The taste of her blood in her mouth only heightened her amusement.
The strike had been lucky after all.
The human spirit detective was such a babe in the woods when it came to actual power. That he possessed some there was no doubt. That he had only a modicum of control over it added fuel to the fire of her plans against the humans.
What pitiful creatures they were. There was no place for such a grasping, fragile species. That they existed at all was more chance then anything else.
She had every intention of remedying that.
First was this Yusuke Urameshi.
This would be hero.
She stumbled back just in time to avoid Narumi's knee that had been aimed at her side. She attempted to blink the lingering fog of the memory away from her eyes.
The sharp, metallic taste of blood in her mouth surprised her. She did not recall Narumi landing a strike to her face. The blood along with the deep throb along her jaw testified that it had happened.
She backed up another step, resettling as Narumi rushed her.
It was not supposed to have lasted this long. A real knock down, drag out street fight had always been what they delivered to the crowds. It was never drawn out, never intended as the spectacles that a lot of the other fights turned into.
Already their fight had lasted to long for her comfort.
She had to get her head back in the game.
She blocked the next two punches that Narumi threw then followed them up with one of her own. The solid connection of flesh on cheek bone drove the other girl to the side. She moved with her catching a hold of her head, yanking the woman forward so that her knee drove into Narumi's stomach.
She could not help the grin that twisted her lips as the spirit detective looked down at her.
She could feel the fear off of him though he would deny it.
How could he not be afraid at the sight of her in full demonic form.
She took the time to relish the moment.
To feel the full throbbing presence of her demonic energies unleashed in this manner. It had been much to long since she had dwelt in it.
And now there would only be pain for the boy to anticipate just as she anticipated being the giver of it.
The explosive agony of her fist hitting a solid wall drove the memory from her mind in an instant.
Disoriented she let Narumi escape the hold she had on her, though she turned to face her. She cast her eyes around the building. Somehow the fight had left the circle and traveled the length of the building. She refocused on Narumi who was wiping blood from a split in her lip.
Narumi's eyes were cold, full of anger, "You've been holding out on me Shizuru."
This was truly the worst possible time for Hiei's memories to be invading her reality.
She could not quit this fight.
It had to end one way or the other and considering the stakes in her favor she absolutely had to win. With Kazuma and the others in the crowd already known as being connected to her if she lost they might be included in the pay back for the loss of so much money.
Her hand was throbbing in painful, tight waves. She may have broken a knuckle pounding the wall as hard as she had.
She brought her hands up, "Just shut up and stop whining Narumi. I'm bored."
Narumi's eyes narrowed to small slits. She knew what was coming and she despised that Narumi lowered herself to this. It never played out well for the other girl. It only served to infuriate her to the point of actually wanting to cause real damage to the other woman. The kind that kept her in the hospital for months.
Narumi was quick when she had to be. She did not bend to retrieve the blade from her boot. Instead she shifted the leg up, snatched it from it's hiding place and launched herself at her all in one smooth motion.
The crowd roared with to much sound as she waited for the right moment.
It was inevitable really.
How else could it be described?
Spirit World's best defense was going to die at her hands.
His face was still twisted with that absurd defiance and cocky determination. As if that would be enough to save him in the end. That look alone earned him the death she would deal to him.
That look and the defeat of the others.
His continued interference in affairs that he should have remained well away from.
Koenma was a fool.
She would carve that into the spirit detective's body. A souvenir of how little she cared what the ruler of Spirit World could do to her if she failed in any way.
It would have been even more satisfying to see the look upon Koenma's face when such a thing were finally shown to him.
Do you actually intend to kill her?
She was holding Narumi against the wall with one arm. With her other hand she held the woman's blade against her neck just under her jaw. Narumi was glaring at her but she could feel her shaking under her arm. She could see that pin prick of fear inside the furious eyes.
She licked her lip, hiding her uneasiness, "You giving up or am I going to have to cut you again?"
"You win." Narumi snarled though it lacked real strength.
