The Sacred Wishing Jewel Ch. 12

[mrs-koki.livejournal.com]

Title: The Sacred Wishing Jewel
Author: Mrs_Koki ( me)
Pairing: KoKi Tanaka/ Inu-Kame
Disclaimer: Owning people is illegal...common though, historically
Genre: AU, fantasy, demons, fantasy violence, human and half demon sex
Rating: PG ( NC-17 for later chapters as Koki and Inu-Kame get closer)
Length: Multi-chapter.
Summary: Koki is a 22 year old human guy, living a normal but unsatisfied and restless life, gets pulled into Japan's feudal past by an otherworldly creature, where he crosses paths with a dog like half-demon named Inu-Kame. There he discovers his past and future and that not all legends are the work of the imagination. Can ancient history give Koki the answers he's looking for and settle his restless heart? Will price be too high to pay for such answers and will he be able to bare the cost? 
A/N: Later chapters Koki and only Koki, will start calling "Inu-Kame" just Kame, everyone else will still refer to him as 'Inu-Kame'








“ Then you insist upon avenging your clan folk...Now matter what?” the Prince asks.

Sango nods.

“ In that case, allow me to assign Naraku here to be your attendant. This man is my advisor, well versed in the subject of demons. He’ll be a useful ally. If you are able to fulfill your mission..I hope you return to me.” The prince finishes and sends Sango on her way.


“ It is impossible to go further on horseback..well..can you walk?” Naraku asks.

Sango just lays against the tree with her eyes closed.

“ Sango..? Huh..So she has died, has she?”

“ Are you..mad? I will not die until I kill InuKame!”

“ Heh..that’s all well and good. But how will you be able to fight..with those wounds?”

“ To exterminate demons...is my destiny!” Sango uses her Boomerang Bone to aid her in following Naraku.


Back at Sango’s village.....


“ This village, it functioned as a smithy as well. They forged weapons and armor from the bones and hides of the demons they exterminated. What remained of the corpses was taken to the outskirts of the village...deep into this cave.” Myoga says from InuKame’s shoulder as the party stops at entrance of a vast cave.

“ This is where the Wishing Jewel was born?” Koki asks then the smell from the cave hits his nostrils.  Koki stops as the monk and half demon keep going, he had a bad experience with caves once as a child and he’s avoided them ever since.


“ Are you coming, Koki?!” Shippo calls from Miroku’s shoulder.

“ You know, Master Koki, if you’re uneasy about coming in...feel free to lean on me.” Miroku offers.


“ Hey! I know what you’re after, lech!”

“ I’m fine...I just don’t care for caves much.” Koki says as they head deeper into the cave system.

They stop when they see the bones of a very large demon wearing armor. They’re shocked to say the least, it appeared to be mummified and part human.

“ What..in the hell is this?” Koki asks.

“ Myoga! What is this, old man?” InuKame asks.

“ Just what it looks like.”

“ If I knew what it looked like I wouldn’t have asked!”

“ You don’t know either, do you?” Shippo asks.

“ A mummified demon?” Koki asks.

“ Is it...a demon? she may have fused with a demon, but this part at least...appears to be..human.” Miroku says.

‘Human? What could that whole in her chest be.? Something about this bothers me..’ Koki thinks looking at the mummified corpse.

“ In the end, it seems we will need to ask a villager after all.” InuKame says.


In the end they decide to head towards the exterminators last know location...the castle in which they met their end. Unknowingly in the same forest as Naraku and Sango.


“ Are you in pain, Sango?” Naraku asks, seeing her crumple to the ground on one knee.

“ D-damn it..”

“ I feel for you..and I know that if you die like this, you will not be able to find peace in death. Do you want to try this...?” Naraku asks holding up a jewel shard.


‘ A Wishing shard?!’ Sango thinks shocked only to ask, “ How did you come to possess that?! Who are you?”

“ I have had this in my hands for quite a while. I’m offering to let you use it. You seem to be under the impression that the Wishing Jewel is an evil object, but it has good uses as well..” Naraku answers.

While Sango is deciding to use the shard or not, InuKame and company make their way through the forest.


“ I’m not complaining or anything, InuKame, but can’t we take a break for a little while?” Miroku asks.

“ What? You’re the one who wanted to go to the castle and meet up with them as soon as possible!”

