File 44: A new menace
Yanagisawa woke up and jumped on his feet. Kurama, Akari, Hiei, Botan and Kuwabara were glaring at him. The fox coldly asked how he felt. Yanagisawa quickly grasped the situation and although sounding rather apprehensive, nonetheless high-handedly praised the group. So... so they had defeated Kaito... not bad at all. With the keys he and Kaito had, they had managed to open the two doors inside but there had been a paper posted on the third one with the following warning: 'Opening this door without permission from Yanagisawa will mean Urameshi's death!'. Hiei warned him to hurry and give that permission if he valued his life but the student was scared at all. Quite the opposite. They shouldn't talk so arrogantly since they had no choice but to follow his instructions.
Upstairs, Yusuke was still desperately trying to move while Kido was taunting him. Even though his friends had defeated Kaito, whether they would be able to safely make it here or not was another matter...
"Why you...! How long are you going to have me stand here like this?!" Urameshi yelled.
"Well now, would you like to move a little?" The blondie conceded, confident he'd be able to stop any attack in time. He stepped out of Yusuke's shadow. The detective stumbled forward before lunging and closing in instantly. But right before his punch could hit, he was immobilized again. However, Asato's face was still white with fear. Urameshi had been much faster than anticipated and he had had barely enough time to stop him. But he soon recovered his cool. "As expected of Urameshi-san."
Yanagisawa opened the third door and led the group to another surprise. After the three doors now there were seven stairways, and each of a different color. Urameshi was on the second floor, but to get there, they each had to use a different stairway. Kurama asked what they were planning next though of course there was no way he'd get a decent answer. Well, they still had no choice but to obey if they wanted to save Urameshi. Kuwabara was about to snap when the fox calmed him down. Well, Akari had half a mind to leave since things were getting more troublesome by the minute. And that must have shown on her face since her boyfriend put a hand on her shoulder. She wouldn't leave after coming this far and enduring until now, right? Then Botan had the bright idea of using the fifth of Reikai's Seven Tools, the Marking Seals! Once you pasted those round seals on someone, only the one who had fixed it could remove it. However, if the person who pasted it on died, it would come off by itself. You could also tell the condition of the paster by the color of the middle ring. If it was blue, they were healthy, yellow was for slight injured and red meant heavily injured. So if they wrote their own names on the seals and placed them on each other, they'd know if anything happened to one of them on the way to the second floor.
They turned to Yanagisawa who told them to do as they liked. Akari frowned at his reaction. Whatever his power was, he had the confidence that those seals would useless against it. But SHE had the confidence that whatever those people's powers, she had the ability to counter it one way or another as long as she didn't let her guard down. And there was a very simple way to do so. Anyway, for now let's go along with the group decision. They wrote the first kanji of their names (or in Akari's case, the only kanji 明) in the center of the seals they pasted onto each other. They were all blue of course. Now Hiei was the only one left. Said he didn't want any. Well, certainly, having those things on wasn't very cool. But there was more important... Botan tried to put her mark on him but he caught her arm. He couldn't stop Kurama however.
"What will you do if something happens to you again, like when you had your soul taken from you?" The fox questioned. The little demon had no choice but to fold.
"What will you do huh?" Kuwabara and Botan repeated as they applied their marks.
"Although having your soul taken is not really considered an injury so I'm curious to know how that thing would react." Akari wondered as she imitated them. Hiei clicked his tongue in response.
Then each chose a stairs and climbed up. After they left, Yanagisawa contacted Kido. Everything was going according to plan. Asato acknowledged the information. That Kaito was done in meant that one was very sharp-witted. He relayed the good news to Urameshi. Very soon, his five friends were going to come and save him. The latter asked what he was planning to do once those five got here. With his ability, blocking all of their movements was impossible. Not if his ability only allowed him to block someone's movements if he stepped on their shadows. Not to mention Akari could use her powers without even lifting a finger! If only one of them broke this light, he was finished! And even Yusuke too! If he had realized from the start the nature of his ability, he would have never been caught so easily! After scoffing slightly at the childishness Urameshi was displaying by being such a sore loser, Kido admitted having a weak ability. But even so, the fact was he had captured him.
