Yu Yu Hakusho:Kōrudokēsu

Chapter 13 The Last of Days

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Romano Hideshi was in a bind...
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He had already spoken to King Enki on the matter of Ginobly Atakashi, and he had told him there was absolutely nothing he could do, especially not in less than two week's time.
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Nerves began to get the better I the Spirit Detective as he paced around his apartment, Yojiki's warning burning into his mind all night...
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It was very late, but despite the hour, Romano felt totally awake and nervous.... The thought of Ginobly gaining even more power troubled him deeply...
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He was so arrested in his thoughts that the knock on his door almost made the detective jump out of his clothes in fright.
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He cautiously approached the door, preparing for anything as he leaned forward, looking through the peep-hole to the outside hallway, which was surprisingly lit for this time of night.
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Outside, he spotted Botan and his neighbor, Mr. Amoko standing outside his door, the ladder looking very upset to be awoken in the middle of the night. Hidehi sighed out in relief that neither of his guests were Ginobly, and unlocked the door and opened it enough to peek his head out. "Yes?" Is all he says as he looks out at the two of them.
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"Romano, next time you want to booty-call one of your girlfriends over, make sure you tell her where you're apartment is so she's not waking me up at three in the morning wondering which is yours!" Mr. Amoko stated in an agitated whisper so as to not wake anyone else on Hideshi's floor.
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"W-Wha-" Hideshi was about to correct Mr. Amoko in his assumptions about Botan before deciding it was best to just let it go. "Yes sir... Thank you for showing her up..." he says as he seizes Botan by the wrist and pulls her inside rather aggressively. "I'm so sorry, it won't happen again..."
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Mr. Amoko grunted a bit as he turned away from the door and headed back to his own apartment for the night.
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Hideshi quickly closed the door as soon as he rounded the corner, out of sight, then turned to Botan, his eyes expressing his sheer irritation with her disturbing his neighbors. "Nice place you've got here Hideshi..." Botan said in a chipper voice as she navigated herself out into Hideshi's small living room.
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"The hell are you doing here Botan?" he tries to say angrily, but can't muster the right emotion due to how exhausted he had become.
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"Well Mr. Grumpy, I thought you'd like to know that we've found someone who may be able to help us against Ginobly!" Botan said cheerfully, making Hideshi's eyes widen a bit.
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"R-Really?!? Who?!?" he said, excitement cracking his voice a bit. To him, and good news was God-sent by this point.
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Botan smiled a little wider as he expressed his enthusiasm.
"Kuroko Sato, the world's first Spirit Detective! She's offered to train you a bit so that you can learn to harness your sacred energy potential!"
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"Wait a sec, she can use sacred energy too?!?" he questioned.
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"Well... No... Remember Hideshi, it normally takes someone forty years to learn how to harness that kind of power. You were only able to obtain it because you're so unnaturally gifted. But Kuroko has been studying up on it and knows literally everything there is to know about sacred energy! I think she'll be a great help to you!" Botan said enthusiastically.
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Hideshi, whose brain was too tired to question what Botan was saying, decided to just let Botan's excitement become infectious. "That's great! That's just so... Absolutely great!" was all he could make up as the reduction of stress caught up with him, making him drop to the floor, exhausted out of his wits, and fall into a deep sleep.
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Botan sighed, and then giggled a bit as he began lightly snoring on the floor. She knelt over and then dragged him back into his bedroom, and sat him down onto his nice, soft bed. He didn't even shudder a bit as he slept, giving the impression he had been awake for days since they rescued Yukina and spoke with King Enki.
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Botan looked down at Romano endearingly. "You've been stressing yourself out too much lately Romano... I wish you were strong enough to not let all this worry you..." she then turns her attention to the other, empty side of the bed. "Just like I wish I had the strength to tell you how I feel about you... How I've felt since the first day we met..."
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Botan's eyes began to well-up with tears as she reminds herself that he will never love her the way she loves him. "Romano... I'd abandon everything if it meant I could be with you... I'd give up my position as a reaper, my immortality... everything... Just so I could lie there, next to you at night... Be there when you wake up in the morning... Live with you the rest of our days... Start a family..." she wiped the tears from her eyes, knowing full-well he couldn't hear her, and that even if he could, it wouldn't change anything. At least in her mind...
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She knelt down and softly kissed the resting Spirit Detective on his forehead for a long moment before returning to her normal stature, and then walking away from him towards the door.
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Before she left, she gave him one final glance, and then whispered "I love you..." before sighing and leaving his bedroom.
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