“ I know but it seems like Master Koki’s starting to tire out from such a non stop march through woods.”

“ Do you need to stop, Koki?” InuKame asks.

“ Yeah kind of..I haven’t gotten much sleep in two days and haven’t eaten anything since yesterday.”  Kirara looks up at Koki from his shoulder.

“ Aren’t we a spoiled prince!”

“ Oi! I’ve been keeping up rather well but I’m only human! Trying to keep with you with your demon powers will probably kill me!”


“ You could show a little more compassion towards him, InuKame. Its not enough to merely to say you like him.” Miroku says interrupting Koki’s and InuKame’s shouting match.

“Eh?!”

“ Lord InuKame..how long have you two been that close?!” Myog shouts.

“ Oh shut up...all of yo...huh?” InuKame’s ears turn in the direction of the whirring noise, Kirara perks up as well.


A large boomerang splits the nearby trees and InuKame grabs Koki and putting himself between the weapon and Koki. Miroku and Shippo duck in time.

“ What the...? Who is that?” Koki asks from under InuKame’s arm.

“ So you’re InuKame! Well...I’m your death!”

“ Who?”

“ Sango!”

“ One of the villagers?!”

“ Boomerang Bone!” She shouts and throws her boomerang at InuKame.

“ Lord InuKame! You mustn’t fight her!” the old flea pleads.

“ She hasn’t give me a choice!” He pulls his sword.

“ Fang of Steel!” Tetsusaiga morphs in time to block the attack.

“ The Tetsusaiga is being pushed back!!” Miroku shouts as the boomerang returns to its owner.

“ Not much room for discussion here, now is there...?” InuKame asks the flea angrily, then turns his attention to his attacker.

“ Why in the hell are you attacking me?!”

“ Shut up, you half breed mutt! Vengeance for my people!” she throws it again.

“ Vengeance?! Myoga what’s she talking about?”“

“ How should I know?!”

“ We have to get that damn thing away from her!” Koki says, pissed at the woman’s insults. InuKame ducks from the attack.

“ Indeed...” Miroku opens up his wind tunnel, “ Wind Tunnel!”

About six wasps surround the boomerang as hordes of them go after Miroku, Shippo and Koki.

“ Those wasps..!”

“ No, Miroku...If they sting you, the venom will kill you!” Shippo shouts.

“ Why are they here?”! Miroku asks.

“ No..don’t tell me..”

Naraku appears just behind Sango. He sees the shard hanging around Koki’s neck.

“ Naraku!!” Koki and Miroku shout in unison.

“ Hehehe, do be good and die for once, will you? Naraku asks.

“ You..! Let’s end this...NOW!!” InuKame shouts and charges Naraku. Only for Sango to use her chains and wrap it around the half demon’s ankle, yanking him to the ground.

“ Release him!” Koki shouts.

“ I’m your opponent, beast!”

“ You! Stay out of my way...or I’ll kill you first!” InuKame growls.

“ Just go ahead and try!”

“ Sh-she thinks InuKame was the one who attacked her village!” Shippo says to Koki from his shoulder.

“ Its just another one of Naraku’s tricks.” Koki says then sees the shard in her back. ‘ That girl...has a jewel shard in her back!’

Sango’s boomerang and InuKame’s sword clash repeatedly. He knocks her weapon back and rushes her before it can return to her hands.

“ Before her weapon returns to her...!”

“ Poison Powder!”  

InuKame has to move fast to avoid being poisoned.

“ Poison gas?” InuKame asks, holding his nose. ‘ I can’t get close to her and Koki doesn’t have a bow and arrows either!’ he thinks.

“ Hmph. I see demons with dog ears have sensitive noses too.”

While InuKame debates his next move, Miroku confronts Naraku.

“ Heh, heh, heh..she is indeed a fine exterminator of demons. Well, well...if it isn’t the monk.”

“ Naraku. One of us will kill you..!”

“ I can’t allow that. You see..very soon, all the jewel shards will be mine!”

“ I don’t know what you’re plotting, but..IT ENDS NOW!!” Miroku rushes Naraku as Naraku pulls a sword from lord knows where, but it was too late Miroku cuts off the arm holding the blade.


“ Prepare to die!” he holds Naraku at staff point. The demon just smirks.

“ Huh? InuKame!” Koki shouts.

“ What..?!”

