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Youtou Shinnoken
A Yuyu Hakusho/Rurouni Kenshin fic
By Chester Casta�eda 
gab_ab@edsamail.com.ph
Original concept by SeventhOne
chadjill@ms3.hinet.net
http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=1377336
http://www26.brinkster.com/callie/

Part four, ladies and gentlemen. :)

The true meaning of 'Aku Soku Zan' will finally 
be revealed... It's more than a just mere 
philosophy.

A few more notes before proceeding:

< > indicates character thoughts
" " indicates character speech


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Chapter 8: To protect loved ones (Part 4)
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     "Seiryu?! Byakko!? WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!?" Kazuma 
Kuwabara demanded, shocked beyond words. He then saw Keiko Yukimura's
current state. His face darkened as rage began to fill his veins. "You
bastard. What have you done to her?"

     "Oh, it's you," Seiryu noted in slight disgust, as if he had just
spotted a large bug. "The human who defeated Byakko."

     "Fuck that. What I did to Byakko is nothing compared to what I'm 
going to do to you!" Kuwabara yelled as he attempted to move into 
striking distance.

     "Stay put from where you are, boy. Don't be a fool. You don't 
have any spiritual power left," Goro Fujita straightforwardly admonished
as the feral materialization from behind him growled.

     Kuwabara gave Fujita a lurid look, thinking, <Seiryu didn't know
that! Why'd you have to tell him?!> Nonetheless, Kuwabara began to
advance towards Seiryu, not minding the fact that he had a less than
zero chance of surviving. "Let her go now, Sei--"

     The carrot-topped boy was shocked into silence upon seeing Genkai
aim a Rei-Gan at his direction. "Why the hell are you aiming that at me,
you old crone?!"

     "I want Keiko safe too... but not at the cost of a needless loss,"
Genkai reproved. "Stand down right this instant, Kuwabara."

     "Do as she says if you still want to live," Fujita 'helpfully' 
interjected.

     "Saito Hajime, the captain of the third unit of the Shinsengumi...
You were able to slip through the jaws of death at Ikedaya, Boshin, 
Seinan... Apparently, you even slipped through the Reikai's grasp as 
well. The only one of the Shinsengumi they called immortal," Seiryu 
stated in a nonchalant manner as he eyed the lean-looking policeman.
"But of course you'd be here. Welcome back to the world of the living.
Enjoy your stay while you still can." 

     "Such big talk from small fry," Fujita declared as the lycanthropic
manifestation from behind him dissipated into the dark skies. "You speak
to me with such familiarity, yet you do not know a thing about me. Who 
the hell are you?"

     "I should ask you the same thing, Fujita!" Kuwabara screamed from 
atop his perch overlooking the devastated battlegrounds below. "What's 
this 'Saito Hajime' nonsense I hear? What'cha talkin' about, Seiryu?"

     <Saito Hajime... Shinsengumi...> Genkai thought as she listened 
intently to the dialogue between Seiryu and the newcomer. <That name
sounds familiar....> The elderly martial artist remembered what Kenshin 
Himura... _the_ Hitokiri Battousai... said a while back inside her dojo.
<He's _that_ Saito Hajime... the enemy of the Ishin Shishi patriot,
Battousai!>

     "Oi! ANSWER ME!" Kuwabara screeched some more.

     "Quiet, aho," Fujita reprimanded, pointedly ignoring the teenager
afterwards. "So Seiryu is your name... Coincidentally, I've already
fought with a namesake of yours. I do hope you prove to be more of a
challenge to me than he did."

     "Such arrogance... even coming from a Miburo like yourself," Seiryu 
assessed, referring to his opponent to the title of 'Wolf of Mibu.' "But
the very idea of a ghost of a human trying to compare himself to a 
Sacred Beast? You really are a fool." Seiryu beckoned the Fu no Senrei 
again, releasing the all-powerful God of Dragons. "It doesn't matter if
you were the captain of a Human World extermination squad. You're in my
turf now, Saito Hajime."

     "Again with that name... I'm tired of hearing that," Fujita stated 
as he drew and raised his sword perpendicular to his shoulders. "It's as
if by knowing that name you instantly know everything about me. You're
the fool."

     <That stance! Could this be...?> Seiryu contemplated as he analyzed 
Fujita's battle posture. He let out an annoyed grunt upon realizing that
it wasn't the Gatotsu the Chojin had described to him. He remarked, "Are
you mocking me? I want to see the Gatotsu I've heard so much about."

     "The Gatotsu? I don't need it right now. This is the Hiratsuki. 
Prepare yourself," Fujita declared as he slowly began to charge.

     "Such foolishness will cost you your life. Fu no Senrei," Seiryu
said as he began his counterattack, unleashing the Lord of Dragons upon
his next victim.

     <H-he's going to fight!> Kuwabara thought incredulously. <Just like
that! And then there was that crazy wolf thing from behind him... and...
and... GA-AH! Who the fuck is that crazy policeman!?> 

     "So he's going to hold back?" Genkai considered as she moved away
from the two opponents. "Could it be arrogance or a misjudgment of 
Seiryu's abilities on his part, or is he _really_ sure that he can
defeat Seiryu's Fu no Senrei with a sub-par tactic?"

