April 9th

Upon everyone's return to Kaede's village, an unbelievable sight awaited Kagome. First, the barrier had completely collapsed, exposing the settlement to great danger from the surrounding forests. But that was only half the problem. Suspended above the village by various entanglements of black hair-like-thread, was an enormous black nest littered with skulls.

The sight alone brought her to a complete standstill, warning the accompanying villagers to remain a safe distance away while she and Sango confronted the source of the unexpected attack. What awaited her the moment she stepped foot inside the village was nothing but hair. It was like a web, covering every inch of the village in a sea of black.

And standing atop a single thread overhang was the source of all this. A female demon with short black hair and red eyes, smiling her welcome with mocking indifference. "Oh! The shrine maiden has finally arrived! Shame on you for keeping me waiting!" She said, chastising her in a soft voice.

Without a single thought, Kagome notched an arrow and pointed it at the intruder. How in the world did she get past her barrier? Also, what exactly happened during her absence? Great… I'm gone for a few days and this happens! "Who are you?! And where are the other villagers?!"

The demon laughed and planted her hands on her hips. "Oh my, oh me, is that any way to treat a guest? Such awful manners you have! It's only polite for you to give your name before I give mine!"

"You're the one who barged into the village and took down the barrier! If anyone has awful manners, then it's you! Now, answer me! Who are you, and what do you want?! I won't ask again!"

"Oh… so now you're threatening me? That's too cute… Then, I'll just cut to the chase. It wasn't difficult getting through your little barrier. Part of it was down, but then again, human eyes are quite weak compared to us demons. And if you must know my name, then I'll only say it once. I'm Yura."

The name wasn't familiar, not that she had that many encounters with demons, but realizing that she had missed something when surrounding the village with the barrier certainly surprised her. And above all things to go wrong, this happened. "Well… that answers some questions. Now what do you want? There's nothing for you here!"

Again, the demon laughed. "But that's where you're wrong, little girl. There is indeed something I'm after. And that something brought me here. Who would have guessed you had such an enemy. He told me a powerful jewel resided in this village and that you're protecting it."

Who and what now? Kagome furrowed her brow. Who was this demon talking about? Someone had it out for her? And how did that person or demon know about the Sacred Jewel?! That was impossible, and besides, the subjugation beads have hidden its power ever since the day it first manifested inside her. "I'm not sure what you're talking about! And who sent you?"

Yura mused. "Well… if you must know, his name is Naraku. But I can't give you any more information than that. He said he'd grant me any favor I desired, so long as I take that jewel from you. Other than that, he wants nothing else from you or the village. So, hand it over," She said, with her hand out. "Do that, and I'll be on my way."

Somehow, Kagome doubted that. There was no way this demon would simply leave if she handed over the jewel, especially with her web of hair encompassing the entire village. Not only that, but the villagers were strangely missing, and seeing that giant nest suspended above the huts worried her. "I hate to burst your bubble, but I can't exactly hand you the jewel! I don't know who this Naraku is, but why don't you go back and tell him to confront me himself! If he has a problem, then he and I can talk about it face to face!"

"I've never heard of that name before," Sango said, her hiraikotsu out and ready for action. "But I have heard about Yura…"

Hearing this surprised Kagome. "Should we be worried?" Fast approaching footsteps caught their notice, but already knowing who it was, Kagome kept her eyes glued on the demon. "Jinenji, go back! It's not safe here!"

He paused a short distance away. "I want to help!"

"I need you to remain with the others and keep them safe," She said. "That's more than enough help."

Yura tilted her head and placed a finger to her painted red lips. "Oh! Don't tell me you're friends with this half-demon? Oh, that's too cute! Then again, I heard all about your strange obsession with demons! You're a really strange shrine maiden…"

"That's none of your business!" Kagome said, pulling back further onto the string of her bow. "Since it seems you won't leave, then you leave me no other choice—"

But Yura held up a hand, interrupting her. "Now, just wait one second. Be careful. You wouldn't want to hurt your precious baby, now would you?" She asked, lifting her opposite hand and extending her arm until a small bundle rose from behind her by the strands of hair. "Oh? What's this? Suddenly alarmed, are you? Well, you should be. You wouldn't want anything to happen to your little Shippo, now would you?"

Kagome gasped. No! Not her child! "H-how—He has nothing to do with this!"

