I wish I owned DBZ, but I don't. I own DVD's and tapes, but it just isn't the same. I also don't own the rights to any of the music pieces you see selected, just copies of merchandise, such a shame. The artists that created them are geniuses and we all must bow to them.
Chapter 82: Dark Tourney 5: Standby
Verto growled a bit with uncomfortable anger as he collided with the mountain and was dug in slightly. With a quick exertion of power, he burst free of the rock and tore the mountain's side completely off. He was about to rush back to the stadium, but had quickly lost the Renegades' power signals. No point I suppose if they're trying to lose me on purpose. I still don't know the extent of their power nor abilities as a whole so I'd better wait for a better opportunity. If I just storm in there I might lose control again or fall into their next trap. Once he calmed down, he sensed Piccolo coming near. He waited long enough for the Namek to see him before dropping down below the tree line.
Piccolo followed, "What just happened? I sensed a disturbance and suddenly you're out here. Taking out some of your aggression on this mountain?"
"I had a little run in with the Renegades. Chal wasn't with them, but they more or less confirmed that he is here somewhere. Got a taste of their abilities too. They didn't say what they wanted specifically, so we're still in the dark with that one. I get the feeling that they're willing to fight me in the ring, otherwise they might have tried to kill me just now," Verto explained.
Piccolo was clearly concerned, "They're that powerful?"
"Don't panic, you're the one with the cooler head right? Anyway, in terms of what we would consider a straight on match up of strength, no. Chal is, but they weren't, as far as I could tell that is. But that doesn't matter though if they use techniques you or I have never seen," Verto reminded.
"I see. You handled it very well then by not lashing out and actually taking the time to question them to ascertain their abilities. What techniques did you see?" Piccolo asked.
"As I told you already, Chal uses lightning type attacks, a lot like my Psi Storm, but better. The woman among them seemed very cold, so something involving ice I imagine. Another seems very good with telekinetic movement, thus how I ended up out here when they decided to cut the conversation short. The other two didn't give me any clues to their powers, so we're in the dark there. The one that spoke with me seemed to be the leader and also appeared to be the most well-rounded fighter both in a physical sense and energy level," Verto answered.
"Good work," Piccolo said.
"Let's find the two demons from Yusuke's team. I don't think we had to worry about the Renegades taking any of them out, and I get the feeling we never did," Verto declared.
Piccolo's eyes narrowed, "Explain."
Verto lifted off into the air, motioning Piccolo to follow, "I just have a hunch. Sure they could've killed him if he was in the way or something, but I don't think that's the goal here. They mentioned that they did not see a storm or a rift when they crossed over, but that it was there afterwards. They seemed to think that this was an isolated planet or something."
"I don't see what that has to do with anything," Piccolo claimed.
"It may not be a big deal, but if you think about it, how did the Zerg come to Earth? Through a dimensional rift," Verto pointed out.
Piccolo turned his head slightly and nodded, "Alright, was there anything else?"
"They gave me the usual warning about staying out of their way, and offered to help defeat Frost. Needless to say, I didn't accept," Verto said.
"Why not?" Piccolo asked.
"If you're going to say that Frost is a bigger threat, I don't completely agree," Verto retorted.
Piccolo was slightly taken aback, "I'm asking why you didn't consider it."
"Frost is a mutual enemy, but he also creates both a power balance and a buffer zone. If he moves against us himself, the Renegades will take advantage. The same goes for us and them. The only thing he can safely do is stay put and wait for one of our skirmishes to come back to him again," Verto explained.
"So you purpose to let this stalemate of sorts continue? That's a dangerous approach Verto," Piccolo warned.
"It's also Vegeta's approach at the moment. We have a slight advantage in overall power, and the Renegades have transportation and surprise on their side. Frost doesn't have another logical choice," Verto pointed out.
"True, but what if he disregards that? Changelings aren't known for their logic once they have a goal," Piccolo said.
Verto paused, "Well I didn't say it was foolproof. But if that happens, I'll let you be the one who says 'I told you so'."
Piccolo shook it off, "So, what do you think these Saiyans will do?"
"Good question, they're more like a wild card. Maybe if we find out what they're after here we'll have a better idea," Verto suggested.
"In that case, we must treat them as another eminent threat and prepare ourselves when we return to our Earth. We'll discuss our findings with the others as well," Piccolo added.
"One step at a time, we need to get out of this mess first. Look, there's the two demons," Verto pointed at the ground. As Verto and Piccolo approached, they saw Hiei and Kurama were under attack by some sort of giant robot. Both were dodging the robot's arms, which extended and bent accordingly to follow their movements.
"I've got this," Verto said as he dropped out of the sky before Piccolo could say anything. He landed just behind the robot and punched straight into its back. It stumbled and rolled forward, taking a few trees with it.
"It's that kid!" Hiei shouted.
"Aren't you two due in the ring? Get going, your team isn't doing very well," Verto said.
"Yes, but we need to find out who these humans are on the doctor's team and how they're being controlled. M-five here should be willing to talk," Kurama said as he looked left. There was M-five, a brown demon with spots covering his body.
"Have fun with that then, leave the robot to me," Verto replied as he stepped towards his target. The robot launched its extendable arms at Verto, who stood ready to take them on.
"He'll be crushed!" Kurama proclaimed.
Piccolo dropped in behind him, "Not likely." Just as the arms reached Verto, they stopped dead in their tracks. A powerful blue energy erupted and began to shred the arms apart, disintegrating them completely. Once the built-in claws were gone and useless, Verto shot forward and plowed through the robot's body. An odd mixture of oil and blood spilled out as Verto landed on the other side and gazed at the hole he had made. The robot slumped over and sparked as it shut down. M-five went into panic mode and ran for his life. Hiei and Kurama chased after him, with the latter using some sort of thorny vine to grab M-five's ankle. He pulled back and the demon's foot was torn off. M-five went down in a heap just as Hiei reached him. He immediately started punching M-five in the face relentlessly, leaving it a bloody mess.
Hiei stopped only for a moment, "Alright scum, you had better start talking. Otherwise I'll have to let Kurama do the interrogating, and he isn't as forgiving as I am!"
"W-what do you want to know?" M-five stuttered.
"How is Ichigaki controlling these humans? They're strong enough that he would have considerable difficulty capturing even one of them. Tell us now," Kurama said coldly. M-five didn't answer right away, prompting Hiei to deck him again.
His tongue loosened accordingly, "Okay, okay! They're the disciples of Metamura, a martial arts master! He fell sick and Doctor Ichigaki offered to cure his illness in return for their help with an experiment!"
Kurama stared at him, "But the doctor didn't cure him at all, did he?" M-five froze from Kurama's chilly stare, and Hiei motioned to cause more facial damage.
"Stop! I'll tell you where he is. He's on this island! Ichigaki brought him here for insurance, to make sure they cooperated! Even with his control devices, there's no guarantee they'd follow orders…" M-five explained.
Verto scowled deeply, "So they're threatened with his death instead. He's mine!"
"It's not your fight!" Piccolo protested.
"Does it look like I care? You guys can go find this old master of theirs, I'll pay a visit to the troll doctor," Verto declared.
"No Verto, you know we've been warned not to interfere!" Piccolo reminded.
