Kagome sighed. Ever since leaving her house, Inuyasha had grumbled and sulked. She knew that he had a point: they really did need to get the shards of the Shikon Jewel before Naraku, but she had a life to live here as well. Plus, as the technical heir of her family’s shrine, she was in charge of handling these kinds of things.
At least she wasn’t required to wear those miko robes . . . she had enough problems looking like Kikyo; she didn’t want to dress like her as well.
As they entered Nerima, she started noticing something was off. It took her a while to figure out what it was though. When she finally looked beside her, she found Inuyasha, as tense as a wire, glancing from side to side with a hand on his sword.
“What’s wrong?” she asked worriedly.
The inu hanyou (half dog demon) looked at her, and she was shocked at the amount of weariness and fear in those eyes. She had never seen that look in his eyes before!
“I sense something . . . powerful. It may even be more than one person, but whoever it is, they more powerful than anything I’ve ever sensed.”
Kagome blinked, confused, “Wait, what do you mean, sense?”
The hanyou shrugged uncomfortably. “All youkai and hanyou have the ability to sense each other, as well as particularly powerful humans. It doesn’t play into our search much, ‘cause most of our enemies are not as powerful as I am.” Kagome expected him to swell in pride, but he said this almost matter of fact. “Still, whatever we face . . . no, it seems to be a small group of people . . . they’re tough.”
Kagome couldn’t help but stare at him confused. This was so far out of her usual experiences with the usually gruff half demon that she was completely lost.
She was so lost, that she didn’t even notice a giggling sound behind her until Inuyasha tensed and stared.
Turning around, she found a tall, green haired woman staring at them. “My, I see that both of you have grown quite well.”
Kagome started, and then jumped at the woman, squealing, “Auntie Setsuna! What are you doing here?”
As the young girl glomped her aunt, Inuyasha asked in shock, “Setsuna? Aunt Setsuna?!? What the hell is going on here?!?”
The black haired school girl turned to quiet her companion, but Setsuna cut her off. “Why, I am full of surprises, Inu-chan.”
Kagome whirled in shock and confusion, but Setsuna just shrugged. “Demons aren’t the only ones with incredibly long life spans. Still, that explanation can wait until later.” She then turned to Inuyasha. “You’ve grown so well. It almost seems like yesterday when you we first met; you were such a cute child back then . . . “
Kagome kept looking between the two of them, mind frozen and lost, when Inuyasha gently took her away from her aunt figure. “When I was a kid, I came across a sorceress, feared by the nearby villages, in a forest. I was being chased by some humans at the time, and she came by and scared them off. I stayed with her for over two months, as she took care of my wounds and taught me a bit about fighting. After I left, I tried to come back and visit, but it was like she wasn’t there in the first place . . . I know she was human, but . . . “
Setsuna grinned softly. “I have lived an incredibly long life, and I tend to make a habit of stepping in and helping where needed. Still, that is something to talk about later, as we have important business to work on now.” She then started leading them in a different direction to where they were going before.
Kagome, eager to get some answers, tried to follow, but Inuyasha held her back. “That’s where THEY are,” he hissed, worriedly.
“Kagome blinked, but Setsuna chimed in, “Be at peace, Inuyasha. None shall harm you under my watch; the strong auras you sense belong to a group of martial artists who have become strong in the ways of ki. They are joined by my adopted daughter, who has a power all her own to handle, and the one we are here to assist, who has begun working on harnessing chi. There are several others, but they are here more for experience than power, so to speak.”
Inuyasha calmed as he remembered the first ten words that Setsuna had ever said to him, but Kagome was not silenced. “Chi? Ki? What are you talking about?”
Oddly enough, it was her companion that answered her, showing a sense of knowledge that surprised her. “Ki is kind of like youkai, except that only humans have it, and you can’t use it as easily as demons can. Closest thing I can compare it to is your spirit energy, which you use instinctively; it took Kikyo years to get as far as you have. Chi, on the other hand, is energy found in nature. I heard that there are people who can use to purify and heal, and it’s actually a lot friendlier to certain demons if used correctly.”
When Kagome gave him a shocked look, he kind of shrugged sheepishly. “Setsuna told me tales of people like that . . . it’s what lead me to give Kikyo a chance . . . and one for you too.”
