Band camp is finally over! It is rather difficult to type properly with an injured right hand (curse those triple rifle tosses). Actually, BC has been over since Tuesday, and I have been lazy in finishing this chapter. Thank you to all who reviewed, no matter what chapter it was on.

sakura mae su

kari tao (ren's little sister)

MyPinkLibra

All of my work is now copyrighted.

Pretty in Black Chapter 7

I don't want to die like this. Rin thought as a tear slipped down her cheek. I wanted to die a natural death surrounded by the ones I love. Oh well, I guess we can't have everything we want.

"Hell Crimson Lizard!" someone yelled and Rin felt the kyonshi's grip on her loosen. She gasped, pulling life-giving air into her lungs, and sunk to her knees. After finally catching her breath he looked behind her only to see Ryu.

"Ryu? I thought you were…I mean, you took a clean blow to the head with a sword." Rin choked out.

"That was nothing. I'm used to taking a serious beating. I was just caught by surprise. But I'm really mad because that Jiang-si split my ultra-heartful pompadour!" Ryu said, clearly unhappy.

"Yoh you run ahead and save Ren. We'll take care of the last two kyonshi." Said Horohoro.

"Yeah." Rin said standing up and retrieving her beads.

"Okay. You all be careful." Yoh said and he ran out of the room.

"Rin, are you sure you're up to this? You still seem out of breath. Maybe you should have gone with Yoh. You can still catch up to him." Horohoro said.

'I'm fine. I'll make sure Manta gets in a safe place." She looked around for Manta and found him hiding behind a large vase. "Never mind, he's already there."

"Alright, lets go!" Ryu said.

"Heh…Bason did this without my knowledge. Now you get to see me in an embarrassing position. I don't know what your doing here, but I'm really amazed that you made it that far Yoh." Said Ren, giving an amused smile.

"Well, you know me. I hang with a pretty tough crowd. Now, lets get you two out of here."

"Hell Crimson Lizard!"

"Nipopo Punch!"

"Yami no Yari!"

All attacks went out but did not hit their target. The remaining kyonshi were too fast. Th one with machine guns and rockets attacked after dodging their attacks.

"Ryu! Horo! Take cover under this shield!" Rin said and created an energy shield to protect the three of them with. Much to her frustration, the machine zombie would not stop attacking the shield and in the process, depleting her mana.

"Ryu, Horo…can you do me a favor?"

"What?" they asked together.

"If this zombie is going to keep attacking, I'm going to be out of mana and won't be able to fight, so I'm going to deactivate the shield. When it's gone, I want you to immediately attack the zombie. Hopefully, you will destroy it. I don't know if I will be able to attack with you. Ready?"

"Ready."

"Now!"

Rin deactivated the shield and attacked, destroying the kyonshi.

"One down, one to go." Horohoro said.

"This will be a piece of cake." Ryu added.

"You're right. He's outmatched 3 to 1." Rin also added. The kyonshi just laughed.

"You delusional fools. You cannot defeat me for you are not strong enough. I will crush all three of you like insects."

"Yeah! Well we'll defeat you so fast that it will make your head spin! Nipopo Punch!"

The kyonshi laughed again and counterattacked causing Horohoro to hit the wall with such a violent force, it cracked the wall and knocked him unconscious. Rin and Ryu then attacked but ended with the same results. Rin was thrown across the room and Ryu was caught in the kyonshi's grasp.

OOO

CHA-CHANK!

Yoh released Jun from her cell and then released Ren. Ren just sat on the ground rubbing his wrists not saying anything.

"You alright Ren?" Yoh asked. Ren seemed surprised by this question.

"Of course. Who do you think your talking to? I'm not some weakling." Jun smiled at this comment.

"Yoh, I want to thank you. I never dreamed that you would come all this way to save us. I was thinking of ways to escape…all of them foolish fantasies I'm afraid." Jun said

"It's alright, it was no problem. We had better get you both out of here."

"No." Ren said.

"What do you mean 'no'?" Yoh asked.

"I came here to defeat Yuan, and I'm not going anywhere until I reach my goal. I'm going to go straight to the top floor. You've done what you've been came here to do so you can leave." Ren said and he started to leave the cell.

"Ren! Don't be stupid!" Yoh called after him. "You were in here because you weren't able to defeat your father! What chance do you have in your current condition? Live today, fight tomorrow."

"You don't understand Yoh." Ren said. "I don't have the strength to live as a loser. If I left, then Yuan would only send kyonshi after me to bring me back here. It is pointless to leave, and then come back again. It is better to get this over with now than later. Still, I thank you for freeing Jun and I."

"But you've seen how powerful father is! You can't defeat him in your current condition." Jun said trying to get Ren to change his mind.

"Oh well." Yoh said. "That's Ren. Once his mind is made up, there's no changing it. I've come this far, I might as well stick around."

OOO

"Ren's challenging me again. He'll never learn. That Yoh Asakura is a bad influence. He won't leave here alive, for this place holds many dangers unknown to him." Yuan said as he sat watching Ren, Yoh and Jun. He laughed silently to himself.

"Ren, wait up. Slow down, you're tired. Yoh said panting as he ran after Ren.

"I'm tired? You're the one who's panting. Why are you following me?"

"I said I'd fight with you." Said Yoh, not really answering Ren's question.

"Mind your own business. If you're smart, then you'll go back to Japan."

"If I did, then you would be lonely."

