Chapter 1
Yae, Saiyuri, and Kaoru walked through the streets of Osaka, gossiping and giggling.
"That Megumi… there's something strange about her…like the way she always hangs around Kenshin, calling him 'Sir Ken'! It's soo annoying!" Kaoru said with a scowl. Yae and Saiyuri exchanged looks of understanding, and smiled impishly.
"Ya-know Kaoru, The way you ramble on about Kenshin…One could only assume that are infatuated with him." Saiyuri said grinning. Yae began to giggle hysterically.
"He likes you too Kaoru!" Yae said clapping her hands together.
"What!? No! I-I just know that Kenshin doesn't like it! It doesn't bother me! He's just lets her do that because he is so polite! Someone's gotta stand up for the man." Kaoru said as she flushed bright red. Wanting to change the subject Kaoru pointed out a cute little boutique.
"Oh-I've always wanted to shop in a boutique!" Kaoru exclaimed as she ushered Yae and Saiyuri towards the stores entrance.
"No you haven't, you're just trying to change the subject!" Saiyuri exclaimed as she let Kaoru lead her towards the small store. The women walked past a group of five young men talking in hushed voices. "Yae, aren't you gonna come in?" Saiyuri asked as she turned to face her friend.
"Uhhh…no I think I'll wait out here and look through the window…." Yae mumbled as she walked past the young men.
"Okay…suit yourself…" Kaoru replied as she and Saiyuri walked through the door. Yae inched closer to the group of men.
"I heard he killed over a thousand men during the revolution!" one of the men exclaimed. The others nodded in agreement.
…Who are they talking about?… Yae thought as she tired to listen nonchalantly.
"I heard that the Batousai is actually living in Tokyo, at some run down dojo!"
…The Batousai!! In Tokyo?!… Yae gasped. All the men stopped looked over at her. Yae quickly looked to the store window, trying not to blush.
"Yeah…I even heard that he is going by the name of…what was it?… I think his new name was Kenshin, Kenshin Himura… Yeah that was it…" Yae didn't hear the rest of the sentence. …Are they serious? Kenshin is the Batousai?! He seems like such a nice guy… Yae thought to herself frantically. Kaoru and Saiyuri walked out of the store with their arms full of knickknacks.
"I'm just saying, Megumi needs to leave Kenshin alone, before I take matters into my own hands!" Kaoru said fiercely. Saiyuri rolled her eyes and smiled at Yae.
"This was all she had been talking about in there…" Saiyuri murmured as she pointed back to the store. "Yae, what's wrong?" Saiyuri asked as she looked at the worried expression on Yae's face.
"Huh? Oh…nothing, I was uh… just uhh…thinking about …something…" Yae said detachedly. Yae was quiet the whole way home. Saiyuri walked in silence pretending to listen to Kaoru's chatter, but was actually thinking of what could be bothering Yae.
…What could have upset Yae so much??… Saiyuri thought to herself with a frown…. What the… did that bush just move?… Saiyuri stared hard at the bush …Hmm… maybe it was just my imagination…no…there it goes again… Saiyuri put her hand over Kaoru's mouth and pointed to the bushes silently. Kaoru nodded her head in understanding, and the three of them stood in silence.
…Oh no! It's the Batousai! He knows that I know and now he is coming to kill us all in order to keep his secret!… Yae thought as she looked around franticly.
"Here's what we will do." Saiyuri whispered "we keep walking towards the bush, then when we are about ten feet away from it, we make a run for the dojo. Okay?" Saiyuri looked at the bush again and took a deep breath. …Here goes nothing… The three girls walked slowly towards the moving bush, making sure not to make a sound. "One, two," Saiyuri whispered "three!" All three girls sprinted past the bush. A white and yellow blur raced after them and grabbed all three girls by the back of their kimonos.
Yae screamed in terror. "I won't tell anyone, please don't kill us! I promise I won't tell any one your secret!"
"What secret?" two familiar voices asked. Yae turned around to see Sano and Yahiko looking at her with confusion.
"Sano!" Saiyuri yelled. "What are you doing hiding in the bushes?!" she said as she slapped him on the arm.
"Yeah, why?" Kaoru asked as she shoved Yahiko roughly.
