Chapter 20: The Deadly Trap of Kagura the Wind Sorceress! / Toothless, Bites
Daitan let out a frustrated growl as she sliced through several of the puppet's tentacles. It seemed as though the moment she severed one, four more grew back in its place. She couldn't even use her whip, for fear of accidentally hitting Sango or Miroku with it. I need to go after that Kagura woman! She thought. But I can't just leave Miroku and Sango to fight this thing by themselves. However, as if he had read Daitan's mind, Miroku suddenly called out.
"Daitan, get to Kagura! Sango and I can take care of this ourselves!"
Several more tentacles flopped to the tatami floor with a swing of Daitan's sword as she turned to look back at him and Sango.
"Are you sure?"
Sango nodded, though she kept her eyes on the puppet's many swaying arms.
"This thing is just here to keep us occupied! They have the short-tempered ones brawl outside and make us deal with this thing?" she hacked off a few more tentacles that had crept up behind her. "You need to get outside and help Inuyasha — we've got this!"
Setting her jaw, Daitan nodded. Neither Sango nor Miroku had any uncertainty in their voices. They could deal with some measly puppet. Daitan turned and made to bolt for the exit, and a wall of tentacles suddenly appeared in front of her.
This thing really doesn't want me to leave! She cut down anything in her path, chunks of flesh that smelled strongly of rot falling to the floor. Several tentacles tried to wind their way around her ankles, but she danced out of their reach. A gap then appeared in between the thick tendrils before her, and that was all she needed to Dash right through. The flesh in her immediate proximity burst apart into a rain of small bits of meat. She tried not to think about how much of it had gotten stuck in her hair and clothes as she made a break for the way out.
The screens separating the different rooms met their unfortunate end to Daitan's sword, and she left a trail of bamboo slivers behind her. The castle seemed to stretch on farther than it did when she had come in. The opening to the outside looked like it would never come any closer than about two dozen meters. Miroku and Sango's battle with the puppet had since faded into the distance, and now Daitan was alone with the sound of her own footsteps. Daitan growled, irritation bubbling hot in her belly as she glared through the many hanging screens in front of her. I don't have time for Naraku's stupid illusions! Locking her eyes on one of the pillars framing the exit in the distance, she summoned her whip and let loose, fangs bared.
Pillars splintered, snapping clean in half, and the screens in front of Daitan were sliced to ribbons in the wake of her whip as she swung it in front of her in a wide arc. The roof began to creak and groan as its load-bearing structures suddenly disappeared. With her path now completely clear, Daitan launched her whip ahead to latch onto the distant pillar at the exit. The ceiling started to bow down, she tightened the tension as much as she could, and Daitan rocketed forward, aided by another Dash.
Daitan finally burst through the last set of screens and out of the castle just before a portion of the roof caved in. She skidded to a stop just outside, just in time to see Kouga fall to the ground. Those same deep cuts that had been on the other wolf youkai littered his body, though none of them seemed to have done as much damage, most likely because of his jewel shards. In front of him stood Kagura, her fan open in her hand once again. And Inuyasha… Daitan's heart seized when she spotted the massive crater in the middle of the courtyard… with Inuyasha's prone body inside of it. Kagura addressed the injured Kouga in a smug voice, but her boasts about tricking him into poisoning himself with a false jewel shard seemed muffled. Daitan couldn't tear her eyes away from Inuyasha. No… he can't be…
Pure, pink light suddenly flooded the courtyard, and the familiar sensation of Kagome's spiritual power made Daitan's skin prickle just from the proximity. Kagome had fired a sacred arrow at Kagura. It was all for naught, however, as the bodies of the dead wolf youkai flew up to shield her. They disintegrated in the air when the arrow made contact, and Kagura only looked mildly annoyed.
"So, that must be the sacred arrow…" Without any warning, Kagura turned and whipped her fan in Kagome's direction. Several blades of light spun through the air with a blast of wind, and Kirara pulled Kagome and Shippo to safety just before the blades crashed into the roof they had been standing on. It was then that Daitan's growing fury reached a fever pitch, and she moved before she could think. A wicked snarl ripped out of Daitan's throat as she Dashed forward, blade drawn and fangs bared at the thought of cutting off the wicked woman's head. But in her haste, Daitan failed to notice how Kagura turned her head, a little smirk slanting her lips.
It felt like a strong gust of wind at first. Even with the remaining momentum from her Dash, Daitan slid back a few feet, her eyes wide. How—? What just happened?! From off to the side, she heard Kagome take in a horrified gasp. She was confused for a moment… until she felt something warm running down her arms and legs.
Several long cuts ran across Daitan's arms and legs, and she staggered backward. Adrenaline was doing a lot of heavy lifting, but she was already beginning to feel a deep ache gathering in her body. Now returning to her right mind, Daitan now watched Kagura warily, her sword at the ready. Kagura just tutted and fanned herself casually as she looked down her nose at Daitan.
