Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Nothing So Simple ❯ Prologue

Ping- My second YYH fic! ^_^
Drunky- On a roll!
Druggy- Oh good, I got the munchies...
Ping- For all that I am a raging KuwabaraxYusuke whore, I had to do this.

Disclaimer- Yoshihiro Togashi is the man, I am a humble fan who buys as much merchandise as my pathetic bank account allows. So that should make up for me ::ahem:: 'borrowing' his creations for a while. No harm no foul, this is all in fun. I'll put them back when I'm done, though there's no guarantee they'll be in one piece.
Drunky- Or their clothes...

Warnings: Incomplete, Language, Stay tuned for more

Pairings: HieixYusuke

Notes: This fic is a gift for Suki, my beta. ^_^ Because despite her threat to tear me a new one when going over my fics, she's had lots of good stuff to say. So for you, Suki, my beta-bitch, a Hiei seme fic for you. ^x^ And I decided to break this one into chapters, instead of holding onto it until it was done like my last monster. That and my spellcheck fizzles out if my document is over 10 pages.

AU: A slightly different take on the missing Artifacts of Darkness. Hiei is in Spirit World with his, and the others are really unimportant. ^^* That's all that I've really changed, besides mentioning recent previous detectives that don't really exist. Other than that, I'm really trying to keep it all together and in character.

Nothing So Simple

If Yusuke'd had any idea it would be that long of a trip, in that kind of unbearable humidity, over such rotten terrain, he figured he would have told the toddler to go soil his Pampers and spend his weekend relaxing instead. As it stood, he was too far away from the palace to voice his belated thoughts, so cursed himself instead as he nearly twisted his ankle for the umpteenth time on sliding rocks.

Once the ground stopped sliding beneath his feet and he regained his balance, he stooped and hefted a large rock, throwing it as far as he could with an outraged cry. He could just break something right now, and he would if the only thing available wasn't a load of stupid rocks! He nearly fell again, reminding himself that his bones were a prime candidate, but not really something he would want to snap, especially when so far from any sign of life.

Three hundred and sixty degrees- nothing but gray rocks from the size of a pea to a city bus. Nothing.

Yusuke sighed as he plopped securely down on one of the larger stones nearby, running his fingers through his hair as he huffed and puffed, pouting without the benefit of an audience to bitch at. He sighed again and flopped his arms lazily, picking up the practically nonexistent breeze on his sweaty skin, cursing the blasted sun nearly as many times as he had almost broken his neck.

"Ahhh... How the hell did I let that brat talk me into this..." He mumbled to himself, wishing harder for a nice cold drink then he ever had before in his life.

After resting his eyes from the glaring sun for a moment Yusuke slapped his thighs and stood, looking around again, though he knew exactly what he'd see. Steeling himself- as well as his joints- he continued to carefully pick his way down the steep hill, praying it wasn't much farther and vowing revenge against a certain pacifier sucking employer.

As he walked, Yusuke was left with nothing left to do, but think.

Yusuke did not like to think.

He rubbed his temples as thinking that he didn't like to think gave him a headache.

He thought back to when this whole mess started. He had just blown off Takenaka with a pretty old school trick that still floored the old fart, walking around down town, minding his own business- when a soccer ball rolled to him. He picked it up, explaining to the small boy that ran to him that he was basically an idiot for playing ball so close to a busy street. The kid, having at his age the brain of a dog, just stared blankly at him. 'Street?' What is this 'street' that you speak of?... It didn't matter, he had something of a soft spot for kids, anyway. They never nagged him or told him what to do, or really even cared about anything at all outside of their own little world. Yusuke smiled, remembering briefly and fondly of when he was like that... It hadn't lasted, of course- life sucks.

So he entertained the kid with stupid faces, feeling appreciated for the first time in who knows how long, ignoring the strange looks he was getting from passersby. Adults- who needed 'em? The kid laughed, people stared, Yusuke let loose his bad-boy image, and all was right with the world. But, as with all things, he didn't want to spend too long, or put too much effort into any one thing- someone might catch him unawares. He handed the boy his ball back, reminding him of the danger- and damning himself for sounding like a stupid grown up- uselessly, he found, as no sooner had he crossed the street than the little crap was at it again.

