________________________________________________________________________


Youtou Shinnoken
A Yuyu Hakusho/Rurouni Kenshin fic
By Chester Casta�eda
chester.castaneda@gmail.com
Original concept by SeventhOne
chadjill@ms3.hinet.net
http://www.fanfiction.net/~abdiel
http://chester-fanfics.livejournal.com/

When will Keiko's nightmare end? What will ultimately
happen to her?

________________________________________________________________________

Chapter 13: To Protect Loved Ones (Part 9)
________________________________________________________________________



Botan had finally reached it; the place she spent much of her spiritual
life in. Level 34 Block 7 of the Purgatorial Sector: The Elysian Fields.

It took a while for her to get there, and for a quite a bit she had
gotten lost and somehow ended up in Level 17 Block 8 of the Corporeal
Punishments Sector. She shuddered. Indeed, she had heard enough wailing
and gnashing of teeth in that one awkward moment to last her a human
lifetime.

<Next time, _watch_ where you're going. Honestly, the blood-red River of
Death should have been a good sign that I had turned at the wrong fork--
W-ell, hello. What do we have here?>

Being there in the Elysian Fields brought back lots of memories for the
ferry-girl. Actually, the exact opposite was instead true; being there
in the Elysian Fields made Botan forget a lot of her memories...
especially the memories of her past life.

Her past life. Huh. She must have been hard up on forgetting all about
her past life to have willingly come there in the Elysian Fields... or
so 'Ayame-sempai' had her believe. In any case, something deep inside
her gut told her that her senior was telling the truth: her past life as
a human was something that she had _desperately_ wanted to forget, so
much so that even now in her state of willful amnesia, she still
remembered not wanting to remember a single thing about her past. <...Or
something like that.>

Botan blinked as she spotted something on the ground. "Hey. What's
that?" she blurted out.

She shook her head clear of her meanderings as she focused on the thing
that somehow caught her attention... a single, pristine white lotus
petal on the ground. That lone petal had the fragrance of a thousand
roses, yet its scent was as subtle as a gentle summer breeze. But its
smell couldn't possibly compare to its oh-so-scrumptious taste and the
effects it had on a wandering spirit's general, um, well-being. <But of
course. Why else would it be called the 'Flower of Eden'?>

She just couldn't describe the feeling. Even though at the time she had
already forgotten everything about her life, she couldn't possibly
forget the sweet sensations she got from ingesting the delicious flower.
Every time she ate one, everything intensified and bristled to life. The
blades of grass that surrounded her became greener, more alive, as if
they were breathing. The rustling leaves became animated as well. In
color, sound, sharpness, smell, and touch, everything became
exaggerated. It was as if she, even though she was already deceased at
the time, could smell again, breathe again, touch again, and see
again... all at the same time with more exuberance and feeling. 

The ferry-girl remembered many a day in her stay in the Elysian Fields
where she would sit idly, munching on the petals of the nearest lotus
blossom in sweet bliss, forgetting all about her woes and not having a
care in the world. She simply could not describe the feeling she felt
every time she consumed the damn sweet blossom. The sheer thrill she
experienced from eating it was indescribable. It felt like... an orgasm,
or maybe as high as you could ever get on drugs. No, higher than that...
It couldn't be expressed. Such comparison paled amidst the sheer ecstasy
she felt from feeding into herself a lotus blossom. Every fiber of her
being exuded... aliveness. There was no other word for it. Aliveness. 

<But I digress,> Botan said to herself, spewing the lotus petal that
somehow ended up in her mouth and blowing it into the misty waters.
<Boy, that was close. Eating those things is dangerous! Sure, they taste
so good and give you such a high that you'd want more and more, but...
but... what was so bad about them again?>

Botan pinched her cheeks in frustration. <Augh, Botan! Focus! I can't
eat any of that stuff! They'll make me fat... no, I mean, forget about
my mission... and everything else, while we're at it... and turn me into
a lotus-eating junkie... again. Though there are worse things that could
happen to a person--and I can easily see myself staying here to eat
lotus blossoms for the rest of my spiritual life--priorities _are_
PRIORITIES! I need to find KEIKO-CHAN, and I need to find her NOW!>

Botan pointlessly breathed in and out, calming her frayed (and mostly
imaginary, since she was in spirit form) nerves. <Wow. It's been so
long since I first came here, hasn't it? It's been fifty-something years
since I first entered the 'Elysian Field University'... I think. I
forget. Well, that's to be expected, knowing the type of 'curriculum'
E.F.U. had.>

Botan sighed. <Anyway... Wow. Wow indeed. Hey, I remember this part of
the river!> she thought as she excitedly looked around her surroundings,
her sense of nostalgia getting the better of her.

The River Styx forked into the Elysian Fields to water the fields and
from there it divided further to form four main streams. The name of the
first river was Pishin. It was the one that flowed around all the
country of Havilah where there was gold, and the gold of that country
was good; bidellium and onyx stone were also there. Why there would be
precious metals and gems in the Spirit World was anyone's guess.
Probably for the sake of irony, seeing that in the afterlife, gold and
diamonds were as plentiful as salt and dirt were on earth.

The name of the second river was Gihon. It was the one that flowed
around all the land of Cush. Incidentally, Cush was where eighty percent
of the lotus blossoms, the main export of the Elysian Fields, were
cultivated. That was also where most of the residents of the Elysian
Fields stayed, for obvious reasons.

The name of the third river was Tigris. It was the one that flowed to
the east of Assyria. In its banks grew every kind of tree that was
pleasing to see, bearing fruits that were pleasant to eat. In the middle
of this cornucopia was the Tree of Life which sustained the vivacity of
the enchanted forest, and beside it was the Tree of the Knowledge.

It had been rumored that whomsoever ate fruit from the Tree of Knowledge
would be granted lost information regarding one's past life, making moot
the effects of the ever-potent lotus blossoms. Few had ever dared test
this theory, and Botan was not among those few.

The fourth river was the Euphrates. Nobody really cared much about the
Euphrates. Which made sense, since the Euphrates was the closest stream
that led back to the middle fork of the River Styx, which meant that it
led directly to the only entrance _and_ exit of the Elysian Fields. And
everybody knew that nobody would ever leave the Elysian Fields
willingly, so there was little wonder why there weren't many people
hanging around at that part of the river.

<Yeah, 'cause most of the people here are too busy being stoned by an
unlimited supply of lotus blossoms. Bunch of lazy, good-for-nothing
addicts.> Botan's pink eyes narrowed. <...Oh, how I envy them.>

Incidentally, that was where Botan was right now; on the banks of the
Euphrates. The shinigami collected her thoughts. <All I really need to
do is get Keiko out of here before she starts eating lotus blossoms and
forgetting stuff. So the sooner I find her, the better. Simple enough,
right?>

She gulped. <I'm just hoping that it won't be too late when I do.> She
blinked. <Wait. What in the world...?>

She found another lotus petal just a few meters away from where she was
standing. She shrugged, walked towards it, and plucked it from the
ground. Sure enough, she sighted yet another petal just a few meters
away from the second petal. And another. And another.

<Looks like Keiko-chan had read 'Hansel and Gretel' when she was a kid.>
Botan smirked.

Common sense dictated that perhaps the trail of lotus petals was just a 
coincidence, and anybody could have left them. But Botan's intuition
told her otherwise. Besides, common sense also dictated that nobody who
had ever tasted a lotus blossom would ever leave any trace of it behind.
People tended to not be wasteful of the euphoria-inducing substance.
That meant two things: Keiko had _not_, as of yet, eaten a single bite
out of the surrounding lotus blossoms, and she still remembered who she
was.

<She's expecting me to come and look for her. She left the trail of
lotus blossoms for me to follow so that I can find her immediately.>
Botan nodded to herself in approval. So there was an off chance that her
female intuition and common sense might get along after all. So much the
better.

