Author's Notes: This chapter was revised on January 24, 2006.
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-June 7th-
Entry at 3:48AM
I waited, knowing that given the scenario, I would have to try and mentally remember any clues he said.
Renkotsu crossed his arms, and began to speak, "It was a few nights ago. Naraku had contacted me saying that he needed to know something about the heist and didn't want to trouble our leader if he didn't have to. He figured that the second and third in the gang's ranks could tell him what he needed to know, and asked me to bring Jakotsu without Jakotsu knowing it. He's very secretive about his location and thought that Jakotsu might tell someone. So, I asked Jakotsu to meet me that night and hit him to get him unconscious."
"You bastard, why in the…." Bankotsu interrupted, and despite how upset I knew that made him, I had to silence him.
"Quiet now, let your friend talk," I said pressing the gun against his temple again. I nodded to Renkotsu that he should continue.
"So, I took Jakotsu there, and that's when everything went to hell. Naraku never intended to talk to either of us- he just used me to get Jakotsu as his hostage so Bankotsu would talk. After finding that out, I tried to get Jakotsu out of there, but I just got shot. And that's all I know."
Kagura edged forward then, Suikotsu still struggling somewhat and cursing in Japanese. "And how do we know that you are telling us the truth, eh?"
"You'll just have to take my word, but even those two can attest that I do have a bullet wound from Naraku," Renkotsu retorted.
I looked back over at Kagura, who was having more and more trouble holding Suikotsu still.
"Kuso! Let go of me onna! Shimatta!" The angered-side voice of Suikotsu yelled.
Obviously seeing the distraction Suikotsu was making as an opening; Renkotsu drew his gun and was aiming for Kagura. I quickly shifted Bankotsu's own gun at him and pointed mine at Renkotsu. I bit my lip and fired.
Please, hit the right spot… I thought to myself as the bullet shot forth.
Renkotsu's gun skidded to the ground and Kagura delivered a kick to his stomach as she turned to run.
"Let's go, now!" She yelled. I quickly followed, figuring I could give Bankotsu his gun back the next time he was at the office.
Renkotsu quickly recovered his weapon and began to fire at us.
"Hey, you have two guns girl- use them damnit!" Kagura called over to me as we ran.
I looked with apprehension to the other gun, and sighed, Okay…here goes nothing…
Turning slightly as I ran, and dodging the bullets headed our way, I aimed both guns and fired behind us. One bullet grazed Renkotsu's leg; the other hit his gun away again. Using what little time that gave us, Kagura and I ran like hell and finally got to the car.
Apparently, Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha had seen the situation and had gotten to the car and pulled it closer. The tires squealed as they sharply turned the corner, and we piled into the car and floored it.
I practically jumped into the back seat, as the bullets echoed behind me. It was only after we'd turned around the corner and had gone around a few more streets that I noticed my position.
"Um…err...Kagome, could you move?" Inuyasha squeaked out, his face bright red.
Leave it to me to get off some superb gunshots, then go and land face first in my partner's crotch when jumping into the car.
Blushing furiously, I removed myself and sat upright.
"Uh…sorry about that…" I stammered.
"Should I stop so Kagura can move up into the front seat and let you two be?" The calm voice of Sesshoumaru intoned from the driver's seat.
"Hey! We aren't doing anything like that!" Inuyasha spluttered.
Kagura just smirked, "Yeah, you weren't doing anything yet…"
"Shut up! You're stupid!" He retorted.
I sighed, "Guys, can we please just drop this…" I was still incredibly embarrassed by my little blunder.
The car went silent for a while, until Kagura spoke up.
"Who taught you how to shoot, Kagome? That was really awesome back there."
I shrugged, "Learned the same as everyone else at the Academy, guess I'm just lucky or something."
"She used to be horrible," Inuyasha muttered, "Couldn't hit the target no matter how hard she tried."
"You weren't much better back then!" I snapped back.
The minor argument continued for a few minutes, and then we returned to silence.
This time, Inuyasha was the one that spoke up, "So, do you think he was telling us the truth?"
"There's no way to know for sure, but it was the same story he'd told to Bankotsu before so, it is possible he really didn't know of Naraku's true intentions," I replied.
