Disclaimers Note: I Do Not Own Yu Yu Hakusho.
Authors Note: I do not intend for Kuwabara-bashing, I believe is the word. He is just my comedic relief because I love that he is such a funny character on the show but yet, he can still be very serious and loyal. The only thing I wish I could get rid of (and probably bash on)would be that hair of his-I just want chop it off! But then that would just kill the goofy image of Kuwabara. Any other questions, I will be happy to answer. This chapter is long so I warn you. Thank you for yout time.
Blue Light
Chapter Nine
"Iris's daughter?" Shizuru said in surprise.
"W-what…" Yusuke's eyes narrowed, "How'd you find that out?"
"My men overheard the conversation between her and some man" Koenma said.
Keiko looked up at Koenma, "Genkai has been the former Blue Light this whole time?
Koenma answered, "Yes. Genkai was born through a flower of a young mortal woman, decades after the Earth swallowed both her mother and father. Iris and Reef."
"That would explain why she also stayed human since her father was a demon." Koenma added.
"We have to go and find her!" Koenma exclaimed. "Genkai is the only key to the Guardian of the Blue Light and the Blue Light itself. If Genkai dies…"
"The world dies with her." Yusuke finished off the sentence.
"If we could get to the Gates of Inara before her," Koenma said, "or at least find her before she reached them."
"Why doesn't she want us to help her?" Keiko asked. "And what I don't understand is why she is going to the Gates of Inara? I know the prophet is there but you said the prophet could only recall certain parts of the vision-which you told Genkai each detail of that vision."
Koenma shrugged. "That is a good question but I have not one clue. She is keeping much of herself, her past, and as well as her power. in the dark. But we do need to find her. She can't do this alone. Her power is fading away as we speak and until we can find the future Blue Light, the Earth is fading as well."
"We can't just up and go!" Kuwabara then said, mostly to himself. "How will we even get there on time?"
Koenma sat up a little as he spoke. "There is one way."
Yusuke nodded. "Well, then, lets get going! We can't let that dumb-brained hag just die!"
Koenma shook his head in agreement. "We need to hurry. Knowing Genkai, there's no stopping her."
Jin spoke up. "But what about the lassies, like my love, Botan, whom is injured. Yourself included."
Yusuke grunted at Jin's "statement" about him referring to Botan as his "love."
Koenma looked down at his leg in despair. "You do have a point."
"We should split up into two groups. We need to take those injured to somewhere safe." Kurama said.
"I agree." Koenma nodded. "I think my palace should do. The rest of you will be heading to the Northern Gates of Inara."
Botan's eyes widened in utter surprise, her jaw slowly dropping in astonishment. "Genkai is Iris's daughter?"
Keiko nodded, "Yes! I couldn't believe it either!"
Keiko, Botan, Yukina, and Shizuru sat around in Botan's room, talking and packing.
"So we're heading to the Rekai Kingdom?" Botan asked.
"Leaving right after we grab our stuff." Shizuru said as she opened the window of the room.
"I was wondering why she was asking me questions…" Keiko said out loud, mostly to herself.
"She asked you questions?" Botan asked Keiko.
Keiko, realizing she had just said what she was thinking, nodded. "Yes, she asked me a strange question…"
"And?" Shizuru urged as she slumped into a chair next to the one window of the room.
"Well, she asked if I dreamed of anyone." Keiko finally said.
Yukina folded a half ripped shirt as she spoke. "That is an odd question to ask."
Botan smiled, giggling. "I doubt it!" Botan winked at Keiko as she said, "To find out who the next Blue Light is, why not ask the closest person to the Spirit Detective?"
Keiko's cheeks started to burn cherry red.
Shizuru laughed at this while Yukina blinked in confusion. "Yeah!" Shizuru agreed. She then leaned forward in her chair, "So have you screwed Yusuke yet?"
Leave it to Shizuru to get to the point!
"Shizuru!" Both Botan and Keiko exclaimed.
Yukina sat on the edge of Botan's bed. "What is going on?"
