Disclaimer: I do not own, never have owned, and never will own any part of Yu Yu Hakusho whatsoever.

K.C. Whitestar- Thanks for the advice. I'm pretty new to fanfiction so I didn't know about the one review per chapter thing. I won't sign in next time. Thanks again!

Please review!! I want to hear what you think!
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"Are there any other questions before we continue?" Kurama searched his memory for something, anything, that didn't make sense. Then he found it. "You said that Rekenkai thought you were 'out of commission.' What does that mean?"

"Oooooh, good question! I was wonderingif you'd ask that." Ryton smirked. "Remember I said that we had made an agreement, he and I? If I was unavailable, he would take the fight." Kurama nodded.

"Well, he decided to make me unavailable, if you know what I mean. He hired another contestant in this tournament to make sure I would not be able to fight. Rekenkai knew that his "assassin" could never defeat me. But he was just enough to distract me. So, by the time I defeated him and arrived here, the match had already begun."

Kurama was surprised by his opponent's story. "Why do you seek to avenge Rekenkai if he tried to have you killed?" he asked, hoping to buy more time.

Ryton smirked. "He didn't want me dead. He only wanted me distracted enough to miss the beginning of the match. So, he chose an opponent strong enough to keep me out of the ring, but weak enough not to pose a real threat. And no matter what, he was my teammate and my friend. I completely understand what he did, and if our positions had been different I probably would have done the same."

He paused, waiting for a response from Kurama, but the redhead did not speak. "Now, if there are no further questions I'd like to continue our match."

Kurama was still breathing heavily. His back still prickled with pain. He racked his brain for another distraction. It seemed all he could do was ask questions, but he could think of none.

"This is a new technique I've been wanting to try," Ryton said, tossing the Rose Whip aside. It transformed back into a flower, and Ryton smushed it with his shoe. "And it's definitely worth trying on you. It's very painful, especially if you move around. So I suggest you hold still."

He extended both his arms in front of him. They began to glow with a golden light. The light condensed into a single strand that twined itself around Ryton's fingers. It split in two. One piece hovered in front of Ryton's right palm, and the other settled in front of his left. Slowly they absorbed into his hands.

Kurama narrowed his eyes. What was this attack?

"Prepare yourself," cackled Ryton, "for the Blaze of the Heated Storm!" Two huge rays of energy blasted from the palms of Ryton's hands.

There was nowhere for Kurama to run. He watched in horror as the beams shot directly at him. He saw them soak into his own body.

It seemed as if nothing happened. The light faded into his body. It was gone. --What...was that?-- Kurama thought. He looked up at Ryton for an explanation. Ryton simply smirked.

Kuwabara was confused. What had just happened? He saw Ryton power up and unleash his energy at Kurama. He saw the energy hit Kurama. But he did not Sense anything. There was nothing. No trace of the attack. No hint of Kurama being in pain. And from the confused look on the fox demon's face, Kuwabara knew that Kurama was just as dumbfounded as he was.

Then, they both felt something.Hiei felt it too. His Jagan was slightly open and glowing underneath the strip of cloth that concealed it. The same question echoed through their minds.

--Wait. What is that?--

Kurama felt warm. At first, he thought it was just the effects of the sun shining into the stadium. But something was not right. It got hotter. And hotter.

Kurama looked at Ryton, wondering if he felt it too. But Ryton just continued to smirk at him. As it grew increasingly hotter, Kurama realized that the heat was within his own body. He stared at his opponent, and Ryton nodded to confirm his realiziation.

The heat was becoming unbearable. Finally, Kurama began to burn. He shrieked as the agony of Ryton's electric attack enveloped his body. It burned. He burned. His hands, his face, his arms, his legs, all burning. The heat spread throughout his whole body. The pain clouded his mind. He couldn't think. His instinct was to run, to drop to the ground, to do something to stop this agony. But he fought to keep from moving. If he moved, it would only get worse.

"NO!!!" yelled Yusuke. He punched and kicked Kuwabara off him and ran to the side of the ring. "STOP IT RYTON!!! STOP!!!!" He was about to fire his Spirit Gun, but Ryton's cackle stopped him. "You fire that gun, Spirit Detective, and your two friends will die. I can make this attack last as long as I want. I intend on stopping it just short of killing him, but I can always change my mind. And my teammates will take care of the fire demon." Yusuke let his hands drop to his sides and glared at him. "That's better."