Extra 19: Change the World (22)
Extra 19: Change the World (22)
"I'm nobody's subordinate!" - exclaimed the little Kitsune as he looked at Yura with annoyance - "The great Shippo-sama is invincible and will soon become a powerful Daiyokai!"
*Kyuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu ~*
"That was?" - Kagome mused as she watched the boy blush - "Oh, I see, I guess you must be feeling hungry..."
"I-I don't know what you're talking about!" - Shippo shouted red-faced as his stomach again let out a cute growl - ". . ."
"Swallow your pride and ask for food" - sighed Yura as she looked at the pathetic excuse of Yokai in front of her.
"Here you go" - Kagome said with a smile.
"Thank you..." - Shippo muttered as he took the strange snack and took a bite - "Delicious ~!"
"I know, it's something I brought from my native home" - smiled Kagome as she watched the little Kitsune devour his meal - "By the way, what are you doing alone in a place like this?"
The two women had until recently walked past what appeared to be a battlefield because of all the corpses scattered on the ground.
"Normally, a Kitsune your age should be with his parents," Yura nodded, noticing how the little boy's expression darkened.
Kagome sighed as she saw how the little one seemed to be on the verge of tears.
"They left..." - Yura said.
"My daddy would never leave me!" - Shippo shouted with tears in his eyes - "He didn't run away, he was killed!"
The little boy's words hit the priestess-in-training hard as Yura let out a sigh, after all, this was normal for them. Weak Yokai, had their days numbered unless they managed to get the protection of another much more powerful Yokai, or were lucky enough to benefit in the lottery of beauty, so they could at least become someone else's partners and even have good lives.
"Do you want to tell us what happened?" - Kagome asked as she took the little Kitsune in her arms and handed him another snack.
Shippo was silent for a few seconds as he bit his lip before nodding, he quickly began to tell them what had happened because he could sense that these two strange women were not bad people.
Yura nodded when she heard that the little Kitsune's father had been eliminated because of the thunder siblings that lived around this place, though Kagome wasn't happy, after all, she couldn't understand how someone had orphaned a child, just to have a new accessory.
"So, what are you doing around here?" - Yura asked while looking at the Kitsune - "From what I can see, this place was attacked by the thunder brothers, at least I think so because I can still feel a small electric current."
"Yes, they were the ones responsible for this massacre, they decided to test their powers after getting the shards of the Shikon Pearl" - Shippo replied while frowning - "If I'm honest, I was hoping that I could get some shards, so I could avenge my father"
"Well, you're unlucky, we haven't found any shards even though we're traveling with the goal of gathering them all" - Kagome replied with a frown.
"Really?" - Shippo asked in surprise as he looked at the two women - "Strange, what is a Yokai teaming up with a human searching for the pearl?"
"Well, the truth is that I would rather be with my master, Kurama-sama, but he told me to take care of the priestess-in-training next to me" - Yura replied as she shook her head.
"Kurama-sama?" - Shippo repeated while frowning - "He's a Daiyokai, or something like that?"
"Yes, he's a Jubi no Kitsune" - Yura replied with a dreamy look.
"Jubi!!! Impossible, nine tails is the maximum level a Kitsune can reach!" - Shippo exclaimed as he looked at Yura with disdain, as if he was looking at a liar.
"She's not lying, Kurama-san has ten tails" - Kagome replied as she shook her head.
"That doesn't make sense, everyone knows that Kitsune can only have 9 tails, and for that to happen, centuries have to pass" - muttered Shippo while frowning and looking at the two women - "Am I wrong?"
"Well, if you want, you can ask him yourself, I mean, I'm going to meet him when my mission is over" - replied Yura while shrugging her shoulders.
"And where is he?" - Shippo asked as he looked at the two women.
"We don't know, he disappeared along with his daughter after something happened that we don't want to talk about" - Kagome answered as she sighed regretfully.
"Oh..." - Shippo's expression changed when he heard this. He actually thought that this Kurama fellow might be able to help him avenge his father, after all, the Kitsune clan was a close-knit one, and the moment one member saw another suffering, they would do everything they could to help them.
What the little Kitsune didn't know, was that someone was indeed watching him.
* * * * *
"What's wrong, Kurama-dono?" - Kikyo asked as she looked at the ten-tailed Kitsune standing in front of her.
It had been two days since they had started their little trip through Japan, with no apparent destination, time she had used to try to understand a little more about this strange man who had her confused.
"Let's just say I saw someone who brought a smile on my face" - Kurama replied while raising an eyebrow. He wasn't lying, seeing a Kitsune from this dimension was something he had wanted to do for quite some time.
Kikyo shook her head before watching as her companion summoned a clone and sent it to a place she didn't know, and although she was curious to know about the whereabouts of the copy of her traveling companion, she decided not to ask, mostly because she didn't want to give this little victory to this stranger.
"So where shall we go now?" - Kikyo asked as she frowned because despite not being in her best state, Kurama's help in maintaining her body and soul, was welcome.
"I'm not sure, I'd like us to continue walking without a specific direction, and who knows, maybe find something fun" - answered Kurama honestly - "You can consider this as a little recreational trip."
Kikyo frowned because she wasn't happy with this kind of situation, mostly because she didn't like to waste her time with meaningless tasks, although it wasn't like she could do much in this situation. The man who accompanied her had immense power over her, not only because he was the only one who could keep her state of mind in perfect condition, but also because he was the person who could trap her with utmost ease, making every act for resisting a complete waste of time.
"You must learn how to relax" - Kurama said boredly as the two of them walked through the forest.
"I don't think I have the right to relax, not when the Shikon Pearl was destroyed into hundreds of shards" - Kikyo replied with a frown.
"Taking care of the pearl is no longer your mission, that ended when you died" - Kurama replied while giving the priestess a glance - "I think one life is more than enough time, so I don't understand why you should keep sacrificing yourself for a simple object."
Kikyo again frowned, though she had to admit that her companion's words made sense. Why did she have to keep protecting an object that only brought her misfortune? Why did she have to put the welfare of others when she already gave her life for the cause? Was one life more than enough?
The more she thought about this, the more confused the priestess became, so after thinking about it for a few more minutes, she decided to put this aside and concentrate on her companion's proposals.
"Tell me, what is it you want me to do?" - Kikyo asked as she gave Kurama a neutral look.
"It's simple, I want you to have fun with the trip" - Kurama replied as he smiled at her.
"Have fun?" - Kikyo repeated, though if she was honest, she didn't know how to feel about this because she wasn't the most expressive, or the happiest person in the world - "I don't think I can do that, not when my soul has been purified of all unnecessary emotion."
"That's where you're wrong" - Kurama replied with a small smile - "Normally you would be right, although you overlook one small detail, the soul that is inside you, is not your original soul, but a fragment of the soul of your reincarnation, in other words, all the restrictions of your past, should not affect you right now"
Kikyo frowned when she heard this because if she was honest, she didn't feel that different from how she remembered.