As Kirara raced through the air above the trees, Miroku was glad he and Sango had so recently taken time to practice for just such an occasion. Moving at great speed and at such a height was disorienting, to say the least, and he would rather risk Sango's ire on a practice run than in the heat of the moment. This way, they had been able to manage it smoothly and swiftly enough to escape before Sesshoumaru could recover from Toutousai's attack. And he'd succeeded in not irritating Sango by accidentally putting his hands anywhere they weren't wanted.
They probably didn't have long before Sesshoumaru would be on their trail again, but at least the quick escape afforded them some breathing room and a much-needed opportunity to ask Toutousai some questions. The old man had been pretty cagey about his true purpose in showing up when he did, and then instigating a fight between the brothers, but at least he'd proved useful for a quick retreat. Unlike some members of their group, he seemed to have some idea of when retreat and regroup was a viable strategy.
"Toutousai, you pretend you're a helpless old man, but you're actually really strong, aren't you?" Kagome asked after they had been flying a while in tense silence.
"Indeed," Miroku chimed in, finding that it was better to look over toward the others than down at the ground far below, "and quite brave, too, to step in to defend Inuyasha like that."
"I didn't need defending in the first place."
"This is not at all what I hoped for," Toutousai said mournfully. "Who'd have thought Inuyasha would be so weak?"
"Hey!" Inuyasha protested.
Toutousai continued as if the hanyou hadn't said anything. "And Sesshoumaru called the blade I made for him blunt and useless." Inuyasha pounded the old man's head with an angry fist. "That hurts, you know," Toutousai told him.
"Yeah, well, just thought I'd prove that I'm not weak."
"Say, um," Kagome piped up, diverting the conversation before Inuyasha could cause any more damage to Toutousai's skull. "Do you think we could go get my bike? I wouldn't want to leave it behind…"
Inuyasha made a derisive sound at that, but Toutousai didn't seem to mind the detour. As Kirara moved to follow in the flying ox's wake, Miroku started to feel like was getting the hang of the whole flying thing. As long as he didn't look down, anyway. Even Sango noticed it.
She looked at him over her shoulder. "You're improving quickly," she told him. "It's not so bad to travel like this, is it?"
"It has its perks," he agreed, though he decided not to tell her that one of the perks was the close-up view of her back—and backside—their proximity afforded him. He might not be allowed to touch, but he could still appreciate the luscious curves so close at hand.
Even the thought of it had his hand itching to caress her bottom… but he had a feeling she would not react positively to his touch, especially not at the present moment, so he put that urge aside for later. He would risk her ire later, when there was less chance of an angry response resulting in a fall to his death.
They flew on after retrieving Kagome's bicycle from where she had stashed it earlier, traveling quite a distance before settling down again on the edge of the forest. Toutousai immediately busied himself gathering stones and fallen branches to build a fire pit, then disappeared into the forest, leaving his three-eyed ox with Miroku and the others without so much as a word of explanation.
Inuyasha gave a "hmph!" and tucked his hands into his sleeves. "Where does he think he's going?" he muttered. "I'm not gonna just stand here and babysit his cow!"
"I think perhaps we ought to see if we can learn more from Toutousai before we part ways," Miroku suggested mildly. "After all, this is the first time we've encountered someone that could tell us anything about the Tessaiga… or about your brother's sword. We may never get another opportunity such as this."
Sango agreed. "The monk's right. If Sesshoumaru is going to continue being an enemy, we need to learn all we can. Let's wait and see what we can find out when he returns."
"Bah," Inuyasha scoffed. "If he returns."
"He'll return," Miroku said, pitching his voice to sound as bland as possible. Inuyasha shot him an annoyed look, but he refused to allow it to disrupt his serenity. "Why would he build a fire pit, if he didn't intend to return?"
"Whatever." Inuyasha dropped to the ground to sit, glaring at the fire pit.
"Moreover," Miroku went on, "I think Kagome-sama should be the one to ask."
"'Scuse me?" Inuyasha was back on his feet in an instant.
Miroku made a placating gesture with his hands. "She's had more success than you in getting the old man to talk, so far."
"This isn't Kagome's problem. It's mine."
"It's all of our problem, as long as we're in this together." Kagome finally waded into the fray. She added, "I don't mind asking questions. I'm curious anyway!"
"Fine. Do what you want." He left them then, walking off a short distance to sulk on his own. Kagome fell quiet, too. She never liked it when Inuyasha was upset like this. Of course, it was probable that none of them liked when Inuyasha was upset, because he tended to act so churlish, but it hit Kagome particularly hard.
