Here it is! Chapter 12! Only 3 more chapters and an epilogue! I have it all planned and everything...it's so sad! I really like this story...but good things must come to an end, ne? Most of you will probably not like me so much by the end of this chapter, but bear with me: I HAVE A PLAN! Oh! And right after I post this chapter, I will be posting the first chapter of my Sango/Miroku Alternate Universe humour fic, titled 'Viva Las Vegas'! Please take some time to check that out, chapter two should be coming out soon as well! So please enjoy this chapter of 'Anything but Paradise'! Please read and review, and thanks to all my reviewers!
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha. Bottom line. If there wasn't a bottom line and I was filthy rich, I probably would but I don't. I don't own Mazda either. I certainly don't own one. (Read on to find out)
Chapter 12: Undercover Argument
It really smelled in the little office which Naraku called home.
Bankotsu found it really hard to breathe, talk and look like nothing bothered him all at once, but the smell of human decay was enough to make him vomit.
Sure, I've killed a number of people in my day, but not in cramped places where the smell accumulates! Is this guy that insane? I guess I'll find out…
He had been sitting on the broken couch for about ten minutes now. When he first arrived, he had been 'greeted' by two rather unfortunate looking beings…if they were human, Bankotsu would never know, especially just by looking at them. Naraku certainly kept security tight around here, but not tight enough so that no one would detect the recording device ingeniously placed in Bankotsu's ear. Sesshomaru reassured him that it would not be detected like the tracking device on Kagura, since it sent no GPS signal; just recorded on a tiny microchip designed by Sesshomaru himself.
When he was finally granted access into the building, there was a young girl who looked no older than maybe seven or eight who led him to this office. She was very pale and spoke very little; this struck Bankotsu as odd. She led him through dark hall ways that had pipes dripping water from the ceiling and he thought he spotted a rat, too.
But what surprised him the most was walking down the hallway lined with cells. Most were empty, but to the first observer they had been used many times before. Bankotsu thought that some were maybe used for torture chambers, from the chains and the blood stains on the wall.
And this was all but proven when he passed a cell with the infamous Kagura, the one who Bankotsu learned had attempted to kill Sesshomaru, occupying it. She only glanced for a moment, and then her head fell down back to its mournful look.
Probably punishment for not getting the job done…Bankotsu thought as they rounded the corner and finally into the office.
Now he was waiting for this Naraku to finally come in. The clock on the wall behind the desk was ticking ever so slowly, and the sound was driving Bankotsu mad. He stared intently at the floor…he noticed that a bloodstain, a very large bloodstain, had once covered it. In fact, this who room seemed to be bathed in blood, from people who couldn't live up to Naraku's orders, he supposed.
Five more minutes went by. Tick…tick…tick…Bankotsu clenched his fist, and tried to keep his cool, for he had a very important job to do.
Naraku stood in front of Kanna, who just told him of the stranger's arrival. He seemed excited…this could be a very interesting client indeed!
Kanna told him the man called himself Bankotsu Banryuu, the gang leader of the Band of Seven in the Kyoto region, and according to whatever records they had, he was a fierce, powerful (and not to mention wealthy) leader. Records said that he personally slaughtered over 900 men and was one of the best jewel thieves in the country. And now he was here in Tokyo, coming to do business with Naraku?
This appealed to Naraku greatly. He had to meet with him at once! Kanna told him he was waiting for him in his office. This would certainly be interesting.
"I will meet with this Bankotsu, and see what he has to offer me…Kanna I want you to release Kagura, but keep a close eye on her from now on," Naraku ordered.
She bowed, and whispered, "Yes, Master Naraku,"
He left to go to his meeting with Bankotsu, and Kanna went to her younger sister's cell. She looked very forlorn, and didn't seem to notice her presence…but then again, who did?
She unlocked the gate and let herself in. Kagura looked up at her, but said nothing as she unlocked her chains. Once they were all unlocked, Kanna stood up to leave.
"W-wait…does this mean Naraku is letting me go?" Kagura asked, massaging her wrists from the friction from the chains.
