Penetration

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In This Chapter: Language

Chapter Six

Once again, Sesshomaru sat on a boulder overlooking a body of water. This time, it was a stream curling gracefully through the trees of the forest named after his little brother, some distance away from the ningen settlement nearby he never seemed to journey far from. While his eyes rested calmly on the glittering surface of the water, Sesshomaru's gaze was turned inwards in silent reflection.

Though his body was loose and relaxed, the daiyoukai found himself with the unfamiliar urge to pace as he thought. Even the soft murmur of birdsong in the trees around him could not calm his mind and fill him with the peace it usually granted. He had just witnessed something... unexpected, and he required solitude to examine it at length.

When he had originally sensed the two youkai blunder their way into Inuyasha's human village, Sesshomaru had felt great satisfaction and something that had been almost akin to relief. Three days since the incident at the pool Sesshomaru had kept a close eye on the hanyou's whereabouts. Such constant close proximity to his brother had been less than pleasant; though the daiyoukai made sure to keep Inuyasha in his amusing state of paranoia over his presence, actually staying within sight of him had been more than Sesshomaru had been willing to bear for prolonged periods of time. He kept Inuyasha in the scope of his senses at all times and made sure he stayed within the half-breed's as well; he'd thought perhaps the agitation it caused would make the fool do something rash and give Sesshomaru the opportunity to settle his debt sooner rather than later.

The youkai lord had thought such an opportunity had come even without the hanyou having a hand in it when his senses had picked up the two youkai. He had been between the village and the hiding half-breed at the time, observing him sulking in the branches of the tree he'd been bound to for fifty years, a time in which Sesshomaru had experienced a sense of peace, free of chance encounters with the fool's bravado. He had had no thought of his younger brother during that time. Those five decades of suspended animation had not even allowed the hanyou's meagre powers to increase; though Sesshomaru had thought his brother able to sense the intruding demons, it had proven to be otherwise.

However, once Inuyasha had been alerted, things had progressed as Sesshomaru had planned. At least... they had at first.

Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed slightly.

Inuyasha had raced to his village with the daiyoukai in silent pursuit; with targets in sight, he had charged in with his usual devil-may-care attitude and completely missed his mark with the Tetsusaiga. His failure to have patience and gauge any hidden strengths of his opponents had not surprised Sessomaru. The fool was rash and untrained, and it showed in his combat skills - what little there was of them. Sesshomaru had seen - and experienced - enough of Inuyasha's battles to know he lacked great strategic ability. Though the gods had seemingly graced the hanyou with enough intelligence to adapt his original tactic of hitting his opponent until it stopped moving if it proved ineffective, he lacked understanding of the finer, more subtle arts of warfare.

Sesshomaru, trained from his earliest memories until well into adulthood by their esteemed father, did not. His sharp eyes missed nothing, and it had taken him only moments to realise the hanyou was not getting himself sliced to ribbons due to any failings on his part. It was, in fact, a crude but effective ploy. Blood was always a potent lure for a lower class youkai, be it hungry or not. The beasts were gluttonous and easily distracted from one food source by another, more appealing catch. The daiyoukai also recognised Inuyasha's motives before he moved: he planned to lead the youkai away from the village. Sesshomaru's powerful ears did not miss the simpering of the remaining ningens cowering in their hovels. His brother sacrificed his more resilient flesh and blood to save that of the mortals.

The mongrel's plan, however rudimentary, succeeded. Pulled along in the wake of the scent of hanyou blood, they followed Inuyasha to one of the fields beyond the village's perimeter. As the battle finally began, Sesshomaru had drifted closer unnoticed by the humans and battling youkai, his hand hovering near the hilt of Tokijin, but all too quickly it had dropped again.

His keen eyes had recognised the youkai's battle strategy before their second turn of it had been completed; Inuyasha had taken a little longer, but he had also picked up on it as well. Had the youkai truly been powerful enough to end his little brother's life, Sesshomaru would have stepped in at that moment, rid the world of the beasts, and settled his score. As they were, with the grudging, private respect he did have for the power Inuyasha could wield when he put his full will behind the Tetsusaiga's power and this new revelation of tactical ability, Sesshomaru had not been able to justify intervention while retaining his honour.

Sesshomaru had left then. It had been obvious the tables were about to be turned, his chance - if there had ever been one - missed. A moment of isolation for reflection had been required, and so Sesshomaru retreated to the peace of the nearby river.

