Disclaimer: theworldsgreatest01 does not wish to try to claim any of the characters of Rumiko Takahashi's work and will never do so, they are just an avid fan.

A/N: A brief warning, we are getting to the good part, the nitty, the gritty, and the sadness of fate in this story. When theworldsgreatest01 thinks of the series of Inuyasha as a whole, they think of the people thrust into war, so many in that era that weren't prepared for it, the fear that must have went through them to fight to live, the concept of death that was portrayed so magnificently by Takahashi-sensei. theworldsgreatest01 wished to do the same in these characters, to show it isn't always just fun and games.

Chapter Eleven: Lost I

... ...

Just keep blocking, keep blocking, keep blocking….now dodge. This stupid song without any rhyming and without much words just plays over and over in my head whenever shit like this happens. I've reviewed combat routines for months, years, days, I know what to expect, I've fought before, I've fought em both before. I'm trained for this. This is what I've been training for. Training techniques, Sango taught me. Miroku too. Oto-san.

Run. Run Kikyou. Now block.

Everything always moves in slow motion when I'm scared. I notice everything that doesn't even matter about the fight, the smell of the area, the sweat dripping down my forehead and my chest, the color of the leaves on the trees or the way the ground feels underneath my bare feet. Its cold and still I'm sweating.

Pain shoots across my side now. Damn it. I could've dodged it, you could've dodged it you stupid-fuck! Again!

I hear my heart beating in my ears like a drum inside me being pounded in the rhythm I don't have for the thoughts in my head. My feet are freezing. Oka-san told me to wear geta, but I never listen, she says. I didn't think I'd need them. My blood is splashing all on the snow. Its like red ink soaking into paper…keep moving, don't stop for anything, you cant stop for anything, don't stop for nothing, nothing. Just concentrate. Where is the bitch, where is she, close your eyes and think, feel your surroundings like Oto-san said. He's to the left, behind, a few yards-just a few fucking yards? A few yards away. Where's the other one, what ever the hell his name is, Kanto?

How did they corner me, it was a setup, and I fell for it like an idiot, a stupid…stupid idiot…

Its getting darker. Where'd the fuckin' sun go dammit…my damn hair is in the way, these bangs. I feel like I'm slowing down. Speed up, speed up, speed up. Run. Again…more blood. Who knew currents of air could cut the shit outta you? There must be a hundred lashes all over my back. The snow is falling everywhere, Haruka's attacks cut through it like water, everything's getting darker but still the ground is white, the trees are white, all white. Underneath my feet, while I'm running, I feel the ground crunching beneath my toes, the snow, I'm running all over it while its so white and perfect.

They're just toying with me now, gettin' some kind of sick kick off of taking me down little by little, piece of skin by piece of skin. It burns, my sweat is pouring into the wounds.

Damn it! I feel Haruka's attack slice through the skin on the back of my leg, tearing through the fabric of my hakama, a clean cut. I cry out, pitiful. I clench my side to help slow down the bleeding and duck between a section of the woods, cutting through trees, branches hitting my cuts, fuck. I still have to try and find somewhere to hide. I can't keep this up. Listen to the surroundings, do you hear em coming? No. Nothing, its nothing, they're not chasing me anymore.

They're fucking with me. My body collapses against the trunk of a tree and slides down to the surface of the snow-covered ground. Blood soaks into it all around me like a puddle, like the color from my hinezumi-no-koromo is pouring off of it and onto the snow. Heart still beating fast, loud. Shut the hell up so I can hear, damn it! My breathing is coming out shallow, my skin burning everywhere, how many cuts…

I close my eyes and open them. I see Tsozen smiling at me and waving, his eyes watching me cry. His hand on my cheek, wiping away my tear but I'm not crying. I see my breath in the air, a mist that disappears into nothing, it might as well shouldn't have even come up at all if it only lasts a second. Concentrate. You can't stay here. You have to move, you gotta keep going. I try to stand up and my legs go limp, I'm back on the ground again, more blood.

