Categories > Anime/Manga > Inuyasha > The Hidden Evil Design
Chapter 3: A Pointless Fight
0 reviewsInuyasha and his friends have eluded Naraku's grip time and time again... but this time, the tides may turn on our group... in the form of a strange game... what is it? What exactly is that demon ...
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Disclaimer: I Do Not Own... (bet you can guess the rest?)
Note: Wow, I'm on a roll with chapters now! Chapter "2" is up and now 3 is on its way (right here).
Chapter 3 - A Pointless Fight
As a recap... (revised slightly)
{Continued from last chapter: Naraku and Sango inside the violet-colored barrier, a few minutes earlier}
"Sango, I have a little something that you and your friends will just love to do, and that is a small test. Pass it successfully and you will be rewarded. Fail to pass it and something terrible will befall all of you. What that is will not be revealed to you until that happens... if it happens. So just cooperate with me and you will see that it can be fun... if done the right way, that is. I will not tell you any more here, because that will ruin the surprise, not to mention the fun..."
{Now... to the present time}
"Inuyasha! There they are, inside that barrier!" Kagome called suddenly, jarring the young half-demon from a little daydream he had been having... it was strange... Kikyou was in it, but what she had been doing Inuyasha did not know... but it was really strange... it was almost as if it had happened before, or was about to happen...
He jerked his head up and seen, approximately 30 feet in the air, a bright, purplish-colored barrier. And inside the barrier were two people, and he knew them both very well.
"It's Sango!" Shippou cried out, before Inuyasha could respond to Kagome's statement. For some reason, Inuyasha was so annoyed that he said, "I know that, you little twerp! It's Sango and that bastard, Naraku!" Rage filled his head again, as if all the blood in his body were rushing upward to that spot. A few minutes ago, he had been placid, tranquil and calm (all of which mean the same thing, actually J), but now that familiar emotion was surging inside of him, lighting all of his nerves and veins, pulsing him into a killing machine, out for revenge and nothing else.
Before he suddenly accidentally exploded with his fury, Kagome said, "That's weird... Kohaku-kun isn't with them. They seem to be just talking, not fighting." As she finished that, Kagome's head filled with a sudden heavy, leaden feeling, as if she had gone up and down elevations really fast, so that it made her light-headed. Suddenly, abrupt nausea pushed its way up her throat, which began to burn as if she had swallowed a whole jar of hot pepper juice. She screamed and wildly grabbed at her neck, startling Inuyasha so much that he toppled to the ground, catching his rider before she landed somewhere that she shouldn't have.
All of her companions yelled out her name, but their voices seemed to be getting farther and farther away; she could feel herself slipping away from the world... getting dark... darker... each breath an extreme effort.
"Kagome!" Inuyasha screamed, his rage gone like a light bulb being blown out, now replaced by worry and fright for his friend... his friend who had shared so many adventures with him... his friend who now looked as if she had just been pulled out of her tomb after being buried. What had all of a sudden happened to make her collapse like this? Heartburn? Was she sick? If so, she wouldn't have grabbed insanely at her neck like she was trying to choke herself. But one fact was clear. Kagome was probably dying.
***********
Up in the air, inside the barrier, Sango stared at what she could see through it, a small white spot had shown through where Inuyasha's Tessaiga had blasted through, but not quite penetrated. Through that tiny spot, she could see, with painful clarity, Inuyasha crouched down upon the ground, leaning over someone. When he moved a little to the left, the figure on the ground appeared to be Kagome-chan.
Sango cried out in shock, and then whirled to face Naraku, who was, still, hovering in the air before her, legs crossed, looking perfectly calm, not a care in the world.
"You did this to her, didn't you?" Sango shrieked, wishing more than ever that she had Hiraikotsu in her hand. Naraku's only response was laughter...
***********
"KAGOME!!" Inuyasha screamed wildly, not realizing he was doing it practically directly right in her face; she did not stir. She continued to look as though she had been recently dug up from a grave, except without the dirt.
Suddenly, the air was filled with Naraku's laughter, and Inuyasha looked up just in time, tears starting to trickle down his cheeks, to see a huge bolt of energy come whipping in out of nowhere. The source of that blast was evident after Inuyasha grabbed Kagome's lifeless body and leapt out of its way; the huge barrier that Kagome had mentioned just minutes before was shining in the air about 50 feet above them, suspended as if from giant, invisible cables... but this barrier was different, somehow... it was not like the ones that Naraku had always erected to protect himself from his foes. It was almost like... Shiori's barrier...