"I would not be lonely! You'll just get in the way. You're abnormally excessive optimism won't save you from Yuan."

"You make your father sound like a monster. Bason told us what happened, but how can any father be that bad?"

"Look, it's not that I hate Yuan Yoh, I came here to defeat the hatred in me. Yuan carved this tattoo into me, and force-fed me the family philosophy since before I could walk. I don't hate him for it; I hate myself for believing it and killing so many people. I'm going to conquer my old self by defeating the man who scarred me. I'm fighting for myself. I cannot let you die because of my selfish cause." Ren said as he retrieved his kwan dao from the wall.

"Ren…" Yoh smiled and put an arm around Ren's shoulders. "It'll all work out. I came here because I didn't want you to die. Let's go forward together. Who knows what we can do until we try?"

Ren looked to his left and his eyes widened. "Yoh…"

"My, aren't we friendly?" Shackler laughed. "But this is restricted area."

"If you try to pass, we will rip you to pieces." Flogger added.

"Who are these guys?" Yoh asked.

"They are the jiang-si who captured Jun." Ren answered.

"That's right. Flogger and I are the guardians of the dungeons. If anyone tries to escape, we torture 'em good."

"I have no problem with torture, as long as I'm the one doing it." Ren said, obviously mocking the Torture Brothers.

"Brat! We'll tear you to pieces!" The Torture Brothers screamed as they ran to attack Ren.

"Yoh, you can do what you want as long as you don't get in my way." Ren said to Yoh.

"Alright." Yoh said and he and Ren attacked, destroying Flogger and Shackler.

"Let's go." Yoh said. "Ryu, Horohoro, and Rin are waiting upstairs. We'll bust our way through to the top floor!"

A short while later, Ren and Yoh reached the main hall. All was quiet and they assumed that Rin, Horohoro, and Ryu were just resting from their fight with the Five-Curse Squad.

"From the main hall there is a direct path to the top floor. Be warned: Yuan is incredibly powerful and brutal. Are you prepared for this encounter Yoh?"

"Yup."

"Good. Lets go."

They opened the great double doors to the main hall only to see a white-clothed kyonshi holding Ryu up by the throat.

"You are not going anywhere, because I will reduce all of you to corpses." It said menacingly.

"Rin! Ryu! Horohoro!"

"They were careless. Just like you two."

"What! How did he get behind us that fast?" Yoh asked, surprised.

"Die." The kyonshi said. "Huo Jian Jiao! Rocket Kick!"

"Rocket Kick? But that's…" said Ren, but he did not have enough time to complete his sentence for the kyonshi attacked again.

"Zhou Shi Dao Jiao! Icbm Kick!"

"These are Bailong's Dao Dan Do moves!" Ren said completing his sentence.

"If these are Bailong's Dao Dan Do moves, then why is he stronger? Who is he?" Yoh asked while dodging the attack.

"Wh-who else?" a small, scared voice said. It was Manta, who was still hiding behind the vase. "The only master of Dao Dan Do is Bailong."

"Then who is he?" Ren asked starting to get annoyed by Manta's indirect answers.

"The master of Rui-Chong Quan Kung Fu—the basis of Dao Dan Do, Bailong's teacher: Sha-wen."

"Sha-wen? It can't be him! This jiang-si's body is young and strong. Sha-wen was 96 years old when he died." Yoh said.

"The Five-Curse Squad was created be specially modifying the best corpses. Yuan does not hesitate to kill the old to fulfill his needs. He put Sha-wen's soul into a young body. Apparently, the first four jiang-si were used to make you over-confident, then Sha-wen could come along to finish you off." explained Ren.

"Bocchama is quick. I am indeed Sha-wen!" Sha-wen said ripping off his mask. "Now I will kill you." He quickly got behind Yoh and moved to attack but was quickly blocked by Bailong.

"Master Yuan destroyed you! He tore you to pieces!" Sha-wen said.

"I sewed him back up." Jun said, appearing in the doorway. "I'm glad that I made it in time. I don't want to imagine what might have happened if I did not."

"Lady Jun. I see that you are up to no good again. You should behave yourself if you don't want master Yuan to punish you again." Sha-wen said.

"It was probably just wishful thinking, but I had hoped that I would be able to live my life without ever having to fight anyone again. I realize now that there are enemies in the world that must be defeated."

Sha-wen just laughed. " You must be mistaken."

Jun put her hair up in it's usual style and said, "Oh no, I'm not mistaken. You see…" she held up her O-fuda, "I've made up my mind."

"Yu-Zhou-Zhan Luo Xia! Satellite Drop!" Bailong exclaimed, attacking and destroying Sha-wen.

"Heartless people don't deserve to live. Even if they are soulless corpses." Jun said coldly. "Come on. Let's go."

"Jun seems…really mad." Ren said surprised.

Yoh and Manta roused Horohoro, Rin and Ryu, and they stood up shakily.

"Ouch…my head hurts." Horohoro said.

"Idiot." Ren muttered.

OOO

"Now Jun has turned against me." Yuan said, deeply displeased. "If that is your Tao, then I shall demonstrate my own."

A lot if book verse in this chappie. Most of it modified so it will not be exactly like the book. I would have put in verses from the anime, but I do not remember what was said.

The line seperator was not working for this chapter so I am reduced to puttin the OOO's back in for now.

REVIEW! POR FAVORE!

-Jai Akari

Copyright 2006 Jai Akari