Hi guys! Thank you all for the great reviews lately! Love you guys! Enjoy this this extra long chapter.
I can feel the blood rushing to my head as tears gather at the corners of my eyes. My mouth is pulled into a tight line as I try to keep my emotions in, but the eyes glaring at me are too much and I finally snap.
"Whahahahaha!" I roar as I roll around the floor laughing. "It's not funny!" Yusuke yells, shaking his fist threateningly. " . ?!" I manage to say between laughs. "That. is your. Spirit beast?! A. reflection. of you?!" I spit out incredulously.
Taking a deep breath to calm myself down, I clear my throat before looking back up at Yusuke with the most serious face I can manage. "Puu!"
"Gnh, pffr, cheee…. whahahaha!" I howl, not finding the strength to keep myself together once my eyes crawl back up at the blue creature sitting on his head. "Yow!" I scream as Yusuke's fist comes into contact with the side of my head, leaving me sprawled on my back. Releasing a heavy breath, I rub at my sore temple. "Geez. How can anyone with such a cute Spirit beast be so aggressive?" "I never asked your opinion, did I?!" Yusuke growls, gritting his teeth as I wave him off.
"Oh, is it that time already?" Botan pipes up, looking at her watch. "You're right, we should be getting back to our room." Shizuru suggests, followed by a chorus of agreements.
Botan turns to me, smiling cheekily. "You can come with us Rosa. We can have a sleepover. Since Kurama is still recovering at the infirmary, it must be pretty lonely." she says, wiggling her eyebrows. I puff out my cheeks at her, indignantly. "What are you implying?!" I hiss, making her giggle perversely.
"Forget it. I'm not going anywhere with you." I scoff, turning away from her, but before I know it, she and Shizuru have me by the arm and I'm being dragged out of the room. "Yusuke! Kuwabaraaa! Help meee!" I wail. Only laughter follows before the door closes. The girls didn't release be until after they practically bolted the door closed.
Shizuru throws me a soft drink from their fridge and I pop it open before gulping down the fizzy liquid. Meanwhile, I eye the quiet ice maiden, sitting on the couch beside me.
Putting my drink down, I ask the question that's been on my mind since the moment I saw her in the stadium: "So Yukina, how come you returned to this world?" I ask, getting to the point. Said girl smiles shyly. "Well, I recently made a big discovery." she starts, making me perk a brow. I nod, urging her to continue.
"I was going to ask after the tournament, but since you asked…I found out I have a brother…and I would like the help of you and the rest of the team to find him. So will you please help me?" she asks bowing her head to strengthen her plea.
I purse my lips, her request making me feel like I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. I know all she wants, most of us do, but Hiei doesn't want her to know. However, I can't just say 'no' to her. That would be too mean. I guess the only thing I can do, is get on Hiei's case and hope he will reveal the truth himself. I wonder what the odds of that is.
"Yukina, I can make no promises." I start, making her loop up at me with her doe eyes. "But we will all do our best to help you." I conclude. I sigh to myself as I watch a hopeful smile appear on her face. "Thank you Rosa, that means a lot to me." she says in her sweet voice. Man, I sure hope we can make Hiei change his mind. Stubborn demon.
"Hey, let's play a game!" Botan chirps, changing the subject quickly. I'm sure she can tell how uncomfortable it makes me. And with that, the table is cleared as she pulls a board game out of nowhere.
Though they tried, they couldn't keep me awake for long. The day was just so tiring, that in an hour; I was out like a light. I eventually spend the night sprawled out on their couch.
The next morning I woke up early and got out of there to pick up Kurama before Botan could make any more crude comments concerning Kurama and I. She was on a roll the night before.
"Good morning." I call to the nurse, who smiles kindly. "Morning. Your friend is ready to go. He's been aching to do so for hours now." "I'm not surprised." I mutter, walking on ahead to find Kurama sitting on the edge of his bed, covered in bandages and such. "Shall I release you then?" I ask as I walk in the room. He smiles gently, though I can see he's growing impatient. "If you would be so kind."
Signing him out, we make our way out of there. "I'm guessing you want to watch the upcoming fight?" I guess. He nods in confirmation. "It's rather early though. Have you had breakfast yet?" he asks. "Not yet." I answer, following him to a café located near the port.
