"Could you hurry up?" Hiei demanded as he waited below the cliff. He was getting impatient.

Mikagami glared at the small black form as he descended the cliff slowly. "Could you wait a moment? I'm not that fast and this is dangerous, you know!"

Hiei huffed and looked at the sea. "Stupid ningen..."

As Mikagami landed on the sand below, he looked at the sea. It looked weird as its color was light pink.

"Recharge your ensui." Hiei commanded without concern.

Mikagami turned his head to glare at Hiei. Damn, why the hell did the boy act like he knew everything? He was beggining to become impatient with him. He just wasn't someone who would bow down to anyone.

"Why should I?" Mikagami said between gritted teeth. He was in a bad mood today.

"Baka, if we'll be fighting with anyone, you would need it, right?" Hiei reasoned. "True, I could easily kill anyone but do I have to watch over your ass as well?"

"Bakayaro!" Mikagami cursed. "You think you're so good, don't you?"

"I'm glad you know." Hiei said as he began to walk towards the sea.

"Shimatta! If I could choose anyone to be with in this hell hole, you'd be the last one I'd pick."

"You're not the only one who thinks that."
 

Mikagami charged his ensui with the pink sea water as he looked on at the sea and the weird landscape. Sure, it was beautiful but it was also pretty weird. He never knew that such a place existed.

He glanced at his new companion.

Hiei was in front of the shore as well, a distance away. His eyes were closed, his face looking peaceful. The sea breeze was ruffling his hair, making him look serene. All his thoughts were of Yukina. She was the one making him strong right now. Like always, she was the reason why he should go on; why he will go on and finally win against all odds.

"Little baka..." Mikagami murmured.
 

They walked carefully towards the castle, their eyes darting around, trusting nothing. Maybe the answers were in that mysterious building.

It was a hot day, the sun fiercely giving off almost unbearable heat. The day was young but as they walked, it seemed like the castle was just getting farther and farther.

Suddenly, the koorime stopped. He could feel something...or someone lurking around, perhaps watching them right now.

He quickly glanced at the trees. Nothing.

"What is it?" Mikagami asked as he looked at the direction where Hiei was gazing at.

"It's as if someone is spying on us."

Mikagami looked around as well. Everything seemed normal but he knew something could be up. Something may just happen. He already had been sucked into this realm without him noticing it so now, he was going to make sure that it would never happen again.

He looked back at Hiei and finally noticed that he was just standing there, unmoving, his face suddenly as white as a sheet.

"Hey!" Mikagami called out to his companion. "What's wrong?"

Hiei didn't answer. He just stood in his place, not hearing and not seeing, his eyes dead as he held his breath.

"Hiei, answer me!"

Nothing.
 

A flash of gray flitted around, much to his annoyance. He could feel no aura yet he could feel something strange from the being who was stalking him.

He couldn't move. He had been tied by an invisible thread so strong that not even his ki could break it, much less loosen it.

He looked around, his eyes following the direction of the gray shadow. The creature was probably as fast as him. He gritted his teeth as the threads binding him held him tighter, almost making it impossible for him to breathe.

Finally, the gray shadow materialized and he came face to face with a boy his height with the familiar brown hair and eyes.

"Honshu."

"It's good that you remember me." Honshu said with a smirk. "You don't know how long we've waited for this. You have no idea how hard we've searched for it. We searched and searched and you know what? Everything led to you."

"What are you talking about?" Hiei demanded, his anger rising as he clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

Honshu's smirk then turned malicious. He circled around Hiei, relishing on the fact that his prey could do nothing more than glare at him.

Hiei then remembered. "Does this have anything to do with my father?"

"Perhaps." Honshu said as he came face to face with Hiei once again. He then held up his hand, a silent command for the threads to keep Hiei from moving, from resisting.

Honshu then came nearer and nearer until Hiei could feel his breath on his neck. He then put his lips very near Hiei's ear and whispered. "You know I haven't played for a long time."

Hiei almost winced at that but prevented himself from showing any form of emotion. He had to show that he still had control. "What do you want? It was you who brought me here, right?"

Honshu smiled at that and moved his head away from Hiei's neck, facing the koorime once again. "I've been watching you for sometime now. I like you. Strong. Silent. Dangerous."

"What do you really want?" Hiei demanded. He did not like this. He did not like it at all.

"You'll find out soon enough." Honshu said with a naughty grin that meant so many things. His face then moved closer and closer to Hiei's face.

No! This was not what he wanted. It was nothing he wanted to take part of. Hiei tried to move anything but failed to do so. He tried to do anything, anything at all, but all he achieved to do was to glare at Honshu with all his anger and all his rage. "NO!"

Without warning, Honshu's tongue then licked the side of Hiei's face.

This was it, the last draw. No way was this kind of torture going to inflict him once again. He concentrated really hard to do anything - this time mentally. He still had the jagan. Maybe it could work. Without another thought, he closed his natural eyes and willed his third eye to open.

"Don't worry, forbidden child." Honshu whispered as he licked Hiei's ear. "They say we look good together."

He looked around to find what he was looking for. What he saw surprised him. Mikagami was shaking him and trying to wake him up!

He opened his natural eyes and glared at Honshu full force. He knew everything now. "You said you watched me, ne? I guess you haven't watched hard enough."

Without another word, he used his jagan's mental capabilities and blasted Honshu away, including everything else in the fake reality he had been in.
 

Mikagami shook Hiei. Hiei was now turning blue. He was beggining to suffocate as he held his breath.

"Hiei, wake up!" Mikagami said as he tried to revive his companion. "Wake up, little baka!"

Hiei didn't do anything, his state just becoming worse and worse in each passing second. There was nothing that could be done. It seemed like this was finally it.

"Baka!" Mikagami cursed as he tried and tried. He was not going to give up now. Hiei was valuable to him right now in this insane world he had been trapped in and there was no way in hell that he was going to be left alone just like that. "Wake up!"

No use. Hiei's eyes then closed as his body went limp and he sank to the ground.

Mikagami caught the limp form of the boy as he tried to revive him. He checked Hiei for his vital statistics and was shocked to find that...

Hiei had stopped breathing. His heart had stopped beating. He was...he was...
 

"You killed him?" the master of the lands asked his servant in pure rage.

"I hope not." Honshu answered, looking at Mikagami and Hiei through the orb. "I haven't even had my fun with him yet."

In a split second, the master's hand came flying towards Honshu's face.

Honshu caught the hand easily. "You know I can rival your strength."

The master of the lands gritted his teeth in anger. "We need him, remember? We need him!"

"Hn, yeah sure." Honshu huffed without concern. "What about the ningen?"

"He's no threat."
 

"Shit! Hiei!" Mikagami snarled in frustration as he tried to restart the boy's heart. "Live, will you?"

Nothing happened as he pumped Hiei's heart and tried to revive him.

"Shit! Live, damn it!" Mikagami cursed. "I swear to you that if you die, I'll kill you!"

He pumped again. He couldn't give up now.

There was no reaction.

Finally, Mikagami gave up. It was no use. Hiei was dead.