They may be all pure and innocent and junk, but kids were as dumb as dirt, sometimes. Figuring it really wasn't his business at all if he planted his face on someone's windshield, Yusuke walked away. The street was busy- the sidewalks teemed with the noisy life of shoppers and tourists and people on lunch break, all talking and working and enjoying themselves, oblivious to the outside world. Engines hummed and horns honked, but for some odd reason, Yusuke could distinctly hear the sound of the soccer ball bouncing, over all the commotion. He felt the urge to turn his head and did, just in time to see the red car racing jaggedly down the road, right towards the little boy.

It was almost... destiny.

With a shout, he had leapt- as if it were the most natural thing in the world. He didn't even have time to think, as he shoved the kid out of the way. His vision darkened, before he even felt it- as if a piano had fallen from the sky, like in those stupid cartoons, slamming into his side and shoulder so hard he felt his organs lurch, his bones creak, and then it hit his back and head.

Yusuke blinked, feeling no hint of pain as he looked about, eyes finally resting on a body on the pavement that looked far too much like himself to register at all in his mind.

The rest was a little foggy. Once he realized he was dead, thanks to the world's most annoying image of Death brought to life- well, sort of- it was all a surreal blur.

If he thought back hard enough, Yusuke reasoned as he sidestepped a rather odd shaped boulder, he could clearly recall his wake, the nasty teachers and students ruining the lawn he was forced to mow every once and a while. His mom, first motionless, then crying, then blaming him- like she always did. He could remember Kuwabara's emotional outburst, and all the stupid tricks he had to perform just to nearly lose Keiko, as she risked her life for his worthless hide.

Koenma had been more than a shock to him, but at that time, when he gave up his spirit egg and thought he had no way to return to his body after all of that goody-two-shoe crap, the diminutive ruler had pissed him off beyond reason- playing with his head like that.

You're dead.

You're not.

You're dead.

You're not.

Happiness finally won over, even though for the longest time- since he was six years old, as a matter of fact- Yusuke had often laid in bed at night with an empty belly and an even more empty heart, wishing he were dead. As the years went by and he grew, so did the rift between himself and his mother, her love for alcohol and partying finally forming a very real barrier between himself and her life- what she wanted and what she was stuck with. Some childhood. He had to be the most miserable person in the world. Finally, he realized as his body began to grow from the shorter, finer boned child into a muscular youth, that violence was an effective cure all, much like sake was to Atsuko.

To each his own.

As time went on, he found that fighting not only helped to relieve his frustration with the cruelties of a pitiless world, but it could also be fun. He became good, eventually the best, and when he was in a particularly nasty mood, it did his inner demons good to see his peers run for the hills- even the girls, though he'd never hit one. Unless he had to. Which was still debatable- Keiko could protect herself, and he wondered if all girls could slap like that.

Keiko was the one friend he had, and even she never really understood his situation- she treated him like every adult in his life did. Always nagging, always bossing him around.

Just last summer, when his voice lowered and a fascinating transformation occurred below the belt, he actually started to look at Keiko as more than a friend- she didn't know it, of course. He'd be peeling himself off the sidewalk if she knew the dreams of her we awoke to, finding himself sticky and tingly all over. On more than one occasion, he thought he'd try and put the moves on her, since she was the most likely candidate for a date, though she didn't exactly have a killer rack like some other girls their age, but his insecurities would rise up and seize him, and he'd turn it all into a joke or some show of sexist piggishness. (A term he had heard from her, describing him, more than once.)

Keiko was much like his mom- a promising girl who needed anything but Yusuke around to ruin her life.

But being friends was good, even though they were slowly drifting apart as Keiko followed her gifted mind to a promising future, leaving Yusuke behind to the cold realization that he really was destined to an early death, because nothing waited for him in the future.

This was why he hated to think- thinking meant remembering, and his life sucked the first time around- rehashing after the passage of time didn't help.

Yusuke picked up his speed a little, catching the promising sight of something not gray in the distance.

If he let himself feel too sorry for himself, he just might try that whole afterlife thing again, only with a more intended ticket this time. But he kept himself aware of the fact that if he took the coward's way, Kuwabara- though they had become closer- would have his title of the most worst, biggest, baddest punk at Sariashiki Junior High, forever. That, and he could never punch anybody again. Well, except maybe some office workers at Koenma's, but where was the fun in that? He'd have to start from scratch to get his reputation back...

This brought to mind the other half of his new life. Koenma, impotent- or omnipotent or something...- ruler of the Spirit Realm, had 'elected' him to become a Spirit Detective for this bland world. Just signed him up without asking, saying he 'owed' the little man.

