AN: My first YYH fanfic. This will follow the canon to the best of my abilities. Fictional names for real world locations, such as Mushiyori City, will be given real names if the story mentions those locations. Enjoy.
Yusuke here. Been a while. Nine whole freaking years of a while, since the second Makai tournament that Yomi won, so you probably can guess that a lot of crap has changed. When Yomi won, King Yama soiled his pants and then wrestled the top dog spot from pacifier face. With so many already crossed to our side, containment didn't really cut it, though as a side note, now the barrier is back up like before. Took four damn months and nearly every spirit detective from Japan here to South Africa to all the way in freaking Canada to get every demon checked out and sent back to the other side. That gave pacifier breath a lot to stamp on. Oh yeah, I've been reinstated, and been getting easy BS cases every six months or so, usually nothing even close to serious. The ramen stand went to hell though, goddamn Shibuya zoning regulations, wanted me to blow a quarter million Yen on some permit. Jerks.
Enki, Yomi, and Mukuro went back to the old ways, so much for that tournament idea. After Yomi won, the three went back to guarding their turf like hyenas, with Enki's and Mukuro's people as quasi allies. At least, they were last time I spoke with Hiei. Koenma let slip that his dad likes this setup more, with the three back to checking their spines for knives, meaning they can't really challenge King Yama again. Whatever, I'm done with that, Raizen's successor or not, I'll let those three, er four, handle the politics.
Speaking of Hiei, he got stuck in the human world when the barrier went back up. Koenma, maybe to keep him loyal, maybe as a little take that to his daddy, gave Hiei the GPS to a small portal that he could use whenever he felt like it. Now he lives in the city, bounces around, doing whatever the hell he does, I don't know the details. I figure it's to keep an eye on Yukina, or something to do with Mukuro. Oh yeah, Kuwabara is now his brother-in-law.
Yep, Kuwabara and Yukina got married shortly after he graduated college. They now live in the house across from his sister's place. Lucky bastard got a job as a loan officer in some big bank. He spends his day sleeping in his car and harassing loan applicants on the status and collectability of their…uhh…collateral. Day of the wedding, Hiei revealed to Kuwabara that he is Yukina's brother, and that he will castrate him if he ever hurts her. Shame you all missed that. That was a good laugh, he looked like he shat his boxers.
Kurama left his stepdad's company and went to college, and then grad school. He now does research for some lab that puts goat genes into tomatoes and makes crazy hippies scream of some reptilian shape shifter triangle conspiracy or something like that. He also been dating this immigrant from Russia for the past few years, told me it's pretty serious. Good for him.
Keiko graduated and now works as an IT for some trucking company. We are still together and share an apartment, unmarried. We've been engaged for like, what is it? Eleven years? Sounds about right. What, me? What's new with me? Me…well…I graduated…high school…then attended college…for a year…and…
"Excuse me sir, is this the button to defog the windshield?" the fat four eyed slob asks me for the third freaking time.
NOW I SELL FUCKING CARS AT A NISSAN DEALERSHIP!
"That's a dial. You twist it left, you twist it right. The ones where it shows a windshield, that helps with defog," I answer, trying hard not to sock the guy in the face. C'mon Yusuke, commissions are good. Commissions are good. Repeat after me. Commissions are good. Attaboy.
"Pardon? Now you have no right to get cute with me!" the fat doofus snaps back. He got short black hair and a dark green suit with a white dress shirt underneath, probably all a couple of sizes too small. I'm scared one of the dress shirt buttons is going snap off and hit my balls.
"What you talking about? You asked a question, I gave you an answer! I'm I'm…I'm not trying to be fresh with you I'm trying to sell you this Altima man!" Is this the dumbass customer of the day?
"I want to speak to the manager," the prick says, like he suddenly thinks he is in charge. Yep, this is the dumbass customer of the day.
