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Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho. That includes any of the characters and/or settings. I do own Kiharu, daughterof Yomi.

Violet Haze
Chapter Four: Kiharu vs. Touya

Key:

Location

Thoughts

Noise

4:34 AM

Cavern Behind a Waterfall

Kiharu awoke stiffly the next morning at dawn, greeted by a cold gust of wind that chilled her face. She rose to her feet and stretched out to relieve the stiffness of her body. She looked outside. The sun had not yet risen and the sky was still dark, so she knew it was early in the morning.

She left the cavern she had sheltered in and leapt nimbly to the other side without getting wet from the cascading water. She kneeled down near the edge of the land she was on and peered into the water. She cupped her hands and placed them in the water; she nearly recoiled at how freezing the water felt. Kiharu brought her hands to her face and gave herself a good wake-up call. She shook the moisture off of her hands and rose to her feet.

The chilly air whipped her dark green mane about her face. Since it was so early, the tournament probably wouldn't be starting for quite some time.

Pity.

She'd have fancied a fight about then. Mornings were very dull if there was no bloodshed. Sadistic as it were, Kiharu almost wished to find a local squirrel and torture the thing to death, relishing its frantic thrashing and squeals as it faced a slow and merciless death. But no. Kiharu merely sat down and sighed.

Fighting was perhaps her only purpose in life. She was created by Yomi to serve as his heir. She was not intended to be of this world. She was manufactured. She had a functioning nervous system, allowing her to process thought and have reactions with the world around her. She even had a sort-of "heart" and even manmade feelings within her. Kiharu wasn't sure how it was possible, but Yomi had created both a mind and heart for her. However, there was something lacking.

Neither man nor demonkind could ever hope to make an artificial soul. Bluntly, Kiharu was merely a soulless body, animated by an unknown life force she had never questioned Yomi about. This unknown substance was what allowed her to "life" without having a soul. So on technical grounds, Kiharu did not necessarily have a place in this or any of the other worlds that existed.

Mankind and even demons wonder about the world surrounding them and their place in it. Kiharu even thought about these things, only to remember that she has no purpose. Kiharu's fist tensed up.

Splash

She pounded her tightened fist into the water, forming many ripples beneath it. Why did she have these thoughts? It shouldn't matter. The only thing that matters is fighting and winning. She gazed at her reflected image in the rippling water. Kiharu looked very much like Satan's daughter with her curved horns protruding from her forehead and her icy violet eyes.

Such a person must be destined to live in a life of blood and malice. The truth was, Kiharu found fighting to be the only reason she existed. Could that really be considered an existence? Fighting and killing seemed to be the only things that fate had in store for her. It came naturally to her, the need to finish off an opponent. It was a sad thing to think, but perhaps fighting was really the only choice she had. Her life couldn't have any more meaning than that. But there was another factor, one that counteracted the belief she only lived to fight.

Hiei . . .

Yes, the one called Hiei seemed to disprove the plausibility that blood was the only thing that Kiharu had in store for herself. There was something . . . bewildering about him. Kiharu could admit, though not to anyone but herself, that he was very handsome and possessed a great deal of power. Still, this feeling was so strange.

At first she believed she was only drawn to him by his immense power, but lately . . .

Damn him. I . . . I don't know what this is. It's . . . weird. When he's near me, I get uncomfortable and feel like slipping away. And I've found myself actually staring at him. And when we're having our little insult contests, I can't help but feel . . . light on the inside.

What is it about him? This feeling is so strange. I . . . I want to see him. I . . . I NEVER actually WANT to see anyone. But yet . . . I want to see him. I almost wish he was right here, right now . . .

Kiharu placed her hand over her heart.

My pulse quickens just thinking about him. And those eyes of his . . . it's almost as if they cast a spell on me. What could this be? What could it mean? . . . He is supposed to be my rival, yet this feeling doesn't seem to fit. Could it be . . . ?