He reminded himself over and over- moreso since this little trek had begun- that he never asked for any of it. But, as he already knew, life sucked and the world- this one, too - was a bitch. So he listened as Koenma gave him his first assignment, quite without any training, which really cheesed Botan off.

Hell forbid they lose him and sucker another human into doing the job! Yusuke rolled his eyes. Gods were so freakin' lame. Koenma didn't hide the fact that he didn't like him, and Yusuke could care less since he never wanted a job anyway, let alone one that involved being ordered around by a freakin' jerk that still breast fed. Though his little spirit gun was a pretty neat trick he would have never known without the intervention of his supervisor, and paying that bastard teacher back was an added bonus. Yusuke could think all kinds of horrible stuff about his mom- but he had a real problem with other people saying it. What with all the crap at school, the fact that despite his miraculous resurrection, his mom was still the same- though he was sure she put up a token attempt- and the looks he was getting from people which were once a source of pride, now a real irritation, he was almost excited to hear he'd be venturing around the Spirit Realm for a while, looking for something called the Sword of Darkness.

Ooo~oooo, spooooky.

Lame.

There was also something called the Orb of Baast and the Forlorn Hope, but apparently something had gone wrong, and the orb and hope-thingy had been returned, without the world ending. Botan gossiped to him about the strangeness of it all, but Yusuke really couldn't force himself to give a rat's ass. Luckily, Botan was a somewhat clever girl and it didn't take her long to pick up on his apathy and shut the hell up about it.

So now, three days into a seemingly endless journey, Yusuke was severely regretting ever accepting the assignment. Well, he hadn't been given a choice, but he could have just refused and gotten his spiritual ass fried to a crisp- end of problem.

Still, he was proud and even if just to spite Koenma, Yusuke decided to stick around and cause as much damage as resurrected-humanly possible.

"OH THANK GOOOOOOD!" Yusuke collapsed onto his knees, then his face in the cool, shaded grass of a forest, sprung up out of nowhere. Rock met grass in a confusing fusion that Yusuke didn't give a damn about. Magic, supernatural forces, whatever- the shade, soft ground and suddenly steady, cool breeze was better than any wet dream he'd ever had and he moaned long and loud as he spread his tired limbs over the first non-rocky surface in three days and two nights.

He laid there for a long time, feeling his skin rise with goosebumps as the wind dried the sweat on his skin and played with his hair. He breathed in the scent of green, perking suddenly when he also smelled something dank- water.

He rose stiffly and lumbered farther into the forest, the trees and underbrush becoming thicker and darker the deeper he went, and Yusuke had to fight through the foliage with several muttered curses before he burst into a clearing, tripping on loose sand and falling face first into a stream. Where he lay, Yusuke began to greedily gulp the frigid water as it encompassed his head and neck, not moving until his air had run out. Breaking the surface of the water, Yusuke took deep gulps of air, as he had the water, then returned his lips to the shining surface, slurping his fill.

Once his belly was almost painfully full, he stood and finally took in his surroundings. Perhaps it was the sudden respite from unrelenting sunlight, but the plant life seemed black, not green, and every now and then Yusuke would hear a rustling behind him. He spun to look over his shoulder, seeing only the leaves of a bush settle, before the sound returned, only in front of him. The game growing boring and painful for his neck, Yusuke trudged through the stream to the other side, emerging with jeans soaked to the knees and tattered white sneakers that squished when he walked. The sounds continued around him, more rusting, almost like whispers, and the sound of scurrying feet and flapping wings.

Putting on his game face, Yusuke stalked through the woods, not really knowing where he was going but enjoying the change of scenery enough to not care for the moment. Koenma hadn't given him a whole lot of info about the assignment- he had one week, had to get this sword that supposedly created demons, and destroy it's abductor. No problem- he could take his time and rest today then spend one day kicking demon ass and getting the sword, then three days trek back.

That was seven days, right?

His headache came back- this was as much of a break as he'd been allowed since his whole 'ordeal' and here he was, wasting his time with math!

