I am so sorry that I have not updated in forever! I'm so so so so so very sorry! Please believe me! I was very busy with school and different things like that. I apologize.

IMPORTANT: I'm going to leave out a very important detail, and I promise that it's for a good reason. Just trust me people!

Chapter 5

I don't own Inuyasha

"No one believes me!" Akira couldn't stop crying. Her parents were gone. They just disappeared and no one believed a word that she was saying. The police didn't know what to make of it and her uncle didn't seem to trust what she said either. "Mama! Papa!" Alone in her uncle's car she waited for some kind of news about her parents, but no one had anything to say. For all she knew, her parents could be dead. Though she tried not to think of that possibility, what else could she think about?

"Uncle?" Suno entered his limo, after three hours of keeping his niece waiting. "Why did we have to come back here?"

"Are you afraid of this shrine now?" He had a tiny shred of sympathy for the girl. She was his niece after all.

"My parents disappeared here! I don't ever want to come back here again!" She wiped her eyes. "I hate this place!"

Suno looked around to make sure that no one else was around the car. No one else could know the truth about what happened. They were luckily alone. "I know you think that I don't believe you Akira, but I do."

Akira gasped from unbelief. "You do?" She had been ignored so much; she was beginning to think that what she had seen was all a bad dream. "You really believe me, uncle Suno?"

"Yes, because I know that your parents are able to go through the well." He had an angry expression on his face. He always knew his brother was a fool and suspected that someday Ikuto would go back down the well. Once he saw that Akira noticed he was upset, he tried to hide it, for her sake. "They're probably fine..."Akira began to smile, but Suno didn't see a point in lying to the poor girl."...but they might be in trouble."

"Then you've got to help them!" She grabbed on to her uncle's lapel in a panic. "My parents need you!"

"Only they can go through the well, Akira." He carefully removed her shaking hands from his clothes. "There's nothing we can do but wait for them to return."

"But..." Her lips began to quiver and she began to lose the hope that she had. She once again began to cry, which annoyed her uncle, but he did try to be patient with her. She was a child and he did know how it felt to lose a parent, or rather both of them. She hoped they wouldn't have to mourn hers' as well.

"Akira, we can't let anyone know about what they can do. I don't want you to say any more about this, and I most certainly am not going to tell the press or the police about this. It's bad enough that I have to figure out some type of cover once they come back."

Akira could see that her uncle was saddened, but he seemed to be mad that they went through the well. "They went so that woman wouldn't shoot me."

"I know..." 'And that's what troubles me most of all. There's only one thing this could be about. This has got to be about the Shikon Jewel.' "I'm sure they'll be back when they can and I'm certain that they'll be safe. We've just got to be patient with them."

With those words of comfort, Akira grabbed a hold of her uncle and wept on his chest. "I know they'll be okay, but I'll miss them."

This girl was now his responsibility. He couldn't let her down. "All will end well, Akira. Don't stress yourself over it." 'At least, I hope it will all end well. To say that I completely trust my brother would be a lie.'

"Ikuto?" Kagome saw that he had been returned to normal, but he was hurt. "I'm coming for you!" She ran to his side, so afraid for his life. He was breathing, but barely. "Will you be alright?"

He opened his eyes and gently smiled at her. "You really showed them Kagome. I didn't know you had it in you. You really impressed me, Kagome." He reached up to touch her face. "Kagome...I..." He wished he felt better so he could embrace her. He couldn't help but feel as if he should. 'She's so beautiful. She's...' "Kagome..."

"You don't have to say anything, Ikuto."

That name again. She said Ikuto, again. 'Oh yeah. I'm not me. I'm him. He's the one she cares about. It's not me she wants.' He forced himself to get up, even though it hurt so badly. "Why do I get the feeling that this isn't over?"

"Because it's not. Ikuzi didn't have the jewel. Izuki must."

"Izuki?" Inuyasha forced himself to stand, but Kagome couldn't recover that fast. "You okay?"

