Ketsuekikawa

The spark was enough to alert Botan. Eric was the only one of the group that hadn't accessed his spiritual powers, so once he did, the release of reikai was enough to give away his position. Outside of sacred ground, it could potentially have been a dangerous scenario. Prior, she was tracking Tokshi whom was looking for Eric, but she needed to assemble the group for the next day. Their eggs were due to hatch sometime that evening and it having them as a group would make it easier to keep a rampant beast from tearing through the spiritual plane. Without the girl knowing, Botan planted a Mejiru seal onto her. It would allow her to track down Tokshi later if needed or at the very least tell if she was okay. This left her to dart off to Eric.

Meanwhile, Eric was still conversing with Hitsu. "I still am, sonny," He replied. He nodded over to the alter in front of the crucifixion and added, "Sometimes, I can hear her telling me it's all right." He looked back over at Eric with a gentle smile, "and she asks about our son all the time."
 


@Midnite
 
"I guess you are. .. your a very lucky and weird old man Hitsu" he says 


He didn't mean weird in the sense that hes a weirdo he meant it in the sense that he may not know how spiritually aware he is.


"Well it was nice talking to you...i will take my leave" he says shaking Hitsu's hand and leaving the shrine going into the floating ghost like state he was prior


@Sir Les Paul
 
Hitsu shook Eric's hand, although his thin skin and brittle bones were weak with age. There was still a vigor in the old man, though. A little life left in his hand. As Eric left the church, Hitsu said, "Take it from an old man, sonny: spend your time wisely. There's only so much of it, y'know..." His words were pretty straight forward. Common advice, too, although it may have meant more accompanying the experience Eric just had. Hitsu was definitely a different individual. He could see Eric, for one. Touch him, even. Was it the church or the old man? It was hard to tell. On his way out, a lady opened the door for him and said, "Thank you for your time, Eric." She shut the door quickly once he left, not giving him much time to figure it out. She seemed oddly familiar, though; and, much like Hitsu, she saw him as well. 

Eric wasn't given a whole lot of time to figure it out, though. Before he could turn around, Botan caught up to him. "Found you. A Christian Church, huh?" she said, looking at the stained glass windows. "Not a shrine, but still works. You got off easy, Echo. The others had to fight a demon, but it looks like you found a good hiding spot," she said. It was odd. This was the first time since Eric had met Botan that she seemed realistic. She wasn't her normal, bubbly self - if you could consider her normal to begin with. In all reality, it was due to her run-in with Koenma. It grounded her hard and it was evident in her demeanor. Of course, it wasn't expected of Eric to know that.

"Let's get you back to the others," she said, "then I'll get Tokshi. She went off looking for you while I was gone." Botan floated higher in the air waiting for Eric to come. "Oh! And, once you get there, don't leave. Your eggs hatch tomorrow evening and it's best if you're all together," Botan said. 

@Midnite
 
Eric looked at her... "ok no problem botan so what happened you have the look i have when my dad chews me out so what happened you boss got upset with you" he asked as they left


He was surprised to know that Tokshi came looking for him.


"Botan have you ever known someone to have a vision of the past as if they were there personally"


@Sir Les Paul
 
"Oh, you have nothing to worry about, Eric. In fact," Botan replied, "you're the only one that should even technically have made it this far." That little reassurance was the best Botan could offer him, but it likely lead to more questions than she cared to admit. "Keep up," she said before darting off. She intentionally sped up just a little faster than he could fly to cut off the conversation, now heading towards the shrine. She ignored his last question - primarily knowing it would be answered later.
 


@Midnite
 
The moment came and time seemed to slow down. Tokshi and her worries fell on deaf ears - quite literally. Rin slid the door of the van open and walked out quickly, the men behind him beginning to unload cans of fuel. Rin, however, walked far in front of them. He knelt down beside the white sedan and slashed its tires while his men poured a ring of gas around the house. In just a few moments, Rin had the entire area surrounded by flames. The two men then tossed Molotov cocktails at nearby houses, catching them ablaze. The fear nearby than ran out screaming were shot down, but those horrors were just body counts. Rin was about to get personal.