"Perhaps not, but as soon as I heard about him, I just couldn't help myself. That human woman was a nuisance though, but just like the other villagers, it wasn't difficult to silence them," She said, taking the toddler into her arms. "Look at how calm he is," She said, cooing as she smiled with satisfied amusement. "He's so precious that I think I might keep him. What do you think, Shippo? You wanna live with Yura?"

Unable to control her discomfort and rage, Kagome pulled tautly at the string of her bow and released her arrow, and much to Yura's surprise, the tip of the arrow spiraled with a blue spiritual energy, and she barely evaded the attack. "That was just a warning shot! Next shot, you won't be so lucky! Now, give Shippo back to me or else!"

"Or else what? What can you and your friends do against me? You should know by now I hold the fate of your village in my hands… or strands of hair, I mean," She said, throwing her head back with laughter. "Oh, your expression delights me! Now then… this is my last warning. Hand over the jewel."

Kagome gritted her teeth and withdrew the staff from her back. "I told you I can't!"

Yura blinked, and a sudden realization dawned on her. "Oh… that's right… I suppose you couldn't. In that case, allow me. I don't mind spilling a little blood!" She said and suddenly unsheathed her wakizashi from its scabbard with one hand. In an instant, she flung herself off the overhang and descended toward her.

But just as she did, Sango countered the attack, and before Kagome could raise her staff, Yura leaped into the air once more and landed upon the overhang. "She's so fast!" Sango said.

"You'll have to do better than that if you want to hurt me! But I'm getting bored… And I don't like that. It's a shame humans can't fly, otherwise this would be more entertaining."

"Then stop running and fight us on the ground! Otherwise, don't blame me for your problems!"

Yura scoffed. "Such a mouthy little girl, you are! Didn't your mother teach you manners?!" She asked, reaching into the pocket of her one-piece, black jumpsuit and withdrew a red comb. "But I have the best medicine for that!"

And with a flick of her wrist, enormous tendrils of hair propelled out of the comb's teeth and knocked Kagome and Sango off their feet, but Yura didn't stop there. Instead, the remaining hair latched onto her ankle and pulled Kagome up into the air, dangling unceremoniously in front of the demon.

"Oh… such pretty hair you have. I would love to add it to my collection," She said, reaching out to touch her strands, but just before her fingers wrapped around Kagome's length, she swung her staff at her. "I can see you take proper care of it, but your behavior needs some work!"

Flustered from her position, Kagome wriggled wildly and swung her staff at the hair holding her in place, all the while, Yura cackled. And then her blue eyes shifted to Shippo in her arm, staring between the two with wide-eyed curiosity. If she dares hurt my son, I will not forgive her! Don't worry, I'll save you!

Again, Yura leaned in close, but this time, she latched onto the staff, ignoring the sparks of spiritual power, and swept her finger across Kagome's neck. "With just a clean sweep of my blade, it'll save me the trouble of cleaning the blood from your hair. And after that, I'll add your head to my collection," She said, pointing to the giant nest ball above the village. "After that, I'll take the jewel and be on my merry way."

"You're not the only one with pretty hair, Yura," Kagome said, surprising the demon suddenly. "I would love to have a strand of my own before you kill me. How about it?"

The comment completely dumbfounded the demon, and she ran a hand through her short ebony locks. "Huh? You want a strand of my hair? You really are a weird priestess… but then again, you have good taste. Not surprising from someone who takes very good care of their hair."

Unbeknownst to Yura, a single thread of hair fell from her head, and snatching it just before it fell out of reach, Kagome silently congratulated herself. "Ever heard of a thing called shampoo and conditioner? Use that every other day and your hair will feel glossy and shine," She said, suddenly catching Yura's interest.

"Sham… poo? Conditioner? What is that—"

"Hiraikotsu!"

Unexpectedly for Yura, a giant boomerang flew at her from behind, but just before she could avoid the collision, it tore through her abdomen and ripped her body completely in half. It also sliced through the hair entangling Kagome, and just before she hit the ground, Sango caught her with open arms, the impact causing her to stagger backward.

But the battle was far from over when she realized the arm still held Shippo in mid-air. Yura was still alive! While various hair shot out from the nest and caught the demon's lower and upper body just before they fell, in a twist of events, it put Yura back together again. As this happened, Kagome quickly regained her footing and reached into the sleeve of her attire and withdrew a paper doll. Wasting no time, she tied the hair around its neck, praying her plan wouldn't fail.

