Sparking the Fire

by lilkorea

The Chuunin exams are approaching but it's hard to concentrate on training when the Rookie Nine are becoming aware of a world that has been coexisting in the shadows. On top of that, the youths are overshadowed by a group of four who secretly protect that fragile veil. Our favorite heroes are sparking a new age.

16. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

The chuunin finals had started, and Neji and Naruto were locked in combat. Neji, having told his tale of the feud between the cadet and main branches of his clan, and Naruto giving his reasons of why he was going to win. Both giving it their all, but Neji's mind was not fully in sync with his body. His thoughts continuing to wander to Yusuke and her team fighting for their lives, and for the many lives in the village.

With one final attack, both Neji and Naruto were buried beneath the earth. Neji had crawled out of the softened earth, battle wary and low on chakra that he overlooked the fact the Naruto had dug right beneath his feet and delivered a blow that immobilized him, giving the win to Naruto.

"In the middle of all of that, you managed to create a shadow doppelganger?" Neji struggled to say. "Your signature ninjutsu…that was careless of me…"

Breathing heavily, Naruto gasped for a moment to get a lungful of air. "I—I failed the academy graduation exam three times because, unlucky for me, the exam always tested the same ninjutsu, my absolute weakest ninjutsu.

"And my weakest ninjutsu was Bunshin no Jutsu. So shut up about 'destiny' and 'inescapable fate,' you shouldn't whine about such trivial stuff! I feel sorry for Yusuke nee-chan, but I also admire her for putting up with your crap. 'Cause unlike me, you guys aren't 'failures.'"

"The winner is Uzumaki Naruto!" Genma announced.

xxxxx

"And the winner by total gross-out is Kurama!" Koto said from where she sat in the stands.

"We did it! In your face!" Kuwabara cheered.

"You made a nice flowerpot out of him, Kurama." Yusuke said with a pleased smile.

"Yes, good fun all around." and older version of Koenma said.

"They don't look like the team that just lost a match. What do they know that we don't?" Hiei pondered, looking across the ring to the other team.

"I wonder how the committee will rule?" the elder Toguro pondered.

"How ya feelin' there, champ?" Jiraiya asked from where he stood next to Koenma.

"Fine." Kurama said, as he staggered up to his team but fell to one knee.

"Hey! Be careful!" Yusuke said, helping him back up.

"I'm sorry, Yuu-chan." Kurama said weakly, his head bowed down.

"Why?" Yusuke asked.

"If only I could have lifted myself a fraction of a second sooner."

"Who cares, you won."

Kurama lifted his head a bit to look at Yusuke. "It's unwise to be so confident before an official announcement."

"And the official announcement says the winner of match one is Karasu!" announced Juri.

"What?!" said everyone on Yusuke's team, excluding Kurama who already knew.

"Huh? And now the fair and impartial Juri is saying that the winner was the late Karasu? I could've sworn I saw Kurama destroy him with my own eyes!" said bewildered Koto.

"It's not fair! These judges have had it out for us since the first day!" Kuwabara said.

"Hey, you with the fish ears!" Yusuke shouted, gaining Juri's attention as she marched up to the referee. "I've got a bone to pick with you!" she grabbed Juri's upper arm so as to get a straight answer. "How does a dead guy win?"

"Hold it; I'd like it if you remove your hand." Juri said.

"I'd like you to remove your head from your ass, but I don't see that happening anytime soon!" Yusuke screamed.

"I won't talk to you, until you learn how to keep your grimy fingers to yourself!" Juri screamed back, slapping Yusuke's hand away.

"I'll put these grimy fingers through your face if you don't tell me how the hell a breathing guy loses!"

"Fine! Your friend lost the dumb match because he was down for ten seconds after I started counting!"

Yusuke blinked at the woman as all irrational thought left her. "Oh, well then why didn't you say so?"

"Baka!"

xxxxx

Neji laid on the cot in the medical ward when Hyuuga Hiashi entered the room. Neji made an effort to sit up, his body shaking from the strain.

"What is it, sir?" Neji asked, holding in his grudge.

"I came here to tell you the real truth about that day." Hiashi said.

"The real truth?" Neji repeated, becoming suspicious.

"That day…I fully intended to die." Neji's eyes widened in shock but then narrowed, thinking of it as a deceit.

"What are you saying?! That day, my father was murdered by Yusuke's father on your order to act as your body double!" Neji yelled in outrage.

"I understand how you came to that conclusion, but that is not how it happened." said Hiashi, feeling guilty for the deceit his nephew had grown up to believe.

"But…why tell me this now?" Neji asked, his head lowered and voice softer.

"Because now, I feel you might finally believe me." Hiashi said, taking in a deep breath for strength. "I fully intended to sacrifice myself for the sake of peace, but your father stopped me and took control of his life by taking my place. He wanted nothing more than to keep you and this village safe from another war."

"And what about Yusuke's father, huh? Can you explain why he killed my father?" Neji asked angrily.

"Your father and Yusuke's father, they were very close friends…they were so close that your father begged that only he can take his life in order to protect us. I tried to negotiate with my brother, but he simply refused and died willingly for the clan. And that is the truth."

"You can't really expect me to believe that story!" Neji shouted, "What a convenient explanation! It sounds exactly like something the Main branch would cook up to placate me, especially after all this time!"

"I knew you would think so, that is why I waited this long. And that is why I am telling you this now…I wanted to relay my brother's final words to you, not as head of the Main branch, but as Hizashi's older brother."

Neji was once again shocked when he saw his uncle on his knees and bowing his head to the floor before him. His shock turned quickly to relief as the full weight of the truth finally hit him as he lowered his head.

"Please…raise your head." he said softly, as tears fell from his eyes. Tears he had long since should have shed.

Father…I still can't be entirely certain whether people's fates simply coast along like the clouds in the sky…or is each person can choose his own path to follow. I suppose the destination might be the same either way. But when you decide to follow your own path, you can strive to achieve your own dreams.

And in my match today, I finally learned that people with dreams are the ones who are truly strong. And…father…my dream is simple…to become stronger right now; I want to become so strong, that I will never lose to anyone again.

Not even to her…

"Father, there are so many birds in the sky today…flying free." Neji whispered, staring out of the window with a peaceful smile.

xxxxx

Hiei won the second match against Bui, displaying his complete control over the Dark Dragon technique and was standing before his team, weak and tired, barely able to keep his eyes open.

"Uh, wait, this is a no-dragon-man area, okay?" Kuwabara said in a panic as Hiei stopped before his team. The destroyed stadium ring behind him.

"Really awesome, Hiei." Yusuke complimented.

"Yeah, awesome. Uh, why don't you go about twenty yards that way and fight the rest of them!" Kuwabara said from behind Kurama.

"That's against the rules now, you cretin. Besides, my attack expired." Hiei said, his legs shaking under his weight.

"Expired?" Yusuke, Jiraiya, and Kuwabara said together.

"I don't know if your brains can imagine it, but this attack drained a good deal of my energy. I'll require some hibernation to get it back. Think you can manage finding a safe place for my body where it won't get stepped on?"

"Did you say hibernate?" asked Jiraiya.

"Fancy word for being lazy." said Kuwabara.

"Listen to me as closely as you can, you three. I am going to trust you against my better instincts only because I have no other choice. Take care of the Toguro brothers. If I wake up and we've lost, I swear I'll kill you all." And then Hiei fell forward, no longer able to stay conscious.

"That's Hiei for you. He faints but he still has time for threats!" Kurama laughed.

"Hold on. So nothing we do will wake him up?" Kuwabara asked, poking Hiei's side with a finger.

"Not long ago he was on a streak of terror. If he had this power then, it would have been disastrous. Now it's our asset." Koenma said.

Yusuke grinned and crossed her arms. "You've got to hand it to him. When Hiei's feeling serious, he really let's you know." she said.

"What are we gonna do about the ring?" Jiraiya asked, "It looks like a graveyard."

Everyone looked to the rubble that had been caused by Hiei and Bui's fight.

"Hmm, good question." Yusuke said.

xxxxx

Shikamaru had captured Temari with his shadow and had moved up to each other and raised a hand, which Temari had no choice but to mimic.

