Genpuku

Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

Welcome to my first published RuroKen fanfic, "Genpuku"! The story is based on events that take place in the manga series rather than the TV anime version and is set years after the end of the manga. For a list of Japanese terms used, please refer to the glossary at the end of the chapter. And, as always, please leave your comments and thoughts! Doomo!

Chapter One:
Babysitting and Bashing

Begin Part One

Yahiko didn't understand women.

Males and females were, reputedly, of the same species. They certainly were able to make children together, so it seemed to be a viable theory. But other than having compatible reproductive tracts, that was where the similarities ended, as far as Myoujin Yahiko was concerned.

For instance, Yahiko considered his current situation. For all the complaining and threatening Kaoru did about the way Yahiko treated her children—the boy, Nobuyuki, was almost ten now, and the girl, Hinako, had just turned six—she had no compulsions about asking him to baby-sit. The oldest, Kenji, was fourteen now, nearly an adult, and was old enough not to need a babysitter, per se, but that didn't stop Kaoru from loading Yahiko down with the responsibility of making sure no harm came to him while she and Kenshin were gone.

Not that Kenji didn't need someone to keep an eye on him, Yahiko thought as he herded the two younger children towards the dojo, where sounds of hard practice could be heard through the chilly late winter air. Yahiko certainly cared for the boy; he was as close to a younger brother as Yahiko had ever had, and he had grown up looking to Yahiko as role model and friend. Yahiko could recognize in the young budding swordsman signs of future strength, both physical and internal, a steely willpower and a samurai's fighting spirit, indomitable and proud.

But Yahiko would be damned if sometimes the little brat didn't need a good bashing over the head now and then.

"Whoopsie." Yahiko saw Nobu fall, taking a tumble over his own feet and recovering with a swift grace that would have made a ninja jealous. Before he could ask if the boy was all right, Nobu was back up and running again down the hallway. Yahiko made a mental note to check later for bruises. Kaoru had left her children in his care, and with her and Kenshin due to return any day now, it wouldn't do to let her see any evidence of a lack of diligence on his part, real or imagined.

It didn't matter if boys would always be boys. If Kaoru was under the impression that Yahiko was somehow lacking in his care of her children, there would be hell to pay. And Yahiko would be the one to foot the bill.

"Whoopsie!" True to nature, Hina—sweet little sprite of a child that she was—immediately tried to copy her brother. Yahiko intercepted her before she could land on her head, catching her around the waist and hoisting her, upside-down, suspended midair. "Yahiko-nii!" Her protest was giggly and breathless, and she twisted, trying to free herself, shrieking with joy as he swung her in a fast circle before gently setting her down.

"You scared me, niichan!" Her eyes, blue like Kaoru's sparkled up at him.

"Sorry, Chibi." Yahiko let her take his hand in her dainty one, stooping a little, folding his lanky frame closer to the ground so the little girl didn't have to stretch her arm to reach him. He wrinkled his nose at her playfully. "You scared me. What if you had fallen and hurt yourself? Your mommy would kill me if she knew I let you be injured!"

Hina beamed up at him, gave his hand a squeeze in reassurance. "Don't worry, Yahiko-nii. I'll keep you safe from mommy's raff!" Yahiko had to laugh, as much at her mispronunciation of the intended 'wrath' as at the mental image her words conjured of Hina bravely holding off Kaoru's furious attacks with himself huddled behind her in fear for his life.

They reached the dojo, and Yahiko bowed respectfully before stepping in through the open door. It was cold enough outside that he could see his breath forming clouds in front of his face even now in the middle of the afternoon, but the door was left open nonetheless, for a variety of reasons. Firstly, it was important to train in all types of weather to accustom oneself to ignoring adverse conditions and concentrate on the fight at hand. But more importantly, nobody wanted to be trapped in an enclosed space with almost two dozen men and boys sweating profusely beneath the sturdy armor they wore during practice sessions.

Practice was already in full swing as Yahiko entered the room, and, while he felt guilty for not having been able to attend the beginning of the session, it was good to see that class could run even without him there to take command. His students were coming along nicely, and he eyed form and posture critically, automatically calling out corrections even as he led HIna by the hand to the cushioned seats along the wall where Nobu had already seated himself, watching the practice with wide-eyed enthusiasm. He had just begun practice himself, and he eagerly drank in the techniques and styles he saw before him to be assimilated for his own one-on-one practice with Yahiko after the other, more advanced, students left.

