Somewhere in Time

Help Unwanted

Inuyasha sniffed the air, wrinkling as he caught a faint scent of miasma mixed with a strong whiff of youki. "Naraku," he growled, increasing his speed as he leapt from tree to tree. He felt Kagome stiffen on his back. She pointed forward.

"Inuyasha, I could also feel four Shikon shards!"

"Nani? Four?" What's going on? They've been trailing Naraku for a week ever since he recovered. Kikyo's scent seemed to have vanished completely, driving Inuyasha mad and frustrated. But this was a breakthrough. The spider hanyou's scent was unmistakable.

When they arrived at the source of the smell and the shards, however, they were caught by surprise. The entire clearing was covered with youkai corpses and Sesshomaru was smack right in the middle, battling the last of the youkai standing: a massive dragon which quickly reminded Inuyasha of Ryukotsusei, only less in size.

Landing at a safe distance, Inuyasha placed Kagome beside Kirara and the rest. "Stay here."

"Inuyasha, the dragon has two shards embedded on its head and another two on its body. Be careful, I can sense immense power from it."

"Keh! There ain't no need to worry." He drew tetsusaiga and ran up beside Sesshomaru. He was surprised to see his half-brother wounded. His chest plate was broken and blood was flowing in an alarming rate. Yet his face betrayed no pain nor emotion.

"It looks like the hanyou has come to your aid, mighty Sesshomaru," the dragon youkai taunted. Its voice was low, guttural. "Have you reached your limit after fighting against so many youkai at once?"

Inuyasha's eyes widened. He looked around once more, realizing that there could have been hundreds of youkai here before they were obliterated. Sesshomaru had been fighting all of them by himself? No wonder he had injuries.

"Oi, who gave you Shikon shards?" Inuyasha yelled.

"I've been sent by Naraku to kill the inu-youkai," the dragon answered. "Maybe he will give me more if I kill you too!" He lunged forward, fangs bared, but Inuyasha quickly leapt out of the way.

However, Sesshomaru did not move. His golden eyes glinted dangerously, making him look more formidable than ever despite his wounds. "You are foolish to think I will be defeated by a lowly youkai such as you."

He brandished tokijin and instantly, the air became electric as he channeled a huge amount of youki to the sword. The blade emitted blue light and glowing arcs of lightning that headed towards the attacking dragon. An enraged howl shook the earth and Inuyasha swiftly planted himself in front of Kagome to shield her against the pressure of the powerful blast.

When the light subsided and the smoke and dust finally settled, there was no trace of the dragon youkai, aside from its scattered skeleton.

"A-amazing," Inuyasha heard Miroku murmur in awe behind him. Kagome ran towards the dragon remains, quickly located the shards, and purified them.

The hanyou quickly tested the air for Naraku's scent but it seemed as though Sesshomaru's attack annihilated all traces. He turned to his companions. "We need to go. I ain't letting Naraku escape this time."

"No," Kagome said. Inuyasha turned to her but the miko was looking at the daiyoukai.

"Whaddya mean 'no'? We're going!"

Instead of answering him, Kagome walked up to Sesshomaru fearlessly. "Let me clean your wounds, Sesshomaru-sama."

"The hell you are!" Inuyasha bellowed. What the hell is she thinking?! "He's tried to kill you before and now you want to help the bastard?"

"He's hurt! Look at his wounds!"

"Miko," Sesshomaru said tonelessly. "I do not need your concern."

"See? He doesn't even need your help!" Inuyasha was furious now. He stormed towards Kagome, planning to drag her towards Kirara, but it was too late because the subjugation beads began to glow and slammed him hard to the ground. By the time he got up, Kagome was already in an argument with Sesshomaru.

Damn, does she have a death wish or something? Sango and Miroku stood nearby, their faces in complete and utter shock at Kagome's temerity to face the ruthless inu-youkai.

"Your insolence will cost you your life. Do not test my patience." Sesshomaru let out a feral growl, his eyes blazing in outrage. He cracked his claws in warning.

"Do you want Rin to see you in that state?" countered Kagome. Inuyasha saw his half-brother stiffen and for a second, he thought he was going to attack the woman. But he merely glared at her.

"Very well." Sesshomaru walked to a nearby tree and sat. Kagome grinned triumphantly and took her backpack with her.

To everyone's amazement, the daiyoukai wordlessly removed his armor and let the top part of his kimono fall off, revealing a laceration that ran deep. Blood smeared his pale skin.

Inuyasha glared at his half-brother, his suspicions beginning to mount. Why does he always let Kagome win an argument instead of lopping her head off for her goddamn attitude?