Yusuke has been abducted by three other boys. Kuwabara, together with Botan, Kurama and Hiei, rushed to the appointed location. What they found waiting for them was a boy with a special ability, called Kaito. Within his territory, tactics involving physical force cannot be used. The only thing they can do is win at his game of words.

The Power of Taboo!
Kurama's Intellect

In the Spirit Realm, Koenma and Jorge are watching what's going on inside the mansion. Koenma tells Jorge that if anyone says "hot" in there, they have their soul taken out, which is what happened to Hiei. Whoever these guys are, they also managed to capture Yusuke, so they must be quite capable. Inside the mansion, everyone is just sitting around, not sure what to do next.

Elsewhere, Kido tells Yusuke how many times does he need to say it -no matter how hard he struggles, it's useless. And it appears that one of his friends has fallen victim to Kaito's territory. Yusuke asks him what he means, but Kido says they'll take the time to explain it to them all later. Back in the other room, Kuwabara says they don't need to sit here in silence, as all they have to do is not say the taboo word.

He asks Kurama what kind of guy Kaito is. Kurama says that Kaito has an exceptionally high IQ, and is a genius unlike any other seen at Meio academy. Kaito says that not once has he even beaten Kurama on a test. Kurama says that Kaito has also published several books of philosophical essays and literary critiques. When it comes to words, Kaito is a specialist.

Kuwabara says you can't judge a person by how they look, and thinks Kaito must take them all as simpletons. He then complains about how stuffy it is in this room.

Kaito says it's like this because he's raising some tropical plants in here. The room temperature is at 27 degrees, and the humidity is at 80% -he supposes it could be hard on those not used to it. But if they're thirsty, there are several kinds of drinks in the refrigerator. Kuwabara thinks there may be juice with truth serum in it, and tells Kaito to drink first. Kaito says he never thought of that, and tells Kuwabara he really is a smart guy.

Botan decides she'll serve them, and asks Kuwabara if he wants an orange juice. He says yeah -ought to put some ice in as well, along with a straw if there are any. But seconds after he says this, something happens to him -his soul is taken!

Kaito says that's two, and now has Kuwabara's soul. Kuwabara ends up like Hiei, but neither Kurama or Botan know why. Botan says that Kuwabara never said "hot"!

"Oh, no!"

Botan's soul is taken, and Kaito now has three souls. He says they fell into his grasp so easily. Koenma wonders why Kuwabara's soul was taken, as he never said "hot".

He decides to rewind the footage, and plays back what Kuwabara said. "yeah -ought to put some ice in as well". "Yeah-ought". "H-ought". "H-ot". Koenma and Jorge realize that technically Kuwabara did say it.

Kaito says that inside his territory, taboo words are strictly observed. You can't say the sounds for "h", "o" and "t" in a row. Those are just the rules. He says the souls are pretty, and he likes Botan's one the most since blue is his favorite color. There's no way to strengthen a soul, they're beautiful and fragile. He could crush them with just a little force, and suggests he should perhaps scratch one of them just a little bit.

Kurama tells him to go ahead and try, but warns him that, to him, that would be taboo. If he tries to pull something like that, Kurama says he'll use any means he can to kill him. Kaito says that's nice, and he gets the feeling he's finally seeing Kurama's true face. Kurama then reveals that he has the key.

Kaito doesn't understand how he got it, and goes to Yanagisawa. Yana says the key should be right here in his pocket, but when he checks, he finds that it's gone. He doesn't understand how Kurama was able to get it, but then he and Kaito notice the vines on the ceiling.

Kurama says he got it without Yana noticing, and it seems that as long as he obeys Kaito's rules, it appears he can use his abilities in the territory. He tells Kaito to take close care of those three souls, as he's going to get them back from him no matter what. Kaito says he can't get them back unless he beats him. Kurama asks him if he can change the taboo word. Clearly neither of them are going to say the current taboo word, so they will end up sitting here like this for hours. Kaito says he can change it, and the truth is he planned on doing so from the start. Once it become one on one between the two of them, he wanted to make the rules a little more advanced.

Kurama says if he lets him choose what the taboo word is, he promises he will be able to make him say it within 45 minutes. Kaito is interested, but asks what'll happen if he doesn't say the word before the time runs out. Kurama says he can have his soul.

Kurama asks him if he wants to do it. Kaito thinks about it, and knows that Kurama has only barely learned about what his ability is. He thinks it'll be enjoyable to see what kind of taboo Kurama comes up with. There's no need for him to be nervous, as he's researched every type of word puzzle there is, right down to the very heart of the words. He tells Kurama he agrees to his conditions, and asks about what taboo he's thought up.

