Kurama watched as Kagome created barriers and weapons from her energy as she fought against the boar demon that had attacked almost the instant their trio had left what was once InuYasha's forest. Of course, with his complete absence from the world of the living, it couldn't be called InuYasha's forest any more, and Tokyo was beginning to attach itself to the area – Kagome's home city, which would some day be built there.

They had stayed with Kaede for a week, Kurama overseeing the miko's instruction as well as that of the fox kit. Things that the old woman didn't know, Kagome was able to learn from Kurama and the books that he had found. As well as the books, Kurama had gifted her the clothes that she was now wearing, rather than the jeans and t-shirt she had come through the well in – no longer in possession of a school uniform, and finally convinced by Souta that it was more practical. Her own clothes were due for a wash at the moment, and by the end of the fight, the emerald green outfit that he had pilfered on a venture to the mainland would probably need it as well.

Kurama smiled as Kagome picked the jewel shard from the boar demon and then noticed her own rather befouled state.

"Ick," she stated, pulling at the clothes and surveying the muddy, bloody mess.

He chuckled. "There's a hot spring off the road a short way up ahead. I think we are all in want of a bath," the fox stated, indicating his own slightly dirtied state and Shippo's muddy hair. The fox kit had been thrown, rather literally, from the fight by the boar early on, and though Kurama had only watched, that hadn't stopped the mud from hitting him.

Kagome took her bath in the hot spring alone while Kurama kept watch and taught Shippo about certain parts of fox lore his father hadn't gotten to before the kit had been taken in by Kagome. He also explained about certain expressions that the child had heard, but not understood.

When Shippo and Kurama had both bathed as well, Kurama sat Kagome down and let Shippo build the fire. The kit would learn about being responsible, and he would test a theory with the miko.

"Take out the shards you have, you're going to meditate. We're going to see if you can use the jewels you have as a way of finding the others," the silver fox instructed.

"Now why didn't anyone ever think of doing this before?" Kagome grumbled as she let her power flow into the gem and out again, searching for the rest of it. A few minutes later, her eyes snapped open. "Bingo," she said. "Found it."

"It? Not other shards, but it?" Kurama questioned, raising a silver brow curiously.

"It. The great big lump of Shikon no Tama that Naraku's got. He's got a bunch of shards as well, not joined to the main piece, which he's planting into lessor demons to fight us or my friends," Kagome answered firmly. She was going to finish this, and soon. Maybe she would even spot Sango and Miroku along the way there.

~oOo~

It took them three months to reach Naraku's castle. Not because of how far away it was, or because of the particularly difficult terrain, or even because it moved several times – one of Naraku's particularly annoying tricks – but because Kurama had them set up camp early every day for extra training and lessons. Though all that other stuff slowed them down a fair bit as well.

When they eventually reached the castle barrier, Kurama passed Kagome and Shippo each a mask – ones he had stolen – that looked just like the one that Sango wore when she was demon slaying or dealing with fumes of any kind. It would filter the air that they breathed so that they would not be poisoned by Naraku's miasma.

"You'd better be ready for this," Kurama told them once he'd tied his own mask on.

Shippo and Kagome nodded, and cast their illusions and barriers before slipping into the castle.

Kurama preferred to get a good look at the place he was robbing, but that wasn't an option this time and they all knew it. According to Kagome, Naraku kept the jewel on his person at all times anyway.

Breaking and entering, infiltration, grand theft, and pickpocketing the bastard all at once. Kurama mentally sniggered. Add to that, he knew that Kagome wanted to kill the half-demon if she got the chance as well, and since she had been improving so much over the past month she would probably be able to purify him with a gentle tap to one of his slimy tentacles if she wanted – and he knew that she wanted to. She wanted to purify Naraku in as painful a way as possible, unlike all the crazed demons who had attacked her before, who she put out of their suffering as quickly and kindly as she knew how to.

In the first room they entered, Kagome stopped for a moment, staring at two jars on a shelf. Kurama raised an eyebrow when she quickly grabbed them and tucked them into her bag, but the look she gave him promised an explanation, so he let it go. It hadn't caused any problems to them, and he doubted that it would for a while. Kagome directed them through the castle until they reached the door of the room that Kagome said the jewel was behind.

Extreme caution was to be taken at this point. Shippo was terrified, and Kurama was decidedly not interested in being 'infected' with a corrupt jewel shard or being absorbed into Naraku's body – something Kagome had warned him about when explaining the genuinely evil half-demon.

Kurama chose a seed from his stash and Shippo hopped down from Kagome's shoulder to open the door. Kagome tightened her grip on her bow and readied an arrow on the string. Shippo opened the door just an inch, and Kagome fired her arrow, not even looking inside, just shooting it through the gap and sending a wave of purification through the room. A quiet thunk indicated that the shaft had hit wood, and Naraku was either aware now of their presence, or not in the room with their target.

"Well, well... That actually stung..." an arrogant voice oozed.

That answered that then.

Kagome handed a cloth to Kurama so that he could handle the jewel if he got to it first, one she had infused with her powers, so that some of the taint would be removed and Kurama would stay safe from the jewel's influence. Naraku wasn't to know about the thief if they could help it. Kagome would draw his attention, hopefully killing him in the process, and not dying herself.

