Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ A. Universal Loss ❯ Accident ( Chapter 1 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Dark Rhapsody 
Yuusuke meets his replacement.
Anime/Manga: Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Post-apocalyptic / Adventure / Action | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 09.13.2004 | Pages: 4 | Words: 4.4K | Visits: 1.6K | Status: Completed
Yuusuke meets his replacement.
Anime/Manga: Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Post-apocalyptic / Adventure / Action | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 09.13.2004 | Pages: 4 | Words: 4.4K | Visits: 1.6K | Status: Completed
A/N: Konnichiwa minna! This is Dark Rhapsody, and here's my new fic. Just to tell you this is two years after the manga ending of Yuu Yuu Hakusho and one year after Ranma 1/2, and it's the beginning of X. Go CLAMP!
Thanks also to my nice editor Seto'segyptianluvr. She rocks! Check out her fics too cuz she's a good writer.
Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THESE SHOWS, YA HERE?!?! Good.
~*~*~*~
A young man with short black hair sat cozily in front of a fire. He was handsome, around his early twenties. He was also curled up in a soft velvet armchair. Wrapping the heavy quilt around his lean frame he stared at the flames as it licked the fireplace. He looked fragile, almost child-like. His tan skin was tinted blue from the cold.
The room was alluminated by that single light. It was the only thing that brought warmth to the small cottage in the wilderness. The place had only two rooms. One was a bedroom, ill furnished with only a tiny cot. You couldn't see the room though, not from the main room where you opened up the door. In this room the flickering fireplace loomed on the farthest wall, nearby an open window. Only the green armchair and a circular oak table stood in the room. Obviously he wasn't much for the roomy kind of atmosphere, although there certainly was a lot of space.
The man sat, dreaming. But not any kind of dream, they were memories. Nightmares. His whole life had been one long nightmare in the shadow of another. And soon, very soon, the rest of the world, and the next, will be living his nightmare of total darknes.
~Yukameshi Noodle Shop(1)~
"Yuusuke!" Keiko Yukimura, a brown-haired, sweet but slightly bossy girl, called. "We're out of noodles again!"
"Yeah yeah!" Yuusuke Urameshi, an eighteen year old with blackhair in a slicked back style, yelled annoyedly. [Geez,] he thought, [business is swell but I don't think I can handle any more of this good fortune.]
He stalked into the storage room and sifted around for some noodles. "Wasabi sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce?! Stupid sauces! Grr! This place is packed to the brim with everything _but_ noodles!!! What kind of noodle shop are we anyway?" he asked incredulously.
Keiko popped her head into the room, "Hey Yuusuke, if you can't find anything you can go to the market, you know?"
"Why do I have to do it?!" he demanded.
"You're the big strong half demon, you should get it," Keiko smiled.
Yuusuke pouted, "Fine."
He went out the door, grabbing a grocery bag from the counter. [She must have planned this,] Yuusuke reasoned. [Darn, that Keiko.] Jogging to the market wasn't too big a task, after all it was only a few kilometres away. That doesn't really matter if you're a great rei ki master and former Spirit Detective. Still, it was annoying. Especially to an impatient warrior like Urameshi.
[Maybe I shouldn't have quit that job,] Yuusuke reflected sadly. [Then again, with the noodle shop and Keiko and everything... I doubt I would have time to save the world.]
Well, Yuusuke was wrong.
~Rei Kai: Koenma's Office~
"Jorge, tell everyone I can't be disturbed right now. Even by Ayame," Koenma, the cute, new ruler of the Underworld (who was currently in teenage form), told a blue ogre in a striped loiun cloth.
"Yes, Koenma-sama," he said in near tears. [Koenma-sama said my name! Ooh, it's gonna be a good day! (2)] Jorge, the ogre, bustled out of the room.
Sighing despondently Koenma glared at the stack of files sitting beside his desk. "I've been putting this off for far too long. Let's just hope THIS time I pick the good one. La creme de la creme," he mumbled.
He sifted through manila folder after manila folder. Near the bottom he found a rather thick file. "Hmm," he mused. This one was extremely worn and old. Chock full of history and toil. Just looking at it, Koenma could tell this was it.
"Who _is_ this guy?" he wondered aloud. "He must be so old right now...to have a history that big."
Koenma read through the file with mixed feelings of wonderment, contempt and disbelief. Most of all joy.
"This is perfect!" he exclaimed happily. "I guess destiny set it up already!"
~Mushiyori~
Ranma Saotome was feeling lucky today. It was the first day since a YEAR after the failed wedding attempt that he wasn't glomped, punched, challenged, annoyed, robbed or malleted. Even Kuno and his constant rambling, which was to be expected, had not rung it's dulcet tones. Why was it that he wasn't being bothered? Because for once in his life he sitched his dad, his rivals, his fiancees andthe entire Nerima in itself. He was now legally able to live on his own. Not that the law has anything to _do_ with it, but it helps when you have a money mongrel like Nabiki around. She'd probably threaten to call the police if he went off alone.
