Chapter 29: The Three Trickster Sprites
"Tell me again, WHY are we stomping around in the middle of the wilderness?" Sanosuke asked. The quartet had made their way northwest of Tokyo. Kouga and Shippo, who had been sniffing around the area, sat back on their haunches and glared over at Sanosuke. Saito calmly took a puff from his cigarette as he answered the younger man.
"I know it's hard for you to understand idiot, but we're tracking a youkai. Our two friends say that his smell is all over this forest."
The group had run into a small band of youkai on their way out of Tokyo. They had originally been heading to Kyoto, but were now instead trailing the one surviving youkai from their fight.
Sano and Saito watched as Kouga gingerly sniffed the air before making a face. The wolf growled softly to himself as he suddenly sprang up and stalked over to Saito.
"I can't take it anymore!" Kouga yelled. "That damn smoke stick of yours is stinking up the place!"
Saito glared back at the wolf. This wasn't the first complaint that he'd received from the two youkai. Shippo had already made a failed attempt to steal his cigarettes and plunge them into a river. The former Mibu wolf calmly took a deep inhale of smoke before blowing it back out at Kouga.
An irritated Kouga bared his fangs at Saito and Sano warily stepped between them. Normally he'd like to see the two of them fight, but right now he was impatient to keep moving. Besides, he was hungry and wanted to eat.
"Hey! You two can tear each other's throats out later!" Sano was beginning to wonder at the wisdom of his interferrence, but the other two men reluctantly back down. Kouga gave a feh as he turned back to Shippo.
"Find anything yet fox?" he asked.
The kitsune stared thoughtfully into the trees. Something about this area seemed very familiar. Could he have been here before?
It was possible. He'd traveled just about everywhere with Inuyasha and the others when they had been searching for Naraku the first time. So when had he been here? The fox sniffed the air once and realized that he smelled humans.
"Hey Kouga," he started to say. The wolf sniffed the air once before pointing off to his left. His sense of smell was far keener than Shippo's.
"Yeah, I smell it too. Looks like that there's a human village that way."
"Let's go there," Sano suggested. "Maybe they saw something."
"I doubt it," Saito said. "I don't know much about youkai, but I seriously doubt that one would go undisguised into a small human village." Sanosuke glared at him. He was trying to think of something witty to say when his stomach rumbled loudly. Shippo smirked slyly at that.
"Ha, so that's why he wants to go the village," he said.
Sanosuke grumbled at that. Could he help it if he was hungry?
"Pathetic," Saito muttered. Sano glared at him again.
"What'd you say?"
"I said..." the Mibu wolf started again. Shippo butt in between them before another arguement could brew.
"I think it's a good idea," the fox said calmly. "Even if they didn't see him, they might know if anything unusual has been going on." And maybe I can figure out why this place seems familiar.
Saito grunted at that as Sanosuke gave a victorious grin. Kouga muttered to himself as he reluctantly led the way to the village.
"Fine," the wolf growled. "But you'd better not take long. Got that rooster?" Sanosuke shot a glare at the wolf and Shippo shook his head. Was he the only sane one around here?
The small group had gone no more than a few steps when both Shippo and Kouga halted abruptly. Sanosuke opened his mouth to say something but the kitsune hushed him. Saito placed a hand on his sword hilt as he waited for an attack to come.
The attack did come. However, it wasn't what any of them were expecting.
Hundreds of flying acorns came hurdling out of the trees at them. Saito was wondering at the strangeness of this assault when he saw a sudden light of recognition flare into Shippo's eyes. The fox whipped out a leaf, which transformed into a large shield to protect them from the attack. Then he halted an irate Kouga before he could go charging at their hidden foe.
"Let me at them fox! They attacked us first!" Kouga protested. Shippo ignored him as he yelled out at the trees.
"Hey! It's me! Shippo! Remember?"
The flying acorns abruptly stopped and the quartet could hear loud whispers coming from within the trees. There appeared to be a heated arguement from their hidden attackers before a squeaky voice finally rang out from the shadows.
"No way! You're too big to be Shippo!"