"Well well, I'm surprised you're still standing. You got lucky. Those wounds are only superficial. Though, attacking a lady while her back is turned? How brazen," she sneered. "As amusing as this is, I cannot allow you to continue interfering."
Kagura raised her fan, and Daitan lifted her sword a little higher, ignoring the growing pain in her wounds. I need to be careful — I can't get hit by that attack again! Daitan's legs tensed, ready to Dash out of the way when Kagura brought down her fan… but neither of them moved. Instead, something, or rather, someone, had drawn both of their attention.
Inuyasha, very much still alive, leaned heavily on Tessaiga as he hobbled forward. He was clearly in great pain, but still with hot determination burning in his golden eyes. Relief threatened to flood through Daitan's body, but she did her best to temper it. The fight wasn't over yet.
"I won't let you hurt Kagome…" Inuyasha growled. His right arm hung limply at his side, and a dark patch of blood stained the front of his kimono, but his gaze was solidly fixed on Kagura. "I'm the one you should be fighting, not her."
As always, Kagura seemed completely unruffled by the turn of events.
"Still alive, are we now? Wolf boy," she addressed Kouga, who lay barely conscious at her feet. "It appears you didn't complete the job."
Inuyasha scoffed.
"Heh, you're kidding yourself if you think that puny wolf cub could do me in with his meager attack," He stood up straighter and raised the Tessaiga with his left hand. Daitan could see how he winced a little from the wound on his chest. "But even more infuriating… is the stench of Naraku that cloaks you… Just the thought of that beast is enough to give me the strength to move!"
"Oh, I apologize. Does that mean you're up for a duel after all?"
"Eager to find out, aren't you?" said Daitan lowly. Now that she knew that Inuyasha was alive, her head had cleared considerably. "You may have gotten one in on me, but trust me, it's not going to happen again!"
Both Inuyasha and Daitan leapt forward, fangs bared and blades at the ready. Kagura didn't move until the very last second. She swept her closed fan in an effortless arc, and Daitan's sword bounced off of the sheer force of wind power that Kagura had generated. Looking to the side, Daitan could see that the same had happened to Inuyasha.
"I am the Wind Sorceress," declared Kagura. "The wind in this castle is entirely under my control."
Daitan's eyes widened. That must be why I couldn't sneak up on her — she could sense me through the vibrations in the air!
Kagura raised her fan again, this time opening it up to its full width. Just as she brought it back down, however, Daitan was ready. She Dashed to the side to dodge the incoming wind blades… but no blades flew through the air.
"Dance of the Dragon!"
A powerful gale began to howl, kicking up dust and debris from the surrounding wreckage, and several small tornadoes erupted from Kagura's fan. Daitan darted from side to side to avoid them, but they seemed to have a mind of their own as they pursued her. Inuyasha didn't seem to be having much luck either, dodging and weaving through several more tornadoes summoned from Kagura's fan. In the middle of it all stood their adversary, looking just as unbothered as ever by Inuyasha and Daitan's fruitless attempts to get closer.
The strongest gale of all came from Kagura herself, and Daitan had quickly found that she couldn't get any closer than about five meters before being blown back by the continuous, shrieking wind. Nothing could physically get through Kagura's wind barrier, not even when Daitan used a Dash. And with her injuries, Daitan didn't know how many of those she had left in her. At this rate, both her and Inuyasha would pass out from exhaustion or blood loss before Kagura even broke a sweat. Daitan summoned her whip as a last ditch effort, but that too proved useless as it just blew back from the strength of the wind. Inuyasha was standing just outside of the range of Kagura's wind, considering the Tessaiga with a deep frown on his face. With Kagura controlling the wind, Inuyasha can't use the Wind Scar on her, She thought. Where is it all coming from?! She's blowing out a massive gale on all sides! …Wait, all sides? Then— Something clicked in Daitan's head.
She couldn't fly like her father. At least, not yet. But she had accompanied him before, and during those times he would tell her how wind currents formed and how to ride them, so as to not exert more energy than necessary. Which meant that if all of Kagura's wind was outgoing on all sides, then she had to be getting it from…
Daitan glanced up. Let's hope this works! She turned tail and sprinted toward the tallest tower left standing, which just so happened to be the one that Kagome, Shippo and Kirara were perched inside. Kagome poked her head out of a hole in the roof.
"What's going on, are you okay?!" she shouted over the wind. Daitan turned back to where Kagura stood in the middle of the courtyard, her bangs lifting up with the air current. Just as I thought! At the very edges of the castle grounds, she could feel an updraft.
"I'll be fine, I'm going to try something!" Daitan glanced back at the arrow nocked on Kagome's bowstring. "Just hold off until I can distract her!" she added. Shippo's voice squeaked over the howling wind.
