Honshu backed away. He had killed Hiei. Why was he feeling this way? Yesterday, he wanted Hiei to feel pain so badly but now... No! He had killed Hiei. He had been aiming at Kajiko but why had Hiei blocked the attack intended for the older demon? Why? Why?

A tear escaped his eye. Hiei was dead because of him. What was wrong? Why was he feeling all these emotions inside of him?

"Bastard." Kajiko...no, now Mikagami snarled at Honshu. "Bastard!"

"No, no..." Honshu whispered as he backed away. He couldn't face this. He didn't want to see it. With a wave of his hand, Mikagami and Hiei were gone.

"Honshu." Hikaru croaked. "Why?"

Honshu slowly looked at him. He had no answers.

Hikaru held on to Yurei tightly once again and noticed that his lover was now dead. Silently, he closed his eyes and willed himself to eternal darkness. "Kajiko, continue on for us."

Honshu just stood there, unmoving as all kinds of emotions hit him. Guilt. Pain. Longing?

"So you finally did it?" a deep voice then said behind him.

Honshu turned quickly to see... "Otousama."

The elder god gave him a bitter smile. "I didn't know you felt that way. Why did it have to come to this?"

Honshu didn't answer.

"I've been watching you."

Honshu looked at his father, pain in his eyes. "Why didn't you stop me?"

"Because I trusted you. I trusted you to make your own decisions."

Honshu shook his head. "I haven't seen you for so long. Why did you bother to come just now?"

"So long?" the god asked in confusion. "It's only been seven years."

"That's half of my life."

"I'm sorry." the god said. "Tell me, what did you want to achieve when you made this mess?"

Honshu was quiet for a while. Then he answered softly, "Your attention."

The elder god shook his head. "And look what happened. You should have just called for me. I would've come. Now, look. You've even destroyed my creation - Ryu."

Honshu bowed his head. "You care a lot about him."

"No. I care about you more. I created him to take care of you. When..."

"My mother died. This is all Hikaru and Yurei's fault. Why didn't you kill them before?"

"That wouldn't have brought your mother back. It was better if they pay for their crimes the right way."

"Why didn't you resurrect my mother back then? Didn't you love her that much?"

"When you really love someone, you have to learn to let them go. Do you love Hiei?"

The question took Honshu by surprise. Where did that come from? He turned away.

"It was obvious when I was watching you. You were feeling these new emotions-"

"Tousama." Honshu interrupted quietly.

"Don't you?"

Honshu thought for a while. Did he? Did he love Hiei? Was what he felt for him *love*? Was that why he felt as if his world was crumbling when he had killed Hiei? Maybe it was. "I don't know."

"You do." the god said with a smile.

Both then looked at the two fire demons still in that room.

"What about them?" Honshu asked.

"It was not right for you to kill them especially when their term was about to end."

"So you're saying?"

"Hai."

"And Hiei?" Honshu querried. "Can I?"

"Hai." the god answered. "He's far too young and your love hasn't even begun yet so I guess you still can't let go."

"I broke the rules."

"It was meant to happen."
 

The Hokage team and the Urameshi team looked at the closing portal. Where had that portal lead Mikagami and Hiei to? What had happened?

Fuko then turned her head at the new people and noticed... "Shuuichi Minamino???"

Yusuke rolled his eyes. Even at a time like this, Kurama would still attract girls.

Yanagi's eyes widened as she blushed. It was Shuuichi Minamino...in the flesh. "Minamino-san?"

"Erm, hai." Kurama answered.

A few seconds later, the portal opened again, dumping both boys to the ground.

"Mikagami!" the Hokage team shouted.

"Hiei!" the Urameshi team shouted.

Both teams rushed to their fallen comrades.

"Mikagami." Recca said as he stepped closer to the older boy. "Daijobu?"

Mikagami looked up weakly. He was better now. "I'm okay." Slowly, he sat up and glanced at Hiei.

Hiei was on the ground, unmoving. His eyes were closed and he looked very peaceful.

"Hiei?" Kurama asked. He felt for a heartbeat and found none. "Hiei!"

"What?" Yusuke asked in panic. "What happened?"

"He's dead." Kurama whispered. His friend was dead. Another friend - dead.

Mikagami then moved towards Hiei, surprising everyone there. "Hiei, not again."

Suddenly, there was a bright glow on Hiei's pale skin. There was an aura surrounding him. What was happening? Was he resurrecting? Then his eyes opened and the glow faded.