Kaoru had handed over the day-to-day running of classes to Yahiko years ago, probably soon after she'd become pregnant with Hina. She still taught, of course, and—it was hard to admit—could still beat Yahiko three or four times out of five when they faced off against each other. But, for all intents and purposes, Yahiko handled teaching and Kaoru ran the dojo. She was a lot better than he was at keeping the place organized and running, balancing finances and scheduling classes and the like. Kenshin was useless when it came to numbers, perhaps the one thing in life where he couldn't beat them one-handed and blind-folded, so it was Kaoru who made sure that expenses never exceeded income, and the dojo was, as a result, always in good standing.

Yahiko's experienced eye scanned the students practicing in full armor, faces obscured by the metal face mask of the helmet. He picked Kenji out easily from among the others and paused in putting on his own armor before joining the practice. Kenji was a natural for the sword, that was no surprise, given his lineage, and his form was good—very good, in fact. His strikes consistently made the target, and his footwork never faltered. He was fast, controlled, and fearless.

And yet…

Yahiko's eyes narrowed as he tugged the last ties into a secure knot and checked to make sure his armor was fasted tightly before standing and pulling his favorite shinai off its space from the rack on the wall. There was something about the Himura's eldest son that just…rubbed him wrong. It was something he noticed most specifically during practice, but Yahiko couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Shrugging off the sensation, Yahiko lined up with the students, across from one of the new beginners, and let the head student call out the instructions for the next exercise.

They rotated partners often, but Yahiko stayed where he was and had the students move around him, not because he was sensei or anything, but because that way he was right there if Nobu or Hina needed anything or if something came up and required him to bow out in the middle of practice. He was aware, on the edge of his consciousness, when Tsubame came in on silent feet to sit with the children. Her presence was a quiet one, but it sang through his senses with an intensity no less overpowering for all its familiarity. But since she was there, watching Hina and Nobu, Yahiko was able to dedicate his full attention to the practice.

The time wore on, and the last rotation of the session found Yahiko crossing bamboo blades with Kenji. The teen wasn't what one could consider tall; his eyes were level with Yahiko's shoulder, but there was room yet for growth, both in height and in muscle mass. Yahiko doubted the boy would gain much in either respect, but already there was a fierceness in his amethyst gaze that spoke of his hard determination to win.

"Hajime!" The cry rang out, and the matches began.

Kenji was more than even 'very good', and Yahiko felt his blood rise at the challenge. Without conceit, Yahiko knew he was a good swordsman, one of the best in the region with shinai, bokken, or sakabatou. Kenshin, though he'd long since given up sword fighting, could probably still defeat him without much effort. Kaoru, too, was better than he. But Kenji…Kenji was one of the very few against whom Yahiko didn't have to hold back.

But there was that something again. Part of Yahiko's mind, the detached part that watched the math dispassionately, could see it in every move Kenji made. Even as he attacked, blocked, and counterattacked with the ease borne of years of training, his mind sought to identify that…something.

Try this, his mind whispered, and Yahiko deliberately let his guard falter almost imperceptibly, let Kenji slip in and land a glancing blow to his leather-protected wrist.

There. Yahiko finally labeled that previously unidentifiable something that had been nagging at him for weeks.

Part of him scoffed at himself for his lateness in identifying what it was. Yahiko was often accused of the same, so why had it taken him so long to realize what it what Kenji suffered from was arrogance?

Now that he knew what it was, the signs were obvious. Yahiko squared off against Kenji one last time, knowing the other pairs had sang since stopped to watch them. Cockiness infused Kenji's ki—his spirit, his aura—all but oozed out of him.

Oh, yes, Yahiko thought, and allowed himself one feral smile of triumph as he leapt in with a roar, closing the distance with a speed that was almost unnatural.

Kenji was good, very good.

But he was better!

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Yahiko's roar—that's what it was, ferocious, fierce, ripping deep out of his gut to shake the rafters—resounded through the dojo the same instant his shinai came crashing down on Kenji's head with perfect control—a exact hit. Only dimly was Kenji aware that he was weaponless; just milliseconds before had Yahiko launched into motion, using his shinai to disarm Kenji with a move too fast to follow, sending his sword flying out of his hands and leaving him defenseless and open to attack.

