Saria: Please please PLEASE! (is praying in front of the computer)
Zas: … What is she doing?
Tori: Praying.
Zas: To a computer?!
SA: Staffing bid. United is pulling out of Cleveland so she's hoping to be sent somewhere much warmer like Tampa.
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"I got this one," Kuwabara announced as he stared at the former detective.
"No," Toguro ordered, his deep voice allowing no room for arguing.
The high schooler looked ready to attempt to argue anyway but was cut off by Kurama.
"Defeating Seaman was a brave feat but you are injured and in no shape to fight." The fox's logic did little to settle Kuwabara's mood.
Toguro stepped forward, hundreds of questions racing through his mind as he stared at Yusuke's predecessor, uncertain how someone could fall to the level this one had. Then again, his experiences weren't as narrow as this one's had been nor had his views been as single minded. Even as an adult this one was more a child in many ways than Kuwabara or Yusuke had been.
"Careful, I started him just like Yusuke," Koenma informed him. "Much like she could, he can store up his spirit energy and fire it."
Genkai stared at the smirking man with disdain. "How strong is his power?"
"Can't say," Koenma admitted. "We don't know what he's learned in the last ten years."
"Then any initial contact will be a gamble," Kurama concluded.
Toguro took a step forward, determined to see this through.
"I have some questions," he started as he slowly approached their foe. "It seems obvious you intend to kill every human for the collective sins of humanity. Do you think any humans don't deserve that?"
Sensui's smir remained firmly in place. "We're all sick, the sins of every human weigh on all our souls."
"Then what of the innocent?"
The madman's smirk grew manic then. "There are no innocents! And if there are, they should thank me for sparing them the disease of humanity!"
"So those people who have never picked up a weapon, or picked one up to defend themselves or their family? Or even people they had never met?"
"Hah! And what did they do after?"
"I know many never touched a weapon again, just went back to living peacefully if they could."
The smirk was gone completely now and a burst of energy erupted from Sensui. Toguro responded with his own energy.
For a moment both were still then Toguro launched himself forward and brought his arm back to chamber for a punch. He fully expected the other to dodge since if he had performed any research he should know about Toguro's strength.
Everyone was surprised when not only did the former detective not dodge, he brought an arm up as though intending to block.
'He's not that stupid,' Toguro assured himself as he slammed his fist down.
Madman that he might be, Shinobu Sensui did know how to fight and to look for advantages. His arm came forward and knocked against Toguro's in the perfect spot to redirect the blow. Deeply surprised, Toguro barely saw the leg that swept upwards and smacked against his side.
'Resshuken,' he realized.
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The sky was getting dark and violent and in the distance there did appear to be some sort of hole in the sky.
"Damn..." Yusuke muttered as she stared up at the portal in the distance.
"Definitely," Yakan agreed as he stared as well. "And there is a demon bridge forming already."
"Think it's almost open?"
Yakan shrugged. "I don't specialize in these sorts of things. We should call these guys to order though. This is actually a border land between Mukuro and Raizen so we might see some of his men about but our goals should be the same and they won't bother us if we don't get in their way."
Yusuke shrugged before digging into her pack for a piece of fruit that they had picked earlier that day and the other nodded before grabbing two himself.
"We're just a few hours away now so eating now is a good idea. Don't know what we'll encounter there."
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Murota stared hard at the captured psychic who still groaned in pain as Toguro's fingers wrapped around the man in a crushing grip.
"I'm sure of it, he doesn't know anything else, just the plan he was briefed on not even an hour before he tried to... eat me." The boxer turned slightly green and shook a little even as anger shot through him.
The elder of the Toguro brothers had convinced him to help him with this interrogation by telling him why it was so personal for him, his brother, and the beautiful Genkai. A kid being stolen and murdered by these people to get her out of the way, what a nightmare for them. And to top it all, they were going to kidnap another kid to force him to unleash hell!
Murota could admit he wasn't the bravest of people but there was a point where he drew the line. Kidnapping kids and murdering them then planning to grab another that he had met and viewed as a decent kid was enough to make even his blood boil.
Unfortunately this one was just a brute and didn't know anything about Toguro's niece.
Aforementioned Toguro was practically vibrating with anger but he forced himself to calm down after a moment and stared coldly at the deranged human psychic.
Murota was unsure of what to do. "Um... what do you intend to do sir?"