Kiharu shook her head. She gave herself a slap to the face, though she didn't really feel it since the frigid gusts of wind had numbed her cheeks; the constant blowing gales caused her dark green hair to cover her eyes. She tucked her hair behind her ears and rose to her feet. It couldn't be. She knew it couldn't. This feeling . . . that couldn't be it.

"Do I . . ." she whispered to herself, " . . . do I actually love Hiei?"

No! Impossible!

She shook her head furiously. She couldn't love him. Hiei was a demon and she was . . . well, a demon as well, but not a real one. Kiharu . . . did she even exist? She was a soulless husk. She had no right to live. Someone without a soul could surely never love someone else, could they? But even if she did love him–Which I don't!–Hiei could not love her back. Hiei was even more unfeeling than she was. Kiharu at least had an artificial heart that could feel. Hiei's heart seemed to be frozen over. The only person he showed even a fragment of emotion to was . . .

So maybe that was it. Yes, now there stood two solid reasons why Hiei could not love her. Hiei was cold and apathetic. He would think love as something foolish and such a man could never understand such a complicated concept of emotion. But even if he could love, he perhaps already did.

Mukuro had made Hiei her heir, but didn't Yomi say there were rumors about them having sexual relations? Kiharu wondered if Mukuro and Hiei could possibly be mates. For all she knew, it was probably true. She had pondered about these rumors before, and was more or less sure that Hiei and Mukuro were lovers. But then again, she was probably just trying to tell herself that to prevent her own feelings from showing.

I don't love. I . . . I can't love. Especially not Hiei. No, I don't love him. Besides, even if I did, Hiei already loves Mukuro. And even if that isn't true, he'd never choose me as his mate. Who would fall in love with someone who didn't even have the right to exist? He may as well love a ghost, for I am merely a wandering spirit with a body, minus the spirit.

Kiharu felt a faint warmth approaching as the tormenting wind began to die down. She peered up in the sky to see the hazy yellow sun had just awakened, hanging high in the sky. Kiharu decided to leave and head to the Demon World arena. Today would be her first one-on-one fight and she'd hate to miss that.

Being very small, Kiharu had to force her way through the massive waves of other demons that were either going to fight in the tournament or merely serve as spectators. Oddly enough, she came across Yomi as soon as she escaped the giant crowds. He smirked at her and said, "How did your training go, Kiharu?"

"Well enough," she said vaguely. Soon they were joined by none other than Hiei and Mukuro. Mukuro seemed to enjoy Yomi's company well enough while Hiei seemed to yearn to be in the arena where he could display his pretentious strength.

"Hello, Yomi," greeted Mukuro, a faint smile on her lips.

"And a good morning to you too, Miss Mukuro," he said merrily. "Today will be Kiharu's fist one-on-one fight in a tournament."

"You don't say?" said Mukuro with mild interest. She peered at Hiei out of the corner of her eye. "Maybe your heir will get matched up against mine. Wouldn't that make for an interesting fight?"

"It most certainly would," concurred Yomi. "A slight inequity against Kiharu would be that Hiei has had many more years of experience than her."

"But with what we saw yesterday in the preliminaries, I'm sure that she could handle herself," added Mukuro. "Not to mention the fact she is your daughter. Kiharu will be fine; I'm sure of it."

Mukuro's praise made Kiharu smile a bit. She was a woman that Kiharu could respect. Mukuro had once been one of the three Kings of Demon World and had many followers. From a mere glance you could tell Mukuro had a vast amount of fierce demon energy swirling within her. She was powerful, yet did not let herself get cocky or acted in a domineering manner. Rather, she spoke polite and fairly. Kiharu felt a twinge in her heart.

A woman of such high caliber is surely a fitting bedfellow for a man like Hiei. I can tell by the way they look at each other that Hiei and Mukuro care about each other. So . . . in other words . . . Hiei could never love me so there is no way I am nor will ever fall in love with him. It is foolish enough to think about love, and even more foolish to love one who is with another. A worthless thing like me could never measure up to someone like Mukuro.

