The others knew that the march back to Kaede's village was going to be a long one. They surmised that Inuyasha wanted to do it himself and he was determined to make sure that Kagome's body made it safely. They also assumed that he was taking the extra time to say goodbye to her and to be alone with his thoughts. His thoughts were pissing him off though and it was an annoying distraction.

I should have protected her.

What an idiot why didn't she get out of the way?!

I could have killed it and she knew that!

Why wasn't I quicker?

Why didn't I smell it before it appeared?

She has survived Naraku's traps for years and she lets a little plant demon take her down?!

She's gone. I'm never going to see her again.

This is all my fault.

This is all MY FAULT.

THIS IS ALL MY FAULT.

He shook his head violently and growled deep in his chest as he picked up his pace. The others hastened to keep up with him and made sure to keep their comments firmly to themselves.

A buzzing sound caused them all to stop dead in their tracks. Looking up, Sango spotted an insect.

"Saimyosho." She pulled the hiraikotsu from her back. Inuyasha's head whipped around at the mention of the all too familiar insect. Sango launched her weapon and it went soaring over the tree tops. The large wasp demon was more evolved than the previous insects Naraku had employed and easily evaded the attempt.

"Damn! It got away! Kilala!" She reached out and plucked the huge flying weapon out of the sky like she'd caught a ball casually tossed to her.

"Don't." Inuyasha's voice commanded. The three of them cast a confused glance his way.

"You...don't want us to go after it?" Sango asked.

He shook his head. "We've got more important things to do right now and Naraku is going to find us with or without one pesky saimyosho." He continued forward.

The rest of them watched as the insect buzzed along and disappeared. They figured he was right but if Naraku were to find out about Kagome's death, it could cause more trouble sooner but they weren't about to try and argue with him. All they could do is provide protection for him until they were able to reach their destination. Sango glanced at Miroku and he returned with a knowing nod. He gently put a hand on Sango's shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze.

The parade carried on for a full day. The sun lowered below the horizon and the temperature dropped sharply. The full moon shone brightly over the landscape, but did not provide the warmth or comfort of the sun.

"I-I-I-Inuyasha?" Shippo stuttered through chattering teeth. "Sh-sh-shouldn't we stop for the n-n-n-night?" He rubbed his arms and shivered. Inuyasha stopped and looked over his shoulder at him.

"AAAH!" Shippo caught an eyeful of the glare he had become accustomed to and quickly retreated behind Sango. Sango and Miroku waited for Inuyasha's response, which usually following that glare was a walloping on Shippo's tiny head. It seemed that Inuyasha was too tired to carry out the usual order of events, but it was more likely that he didn't care.

"Yeah...alright." He stopped and lowered himself and Kagome to the ground.

The others looked between one another before settling down. It was unusual for Inuyasha to give in so easily, especially to a request from Shippo. Typically he would get a mocking, after which Kagome would step in to defend him, sometimes a 'Sit', followed by Inuyasha grudgingly yielding. The peculiarity of it all caused a great unease, especially for Shippo. He was quick to accompany Miroku to gather firewood in order to help ease the tension, and protect himself from a lump on the head.

"Inuyasha?" Sango said gently as she moved next to him, He was still holding Kagome in his arms. She was wrapped entirely in his kimono but he still stared down at her. His ears twitched in reaction to Sango's voice but that was all the response she got from him. She rubbed his shoulder briefly and finally drew his gaze to her.

"I'm so sorry." She said softly as she moved her hand to Kagome.

"It's not your fault, Sango. It's mine. I should have protected her."

"The only one to blame is the demon. Please don't be so hard on yourself. Kagome wouldn't have wanted that." She offered him the utmost sympathy but she could see that for the foreseeable future, he was wholly broken.

"SANGO! INUYASHA!" Miroku's voice screamed from the edge of the clearing.

Sango instinctively pulled her weapon from her back. Inuyasha's head snapped up in time to see Miroku running full-speed at them. A crashing mass flattened the trees behind him.

"Hiraikotsu!" Sango whipped her weapon over her head. Miroku and Shippo threw themselves to the ground as the boomerang spun through the trees, splitting them around the monk and the fox kit. Tree limbs hammered the ground as leaves fluttered in the air around them. Miroku clambered to his feet, snatching Shippo by the tail as he gained footing and continued sprinting. A familiar form emerged from the destruction, announced by a signature demonic chuckle.