The five were all in the dark. Kuwabara was complaining about this ridiculously long staircase when suddenly he noticed that he going down. What was with this mansion, making stairs go up then down?! Botan was in a spiral staircase that was making her feel nauseous going round and round for so long. Kurama's stairs seems to float in mid air. He was surrounded by doors on all sides. Suddenly, the stairs before him disappeared and another flight appeared on his left going to up to a door. He followed the new path. In Akari's case, the incline of the stairs had grown steeper until it basically became like a ladder. She arrived on a platform and the steps took the shapes of tiny waves with barely any incline. Well, wherever she was, her aura was filling the whole space. Plus she had decided to wear her reiki armor as a supplementary precaution. It was impossible for people to come close or touch her. Hiei was climbing too when a trap opened under him. He fell and landed on a platform too. He looked around. There were stairs everywhere. He slashed and the mirrors shattered, leaving only one flight leading to a single door. How ridiculous.
"All I have to do is lightly block your mouth and nose and I could kill you." Kido taunted. The detective challenged him to do just that. It was better than being caught here so undignified like this! The blondie told him to cool down and wait for the others. And soon, they arrived. Kazu asked what the hell Urameshi was just standing here like this for. Yusuke cautioned his friends about Kido's power. They must not come close. Then Kido told them about the next game. There was one imposter among those five. He had to find him within the next ten minutes. And the five could only answer Urameshi's questions. Any other talking was not allowed. The Reikai Tantei looked at his comrades, shocked. Appearance, aura, behavior... there wasn't any difference! Kuwa and Botan snapped. An imposter? Yeah, right! Who could disguise themselves that well, not to mention in such a short amount of time?! Kido reminded them that talking was forbidden. Didn't they care what would happen to the hostage? Hiei pointed out that he could kill him before he could no anything to Yusuke. However, if one of them was an imposter that meant the real one was in their custody. They had another hostage besides Urameshi. If something happened to Kido, his friends would kill him. They had taken everything into account. And now there were only nine minutes left. Yusuke gritted his teeth. In these circumstances, he had no choice but to play the game. Akari had thought of another possibility though, they could capture that blondie and exchange hostages, that guy against Kuwa... but she kept quiet about it.
Urameshi started by asking Kuwabara his birthday and blood type. Kuwa who naturally got angry that he was doubted first. But then while he wouldn't mind answering, that answer only had value if Yusuke actually knew his birthday and bloodtype... which was not the case. What was the point of asking something he wouldn't even know was right or wrong? He was really no good after all. He asked Kurama his mother's name.
"Minamino Shiori, age 40. She's engaged to get married again this fall." The fox replied with a small smile. Yusuke rejoiced. He wanted to be invited too. Seven minutes left. The detective switched to Botan. He wanted to know her three sizes. She barked at him, a blush on her cheeks. What good would it do?! She had never told him that information to begin with! Grinning indecently, he insisted that she did 'that one time'. Botan doubted herself and started thinking. But that only reinforced her conviction. She had never told him, that dumbass horndog! The boy clicked his tongue. His ploy had failed.
"Humph. This is so stupid I can't stand it." Hiei commented, causing him to become Yusuke's next target.
"Hiei! What's the name of your younger sister?" The detective interrogated, staring so expectantly at the little demon and definitely thinking 'Come on! Answer!'
"I don't have to tell you. You know well who she is." The fire youkai responded flatly. Urameshi gritted his teeth, a vein on his temple. His ploy had failed again. Well, given Hiei's personality, he should have seen that coming. Kuwa was surprised... and assumed that since she was Hiei's sister she was certainly a hard-looking and ill-tempered girl with appearance and personality very much like her older brother. Hiei threatened to kill him. Botan blabbered that Kuwa-chan was the only one who didn't know. Kurama hushed her. Akari sighed as the blue-haired girl clamped her hand on her mouth. Kazu was positively indignant that everyone knew but him. Well, he had always hated being left out. He demanded that they told him too. Unsure, the kitsune stared at Hiei who didn't want him to look at him every single time. Only five minutes left. Kido wanted to know whether it was alright not to ask Akari-san anything.
