Kohaku’s katana returned to its sheath with a snap.

Jolted from her reverie, Kagome turned toward him at the sound. But the taijiya was already walking away.

“…Grave lad,” Ren remarked as he drew up beside her, his smile wry. Sharp and narrowed, his hawkish eyes followed after Kohaku’s dark receding form, before flitting around at the dispersing militiamen. “A fine enough commander, I suppose, for a bunch of green boys and tired old men.”

Having led their horses over, the warriors gathered closest to Ren snickered at this. With them, they carried the cloying stench of sweat and dirt, of leather and steel. It was an oppressive smell, made even more so by the dense shadow their collective bulk cast over Kagome and the earth around her. But emanating most strongly from Ren was a scent heavier and darker still—

It was the scent of blood.

Kagome frowned, resting her glance upon him. “Kohaku is a fine commander,” she said, holding his eye. “He’s good at everything he does.”

The trace of iron in her tone wasn’t lost on Ren. His tawny gaze seemed to flicker, the easy crook in his smile going briefly flat.

“…Of course he is, Kagome-sama,” the samurai said smoothly, inclining his head to her in deference. “Pardon my ignorance.”

The miko looked past him, to the brutish lot of armed men assembled behind him. “There’s more of you than there were before.”

“A happy coincidence,” Ren said with a roguish grin. “The strange flood that laid waste to our homeland scattered us few survivors to the wind, yet here, in the blessed East, we have been reunited once again. I hope, Kagome-sama, you will forgive these poor mongrels for their past banditry—truly they knew no better. Yet I have brought them back to heel, these wayward brothers of mine, and a few more beside them, who wished to serve a higher cause.”

Kagome considered him a moment more before she turned her face away. “Past that shrine on the hill,” she said, pointing off toward the distant gleaming structure, “there’s a temple and acres of free land surrounding it to the northwest. Tell the monks that I sent you, and they can lead you to it. Most of the land is wooded, though.”

“Then we shall clear it,” Ren said graciously, his gaze lingering upon her as he signaled to his men. “…And await your next command, my lady.”

Despite the bitter cold, a touch of heat rose to Kagome’s cheeks nevertheless.

Inuyasha © Rumiko Takahashi