“ Master Koki!” Miroku runs to help but InuKame beat him.

InuKame destroys the arm but the hand stays in tact. He hears a noise above his head and Sango shouting.

“ You murder my village but protect him?!”

“ Watch it!” InuKame grabs Koki leaps out of the way as the Boomerang lands where Koki and InuKame were a few seconds ago. The hand goes unnoticed as it gets closer to Koki and the jewel shard that’s in his possession. It grabs it and makes a speedy retreat back to Naraku.

“ HEY!” Koki shouts.

Miroku looks back and sees the hand re-attaches itself back on Naraku’s arm.

“ Heh heh heh..THIS...is not for you..”

‘ He stole the Wishing shard!’ Koki and InuKame think at the same time.

“ Now that I possess the Wishing Shard, there is no longer any need for me to wait...”

“ Naraku STOP!” InuKame shouts shielding Koki from the vile demon.

“ Farewell, InuKame!”

“ I won’t let you get away!”

Naraku unleashed poisonous vapors making InuKame stop dead in his tracks as he escapes into the sky.

“ Sango..I shall be awaiting you at the castle..Defeat InuKame and then return to me..”

Sango starts to question whether or not she can trust Naraku. She turns as she hears a familiar four legged friend running up to her.

“ Kirara...you’re still alive..?! Follow him, Kirara, and if he does anything suspicious..kill him!” she says to the demon cat, who transforms into her larger size and takes off into the air after Naraku.

“ Naraku...wait!!”  InuKame shouts but Sango’s weapon cuts across his path.

“ InuKame!!” Koki shouts running over but Sango stops him where he’s at...some fifty feet away.

“ Prepare for extermination--here and now!” she screams.

“ Can’t you just give it a rest?!” the half demon asks as she attacks him again.


“ Don’t be an idiot!” he shouts and throws Tetsusaiga and in front of Sango and knocks her weapon from her hands, it lands near Koki. “ If you can’t use reach your weapon..you’re mine!”



“ Poison Dust!”

Sango throws the dust just as InuKame uses his claws to remove her filter mask. She grabs her nose and starts falling back to the ground, InuKame grabs her leg and pulls her away from the poisonous dust.

‘ Why..is he..rescuing me? No! Its a trick!! He‘s the one who slaughtered my village!!’ Sango asks herself.


She takes her short blade out and stabs InuKame in the arm. As Koki runs to catch up.

“ I-InuKame!” He calls.

InuKame looks down at Sango.

“ You fool!!” He pulls the blade from his arm and her hand, “ You still don’t get it, do you?! Naraku’s duping you!!! And meanwhile..you’re here bleeding to death!” He shouts at Sango.

“ Wh...at...?” She looks down and sees blood dripping from her wounds. ‘ I didn’t realize it was so bad..Why haven’t I felt..the pain..?” she thinks watching it drip from her hand.

“ InuKame are you alright?” Koki asks.

“ I am, yeah.” InuKame smiles at Koki.

Sango collapses on the ground at their feet.

“ Waah! She’s dead!” Shippo shouts.

“ No..she’s just passed out!” Koki says kneeling down to Sango’s body.

“ InuKame, this girl..She’s got a Wishing shard implanted in her back..” Koki explains.

“That explains it..From the blood scent on her I could tell she was severely injured from the beginning but...That bastard Naraku stuck the shard into her to keep her fighting until she died.” InuKame says to Koki while Miroku and Kirara chase Naraku.

‘ I can’t lose sight of him!’ Miroku thinks coming to a skidding halt before he falls off the edge of the cliff. “ Blast it!!” he shouts in frustration.

Kirara comes back to give Miroku a lift.


“ Thanks for the lift!” The monk says to Kirara as they get closer to Naraku.


“ Naraku...wait!!” Kirara gets along side Naraku and Miroku takes a swing at him.

All of a sudden two claw like hands come from no where and one grabs Kirara by the neck, and the other grabs Naraku by the arm and slams them both into the ground..hard.

“ Argh!” Miroku grunts as they hit the ground.

“ Don’t underestimate me..” Naraku says and keeps going.

Miroku and Kirara follow Naraku, along with Koki, InuKame, Shippo and an injured Sango.

‘ Can’t move..my body. What’s happened to me? Where am I? Someone’s back..so warm...whose..’ She then wakes up and sees InuKame.

