Chapter 19
LAST TIME:
A hand tapped her shoulder, and Kagome turned to come face to face with none other than...a woman in the blue and white robes of a fully trained miko. And Kagome knew exactly whom she was. "L-Lady Kikyo!"
The miko smiled slightly and nodded her head. "Yes… I don't often tread among humans…" Her face took on a look of embarrassment as she said, "Would you mind if I sat with you to watch the fight?"
"O-of course! I mean, no, I don't m-mind!" Kagome, flustered from finally meeting her role model for any and all priestess duties, quickly turned away from her and frantically searched yet again for a seat.
"There's one," Kikyo blurted, directing Kagome's eyes to an empty pair amid demon-occupied seats. She smiled her small, shy smile, then grabbed Kagome's forearm and rushed over before they were taken.
"Seat's taken," grumbled the demon immediately to the left of their destination; he was staring intently at the ring below them. Both girls could tell he was lying. A simple human with no powers could tell he was lying. The guy was just that bad.
"I don't think so," Kagome stated, settling comfortably in her chair. She kept her eyes trained on the Urimeshi Team as they prepared to battle. Why did Urimeshi seem so familiar? She could have sworn she'd seen that face before… Somewhere in Ningenkai, to be sure.
"Not you, girl; the other one." He smiled what she thought he believed was a charming smile (despite the fact it failed miserably at any resemblance to charm), then stared back at the arena.
"Whatever." The thrill of meeting Lady Kikyo had worn off when the teams had lined up in the ring. Kagome couldn't keep her eyes off them.
Kikyo started to say something then, but both of her "companions" shushed her. The match had finally started, and they were going to watch it if it killed them—and it very well might.
Whatever was going on in the ring was one-sided. The vertically challenged Masked Fighter was the only one able to dodge the Ichigaki Team's elusive attacks. What was going on? Could Urimeshi and his friend really not see their energy? The leader kept trying to dodge more than those two rings that were thrown at him; it looked more like he saw six. As for the others: a long pole and an energy punch aren't hard to dodge.
This match was totally screwed.
Finally, Kagome couldn't take it anymore. She stood up and leaned slightly over the seat in front of her. "Urimeshi, is that the best you've got?" she yelled, hands cupped around her mouth as amplifiers. "I can do better than that, moron! I can do WAY better! Don't tell me the human team is gonna lose the stinkin' fight 'cause they can't see their opponents' friggen' energy!"
Her taunts were getting to them. Well, they were getting to Urimeshi anyway. "Shut up!" he shouted back at her, having pinpointed the annoyance as she spoke. "You don't know what you're freakin' talkin' about! You're just some stupid girl who thinks she's better than everyone else!"
"Well apparently I'm better than you; you can't even see their stupid energy!"
"How the hell do you know that! I can see their energy just fine—!"
"Yeah right! That's really why you can't dodge two damn rings, an energy punch, and a stupid energy javelin! You moron!"
"You've already called me a moron—wait, did you just say there are only two damn rings!"
"Yes! IDIOT! Dodge them, not the fakes!"
"If I'd known there were fakes, I wouldn't have wasted my time, like I am right now!"
His eyebrow was twitching. It was twitching so bad it looked as if it might twitch right off his face. Kagome didn't take this as a good sign; neither did the rest of the demons in the stadium with half a brain.
"Oh, crap..."
Yusuke's energy exploded around him, curling around his form with the angered strength of a venomous snake. Damn that girl for making him mad. Damn that girl for being right. And damn that girl for actually helping!
He could see what she was talking about now. There WERE only two damn rings dangling from the redhead's forearms, not six. The one with the braided black hair was carrying a long pole, which sparkled white. That same shimmering energy surrounded the brunette's right fist. 'Guess their attacks really aren't that special.'
"Urimeshi, stop!" Kuwabara spoke up. "Don't fight them." He dematerialized his orange sword, and stood in the center of the ring, completely prone to attacks.