"Man! It feels great to breath the free air," Ranma grinned. Carrying his over-used back pack he strolled through the place, looking through windows and grabbing a newspaper.
"I need a job, the money mom gave just isn't enough for monthly rent," he said. [Mom, she doesn't even know I'm her son. She gave the money to 'Ranko' for _her_ birthday,] he thought sadly. [Mom. I left without even telling you. I'm sorry.]
Sighing he stuffed the news in his back pack and began to look for an apartment. He could remember slipping out of the house and running all the way out of town. Running for as far as he could until the buses and subways opened. And then he just got off randomly. Fate took him here, which wasn't too bad. He'd heard of some martial arts master who lives some ways from Mushiyori.
He walked, paying close attention to street signs so he could remember where he was in case he needed to go back. The more he got into town the busier it became, eventually he reached a market place. His stomach chose that time to rumble.
"Urk!" he sweatdropped. "Wonderful. At least I still got some instant ramen noodles left." Deciding it would be a good idea to settle down and rest Ranma waded through the crowd and was spat out near a park.
"Weird," Ranma thought aloud. "Everything's coming along a little too well." Shrugging that foreboding feeling off he sat on a bench and took out a thermos, it was his perfect day after all. What could go wrong? "It's a good thing I still have some hot water," he smiled. Screwing off the cap he fished out a few bowls of Instant Noodles (TM) and poured the hot water into them.
"Just wait five minutes," he grumbled, so did his stomach. Sighing he watched his surroundings. He always found his way into parks one way or another. All of them were the same. Grass, benches, trees, playground, cemented path, sometimes a fountain or two. That's where he usually ended up. He stared boredly at the intersection, seeing cars zoom by and the lights changing from red, to green, to yellow and back again.
Suddenly, the light turned green. A blue car sped by at twice the speed limit. There was still one more woman crossing the street. "Hey lady! Get outta the way!" Ranma screamed. Before he knew it instinct kicked in. He ran as fast as he could (which was fast, believe me). Hurtling forward like a rocket he pushed a guy out of the way in a mad dash.
"Watch it!"
The woman had suddenly stopped and she saw the car coming at her. She froze. Inches away from the bumper.
"NO!" Ranma jumped and forced her out of the way. Landing he watched the bumper ram into her. [Shit.]
<WHAM!>
~Yuusuke~
"Watch it!" Yuusuke yelled angrily. All of his noodle packages fell to the floor, along with a new wok. "Stupid," he growled.
<WHAM!>
"What the?!" he turned, in the direction the guy who bumped into him ran. He was run over by a speeding car. "Oh no."
Yuusuke sprinted over to the car. Glaring at the driver he went to the other side to see if whoever that guy or the lady who was saved were hurt. Shockingly he found someone very familiar, "Mrs. Minamino!"
"Who was that? Yuusuke?" Shiori asked him, remembering Urameshi from his few visits to their house. She held her arm carefully, it was scraped in the same spot from eight years ago and bleeding terribly. The bleeding reminded her of Shuiichi. He was safe in his office (unhappily) doing some paper work, but she could swear she saw red hair before the body disappeared from the car entirely.
"I dunno," he said suspiciously. [But he was running so fast I could swear he was flying. Only Kurama or Hiei can do that. I have this weird feeling of deja vu, too,] he thought. [Wait a sec ... dammit! This is how _I_ died! It must be Koenma again. Can't he be more original?!]
Yuusuke grumbled something about killing a toddler and lugged the person out from under the car. "Hey! It's a girl!" he exclaimed in alarm. She was soaked from the puddle on the street. "She musta fallen," he mused. "Just like me." He examined her wounds carefully.
"Woah! She's built like a rock, barely any damage to her skin at all," he mumbled. "A few tire marks, but the impact must have broken her ribs. And she's bleeding internally most likely. Still a pulse though."
"Wait here Yuusuke, I'll call the police," Shiori said frantically. She rushed to find a phone booth in one of the shops.
He shook his head, "Kurama ain't gonna like it when he finds out his ma was nearly killed." Cradling the girl he thought, [Koenma's getting a new Spirit Detective, most likely. And it's a girl too. Must be something special if she can go faster than my eyes can follow.]
Then her heart stopped entirely. Yuusuke watched her spirit sperate itself from the body. [Hmm, if she's gonna be revived who knows what kind of chaos would happen if they found out she isn't dead anymore.]
~At the car crash~
"Whadda hell?" she wondered. "I'm down there, and I'm up here." She paused to realize how ridiculous that sentence sounded.
"Is that possible?" she asked. Interested, she watched the scene play out as the woman he saved ran to phone the ambulance. When they came they quickly took her body.
"Hey, I'm her bro. Do you mind if I come along?" the guy she bumped into said.
"WHAT?!?!" she asked rumbunxiously. "I DON'T KNOW WHO THE HELL YOU ARE, JACKASS!!!"
He turned to her and winked. Without moving his mouth she heard him say, "Don't sweat it, man. If anyone you knew found out you're dead than it's gonna be big trouble."
"Dead? Trouble?" she asked. "What's that mean?"