Yellow eyes turned up to him for a moment before a twisted smile crossed the man's face.
"We're going to follow the plan."
Murota's eyes widened in shock.
"We better hurry to get into position. Get yourself to the Demon's Door Cave and stay hidden," Toguro ordered as he hauled up the psychic.
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"He's in danger!" Mitarai yelled to try to get either Botan or Shizuru to finally take him serious.
"Listen, my brother is accident prone but with the others he's safe," Shizuru informed him.
Kaito chose that moment to stick his head into the room. "Is there something the matter?"
"It's Kuwabara! Mr. Sensui wants desperately to recruit him!" the reformed psychic yelled.
All three looked confused for a moment and Kido appeared in the door also, Yana right behind him.
Shizuru spoke first. "Huh? You got the wrong guy. No one wants Kazuma on their side, they get stuck with him."
"No!" Mitarai tried to explain. "I'm sure Mr. Kuwabara is the psychic. Mr. Sensui needs him to cut down the barrier!"
"SHIT!" Kido and Yana shouted and turned to sprint down the stairs right as Botan exclaimed "We've got to warn them!"
The blue haired girl rushed to the window as crashes from downstairs announced the two boys trying to exit the house at the same time.
"I can't see them!" she cried as she forced open the window and looked back and forth before finally seeing them down the street quite a ways. "HEY!"
Her attempts to yell warnings were interrupted by Shizuru.
"Get down!" she called and Botan hit the floor in time to avoid being hit by a new round of firing.
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Kido and Yana yelped as they were both shoved out of the door by a surprising source: Kaito.
"We don't have time for ridiculous antics," he informed them coldly as he pushed past them and took off down the walkway to the street.
The two stared after him in surprise for a moment before rushing after him only to slam into him on the street.
"Hey! We gotta hurry!" Kido yelled before seeing the terrifying thing that had made the taboo psychic stop.
A large purple energy bomb was sailing straight at them.
None of the boys had time to do much of anything, they simply grabbed each other as though that would protect them and screamed as the murderous mass flew at them then curved at the last moment and missed them by centimeters.
The relief was shortlived as all three looked up to see that Kuwabara's window and the front wall of the house had been struck.
"Botan and Shizuru!" Yana shouted then the three looked at one another.
"We need to get Master Genkai!" Kaito decided after a moment. "We could make things worse by going up there and if someone is hurt she is best suited for helping them!"
"Right!" Kido shouted as he ran down the street, Yana behind him with Kaito bringing up the rear.
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Sensui had used the momentary distraction to disappear while everyone of his potential opponents were staring at where Kuwabara's house was smoking.
"MY HOUSE!" Kuwabara howled in anguish. "Botan could be hurt... OR MY SISTER!"
"Good thing we didn't call Yukina to help with patching up Seaman," Genkai murmured to Toguro as the attention refocused on Sensui only to find that he was not there.
"Let's go see if anyone is hurt," Koenma said to Genkai who nodded then looked to Toguro.
"Be careful," she ordered before turning to follow the Prince of Spirit World down the street.
Toguro, Kurama, and Kuwabara raced down an alley that an echo of Sensui's energy led them down then searched for the man when the trail ended in a busy intersection. He was easy to find since the tall man stood tauntingly among the crowd, not even attempting to hide.
"There!" Kuwabara yelled as the gave chase and followed the dark man into a building.
Sensui wasn't in immediate sight.
"They just don't make Spirit Detectives like they used to," the former detective announced as he came into sight at the top of a staircase.
"No, they don't," Toguro admitted before barreling his way up the staircase. He wasn't too fast but his speed seemed sufficient at that moment. "My granddaughter actually cared!"
Sensui snorted as he dodged Toguro's first swipe. "And a hell lot of good that did her!" he taunted.
The next punch thrown was wild and contained every ounce of strength Toguro possessed and Sensui wisely chose to dodge again which probably saved his life since the punch caused most of the floor to collapse.
Toguro barely managed to jump clear before the floor crumbled and Kurama had no problems either while Kuwabara had to cling to a banister and slowly make his way around.
The hall was proving a bad place for Toguro to fight since his size demanded space and Sensui, though a bit on the bulky side himself, was proving to be a lot more capable in the confined area. Every punch that did not possess his absolute strength was knocked aside and countered with a hard kick. His own kicks were too slow and linear to work in this space. Another kick managed to knock the former champion back and down.