"What are you going to do?!"
Daitan looked back at them with a little grin.
"You'll see!"
Leaping up to the top of the building, Daitan's legs tensed. With a grunt of exertion, Daitan launched herself as high and as far as she could from the top of the tower. Up here, the wind was just as strong, but instead of pushing out, it drew Daitan to the very center of the courtyard… and sucked her directly down to where Kagura stood. Kagura glanced up a moment too late, and Daitan landed almost directly on top of her.
Something cracked under Daitan's foot as she landed a heavy kick to Kagura's left shoulder, her strength aided by both gravity and the force of the downdraft. Kagura stumbled sideways, and for the first time since Daitan had laid eyes on her, Kagura's face twisted with anger.
"Little wretch!"
Daitan whipped her sword in front of her to cut off the hand that Kagura held her fan in, but it was only blocked again by another of Kagura's wind barriers. Kagura made to swipe her fan in front of her once again, and this time, Daitan summoned her whip. It latched onto Kagura's injured arm just before another gust of wind blew Daitan back, and she fought to keep it connected as the heavy gale lashed at her skin and made her eyes burn and water.
"You think you're doing something? You've barely landed a single blow — give it up, little pup!"
Shoes slipping on the ground, Daitan's wounds stung as she held onto her whip. And yet, she still looked up at Kagura and bared her fangs in a grin. Kagura sneered, eyes narrowed.
"What are you—"
A shining pink light illuminated the courtyard once again, and another one of Kagome's arrows sliced through Kagura's wind. It seemed completely unaffected by the youki-summoned gale, and it crackled with spiritual power as it buried itself at Kagura's feet. Kagura scoffed, looking back at Daitan.
"Was that your little plan? It might have worked if her aim wasn't so pathetic—" she suddenly gasped, cutting herself off. The gale had started to die down, Kagome's arrow glowing brighter and brighter as it purified the youki controlling the wind currents. Daitan felt the familiar buzz of spiritual power in the air, but she paid no mind to it, using the dying wind to her advantage as she reeled herself in by her whip to take another swing at Kagura. Kagura raised her fan and Daitan prepared to feint to the side to get around another block. But what she did not anticipate was Kagura whipping her fan forward and simply striking her hard across the face. Daitan's head snapped to the side, her whip faded out of existence, and with another wave of her fan, Kagura conjured up enough wind to send her tumbling backwards head over heels. She finally slid to a halt next to Inuyasha, flat on her back in the dirt.
"...Got any ideas?" Daitan grumbled dryly, sitting up and rubbing her cheek. The slap across her face had done more damage to her pride than anything else. Inuyasha's mouth twisted in distaste.
"Just one," he said, then turned to where Kagome was still perched in the tower. "Kagome! Shoot me with your arrow!"
Daitan's eyes went wide and she whipped her head to look over at Inuyasha.
"Are you crazy?! That could kill you!" Daitan growled when he ignored her, but the look on his face showed that he was deadly serious.
"Ask questions later, just trust me!" he shouted to Kagome. Kagome looked hesitant, but took aim anyway. It was then that Daitan finally saw what was going on. Inuyasha's youki blew harmlessly to the side in the high winds, unable to clash with Kagura's… and thus rendering him unable to use the Wind Scar. But if Kagome hit him with her arrow, it would purify Kagura's youki that controlled the wind around him, and he would be able to hit Kagura with the Wind Scar. If he survived, that is.
I guess we'll see. Thought Daitan. She backed off a little ways, and Inuyasha only chanced a brief glance back at her before another one of Kagome's arrows pierced the air. It only grazed Inuyasha's shoulder, but Daitan still winced when Inuyasha momentarily cringed and shuddered with pain from the potent spiritual power. The arrow, however, had done just what he had hoped. The wind around Inuyasha died, and his youki burst forth to clash with Kagura's. Inuyasha readied the Tessaiga in his left hand and swung for the Wind Scar.
A massive burst of light erupted from the Tessaiga, tearing straight through the heavy wind to completely engulf Kagura. Daitan could just barely see her go flying, eyes wide with fear. However, it was only a moment longer before Kagura appeared just above the blaze of light. Her clothes had partially disintegrated to show her torso, but the flesh beneath didn't look damaged at all. My father was wounded by the Wind Scar, but she got away with barely a scratch! Just who is this woman?
Still in midair, Kagura reached up and plucked one of the feathers out of her hair. In a split second it grew to enormous size and caught her, carrying her away on an updraft. As she fled into the distance, Daitan spotted a large scar on her back… a scar in the shape of a spider, just like Naraku's. Daitan frowned. Kagura did smell a lot like Naraku… just what kind of connection did they share?
