Fushigi Yuugi: The Next Generation - Part 9

Author's Note: I don't own Fushigi Yuugi. Yuu Watase does. I am only borrowing. Come to think of it, I have a larger world than the original.

Author's Note: I am continuing my round robin system. This time I am going to the Northern Empire. By the next time, I'll be back in Konan. As always, I take from the TV series, and not necessarily the OVAs. Sasaki Yoshi is now called Yogensha. Before I am through all the seishi should be known by their kanjis and not their civilian names. There are spoilers.

Soohoo Yoko landed right on her bottom. Yogensha landed on his face, but got up quickly to look around. He had wondered why they had to dress warm, and he got their answer when he looked around. There was ice and snow everywhere. There was a chill factor in the air.

"Great," said Yogensha.

"At least there was freshly fallen snow to land on," said Yoko cheerful as she got up from the ground. She fell back down when she slipped. Yogensha sighed and helped his miko up from the snow.

"But, it really slippery," said Yogensha.

"You're right it's freezing. It's a good thing that those people told us how to dress," said Yoko.

"You mean the Kajiwaras and Mr. Yuki. Yes, it was very thoughtful of them. I should have realized that it was going to be cold by the way we were told to dress," mused Yogensha as he rubbed his chin.

"I see a fire over there!" shouted Yoko as she ran off.

"Wait!" called Yogensha. It was too late. Yoko was too far ahead of him to hear him. Yogensha had to take off after her. The camp at the bottom was empty. Yogensha had a bad feeling about this. Yoko didn't care she was warmer herself by the fire.

"Will you calm down, Yogensha? It's not that bad. Just because there's no one here doesn't mean that there's any thing wrong," said Yoko.

"Don't you think it's a little suspicious that there's no one here, but the camp was obviously set up earlier?" asked Yogensha as he looked around. Yoko had a clueless look on her face. Yogensha sighed. 'Of course, you don't! I should remember who I'm dealing with,' thought Yogensha.

He looked around the deserted camp. The tent was very fine, but a light tent. It had some sort of crest on it. It was some kind of vulture. Yoko had found a stash of food. She was happily eating the food. Yogensha sighed. He seemed to be doing that a lot around her. Yogensha heard something coming from the woods. He left a sudden feeling of deju vu, but that was a typically feeling for Yogensha. There was a tall man with light brown with a band tied around his forehead. His eyes were a icy blue.

"What are you doing in my camp?!" asked the man in a fierce voice.

"What?" asked Yoko. Her mouth was full with the food that she had found.

"YOU'RE EATING MY FOOD!" shouted the man frantically.

"Sorry," said Yoko as she tried to swallow what was in her mouth. "It was good," she said with a smile.

"You don't know who you're dealing with! No one messes with Gan Zheran! No one!" shouted the man as he drew his sword. He lunged to attack. Yoko jumped up surprised.

Yogensha knew that he was going to do it. Traveling to the Universe of the Four Gods amplified his power. Yogensha could see three moves ahead of Gan Zheran. "I can't let you hurt her. We're sorry for invading your camp. We'll be on our way," said Yogensha calmly.

Gan Zheran turned around. How dare that boy interfere with his fight with this girl? He lunged at Yogensha. Yogensha jumped out of his way. Zheran attacked him again, but Yogensha blocked his hit. Yogensha punched him in the stomach. Zheran jumped back in pain, and swore under his breath.

'How is it possible for this kid to know all my moves before I do them?' thought Zheran.

He was pretty fast, but the boy had countered all his attacks. Zheran tried to take another swipe at him. He raised his sword up.

"AAAAAAHHHH!" shouted Zheran as he came down with the sword. Yogensha had moved before the blade came down upon him.

"Shit!" said Zheran. He couldn't believe he had missed the boy. He raised his blade again.

"STOP!" shouted Yoko.

"What?!" said Yogensha and Zheran in unison.

"Look at the top of his hand," said Yoko as she pointed at Zheran.

There was a glowing kanji on the top of his right hand. Kokoro. Heart.

"Oh, this? It doesn't mean a thing. I'm still going to kill you both," said Zheran in a cold voice.

"Why are you going to kill us for such a small offense?" asked Yogensha.

"Because, boy, I am a professional killer. Since, the world is obviously going to end, my services haven't been needed. Why hire an assassin, if the world is going to end anyway? I had to quit my profession. That doesn't mean I don't need the practice. That means I'll have to kill you both," said Zheran coldly.

"You can't! I said that I was sorry about the food. Beside, I am the new Genbu no Miko!" exclaimed Yoko covering her face with her hands.