C'mon…get up. "Get up…"

I'm on my own now, I've trained for this, I'm ready, I'm stronger-I can do this, just get. Up.

I'm standing.

Walk.

My legs move silly, they're puppet legs wobbling around on strings it might as well be, I start running again but I'm going so slow…so fucking slow, move, move move! Run…stay safe..run away from it. Its gonna be fine…just run Kikyou, don't be afraid…you're alone. Oto-san. Oka-san… Where'd the trees go.. Don't worry about that shit, just keep moving! Where do I go… I'm lost. Where am I…

Where am I….

I'm falling. Through time? Like Oka-san did a long time ago? Do I remember..? Its dark. And cold down here. My body's so cold… I hear them talking. Yeah I hear you, you fuckin' bastards. With his foot he puts it under my shoulder and shoves my body so now my back is cold, the frost seeping into the cuts there, it feels good. He's tall standing over me…I see the green of his eyes.

I cough up something warm and like thick water, it tastes like metal, my insides hate me. I'm lookin' in your eyes. I'm not afraid.

He kicks me in the stomach and I'm gone.

… …

"Kirara! Let's finish it!" She dashes out in her full form, fire spewing from her very fur and her jaws wide open, fangs bared to bite down on the demon. I'm exhausted more than I've ever been but I manage to reach in my robes to grab some sutras and put the last bit of my energy into them. I watch the paper glow with my light blue aura and throw them straight to the serpent and it makes a direct hit, burning its scales clean off the bone. The air fills with the scent of searing flesh, but it's the least of our problems.

"Alright time to get this crap outta the way!" I hear Inuyasha yell out in the clearing and I turn to look just as he starts to unsheathe Tetsusaiga with his left hand. His right arm is wounded, blood drips from his fingers but he still holds the sword strong while he jumps up into the air and starts to come down hard. The demon struggles in Kirara's grip and Kagome takes the pressure off by firing a perfectly aimed arrow that plunges into its neck. This is the calm that takes place before Inuyasha delivers the final blow, a blunt cut through the neck.

It all feels like a relief off our shoulders, I exhale a sigh and finally let my guard down, but a quick critical glance from Chichi-ue makes me straighten up again. Even if my muscles are aching from the neck down I can't let my guard down just yet, it's a careless juvenile mistake, I've been told this countless times.

Kirara lets the lifeless form free and I can't help but notice her disgusted expression as she blows from her nose and hangs her tongue; the demon's skin must have left a bad aftertaste.

"The others left for some reason," Kagome is the first to say. We all look around the area cautiously for a few moments before discussing.

"It was a coward's attack," Inuyasha seethes, placing Tetsusaiga back in its spot at his side.

"An ambush while we're asleep, off guard. We should be more aware next time. If this is how Maburoshi wants to do things now, now that we know…" Chichi-ue supplies.

We were all a little exhausted from walking all day questioning village after wanderer after village for information about any strange demons roaming about the countryside and having our hopes dashed with each negative reply so we decided to settle in and get a good night's sleep for once after being led in a pointless circle. I woke up to Shippou's wailing and I barely managed to awaken in time to dodge a katana that plunged into the ground where my head had previously laid only seconds ago. I looked at my assaulter and he didn't afford me much time to take a breath before he jumped out of the way for the serpent demon to strike at me, Haha-ue fended it off with Hiraikotsu and its all a complicated, exhausting blur from there.

But throughout the battle I thought it strange that the two main assailants had fled and left us all to deal with the lesser demons, nuisances really, but not before the ninja wounded Inuyasha's arm.

"Hey, where's Imoutou-chan?" I asked suddenly, realizing her absence in most of the fight and the lack of her boasting or complaining. It was too big a thing and too common to miss.

"I saw her go after the ninja guy, I think she wanted to take him on herself…" Shippou replied. He was sitting down in the grass with Kirara, massaging the bruise on his cheek. Kirara mewed out, and I heard the concern in it, strangely. I watched her start to sniff the air.

