Thank you for the wonderful feedback! It truly makes my whole day to see a review. I write to share stories, and knowing that my words have filled someone with emotion is immensely gratifying.
This chapter is necessary to provide some information. It will start getting intense in chapter three. And by that I mean that I have a lot of nice little twists and turns planned. ;)
Happy reading!
Edited: 9/30/14
Eternity
Chapter Two- Darkness
-Two Years Later-
The sound of synchronized shouting emerged from within the Kamiya dojo, along with the whispers of slashing wind. A feminine voice called out commands that were promptly followed by feet moving obediently, wrists flicking carefully, and by toned arms swinging in unison. Sweat dripped freely now, but the gratification that coated the air kept them all going.
Kamiya Kaoru stood in the center of the training room demonstrating the exact moves she wanted to see her students reflect. The four boys followed her with remarkable accuracy, never surrendering to their aching muscles.
Kaoru's class met three times per week for several hours during which she taught them not only the swordwork of the Kamiya Kasshin-Ryū, but also the good morals required to wield the unique style properly. She emphasized the necessity of saving lives with the Kamiya Kasshin-Ryū during every class and forbade them to ever practice if they were feeling angry or upset, because such negative feelings were the weeds that made good people's hands develop into terrible weapons. Her family's style had never taken a life, and kami help anyone who ever dared to stain the Kamiya name.
"Alright. One hundred down strokes, and then you may clean up," Kaoru called, panting lightly. Feet shifted as her four students broke away from their formations, and soon the sound of bokkens slicing the air seemed to echo throughout the hall.
Kaoru watched them, eyes shifting from student to student, taking note of any imperfect stances or foot placements, and quietly correcting them. Because she was the only sensei who could teach the Kamiya Kasshin-Ryū to the next generation, Kaoru knew it was crucial to ensure that every movement was perfect during training. Even the slightest mistake in combat could result in a death, so by enforcing precision now, her students would always be more attentive to the details.
After they had completed their lesson, the four boys replaced their bokkens in their respective homes and quickly grabbed small towels that were floating in a bucket of clean water. They put these on wooden floorboards and then cleaned the floor with surprising speed.
As they left the room, they bowed to their sensei and then talked loudly and laughed amongst themselves as three of them headed for the gate. They waved back to Kaoru just before they disappeared into the busy streets.
"I'm hungry," the fourth boy complained once the others were out of earshot, but when he looked at the young instructor, he quickly clarified. "I wasn't asking you to cook. I'll find something to eat."
Kaoru smiled sweetly, appreciating that he was being conscious of her exhaustion for a change. She almost felt like she even gained a bit more energy from his unusual kindness. "It's ok, Yahiko. I'll cook. I can make soup and rice balls-"
The fifteen-year-old sucked in a breath and made a face. "Really- I'd rather just find something. I don't want to spend another night vomiting everywhere."
Her smile vanished and anger sparked to life. "You ungrateful, little pig!" Kaoru nearly shouted, glaring daggers at Yahiko, who was already snickering and running away from her raised fists.
As Yahiko scurried off into the house, Kaoru heaved out an annoyed sigh. She just wanted to wash herself, eat a light meal, and then slip off into the world of dreams. It had been a long day and she knew that the following day would be busy, as well.
She went to her room, grabbed a towel and fresh clothing, and walked back towards the bathhouse. Kaoru found herself deep in thought about how to recruit more students to help pay for everything.
Two years ago when Takeshi was still at home, he taught seventeen students, which gave them more than enough money to live comfortably. However, since he had gone to fight in the war, many of the parents stopped paying for their children to learn the Kamiya Kasshin-Ryū. Why would they pay a young woman to teach their children when they could learn from established male instructors of more powerful and deadlier techniques? They would, in the parents' eyes, be more effective at defending their families.
Now Kaoru only had six students and one of them wasn't even paying. She had taken the recently orphaned Yahiko in the year before, allowing him to live in her house. She even trained him with the rest of her students. His only payment for his room and board was to help her clean the house and take care of the yard. She would have never had the time to clean everything without him, so she was grateful for his help. Despite his annoying tendencies and rude remarks, she welcomed his company; living completely alone for a year had taken a large toll on her and she felt like she was still healing.
"Sensei!"
Kaoru's head whipped around to find the owner of the voice, only to see the two students who had not shown up for that day's lesson. "Takeo. Yuto. Is everything well? I was afraid you had both gotten sick," Kaoru said, turning to the siblings.
They looked uncomfortable and floundered for a moment before bowing low. Kaoru's heart lurched to a painful stop. She had seen this too many times before and knew exactly what they were going to say. She tried her best to remain composed but she wasn't sure how well it showed.
"We're sorry, Sensei," Yuto muttered. "Father wishes for us to train with Yamamoto Sensei."