Before he could elaborate further on that thought, Inuyasha had to dodge another gigantic blast of energy from the direction of the barrier, and then he heard Naraku's voice.
"Very good, Inuyasha, dodging my attacks like that. If I am not mistaken, you are improving... little by little... heh heh heh... oh yes... by the way... what do you think of my little spell? Or, to be more direct, the curse that your friend, Kagome, is under?"
Inuyasha did a double-take. This was a curse? So Kagome was not really dead...? For a moment, his heart threatened to burst with joy and relief, but swelled back up when Naraku continued, "I daresay that she has less than an hour to live... unless you can do something for me. Would you like to know what it is?"
Right now, Inuyasha wanted nothing more than to find Naraku, who was very near, he knew and squeeze the life from him. He knew that he was near because he could sense his youki, and it was as unpleasant than ever. This was no kugutsu, it seemed. And he knew, before it even started, that this battle would be worthless.
Within the barrier, Sango had silent tears flowing down her face at the thought that Kagome might really die from this curse of Naraku's... that thought, coupled with the feeling of already intense hatred of what he had done already caused her to move beyond her limits. Whatever it took, she would stop him!
Before she moved to take action, however, Naraku turned away from his conversation with Inuyasha and faced the demon slayer. His eyes glittered beneath his mask... glittered with malice and greedy intent... not to mention arrogance. His pride absolutely knew no bounds. An example of that occurred a few months ago when he was searching for the last shard of the Shikon Jewel. The location of that shard turned out to be found in the world between this one and the afterlife. It was also in this location that Inuyasha's father's bones were currently resting... the place where the son of the great dog-demon leader had found his heirloom, Tessaiga. It was at this place that Inuyasha and his friends encountered the demon, Housenki, who in turn granted Inuyasha the power to expel multiple diamond shards from his blade when it was powered up to do it. It was called Kongosouha... or the Adamant Barrage (English dub fans should recognize that name!). It was a powerful, devastating attack that could rip through any foe, no matter how strong, even an extra-powerful barrier that Naraku possessed once he had gained his new body at Hakurei Mountain. Naraku had learned from that experience to be more wary of Tessaiga! Speaking of that brutal attack...
Inuyasha was readying his sword for it now, watching the circular waves of wind curl about the blade, and any moment now it would be fully prepared to unleash... those diamond spears of doom (sorry, couldn't resist)!!
Naraku, watching from within the barrier's security, only smiled, and Sango thought she knew what would happen if Inuyasha were to expel the power of his sword. Futilely, Sango pushed with all her might against the wall of the shield, but it would not give... usually, people trapped in a barrier or ones that use them to protect themselves can enter or exit easily... but this one was different.
Since that method would not work, Sango tried her voice.
"Inuyasha! Don't use your attack on this barrier! It won't work on it! Do you hear me?" She cupped her hands about her mouth like a megaphone, but she figured her words would not be heard, regardless.
Naraku, silent now, only thought this: This kind of barrier is indeed special, and for this occasion, its purpose will serve me very well. Go on, Inuyasha, and use the power of that marvelous sword of yours! The Kongosouha definitely is a powerful attack, but any attack on this barrier is not only deflected back at the striker, but it will also absorb into the barrier itself, impacting all who are in it, and your friend, the young demon slayer, is no exception. So do it, Inuyasha! Release the sweet power of your weapon! And doing so will unlock part one of my plan...
Again and again, Sango tried to get Inuyasha's attention; she waved her arms, flapped them like a bird, screamed high and low, pounded on the barrier's walls and tried everything else she could; it was no use.
Naraku, watching this, grinned... pleased with himself for creating such a unique barrier. Although Sango did not know it, this barrier did not transmit any sound to the outside world... so... the only way to contact someone outside the barrier was to do it telepathically... or... if you were really strong... like Naraku, for instance... you could enhance your voice so it echoed around the whole shield, and parts of it would shake, allowing sound to be transmitted to the listener... Inuyasha, in this case. That was how Naraku had spoken with him a few moments ago. This /taijiya/, unfortunately for herself, did not seem to realize this little detail... Alas. He sighed, still pleased with himself, and prepared to watch Inuyasha seal his own fate.
