Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Right Here Waiting For You ❯ Chapter 43 ( Chapter 43 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

~*~*~*Story Start*~*~*~


“Toguro blew away Yusuke's giant Spirit Gun with nothing but the aura surrounding him! Now he's batted Yusuke all the way to the third level!” Koto shouted, her eyes widening at Yusuke's kneeling form.


My hands clutched tightly to Hiei's shirt once again, biting my lip out of nervousness. Yusuke hadn't moved, and I was concerned that one of his ribs had been broken do to the punch. I hated watching this, watching him get smacked around like he was nothing but a rag doll. I know I use that expression a lot for some reason, but it seems to fit, even if I really don't want it to. The boys beside me said nothing, their eyes narrowed dangerously on Toguro's form, yes even Koenma, something I've never seen the cowardly prince do, especially to someone like Toguro. I let my ruby red eyes land on Toguro's blue, tree bark-like form, instantly narrowing into a cold glare. He was staring at Yusuke with a disappointed look on his face, and that only pissed me off more.


“You're not doing your job, Yusuke Urameshi!” Toguro growled angrily, making Yusuke look up with a scowl on his lips. “This is the first time I've fought at 100%, clearly there must be a reason. The way you're fighting now I could finish you easily with one punch of my powered up arm. But that's not what I've waited all this time for. You have a power you still have not realized, and this body will bring it out.”


Yusuke said nothing, just glaring as his body shook in pain, on arm wrapped around his stomach.


Toguro narrowed his eyes slightly. “The techniques Genkai mastered after all her years, combined with the unnatural talent you were born with, that is everything needed for the ultimate power. For years I have waited for those ingredients to show themselves, and now they have. So I must put my strength against yours, and know the answer it will give,” he said lowly, his eyes flashing dangerously, making me glare.


“Stupid bastard,” I hissed lowly, anger building up in me.


Kuwabara was the same, his hands tightening into fights as his sides .“I can't stand this guy! He's trying to beat more power out of Urameshi just so he can have a good time!” he shouted, his teeth clenching as he glared heatedly.


“It's the nature of the youkai body they gave him, his instincts tell him to fight,” Koenma stated solemnly.


Toguro turned to Koenma, a mocking smirk on his lips. “Don't sell me short, it's more than that. I may have the instincts to act aggressively, but it's my own choices to follow them through that define what I am. Without my conscious decisions, my body has only impulses that will quickly fade away.” The bones that stuck upwards from his shoulders opened, reminding me of a small volcanoes. “Let me show you what I mean,” he said with a sadistic undertone in his emotionless voice, making me shiver.


I did NOT like the sound of that!


I heard the sound of air being sucked away, and my eyes snapped to the volcano shaped bones on Toguro's shoulders. The air was being sucked into it, and my body tensed up, what the hell was he doing? However, I soon got my answer when I heard the shrieks and screams come from the stadium, making me turn to the stands that now was swarming with frantically running youkai. Small balls of red light rose from their bodies before streams of blue souls were ripped from them as well, flying into the volcano-like tubes. The boys and I watched with narrowed gazes, sweat trickling down our temples. What exactly was Toguro? Every second he seemed to be more than a youkai. He was more like a monster, but something told me that wasn't enough. He was the Devil.


“Remaining at top strength is demanding, and my body gets an impulse to devour souls! But its not until I decide to kill that feeding begins!” Toguro smirked wickedly at Yusuke's glaring face. “I've chosen evil, and in twenty minutes everyone will be gone! Aren't you going to do something to stop me, Urameshi?! Or will your friends have to watch as you let these people die?!” he shouted, a dark chuckle escaping his lips.


The tubes began to suck the air once again, the swishing of air reaching my ears. Wisps of light blue, fog-like souls began to whip around the stadium and when it started heading towards us, Koenma rose his hand, strengthening the barrier. The wisps formed around us, heading towards the stands and I looked back, sighing in relief when I still saw the barrier around the girls. However, the youkai weren't lucky, all of them were holding onto themselves, sweat trickling down their faces before their too burst into the wisps of souls. I shivered in disgust, turning my cold glare on Toguro's smirking form. How could anyone find this  pleasing?! He was stripping these youkai of their lives, and despite how they wanted us to die, that didn't mean that they deserved this kind of fate!


My angered thoughts, however, were broken when I heard two things. 1, I heard the voice of a very familiar referee that decided to abandon us, her voice and body trembling as she stood behind a large piece of the broken ring. And 2, I heard the youkai scream once again, but this time they were running towards the holes in the stadium walls, trying to escape. I watched them with jealously, wishing that my team and I could do that. But considering Toguro would only kill us, that, unfortunately, was not a possible option.


