Sry that I haven't posted in about two months. No reviews for the past couple of chapters really puts a downer on ya. Plus I've been busy with work and everything. But I was finally in the mood tonight to write. I have a feeling I'm not going to bed due to my alarm is supposed to go off in a couple of hours lol But I for some odd reason do my best writing at night. I don't get it. Anyway, enough of my rambling. I hope you enjoy and I'm REALLY hoping for some reviews this time. They really do help motivate. I have this upcoming weekend off so we shall see if I get into a writing mood or not. Thanks!

It started off with a stare down. Taikichi's tail kept swishing back and forth. He had a large smirk planted on his face.

"What's the matter? Suddenly got cold feet girly?"

She yawned, "No. I was just going over all the ways I could obliterate you."

He scowled at her, "You're a bitch you know that?"

Kiren shrugged, "Tell me something that I don't know."

Koto sighed annoyingly, "Come on people! Enough chit chat and let's see some blood!"

Everyone in the crowd was screaming "Blood! Give us some blood!"

Taikichi's face turned into a smile, "Well, you heard the lady and the fans, let's get this party started!"

He rushed towards Kiren, drawing a small dagger. She moved slightly to the left and watched him fall flat on his face. She giggled as she kicked him in the stomach and watched him fly into the wall of the stadium.

She playfully yawned again, "Come on, you gotta give me more entertainment than that."

She heard a growl come from the pile of debris as Taikichi got up and went back to the ring. He wiped blood from his chin. He charged at her again, swiping the blade at her. She toyed with him for a little bit, dodging just enough to keep him swinging.

After a few minutes she was bored and quickly went disappeared behind him and did a swift chop to his neck. A loud crack was heard and Taikichi dropped to the ground.

Koto ran over and checked for a pulse, "Well folks, looks like there's no need for a ten count. There was no blood but it was quick and beautiful! Kiren gets the first win for team Urameshi!"

Kiren walked off the ring and stood with the gang. Yuske patted her on the back.

"Well that was definitely a quick round. Hope that's the case for the rest of us."

Kiren smiled, "I hope so too."

Koto started screaming into the microphone, "Alright! Next fighters please step into the ring! Let's hope for some blood this time around!"

A scrawny wolf demon stepped onto the ring, cracking his knuckles. Kuwabara stepped up onto the ring cracking his own knuckles.

"Alright, this bad boy is all mine!"

Hiei scoffed, "Don't make a fool of yourself again."

Kuwabara growled and turned to face him, "Shut it short stuff! You're next on my list!"

Hiei smirked, "I'm so scared."

Koto started talking before Kuwabara could make a retort, "Alright! Looks like we've got our fighters! Team Urameshi's Kuwabara versus Team Kito's Kurai! Begin!"

Immediately Kuwabara brought out his spirit sword. He struck a pose mumbling something along the lines of 'oh yeah, I'm cool. Look at me ladies'.

Kiren rolled her eyes, "Is he always like this?"

Yuske rubbed the back of his head, "Sadly. I like to think of it as cheap entertainment to break the ice when everything's so tense and serious."

Kurama chuckled, "That is definitely one way to put it."

Kiren sighed as everyone looked back to the ring. It looked exactly like Kiren's fight though swapped. This time Kuwabara was the one slashing around and Kurai was the one looking bored and dodging left and right.

Kiren shook her head, "Well, this should be over quickly. Let's just hope it doesn't end like mine did."

Kurai kicked Kuwabara in the stomach and sent him into the wall. Kiren crossed her arms against her chest.

"He should just stay down. Save him some embarrassment."

Yuske gave a quick chuckle, "Sadly, he's too stubborn for that."

Kuwabara got back into the ring just before Koto got to ten. He charged at Kurai and was back to swinging his sword wildly again.

Kiren groaned, "Can this get any worse? Doesn't this idiot learn anything?"

Hiei crossed his arms to his chest, "He's too stupid for that. I don't see why we even bothered with him."

Yuske sweatdropped, "Come on guys, give our guy some credit here. He's not completely hopeless. I mean, he won a couple of fights during the last tournament."

Kiren rolled her eyes, "Shocking."

The gang turned their attention back towards the ring. Kuwabara managed a kick to Kurai's face. He only moved him a little bit towards the edge of the ring though.

Kurai scoffed, "You are an embarrassment and I'm tired of this. This ends now!"

