"We just have go through here and then we're...what the hell is this?" Yusuke said as the four of them entered through the doors together. A large raised ring stood before them in a massive empty arena.
"Welcome gentlemen," a woman with black hair in a long sleeve bright red kimono said to them as they entered. She stood in the middle of the ring. "About time you showed up, don't you know not to keep a lady waiting?"
Yusuke demanded, "Just who the hell are you?"
She replied, "My name is Airi, and I'm the fighter you have to fight before you can ever walk through those doors behind me and move on."
Kurama asked, "Why are you telling us this?"
"Because I have to," she said, "but I don't have to tell you anything else if I don't want to. Now, who's the young man who's going to fight me first?"
"No way!" Kuwabara said, "You're a girl, I can't fight girls, it's against my code."
Hiei said angrily, "You can be serious."
"When am I ever not serious about this stuff, short?!" he glared at him angrily.
Yusuke shouted, "Hey lady, I'll fight you!"
"Wait," Kurama warned as he held he back and stepped in front fo him, "we must be careful. Something isn't right here."
"What do you mean?" Yusuke asked.
Kuwabara said, "You're not actually going to fight a girl, are you Kurama? Come on, I know you're a better man than that."
"Would you shut up?" Hiei said.
Kurama explained, "Her energy, something isn't right. I'll investigate by fighting first. If I fall someone will have to take over." He walked toward the ring.
Yusuke said, "Something's weird about her energy, what is that supposed to mean?"
Hiei said, "You two don't feel that, do you? There's a specific type of demon that can emit couragous and standoffish energy. That's what she's doing."
"I don't care what kind of energy she has," Kuwabara said, "she's still a girl and I don't fight girls." He watched Kurama walk to the center of the ring. "I still can't believe Kurama's going to fight her."
Yusuke asked, "What's so weird about that? So she's too cocky to know she'll lose."
"It's not that," Hiei explained, "these types of demons are difficult to beat because their attitude fuels them. Kurama knows that."
Kuwabara said, "All the more reason not to fight her! Hey!"
"The first move is yours," Kurama said politely.
Airi explained, "Alright, but first let me explain something. Whoever draws blood first, wins. We don't have to fight to the death here."
"Of course that would be the rule," Kurama said, "demons like you always like losers to come back and try to challenge you again."
She asked, "You're a fox, aren't you?" Kurama stared at her blankly. "Well, it's obvious that you are, so yes, I'll take you up on that offer to go first. What a gentlemen...gentlefox." She pulled out two large traditional Japanese fans.
Yusuke asked, "What the hell is she going to do with those, blow him away?"
"Move, Kurama," Hiei warned, "now."
In an instant, Airi opened her fans and waved both of them at the same time toward Kurama. He felt the whisks of wind move around him as he barely moved out of the way in time. Hiei jumped forward and moved cut the air with his sword, the slashes of wind bent around them and cut parts of the arena wide open. If there were any audience members there, they would have been dead.
Yusuke shouted, "Your hair! Kurama!"
Locks of red hair fell to the ground unceremoniously where Kurama was once standing. Seeds and parts of plants were among the fallen.
Kuwabara shouted, "That almost killed us!"
"That blow was meant to kill everyone at once," Hiei said as he put his sword away.
"Hey!" Kuwabara shouted at her, "I thought you said you weren't going to kill anyone!"
Airi replied, "Those blasts would have drawn blood, and I would have won." She made another wave of wind, a lighter one, that made the pieces of hair and seeds scatter. They were impossible to collect and find now.
Kurama asked, "How did you know I'm a fox? Do you know who we are?"
She said, "Of course I know who all of you are. Kurama, the fox who became a human. Yusuke, the spirit detective. Kuwabara, his friend. Hiei, the notorious criminal in demon world forced to work with you humans. What makes you think I wouldn't know who you were?"
Yusuke said, "Kurama your hair! It's short."
Airi said, "That way those roses and seeds can't get me, they're gone now."
Hiei said, "Never should have let her have the first attack."
"So," she said as she looked at Kurama, "what are you going to do now?" She leveled her fans.