“ You..!” she says outraged.

“ You back among the living?”

“ Let me down! What are you planning to do with me?!”

“ What--?” Koki cuts across InuKame.

“ We’re chasing after Naraku, because he took my wishing shard.” Koki explains.

“ Listen...its Sango right? If you keep swallowing Naraku’s lies, I’m going to drop you right here!” InuKame threatens glad that Koki’s an intelligent human.

“ Wha..” Sango’s surprised.

“ Sheesh InuKame...and you wonder why no one trusts you.” Koki says to InuKame before turning his attention back to Sango, “ Pay him no attention, he may look fierce..but he’s really just big cuddly puppy dog.” Koki knows that if anyone other than him said that...they’d be dead about now.

“ HEY!” InuKame shouts indignantly.

“ You are here, Sango, because Lord InuKame refused to leave you behind in your injured state.” Myoga says jumping on Sango’s shoulder.

“ Elder Myoga....” Sango says.

“ I’m going to speed up!!” InuKame warns before doing just that.


Miroku, Kirara and Naraku face off. Miroku’s astonished to see Naraku’s body.

“ Why so astonished, Monk?” Naraku asks tauntingly.

‘Naraku’s body..’ Miroku thinks then says, “ Its just an illusion.!!”

“ Well, dear monk, there is only one way to tell if its an illusion or not!!”

Naraku sends his demon tendrils flying towards Miroku. The monk swings his staff and slices the tendrils in half, only to look and see them rejoin back into one.

“ Argh! Even when I sever them they flow back into one.....WHOA!” Mirkou shouts before trying to jump out of the way.

One forms a hand and grabs the monk around his ankle, pulling him back. While another one comes flying right at his chest. Miroku tries to block but it makes contact with his body anyway.

‘No...! I’ll be run through!!’ Miroku thinks just as InuKame shows up and cuts the tendril in many pieces.

Naraku’s surprised that InuKame still lives.

“ What the...is that grotesque thing Naraku’s body?” Koki asks.

“....” Sango says nothing.

“ What do you think you’re doing, letting your guard down like that, Miroku!?” InuKame says annoyed.

Then he sees that Mirkou is unconscious and not responding, he has something sticking out of his chest.

“ H-he’s been impaled!” Myoga says in horror from InuKame’s shoulder.

“ Miroku!” Shippo and Koki shout at the same time.

“ Miroku!” InuKame says running over as Naraku attacks again. He looks up in time to see the very thing he just cut...coming right at him and Miroku. He grabs the monk and leaps out of the way.

“ Whew....I thought I was going to die!” The monk wakes up.

“ Huh? There’s not even a hole!” InuKame says putting the monk down.

“ Now that was close...”

“ What’s the idea of collapsing with that dead look on your face!?” InuKame hits Miroku in the head out of annoyance.

“ You’re the one who decided I looked dead!”


“  So, InuKame..you still live. Sango was unable to take you down, eh?” Naraku cuts in.

“ Naraku, it was all your doing, wasn’t it? You’re the one who led the demon horde to the exterminators’ village..and caused its decimation!” InuKame demands.

“ Heh, all I did was inform the demons that the most powerful the exterminators were summoned to the castle..So that the village’s defenses were thin.”

“You...”

“ And your goal was the Wishing shard located in the village?” Miroku asks.

“ Ho..Aren’t we well informed? In the chaos of the slaughter...stealing the shard was a lark.”

“ To own that one shard...you killed all those people..” Koki says to Naraku.

“ Naraku!” Sango shouts.

“ Oh Sango...” Naraku starts...

“ The demon at the castle..was that your doing too!?” She demands.

“ Well...I did need a pretext to lure you exterminators out and means to get rid of you before you realized the truth.”

Sango’s out raged. The images of her dead father and brother come back to her.

“ MURDER!!” She shouts only to fall down in pain.

“ Sango!” Koki says in alarm even though his eyes still show his anger at her for trying to kill InuKame and her insults. ‘ the jewel shard that was suppressing her pain popped out...!’ he thinks as he looks at her back.

She groans in pain.

“ Heh..You’d have been better off dying satisfied that you’d fulfilled your vengeance against InuKame” Naraku laughs.

Angered InuKame charges Naraku, taking him by surprise while his attention was focused on Sango.

“ You MONSTER!! Always playing with playing with people’s hearts!!” he growls.