"Don't you worry, Keiko-chan. I'm coming. Just wait for me. Botan-san's
going to sort things out and fix your little problem, just you wait and
see."


***


In sheer and desperate terror of the looming threat before him, Randou 
inadvertently activated one of his more psychosomatic skills: Astral
Projection. Just as an advanced living organism would automatically
shield its eyes at the threat of being pierced, so did the involuntary
parts of Randou's mind teleport his spirit away from near death. It was
merely survival instinct that prompted him to do so.

In this moment of utter solitude, the crimson-haired demon was given a
chance to mull things over. Only one thought continued to repeatedly
haunt Randou's mind; he could have done way better in his fight with
Yusuke. He really could.

His first mistake was nearly losing to the pathetic Kazuma Kuwabara, of
all people. His haphazard battle with the teenager caused him to enter
his fight with Yusuke at below a hundred percent, which wasn't very wise
of him to do, in hindsight.

<Damn that double-edged Blood Wind,> Randou's spirit cursed as he
surreally looked down at his twitching, unconscious self. He checked his
injuries one by one as he observed his spiritless body from afar.

Come to think of it, his presently hollow, recessed eyes and gaunt
pallor were undoubtedly the results of excessive blood drain care of the
Blood Wind. His half-healed jaw, on the other hand, was the effect of a
Blood Fire Wave-powered punch from Yusuke. The jaw was half-healed
because of his cocoon rejuvenation technique; small comfort, but at
least he had one.

A myriad of bruises and contusions lined Randou's body. These wounds
could have been a lot worse had he not learned the Iron Body Technique,
he noted to himself in a mantra-like manner. Then again, had he not
inadvertently roused his opponent's demonic blood with the Kugai, then
he wouldn't be in the sorry, pathetic state he was in right now.

Randou then took note of the more invisible injuries he had; his
depleted youki, chakra, and jaki, were caused by his own reckless use of
his numerous ki-based attacks. True, the Ibuki had somewhat restored
most of his power during his little siesta inside his special cocoon,
but all that was rendered moot thanks to Yusuke's reawakening as a Demon
Lord Descendant.

Randou was beginning to see a trend to his woes and injuries; most of
them were, more or less, his fault. This fact depressed him all the
more. He did his best against his opponent given the circumstances, but
it was very evident that his best wasn't good enough. He _could_ blame
the circumstances surrounding his defeat... lesser demons would... but
not him. His defeat was his responsibility and his alone. And regret was
for losers.

He had to face facts: he had failed the Chojin. He was just glad that,
even for a short time, he was able to fight Urameshi to the limit.

He suddenly heard a spiteful, derisive laugh echo in his ghostly mind.
"Are you kidding me? You call that 'fighting to the limit?' Please.
Urameshi barely went S-level with his powers, even after using a little
bit of his Sei Kou Ki; you were just too weak to notice."

"Who's there? Show yourself!" Randou's spirit demanded as it whirled
wildly towards the origin of the reverberating voice.

"You're right about two things, though. You really have failed the
Chojin, and it's all your fault," disparaged the voice. 

Randou's eyes narrowed as he finally caught sight of the previously
unseen outsider. "Oh. It's you. The Chojin's pet dog."

"I could say the same thing about you. After all, you do constantly
follow him around, hanging on to every word he says like a little lost
scamp."

Randou harrumphed. "It takes one to know one."

The stranger chuckled. "You call that an insult? So it's okay for you to
be a sniveling, mangy dog since I am one too?"

"Whatever. What do you want?" Randou snapped. "Don't tell me you've come
all the way here just to make fun of me."

"Though that is tempting... No." The stranger seemed to hesitate for a
few moments before stating his business. "Believe it or not, I'm here to
grant you the power to defeat the Reikai Tantei Urameshi Yusuke and,
in turn, the Guardian of the Youtou Shinnoken, Himura Battousai."

"Oh, really?" Randou asked in obvious skepticism. "You can do that? How
lucky of me then."

"Of course I can," the stranger bragged, acting as if it was the most
obvious thing in the world. "I am, after all, the conduit of the ever-
powerful Chojin's jaki no power. That's to be expected, since I've
been his most loyal servant for more than a century."

<Humph. And he wonders why I call him the Chojin's dog.> Randou raised
an eyebrow. "So you're serious? Exactly, why would you want to do that?"
The demonic ghost eyed the outsider warily. "What's in it for you?
What's the catch?"

"No catch. And just to be clear, I _don't_ want to do this." The
stranger sighed. "But if you're really doubtful about my intentions,
then go take it up with the Chojin; he's the one who ordered me to do
this." Randou's eyes went wide at the outsider's revelation.

"I could care less why, truth be told. Personally, I'd rather see you
burn in hell." The stranger shrugged. "Oh well. You're merely a means to
an end anyway. Besides, now that you _have_ to continue your fight with
Urameshi, I still have the small comfort of watching you suffer some
more."

But Randou was already ignoring the stranger after he heard the good
news. <I can't believe it. The Chojin actually sent him to give me the
power to destroy Urameshi Yusuke? Incredible. It seems that, despite my
bumbling, the Chojin has yet again given me another chance to prove
myself! Hell, I may have even impressed him with my performance in the
fight, in spite of the circumstances!>

"...Now don't get ahead of yourself, red. I'm hardly giving you _all_ of
the Chojin's power. I'm just here to tune you up a bit before round four
starts. Consider it your second wind of sorts." The stranger was soon
bathing in the dark aura of choleric jaki. "Though you have inexplicably
gained the Chojin's favor, I'll be providing you with just enough jaki
to let you use most of your first and second level tricks and any one of
your third level attacks. After all, like you said in your little
monologue, you've bumbled a lot in this fight; this is all that you'll
get because of it, and nothing more."

"Then stop your yapping and let me have it already," Randou plaintively
declared, his arms crossed in challenge.

"Fine." Without so much as a word of warning, the stranger blasted wave
upon wave of the Chojin's ebony jaki into Randou's floating spirit,
making him drown in a spherical pool of pure evil energy. "Power of rot,
obscuring truth, what once was old restore to youth."

Afterwards, while converting the evil energy of his master into demonic
power, the stranger chanted, "Flay the flesh, lay bare the bone. Upon
this field, let grief be sown!" Soon, youki began to course anew through
Randou's battered frame, restoring it back to health.

"Bastard. Stop pretending to cast spells, you're just transferring the
Overfiend's jaki no power unto me." Randou grunted. "You're no warlock,
you're just lucky that the Chojin chose you as a vessel for his awesome
powers."

"You're welcome," the outsider said. "Now finish what you've started.
Don't waste any of the Chojin's mercy, there's not a lot of it to go
around."

"Don't tell me what I can or cannot do. Only the Chojin can decide my
ultimate fate," Randou riposted as his jaki-filled spirit started to
travel back into his recently repaired body.

<And he calls _me_ the dog.> The stranger sneered. <Go, Randou. Go forth
and give Urameshi Yusuke an epic battle worthy of the Chojin himself.
You have no other choice anyway.>


***


"Is the woman still asleep?" Iehik asked his monstrous, six-feet high
'little' brother as he warily looked around for any sign of the scary
policeman, the idiot human, or the aged martial artist. Thankfully, none
of them were in sight.

"Yeah. She's out like a light, big brother. Hell, there's a line of
drool just below her pretty li'l chin that's pooling on my shoulder
right now! Actually, it's rather fetching on her, if I do say so myself.
Come to think of it, for a midnight snack she's kind of cute..." Iehog
went on and on and on.

"Stop. Just... stop. Stop draining me of my intelligence with your
stupid ranting." Iehik snorted, then smiled his monkey-like grin. He
scratched his hefty chin with a clawed hand. "Besides, we're already
here."

"Where's 'here'?" Iehog asked dumbly, blinking.

"'Here' is where we find the remains of two of the four Shisejyu, Byakko
and Seiryu."

