Author's Note: I absolutely do not own the copyrights to Rurouni Kenshin, and since I don't know Nobuhiro Watsuki-sensei personally, I do not have his permission to do this. Is this copyright infringement, then? I don't know. =)

Anyway, a brief explanation: The whole part when Kenshin meets and encounters Jineh is one of my favourite parts in the whole of Rurouni Kenshin. (Well, possibly my favourite part so far.) And while I'm waiting for the second and third parts of the live action movie, I got so hung up with re-watching (over and over) the last fight scene between Kenshin and Jineh that my emotions simply overflowed. The following is just an expansion of what I feel are Kenshin's thoughts about the whole affair. Also, this is actually a mash-up of manga, anime, live-action movie, and imagination, so is this still copyright infringement then? =)

Oh well.

PS: And I suck at describing the fight scene itself, so please be merciful. =)

XXXX

The moon was full and brightly shining up in the sky. The darkness was pressing all around within the woods. But against the moonlight, steel gleamed, and a deep voice broke the silence.

"To protect Kaoru-dono, I will become a hitokiri once again."

And the blade swung down.

It was inevitable. The minute I heard the name Jineh Udoh, I knew that the ghosts of my past had come to take me away. Just when I was finally, finally feeling free of the hitokiri inside me, they had to come calling.

The wild rush of the river could not drown out the deafening voices in my head. Hitokiri Battousai, they called out. The hitokiri who ended many lives, fathers, brothers, sons, and left wives, sisters, mothers crying out in despair. The hitokiri who mercilessly cut down people who believed in a different world than him, and paid for that belief with their lives. The hitokiri who delivered Tenchu to countless mortals, the agent of death. The hitokiri who paved the way for the new era with the blood of the old one.

But I only did it to protect those I see suffering before me, a small voice said.

I could only sigh. It was a misguided thought. A katana is only destined to kill. It can't be used for something as pure as protecting the lives of people. No matter what Kaoru-dono thinks, a katana in my hands is a weapon designed to kill.

Kaoru-dono. Her name rang in my head like the clear peal of bells in the Christian church. She came unexpectedly into my life, like a ray of sunshine that managed to break through the stormy clouds. Just when I resigned myself to living a pointless life, she came and showed me how to live fully.

But I can't drag her into the mudpit that is my past. She is too pure, too gentle for my rough hands to touch. She mustn't be sullied by any ghost that I inadvertently summon, and so, for her own safety and my sanity, I had to go. Like a coward, I simply gave notice through a third party, and not to Kaoru-dono herself, because I know that, in looking through those clear eyes of hers, I would not find the strength to leave.

"Kenshin…" I could almost hear her say.

At the same time, I sensed somebody behind me. I gripped the sakabatou tight and unsheathed the katana just a little to show the blade. Has Jineh found me already?

"Mitsuketaaaaa…" Kaoru-dono's face loomed over mine. In surprise, the blade slipped and cut my thumb. I swear, she could be as frightening as Jineh himself!

"K-Kaoru-dono," I gasped.

Kaoru-dono sat beside me. "I heard from Sano," she said, cutting straight to the point. "If you're going to fight Jineh, then I'm not going back either. I'm going with you."

I pressed on my thumb to stop the bleeding. I welcomed the pain, because I sure as hell don't welcome her words. "You know what Jineh is, Kaoru-dono, so you must understand that I have to fight him alone," I explained. "To be able to defeat him, I have to draw out the hitokiri inside me, and who knows what will happen?" I know what clearly, though, but I chose not to tell her.

She was staring straight across the other side of the river, so I followed suit. I could feel her frustration emanating, but she was tough enough to keep it in check. Suddenly, she stood up, and planted her feet in front of me.

"Kaoru-dono?" I asked questioningly.

Kaoru-dono yanked on the ribbon that tied her hair. Without the restraint, her straight dark hair cascaded down on her back. Then, strangely, she handed the ribbon to me.

"This is my favourite indigo ribbon. I'm giving it to you," she said. When I made no move to take it from her, because frankly, I don't see the point, she grew irritated. "Just take it!" she growled.

"Yes ma'am!" I had to obey her immediately.

She wasn't smiling as she looked at me. "See here, I'm only lending this to you," she explained. "You have to come back to return it to me. I won't forgive you if you won't."