Inuyasha set Kagome's body down and leaped to his feet, his hand grabbing the hilt of Tetsusaiga.

"Naraku." He snarled.

"Inuyasha." The deep voice taunted him under cover of the usual baboon cloak. The form floated in the air, several meters high, surrounded by a swarm of saimyosho. "It would seem that Kagome did not survive the wound inflicted on her by my shikimin budonoki."

Inuyasha's eyes flashed with a white hot anger and he bared his teeth. He could feel his heart slamming his fury through his veins. Tetsusaiga would assure that his demon blood stayed in check, but that was the ONLY thing holding him back right now.

"You son of a bitch. YOU sent that thing to kill Kagome?!" He unsheathed the sword and it transformed at will, hungering for Naraku's blood, as much as Inuyasha hungered for his head on a pike.

"Kagome is now no longer able to purify the jewel shards, and you are weakened without her. Now I will take jewel shards and I will also dispose of Kagome's body for you."

"Like hell you will! Prepare to die, Naraku!" Inuyasha pushed off the ground and made a mighty swing in Naraku's direction. Tetsusaiga's blade struck a barrier which easily absorbed the blow, sent a shock wave through his body, and sent him hurtling back to earth.

It was hardly a surprise when root-like appendages burst from underneath the cloak, quickly swarming the immediate area. Miroku dodged a slap or two that came his way. He was able to dissolve a few of the "arms" by using sacred sutras, however, the chunks of flesh would merely writhe on the ground before collecting together again in an endless cycle. Sango swiped at the clawing arms, as well as Kilala who alternated between breathing fire and biting. Inuyasha rolled to his feet as one of the arms headed for Kagome.

"Get away from her!" He sprinted and whacked away at the arm, severing it from its host. He scooped Kagome up and ran towards the others.

"Sango! Take Kagome on Kilala and get out of here! You can't let him take her!" He pleaded.

Sango cleared a path and Kilala jumped through, ducking to let Sango swing her leg over her shoulders before catching hiraikotsu on the rebound. Inuyasha placed Kagome's body on Kilala and they took flight. It was clear to everyone that this was another demon puppet and as such, was likely a distraction.

"You do know this is a demon puppet, don't you?" Miroku swung his staff back and forth, dodging attacks.

"Yeah, I'm not an idiot! What's your point?" Inuyasha snapped back, as the two of them made quick work of destroying the flesh, only to watch it knit itself back together.

"When Naraku sends demon puppets, they're usually a distraction. What...are we...being distracted from?" He panted as he indulged in the brief moment of respite to catch his breath.

"I don't know but Sango better get Kagome some place safe until we can catch up to her." He readied his sword again as the battle promised to continue.

Sango struggled to stay on Kilala, while fighting off pursuers summoned by the demon puppet, while also trying to keep Kagome aboard the flight. Kilala was having similar troubles as Sango was rapidly shouting commands to her but she could only go so fast. It was not unusual for a horde of lesser demons to appear when it came to Naraku and his schemes. However, it was unusual that it was a challenge to escape them. Kagome had garnered a great amount of spiritual power and was adept at putting it to good use. Her sacred arrows would fell many of these demons and allow the party to get out with their lives, even if they weren't victorious. Without her aid, they were nearly helpless. Sango released the blade strapped to her forearm and proceeded to slash away at the demons snapping at her back, all the while urging Kilala forward. She had been mostly successful at driving the gnashing teeth, and writhing limbs back until she heard Kilala howl in pain as she was jolted from her perch. She screamed as she went tumbling through the treetops, bashing her arms and legs on tree branches before thumping hard to the forest floor. Her world spun with a wretched pain in, well, everywhere. Stars flickered across her vision and she nearly fainted. She cried out as she tried to regain her bearings. Her arm was broken, and likely a few ribs. Her legs were going to be remarkably bruised and she had at least one twisted ankle.

"Kilala!" She tried to shout but her definitely broken ribs wouldn't allow it. She gazed up to see the swarm of demons fly overhead.

