Inuyasha didn't expect to be hauled onto Kirara's back has he battled through a swarm of fire spitting serpents.
"Kagome!" the hanyou snapped, his heart thudding in fear as the miko was once again in the thick of the battle, "I thought I told you to stay up on that hill!"
"There's no time," Kagome shouted over the battle as Kirara sped over the sea of demons, "I know how to end this!" Inuyasha listened to her hasty explanation, his frown growing with each second as he realized she was planning on putting herself further into direct danger.
"…If I can purify the jewel, then nobody else has to die!" She finished. Inuyasha huffed and growled, his ears flicking in anger when he realized he didn't have a good enough argument to stop her.
She's right, the hanyou grudgingly admitted, No one else can purify the jewel, and until that's done the demons will just keep healing. Everyone was fighting their hardest out here, but not a single one of the demons was dying. As long as Ronuku and Kohana were against them, it didn't look like they could make it past this point. If they didn't do something soon, they weren't going to make it out of this; Inuyasha was glad that there seemed to be another way without killing their friends.
Even so, he loathed for Kagome to be anywhere near Naraku, let alone up in that damn spider fortress hiding him and who knows what else. His claws flexed, and he put his arms around her protectively.
Naraku wouldn't touch a single hair on her head, not if he had anything to say about it.
"Right," the hanyou nodded, "Let's go!"
Kirara growled in affirmation and took towards the sky. The wind whipped past them, hair and clothes blowing wild as the demon cat raced through the air. Inuyasha's ear twitched, snarls and growls crowing behind him. He turned to see a host of demons in pursuit, intent on bringing them down. Angrily the hanyou clutched his fist until drops of scarlet soaked his claws.
"Blades of Blood!" He tossed the attack out, pulling Kagome closer with his free arm. The red blades soared through the air and struck several of the demons away, but they quickly returned the chase. The hanyou growled again, unable to use his Tetsusaiga for fear of throwing Kirara off balance or knocking Kagome off.
"Kirara, we need to hurry!" Kagome yelled. The cat's ears lay flat against her head, red eyes narrowing in determination as she sped up.
More demons from below turned their attention upwards and gave chase, spitting fire and poison, intent on bringing them down. Kirara weaved through the sky, avoiding their attacks with expert skill. A wave of demons approached to her left, but dispersed as Hiraikotsu flew up from below and crashed through their ranks. Another group approaching on the right were swiftly torn apart by Inuyasha's claws.
"Look out!" Kagome called, pointing to a mass of demons that grouped in front of them.
With a fierce snarl, Kirara charged forward. Her dagger like fangs ripped the head off of a demon bird, her flaming claws ripping through the bodies that stood in their way. The three burst through the other side of the mass like a bullet, a trail of blood raining in their wake.
"Nice work Kirara!" Inuyasha shouted, the sleeves of his robe having protected Kagome from the onslaught. The demon cat flicked her ears in acknowledgement, gashes in her fur beginning to bleed. She didn't slow down though, Kirara climbed higher into the sky until they stood at the edge of the hulking mass of spider.
"I don't see an entrance," Kagome said, as they circled the beast. Thick black hairs protruded from the spider's purple flesh, its huge body curled up into a dark sphere. If the beast was tracking their movements with its bulbous red eyes, it didn't bother to bat them away. Its massive legs, thicker than tree trunks, remained tucked under its belly, and its hairy fangs covered any opening that might have been a mouth.
"Then we'll just have to make one!" Unsheathing the Tetsusaiga once more, Inuyasha leapt from Kirara's back and dug his sword into the side of the spider's abdomen. Clinging to his blade to keep himself from falling, Inuyasha carved an opening into the spider, the chunks of purple flesh falling away to the ground. The hanyou stayed light on his feet, ready at any moment to leap away should the spider try to throw him off, but the beast didn't react in the slightest.
Kagome's scream brought Inuyasha's heart to a screeching halt.
"Kagome!" He turned, his golden gaze widening in horror as he saw the miko fly upwards through the air, Kirara having been struck in the underbelly by a demon.
Inuyasha bent his knees to leap after her, but the furious cat recovered and beat him to it. Kirara raced upwards, her teeth grabbing onto Kagome's sleeve before the miko began to fall. Kagome clung to the cat's neck for dear life, and as gently as though she were a mother carrying a kitten, Kirara floated towards Inuyasha.
"Take my hand," the hanyou yelled, reaching for Kagome while keeping another hand firmly on the Tetsusaiga. They edged slowly closer, Inuyasha's heart hammering in his chest, as the miko's legs dangling precariously in the air. When she was about a few feet away, Kagome let go of Kirara with one arm and reached for him, the tips of their fingers brushing as they made contact.
Kagome's weight suddenly crashed against him, Kirara's roar of pain echoing through the sky.
A serpent's fangs were sunk into the demon cat's spine; its tail as sharp as a blade skewering her through the belly. In the blink of an eye the hoard appeared and swarmed Kirara, their claws and teeth ripping into her flesh as the cat's struggles grew weak.
"Kirara, No!" Kagome wailed. Inuyasha held her close, both of them hanging from the side of the spider, completely unable to help their friend.
Kirara's cream pelt vanished under the demons, and within seconds her body fell towards the ground like a rock. She crashed against the earth with a sickening thud, the demons below swarming over her motionless figure.
Dammit! DAMMIT, NO! Inuyasha gritted his teeth, rage and grief burning through his body. Kirara was a faithful friend, she'd always been there to help them when they needed it, and just like that she was gone.
