Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha only my OC
"Lord Sesshomaru! What do you intend on doing?" asked Jaken.
Jaken finally managed to catch up to Sesshomaru and Shiori. They were steadily walking to the edge of the forest.
"Will one of you please explain what's going on? Why are you walking aimlessly?" whined Jaken.
Neither one of them said anything and continued on through the forest.
"It's here," said Sesshomaru after much silence.
He stopped walking and stared at the clearing ahead of him. Shiori was also looking in that direction.
"Huh?" said a confused Jaken. "What's here?"
"Naraku's castle," answered Shiori.
"But I don't see anything here!" said Jaken looking around. "Where is it?"
A swirl of demonic power suddenly appeared in front of them—it was Naraku's barrier! It quickly disappeared, revealing a hidden fortress.
"The barrier…opened?" said an astound Jaken.
"Naraku's barrier has certainly increased in strength since we last battled. How could he have strengthened it in such a short period?" thought Shiori
They continued on until they entered the courtyard of the castle. Naraku was there waiting for them. His evil aura filled the air.
"Deliberately leaking out your scent so that I would find your castle," said Sesshomaru. "Is your way of an invitation to me?"
"Just sending out an invitation wouldn't bring you here, would it?" asked Naraku darkly.
"It's true. In order to get Lord Sesshomaru to do anything, ask him to do the complete opposite," thought Shiori rolling her eyes.
"The girl you seek is not here," said Naraku. "The miasma in the air of the castle would kill her for sure. The girl is in custody outside of the castle. There's no need to worry about her."
"Naraku," said Sesshomaru coolly, "do me the honor of at least realizing that I'm not here simply to save Rin,"
"I understand that," said Naraku. "You are the kind that doesn't like taking instruction from other people. You will not kill Inuyasha when instructed. Nor will look for the girl either. Instead, you've come to kill me."
"Hmph," said Sesshomaru, "you talk as if I just walked into your trap. We'll discuss your intentions later…..that is, if you make it through the night."
"Sesshomaru, I shall have your power whether you like it or not," Thought Naraku.
"Shiori," said Sesshomaru. "You and Jaken stay well back."
"I have a bad feeling about this….." thought Shiori.
"Well, let me give you a proper invitation!" said Naraku throwing off his cloak.
He revealed himself to be nothing more than a giant collection of demons. It almost resembled a mutated scorpian.
"So that's his true form," said Shiori coldly. "It's absolutely disgusting."
"No need to worry, Shiori. This is not my true form. It's merely a work in progress," he darkly jeered.
"Any form of yours is already disgusting enough," she said.
"Flattery won't get you any closer to saving Rin's life," he said while laughing darkly.
"Shiori…." said Sesshomaru adamantly.
"I know," she said moving away, "We're going."
Naraku instantly shot down on Sesshomaru with one of his tentacles. Sesshomaru unsheathed Tokijin and sliced it away. Clumps of Naraku's demonic flesh fell to the ground around Sesshomaru.
"Something about this…..doesn't seem right," said Shiori.
"What do you mean?" asked Jaken.
"I mean, why is Naraku suddenly interested in killing Lord Sesshomaru," she said.
"A lot of lowly demons try to claim the lord's life. They figure they'll gain status by killing a demon lord," he stated.
"True, but Naraku's not one who cares about that sort of thing," she said. "What's he trying to do?"
Across the courtyard, she spotted another woman—it was Kagura. She was observing the scene from the shadows. Her aura was exactly the same as Naraku's. She was definitely one of his incarnations. Slowly, Shiori began making her way over to her.
"Wait Shiori! Where are you going?" asked Jaken.
"I'd like a word with that young woman over there," she answered.
"That's Kagura the wind sorceress," he explained. "She's the one who took Rin."
"I see," she said floating up. "Stay here."
"What? Wait! What are you going to do?" he screamed after her.
He turned around when he saw a chunk of Naraku's flesh sliding after him.
"Get back, vermin!" he held out his staff, "Staff of 2 heads!"
He blasted the pest with fire, but it was to no avail. It continued to crawl after him.
"Oh no! Lord Sesshomaru!" cried Jaken as he ran back and forth from the pest.