"I'm afraid you're going to have to this time," a voice from the side said.
All of them glanced over, but Hiei was the first to speak, "Who the hell are you?"
"Leira, what's wrong this time?" Verto said.
"Yusuke Urameshi is going to be killed in the next round. You must not let that happen," Leira stated.
This pulled Hiei and Kurama's full attention, "By who?"
"The owner of the team you'll be facing has recruited a substitute that will be used after the captain is beaten. None of your team is currently strong enough to deal with him," Leira said as she glanced at Verto, "But he is."
"One of the Renegades? Is there more of them here?" Verto asked.
"You'll find out in due time," she replied vaguely.
Hiei gritted his teeth, "How is he supposed to fight for us? He's on Toguro's team and we were already given a substitute!"
"Use the masked fighter's disguise," Leira suggested.
"Of course! They are nearly the same size. We'll just have to talk him into removing it. He'll likely be worn out after fighting with those humans that are controlled by Ichigaki," Kurama claimed.
"For the record, the masked fighter is female. Hurry and find their master," Leira suggested. Kurama and Hiei nodded and turned back to M-five, who was trying to crawl away. Verto and Piccolo both stared down Leira, who looked slightly flustered, but not towards them.
"There's something about this you're not telling us, spill it," Verto said, slightly agitated.
"Only that I have a measure of regret that this happened. I made a mistake and I have to rely on you to clean it up. Be careful," Leira warned.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Verto asked. Leira didn't answer as she turned around and vanished into thin air.
Piccolo shifted slightly, "I think I know. Let's get back to the stadium and give the doctor his pet back."
When Piccolo and Verto arrived, Kuwabara was down and out of the ring. Yusuke was suddenly powering up and preparing to fire at the three humans. He managed to stop from shooting his Spirit Gun when the masked fighter calmed him down. The crowd took note of Piccolo and Verto dropping down into the arena, more so when the crumbled robot hit the ground.
"My precious Gatsubal!" Ichigaki crowed when he looked over.
"That's what that pathetic thing is called? I've got a new name, Trash Can. As in what I'm about to throw you in," Verto declared as he stepped towards Ichigaki.
Koto the referee ran between them, "Stop, you can't interfere in this match!"
Verto glanced at the ring for a moment, "I'm not in the ring now am I?"
Koto seemed defiant to stand between them, "You're not a member of either team, so you have no place here!" Above, Kurama and Hiei quickly dropped into the stadium, landing on the broken robotic contraption.
"And you can't jump in either, they agreed to a three on three match!" Koto pointed out.
"Hey guys, you're late," Yusuke said from the ring. The other fighters were standing still at the moment, not attacking for some reason. Verto stayed silent while Kurama explained what had been transpiring out of the arena and why the doctor now controlled the human martial artists. Piccolo tugged at Verto's arm, motioning to maneuver around Ichigaki and block his exit. As they repositioned themselves, Verto could feel Yusuke's anger sparking his energy when Hiei was finished explaining the situation, and voiced his opinion to the mindless fighters. Verto didn't quite hear what he said other than some random cursing, but he could definitely tell what the humans started to say as blood started pouring from their eyes.
"Kill us!" all three said in unison as they refused to even move.
"Bah, the human emotional brain is the only part throwing a wrench into my socket here! Despite the effectiveness of my devices that feeling crap still manages to poke its ugly head out. Well, that won't last for long!" Ichigaki claimed. Yusuke's power erupted again, but the masked fighter held him back and said she would handle it herself. She landed and shifted stances as Yusuke backed off, but Verto felt her spirit power being concentrated into something. Then she started chanting in a language he didn't recognize. Suddenly, a blue burst of Psi energy came forth from her hands and took the form of a large twister that swirled in the air a bit.
"It's a hoax! I've gauged this fighter's power. She doesn't have enough energy for an attack that big! It's just a trick, attack her!" Ichigaki ordered. Wrong, very wrong. The three humans powered up their own energy attacks and charged ahead, only to come to a halt when she erected a large energy shield around herself. She finished her chant and then leapt into the air, punching each of the fighters once in the chest before dropping to the ground. Each of them paused in mid air as the creatures attached to their backs suddenly came off. All three humans then fell to the ring and stayed there, their power plummeting. Verto sensed that she didn't kill them, but their energy levels were extremely low, enough to the point where everyone else thought they were dead initially.
"But, my perfect inventions! How can you destroy scientific achievement with chanting?" Ichigaki shouted in shock as Koto counted them out.
"Stupid doctor, stupid tournament," Yusuke grumbled as he marched towards Ichigaki, who was starting to backpedal a bit.
Verto smirked, "Oh good, I thought he would never come this way."
"Just prevent his escape kid, it's their fight so let them finish it," Piccolo warned.
"Hey, asshole! You better realize that you're not walking away from this!" Yusuke shouted as Hiei jumped into the ring next to him. Verto noticed Kurama coming closer as an older man entered the arena from his far right. Judging by both his appearance and age, Verto guessed that it was the old master they had been looking for. He looked like he was recovering from something rather brutal, but was managing to walk into the place just fine. The evil doctor tried to bargain with them for Metamura's safety, only to realize that it was a moot point when Kurama pointed him out. Ichigaki then reached into his lab coat and pulled out a syringe to injected himself with. His low power surged and his body mutated into a larger green demon. While initially strong, Verto sensed that there wasn't much to be concerned with.
With the exception of Kuwabara, all four of them can beat him in that state. Ichigaki jumped into the ring and loomed over Yusuke and the others, trying to use his long arms to slash at them. Verto and Piccolo stood by and watched as Yusuke declared that he would handle it alone. He was hit once by Ichigaki's claws, but barely acknowledged the attack and beat the crazed doctor silly. He landed a fierce uppercut that sent Ichigaki into the stands, where the doctor lay and didn't move again. As the dust from that settled, Metamura's students woke up, and a heartfelt reunion occurred in the ring while the demon crowd groaned.
"This crap is making me sick!"
"Damn it, they survived again!"
"We're not going to be satisfied until at least one of them bites the dust!"
"Kill Yusuke! Kill Yusuke!"
"It's funny how they managed to not notice us at all once their opinions got in the way," Piccolo claimed.
"Yeah, I guess they really didn't need us on this one," Verto replied.
"Help the one in blue get to their waiting area, I'm going to track down Frieza," Piccolo said as he left through the tunnel. Verto nodded and went to help Kuwabara to his feet. The elder teenager hesitated with fear along with the blue-haired girl that Verto had seen with Yusuke's team before.
"What do you want?" she asked.
"Relax, I'm just here to help," Verto replied as he helped Kuwabara stand up.
"Oh, well thank you, I'm Botan," she said.
"Just call me D for now. Let's get this lump out of here," Verto suggested. It was a short walk to the locker room area, where Verto assisted in getting Kuwabara to the nearest bed.
"There you go champ, take it easy. These injuries look pretty bad!" Botan said as she helped him lie back.
"Thank you for assisting us my young friend," Kurama greeted Verto as he walked in.
"Yeah, but why is he helping us this time?" Yusuke asked right behind him.
