Sayomi kept her distance, giving him no chances. She let her cloak close around her, took in a deep breath, and said, "That was quick. I didn't expect to see you for at least a couple more days."

"What can I say?" Yasuhiro shrugged his shoulders. "I couldn't wait any longer. You don't know how long I've looked forward to this moment. I'm half convinced this is just another dream or meditation."

"Were you there the whole time?" Sayomi asked.

"Of course not." Yasuhiro waved off her suspicion. "I stopped following once you reached your borders. I just wanted you to return safely. Now then, we should start heading back. The farther we get from here the better." He turned to walk away from Raizen's kingdom.

"What about in the Human World? Were you always there?"

"Yes and no. Like I said, I kept a respectable distance, but I was always close by. Now come on. If we don't go soon, we might run into trouble."

Sayomi hesitated before following after him. "Where are we going?"

"You'll see. I'd rather not say anything aloud while we're out here. You never know who might be listening." Yasuhiro smiled and looked down at her. "So how did you end up way out here? It's no wonder I couldn't find you."

"I was found near death and brought here to recover. I don't really know how far I ended up, but this is pretty much where I've been." Sayomi kept her eyes forward, though she watched him in her peripheral.

"When did you end up in the Human World? I gotta say, I was pretty shocked to see you on TV at the Dark Tournament of all places. On the human team, no less."

Sayomi shrugged. "Probably four or five months before the tournament. Hard to say. Everything happened so fast."

"You must've been having fun, then." Yasuhiro sighed. "It makes me kinda jealous, you know? I was supposed to protect you, but I ended up losing you instead. The only reason I kept searching was because I never found anything. Not a body or empty set of clothes to confirm your death."

Sayomi did her best to ignore the memory of the night he was describing. "I couldn't help it. Once I started running, I couldn't stop. It didn't feel safe. When I woke up, I was in a strange room with a monk. Since he nursed me back to health, I figured I was safe enough."

"So how did you get involved with the Underworld Detective?" Yasuhiro kept his smile, but his eyes darkened just a shade.

"I owed the king a favor for his protection. It was the least I could do." She made sure to keep her answers brief, yet detailed enough to convince him of her honesty.

"Interesting." Yasuhiro slipped into silence as he became lost in thought.

Sayomi noted his stoic expression. "What about you? What have you been up to since back then?"

"Besides looking for you, I was busy training. I needed to have full control so a night like that wouldn't happen again." He turned to her with another smile. "I think I can finally say I've gotten to that point. Now that I've got you back, there shouldn't be any more mishaps with my powers."

"Just because you found me?" Sayomi raised a skeptical brow. "That seems a little too good to be true."

"Well, once I made contact with you, I knew I still needed to work on a few things. Now, in the short amount of time since, I've come to understand my abilities better. Soon, you won't have to worry about your powers anymore because I'll protect you."

Sayomi's fists clenched despite her deep breathing. "That won't be necessary. I prefer to take care of myself and practice my abilities the way I think I need to. Besides, I enjoy fighting more than healing."

"It's not about what you enjoy, Sayomi. It's about what's best for you, and what's best is that you avoid fighting as much as possible." He looked up at the sky and said, "Once the sun sets, be ready to use your shadow step. It'll be a lot faster than walking."

Sayomi scowled and nodded. If you think you can keep me from fighting, then you better pray I don't get stronger than you.

"By the way, Sayomi," Yasuhiro said. "I must say I'm curious about what took you so long to get here."

"The Demon Plane or literally get here?"

"Both." Yasuhiro smiled down at her and said, "It's just, I'm wondering why you would take so long in the Human World, and why you took so long once you came back to Tourin. If you were fulfilling a favor, I want to know what kind of favor it was."

"Sorry, but It's not something I can just talk about. You can call it classified information or personal. Either way, it's really none of your business." Sayomi kept her expression neutral and did her best to ignore her brother's smile.

"That's too bad." Yasuhiro sighed. "Can't blame me for trying, I suppose."

