Chapter 14

"So, the punishment board has agreed to go easy on Kurama given the circumstances," Botan explained after school the next day.

"Well, that's good to know," I said. I knew after this, Kurama and I were going to be in contact again.

"Yeah, but now we still have to find, Hiei," Yusuke said.

I jumped down from the top of the shed where I was sitting on the roof of the school.

"Then what are we waiting for?" I asked opening the door. "Let us venture forth and capture the fiend!"

"Kairi, chill out," Yusuke said. "We're not in medieval times."

I rolled my eyes and walked downstairs, running into Kayko.

"Oh, hey, is Yusuke up there?" she asked.

"You bet," I said continuing on my way to my locker. I stood in front of it and stared for a moment. "Now what was my combination. . .?"

"You're still here?" Someone said walking p behind. I turned to see Rei.

"Yes, I am. And so are you," I said. "Glad we sorted all that out."

I turned back to my locker.

Maybe it started. . . 7?

Rei started to go off on a rant about how she was irritated that I wasn't paying attention her. I continued to try to figure out how to open my locker.

Finally I shrugged. I punched the locker and it bounced open.

I started to toss my belongings into it.

"Are you listening to me?" Rei asked.

"No," I replied closing my locker. "Did you need something? Or just my attention?"

Rei went to say something but she was interrupted by Kayko storming past her, visibly irritated.

Wonder what Urameshi did to piss her off this time.

"Look, Rei, I'd love to stay here and chat with you but, honestly that was a lie and I've definitely got better things to do," I said.

Indeed you do, detective.

I started to walk away from Rei.

Hiei. . .?

The one and only.

We've got to stop meeting like this, Hiei. I enjoy surprises, but yours are border line rude.

Pardon my manners then. We should meet face to face, and this time you'll bring your little assistant and the other two artifacts.

Now, Hiei, why on earth would I do that?

Because, you wouldn't want something to happen to your precious, Kayko now would you?

I froze. Kayko? I'd just seen her a moment ago. He had to be bluffing.

What the hell are you talking about?

I just happened to run into Kayko on her way home from school, in quite the upset state over Urameshi. At that point I just so happened to. . . Take her.

I groaned.

If you hurt her-.

No harm will come to her if you bring me the artifacts, Detective.

Shit – and I had no other choice but to trust him.

Where are you?

I'm sure you can sort that out on your own, and you'd better hurry. Poor Kayko doesn't have much time.

I ran upstairs to find Yusuke and Botan. I searched the roof and all the classrooms but they were nowhere to be seen.

I ran outside to see if I could find them on the grounds, but still nothing.

Finally I happened a glance at the third floor window and saw there, Yusuke and Botan in Mr. Takanaka's office.

I flew up to third floor, being as inconspicuous as possible and looked inside. Botan glanced over at the window and saw me. I motioned her outside. She tapped Yusuke and he glanced over to the window. His eye's widened.

"You can fly!?!" he shouted.

I ducked down from the window as Takanaka looked over. I waited a moment and looked back up. I motioned him outside.

Not too long after he was outside.

"When did you learn to fly?" he asked.

"When I was eight," I said. "But that's not important. Hiei has Kayko and unless we find him soon and give him the artifacts, he's going to do something to her."

I could see the rage in Yusuke's eyes. He didn't care about anyone else as much as he cared about Kayko and by even threatening to hurt her, he was pissed.

He looked at his demon compass.

"Let's go get that son a bitch," he said.

As unprepared as I knew Yusuke was and as little as we both knew about Hiei, I knew this was one fight I should've handled, but I knew at the end of the day, Yusuke wasn't about to let me fight Hiei. He had to get Hiei himself for hurting Kayko.

We ran all the way to shady side of town that was nothing but abandoned buildings and warehouses. And inside one, we found Kayko.

We dashed over to her.

"He got her," I said looking at her forehead. There was an eye opening up on it. "He got her with the sword."

"How very perceptive, of you," Hiei said coming out of the shadows. On his forehead, where he usually wore a white head band, was a third eye.

"Well then. . ." I said. "What is that?"

"This is the jagan eye. It's what gives me telepathic abilities. Usually I can control any human who crosses my path with it, but it seems you're not Koenma's usual brand of flunkies," Hiei said.

"Change her back now!" Yusuke said.

"Do you have the items?" Hiei asked.

Yusuke tossed Hiei the items and he sat them aside.

"Good, very good," Hiei said. He held up the sword. "In the hilt of this sword is the antidote used reverse the effects of the sword. If you want it, come and get it. But be quick, once that eye on her forehead opens all the way up, there'll be no bringing her back."

I quickly turned to Kayko and started feeding her my energy so the eye would start to close.

"Yusuke, kick his ass, I'm not going to be able to do this for long," I said.

He nodded. "Not a problem."

Of course this was a problem, because as soon as Yusuke went after Hiei, he disappeared.

"Shit," I said.

"Where'd he go?" Yusuke asked.

