Adult-FanFiction.org : Inuyasha / Yashahime

In a New Light	By : Sylean Category: InuYasha > Het - Male/Female > Naraku/Kagome Views: 17606 -:- Recommendations : 5 -:- Currently Reading : 4
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha nor do I make any profit from this story.

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In a New Light
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha nor do I make any profit from this story.
Warning: There will be lemons in this story, some non-con as well. Full versions will be posted on Adult fanfiction under the same story name (Author's name Sylean.) Summarized (a.k.a. butchered) versions of the lemons will be posted here.

Chapter 22
(A/N: Spoiler alert! Episodes 80-81, where Naraku tries to absorb Sesshomaru, fails, and vanishes.
In areas where I follow the series, assume it will be predominately the same as the episodes, not much will change, but they might get slightly twisted, reinterpreted, or added to.)

Noisily leaping out of a half-sleep, Inuyasha's nose suddenly spurred him into action. The commotion also woke Kagome who followed out of concern. "What's the matter, Inuyasha?"
"I can smell him; Naraku," Inuyasha informed with a side-glance.
Kagome's anger had not dissipated from her discovery of what Naraku had been doing to her, only been put on a back burner to simmer silently until the time came that she could unleash it. The instant Inuyasha mentioned his name that anger rushed to the surface with a vengeance, "Lets get him, Inuyasha." She would confront him, she would get her answers, one way or another. Not wanting to admit it, she was actually more angry at herself for allowing herself to trust him, allowing him to do to her, what she knew he was most skilled at; manipulation. But for the time being, she would channel that anger in his direction. She had given him a chance to prove himself different than all her friends believed, and got caught in his web for her efforts. It still confused her, however, why she wasn't suffering from any withdrawals; yet another question to grill him about.
Listening in on Sango and Miroku's observations, "He's gone out of his way to hide himself, why would he show up now?" she couldn't help but be curious as well. "Yes, that bothers me too." Naraku undoubtedly had some plan brewing, and she would find out what. Inuyasha now had the Red Tessaiga and should be able to breach his castle's hidden barrier. Her plans got derailed however, when a jewel shard was detected in a separate direction. Miroku delegated that Inuyasha would continue on to fight Naraku, and the rest would go after the jewel shard, much to Kagome's silent dismay. She wanted to go yell at Naraku, damn it, but wasn't given the option. She'd just have to find him later. At least they would know where his castle was, since Inuyasha finally had a scent trail to follow. Reluctantly, Kagome let her anger simmer back down.

So far, everything had progressed just as expected. All it had taken was a simple insult to Sesshomaru's honor, by abducting his ward, and leaking his scent to lure the dog into his barrier. Within the miasma, Naraku had a slight advantage, seeing as Sesshomaru would have to expel some energy to protect himself from it. Not much, he knew, for the demon lord was poisonous in his own right, but he would take every advantage he could get. 'Lord Sesshomaru, you will assist me whether you like it or not; whether I gain your power, or you defeat me and make it seem I'm merely retreating to recover, either one suits my purpose.' Unfortunately for Naraku, he had spent the last few days focusing on Sesshomaru and how to lure him into his castle and absorb his powers, and had completely bypassed the progress Inuyasha had made with Tessaiga. If the mutt had one skill mastered, it was showing up at the least opportune moments.
Naraku was formed by absorbing a multitude of demons, it was only logical that he would try to attain a more powerful body. When the pieces of fleshed seized him, and Naraku announced his intentions, Sesshomaru understood the objectives, 'Does this amalgamation seriously think he could absorb me? Let him try, my power is far more than can fit within his pathetic shell, I will destroy him from the inside out.' With that, he stood completely still, unfazed as Naraku engulfed him.
When Inuyasha broke through his barrier and severed the flesh that bound Sesshomaru to Naraku, the demon lord deemed that time to reemerge with mocking satire. At this point, Naraku knew exactly which direction the battle would take, despite the dog brother's getting into each other's way. He switched his purpose towards his secondary objective, disappearing with flair.

"Kill her," Naraku commanded into Kohaku's mind, knowing the boy would resist just long enough to allow Sesshomaru to make it to Rin in time. He didn't need to go losing Sesshomaru's weakness just yet; she may come in handy again. It also came as no surprise when Sesshomaru released Kohaku, seeing as the demon thought the boy's death was Naraku's desire. 'All too easy to predict,' Naraku mused at his secret successes.

