A Change of Heart
Chapter 14: The Arrow of Resolution
As the trees swayed in the breeze and the sky darkened with miasma, everyone kept their watchful eyes on the sudden appearance of their arch nemesis. Naraku stood there with an evil glint in his eyes and a smirk of satisfaction upon his lips. The low growl of demons fell on deaf ears as they watched their master from a distance.
"Naraku, you bastard," Inuyasha yelled, unsheathing Tetsusaiga and glaring at the dark man.
He only smiled in amusement. His eyes drifted over the clearing. "Kikyo's aura still lingers and yet, I don't see her. What happened to our old friend?" he asked, turning his gaze back to the half-demon.
Kagome placed a comforting hand on Inuyasha's back, trying to help calm his fury. "What is your purpose?" Miroku called out, tightening his grip around his staff. Why had Naraku come to face them after all this time?
A chuckle rose from his throat. "Isn't it obvious, monk? I've come to finish off what I started fifty years ago."
Sango's eyes hardened at his confession and she grasped hold of her Hiraikotsu, preparing herself for battle. "You son of a bitch," she mumbled harshly, her gaze sweeping over the collection of demons for any sign of her brother.
"Not on my watch," Inuyasha replied, leaping into the air. With a battle cry, he brought his sword down where Naraku had stood moments ago. The enemy easily dodge his attack and made his way quickly toward his target. "Kagome!" the half-demon screamed as he turned around and rushed off to save her.
"Die you evil creature," Miroku bellowed, removing the prayer beads and opening his windtunnel with a battle cry. Suddenly, a ferocious wind came seemingly from nowhere and began to drag everything into the void of his hand. The demons screeched and growled as they were dragged into its depths.
Naraku, however, had been prepared for the monk's attack. He took a insect nest out of his robes and tossed it in Miroku's direction. "Watch out!" Sango yelled, trying to save him from a fatal mistake.
Miroku took note of her voice too late. The Saimyosho flew from the nest and straight into his palm. His body pulsed as an overwhelming pain seemed to take root where his hand was. He let out a cry of anguish, but did not give up the fight. He squinted his eyes shut against the agony, continuing to suck up the demons. Their nemesis paid little attention to him. It seemed as though he had the strength to withstand Miroku's attack, therefore rendering the wind-tunnel useless.
"Close the windtunnel!" Kagome begged, taking a few steps toward him in order to try and save his life. "Miroku, you'll die if you keep it open!"
Finally heeding their words and coming to his senses, the monk quickly wrapped the prayer beads around his wrist to close off the wind. He immediately fell to bended knee, suddenly overwhelmed with the pain the poison created. "Miroku!" Kagome screamed, coming to his side.
"I'm alright," he assured, although he looked anything but.
Her eyes flickered to his hand, which had turned a sickening purple as he groaned in pain. "You need to get to Kaede's." The old woman was the only one that would be able to help him at the moment, considering Kagome had an enemy on her hands.
Miroku shook his head. "Thank you for your concern, Kagome, but I am fine for the time being. Please, do not worry about my health." He smiled half-heartily in order to bring her some sort of comfort, but it did little to soothe her growing concern.
Knowing she would be unable to persuade the monk any further, she gave an affirmative nod and stood up, turning her gaze once more to the battle. Inuyasha seemed to be tiring from swinging his sword constantly at the enemy and Sango didn't seem to be fairing any better. "Kirara," she shouted to her demon feline, immediately jumping on her back and taking to the skies.
The demon slayer circled their opponent, trying to pinpoint a weak spot. "There has to be something we can do," she mumbled. But it seemed as if it was all lost. A barrier had circled Naraku, rendering him almost untouchable. Even Inuyasha's barrier-breaking Tetsusaiga couldn't burst through it.
Before Sango could contemplate her next move, a black dash caught her eye. Kirara immediately dodged the leaping figure as her mistress's eyes searched where the person fled, trying to pinpoint his location. She grasped her boomerang and readied herself for battle.
Turning around to fight off the invading nemesis, Sango jumped off her feline's back and glared at the figure. But something seemed oddly familiar about the way he was dressed and the weapon he held by his side. "Show yourself," she yelled to him, waiting for the boy to turn away from the shadows and face her.
He did as she asked, letting his lifeless eyes find hers, causing the demon slayer's breath to halt in her throat. Her heart began pounding faster as what always happened when she encountered him. "Ko-Kohaku?" she called, the name whispering off her lips in a plea.
Her brother didn't move to show any sign that he had heard her. Instead, he stared at her, letting his gaze burrow deep into her soul. So far, in fact, that she could feel her heart ache as if it was being ripped out from her chest. Tears pricked the back of her eyes at seeing her younger brother in such a state, but she refused to let them fall. Weakness was not an option.
Suddenly, he sprang from his position and swung his scythe around mercilessly, throwing the chained weapon at the girl in an attempt to slice her head off. Just in time, she threw her giant boomerang in front of her, blocking the attack and repelling it toward the ground. "Kohaku!" she screamed, her voice laced with anguish. The desire to tear the boy from Naraku's clutches was too great, almost to the point where she couldn't stand it any longer.
The siblings endured battling one another, each attempting a different feat; Kohaku wanted her dead by Naraku's orders, while Sango wanted to save her brother from the dark man's clutches. It was a battle that neither side would win easily.
Meanwhile, Inuyasha continued to fight off their nemesis. With Sango occupied by Kohaku and Miroku wounded, there wasn't anyone else to stop him. "You bastard!" the half-demon yelled, wind swirling around his sword. "Wind Scar!" Bright yellow light tore through the ground, heading straight toward its target.