"Ah, yeah, I don't need to ask her anything, or rather I must not. Since she arrived she's been glaring at me so fiercely and accusingly while leaking out such a wrathful and terrifying power. Only the real one can so naturally incite fear just by standing there. She's already come here. I'm dead meat if I ask her anything more." That was then Yusuke recalled the seals on his friends' chests. He had forgotten about them (to Botan's displeasure) but he remembered what they were about. Since only the one who pasted it could take it off, the fake shouldn't be able to remove it. However, all five of them were able to remove the seals with their name. How could it be?! Was there really an imposter among them?! Or could he even copy one's extrasensory imprint?! Kido certified it. The imposter was among them. Yanagisawa's ability was 'copy'. This extrasensory imprint, as well as memories, personality... everything. If Urameshi couldn't tell who was the fake that meant he had no need for the real one. And then then came the time limit. Now he was going to free Urameshi who had to slug the person he thought was the imposter as hard as he could. That was the only way to undo the transformation. He would only have one chance. That shocked everyone. Yusuke wanted to know his goal.
"A certain person asked us to do that. Although we're enjoying this as well. I hate to be a pest, but if you try anything funny, the hostage dies." And he stepped out of Urameshi's shadow, freeing him. The detective looked at his five friends and quickly took his decision. He apologized in advance and charged. And with his reiki-active fist, he punched Kuwabara's face... undoing the transformation. Yanagisa was sent flying and crashing against easels, canvases and a table. He had been knocked unconscious. Kido was awed that Urameshi could actually guess right. Well that guy was the easiest for him to hit and he was used to that. That was all. Kurama and Hiei wouldn't be stupid enough to let themselves be caught (at this Kurama asked Hiei if his ears were burning, but he just hned and looked away) and it would be impossible to even approach Akari the way she was now. That left Botan and Kuwabara. If they were low enough to capture the weakest, Botan, then nothing to do, he'd just have to fail, come back, and crush them all. Now both four-eyes (Kaito) and droppy-eyes (Yanagisawa) had been defeated. Only one left. Kido sincerely praised Yusuke but that didn't abate his anger. However, Asato wouldn't get a turn. As ordered to, he would release Kuwabara... but first, he was going to reveal the mastermind behind it all.
The door behind him opened, and Genkai came forward, smirking. Yusuke started yelling angrily at her when Kido suddenly groveled before them and apologized. She said he didn't need to since she was the one who had devised this plan.
"That's my grandmother. She knows pain is the best teacher and she makes sure we've properly learned our lessons." Akari commented. "Still, you can be sure I'll require proper compensation later for having made me go along with your farce even though I didn't need it."
"Indeed, you didn't need it. But I had to make sure. How was I supposed to know since you've moved over to your boyfriend's house and no longer come to see me? How heartless and ungrateful can you be, abandoning me, an elderly, and your only living relative left, as soon as you've got yourself a man..."
"Isn't it because you're like this and because you wanted me to be closer to school?! Don't make it my fault!" The pink-haired girl shot back. "And wouldn't a nasty sourpuss of a grandmother like you normally accuse the guy of having stolen her cute and beloved and innocent granddaughter and only living relative left, especially if he's such a naturally manipulative and deceitful thieving fox?! Aren't you the heartless one, not being the slightest bit worried?!" At this, the others sweatdropped. Akari really had a way with words, and she might (certainly) not even realize it herself. Even her boyfriend wasn't safe from her casual barbs. The worst was that she was actually right so it could be difficult to find faults except her mercilessness in the choosing of her words.
"Why in the world would I be worried since that fox would use all of his intelligence, skills, soul, heart and body for YOUR sake? I've long ascertained that. To have such a man in the palm of your hand, you're my granddaughter alright. Hohohohoho. And so you say, but you would have snapped even more if I had seriously badmouthed and doubted him, right?" However, Genkai was still her grandmother, it was still far too early for Akari to fill the gap in experience and defeat her.
"You might be right... but the way you say it still pisses the hell out of me..." Akari conceded through gritted teeth. She was feeling the familiar bloodlust that this despicable smirk and superior laugh always elicited in her. That bloody and shameless old hag was actually using her to sing her own praise...