Morning light was finally reflecting into the sky, it had been a very long night, and the adrenaline had finally worn off. They all stood in the clearing, the same clearing that Kohaku nearly 'killed' Rin in. The girl had left happily with Sesshomaru and Kohaku ran off with Kagura, leaving Kagome and Inuyasha to explain to Sango the events they had witnessed. Continuing with the sharing of information, Miroku asked what had happened with Naraku.
Inuyasha plastered on a proud grin and spoke in an overconfident manner, "Well, after I broke through Naraku's barrier, a fierce battle ensued. Naraku was all tentacles and disgusting and I was all honor and glory as I slashed him to pieces with Tessaiga!" He pulled his prized sword and held it up to bask in their 'adoring' appreciation as well as himself. Or at least that's what he was seeing through his rose-colored-glasses. "My attacks even saved Sesshomaru. I thought maybe the bastard would finally show a little gratitude, especially since Naraku was trying to absorb him, but instead he insisted on getting in my way and its basically all his fault that Naraku escaped." The others listened, but knew this was a far-fetched version so picked out only the usable details. Inuyasha broke the barrier, Naraku was injured, Sesshomaru was present, and the two dogs likely got into their own fight in the middle of fighting Naraku.
"We're proud of you, Inuyasha," they praised sarcastically, stroking his already inflated ego. If the pup had a tail it surely would have been wagging.
Kagome drifted off into thought, 'Naraku's injured? I hope he's okay. Wait, what am I thinking? He drugged me, manipulated me into giving him my virginity, why should I care about him?' She noticed her anger had been replaced with worry. As much as she should be mad, she knew that she really didn't consider such an act against her that big of a deal. She was far more concerned with his well being than chastising him. 'Why, why do I care about him? After what he did to me, he doesn't deserve my concern… but that doesn't change the fact that I do care about him. I care too much about someone who does not deserve it, for the second time. This is torture, not knowing if he is okay. After hearing Inuyasha brag about how he tore him to shreds, I can't help but want to find him and make sure he doesn't need my help. I never was mad enough to want him dead, never. I just wanted to… wanted to, I don't know, maybe yell at him until he gave me a good reason or apologized.' She scoffed at herself, as if Naraku would ever apologize. He never seemed to regret anything he did. She sighed aloud, unintentionally gaining the attention of the others.
"What's wrong, Kagome?" Inuyasha miraculously picked up on her worry.
She snapped her head up, all eyes on her, "I, uhh, I mean, he escaped." She stuttered out, letting them think she was worried about him still being on the loose. 'He escaped, he may be injured, but he escaped, that means he's still alive. I will just need to find him.' "Do you know which direction he went?"
Her question, genuine as it was, made Inuyasha's ears droop, "No, he just vanished into thin air."
"Lets go pay the castle a visit, there might have been some kind of clue left behind if he vanished in such a hurry as you described," Miroku rationalized, gaining agreement.

(A/N: Spoiler alert! Episode 83-84, where Ayame claims Kouga is her fiancée.)
Nothing, not a twinge of jewel shards, no ominous aura, and not a whiff of that intolerable scent; in all senses of the word, Naraku had vanished. The only scent Inuyasha could detect nearby, was only slightly less irritating, and was accompanied by two jewel shards that Kagome refused to let him collect. He turned his claws towards the whirlwind to halt the intruder, but only got splatted to the ground by the cocky wolf instead.
"Hey Mutt, where's Naraku? I know you know so fess up now," Kouga grilled him after his usual bout of flirting with Kagome. She kept her eyes open this time, keeping a close eye on him so there wouldn't be a repeat of last time, when he licked her neck. No one knew where he was, of course, but that didn't stop another of Inuyasha and Kouga's signature arguments. The day quickly went from uneventful to what-the-heck-just-happened when in quick succession, a hair demon emerged from Naraku's castle, attacked Kagome, Kouga snatched her up and ran off to safety, only to run into Ayame, a female wolf demon who claimed to be engaged to Kouga. Ayame informed them that a miasma had descended from the northern mountains, and it was causing an uproar in the clans. She had been ordered to bring Kouga back to make peace.
The instant Ayame mentioned a miasma, Kagome couldn't help but wonder if it was Naraku. She would have to be sure and tell the others about it. Right about that same time, the hair demon caught up to them and again went after Kagome and her jewel shards. She was ending up in Kouga's arms a lot more than she would have liked today.
"Hey demon, I'll take you on. Then you can answer a few questions for me," Kouga growled in challenge. The battle wasn't near as fierce as some, but Kagome still got a little worried about what might be revealed about her, since this was one of Naraku's discarded demons, it might know about her 'affair' and have no qualms outing her since it didn't seem to like Naraku much either. "Okay demon, tell us everything you know, or you'll be sorry."
"Naraku has escaped to a place where no one can touch him," the hair demon informed with a raspy voice.
'What does that mean? His barrier can be broken by Tessaiga, can't it?' Kagome wondered.
"Unfortunately for you, that's all I know," the demon mocked. "He cut me off before he could accomplish his plans. Ha ha ha, serves you right."
'Does he not know about Naraku and I?' Kagome breathed easier.
(A/N: Pertaining to the hair monster questioning segment, he doesn't know about Naraku and Kagome since he was separated in episode 67, during Naraku's period of weakness and Naraku and Kagome happened around 71-73.)
The demon was dealt with and Kouga quickly resumed his flirtations. "Kagome, I'm sorry to say, I have to be on my way now. Next time we meet, I promise to bring Naraku's head on a platter," Kouga bragged, making Kagome's stomach turn at the visual.
"I think, I'll, pass," she gave an uncomfortable laugh, then after a bit more harmless arguments with Inuyasha, he left in his whirlwind.
'The demon said Naraku escaped to place where no one could get to him, I wonder where that is, and how he managed it,' Kagome, along with everyone else, was trying to piece together this puzzle.