"And saying Naraku shot him isn't that far-fetched either. Especially since it seemed he was trying to get Jakotsu out of there," Kagura added.
"Your client doesn't trust him at the moment, so going by that judge of character, it would be best if we remained skeptical on his actions," Sesshoumaru said calmly.
"We should probably go get Rin." Kagura said leaning up towards the front seat, "Sesshoumaru, just keep driving and I'll tell you where to turn at, okay?"
He nodded mutely in response.
We finally arrived at Sango's house, and were surprised to see that the lights were on. Considering the time it was, that seemed really strange, and made me a bit apprehensive as we parked.
The three others behind me, I approached the door and knocked lightly. I heard Sango's voice murmur something, and finally the door opened.
I blinked twice and stifled a laugh.
Kagura laughingly spoke, "Poor kid looks like he's become victim to a Rin-style makeover."
Kohaku blanched and blushed, "Ah! Now other people have to see me like this. I'm going to my room!"
Rin followed, "But Kohaku, I still needed to do your eye shadow!"
Sango turned to us, laughing a bit herself, "So how'd things go?"
"Good," I stated simply, "And I take it Rin's been keeping you up?"
"Yeah, she made a slumber party of it. I can go get her if you need to go."
"It is late," Kagura said, "She really does need to get some sleep."
Sango nodded, and went to retrieve the little girl. Rin came back, practically bouncing, and smiling widely.
"Did you have fun beating up the bad guys?" She asked cheerfully.
Kagura smiled, "Sure kid, now let's get you home."
"Awww, but I was having lots of fun playing with Kohaku!"
"Rin," Sesshoumaru said simply.
"Okay, I'll come- just let me say goodbye to Kohaku," she replied dejectedly.
About then, Kohaku, who'd apparently rid himself of the makeup, had stuck his head back out his bedroom door.
Rin rushed over, "Bye, bye Kohaku! I'll miss you. We'll have to play again some other time. Night!" She said hugging him.
Kohaku blushed slightly, "Uh…goodnight Rin."
With that matter attended to, Rin skipped back over to us, "Okay, I can go now."
Sesshoumaru nodded, and turned to leave.
"I think that was a 'thanks,'" I whispered to Sango in regards to the nod.
Sango smiled, "Don't worry, she wasn't a problem at all. And don't hesitate to have her come over again while you're working on the case."
"Okay, thanks again." I replied, as we turned to leave.
After driving back to the office, Kagura had agreed to help me write down our conversation with Renkotsu really quick before they left for the night. We walked up to the office, and right as I went to unlock the door I heard a piece of paper crumple beneath my shoes.
I bent down and picked it up.
"Neh, what's that?" Inuyasha questioned.
I skimmed the paper, and turned back to him, "It's another note from 'X.'"
"Note?" Kagura inquired.
"Yeah, I'll explain once we get inside." I replied turning the key in the lock.
Once in, I switched on the nearby lamp and took a better look at the paper. Just like the one before, a small index card had a cryptic message of sorts on it.
"It reads, 'He is not who he appears to be, but you can still save him. Save them both.' And signed just 'X' again." I commented to Inuyasha.
"What's this about?" Kagura asked leaning over to look at it.
"We'd gotten another mysterious letter like this before. Similar message and signed the same."
"Seems someone wants you to help without asking you in person," Sesshoumaru remarked.
"I'm still confused as to which person or persons they talk about though. Both notes say we need to 'save them both' but aside from Jakotsu, I can't think of anyone else that's been reported missing." I replied, still very perplexed.
"'He is not who he appears to be.'" Kagura read, "Could it be that Suikotsu guy? With the two sides?"
"You thinking he might still be mixed up in this somehow?" Inuyasha retorted.
"Well there was that issue about the ring…" I muttered aloud, thinking it over.
"Ring?" Sesshoumaru calmly asked.
"At the alley where Jakotsu's hairpin was at, we found a scrap of white cloth and a gold ring. When we mentioned the ring around Suikotsu- at first he demanded that we give it to him. He really seemed to want it for some reason, and when questioned further, he mentioned it had something to do with a promise he'd made to Jakotsu and that Bankotsu shouldn't know about it."
"Could the ring be the heirloom Naraku wants?" Inuyasha propositioned.
