Besarki: Oh...my...god...I can't believe this turned out so badly...I haven't written this badly since the chapter Ribbons and Riddles of my original...wow...this is horrible. It includes about half as much as I wanted it to include and the ending is a fraction as powerful as it was meant to be...sob.

A crack chapter would be preferred to this piece of junk. I suck at writing guys. Especially evil guys trying to be good, and their twin brothers who act uncharacteristically like brats. Argh! I hate this chapter. I wish sooooo much I could rewrite it, but I don't have any ideas. Noooooooo!

Okay, so I did touch it up a little so it is better than it used to be, but it's still lacking. Sigh. Usually, I think I might just be too hard on myself, but this time I have my doubts. It doesn't suck overwhelmingly like it did originally. Now it's acceptable, but not amazing like it should be.

*Goes emo*

Actually, there is something to celebrate about. Apparently, Hana is rumored to be on the front of Mantarite. Hope it's true...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I see nothing in your eyes
And the more I see the less I like
Is it over yet?
In my head

I know nothing of your kind
And I won't reveal your evil mind
Is it over yet?
I can't win

So sacrifice yourself
And let me have what's left
I know that I can find
The fire in your eyes
I'm going all the way
Get away
Please...

You take the breath right out of me
You left a hole where my heart should be
You gotta fight just to make it through
Cause I will be the death of you

~Breath, Breaking Benjamin

Yoh

"You didn't have to knock him out," I hissed. Behind me, my brother laughed to himself.

"He would have panicked when he realized that it wasn't you. And besides, I did you a favor, little brother. You should be thanking me."

"Thank you for knocking my son unconscious?" I asked stupefied. Was he mad?

"I saved his life. Maybe if you hadn't been so preoccupied repairing that oni, you could have done something about it yourself."

"Your minions were the ones that destroyed that oni! My wife and son could have died!" I retorted hatefully. Again, Hao laughed.

"Little brother, do you know nothing at all?" In my limited vision, I could see a hazy grin forming on his face. "Do you really comprehend only the small amount that your eyes show you?"

I turned away from him, disgusted, and stared down at the only thing that was clear to me.

Hana was passed out on a shoreline somewhere. I told Hao to take him to the United States, but I don't know if he really did. I wouldn't put it past my brother to leave him in South America as some kind of sick joke.

Though I couldn't see Anna as clearly, I could tell that she was alive too, but she was still over the ocean. Even without the storm, it wasn't where she should be now.

"I'm surprised Yoh-kun. Normally, you'd be down there telling her where to go by now," Hao jeered.

I glared down through the window of cloud-like material. I wanted to. Kami knows I wanted to, but I couldn't. If I was down there, I could see only what was going on around me. Right now, Anna was headed in the right direction and Hana was still out, but that could change at any time. I needed to be here to watch them and keep them away from the danger that was always so close behind them.

Damn. To be the Shaman King and still be so limited...

"Better get used to it," Hao snickered. "For every good thing something bad must follow. Karma, and all."

"That's not karma."

"It's a kind of karma. Ask Anna. She'd probably know."

"I have better things to ask my wife than a question about karma," I muttered.

A second later, I felt my brother's arm around my shoulder, though I didn't bother to look, because I knew I'd barely see him.

"Still bitter over that?" He guessed, the words rolling off his tongue like creeping snakes stalking their prey.

I gritted my teeth and closed my eyes. "Give me my sight back," I demanded.

His grin grew wider. "I didn't take it to punish you, Yoh. I took it because, as one who fills half of the Shaman King role, your vision would have grown to see more than just what was in front of you."

I turned my unseeing eyes on him then. I'd known from the start that Hao was responsible for my sudden loss of vision, but I had never known why. Still, it didn't make sense. So I could see a little better than usual. What was so wrong with that?

Without my even noticing, his taunting smile had become dark and malignant. "Ha. The Shaman King can see the future, Yoh."

"...What?" I could see the future? That would be so helpful. Why take that away?

"He can see farther and more accurately than any diviner. His predictions are never wrong."

"What are you getting at?" I asked suspiciously.