Kenji met Yahiko's gaze through their masks and read not gloating, not victory, not even the sort of satisfaction Kenji had been half-expecting. Completely disarming your opponent was one of the most lived-for moments in kenjutsu; sending their weapon crashing into the opposing wall was to die for.

But Kenji read nothing but pure concentration on his older brother, friend, and sensei's face. Concentration, and danger, Kenji realized as Yahiko moved back, then bowed to finish their match. Kenji responded in kind unthinkingly, confused by the look—the threat—he'd read in Yahiko's eyes.

Because, sure as his name was Himura Kenji, there had been a definite warning in Yahiko's hard brown gaze.

The confusion kept most of his embarrassment at having been so thoroughly defeated at bay as he removed his armor, put his equipment away, said good-bye to the other students. Tsubame—he'd seen her enter—had left, taking with her Nobu and Hina. She'd probably gone to prep the bath for him and Yahiko before saying good-bye to the students at the front gate. An affectionate smile touched Kenji's serious face as he thought of the woman who was both aunt and sister to him. She still worked at the Akabeko, though with her husband's salary, it wasn't strictly necessary for her to keep the job, and her training as first waitress, and now hostess, of the popular restaurant showed.

"Good fight."

Startled, Kenji roused himself from his thoughts to find he and Yahiko were the last two left in the dojo. The older swordsman was wiping at the sweat on his face with the thin towel they used to tie around their heads under the helmet to soak up the sweat before it dripped into their eyes and rendered them useless in the fight. Yahiko was standing over him, looking down at him, his gaze serious and strangely forbidding.

"You've got excellent reflexes," Yahiko said, but Kenji knew there was more to be said than just the compliment; he could practically hear the silent 'but' at the end of the sentence. "And the timing of your techniques is beautiful. But—" Here it is, Kenji thought, with a touch of sourness, as he braced himself for the criticism. "—you're overconfident and arrogant. And that arrogance is what made you lose today."

Yes, Yahiko thought, tiredly, as he turned and left Kenji speechless and stunned, alone on the dojo floor. There were certainly times when Kenji could use a good bash over the head, and it was just too bad that Yahiko had to be the one to do the bashing.

Written: 7.17.06

Author's Notes: One note on the title of this fic…Genpuku refers to the old practice of "coming-of-age" for men before the Meiji Era. At age fifteen, a boy became a man. In the manga series, for Yahiko this comes when he 'inherits' the sakabatou from Kenshin; for Kenshin, this comes sometime after he met Tomoe but before she died.

And one note of clarification regarding the kenjutsu practice scene described in this chapter…For those of you who have never seen a modern-day kendo practitioner in full bogu (armor), the descriptions of what they are wearing are perhaps a bit hard to imagine. The 'helmet', as it were, consists of two thickly-padded cloth flaps that extend over the shoulders and a metal face-mask that protects the wearers from inaccurate hits. Beneath the helmet they wrap their heads with a tennugui, or 'towel' made of thin cloth, to keep the sweat out of their eyes. Other pieces of armor include a 'do', which protects the torso and chest, a 'tare', which protects the hips and groin area, and 'kote', which are leather-and-cloth gloves to protect the wrists. Kaoru and Yahiko both have suits of armor, which are worn in the early books of the manga but are never shown in the anime series. The armor worn in practice is similar to that worn in battle by the warriors (shown in various scenes during both anime and manga series). It is fastened by tying ties, as commodities such as Velcro, buttons, and zippers weren't invented until much later. )

Sorry for the length of the author's notes! In the future I hope they will be much, much shorter. Thank you for bearing with me!

Glossary (in alphabetical order):
Bokken: all-wood sword used in practice; not used to connect with another person during practice
Chibi: roughly means "small one", used here as an affectionate nickname. Can be used as an insult (especially when directed towards a boy)
Hajime: "begin", used in practice to indicate to both participants when the match starts
Kenjutsu: sword fighting
Ki: "spirit" or "aura"
-nii: an affectionate suffix for an older brother
Niichan: "older brother", used here as an indication of the closeness between Yahiko and the Himura's children
Sakabatou: Kenshin's reverse-blade sword
Sensei: "teacher"
Shinai: bamboo sword used in practice; can be used for full-contact with an opponent