Kagura intently watched as Sesshomaru fought off Naraku. He destroyed chunk after chunk of Naraku's body. Slimy chunks of flesh landed everywhere.
"I don't get it," she thought to herself. "What could Naraku possibly gain from Sesshomaru's death?"
She suddenly came to a dark conclusion, "could that be what Naraku's planning?"
"Well," said Shiori landing in front of Kagura. "You appear to be in deep thought, so I'll make this as quick as possible. Are you Kagura of the wind?"
"Yeah, what of it?" spat Kagura.
Shiori smiled sweetly, "that's all I need to know."
She then punched Kagura across the face. Kagura fell to the ground. She stared at this mysterious girl. Gone was Shiori's sweet expression.
"How dare you?" she yelled.
"Although I'm currently upset with her, that was for Emi," said Shiori coldly.
Kagura got up and held out her fan.
"Dance of blades!" she shouted as she swung it in Shiori's direction. A whirlwind surrounded Kagura and fired out blades. Shiori disappeared behind the thick winds.
"Hmph," she said. "That should take care of her,"
Out of nowhere, emerged Shiori's shadowy figure. It was coming closer and closer to Kagura. She was somehow avoiding the blades. Before Kagura could fire another attack, Shiori came bursting through the wind barrier.
"What?" Kagura exclaimed.
Shiori spun around in the air and roundhouse kicked Kagura in the stomach. She snatched up Kagura's fan as it was knocked from her hands. The wind quickly scattered, and Kagura was slammed into a wall. Shiori gracefully landed in front of her fallen foe.
"And that was for Rin," she said.
Kagura attempted to rise, but stopped when she realized she was missing her fan.
"Get up," said Shiori icily while opening the fan in front of her face. "I dare you."
Kagura froze as she stared at Shiori's half concealed face. One murderous, violet eye gazed back at her. She didn't dare try to stand again.
"Tell me what you've done with Rin," Shiori demanded throwing the fan back at Kagura.
"I'd be less concerned about that brat if I were you, sweetheart," said Kagura weakly. "You've got bigger problems right now."
"You're referring to Naraku's plans with Lord Sesshomaru?"
"Precisely," said Kagura. "I'm sure you've noticed the Naraku's flesh."
It was true, Shiori noticed something unusual about his flesh. It wasn't dying off as Sesshomaru hacked at it. The chunks still had demonic energy….energy that should have been gone a long time ago.
"His chunks of flesh….they're still alive," said Shiori.
"I think Naraku's planning on absorbing Sesshomaru. He wants his demonic aura to become a full fledged demon," said Kagura.
"Naraku is nothing but a half demon? Then that foul collections of demons are the ones he absorbed? I wonder what kind of original form he had," thought Shiori.
She turned to Kagura, "you said you only thought that was Naraku's plan. Why don't you know for sure?"
"Because, Naraku doesn't trust me," she said simply. "He thinks I'd betray him…and he's right."
"And how will you benefit from this betrayal?"
Kagura stared at the demon Naraku, "Naraku has possession of my heart. He can easily kill me with it whenever he wants. As long as he's alive, he'll continue to threaten me into doing his bidding."
"This feeling…..I've felt it once before. With Kikyo…am I once again feeling sympathetic for another being?" Thought Shiori grabbing her chest.
"But Sesshomaru can defeat Naraku. I know he can," said Kagura. "I've seen his power. He can win against him. Naraku will never absorb is demonic power."
"Lord Sesshomaru…..please be careful….."
As soon as she thought that, Sesshomaru turned in her direction. He was looking directly at her. The expression on his face was unreadable. He quickly looked away and continued fighting Naraku. Shiori was absolutely amazed.
"Did he hear my thoughts?" She wondered. "No, that's impossible. He couldn't have heard me. It was only a coincidence."
"What's the matter Lord Sesshomaru? You seem a bit distracted by something," said Naraku. "Do not fret about your friend. I have plans for her as well."
"Oh how nice of you," Shiori sarcastically responded. "And here I thought you'd forgotten about me."
"It's my pleasure," he said darkly.
"The nerve of this guy. No matter what I say to him, he always has a prepared response! It's highly annoying."
"You won't lay a finger on her or me," said Sesshomaru swinging tokojin.