"You want the manager?! LOOK! LOOK AT THE SHOKO ASAHARA IMPERSONATOR SLEEPING ON THE ROOF OF THAT BLUE ROGUE! THE ONE WITH THE WHISKEY BOTTLE IN HIS MOUTH! THAT'S THE FUCKING MANAGER! Oh wait! No, no, no! I know who you want! You want my boss' son Junichi, our esteemed Vice President of Yamashita Nissan of Shibuya! WELL LOOK THROUGH THE GLASS WALLS TO FIND OUR 'GENIUS' VP PLAYING HANDBALL WITH THE WINDOWS OF AN SUV THAT I MAY HAVE TO SELL! Oh wait, no! I get it! You want to speak to the person in charge!"
I grab my crotch and pull it forward, creasing the pants of my charcoal suit. "There you go, yokozuna! Your lips to his ears!" Fatass gave me the finger and left. I hate this crap. Running on brain fumes, I run to the sidewalk and find some couple pushing a couple of kids on strollers. "HEY! YOU WANT TO BUY A CAR?! NO?! WELL WHY THE HELL NOT?! WE GOT NISSAN QUEST! CAN FIT A DOZEN OF THE LITTLE SHITS IF YOU STACK THEM RIGHT! SOMEONE! SOMEONE! BUY A FREAKING CAR ALREADY!"
"Having a difficult day I gather?" I hear Kurama's soft, almost Shakewhatshisnamian voice from behind. I turn around and find the guy, wearing a knitted brown sweater and denim jeans under a big white lab coat with a few green and red stains on it. It got this name card that says 'Shuichi Minamino' his 'official name'. Aside from him cropping out the bangs on his head, revealing a flat forehead, he looks like hasn't changed a bit. Day suddenly got better, thank the big man upstairs for that.
"Kurama! Got off from work already?!" I yell out. Have to say, much rather talk with him then with window shoppers asking me about every freaking accessary in a minivan. Kurama smiles a bit and nods, saying "Makes no sense to wait several hours for a petri dish to yield a result. Regardless, my second research paper has caused me some grief. If I do not achieve some measure of peace soon, I fear I may go mad."
"Alright I hear ya. Nanako!" I yell at my only other coworker, this 35 something Japanese woman in a black suit and with dark brown hair cropped a couple of inches above her shoulders, probably the one keeping this damn place from falling apart. I got her attention, good. I yell "I'm taking another lunch break! Knock yourself out!" She nods at me and takes a bite out of her sandwich. Come to think of it, it's almost six. Only one more hour of this crap to go.
I lead Kurama through the glass doors into the showroom, spotting Junichi playing field goal kicker with some paper and three pencils tied with rubber bands. "Shouldn't you be working?" he has the balls to say. "Yeah, I should, buddy. How about you?" I shut him up right then and there. At least he ain't one of those daddy's boy twerps, thank you for that. I find a table next to a spinning black Altima on a display pedestal. I then drag a few cushion chairs from the corner by the entrance that my boss calls the lobby when he's sober. "Thank you," Kurama says as we sit down. I start.
"So Kurama, how's it been? Anything interesting come up?"
"Ah, you humans have a saying for that…same old same old. I must admit I have been having some difficulty with my current paper. Tedious research, constant fact checking to ensure I am not using outdated material, not to mention having all parties properly cited. I rather not develop a reputation of being a thief." The sly fox says with a slight upward twist of his mouth. "How about you, Yusuke? I would have imagined that working on a commission would have brightened your attitude, though I'm slightly pleased to see that you haven't changed."
"Yeah, yeah," I say, brushing off that last comment. I lower my voice just a bit "Well welcome to my workplace, might just be a better setup then the ramen stand. Might. My boss is that sun-tanning hobo that you may have noticed sleeping on that car, Mr. Productive is his son, and that lady having dinner is Nanako. Day's been in the ass. Nothing but window shoppers and some fat ass that probably had the circulation to his brain cut off by his pants."
"Sold anything yet, Yusuke?" I sigh and say "Two Rogues and a Quest." "This week? That isn't quite as meager as you may believe." I close my eyes and say "This…month." "Oh," Kurama replies like he doesn't know what else to say. I continue "I had four sales fall out because my boss decided to spring some 'administrative' charges on them, that prick. After I told them that the price we agreed on was final. What a pain. How does Kuwabara end up working for a bank and I get stuck with this lousy outfit?" Kurama blinks and says "You could always ask if there is a position available. I'm sure he would put in good word." Yeah right, like I'd ever ask him for a job. "Nah, Kurama, I would never pass the license test in twenty years." "Suit yourself," he replies.
