About the weapons: A katana is a Japanese, long-bladed sword, like the Tetsusaiga (only not crummy). Shuriken are those small, round, spiky throwing things one always sees ninja use in movies. A naginata is similar to a European halberd: It’s a long pole ending in a blade. Ordinarily, it doesn’t unscrew, but I’ve seen the sort that do offered for sale in ancient weapons catalogs (scary that I love those things). If you read the comic Shi, the main character uses a naginata (if you don’t read Shi, pick up a copy at your local comic book store; you won’t be disappointed). I have no idea what that boomerang thing is that Sango uses.

        Sota sat by the fire in Kaede’s house. Beside him was the old priestess Kaede on his left with the Tetsusaiga in its black sheath across her knees and Myouga the flea on her shoulder. The priest Miroku sat on Sota’s right. Across the fire was Sango the demon hunter. All but Kaede were itching to get to the future and save Kagome from the evil Hisui Oukami and her lackeys.
        "Inu Yasha will need his sword to fight the demons," Sota insisted.
        Kaede was reluctant to surrender the weapon without a direct request from Inu Yasha. There was also the matter of Sesshomaru. "If Sesshomaru is there, boy, he’ll try to take the blade from Inu Yasha—and with Hisui Oukami’s help, he might succeed this time and kill Inu Yasha, as well. Anyway, Inu Yasha didn’t say to send it to him."
        "He didn’t know Sesshomaru was gonna show up!" Sota protested. "I’ll bet he wants it with him and didn’t have time to tell Kagome to tell me ‘cause he was making sure the bad guys didn’t hear Kagome’s plans!"
        "But you said they did hear," Miroku pointed out. "You told me you were chased by two kitsune whom you suspected work for Hisui Oukami."
        Sango frowned. "I find it hard to believe kitsune would allow themselves to be employed by anyone, particularly as bodyguards or ninja. They’re not the most violent of demons. However, many things can change in four hundred years."
        Sota could only shrug. He wasn’t one hundred percent sure the kitsune worked for the people who were after the shard, all he knew is they’d tried to stop him from getting to the well. "They might not be working for her. They didn’t say anything when they were chasing me, so maybe they just felt the jewel and were going after it on their own."
        Myouga didn’t buy that. "That would be too great a coincidence. It seems more likely that they were sent by Hisui Oukami, or possibly this son of hers that you mentioned."
        Nods of agreement all around. Sota said: "I still think Inu Yasha will want his sword."
        "I agree," Miroku said, and Sango nodded: "So do I. We should take it with us to Kagome’s time."
        Kaede sighed. "I’m against this," she told them in a weary voice. "Kagome sent the jewel shard to me for safe keeping, just as Inu Yasha left the Tetsusaiga with me for the same reason. The shard, at least, should remain here, out of Hisui Oukami’s reach."
        "But it’s not out of her reach!" Sota protested. "Kagome said Hisui Oukami was looking for the jewel in this time and even looked for it in Kikyo’s village but she didn’t find it. If it’s here, she’ll find it, right? So we have to take it back with us!" He pointed at Miroku, then Sango. "They can protect me if those guys are still out there when I get back."
        "Excellent reasoning, Sota!" Miroku agreed with a polite nod. Anyway, the boy still wore the jewel about his neck, so no matter what Kaede thought should be done, surely she wouldn’t take the jewel from Kagome’s little brother by force. If Sota decided it was best to take the shard back to the future, then that’s where it would go, and he and Sango would protect it and him. He imagined the look on Inu Yasha’s face when he saw him and Sango appear to save his ass. Even better would be the priceless look Inu Yasha would give him when he handed him the Tetsusaiga.
        "Give me the Tetsusaiga, Kaede," Sango said, holding out her hand. "I’ll place it in Inu Yasha’s hands myself."
        It took another half hour of pleading and arguing, but Kaede was finally convinced to surrender the Tetsusaiga and give her blessing to the little rescue party’s journey to the future. As they gathered around the well in the forest, Kaede and Myouga wished them luck.
        "Staying as far from the danger as possible, flea?" Sango accused with a stern look for Myouga.
        The tiny demon hung his head and wrung his hands. "Well, we can’t all go, can we?"
        "But Inu Yasha may need your sage advice," Miroku told him.