"Excuse you! I was in the middle of a very important conversation!" Yura said, scolding Sango. "How dare you interrupt!" Without even batting a lash, she swung her comb and tendrils shot out at her and Sango, and once again, not only was Kagome caught by the hair, but so was her female companion.

In all honesty, Kagome wasn't prepared for this sort of battle, and considering her staff wasn't able to cut through the coarse hair, Kagome remained calm. But fear prickled her when she thought about the villagers and what might have happened to them during her short time away from the settlement. Where were they?

Kagome's eyes flashed to the giant nest above her. Are they in there? Were they even alive?

A scoff escaped the demon once again as the hair lifted both Kagome and Sango off the ground while tossing her hiraikotsu a far distance away. From there, Yura directed her full attention onto Kagome. "I'll deal with you later, slayer. Now then… where were we? Oh yes… You said something about shampoo and conditioner. Explain to me what those are!"

Now that surprised her. Who would have thought this demon would be more interested in hair products than the actual battle? Then again… she was a hair demon after all, and now that she got a closer look at Yura, she realized her hair differed from hers and Sango's. While black and cropped above her shoulders, it lacked any shine, even her bangs laid slightly matted against her forehead.

Could it be she's collecting all this hair because she lacks what others have? I suppose that would make sense… I wonder… I bet I can turn all of this around if I get onto her good side… I hope this works.

"I have those products at home, and they not only soften and make your hair shine, but they also nourish every strand, helping it grow stronger. Where I come from, they come in different formulas and scents, but don't even get me started on all the different body wash," Kagome said, buying her time until her plan fully unfolded.

"Formula? Do you mean like a potion? And body wash? I've never heard of such things… And yet, I don't detect any lies," She said, suddenly leaning in close and touching Kagome's hair between her fingers. "Then… I command you show me where these hair products are and maybe I'll be lenient toward you and your village!"

Hook line and sinker! I think this might actually work!

Kagome cleared her throat. "I'll only hand it over on two conditions. Forget about the jewel, and so long as the villagers are unharmed, then I will gladly hand them over to you."

"And what makes you think your villagers are still alive? Do you really think I'd let them after waiting all this time for you to return to this village? After all… you made we wait quite a long time," She said, and at Kagome's expression, she smirked. "Regardless, it's clear you're trying to fool me! Naraku warned me not to fall for your tricks!"

Realizing her plan had failed, she struggled against the hair subduing her, but it was no use. She couldn't move. Kagome's eyes flashed to the beads around her wrist, but there was no use getting the jewel's powers involved, especially against a low level demon like Yura. If the hair wasn't so coarse, she could break through it with no problem.

"It seems like I'll need both hands for this…" Yura said, and released Shippo from her arm, allowing the hair to pull him above them safely. "It's no use struggling. I've collected this hair for many centuries and with each skull added to my collection, they only become stronger. If I wanted to, I could easily chop you up into little pieces, but removing blood is such a hassle."

"What's the real reason you're doing this? Is it just pretty hair you're after? How did you get involved with this Naraku in the first place? Why does he want the jewel—" Before Sango could further ask, a wire of hair surrounded her neck and choked her.

"Can't you see I'm talking to the priestess?" She asked. "Don't you know it's rude to intrude on a private conversation?"

"No, stop! She has nothing to do with this!"

"The reason doesn't matter. You'll all be dead soon enough. You're probably the chattiest humans I've ever stumbled upon. Most would beg for mercy right about now, but you're intent on knowing why I go to such lengths. But as for this Naraku, how should I know what he's thinking? It's not my business to know, and I don't care. I'm just doing my job, but your stubbornness is making that difficult," She said before leaning in close to Kagome once more. "I thought you would put up more of a fight… How disappointing."

"Aren't you worried he might toss you away? How can you trust someone you don't even know? Why would you go to such lengths? What did he promise—"

With a turn of her finger, a wire-like thread appeared around Kagome's neck, and unable to say another word, she struggled for breath.

Yura sighed and touched a thicker cord of hair beside her, running her fingers along it with a dismal expression. "Do you see these split ends, its lackluster of color? What I'm looking for is undamaged hair. In order to attain what I need, I must sacrifice the lives of one thousand humans and one thousand demons. I'm already halfway towards my goal."

So, she was right. This really was about her hair. Kagome wanted to roll her eyes, but the cord tightening around her neck made that impossible. If she really wanted great hair, then she could easily introduce her to many products! This was just a waste of innocent lives!

