Chapter 10

"I have an idea of what Ichiro is up to. And I'm afraid it's not good at all!" Myoga jumped onto Inuyasha's shoulder. "Oh, Master Inuyasha! I'm so relieved to see you back to your old self!"

"Myoga! You're back! Did Totosai say anything about the swords?" Kagome asked.

"Nothing more than I already suspected. He agreed that if they did not react then the spell itself was not a danger. But that's not why I'm here. I'm afraid I don't bring good news."

"You just said. What is it?"

"I know what Ichiro plans to do with Lord Sesshomaru."

"What does he – Wait a minute! How did you know who's behind this?"

"I returned just as you encountered Ichiro. When I saw what was occurring, I thought it best to remain hidden in hopes of learning something. I hid on Lord Sesshomaru's clothing when I realized it was him Ichiro was after. I remembered Ichiro from many, many years ago when he served my master. He is inu yokai."

"We noticed."

Myoga continued, "He was member of the clan. He disagreed vehemently with Inu no Taisho's protection of the humans that lived in his domain. He also felt that conquest rather than diplomacy showed strength. He left the western domain centuries ago. This would have been well before you were born, Master Inuyasha. Lord Sesshomaru would have only been a young child at the time. Nobody's heard anything of him since. It was assumed that he was dead.

"From what I was able to observe, it appears that he intends to perform some sort of ritual that will implant memories of him being a close friend and trusted advisor to both your father and Lord Sesshomaru. That way he will retain significant influence your brother when he returns him to his normal self. He has a strange orb in a box that he intends to use to accomplish this. It gave off a very strong and strange aura. I've never felt anything like it before. I will say that it made me feel very uneasy just being in the same room with it."

"But why?" Kagome asked. "Why choose Sesshomaru? It seems like an awfully big risk to take. Sesshomaru's pretty powerful. It seems like there's a lot that can go wrong with his plans. If he fails, Sesshomaru will slaughter him for certain. I can't imagine anything worth that amount of risk."

"It is exactly because of who Lord Sesshomaru is. And who his father was."

"Then this is some sort of revenge against his father?" Sango asked.

"No." Myoga shook his head. "You see, as the elder son, Sesshomaru will inherit his father's position as lord when he comes of age."

"Hold up," Kagome interrupted. "What do you mean 'comes of age'?"

"As I've told you before, Lord Sesshomaru is still an adolescent in demon terms. He is still too young to rule in his father's place. His mother currently fills the role of regent until he is old enough to rule himself."

"Wow," Kagome said softly. She had never realized that Sesshomaru would still be considered barely more than a child by his own people. Glancing at Inuyasha, she wondered if that was the reason Sesshomaru held such hatred towards his half-brother. He had still been fairly young himself when their father had died.

"Meh. So what?" Inuyasha interrupted her thoughts. "So the bastard can't rule yet. Big deal."

"This is not some feudal lord's estate; it is a substantial empire. Don't forget, Master Inuyasha, your father was one of the most powerful and influential demons of all time. If Ichiro succeeds in his plans, he will have the perfect puppet in your brother. A way to control those lands without anyone being the wiser."

"He's trying to usurp Sesshomaru?" Miroku asked.

"Not exactly. Lord Sesshomaru is his father's rightful heir. Ichiro would not simply be able to kill him and take over. Not without an impossibly vast amount of resources and a large army at his back. However, there is nothing to say that he couldn't advise Lord Sesshomaru toward taking a course of action that would suit his own purposes. If he is able to gather enough influence over him, he would rule in all but name."

Inuyasha snorted. "I'd like to see anyone try to control Sesshomaru." As much as he hated his older half-brother he knew the other was incredibly strong willed.

"Master Inuyasha, please!" Myoga pleaded. "I have no idea exactly what powers Ichiro has gained over the past few centuries since his departure, but believe me, they are substantial. He was able to bespell both you and Lord Sesshomaru. You know how strong your brother is! Entrapping a full daiyokai is no mean feat! You must stop him before he carries out his plans! He'll most likely use your brother to start a war that would ravage the entire country."