Sensui was smirking again as he slowly approached the downed martial artist.
"Hey you yellow bellied bully! Are you going to kick a man when he's down?" a shout came from behind Sensui and Toguro almost groaned as he realized what was about to happen.
"Why not fight me? The Warrior of Love, the Defender of the Defenseless!"
"He doesn't use territory!" Toguro shouted but the boy wasn't deterred.
"For I am Kazuma Kuwabara and prepare to feel my shiny new sword!"
Everyone actually was anticipating seeing the sword that had defeated Seaman but the sword formed wasn't a jigen to, instead it was the boy's familiar blade. For some reason Toguro was relieved.
Kuwabara was less than pleased and ranted slightly at the blade.
"Ah well, here it goes!" the teen shouted as he charged.
Kurama caught up then and attempted to call for the other to stop but it was for naught.
The charge was met head on by Sensui who caught the sword in one hand and knocked the red head away easily. He jumped back when Kurama drew his rose whip and attempted to strike the man, jumping the railing and going straight for the window behind it, smashing the glass and falling to the street below.
The three barely exchanged a glance before following the man to the street and found that once again he was not bothering to hide, just stood in the center of a walkway surrounded by normal humans.
Sensui's attention was on Kurama. "Dare you to risk that erratic weapon among all these people?"
Green eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Why I'm hurt! Surely my life should be worth a couple of deaths!"
The roar of a motorcycle acted as a signal and Sensui smirked as he turned and ran again. Toguro and Kuwabara gave chase but Kurama found himself facing Sniper who appeared on a motorcycle. His hand raised to reveal that he was armed with more of his 'bullets'.
"You can't do that with these innocents standing around," the fox ordered.
"Fine, not that I ever miss my target," the youth bragged flatly. "But if it's a change of venue you want then I'm game."
"Kurama!" a voice shouted and Kido rushed up the stairs.
Sniper's aim changed right as a shift occurred which told Kurama that a territory had just opened but he knew it wasn't Kido's. Sniper either didn't notice or thought it to be of no concern since he fired.
There was no time to react but Kido looked strangely unafraid as he faced the telekinetic 'bullet'. Kurama realized why when he saw who was positioned behind Kido, specifically placed so that his territory would cover Kido and himself but not touch Sniper.
The projectile seemed to ricochet off of Kido and bounced towards Kurama where it changed trajectories yet again and finally planted into Sniper's leg.
The teen cursed colorfully before revving his bike and taking off, narrowly avoiding Kurama's strike.
While this was happening Toguro and Kuwabara followed Sensui into what looked to be a parking garage and onto a flight of stairs.
Sensui was very fast, Toguro was only moderately fast but managed to keep up. Kuwabara fell behind them bit-by-bit until he almost ran into a kid and lost valuable seconds.
"Why aren't you inside watching cartoons like a normal kid?" he demanded from where he had skidded and slipped in order to avoid the collision then climbed back on to his feet. "Anyway, there's a lot of weirdoes out there today so go on, run home to your mom."
As he moved to try to rejoin the chase on the stairs, the opening of a territory stopped him cold and he turned to stare at the child.
"Little punk, is this yours?" he demanded before a set of tendrils appeared and wrapped around his form, trapping his arms. He barely managed a yell before he found himself in the bed of a materialized truck.
On the roof of the garage Toguro and Sensui had finally come to a stop and the former champion found himself growing slightly nervous. Sensui was too smug, too self-assured; there didn't look to be even a shadow of doubt in his expression.
"No more running."
There was no reaction from his target at the order, the man didn't even seem to be looking at him.
A sudden scream alerted him as to why.
"Kuwabara!" Toguro didn't hesitate, he turned directly to the stairs and hurtled down them, completely missing it when Sensui ran to the side of the roof and jumped the fencing.
Neither the reason nor the source of the scream was apparent to Toguro when he reached the level that it seemed to have originated from. Squealing tires drew his attention outside and he rushed to see a green truck tearing down the road with a bound Kuwabara and Sensui in the back.
Horror shot through the martial artist as he stared after the truck then leaped to the ground as he stared after the truck as Kurama and the three new kids approached.
"Get us a car!" he ordered Kurama as he stared after the retreating truck.
"Is that wise?" Kurama asked as he stared after the truck. "We know where they're going, let's reorganize or they will overwhelm and defeat us."