The fox smirked at that before transforming into a younger version of himself. Then he hopped out into the open and stood there a few seconds before turning back into his adult form. There was another pause from within the trees before three small shapes dropped out from above.
"Shippo!"
"Shippo!"
"Shippo!"
Kouga groaned. Three little monkeys had now attached themselves to the fox. He had a feeling he knew who they were. Miroku had once told him the story, much to Inuyasha's infinite outrage.
"Feh, monkey sprites," he muttered. "You weaklings aren't even worth my time."
"Oh yeah," one taunted. "Well Inuyasha found us to be a formidable foe!"
"Yeah, a formidable foe!" the second second.
"Formidable!" the third echoed.
"Don't compare me with that mutt!" Kouga yelled. "I'm not as lame as that dog breath!"
"You sure about that," Shippo muttered.
"I heard that fox!"
Saito and Sano stared back and forth in surprise before Sanosuke began to laugh. Saito himself smirked as he puffed on his cigarette.
"You three hardly appear to be formidable to me," Saito commented dryly. The three little monkey sprites glared at him before one threw a rock at him. The former Mibu wolf calmly reached out and caught it.
"Please, a stone could hardly hurt..." he started.
"Umm, Saito? I think you should drop it..." Shippo started. The stone doubled in size.
"I guess it's too late now," Kouga smirked. The rock tripled in size.
"Yeah, probably."
Saito and Sanosuke gaped as the rock suddenly turned into a giant boulder. The former Mibu wolf nearly swallowed his cigarette as he fell flat on his face, hand still attached to the rock.
Sano's jaw dropped open as he stared at the giant boulder. The three little monkey sprites began to chatter excitedly as they hopped up on down on the rock. One made the mistake of jumping up and down on Saito's head.
The former Mibu wolf muttered incoherently as he reached up and grabbed it by the tail and brough it to his face.
"What did you do to me?" Saito growled. The little sprite stuck out his tongue at the enraged human.
"I'd let me go if you don't want a boulder on your other hand!" it yelled cheerfully. Saito scowled darkly as he dropped the sprite on it's head. He slowly stood up and tugged on his right hand, but it was stuck fast. Of all the... He heard several snickers behind him and he turned to glare at his three companions.
"Shut up!" Saito yelled in outrage. The two youkai threw their heads began and began to laugh hysterically. Even Sanosuke joined in on it. Damn them all to hell.
"I'll kill you all!" Saito threatened.
"How are you going to do that with your sword hand stuck to a rock?" Kouga taunted. Saito unsheathed his sword with his left hand and waved it furiously at the wolf.
"Come here and find out!"
"Oh shut up Saito. You may be a great fighter for a mortal, but there's no way you're going to be able to drag that thing around!" the wolf smirked.
"Why don't you come over here and say that wolf?" Saito warned. Kouga smirked and jumped onto the boulder and sat down.
"Nice rock you got here human," he laughed. Saito swiped at the youkai with his blade, but Kouga nimbly lept out of the way. Then the wolf kicked the boulder and sent it and Saito rolling down the hill. Shippo sighed and shook his head as he turned to a laughing Sanosuke.
"You know Bird Head," the fox pointed out dryly. "That very easily could have been you."
"But it wasn't," Sano replied. The sounds of a cursing Saito drifted up the hill as Shippo gave another sigh. This was going to be another long day.
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"The oldest trick in the youkai world and you fell for it," Shippo said. Saito muttered darkly before glaring icily at the fox.
"In case you haven't noticed fox, I'm a human," Saito pointed out sarcastically.
"Really? I thought you were supposed to be a wolf."
Saito glared hard at the fox, causing him to smirk. The first thing he had done once the monkey sprites had released him was to chase down Kouga. The wolf youkai had led him on a merry chase through the forest before Saito finally managed to trick him into coming back. Then he had landed a few good blows before pushing him down a steep hill.
"Of course he fell for it, he's a mortal!" one of the monkeys piped up.
"Yeah, a mortal!"
"A mortal!"
"That supposed to mean something?" Saito asked with icy calmness.