Naraku put up a barrier, effortlessly withstanding the attack. "Heh," he chuckled darkly. "How long will you continue to fight? You shall never beat me, Inuyasha."
He growled in reply. "I'll rip your fucking head off!" With a battle cry, he rushed into danger once more, Tetsusaiga raised above his head in battle formation. Before he could release another attack, his enemy smirked in satisfaction.
"Such a fool," he mumbled. Suddenly, various tentacles shot out from his barrier, waving around in the air wildly before centering on their target. All at once, they rushed at Inuyasha, catching him off guard.
"What the hell?" he said, his brows furrowing in concentration as he dodged each attack Naraku threw at him. However, with each one he ducked or sidestepped, a new one appeared in his path, creating a never ending chain of assaults. "Damn it all," Inuyasha growled beneath his breath, feeling the burn in his muscles as they begged for rest. But even as his steps slowed and his arms became heavy, he refused to give up the fight.
Naraku watched with crimson eyes as the half-demon tired from his attacks. "Your life will end," he taunted, grinning. "You shall join Kikyo in hell."
Without warning, a tentacle shot out from the middle of the group, heading straight toward Inuyasha's stomach. Having no time to dodge it, he merely squinted his eyes and readied himself for the pain that was sure to come. It pierced straight through his abdomen, causing him to fly back into a tree. A resounding 'crack' echoed throughout the forest.
A sputtered cry came from his lips, followed by a spurt of blood. His eyes widened at the sudden impact and he found the wind had been knocked out of him. "Inuyasha!" Kagome cried, immediately running over to the wounded man. Naraku retracted his arm and watched the scene unfold.
Inuyasha slumped down against the tree, holding his hand over the afflicted area while squinting his eyes against the pain. "Damn you," he managed to choke out, trying to keep his gaze on the enemy.
"Inuyasha!" Kagome called again, kneeling beside him with a worried expression. "Are you alright?"
"Get out of here," he demanded, his words cracking with the weight of his wound. "Run, Kagome!"
She shook here head. "I won't leave you here to die!"
He struggled to say something back, but found he had no strength to talk. Instead he decided to give her a heated glare, one she dismissed with a frown.
"You have always protected me," she continued softly. "Now its my turn to protect you." Ignoring his coughs of protest, she stood from where she was and prepared to turn back toward the enemy, bow in hand.
Before she had a chance to cast her glare upon Naraku, his tentacles had wrapped around her waist, yanking her toward his barrier. A scream tore itself from her throat as she felt the wind whip through her hair. All of her arrows that had been neatly tucked away in her quiver fell to the ground below, except for one.
Seconds later, she found herself face-to-face with the man who had caused everyone such agony. A sickening smile met her gaze. "It seems as though you are all alone, now," Naraku taunted.
Kagome pushed against the vines, silently grateful he didn't get a hold of her arms. "Let me go!" she demanded fiercely.
Her cries only received a dark chuckle in response. "So this is how it all ends? The great reincarnation of Kikyo, left defenseless with no one left to save her. Such a pity." His eyes glazed over in an undefinable emotion. "I would have liked to play with you more."
His hold tightened around her as a gasp fell from her lips, rendering her speechless. The tentacles continued to slither around her body, as if searching for something. "It seems as though you have some secrets," he mused aloud, reading her thoughts through the power he gained days prior. "Kikyo's death seems to be a dark spot within your heart."
"You don't know anything!" she screamed in response, her struggles ceasing. It would do no good to fight against him. Saving her strength was a better option. She cast a fervent glance in Inuyasha's reaction, only to see him fighting to stand up. There was no possible way he would be able to save her now. Kagome was on her own.
"But on the contrary, my dear," he responded. "I know every thought that passes through your mind and every feeling that swirls in your heart. You belive it is your fault Kikyo died, because you didn't think the half-demon was trustworthy."
"Stop it!" Tears prickled the corners of her eyes as she listened to Naraku speak of everything she kept bottled up inside. "You're lying!"
Inuyasha stopped his procession, watching the interaction between Kagome and his enemy carefully. "Kagome," he mumbled, hurt passing over his eyes.
Naraku smirked at her denial. "Its a shame, really. Everything that Kikyo has done for you, only for you to die. Her efforts have been in vain."
At the mention of the dead woman, Kagome's eye lit with a burning fire. "No," she snarled, almost as fiercely as a demon. "Kikyo was selfless when she was alive. It was because of you her heart was tainted with darkness. Her good deeds will not be futile!"
Suddenly, it seemed as though a great power had awaken deep within her. A pink glow enveloped her being as she grasped her final arrow and strung it in tune with her bow. "Now die for all of the horrible things you have done! Go to hell!" Her voice rang strong and clear through the forest as she pulled the string taunt and released.
Everything seemed to pass by in slow motion. Sango dove into Kohaku to protect him from the bright light that had appeared. Miroku turned away from the silent blast, squinting his eyes against it. Inuyasha, however, could do nothing but observe intensely, putting his hand up in front of his face slightly.
Kagome watched as her arrow pierced through Naraku's barrier, and the look of astonishment that took over his face. His tentacles released her and she fell to the ground, watching as her attack shot through his heart. The last thing she heard was a scream from his lips before she hit the dirt and everything went black.
A/N: Okay, I have to be completely honest with you guys. I don't like this story or the way its turned out. Since it was one of my earlier fics, I'm just not that into anymore. I literally wrote almost a sentence a day for this chapter until I finally sat down and just wrote it. Took me weeks. But I thought I'd finish it up for those who did enjoy it. Sorry if it wasn't one of my best pieces. I tend to write better when I'm into the story. There is only one more chapter left. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy the rest of it.