Chapter 7: A Real Test

Kuwabara Kazuma was walking to school with his friends, when a beautiful girl walked up. She looked really uncomfortable.

"Um. May I please speak to you Kuwabara?" she asked. As an added thought she added, "Privately," with a menacing glance at the three men Kuwabara was with.

"Uh sure. Guys you go on ahead, ok?"

"All right Kuwabara. You go!" one of his friends said.

The two walked over to stand under a tree.

"Torashi, what the hell is this all about? Did you finally decide you liked me?"

"Dream on. I want you to fight me. Call it training. You need to know how a yokai fights in order to fight a yokai. And you have fought yokai. So I'll learn to expect the unexpected."

"I can't do that."

"Why the hell not?"

"Because...because you're a girl! It goes against my code of honor."

"I'll fight back. You've experienced a small amount of my wrath. I'm not afraid."

"It goes against my code to hit girls."

Torashi's pupils narrowed. "Stop calling me a girl. I'm a fighter, just like you, just like Yusuke, and everyone else!"

"That doesn't change the fact that you're a girl."

Torashi punched Kuwabara. "I said, knock it off! I'll feel bad if I beat the shit out of you. Besides, you owe me."

Back with the guys Kuwabara was hanging out with, they were having their own conversation. The guys were far enough away that they were unable to hear what was being said, but it wasn't going to good for Kuwabara.

"Man, Kuwabara isn't doing to hot. What could he of said that upset her so much as to punch him?"

"Maybe he said he'd go out with her. It wasn't what she wanted?"

"I was serious! I bet he said he was seeing someone. You know that dreamy look he has during class... I think he's got some invisible girl friend..."

"How the hell do I owe you?" Kuwabara asked, confused.

"You looked at me. When I was nude!"

"You could have told me..."

"I was a neko! When I am a neko, I am exactly like a neko. I can't talk either. Baka yarrou."

Torashi took a deep breath, trying to calm down. She was trying not to resort to her "Plan C" as off yet. Time for "Plan B". The plan she all ready doubted would work.

"I have control of my rei." As she said it, three little 'tsume' glowed around her knuckles. "See. Know, knowing you don't have that advantage over me, will you fight?"

"No, Torashi. Get over it. I wont fight you!"

Great. Ok then. Time for "Plan C"! And it was his fault. Torashi turned, looking up at the sky, a thoughtful expression of her face. "Oh, well. I don't know what's wrong with that baka. I think it may be that he is afraid of being beaten by a girl. I'll just tell Yukina that he looked at this girl..."

Torashi turned, a hand resting thoughtfully at her chin. She loved that spaceless look on his face, a perfect Hall of Stupid Looks.

"All of that because of me and my honor code?"

"Possibly. Unless you want little old me to die in the Tournament from lack of preparation. It's all in the prospective."

"You really are threatening my happiness with Yukina-san! I almost killed Toguro Ani for that."

Without warning, Kuwabara lunged forward. He toppled into Torashi and, since it surprised her, she fell down as well. She shook her head, knocking loose dirt and leaves out of her vibrant red hair. "Stupid, clumsy oaf," she muttered.

What started as a verbal fight, turned into a fist fight, ended as a rei fight. Blows were traded, though none were vital.

A young girl clung to the shadows. Her body was covered with fresh scratches and there was a fresh cut near her left eye, still dripping with blood.

She got to the house she was staying at. She attempted to brush away the blood from her eye, but only succeeded at smearing it across her cheek.

He should be here by now. I napped long enough after the fight, but it didn't matter. I'm still exhausted! she thought wearily.

She knocked on the door, letting the residence know she was there, before letting herself in.

Kurama walked out of his room when he heard the knock. She had walked in and stood for a moment. He dashed forward as the girl collapsed, catching her as she fell. He picked her up, listening carefully for any acknowledgement of it. There was nothing. Relieved, Kurama quietly took the girl outside.

He set her down outside next to the wall so she could lean against it. Kurama remained standing.

"What happened, Torashi-san? Did you get attacked by a yokai?" he asked, concern filling his voice.

She smiled half-heartedly, amused at what she had done. She looked as if she had been drinking, but she hadn't. "I pissed Kuwabara off."

"You pissed him off? Why would you do something like that?"

"His fault. He wouldn't fight me on his own, so I dragged the name Yukina into the conversation and wham! Got what I wanted, though."

"What about Yukina? You didn't threaten her, did you? That would be suicidal against Kuwabara-kun."

"I told him I'd tell 'er something. You might want to watch what you say 'bout things like that."

"I can't believe you are still joking," Kurama said, shaking his head. Changing the subject, he said, "I've got something that will heal those cuts."

He disappeared beyond Torashi's sight for a while, returning with a small glass jar.

"What's that?" Torashi asked.

"It's a healing salve that I made. It's made of morning glory. It's a very beautiful flower."

Kurama bent down and smoothed a bit of the concoction on the uppermost of the cuts on her left arm. Torashi jumped.

"Are you all right, Torashi-san?"

"That stuff stings!"

"Most things that help do, Torashi-san." He rubbed a bit more on another cut.

"You just like to torture me, don't you?" Torashi murmured sarcastically.

"How did you find out about Yukina, any way? She shouldn't be here around this time of the year."

"Hiei...told...me." Torashi said. She was falling asleep. She closed her eyes. She was so tired; she could sleep through a yokai raid. Unknowingly, she drifted to a place of half sleep.

"You're remarkable, Torashi-san, if Hiei told you his secret," Kurama whispered.

The area by her left eye stung suddenly. Without thinking, Torashi lashed out with her hand before her eyes had opened. Her hand came in contact with skin, brushing it away.

"Torashi-san, I need to put thins on or else it wont heal quickly," Kurama sounded hurt, even though Torashi didn't have that much strength left.

"I...I'm sorry, Kurama-kun. I...you just startled me. I don't want a cut this close to my eye to be touched with that stuff. I'm sorry."

"It's all right. I've used the salve on the rest of your cuts. You should be fine by the tournament."

"Arrigatou," she said, standing up. She walked inside, swaying from weariness. Torashi fell into a dreamless sleep as soon as she lay down.

The rest of the days till they would leave ticked by. Torashi practiced with either Yusuke or Kuwabara. She wasn't injured after the first fight she had with Kuwabara, but the cut by her eye would bleed. She even fought with Kurama on the weekend. At night he helped her with her poison. That was how Torashi passed the remaining days in Tokyo.

Authors note: Hope you had a good time reading this. Reveiws'll make me happy and make me want to type more. Later!