Yu Yu Hakusho: New Dreams, Old Nightmares

Gonna try to get a new chapter done quickly. Things are starting to pick up. How do you all like the plot so far? I hope you enjoy it. I'm going to twist the heck out of it before it's all said and done. Been WAY too busy to update. I'm back at my old job, and my car asploded the other night.

Back to Ningenkai.

New Dreams, Old Nightmares

Chapter Thirteen: Target Sighted

"Aww, come on you two, it's not that bad!" Kuwabara stated, seeing the look of surprise and disgust on the faces of the two girls.

"I admit, it certainly shows off your, um…physique," Keiko stuttered.

"Yeah, baby!" the orange haired dynamo said, striking a few poses in front of the mirror.

"It does make you look handsome, Kazuma."

Keiko flustered. "You have got to be kidding, Yukina! There is no way I'll be seen with him wearing that thing in public!"

"But nobody else will see us. We're just going to the beach out by Genkai's."

Keiko flushed even more furiously. "That's not the point!"

"Come on ladies! Kuwabara, captain of team stud!"

"Take that off, now."

Kuwabara turned to face her. "Oh come on Keiko, you've never seen a Speedo before?"

"Kuwabara…"

"What do you think, Yukina?"

"It's an interesting garment."

"Yeah!" he said, beaming. "I need to work on my tan! I've been spending too much time indoors studying for those stupid exams."

"Look, I just don't think it's proper for anyone to wear something like that, much less you. It doesn't leave anything to the imagination!"

"That's the point," he said with a grin.

"That's it. You're officially qualified as a very bad person." Keiko said, throwing up her hands and walking away from the other two. Thank God nobody else had seen the display occurring in the back of the surf shop.

"Why are you so uptight all of the sudden? You never had a problem with Yusuke squeezing your boobs or flipping your skirt. You even spent the night at his house two days ago!"

"…"

"Ahh! Stay away from me!"

"How's your lip, Kazuma? Better?"

"Yeth, it's buch better," Kuwabara said, holding the cold compress up to the side of his face. Keiko had hit him square in the jaw, and split his lip in the process. After that, they had left the shop, but not before Kuwabara decided to (wisely) buy a pair of traditional board shorts.

Yukina, indispensably cheerful as always, was dragging the other two through virtually every store in the mall. They had covered all of the second floor and part of the first, when Kuwabara noticed the flower shop off on the left.

"Hey, lets go see if Kurama is there!" he said, oblivious to his swollen jaw.

"Kuwabara, wait!" Keiko started to tell him, but he was already gone.

"Hey, Shuuichi!" Kuwabara yelled, sticking his head in the front door. Noriko was there, reading the paper. She looked up at him.

"Oh, hello Kuwabara. Where's your better half?"

"Who, Shuuichi? He's not here?"

Noriko folded the paper and put it aside, right as the two girls walked into the shop after catching up with Kuwabara.

"No, he isn't. He has a few days off. Why hello there, Keiko!"

"Noriko-san! Good to see you," Keiko said, giving a small bow.

"And who is this young lady?" Noriko said, looking over her glasses at the blue haired beauty that was timidly looking around at the different arrangements.

"Oh, this is a friend of ours, Yukina."

The ice yokai turned at the sound of her name, realizing for the first time that there was someone new in the shop. She bowed apologetically, her cheeks flush with embarrassment.

"Pleased to meet you."

"So how is Shuuichi?" Noriko said. "He said he was going to a party with you two last night. Did you lose track of him this morning?"

Kuwabara slapped his head. "Oh man, I forgot all about what he said he was going to do today."

Noriko raised an eyebrow. "Did you have that much of a good time?"

The orange haired teen laughed.

"So Keiko, how was it to see your boyfriend again? I bet it was a real joy to see him after the years he was away."

Keiko visibly stiffened while Kuwabara sweatdropped, instantly shutting up. It took her a second to answer, but when she did, she answered with a tight smile. "It was good to see him again."

"Uhoh," Noriko said, leaning forward an putting her elbows on the table. "Didn't go as planned, did it?"

Keiko didn't answer, and Noriko dropped the subject. The awkward silence that followed was accompanied only by the ambient noises of the mall in the background.

After a few tense, painfully long seconds, Kuwabara broke the silence.

"Do you think Shuuichi is back yet? We should give him a call and see what he's doing the rest of the day. Do you think he wants to go to the beach with us?"

"That's a good idea, Kazuma!" Yukina said, bubbly as ever.

"Noriko, it was good to see you again," Keiko said, bleeding tension from every core in her body. She turned and walked back after giving a short bow, forcing the other two to follow her.

Kuwabara and Yukina were rushing to catch up to her when Kuwabara's cellphone went off. All three stopped while he dug it out of his pocket.

The caller ID said that it was his home. He opened the phone and pressed it to his ear.

"Sis?"

"Hey bro. You okay? You aren't home yet."

"Just doin' some shopping with the laides."

