The Portal

Chapter 3 – The Final Battle?

“Naraku!” Inuyasha shouted as he deposited Kagome onto a nearby rock, where she quickly took aim, after Shippo ran for cover.

Kirara landed behind Inuyasha. Sango and Miroku leapt from the fire cat’s back and made ready for battle.

Sango shouted, “Is it another puppet, Inuyasha?!”

Miroku quickly answered her question for the hanyou, “This is no puppet! For once the coward has shown himself!”

Kagome caught her breath when Miroku confirmed that before them stood the real Naraku. Not a demon puppet or a foul illusion, but the real thing. She pulled her bow a little tighter.

Inuyasha sent Naraku a wicked smile. “So today’s the day I finally get to slaughter you?!”

Naraku laughed, as a blast of wind hit the group, sending Kagome hurling from her rocky edifice. She hit the ground with a thud, “Ouch! That hurt!”

Sango shouted, “Kagome, are you ok?”

“I’m fine Sango, I only bruised my butt!” Kagome jumped to her feet searching for the one responsible. Spotting the wind sorceress to the left, she shouted, “Kagura, your gonna pay for that!” Kagome released her purification arrow at the wind witch, who barely avoided the blast of miko energy.

Kagura huffed at the insult. ‘How dare that little tramp?!’ Too bad she couldn’t just kill her now, but that would not go along with Naraku’s insidious plan. ‘Damn that bastard!’ Instead she snarled at the miko, “You’re too easy, miko! You are not my opponent today!” With that she turned to the houshi and demon slayer. She let a knowingly evil smile play on her lips before releasing her assault. “Dance of blades!”

Sango and Miroku dove out of the way as the razor sharp wind attack busted the ground where they recently stood. Sango was pissed, and decided there was no time like the present to rid the world of Kagura’s presence. “You’re on, Kagura!” Sango ran forward, and flipped twice to avoid another blast of Kagura’s blades. “HIRAIKOTSU!” She sent her weapon hurling toward her attacker.

Miroku began to make his way to Kagura, in an attempt to subdue her with his sacred sutras. He rolled out of the way just in time to dodge Sango’s weapon on its return trip.

Inuyasha released a hearty laugh before jumping into the fray. He easily dodges Kagura’s attacks, leaving that bitch for Miroku and Sango. She was of no consequence. He had bigger fish to fry. He wanted Naraku’s head. “WIND SCAR!” He watched as the awesome power of the Tetsusaiga slammed through the dirt and rocks, headed for its intended victim.

Naraku dodged Inuyasha’s attack and headed for the point of no return... for Inuyasha. The plan was going perfectly. Silently Naraku sent his next warrior into battle.

Sango grabbed the hiraikotsu and flipped past another blast of Kagura’s blades, before pressing forward. Kirara was trying to bypass the main battle between the monk and Sango. After several amazingly agile feats, the feline finally made it close enough to Kagura, in order to draw some of the fire from her friends. As she dodged the last of Kagura’s wave of blades, Kirara caught sight of the one thing she hoped she wouldn’t see during this battle.

Kohaku.

Sango’s younger brother.

Sango halted her aggressive push forward when Kohaku made his appearance. ‘Please don’t do this.’ Sango lowered her weapon. She hoped the show of faith would calm her brother’s attack, but Naraku never was to let that happen.

Kohaku raised his sickle, sending it into a hurling vortex of death, before letting it go with precision born from years of experience. His opponent was a formidable one, however, easily dodging his onslaught.

Kagome was waiting for her shot. If Inuyasha could get close with the wind scar, she would send her arrow to join the attack, thus sending Naraku to his doom. Her eyes were trained on the scum, who had so far, avoided every one of Inuyasha’s attacks. Out of the corner of her eye she caught a flash of white. ‘What was that?!’ It was heading toward Inuyasha at an alarming rate of speed.

