: Disclaimer :

Sessha does not own Rurouni Kenshin, that he does most certainly not. :)

Kenshin - @_@x That's sessha's catchphrase, that it is!

Justice - @_@ But sessha likes it too!

Kaoru - TWO rurounis...?! Is he a brother or yours or something, Kenshin?

Justice - Oro.

Kenshin - O_Ox

AUTHOR'S QUERY - @_@ Um, ff.net removed all the spaces between paragraphs in my fic.

Anyone know a way to fix this...? o_o'

I'd be most appreciative if anyone has any suggestions...

Note - Thoughts are in italics, and quotations inidicate spoken words. indicates scene change.

THIS indicates time-slowdown

stuff, so more happens in the moment than I actually have room for. ^^ Lame, I know.

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WOWIE-ZOWIE!!! My first review! ^___^ This makes me happier than you can possibly imagine.

I would like to thank Shaolin and Amakakeru (that's one name, people) for taking the time to read my

scribblings, and even more for reviewing it! You're the best!!!

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The Sword of Seijuro Hiko

Chapter One - ...Of Decisions and Past Lives

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ORO

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...Some time ago...

The thirteenth master of the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu, the most powerful sword style in Japan, no, the world,

sat on a log outside his quaint little cottage, and stewed in a way that only Seijuro Hiko could stew.

He had decided, wistfully, to go to the village at the base of the mountain, having run out of sake,

which, in Hiko's book, was tantamount to death. Disgruntled at having to leave his residence for anything,

he had nonetheless begun the fairly short trip to the shop, deciding to buy enough

to last him at least a month.

He therefore brought a cart.

(A/N - Can you imagine Seijuro Hiko dragging a cart behind him as he walks down the street?)

"Mister Seijuro! What can I do for you today?" called the portly owner of the sake shop.

"Sake, Tamataro. A month's worth." was the curt reply.

Tamataro grinned. Seijuro had been a regular customer of his for almost ten years now, coming in on a biweekly basis to resupply his stores of sake, which was about the only thing the reclusive man would come down off his mountain for. After a decade, though, he still knew mothing more than the name, love for sake, and that the man lived in the Kyoto mountains, and his paying customer seemed to prefer it that way, so Tamataro asked nothing.

"Yuki!" he called to his wife. "Send Shiro and Tsukasa for two dozen jugs!" Grinning, he turned back to chatwith his customer over a few small tidbits and get some answers over a small matter that had been bugging him.

"So, Seijuro, how's it goin' up there on that mountain of yours? And where's Kenshin? It's been months since that boy's been down this way." the owner queried.

Hiko was about to answer until he caught sight of the owner's youngest daughter behind the shoji. He suppressed a smirk as he thought how best to answer the question. Kenshin had made quite an impression on the women whenever he accompanied Hiko anywhere, which was not unusual; he was, after all, Hiko's student, and Hiko's natural charm and roguish good looks were bound to rub off on the kid to some degree or another. Further, the kid's hair, eyes, face,

and general build seemed simply to draw women to him. Hiko had to supress another smirk, remembering a few of the confused and often intimidated kid's

encounters with the opposite sex...

He drew himself out of his memories and came back to the question of how to answer the question. (A/N - o_O) The girl peeking out at him had recently turned sixteen, and was already turning out to be one of the most exotically beautiful women Hiko had ever seen, and that was saying something, he mused. Kenshin had been flabbergasted upon meeting

her about four years ago, and had given Hiko yet another excellent source of sadistic amusement. Upon each return trip, both Kenshin and the girl (Ayane was her name) grew more and more enamored with each other, to the point where

Hiko actually lingered in the town after his business was done, letting the kid have some time to talk to another kid. Again, snapping out of his reverie (he'd been doing this alot since his deshi had left), he returned to the question in front of him.

He really didn't want to let it be known that Kenshin had left for the war, but on the other hand...

"Kenshin has had many chores to do the past few months.

He will not be down for some time," he lied.

Having noticed his daughter's presence as well, Tamataro grinned and replied, "Too bad, I have a feeling that a certain someone wishes he was around more, if you catch my drift," snickering.

Behind the door, Hiko felt the girl's ki jump and then flare with panic.