He cursed himself and batted at a low limb, untying his green jacket from around his waist as brambles snagged on it. He soon had to put the jacket on, as the forest grew increasingly dark, cool and noisy. He ignored the strange sounds as he plodded on, his sneakers still squilching with each step over fallen, rotten logs or muddy pits and deep, dark holes. He shuddered slightly, the abrupt change from almost constant heat to such dank coolness so shocking to his body that he began to feel feverish. He idly wondered if maybe he hadn't picked up a few life forms from that water, swimming around happily in his gut, just waiting to burst out of his chest like in that alien movie. He felt eyes on him from all directions, but paid no attention, reaching into his pocket and retrieving his comb, slicking his hair back out of his face. The feeling of being watched never left him, as he walked, but he ignored it intently, trying to come up with something to do to pass the time besides more thinking.

**********

He lowered his head, three eyes staring unblinkingly ahead. At the foot of his throne, his sentry knelt, a smug look of satisfaction on his wart covered and leathery face, that he had been the first to report this news to his lord.

He didn't much like that look- none of them were actually needed, they were just there to take care of things too small and unimportant or that he had no interest in. Without sparing a glance, he summoned a small ball of black fire and cast it to the demon, engulfing the pathetic creature in tortuous heat before it disintegrated entirely.

He smirked as all his other demon legions cowered and shifted nervously.

Taking up the thin, white strip from his lap, the spiky haired koorime closed his jagan eye on the intruder in his forest and retied the sash around his forehead.

Another low-level demon stepped forward, bowing respectfully.

"Lord Hiei, would you like my men and I to take care of this trespasser?"

Hiei glared, causing the warrior to flinch. "You are a fool. Can you not sense the aura of Koenma surrounding him? He's from the palace- a new detective, no doubt, come to save the world." He snorted. "Even with your entire band you wouldn't stand a chance."

The demon looked chagrined and bowed lower. Hiei scoffed. "But of course you wouldn't know that, you're too simple to do little more than talk. No... I think I'll take this one on..."

"And destroy him like all the others!" An exuberant cry rang out from the throng of demons lining the hall of his throne room.

Hiei did not reply, merely stood and slowly walked down the steps, all entities in the hall bowing their foreheads to the floor as he passed. 'Rocks make such pathetic demons...' Hiei idly thought as he left the hall, taking his newly acquired sword from the proffered hands of a servant. He smiled suddenly, a look the servant did not like, as he hurriedly left the master alone in the front entryway of the grand palace.

This detective was different than the others. He reeked not only of great power, but of a greenness- an ineptitude to use his abilities to the fullest. The hunt would be exciting, the torture thrilling, and the disassembly of yet another one of Koenma's pathetic humans would be most delightful- it had been so boring, lately... And then, once his thirst for battle and carnage was sated, he could sit back and watch from afar, the look on Junior's face as his peon was sent to him, piece by bloody piece.

With an even more feral grin, Hiei winked out of existence.

**********

"Gotcha!" Yusuke slapped the back of his neck, crushing the doomed form of a blood-sucking insect beneath his palm. Yusuke had not the time to celebrate the kill before another buzzing pest was dive-bombing his face before alighting on his arm, only to meet the same fate. He had not dried off, the forest now more humid and the plant life more spaced out and lean, and so he was again miserably hot, with his clothes tightly hugging his frame. But he dared not remove any clothing, as it served as one more barrier between him and those that would eat him alive. He had been inundated with swarms of insects since he had left the water's edge, and it was almost enough to drive him back to the water just to escape them all.

He growled and attempted to ignore them all- again- as he tromped through another bush, sending up another cloud of dozens of the wretched creatures. He frowned and clenched his fists, about to open fire on them all, his limited arsenal be damned, when suddenly, they were gone.

Yusuke blinked for a moment, confused, before noticing that all around him, not only had the bugs gone, but the noises as well- no rustling of life or wind, no screeching of birds or croaking of frogs. All that remained was the sound of his heavy breathing, the mud slowly swallowing the soles of his shoes, and the sensation of being watched.

The feeling of eyes boring into the back of his head was so eerily tangible, that hairs at the nape of Yusuke's neck rose and he spun, fists up and ready to fight, eyes scanning the trees.

He heard a faint, deep voiced laugh and searched more frantically for the source.

"Koenma must be going mad, sending me a detective that can't even sense my energy... You were facing the right way before, human." The voice was full of mirthful scorn, causing Yusuke to narrow his eyes and growl as he turned again, silently angry at the taunting words and the truth of them. "Tell me, is he really so desperate that he'd send me a mere... child?"

"What!?" Yusuke barked, more defensive and determined to find the voice than ever. "Why don't you show your stinkin' self, you coward, and say that to my face!"