Lounging on the grass, looking up at the starry sky and listening to Inuyasha complain once again about Naraku escaping, just as he had for the past several nights, and days, Kagome repeated the words Ayame had said, "A lunar rainbow."
"There ain't no such thing as a rainbow at night," Inuyasha scoffed at the sickeningly romantic notion.
"There is, to those people who can see it," Kagome mused aloud. 'The night is not just the absence of light, it has its own deep spectrum, shrouded in dark blues and purples, much like a certain demon I know. Naraku, I have no idea where you are, but I will see you again, I just know it.'

(A/N: Spoiler alert! Episode 121, only the flashback part of where Naraku resurrects Bankostu.)
A cold room filled with an illuminated mist, the mist itself being the only source of light, is where he found himself when he awoke to the sounds of a deep voice, repeating the words, "Awaken, Bankotsu. Awaken." He felt consciousness slowly taking hold. "I grant you life once again."
"Who are you? What is this, the seven of us were beheaded?" he was full of questions, trying to regain his grasp on life.
"My name is Naraku. To think the man I met all those years ago, was Bankotsu of the bank of seven," Naraku let the mist clear to reveal the bones surrounding Bankostu. "We are in your grave right now. I have implanted a shard of the Shikon jewel in your body, that is the power you feel."
Bankotsu reveled in the feel as he touched his neck, where the shard lay, "Ah, Sacred jewel shards can be very useful, can't they?"
"I want you to serve me, Bankostu," Naraku got straight to the point, "this renewed life will be everlasting for so long as you do." Naraku dropped six more shards onto the ground for Bankotsu to retrieve. "Now go forth with your six comrades, and await further orders."
Holding the six shards in his palm, Bankotsu eyed them carefully. He understood what this demon was offering, in its entirety. Life, another chance to walk this earth, a reprieve from the eternal darkness, or was it hell, he wasn't sure, the memory was but that of a faded dream. This boon, however, would not last forever; it would only last as long as he remained a servant to a demon, at the beck and call to such a despicable creature. He now had a choice, to let his brothers remain in their lifeless slumber, free from the worries of a second death, or revive their bodies, and follow the commands of a demon. Which would they even prefer, which would he prefer if he were in their place. "Ridiculous, the dead can't think, they have no preferences. Only the living can make such a choice," he spoke to himself. So what would he decide? After sitting there for several minutes? Hours? Days? He finally opted to put the choice in their hands, allow then to forge their own path once again. But for the sake of his companions, he would not inform them of the entirety of Naraku's intentions for them. They didn't need to know that this life was only temporary, that they were essentially slaves to his whims, and that they would die once again. No, he would lie to them, just this once, and allow them as much enjoyment as possible in the short acquittal they had been "gifted."
That had been a few days ago, they had many more questions than he had, but he simply told them a demon revived them, for a price. Most of them were content with that, but Renkotsu would not let the subject drop. In private he informed him that he could either go along with this new life, or return to the non-existent afterlife, the choice would be his. As sincere as Bankotsu's words were, Renkotsu took them as a threat, that was just how his scheming, distrustful mind worked. He quickly fell in line after that, and the group ventured out to equip themselves and dig out their old hide-out. Kyokotsu's size certainly came in handy when it came to renovations and packing Ginkotsu's rusted body to the workshop to get reforged. The tasks required of the group however, were too few, and boredom quickly set in. Being dead, and having the jewel shards, they didn't require any food, water, or warmth to maintain survival. Ignoring orders, Kyokotsu began venturing down the mountain, devouring anything he could get his hands on, and swiftly adding to his already unnatural size. Suikotsu went in search of him, but had yet to return.
Bankotsu was not in a very good mood with having two members either missing or deserting already. He sat on a stone, one leg crossed over the other and arms folded over his chest, trying to be patient and keep his calm. His failing meditation was interrupted when an insect buzzed into his ear. Oddly enough, he could understand it. Perhaps that was another perk of the sacred jewel shard. It wanted him to follow it. "Heh, why should I obey a mere insect," he clenched a fist, preparing to strike it, but stopped at the next part of the message. "Oh, you belong to him, I see." He rose reluctantly and followed until he was brought to a figure clad in white fur. "Do you have a task for us yet? My men are getting impatient sitting around here." He briefly noted that Naraku, if that was really him, smelled of flowers. 'Such a misleading scent.' (A/N: For those who do not remember, in episode 111 when Naraku places a "clean smelling" puppet to help the Band of Seven escape, well, this is that same puppet. Having a different scent allows it to roam freely, without the risk of pursuit or discovery.)
"It seems, you are missing a few of your comrades," Naraku's puppet commented idly, intentionally hitting a sore spot. "Is there a reason why they are not following my orders?"
"I command my men, not you," Bankotsu snapped back at the intentional barb.
"It would be wise to temper how you speak to me. I could kill all seven of you if I so chose. Your jewel shards are controlled by my influence, not your own, and because of which, I can strengthen or weaken you with just a thought," Naraku warned. When Bankotsu didn't respond, a triumphant smirk crept across the puppet's lips, the only discernable feature under the baboon skull mask. "If I remember correctly, the first time we met, you carried a rather large halberd."
"Banryu? What about it?" Bankotsu asked, curiosity overtaking his anger.
"Perhaps you should retrieve it, seeing as you will stand no chance against your opponent without a weapon," Naraku suggested. "These insects will be of use to you, use them wisely." He tossed a hive to the mercenary and a couple of wasps squeezed out of the hole on top of it.
In the time it took Bankotsu to inspect the hive, Naraku had vanished, 'insufferable demon.'

