They had known the fugitive demon was in the area. The Urameshi team had been alerted to his presence, and they had split up to track him down more efficiently. They hadn't considered him a serious problem; any one of them could easily subdue him. He could cause a great deal of harm to regular humans, but to the Reikai Detectives his antics would be a mere nuisance.
Kurama was the one to encounter him. The fugitive sprang at him, in the hope of gaining the advantage through surprise, since he knew he was out-classed.
Kurama's reflexes responded to the threat, enabling him to dodge the thrown dagger. He ran through his opponent's statistics in his head to determine the best method of apprehending him. A petty thief, the criminal specialized in quick, surgical strikes to obtain small, extremely valuable or powerful objects. No warrior, he was noted for using ranged attacks to secure his retreat if confronted.
He wasn't getting away this time.
"Rose Whip!" Kurama shouted, intending to corner his opponent before he could make an escape. A whip appeared in Kurama's hand...but not the one he had expected. Instead of the deadly, thorn-studded weapon, his magic produced a long, brittle wand of a medicinal herb he had collected.
While he dropped the object in shock at such an unprecedented mistake, the fugitive nearly eluded him. Shaking himself out of immobility, Kurama reached out with his influence, commanding the potted flowers from a nearby windowsill to grow into thick vines, entangling the criminal as he darted past.
Mission accomplished.
And yet... He lifted the plant that had taken the place of his rose. It should have been a rose. The seed had been exactly where he always kept it. He had worked out a meticulous pattern for ensuring that he knew where each and every species rested, a pattern so ingrained that he could use it by instinct alone if need be. Nothing had disrupted that filing system since...
He closed his eyes and covered his face with his hand, realizing at last how the switch must have come about. One word sprang to his lips, a word that, when he spoke it with a mixture of frustration, resignation, and amusement, perfectly encapsulated the whole explanation.
"Hiei!"