Koto was now at her feet. “Afraid of being sucked into Toguro's body, the weaker fans who can't defend themselves are stampeding out of this stadium! Their faces contorted by panic!” she shouted over the youkai's screaming.


Turning away from the youkai I looked back at Toguro, seeing the souls still sucking into his tubes, and suddenly my eyes widened. However, it wasn't Toguro who caused it this time, it was Sakyo. The black haired ningen gambler pulled a strange black, flip-open device and pressed three buttons. My eyes narrowed in suspicion at the smirking gambler, and when I felt the ground below us begin to shake violently, I knew my feelings were justified.


I let go of Hiei's shirt, anger and fear coursing through my body. “What the fuck did you do?!” I shouted angrily, about to try and grab the gambler by his throat, but Hiei stopped me, holding out his arm.


Sakyo just glanced at me, his smirk widening ever so slightly. A growl rumbled in my throat, but before I had a chance to open my mouth or think of words, the rumbling grew more violent. I stumbled slightly but held my balance, snapping my head in the direction of the youkai. Large, thick black rectangular shape metal walls lifted from the ground, reaching high above the stadium in a large circle, completely encasing us and the youkai inside. My heart skipped a beat, my eyes widening in shock as the youkai began to let out shouts, banging on the metal walls, but not making a single scratch or dent on it. I turned back to Sakyo, my wide eyes staying. This ningen, was he really going to trap us in here to die?!


“Oh,  you can't want to leave us, your lives are worth less than the tickets,” Sakyo said mockingly with a smirk, lighting a cigarette as it hung from his lips.


The youkai began to shout in angered voices, and out of all of them I only heard one voice that was able to be heard clearly. “I'm not going down without a fight! I'm gonna charge that bastard!” And with that, youkai began to jump from the stands and run towards Toguro's form.


I shook my head slowly at them. “They're so stupid, they're just killing themselves for no reason.” I said, frowning deeply.


The youkai shouted out battle cries, acting as if they had a chance at taking down Toguro. Toguro, himself, just stared at them as they came towards him, their fists and claws raised threateningly. Closing his eyes briefly, Toguro put his thumb behind his pointer finger once again, letting rounds of Spirit Bullets to fly through the air and right through most of the youkai's bodies. I swallowed thickly, nausea swimming through  me as I watched the youkai's bodies being torn apart, their blood splattering the ground in a sea of red. However, Toguro wasn't done yet. Seeing more continue to run at him despite his power, he threw his right arm to the side, the energy mixed into his arm slamming into their bodies and tearing them apart as well. More screams erupted from them, and I desperately tried to block them out.


More of the blue misted souls were sucked into Toguro's bodies, making the tree-like man smirk darkly. “All you weaklings had best remain in your seats, Yusuke and I have some disagreeable tempers,” he said sadistically, and that made me glare at him vehemently. Yusuke was NOT like him in any way!


“Shut up, Toguro!” Yusuke shouted angrily as he appeared above Toguro's head, his fist raised. “Don't you ever put me in the same category as you!”


Yusuke let his fist fly, it landing point blank onto Toguro's forehead. At first it looked like nothing happened, but before I grow worried Yusuke's Spirit Energy erupted in a bright blue light, it ripping the ground beneath the two apart. Rocks flew overhead while others disintegrated just by the touch of Yusuke's power. Hope filled my heart for a fleeting second, hoping that this attack would have some kind of effect on him. However, that hope was crushed when I saw the amused smirk play on Toguro's lips, a look in his eyes that couldn't help but make me shiver involuntarily. Oh god, Yusuke, please be careful.


“Now we're starting to get somewhere.” Toguro smirked wider. “So, it's your refusal to admit how much you and I are similar that makes you lash out at me,” he said, his amusement seeming to grow as those words passed his lips.  


“Look how much power Yusuke's creating!” one of the youkai shouted.


My heated glare couldn't even compare to the one that was in Yusuke's eyes just now. Letting out a shout of anger Yusuke through rapid punches at Toguro's body, going from his head to his chest to his arms and anywhere else that could hurt the ningen-turned-youkai. Every time a punch landed a loud, sickening smash would be heard making me almost flinch, but considering it was Toguro getting hurt I ignored the sound. Most of Yusuke's power seemed to be going into those punches, but even I could tell that he wasn't really using ALL of it. Something was holding him back and I wasn't sure what it was, but I knew that Toguro would try and find a way to bring it out, and I was getting a bad feeling about how he would do that. I swallowed thickly once again, glancing at the boys all around me. If Toguro even so much as dares to touch one of them, I'll kill him myself!


