Disclaimer: We don't own Zaraya or Yakusoku.

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Chapter Ten: Blood and Bones

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"Be careful, Kuwabara!" Yusuke called, "We don't want you getting killed this early in the Tournament!"

"Shut up, Urameshi! I can handle this on my own!" Kuwabara's opponent smiled.

"It's so nice to have team members that worry about you," he said, smiling, "Let's make a formal introduction before we start fighting." He held out his hand. "Yakusoku Jag."

"Kazuma Kuwabara," Kuwabara said, shaking Yakusoku's hand.

"Oh, look, they've become friends," Frogari said, sarcastically, "Less of this 'friendship' stuff and more blood!"

"The frog's right," Yakusoku said, "Tell you what, since I'm feeling generous today, why don't you go first?" Kuwabara grinned.

"You're going to regret that! SPIRIT SWORD!" The familiar sword of yellow Spirit Energy flared into life in his hand, and he moved into a fighting stance, prepared for attack. Yakusoku smirked.

"'Spirit Sword', huh? Interesting..."

"Less talk, MORE BLOOD!" Frogari yelled into his microphone.

"SHUT UP!" Yakusoku yelled at him, "YOU'RE COMPLETELY RUINING THE DRAMATIC TENSION!"

"Yes, Frogari, you don't have to keep insisting for blood," Faye said, "I'm sure you'll get it soon enough." Frogari sulked and was quiet. Yakusoku sighed impatiently.

"He's right. We should get on with it." He gripped his right wrist with his left hand. "Here's an attack I'm sure you'll find very familiar." Raising his hands, he moved his right index finger and thumb into a gun-shape and smirked.

"No way," Yusuke gasped, "That's---"

"SPIRIT GUN!" Kuwabara's eyes widened as an orb of energy was shot at him, black instead of Yusuke's blue. He twirled his Spirit Sword and deflected it off into the trees, where it left a ruin of wood in its wake.

Yusuke's jaw was hanging open.

"That's my attack," he whispered, dumbfounded, "How did he---but---it's mine..."

"Don't like the attack?" Yakusoku asked, cocking his head, "I find it highly amusing."

"Laugh at THIS!" Kuwabara rushed the demon, Spirit Sword at the ready. Yakusoku leapt back, but the sword grazed his stomach, ripping through his clothing and flesh and spraying blood in all directions.

"Now THAT'S what I'm talking about!" Frogari exclaimed.

"All right! GO KUWABARA!" Yusuke yelled, "YOU CAN BEAT HIM!"

Yakusoku threw one hand over his stomach protectively, glaring at Kuwabara.

"Not bad for a human," he spat, "Let's take this up a notch." Moving his spare hand up to his forehead, he ripped off his green bandana and let it fly off in the wind. On his forehead, an orange eye began to open.

"WOAH!" Kuwabara exclaimed, "You've got a third eye just like the shrimp!"

"Yes," Yakusoku said, "But unlike him, mine is natural. I was born with it." Hiei glared at him, and his own Jagan flared briefly beneath his bandana.

Yakusoku laughed and removed his now blood-soaked arm from his chest. He flung his arm out and opened his hand, fingers curled apprehensively. Black spots began to dance around him, gathering in his out-stretched hand.

"That's a lot of power," Yusuke stated, staring.

"BLACK SPIRIT SCYTHE!" The black spots molded together, and now he was holding a scythe in his hand. He moved his left hand onto it as well.

"Shall we fight?" he asked. Kuwabara responded by charging him, which Yakusoku easily blocked. The two fought intensely; blocking, attacking, and blocking again. Yakusoku was really good at dodging and attacking, so Kuwabara was hard pressed. Eventually, however, Yakusoku penetrated Kuwabara's defenses and slashed the human across the chest. Kuwabara gave a roar of pain and his Spirit Sword flickered into nothing.

"More blood!" Frogari exclaimed, "This just keeps getting better and better!" Now both of them were bleeding; Kuwabara more than Yakusoku. Yakusoku smiled.

"There. We're evenly matched now, wouldn't you say?"

"That's what you think," Kuwabara growled, and his Spirit Sword flickered back into existence.

"Of course," Yakusoku continued, "I don't like it that way. I prefer to have my matches go quickly---so let's hurry up and end this."

"I'm with you on that," Kuwabara said, and held his sword at the ready, expecting another attack.

It never came.

Yakusoku began twirling his weapon in a slow figure eight, chanting something in a different language. His figure eight grew faster and faster until it was just a black and silver blur. Kuwabara watched this until a wave of power hit him.

:That's...a lot...of power...:

"Where's it all coming from?" Arashi asked.

"It's the dead," Kurama said. Yusuke and Arashi looked at him, confused.

"The dead?"

"Think about it. This field is where those who died in the past Tournaments are buried. That scythe has the ability to raise the dead and control them."

"But can he control how many dead he pulls up?" Hiei asked, "I don't think so."

"We'll just have to wait and see," Kurama finished. Yusuke and Arashi exchanged a look before turning back to the match as well.

Yakusoku's scythe was twirling at an immense speed, and his chant had grown faster, too. With a sudden jerk of power, he stopped and thrust his schythe into the ground.

"GUARDIAN SUMMON OF THE SPIRIT SET!!!" The power reached its peak, and everyone prepared themselves for the worst.

But nothing came.

Yakusoku looked confused.

"Well, that's a bummer!" Faye exclaimed, "And here we were, expecting some great power show, and nothing came!" Yakusoku removed his scythe from the ground and prepared to try again. Just as he opened his mouth, there was a tremor in the ground. As it ended, there was a sudden burst of power and several things popped up out of the ground. On a closer look, they turned out to be bones--bones that pushed their way out of the ground.

Arashi screamed and clung to Hiei as green-glowing demon skeletons materalized on the field.

But more than one voice screamed along with hers.

***

"Hey, Kozu?"

"Uh huh?"

"I thought you said you didn't have a light."

"I don't."

"Really?"

"Uh huh!"

"...then what's that green light I'm seeing?" Kozu opened her eyes and sure enough, their prison was lit up by a green light. Niyali was staring intently at her, fear written plainly across her face.

"I don't know," Kozu said, "But it's not me..."

"...then...what is it?" There was a nervous silence. Suddenly, the earth shook around and under them. Dirt fell from the 'walls' and above them, and they were soon covered in more dirt, and sitting in a good three inches of it. Niyali began to cough again as she inhaled some. Yet the glow had not subsided; rather, it had grown in intensity. And then a pale, boney hand thrust itself through the floor right between the two girls.

Shock registered itself first, and they stared dumbly at it, ignoring the other various bones that were coming through the walls around them. It was when the first skeleton had completely materialized that what had just happened got through to their senses.

Simultaneously, the two of them screamed.

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Arashi's up in Canada...or she WAS, when I first posted this...but she's not now, so leave a review and be happy!