"What? What the hell got into her? Its bad enough we gotta worry about stupid weak demons and minions attacking us, she knows she can't be alone! We gotta go lookin' around for her n-"

"We have to go," Kagome cut Inuyasha off, standing attentively. I could see the worry in her eyes out the corner of mine, but I was mostly paying attention to Kirara. So was Haha-ue.

She stood on her paws and mewed again, and it was apprehensive. She smelled blood. And she made it clear it was Imoutou-chan's.

"Let's go! Kirara has the scent," Haha-ue shouted.

She led the way with Kirara while we all followed suit and I looked to my mother. Her silence translated to me as a mutual one, she hadn't mentioned that Imoutou-chan is in a lot of danger. Or worse.

Why had I let her out of my sight? I always keep a close watch on her in battle, how could I be so careless? Now we don't even know, we don't know if-she could be… For the first time I notice it. Its snowing. The ground is covered in it, its freezing but we all don't care, as we all race after Kirara our minds are just filled with Imoutou-chan. Kagome hasn't even fussed over Inuyasha's wounds. There's worry etched onto her face.

Damn. It's my fault, I should have followed her, I should have. My heart…it feels like its beating a mile a minute, I feel like its at the same pace as hers, she's afraid, I know it. A brief image of her crying out in pain flashes across my mind with tears pouring out of her eyes and I shut mine. No. She has to be okay, she has to! I can't lose her, she's-she's too much to me!

I look up at the stars above us that seem to move as we do, even faster, no matter how fast we run we can't reach them. So many nights we looked at those stars together, as children, laughing, dreaming about our future, thinking how easy and exciting it would be to go on a journey and defeat Maburoshi and show him what happens when he bullies people. The times we looked up at them while we laid in the grass and thought deeply of our own mortality. My arms around her while she cries into my chest. Her hand in mine. The trust in her eyes whenever she looked at me. With the snow falling from the sky its like the stars are falling one by one and coating the land beneath. Its all surreal, it isn't happening. She's not gone. She can't be.

"There, ahead! A cave!" Chichi-ue's shout breaks through my thoughts and I look up to see it, a cave with a wide mouth that appears as though it would consume anything that went within its depths. Its too dark to see inside.

"Kikyou's in there. Kirara knows it," Haha-ue remarked, grasping Hiraikotsu on her back.

"Damn. They led her in there," Inuyasha cursed. "Let's go, we can't just sit here not doin' shit."

He held onto Tetsusaiga in its sheath and started ahead, as did everyone else, I was the only one who stayed still. I felt like I couldn't move, my body. What if she was…what if we were too late?

"Dammit! What the fuck?"

They were all met with a barrier that was careful to give them all an electric shock of defiance before shoving them back where they had stood before. Maburoshi's minions weren't fools, maybe that's why I hadn't moved with the rest of them in the first place…I sensed it already, I anticipated it like it was normal. The shock harmed Inuyasha the most, considering he was already wounded.

"No!" he screamed and pounded at the barrier with both his fists, causing more damage to his wounded arm, the electricity surging through him and the bounce back occurring again.

"A barrier…" Shippou said out loud, "then how do we get Kikyou back?"

"There has to be some way, there has to!" Kagome cried out. Her voice broke.

There is a way, I know it. They wouldn't have led her here for no reason, they would have taken care of her out in the open, dragging her here was unnecessary if they only planned to kill her. There is a way.

Kagome rushed to take an arrow out, readied her stance without the slightest hesitance and fired a shot to the barrier. It was useless. The arrow made impact but ricocheted into the air. She only stared at the entrance. "We're not leaving my daughter in there, we're not."

What was I doing? Nothing. Just standing around. Staring into the mouth of the cave. It called to me, a subtle voice drawing me in. I felt it inside me.

"What can we do…" I heard Haha-ue mumble.