Kagome had snuck out of camp for a short break, a cessation from the constant complaining and animosity about Naraku, a chance to think without worry of others getting too curious. She sat on the edge of a grassy hill, the sun setting on her left, just staring off into the darkening mountain range to the north. Ayame had told her and Kouga that a miasma had descended from that region, could it be possible that Naraku was in that direction? She didn't know for sure, but it comforted her to stare off in the direction she thought him to be. Inyasha had been chasing after any possible lead, including heading in a general north direction after Kagome had conveyed the information, and because of his frantic behavior, Kagome hadn't had much time for herself. Not that she was complaining, she wanted to find Naraku just as much, if not more, than the others. It was just exhausting on her mind not knowing if Naraku was okay. The image of Naraku all cut up and bleeding profusely in some cave kept creeping into her troubled, paranoid mind. It made her heart clench up in worry that he needed her but she wasn't there to help him. What if he was dying? She gripped at the pain in her chest, her whole body trembling at the morbid image. In his injured state, he was probably weakened, which means his barrier would be weakened, leaking his scent and drawing the attention of not just Inuyasha, but also Kouga, and maybe Sesshomaru. What if they found Naraku first? Would he be able to defend himself? That hair demon had said no one could reach Naraku, but she also knew many demons had arrogance issues. Was that simply how Naraku felt at the time of severing the demon, a time when Inuyasha had yet to acquire the Red Tessaiga? If so, maybe Naraku wasn't as safe as she had thought. He is sure to be weaker than usual, and if another found him first, even as good at hiding as he is… she didn't want to think about what they would do to him. 'I have to find him first,' she decided resolutely. 'Naraku…'
"When will I see you again?" her soft voice held so much longing and concern, unaware that she was overheard.
'In the end, after all is said and done,' Kagome pondered on Naraku's actions, 'what really matters to the heart is how a person makes you feel. He has made me so very happy in the short times we spent together that this minor transgression of drugging me barely even registers on the scale.'

Miroku had not intended to eavesdrop, he was only coming to check up on his friend and let her know the grilled fish was ready, but when he heard her longing words, he was suddenly faced with a choice: disrupt her and let her know he'd heard her, or step back and leave her to her thoughts, uninterrupted. He was surprised she had not heard him to begin with, but then, he had left his staff behind. It was staked in the center of camp as a focal point for a weak barrier, just strong enough to deter lesser demons and alert him if any powerful ones entered. Standing behind a tree, he decided to return in a few minutes and turned back towards camp. The words she said confused him however, "When will I see you again?" 'Who could she be referring to, family maybe? No, that's not it. She sounded as if she was speaking to a lover. But wasn't she in love with Inuyasha? The two of them had been out all night together some weeks ago, and Sango seemed to have stumbled across the sight, but maybe it wasn't Inuyasha she saw. I will need to ask her.'

(A/N: Does it feel like Kagome is in character, letting her concern overshadow her anger, at least for the time being? My impression of her is very forgiving and she can always grill him on it later.
So, Miroku is getting curious, lets see what his deductive abilities can dredge up.)
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In a New Light