Hey what up, peeps? Sorry for the delay…had to finish my Sibika, language, visual diary and book report. That and I was too busy staring at a black and white spiral to test how receptive I am to hypnosis. I then had to do a project on a volcano and the drifting continents. I thank the people who reviewed this and my one-shot… yeah, and if you're wondering about what SeiTai means its Seiten Taisen. Have fun read this 'cause it's going to be long and…it's the last chapter…T-T
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Recap:
'I heard that, Otouto, I'm—I quote—"Getting my ass off Satan's territory" and helping you now…' Hao thought-spoke in Aridas' mind. Aridas cursed thoughts as he and Hakkai blocked Kage's attack. Hakkai and Hao chuckled a bit because of this. Aridas then started attacking Kage.
A few 10 minutes later Aridas was caught off-guard by Kage. Kage quickly oversouled Shruikan into his sword and went into quick attacking stance.
"This is it for you, Kairudo!" Kage said quickly dashing forward to Aridas.
"ARIDAS!" they yelled. With that, Kage strikes with his sword, blood spurting everywhere. This caught everyone off-guard because the blood spurting everywhere wasn't Aridas' but…
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Same Ground Ch. 13
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It was Yoh's blood. Aridas stared in horror. Yoh had stepped in to take the blow. What was surprising was that Yoh had stabbed Kage at the same time. He became transparent and then disappeared.
Aridas panted hard and looked at Hao with a serious look, making him run to his brothers. Aridas gestured at Yoh as Hao quickly took Yoh by the shoulders. Aridas gripped the sword hard.
This may hurt a bit, my brother, Aridas said as he slowly took the sword out of Yoh, with blood gushing out of the wound, and threw it away. Yoh flinched hard and whimpered as Hao pushed him down, preventing him from making any sudden movements. More blood gushed out of the wound. Soon Hao and Yoh were under a puddle of blood.
Yoh was panting short and fast. Hakkai, through Aridas, checked Yoh's pulse. Yoh's companions rushed to the trio.
"How is he?" They asked. They had a terrible feeling that they already knew.
"It's not looking very good. His pulse is faint" Amidamaru said as Yoh's pants became shorter and faster. Yoh tried to look up but did not have the strength to.
"A…Ani…Aniki…Pu…sh…m-my…h…hea…head…u-up…" Yoh said weakly. Hao slowly pushed Yoh's head up so that everybody could see his face.
"You guys…this is…pro-probably t…the l…last ti-time… I-I'll b…be seeing…y…you…" Yoh said, his pulse fading fast. He directed his eyes at Hao.
"Ani…Aniki…P-promise… m…me…T-take…c…c-care…of-of…A-Anna…" he said hoarsely. Hao gripped Yoh's hand gently.
"I promise I will take care of her, Otouto," Hao said, letting go of his hand, slowly putting him down. Yoh looked at Aridas.
"A…Ari…Aridas…" Yoh barely managed to say.
I will, Yoh, it's a sure thing, Aridas said, grinning sadly. Yoh smiled happily as his brother finally called him by his name.
Hao slowly stood up and walked away, clenching his hand into a fist. Yoh suddenly clutched Aridas' hand. He inhaled deeply, a rattling breath that sent unholy chills up everyone's spine. Then he breathed out…and his hand went limp.
A sharp pain went through Hao's heart. He turned around to see Yoh's lifeless body; a smile on his face as well as a peaceful expression. Tears filled his eyes and he fell to his knees as Len, Horo, Lyserg, Choco, Rio, Silva, Faust, and Jun and Pai-long looked away, Amidamaru bowed his head and Goku closed his eyes and made the sign of the cross as if to say 'may you rest in peace.'
"Yoh!"
It was Morty, Anna and Ianna. Hao watched as the itako rushed forward. She stopped short as she saw Yoh looking as peaceful as before—only covered in blood.
Aridas stood up and stepped toward Anna. Hao could see there were tears in his eyes as well. Yoh… I was about to be stabbed by Kage but Yoh took the hit…they killed each other…this wasn't supposed to happen… Aridas said closing his eyes and sheathing his sword quickly.