"Nope, just that humans are..." another started. Shippo raised an eyebrow.
"Except for Kagome, Miroku and Sango," the third assented.
"And the wolf's about as dumb as Inuyasha," another pointed out. Kouga whipped his head around to bellow at the trio of sprites.
"What'd you say?" he barked. The three little monkeys grinned mischieviously before they turned around and wriggled their rear ends at the irate wolf.
"Beware of evoking the wrath of the monkey god, the monkey god..." they sang.
"The monkey god!"
Whack! Whack! Whack!
Three little monkeys lay in a disorientated heap. An irritated Kouga turned to grin at Saito.
"You want roasted monkeys for dinner?" he asked. Saito gave the three sprites a thoughtful look. Shippo sighed, this was getting them no where.
"Where's your monkey god?" The kitsune finally asked. "I'd like to speak with him. It's very important."
It took the sprites a few moments before they regained their senses. Then they leaped up and puffed out their tiny chests proudly.
"Follow us, we'll lead you to the monkey god!"
"To the monkey god!"
"The monkey god!"
"The monkey who?" Sano asked.
"The monkey god," Saito answered dryly.
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Namu peeked quickly around the corner. Good, no one was watching. The young fox hanyou quietly slipped through an open doorway and down the hall.
Everyone one else was busy, which was why he had chosen now to leave. Amaya and Akio were busy with their daughter and Jaken was moaning yet again about being left behind by Kenshin. Megumi was busy showing his sister some medicinal herbs and explaining their uses.
The young man slipped through another doorway. He wasn't going to be left behind to do nothing. Inuyasha was a hanyou, but everyone respected him because he was strong. Namu had made it a private goal to be as as great a warrior as Inuyasha. Then everyone would have to look up to him and respect him. Especially his father.
Namu halted in the shadows and listened silently. His fox ears twitched, but detected no sounds. The young hanyou hoisted a small bag over his shoulder and lept out of a window. He landed silently and sprinted out of sight.
Unknown to him, a hidden Kirara was watching him from a small ledge. She lept down off the stone wall and began to trail quietly after the determined young man.
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"Hmmmm..."
Sanosuke stared curiously at the ancient spirit in front of them. This creature wasn't anything like the three little sprites. He was calm, quiet, wise...
Strange looking though.
Even Saito and Kouga seemed to have come to the same conclusions. The two wolves had been surprisingly respectful to him after their initial meeting. Shippo had spent some time explaining their situation to the old man, much of which he seemed to have already known. Or guessed.
"It is true," the monkey god admitted. "I have felt a dark shadow growing in my mind for some time. I sense that great evil is at work in both the human world and the youkai world. Something that indeed threatens us all."
"Do you know where Naraku's hiding?" Kouga asked, with barely contained impatience. The monkey god bowed his head in deep thought. The three little sprites looked anxiously at him, but he opened his eyes moments later.
"That remains hidden from me," the ancient spirit answered. "However, I do feel that it's presence lies most strongly to the southwest."
"Most strongly?" Shippo asked. "Then you feel his presence in other places too?"
"Yes, young fox, his taint stretches across the whole of all the islands." The other three gave a start at that.
"Monkey god," Saito finally said. "Are there humans working for Naraku?" There was a pause.
"Yes," the monkey god answered. "Though the ability to see them lies behind even my vision. However, I do not think that most of them do this willingly." Saito brought his hand to his chin in thought before looking at the others.
"You know Naraku better than I do," he said to the youkai. "Is it possible that he has spies in the government?"
"Oh yeah," Kouga answered. "Naraku has connections everywhere, that's how he works."
"He could even have youkai disguised as humans," Shippo pointed out quietly. "I'm a kitsune, I can change my form to whatever I'm want. Other youkai can do that too, not just foxes."
Saito's eyes narrowed at that. Sanosuke clenched his fists together as the full implications of that slowly dawned on him.
"Are you saying that Naraku could be pulling strings behind the government?" he asked.
"No one would be the wiser," Shippo said. "He could already have the whole government under his control."