Kagome nodded, though she was still a bit lost. However, by the time she managed to word her next question correctly, their guide called out, “We’re here.”
/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/
As they entered the Neko Hanten, they were surprised to see a young man, wearing a Chinese style tangs, waiting for them. As they got closer, he looked at Setsuna and said, “He’s not human.”
Inuyasha tensed and got in front of Kagome, but Setsuna replied, “He’s a half demon.”
“Is he good or bad?”
Inuyasha bristled at this, but Setsuna cut him off, “He’s one of the best; I can vouch for that.”
With that, the odd teenager nodded and glanced at Kagome. “Her aura feels purer than normal, but it doesn’t look like she’s been trained as a miko or a priestess.”
Inuyasha started growling, ready to attack if anything happened, but again, Setsuna replied, “She is the reincarnation of a powerful miko from the Feudal Era. Her powers are mostly instinctive though. Still, she can sense evil coming from miles away. Inuyasha is her protector and friend, and takes care of anything else she needs defense-wise.”
The youth nodded, and then held out his hand, “Name’s Saotome Ranma, Journeymage Chi Wizard and a master of Matsubetsu Kakuto Ryuu.”
Inuyasha eyed the hand warily, and then took it. “Inuyasha, inu hanyou.”
He then stepped aside for Kagome to shake hands. As she did so, she was shocked to feel the amount of pure power resonating in him. “I-I’m Higurashi Kagome.”
As introductions ended, Setsuna lead them into the back, where an old crone (“Elder Cologne of the Chinese Amazons; It’s a pleasure to meet both of you.”), a taller, yet still old man (“Call me Uncle. It is a great honor to meet such an infamous hero as yourself!”), a young girl about Kagome’s age (“Name’s Chan Jade. Nice to meet you!”), and, most astonishing to Kagome, Sailor Saturn (who just nodded).”
As they took their seats around the table, Kagome was due for one last surprise, as Setsuna transformed, “Auntie Setsuna . . . YOUR SAILOR PLUTO?!?”
Pluto giggled, causing Saturn to stare in shock at her, “I have lived a long and interesting life; I met your mother back in college, which I attended for a laugh, to be honest, but I have done that several times throughout history.”
Kagome gaped at this, but Inuyasha nudged her and asked, “What the hell are you talking about.”
Kagome, slightly out of it, replied, “There’s this group in Juuban called the Senshi, who fight off demons with these really cool magical attacks. It’s kind of an urban legend.”
Inuyasha tensed at hearing this, but Pluto laughed, “Actually, we tend to fight youma, who are more or less minor demons who can drain the ki out of normal humans. I seriously doubt any of the other girls are ready to handle a real demon yet, especially one as skilled as you are; even then, I wouldn’t allow any of them to harm you.”
“Yeah, though how you can fight anything in those costumes is lost to me,” Ranma sniped good-naturedly.
Setsuna gave him a mysterious smile, “True, the committee who developed these was made up of perverted old men, but they are designed to be Class S magical armor, and are remarkably comfortable to fight in. If you don’t believe me, we can let you try one out . . . “
“No thanks!” Ranma yelped, backing off.
This caused both newcomers to stare at him oddly, but Setsuna just turned around, whispered something in Saturn’s ear (who had gasped at her last statement), and then told the two of them, “You’ll see soon.”
She then lead the group over to a large round table. Ranma and Cologne took up seats next to each other, as did Uncle and Jade. Sailor Saturn and Inuyasha, on other hand, took up guarding positions behind Luto and Kagome, respectively.
“To begin with,” Cologne stated, “I need to give all of you a brief summary of events. Earlier this week, Ranma here came across a book that has started him on the path to Chi Wizardry. The problem with this is that Chi Wizards tend to draw Dark Chi Wizards to them, and the one that has shown up has us in a stalemate, which is rapidly dissolving in his favor. Ranma lacks the experience necessary to deal with this, and the rest of us here in Nerima lack the strength to back him up. This is why I sent for help.”
Pluto and Uncle nodded at this, but Inuyasha summed up both his and Kagome’s feelings, “That’s good and all, but what are we here to do, anyways?”