"It's a long story. We should concern ourselves with Kuwabara first. Then we need to make a plan with the masked fighter," Kurama suggested. Hiei and the masked fighter came in just as Verto stepped out, allowing them the luxury of being left alone, but it wasn't long before the announcement came.
"May I have your attention please! The third round of the Dark Tournament will begin immediately! Also the fights will proceed as the bracket is ordered, starting from the left. Will Team Urameshi and Team Masho please report to the ring!"
"What?" Yusuke shouted.
"So that's what they're up to, convenient timing," Kurama said.
Verto's eyes widened at the declaration, Seriously? They weren't even given a chance to rest.
"Yusuke, make yourself useful and go stall them," the masked fighter suddenly said. Everyone stared at her, most likely because she didn't speak much.
"What the? And what are you going to do?" Yusuke asked.
"Just do it, dimwit!" she said in exasperation.
Yusuke looked confused at her words, "Huh? Okay then…"
Kuwabara groaned, "Hey Botan, help me get out there!"
"No way, you're in no condition to fight!"
"I have to!" he urged.
"Take him out there Botan," Mask said.
"B-but!" Botan protested.
"Do not worry, he won't be in any position to fight either way," Mask reassured. As Botan was helping Kuwabara out, Mask began peeling the wrapping from around her head. At the same time, Verto felt something about Mask shift slightly.
Kurama seemed shocked when an old lady was revealed beneath the mask, "Genkai, how?"
Verto caught the confusion bug for the moment, "You seemed a lot younger a moment ago."
"Shut up, we don't have time for that story. You wanted to make a plan, so hurry it up," she snapped at him.
"We were warned that an extremely powerful substitute would be used against us in the next match and it was suggested that you allow this boy to take your place. Seeing as you're drained from your technique and Kuwabara is injured, it's a tempting idea," Kurama explained.
"We should have recruited him from the start. Had I known there was an old woman under that mask, I would have killed you and Yusuke for such foolishness," Hiei claimed.
"You couldn't do either in your condition right now, so I suggest you cram it up your ass!" Genkai rasped back.
Hiei started towards her, "Why you!"
"Hiei, please! Is there any way we can use our substitute?" Kurama asked.
"Of course not, none of us have died yet! Though I'd be happy to slit Kuwabara's throat if it will help," Hiei replied.
"And there's the matter of finding him as well. If Koenma doesn't trust his own replacement, then we have little choice. You two go out there, he'll be along in a moment," Genkai ordered. Once Kurama and Hiei left, Genkai retrieved a matching set of clothes from a nearby cabinet.
"I don't understand, why didn't Koenma send you along instead of that big buffoon? Then I wouldn't have to be involved," she claimed.
"It wasn't him that sent me here…well not exactly," Verto paused as he tried to think of his answer.
"What are you saying?"
"It's a long story like they said, but let's just call it a time travel thing where something happened here that wasn't supposed to. The world gets wiped out because of it," Verto explained briefly.
"And you're here to fix everything? Sounds like you'll just make it worse, and that confounds things since you're on Toguro's team," Genkai pointed out.
"Only because they're going up against the imposters that I have to stop. After that, I'm gone," Verto said.
"Alright boy, put these on," Genkai said as she handed over her spare clothes. Verto grimaced but turned his back and removed his green uniform. As he was changing, he became weary of Genkai's staring, like he was under a microscope. He quickly realized that she was likely seeing all the scars he had amassed in recent history, the burns from Kaon being the newest.
"Tell me, how old are you?" she asked.
Verto turned in question, "About ten now I think."
"Don't lie to me boy," she snarled back.
Verto's eyebrow went up, "Alright, would you believe mid-twenties?"
"I guess I'm not the only one who uses a technique that causes age-reduction," she replied.
"Never heard of that, and this isn't a technique. It's just how I am," Verto said.
"That's absurd."
"Do you want me to go into the long winded details about time travel? I guarantee my story will take longer than that match out there will," Verto said sternly.
"Never mind," she grumbled as she turned around. She appeared to be preparing something that Verto didn't see as he was putting on her shoes, which barely fit his feet.
She turned around and handed him a white wrapping, "Put this on over your head." Verto eyed the makeshift turban and noticed a light red liquid pooling in the center of it.
"What is that?" he asked.
Genkai saw the hesitation and grinned, "What do you think it is?"
"No way am I dying my hair, especially not pink!" Verto protested.
"That's fine, then you can tell whoever sent you here about how you failed because you were too stubborn and stupid to look convincing," Genkai said calmly.
"Argh, fine!" Verto grumbled as he turned around. Genkai dumped the solution over Verto's black hair, which quickly changed color in response. Thank god Trunks and Goten aren't here to see this, never mind Vegeta. I would never hear the end of it. Genkai personally soaked each strand until there was no longer any hint of black on Verto's head. She then wrapped a different cloth around all but Verto's eyes, concealing most of his head.
"Now, I suggest you keep your true power suppressed while you fight, until you have to use it that is. Most demons have very good spiritual awareness and if it's too high, they'll sense the difference between us. Get going!" Genkai barked at him.
When Verto entered the arena again, he saw four cloaked individuals on the other side of the ring from Yusuke. He was facing off with a red haired demon with a single horn on his head, along with pointed ears. Verto couldn't make out what he was saying over the microphone, but it sounded like he wanted to settle everything in a gauntlet type of match.
Koto was happy to translate it, "Jin has suggested a series of one on one matches with the winning team getting five wins and Yusuke gives the nod!"
Before anything could start however, another bell signaled some sort of decision, "May I have your attention please! Due to the Urameshi team fighting without rest, a medical examination will be ordered to take place immediately! Please report to the medical tent!"
"What is this, gym class?" Yusuke groaned.
"They're up to something!" Kurama suggested. Verto walked over and stood next to Hiei, nodding slightly when Hiei glanced at him.
"At least that old woman has a brain, but we're going to handle this without your help," he whispered.
"Sure," Verto replied.
"As long as they don't grab my balls and make me cough!" Yusuke snorted, ignoring the short conversation next to him. As he said that, a very attractive woman appeared in a nurse's outfit next to a freshly set medical tent. Hello.
"Whoa, scratch that!" Yusuke said when he caught sight of her. She walked towards them with a swagger, though Verto could sense a darker ambition coming from her. The others might not have been able to detect it through her suggestive movements, but Verto definitely did.
"Hello gentlemen," she said in almost a moan. Then she lifted her hand and gradually moved it towards Yusuke, and then Kurama. Verto sensed a momentary spark of energy from her, but it was very low. She must be scanning us to determine who is the weakest. If I suppress my power too much, there is a chance that she will pull me along for the ride. A medical examination is not what I need right now. Just as her palm faced Verto, he let out a very quick burst of energy before suppressing it just as fast. Her eyes went wide for a moment before she calmed herself and turned away.
"Yes, why don't you and um, Kuwabara, come with me to the medical tent!" she said directly to Hiei.
"What are you talking about? I need no attention. Why don't you go nurse that fool on your own!" Hiei spat at her.
