A/N- Here's a One Shot for Labor Day! Hope it will be interesting. Now, Batman characters in this story are based off of The Batman, an animated show run on Kids WB on Saturdays. The Yu Yu Hakusho characters are set after the end of the series, and Hiei is still somewhat under Koenma's control.
Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho or The Batman. I like the shows very much though.
Dedication: This story is dedicated to all those who have to work on Labor Day
Batman's Ultimate Villain: Hiei: Ultimate Thief
Hiei walked silently through the museum, his keen youkai ears alerting him to the footsteps of the ningen guards long before they arrived, making it simple to avoid their prying eyes. He avoided the cameras with his speed, so that only a glimpse could be seen of him, and then only if the tape was paused. His red eyes were narrow in irritation, but his posture, practically invisible under his long black cloak, was relaxed. He was breaking no laws of his people in this heist, and while technically he was breaking Koenma's laws, he had been asked to do this by Koenma himself.
He growled lightly at that. Apparently, deep within this museum was a bracelet; the humans considered it a rare, irreplaceable relic. To Koenma, it was reason to panic. This bracelet was covered in hiruseki gems, and not stable ones, either. These gems were from a Forbidden Child generations before Hiei himself; apparently, a weak Forbidden Child to have cried so many gems. Hiei himself had barely cried a gem in his life, and he was already several centuries old.
But, because he was half Koorime, he was stuck with this insufferable mission of passing the human security measures without being seen, and retrieving the bracelet, rather than letting the Great Thief Kitsune fetch it. And if he was seen or confronted, he had to act human, of all the indignities. After he had the bracelet, he was free to dispose of it in any way he so chose; exempting, of course, ways that would kill or maim any humans. In fact, even if he was attacked, he wasn't allowed to do any "lasting damage." Hiei wondered exactly what that was to mean; but it was of little importance. He did not intend to be found at all.
He saw the bracelet now, and paused in front of it. As a Koorime, hiruseki tear gems almost called to him, as though they had emotions of their own. It was something like a siren's call, but one to avenge the one who had shed the tears. Thus, Koenma had given this mission to him, bothersome as it might be.
Hiei stood in front of the bracelet, caring little for the elaborate designs that the humans had carved onto the gems, but almost entranced by the siren's call of the gems. But his other half kept him safe from the call, keeping his body mostly under control and preventing it from turning into an avenging monster.
He reached out his hand, ignoring the alarms placed on the bracelet due to the hiruseki gems' distraction, and grabbed the bracelet. The alarm blared immediately, jerking his red eyes from the black gems as he cursed their power over him.
The guards ran towards the scene of the crime quickly, for ningen, anyway. They surrounded him, guns drawn, and his red eyes flicked lazily from one to another. He saw them shudder, and nearly smirked that his mere eye color would have such an effect on them. Then, in a flash of movement that could only be seen as a blur of black, he disappeared, striking each with the hilt of his sword, always in the stomach, knocking them to the ground with a groan, before he knocked them out completely with a blow to the head. In mere seconds, he had returned to his original position, and his red eyes landed on a camera which now focused on him. He sneered at it—it was useless for them to gain his image; they would never find his identity.
But it appeared he had delayed overlong. His sensitive ears heard the noise made by the clothes and feet of a man as he fell from above, and his eyes, able to see almost as well in this darkness as they could in the light, saw the cloaked figure reach the ground, landing silently (to any ningen) in the shadows.
He glared at the man. Koenma had not told him of this…. He looked the man up and down. His eyes rested on the strange points, like ears, that were added to the cowl which half covered the man's face. Hiei cocked his head slightly as he observed him. What exactly was the man trying to accomplish by dressing like that? The cape would disguise his movements, Hiei supposed (at least, that was why he wore his own cape). But the cowl…this man didn't want his identity known. Was he some sort of thief?
"Drop the bracelet, kid," the man growled, his deep voice quiet, but easily heard throughout the room.
Hiei's eyes narrowed at the word "kid" and spoke back. "Calling me a kid doesn't make me one…but what are you?"