Iehog rubbed his hefty melon head in contemplation. "Um... so, what are
we doing here again? Are we here to pay our respects?"

"...." Iehik growled. "I simply _cannot_ believe how stupid you really
are. Dammit, there are times when I just want to transplant my glorious
brain into your empty skull as an act of charity on my part."

"Oh, would you, big brother? Aw, you always were the one who looked
after dumb ol' stupid me whenever the times are tough." Iehog clapped
happily, nearly dropping the slumbering Botan off of his right shoulder
as a result.

"Huh. What a nice, if grammatically incorrect, sentiment... especially
coming from you." Iehik sniffed. "Now stop getting all sappy on me and
grab those bodies!"

"Yessir!" Iehog saluted, but then frowned. "But, big brother! There
isn't much of anything left of their bodies; only big, steaming chunks
of blood and guts. Also, it kinda reeks here..." The large demon covered
his nose in disgust.

Iehik rolled his eyes. "Jeez, that's exactly the way we want them to be,
idiot."

"We do?" Iehog blinked, his mouth agape.

"Do I really need to spell things out for you? Dammit, Iehog, you'd be
lost without me. Anyway, here's what I want you to do..."


***


The trail of lotus petals went through many detours. Botan had to travel
first from the misty banks of Euphrates to the country of Havilah where
she developed a severe sneezing fit because of her terrible spiritual
allergy to gold dust. One could say that a sneezing ghost seemed rather
redundant and a spiritual allergy altogether absurd, considering the
ancient belief of spirits leaving their bodies after a sneeze, but Botan
didn't really give much thought about those things.

>From there, much to her ghostly sinuses' relief, she made a quick stop
to the banks of Tigris to gather her wits and get a bite or two to eat.
Afterwards, the trail, in accordance to Hansel and Gretel tradition, 
disappeared thanks to several wandering lotophagi/lotus-eaters that just
couldn't stand seeing those poor lotus petals waste away on the ground.

After much deliberation, Botan had an idea; she would follow the gang of
wandering lotophagi who were, in turn, inadvertently following the trail
of lotus petals that Keiko left earlier. 

Much to her chagrin, the trail of humanity apparently ended on the last
place she wanted it to end: the Land of Cush, the center of all lotus
blossom production in the Elysian Fields.

<Damn. So, in the end, Keiko-chan ended up here anyway. Double damn.
That could only mean one thing...> The ferry-girl shook her head. <No.
Stop it. She didn't. Of course she didn't, dammit.>

Her only certainty her doubt, Botan trudged forward, combing through the
ranks of apathetic souls that lounged around the banks of Gihon in
blissful indifference as they munched their worries away.

<This really is the Purgatorial Sector, isn't it? Even though it seems
somewhat cruel and downright insane to put dead souls in here, I have to
admit that this is the best way to purge them of their sins and regrets:
by making them forget everything about their past selves so that they
can start anew,> Botan observed as she flew across the surge of humanity
with her trusty boat paddle, effectively pulling her out of temptation's
reach. <I can't be too careful, though. If I were to eat even one petal,
I'll probably go back to the habit and become a lotus junkie again.
After all, I was once a lotophagi too, for Enma's sake.>

The more Botan looked, the more people she saw, their forms seemingly
materializing before her very eyes. Old people, middle-aged, teenagers,
children... even a few toddlers were loafing around the land, enjoying
the strange but pleasing hallucinogenic effects of the lotus blossoms.
<If this were to happen in the Human World, the police and the media
would have a field day.>

Botan stared at them all in amazement. And yet, she noticed that only a
few were looking around at the others, like she was. As expected, most
seemed completely unaware that they were not alone in the vast
wilderness of lotus blossoms, opting to focus their attention on
prolonging their drug-induced euphoria.

Botan's heart got caught in her throat as she finally found what she was
looking for; she had finally reached her intended target just in the
nick of time. "Keiko-chan! KEIKO-CHAN! It's me, Botan-san! I've come to
get you out of here!" She excitedly landed on the nearby patch of land,
relieved to see that the ghost of Yusuke's childhood friend was all
right.

Her heart subsequently plunged to her stomach as she saw the bits of
lotus petals on the side of her dear friend's chin; Keiko Yukimura was
now one of _them_, one of the lotophagi.

Munching idly on a lotus blossom, Keiko deadpanned, "Hello there, miss.
And you are...?"


***


The Toushin blasted Randou into oblivion with his all-powerful Rei-Gan;
and that was that.

Unfortunately, that wasn't that... Randou survived. The red, white, and
blue blur that blasted off from the resulting pile of wreckage was
proof of that. The youkai went charging through the temple, blindly
hitting and breaking through the rubble and the gingerbread columns. 

"GODAMMIT, you're still alive?" the mazoku descendant exclaimed in
frustration and astonishment as he slowly traced his index finger in the
air, following Randou's flitting movements like a gun aimed at a moving
target.

"Nothing gets past you, Urameshi," Randou called out as he acrobatically
encircled the passionate half-demonic Spirit Detective. "Shall we?"

"Boy, you're stubborn! Why won't you just die like a good demon?" the
half-demon said as he fired his Spirit Gun indiscriminately at Randou's
afterimages. "But you're right about one thing though... nothing gets
past me, including YOU!"

Randou barely had time to shield himself as a Rei-Gan actually managed
to hit him, searing his interlocked forearms with second and third
degree burns. <Great. We're back to square one. What am I going to do
now?> he asked himself as he carefully reassessed the situation. Mazoku
Yusuke was exceedingly dexterous because of his bond with the Youtou
Shinnoken. He also had huge amounts of demonic energy inside of him. On
top of all that, he had an incredible amount of tolerance to pain, as
evidenced by the way he was currently handling the Kugai's effects.
<Damn. So what must I do to take him down? What is the chink in his
armor?>

It then came to Randou; his epiphany. The youkai's eyes narrowed as he
stared closely at his enemy's topless form. It had several bruises and
contusions, but even as he examined the body, the wounds were slowly
healing themselves. But that didn't matter to him. What really caught
his attention was the small trickle of blood on Yusuke's right shoulder.

The shoulder wound. The shoulder wound that appeared on Yusuke after
Kenshin blocked Randou's Rei-Gan to save the ferry-girl and the human
girl a while back. The shoulder wound that the demon took advantage of
during the early rounds of their fight. <It hasn't fully healed yet,
even though Urameshi had already turned mazoku!> Indeed it hasn't; it
was still open and bleeding, concealed only by Yusuke's demonic
markings. <Perfect.>

"Ultra Electromagnetic WHIP!" Randou shouted as he called upon a whip
made of pure energy to appear in his hand. He then snapped his wrist,
making the pointed end of electric whip snake towards Yusuke's shoulder.

Because the mazoku's defense mostly consisted of surviving attacks, he
let the electrically-charged whip cut through his right shoulder, fully
confident of his ability to withstand the pain. The amount of voltage
that the assault produced was tremendous, but overall the Toushin was
none the worse for wear because of it.

Randou sneered. "Gotcha, Urameshi." Chanting a secret sutra to himself,
the demon summoned a unique skill that he usually reserved for last
resorts. "BLOOD WIND!"

A crimson tornado that reached all the way up to what was left of the
ceiling of the dojo emerged from, surreally enough, Yusuke's bloody
shoulder. The mazoku was taken completely by surprise as the red cyclone
swallowed him up and whirled him around in a raging spiral of death.

