Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Rurouni Kenshin characters.

Prologue: Trouble

"If we have any luck at all, the central army will arrive in a week. But on their preceding infantry, staving off an attack would be virtually impossible. Diplomatic relations have been severed at the Fukuoka conference."

The men seated around a low table fell silent at the adviser's words. Each balked at the prospect of invasion; total war would then be inevitable, followed by imminent chaos and famine. If their city state was to survive the first wave of soldiers, they would have to draft the already limited number of unlisted men. Even that, however, would not be enough if the central army was to follow suit.

"Then what can we do?" Raikoji Muneiwa asked, brow furrowed. Then, he turned to the man sitting at the head. "We cannot possibly abandon this domain. Our lands have far too many resources to just leave behind for Isurugi Raijuta and his unit."

Kamiya Koshijiro rose, and set his eyes on a map spread. After several minutes of steep concentration he said, "We will defend our land." At this, several men burst into a number of protests.

"But how?" another interjected, "A struggle seems futile. It will be better if we surrender now. I understand your principles, Koshijiro-dono, but would not more lives be saved if an armistice was instated?"

"I would like to think it possible. However, Raijuta is not known for his kindness. Whether there is a truce or not, he plunders all lands under his control. I am afraid that these lands will not survive afterward, Gasuke-san. I cannot fathom the fate the people will suffer if authority is relinquished."

Gasuke sat back, and shook his head. "I still do not understand. Either way, this domain will be lost."

"Whether it will be lost or not, we will have fought honorably. That is most important." Koshijiro remarked. "Now let us set our focuses on the west wall's defense-"

"Father?"

The men looked up sharply. A young woman had slid the shoji screen door open. Instantly, Koshijiro's resolve seemed to soften as he beckoned toward his daughter. "Kaoru?"

She bowed. "There is a messenger outside of the defense."

"Send a guard man to retrieve him. Instruct him that I am about to finish this meeting. He can wait outside of this room; I will not be long."

There was a pause in which the men looked expectantly for Kaoru leave. When she did not, Koshijiro questioned, "Do you wish to speak with me?"

"I... I want to know what's going on," Kaoru said hesitantly. She ignored several voices of disparage as she continued, "There is a battle coming. I want to be of assistance."

Koshijiro looked at her before saying, "How did you know, my daughter?"

"The sentinels are on constant watch. The court is agitated, and the soldiers grow restless-"

"You should merely focus on keeping yourself safe," a gangly man, Tanishi, interrupted. "Women should not involve themselves in matters that do not pertain to them."

"As the daughter of this domain's ruler, I believe I should involve myself," Kaoru replied determinedly. "I care for these lands as much as you."

Tanishi scoffed. "Girl, I suggest you keep your mouth shut. A woman should not be audacious in the presence of men-"

"Tanishi, that is enough," Koshijiro intervened, voice touched with the slightest bit of warning. "Remember that you are speaking with my daughter." With that, he turned to Kaoru. "This is a meeting between me and them. If you want to know anything, address me afterward. Thank you for your message."

Kaoru knew it was over. Head up high, she walked out of the room and slid the door shut.

Koshijiro, meanwhile, gathered the men around the map. It was as if there was never an intrusion; the rest of the gathering was spent on preparing for battle.

It was late into the night when two men, burdened with heavy rucksacks, moved across the castle's small courtyard. Stealthily, they crept among the structure's perimeter until they were met with a towering wall. This was their only obstacle in reaching the wilderness of outside; one of the men, Hachisuka, began uncovering a small hollow before the rampart.

"Are you sure that this will work?" Tanishi asked, as he hurriedly bent down to help.

"It should," the other responded huskily. "Because there's no way in hell I'm gonna stay here and get slaughtered. Koshijiro is a great man, but I can't see how I should get myself killed defending this place."

"We have tried to persuade him. As always, however, the man was unmovable."