Zheran had a funny look on his face, and he turned to Yogensha. Yogensha nodded and glowed his kanji on his forehead. Zheran let out a sigh. He knew what it all meant. That he too was a seishi. He looked at Yoko and looked back at Yogensha. All Zheran could was shrug his shoulders.

"I am your second seishi, Genbu no Miko," admitted Zheran.

"That's great," said Yoko with a happy smile on her face.

"I am sorry about the misunderstanding," said Yogensha.

"Tell me your names. My name is Gan Zheran. But, from now on I'll be known as Kokoro," said Zheran.

"I am Soohoo Yoko. This is Yogensha, Kokoro," said Yoko.

"What are your powers, Yogensha?" asked Kokoro.

"I am a seer. I can see things before they happened. I knew all your moves before you made them," said Yogensha with a smile on his face.

"Oh by Genbu! I was wondering why you were able to figure out what my moves were. My seishi power is speed," said Kokoro.

"You know that your world is crumbling?" asked Yogensha.

"How could I not know? Look around you. This woods used to be a green lush forest untouched by ice and snow. Now there are blizzards regularly around here. If you go into any town, there are rumors about it. They don't want to believe that the worse has happened, but it has. The people are starting lose faith. They think that Genbu has abandoned them. But, I never thought he did. After all, I am a seishi. I never told people openly that I was a seishi," said Kokoro.

"Why not?" asked Yoko.

"Because I would be expected to do my duty, how could I do it without a miko? My problem is now solved. Since you are here, Genbu no Miko," answered Kokoro.

Yoko smiled and the rest of them talked some more. When Yoko mentioned the shinzaho, Kokoro talked about it at great length. He also discussed the last Genbu no Miko.

"The shinzaho is located at the temple in Mt. Black. Of course, I could be wrong. The Suzaku Seven got the shinzaho from there, but it was later taken by the Seiryuu Seven. The shinzaho are magical talismans. I don't know if they were return to their original locations," said Kokoro. He was thinking hard.

Yogensha was also in deep concentration. 'If I can focus my chi, then maybe I can find the shinzaho.,' pondered Yogensha. He was in a very deep trance. He could see a mountain covered in snow. From what he could see, there was town, but there were woods all around. There was a large stone that was placed near the entrance of the mountain, but it looked like someone had moved it. There are great big iron doors. Yogensha could almost feel the chill in the cave that he wasn't even.

"Yogensha?" said Yoko. He was gone from where he was physically. Yoko gently shook him. Yogensha snapped out of his trance. Kokoro was looking at him strangely.

"I can see where it is. It's in a mountain with large iron doors in front of it," said Yogensha softly.

"Let me think. Where would you find a pair of large iron doors in a mountain," thought Yoko out loud.

"Geez. You don't know anything about this world remember. Don't think too hard about it. I maybe able to see it, but I can't pinpoint locations. I don't know this world myself," said Yogensha with a smirk on his face.

"That is Mt. Black. That's the only place in all of Hokkan that looks like that," said Kokoro thoughtfully.

"That's great!" said Yoko, "All we have to do is go and get it. YEAH!"

"It can't be that easy. You don't need to be a seer to see that," said Yogensha.

Yoko is in her dreamy fantasy world. Her eyes are large and there is a bubble dream background.

Yogensha and Kokoro both sweatdrop.

* * *

The three of them continued their trek in the ice and snow. The winds were high, and there was no place they could set up a camp. Yoko constantly complained about the cold and other things. Yogensha just sighed and kept quiet. Kokoro wasn't as quiet. In fact he was very annoyed by Yoko.

"IF YOU WERE NOT THE GENBU NO MIKO I WOULD SLIT YOUR THROAT RIGHT NOW, WOMAN!!!" shouted Kokoro.

Yoko is busy humming to herself. Kokoro is now superdeformed and has his head extra large. His mouth is now really large.

"STUPID WOMAN! YOU DARE IGNORE ME!!!!" shouted Kokoro. Yoko is absentmindedly looking at the scenery around her. Yogensha sighed and said nothing. He didn't want to get involve with their petty arguments. Yoko got up off the ground all of a sudden and took off running again.

"Wait! Where are you going, Yoko?!" called Yogensha after her.

"THAT WOMAN IS GOING TO GET US KILLED!" bellowed Kokoro as he took off running. Yogensha followed behind him. He wasn't as fast as Kokoro. Yoko was running towards a cave.

"Don't go in there. You don't know if it's safe, Genbu no Miko," warned Kokoro.

She ignored him and went inside anyway. There was a man dressed in dark clothes with his dark brown hair over his face. He looked up at her with sharp gray eyes.

"Get out of my shelter for the evening," said the man in a cold voice.

Yoko backed away from the man involuntarily. She placed her arms over her chest. Her teeth clattered against the cold wind. Her blue eyes looked at the man. There was something about the man that made her sad for some strange reason.