     "He's the only other person the Chojin specifically warned us 
about, besides the Battousai within the Demon's Sword," Byakko muttered 
from his crouching position as he covered with his remaining arm the 
bleeding hole Seiryu gave him. Through his raspy panting and sickly 
coughing, he managed to add, "The Chojin mentioned that Saito Hajime is 
one fighter you can count on to _never_ hold back."

     The large, serpentine dragon flew across the landscape so quickly 
that it looked like an azure river of raging rapids. It bared its fangs
as it faced the charging Fujita.

     "They're both doing a head-on attack!" Kuwabara remarked as he 
prepared himself for the subsequent impact.

     <Foolish indeed. His puny sword will break against the Seiryu's 
scales, just as his half-hearted charge will break against the Seiryu's 
claws,> Seiryu noted smugly.

     Just as the dragon was about to bite Fujita in half, the policeman 
let out a flurry of stabs at the Fu no Senrei beast's gigantic maw, 
shattering bits and pieces of its double row of sharp teeth. The Lord of 
Dragons shrieked in agony, but it still continued its attack undeterred. 
Then, in a blink of an eye, it swerved over Fujita's blind side just as 
the officer missed a quick stab. It now had an opportunity to attack 
from the rear, where its prey was defenseless.

     The law enforcement officer could only chuckle in mild amusement as 
he flipped his blade and slashed sideways right through the dragon's 
neck as its long, gargantuan body twisted around him. It subsequently 
and painfully recoiled from the police officer's strike.

     "An avoided thrust can become an attack from the side in an 
instant. The Hiratsuki, as devised by the tactics genius Hijikata
Toshizo, the second-in-command of the Shinsengumi, has no weak points. 
And my Gatotsu is even more so."

     "A dragon..." Kuwabara managed to whisper as he plopped down to
the ground. "He was able to face a dragon."

     "Feh," was the only reply that came out of the Shisejyu Seiryu's 
mouth. "Showing off, aren't we?"

     Fujita smirked. "Not at all."

     The Sacred Beast Blue Dragon snorted, summoning his injured 
familiar into combat once again. "That was a mere scratch. Don't
celebrate each and every minor victory."

     "A mere scratch? You mean like that graze you have on your neck 
right now? Oh, and wipe your mouth. Blood is trickling down your chin,"
Fujita retorted.

     A look of slight annoyance allayed Seiryu's previously self-assured
expression. 

     Fujita chuckled at Seiryu's reaction. "No wonder you named your 
little pet after you. That overgrown lizard _is_ you... or rather a 
direct manifestation of your soul. Once it gets hurt, so will you. It's 
a pity then... After I kill it, you will die as well."

     "Action speaks louder than mere words, Miburo. The Chojin didn't
describe you to be this talkative. I only have three words for you...
Fu no Senrei," Seiryu declared as his namesake beast attacked Fujita
again.

     "And these are my three words in response... Aku Soku Zan. You will 
die, and so will the Chojin... It's inevitable," Fujita avowed as he
fell into Hiratsuki stance and hurtled towards his quarry.

     "'Kill Evil Instantly?'" Kuwabara repeated, incredulous. "What is
this, an old samurai drama? That guy's a complete loon!" He then 
silently muttered, "A mother-fucking bad ass bastard, but still a loon."

     The dragon soon moved into a spiral... a movement reminiscent of 
its attack on Genkai a while ago. Fierce, biting-cold winds accompanied 
the assault, threatening to loosen Fujita's footing.

     "It's still a head-on attack... but what's with the spiral?" 
Kuwabara commented as he struggled to get a better view of the lavish 
spectacle of death. He grit his teeth as he felt coldness beyond mere
cold. It was as if Death himself had embraced him. Through his
chattering teeth, he was able to stutter, "F-f-fuck, w-what is this?!"

     In no time at all, the dragon and the wolf were again upon each 
other. Fujita was able to fight through the storm-like winds enough
to gain sufficient momentum to execute his attack with only slight 
delay.

     But this slight delay was all the God of Dragons needed.

     With a burst of speed that belied its mass, the dragon avoided
Fujita's thrust. Its claws dug deep into the ground, causing clouds of
dust to form.

     <Quick, but it seems he has forgotten the side attack,> Fujita 
assessed as he flipped his blade and slashed sideways. To his chagrin,
because of the fierce stream of air that now shielded the serpentine
creature, his offensive merely scratched the dragon's tough hide.

     The Shisejyu Seiryu smirked. "After executing the thrust _and_ the 
side attack, you're now wide open, Saito Hajime."

     The dragon Seiryu overturned an entire plot of land,
unceremoniously flinging it, along with a slightly irritated Goro
Fujita, into the air. The patch of earth consequently crumbled against
the dragon's coiling body. 

     With his feet off the ground, the police officer could do nothing
but helplessly float in the tornado-like vacuum the dragon had created
with its spiraling movements.

     "Aku Soku Zan indeed... All you have are words. I now have the 
upper hand in this fight." Seiryu smirked smugly. "Watch your body get 
ripped apart by the might of my Fu no Senrei."