Supressing yet another smirk, (which he really wasn't used to doing) Hiko's reply was cool and level. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Tamataro snickered again. "Of course, of course."

The boys brought the jugs of sake up, and Hiko loaded them into his cart,

paid for the goods, and was on his way.

Walking down the road, Hiko looked up at the gray skies, and heaved a mental sigh.

Idiot apprentice...

The sheer idiocy of his only pupil was hard to grasp sometimes but then, Hiko remembered being almost the same at his age, idealistic and overconfident in his sword and his skills. His master had indicated his exasperation with Hiko many a time, drilling the Hiten priniciples into him daily, reinforcing those principles with stories that could make a hitokiri break down in tears. Hiko had done his best to do the same to his baka deshi, but had ultimately failed to change his mind. It wasn't really unexpected. It had taken nothing less than the teaching of the Hiten Mitsurugi succession technique to sober Hiko's idealist's mind.

He slowed his pace, and his expression softened for a moment.

Shishou...

Hiko hung his head glumly at the memory of his predecessor, of what it had taken to break Hiko of his nonsensical notions, and of what he had failed to do, in turn, for his own pupil.

Idiot apprentice... He thinks he can change the world, just because he's the second-greatest swordsman in Japan. He thinks he can just go out and kill the evil men, and save the people of this dying nation. My poor baka deshi...

He wasn't even fully trained, let alone fully grown. He was too young to face the horrors of the revolution, too young to see death on such a scale, of the sheer cruelty that humanity was capable of.

Hiko lifted his head to the heavens again, scowling.

What kind of supreme being would allow such barbarity?!

Focusing his eyes on the road, he noticed a familiar ki trailing behind him. Actually, it had been trailing him for some time now, but Hiko had been too preoccupied to take note of it. He scowled again. I've got to stop these stupid little trips of introspection...

Straightening, he called out, "It's unbecoming a lady to follow someone in the shadows,

Ayane-dono."

Ayane started at Hiko-sama's awareness of her presence. She had been very careful to walk softly and curb her breathing- Kenshin had told her much about what went on back on that mountain he lived on, so she knew, unlike her father, that Seijuro Hiko was a great kenjutsu master; (actually, according to Kenshin, whom had shown her some of his own

amazing skill, Hiko was the greatest swordsman in all of Japan).

"What's wrong? Nothing to say? Is it just some hobby of yours to follow people around town like a fox?"

Ayane started again; Hiko-sama was pretty straightforward, she thought.

"Well, I..."

Some moments passed. Hiko grew annoyed at the lull.

"What?"

A bit taken back, Ayane managed to stutter, "I-I wanted to ask where K-K-Kenshin-chan was."

Hiko grinned at the honorific. That kid was some kind of ladykiller.

"I said earlier, he's doing chores at the mountain. Didn't you hear me behind that door?"
Ayane should have been numb to Hiko-sama's awareness and sharp tongue by now, but she wasn't, so for a fourth time, she started, but then straightened up and squared her shoulders.

"You're lying."
Hiko was silent for a moment, and Ayane trembled at her own forwardness. She knew Hiko-sama was strong and fast, and that he was a bit of an old bear, according to Kenshin-chan; truth be told, after hearing everything Kenshin-chan had said about Hiko-sama, she really wasn't sure why she was even here, let along telling him something like that.

The air was thick with tension, Hiko wondering what the heck was going on with this normally amiable kid, and the girl trembling terribly, wondering if he was going to be angry...

Speaking slowly, Hiko asked, "Why do you say that?"

Ayane was silent for a moment, and Hiko spoke again.

"It's not polite to accuse someone of lying and then say nothing when they inquire why, Ayane-chan," he said quietly, without turning around, his voice level, his words slow.

Ayane was trembling violently now, but somehow found her voice and her words.

"He went to Kyoto, didn't he, Hiko-sama?"

It was Hiko's turn to start, and his heart skipped a beat, before beginning to beat at about 150 % percent it's normal rate.

"Why would Kenshin go to Kyoto, Ayane-chan?" he inquired, not quite sure what to think.

"He went to fight in the war, Hiko-sama."

Hiko said nothing, but inwardly he was very much unsettled. Was this girl able to read him like so...? Impossible. He was a master of the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu, the greatest sword style in the world; he could not be read by anyone, not even Kenshin, no, not even his own master could read him towards the end, surely this child...