Tears welled up in Anna's eyes as she burst into tears and hugged the nearest person next to her, which was Hao.Everyone looked at them (A/N: wouldn't you?). Ianna went up to Aridas and put her hand on his shoulder.
"It was supposed to happen. He not only saved your life, but everyone's lives. Aridas, he saved the world again," Ianna said. Aridas smiled and hugged Ianna, for he knew his fiancée was right. Suddenly lights came down from above, covering them. Then, animals and ancient creatures came down from them.
"What is this?" Len questioned looking at Aridas but apparently he looked up at the lights with a blank look. Len then looked at Hao, who also looked up with a blank look.
"Ianna, what's wrong with them?" Len asked.
"I don't know…" Ianna answered.
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Aridas and Hao suddenly found themselves in a bright, unknown place. They were looking around when a brown eagle flew around them in a large, high perimeter. The eagle slowed down in circling them and dove right at them. The eagle stopped for a second and landed slowly in front of the two brothers, flapping it's wings. When the eagle touched the ground, a white light covered it, making the two brothers put their arms up to cover themselves from the blinding light. When the light had disappeared, Aridas and Hao put their arms down and got a shock. Where the eagle should've been was instead Yoh, dressed in a long-sleeved white robe and hanging from his neck was an eagle totem. His headphones that used to be on his head were now replaced by a crown of brown feathers. He stood before them, looking serious at one moment, but smiled sheepishly soon after.
"Hello, my brothers," Yoh greeted them.
"Yoh! You're alright!" They replied at the same time even more surprised.
"Well…not really…I'm still dead if you're thinking that I'm alive…" The shaman said, putting his hand behind his back and laughing a bit but stopped soon after with a serious look.
"Now I know what you guys are thinking: 'why am I here?' Well, I'm here just to let you know that the mountains you and the rest are on will crumble into a million pieces when I leave you, so take the others and leave as fast as possible." Yoh said.
But what happened to that brown eagle? OWW! Aridas yelled as Hao 'accidentally' stepped on his tail.
"The brown eagle you are talking about is me. My totemic animal is an eagle, just as Aridas' totemic animal is a wolf. Hao's totemic animal is…uhh…umm…err…chotto matte…Oi, Onka, help me out here. What's Hao's totemic animal?" Yoh asked aloud. A man appeared, wearing the same thing Yoh was only a jaguar totem was hanging around the neck and his head was that of a black jaguar's.
"A dragon, the totemic animal of this one is, I believe that, young Asakura," the jaguar man whom Yoh called Onka said, bowing to Yoh.
"Arigato gosaimasu, Onka, please step aside," Yoh said. Onka frowned.
"Hurry up you must, young Asakura, little time we have left for talking," Onka said before stepping aside.
"Sou…as I was saying…" Yoh began.
"OWW! Okay, who hit me on the head?" Hao yelled, rubbing his head.
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"Oops, I guess we should've put them to one side before fighting…" Goku said, blocking a white tornado that came from Qingmaru. He, his brother, Morzan, Dominique and Arget ambushed the team after they took the three Asakuras from the plateau. Goku was fighting Qingmaru, Len fighting Shinmaru, Ianna fighting Morzan, Silva fighting Dominique and Horo fighting Arget. Unfortunately, when they had ambushed them, Qingmaru threw a rock supposedly at Goku, but instead hit the blanked out Hao.
"That's it, they're comin' off now! Gojyo, out of the Shakujou!" Goku said, Gojyo whizzing out of the weapon and the weapon disappearing itself. Goku murmured something and, using Nyoibou, jumped very high into the air. Then, Goku stood on the shoulder of a very giant Kouki. Anna stood where she was, dumbfounded.
"What the…How did he…" Anna stuttered. Then, Hakkai appeared in front of her, making Morty scream out: he was right beside her.
"Gomen, Morty-san…let me to explain, Anna-san. You see…" Hakkai began.