Hachisuka shook his head. "Pah. I bet that Kaoru girl gets her stubbornness from him," he flouted, as he crawled down into the tiny, shoulder-sized hole. Tanishi followed suit.

"Probably. Her mother was a quiet one," the gangly man said, as he and Hachisuka groveled underground. "The girl's insolence is nothing short of indifference. I do not see how Koshijiro would have raised a daughter like that. She practices kenjutsu like any other man. It is unnatural, to say the least."

"It's unlucky that he treasures her. You know, this whole war could have been avoided if it weren't for that Kaoru girl."

Tanishi grunted as he and Hachisuka finally crawled out at the other side of the wall. Wrestling his rucksack out of the hole, he muttered curiously, "How?"

"A few weeks ago, I carried a message for Koshijiro. It was from Tani Jusanro."

Hachisuka's eyes widened. "Jusanro? The warlord Jusanro?"

"You are correct," Tanishi said, as they both carefully made their way through a patch of caltrops. "Jusanro issued Koshijiro an ultimatum. He said that he would call back Raijuta and his forces if Koshijiro gave him an offering."

"Don't tell me..." Hachisuka muttered, in disbelief.

"Jusanro wanted Kaoru's hand in marriage. The union would have been for political purposes. He demanded that this land then be part of her dowry. On these terms, Jusanro would have taken over, but left us to rule ourselves. He would have demanded a census and a general tax, but that would have been it. A damn war could have been avoided altogether."

Hachisuka was still in shock. "So we're in this mess because of that Kamiya girl?"

"Yes," Tanishi answered poignantly. "And Koshijiro, because of his stubbornness on refusing to let his daughter leave."

"Bah!"

At last, they reached a small clearing that bordered the edge of the forest. There, two mares were tied; Hachisuka and Tanishi each saddled a mare and cut the rope. Immediately, they rode onto the nearest roadway. After a while the mares galloped at a steadier pace.

When they were a safe distance away from the walls of the city state, they slowed their strides.

"We'll head to Kyoto," Hachisuka said, "there we'll find some sanity in the midst of all this madness."

Tanishi pointed over the distant promontories."There should be a rest stop along here some-"

Hachisuka whipped around as Tanishi stopped, and suddenly gave a great cry of pain. The man fell off of his horse, and clutched at his chest.

Hachisuka came to an abrupt halt, hands tight around the reins in his fists. He then ran over to his friend in horror- there, wedged deeply into Tanishi's chest was a flaming arrow. He could not help, for it was already lodged in Tanishi's heart; Hachisuka could only stand there, as Tanishi thrashed about, screaming and shouting.

A deep rumbling resounded throughout the area. Slowly, Hachisuka turned, but only to meet an even more shocking sight.

There, from a great distance, were thousands upon thousands of horsemen. They were speeding black dots that roamed the plain; they carried brilliant yellow flags, each endowed with a red emblem that could only mean one thing: Raijuta and his unit were approaching!

Hachisuka yelled and scrambled over Tanishi's corpse. With all the speed he could muster, he threw himself onto the mare and dug his spurs deeply into its sides. With a cry, the mare reared up and galloped back toward the path that led to Koshijiro's domain. Gasping furiously for breath, Hachisuka held himself flat against the animal for dear life.

'I've got to warn Koshijiro. Dammit, I gotta get out of this alive first!'

A/N: Hmm... this introduces a whole host of problems. On a different note, there're a bunch of names that might seem unfamiliar:

Raikoji Muneiwa- Chizuru's gramps.

Gasuke and Tanishi- Two goons that get beat up by Kaoru. They chased her two students to the dojo. They were lackeys for Hachisuka.

Hachisuka- the perverted ganster with the wooden cannon from early on in RK.

Jusanro- The 'pork bun' from early and later on in the canon series.

Yeah, it seems like I used the most random people (none are going to be main characters, 'cept for Kaoru) . Anyways, I apologize if it seems too short and boring. As it is the prologue, I wrote only enough to give leeway into the next installment. See ya next chapter :)