Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN YU YU HAKUSHO OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS!!! WOOOOOOOOO!!!!
A/N: Sorry about the wait. I've been busy with stuff lately and I had too do a little bit of work on some other stories before coming back to this one. After rereading this, I found myself asking "Where the hell were you at when you wrote this?". What I mean is, it seams overly simplistic and all around sub par. So, I will be trying much, much, much, much, much, much, much…..
Continue saying "much" for about an hour….
…much, much, much harder to give this story a feel of what actual western stories and films had. Give it about 3 chapters, and if there's no improvement then I'll scrap the thing.
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Chapter 5
"Look, I understand where you're coming from but what the hell did you want me to do?!" argued Sheriff Urameshi, rubbing his temples as he leaned forward in his seat.
"You should have left him in the street to bleed!" shouted back another man, much larger than the other. He was dressed properly in an expensive looking white shirt, black bow tie, and buttoned up velvet vest. His dark beard was epic in size and the curly locks tuck out in every which direction as his lips moved with great emphasis, spit flying from his mouth. "You should have never brought him into this conflict to begin with! How do you think this would look in Washington?!"
Yusuke exhaled deeply, running a hand down his face until both of his elbows came to rest on his legs as he hunched forward.
"Exactly! My son is a respectable senator, Mr. Urameshi! Do you honestly think that the capital would turn a blind eye to his father conspiring with… with a murderer?!"
"Enma…"
"Mayor Daioh!"
"….Mayor Daioh…" Yusuke grumbled, gritting his teeth as he resisted the urge to slug the stuck up fatass, "He's not a common killer! If you could see what he does with a gun…"
"I don't want to!" The Mayor roared back, getting to his feet and pacing about, a massive hand rising to fix his spectacles upon his nose. Frowning, he turned to a nearby shelf on a wall and quickly snatched a portrait from it, thrusting it in front of the officer. In the black and white photo was a young man sitting straight up in a chair. He looked as if he had so much authority that he could decide who went to heaven and who went to hell.
"You know my son Koenma." He barked, locking eyes with Yusuke, who nodded, "You call yourself his friend. You've known him since you were young. WHY would you put him at such great risk?!"
"For Christ's sake, he'll be alright!" The younger of the two shouted back, now getting to his feet as the Mayor turned his back on him, "This isn't enough to cost him his political career! Shit, you know that!"
Mayor Daioh turned to face him, a deep frown playing on his face as his enormous and bushy brows furrowed.
"What is it that's really got you so riled up about this?" Yusuke asked, his voice regaining some of its composure. Enma Daioh paused for a moment, opening his mouth to speak before shutting it.
"No more stunts like this." He managed after another few seconds drifted by, "You hear me? Or it's your badge."
Yusuke sighed, fixing his belt, "Yeah, I hear ya."
"Urameshi, don't you think we should be hiding somewhere?" Kuwabara suddenly asked, making his presence noticeable from where he had been seated. Yusuke shook his head.
"Nah, this place is as safe as we'll get for now." He answered, casting the Mayor a questioning look and receiving a nod.
"Yes, I have my best men on duty as we speak. They're all young veterans from the war, not novice thralls like Sakyo employs." The large man said, resting his palms on a nearby dining table as shutting his eyes for a moment as he leaned against it slightly. Kuwabara got to his feet, scratching his carrot colored hair as he trotted over to the window of the room, pushing aside the expensive looking red curtain and casting his gaze out onto the streets below. Life was going on as usual in the town, despite the fact that there was now a possibly that the town hall would be up in smoke by sunset.
"Hey, looks like Kurama's come to join the party." The depute voiced aloud, earning a hopeful and surprised grin from Yusuke and a groan from Enma.
"Yeah?" The sheriff asked, moving beside his partner and looking down. Sure enough, a man possessing both a poised swagger and a flowing fiery mane. The Mayor cursed under his breath, running a hand over his balding head until it reached his slicked back hair on the rear side.
"A murderer AND a gambler. Phenomenal." He muttered dryly, moving to a nearby liquor cabinet and opening it up, his massive hands immediately grabbing a vial of bourbon.
"This'll work. Trust me." Yusuke said cockily, his grin still in place as he looked over his shoulder at Mayor Daioh, who offered a disbelieving and desperate sounding sort of noise as he tossed back his alchohol.