“Go Urameshi! Kill Toguro!” a green youkai shouted from the stands, taking me by surprise.


I turned, seeing a blue youkai standing next to the one that had just spoken, punching his fist in the air. “We're behind you all the way, brother!” he shouted, however this time I was annoyed.


“The opinion polls have changed,” Hiei said lowly.


I rolled my eyes. “Wow, I didn't see that coming,” I spat sarcastically.


Our attention turned back to Yusuke and Toguro, seeing the black haired ningen still throwing quick, but painful punches at the taller man. Each second that this went on was one more second of us growing more rigid and anxious, Kuwabara being a perfect example of it. He was glaring angrily at Toguro, but his body was shaking slightly from both fear and anger. However, out feelings would only amplify. Without any warning, Toguro slammed his fist into Yusuke's jaw, sending the Spirit Detective flying through the air, a shout of pain escaping his lips. But thankfully he flipped over, landing on his feet before pushing off the ground, racing towards Toguro once again. Pulling back his fist, Yusuke let out another shout, throwing it with all the strength that he was letting out, only for Toguro to grab it effortlessly.


“You know that's not good enough,” Toguro growled lowly.


Toguro let his hand clench over Yusuke's fist, making the black haired boy throw his head back, shouting in pain as we could practically almost hear the bones breaking. Raising Yusuke off the ground, Toguro sent a strong punch into his gut, making him throw up blood. However, the bastard wasn't done with Yusuke yet. His right fist slammed into Yusuke's face like Yusuke's had done to him, and blood flew from his lips as his head was being thrown every which way from the force of the punches. My eyes widened in horror as my hands rose to my lips, fear racking my body. I hated not doing anything, not being able to help him, it made me feel like I was weak. It made me think of that day all over again, when I couldn't save him...


The blows got harder and harder, making me flinch each time they connected with Yusuke's body. Sometimes, just for his own amusement, Toguro would switch up his attack. He would send strong upper-cuts into his stomach, slam his fist under Yusuke's chin, and then go back to go back to the rapid punches to his face once again. Yusuke could only fight to stay conscious as he coughed up blood.  The boys beside me, however, didn't flinch like I was doing, they only stared with narrowed gazes at Toguro's bodies. And I couldn't even imagine how the girls were doing as they watched this. It was horrible. And poor Keiko, that girl never knew Yusuke went on such dangerous missions all the time and she must be scared to death.


However, my thoughts were cut off when I saw Toguro send a powerful kick into Yusuke's chest, sending the black haired Spirit Detective into the air. “YUSUKE!” Keiko's scream echoed across the stadium as Yusuke's body slammed against the ground, making me frown at the emotion that was in her voice.


All eyes snapped to Yusuke's form, hearing a weak, “Kei...ko...” spill from his lips.


If I wasn't so angry at Toguro, I would have let out a sigh of relief because he was still conscious, but for obvious reasons I just couldn't. But the anger filled me once again, hearing Toguro's shoes click against the ground as he walked towards Yusuke, his eyes narrowed in obvious annoyance. My fists clenched once again, seeing him stop before Yusuke's body. And just a second after I saw Yusuke's eyes snap open, a fear in them that wasn't towards Toguro. However, before I could wonder Toguro slamed his foot painfully in Yusuke's cut. The black haired ningen's eyes widened with pain, and blood shot out of his mouth as he gave a chocked shout.


“I won't let you avoid your problems forever.” Toguro narrowed his eyes into a dangerous glare. “The only waiting does is cause more people to die,” he growled lowly as we all heard the familiar sucking of air.


The blue wisps of souls rose from the youkai's bodies, leaving them to fall to the ground as they disintegrated, the souls being sucked into Toguro's body once again. I grimaced, and I couldn't help but feel bad for them. Even if they were youkai who wanted us dead, I didn't wish this upon anyone. However, I tore my gaze away from the crowd as they shout and screamed in fear, turning my saddened gaze over to Yusuke's form, Toguro's foot still pressed into his gut. The pain on his face only made me feel worse than before, the anger still raging inside me despite my expression not letting it show. If Toguro comes close to killing him, then screw it, I'm jumping inside. Screw the rules, Yusuke and the boys are more important!


Koto's eyes were half lidded, staggering as she tried to keep herself up. “They's relatively few of us left in the audience now, Toguro's too much. His draining powers is taking it's toll on the strongest...” She let out a gasp as she fell to her knees, barely lifting the microphone to her lips. “I don't know if you'll hear this broadcast much longer...” she trailed off, gasping once again when she felt the pressure leaving.