It would've been too easy to just storm in. This man - the former Uriel - he had to be smart. Rin sat a crate down beside the house and began tossing more of the flaming gas bottles at the house, this time strategically. He set every exit ablaze aside from the front door which had the sedan parked out in front, giving Rin cover while the doorway had none. But, that wasn't enough. Rin began tossing rocks into the upper widows to bust them out before throwing more bottles into them. He pulled over one of his men and had him circle around the house doing the same. Rin didn't want to just kill this man or burn him alive. He wanted to see his face. He wanted his hands to do the work. So, his entire intention was to smoke them out and force them out the only exit.

It worked. 

It was just a minute or so before a man in a button down shirt, now stained with black smoke, burst through the front door. His wife and daughter were behind him. Yet, Rin did not shoot. Neither did his man. "Uriel, we meet at least. Though, I doubt you know who I am," Rin said.

Toma glared at Rin, but sighed. "Promised protection in return for my services... I should've guessed this would happen," Toma said. 

"It's only fitting," Rin said, "considering you burned my family." It was at that point that his daughter began crying loudly, clinging to their mother.

Before Toma could even make a reply, Rin cut him off, "Now, now, that's not the only reason I'm here, though."

Toma lifted his eyebrows before saying, "You've figured it, haven't you?"

"I think so, but I need you to confirm it," Rin said. "So, I'll make you a deal."

Toma replied quickly, "I'm not exactly in a position to decline."

"It's rather simple. You have no family on file for me to kill aside from those in front of me, so what I am willing to trade is mercy for information," Rin explained.

"You won't like what you hear and you won't spare us - I know this game," Toma said, his tone completely flat. 

"I won't spare all of you - no. I didn't have a child or a wife so I'll get no satisfaction from killing them. What I offer is to let them go. Right now," Rin added onto his aforementioned deal.

Toma closed his eyes and shook his head. "I suppose it's the only chance I have, huh?" Toma knelt down and hugged his daughter tightly. It was a heart-wrenching moment. She was crying. Not just crying, but bawling. Screaming for her daddy, screaming in fear, and she clung to Toma. All he could do, however, was tell her he loved her and let her mother rip her little hands from his shoulders before she walked off the porch and to the man that was holding a gun before simply running off through the opening in the flames. Tears filled Toma's eyes, too, but at this point, there was no turning back. "I suppos-"

"Uh, uh uh, bud. I can see the bulge in your hip. Take out the gun. Then take off your shoes, socks and belt. Put them down or I'll have my riflemen take them out," Rin said.

Toma stood in silence for a moment, but ultimately did as instructed. Now he was completely unarmed. "Smart man. I wouldn't guess they'd send a stupid one after me," Toma said.

"I'm not sure why they allowed me to come after you. Tying up a loose end by creating another," Rin replied.

"You have no idea what you're in for..." Toma replied.

"Then do go on," Rin replied.

"I'll start by telling you what you've probably figured out. There are no real gangs in this town. It's all controlled by a few people that keep the town divided to keep law enforcement down. The Japanese government would be in here immediately if they knew one of their tourist attractions was a center for organized crime," Toma explained.

"Keep going," Rin said.

"The Saints are the enforcers of the gangs. They're named after the Seven Archangels: Michael, Gabriel, Raphael and so on. It's pointless going on because this town only has two of them. Michael and Uriel. Michael is the only one that directly talks with our leaders and Uriel is the archangel that presides over Ketsuekikawa. I took the role after being busted for covering up internal affairs at an Intelligence Agency. I was young and dumb, looking at serving life if not just getting gunned down," Toma said, although Rin interrupted.

"Your files went on about your intelligence. Your capability. Please tell me you didn't just call yourself young and dumb," Rin said, almost in disbelief.

"My intelligence is selective. I have three Masters and finished eight year training in two. I was the youngest agent in my cabinet since World War II. I thought I could get away with making a little extra money on the side... I was wrong," Toma explained.

"This was easy, I admit. I thought you'd put up more of a challenge," Rin said.

"I never liked fighting and I hoped they'd keep their promise. I intended to keep mine until now... but I suppose it doesn't matter. A ghost from my past is here to haunt me," Toma said.

"To kill you, actually. But, I don't believe you're done," Rin said.