The Ichigaki Team seized the opportunity and struck. Even if KuwaBAKA could have seen their energy, there was no way he could have dodged with all three attacks coming at him.
"KUWABARA!" the team leader called out, eyes wide. Was he admitting defeat—committing suicide?
When the smoke cleared, Kuwabara barely stood there, shoulders drooping and body trembling. "Look at their eyes," he croaked.
Yusuke looked, and he couldn't tear his eyes away from the sight. Blood leaked from the corners and trailed down their cheeks. They were crying. They were crying blood.
Kuwabara stared into the folds of his mind. It was black. There was nothing, no thoughts at all. Then, there came great pain. Immeasurable pain. Each time his heart beat, each powerful pump, a shockwave of anguish flowed with it.
It wasn't just blood; something was in it. He cried out but made no sound. Not a whisper, croak, nor tiny bit of air passed his lips.
This was definitely not his mind; he had involuntarily intruded upon someone else's thoughts.
'What's going on?'
He wasn't left guessing for long.
A memory joined him in that mysterious black expanse. There were several guys—humans—gathered around a futon. On that futon rested an older man: not graying—he still had fair brown hair—but certainly not young. The boys were crying; tears dripped from every one of their chins, collecting into small, wet pools on the hardwood floor.
All was silent. Nothing could be heard, not even the boys' voices as they spoke to one another, obviously discussing something, most likely the man in the middle.
Then a few of them turned their attention to the sliding paper door. The door slipped to the side, revealing a short, ugly troll. He said something to them; he must have degraded the man, for several of the boys jumped to their feet, highly insulted, while the others sat in shock.
The troll spoke again. This time, they all turned their heads to examine the man's face. Mr. Troll spoke, pointing to three of the boys; they rose to their feet.
Kuwabara could now see the trio's faces clearly. They seemed oddly familiar...
The three exited the room, single file, in an extremely somber mood. The remaining boys cried harder, sobs shaking their forms, now that their companions were gone. Their only comfort was that the man would be saved.
The strange memory faded, only to be replaced by many more in some great slideshow. This time, those familiar boys were slaughtering innocent people. There were youkai, hanyou, ningens, men, women, children, more...
All of them ended up dead, slain at the hands of those three formerly innocent boys.
"Kill me." It was the first sound to be made all throughout, other than the horrid screams of dying people. And the voice that spoke those words seemed so calm, so decided, even as it admitted defeat.
"Kill us," the voice continued, picking up urgency. This time two others had joined it.
The three human members of Ichigaki's team appeared before him, replacing the images of the dead. They extended their arms, crying relentlessly, and implored Kuwabara to help them.
"Please, kill us. We must die!"
"We don't deserve to live!"
"Please, anything is better than this cursed existence!" Blood streaked down their cheeks, staining their faces with its crimson color.
"NO!" With each plea, Kuwabara's resolve strengthened. There was no way he would slay innocent souls. The real deserver of pain—in the form of a tortuously slow death—was Dr. Ichigaki.
Jerked out of the trance in his rage, he quickly materialized his sword, turning his body so he faced Ichigaki. "You..." He paused, and the arena, as well as everyone in the stadium, silenced, hanging to his words as though mesmerized by his voice. "You... Bastard!" Sword raised high above his head, Kuwabara sprinted forward, aiming a slash for Dr. Ichigaki's neck.
His attack was cut short, though, as the three enslaved souls came to the doctor's defense. Red and Javelin-guy grabbed his wrists, restraining him by locking each of his arms in their grip, while the third brought down his fist directly on Kuwabara's back. Blackness spotted his vision for a moment as a pang coursed through his spine.
But he didn't give up. He couldn't. Not after what he had just seen.
Even as the orange lightning-like energy slipped from his hand and disappeared, Kuwabara kept struggling. "You... jerk. How could you..." With another blow to his head, blood began to force itself up through his throat and out of his mouth. Between coughs, he somehow found the energy to finish. "...How could you lie to them? How could you steal their... fucking lives!" With his final words, their last blow was struck to his stomach, a blow that could have very well injured his internal organs.
