In the Beholders Eye

Written By Sarga

May/June 2006

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of the characters, I'm just taking a theme and running with it...

Summary: Naraku, scourge of Japan's feudal times, is defeated. The mighty Shikon No Tama, the sacred jewel, is whole. A wish takes place leaving Kagome in a life-altering situation. What will become of everyone?

An FYI: The first few chapters are just leading up to the good part. Stick with it and you'll be happy with the result (if not...well, let me know why REVIEW!)

THIS STORY DOES NOT CONTAIN "ADULT" CONTENT, however, there is some gore in the second last chapter.

Enjoy!

- Sarga

Inuyasha stood tall, Tetsusaiga fully extended, his enemy lurking beyond his vision. A thick white fog clouded the air about them.

'I know he's here, I can smell his stench,' Inuyasha mused with a sneer.

"COME OUT AND SHOW YOURSELF!" he demanded to the mist.

A guttural laugh seemed to emanate from all directions. "Like this?" the disembodied voice asked.

A brown earthy tendril shot past Inuyasha as he barely dodged the attack. Hacking at the exposed arm, it fell and writhed aimlessly on the ground. The naturally formed mist suddenly cleared and the laughing started once more.

Naraku stood in the distance, the only recognizable part of his body being his head. His once humanoid form was replaced by his true form, that of earthen tendrils in a thick mass, partially covered by a white baboon cloak.

Another tendril shot towards Inuyasha. This time it was severed by Sango's hiraikotsu as she came to the aid of her long time friend. More tendrils shot towards the pair, and one managed to grab the slayer's leg, dangling her upside down. Inuyasha slashed her free and gracefully caught her as she plummeted.

"Is that all you got?" Inuyasha demanded of his demon foe, laying Sango gently to her feet.

The response was not what Inuyasha expected; joyous laughter. Glaring at his enemy, Inuyasha soon saw the cause of this, a dangling Kagome struggling for air. Inuyasha leaped away from the tendrils shooting towards him only to be ensnared like Kagome. The hiraikotsu released Inuyasha from the death grip and he ran once more to Kagome's aid.

"Windscar!" he roared. Waves of power sliced through Naraku's appendage, causing Kagome to fall unconscious to the ground. Her jewel shards gleamed from the bottle around her neck, moving into view as she impacted the grassy earth. More tendrils raced Inuyasha towards the prone miko.

Grasping her in his arms, Inuyasha raced back to the forest where Shippo crouched hiding behind a fallen tree. Miroku lay in a sweat, having sucked in Naraku's poison insects. He had done it to take in Kagura and Kanna, clearing the way for the others to reach Naraku.

"Damn! Where'd Kikyo go! She was supposed to protect you three!" He growled at Shippo, gently laying Kagome next to Miroku.

Frightened, Shippo stammered a reply. "She said she was going to kill Naraku, something about him outliving his usefulness."

With that, a blinding flash of light zipped past the hiding group. An explosion ripped through Naraku, knocking him one way and Sango another.

"Die Naraku!" shouted Kikyo as another arrow zipped forward. Her angry words mimicked those she had spoken because of Naraku's deceit so many years before.

Naraku dodged the second arrow with obvious exertion. He called his pieces together and started to re-form his broken body. Inuyasha ran back into the fray and he, Sango and Kikyo continued their attack.

"Why Kikyo?" Naraku teased, fully re-formed. "After all of the help you gave me in collecting the shards, you now wish to see me perish? Has someone pitted you against me?"

Kikyo responded in a rage Inuyasha had never seen from her. She blindly ran towards the demon, bow drawn ready to cast him into hell. A seemingly invisible tendril appeared from nowhere, grasping her by the throat. More tendrils shot towards her, seeking to keep hold as they had neglected to do with Kagome.

Inuyasha rushed forward, ignorant of the fact that yet more tendrils sought him out.

"Inuyasha!" Sango warned, but too late as the half-demon was torn from the ground, tetsusaiga ripped from his grasp. The tendrils sought out the last remaining threat, Sango, as she fought her way towards her captured allies.

Skillfully dodging the majority of his attacks, Sango was finally taken hostage, engulfed by the demon they had all sought so desperately to destroy.

"How does it feel, Inuyasha," mocked the demon. "To know that all of your efforts are gone to waste, that every last hope you had in this world will be crushed under..."

All of the hostages dropped to the ground.

Flashes of mystical blue light zipped past them and struck their target again...and again...and again.

In a brilliant explosion of energy, body parts began fly from the shell of a demon. All of the parts that had once formed something so powerful disintegrated into dust, the source of his power, that tiny jewel, falling innocently to the grass below.

Naraku was no more.

End of Chapter

- Sarga