Tears flowed steadily from her eyes. 'Why is he asking me to leave?'

Memories flashed through her mind. She could almost feel her heart breaking into tiny pieces.

'I've already lost my mother…my home…everything…I don't want to lose Sensei too…I don't want to leave…'

Her eyes fell on the dagger at her side. Subconsciously, her hand moved towards it.

'Is there anything else for me to live for? If I were to lose the last thing I have left…to leave the one I love…Life would be meaningless…'

She unsheathed the dagger. "Sensei…I can't…I'd rather die before I have to leave…"

"I don't want you to die. Just leave."

"Sensei, please…If you don't kill me before I have to leave, I'll do it myself…"

The dagger flashed in the moonlight. Kurama spun around in shock.

"No, don't!"

He cursed himself. 'You baka fox! If she loses her life because of this, I'll never forgive myself!'

He sprang at her, hoping he was quick enough to stop her.

He wasn't. The ground before him was covered in blood and time just seemed to stop.

Chapter 6 – Sunshine after the Storm

Disclaimer: Yu Yu Hakusho is the property of Yoshihiro Togashi and so are all the characters in it. As much as I wished, I still don't own Kurama…oh sob…

Sorry for the delay, I hope you guys haven't been killed by the suspense. So sorry…


Moonlight fell on the crimson ground. Blood dripped from the dagger, dripping steadily onto the pool on the ground.

The bat demon gritted his teeth in pain. The dagger stabbed his arm as he was trying to block it from stabbing the intended victim.

"Kuronue-san! I'm sorry! Are you alright?"

Kuronue didn't answer. He glared at Kurama for a full minute before yelling at him.

"WHAT THE HECK DID YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING?"

Kurama couldn't help feeling a little relieved. At least no lives were lost…

Kuronue snarled in anger. "And you too, trying to end your life like that. What would I have done if you had died, huh?"

"Kuronue, I…"

"Shut up, you stupid fox! You nearly killed her, you know that? If I hadn't reached here in time, who knows what would've happened. How could you be so mean to her?"

"Kuronue-san, please… You're hurt…"

"Never mind me, worry about that mentor of yours! That demon's got a few screws loose, I'll say. What did you get so mad for, Kurama?"

Kurama remained silent. All that happened in the past hour was still a little too much for him. Now come to think of it, how could he have let his jealousy overwhelm himself?

"I didn't mean to…I didn't…I was just…"

"Just what? Look, it's not her fault, ok?"

Kurama looked up. "Not her fault for what?"

"I know what you're ranting on about. She didn't have any notion of doing that, I did. If there's anyone you should scold, scold me. Don't blame it on her just because you want her to be single forever."

Kurama felt a little annoyed. "I don't want her to…Hey! I didn't say that! Kuronue, you…"

By then, Kurama was too lost for words. Kuronue was glaring at him so fiercely that he dropped his gaze.

"You'd better apologize to her. And for your info, your student here has been very obedient and refused to start any relationship with me. Does that settle things?"

Kurama's heart gave a little skip. 'So she's not…I've been such a fool…Never again will I let my suspicions and jealousy control my emotions like that…'

"Hey…ermm…I'm sorry…I was just a little too…ermm…"

"It's ok, Sensei. So, do I still have to leave?"

"No! No, you don't. I just said that in a fit of rage, that's all."

Kuronue sighed. "So it's settled then…" Then he fainted on the ground.

"Kuronue!"

"Kuronue-san! Wake up!"


A few days later, things were the same as ever. Kuronue's arm was healing well, he and Ariya tried their best to pretend that nothing ever happened between them and Kurama tried his best to pretend he had never seen them kissing in the forest the other day.

"Don't you ever say anything hurtful to her again."

"I won't. I promise. And I'm really interested to know, why didn't you ever tell me that you were in love with her?"

"Because I thought that you'd kill me for sure."

"…Oh… I'm sure that if you had told me in a nice way…"

"Drop it, Kurama. Anyway, there has to be another reason other than being over-protective of her that made you so mad that day."

Kurama stared at the ground. "I don't quite follow you…"

"You pretty much do, Kurama. Tell me, were you… jealous?"

"No, why would I be?"