And out went his lights.
"Kuwa...bara? Kuwabara? Kuwabara, an-answer me..." Yusuke stumbled over to his comrade, knees giving way just as he reached his side, and his energy dwindled before finally collapsing. "Damn it... I said answer me..." There was an uncommon tenderness in his words as he said it, the kind of care that typically eluded him in all his hotheaded glory. Gripping his shoulders, Yusuke began to mumble, "Kuwabara... You idiot, get up. Wake up, now." After he still didn't move for untold thousands of seconds, Yusuke shook him, and his voice rose in volume and pitch. "What the hell is wrong with you, you stupid baka? Why couldn't you just move? Why... WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOUR BRAIN? DID IT DIE OR SOMETHING! I'm surprised you even have one left!"
Yusuke's attempt to humor out the situation didn't help. In fact, it failed miserably. Damn. Damn it. Damn it, damn it, damn it... Damn.
"Damn."
He stood, rising to his full height. His energy once more swirled about him in an array of colors, primarily a shimmering white. "You bastards, you freakin' hurt him..." Yusuke's fingers tightened into a fist, solid and extremely capable of forcing through cement. His spirit energy clung to it as if the fist was its only lifeline. He pulled back, clenching his jaw almost as tightly as his fingers, and prepared to punch.
But he never got the chance to move. The Masked Fighter sullenly stepped in front of him, standing between one hothead and three still-teary boys. "Urimeshi, get a hold of yourself. It's not like you've never seen someone die." Her bland tone was a shocking jolt back to reality. Yusuke managed to snap out of it and look at his ally with actual sanity in his eyes before she turned her complete attention back to the opponents.
"Come on, fools. Attack me. Now."
The Lord of the Western Lands of Makai stood from his upholstered chair, more silent than a cat, and briskly stalked nearer to the window overlooking the stadium. He raised one hand and tapped the reinforced glass with his finger, the motion made impatient by his thoughts.
"What's going on down there?" he bit out, his voice soft and tinged with harshness. "There's something wrong with the Ichigaki humans..." Sometimes, apparently, Sesshomaru felt it was necessary for someone to state the obvious.
"Perhaps they're connected somehow."
Sesshomaru's head snapped toward the sarcastic tone. A feral growl pulsed from his chest at the offender's insolence; an unnerving glare supported his message.
"Akuma! Hold your tongue," was the soft-spoken response from another in the stadium balcony. The speaker turned to face Sesshomaru. "Lord Sesshomaru, I apologize for his negligence."
He regarded the young demon with an air of superiority, but chose to forgive him rather than offer punishment. "Do recall, young one, I am a Demon Lord here in Makai. Do not cross me, as well as consider your mission at all times, and our terms shall stay friendly. Clear?" He did not have to wait for a response to know that he had, in fact, been quite clear enough. The boy's red eyes glinted with grudging obedience; he obviously didn't prefer taking orders.
"Yes, Lord." Immediately following another fierce look from Sesshomaru, Akuma shifted his weight from his right to his left foot before stepping toward the observation window—a spot several yards away from Sesshomaru.
His defendant sent a powerful glare to the raven-colored hair lining his head as he turned his back. She, herself, stepped nearer to the Lord for observation of the events happening below them.
"Hayashi, what do you make of it?" He spoke to the young woman beside him without turning his eyes—focused once more on the ring—toward her.
"Suspicious. I don't think it has anything to do with him, though. That one has Ichigaki written all over it." Haya's gaze lingered on the redhead collapsed behind the two other Urimeshi Team members. Her judgment placed him to be a bumbling idiot with strong morals and a will to survive. He wasn't dead. Surprisingly enough, it would take a lot to kill him.
