Disclaimer: I do now own Yu Yu Hakusho. I do own Ria.

A/N: Welcome to the TENTH chapter of A Most Unusual Vocation! It has been six months since Yusuke Urameshi defeated the demon Rando and became Genkai's apprentice but unfortunately for the spirit detective there will be no time for some R&R as he and Ria find their city is being threatened by an infestation of Makai insects forcing them to take on the fearful Saint Beasts. So without further ado, I turn it over to Ria. Enjoy!

"Don't worry, Keiko. Yusuke will be back soon, you'll see," I reassured my little sister as we sat in my room. Keiko was perched on my bed while I sat backwards in my desk chair.

"It's been six months already, Ria," she reminded me unnecessarily, her ankles crossed neatly. "How much longer does he expect me to wait?"

"Alright, how about this then?" I offered. "We go over to his house and see if he's there."

"Fine," Keiko agreed after a moment. "But this is the last time."

I smiled to myself as we stood up and headed over to Yusuke's house only to have his mom tell us he was still away at "camp" and not to worry.

"How can she not be worried?!" my sister exclaimed, shaking her head in exasperation on our way back home. "She's his mother, for crying out loud!"

"Easy, Keiko. You're going to burst a blood vessel," I warned her, grinning as I noticed a familiar figure striding towards us. "Well look who it is."

"Long time no see," greeted jackass with a smile of his own.

"Yusuke!" cried Keiko happily, tears lining her eyes.

~ A Most Unusual Vocation ~

A little while later I found myself balanced on the arm of a bench next to Yusuke and Meathead who had only taken a day to fully recover after being treated by Genkai.

"I think she even made me stronger," Meathead declared, flexing his arms. "I can try them on you, Urameshi, if you want!"

Jackass snorted. "Buddy, I'm afraid they'd send me to jail. After what I learned from the old lady, fighting you would be cruel."

"So, was the training very hard?" asked Meathead.

"Let's just say I'll be having nightmares for the next four years because of all that crap I went through," he replied. "It was worth it for all the tricks I learned though."

"Now that's what I wanna see," said Meathead excitedly just as Keiko returned with four ice cream cones in her arms.

"See what?" She inquired.

"Kuwabara was saying he wanted to see a movie, right?" Yusuke lied quickly, glancing at him.

"Yeah, movies. I love them," Meathead confirmed, turning to me. "How about you, Ria?"

"A movie sounds great," I said in what I hoped was a convincing tone. Evidently it was good enough for my baby sis as she told us she knew of "a great foreign art film" then led us immediately to the theater, skipping a way ahead of us. "I hate lying to her."

"Yeah, me too," murmured Jackass. "But it's for her own good."

"You know, I haven't seen Keiko this happy in months," remarked Meathead before wrapping his arm around Yusuke's shoulders and rubbing his head. "You guys must really have something for her to be that way."

Yusuke did not reply but instead was staring behind them.

"Yusuke!" called Keiko, dragging our attention back to her. She was standing in front of the theater. Her face was alive with pure elation. "Enough wrestling. The movie's about to start."

The boys straightened up and I stared at my partner questioningly who inclined his head ever so slightly then looked apologetically at my sister. "Hey Keiko, I've gotta grab something at the store first. Ria and Kuwabara have to get something too."

"We'll be back in five minutes," I promised her. "Would you mind saving us some seats?"

"Fine," Keiko conceded though I could tell she was not pleased. "I'll be in the center row."

"Thanks, sis," I said, hurrying after the boys who were already jogging away. "I knew you noticed something back there. We're being followed, aren't we?"

"Take a look for yourself," said Yusuke.

I glanced behind me to see five teenage boys tailing us. I smirked. "Poor guys don't know what they got themselves into."

"Well, we've got the time. I say we have some fun," stated Meathead.

We turned into an alleyway between two abandoned buildings and faced the thugs who up close seemed…strange. Their skins were blue and they were stumbling around as if they were drunk.

"You jokers are in for it now!" declared Meathead as he thrust his thumb at his chest. "My name's Kuwabara, the #1 thug of Sarayashiki Junior High!"

Yusuke snorted. "Ha! No sense in telling lies."

"Don't you think something about these guys seems off?" I murmured to my partner as the teenage boys pulled out knives and lurched towards us.

"Hold that thought," jackass replied as we beat the punks easily or so we thought but the guys got back to their feet as if nothing had happened. "Looks like you were on to something, Ri."

"Are they human?" demanded Kuwabara, turning to Yusuke. "What do we do now?"

"Now we leave it to me," Yusuke said, making a fist with his right hand and pulling back his arm as a massive amount of spirit energy gathered in his fist.

"Is that one of your new techniques?" inquired Kuwabara stupidly.

"And here I thought you couldn't get any dumber, Meathead," I remarked before rounding on my partner. "As for you, don't go thinking you're the only one who's gotten any stronger because you're the old hag's student. I haven't been sitting on my ass these past six months, you know. I've been training which is why I can now do this."