Shizuru smirked. "Yukina! Don't tell me you don't know about Keiko and Yusuke being in love?"
Yukina blushed. "My… I never knew!"
"Oh, such innocence…" Shizuru sighed, falling back into her chair. "The only time I was that innocent was the day I was born. By age five, I knew everything about a boy from what food he likes to how he likes to do it with a girl-"
"I think we get the picture, Shizuru!" Botan interrupted, her face flushed red like the other two younger girls.
"So, who do you like, Shizuru?" Yukina asked, her eyes cast downward.
Shizuru smiled. "No one at the moment."
"I'd like to remind you of a certain red-headed boy who seems to be the first to turn the same color of his red-hair when you enter a room," Botan sang.
Shizuru coughed, a faint tint of pink heating across her cheeks. "What about you, Yukina?" Shizuru changed the subject, leaving Botan and Keiko to exchange smiles.
Yukina blushed. "I'd rather just fold clothes…"
"Shizuru changed subjects but we're not going to let you do it!" Botan exclaimed.
"Now, Yukina." Keiko smiled. "As friends, we have the right to know."
Yukina blushed. "As a friend, I would think the question we asked you first should be answered before I say anything…"
"Oh," Shizuru chuckled. "She's good."
Keiko blushed furiously. "I-I…"
Botan smiled. "Come on!"
Keiko looked up at Botan with a smile but just as she was about to say something, she remembered the way Yusuke looked at the blue-haired maiden.
The smile slowly started to fade.
Botan, unsure of what she was seeing, thought she saw something change in Keiko's eyes but they returned back.
Keiko had a big smile on her face and she was blushing again, saying, "We just kissed! Once! When I had to save his life…" Keiko tore her gaze away from Botan as the girls all around her started to laugh and tease.
"There had to be more than that!" Shizuru shouted.
"I hoped there would be more, too…" Keiko whispered to herself but none of the other girls heard as they sat laughing and joking.
It was about an hour when everyone stood in Botan's room, standing in a circle. "I haven't done this with this many people, Koenma." Botan said, a little faintly. She sat in a chair with Jin on one side (he beat Yusuke to it) and Hiei on her other side.
"I'm here, Koenma, sir!" Ogre shouted out as he ran in through the door.
Koenma sighed as Ogre joined the circle.
"Don't worry, Botan." Koenma turning his attentions to Botan. He nodded his head in assurance. "I will be assisting you."
"And you've got me here, my beautiful maiden." Jin smiled down at Botan, who blushed slightly.
"Okay." Botan turned her head forward and closed her eyes. She focused on the room around her, the people surrounding her, and the air enclosing and weaving through the bodies.
Suddenly, everyone felt their bodies being pulled upward and in a flat of a second, they found themselves in the Grand Hallway of Koenma's home.
"Good job, Botan!" Koenma told his blue-haired friend. "We made it."
Botan smiled but then felt herself drop a little. Her shoulders hunched in and her head fell forward a little.
"Watch out, Botan!" Yukina exclaimed.
Hiei, quick as he is, pulled Botan back as gently as he could.
"What exactly was that?" Hiei asked Botan as he steadied her. Botan smiled at him, wearily. "Teleportation. Many of the deity's use this while I rather fly on my oar."
"As you can see," Botan said softly. "It takes a lot out of a girl…"
"No worries, love!" Jin sang carelessly, bending down and swooping Botan into his arms. "I've got you."
Botan laughed at the sudden action, pink creeping into her pale cheeks. "Um, thank you." She placed an arm around Jin's neck to steady herself and placing her head against his shoulder.
But as they walked away, Botan looked over Jin's shoulder to see Yusuke gazing at her with his deep, dark eyes. Botan couldn't help but keep her gaze locked with his and feeling her cheeks warm and her body heat with the same intensity.
Yusuke finally broke it with a little smile before he turned away.
Botan slowly dipped down, placing her head back against Jin's shoulder.
"What was that?" Botan whispered to herself as she tried to control her beating heart.