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"The nerve…" Keiko grumbled to herself as he sat outside of the room that her husband-to-be was in upon a comfortable orange couch. Her arms were crossed firmly in place over her chest and a scowl was plastered on her face as she glared down every single person who dared to walk by her.
First armed men had broken into her home, and now she was being forced to sit and wait alone as she was left out of all the information exchanging. If she were not such a proper women, various vocabulary words would be escaping from her mouth at high volume.
"Excuse me, miss… oh, Ms. Yukimora. So good to see you." A calm and silk like voice suddenly spoke, ripping her from her angry and violent thoughts. Looking up, she came face to face with a red haired man that she had seen Yusuke with just a few times before now… oh, what was his name?
"Kurama, Ms. Yukimora. Youko Kurama." He said smoothly, a tranquil smile fixed on his face. Keiko felt her troubles suddenly fade away from her thoughts as the man took her hand gently in his and planted a kiss on it. She fought the blush violently that threatened to rise up to overwhelm her cheeks.
"Is your fiancé in this next room, perhaps?" Kurama asked politely, cocking his head to the side. Welcome back, anger. Keiko nodded, her frown returning in full swing. Picking up on her change in mood, Kurama decided to have some fun.
"And he left you all by yourself out in this dismal corridor?" He asked, faking disbelief. Keiko looked up, happy that at least one other person thought it as rude as she did, "That is by far one of the most far fetched trials that I have ever seen a man put an upstanding woman such as yourself through. Please, allow me to escort you in." He finished, offering her his arm.
"Why, thank you so much, Mr. Kurama." She said, accepting the offer and linking with him at the elbow. Smirking, the Lord of Vice turned the handle on the door and pushed it open, allowing the two to step inside.
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The room both well lit and well furnished, and not to mention well populated. For a place that had experienced such death just hours ago it was truly alive. Various men from various social classes stood about and talked, sipping champagne, wine, and hard cider as they mingled. However, this party was a mere excuse for the arrival of so many people to Sakyo's estate. It happened annually, once every half of a year. The biggest names and the biggest investors in the underworld, whether they be from North, South, or West, gathered for a meeting to discuss problems, successes, and plans for the future.
In another room of the mansion, much more dimly lit than the other, several well groomed and formal looking men sat about a long wooden table, over which were strewn multiple papers, charts, and maps.
"What I'm saying, Gentlemen, is that this mine will easily make our pockets at least ten times heavier." Sakyo spoke aloud, his expression relaxed and composed as he drew a deep breath from his cigar. You sometimes had to squint to see in front of you due to the heavy smoke that weighed down upon the air from so many smoking men.
"That may be so, but in order to continue the construction we would have to increase our individual revenues each by over 25 per year. No doubt this will garner unwanted attention from the authorities." Another man spoke, leaning back in his seat and flipping through a packet in his hands. Sakyo nodded, leaning forward and intertwining his hands before him.
"Yes, that's correct." He answered, continuing on despite the hoarse whispers that suddenly filled the room along with the smoke, "But as we've already learned, the law can be ignored for the right amount of money. For short term profit, I realize that this will be a huge back step. But in the long run I assure you this mining network will secure our financial futures."
"I just don't know, Sakyo. It seems like to much of a risk to me." Another man voiced, running a hand through his aged beard, "What if your expectations are wrong about the abundance of gold in these caves?"
"I assure you that is not the case." The leader responded, getting to his feet and snapping his fingers. Several low ranking soldiers standing off to his right approached the table, placing an item covered in a black cloth upon it. Sakyo smirked.
"Gentlemen. A taste." He announced as he pulled back the sheet, revealing a massive block of 24 carrot gold. Instantly every person at the table was on their feet, several studying the precious alloy through special spectacles as others argued quickly in favor of supporting the mine.
"This puts my doubts to rest."
"You have my support, Sakyo."
"Excellent. As a token of good will" Sakyou began, raising his voice to speak over the masses, "I will now show my true faith in this project by investing 99 of all my assets to it." He declared, earning cheers as men eagerly began drafting checks and letters to banks. From the corner, Toguro watched stoically. He didn't care for the rats that comprised this committee. However, there was little doubt that this deal gave him the opportunity for profit as well. Who else but him could they hire to make sure everything ran smoothly? If they chose someone else, he would rob the place!