"Wait, wait, and wait. Who are you?" Anna asked.
"Anou…gomen, Anna-san, allow me to introduce myself now. I am Cho Hakkai, one of Goku's guardians." Hakkai said bowing to her.
"Ah, I see…You may continue your explanation, Hakkai," Anna said nodding.
"Arigatou, Anna-san…As I was saying, Goku was able to do this because he defeated your shikigami while you were under the influence of the talisman Kage slipped inside you. Len should be able to do that as well, seeing as he's about to do the same thing Goku did. Oh, there he goes…" Hakkai said as Len summoned Zenki, super-sized. Goku wasn't having his good luck times, though. Qingmaru summoned his giant oversoul, which was a huge white tiger. Qingmaru's giant oversoul knocked Goku and Kouki down.
"Anou…looks like Goku's having a hard time…" Hakkai said as Sanzo appeared beside Hakkai, making Morty faint. Sanzo, unfortunately, wasn't having his good times either.
"That bakasaru…doesn't he know he CAN'T control shikigami since…" Sanzo began.
"Now, now, Sanzo, no need to mention that here…Besides, he can summon the thing on his own without the influence of your safety," Hakkai said, trying to calm Sanzo down.
"I never told you or anyone before this, Hakkai, but…" Sanzo said, a vein popping out every second Hakkai was wasting with him.
"Hai, Sanzo? What is it you are going to tell me?" Hakkai asked.
"Hakkai, you NEED to get A LIFE." Sanzo said, the Shoureiju in his hand and more veins popping out.
"Ah, gomenasai, Sanzo, but as you can see, I have no life. I'm a ghost," Hakkai said laughing a bit.
"I mean it, Hakkai. GET A NEW LIFE." Sanzo said, aiming the Shoureiju at Hakkai's head.
"Ma, ma, Sanzo, I'll stop the jokes…well, would you look at that…" Hakkai said sweat dropping. Sanzo, Anna and Morty (Who recovered) looked at the direction Hakkai was looking at. Qingmaru destroyed Kouki but, luckily, Goku merged something with his Nyoibou and then with his golden diadem. A bright light appeared under Goku and something that looked like Goku, only it had green armor, white cape, blue pants with a red 'thing' covering at bit of the top; his eyes were slit, a halo was at its back, and it wielded a staff much similar to Goku's, only gold. Oh, yeah, and it was a bit taller than the Spirit of Fire.
"Oh my god. It's him…It's really him…" Gojyo murmured.
"Hiya, SeiTai! How long has it been?" Goku asked the…thing he stood on. It only growled dully in reply.
"I know I didn't set you out that time, but Sanzo wouldn't let me…" Goku said smiling sadly as everyone made an anime fall.
"How can that idiot monkey talk to that 'thing' he's standing on?" Len questioned quite loudly.
"Well, as they say," Sanzo said.
"Monkeys will always be monkeys!" Gojyo and Sanzo said at the same time.
"For the 500th time, I'm not a monkey!" Goku yelled as the…thing Goku called SeiTai growled at them as if to say the same thing Goku said. Qingmaru attacked Goku but his giant oversoul was more than a step ahead of him and disappeared out of everyone's sight.
"Whoa, How'd he disappear like that!" Horo asked out loud blocking a fire attack from Arget.
"I've got to learn how he does that…" Len said sighing as he jumped up to evade Shinmaru's attack. Sanzo heard this even though they were far and disappeared from where he was floating. He later then appeared beside Horo, surprising him.
"First thing's first: he didn't disappear, you baka Ainu," Sanzo said blankly.
"I think you need to get glasses, you baldie monk, because he disappeared. I saw it with my own eyes and I was closer to the saru ("I'm not a monkey!" Goku yelled.) than you!" Horo said.
"Anou…Anna-san, did Horo-san just stand up to Sanzo?" Hakkai asked the itako.
"From the sound of it, yeah, I think he just did." Anna replied.
"Anou…Looks like Horo-san is going to get it now…" Hakkai said the same smile plastered to his face.