Haya felt her spirit perk in the direction of one of the guards stationed before the entrance to the prep room designated Ichigaki's this round. Yes, Taiza?
Incoming demons. Urimeshi members Kurama and Hiei riding some strange mechanical demons. Yume and I are out of sight, and I've got our auras covered. The demons don't look like they plan on stopping before they reach the walls.
Is it him?
No. Ichigaki's done this, I'm sure.
Fair enough. Keep your post.
Done.
"Sesshomaru." Haya addressed him in a sharp tone, keeping it soft so as to not cause alarm. "Pay attention to the entrance on your right." He nodded, hawk-like eyes missing none of the action.
Then the wall seemed to explode, and amid the rubble and flying dust, out came—
The Masked Fighter raised her head to face the rocks zooming from the new hole in the wall. Good luck to whoever got stuck with fixing that mess! Not that she cared in the least. The landscape of the area she fought in was none of her concern. What was her concern were the figures emerging from the smoky dust storm.
One figure was clothed in black, and the other human shape was clothed in a reddish-pink sort of outfit. Both rode large, dangerous-looking machines. Both of them were her missing teammates. She'd have to berate them later. First, she should get their story. Yes, that would be the wise thing to do.
But for now, the rest of the fight took priority.
She arranged her hands and collected her spirit energy, focusing it into her palms. She knew this attack would return her to her fighting prime, and she didn't mind that much. The purpose of her mask was to hide her true identity; what's the hurt in risking exposure of a face that wasn't hers anymore?
She smirked as the three immobile fighters crashed back into action again, lunging for her and her participating teammates. "SPIRIT WAVE!" she shouted, forcing the energy out from her hands to spread into a shield-like barrier before them. The resulting clash was bigger than she'd anticipated; the sheer force of the blast sent sharp bursts of energy flying toward her face. There may as well have been knives tossed toward her at a dangerous proximity to her face, but we all know that didn't happen… The shrapnel was enough to uncleanly slice the material wrapped around her head, and a large piece of it dropped away to reveal her large chocolate brown eyes and smooth skin—as well as some pink ringlets dangling by her ears.
The dust finally cleared, and a fearless Masked Fighter stood in the center of the ring, missing only one thing—her mask. A gasp traveled through the demonic crowd as they first assessed the damage of the attack then shifted their scrutiny to the human who possessed so much power.
The three fighters of the Ichigaki team lay on the heavy tiles, defeated. During the blast, the odd things attached to their backs and infused with their blood were ejected from their bodies. Now blood spattered the floor surrounding them, but it shimmered slightly as though thousands of tiny insects were swimming in the crimson drops. Closer inspection revealed those insects were none other than mechanized… well, for lack of a better word, insects.
The Masked Fighter nodded as her lips lifted in a slight smirk. She had known it all along. They were simply being controlled by the pumps Ichigaki had infused with their backs. No doubt she would have to explain this to the dimwits on her team, unless Kurama and Hiei had already discovered the secret—in which case, she would pawn it off on them, but in the meantime…
Koto's fox ears twitched at the silence, bewildered at the obvious defeat of the Ichigaki Team in such a manner. "The… Well, guys, the winner of this match is Team Urimeshi, by a stunning end technique! It seems the mysterious Masked Fighter has also been unmasked! She appears to be a…" Koto paused to carefully bring herself nearer to the contestant. "…Young female with pink hair! Talk about surprises! Now, um… Off you go; it's time to leave the ring now." The hand not already preoccupied holding her microphone shooed at the teams impatiently. "And would someone mind taking these guys?" She sent a signal up toward the judge's stand high in the stadium as a request for transport assistance.
Miss Pink-Hair glared at the offending kitsune announcer, and immediately grabbed Yusuke by the ear. "Up, dimwit, and make yourself useful. Grab the idiot." She then stalked over to the doors adjoined to the wait room that had been assigned to their team for the match, trusting that Kurama and Hiei, as well as the humans, would follow her in their own time. She wanted to get out of the public eye ASAP.