"NO!" The big man's fist pounded into the building beside him. "I promised that no one else would disappear or suffer, I won't fail now!"
Kurama sighed heavily. "This is still about Yusuke, isn't it?"
Toguro's lack of response was answer enough.
"You need to let her go and give grief it's due," the fox instructed. "Kuwabara cannot replace her, no matter how much you try. Now pull together and think, this situation is different. We know where they intend to take our friend so let's organize. We'll have a better shot at successfully rescuing him!"
Toguro stared after the truck for a moment longer then nodded in understanding. Turning, he found himself staring at a familiar face who looked ready to explode.
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Having passed the three boys on the street and getting the update about Botan and Shizuru probably needing help, both Koenma and Genkai had raced to the Kuwabara family home. A fair portion of the front of the house was missing and still smoking.
"That technique sure packs a serious whallop!" Koenma declared as they ran for the door as a small crowd began to appear to gawk at the house.
"Yes, too much for any of us at the moment I would say," Genkai admitted. "So what was he aiming at? Toguro was right there!"
"Must have been targeting Seaman... Again! Sensui certainly is persistent and goal-oriented, I'll give him that. Just two of the many qualities I avoided when I hired Yusuke!" The comment just slipped out but there was no retracting it.
They hit smoke at the stairs and Koenma stopped and began to cough violently.
"Drama-prince," Genkai muttered and molded her energy rapidly into a shock blast that forced the smoke to dissipate.
"You do know a lot of tricks," Koenma stated in minor shock as the psychic raced up the stairs.
The state of Kuwabara's room probably would have had the boy frothing at the mouth due to the destruction of all his posters, bed, and homework.
Seaman was curled up against a wall, shaking as he stared at them and still looked shocked about the destruction. Shizuru had made it to the door and was just unconscious as she half lay in the hallway.
Simple healing was all that was required then the two turned their attention to where Botan lay under a bookcase.
"Botan!" Koenma exclaimed as Genkai grabbed the bookcase and easily righted it, setting it back into place and freeing the grim reaper. "Hey, are you alright?" the prince asked as he tried to help his assistant into a sitting position but received no response.
"I think we should take that as a 'no'," Genkai informed him flatly then turned towards Seaman. "Alright wall-flower, you just sat there on your sorry ass and watched this poor girl suffer? What's wrong with you?"
"B-but, I don't know! I thought I was your enemy?"
"Huh." Turning back to Koenma, she instructed, "Set her on the floor gently."
Koenma nodded and did as the psychic ordered then watched as she pushed up Botan's shirt to reveal the damage. Her back looked to be broken and was painted with a fair number of bruises. Genkai gently sent her energy into her through healing waves, repairing the damage.
"I-I don't understand," Mitarai said as he stared at what Genkai was doing. "I work for Sensui."
"Does he know that?" Koenma challenged. "Because from where I'm standing it looks like he is trying to terminate more than just your employment."
Shizuru and Botan regained consciousness roughly a minute later right as Kurama, Toguro, Yana, Kido, and Kaito arrived back at the house.
"I'm up!" Botan declared in surprise, her candy pink eyes blinking in shock. "When did all of you get here?"
Koenma was grinning brightly as his assistant. "Glad you're okay."
"And why wouldn't I be?"
"Your formerly fractured back is one good reason I can think of," Genkai stated as she ran a diagnostic over Shizuru.
"When we came in we found you under the bookcase."
"That sounds like a funny place for me to be!" Botan replied with a sheepish grin.
"How did you wind up there?"
"I don't know!"
"Being crushed by a bookcase seems like it should leave an impression," Koenma pointed out.
"It's because of me!" Mitarai finally interjected. "She got trapped because she was trying to save me."
Toguro, Kurama, Genkai, and everyone else turned their attention to Mitarai.
"When the bookshelf started to topple, she shoved me out of the way. She got crushed instead of me. I dont understand, it's not how he said!" The teen looked more confused than ever and very upset. "First Kuwabara and now you do it! Why do you people keep saving my life? It's not how he said! Why?"
"Cause that's just what people do," Botan replied as though it were the simpliest thing in the world. "Oh, but I think I'm starting to remember!" the grim reaper reported as her eyes glazed slightly, a sign that she was remembering something. "So that's what happened, I just acted without thinking!" she concluded cheerfully.