     <Dammit, Fujita's in trouble!> Kuwabara reflected as he shivered 
in frosty agony. <Without the ground to stabilize his footing, he can't 
do any of his fancy strikes!>

     Seiryu the God of Dragons soon reared its ugly head at the center
of the spiral. Afterwards, it headed towards the airborne policeman, its 
sharp claws ready to tear into shreds anything that passes through them.

     "Really now? How presumptuous of you." With that said, Fujita
readied his sword into Hiratsuki stance again.

     "Fool. You have no leverage for attack. Die," Seiryu stated.

     As the dragon coiled around Fujita, the policeman nimbly stabbed
at the gigantic monster's back. The embedded sword soon allowed him to 
set foot on the creature's snake-like body.

     He now had all the leverage he needed.  

     In annoyance, the God of Dragons twisted over its back and charged 
at the upstart Miburo with the intention of impaling him with one of
its claws.

     Fujita smirked. "Here's where my attack begins." His Hiratsuki
stance swiftly changed into a different stance... with his right leg 
forward, sword held in the left hand parallel to the body, right hand 
held in front along the blade. 

     Seiryu winced. <Could it be...?> 

     "GATOTSU ISHIKI!" the Wolf of Mibu roared mightily as he charged
and gauged out the dragon's left eye.

     "GRAAAAAGGHHH!!!" the Shisejyu Seiryu howled as his own left eye
began to stream with tears of blue blood. His alternate self mimicked
his panicked cry perfectly.

     Fujita shifted to his Hiratsuki stance again as he sadistically
added more injury to injury by letting out a flurry of stabs at the
dragon's already wounded eye.

     An inaudible mental click resounded in Genkai's psyche. <This 
Saito person is fighting the Fu no Senrei with the Hiratsuki not because
he's holding back... The Gatotsu is an offshoot of the Hiratsuki, such
that he could combine his Gatotsu attacks with the Hiratsuki with no
trouble at all.> 

     The dragon's panicked shrieks of suffering echoed across the 
valley. It violently shook its head in an attempt to get rid of the
psychotic policeman.

     <In real combat, it's extremely rare to meet the same enemy twice. 
When it does happen, if there is one technique that can bring him down, 
all others become useless. To polish one's own specialized techniques 
until they become certain death... This is his true strength,> Genkai
assessed.

     "What's the matter? Can't fight anymore?" Fujita taunted as he 
extricated his sword from the dragon's eye and slid off from the
dragon's body. He landed nimbly on the ground while quickly avoiding the
Fu no Senrei beast's whipping tail. "Come on. I have only used the most
basic of the Gatotsu's maneuvers. Giving up already?" 

     Seiryu's face morphed into that of a hateful demon ogre, his fangs
grit and gnashing in pure, unadulterated anger. Keiko soon became paler
as he again siphoned energy from her pain and suffering. Genkai and 
Kuwabara immediately made a start, but from their awkward positions it
seemed that only Fujita was within striking distance.

     Through a hiss that did not bother to hide the fact that he was
enraged, the Shisejyu declared, "Fu no Senrei."

     "Again? Don't you know any other attacks?" Fujita snidely remarked. 
Afterwards, he readied himself. This time he didn't bothering going into 
Hiratsuki stance, preferring to shift to his Gatotsu stance immediately. 
It was as if he instinctively felt his previous tricks would not assist 
him this time.

     <This air of tension I feel...> Genkai began, not able to finish
her sentence in time as the fight abruptly started before she even 
realized it. 

     The titanic Dragon of the Trial of Negation blasted through the air
with speeds that defied the laws of physics themselves. Rising above the
edicts of the physical world, it charged inexorably at Fujita like a
blue streak of lightning.

     "Fujita..." Kuwabara whispered in uncertainty. 

     Fujita's eyes widened for a split second as a flash of superimposed
afterimages burned into his eyes like a colorful, flowery explosion of 
light.

     "GATOTSU NISHIKI!" Fujita roared as he struck forward with the 
second form of his Gatotsu a split second later, its wider range of 
attack enabling him to deflect the dragon's powerful charge. His
blade crashed hard against the dragon's underbelly as he diverted its 
path away from his person. The dragon rose up into the stormy skies.
 
     Suddenly, a vortex of air appeared and arrested all of Fujita's
movements. The irresistible maelstrom began pulling him towards the
dragon's waiting claws. Sure enough, the Creature of the Fu no Senrei
promptly made a u-turn towards its hapless prey.

    <This is...> Fujita began as he struggled against what seemed to be
an intense hurricane. <This is... The Dragon that Soars the Heavens. In
other words, Seiryu's Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki. It has everything...
the quick, unstoppable charge of the first strike, then the air void of 
the second strike. But of course, nothing less than an actual dragon can
execute a similar technique. No one can escape the furious winds
produced by a dragon's brilliant ascent into the heavens.> 

     With his footing uneven and the God of Dragon's Seiryu inching 
closer and closer, Fujita had a very little window of opportunity to
strike.
     <But while the dragon's advantage lies in the heavens, the wolf's 
advantage lies on the earth,> Fujita contemplated as he crouched low, 
avoiding the intense vacuum and regaining his balance and leverage.