I can't breathe… Any tighter and it might actually cut through my skin!

Yura sighed. "Regardless… I'll make this quick so you don't feel as much pain," She said, twisting her index and thumb along the threads, further tightening the cord around Kagome and Sango's neck. "Just a quick snap and my job will be finished—"

It happened in a matter of seconds. A blur of black shot through the maze and a blade pierced Yura's fingers around the thread which threatened their lives. As it loosened, another swipe from their mysterious savior cut through the hair suspending them in the air, and once it had fallen away, two strong arms caught their freefall. Aside from Yura's surprised shriek, their savior returned them safely to the ground.

Kagome and Sango stared into the face of their rescuer, who bore an uncanny resemblance to Yura. This demon had the same short hair, one-piece black attire and same height as the one above them, and because of Sango's confusion, Kagome reassured her with a smile and a tap of her hand on her shoulder.

"H-how?!" Sango gasped. "There's two of them?!"

Kagome nodded. "Let me introduce you to my shikigami," She said, pointing to the demon doppelganger. "I wasn't sure if my plan would work in time, but thank god it did!" In all fairness, this was her first time tapping into this little creation of hers, which she had learned from Maemi and Aiya.

Sango blinked and shifted her gaze between the shikigami and the real Yura. "But how…"

"I'll explain later, right now, let's put an end to this battle," Kagome said, and turned her glare upwards to the shrieking demon. "Listen up, Yura! I was being serious when I said I'd help you, but you're testing my patience! I will not stand around and let you hurt others!"

But Yura wasn't looking at Kagome as her attention remained transfixed on the shikigami. "How dare you make a clone of me! Why, I have never been so insulted in my entire life! Do you really think a fake imitation is enough to frighten me?!"

The battle didn't last nearly as long as Kagome thought it would, in fact, the shikigami had done most of the work. Although it lacked the immortal thread that pieced Yura together, it remained otherwise unafflicted by her attacks, simply because Kagome held its weakness in her possession. The only way to eliminate her creation was to destroy the doll or unravel the hair around its neck.

While the fight began overhead, Kagome and Sango searched the entire village for the missing citizens, but there was no sign of them. All the huts were empty, and the only sounds heard were theirs and the battle. This led Kagome to believing their missing whereabouts were connected to the giant nest directly above them, and by sheer coincidence, a long and thick broken strand of coarse hair cascaded down the length of a hut, leading directly to the nest itself!

But as they climbed its length, it was nearly impossible to break through it, even with Sango's blade, but a muffled noise within signified that there were others trapped inside. Sadly, the only way of breaking through was if her shikigami eliminated Yura for good, or if they somehow tricked Yura into attacking the nest instead.

Neither of those happened, and instead, something else took place. Something Kagome and Sango never believed they'd ever witness. When their attention shifted back to the battle between the duo, the entire time, the hairs entangling Shippo moved on their own accord. Right, left, up, down and in all diagonal directions. It spared him from harm, that much they realized with Yura's obsession with the child, but no one expected that abrupt movement would stir something within the boy.

A blue fire emerged from his small body, his emerald-golden eyes flashing a similar hue, and with a loud cry and raised palms, that flame scattered the entirety of Yura's hair. It glided through the village, engulfing everything in flame, even the strings connected to Yura's comb, which she had dropped as it had scorched her.

And the result of that mystifying power completely scorched the nest next to Kagome and Sango. In a matter of several seconds, all of her hair disintegrated into nothing but ashes, swept away by the wind, leaving behind a mess of skulls. More surprising yet, the fire did not hurt them and had instead aided those trapped and placed them safely on the ground without further injury.

With the realization that Shippo's powers had manifested, and at such an early age, coupled with the fact that Yura had not once hurt any of the villagers, Kagome decided some leniency was in order. With her child safe in her arms and everyone accounted for, she approached the shikigami holding Yura down on the ground, with her arms crossed behind her back.

"How dare you! You destroyed my precious hair! Do you realize how long I've spent collecting it?!" Yura yelled, kicking her legs, but to no avail, she could not move from her spot.

Although the entire situation frightened the entire village, Kagome reassured them that all would be fine. Despite the slight commotion and distrust directed toward Yura, she handed Shippo over to Sango and approached the hair demon. After kneeling in front of her, she withdrew something from her sleeve and placed it around Yura's neck.

Yura gasped. "What are those?! Get it off me!"