"I'd believe that," Koenma stated and Botan broke into sheepish laughter as several others who knew Botan found themselves smiling also.
"I like to think it's a good trait not to over-think everything."
Mitarai's eyes were soft, anger completely gone as his confusion settled deeper but understanding was starting to take root.
"I think it is like that for a great many people when another person's life is put into jeopardy," Kurama said when he noticed Seaman's expression and recognized this could be a pivotal moment for the psychic.
"Well that's never been the case in my experience growing up! And not on that videotape!" the boy argued.
"Chapter Black is a one-sided argument, part of a series that is never meant to be seen alone."
Mitarai turned his head away from Koenma's argument. "No! That's all a big lie!"
Once again, Kurama stepped forward as the calm voice of reason. "Mitarai, I understand your dilemma. You've witnessed some of the worst mankind has to offer, through your eyes and on tape. Now if you leave your eyes open you'll see some of the best all around."
Toguro cleared his throat. "Speaking of which, Kuwabara has been captured. Luckily we met someone who is willing to give us a hand."
"Huh?" Koenma asked then his eyes turned to the gaping hole in the front of the house.
Outside was a van with the words Sarayashiki Junior High printed on the side and a man with a kind face was behind the wheel.
"We ran into Takanaka and the soccer team downtown. They know Kuwabara got kidnapped and the kids chose to allow us the use of the van and took the train home. Takanaka insists that he be allowed to drive us."
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Hokushin stared at the fortress of Mukuro with much disdain. He both hoped that Yusuke was in there as well as fervently prayed that she wasn't. If she was here then he was certain he could break both of them out with his abilities. If not then he wouldn't have to worry about how much that monster Mukuro might have tried to twist his king's daughter.
His disguise was a terrible thing in his opinion but better than the one Suzuka had chosen for himself. The blond was sporting a clown costume complete with make-up and a rubber nose. Initially he had tried to convince Hokushin to dress in something similar but the monk had not budged.
Currently Hokushin was disguised as a red humanoid demon of an indeterminate species with ears not unlike his lord's or Jin's when the wind user was excited. The paint was fine but the clothes were terrible and Hokushin was certain that the insane drama queen had chosen the short open vest and shorts just to annoy him.
Slithering up a wall, he glanced into one of the carved openings in the insect's shell and watched the hall for a short while. Two officers and a warrior passed, none of them sporting anything that even remotely resembled a uniform. After it had been silent for a minute, he slipped into the hall.
Knowing Mukuro and based upon what they had heard of the encounter, it sounded like Yusuke was opposing the tyrant. Hokushin felt pride that the child would recognize such things as Mukuro needing to be stopped. Unfortunately, that also meant the kid could be imprisoned since though ruthless Mukuro was far from dumb. He probably saw Yusuke's potential and would try to win the kid over.
Stretching out his senses as he moved quietly down the hall, the monk followed what felt like an echo of Yusuke's energy and traced it through the halls and up a flight of stairs. This level seemed to be living quarters and one of the walls looked to have been recently repaired.
Placing his hand against the material, Hokushin suppressed the urge to grin. This was definitely Yusuke's energy and now he could feel various threads of it, most of them leading downwards.
'Prison level,' he thought as he glanced down the stairs, never noticing Kirin stepping out of one of the dorm rooms.
Several warriors were out and about, a slight chaos in all their features and clothes. There were piercings, tattoos, gaudy jewelry and clothes. Try as he might, the monk did find himself staring and coming to the conclusion that if a ruler was insane then it would be passed down to their followers.
The busiest levels had a large number of demons wandering around but Yusuke's thread took him past all of there and he descended deeper and deeper into the dark underbelly of Mukuro's monstrous fortress.
Finally he seemed to find the prison level and he felt a number of very strong signatures along side Yusuke's, all heading to a pair of doors.
Cracking one of the doors gently, he glanced into what had to be one of the most dismal yet cavernous rooms in the fortress.
"Yusuke?" he whispered in, hoping the girl was close but heard no response and quietly slipped into the room, leaving the door open behind him.
He kept close to the wall and crept along. This place struck him as the perfect place to imprison the child. It was large but utterly depressing and smelled absolutely disgusting. His nose kept picking up a new odor with each step he took but one of them put him very much on edge: blood.
Avoiding a pool of fluid on the floor, the monk looked into the center of the room to see if there was any form and felt his breath catch. Lying in the center of the room was a small lump.