Kurama dropped the earthen floor with grace unsurprising to those who knew of his demon side. He landed with perfect balance, instantly directing his gaze toward Dr. Ichigaki.
Hiei, I'll handle the doctor. Think you can manage our "steeds"?
Hn. Of course. Enjoy.
With that, Hiei was off, back through the wall with both of the now-tamed mechanical demons in tow. Who knew how he intended to banish them from life?
Kurama took one step, and quick as lightning he was within six feet of the man he intended to punish.
Ichigaki had apparently begun to panic; his eyes darted back and forth in an almost hypnotic way, and the whites shone in bright contrast against the gray of his demon skin. Suddenly a sly grin overtook his features, and he slipped a hand into the frontal pocket of his lab coat. When it reemerged, it held a tiny bottle of a greenish liquid, which he proceeded to unscrew and lift to his ugly troll lips.
Kagome's eyes nearly dropped out of her head when part of the wall imploded with no apparent warning. Immediately upon comprehending said implosion, she was able to sense a demon very prominent in her memory. Or… Something. Kurama wasn't really a demon, but he wasn't human either, and that just confused her greatly—so she chose not to dwell. As usual, she avoided the more difficult problem, and moved on with her thoughts.
Her mood perked up as soon as her spirit was able to feel Kurama's nearby. Something about him made her feel safe, safer than she'd felt in ages; the only feeling worthy of rivalry was the safety she felt when she was near Touya, and that said a lot.
That bang had done a lot to bring her out of the fight, though, and she almost missed the main event: the win. Almost, of course, for how could anyone with one hemisphere of a brain miss the blast erupting from that small, small warrior?
She only wished she could discover what had been wrong with Ichigaki's humans.
That was another matter entirely, though, and right now Kurama was in the area. That meant she wasn't going to have much of an attention span for the time being.
Speaking of whom, what the heck was going on down there? The lovely fat doctor was… transforming! It was as though his body were erupting, growing muscles where before there were none, bone structure completely changing and extending, skin expanding, altogether allowing Ichigaki to grow to a monster three times his previous size! That stupid demon; what was he up to now? She would have loved to just smack that smirk off his little…
Speaking of demons, where the heck did Shippo get off to? Oh. My. God. I can't believe I forgot about him! Kagome's eyes quickly scanned the seats near her for the small kitsune, mentally berating herself for completely abandoning him in thought and action.
Wait. Stop. There! She had found him, all the way down there—by the hole in the wall. Kagome groaned. You have got to be kidding me. If that Ichigaki guys gets him, Inuyasha will kill me, but if I leave Kikyo, I'll be no better off. Crap. Crap, crap, crap. Her frantic thoughts paused, before she shrugged, knowing she could handle whatever that hanyou had for her. So long as nothing bad happened to Kikyo.
"Um… Lady Kikyo, Inuyasha was looking for you; he seemed really worried. Go to him as soon as possible, or he'll have my head. Please and thank you! I must be going now." She saluted the priestess playfully, shot her a smile, and bounded off down the aisle stairs. It didn't take long for her to reach the thin wall separating the grass surrounding the ring from the stands, as though the spectators attended for a mere baseball game. One hand shot down to grip the top edge of said wall, and she used this hand combined with her momentum to vault into the danger zone.
To her left was the ring now, to the right more spectators, and directly before her, not thirty feet off, was the now-giant troll and to his left, a certain red-haired fox demon with emerald eyes she could melt in. Where had Shippo gone?
There, perched on the cement wall, as close to the pair of demons as he could get without stepping off. Kagome's options were limited. Choice one stated that she could go to Shippo and remove him from near-immediate danger—while placing herself in more danger than he was at present. Choice two said she could leave him be, and save him should something go wrong—but she did not have the youkai speed she would need, and would most likely be too late. Inuyasha will have my head if I lose one of his, er, employees, she reminded herself. Option one it was, then.