The daiyoukai found himself in an uncomfortable situation. How long would it be before Iunyasha encountered an opponent truly powerful enough to endanger his life? If he stayed in this backwater province, it would not be any time soon. No demons of any note besides himself frequented this place, and that was not by choice. Stifling the urge to growl, Sesshomaru clenched his fist where it rested on his knee and then released, a small portion of his frustration ebbing with the movement.

Sesshomaru's eyes lifted from the surface of the water and stared out into the forest. Inuyasha was coming. He was at the periphery of Sesshomaru's senses, so the fool likely had no idea where he was just yet, but it wouldn't take long for him to be discovered. And there would be a confrontation when Inuyasha finally managed to reach him. He could tell the hanyou was furious. His youkai was blazing, feeling like it was almost as combative as it had been when they faced off against Naraku for the last time.

And So'unga.

Remembering that name sent Sesshomaru off on another train of thought, dismissing the hanyou's approach for the time being.

The battle had been over a year ago, but the daiyoukai still remembered the events as though they were yesterday. He remembered knocking the fool's body aside and taking a blow for his sake. If such a strike had brought the great Sesshomaru to his knees, what damage would it have done to the hanyou? At the very least, his participation in that battle would have come to an abrupt halt. Thinking of it logically, that would mean that by shielding Sesshomaru's body, Inuyasha had simply repaid a debt owed from that battle. They were even, and Sesshomaru was not indebted and bound to trail after the obnoxious ingrate any longer.

However... though he entertained the notion, the daiyoukai inevitably dismissed it bitterly. He knew his own motives for putting himself in the path of the attack meant for Inuyasha were in question. His father's words had been echoing in the recesses of his mind even before the half-breed unwittingly parroted them. Sesshomaru had still been willing to disregard them as nonsense until Inuyasha's strength flared anew. He had his mortal pack to protect and, beyond that, the world. He perhaps didn't consciously think on such a grandiose scale, but since meeting his trio of ningen and the kit, his anti-social attitudes had adjusted themselves.

When he had seen the strength the fool gained seemingly just from the knowledge that there were people in his life he needed to protect, Sesshomaru had acted selfishly. He could acknowledge that. He had taken the blow for Inuyasha to further his own ends. Had he believed there would be no need, no benefit... would he have stepped in then?

Impossible to say. He certainly felt no love for Inuyasha. Many times he had remembered the quiet that had descended on his life while Inuyasha had been sealed to his tree and wished for it back. The daiyoukai preferred solitude. He needed no one. He kept his kappa retainer with him only for the vague usefulness and apparent undying loyalty the little creature offered; with his ward, it was something indefinable. It had been the Tenseiga's will to revive her, but the Fang had had no influence on his decisions regarding the girl since.

But what of Inuyasha? He couldn't deny that (barring the encounter that led Sesshomaru to his current sorry state of affairs) it had been a long time since he had seriously tried to kill the hanyou. He had become as used to Inuyasha's presence in his life and the battling as much as it was possible to since he had gained freedom from the sealing arrow. In the few years since then, as they crossed paths repeatedly in the hunt for Naraku, Inuyasha had become something of a constant in his life. He'd begun to grow... accustomed to the frequent encounters.

The fool was the only demon who ever challenged him outright now. Even Naraku had used tricks, deceit and his numerous incarnations to strike at himself and his brother's group. Should Inuyasha vanish, so too would the last remaining challenger in his life. Would that be a cause to mourn the fool? Though the daiyoukai would once again have the peace he had missed, he was aware that a long stretch of such could result in his life becoming... mundane. Was such a possibility worth sparing the hanyou's life?

Sesshomaru was not permitted the time to ponder this question, however, as his sharp ears then picked up the sound of the angry stomping of aforementioned hanyou. He quickly schooled his face into stillness, concealing any evidence of his inner conflictions from his younger brother. When Inuyasha finally came crashing through the bushes into the clearing, the daiyoukai knew he was presented with a calm, composed Sesshomaru with his eyes settled lightly on the smooth water's surface.

"What the fuck are you playing at, bastard?" said the ruffled hanyou without preamble, and Sesshomaru allowed an internal smile. So after being distracted by the village's plight, Inuyasha fell back on old habits. "I want to know. You need to stop this creepy-ass stalking shit right now."

"This Sesshomaru would not lower himself to stalk a hanyou," he said mildly, eyes never leaving the water, while inside he writhed. Even if he was forced to lower himself that far, he was not about to admit it to Inuyasha.

"Look." Sesshomaru heard the strain and the forced patience in the hanyou's voice, and curiosity got the better of him, so he glanced over.

