Chapter 24

The half demon stood poised and stared defiantly at the black hulk of a demon that was still sneering savagely at him. If not for the hostage…hostages…Goshuri held precariously in his clawed fingers, the half demon could have ended the confrontation right then and there. But despite the near overwhelming temptation to do just that…Inuyasha held his ground. Killing this demon would grant him no satisfaction it if also meant formfitting the lives of an innocent mother and her unborn child. If only there was a way to get the incarnate to release her…

"It's ironic that you'd call me a coward!" the half demon at last growled sharply "considering you're the one that's hiding behind a shield."

His effort was simple enough, wound Goshuri's pride and he'd henceforth release the mortal in an effort to prove himself…or so he thought.

"You're right… how utterly spineless of me," came a very sarcastic retort from the incarnate that made Inuyasha realize instantly the flaw in his plan. With an expression torn between anger and horror the half demon watched as Goshuri extended his arm away from his body and with painful slowness started to tighten his fist around the whimpering woman. "I suppose you would prefer if I dispose of it…"

Glaring hard Inuyasha was just about ready to loose the tiny shred of restraint that kept his muscles frozen but before the impulse had time to register a jolt of silver erupted from the forest. The energy streak shot past Goshuri's hand and left a cloud of red and the incarnate's roar in its wake. It was only a an instant later, after the silver rush glided to the ground and assumed a perceivable shape.

His niece was standing with back turned some distance away, the shivering village woman clutched in her arms. At the moment she was snarling something awful, but the sound was condensed and muffled thanks to the large hunk of black-furred flesh she held within her jaws. Gradually the demoness turned, releasing the woman as she did so, and as her head swiveled to peer hatefully over her shoulder Inuyasha could see that the trophy she held in her fangs was one of the incarnate's fingers; torn intact, strait from the joint where the digit fused to the hand. Chuffing the she -demon spit out the claw causing it to hit the earth with a dull thud.

Goshuri meanwhile watched with dilated eyes as his former prisoner ran into the woods and he was faced instead with a dog demon whom he himself has personally slaughtered.

"You…" was all he could stammer, and after a seemingly endless pause to confirm the she-demon's scent he managed to continue "but that's impossible! I thought you were…"

"Dead?" came an eerily cold interjection from Shura followed by a snort "That was a cheap shot…and it's one you won't make again!" As she spoke the demoness maneuvered forward with confident strides until she had reached the side of her uncle. Then for her own enjoyment if not added effect she pressed the knuckled edge of her clenched right hand against the open palm of her left and gave them a sharp crack.

The threat didn't seem to frighten the incarnate for his snarl deepened as he continued. "I don't know how you survived canine wench," he growled with an angry note of emphasis "but I will not let you stand in the way of my revenge!" Now it was Shura's turn to snarl.

"That makes two of us."

Knowing full well that he was Goshuri's intended target Inuyasha drew Tetsusaiga and stood at the ready. But before he could make another move and dice up the incarnate just as he had the beast's elder brother a slim, striped wrist extended before him.

"No Inuyasha," came Shura's stern request "this battle is mine." True to his nature the half demon started to grunt out his disapproval, but in the instant before the protest escaped, instinct clamped his jaws shut and held them fast. His niece had been driven into "kill-mode," and provoking her with unnecessary arguments was not at all a wise course of action. Lowering his sword Inuyasha acknowledged his stand-down from battle by taking a short, step backwards, away from the soon to be warzone. This action seemed to satisfy Shura for she gave an approving nod.

"If for whatever reason I don't survive," the demoness directed to her uncle before advancing a few paces "I leave it up to you…to take this bastard down." Inuyasha nodded at her request, but said nothing more.

With a determined stare he watched his niece approach Naraku's incarnation, her gate and movements frighteningly similar to those of her father.

Goshuri meanwhile snarled under his breath at the she-hound nearing him. There was nothing he hated more, then an adversary that refused to die. And this one was presently thwarting his attempts at slaying the real enemy…Inuyasha. Hissing harshly in his throat, Goshuri tapped lightly into the sacred jewel concealed in his chest and focused the energy to his bleeding hand. Almost immediately the bloodflow ceased and from the raw, exposed tissue poked the beginnings of a claw. Within seconds a new finger regenerated from his flesh. With that problem taken care of, the demon next turned his attention to Inuyasha's bothersome niece….

Whoomp! Something hard struck Goshuri in the chest with the force of an avalanche, sending the two-ton demon careening into the earth. Now sprawled awkwardly on his back Goshuri immediately composed himself, when he realized the demoness's target was the jewel in his chest. Springing to his feet the incarnate countered with a telekinetic pulse of energy. He could see Shura's body thrown back but within an eye blink she was at him again her claws at the ready. This time Goshuri tried to block the demoness's assault by psychically ripping a large tree from the earth and hurling it at her. But to his dismay, such an obstacle didn't even break her stride. Just as the object reached her it was split clean down the center with a well aimed Iron rever attack and the two haves sped harmlessly past. Then suddenly…she was gone again… Goshuri turned on his heels when he heard the whistle of an approaching attack from behind. How did she get back there so fast? This time the incarnate blocked by hurling a boulder, and for a second time he was sorely disappointed with its lack of effect. Rather then using her claws the demoness connected her fist to the rock, pulverizing it in mid air. Then with equal nimbleness she zipped out of the fragments path and settled to the ground, just left of where the incarnate was facing.