She grumbled something rather unpleasant under her breath, then exhaled softly. A quick glance toward Kurama told her he had noticed her and was watching her warily. Good, at least I won't die under his watch, Kagome told herself, though she knew she was only being a fool. What would a gentleman like him have to do with a brash, human girl like her? He had no reason to save her life, just as she had no reason to feel this odd sense of safety he imposed on her.
Kagome's right foot shifted slightly in the grass, preparing her for the spring, when the doctor turned to better face both of his assumed enemies, Kurama as well as Kagome. Incidentally, the move placed him directly between the miko and her demon destination. Grand. Just grand. She sent a glare his way, though she was sure he mistook it for a malicious look for being her enemy; no, it was more like an extremely annoyed look for getting in her way. She didn't want to publicize her strength, after all, she only wanted to get back her poor charge! Hopefully, Kurama would kill him quickly.
"So, the human wants to fight me, does she? What is it you have to do with Urimeshi, or even those boys of mine?" Ichigaki's voice was even deeper than it was before, more gravelly—more disgusting than ever.
Kagome's eyes widened, and once again, the doctor misjudged her expression; this time, she was positive he had.
"Scared, are we?" (I am not scared, you stupid, big, fat, demon! Go fall in a hole and die or something—oh, wait, you're too stupid for that. Hah!) He chuckled a short, dry, toady laugh. "Well, you know, I haven't revoked my offer yet. You could still come join me. Or, I could take your life, your little, precious life." A wicked smirk sliced up one side of his face. Her eyebrow twitched once, then again. Why didn't Kurama just pulverize him already?
A soft growling sound reached her ears, though it faded fast; to her surprise, it came from Kurama's direction. This time her eyes widened due to the shock of the moment. Why the heck was he growling? Ichigaki hadn't insulted Kurama, he'd made a snide comment to Kagome! So why, then…?
No time for that. Kagome mentally scolded herself for the distraction. When an enemy is around, you never let your guard down. Never. It's a novice mistake, to be quite honest.
"You can't be serious," Kagome quipped, her voice cheerful—with a splash of venom. "Haven't we already covered this? I refuse to go with you, for any price, and I don't plan on dying here either. So if you'll excuse me, I just need to—"
"Tsk, tsk! Where do you think you're going? Cross my path, girl, and you're mine." He slid to his left (Kagome's right) a few steps to better bar her path. "Forever," he added, that impish grin overtaking his face. God, how she hated his expressions!
Kagome merely rolled her eyes in response. "I think not. Move. Now. Please?" Their gazes locked and a staring contest ensued. Ichigaki won—he did hold youkai blood, after all—but Kagome refused to back down.
Eventually, Kurama must have had enough of it. (Of course, he hadn't been delaying the moment for any reason other than the pure fascination in witnessing this human and her interaction with a demon—who, by rights, should have had her trembling by looks alone!) As Kagome conveniently distracted him with her obstinacy, he reached one perfect hand up. It passed between hair and neck, and when he brought it back into the air it held a single rose, which was deep in color: a bloody crimson. His fingers gingerly held it, always with that air of grace and quiet strength; this, Kagome noted with the use of her peripheral vision.
With a great crack, his rose whip had unfurled from the seemingly harmless garden friend, and just as quickly it wrapped around the doctor's neck. His throat, the jugular vein, had been slit by the thorns that still adorned the whip, and his life's blood poured through the wound. That was enough to kill the weakest of demons, the ones with hearts who didn't have the speed, strength, intelligence, or skill to properly defend themselves. Luckily, Ichigaki was among them, or this battle may have actually been just that—a battle.
Kagome turned to face him, wide-eyed at the display. Had he just slain the great doctor with a… a rose? The same type of rose he had given her the night before. No—hers had been deprived of thorns, while this one clearly wasn't. But he took them from the same area at the nape of his neck, and—
Now, hold on! She'd seen him use that whip once before! Yes, just last night, when he slew the Makai snake. Already, it seemed so long ago.