"He's fast," Botan said.

"He's really fast," I said. "Be careful Yusuke. Try to sense his Spirit Energy so you can keep up with him."

Yusuke nodded and stood still for a moment, and then he ducked. Hiei had come in right over his head.

Finally, Yusuke was proving he wasn't a worthless idiot. He was a fighter, and from the looks of it, a damn good one.

"Hmm, you're better than I expected," Hiei said.

"Yeah, I'm special that way," Yusuke replied. He went at Hiei again, this time landing a solid punch on him, sending Hiei flying into some wooden crates. "Ha, game, set, match."

"You idiot! He's not down just yet!" Botan said.

"What are you talking about? I definitely just knocked him out," Yusuke said.

"Hiei isn't some punk of the street that you beat up everyday. He's an apparition. It'll take a lot more than a stupid punch to take him out," I said.

"I appreciate your confidence in me, Detective," Hiei said coming out from the rubble of the crate. "However, I give credit where credit is due. I didn't see that coming."

"Well there's plenty more where that came from," Yusuke said.

"I have a surprise of my own for you," Hiei said tossing his cloak aside. "Now it's time for you to see the real power of the jagan!"

Hiei's spirit energy began to rise, his skin changed from its fair tone to a sickly sea green color and many eyes started opening up.

The eye on Kayko's forehead started to open more as well. I used more of my energy to keep it at bay.

"Yusuke, his spirit energy controls Kayko's eye. Hurry, I'm not going to be able to do this much longer," I said.

Yusuke stopped paying attention to glance over to Kayko – a mistake. Hiei took the opportunity to knock Yusuke to the ground.

Hiei pulled out his sword as Yusuke rose to his feet, completely cornered.

"It's been fun," Hiei said.

Just then someone ran inside speedily – all I saw was a flash of red hair.

"This is the end!" Hiei shouted and shot his sword forward skewering my best friend.

"Kurama!" Yusuke shouted. I looked up to see that Hiei's sword had pierced Kurama and not Hiei.

"What are you doing here?" Hiei asked.

Kurama didn't answer, only dipped his fingers in his own blood and splashed it in Hiei's jagan eye. Hiei started panicking and having a freak out.

"Without that eye on his forehead, the other's are useless," Kurama said to Yusuke.

"Don't count me out just yet, Kurama," Hiei said. "I may not be able to use my jagan, but I don't need it to defeat you!"

Hiei charged up for a punch that was certain to smite my best friend, and given his speed there was no way Yusuke could dodge, but then Yusuke did something unexpected. He charged up for his one and only spirit gun of the day.

"That idiot! He's gonna miss! Hiei's too fast!" I said.

And as expected the blast shot past Hiei, barely grazing him. Hiei stopped in his tracks. Yusuke was out of energy.

"Ha! You m missed! Did you really think your attack could hit me?" Hiei asked.

"No, wasn't counting on it," Yusuke said with a grin.

That's when we saw it, the blast was coming back, it had reflected off the Forlorn Hope which Hiei had sat down.

WHAM! It hit Hiei in the back, knocking him to the ground, earning Yusuke his first victory as Spirit Detective.

"If I were you, I'd call my plastic surgeon and get that eye of yours removed. I think it's defective," Yusuke said.

"You'll pay for this. . . Detective," Hiei said. His skin return to normal, his eyes vanished and he became unconscious.

Yusuke tossed me the sword and I removed the hilt. Indeed there was an antidote inside, which I didn't hesitate to give to Kayko.

"Damn, I'm awesome," Yusuke said.

"I hate to agree but you're right," Botan said.

"When did you figure out the Spirit Gun would reflect off the mirror?" Kurama asked.

"Yeah. I've been using it for ages and I didn't know that," I said.

"Well. . . About two minutes ago," Yusuke said.

"WHAT?!" I asked.

"Yeah. I mean, I basically was just thinking light bounces off mirrors so it should be the same basic principal right? It was a lucky guess," Yusuke asked.

"You risked Kayko's life on a guess!?!" Botan asked.

"Well, in his defense it was an educated guess," I pointed out, no matter how stupid it was.

"This whole time you had us thinking you were a brilliant strategist, when really you're just a lucky fool," Kurama said.

Yusuke frowned at Kurama, but let the crack go.

"Well, you guys, my best friend is half alien, her cousin is a demon, I was dead just last week, I saw a man eat children's souls, I saw a guy with green sky, and my girlfriend had an extra eye on it," Yusuke said. "I have officially seen everything."

"Really?" I asked.

"Yep," Yusuke said.

"Ever seen a man eat his own head?" I asked.

". . . No," Yusuke said.

"Then you haven't seen everything," I said with a wink.

"You've seen that?" Yusuke asked. "I mean, that's not even possible I think. . . I mean, I'm no doctor but. . ."

I laughed and put my arm around Yusuke.

"Yusuke, in this line of work, every day you're going to think you've seen everything, until you see something new and realize, that you haven't," I said.