“ What do you mean InuKame? Are you remembering...Ren!?”

“ Shut up, you filth!” the half demon yells and uses Tetsusaiga to cut Naraku’s head off.

“ Oh..!” Koki’s surprised.

“ He did it...!” Shippo says.

Naraku’s head falls to the ground...laughing.

‘ We did it...at last..Naraku’s finally dead.’ InuKame thinks looking at the head on the ground.

“ Its over...Lady Sango. He’s gone.” Shippo says.

“ I’m not too sure about that Shippo.” Koki says.

“ What do you mean, Koki?” the little fox asks.

“ My jewel shard.” Was all Koki would say.

‘ That was almost too easy...was this really the Naraku that I’ve been pursuing all this time?’ The monk thinks.

‘ What a bitter vengeance..for bringing about Ren’s death...and causing so many others so much pain..’ InuKame thinks before kneeling down to pull the hide head off, “ Let’s see your face at long last!” he removes the covering.

“ What the hell...?!” the head was dissolving where it lay.

They hear a cracking like noise behind them and see the very thing that was trying to kill them before....coming back to life! It goes after InuKame first landing with a ‘thunk’ right where he was standing not two seconds before.

“ Huh?” Koki says out loud. - I knew it!-

“ Th-the body’s moving by itself!” Shippo shouts.

“ Heh heh heh..did you really think...I could die?” the head asks, still laughing.

“ The head’s still alive too?!” Miroku ask, 'Something’s strange..despite this trick. Naraku’s evil aura when we last faced him..was far more powerful that this!’

The tendrils come flying at them again. InuKame and Miroku start chopping away at Naraku’s body. The more they hack at it...the more it reforms. Its starting to frustrate them.

“ He’s becoming whole again!” Koki says not so surprised with that. ‘Is it the Wishing jewel shard’s demonic power?! But no..its not! Otherwise it would’ve dissolved more!’ he thinks as he picks Sango up and moves them both just as it comes after them.

“ Hey! Where are we going!?” Sango asks Koki.

“ Be lucky I don't let Naraku kill you!” He says in her ear before setting her down again.

Letting Koki’s comment slide for the time being Sango turns her attention back to the fight in front of them. ‘ How could I have been such a fool?! I can’t believe I traveled with that wretched demon and never sensed a glimmer of an evil aura! But even now..I still don’t! He’s still not emanating any demonic power! What can he be...? That’s it....I see it now! He’s....’ she thinks then shouts out loud, Target the immobile part!! Target his chest!!”

“ His chest?!” Miroku and InuKame say in unison.

“ So..you’ve caught on..” the head says that has gone unnoticed.

“ IF YOU SAY SO!!” InuKame shouts and slashes at Naraku’s chest, causing him to break apart...the head vanish at the same time.

“ Did we do it this time?” Shippo asks.

“ He’s turning to earth...huh! A doll...” Miroku says.

“ A doll..you said?!” InuKame asks.

“ With a strand of hair wrapped around it. This is a golem spell. This hair must be Naraku’s, we have been battling a construct of mud and magic. The real Naraku is most likely holed up somewhere...manipulating this thing from a safe distance.” The monk explains as Koki walks over and stands near InuKame.

“ So..it was destroyed.” The real Naraku says.

“ Young Master, what was that sound..?” The old attendant asks.

“ It was nothing, old man...nothing.” he says to the old guy and then out loud to himself, “ Heh..I have destroyed the exterminators’ village, taken possession of some jewel shards..conquered this castle and borrowed a form that gives me concealment and power.”


“ By the seven hells! What is wrong with that exterminator wench?! How can she not remember the location of the castle--or the face of that suspicious young lord?!” InuKame asks annoyed.

“ Shut up and keep cleaning. Remember who we are up against here, Naraku  no doubt thought to enchant her so that if his evil deeds were exposed...She would be unable to find her way back to him. Beside which..even if she does remember with those injuries..it would be unwise to move her right now.” Miroku says stoking the fire.

“ She’s been asleep for ten days now. If it were me, those scrapes would have been healed in three days.” InuKame responds.


“ If it were ME, I don’t know that I’d ever have gotten out of bed. Besides, if it were Koki...would you so inclined to move him?” the monk counters.


“ Lady Sango..Time to change your band...oh!” Koki says but sees the Sango has wandered off.

