Chapter 7:

            Chiaki cringed, finally recognizing the voice. The Suzaku seishi gathered around her protectively. Nakago, Suboshi, and four other ominous companions seemed to melt out of their shadows. Nakago fixed a glare on the girl in the midst of their enemies.

            "You can't have it," Chiriko shouted. "You're lying!"

            He held up a small mirror with a smirk. "This is what you were after, isn't it?"

            The seishi fell silent. Chiaki glanced around with an arched eyebrow. "What? It's just a mirror." 'If a mirror gets them worked up, we're in trouble.'

            "That's the shinzaho," Hotohori replied in a low voice, tone indicating that he was not very pleased.

            "Oh..."

            He drew his sword, eyeing the Seiryuu seishi suspiciously. "We will remain calm," he told the ones behind him through somewhat gritted teeth. "Remember, we've fought with them before... They are powerful. We must keep our strength and-" He was interrupted by a feral yell as Tasuki launched himself at Nakago.

            "Bastard!" Tasuki screamed.

            Suddenly he was thrown back by a powerful blinding white ki blast. His body flipped over and he fell to the ground with a sickening thud. To Chiaki's amazement, the fiery tempered young man, though a bit woozy, climbed to his feet again. In a flash, he whipped out his tessen.

            "REKKA-"

            The two opposing forces closed in on one another, with Nuriko and Mitsukake placed together in front of her, acting almost as a shield.

            "SHINEN!" A blaze of fire spewed from the weapon, engulfing the advancing Seiryuu group. But they were not so easily defeated. Nakago was the first to emerge, seemingly unharmed. No burns, no scratches... he was smirking!

Chiaki shifted her weight nervously. 'How is that possible?' Moments later, the area burst into violent fighting. It was amazing, as horrible as it was. The moment before had been like a calm before the storm.

"What the...?" She glanced around, dodging the sword points, bursts of fire, ki, and lightening, bewildered. She was surrounded by awesome power. Each seishi was squared off with one enemy, except Nakago, who held the attention of Hotohori and Tamahome. Nuriko was entangled in a grueling hand-to-hand combat with a huge wolfish looking... beast. Her heart lodged in her throat. 'Nuri-chan...' She was suddenly thrown to the ground as Tasuki crashed into her, swearing up a storm. He fought with a strange looking man wearing an equally strange hat. Her gaze finally rested on Chichiri who was fighting a...child? Mitsukake and Chirko were lost somewhere in the din. "What the hell is going-" She cut herself off with a scream as a pair of arms grabbed her roughly. Ramming her elbow into her captor's gut, she whirled to find it was Suboshi. Rage upon seeing his familiar countenance filled her. "What, you want a taste of your own medicine, huh? Huh? Bring it on, circus boy!" she yelled.

            "Chiaki, don't get involved!" she heard Hotohori shout.

            She paused, turning to him. He was so involved with Nakago, that she was amazed he had heard anything. Had the time to respond. Fatal electricity rumbled through the air. "What?" As soon as the word left her mouth, she knew it had been a mistake. Suboshi kicked the back of her knees, forcing her to collapse, and he swung about his killer yo-yos, as she had come to know the weapon. Quickly, she rolled onto her side, swung her leg around, and knocked his feet out from underneath him. Chiaki climbed to a stand, glaring at Suboshi as he floundered angrily through the snow, rising to his feet. "That all you can do?" she hissed.

            With a yell, he launched himself at her and they tumbled head over heels into the snow, punching, jabbing, kicking one another. She moved to shove him off of her when her hand slipped in something slick on his side. Suboshi jerked away, hunched over a wet red spot spreading over his tunic. Glancing at her hand, she found it covered with a sticky red substance... 'Blood? I didn't hit him that hard...' Realization hit her. Somehow or another, these seishi were hurt. Scrambling to her feet, she dove out of the way as he lunged for her again, growling like an animal and shouted out this revelation to her companions, "They're hurt! They're HURT!" assuming it would be of some assistance to them, before she slipped in the snow. Flailing backwards, she crashed into a woman who was concentrating on commanding lightening bolts. The woman turned on her with a snarl.

            Her face scrunched up. 'Damn, she's pissed...'

            "Chichiri, get Chiaki and Chiriko out of here!" Hotohori shouted over the din as she was preparing to fight once again- this time with the enraged woman who didn't look too pleased that her attempted electric massacre had been forced to an end.

