Kaya's Story (An InuYasha Fanfic)

Chapter 80: Enter Hakudoshi, Naraku's New Incarnation

Not too long after Rengokuki and Entei retreated, we found a village that had been reduced to smoldering rubble. Rengokuki and Entei had definitely been there and Shippo found the clue to where they were. We ran off in the direction of where Entei's hoof prints pointed only to be stopped by the scent of Entei approaching at a rapid pace. When Entei arrived, we barely dodged his fire attack. InuYasha and I retaliated with our wind scar attacks, but both of them were blocked by a demonic barrier. That was when Entei's rider spoke, but it wasn't Rengokuki. It was a child who claimed to be the infant that had been split in two by Monk Shinsen. It made sense considering he was an incarnation of Naraku. The child explained his name was Hakudoshi and that Entei had chosen him as his new rider. He also explained that the reason he had been searching for the border between this world and the next was so he could find the Jewel Shard that was there. Kagura showed up not long after that and after InuYasha used his wind scar again, the two demons left using the safety of a demonic barrier.

It had been several days since our encounter with Hakudoshi, but everything seemed quiet. Miroku and Sango had left on Kirara to go see if any Shrine keepers or monks had been attacked. We had stopped for lunch so they would be able to find us easier. Kagome had started the fire and InuYasha took off trying to find any sign of Hakudoshi. I left to gather firewood, but on my way back to Kagome and Shippo I started to sense a demonic aura. I took off at a dead sprint and got back to our spot just in time to see InuYasha take care of the demon with his claws. This demon was strange in more ways than one. The aura surrounding it was much weaker than it should have been for that type of demon, plus it was missing its head. "Was it always like that?" I asked the other three. They looked at me confused and I pointed at where the head should be. Before any of them could answer, Miroku, Sango, and Kirara returned. Miroku and Sango asked the same question I did, and Kagome informed them that it was headless from the beginning. Then Miroku and Sango mentioned something about random moving demonic auras, and I felt like this had a lot to do with Hakudoshi. Demons are hard to kill, so if he wants to find the border between this world and the next, demons were his best option. When InuYasha said something about poor swordsmanship, it started to make more sense than before. That child wouldn't have known how to properly do anything with that stolen blade of his. We left shortly after our conversation, hoping to get more leads on what was going on.

We had traveled several more days before we found a village that had been attacked by a headless demon. Miroku volunteered us for the mission of slaying the demon and our group headed for the nearby mountain. The swath of destruction left behind by the demon made it easy enough to find. When we did find it, a young girl was being chased by it and Shippo jumped in to save her. InuYasha kept the girl and Shippo from getting killed, but the girl jumped on top of InuYasha trying to stop him. The three of them barely missed getting kicked by the huge demon, but when the demon thrust its fist down on them the young girl was sent flying. When she landed, I saw a puff of smoke and the girl was replaced by a small otter demon. After InuYasha killed the large demon that had attacked, we sat down with the otter demon for an explanation. Kanta, the small otter demon, explained he was looking for his father and was carrying his father's head around in the bundle he carried. After a boy in white riding a demon horse appeared, Kanta's father had been attacked and beheaded, but his head had been swept away in the current. Kanta went after it to bring it back to his father, but his father's body had disappeared and in his search to find it was how he ran into us. After Kanta finished his story, Miroku revealed they had come to the same conclusion I had about what was going on. InuYasha joined the conversation and explained to the others what I already knew. If Kanta could find his Father soon and replace his head, Kanta's father would revive. Shippo then volunteered InuYasha for the search and started telling Kanta how strong InuYasha was. He then added a few negative things earning him a knot on the head, courtesy of InuYasha. Shortly after our conversation, we took off.

Around dusk, InuYasha and I caught the scent of Kanta's father, but his blood was present too. Not that we mentioned that to the small otter child. Soon we came across a village that was yelling about a headless demon, with the scent not far ahead we figured the headless demon had been Kanta's father. The closer we got to the scent, the more I noticed another scent that filled me with dread. Sesshomaru was dangerously close to Kanta's father, which couldn't be good. When we reached the source of the scent, Sesshomaru was there. Shippo and Kanta hurried to replace the head, but it fell over and didn't reattach. I knew how this small otter felt. Kagome's voice pulled me out of my daze. She was asking Sesshomaru to use Tenseiga to help Kanta, but he declined by saying it didn't involve him. "Think of how this boy feels. Think about how you felt the day your father died. Sesshomaru, please," I pleaded. Sesshomaru just started walking away without a word. Shippo ran in front of Sesshomaru, stopping him in his tracks and begged him to save Kanta's father. InuYasha told Shippo he was wasting his time because only someone with a caring heart can use Tenseiga. Sesshomaru agreed and took a step forward before stopping and turning toward Kanta and his Father. He drew Tenseiga and slashed through something. For a moment, nothing happened, but then Kanta's father began to stir. A few tears came to my eyes as Kanta ran to his father and they embraced. I was happy that he got more time with his father. As Kanta's father was removing the human weapons from his back, he began to tell us about a place he had seen when he was headless. He told us that it was a place shrouded in white mist, but below them was a large skeleton clad in armor. Kagome, InuYasha, and Sesshomaru knew what place he was talking about, but none of the rest of us did. Kanta's father then thanked us for saving him, but by that time Sesshomaru had walked away without a word.

The next morning, we walked with Kanta and his father to the nearby river to see them off. As they were saying their good-byes, I got glimpses of my father. I knew Shippo had gotten some of his, too. After the two otter demons swam off, we began breaking down the information we had learned. A world of white mist and giant bones. InuYasha told us he had been there before, but he sounded sad about it and a thought occurred to me. Father had told me Inu No Taisho didn't have a regular grave like humans, so maybe this place shrouded in mist was his final resting place. Whether it was or not wasn't important right now. What was important was making sure Hakudoshi and Naraku don't find it first.