As if in slow motion, Sango watched, helplessly, as Inuyasha raised his sword. He had moved into a certain position, a position which Sango knew very well, and would not be able to stop.
Complete silence inside the barrier...
Silence...
Silence...
Kirara and Naraku were too quiet...
Sango could her heart beating wildly against her chest...
Then...
"SANGO!!" a voice suddenly shouted, piercing throughout the barrier so that it made Sango cringe from both the sudden noise of the shout and the ringing it made on the barrier's walls; evidently, sound could not be heard from the people inside the barrier to the outside, but voices and other noises could be heard from the people outside to the people inside. Sango held her hands to her ears for a moment to block out the sound... when it was gone, she looked, and did a double-take.
Outside, on the ground, Inuyasha had lowered his sword, the waves of wind long since diminished from his pausing. Kagome still lay on the ground, looking like a breathless doll, Shippou, whom Sango just noticed for the first time, was lying on Kagome's chest, tears flowing down his face; although she could not hear it from this distance, she knew that the young kitsune was crying. The one who had shouted was Miroku, whom Sango also just realized was there. He was standing a little back from Inuyasha, who still held his blade to the spot where he was about to fire the diamond spears.
"Houshi-sama?" Sango cried, hardly able to believe it. They had all come to her rescue, even the lecherous priest!
Miroku was not sobbing, as Shippou was, but his face was lit with an insane urge not to... it was mixed with radiant anger that Sango could almost feel emanating from him.
Naraku, who had been silent and enigmatic for a while, now spoke.
"Well, if it isn't the holy monk, come to pay his last respects before the woman he loves passes into the afterlife! My, what a perfect day! I choose this day to come out of hiding and gather all my most powerful enemies, with the exception of one, right to me! How lucky!" He laughed, the sound ringing through the air. But then, he stopped just as quickly. His voice turned businesslike.
"Houshi, if you choose to open your Kazaana and suck in all that you please, do so at your leisure...but..." His voice trailed off, and from some interior part of his robe he pulled out a familiar-looking bee's nest. With one flick of the wrist that was not holding the hive, the hive itself materialized out of the barrier, and almost directly in Miroku's face. He swatted it away with his staff, but it only flew away from him and exploded into the nasty insects which make it up... the Saimyoshou. Naraku finished his statement.
"But even you would not be that foolish, would you?"
Dammit, Miroku thought.
Note: Wow, I'm on a roll with chapters now! Chapter "2" is up and now 3 is on its way (right here).
Chapter 3 - A Pointless Fight
As a recap... (revised slightly)
{Continued from last chapter: Naraku and Sango inside the violet-colored barrier, a few minutes earlier}
"Sango, I have a little something that you and your friends will just love to do, and that is a small test. Pass it successfully and you will be rewarded. Fail to pass it and something terrible will befall all of you. What that is will not be revealed to you until that happens... if it happens. So just cooperate with me and you will see that it can be fun... if done the right way, that is. I will not tell you any more here, because that will ruin the surprise, not to mention the fun..."
{Now... to the present time}
"Inuyasha! There they are, inside that barrier!" Kagome called suddenly, jarring the young half-demon from a little daydream he had been having... it was strange... Kikyou was in it, but what she had been doing Inuyasha did not know... but it was really strange... it was almost as if it had happened before, or was about to happen...
He jerked his head up and seen, approximately 30 feet in the air, a bright, purplish-colored barrier. And inside the barrier were two people, and he knew them both very well.
"It's Sango!" Shippou cried out, before Inuyasha could respond to Kagome's statement. For some reason, Inuyasha was so annoyed that he said, "I know that, you little twerp! It's Sango and that bastard, Naraku!" Rage filled his head again, as if all the blood in his body were rushing upward to that spot. A few minutes ago, he had been placid, tranquil and calm (all of which mean the same thing, actually J), but now that familiar emotion was surging inside of him, lighting all of his nerves and veins, pulsing him into a killing machine, out for revenge and nothing else.
Before he suddenly accidentally exploded with his fury, Kagome said, "That's weird... Kohaku-kun isn't with them. They seem to be just talking, not fighting." As she finished that, Kagome's head filled with a sudden heavy, leaden feeling, as if she had gone up and down elevations really fast, so that it made her light-headed. Suddenly, abrupt nausea pushed its way up her throat, which began to burn as if she had swallowed a whole jar of hot pepper juice. She screamed and wildly grabbed at her neck, startling Inuyasha so much that he toppled to the ground, catching his rider before she landed somewhere that she shouldn't have.