At his statement, Hiei could almost smell the curiosity and surprise the other was emitting. Apparently, that wasn't the usual reaction to the man's presence. But the man was probably surprised by Hiei's deep voice, belying the fact that he was much older than he looked.
The man didn't respond immediately, and Hiei didn't move, too curious to use the moment to escape. "I'm the Batman…" and with that, the man shot forward, fast for a normal human. Still, it was a simple thing for Hiei to sidestep him.
"And why is 'the Batman' fighting me?"
The scent of surprise was even stronger now, even as the Batman continued his assault, and Hiei continued to dodge with little effort. "Because you're stealing from the museum," Batman stated monotonously.
Hiei looked down at the bracelet, which he had slipped onto his wrist without thinking when the fight began. "Hmm…" Batman attempted to punch him once more, but without even looking, Hiei dodged. "Bothersome complications," Hiei muttered softly.
Then, his eyes widened in surprise, and he ducked down suddenly, allowing the brightly colored boy to fly over his head.
The boy landed next to the Batman, and Hiei looked at the colorful outfit with distaste. "And who (or what) are you supposed to be?"
"I'm Robin, the Batman's partner," the boy stated proudly. "Who are you? I've never seen you around."
Hiei looked him over once more. "And you never will again. Now get out of my way."
"…Do I look stupid to you? It's two against one!"
Hiei looked at the boy and stated dryly, "…Right. You just haven't landed a hit on me yet."
"Hey! That was luck!" Robin yelled defensively.
"Hn," Hiei grunted. Then he settled into a defensive crouch, his hands still hidden from sight by his cloak.
The Batman and Robin moved forward as one, and Hiei dodged easily, unsheathing his katana in one fluid motion. In response, Batman removed a small, obviously sharp object, which looked to be boomerang-like, and Robin expanded his bo-staff.
Hiei grinned, something that looked a part of nightmares, with his haunting red eyes and sharp teeth. "Hm…Koenma told me no 'lasting damage.' Pity ningen are so weak…I'll have to play kindly."
With that, Hiei shot forward, slow enough to be seen, but not so slow that it was easy to react. Batman moved his bat-arang in the way of the blow, and Hiei smirked, quickly moving his leg to land a solid blow in the Batman's stomach, knocking the air out of Robin's mentor. Robin instantly charged him, and Hiei responded with his unmatched skill with the katana: in a series of slashes almost impossible to follow with the human eye, the bo-staff was no more than several two-inch, round pieces of steel on the ground. While the boy was still stunned by his no longer existent weapon, Hiei made his way toward the exit, only to be stopped by Batman, who was blocking the door. While Hiei was still surprised by the human's swift recovery, Batman made for the bracelet. Hiei's youki flared in reaction to the ningen's close reiki. Even as the Batman still reached for the bracelet, Hiei felt the gems reacting to his youki, and faster than the eye could follow, he tossed the bracelet off his wrist and into the air. It was not a moment to soon, for the bracelet exploded.
Batman's hand closed around Hiei's wrist, but only for a moment before Hiei jerked back, casting a satisfied glance at the area where the explosion had occurred.
"One less volatile object in ningenkai…" Hiei muttered, smirking. With that, he disappeared.
Batman's POV
The thief was gone. A quick glance around revealed that. Robin turned, and stated, disbelief still in his voice. "He- he demolished my bo-staff. And I couldn't even see him move!"
Batman smiled grimly. "But why did he destroy the bracelet? If that was his goal all along, why did he put it on his wrist in the first place?"
Robin shrugged. "But how are we gonna find him and bring him in?"
Batman began to walk away. "Come on, Robin. And while you're at it, call Barbara. Tell her to join us in the Batcave."
Robin nodded, and made his way after his mentor.
Batgirl (AKA Barbara) reviewed the footage from what the Batman's camera had collected as he had fought. "Wow. This guy's good. It's like you're moving in slow motion compared to him."
The Batman ignored her, focusing on the screen as he ran a program to try and match this thief to anyone in Gotham. It should have been simple enough, considering how easily they saw his face…but no one matched the boy at all.
