Hi ya!

Sorry for the late update! I'll get straight to the point. I'm placing the reviews at the bottom of the story this time, so ppl. who don't want to read them can just stop after the story is done. Alright, I'm not in a talkative mood right now (big surprise to all my friends) so here ya go!

I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho; I only own the evil imagination that caused me to write such a story.

(enter text) Thoughts If ya don't 'member ;P

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The Final Battle

(q/n: In reference to my first chappie, this is where things start to sway slightly more from the actual show/magna. I added a detail toward the end that I have already been told is very kawaii. Enjoy!)

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(Almost there) Hiei thought as he ran through the forest. He couldn't understand why Karasu didn't hide his energy this time, but he wasn't complaining; it just made it easier to find them without using his Jagan.

With Kurama's nearly finished potion safely stowed away in his cloak pocket, he ran into the heart of the forest. (Where are they? They should be right here.)

Instinctively, he looked up and almost fell backwards.

(Kurama!)

The fox was hanging in a tangle of vines in tree canopy, with one thorny branch tightly around his neck.

Hiei quickly unsheathed his sword and jumped up the tree. In three slashes, the vines broke away and Hiei grabbed Kurama, laying him carefully on the ground.

(No, no, no, this can't happen!) Hiei thought frantically. "Kurama, wake up!"

Kurama's neck was covered in puncture wounds from the vines' thorns and they were all bleeding badly.

Hiei took his white scarf and carefully wrapped it around the fox's neck, tying it tightly to stop

"Hiei!" The fire demon didn't even look up as Koenma and Yusuke ran up behind him.

"How is -oh no." Koenma was in his teenage form as he knelt next to the ghost-white fox spirit. "We need to get him out of here before Karasu comes back."

"Too late," Yusuke growled as Karasu appeared in front of them.

"Now why are you always ruining my fun?" The crow pretended to pout in a mocking sort of manner.

"FUN! YOU CALL THIS FUN?" Yusuke yelled. He was completely shocked and disgusted at Karasu.

Koenma looked at his spirit detective, "Yusuke, you know from the Dark Tournament that Karasu kills everyone that he feels affection for. We have to get these puncture wounds taken care of before the blood fills his throat."

Yusuke seemed to hesitate, but he answered quietly. "All right, let's go."

"No."

Everyone looked at where the whispered croak had come from.

Kurama's eyes were barely open and his voice was badly slurred and sounded like a frog croaking. "He has my powers. He can not… be left with them, or he'll cause… even more damage."

Hiei looked at his pocket. "Kurama, I have your drink, but there were only eleven containers."

"There has to be twelve," Kurama said immediately, "Let me see it."

"Kurama, I really don't think you should be worried about a mixed drink right now," Koenma said as Hiei pulled the container out of his pocket.

"Shut up," Hiei hissed as he slowly helped Kurama sit up. He removed the seal and held it close to Kurama's nose.

"The rose," he said after a minute, "It's missing the rose extract."

(Of course.) Hiei sighed. (The one that it must have.)

Karasu suddenly started to laugh maliciously.

"And what's so funny?" Yusuke asked, not having budged from where he was guarding his injured friend.

Karasu smiled as he pulled a small vial out of his pocket. "Looking for this?" His smile grew wider as he saw Kurama tense. "Yes my sweet, you know what it is. I took it while I was picking you up from school."

Kurama suddenly fell into a fit of violent coughs, bringing up blood as he did.

Hiei placed Kurama on the ground so he lay on his side, then stood up to face Koenma

"Hold this, and don't you dare spill any of it," he ordered.

Koenma took the container as Hiei went up to Yusuke and whispered just loud enough for him to hear.

"We must get that vial. If we add the rose to the others and give it to Kurama, it will strengthen his control over the plants and he will be able to break Karasu's hold."

Yusuke nodded never taking an eye off of the crow. "Karasu, you will regret everything you've done." He pointed his finger at Karasu, "SHOT GUN!"

Karasu was immediately surrounded, but when the dust cleared, everyone saw that he had enclosed himself in a shield made of grass and shrubs to protect himself.

"He's already mastered Kurama's powers," Koenma whispered and flung around to Kurama as the fox went into another fit of bloody coughs.

(We have to finish this soon) Yusuke thought as he heard the painful coughs. Hiei suddenly appeared next to him and whispered something in his ear. Yusuke quickly nodded, then Hiei disappeared. Yusuke aimed his gun again, causing Karasu to laugh.

"Didn't we try this already? If you don't remember, it didn't work." Karasu mocked.

(There is only one flaw in Kurama's shields) Hiei had said (It's the instant when he is powering up to raise the shield. He is momentarily paralyzed due to deep concentration. Aim your gun again, and when he powers up, I will snatch the vial.)