All of her companions yelled out her name, but their voices seemed to be getting farther and farther away; she could feel herself slipping away from the world... getting dark... darker... each breath an extreme effort.
"Kagome!" Inuyasha screamed, his rage gone like a light bulb being blown out, now replaced by worry and fright for his friend... his friend who had shared so many adventures with him... his friend who now looked as if she had just been pulled out of her tomb after being buried. What had all of a sudden happened to make her collapse like this? Heartburn? Was she sick? If so, she wouldn't have grabbed insanely at her neck like she was trying to choke herself. But one fact was clear. Kagome was probably dying.
***********
Up in the air, inside the barrier, Sango stared at what she could see through it, a small white spot had shown through where Inuyasha's Tessaiga had blasted through, but not quite penetrated. Through that tiny spot, she could see, with painful clarity, Inuyasha crouched down upon the ground, leaning over someone. When he moved a little to the left, the figure on the ground appeared to be Kagome-chan.
Sango cried out in shock, and then whirled to face Naraku, who was, still, hovering in the air before her, legs crossed, looking perfectly calm, not a care in the world.
"You did this to her, didn't you?" Sango shrieked, wishing more than ever that she had Hiraikotsu in her hand. Naraku's only response was laughter...
***********
"KAGOME!!" Inuyasha screamed wildly, not realizing he was doing it practically directly right in her face; she did not stir. She continued to look as though she had been recently dug up from a grave, except without the dirt.
Suddenly, the air was filled with Naraku's laughter, and Inuyasha looked up just in time, tears starting to trickle down his cheeks, to see a huge bolt of energy come whipping in out of nowhere. The source of that blast was evident after Inuyasha grabbed Kagome's lifeless body and leapt out of its way; the huge barrier that Kagome had mentioned just minutes before was shining in the air about 50 feet above them, suspended as if from giant, invisible cables... but this barrier was different, somehow... it was not like the ones that Naraku had always erected to protect himself from his foes. It was almost like... Shiori's barrier...
Before he could elaborate further on that thought, Inuyasha had to dodge another gigantic blast of energy from the direction of the barrier, and then he heard Naraku's voice.
"Very good, Inuyasha, dodging my attacks like that. If I am not mistaken, you are improving... little by little... heh heh heh... oh yes... by the way... what do you think of my little spell? Or, to be more direct, the curse that your friend, Kagome, is under?"
Inuyasha did a double-take. This was a curse? So Kagome was not really dead...? For a moment, his heart threatened to burst with joy and relief, but swelled back up when Naraku continued, "I daresay that she has less than an hour to live... unless you can do something for me. Would you like to know what it is?"
Right now, Inuyasha wanted nothing more than to find Naraku, who was very near, he knew and squeeze the life from him. He knew that he was near because he could sense his youki, and it was as unpleasant than ever. This was no kugutsu, it seemed. And he knew, before it even started, that this battle would be worthless.
Within the barrier, Sango had silent tears flowing down her face at the thought that Kagome might really die from this curse of Naraku's... that thought, coupled with the feeling of already intense hatred of what he had done already caused her to move beyond her limits. Whatever it took, she would stop him!
Before she moved to take action, however, Naraku turned away from his conversation with Inuyasha and faced the demon slayer. His eyes glittered beneath his mask... glittered with malice and greedy intent... not to mention arrogance. His pride absolutely knew no bounds. An example of that occurred a few months ago when he was searching for the last shard of the Shikon Jewel. The location of that shard turned out to be found in the world between this one and the afterlife. It was also in this location that Inuyasha's father's bones were currently resting... the place where the son of the great dog-demon leader had found his heirloom, Tessaiga. It was at this place that Inuyasha and his friends encountered the demon, Housenki, who in turn granted Inuyasha the power to expel multiple diamond shards from his blade when it was powered up to do it. It was called Kongosouha... or the Adamant Barrage (English dub fans should recognize that name!). It was a powerful, devastating attack that could rip through any foe, no matter how strong, even an extra-powerful barrier that Naraku possessed once he had gained his new body at Hakurei Mountain. Naraku had learned from that experience to be more wary of Tessaiga! Speaking of that brutal attack...