"So…how's Zinaida? The nurse," I ask, shifting the topic. Kurama calmly replies "She is fine. She just completed her documents for naturalization, in Japanese mind you, and is awaiting her oral interview. I have been assisting her study of Japanese and I believe she should be naturalized within a year, bureaucratic inefficiencies aside." I watch him let out a chuckle. "She now wants to open a floral shop, call it 'Fox Petals'." Okay…interesting. Eh, I won't pry. "Good to hear. Keiko's been doing fine, still working IT and all. Keeps bugging me to try to learn code…like that will ever happen. I'm done with all this school crap." Kurama smiles and says "I hear you would be able to study at home, so you never need to care about class attendance again." "Yeah yeah, real funny."
After a pause, I say "Listen Kurama, I'm getting off work in an hour. Want to grab a drink and some dinner? I know a good diner here." He nods and says "Perhaps. I need time off from writing about alleles." "So, anything interesting on that front?" Kurama slightly frowns and says "My team is looking into ways to make rice plants resistant to excessive flooding. Rice plants usually die when underwater for more than a few days, and flooding has wreaked havoc on crops in Southeast Asia. So far, finding the right gene has turned rather fruitless, pardon the slight pun. With that project coming along rather slowly, I decided to pursue some research on another topic, publish another paper and strengthen my appeal to employers. Except now that has turned tedious, and so, here I am."
I stretch my arms out and say "Well, can't speak for my boss but if you want to sell crap with me I won't stop you." "I'm afraid I am not much the salesman," there he goes with that fox like smirk.
"So Kurama, what's Hiei been up to lately?" Kurama frowns and says "He somehow managed to forge an identity and now lives in a small home in Taito ward. I do not know how he acquired it, nor do I wish to find out." That three-eyed midget is always up to something, I tell you. "Can't say I'll ever understand that guy," I say. Kurama motionlessly says "He told me that he has become curious on how humans live. Wishes to perform his own research, so to speak." A smile creeps up on his face as he says "Perhaps becoming legally related to one has got him to think." "Ha, I still remember that time when Hiei spilled the beans on Yukina at the wedding hall. Poor guy probably had to scrub the crap out of his pants." "That is one way to put it," fox boy replies, and now we're back to silence.
"Alright, onto brass tacks Kurama, what's the news from the Makai?"
"Yomi continues to press his claim for the entire plane, the half ruled by King Yama aside, as per the rules of the second Makai tournament. His belief that humans should be consumed for nourishment on account of high reproduction rates has not waned in the slightest. Enki remains fiercely opposed and Mukuro has provided political and some logistical support. You recall I mentioned a skirmish between Mukuro's Kingdom of Alaric and Yomi's Kingdom of Gandara?"
"Yeah Kurama, I remember. A few of Mukuro's A-Class demons got into a scrape with some bandits from Yomi's turf, right?"
"Those were no mere bandits. Mukuro identified at least one of the bodies as Yomi's men-at-arms, the rest were rumored to be a mix of hedge warriors and bandits. Mukuro believes that Yomi sent a scouting party to harass their border and reconnoiter fortified encampments. Hiei concurs with Mukuro and advised her to demand monetary restitution for the insult. Enki meanwhile has completed a massive fortress in the heart of the Kingdom of Tourin and has appointed his wife as commander. A-Class hedge warriors and even two petty S-Class warlords have flocked to his side. The situation is tense to put it mildly."
"Well at least Enki is getting the boost this time. Whose side are you on?" I ask. "Me? I have grown weary of these squabbles of nobility. While Yomi and I are on much better terms, I have a life here in human world." Nodding, I say "Yeah, I hear you. I just, I'd like to use my free time to save the world again if this spills over to our humble abode. Selling cars is a pain in the ass already."
Kurama smiles with his eyes closed and says "I believe I will stay for refreshment." Good. "Thanks, Kurama, appreciate it." Now neither of us will go nuts.
