I See You [Sesshomaru]

Chapter 59

        Kagome nervously tapped a finger against her upper leg. Sesshomaru had left only moments ago with all of his soldiers and a handful of those that had come from the Southern Lands from the Hawk Clan. But there were still quite a few of them left behind and she at first wondered how all of them had managed to fit in the gardens. Everyone was whispering about who this supposed fifth commander could be. Some wondered if it would be the lord's servant, Jaken, but when he left on the back of A-Uh that theory was squashed. It could have even been one of the ladies from other households that would be going to war with them, but none could really see reasoning behind that logic. They would have been sent to the said household instead of coming all the way to the Western Lands. Then there was the presence of the pack and all the attention shifted towards the former queen, Aisu. Sure the history between the lord's ancestors and her followers had not ended on a pleasant note long ago they had allied once more in recent years. Without her heir, who had met an untimely death at the hands of Lord Orochi, all power would fall to her once more. And the fact that the pack was still mingling about, the alpha wolf having retreated to the household and yet to return, all believed that she would be the one to lead them in the surprise attack.

        "Don't be so nervous," Sango muttered at the older teen's side. The young woman was strapped with gear she would take on her demon hunting jobs, a poison canceling mask resting on her collarbone from the string hanging around the neck. Though dressed in the uniform she would always wear during their travels she looked completely different. More fearsome that would have the horde worrying that there was a demon slayer in their presence. "She's going to do fine." Even Kagome looked different. Wearing her school uniform would not be in her best interest to wear during the battle. Akiko had seen to it that she was given a priestess kimono someone would use to fight in. One sleeve was cut off at the shoulder that she would use to draw her bow, the other not as long at the end so to not get caught on anything as the fabric reached the wrist. Leg guards covered the pants that would normally billow out at the bottom, which struck Kagome as odd as this wasn't traditional for Japanese war attire. Tatara had said something about all of them protecting themselves from snake bites, as the ends of the fabric tucked into black boots, which would do some damage if kicking a demon. She even wore arm guards. Her hair had been pulled back into a bun to keep the strands out of her face and was accompanied by two long needles that took on the appearance of chopsticks at the top. Those were courtesy of Sango in case they grew separated or she was left without a bow. She had a means to always protect herself.

        "I'm more so worried about the reaction from everyone here," Kagome spoke lowly. "They have it in their minds as to who will lead them now and stand behind the pack... what if that's not felt towards the real commander since they have been in hiding for so long?" What if they thought Akiko was a coward and refused to stand alongside her?

        "You're overthinking it."

        "Yeah, don't worry, Kagome," Shippo spoke from her shoulder. "Everything will be just fine."

        The doors to the compound began to open drawing all of their attention, whispers falling away to silence, as the anticipation was almost too much to handle for some. There were collective gasps from those at the front, humans, demons, and half-demons trying to crane their necks to see whom it was over the crowd. But Kagome could clearly see her cousin emerge with Aisu and Tobi on either side. She looked completely different from the other times her demonic aura was present, looking more like a half-demon than a human with a few feature changes.

        "She's grown stronger," Inuyasha commented. He could sense it from her aura as Shippo, Miroku, and Sango nodded in agreement.

        Akiko could only see the first three or so rows of her army, but needed to be able to address all of them. So with every step she now took the ice collected around the ground and spread out. Steps protruded out of the grass allowing the young woman to stand higher and become visible to all in attendance. And the collective gasps grew further, leaving many speechless with slack jaws as to who their commander was. It was the heir to the north back from the dead.