A/n: Chapter 10 is up! Woohoo! I'm really going somewhere with this! Thank you for everyone's support!
Disclaimer: I own Yu Yu Hakusho! *gets sued and beaten up* I was sleep-talking. Sheesh.
Worth
Chapter 10
"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!? You mean to say this was all for nothing!" Yusuke's eyebrow twitched while his left sleeve fell from his shoulder.
"As to be expected from a dimwit like you... Don't ever put me in your shoes. Unlike you, I do things with reasons behind it." Genkai said as she puffed a cigarette.
They were in the middle of the forest. Genkai stood proudly before Yusuke who sat in the grass with a disbelieving expression.
"And what could that reason be?" Yusuke asked, awaiting a worthwhile answer.
"Though it's true that I could have undone the seal to your new power by giving you the secret word but…" Genkai began. Yusuke looked at her intently. "I don't pass out on opportunities like this!" She said with a loud laugh.
Yusuke posed a finger on her. "How… Is that the way a teacher should treat her student!?"
"And is that the way to treat your teacher?" Genkai said as she swiftly posed a deadly punch to Yusuke's face but stopped herself at hairsbreadth.
Yusuke gulped. 'Such speed.'
"With this lousy attitude of yours, I'm surprised there are people who still want to stay in your life. You're a big pain in the ass. There are still really good people out there." Genkai withdrew her hand from Yusuke's face.
Genkai looked at Yusuke who looked downtrodden and contemplative. "Nevertheless, I never questioned your good intentions."
"So this is your power… It's warm but it feels sad at the same time." Yusuke looked at his hands. "That time at the cave… I thought I was gonna die… the power was overwhelming so I didn't notice it then… but now…"
"Oh shut up." Genkai snapped. "It's too early for emotional hour. And besides, I've had enough thinking of it. Now, I have the chance to set things right before it's too late."
Yusuke looked at the serious Genkai who looked him in the eye. "Yusuke, I will not tell you this again so listen carefully."
Yusuke looked at her attentively.
"You have enormous power in you and in time, it will continue to grow as if it were from a bottomless spring. By then, you will have to decide." She said in a calm voice. "Whether you control the power or let it control you."
Genkai looked at the grass and momentarily looked at the snail that was slithering slowly. "I've known people like you – people with good intentions, people who wanted to protect – but they, too, fell into the abyss of this hunger for power. And in the end, they realize that their true search for power was futile because… the real source of power was the very thing they abandoned in the first place."
Yusuke looked at Genkai as if electrocuted by her words.
"Never abandon your humanity, Yusuke." Genkai said with piercing eyes. "Things will happen in the future and a lot of it won't be pleasing to you. With the power you have and that unthinking head of yours, you might as well obliterate everyone who gets in your way."
She paused to take a moment to smile. "But I trust you wouldn't go that far. Not while I'm still alive at least. Because if you do… I'll be the first to kill you."
Stress marks appeared in Yusuke's face. 'What is she trying to do here? First, she gives me some crappy advice and then she says she trusts me to do the right thing next she threatens my life if I don't.'
"Is that a little too much for your brain to handle?" Genkai asked sourly.
"Look here, Grandma!" Yusuke said energetically. "I don't understand what you're trying to pull here! And about losing this humanity crap, I don't know what that's like! I know I haven't been in the A-list of humans ever since! And I sure know how to complain about how my freaking life sucks all the time! But I just take it as it comes because that's the best way to go! And if I do it wrong and I get the chance to set things right then I would! So don't give me all these lectures!"
Genkai smiled. "It must be nice to have such a simple head above your shoulders. But it should be a good thing for you."
"What's that? I don't know what you meant by that but it's not sounding pretty good to me!" Yusuke said aggressively.
"Yusuke" Genkai called coldly. "Remember what you said. Keep your friends near. And when times get difficult remember what used to be good. Power… Don't lose to it."
'You sure want me to remember so many things.' Yusuke thought. "Why are you saying all these to me anyway?"
"Because true strength isn't only about ability of the body…" She said. "Rather, it's the ability to make something out of nothing, reaching out for something that used to be impossible because of something more worthy than everything else."
Yusuke pondered on what Genkai has said for a minute. 'That time when I fought with Suzaku... I thought I exhausted all my power but when I heard Keiko call my name for help…'
Genkai gave a crinkly smile. "So you finally understand. Our motivations are all different. Yours just happen to be…"
"Don't say it!" Yusuke said as he gritted his teeth.
"A little shy, aren't we? How good it is to be young!" Genkai laughed maniacally.
"Shut up!" He snapped back, blushing.
"Say that to yourself, you big-mouthed dimwit." Genkai retorted. "You should be thanking me for awhile ago." She grinned.
"Shut up!!!" Yusuke's voice echoed through the forest.
~o~
"Hachoo!" Keiko sneezed.
"Oh no! You must have caught a cold." Yukina said worriedly.
"I'm okay. You don't have to worry about it. It must be just the dust mites." She laughed a little at the make up excuse.
"They say that when you sneeze suddenly, someone must be thinking of you." Shizuru commented.
"Who could it be Keiko?" Botan winked as she poked the brunette.
"I don't know of anyone who could be thinking of me right this moment." Keiko said as a killing battle aura surrounded her.
Botan leapt to the other side of the room out of fear. She laughed nervously. 'I should really learn how to shut up.'
"Here this should help." Shizuru said as she handed Keiko an ice cream cup and a spoon. She said in a sisterly way.
"Thank you, Shizuru." Keiko smiled as she took a spoonful of ice cream.
"It tastes sweet." Yukina said as she took a spoonful herself. "It smoother than snow but it's just as cold. It even has the color of pink flowers."
"That's strawberry, Yukina. Here taste mine. It's chocolate." Botan said recovering from Keiko's if-looks-can-kill attack.
Keiko smiled amused at the ice maiden's first encounter with ice cream.
Shizuru sat next to Keiko as she watched the grim reaper and ice apparition compare ice cream flavors. "That boy… although he said that… maybe he's under just a lot of pressure. People say things they don't mean all the time. Maybe this isn't different from those other times…"
"I know he didn't mean it." She said as she diverted her attention to the vanilla ice cream, which was starting to melt. "It's just that… I finally had something I could really contribute and yet it seems as if… he doesn't want me to if he could help it. And it's not just that thing, it's everything else. I really don't understand that guy."
Shizuru smiled and put a hand on her head and patted it. "If I had known any better… the reason why he doesn't want you to be involved in any of this shady business is because he wants to protect someone very important."
"That idiot… I don't always want to be protected." Keiko muttered under her breath.
Shizuru took her hand off her head and gave her a soft smile. "But doesn't it feel great?"
"What does?" Keiko looked at Shizuru.
"To have someone find you worthy of his protection… when I think about it… it must feel great, don't you think?" Shizuru said maturely.
Keiko played with her ice cream with her spoon while she thought over what Shizuru said and finally smiled. "I suppose… you're right."
TBC…
~o~
A/n: I just had to say this… I love Genkai and Shizuru! They're just so bad ass and yet they still have their gentle sides! Hard core!
Thank you again for everyone's supportive reviews *cough cough* I hope to hear from everyone who reads this. ^__________________^