"Because his wounds do not interest me quite as much as yours do, Hiei," she replied calmly. Hiei grunted slightly and followed her as Botan helped Kuwabara to the tent. A brief exchange of quiet conversion ended when Hiei tried to walk out of there. Then Verto sensed the nurse powering up, and her energy surrounded the tent. Hiei attempted to run right through the force field that was erected, but failed and fell backwards. Verto sensed him try to power out of it, but it only seemed to affect him more. This also left Botan and Kuwabara trapped in the tent as the nurse stepped out without pause.
"What the hell? Hey red head! Why do I get the feeling you aren't a licensed nurse?" Yusuke shouted as he ran towards her. She suddenly stripped off her outfit, revealing nothing but a yellow colored vine wrapped around her curvy body.
"That's correct Yusuke! Enchantress is more like it. I am known as Ruka, and am the most talented person alive in spell defense incantations!" she said. Hiei looked angry at himself for falling into the trap, and attempted to punch his way out, only to get struck by random lightning bursts and put on his knees. That force field must be like my feedback wave, it repels and strengthens whenever force is used against it. The tournament committee then decided to announce the obvious for everyone.
"Hiei and Kuwabara have been ruled medically ineligible and will sit out for the duration of this round!"
"Give me my damn team back!" Yusuke growled.
"I'm afraid I can't do that. Didn't you hear? They are both very sick, and they need a little time to recover!" Ruka said as she reentered her shield and sat down while Hiei struggled next to her.
"Hey, fox girl! How can you let them lie like that?" Yusuke asked as he jumped into the ring to hunt down Koto.
She screamed a bit as he bore down on her, "I have nothing to do with these decisions, really!"
"Wrong damn answer!"
Kurama then cut off Yusuke in the ring before he did something foolish, "Hey, it's all right!"
"Says who? Those lying bastards are cheating again!" Yusuke pointed out as Verto joined the two in the ring.
"Obviously the committee is against us. But we haven't been hurt either. Truthfully, Hiei and Kuwabara are not well enough to fight right now, not against these demons. Think about it, why would she only capture two of us when she had the chance to do more? Maybe her power is too weak to restrict us all and she took a pair that were too weak to resist at the time. Normally I'd say Hiei should be able to break out of that, but not with his condition right now. She's helped them less than they believe. This should lure Team Masho into a false sense of security. The advantage is ours," Kurama explained as he glanced at Verto again. They were interrupted by a deep voice laughing from across the ring. The red haired demon and one of his larger companions were standing there.
"Three against five now Jin. I'd bet you can destroy all of them yourself!" the big one said.
"Ugh, nah! I'm having to change my mind if it's going to be a fix like that! I don't give a damn, someone else go! I'm sure I'd rather watch!" Jin said as he started to walk off. Wow, an honorable demon. He had a very strange accent as well, kind of an Irish thickness to its tone.
The large one suddenly grabbed his shoulder, "Don't start thinking you can disrupt the set this time Jin!"
"Argh, don't you ever put your grubby hands on me again!" Jin growled as he roughly shoved him off and walked away, sitting next to the wall. As the other Masho members were discussing who was going to fight, Kurama turned to Verto.
"Let us fight them as long as we can. I'd rather not pull you into this unless necessary. After all, it would greatly increase the chances of your disguise coming off!" Kurama suggested. Well I suppose I can't ask him to trust me already based on almost nothing besides a little help. I guess I'm on standby for now. Verto sighed slightly and stepped out of the ring as Kurama had Yusuke leave as well, in order to fight first.
The round proceeded quickly as Kurama took on Team Masho's first fighter, a blue demon named Gama. This demon used some sort of strange paint to cover himself in markings that seemed to focus his energy. He attacked Kurama relentlessly, but missed on each attempt. Gama didn't wait long before using his paint against Kurama instead, covering his ankles and wrists with small amounts of black ink. The effect seemed to hold Kurama in place and make him unable to dodge. Gama explained that it was a heavy chaining effect that resembled having roughly two-thousand pounds of weight attached to each limb. Gama then moved to strike the supposedly defenseless Kurama, who twirled his head slightly as his energy surged out.
"Rose Whip!" A long thorny wine shot out from his hair, which tore the surprised Gama to shreds. As Gama bled out, he looked up to realize that Kurama hadn't used his hands to summon his Rose Whip, which was intertwined with his red hair. Gama struggled to get up and attack, leaving his purple colored blood to constantly spill out onto the ring and onto Kurama as he swung wildly. The blood stained Kurama's uniform as Gama finally collapsed and Koto began the count. As she was counting, Gama was whispering something to Kurama that made him panic. Verto suddenly sensed Kurama's energy fading, as if something was blocking it out. He's sealing Kurama's energy, which will make him unable to make it through the next match, whether he can move or not.
"That isn't good. You might want to jump in," Verto suggested. Yusuke didn't hear him, focusing completely on Kurama's situation.
"Nine…ten! Kurama is the winner. May I have the next member of Team Masho!" Koto announced.
A shorter demon came in next, taking off his cloak to reveal sharp blue hair and a turban. His outfit was a matching shade of dark blue and white. He looked more human than anything, but Verto sensed something dangerous about his energy. Kurama still couldn't move and Koto decided that he wanted to stay in.
"The next match, Kurama versus the Ice Master Touya!" Verto's eyebrow went up under the mask, Master of ice, that doesn't sound good. Although, it may give me some insight to the Renegade that might use it for her attacks.
"Your sacrifice will not be in vain Gama, Kurama will pay," Touya declared. He quickly released his power, and a chilly wind blew through the arena as Koto shrieked and got out of the ring. The ring itself seemed to freeze up before the air reached Verto and Yusuke.
"Whoa! That's cold!" Yusuke claimed called out. Kurama shivered just slightly as the cold energy poured over the ring and then ascended upwards, trapping the combatants in a huge aura of frigid air. That's his technique, freezing the air and ground would make his opponent's chances of defending drop and his chances of landing a blow that much greater. At the very least, Kurama can still move, if that curse thing wears off. But he won't be able to go very far. Kurama's leg still didn't budge very much when he tried to step sideways, and he stopped with a nervous look towards Touya. He then started speaking softly to Touya, trying to start a conversation of some kind as a stalling tactic. It didn't last all that long when Touya started charging some sort of green energy attack in his open palm.
He held it up and then blew it away with his own breath, "Shards of Winter!" The green energy condensed into sharp icy spikes that flew at Kurama with frightening speed. Kurama was able to dodge them just in the nick of time, revealing that the curse around his hands and legs had worn off. He moved and rolled around the ring as Touya continued to fire off shards of ice at him. He eventually was hit once, and that was enough to slow him down to receive more. The needles of ice ripped into Kurama's arms and legs, taking him down but not hitting anything vital. Kurama had been able to block the ice with his own body, shielding his vital points despite the pain. Touya took exception to that and held out his arm, concentrating deeply. A long blade of thick ice formed around his wrist, extending out nearly a foot and a half from the end of his fingers.
"Crap, Kurama throw the match! I can handle it!" Yusuke shouted. Kurama glared at him before resetting his attention on his opponent.
"Looks like he has a plan," Verto said.
"Shut up you midget! Our teammate is about to die up there if you hadn't noticed!" Yusuke shouted in his face.
"Take it easy soldier. If it was hopeless, I'm sure he would have heeded your advice," Verto said calmly. Yusuke continued to fume, apparently wanting to take his frustrations out on the masked Verto rather than anyone else. Verto watched as Touya charged recklessly, allowing Kurama to maneuver just right to counterattack with a knife-hand to the back.
