Misguided Rage, Pt. 4:
Yusuke, Keiko, Kuwabara, and Kurama continued their conversation in the living room of the apartment belonging to Keiko and Yusuke. There were laughs and smiles for all. Catching up really got all of them in a wonderful mood. When suddenly there was a hush that fell over the three men. Each of them turning their head, as if they could hear something that no one else could. Keiko sat there puzzled, looking to each of them with a concerned look.
"Was it something I said?" She asked, looking to Yusuke.
"No. Keiko, you're fine. I assume you guys feel that too?" He asked, never breaking his gaze from that direction.
"Yeah." Answered Kuwabara.
"Indeed." Kurama would respond.
"Should we check it out?" Yusuke asked the two of them.
Kurama and Kuwabara nodded their heads in unison as they each pushed themselves to their feet.
Yusuke would turn to Keiko and smile. "Hey, stay here. We will be right back, ok?"
Keiko frowned lightly, but simply nodded. "I guess I'll just start cleaning up. You promise you're coming back?"
Yusuke would walk over and push a kiss to her forehead. "I swear it."
Keiko couldn't say no to that. She smiled and nodded. "Be careful."
Yusuke smiled and gave her a thumbs up.
"Don't worry Keiko, I won't let anything happen to Yurameshi." Kuwabara said confidently. "And after all, it's the three of us. We couldn't be safer."
She would nod to Kuwabara as well with a smile and it really did lift her spirits once she started thinking about it. The bond that those three shared was so strong. Certainly nothing could happen to them. Not with them watching out for each other. So she breathed a long sigh of relief and began cleaning up the living room.
Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Kurama headed out the door and immediately in the direction of the energy spike they had felt.
"What do you guys think it was?" Kuwabara asked as they sprinted toward Main Street.
"It's not a question of what it was Kuwabara, but rather who." Kurama responded, trying to piece things together in his head as quickly as he could.
"Who? Yeah, I guess that makes more sense." Kuwabara said, now beginning to think in his own head. He was getting concerned as well, but wouldn't show it yet.
The three of them finally reached Main Street. Stopping for only a moment, then turned and headed in the direction of the where the casino sat at the top of the street. The building lit up the entire area around it, almost like it was daylight while standing within that proximity. They did a quick scan of the area before looking to one another.
"I sense something over here, guys!" Kuwabara shouted. He did after all have the best Spirit Awareness of all of them.
They ran down the alley next to the casino, rounding the back corner of the building. And there they saw her. Botan, laying on the ground, up against the dumpster that sat behind the building. She even seemed to have smoke coming up off of her, like her body was releasing a high amount of heat.
"Botan!" Yusuke shouted, running over to her. He would lean down, his hand moving underneath her head to support it up. "Botan, can you hear me?" He asked gently, begging for an answer, but there was none. "Kurama, can you do anything for her?"
Kurama move to kneel next to him, his fingers would press up against her neck softly, then he would close his eyes and wait. "She has a pulse. It's weak but it's there. She's been through a high level of bodily stress, Yusuke. We should get her inside. Then we can properly take care of her."
"Move Yurameshi, I got this." Kuwabara insisted, kneeling down and picking her up in his arms.
"The human freight train strikes again. Thanks Kuwabara." Yusuke said.
"No problem. Let's get her back to Yurameshi's place, right Kurama?" Kuwabara would ask.
"Yes, that seems best." Kurama nodded.
"Ok, let's go then." Yusuke said, leading their way. Kuwabara would follow Yusuke while Kurama took up the protective spot behind him.
It was not long before they returned to the apartment. The door was opened carefully and in they went. Keiko was in the kitchen cleaning the dishes some when she heard the door open. She came out into the living room and her eyes widened in concern for her friend.
"Oh my gosh! Botan! What happened to her, Yusuke?!" She asked hysterically.
"I'm not totally sure, Keiko, but we're going to look after her and make sure she's taken care of." Yusuke responded. Unfortunately, he wasn't sure what to think either.
"Do not worry Keiko, although she has endured a heavy amount of stress, judging by her injuries, she should be just fine after a long night's sleep." Kurama assured her. "I will also put together a little bit of medicine myself for her, to help with any pain she may have when she wakes up."