"That's it, I'm done, I give up." Shikamaru said lazily, surprising everyone.

"Wh—what?!" Temari said.

"I used up too much chakra doing all those shadow possessions in succession; I won't be able to hold you for more than about ten seconds. So even though I've planned around two hundred more moves, I think I'm out of time. And this fighting stuff is getting to be a drag, one match is enough for me." said Shikamaru.

"The winner is, Temari!" Genma announced.

xxxxx

"You're nothing but a freak!" Kuwabara said, as the elder Toguro literally pulled himself together.

"It truly is an exquisite sword." the elder brother said, admiring the hilt Kuwabara received from Suzuki. "Did you inherit this from her?"

"Who?"

"You would think she'd leave something like this for her apprentice, but I guess her precious Yuu-chan wasn't strong enough."

"You don't know what you're talking about! Genkai is just sick!" Kuwabara said.

"Oh, that's perfectly sad." the elder brother said, giving a wickedly coy smile at Kuwabara. "Your friends have been keeping secrets. Genkai is dead." Kuwabara's eyes widened. "She has been for two days now."

"No! It can't be." Kuwabara breathed as he looked back at Yusuke who was looking down with a pained, guilty look on her face.

"Give it a break; you're the only one left."

"Isn't that nice? Genkai really didn't show up for her battle."

"No. You pull your own weight from now on."

"I see. Everybody really did know about it but me. They kept me out on purpose. They didn't think I could take it!" Kuwabara said, as realization dawned upon him at last.

xxxxx

"Will the next fighters step forward." Genma said, as Gaara entered the ring, facing Sasuke next.

xxxxx

"It's about time you've won a fight! That was awesome!" Yusuke said with a relieved smile as Kuwabara approached her with a serious look on his face that the team leader pause. "You all right there, man?"

Without warning, Kuwabara punched Yusuke across the face, making the girl stagger back from the force as their teammates looked unsurprised at Kuwabara's anger. After all, he was right to be angry for their deception.

"What was that for?" Yusuke asked, rubbing her cheek.

"I thought that we were friends, but I guess I'm just one big joke to you all, aren't I? Well this joke's got feelings! Genkai meant a lot to me, too!" Kuwabara yelled, grabbing Yusuke by the front of her shirt. "Did you all just sit around and laugh about how clueless I was? Is this how you get your kicks, Urameshi? Huh? Answer me!"

"Kuwabara, listen…" Koenma began.

"This doesn't concern you!" Kuwabara snapped out at the prince.

Kurama stepped forward, understanding how it all looked to Kuwabara. "Yusuke did not tell Hiei and me either. We were left to detect her passing for ourselves."

Kuwabara looked down at Yusuke, seeing the remorseful look on her face. "Is this true?" he asked.

"I didn't tell anybody…she…she died in my arms." Yusuke finally said, the memory still as painful as it brought the sting of unshed tears in her brown eyes.

"Then what?" Kuwabara asked as Yusuke pushed him off of her.

Yusuke's head hung down, unable to meet her friend's eyes. "I asked Koenma to take her place, temporarily. At least that's what I told him. I guess I thought if I never said it, it wouldn't have to be real. I'd like to think that I know better than that now. That the only way to move on is to give her death the reverence she deserves and give grief it's due. But that's why I couldn't tell you. I'm sorry you had to find out the way you did, Kuwabara, and I'm sorry you felt like we punked you. But I can't apologize for dealing with this the only way that I knew how."

Yusuke then walked towards the ring where the younger Toguro was waiting for her.

"Urameshi!" Kuwabara called out, making Yusuke stop but didn't look back at him. She lacked the resolve to meet his gaze. "Win this."

Yusuke nodded her head and entered the ring, walking up to the center to meet her enemy.

"It's grudge match time!" Koto announced from where she sat. "Team captain facing off with team captain. There's a lot of bad blood here on this stadium floor. So stay tuned 'cause it's sure to get messy. You could cut the tension around here with a seven foot sword as the crowd waits. Some scrambling to place last minute bets before the windows close. Surprisingly, the odds have shifted. Thanks at least in part of her team's momentum, Urameshi Yusuke is now considered the odds-on favorite to win this match!"

xxxxx

The Hokage watched the impressive match between Gaara and Sasuke, proud of his own shinobis for showing such skills and determinations. Though he found himself wondering who would win if it were Yusuke fighting one of the two boys…or both. It was an amusing idea, and a very destructive one at that. Just thinking about the damage would make anyone think twice about deciding to let Yusuke fight anyone like Gaara or Sasuke. It was already risky enough to do nothing but overlook whenever Yusuke and Neji fought. Which made his mind wander to Yusuke, and how well she was holding up against Toguro.

I have faith in you.

xxxxx

"Aw, man! Are we late?" wondered Rinku, as he, Chu, Jin, and Touya looked down into the ring from the top of the stadium.

"If we aren't it's not thanks at all to the drunken biggie that traded our tickets for a couple of pints." Jin said, glaring up at Chu.

"Will you shut it?! We're standing here, aren't we? No, really, I have to check!" Chu said before throwing his head to laugh.

"Yes, we are. It certainly was kind of that usher to let us inside." said Touya.

"Right. Didn't even have to break the other leg." said Chu.

Toguro's now stronger self charged at Yusuke, pulling his right arm back as Yusuke firmly stood her ground, holding up her hands in a defensive pose to block the anticipated punch.

Jiraiya gasped in shock. "What? Are you crazy?! There's no way in hell that you could block his straight on punch!" Jiraiya yelled when Toguro suddenly stopped mere centimeters away from Yusuke.

"I see the way you look at me, in judgment. But you have no idea what it's like, do you? To lose your beloved, your friend?" Toguro said as he stood back.

"No, and I never will because I won't let that happen. I actually look forward to growing old with them." Yusuke said.

"You say that now." he said, looking over at Yusuke's teammates.

Yusuke glared up at him. "Stop it. This is between you and me."

"Show me the true extent of your power, Yuu-chan." Toguro said as he slammed his enormous fist down at where Yusuke was once standing as she jumped backwards. The stadium ring breaking apart and chunks of the cement flew upwards.

Yusuke hid behind one of the flying rubbles, hanging upside down in mid-air, her right arm extended out.

She's using her head in battle, I like that. Toguro thought. "Come out, come out, Yusuke!"

The chunk of cement moved out of the way to reveal Yusuke upside down among the rubble, her glowing finger pointed straight at Toguro's head.

"Rei Gun!" Yusuke's blast of energy was powerful enough to blow Toguro right out of the stadium as she touched back down on her feet, standing tall and staring out at the fresh path of smoke.

"Bull's eye!" Kuwabara said, punching the air.

"That's a direct hit!" Jiraiya said, wide-eyed. Her power just keeps growing…at this rate she'll surely become the strongest of her generation, maybe stronger than Naruto. But…it's hard to believe…that this girl…this child…can possibly rival all three sannins at once if her power continues to grow.

"The usually rather vibrant crowd looks on in stunned silence. I don't think anybody saw that one coming. Especially not Toguro who's been blown right out of the stadium!" said Koto.

"I knew that girl could do it." Jiraiya said with a proud smirk.

"Where am I? And who am I?" Juri questioned as she sat up from the pile of rubble she was lying on.

"Hey lady, get up and snap out of it!" Kuwabara yelled, "You've got a job to do! There's a fighter out of the ring and you'd better start counting like you're always doing for me!"

"Take a moment to look where Yusuke's standing." Hiei pointed out. Kuwabara looked out into the ring, or lack there of as only ruin was left and the ring was gone. And Yusuke was standing in the middle of the arena where the ring once was.

"Hey, how the heck do you get back in the ring?" Kuwabara pondered.

"In this final battle, there will be no boundaries." Kurama said.

"The only rule is kill or be killed." Koenma said.

xxxxx

"What seems to be the matter, Hokage-sama?" asked the Kazekage, seeing that the Hokage had fallen unusually silent.

That power…though it was only for a short moment…yes—yes it was definitely Yusuke's power I sensed. The Hokage thought.

