The True Mastermind
As his school was under attack by his imposter, Batsu finally emerges to defend his friends. Using his much more improved strength and power, Batsu manages to overwhelm his opponent, forcing him to flee the school. Now, reunited with Kyosuke and Hinata, the trio sets off to find the imposter and put an end to his attacks once and for all.
Meanwhile, Yusuke has also reunited his friends and upon hearing about about Daigo's latest attacks on Kuwabara's friends, the heroes track him down at a mountain area, where he, the Batsu imposter, Momo, and Hyo wait for their arrival.
Could this be the final confrontation of this bizarre mission?
"Do you fools really think you stand a chance against us?" said the Batsu imposter. "None of you could defeat Daigo. What makes you think you can take on all three of us?"
"This isn't going to be like last time, pal!" said Kuwabara. "This time, I'm gonna let loose on all of you by myself…except for the girl."
"Kuwabara…you must approach this wisely," said Kurama.
"This guy attacked my friends, Kurama, so this is very personal" said Kuwabara. "I'm gonna make sure that he doesn't get away with this again."
"But that's my brother," said Akira. "I should be the one to stop him."
"No way!" said Kuwabara. "He may be your brother but I'm not going to stand here and watch him hit a girl right in front of me."
"Like you said, this is personal. I know my brother would never do these things, so I have to be the to find out what's wrong, even if I have to fight to do it."
"Hey, this is personal for me too, remember?" asked Yusuke. "That fake Batsu jerk was the one that attacked Keiko. So, if there's anyone that's gotta kick his ass right now, it's me. You two can just take care of Daigo."
The imposter laughs at the two. Despite being well aware of their spirit energies, he still looks down at the enemies as inferior to him.
"What makes you think you can defeat me, Yusuke? If my reports are correct, you couldn't even defeat Batsu."
"And neither could you," said the voice of someone approaching.
It was in fact the voice of Batsu, who has finally arrived with his friends.
"Didn't somebody ever tell you that the copy can't beat the original?"
"Hey, it's Batsu…the real Batsu, that is," said Yusuke.
"Yusuke…it seems like we have a mutual enemy after all," said Batsu.
"Well, we could use some help. This guy can't beat all of us." Yusuke then turns his attention back the imposter and says "Now the jig is up. The real Batsu is here and now everyone knows you're a fake. Tell us who you are now."
The imposter lets out an evil laugh. Although he knows that his disguise is useless, he still feels very confident in his plans.
"Very well, then," said the imposter. "I don't have any use for this anymore. Time to show you who I really am."
In a flash of light, the imposter reveals himself as none other than Kurow Kirishima.
"Greeting! I am Kurow Kirishima! And we are the Darkside Students' Congress!"
"You!" said an angry Hinata. "You were with Daigo when he attacked us at our school!"
"I knew it," said Batsu. "When I heard your voice at the school, I knew it sounded familiar. The way you slash seems very fitting for someone who wears claws, like the ones you have on now."
"Clever," said Kurow. "Your perception is more impressive than I thought."
"But why did you pretend to be me?" asked Batsu.
"Simple; it was to destroy the Imawano family!"
"What?!" said Kyosuke.
"Did…did he just say Imawano?" said Botan.
"As in…that spirit?" asked Yusuke.
"So, all this is connected indeed," said Kurama.
"Huh?" asked Batsu.
"Wait, do you know about the Imawano family?" asked Hinata.
The conversation catches Hyo's attention. The mentioning of a spirit bearing the name of his family makes him curious about Yusuke and his friends.
"Hehehe! Enough small talk!" said Kurow. "Let's get down to business!" He then looks over at Yurika and says "You've done your part, sister. Now come join us as we prepare to take over."
"What?!" yelled Zaki.
"Yurika, he's…your brother?" asked Akira.
Yurika looks down at the ground in disgust as she says "…Yes. Kurow is my brother. He's the mastermind behind all of these incidents."