As I looked back at her earnest face, I understood. Her eyes told all. Don't lose yourself in the fight. Come back to us as our rurouni, Kenshin Himura. You'll do that for me, won't you? I had to smile at the sincerity of the plea in her eyes. "I will," I promised.

I will.

Hearing the conviction in my voice, Kaoru-dono smiled back.

I couldn't process what happened next. He was really a ghost, a malignant ghost that had to come and take away my sanity. He stole in like a phantom and snatched Kaoru-dono from where she stood.

I could only watch in shock as the small boat that carried both Jineh and Kaoru-dono move rapidly with the gushing river. "Kaoru-dono!" I jumped up and ran, but I simply wasn't faster than the river current. "Kaoru-dono!" I shouted again. It was unbearably frustrating to be this helpless!

Kaoru-dono managed to free herself momentarily from the hand that sought to keep her silent.
"Kenshin!" she cried out my name.

I turned my attention to her abductor. "Jineh!"

"So, this is your woman, Battousai!" Jineh sneered at my futile attempts to catch up with them. "Good! Get angry! Get really angry! Go back to the hitokiri that you have abandoned if you want to save your woman! I'll be waiting!"

"Jineh!" My voice was shrill with desperation, but inside, my heart burned with white-hot fury towards the man who abducted Kaoru-dono.

The rapid current soon carried Kaoru-dono and Jineh away until I couldn't see them anymore. Recognizing that I was defeated, I slowed my pace and stopped running after them altogether.

"Kaoru-dono," I whispered. I gripped the ribbon tightly in my hand. It's time to lay this ghost to rest. And to resurrect the hitokiri that lies secretly within me.

"Here he comes now." Jineh smirked as I arrived at the abandoned temple where he took Kaoru-dono. Even with the darkness of the night, I could see Jineh looking down on me from the top of the steps, and beside him, Kaoru-dono.

"Kenshin!" Kaoru-dono cried out, but the relief in her voice only served to madden me further. I couldn't reply.

"Are you angry yet, Battousai?" Jineh taunted as I walked slowly towards them.

"I am angry… angry that you had to drag Kaoru-dono into this, and angry at myself for not stopping you sooner," I replied, the fury spilling out in my words.

I knew Kaoru-dono heard the malice in my voice. "Kenshin?" she said tentatively, confused at what she heard.

Jineh grinned. "Good." He went near Kaoru-dono, and lifted her up. I unsheathed the sakabatou, ready for any attack he might make. His next action, though, caught me by surprise once again.

"Get angry! Show me the Hitokiri Battousai!" From the top of the steps, he pushed off Kaoru-dono. She cried out in pain as she tumbled down.

"Kaoru-dono!" I sped towards her, intending to catch her as he threw her, but with one jump, Jineh was beside me, brandishing his katana. After, it was then a clash of steel against steel, but all the while, I couldn't think of nothing else but Kaoru-dono's safety. I had to go to her, see if she's still okay, but my hands were full in parrying every slash he made against me. With my distracted mind, he managed to cut me in the arm, and I could do little else but to move away.

He stopped. His eyes, deep black and murderous, scrutinised my cut arm and then looked down on my katana. He smirked again. "Do you really think you could kill me with that katana? Or are you still stubbornly clinging to that pathetic belief about not killing again?"

From the corner of my eye, I saw Kaoru-dono lying on the base of the steps. I couldn't do anything for her anymore, but at least she was fairly okay, as far as I could see. I stared into Jineh's eyes. In reply, I simply raised my sakabatou, anticipating his response.

I do.

As if hearing my thoughts, Jineh lashed out again at me. This time, though, I can now follow with his movements. Deflecting each sword slash and thrust easily, I was simply waiting for an opportunity to break his rhythm and finally put an end to this murderer's career.

Left-hand slash… then the right… then a thrust…

As he kicked me backwards, I braced myself with the sakabatou, waiting for the decisive downward thrust.

Jineh's eyes widened when I blocked his blade with the hilt of my sakabatou. This was the opportunity I've been waiting for. A sideslash… now!

It was my turn to be astonished as I felt his katana pierce my shoulder.

"Kenshin!" Kaoru cried out. She struggled to sit up.

Jineh leered. "You're not yet good enough to predict the Haishatou, are you?" He proceeded to turn the thrust into a cut, but I raised my katana to block it. After that, I could do little else but to defend myself against the wild onslaught of slashes and thrusts that came in all directions.