"Tsk, tsk. Like a sheep to the slaughter- how could you possibly hope to defeat me- you can't even find me." More dry laughter and Yusuke growled again, low in his throat. The laughing slowly faded and Yusuke twirled on his heel as the entire forest seemed to burst into life, movement and noise completely surrounding him, as if a tornado had touched down, tearing plants- roots and all- up and away, creating a large clearing. Yusuke shielded his face with his arms until the wind died down. He lowered his arms, covertly looking around.

"Pathetic."

"Show yourself!" He commanded with a voice firmer than his knees felt. Despite his bravado and expertise at fighting junior high kids, he'd never actually faced a demon before, and this one seemed to be pretty confident.

"Hm. Should I waste my time and reveal myself, or should I just skin you alive..." Without waiting for any kind of response, Hiei appeared, several yards away from the detective, Yusuke finally catching sight of him. "Ah, what the hell. You humans always did like to stare death in the face, anyway."

"Sorry, pal, but Death is a loudmouthed, nosy chick with blue hair- and you don't have the tits."

Hiei quirked a brow, the corner of his mouth rising. "The ferry girl isn't the only one with a big mouth."

"Uh..." The wide-eyed human drawled, finally looking at his opponent, pointing a finger in his direction. "Who are you?"

Hiei narrowed his eyes and crouched into a fighting stance. "Since this is my forest, I don't have to answer that. It wouldn't make a difference anyway- you'll be dead before it would have any meaning for y-" Hiei blinked, eyes wide, and straightened as the human laughed- yes, laughed at him. Shock worn off, Hiei became enraged, his red eyes piercing the fool who dared to laugh in his face.

"Aw, man!!" Yusuke cackled, still pointing at the demon. "You're almost as cute as Koenma, little fella!"

Hiei's jaw dropped and brows furrowed for a moment, speechless as the mortal detective laughed so hard he nearly fell over. He felt his face redden and his blood pound furiously in his ears. "How... how DARE you." Hiei hissed, tossing his black coat away and reaching for the hilt of his sword. "Prepare to die, Spirit Detective!"

Yusuke stopped laughing in time to almost completely dodge the sword, landing in the mossy mud with a tiny trail of blood running from an inch long nick on his left cheek. "Geeze, touchy about the height, huh?" He heard an enraged growl and rolled blindly away, flipping onto his hands and springing away, missing any attack by sheer luck. Feet firmly planted on the ground, Yusuke readied his fists again, but the black demon was nowhere to be found.

"You are either extremely intuitive, or extremely lucky. Either way, you're extremely stupid and you will die!"

Yusuke heard the sound of metal slicing air and turned, but no sooner had he done so than his right arm erupted with burning pain. With a yelp, he gripped his upper arm as blood slowly leaked between his fingers. He was no more prepared for the next blow that sliced his left thigh, or the next across his back. Yusuke, finally realizing he was in deep, stumbled away from the fight, only to find he had stumbled farther in as another blow sliced across his left knee, knocking him to the ground with a cry.

Wincing, Yusuke gripped his arm as he pointed his finger, now with more purpose, and sat kneeling on the forest floor, trying to catch sight of his attacker. "C'mon..." He whispered, more to himself. "Where are ya, ya little- SHIT!" Yusuke lurched forward as he caught sight of a glint of metal, narrowly missing having his head sliced off.

'I gotta start getting serious, here- this guys gonna slaughter me!'

He rolled into another crouch, still aiming at nothing in particular. "Why don't you stop running, you coward!"

'If I can just get one good shot, that'll be enough, won't it?' Yusuke hoped as he searched the once again still woods.

"You keep calling me a coward, but you're the only one who's running." The bodiless voice returned.

Yusuke squawked and fell onto his rear as Hiei materialized inches before him. Yusuke pointed at his head, trying not to show his surprise.

"But fine, I can be agreeable. Let's play this on your slower, less effective terms. Go ahead." Hiei purred, leaning down a little. "Take your best shot, boy."

Hiei sniggered to himself- despite the amount of power he sensed surrounding the detective, this fool had tapped into almost no energy- he was harmless. This meant it would be less of a struggle, but no less fun, as long as he could drag it out.

Yusuke narrowed his eyes. 'This asshole obviously has never heard of Yusuke Urameshi!!'

"SPIRIT GUN!"