Keiko, helping a limp Koenma, walked through the hallway with the others and shared the same reactions with a few of them. The Grand Hallway was large with magnificent tapestries hanging along the wall. Gold and purple colors with large, carved doors that had pictures drawn into them. In the middle of the large entry was a grand stairway that led to an upstairs where from the balcony, you could see a more detailed look at the chandelier that hung from the high ceiling. It was a beautiful crystal blue-color rather than the usual golden the rich had in their homes.
"Koenma…" Keiko said in wonderment. "You home is beautiful."
Koenma smiled, looking down at Keiko. "Um, thank you, I guess." He looked around his home and shrugged, "I always thought of it a little plain."
Shizuru shook her head, "Plain is my house, which compared to this is a speck of dirt."
The group climbed the stairs to the second floor where there was a large, brown double-door shaped like an arc. There were other rooms on either side and at the end of the floor were two sets of stairs leading upward.
Koenma pointed to the door. "In here, everyone. This is my office."
Kurama and Kuwabara opened the double-doors and held it for everyone to walk in.
It was a few moments until Koenma had everyone injured, or who were staying behind, situated. The girls left to find their rooms with a few maids.
The rest were in Koenma's office, figuring out how they were going to find Genkai and to get to the Gates of Inara at the same time.
"What we need to do is split up." Koenma said.
"For once, I agree." Yusuke said, his arms crossed as he leaned against Koenma's desk.
"Well," Kurama said. "I think it would better if Hiei, Touya, and I went to the Gates of Inara. Maybe if Yusuke finds Genkai, he can try to stop her."
"She's a stubborn old woman," Yusuke grunted and then paused. "But I'll try."
"Good." Koenma said.
"Then you will be off with Kuwabara and Jin," Hiei added.
Yusuke blinked. "The Moron and the Freakin' Elf?"
"Urameshi!" Kuwabara shouted.
Yusuke sighed, "Fine. The Moron is good but the elf stays."
"All the time in the world to spend with my lady," Jin sang.
"The elf goes." Yusuke growled as he started heading to the door.
Botan lay in her room, the very same one that she had grown from the time she was three. It was a large room with everything she needed equipped with two rooms and a small kitchen(which she demanded from Koenma a few years back).
The girls had left to find bandages and other things to bring back(also to explore the castle).
But since most of her assignments had been in the living world, Botan had a lot of her things at Yusuke's apartment…
Yusuke…
Botan felt her chest falling heavy with weight as if gravity had become more dense on that one spot-
Her heart.
Am I becoming sick again? Botan thought, remembering what happened to her the day before when Yusuke was with her.
There he was again-Yusuke.
His dark eyes were digging through her soul. His name tugging at her mind.
I can't feel things for Yusuke! Botan shouted in her mind.
"This is so stupid…" Botan muttered to herself, trying to shake the thoughts from her head.
"What's so stupid?" A low voice sounded through the dim-lighted room.
Botan jumped in surprise, her hands flying to her chest from fright. She then stopped breathing hard when she saw the shadowed figure walk into the light.
"Yusuke?"
"Sorry, Botan." He said sheepishly, ruffling the back of his gelled hair with one hand. "The door was kind of open so I came in."
Botan smiled, "You need to learn how to knock."
"Gotta save the energy, kid." Yusuke smiled, shoving his hands in his pockets.
Botan was just about to say something smart, to retaliate against the "kid" statement, when she realized something.
"Oh, are you guys leaving already?" Botan asked.
Yusuke looked to the side, gazing around at the room. "Yeah. I was just-" He turned to look into Botan's eyes. "I was near so I decided to drop by."
Botan smiled but looked down at her lap because she could feel heat creeping across her cheeks. She couldn't keep his gaze…
It was so intense and full of-
Heat.
"Get well, okay?" Yusuke said, walking nearer to Botan.
Botan blinked and smiled. "Hey! I'll be up in no time!"
Yusuke reached the edge of Botan's bed and leaned down so that his face was close to Botan's own.
They stayed this way, once again, with their gazes locked.