Randou nodded sagely to himself; the Blood Wind wasn't so double-edged
when it made use of the opponent's blood instead of his own. <Brilliant.
It'll now take quite sometime before Urameshi can recover enough to
summon that Sei Kou Ki technique of his again because of the Blood
Wind's energy-sapping powers. From my estimations, it takes at least
ninety percent of his demonic energy to beckon such a powerful attack.
Deplete his energy by even eleven percent, and he'll be dead in the
water.> 

Randou was so satisfied with his work that he didn't even bat an eyelid
as the Blood Wind somehow got redirected from the ceiling to the 
nearby columns, utterly destroying them. And, with a long, tearing
scream, the rest of the roof consequently fell in and stopped short the
extent of the attack's duration. <But of course. I'm fighting a mazoku
warlord, so first level tricks like the Blood Wind won't be enough to
put him away. Even so, I've still depleted him of some of his power. As
long as he can't summon that angelic Saint Light Energy of his, I have
nothing to fear from him.>

The mazoku emerged from the rubble, sinisterly grinned, grabbed his
bloodied shoulder and lashed out with a "BLOOD WIND!" of his own, much
to Randou's absolute astonishment. The somewhat weaker but nevertheless
effective crescent-shaped wave of blood-ki knocked the youkai straight
into the nearest pile of wreckage.

"Hey, this Blood Wind of yours is quite handy when you use just enough
of it to avoid serious blood loss," the demonic warlord descendant
cheerfully noted, then gleefully lobbed several more blood-ki shots.

"INNER BLOOD TURMOIL!" Randou roared as he absorbed several waves of the
mazoku's Blood Wind into his system, savoring the delicious plasma of
the Class-S Warrior. "Didn't you say a while back that you want me to
bleed for you? This time, it'll be you who will bleed for me."

Fully expecting the Blood Fire Wave counterattack, the ever-primed and
ready Urameshi braced himself for impact. What he didn't expect was the
sudden rise of his body temperature as his blood began to inexplicably
boil. Quickly, the Spirit World Detective felt as if the whole world
fell on his dilapidated shoulder, threatening to crush him as he was
depleted of his strength.

A scarlet geyser of blood two feet high exploded from Yusuke's shoulder
moments later as hundreds of bloody, scalpel-shaped objects violently
escaped from the lesion, shredding every last bone, tissue, and muscle
apart. The lone child of the demonic nation was helpless against the
instruments of destruction as they tore through his shoulder, one after
the other.

"BLOODY RAIN!"

Before the mazoku could even react, he was consequently showered with
the fugitive blood scalpels that reentered his shoulder injury while
newly-made scalpels kept coming out the same way, forming into a
incessant and self-propagating ring of carnage. Like food cooked with
its own juices, Yusuke was now being bloodied by tools made from his own
blood.

As soon as it started, it ended. Yusuke Urameshi was more than just a
little winded after the complicated assault. In a little while, the
blood scalpels made their way into Randou's plasma-diminished body,
replenishing him with a rather hefty and unusual blood transfusion.

Accordingly, the invigorated demon charged forward with a speed that was
beyond the Divine Speed... the Chou Shinsoki... and used his flaming-red
youki to execute the "114 Shiki, ARAGAMI!" landing a flaming punch
straight into his opponent's raw shoulder, adding insult and further
injury to injury.

"How about that? I'm back in the game." Randou smirked as he cocked his
pointer finger at his head. "Who'd have thought that the tables would
turn this fast? I now have the upper hand in this fight. You're now as
good as dead." He mocked-fired his pretend Spirit Gun. "Bang."

The mazoku snorted as he gingerly cradled his injured shoulder. A
scarlet glow subsequently surrounded him.

"Oh, please. Even though you still have buckets and buckets of demon
energy inside of you, you can't use any of it now that you're gravely
injured."

"Really now?" Toushin Yusuke smirked. "JYU REI JYOU ANTE!" he summoned.
The demonized Spirit Detective's Luminescent Spirit Ante shone so
brightly that it seemed like daylight from the sun itself. The burst of
energy changed from scarlet to blue as it began to form into the image
of a flaming cerulean phoenix. Row upon row of debris and wreckage
started to chip and crack amidst the strong, scorching winds produced by
the manifestation of Yusuke's Spiritual Power.

<The bastard's summoning _reiki_ this time? Is there anything he can't
do while he's demonized?> Randou thought in slight panic as he started
to sweat bullets amidst the sweltering heat of Yusuke's apparent power.

Yusuke's numb, dead shoulder began to tingle with the barest flicker of
life. It was all he needed. Summoning the inner reserves of his demonic
and spiritual ki, he focused his sight inward until he was aware of the
throbbing of his cells, of the blood threading through his veins,
focusing smaller and smaller until it seemed that he was aware of each
particle of his being.

He focused on aiding the healing spark, leading it on its microscopic
journey through the cells of his destroyed shoulder.

Gradually, with his inner guidance, the spark worked its healing power
within him. Bleeding slowed as the ends of the severed artery joined and
fused. Veins and capillaries closed, and shredded flesh pulled together.
Shards of collar bone shifted within the torn muscle, moving so
painfully into place that the mazoku had to grit his teeth to keep from
crying out.

The mazoku Yusuke had just restored and healed his shoulder in the same
manner that Toguro Ani would. Randou flinched. "Huh. Oh yeah? You think
that I'm impressed with just that? I've seen better. IBUKI!" 

Randou fell into the Iron Horse stance as he slowly but surely summoned
up enough chakra to go hand-in-hand with his renewed blood-ki. His
recently acquired hodgepodge of jaki then separated into other types of
energy... so not only chiki, chakra, youki, and jaki filled his being,
but also reiatsu, shouki, kenki, reiki, and even a little bit of the
most specialized kind of energy in all the three worlds, nen. 

Before long, Randou's aura overshadowed the light from Yusuke's aura
with so much evil energy that it seemed like they were currently
experiencing a total solar eclipse. The ebony burst of negative power
seared through the air as row upon row of debris and wreckage started to
fragment and break amidst the cold, winter gale produced by the youkai's 
demonstration of his malevolent power.

The mazoku actually seemed rather happy at the turn of events, much to
Randou's bewilderment. <What kind of a person is he? It looks like he's
actually looking forward to the fight, despite my show of strength.>

"You've gotten me kind of excited, Randou. Let's see how far we can take
this duel of ours," Toushin Yusuke said, his booming laughter echoing
inside the remnants of the dojo walls.


***


Battousai sighed as he slowly sheathed his sword back into its scabbard.
Finally, his long and involved fight with Genbu was over. 

A flicker of pain flashed into his right shoulder quickly. And there it
was again. And again. And again. Before long, the white spears of
blistering death stabbed his shoulder repeatedly; at the back of his
mind, he knew that this pain was not his.

<This shoulder... is the same shoulder that got shot by that Randou
person's Spirit Gun,> Battousai evaluated. <Why is it flaring in pain
_now_ of all times?>

Annoyed, he tried to force his body to move, but the sharp pain surged
with every movement, however slight, causing him to gasp at its
intensity as it seared his insides and stole his metaphoric breath away.
It felt as if someone had driven a dozen thick nails into his shoulder.

The swordsman ghost then crumpled on the ground as he felt his shoulder
shatter into a million pieces.

The ex-assassin's knees buckled, the pressure of his own weight too much
for his weakened state to handle. He cursed his apparent moment of
weakness as his arm served as a cane that kept him from collapsing
altogether... collapsing like a helpless old man. 

<I guess I _am_ an old man, seeing that I've lingered far too long in
this world because of this accursed sword,> he thought bitterly as he
wrenched his jaw in the middle of the agonizing torture. <But what's
causing Urameshi's shoulder to burst into excruciating pain like this?>

Battousai landed in the most pain he'd ever had in his life. Worse than
being robbed of nearly all his senses when he tried to rescue the
'kidnapped' Tomoe Yukishiro. Worse than being slashed at the back and at
the neck by Soujiro Seta and Aoshi Shinomori respectively. Worse than
the burns he took from Shishio's Guren Kaina. This exquisite agony was
beyond anything he had ever experienced. The fact that he couldn't even
summon any kenki to buffer the pain left him in even more pain. He
staggered to his feet then looked at the sky in dazed confusion.