     Dragon and wolf were again face-to-face.

     <The claws and teeth of the dragon that soars the heavens can't
reach a wolf gone to earth.>

     "GATOTSU SANSHIKI!"

     The Sacred Beast Seiryu's mouth formed into an 'o' as a fountain 
of blood began to streak through his split skull. "H-h-how... did...
you... Saito H-Hajime...!?"

     "That Saito... he used the eye of the whirling vacuum to propel his
upward strike into the dragon's skull!" Genkai said, impressed. "His
attack stance was sunk down low. By maintaining that stance, using the
ground's recoil to the impact of air generated by the dragon's first
strike, he had a chance of withstanding the vacuum. The vacuum can't
work on what's not above it, after all. Then, by using the power of the
void to aim, and half-turning to meet the turning second attack, his
attack struck home. He's good. He figured out how to counter the
dragon's attack at a glance."

     "Humph. I haven't really 'figured it out at a glance,' as you've
stated. I merely compared it to a similar technique I've already seen," 
Fujita explained after overhearing Genkai's statements. "So far, it 
seems that the bastard's technique is nothing more than an inferior copy 
of the one I saw. It only goes to show that a technique can only be as 
good as its user, no matter how powerful it is."

     Finally recovering from his dumbstruck state, Kuwabara demanded, 
"What the hell are you two talking about?!" just as he made his way to
the decimated combat zone.

     "Something far beyond the grasp of your intellect," Fujita 
answered.

     "HEY! Saito, Fujita or whoever you are! You just shut up, you crazy
cop!" Kuwabara rejoined.

     "I agree with the policeman," Genkai grinningly joked.

     "Aw, man! Not you too, granny!" the red-haired boy whined.
  
     "Never mind that... we've got to find a way to reverse Keiko's
condition!"

     "I told you to stop celebrating each and every minor victory.
Celebrate only after you're completely sure you've killed me."

     The last statement got everybody's attention. It came from Seiryu.

     "Being so presumptuous is the reason why the Chojin defeated you in
the first place, Miburo," Seiryu said through gasping breaths. "Are you
going to make the same mistake a century later?"

     "Be my guest," Seiryu dared, unfazed.

     "Wish granted." With one fell swoop, the policeman extricated his
sword from the God of Dragons Seiryu's head while completely cleaving
its thick skull in half. The following shower of blue blood completely 
bathed the errant law enforcement officer.

     Fujita afterwards felt his body go frigid. 

     The Shisejyu Seiryu smirked despite his bloodied state. "In real 
battle, there are no rules. Everything can be used as a weapon. There 
are people who are described to have 'ice' in their veins instead of 
blood. Well, my dragon incarnate literally has 'ice' in its veins...
only colder still. The azure blood of the dragon is colder than even the 
coldest of ice. It will spread in your body until you become a brittle 
mass of frozen flesh, blood and bones." 

     "Not. While. I. Can. Still. Move," Fujita disjointedly but clearly
stated as he struggled against the frigidness of his body.

     "No. It ends here." Seiryu unceremoniously shoved his hand into
his skull, which opened up his and the God of Dragon's head wound some 
more. Consequently, a deluge of blue from the dragon Seiryu's split
cranium rained upon Fujita, caking him with hardening, quicksilver-like 
blood. Soon, nothing was left of the officer except for a person-shaped 
mound of sapphire. 

     "Saito Hajime-san!" Genkai shouted in absolute shock.

     "Officer Fujita!" echoed Kuwabara in disbelief. 

     Seiryu clutched his head in agony as he experienced the headache
to end all headaches. Genkai could only give him a wary look as he 
slowly came to.

     <He's supposed to be dead at this point... On the other hand, he
should have been dead from the start, since he had been killed by Yusuke
and the others. Negative energy is what's keeping him alive.> Genkai
narrowed her eyes. She knew where Seiryu was getting generous amounts of
jaki no power.

     Sure enough, the Blue Dragon Sacred Beast yet again began to siphon 
even more jaki from Keiko in an attempt to heal his wounds. <That stupid 
ghost gave me a hell of a time. Had he been revived by the Reikai with
rei in the same manner we Shisejyu have been revived with jaki? Oh well,
it doesn't matter at this point. However...>

     Soon, though the young girl's face was still doll-like and
apathetic, her left eye bled crimson tears.  

     "It seems that my new avatar won't last any longer... Damn that
Saito and his Gatotsu!" Seiryu cursed with a scowl.

     "It's trash like you who should be damned, Seiryu! Let Keiko-chan 
GO!" Kuwabara proclaimed as he rolled up his tattered sleeves. "I was 
able to give Randou a sound beating... I don't see why you should be 
any different! COME ON! COME AND GET IT!"

     Ignoring the boisterous youth before him, Seiryu's eyebrows
furrowed. "The old hag is gone." In the blink of an eye, he quickly
blocked Genkai's attempt at recapturing Keiko.

     "Hag. It's over. You've lost. Not even the great Saito Hajime could
help you," Seiryu expounded as he held Genkai's fist at bay with a 
clawed hand. "Let me guess. You have no intention of letting me use up 
the girl's life essence and you won't dare let me prolong her suffering 
in my hands... More or less, is that what you're going to say, my self-
righteous opponent?"