Hao's smile gleamed. He bit his lip for several seconds then burst out laughing. "Ahahahaha! So naive, even after all these years! Heh heh heh. You see, Yoh, not every prediction will be to your liking. I've seen the future, and it's not something that would meet kindly with your eyes."

"What did you see?"

"To tell you could drive you mad."

"TELL ME!" I screamed at him.

"Hahaha. Did you just raise your voice? How unlike you..."

I was scared. I will openly admit that I was terrified. I didn't want to know, but if something bad was to happen, and there was any way to prevent it... "Shut up and tell me," I ordered.

Still grinning like a madman, Hao stepped away from me. "Very well, little Yoh," His hands rose above me while what looked like sparks went off around them, "but remember, you asked for it."

The evil glint in his eyes immediately made me almost consider taking back my words, but I could take it. I could take anything Hao threw at me. Because I had a reason.

"Hahahaha," Hao laughed enthusiastically as his arms dropped to his sides. "Your righteous little rant is touching, Yoh-kun."

I blushed. Damn. Forgot he had reishi. Darn that Hao.

He rubbed his fingers under his eyes, wiping away the tears that weren't there. "Haaaa...That gave me a good laugh. Thanks. I needed that."

I groaned. "That's great, but can you please laugh later? My family might be in danger here!"

"Danger? You make me laugh, little brother," He teased. The sparks disappeared from his hands, and he turned around and headed in the opposite direction. He stopped a few meters away. "Your family didn't just now become endangered. Your son was born into constant danger and your wife wrapped it around herself when you became Shaman King. Your family has been in grave danger from day one. The deck's stacked against them, but they can't afford to lose. Why? Because if those two die, your entire clan could go extinct!"

"It's your clan too!" I argued, but the attempt was pretty weak. My fast was whiter than a porcelain kettle.

"True, but they've disowned me, and honestly, I don't really care about what happens to them. Live or die. It's all the same to me. Really, you, Anna, and Hana are the only ones I'd give the time of day to."

"The three of us?" Just our little family? Though I didn't say anything, I was honestly surprised that Hao cared at all.

"Yep. I've only just met Hana and I'm pretty sure that Anna hates me, but those two aren't bad. Hana's open-minded and Anna understands sacrifice. They're a good family. You're lucky to have them."

"I know I am." And I did. My wife and son were the two most important people in the entire world to me. I can't quite say that I couldn't live without them because I was dead, but I could say that I couldn't exist without knowing that they existed too--that they existed, and forever would, with me.

"I'll be sure to take good care of them when I'm resurrected."

I rolled my eyes and laughed once. "Hao..."

"Don't worry, Yoh. You can keep an eye on us from cloud world. Not that you'd want to..."

"Hao..." I said, a little more dangerous this time.

He threw his hands up, laughing. "Sheesh. I'm just kidding, kid. What crawled up your ass and died?"

"HAO!"

"No, it wasn't me," He chuckled. I shot him a death glare. "Again, I'm kidding. Relax." He shook his head.

I frowned and waved my hand in front of my face. "Okay, we're getting off topic."

"I wasn't aware that we were ever on topic."

"We were."

"News to me."

"Quit avoiding it. I want my sight back." I tried to sound forceful and sure, but I'm not sure how it came out. Obviously not enough since Hao still refused.

"Nope. Not gonna happen."

"Why not?!"

He dragged his hand down his face. "Because you have doubts. Deep down, you don't really want to know their fate."

"It doesn't matter what I feel deep down--"

"Oh yes, it does."

I stared at him without understanding.

"You see, Yoh, if you see something that you truly aren't one hundred percent ready for, well...that knowledge could drive you mad! Now, if this resurrection thing doesn't work, I don't want to be stuck up here with a sobbing lunatic."

"I'll risk it."

"Oh, but I won't. Just because I gave up on eradicating the human race doesn't mean that I won't take out a few if you get me irritated."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Yoh...this is me we're talking about. If I have to bury a few pests, I mean humans in the dirt in order to make a better world, I will."

"...You know, maybe that's the reason no one likes you."

