A/N : I guess its only fair I start with this, just in case the summary wasn't clear enough.
Two Rurouni's - Kenshin and Soujiro; Okashira - Aoshi; Two wolves - Okita and Saito.
Standard disclaimers apply
Warnings : well, its mostly friendship and humor with a tad of hurt/comfort but just the initial bits where they enter after-life is slightly angsty. (they are dying, thats the best defense I have)
Their deaths are NOT cannon! But hey, give it a chance :)
PROLOGUE
Do you believe in hell? Do you believe that sinners are burnt within its flames?
Do you believe all the men who have sinned deserve to go there? Maybe you do, but the universe didn't.
You see, fate had decided to intervene on the behalf of five men.
Each of them had taken countless lives, each of their swords were soaked with the blood of their own kind and each of them were aware of the sins they were committing but they went on and did it anyway.
Why? Because they believed in the greater good. They believed in destroying evil. They believed in protecting the weak. They believed that their souls were a worthy sacrifice to make their nation a better place.
These were men of noble intentions and good hearts. They were honorable men who deserved more than what their life offered them. So much more...
Yet would you allow such men into heaven? No, they are far too blood stained for that...
Which is where the alternative is to be considered - purgatory. A place where death at least would offer them something that which life couldn't. Peace.
However, fate does - as these men can attest first hand- love its irony; And these men, being such obvious favorites, never could catch a break.
This time too, there is a price to pay.
A seemingly simple one.
To live with each other - for eternity.
Welcome to the after life that awaited the strongest swordsmen of Japan.
A/N : Please do leave reviews :)