Inuyasha scowled slightly over Myoga's prattling about Sesshomaru being ensnared. As his servant, shouldn't he have been praising Inuyasha's strength rather than his despised brother's? Though, if he was being fair, the flea had a point. Anyone powerful enough to gain control over Sesshomaru would be a formidable foe.

"You stayed and learned all that? I'm impressed! You actually did something brave for once!" Kagome said, seemingly oblivious to Inuyasha's annoyance.

"Don't remind me," Myoga muttered. Louder, he said, "My loyalty has always been to Inu no Taisho and Lord Sesshomaru is his son. If he is in danger, I owe it to my lord's memory to help if I am able."

"Well, now that we know what he plans, what can we do about it?"

Myoga shook his head. "There's a barrier up around the hut. Ichiro is using a Barrier Stone to keep it in place. You'll never break through without Tessaiga."

"What's a Barrier Stone?" Kagome asked.

"Exactly what it sounds like. It's a small object that looks like a colored stone that produces a barrier. They usually come in pairs. The second stone allows the bearer to pass through the barrier unharmed. They are coveted by those who cannot produce a barrier themselves. They're quite useful as they do not pull from the users own spiritual or demonic energy. The barrier will remain up forever unless it is deactivated by the one who possesses the stone."

"Is there any way we can get the stone from him?"

"Not that I saw. He keeps the Nullification Stone on his person. I do not know where the Barrier Stone is hidden. Probably somewhere inside his home itself. It could take days to find it."

"We don't have days."

"I agree. Ichiro still has preparations to make but he's completing them rapidly. He spoke of Lord Sesshomaru needing his strength for tomorrow."

"Damn. That means we're out of time," Inuyasha muttered. "We need to find a way to get Tessaiga back."

"I doubt Ichiro is going to just hand it over if we ask nicely," Kagome said darkly.

"Probably not. However, whatever ritual Ichiro is planning, he's doing it outside. Presumably so he'll have more room in which to work. If he has Lord Sesshomaru with him, that means he'll have the barrier over them to prevent Sesshomaru from running off or anyone from interfering. The hut should be mostly unprotected by it."

"So what?"" Inuyasha demanded. "We still can't get through the barrier."

Myoga sighed. Inuyasha was incredibly thick headed sometimes. "What it means, Master Inuyasha," he said with exaggerated patience, "is that you may be able to retrieve Tessaiga and then use it to bring down the barrier."

"Tessaiga?"

"Yes. Ichiro placed it on a high shelf near the door of the hut. If you can get inside, you should be able to retrieve it."

"That's awfully risky, Myoga," Miroku said. "Besides, wouldn't Ichiro keep the sword with him?"

"I doubt it. He isn't able to touch it, being a full demon."

"Then how'd he get it inside in the first place?"

"He didn't. He had Lord Sesshomaru pick it up."

"Sesshomaru?" It came out halfway between a question and a sneer. "How'd he manage?"

"I'd imagine because Lord Sesshomaru is currently a child that holds no animosity towards humanity."

"That's all well and good," Kagome said before Inuyasha could continue ranting about Sesshomaru being able to handle his sword. "But how is Inuyasha supposed to get in to get Tessaiga? Ichiro's sure to try to stop him if he sees him making a move towards the hut."

"There is a window on the back wall that's large enough for you to enter through."

"So we'll just have to distract Ichiro while Inuyasha sneaks around back, gets inside, and grabs Tessaiga," Miroku stated. "Then he can bring down the barrier and we can rescue Sesshomaru."

"I know! I can pretend to be Sesshomaru and make him chase me!" Shippo said excitedly. There was a pop and then a silver-haired pup looking up at them from where Shippo had been standing.

Inuyasha shook his head. "That won't work, Shippo." He tapped his nose. "Ichiro will know you're not Sesshomaru by scent. Even if he can't smell you through the barrier, he already has the real one."

"Oh," Shippo popped back into existence, looking dejected.