"Yes…he warns you not to do something you will regret…" she whispered in response, and disappeared around the corner. Kagura left her cell. She knew what she had to do. Naraku killed her brother, now it was time for revenge.
She turned to the exit, and went to go find Sesshomaru.
"Ah, Bankotsu-san, it is finally nice to meet you. I've heard many great things about you," said the man now standing in the doorway. He had long dark hair and crimson eyes. This had to be Naraku.
He stood up and bowed, and Naraku bowed in return. Soon they were shaking hands.
"And you must be Naraku. I've heard many things about you too," Bankotsu replied. Chuckling, Naraku took a seat at his desk.
"Please have a seat," he said, motioning to the couch. Bankotsu straightened out his tie and then sat down.
"So what can I do for the great Bankotsu Banryuu?" Naraku asked, hands folded in front of him on his desk.
"I have a proposition for you, one that I believe you'll take much interest in," Bankotsu replied. Naraku leaned forward in interest.
"And what would that be?" Naraku inquired. Bankotsu crossed his legs.
"Well, you happen to know Sesshomaru Takahashi, the owner of the Tenseiga Corporations? Recently, his company has been expanding into my territory and I don't have enough man power to take him out, so I was hoping I could turn to you, as I've heard you've attempted assassination before," Bankotsu explained. A wry grin was now across Naraku's face.
"That does sound interesting…what kind of payment are we talking about here?"
Bankotsu let out a small laugh. "Now that's the kind of man I like to do business with, a man who is straight to the point. We're talking about a very large sum, 25 million yen at the least,"
Naraku's face lit up with delight, while still maintaining the face of an evil mafia leader. "I like the sound of that,"
"I knew you would. Say, mind if I ask you something?" Bankotsu asked.
"For 25 million yen minimum, ask away," Naraku replied, leaning back in his chair.
"I have some sources telling me that you're the one who's behind Sesshomaru's half brother, InuYasha. Is this true?"
Naraku contemplated at telling him the truth at first, but why not? It wouldn't hurt sharing a few secrets with a fellow gang leader like Naraku himself. And of course, the amount of 25 million yen had nothing to do with this decision.
"Yes, in fact, it is. Would you like to know how I did it?"
Bankotsu surely looked interested. "Yes, I would,"
So Naraku explained everything to him from the beginning, from meeting Kikyo, to their premature plans, to Musou and Kagura's infiltration into the airport, to the actual crash. He even told him that they all survived, but did not reveal a location. Bankotsu had no problem with this. Naraku even shared his tale of lying to his girlfriend about the survivors.
"You certainly have your way of doing things," Bankotsu mentioned. Naraku gave him a sly look.
"I'm just a man who knows what he wants," Naraku replied.
Just a man who will serve a very long time in jail…Bankotsu thought, standing up.
"Well, I believe are business here is done. I expect the job to be done in a week's time; I'll send an associate later to inform me on how you're doing. Do we have a deal?" Bankotsu asked, putting his hand in front of him, indicating he wanted to shake on it.
"Of course, I won't let you down," Naraku replied, shaking Bankotsu's hand firmly.
"I'm sure you won't," Bankotsu said, "I'm sure you won't,"
Jakotsu sat in the front of his sleek Mazda looking in the rear view mirror waiting for Kikyo to finally go home. He adjusted his designer sunglasses, and sighed.
How long is this going to take? She's never taken this long before…but then again, I've never followed her before…oh it's not fair! Ban-kun gets to do all the fun stuff while I'm stuck following Miss Two Face around! She can't even accessorize properly!
Jakotsu huffed and puffed to himself like this for the next three minutes before he caught sight of Kikyo getting into the company limousine. Jakotsu started up his car, and began the chase.
He stayed two cars behind as to not look suspicious. Jakotsu took pictures with his miniature camera for photographic evidence that would probably be used against her later.