Suddenly the door kicked down, causing all in the room to jump and look up in surprise. The closest ones to the door huddled back, desperately trying to escape the presence of the thing that stood before them.
"Brother!" wailed the pathetic form of Elder Toguro, his limbs hanging loosely as he staggered into the room, blood dripping onto the carpet from his many wounds. The younger brother frowned, gritting his teeth behind closed lips.
"He escaped!" The sickening beast cried, holding a bullet wound in his left shoulder, "They swarmed us! From all around! I killed at least twenty of them but they just kept coming!" He lied, falling to his knees at his younger brother's feet.
"Sakyo, what is…"
"Pay no attention, Gentlemen. Please, help yourselves to the refreshments in the next room as I prepare the documents to be finalized." Sakyo announced, maintaining composure. Unsure and slightly unnerved, the businessmen and crime lords exited the office quickly without looking back. As soon as they had all left, Sakyo shut the door tightly.
"Toguro…" He began lowly, turning to the younger of the two, who held up a massive hand.
"I did the best that I could, brother! I swear it!" The wretch sobbed on the floor, "But we can still get him! There's time! Jaganshi was on the verge of death when they came!"
"You should not have interrupted the meeting. It was unprofessional." The juggernaut answered coolly, fixing his shades.
"Who gives a damn about those bastards?! Jaganshi is alive! We should bleed him now while we have the chance! One of the men said that he was taken to the town hall!"
"Then we will do nothing." Younger Toguro answered, earning a look of dismay from his older sibling. He looked to Sakyo, who nodded.
"Yes, that would be an unfortunate decision. I am afraid that while you work for me I cannot allow any action against the Mayor to take place."
"WHAT?! Then to hell with you, we resign!" Elder Toguro spat, only to receive a powerful fist across the face from his brother. He skidded several feet back across the floor, scrambling back up to his feet using a nearby desk.
"You would hit me?! I'm your brother, dammit!"
"Enough. Our first obligation is to our contractor. Jaganshi can be dealt with later. As we saw today, he's of no threat to us." Younger Toguro stated, returning his hands to his pockets.
"I'm glad we're in agreement. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to do some damage control." Sakyo said, dismissing himself with a bow from the room. The elder Toguro stood seething, biting his lip as his eyes bulged from their sockets. His brother merely grunted as he walked by him without sparing a glance.
"Get someone to clean out your wounds. I'm not touching you."
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"I said sorry!" Yusuke shouted as he received another smack to the head from Keiko as she continued to berate him for leaving her in the hall, "Keiko! KEIKO!!"
"My home has turned into a circus…" Mayor Daioh murmured from his desk, resting his head in his large hands as he closed his eyes, trying to rid himself of his horrible headache. Kurama, paying no heed to authority, casually smoked a cigar as he lounged in a chair not far from the brawl taking place, his right leg crossed over the other comfortably.
"If you don't mind my interjection, I would suggest that we get down to the matter at hand." He voiced calmly, causing Keiko to stop beating her fiancé, Yusuke to stop screaming and Kuwabara to stop cowering in the corner.
"I too received unexpected visitors this morning. It would seem that my under the radar cooperation with you has not gone unnoticed, Yusuke." The redhead explained, pausing to examine the lit end of his smoke, "Three of my men are dead. That leaves me with only seven."
"And they can be trusted?" Kuwabara questioned, emerging from his hiding place to stand next to the sheriff. Kurama chuckled.
"Heavens, no. However, I am sure that I am the only one who is paying them for their services at the moment. And how many do you have that we could use?"
"It's just me and Kuwabara." The sheriff answered, frowning as he ignored the glare he was receiving from Keiko, "I'm almost positive the others are getting paid off by Sakyo." He finished, looking at the Mayor for a moment. It was the big man himself who had said that he would not be firing the corrupt officers. Yusuke recalled being fairly pissed upon discovering that the Mayor would not even provide him with reasons as to why.
"Then that gives us eleven good men if your comrade is feeling up to it. I must admit, while taking on the entire Sakyo complex by yourself requires a great deal of testicular fortitude, of also signifies a lack of common sense." The drug lord mused, taking another puff of tobacco. Yusuke sighed.
"Either that or…" The sheriff trailed off, earning an inquisitive look from the redhead.
"Or…?"
