This is an AU. I've not finished Inuyasha so I'm not updated on the timeline. This is my first Inuyasha story so we'll see how it goes. I'm open to constructive criticism, comments, and ideas. No flames. Any ideas presented will not necessarily be used, but I will consider them. I don't own Inuyasha, the only thing I own in this is my OC Asha and if anyone has an issue with a woman of color of Japanese descent as an OC they don't have to read this. The backstory for Bankotsu is inspired by another fabulous fic I'm reading called Redemption by YFate so check that out as well! Without further ado, hope you enjoy!

Terms:

Katana - a curved , single-edged Japanese sword

Daimyo - lord who is a vassal to the Shogun

Banryu - barbaric dragon

Prologue

Asha leaned against the castle's wall and stared up at the clear sky. Placing a protective hand over the hilt of her katana she reminisces over the events that brought her to the daimyo's castle.

Sometime in the past couple weeks, the notorious Shichinintai had risen from their graves as walking corpses amongst the living. She had no idea how such a thing was possible, but apparently the samurai general of their territory received word that the band was to seek vengeance for their execution.

The daimyo, fearing for his life and the loss of his governmental powers, drafted any able-bodied citizen from his territory, which is how Asha found herself currently employed in the daimyo's guard. She along with other villagers had been stationed around the castle, ordered to lay down their lives to protect their "benevolent" lord.

She was among one of the few women picked out to guard the palace. But she felt bad for the other conscripted villagers. As she looked around at the older soldiers marching around awkwardly with weapons far too foreign and heavy for some of them, she thought about how truly desperate the daimyo must be.

Or was the Shichinintai that big of a threat that the lord's own army wasn't enough to take care of them. Forcing men who'd worked their entire lives as simple farmers to pick up a weapon and lay down their lives for a man they would never meet face to face was incredibly cruel in her eyes.

Asha was one of the few lucky ones, especially as a woman, to have received training in the art of weapons and self-defense. Her father was a prominent swordsmith who at a young age fled from a clan of demon slayers. He'd settled down in a remote village, married a woman foreign to this country, and started a family with her. And while he condemned violence, he felt it important for his children to learn how to protect themselves in this warring age – especially his daughter. He trained them in the art and traditions of fighting humans and demons alike.

Their home was located on the outskirts of their village and two years after the Shichinintai had been executed, Asha frequently walked by their tomb that was erected near Mount Hakurei. It was said to have been built in order to calm their restless spirits. At the time, she found it strangely touching that the band had been properly buried despite all the pain and suffering they'd caused. However, she supposed it was motivated by the fact that local villagers didn't want to risk their spirits haunting them and possibly ruin seasonal harvests.

Looking back on it now, it didn't quite seem to do the trick since they've been resurrected with an agenda.

"Hey, you! Get back to your post!" A commanding solider shouted at her, rousing her from her thoughts.

He was a tall fellow who looked like he could use a good drink. No doubt all this business with walking corpse's threatening his lord's life would cause undue stress, but he looked about ready to pummel her.

Asha simply straightened and worked out the crick in her neck before bowing slightly and leaving for her post.

As she walked, the faint sound of rumbling and shouts of men caught her attention and caused her to stop and turn.

What she saw was truly a sight to behold.

At the entrance to the castle grounds stood a giant man, more metal than human, with all sorts of contraptions in place of body parts. Standing on top of a metal platform where his legs should have been were three other people.

One of them she nearly mistook for a woman, due to his feminine hairstyle and colorful kimono. But the body underneath was that of a man with strong muscled calves. This strange man carried with him a sharp wicked looking sword. It had multiple thin blades attached to it, which could easily go unnoticed to a less trained eye.

The man standing next to him had long pointed tiger claws strapped to his hands and the last one had a small cannon hoisted on his shoulder as well some kind of large jug.

What threw her the most was the sheer bloodlust she felt rolling off them in waves.

The villagers masquerading as soldiers cowered before them and Asha knew this battle was over. It would be more like a one-sided massacre. This band of mercenaries would not hesitate to slaughter anyone they came across.

With that realization she quickly went to hide herself amidst the chaos. She had no loyalty to the daimyo and would like to live to see another day. She'd heard the stories of the horrific acts the Shichinintai carried out and she had no desire to fall victim to them.

Weaving between oncoming soldiers, she found a deep crack near the side of the palace. It must have sprouted up at some point during the castle's existence but was the perfect hiding spot as it was small enough to miss.

Asha herself had a slight figure so getting down on her knees and squeezing herself into the space took little effort.

Even though she knew the ground would soon run red with blood, she still wanted to watch and peaked her head around to see the mercenaries quickly disposing soldiers and ransacking the entire grounds.

Minutes later and it seemed like the battle had died down. Bodies of soldiers were spread across the grounds and she placed a hand over her beating heart to calm down.

Suddenly, she started as hooves sounded in the distance.

The samurai general must have returned with his army, though he was far too late.

In that same moment she saw another man exit the palace carrying the biggest halberd she'd ever seen.

It was so large she almost mistook it for a sword until she noticed a sharp blade that curved at the other end. Her eyes widened at the sheer volume of the thing. It looked like a giant slab of metal, the height of a full-grown man, smelted onto a metal hilt. Far too impractical to be used as a sword or a halberd and excessive to use on humans. A better application for it, she thought, would be on a dragon. That's just how big the thing was.

But the man who held it against his shoulder carried it with a sort of ease that made her envious. His steps were self-assured, and he didn't look winded one bit. Leaning forward to get a better look at the group, Asha was surprised to see that the man with the halberd was young – really young.

He looked no older than her and yet she could tell that he carried years of battles that she had yet to experience.

She watched him exchange words with the samurai general, too far to make out exactly what they were saying.

The next scene though, would be forever etched in her memory. Asha watched, slack jawed, as the man with the halberd spun his blade in the air as if it weighed nothing before he himself leapt up with blinding speed and cut down the samurai general with one swing of his blade.

His taunting laughter rang through the air as his comrades happily joined him in slaughtering the rest of the army.

It all happened in a fiery combination of cannons, fire, smoke, and blood.

Asha simply sat there and hugged her shoulders, folding in on herself. All she could do was wait for it to be over and pray that they didn't find her.