"And another thing, how long are you going to keep that stupid mask on?" Yusuke grumbled. Touya stumbled and fell out of the ring, with his blade arcing towards Yusuke. Verto shoved Yusuke out of the way and quickly blocked against Touya's ice blade, catching it in his hands. The crowd got restless and a various amount of noise was created as Touya stopped in mid air and remained still as Verto glared back at him, literally holding him up by the ice blade. A slight jab of pain came from Verto's palm, followed by a slight trickle of blood that froze on Touya's sword. Aw hell, now I've gone and injured myself.
"My apologies, I had not meant to lose control and exit the ring like that. I nearly killed your friend, please forgive me," Touya said as Verto slowly lowered him to the ground. The blood coming from his hand angered him more than the botched attack, and Verto broke the sword in half just from his grip. Touya's eyes lit up in slight fear as he backed into the side of the ring.
"I must remind the masked fighter that you cannot interfere in this match or else your team will be disqualified! Since you were only defending yourself this time, you will be let off with a fair warning!" Koto announced as she ran in their direction. Verto dropped any intent he had to harm Touya, but that didn't stop his eyes from igniting with bright red momentarily. Touya quickly jumped into the ring to continue his match while Verto stared at the wound the ice sword had caused. It had been when he caught the sword, and it had sliced across his hand horizontally. It wasn't bad by any means, but it was bleeding a great deal more than it should have been given the differing strengths of the demons and him. Well, I shouldn't have expected to be invincible here after all, my own fault. At least I kept the objective alive while he was being an idiot.
"Uh, thanks. Are you alright?" Yusuke asked. The crowd roared before Verto could respond, revealing that Touya had produced another sword and had cut Kurama's arm with it. It wasn't a large cut, but it was enough for Kurama to hold it protectively. Touya declared his final attack and Kurama dashed to the side as he held his arm. Touya confidently chased him down before lunging at him. Kurama's arm suddenly sprouted a mass of green leaves and thorns. Both managed to stop Touya's attack, and then counter it with a long vine that pierced his chest. Nice one, now how the hell did he do it? Touya wondered the same thing as he choked on his own blood.
"How did you manipulate your death plant without your energy?" he asked before glancing at Kurama's arms. The plant had grown from them, meaning Kurama had intentionally planted the death seed within himself.
"That's crazy, you used your own body?" he cried out.
"I-It was my only option," Kurama stuttered.
"You really are something else," Touya grunted as he dropped to the ground and Koto began to count him out.
"All right, now it's my turn!" Yusuke announced.
Kurama was fading fast judging by what Verto could sense, though it wasn't enough to kill him, just knock him out for a while. Koto counted ten before Touya could reach his knees again, and Kurama was declared the winner as he passed out on his feet. At first Yusuke was petrified until Koto checked his pulse.
"Wait folks! Kurama still has a faint heartbeat, it appears he has simply passed out!" she announced, causing the demons in the crowd to groan.
"All right, that scared the hell out of me. And hey, fox girl! Just so we're clear, the rest of the fights are all mine!" Yusuke shouted to her. Verto snorted next to him, Hmph, more or less.
"Not so fast!" a new, deeper voice answered. It belonged to the next Team Masho fighter, who was a dark skinned and very tall man with scars all over his body.
"You forgot something; he's standing in the ring! It looks like he's volunteering to fight again!" he said.
"Oh give me a break dickhead! Kurama's not even conscious, I'm taking this fight!" Yusuke shouted back.
Koto looked confused for a moment, "Um, all right! Team captain decides, Yusuke versus Bakken!" The demon crowd started shouting random obscenities until another announcement bell went off a few seconds later.
"Correction, the next fight will be Kurama versus Bakken!"
"What?" Yusuke and Verto said at the same time.
"A fighter cannot be removed from the ring against his will, and as will cannot be determined here, Kurama remains eligible!" Verto's fist cinched up, but he managed to maintain his position, That is one dirty play. Bakken chuckled at this before grabbing Koto up by the back of her neck.
"Looks like you're not needed anymore kitten!" he laughed as he tossed her out of the ring. Koto landed painfully as both Yusuke and Verto growled at the same time. Bakken turned towards Kurama before striking him hard in the stomach. Kurama went down instantly and didn't move.
"Kurama is definitely down Bakken! Step away while I take a ten count!" Koto ordered as Bakken looked back at her, annoyed.
"You're kidding! No one embarrasses my shinobi set and gets off with a ten count!" he grumbled. She got to nine before Bakken picked up Kurama by the shirt and placed him lightly on his feet, though still held his weight.
"Oh look at that, he's back on his feet! I guess he wants some more!" Bakken said as he held the shirt collar tightly before unloading on Kurama's face.
"Stop the fight!" Yusuke shouted.
"Not much of a challenge for me, I like that!" Bakken laughed as he bashed Kurama's head several times before dropping him on the ground. Koto had hesitated before getting back in the ring for her referee duties; apparently this beating was beyond even her sadistic appetite.
"Stop! I'm all for extreme pain and suffering you disgusting freak! But this guy isn't even awake to enjoy it, I'm taking a ten count!" she said as she stepped between Bakken and Kurama.
"Count yourself out bitch!" Bakken growled as he smacked Koto in the head, sending her bouncing to the grass outside of the ring. Hitting a defenseless woman, I can't tolerate this much longer. Verto glanced over at Yusuke, who was shaking in anger.
I should not do anything rash, though this guy probably wouldn't be winning if Kurama were awake. I'll let Yusuke kick his ass, I'm sure he's itching to right now. As Bakken reached down for Kurama's limp form, Yusuke's hands starting to come together for his Spirit Gun attack. Fortunately, Verto didn't have to stop him, because Bakken's teammate started shouting at him.
"Why did you stop me Risho?" Bakken asked angrily.
"If you would have struck him, you would have died as well!" Risho said as he pointed straight at Yusuke, who had Bakken's head in his crosshairs.
"Place Kurama outside the ring! It's obvious Yusuke cares more for that demon's life than this tournament. He's willing to take on everyone in this stadium if he must. We must not be caught up in a revolt, we need the win!" Risho said from under his hood.
"You're getting soft Risho, you're going to end up like Gama and Touya!" Bakken shouted back. Then he looked back towards Verto's way, and saw the angry expression on Yusuke's face before sighing and tossing Kurama to the grass.
"Well I think we can all agree that Kurama will be staying outside the ring! Just change the blasted scoreboard already!" Koto said as she was getting back up. As Yusuke was helping Kurama over to the stadium wall, Verto heard some commotion from the medical tent, where he sensed Hiei's power relaxing slightly.
Hiei must have been preparing to jump in as well, I doubt that force field would stand up to that dragon flame of his. Verto then noticed that both he and Kuwabara were now standing up, and their energy was slowly returning to normal levels. Hmmm, that's strange, that force field must also have a healing effect. That witch won't be able to keep them in there for long if this keeps up. Once Yusuke left Kurama's sleeping form, he stood up with a deathly glare directed at Bakken. Verto had wanted to pound the moron in the ring himself, but he felt that Bakken was Yusuke's to finish. It's his world anyway, this guy won't last long.