They decided to leave the bickering at this. Since Yusuke still hadn't got a clue about what was going on, Kurama explained while trying to appease his lover's bad mood and hugging her from behind. He could call those 'introductions', albeit in somewhat poor taste. She wanted everyone to understand the abilities of those guys which weren't just about 'firepower'. He had a vague sense that she was the one behind when looking at Akari's behavior when they were against Kaito, and it had gotten stronger when they had entered this atelier. If they had wanted to, those guys could have been more underhanded, and killed them in a number of ways. Since they didn't, there must have been a purpose, and it was hard to think of anyone else who'd do this in this roundabout way. Genkai scoffed. He was right, although she hadn't done that for fun. But Hiei still didn't understand the reason for going this far.
"You five are strong. But depending on the method, there are still ways to kill you. I wanted you to understand that. Akari had understood that thanks to Kurama when she had just returned from the Makai, and she hadn't forgotten about it, which was why she was fine this time." The old master stated. Her granddaughter commented that she didn't need to mention that last part but she was ignored. The fox squeezed Akari tighter. "Hiei, you had your soul taken from in Kaito's territory. The same goes for you, Yusuke." She proved her point. Again, Urameshi childishly retorted that he wouldn't have been tricked if he had known the nature of his opponent's power. "Fool! Do you think an enemy would take the trouble of revealing their powers to you before fighting?! Being caught by your opponent means death!" The woman snarled. At this the boy had nothing to retort. So he slightly changed the subject. She kept talking about enemies but if they're not those guys, then who?!
Kido told them they had come to consult Genkai-shihan when they had become conscious of their new abilities. That was when they learned the truth about Urameshi-san and Katsuyama-san, although they had already heard of them for their school fights. However, it was only very recently and abruptly that they had come into possession of those abilities. It was an effect of the hole to the Demon Realm, a boundary tunnel connecting the Makai and Ningenkai! The news shocked the group. This was the very thing Sakyo had been trying to do!
"I heard everything from baa-san. There's someone trying to open a doorway to the Demon World. A ridiculously, dangerously huge doorway of darkness." Kazuma said forbiddingly as he walked forth too.
"Your expression and your outfit don't match." Yusuke commented. Even though he had such a grim look on his face, the fact that Kuwa-chan was wearing only his underwear robbed him of all convincing or alarming power. On the opposite, it made people want to laugh at him. So he flew off the handle again and made Yana return his clothes. But Sakyo died. So who could be doing this? There was someone who had inherited his wish.
However, it was still hard to believe for Kurama that a power existed that could open a hole through the vast subspace between the Makai and Ningenkai. Hiei was of the same opinion. If that thing had been possible, he'd have returned to the Makai long ago. As Genkai said though, seeing was believing, and she suggested that they all went to take a look... at Mushiyori City. And that town was just a stone throw away from theirs.
But the most incredulous one, or rather, the one whose denial was the strongest, was Koenma. Even if there was a one in a hundred billions chance that the possibility existed that a hole might open between the two worlds, it meant nothing more that the land had temporarily fallen to some demon! Ayame, who had gone to investigate Mushiyori City and returned to give him her report, insisted. Japan was only going to reach the peak of its dark age in a few centuries. It was unthinkable that a hole of that size could appear naturally. It was clearly the action of some artificial power. He contacted Botan. He needed to talk to Urameshi, and Akari too. It was an emergency. Genkai answered they were all here. And they also knew what it was about. The human world was already being affected. In the last month thirty people had come to consult her after having suddenly developed strange abilities... including those three. And all those people had been from Mushiyori City. Well, it was good if the effects were confined to that city but to think they had already reached the 2nd stage... The Prince of the Reikai was reluctant to be more detailed as it'd include top secrets but he was pressured by Urameshi.
Junior informed them that there were four phases before a complete opening of a boundary tunnel. In the first phase, the air in the ningenkai became stagnant, miasma gathered, and lower life forms from the Makai, like bugs, flourished. In the second phase, special abilities started appearing among humans. In the third phase, youkais of D class and lower began thriving in the Human World, violent ones short on intellect. And the fourth and last phase, when the diameter of the hole reached 2km, youkais of C-class and B-class were able to come and go on Earth. And they would do well to note that even Younger Toguro had only been a B-class demon. This appalled Urameshi. That guy, who had been so overwhelmingly powerful... just a B-class?! Koenma explained that the Demon Realm was endlessly deep and vast, just like an incredibly deep-reaching undergroung building. And the Reikai only had control over the mere half of the first underground floor. It was too dangerous to step foot any farther than this. All that could be done was to expand that zone, a little at a time over the years, slowly but surely. And deep inside the Makai were the A-class youkais and S-class youkais. And not even the Reikai could do anything about those S-class demons.
