu said, wrapping his arms around Sayuri once more before turning to leave. She followed moments later.

At the Dinner Hall

The banquet hall was vast and draped with fancy tapestries. The dining room was divided into three enormous tables. One was for the nobles and honored guests, another was for the political officers, and the smaller one was for the workers and servants. Sesshomaru sat at the noble table, with Inuyasha, Kagome, and the others off to the side. Sayuri sat with her father at the noble table, across from Sesshomaru, with Inunobu in his canine form at her feet. It was still not safe to let the assassin know that he was here.

'Father,' Sayuri began, 'what do you know about these assassins?'

'Well, Sayuri, each of them use different techniques. The one sent to assassinate Sesshomaru is probably the strongest they have, since the Lord is so highly skilled. It is rumored that he prefers fighting unarmed, which would say a great deal about his abilities.'

'What about the one that…is trying to kill…you?'

Susumu gave Sayuri a sympathetic look and took one of her hands. 'Sayuri, do not worry about that now. The time for worrying over my life will come tomorrow; there is no need to rush it.'

'Yes father,' she said softly, looking sadly at him. She smiled when she felt Inunobu nuzzling her other hand with his canine snout. She stroked the fur on his head before returning to her meal, not wanting to attract any attention. Meanwhile Sesshomaru was in a discussion with another noble.

'My Lord, don't you think this is a bit presumptuous to eat in plain sight and view of the attacker. Lord Sesshomaru, you should be more careful, we do not yet know what this assassin is capable of.'

'Silence, I will hear no more of this. The assassin is only a simple lowlife from the Order of the Claw. They cannot defeat me in the same way they defeated my father. This attacker will be destroyed.'

Sesshomaru finished his sentence and detected the smell of blood coming from his servant's quarters, which was supposed to be empty during the dinner hour. It would have made a perfect place for the assassin to hide, which means a servant surprised him while he was preparing to attack. I will have to remember to resurrect that servant with Tenseiga for revealing the assassin to me. The smell was very faint, and it seemed that only he could smell it. Inuyasha was too busy eating. Sesshomaru looked momentarily at the side of the table that Sayuri was sitting on to see if he could find Inunobu. He scanned the table and saw nothing, which made him a little annoyed, until he looked down at his feet and saw his brother sitting on his canine haunches three or four feet away, looking at the place where the smell of blood was coming from. Ah I see, you smell it as well. Very well, it seems as though it has begun.

As soon as he finished that thought the assassin walked into plain view across the room, his hands covered in the same blood that was giving off the smell. Sesshomaru thought to himself, it seems that he realized killing that servant would give him away. He wants to go for the grand entrance. The entire room stopped talking, because even the weaker dog demons had a sense of smell strong enough to detect the odor of blood.

'All of you go to your quarters,' Sesshomaru commanded. The entirety of the room with the exception of Inuyasha, Inunobu, Kagome, Miroku, Sango, Shippo, Kirara, and Sayuri and Susumu emptied into the surrounding hallways as quickly as possible.

'Sesshomaru, I have come to slay you. You are a plague on this kingdom; you take your responsibilities too lightly. It is the duty of the Order of the Claw to remove you from your position of power,' hissed the assassin.

Sesshomaru got a good look at him after the subjects had cleared. He was very well muscled, though he had a slender build. His eyes were cruel and cold, but also looked a little insane. He was about as tall as Sesshomaru and, like the rumors said, he wore no weapon. Sesshomaru drew Tokijin and effortlessly threw off a wave of blue energy which tore through two very expensive looking tables and the carpets underneath them. The assassin jumped forwards, going over the energy wave by mere inches, and landed right in front of Sesshomaru and boldly slashed Tokijin with his claws, causing the sword to be ripped from Sesshomaru's hand and fly into the wall where it stuck.

'He's fast,' Sango said to herself.

Sesshomaru wasted no time and drew Tenseiga and sliced all the way through the assassin's waist. The assassin was caught off guard, and it took him a second too long to realize that Tenseiga could not harm him, which was long enough for Sesshomaru to land a hard right to the assassin's face. He fell to the ground.

'Damn you. You are unfit to rule this kingdom Sesshomaru.'

Sesshomaru addressed his attacker with boredom. 'Do I get the honor of knowing your name demon?'

The assassin was by this time across the room and away from Sesshomaru. 'My name is unimportant, in the Order of the Claw I am called Tsume, but you will soon forget that once you draw your last breath.'

Inunobu was getting very angry. This was the organization that plotted his father's downfall. He could not stand and do nothing; it was his vengeance as well. He walked in front of Tsume, and stood between him and Sesshomaru. Tsume gave him an odd look.