"We just wanted to see what you would do," Sano answered innocently as he rubbed his arm, "and see if you three would be able to fend for yourselves. Kaoru talks so loud we could hear you guys coming from a mile away, and since Yae always looks at her feet when she walks, you would have fallen right into our trap! If it wasn't for Saiyuri you two would have been gonners." Sano said pointing at Yae and Kaoru.
"Yae, what were you talking about when you said you promised you wouldn't tell our 'secret'?" Yahiko asked.
"What?! Oh…no one…I-I…nothing…" Yae said as she blushed. Sano arched his eyebrow and looked at Saiyuri for an explanation. He opened his mouth to speak but was cut short.
"Don't talk to me, ya big jerk!" Saiyuri said sternly "You're just lucky I don't have my sais with me, otherwise you'd have another hole in your stomach."
"No way! The most you could have done was given me a scratch." Sano said defensively
"Yeah, like how all you got was a little "scratch" from that guy in the bar last week!" Saiyuri said dryly.
"Umm… you guys I think we should start heading home, it's starting to get dark…" Kaoru said as she took Yae's arm and started towards the dojo. Yahiko stayed behind to listen to the quarrel….This is getting interesting!… The boy thought with a grin.
"Hey now! The guy was hittin' on you, was I just supposed to let him be all touchy feely with you?" Sano asked. Saiyuri rolled her eyes.
"Sano! The guy was twice your size, and he probably weighed five times more than you did!" Saiyuri said curtly.
"Yeah, but now he won't go bothering random women, now will he?" Sano said as he put his arms around Saiyuri's waist.
"Yeah, and you won't go picking fights you know you can't win!" Saiyuri smiled.
"Sano got beat up?!" Yahiko asked in amazement. Sano and Saiyuri turned around to find the boy grinning from ear to ear. "Just wait till I tell everyone!"
"Not so fast…" Sano said as he grabbed Yahiko by the neck, "I didn't get beat up, I just got hurt…a little." Saiyuri giggled, as she tried to keep a straight face.
"Okay Sano…whatever you say…" Yahiko said as he slipped out of Sano's grasp and raced after Kaoru and Yae.
"Why'd you have to bring that up?" Sano mumbled.
Saiyuri burst into peals of laughter. "Because it was so funny, and cute! Come on, we had better catch up to everyone else." Saiyuri said as she took Sano's hand and walked home.
Yae, Saiyuri, and Kaoru walked through the streets of Osaka, gossiping and giggling.
"That Megumi… there's something strange about her…like the way she always hangs around Kenshin, calling him 'Sir Ken'! It's soo annoying!" Kaoru said with a scowl. Yae and Saiyuri exchanged looks of understanding, and smiled impishly.
"Ya-know Kaoru, The way you ramble on about Kenshin…One could only assume that are infatuated with him." Saiyuri said grinning. Yae began to giggle hysterically.
"He likes you too Kaoru!" Yae said clapping her hands together.
"What!? No! I-I just know that Kenshin doesn't like it! It doesn't bother me! He's just lets her do that because he is so polite! Someone's gotta stand up for the man." Kaoru said as she flushed bright red. Wanting to change the subject Kaoru pointed out a cute little boutique.
"Oh-I've always wanted to shop in a boutique!" Kaoru exclaimed as she ushered Yae and Saiyuri towards the stores entrance.
"No you haven't, you're just trying to change the subject!" Saiyuri exclaimed as she let Kaoru lead her towards the small store. The women walked past a group of five young men talking in hushed voices. "Yae, aren't you gonna come in?" Saiyuri asked as she turned to face her friend.
"Uhhh…no I think I'll wait out here and look through the window…." Yae mumbled as she walked past the young men.
"Okay…suit yourself…" Kaoru replied as she and Saiyuri walked through the door. Yae inched closer to the group of men.
"I heard he killed over a thousand men during the revolution!" one of the men exclaimed. The others nodded in agreement.
…Who are they talking about?… Yae thought as she tired to listen nonchalantly.
"I heard that the Batousai is actually living in Tokyo, at some run down dojo!"
…The Batousai!! In Tokyo?!… Yae gasped. All the men stopped looked over at her. Yae quickly looked to the store window, trying not to blush.
"Yeah…I even heard that he is going by the name of…what was it?… I think his new name was Kenshin, Kenshin Himura… Yeah that was it…" Yae didn't hear the rest of the sentence. …Are they serious? Kenshin is the Batousai?! He seems like such a nice guy… Yae thought to herself frantically. Kaoru and Saiyuri walked out of the store with their arms full of knickknacks.