"Whatever I did took a lot out of me. I don't think I can stand right now."

He reached out his hand in order to help her. "Come on Kagome. We've still got to find—" A white light suddenly hit Inuyasha and knocked him back into a tree. "Ahhhhhhh!" He was in such agonizing pain that he could hardly stand it. He could feel his skin burning, and it had never burned like this pain before.

"Inuyasha!"

"Ahhhhh!" His whole body was burning and he had never felt such a power like that. Sesshoumaru had burned him with poisonous claws many times, but this was worse. Inuyasha felt like his very soul was on fire. 'Am I being purified?' Once the light dissipated, he fell to his knees and struggled to have air enter into his lungs, which was a hard struggle indeed.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome suddenly found the strength to run to his side. "Inuyasha!" He was coughing up blood and his body was smoking. His pupils were dilated and his fingers were twitching. "Inuyasha?" He was beginning to become very pale and his eyes were bloodshot. He looked like death. "Oh no..." She had no knowledge of what to do. The only thing she could do was hold his head in her arms and begin to cry. "Inuyasha? Please don't die on me! Don't leave me!"

"Ka...Ka...gome?" He was wheezing and gasping for air, so painfully. "Ka..."

"Don't speak. Just try to breathe. Just..." He fell into her arms, unable to keep up on his own. "Please don't leave me. I can't..." His eyes were dimming. "Don't leave me. I can't do this on my own."

"Why are you..." he coughed up blood right on her chest. He was a mess, and he probably wasn't going to survive. "...calling me Inu..."

'Why am I calling him Inuyasha?' "Ikuto? You're back to normal?" She could see his eyes flashing from gold to brown. "No! You're being purified! If your demonic blood goes away, you'll die from your wounds!" She didn't know how to save him. 'There's only one way I can think of...' She needed the Shikon Jewel.

"This is so touching..."

Kagome gently sat her husband down and turned around to face her opponent. "Izuki!"

"That's my name." Her smug smirk soon disappeared though and turned into a scowl, with a ravenous blood lust. "You killed my sister!"

"And you're killing my husband!"

"Well, then you can join him when you die!"

Kagome blinked and Izuki was right in front of her. Once she blinked again, she was on the ground in pain, lying next to her husband. "She's too strong." She reached over to touch her husband. "What should I do, Ikuto? I don't know how to protect you."

"You can't protect him," Izuki assured, "the only thing you can do is die with him!" She grabbed Kagome by the hair and held her up. "Now is the time for you to die, girl. Now you die!"

Kagome didn't have a doubt that Izuki would succeed at that moment, until she saw that Shikon Jewel hanging around her neck. "It's not over!" Kagome grabbed the jewel in an attempt to steal it, but Izuki grabbed it first.

"You silly little girl. You can't defeat me."

"I would rather destroy this jewel then let you or your evil sister have it!"

"It was only my sister who desired the jewel. My only reason for keeping the jewel is to make you absolutely miserable." She threw Kagome into a nearby tree and began to laugh sinisterly, as Kagome began to pass out.

'It can't let it end this way. I can't…'

"Miss Kagome?"

"What?" Kagome opened her eyes and told herself that she had to be in Hell. She just had to be. There was no way she and Ikuto could have possibly survived their ordeal with Izuki. Yet, somehow, she was alive. There were no signs of the other world. There was simply a smiling young woman in front of her. The young woman was too pretty and innocent looking to be the reaper, so Kagome had to be alive. "Did you rescue me?"

The girl smiled widely and nodded her head. "Do you remember me?"

Kagome's full vision began to come back, but she still couldn't put her finger on who this girl was. "Uh…sorry…I…" Then Kagome looked beyond the girl and a little farther down was a very familiar face. "Sesshoumaru?" It was Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha's older half brother. He looked exactly the same that he did from years ago. So did Jaken, who was standing right beside him. There was only one person missing then, which meant that the girl standing in front of her had to be Rin. "Is that you, Rin?"