"What more do you want know? I was a fugitive and ended up getting recruited by dumb luck. My training got me through ranks and they made me a Uriel for five years before I retired," Toma explained.

"You're playing dumb and lying to me. This was too easy," Rin said.

Another moment of silence filled the air before Toma sighed. "You're too smart for your own good, Rin," Toma said.

"How do you know my na--Hey, hey, what are you doing?" Rin said. At first, he was put off by the fact Toma knew his name, but more so he was concerned with what he ripped out of his cufflink. Just as Toma was about to pop it in his mouth, Rin pulled out his pistol and fired it. Whatever it was flew out of Toma's hand, but his white shirt began to become engorged in blood. He knelt down on the ground as he bled out and Rin ran over to him. "Hey, you mother fucker! I wasn't done with you!" he said as he tried to apply pressure to the wound.

"If you don't want to end up like me," Toma said, "either die early... or give up." Toma and his eyes faded. Rin shot right through a subclavian artery. If he didn't die from the blood loss, he would have from the shock that was coming up. Fact was, though, Toma was gone. What little lead Rin had was gone and now he had no cover for his pursuit of knowledge. Before, he wanted revenge, but now he realized something: his revenge wasn't just on a man named Uriel, but the crime lords that created him. The same people he worked for. And, figuring out how to get it was a whole lot more difficult. 

Rin stood up and looked over at the man he still had with him. "Drag the body into the fire," he said, "I'm done with this filth." Rin began walking away and the man walked over to the body only to be shot in the back of the head. Rin couldn't have any witnesses. He poured fuel on both bodies before setting them afire. In the end, Toma was right. Rin had no idea what he was getting into... and neither did Tokshi.
 


@Nenma Takashi
 
Tokshi watched in horror at the scene in front of her houses burning to the ground in front of her. She tried to talk to Rin but her words wouldn't reach him. "RIN STOP PLEASE!!! RIN LISTEN TO ME DAMMIT RIN!!" But no matter how loud she yelled he continued he couldn't hear her she knew even if he could she wouldn't be able to stop him. Eventually she gave up trying to stop him and began to try and knock sense into him but her fist simply fazed through him. That didn't stop her from trying she felt bad for the daughter and wife she knew this man had done terrible things in the past, but she couldn't help but feel bad for the other two. After Rin had shot the man she stopped trying to hit him and just watched him kill the two men with him. She took a moment to think about what she was apart of her body began to shake with fear. A single question plagued her mind as she looked at the once alive Toma. How long? How long until she was a loose end waiting to be tied. How long until she was next on the hitlist. How long would they keep their promise before Uta was another loose end. How long until they both were burnt in a fire and were just erased. 


@Sir Les Paul 
 
In a sudden jerk, Tokshi felt herself ripped from her position nearby Rin to floating what felt like a thousand feet in the air - so far that the neighborhood caught fire looked like tiny flames in a carpet. "I came to get you... but I had to watch," Botan said. Botan looked down at the flames and said, "One hundred forty se--six. That is how many will die today because of him," she added. Her eyes let the flames dance within them, although unlike Tokshi, she could see them from this distance in full. After a moment of her stare, she looked back to Tokshi and said, "Let it be a lesson, though. This is what demons will do if we let them in your world," Botan told her in a darker tone, "but don't mistake me. Those men are not demons. Just monsters."
 


@Nenma Takashi
 
Tokshi wanted to tell her she's wrong wanted to say that Rin was different. But she couldn't in her heart she believed the words Botan said she'd seen alot today hell she saw a real life demon today. Yet it didn't compare to the fear she felt when the blond man spoke, when she watched Rin prepare for his revenge, when she watched Rin go through with all this. Up till now she treated being in the gang like it was a game but now she saw the true terror of what she had gotten herself into. "If I'm brought back to life....would I be able to help him?" Tokshi knew she had just asked a stupid question what was she gonna do? One girl even if she had crazy ghost powers vs an entire town of gangsters is just suicide. She looked at Botan turning her body towards her she scratched the back of her head. "Is it almost time for these eggs to hatch?" She asked taking out and showing Botan her egg. 