Right then I started to run ahead as fast as my body would let me. I heard the snow beneath my feet and I saw Imoutou-chan's face before me, the trust in her eyes. Everything stood still, the sound of the wind only rushed through my ears while I ran into the cave, passing through the barrier without any resistance as if there were nothing there at all, the voices of my parents and Kagome calling after me from the entrance didn't faze me, I only concentrated on finding my way through the cave. It bent at the corner; I turned it. Imoutou-chan, I'm here, just wait, I'm coming, its not over, it can't be, its you and me in this world, we have to do this together.

… …

I can't move my body…

Voices. I hear them talking.

"C'mon, Maburoshi doesn't control everything you know, you could try having a little fun for once. I believe torture is in order."

I know that voice. But I can't see. Because your eyes are closed stupid…its dark because your eyes are closed, open them.

"Are you in?"

But my eyelids are so tired…my whole body is. Its hard. I can do it. I've been doing it since I was a baby, just open them, you know how, open them, open them, open them, open!

Light. I see it, its blurry, but its there. Just a little more…I'm in a big place, its dark, but there's a little light, I see it, yeah I see it, there. Everything slowly comes into focus. Real slow, from blur, to…what is that. A person.

I groan and it hurts my throat, its so dry. But I manage to pick my head up just enough to look next to me and see a shadow. No. Another person, in black clothes. Green eyes look at me sharp.

"Well, looks who's up!"

There's dried blood on my chin. And he keeps looking at me. Wait. I try moving my arms and legs and I can't. I'm tied up, but to what? I look up at the rock against my back and look down at it coming out the ground. I gotta get outta here, I gotta get loose. The guy standing next to me walks around to the front of me and watches me struggling to get out the bindings. My body's too weak, I can't break free.

"Hey Kenta, she's struggling, take care of her damn it, we can't risk her getting up enough strength to try anything stupid." The voice tells the guy and he bends down to pick up a sheathed katana. He watches me close, all I see is his eyes and the black of his clothes. Then he holds up the end of the sword at me, lowers it to my stomach.

"Well what the hell are you waitin' for? Do it, stupid!"

He lunges his arms forward with a quick move faster than I can see and drives the end of the katana into my stomach in a hard blow. I cry out like a baby and I feel the blood rush up my throat and see it fly out my mouth. Fuck…that bastard. You bastard.

The girl in the back laughs, I can't see her, only the ground and dirt while I try to catch my breath from getting the wind knocked outta me. The guy is just standing there, I see his feet, what is he doing, he already took care of me. What the hell more do you want? I pick my head up and look him straight in the eyes. I clench my teeth. I wanna rip your face off, do you know that you piece of shit?

"Ah, you're awake now, wide awake, that's good!" The little bitch walks up to me. "You know, its rude for a guest to just be unconscious throughout the whole party."

All those bright ass colors in her outfit hurt my damn eyes. Its Haruka, I know her name. Purple hair, blue eyes, just a little fucking kid, almost half my height. Damn youkai. "Do you know how stupid you are, hm stupid? Do ya?"

She starts walking to my left. "Do you realize how easy it was to just lure you here, all alone, without anybody to save you? Did you really think you could take us both on? I know Maburoshi said it would be easy and that you were stupid enough to fall for it but I didn't think it would be this easy or you would even be this stupid!"

She walks back over to me and looks me over. "Wow, you're pretty beat up, looks like you're not going anywhere!" she says, smiling. "And if you do try anything, this big lug here will just keep clocking your lights out huh? Kay?"

I try to look back down but she grabs me by the chin and picks my head back up. "C'mon, don't be a bad sport… Don't you love this, hey?" She looks over to the guy in black but he doesn't answer, only stands there watching the entrance of the place. Haruka's face drops and she frowns. "Do you ever talk?"

He still doesn't say anything. "Oh well," she lets go and walks over to sit on a rock rising out of the cave floor. "Give me a good show then if you're not doing anything or talking like a normal person. Maburoshi said to give her hell, so that's what we're gonna do."