Then, at that very moment, he felt it; the copious amounts of spirit
energy coming out of Genkai's dojo. Even as Kenshin Himura was lamenting
on his inability to summon kenki to buffer the unbearable pain, Yusuke
Urameshi was somehow able to do just that with his reiki. As a result,
this helped Battousai beckon his own sword energy to come forth and flow
within his body.

The nearby trees... the ones that survived Battousai's earth-shattering
fight with Genbu... rustled amidst an unseen wind. An emerald squall of
leaves later surrounded the Guardian of the Demon's Sword, engulfing him
in evergreen opulence. The leaves afterwards snapped and crackled like
the embers of a gigantic blaze as the swordsman's imperceptible sword-ki
burst into new life.

Then, as gradually as it appeared, the terrible shoulder pain slowly
disappeared. Himura's golden eyes blinked as he felt the presence of an 
infinitesimal healing spark as it made its way into the wispy cells of
his butchered shoulder. Bleeding slowed as the ends of the severed
artery joined and fused. Veins and capillaries closed, and shredded
ethereal flesh pulled together. Shards of ghostly collar bone shifted
within the torn muscle, moving so painfully into place that the red-
haired manslayer had to grit his teeth to keep from crying out.

Battousai let out a sigh of relief soon after his reprieve from the
pain. <What's going on? Did Urameshi Yusuke do _this_? Healing his...
_our_ shoulders, I mean. If so, then how did he manage to do it? Am I
merely experiencing the full extent of his power as he so described when
we first met? I think...>

A cold, biting wind... different from yet similar to the unseen wind
from before... started to blow as the sun was concealed by stray nimbus
clouds. Daylight faded into darkness. Battousai's sharp eyes narrowed. 

His unease slowly rising, Battousai wildly turned to look as he sensed a
strange... nearly alien... presence manifest itself. At first he could
see nothing except a few cracks of lightning that burned in the
distance, then even those few sources of light started to disappear.

Moments later, strangely enough, he felt the weird sensations start to
surround his body as the ghostly hairs from behind his neck stood on
end. As tension filled the air, an eerie hush seemed to settle over the
entire area.

>From Battousai's experience, every time he had these strange moments of
quiet, bad and unnatural things happened. There was no telling what
would occur this time. <This strange feeling... Is it coming from either
Genbu's or Randou's jaki no power?>

Soon everything faded from view, except for two amber orbs glimmering in
the darkness. <Wait. This isn't the same. I'm feeling a different kind
of spirit. Still dreadful and cruel, but not 'negative' or 'evil' in a
sense.> He grunted as his hand instinctively found its way to the hilt
of his Youtou Shinnoken. <There's no mistaking it. This energy could
only belong to...!>

Then he saw it; a thick mass of dark mist that steadily flowed down the
ground towards him. As it came ever closer, he almost couldn't believe
his eyes... almost. Something was in the fog. To be exact, it was a
lean, four-footed silhouette of something prowling forward on misty
paws.

The smaller forms from the mist seemed to coalesce, merging to form a
single large form that seemed to dwarf even Genbu's "Genbu no Ikari"
form. Those amber lights burned into the very heart of Battousai,
staring at him like sharp, fiery...

<...Eyes.> Battousai thought in certain resolution.

A ripple passed through the cloud of mist, pulling it into fine, long
streamers that were strangely reminiscent of feathers... or fur.

The former hitokiri watched the shadowy mass so rapidly approaching in
silence. Finally, it appeared; the misty, yet unmistakable form of a
giant wolf, its amber eyes glowing in the gathering darkness.

And out of the dark mist, directly under the great beast's grinning
jaws, stepped Goro Fujita, his lips curling with the exact same feral
grin as his amber eyes gleamed with cold expectation.

"Saito Hajime. You do know how to make an entrance," Battousai stated
humorlessly as he fell into his preferred battou-jutsu stance.

"It's been a while, Himura Battousai." Fujita went into his Gatotsu
posture in kind. "It looks like I won't be bored after all."


***


Munching idly on a couple of lotus petals, Keiko said in monotone,
"Hello there, miss. And you are...?"

"Uh, um, it's me... Botan." The ferry-girl tentatively introduced
herself as she bowed, then scratched her chin in consternation. <Oh
great. It's like I'm talking to a senile old granny. I guess I'd better
humor her for now.> "Uh, nice to meet you. Anyway, I've actually come
here for you, Yukimura Keiko! Today, we need to--"

"Um..." Keiko stared at Botan blankly. "Who's Yukimura Keiko?"

Botan nearly facefaulted, but caught herself in the middle of her fall.
<No good. She's eaten enough lotus blossoms to forget her own name!
Hmmm. Come to think of it, so did I once upon a time, BUT THAT'S NOT
IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW!>

"Keikowereallyneedtogetoutofhereorelseyou'llbecomealotusdruggieandI--!"
Botan explained in one breath, teary-eyed and terrified beyond words at
her friend's present condition.

"What are you going on about? Slow down. Deep breaths," Keiko said in
level-headed calm and composure, her eyes half-lidded in indifference.

Botan slowed down, took deep breaths, then resumed absolute batshit
panic and insanity. "C'mon, Keiko! Don't tell me that you've forgotten
your own name!" <You'd have to be plenty wasted to do that,> the aqua-
haired shinigami said and thought respectively, concern marring her
beautiful features. "You remember who I am, right? I'm your ol' buddy,
Botan!" 

Keiko tilted her head, then shrugged. "Humph. Names. Who needs them? A
rose by any other name smells just as sweet and fragrant. You can call
me Master Jericho for all I care. I'm perfectly happy just the way I am
now." 

"J-Jericho...?" Botan blinked soundly. <Yep. She's wasted.>

Jericho, er, Keiko ate more of the delectable lotus blossoms at hand
before offering one to Botan. "Want some? They're practically growing
everywhere for easy pickings, and they taste oh-so-magnificent, like a
piece of paradise in your mouth. You should give it a try."

"N-N-No. I really shouldn't, b-but thanks anyway," Botan said as she
hastily wiped the cold sweat off of her brow. <Break the habit, Botan.
Break the HABIT!>

Keiko shrugged once again. "Suit yourself." She afterwards focused her
full attention on picking up more blossoms for her hearty consumption.
"Well, it was nice meeting you... whoever you are. See you whenever.
Ciao."

"Ciao?" Botan shook her head as if to clear it. "H-Hey! Wait! You can't
let it end this way! You still have your whole life ahead of you. Just
because Seiryu killed you doesn't mean that you'll have to spend the
rest of your spiritual life in purgatory, stuck in a state of blissful
ignorance of who you really are!"

But Keiko had already consumed three whole servings of lotus blossom
during the course of Botan's impassioned speech. The girl then blinked,
looked up at the ferry-girl, then cheerfully greeted, "Hello! And who
might you be?"

"...." Botan detailed. <I think I'm going to cry. How can I make you
remember, Keiko-chan? What must I do so that I can remind you of who you
really are?>  
"Oh, so you don't know your own name too, huh? I've met lots of people
who are like that." Keiko gave Botan a sympathetic pat on the shoulder.
"But that's all right. As long as everybody has a steady supply of lotus
blossoms to eat, then everything will be a-okay! Right?" She then winked
and did a thumb's up sign.

"Anooo..." Botan started, boggling at Keiko's sudden shift of moods.
<Did I act this wasted when I was lotophagi? Jeeze, Keiko-chan is
becoming the poster child of a public service announcement on drugs
right before my very eyes!>

Like a small child, Keiko again shifted her attention to other matters
of great importance... matters involving lotus blossoms and lotus
blossom consumption, no doubt. "Well, I guess that's that. I better get
going, um...." The young ghost girl seemed to ponder something for a
little bit before smacking her palm with a closed fist. Realization had
apparently struck her on the back of the head. "Wait! I know who you
are!"

Botan suddenly brightened like a halogen lamp as she elatedly jumped at
her amnesiac friend with uncontainable excitement. "So do you remember
who I am? Who you are? Why you have to get out of here?"