I'll make sure she suffers for trying to hurt my poor Inu-kun! Jakotsu thought darkly as he turned at the exit that the limousine took. It stopped soon at a chic café that was just downtown. Surely she could've walked there! But then again, in those heels she was wearing…
He parked on the other side of the street and slowly got out of the car. He crossed the street elegantly, now wearing a light blue kimono with yellow lilies embroidered along the bottom. He stepped into the café and took a booth near the back. He took out a magazine from his purse and flipped it to a page where a tiny screen was fixed into the center. A small camera on the cover allowed him to see everything in front of him without looking odd.
On the screen he saw Kikyo sitting in a window seat, checking her watch frequently.
If only I could get a hand on her wardrobe…that outfit is atrocious!
Soon a man with long dark hair wearing a dark suit came in. She immediately greeted him with a long kiss and they sat down. Luckily enough for Jakotsu, he wasn't sitting that far away…
"So I met with somebody today," the man explained.
"Uh-huh…" Kikyo replied, looking for more details.
"And he's going to pay me 25 million yen to take out Sesshomaru myself within the next week," he explained further.
"Really! 25 million yen! That's a lot for one man. Who was this guy anyway?"
Obviously Bankotsu, you dimwit! Jakotsu thought. Surely his 25 million yen offer was a big hint; it was an appealing number to all gang leaders and such.
"He's very wealthy and powerful, but is very secretive and doesn't like his named mentioned for the sake of it,"
"Ah, I understand," she replied playfully.
"He also said that the 25 million yen was the minimum,"
"Wow! So he could end up paying you even more?"
How stupid do they come? Jakotsu thought, his face clearly showing his expression. Suddenly he glanced up, and saw Kikyo walking straight towards him!
Uh-oh…do I look suspicious? Can she see the camera? Jakotsu thought (plus thousands more other thoughts) as she came closer and closer. He closed the magazine as so she wouldn't see the little screen. He hoped anyway.
"Excuse me, miss?" Kikyo asked him. He'll let the 'miss' thing fly this time…he didn't want to blow his cover.
"Yes?" he responded.
"Where did you get that purse? It's adorable!" she said.
Phew…thank the gods she's stupid!
"I got it at this little boutique on the corner of Hiten and Maten Avenue. It's called 'Tsubaki's Bag Boutique'," he explained.
"Okay! Thanks!" she said with a fake smile on her face and walked back to her table.
That was a little close…he looked at his designer purse beside him…THANK YOU PURSE! I am definitely going back to Tsubaki's after this job for an all out shopping spree!
Well, it's not everyday that a purse saves your cover.
The humidity…all everyone could think and moan about was the humidity. Kagome laid in the shade attempting to cool her off by using a palm tree leaf as a fan, with little success unfortunately. InuYasha sat leaned up against the palm tree, topless and his hair to one side to get it off his neck. Miroku and Sango were splashing about in the ocean.
Kagome was very happy for her friend, ever since she got together with Miroku two nights ago. It was about time Sango had a boyfriend; she had been very lonely before. Now if only her and Inu…
…wait, what was she thinking? He already had a girlfriend. This brought Kagome down a bit, but she tried not to worry about it. They were just good friends…well, with the holding hands and everything…friends held hands, right?
She glanced up at him for a moment, and noticed his eyes were closed. He seemed to be sleeping, from his light breathing. Kagome took this opportunity to gaze at the one thing hotter than the temperature.
He's got to be the best looking guy I've ever seen! Better looking than Koga! I wonder if that kind of hotness on a guy is even legal…his girlfriend is pretty lucky…and probably pretty too…sigh…
InuYasha felt a pair of eyes burning into his chest and abdominal area. He knew it was Kagome, she'd been checking him out ever since the first time he took his shirt off. It was like she's never seen abs before.
I'll let her look for now…but not for too long…
Two minutes went by. Kagome was still staring (and is that drool!). Now InuYasha was getting annoyed. All he wanted to do was have a nap! He opened one eye.
"Does something interest you?" he asked sarcastically. She immediately looked away, turning slightly to her left.
"Uh, no…I don't know what you're talking about," she replied, trying to sound innocent. InuYasha rolled his eyes. Kikyo would never look at him like that ever.
Kikyo…
Just the thought of her made InuYasha sad. Had she given up on him now? She must be so worried and depressed, considering their last words together were all part of an argument. It made him feel rotten to the core.
