Kim: Ahhhh. Exams next week. They seem to be affecting a lot of peoples' writing, but not me! I'm exempting second block, so I don't have to go to school that day, so four-day weekend for me! I cheat in Latin, so I have to exempt that class. I have a b or c anyways…

Amber: On with the chapter!

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Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha

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Last time…

"What is it?" InuYasha questioned, catching the other two's attention. He sniffed the air and turned around. "Oh no…"

"So the rumors were true," said a familiar voice.

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Chapter 23: Sealed Away

I told you myself…" InuYasha said.

"I believed you were lying."

"I'm not going," InuYasha growled in warning.

'A part of him wants to, though,' Kagome thought.

"Kagome, get Hikari and yourself out of here." InuYasha called over his shoulder as Kikyou's immense spiritual energy started to swirl around her in great waves. Kagome nodded and ran.

'…I hope my body can handle this…' were InuYasha's last thoughts that Kagome heard.

"What's wrong, Kagome?" Sango asked as soon as she entered the hut.

"Kikyou's attacking InuYasha," saying it felt weird. Why would Kikyou attack InuYasha?

"We should go help," Sango said to Miroku, who was now at her side. "He's not in the best of shape. His right arm, chest, and left leg are damaged." Sango picked up her weapon as she spoke.

"How is Shippo's fighting?"

"Pretty good. He's gotten stronger. Why do you ask?" Miroku replied.

"Shippo's with him," Kagome said, scrambling around the hut. "Where's my sword?"

"InuYasha has it still. I'll watch Hikari for ye." Kaede said. Kagome nodded and the three raced out.

"Where are they?" Miroku asked as they ran. His question was answered when Kagome took a hard right. Kikyou knocked a sword out of InuYasha's hand and it went flying, piercing the ground a few feet from Kagome.

"Whose sword is this?" Kagome called, inspecting the sword.

"Yours!" InuYasha yelled. Kagome looked up at him. His arm was bleeding badly and he was on one knee, his sword laying useless yards away in a tree trunk.

"Kikyou, leave him alone!" Kagome yelled. Kikyou ignored her completely and proceeded to shoot an arrow at him. Before she could react, InuYasha was pierced in his wounded arm. He grabbed the arrow in reaction, attempting to remove it from his flesh.

Kagome said nothing more. She forced her sword to transform, a task so easy it was like breathing, and swept it to the right. Immediately, a wave of sacred arrows formed and was raging toward Kikyou.

"You have lost your touch, Kagome. I'm surprised that you are attacking me and not InuYasha. You should have seen that that creature is not him."

"What?"

Kikyou waved her hand and the arrows froze inches from her face. She plucked one out of the air and shot it at InuYasha.

Kirara ran over at an impossible speed and pulled him out of the way, leaving him by Sango's feet.

Kikyou turned the rest of the arrows toward the group, aiming for InuYasha, and sent them flying. The arrows froze, inches from his face and a green aura surrounded them before the disappeared, reappearing in front of Kikyou.

"What's going on?" Sango said. InuYasha got up, somehow without notice, and stumbled over to get his sword out of the tree. Kikyou strung her bow, and pinned InuYasha to the tree.

"INUYASHA!" Kagome screamed.

"…kill…her…now Kagome…" InuYasha's eyes shut and he fell into an eternal sleep, pinned to the sacred tree.

Kagome lifted her sword and aimed it at Kikyou, tears streaming down her face. "Go to hell, Kikyou. And this time, don't come back." With that, Kagome used her sword to open a portal to hell beneath Kikyou's feet, and she watched as Kikyou dropped down as if she had fallen off a cliff. "InuYasha…InuYasha!" She raced over to the tree, immediately gripping the arrow. But as soon as she pulled it out, InuYasha's body disappeared.

"What the hell…?" Realization flashed over her face and she quickly spun around. "Sango, Shippo, Kirara, stand back." She picked up her sword and cut through Miroku's body.

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Kim: Sorry for the shortness. I've had some people complain about that lately, but I'm starting to post one or two chapters a day, so length shouldn't matter. Not everybody updates like me. I'm just the freak who gets up at 5 AM to write and color pictures in Adobe Photoshop!

Amber: PLEASE review!