But Keiko wasn't even listening to the Angel of Death. "Jeremiah! No,
Michaela! Wait, no, Charlene! You're Charlene! I should call you
Charlene, 'coz you look like a Charlene to me!" the young girl chirpily
assessed. "Well, anyway... Good-bye, Charlene! I hope you have a happy
life! Try one of these lotus blossoms sometime, they taste fantastic."

Botan's mouth went agape as she reflexively bowed down and waved good-
bye at Keiko in a dazed and confused manner. Once she regained control
of her psychomotor functions, the blue-haired ferry-girl of death cried
out, "Now just hold on a minute, Keiko-chan!"

"...Jenny. I like the name Jenny. Call me Jenny," 'Jenny' helpfully
supplied as she crouched down and picked up a fresh stash of lotus
blossoms, putting them inside the folded hem of her uniform's skirt.

"Fine, Jenny-chan..." Botan blinked several times. "N-No. Just... no.
Keiko. You're not a darn foreigner, you're Keiko-chan! And stop
distracting me, your name is beside the point! You couldn't possibly
forget everything about your life just like that, not after everything
you've gone through!" Growling like a feral hellcat, Botan charged
forward, startling the young girl and making her drop her prized lotus
blossoms on the ground. Several lotophagi suddenly appeared out of
nowhere and quickly snatched away the delightful, mind-altering plants. 

The forgetful female was further taken aback when the ferry-girl grabbed
her by the shoulders, holding her at arm's length. "Snap out of it,
Keiko! You've got to remember who you are and where you came from, damn
it! I won't allow you to become a lotophagi junkie... No way! You are
not a lemming! We have to get out of here before this whole damn place
swallows you whole!"

"Hey, let go! Stop shaking me, Charlene!" Keiko shrieked as she resisted
the taller girl's grip. Feeling shame for her sudden outburst, she
quickly got her breath back. Controlled herself. Forced herself to calm
down, to relax. Whatever it was that the crazy girl was ranting about,
it didn't apply to her. So... she had nothing to worry about.

"Look, I barely know you, and I have better things to do. I could care
less why you're here, why you're calling me strange names, and why
you'd actually _think_ that I'd willingly come with you and leave this
wonderful, magical place behind. So stop wasting my time if you have
nothing better to say, okay?" Keiko said, laying down her ultimatum on
the distressed shinigami.

And with that, Keiko made her way out of the area, leaving Botan there
like a child asked to think about what she'd done wrong. And the Goddess
of Bereavement indeed had a lot to think about.

Feeling like she had little to lose at that point, Botan fumbled through
the inside flaps of her kimono and took out the standard issue guidebook
of all shinigami that detailed everything they needed to know about the
lives of millions of humans; the Book of Fate. She hastily flipped
through its pages before stopping on a particular profile. "Do you
remember," she winced at the characters, "Sarayashiki Junior High?
In that school, you're the class representative of your section, aren't
you? And from what the Book of Fate says, I reckon you're a very good
and responsible iincho."

Keiko didn't even miss a beat as she, in turn, rummaged through a
nearby bushel of pre-picked lotus blossoms that a slumbering lotophagi
carelessly left unguarded. "Yes! I've hit pay dirt. Sorry, mister. You
snooze, you lose."

"And what about your best friends what's-her-face and the other girl?"
Botan tried to find the names of Keiko's closest acquaintances in the
book, but then decided that she had very little time to waste. "Don't
tell me that you've forgotten their names the same way as I did! You're
way nicer than that! Also, what about your parents who run that ramen
restaurant? Have you forgotten about them too?"

Keiko continued to ignore Botan as she added even more lotus flowers to
her current supply while keeping a wary eye out for wily lotus blossom
thieves just like herself.

"And I bet it's impossible for you to forget all about Urameshi Yusuke,
right?" That got Keiko's attention. Botan prodded, "How can you _not_
remember? He is, after all, a disgusting, irresponsible, and annoying
brat who always teased you and caused you trouble. You were his only
friend from way back when. Also, you were always there for him, even
though his mother wasn't." 

Botan laughed; she didn't care if it was an appropriate time for her to
do so, she just did. "Who would have thought that a juvenile delinquent
like him would end up with a straight-A student like you? I guess
opposites really do attract."

"Shut up, Charlene. I'm not listening to you or any more of your weird
stories," Keiko pointed out without looking up from her crouched
position. She was about ready to eat yet another lotus blossom when she
heard Botan's next lines, stopping her short of taking a bite out of
flowery bliss.

"Most importantly, Yusuke's the most important person in your life, so
of course you'd remember him! You brought him back to life with a kiss,
he nearly died for you once or twice trying to save your life, and you
waited for him oh-so-patiently for three years while he was in the Demon
World. A blind person can see how important you two are to each other.
So even in your twisted state of amnesia, your feelings for him should
trump your forgetfulness!"

Keiko threw the immaculate flower bud at Botan's face in frustration.
"No! Stop it! SHUT UP! I don't WANT to REMEMBER! I don't want to dredge
up the past! I don't care who Kyosuke or Eugene or Tetsuo is! I JUST
WANT TO BE LEFT ALONE! Can't you just leave me in peace?" She proceeded
to break down and cry in the middle of the lotus fields.

Botan bit her lip as she cautiously approached the sobbing Keiko. <I'm
so sorry about this, Keiko... but I had to do it! I can't stand the
thought of losing you to this place.> She wistfully looked up at the
foggy skies. <Come to think of it, nearly the same thing happened when
Ayame-sempai tried to get me out of the Purgatorial Sector. I couldn't
stop myself from crying. I didn't want to leave.>

Botan's pensive gaze turned resolute. <But I still have to do this. Even
if... even if Enma Daio himself ordered Ayame to get Keiko in here for
the sake of turning her into a ferry-girl just like me, I won't allow
it. She still has Yusuke to take care of, after all.> She put a gentle,
comforting hand on the bawling girl's shoulder.

The Death Goddess flinched as Keiko slapped her hand away. <Boy, she's
really pissed now. I don't blame her. The shock of her death may have
sealed the deal for her, causing her to drown all her problems with
these lotus blossoms. At this point, she's too afraid to remember who
she really was simply because it'd reveal to her everything she had lost
by dying in Seiryu's hands. In short, she's in total denial.>

Botan let out a vaporous breath of resolution. <I _knew_ that it'd come
to this. Looks like there's no other way; I have it to give her now.>
She looked through her sleeves again before getting a hold of what
looked like, for all intents and purposes, a shiny red apple.

"Look, I'm really sorry for all the trouble I've caused. Don't worry, I
won't push the issue any further." The ferry-girl smiled friendlily at
her contemplative friend. "Let me make it up to you. Are you hungry,
Kei--I mean, Jenny-chan? I have something that tastes even _better_ than
all those yucky lotus blossoms you've been in eating. It's a delicious
apple," Botan lied through her teeth.

Keiko raised an eyebrow as she cautiously and suspiciously eyed at the
blood-red fruit. "Oh, c'mon. Take a bite! It's just a harmless fruit.
And you know what they say, 'An apple a day...'" Botan insisted.

Keiko examined the fruit carefully, noticed its pear-like shape and
multilayered skin, and declared, "That's not an apple. You can't fool
me. There's no way you're making me eat that fruit. I've heard of it; it
came from the Tree of Knowledge. People say that eating it will cause
certain death, and I don't want to die!" Keiko hastily backed away from
the ferry-girl, prompting several lotophagi, upon overhearing the
conversation, to retreat into the fields of white and pink as well, away
from the cursed fruit.

<Hmmm. That's a lot different from what _I_ heard. Besides, of all the
things she could remember, why that particular tidbit of info?> Botan
snorted. "Get real, Keiko-chan. You're already dead. Eating this fruit
won't kill you. Besides, if it really was supposed to kill you, then it
should have been called, 'The Fruit from the Tree of Death', right?"
 