However, the Spirit Realm had already taken a measure against those by placing a barrier in the subspace between the Makai and Ningenkai. But since it was an overly huge kekkai, it could only stop the A- and S-class ones. B-class and lower could still manage to pass through. If the youkais of A-class and above invaded the Earth, even just a tiny handful of them could annihilate mankind in a matter of weeks, no, even days. Kuwabara flew off the handle asking what it was all about. Since his spiritual power hadn't returned yet, he couldn't see what was on the screen or hear Koenma's voice. Only Akari replied that he didn't really want to know. She looked unnaturally grave to him but in fact it was only natural that she'd have such expression. Given the years she had spent in the Makai, she had experienced in her flesh the differences between the youkai classes.
When she had gone, she had realized she had been just a local country kid bully thrown into a real battlefield in the jungle and could only make do with up to the weakest C-class. Then before having to develop her powers, she had had to learn how to properly use what she had, how to be smart and cautious, which had truly been the hardest part for her. She did that in that Reikai-controlled area. And then she ventured further... until she became able to deal with B-class demons. She had to regularly take stock of what she had learned, deepen, widen her knowledge and understanding of the techniques, and simply practice. But when she had returned to Ningenkai, she had found out it was only to mid B class. Toguro was an upper B-class. So before the tournament she had spent again about a month and a half over there. And all this time a consequent part of her attention and energy were being diverted by the Meikai Gyoku too so she hadn't been able to grow as much and as fast as she'd have liked, and as she could have given the time she had spent...
The tall and lean young man who had appeared before Toguro-ani walked into a building. The elevator took him to the highest floor where he entered an apartment. The interior was spacious but dark, practically bare, metallic, as if devoid of warmth, life, personality. He sat on an armchair, arms and legs crossed. An aquarium was dimly glowing an ominous green in the darkness. And among the tropical fishes... was Toguro-ani's head. An arm was attached to it by a string of flesh. The damages inflicted by his brother's blows had barely healed at all. He asked about the condition of the tunnel. Was everything going smoothly? The man smiled in response. Toguro rejoiced maliciously. However there were despicable folks doubtlessly going to interfere. And so...
"I have a favor to ask. Take vengeance on them for me, please...Sensui-san!" He begged. His manner of speaking had become uncharacteristically polite. "Knowing you, you can do it."
"I don't take orders from you." Sensui replied as walked to the panoramic window and opened the curtains, revealing a beautiful moon. "However, I will not allow anyone to interfere in something so enjoyable." He smirked too.
"I leave it to you."
You, humans who destroy everything, consume everything, for the sake of your regrettable boundless hunger, and it is still not enough... the time when you are to be judged has come!
In the Youjigen Mansion, Kuwabara was freaking out. Since he had to know the truth after all, his friends had told him... to these expected results... He was acting like everything was over already and they were all going to die in a minute. Annoyed, Akari gave him a good blow in the guts, knocking the wind out of him, and told him to shut up... as if he could talk again immediately after the hit he had received. Her grandmother more poisedly asked him to calm down. They'd go into details once they had returned Kaito's soul to him. And so they went down to the first room. Kuwa had recovered, and admitted he had completely forgotten about that guy. With Genkai's technique, Kaito's soul went back into his body. He woke up to see everyone present and assumed everything had gone as planned. Kurama noted his impactful introduction, but actually Kaito had seriously tried to defeat him. He had wanted to win at least once against him. And he had been completely beaten again. Yusuke wondered what he would had done if Genkai hadn't been there to save him. Well, he would have been a goner. And in fact that was the very reason why they had gone to Genkai. He had tested his power, said the taboo word, lost his soul, was in need of someone to fix him and his friends took him to the old specialist. Your most defenseless state was when you were just a soul. Left alone for a whole day, and you'd be headed for the Next World.
