"What the hell is going on!? I want answers! Keiko almost died because of you!" Yusuke screamed into the mini-rulers face while holding him up by the collar of

his shirt. "Yusuke! Calm down! Koenma was only trying to.." Boton began

"Trying to trick us into thinking we were on a friken vacation!? When really we were surrounded by blood thirsty mermaids! A little warning about that giant

man-eating shark or that evil fox guy would have been nice!"

The double doors leading to Koenma's office slammed open, everyone averted their attention. Footsteps resounded throughout the room as a familiar bat

demon made his way over to the three, his clothing battered and his skin covered in deep scratch marks. Without a word, Kuronue set the tool of power that

contained Shukaku on Koenma's desk. Removing his hat, a pile of sand fell to the ground.

" What the hell happened to you?" Yusuke asked while letting go of Koenma.

"I sent Kuronue on a special mission to obtain the tool of power that houses the wind elemental Shukaku. I see things did not go as planned?" Koenma asked

while adjusting his clothing and sitting back down in his chair. Kuronue nodded, "I met the guy that has been releasing all the elementals, well sort of. He

released Shukaku before I could do anything about it." Kuronue replied. "Who is he? What does he look like?" Koenma asked. "I don't know, I didn't see him..I

only heard his voice."

"How many of these elementals are there left?" Yusuke asked. "Isonade of water has been defeated along with Kyuubi of fire. Kuronue took care of Raijuu of

lightning and Kaku of wind. That leaves one, Kaku of earth." Koenma replied.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\Genkai's Temple/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"How is she?" Kurama turned to see Keiko standing in the doorway, a white bandage wrapped around her head. "She has yet to awaken." Kurama replied.

The somber look in the fox's normally vibrant emerald gaze made Keiko feel sick to her stomach. Was there something he wasn't telling her? Was Cheza not

going to wake up? She herself had not woken up until two days after the incident with Kyuubi.

. Something more was going on with Cheza than Kurama was letting on, Keiko could tell by his demeanor.

/\/\/\/\/\30 minutes later/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

A knock on the door tore Kurama from his thoughts. Yusuke and Kuronue now stood in the door way, "Hey there Kurama, how's Cheza doing?"

"Not well I'm afraid,she has not yet awoken." Silence ensued soon interrupted by the rustling of Kuronue's clothes as he approached Cheza's sleeping form.

Kurama remained silent, his eyes downcasted. "I fear she will not wake up." Kurama finally admitted while approaching Cheza and gently stroking her cheek.

"Fools, do you not sense the physic energy coming off of her?" All eyes fell upon Hiei as he entered the room, his crimson eyes landing on Cheza. "Do you know

something we do not?" Kurama asked. From his words, Kurama and the others were able to conclude that Hiei had entered Cheza's mind and apparently he

had found something.

Suddenly something began to vibrate in Yusuke's pocket. Fumbling around, the spirit-detective removed the source of the noise; his communicator. Koenma's

face appeared as soon as Yusuke flipped it open. "Yusuke! I have some rather troubling news. The one responsible for releasing the elementals is a physic

demon, a very powerful one. He is playing mind games with us, somehow he sneaked into my office while I was away and left this note." Holding up the note

for Yusuke to see, the spirit detective began to read the paper's contents aloud.

"Dear Youko, it's been quite some time hasn't it? As you can see, my skills as a thief and physic have improved immensely. Not only was I able to release all the

elementals effortlessly, but I was even able to sneak into Spirit World undetected, the most heavily guarded place in all of the three worlds!

There is one elemental left, I shall reveal myself to you after his demise. Don't worry, you will not have to fight Kaku. I have released him in place where he cannot

cause harm. I suppose I shouldn't say that, he can cause harm where he is..but only to one person. Can you guess where I have released him?

I look forward to seeing you soon."

"P.S it was good to see you again Kuro. I was a bit surprised you didn't recognize my voice, but then again it has been a few centuries. I am curious to hear how your

life was restored as I am sure you are curious as to how mine was"

Yusuke looked up to see Kurama's eyes had taken on a golden hue, even a few strands of his hair were now silver. "So… I take it you know where he has

released Kaku?"

"Kaku is trapped within the confines of Cheza's mind." Koenma responded through the communicator. "WHAT!?" Yusuke exclaimed.

"Leo" Kuronue suddenly commented in a near whisper. "Leo?" Yusuke repeated. "Kuronue!? The demon's name is Leo?" Koenma asked, a sense of urgency in

his voice. "Yes" Kuronue replied while turning his gaze to Kurama for confirmation. "Leo was a late comrade of mine, he betrayed my trust and paid the ultimate

price." Came the voice of Youko, not his red headed other half. Though Kurama still maintained his human body, Youko had undoubtedly taken over. "If you

killed him…how is he still alive?" Yusuke asked. "The same question could be asked about Kurama and Kuronue. This demon's life must have somehow been

restored. "Koenma replied. Everyone's attention averted to Hiei as he removed the bandana around his forehead, revealing his third eye. Without a word Hiei

approached Cheza's side, a brilliant purple glow now emitting from his third eye. Seconds later, a pair of bloody scratch marks appeared on Cheza's arm.

"There isn't much time." Hiei commented while closing his eyes, no doubt the fire demon was beginning the process of entering Cheza's mind. Kurama, now fully

transformed into Youko, grabbed hold of Cheza's arm. More and more scratches began to appear, "She is fighting Kaku as we speak."

/\/\/\/\/\/\ Cheza's mind/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Cheza spun around, her heart beating faster with every passing second. She found herself in total darkness, except for a lantern off in the distance. The

lantern had begun to grow brighter and brighter, that is when she had noticed a small figure next to it. A creature smaller than a house cat, it appeared to be a

badger or a beaver..something of the sort. The creature sported seven tails and bright yellow eyes. Out of nowhere the creature had descended on her,

sinking its sharp claws into the flesh of her right arm. She had taken off running, how long she ran she didn't know. Finally, she had come to a halt.

Staring down at the ground beneath her feet, she noticed a large crack making its way through the earth and towards her. With a startled scream the ground

beneath her began to crumble revealing an oversized mouth with razor sharp teeth. Closing her eyes tightly, she braced herself for the painful death that

awaited her. Suddenly, she felt someone catch her. A pair of strong arms held her tightly, the warmth coming off of them gave her comfort. Had Kurama come

to save her? Where was she anyways? The last thing she remembered was that monster plant towering over her and Kyuubi. Her eyes slid open, expecting to

be met with a golden or emerald pair. No, it was not Youko who had come to save her. "Hiei?" Cheza exclaimed as the fire demon set her down on a patch of

ground that looked exactly the same as the spot she had been in only moments before. "Hiei? Where are we!? Where's Kurama? and the others? Are we on

the island still?" Hiei unsheathed his sword as the ground began to shake,

"No, we are in your mind and we're not alone."

End of Chapter