Sorry for not updating so soon, everyone.

Here's the next chapter!

CHAPTER FOUR: Revelations!

Silence.

Everything was quiet. It was as if everything had stilled after Hao's declaration. The wind, the birds and most importantly, his friends.

Yoh glanced at them, worried about their seemingly everlasting silence. Even Anna had grown impossibly quiet, which wasn't a good sign, not in the slightest.

Ren was the first to recover, not that Yoh expected anything less of course. The Chinese shaman turned his onyx eyes to Yoh, and for some peculiar reason, the latter couldn't help but feel unsettled under that gaze. Were his friends disgusted with him now?

"What is he talking about?" Ren said after a moment, eyes glued to Yoh's form, intent to see his reaction. He wanted Yoh to laugh like he usually did and tell them that it was a prang, a cold, humorless joke, but a joke nevertheless. When the other boy however averted his gaze, Ren instantly knew that something was wrong.

"Tell them, otouto. It seems they want to hear it from your own little mouth in order to believe it to be true." Hao said, earning Ren's glare in return, but he purposely ignored him. He focused his attention on Yoh instead, but when the boy refused to even look at him, his hands clenched into fists. Anger swept over him as Yoh kept ignoring him, anger that was increasing rapidly.

And then, Yoh flinched.

Hao was genuinely startled by this, but then his lips curled into a cruel smirk. How could those fools still refuse to acknowledge his words? They had all the proof they needed right before their very eyes. Yoh had felt his anger! He had felt it as if it was his own and involuntary reacted to it.

"Yoh!" he shouted and to his utmost pleasure, this time his gaze met nearly identical brown eyes looking up at him. He lifted one hand and pointed at Yoh, brown eyes blazing with scorching fire, invisible to any human eye. But he knew that shamans could see it. All of his enemies had cowered in fear before the never ending flames that burnt in his eyes.

It was always a wonder though, how that boy, that weak, vulnerable and pathetic excuse of a shaman, seemed to be immune to his fire. Refusing to bend under his will like so many others did. And Hao could be very persuasivewhen he wished to. It was kind of annoying the way that boy wouldn't be swayed by his persuasion, but yet so utterly intriguing at the same time. No one had dared to defy him like that and lived to brag about it.

Even those pathetic X-LAWS. They kept going on and on about passing judgment over him, that they'd make him pay for all the turmoil he had caused. What ambitious little pests. But in the end, they couldn't even save themselves, let alone the world.

And yet, for some reason that stubborn twin of his refused to be intimidated. It was like a puzzle that no matter how much you tried you couldn't find the correct pieces that matched. You couldn't find the solution. Oh, yes. Yoh was just like a puzzle. It would irk you to no end by its seemingly innocence appearance when deep down you knew it would refuse to even budge unless it wanted to. Yet at the same time, it made you obsessively intrigued by it, made you determinate to solve it.

And as he stared at those eyes that resembled his own so much, he couldn't help the challenging smirk that graced over his features. But the boy didn't sway under his gaze, didn't flinch and didn't cower like the others.

"Tell them." he ordered again, this time emphasizing the words.

Yoh just stared at him for a while, not looking away but not giving any signs that he had acknowledged him either. Then, the others took it upon themselves to act, obviously having snapped out of their shock finally.

"You." Horo Horo spat furiously, pointing menacingly at him, "Will. Not. Tell. Him. What. To. Do!"

Hao had to resist the urge to roll his eyes. They way they fussed over his lesser half was beginning to get on his nerves.

"It's true." All eyes shifted over to Yoh at the words that left his mouth, but the boy still didn't avert his gaze from Hao's as he spoke. "At least I think it's true."

"What the hell do you mean 'you think'?" Ren shouted heatedly, his temper getting the better of him. Only then did Yoh move his gaze over to them, his face taking an apologetic expression.

"I know it feels different. Before, I wasn't able to sense his feelings so vividly, as if I experience them myself. And believe me, it's no pleasant thing either. So much hatred and repulsion…" His hand seemed to move on its own accord, as if he was in a trance. It grasped the fabric above his chest and clenched. "…It's unnerving, to say the least."

"But Yoh-kun…" Lyserg began, eyebrows creasing into a worried frown, "he said that in order to kill him, we'll have to kill you too."

Yoh shook his head. "That's kind of vague. However, the fact remains that if he dies, somehow I'll be forced to follow. And of course, the same works the other way around. If I die, then he'll die too."

Looks of horror was the only thing that greeted him. He tried to smile but he could feel it tremble. He sighed. He could sympathize with his friends. They felt like they were at a dead end. There was no way back and the path that led forward was blocked. In other words, they were trapped. But surprisingly enough, that didn't seem to bother him.

He had always wondered the reason behind Hao's actions, the reason why he acted to cruel and apathetic to others' pain. In fact, he seemed quite intent to be the very cause of the others' pain. Why though? What could have possibly triggered such a reaction? This was his only chance to figure it out, to figure Hao out.

He focused his attention back to his friends, staring at each and every one of them individually. He knew the decision they would take before they had even taken it. After all this time they had spent together, he was able read them like an open book.

