Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho or any of its characters. I do however own Kythe.

A/N: Well this is chapter three for The Tenken! Once again I'd like to thank Crystal Koneko for reviewing the story as well as Lexi-Teniro and Kenshin44 and carrie hinojosa.

Anyway, I figure it's about time that the group meets the Tenken don't you? So without further..waiting, for lack of a better word, here it is!

Disclaimer: Well I still don't own Yu Yu Hakusho, any of its characters, or the name Tenken from Rurouni Kenshin. I do however own Kythe.

Ch.3- The Tenken

It wasn't until they were about ten kilometers away from the source of blood and guts that Yukina started moving back towards Hiei.

"Hiei?" she asked.

"Please don't ask me again Yukina, I'm still trying to cope with myself and the truth."

She shook her head, "No it's not that. What do I do when you guys are fighting? Do I stay with you? Or do I hide somewhere?"

As she said this, Hiei noticed that she was genuinely scared. To be honest, he hadn't really thought about it…considering the circumstances.

"You just stay with me, alright?" She nodded thankfully with a bright smile.

Hiei couldn't help but grin. Ever since Yukina had found out that Hiei was her brother, she had caused many different emotions to be unleashed, happiness, care, and worry. He was becoming soft, and that scared him. What if Yukina was in trouble and he had to give up because he actually cared for her. He didn't know if he could do it, he had never given up in a battle, ever.

Now coming to within hearing distance of the "source" they heard screams and shouts of pain and agony and fear. They were blood-chilling screams that were muffled as their owners' throats filled with the life giving substance. A minute later, the first body was found. And that was all it was, a body, no limbs, no head, just a stump of flesh.

Said head was a good ten meters further up the path the Tentei was taking. Yukina and Botan cringed as they saw it. Hiei heard both Botan and Yukina swallow in disgusted agony.

Yusuke and Kurama remained impassive and Hiei…well hell, he was Hiei.

Steadily the body count of dead demons increased. No one body was complete, at least each one missing a limb while some…well let's just say it wasn't very pretty.

Closer and closer they came, each noticing the thinning of trees, signifying the coming of a clearing. The closer they came, the darker and more like blood the sky became until they could taste the blood in their mouths.

"You know, all of a sudden I'm regretting coming with you guys on this mission." muttered Botan in a really shaky voice.

"Hn." Was all Hiei said before he allowed himself to move a few steps closer toward her. She didn't notice, nor did anybody else for that matter. Thank god! He thought, I really am going soft.

Unbeknownst to Hiei, Kurama was smirking evilly. He concentrated a little before he opened a mental link to Hiei.

So Hiei, are you, oh how should I put this? Uhh…growing attached to Botan?

Hiei's face barely even twitched.

Hn. So what if I am?

Kurama blinked. He had expected outright denial, not that response. So you are then?

As much as I hate to admit it fox, I've fallen for her…hard.

Kurama was stunned. It looked as if this conversation was going to turn to a counseling session, and he would have to be the therapist.

Well, when did this change of taste come about? He questioned.

Hn. At the end of the Dark Tournament…why?

Umm, no reason.

Kurama thought. He started again, How far do these "feelings" actually go Hiei? Do they actually go as far as lo…

Bite your tongue fox, or I'll take it out. Besides, shouldn't you be worried about your own personal life, with a certain baka's sister?

The link went dead.

Oh, damn I'm good! Hiei thought cockily. Even from his position behind him, Hiei could see the blush radiating from Kurama's cheeks.

Suddenly. A corpse flew threw the air. Said corpse no longer had a head nor did it have any of its limbs.

Botan screamed and grabbed a hold of Hiei.

Yukina screamed and grabbed a hold of Hiei.

Hiei's eyes widened in shock as he blushed.

Yukina he could handle, but Botan? This was just too much for the poor fire demon. He cleared his throat to catch the two females' attention. Yukina being his kin wasn't embarrassed. Botan however, was and, scared for her life, she quickly relinquished her grip from Hiei's neck, around which her arms had been.

"Uh...I…I'm sorry H-Hiei, I didn't mean…please don't hurt me!" she whimpered as she tripped over herself while trying to run from him, closing her eyes as she hit the ground.

Hiei looked at her for a minute, then over at Yusuke, Kurama, and Yukina who were all quietly creeping closer to the "source" and ignoring Botan and himself. He sighed and went over to the fallen fairy girl and bent down to her eye level, resting one knee on the ground.

"Hn, onna." Botan merely curled up into a protective ball.

He tried again, raising his voice, "Onna." Botan only curled into an even tighter ball.

Then, realization hit him. He lowered his voice to a soft, almost soothing whisper, "Onna." When he received no answer again, he continued, "Onna look at me." In response Botan squeezed her eyes shut tighter. When he received no answer yet again, he tried in an even softer voice, "Botan, look at me." It wasn't a request, it was an order. Botan however, still remained in her little protective ball. "Botan," Hiei whispered, "do I…do I really scare you that much?"

Still nothing.

He had never seen her like this, it was…scaring him, and he was worried.

"Please tell me Botan, please!"

Botan finally opened her eyes and looked at Hiei in surprise. He was actually pleading…with her no less, she couldn't believe it.

"Please tell me!" he pleaded again in an even more urgent whisper.

Shaking off her astonishment, Botan said, "Yes Hiei, you…you do scare me."