"Yusuke," Botan said softly.
"Yeah?" He said, not moving at all.
"Be careful." Botan said.
It had was a full minute when Yusuke finally moved his face from Botan's and laughed. "You worry to much, Bo!"
Botan felt her heart give out a sigh of relief. For a minute there, she thought that Yusuke was going to kiss her…
"Yusuke Urameshi!" Botan said, trying to hide her smile. "If you try and do something stupid, I will personally find a way to you. I will have an oar waiting to inflict much pain to that gelled head of yours!"
Yusuke laughed and turned to walk out of the room. "Don't worry. I'll be fine!"
"Good!" Botan shouted out, "But if I find out otherwise-"
Before leaving out of the door, Yusuke turned to look over his shoulder and grinned. "I'll make a deal with you."
Botan narrowed her eyes, "What?"
Yusuke winked, "I'll be sure to come back if you wear less then what you had on that one day I caught you-"
Yusuke started running out, laughing, as shoes, books, and many other things flew out of Botan's room with her yelling.
"YUSUKE!"
Genkai looked around her and to her satisfaction, she seemed to have lost her "companion." She then gazed at her surroundings to see a light fog set across a woody, cloudy area.
"The Gates have to be around here somewhere…" Genkai muttered.
Genkai walked forward, ignoring the fact that her body was screaming for rest.
Then suddenly, out of the ground rose a large, black oak tree. The roots spread fast in the ground, causing Genkai to jump before they hit her. The branches of the tree flew upward into the sky and out as a young girl came rising along with it.
Lavita.
Genkai threw one hand back and one hand forward, positioning herself in fighting stance.
"Genkai." Lavita said quietly after the tree had finished it's growing.
"I thought you died along with-" Genkai started.
"No." Lavita said with a quaint smile. "I'm still alive." Lavita looked Genkai up and down, "You haven't changed a bit. I thought my sister told me you turned into an old hag."
Genkai threw all her power into the palm of her hand, a glowing ball of blue energy set in front of her fingers and aimed towards Lavita.
"I'm a little busy, Lavita." Genkai said. "I don't have enough time to play."
Lavita bowed, which confused Genkai.
"There is a time when we were friends, once." Lavita said, still in her bow.
"Yes," Genkai said with uneasiness. "Once."
Lavita then lifted her eyes to meet Genkai's, her green eyes, bright as they were, still showed coldness and darkness. But there was something Genkai had not seen in those eyes since when they were younger…
Tears.
"I'm sorry, my friend." Lavita then lifted her hands into the sky and then pulled them down quickly.
Before Genkai could blink, she was being engulfed within the branches of the black oak tree.
Kurama, Hiei, and Touya were transported into a clouded, wooded area. It was dark and the only light shone was the light from the mood that lit from the sky.
"You hear that?" Hiei said after they had started to walk for a few minutes.
Touya blinked, "Yes. The moisture in the air seems to getting sucked up. Something around here isn't right."
Kurama nodded, "It doesn't. The ground feels softer than usual."
"Can you pin point to where it's being drawn to?" Hiei asked Touya.
Touya nodded slowly, "I think we're standing on it."
Touya turned around and watched in shock as a large oak tree rose from the ground. He quickly snapped out of his surprise and jumped up into the air before the oak branches came crashing down on him.
"Oooo!" A familiar voice shouted out, "I smell blood!"
The three boys looked up into the sky to see a flying Marie in a roundhouse kick stance."
"Oooo," Hiei smirked as he pulled out his sword. "I smell blood." Kurama and Touya jumped to the sides and Hiei jumped up into the air, his sword meeting Marie's foot.
A large explosion blew up at the contact.
"Aren't you a small thing?" Marie snarled when she was thrown back into the air.
Hiei flipped back to the ground with a raised brow and a smirk on his face. "For me being such a small thing, why am I beating you?"
Marie just screeched out in anger, flying downwards towards Hiei, shouting out a command.
"Koori! Lilia!"