"Forgive me, Kazekage-dono, I was merely lost in thought for a moment." the Hokage said, waving it away. But his senses kicked into high gear as he sensed an even more powerful wave of energy tingled the nerves in his spine.

xxxxx

Yusuke closed her eyes and let out a slow, even breath. "Guess play-time is over." she said, opening her eyes and displaying her cocky smirk. "Oh well, it was fun."

"What?" Toguro said, staring at Yusuke as she ripped off her left wristband to reveal a golden glowing band underneath.

"Well, for some inexplicable reason, Yusuke has ripped off her left wristband to reveal a…uh, it's a glowing, gold, bracelet! And might I say, it takes a pretty tough fighter to wear jewelry in public. Especially at a tournament like this." said Koto.

"I should have expected. Reiki Cuffs from Genkai." Toguro said, immediately recognizing the golden bands of energy as Yusuke ripped off the other wristband.

"I gotta say that's a pretty sissy fashion statement. Even for Urameshi." Kuwabara said.

"Why would she fight Toguro using such a handicap? I hardly understand." Kurama said.

"Easy. Because she's a cocky fool." Hiei said bluntly.

"Yes, she must have inherited it from Genkai. The Reiki Cuffs that is." Koenma said.

Genkai, is it time yet? Yusuke wondered as she looked up to the gigantic hole in one side of the stadium, gazing at the mid-afternoon sky. "Now's a pretty good time, right baa-chan?" Yusuke asked the heavens as she raised both her arms up above her head. "Avitus!"

Instantly the Reiki Cuffs vanished and a tremendous amount of energy poured out from Yusuke's body like a tidal wave, taking on the form of a phoenix as it stretched across the stadium, bathing the audience in warmth and protection.

"Are you really so arrogant, Urameshi, that you thought you could actually beat me while wearing those cuffs?" Toguro asked.

She gave him a half-grin. "Well, yeah, sorta. In hindsight I may have been a bit cocky."

xxxxx

What was that just now? Sasuke thought in the middle of his battle with Gaara who had just trapped himself in a sphere of sand. This power I'm feeling…two great chakras that I've never felt before…i-it's intense.

"Do you sense that?" Kakashi asked Gai, his eye turning away from the fight in front of him to the side, as he tried to pinpoint the direction it was coming from.

"Indeed, I do." Gai said, his face serious. "It's Yusuke, isn't it?"

"All signs point to yes." Kakashi said, as he glanced over at Sakura and Ino who seemed to be oblivious to the great surge of power that he and the other jounins seemed to be acute to.

xxxxx

"This is such a mess."

"Oh that's just perfect! Now I'm hearing things!" Jiraiya said.

There's no choice. I'm sending her in. Koenma thought.

"You will never let this old woman have some peace and quiet, will you, Yusuke?" Yusuke's eyes widened as she looked up to see Puu flying above her, but something was rather off about her Spirit Beast.

"Genkai's come back to life and she looks like Puu!" Kuwabara said in surprise.

"Toguro, you want to see Yusuke's real power come to the surface? I'll tell you how. She's very predictable. The only thing you have to do is kill one of her friends and make sure she's watching." said Genkai through Puu's body.

"Genkai! What the hell is the matter with you?!" Yusuke yelled as fear began to wrap its cold hand around her heart.

"Yusuke has a six foot wall of crap between her and her actual emotions, and that's where her power resides. To break through that wall you have to do something drastic, like killing someone she really cares for." said Genkai.

"Dying must have ruined your heart, you hag!" Yusuke said bitterly, only to be slapped across the face by one of Puu's wings.

"Open your childish eyes, dimwit! If you don't stop Toguro, everyone in this stadium dies! And damn it, if the life of one friend is what it takes for you to save the rest of them, then that sacrifice is worth it!" Genkai said sternly.

"No! You're nothing but a stupid hypocrite! You told me to commit to something all the way and I chose my friends! Now you say killing one as motivation is okay?!" Yusuke yelled in outrage and confusion.

"Sorry, Yusuke, but this is the world you stuck yourself into, and it's not pretty. When you're not strong enough to lead, you lose the privilege of getting what you want."

"I had the idea a while back," Toguro said, "And I didn't like how it felt. But if that's the only way, then I'll take Kuwabara away from you." Yusuke's eyes widened as her eyes glazed over with fear. "You two seem to be very close, so that should be enough for you."

Toguro then began to stalk over to Yusuke's teammates, his sights set on Kuwabara.

"Stop it, Toguro!" Yusuke screamed, as she made a desperate dash to stop him only to be knocked back effortlessly. "Bastard!" she cursed, as she got up quickly and charged at the demon again only to be crushed face first into the ground, immobilizing her for a few moments.

Both Hiei and Kurama braced themselves to fight off Toguro with what little power they had left but was asked to stay back by Kuwabara, who boldly stepped forward.

"NO!" Yusuke screamed, as she got up onto her hands and knees, a look of desperation on her face as she and Kuwabara locked eyes before Kuwabara charged at Toguro with his Spirit Sword at hand. "Kuwabara, no!" Yusuke screamed as Toguro swiftly sunk his fingers into Kuwabara's heart. "NO!" she cried, tears streaming from her eyes as she hunched over on her knees, her shoulders shaking.

Both Hiei and Kurama ran to Kuwabara's side, Kurama picking up the dead body, his head bowed.

"That was anticlimactic." Toguro said blandly. "You knew him for so long and now he's dead. Do you think that was sufficient for you? Or do I need to take another of your friends for you to get the point?"

A pool of light appeared beneath Yusuke's feet as she slowly stood up, an emptiness in her eyes as her sorrow reached outwards for all to feel.

So I guess that was enough. Toguro thought.

"You took my teacher…Now you take my friend. What the hell do you want from me?" Yusuke asked, a tone of melancholy in her voice as she looked straight at Toguro. "Don't you think I wanted to use my power, win this thing, and go home? Of course! I just…didn't know how to reach it. And now I have to live with that."

"Maybe not for long, Yusuke." Toguro said.

xxxxx

The chuunin exam truly was a plot to get to Sasuke as the Hokage was held hostage by the Kazekage who revealed himself as Orochimaru. And now, trapped within an impenetrable force field, the Hokage was to stall Orochimaru as long as he could until he figured a way out.

"Where is your adorable Spirit Detective I've been hearing so much about, Sarutobi-sensei?" Orochimaru asked with a twisted grin.

"Fighting to keep everyone's dreams alive." said the Hokage.

"Heh! Your sentimental ideals are still nonsense to my ears." Orochimaru said, ready to engage in battle when a powerful surge of chakra stopped him.

xxxxx

Yusuke fired off the last of her energy in one last giant blast and Toguro fell at her hands. She collapsed to the ground, exhausted from the fight.

I killed Genkai, but one remained. And now that surviving piece can at last be put to rest. Thank you again, Urameshi Yusuke. This was the first time I could use my absolute strength, and you answered. It was the only way it could end.

"That's hard to call." Juri said, seeing that both fighters were down.

"Juri, behind you!" Koto said.

Juri turned around to see Yusuke was on her feet. Koto jumped down from the stands and ran over to stand next to Juri, both announcing in unison, "Winner of the Tournament! Team Urameshi!"

Kurama and Hiei and Koenma ran to Yusuke's side, Kurama catching her as she nearly collapsed against him, lowering her gently to the ground. A blank look on her face as fatigue and shock was quickly consuming her.

"Yusuke! Easy does it. No sleeping just yet. Yusuke, snap out of it! You have your victory!" Kurama said, shaking her lightly.

"Am I still…Am I alive?" Yusuke asked.

"Of course!" Koenma said, "Do you see any halos on us? Everything is a-okay now!"

Yusuke looked at her teammate's faces and then over to Jiraiya who was knelt down beside Kuwabara's body. Fresh tears welling up and spilling as she beat her fists on the ground.

"No it's not. No it's not. Damn it!" Yusuke shouted, slamming her fists to the ground as tears streamed down her dirty and bruised cheeks. "If I hadn't been so stubborn, if I didn't have a concrete wall between me and my own stupid emotions…I had all the strength to save him. I was just too dumb to know how to reach it. What the hell do I say to that, huh?"