I glanced at her, my eyes widening ever so slightly when I saw Chu and Rinku holding out their hands, building a barrier around themselves and Koto. “Rage on there Sheila, I got ya tail. You do want to be a bonza announcer, don't ya?” Chu asked, smirking down at Koto.


“Uh...yeah,” Koto mumbled, staring at Chu with a surprised gaze.


Chu looked over at Rinku. “You're a rip-snorter over there, aren't ya mate?”


“Oh yeah,” Rinku said with a nod, ignoring George's gestures next to him to get inside the barrier.


That moment of surprise, however, was instantly forgotten when I heard the sound of Yusuke's grunts. My eyes widened and I snapped my eyes over to his form, seeing him desperately trying to hold up Toguro's foot with his hands. The ground beneath him began to crack and break at the pressure and force being pushed down upon him. His arms shook with strain, and sweat trickled down his temple as he grunted with effort. Come on Yusuke, you can do this...


“You see I become something of a different person when I take my full youkai form.” Toguro smirked sadistically as he looked down at Yusuke. “I'll do anything to get what I desire!” he shouted, his smirk widening as he turned to the girls, or more specifically one of them. Keiko.


Yusuke's eyes widened with that familiar fear-filled look, and I instantly remembered the look from before, and a gasp escaped his lips.  Toguro held up his left arm, his Spirit Energy building into it at a dangerous level before he released it, sending a a blue, disk-shaped Energy bullet towards the girls, and my eyes widened with horror quickly turning towards them as the disk connected, a loud explosion filling our ears and I only saw dust filling the spot where the girls were. My heart skipped a beat, fear filling my body. And I could tell from Yusuke's expression before, he was more scared than I would ever be.


I kept praying that they were all right, and after a few tense seconds of waiting for the dust to settle, I let out a sigh of relief when I saw that my prayers were answered. Where the huge whole was from the explosion only held three or four dead youkai bodies, and a good few feet away from them were the girls looking completely fine and untouched. I let out a shaky breath, my hand lightly over my rapidly beating heart. That was way too close for comfort. Seeing the girls expression of shock and fear, I knew that they were feeling the same way too. Obviously. However, for some reason Keiko wasn't looking towards the whole. Was she...?


“I'll wonder if I'll miss next time?” Toguro asked, breaking my thoughts.


I looked back at him, glaring heatedly along with Yusuke, that bastard! However, Yusuke let out a shout as his Spirit Energy skyrocketed once again, easily slipping himself out from under Toguro's foot and  jumped back, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. Letting out another shout, Yusuke kicked off the ground into a run and slammed his fist into Toguro's face. Toguro's face and torso turned, and seeing him -seemingly- off balance, Yusuke went to do it once more. However, a spark was in Toguro's eyes, and he back fisted Yusuke's jaw with his left hand, cutting off Yusuke's shout and sending him back into the lower stadium wall. The impact made me flinch and gasp, hearing the wall collapse and seeing the dust fly into the air.


“Yusuke!” I shouted, my voice shaking with worry.


“You're an incredible disappointment.” Toguro stared narrowly down at Yusuke's body as the dust settled, seeing him sitting limply against the broken wall. “I went through so much in the assumption that you would be the one person who could fight me. If I'm proven wrong, you'll pay for it. Dearly,” he warned lowly.


“I'll get you,” Yusuke growled weakly as he lifted his head, his eyes glaring dangerously.


Kuwabara stepped forward, his eyes narrowed with worry. “No! Don't give up now, Urameshi!” he shouted.


“I've never known Toguro to act this viscously, he's always so business like,” Sakyo said with a smirk on his lips, his cigarette bouncing ever so slightly with every word.


I scoffed sarcastically. “Yes, this is so out of character,” I spat heatedly.


The anger was growing more and more, and the shouts of defeat from the crowd were not helping me in slightest. Yusuke WASN'T going to lose this fight! I know he'll pull through, he would never let someone like Toguro win! When this is over and we're the champions, they're going to be sorry that they ever doubted him! However, my angered thoughts were cut off when I saw Toguro walking towards Yusuke's body. My body tensed up, and if I sensed a powerful attack being put together I was going in, despite my wounded side and low Spirit Energy. But I stopped when I saw Toguro halt, looking up into the sky. The boys and I did as well, hearing the sound of wings flapping and our eyes narrowed with confusion when we saw Puu flying down towards Yusuke's body.


Puu flew in place before Yusuke's form, eyes half-lidded in a familiar gaze as he opened his mouth, “You will never let this old woman have some peace and quite, will you Yusuke?” ...Genkai asked?!


“What...the hell?” I asked weakly, my eyes wide disbelief.