Shrugging the guy answered, "You'll see. But I don't get why Koenma is in such a hurry."
"Koenma?"
The guy grinned, "He's a real hoot. A whack-job, but he's okay."
"Who are you anyway?" Ranma demanded.
"Oh, that. Yeah, sorry. Urameshi Yuusuke. And you?" he asked.
"I'm Sao ... Aikaze Ranma," she introduced. [Aikaze. Where'd that come from?] Yuusuke smiled and waved good bye as he stepped into the vehicle.
Ranma murmurred, "Great. Now, to figure this out. I'm dead, and there's some weird guy named Yuusuke who's trying to help me." She paused to think, "But if I'm dead how come he can see me?"
"You must be Ranma Saotome," a sweet voice said behind him. "I'm Ayame."
She turned and looked over the girl curiously. She wore a very dreary outfit, navy blue almost entirely. Her long dark blue hair was also in a pony-tail. The weirdest part was she was sitting on an oar. [She one of those Western witches?]
She was wary of the woman, "What're you doing here?"
The 'witch' smiled, "Oh. I'm taking you to Rei Kai."
"Rei Kai?" Ranma said unbelievably. "What's that?"
"The Underworld," she answered.
"Why?"
Ayame was hesitant to tell her, "Koenma-sama would like to see you."
"ARGH!! Who's this 'Koenma' guy anyway?" she screamed in frustration. That was the SECOND time someone who could see her had talked about Koenma.
Surprised at her temper Ayame said, "He's actually just Enma now, being the ruler of the Spirit World."
". . . I'm still confused," she deadpanned.
"You've never heard of Enma? Ever?" she questioned in mild shock.
Ranma shook her head, "Nope."
"Maybe you should learn you're history then!" another voice, this one overly cheery with a British accent (3), said.
"And who the heck are you?" Ranma inquired. She was getting frustrated.
The girl with light blue hair and a pink kimono smiled. She held a check book in her hands and sat at her oar with perfect balance. "Botan, Grim Reaper and Spirit Guide to the Under World. At your service!" she grinned.
Ranma sighed, [Great, one girl popping out of nowhere with an oar is bad enough but TWO?! I knew it. Never trust a day to be perfect if you're me.] "You don't look like any Grim Reaper. You're too happy."
Botan sighed, "You will not believe how many times I've heard that."
"What are you doing _here_ Botan? Weren't you boating a girl to Heaven?" the first 'witch' lady inquired.
"Ayame! I thought you weren't assigned jobs like these, ya know? I thought you were in the Info Department," Botan said. "Did you get demoted!?!"
The girl blushed, "Of course not! But Koenma-sama said I should pick this on up as soon as possible. All the other Grim Reapers weren't available."
"Yeah. After Hiei stirred things up in Makai with that bounty hunt for that guy, whats-is-name, I thought they'd turn the kekkai inside out looking for him!" Botan chirped. "I heard down the grape vine that they still haven't found that guy!"
Ayame nodded, "Yes. It's true. And nobody really knows his name. He's just Kage."
" 'Shadow'? Hmph, I don't see why they can't find him. With such a big reward held over his head I'd thinkthat he would be found in a snap!" Botan declared.
"Yes, Hiei as your own bodyguard for a lifetime and a million in makai money. That's quite a bit over a billion yen. If humans were in on it I'm sure they could find him," Ayame agreed.
"Stupid demons," the Grim Reaper huffed, "they can't trust anybody. But I wonder why Hiei is putting such grand stakes to find this Kage. Who is he?"
"I'm afraid only Hiei and perhaps the Three Makai Lords and Koenma know for certain," the Information agent replied. "I suppose he must be threatening Rei Kai, Makai or Nigen Kai."
Botan blinked, "But I thought Hiei didn't care about humans."
"HELLO!?!" Ranma bellowed. "EARTH TO CRAZY OAR LADIES!!!"
"Hey!" Botan yelled defensively. "I am _not_ an old lady."
Ranma was at her wits end, "What is going here?"
Botan laughed, "No need to get upset! I thought I had an appointment here for a boy named Ranma Saotome but I guess I was wrong. The system screwed up again. There are more bugs in Rei Kai after Yuusuke died."
"Wha? Yuusuke died already?" she questioned. "No wonder he can see me."
"So you've already met the famous Spirit Detective," Ayame mused. "I wanted to talk to him personally. Koenma said there was something urgent for the future Rei Kai Tantei and the last one."
"Rei Kai Tantei?"
Botan's eyes lit with comprehension, "Oh I know! This Ranma guy is the new Spirit Detective! . . . I wonder where he is."
"_I'M_ RANMA!!!"
"Oh. Really?" Botan queried. "But I could have sworn Ranma was a b-"
That was the last straw. Ranma was confused, insulted and hungry. "I'M A GUY DAMMIT!! It's because of this stupid curse!! I'd give anything to live without it and I've gone through princes, crazy dates, martial artists and a friggin GOD to get a cure and none of the damn things work!!!" the half boy-half girl vented. For some reason she didn't think that the blue-haired girl her outburst too much. (And she wouldn't react like a normal person by staring dumbfoundedly and wondering which looney bin she'd escaped from.)