"Horo's going to get what, Hakkai? Oh, and please stop smiling, it's scaring me…" Morty asked as Hakkai still smiled, making Morty shift uncomfortably.
"Anou…you'll see, Morty san. And gomenasai, I can't stop smiling," Hakkai said slightly laughing.
"Believe me, short-stuff, you don't want him frowning, it's not nice," Gojyo said crouching because of Morty's height.
"It's MORTY, you red-haired cockroach!" Morty screamed. Then, a large sound of a bang was heard. Apparently, Sanzo tried to shoot Horo with his Shoureiju but 'missed' by an inch.
"DON'T YOU EVER CALL ME THAT OR YOU'LL REALLY GET IT! And besides, Goku and his oversoul didn't disappear. It just moved fast. And if you don't believe me see for yourself," Sanzo explained. Then Qingmaru's oversoul disappeared quickly as he fell down. A blur appeared behind the place Qingmaru's oversoul was and then was replaced by SeiTai.
"Score another one for Son Goku and SeiTai!" Goku said making a victory pose. SeiTai, on the other hand, wasn't done yet. He looked down on the tiny (A/N: to him, at least) shaman and stepped on him. When SeiTai removed his foot, Qingmaru was no more than little pieces of dust. SeiTai smirked and then disappeared. Goku landed in front of Hakkai without a scratch with a gold orb with pointed ears and long hair at his side; SeiTai in orb mode.
"Tada! I did it Hakkai!" Goku said happily. The orb growled in annoyance.
"Sorry, SeiTai…we did it Hakkai…but you didn't have to do that, you know…" Goku said unenthusiastically. The orb did a series of growls that only Goku could understand.
"Uh-huh…Sou…okay then!" Goku said happily as he put his hand in the air with SeiTai in it. Hakkai and Gojyo got a bit wary.
"Oi, bakasaru, are you sure you're going to do this? The last time that happened, you went ballistic on everything you saw!" Gojyo asked.
"Of course I know what I'm doing, you ero kappa! SeiTai, Hyoi Gattai!" Goku said as he pushed SeiTai into himself. Sanzo stopped trying to shoot at Horo (He continued because Horo had continued to call him baldie) and looked at where Goku was.
"Did that bakasaru just…GOKU STOP THAT INTEGRATION!" Sanzo yelled but it was too late. Goku's diadem flinged from his head and on the palm of Anna's hands. Goku's ears, hair, teeth and nails grew longer as his eyes became slit.
"Great, the monkey's gone and done it…we're all DOOMED…" Gojyo said.
"Sou, it looks like Seiten Taisen has his body back…" Hakkai added, still smiling.
"Wait. Goku called his ghost SeiTai, not Seiten Taisen." Morty reminded.
Yes, he did, but that was the pet name that little bakasaru gave him, a voice said. Seiten Taisen and the rest looked to the side and saw Aridas, his blade held erect.
"Thank god he's alive…" Ianna murmured as she made Morzan meet the same fate Qingmaru had and, no sooner than that, Shinmaru and Dominique met the same fate as well. Now that Arget was the only one left he quickly blasted another fire attack at Horo and flew away.
Now everybody had their eyes on Aridas and Seiten Taisen, who were standing there, looking at each other deadly. After a few minutes, Aridas sheathed his sword and stretched his hand out to the vicious looking… demon as he looked at his hand. He stared at it for quite a while before taking it and shaking hands with him, making the people who knew him surprised.
I'm glad you surrendered, young Seiten Taisen. You've grown spiritually since the last time I met you, Aridas said letting go of the vigorous handshake.
"What can I say; I had no choice but to surrender. My young master told me to," Seiten Taisen replied, his voice much like Goku's but much hoarse.
"Haha, now there's a real joke! A great sage like you taking orders from a monkey like Goku? My, my, Seiten Taisen, you've lost your sense of bloodlust!" Sanzo said. Seiten Taisen turned to Sanzo.