This time, the smile that crept over his face wasn't forced, it came completely natural to him.

With a small giggle, he let himself flop down on the ground, planting his palms firmly on the ground behind him and leaning against his arms. The others gave him an odd look but he merely grinned in return.

"It seems we've hit a bit of a dead end, don't you think?"

His friends shared a look, identical grins breaking over their features. Chocolove chuckled, bringing his arms up and folding them behind his head. "Honestly Yoh, you're probably the only one capable to work such a predicament."

At the chuckles of agreement that rose all around him, Yoh couldn't help but laugh sheepishly. His gaze flickered over to the side briefly, catching Hao's eyes. The pyro shaman cocked a perfect eyebrow at him, arms crossed over his chest. Yoh tilted his head to the side slightly, a small smile playing at his lips, inwardly savoring the perplexed expression that took over his brother's features as he tried to work out the reason behind that peculiar happiness.

"Yoh."

Blinking out of his daze, the person in question, turned his head to the side, instantly meeting the dark gaze of his fiancé. Anna had folded her arms over her chest, a stance that eerily reminded him of Hao. This couldn't be good.

"Answer something for me, Yoh. If this hadn't occurred, would you have killed him?"

Anna's question caught him off guard. Kill him? Kill Hao? He tilted his head backwards, eyebrows furrowing ever so lightly in thought as he gazed at the moving clouds above.

Yes, wasn't that what they expected of him? To put an end to Hao's evil deeds? And of course, the fact that he was Hao's other half instantly deemed him as the only person suitable enough for such an act, seeing as he was likely to have pretty much just as much power as Hao possessed.

But Hao wasn't just anyone. He was his brother… his twin brother none the less. And they expected him to kill him, just like that? Unexpectedly, the answer seemed quiet clear to him.

"Wound him, yes. But kill him…" he trailed off, knowing for certain that Anna would be able interpret the meaning.

"Then, you must know what this means, don't you? That there's no other way."

And everything seemed to lapse into silence yet again, Ren and the others glancing awkwardly between Anna and Yoh, having no idea what they were talking about.

Yoh's expression remained passive, only his eyes were moving from time to time as they followed the clouds' every movement. And then, his lips curled into an almost faint, sad smile, a smile that clearly stated that he was perfectly aware of the consequences his answer would bring.

"I know." he finally said, voice devoid of any kind of emotion that would betray whether or not he was bothered by result that was sure to follow.

Anna nodded curtly once and lifted her hand, her sea-colored beads clutched tightly in it. They glowed suddenly a bright blue light. It lasted only for a second but when it faded, the two Shikigami gods were standing behind her, eyes focused solely on Anna as if waiting for their orders. Then, Anna stretched her arm forward, pointing a single finger at Yoh. The monsters followed the direction of her hand, eyes instantly narrowing once they settled upon the figure she was pointing, their target.

They lunged forward.

The other shamans gasped but before they could inquire as to what was going on, they were interrupted by a sudden cry of fury.

"NO!" Hao shouted, pure rage literally written all over his face. That blasted itako! How dare she? When he tapped into their newly established link and got a glimpse of Yoh's emotions, he realized with horror what that woman was planning to do. And if she were to succeed, his scheme would be ruined. Everything would have been for nothing.

With a swift move he raised his arm, the Spirit of Fire instantly doing the same, like a puppet following the puppeteer's every move. "Stop her!" Hao bellowed and with a roar of understanding, a cyclone of scorching fire shot out of the spirit's palm.

Yoh never reacted, his expression remaining one of serene calmness. The two gods growled dangerously, bringing down their clawed hands just as the boy closed his eyes. The result was immediate.

Yoh slumped to the ground unconscious, the beam of fire that had been lunged by the Spirit dispersing into nothing just as Hao's form was seen falling from its shoulder and right into the void.

The Spirit of Fire let out a startled shriek before it dove right after its master, catching Hao's falling form in midair and cradling him gently between its palms. It took one look at the shaman's unconscious body before its blazing green eyes glared at the group of people on the ground with all the strength it could muster, making the boys involuntary shiver under that gaze.

With a last fury filled cry the Spirit of Fire was gone.

"Yoh-kun!" Manta and Lyserg exclaimed simultaneously, both rushing to their friend's aid. The green haired shaman was the first to reach him, kneeling beside him and lifting him as gently as possible from the ground. Manta had also kneeled on the ground to inspect Yoh's injury when a horrified gasp was torn from his throat.

The rest of their friends were instantly around them, straining their necks in order to see what the problem was only to pale at the sight of that blood puddle that had gathered all around Yoh's head.

"Bloody hell, Anna! What were you thinking?" Ren yelled furiously, black eyes meeting the equal black of ones of the itako and glaring at the impassiveness in them.

Anna didn't even blink at his outburst, but her forehead wrinkled ever so lightly as her gaze settled on the blood that had finally stopped pooling from under Yoh's head after Faust had begun attending the injury.

"It seems I overdid it a little."

"A little?" Chocolove managed incredulously.

