A threatening letter has arrived for Koenma from Demon City, a world where the most evil of Demons live. If their demands are refused, it says that several thousand Makaichu bugs will possess some people, and the Human Realm will be destroyed. Having received orders from Koenma, Yusuke, along with Kuwabara, have charged into Demon City. There, the two are joined by powerful allies Kurama and Hiei. However, they soon find themselves plunged into calamity!

Beautiful Dance of the Rose!
The Elegant Kurama

The Eye Bat says that the gate can tell how much power those supporting it have, and press down with just enough force that they can endure it. If even one of them withdraws their power, it will squash them all flat. And if one of them betrays the others to escape, the ones left behind will be crushed. They can also rely on each other, but eventually their power will fail then, and they'll all die. Only the one capable of betraying the others may enter the castle. Kuwabara tells the Eye Bat not to toy with them, and then tells Hiei if he's got this -if he betrays them, he won't get off for free.

Hiei points out that if they just stay here like this, they will all die. Yusuke tells them to cut it out, but then sees the lever. He knows they have to pull it back up, and tells Hiei to go and do it. He thinks that Hiei is the fastest among them.

Kuwabara calls Urameshi an idiot -is he out of his mind? He thinks that Hiei is detestable, and even Hiei thinks Kuwabara is right -is Yusuke sure he can trust him? He did try to defeat him once, after all. Yusuke tells him he knows he's the type who would want to defeat him directly. He raises his spirit energy to support Hiei's part, and tells him to go now.

Hiei dashes forward and gets to the lever. The wall continues to move down, but Yusuke is just about able to hold the extra weight. But Hiei then hesitates.

Kuwabara asks him what's wrong and tells him to hurry and raise the lever. The Eye Bat tells Hiei that he can lead him into the castle, and leave the others here. The Four Saint Beasts would gladly take in a criminal such as Hiei, and together, they could take over the Human Realm. Yusuke and the others continue to keep the ceiling held up, but their power is wavering. Kuwabara yells if Hiei is going to betray them after Urameshi put his trust in him.

Hiei laughs and says those guys are dense. The Eye Bat tells him there's no need for him to die with those insignificant folk. The ceiling continues to move down, forcing Yusuke and the others to drop to their knees. The Eye Bat tells Hiei that he will be his guide, and tells him to come this way.

But the moment the Eye Bat's back is turned, Hiei attacks him, using a sword to slice right through his eye. Hiei then pulls the level back up, which causes the ceiling to stop moving...

...but also activates a trap, as a massive rock is dropped down from above. Yusuke and the others watch as the rock seemingly crushes Hiei, but as they rush out, they see that he moved out of the way in time, and now stands on top of it.

Hiei tells the injured Eye Bat to go and tells his masters this: if they're going to beg for their lives, now is the time! As the Eye Bat flies away shrieking, Kuwabara asks Urameshi if he's ok. He says that he thought his veins were going to burst! He then thanks Hiei for saving them and tells him he's quite the actor -he really gave them all a scare back there. And it doesn't look like his bad disposition has changed.

Hiei makes it clear he didn't necessarily do it to save them, so don't get it wrong. "The more people they have, the easier it is to defeat them" mentality they have goes for him too. As Hiei walks off, Kurama says that's just his way of saying thanks, so pay it no mind. Elsewhere, the Four Saint Beasts discuss what has happened. Suzaku says they may be able to enjoy them, and asks for someone to go play with them. After hearing what Hiei said about begging for their lives, Byakko wants to go and tear them apart.

However Genbu says that he, who sees over the lowest rooms of the castle, will go. He's sure he will bring back their dead bodies with haste, and they can then string them up as a warning to the Spirit Realm. Meanwhile, Yusuke's group continue to walk through part of the castle, when Yusuke's communicator goes off.

Botan reports in, but the moment Kuwabara sees her, he takes over. He tells her that he's helping the weak, crushing the strong and making every effort to protect Urameshi. Botan says she's relieved to hear that, and says there hasn't been any disorder this end as of yet. The Makaichu can only take over those who have shady minds, and she's sure there are only a few people like that, so the bugs won't be able to find hosts. She also caught another small-time demon from Demon City.