"Stop it. I told you to stop calling me Keiko-chan. And for the last
time, stop telling me all these lies! I'm not dead. In fact, I've never
felt more alive in all my life!" The obstinate Keiko slapped the apple-
like fruit from Botan's hand. "Keep that thing away from me."

<You're as stubborn as ever before,> Botan thought as she picked up the
fruit of knowledge off of the ground. She afterwards had another plan.
The consequences of her new plan might just be too much for her to
handle, but she was willing to take the risk on the off chance that it
might work. It just went to show how much Botan was willing to sacrifice
for the sake of a loved one.

"I don't see what you're getting all worked up about. This thing's
delicious! Watch." As Botan said the words, she cleaned the fruit with
her left sleeve and took a large bite out of it with no hesitation or
contestation. <This is all for your sake, Keiko-chan. So you better eat
this damn fruit, or else!> After that, she did her best to conceal her
displeasure over the bitter aftertaste. "Mmmm! Yummy!"

After Keiko saw the stranger eat the fruit with no ill effects, she
reconsidered her first assessment. Truth be told, she would much rather
eat more of the delicious, ecstasy-inducing lotus flowers, but her
curiosity quickly got the better of her. The girl saw that the fruit was
good to eat, and pleasant to the eyes, and was ideal for getting lost
knowledge and vital information about one's self to boot. With no signs
of reluctance, she finally took a bite out of the contentious fruit. 

Botan gulped, hastily wiping the tears that formed in her eyes. She
didn't want to think about the consequences of her eating the fruit as
of yet. <If eating the damn fruit will cause me to remember a little bit
of my past, then so be it. Jenny's worth it. Er, I mean, Keiko's worth
it. Yeah.>

Keiko at first balked at the bitterness of the fruit, then her mind's
eyes opened and saw her unlocked memories burst into her head like water
from a broken dam. In that brief instant, Keiko indeed saw her life pass
before her very eyes.

Keiko then slapped Botan hard on the cheek, leaving a stinging red mark
on the ferry-girl's face. That gave Botan her second greatest shock of
the day; the first one was Keiko's death.

"Why did you make me remember? Why didn't you just let me forget,
knowing the reality of the situation? Why now, after I've successfully
forgotten everything? How dare you. How dare you let me suffer like
this!" came the livid Keiko's tirade.

"Keiko-chan, I... I..." Botan started, searching for the right words to
say; her search was futile.

"Actually, I've been thinking. Ever since I left that trail of lotus
petals for you to follow, I've been thinking. I said to myself, 'What's
the point of all this? What am I doing this for? Am I really that
confident that I'll be found? That I'll survive? That I'll live?' These
questions echoed in my mind over and over. I thought I was going mad..."

"But you can't give up now!" Botan interrupted, not liking the direction
the conversation was going. "I'm sure there's a way for you to come back
to life. There always is. No, there definitely is!" 

"What a nice sentiment." Keiko chuckled somberly. "If there really is a
chance for me to come back to life, then what am I doing here in this
lonely, godforsaken land in the first place? Why am I a ghost now? What
was I doing in the River Styx, floating towards 'where I'm supposed to
be'? Why wasn't Genkai-baasan able to save me? Why wasn't Yusuke...?"
Her lips trembled as her eyes moistened. "Just let me be. I'm tired.
I've had enough."

After a fair amount of quiet contemplation and deliberation, Botan
retorted with, "Resigning yourself to spend two human lifetimes here
in purgatory isn't the answer, Keiko-chan. Please, don't run away from
your past. I beg you, have more faith in Yusuke!" 

"Then tell me, can Yusuke find a way to return me to my body? Can Koenma
Daio? Can you?" Poignant tranquility reigned supreme as Keiko waited
ever so patiently for Botan's answer. "I thought so," the ghost-girl
said with decisive conclusiveness.

Botan had just about enough of Keiko's angst-ridden cheekiness. "You
want the truth? Fine. I don't know. I don't know whether or not I, or
Yusuke, or Koenma Daio, can save your life, seeing the permanent damage
Seiryu did to your body." The shinigami's last statement prompted a
pained wince from Keiko. "I came here on a whim, with only a faint hope
that Koenma-sama can somehow find a loophole or something to revive you
the same way he did Yusuke. But that's probably just a delusion of mine,
knowing the situation."

Her eyebrows furrowed, Botan halted her speech briefly. After a few more
seconds of reflection, she carried on her diatribe. "Maybe you're right.
Maybe it was stupid of me to go here in the Elysian Fields to pick you
up. Maybe this was all a big mistake, and ignorance truly is bliss. But
you know what? I don't give a damn. I'm not only trying to save your
butt for your own sake, but for Yusuke's as well. So what if there's
little to no chance of you recovering? We'll find a way. We'll do
whatever it takes to get you back. If that's still not enough, then
tough luck; it's time to let go. But not right now. Not while you still
have a shadow of a chance left. Never let go while that small spark of
hope is still there."

There was another pregnant pause. "B-But what if...?" Keiko sputtered in
apparent fear and apprehension.

"No more buts. No more buts, ifs, and whys. No more questions, please.
We'll simply cross that bridge when we get there. For now, what's
important is that we get out of here." Botan summoned her mystic oar and
motioned Keiko to hop on. "We have to go, Keiko-chan. We still have some
unfinished business to take care of."

Her eyes downcast, Keiko nodded in agreement as she made her way towards
the ferry-girl's unusual mode of transportation.


***


Randou reared back, his arms and palms posed in such a way that it
looked like he was holding an imaginary ball. Crackling bits of electric
blue energy began filling that gap in between his hands, forming into a
sphere of pure youki as he began to glow with a bright red aura that was
in stark contrast to the shining blue ball in his hands.

It was fairly common for beings such as Yusuke to have control over some
sort of energy produced by the body. The kind of ability the energy
created usually corresponded with the dominant characteristic of the
person wielding it. The amount of ki that one could produce was related
to either their physical strength, spiritual awareness, and/or
willpower. These energies often enabled both demons and humans alike to
do supernatural feats; they also allowed for situations to occur that
would not be naturally possible, which was part of the appeal. Often
these energies were used to devastating effect in fights, creating
brutal and visually arresting scenes. 

But Randou was a special case; given the chance, he could actually make
use of all kinds of energies with varying wavelengths and attributes.
He would have to, given the fact that throughout his entire life, he had
acquired a hundred and one techniques to his arsenal. In order to use
such abilities, he would have to learn to use different sorts of
energies; that was a given. Control of so many varieties of energy
enabled the demon to have enhanced physical strength, accelerated
healing, control over physical elements of nature, and the ability to
create realistic illusions.

<Big fucking deal,> Toushin Yusuke thought to himself as he started
firing away dozens of You-Gan blasts at Randou. <I can feel all those
kinds of energies him, but they still pale in comparison to the Sei Kou
Ki.> He cracked his knuckles for a bit before he resumed fire. <All I
need to do now is recuperate for a few minutes; that damn Blood Wind
still took its toll on me.> 

After dodging dozens of youki bullets, Randou answered back Yusuke's
Demon Gun with his own explosive "HADOU KEN!" unleashing a massively
huge blast of energy that swept through the floor then collided with the
demonic energy balls, causing them to vanish in its wake.

Yusuke's first few blasts of youki easily fell victim to the Ansatsuken
special technique, but he still continued firing his powerful and
relentless You-Gan blasts like there was no tomorrow. Soon, even the
Hadou Ken had to dissipate in the face of the relentless assault. Was
this damn hanyou's power truly inexhaustible and limitless? <Bullshit,>
Randou thought to himself. <Everybody has a limit. Urameshi Yusuke is
no exception to that rule.>

"HADOU KEN! HADOU KEN!" Randou fired off more of his energy balls, but
to no avail; he simply could not go toe-to-toe with the impulsive half-
demon's impassioned offensive... at least, not with just the Hadou Ken.
Needless to say, it was truly a force to be reckoned with.