"Red eyes…that suggests some sort of mutation, and a power…" the Batman murmured to himself.
"Super skill with the sword?" Robin muttered, watching as his bo-staff was demolished in slow motion on the screen.
The Batman cast an irritated glance at him, just as Alfred entered the room. "Snacks, anyone?"
Robin and Batgirl raised their hands, not looking at him, and he went down to them, just in time to hear the explosion off screen.
"What was that, Batman?" Batgirl asked.
"When the bracelet exploded…" he muttered, not focusing on her.
She perked up, then listened as the thief stated, "One less volatile object in ningenkai…"
"Huh? What does he mean by that?"
Batman turned to her, distracted. "Mean by what?"
"'One less volatile object in ningenkai,'" she quoted. "What's ningenkai anyway?"
Batman ran a search on the word, ordering the computer to read the results aloud. "Ningenkai: a Japanese word literally meaning 'human world.' A concept revolving around the three worlds: Reikai, literally 'spirit world,' Ningenkai literally 'human world,' and Makai, literally 'demon world' make up the three worlds."
The group blinked at that. "So…our thief is from Japan and believes in three worlds?" Robin questioned.
"Least it's a lead…" Batman muttered. "Barbara, Richard. Look for any other words he said that you don't know the meaning of."
They obeyed. "Here's one. Ningen. But maybe that's just short for ningenkai."
Batman looked it up, and the computer spoke, "Ningen: a Japanese word meaning 'human.'"
"What was the context, you two?" Batman asked pensively.
"'Pity ningen are so weak,'" Robin quoted. "Just before he attacked us."
Batgirl looked at them quizzically, though her cowl hid the expression. "He called you 'humans?' He really sounds like your typical 'I'm gonna take over the world' type guy."
"Look for more words, you two."
They obeyed, Alfred still observing from the background. "Ahh. Here's one. Sounds like the name of his employer. A 'Koenma,'" Batgirl said.
Batman executed the search. "No such word," the computer's voice reported.
"Search for 'ko.'" Batman ordered, even as his sidekicks groaned at the failure.
"Ko: a Japanese word. Common meaning: child."
"Search for 'enma.'"
"Enma: a Japanese word, title of the king of the underworld."
"Umm…So he said, child king of the underworld?" Robin asked. "That just seems…weird."
"Strange name to claim. If you wanted to be feared, I would think you would leave off the ko," Batgirl commented.
"We've learned all I think we will. Let's get this man before he strikes again," Batman commented.
Batgirl and Robin nodded, following him and sitting in the car.
"Uh…hey, does that mean you put a tracking device on him? When?" Robin asked as they started to head onto the streets.
"When I reached for the bracelet. My hand landed on his wrist, and I planted it then."
They nodded, and prepared mentally for the hard fight ahead.
Hiei rested on top of a building with the large word "Wayne" on top in bright letters. Koenma was busy, and wouldn't give him a portal back to Japan until a few hours had passed. So, he had to sit here, bored, for Koenma's incompetence.
"Hey! Thief!"
Maybe not bored. He turned, sniffing the air. He should have been more aware of his surroundings. The two ningen from before, plus a female, had come. He turned his head towards them slowly. "Who's the onna?" he asked boredly, crimson eyes looking over the girl. Her outfit was similar to the Batman's, just with a long sleeved and short-skirted dress, and high boots.
"I'm the Batgirl," she announced.
Hiei gave a "hn," and turned onto his side. "Do me a favor and go away."
Footsteps alerted him to the boy Robin, and Hiei was lifted to his feet by the boy's hands on his cloak. "You aren't in any position to make demands!" Robin exclaimed.
Hiei looked at him. "And a ningen like you is going to stop me?"
The boy glared, and the Batgirl spoke. "Why do you keep calling us 'ningen?'"
"Because I want to," Hiei replied, apparently unbothered by the boy still holding his collar.
"Robin, come here," Batman ordered. Robin obeyed, dropping Hiei's collar reluctantly.
"What's your name, thief?"
Red eyes glanced at the sky, in which the sun was rising. No portal. "…Hiei."