"Well, I guess I'm just really thick-headed then," Yusuke growled as he powered up.

"You never learn boy," Karasu laughed as he too, powered up.

At that instant, Hiei appeared and knicked the vial from the crow's hand.

"NO!" Karasu yelled, breaking his concentration on the shield.

Yusuke saw this and fired, hitting Karasu square in the chest and sending him sailing across the clearing.

Hiei reappeared next to Koenma and Kurama, causing the Prince to jump.
"Give me the container," Hiei growled. Koenma immediately handed it to him.

Hiei uncorked the rose extract with his teeth, spitting it out as he poured the ingredient in with the rest. It turned pitch black as he guided the ashen fox carefully on his back. Kurama didn't even flinch as he was laid on his gashed back, and the cloth around his neck had completely bled through.

"Kurama, I have it. Kurama?" Hiei almost thought he was too late, until he saw the slight rising of his partner's chest.

Yusuke still kept a close eye on the knocked out Karasu across the clearing as Hiei lifted Kurama's upper torso until his head was resting on Hiei's shoulder. He opened Kurama's mouth slightly and poured a little of the liquid in, rubbing his throat to help it go down.

Kurama suddenly started to choke on the disgusting drink. Hiei heard Koenma give a sigh of relief, and he slowly fed him more until the beaker was empty. Kurama's breathing instantly started to quicken. He slowly opened his eyes to show their deep gold color.

Hiei raised an eyebrow at this. "Youko?" Kurama slowly looked up at him, then to the other end of the clearing.

Karasu had staggered to his feet and was looking straight at Kurama, no longer a look of fun in his eyes, only rage, and a little…fear? "You will not get away Kurama. You will be buried here, among your precious plants!" He released a few dozen bombs straight at the four detectives.

Koenma and Yusuke shielded their faces from the attack, but they suddenly felt a giant shield form around them. They opened their eyes to see a thick wall of vines between them and Karasu.

"Kurama?" Yusuke turned to look behind him.

Hiei was still holding Kurama up, but Kurama's eyes were glowing a bright gold.

The vines quickly shrank away and Kurama looked straight into Karasu's eyes.

"Sayonara Karasu," Youko's deep voice projected loud and clear, even with his throat badly slashed.

Karasu's eyes suddenly widened as a thick, thorny vine pierced his back and protruded through the front, straight through his heart. Karasu stood stunned for a minute, just staring at the golden eyes, then collapsed to the ground.

Yusuke didn't move at first, but when Kurama's energy suddenly plummeted, he spun around.

There was a blinding light, then Yusuke saw Hiei, sitting on the ground holding a small silver fox with four tails. "Kurama!" Yusuke ran to the fire demon and looked at the kitsune in Hiei's arms.

In his fox form, Kurama's wounds were much more visible against his beautiful silver fur, but almost every inch of it was drenched in crimson blood. The little fox panted heavily and buried its nose deep in the folds of Hiei's cloak as if to hide from the pain.

"I-is he alright?" Yusuke asked.

Koenma knelt next to Hiei and looked at the trembling fox. "Kurama is in very critical condition, but in this form we can heal him more easily and he will be able to get better faster than normal."

"I'll take him to Yukina," Hiei said, as he slowly stood, careful not to jar Kurama at all.

"We'll take Karasu back to the prison and make sure he doesn't get away again," Yusuke said.

Hiei nodded slightly as he disappeared.

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There's eight! Yay! We're inching closer and closer to the end.

Now, to trusty reviewers new and old:

SilentSheWolf: I was just kidding 'bout the whining thing, no need to scold yourself. I should probably bang my head for makin' it sound like I was mean. Bang head on wall.

KaraKurama: Thanx for agreeing with me! It's not often that ppl. do that. And thanx for sending me the Japanese word for rose, that will be very useful.

YamikiofAnime: Geez, you need to stop exploding or there won't be any of you left to read the next chapter. LOL. I hope you loved this chapter.

MikaSamu: Wow, that was deep. I like that explanation. Thanx for the review.

darksaphire: I know, I can be pretty predictable at times, but I was pretty nieve when I wrote the first chapter, so it didn't work out as planned. I hope you enjoyed the rest of the story.

Anishu: You know how these stories go; they always seem to have just enough blood left to live, no matter how much they lose. How I see Karasu; he is just a lunatic who likes to torture his prey until they die. I don't know if that's how he was meant to be, but that's how I see him. And thanx, I am having a blast!

And as always, thanx to Whatcallmyself for al your help! I thought you would like Koenma's little 'mixed-drink' joke.

Wow, 31 reviews and I get at least one new person every time! Thanx everyone! I'll be back as soon as I can with the next chappie

C ya when I c ya ;P

Kittyluv