Apparently, Kagome's eyes had a mind of their own. They had been staring at him, leaving her to appear the stupid human who was unused to youkai. And that definitely couldn't be further from the truth.
He chuckled, closing the distance between them with what appeared to be a single step. When had he gotten so fast, too? She supposed it didn't matter.
"May I inquire as to the reason behind your shock?" The smile gracing his lips was light, as fair as his beautiful skin, yet as dark as the emeralds in his eyes.
Kagome's jaw practically snapped shut, though she did at least have the grace to smooth the action as to make it less noticeable. "Um, yes, er, I mean… No." A smile of her own was sent as an attachment to her words, though it felt shallow, even to her. "Now, if you'll excuse me…" She slipped aside before the heat she could feel rushing to her cheeks could materialize. (It would only add to her embarrassment.) By the time she had taken three short steps Shippo had found his hyperactive way to her shoulder once more.
Absently, Kagome's hand reached up to begin stroking the kitsune's fur, then she continued on her way to the other end of the ring. Her eyes were clouded, almost hazy. Kurama didn't fail to notice this, just as he never failed to notice anything. As he watched her walk away, he realized how very much he didn't want her to leave him. He desperately wanted her to remain by his side. Forever, if possible, though for now a temporary arrangement would do.
He reached out one hand and lightly rested it on her shoulder. "Where might you be off to, Kagome?"
She stiffened slightly at the touch, then turned to face him, at ease once more. "To join my team," she said, appearing slightly confused. What had he done that was perplexing? Was it his touch? Was she as confused about her feelings for him as he was about his feelings for her?
A word began to form on her lips, but she let them drop. Why had she done that? Did she not realize how tempting they were, those lips of hers, and how dreadfully he wished to know her thoughts? That combination, moving lips and the words left unsaid, was deadly to his concentration. It would surprise him if he didn't lose his cool at least once in the coming match.
"Your team?" he questioned softly. He had to be sure Team Masho was really comprised of her companions at this tournament.
"Yes. We fight next."
Of course, Kurama thought. Just my luck to have my eye on an enemy.
"Surely, you aren't a competitor?" He let just enough concern slip through so that she alone would be able to sense it; he truly did care, after all, though he had no idea why.
Kagome laughed, and Kurama couldn't help but enjoy the way it sounded: like the wind as it rustled through autumn leaves, light and joyful. "Of course not! I watch fights, I don't participate in them."
Suspicious. Why, then, did she wield a katana? And quite well, he might add. But before he had a chance to say anything more, the judge's decision reached their ears via Koto.
"All right! Time to start the next match, everybody! I hope you're all as excited as I am, because I know I can't wait to see the fight Team Urimeshi can possibly put up in their condition!" Her ears twitched again. "Yes, but before all that, time for a check-up in the nurse's station. Team Urimeshi first. Come now, hurry up!" She tugged at one fox-ear impatiently.
Kurama sighed. "Enjoy the match, then. Farewell." He smiled softly, then withdrew his hand from her shoulder and made his silent way for the booth and the waiting nurse, despite the nagging feeling that something odd was going on.
A/N: Okay, so do we have some happy campers out there somewhere? By far, my longest chapter yet, I made it twice as long as usual for your enjoyment. It will make the story flow better as well, I think. Yes, I apologize for the long wait. So much stuff has been happening lately, good and bad, I just haven't had time (or ideas) until recently to work on the chapter! I hope you guys appreciate this. It will be a while before I update again; I'm warning you this time. School starts up again soon, and I've got assignments, a book to work on, endless hours of cleaning out my room… Enough of that.
Please review! The button's down there somewhere, and it's looking a mighty bit lonely.
Constructive criticism is appreciated, or even flames. My entire purpose is to improve my writing, so I'd appreciate it if you guys would help out! (Much better this chapter, eh?)
Thanks in advance!