Toutousai returned a while later with the cleaned carcass of an animal he had killed in tow, and proceeded to spit it and place it over the fire pit. The addition of the same fiery breath he'd used on Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru soon set it to cooking.
Kagome approached while he was thus distracted. "Hey, Toutousai," she began, "can I ask you something?"
"Don't see why not," the old man mused. He seemed to be in a better mood now that he'd escaped Sesshoumaru's wrath and obtained a snack.
"If the Tenseiga is so blunt, couldn't you just sharpen it for him instead of making a new sword?"
"The sword isn't blunt. It's a sword that doesn't cut. There's a difference."
"A sword that can't cut?" Inuyasha asked, skepticism evident in his voice. "How are you supposed to fight with something like that?"
Toutousai snorted derisively. "You don't fight with a sword like Tenseiga. The Tenseiga is a sword of healing." He paused to blow fire breath over the spitted beast again. The aroma of roasting meat wafted through the air. "Unlike the Tessaiga, which was created to bring down the strong, Tenseiga is a sword that protects the life of the weak."
Sango perked up at that. Miroku could see hope spark to life in her eyes. "You don't mean that it can restore someone to life, do you?"
Oh, Sango, he thought, even if Sesshoumaru had such power, I don't think he would ever be willing to use it to restore your kin.
"If you master it," Toutousai said. "For one with a true heart, one swing of the Tenseiga can save a hundred lives."
Inuyasha snorted. "I get it now. No wonder that asshole's been looking for a new sword. The one he's got mustn't do him any good."
"Maybe giving the Tenseiga to Sesshoumaru was a mistake," Toutousai admitted. The old man actually sounded a little rueful about that.
"With the personality he has? Definitely," Miroku agreed.
Kagome's gaze was fixed on the old man. "He must be really angry that the sword won't work for him."
"Indeed," Toutousai agreed sagely. "That's why you all should steer clear of him for a while. He won't like it one bit that Inuyasha still has the Tessaiga."
"We should steer clear of him? What about you?" Kagome asked.
"Hmm?" The old man was no longer paying attention to Kagome, or any of the others. His attention was fixated on the roasting meat over the fire. He breathed his fire breath over it one last time and, apparently judging it ready, all but inhaled the entire roast, bones and all.
Miroku stared at the now-empty fire pit, feeling vaguely dismayed.
"All right," Toutousai said, apparently reinvigorated by his large meal. "Time to go."
"You're leaving?" Kagome asked.
"I'd hoped to rely on Inuyasha for protection, but I just don't think he can beat his brother," the old man explained. "I'll just have to fend for myself."
"But…"
"Ignore him," Inuyasha suggested. "We don't need an old fart like him tagging along, anyway."
Kagome frowned.
Toutousai dismounted and stalked over to Inuyasha. "Give it back," he ordered.
"Give what back, geezer?"
"The Tessaiga. You aren't able to use it properly. I'll destroy it so it can't fall into Sesshoumaru's hands."
"No way!" Inuyasha snapped. Before anyone could stop him, he'd punched Toutousai so hard the old man crumpled to the ground. He was a youkai, not a human, so he was probably okay, but such a forceful blow was excessive even for Inuyasha.
While Kagome tried to placate the outraged hanyou, Toutousai picked himself up off the ground and beat a hasty retreat. In moments, his ox youkai had carried him away and out of sight.
"Think we'll ever see him again?" Sango asked, stepping up next to Miroku.
"I doubt it," he decided. "He seems to have made up his mind about Inuyasha's potential, or lack thereof." It occurred to him to add, "Now, Inuyasha's brother, on the other hand… I think we'll see him again. And probably sooner rather than later, if he thinks he really has a chance to win the Tessaiga from Inuyasha."
"You may be right about that," she agreed. "But if he does return, what should we do? If Inuyasha still hasn't mastered the Tessaiga by then…"
It would be a bad situation indeed if that were to occur. Fortunately, Miroku thought it likely that it would be a while yet before they encountered Sesshoumaru again. He could have given chase immediately, after all, but there had been no sign of him yet. He might not be in any real hurry to push whatever advantage he thought he had.
"What's the hold up?" Inuyasha demanded. It seemed he and Kagome were already starting down the road. "Let's get going, already!"
Miroku shared an exasperated glance with Sango, who stifled a giggle, and the two of them fell in behind their friends.