I wasn't the only one confused, Kuwabara jumping back with shock as his eyes widened comically. “Genkai's come back to life and she looks exactly like Puu!” he shouted, almost making me jump at the loud volume of his voice. However, I swallowed down any comments that tried to make themselves heard, this was serious.


“Toguro.” Genkai/Puu glanced at the ningen-turned-youkai. “You want to see Yusuke's real power come to the surface? I'll tell you how, he's very predictable.” Upon hearing that, I stared at Genkai with wide eyes, a very bad feeling filling my stomach. “The only thing you have to do is kill one of his friends, and make sure he's watching,” she said with a calm, even voice, ignoring Kuwabara's, Yusuke's and my gasps.


“What?!” I practically shrieked, my heart literally stopping for a second. No...


Yusuke's eyes widened as he sat up, looking towards Genkai. “Genkai! What the hell's the matter with you?!” he asked, his eyes wide with disbelief as well.


“Yusuke has a six foot wall of crap between him and his actual emotions, and that's where his power resides,” Genkai explained, ignoring Yusuke's shout. “To break through that wall, you have to do something drastic, like killing someone he really cares for.”


“Dieing must have ruined your heart, Genkai!” Yusuke shouted angrily.


Genkai swooped down towards him, eyes narrowed. “Open your childish eyes, dimwit. If you don't stop Toguro everyone in this stadium dies and dammit, if the life of one friend is what it takes for you to save the rest of them than that sacrifice is worth it!” she snapped, and I swear I was paralyzed to the ground.


“NO!” Yusuke jumped to his feet, pointing an accusing finger at Genkai. “Your nothing but a stupid little hypocrite! You told me to commit to something all the way, and I chose my friends! Now you say killing one is motivation is okay?!” he asked/shouted with a growl, only to have Genkai slap Yusuke across the face with Puu's wings/ears, shocking Yusuke only for a second before he glare at her. But when he saw the look that was on her face, the glare in his eyes fell.


“Sorry Yusuke, but this is the world you stuck yourself into and it's not pretty. When you're not strong enough to lead, you lose the privilege of getting what you want,” Genkai said sincerely, her eyes showing that she had been through this once before.


Before anymore words could be passed between the two, Toguro's Spirit Energy spiked and he held his thumb behind his pointer finger and flicked two Spirit Bullets at the two. One connected with Yusuke's face, sending the Spirit Detective to the ground, while Genkai barely dodged the one that was shot at her.  I heard her flap away from the two, but I was too busy worried over Yusuke to figure out where she went. Yusuke let out a groan of pain, his teeth clenching together as he seethed slightly. Toguro stood above Yusuke's form, his face emotionless and that didn't help the fear that was raging through my body. Toguro would kill one of us without any hesitation. We all knew that, and I hated it.


“I had that idea a while back and I didn't like the way it felt,” Toguro said with a frown, and I scoffed. “But if nothing else will bring out your true abilities, well you heard before, I'll do anything. All I have to do is choose which one.”


Toguro turned towards us, and the glare that was in my eyes dropped, fear quickly replacing it. I looked back at the boys, hoping that none of them would be picked. The only problem was that I wasn't that close to Yusuke as I was with Hiei, Kurama and Kuwabara. Sure we were still friends, and I look at him as my younger brother but I knew that Toguro never saw how close we were to even think of my as a possible target like the others. I still hoped that he would still pick me, despite how stupid that was, but I would rather me go than any of the boys. I turned back to Toguro, wiling myself to not be scared and to narrow my eyes at him like the others, standing my ground despite the shakiness. Toguro only trailed over us with those dark eyes, going from left to right and back again. It was unnerving, to say the least.


“Don't do this,” Yusuke growled weakly, shakily getting to his knees.


Toguro only ignored him, a sudden smirk appearing on his lips as he pointed towards us. “How about you...” A dramatic pause hung in the air, scaring me even more before he finally asked, “...Kuwabara?”


Yusuke, Kuwabara and I stiffened at the name that passed Toguro's lips, and my eyes widened with horror. Despite how things started out between Kuwabara and I, we grew close over the months that passed since we met, and he grew to be something like an annoying -but lovable- little brother I wouldn't want to trade for anything in the world. Knowing that someone like Toguro was going to harm someone I cared for, again, the fear paralyzed me once again, nothing that my mind screamed to my body wouldn't get me to move or say anything. All I could do was just stare, something I always hated to do. No...


“Urameshi does appear to be the most protective of you.” Toguro smirked for a brief second, before a serious expression took over. “Lets see you bring out his hidden emotions, I'll make this quick,” he said, walking towards our group slowly.  