Out of the dark oak tree, sprouted two deformed women. One woman had wavy, dark green hair with a shirt that was made from leaves, covering her chest and trailing down to cover parts of her body and encircling her legs.
The other woman had branches for hair that was shaped like a tree bush, twig like arms and legs, and she also had they same things on as the other one.
"I'll take the one with the green hair," Kurama told Touya.
"I guess I have the uglier one," Touya said. "Let's carry on then."
Hiei threw one hand in the air, throwing out fire towards Marie. Marie jumped up into the air as she threw her own fireball of green.
"What the hell are these things?" Touya shouted to Hiei as he ran across a branch from, whom he thought was Koori. He sprayed ice along the branch, which caused Koori to have a hard time keeping up because she had to tread over ice. "I cut off her leg and she just grows another one!"
"Keep cutting her up until there's nothing left!" Hiei shouted as he dodged another ball of green from Marie. He smirked, "You seem to have a tendency to miss."
This just added to Marie's anger as she reached above her head and threw a ball at Hiei, which missed him once more and plummeted down towards the ground.
Kurama had enough time to fight off Lilia to see the green ball fall to the ground, hit the tree's roots, and see it split into two. The root that was still connected with the tree was fine but the root that wasn't, died.
"Split them apart!" Kurama shouted to Touya, using his rose whip to keep Lilia back.
"What?"
"The root!" Kurama shouted, "They are connected to the tree, which will keep giving them life if they stay rooted to the tree. Try it!"
"Okay." Touya said, using his ice to slice up every part of Koori's body that was touching the tree. It took only two seconds for Koori to fly up and die in the sky. "Worked like a dream, Kurama!"
Kurama then cut off Lilia's own legs and parts of her body that was connected with the tree and she shriveled up and evaporated.
"You two had the easy ones." Hiei sliced his sword across Marie's body. He only cut into her upper chest area, around her shoulder and collarbone.
Marie hissed and flew back a bit, holding her cut with a hand. Looking at the blood, Marie then turned around as she slowly smiled.
"I'd like you all to meet some of my army." Marie flew up as the oak tree began to sprout up more Koori's and Lilia's. Then out from the sky flew down green-coated ninjas, all covered except for their eyes, onto the floor.
However, it didn't stop as they kept coming and coming and coming.
"This is some?" Touya asked.
Hiei just shrugged, "A little exercise never hurts."
Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Jin were also transported to the front of the Gates of Inara.
"So why are we here?" Kuwabara asked, "Why aren't we looking for Genkai like the others?"
"Koenma said we should come here to see someone who can help us find Genkai and the Blue Light and the Champion." Yusuke explained.
Yusuke looked around the clouded land and the turned to look at the gate and an ogre standing in front of it.
"Hey!" Yusuke shouted, "You!"
The ogre's eyes turned Yusuke's way and asked with a booming voice. "Are you the Spirit Detective?"
"Yeah." Yusuke asked. "Here to see someone."
The ogre nodded, turned around and waved a hand in the air. Just as he did so, the gates started to slowly open.
"Welcome to the Gates of Inara." Said a small voice.
The three boys walked in to see a young ferry girl with pink, cotton-candy colored hair, and sky-blue eyes. She wore a white kimono and carried in her hands a blue umbrella with flower designs on it.
"I am Lin. The 'prophet' that Koenma likes to refer me as." Lin smiled, bowing. Once upright, Lin moved to the side and said, "And here is someone else that might be a help to you all in saving the earth."
The boys gazed straight ahead at the figure a woman through the clouds and as it parted, the boys had to blink twice.
It was Shizuru.
Or a beautiful woman that looked like Shizuru.
She stood before them with the same golden-brown hair that was pulled up into a stylish twist. Her attire was a dark-violet kimono with the sleeves long and the cuffs almost touching the ground. The hem was stitched in gold and her skin was a creamy color of pink and light brown. Her eyes were the only different thing between Shizuru and herself. A pure green that seemed to radiate rays of light.
"Hello." The woman said with a bow. "I am Hotaru. Kin Hotaru."
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