@Sir Les Paul 
 
Botan sighed, almost as if she was disappointed with her own answer. "As a Shinigami, it is not my duty to meddle in mortal affairs... my duty is to make sure you and the others are capable of protecting this realm - from and only from spiritual threats," Botan explained. The two neared the original shrine the others were at and with only a few hours before the eggs hatched, their timing couldn't have been better. "Even monsters like him aren't our problem," Botan continued on, "and if it's not our problem, we don't try to solve it." She did perk up to specifically add on an important point: "If you want my advice, pretend you never saw that if you get your second chance. All of those men are dangerous - even more so if you know what you do. What point is there in a second chance if you waste it?" There was a bit of melancholy in her voice. Her bubbly tone was lost just like it was on Eric. By the time Botan offered her last bit of advice, however, the two arrived at the entrance of the shrine Arimi took them too.

"You have about three hours before the eggs hatch," Botan told her, "go tell the others. I have to prepare your kits."


@Nenma Takashi
 
Tokshi sighed she felt so drained she hated this feeling she worked so hard everyday at her jobs, worked so hard to get stronger and fought so much to make sure she never felt this. She felt so weak...weak that she couldn't help Rin, weak that she was going to have to just forget what she saw, weak that she for a moment stopped wanting to come back. She wondered if she truly even deserved a second chance she saw just how strong Uta was being she was no longer his crutch he was her's. She needed Uta he was the only family she had she did everything she could to make sure he was happy and did it. So why should some petty thug who fights just for some cash get another chance at something as precise as life. Tokshi felt her heart ache as she thought about it she couldn't stop this sad feeling swelling up inside her. So she did what she did best and decided to just beat it out. Tokshi decked herself as hard as she could in her right cheek she stumbled for a bit then chuckled. "That was close I almost fucked up there." She rubbed her cheek she knew it was gonna start to swell later but she didn't care. At this point she made her decision even if Uta didn't need her she knew he wanted to see her wake up, and if Tokshi could help it Uta got whatever he wanted this wasn't any different. She'd get her second chance she'd wake up, she'd see Uta again and they'd be happy again the two of them. "Oi Botan...thanks for giving some punk like me a chance, I'll be sure to pay you back after I become a Spirit Detective." Now filled with a new found confidence she walked over to Ari and Warren. "Yo Shortstop is Ari awake cause Botan said our eggs are gonna hatch in a bit." She rubbed her cheek she could almost feel it starting to swell up. 


@Sir Les Paul @Scrubnoppon @QuirkyAngel
 
Eric was alongside Botan still he had learned alot of himself and let go of a lot of anger animosity and guilt. He felt like a new person to an extent as he still wasn't a big social person just friendlier now


"I wonder what will come out of these eggs" he says 


@Sir Les Paul
 
"Gee... it sure is boring around here..."


Warren placed his head in his hand as he


waited for Ari to wake. 


He waited


and waited...


and waited...


an-


"AH! Tokshi! Eric! You guys took me off guard!" 


The boy floated upright, and gestured towards Arimi 


"Nah, She isn't awake yet. I haven't left her side since you left!" 


Warren smirked as he took a heroic pose. 


Warren turned back around to confirm that Arimi was still sleeping, and sat down near the group


He pulled out his spirit egg from his pocket. 


"Hmm... I wonder what mine will be..." 


Throughts swirled though his head. What could it be? Would it be something cool? Will it be something cute? Will it be something... less... favorable... 


"Well, whatever we all, I wish you the best of luck. I'm sure you all will see Your family again." 


Warren looked down at his egg and smiled. 


"I'm coming you guys..." 
 
Rested right of outside the main hall of the shrine, her 'body' laying on the cold stone floor which she couldn't really feel, Arimi didn't want to wake up. She was having a nice dream. Her father and mother were there, seated next to each other on a bench in a park her family used to go too. They were both smiling as they beckoned her to join them. Arimi knew it was a dream. Of course she did. Her parents were far too young...and her father was on the other side of the world. But even so, that the knowledge that it was a dream, didn't prevent Arimi from enjoying the moment while it lasted. Unfortunately the moment would be interrupted by bothersome external voices that she vaguely recognized. Arimi tried to grasp onto to the dream, but it was futile effort.