"Geez, ya don't need to get so uptight about it," she murmurred. "Besides, what kind of idiot goes to Jusenkyou anyway? That curse is incurable any way you dunk it."
"What?! No way!" she protested.
Ayame nodded, "Yes. There are no 'real' cures because even though they work the curse stops you from ever getting them. The springs are no good because it will fuse you're curses. In fact, if you get splashed by multiple springs your curse gets locked, although I've heard if that happens the curse will stay the same. Jusenkyou is a real mystery. It just existed. Some of my colleagues who were working on the case said it pools the worlds dark energy. That's why people who get pulled in are usually corrupt in one way or another."
"Corrupt?!" she retorted. "Maybe my pops, but definitely not me!"
Botan checked her hand book, "Well, it says here you were excessively sexist. A complete male chauvinist at the time. Maybe that's why."
"That would explain the girl curse," the other Spirit World messenger reasoned.
"Hey you two! I've been waiting for half an hour!" yet _another_ voice called from the sky. "Where were you?" Ranma and the two girls looked up and saw a brown-haired teenager with a blue outfit and red cape (you know, the usual one) appear out of a hole. Oarless, to Ranma's great relief.
Ayame looked shocked, "Koenma-sama! Oh my, I lost track of time."
"Hi Koenma-chan!" Botan chirped. "I hope you finished all those files!"
Ranma gave him a hard look over, "You're this great Koenma I've been hearing about?"
Koenma nodded, he didn't have his pacifier for obvious reasons. One being he was the lord of the Under World and if someone pissed him off he could send them straight to hell, literally. Two is his alredy immense reiki, which he had acquired a year earlier after he had proven he could rule Rei Kai for at least a year. Because everyone knows what could possibly go down in one year. (And they need a new ruler soon anyways. Who's better qualified than the son of the guy who used to run Spirit World?)
"You must be Ranma. I've heard a lot about you," Koenma said. [Lots of things. Each and every one more unbelievable than the next.]
If people had heard of Ranma Saotome she'd have been shipped off to the Tendo home a long time ago. Or she would have been bored to death by the endless amount of wanna be martial artists trying to claw their way into the big leagues. Or Nerima would have had lost all normal and sane people left in the district.
The thing that people would probably have heard her doing would be the Saffron incident. Blowing up an entire mountain was a big deal, and it was printed in newspapers as a headliner. They didn't know she really _did_ it though so that didn't really count. "Like what?" she quipped.
"Well, I've heard you got cursed by Jusenkyou a few years back. I've heard you've pretty much achieved ki mastery. I've heard you've got a harem of fiancees and you don't like (as in love) a single on of them. I've heard you know practically every martial arts style under the sun. I've heard you're father has sold and stolen you back more times than you can count and I've heard you have never seen your mother as her son in over a decade," he finished. He ticked off just a few of the things that made up Ranma Saotome's life. "Am I right?"
". . . " Ranma didn't answer. Never trust your mouth when it comes to answering a question like that. Saying 'yes' or 'no' or even 'maybe' would be a grave mistake.
The Lord of Rei Kai grinned, "I'll take it by your silence I'm correct. Anywho, I came here to ask if you'd like to live again."
Ranma quirked an eyebrow, "Live again?"
"Sure! Why not?" he shrugged. "I've checked out your profile and this sort of stuff happens to you all the time. Thanks to Yuusuke it probably won't be a problem! Besides, it's just not interesting on Earth if one more trouble maker dies."
"Trouble maker?!" she growled. "Who are you calling a trouble maker you - !"
Koenma interrupted her, "There's just one thing in return. You check out okay, there's not doubt in my mind about that, so there's no stupid egg test. However there's a slight miscalculation with your death."
"And that would be?"
"Erm . . . it's just that . . ."
When Ranma heard the price to pay she flushed crimson, "WHAT?!?!"
~*To Be Continued*~
(1) I really don't know the name of the noodle shop they own so I just fused Urameshi and Yukimura. I think the name's cute but whatever.
(2) In the American version of YYH the blue ogre is never named until around episode 60 something. He's all happy and whenever he and Konma show up in a scene he's going on about being called George, or Jorge.
(3) Also from the American version is that Botan has an English or British accented voice. it's kind of weird, I like the Japanese voice actress better cuz her voice sounds more like how I imagined Botan might sound. All high pitched and chirpy. (Seto'segyptianluvr (my editor):Kinda like you?)
Author's Notes: A little whim I had a while ago. At first it was going to be with Yuusuke as the Spirit Detective but decided things would be more interesting if I threw Ranma into the mix. If you're wondering about the title it has more to do with one of the missions than the fic itself.
