TheNotSoNiceLibrarian: Cliffies are evil but only if the story doesn't get updated. :D Don't worry, this chapter is chiffy-free.
KyoHana: The first part of this chapter is my way of punishing Yusuke for hurting Shuichi. I'm not happy he made me write that.
The forest was flattened in less than a second. Lakes evaporated. Animals that moved too slow extinguished in a sea of energy. Anything that still stood afterwards were pelted by a monsoon of ki. Everything it touched burned; Everything, except a single creature standing in the center of it all.
Yusuke was angry. He was angry at his demon father, at his human mother for sleeping with him, at being cursed with terrifying power. But most of all, he was angry at himself. He was, as his mother used to put it, a fucking idiot. He wanted to hurt himself. He deserved a good beating. He tried to punish himself, using his own ki, but every time he tried, the energy deflected off of him, leaving him unscathed.
"Damn this power, damn this shit, damn it all!" Yusuke shouted to nobody in particular.
He had vaporized Shuichi. He didn't even remember doing it. The last thing he remembered before the blast was standing over Shuichi trying to convince him that there was a way to destroy the research lab without Yomi knowing.
By the time he was aware of his own actions, Shuichi was already gone.
At first, he couldn't believe it. He thought Shuichi was playing a cruel trick on him. He must have survived the blast, his demonic powers were returning after all. He must have been hiding in his room, trying to lay low until Yusuke's anger dissipated, still working on his experiments until he perfected them. But Shuichi wasn't there. Yusuke had torn the room apart to make certain of it.
Maybe he was in ningenkai, checking on his parents and running the family business. But he wasn't there either. Yusuke had called every single Minamino family listed in the Osaka phone book, asking for Shuichi, but nobody had a Shuichi in their family.
Maybe he was laying in the forest, injured and helpless from the blast that propelled him deep into the woods. Maybe he was trying to crawl his way back to the castle, his human body too weak and too frail to take him back. Worse, maybe he was in a coma, unable to call for help. Yusuke organized a search party to check every nook and cranny of the forest within a 3 km radius of the blast.
While he was madly searching, eyes opened and alert but not really seeing, a voice spoke to him.
He's not here, child.
Yusuke looked around. Everyone was preoccupied with searching. Some were shouting Shuichi's name, others were on all fours looking under bushes and shrubs, still others were climbing up the old growth that may be large enough to hold a human boy.
He's gone, child. The voice spoke again.
"What are you yapping on about?" Yusuke shouted. A few demons in the search team peered up at him curiously.
He's dead, child.
"Shuichi is not dead," Yusuke insisted, not noticing the strange looks he was getting.
You killed him, child.
"It wasn't me. I was not myself." Yusuke denied, shaking his head to the voice in his head.
It was you, child. You fired the spirit gun.
"I blacked out! I wouldn't have fired if I knew what I was doing."
Don't deny it, child. You were just as aware as you were when you pressed him down and kissed him.
"I was drunk!"
You liked it. You wanted to do it. You wanted to do it again. I know you did, child.
"I was drunk!" Yusuke asserted, again.
You weren't drunk when you killed him.
"Listen to me! I wasn't in control of my own body!"
Maybe not consciously. But you were in control subconsciously, child.
"Who the fuck are you to be telling me what I am, and what I'm not?"
I know everything about you, child.
"The hell are you talking about?"
I'm you, child. I'm your demon energy.
Suddenly it dawned on Yusuke that it was this side of him that took over when he blacked out.
"YOU'RE THE ONE WHO KILLED SHUICHI!" Yusuke bellowed in realization, feeling his rage growing, his aura swirling.
We're one and the same, child. But you're weak and it's time I took over.
"Shuddup! I'm gonna beat you to a bloody pulp. I'm gonna make you regret opening your damn mouth. I'm gonna make sure you never speak again," Yusuke seethed, his hair inexplicably bursting out of his hair into an untamed raven-colored mass, his energy flaring skyward forming a scarlet tornado. Everyone around him scattered.
Yes, child. Free me! Free me, child! Free me!
Just as he had a few days ago on the castle lawn, Yusuke released a torrent of energy. This time, it was not aimed at anything or anyone in particular. It was aimed at the world, at the helpless situation he'd found himself in, at his fate, at the demon within him.
When he came to, he was in his bed. Yusuke felt like he had been asleep for weeks. Near him, he could hear voices murmuring but couldn't make out all the words. The hushed voices, whoever they belong to, were speaking in a serious tones. Yusuke managed to catch some disjointed words: alliance, offense, disinherit, and Gandara. He turned his head towards the sounds, but a big mass of hair, his big mass of hair was in the way. Had he taken his true mazoku form again? He checked his arm for markings and saw that they were faint, but there.
Yusuke vaguely recalled decimating the forest. The more he fought his demon side, the stronger and angrier he became. In the end, he consumed his energy stores and collapsed in a helpless, grief-stricken heap. Shuchi was dead and his demon side had killed him.
