The Point of No Return

"Someone is going to die."

That was the only thought running through Koenma's head as he gazed out Yusuke's window. Someone, maybe more than someone, was going to die.

"I should have never sent him to that bloodbath..." the forlorn god whispered. "I might as well have killed him myself, it would be no different..."

Sensui.

Yusuke.

"No one should have to choose between them..." Brown eyes closed against the bright sunlight and childlike tears. Koenma could not cry, not with Yusuke, Kurama and Genkai in the room. First, they would tease him like nobody's business, but more importantly, they needed him to be calm. Koenma was their only clue to Sensui's abilities.

Sensui.

It all came down to Sensui.

He'd been an interesting person to know. His employer had been real fond of Sensui, and as close to him and Itsuki as he was to the Urameshi Team. Young Sensui had been determined to better himself and his world by vanquishing all evil. Meaning, vanquishing all demons.

Still, Koenma had been glad when his detective enlisted a partner. Sensui was so clear cut; he saw the world in black and white. Itsuki was more realistic. Perceptive. Sensui may have been the detective, but Itsuki made sure that he was the one doing the dirty work. Koenma had been all for that.

"Nothing lasts forever, right, Sensui?"

Koenma tightened the bright red scarf around his neck. The present-day Sensui met his eyes carefully. It was the same cool-blue gaze Koenma remembered so clearly. Except it was so very empty.

The Spirit Realm Detective version of Shinobu Sensui had been a quiet, serious type of guy. But he always had a mission, a purpose. A passion. And that was always painted delicately in his eyes. Blazoned in blue for all to see.

"What did I do to you, Sensui?" he asked softly. He could hear a faint whimper in his voice. It sounded pathetic, even to himself.

"I condemned you to madness, didn't I? I sent you and Itsuki past the point of no return. Blurred the lines you held sacred."

Years ago, Sensui's mission had been to protect humanity. Every time Koenma had gazed into his detective's eyes, he had seen that.

Now, his detective's mission, his passion, his life was to end humanity.

That was not written in his eyes.

Now, gazing out Yusuke's window and onto the building across the street, where Sensui and one of his Seven stood, all Koenma saw was...

Nothing.

Nothing. No goal. No remorse. No joy. Honestly, Koenma wasn't sure what he should have seen, but he was pretty sure this was not it.

Vaguely, he percieved Kuwabara leaving the bedroom Mitarai, Botan and Shizuru were stationed in. The prince could hear Yusuke yelling at him to stop as they both left the apartment.

Yusuke!

"No!"

Sensui would kill Yusuke. That much was obvious.

Unless Yusuke killed Sensui first.

"Great. My detectives, I've condemned one to madness and the other to death."

Sensui or Yusuke? Yusuke or Sensui?

Who would win?

"Who do I want to win?"

Sensui? Sensui had seniority and experience on his side. Genkai proved it, those were formidable weapons. Last time Koenma had checked, Sensui had been a master of eight different styles of martial arts. At least. It had been ten years; Koenma had no idea what to expect now.

Yusuke, on the other hand, had recently and barely master Genkai's Reikohado techniques. Even then, it took bribes, threats, Genkai's real death, Koenma's possible death and Kuwabara's faked death for him to go through with it.

Yusuke had not been able to master his own power until the fake death. As Koenma had said at the time, he didn't think it was very nice, but, as Hiei pointed out, very necessary.

Sensui was so disciplined.

Sensui and Itsuki never had to be cajoled or threatened.

Itsuki never claimed he had nothing to do with Sensui... until a damsel in distress was dropped into the picture.

Sensui never had to be bribed with acquittals.

Itsuki had never jeopardized the mission by putting other interests above it.

And Sensui had never had to be tricked into defeating a demon with tickets to a martial arts tournament.

The Urameshi Team didn't have Sensui and Itsuki's close rate. But they hadn't been active as long.

They didn't have Sensui and Itsuki's discipline. But they were, technically and overall, younger.

They didn't have Sensui and Itsuki's almost-psychic abilities to read eachother perfectly. But there were four of them.

They weren't trying to destory humanity.

"Okay, Hiei tried," Koenma amended. "For Yukina's sake."

Shouts of "Wait!" (Kurama) and "Damn those boys!" (Genkai) penetrated Koenma's hazy brain. Numbly, he ran after them to confront Sensui.

Once down, Koenma sized up Sensui and his fellow. Where could Itsuki be? This had to be "Sniper."

"Duh. Opening the hole."

Swallowing roughly, Koenma addressed him, saying simply "Sensui."

The old detective smirked. "It's been awhile."

Koenma forced a jaunty tone to his voice. "Is that any way to greet me?"

The others warned Kuwabara to stay back, saying he was still weakened from his fight with Seaman. He warned Yusuke to stay back, Sensui could also shoot his energy.

"How's his force?" Genkai asked tersely.

"Considerable. I don't know how it's changed these last ten years, though."

Kurama's eyes narrowed. "So it's going to be a dangerous gamble."

"You hear that, Urameshi?" Kuwabara said.

Yusuke stepped forward, and called to Sensui. They taunted each other before beginning their first showdown.

"Sensui... Yusuke..."

Koenma swallowed again, coming to a decision.

Yusuke had to win.

If Sensui died, Koenma would just pull a few strings, get Sensui placed into a semi-comfortable final resting place with a careful, cleverly light punishment attached. Screw the rules. Sensui was his responsibility; none of this was Sensui's fault. It was all Koenma's, and he felt awful for not being able to fix it.

He felt like the cold jerk Yusuke referred to him as for dropping all of this onto the poor kid. But they were past the point of no return.

But just as with defeating Toguro to stop Sakyo, the only person who do it was Yusuke, and Yusuke alone.

"Good luck."

----

Yes, Koenma was talking back to his own thoughts. No, I don't know how he managed to be so quiet that Yusuke, Genkai, Kurama and Kuwabara didn't hear him.

The dialogue at the end is from the episode this fic is based in, on the Dark Indulgence DVD.