I held my right hand palm up; focusing as my energy easily appeared and formed into a ball. I then tossed it into the air and snapped my fingers causing my bow and quiver to appear. I knocked five arrows and aimed them at their targets. "Ready when you are, partner."

"Now there's the Ria I know," he murmured. "Alright, let's do this. Shot Gun!"

"Arrow Barrage!" I shouted, releasing my arrows which merged with Yusuke's five spirit bullets, sending our opponents on their asses and this time they stayed down.

"Wow, you guys are amazing!" breathed Meathead as we high fived each other. "It's like your spirit energies were meant to work together."

"Well, yeah, why else would Koenma have put us together?" I pointed out, striding over to our passed out stalked. "Now what are these guys, anyway?"

"Hold on," interrupted Meathead. "I feel something really strange around us. I don't think it's human. Something like that over there!"

Kuwabara pointed at a hunched figure wearing a trench coat hiding behind a pile of garbage who freaked out and bolted away. We charged after to him only to run into the Grim Reaper herself who hit our quarry on the head with a baseball bat.

"Now that's what I call teamwork," she said, grinning.

~ A Most Unusual Vocation ~

"So what's up, Botan?" I asked our assistant as we stared down at what was clearly a demon.

"I've been shadowing that once since he slipped through the barrier two days ago," she informed us. "I'm quite certain he's a spy for the place you need to go on your next mission."

"Okay, Botan! You can stop right there!" exclaimed Yusuke, cutting her off. "I got back from Grandma's evil boot camp today and I deserve a vacation. Why don't you call back in 2 years?"

I rolled my eyes while Botan merely regarded Jackass calmly. "Then I guess you don't mind everyone in the city being turned into a zombie?"

I glanced at her. "Did you say zombie? We just had a run in with five goons who were acting like they were extras from Dawn of the Dead."

Botan nodded grimly. "Koenma was given a message yesterday. It was sent by an agent, much like this one we just walloped, in which the four saint beasts demanded immediate immigration to the living world."

"I don't see what all the fuss is about," argued Yusuke stubbornly. "If Koenma's in charge then why can't he just turn down the request? And who are these stupid saint beasts?"

"They are four of the most notorious criminals in all of Spirit World," she explained, walking over to the punks we had dispatched. "The title saint is given to them by their followers. Years ago, they were chased by a coalition of pursuers and evaded capture by locking themselves in a booby trapped fortress.

"Since then a city has formed at its base and is filled with vile crooks who revere these beasts like gods. It's a city of ghosts and apparitions."

"Sounds like the ideal vacation spot," I muttered as we followed her. "So what does all of that have to do with our home becoming the scene of a bad horror movie?"

"Take a look at these boys you knocked out," Botan suggested. We looked down at the nearest punk to witness a bug coming out of his mouth before flying away. "They're called Makai insects, a parasite from the darker parts of the Spirit World. They bury themselves under the skin and then nurture the insect's animal design. Minds occupied by the parasite develop a need for destruction, physical power, and murder. It will be a disaster."

"Well, can't we tell people?" offered Yusuke. "I mean, there's gotta be a cure."

"There is," she confirmed. "But ordinary people can't see the insects. The inflicted will be seen as nearly psychotic and I'm afraid a cure will not be the first on the humans' minds."

"It never is," I agreed as Jackass demanded to know what we should do.

"The only way to rescue the city is to kill the Makai insects," Botan pointed out. "And the only way to do that is by destroying the whistle which the enemies possess. Without the whistle's sustaining frequency, the Makai can't live outside of Spirit World."

"So, how long do we have before these beasts leave their castled and come to Earth themselves?" asked Yusuke.

"At this point, they can't," she replied. "For years, we've had them trapped inside the city with the barrier wall. Now with this insect invasion, they hope to force us to open the barrier. Instead we'll make a small breech in the wall to let you two in. Eventually they'll find the hole. I don't think I have to tell you what would happen if all those demons were unleashed on Earth."

I stared at Yusuke meaningfully. My partner sighed. "Okay, alright. I'll go. I just can't believe Koenma expects us to take on a whole freakin' city of demons by ourselves! Don't they send out teams for this kind of thing?!"

"What about me, Urameshi?" demanded Meathead.

"Oh, Kuwabara, there's no such thing as demons," Botan said, laughing nervously. "Yusuke, Ria, and I were just joking."

"Look, I'm not dumb or blind," Meathead told her though I would have debated the not being dumb part. He snatched the Makai insect out of the air to prove his point. "We all know I can see supernatural stuff a whole lot better than Yusuke or Ria and I'm not gonna sit around my house while Yusuke and Ria don't see things and let big monsters and insects take over my city 'cause I'm Kuwabara and in case you guys forgot, I've got a sword!"

"Well, you two," murmured Botan. "I guess there's no point in arguing with the eager."