“Stop it, Toguro!” Yusuke shouted, getting to his feet before jumping over Toguro's form.


Landing before Toguro's form, Yusuke let out a barrage of punches towards the taller man's chest, however Toguro just kept walking as if nothing was happening, Yusuke's feet sliding against the ground. With each step Toguro took, the more Yusuke got desperate and the more I became scared. And my fear only increased when Toguro slammed the back of his fist into Yusuke's jaw, sending the Spirit Detective sliding against the ground, a dark line of uprooted dirt below him. Toguro only glanced at Yusuke before he continued forward once again, his eyes locked intently on Kuwabara's slightly shaken, but narrowed eyed form.


“Bastard,” Yusuke hissed, blood falling from his lips.


Getting to his feet once again, Yusuke kicked off into a run towards Toguro, only for the taller man to slam his fist into Yusuke's neck, making Yusuke cough up blood and stumble. Not giving Yusuke any time to dodge, Toguro back-fisted him, sending him to the ground once again. I bit my lip, watching this sadistic fight play before my eyes, not even noticing Kuwabara clench his teeth and narrow his eyes in determination, the look increasing every time Yusuke was hit.


“If he makes it over here, the four of us must fight him together,” Kurama said lowly to us.


I, somehow having enough strength, nodded firmly. “Got it, that bastard's going to die one way or another,” I hissed quietly, my red eyes flashing with anger.


Hiei glanced at the two of us with narrowed eyes, raising an eyebrow slightly. “With what secret weapon? You two have been barely able to stand up since your flirtings with death,” he said seriously, and I couldn't help but frown even more at the sound of that. Dammit, I thought he wouldn't notice...


Kurama turned to him briefly.“Yes, your Darkness Flame technique hasn't left much of you either. We could run, if you want,” he suggested jokingly with a slight smirk on his lips.


“Don't be simple, I'll take Toguro alone if I must,” Hiei said, narrowing his eyes.


The three of us turned back to the two, our eyes meeting Yusuke's hunched over form as Toguro's fist embedded itself into his  gut, blood spilling out of his mouth almost instantly, a chocking gag-like sound meeting our ears. Yusuke fell to his knees, one hand on the ground holding himself up, while the other was  at his stomach, holding it there as if that would make the pain go away. I didn't care if I could barely move, that I barely had any Spirit Energy left, all I want was to kill that bastard for what he did and for what he was doing now. And watching him stare down at Yusuke with a smirk-filled face didn't help either.


“You do know that this is your fault, right? Living in a constant state of repression,” Toguro mocked.


Yusuke got to his feet, eyes wide with anger. “NO!” he shouted, holding out his right hand in the shape of a gun, his left hand holding it steady as he tried to charge it.


However before he could, Toguro appeared behind him, making the ningen stiffen in shock. “Relax Yusuke, I'll free you up,” he said emotionlessly as he grabbed Yusuke's head, slamming it down into the ground, applying more pressure to make the ground below his face smash painfully. I let out a growl, watching as Toguro left Yusuke's motionless body face down on the ground. His face was as emotionless as ever, obviously not caring that he would be taking a innocent ningen life. Bastard.


The boys and I glared at Toguro heatedly, getting into fighting stances. “Ready?” Kurama asked, Hiei and I only nodding in response.


Kuwabara, however, stepped in front of us, making our eyes widen as we straighten out of our stances. “Stay back guys, I'm the one he wants,” he said, his tone leaving no room for arguments. Pff. Like I care!


“What?! Kuwabara, he wants to kill you!” I shouted, staring at him like he was crazy.


“Just stop and think, Kuwabara!” Kurama added, eyes narrowed.


Hiei stepped forward, raising an eyebrow at Hiei, his blood red eyes scrutinizing him. “Its not time for your showmanship. Face Toguro alone now, and you'll die before this minute is through,” he snapped in annoyance, but when Kuwabara only grunted in response, he eyes widened along with Kurama's and mine.


“Hey Koenma,” Kuwabara called, ignoring our gazes as he turned to the teenaged prince next to us. “You ricked your life on Urameshi's fight, and now I'm gonna do the same. So make a place for me, and make sure my wake is as good as his,” he said with a smirk, giving us a two fingered salute. I just stared at him, too shocked to shout at him or even move. Why was he doing this?! He doesn't have to die, he should know that!


“Kuwabara! I..uh...” Koenma trailed off, not knowing what to say in this situation.


“There's no stopin' him, and if I'm gonna go now, I'm gonna go chargin' at full speed!” Kuwabara shouted with that smirk widening, his Spirit Sword materializing in his palm as he walked calmly towards Toguro's form. “A mulberry's a tree, and Kuwabara's a man! And I'll prove it! We all have to die when our time comes, but if we do our duty we don't got regrets! So taste a little piece of my sword, Toguro!” he shouted, kicking off into a run.


