Yu Yu Hakusho: The Next Stage

Chapter 7: First Battle

Mayumi, Takashi, Yuki, Marth, and Tohiro stood in the grand lobby of the hotel, which was to be their home for the next seven days. Their families had come along with them to Spirit World, where the Tournament of the Three Worlds was to take place the next day.

The four protectors had to submit their names in to the Grand Committee for approval. Koenma went along with them for assistance. As they approached the front desk, they found a woman sitting at a computer typing.

"Excuse me," Koenma interrupted politely, "I have the five participants from Living World here with me."

"Names, please," she requested.

"Marth the Wind Master, Takashi Kuwabara, Yuki Minamino, Tohiro Toguro, and Mayumi Urameshi," he replied.

"And who is your team captain?" asked the woman.

They each looked around at one another, clearly uncertain.

"Well," Koenma began, "it's your team, so it's up to you."

"I think since Mayumi's dad was the captain of the Dark Tournament team, Mayumi should be the captain of ours," declared Takashi.

"Is that your decision?" Koenma asked.

Each boy nodded their heads in agreement (with the exception of Tohiro). Mayumi blushed.

"The captain of Team Urameshi is Mayumi Urameshi," Koenma said proudly.


The five teenagers stood in the hallway below the stadium, awaiting the first battle to be announced. Marth was to go today, but against who was unknown. Each team was not allowed to know who their opponents were until their first opposing match. There were to be seven matches this week, one each day. No one knew who would go when or against whom.

Each protector's family would be in the stands this week. Also, a few guests had come along to watch the battles, including Koenma, Ayame, Genkai, Jorge, and most surprisingly, Hiei.

All five of them sat in complete silence. Each one was wondering how hard this competition would be. Loud voices sounded above their heads in the stands. Koenma had told them how Living World was never the crowd favorite in these tournaments. That made them slightly more anxious to get started.

"It is my honor to present Team Urameshi verses Team S.D.F!" called an amplified female voice, which rang throughout the stands.

The concrete door in front of them rolled slowly open, and the sunlight streamed through, hitting their faces. They made their way outside, where they stood in a grassy area surrounded by the stands. In the middle was an enormous white stone ring, which was in the shape of a circle. On the opposite side of the stadium, another door slowly opened, revealing a group of five people dressed in military uniforms. Each one had a badge with the letters S.D.F. printed on them.

Mayumi took a good look at them. One was an older man, with narrow eyes and gray hair. Another was a young woman, who had a plain face and mouse brown hair. She had blue eyes. The third person was a young man, with long black hair and wide black eyes. Mayumi thought he was extremely handsome, and she giggled shyly at the sight of him. The next person was a young woman, with curly blond hair and a pink headband. Also, she had black eyes. Lastly, there was a tall man with sea blue hair and gold earrings. Like most of the others, he also owned black eyes.

"I am Koto, your announcer for the duration of this tournament!" said the female voice, and they saw a girl with cat ears and overalls in the center of the ring. "If I could please have our two fighters from both teams step into the ring."

"Good luck, Marth," they told him.

"Thanks," he said with a gulp. He jumped up into the ring simultaneously with the brown-haired S.D.F. girl.

"In our first battle of the week, we have Marth, from the Living World, verses Sorai, of the Spirit World Special Defense Force!"

Mayumi looked around at the stands. She could clearly see that they were divided into thirds. One part was made up of the Spirit World members, who looked so magical compared to everyone else. They all had a majestic grace about them, but then she remembered that most of them were dead. Another third was the Demon World inhabitants, who had a wide variety of body types, skin colors, and other physical traits. They were most definitely the rowdiest group in the crowd. Mayumi remembered spending six years with them, getting to know their way of life and seeing that they weren't as bad as everyone told her they were. The last part of the stands contained the supporters for the Living World, which numbered few. Their families were in the stands along with their other guests, but no others sat in that part of the stadium. Remembering what Yuki had told her about few people in Living World knowing of the other two worlds, Mayumi realized that they would not have many people attending these functions.

"On my signal you may begin," Koto announced.