A lone Demon Gun shot was able to slip past the feverish deadlocked
shootout; Randou had to think fast in order to counter the energy ball
that threatened to cook to him alive in his own juices. <Hmmm. My own
juices, eh?>

Randou was almost immediately absorbed in an orb of blood red energy as
he chanted, "Kyuuketsuki Gakuen, INNER BLOOD TURMOIL!" Then, as the You-
Gan made contact with the energy surrounding Randou, it instantly
dispelled.

The orb of energy that surrounded the demon shrunk dramatically. Before
long, the red light was the size of a basketball, hovering above
Randou's hand. "BLOOD FIRE WAVE!" As he said the three words, the ball
of energy burst into a thousand beams of destructive power, all aimed at
the mazoku. 

"BLOOD WIND!" Yusuke countered as he used the scarlet crescent waves of
his recently repaired shoulder's chiki to cancel out Randou's own
attack.

They were in a standstill yet again. <I hate stalemates,> Randou thought
to himself as he reared back to form yet another Hadou Ken. <But the
game isn't over yet. There are still a lot of pieces left on the
board.>

Toushin Yusuke kept his pointer finger steadily aimed at his intended
prey. Soon, a familiar warmth and energy rush seized his person as his
finger emitted sounds reminiscent of an analog synthesizer being tuned.

"HADOU KEN!"

"REI-GAN!"

The Surge Fist and the full-charged Spirit Gun terminated each other, as
expected. After a few more repeated shots, Randou promptly noticed that
his projectiles weren't getting anywhere near the mazoku simply because
he was on the defensive. He decided to change tactics and from then on
used his Divine Speed to quickly slip in several ground-based "POWER
WAVE!" shots in between his numerous blasts of Hadou Ken. 

The dual technique actually worked for quite a while, confusing the 
mazoku and scorching him from time to time. But Yusuke's endurance and
quick thinking soon won out as he began playing Randou's game.

"RENSHYAA!"

The Renshyaa was neither a move Yusuke developed through rigorous
training nor a technique he learned from Genkai. He wasn't even the one
who named it. It was something he improvised in the spur of the moment,
during his heated battle with Yomi in the finals of the Demon World
Tournament. It was a skill whose origins reflected his rambunctious,
impulsive and spontaneous personality.

The half-demon first heard the made-up name of 'Renshyaa' from his demon
friends back in the Makai competition who, in turn, heard it from the
feline announcer Koto. The moniker was supposed to refer to the
continuous and never-ending youki-powered Spirit Gun technique that he
used against Yomi's Reppa-Hanshyou-Heki.

Using youki, the rapid-fire maneuver was completely ineffective against
his opponent's force field. With reiki, however, Yomi didn't even stand
a chance.

Today, the mazoku was about to use both reiki and youki versions of his
Renshyaa together, with both hands. His dual attacks easily overwhelmed
the demon's.

<The human can use two types of energy at the same time? Well, ain't
that just fucking PEACHY! But never mind, I can do the same tactic ten
times better than him!> Randou growled to himself, then shouted out,
"HADOU KEN! KIKOKEN! POWER WAVE!"

He felt somewhat ridiculous at slipping in a chakra-powered, lower-tier
Kikoken into his attack at such a critical time, but it was the quickest
projectile of the bunch and he needed a way to distribute his remaining
energies prudently. 

Besides, because Yusuke was currently guarding himself from both middle
and ground attacks, that single surprise Kikoken actually managed to hit
the damn demonic human right square on the face.

"Ouch. It felt like somebody slapped me." Yusuke smirked. "Try harder."
The continuous shootout afterwards carried on unabated.


***


To be Continued...

Next: The tragedy of the Kugai.

"'Twas the night before Christmas (yes it 'twas!) and all
through the dojo; not a creature was stirring, not even a dodo."
Merry Christmas, everybody! Sure, this is hardly a Christmas-
related fic, but still, better this than your average annual
holiday spamfic, IMO.

Gee, the whole Botan-rescues-Keiko-from-a-life-of-apathy arc took
longer than I expected. Actually, I first envisioned it to be
about a cut scene long. Huh. Now it's a whole mess of drugs, dub
names, and future plot points.
 
Oh well, I must be at that stage of fanfiction writing where
scenes start to get longer as deadlines become nonexistent. Okay,
so I do have real worries about the pacing of the story, but then
again this is how I write nowadays. Besides, the surplus of pages
is good news because it basically means I'm now enjoying myself
while writing... and really, isn't that the bottom line?

As a little by-the-way, check this link out; it's a conceptual
design of three of the four Shisejyu by yours truly:

http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/10120784/

Wheee! ^_^ And if you check out the date it was published, then
you'd know that it's been quite a long time since Danyal Herder
and I first dreamed up of the powered-up versions of those damn
Saint Beasts. Whew. I am a fucking slow writer.

In other news... Oh boy, Randou really did throw in everything but
the kitchen sink this time around, didn't he? ^_^ Overkill much?
Definitely. Now, in no particular order, the rest of Randou's
stolen techniques:

34. Astral Projection: Making your 'astral body' (or perhaps,
your very soul) travel outside your real body. Much like what
Kuwabara did during the canon Yusuke-Randou fight or what Botan is
currently doing in the story to save Keiko's life. Usually happens
when a person is near-death and/or unconscious. An Abdiel
'creation'.

35. Ultra Electromagnetic Whip: Hmmm. The origin of this attack is
actually a mix of two preexisting techniques; Sesshoumaru's youki
whip and Voltes V's Choudenshi Whip. Other than that, I chose the
dub-ish name 'coz it mainly sounds cool to me (like, say, Samuel
L. Jackson's movie, "Snakes on a Plane").

36. Bloody Rain: Though it uses the principles of the Kyuuketsuki
Gakuen, it's not really a technique of the Vampire Discipline.
It's actually a maneuver Randou copied from one Kurodou Akabane
A.K.A Doctor Jackal of Getbackers fame.

37. Chou Shinsoki: A second-level Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu technique
used by Shogo Amakusa of Rurouni Kenshin fame. Just slightly
faster than Kenshin's Shinsoki, just barely as fast as Hiko's
Shinsoki, but still much slower than Soujiro's Shukuchi, by my
estimations.

38. 114 Shiki, Aragami: Randou delivers a flame punch. It's pretty
pathetic as a standalone attack but great for combos and counters.
A Kusanagi style of Ancient Martial Arts technique from Kyo
Kusanagi of King of Fighters fame.

39. Power Wave: It's a ground-based technique Randou discovered
and stole while wandering the outskirts of the Human World i.e.
South Town, during the time of Geese Howard's reign of terror and
before Terry Bogard entered his first King of Fighters tournament.
The demon wasn't able to finish his fight with the human that
'taught' him the move, but he learned a lot from the battle
nonetheless.

40. Kikoken: If Yusuke were human at the time, then the Kikoken
would have affected him this way, "The hit doesn't feel like a
solid hit but more of an effect that influences the whole body. It
actually has the temperature of a warm bath." The projectile
technique of Chun Li of Street Fighter fame.

Finally, can anyone guess who that Pokemon, er, I mean, who 'The
Stranger' that suddenly appeared and recharged Randou's batteries
is? It's not exactly a mystery, really. Hell, you also don't even
need to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out who the Chojin is. Yes,
his... and the Fruit of Knowledge's... introduction to the story
may seem like bad writing and excessive Deux ex Machina usage,
but... they both have their intended purposes. Stay tuned!

Disclaimer: Yuyu Hakusho is the rightful property of Yoshihiro
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

Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com 

             .---Anime/Manga Fanfiction Mailing List----.
             | Administrators - ffml-admins@anifics.com |
             | Unsubscribing - ffml-request@anifics.com |
             |     Put 'unsubscribe' in the subject     |
             `---- http://ffml.anifics.com/faq.txt -----'