“ She’s gone!” Shippo says.

Sango found the graves of her people that InuKame and the others took the time to make. That’s where Koki and Shippo find her.

“ Lady Sango, please...you shouldn’t be moving around yet..”

“ These graves...”

“ What?”

“ You gave them all proper burials?”

“ Oh..yeah we did.”

Sango just looks at the graves...not saying anything.

“ Such anger...” she says after a minute.

“ Huh?”

“ In your eyes....I’ve never seen such anger.” she says to Koki.

“ Hey, um...I don’t know exactly what to say, but...” -I can’t tell her to cheer up..this girl’s all alone in the world now- Koki thinks before continuing, “ Listen, when you get well...Do you want to come with us? I mean InuKame and the monk Miroku are both good people...fundamentally.” he offers even though she did try to kill InuKame repeatedly.

“ Fundamentally?” Shippo asks.

“ You..had a Wishing Jewel shard, didn’t you?” Sango asks.

“ Yeah, and we managed to get it back from the fake Naraku...”

“ Which means Naraku will come after it again, yes..?”

Koki nods.

“ In that case...I’ll go with you.”

“ Lady Sango..are you planning to avenge everyone?”

“ Of course. Besides, the Wishing Jewel...”

“ Was born in this village, wasn’t it? Originally, we came here hoping to learn the story...” Sango starts walking away from Koki and Shippo.

“ Just Sango is fine. In thanks for laying my people to rest...I’ll tell you how the Wishing Jewel came to be..”


After getting Miroku and InuKame, they head back to the cave where demon remains were stored. InuKame was carrying Sango on his back due to her injuries.

“ Have you seen the thing that lies at the back of this cave?” Sango asks as they head deep into the cave.

“ Uh-huh, a mummified demon is it?” InuKame asks.

“ MMM...But more than that, its a monster formed by a horde of demons, dragons, ogres and trapdoor spiders. Joining into one and combining all their dark powers..all to defeat one single mortal.”

“ A mortal?”

“ And when they attached themselves to this mortal and began to devour..”

“ So then this was a human, after all..She’s wearing a very old style of armor. An ancient warlord’s wife, I take it?” Miroku asks.

“ No. In fact she...was a he. Some sort of Priest from a hundred years ago.

Koki looks at InuKame at the mention of the word Priest.

“ Yeah, yeah..against demons, a Priest would be as powerful as a hundred samurai.” InuKame says.

‘ You mean this man also spent his life..fighting continuously against demons..Just like Ren?!’ Koki thinks as Sango continues her story.

“ Back when the aristocracy had all the power..life was a circle of war, famine and death. And to feast upon the helpless and the dead, there grew more and more demons. There were monks and warlords who could exterminate demons but only one had spells that could extract a demon’s soul..and cleanse it utterly, the Priest named Midori. He possessed enough spirit power to destroy ten demons at once.”

“ He could extract their souls?” Koki asks.

“ Not just demon souls either. All the world’s creatures, whether human, animal, trees or stones...are each made up, its said, of four wishes.”


“ Its a Shinto philosophy, not Buddhist.  The wishes are known by regular humans as valor, harmony, courage and love. Together those spirits are housed in a physical body as its wishes or heart’s desires. Combined and balance it allows to the bearer to create multiple paths or wishes.” Miroku says.

“ Which means...?”

“ All it means is that the same heart can either be good or evil.” Sango answers, before getting on with the story.

“ Midori mastered the spell to pull the four desires into proper balance..and thus nullify demon souls.  So the demons feared Midori and began to target him for death, but they knew that if they attacked him...they would probably be cleansed into nothingness. So they decided to concoct a wicked desire, one so evil, so powerful..so vile that it could stand up to Midori’s enormous spirit power.”

“ That’s why the demons merged into one...but how?” Shippo asks.

“ Look there...there’s another mortal there.” Sango points to another corpse sticking out of the wall.

“ That’s human too!” Shippo says.

“ They say there was a man who secretly yearned after Midori. The demons snuck into a crevice on that man’s heart....and possessed him. It seems that it’s easier for demons to meld together if they can use the twisted desire of a mortal as a crucible....

“ Is it me or this story becoming all too familiar?” Koki asks InuKame, interrupting the story.

