Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha.

Chapter 32: Shinobi

InuYasha sighed as he fell backward onto the cold, hard ground and spread out his arms to his side. Just eighteen hours ago he was saying goodbye to Kagome and his pups. He just couldn't believe how much he missed them already. Eighteen hours. Not even a full day. Now the group had made camp, the sun had set, stars were out, and InuYasha couldn't be more miserable. His ears were flat on his head and he narrowed his eyes.

"What's with the long face, mutt?"

InuYasha growled. "Leave Kouga, unless you want that tail as a permanent decoration springing out of your throat."

"Touchy, touchy. Anyway, I wouldn't be anywhere near you if it was up to me. Your brother wants to have a word with you."

InuYasha stood up and pushed past Kouga with his shoulder. He pulled back the flap to the center tent were Sesshomaru and other youkai had already gathered. Kouga came in not far behind and leaded against a support beam with his arms crossed, glaring daggers into InuYasha's back.

"About time you joined us, InuYasha." Sesshomaru stated without looking in InuYasha's direction.

"Keh."

"Continue Reotsu." Sesshomaru nodded to another inu-youkai who stood in front of the others.

"As I was saying, our scouts weren't able to get much information on Haru or Taru's whereabouts, nor are they completely sure about where the army is gathering. The only signs are still further to the southeast. All the locals have verified that large groups of youkai have been seen traveling in that direction."

"How long ago?" InuYasha asked.

"Only a couple of days ago."

"If they're right, then Haru's army is most likely already gathered and ready for attack. That means he could be on his way to the Westernlands right now." InuYasha narrowed his eyes in thought. "We should meet them on the way if that's the case, unless…"

"Unless Haru decides to take an alternate route. Then we're pretty much left wandering around until we decide to double back. By then he would have already beaten us." Kouga finished his thought.

"We can't do anything with the lack of information we have right now. I'm not going to sit around and wait to see what Haru has planned, and we can't go forward without knowing more about what lies ahead," voiced InuYasha.

"Then what do you suggest, mutt-face?"

"First off, we need more information. The youkai in these parts can't be trusted, they could already be spies for Haru. Send some of the humans into the villages around here. By experience I know that news of youkai gatherings and attacks reaches human villages very quickly and spreads like wildfire. If Haru and his followers are anywhere near here the humans would be a more reliable source."

One human present stepped forward. "I volunteer myself and a few of my men."

"Good. It is settled then." Sesshomaru turned to the rest of the group. "We shall stay here until further information is gathered."

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Kagome put the last stitch in the wound on Rin's arm, bandaged it, and looked around the large underground room for the next patient. There were humans, youkai, and hanyou spread out everywhere. Young, old, and crippled. Everyone that was able was above in the fighting.

"Kagome-sama, I think you should come look at this." Tani called from across the room.

Kagome nodded and turned to Rin. "Can you watch the pups for a second?"

"Of course." Rin replied.

Kagome walked over and kneeled at the edge of the futon beside Tani. There was a Tiger youkai kitten laying on the futon with a nasty gash across his forehead, his grandmother sitting on the other side.

"I don't know what to do, it won't stop bleeding."

"I'll handle it. You go and check on the others, Tani." Kagome reached in her bag and pulled out a needle and thread. She used a cloth to clean the cut and started to work. The kitten growled and bit Kagome's hand. "Shhhh…" she rubbed his burnt-orange hair back out of his face, "It's alright. This will fix you right up." The grandmother grabbed his hand and let out a loud, calming purr, allowing Kagome to quickly finish the job.

After several more fix-ups on hanyou, youkai, and human alike Kagome finally settled down with Rin, Tani and the pups.

"Kagome-sama?" Usagi approached, Keiji in tow.

Rin ran up and grabbed Keiji, wrapping him in a tight squeeze. "Are you two alright? This Rin was so worried! Have you seen Yukio?"

"We're fine, Rin, and I'm glad to see you are too. The last time I saw Yukio he was running up to fight with the others. I'm sure he's safe enough, though. Right now we have bigger problems. Smoke is drifting down from the stairwell. The top levels must have caught fire."

Kagome nodded as she processed the new information. "Then we need to get everyone out now. Get everyone who is able to help the injured. Make sure no one is left behind. We're out of here as soon as everyone is taken care of."

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Makoto leapt through the trees with full hanyou speed. Grabbing a branch, he flung himself into the air, flipping into a summersault; hand-planting the ground and pushing himself back up into the air. He let out a triumphant yell as his feet hit the ground and he was off running again. His ears twitched as the wind blew in them. He had to admit, it felt good to be hanyou again. His relief was short lived as flames from the castle rose from the horizon. Bright orange lit the sky and reflected in his eyes. Makoto growled in annoyment when the smell of charred flesh and spilled blood hit his sensitive nose.