"Do you like her or not, Kurama? Because you care way to much to be only caring for her as a mentor, you know."

Kurama didn't know what to say. Was it true that he really liked her? Or was someone toying with his mind?

"If you like her, Kurama, then just tell her. Get it over with. You'll regret if you drag this relationship on any more. I can tell that she cares deeply for you too."

"She respects me. I'm in a different position than you are, Kuronue. Imagine how would you feel if your mentor suddenly came up to you and confessed his love?"

Kuronue shook his head.


The youkai cowered at the dark figure in front of him. Spluttering, he tried to get his words out.

"I found them, master! I found them!" He spluttered excitedly.

His master merely raised an eyebrow at him as he continued with his report.

"It was just as you had suspected, master! The girl is alive! The one you saw in the forest a few years back, she is the only survivor of all your attacks!"

"The only survivor, did you say?"

The youkai flinched at the icy tones. His master continued. "I wonder, how is it that a young girl can survive our attack and not die yet?"

"She has had help from a certain kitsune, master."

"I've heard of that already. Youko Kurama, am I correct?"

"Yes, my lord."

The demon got up from his seat and walked over to the window. His eyes glinted with malice and evil, the look of an obsessed killer.

"I've killed every single person in every one of my raids… No one has ever survived… How is it that a mere child survived my attack and lived to bear witness to my act? I do hate it when things are not as perfect as I planned it to be…"

"Master, I…"

"You'd hold your tongue if you knew what was best for you… All this while… I love doing things perfectly… My policy is… No survivors allowed…"

"Master… This girl… She seems to have taken refuge with Youko Kurama…"

"An accomplished Spirit Master, an excellent strategist, and a ruthless, cold-blooded killer too… I've heard of him… This makes the kill even more interesting…"

"You… Master… You plan on going after the girl?"

"Why of course. I plan to tie up all the loose ends… And if I'm lucky… Eliminate a potential threat as well…"

"You mean… You want Kurama out of the way as well?"

"If possible, yes. He's not much of a threat right now, but given desperate situations, he might be trouble to me. Now, find out exactly where the girl is and tell me."

"Why don't I bring some of the others to kill her for you?"

"No. I'm rather interested to find out how much a young girl can improve in so many years. I must say, I have this urge to end her life myself… I haven't killed in years, you know…"

"Very well, master. Shall I find out more about Kurama as well?"

"Yes, find out everything you can about him. But don't let him catch any wind of this. We don't want to lose the element of surprise, do we?"

"No, master, we won't…"

"Now go! What are you waiting for?"

The youkai fled out the door. His master watched him run away with a look of disgust on his face. Then his eyes lit up with a fierce glint, a bloodthirsty look of an obsessed killer…


Laughter rang out in the night sky. Evil laughter, that of a killer who didn't care about the pain of death… Who enjoyed taking the lives of others… Who utterly destroyed her life…

A bead of sweat formed on Ariya's forehead. Her hand shaking, she gripped her whip tightly with one hand and faced her worst nightmare…

"How are you, Ariya? Doing well, I presume?"

Ariya glared at him. 'How did he know my name?'

The demon took a few steps towards her. "Don't worry. I'll make sure your death will be painless, unlike your mother… Too bad… I did so want to hear you scream…"

"You took my mother's life… You'll pay for this!"

She leapt at him, lashing out with her whip. He vanished into thin air, reappearing beside her. Each time she tried to hit him, he just vanished and then reappeared like a ghost.

"You're not real… No, you're not… Get out of my head…"

'This is just a nightmare… A nightmare…' She thought. 'Please let me wake up and forget…'

A cold hand touched her shoulder. Looking up, an evil grin greeted her. "Now tell me, should I end your life now, or should I toy with you a little longer?"

"


Kurama stopped in his tracks. He could hear someone crying, the cries sounding really familiar…

'Why is she crying?'

He ran into the clearing, only to find her curled up on the floor, crying.

"Ariya! What's the matter?"

When she didn't answer, Kurama quickly picked her up and pulled her into a hug, letting her sob in his arms. He could feel that she was shaking with fear too.