Inuyasha was readying his sword for it now, watching the circular waves of wind curl about the blade, and any moment now it would be fully prepared to unleash... those diamond spears of doom (sorry, couldn't resist)!!
Naraku, watching from within the barrier's security, only smiled, and Sango thought she knew what would happen if Inuyasha were to expel the power of his sword. Futilely, Sango pushed with all her might against the wall of the shield, but it would not give... usually, people trapped in a barrier or ones that use them to protect themselves can enter or exit easily... but this one was different.
Since that method would not work, Sango tried her voice.
"Inuyasha! Don't use your attack on this barrier! It won't work on it! Do you hear me?" She cupped her hands about her mouth like a megaphone, but she figured her words would not be heard, regardless.
Naraku, silent now, only thought this: This kind of barrier is indeed special, and for this occasion, its purpose will serve me very well. Go on, Inuyasha, and use the power of that marvelous sword of yours! The Kongosouha definitely is a powerful attack, but any attack on this barrier is not only deflected back at the striker, but it will also absorb into the barrier itself, impacting all who are in it, and your friend, the young demon slayer, is no exception. So do it, Inuyasha! Release the sweet power of your weapon! And doing so will unlock part one of my plan...
Again and again, Sango tried to get Inuyasha's attention; she waved her arms, flapped them like a bird, screamed high and low, pounded on the barrier's walls and tried everything else she could; it was no use.
Naraku, watching this, grinned... pleased with himself for creating such a unique barrier. Although Sango did not know it, this barrier did not transmit any sound to the outside world... so... the only way to contact someone outside the barrier was to do it telepathically... or... if you were really strong... like Naraku, for instance... you could enhance your voice so it echoed around the whole shield, and parts of it would shake, allowing sound to be transmitted to the listener... Inuyasha, in this case. That was how Naraku had spoken with him a few moments ago. This /taijiya/, unfortunately for herself, did not seem to realize this little detail... Alas. He sighed, still pleased with himself, and prepared to watch Inuyasha seal his own fate.
As if in slow motion, Sango watched, helplessly, as Inuyasha raised his sword. He had moved into a certain position, a position which Sango knew very well, and would not be able to stop.
Complete silence inside the barrier...
Silence...
Silence...
Kirara and Naraku were too quiet...
Sango could her heart beating wildly against her chest...
Then...
"SANGO!!" a voice suddenly shouted, piercing throughout the barrier so that it made Sango cringe from both the sudden noise of the shout and the ringing it made on the barrier's walls; evidently, sound could not be heard from the people inside the barrier to the outside, but voices and other noises could be heard from the people outside to the people inside. Sango held her hands to her ears for a moment to block out the sound... when it was gone, she looked, and did a double-take.
Outside, on the ground, Inuyasha had lowered his sword, the waves of wind long since diminished from his pausing. Kagome still lay on the ground, looking like a breathless doll, Shippou, whom Sango just noticed for the first time, was lying on Kagome's chest, tears flowing down his face; although she could not hear it from this distance, she knew that the young kitsune was crying. The one who had shouted was Miroku, whom Sango also just realized was there. He was standing a little back from Inuyasha, who still held his blade to the spot where he was about to fire the diamond spears.
"Houshi-sama?" Sango cried, hardly able to believe it. They had all come to her rescue, even the lecherous priest!
Miroku was not sobbing, as Shippou was, but his face was lit with an insane urge not to... it was mixed with radiant anger that Sango could almost feel emanating from him.
Naraku, who had been silent and enigmatic for a while, now spoke.
"Well, if it isn't the holy monk, come to pay his last respects before the woman he loves passes into the afterlife! My, what a perfect day! I choose this day to come out of hiding and gather all my most powerful enemies, with the exception of one, right to me! How lucky!" He laughed, the sound ringing through the air. But then, he stopped just as quickly. His voice turned businesslike.
"Houshi, if you choose to open your Kazaana and suck in all that you please, do so at your leisure...but..." His voice trailed off, and from some interior part of his robe he pulled out a familiar-looking bee's nest. With one flick of the wrist that was not holding the hive, the hive itself materialized out of the barrier, and almost directly in Miroku's face. He swatted it away with his staff, but it only flew away from him and exploded into the nasty insects which make it up... the Saimyoshou. Naraku finished his statement.
"But even you would not be that foolish, would you?"
Dammit, Miroku thought.
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