     "You yourself already know your sins, yet you go about it like it 
doesn't matter," Genkai nearly spat. "You disgust me. HYAKU RETSU KEN!"

     Seiryu spotted and blocked each and every one of Genkai's quick
strikes, but he had to relinquish his hold of the aged martial artist to 
do so. Taking advantage of this, Genkai finished her Hundred Punch Rush 
with a fierce blow that flung her away from the Blue Dragon Saint Demon. 
She immediately reversed her momentum as she thrust her right leg
forward and shouted, "HIRYU KYAKU!"

     Seiryu blocked the blow with his knee as he impaled the old woman's
stomach with his extended claws. He reproved, "I've already seen those
moves of yours while you fought Byakko. They're now next to--"

     "SUPINE KICK KOUGEKI!" Genkai shouted as she flipped over and 
struck Seiryu's left side where his gauged eye created a blind spot.

     The hidden attack sent the Shisejyu sailing up into the gray skies
in surprise. "Fu no Senrei," he summoned in annoyance while he remained 
airborne, only to boggle in astonishment as he saw a much younger Genkai
charge up an energy-brimmed Rei-Gan.

     "Your Fu no Senrei won't make it in time. I'll finish you off right
here and now, for Keiko's sake," the teenaged Genkai announced as she
practically poured her heart and soul into that one blast.

     "REI--!"

     An inhuman roar was the last thing Genkai heard before she got 
smacked away by a maddened, mindless and beast-like Byakko. 

     Seiryu could only chuckle as his dragon self finally merged with 
his sacred beast self. "My old comrade... It's good to see that even a
whipped dog like yourself could be of some use after all." 

     The Blue Dragon Shisejyu barely had time to block as a blast of 
pure energy exploded right in his face. He crashed hard on the ground a 
while later.

     Byakko snarled as his jaws burned with energy he stole from
Genkai's half-charged Spirit Ball. He repeated his intense onslaught,
shouting, "MEI-KO-SHOU-KAI-HA!" over and over as he mercilessly
bombarded Seiryu with energy balls. 

     But Seiryu wasn't Byakko's only quarry.

     Genkai herself nearly got pounded with repeated blasts of jaki from 
the maddened White Tiger Shisejyu. Not even Kuwabara was spared from 
Byakko's attacks. He attacked everything that moved, everything that 
breathed... He needed neither logic nor reason to do so. 

     "Watch out, granny! Byakko's gone berserk!" Kuwabara screamed at
Genkai in panic as he hobbled away from one of Byakko's gratuitous
barrage of wild strikes, his blue uniform bloodied and tattered.

     "Kuwabara! Get away from him, Byakko! REI-KOU--!"

     Frustration. Anger. Hatred. Violence. Retribution. Vengeance. Those 
were the only things that mattered to the fierce, bestial creature as of
now. While he had those emotions inside of him, neither Heaven nor Hell 
could stop him. He was a destructive, mindless behemoth that would go to 
great lengths just to sate the hate burning inside of him.

     "Byakko! What has happened to you!?" Genkai shrieked, biting her
lip as her feline opponent's claws dug deep into her calf. She was 
callously flung around like a rag doll as Byakko began to literally maul
her.

     Byakko looked at his bloodied claws in awe, overwhelmed by the 
power behind them. With just a few strikes he could literally kill all 
of them... the old woman, the human boy who defeated him, even Seiryu 
himself. The destructive viciousness that besieged the beast-like youkai
numbed him of all pain... of all things. Nothing else mattered to him 
except the irresistible strength he had. 

     "Genkai-baasan! LET GO OF HER, BASTARD!" Kuwabara began to 
ineffectually grapple the White Tiger Shisejyu from behind, silently 
cursing his lack of Spiritual Energy due to his fight with Randou. 

     Seiryu could only cackle in glee as he struggled to get up from 
the thrashing his fellow Sacred Beast gave him. "You really are
pathetic, Byakko. The only way you could gain a decent amount of jaki no 
power is to surrender to it fully, body and soul. Yes, you've now become
a veritable killing machine, but all you have now is killer instinct, 
nothing more! Go ahead and kill the old hag. Afterwards I'll kill you
again, just like before!"

     <Seiryu... was the one who originally murdered Byakko?> Genkai
thought through the haze of her mind as she struggled to protect herself
from Byakko's violent offensive. <Then that means....>

     "YOU MOTHER-FUCKING BASTARD! Stop picking on little old ladies and 
face ME!" Kuwabara finally hollered as he clawed at Byakko's eyes and
burnt face. The youkai yowled in pain as he threw the tall, teenage boy 
at the barely conscious Genkai.

     "Seiryu's right. You really have become pathetic," Kuwabara
silently muttered as he crawled over Genkai's prone form in an attempt
to shield her with his body. <You couldn't even think for yourself. It 
doesn't matter that you have this killer instinct or berserker strength.
You're not the Byakko that I fought with all those years ago.> He faced
the berserk Byakko with disgust in his eyes. "I know you can't
understand a word I'm saying, but... you're no fighter. You're just
another mindless, out-of-control youkai."