"Kenshin-chan told me about the Hiten Mitsurugi, Hiko-sama," she said quietly.

...one worry aside, he wasn't getting soft. New worries appearing, the kid had talked.

Idiot apprentice.

"He said he was going to talk to you about going to Kyoto to fight the evil men there; he said he was going to save Japan. He really went, didn't he?" Ayane asked, pensive.

Surely it's someone else, she thought. Surely Kenshin would never do those things...

"...He went."

Ayane, her fear forgotten, now felt a fine, rich fury coming over her, and she strode towards Hiko,

walked in front of him, reached up, and slapped the tall swordsman across his right cheek.

Hiko was utterly shocked. She had struck him! This quiet, respectful girl, the apple of his deshi's eye, had just walked up and slapped him across the face! What in the name of all that was holy was going on...?

Dumbfounded, Hiko could only stand in a daze as Ayane yelled at him, attracting quite a crowd, as she lectured him about sending Kenshin off to the war in Kyoto, about it being wrong for a boy to fight in such a war, about how she was worried for his welfare... Hiko picked up only a few words as he stood and stared, trying to sort out exactly what he had been embroiled in by his deshi.

Flaming hair...Ishin Shishi... Shogunate in turmoil...Battousai...hitokiri...

That stopped Hiko cold.

The sun chose to set beyond the hills at that point, and a north wind blew down upon Seijuro Hiko, freezing him to his very heart. Seijuro Hiko trembled, a movement so fine and brief that none present could see it, but Hiko felt the movement of his own body, the weakness in his knees, the utter shock that threatened to reduce him to complete helplessness, and for the second time that day, his heart began racing. Except, this time, there were emotions that he was not accustomed to behind the rapid heartrate.

Ayane had continued to lecture him, oblivious to the inner turmoil of the man she was screaming at, entirely wrapped up in her anger and resentment, and she might not have stopped unto this day had not Hiko grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her violently.

"What did you say?!" he screamed.

Ayane was shocked at this sudden outburst from Hiko-sama, and Hiko, not in the best of moods, shook her again.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!"

Ayane stuttered..."g-g-gomen, H-Hiko-sama..."
"ANSWER ME, CHILD!!! WHAT DID YOU SAY?!"

Ayane whispered, "I said it was wrong for you to send Kenshin-chan to be the Ishin Shishi hitokiri, H-Hiko-sama..."

It was then that Seijuro Hiko's world collapsed.

Hitokiri...

Hiko did not remember walking back to his mountain, nor did he remember the people staring at him as he did, nor Ayane following him partways, pleading with him to tell her what was wrong, nor her father coming, retrieving her and casting a sorrowful expression at Hiko, understanding dawning in Tamataro's mind, having been told by his daughter what had happened and observing Hiko's vacant, shocked manner.

Not possible... not possible...

Usually, sake was enough to get him to relax no matter what the problem was, and Seijuro Hiko wasn't one to be uptight about anything at all in the first place. He had seen death, hatred, sorrow, love, despair, hope, joy, war, and peace,

and through all of it he had remained stubbornly irrepressible, unchanging and unswerving in his devotion to his duties and his sake.

Ah, yes, his sake...

He had recieved startling, disconcerting news that day; to be honest with himself, it had shaken him to the core of his being, something that had only happened once before in his life, and he didn't care for the feeling. Hiko liked feeling calm and on top of things, five steps ahead of everyone else, completely aware and on-guard, the man others turned to when knowledge and confidence were needed, but this news had shattered all his confindence, his arrogance, and perhaps even his faith.

Shaking, he poured himself a generous dose of rice wine, making himself focus on the cup and the liquid, and on the sensation it would cause in his throat and belly, on the stream of sake from the jug to the saucer, anything, anything at all, to keep from thinking...

There is no way. It is not possible. Even he is not that foolish...

With a feeble smirk, letting that thought comfort him, he raised the saucer to his lips...

Even Kenshin is not so stupid as to let himself be drafted into such a position...

Kenshin was an idiot, but he was not that gullible. Surely a student of the Hiten Mitsurugi could see beyond the political doublespeak,

the trickery behind the words of the self-servinig politicians, beyond the practiced smile and sureness of speech...