"Why?" The way he said it nearly caused Botan to feel guilty at saying that…almost.

"Do you want the truth?" she asked in a small voice. Hiei nodded. "Ever since I m-met you Hiei, I've t-tried to be n-nice to you, to b-befriend you," she whimpered, "But every time I tried you shunned me. And then when we were on missions and I get captured I'm always so scared." There were tears forming in her eyes now.

"But then you save me, and all I want to do is thank you and praise you for saving my life. But then you say that you only did it so Koenma won't put you in prison, and that…and that it w-wouldn't m-matter to you if I was alive or dead. And after that, my whole world just shatters to p-pieces!" With that she burst into silent, heart-wrenching sobs.

Hiei stared at Botan in astonishment. Everything he'd done, everything she'd said had been true. Had he really done that much damage to her? Apparently he had. And now Hiei felt moisture start to form in his eyes.

He had never realized how much it had affected her. And as he stared at her now, watching her sob silently, he wanted to ease her pain, to soothe her aching heart. He wanted to comfort her and he wanted to stay with her and be by her side until they were both gone from this world.

He started to move towards Botan, but then stopped. At first he had been going to comfort her, but another thought crossed his mind.

What if she hated him for what he had done to her? What if she just slapped him away? He didn't think he could handle rejection, not now, he was too vulnerable and with all these new emotions rushing through him, he might not be able to continue on.

He was now experiencing one emotion that had been absent from his life since his very, very early childhood. An emotion that he never knew he possessed, but always knew existed.

It was the emotion he felt every time Botan was captured, every time she was injured, and every time she wasn't within his line of sight. The only other person who this emotion ever came out for was Yukina he suddenly realized. When she was hostage under the Toguro brothers. When they had made her cry. The emotion he had thought dead in him since he was dubbed the Forbidden Child.

He, Hiei Jaganashi, was afraid.

He was afraid of what might happen to Botan on this mission. He was afraid of what might happen to Yukina on this mission. But most of all, he was afraid of how Botan was going to react to him now.

Would she hate him? Would she accept him? There was only one way to find out.

Slowly, and cautiously, he got up, went up to Botan and gently wrapped his arms around her huddled form.

Botan tensed. The arms that had just encircled her seemed so familiar. And they felt so…right wrapped around her right now. She opened her eyes, and stopped breathing. The arms that were holding her, the arms that had saved her from many a perverted and power hungry demons, those arms belonged to Hiei Jaganashi, to the one who had stolen her heart from the first time their eyes had met.

"H-Hiei!" she gasped in stunned shock.

"Botan…I…I'm so sorry! I never realized what I was doing to you…I-I was so stupid…I'm s-sorry!" he whispered while fighting a stutter.

Then he did the most unexpected thing he could have ever done. He started crying.

It wasn't a sobbing crying; it was a very soft, very sincere, very simple crying.

Botan couldn't believe it. Hiei, the supposedly unbreakable, unemotionally withdrawn warrior was crying. There were soft thumps as the tear gems, his tear gems, hit the floor colored a startlingly obsidian black.

'Oh Hiei!' Botan thought.

Carefully, so as not to surprise or scare him, she put her arms around Hiei's shoulders and returned his hug. Hiei tensed slightly, but shook it of and started crying into Botan's shoulder.

She tightened her grip on him as she realized just how bad an emotionally unstable condition Hiei would have to be in to be reduced to tears.

"Shh..Hiei, it's alright. It's alright, I'm here for you, just let it all out." Hiei did as he was told.

Unbeknownst to them, the, the other three in the group had entered the clearing and were looking for the "source".

Hiei stopped crying a little while later. He lifted his head and looked Botan right in the eyes. He melted into the vibrant pink pools. Botan was likewise staring into Hiei's crimson orbs.

Neither of them realized they were alone. Neither of them realized the rest of the group was ahead of them. And neither of them cared.

They were entranced by each other's eyes, and slowly and unknowingly moving closer to the other.

"Botan?" Hiei whispered.

"Yes Hiei?" she replied. Their faces were inches from each other's.

"I'm s-sorry for everything."

Botan smiled softly, "I know Hiei, and it's alright."

"Botan?" Hiei said again.

"Yes Hiei?" she asked. Now only mere millimeters separated their lips.

"I l-love you."

"I know Hiei, I can see that in your eyes. And you know what?" Hiei's heart stopped.

"I love you too."

With that their lips met closing the almost nonexistent gap between them.

The kiss was soft, heartfelt, and full of love. They were lost in their own little world. The only thing that mattered at that moment, or existed for that matter, was the other.

Because of this, neither of them noticed the silver haired, blue and black clad figure behind them.

"Excuse me if I'm interrupting anything." He said loudly.

Botan and Hiei broke apart like a shot, but before Hiei could even blink, all he saw was darkness. Botan screamed. The man, no, teenager in front of her wore an empty smile.

"W-who are y…?" Botan asked in petrified terror, trying to back away from the stranger and drag Hiei with her at the same time.

However, she was cut off before she finished her sentence, he had hit her over the back of the head with the hilt of his katana.

She hit the ground.

"I'm the Tenken." He said, his emotionless smile never wavering.

A/N: Well, there's chapter three! I hope you like it. Anyway, as always R&R please. Once again, thanks to all those who reviewed the other chapters!

'Til next time, laterz!