"Kita, Okaa, the pups… I should have been there for them! If something happened it's all my fault because I'm freakin not there like I should be!" Makoto slammed his fist against a tree as he passed it and kept moving. The flames of the castle were huge and still so far away.

"There's gotta be some way I can get there faster…" Makoto shook his head as soon as the thought entered. "I can't allow that. I won't become youkai." He continued to rush, the closer he became the stronger the smells and the stronger his fears became.

What if I lose control again? What if something happens just like with Akina? He thought to himself. Makoto sniffed. The smell of wolves was all over the area. A whole pack of them, the scent familiar but Makoto had never met a pack except for Kouga's and Kita…

Could Haru have recruited her pack?! Are they the one's attacking the castle?!

Makoto let out a ferocious snarl as he drew Touken, the edges already changing color as he spoke: "Youkai."

The change started immediately. Makoto felt his entire body pulse with the sword as he started to glow red. First to change was his claws. His long, hanyou claws extended and curved even further out, the edges razor sharp. The muscles on his arms, legs, and chest bulged out making his frame nearly double in size. His fangs extended over his lower lip as stripes appeared across his cheeks. The last to change were his eyes. They changed from their normal gold to pitch black.

The transformation complete, Makoto put his sword back in the scabbard and cracked his knuckles with a smirk. It. Felt. Great. He could feel every cell in his body energized to the core. Every fiber of his being was jumping for joy at the rush of adrenaline and complete power surging through his blood. Makoto could have lost himself in the feeling right there, but thanks to his even more attuned senses, his sense of smell was working overtime. Yes, the wolf-youkai that were heading toward the castle were somehow related to Kita. He could also smell Kita, even from that distance; he could smell her fear, her blood, and her resolve.

He growled. Not just a little 'angry' growl. Not even a growl that would mark him as furious. This was a growl of untended rage. A growl that curved his lips from his fangs and vibrated though his bones. A growl that made the forest around him grow suddenly very still and quiet.

He soundlessly starting sprinting through the trees, having no problems avoiding anything in his way: right, right, left, jump, right, duck, slash. Anything he couldn't avoid fell to the mercy of his claws. Within no time at all he had put half the distance behind him and was that much closer to his goal.

Makoto was surprised that he could almost think completely like himself. He admitted to himself he was thinking at a lower, almost primal level, but all the same his thoughts were his own. He understood what was happening, where he was going, and whom he was going after. He figured as long as he held on to that knowledge everything would be okay in his transformed state. Skidding to a stop in front of the castle he was amazed at how much speed he had actually gained. What would have taken him another good hour of running had only taken him twenty minutes or so.

It didn't take long for Makoto's attention to settle on a particular fight. Kita, Miroku, Sango, and Shippou were surrounded by the wolf-youkai he had smelled earlier. While the others were fighting off some of the wolf-youkai, Kita was in a face-off against their leader. It took everything he had not to jump into the fight the first time Kita fell to the ground, but this was her fight. She had to make up her mind on how she would deal; a family matter. He would wait until she really needed him. Inside Makoto was screaming to interfere at the smell of her blood, but he knew his youkai was right.

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Kagome held Gina and Mehiji close to herself under the blanket she had wrapped them in. She coughed through the thick smoke as she made her way down the halls. There was so much rubble that several times she had to turn around from dead ends. Rin and Tani were following at her heels, along with the others that had been hidden away below the castle for 'safety'.

"Kagome-sama," Tani coughed, "It's getting hard to breathe in here."

"I know, Tani, just help me find a way out!" her own ragged voice rang out. The pups coughed from under their blanket and Kagome pulled them closer. She stumbled around trying to avoid the rubble and flames.

"Rin? Rin!"

"Yukio!" Rin jumped into the inu-youkai's arms and nearly sent them both tumbling over.

"All of you grab on to each other. Kagome-sama, hold on to me. This whole place is about to collapse."

With Rin plastered to his chest, Kagome shifting the pups to one arm and grabbing hold of his haori, and others doing the same behind her, Yukio led the group through the corridors. At some places they were practically walking on the walls to escape the fire licking at the other side. Hot stone and burning wood fell from the ceiling, raining down on their heads. Kagome cringed as a piece of the burning wood fell on her outstretched arm but refused to let go of Yukio's haori.

"Hold on, it's only a little further." He reassured. Soon the heat started to die down a bit and Kagome and the others could see a giant hole in the wall that led outside of the castle. Yukio jumped through and put Rin back on her feet, reaching out his hand and helping Kagome and the others over the last of the ruble and out into the fresh air. As soon as she was a good distance away Kagome fell to her knees and put the blanket covering the pups on the ground.