A rumbling, scraping sound drew Daitan's eyes back to the ground to see that the castle had begun to disintegrate into smoke, just like before. Kirara landed on the ground beside them with Kagome and Shippo on her back, and Daitan sighed with relief when she spotted Sango and Miroku making their way over from one of the disintegrated buildings. Upon spotting Daitan, Miroku gasped.
"Are you alright?" he fussed. Daitan nodded at first, but cringed. The adrenaline was running out, and now it felt like her entire body was stinging and throbbing. Her wounds had already stopped bleeding due to her advanced healing, but that didn't mean they didn't hurt.
"Ugh… I think I'll be alright." she mumbled.
"Where is the sorceress?" asked Sango, scanning their surroundings. Inuyasha dipped his head a little, not meeting her eyes.
"...I let her get away. My right arm was practically useless, and I wasn't able to finish her off."
Nobody seemed to know what to say, especially Daitan. Sure, she had managed to get exactly one hit in on Kagura, but it barely did anything. Now both she and Inuyasha were wounded, and none of them had managed to collect any new jewel shards. Perhaps the only positive note was that it presented an opportunity to finally make nice with Kouga, now that they shared a common enemy in Naraku. Speaking of which…
"Kouga, are you alright?" Kagome knelt down beside him, eyebrows pinched together with worry. His right arm, the one with the jewel shard, had blackened considerably in the last several minutes. Daitan approached, her gait stiff due to her wounds, and she wrinkled her nose at the scent of rotting flesh.
"His skin is changing color," remarked Shippo, holding his nose. "The poison from the counterfeit shard is spreading!"
Kagome reached forward, clearly hoping to take the false jewel shard out of Kouga's arm, but a spark of dark energy made her flinch back.
"There's a barrier around his arm…" she murmured. "But if we don't do something fast, he'll die!"
Kouga twitched and slowly opened his heavy-lidded eyes.
"Let me be… Kagome… I tried to murder… Inuyasha…" he rasped. Kagome shook her head, face set in a hard, but worried, frown.
"It wasn't your fault, Naraku tricked you. Inuyasha never wanted to settle things this way!"
Hm, not so sure about that. It was only an hour ago that he was saying he wanted to kill Kouga. Daitan sighed and walked forward, unsheathing her sword.
"Well Kagome, if you want him to live—"
Kagome's eyes nearly popped out of her skull.
"What?! No, you can't just hack the guy's arm off!" she squeaked. Inuyasha appeared beside Daitan, Tessaiga at the ready.
"Seems we had the same idea," he smirked. He then addressed Kouga, who looked like it was taking every ounce of effort for him to keep his eyes open. "We were both deceived by Naraku's scheme. If you can hang onto life, you'll survive if I cut your arm and the counterfeit jewel clean off!" Inuyasha declared, holding the Tessaiga up high. Kagome, however, wouldn't have it.
"No, there has to be another way!"
Daitan pinched the bridge of her nose, exasperated.
"Well what would you suggest? Kouga's got minutes left, we don't have the time to think too deeply about it!"
"Wait a minute!" chimed in Shippo, turning to Kagome. "We can't touch the poison's barrier, but isn't the sacred arrow able to break it?"
Everyone blinked, and Daitan was pretty sure they were all thinking the same thing. Why didn't I think of that?!
Kagome didn't hesitate as she took one of her arrows out of her quiver and thrust it down toward the wound where Kouga's shard was buried. As pink light shone brightly from the arrow's tip, Kouga let out a weak groan from her purifying energy. When she pulled the arrow back, the fake jewel shard came with it, momentarily bathed in Kagome's spiritual power for a few brief seconds before it shattered out of existence. The pink light faded, and all could see that Kouga's arm was no longer blackened and rotting.
—-
Unlike before, the dark clouds hadn't faded away with Naraku's castle, even when they had gotten a little distance away. Kagome still looked back to where they had left Kouga, the worried pinch in her brow ever present. In the end, they all decided to leave him behind to recover on his own. Daitan's wounds had started to catch up to her though, and they had only made it to the top of a nearby hill before Miroku suggested — totally not because of her and Inuyasha — that they stop there for the night.
Daitan gingerly sat herself down next to Inuyasha, who leaned against Kirara and clutched at his broken arm.
"You alright?" she asked. Inuyasha scoffed as usual, but his heart didn't seem to be in it.
"Me? What about you? You're walking like an old lady." he huffed. Daitan chuckled a little.
"Oh, I'll be fine in a couple days. They hurt, but they're not that deep. I'm more worried about your arm healing right." she said, stifling a yawn. Inuyasha closed his eyes and leaned back into Kirara's pelt.
"I've broken a lot of bones, it's no big deal. I'm used to dealing with them on my own."
A little sting of melancholy entered Daitan's heart. As she laid back into Kirara's fur, one final thought drifted through her mind before she gave in to her exhaustion.
You should never have had to, Inuyasha.
A/N: Wind dynamics are fun. And not every clever strategy will work out as intended :)