        Myouga suspected he was being mocked, but at last, he hopped onto Sota’s shoulder and declared in a quavering voice that the priest was quite right, so he would accompany them to the future to make sure Inu Yasha didn’t do anything stupid while fighting one of the most ruthless demon lords in all of Japan (and possibly China, as well).
        They sat on the lip of the well, and Sota held out his hands. "I think we all have to be touching."
        Sango took the boy’s hand, and Miroku grabbed Sango’s arm. That earned him a snarl from the demon hunter. "He means, touch him, you lecher!"
        "Ah." Miroku got up, went to sit on Sota’s other side and took the boy’s hand. "Right. Ready now, Sota?"
        Sota nodded. "Let’s go!"
        They jumped into the well and out into the future to find Tsurai and Shinai were still there but were a little preoccupied. A handsome young man swinging a pair of katana held the kitsune brothers at bay in the courtyard, while Sota’s grandfather chanted curses in a vain attempt to banish the demons from the shrine. Tsurai had Sota’s mother pinned against him by the throat and was holding a gun to her head. That appeared to be the only thing keeping the man with the swords from pressing his attack.
        "Mom!" Sota screamed, spoiling any element of surprise Sango and Miroku might have had. Miroku scooped Sota onto his back with orders not to let go no matter what, then took up a defensive posture with his staff before him and the well shrine wall behind. Sango launched a flight of shuriken at Tsurai, but the kitsune dropped to his knees, and they flew harmlessly over his head. That gave the demon hunter the distraction she needed to pull out a sword and charge. Shinai jumped between her and his brother and pointed his pistol at her chest. Not recognizing the weapon, Sango kept coming. Fortunately for her, Shunusuke knew exactly what that weapon was. He threw one of his katana with a shout to Sango to dive. She dove, and the katana hit the barrel of the gun, knocking it out of Shinai’s hand. Meanwhile, Shunusuke kicked Tsurai in the face and slashed down with his other sword, meaning to cut off the kitsune’s hand, but Tsurai was fast enough to get his hand out of the way, leaving Sota’s mother in the sword’s path. She screamed and dodged, but Shunusuke had checked his stroke and pursued Tsurai, who was on his ass but had his gun up and pointed at his boss’ son. However, he knew it would be his life for Shunusuke’s, so he didn’t fire. Instead, with a glance to his brother, he disappeared. A half second later, Shinai was gone, as well, leaving Sango’s blade to hiss through air.
        Mrs. Higurashi made a tiny, fearful squeak when the brothers disappeared. "Who—what were—"
        Sota and Gramps threw themselves on her and wept. "Mom, are you alright?" Sota sobbed. "I was so scared!"
        Shunusuke knelt in front of her and asked the same question without the drama. "Mrs. Higurashi? Were you hurt?"
        She shook her head and wiped a tear from her cheek. "Who were those creatures? And what did they want with me?"
        Shunsuke planted his hands in front of his knees and bowed his face to the dirt. "I’m sorry your family became involved in this matter. My name is Shunusuke Asano, Kei and Yuki’s older brother, and to my shame the son of the man who sent one of those kitsune after the Shikon Jewel, which my father seems to believe is in this shrine somewhere. My father sent the kitsune in the white shirt, his mother, Hisui Oukami, my grandmother, sent the one in the Hawaiian shirt. She, too, is after the jewel."
        Everybody was astonished by all of that, especially that bit about the Great Demon of the Northern Lands being grandmother to one of Sota’s own playmates, Kei Asano. "Th-that means," Sota sputtered, "Kei is…part demon? A-And so’s Yuki? And you?"
        Shunusuke sat up and nodded. "I’m afraid so." He glanced at the well shrine and asked: "Is that the portal to the past? The way Kagome and Inu Yasha get back and forth?" When all he got were suspicious looks and no answer, Shunusuke sighed. "I can understand why you don’t trust me. That’s alright, I don’t need to know." He looked at Miroku, then Sango, where his gaze lingered. "Who are you?"
        Miroku put himself into Shunusuke’s line of sight, forcing him to look at him instead of the demon hunter. He bowed. "My name is Miroku," he gestured to Sango, "and this is Sango, the demon hunter." From Sota’s shoulder, Myouga cleared his throat, and Miroku added with a smile: "That’s Myouga the flea, Inu Yasha’s retainer."