About 45 minutes later, the sun set below the horizon. Yasuhiro turned to Sayomi and switched to infrared vision. She mimicked him, then they covered themselves with shadows. Stepping through the Void to their destination took only a moment. As soon as they arrived, they relinquished their aura and returned to the light spectrum.

Sayomi looked around at the hallway and froze. The walls and floor looked like the muscle tissue of a living creature. Facial features, such as mouths and eyes, protruded from the walls, floor and ceiling. She treaded carefully on the balls of her feet to minimize contact. How can he just walk over these things so casually?

Yasuhiro walked down the middle of the hallway with a confident stride and stern glare. Without turning to look at her, he said, "I am taking you to the person I owe my sanity and my life to. He's the one who aided me through my training."

"So, if he helped you to control it, then why can't I ask for the same help?" Sayomi asked, her arched brow challenging him to stop her.

Yasuhiro stopped and turned to glare at her. He lowered his voice and said, "We will discuss it afterwards. For now, just keep your head down and let me do the talking. He's been patient so far. You don't want to anger him."

Sayomi returned his glare, but kept quiet. Beneath her cloak, she slipped her hand over the handle of her sickle. When he turned to continue down the hall, she relaxed. If he tries anything, I'll show him just how serious I am.

When they reached a fleshy door with an eyeball in the center, Sayomi did her best not to look at it directly. Yasuhiro knocked three times and waited.

There was a moment of silence before a muffled voice said, "Come in."

When Yasuhiro ushered her in, Sayomi noticed the room looked just as creepy as the rest of the place. Across the far wall were windows looking out to the Demon Plane. Sayomi felt her mouth hang open when she realized they were moving over the terrain. Where the hell are we?

Yasuhiro walked to the center of the room and bowed on one knee. Sayomi looked down at him with a curious brow. When she looked up, she noticed the figure standing just 6 meters away.

He wore baggy green pants with a violet, gold-trimmed vest. Beneath the vest, the figure wore a white long-sleeved shirt. A red sash was tied around his waist with his head and shoulders wrapped in bandages and talismans. Sayomi kept a stern glare at the tyrant's back.

"My lord," Yasuhiro said reverently. "My apologies for the intrusion. I came to inform you that I have completed my mission and have brought my sister back with me."

Wait... So, he knew I was coming? Sayomi slid her glare down to her groveling brother. This is who he's been training under?

"Girl! Show respect to Lord Mukuro and kneel."

Sayomi glanced at the other demon in the room. He was tall and physically strong. He wore a helmet that only exposed his menacing glare. His torso was protected by armor while his pants were loose and baggy.

When Yasuhiro noticed Sayomi was still standing, and glaring at the second-in-command, he tugged her cloak down to force her to a knee. "I told you to keep your head down and let me do the talking!"

"Hmm?" Mukuro turned and stared down at the commotion.

Sayomi stared at the large eye that peeked through the bandages. Then Yasuhiro forced her head down and said, "Please forgive her, my lord! She's been living with savages who lack proper manners. I will do my best to correct her actions as soon as possible."

Sayomi growled. She snaked her wrist around her brother's arm and slipped out from under his hand. She followed through with a wrist hold and got back to her feet. "I just left someone's territory so I could be free of this crap. I'm not bowing down to some other demon just because he's another king, dammit."

Yasuhiro stared at her trying, and failing, to respond. Mukuro's eye widened slightly at the unexpected outburst. The other demon's glare narrowed as he started to charge his aura.

Sayomi noticed and started to slowly extend her shadow.

"Kirin!"

The demon, Kirin, immediately stopped and turned to Mukuro.

"Let her speak. Then, I'll decide what to do with her." Mukuro kept his eye on Sayomi. "What is your name?"

Seeing that Kirin wasn't going to try anything, Sayomi shifted her attention back to Mukuro and slowly released her brother. She focused on a talisman just above the tyrant's eye. "My name is Sayomi."

"I am Mukuro."

"I know. Where's Hiei?" Sayomi hadn't seen the fire demon in nearly a week. If he's in a place like this, there's no telling what they're making him do.