He disappeared in an instant, causing Kuwabara to look around idiotically. Suddenly he reappeared behind him. Kuwabara turned around just in time to get punched square in the jaw and sent flying yet again. He landed just in front of the gang.

Koto quickly ran over and started a ten count.

Kiren shook her head, "Well, atleast he's still alive."

Koto got to ten, "And the winner is Kurai! Tying the two teams with one win each! Let's get the next round started!"

Hiei swiftly stood in the ring, "Time to make up for the fool."

Koto joined him in the ring, "Looks like we have an impatient competitor from Team Urameshi! Team Kito, who is your next fighter?!"

Kito smirked from the other side of the ring, "Well, since that bastard Taikichi took the girl on me, I suppose her other half will do."

He got on to the ring just as swiftly as Hiei and drew his katana he had on his hip. Koto got a big smile on her face, "And the leader of Team Kito, Kito himself has entered the ring. Looks like it's going to be a challenge of speed and swords! Let's hope it's a good one! Begin!"

Hiei drew his own katana, "What exactly is your interest in Kiren?"

Kito chuckled, "Protective aren't you? Who knew that once infamous blood thirsty fire demon who trusted no one would stoop so low as to fall in love with something like that and be protective of it."

Hiei growled causing Kito to smirk, "Aw, did I hit a nerve? Look, everyone here at this tournament knows little missy's there secret. Mazuki is just as famous as you are. Perhaps even more so than you. Everyone wants a shot at her. You could always do yourself a favor, relive yourself of the hassle of always having to watch out for her and hand her over."

Kurama shook his head, "He's trying to make you lose your focus Hiei. Don't let him mess with your head."

Kiren fidgeted, "I have a feeling this is going to happen a lot throughout this tournament. I'm sorry guys."

Yuske put his arm around her shoulder, "No need to be sorry. It keeps it more entertaining. I love watching him get pissed."

She shrugged him off, "I don't."

Kurama put a hand on her shoulder, "He didn't mean it like that. He's just trying to lighten the mood."

She nodded and looked back towards the ring. She noticed Koto getting impatient.

"Come on people. We need some blood! As intriguing as all this talk is, let's see some action boys!"

Loud cheers came from the crowd agreeing with her.

Kito got a large grin on his face and chuckled to himself, "I love pleasing a crowd. I'm curious, how do you think our precious little kitten would react if I killed you? Do you think she would go on a murderous rampage and kill everyone here? Or would she go into shock?"

They started circling each other.

"Personally, I'm hoping for the latter. It's amazing what you can do to someone when they're in shock."

Hiei growled and lunged at them. Their katanas met with amazing force, sending sparks around the two. They broke apart and continued with amazing speed.

Yuske whistled, "Wow, someone else who can match Hiei's speed besides Kiren."

Kurama nodded, "Not only that, but he has Hiei blinded with rage. He's bound to screw up somewhere."

Kiren shook her head, "He's too smart for that."

Kurama smiled, "Before we met you I would have to agree with you. However, love can make us do crazy things. And when our loved ones are in danger or someone is threatening them, we can become blind to the obvious. Hiei loves you very much and he is a very protective demon. Push the right buttons and he could become blind with rage."

Hiei landed on the edge of the ring closest to them, "Give me some credit fox."

He took off again landing blows with Koto.

Kurama chuckled to himself, "And then again, there are special cases where one can still remain level headed."

Kiren smiled and turned back towards the ring. The two of them were still going at it at amazing speeds. It was almost too fast for her to follow. After a while the two fighters landed on opposite sides of the ring.

Kito smiled at him, "This is getting boring. Don't you think so?"

Hiei smirked, "What did you have I mind?"

He smirked back at him and raised his hand concentrating his energy into it. A ball of fire formed into it.

Kiren scowled, "Jerk."

Yuske looked at her with a questioning look.

She shook her head, "I can't do that."

Yuske laughed, "Time, girl, it takes time. You'll get there."

She glared at him and turned back to the ring.

Hiei had a bored look on his face, "What exactly are you intending?"

Kito laughed, "I figured let's use the clichéd line of 'fight fire with fire'. Let's see which one of is the better fire demon."

Hiei sighed, "You're right, that is clichéd. And I'm tired of you."

He vanished in a split second and reappeared in the same spot a second later.