Haruka grinned, showing her teeth at me. "We're gonna have alotta fun with you. You shoulda never tried to be a hero all by yourself, now nobody's gonna hear you screaming in here when you're begging for us to show you mercy, and we're gonna have a ball, huh, we're gonna put you through the worst, oh, and we'll try not to kill you, but if we do by accident…oopsies."

The guy in black stands in front of me again, and I can't look at him. I can't look at any of em. Haruka's right. I shouldn't have tried…now I'm alone. I feel the cold, hard surface of the katana sheath hit me across the face. Again. Other side of my face. He hits me in the chin and my head shoots straight up. I see nothing but the ceiling of the cave, no stars, no sky, nothing. Again. I cry out. Every blow. I'm losing, I'm losing, they're takin' it from me, I can't fight…I can't do this, its too much.

Again. I wanna go home. A hard blow to my stomach again and I cough up more blood. He doesn't give it a rest, he keeps going, no rest, another hit to my chest this time, then my face again. My tooth is loose…

I just let the blood run out my mouth with my spit. Tears are coming from my eyes now. Nobody's coming. I'm stuck here, getting beat up by this bastard.

Oto-san. I miss my Oto-san, I wanna be home again, I want him to come and save me, call me his pup and hold me… Another blow to my face. Hold me and tell me everything's ok, he's gonna protect me, he's not gonna let anything happen to me, even if everybody hates me and doesn't like me he knows what its like and he's always gonna be there and if anybody gives me shit he's gonna kick their ass for me and nobody's gonna touch me, he promises me, he promises because that's what fathers do and his father couldn't do that for him but he's gonna do it for me.

It hurts…so bad…I'm crying. Oka-san, I want a hug from my Oka-san, I wanna hug her and not try to pull away because I need it, I need you, my mother, telling me that I have the prettiest eyes and she's proud of me and if no one feels the same they're wrong and she loves me…

A blow to the bottom of my jaw again and I see Haruka laughing but I don't hear her, then I'm looking at the ground again, watching my blood and tears falling into a puddle there and disappearing in the ground.

Nii-san. I see him smiling at me, blushing, calling me. Talking to me, the base in his voice that makes me drowsy and sleepy, coming together with the softness of it and stuff. His smile. I wanna see him again. I don't wanna leave him yet. He's my Nii-san, my only friend, my best friend, my-only. I love my Oka-san. I love my Oto-san. Do I? Do I love…Nii-san? We're all we've got…I need him to be there, if he's not, I'm alone…I do love him. Dammit.

I'm weak…I wasn't ready for this. I'm not. Its too…

Much.

For a moment I see the glint of the blade and hear the sound I know that's a sword being taken out, then I hear the other sound I know that's skin being cut, and I feel it too. I've never been cut before, now I know what it feels like…hot steel slicing through leaving the worst stinging ever, fuck. I scream out.

Now I'm bleeding from my side again. Losing too much blood. This is hell, this is what its gotta be like, this is it. I'm coughing again, more blood from my throat. The ground is slithering around, like brown snakes all around my feet. Its getting blurry again…

I couldn't do it Oto-san. I can't stay awake.

And I'm scared. I don't wanna die.

My eyes burn and I feel the tears coming up and spilling all over my nose, dripping down on the ground, drop by drop. I'm whimpering now. Sniffling up snot like a scared little girl. Sobbing.

I don't wanna die…

… …

Rounding the corner I sensed Imoutou-chan's spiritual energy fading fast, the decline in her power like blunt, sharp drops and my heart beat cajoling me forward, beseeching my legs to go faster, faster, faster still. And here I came into a large cavern formed naturally over time, a tall pillar within its center, jutting out to the heavens above and its stars giving light to the area, and here I saw my imoutou-chan, her body tied there as a martyr, head limp and dangling as if she were unconscious or-

"Imoutou-chan!"

She doesn't look up. She's…? For a moment I take notice of a figure dressed in black standing before her, the glint of a blade he's holding up that's coated in blood. We catch each others eyes and an anger unlike anything I've known before surges up in me.

