A/N: And we're back again! Chapter Fifteen! WOOHOO! Disclaimer will be read by…Hinata!

Hinata: Anno…Aki-chan doesn't own Naruto-kun or Inuyasha. All she owns is this story series and her characters. Naruto is the respectful property of Masashi Kishimoto, and Inuyasha is the respectful property of Takahashi Rumiko. Kyo, Hana, Hakaru, Megumi, Ryouji, Harukichi, Hinoki, Mei Lhi, Mei's handmaidens (A/N: can't think of all their names right now…) Minoru, Tsukimisou, Tsurugi, Haru, and Reika are all the respectful property of Aki-chan, along with this story, as aforementioned. Now Aki-chan has a special message to all her reviewers.

Special Message that everyone must read: Alright, everyone must read this as it is very important to you all. Posts will be on hold. That's right. On hold. Why? Because I say so, dammit! Just kidding. I have school starting September 1st. Posts will be on hold not only to accommodate for my now hectic schedule, but for resettlement into the groove of life that we all wander into during the school session. That includes reprogramming my body clock to wake up earlier, to go to sleep on time, and to learn how to writer legibly (again) and actually work on the more important tasks at hand. Also, I have said many times that I don't have a life. As of now, I have one. I've just recently discovered it, and with this discovery, I find myself very busy and with plenty of distractions. However, once I am resettled comfortably, updates will once again resume in a hopefully regular schedule. But they'll most likely be slow around spring. March, to be specific, as I'll be 15½ years old, and of legal age to get a learner's permit (Oh I'm getting so DAMN OLD! This'll be the second birthday I've had since I registered to this site. And if you're wondering when my birthday is, just count backwards six months from March, and you should get the month after the current one, which is September, and the day being the 23rd.), so I'll be studying like crazy so I can learn how to freaking drive. And Saturdays will probably be out of the question for updates, because I am in marching band and we go to competitions and stay there the entire day. But they're all fun, and I do enjoy it all. Anyways, I will definitely try to update when I can, but I cannot make any promises. Once again, feel free to stop by and drop me a line on my Deviant Art page, or just spam my email inbox with messages at your own leisure. And I know I'm taking up enough space as it is, so sadly, I'll be taking up even more with yet another message for you all to read. Thank you all for your time and another big thank you for taking a few minutes to read this rather depressing message. And now here's the other one, a much shorter one, for you all to read…

Dragon Man, Angie, Riku, Sanosa, Ohiowriter, John Bellamy, Kitten, Kagome's Pup, Inuyashagal, JediMasterAJK, and Eric3D2B, I want to thank all of you for so faithfully sticking by me thick and thin through all this. Also, I've been informed by Riku-chan that we aren't allowed to answer our reviews, and I don't like the idea anymore than you guys do, but this is their site, so therefore I am obligated to obey their rules. But that doesn't mean for you to stop submitting your reviews. As you know, I do read your reviews. What I am suggesting is that review responses can be answered through email. All of you, please do feel free to email me. My email address is available for public view on my profile page, but be sure that when you send me messages, that your displayed sender name or the email subject title is something I can recognize not to delete. I tend to get lots of spam…which is rather annoying. "Free 1-Month trial of Viagra!" Like omg, I'm a friggen girl for Christ's sake! Anyways, I think you get the point, so um…yeah…

And now, Chapter Fifteen.


Chapter Fifteen: Restoration

All around the Western Lands, servants were seen cleaning up the damage done the previous night. Each one worked diligently, intent upon getting the castle and the grounds back to their former spotless condition.

Kagome Higurashi sighed as she swabbed a sodden scrap of cloth over a window frame repeatedly. Inuyasha worked nearby, helping the servants repair one of the many holes in the walls the castle had gained during the skirmish. The young miko woman wiped her forehead, as she watched her mate and the others around him raise a new piece of wall into place. Mei Lhi approached carrying a large water pitcher. The hanyou girl offered some, which the miko gratefully accepted. After the dipper was placed back into the pitcher, Mei Lhi continued on towards her brother and the servants, once again offering the cool liquid. Once again, her offer was accepted and welcomed with open arms.

"Alright, take a break!" Hana called out to them all. "You've been at it all day and if you don't eat anything, you'll all most likely pass out. Summer is upon us, and the days are becoming much warmer, so keep that in mind."

Gratefully, the servants, Inuyasha, Mei Lhi, and Kagome set down their things and followed the miko-youkai back inside the less damaged part of the castle.

-

'That bastard. I'm going to kill him…agghhh…He's lucky I didn't kill him on the spot! Damn him! Damn him to hell!' Reika hissed angrily.

Her room was very dark, and the one window in the room was covered by thick, heavy obsidian drapes. Her purple eyes flashed angrily, her gaze drawn to her injured shoulder. She bit back another groan of pain as the burning sensation of the sun ray washed over her again. Just thinking about the bright daylight outside, just beyond the heavily covered pane of glass and stone walls was enough to make the girl sick. With another hate-filled glower at her wound, she stood, briskly crossing the room, heading for the bath.