As a side note, I'm sorry if my spelling varies. I like spellling Yusuke, Yuusuke cuz I think it looks cooler. My spelling of the three different planes is extremely weird. I spell it Makai, Ningenkai, Ningen Kai, Reikai, Rei kai, ReiKai and Rei Kai. I'll try to stick to one spelling but if i slip up sorry. So many ways to spell a single word. *Sigh*
As another side note, if anyone who's seen the end of the series could help me out . . . I was curious if Kurama gave up his powers forever or if he just sealed it away. I'm curious to know because a youko is not so easily forced into retirement. Not when there's a Spirit Detective on the loose, anyway.
Thanks also to my nice editor Seto'segyptianluvr. She rocks! Check out her fics too cuz she's a good writer.
Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THESE SHOWS, YA HERE?!?! Good.
~*~*~*~
A young man with short black hair sat cozily in front of a fire. He was handsome, around his early twenties. He was also curled up in a soft velvet armchair. Wrapping the heavy quilt around his lean frame he stared at the flames as it licked the fireplace. He looked fragile, almost child-like. His tan skin was tinted blue from the cold.
The room was alluminated by that single light. It was the only thing that brought warmth to the small cottage in the wilderness. The place had only two rooms. One was a bedroom, ill furnished with only a tiny cot. You couldn't see the room though, not from the main room where you opened up the door. In this room the flickering fireplace loomed on the farthest wall, nearby an open window. Only the green armchair and a circular oak table stood in the room. Obviously he wasn't much for the roomy kind of atmosphere, although there certainly was a lot of space.
The man sat, dreaming. But not any kind of dream, they were memories. Nightmares. His whole life had been one long nightmare in the shadow of another. And soon, very soon, the rest of the world, and the next, will be living his nightmare of total darknes.
~Yukameshi Noodle Shop(1)~
"Yuusuke!" Keiko Yukimura, a brown-haired, sweet but slightly bossy girl, called. "We're out of noodles again!"
"Yeah yeah!" Yuusuke Urameshi, an eighteen year old with blackhair in a slicked back style, yelled annoyedly. [Geez,] he thought, [business is swell but I don't think I can handle any more of this good fortune.]
He stalked into the storage room and sifted around for some noodles. "Wasabi sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce?! Stupid sauces! Grr! This place is packed to the brim with everything _but_ noodles!!! What kind of noodle shop are we anyway?" he asked incredulously.
Keiko popped her head into the room, "Hey Yuusuke, if you can't find anything you can go to the market, you know?"
"Why do I have to do it?!" he demanded.
"You're the big strong half demon, you should get it," Keiko smiled.
Yuusuke pouted, "Fine."
He went out the door, grabbing a grocery bag from the counter. [She must have planned this,] Yuusuke reasoned. [Darn, that Keiko.] Jogging to the market wasn't too big a task, after all it was only a few kilometres away. That doesn't really matter if you're a great rei ki master and former Spirit Detective. Still, it was annoying. Especially to an impatient warrior like Urameshi.
[Maybe I shouldn't have quit that job,] Yuusuke reflected sadly. [Then again, with the noodle shop and Keiko and everything... I doubt I would have time to save the world.]
Well, Yuusuke was wrong.
~Rei Kai: Koenma's Office~
"Jorge, tell everyone I can't be disturbed right now. Even by Ayame," Koenma, the cute, new ruler of the Underworld (who was currently in teenage form), told a blue ogre in a striped loiun cloth.
"Yes, Koenma-sama," he said in near tears. [Koenma-sama said my name! Ooh, it's gonna be a good day! (2)] Jorge, the ogre, bustled out of the room.
Sighing despondently Koenma glared at the stack of files sitting beside his desk. "I've been putting this off for far too long. Let's just hope THIS time I pick the good one. La creme de la creme," he mumbled.
He sifted through manila folder after manila folder. Near the bottom he found a rather thick file. "Hmm," he mused. This one was extremely worn and old. Chock full of history and toil. Just looking at it, Koenma could tell this was it.
"Who _is_ this guy?" he wondered aloud. "He must be so old right now...to have a history that big."
Koenma read through the file with mixed feelings of wonderment, contempt and disbelief. Most of all joy.
"This is perfect!" he exclaimed happily. "I guess destiny set it up already!"
~Mushiyori~
Ranma Saotome was feeling lucky today. It was the first day since a YEAR after the failed wedding attempt that he wasn't glomped, punched, challenged, annoyed, robbed or malleted. Even Kuno and his constant rambling, which was to be expected, had not rung it's dulcet tones. Why was it that he wasn't being bothered? Because for once in his life he sitched his dad, his rivals, his fiancees andthe entire Nerima in itself. He was now legally able to live on his own. Not that the law has anything to _do_ with it, but it helps when you have a money mongrel like Nabiki around. She'd probably threaten to call the police if he went off alone.
"Man! It feels great to breath the free air," Ranma grinned. Carrying his over-used back pack he strolled through the place, looking through windows and grabbing a newspaper.
"I need a job, the money mom gave just isn't enough for monthly rent," he said. [Mom, she doesn't even know I'm her son. She gave the money to 'Ranko' for _her_ birthday,] he thought sadly. [Mom. I left without even telling you. I'm sorry.]
