BUI
BU
Bui is the enormous armored fighter of Team Toguro and the opponent who forces Hiei to prove how completely he has changed since first summoning the Dragon of the Darkness Flame. His axe and armor make him look like a simple brute, but the armor is actually a restraint used to suppress Bui's massive battle aura. Once he removes it, his energy becomes powerful enough to levitate his body and repel attacks that would flatten ordinary demons. Hiei responds by firing the Dragon again, only for Bui to turn it back at him. The fight ends when Hiei does something even more dangerous and absorbs the Dragon into his own body. Bui survives the defeat, one of the rare Team Toguro fighters to do so, and accepts the result without the sadism shown by his teammates.
BUI THROUGH THE ARCHIVE //
DARK TOURNAMENT WATCH GUIDE //
Open page →Team Toguro's final does not simply line up four stronger versions of the same opponent. Karasu attacks Kurama's control and identity. Bui forces Hiei to master the Dragon he once barely survived using. Elder Toguro turns Kuwabara's emotions against him. Younger Toguro spends the entire captain's match trying to break the restraint inside Yusuke.
That is why the final feels like a conclusion rather than another round. Each member of Team Urameshi is forced to use something the tournament has spent dozens of episodes building.
That is why the final feels like a conclusion rather than another round. Each member of Team Urameshi is forced to use something the tournament has spent dozens of episodes building.
Why it matters
The bracket reaches its best point when strength stops being one number. Each fight asks what that character has actually learned.
SPIRIT ENERGY & SIGNATURE TECHNIQUES //
Open page →Hiei's first Dark Tournament use of the Dragon of the Darkness Flame destroys Zeru and nearly ruins Hiei's arm in the process. The attack is powerful enough that simply summoning it is dangerous to the person using it.
By the final, Hiei has changed the relationship. Bui sends the Dragon back toward him, and Hiei absorbs it instead of being consumed. The same force that once injured him becomes an internal power source he can control for a short time.
By the final, Hiei has changed the relationship. Bui sends the Dragon back toward him, and Hiei absorbs it instead of being consumed. The same force that once injured him becomes an internal power source he can control for a short time.
What changed
Hiei's progress is not measured by summoning a bigger Dragon. It is measured by surviving, understanding and finally mastering the thing he was reckless enough to call before he could control it.
YU YU HAKUSHO COMBAT LEDGER //
Open page →Bui removes the armor suppressing his battle aura while Hiei unwraps the arm containing the Dragon of the Darkness Flame. Both fighters enter the serious part of the match by taking off restraints they had been carrying for a reason.
The Breakdown
Hiei fires the Dragon. Bui survives and sends it back. Instead of being destroyed, Hiei absorbs the Dragon and converts its power into speed and strength Bui cannot match. The technique that nearly crippled Hiei earlier in the tournament becomes the source of his victory because his control has finally caught up with his ambition.