He laughed and grabbed a handful of my hair. "When you're as strong as I am, you don't need people to like you."

I punched him in the arm, making him let go. "I don't think you really believe that...and that really hurt!"

He went on chuckling and started to walk away again. "Trust me for once, Yoh. You don't want to see this."

I sighed. "No, I probably don't, but I need to, Hao."

"No, you don't. You don't want to see this. This is one of those things that you should be just turn your back on. Ignore your instincts and all."

"I can't."

"Yes. You can, and you will."

"No, Hao, I can't." Furious and frustrated, I balled my fist, applying so much pressure that it shook.

A lookout in the cloud layer suddenly opened up and revealed a huge rock formation in the middle of Europe. It shook in synchronization with my fist then gave and exploded into thousands of splintered pieces.

"Way to go, idiot," Hao mumbled. I didn't hear what he said next, but it sounded like something along the lines of legendary warrior and then something derogatory.

"Sorry," I apologized, opening my fist and removing all pressure. The rocks shook a moment longer then went completely still. The lookout closed soon after.

"Oh well. At least you didn't cause another earthquake."

I groaned. "Don't remind me."

Hao rolled his eyes. With a heavy sigh, he bent and sprung up onto a ledge above him. After carefully steadying himself, he reached forward and ran his index finger along the wall, carving out a new window in the shape of a square. The white within the square vanished and was replaced with an image of the now gentle ocean.

"Hmm," He mused. "I thought for sure Anna would be here by now. Must've gone a different way."

"She going the right way. She passed there earlier. You missed her."

"Oh? Since when has that oni been so fast?"

I shrugged. "She probably added mana too it."

He agreed with a nod. "Probably."

I heard Hao closing the gap while I was turned around.

"You're like one of those stalker spirits," Hao said from behind me. "The ones that humans pay shamans to get rid of."

"I am not." Anna had always called those spirits vermin, despite how many times I asked her not to. It hurt the ghost's feelings.

"There you go on one of your mental rants again," My brother teased. "At first, I thought they were pretty funny, but lately they've just been downright annoying."

"I'm sorry my internal conflicts aren't acceptable to you," I said sarcastically.

Hao snickered. "You're such a little kid."

I didn't bother replying.

"Well, it looks like it's time to go torture the monks again. Talk to you later, Yoh."

I was extremely close to saying goodbye, then I suddenly remembered our argument from before. "HEY! We're not done here!"

He swore under his breath. "Look, Yoh--"

"No more arguments! You're not going to change my mind!" I was determined, and though I didn't know it, he was about to give in.

He shook his head. "If you really, really want to, and you are willing to go through with this knowing that it will affect you more than anyone else, then I can't keep it from you. However, before you choose let me tell you one more thing."

I turned and stared at him. His back was to me.

"What you see...and I'm sure you'll see it--it's been building for too long to go unnoticed...is not preventable. Even if you are the Shaman King, you have no power over this. It's too close in the near future to be altered now. Maybe if we'd seen it a few years ago, something could have been done, but not anymore." He glanced over his shoulder and glared at intently. "Taking away your sight was probably the nicest thing I'd ever done, and you really want to take it back? You really want to see again even though you'll be haunted from it? Not wise, Yoh."

"I need to see, Hao, I don't need a therapist." He didn't laugh this time.

"This isn't a joke. I'm being completely serious here. You don't want it back. For once in your life, listen to me."

"I've been listening to you for the past seven years. I appreciate you turning over a new leaf and all, but I need to see this--to see everything clearly again."

Hao snorted. "You could never be blind. You'd kill yourself in a matter of hours."

"Don't stray, Hao," I scolded. "And quit stalling."

"Fine, Yoh." He growled and stalked back over to me. The electricity had returned to his hands, and it danced more violently now. "If this is what you want, then fine, but I'm sorry things had to turn out this way."

His hands lifted and the sparks jumping around them suddenly leapt out at me, the extreme intensity knocking me over.

In the same second that my vision became crystal clear, a second window in my mind seemed to open. I saw many things at once.

Blood spilled all over the ground, bodies lying motionless, and a shining light in the background. Someone was crying...