Mehiji whimpered and ran over to Kagome, grabbing the bottom of her kimono with his tiny claws. Kagome patted and rubbed his back, shushing his cries. Gina sat still and looked over her shoulder toward the castle, her little ears swiveling around.

"Okaa…" she said in a small voice, "K'ta." She raised a clawed hand and pointed off in the distance. Her mother tending to Mehiji, Gina made her way to the she-wolf.

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Kita grunted as her shoulder slammed the ground. Shinobi stood over her with an impassive expression on his face. She shook herself off and stood to her feet, legs already getting shaky. Shinobi waited till she got all the way back on her feet before bringing his knee up to her stomach. Kita doubled over from the impact, wrapping her arms around her stomach as she started up a coughing fit.

"It was your last chance. There will be no other." He replied.

"Fine with me." Kita retorted, blood dripping from the corner of her mouth. Her eyes were wild and unfocused, flashing from their normal emerald color to a deep purple. She transformed. Claws and fangs extending, her black hair laced with traces of gold. The last to appear were two yellow triangles under her eyes and a yellow eight-pointed star on her forehead.

"Spitting image of Moriji." Shinobi commented when the transformation was complete. "How disgraceful for you to wear the mark of pack leader." He pulled back his hair to reveal the eight-point star on his own forehead. "There can only be one pack leader, girl. I earned that right when Moriji fell to my claws."

Kita smirked, one fang hanging over her lower lip. "That symbol you wear is nothing more than a forgery. A lie. The symbol I wear is a right given to me at birth by my father, our leader. He named me as the heir. You want the right? Then come take it."

Shinobi sneered and rushed for Kita. Kita hand-planted the ground and kicked both feet into the air, her left foot catching him in the stomach while her right cuffed around the back of his head. Shinobi managed to grab the pad and heel of Kita's left foot and twisted it around, making Kita flip to the ground; but not before her right leg wrapped around the back of his neck. Kita landed on top of Shinobi's chest. Shinobi grabbed Kita by her hips and flipped her over his head. Her back hit the ground with a thud and she let out a puff of air. Shinobi backflipped himself over her and straddled across her stomach, pinning her arms to her sides. Kita struggled beneath him, finding just enough strength to flip her legs under Shinobi's arms and kick him off of her. She rolled to the side and jumped to her feet. Shinobi kneeled on one knee and punched the ground with his fist growling.

Kita growled, arching her back and bending down low, baring her fangs and ears standing straight up on her head. Shinobi again made the first move. He rushed her, but as she readied herself he changed direction, coming up to her left side kicking her leg where it had been broken. Kita whimpered as the strength in her leg gave way and she fell to the ground.

"First rule of a leader, little girl, never show a weakness. When you attacked with that leg you were hesitant. That's all I needed to know."

Kita grunted and hobbled to her feet. Shifting most of her weight to her good leg made her a bit off balance, but she knew she could still fight. Shinobi circled her in a slow stride, eyes narrowed and glaring. Kita knew if he kept attacking her weaknesses she wouldn't last much longer, and that's exactly something Shinobi would do. He had to take him out first. Don't give him the chance to put her out of commission.

"Gina!" Kita's ears swiveled and her eyes averted to the side at the sound. Kagome was running toward her, as was a small silver and black streak. Gina.

That distraction was all Shinobi needed. As the pup made her way to Kita's side, he struck with his claws. Kita's face was streaked in blood thanks to Shinobi's claws. She attacked him, drawing blood with her own claws, and with a kick to the stomach sent Shinobi tumbling across the ground.

"K'ta!" Gina grabbed for the transformed Kita. Kita spun around and released and angry snarl. The startled pup skittered backward with her ears lowered to the side of her head and whimpered.

"Gina…" Kagome sighed in relief as she reached the pup and took Gina into her arms.

"Get that pup out of here." Kita growled. Kagome only nodded and walked backward to where Mehiji and the others stood watching.

Shinobi made it back to his feet and Kita leaped. The two fell to the ground tumbling, a tangled mess of blood, claws, and fangs. It ended in a short yelp from Kita as Shinobi landed on top of her with his fangs digging into her neck. She struggled beneath him and yipped and his fangs pierced her skin.

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A/N:

Special thanks to wolf dot org for helping me get the behaviors kinda-sorta right.

Question: Do you like having Japanese words incorporated into stories or not?

Oh, and just for fun, if someone were to make a live-action InuYasha movie, what actors/actresses would you what to play the character's parts?