'Sesshomaru take your lowly dog from my presence, we are having a fight.'

Sesshomaru smirked tauntingly. This caused Tsume to become angry.

'How dare you laugh at me? You fool! I came here to destroy you so that-' Tsume stopped talking when he saw that the dog was glowing. Tsume was old enough to know Inunobu when he saw him, but this ability was developed after Tsume left. The light became brighter until a glowing humanoid form stood in the place of the dog. The glow faded, and Tsume looked more than a little surprised.

'Impossible! It's not possible! Inunobu, the lost Son of the Fang, our leader told us you were long dead.'

'He was mistaken,' responded Inunobu, with a determined look on his face. With that Inunobu flew across the room at Tsume, who was still in shock. Tsume only blocked Inunobu's slashing claws at the very last moment possible, and received a very deep gash in his arm and was thrown into the opposite wall. Inunobu continued his advance, dashing forwards and clawing Tsume's chest and arms. The assassin was bleeding profusely, but managed to get a swift kick into Inunobu's side, which was enough for him to flee to the other side of the room. Unfortunately for Tsume, Inuyasha was standing there.

'The other son is here as well.' Kichiro you have made so many miscalculations.

'WIND SCAR!'

A wave of golden energy washed over Tsume, who had once again managed to escape with his life. The assassin was crouched on the ground, breathing heavily. He noticed a full medieval suit of armor Sesshomaru had brought back from a distant land. Perfect.

'Revenge is mine,' said Inunobu, now closing in on his prey. Both hands glowed green, ready to release deadly poison. Tsume back flipped over to the suit of armor and grabbed a very large scale broad sword that the armor suit had in its hands. He turned around and hurled the sword as hard as he could. It was only a fraction of a second later that a gleaming red light whip removed his already bloody head from his body. He was dead before he hit the floor.

Inunobu saw the poor aim the Tsume had used to throw the sword. It is no wonder he fought unarmed. No… Inunobu's thoughts sped up as time seemed to slow down. The sword was not aimed at him but at….Sayuri…The sword was in range so that he could catch it, but he couldn't take the risk. If I miss the sword, I'll have no chance to catch it again. That leaves one choice.

Sesshomaru watched Tsume die with satisfaction, but he too realized the broad sword's destination. He felt genuinely anxious; he was too far away to do anything, and the only person who could do something was Inunobu. When he taunted Inunobu with the idea of Sayuri's death in the arena, he had not meant it. If Sayuri dies, it will destroy Inunobu more than father's death ever did.

The other people in the room, excluding Sayuri, could not follow the path of the sword, because it was moving too fast. Sayuri could not see where the broad sword was going, since Inunobu blocked her view.

In the split second that Inunobu realized what was about to happen, he had made up his mind. He could not risk going for the sword, but he could save Sayuri. He summoned up the most demon speed he could muster and glided across the room to Sayuri, where he immediately threw her out of the way. He felt the blade slide into him, impaling him and then pinning him against the wall. It was much wider and more painful than the demon slayer's katana that Inuyasha had stabbed him with. Inunobu barely had enough energy to make a sound, and the effect of the sword through his body was immediate.

Sesshomaru's eyes widened. His younger brother had just willingly sacrificed himself for someone else. It was a sight that he never thought he would behold in the entirety of his life. Inuyasha had a similar expression on his face, and the humans and Shippo were stunned. No one knew how to react.

They did not have long; Inunobu was fading fast. The wounded demon was slumped against the wall, and his blood was everywhere. It had splashed out of his body with violent force on the initial impact of the sword, and was now dripping everywhere. His white clothes were completely red on the front half. Sayuri was still on the ground, not facing Inunobu. She didn't want to look. Tears already formed and were flowing from her eyes. No…please…don't let it be…anything else just not this…please.

Sayuri turned around slowly, taking in the sight of her wounded beloved. She saw exactly what she prayed she would not see. In all likelihood, Inunobu would die. His head was slumped to one side, but his eyes were looking at her. They were becoming clouded and glazed. Sayuri approached slowly, and when she got to Inunobu she took his head in her arms.

'No…' she said quietly, 'Inunobu…please.'

The dog demon responded to her voice and his eyes regained their focus a bit. She could tell he was listening.

'Inunobu you can't…you can't die.' Sayuri was crying silently, and her voice was heavy with grief. 'I…love…you,' Sayuri whispered to him. His lips formed into a smile, or at least the best smile he could manage. His eyes closed.

A/N: Yeah ok so this might be a little bit of a cliffhanger, but on the bright side I'm back.