I suppose that it's usually very quiet and void of people and active businesses when there is no tournament, but at the moment, the place is bustling with humans and demons alike. It gives off the vibe of a popular tourist destination. It's odd to see the mash of creatures just doing their thing without going for each other's throats.
As I munch on my bagel I look at the people walking about outside. "Despite their reasons for being here, the humans and demons here seem to act so natural together. I wonder if there would be even a tiny possibility that we could all coexist in the same world. Wasn't there a time way back when that it was so?" I can't help but question.
Kurama hums in thought. "There was a time, but humans and demons were separated for a reason. There is a lot of spite between the two races. It will take a lot of change in mentality for things to return to that." he answers, sounding like he's seen it for himself. Well, maybe he has.
I look over at him with a bright smile. "Well, at least we set a good example of how it can be done." He nods in agreement, returning the smile. "I can't argue with that."
"What's wrong?" he asks when my face pulls into a grimace. A nasty thought came to my mind just then. "I was…wondering." I start. "Yes?" he urges when I pause. "Well, have you thought of going back...there again? Demon world I mean." I ask reluctantly. I'm kind of afraid of the answer. The though of Kurama leaving to go anywhere, much less to another world doesn't sit well with me. Maybe I'm being selfish, but I would very much prefer to keep him close.
Kurama blinks in surprise, before sighing, a light smile playing on his lips. "I used to. It was my goal to return." he admits, making my frown deepen and his smile widen as if he knows something I don't.
"What?" I ask a little defensively when he starts to chuckle. "You're afraid that I'll leave." he states, making me blush. "Well…of course I am!" I say, not seeing how that's funny. "Thank you Rosa." he says, surprising me. "What for?" "For not wanting me to leave." he answers, confusing me even more. "You don't have to worry though. I won't go anywhere if I have a say in it. I'd rather stay with the people I care for."
Biting my lip at having been seen through so easily, I eventually manage a shy smile. "I'm glad. Things wouldn't be the same without you." I admit.
After finishing up on breakfast, we make our way towards the stadium where crowds are already gathering for the upcoming match. We find ourselves a place where we can easily overlook the match, which will be between team Uraotogi and Gokkai Rokkyo. Hiei joined us just in time.
Gokkai Rokkyo didn't stand a chance, however. In only three rounds they were beaten and that only lasted a few minutes. It was probably the quickest match I've seen so far. It was rather unexpected, as they don't seem particularly powerful. I suppose looks can be deceiving.
"Next comes you guys." one of their team members calls out to us. He is dressed in traditional clothing and his hair is an odd blue color. We haven't gotten to see him fight during this round. "Put your affairs in order." he finishes before they leave the arena. "That's laughable." Hiei scoffs, clearly unimpressed.
"What, are you here too?" Kuwabara's voice sounds from behind us as the others arrive, including Botan. "We thought we'd take a look at who we are going to face in the next match."
"It's already over." Kurama states, shocking them. "Unbelievable. You mean they settled everything during the five minutes it took us to come here, this Uraotogi team." Kuwabara muses as he looks at the massacre below. "Two minutes to be precise." Kurama adds. "It wasn't worth their trouble. Their opponents were too weak." Hiei says before turning to Yusuke.
"That's all fine and all, but what is that ridiculous appendage growing out of your head?" he asks, making me snicker. "I don't even want to explain." Yusuke answers, still bothered. "By the way Kurama, are your injuries alright?" Kurama nods. "I'm fine. I'll have recovered by tomorrow." he replies, making Hiei smirk at him knowingly. "Stop trying to put up with it for your pride's sake." Kurama is quick to counter this attack on his ego though: "I'd be a fine contest to see who can put up with the most, wouldn't it?" he wonders, referring to Hiei's injured arm.
"That's right! Kurama, have Yukina-san treat you!" Kuwabara pipes up, making Hiei stiffen. "Between her healing abilities and your medicinal herbs, you can't miss. Actually, she says she came here looking for her older brother! Once this tournament is over, I'm going to help her search." he rattles on. Hiei's discomfort radiates off him at this point. I just realized that Kuwabara is the only one of us who doesn't know of their relation.