"You say you've learned." said Koenma.

"Shut up!" Yusuke said, throwing a sharp glare at the prince. "What good does that do? He's already dead! I can't say anything to him now! Is that so hard to get? I'm just like everybody else with power! I don't do anything to help! I'm sorry, Kuwabara! It's all my fault!" Yusuke dropped her head again, letting out another sob.

"Ah, okay, I think you've done enough groveling for today!" Yusuke immediately looked up with wide, teary eyes, blinking in disbelief. "Though it is greatly entertaining!" Kuwabara was standing in front of her, perfectly fine. There was just no way! "Reporting for duty, Captain Faker! That's me!"

"Hey," Yusuke squawked, as she looked at Kurama with a bewildered look on her face and pointing at Kuwabara. "Why's the dead guy walkin' around?"

"Yes well, I tried to inform you, but you were too engrossed in your speech." Kurama said.

"The heart! The finger poking!" Yusuke stuttered.

"You're a moving public speaker, by the way." Kurama said, giving her a reassuring smile. "Look, he never died, but Kuwabara figured you needed a good shock treatment."

"How does it feel to be outta the loopty-loop?" Kuwabara asked with a goofy grin.

"All you guys were in on this?" Yusuke asked.

"Naturally. I know I'm not supposed to lie; but well, whatever." Koenma said.

"And you guys let me cry like a baby?" Yusuke asked, comical tears running down her face.

"You said it yourself; it was your fault." Hiei said.

"I agree with Hiei, mostly so I don't feel guilty." Koenma said.

"If you could've reached your power on your own the fake death wouldn't have been needed, and you wouldn't look like a child." Hiei said, as he looked over at Yusuke, only to find that she was not where she was before.

"I doubt she heard you." Kurama said, pointing over to where Yusuke was beating Kuwabara to a pulp. Hiei sweat-dropped.

"We're in front of a million people and my boss and hardcore demons fighters, and you make me say all that sissy crap?" Yusuke yelled as she continued to beat Kuwabara. "I really thought you were dead you stupid ass! It's freakin' embarrassing! You're supposed to be my friend…! I'm gonna kill you for real now!"

"Yusuke, Kuwabara, let's head home." said Kurama.

xxxxx

"The snake is just too massive! Nothing we throw at it will penetrate its surface!" screamed a jounin as he and his squadron fell back to gain distance from the giant three-headed snake as it created more damage upon the village.

"We need more reinforcements!" screamed another.

"Someone evacuate the citizens!"

"Damn those Sand-nins!"

"We have to push the snake back, divert it away from the village!"

"Rose-whip!"

A thorny vine lashed out at one of the gigantic snake-heads, blinding an eye as it hissed in pain.

"Fists of the Mortal Flames!"

The same snake-head received scorching marks upon it as flames hit directly in the other eye.

"What the—" stuttered a dumbfounded sand-nin as two people landed together side-by-side across the way on a rooftop. One had flowing red hair and hard emerald eyes while the other had black hair that defied gravity with piercing crimson eyes. Both looked worse for wear with the tattered clothes, the scratches and bruises on their bodies, but still looked strong and ready to fight.

"Who the hell are they?" spat a sand-nin.

"I can answer that one for you." came a girl's voice from behind. The sand-nin turned around to see a girl with raven black hair and brown eyes standing next to a tall boy with orange hair and beetle black eyes, both looking just as battle weary as the other two boys.

"We're the one's who'll kick your asses!" said the tall boy. "Spirit Sword!"

The sand-nin's eyes widened as he was thrown off the roof with a sizable slash across his torso and fell.

"Heh, heh! Told ya so!" Kuwabara said.

"Shut up, what are we gonna do about that snake?" asked Yusuke.

"None of us are at full strength to kill it." said Kurama as he and Hiei appeared at the girl's side.

"Stupid tournament, because of it we're of no help here." said Yusuke.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

A giant frog appeared within a cloud of smoke, dropping down onto the three-headed snake, crushing it beneath its weight as a white-haired man stood upon its head.

"That wasn't exactly what I was thinking, but it'll work." Yusuke said.

"Look! The stadium! There's some weird looking force field!" said Kuwabara, pointing to where they all saw a dark purple wall was.

"C'mon, let's go!" said Yusuke.

"Wait, we'll stay here and fight off the sand and sound-nins. You go on ahead." said Kurama. Yusuke nodded her head before hurrying off towards the stadium.

"Jiraiya-sama! Thank goodness you're here!" said a jounin.

"Sorry for the delay, but we were being followed on our way here." Kurama said as the Toad Sage appeared before the three young shinobis.

"We even brought some extra help from the tournament." Jiraiya said as Chu, Rinku, Jin and Touya jumped down from the back of the giant toad.

xxxxx

"Orochimaru, I should have dealt with you back when I had the chance." said the Hokage as he stood several yards away from Orochimaru.

"This is true, but it wouldn't matter now. Time has done its worse on you, old geezer." Orochimaru said. "Now tell me, where is that adorable Spirit Detective of yours, hmm? I so wish to meet her. When I felt that strange wave of chakra, my senses went wild and I relished the feeling of such power."

"I've already told you, Orochimaru, Yusuke is away, fighting her own battle to keep her village safe." the Hokage retorted.

Orochimaru chuckled. "And what a fine job she's done." he mocked as he looked out into the invaded village.

"Thanks, I do what I can." came a cocky reply, as both the Hokage and Orochimaru looked to the side to see a girl in tattered and ripped clothes.

"Yusuke, stay back!" the Hokage ordered.

"So this is Yusuke-chan I've been hearing so much about." Orochimaru said, "As Spirit Detective I assume you've gone through much training to build up your chakra. The last wave was sensational."

Yusuke took a step forward towards the force field but was stopped by an Anbu gripping her arm, keeping her from moving forward. She looked at the cloaked Anbu, recognizing the painted mask.

"Nii-san." she said softly. "Let me go."

"Yusuke, if you even touch that wall of cursed chakra you will be burned to death." Susumu said.

"Sorry, nii-san." Yusuke jerked her arm away from Susumu's grip and ran straight for the force field, building up her reiki to encase her body as she ran through the wall. Her skin stung for a brief moment as she tripped into the chakra-made prison, the Hokage at her side instantly.

"Oh…that burned." Yusuke groaned as she sat up on her knees with the Hokage's help.

"You fool, I told you to stay away!" the Hokage scolded.

"Sorry, jii-san, but name a time when I really listened to anyone." Yusuke said with bitter humor.

"Rather impressive, using your chakra as a second skin to get through the force field." Orochimaru said with mirth. "An interesting child indeed."

"That bonehead." Susumu said through gritted teeth.

"We'll just have to hope that she can hold out on her own." said one of the Anbu beside Susumu.

"You've always said Yusuke had unusual talents, let's just hope those talents will come in handy." said another.

"Or else, she might end up like Orochimaru's other victims."

Susumu grabbed a hold of the Anbu who just spoke and brought him forward, glaring hard into the other man's eyes.

"Don't you dare bring up something like that ever again where my sister is concerned. You understand?" Susumu hissed before pushing the Anbu away from him.

xxxxx

"Nine people after us?" Naruto shouted in outrage. What happened before seemed to have temporarily left his mind. "Isn't that a bit too much?"

Neji snorted. "Are you a dunce? They're after Sasuke. We're just merely stepping stones."

Pakkun interrupted before Naruto could start an argument. "Well, at this rate they'll catch up and I don't believe we have the time to deal with the likes of them." The dog glanced over to Shikamaru. "You've been quiet... What's your input?"

Shikamaru was thinking for a bit longer before he spoke. "Judging from our situation, we have two options. One is giving up the retrieval of Sasuke," here he was glared at by Naruto. "Or we can have the second choice where someone stays behind and ambush them." At this, they all stopped; Naruto had to catch a branch to pull himself back.

"What?" Naruto asked again, but they all knew he heard. The blonde had the tendency to repeat something for no apparent reason.

"An ambush would be the wisest decision where we have an advantage since this is our territory. However, since they came to invade, they must have taken precautions as well." He glanced between his current team members. "We currently have three choices of whom to leave behind. The dunce," Naruto growled, "The temperamental," Neji glared at him briefly. "And me, the lazy bum."

