This is it! Chapter 5! I personally love how I wrote this chapter... I guess you could call it a writer's accomplishment, or something. Anyway, I hope you really enjoy this chapter! ^_^
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho, nor do I own Leiko.
Thanks, and Enjoy!
----------------
--Later that night
Leiko had fallen asleep tied to the mast, a bit of drool coming out of the left side of her mouth. She was finally having a good sleep after all this time, when a wave suddenly smashed into the side of the ship, waking the princess up from her peaceful slumber. She looked about wildly, wondering what in the world was happening.
Men frantically ran about, securing their life lines, among other things. Kurama opened the door quickly and rushed out, not forgetting to close the door before he left. Grabbing a rope, he stood at the deck of the ship.
"Satoshi! What's happening?"
"It's a storm, captain! And by the looks of them waves, an awful nasty one!"
Jumping down, still holding onto the rope he had grabbed earlier, he cupped his right hand to his mouth, shouting orders. "Secure all sails! I repeat; SECURE ALL SAILS!" He ran over to the main mast where Leiko was still tied. Another wave smashed into the side of the ship, knocking him off of his feet. Using the rope as leverage, he pulled himself to his feet and finished making his way over to Leiko, who closed her eyes as another wave crashed into the side of the ship, splashing ice cold sea water onto her face.
Unsheathing his sword, Kurama quickly cut the ropes in one swing, releasing her. Out of the corner of his eye, and using the lightning streaking across the black sky, he saw a huge wave heading their way.
"Grab on to something, boys!" He shouted, before quickly re sheathing his sword and, grabbing Leiko from behind, grabbed the main mast, hugging both it and the princess.
The wave came down upon the ship, splintering the rails and making the deck even more slippery. Leiko closed her eyes tightly and held her breath, ignoring the fact that Kurama was currently protecting her by hugging her from behind, along with the mast. As the water crashed down around them, she could feel the salty water enter her ears, then drip back out. Her whole body was completely drenched, besides the fact that it was raining harder and faster now. The water soon washed off as the ship rocked with the smaller waves, almost completely at their mercy.
As the wave passed, Kurama loosened his grip slightly, but not entirely. He made sure there were no more monstrous waves before fully releasing Leiko and running about the deck, shouting orders. Leiko slumped to the floor, still hugging the mast as more waves seemed to hit the side of the ship at a faster rate. She looked about, fear clearly visible on her face. And yet, there was also a strange mix of excitement showing as well.
Kurama ran past her, stopping just a few feet away from her. "Sai! Do you see any more of those waves?"
"No, captain! But there are a bunch of middle sized ones that are heading our way!"
"That's fine! We can survive those!" He noticed Leiko just sitting there, hugging the mast tightly whilst looking about. Her eyes landed on him. "What are you doing?! Get downstairs, where it's safe!"
"No way!" Leiko shouted back over the roar of the raging storm. "I think it's better up here!"
There was a flash of a smirk on his face before another wave hit the other side of the ship, almost knocking him off of his feet. He gave one last glance at Leiko, making sure that she was momentarily fine, before running off to help his crew. There was one that was near Leiko, who was trying to untangle a piece of rope when another wave hit. He grabbed the rail for support, then continued what he was doing, not really paying attention. Having gotten used to the usual rocking of the ocean by now, Leiko unsteadily got to her feet, not daring to let go of the mast. She glanced about, but her gaze once more fell upon the man from earlier. He appeared much older than the others, and had wrinkled hands. She didn't know if it was from too much water, or if he really was that old. Just then, a giant wave appeared out of no where, heading straight for the ship.
"LOOK OUT! EVERYONE! GRAB ONTO SOMETHING!" Kurama roared, tying himself to a part of the railing near the head of the ship.
Leiko grabbed the main mast tighter, and was about to close her eyes when she noticed that the older man hadn't heard. Just then, the wave hit, flooding the ship once more with water. It swished about, knocking the crew about. It also uplifted the older man and was dragging him off of the ship.