Shippo opened the door the rest of the way, and stayed beside it. He was stronger, but he wasn't ready to face the creature of nightmares that was Naraku.

"Okay, that's just really gross," Kagome said when she was able to take in what Naraku looked like just then. He was spread out in slimy lumps around the room, his head and torso hanging from a web of green gunk. "Ew, just really, really ew," Kagome stated, drawing back her bow and firing at his face.

Tentacles came up to block the arrow as they had in previous battles. Three were ripped through before they dissolved and the arrow came to a stop in the fourth, which also dissolved, before the arrow fell to the floor.

"You little wench," Naraku sneered, readying his separated limbs to attack her even as Kagome fired another arrow at him.

"I'm getting really sick of being called that," she stated, placing a third arrow on her string while the second ripped through more tentacles, not quite reaching Naraku. The third arrow managed to land in his throat.

While he gasped, Kagome loaded another arrow.

"That one was for what you did to Sango," she stated, releasing the next one. "For Miroku," she said, as it landed in his shoulder. "For InuYasha and Kikyo," she continued, this arrow striking him where his heart should be, if it still existed in his body. "For all the demons you've driven to madness with your tainted jewel shards and evil ambitions," she growled, this arrow landing in the other shoulder. "This one is for Midoriko, the miko who created the jewel in the first place." The arrow landed in his eye. "And this one?" she said, drawing her bow back again. "This one is for me, because I had a hard enough time having to put up with InuYasha and searching for the jewel shards without having to deal with you as well!" The last arrow landed in his other eye, and Naraku dissolved, purified. "I wonder if you will take your incarnations with you," she growled down at the ashes all around her.

All the pieces of demon flesh dissolved as well, and Kagome saw Kurama bending down to collect something with the cloth she had given to him.

"One large one, and several slivers," Kurama declared, pouring the contents of the cloth into Kagome's hand. He'd seen her purify other shards with merely her touch, and saw it happen again, even though they were tainted nearly black, they still became a glowing pink as they touched her.

Kagome closed her hand, her eyes, and took a deep breath.

"Just the one in Kohaku's back, and Koga's two in his legs left," she said, opening her eyes with a smile on her face. "And Koga's always going on about being in love with me, so that shouldn't be a hard one. You have my deepest thanks Kurama," Kagome said, bowing deeply to the silver fox, the Youko.

"I will escort you to the well, so that you can return these to your time, and wait for you to return," Kurama said. "You need to give me the date in your time, so that I will not try to seek you out for that favour before you will know me," he added.

Kagome nodded and led the two foxes out of the castle into clean air and a different part of Japan than they had been.

"I'm guessing the castle returned to it's normal location without his energy to hold it within his own realm," Shippo observed, stunned.

~oOo~

Kagome dropped her filled-in school work on the kitchen table, picking up the next set – as much as Koga claimed his love for her, he was really very absent, and she had no idea how long it would take her to find him with how fast he moved from one place to another – then went to put the latest shards and the chunk taken from Naraku with the others in the barrier she had created in her bedroom.

She put her clothes through the washing machine and fixed herself something to eat while they washed. Lucky for her, her mother and grandfather were at one of Souta's soccer games – it was in red on the calendar, which was the only reason she knew. When the wash finished, she put it in the dryer and got herself into the shower. Hot springs were great, but there was just something about her own shower, and the heated towel rack, and being able to clean up without having to deal with the potential of animals or demons showing up. It was just relaxing all over, especially the way the hot water pounded on her shoulders.

When she climbed out, she enjoyed the bliss of a blow-dry and face mask until the clothes dryer was finished, when she folded everything up back into her bag – which had also gotten washed with everything else – and began cooking dinner, ready for her family.

"I just thank Inari that the Yoko is more patient than the Inu was," Kagome sighed to herself as she flipped the omelette onto the plate just as her family walked in, having gotten into the habit of referring to the minor deity of grain and harvests – and foxes – while travelling with two of "Inari's runners" as the fox demons apparently called themselves sometimes.

"Kagome! This is a nice surprise!"

"Hey, I'm home for a while. Not long, still got a couple of shards to get, but then I'll probably be back for keeps," Kagome answered, smiling as Souta hugged her quickly before going for a quick bath after his soccer match.

"You know Kagome, it's been a while since we've seen InuYasha around here, has he learned to be patient?" Kagome heard her mother ask.

Kagome steeled herself. She'd told her friends because they had been pestering her about her love life again. She hadn't told her family yet. Souta would probably be crushed that his hero was gone in a very much permanent way.

"No," Kagome answered. "He just made a decision. I haven't actually seen him for some time myself," it was better than saying he was dead. Her mother would react terribly to the news. If he was just having a really long pout, then that wasn't so bad.

"Oh, I'm sorry dear, are you alright?"

"Of course! I've still got all my other friends!" Never mind that she hadn't seen Sango, Miroku or Kirara for a while either... "And I'm finally getting a proper hold on my own powers as a miko," she added, reaffirming that it didn't matter what happened, she was still just fine.

"If you're sure dear."

"Yes Mama, I'm sure. I promise, everything is just fine."

~oOo~