"Mh. That sounds like trouble. Why don't we help too Hiei?" Kurama asks, acting completely innocent, though knowingly rubbing Hiei the wrong way. "I'll lend a hand too!" Yusuke adds, grinning like a fool. "Why you…" Hiei growls, knowing he can't say anything else, lest Kuwabara find out the truth. Speaking of which, he's starting to know that we're keeping something from him as he throws questions to find out.
My mind however is elsewhere as I spot Genkai staring Yusuke down. He finally notices as well. "What?" he asks, looking disturbed, before his attention is drawn away.
Following his line of sight, I catch sight of Toguro and his team standing on the other side of the stadium. There are only four of them I realize. Could that be their whole team?
I frown when the stadium populace starts to chant his name. I grit my teeth when the younger Toguro raises his hand and points his finger straight at Yusuke in a challenging manner. He really has it out for him! I really hate that thought and a feeling of protectiveness comes over me. Yusuke isn't yet strong enough to fight him. After recovering from the initial shock, Yusuke returns the gesture by making a throat cutting gesture, making Toguro smirk before they leave the arena.
"At least you van give and take like a man." Genkai/the masked warrior speaks up, her voice still sounding young. "What do you mean by that?!" Yusuke challenges offended. Genkai is riling him up for some reason, I wonder why.
Soon we find ourselves in the confines of a locker/break room within the stadium. Kuwabara is really rattled after seeing Toguro, probably because he is strong enough now to fully sense the power radiating off of his former opponent. Back then, when they fought to rescue Yukina, they were only being toyed with. The Toguro brothers losing was set up from the start.
We look up from our mulling when the door suddenly swings open. Standing in the doorway is team Uraotogi. 'Great. Couldn't wait to bother us, could they?' I sneer in my thought.
"Hey there, you haven't forgotten about us, have you?" the same demon who called out to us before asks mockingly. "The team we're fighting tomorrow." Yusuke remarks, making them introduce themselves. I roll my eyes, not really caring.
"What do all of you want?" Yusuke asks rudely. "No matter how much you bow your heads, we're not gonna hold back in the matches tomorrow." he continues, pissing them off. "Prepare yourselves. You will be the stepladder that will allow our names to spread far and wide." the one now known as Shishiwakamaru says confidently.
I snort as they turn to leave. "There's nothing wrong with your ego, but for it being to big for this room, that's for sure." I retort, earning a glare from the pretty boy team captain. "Not even worth considering. If you wanted fame, you should have gone on TV." Yusuke adds smirking. "You bunch of clowns!" Kuwabara yells after them.
The insults stops them in their tracks, making Shishiwakamaru whip around, not looking all that pretty anymore as horns appear on his head and his face goes all demonic. "I'll make you regret those words! I'll make sure of it!" I'm glad when they take their leave. They're tomorrow's trouble.
"They're no match for us. I couldn't feel any Demon energy compared to Toguro and them." Kuwabara says. "As far as I'm concerned, they're only opponent to warm up against." Yusuke adds, looking very cocky.
"Don't be so conceited!" Genkai/ masked fighter yells angrily, shocking Yusuke. He grinds his teeth. "Cut it out already!" he suddenly yells back. "You've been staring at me with that creepy look for a while now!" he shouts, punching the wall. "What the hell do you want to tell me?!"
"That's simple…The captain of the Toguro team is Toguro. You and Rosa are the team captains of this team and Toguro chose you to fight him. I have doubts whether you have enough power to withstand Toguro." she answers as a matter of factly. "You what?!" Yusuke questions insulted.
I glance back and forth between the two of them. There she goes again, angering Yusuke, or perhaps frightening him. Yusuke doesn't feel very confident at all when it comes to Toguro, and he doesn't have the right to be. Is this when Genkai will do what she told me about before? Will she prepare him by giving Yusuke her powers?
Despite Kuwabara's and Botan's attempts to calm them down, Genkai/masked fighter dares Yusuke to take it outside. Yusuke is quick to follow when she walks out of the room. This is it, isn't it? She had to get Yusuke to herself somehow and this is how. I just wonder, can Yusuke handle all that power?
