CHAPTER FOUR

Sakura

Talking to Kaede earlier overwhelmed me. It was too much to think about, too much to handle. I don't get it, though. I was just fine these past few days. Why was I feeling so anxious all of a sudden? Was it because I was actually following through with getting revenge for my parents? Was it because I was back in the feudal era instead of the present where I had little next to nothing to worry about? Maybe it was a combination of both. I wish I knew. What I did know was that I wanted to be alone for a while and I knew just the thing to help me relax on a hot summer afternoon; a soak in a nice cool lake.

I found one a couple of miles north of Kaede's village. I checked the area and was glad to find I was there all alone. I dropped my backpack and stripped myself of my clothes and jumped into the water. It felt so nice. So nice that I changed from my human form to my demon form. It felt good to be free and be myself; something I felt I should be more often. I had no problem with showing who I was until I was ten years old. I paid more attention to what people would say about me and my family. It made me hate myself and what I would become.

I swam to where I jumped into the water and leaned against a boulder. I slumped down into the water until it was up to my nose. I sighed and held up my arm and read over the marking of my father. No matter how much I didn't understand what I was and why some people hated what I was and my parents for creating me, I still accepted who I was. Ayame and I were gifts. Even still, why did things have to be so complicated?

A loud cracking sound put me at alert. My ears flickered back and forth and my eyes rapidly checked my surroundings. A heavy energy was heading in my direction. So much for a little relaxation.

I quickly got dressed and reverted back to my human form just in case I was wrong about the energy I felt and humans showed up instead. I wasn't in the mood to deal with any 'it's a demon' confrontations. I was strapping my sandals on when some trees fell close to my area. Suddenly, a new energy was approaching. It was coming at me fast from the south. It couldn't have been Ayame. The scent was very unfamiliar. Whatever it was turned me serious; not that I was even in a playful mood after that talk from earlier. I braced myself and prepared to engage in a two against one battle. My right wrist pulsated.

My parents were always watching over Ayame and I. When this happened, it was their way of alerting either me or Ayame that the other was in need of help. They were signaling her that I needed her and telling me she was on the way. And judging by the size of this Cyclops, I was probably going to need her.

Inuyasha

Damn my foot! The potion Kaede gave me only eased my pain a little. I could still feel pressure every time I landed on it in all of two seconds. I tried to ignore it the best I could as I kept running and leaping from tree to tree, trying to see what demon was causing all the commotion so close to the village.

The earth vibrated beneath the heavy footsteps of the demon that suddenly came into my view. I didn't expect it to be so close so fast and it looked as if it was stumbling backwards and heading right in my direction.

I drew my Tetsusaiga and stood firmly on the ground, preparing to attack. "Wind Scar!" I swung Tetsusaiga with force towards the demon and golden energy tore into the ground and cut through the heat in the air.

Aware of my presence, the demon turned to glance at me and moved out of the direct path of my Wind Scar and only his right arm caught the attack.

"Dammit!" I swore. I was even more surprised when his arm reattached to his body. "What the? He must have a jewel shard! Now I have to find out where it is."

The Cyclops turned his back on me and that left me shocked. I've never been ignored during a battle before.

"Hey!"

"Huh?" I heard a female's voice on the other side of the demon. I sniffed the air and I noticed that cat-dog scent I picked up back in Kaede's hut. The same one I smelled on the girl with the ponytail.

I ran around to the other side of the demon where I saw a girl lodged deep into a large rock sticking halfway out of the ground. I froze, unable to move or speak. What the hell was she doing here and who was she?

"Did you do that? What's your deal? This isn't your fight!" She yelled at me, removing herself from the rock and standing in a defensive pose.

"What are you trying to do, get yourself killed out here? Stupid human girl!" I yelled back. She was saying something but I wasn't hearing her. The Cyclops swiped his left arm in her direction and I ran and tackled her into the lake with my Tetsusaiga in tow, avoiding him smacking her into the woods. Then it hit me- she had the same scent as the girl from before. Why did I just call her a human? Her physical appearance confused me for that split second.

When we came up for air she groaned loudly, smacking the water. "Every time I fight I'm always being pushed in water!"

"What are you talking about?"

"You just stay out of my way!" She snapped. She was really starting to piss me off.

"I was only trying to help!"

"Thanks, but I can handle this. Now, stand back!"

"Handle it how? You're just a.." It was about to slip out again, until her glare shut me up.

She looked at me with red eyes that were just brown three seconds ago. I looked to the top of her head and ears similar to mine but were slightly bigger sat at attention. She floated out of the water and I noticed her nails were longer and there were markings on the inside of her right wrist.

"I'm not a human." Her long fangs showed when she talked.

She paid me no mind as she charged the Cyclops and sent him flying backwards onto the ground. I was stunned. Curious. Confused. Intimidated. Who and what the hell was this girl?

"Inuyasha!"

I heard my name and turned to see Kagome and the others running towards me. I climbed out of the water and shook dry.

"Are you okay? I felt a jewel shard nearby."

"I'm fine." I turned my body back towards the battle at hand.

"Whoa, who's she?" Shippo questioned.

"Sakura!"

Everyone looked behind us to see the ponytail girl from earlier run up to the other girl and the Cyclops. She sprinted past us at lightning speed and without warning, air-kicked the demon in his large stomach so hard that she sunk into the middle before the rest of his body rippled and he fell back to the ground, roaring in anger.

"Osaeru (restrain)!" She swung her arms in an upward motion with the other girl and thick vines shot up from the ground, restraining the demon in his place.

I looked to the red-eyed girl whose eyes were now glowing the color of her pupils. "I'm not in the mood to play around. Let's just finish him." She said to the ponytail girl.

"Wait a minute!" I called out. "There's a jewel shard in there I need!"

Her eyes stopped glowing and she looked to the ponytail girl flying across from her. "No wonder he regenerated."

There was a blast of energy and the demon's right arm was quickly separated from his body. Ponytail girl brought the arm over to us out of his range and struggled to hold on to keep it from traveling back and reconnecting. I hurried to her side to help keep it still. "I'm guessing it's in here somewhere." She said, standing firmly on the ground, still portraying a human.

Kagome located the jewel shard and I did the honor of retrieving it.

"Ayame!" The other girl yelled with alert filling her voice. "It's Naraku."

Everyone gasped. I grabbed Kagome onto my back and Sango, Shippo and Miroku hopped onto a full grown Kilala's back and headed over to the stomach of the wailing Cyclops.

The girl peeled back the shirt it was wearing and Naraku's spider mark was engraved into his rough green skin.

"He knows we're here." Ayame stared at the familiar mark.

"Naraku is looking for you?" Miroku posed the question on everyone's mind.

"No. He knows we're looking for him. This is his invitation." Ayame said.

"We need to inform Kaede." The demon girl said to Ayame. She held a hand out and the red glow returned to her eyes. "Kuiiruyoni miru (devour)."

The earth rumbled beneath us and started to open up and proceeded to swallow Naraku's puppet. We all headed in the direction of the village. These two girls had a lot of explaining to do.