Miko Upgrade - Chapter 6
Many more hours of moth watching followed the blonde man's departure until Kagome could only assume night fell because as she felt a mild pain in her stomach the door was once again opened but this time by a familiar girl with bubblegum pink hair. Following the girl was the blonde boy still covered in bandages, the sight of which caused Kagome to wince with remorse; before Kagome could wonder why the pair was here the girl produced a tray which held a glass filled with what Kagome assumed was water, and a bowl which hid some form of food.
Kagome stood but the teens watched her wearily as she did so, both extremely careful of where she held her hands. With a sigh Kagome put up her hands up in a sign of surrender and kept them there as they approached, when the girl was close enough she thrust the tray at Kagome which caused the glass to tip over and spill straight down Kagome's flimsy hospital dress. Kagome and the bubblegum girl swore in unison before the tray was taken from Kagome's hands once more, the pink haired girl left the room stomping her feet in frustration while the blonde boy remained simply staring at Kagome. Starting to feel uncomfortable under his questioning gaze Kagome locked eyes with the boy with a stubborn "What?"
The young male seemed to be taken slightly off guard but he recovered quickly as he continued to look at the internally squirming miko. Deciding to try a different approach Kagome was about to question the boy more politely when he suddenly spoke up.
"What are you?" now it was Kagome's turn to be taken by surprise, such a question was not unprecedented but usually introductions came first unless of course they were in mid battle.
"My name is Kagome, Ka-Go-Me and I'm not a 'what' I'm a who" she said with a huff but the boy took no notice of her tone and continued to stare at the agitated miko. "Isn't it polite for you to tell me your name?" she prompted
The blond gave her a quizzical look which seemed highly misplaced on his features, almost as though he was unused to thinking deeply into such questions. "Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki"
Kagome gave the boy a smile before sending him a sly, conspiratorial glance "Hey Naruto, want to see a magic trick?" she asked but before the boy could answer Kagome held her hands in front of her chest as if holding a ball; in an instant a bright pink orb appeared floating within her palms, smiling Kagome set the small sphere spinning. Faster and faster it moved until Kagome snapped her fingers which caused the pink orb to explode in bright dancing fireworks.
Grinning cheerfully Kagome looked at the mesmerised boy who was failing at trying to hide his glee. "Cool huh? Wanna see another?" Kagome asked and the boy nodded entranced, his eyes slowly rising to meet Kagome's. "Give me your hand." The boy did as he was told and Kagome took a fierce hold before pouring healing energy into the dazed Naruto just as she had done to the bubblegum girl earlier.
Kagome was still healing the blonde when she heard the door open followed the clutter of implements hitting the floor; hurried footsteps alerted Kagome to her lack of time and in a final desperate hope she forced a surge of power to jump from her body to the boy's leaving her unbearably weak. Exhausted Kagome fell to her knees just as she felt the blonde's hand being torn from her own however the miko took little notice as she felt cold stones connect with her side, she didn't even recall falling and yet she was on the ground staring at two pairs of feet encased in the strangest shoes she'd ever seen.
The cool stones felt strong and sturdy beneath the weak woman as she lay unable to move; powerless to do anything but keep her mind from spiralling into the dark recesses of oblivion which called to her so sweetly, so temptingly, the miko lay quietly contemplating the strange design of the shoes which stood directly in her eyesight. Focusing on the footwear Kagome became aware of voices swirling around her, almost as though she were simply part of the furniture, however in her weakened state the young miko had neither the concentration required nor the will to listen in on the conversation so the dazed female simply listened to the voices processing nothing but the telling tones.
The loudest was panicked, angry, and scolding yet somehow it was also puzzled and sympathetic while the other sounded understanding, regretful, and reassuring though hostility hinted at the edge which confused Kagome deeply.
Musing aloud Kagome didn't even realise she was pondering the meaning of the contradicting tones until she felt arms grabbing and lifting her up but before Kagome could react she was being pushed across the room until her back connected with the equally cold stones of the adjacent wall. Pain exploded along the miko's spine which caused her to instinctively attempt to form a barrier, however she had exhausted her own power in healing the blonde boy so when she reached for something to support the protective sphere she was attempting to make Kagome began to unknowingly use the shikon no tama. Despite her desire to only form a shield around herself, once the dam that held back the shikon's power was breached there was no holding back the torrent of purifying energy. What started as a trickle rapidly escalated into a flood which the young miko knew she had no chance of stopping in her still exhausted state but that did not stop her trying. Thankfully the miko energy would just swirl around within her barrier as there were no demons for it to try to battle so Kagome allowed herself to relax as the shikon's power filled the solid pink orb and her own body slowly filling her with power and erasing her exhaustion.
Feeling her strength return Kagome opened her eyes only to see the blonde boy backed into the opposing corner of grey room, he was hunched over as though in pain once more. It was a stance Kagome recognised easily but through her into a world of confusion, the pink haired girl was backing off, her eyes flashing with fear. Kagome regained her footing, the swirling Shikon energy surrounding her as she took tentative step after tentative step towards the blond cowering boy. Each step became surer and Kagome sent the concerned girl a 'Stay were you are' look. Reaching the boy Kagome dropped to her knees and with a gentle hand on either side of his face she forced the boy to look her in the eye. The boy's eyes were red, his facial features changed and distorted and he was growling ferally at her. Taking a firmer grip on him Kagome forced the boy to maintain eye contact with her and as she absorbed the overwhelming power of the shikon no tama she poured shifted energy into the boy. As the boys injuries began to heal, his facial features began to normalise and the shikon energy began to dissipate. Once the boy had returned to normal and the excess energy was absorbed Kagome rose to her feet and held out a hand for the boy to take.
"You should really be more careful…demon." Kagome looked at the boy knowingly, while he looked at her with astonishment. Within moments Kagome felt her arms being restrained behind her, seems the blond man was back with bubblegum in tow. Kagome let them take her back to the chair, she didn't even resist at they tied her hands because she'd done what her conscious needed to do. Kagome had managed to heal the boy and discover a few more things about her captors in the process. Bubblegum rushed to the demon boy and began checking his now non existent injuries, her face was filled with concern, anger and fear. The miko turned her eyes back to the blonde in front of her, his expression a mask but she could guess he was as surprised as the others.
"I'm going to ask you again, who are you?" His tone was ice but his eyes were like fire, Kagome knew he wasn't playing games anymore but she was still unable to give him the answers he desired, squaring her shoulders and looking him in the eye she decided to tell him what he wanted to know… probability was they were going to kill her anyway.
"I am Kagome Higarashi, wife of the Hanyou Inuyasha and Miko of the Shikon no Tama. I am lost in this land, separated from my family, am constantly getting attacked by ninjas and am Still wearing nothing but a soggy hospital gown. Does that answer your questions?"