Kagome sighed. "Those are subjugation beads, Yura, which will keep your behavior in check, at least for the time being. Only I can remove them, so don't waste your breath," She said, frowning. "This is my only way of trusting you, so be thankful I'm sparing your life."

"And why would you do that? Don't forget that I'm your enemy, priestess!"

Even if that was true, Yura didn't hurt anyone. The villagers were safe, kept within her nest for who knew how long, and aside from a few scratches and bruises, everything was fine. "I won't lie and say that I wasn't scared. Believe me, I was, but now I finally understand why you went through this endeavor, as selfish as it was when you could have used other measures…" She said, and signaled her shikigami to move away from Yura.

Once she did, Yura quickly stood up and dusted the dirt from her clothing and scowled at her. "I'll never forgive you for this! Not only are you strange, but you're also a liar!"

"And when did I lie? I was being completely honest about the hair products. I was willing to make a deal with you, that if you should give up on the jewel and not hurt the villagers, then I would help you with your hair dilemma," Kagome said, reminding her. "And look. Everyone is safe. Not a single hair missing from their heads. If you're willing to give up trying to kill me and take the jewel, then I will help you."

Taken aback by her words, Yura mused. "Why? Why would a priestess go to such lengths for a demon? I don't understand. Anyone else would have tried to kill me by now."

"Because, unlike other priestesses, I don't discriminate against others. Regardless if you're human, demon or half-demon, or a feral animal, I will help you if you need it. But if you give me a reason to come after you, then I will, but I don't want you as my enemy, Yura. I want you as my friend."

"Friend?"

Kagome nodded and held out a hand. "If you're willing to trust me, then I'll help you. If not, you can leave from here, but understand that those beads around your neck will not allow you to hurt another innocent soul. And I can't predict what might happen to you if you return to this Naraku with empty hands… I'll leave that decision with you."

Once the situation had calmed and the villagers realized Yura was no longer a threat, they welcomed both her and Jinenji, along with the other inhabitants who had journeyed far and lost their home. Much like Yura and Shippo, Jinenji also wore the subjugation beads around his neck. They not only protected them from the barrier but also kept their behavior in check, and until a proper wall surrounded the entire village, they would continue wearing them.

Now that she and Sango had returned to the village and handled the situation easily enough, she suddenly sweat dropped when she realized there were now more villagers than there were huts. A sigh escaped her. "Looks like we'll need to bring everyone together and build more huts…"

A gasp escaped Sango suddenly. "Oh, Kagome! Your hair!"

What about her hair? Bemused and somewhat worried something happened, Kagome reached over her shoulder and touched her hair, but no sooner had she done that, her eyes widened. Several strands of her hair had been hacked off, and she turned her glare onto Yura, who weakly smiled in return.

Jinenji, who'd been so preoccupied observing the other villagers and the upgraded huts, suddenly noticed the alarm in both Kagome's and Sango's expressions. And at the sight of her hair, he became dismayed. "It must have taken you a long time to grow it that long… Are you okay, Kagome?"

With a deep breath, she exhaled and then nodded. "It's okay… I needed a haircut anyway…" She said, suddenly realizing the cut ran diagonally from her shoulder to her lower back. It had taken her a long time to grow it to her waist, and now… it was gone. At least it was better than losing a limb. "I don't get how that happened…"

"Probably because the hair was strong enough to cut through skin," Yura said. "When your shikigami saved the two of you, during your freefall, your hair must have gotten snagged by my thread of hair. But… if you ask me, you look much better this way," She said, and approached Kagome and touched the strands of hair to frame her face. "All it needs it a little touch up!" She grinned.

A/N-Answering Questions (ffn, ao3)

I originally planned to kill Yura off, but changed my mind at the last instance. xD She would make a great addition to the village, don't you think? What did you think of the idea for Kagome to use shikigami? I've always liked the idea of Kagome having shorter hair, at least shoulder length. xD

KairaB-I originally planned for his mother to get stoned to death by those villagers, but changed that at the last instance. His poor mom… Maybe I'll add something for his father and say he's still alive? Yes. Similar to Temptation's Flower, this story is also rated T. I'm planning to be less descriptive with intimate scenes that don't go beyond censorship, but writing enough that the readers still enjoy it. Some scenes might be implied, but not the most important ones. I removed the chapter titled "Satouru's Secret" and simply narrated what happened with Naomi, and considering the rest of the story wasn't M rated, I changed it to T.