“Kuwabara no!” Yusuke shouted, getting to his feet weakly, his eyes wide with fear and panic.


Kuwabara ignored him, and I shouted for him to stop as well, my legs moving on their own, but before I could run any further, two arms grabbed my waist pulling me back to my original spot. I grunted at the pain that was in my side, feeling them tighten their hold as I tried to desperately get out of their arms. My eyes narrowed as tears pricked behind them, and I looked over at my shoulder with a glare, seeing Koenma holding me. I wasn't sure why I couldn't break out of his hold, maybe I was too weak, maybe I was hurt more than I thought, or maybe I was too scared to really do anything. And I prayed to whoever would hear me that the last one wasn't the right answer.


“Let go of me, Koenma! He's going to die!” I shouted, trashing in his arms, my eyes widening with panic.


Koenma let out grunts as he tried to restrain me. “If you go you'll only die, too!” he shouted at me, as if that would be enough reason for me to stop.


I continued to thrash, shouting, “I don't care! Le go!”


I heard Kuwabara's shout once again, and I quickly turned my head towards him, seeing holding his Spirit Sword above his head, ready to strike it down on Toguro's body. I struggled harder, both for that reason and because when Toguro suddenly disappeared, a dark chuckle left his lips. Seeing that, Kuwabara's eyes widened for a brief second and he let out a surprised gasp. Stopping in his tracks. Because my eyes were better than his, I saw Toguro appear before Kuwabara could even blink. Toguro let out a smirk, thrusting his fingers into Kuwabara's chest in one quick swipe, and Kuwabara realized what happened as a chocked sound of pain escaped his lips.


My heart stopped, a cold chill consuming my body, my thrashing stopping on a dime. I stared with wide tear filled eyes, my mouth agape, no thoughts rushing through my mind to tell me what had just happened. However, as I continued to stare at Toguro's fingers sticking out of Kuwabara's left pectoral. I was in too much shock to wince when Toguro pulled out his digits, blood coating his fingers. Kuwabara let out a choke-like cough, blood spilling from his lips just like it was doing from the five wounds in his chest. My legs gave out beneath me, making me fall to my knees and out of Koenma's grasp, not noticing or sensing the concerned gazes that fell on my form. I only focused on the ningen I thought of as a friend, a young, annoying brother. I just stared him as his life slowly seeped away from him.


Not again...


“NO!” Yusuke shouted, his eyes wide with horror.


Kuwabara staggered forward, a smirk on his lips  “Okay Urameshi,” Kuwabara started, before blood flew up his throat, spilling out of his mouth and onto the ground. “...It's all you, I did what I could...now beat him for...all of us. Make my death count...okay?” he asked, his smirk dropping as his eyes lost their shine, and he fell to his knees.


Hiei, Kurama and Koenma ran forward towards the ningen, however one stopped for a short second, glancing at me from over their shoulder before remembering what they were doing. I didn't know who it was, and right now I didn't care. All I could see was Kuwabara's body falling forward, his body hitting the ground in a slumped over position. My body trembled violently, seeing Kurama quickly fall to his knees beside Kuwabara, grabbing ahold of Kuwabara's body.


“Hold on now, Kuwabara! Just stay with us!” Kurama pulled Kuwabara's arm over his head, letting it rest over his shoulder, trying to hold him up. “Kuwabara! Just...stay with us...” he trailed off, his head looking towards the ground as his shoulders shook visibly, hearing no response.


Yusuke stared at Kuwabara's body with anguish and guilt in his eyes, before he lowered his head, shaking.


Toguro crossed his arms, a bored look on his face. “That's anti-climactic, you knew him for so long and now he's dead.” He glanced at Yusuke's shaking form. “Do you think that was sufficient for you? Or do I need to take another of your friends for you to get the point?” he asked with a sick, sinister smirk playing across his lips.


Yusuke's body stopped shaking, a small white and purple circle of Energy forming under his kneeled form. His body began to glow as he slowly rose to his feet, making the boys gasp and Toguro look over at him. But when they did, their eyes widened when they saw his body disappear in  two small wisps of Energy. Toguro's eyes widened slightly before he whipped his head and body around, seeing Yusuke standing behind him, green-ish gold Spirit Energy smoldering around him like a flame. My eyes sluggishly fell over his form, not so much as glancing at Toguro's body when it glowed blue for a short second. I held onto a small sliver of hope that I would find something in Yusuke's downcast face that would tell me that this was a lie. That Kuwabara was okay, but I only saw his eyes sorrowful and his lips set in a sad frown.