"That's it, slice a little bit further. Pretty soon you'll become engulfed in my flesh," thought Naraku. "And I'll finally obtain a demon with a perfect demonic aura."
Suddenly, Naraku sensed a disturbance in his barrier. Someone managed to break through it but who? He quickly turned to Kagura.
"Kagura, go and take care of our unexpected guest," he ordered.
Kagura was confused. She hadn't realized anyone was approaching the castle. She quickly did as she was told and took off on her flying feather. Shiori also sensed the presence approaching.
"Inuyasha," she thought to herself. "He's somehow broken through Naraku's barrier. I pray this doesn't turn into another altercation between the hellhounds. I really don't miss those at all."
"An unexpected guest? It's a shame he came all this way to meet you, Naraku," said Sesshomaru. "By the time he gets here, you will be dead."
Sesshomaru had also picked up on Inuyasha.
"We'll have to see about that, now won't we?"
Naraku continued to attack Sesshomaru with his various body parts. Sesshomaru calmly sliced of whatever limb Naraku flung at him. Shiori carefully eyed the chunks of dead flesh around Sesshomaru's body. They were squirming. How could Sesshomaru not notice that?
"Shiori!" said Jaken running over to her.
"Jaken? How did you get over here?" asked Shiori.
"Those chunks of Naraku's flesh…they're alive!" he expressed. "They tried to attack me!"
"I'm aware," she said. "Naraku plans to absorb Lord Sesshomaru."
"We should tell Lord Sesshomaru!" he exclaimed.
"There's no need to do that. I'm sure he's also aware. There's no way he'd be foolish enough to get himself absorbed."
"The one who cut the barrier…is coming closer. Kagura must have failed," thought Naraku. "Lord Sesshomaru, it seems I'll no longer be able to battle you leisurely. That perfect demonic power of yours….shall be absorbed into my flesh!"
Suddenly, all the severed flesh began clinging to Sesshomaru's body. It wasn't long before he was completely engulfed in Naraku's flesh. Shiori could do nothing but watch as her Demon lord was absorbed.
"Lord Sesshomaru! It can't be" cried Jaken as he turned to Shiori. "You have to do something!"
"He….he was absorbed….Lord Sesshomaru's been absorbed by Naraku…." Shiori stammered. "How could he allow such a terrible thing?"
She was in such a state of shock, that she didn't even notice Jaken tapping at her leg. She barely noticed Naraku addressing her. Slowly, Shiori walked onto the battlefield and approached the engulfed Sesshomaru. She blankly stared at the pulsating bundle as she placed her palm on it. She remembered the way it felt to place her hand on Sesshomaru's injured shoulder. She remembered the way she felt after he disappeared in Inuyasha's blast. This feeling in her heart…was so much worse.
"What's wrong Shiori?" taunted Naraku. "You seem a bit bent out of shape. I've finally obtained a demon with the perfect demonic aura. You should be happy for me."
She didn't even acknowledge his very presence. All she could think about was Sesshomaru…..and how he'd stolen him away from her. Anger swelled inside of her. Shiori felt like her heart was about to burst open.
"And now, Shiori, I will test out my newfound power on you! Let's see how long you last against a demon with my power! It'll be a satisfying victory to kill off a shinigami."
He shot his tentacles straight for her. She didn't even turn to face her oncoming doom. Jaken watched in complete terror as Naraku's tentacles got closer to Shiori. She tilted her head down and let her bangs concealed her face.
"Curse deflect," echoed her voice.
Shiori's body lit up with spiritual energy. It traveled up Naraku's tentacles and raced towards his body. He quickly shielded himself with a demonic barrier. All of the tentacles that came in contact with her quickly dissolved.
"I must say, that was rather impressive. But not enough to stop me," he teased.
He attacked her again, and she avoided his attacks. She unsheathed Gin Tusgunai and mercilessly slashed his tentacles. Never in her life had she ever attacked anyone with such force. She was out for Naraku's blood.
"You fight with such passion. Just what was your connection to Lord Sesshomaru?" he questioned Shiori.
"Shut-up," she spat.
She landed on the ground in front of him and stared him down. She refused to let him leave alive. Not after what he did. She destroyed as much of his tentacles as she could.