"Yusuke?" he whispered as he finally abandoned the wall and felt his heart give a beat.
The figure didn't move, didn't react, and Hokushin quickly reached out a hand to shake the being.
Fabric easily pulled away in his hand to reveal a sack.
'Trap!' Hokushin's thoughts screamed right as the door to the room slammed shut with a bang.
Rushing fluid noises caught his ears then and to the monk's horror, fluids began to rise around his feet rapidly. Foul odor hit his nose then and he felt further insulted as he realized that they were flooding the room with the waste of the ship! JUST WHAT KIND OF PRISON WAS THIS?!
Ripping off a bit of his vest, Hokushin attempted to plug his nose even as his eyes skimmed over the dim space, trying to find a possible escape route. He noted where most of the fluid seemed to be coming from and moved away from that area. His search wasn't fruitful though and he turned his attention upward and extended his legs, relieved to get his head and torso further from the mess below.
The ceiling confirmed his fears when he saw that it was organic and not stone. There were no grills, holes, nothing that he could squeeze through.
Desperation finally struck and he waded through the rapidly rising fluids to the door and yanked at them, unsurprised when the doors didn't budge.
Well, if this was Mukuro's idea for punishment then it was an inspired one.
As the liquid level rose to above his extended thighs toward his torso the general began to feel panic for the first time in several years. This was far worse than the realization that his king was to die soon and his heir was pint-size! It was worse than losing a fight to a clown or worse yet, Suzuka! If he didn't get out of here or his disguise failed then his obituary was going to indicate that he had drowned in a sewer!
The liquid rose past his chest now and the minutes were agonizing as more and more fluid built. His neck was holding his head against the ceiling but the rest of his body was submerged.
It took almost thirty agonizing minutes for the room to fill and the monk desperately sucked in his last breaths and wondered if this was how Yusuke gone; had they shoved her in here multiple times to face a death by drowning and pulled her out right before she did so they could prolong the torment?
One last breath was sucked in and then the last of the air pockets were gone.
For a long minute everything was still then a slight current tugged at the monk's leg.
Praying that it was some sort of leak, the monk attempted to look for where the current was headed but found he didn't have to as the slight stream became a tide that ripped him towards a breach that had opened in the wall.
Seeing no reason to stay, Hokushin allowed himself to be sucked through and into what appeared to be a long, organic pipe. It was dark to the point where he couldn't see a thing and he couldn't find an air pocket.
Grabbing at the walls was ineffective as his hands slipped over the mucus that covered it. The speed of the current increased, pulling him faster and faster through the pipe. A light at the end of the pipe was beyond welcome and as he passed through the circle of light he allowed for a sense of elation to overwhelm him momentarily.
The ground was sludgy and clung to his clothes and body which was rapidly losing the red paint but Hokushin could have kissed it right then if he weren't as determined to pull himself out of the foul mess he was currently in.
Pulling himself onto a nearby rock, he glanced back at the nightmare-mobile and thanked every deity, both human and demon he could think of to be out of it until he realized what had happened.
The roar he unleashed caused many onboard Mukuro's insect fortress to jump but Kirin snickered darkly as he moved through the halls in an unworried manner. Lord Mukuro had said he wanted all spies flushes out if they could manage it and he had done just that though he doubted his lord meant it so literally.
But it brought satisfaction unlike anything else to know that he had managed to quite literally flush General Hokushin out with the rest of the ship's piss and waste.
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Sniper had obviously anticipated the group trying to chase after Kuwabara and Sensui and had lain in wait for them. When they passed in the school van he had given immediate chase though he had not become an actual threat until they were on the road to Mushiyori City.
"What the hell is that kid doing?" Takanaka demanded as he stared at his rearview mirror. His answer came as a marble 'bullet' slammed into the mirror. "You weren't kidding about this being dangerous, were you?!" he practically shouted at Toguro then looked at the assorted crew in the van. Most were kids in their mid-teens and he vaguely recognized the girl who had blue hair.
"Just keep driving," a red headed boy instructed as he opened the door of the van.
"WHAT THE?!" the counselor shouted as the boy climbed onto the roof of the van but anything he had to say was cut off as the woman with pink hair opened the backdoor of the van.
"Don't think too hard about what you're about to see," Toguro told him. "It might be better if you try not to see at all."
