CHAPTER NINE
Kagome
"We're back!"
Everyone looked behind us to see Sakura and Ayame floating to the ground from the sky.
"Took you long enough." Inuyasha rolled his eyes at Sakura. He was being really moody lately and I couldn't exactly figure out why. Thankfully, Sakura didn't take it personal.
"…Did you miss me, Inuyasha?" Sakura clasped her hands together in front of her and invaded his personal space, rubbing a shoulder to his chest.
Inuyasha blushed but tried to hide it with dominance. "Not a chance!" He barked.
"Yeah, right." Ayame snickered, appearing in her signature human form.
"Is everything okay?" I asked the sisters, gripping the handle bars of my bike.
Sakura threw her hands behind her head and smiled at me. "Everything is perfect."
The sisters fell in with the group's stride and we continued in the direction we believed Naraku would be in.
"You know, something doesn't seem right." I broke the silence.
"What do you mean, Kagome?" Sango asked with Kilala sitting on her left shoulder.
"That Cyclops. Why do you think Naraku's spider mark was on its stomach instead of its back like the others?" There was another moment of silence between us before Miroku agreed with me.
"That is pretty strange." He scratched the back of his head. "I'm not sure what his reasoning for that would be."
"It's probably nothing." Inuyasha said from my left. "At least it was on there and we knew it was him. That is his calling card no matter where it's marked."
"But, you never know with Naraku. I wouldn't put anything past him." Sango added.
"Kagome,"
"Yeah?" I glanced back at Ayame.
"Didn't you tell me that Naraku was also looking for the Shikon Jewel, the other day?"
I stopped my bike and turned to look into her black human eyes. "Hey, you're right."
"What does that mean?" Shippo asked, sitting in my bike's carry basket in the front.
"That Cyclops had a jewel in his arm. Why would Naraku not take it from him and send him to attack as is?" I pieced together and questioned out loud. "Had he taken it out maybe he would have killed the monster in the process just to get it."
None of this was making sense to me. Naraku has always had his own way of doing things, but when he switched it up it threw us off.
"Maybe he's just trying to confuse us." Inuyasha came to a final conclusion, even though his face showed he was still pretty skeptical himself.
I got ready to continue pedaling forward. "Yeah, let's try not to think too much into it. It was just on my mind." I shrugged.
"Great observation, though, Kagome." Miroku said.
Thunder struck above us and we hadn't even started back walking again. It hadn't looked like any signs of rain today but the sudden grey clouds in the sky told a different story.
"Ayame?" Sakura growled.
Ayame held her hands up. "Don't growl at me! Mother Nature still has a mind of her own, ya know! Since when do you hate the rain anyway?"
"Since I've been more in contact with water the times I don't want or need to be. Can't you make it stop? Tell me how to do it." She held her palms face up to the sky ready to follow her sister's instructions.
Ayame shook her head. "It doesn't work that way. I can only stop what I start, which goes for you as well. I can't alter natures work." She explained.
"Great. I knew I should have grabbed my umbrella when we went home."
I kicked myself. I was always prepared for major disasters but when it comes to certain things such as umbrellas, I always forget to pack them. I looked around and unfortunately there weren't any villages around as far as my eyes could see. We were too far from Kaede's village to turn around and go back for shelter.
"You're acting like such a house cat." Inuyasha picked at Sakura and she nudged him with her arms crossed.
"Let's see if the forest trees can provide some shelter." I shielded my eyes from the little droplets of rain.
Inuyasha picked up my bike and we all headed for the forest. The rain was just getting started but it wasn't that bad. The trees were a little helpful in keeping us dry until the rain proved it was stronger than the grassy leaves above us.
"I guess we'll have to wait this out." I dug into my yellow back and pulled out a handy jacket I had inside.
"Come on! It's just a little rain!" Inuyasha stood in front of everyone with his hands out and at the end of his sentence the rain fell harder. He glared at Ayame who covered her head with Sakura's backpack.
"It wasn't me! I'm not messing with nature today! You'll know if it's me, trust."
"Inuyasha, we're not going anywhere. So we might as well try to build a make-shift roof or something!" I half yelled over the sound of the rain.
Summer storms weren't uncommon but they rarely happened. It's been a while since one has occurred and why nature chose today of all days to bring one upon us is beyond me. I wished Sakura and Ayame could do something about it.
"Sakura, let me see your pendant." Ayame said, holding her hand out for the necklace. "I'll be right back." She took off somewhere into the forest before anyone could ask her where she was going.
Sakura shifted towards me and held on to the other end of my small jacket to make sure her head was covered. "You comfortable?" She asked and I nodded.
I looked to Sango, Miroku and Kilala and they were all trying to make the best out of the situation using Sango's green skirt as a cover. Shippo snuggled up close to me and just stared out into the forest in front of us. I felt Sakura being pulled away from my side and closer to Inuyasha as he removed his robe and covered both of their heads with it. It was the most adorable thing ever!
I guess he felt me staring because he glanced at me then looked away. "How sweet of you, Inuyasha." I picked at him.
"Just be quiet, Kagome! I'm only trying to help."
"I'm back!"
Ayame returned to the group wearing a long plastic poncho with extra ones in her hands, even two for Shippo and Kilala. I always hated to wear those things but I sure was happy to see her passing them out.
"What are those things?" Shippo asked as I helped put his on after I got my own on.
"It's called a poncho. It protects you from the rain when you don't have anything else to keep dry with."
"Neat!"
"Thanks a lot, Ayame." I said.
"Don't mention it."
"So, now can we continue on instead of waiting around like sitting ducks?"
I looked to see Inuyasha pulling his poncho over his head. "I suppose so."
"I'm up for it." Miroku chimed in.
"Ah-choo!"
"Bless you, Kagome." Miroku said with a little worry.
"Thanks. I don't even know where that came from. Ah-choo!"
"Bless you." Everyone said at once.
Before I could thank them again, a gust of wind stirred the leaves and sticks around us and into the air. Inuyasha gave out a loud yelp and everyone put their guards up, waiting until our view was clear again.
"Inuyasha?" I worried. The first person I saw when all of the leaves fell wasn't Inuyasha but the young leader of the Wolf Demon Tribe.
"Kagome! I heard you sneeze! Are you alright?" Koga held my cold hands into his strong warm ones and stared deep into my brown eyes with his turquoise pools.
"Oh, Koga?" I was surprised to see him. "I didn't sense the shards in your legs at all."
"Probably because I've gotten faster." He boasted with his fists placed on his hips.
"What happened to Inuyasha?" I looked around with everyone else.
"I'm up here!"
Inuyasha was tangled in branches in the trees above us. Koga moved so fast with the help of the jewel shards in his legs we didn't even see he knocked Inuyasha out of the way to get to me. He detangled himself from the trees branches and jumped down, getting in Koga's face.
"Okay, you flea-bitten wolf! You better be glad Kagome couldn't sense those shards and I couldn't smell your stench, otherwise that wouldn't have happened!"
"What's the matter, mutt? The rain too strong for your little puppy nose?"
Inuyasha growled at Koga and Koga growled back almost more viciously than Inuyasha. I was starting to get nervous. These two would fight anywhere at any time and now wasn't any different from the other times. "Um, okay you two." I stepped between them.
"Humph. Never mind all that. Why do you have my Kagome out here in this rain?! She'll get sick!"
"Koga, I'm fine- ah-choo!" Stupid sneezing. Koga suddenly scooped me up into his arms and looked at me with eyes I could get lost in for eternity.
"No, you're not. Come on, I'll take you to find some shelter." He turned around and whipped his tail into Inuyasha's face and took off running, leaving my bike and my friends behind.