Yusuke kept his eyes facing towards the ground. “You took my teacher, and now I let you take my friend. What the hell do you want from me?” he asked quietly, his voice shrouded in sadness.


A bright blue oval of Spirit Energy formed beneath Yusuke's feet, and no one said a word, feeling the black haired ningen's Spirit Energy rise to heights no one thought would be possible for a ningen to have. The dust and debris that littered the ground blew away from the oval, the clouds of dust moving away in the shape of a growing circle before dissipating, and darker blue orbs of Energy lifted into the air. Yusuke stood in the center of it all, the Energy moving his hair softly over his liquid like brown eyes, as if a breeze was washing by him.


“All right, Toguro, you got what you wished for,” Kurama growled softly, eyes narrowed into a glare.


Yusuke lifted his head, staring at Toguro. “Don't you think I wanted to use my power and win this thing and go home? Of course. I just didn't know how to reach it, and I have to live with that,” he whispered, as if he feared for his voice to crack with emotion.


“Maybe not for long, Yusuke,” Toguro grinned twistedly.  


Yusuke said nothing, only staring at Toguro as I saw tears form, but none fell.


That's when it everything hit me. Seeing the guilt on Yusuke's grief stricken face as tears sat in his eyes.


Kuwabara was...


Tears threatened to spill, but it was like an invisible wall was holding them in, allowing me to watch the world around me with a blurred gaze. I couldn't move, I couldn't think, I couldn't do anything but stare in horror. I wanted to scream, I wanted to cry, I wanted to kill Toguro for what he did, but... I...I was too scared. I was in too much shock.


I couldn't do anything.


Flashes of my past filled my mind, making the pain in my chest intensify. My father's fear-filled face, the pain in his eyes, those warm eyes losing their brightness and life. This happened before. It may not have been exactly the same, but the end result was the same. Someone important to me was dead, killed right in front of me while I did NOTHING. I was such a child despite the years that went by since that night, all I could do was stare and watch as my loved ones were taken away from me. My father died before me, and now Kuwabara.


How many people have died now?


My mother. My father. Genkai. And now...Kuwabara. Four. Who was the say that he would be the last? Who would be next? Would it be the girls? Would it be Koenma? Would it be Yusuke? Would it be Kurama? Would it be Hie-


A sharp, painful jolt went through me, my heart aching so much it actually began to hurt. If I wasn't paralyzed with shock I would have clutched my chest, trying to make the pain go away, but I couldn't. The tears finally fell, the situation finally sinking into me as my gaze never left the red haired ningen, my chest still aching horribly.


Everyone was beginning to die around me.


It was going to happen again.


Oh god...


No!


I couldn't go through that again! I couldn't bear the thought of burying those that I loved! I already did that with my parents when I was a child, I didn't want to do it again! I wasn't going to do it again! I don't want to be alone anymore! I don't want to wake up feeling empty, I felt too much of that before, I couldn't go back to that life!


Please God, don't let me...


Please God, don't let me go back to that world. Don't let me feel that painful loneliness again. That pain was almost unbearable, feeling that emptiness that couldn't be filled. I don't want to go back to the world where the people I loved are gone. I don't want to see anymore faces being filled with fear, pain, and death. I want to keep seeing everyone smiling, I want to see them ALIVE. I want to keep seeing Hiei's smirk, I want our 'arguments' to keep going on after this, I don't want what we have to end. Ever. I want to keep seeing Kurama's gentle, brother-like gaze, hear his comforting words, experience his concerned protectiveness. I want to keep hearing Yusuke's sarcastic voice, watch him grow, see that cocky smirk on his lips as he taunts an enemy or even us. I want to see Kuwabara smile that goofy smile, hear him laugh that annoying laugh that never fails to bring a smile to our lips -except Hiei's- despite us not wanting to, and watch him make a fool of himself in front of Yukina or just in general. I want to see the girl's cheerful faces, their sweet personalities, and experience their sisterly nature.


I don't want to lose this world. I don't want to go back to the darkness.


I don't want to be alone again.


I don't want to be scared.


I don't want this!


I want to be happy for once in my life! I want to feel like everything will be okay no matter what happens!


I want this nightmare to end!


Please! Whoever is up there, just make it end!


Please!


Please...


~*~*~*~*~< br>

Ending it here! Poor Kuwabara D: I always hated this scene after I finally started to like him as a character (yes I know, I'm mean). And poor Kira, she can never get a break,huh? Well, I hope you all liked this chapter and I'll see you all in the next chapter. Bye!
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