Kiharu's thoughts were interrupted upon the sound of Koto's voice ringing throughout the stadium. "Hello, fellow carnage fans!" she said cheerily, her voice echoing as she spoke. "We're about to start the next round of the Demon World tournament. We still have sixty-four fighters left so we're having a total of thirty-two fights this round. All pairs of combatants have been selected randomly. If you turn your attention to the large monitor you'll see what two fighters have the honor of knocking each other's brains out first!"

All the demons in the crowd cheered loudly. Some started chanting names of their favorites. On the monitor appeared to be two lists of all the fighters still remaining, each list containing thirty-two names. The computer highlighted different names at a very rapid pace. Kiharu tried to follow it but the highlighted name changed within a half second. Soon the lists disappeared and two names in digital green font read across the monitor:

Kiharu vs. Touya

"There you have it, ladies and freaks! The first match-up is Kiharu, daughter of Yomi and Touya the Ice Master!" announced Koto.

"So the first fight goes to me," said Kiharu to herself.

"Both fighters please come over here so I can send you to your arena to begin the bloodbath!"

As Kiharu made her way over there, Mukuro said, "Good luck."

"Thank you," mumbled Kiharu quickly as she bustled over to get to the arena. She approached Koto, with no sign of her opponent. Koto led Kiharu over to a large chrome door.

"Step right through here," she said, opening the door widely. Kiharu stepped inside and felt the door close behind her. Unlike the door she used to transport to the preliminaries, there was no spinning around and around. Rather, she just walked straight into an arena, whose terrain was that over a forest, complete with a large lake off to the sides. Soon she heard approaching footsteps and gazed upon her opponent.

He had the most unusual eyes, for they contained no pupils. His hair was an icy blue, with four green spikes. He wore clothes that let Kiharu know he was a Shinobi, or Ninja, of Demon World. His height wasn't much to speak of, but then again, neither was Kiharu's. Both demons were ready and focused, awaiting the signal from Koto to begin. So this was Touya the Ice Master? He probably wasn't as strong as Hiei or Mukuro, but he should still put up an interesting fight.

"Let the match begin!"

Touya made the first move, his hands at his side glowing a neon green color. Tiny bright white orbs are in his hands. He brought his palms to his mouth. "Shards of Winter!" he called and the white orbs came for Kiharu. She moved quickly and Touya's eyes widened in surprise.

"She . . . vanished," he murmured to himself.

"Uh, it looks as if Kiharu has disappeared. That was one fast dodge!" commented Koto.

Touya's entire body stiffened up when he sensed a demonic presence behind him. "Boo," said Kiharu tauntingly. She delivered a heavy kick to his back, sending him flying into the lake.

"And with a roundhouse kick, Touya's been knocked straight into the lake!"

The Ice Master surfaced and did not look fazed. Rather, he looked pleased. Kiharu had to take a second glance to be sure, but it seemed Touya was literally standing on the water. He emitted a loud cry as his body started to radiate with his aura. Beneath him the entire lake froze over. Kiharu was baffled by this action. She decided to forget about it and came for Touya. She tried to punch him in the jaw, but he ducked and punched her in the ribs. Kiharu did a back-flip to get away from him and wrapped her arm around where he had punched.

"Not bad," she said, masking how badly the impact of his fist was. Any harder and he may have broken her ribs.

"It gets better," said Touya with a smirk.

Kiharu felt her feet getting cold. "Wh-What the hell is this?" she said frantically. Ice was creeping up her legs and had already covered her shins. She felt herself being drained of energy.

"My ice has the ability to suck the demon energy right out of you," he explained triumphantly. "No one caught in my ice can move their feet or use even an ounce of their demon energy."

"You bastard!" she roared at him. She was pretty much screwed. He was right. She felt her power draining away and the ice had climbed up to her knees so most of her lower body had been encased in the ice.