With one strong swing of his blade, he threw me off balance. I managed to get up, but he simply kicked me back several feet and I hit the ground once more.

"Kenshin!" Kaoru cried out again. She started crawling towards us, and was just hindered by the bonds on her hands and feet. "Stop it! Jineh, stop it now, please!"

I was defeated. That much I could recognize. That much he could see. Surely, he must be disappointed now that he has beaten the legendary Hitokiri Battousai. He turned and walked away from me in disgust. Surely he would stop now…

"Not enough," he muttered, and looked towards Kaoru, who defiantly held his gaze. She gasped, and her eyes widened in fear. As she fell back on the ground, I could hear her gasping for breath.

Jineh turned to me again, a challenging look in his eyes. In a split second, I knew what he had done.

"Kaoru-dono!" I cried out, but she couldn't call me back. She could only look at me with terrified eyes.

"It's a stronger version of the Shin-no-Ippou, enough to paralyze her lungs," Jineh drawled. He pulled out a pocket watch. "She'll only last two minutes, at most." He threw the pocket watch in Kaoru's direction. "So, Battousai, what are you going to do now? Dying by strangulation is not a pretty sight."

"Jineh…" In my anger, I could only say his hated name.

"There's no time to waste. Just let your katana do the talking, even with that joke of a katana," Jineh mocked.

I gripped my sword tight. As he turned around, I crossed the distance between me and him in a split second, but only managed to cut his cheek. I landed heavily near Kaoru-dono, to closely assess the pain he had brought on her. "Kaoru-dono," I whispered. She looked at me briefly, then closed her eyes in pain as she vainly tried to draw a breath.

"Impressive," came Jineh's voice from behind. "I didn't see that one coming. You're getting faster."

I stood up and faced Jineh. "If you want to live, you will undo the Shin-no-ippou on Kaoru-dono!" I snarled.

Jineh just laughed at my threat. "There are just two options: that she is going to break the spell herself, which would take a greater swordsmanship spirit than mine," he said, "or you kill the caster and release her from the spell."

But we both know that there's only one option. Jineh felt it in the murderous ki that emanated from me. He sprang deeper into the woods, with me hot on his heels. We exchanged a few blows, and as soon as opportunity arose, he ran away again.

All the while, Jineh kept smirking at me. He parried, he dodged, he countered all my blows, but he saw what I was beginning to see now.

You're holding me back, a cold voice whispered. You are holding me back, because you are afraid of me.

Shut up.

The voice laughed cruelly. All that talk of protecting people, those who you see before you, is just talk because you are denying your true nature.

Shut up.

I am your true nature, you weakling, and in order for you to save her life, you need me to come out.

Shut up. I can defeat him without your help.

But you don't need to defeat him to save Kaoru, you need to kill him.

I roared out my frustration as Jineh deflected my slash again.

And who between us is the killer?

Jineh managed to pin me against a tree, and while I was engaged in preventing him from crushing me, he pulled out a tanto and stabbed me with it. I managed to push him away, but with a well-aimed kick, he sent me flying backwards again, back to where Kaoru lay.

Kaoru-dono…

As I pulled out the tanto from my arm, I glanced at her. I couldn't shut out the sound of her labored breathing, and I saw in her face that she was in pain. But her eyes looked at me in concern as her gaze raked in my bloodied clothing, and I wondered, why are you so concerned about my life, when yours is already at death's door?

To save Kaoru-dono, I have to kill.

I closed my eyes, and let the hitokiri in me fully take over.

You're the one who can save Kaoru-dono. Please…

Pathetic.

Being a rurouni is not enough to save the people I am trying to protect. I needed the hitokiri, no matter how hard I try not to, because he is the only one who can be strong enough for them.

I stood up, and faced Jineh. Now fully recognizing the presence of the Hitokiri Battousai that he wanted to meet, he stopped smirking and was on his guard.

I flexed my sword hand. "Come at me so I can kill you."

Jineh obliged, and he came at me with the desperation of a dead man. To be fair with him, he managed to match my attacks with his pathetic sword style, but…

"Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu, Ryutsuisen."

The sakabatou came falling down the sky and delivered Tenchu on Jineh's head. He staggered for a second, then collapsed on the ground.