"I see. Look, don't take this the wrong way, but is Kurama with you guys? He didn't answer his phone earlier and I'm looking for him."

"Nuh uh, haven't seen him all morning. I thought he walked you home?"

"Yeah he did, but something bad happened last night and I saw him again," Shizuru said, with just enough edge in her voice to imply that something went horribly wrong.

Kuwabara's face turned serious, Yukina and Keiko sensing his change in demeanor almost instantly.

"Were you hurt?" he asked. Yukina gave a small gasp.

"No, I wasn't, but someone else was. Seems Kurama has a friend who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. She got beat up pretty badly and spent the night here."

"What the heck happened?"

"Some yokai caused some trouble. Kurama stopped them. I don't know what to do with this girl…"

A beeping noise sounded in Kuwabara's ear. He pulled the phone back for a second, and looked at the screen. There was an incoming call from Kurama. Speak of the devil…he thought as he placed the phone back to his ear.

"Sis, I got Kurama on the other line. Can I call you back?"

"Tell him to call me, okay?"

"You got it," Kuwabara said, walking towards a corner of the mall and motioning for the other ladies to follow him. He punched a button on the phone to hang up on Shizuru and ended up connected with Kurama.

"Kuwabara!" Kurama's voice bled through the earpiece. "Where are you?" The urgency in his tone was unmistakable.

"Kurama?" he said, cupping his other hand around his unoccupied ear to pick up everything his friend was saying. "What's wrong?"

"We've got a big problem! Where are you?"

"I'm at the mall with Yukina and Keiko. What happened?" he asked, looking at the suddenly scared faces of the two ladies with him.

"Not good," Kurama said under his breath. "There's been a breach at the border. The portal they went through opens on the other side of town from where you are."

Kuwabara's face went white. "How many were there?"

"I don't know. Hiei went to handle them from the Makai side and I'm going to do my best to take care of any that actually make it through."

"How powerful would they be?"

"I don't know," Kurama said. Kuwabara could hear a car honking in the background. "They could be B-class or stronger. They would have to be if a group of them gave the patrol difficulties."

"What is it, Kazuma?" Yukina said, tugging on his sleeve. Keiko had turned pale as well.

"What do you want us to do, Kurama? Do you need help?"

"Not yet, Kuwabara. I need to see what the situation is. I'll call you in a few minutes, I'm a few miles from the park and running as fast as I can. You wouldn't be able to get here as soon as I can. I'm just glad you aren't in the area."

"Okay then. I'll make sure they're safe. Don't worry. Shizuru is looking for you, something about a friend of yours that got hurt?"

"I'll call her as soon as I'm done here," Kurama said. Then the line went dead.

Kuwabara was still in shock as he closed his phone. Keiko and Yukina practically mauled him trying to get the information as to what was happening out of him.

Deep inside a wooded grove in the park, a blinding flash of light appeared out of nowhere. A rushing noise was heard, as the very fabric of existence opened momentarily, revealing blackness as deep as the darkest night. The edges of the hole gave off their own aura, sparking as it contacted the air around it. A figure emerged from it, tendrils of darkness clinging, as if desperate to retain their hold. Finally giving up, they relented as the young yokai tore her way through.

Otoyo hit the ground, immediately shimmering to become invisible. The portal snapped shut behind her, the latent energy dissipating in a cloud of sparks.

She shook her head, anxious to clear it, fighting back a dizziness. The trip through the psuedospace had been very disorienting one…

Move away from the portal, she told herself. She looked around quickly, instantly overwhelmed by everything. The sights, the smells, the vibrant colors that were nowhere to be found in Makai…this was her first trip to Ningenkai.

She had to get out of the area. She felt exposed here…but she couldn't phase or move too quickly. She didn't want to put out yoki, or do anything that would hasten her chances of being discovered.

She bolted towards the edge of the park, out from the cover of the bushes. The only indication she was there were the grass that mysteriously flattened with her footfalls.

There! Off on the other side of the main road, there was an alleyway. It looked different from what she was used to in Makai but thing here must function the same, right?

In a flash, she leapt over the road, the cars, and the people gathered there, materializing as she reached the shadows of the alley.

She let out a sigh of relief. Okay. One objective down. I'm here…

Standing up, she looked around. Well, it didn't seem too different from Makai…there were trashcans in the alley. At least that was the same…

She almost felt bad that she had no time to stay. It would have been fun to explore for a while. First things first.

She closed her eyes, sensing out the city. In her minds eye, she still saw everything clearly, although translucent. She saw glowing figures, some more prominent than others, but none that were giving off anything more than negligible. The stronger the person's reiki, the brighter they glowed.

