Strong Enough Chapter One, a rurouni kenshin fanfic

Strong Enough

Tokyo...the city of dreams, power, rebirth and forbidden love. A place where a child can remain a child for as long as the child wants unlike Tokyo's brother and sister cities where a child is forced to become an adult.

'Indeed it has been a long while, that it has.' Kenshin thought as he walked down the familiar roads. The same old, warm, friendly faces and the same busy shops and hopefully the same, forgiving place that he had stumbled upon his quest as a young wanderer.

Over the years Kenshin had grown quite old, but was nonetheless the same old 28-year-old inside. If not maybe a bit wiser.

Kenshin a mere age of 35 had turned to the second place he could ever remember calling home after a rough 5 years of soul searching.

'So many bad things have happened. I hope she can forgive me.' Kenshin thought as he walked down the very familiar dirt path and off in the distance Kenshin could see the Kamiya Dojo.

Suddenly Kenshin stopped walking. He looked at the area around and notices something about it. It was the spot he had hugged Kaoru, as he was about to head off for Kyoto. And the same spot he had kissed her good-bye the night before he had left to go on the journey he just got back from.

Kenshin's lavender eyes lightened some. It had been too long of a 5 years. He could barely remember what Kaoru looked like. He could only remember what her eyes looked like. One of his favorite things about her.

Kenshin shook the memory away as he continued on walking. Once he had gotten to the big wooden gate, Kenshin knocked lightly at first, then a bit more loudly the second time.

With his keen sense of hearing Kenshin could hear running footsteps and the giggling of somebody he didn't know or remembered.

A moment after he heard the laughter the wooden door opened and when Kenshin looked down he saw a little girl who looked to be about 4 years old. She had short black hair that kind of spiked around her heard and she had huge beautiful chocolate brown eyes.

"Hi may I help you?" The little girl asked politely. Kenshin squatted down to her height so she wouldn't have to look all the way up at him. "Um...You wouldn't happen to know if this is still the Kamiya Dojo/ Residence would you?" Kenshin asked friendly as he smiled at her. But before the young girl had a chance to answer Kenshin a young boy darted out in front of the girl and pushed her behind him.

Kenshin was shocked to see how fast the child had moved and came out of no where in particular. But more so than that how much the child reassembled him detail for detail. He had his read hair, his body frame, but his eyes were of an ocean blue.

The young boy stared up at Kenshin with what Kenshin believed to be fierce and maybe even hateful eyes.

"Kenji! Suki!" Sano Yahiko shouted as he ran up panting heavily as he came up behind him. As soon as he looked up to see who was squatting near the gateway Yahiko quite panting and straightened his form visibly.

He eyes turned stone cold and unwavering. His hands balled at the side and Kenshin could tell he was fighting real hard internally to keep his anger in check.

"What are you doing here? Haven't you done enough damage or are you here to create more?" He asked coldly, slightly shaking a bit as he said it.

"Yo! Yahiko did you find Suki and Red!" Sano shouted from a distance away. Yahiko's eyes didn't leave Kenshin, but he turned his head to answer Sano.

"Yeah I found them...along with a ghost from the past." He responded.

Just as Sano was coming over to see whom Yahiko was talking about, Yahiko sent Kenji and Suki away inside the dojo. Kenshin watched the children obediently leave, but he noted that the little red head boy didn't go without giving Kenshin another dirty look.

As Sano came running up slowing into a slow jog hit saw little Kenji and Suki go past him and as he looked over to Yahiko noted the 'ghost' that was standing at the entrance.

He just stood there watching Yahiko watch the man that USED to be his best friend.

"What the hell made you want to come back here?" Sano said flatly. Kenshin starred at Sano and looked back at Yahiko who was still starring daggers at him. "I wanted to come back because I've been gone a long time." "Bull shit. That excuse isn't gonna cut it." Sano snapped.

"You'd better come up with a better reason than that." Sano replied. There was a faint smack off in the direction that the two kids took off in. "Yahiko go check on Suki and Kenji." Sano ordered. "But-" "Damn it Yahiko this is not time to argue with me. Just go check on them okay!" Sano roared at the younger male. Yahiko muttered a fine, but he wasn't satisfied until he gave Sano a defiant look and walked off.

"So answer my question Kenshin." Sano said after realizing Kenshin was taking too long to answer. "I need to see Kaoru." Kenshin answered while narrowing his own eyes. "And why in the hell would make you want to see her?" "I miss her Sano." "You now what I think that excuse a bunch of crap. And only my good friends call me Sano."

"Sano please...just stop this and let me see Kaoru." "I won't let you." "Why?" With Sano Kenshin's response Sano lost all kind of control and darted out towards Kenshin and decked him in the face. Kenshin was off guard and stumbled backward grabbing his swore check.

"How dare you ask me why Kenshin...Do you actually know how much you made missy suffer since you left?" Kenshin watched Sano on as a variety of emotions raced through his face and eyes. "You worthless punk...You sleep with her one night and then you leave the next morning without so much as a goodbye or a letter." Sano finished. He made out to hit Kenshin again, but this time Kenshin was prepared and blocked his move, but not the second one followed and he fell to the ground hard.

Kaoru was around the corner coming back from shopping when she heard Sano scream. She quickly began to dash towards the dojo and when she got there she saw Kenshin fall to the ground hard from a punch from Sano. Just as she saw Sano get ready to punch Kenshin again she dropped the basket she was holding and quickly threw herself on Kenshin to protect him.

A/N- So what will happen next? Read/ Review and find out!