The emerald haired senshi replied, “As a guardian of the Gates of Time and someone with previous experience with Chi Wizards in general, I can advise our small party on what needs to be done to get rid of this pest. Also, I represent a small party of magical warriors who can help in moderately large scale fights, though most lack the experience in dealing with such enemies.”
“Uncle is Chi Wizard, a Talisman Master, to be precise,” said old man added, “I have dealt with many Dark Wizards in my time, so I can also help with advice. One more thing: Uncle also has experience with warding, so that the forces of evil cannot harm us in our own homes.”
“And Ranma, though he is a brilliant fighter,” Cologne finished, “is also our only heavy hitter in this battle. The only other thing that can stand against an evil of this type is you, Inuyasha. Pluto has told us enough about you, and we feel that you can help us accordingly. Likewise, Kagome’s experience with Spirit Energy, while rudimentary, can help us heal any wounded civilians or support, and there will be many of those.”
“Yeah, but what do we get out of this deal, anyways?”
“Inuyasha!” Kagome snapped at the half dog demon, incensed, but Cologne’s cackle cut her off before she could ‘sit’ him.
“My dear, it would be remiss of us to call for allies without having some kind of offering to give them. In fact, I believe our alliance will help us all, in one way or another.”
“What do you mean?” Jade asked, curious.
Instead of one of the typical sources of information answering her, Ranma snorted, “It’s simple. In your case, you helping us also gets you and your Uncle further training in the Art.”
As Jade nodded, a curious gleam in the teenage girl’s eye, Pluto added, “Despite my sources of knowledge, there are things I can’t see or calculate for, and this event has given me a chance to right some problems that will be happening further into the future. While I cannot go into great detail about this, there is something coming that the Senshi and I will not be able to handle, as it carries considerable immunity to our brand of magic. Before Saotome-san discovered the book, it looked as if there would be no Chi Wizards of a high enough level that could assist us.”
“However, with this change in the timeline, we now have the possibility of having two Chi Wizards of considerable strength to ally with us, as well as several others.”
“Woah, Uncle is going to get even stronger?” Jade asked, having previous knowledge of the many wondrous things that Uncle could do.
Inuyasha couldn’t help but scoff at the idea of the old man being that tough, but Uncle could only sigh sadly, “No, Jade. If Pluto is talking about what I think she is talking about, then Uncle will not be able to help.”
Jade gaped at this, stunned, as she whispered, “You mean, you mean that you may . . . “
Pluto quickly interrupted, “While there are ways to extend Uncle’s life (and personally, I do hope that he’ll take one of them), they would also disconnect him from the flow of Chi. He could live, but either way, he would still be of little help aside from an advisement position.”
“Then . . . then Tohru-“
“Tohru still has much to learn, and I fear he will not be ready for what may come,” Uncle kindly told the girl.
“Indeed,” Pluto added, “Besides, we would need at least one Chi user to guard the base, so to speak, which would keep Tohru from assisting us at all.”
“Then . . . who are you talking about?” Jade asked, confused and curious.
Ranma answered it by drawling, “Well, I get the feeling that you might be a faster learner than expected.”
This shut Jade up, as her mind froze, dealing with the idea that she could become a Chi Wizard like Ranma . . . and then heated up as several other fantasies came to mind. Needless to say, the blushing girl wasn’t about to say much else.
“That’s all well and good, but what do you have to offer us?” Inuyasha inquired.
Ranma smirked, “Well for one thing, I can teach you how to fight better than you can.”
“I know how to fight!” the white haired hanyou snapped.
“Yeah, but there’s always room for improvement. I mean, since you have no master to teach you, you’ve probably just picked up all your skills from what works. I can teach you stuff like that in less time than it would to pick up on your own, meaning you can fight better, faster.”
This silenced Inuyasha, as he thought through the straight forward logic he was confronted with. “You . . . you’ve got a point . . . “ he grumbled.
“Also,” Pluto added, “Chi energy is not that different from spirit energy, so Ranma can also tutor Kagome on her own skills. It would help you and your group to become better fighters in the end.”
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(Posted Wed, 09 Jun 2010 20:56)
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