She furrowed her brow and extended her range. The horizons zoomed towards her, a continual soft light blending at the edges of her vision. Background noise from those stupid ningens…

Aha…she thought. This is interesting…

A few splashes of burgundy accompanied by even fewer bright red stars showed up as she methodically focused on each area around her. Yoki. So there were some yokai living here after all…

It made sense that they would exert enough energy to be sensed. Normal humans couldn't be bothered by anything, but other yokai would know when someone stronger was in the area so they would know not to start any trouble. Those ningens that would feel something would do nothing, and those that were strong enough to do something would end up having some meaningful dialogue and reach an understanding, of sorts…

Speaking of which…

Otoyo picked up a few bright blue signatures, symbols of ningens that would have a higher spiritual awareness and more reiki, whether they knew how to use it or not. One of them was her target, somewhere out there…

Panning around her, she was suddenly floored by a huge presence of reiki outside the city limits. Upon regaining her composure, she focused on it further, and breathed a sigh of relief. Most of it seemed to be coming from the ground itself, with possibly one or two actual beings inside the area. Probably a shrine or dojo of some kind.

He might be there, but there's no way I'm going there unless I have to.

Right side! What was that?

B-class coming up fast…this red star was so bright it had it's own aura around it. And it was getting closer, way too quickly to be coincidence…

Suddenly, everything zoomed back to normal. Colors returned as Otoyo opened her eyes, returning to normal. She didn't want whatever that was to notice her while she was sensing!

Kurama closed his cellphone, not even pausing as he kept running through the crowd toward the park. People stared at the youth as he ran past in a whirlwind of white shirt and red hair.

Too many people around…if something gets through…

Kurama sprinted faster, exerting a good deal of yoki from his body as a beacon. Hopefully, whatever came through will not be stronger than me and be scared off by my presence. When he does that, I can track him down…

He rounded the last corner, the cobblestones underneath him giving way to the border of the park around him. He stopped as he saw…

…absolutely nothing. He stood there, panting for a few seconds, confused.

Did Hiei kill them all?

Kurama closed his eyes, frantically searching for any traces of yoki. He breathed in deeply, trying to pick up the scent of any yokai that would have made it through.

He didn't sense or smell anything, but couldn't seem to shake the strange feeling he had. He opened his eyes again, scanning the faces of the people around him. He didn't see anything out of the ordinary…a father carrying his son on his shoulders, the boy beaming enthusiastically as he waved his hands in the air…a woman feeding the birds from a park bench…a group of children trying to race paper sailboats in the lake…

Everything was normal…

"Are you okay?" he heard a voice next to him say. He turned and saw an elderly woman looking up at him. Kurama realized that he must look like a mess. Beads of sweat clung to his flushed face, and his breathing still hadn't calmed down completely.

"I'm fine," he answered, straightening up and relaxing. "I thought I saw someone I knew, and was trying to catch them. My mistake, it seems…"

The older woman seemed to accept this answer, smile, and went on her way.

Kurama's eyes narrowed, scanning the park one last time before he turned around and started walking back.

That was close…

Otoyo was hiding in the alley, out of sight. She was passively sensing, hoping to hell she wasn't picked up. Whoever that was, he was moving away now.

Or was it a trap?

No. She wasn't found out. She let out a breath she had been holding for nearly a minute and a half.

Okay…now to business. She remembered Ryominaka's words to her. Her target was simple. The wielder of the jigen-to would emit a special aura. One that would be different from the others, but might be a little difficult to pick up on since it wasn't nearly as strong as it once was.

"I sensed that power years ago. Right here, in Makai. But I didn't think it belonged to a mere ningen. After all these centuries, not a single yokai has been known to have that ability. Find him, Otoyo. It won't be too hard."

After calming down for a few minutes, to make sure whoever was searching for her was gone, she began to actively sense. The one she was scared of had walked a good distance away, blending in with the background, no longer actively pursuing, if it at all…

She stretched her senses to the limit, beginning a slow sweep of the city that stretched for miles…she could barely pick up anything at those distances, but she still tried. She didn't want to move and alert anyone that she was there.

Wait, she thought, going back and doing a double take on a hazy signal. That can't be right…why do I sense yoki and something else? Is that what I'm looking for? It couldn't be right. She was looking for a ningen, not a yokai…

She focused all her attention on that one spot, the signals and ambience around them becoming clearer.

There! Two figures together! So that was it. One giving off yokai energy, and the other giving off the exact energy she was looking for! It felt a lot like reiki, but tinged with something different entirely.

A grin spread across her face. She simply had to get to him…but how?

As if by divine intervention, an answer presented itself. An angry woman appeared at the mouth of the alley, in the middle of a rather heated discussion with whoever was on the other end of her cellphone. She was wearing a business outfit consisting of a woman's blazer and a miniskirt, almost too short to be deemed appropriate. Her long brown hair covered half her face and the phone she had pressed to her ear. She was quite attractive.

Perfect…

Otoyo shimmered, turning herself invisible once more. The woman was so engaged in the conversation she was having, she didn't even have time to scream.

So sorry for the long pause guys. Hope you liked this one. I'll try to update more, honest!

Please review! And check out my other fic, "Trading Hells." I wrote it as kind of an experiment, letting my mind wander while writing it. Completely different than the tone of this story.