Hiei's eyes narrowed as he realized he had miscalculated how much of his energy the human had at his disposal.

Yusuke's breath was harsh as he held his pose, waiting for the smoke to clear. Once it settled, he breathed a sigh of relief and smiled to himself. "Gotcha." There was only an instant of a tingling sensation before he rolled forward, blood running down the back of his neck. With a groan he looked over his shoulder at the supposedly defeated demon a few yards away, who appeared to have suffered no more than a few scratches and the loss of his shirt.

'Oh man, I am so screwed!!'

"I think perhaps I underestimated you, detective. Score one for you. And now, for the match..."

Yusuke turned his head just in time to see an evil grin as the raised sword begin it's swift descent...

... to slice a tree in half.

Yusuke stared wide eyed before breaking out into slightly hysterical chuckles, as the demon merely stood with his arms crossed, looking quite pleased with himself. "Hey pal, maybe you should get your big-ass eyes checked- you missed me!" Yusuke rose to his feet and readied his fists. He was out of usable energy, but his opponent apparently thought he could still attack- which could be to his advantage. Especially if he was crazy, as he apparently was.

His surety began to slip as the felled tree began to shiver and change shape, finally coming to rest on the ground as a purple, mottled and horned demon.

Yusuke felt his jaw drop, clicking it shut once Hiei smirked.

'Yeah, I'm screwed.'

"What... the hell... is that thing!?"

Hiei chuckled again, greedily taking in the sight of the formerly brash detective as he lost some of his composure and confidence. "Is Koenma really so pressed for time that he didn't even bother telling you about the Sword of Darkness?" At a thought, Hiei cocked an eyebrow and stared skeptically at the shell-shocked human. "You were sent to retrieve the sword, weren't you?"

Oh, if this turned out to be a big waste of his time...

"Y-yeah." Yusuke cursed his voice.

Hiei nodded and rolled his eyes. "I really shouldn't be surprised- the princeling does everything half-assed, why should this be any different?" He asked, mostly to himself.

"Maybe the little freak likes getting spanked."

Hiei couldn't help it as the corner of his mouth quirked up. "Who's to say, gods always were a strange lot- too much time on their hands, if you ask me. But don't be mistaken, kid, this little banter doesn't mean we're 'buddies' or anything. It's going to take more than a mutual dislike of the Great Koenma to save you now."

"Then why the hell are you still talking?" Yusuke griped, though he couldn't help the smile on his face. At least this guy had attitude enough to keep him busy with chitchat, hopefully for long enough to think of a plan.

"No particular reason. I just wanted to make sure you knew how little needed you are. I mean, if you aren't even aware of the sword's powers, how do they expect you to overpower me and gain it back?"

"Uh, good point. Ya know what? I'll ask Koenma when I get back with the sword." Yusuke smirked. He couldn't help it- next to fighting, talking trash was what he did best.

Hiei smiled as well. "This sword has the ability to transform anything it cuts into a very stupid, very expendable, but very cheap demon. Makes for a good method of recruitment, wouldn't you agree?"

"Yeah, well, with an attitude like yours, I'm not surprised you have to make your own friends."

Hiei laughed. "Let's see how big you talk when you're screaming in agony."

Yusuke's eyes widened as Hiei became a blur, and trees all around began to fall, morphing into a little econo-army. He put up his fists as they all stood, surrounding him in a wide circle and Hiei reappeared where he had stood before, arms behind his back. Yusuke tensed then winced as his cut arm began to bleed anew.

He gasped.

"But... you... the sword... Why aren't I...?"

Hiei laughed, throwing his head back and revealing a mouth full of sharp teeth. Yusuke growled.

"What's so damn funny?"

Hiei sobered a bit, though still wracked by fits of chuckles. "Fool. My blade never touched you- it didn't have to." He smiled darkly at his prey, laughing again once it finally dawned on Yusuke.

'What! You mean it was the freakin' wind off his sword cutting me!?'

"So now you see just how truly hopeless it is." He raised one hand, holding it inches in front of his face. One glance to the left, one to the right, and satisfied at the slavering demons at his call, he stared Yusuke in the eyes. "Die." He snapped.

The battlefield rumbled with both the footsteps and the roar as nearly a dozen razor toothed and clawed demons rushed at Yusuke, eager for a taste of his flesh and blood.

'Alright, Urameshi, time to think on your feet- as usual!'