"… or there's something else goin' on that we aren't seeing."
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"So you've really seen Indians?" Botan asked excitedly as she continued to stitch away at the largest cut adorning Hiei's body, taking a moment to look up at his face. As it had been all day, it lacked any sort of emotion as he gave a nod, resisting the urge to wince as the needle stabbed through a soft spot of flesh. The woman was certainly not the best nurse, however, she would suffice. The bandit had quickly sent away any others who would come to try to mend his injuries. He was no fan of being prodded by complete strangers.
"I wish I could get out more to see nature." She rambled on. It had been that way for the last few hours. She would talk…. at great length…. and Hiei would respond with one or two words, if any at all.
"My father keeps me on a pretty short leash though. Koenma too, when he was still here. I told you that he's a United States Senator, right? Our father was so proud when he went off to the capital. Everyone wished him well, even Mr. Sakyo!" She said, cutting the thread that she had used to sew Hiei's flesh, "Now that he's gone it's just me that my father worries about. He wants me to be like one of those princesses back in Europe, but all I want to do is see the countryside. Too bad he keeps me cooped up in here all day, right?"
"Hn." Hiei grunted, reaching back and folding his hands behind his head as though they together formed a pillow. As he moved, his muscles rippled and upon arriving at the desired position Botan found her eyes constantly wandering back to his bulging biceps.
"Well, I should get more water." She said suddenly, gulping as she grabbed the wooden bucket that was still halfway full.
"Woman, there's plenty." The desperado stated, looking at the item in her hands and watching as she set it back down. Giving a small smile, she nodded.
"I suppose so." She said, returning to her chair beside the bed, "So what's your story?" She asked, cocking her head to the side. Hiei raised an eyebrow.
"Your history! Where do you come from?" She elaborated, still smiling. Hiei snorted.
"It's not important."
"Yes it is! It's important to remember where we come from! It helps us figure out where we're going!" She giggled in response, still watching him.
"… The South." He said dryly after a moment, causing her smile to grow.
"Ok! Where in the South?"
"… The Western South."
"No, silly, I mean what town." Botan stifled another giggle as she folded her hands on her lap. Her blue ponytail bobbed slightly as she moved her head.
"I don't know." He answered stoically, looking up at the ceiling now. Botan's smile faded. She hadn't meant to bring up a sensitive subject.
"Oh… I'm sorry."
"Hn. Don't be." He said. It sounded more like an order, actually, when she thought about it. She nodded and leaned in slightly.
"Hiei… why did you go after them?" She allowed to slip out. She felt herself wishing that she hadn't but she continued anyways.
"Why didn't you just wait for Yusuke? Then none of this would have happened…"
"…A man who works for Sakyo stole something from me." He answered slowly, his voice deep and cold. Botan nodded, and despite the fear that gripped her tightly, continued.
"What did he steal?"
Hiei didn't answer with words, but instead looked over to their right. Hanging beside the door on a coat hanger was his cloak, scarf, and the rest of his attire minus his hat. Pity. He had loved that hat.
"Chest pocket on the left." He said, pointing to the cloak. She got up slowly and walked over to the clothing, reaching inside of the designated pocket and withdrawing something that was small and felt cold. Opening her hand, she looked down at the beautiful locket in her hands and went back over to Hiei.
"It's beautiful…"
"Hn. I couldn't care loss about the locket and chain." The desperado stated, opening his palm. Botan gently placed it in his hands and watched as he flicked it open, revealing the aged black and white photograph of a young women who looked similar to Hiei.
"…your sister?" She guessed, earning a nod. She took it delicately back into her hands and examined the photo, giving a small smile. "Where is she?"
"…"
"….oh…."
Slowly, she placed the locket back into Hiei's hand, closing his fingers around it for him and placing his hand on his chest.
"Do you… want to be alone?" She asked hesitantly, getting ready to stand. His answer was simple.
"No."
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A/N: Alright. Hopefully this is where I'll be able to kick the story up a notch. Expect twists and turns, that's all I'm gonna say. Oh yea, and of course….
REVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEWREVIEW!!
As an added bonus, one of those reviews is spelled wrong! Tell me which one it is(in a review) and get a prize!! But honestly, thanks for reading the fic so far and bearing with me and its crappiness. Hopefully with some modifications this story will be worthy of your love.