Verto was right about the next fight. Bakken unleashed his special technique on Yusuke, which was a thick fog formed from his sweat that covered the entire arena. Verto was unable to see any of the action initially, but from what he sensed of Bakken's sneaky attacks and Yusuke's response to it, there was nothing to worry about. Yusuke only let the fog settle in for a minute or two before he fired off his Spirit Gun, which collided with a wall and exploded. The wind forcefully removed the fog from the area, clearing up the air and sending Bakken into panic mode. Yusuke then pummeled him relentlessly, breaking bones all over his body. He was knocked out from Yusuke's last punch, which put him in a pile of rubble near where his teammate Jin was sitting. Jin himself got up once Bakken was declared the loser, and the crowd went crazy as he stepped towards the ring to take on Yusuke.
Verto opted to step back towards Kurama, who was stirring slightly as he eyed the two in the ring. Yusuke and Jin both started laughing about something, though Verto didn't hear what as Koto announced the start of the match.
"You all right?" Verto asked in a low voice as he looked Kurama over. He was covered in blood all over, but most of the damage seemed to be from his own design.
"My injuries aren't as bad as they seem, this death plant is the most trouble. It will take a great deal of concentration and energy to remove," he said softly.
"What do you know about this Jin character anyway?" Verto asked.
"He's a master of wind manipulation, and not many fare well against him one on one. I myself most likely would have lost. What about you?" he asked.
"Not sure, have to see him fight to know. But if his energy level is any sign, I would probably beat him easily," Verto admitted.
"Tell me, why are you helping us? You haven't explained that very well to us yet," Kurama pointed out.
"I'll give you the short end of it right now, I was only supposed to make sure your team leader survives outside of the ring, but seeing as you clearly needed the help, I don't mind," Verto explained as a sudden strong breeze took over the arena. He sensed the wind being driven by Jin's energy, which also allowed him to hover off the ground a bit. Jin smiled and suddenly flew straight up until he was very high in the sky. He stayed up there for a few minutes, taking in the scenery as far as anyone could tell.
"Hey come on! You've got a fight to lose!" Yusuke shouted up. Jin glanced downwards at this and promptly dropped to the ground, using his own power to accelerate into a very fast nosedive. Yusuke stood ready for a frontal assault, which judging by Jin's approach, was unlikely. Jin turned and blew right past Yusuke before circling around. Yusuke tried to turn, but was too slow and took a punch straight to the face. As he fell backwards, he attempted to counter attack with a knee kick that only brushed Jin's hair. Yusuke tumbled backwards and rolled on the ground before stopping, a decent trickle of blood came from his lip. He took that hit on purpose, bit of an odd way to start a fight. Yusuke got up and complimented Jin on his attack, grinning at him ear to ear, which Jin returned as he floated cautiously.
"Seems Yusuke has found someone a lot like him," Kurama said softly.
"How touching," Verto muttered. Jin slowly landed with an even bigger smile, announcing a special move. He stretched his right arm a bit to loosen it, and then started making quick arm circles. Verto sensed energy being pushed into this motion, and soon there was nothing but a blur of wind current spinning around his forearm. What the hell is that? The mini-tornado spun tightly until Jin could actually move his arm alone while the twister kept spinning, churning up a lot of dust in the process.
"This is one of my favorites! I call it the Tornado Fist!" Jin declared as he brought his arm back for attack. Yusuke didn't seem concerned initially, but Verto felt that he should be. That attack is stronger than it appears, with the added force of wind energy behind it. It will no doubt cause a great deal of damage if it lands. Jin ran at Yusuke, who stood motionless as he watched the movement. When he got within a few feet, Yusuke suddenly realized that he shouldn't take the hit and attempted to dodge. He managed to completely avoid the fist, but the wind energy clipped him and sent him flying towards the stadium wall. He landed sideways and sighed in relief, until he saw Jin flying towards him with a second round of twister prepared. Yusuke jumped off as Jin arrived, and this time the wall took the hit. The wind energy exploded outwards from Jin, leaving both the wall and the first ten rows crumbling with many demons getting caught in the blast.
Wow, not sure if I would have wanted to get hit by that, not without some sort of power just to block it. Yusuke jumped back into the ring as the smoke cleared from Jin's blast, which revealed a still smiling demon floating there.
"It's been a long time since I've had a fight and actually had some cheer about it, ya know!" Jin announced.
"I think I do," Yusuke grinned back as Jin floated back into the ring. Jin started rotating his arm again, and this time Yusuke didn't wait for him to finish.
"Not this time pal!" he shouted as he dashed in, punching rapidly. Jin backpedaled as Yusuke gave chase, barely managing to block all of Yusuke's punches. The action moved quickly around the ring, with half of the crowd not being able to follow as the two exchanged fast blows.
"It appears their speed is nearly even, though it is hard to follow it," Kurama noticed.
"No, Jin isn't using his wind power. Yusuke has a slight edge, at least on the ground," Verto said.
"You can follow that step for step?" Kurama asked.
Verto nodded, "It's mostly a lot of reckless punching by Yusuke, but it's fast enough that Jin is having trouble blocking it." Yusuke continued his rampage and eventually managed to catch Jin off one time, long enough for a hard jab to the ribs. Jin stumbled, giving Yusuke the opening he needed for a heavy blow. Jin avoided by flying straight up in the air, stopping far above the ring to recover.
"There's my chance going air-borne, damn it!" Yusuke groaned. Jin appeared to be suffering some effects from Yusuke's one punch, affecting him far more than Jin's attack on Yusuke earlier.
"Jin has been hit hard, taking refuge in the air until his squashed diaphragm can recover!" Koto announced.
"So, how do you gauge them now?" Kurama asked.
"Jin's only advantage is what his wind energy grants him, Yusuke has a slight edge in speed and a decisive raw strength advantage. Due to Jin's escape ability though, they will both have to pull out all the stops to beat the other," Verto replied.
"You seem quite experienced in battle for such a young boy," Kurama noted.
"Comes with the territory, you would understand if you had been through half of the hell that I have," Verto said.
Kurama chuckled. "Perhaps." Jin seemed content to stay in the air and spend as much time as he wanted to think up another attack plan, but Yusuke wasn't having it. The bright blue blast that came from his right index finger got Jin's attention as it rocketed through the air towards him. Jin looked as if he was going to crap his pants.
"Yes, it appears as though the great Jin has been caught completely off guard! Will this be the deciding blow?" Koto asked in full play by play mode. Jin's demeanor changed quickly and his energy erupted outwards. He used his body to channel it and then manipulate it into a very rapid tornado, much larger than the one he had been using before. The Spirit Gun blast struck the side of the twister and struggled for a few moments, lighting up the shocked faces of just about everyone in the audience. Jin's tornado shifted sideways, allowing the blue blast to move harmlessly by as it vanished into the clouds above.
"Hey, I needed that!" Yusuke shouted at him. Verto found himself impressed, Nice barrier, he has such control over the wind that he can even deflect energy beams with nothing but air.