I could still hear him breathing, and I scowled. "If this was an ordinary katana, you should already be dead," I remarked as I saw him stand up again, blood cascading down his face from the gaping wound on his head.

Jineh merely laughed, and with good measure, licked the blood on his face. "It's not over till one of us is dead," he countered.

"True enough," I agreed, then I sheathed my katana and positioned myself in the battoujutsu stance.

"Battoujutsu, huh," Jineh said, recognizing my form.

I nodded. "Let me show you how I got the name Battousai," I said. "It will be an honor for you."

I saw him hesitate for a second. He must be deliberating how he could dodge the death blow that was surely coming. With a intake of breath, he gripped his katana tight, and readied himself. I knew he figured something out from the confident way he faced me. I smiled to myself.

"Here I go," he said, launching at me. As he stepped into my striking zone, I unsheathed the sakabatou.

Fool.

Jineh's face lit up as he successfully dodged the blade's strike. He laughed triumphantly. "Victory is mine!" he managed to say. With a downward slash, he struck at me.

But he didn't land a blow on me, because my sheath crashed into his elbow, breaking it, and severing his tendons.

Fool.

He screamed in pain as he clutched at his sword arm, now bent in an unnatural manner. He stepped away from me, and I did the same. I smiled coldly at the confusion in his eyes. "Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu, Soryusen," I said. "The battoujutsu, though instantly deadly, has a weakness that leaves the user open when the victim manages to dodge the first strike. I however, as a master of the battoujutsu, know very well that weakness, and have taken the precaution of using the sheath as a secondary strike should the first strike be rendered useless. Your life as a swordsman is over," I declared, as I switched the cutting edge of the sakabatou to face Jineh, "and so is your life as a human being."

Jineh laughed maniacally. "Kill me, Battousai!" he cried. "Let me taste a hitokiri's blade!"

This is it.

"Don't hesitate!" Jineh goaded me. "She doesn't have long to live."

Kaoru-dono. I could hear her labored gasps behind me.

I raised my katana. "To protect Kaoru-dono, I will become a hitokiri once again."

"Good." The malice in Jineh's eyes was unmistakeable. If left alive, he will continue to murder. He will haunt and hurt Kaoru-dono again, unless I end this once and for all.

I steeled myself to do the deed.

"Die!" I swung the blade down.

Good bye, Kaoru-dono.

"Stop!"

Inches away from Jineh's head wound, the blade froze. At the sound of her voice, I stopped, and looked at Kaoru sharply.

Kaoru was sitting up, breathing heavily, but still breathing. What was more, she was able to shout out at the top of her lungs, using the first breath that she took, to stop me.

"I can't believe it," Jineh muttered, voicing out my thoughts. "She broke it."

"Kaoru-dono…" I murmured.

"Don't kill, Kenshin," she said clearly as she looked right at me. In between breaths and tears, she talked to me. "Don't kill anymore, for the sake of those you killed, and those you saved! You don't need to kill to save somebody. Isn't this the new world that you have fought for?"

She sat there, holding me in her tear-filled gaze, beseeching me to hear her. Don't kill anymore. Come back to us as our rurouni, Kenshin HImura!

"Kaoru-dono…" Her blessed name was enough to bring me back again. I lowered my katana. Heaving a sigh of relief, Kaoru-dono sank back to the ground. This time, before she hit it, I was there to catch her.

"Are you okay, Kaoru-dono?" I had to ask her. She looked up at me and smiled.

"I'm fine, Kenshin," she replied. Then she stiffened, as I sensed Jineh behind us.

"I told you it's not over yet," he said.

I clutched the abandoned sakabatou. "Give it up, Jineh," I said, this time without the cold tones of the hitokiri. "Your sword arm is broken, and you only have a wakizashi to stop me."

"It's only over when I say it is!" Jineh declared, and raised the wakizashi. I turned swiftly around to parry his thrust, but I found out it wasn't for me. He plunged the wakizashi deep in his abdomen before I could stop him. He fell backwards among the rocks behind him.

A gurgle of blood spewed out from his mouth as he tried to speak. "Don't look at me like that, Battousai," Jineh said. "A hitokiri is a hitokiri, until he dies. That is the truth. I'll be watching you from hell as you struggle to keep denying this truth. I wonder, just how long are you going to stay a rurouni?" He started laughing, until, choking on his own blood, he stopped altogether.