I should have protected her! Inuyasha berated himself, yet another death weighing on his conscience, she saved Kagome and I didn't even…!
"Inuyasha," Kagome's voice shook with emotion, tears spilling down her cheeks, "Kirara brought us this far. We have to keep moving."
The hanyou nodded, cutting deeper into the spiders flesh until the hole was big enough for them to fit inside. Holding Kagome close, he leapt inside, pushing back his grief enough to focus on killing Naraku.
He wasn't going to let Kirara's death be in vain.
As his feet touched down, Inuyasha glanced around the inside of the spider, surprised to see that it was open like a cave instead of filled with guts. Even so, the purple floor beneath his feet felt clammy and wet; several of the walls around them pulsated, dripping with sticky fluids. He felt Kagome shudder against him.
"Which way is the jewel?" He asked, noticing that the cavern they were standing in had two openings at different ends. Kagome glanced around, her eyes narrowing as she searched for their target. She raised her arm and pointed towards the floor.
"Down there," the miko said, "It's below us, closer to the center."
"All right," Inuyasha nodded, stepping away from her and crouching, "Get on."
As soon as Kagome was on his back, Inuyasha took off running towards the exit in front of them. If they were lucky, then they could find a way down without having to spend ages cutting through the inside of the spider.
The cavern they entered was larger than the one before, with even more pulsating walls. Inuyasha dashed across the wet floor, noticing that every so often pores would open up and emit a strong smelling gas into the air. He grimaced, his strong sense of smell causing him to grow sick at the scent, and an oppressive feeling began to weigh on his chest.
"Naraku's demonic aura is really strong in here," Kagome whispered, a twinge of fear to her voice. Inuyasha felt her body heat up behind him, his body starting to burn where she touched, little pops and whizzes suddenly emanating from her. Inuyasha turned to look, seeing the miko's body glowing faintly pink. Little cracks of electricity danced around her body as the glow collided with the aura around them.
"Sorry," Kagome said, and Inuyasha realized that her powers had started to purify the air around her, which would explain the stinging sensation against his back, "Am I hurting you?"
"No," Inuyasha huffed, "It'll take more that to bring me down." He could put up with any amount of pain, as long it meant Kagome was safe. A little burn on his part was worth the price of her being unaffected by the demonic aura.
Naraku's low chuckle suddenly echoed through the cavern.
"So, Inuyasha, you've come to purify the jewel, have you?"
Inuyasha growled, his ears twitching as he tried to pinpoint the location of Naraku's voice. It sounded as though it were coming from every direction.
"There!" Kagome suddenly pointed, as Naraku's face emerged from the wall of the cavern.
"You hope to bring a spark of light in a place as dark as this?" Naraku's mouth moved, but his voice still seemed to come from everywhere.
"Damn you!" Inuyasha set Kagome down and aimed his Tetsusaiga, "Wind Scar!" the attack crashed through the walls and tore apart Naraku's face as well the walls of the cavern. Miasma spilled into the air, but Naraku's face appeared on another wall.
"Fools, your pathetic heroics will amount to nothing!" Naraku laughed as Inuyasha attacked again. More of the walls tore open, spilling in more miasma.
"Your friends have filled the jewel with their grief and anger!" Naraku called from above. Another attack only brought out more miasma.
"Enough of your stupid games!" Inuyasha snarled, "Come out and show yourself!"
Naraku materialized before them, his body in full, as he held out the jewel, a completely onyx sphere that reflected no light in his palm. He smirked.
"There is no hope, your friends below are realizing this as they watch their comrades perish one by one. They will soon see that they cannot win, they will give into the depths of their despair and fuel the jewel's dark energy, just as the others have done before them," Naraku smiled, "Inuyasha, you will find no victory here!"
"Inuyasha, that isn't the real jewel, it's an illusion," Kagome hissed, her body glowing like a pink beacon amongst the miasma.
"Figures!" Inuyasha barked, "Even in here Naraku's still too afraid to show himself!"
"Is that so?" Naraku asked, vanishing again, "Perhaps, Inuyasha, you've yet to see how truly terrifying you can be."
The ground beneath them suddenly pitched. Kagome yelped and stumbled, her knees hitting the ground as she tried to keep from dropping her bow. Inuyasha called her name and leapt towards her, but the walls around him suddenly caved and knocked him backwards. He howled in anger as the cavern tossed him around as though he were nothing more than a doll, when suddenly he lost his grip on the Tetsusaiga.
The sword was swallowed into the floor.
All at once the hanyou's senses were assaulted by the miasma, the demonic aura reacting with his own and clouding his vision. He tried to call out to Kagome, but his voice only came as a garbled snarl. His body broke out into fever, his vision became clouded as he stumbled backwards.
"Give in to the depths of darkness," Naraku's voice echoed through his mind, "This is the true nature of your heart."
Kagome called out his name, but her voice was muffled and distant. Rage boiled in his body, his eyes saw complete red as he felt his fangs and claws growing. His back arched, and he let out a blood curling howl, sentient thought completely gone.
He was angry.
His claws and teeth were meant to kill.
He needed to kill.
He needed blood!
The demon Inuyasha leapt forward, power coursing through his body as he swung out, seeking to destroy anything in his path, anything that moved. His claws sliced through something warm, the sweet scent of blood assaulting his nose, the hot liquid splashing against his face.
Kagome screamed.