Kurama jumped off of the ring and onto the grass. He drove his energy into the plants. The ones at his feet overgrew and started charging straight for Airi. She used her fans and cut down the vines instantly. The wind swept across them and headed straight for Kurama. He braced himself but his arms were cut up in the process.
"Kurama!" Yusuke shouted as he went down in pain. An "X" mark was made in blood across his chest and upper arms.
Airi said, "Blood! I win. Who's next?"
Yusuke shouted, "I'll kick your ass!"
Hiei jumped onto the ring before he could get a change to move forward. "Hiei?" Kuwabara asked, "So you'll fight girls too? What's the matter with all of you?"
Kurama walked over to them and said, "Kuwabara, a fighter is a fighter no matter what."
"Are you okay?" Yusuke asked.
"Fine," he replied, "it's only a scratch."
They all looked on at Hiei who took off his jacket, showing his regular all black attire underneath.
Yusuke said, "Kick her ass, Hiei!"
"Urameshi!" Kuwabara shouted.
Airi said, "Fire, you know that's the weakest of energy right?" She leveled one of her fans and quickly made wind sweep across the ring. Hiei moved out of the way in time while everyone else braced themselves against the wind attack on the sidelines.
Yusuke said, "Damn that's strong."
"This isn't a cutting blast," Kurama explained, "it's an energy sapping one."
As the wind disapated, Kuwabara said, "What are you talking about? My energy's just fine."
"It's specifically designed to wisk away fire energy," he answered as he saw Hiei dodge another blast.
Yusuke asked, "You mean if Hiei gets hit..." He trailed off as Kurama nodded.
Moving quickly with his sword, Hiei drew it and lunged toward her. She made one swipe with her fans and broke the sword in several different pieces before Hiei could land a hit.
"A little man with a sword," Airi said coyly.
Hiei threw the hilt away and said, "I've killed for less."
"Hiei!" Yusuke shouted, "Don't get near her!"
Airi blew a gust of wind in his direction to shut him up. Then she directed another blast at Hiei as he jumped up. His fire energy grew. She blew another fire stealing blast and he fell unceremoniously to the ground. "What?" he asked.
"Your fire is in the air now," she said, "not in your energy anymore. Don't worry it'll come back. As for this match-" she whipped her fan around and sliced into his right shoulder and arm, "there's your blood. It over." Hiei glared at her.
"Hey!" Yusuke shouted as he jumped into the ring, "You have no chance, lady."
"Yusuke!" Kurama said as he ran toward the middle, ignoring him.
Hiei jumped back down toward him with his jacket in his hand and said, "You know there's an easy way to defeat her, right?"
"Of course," Kurama replied, "but Yusuke's not in his right mind."
Kuwabara said, "I can't believe you two actually fought a girl. That's not right!"
Yusuke said, "The match starts now." He raised his finger to start a spirit gun blast."
"Alright Mr. Spirit Detective," Airi said, "whenever you're ready."
He fired a large blast directly at her. She used her fan and cut it half, causing two blasts to go on each side of her. The cut moved through the air and hit Yusuke square in the chest. "Dammit!" he said.
"Kuwabara, you're next," Kurama said.
"Haven't you been listening?" Kuwabara demanded, "I don't fight girls and you can't make me!"
"Listen," Kurama insisted, "You don't have to fight her, immobilize her and cut her somewhere and you'll win. Your spirit sword can do that, listen closely."
After a chat, Kuwabara made it to the ring and said, "Alright Mr. Airi, it's time we had a chat."
"Oh?" she said cooly, "I thought you said you won't fight girls. I should tell you I'm not a girl, I'm a woman, so it's okay if you fight me."
"That's not what I'm talking about!" he shouted and created his spirit sword.
She replied, "You know I can wisk away energy, right? Don't move and you won't get hurt." She leveled her fan.
Just before she was about to attack, Kuwabara lengthened his sword and made it spiral around her. "I don't fight girls," he said, "but this isn't really fight now is. There. Now you can't move your little fans around." He tighted the sword around her body.
"Wait," she said, "don't you dare cut my kimono, this was expensive."
"Fine," he said, and made a small cut on her neck, "are we free to go now or what?" He made his energy disappear.
She moved her fans and forceably opened the doors behind her with her wind, "There. Go on ahead."