Kurama says the taboo will be one letter, but after every minute, another will be added. Starting with "a", then "i", and after every minute, the taboo will increase, in syllabary order. It means the letters available to use will decrease. It will take 45 minutes before all of the letters are eliminated.

Kaito says this is interesting, and right now, it's 12:51. He says they'll start at 1 o'clock. He writes down the taboo.

The clock strikes 1, and the two begin their game. Kaito says it will only be for a short time longer that they can speak freely like this, as very soon, "a" will be gone.

A minute passes, and the letter a is removed. Kaito says it'll be the letter "i" too, before long. He thinks Kurama should get in his fill of words with "i" in them right now, whilst possible. He thinks he must have said the letter "i" several times then. Kurama tells him not to be so confident, or before long, he could slip up.

Another minute passes, and the letter i is removed, then u, then e, then o. Five minutes have passed in total, but Kaito says they can still talk, even without one of the letter columns.

Kurama says make the slightest mistake, and you may just say them. More time passes, and more letters are removed. Kurama is watching, and it's driving him absolutely nuts... once you're allowed not to say something, it makes you want to say it even more!

Back in the mansion, Kurama and Kaito continue.

"Minamino, what are you after?"



"Well now, haven't I already indicated that?"

Kaito suddenly gets up.

"What now?"



"The bathroom."



"Yana, don't say anything."

Yana almost laughs, but puts a hand over his mouth to stop himself. He thinks that he's in Kaito's territory as well, so he's got to be careful himself. Kaito thinks about what's going on, and what Kurama is trying to do. In 10 minutes, they won't be able to have much of a conversation, which means they won't be able to raise their voices. He thinks Kurama is waiting for when they can barely speak at all. He then hears a thud outside, and rushes out of the bathroom.

He sees that Yana is unconscious, and wonders how Kurama did it. He then sees the vines above moving, and remembers that Kurama can control the plants. He wonders if Kurama has gone ahead to the next room.

He doesn't think Kurama will have moved on. The person who built this house was eccentric, and built three doors to pass through this hallway. He has the key to the second door, and the key to the third door is hidden. And besides that, Kurama had said he was going to take back the three souls. He wonders if Kurama took the souls he'd left, and goes back towards the main room. But as he does, he sees that it's covered with plants and flowers.

He has no choice but to wade through them. But he sees that the souls are still all there, however Kurama is gone. But it means he has to still be in this room somewhere. He must be waiting for him to drop his guard. Kaito starts looking around, but he keeps hearing the plants rustle in different places.

He looks at the clock, and realizes there are only a few letters left they can use. He decides to not say another word, as as long as he doesn't say anything, he'll win. He knows what Kurama is planning -he's going to try and startle him, and try and make him scream. Kaito decides to just stay in the center of the room, as that way he'll immediately know where Kurama will call him out from. There are 3 minutes left.

Time passes, and Kaito puts his hands over his mouth just in case. Kurama is above him, and drops down slowly. He does a scream with the only letters left to use: "wa!".

This scares Kaito, but he forces himself not to scream. He knows if he yells out "kyaa" or anything like that, he'll lose! He manages to stop himself. He turns around and thinks he's won, but then notices the expression on Kurama's face.

...



"Aha ha ha nya ha ha!"

With his laughter breaking the taboo, Kaito's soul is taken, whilst Hiei, Kuwabara and Botan's souls are restored, and they all return to normal. Kurama tells them that Kaito's territory has vanished.

Kaito's soul hovers over his body. Kuwabara says they've won in the end, but he shudders to think what would have happened if Kurama wasn't there. But he tells Hiei he was the cause of all this! For once Hiei has no response to Kuwabara.

Kuwabara tells Hiei that this was all his fault for getting his soul taken away. Kurama tells them that in a contest like this, thinking that you can win as long as you don't say the taboo word will psychologically make you lose. In the Spirit Realm, Kurama and Jorge are laughing at the expression that Kurama pulled, and can't believe he did that. Back in the mansion, Kido wonders what's going on down there, but Yusuke tells him that Kuwabara and the others will make it all the way here -no question about it. And when that happens, Kido should brace himself.

Thanks to Kurama's quick thinking, Kaito's territory has collapsed. However, as everyone moves deeper inside to rescue Yusuke, what kind of territory will the next boy standing up to them have?


NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW

(Yusuke is speaking)

Damn it, these guys are just picking one strange fight after another! It's almost as if they're testing our powers. It really disgusts me! Damn, which one of them is it?! The one who came up with this ridiculous contest? Come on out, I tell you! Next time: The Terrifying Truth! A New Mystery. The Other World's not watching for nothing!