Simultaneously, I also saw a battle going on between a group of people. They were shamans with their oversouls blazing. Suddenly, several of them charged and a huge explosion went off.

For a moment, I caught a glimpse of a body-littered wasteland where only one stood alive.

And then there was nothing. I'd gone from having blurry vision to be being blind in the course of only a few minutes.

However, my ears picked up what my eyes did not.

Rock bottom...

Forgive me...

All for nothing...

No way around...

No denying...

Naka...

It didn't matter...

I love you...
I miss you...
I'm sorry...

Too weak...

TOO LATE!

Everything that had happened...
All we'd been through...

Gone, dead, over...

The only option I had left...

My fault.
My fault...

Over...

"NO!" I screamed. I was on my feet and running before my brother's earlier words had a chance to reach me. I didn't know where I was going, but I couldn't stay here, not after seeing what I had. There were no other alternatives. I had to run. To run and run and never look back.

Behind me, my brother shook his head and stared up at the artificial sky above him.

If I didn't wake up tomorrow, I think he'd be okay...

Besarki: BAM! HEAVY DUTY FORESHADOWING! BAM! SHIT CHAPTER! If my constant negativeness irks you, do me a favor and don't tell me. :)

So, yeah, I don't really like this chapter. Too gloomy. So un-Yoh. I hate the way I wrote him here. He just doesn't fit into situations like this. So, I have a proposition for you munchies. If you want, I can make a SECOND Yoh chapter or a half-Yoh, half-Hana chapter later on (the second would be preferred). It would be the chapter after what was foreseen in this chapter, but it would be a happy Asakura Family Chapter. After the storm, you know? I'd really like to do that after this failure here. Ugh. I hate this so much...many apologies to everyone who was looking forward to this and was majorly disappointed. I'd love to rewrite it, and actually, I just might and replace it later. Hmm...Yep.

The ending format was originally much cooler looking, but FFNet always rapes my format. I'll put up the original somewhere else later. Oh, and just because it's written only in italics doesn't mean it's Anna. This time, I only used one text effect even though it's multiple people. Adds suspense cause you don't know who said or thought it. Hehehehe.

And there goes my consistency again. Sigh. Don't get it? In this story, I use both the customary and metric system. No matter which I use, only some of the readers will get it. The other half will be confused, or at least disgruntled.

"What crawled up your ass and died?" Don't really like this line, but no matter how hard I try, I can't get rid of it. Sorry. Hao demands that it stay.

I used the wrong tense somewhere in this chapter. It was singular where it should have been plural. If you're curious, go look for it. It's a clue to the major conflict. I'll give you a hint: Hao said it.

Back with Hana again next chapter (YAY for me and BOO for everyone else). Aaaaaand...next chapter...EQUALS AMERICA! WOO! The place where Besarki actually knows where things are! WAHAHAHA! Oh, and you'll never guess who'll be there. Oh, it's gonna be great. I'm gonna go get started on that. Bye Munchies! And again, SORRY! GOMEN NASAI! LO SIENTO! JAMMER! PARDON! SCUSA! AND A BUNCH OF OTHER LANGUAGES WHICH I'M TOO LAZY TO LOOK UP!

Okay! That's it! Bye!

...

...

MMMMM--

NOOOO! IT CAN'T END LIKE THIS! I'm doing a continuation right here, but it's gonna be Hana, not Yoh. So, here's the "prologue" for the next chapter, which for once, I think is going to turn out really well. I'm psyched. Anyway. Enough talking from me. Here it is...

Hana

...

...

...My head hurts.

...Ow...

...Where the heck is Kaa-san?

...Where the heck am I?

...Who the heck am I?

...No. I know who I am...

...And I'm on a beach...

...I think I hear water...That would make sense, since this is a beach and all...

I think I hear someone...Do I know him? I don't know...oh well. I guess it doesn't matter...nope...doesn't matter...

...

Mmmm...I'm sleepy...maybe I'll take a nap...yeah...I like naps...zzzzz...

...Zzzzzz...

...

...

"...Huh?!?! Oh my god! Shigaraki! Get over here quick!"