"Does anyone have any water?" the boy in the yellow hoodie asked as the attack began again and before Takanaka could tell him there was a cooler under the front row a shout of "Rose Whip!" rang through the air.
A long green whip slashed at the motorcycle behind them as the woman shouted "HYAH!" and fired a blue blast of energy.
Takanaka almost swallowed his tongue as little by little he realized he had become a part of something that was probably well beyond him.
"Found some!" the hoodie boy called and a moment later a small monster made of water bounced through the truck, catching and stopping the various bullets being fired.
"Save those for later!" Toguro ordered and the boy nodded even as Takanaka stared hard at the creature before him, barely noticing the car he was getting dangerously close to until he had to swerve around it.
The green whip appeared again in his rearview mirror and the cyclist dodged yet again before tossing his hand forward, almost like he was trying to slap the truck.
"He's marking us!" the boy who had created the water monster explained over the ruckus inside the van. "None of his shots will miss now!"
"I'm not worried if the worst he can do is marbles!" called a punkish looking kid with short blond hair.
"What about that?" asked the one with the crazy hair.
Everyone looked then.
"WORRIED NOW!" was the shout as Takanaka did his best to avoid the volley of knives and there was another blue blast from the woman in the back as the whip criss-crossed the air behind them. Whatever knives were not incinerated were cut to pieces by the whip and fell useless to the road.
Behind them the motorcycle had disappeared and Takanaka sighed in momentary relief. That relief was short since the bike was back again moments later with the teen's hand planted on the side of a large truck.
"A fuel truck?!" the nerdy teen in the back yelled in surprise.
Hoodie looked back and his voice rose an octave as his eyes grew to the size of saucers. "He's going to FIRE IT!"
"KURAMA! THE WHEELS!" Genkai shouted, refusing to fire another attack since any stray hits could cause the truck to explode.
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Where the tunnel was suppose to open was easy for Hiei to locate, he hadn't even needed to use the Jagan Eye. The wind now smelled of his homeland, a bitter smell that most would find noxious due to the blood that flavored it. It was a welcome scent to Hiei.
Currently the tunnel wasn't open and though he did intend to help ensure it was closed and sealed since the deaths of anyone else on the team might cause Yukina to cry, he did intend to go home at long last.
That would come later. Right now he was staring at a rather peculiar and familiar looking bird. It had settled near him in a tree with an almost familiar sounding "Puu!" that caused him great discomfort. Thankfully the bird was the wrong shape to be the former spirit detective's spirit beast. This bird actually looked like a bird for starters and not a stuffed animal, a rather large bird at that. There were actual wings on this thing as well rather than ears that could be used to flap around.
"Puu?" the bird asked him familiarly and Hiei fingered his sword.
"Hello lunch."
The bird's eyes widened and it took off with a powerful flap, heading towards the road.
Drawing his sword, the demon chased after his meal leisurely. He still had several hours still so he was in no hurry.
The screech of tires drew his attention and he looked to the road, possibly to find some entertainment. Humans did race in their vehicles up there and on occasion crashed. What he saw made him take pause.
There did appear to be a race taking place and it involved the strangest trio of vehicles he had ever seen. The first was a van that a certain fox demon he knew riding on top with his rose whip. Following them was a large truck and a motorcycle that was swiftly pulling back. He recognized the truck type as one that Kurama had pointed out and called a 'fuel truck'.
If he was correct in his next assumption, that thing would explode if it ran into something.
His sharp eyes caught sight of most of the crew in the van plus several he didn't know. He could guess where they were headed since he had seen the truck not too long ago that had a loudly yelling Kuwabara in the back of it.
A shout from the van brought his attention back to the situation and for a moment he considered just letting the team deal with this themselves but scoffed when he realized they weren't even aiming at the correct target if they wanted to stop that truck, especially if the terrified expression of its driver was anything to go by. They couldn't aim at the psychic though.
Giving up on his lunch, Hiei changed directions and headed for the road. His approach through the trees was easily missed and the human biker didn't even know he had been hit until his territory was already collapsing and Hiei sped around the truck to the van.
"You humans looked like you needed a hand!" he shouted at the van and the driver looked like he was ready to have a heart attack.
"Right in the nick of time Hiei!" Genkai shouted as Kurama nodded with a half smile.
Seeing no reason not to take advantage of a free ride, the fire demon hopped on top of the van.