"Not with one as hardheaded as him," I agreed, turning to my partner. "Just so we're clear, I am not going to be responsible for his life."

Yusuke smirked as our assistant lead us inside a dusty building, making us hack. The grim reaped headed inside after advising us to watch for dust. "Gee, thanks for the warning."

We went down a flight of stairs to the basement. Botan then got on her hands and knees, pounding on the floor. "This is where they were supposed to put the breach in the barrier."

Suddenly part of the floor popped open and Botan removed the tile to reveal a dark hole brimming with green smoke.

"You are gonna give us a rope or ladder or something?" Yusuke asked our assistant as we gathered around the opening.

"No, jumping down should land you safely on the outer bank of the city," she assured us as if falling down what looked like a bottomless pit was no big deal. Botan then looked at Kuwabara. "You know you don't have to go through with this if you don't want to. No one will hold it against you."

"Oh, okay," said jackass as he attempted to leave. "Goodbye."

I stretched out my foot tripping him. "She means Kuwabara, dumbass."

"Don't worry about me, Botan," Meathead reassured her. "I sort of feel like a spirit detective myself now and as a detective there's no turning back."

Without further ado, Meathead leapt into the void.

"Maybe he'll be okay alone," murmured Yusuke. Botan and I glared at him. "Okay, okay."

"Not yet!" the grim reaper cried just as we were about to jump. We turned to look at her. Botan pulled out what appeared to be two compact mirrors. "Here! I'm supposed to give you two this communication mirror!"

"Geez!" exclaimed jackass, tearing the mirror out of her hand. "You nearly forgot to give us this thing?! Let me guess, without it we'd probably be killed."

"No," replied Botan. "It's not a weapon. It's just a communication mirror so I can keep in contact with you two while you're on the other side."

"Yeah, yeah. Leave us on our own while you go and do other things," Yusuke complained before abruptly turning pale. "Oh no!"

"What's the matter now?" inquired Botan.

"Keiko," he explained. "We just dumped her off at the movie theater."

"Shit, he's right," I muttered as I chastised myself for forgetting about my little sister.

"Hey Botan, tell you what," said Yusuke. "Why don't you go take care of things with her and we'll go down here."

"Wait! I don't want to do that!" the grim reaper objected as Yusuke hopped into the hole. "Yusuke!"

"Thanks Botan," I told her earnestly as I leapt in after her partner. "I owe you one!"

~ A Most Unusual Vocation ~

"Well I guess this is the place," said jackass after we landed on the ground hard.

"What was your first clue?" I inquired sarcastically as creepy ghoul things came out of the ground. "Here comes the welcome committee."

"Now who's pointing out the obvious," noted Yusuke as we engaged in an all-out battle. "This is going to be pretty lame if we're killed before we reach the stupid castle."

"What we need is backup," I pointed out unnecessarily just as the sky opened up and to spirit orbs flew down. They then created a blinding light making the creatures run away. "That works."

"It seems you could use some help," remarked a familiar voice. We glanced up to see Kurama and Hiei standing on the branch of a tall tree.

"If these things were too much for you, we're going to have some serious trouble," Hiei added as they jumped down to land in front of us.

"Well, well," said Yusuke, smiling, "The thieves."

"Hello," replied Kurama, politely.

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked.

"Even that fool Koenma knew it would take more than human power to kill the Saint Beasts," sneered Shorty condescendingly causing me to glare at him.

"By aiding in this mission, Koenma has assured us we can clean our slates in Spirit World," added Kurama before I could grab Hiei by his throat.

"That was nice of him," I murmured. "Though he probably heard Yusuke complaining and just wanted to shut him up."

Yusuke laughed then turned to Meathead. "Kuwabara, let me introduce you to these guys. That's Hiei and his name's Kurama, he's Ri's..."

I stomped on his foot, cutting him off before returning my attention to the former thieves. "Thanks for coming here. We could really use the help."

Hiei snorted. "Helping is not the right word. Koenma may regard us as equals but I do not. Once inside the castle, I suggest you let us do the work. As far as I'm concerned, we're babysitting."

I bristled. "Excuse me? What makes you think you can act all high and mighty, short stuff? In case you've forgotten, we beat you."

Three eyes ignored me and instead addressed Yusuke. "You, detective, are a different story. I plan to take my revenge on you so consider this fair warning."

"Hiei, we must face this current business before you start your own," advised Kurama, no doubt noticing I was physically fuming.

"Don't worry, three eyes. If we survive this, I'll be glad to take you on," Yusuke assured him as he looked around at us. "Now is this the perfect team or what?"

"Yeah, perfect," I muttered, glaring at Hiei. His target may be my partner but I still owed him for what he did to Keiko but like Kurama said now was not the time so I strove to put on my best neutral smile and glanced at my partner. "Let's get going then."

A/N: And there you have it! We have officially entered the Saint Beast arc where our team will endeavor to survive Maze Castle. Until next time, read review and show the love!