Said demon gets up and is about to attack her, but she hits him with her bat. She tells Yusuke that it's alright, as these guys are weak. It's the Makichu problem that's far more serious. She's spent the whole day looking around for them, but has so far only found 15 of the bugs, out of several thousand. The demon gets up again and tries to walk off, but she hits him with her bat. She says that once the bugs become parasitic, she'll have to take them on as humans, something she won't be able to do. Yusuke says he understands, and they'll destroy the bug flute without a moment's delay. As she ends the call, she sees another bug and sprays it with Spirit Realm pesticide.

In the Spirit Realm, Koenma is in the resource room when Jorge runs in. He tells Koenma that they've just received word that Yusuke and the others have overcome the gate of betrayal. He then asks Koenma what is he doing exactly? Koenma explains that he's looking for materials that will tell him what kind of guys the Four Saint Beasts are. Jorge is surprised he gave orders to Botan, Yusuke and the others without even knowing the true nature of the enemy, and Koenma says that's right. Jorge thinks that's terribly irresponsible and he's gone too far, but Koenma says he had no choice, there's no one else he could have asked. Unless maybe Jorge would like to go in their place? Jorge immediately declines that offer.

Back in the castle, Yusuke asks Kurama if he knows anything about the Four Saint Beasts -what are their powers or techniques? Kurama says they don't know either. As the Spirit Realm sealed them up in Demon Realm, they know that they are a considerably dangerous group. They have been kept pretty far away from humans, so their appearances might be surprising. Genbu's voice then calls out to them all, and thanks Kurama for such words of praise.

Genbu tells them that they're finished here. The group opens up a door and heads into the next room, which is dimly lit. Yusuke grabs a torch and throws it into the room.

This reveals Genbu, who tells them how good it is they came here. Kuwabara wonders that this thing is, as they see Genbu for the first time. Genbu says that he, the most powerful of the Four Saint Beasts, will now teach them a lesson.

FOUR SAINT BEASTS

GENBU

Yusuke is surprised that this is one of the beasts, as Genbu says that the stairwell behind him is the only way out of here. They can either defeat him or become corpses -those are their only choices. He then uses his tail to smash part of the ground, and tells them they can attack him all at once, as that would save him some trouble.

Kuwabara wonders how they can fight against a monster like that, but Kurama steps forward and says he'll take him. He says that as long as they don't know the true nature of their opponent, it's dangerous for them to all go at once. And besides, he can't allow Hiei to be the only one to look cool! Genbu says if they want to die one at a time, then that's ok.

Yusuke thinks this is crazy, and thinks they should look for an opening and then all run upstairs instead. Hiei tells him that he doesn't know what kind of strength Kurama has, and says the reason he teamed up with him originally was because he didn't want to make him his enemy.

Yusuke then notices that Genbu is doing something with his tail, as it seems to be sinking into the ground. The tail then bursts out of the ground behind Kurama and shoots directly towards him, forcing him to jump out of the way. The tail grazes him, as Genbu laughs and says he can integrate himself with the rock and move around. By passing through the rock, moving his tail is a piece of cake -in other words, he's part of the entire room.

Yusuke asks Kurama if he's ok, whilst Kuwabara thinks Kurama is really in for it. But Kurama tells them not to worry, the injury he received was just a scratch. Genbu says they'll see how long he can keep talking big, and starts to sink into the floor.

Yusuke says that Genbu has completely hidden himself, and Kuwabara says now they can't tell where he's coming from. Genbu suddenly bursts out of the ground behind Kurama, but the latter senses it in time and leaps up, avoiding Genbu's punch. But as he jumps back, Genbu's tail bursts out in front of him.

Kurama just manages to avoid being hit by the tail, but when he lands, he sees that Genbu has vanished again. Genbu then bursts out of the ground right in front of Kurama, forcing him to jump back. Genbu then disappears again and says Kurama we'll never beat him just by running away.

Kurama says that's true, and pulls out a rose. Kuwabara hopes he isn't thinking of giving Genbu that as a present! Kurama says this is no ordinary rose.