"Hiei, huh? What is someone Japanese doing stealing in Gotham?" Batgirl asked.
"None of your business." He shifted, drawing his sword. "If you so desire my company, you will have to win it."
Batman's hand reached to his belt, and a small pellet fell into his hand. He tossed it, and Hiei instantly deflected it. It landed at his feet, rather than on his chest, but it still released its contents, instantly freezing Hiei's legs up to his knees. He looked at his legs, apparently irritated, and for a moment, Batgirl and Robin smirked, thinking that they had him now.
"Why do non-masters of ice persist in using it?" Hiei pondered aloud in a monotonous tone. "I'm master of ice more than any of you." And with that statement, Hiei's red eyes glowed blue for a moment. The ice instantly moved down his legs, releasing them, before moving through the air to land in his hand. His eyes still glowing blue, he shaped the ice into a dragon sculpture. His eyes returned to their normal red. "No non-master can defeat me with ice…"
"What about this, then…" Batman muttered. A small pellet was in his hand, this one landing just in front of Hiei, who looked at it with little apparent interest…until it started releasing a gas. He instantly held his breath, unwilling to inhale poison, only to find it irritating his eyes. His eyes widened, and suddenly tears were falling down his face; but as soon as they left his eyes, they suddenly solidified, into the very black gems that had made up the bracelet. Hiei was looking at the gems in shock as he fell, coughing gently-- the ice sculpture shattered instantly. The Batman, Robin, and Batgirl stared at the growing pile of gems. Batgirl started forward and picked up one from the still growing pile. "Batman, this is that same gem, the one the museum people thought didn't exist anymore…"
Hiei slapped her hand, and she dropped the gem in surprise, glaring at him.
Robin piped up, "Well, he isn't stealing to get rich. All he has to do is cry."
Hiei glared, turning to the Batman. "What did you do to me, ningen!"
The Batman didn't have a chance to respond, as something looking similar to a black hole opened between the two. A teenager of seventeen or so years stepped out, long red hair flowing gracefully behind him as he exited, the portal disappearing as he did so. Green eyes looked over the two parties, apparently interested. "Hiei, why are you crying? So many black Hiruseki gems…I don't think I've ever even seen you cry before…"
The irritated Forbidden child removed his cloak to throw it at the teen. "Be quiet, kitsune, before I cut off that mane of yours."
The green eyed teen caught the cloak and pouted, then he turned to the Batman. However, as soon as the cloak had been removed, Batman's eyes had fallen upon Hiei's necklace. "Another of these gems. But a different color…"
The green eyed teen glanced at the necklace lazily. "Ah, yes. That's his mother's tear gem. Anyway, who are you and what do you want with Hiei?"
Batman blinked underneath his cowl at the polite tone, lost for words. But Robin had no such difficulties. "He blew up the bracelet from the museum! That's illegal!"
The teen smiled slightly. "Ah, that. Well….You see, that bracelet was basically a bomb waiting to go off. He didn't make it explode on purpose; his mission was to get it out of the museum and detonate it safely."
They blinked at him, then Batgirl asked, "Uh…And who are you? Are you the 'Koenma, he mentioned?"
The teen shook his head. "Oh no. My name is Kurama—I'm something like his teammate. Anyway, if you'll excuse us, his mission is complete…I'm afraid you can't have the gems though…might explode, after all…"
And with a flick of his wrist, sending the cape back to Hiei, and a flicker of black, Hiei had gathered all the gems into his cloak, and they stepped into a portal, Kurama waving over his shoulder as they went.
"Uh…bye?" Batgirl stated, waving hesitantly as the portal closed.
Robin blinked. "Did that make sense to anyone? Who's Kurama anyway?"
No one moved as the sun rose, illuminating their figures, but not their minds.
A/N- Hope that you enjoyed the one-shot. The story is eight pages long! I did my best to keep everyone in character, and I apologize if anyone didn't feel a character was written quite right.
If you enjoyed this story, I'd appreciate it if you left a review, or chose to look at one of my other stories. Thanks for reading.
Sayonara!
Shiori Hitohana