Extra 19: Change the World (48)

"It's been a while since we last saw each other, Kagome-san, Yura-san" - Izumi said with a small smile as she looked at the group - "I see everyone is well".

"Yes, though we miss you on our adventures" - Kagome replied with a smile as she noticed how Inuyasha was still frozen.

"You could have waited for me, Izumi-san" - Sango said as she ran after Izumi along with her brother.

"I'm sorry, Sango-chan" - Izumi replied with embarrassment.

"Who are they, Izumi?" - Kagome asked with surprise and curiosity.

"I think before asking a person's name, you should introduce yourself first..." - Sango said as she shook her head and looked curiously at this strange group - "A Hanyo, a female Yokai, and finally.... A slut?"

"Slut!" - Kagome repeated with a face red with fury - "I'm not a slut!"

"Then why do you wear such strange clothes that expose so much skin?" - Sango asked as she cocked her head to the side - "Although I don't understand about why you're upset, your profession shouldn't be an embarrassment."

"I'm not a slut, this is my village's traditional clothing!" - Kagome exclaimed as she frowned and pointed in the direction of Yura, who was looking at all this meaningless talk with an apathetic expression - "Besides, she's showing a lot more skin than I am!"

"True, but unlike you, she's noticeably doing it so as not to restrict her movements" - Sango replied while looking carefully at Yura - "Besides, I think that outfit is to maximize her seductive power and lower the guard of her male opponents."

"Perfect, you said everything correctly" - nodded Yura as she shook her head, completely ignoring the embarrassed look of the girl's brother accompanying her master's daughter.

"And how do you know I'm not a warrior?" - Kagome asked as she interjected into the two girls' conversation.

"A stance that shows many openings, a weak aura that shows you haven't had a fight to death, and finally, you don't look like you're ready to fight, like the dog boy and the female Yokai are" - Sango answered simply.

"Ugh" - Kagome could only let out a groan of irritation, though she quickly calmed down and asked the girl again what her name was.

"My name is Sango, and I am a demon hunter on a quest for revenge" - Sango replied as she folded her arms - "This is my younger brother, Kohaku"

"Revenge?" - Kagome repeated with a frown - "Against whom?"

"Isn't it obvious?" - Yura said as she narrowed her eyes - "We've all come to the same location, in search of the same goal..."

"Naraku..." - Inuyasha growled fiercely as he regained his composure - "Wait, how come you guys have problems with that jerk too?"

"It's an interesting meeting you have here" - said a male voice - "Would you mind if I joined your conversation?"

"You..." - Sango said with a frown - "Have you been following us, by any chance?"

"As beautiful as you are, that's not the case" - Miroku replied with a frown - "I may be a womanizing pervert, but I'm not a creep who stalks women, in fact, I came in this direction for the same reason you did."

"Do you also have business to attend to with Naraku?" - Izumi asked in surprise because she didn't expect such a coincidence.

"That's right" - smiled Miroku, though his expression quickly returned to normal - "As for what they are, I'll tell you if you do the same..."

"Why should we?" asked Inuyasha neutrally.

"Because there is greater power when the numbers are higher" - replied Miroku simply - "Not to mention that I'm sure my situation is the most complex, after all, it directly attempts my life..."

Kagome and the others frowned before they began to speak.

"Naraku is trying to collect the shards of the Shikon pearl for a reason we don't understand, and we are trying to stop him because we can't allow someone as evil as him to get hold of the power of such a dangerous artifact" - Kagome answered simply - "Besides, the shards are hugely connected to the only way I can return home."

"I see, it makes sense" - nodded Sango as she started to think - "As I said before, I am a demon hunter, one of the two survivors of my clan after Naraku annihilated us, in fact, I would have been the only survivor if Izumi-san hadn't appeared and saved Kohaku, now we are traveling, so we can eliminate that monster, so other people won't have to go through what we did, although the biggest reason is that I wish revenge for the death of my father and my brethren"

"Revenge... a fair motive" - nodded Yura as she started to think - "Although I'm surprised that Izumi-sama is with you."

"Sama? Are you her father's subordinate by any chance?" - Sango asked in surprise, though her expression returned to normal when she saw how the girl nodded - "I see, that explains your enormous latent power."

"I guess it's your turn, monk" - Inuyasha said with a frown.

"The truth is, I'm looking for Naraku, so I can end the curse that has afflicted my family for generations" - Miroku replied as he frowned - "The story goes back to my grandfather's time, 50 years ago..."

"Fifty years?" - Inuyasha repeated with a frown because this gave him a bad feeling.

"That's right" - nodded Miroku as he shook his head - "My grandfather was a very skilled monk who during his travels encountered Naraku wreaking havoc, as expected, he tried to exorcise him, though the Yokai managed to escape. My grandfather chased him for years, but Naraku was cunning, he had the ability to change his appearance, and every time my grandfather met him, he had a different human face, it wasn't until 50 years ago that he met Naraku for the last time, although there was a problem... Naraku was wearing the appearance of a beautiful woman..."

"Let me guess, your grandfather fell for it because he was a womanizing pervert" - Yura replied sarcastically.

Miroku nodded before letting out a sigh - "Anyway, the thing ended with Naraku piercing my grandfather's hand, and creating a curse that makes this hole start absorbing everything in front of us."

The monk quickly removed the seal from his hand and demonstrated for a few seconds the power of the black hole in his hand, before sealing it again to prevent side effects.

"An interesting ability, though obviously being a curse there must be a "but"..." - Sango said as she frowned.

"Exactly, and that's the fact that the more it uses this ability, the bigger it gets" - sighed Miroku as he frowned - "To the point that it will eventually absorb me, ending my life and everything around me."

Kagome's expression darkened when she heard that as she quickly deduced the fate of her family - "And it affects everyone in your family?"

"Ironically, only the men, though this is because both my grandfather and father managed to conceive only one male child" - Miroku replied as he sighed regretfully - "I think this has to do with the curse Naraku put on my grandfather"

"Wait a second, did you in fact say that Naraku could change his appearance?" - Inuyasha asked with a bad feeling.

"Correct" - nodded Miroku seriously - "Why?"

"It's just that I have a feeling that I have another motive to kill that bastard" - Inuyasha answered gritting his teeth.

"Are you saying that Naraku was responsible for the situation between you and Kikyo?" - Yura asked with surprise - "It makes sense..."

"Kikyo?" - Miroku asked as he tried to remember where he had heard that name - "You mean the priestess who guarded the Shikon pearl?"

"Yes" - nodded Kagome with a frown as she noticed Izumi's sad expression.

"If I remember correctly, Naraku almost got the pearl 50 years ago when he killed Kikyo, though I'm not too sure about this" - Miroku replied with a frown - "It's possible that these are just rumors."

Inuyasha gritted his teeth angrily as he took a long breath to try and calm himself down, mostly because Izumi was close by, and he didn't want her to leave when they hadn't seen each other in so long.

Yura frowned when he saw this, though he did nothing because if Kurama had let his daughter go off on her own, that meant he was watching everything and had begun to accept that his princess had to start making her own decisions.

"I see," Sango muttered as she noticed the tension between Izumi, Inuyasha and that priestess named Kikyo, "Though that doesn't make sense, after all, the priestess should be dead... unless..."

Sango thought of a possibility, which quickly became more and more likely - "I see..."

"Did you say something, Anee-ue?" - Kohaku asked in surprise.

"Oh, it's nothing" - Sango replied as she shook her head.