She nodded to herself, backing away from her rival as she tried to make sense of anything that had just happened.
I don't get it...how did I...
She barely registered the crowd becoming louder after Narumi's capitulation. She did however flinch when Yusuke, Kuwabara, Botan and an overly delighted Arata surrounded her whooping and cheering.
She was exhausted, the only thing she could think of was going home and crashing.
"You were awesome Sis!" Kuwabara crowed, "I can't believe how you took that knife from her!"
Me neither...
"And I thought watching the boys was exciting!" Botan said practically bouncing, "You were right I've never seen a street fight like that! It truly was amazing to watch you in action Shizuru!"
"You made us a bundle!" Arata exclaimed, "Just give me a couple of minutes to collect and I'll have your cut..."
"How about I come get it in a couple of days." she interrupted him wanting nothing more then to be away from all the noise, "Please tell me you guys brought the car. I don't think I'm up to another oar ride."
"Well yeah," Kuwabara answered his excitement dialing down a little with concern, "We aren't fast like Hiei. Some of us have to use the regular ways. Hey are you alright?"
"Tired," she assured him, "took more out of me then I thought it would. Let's get out of here."
"But shouldn't you..." Kazuma began uneasily.
"Are you hard of hearing?" Hiei broke in scathingly, "I for one do not want to linger in this place."
She cast a grateful look at the fire demon for the interruption. She really was not up to arguing with her brother at the moment.
Her jaw, ribs and hand throbbed at different intervals, some more pronounced then others.
She was cold, no doubt from some aspect of shock.
And she was extremely confused by what had happened during the fight.
He kept a careful eye on her as she rested her head against the window of the car during the ride back to her home.
He had shocked the others by joining them in the car. None of them had said a word but they continuously cast odd looks at him. He did not normally travel with them in their vehicles. He was not fond of the smells they produced and his own method of travel was much faster.
In this situation however he felt a need to.
It seemed that everything that had to do with her was fated to be of a dual nature when it came to his feelings.
At first he had been absolutely mesmerized by the sight of her in that ring. Every movement, every action he had followed with an almost obsessive eye. An odd sense of pride had filled him seeing her fight, pride and other more elusive but still warming emotions.
Looking away from her had not been an option.
The way she held her body.
How she had braced for hits.
Her delivery of attack.
While still restricted by her human nature he could find little fault in her approach.
He had been enjoying himself until that first moment she had faltered.
When the other woman had landed that punch in an unguarded instant.
It had been brief but he had been flooded with abrupt tension. Without removing his headband he had allowed the Jagan to open, not enough to access her mind but enough to know exactly what had occurred if it happened again.
When it did she did not falter as noticeably as she had before. Her attack became more pointed, driving Narumi across the building with their severity. The pace at which she had drove the other woman had been more then he had anticipated.
That did not bother him so much as the brief fluttering of something shadowed along her form. It had not lasted long enough to identify but it had caused his concern to grow. Especially after she had hit the wall, the confusion that had flashed across her expression had been hard to ignore.
Which was why when it happened again he had taken matters into his own hands. He had made sure to be well away from the onlookers, hidden in the shadows behind all of them before removing the head band to touch her mind.
He had not had an opportunity like this to enter her mind when she was caught up in a memory. The singular time he had tried she had recovered before he could fully engage her.
It was strange to see that through her eyes and have his own memories of his attempt on Yusuke's life. He had been to brash, to arrogant back then. Even he could admit that.
What disturbed him was that she did not seem to struggle against the memory. Her mind occupied in the memory as her body remained in the fight.
Only his words brought her up short, drew her out of it enough to realize what she was doing. He cared little whether the other woman died. He knew Shizuru would care, that it would carry more weight if it was done without her intention behind it.
That same shaded curiosity enfolded her for a moment then was gone.
He had not even sensed it during his time in her mind.
Whatever it was it was to well hidden, to much a part of her to be easily detected.
But it is there. There is no doubt any longer. The question is what is it doing to her?