     <Kuwabara...> Genkai thought, looking over the young man's
shoulder just as Byakko prepared his lethal strike.

     The strike never came. Instead, Byakko instantaneously pounced on
Seiryu again.  

     "W-why the hell did he do that?" Kuwabara managed to squeak out
confusedly.

     "You caught me by surprise the first time, Byakko," Seiryu said as
he evaded the one-armed White Tiger's whirling strikes. He caught
Byakko's remaining arm and broke it in one swift movement. "But not this 
time. I won't be killed by a mindless beast."

     <I don't understand. Did Byakko opt to attack Seiryu instead 
of Kuwabara because the boy had no rei left in him?> Genkai arduously 
pondered. <I'm inclined to believe that, but the look in Byakko's eyes 
just now....> 

     Seiryu chuckled as Byakko howled like a mad dog. "And you call 
yourself a Shisejyu? You completely disgust me. You should see yourself 
now... You're even worse than a Class-D creature. You're more pathetic 
than you were after your defeat by hands of that stripling of a human.
You are a mockery of what we Shisejyu stand for... The only thing you
truly deserve is death." 

     Byakko rejoined Seiryu's comment by literally biting off the Blue
Dragon's forearm. The cold, blue dragon blood consequently gave the 
White Tiger Holy Beast lockjaw while Seiryu himself shrieked in agony. 
The Blue Dragon Shisejyu tore his fellow Sacred Beast's arm off in
retaliation.

     For the second time that day, an inaudible mental click resounded
in Genkai's psyche. <Byakko's jaki no power! It stems from...!>

     Seiryu gasped for air as he strained to absorb even more negative
energy from his newly selected avatar. It was the only way he could 
survive his present injuries. <Little streams of jaki won't be enough
this time. I have to regenerate my arm and replenish my strength, even 
at the cost of a powerful source of jaki no power!>

     However, the strain was too much for Keiko to take. She screamed in
pure agony and pain as her mask of apathy cracked and shattered under 
Seiryu's desperation. 

     "KEIKO-CHAN! Seiryu, you..." Kuwabara hollered as he struggled to
rise. He fell down moments later as he himself experienced pure agony
and pain... the result of Randou and Byakko's assaults on his person.
"Damn it all to hell!"

     Byakko felt it. Jaki no power... The young human girl's beleaguered
body was producing huge amounts of negative energy. The Holy Beast was
soon drawn to the tormented girl the way sharks were drawn to the smell
of blood. He had found his new target.  

     "MY AVATAR! Don't you dare--" Seiryu started as he pounced at
Byakko, only to get blasted away by unexpected Mei-Ko-Shou-Kai-Ha. 

     One claw strike was all it took to end Keiko's suffering.

     But it wasn't meant to be.

     <Genkai-baasan?!>

     "Old hag."

     "WAKE UP, BYAKKO! Wake up and understand the root of your 
suffering! IT'S REVENGE AGAINST SEIRYU THAT YOU WANT, NOT BLOODLUST! REI
HANDOU!"

     Genkai used up all of her remaining power on that one powerful 
strike. Curiously enough, it did not finish off the armless beast as
the spark of intelligence finally glinted in his eyes. Byakko fainted
soon afterwards.

     <Rei Handou... I've heard of that move before...> Kuwabara 
reflected pensively. <Wait! Of course! That's the strike granny used
on the Ichigaki Team during the Black Martial Arts Tournament! But
wasn't it used to get rid off Ichigaki's mind control thingies? Does
that mean...?>

     "The Rei Handou is a technique used to even out imbalanced ki-flow.
The Chojin created a disparity in Byakko's ki, which made him go berserk
every time he made use of jaki no power. I used the Rei Handou to
relieve him of that impediment to his own judgment and reasoning,"
Genkai explained.

     "Bravo. You figured it all out. I'd clap to applaud you... but I'm 
a bit handicapped right now," Seiryu derided. "The Chojin didn't want to
waste Byakko's 'potential,' so that's why he opted to drive him mad with
jaki no power instead. Though I personally would have preferred it if he
hadn't revived the whipped dog in the first place. As you can see, he's
more trouble than he's worth."

     "You seem very complacent about it, despite the fact that you've
already spent a lot of your strength," Genkai said as she fell into her
characteristic battle stance. 

     Seiryu sneered. "You act as if you're still a threat to me."

     Keiko was soon shivering in pain, as if she had a severe fever. 
In turn, Seiryu's severed arm began to restore itself as more and more 
negative energy filled his body.

     "You mother-fucking bastard," Kuwabara seethed through grit teeth
while Genkai remained silent.

     Seiryu addressed Genkai once more, avowing, "You're so utterly 
predictable. Saving Byakko and the girl with one fell swoop... How very 
typical, yet impressive. However..." Seiryu motioned with his remaining
hand as it brimmed with negative energy, "you have now completely 
depleted all your reserves of spiritual power. And, seeing his current
state, that young boy beside you won't be much of help either. You have
now left yourselves completely at my mercy. Your melodramatic sympathies
have just cost you your lives."

