Chapter 29:
Eventually, Arisa rode on Ah-un as they travelled to many more forests, without being informed about who they were going to see.
"Aren't we there yet, Sesshomaru?" the modern girl asked.
"Almost." The dog demon replied bluntly.
"You've had the same answer for the nth time, and we still did not reach the place…"
"Stop complaining. We are here."
They stopped in front of a big tree, which looked just the same with the other trees located in the forest they were in. Arisa's face scrunched in confusion, trying to think what sort of difference there would be in that random tree. But when she was about to comment, the tree started transforming, and soon; a carved, old face emerged and began to speak.
What the—a living tree? The feudal era is so full of surprises…better get used to it.
"It has been quite a while, Sesshomaru. What brings you here?"
"I have no time for formalities. I will get straight to the point, Bokuseno." He quickly replied.
"Still the arrogant youth you are. Alright then." The old tree replied with a chuckle.
You have no idea how accurate you really are, Mr. Tree. Arisa thought as she listened to them converse.
"I heard that the scabbards for Tenseiga and Tetsusaiga were made from your branches."
"Ah, yes. Your father, a good friend of mine came and asked for it, for the swords of his two sons. The Tetsusaiga for the younger brother, and the Tenseiga for the older brother."
"Why is the Tetsusaiga given to Inuyasha?"
Bokuseno, who was curious as to why he would come all the way over his place just to ask about the two swords, already knew the reason - that he didn't like their father's distribution of the swords.
"The Tetsusaiga is meant to control Inuyasha – that is, to prevent his demon blood from overcoming him. If it happens that his demon blood reigns over, he will become insane and act out of murderous rage. However, it will soon be too much for his half-demon body to handle, and eventually, he will die if it goes on."
Arisa unintentionally gasped loudly at the information she just heard. At the same time, there was a hint of surprise in Sesshomaru's expression, and the living tree had noticed that.
"Was there a change in the course of Inuyasha's blood?"
"It was right at the moment when I attacked him, after throwing away the Tetsusaiga for some time."
"I see. Now that you know the full reason, it is up to you to decide."
Slightly paying attention to Arisa, Bokuseno decided to ask another question.
"I see you have a young human girl with you. I thought you hated humans."
"No reason." He replied flatly, and then he started walking off.
Annoyed and guilty about his rude behavior, Arisa decided to explain a little.
"About that…a lot of things led to this. For example—"
Suddenly, she felt a piercing glare over her shoulder that came from Sesshomaru. Immediately, she stopped her explanation.
Oops-a-daisy.
"…s-so that's that. Thank you so much for telling us about Inuyasha and his Tetsusaiga." She said with a nervous chuckle, and then proceeded to walk beside Sesshomaru, with Ah-un and Jaken following them from behind.
Bokuseno smiled as he watched them leave.
I knew there was something different about Sesshomaru today.
"Umm…Sesshomaru?" Arisa carefully asked along their way.
"What."
"Now that you know the reason why Inuyasha has the Tetsusaiga… isn't that enough for you to give up on it…?"
Unfortunately, there was no answer from him, which made her go further with speaking her thoughts.
"Seriously…you're already strong enough, even without a sword."
"I did not ask for your opinion." He replied aloofly.
"Huh!?"
"And it is his problem, being a pathetic half-demon."
"Look, it is not his fault for being born as a half-demon! Why can't you understand that?"
"Why should I?"
"Agh, Sesshomaru!"
Completely triggered by his inconsiderate words, Arisa continued to whine without minding her words; but Sesshomaru wasn't the least bit bothered by it. That is, until a scent of fresh blood from the nearby village had caught his nose. As if he knew what was going on in that village, he went to the direction where it came from right away.
Momentarily, Arisa felt the same vibe she felt from Inuyasha, back when he had an uncalled duel with Sesshomaru.
"Ah-un, please follow Sesshomaru. Fast!" Arisa said, panicking as she climbed up on him. Shortly after, they flew towards the village where he went.
Meanwhile, poor Jaken was left behind, crying out loud.
"How could you even forget me…!"
As soon as Ah-un and Arisa reached the village, Sesshomaru and Inuyasha were fighting already. Though, she saw the change in Inuyasha's face – his eyes were red and his fangs were bigger and very visible. His claw-like nails were longer than usual, and…he was bloody all over. She was more than shocked than expected.
Her moment of shock deepened as she observed the village's surroundings: a lot of revolutionaries were there, lifeless. And there was a demon that looked like a moth on the ground, lifeless as well. A few of the villagers had gathered around in one corner, including the females, all cowering in fear.
Then, she saw Kagome, who looked like she was about to cry as she helplessly watched the brothers fight, along with Sango and Shippo caring for Miroku who appeared to be hurt. She immediately approached them.
"Kagome! Sango! Miroku! Shippo!"
All four of them turned to where the voice came from and they were all surprised to see Arisa.
"Arisa…!" Kagome called back, though it was a soft cry.
"What happened here…? Did Inuyasha do this…?"
Kagome and Sango only looked down, while Miroku was trying to sit properly and gritted his teeth, still in pain.
"He did…but it was out of anger due to Gatenmaru's doing…" he replied.
"Gatenmaru? Is he that moth-like demon over there?"
"Yes…urk!"
"H-hold on, I'll heal you right away!"
Arisa went near him and started to focus, and soon, she saw the same dark aura coming from his right hand, just like before.
"Don't tell me you are poisoned again…"
Miroku smiled lazily. "So I am flaunting too much…"
"No, you're not!" Sango interrupted, her voice cracked.
"He had taken too much of Naraku's poison insects days ago, and he has yet to recover. Then this happened..." Sango continued, trying to explain his situation.
"Insects…?" Arisa said, as she tried to remember something familiar. Then, the hive that Naraku once gave to Sesshomaru crossed her mind.
I see…so that was the purpose of that back then.
"What exactly is in your right hand, Miroku?"
"…it's a curse from Naraku, and it's called the Wind tunnel. As much as it's convenient that it can absorb anything... it grows wider as time goes by, and ultimately, it will consume me. I just didn't expect that those insects were its weakness." Miroku revealed.
"Naraku was also responsible for the death of my comrades in demon-slaying. And he even used my younger brother Kohaku to do it, and then killed him right after…! And now, he is holding him captive and uses him for his evil plans…with the sacred jewel that sustains his life…" Sango added.
"That Naraku has brought too much tragedy in your lives…" Arisa commented with a frown as she started healing Miroku's hand. Soon, the monk had felt much better, and he was able to move, at least.
"Please refrain from exposing your hand on those insects, Miroku. I can only remove the poison, but not the curse. And I am not around all the time." Arisa warned, to which Miroku nodded.
"Though it seems your healing has reduced the hole in my hand…"
For a moment, she felt a bit dizzy, similar to when she was done curing his hand for the first time.
Is this because I am in contact with that curse…?
"I-is that so…" she replied, still having that thought in mind.
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