"You are correct!" She had really grown up. She was mature all around. Her face was so innocent, but her eyes told a different story though. She wasn't exactly the same Rin as before. She was different. She didn't look so innocent in the eyes, and though she was a thin girl, her body didn't look defenseless, especially with a sword hanging from her sash. "I've missed you very much, Kagome."

"I've missed you…" Her mind really was blown away. 'She still is hanging around with Sesshoumaru for all these years?' Kagome looked at Sesshoumaru and bowed her head in respect. "Thank you very much for saving me."

"It wasn't me" was his cold reply. "It was Rin who saved you."

'That's odd…' "And how did you manage that?"

"She said she was a priestess, but she couldn't hurt me because I'm a human."

"But Izuki was still strong!"

"Yeah, but I guess she couldn't fight as good as me, so when I started beating her, she left very quickly."

"I see…"

"Lord Sesshoumaru did save your friend over there." Rin was pointing behind Kagome, so she quickly turned around.

"Ikuto!" Kagome was about to run towards him at full speed, but she stopped herself once she heard him growling. "Ikuto?" He sounded just like a rapid dog. "Are you okay?" She decided to finally stand and approach him slowly. "It's over now. We're going to be alright."

"Don't come any closer or I'll rip you apart!" Kagome jumped back at his words. It didn't sound like a threat. Nor did it sound like he was concerned for her safety. It was just a fact, a fact that he stated angrily. He really was ready to kill Kagome at that moment. He was sitting alone with his back against a tree, trying to keep a hold of himself at all costs. He couldn't though. He didn't know how.

"What's the matter with him?"

"I was hoping you could answer that, woman." Sesshoumaru approached Kagome, with the same distaste he always had for her. "I remember you. You are Inuyasha's woman."

Kagome slowly nodded. "What about it?"

"He died, and I brought him back to life with my Tenseiga."

"You…you did what?" She couldn't believe he would do such a thing. Every time the two brothers were together, they would fight. It was clear that Inuyasha didn't like Sesshoumaru, and it always seemed the same way for Sesshoumaru…"I thought you hated Inuyasha. Why would you bring him back to life."

"That boy is not Inuyasha, nor is he a real demon. It was not the Tenseiga's will to bring this boy back to life, but it was the Tetsusaiga's."

Kagome noticed that Sesshoumaru had three swords instead of simply having two. 'I guess the barrier protecting the Tetsusaiga from the clutches of demons is gone since Inuyasha is dead.' "Even so, why would you bring him back?"

"I simply wanted to understand the boy, that's all."

"Then why didn't you ask him. Why are you talking to me now?"

"The boy can't do anything but make threats. Soon he'll snap completely and destroy you. He's in no condition to answer my questions. Now tell me who this boy is. I wish to know why the Tetsusaiga reacts so strongly to him. I wish to know why he bares such a strong resemblance to Inuyasha."

'I wonder how he'll take it.' There was no telling how Sesshoumaru would take this unusual news. It should have been obvious who the boy was. It was the rest of the information that she thought he'd deny. How could she tell Sesshoumaru that he was reincarnated as well? Sesshoumaru probably expects to live more than 500 years into the future. She wondered what would happen that could actually kill the great demon Lord Sesshoumaru. 'The whole truth might make him upset, and he really doesn't need to know that much. I won't tell him about Suno.' "This boy who can't control himself is a human. He was turned into a demon by two evil sisters." Sesshoumaru's interest wasn't sparked yet. "I don't know how, but that's what happened." He still didn't show too much interest. "This boy is Inuyasha's reincarnation, Ikuto."

That was enough, though. "His reincarnation?"

Kagome nodded. Sesshoumaru seemed a bit surprised, something she wasn't used to seeing, but it quickly ceased. The slight bit of surprise went away within an instant. "Just as I am a reincarnation of Kikyou, he is a reincarnation of Inuyasha."

He wasn't satisfied with just that. "But simply being a reincarnation shouldn't be enough. Demon blood doesn't exist within his soul. It's a matter of blood."