"Thank you Kurama, that makes me feel much better." Keiko said. She then moved over to the couch, clearing it, then moving to the linen closet they kept, she pulled out a comforter for Botan. Kuwabara would set Botan on the couch gently and allow Keiko to put the blanket on her. Keiko would sit next to her then, still full of worry for her friend. "Oh Botan. What has happened to you?"
Kurama would begin to inspect her wounds. His eyes moved slowly, checking every detail of her form and figuring out what he could. 'Electrocution?' He thought as he looked her over. 'Charred fabric and burns on the skin. It has to be. But from what?' Kurama went deep into thought, debating every possibility inside his head.
"What do you think, Kurama? Was she attacked?" Yusuke asked in concern. He stood there now with his arms crossed over his chest, his patience running thin as it often did with him.
"I'm not totally sure. Some signs are pointing that way, but to diagnose with such little to work with is unfortunately something I cannot do yet. I'll need more time. And when she wakes up, I'm sure she can tell us more." He said, moving to stand. "There's not much more we can do until then. I suggest everyone get some sleep."
"Uh, do you guys mind if I crash here tonight then? With stuff like this going on, ya know?" Kuwabara asked.
"Yeah, I actually suggest you two stay here tonight." Yusuke replied, nodding to Kuwabara.
Back in the City:
"Well, young one, it seems that you have gotten their attention. I still think you should have maimed her a little bit, try to strike more fear in their hearts. But that's just my style." The first one stated.
"What's the point of causing more harm than what I did? Especially to one of those who work directly for Koenma. None of them are trained to fight or even have that much Spirit energy. It would not send a message and be a waste of my time." The other responded.
"Careful, you don't talk back to me." The other said.
"And you remember that you aren't my sensei. I'm getting his honor back."
"How dare you. You think that's not my goal too?" He growled. "You're insubordinate, just like your father was."
"Do not talk about my father. He was worshipped. He was one of the greatest leaders Demon World has ever known." The younger one snapped back.
"You keep this in mind. Without me, you would not have this opportunity to avenge either one. Remember that."
The two would vanish into the darkness again, keeping their distance, biding their time to strike.
The Next Morning:
Botan gingerly began to stir, her body straining to sit up. Eventually she stretched lightly and looked around. She recognized her surroundings and took a deep breath of relief, only to wince in pain. Her side and her neck was in incredible pain. She remember the last night and the attack she went through. She couldn't recall any faces, which would have helped in her own mind, but she remembered what happened. She looked down, seeing Kurama sleeping at the foot of the couch and Kuwabara on the floor just across the room. Her heart was filled with happiness, knowing that they must have come to get her and thanks to them she was safe. Her friendship with them meant everything and she could not be more grateful. She waited patiently before Kuwabara grunted and turned back over, getting comfortable again.
"Kuwabara?" She asked softly.
"Hmm, 5 more minutes." He grunted sleepily before gaining a bit more consciousness. "Botan! You're awake." He said, unintentionally waking the others.
Kurama sat up with a stretch before looking to Botan. "Hello again. How are you feeling?"
"A lot of pain in my lower neck and side, other than that though, I'm not bad." She said.
Keiko and Yusuke came out of the bedroom after hearing Kuwabara and Keiko rushed over to Botan, throwing her arms around her in a caring hug.
"Oh Botan! I was so worried about you!" She exclaimed.
Botan returned the hug and smiled to her. "Easy now, I'm still quite sore Keiko. I still appreciate the hug nonetheless."
"Botan?" Kurama asked. "Can you tell us anything about last night?"
"Yes. I was searching for an unusual amount of energy that had been spiking as of late here in the city. I found one near the casino. When I went down to find it, I found a homeless man in an alley. At first I thought it might be him, then I was attacked by a second person hiding in the alley. He pinned me to a wall by my throat, then mentioned you, Yusuke." She turned to eye him sadly. "You have more enemies out there. Someone in this city is watching you. Someone I'm not familiar with. I hate to be the bearer of that bad news."
"I'm not really surprised. It seems that I have always had someone that had a problem with me. Hell, that's how Kuwabara started coming around." Yusuke responded. "What exactly did they say?"