"Did we get that on video, please tell me we did! Jin used his power to create a wall of wind that turned Yusuke's Spirit Gun blast into a space cadet!" Jin sighed in relief and floated down, telling Yusuke that his long ranged attacks won't work on him. Not true, if Jin is caught at the right time, that blast can be effective. Other than that, the only way to nail him with it is at a close range. I wouldn't do that though, Verto thought as Jin laughed at Yusuke's folly. The crowd started chanting positively towards Jin, who soaked it in before getting ready for the next attack. He spun his right arm again while he floated, producing another violent tornado around his arm.
"Jin is getting his Tornado Fist ready for action again!" Koto said over the airwaves. Yusuke didn't move, but looked both concerned and focused at the same time. Jin dove towards him at top speed, intent to punch his head right off.
"Oh my, the Spirit Detective is refusing to back down, he's not even guarding himself!" Koto cried out as she backed off. Verto sensed Yusuke getting his energy ready for something, but didn't bother moving until Jin was much closer. His stance shifted slowly until his index finger was pointed straight at Jin, shining brightly with full power. So much for brains, he's going for it already.
"Don't be crazy!" Jin shouted as he continued his flight path anyway. If that blast hits that tornado, the combined explosion will probably kill them both, and maybe part of the audience as well.
"Let's see which one of us is tougher! Spirit Gun!" Yusuke shouted as he fired. The blast ignited almost immediately and engulfed the entire stadium in blinding light. Most of the destruction went straight up however, indicating that Jin might have been able to deflect it. Yusuke was sent flying backwards into the wall and Jin was sent on a slightly different course through the air. Koto regained her composure and climbed back into the partially destroyed ring, looking franticly for both fighters. The crowd groaned when they noticed Yusuke lying next to the medical tent.
"Wow, it seems both fighters were able to withstand the explosion!" Jin's clothing was slightly ripped, as he seemed very relieved, but also confused at the same time.
"I thought I was crazy Urameshi, but you take the prize! To hell with that! You don't make bombs go boom in your face!" Jin shouted down at him.
"Damn it, at least one of us should have died!" Yusuke shouted back. Hiei berated him quietly from inside the tent while Yusuke only shrugged it off and claimed he would think of something.
Verto frowned, "He got lucky with that one, Jin probably saved both of them with that evasion."
"Yes, I highly doubt Yusuke will be able to pull off one of his miracle comebacks against him, but it wouldn't be the first time either," Kurama said.
Hiei's voice boomed in the arena as Yusuke was ignoring him, "Just try not to get killed! But if you do, I'll be taking your place in the next fight!"
"Please, even if you escaped, it's illegal to enter the battle once you've been deemed ineligible to fight!" Ruka interjected.
"Illegal?" Hiei chuckled as his power surged around him, "To hell with the rules! My power has nearly returned and I am going to fight! And if anyone tries to say otherwise, well I think you know the rest!" Ruka shook nervously as Hiei's power clashed with the force field quite a bit. Yusuke sighed and took a deep breath as Koto started counting, jumping back into the ring at the count of seven. He and Jin traded a few more confident insults before Koto gave the go ahead. Jin then started twirling both arms, creating two Tornado Fists.
"Uh oh," Koto said as she backed out of the ring again.
"Yusuke won't be able to deflect both of those with his Spirit Gun," Kurama stated.
Verto nodded slightly, "Yeah, he might want to consider a different technique for this one." Yusuke did indeed try something different, for him. He shifted stances to a pose that looked as if he was charging a much bigger blast between his hands, but when his energy erupted, the spirit power spread through his body instead, powering him up more. Well what is this going to be? His blue aura appeared and flowed smoothly through the air, but also inconsistently, showing that he might not have done this very much. Wait a second, instead of using one finger for his blast attack, he's going to use his whole body to channel it.
"This might be messy," Verto said as he stared at the flowing aura.
"Have patience, he has a history for surprises. This is likely something he learned from his teacher Genkai," Kurama replied in confidence.
"It might stop both of those Tornadoes, but if he screws up, he will likely kill himself in the process," Verto retorted.
"Well he is a gambler through and through," Kurama chuckled.
"He can stand there with his thumb up his ass for all we care! He's not gonna win!" a demon shouted from the crowd. Jin looked excited at this development and wiggled around in the air.
"I can't be waitin' anymore! Let's play it!" Jin shouted. Yusuke's power surged one more time, and his body shifted slightly, involuntarily. This told Verto that not only was he new to whatever technique he was using, his body was also unstable when employing it. Jin flipped around before surging towards Yusuke at his best possible speed. Yusuke finished his power up and caught Jin's first punch directly with his left hand, shaking a bit as he firmly held it in place. The crowd gasped as this happened, and remained silent as the two forces clashed. Yusuke was forced backwards by several feet before he clamped down and stopped. Yusuke then charged up and literally threw Jin right off of him, disabling the first tornado completely.
"Incredible, Yusuke blocked Jin's first Tornado fist! But there's a second helping on the way!" Koto shouted.
"It's goodbye!" Jin announced as he punched forward with his other arm. Yusuke raised his foot and blocked it before kicking off, disabling the second attack. Jin floated motionless, shocked at what had happened and unable to fend off what was coming.
"Spirit Wave!" Yusuke shouted as his fist charged up with the remaining energy. He then punched Jin once in the gut, lighting up the arena once again as the blast took on a physical impact. That attack has its best power from point blank impact, just like my Galic Fist. I see why he was saving it. Jin was sent flying into the sky, and soon vanished from sight as Koto cried out in joy.
"That was similar to his Shotgun technique, just without the energy blasts," Kurama noted.
"I use something like that, it's effective if done correctly. Looks like he might have pulled this one off," Verto said.
"There's no sign of Jin, is he using his wind power up there?" Koto asked. Verto sensed Jin falling back down a moment later, and he was not using his own power to control the descent. He crashed into the seats and fell to almost halfway down from the upper level, almost completely out of it. Koto began to count as Yusuke caught his breath. Both fighters were low on power from what Verto could tell, but Jin was the only one that was incapable of continuing. Koto finished the nervous count and declared Yusuke the winner, though Jin was able to stand up one more time before he passed out completely.
"That was a damn good fight Jin! We'll hang out if you ever wake up!" Yusuke said as he turned towards the remaining two fighters.
The demon crowd starting passing their hatred of Yusuke over to Team Masho.
"They're pathetic! It started off five against three! Now there's only two left and Urameshi is still standing!"
"Get that trash out of the tournament!" Verto noticed an overweight man made his way out of the tunnel and directly behind the team leader Risho, berating him about something before running back up the stairs. Risho stepped towards the ring and removed his cloak, revealing that he was black haired man wearing a dark uniform and an orange scarf.
"You better not blow this like your buddies did!"
"Give us a kill!"
"Give us his head!" the crowd continued to ramble on at the opposing captain, who didn't lose his composure.
"With Team Urameshi up four to one, this fight could swing momentum in either direction, begin!" Koto ordered.
"Sorry to say Yusuke, but you're going to die without even laying a finger on me!' Risho said in all confidence.
"What?" Yusuke asked in surprise. Risho only chuckled at him.
"That's it, I'm kicking your ass straight to the moon!" Yusuke shouted as he ran in a dead sprint towards him.