"Who's to stay?" Naruto asked after a moment of silence.

"The choice is obvious isn't it?" Shikamaru asked. "Naruto you're a dunce and nearly useless. You've already fought with a Hyuuga and wasted a sizeable amount of chakra," he paused for a moment to allow the analysis to sink in. "But at the same time, you're the closest one to Sasuke that he would actually listen to. Also, if anything happens, you and Sasuke can pair up easily with one another in a tag battle."

Pakkun watched as the boys contemplated. "So Naruto would not be the one to stay behind; which leaves the two of you."

Shikamaru glanced at Neji for a moment before continuing. "I've already wasted a large amount of my chakra in the tournament and Neji is in the same predicament. However, with his Byakugan, there's an advantage in searching for Sasuke, but at the same time..."

Neji smirked. "I see where this is going," he reached into his back pouch before pulling out a small bag and tossed it to Shikamaru. "They're soldier pills. I advise you two to take them and hurry off towards Sasuke. I'll hold them back."

Shikamaru caught the small bag, but he rose to protest. "I meant I was going to stay!"

Neji stared at him sternly. "Listen Shikamaru, neither Naruto nor I have the strategic mind you have. If it were me on the battlefield with him, we would waste our energy on menial things and probably fail our mission much later on. Besides," the Hyuuga trailed off, thinking about Yusuke's phenomenal strength. "We have people who are counting on us."

"Neji," Naruto started. The Hyuuga looked up to the branch where the blonde stood "Come back alive." Naruto gave him a smirk and a nod.

"Alright then! Let's go, Shikamaru!" Naruto shouted before Pakkun ran forward with him following behind.

Shikamaru stayed for a moment and stared at Neji. "You're still hung over about that Yusuke girl, right?"

Neji turned around readying himself to go back. "I meant what I said," he paused for a moment thinking what else he should add to that. "We will see each other when this is all over."

Shikamaru watched the Hyuuga's retreating form for a bit longer before he let out a sigh. "This is so troublesome... Sometimes I wonder if staying alive is too troublesome." He continued to mutter to himself as he ran to catch up with Naruto.

xxxxx

"I would think an ambush on Konoha would be at least somewhat more amusing then this, how boring," a young man said as his red eyes glanced over the current situation in Konoha. Jiraiya had summoned frogs to counter the snakes Orochimaru had had others summon prior to the attack.

"And watching those brats fight for their lives wasn't amusing enough for you?" The other asked.

"I was just merely curious about the Spirit Detective and her team. Their presence is merely a nuisance that would hinder our mission."

"She's not of importance as of yet. You don't have to trouble yourself over this little matter," his companion said as another explosion occurred. The two acted as if the destruction of Konoha was not occurring and talked as if it was only about the weather. "For all you know, it might be a mistake on the prince's part." The shorter frowned upon that notion, despite the truth that was behind it. "Just enjoy the destruction of Konoha. It's not everyday you're able to enjoy the downfall of your home village."

xxxxx

Jiraiya watched his toads for a moment longer before he allowed his eyes to look elsewhere. I can feel it... Whatever or whoever was following us is still here.

"GAH!" An agonizing scream came from one of the watch towers.

Jiraiya quickly snapped his attention towards the sound before cursing under his breath. The Yamato dragon was spitting fire. I'll have to deal with them later. He quickly moved to stop the snakes from burning anymore houses or kill anymore ninjas but stopped when he saw the fires being put out as the air grew colder and the snakes began to freeze.

"Tornado Fist!" One frozen snake shattered into a thousand pieces from Jin's attack.

"I guess bringing those guys along was a good idea." Jiraiya said to himself.

xxxxx

The Hyuuga prodigy stood amongst the unconscious bodies littered around him. "Seems like I don't have much to worry over," Asuma spoke as he jumped down from the trees. "Where're the other two?"

Neji glanced over the man with his Byakugan before answering. "They went ahead."

BOOM

"Well, someone is having fun with explosives," Neji murmured.

"Can you find the others?" Asuma asked.

The Hyuuga reactivated his byakugan before skimming through the forest. "Northwest, 500 kilometers..." he turned to the unconscious sound-nins at his feet. "What are we supposed to do with them?"

"There's no doubt, Morino Ibiki would want to interrogate them, but with the village in chaos right now—" he was briefly cut off when Neji formed a set of hand seals before kneeling next to each and every one of the unconscious bodies and tapped them on the head. "What did you—?"

"A heavy sleeping jutsu, they won't wake up unless someone cancels the jutsu... But I doubt they can do it that easily unless they have some medical training," Neji explained simply before standing up. "If we go now, we might be able to catch up with Naruto and Shikamaru."

xxxxx

The Hokage and Yusuke both faced the First and the Second Hokage with Orochimaru behind them. The man was prepared to summon the Fourth, when a frown spread across the old man's face. I can't let him summon the Fourth!

"How would you like it if I summoned the beloved Fourth?" Orochimaru cackled as the coffin rose atop the roof.

"It'll be fruitless for you to summon him!" the Hokage shouted before charging forward in an attack, with Yusuke running right beside him.

Orochimaru smirked, ordering the First and the Second to attack them. "I'm afraid my efforts would not be fruitless," he grinned arrogantly. "You see, I had a little prophet tell me about the occurring events beforehand," he cackled insanely while Sarutobi's eyes widen.

Prophet? It can't be... Sarutobi quickly dodged an attack by the First and strayed away from Orochimaru. While Yusuke managed to kick the Second away. Genkai couldn't have possibly—

"It's your funeral old man!" Orochimaru shouted before forcing an abnormal amount of chakra into the coffin and dragged it above ground. Sarutobi quickly tried to force the coffin back down with Yusuke's help as she shot a small blast of her Rei Gun at it that was strong enough to shatter the coffin to splinters.

"I told you, your attempts are useless, the Fourth is the only dead that you cannot resurrect!" Sarutobi quickly dodged another assault from his two former teachers.

"You seem rather desperate to keep the Fourth from being summoned, why is that?" Orochimaru murmured to himself, stunned to find his jutsu failed thanks to Yusuke's little light show. Calculations quickly ran through his mind before he came to a conclusion. A frown crossed his face. "Unless... The Fourth..." a frown etched across his face.

xxxxx

"NaRuTo! nArUtO! NAruTO!" Gaara roared in his half-transformed state as he strained to remain on the branch where he stood. Naruto and Shikamaru stood a good distance away from the red-haired genin with Sasuke securely in their possession.

"He lost it," Shikamaru stated simply as they rested Sasuke against the tree. The Uchiha steadied his breath to an even pace before he attempted to proceed to talking.

Naruto looked worriedly at the dark marks covering half of Sasuke's face. "Hey, you okay?"

The red-eyed genin nodded, struggling to respond through his heavy breathing. "Four," heave, "Chakra," heave, "blows and," heave, "he's still moving!" He exhaled shaking breath before struggling to his feet.

Naruto quickly pushed Sasuke back down and started before he could interrupt, "You're not fighting in this condition! Shikamaru, watch him, I'll take care of Gaara." He moved to jump, but Sasuke quickly snatched the blonde's wrist.

"And you're thinking of facing Gaara yourself?" Sasuke snapped.

"I can do this and you're in no condition to complain!" Naruto retorted hotly before tearing himself away from Sasuke's weakened grip.

"Naruto, Sasuke's right, you can't just charge head-on into a battle!" Shikamaru reasoned.

"Just keep watch on Sasuke; I know what I'm doing!" Naruto quickly evaded the two genin's hands before jumping towards the next tree.

"You idiot!" Sasuke shouted attempting to get up, but Shikamaru held him in place. "What are you doing? Let go of me!"

"As much as I don't want the idiot to do this alone, you're not in the best condition to help him! We're supposed to bring you back alive!" Sasuke glared at Shikamaru, but quickly glanced back to Naruto at Gaara's roar.

"NaRuTo!" half-transformed Gaara charged at the Kyuubi vessel.

