"Failure to protect the House of Inu is a dishonor!"

Sesshomaru, Homugi, and a few surviving soldiers stood before the Court of Elders and a disenchanted Milady in the Hall of Judgement. It was a round room lined with tapestries of historical moments within the inu line. The oldest of all inu was the one screaming at everyone. He was a man of average height and build with only armor on his torso these days. He no longer fought due to his age and carried a staff with two thin red tapestries with the eyes of the inu at the bottoms of both and flying inu in the centers. The soldiers could barely stand as they tried to defend their case against the attack on the House of Inu.

"Elder, this was beyond our knowledge!" a guard defended, holding up a broken arm. "Ambassador Norihisa and our top soldier, Takamuku, were the main ones that led the intruders in here. They could've just easily escorted innocents here!"

"Both men were possessed and had the scent of the Netherworld laced on their person! You expect me to believe that you were so incompetent?" the elder argued, silencing the guards.

"Norihisa was attacked and killed weeks ago! The puppet that was left behind was just a husk of what remained of him afterward! Takamuku had to have perished after him. He wasn't completely possessed yet. I told the court about those puppets earlier when I was sent to - !" Homugi tried, holding up a hand to her chest.

"We sent Teinosuke to handle the investigation! You overstepped your boundaries!" the elder interrupted, stabbing the floor with his staff. "You were tasked with assisting in documenting his findings for us to determine our next plan of action. Your selfish ambitions caused more unnecessary deaths than realized!"

"I did assist Teinosuke!" Homugi defended. "He asked me to look into the puppets. The accounts I delivered were joint reports. His being the headline! We told you that something was wrong when Norihisa didn't act like himself. He was slower, less enthused, too casual. This is the ambassador to one of the largest strongholds in the demon world. He should know all of the territories - claimed or unclaimed - like the lines on the palms of his hands and prints on his fingertips. Why didn't he know where he was going? No matter what part of this world you venture in, all inu are trained on how to find their way back home starting from year one. One of our men had to find him, escort him to his own home, escort him to the court to relay his findings! No one thought to check him out?"

"If the soldiers had to find him, and they were specifically trained to always find home as you say, why didn't they find him suspicious?" the elder asked calmly. "We send our youth to Yaban'na Tsume for more than just being able to defend themselves and learn of our laws. It is to recognize their kind first and foremost. If the Netherworld can mask a scent almost all generations of inu should be familiar with, that is where our problem truly lies. Moreover, whoever disturbed these cretins from the land of shadow and death is practically making a declaration of war."

Sesshomaru's eyes widened slightly at this before they returned to normal. He tuned the rest of the argument out for a moment to think. The elder was right. The Netherworld entering the living world was going to be a problem. This was only a taste of the trouble that came with visiting the land of the dead.

"Sesshomaru! I want the head of the bastard who dared to awaken hell itself to destroy us!" the elder shouted, breaking Sesshomaru out of his thoughts. "This is a disgrace to Lord Toga's name and the House of Inu! Either find the whereabouts of the Meido Stone or you will be deemed unworthy of ever taking up the throne! Homugi... you are off the investigation."


Numa-o, the Marshland Ogre

The coolness of the fog and the beginnings of nature changing from vibrant greens to more yellows and oranges signified the autumn season upon the living world. Dressed in no more than her black bodysuit, utility packs, and fur belt, the doctor enjoyed the cool breeze on her exposed skin. She was actually quite nervous. It had been some time since Homugi left her side to run to the House of Inu. Something had happened over there that claimed her immediate attention. Not wanting to pry, Meioshi let the blue merle beauty go on to prove herself once more on her own and wished her luck on her journey. If Homugi still felt ashamed, the doctor told her to follow the scent of the peach tree ink on her person. She could only hope that the girl had made it in time to stop Rakuyama and her minions.

Meioshi was on her way to the next part of her journey since the fight in the Mujina Woodlands. Bonitas and Caritas returned to Kako Seigi's side while she went on to address the Commander Oni after she was able to get the mask from the kyonshi. Experimentally, she placed the mask on her face to see why the kyonshi wore such a thing. Behind the mask's eyes, she saw something incredible. The doctor was able to see the temperatures of living things! That was the key to Shanwang's second part of the riddle. A mask that could see body temperature! The map was much easier to find after obtaining the Kyonshi Mask, especially once she froze the lava in the foundry for a moment. The map's markings and legend key solidified once cold air hit the smoke. Afterward, she had to put the pieces together like a puzzle and the map appeared like a scroll in her hands. She never saw the supposed blacksmith Homugi spoke of, but she promised to return to unfreeze the foundry when requested. Perhaps the man would like dinner for his troubles. If not, she was sure she could accommodate for the trouble some other way. After all, blacksmithing was his livelihood. She understood what it meant to have that taken away.

Leaning on the back of Genso ShuShu-Sen, Meioshi closed her eyes to think of Shanwang's words as her boat sailed across unknown waters. She had to find something armored but not a soldier, snapping but not a twig, drifting doth the home, round water doth it live. Just as Meioshi was going down a list of marine animals, a bell rang and someone landed on her boat. Calmly, she looked up to see the trademark white, cuffed hakama pants and a descending fur pelt. Sesshomaru. Well, shit.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing your mug again this time?" Meioshi asked sarcastically. By now, she knew what it might be.

Sesshomaru kept his composure as he looked down on his prey and said, "You are a threat to the House of Inu and the lands occupied within the Western territories. Involvement with these creatures of hell itself has cost the lives of many innocents, and it will continue to be costly as long as you walk on this fine line between the world of the living and the world of the dead. It has been ordered that I kill you."

Meioshi was silent for a moment, lightly chuckled, and then said, "Pity that. You see, my mortal enemy has immeasurable strength and skill that would wipe out this wretched world, and I need to 'power up' if you will to defeat this particular being. Unfortunately, that means I can't let you kill me, so you and the House of Inu will have to kiss my ass, you silly old dog."

SLICE! CLASH! Poison and frost met between blades before Meioshi and Sesshomaru leap away from each other and land on the murky shore. The doctor's armor materialized, and her eyes turned to that predatory orange coloring. Summoning her roningasa hat, Meioshi placed the item on her head and looked Sesshomaru directly into his eyes with a distinctive frown.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you don't like my boat," Meioshi spat, earning a wicked smirk and dark chuckle from Sesshomaru. "What is the meaning of this, Lord Sesshomaru?"

"I've no reason to repeat myself," he replied, lifting a claw to crack his knuckles. "Your punishment has been decided by the House of Inu."

More inu soldiers appeared to surround Meioshi, forcing her to look around and evaluate each demon and their level of energy. Seeing no way out of this fight, she hissed, "Shit!"