Inuyasha looked stressed, he noted. He was actually pinching the bridge of his nose, as though warding off a headache. The daiyoukai reflected that perhaps Inuyasha was beginning to understand just how irritating it was to always have him showing up where he wasn't welcome.

"I don't know why you started acting so fucking weird all of a sudden, and I don't wanna know. Just stop it."

"Do not presume to give me orders, half-breed."

Rather than take the bait as Sesshomaru had hoped, the hanyou suddenly looked triumphant. "I can't order you not to do something if you're not doing it!" he said, sounding far too pleased with himself for Sesshomaru's liking. "You finally fucking admit it, then, you stalking bastard?"

Sesshomaru wanted to bare his teeth. It took more effort than it should have to keep his expression neutral. "This Sesshomaru has not admitted to any of your convoluted allegations, you fool," he said, his voice going quiet to avoid losing his decorum and snapping.

"Then why do you get so defensive whenever you say it, huh?" Inuyasha shot back, still sounding smug.

"I believe, little brother, that you would also be irritated if you had an irksome brat of a pup levelling accusations at you at every turn," Sesshomaru returned, barely able to control his vehemence. Spending so much time forced to do exactly what the hanyou accused him of already had his patience on a razor thin edge; this threatened to push it over.

Those ridiculous ears flattened for a split second, and then Inuyasha's hackles almost visibly raised. "If you're not following me, why the heck are you always every damn place I go?" Inuyasha demanded.

Again, the urge to do something so unbecoming as snarl at the fool rose within Sesshomaru. He squashed it down mercilessly.

"This Sesshomaru's actions are not your concern, half-breed. I go where I wish."

Inuyasha did bare his teeth. "Then why do you wish to hang around here? You hate humans. You hate me more. You're not making any fucking sense!"

"If you are too ignorant to understand, Inuyasha, that is your own problem." Insulting Inuyasha, watching his eyes begin to shine brighter with his anger, soothed Sesshomaru. Things were as they should be. The fool would let his anger take over, and it would lead them away from the uncomfortable topic of his recent actions.

"I am not fucking stupid!" the hanyou snarled. "You just -" Inuyasha cut off abruptly. "You know what? Just fuck off. Just fuck the hell off. I've had enough of this shit. If I see you around here again, I'll fucking kill you."

Sesshomaru watched, one eyebrow slightly lifted, as the hanyou spun on his feet and began to stomp away. Such a fool, as always. All bark and no bite. Surely Inuyasha knew that he could never actually defeat him. Any strike he would land on Sesshomaru's person would be a fluke and nothing more.

The daiyoukai's eyes flicked down to his left sleeve, which lay empty as it rested graceully on the boulder beside him. A powerful fluke, indeed. But one that had, nonetheless, forced Sesshomaru to reevaluate his estimations of his brother's strength and resourcefulness. No other opponent he had ever faced had managed to inflict such a devastating wound. No other opponent had ever crippled him so. No other opponent had ever drawn so much blood.

Inuyasha was not more than ten paces away when Sesshomaru looked back in his direction.

"Inuyasha."

Inuyasha didn't look back, even as he paused his stomping. "What the fuck do you want now?" he snapped irritably.

"Forty-seven."

Sesshomaru watched with great pleasure as every muscle in Inuyasha's body visibly tensed. He whirled back to face his brother as a low growl rumbled deep in his chest. Sesshomaru could see his fingers flexing, hear the slight crack of the knuckles as his fists curled and uncurled.

There was to be a fight, of that the daiyoukai was certain. Inuyasha had finally buckled under the pressure of this game after only a few days, and now his rage would lead him to recklessly begin another pointless duel to add to their battle history. Sesshomaru viewed it as a great pity that clan custom prevented him hurting Inuyasha until the debt had been paid.

Anticipating Tetsusaiga's swing at any moment as the hanyou moved toward him at speed, Sesshomaru shifted his body just slightly in preparation for the dodge. He took an almost perverse pleasure in waiting until the very last moment to avoid the hanyou's attack; he felt it rubbed Inuyasha's pride just that little bit more raw than if he were to step aside earlier.

What he did not anticipate, however, was for Inuyasha to forego unsheathing Tetsusaiga and instead bodily leap at him. His own taunting cost him then; the split-second he needed to escape Inuyasha's sword stroke was absorbed by his surprise at the unexpected form of attack, and before he could leap away, the enraged hanyou hit him full in the chest, still snarling like a feral dog. Sesshomaru's growl of shock and anger mingled with Inuyasha's as they spilled from the boulder and into the lush grass on its other side.