The two of us go back to the quiet as I hear Junichi's handball bouncing off stuff. I'm going to hit that brat soo…
"Did you feel that?" Kurama says, his eyes all serious-like. "Yeah, I felt it. Coming from outside, I'd guess maybe…damn how did I not sense that energy level?" My freaking spine has chills running up and down. This is big. Shit, not today. Why does it got to be today? Kurama looks at me all stern like and leans forward. He whispers "It feels stronger then the levels that some of the Makai tournament apparitions displayed. A-Class, at the least. This is most troublesome…such energy levels have no business being in the human realm." "Yeah and it's getting closer. Damn, this is too public. Koenma is going to flip if we fight here. I…what…we need to get the place cleared out. I know! I think I remember where the fire alarm is."
"And attract emergency services here? That will be worse," Kurama calls me out. Damn, he is right. This is going to get very bad. "Do you got any better ideas man?" I say. Fight don't scare me, it's the collateral damage that's got me worried. Before Kurama could say something, I spot from the corner of my eye, what I gotta dub as Freddy Mercury on steroids. Literally, the guy looks buff like Toguro did during the start of our dark tournament fight, and he got this thick 1800s English bare knuckle boxer moustache, just missing the handlebar ends. He is wearing this black t-shirt, sleeves just short of his sizeable biceps. He got dark green camo cargo pants and brown boots, his pants held up by a dark brown leather belt. Looks serious.
"Can I help you?" Junichi says in English. Oh boy, if I'm guessing right, Mister Fahrenheit here is helping himself to you. I start to get up, but Kurama gave me this look that says 'Bad Idea'. The meathead turns to me and loudly says in English "Someone has notified me that the best salesman in Tokyo sits in this very place." The guy has a strong but kind of croaking accent, Middle Eastern I think. Sounds like he got punched in the throat or something, voice is deep otherwise.
Alright, maybe try the Urameshi charm. "Yeah buddy, that would be the fine lady eating outside, though I don't think she has a penis so the whole salesman part ain't all accurate." "Lazy bum," Junichi, like an idiot, blurts out. He is going to get himself killed. Kurama, now with his eyes closed, looks like he is thinking of something. Better be something good. Frog voice looks at me, his eyes like ice. He says "Ah don't be quite so bashful. I have been told many fascinating things about you, Mr. Urameshi." "And who has been whispering the sweet-nothings, huh?" I reply. Guy likes to beat around the bush. Great, I hate him already.
Frog voice then glances at Kurama and says "Ah! You must be Yoko Kurama. I've heard much about you as well." He talks a bit like a ham, gives me goosebumps. The guy comes back to looking at me while Kurama's eyes open. Fox boy got his usual serious look about him when he expects crap to hit turbines. Damn, this actually might happen.
My boss apparently decided to sober up at the worst possible time. Him and Junichi approach frog voice from behind, as my boss says in Japanese "Is everything fine? We have a great holiday leasing option on new Altimas if you are interested." I see Junichi whisper something to his dad's ear. Boss then switches to English "Oh my apologies, I did not know. You must try a new Maxima. Very sporty, great at turns. Let's take a test drive." "Boss, Junichi, I am good. Nanako said she needs you two," I lie, hoping boss actually believes me for once. Boss looks at me, gives me that pissed off holier than thou look again, and says "You don't tell me what to do, boy." Dumbass.
Dumbass Sr. and Dumbass Jr. get between me and frog voice, trying to rip him off on an overpriced sports car. I give a look at Kurama, he nods his head just enough. Can't believe I'm doing this at work.
In a quick flash, almost too fast for me to track, frog voice has boss and Junichi lifted up the ground with each of his hands around their necks. Shit, I haven't fired my spirit gun in months. "Kurama, move!" I yell, climbing out of my seat, pointing my finger and drawing in the energy for a point blank shot. I hear two nasty crunch sounds, and the two stop flailing their legs. Damnit! I nearly power the shot up until frog voice Spartan kicks me in the chest and sends me into the doors and windows of an Altima. My red tie flaps into my face, blocking my right eye. I barely see Kurama rise up and reach into the back of his hair for that rose thing, only for frog voice to swing his left elbow backwards and into Kurama's chest, sending him flying over an SUV and into the back concrete wall. Frog voice then drops my dead boss and his dead dumbass son to the ground and turns to me, looking at me as if he just took out the trash. Jesus this guy is serious.