"Oh, please, 'Genjo Sanzo houshi-sama,' I haven't lost my sense of bloodlust. It's my young master's hunger that's keeping me from thinking of bloodlust," The sage retorted.
"Uhh, just to remind you, Aridas, we need to get going," Hao said, surprising everybody but Seiten Taisen and Aridas. Then, the mountain started to shift. A huge chunk of the top blew off and sent large debris everywhere. Aridas quickly took Yoh's dead body as Griffyn prepared to take off. Everybody quickly climbed onto his back as he took off without warning. They looked at the island (A/N: yes, an island, I forgot to tell you) which was now going up in smoke.
I'm glad we made it out of that island, Aridas sighed in sad joy.
"You don't seem to glad, though," Hao said trying his best to comfort his brother.
Believe me, Aniki, I am… Aridas said as they soared higher into the sky.
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Aridas, Hao, Ianna, Anna, Morty, Amidamaru and Goku stood on top of Funbari hill as their ghosts floated beside their masters. It had been nearly a year since Yoh's death and burial and everything seemed normal. Len went back to china as he had business with his family, Horo and Pirika went back to Hokkaido for the same thing and the rest went back to where they came from. Goku decided to stay wherever Aridas stayed and gladly Anna agreed to let he and his team of youkai (well sort of) guardians stay at her place. Hao placed a white and red rose on Yoh's grave.
"He was a good kid, Yoh Asakura. Even if I only did learn about him from Kage-sama I felt like I knew him more than that somehow," Goku said.
"Ch. I don't see why you people have to do this every single week," Sanzo scoffed. At that moment Anna tied her beads around Sanzo.
"Say that again or I'll…" she began.
"Or you'll what? You can't do anything to me. Not without Yoh by your side. I've observed you for the past few months, Kyoyama, and ever since your fiancée died you do nothing but cry and try to be with him!" Sanzo yelled at her. Tears started to come out of her eyes for she knew that the monk was right. She tried hard to keep the tears from coming but failed miserably and cried on Hao, making the beads fall down to the ground. Sanzo's face softened a bit.
"What I'm trying to say is that you have to let go," Sanzo said calmly.
In other words, your way of life, Aridas trailed off.
"His way of what?" Hao asked trying to comfort the crying itako. Aridas sighed and closed his eyes.
'Those who kill, should expect to be killed.'
'It is Karma that will see to that.'
'You cannot change anything by dying,'
'For the gods do not save anyone'
'If you meet Buddha, kill him
If you meet the father, kill him
Beholden to no one
Live only for yourself'
'For the only side I'm on is my own.' Am I correct, Koryu? Aridas recited.
"For not much the pleasure, yes, you are correct. But know this Aridas; that way of life should not only be mine but it should be everyone around here." Sanzo said blankly.
"Well you don't rule everyone, Genjo Sanzo houshi-sama…" Seiten Taisen whispered to himself.
"What was that, great sage?" Sanzo asked pointing his Shoureiju at his head.
"Uhh…My young master told me to do so!" Seiten Taisen said pointing to Goku.
"Nani? SeiTai…" Goku whined.
"Don't call me by that name! Even if you are my master you still have no right to call me that!" the sage retorted. Minutes later the Saiyuki gang started to fight.
"Uhh…Ianna.?" Morty asked.
"What do you want, Shorty?" Ianna snapped.
"Uhh…do they always do this?" Morty asked, ignoring the fact that Ianna called him Shorty.
"Yeah, they always do this. And after 500 years, you can easily get used to it," Ianna said walking down the hill. Hao took Anna back to the Onsen as Aridas looked up to the sky. Wind rushed past his face.
Sigh…Yoh…it seems that you left too soon…Anna needs you more that ever… Aridas said as he quickly changed into a wolf and raced down the hill.
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Author's notes: I told you it was long…probably the longest chapter I've done…there will gladly be an epilogue and I'm still wondering if anyone wants a sequel because I'm already thinking up of one… I thank OtakuNekoGirl and all the other people who read this fic or put me or my stories in their favorite's list. Don't forget to review!
-LazyShamaness