Kurama stroked her hair gently. "Shh… Calm down… Don't cry anymore, alright? I'm here…"

After a few minutes, her tears stopped. Kurama just held her tightly in his arms. Then, he broke the silence.

"You mind telling me what's going on?"

Ariya shook her head. "Just a nightmare…" She muttered softly.

"It was more than a nightmare… A normal nightmare wouldn't make you cry…"

"It's nothing… really… you don't have to worry about me, Sensei…"

"Now when you say that, I really get worried…"

After a long pause, Ariya finally told Kurama about the nightmare.

"He won't be coming back, I assure you. And even if he does, I promise, I won't let him hurt you, alright?"

Ariya nodded, then said: "Thank you, Sensei…"

With that, she closed her eyes, and fell asleep.

Kurama however, sat there pondering over what she had said. He remembered what Itsutoki had told him before.

"They know, Kurama. They know."

'Do they really know I'm hiding her? Do they really know who she is, or that she survived? And do they want to finish the job?'

Kurama preferred not to think about what they would do if they ever found her. If they could burn down entire villages, kill women and innocent children, laugh as their victims begged for mercy and still cause nightmares for a child even after so many years, who know what they will do next.

Somehow, he had a very, very bad feeling about this. In his heart, he silently wished that they never would come back.


Kuronue yawned and stretched himself. Beside him, the other bandits were lying around, looking extremely bored as well.

"Oh Kurama… I'm so darn bored…"

"Don't complain, Kuronue. All your whining is clouding up my mind. I'm trying to think of a strategy for our next raid."

Kuronue rolled his eyes and looked at Ariya, who in turn, looked back at him.

"What is it, Kuronue-san?"

"You never go on raids… Why don't you join us this time?"

"No, Kuronue. You know perfectly well why she can't go. And I'll never allow it too."

"I know, but she has to come to terms with it someday."

"Kuronue-san, I'm not afraid of going on raids. I'm just worried I might slow you down."

"Yeah… You'll be too busy looking at her that you might fall into a trap and get yourself killed…"

"Watch your mouth, you fox…"

Ariya blushed and stood up, muttering that she had to go somewhere. Once she was out of earshot, Kuronue whispered to Kurama.

"Told her yet?"

Kurama felt a tremor run through his heart.

"Told… told her what?"

"How you feel about her. You do like her right?"

"Kuronue, we've been through this already. No, I don't."

"Oh yes, you do. I can see it from your face, you really like her."

"Even if I do, I don't have to confess. What do you want me to do? Get on my knees and propose to her?"

"No, who would be that stupid?"

"Well, you would, but…"

"KURAMA!!!"

"I'm just not saying anything, that's all."

"You're just being stubborn… Kurama, please. Don't wait till it's too late."

Kurama paused momentarily. "Why would it be too late?"

"You never know, Kurama. Anything can happen anytime."

Kurama forced a laugh. "It's not like any of us is going to die, right?"

If only he knew how wrong that statement was…


They ran as fast as they could, past the defenses and the guards. Silently, they slipped into the palace, disappearing into the shadows with great expertise.

That's right, guys. Youko Kurama and his accomplice Kuronue have just decided to do a little shopping at the nearest palace. Without paying, of course…

This time, they didn't bring the rest of the bandits along. They just decided to do a little stealing without waking the others up. Besides, Yomi would only complain and whine all the way…

"Nice move, Kuronue!" Kurama said as Kuronue stunned the guards.

The bat demon smiled. "Now it's your turn, foxy…"

Kurama smirked. He paused in front of a wall.

"How dim do they think we are?"

Focusing his spirit energy on the wall, he blasted it and it disappeared to reveal a secret door behind it.

"I don't know why they think we'd never notice the difference between a real wall and a fake one."

Within a few seconds, Kurama had picked the lock and they entered the vault. A few minutes later, they were both running away from the palace as fast as they could, laughing as they heard the guards chase them.

It was just a little fun, what harm could it do? Like Kurama said, it's not like anyone was going to die, right?


Ok, firstly, SORRY!!! I'm so sorry that I took so long to upload this… I was just so caught up with life and its twists and turns… And I was really depressed for quite a while too. But don't worry, I'm ok… hehe…

Chapter 7 is coming up soon, please wait patiently, ok?