"Yamamoto? That style is infamous for its bloodshed! How can your father wish for your hands to be stained with death?" Kaoru's blood pumped forcefully through her veins and she was breathing harder, insulted that years of hard work were going to be tossed to the wind.
"Gomenasai!" they both cried, and as if to escape the guilt, they scurried off without ever meeting her eyes.
Shocked, Kaoru was frozen in place for a moment before she slowly shifted her foot and shuffled to the bathhouse in a daze. She tried to keep her swarming thoughts at bay at least until she finally settled down in a hot bath, but her attempts were in vain. Her fingers quivered as she tried to unlatch the door and it took everything in her to not fall to the ground inside the bathhouse once she had stepped inside.
She barely had enough money for food as it was; how were they supposed to survive with only three paying students? Her time was already stretched as it was. She worked at the inn on the opposite side of the city from sunrise to just before noon and four days a week she had to run home from the inn to train her students for three hours. Changing the times that the lessons met was not an option because it could potentially cause her to lose the rest of her students.
Mechanically, Kaoru stepped out of the bathhouse, set firewood in place, and lit a flame before retreating back inside. Her sluggish body opposed her racing mind as she slowly undressed and climbed into the still-cool water.
How would her ancestors ever forgive her for losing so many students? Tears slipped down her cheeks freely now. How would the Kamiya Kasshin-Ryū ever survive if there were no students to spread the wisdom of protecting the weak? Her family's style stood alone in proclaiming that it was not necessary to kill. How many lives would be lost because she couldn't keep her students?
Kaoru remained lost in thought with silent tears streaming down her face so long that her skin could no longer bear the burning water. She climbed out, dried off, tied a robe around herself, and went to her room. Since her appetite had dissipated, she decided to just go to sleep early. Just as every night before, she closed her eyes and prayed to Kami to bring her dear brother home safely.
Fortunately, she was worn out from the long day and sleep wrapped its arms around her without wasting a single moment.
A man clothed in a dark gi and hakama was walking down a neighboring street. He looked tired and slightly intoxicated, judging by the way he was sauntering about without a care in the world. He was surrounded by three larger men, all in uniform, who were all searching the dark streets for something they would never find until it was too late.
The first few times he had seen the sight, he had laughed; the rich honestly believed that they would be protected from Hitokiri by hiring a few bodyguards? What fools. He had seen countless officials and politicians hire men in a pitiful attempt to discourage an attack, and they were never successful in their endeavors.
Not from Battousai.
The four men turned the corner of the street and walked past a few gates before reaching the drunk man's home. The guard standing before the gate bowed before his lord and assured him that no one had entered his residence during his absence.
The man laughed. "He's rumored to be all the way in Tokyo right now, and no one else is stupid enough to break into my home! Of course I have nothing to worry about." He stumbled upon the threshold of his home, but otherwise went straight to his room. Two of the bodyguards situated themselves on both sides of the house, while the third guarded the bedroom door loyally.
Battousai finally stood from his perch atop the roof and leaped down with incredible grace. He landed on the soft grass right in front of one of the roaming guards, surprising him so severely that he fell backwards. The scarlet-haired man wondered what use it was to have wasted so much government money when the guards barely even paid attention.
He drew his sword, swung it gracefully, and in the blink of an eye, the man's screams had been silenced forever. Battousai darted to the second man, severing his life just as quickly.
He looked up just in time to see the third guard running for his pathetic life. He hadn't made it halfway to the gate before the manslayer appeared in front of him, eyes slit into a deadly, golden glare. How dare he desert his post when his lord was in peril? Years of training and all he could do when real danger faced him was run and cower.
The assassin stalked closer at a human-like pace for a change, eyes never leaving the poor excuse for a man. The sword in Battousai's hand trailed blood, permanently marking his steps in the trimmed grass. He raised the sword again but the guard was lifeless on the ground before he could force himself to move his frozen limbs.
The manslayer flicked the blood off the blade and silently made his way over to the house.
He reached out and slid the shoji door aside, and stepped into the dark room. The target was cowering in the corner, illustrating the near-universal competency of his fellow politicians. The Bakufu leaders all dictated lessons of fearlessness, strength, loyalty, and ruthlessness, yet all but two of them had fallen to the ground at the sight of the legendary manslayer, pleading fruitlessly for their lives.
The sight disgusted the assassin. How dare they preach one ideal and live the exact opposite? This was certainly a significant factor of why the Bakufu should all be eradicated; spineless liars should have no place power. Their ancestors would be shamed to see how cowardly they'd become.
The politician realized he was paralyzed, his eyes wide and mouth hanging open in silent screams.
"Even you don't find your own life worth an honorable death," Battousai muttered. In a flash the man's throat had been split open and the victim tumbled to the ground, lifeless.
The assassin turned on his heel, flicked his sword clean of blood, and sheathed it as he left the house, invisible to the rest of the world. He flitted from rooftop to rooftop until he reached the edge of the city.