Sighing he stuffed the news in his back pack and began to look for an apartment. He could remember slipping out of the house and running all the way out of town. Running for as far as he could until the buses and subways opened. And then he just got off randomly. Fate took him here, which wasn't too bad. He'd heard of some martial arts master who lives some ways from Mushiyori.
He walked, paying close attention to street signs so he could remember where he was in case he needed to go back. The more he got into town the busier it became, eventually he reached a market place. His stomach chose that time to rumble.
"Urk!" he sweatdropped. "Wonderful. At least I still got some instant ramen noodles left." Deciding it would be a good idea to settle down and rest Ranma waded through the crowd and was spat out near a park.
"Weird," Ranma thought aloud. "Everything's coming along a little too well." Shrugging that foreboding feeling off he sat on a bench and took out a thermos, it was his perfect day after all. What could go wrong? "It's a good thing I still have some hot water," he smiled. Screwing off the cap he fished out a few bowls of Instant Noodles (TM) and poured the hot water into them.
"Just wait five minutes," he grumbled, so did his stomach. Sighing he watched his surroundings. He always found his way into parks one way or another. All of them were the same. Grass, benches, trees, playground, cemented path, sometimes a fountain or two. That's where he usually ended up. He stared boredly at the intersection, seeing cars zoom by and the lights changing from red, to green, to yellow and back again.
Suddenly, the light turned green. A blue car sped by at twice the speed limit. There was still one more woman crossing the street. "Hey lady! Get outta the way!" Ranma screamed. Before he knew it instinct kicked in. He ran as fast as he could (which was fast, believe me). Hurtling forward like a rocket he pushed a guy out of the way in a mad dash.
"Watch it!"
The woman had suddenly stopped and she saw the car coming at her. She froze. Inches away from the bumper.
"NO!" Ranma jumped and forced her out of the way. Landing he watched the bumper ram into her. [Shit.]
<WHAM!>
~Yuusuke~
"Watch it!" Yuusuke yelled angrily. All of his noodle packages fell to the floor, along with a new wok. "Stupid," he growled.
<WHAM!>
"What the?!" he turned, in the direction the guy who bumped into him ran. He was run over by a speeding car. "Oh no."
Yuusuke sprinted over to the car. Glaring at the driver he went to the other side to see if whoever that guy or the lady who was saved were hurt. Shockingly he found someone very familiar, "Mrs. Minamino!"
"Who was that? Yuusuke?" Shiori asked him, remembering Urameshi from his few visits to their house. She held her arm carefully, it was scraped in the same spot from eight years ago and bleeding terribly. The bleeding reminded her of Shuiichi. He was safe in his office (unhappily) doing some paper work, but she could swear she saw red hair before the body disappeared from the car entirely.
"I dunno," he said suspiciously. [But he was running so fast I could swear he was flying. Only Kurama or Hiei can do that. I have this weird feeling of deja vu, too,] he thought. [Wait a sec ... dammit! This is how _I_ died! It must be Koenma again. Can't he be more original?!]
Yuusuke grumbled something about killing a toddler and lugged the person out from under the car. "Hey! It's a girl!" he exclaimed in alarm. She was soaked from the puddle on the street. "She musta fallen," he mused. "Just like me." He examined her wounds carefully.
"Woah! She's built like a rock, barely any damage to her skin at all," he mumbled. "A few tire marks, but the impact must have broken her ribs. And she's bleeding internally most likely. Still a pulse though."
"Wait here Yuusuke, I'll call the police," Shiori said frantically. She rushed to find a phone booth in one of the shops.
He shook his head, "Kurama ain't gonna like it when he finds out his ma was nearly killed." Cradling the girl he thought, [Koenma's getting a new Spirit Detective, most likely. And it's a girl too. Must be something special if she can go faster than my eyes can follow.]
Then her heart stopped entirely. Yuusuke watched her spirit sperate itself from the body. [Hmm, if she's gonna be revived who knows what kind of chaos would happen if they found out she isn't dead anymore.]
~At the car crash~
"Whadda hell?" she wondered. "I'm down there, and I'm up here." She paused to realize how ridiculous that sentence sounded.
"Is that possible?" she asked. Interested, she watched the scene play out as the woman he saved ran to phone the ambulance. When they came they quickly took her body.
"Hey, I'm her bro. Do you mind if I come along?" the guy she bumped into said.
"WHAT?!?!" she asked rumbunxiously. "I DON'T KNOW WHO THE HELL YOU ARE, JACKASS!!!"
He turned to her and winked. Without moving his mouth she heard him say, "Don't sweat it, man. If anyone you knew found out you're dead than it's gonna be big trouble."
"Dead? Trouble?" she asked. "What's that mean?"
Shrugging the guy answered, "You'll see. But I don't get why Koenma is in such a hurry."
"Koenma?"
The guy grinned, "He's a real hoot. A whack-job, but he's okay."
"Who are you anyway?" Ranma demanded.
"Oh, that. Yeah, sorry. Urameshi Yuusuke. And you?" he asked.