"Just that they were looking for you. They wanted to send the message that you were their target. Mmph!" She winced again, grabbing at her side and bending a bit more in pain.
"Here Botan, take these." Kurama outreached his hand and offered her a pair of pills. "These should help exponentially with the pain."
"Oh, wait Botan, I'll get you a glass of water." Keiko offered as she scooted off to the kitchen and then came back with a glass for her. "Here you go."
Botan would take the pills and then the glass of water from Keiko and down them. She would sigh and smile. "Thank you both. It's very relieving having such good friends to look after someone like me. I will have to contact Koenma and let him know that my report."
"Do whatever you have to do, Botan." Keiko said supportively.
"Thank you, Keiko." She smiled brightly to her before taking out her Communication Mirror, she would make the call to Spirit World.
Back in Spirit World:
The call began to come through and Koenma would answer it on the large screen in his office.
"Oh, Botan, it's you. I was wondering when your report is going to come through." Koenma said.
"Koenma, sir, I'm sorry my report is so late. I ran into a bit of a snag." Botan responded as she winced a bit again.
"Botan, are you alright? What happened?" Koenma asked, more concerned now.
"I came under attack by what I think was the source of the energy we've been tracking. I can only confirm that whoever it is, is male. Other than that, I didn't gather more information. I apologize."
"Do not apologize, you are irreplaceable, Botan. I am just relieved that you are OK. But how did you survive the attack?"
"I was not his target. I was just used to send a message, sir." She said, coughing softly.
"Not the target? Then who?"
"Well…" She smiled, turning the mirror so that Koenma could get a full view of all that was there.
"Oh, I see. Hello everyone. It's very nice to see each of you. So who is the lucky one with the target on their back then, hmm?"
"I believe that it's Yusuke, sir. The one who attacked me name dropped him as being the one who he wanted to notice." Botan confessed.
"I see. Yusuke, are you prepared to take on a threat without the backing of Spirit World? I cannot promise that our forces will take your side, although I can say that they will not take the other side either. Basically, I'm saying you're on your own." Koenma explained.
"Yeah, don't worry Koenma, whoever it is, all they did was piss me off." He replied. "I'm not going to need anyone to help me deal with this."
"Very well, Yusuke, take care of your business. Just please keep the collateral damage to a minimum." Koenma requested. "Botan. I am sending you an escort to bring you back to the Spirit World. I won't risk my most trusted agent's safety."
"Oh, Koenma, sir, that's not necessary, I just need to get my strength back is all. Then I will fly back on my own." She smiled. "Thank you though."
"I am not taking a no on this one. Without knowing who the threat is and knowing that they are willing to attack you, I won't risk it. Just stay put. That's final." Koenma made clear.
"Oh, umm, yes sir." She nodded to him.
"Until then, Yusuke, I would stay on high alert if I were you. Be careful. Koenma out!" He waved as the video call was disconnected.
"Well, I hope I'm not being too much of a bother by staying here until Koenma's escort gets here." Botan turned toward Yusuke and Keiko.
"Of course not! How could you ever consider yourself a bother Botan?!" Keiko shouted and moved to sit next to her. "I would never ever just put you out."
"Thank you Keiko, that truly means a lot." Botan smiled happily to her as she laid back gingerly against the cushion of the couch, the pain meds beginning to kick in already. "Oh, Kurama, what are these?"
"A special medicine I helped develop. Don't worry, they will work just fine. You'll feel better in no time, they might make you a bit dizzy due to the strength of them, but you won't have any other side effects." Kurama replied, patting her hand.
Botan would nod to Kurama understandingly and close her eyes, trying her best to just relax after the night she had. Her breathing slowed down but she had a smile on her face, just happy to be surrounded by friends.
"So what should we do now, Yurameshi?" ask Kuwabara, who had patiently been waiting for a plan to be formed.
"Come with me Kuwabara, let's go for a walk. Kurama, you mind staying here with Keiko and Botan?" He asked, turning to check on the group.
"Oh, no, not at all. It's probably best that I'm here to help tend to Botan's injuries anyway. Be careful Yusuke. We still don't know who we are messing with here. Don't careless." Kurama advised him.
Yusuke nodded to Kurama, opening the door and balling up a fist, Kuwabara right behind him.