Yusuke jumped up as his first attacker dove for his legs, allowing for an easy target as his heel connected with the demon's temple, sending him skidding into another oncoming demon. Yusuke turned and rained punches into the gut of another, until one landed on his back and clawed at his chest. With a cry, Yusuke knelt down and somersaulted until he lay on his back on the demon, jamming his elbow into it's ribs with all his might. With an earsplitting shriek the demon released him and clutched it's side, allowing Yusuke up to dodge a swipe at his head.

He jogged back, throwing a few well placed uppercuts and kicks as he tried to gain some distance, but the group kept closing in on him, not allowing him any breaks or openings to recoup. Three tackled him at once, biting and shredding his shirt, and he kicked and cussed until he knocked one off. Now able to sit up, Yusuke fought one off with his fists, the other with his legs, doing marginally well until two more grabbed his arms from behind.

Yusuke's eyes widened as he was pulled back onto the grass, several hideous faces looming over him. A dollop of spit fell from one's face, landing just below Yusuke's eye. He flinched, and when he opened his eyes again, he couldn't help but scream.

Hiei smiled in satisfaction as the demons all rushed in at once. It was really an easy way out of dealing with the detective, but his earlier eagerness to deal with an opponent quickly faded once he realized the boy was no match for him. He started out strong, but slowly, as the demons kept falling in on him, Hiei could see the quickly growing strain on his body. He was slowing down and his hits weren't as effective.

He sighed. Was this really the best Koenma had to offer? Did he have nothing better to look forward to, no real opposition to face? Sure, he wanted to take everything over, but this just sort of made it feel like... it was all being handed to him. He wanted to fight for what he would soon have.

He snapped out of his thoughts as Yusuke cried out, a demon clinging to his back and clawing madly at him. The wind picked up and Hiei could smell blood and sweat and fatigue, and it was such an alluring smell his eyes half closed as he savored it. He rarely was allowed such a luxury- to witness the divine pain of a true struggle for life. A fruitless struggle, but a struggle all the same.

He returned his gaze to the battle, feeling impatient. Really, why was it taking them so long to kill him? There was one of him, a dozen of them, and since he hadn't fired again he either didn't have enough time or enough energy- so, he should be relatively easy to kill. Why the devil was this taking so damn long!?

Finally, Yusuke was overcome by three demons at once, and Hiei was hopeful, but then one was thrown off and the others held at bay. Hiei rolled his eyes and clicked his tongue, silently supposing to himself that he did owe the detective at least that much- he was a damn pain in the ass to kill. Some humans had a nasty habit of clinging to life, never knowing when to give up. Finally, finally, six demons foaming at the mouth held the detective pinned to the ground. Hiei smiled and wetted his bottom lip.

The scream was glorious.

The rush of the scent of blood hitting his nostrils was deliriously delicious.

The sudden explosion of demons was something of a shock.

One eyebrow raised, Hiei watched as a human that should by all rights have died three times over now, stood kicking and punching and yelling, throwing every single blessed demon off, and keeping them off as the tirade continued for many minutes. He blinked several times as, with blood oozing from every pore, the detective began to rush him.

'He's mad. There's no second about that- he's completely mad.'

With a war cry Yusuke charged headlong toward him, outrunning all his pursuers. Hiei held his ground until the last second, dodging to the right of the fist that flew at his face. His eyes widened as a knee collided with his side with breathtaking force. With a gasp, Hiei fell to one knee, holding his side. A bead of sweat ran down his temple as he caught his breath, a sharp pain in his side at every inhalation. With disbelieving eyes, Hiei turned to look up at the detective's face.

Yusuke smiled down at him. "Hurts good, don't it?"

Hiei growled and sneered. "A lucky hit. You're still going to die."

Yusuke chuckled, much to Hiei's surprise, and fell onto his backside. At eye level, Yusuke winked. "I know. I just wanted to hit you at least once before I did."

Hiei's face went blank as the detective continued to laugh hysterically before falling onto his back, voice gone silent. Hiei sat frozen for a time, watching the slow and uneven rise and fall of his chest. A quick flash of movement and the demons were upon him.

Just before their maws descended upon the carcass, they looked up and screeched as they were burnt to ashes.

Hiei stood, wiping his pants off as he looked down at the detective. After securing his sword in his belt, he leaned down and gathered the limp body into his arms. He shook his head, as he turned to return to the castle.

'We're both mad.'