His deshi would never...

"I'll do whatever it takes to protect the people of Japan! I don't care what I have to do!"

...only to crush it in his fist, as the rage took him wholly.

The creatures of the mountain woods, usually peaceable and calm in the quite stillness characteristic of the lone resident of their mountain, were therefore somewhat shocked when the formerly silent kenjutsu master let out a roar that could be heard for miles, despite the wooded area. Every living thing for at least a thousand yards turned tail and ran as far as they could from the epicenter of this previously unfelt power, this power so great and terrible

that the hearts of normal men would fail them in their terror of it, sensing not only the sound

and force of his voice, but the sheer magnitude of his rising, furious ken-ki as well. Birds took to the sky, squirrels hid in trees, mice hid in their holes, and everything that could not hide or run merely trembled, hoping that the power wasn't coming for them.

Hiko screamed long and loud, his fury and sadness and utter despair threatening to tear him apart; he screamed as powerfully as he could, releasing the emotions welled up inside his troubled heart, and nature responded accordingly.

The trees around him bent and cracked and whined in response to his power and ken-ki. Leaves encircled his body, the wind whipping and howling around him as his muscular form twitched and flexed, barely able to contain the strength of his own swordsman's spirit. The gray sky turned darker, it's color closer to that of pitch than anything else, and the people of the village at the base of the mountain took shelter from the torrential storm that followed.

The storm lasted for hours - the scream for a minute. And even when the voice died down, few creatures stirred from their place of shelter.

Hiko lowered his arms and hung his head in the knowledge of what he had to do. Having vented his emotions, in a limited way, he stood quietly for a moment in the center of the raging storm, the lightning flashing overhead, torrential rains beating down on the white cloak of the Hiten master, his Shirasaya Nihontou in hand, his long hair blowing in the violent gales,

and their are no words in any language to describe the fear that the sight inspired in the woodland creatures who dared to come near. Without a word, Hiko whirled towards his cottage and stormed into it, the smallish residence shaking and creaking at the furious

presence of it's master. Quickly and concisely, Hiko swept up a container of water, dry provisions, and a knapsack, then turned and strode out of the building and

towards the base of the mountain.

Towards the place where the Hitokiri Battousai was said to be based out of.

Towards Kyoto.

Seijuro Hiko had always been a man of action, and this day he had proven it. He now walked not as a man who loved life, but as a man who knew his duty and intended to do it, regardless of the difficulty of the task and of the pain it would cause him.

In the mind of the Hiten Mitsurugi master, the relationship was no longer master and student, but that of the Hunter and his Quarry.His eyes had taken on a different kind of shine - no longer burning with intelligence and wisdom, but with smoldering fury and determination - the pupils narrowed, becoming harder and almond-shaped, and the formerly black irises had become a terribly dark and foreboding...amber.

Seijuro Hiko was on the hunt, and the days of Hitokiri Battousai were numbered.

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Author's Notes - And Saitou thought Shishio's spirit was intimidating... Heh, heh, heh...

Wowie-zowie, I wrote this in two days, starting on the day I wrote the prolouge. And let me tell you something, it was fun! ^_^ I know the genre says action/adventure, and trust me, it will begin soon. I just wanted to get the backstory set up. Now Hiko's on the way to Kyoto, and the fun is gonna begin... Don't be suprised if I actually find a couple of battles for Hiko that might actually be a challenge... i.e., Battousai is toast if he confronts these guys (and girls)! Please read and review, let me know if you have any good ideas for bad guy and bad girl names! I know very few Japanese names... As for the ones I do know...

Tamataro - Uh... I dunno where I found this one! ^^'

Shiro - One of the Kyoto Oniwaban's names. The character is not the same, just the name.

Tsukasa - From the immensely popular .hack. ^_^

Yuki - No clue whatsoever. It just came to mind.

Ayane - I think this was from DOA2. Gosh, she's pretty...

Anyone reading this has probably noted I'm very inspecific about dates.

Again, the reason is I have not seen the OAVs, so I don't

wanna write anything that conflicts with the RK timeline. ^_^ You'll see why eventually...

^_^ Thanks for reading!