"What's this? She's weakening my barrier!"
Kagura watched the scene from up above.
"Why is she fighting Naraku?" she eyed the large bundle of pulsating flesh. "Oh no, it seems I've overestimated Sesshomaru. He was absorbed into Naraku's body after all," she thought. "But perhaps Inuyasha will be able to assist her in stopping Naraku. Especially with his new and improved tessaiga."
"You may as well just surrender, Shiori. Once I finish absorbing Sesshomaru's demonic power, I'll be unstoppable," he said.
"Come out from behind that barrier and fight me you coward!" she yelled.
Shiori quickly looked above her, "something is coming this way…..he's here!"
"Naraku!" called Inuyasha from the sky "So that's your true from, huh?"
"Inuyasha…..he's the one that broke through?"
"Windscar!"
"Ack!" gasped Shiori as she leapt out of the windscar's path.
Naraku put up his barrier, but somehow the windscar broke through anyway. He took a direct blow from Inuyasha's attack.
"How could this have happened?" he thought.
"Damn you, Inuyasha!" said Shiori landing next to him. "Are you trying to kill me as well?"
"Shiori, I thought I caught your scent," said Inuyasha. "Why are you always involved in a Naraku plot?"
"Why are you always late to the scene?" she questioned matching his tone.
"Oh I see what you're doing? You just wanna destroy Naraku alone. Well if anyone destroys him, it's gonna be me!" shouted Inuyasha.
"Not…if you're always….late….to the scene," she said with strain.
"Er, will you just shut up and stay out of my way?"
"Not this time," said Shiori with determination. "He's mine."
"What the hell's wrong with you?" he asked looking at her. "Why are you so on edge?"
"So, Inuyasha you broke through my barrier. I never expected you to come this far," said Naraku interrupting Inuyasha and Shiori's argument. "There's no need for you to fight. There's plenty of me to go around!"
He shot more of his tentacles at the pair, but they quickly dodged them.
"But I have a much better idea. I think I'll absorb the 2 of you as well," he bellowed.
"As well?" said Inuyasha a little puzzled. "What are you talking about?"
"Just moments before you arrived, I absorbed Sesshomaru into my flesh," said Naraku.
"You what?" he exclaimed.
He suddenly noticed Sesshomaru's engulfed body on the field. How could Sesshomaru have allowed such a thing?
"Though your powers won't add much, considering I already have a perfect demonic aura. Still, you may prove to be very useful. You shall both be reunited with Sesshomaru!"
He attacked again, but they continued to escape his grasp. They fought their way through his tentacles. Shiori shot a purifying blast at Naraku, making him cringe. Inuyasha took note of her strengthened attacks.
"So that's why you're so on edge?" he said with a smug. "It's because Sesshomaru's dead, isn't it."
She ignored him and continued to swing at Naraku.
"Heh, well there's no way I'm getting absorbed! I won't prove to be as weak as Sesshomaru!" he yelled preparing to swing tessaiga.
"Be Silent!" she cried while also swing her sword at the same time.
"Windscar!" shouted Inuyasha.
"Hell wrath!" yelled Shiori.
Naraku had no time to escape their incoming blasts. He put up his barrier again, but it was once again destroyed. Kagura kept her distance in the air to avoid being swept up. She intensely watched the battle. Hoping they would finally destroy Naraku—once and for all!
"What? How can this be happening? I've absorbed Sesshomaru's demonic power. They shouldn't be able to inflict this amount of damage on me!" He looked down. "Unless…..No!"
Light was emitting from the bundle Sesshomaru was engulfed in. All of the sudden, It completely disappeared and a kneeling Sesshomaru was revealed. He was holding Tokijin in front of him as a shield. Somehow, the sword protected Sesshomaru from Naraku. Everyone stared in total shock.
"It's….him!" Thought Kagura.
"Lord Sesshomaru!" Jaken happily called from the shadows. "You're still alive!"
"Isn't it ironic, Naraku," he taunted, "that the flesh that bound me to you served as a shield from their pursuits?"
"What?" choked Naraku.
"What's wrong? You look as if you've seen a ghost," said Sesshomaru with a smug. "Did you really think my demonic aura could be absorbed into your filthy body?"