Slowly, Arimi's eyes opened and she saw...the sun glaring at her face. Groaning, Armi covered her face with one hand, her other hand instinctively searching for her glasses. It took a moment for her to realize that the were already on her face. Why would I sleep with her glasses on? Looking around, Arimi saw she was at the shrine and the memories came rushing back. Arimi let out an amused giggle, her hands covering her mouth.


"Right. I'm a disembodied spirit now"


Hard to tell which was more fantastical--her dream or her current reality. She could see Warren, Tokshi, and another person who she didn't recognize. Pushing off the ground, Arimi glided over to her fellow spirits. She looked towards the person she didn't recognize, examining him as if he were an interesting specimen. "You must be Eric. I heard you met with vengeful spirit. Glad you appear to be okay."Arimi figured she could ask him the details about his fascinating encounter later. "I'm Arimi, fellow Spirit Detective candidate...I think." Probably. She'd been able to fire the spirit gun, gambled her soul and succeeded, just as Miss Death God thought she could. Her eyes flickered between Warren who was holding his egg and Tokshi whose cheek was swelling a little. Warren holding an egg wasn't really a cause for concern. However Tokshi's cheek made her tilt her head a little. "Did I miss much?"            
 
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Eric froze for a moment when Arimi approached him...the small girl looked very intelligent and he thought that she was very pretty not that he'd admit that he wasn't much of a ladies man.


"Umm ...um thanks for the concern and yea im happy i made it out alright" he says smiling 


He didn't know how to interact he was blushing a lil bit...


   :get it together Echo: he says in his mind


"Your that genius girl i knew you looked familiar i read about you..if you're here then you must have died" he says 


@QuirkyAngel
 
Tokshi pet Ari's head hearing she was a genius apparently. "Wow Ari didn't know you were that smart." She joked. "Oh yeah if your worried about my cheek don't. I did it to myself sometimes ya just gotta beat the bad thought outta of yourself! Ya know?" She said looking to the shorter girl as if she was actually going to understand what she meant. Tokshi then looked Eric up and down she then chuckled. "So tell us Eri what were you up to while the three of us fought off a demon?" She was clearly bragging about the fact the three had beaten a demon even if it was by the skin of their teeth. She put her arm around Ari bringing her close she chuckled again. "Lil Ari here finished the demon off herself." Tokshi mimicked a gun with her hand like she saw Ari do then attempted to mimic her voice very poorly. "Spirit Gun! BANG! No more demon it was awesome." She looked over her shoulder to Warren. "Ain't that right Shortstop!"


@Midnite @Scrubnoppon @QuirkyAngel @Sir Les Paul
 
"Yea well i came across a vengeful spirit. .but i had to run...im surprised you guys beat a demon when we come back to life i guess im gonna have to train harder than the rest of you" he says 


He was legitimately sad he couldn't test himself as the others got valuable experience and he didn't even know why Tokshi said spirit gun bang.


@Nenma Takashi
 
"Haha, yeah! I was like 'You can do it! ' and she was like 'nah that's not how it works' then, me and..." 


warren went into a long explanation about what happened. After a bit, Warren made some strange laser beam type noises.


"Then, the spirit gun beat the Demon! And after that she passed out- and I waited here. I bet your back hurts from carrying us through that battle huh Ari?" 


Warren chuckled to himself a bit and adjusted his position, crossing his legs still afloat. 


"You know, when we all come back to life, we should all keep in touch. Besides, if we're going to be spirit detectives, we're going to have to be able to see each other in case something comes up. Or... maybe you just wanna talk..." 


warren helt up two Finger guns and pointed them at the girls trying to "be all smooth for the ladies."


"Untill then. All we can do is wait..." Warren looked at his egg. "I bet I'll get something good out of this guy. Just you guys wait and see!" 


"hehe... I hope a hot girl comes out of my egg..."
 
Tokshi held in a chuckle as Warren made dumb laser noises. "Yeah I agree we should all meet up somewhere we all know and stay in touch." She then chuckled a bit pointing to herself with her thumb. "Ironic how she carried us in the fight but I had to carry her afterwards." She then sighed when Warren pointed at her and Ari. "Dream on Shortstop your chances are about as good as me failing to become a spirit detective." She then pushed his forehead causing him to spiral backwards as he floated in mid-air. "You probably shouldn't get too used to floating since you won't be able to do that when we get our bodies back...I think?"