"I'm Sao ... Aikaze Ranma," she introduced. [Aikaze. Where'd that come from?] Yuusuke smiled and waved good bye as he stepped into the vehicle.
Ranma murmurred, "Great. Now, to figure this out. I'm dead, and there's some weird guy named Yuusuke who's trying to help me." She paused to think, "But if I'm dead how come he can see me?"
"You must be Ranma Saotome," a sweet voice said behind him. "I'm Ayame."
She turned and looked over the girl curiously. She wore a very dreary outfit, navy blue almost entirely. Her long dark blue hair was also in a pony-tail. The weirdest part was she was sitting on an oar. [She one of those Western witches?]
She was wary of the woman, "What're you doing here?"
The 'witch' smiled, "Oh. I'm taking you to Rei Kai."
"Rei Kai?" Ranma said unbelievably. "What's that?"
"The Underworld," she answered.
"Why?"
Ayame was hesitant to tell her, "Koenma-sama would like to see you."
"ARGH!! Who's this 'Koenma' guy anyway?" she screamed in frustration. That was the SECOND time someone who could see her had talked about Koenma.
Surprised at her temper Ayame said, "He's actually just Enma now, being the ruler of the Spirit World."
". . . I'm still confused," she deadpanned.
"You've never heard of Enma? Ever?" she questioned in mild shock.
Ranma shook her head, "Nope."
"Maybe you should learn you're history then!" another voice, this one overly cheery with a British accent (3), said.
"And who the heck are you?" Ranma inquired. She was getting frustrated.
The girl with light blue hair and a pink kimono smiled. She held a check book in her hands and sat at her oar with perfect balance. "Botan, Grim Reaper and Spirit Guide to the Under World. At your service!" she grinned.
Ranma sighed, [Great, one girl popping out of nowhere with an oar is bad enough but TWO?! I knew it. Never trust a day to be perfect if you're me.] "You don't look like any Grim Reaper. You're too happy."
Botan sighed, "You will not believe how many times I've heard that."
"What are you doing _here_ Botan? Weren't you boating a girl to Heaven?" the first 'witch' lady inquired.
"Ayame! I thought you weren't assigned jobs like these, ya know? I thought you were in the Info Department," Botan said. "Did you get demoted!?!"
The girl blushed, "Of course not! But Koenma-sama said I should pick this on up as soon as possible. All the other Grim Reapers weren't available."
"Yeah. After Hiei stirred things up in Makai with that bounty hunt for that guy, whats-is-name, I thought they'd turn the kekkai inside out looking for him!" Botan chirped. "I heard down the grape vine that they still haven't found that guy!"
Ayame nodded, "Yes. It's true. And nobody really knows his name. He's just Kage."
" 'Shadow'? Hmph, I don't see why they can't find him. With such a big reward held over his head I'd thinkthat he would be found in a snap!" Botan declared.
"Yes, Hiei as your own bodyguard for a lifetime and a million in makai money. That's quite a bit over a billion yen. If humans were in on it I'm sure they could find him," Ayame agreed.
"Stupid demons," the Grim Reaper huffed, "they can't trust anybody. But I wonder why Hiei is putting such grand stakes to find this Kage. Who is he?"
"I'm afraid only Hiei and perhaps the Three Makai Lords and Koenma know for certain," the Information agent replied. "I suppose he must be threatening Rei Kai, Makai or Nigen Kai."
Botan blinked, "But I thought Hiei didn't care about humans."
"HELLO!?!" Ranma bellowed. "EARTH TO CRAZY OAR LADIES!!!"
"Hey!" Botan yelled defensively. "I am _not_ an old lady."
Ranma was at her wits end, "What is going here?"
Botan laughed, "No need to get upset! I thought I had an appointment here for a boy named Ranma Saotome but I guess I was wrong. The system screwed up again. There are more bugs in Rei Kai after Yuusuke died."
"Wha? Yuusuke died already?" she questioned. "No wonder he can see me."
"So you've already met the famous Spirit Detective," Ayame mused. "I wanted to talk to him personally. Koenma said there was something urgent for the future Rei Kai Tantei and the last one."
"Rei Kai Tantei?"
Botan's eyes lit with comprehension, "Oh I know! This Ranma guy is the new Spirit Detective! . . . I wonder where he is."
"_I'M_ RANMA!!!"
"Oh. Really?" Botan queried. "But I could have sworn Ranma was a b-"
That was the last straw. Ranma was confused, insulted and hungry. "I'M A GUY DAMMIT!! It's because of this stupid curse!! I'd give anything to live without it and I've gone through princes, crazy dates, martial artists and a friggin GOD to get a cure and none of the damn things work!!!" the half boy-half girl vented. For some reason she didn't think that the blue-haired girl her outburst too much. (And she wouldn't react like a normal person by staring dumbfoundedly and wondering which looney bin she'd escaped from.)
"Geez, ya don't need to get so uptight about it," she murmurred. "Besides, what kind of idiot goes to Jusenkyou anyway? That curse is incurable any way you dunk it."
"What?! No way!" she protested.