"I'm just saying, Megumi needs to leave Kenshin alone, before I take matters into my own hands!" Kaoru said fiercely. Saiyuri rolled her eyes and smiled at Yae.
"This was all she had been talking about in there…" Saiyuri murmured as she pointed back to the store. "Yae, what's wrong?" Saiyuri asked as she looked at the worried expression on Yae's face.
"Huh? Oh…nothing, I was uh… just uhh…thinking about …something…" Yae said detachedly. Yae was quiet the whole way home. Saiyuri walked in silence pretending to listen to Kaoru's chatter, but was actually thinking of what could be bothering Yae.
…What could have upset Yae so much??… Saiyuri thought to herself with a frown…. What the… did that bush just move?… Saiyuri stared hard at the bush …Hmm… maybe it was just my imagination…no…there it goes again… Saiyuri put her hand over Kaoru's mouth and pointed to the bushes silently. Kaoru nodded her head in understanding, and the three of them stood in silence.
…Oh no! It's the Batousai! He knows that I know and now he is coming to kill us all in order to keep his secret!… Yae thought as she looked around franticly.
"Here's what we will do." Saiyuri whispered "we keep walking towards the bush, then when we are about ten feet away from it, we make a run for the dojo. Okay?" Saiyuri looked at the bush again and took a deep breath. …Here goes nothing… The three girls walked slowly towards the moving bush, making sure not to make a sound. "One, two," Saiyuri whispered "three!" All three girls sprinted past the bush. A white and yellow blur raced after them and grabbed all three girls by the back of their kimonos.
Yae screamed in terror. "I won't tell anyone, please don't kill us! I promise I won't tell any one your secret!"
"What secret?" two familiar voices asked. Yae turned around to see Sano and Yahiko looking at her with confusion.
"Sano!" Saiyuri yelled. "What are you doing hiding in the bushes?!" she said as she slapped him on the arm.
"Yeah, why?" Kaoru asked as she shoved Yahiko roughly.
"We just wanted to see what you would do," Sano answered innocently as he rubbed his arm, "and see if you three would be able to fend for yourselves. Kaoru talks so loud we could hear you guys coming from a mile away, and since Yae always looks at her feet when she walks, you would have fallen right into our trap! If it wasn't for Saiyuri you two would have been gonners." Sano said pointing at Yae and Kaoru.
"Yae, what were you talking about when you said you promised you wouldn't tell our 'secret'?" Yahiko asked.
"What?! Oh…no one…I-I…nothing…" Yae said as she blushed. Sano arched his eyebrow and looked at Saiyuri for an explanation. He opened his mouth to speak but was cut short.
"Don't talk to me, ya big jerk!" Saiyuri said sternly "You're just lucky I don't have my sais with me, otherwise you'd have another hole in your stomach."
"No way! The most you could have done was given me a scratch." Sano said defensively
"Yeah, like how all you got was a little "scratch" from that guy in the bar last week!" Saiyuri said dryly.
"Umm… you guys I think we should start heading home, it's starting to get dark…" Kaoru said as she took Yae's arm and started towards the dojo. Yahiko stayed behind to listen to the quarrel….This is getting interesting!… The boy thought with a grin.
"Hey now! The guy was hittin' on you, was I just supposed to let him be all touchy feely with you?" Sano asked. Saiyuri rolled her eyes.
"Sano! The guy was twice your size, and he probably weighed five times more than you did!" Saiyuri said curtly.
"Yeah, but now he won't go bothering random women, now will he?" Sano said as he put his arms around Saiyuri's waist.
"Yeah, and you won't go picking fights you know you can't win!" Saiyuri smiled.
"Sano got beat up?!" Yahiko asked in amazement. Sano and Saiyuri turned around to find the boy grinning from ear to ear. "Just wait till I tell everyone!"
"Not so fast…" Sano said as he grabbed Yahiko by the neck, "I didn't get beat up, I just got hurt…a little." Saiyuri giggled, as she tried to keep a straight face.
"Okay Sano…whatever you say…" Yahiko said as he slipped out of Sano's grasp and raced after Kaoru and Yae.
"Why'd you have to bring that up?" Sano mumbled.
Saiyuri burst into peals of laughter. "Because it was so funny, and cute! Come on, we had better catch up to everyone else." Saiyuri said as she took Sano's hand and walked home.