He cracked open his eyes slightly to see Kagome's back facing him, finding interest in drawing in the sand. He closed his eyes and shifted slightly.
But he hadn't really felt that bad when he was with Kagome. She wanted for nothing and was just happy all (well, most) of the time, and made all his bad feelings go away. She was like a tranquilizer to him…he felt at peace when he was with her.
Suddenly, he felt the eyes burning holes into his well-toned body again. Couldn't the girl just give it a rest? He shot open his eyes and sat up.
"Do you mind? It's pretty hard to just sleep around here without some fan-girl staring at you all the time!" InuYasha snapped. So much for being a tranquilizer.
Kagome immediately accepted the challenge. "I wasn't staring at you! You're just paranoid and think everybody's obsessed with you!"
"What the hell are you talking about?" InuYasha yelled, "I ain't paranoid! And I don't think that everybody's obsessed with me!"
"Yes you do! You accused me of being your fan-girl!"
"Because you just can't stop staring at me! If anybody is obsessed with me, it's YOU!"
"I am not obsessed with you! Why would I waste my time with a spoiled brat who's just a stupid ass!"
"You're the one who's spoiled and stupid!"
"No I'm not! You're the one with all the money and everything!"
Sango and Miroku (whom had been standing there for a while) just watched at the bickering couple (who were now standing nose to nose). Sango sighed, and Miroku just shook his head. And they had been getting along so well…
"Yes you are! You were stupid enough to almost get married to the stupid wolf weren't you?"
Kagome gasped, and backed off. She opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. Miroku and Sango looked shocked that InuYasha would say something so personal. Kagome was on the brink of tears. She closed her eyes, and clenched her fists.
"Stupid hanyou!" she yelled with all her might, before running off into the jungle behind her. Tears from her eyes streamed down her face, as she made her way through the thick underbrush all around her.
InuYasha stood there, looking flabbergasted. How could Kagome have said such a thing? He wanted to go confront her, but he found that he couldn't move.
She really hates me that much?
Sango and Miroku just looked on, no words being able to ease the situation. Sango couldn't believe the childishness of both of them…using such personal attacks against each other over one looking at the other. After a few moments of silence, InuYasha finally spoke.
"Fine! She wants to be that way, then its fine with me!" he said in a huff storming off to sit under another tree. Kagome's intoxicating scent that still coated the air around this tree was confusing his thoughts.
Most would've believed that he was just angry, like a five year old right at this moment. But little would they know how much he was hurting inside…
Kagome furiously pushed ferns and other plant life aside, while tears continued to flow. She hadn't taken the path to the hot spring, she just started to walk into the jungle, and a little voice in the back of her head was telling her she was lost.
But that little voice was overpowered by the thoughts on the forefront of her mind.
How DARE he say that thing to me, after I told him in the belief he would understand! How can he hate me that much?
Suddenly, so caught up in her thoughts, Kagome slipped. She turned and tumbled down a very steep hill, being hit by tree roots and rocks on the way down. The world was spinning around her. She didn't even have time to scream.
She landed at the bottom with a thud. Every joint in her body hurt, and her entire body was covered in mud. She didn't move at first, just letting it all the pain settle in. But then she heard the most frightening sound…
Hiiiissssss…
She looked behind her, but it was too late. The yellow rattle snake at her ankle had already struck, causing a burning sensation within her right leg. She used her left leg to kick it off, and it soon retreated. She tried to move to see the bite, but was slowed down immensely by the pain in her bones.
She examined the bite. There were two clear punctures, which were already swollen purple. She felt dizzy, and tired. All she wanted to do was sleep. And was it just her, or was it getting hotter outside…?
That's when the realization set in. The snake was poisonous. She couldn't move. The sun was going down, and no one knew where to find her.
It was most certain she was going to die.
InuYasha…please! Please find me!
A cliffhanger! Holds up big metal shield to protect herself from flying objects I liked Jakotsu's part! He can be so adorable! Thank you again to all my reviewers, please continue to do so! Now, while you're waiting for Chapter 13, go see my new fanfic!