Kito laughed, "Was that supposed to sca-"

His sentence was interrupted when his body fell in half onto the ring. Koto got all giddy, "Ooooo now that's what I'm talking about! Beautiful! I'm getting shivers! No need to have a ten count here! Hiei is the winner! Giving Team Urameshi two wins to one! One more win and Team Urameshi wins this round! Next fighters please enter the ring!"

Hiei jumped off the ring and walked up to Kiren. She gave him a smile and a quick hug.

"Good job."

He pulled back and looked her in the eyes, "I'm sorry about the things that he said."

She shook her head, "I should be the one apologizing. One of these times someone's going to get hurt because of me."

He put a finger on her lips, "Shhh, no more of that. What have I been telling you?"

She smiled, "Yes, yes, I'm sorry."

Hiei gave her a quick peck and turned back towards the ring. Kiren smirked at what she saw. Yuske was beating the crap out of this opponent. He ended it by kicked the guy into the wall. Koto did her ten count and it was all over.

Koto walked to the middle of the ring, "Well folks that ends the first round of this tournament! It wasn't as long as we all hoped but that just gives us something to look forward to! The next round will be starting shortly!"

The gang walked out of the arena and back towards the hotel. They went up to their rooms. Kiren went into the bathroom and shut the door. She started taking her shirt off as she heard the door open and close. The smell of fire and pine filled her nose.

A smile graced her lips, "Going to join me?"

Arms slid around her waist and a kiss was placed on her neck, "I was thinking about it."

Shivers went down her spine at the kiss, "Sounds like a plan to me."

He smirked, "Why don't you let me help you?"

She felt her bra being unclipped and she smiled, "Please do. Only if I get to return the favor."

Her bra was slid over her shoulders and fell to the ground. She turned around to face him and was met with fiery kiss. Her hands found their way to the hem of shirt and she started pulling it up. Hiei broke the kiss just for an instant so she could take his shirt off.

Once it was off his mouth found hers again, tongue entering and exploring. Each of their hands went to the top of their pants, unbuttons and slowly undoing the zippers. Pants were quickly disgarded as well as the remaining garments. They broke apart for air and to turn the water on.

Hiei smiled at her, "How did I manage to find someone so beautiful?"

Kiren looked down at her feet causing her hair to cover her eyes, "You're just saying that."

Hiei growled softly at her, "Don't start. I am not 'just saying that'. You are a gorgeous woman. You should not be ashamed of anything. These scars are a part of who you are and prove that you are a strong individual. You should wear these with pride. I am very proud to have you as mine. I wouldn't have you any other way."

A small smile played at her lips, "Sorry. Thank you. Let's get in the shower before the water gets cold."

He smiled as they got into the shower. For a while they just stood under the water. Hiei was hugging her from behind, kissing lightly on her neck. She couldn't concentrate on the shower feeling his bare chest against her back.

His teeth gently grazed her neck and her body felt like electricity.

She had to swallow a couple of times before she could find her voice to speak, "Hiei, do you think it would be possible for me to mate?"

Hiei froze mid kiss at her sudden question, "What brought this on?"

She smiled, "Just something I was thinking about. It made me curious considering I was born a human with a demon's soul. Kind of like Kurama. It made me wonder if that made it possible to mate like normal demons do."

He turned her around to face him, "Is this something that you would want?"

She wrapped her arms around his neck, "Ever since I gave in to the feelings I had for you, I knew that you would be the one that I would be spending the rest of my life with. I don't know what I would do without you. That time that we were interrupted by Keiko, I got this instinct to mark you. Same thing just happened right now as I felt your fangs on my neck. It got me wondering that if I had the instinct and sudden urge to, if I would be able to actually do it."

Hiei bent down his head to her beautiful mounds and gave her nipples a taste causing her to moan into his hair. He gave her butterfly kisses up her chest and neck until he met her lips and gave her a kiss.

He pulled away slightly and looked her in the eyes, "I think that if you're having the instincts and urges for mating, then we should be able to mate no problem. Mating is only a demon's instinct. You must be atleast somewhat merged with Mazuki to make this possible."

She smiled a big smile, "I can't tell you how happy that makes me."

A small smile graced his own lips, "Me as well. However, we're not ready for that just quite yet."

She nodded, "I know. But it's nice to know that we can do it in the future when we are ready for it."

He nodded as well and leaned in to kiss her again. Eventually they did make it out of the shower and crawled into bed. Kiren fell asleep instantly in Hiei's arms. After a while Hiei fell asleep as well with a smile on his face.