     A flicker of emotion was seen through Genkai's shimmering eyes as
she mournfully took one last look at Keiko Yukimura. <I'm so sorry, 
Keiko. I'm sorry that I wasn't able to save you.>

     Seiryu continued, stating, "Oh, by the way, thank you for sparing 
my source of power's life _and_ getting rid of the bane of my existence
all at the same time. As a show of my appreciation, allow me to give you 
and your companion a glorious death. Feel the full consequences of your 
foolishness."

     Again, the deluge of icy rain came as Seiryu released the God of 
Dragons from his body. It leaped up and hung in the air, light
reflecting off each shimmering scale as it howled a shrill cry evocative
of the terrifying shrieks of the blameless.

     "Kyomei Jisatsu Jin--Fu no Senrei."

     With an ear-piercing screech, the leviathan-like creature rose up 
further into the sky until it was hovering high above the powerless
Kuwabara and Genkai. After that, it quickly descended, thundering down
onto the luckless duo like an unstoppable avalanche of ice and snow
drawn from the very depths of the Demon World, in the Land of the
Koorime.

     But it had been said, "What goes around, comes around." 

     "BOUKO HYOUGA!" Byakko managed to call out despite his stiffened 
jaw. His body quickly grew and hardened as his muscles hypertrophied in 
the same manner his Kaiwan had. 

     The Fu no Senrei pounded hard against Byakko's rock-hard, armless
body yet he would not give an inch to the relentless assault. Genkai and
Kuwabara could only stare in shock and awe at the spectacle before them.

     "You traitor. So it seems that you've shown your true colors. You
don't even know where your loyalty lies," Seiryu said in revulsion. "I
never thought that you could stoop any lower than you could, but again
you proved me wrong. Die with those pathetic humans." 

     Byakko laughed maniacally as he stared at Seiryu through eyes of
lunacy. 

     <I hate you.> 

     He could not scream the words at this point, but the technique he
did was unmistakably the Mei-Ko-Shou-Kai-Ha. The concentrated blast of 
destructive force tore through the body of the serpentine dragon,
continuing on with minimal loss of velocity as it headed straight for 
Seiryu.

     <I've hated you from the time you've killed me in the Maze Castle
to the time we've spent together in Hell.>
 
     Frustration. Anger. Hatred. Violence. Retribution. Vengeance. All
those emotions were released in that one, all-or-nothing blast.

     <I've hated you since the Chojin revived all of us from damnation
in exchange of our loyalty and freedom. I've hated you as Suzako became
one of the Chojin's elite. I've hated you as Suzako trained us to become
stronger by means of ruthless torture.>

     The subsequent explosion as it impacted upon Seiryu's person was 
beyond words.

     <I've hated you even after the Chojin made me go mad with power
just to prevent me from murdering you.>

     If at that point Seiryu gained the ability to turn his own 
suffering into negative energy, he would have had enough power to rival 
that of the Chojin's. 

     <I hate you so much that I would kill you and then revive you
repeatedly just to kill you again and again.>

     Byakko cackled one last time before his own body shattered into
cold, brittle pieces.

     Silence passed Genkai and Kuwabara in an unhurried pace. 

     "I-it's good that that those two monsters have finished each 
other off, eh?" Kuwabara asked hesitantly, just to break the ice.

     "But who really is the monster?" Genkai mused as she finally
recovered from the energy-draining Rei Handou technique. 

     "What are you saying, Genkai-baasan?"
 
     "Nothing," Genkai replied, sighing. Next she added, "Kuwabara, you
weren't able to finish Byakko off when you fought with him, right?" 

     "So what of it?!"

     "I wasn't insulting your abilities. Seiryu was the one who killed
him, wasn't he?"

     "Uh... yeah. I guess he did."

     "That settles it. Everything that happened was meant to happen."

     "Um... okay," Kuwabara said, nodding absently. He admittedly didn't 
understand the gravity of Genkai's words, but that didn't matter to him
much. "Well, at least now that those two are dead, Keiko's safe, right?"

     Genkai narrowed her eyes as she grit her teeth. "Wrong."

     "Wrong? What do you...?" Kuwabara confusedly asked. He got his
answer moments later.

     It began to rain.

     "Be careful, Kuwabara! That rain, it is no ordinary rain! It's...!"

     The warning came too late as Kuwabara literally froze in his tracks
like a statue. Genkai tried desperately to outrun the hazardous shower,
but soon Death's icy grip took hold of her as well. Each droplet burned
through her skin as they spread across her body like quicksilver.

     It was a bloody rain... the bloody rain of Seiryu's own blood.   

     The Shisejyu Seiryu rose from the rubble as an icy flood spread
across the ravaged lands. A quarter of his face and parts of his body
were missing but he was still, for the most part, alive. His next words
were simple and uncomplicated.

     "I've won."

     He looked ahead and saw that his avatar, though lifeless as a
marionette, was still intact. That was wonderful, since a good avatar is
hard to find. His God of Dragons counterpart floated above her in the
sky, shrieking in victorious delight as it let its blood deluge on the
mountainside.