"I said get out before I have to hurt you, little girl," said the man.

Yoko turned around and ran right into Kokoro's chest. Kokoro looked at the man.

"I see you've found shelter, Lady Yoko," said Kokoro, "If you would be so kind sir as to allow us to stay until the blizzard is over, then we'd be grateful."

"No."

"This is the Genbu no Miko. She requires a place away from the cold. My fellow seishi and I will stay outside the cave, but she must stay here," said Kokoro cautiously. He didn't want to kill the man over the cave. There was something deep and profound about this man.

"Get out of my cave. Leave me in peace," ordered the man.

"I can't let you do that. I told you who we are. I am going to have to prove that I am a Genbu seishi," said Kokoro as he drew his sword. Yoko's eyes widened. She didn't want him to kill the man.

Kokoro drew his sword out and Yoko moved closer to the cave's walls. She hated the sight of blood.

"Please Kokoro, don't hurt him. We'll just find somewhere else to stay," said Yoko in a soft uncharacteristic whisper. Her eyes were filled with fear. Kokoro looked at her for a brief moment. He looked at the man in front of him. He knew why she didn't want him to attack. The man was just sitting there. He didn't do anything to them. All the man wanted was to get them out of his shelter.

"I can't allow this man to disrespect you, Lady Yoko. I must defend you and your honor," said Kokoro. Kokoro raised his sword. He lifted it over the man's head. The man didn't even bother to resist.

"STOP KOKORO! The man is a Genbu seishi also!" shouted Yogensha. He had finally caught up with them. Yogensha had used his powers, and he saw that the man was a seishi.

Both Yoko and Kokoro frozen, and looked at the man. He let out an unhappy sigh.

"The kanji is located on the right side of my chest," said the man softly.

Yoko walked up to him, and he stood up before her. He was only a little taller than Kokoro. Yoko untied the sash around his chest to look for the kanji. She ignored the sounds of warning from Kokoro and Yogensha.

His upper torso was well defined. His stomach was tight, and his chest was muscular. Yoko waited, and the man willed his kanji to show. It was the kanji for Seizonsha. Survivor. It was located near his right nipple. Yoko gently prodded him with her fingers. The kanji was bright. She pressed her palms against his chest. The man let out a sigh.

"Can't you look at my kanji without fondling me?" asked man in a sort of exasperated tone. Yoko looked up at his face in surprise. He had a very handsome face with a noble bearing. 'Too bad his face is hidden by his hair,' thought Yoko. She dropped her arms from his chest.

"What's your name?" asked Yogensha.

"I have no name or title. My name is my kanji: Seizonsha," said the man in a firm voice.

Yogensha gave him a slight bow. Seizonsha looked surprised, and he returned a bow. He retied the sash around his waist and covered his abs and chest. Yoko silently regretted that, but she didn't say it out loud.

"My name is Yogensha," said Yogensha, "My real is name is Sasaki Yoshi."

"I am known as Kokoro, but my real is Gan Zheran," said Kokoro.

The man looked at the people in front of them. The girl was his miko. She was very beautiful. Her eyes were blue like the sea, and her hair was like gold. She was cold. Her skin was a beautiful bronze that was unnatural for the area.

"Come and warm yourselves by the fire," invited Seizonsha. He had been alone for such a long time. Seizonsha looked forward to having some company. These people were like him. People who were on a journey. Before he didn't have a destination, now he had a purpose. Perhaps, there could be more meaning in his life.

"What are your powers?" asked Kokoro. "I have the power of speed. I move quickly enough, so that I don't make a sound."

"I am a seer. That's why I was able to tell that you were one of us. I can see events into the recent future. I can see different locations as well," said Yogensha.

"My power is time. I can control time," said Seizonsha. He waved his hand over the fire, and froze time over it. The flames didn't flicker or move. He waved his hand again and the flames started to move again.

"Wow!" said Yoko.

She smiled. This time everyone in the cave smiled with her.

~*ClareBear's Omake*~

Nuriko: Who does she remind me of?

Hotohori: Yoko is so cheerful. She so optimistic.

Miaka: I have no idea what you are talking about Nuriko. I hope we go back to Konan soon. I wonder how Mariko is holding up.

Hotohori: I am worried about Boushin.

Tamahome: ClareBear said that she'd go back to Konan in the next part.

Nuriko: Ooooh. Did you see that guy's chest? Wow!

Miaka: I wonder what's up with that guy. He just seems so mysterious and sad.

Tamahome: Perhaps, a tragic past?

Chiriko: I hope not, but that wouldn't be too unusually for a seishi.

Mitsukake: Maybe it's a lost love.

Nuriko: I think he has a great set of abs!