BARA TOGE MUCHI HA

(Rose Thorn Whip Blade)

Yusuke says the scent of roses is filling the room, whilst Kuwabara thinks Kurama is an ostentatious bastard -he even said the move name in English! Yusuke thinks Kuwabara hates everyone who's cooler than he is. Koenma is watching and thinks how beautiful this technique is... to think that Kurama could use it. However Genbu isn't impressed, calling Kurama an idiot -does he think he'll have time to draw his whip when he won't know where his opponent is coming from?

He tells Kurama he'll tear him apart with a single blow. After waiting a few seconds, Kurama says he's above him, and sure enough, Genbu dives out of the ceiling. But Kurama has his rose whip ready, and starts lashing out with it rapidly. Hiei says the thorns on the rose whip can cut through iron!

KAGON RETSUZAN SHI

(Luster Severe Rending Slash Limb)

Genbu is sliced into pieces, and his remains crash to the floor. He's still barely alive, and asks how Kurama was able to tell where he was. Kurama says that it was from his smell -he'd bathed the entire room with the scent of roses, so his demon energy stank. Genbu then dies, as Yusuke tells Kurama he did it -it was Genbu who was beaten in one blow. Kuwabara says Genbu ended up being pretty weak, but Hiei calls him an idiot. The only reason this happened was because Kurama was there. He tells Kuwabara that if he had tried to fight Genbu, he would have been killed by the first strike.

Kuwabara tells him he really knows how to irritate someone, and show him some respect -he placed third in Master Genkai's tournament. Hiei calls him an idiot, but Yusuke tells them to knock it off, or he'll settle things for them. He says they should keep moving forward, and starts to walk off, but Kurama says they apparently can't go just yet.

The reason for this is because Genbu isn't dead, and starts to put himself back together. He tells them it's useless, no matter how many times he is cut up, he can't be beaten. And not only can he return himself to normal, he can also split himself up. He says he'll show them, and uses his exploding boulder bomb attack. This sends parts of himself right at Kurama, but Kurama uses his kagon retsuzan shi technique again, slicing up the projectiles.

Genbu is reduced to rubble, but even in this state he's still able to pull himself back together. He says he's done playing around, and uses his exploding boulder bomb again. Kurama uses his rose whip again, but starts getting sliced by the pieces.

But he sees that one of the pieces is different to any of the others, as it glows red. The pieces circle around and come back, but Kurama just stands there. The pieces pass by him, and again he takes a few hits.

Genbu thinks Kurama is mad for making himself such an easy target like that. But as Genbu reforms, Kurama starts to laugh. Genbu asks him what he's laughing about, as he's going to put him out of his misery right now. But then he realizes something -why is his opponent upside down?

It seems that this time when Genbu reformed, something went badly wrong! Yusuke and Kuwabara both laugh at him, and Yusuke tells him it looks like he's got some big balls there. Genbu realizes that Kurama has taken something from him, and Kurama pulls it out: the glowing red rock.

Kurama says this red rock must be the command pylon which returns Genbu's dismembered body back to normal. Genbu did a good job hiding it, but it couldn't escape his notice when he saw it glowing with power. Finding things that people try to hide is one of his specialties -he is a professional thief, after all. Genbu tells him to wait, but Kurama throws the red rock, and then slices it apart with his rose whip.

Seconds later, Genbu explodes. Yusuke tells Kurama way to go, but then sees Kurama drop to his knees. Hiei is surprised he was wounded this seriously, but Yusuke says not to worry -he can leave the rest to them. Kuwabara says he'll take on the next one.

With the room now clear of danger, the group head up the only staircase available. As they head off, the next of the Saint Beasts finds them interesting, and says he will be their next opponent.

FOUR SAINT BEASTS

BYAKKO


NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW

(Yusuke is speaking)

Kuwabara, are you seriously going to take on the next opponent, Byakko?! He's quite a monster! Woah, Kuwabara's sword of spirit energy has grown longer! That's a real serviceable sword you've got there! You don't do too badly yourself! All right, Kuwabara, go run wild against him! Don't get too cocky on us! Next time: Grow, Spirit Sword!! Kuwabara: A Man's Fight. The Other World's not watching for nothing!