The said youngster quickly raised his hands to form a seal before he bellowed, "Kage bunshin no jutsu!" A group of five clones appeared, bracing for the attack of the sand gennin.

xxxxx

Jiraiya frowned as the battle seemed to unfold against their favor. This can't possibly be right. From Koenma's warning, this should be an easy win, but the enemy seems far too well prepared. His frown deepened as he recalled something else. Unless… that person interfered. Jiraiya gritted his teeth in annoyance before he released another fire base attack.

"Jiraiya-san!" A jounin shouted to him and pointed to the stadium.

The legendary ninja frowned as he saw the dark barrier. Something is definitely not right here. Trees raised through the top of the barrier as the sparks of battle flew in the air. "Forget about the battle there! The Hokage can protect himself; just concentrate on protecting the village!"

"HAI!" The jounin shouted before returning to the offense.

Jiraiya's eyes lingered at the dark barrier. Maybe I'm thinking too much over this… That person would find this all too troublesome and not worth the time… He sighed as another thought reached his mind. Unless that person was paid enough… He raised a hand to scratch the side of his head as he sighed. If it's that money monster … The zeros in my bank account will be dropping a few by the time I'm done talking. The legendary ninja sighed again dejectedly before returning his attention back to the chaos and resumed his position in battle.

"Do you feel that?" Chu asked while having two Sound nins in a headlock under each arm as he looked towards where Yusuke was.

"Yeah, that's some creepy reiki coming from over there." said Rinku.

"Our Sheila sure is a tough one to put herself through another ringer so soon after that last fight." Chu said.

"One would think she'd be drained of her reiki by now." Touya said.

"Yusuke might need our help." Jin said.

"No!" Jiraiya said, getting the four's attention. "You're all needed here, helping us protect the village and its people! Let the Hokage and Yusuke handle that themselves!"

xxxxx

Sarutobi weaved through the trees along side with Enma, his beast summon, and Yusuke. "Yondaime is dead! Just admit your technique is faulty!" Enma turned into a pole for him to wield; he jumped over the branches and various other obstacles in an attack to over threw both the First and Second.

The elderly man braced himself for the attack and blocked with the Enma pole. Orochimaru swung down his sword at Sarutobi who grunted and pushed back the offending sword.

"The Yondaime was once Konoha's protector, and now that torch has been passed down to the new generation. What do you plan to do when against such fresh talent like Yusuke? What can you do?"

A sadistic grin loomed over Orochimaru's face. "I can do many things old man," he cackled.

Sarutobi frowned as he jumped away from the psychotic man. "What do you mean?"

"I could do many things with a living body," Orochimaru's voice changed as he giggled. "Many, many things…" he slowly trailed a hand over his face before tearing the skin to reveal another's face beneath.

"What… did you… do to yourself…?" Sarutobi stared in shock as the other snapped forward laughing. Yusuke and Enma looking on with horror.

"This guy…he's so…twisted…" Yusuke shuddered.

xxxxx

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM

Five suicide clones blew up simultaneously at the nearly complete transformed ninja. Naruto quickly flung wires over a near-by branch and swung himself away from the blast. He could feel the heat from the burst of hot air engulfing the area as he released the wires and snagged onto a sturdy branch. Sasuke and Shikamaru had fled a safe distance away from the blast.

"That blast couldn't have scratched him," Sasuke murmured. Shikamaru nodded in agreement.

A roar came from the cloud of dust before it cleared away, revealing a full demon. Gaara emerged from the sand demon drearily. His eyes were closed and he hung lifelessly. "GAARA SNAP OUT OF IT!" Naruto shouted.

The demon below snapped his golden eyes open before cackling. "FINALLY FREE!" the sand demon cheered. "I've been cooped up for so long!"

"Give Gaara back," Naruto demanded.

Shukaku stuck his tongue out. "Iyada neh," he teased before belching a wind blast at him.

Gamabunta barely dodged the attack before returning with a water blast. "You won't be able to get him back like this," a frown crossed Naruto's face as the frog boss spoke. "The only way to bring him back is to wake him up. Just give him a good smack over the head and make it count!" He ordered before charging forward.

Down below, Neji and Asuma had arrived at the scene. The jounin's mouth dropped open at seeing Naruto's summon; his cigarette was about to fall to the ground, but Neji caught it and crushed it in his hand.

"Try not to burn down the forest, those two have already caused enough damage," the Hyuuga said before bounding off towards the next tree.

The jounin can only numbly follow. The power these kids have… its mind numbing… are they our future? Asuma wondered as he occasionally glanced up at the battle.

"Sasuke!" Neji shouted.

The Uchiha glanced back at the call of his name.

Neji landed next to him with the jounin not too far from him. Pakkun raised a paw as a greeting. "I see you've taken care of our pursuers."

Neji snorted, "You doubted my abilities?" The dog attempted a human shrug.

"Still alive, eh? Shikamaru?" Asuma asked his lazy student, but was greatly surprised when the Shikamaru kept his attention on the battle.

"HENGE!" At the shout, they all looked up. Their eyes widened when the smoke cleared and the vision of the Kyuubi appeared.

"The battle is going to end soon," Shikamaru said as he closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. His eyes were irritated from following the battle.

xxxxx

"Tell me child," Orochimaru began, looking at Yusuke. "What does it feel like to be walking the same path as your father?"

"What?" Yusuke breathed, perplexed by the question.

Sarutobi grunted as he created shadow clones. "Don't answer him, Yusuke." He and his clone preformed the seals to the fuuin jutsu, their body burst with an extraordinary amount of chakra.

Unfamiliar with this jutsu, Orochimaru was taken by surprise when Sarutobi disappeared and swiftly knocked the sword out of his hands. The old man quickly caught his arms and locked his legs. The First and Second was caught in the same position by the other two clones. "Nani?"

"Whoa! Jii-san is a lot stronger than I thought!" Yusuke said.

"A gift from the Fourth," Sarutobi smirked.

Orochimaru watched in horror as he saw the First and Second collapsed into dust and disappeared. He swiftly turned his attention back to his teacher. "That was the sealing jutsu the Fourth used wasn't it?" The old man only continues to smirk. The clones seemed to suffer a spasm of pain before disappearing as well. "That wasn't the Fourth's jutsu is it? That couldn't have been his technique!"

Sarutobi laughed roughly. "Afraid? That's not very like you Orochimaru." He turned his head to look at Yusuke. "Yusuke-dono, keep your distance!"

Orochimaru struggled to free himself from the old man's grasp. "What are you doing?"

"Something I should have done a very long time ago," he whispered as the jutsu began to take its effect. The pale-skinned ninja watched in horror and fright as ghostly hands emerged from Sarutobi's torso and lunged for his captured hands.

"You've done too many unforgivable things, tampering with things that should never be tampered with," he coughed up blood. Orochimaru stared as the blood dripped from his lips. "I may not have enough to properly perform this, but it will be enough to bring you down to hell with me."

Yusuke, having dealt with death many times, was able to see the shikigami. Blood quickly began draining from her face as she stared at it looming behind the Hokage. Orochimaru began to slowly lose feeling of his arms. "Let go you vindictive old fool!" He continued to growl before he noticed his sword on the ground. With the remaining senses in his fingers, he urged the sword to come to him.

Yusuke saw this and unthinkingly made a quick dash towards the two, but fell short by a second. In result the sword flew straight through Sarutobi's back and protruded through the front of his chest. "If you're going to die, die without me!"

Sarutobi gave a gasp and nearly lost hold on Orochimaru's arms; however, he quickly regained control as he grasped tighter. Yusuke was standing right behind him, holding onto the blade of the sword as she tried with all of her remaining might to prevent it from going any further. "There's no use in fighting, my stupid student. I will bring you to hell with me."

xxxxx

Gaara and Naruto stood on opposite ends of the giant dagger breathing heavily. Their foreheads bled incessantly from Naruto's attack. The others watched in awe and shock at the intensity of the battle. "Are you back to your senses yet?" The blonde asked tiredly. The redhead stared at him, silent, unsure how to respond.

"They still have energy to continue fighting?" Neji asked, awestricken.

