Chapter 10

Once in what Kagome assumed to be the dojo with cleaned dark wooden floors and traditional sliding doors, Genkai immediately instructed Yusuke to go through his warm-up. Then she turned to Kagome.

She froze, nervous and admittedly fearful. The weight in the older woman's stare alone was enough to make Kagome give up whatever argument or way of escape. It was as if the woman could see through her, see all Kagome's weaknesses and failures; she felt bare and alone.

Genkai's eyes soften before nodding to a set of simple cushions. Taking a seat, the older psychic took a long drag of her cigarette. Kagome followed and took the seat across from her. "Because you are injured, I won't have you doing anything as demanding as Yusuke- yet. For now, I want you to meditate," she explained, much to Kagome's relief. Genkai went on instructing her to simply search out her reiki but avoid drawing on it.

Kagome nodded before adjusting her posture with her legs crossed in the lotus position and hands gently resting on her knees. With a deep breath, she allowed her eyes to close and focused solely on her heartbeat. It started in soft, hard to find with her cluttered mind, but as she focused only on her breathing, her heartbeat hummed, creating a steady rhythm to center herself with. All conscious thought fell away, and for the first time in days, Kagome felt at peace.

On the other side of the room, Yusuke worked on stretching his muscles, a normal morning routine by now but took great care in his warm-ups, seeing as every new training regiment with Gentai seemed to either almost kill him or at least make him wish for death. It was almost fifteen minutes when he switched into a light workout. This consisted of channeling his reiki into his finger that he then balanced on while doing push-ups. It was only after 10 that he changed fingers mid-push-up. Once through his reps, he switched to military style diamond pushups, all the while he was muttering and grumbling irritatedly to himself. It was twenty minutes into his warmup/workout before Gentai softly called for him to stop.

"Stop your bitching boy," Genkai hissed. "You'll need to get stronger if you have any chance of protecting that girl from the demons and humans that will come searching for that jewel," she explained lowly to avoid Kagome overhearing. "That jewel is dangerous, and even I fear what will become of her,"

"What do you mean?" He asked quietly, eyes darting worriedly in Kagome's direction. Her brows knotted and breathing slow, she did look feverish but chalked that to it being unusually warm in the dojo.

Genkai wasn't one to show fear towards anything; it wasn't in her nature. The elderly psychic was usually cynical in her approach to anything and everything, and a level of arrogance that came from years of complete mastery of her craft. To see the woman he perceived as a grandmother and damn near invincible actually worried had him uncomfortably afraid.

His senses weren't as honed as those around him, but he had already felt a horrible feeling coming from the jewel, and as frightening as it was, it had whispered to him. It spoke of power, of overwhelming strength, and possessing Kagome. It was disturbing and had him feeling sick. Yusuke had never felt such a thing like that, and as much as it had bothered him, he couldn't say it was evil, just strong.

"That jewel is like a beacon of power. Anyone with a lick of awareness and a weak will is going to be drawn to it,"

Yusuke gave a determined nod, and the two began sparing.

He didn't know how long they had been fighting (training); all he knew was that he was nowhere near his limit, but his body was showing signs of a growing number of bruises. Right now, he was mostly evading and blocking, occasionally getting in a counter move, but Genkai had wanted to see how fast his reflexes had gotten since their last training session five months ago.

Suddenly across the room, Kagome made an audible gasp, eyes snapping open before she was running out of the dojo.

Both fighters froze, briefly offering the other a look before chasing after her.

"Wait! Kagome!" Yusuke called after her. "Damn, she's fast!" He grumbled lowly under his breath.

"Yusuke, she's running towards a group of powerful youkai!" Genkai yelled, her voice laced with urgency.

"Damn it!" Yusuke growled.

When they finally had Kagome in their sights again, the girl was franticly running across the stone walkway. The smell of blood was heavy in the air, meaning that in her haste, Kagome must have reopened one of her larger wounds.

The group she was racing towards consisted of six demons of varying height, age, and prowess. From left to right, the first two were the weaker of the group, being roughly the same height and looking much like brothers. One had a mohawk toping their head in a dull gray color, they were dressed in a more grunge style of black, and tattered badge covered jean jacket, his pointed ears covered in several piercings and wrists covered with leather bands. The second had two-toned hair, the gray sides cut short while the dark top was longer and styled. He wore dark jeans and boots, his top layer in a white shirt, dark flannel, and suede jacket, like the first he had on leather bands on his wrists.