“ InuKame! This tale is just like Naraku’s! The brigand called Onigumo offered his body to a demon horde...to be reborn as a more horrid demon than any of them!” Miroku says.

“ You mean Naraku..?” Sango starts but InuKame cuts her off.

“ Continue the tale Sango. This Priest..did he win or lose?” InuKame asks.

“ They say the battle went on for seven days and seven nights. Then finally Midori’s strength was spent and his body was devoured by the great demon. When his soul was about to be sucked out of him.. in that moment, Midori used  the last of his energy to steal the demon’s soul..to take it into his own and with that both the demon and Midori died. Leaving behind a crystallized heart that we call the Wishing Jewel. But even though their physical bodies have perished...inside the jewel, they say, the hearts and souls of Midori and the demon-of-demons are still battling each other. And so the Wishing Jewel can become as good or as evil as the heart of whoever possesses it. In the hands of a demon the stain of corruption will grow with in...but in the hands of pure-hearted being, it will become purified.”

“ Over hundreds of years the jewel has passed among demons and humans of all kinds...until during my grandfather’s time, it was returned to this village.”

“ Returned?” Koki asks.

“ My grandfather exterminated one particularly vile demon after a vicious battle. He himself died of his wounds soon after..but before he did so, the jewel popped out of the demon’s body.” Sango says.

‘ And so...it was entrusted to Ren, huh?’ InuKame thinks.

“ Then it was because Ren purified the jewel..that Naraku was created?” Koki asks.

“ Most likely, yes. Naraku wanted to defile the jewel. He wanted to corrupt Master Ren’s heart with hatred, and have the Wishing Jewel steep in the blood of his bitterness.” Miroku answers.

“ Then the jewel..is playing its life over again.” Sango offers.

‘ Ren carried the jewel with him to his death! He was trying to end the cycle once and for all, but in the end...the jewel did return..crossing space and time..with me!’ Koki thinks not looking at InuKame or anyone for that matter.

“ Feh! You make it sound like we’re the ones being manipulated by this jewel! How ridiculous can you be? If the jewel is somehow making these bloody events repeat themselves...Then I’ll put the cycle to an end myself!” InuKame says determined to stop the course of events for good.


They head back to Sango’s village for the night. Koki immediately separates himself from the others. Sango turns to Miroku for answers.

“ Your friend...is he alright? He doesn’t like me very much does he?” she asks as InuKame goes after him.

“ Who..Master Koki? He has thing against humans trying to kill InuKame and insulting him as well......it doesn’t sit well with him and since you were tricked into doing so....he’ll get over it, he always does.”

“ He’s been quiet ever since he heard the tale of the Wishing Jewel.” She says.

“ That’s why InuKame went after him...to find out what’s wrong.” Shippo answers.

“ Whatever is bothering him..we’ll never know about it. It will be for InuKame’s ears only, especially since those two are more involved with this jewel than we are. The Priest that your village gave the jewel to to protect...Koki’s his reincarnation.” Miroku tells Sango.

“ InuKame...well he used to be with jewel’s original bearer Ren.” Shippo says.

“ So that’s why he....” Sango says trailing off.

“ Hey Koki...what gives?” InuKame asks when they were away from prying eyes.

“ Oh hey Kame, its just....you do realize that if I had never been born this cursed jewel wouldn’t have torn everyone’s lives apart.”

“ Come on stop it. No one is blaming you, least of all me, like Miroku would say...when fate throws you on a different path than the one you were on, there’s nothing for it but to do what you have to do.” InuKame says.

“ Its just that you and him could’ve been happy together if...” Koki starts but InuKame cuts across him.

“ I know that Koki. But Naraku’s trickery fifty years ago just showed me that what Ren and I had...wasn’t meant to be. Don’t tell the others this but I’m glad that this jewel is back even though it crossed space and time...I got to meet you. I haven’t felt this calm nor this ‘human’ since my mother was alive. So just stop blaming yourself alright?” InuKame walks closer to Koki.

Koki slides his hand up to rest on the half demon’s neck, he leans in and presses his lips to InuKame’s. They kiss for a few minutes before InuKame pulls away and asks, “ So what want me to hold that while you sleep?” referring to the jewel shard around Koki’s neck.

“ Who else would I let guard it.” Koki smiles.

They walk back to the others. After climbing in his sleeping bag he hands the shard to InuKame, who hangs it around his neck.