"He's fucking shedding off all his blood, Anna!" At the horrified look in Manta's eyes, Horo Horo took a step back sheepishly, "Ok, maybe I'm exaggerating a little," he hurried to correct himself before refocusing back to Anna, "but the fact remains that he's bleeding, and quiet heavily for that matter!"

Ren rolled his eyes at the blue haired boy's slip back then, his own attention focusing on Anna too. "Why did you do that for, anyway?" he asked as evenly as he could in his attempt to regain control of his flaring temper.

"What did you expect me to do?" Anna snapped, black eyes narrowing viciously, "You were here, you saw what happened. And don't you dare tell me that you were still planning to take down Hao, because we both know it'll be a big, fat lie!"

They were all taken aback by her outburst, since Anna was never one to lose her composure so easily. Ren let out an exasperated sigh, hand coming up to comb through his hair in a rare gesture of helplessness. "I still can't believe that Yoh is now glued to the hip with that bastard. And quiet literally. I mean, you can't kill one of them without killing the other along the way."

"No one can believe it, mate." Chocolove said as his shoulders slumped. Horo Horo frowned, gaze planted firmly on the ground.

"This," Anna said while gesturing with her hand towards Yoh, "was the only way we could have proceeded without risking any permanent damage, if you know what I mean."

They all nodded slowly. It was true. Since their lives were now so closely linked, by injuring one they injured the other. And Hao had already proved that his powers, no matter how hard they wanted to deny it, were far more stronger than their own. Meaning that if they wanted to make him retreat without having won the entire war first, they had to sacrifice a little something in return.

But that was alright. They hurt their friend, it was true. But by doing so they had ensured Hao's loss since he hadn't been able to take full possession of the Great Spirits, only a portion of them. But most importantly, they hadn't lost Yoh. When Hao devoured his soul, they had been forced to accept that if they wanted to destroy Hao they would have to let go of their friend, seeing as how his soul was inside Hao's body.

But yet again, Yoh proved to them a fact that they already knew but had momentary forgotten. That the kid was full of surprises. Not only he managed to come back to them, with a little help of course, but he had brought his powers with him too, leaving Hao weaker after losing the part that had supposedly belonged to him from the beginning.

Of course, Yoh's return had come with a price. It seemed that his brief connection with Hao hadn't broken when they separated again. After all, as Hao said, when two halves become a whole, even if it is for a little while, they can never go back to the way they were before.

But no matter the outcome, there was one thing they had silently all agreed on… They wouldn't lose Yoh again after having taken him back, even if that meant letting Hao go.

"What now?" Horo Horo asked after a while, voicing the very question that had been on everyone's mind.

"There's nothing more we can do here. The only fortunate thing that came out of Yoh's predicament is that we were able to take advantage of it and prevent Hao from taking over. That is enough…"

But the words for now hung heavily on the air around them, making their chests tighten in a wicked way and bring a sickening feeling to their stomach.

"It's time to go back then." Ren said in conclusion, shaking his head at the irony of the statement itself. They had come here with the same purpose in mind, the same goal. To become Shaman King. And yet, along with that goal came other, inevitable things. Such as making enemies, friends, learning to accept defeat, taking responsibility of their actions in the past and generally, becoming better.

But then, along came Hao.

The biggest threat to not only achieving their goal but to the entire world as well. And just like that, becoming Shaman King was not important anymore, nor was the reason they had been fighting for all this time. It was ironic how so many people, with the same original purpose in mind, with the intention of fighting each other in order to stand victorious, had united their powers with a new purpose now in mind.

To prevent a single person from claiming the title they had craved so much.

All of their previous fighting seemed so plainly ridiculous and childish compared to Hao's intentions.

'Not that it matters anymore.' Ren thought bitterly, genuinely startled when a hand took hold of his shoulder gently but yet firmly. He didn't have to look in order to know to whom it belonged to. Normally, he would have shrugged the offensive hand off but the fact that he didn't, made him realize exactly how much this whole thing had changed him.

"It's time to go home." Horo Horo said, voice filled with a resolve that Ren was certain the other boy didn't possess when they had started their journey.

His dark eyes drifted over to the unconscious form on the ground, wondering for a moment exactly how the boy was able to withstand all that weight that others so uncaringly had placed on his shoulders and still be able to smile like that.

Yoh was strong, he didn't bother denying that fact, but it was only then that he realized the extent of his strength and it didn't have anything to do with shamanic abilities.

"Aa. That it is." he agreed after a while, lifting his gaze to stare at the person next to him. Horo Horo grinned cheekily, head moving to the side to look at the rest of them. Ren followed the direction of his gaze, noting the smiles that lit up their friends' faces before as one, they all turned their attention on the figure on the ground, expressions softening with fondness.

Yes, they might have lost their chance to achieve their dreams, but they had gained something else along the way.

And for the time being, they were able to cast all thoughts of Hao aside.

END OF CHAPTER FOUR

Special thanks to SK-fan7, Nako13yeh, Thunder of Friendship, darkshadowgirl666, and emloha for all their support.

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