"What do you want from us?!" I yell out, starting to sweat. His right fist goes in my direction, jab. I spin to the right and let the guy take out the rear window. Glass shatters like it was made to do that. He strikes fast, barely saw it coming. Left straight coming, I push off and to the right, guy's arm goes clean through the car door. "All good things will be revealed in due time, my child," guy croaks out, calm in an eerie way. He pulls his left arm out like it was nothing. "Rose whip!" I hear Kurama yell out. A green thorny vine wraps around meathead's right arm. I take a quick glance back and see Kurama digging himself out of the wall, covered in dirt and now having a couple of small cuts on his face.
Frog voice grabs the vine with the same hand and pulls on it, sending Kurama flying into his left fist, the fist burying itself in Kurama's gut. He gasps and spits out blood, and goes flying into the ceiling, through it, and then back out the ceiling a few meters away, landing on the roof of a Rogue. The roof of the SUV caves inward as the windows break. "KURAMA!"
"Ah, now where were we, Mr. Urameshi?" the prick croaks out, turning to me. I'll tell ya! I connect a flurry of hooks at his cheeks and chin as fast as I could. "I WAS JUST GETTING YOU ACQUAINTED WITH MY FISTS YOU BASTARD!" I must have got him at least thirty times, maybe fifty. No…this is crap. The guy didn't even move, I barely dirtied his face. The backhand came like lightning, and now I got this metallic taste coming from my lips. I don't even remember flying through the windshield and the front seat of the Rogue that Kurama is now lying on.
"We…must…retreat," I hear Kurama whisper from above, sounding like he's hurt. I'm not there yet, fox boy. This meathead just made my day worse and now he's gotta pay! I leap through where the windshield once stood and Superman punch the guy in the forehead. He moved an inch, progress at least. The guy grabs my tie and yanks me from the air, head butting me. I felt my eyes flash for a second and stare at the guy in a daze, ass on the floor. He starts talking, walking away, his back to me "A wise man once spoke of the definition of insanity, my child. I must confess, Mr. Urameshi, you will not find the results you seek if you continue."
"I'll show you some freaking results! SPIRIT…" the guy grabs my right wrist and twists my aim to the ceiling, inadvertently lifting me to my feet. "Perhaps the same wise man will ponder why someone would announce his attack to a rival combatant." Damn you! I send my left kick upward, clipping his chin. He lets go of my wrist and takes a step back. Damn, he's at least a foot taller than me. A left handed haymaker flies at my face. I barely duck in time. Damn, I felt THAT! I send an uppercut into his gut, followed by a left hook that grazes his neck. I go for a right jab. The guy grabs my right forearm and stops me in my tracks. Fine, how about a left?!
Same result, he now got both of my hands. Can't even aim my fingers at his face. He goes off "It seems your mummer's peace has become your undoing. The child needs to refresh his Sun Tzu." I kick his shin and pull off. What the hell is he talking about? The man glares at me, his face remaining calm. He starts going off in a language I don't understand "Tarreh be toxhm aŝ miravad Ḥasani be bâbâš."
What?! "Who the hell are you?!" I yell out, looking for a damned answer. Frog voice's lips curl to a smile as he says "I, am but a man whom wishes to kill you…in accordance to the ancient laws of combat that all men must adhere to." "What the hell did I ever do to you?! Answer me asshole!"
The freak takes a step forward and says "Live."
A thick cloud of smoke fills the dealership. I suddenly feel a thin hand touch my shoulder and turn to see Kurama whispering "We must escape." The sprinklers go off, now we're going to have an audience. I fish out a car key and say "Grey Nissan Cedric Y33. I'm sticking around to give this bastard the what for." "Don't be foolish Yusuke! Even if you can match him, think of the civilians outside!" fox boy starts whining. I don't care, I don't leave fights.