"He's alive….he's really alive…" thought Shiori.
"Happy now?" teased Inuyasha.
Shiori glared at him, "I don't know what you're talking about."
As she turned away from Inuyasha, she caught Sesshomaru's gaze. She fought to break free, but she couldn't help but stare back. Why was he staring at her like that?
"Well if the 2 of you are done with your silent conversation," said Inuyasha stepping in front of Shiori. "I'm gonna need for you guys to get out of my way!"
"Inuyasha, step down," said Sesshomaru calmly. "I'm fighting him."
"Huh? No way!" Inuyasha shot back. "Besides, if anyone should step down it should be her!"
"What? Do I have to remind you who kept him at bay, while you took your sweet time to arrive," she said looking at Inuyasha. She then turned to Sesshomaru, "and while you were careless enough to be absorbed? I am not stepping down!"
Sesshomaru glanced at his enraged companion. He'd never seen her so worked up before. Inuyasha tried to avoid her hostile gaze, but it was inevitable. Something about the night's events deeply upset her.
"I'll absorb you all while you bicker!" screeched Naraku.
He grabbed at them with his roots. Inuyasha leapt into the air and slashed the advancing tentacles with one swing. Naraku avoided being hit by another windscar. His victory was short lived when Sesshomaru impacted him with Tokijin. Naraku yelped with pain.
"Hell wrath!" shouted Shiori from the sky.
Her demonic power rained down on the vermin like a monsoon. Naraku was being attacked from all angles.
"There doing it," thought Kagura. "This is it! Naraku will finally be killed!"
"I told you to get out of my way!" said Inuyasha to Sesshomaru and Shiori. "I said I was gonna kill him!"
"No," said Sesshomaru calmly, "He's mine."
"No, I want him!" shouted Shiori.
All of them continued to fire attacks on the battered Naraku. It was useless to put up another barrier. They would easily destroy it. His body was torn to pieces, yet he still continued to live. After taking enough damage, he finally took to the sky in a swarm of miasma. Kagura moved out of his way. He looked down at the fighting trio.
"Lord Sesshomaru, it looks like we'll have to continue our battle some other time," he said.
Sesshomaru's eyes turned crimson, and his hair began to lift. He was starting to transform.
"Naraku, you fool! Don't think for one second that you can ever escape me!" he strained.
"It would be in your best interest not to transform, Sesshomaru," said Naraku. "There is the matter of the young girl."
Sesshomaru instantly stopped transforming. Shiori stood beside him. How could they have forgotten about Rin? Inuyasha stared at the both of them.
"Young girl? What young girl?" he asked.
"You'd better go save her, she's being taken care of by Kohaku as we speak," he said disappearing into the sky.
Inuyasha turned to Sesshomaru, "did Naraku kidnap someone? A friend of yours?"
But Sesshomaru didn't say anything at all. He floated away into the nighttime sky, leaving Shiori and Jaken behind. Shiori watched him leave.
"No! Why am I always left behind?" complained Jaken. "Why?"
"Shiori," said Inuyasha adamantly. "What is going on? What little girl was he talking about?"
"Do you remember the girl who was with me," she asked him. "when you saved me from Naraku's demon puppet?"
Inuyasha thought back to that day. It was a while ago, but he remembered Shiori's human companion.
"Oh yeah," he said. "I meant to ask you about that."
"Her name's Rin," explained Shiori. "She's another companion of Lord Sesshomaru."
"What?" said Inuyasha. "I haven't seen her since then. I thought she was with you."
She shook her head, "she's his. That's exactly why Naraku kidnapped her and used her as bait for this scheme. Pathetic…"
"Sesshomaru's never been known to care about humans. Why would he allow one to travel with him?"
Shiori stared into the sky, "believe me, I was just as puzzled by it was you…I still am."
"Wait," said Inuyasha, "Naraku said Kohaku was watching after the girl. If that's the case, then she's in trouble."
"Kohaku?" she asked.
"Yeah, Sango's little brother," he said. "He's been placed under Naraku's spell and might be attacking Rin as we speak. Sesshomaru will kill him for sure."
Shiori nodded in agreement.