"Is that the best you can do?" the sound of the she-demon's voice made the incarnate pivot again to face her "I would think you'd be a lot stronger considering how many you killed…"

The incarnate's eyes flashed for a brief moment as he continued to stare down at the dog demon. Her skill level may have increased to the point of posing a threat but unbeknownst to her, he still had an edge, and it stemmed far beyond the jewel pulsing in his chest. Despite all her newly acquired bravado and fighting skill, it didn't erase the fact that he, Goshuri, had slain her once before. And thanks to that faithful claw-stroke delivered to her chest…his victory was inevitable. For deep within the she-demon's flesh lingered the tiniest sliver of his claw, a fragment so small it remained completely undetected, to both her and her caregivers. But he had sensed it. Now that the demoness's blood was rushing, and her temperature risen, he could feel the tiny fleck of his essence throbbing within her chest. All he needed was to call it back to him…and the battle would be over.

"So, it's my best that you want is it she-hound," mused the incarnate with a devious grin "well then allow me to grant your request." With eyes glowing and the sacred jewel perking with power the incarnate focused upon the pin-prick of essence and fueled its energy. Then with the slightest command, he drew it towards him. The effect was immediate.

Shura let out a horrendous shriek as a searing pain erupted in her chest, and an even louder one when a wriggling, buzzing mass started to crawl within her flesh. Tearing at the pain with her claws Shura ripped a sizable gash through both her garments and her tissue, and from out of the openings poked a hell-insect's head. The creature buzzed loudly, and after prying enough of itself into the outside world, thrust its stinger at Shura's heart.

Inuyasha watched horrified as his niece sank to the ground. Her pale skin made even paler complements of the insect's venom, the demoness's body looked as still and shrouded as a ghost, and for all her rights she probably would become one soon enough.

Turning a rabid eye in the incarnate Inuyasha darted into the beast's line of sight before he even realized his feet had started moving. He was that pissed. Naturally this delighted Goshuri, who like his master, relished adding fuel to the half demon's flaring temper.

"What a pity," the black demon voiced with a smirk "I broke her dreams and her heart."

"That's enough out of you!" roared Inuyasha before the beast could comment further. With a mighty thrust of Tetsusaiga the half demon unleashed a wind-scar attack aimed directly at Goshuri's head. But before the blow could connect a pulse of iridescent telekinetic energy radiated from the demon's body and formed a brief but effective half-dome shield. This shielding protected the incarnate from the strike's damage however it did not prevent the massive recoil that accompanied it. Goshuri had to dig his talons deep into the earth just to keep from falling over, and even with this effort, the blow still sent him skidding a good twenty feet backwards.

"Learned some new tricks have we, how interesting" hissed Goshuri with a sneer as the half demon readied for another strike. "Not that they will save you…" he made it a point to add. In the next instant, with the same surprising speed inherent to his late brother, Goshuri appeared within striking range of Inuyasha. A well-aimed underhand punch sent the half demon soaring a lengthy distance before he hit the earth with a thud.

Growling angrily, Inuyasha pulled himself to his feet but that was all the further he could get before another blow, this time from Goshuri's tail, knocked him flat. For a second time the half demon tried to rise, but as before his movements weren't fast enough. Goshuri appeared with his same lightning movements and with a heavy hind-paw squished Inuyasha into the dirt. And that was where he stayed, unable to move even his lungs.

With wild eyes Inuyasha stared up into the face of the demon that now loomed above him. Goshuri's lips were parted revealing a sinister grin, and his eyes shone with a reminiscent evil inherent to every incarnate Naraku had ever created…

The half demon's vision blurred. His body had gone numb to the point where all he could sense was the shift in pressure as the black demon drove him into the earth with increasing force. A distinct cracking sound also reverberated in the air and it was only after the fear of death had started to set in that the half demon realized the noise was from his bones as they strained to withstand the weight. With his last driving ounce of strength Inuyasha managed to land a moderate Iron rever attack on the leg that currently pinned him. Unfortunately, with his senses so distorted, the strike was quite poorly aimed; only one of the five claw-strokes actually hit, not nearly enough to do any serious damage… and still, the weight atop his body suddenly lifted.

Drawing in a massive breath for air Inuyasha felt relief spread across his entire being. Rich, wonderful oxygen and a blaze of adrenalin surged to his vital structures and within moments the feeling returned to his limbs. At the same time the half demon's senses also sharpened. His hearing came first and strangely, based on what his ears relayed of the incarnate's breathing pattern, Goshuri had turned away from him and was focusing on something in another direction. Blinking hard Inuyasha eventually got his eyes to clear. As he anticipated the incarnate had indeed pivoted his body, but from his current angle still sprawled in the soft earth and with the black hulk of a beast occluding his view, the half demon couldn't see what had intrigued him so. Then Inuyasha regained his sense of smell…and in that moment he quickly learned the reasoning for his captor's sudden change of heart. Sesshomaru's scent was in the surrounding air…and it reeked of anger.