I hear that Arabic sounding frog voice from the smoke as Kurama pushes me to the exit. I hear a laugh and then the frog voice say "There is much wisdom in your ally's council." That's it. I run into the fog, thinking this guy has to have a weak spot, hell his balls will do. Out of nowhere, I feel a large hand grab my chin and I feel my body pitched toward the exit like a fastball. Looks like Kurama is playing catcher.
Kurama and I fly through the glass and through the pavement, as I hear a few civilians yell and run off. Great, cops will be here soon. I try to move but that toss knocked the wind out of me. I hear Kurama crawl onto his feet and run to my car parked by the curb. I hear a door open as I gaze into the smoke filled wreck of the dealership. Looks like Nanako ran off, so at least I saved someone. My body's throbbing, hurting. Kurama's dragging me off the ground and into the shotgun seat. I feel my dress shoes graze asphalt. The leather upholstery feels a damn lot better than concrete. He shuts the door and runs to the driver seat like his plants two miles away caught fire. A twist of the key, a pause to let the engine wake up, and we are gone. I hear sirens zip by, see flashes of red and blue from the windows. And I learn pretty quickly that stop signs are loose suggestions for fox boy here.
I need to rest, just realized how much my back hurts. My eyes close. Sleep.
I wake up on a beige leather couch, with a wool blanket over me. I'm shirtless and barefoot, and got a warm wet towel on my forehead. Place smells like cabbage soup, eck. The smell jolts me awake. I look around and find myself in a living room with dark wooden cabinets and bookcases, some see-through glass cabinets holding stacks of photographs and books that look to be in English, Japanese, and I guess Russian. I look left and see a wooden coffee table with a medical stitch kit, iodine, gauze, and a few ice packs. Across the room is a big old TV set with porcelain figure skater dolls on top. "Hello, good to see you up," I hear a woman say in Russian accented Japanese, her voice slightly deep and her A's getting unnecessarily stressed.
"Hey Zinaida. How long was I out?" I hear Kurama answer "Not more than an hour. Zina stitched together your cuts. Miraculously we both avoided broken bones or torn ligaments. Zina prepared some soup for you when you gain enough strength to move." "Thanks, Zinaida, appreciate it. So…what's the news on frog voice?" I ask, remembering that Freddy Mercury prick that put me in this condition. My back remembered that it's hurting, and now decided to spread the word, damn it's hard to move.
I hear Kurama say "A Homicide detective is waiting in the lobby to speak with you. Shall I signal him inside?" Police? Argh, fine. "Send him in."
I hear a door open, a few words, and then see a lanky plainclothes cop in a light brown leather jacket and dark blue jeans, wearing framed black eyeglasses and having short black hair. He sits on the coffee table, turns to Zinaida, and asks "May I?" She nods and then leaves the room. The cop looks at me, pushes the stitch kit aside, pulls out a pad and a pen, and says "Hello, my name is Assistant Inspector Ikko Hozumi, Homicide Division. I am investigating the murders of Fumito and Junichi Yamashita and the destruction of the Yamashita Nissan dealership. I've been told that you are a direct witness of the incident, having fled with Mr. Minamino. May you describe your relationship to Fumito and Junichi Yamashita?"
"Yeah, Fumito is…was…my boss. Junichi was Vice President." "How would you describe your personal relationship with the two?" Eh? "Well, I work…worked for them and they paid me commissions, no different than any other salesman job." "How would describe their personalities?" What is this? "Describe their personalities? Fumito was a day time drinker that occasionally got involved with the car deals and Junichi just slept at work." "Were there any other employees at the dealership?" "Just one, Nanako, don't remember her last name. Is she safe? I didn't see her while Shuichi pulled my ass out of there from that nutjob." "She is safe, I can assure you." Good, good. I wasn't completely useless. "That's a relief, I'm guessing she called you all."