Shikamaru shook his head. "Each of them probably have enough energy for one last hit." Not waiting for anyone to ask, he continued. "Naruto most likely wasted all his energy earlier during the battle. That burst of red chakra was probably the last of his reserves. As for Gaara, he was unstable throughout the battle. The fluctuations in the way he expels energy and attacks can waste a good amount of his chakra."

"So the winner is decided on who has the better physical stamina…" Asuma gave an amused sigh.

Sasuke watched on, his jaw clenched and his fists balled tightly at his sides.

"Then Naruto will win," Neji inserted. "The idiot has more stamina then a raging bull."

POOF

The dagger disappeared, but neither had left their perch; instead, a giggle began. The group stared in surprise as the redhead burst into an uncontrollable laughter. A grin spread across Naruto's face as a weak chuckle escaped from his lips; soon, he too was in a fitful splay of laughter. The four stared at one another, wondering what has caused the unnatural event that was occurring. Even Temari was puzzled by the two's actions.

xxxxx

"Die old man! Die!" Orochimaru growled. The sword attempting to go further and further into Sarutobi, but Yusuke was the only one preventing it from doing so as the blade cut painfully into her hands.

"Jii-san!" Yusuke snapped. "You better finish this one way or another! You're not going to get another chance!"

The old man coughed another mouthful of blood. "Understood," he replied in understanding. "I'm no longer young. It's not possible for an old man like me to receive a second chance."

Orochimaru smirked, slightly relieved that the old man can do no lasting harm on him. "You might have been able to defeat me ten years ago with this technique, but you're old and decrepit. Nothing you do can harm me." An unease laughter came from the pale-skinned man before he bellowed in a steady laughter.

A weak grin reached Sarutobi's lips. "You're right on that, my stupid student. If only I was ten years younger…" he said tiredly, making a final decision in his mind. "I really wanted to take you to hell with me, but this is probably the next best decision."

Orochimaru's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

Sarutobi gave a weak laugh. "I'm unable to bring you with me; I will let the next generation to deal with you…And Yusuke-dono will lead them."

"Old man, you're pushing the limit here." Yusuke muttered as she gripped the blade tighter, the edges cutting deeper into her palm and fingers, her blood dripping freer down the metal blade.

"You foolish old geezer! They're unable to defeat me! I'm superior to all of them!" He laughed maniacally.

The old man smirked. "Do you think I will leave them without giving my all before my death? You are the fool, my stupid student. I'm still able to take away what's most precious to you… Your ability to perform those techniques you're so pleased and obsessed with." He gave a final grunt, drawing as much as Orochimaru's soul as he can before giving a loud shout, "FUUIN!"

A bright flash passed as the soul taker behind Sarutobi sliced off Orochimaru's soul-arms and devoured them. The man gave a loud scream of agony as Sarutobi released his hands and began his fall backwards. "My arms! My arms! What have you done to them?"

A faint grin passed Sarutobi's lips as his eyes slowly closed. "I really wished I could have done more…" Memories over took his mind as he slowly lost consciousness forever from the world. "I've done enough… The rest will be left to Yusuke and the future."

"Sarutobi! Give me back my arms!" Orochimaru shouted frantically.

"Yes, all will be left to the next generation," Sarutobi thought with satisfaction as his eyes finally closed with a smile on his lips. He fell back where Yusuke caught him and fell to her knees from the Hokage's weight.

"SARUTOBI!" Orochimaru roared.

"Jii-san? Jii-san!" Yusuke cried, her voice beginning to crack in hysterics.

"Orochimaru-sama," one of his four minions greeted as they knelt before him. The pale man looked over to where his now dead sensei lay in the Spirit Detective's arms before he dropped his head dejectedly as the four hauled him away from the village and protected him from any other attacks.

"Jii-san, wake up! Wake up! Please! Don't leave me like Genkai!" Yusuke cried, as she hugged the dead Hokage's body, rocking back and forth as her body racked with sobs.

The four Anbus, one of whom was Susumu, who had been watching from outside the dark barrier cautiously approached the hysterical girl and their dead leader.

The battles throughout the village slowly came to an end as the enemy retreated with their defeated leader. A loud cheer came from all as the village slowly cleared of invaders. The villagers slowly emerged from the safe houses with the guidance of many chunins that were protecting them.

Konohamaru looked sadly at the ruins of the battle torn village while his friends hung over his shoulders trying to cheer him up. A faint smile crossed his face, but he looked worriedly at the cracked face of his grandfather's monument on the mountain above.

Elsewhere, jounins and chunins alike carried off the weak and injured to the various medic wings throughout the village. Genma, Kurenai and Ebisu remained in the stadium to awake the sleeping audience. While Gai and Kakashi gathered up the defeated invaders and lead them into the jail cells that were quickly becoming crowded. Jiraiya swept through the village for any lingering sound nins with the four youkai he brought.

Naruto returned to the village hanging onto Shikamaru while Sasuke hung off Neji. The Sand Village siblings were already returning to their home village. Asuma had left to retrieve the sound nins for Morino Ibiki to interrogate. The death of the Hokage was told a day later after the chaos settled.

Early morning, on the day of the Third Hokage's funeral, along with those who gave their lives protecting the village, Neji was already up and dressed in a formal black kimono and was quietly heading towards the Urameshi compound. And as he steadily made his way, he saw that he wasn't the only one who was worried for the Spirit Detective. He saw that her friends, Kuwabara, Kurama and Hiei, were entering the Urameshi house.

The Hyuuga prodigy knew that he couldn't compete with them when it came to comforting Yusuke. After all, what they went through together made their bond stronger than what he and Yusuke had. Whatever it was they had…

Yusuke…even in your time of need I can't be there for you.

Kuwabara, Kurama and Hiei were all standing in the living room of Yusuke's house, dressed in their mournful black garbs for the sad day ahead. Yusuke stood by the window, staring out into the street with a blank expression. It had been a few days since the attack on the village and Yusuke had withdrawn from the world, quietly mourning.

"After all this time, it's gonna feel weird not fearing for my life." Yusuke said with bitter amusement.

"Don't sweat it, Urameshi. I can beat you up everyday if it makes you feel better." Kuwabara said from where he sat, lounging on the couch, trying to cheer his friend up.

"Yusuke is right. Normal life for us all will seem pale for a while." Kurama said, as a tapping came from the window to show Puu flapping outside the door. Yusuke opened the window.

"Hey." she said, as she reached out and grabbed her Spirit Beast that seemed to resist her reaching hand. "There you are. You're all right, Puu."

"Puu!" it chirped with discontent as it wriggled in Yusuke's hold.

"I didn't think you'd ever come back after Genkai started talking through you. You're kind of like a telephone to the other side, aren't you? Well, what are you waiting for, operator? Patch me in to baa-chan! Come on! Which side's your receiver?" Yusuke said as she pinched Puu, trying to make him work. "What? You'll do it for her, but not for me? You're my Spirit Animal, you know!"

"Stop it, Yusuke." Kurama said calmly.

"Come on, Puu." Yusuke continued.

"It's not possible anymore." Kurama said. Yusuke looked over at Kurama as Puu managed to free himself and fly over to the couch and perched itself on the arm.

"What do you mean?" Yusuke asked.

"The part of Reikai Genkai spoke from is Land Between the Living and the Dead." Kurama explained.

"I thought humans went to Reikai when they die?"

"Yes, for a short time. But it's merely a junction from which their real journey begins. In truth, Reikai is a complex system of many separate worlds. And with the Land of the Dead there is no communication. Genkai's was a priority case. Her placement should have been quick. Listen to me, Yusuke. It's time we said our goodbyes to her for real. And the same goes for the Sandaime as well."

"It's so dumb." Kuwabara scuffed.

"We just have to let them go." Kurama said.

"Fine!" Yusuke said, surprising the three boys with her outburst. "You heard the fox-boy! There's nothing we can do for the hag and geezer if they're already limp. Just gotta keep on trucking, yes sir!" Yusuke made her way towards the door. "I'm gonna go outside and make myself a nice big shiney first place medal, sit in the sun, and have a stupendous friggin day, damn it!"

And the door slammed behind her.

"Well, all right, Urameshi. Would you make me a medal, too?" Kuwabara called.