The next morning Kiren woke up and got dressed and then went into the kitchen to make breakfast. Everyone else was still asleep. Just before she was done making the food, she noticed Hiei behind her wrapping his arms around her waist.

She chuckled, "You like doing that don't you?"

Hiei smiled into her back, "I'll stop if you want me to."

Kiren shook her head, "You do and I'll ban you from kisses."

They both laughed as Kurama entered the room, "Romance this early in the morning? Did you two have a good night last night?"

Kiren turned to see an all knowing smirk planted on Kurama's face. Her cheeks instantly heated up as she shook her head.

"No! Not what you're thinking! Pervert! No breakfast for you!"

Kurama chuckled, "Now that's not very nice. Hiei, you must stop rubbing off on her."

Hiei growled at him, "Shut up fox."

A yawning Yuske walked into the room, "It's too early for fighting."

Kiren giggled, "Then why are you awake goofball?"

He yawned again, "The smell of food can wake up anyone."

"That's for sure."

Kiren turned around to see Kuwabara entering the room and sitting at the table with Yuske.

She smiled, "You're in luck because it just got done."

She served breakfast and the table was alive with chatter from everyone. Kiren was happy that it was a good morning. She wasn't looking forward to later on this afternoon when their next round would be beginning.

After everyone was done eating, Kurama offered to do the dishes and everyone else went into the living room.

Yuske looked at the clock reading eleven am. He sighed, "Our next match starts in about two hours. Who are we up against again?"

Kurama, having finished the dishes, entered the room answering him, "I believe its Team Sheena. They are supposedly a group of assassins. Which means they'll have speed as their main weapon."

Yuske groaned, "Well, hopefully they won't have elements like Jin's team did back at the last tournament. That was just brutal."

Kuwabara scratched his head, "They weren't all elements. Just the last three I think."

Kurama nodded, "Yes, that is true. However, we must expect anything. Don't take our enemy's lightly."

Kuwabara sighed, "I know, I know."

They passed the time talking about what they should be expecting when it got close to the time of the fight and time for them to leave to get to the stadium. Kiren went to her room first before they left and grabbed her IPod.

Yuske gave her a funny look, "Do I dare ask why you're bringing that?"

She looked down at her IPod and then back at Yuske, "For my fight. I'm usually at my best when I have music. I stay calm and focused and it usually blocks out the other opponent from trying to enrage me in some way."

Kuwabara looked at her funny as well, "How can you stay focused with music in your ears? Isn't that a little distracting?"

She shook her head, "Not really. I don't know why but it helps me out. Guess I'm just weird that way."

Kurama smiled at her, "Not weird, unique."

It didn't take them long to get to the stadium. Koto was already in the middle of the arena talking about how excited she was for the match.

"Ok everyone! We are about to start the next round! Today we have Team Urameshi up against Team Sheena! Both teams please report to the ring to decide how the matches will be fought!"

Both teams met in the middle of the ring by Koto. Kuwabara started having a freak out session.

"WHAT! THEY'RE ALL GIRLS?! THERE'S NO WAY IN HELL THAT WE CAN FIGHT THIS TEAM! IT GOES AGAINST MY HONOR CODE!"

The leader of the team glared daggers at him, "What in the hell did you just fucking say to us? Are you saying that we're not worthy of fighting because we're women? Are you taking pity on us? You are some fucking piece of work you asshole!"

He shrunk away behind Yuske, "That's not what I was saying! I was just brought up that guys aren't supposed to hit girls."

The leader started growling as Kiren jumped in, "Please excuse him, he's just an idiot. We'll make sure to give you fights worth your time."

The girl smirked at her and then turned to Yuske, "Urameshi, I say we do this one on one. I want to teach that fucking bastard hiding behind you a lesson he won't ever forget."

Yuske smirked, "You're on!"

Koto screamed into her microphone, "It's been decided! Just like Team Urameshi's last round, this is going to be a one on one match up. The first team to three wins is the winner of the round! Teams pick your fighters!"

Each team went to their side outside the ring to determine who will go first. A slender woman about Yuske's height entered the ring.

She spoke as she got to the middle by Koto, "I want the Spirit Detective of that rotten toddler who calls himself a ruler."

Yuske smirked, "I'm liking this girl already."

He jumped into the ring and Koto took over, "And the first match is going to be between Team Urameshi's Yuske! And from Team Sheena we have Colette! Let's see some blood today! Begin!"

And there it is! Chapter 21! I hope you like it! Please R&R!