"What is your relationship to Nanako?" the Assistant Inspector asks. "Just a concerned coworker still in shock of it all," I answer. "Very well," he says as he writes stuff down. The cop then asks "May you walk me through what happened?" Great, here's hoping Kurama didn't deviate too much from the truth. "Yeah. I was speaking with my friend Shuichi while taking a lunch er dinner break. Then out of nowhere, this meathead comes into the dealership. My boss Fumito and Junichi go up to him, trying to get him to test drive a car. He answers by grabbing them by their necks and choking them out. It sounded disgusting. He then attacks the two of us, putting his fists through windows, doors, sent me through a freaking windshield. Smoke came out of nowhere and Shuichi and I got thrown through the glass exit. Shuichi then dragged my near unconscious self to my car and now I am here."
"Do you need medical attention?" "Somehow, no. I guess I'm blessed."
"Pardon, you said he put his fist through doors. Steel car doors?" the cop asks like he heard me wrong. "Yeah, steel car doors. I couldn't believe it either," I say, throwing a line of BS at the end. "Describe this man, mention everything you noticed. Any detail could be the difference here." Alright, here it goes. "Six foot six my guess, maybe taller. Was a head and half taller, that's for sure. Looked to be in his late 30s, early 40s. Slightly tanned skin. Like someone cloned Freddy Mercury, moustache and all, and injected him with steroids. Had a dark t-shirt and cargo pants, I think they were camouflaged. Spoke English with a deep but froggy voice, had an accent, Arabic sounding. You got all that?"
The cop ignores me and keeps writing. After a bit, he looks up and asks "How would you describe his emotional state?" I suddenly feel a shiver down my back, I think it's Kurama trying to tell me something. What? Hmm…I think I get it. "He looked crazy, like he just stood there and then grabbed Fumito and his son when they got close. Didn't change his look at all during the fight, just looked like someone with a few screws knocked loose." The cop glares at me like he is fishing for crap. He says "Mr. Minamino stated on the record that he believed the man to be on narcotics, such as crystal methamphetamine. Care to comment on that?" Good work Kurama, maybe we can get out of this easy.
I shrug my shoulders and say "I don't know, I'm the salesman, not the biotech masters of science. His eyes did look bloodshot and I don't know many human beings that can put their fist through solid steel." "Okay, thank you. Three more questions to you, Mr. Urameshi." "Yeah, go ahead." "Do you know anything of any possible organized crime connections with the Yamashita's, Fumito or Junichi?" I try not laugh, better not mock the dead when they are still warm. "Highly doubt it, detective. Fumito was a bit of a sleaze ball, like he tried to sneak in administrative costs before the deal would close, but nothing criminal." "Very well, did any suspicious individuals come in contact with Mr. Yamashita or his son, during the course of your employment?" "Can't think of anyone." "Very well…is there anything that would lead you to believe that this…Freddy Mercury character was a former customer?" "Never saw the guy before in my life. Guy was a total stranger. If he shopped with us before, I didn't know about it."
The cop finishes writing on his pad and gets off the table. Finally, my throat is getting sore. He turns to Kurama and says "There is one more matter to attend to." Kurama nods at him to show he is listening. "One of the squad cars driving to the crime scene noticed a Nissan sedan speeding past two stop signs. They remembered half of the license plate. I noticed a sedan parked outside that matches the known description." Kurama smiles and says "Surely you can understand the gravity of the situation. We were driving for our lives." What the…oh boy. The cop pulls out an orange slip and hands it to Kurama. This is funny, fox boy got a traffic ticket. The cop says "We will let the traffic court decide that. My number is inside the slip, in case you recall anything else." Zinaida walks him to the door and lets him out of the house.
"50,000 yen, quite a steep penalty for self-preservation," Kurama says as he reads his ticket, sounding annoyed, almost insulted. I chuckle and say "It's alright, I'll take care of it. Still, going to be a hoot telling Kuwabara that you of all people got a ticket for aggressive driving, haha." "Have you forgotten someone important?" he asks me, like I offended him or something. "What?" He points at his right pant pocket and says "Your phone." Oh crap, Keiko!
I quickly pull out my blue flip phone expecting a dozen voicemails. I found three missed calls and one voicemail. That's worse. Not even checking the message, I call Keiko immediately.