Before Kagome registered what she was doing, she burst into a run. All she could think was ‘I must get to him!’ As fast as her legs would carry her, she ran, screaming, “INUYASHA!”

It all happened so fast that it was almost impossible for any of those, not directly involved, to recount the exact steps which lead to the horrific zenith. The white blur reached Inuyasha just as Kagome did. Before the girl could squeeze out a warning to her friend, a tentacle from Naraku sprang from underneath his tattered white baboon pelt effectively ensnaring Kagome. She found herself being hoisted off of her feet and pulled toward Naraku’s outstretched hand. While he was after the shards of the Shikon jewel, he was unaware that another had joined the battle. One who was determined not to allow Inuyasha the satisfaction of destroying Naraku.

Sesshomaru pushed Inuyasha out of the way and raised his sword in preparation to slay Naraku. Inuyasha’s wench happened to be in the way, though, and for some reason he was hesitant to include her in Tokijin’s attack. ‘Perhaps it is Rin’s fondness of the miko?’ Instead of a blast of his swords awesome power, the demon opted for a direct slash to Naraku’s neck.

Naraku caught sight of Sesshomaru just as the interfering taiyoukai shoved Inuyasha aside. It took him a moment to recover from the shock, before turning to flee.

Sesshomaru pulled back on his attack, just in time to avoid slicing the girl’s head off, as the foul hanyou turned away. ‘The damn girl is in the way.’ Without a second thought Sesshomaru grabbed the miko’s arm, intent on removing her from Naraku’s grasp. Suddenly a bright light blinded him.

Inuyasha recovered from being shoved by something, or someone. He swiftly regained his balance and turned just in time to see Sesshomaru grab for Kagome who was captive in Naraku’s tentacle.

Then they were gone.

The only thing to give a hint that they had once stood in that spot was a puff of smoke.

“What the fuck?!” Inuyasha shouted. “KAGOME!!!!”

With the abrupt disappearance of Naraku, came the equally abrupt cessation of the recently on-going battle. All present on the rocky summit stared as the little puff of smoke drifted upward into nothingness. The only sound was the frantic calls of a lone half demon with silver hair, who refused to believe his own eyes.

Sango finally found her voice. “Wh... Where did they go?”

Miroku had no answer to Sango’s question, and could not currently articulate a sound. His eyes drifted away from Sango back to his opponent. ‘Why wasn’t Kagura continuing her attack? She has to know something.’ “Kagura! What has happened to Kagome, and the other’s?”

Kagura finally turned from the drifting tendrils of smoke to the monk. A slow smile began to curve over her face. ‘It has finally happened!’ With a genuine smile of happiness the wind sorceress answered the monk, “Naraku has finally fallen! I am free!”

Miroku had no time to respond before she took off in a gust of wind, only stopping to gather Kanna before disappearing into the horizon.

“Naraku has... Does that mean?...” Miroku snatched the prayer beads away from his accursed hand.

No wind tunnel.

No celebration would be found in this victory, however. They had lost their most dearest of friends.

“Kagome!” Sango’s anguished cry echoed in the mountain air. She was distracted, suddenly by the sound of Kohaku, falling to the ground. She rushed to his side. “Kohaku! Kohaku, NO!!!” Her worst fears were coming to life! She not only lost Kagome, a girl who was like a sister to her, but her dear little brother, as well. Fate is so very cruel.

Inuyasha dropped to his knees. ‘What the hell just happened?’ He couldn’t lose Kagome. She was the best friend he ever had! They fought side by side for years. Sleeping and eating together. Laughter and sorrow. How could this have happened?

Not only was his dearest friend gone, but his only brother, as well. The Great Lord Sesshomaru. Taiyoukai of the Western Lands, was taken on to the netherworld. Never to be seen again. Sure he wasn’t the greatest of brother’s, but he was the only one he had. Now he, Inuyasha, was the only one left of his clan. What a tragic day this turned out to be.