Kurama, having been looking in that direction, shouted, "NO! BROM!"
Without thinking, Leiko released her hold of the mast and, using the power of the water, jumped over the railing and grabbed a hold of Brom with her left hand, while grabbing onto a soaking rope with the other. Gritting her teeth, she looked back down at the guy she just saved.
"You okay?!"
"Yeah! Thanks a lot!" He called back, fear and relief mixed on his old and wrinkled face.
Kurama ran over the deck and looked over the railing. Leiko looked back up at him, not able to keep the strain hidden. Due to the rope being completely soaked by sea water, plus the rain heavily falling down from the heavens, her hand began to slip. Fear suddenly flashed across her face. Her hand suddenly slipped completely, not able to get a grip, but caught one a few inches later, nearing the end of the rope.
"Hold on! We'll pull you up!" Kurama called down to them, his blood pounding through his veins.
"Hurry up! I can't hang on for much longer!" She cried, trying to ignore her screaming muscles.
Another rope was thrown down to hang right next to her. "Try and lift Brom up to the next one!" A different man from the crew shouted.
"I can't! I can barely even move!" She called back, gritting her teeth in pain.
Kurama watched this, then turned to his crew. "Men, we're going to pull them up. Unravel the rope and get in a line, we're bringing them back to safety."
"Aye-aye!"
Following his orders, the crew began pulling on the rope, slowly dragging Leiko and Brom back up towards the ship, and away from the raging sea below. Kurama stood at the railing, watching their progress. His keen eyes suddenly turned to the rope, sensing something was wrong. The rope was beginning to tear at one point. He estimated that once it reached the edge of the railing, it would snap, sending Leiko and Brom to their death in the black water below. As his men continued pulling, Kurama ran over to the rope and grabbed it just as it snapped, causing Leiko to slip a little more. Using the railing as leverage, he pushed back using his left arm while his right was holding the wet rope over the edge of the railing, determined not to let them go.
Dropping what now useless rope they had, the crew rushed over to help their captain, knowing he alone could not pull them up. The strongest grabbed the rope just below where Kurama was holding it, and slowly but surely, brought Leiko and Brom back on board. Leiko lay, panting heavily, sprawled out on the deck. She could feel her arms pulsing in pain, her arms stretched beyond the limit they were used to. Brom sat next to her, massaging his right arm. He looked at her strangely, as if he couldn't believe what she had done.
Kurama approached the two of them, his hands on his hips (in a masculine way). Brom looked up at him and quickly stood up and bowed, grateful to his captain and crew.
"Thank you so much, captain!" He said happily, standing straight again with a broad smile.
Kurama merely nodded, his gaze on Leiko.
"Ow…ow…ow…" She said quietly each time her arms pulsated. Her eyes were shut, her breath coming in and out fairly quickly.
"You surprise me." Kurama said suddenly, watching her closely.
Leiko's eyes fluttered open, looking tiredly at him. "I tend to do that to a lot of people…" She murmured, blinking slowly. Using her tired arms, she tried to sit up, but to no avail.
Kneeling down next to her, Kurama slowly and carefully helped her sit. He took her right arm in his hands, examining the damage. Standing up, he helped her to her feet.
"Men, we have made it through this storm." He pointed at Satoshi. "Satoshi, head a course for the next island. We need to make repairs." He turned to Leiko, who looked completely exhausted. She swayed with the ship, and appeared as if she would fall at any minute. As if on cue, Leiko closed her eyes and fainted, her energy completely spent. Kurama caught her gently in his arms, a small smile on his face.
"Thank you, Leiko…" With that said, he took her completely into his arms and carried her to his quarters.
--------
That's the end of Chapter 5! I hope you liked it! Now, don't forget to review, ok? It'll make me feel better as a writer. Thanks for reading, and hope you're looking forward to the other chapters! ^_^