"But how?" Sano protested. "He hasn't been back long enough for that..."
"Doesn't matter," Shippo answered. "Do you remember that green haired youkai witch, Raizel? She knew about Naraku, that's how he was able to be released. My guess is that he's had several followers waiting for his return, maybe even some incarnations that we didn't know about. If that's true, then this has been in the works for years. Possibly even centuries."
"But with Naraku behind the strings now..." Kouga muttered.
"Then the situation is dire," the fox agreed. "I'm sure that Naraku knows by now of the world that lies outside Japan. I doubt that he'll stop with this country if he gains control. He'll spread himself out into the other lands."
"That can't happen," Saito said. "I won't let him take this country."
"Then I say we get moving," Kouga decided. "We're not doing anything just sitting here."
"What about the youkai we were chasing?" Sano asked.
"Yeah, we can't just let him go," the wolf agreed. "I still owe him for that cut he gave me." He smacked his two fists together.
"You call that a cut?" Shippo asked dryly. It had barely been a scratch.
"Feh, doesn't matter, he still cut me," the wolf said stubbornly. "He's going to pay for that."
"If you are searching for a youkai," the monkey god said. "There was one heading that way." He pointed to the west. "He had an unkindly air about him. I fear for the humans that stand in his path."
"We'll stop him," Saito said and headed out the door.
"Wait," the ancient spirit called out. Saito paused and waited. "There is a faster way," the monkey god continued. "A short way. My sprites can show it to you."
"Right!" the three monkey sprites yelled.
"We can show you!"
"It's this way!"
"This way!"
"I guess that means no monkeys for dinner," Sano muttered. A trio of acorns smacked him in the head.
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Namu paused. Something wasn't right, he was being followed. The young fox hanyou slid into the shadows and waited.
Nothing.
He waited a few more minutes before venturing back out and continuing on his way.
Kirara waited a few minutes more before padding silently through the woods. She was determined to see that the young kit came to no harm.
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Saito eyed the strange door curiously. The three, annoying little sprites had danced on ahead of them, leading them to a large, ancient tree. The three little monkeys had chanted some kind of spell in front of the tree. After a few minutes, delicate, glowing green lines had formed into the shape of a strange doorway on the tree trunk.
Their journey to the strange door had mostly been uneventful. Mostly. Kouga had twice more threatened to eat the little sprites and Sano had tricked by one of them into falling down a hole. Other than that though, everything had gone fine.
"Follow us!" One yelled.
"Yeah, follow us!" The second echoed.
"Follow us!" The third cried.
"Just hurry up before I eat you!" Kouga yelled. Saito smirked as the three sprites pelted the irate wolf with acorns. Shippo sighed, he seemed to have done a lot of that today, before stepping quickly after the three sprites. Sanosuke was the second one to go in.
"I'm not going in there," Kouga growled. Saito smirked and planted a foot into the wolf's back.
"Yes you are," he said. He then kicked Kouga through the doorway and stepped through.
Saito found himself emerging out from another tree, onto a grassy plain. The others were waiting for him. Kouga was lying face first on the ground. The wolf muttered darkly before jumping up and pointing an accusing finger at an amused Saito.
"You...you..." he sputtered. Then Kouga paused and sniffed the air. The wolf suddenly grinned toothfully and sprinted off to the distance.
"I found him!" Kouga yelled. The others watched as the wolf chased down a clearly terrified and surprised youkai. So much for that.
"Let's get going," Shippo sighed. He turned around and stopped in surprise. The three little sprites had disappeared. As had the doorway.
"What the...those wretches!" Shippo yelled. "I'm going to kill those monkeys!"
Saito shook his head as the fox began to curse the small sprites, his red tail swishing in agitation. Apparently even the kitsune could get annoyed. Not that he could blame him. All that Saito or any of the them knew was that they were west of where they had been before. No matter though. They'd find their way.
"I told you we should have listened to Kouga and eaten them, you stupid fox!" Sanosuke yelled.
Saito smirked to himself and lit a new cigarette. This whole venture was turning out to be rather interesting.