"Hey, guys," Takashi whispered, "my dad told me that Koto chick was the announcer for the Dark Tournament too."

"Really?" Mayumi replied.

"Go!" shouted Koto.

Marth took out his yellow Stone and began to chant. Within seconds, however, Sorai delivered a hard punch to the jaw that send him flying. He landed toward the edge of the ring, breathing heavily. Mayumi gasped.

"You can do it, Marth!" she cheered.

A small tornado of swirling wind rose from the ground, though not nearly as massive as the one she saw a month ago. Marth was lifted into the air, and he was able to levitate as the wind disappeared. Sorai, however, was also able to fly. Their battle was taken to the skies. Punch after punch was thrown, and they continued up into the clouds. The audience began to mutter angrily.

"C'mon!" shouted the demons from the stands, "we wanna see some blood!"

Without warning, a figure fell from the clouds, like a blue comet heading toward the ground. With a hard and noisy impact, Marth crashed into the ring, sending small amounts of rubble into the air. Sorai flew back to the ground, sending shots of energy blasts at him.

Sorai stopped her blasts suddenly. She gazed around the stadium, as if looking for someone.

"It appears to me that Marth has just disappeared without a trace," Koto shouted into her microphone.

A blue figure appeared behind Sorai. It was Marth, who pulled her arms tightly behind her back, locking her in place.

"Where do hamburgers dance? At a meat ball!" Marth cried.

Sorai had a puzzled look on her face for a few moments, but soon it dissolved into a slight grin.

"What did one candle ask the other? Going out tonight?" Marth shouted.

Sorai had a large grin upon her face now.

"What are two things demons can't eat for dinner? Breakfast and lunch!"

Sorai began to giggle quietly.

"What did the gingerbread man have on his bed? Cookie sheets!"

Sorai started to laugh harder.

"Knock, knock!" Marth yelled.

"Who's there?" she responded happily.

"Lettuce!"

"Lettuce, who?"

"Lettuce come in, and you'll find out!"

Sorai began to roar with laughter.

"What do you call Santa's workshop when it's messy? A toynado!"

Sorai collapsed onto the ground, clutching her sides as she laughed madly.

"One, two..." Koto began.

The four other teenagers watched in awe as Sorai rolled on the ground. If she could just stay there for ten seconds, the fight would be theirs.

"Five, six..."

They held their breaths as Sorai made no attempt to stand.

"Nine, ten!"

The crowd went wild. Apparently, Marth had many demon supporters due to his father's demon blood.

The other four S.D.F. members rushed into the ring and lifted Sorai from the ground. She had tears streaming down her face at this point from laughter as they escorted her out of the stadium. The protectors jumped into the ring, celebrating Marth's victory.

"We have one point for Team Urameshi, and zero points for our other two teams! Remember, the team with the most points by the end of the tournament is declared the winner!" Koto exclaimed.

That evening, the protectors, their families, and the guests celebrated the first battle with an enormous feast in the hotel restaurant. Mayumi and the four boys were introduced by Kurama to a group of old friends who were attending the tournament.

"I'd like to introduce Kido, Yanagisawa, and Kaito. They have "territorial" powers that swept across Japan many years ago. They went to Genkai for help, then joined our side for the fight against an old rival, Shinobu Sensui."

"Pleased to meet you," they said, bowing respectfully.

"Kaito is interested in languages," Kurama continued. "He is an accomplished author of essays and novels. My former schoolmate has expressed that he would like to know where you obtained your jokes, Marth."

"You mean the ones from today?" asked Marth, with his usual Scottish accent.

"Yes," Kaito replied.

"Well," Marth began, "I got them off the back of a fast food bag."

The group laughed.

Mayumi was also later introduced to Mr. Mitari, a friend of Kuwabara. Mr. Mitari was also was involved with the case of Shinobu Sensui, who she learned was a man who had wanted to create a tunnel between the Living and Demon Worlds. He died in a fight against her father, which angered her slightly.

The rest of the night was full of celebration. Everyone went to bed feeling tired, but good. They had managed to scrape the first win of the entire tournament, and they all hoped they could keep it up for tomorrow's impending battle.