"You gotta go after Sesshomaru," said Inuyasha shaking Shiori by her shoulders. "You can't let him kill Kohaku."
She blinked twice, "So, Sango's younger brother is about to be mercilessly slain by your older brother?"
"Yeah, talk about a bad situation," he said. "Now go! Quickly! I'll catch up to you as soon as I find Kagome and the others."
"Alright," she said hovering above him. "But I don't know how you expect me to stop him. He does what he wants."
She flew off into the night. Inuyasha quickly ran to find Kagome. Jaken, realizing he'd been left again ran around aimlessly.
…..
Sesshomaru glided through the heavens as he followed Rin's scent. She was definitely getting closer. He picked up the scent of another person as well. Whoever he was had attacked Rin. He could smell it in the air. Finally, he spotted them. Rin was lying in the grass, unconscious. Kneeling over her motionless body was a boy around her age. He held a blade over her head. Sesshomaru quietly landed behind the boy. The boy stood to face Sesshomaru, and bared his blade.
"Oh," said Sesshomaru with slight interest. "You turn your blade toward me?"
Sesshomaru held up his claw and prepared for the boy to charge. He suddenly caught a familiar scent in the air. Shiori was coming. He watched her land a few feet away from him.
"She's keeping her distance from me," he thought.
She approached the scene, but stopped when she found Rin. An entire surge of emotion went through Shiori as saw her unconscious body. How could something like that have happened? She gently scooped Rin up and laid her head on her shoulder. Slowly, Shiori stroked the girl's hair. Sesshomaru was watching her the entire time.
"Lord Sesshomaru," she said quietly. "There's no need to kill that boy. Rin's fine."
He said nothing to her at all. Sesshomaru only watched her blank expressions. He couldn't read her…and it was bothering him. Suddenly the boy attacked Sesshomaru. Sesshomaru quickly knocked him down.
"Lord Sesshomaru, don't kill him," she said with more force.
"Why? What is he to you?" asked Sesshomaru.
The boy continued to attack Sesshomaru, but he was always knocked down.
"He's being controlled by Naraku. What will killing him prove?" she asked.
By that time, Inuyasha and Kagome showed up on the scene. Kagome rushed to Shiori's side to check on Rin. Inuyasha ran up to Sesshomaru.
"She's fine," said Kagome to Inuyasha, "only unconscious."
"There, you heard her. The girl's okay. Plus she's in Shiori's care. So let the boy go!" demanded Inuyasha.
"This boy is determined to die by hand," said Sesshomaru. "I can feel it."
"Kohaku!" shouted Inuyasha. "Snap out of it!"
But Kohaku didn't respond. Instead, he tried to attack Sesshomaru again. This time, Inuyasha intervened and knocked his weapon out of his hand. Sesshomaru then stepped in and grabbed Kohaku by the throat. He hoisted the boy straight into the air.
"Disarming the boy for me, Inuyasha?" teased Sesshomaru. "I didn't know you cared so much about me."
"What?" Inuyasha exclaimed. "Sesshomaru let's get one thing straight! I'll kill you if you hurt that boy!"
"Don't do it Sesshomaru!" pleaded Kagome.
Rin began to stir in Shiori's arms. Both Shiori and Kagome looked down at the girl. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around.
"Lady Shiori, you came back! And Lord Sesshomaru!" she then turned to see Sesshomaru was holding Kohaku. "What's the matter Kohaku? Did something happen?"
"Lord Sesshomaru," said Shiori softly. "Will his death really give you any satisfaction?"
Sesshomaru looked into Kohaku's eyes. They were completely blank. He showed no emotion …..not even fear. He didn't like the look in his eyes. He would, in fact, receive no satisfaction from killing Kohaku. And so, he released his grip on Kohaku. The boy then ran away into the nearby forest. A couple seconds later, they saw him and Kagura fly off on her feather.
"Thanks Sesshomaru," said Kagome. "Thanks for letting him go."
"The boy was ordered by Naraku to die by my hands," said Sesshomaru leaving. "I don't play by his games."
Shiori put Rin down. Together, they walked after Sesshomaru.
"Take care of yourselves," she called over her shoulder.
Rin turned to wave at them, "good-bye everyone!"