-

"Kyoshi-kun…" Mei Lhi began timidly.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"I'm worried about her…"

"Who?"

"Your cousin…Reika."

"Don't worry, Mei. Reika's very capable of taking care of herself."

"But she just looked like she was in so much pain when Harukichi's light hit her."

"She'll be fine Mei. I promise."

"Alright you two, break time is over. We've still got a lot that needs fixing. Come on…" Hana said, slipping into the room.

-

Reika sneezed slightly before she broke out into an angrily muttered tirade. Viciously she tore open the doors to the bath, casting off her clothing with an odd sort of furious grace, at last stepping into the warm waters.

A splashing sound caught the girl's attention. She wasn't alone. Glancing in the direction of the sound, she could make out a human-like shape through the rising steam from the water. It seemed to be growing bigger or whoever or whatever the figure was appeared to be coming closer.

"Hello? Is someone there?" A boy's voice called out.

The steam cleared, and the veil between the two was lifted. The boy appeared to be Reika's age. He bore a curious, yet confused expression.

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to intrude…" he began. The boy suddenly noticed the wound on the girl's shoulder. "You've been injured, miss. It looks terrible. I have herbs and things that could help with that."

"I don't need your help. I can help myself." Reika replied.

"Please, let me help you. It's rather deep, and judging by your appearance you're a shadow-type, and this was a wound made by a light-user. It won't heal very easily on its own. Please miss, I can help you."

"I said no. Now leave me in peace."

"Miss, I beg you. Let me help you. It'll only get worse as time goes on. Please, allow me to do this one favor, and if I happen to run into you again miss, I won't bother you unless you request my assistance."

"If I keep saying no, you won't go away will you?"

The boy shook his head, his short golden hair moving with the motion ever so gracefully. (A/N: Let's just say he looks exactly like Tidus from Final Fantasy X without the nice tan. But his skin isn't pale either. It's about the tone that Miroku's is.)

"Fine. I'll let you help me."

"I'm Adachi Toji, by the way. It's nice to meet you, miss…?"

"Reika. Ikari Reika."

-

"How about you boys give it a rest?" Hana suggested. "You've done enough and you two look exhausted. Besides, there's plenty of time to work during the rest of the week."

Inuyasha and Kyo nodded, both hot and sweating from the day's work. The two moved to pick up their haori, which they had cast off from the sudden increase in heat, due to the slow ending of spring and the beginning of summer. Mei Lhi came out again with the water bucket and dipper, the two young youkai taking gracious gulps of the cold liquid.

"Come on, dinner's almost ready."

-

"Almost done, miss." Toji announced over his shoulder to the waiting girl.

Reika simply glanced in his direction, but did nothing more to show she had acknowledged his statement. He walked over clean bandages in one hand, an odd looking poultice of some sort in the other.

"May I…?" he asked.

Reika glanced at her now-clothed shoulder, effortlessly shrugging off the material. Toji studied the wound briefly before setting to work. With a gentle touch he applied the odd mixture to the girl's pale skin before dressing the wound with fresh white cloth bandages.

"Why…why did you do this?" Reika asked in a low whisper.

"Just wanted to help…that's all, really." Toji answered.

Reika stared morosely at the floor in silence as she idly readjusted her clothes. Toji looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"Is something wrong, miss?" he asked.

"No…it's nothing…"

-

Spring break finally ended at last, and Kagome, Inuyasha, Mei Lhi, and Kyo returned to Tokyo once again. The castle was now looking much better, thanks to all the hard work that had been done.

Before any of them knew it, another month had gone by, and Higurashi Kagome found herself swarmed with exams. At last, the school year was ending. The young miko sat in her math class, idly staring at the clock on the wall.

"And that's pencils down." The teacher announced. "Please make sure your name is on your test and pass it forward to the front of the row."

The bell chimed.

"I'll grade you after lunch. You'll receive your final scores at the end of the week. Class dismissed!"

Kagome sighed, walking out of the stuffy room stretching out her arms with a long yawn.

"Someone looks tired." Mei Lhi commented.

"You would be too, Mei-chan! That test was so exhausting!" Kagome managed before another yawn hit. (A/N: It's currently 9:23pm, my birthday in numerical sense on Sept. 16 as I write this. I'm pretty tired right now…had to survive a week of marching with an injured foot and do loads of history reading homework…and a really hard test today for history…anyways…)

"I'll be happy once we can leave." Tenshi said, sounding oddly bored. "I'm quitting school after this year. Better stuff to do in our time…it's more interesting there…besides, my tail gets really cramped up from having to stay hidden all the time."

Tenshi sighed before looking around.

"We're short one."

"Eh?" Kagome and Mei Lhi asked, confused.

"Oda-kun, duh! He's not here."

The hanyou girl tensed, her eyes darting around frantically. Tenshi raised her eyebrow in amusement.

"So this is what separation anxiety's all about, huh?" she commented dryly.

"Tenshi-chan! That's cruel." Kagome exclaimed.

