Naruto Of The Shikon

Chapter 22: A reintroduction

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The sky was bathed in a dark, deep purple. It had slowly changed from clear blue of spring and was now this dark abyss of miasma and death that seemed to permeate the land.

Naraku was gathering his strength for the coming confrontation Naruto realized. He always did before any major confrontation, but this was different...

This time the very air seemed to ooze miasma, Naraku, it appeared was going to take this fight quite seriously the blond Shinobi noted as he absently flexed his hand as he stared at the dark castle that was just at the edges of his sharp sight. 'Perhaps this will be it...' He mused.

He turned as he heard footsteps coming from behind him and found Kagura shifting from foot to foot rather nervously. Her eyes fixed on the dark lair in the distance. "The food is cooked." She mumbled as she diverted her gaze.

Naruto nodded and turned back to peer off in thought. The wind demoness, despite the fact that she now had a proper weapon was still dead nervous about facing her previous enslaver in battle, not entirely unexpected really. "Thanks but I'm not hungry right now, tell the others I'll stay here for a while."

She nodded and turned to walk away again.

'Perhaps this time.' He repeated quietly in his mind as he heard the heavens rumble with thunder.

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Sango watched the dancing fire as it cackled merrily in the center of the camp even in the midst of the great darkness they were near. Her mind was clouded, the pain of Kohaku's passing and the pain that came with the fact that she was now truly the last demon slayer were reduced to a dull ache in her chest.

The others of the group had noticed her somber and reserved demeanor and had questioned her and Naruto on what had happened. Naruto had looked at her with those icy blues that seemed to show some form of reflection in them. He simply shook his head and spoke. 'It is not my choice to tell you.' He had turned to look at her. 'It is hers.'

They had asked her. After a few minutes of questions she had revealed that Naraku had killed Kohaku infront of her. It wasn't the whole truth but it had satisfied them. Kagome, Shippou and Miroku had hugged her, the last not adding his patented grope.

Inuyasha and even Kagura had shown some forms of compassion towards her. The former with a few soft spoken words that basically translated into a 'Sorry for your loss' and the latter through some discrete glances with a hint of compassion in them. She had tried to hide them but Sango, even in her lethargic state of mind had seen them.

Her anger at the demoness had not vanished but it had dimmed somewhat. She had remembered Naruto's voice those nights ago when he had said

"If you wish to hate Sango, then hate, but do it for a proper reason. Do not hate one for crimes he or she did not commit. It just ends up being more painful for the both of them if that's the case."

Those words, back then had been just that, mere words...offered by someone who claimed to understand her pain when in reality they knew nothing but now...when she could compare it to what he had told her in that moment of weakness back in her hut in her village. She knew he was speaking from experience, just like then.

'Because everyone I've ever loved...is already dead.'

Those words, along with the silent tears that trailed down his cheeks spoke volumes in their own right.

She did not know what to think about the blond shinobi now, he was an enigma with more layers than any person she had ever met, even Inuyasha.

A tap on her shoulder brought her out of her thoughts. She turned and found Kagome smiling softly at her. She smiled back, though any could tell it was rather subdued.