Ayame nodded, "Yes. There are no 'real' cures because even though they work the curse stops you from ever getting them. The springs are no good because it will fuse you're curses. In fact, if you get splashed by multiple springs your curse gets locked, although I've heard if that happens the curse will stay the same. Jusenkyou is a real mystery. It just existed. Some of my colleagues who were working on the case said it pools the worlds dark energy. That's why people who get pulled in are usually corrupt in one way or another."
"Corrupt?!" she retorted. "Maybe my pops, but definitely not me!"
Botan checked her hand book, "Well, it says here you were excessively sexist. A complete male chauvinist at the time. Maybe that's why."
"That would explain the girl curse," the other Spirit World messenger reasoned.
"Hey you two! I've been waiting for half an hour!" yet _another_ voice called from the sky. "Where were you?" Ranma and the two girls looked up and saw a brown-haired teenager with a blue outfit and red cape (you know, the usual one) appear out of a hole. Oarless, to Ranma's great relief.
Ayame looked shocked, "Koenma-sama! Oh my, I lost track of time."
"Hi Koenma-chan!" Botan chirped. "I hope you finished all those files!"
Ranma gave him a hard look over, "You're this great Koenma I've been hearing about?"
Koenma nodded, he didn't have his pacifier for obvious reasons. One being he was the lord of the Under World and if someone pissed him off he could send them straight to hell, literally. Two is his alredy immense reiki, which he had acquired a year earlier after he had proven he could rule Rei Kai for at least a year. Because everyone knows what could possibly go down in one year. (And they need a new ruler soon anyways. Who's better qualified than the son of the guy who used to run Spirit World?)
"You must be Ranma. I've heard a lot about you," Koenma said. [Lots of things. Each and every one more unbelievable than the next.]
If people had heard of Ranma Saotome she'd have been shipped off to the Tendo home a long time ago. Or she would have been bored to death by the endless amount of wanna be martial artists trying to claw their way into the big leagues. Or Nerima would have had lost all normal and sane people left in the district.
The thing that people would probably have heard her doing would be the Saffron incident. Blowing up an entire mountain was a big deal, and it was printed in newspapers as a headliner. They didn't know she really _did_ it though so that didn't really count. "Like what?" she quipped.
"Well, I've heard you got cursed by Jusenkyou a few years back. I've heard you've pretty much achieved ki mastery. I've heard you've got a harem of fiancees and you don't like (as in love) a single on of them. I've heard you know practically every martial arts style under the sun. I've heard you're father has sold and stolen you back more times than you can count and I've heard you have never seen your mother as her son in over a decade," he finished. He ticked off just a few of the things that made up Ranma Saotome's life. "Am I right?"
". . . " Ranma didn't answer. Never trust your mouth when it comes to answering a question like that. Saying 'yes' or 'no' or even 'maybe' would be a grave mistake.
The Lord of Rei Kai grinned, "I'll take it by your silence I'm correct. Anywho, I came here to ask if you'd like to live again."
Ranma quirked an eyebrow, "Live again?"
"Sure! Why not?" he shrugged. "I've checked out your profile and this sort of stuff happens to you all the time. Thanks to Yuusuke it probably won't be a problem! Besides, it's just not interesting on Earth if one more trouble maker dies."
"Trouble maker?!" she growled. "Who are you calling a trouble maker you - !"
Koenma interrupted her, "There's just one thing in return. You check out okay, there's not doubt in my mind about that, so there's no stupid egg test. However there's a slight miscalculation with your death."
"And that would be?"
"Erm . . . it's just that . . ."
When Ranma heard the price to pay she flushed crimson, "WHAT?!?!"
~*To Be Continued*~
(1) I really don't know the name of the noodle shop they own so I just fused Urameshi and Yukimura. I think the name's cute but whatever.
(2) In the American version of YYH the blue ogre is never named until around episode 60 something. He's all happy and whenever he and Konma show up in a scene he's going on about being called George, or Jorge.
(3) Also from the American version is that Botan has an English or British accented voice. it's kind of weird, I like the Japanese voice actress better cuz her voice sounds more like how I imagined Botan might sound. All high pitched and chirpy. (Seto'segyptianluvr (my editor):Kinda like you?)
Author's Notes: A little whim I had a while ago. At first it was going to be with Yuusuke as the Spirit Detective but decided things would be more interesting if I threw Ranma into the mix. If you're wondering about the title it has more to do with one of the missions than the fic itself.
As a side note, I'm sorry if my spelling varies. I like spellling Yusuke, Yuusuke cuz I think it looks cooler. My spelling of the three different planes is extremely weird. I spell it Makai, Ningenkai, Ningen Kai, Reikai, Rei kai, ReiKai and Rei Kai. I'll try to stick to one spelling but if i slip up sorry. So many ways to spell a single word. *Sigh*
As another side note, if anyone who's seen the end of the series could help me out . . . I was curious if Kurama gave up his powers forever or if he just sealed it away. I'm curious to know because a youko is not so easily forced into retirement. Not when there's a Spirit Detective on the loose, anyway.