"What? I didn't do anything!"

"Mei-chan's only having a panic attack…"

"Oh honestly, she's had worse."

"Tenshi-chan! Can't you see how worried she is?"

The wolf youkai girl sighed, shaking her head. "But she'll be fine, you see, so don't worry about it."

"How can I not be worried?"

A loud cry of "Kyoshi-kun!" caught the two girls' attention, and turned in time to see the hanyou girl pounce on her mate. The Ryuuyoukai boy was caught off guard and fell onto his back, lying spread-eagled on the floor, his mate on top of him in a position that questioned the girl's intentions.

Tenshi smirked inwardly to herself and focused her attention back to Kagome once more. "There, you see? She's fine."

-

Tenshi waved and walked to her locker, putting away her language arts book. Her smirk had long faded on her face. Instead, a stony expression rested on her features.

'Mei-chan doesn't get that worried when Oda-kun is away. Kagome was right. She was definitely about to go crazy if he hadn't shown up. Something's different. It has to be. I know that all her actions there couldn't have been conscious actions. It's all instinct. It's just so easy to tell that it is. Something's different. There has to be a reason. I should probably tell Hana-chan about this. And Oda-kun's mother also. I just hope that whatever's happening doesn't have to do with the youkai ranking thing again. Could it be possible that if it is, she'll go insane to the point of suicide? I'll definitely have to speak to Hana-chan and Oda-san…I have many people to discuss this with. Mei-chan's not really acting like herself…and whatever the reason is, I don't like it.'

-

Reika sat alone, picking at a bowl of rice when she noticed that the book in her pocket became slightly heavier and grew hot. Setting down her barely used chopsticks she opened the book and flipped to the "life" side of the book. Immediately, her eyes widened. As clear as the sky outside, the words printed on the page were undeniable.

'Nameless. – Yet to be born, child of Oda Kyoshima and Oda Mei Lhi.'

The book grew heavier and grew cold this time. Reika flipped to the "death" side of the book, and in surprise, she dropped the book and stumbled backwards in her room.

"No…no…NO! It can't be!"

She refused to believe what it was she had read. She was determined not to let that death come true. Those words which she had read were burned into her mind. They would not leave, no matter what she tried to think, that name kept interrupting any diversion she attempted. For you see, the words she had read were not pleasant at all. Reika knew that she would have to be the one to attend, the one to finalize the death.

'Oda Mei Lhi, death will be shortly after going through childbirth. Estimated date of death: eight months, sixteen days, fourteen hours, and twenty-three seconds from present.'

The girl glared daggers at the book, the one thing she had to obey. With another hate-filled glare she snatched up the offending item and tossed it as far as she could across the room and screamed in anguish.

She was NOT about to stand there and let it happen. She'd do something. She HAD to beat fate at its own game…somehow…

-

"Letters with your scores will be mailed home today. You have no homework for tonight, but I would like if you read pages one-hundred twenty to one-hundred fifty. We may have a quiz, so be prepared. That will be all for today. When the bell rings, you may leave."

Ding! Dong! Dong! Ding! (A/N: Attempted Japanese school bell sound effects… XX)

The school slowly filtered out until it was at last empty. Kagome, Inuyasha, Mei Lhi, Kyo, and Tenshi all made their way back to the Higurashi shrine, prepared to head back to the Sengoku Jidai for the weekend.

The group climbed the shrine steps, setting down their school things and promptly jumping into the well.

On the other side, someone clothed in black waited under the shade of a tree.

Reika stood and made her way towards the group, being sure to stay within the shadows.

"Kyo, I need to talk to you…"

"What's wrong, Reika?"

"We can't discuss it here! Elsewhere, Kyo! Others are listening!"

"Reika, they can't understand anything we're saying."

"I don't mean them! I mean other Ryuuyoukai! They're doing rounds now. There are spies everywhere you look."

"Why? What's going on? What have we missed?"

"Another attack is being planned. Only the target is Sesshoumaru. They're going to try to get Sesshoumaru to step down by using the children. There are spies out simply to keep an eye on things and to know what everyone is up to."

"This can't be good."

"Has it ever been good, Kyo?"

Kyo sighed and reluctantly shook his head in disbelief. Quickly he glanced around, seemingly satisfied with the fact that none but the ones he had arrived with were present. "So…what did you want to tell me?" he asked.

Reika took a calming breath before slowly pulling out the book which she had so recently cast off from her clothes.

"It's about your wife."


A/N: I know it's short, but it's hard to gain inspiration when you've got work by the heaps piled on you, along with a birthday coming up, it gets pretty damn hard to think. I literally wrote all this last bit today (Sept. 16th) on a very ridiculously tired brain. Anyways, plot twists galore. And my birthday is Sept. 23rd, which is next Friday. I'm hoping to have Ch. 16 ready by then so I can post my fellow readers a gift for them from me, although I should get the gifts instead. But anyways, it dun matter. I'm really tired right now, and it's only 10:40pm and I'm already nodding off. Please rate and reviews, etc. Ja ne until next time!