@Scrubnoppon @QuirkyAngel @Midnite @Sir Les Paul
 
Arimi was embarrassed. Beyond embarrassed. She was mortified by all the praise being heaped upon her. Arimi wasn't used to it. She was the leader of the Paranormal club. The leader of the dorks at her school. Insults she was used and could deal with...but being the center of positive attention? Praise? Arimi flushed red, unable to decide whether she was happy or wanted to hide in a hole. "G-genius?"


Was Eric mocking her? She'd never thought of herself as such before. Sure she went to a fairly high tier school, but her grades were mediocre there...at least compared to others students. Sure she was a bright child, won a couple of spelling bees in her youth, made the newspaper once even, but that had been a while ago. "I'm not!"


Ducking from Tokshi's hand, which patted her head, she looked between Tokshi who was bragging and Warren who was making laser noises. Arimi huffed, her arm folding across her chest. Their rendition of what happened was a bit exaggerated. She opened her mouth to protest their story...but Arimi couldn't find fault with what they said. She couldn't explain what happened either. All she knew was that Tokshi wasn't running and she wanted to save them. She turned to Eric who seemed rather depressed that he'd run away from a vengeful spirit.


"I was only able to do it because of this ring that Botan-sama gave me," Arimi said, showing her pointer finger with the concentration ring to Eric. She couldn't explain how it worked. Really, she couldn't explain anything. Even the fact that she hadn't really wanted to kill the Kuchisake-onna until Warren got thrown. Doing so would kill the mood. She turned to Tokshi and Warren. They were nice people...but Arimi was only interested in them because they were ghosts. Though, keeping in contact with people who came back to life after becoming ghosts, was probably worth it. She looked between Tokshi and Warren.


"I don't know how to get back into my body. Botan-sama didn't exactly explain how I'm suppose to repossess myself." Arimi said frankly. Warren and Tokshi were eager to get their bodies back. Apparently once their eggs hatch, they'd be able to do that. Arimi glanced at Eric. "I never died. I was...reaped, I think? My friends and I were trying to talk to ghosts and...well...here I am~" Arimi grinned. "Keeping in contact is a great idea! I'd love to get to know my fellow spirit detectives."          
 
"Hey this is pretty fun." 


Warren retained his position a second he spiraled through the air, his childlike sense of wonder and awe got to him. 


He eventually stood up and looked to Arimi. 


"Well, of course you'll come back. She'll have to do some spirit paperwork or something, and boom! You're back to life! you should be fine anyway, you did an fantastic job with that spirit gun. My guess she's reviving us all at once. I guess it makes it easier. Maybe a lot less work. I dunno." 


The boy shrugged and reverted to his cross-legged position. 


"Man, im going to miss floating. I'm going to wrench out every last second of this!"
 
"Your in the top 30 in school i think that classifies you in the genius category im 41st" he says to her.


Eric looked at the ring on her pointer finger....


"Spirit gun...im sorry i missed it. Next time i will be sure to help Arimi I'll be willing to join the paranormal club if you join the chess club" he says 


@QuirkyAngel
 
"Oh, so THATS how it works? Huh. Japan is really different. Everything here is in cursive..." 


the boy scratched his head out of embarrassment. 


"Bleugh. Don't get me wrong, I like it here, but the change is overwhelming  all at once, you know? My dad wanted to move here but he never told me why... I think it's because of the case or something." 


Warren chuckled 


"funny how it got me killed, huh?"
 
Tokshi whistled impressed by the two being so smart. "Wow top 30 and the 41st. Well bow down to the most amazing of us all the legendary 600th in a school of 700 students go on it's ok to praise me." She joked knowing just how pitiful her score was compared to the others in the group. Tokshi took a second to really realize just how friendly she had gotten with Warren and Arimi but she didn't know Eric all that much. "So how bout we brag about how we died? Not to sound too cool but I got stabbed trying to protect my boss. What about you guys?" 


@Scrubnoppon @QuirkyAngel @Midnite
 
"OH! Yeah, I don't think that we addressed that with each other- have we?" 


Warren put on a smug look and folded his arms. 


"Well, A gang member tried to shoot my sister. So I got shot to let her get away. what about you guys?" 
 
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