"Of blood?" Kagome hadn't really thought too much about it. 'He has a point. Ikuto is now a half demon. Having Inuyasha's soul shouldn't be enough for that, though. He has to have some type of blood relation to have dog demon blood, and I know Inuyasha doesn't have any offspring. That only leaves one person…' Kagome looked up at Sesshoumaru. "Oh wow…"

"Wow what?" Jaken asked with frustration. He certainly didn't understand why his Lord had so much curiosity towards Inuyasha's reincarnation. Sesshoumaru seemed to despise Inuyasha. Why should anything with his reincarnation be different?

"He has to be your descendent…" Kagome saw the look of anger flash in his eyes, but she also caught something else in Rin's. Rin looked as if her heart skipped a beat.

"Does that mean that somewhere down the line that your demon blood will mix with a human's?" Rin's voice sounded so…so hopeful.

"That's impossible!" Jaken yelled. "Lord Sesshoumaru would never!"

All eyes were on Sesshoumaru now. He couldn't believe such a thing would happen, but how was he to control the fate of his bloodline? He was only responsible for his actions. "You and the male human are, from my understanding, from the future?"

Kagome gave a nod. "500 years to be exact."

"I see." He had no more to say, no more to ask, and no more information to be gained. He knew why the Tetsusaiga was acting up lately. It was because of the reincarnation, his supposed descendant. "Let's go."

"But…" Kagome knew by experience that she couldn't stop Sesshoumaru from leaving. He did what he wanted. 'What should I do?'

"Wait!" Ikuto barked.

All were surprised. He had been growling the whole time, struggling to simply gain control of himself. "I…" He forced himself to stand up, but he had to force himself from taking the next step. He wanted to kill Kagome and the rest of them. It was something that was in his blood. It was something he couldn't control. "I want to know how to stop this from happening to me." He was shaking from the hurting. It hurt to fight the urge to destroy them. "I'm in so much pain, and I can't help it. How do I make it stop?"

Sesshoumaru saw the desperation in his eyes. Ikuto really did look like Inuyasha. The only real difference was the skin color. There used to be other differences, but because of the demon blood, he looked just like a half breed dog demon. "You were not born with that much demon blood. You merely had a drop in you, and nothing more. Now you have too much. You can't control the blood coursing through your veins, and soon you'll destroy and keep destroying, until you destroy yourself. Then, your soul will be devoured." He wasn't saying those words to be cruel, but simply because it was the truth.

"But the Tetsusaiga will keep him from doing those things!" Kagome knew what she was about to ask was a long shot, but she had to try.

Unfortunately for her, Jaken already knew what she was about to ask. "No way will Lord Sesshoumaru ever give up the Tetsusaiga! He has worked too hard for it!"

"But…"

Ikuto didn't care about the sword. He just didn't want to kill his wife. He just wanted to control the demon blood long enough to even have the chance to get back to normal. "I can't take the chance of hurting Kagome. To me, she's just a target right now, and I don't want to think like that."

"And what would you have me do?"

Ikuto couldn't believe he was about to ask this, but he had no other choice. The fate of his wife and himself rested on his ancestor, a demon Lord, who despised the very thought of his descendant. "Train me."

"Do what?" Kagome's mouth dropped at the odd request. "You want him to do what?" 'Sesshoumaru would never agree! And why would Ikuto even ask such a thing? Is he insane?'

"Train me!" he said much more demanding. He wasn't asking. He was telling Sesshoumaru to do it. "Help me overcome this. I need to."

"It's not my responsibility," Sesshoumaru assured him, "nor do I have the patience."

"You can't help me, but you can train a little girl to fight so good that she nearly killed Izuki?"

Sesshoumaru remembered teaching Rin. She was completely obedient and very determined, so she of course picked up on things very fast. Though he didn't want to admit it to himself, he would always be there to save her, but there was no point in her being completely helpless. He wouldn't let her die, but why even give her the chance to get hurt? So she was taught. She watched so much that she already knew what to do, and she was in a good physical condition already. Ikuto was asking for something else though. He didn't want to know how to fight. He wanted to know how to contain the demon that was within him. How was demon Lord Sesshoumaru supposed to teach a thing like that?