            "What?! I can fight as damn well as any of you!" Of course, the emperor ignored this. He was too busy dodging a very powerful blast of ki that made the very air surrounding them shake. She yelped in surprise when Chichiri suddenly dashed by and threw her over his shoulder with a brief "sorry Chiaki, no da". Lightheadedness and nausea filled her as they seemingly sank into a tangible black oblivion. Just as she was about to pass out, throw up, or both- she wasn't sure- a burst of bright light exploded into the blackness and, after blinking away the spots before her eyes, she discovered that they had returned to the inn.

            With a sigh, she let herself go limp over the monk's shoulder before he set her to her feet again. Then, balling up her fist, she struck him in the chest. "Don't ever do that again!" she screeched.

            Chichiri leapt back, unhurt, but positively startled. Chiriko stared at her in disbelief, having never really witnessed the girl behave in such a manner. "Daaaa...." Chichiri rotated his shoulder absently and inquired, "Do what, no da?"

            "Do... do... that- that thing!" she sputtered. "That thing you did to get us here!"

            "Oh, I see the problem na no da... You've never warped anywhere, no da."

            "Whatever, whatever." She shook her head, pacing around the room. "What are we doing here? I should be out there, helping! So should you!"

            Chichiri shrugged. "Hotohori-sama said for the two of you to be taken out of the fight, no da."

            "That's another thing!" she ranted, thrusting her finger in his direction. "How weak and pathetic does he think I am? Granted, I don't have the best footing in snow, but I could have done some serious damage if he let me stay. Ooh, he's going to have a piece of my mind." Quickly, she walked over to him, thumping her hands on his shoulders. "Take me back there. You guys need all the help you can get, don't you? I mean, would you rather sit around and do nothing when you could do something? You know I have a point, Chichiri."

            "Well, of course, no da. I don't want to be babysitting... Chiriko no da..." he amended quickly, noticing the glare she shot him at the comment, "but I have to do what I have to do, no da."

            She glared daggers at him, slumping down into a chair.

            "Daaaa...." He looked away from the angry girl to Chiriko, who sat quietly on the floor, watching them. "What were you and Mitsukake doing, no da?"

            "He was protecting me. Otherwise, he would have helped out." His face fell guiltily. "I can't do anything helpful. I mean, what good is being a seishi, if all I can do is be smart?"

            "Stop the self pity, okay? You're stuck. But there's all sorts of ways you can help if Chichiri would just take. Us. BACK!" Chiaki glared at Chichiri.

            "Hothori-sama specifically-"

            She leapt to her feet again. "Why do you even listen to Hotohori-sama anyway? I mean, yeah, he's emperor, but he's what.... five, six years younger than you?"

            "He's the emperor, no-"

            "But there was a fight going on! Chichiri! Take me back there! I want to help."

            He quirked his mouth to the side.

            "You don't take me back and I... I will take out all this aggression on you physically! And Nuri-chan has been helping me fight, so you know what it will do to you."

            "Daaaa...." Chichiri didn't know what was worse: facing an angry emperor or the wrath of an irate woman.

            "Those guys were hurt," she added. "Do you know what an upper hand we have on them? I want to kick Suboshi's butt! Don't deprive me of this!"

            He blinked. "Hurt, no da?" Chiaki had a point. With the Seiryuu seishi injured, they would have the advantage of at least being on the same level of power. But five of them wouldn't be enough to fight. He stood abruptly.

            A light of excitement glimmered in Chiaki's eyes. "We're going back?"

            Chichiri removed his mask and thumbed its cheek absently. "Yes. Chiriko, are you coming with us?"

            The young seishi glanced back and forth between girl and man. Slowly he stood and nodded. Motioning for Chiaki and Chiriko to approach, he set up the teleportation and pushed each one in before disappearing into it himself. Moments later, they burst from the black folds of the teleportation and onto a scene of chaos. The fighting was still going strong. The air stunk of ozone, burnt flesh, and the metallic tang of blood. Each seishi from both sides was stained with blood, sweat, and ash. Tamahome, Hotohori, Mitsukake, and Tasuki alternately attacked each of the Seiryuu seishi in pairs. Nuriko was the only one fighting the beast man. Chiaki was amazed at the power of his strength; the ... thing he fought was much more muscular, taller, more massive.

            The beast man drew back a huge clawed paw and, almost as if in slow motion, plunged it into Nuriko's chest, lifting him high above his head with a victorious roar. Nuriko's blood poured down his arm, and speckled the snow.

            "NURIKO!" Chiaki screamed, tumbling forward.