"It was a good idea, Shippo," Sango said, trying to cheer him up.

"You looked just like Lord Sesshomaru," Rin added.

"Really?" he looked pleased by Rin's praise. He never had been able to resist an admiring girl.

Rin nodded. "Yes. I wish I could do magic. Then I could help, too," she said quietly.

While he had no idea why Rin seemed to like Sesshomaru so much, Shippo had become fond of her over the past few days. Besides, he hated seeing a girl so sad. He dug through his pockets and pulled out a couple of the toys he used in his fox magic. "Hey, can you hold onto these for me? It'd be a big help if I don't have to search for them in the fight."

"Really?" she asked, a bit skeptical.

"Yeah. It'll be a big help!" He grinned at her, his green eyes shining.

"Okay!" She returned his smile, cheered by the thought of being able to do something useful to help rescue Sesshomaru.

"Oops," Sango said as Hiraikotsu seemingly accidently slipped from her hand and hit Jaken on the head just as he opened his mouth to berate Rin.

"I think our best chance is to attack Ichiro head on," Miroku said. "If we all attack the barrier at the same time then he'll think we're trying to get through. That should give Inuyasha a chance to sneak around back and get Tessaiga. Remember, he doesn't know that we have any idea what he's planning or what his defenses are. He'll likely think we're simply trying to rescue Sesshomaru. And that we'll fail. We can use his overconfidence against him."

"I agree. That's sounds like our best shot," Kagome said.

"We have no idea when he's going to perform this ritual or how long it's going to take," Sango pointed out. "If we begin attacking before he's committed, he'll likely retreat behind the barrier and wait us out. We need to wait until he's begun but not too long. We don't want him completing it and controlling Sesshomaru."

"We should get closer so we can make our move faster."

"But not too close. We can't risk Ichiro scenting or spotting us before we're ready."

"And how are we going to know when to attack?"

"Myoga, can you go and keep an eye on Ichiro?" Kagome asked. "Let us know when he's ready to begin and we'll attack then."

The flea started to protest, then sighed in resignation. He was the only one who would be able to approach and observe without the risk of being detected. His former master's eldest son was in danger. He knew he would not be able to live with himself should he refuse to help and Sesshomaru came to harm. Or, even worse, if Ichiro gained control over him and destroyed all that Inu no Taisho had worked so hard to achieve over his lifetime.

"Alright," he agreed. "You should camp here for tonight and move closer at daybreak. I will go and keep an eye on things. I'll find you as soon as I learn anything." He hopped off of Inuyasha's shoulder and disappeared.

"I hope Lord Sesshomaru is alright," Rin said softly. "He must be really lonely and scared."

"Foolish girl!" Jaken screeched. "Lord Sesshomaru is never scared! How dare you imply such a thing"

"But Master Jaken, he's only a child."

The imp snorted derisively. "Lord Sesshomaru is a great demon! Even as a child he would not – "

"Give it a rest!" Inuyasha cut the imp off irritably.

"You miserable half-breed! This is all your fault!"

Inuyasha picked Jaken up by the back of the neck and held him up at eye level. "Oh? Wasn't it Sesshomaru he was after? If anything, this is Sesshomaru's fault." He snorted. "It would serve him right if I left him –" He broke off as he saw Rin's unhappy face. With a sigh he tossed Jaken aside. "Never mind. I need to get Tessaiga back anyway so we might as well rescue Sesshomaru while we're at it. Besides, this Ichiro guy is too powerful to leave running loose. Who knows what kind of schemes he'd come up with next."

"I agree," Miroku said. "Ichiro is much too dangerous. He's powerful and cunning and has no qualms about harming anyone to get what he wants. He cannot be allowed to carry out his plans." Sango and Kagome nodded as well.

Kagome suddenly smiled mischievously. "Inuyasha, with you back to normal and Sesshomaru still a pup, does this make you the big brother now?"

Inuyasha simply stared at her, a look of horror coming over his face as he digested her words. "That's just wrong!" he sputtered while the others laughed.