Retribution

Chapter 4

The next morning came fast and she was up shortly after the crack of dawn and quietly exiting the hut to check on her clothing that she hung out to dry. Finding them mostly dried she wondered how she was going to change with her current male guest in there sleeping. She figured she should add on another room being she had no idea how she would do this every morning.

She should rather have a separate room for sleeping anyways; it would be easier to keep warm in the winter without so much of a draft. Turning to go back in she walked right into Itachi and felt his hand on her back supporting her balance. Hiding the blush she mumbled an apology under her breath and went back into her hut to change.

InuYasha had whined about helping her build another room to her hut but with a final plead from Kagome he headed to the woods in search of a couple trees to use. Itachi had left that morning and since then hadn't returned. With the room marked in the ground Kagome focused on taking a few of the boards down to create a doorway and then left to go back to her era for a hammer and nails. By the end of the day her hut was set and she had ventured into the woods behind her home and found a clearing to start setting up a training area for closer combat. She then continued with the rest of her supplies to a large field a few minutes further and finished making an archery range. By then the sun had set and she was lying on her back in the field lightly dozing.

The moon had risen in the sky and she awoke to the feeling of eyes on her. Strengthening the barrier she had placed just beyond her skin she made a quick sweep of the surrounding area with her eyes before feeling the presence leave. Dismissing it, she headed home and then proceeded to take another dip in the hot springs but only to wash tonight, her stomach was rumbling too loudly to be ignored. Returning to her quiet hut she made some soup from her time and proceeded to crawl into her sleeping bag, entirely forgetting about her second room meant for just that.

Itachi quietly landed outside her hut after spending the day getting a feel for his new surroundings and the villagers themselves. He noticed the new room added to the hut earlier but couldn't find Kagome anywhere for hours. Entering the hut he spotted her fast asleep in her sleeping bag with soup leftover and a dish left out for him.

Heating the soup up he studied her as she slept, noticing the wet locks that still clung to her face and the damp clothing outside. He had this urge to watch over her but he could only guess it was due to her giving nature and possibly being the one to help him find a way back to his world. He had a nagging feeling that he would need to at least find out how.

Quietly eating his soup he sat in his thoughts as he continued to stare at the slumbering woman on the other side of the fire. InuYasha wasn't on the hut tonight; he hadn't seen much of the half demon either today. Finishing his soup and killing the fire he washed the dishes at the river and then returned to get some sleep. As he fell asleep he decided to speak to Kagome tomorrow.

She rose early that morning, just before sunrise and went through her morning routine, noticing the cleaned dishes she headed out early after grabbing an apple from her bag. She was glad she had the other room built; it made the morning that much easier to go through. Disappearing into the woods she went straight into a warmup for a day full of testing out her training grounds. She knew she could be stronger physically and had room to improve on her archery skills as well. She needed practice and something that would push her to her limits.

Setting her bag down she went straight into her training, using her bow sparingly as she attacked the targets for several hours that morning. Towards the peak of the day she finally took a long break and washed up, ate a light lunch and guzzled down a bottle of water. She took a short walk to the other training grounds and spent several hours of the afternoon practicing there before she headed to the river.

It was so hot out today she decided to finish her day swimming so she changed into her bathing suit. Noticing the splinters in her skin she spent several minutes taking them out and ignoring the blood. Finally done she dived into the water then went for a swim in the calmer portion, going upstream for a while before letting herself float and feel the current push her right back. The water washed away the blood; dirt and sweat she accumulated through the day making her feel clean and refreshed.

After washing up and getting dried off she focused on using her powers to heal the wounds and that is when Itachi found her. Noticing the scrapes and her tired appearance he did his best to ignore that she was only in a bathing suit and towel. He knelt down next to her and looked at her hands after he grabbed them gently. He looked up into her blushing face and questioned the wounds she was healing.

"I had been training today." She watched him gently let go of her hands and went back to focusing her power into healing the remaining scrapes. Feeling eyes on them Itachi stood and waited for her to finish before helping her carry her stuff back to the hut while quietly informing her of the eyes on them.

He sat watching her make ramen when he recalled that he wanted to speak to her, "Kagome."

"Hmm," Their eyes connected and she noticed the more serious look in his eyes and posture compared to the relaxed one he had settled into.

"I have had this nagging feeling that I should figure out how to get home, I have a feeling I will need to know in the future. Would you still be willing to help me?" He almost felt guilty asking this of her. He didn't plan to go home the second he discovered a way, he really wouldn't mind living out his days here in this world.

"I did say I would should you decide that is what you wish," her calm reply seemed to be lacking in emotion but neither said a thing. She certainly didn't blame him for still wanting to know how to get home. She wouldn't be happy waking up one day to finding herself stuck in some unknown world.

"I don't plan on leaving; I have come to liking this place. It's just a nagging feeling I have, my instincts are rarely ever wrong. Thank you Kagome, for all of the help you have given me this far." She gave him a small 'you're welcome' and then began scooping out the noodles and passing a bowl over to him.

The rest of the night carried on peacefully, he accompanied her to the river once more and helped her wash the dishes. As they sat there listening to the water lapping at the shore he realized she had fallen asleep. Feeling the eyes back on them he glared in the direction that he could feel them and then proceeded to pick up the few dishes and carry Kagome back to the hut.

She was light in his arms, his mind wandered off course, he for some reason wished he could share his world with her but he already decided he wasn't up to living there. He was certain that he wouldn't be getting a warm welcome should he ever return. Even if a few of them accepted him, it wouldn't be the whole population.

Minus his mom though, he had never really interacted with women much. He knew he had fan girls back in the village before he went rogue but he couldn't go for girls that were so shallow. It was easy being around Kagome and her close friends; they after all were not like that.

Reaching the hut he carefully set down the dishes and then got Kagome tucked away in her sleeping bag. He could tell while she was cooking dinner that she had been exhausted. Her friends had lives of their own as he could clearly see so he was glad that he was around while she was clearly pushing herself hard. He wondered what she was preparing for or if it was just expecting the unexpected. Lying down in his own bed he looked at her one last time before focusing on falling asleep.