If only they'd never met. If only he'd never told Shuichi about his demon heritage. If only he'd never invited Shuichi to be his adviser. The redhead would still be alive now. He would still be turning heads every time he walked down the street, safe at home surrounded by —
"Urameshi?"
The voice jerked Yusuke out of his internal turmoil. Kuwabara, looking like he hadn't slept for days, appeared in his peripheral vision.
"Your Highness! You're awake!" Hokushin appeared on the other side of the bed, waving for servants to bring food and water.
Both of them looked absolutely spent, as if any moment now, one of them could pass out from sheer mental exhaustion. They've been worried about him, Yusuke realized. The two of them had been by his bedside, sentinel of both his sanity and his health. Then, a second thought hit Yusuke: he wasn't the only one who had lost a respected friend, these two were grieving as well. They have been by his side throughout his search for Shuichi. Finally, another thought: but here they are, still levelheaded, still running a country, and still preparing for a war. Yusuke sat up. No matter how sad or angry or depressed or in denial he was, one thing's for certain: an entire country was counting on him to set things right.
Yusuke scratched the back of his head and managed a sad grin, "Wow, I royally screwed things up this time, didn't I?"
Kuwabara was the first to speak, "Yah. I've always known you were a few sandwiches short of a picnic but I didn't expect you to be batshit insane." Contradictory to his words, the carrot top put his hand on Yusuke's shoulder in a show of support. "But hey, look at the bright side! At least there's no more forest to destroy."
"That's true, Your Highness. That was a very impressive display of power," Hokushin chimed in. "More than enough to rival Yomi and Mukuro. I can only imagine their shock when they felt that ki."
"Yah ok, but don't expect a replay anytime soon." Yusuke tried to run a hand through his locks but found that it was too unruly and tangled for his hand to budge even an inch. "Hey, can we cut this mess off?"
"Certainty, Your Highness." Turning, he gestured for the maids to bring a pair of scissors.
"Nah, keep it long, Urameshi! You look like a proper mazoku king," Kuwabara joked, tugging at the long locks and quickly realizing how tangled it is when his fingers were snared.
"No thanks. When have I ever looked a proper anything?" Yusuke countered. Then, pointing at his tattoo-esque markings on his body, Yusuke asked, "Why didn't these disappear this time?"
"It appears that your human side and demon side have merged." Hokushin observed.
"Oh yeah? That bastard was totally pushing my buttons," Yusuke casually confessed.
"What bastard?" Kuwabara asked.
"The voice in my head."
"Hey Hokushin, get a straitjacket over here. This one's still crazy."
"No, you idiot!" Yusuke smacked Kuwabara on the head. "Remember how Shuichi was telling me to reach within myself to find my hidden demon? Well, I did more than that! I beat that bastard down. He kept telling me to free him and I almost did, but in the end I absorbed him."
"Now that you mention it, Your Highness, it is evident that your human body has assimilated your demon powers." Hokushin examined Yusuke thoughtfully, "In the past, it felt to me like you were trying to maintain your humanity whilst trying to control the foreign powers within. It is apparent now that your demon powers are a natural extension of you, an appendage or a tool for you to use at will. The difference is palpable."
"Yah, something like that." Jumping out of bed, the raven haired boy started stretching his arms and legs, shaking out the knots in his muscles and getting his blood running. The servants have set out a chair in the middle of his room to serve as an impromptu barber station, complete with a warm beverage and light snacks.
Yusuke quickly slouched onto the chair, head leaning on the top and left ankle resting on right knee. Immediately, a group of servants starting fussing with his mane. "So, how long was I out for?"
"3-freaking-days, Urameshi!" Kuwabara exclaimed before sitting down backwards on a chair across from the mazoku king. He leaned his arms atop the back.
"Sorry! Needed my beauty sleep, ya know?" Turning to Hokushin, Yusuke asked, "So, what's new?"
"A lot, Your Highness." Hokushin took a big gulp of water, as if preparing for a long report. "First of all, Mukuro and Yomi's wedding is set for 4 days from now. Judging by the frantic pace of their courtship and timing of the ceremony, this is clearly a marriage of convenience, a symbol of their alliance against us. Our intelligence network informs us that it will be held in the Crystal Desert, an unclaimed region between the Alarican and Gandaran territories."
"I take it we're still not invited?" Yusuke half-joked, thinking it would be the perfect opportunity for him to destroy both of his enemies.
"I'm quite certain we're not."
"We're not the only ones who didn't get an invite though," Kuwabara added. "Most of the Alarican lords and ladies didn't either. Some of them are outright boycotting the ceremony. They're pissed at their king right now."
"Cause they hate Yomi?"
"It's because they'd rather stay independent," Hokushin answered. "The Alarican people are very proud, they would never bow down to Yomi."
"So why would Mukuro piss off half her country to marry this guy? What's her hidden agenda? She's stayed neutral for so long."
"That's exactly my thought. Either Mukuro knows something we don't know or Yomi is blackmailing her."