"Stop the fight immediately!" the announcer said from the upper level. Yusuke tripped on his own movement and grinded to a stop face first.
"What the hell for?" Verto asked.
"They're up to something," Kurama said with a concerned tone.
"Tournament committee, please clarify! Why did you order a stop to this fight?" Koto asked.
"Upon review of the last fight, it has been discovered that Koto delayed her count significantly during Yusuke's second ring out!"
"Since when do we pay attention to that?" Koto asked innocently.
"Upon deliberation and with a unanimous decision, the fight between Yusuke and Jin has been ruled a double-loss. Neither fighter is eligible for the remainder of the round! The score is now corrected as three to two." Verto shook his masked head, Wow, and I thought the last one was bad. Talk about being screwed over.
"This can't be the end…" Yusuke gasped.
"Are you sure you can handle this?" Kurama asked.
"The captain won't be a problem, we'll see about the supposed substitute if he ever comes out," Verto replied. The medical tent darkened as the barrier started to buckle due to Hiei's rapidly rising energy. Ruka was sweating heavily as her force field was slowly being torn apart by Hiei. Although Kuwabara looked much healthier and energized, he was standing in the back corner of the tent with Botan and away from Hiei.
"Yusuke, let's forget about their rules, we'll only be dragged down by them. Instead, I suggest we show this entire stadium a new definition for victory!" Hiei declared.
Yusuke's fists shook as he turned back to Risho, "Yeah, why not? They're gonna kill us anyway, so why don't we take on every demon freak until there's no one left? Sounds good to me."
Verto jumped up into the ring and landed beside Yusuke, "Relax, I've got this. Go get some rest."
Yusuke paused, "Wait…weren't you a girl before?"
"Does it matter? I'm here to help, now get out of the ring so I can beat this loser's ass!" Verto said. Yusuke still looked confused but walked off anyway, unsure of it all. Verto turned and stared down Risho, keeping a very strict hold on his energy level to far below his opponent.
"Ugh! What a terrible way for a fight to be called! I hope this next one has more of the gruesome violence that we all love, am I right people?" Koto shouted. The crowd jeered at her before settling down.
"Well that was a pathetic response. Next fight, Risho versus the masked fighter! Let's go!" Koto declared.
Risho scoffed as Koto got out of the way, "This little thing is going to fight me? What a waste!" Verto didn't answer as Risho drew closer.
"Your spirit energy is so low that all I'd have to do is tap you and you'd die," Risho claimed.
"Risho seems assured of victory, maybe he wasn't watching Team Urameshi's last fight?" Koto suggested to the audience.
Risho paused and stared at her, "Nobody asked you, sympathetic little whore!"
Koto gasped slightly before turning angry, "What did you say to me?"
Risho focused his attention completely on her, "You heard me. You're nothing but a groveling, human-loving slut! You've sided against your kind long enough in this stadium!"
"I only call it as I see it, it's not my fault if human fighters are better than demons!" Koto argued.
"Such nonsense. When we win, I'll make sure you don't live past today!" Risho said. Just as he turned back, Verto's fist met his face, sending him flying out of the ring and onto the ground in a heap.
"Whoa, what a punch by the masked fighter! Risho is down and out! I'll start the count…one…two…" Koto rambled.
Risho flinched painfully as Verto stood on the edge of the ring, "That was a cheap shot, I wasn't ready!"
Verto snorted lightly, "Maybe that'll teach you to focus on your opponent and not the ref next time." Risho growled as he stumbled back to his feet, still wobbly from the initial hit.
"That does it, you're going to pay for that!" Risho declared. He held his index finger up as he began to glow orange all over. The ground started to shake and crack as streams of dirt and rock spewed into the air around Risho. He managed a confident sneer as the odd technique pulled in the earth around him.
"I'm sure you were wondering what my skill was. Full control of the earth around me! It makes for very good armor, of clay!" Risho shouted. His technique pulled the clay and dirt in and covered his body in it, leaving only his face, upper arms and hands clear. The rest of his body was immersed in thick, spiky armor. That'll increase his physical strength and endurance, but I'll bet it'll cut his speed in half. He's got nothing on Frost either. Risho leapt into the air and began channeling his energy, making his armor glow red as he began to descend.
"Meteor!" Verto waited until just before Risho reached him to dodge it. It appeared to be nothing more than a powered up flying tackle technique, and Verto was unimpressed as Risho crashed into the ground. Pathetic, I'll end this now. Risho pulled himself out of the ring crater, but not nearly fast enough when Verto came flying at him. One powerful punch cracked the armor, and Risho fell backwards, stunned.
"Once again, the masked fighter has flattened Risho with one hit! Is this the end for Team Masho?" Koto asked the crowd. The crowd itself was absolutely silent as one of the demon's heroes had been wiped out with little effort. Risho struggled to get to his knees, stopping when Verto stepped within a few feet of him.
"Quit now, while you still have a little dignity left," Verto suggested.
"You think you're so strong that none of us have a chance? We've got a surprise for you! Koto, I wish to withdraw and allow our substitute to fight in my place!" Risho claimed. Verto backed away and stared towards the tunnel, ready for whoever was going to come out, About time.
"Team Masho wishes to stop this fight and bring in their relief fighter. The committee will deliberate this," Koto announced. Almost immediately, the scoreboard lit up with a bright circle, indicating approval.
Risho laughed even as blood spilled out of his mouth, "Hahaha, now you're in for it!" He dared to come closer and hover over Verto's shoulder while the younger fighter was waiting patiently.
"Our relief man would make Toguro quake in his boots, you have no idea how strong he is!" Risho cackled. Verto silenced Risho's laughter with a swift kick to the jaw, sending the taller demon flying into the audience.
"I can't say that wasn't well deserved. Both teams are now down to one fighter a piece, though if the masked fighter is killed, Team Urameshi may use their substitute. Team Masho, I need your fighter out here now please!" Koto declared. Verto suddenly picked up on a strong ki coming from the tunnel, and it was coming closer. It felt extremely familiar, and Verto scowled under the mask. I should have dragged that freak with me by the tail, figures he would do something like this. At least I know what Leira meant about making a mistake. The pale, white and purple skin of Frieza emerged, and the demon crowd hushed when he stopped suppressing his energy, causing the ground to crack in his wake. He floated towards the ring while Koto struggled to stay on her feet.
"Oh wow, Team Masho's relief fighter is so incredibly strong that I can't even stand up! Such incredible spirit energy!" Koto claimed.
"Hmph, I haven't even started yet little girl," Frieza said as he landed in the ring, "Don't worry little masked man, I'll make this quick!"
Verto's scowl changed to a smirk under the mask, Oh it's gonna be quick alright.
A/n: Didn't mean for this chapter to be so long with battles that are more or less already in the anime, but I didn't want to leave details out for that particular round, especially for those who haven't seen it. Consider it putting the spotlight on someone else. And yes, Verto is about to demolish Frieza, though I'm sure you all knew that.
Next time on DBV: Verto makes quick work of Frieza and prepares for his eventual confrontation with the Renegades in the semi-final round. He puts forth a declaration that he will fight every single one of them by himself or die trying. Can he defeat all of the Renegades, who may possess equal or greater strength than him? Stay tuned for another action packed chapter.