"I THOUGHT THIS WOULD STOP! I'VE BEEN WAITING HERE FOR AN HOUR THINKING THAT YOU DIED! AGAIN!" "Keiko I've been out cold for that hour. Some meathead came in with fists flying. I'm at Kurama's girlfriend's house, yes the nurse, she stitched my cuts." "Oh Yusuke," she says over the phone like a 10 ton weight slid off her shoulders "I am so relieved to hear your voice." "Thanks Keiko, trust me, I'm fine. I'll get home as soon as these aches wear off." "Why would someone hurt you and the Yamashitas? Have you been fighting again?! I thought this would stop!" "Keiko, I'll tell you later." "Yusuke!" "Keiko! I'll tell you later, damnit!" "Fine!" She hangs up the phone, this evening is going to suck. Stupid police and their subpoenas of cell phone conversations.
"Well, Kurama, that went as I figured it would. Good call on the whole meth head story. I don't think Koenma would like having to memory wipe half the Shibuya ward police department." He sits down by my legs and folds his arms all serious like, saying "No, he certainly would not. This man is quite peculiar. He likely had the speed to chase us down and end our lives in our current states, yet he let us go. His strength is substantial…it has been several years since I have been knocked off my feet in such a manner. And that is the fact that troubles me the least."
Kurama reclines against the sofa and rest his hands behind his head. He looks at some corner of the ceiling and says "The man emitted pure human energy, no doubt about it." "Yeah, I felt it too. No artificial demon energy like Toguro, and THAT has me curious." "Agreed. We must contact Kuwabara and Hiei. Koenma and Botan as well. That man is a genuine threat. He will return, I am most certain of it."
Zinaida comes out of the kitchen with a bowl of cabbage soup and some rye bread. She says in her accented Japanese "Here, Kurama enjoys my kisliyeh shchi with extra salt, ask if you want more. Doesn't protect against Makai insects," she looks at me like she knows something "but good for gaining strength back." Wait. Hold on. Backtrack.
WHAT?!
"Kurama you told her?!" He smiles at me and says "We've been together for nearly three years. Six months into our relationship, she 'confessed' that she has schizophrenic hallucinations of 'demonic wasps' and 'goblins' from time to time." That's not answering my question fox man. "And, Kurama, what did you say?" At least she has some spirit awareness. Makes this less awkward. "Within two months we toured half of Enki's kingdom together," Kurama says as Zinaida cracks a smile like fox boy here. "You took her to demon world?!" Seriously Kurama, that's playing with fire. I love Keiko but I'd never take her to demon world. Wait, that's probably the freaking reason WHY I wouldn't. "Why yes, we visit every month. She loves the Forest of Fools in particular." He turns to her and speaks in Russian "Lyehs Durakohv." Zinaida nods and says "The Yokai are so fascinating. I thought for so long that I was insane, and then Kurama showed me that I simply can see more of this universe. And what a beautiful universe it is." Yeah okay, lady, I'm not sure beautiful is the first term I'd use to describe demon world. "Do not fear, Yusuke, my name still carries weight in the demon world, and Enki still extends protection to friends of the son of Raizen." "Good to hear they haven't forgotten about me over there, heh." I move to a seated position and take a spoonful of boiled cabbage. Pain has a way of making me forget how hungry I am.
It's alright. What I wouldn't give for some mushrooms though. I go through half the bread and soup until I feel full enough to talk business again. "And here I was thinking I was done with this crap. Occasional C class runaway every six months, that one group of D classes that tried to eat everyone in that hospital, that was easy. Then this happens. Hey, I still got it, but I ain't stupid enough to say my powers are like they were." Kurama nods with this grim look and says "All weapons require sharpening to maintain their quality. I fear the two of us have allowed our weapons to rust."
"Looks like we are back at it, Kurama. Time for a real Team Urameshi reunion." It's been a while since the four of us worked together. Almost getting nostalgic now. I say "A now unemployed car salesman and a biotech researcher. Genkai is probably laughing at us all the way upstairs. Let's hope the other two haven't become marshmallows like us." Kurama grimaces and says "For our sakes, yes."