Yusuke recalled his last conversation with Shuichi and the laboratory he mentioned. Is it possible that Yomi is threatening Mukuro? No, that doesn't make sense. Yomi would sooner threaten Tourin or himself than Mukuro, considering her powerful army and neutral stance until recently. If Shuichi had known, it was entirely possible that Mukuro knew about the laboratory as well. Could it be possible that Mukuro wanted access to the technology?
Before Yusuke could verbalized these thoughts, he sensed a sudden spike of unrecognizable demon energy followed by loud rumbling that reminded him of a freight train. Outside, in the ruined forests surrounding the castle, a huge cyclone was making its way towards them. The servant that was cutting his hair froze mid-action before screaming hysterically. Those that stayed calm were working together to board up the windows. Undaunted, Yusuke stepped outside, hair only half cut. Based on the strength of the energy aura, it was obvious that Yusuke was in the presence of a Class S wind master.
"Urameshi! What are you doing? We need to get underground!" Kuwabara stuck his head out the window and shouted, all the while directing servants towards the hallway away from the twister.
Yusuke motioned for him to go back indoors knowing this ki was too strong for a human to withstand. Feeling oddly confident of his abilities, he stood directly in the line of fire, his mazoku aura shielding him from the strong gusts of wind and the smothering dust clouds. When the tornado was mere meters from colliding with him, Yusuke let out an eruption of powers, effectively blasting it apart and exposing the demons within.
Even though he could not see clearly through the flying debris, Yusuke could pinpoint the exact location of the wind master and the three demons that accompanied him based on their energy signatures. All four of them were Class S demons. Yusuke knew that powerful demons such as these were few and far between and could not fathom why they are here in Tourin. Unless — fingers crossed — his old man's buddies had finally decided to make an appearance.
Once the debris settled, Yusuke was finally able to make out the silhouettes of his visitors. One in particular was walking faster than the others, practically skipping his way towards Yusuke.
"Aww, you ruined my grand entrance!" The demon pouted, biting his lips with his pointy canines and throwing his arms up in the air in show of mock disappointment. While not very tall in stature, the demon was clearly proud of his muscular physique and showed it off in a revealing toga. Peeking out from the center of his thick, shoulder-length hair is a small horn.
Grinning at the unusual at the opening line, Yusuke gesture at the path of destruction left by the cyclone. "Nah, that looked like a fun way to travel." He had a hunch that he was going to get along with this red-haired demon.
"That energy blast you made just now was pretty cool too, Yusuke!" Reacting to the small look of surprise that must have shown on Yusuke's face when his name was used, the demon quickly offered an explanation. "Master Genkai told me all about you!"
"Master who?" The mention of this Master Gen-something person dispelled all hopes of these demons being Raizen's old sparring buddies.
"Master Genkai is a spirit energy master that we live and train with in ningenkai," A short but serious looking demon answered, stepping forward. This one had slicked back grey-blue hair with four stiff strands of green jutting forward and to the left, partially covering one eye. "I'm Touya. This is Jin, the wind master."
"I was so excited I forgot to make introductions!" The red-headed demon grinned sheepishly then gestured to a tall, muscular demon with a blue mohawk that reeked of alcohol and a spiky blond demon who Yusuke would have mistaken for human if not for his strong youki. "That drunkard over there is Chu and that one is Suzuki."
"Yusuke here, but it looks like you already know. This here is Hokushin and Kuwabara," the half-ningen gestured to his two advisers, who have made their way outdoors and were cautiously examining the newcomers. "What did this Master Genkai tell you?"
"Only that you're the new half-human king of Tourin and your stance to protect the human realm." Touya replied. "As soon as we heard about Yomi's latest ploy, we knew we had to join your cause."
"Excuse me, Touya san," Hokushin spoke up. "What exactly is this ploy you are referring to?"
"His biological weapons development program and his intention to use them in both Ningenkai and Makai," the short demon responded, looking more solemn than ever. "This is obviously a big problem for us, as we've been living peacefully in Ningenkai."
As far as Yusuke knew, the only other person who knew about this was Shuichi. Perhaps Shuichi had survived after all and went back to the human realm to gather more help. "Wait, how did Genkai know about this?"
"She received a funny letter!" Jin exclaimed, smiling wide. "It was a little flower with a message written on the petals!"
"No idea who sent the thing," Chu the drunkard said, hardly able to stand without swaying. "But it sure as hell came at the right time."
"Yah! In four days, Yomi will be in the Crystal Desert and he'll be too distracted to stop us," Eyes sparkling with mischief, Jin clasped his hands together and smiled, "Let's go trash that lab!"
Author's Notes: Hope you enjoyed that! Next chapter, we return to Hiei to see how the whether or not Mukuro have turned into a Bridezilla yet. :D
Oh...this weekend's going to be busy so I probably won't be able to update until Tuesday or Wednesday next week. :(
Suggestions and ideas always appreciated!