Kaito stood up and the three former enemies introduced themselves and their abilities. All three were residents of Mushiyori City and had come into possession of their new power just about a month ago, not long after the Dark Tournament. And since that thing happened in the 2nd phase, that meant the tunnel started opening immediately after the tournament. They received a new communication from Koenma. The hole was widening at a terrifying speed! At this pace, they only had three weeks at the latest until the final phase! Urameshi was terrified... in just three weeks, all those demons as powerful as Toguro would be coming to invade Earth...! There had to be a way to stop it and close that hole! Indeed, there was, only one: that was to defeat the spellcaster at the center of the hole. He must be one of considerable ability. You could use many ordinary spellcasters and still be unable to create a hole so large, which was precisely why Sakyo had spent such a huge sum of money to accomplish it... and why he had tried to obtain Akari and her huge pool of energy and potential abilities.
Currently, the spatial distortion was at 1,3 km. Once it reached 2km, it would be too late. They'd be unable to close it. Yusuke wanted to go right now and pound those guys... and as he didn't seem in a state to listen, Genkai stopped him violently. Didn't he know the meaning of 'reflection' or 'reconsideration'?! Was he planning to rush after the enemy again without the slightest clue about their identity or abilities and commit the same blunders as he did today?! Then for what purpose had this farce been?! Urameshi protested that if they dawdled around, the hole would only get larger. The old master reminded him they still had three weeks. How many were the enemies? What were their abilities? Who was their boss? They had to learn those things first. Akari kept quiet. She understood why her grandma wanted to placate those guys. If the enemy that much power, all the more reason to be careful and not rush head first. But she was also worried about what Koenma had said... three weeks... at the latest... which meant they should consider the possibility of having only half this time. They didn't have much time for information gathering. And if they knew about Sakyo and his goals, it should also be safe to assume they knew about the Dark Tournament, and thus about the Urameshi Team, and that they'd try to stop them. Those people might even be lying in wait or preparing something on their own. But if she voiced her thoughts, that'd only spur her hot-headed friends more than necessary, hence her silence.
But surprisingly, Hiei had a question. He wanted to know in which class he was in and seemed pretty adamant about it. The evaluation of his strength seemed to be a sensitive subject. Nonetheless, Koenma chose honesty. Right now, he was ranked in the middle of the B-class. He wanted to add that when Hiei had fought Yusuke, he only ranked among the upper D-class. Considering the time gone by since then, his fighting sense was nothing short of startling. Hiei was piqued, claiming he had been underestimated, although whether he truly believed his own words was rather doubtful. And he left, saying that what happened to the Ningenkai was not his business. He wasn't going to interfere but he had no intention to help either. He was going back to the Demon Realm. Kazu called him cold-hearted but the others weren't of the same opinion. He was sure to come when they'd need him. He simply wasn't honest, and he was also wavering; the opening of that tunnel to the demon world wasn't affecting only the humans.
The next morning, they'd split into two teams to grasp the condition of the city. Of course, careless independent actions were to be strictly avoided. Kido, Kaito, and Yanagisawa were also going to help. They wanted to protect their city and their world. Until then, time to get a good rest and sleep! But as almost everyone agreed and Kurama took Akari by the waist, Kuwabara loudly complained. They were all staying here?! He was delicate and couldn't sleep without his pillow! However, before SOMEONE had the time to knock him out as she wanted to, he had the stupidity to ask Botan to sleep with him and so Botan was the one to knock him out.
"Itsuki." Sensui said. He was in an underground cave of Mushiyori City. And 'Itsuki' was sitting cross-legged on a small craft in the middle of the underground lake. Itsuki was a handsome young looking demon with teal hair down to his shoulder blades, golden eyes, and was wearing a red undershirt, light blue robes and pants, and a yellow sash. He informed Sensui that there was an obstacle. Within the subspace that acted as a border between the Makai and Ningenkai, a powerful kekkai was in place. With his abilities, he could only open doorways between dimensions. A person able to cut through that kekkai was needed. Sensui promised to find someone with the ability to cut through dimensions... while he'd be dealing with those that would get in their way... And he walked away, passing five people.