"Ah! Our hero has arrived, let the show begin!" Before I can find out where those strange words came from a multi-colored blur rushes toward me giving me no time to block before I'm struck a hard blow to the back. How did she manage to get behind me so quick? I roll forward on the ground and follow through by holding up my arm toward her, blocking her next attack that sprung at my face from just the hem of her kimono but the attack was just as strong as any weapon could muster, luckily my forearm is covered by tajiya armor. Still no time is wasted to recover, my defensive technique only serves to enrage the youkai I now notice to be Haruka and she clenches her teeth, whips back her other arm and continues her assault while I scurry backward on the cave floor struggling to get to my feet and block at the same time.

"Your technique is so basic its laughable! Have you even been training at all? You're weak! You and that little bitch there both!" Haruka seethes through her teeth and starts to giggle.

This is the only time I realize that she's been toying with me. As soon as it dawns on me the ominous smirk on her face startles me and it causes a stumble in my defense, she finds a careful opening and first hits me in the chest with her kimono sleeve, two hits each sleeve, then jumps up to kick me in the same area. All the pressure was dealt to my heart. How could I leave it open? Am I really that weak? But we've been training! I fall to the ground and skid to a halt, the back of my head aching. My hand unconsciously grips the fabric over my chest. There's no time for breathing or healing, you're in the heat of battle and you have to move! Placing my other hand on the ground I push myself into a sitting position and force myself to my feet. Haruka stands feet away from me still smirking, her head tilted to the side with arms folded as she observes the entire scene. My breathing is heavy, I have to level it, concentrate and watch her every move, even though she isn't moving she can attack at any second so be alert.

"Going over battle routines in your head little boy?" Haruka laughs, "I don't even feel like goin' on with you, just look at yourself! You're not even a challenge and I'm half your size, hey!"

She breaks her conversation with me to look somewhere else. "Hey deaf-mute! Maburoshi told that you're supposed to deal with this guy, you and him are supposed to get up close and personal, teach him a lesson in real combat? I'll watch the other brat!"

I see the ninja turn towards us. He hadn't been paying any attention to us before, now he stares directly into my eyes. I look back at Haruka then at him. What if they both decide to attack me at once and her words were just a ploy to get me to believe I'll only be fighting the ninja? I try to think ahead of everything, anticipate every move and block and parry in advance. Then I notice his eyes observing my body, I feel it on the surface of my skin, he's measuring me. Assessing all my weak points. I look back at Haruka again.

"If I were you I'd be more worried about that, hey."

The ninja's light footsteps echo and bounce all around the cave walls at a steady pace and I turn to see him running with his hands at his side wielding a katana, I hurry to grab the hidden blade within my robes just in time to parry the strike of his katana and its begun with the loud ringing of steel colliding together at once. Even though I throw the energy behind the attack back at him and it absorbs into the blades he still manages to push me back and my feet slide slightly backward.

I can be stronger, I know I can be. Imoutou-chan is at the corner of my eye, barely in sight and still a limp body tied to a post. I look in her assailants eyes and promise to be stronger, we have to be, I have to be for her. I'll die trying! I push him back and attempt a strike, its barely blocked it seems but he makes it look so effortless, like he's not even using his full potential! I scream out a battlecry and lunge my blade in the direction of his abdomen, perhaps an open space left there carelessly but the katana parries it away and I'm caught blind by a fist striking me in the face. Blood rolls down from my nose and from a cut on my cheek but I keep going and so does he, block after block, he lands two more hits to my torso and my heart pains start up again. I ignore everything, even Haruka's shrill laughing as she watches us wrestle with each other, she can laugh as much as she pleases but I won't back down not when so much is at stake, I fight, I fight. He lands another strike to my cheek yet this is what gives me the opening and incentive to push forward against his force, throw him off balance and plunge my blade into his shoulder.

This is it! I've done it, I got him, I've won! I stop and watch his reaction, wait for him to double over in anguish or cry out but he says nothing, everything is quiet now. Save for Haruka's snickering.