The next pointed eared demon was a couple inches taller, looking to be in his mid-twenties, with tanned skin, icy blue eyes, and thick black hair that was tied up in a sloppy man-bun. He was dressed in fitted ripped black jeans and white shoes, a white shirt, and a fleece-lined jean jacket. On his wrist was a braided leather and black metal twisted band.

Next was a silver-haired demon with dog-like ears topping his shaggy hair. He looked to be in his early to mid-twenties with piercing gold eyes and tanned skin. He wore tan work boots, blue jeans, a red flannel was tied around his waist while also wearing a white shirt and a hooded leather jacket. Wrapped around his wrist were a silver and gold band.

Continuing down the line was a young pointy-eared demon of roughly the same age as Kagome and Yusuke. He was lightly tanned with jade-colored eyes and fluffy copper-red hair. The young demon looked to be grinning from ear to ear; even the foxtail at his back was swaying happily. Dressed in a button-up in a brightly patterned shirt, a gray sweater tied around his waist, black jeans, and shoes, Yusuke would have thought him a normal teen at the mall if not for the whole demon thing. Just like the others, he had a band around one of his wrists, a mix of three different colored leather and black metal.

Last, and the tallest, had to be the strongest demon of the lot. His very presence made Yusuke nervous in a way that made Toguro's power pale in comparison. Looking to be in his late twenties, the pointy eared demon had long gleaming silver hair and cold gold eyes framed by thin maroon markings on his eyelids with a set on each cheek that seemingly glowed on his pale white skin. He was dressed in dark pants, a gray button-up shirt with a grey vest and burgundy tie, last was a long coat. And again on his wrist was a gold band.

Before Yusuke could call out to the girl in hopes of stopping her, Kagome was leaping straight into the arms of the trespassing demon with an emotional cry of: "Inuyasha!"

~o.O~O.o~ 500 Years Ago ~o.O~O.o~

Even on the verge of collapse, it was hard to believe what he had just witnessed and not think it an illusion brought on by exhaustion, but he could sense it was her. Her power had flown right past him, nearly singeing his skin from its proximity and bringing with it the memory of being struck with one of the priestess's arrows fifty years prior.

"Ki- Kikyo?" Inuyasha stammered in disbelief as he looked at the woman who had died, for the second time, in his arms only 3 months prior. And yet, as the breeze shifted, her scent was unmistakable; it was fresh and clean, lacking any traces of graveyard soil. It really was her, alive.

From behind, Shippo's voice cut through the eerie silence, his small voice wavering and fearful. "Where's Kagome?"

Everyone seemed to jump, momentarily forgetting their fatigue, they looked around and found the young miko was missing.

But it was Kikyo that spoke; her voice was warm and soft, holding a warmth that had been lacking while in her previous state of revival. "My reinca-," she stopped, shaking her head before continuing with a sad look. "Kagome was sent back to her time,"

"What do you mean?" Sango asked, her brown eyes brimming with worry; they were miles from the well, something like that shouldn't be possible.

"Naraku had unwittingly made a wish on the jewel, and his stupidity is what has brought me back to life but doomed Kagome," Kikyo looked at the slayer with broken eyes, even looking to be on the verge of tears herself. Her voice even wavered with a watery edge to it. "She's dying,"

"What!?" Inuyasha was suddenly filled with an urgency to get to the well and check on the girl.

Kikyo looked up to the sky thoughtfully. "I know because my soul was pulled from her, I am uncertain, but I think I know what the jewel plans are," she held her head. Her mind was spinning, a scramble of information that she was struggling to untangle and make sense of it all.

The Shikon no Tama was forced to finish the wish made by Naraku, and yet it wanted to keep Kagome alive- no, that's wrong- the jewel needed her alive. But why? Kikyo had an idea, a passing whisper that had her uncomfortable.

Kagome of the Shikon: The one of many souls.

It sounded ominous as if the gods' plans for Kikyo's former incarnation were using the jewel as a conduit to achieve their goals. If she was to die, then the jewel would lead to her rebirth but into what remained uncertain.

The group's feeling of exhilaration over their victory was now soured by the sudden realization of the impending death of their dear comrade. But from the look in her eyes, Kikyo seemed determined to prevent such a fate even if that fate was Five-hundred years in the future.

wolfYLady: Hey, long time no see! Sorry for the long wait, but like my old note said (on profile), my life has been greatly affected by the pandemic, but I have been slowly able to write. I know it's not much, but I thought you guys deserved an update to one of my personal favorite stories!

Please review, and in the meantime, stay safe, wash your hands, and don't forget to wear your mask!