Everyone looks at Yurika in shock at this new revelation. For the Akira and Zaki, it's hard for them to believe that the normally quiet and timid Yurika is related to the vicious and violent Kurow.
"Hey, don't pretend like you're not involved," said Kurow. "I may be the mastermind but you were also an accomplice in my plans.
"Wait, so you were actually part of everything that's been going on?" asked Kuwabara.
"Yes…I'm afraid so," said Yurika. "I didn't have the courage to stop my brother…but now I do. Kurow, I will stand with them to stop you!"
"So, you betray your own brother?" said Kurow. "Well, it doesn't matter. You're worthless to me now and soon, you'll be dealt with along with the rest of these losers."
"It must really suck to have a brother like that," said Yusuke.
"Yeah, putting up with his crap all the time must have be like torture," said Kuwabara.
"Akira, Zaki…we can still fight together," said Yurika. "I'm no longer following Kurow's orders, so I will help you stop him."
"Don't worry, Yurika," said Akira. "I won't hold this against you."
"Neither will I!" said Zaki. "Besides, we know who the real mastermind is."
"I'm going to help you guys out too," said Kuwabara. "I can't stand seeing girls getting attacked and this guy already hurt my friends. It wouldn't be right for me to just stand by and watch."
"Oh, well thank you," said Akira. "I really appreciate your concern."
"Never thought this guy would be on our side," said Edge.
"Me neither," said Gan.
Kurow chuckles at his enemies with no intimidation at how many of them he faces. With Daigo, Hyo, and Momo on his side, along with his own skills, he believes that he has enough that no one can stop him.
"Daigo!" yelled Akira. "It's me. Can't you hear me?"
"Your brother doesn't care about you either!" said Momo as she sticks her tongue out, angering Akira.
"That's right," said Kurow. "Daigo works for me now. And just show you how loyal he is…" At that point, Kurow takes out a flute and begins to play it.
As it plays, Daigo slowly starts letting out a loud scream. His spirit energy increases, his eyes glow red, and his skin darkens.
"Brother, what's wrong?" yelled Akira.
"Man, he's gone crazy!" said Kuwabara.
Kurama notices the flute that Kurow is uses, believing it to be the reason for Daigo's sudden change.
Botan slowly distances herself from the crowd, saying "I think I should let you guys handle this. I'll just be in the way, you know."
"I never thought a flute could piss someone off that bad," said Yusuke.
"It must be some way of brainwashing," said Kurama.
"Brainwashing?! With just an instrument like that?"
"It's not just the flute. He must be using some sort of spirit energy to play it. That may how he's able to control Daigo."
"That is correct," said Yurika. "My brother and I can use our energy for certain objects, including instruments. This is why I carry my violin and bow."
"That's…unusual!" said Yusuke.
"Careful, guys," said Batsu. "I think he's about ready to attack."
As they look at Daigo, they can sense the dark energy coming from his body. His face bares a dark, almost demonic-like expression. It looks as though he's now a blood thirsty monster. Yet despite this change, his power and form remains that of a human.
"Now, Daigo!" said Kurow. "ATTACK!"
Daigo lunges at Akira and her friends with a powerful ground punch. Although the girls manage to avoid it, the punch leaves a large dent in the ground.
Kuwabara can tell that Daigo is a lot stronger than before and therefore, he must use his Spirit Sword to fight him this time.
But unfortunately, he's not able to summon it.
"My Spirit Sword…it's not working!" said Kuwabara.
As Kuwabara continues to try, the Spirit Sword fails to form. Suddenly, Kuwabara starts to worry.
"What's the matter, Kuwabara?" asked Kurow. "Didn't you want to fight Daigo again? Don't tell me that you're too scared to fight him now!"
Yusuke and Kurama can tell something is wrong with Kuwabara.
"Kuwabara, what are you doing?" asked Yusuke.
"Oh no!" said Kuwabara. "What am I gonna do now?"
To Be Continued.