     "So after everything that had happened, after going through the
Miburo, Byakko and even Genkai, I am still the one who emerged
victorious. As Saito Hajime is the 'immortal' one of the Shinsengumi, I
am the immortal one of the Shisejyu. And I am even better than Saito
Hajime, because I am still alive and he is now dead. I am the one who
killed the immortal wolf, Saito Hajime."

     "Indeed, Saito Hajime is dead. But I am not Saito Hajime," said a
slightly muffled yet menacing voice.

     Seiryu nearly jumped up in surprise after hearing the disembodied 
declaration. The Blue Dragon Shisejyu swung his head wildly in all
directions as he desperately tried to find out where the voice came
from. He quickly spotted from behind him a person-shaped mound of his
hardened, coagulated blood. The Saint Demon laughed in relief as he
regained his cool demeanor.

     "I thought I've finished you off. No matter. I'll let you feel the 
might of my Fu no Senrei for one last time."

     "You won't even get the chance to do that."

     "Indeed? Prove me wrong, then. Fu no Senrei."

     As the Holy Beast said the words, the misty yet unmistakable form
of a giant wolf appeared, its amber eyes glowing in the gathering
darkness. It pounced on the approaching God of Dragons, mauling Seiryu's
draconic manifestation in the same way Byakko had with Genkai and 
Kuwabara a few moments earlier.

     A muffled chortle was heard amidst the chaos.

     Seiryu growled at the frigid Miburo as more of his cerulean blood
was spilled on the ground. "Seeing your pathetic state, even if my Fu no
Senrei can't finish you off, I still can. Die." The Holy Beast punched
through the unmoving police officer's chest area with no trouble at all.

     "You've just sealed your fate," Fujita stated as he began crushing
and breaking through the blue ice that caked his body. Soon, even at
close range, the policeman was able to aim his long katana a hairbreadth
away from Seiryu's neck.

     "W-WHAT?!?" Seiryu exclaimed as he tried to back away from the
deadly weapon, but his bleeding legs failed him. His whole body failed
him. His own icy blood, ironically enough, had frozen him as well. "Who
the hell are you? What the hell are you? A ghost? A spirit? A monster?!"

     "Saito Hajime is just a person who lived during a bygone era.
Fujita Goro is just a name. I am neither just a person nor a name. I am
beyond that."

     "Y-you're crazy! GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!"

     "What I am is justice. What I represent are these three words...
Aku Soku Zan."

     "A-Aku Soku Zan?"

     "With pleasure. GATOTSU ZEROSHIKI!"

     Like a puppet with its strings cut, Seiryu fell in a boneless heap
along with the dragon Seiryu. The God of Dragons consequently began to
melt away like thawing ice.




***




     Acting by some unknown providence, Iehik ceased his panicky
chattering as he felt both the life forces of the two Shisejyu ebb and
vanish. In an uncharacteristic grim tone, he ordered to Iehog, "Grab the
Reikai woman and bring her with us. The two Sacred Beasts have died. We
can now make use of them as leverage."

     "I understand, big brother."

     "Hold up! This isn't part of our deal!" Botan managed to say
despite her recent break down. "And I'm not going anywhere until I see
Keiko--"

     She was effortlessly silenced by a swift, backhanded strike on the 
back of her head care of the monstrous Iehog.

     "We should have done that in the first place, big brother."

     "No matter. It's of no consequence to us. Today we shall meet our 
destiny."




***




To be Continued...


Next: Unleash the Battousai.

Yeah, maybe you're still distracted by the "Next: Unleash
the Battousai" message above this, but if I could get your
attention for a moment... Please? Okay, thanks. :P

Perhaps you've noticed, perhaps you didn't... but I've been
experimenting with my writing style again for Youtou
Shinnoken. :) That's right, folks... my trademark 'awkward
scene breaks' of three asterisks have mostly been taken
out of this chapter. It has become one long, uninterrupted 
brawl-fest with no in-between scenes aside from the little
itty-bitty one in the end. :D 

Why, (Why, Mr. Anderson, why?) you may ask?

Personally, I (an author who has the attention span of a 
little... Oooh! Lookie! Shiney object! Wai! ^_^) don't like 
writing lengthy, drawn out scenes, but the whole thing was 
done nonetheless mainly for two reasons: 

1.) To tie all loose ends in just one chapter, which is 
convenient for me. ^-^

2.) To address the feedback I've been getting about 'awkward 
scene breaks.' :P

As a side note... yeah, it would be more characteristic of
'Saito' to use the Gatotsu technique immediately in a fight.
The only other time he used the Hiratsuki was with Kenshin
during their first meeting. (and _that_ was anime-only,
since in the manga Saito fought with the Gatotsu only) ^^;

Still, I had to find a way to draw out their fight, right?
:P Besides, I think it's cool for Saito to know both 
techniques. ^_^

And soon, the awaited Battousai will finally be set free. 
Can't wait. ;)

Disclaimer: Yuyu Hakusho is the rightful property of Yoshishiro 
Togashi, Shueisha, Fuji TV and St. Pierrot. Rurouni Kenshin is the
rightful property of Nobuhiro Watsuki and Sony. Don't sue us please, 
we are very poor.

Ja!
Abdiel


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