"I see..." Mukuro ignored her question and asked, "Where did you come from?"

"That's not important."

"It is if you want to know about him."

Sayomi's eyes darkened when she answered, "Tourin."

"Ah." Mukuro's posture relaxed. "That explains a few things. As for him, he's currently fighting 100 A-Class demons in the lower training dungeons."

"100?!" Sayomi gasped. "That's insane!"

"Really?" Mukuro blinked. "I thought I was being too lenient."

"Take me to him, please. I need to make sure he's still alive!" Sayomi glared at the demon and clenched her fists.

"I will not." Mukuro stared down at Sayomi, using just enough of his aura to warn her. "You are here by request of Yasuhiro. I allowed him this opportunity, yet you come into my territory and speak to me in such a manner?"

Sayomi clenched her fists and did her breathing exercises to keep focus. I know he's holding back, but it's still so intense.

"I am not the starving fool," Mukuro continued. "Hiei is here to train, so he will not be disturbed. He is allowed time to rest in between sessions. I will fetch you when it is time for his break. In the meantime, I advise you stick close and listen to Yasuhiro. Otherwise, your safety won't be guaranteed."

Sayomi scowled. "Do I have a choice?"

Mukuro's head tilted just slightly. "You have another suggestion?"

Sayomi glanced down at her brother before looking back up at Mukuro. "Yasuhiro said he no longer has problems with his power. Is that true?"

"Hmm..." Mukuro looked down at Yasuhiro who kept his head bowed. "Control takes time and the will to work at it. Whether he still struggles with it or not depends on him."

"So if I'm willing, you'll train me?" Sayomi asked. She kept her stance firm with her fists at her sides. "I just want to get strong enough so I can eventually leave on my own. I don't want to stay here any longer than necessary."

"You barely rank a low-B Class. I don't have anything weaker than A-Class in my ranks to provide for training." Mukuro turned to Kirin and said, "Prepare a dungeon of 50 A-Class demons."

Sayomi gasped. "50?!"

"My lord!" Yasuhiro yelled urgently. "Please pay her request no heed! I will be responsible for her protection! It is my –"

"Silence!" Mukuro ordered.

Yasuhiro snapped his mouth shut and returned his gaze to the floor. Sayomi arched her brow at her brother. Is that really necessary?

Mukuro returned his attention to the demoness and said, "If you wish to get stronger, then you must fight for your life. If you don't achieve the necessary power, then you will die. These are the terms and conditions for my training."

"Mind if I add another condition?" Sayomi asked.

"Hm?" Mukuro asked, "What condition?"

"I don't want to be part of your army. I want to stay out of the war and have the freedom to come and go as I please." Before Mukuro could speak, Sayomi held up a finger. "Of course, this is only once I'm strong enough to actually leave this place. Until then, I have to consider this my home base."

"A nomadic nature," Mukuro mused. "I suppose I could accommodate for something in return."

Of course... Sayomi crossed her arms and tilted her head with a raised brow. "What do you need? I don't mind paying a favor with a favor."

"I will inform you when the time comes... if you can survive your training." Mukuro turned back to the view of the Demon Plane forests that passed by. "There's no point asking you for anything if you die before it's time to pay. Stand by with Yasuhiro until Kirin comes to fetch you."

Oh! Sayomi's eyes widened as she remembered. "Sorry, just one last thing! I need to see Hiei before a month's time. It's urgent."

Without turning back, Mukuro said, "Then you should finish your training quickly."

Sayomi resisted the urge to growl. I should've known.

"My lord, please allow her to rest first," Yasuhiro begged. "She ran for five consecutive days before coming straight here. I was hoping this would've been a brief introduction so she could regain her strength."

"She has a day," Mukuro said. "Training will begin whether she's ready or not."

Taking that as his hint to leave, Yasuhiro urged Sayomi to do the same. She reluctantly followed him out of the room, but kept her senses open for any surprises. When they walked into a random room without bothering to knock, Sayomi figured it was his.