"She's so neck-deep in repression even I feel sorry for her." Hiei said.

xxxxx

Yusuke didn't want to be around anyone as she headed for the outskirts of the village to the forest. She didn't even want to be around herself, wishing she could just get out of her own head space and not think of how she could have done things differently.

"Oi, if ain't our little Sheila." came a familiar gruff voice. Yusuke looked around before she looked up into the trees, seeing the four demons who helped her village perched in the branches.

"I thought you guys had split." Yusuke said, a smile spreading across her face. She was happy to see them, considering the last time she saw them was when they escaped the tournament stadium when it detonated. She bent her knees and easily jumped up onto the branch where Jin and Touya were occupying.

"We had every intention of returning to Makai after your village was safe," Touya said, "But when it came time to leave we all had a change of heart."

"Ay, the wind out here is much better than back home." Jin said with a grin.

"I never got a chance to thank you guys for your help. Even though this isn't your home you helped my village fight off the attack from Sound and Sand." Yusuke looked at each of them. "Thank you."

"Aww!" Chuu grinned, jumping to their branch and putting an arm around Yusuke's small shoulders. "Haven't ya figured it out yet? You did alright by us and it was only natural for us to return the favor."

Rinku jumped over to join them. "Yeah, plus who would want to go back to Makai? Ningenkai is actually a lot more fun than I thought."

"If you guys are staying here then where do you plan to live?" Yusuke asked.

Touya smiled gently at her. "Don't worry about us, we've all started with nothing."

A thought occurred to Yusuke—if she were Hokage, she would have the authority to make them citizens of her village. But that was a stupid thought since she had no intention of going that route, being Spirit Detective was hard enough. Then another thought struck her.

"I think I know where a couple of strays can stay for the time being." Yusuke said, reaching into her pouch that was strapped on her hip and pulled out a small scroll and a brush and ink. She then wrote down the coordinates and handed the small scroll to Jin. "You'll most likely have to do a lot of upkeep around the place since the owner...well, let's just say that it's a safe place for you guys to stay."

Jin took the scroll and hugged Yusuke tightly, pressing his cheek against hers with affection. "Ah lassy! Your kind of wind is the kind I like the most!"

"Oi! Quit hoggin' the Sheila!" Chuu yelled, trying to pry Jin off of Yusuke.

"No! Don' wanna!" Jin yell back stubbornly, holding onto Yusuke childishly.

Irritated, Yusuke jabbed her elbow into Jin's diaphragm and kicked Chuu in the knee, causing both youkai to fall off the branch and land hard in the dirt. Touya and Rinku both just sighed.

"You look as though you're dressed for a funeral." Touya said, taking note of Yusuke's black clothing. He watched as Yusuke's expression became somber and her once bright eyes dim with hollowness.

"Yeah…" Yusuke said softly, "Today the village is gathering to mourn the people who gave their lives that day."

The Ice Master placed a hand on her shoulder in a show of giving some comfort. "No one will blame you for not being present. You've done your duty to your village, you gave it your all."

"Then why does it feel like my all wasn't enough?" Yusuke asked.

"Easy, because you survived." Touya said, knowing how she felt. Yusuke let his words echo around in her head as she turned her gaze back towards the village.

xxxxx

Koenma sat behind his desk, readjusting to his old life-style.

"He's here, sir." said Koenma's assistant.

"Fine. Let him in." Koenma said, as the doors slid open as a man stepped into the office. "Time to find your place, Toguro. I've arranged a thorough evaluation of the facts."

"I don't think that's necessary." Toguro said.

"Oh no, no, no, quite to the contrary. In fact, yours is a very intricate case." Koenma insisted.

"I've already decided. I would like you to sentence me to Limbo."

Koenma's eyes widened. "To Limbo? You're asking me to send you there? Do you even know what Limbo is? Obviously you don't. Of all the destinations for parted spirits, it's by far the most horrific. Absolute misery. Every part of you sliced away except your ability to exist. And yet knowing that you won't."

"Good." was all Toguro could say.

"I've weighed your youkai crimes against your ningen achievements. And considering that Sakyo's plan ended in part because of you, a slight punishment will be sufficient. Please, you have time to reconsider this."

"I've had far too much time. My choice is made."

"Very well." Koenma heavily sighed as he raised his stamp. "I can't convince a man with a death wish. Ten thousand years in Limbo. Godspeed. Take him away, Ogre."

"Yes, sir."

Toguro walked down the cobble-stone path to a large red gate, chipped and charred around the edges. Within the mist, he saw two shadowy figures waiting for him. As he approached closer, he realized that the two figures were of a young man and woman. Both in their mid-twenties. Instantly Toguro knew who they were…his old friends whom he betrayed for absolute power. Once upon a time...

"Don't tell me you're surprised. You both knew I would choose to go this way." Toguro said with a smirk.

"You're right, we did know. After that day on the river, we knew everything would end. And yet neither of us couldn't stop it." said Sarutobi.

"You're a hopeless dimwit. You realize that?" Genkai asked, "You just love to wallow in your own ridiculous suffering."

"Kairen is the one who killed those kids, not you. Don't you think you've blamed yourself enough already for not being perfect?" Sautobi asked. "Haven't you blamed us enough, too? You've trapped yourself in a body you hated, hiding in the pain. And now you want to torture yourself again for eternity. Why? Haven't we all paid enough?"

"You're wrong. All that business delighted me. Murdering Kairen, knowing that I pushed forward to meet my ultimate potential; I understood my power and was freed from human baggage. And in the larger scheme I knew the part I had to play. I'm actually thankful for what Kairen did." Toguro said.

"Liar!" Genkai yelled.

"Don't mourn me, Genkai. Like you said, this is the way I wanted it to end. Don't stay here trying to figure me out. You have a job to do. Your apprentice, Urameshi, she can still be stronger. But she could go the wrong way, too. Like me." Toguro walked past his old teammates towards the gate. "Maybe she'll actually listen to you, the way I could not."

"You really care about Yusuke. In your own screwed-up way, you've been teaching her, too. She's like a daughter I never had. Maybe you think the same." Genkai said with a tender smile. "Don't ever feel regret for the things between us."

"No, Genkai." Toguro said, smiling back at his teammates. "But it would have been a beautiful life." And then he walked through the gates into a flaming hell.

"You really are a big-hearted fool." Genkai murmured, as she and Sarutobi turned back, hand-in-hand.

The rookie nine were all present at the Hokage monument, along with the shinobis of the village, all dawned in black. Naruto looked around solemnly, seeing many people sobbing for the death of so many as the Hokage's picture, along with the photos of the dead were on a long table. Naruto knew that the whole village was present and in mourning and among all the familiar faces, he spotted Team Urameshi without Yusuke.

"We are gathered here today, in remembrance of our beloved Sandaime and those who fought valiantly to keep this village safe…" Neji was only half listening to the sermon as he concentrated more on Yusuke's cold hand in his.

xxxxx

Yusuke had gone back to where the stadium stood, only to find that it had vanished without a trace. She looked around, figuring that of course there would be no sign of the tournament after it ended. On top of that, being the winner of the tournament, she never got her prize, but then again what she wanted was impossible. With a sigh Yusuke laid down on the grass, taking in the silence and staring blankly up at the sky.

"So this is the calm after the storm, huh?" she said to herself.

"Doesn't give you the excuse to be lazy." came a familiar voice. Yusuke perked up as she sat up and looked around, her eyes landing on the one person she last expected to see.

"Gen…kai…?"

"That's right, I came back just like my student; half-assed." Genkai said with a cocky look.

Yusuke slowly stood up, her eyes wide as her mind tried to decide if this was real or just an illusion. She chose the former. "Baa-chan! C'mere you beautiful old hag!" she said as she tackled the old woman in a hug, laughing as tears ran down her face.

"Careful you dimwit! I may be alive but I won't be for long if you don't stop crushing me!" Genkai yelled, smacking Yusuke over the head, but the girl wasn't discouraged as she just laughed in relief.

End

AN: That's the end of book one. I'll post up the second installment as soon as I can. It's titled "Fanning the Flames" please review!