At dawn, Keiko woke up with a start. She was in her bed, panting. She noticed Puu-chan at her window. He really didn't look well. He was trembling fearfully too. She tried to take him in her arms but he flew away. The girl dressed at lighning speed and followed him. Shizuru saw them and came down to see what was going on. Yusuke, Kazuma, even Akari and Kurama hadn't returned to their homes. Something was happening, and Puu could know the others' location. Shizuru quickly dressed too and joined Keiko but when she looked in the direction Puu was heading to, she felt something truly ominous. Something incredibly dreadful could be waiting for them. But nonetheless, worried about the people important to them, they went.
After dividing into two groups of about equal numbers, power and smartness and tour guides, the gang entered Mushiyori City. There was a stone slab reading 'a cheerful city makes for an enjoyable future'... quite ironic really considering the makai bugs swarming around and the future awaiting this town – and the country and the world – should the gateway keep growing. Ordinary people couldn't see the insects, which was good or there would be a panic. Yusuke, Genkai, Kido and Yana made one group while Akari, Kurama, Kuwabara, Botan, and Kaito made the other. Yusuke's group went to assess the situation in the city while Akari's group headed to the place calculated and sensed to be the center of the distortion.
The pink-haired girl was wearing dark jeans, sneakers, a grey hooded sweatshirt with a red zipper and red-trimmed pockets and a light blue jacket. They arrived before a consequent and grassy vacant lot. Naturally, there weren't any hole, human or demon aside from the five of them. It was too bad, really, but it was not like she had expected them to be completely out in the open like this. However, two things were certain when a space distortion was created: it was circular, and there was a spellcaster at the center. So if those weren't on the surface, they could only be underground. Suddenly, Akari and Kurama felt eyes on them. The girl vanished and the man ran in the direction, followed by the others who had no idea what had gotten into them. When the four reached the small storehouse at the corner of which the fox had felt the presence, Katsuyama was already there, looking significantly displeased. She was nibbling her thumb. That sneaky little rat was rather quick on his feet, and he had even managed to completely erase his presence... But the fact that someone was watching them meant that the enemy had already sensed they were moving against them. And that Akari couldn't catch them meant that either that snoop was powerful or that his ability nicely countered Akari's sensing. Anyhow, they should join up with Yusuke and the others. The five started leaving, unaware that they were again being watched by a hooded teen hidden inside a large round open water tank. And what was strange was that even if his head, neck and shoulders had completely emerged, the liquid still formed a dome over him.
Kido asked Urameshi what he thought about the state of the city but there was nothing to say really, aside from all those bugs. The blondie complained it was a gloomy run-down city with no entertainment. Yusuke agreed. Then, all of a sudden, they had this weird yet familiar feeling of displacement. They had stepped into someone's territory. But unless the owner was using his power, there shouldn't be this feeling. They climbed down a narrow staircase to a bar. Genkai spoke Yusuke's name warningly but he knew what she wanted to say. He wasn't going to make the same mistake. They didn't reply to the staff's greeting and looked around. A man with a magenta turtleneck sweater was sitting alone at a table, his back to them. And at another table further away on the side, three high-schoolers were drinking coffee. Six people in all including the two staff members. Who was the ability user?! Or could it be everyone here had a power?! The man chuckled.
"You guys over here, do you have any business with me?" He asked smugly and stood up. He stepped to the side and faced them, his hands in his pockets. "You have abilities too, don't you?" He smirked. The bartender and manager of this place panicked. He didn't want to have any trouble here. But he was told off. "I don't know what you came here for but I don't want any trouble either."
"We're looking for some guy who's digging a hole... an incredibly huge hole."
"A hole? Do you mean the boundary tunnel?" He inquired with that same arrogant attitude. The teens gasped. "You guys have been talking about it for some time now, haven't you? Inside your minds, that is..." He trailed off. Urameshi and his friends could infer that he was a mind reader but they couldn't be too sure about that either. He could be just pretending and instead have some other ability. And he could know about the ones they were looking for. Asato offered to test him. If that man was bluffing, then he wouldn't know about his ability, and Kido would easily be able to step on his shadow.
"You're going to answer us, even if I have to force you to. We're risking our lives here." The blondie stepped forward and extended his territory. He suddenly leapt but his opponent smirked and jumped backwards before his shadow could be stepped on. Off balance and shocked at having been found out, Kido couldn't react in time as his adversary repeatedly rained blows on him... and eventually knocked him down. Yana rushed to his fallen comrade and helped him.