"Kagome..." She looked around and did not see her body anywhere. "Damn...it." She seethed as she tried to stand. Her legs weren't ready yet to hold weight between the pain of the fall and the adrenaline and she wobbled back to the ground. Crying in frustration, she leaned against a tree and spit out a mouthful of blood and a couple teeth. She could feel the right side of her face starting to swell. The fall had been so frightening that she hadn't noticed she'd hit her face on the way down. She wasn't going to be able to move far. She dragged some branches and plants over herself, hopefully hiding her from view. She prayed that Inuyasha and Miroku would find her before any of Naraku's soldiers did. Otherwise they would soon be burying two bodies.

Kilala was disoriented from being struck. All the fighting going on behind her had blinded her to the threat that was below her. It had knocked the wind out of her and she had somersaulted some distance away. Both passengers had fallen and now she needed to reunite with Sango. She licked her leg, having sustained a wound, but it wasn't broken. She shook her body and hunched down, listening for danger, or for any sign of Sango. She heard the demons flying over head and a muffled dragging sound. She lifted her nose to the air. She could smell Sango's blood.

The large snake demon crawled along the ground, waiting for the right moment to strike. Just as Naraku had said, the half breed would send the girl off with the demon slayer while he and the monk battled the puppet. He wondered what his reward would be for completing this very odd task. When Naraku had sought him out, his original inclination had been to attack him but he could feel the raw power and decided not to press his luck. The twin tail looked back to gauge the danger behind her.

Now.

The snake was enormous; at least 200 feet long. Thanks to the generous gift from Naraku, a moderately sized snake had become a massive, powerful reptile. The jewel shards in his forehead pulsed with an evil energy and he pounced from below. Originally, he had intended to bite and kill the cat but had come up just short of the mark. Naraku would not be pleased. The girl did fall to the ground though, and as per Naraku's instructions, he was to retrieve her body and bring it to him. He did not lose sight of his target as she fell nearby. The demon slayer had flown off and was most likely dead. A fall from that height was certainly treacherous enough. The twin tail had attempted to stay in the air and as a result, had landed even further away, also most likely dying. If either or both of them survived, they would be too hurt and too far away. He liked his chances. Although the thought of a demon slayer and another demon ripe for the picking whetted his appetite, he knew if he should fail to bring Naraku the girl, his empty belly would be the least of his worries. He slithered along, following the scent of the girl. She was dead. Not only that, she's been dead for a while. What would Naraku want with a corpse? She didn't seem all that extraordinary. Regardless, if he wanted to retain his head, he needed to achieve the goal given to him. He finally came upon the girl. He took her in his mouth and moved as fast as his body was able. The puppet would likely keep them busy but it would not stave them off forever.

His keen eyes allowed him to weave through the densest forest with ease. He was miles away by now and they would never catch up to him in time. He came to a river and set the girl down to drink. He had a moment. He lapped the water up, causing the water to dip with the massive intake. Once he was satiated, he turned to pick the girl back up when a scent provoked a different urge in him. His stomach growled angrily at the emptiness that he'd let overtake it. The jewel shards sullied and his sentience was dulled; shrouded by pure hunger. A young girl was in the shallow of the river, sleeves rolled up past her elbows, grabbing fish with her bare hands. Her back was turned to him and it was dark. It would only take but one moment to snap her neck and devour her. It wouldn't be a sufficient meal, but it would keep his hunger at bay long enough. He lowered his head and carefully inched his body closer. He froze when she caught a fish and twisted to throw it on the river bank with a giggle. She sensed his presence. She spun around and looked but she did not see him. His camouflage was better than her human eye sight. She still seemed wary but she resumed fishing.

Closer. Closer. He reared his head up, baring his fangs and let out a hiss, just to see the horrified expression on her face before she died. That was his favorite part and he could have sworn that it made them taste better when they were scared. She jerked at the sound and whipped around to face him. He lunged. She screamed as the slippery rocks beneath her feet caused her to lose her balance. He stupidly hadn't anticipated that and instead of lunch, he took up a chunk of the riverbed in his mouth. He spat out the mound of wet sediment, water, and rocks, ignoring the gash across his nose and reeling back to try again if the girl was still nearby. She had gotten sucked into the current and was floating downstream screaming her head off. Well, that works. He angled around to follow her when a rustle of leaves caught his attention.

Lights out.