"You're the only one who can help."

"And why is that?"

"Because I'm your descendant right?"

Sesshoumaru didn't answer.

Ikuto had some of Inuyasha's memories. There was a time when he had most of them, but that was long ago, and he tried to fade it away. He never did forget the squabbles Inuyasha had with Sesshoumaru, though. Even though it always appeared to be a fight to the death, Sesshoumaru really wasn't fighting with all of his power. Inuyasha was more like a joke to Sesshoumaru. Inuyasha couldn't realize something like that, but Ikuto could. Ikuto knew that Inuyasha always tried to destroy Sesshoumaru, but Sesshoumaru never really wanted to kill his brother. And when Inuyasha was losing his soul, it was Sesshoumaru who stopped him and spared him once again. Sesshoumaru didn't want Inuyasha to lose his soul. Sesshoumaru wanted Inuyasha to know himself, and know his place. "You never wanted Inuyasha to completely lose it right? You didn't want his soul gone…"

Even though Sesshoumaru wouldn't admit it, that statement was true. "We're leaving."

For a brief second, Ikuto was happy.

"You're leaving?" Kagome tried to touch her husband, but he stepped away. "I'm doing this for us, Kagome. We need to find the jewel so I can go back to normal." He seemed so confused. "I remember changing and I remember seeing those creepy women. From then on, I've just had a desire to hurt everything and everyone around me, and I can't go back home like that. I've got to calm down. Then I can look for the jewel."

"But, what about our daughter? We can't just stop for a second!"

"Then go home and I'll get the jewel, Kagome! Don't you think I'm worried about Akira? I'm just worried about you right now too! I'll just hurt you, and I couldn't live with that!"

"You stupid jerk!" she yelled. "I know you won't hurt me! You'd never do something like that. Inuyasha gained control. You can do it too!"

"Why are you bringing him into this?" Ikuto asked violently. "What about that stupid guy?"

"What do you mean…?" No wonder why he was so confused. He didn't know he had a breakdown. He didn't know that he thought he was another person. 'He doesn't remember thinking he was Inuyasha…' "Oh no…" 'He really does have a personality disorder.'

"What is it, Kagome?"

She shook her head. "No, forget it. Just forget about it." 'Maybe it won't happen again.' "Go with Sesshoumaru, but I'm not going home until I have you as a human by my side."

"Kagome, just go home. I'll be fine."

"But I won't…"

He really did want to embrace her, but in his condition, he might slight her throat instead. He'd never take the chance of putting Kagome in danger. That's why he had to go with Sesshoumaru. If Ikuto were to lose it, then Sesshoumaru was the only one who could put him down. "I swear I'll conquer this. I'll come back in three days time, Kagome. I promise I will."

"And I'll be waiting for you, sweetheart."

Ikuto turned around and saw that Sesshoumaru, Rin, and Jaken were almost out of sight. "I've got to go!" He ran after them, and it didn't take long for him to catch up, with his new demon speed.

Kagome could only watch as her husband began to run away from her. This was his way of saving her, and she was grateful. She was still angry though. Maybe they could have gotten through it together. Then again, saying "sit" a bunch of times really wasn't the way to solve the problem. "I love you Ikuto, and I have faith in you." 'Maybe I should have told him about Inuyasha, though. What if he changes back, while he's alone with Sesshoumaru?'

To be continued…

IMPORTANT: I did not describe the battle between Rin and Izuki for one reason! I want her kick butt skills to be revealed at a later time. Sorry, but you shall see that this little girl grew up...

A/N: So what would happen if he changed back into Inuyasha? Will it be another brother battle? And is Rin and Jaken safe with Ikuto, or will he really kill all around him? You're going to have to review so I can update, and I'm really sorry for the wait!