"Too bad for you, huh? Not being able to step on my shadows." The man taunted. He was truly a mind reader after all. The high schoolers paid for their drinks and left in a hurry, obviously scared. The manager was going to call the police but was threatened into behaving. He challenged the others. He had always wanted to be a pro boxer, and with his ability to read mind, he could predict his opponent's move and become the next world champion. Well, now they knew his power but they still didn't know his intentions. That was why Yusuke required that the guy let Yana copy him and that he cooperated with them. He was turned down, though. In order to copy him, they had to knock him out first. Yusuke agreed reluctantly and announced that he was going to send him flying with a right straight and told him to brace himself. The boxer-wannabe thought it was a ploy to catch him off guard and read his mind but that was not the case at all. It was exactly as he had said, without a single hint of doubt or deception. What an overly honest idiot! Too easy!
Urameshi lunged... and closed in instangly. The guy could react. He stopped his punch before it hit but the shockwave actually sent him flying into the wall. The man collapsed, out cold, to Kido's and Yana's amazement. Well, that was only about 30% of the Dark Tournament Champion's power. Yanagisawa touched the unconscious dude and transformed into him. The bartender and waitress couldn't believe their eyes. Had they gone crazy? Were they dreaming? Mitsunari told them this guy was alright. He didn't know anything. But to Genkai's opinion, they could use his power.
Kurama contacted Koenma and reported their findings. He also informed the prince that they were going to join up with Yusuke's group. When the communication ended, Koenma called Ayame and ordered her to analyze the data on the hole once more, as precisely as possible.
Murota, the mind-reader, was sitting on a low wall. This square wall was delimiting a patch of grass on which a monument had been erected. There were pieces of tissue stuffed in his nostrils to stop the nosebleed. Genkai and Yusuke were sitting on either side of him and Kido and Yana were standing on either side of them. They were in the middle of a large square. The radius of Murota's territory was about 30 meters. He could hear the thoughts of everyone within that zone the same as if they were speaking. The stronger the thought, the louder their voice sounded to him, as if that person was shouting out, which meant he could check everyone passing here. Genkai asked him to let them know if anyone was thinking something strange but he must not show it on his face or meet their gaze. The enemy also had abilities and would doubtlessly realize they are within his territory. Murota agreed. Suddenly he had a spark of realization. The guys instantly tensed up. Who was the enemy?! Where?! But then blood spurted from his nose again and he got a lewd expression. A girl was waiting for her homeroom teacher to do perverted stuff with him! This earned him a good punch on the head from the two sitting on either side of him.
"I'm gonna kill you!" Urameshi shouted menacingly as he grabbed the magenta pullover, veins visible on his temples.
"Ah, you're seriously thinking of killing me!"
"You don't need to be reading my mind!" The detective shook the man who couldn't help but grin sheepishly. He let go and Murota coughed a little. The rei Master also reproved him for joking around at a time like this. The middle-aged guy apologized obsequiously. Time passed. The four kept looking around for anything suspicious. But as the silence was settling in Yusuke turned to Murota again to ask him if he had detected something... and was surprised to see him completely overcome with fear...
"There's someone... someone there... someone terrible..." He held his head.
Kill them all... kids... women... the elderly... dig as much as they want, it'll never be enough... fill up the entire world with graves! Kill them all! Kill them all! Kill them all! Kill them all! KILL THEM ALL!
Murota screamed in absolute terror. It was a voice... louder than anyone else's... and yet darker, quieter than anyone else's... He had never heard a voice as murky and bloodthirsty as this! Yusuke asked him to give his direction and description without pointing. A tall man coming from the right, with black hair that was slicked back and black clothes... The second they turned, they recognized the one who had struck such such intense fear in a grown adult... and he also turned to look at them and smirk disdainfully... he knew! But they had no time to think for the next second, a projectile passed him by and hit Murota's forehead. Blood squirted from his injury as he fell back on the grass. People screamed, believing he had been shot dead by a sniper. Yusuke raised his torso and called him before turning to the man who was still there, smiling, staring at them like at crawling maggots... his eyes clearly said 'my way of saying hello, Urameshi Yusuke'...