The room was just as weird as the rest of the compound. Though it had a bed and large chest for personal items, the lack of furnishings made the space feel less like a room and more like a prison cell. She leaned against a wall, careful not to touch an eyeball that peeked through it.

After he locked the door, Yasuhiro turned on Sayomi with a calm glare. "What the hell was that?"

Sayomi returned his glare. "That was taking advantage of an opportunity."

"Do you realize what you've just done?" Yasuhiro closed his eyes and shook his head. "No, of course you don't. You're lucky he didn't kill you right then and there for making such demands."

"You can't stop me from fighting, Yasuhiro. I've had a hard-enough time getting to this point and I'm not letting you take that from me."

"You don't need to do this." Yasuhiro placed his hand on her shoulder and held firm. "I promised mother I would keep you safe. Why are you risking yourself?"

"Because I made her a promise, too." Sayomi looked him in the eye, refusing to back down. "I promised her I would be strong. It's the only way to survive. The fact that I have fun doing it is just a bonus."

"She was talking about emotionally, Sayomi." He let her go and started to pace around the room. "The whole point was to protect you, but I can't do that if you insist on endangering yourself to the point of suicide."

"That's not what she meant." Sayomi's stormy eyes narrowed. "She knew I couldn't rely on you forever. just like we couldn't rely on her."

"I'm stronger now than she was back then. You won't have to worry about that."

"And what if I get stronger than you?" Sayomi asked. "Will you still insist on protecting me?"

Yasuhiro stopped pacing and stared at Sayomi in shock. "Do you know how reckless you've been over the past several months?"

"I survived, didn't I?" Sayomi crossed her arms and said, "There's a saying I learned in the Human World and it seems to hold true so far. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. I almost died a few times, yet I'm stronger than I was before. I know what I can handle and what I can't."

"Dammit, Sayomi!" Yasuhiro snapped. "I didn't get this strong to find you just so you could risk your life!"

"And I thought you were dead all this time," Sayomi said calmly. "For most of my life, this is what I've been striving for because I thought I would be on my own."

"And now you're not!" Yasuhiro pleaded with his eyes for her to understand. "You don't need to fight anymore."

"But I want to," Sayomi argued. "I waited years to gain my independence. Now you're telling me to become dependent on you instead? No thanks. You'll have to kill me to keep me from fighting."

Yasuhiro groaned. "When did you get so stubborn?"

Sayomi shrugged. "I guess spending so much time with them rubbed off on me."

"That's not anything to be proud of," Yasuhiro scolded.

"You asked." Sayomi shrugged. "So, can you answer some of my questions now? You've been dodging them ever since you first showed up in my meditations."

Yasuhiro let out a heavy sigh. "I'll answer what I can, but just know I can't answer everything."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't have all the answers. My memory is a bit hazy with certain things. Even if I try to remember, I can't seem to clear the fog."

Sayomi arched her brow curiously. "So what can you remember?"

Yasuhiro sat down on the bed and glared down at the floor. "I don't remember much, really. I remember being chased by the hunters, but I don't remember why. Next thing I know, I lost you. I panicked and almost faded because I went into a frenzy looking for you. If it wasn't for Lord Mukuro, I wouldn't be here. I only found out I was a suspected criminal when he recruited me into his army. He told me what I had done and said he had better methods for training. I almost didn't join, but he said I'd be able to find what I was looking for if I worked for him." He raised his head to meet her eyes. "Years later, I finally found you."

Sayomi did her best to not react to the look he was giving her. "So, you don't remember practicing your powers on humans?"

"If I did it, then I probably had no choice. When I finally came to my senses, it was like waking up from a long sleep."

Sayomi kept her guard up. "Okay, let's say I believe you. How did you gain control?"

"You'll find out soon enough." Yasuhiro sighed heavily. "Lord Mukuro is going to push you beyond your limits. It will be life or death. The only way you can survive is to rely on the Void. The real training will begin when you start to give in to it." He looked at the mark around her neck. "I'm sure you have an idea what I'm talking about."

"That's actually another thing I wanted to ask you." She gestured to her neck, then his eyes. "What do these mean?"