I went to the drawer and pulled out the item in question, and looked at it, "It seems just like a normal gold ring though. What's so special about it?"
"Wait a second; Suikotsu doesn't want Bankotsu to know about it, right?" Kagura questioned.
"That's the impression he gave to me, he said the ring would upset Bankotsu," I replied.
"Is it possible that during the heist Suikotsu took the heirloom- the ring in this scenario- and Jakotsu saw him? Then, for some other reason, Bankotsu didn't want them to steal that ring. Perhaps, Bankotsu knew it would cause troubles with Naraku and had told them to leave the ring be; but Suikotsu, perhaps in part to his various personalities, took it anyway. That would explain, one- the promise with Jakotsu to keep quiet about it, two- why it would anger Bankotsu, and three- why he'd want it back."
I stopped and thought on all that Kagura had just said, "It seems possible- except for one thing. Jakotsu in the tapes of his conversation with Naraku said he didn't know where the heirloom was. So unless he was lying or he didn't see Suikotsu take it, it can't be that. Either way though, it's something to keep in mind."
"Hmm... well, we'd better be getting Rin to bed," Kagura remarked seeing the small girl dozing in Sesshoumaru's arms as he stood by the door.
"I understand, just let us know if anything comes up. And see if you can figure anything out when you're at Naraku's tomorrow."
"I will. You two just keep up the way you've been dealing with Bankotsu. Him and his connection with the other members might be just what we need to solve this."
I nodded in return and led them out. We really should have sat down and dealt with some things better, but it was very late and we were all tired. I waved goodbye to them as they went down to their car and Inuyasha just muttered to his half-brother.
"I'll be home once we finish up stuff here- if I feel like it."
Sesshoumaru just quirked an eyebrow and replied, "I'll make sure to lock all the deadbolts then."
As their car drove off down the street, I looked to the pile of papers atop my desk and sighed, "I'm too tired to deal with this now, let's just worry about it tomorrow."
"Let me at least get you a bandage for that cut before you go home," I heard Inuyasha say very quietly.
"Cut?" I asked confused.
"On your arm, there's a small cut," He replied pulling out the first-aid kit and digging around in it.
I looked to where it was, and sure enough, there was a small cut on my arm and a tiny amount of blood trickling down from the wound.
Inuyasha snatched up a tissue and blotted at it. "Okay, this should work..."
Just then a knock sounded on the door and a voice came from the other side.
"Kagome? Inuyasha? I saw the light on and thought you'd still be here," The distinct voice of Bankotsu called out.
"The door's open," I replied.
I turned slightly to see him come in, while Inuyasha was still trying to get the bandage secured. Bankotsu paused a second, then smirked slyly.
"Did I interrupt something?"
"Shut up, you!" Inuyasha snapped, "She just has a cut and I'm just putting something on it. That's all, okay?"
"Touchy," He remarked in reply.
I just laughed nervously as the two glared at each other.
"Bankotsu, sorry about that last minute stunt earlier," I said once Inuyasha had finished getting the bandage on.
"It's okay. Though, I would like my gun back."
"Oh of course," I said picking it up off my desk and handing it back.
"And don't worry about Renkotsu. I've got him staying with Kyoukotsu and Ginkotsu until this is all over. They'll alert me if he tries anything."
"That's good."
"Um..." He rubbed the back of his head nervously, "If it wouldn't be too much trouble, could I stay here again tonight?"
"Of course. We don't mind at all."
"If Kagome stays, I'm staying," Inuyasha said firmly.
"Fine with me," He shrugged and went to sit on the couch. He pulled out his cell phone and blinked, "A message?" He hit a few buttons and listened.
His eyes went wide, and he handed the phone to me, "Kagome, you should hear this."
I took the phone and hit the repeat. A fuzzy and distorted message began, "Bankotsu, this is Jakotsu. I'm borrowing Musou's phone and it's running low on power, but I need to tell you something important. Whatever you do, don't trust..." The message crackled, and the last thing I heard was, "...kotsu" before the phone had gone dead.
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Preview for Chapter 10:
Jakotsu's distorted message was a warning, but which of the five members of the gang is the one they should be looking out for? And is the gold ring truly the heirloom that Naraku seeks?