"Hiei!" Mikagami, Kurama, Yusuke and Kuwabara cried out. He was...he was...

Hiei's weak eyes slowly turned towards them. He suddenly smiled at Mikagami. "Honshu saved me." he whispered weakly. "And they're alive."

"Hiei, where have you been?" Kurama asked.

"To a place of..." Hiei coughed. "Hate." He then closed his eyes as exhaustion overtook him. Kuwabara lifted him easily.

"Wait." Mikagami said, surprising them all once again. "Where are you taking him?"

"We're going to heal him." Kurama said with a smile, turning back one last time. Then the three of them left with their little bundle.

Mikagami looked at his teammates. "What day is this?"

"Hn." Domon answered with amusement. "Same date as a few seconds ago, baka!"

"Baka ningen." Mikagami whispered.

"What?" Domon demanded.

Mikagami just rolled his eyes. "Hey, who was that guy with long red hair?"

"Minamino Shuuichi." Fuko and Yanagi sighed in unision.

Without another word, Mikagami stood up and headed to the nearest phone booth.
 

"You sure Hiei's going to be alright?" Yusuke asked Kurama. They were now in Kurama's bedroom.

"Hai." Kurama assured him. "He's okay now but there are just a few more minor wounds."

"Okay." Yusuke said with a smile. "For a moment there, I thought we'd lost him."

Kuwabara smiled as well. He was glad that the little shrimp was fine as well. As much as he was annoyed at seeing him before, it had actually been three years since he last saw him and a dead Hiei wasn't what he wanted to
see. "Get well soon, chibi."

After about a minute, Yusuke and Kuwabara left.

Suddenly, Hiei stirred. His head was moving from one side to the other. His breathing was getting quicker. He gasped and sat up. "Kajiko!"

Kurama blinked. Did Hiei just say Kajiko? One of his former lovers before? "Hiei, you okay?"

Hiei quickly masked his tremors and nodded. He lay back down and faced the other side.

"Where have you really been?" Kurama asked in curiousty.

"It was another realm. I didn't understand it well."

"You just said Kajiko." Kurama stated. "You know him?"

"An acquaintance." Hiei muttered. He paused for a while. "Kurama, do you trust me?"

Kurama was surprised at that question. Yesterday, he was the one who had questioned the koorime. "I..."

Hiei sat up and looked at him in the eye. He had always trusted Kurama but was never sure about that trust. But then, there was more than trust now. Why was he always thinking of him even back in Makai? Even in that unknown realm? Could he possibly? No, probably not. Kurama wouldn't want him and he was supposed to be incapable of...love.

"Yes, I trust you." Kurama answered seriously in a low tone.

"So I guess I trust you too." Hiei said, lying back down.

"Hiei, you don't know what you're saying. I can trust you because I know that through all your coldness on the outside appearance, you're harmless. You don't know me at all."

"I trust you." Hiei just said. "I should be dead by now if you are what you're trying to claim."

There was a knock on the door.

"Shuuichi?" It was Shiori.

"Should I hide?" Hiei asked softly.

Kurama shook his head but covered Hiei with a blanket.

"Shuuichi, you have a visitor. He's here now. You wanna let him in?"

"Ah, kaasan, I'll be out in a second."

The door opened. Outside was a silver-gray haired boy with baby blue eyes.

"Hai, may I help you?" Kurama asked, absent mindedly.

"Uh, I was the guy Hiei was uh, fighting ealier." the boy said.

"Fighting?" Kurama asked as he raised one of his brows. "Did you do that to Hiei?"

"No!" Mikagami said. "I was with him in the realm."

"Oh." Kurama said. "You wanna see him?"

Mikagami nodded.

"Hiei, someone's here to see you." Kurama informed his friend.

Hiei sat up and saw Mikagami. "Kajiko."

Kurama's eyes widened. Kajiko? The boy was Kajiko? He looked back and forth at Hiei and the ningen. "Kajiko?"

"Oh." Mikagami said, remembering that he had just barged in here without even saying his name. "I... My name is Tokiya Mikagami."

"Kurama, he's Kajiko, my..." Should he tell him? Only if he trusted him...which he did. "brother."

Mikagami and Kurama's eyes widened at that, surprised; Mikagami at Shuuichi's identity actually being Kurama and Kurama at Hiei's declaration that Kajiko was his brother.

"Hn." Mikagami said, eyeing Kurama with an expression barely distinguished as a smile. "Long time no see."

"You too." Kurama said with a grin. "It's been a long time."