Touya's hands began to glow that neon green again. Once more she saw the demonic orbs of ice in his palms. "Shards of Winter!" The shards came at her and Kiharu tried her best to avoid them, but still a few managed to graze her arms and legs, each one that hit leaving a cut behind as a souvenir.

"Wow, it appears the tables have turned. Touya once again shows us his ice that has the power to absorb demon energy. Kiharu is totally helpless!"

Kiharu shut her eyes tightly, focusing on her energy. No, she couldn't lose. Not yet.

I'm not losing until I fight Hiei!

An immense dark green energy surrounded Kiharu. "What's going on?" asked a baffled Touya. He was awestruck at the sight of her energy. Kiharu felt the ice that grasped her ankles starting the crack. With what sounded like an explosion, her energy shot up and the ice started to break apart.

Kiharu leapt backward off the ice platform and landed back on the earthly terrain.

"Oh my . . . Kiharu has managed to break out of Touya's trap. It's still anyone's game, folks!"

Touya, getting over his shock, crossed his right arm over his heart. Channeling his energy, Kiharu it become encased in ice. "Ice Sword!" he cried aloud. Instantly, a blade made of ice formed, his hand frozen in the hilt of it. Touya leapt from his broken ice rink and came at Kiharu. Using up all that energy slowed her down a bit, but she still managed to keep up with Touya.

Touya's sword went for her stomach, but Kiharu merely turned to the side. She tried to kick him in the ribs as penance from when he punched her there, but his left arm blocked the kick, pushing her leg aside. Kiharu kept dodging the slashes of Touya's Ice Sword, until one attempt she was a bit too slow. Touya managed to cut off part of her hair. The dark green mane that once touched her hips now had a side that only graced her shoulders.

"Instead of chopping up his opponent, Touya has managed to give Kiharu a haircut. If she's like any other woman, she must be fuming with anger at her crooked locks!"

Kiharu ran to distance herself from Touya and then came at him, delivering a right hook to his face. Touya staggered to his feet and then attempted to thrust the Ice Sword into her throat. Kiharu gripped the tip of the blade and with a firm squeeze of her hand broke it off.

Crackle.

Touya gasped as the entire Ice Sword started to crack. Soon the Ice Sword broke entirely, leaving a very dumbfounded Touya staring at Kiharu in shock.

"Kiharu's managed to destroy Touya's Ice Sword. This fight keeps reversing who's winning!"

"H–How did you do that?" asked Touya, caught completely off-guard.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Kiharu did not answer him but extended her fingernails into sharp claws. She plunged her right set of claws into his stomach, causing the Ice Master to cough up blood as warm crimson liquid saturated the earth below them. She draw them back and used the set of claws on her left hand to take a swipe across his chest. Five shallow lines formed, rimmed red by the crimson about to leak from them. He fell to his knees, still hacking up blood from her assault. She strode to his side and crossed her right hand over her chest. "Goodbye," she said. She struck Touya in the back of the head with her right hand, rendering him unconscious. Kiharu then used her nails to slice through her hair, so now both sides only nestled near her collarbone. She then retracted her claws and heard Koto's commentary.

"Well, it looks like this battle is over. Those last few seconds were incredibly gory and bloody and I love it! That concludes the first fight, pushing Kiharu on to the next level!"

Kiharu looked at the woman who was flying the eyeball camera. She looked into the lens and smirked faintly. Kiharu looked over at Touya and sighed. She had intended to kill him, just like the others, but it was less effort to get him unconscious. She walked over to his bleeding body, hoisted him over her shoulder, and started walking for the door, ignoring the fact his blood was staining her clothes. Kiharu at first was actually going to leave him there, but the least she could do is take him to the infirmary. He wasn't just a mindless demon who was filled with bloodlust. He obviously came to win, but wasn't running around slashing his Ice Sword at everyone. For that, she had to respect him. Not as much as she respected Mukuro, but she still respected him, nonetheless.