        Mrs. Higurashi blinked puzzlement. "Inu Yasha’s…’retainer’? Is he some kind of nobleman in his time?" And here all along she’d thought he was just some ruffian her poor Kagome was forced to associate with to recover the pieces of the Jewel of Four Souls. A rather jealous, demonic ruffian to be more specific.
        Myouga was delighted to explain. "Lord Inu Yasha is the second son of the Great Demon of the Western Lands and a human woman of noble birth, the Princess Shinju."      
        "He’s a prince…" Mrs. Higurashi mused wonderingly. "I always thought princes were cleaner, somehow."
        Miroku and Sango chuckled, but Myouga looked even more embarrassed. "Well, M’Lord has had a difficult life, what with his parents dying when he was so young, and his brother banishing him," he wrung his hands, "not to mention the jewel."
        "Speaking of which," Shunusuke interjected, "I hope for your sake that it isn’t in this house. I know my father, and he won’t give up until he’s found it, no matter what it takes." He sent out his mental feelers, but found no sign of any of his father’s people. Yet. "Is it here?"
        No one spoke.
        Shunusuke sighed. "Look: I’m totally against what my father is doing. I just saved your life, and yesterday my sister saved Kagome’s at great risk to her own. In fact, Yuki almost died using her power to protect Kagome from magical attacks and bullets. I’m not asking you to give me the jewel—I don’t want it—I just want to know if it’s here, so I can give you good advice about what to do next!"
        "Magical attacks and bullets?!" All three Higurashi’s gasped at once, then Mrs. Higurashi asked meekly: "Yuki has powers that can do that?"
        Shunusuke nodded, then he smiled reassuringly. "Don’t worry. When I left the hotel, Kagome and Yuki were having a nice breakfast on the veranda with Inu Yasha and Shippo and that friend of Kagome’s, Rei." He ducked his head and added: "My family’s there, too: Hisui and my Dad and Hisui’s latest boy toy Sesshomaru."
        "Inu Yasha’s eating breakfast with Sesshomaru?!" Sango exclaimed, at the same time as Miroku asked: "What’s a ‘boy toy’?"
        Shunusuke got up and went to collect the sword he’d thrown at Shinai. The kitsune had somehow managed to reclaim his gun before disappearing, which didn’t really surprise Shunusuke. The brothers were too experienced to leave behind any physical evidence of their presence. "A boy toy is a trophy boyfriend, someone who looks good hanging around with a rich and powerful woman like Hisui."
        "That’s so…shallow…" Sango said with a frown.
        "Quite," Miroku agreed.
        Myouga said thoughtfully: "I can’t imagine Lord Sesshomaru would allow himself to be treated in that way by a female. Even a female as powerful as Hisui Oukami."
        Shunusuke shrugged. "Actually, I think they genuinely feel something for each other. I know I wouldn’t put up with her unless I was in love with her, ‘cause I know it’s not her money that interests him. He’s certainly got enough of his own from what I’ve heard." Then he abruptly shifted gears. Grinning at Miroku and Sango, he asked: "So. Do you people need a ride to the beach?"
        "Beach?" Sango queried. "Is that where Kagome is?"
        Sota nodded. "Right. Shunusuke knows how to get there." He took the jewel from around his neck and pressed it into Sango’s hand. "Take this to Kagome. Inu Yasha can protect it a lot better than we can," he touched the Tetsusaiga’s hilt and added: "As long as he has his sword."
        Sango smiled at him and hid the jewel in her shirt. "Don’t worry," she reassured him and looked around to take in his mother and grandfather, too, "we’re here now. We won’t let anything happen to Kagome or the jewel. Right, boys?"
        Miroku and Myouga nodded: "Right!"
        Sango turned a severe look on Shunusuke. "And if you try anything, Asano, you’re dead where you stand. Understood?"
        Shunusuke looked her over, noting her armor and especially the giant boomerang strapped to her back. That would definitely have to go in the back of the truck. What was that thing, anyway? Some bizarre demon-slaying weapon? He had to admit, though: She sure was cute when she was threatening a man. He grinned his most winning grin at her. "Yes, ma’am. I understand completely."