"You've been touched by the Void," Yasuhiro said quietly. "You've come close to fading, haven't you?"

Sayomi didn't bother denying it. Hiei did mention something about that. "Yusuke died. At the time, I didn't care if I faded or not. I just... "

"You didn't care?" Yasuhiro's eyes narrowed. "You didn't consider how that might've affected me?"

Sayomi tensed when she noticed the shift in his tone. "Yusuke is—"

"An abomination," Yasuhiro finished. "He's a human recruited by the Underworld who turns out to have demonic ancestry. The irony is not lost on me. Why you would be willing to fade for the likes of the half-breed is what boggles my mind."

"If you actually gave him a chance, then maybe you'd understand." Sayomi met her brother's glare with her own. "Yusuke has a knack for surprising people."

"Is he the reason you asked to not be part of the war?"

"He's part of it. I just want to be neutral." Sayomi shrugged. "Mukuro said it himself. I know I'm only here temporarily, so why join an army?"

"But you could stay here," Yasuhiro argued. "Why do you feel like you need to leave?"

"I'm not gonna rely on others to protect me when I can protect myself. Besides, I don't really like this place. It feels really creepy here." Her eyes wandered to the eyeball poking out through the ceiling and the pair of lips on the floor.

"You'll get used to it. It's really not as bad as you think, Sayomi."

"I'll decide that for myself. I still have one more question I need to ask." She stared her brother in the eye. "What happened to my shade?"

"Do you remember what your shade is?" Yasuhiro asked.

"It's a version of myself, isn't it?"

"In a sense," Yasuhiro answered. "Your shade was a manifestation of what you considered negative emotions. When you were little, you used to literally manifest your shade with your own shadow to have someone to play with. It was back when mother was still alive and I was usually out gathering supplies and information."

I don't remember that... Sayomi tried to think back to such a time, but nothing came to mind. Is that why the monks taught me to meditate? So they wouldn't have to see me talking to a physical shadow version of myself?

"You were always a good child who smiled all the time and did as you were told, but your shade would often voice how you really felt about certain things. If your shade is gone, it usually implies that you don't need it anymore. You felt strong enough to handle your own negative emotions. I assume this came from your training, am I right?"

Sayomi shrugged.

Yasuhiro sighed. "Our powers are tied to our emotions, Sayomi. They affect the strength of an attack and our control. If you can use your emotions to your advantage, rather than just reacting to them, then you'll have better control over your power."

Sayomi's eyes widened slightly as she thought of Yusuke. Master Genkai was always telling him that he needed to more honest with his emotions. Especially during his fight with Toguro... I've always been afraid of losing control and fading until...

"Mind if I ask you a question now?" Yasuhiro asked.

"Might as well," Sayomi allowed.

"For the longest time, I've been struggling with my anger. What have you been struggling with?"

"Fear," Sayomi answered.

"I see." Yasuhiro bowed his head and let out an empty chuckle. "I guess that makes sense. You were probably terrified when we got separated and now with your powers."

"I'm not as scared anymore," Sayomi said. "Sure, I don't want to fade away if I can help it, but even the Underworld doesn't know what happens to souls in the end. I want to get over my fears so I can enjoy my life the way I want to."

Yasuhiro stared at Sayomi for a moment. She stared back. The staring contest dragged on until Yasuhiro grunted. "You should get some sleep. It will be the only rest you'll get until you complete your training."

"Am I supposed to sleep on the floor?" Sayomi asked, eyeballing the mouth in the center.

"Of course not," Yasuhiro said. "You take the bed. I'll stand guard outside until it's time for your training."

Sayomi watched as he left the room. Then she stared at the bed, and sighed. "He's probably right. Still, I don't like the idea of sleeping here with all these eyes watching me."

She sat on the center of the bed and settled into a lotus position. Though she kept her eyes closed and her breathing slow, she made sure to keep her ears open for anything that might sneak up on her. Meditation will work just as well as sleep. Even if I could fall asleep, I don't want Yasuhiro or that Kirin guy sneaking up on me when I seem the most vulnerable.