Then the night fell silent, as undisturbed as it was a few minutes ago.

"I'll be all right, Kenshin, let me just catch my breath," Kaoru said.

We sat at the base of the temple steps, and watched the fire that I created burn Jineh's body. We decided that we'd simply let the police know that Jineh is dead, but for now, we had to properly dispose of his body. That is to say, we had to give him a proper burial.

"All right then, Kaoru-dono," I said.

She turned a concerned gaze at my direction. "Don't worry about me, worry about yourself," she said. "You need to have your wounds treated."

I shrugged off her concern. "I'm fine, Kaoru-dono," I replied. "I've had worse wounds than this." Besides, my life is nothing compared to yours, I added to myself.

Beside me, I heard Kaoru sigh. "Give me my ribbon back," she demanded.

I started. Now that you mention it… I drew out the ribbon from my clothes. "Here it is."

She gritted her teeth when she saw its condition. "It's bloody!" she shrieked. "And that was my favourite one too!"

"I'm sorry!" I quickly apologized. With clenched fists, she took it from my hands. "Mou... you don't take care of things that are lent to you, do you?" she hissed, all the while glaring at me. Then breathing out harshly, she ordered me to turn around. I heard the sound of tearing fabric, and when I glanced back, she was tearing cloth from her inner clothes.

"Hey, I told you to turn around!" she admonished, sharp eyes turned on me. I turned back, then concentrated on the ground as I said, "There is absolutely no need for you to concern yourself with me, Kaoru-dono."

"Why not?" she asked.

"Because, if not for me, you wouldn't have been in this situation," I explained. "Your life wouldn't have been in danger, and you wouldn't have been hurt like this."

"Turn around now," Kaoru-dono commanded, and I faced her. She looked at me with a serious face, three strips of cloth in her hands. "We need to dress your wounds as soon as possible. When we go back, we'll let Dr. Genzai treat them properly."

"No, Kaoru-dono," I said. "When we go back, we let Dr. Genzai see you, and then I go back to wandering."

"What are you talking about?" She started glancing around for something, or probably avoiding me. Which is just as well.

"Jineh is right, I am a hitokiri, and will always be," I said, hating myself for saying these things. "How should anyone in their right mind be safe from someone like me?"

"Kenshin, look at me," Kaoru-dono said. I did. She was still looking at me with that honest, steadfast gaze. "Who are you?"

I was mystified by her question. "Himura Kenshin," I replied.

She smiled. "That's right. You are Himura Kenshin, the rurouni. That's how I know you as, and that's how I will know you." She turned to my shoulder. "Show me your wounds."

"But I am…" I started to say, but Kaoru-dono cut me off. "I told you before, didn't I, that you're free to keep the secrets from your past. I know you as Himura Kenshin, the rurouni, and that's all I'll ever need. Take off your shirt."

"But…"

"No buts. Show me your wounds, fast," Kaoru-dono cut me off again. I obliged, and as Kaoru deftly cleaned my wounds the best way she could without water, she continued, "Whatever you have been in the past is not important. What you are now and what you decide to be now is the more important issue. You are a rurouni, Kenshin." In a softer voice, she added, "You are our rurouni."

Rurouni. Our rurouni. At her words, it was like the dawn had come earlier, and the warmth of the sun was seeping through my skin. I reached out and held the hand that was dressing my wounds, to keep what I was feeling more real. "Thank you," I said softly.

Kaoru-dono looked up at me, but quickly glanced away. "I'm supposed to say thank you," she said. "I'm really grateful that you came and rescued me."

I couldn't help but smile at her. Ah, but you rescued me first, Kaoru-dono. If you hadn't stopped me, I might have gone back to being the hitokiri once again. I glanced at the sakabatou beside me. Thank you for reminding me of what I want to be, Kaoru-dono.

I stared into the still-burning pyre. You may watch all you want, Jineh, but as long as I have my sakabatou, and my friends, I will still be the rurouni as long as I live.

"I'm done," Kaoru-dono said. She looked up at me, and held out a hand. "Let's go home."

I looked at the proffered hand before taking it. "Let us go home," I repeated.

XXXX

Thank you for indulging me by reading this. I just can't contain myself. I simply can't wait for parts 2 and 3! Why can't time pass more quickly? =)