"You really think that hurt him! You thought you had him! You really did, you thought you won that easy? You stupid boy! You're an idiot, you're a moron!"

The ninja looked at his shoulder and calmly placed his hand upon the blade, pulling it out with ease and tossing it to the side like it was a child's toy. This isn't happening, this can't be. I rose my hands up to look at them and they trembled at my gaze. Imoutou-chan…I'm sorry..

We weren't ready for this. A sharp five consecutive blows to all the vulnerable areas in my body that he had observed earlier and that I had simply left for him to take charge of resulted in me falling to the ground, the right side of my face scraping against the rough surface of rocks and gravel. This is where I belong. I'm a failure, a coward, a weakling, a moron as Haruka called me. How could we not be prepared? Hadn't our parents trained us enough? We dealt with other demons so easily, why were these two so hard to defeat? We weren't ready. Imoutou-chan and I will die here. The dirt and gravel seep into the cuts on my face, stinging them. I deserve this. Tears start to well in my eyes. "Nii-san…"

I hear her voice and feel it when I close my eyes, its weak and defenseless, so unlike her usual self when I used to hear that title called to me with such bravado and ferocity behind it, now as I move my head as much as I can while ignoring the aching of my skull I see her face above me, battered and bruised, blood-smeared. It's the first time I've ever seen her look so helpless, and I can't help but think, she's too young, she's a woman. I finally see her as she is, my little sister, viciously beaten to shreds by this man who has no compassion for the fact that she's a woman, a girl who deserves better, her soft face is covered in welts now. Yet I still manage to see her smile at me, small smile that comes through tears streaming down her face. She's afraid of dying here.

I reach out my hand to her to just touch her, let her know everything will be alright even though I don't even know for sure if its true for myself but the ninja's foot comes between us, stomping onto my hand without any resistance and pain shoots through my whole hand. I hear the sound of my bones breaking. Haruka's laughing fills the cave again.

"How heartbreaking! Such a beautiful moment! You're bad Ken-"

I can't hear the last thing she says because at that moment he moves his foot onto my head over my ear, pushing it to the ground so I can no longer see Imoutou-chan. The pain is unlike anything I've ever felt before. I shout and struggle but there's nothing I can do, I'm too weak, the more pressure he exerts the more I scream, Imoutou-chan forgive me I wasn't good enough, strong enough, Haha-ue why didn't you tell me I wasn't good enough, Chichi-ue why didn't you teach me to be a real man and defend everyone, why do I have to be weak, why? Sayuri…This pain! I want it to go away! Please! I close my eyes and scream.

"Please! Don't kill me! Don't kill Imoutou-chan!"

Then the pain stops suddenly. I can't believe it. I'm still alive… I feel someone leaning over me, then a voice in my ear, a male voice that I won't forget.

"You're pathetic."

I hear Haruka again. "That should be enough right? He only told us to push em to the brink of death. Why do you think he wanted us to do this anyway? Its so boring."

"To warn them of death. That it is coming."

"Wow! You finally talked. Whatever. Maburoshi's gonna let the barrier down, he already knows they're beat up and we stopped already, weirdo knows everything about those idiots. The rest of the 'Inu-gang's' gonna be here soon. Let's go hey?"

The movement of bodies and the sound of rocks crumbling, an explosion, then the fluttering of fabric on the breeze. They're gone. I stare at the rocks scattered from their escape that rolled by my head. Death.

"Nii-san…"

"KIKYOU!"

"Kohaku!"

"KIKYOU!"

I hear everyone coming. Everyone that didn't teach us what death really is. What battle is really like. I don't want them to come. I close my eyes and all I can think of is how I begged for my life with my head beneath another man's foot.

Pathetic.

A/N2: Appreciation is shown toward those of you that take the time out to read this fanfic. Reviews are always welcome and please do so, bad or good, they are one and the same, a desperately needed review! Many thanks.