Sounds of flowing water reached his ears as he finally neared the river that ran along the outskirts of the farmlands. He removed his scabbard and cleaned it along with the sword, not desiring to retain a drop of blood.
There was a single mission on his agenda; to help rid Japan of corruption. He had the ability to eradicate those in power who were too selfish and greedy, and he felt that he had a responsibility to stand up for a better future- even if it meant that destroying himself in the process. Seeing blood every night just so the innocents would eventually never have to see it again, was worth sacrificing his own sanity.
He washed his whole body, always scrubbing harder than necessary in an attempt to cleanse himself of the evil deeds he had done. The pain that tore across his flesh as he rubbed his skin raw was excruciating, but focusing on it allowed him a few moments of mental solace, and he eagerly latched onto them.
When he finished, he stood and reached for his sheath as he took a deep breath, and then began his long journey back to headquarters to await his next orders.
To cross the distance would only take a day, yet the time seemed to drag on for a week. While most would go crazy from boredom on such an eventless path, Battousai appreciated the silence and solitude. Any time to himself when he wasn't pursuing his next victim was almost a blessing to him because it was his only chance to ease his aching conscious.
As he walked, he tied the sheath back to his side and absently started running his fingers over a kanji symbol that was fastened to the silk cord on the scabbard.
Eternity.
Battousai still didn't know exactly why he had decided to keep the kanji character, especially since he didn't believe that anything at all could last for eternity. No human, animal, political system, civilization… not even basic human values could withstand the influence of hundreds of years, let alone eternity.
Even his years of fighting and removing the horrible people of Japan would only bring half a century of peace, at best. He was destroying his life for a few decades' worth of happiness for others. Within two centuries the name Hitokiri Battousai would be nothing but a whisper in the past.
Eternity stood for a concept that was out of reach of any human, and therefore there was no sense in trying to attain it.
Still, he found comfort in holding the charm, and it strangely calmed his antagonized mind. Just brushing his fingers on it brought the fleeting sense of hope that maybe, just maybe, he might one day feel a single moment of peace.
Kaoru's eyes shot open in the middle of the night. Something wasn't right. She sat up cautiously and listened for even the tiniest sounds of movement.
Footfalls. In the garden…
Silently, she flew out of her covers and grabbed the bokken that was propped up against the wall. Kaoru tiptoed to the door and slid it open just enough to peek outside. Everything was still within her view so she opened the door all the way and immediately placed both hands on the hilt, ready to strike anyone who may have been foolish enough to jump out at her.
When nothing happened, she surveyed all of the garden that was visible from her doorway. Sure that the invader was on the other side of the house, Kaoru slunk around the corner of the building, her bokken always at the ready. The waning moon spread a pale glow upon the trees and flowers in the garden. The beautiful sight would have stopped her in her tracks any other time, but she wasn't about to break her concentration.
As she rounded the next corner she fought to keep a sharp gasp from escaping her lips. The intruder wasn't lurking about as she had expected, and neither was he planning on attacking her. Surprisingly, he was sitting at the edge of a pond by the wall of her family's land. His focus seemed to be on the fish swimming in the pond, but Kaoru knew that the scaly creatures liked to spend the nights underneath a small log. The man was staring into nothing.
She knew who the man was the instant she rounded the corner. Though the moon wasn't bright, the man's white jacket outshone thing else. Messy black hair was tied away from his face with a scarlet ribbon, his hands were bound in white bandages, and his lean muscles still slightly showed through his clothing. Everything was exactly as she had remembered… except for a black kanji character centered on his back.
Evil.
Just like that, all the oxygen in the world dissipated. Her heart froze and even time screeched to a halt.
Something had happened…
Kaoru remotely heard what sounded like wood dropping to the floor, but she wasn't sure what it could have been and it didn't matter.
Evil.
Where was her brother? Where was Takeshi?
'Kami… please… wake me up from this nightmare,' she pleaded desperately.
Her gradually weakening knees finally gave out and she fell to the floor, but catching herself was the furthest from her mind.
Sanosuke finally turned around. Their eyes met and Kaoru's dwindling hopes of this being some sort of sick joke were instantly snuffed out. No smile graced the man's face and his eyes were hollow, joyless.
Then some strange strangled sound erupted into the darkness, piercing the peaceful silence. The noise was loud and echoed in Kaoru's ears and it took her a few moments to realize that she was the one who was wailing so uncontrollably. Tears poured down her cheeks and her cries seemed to have no end.
Her brother was dead.
He had been the only other member left of her entire family, and now she had been left alone.
Kaoru realized with a stab, that her family would die with her. He was their only hope of continuing the Kamiya name… the only hope of truly restoring the Kamiya Kasshin-Ryū. All her family's efforts would die with her. Countless generations destroyed.
The only way some semblance of her kin could survive would be through her children- but how could she even marry? Would she allow herself to be thrown into a loveless marriage? Even her dreams of falling in love had been lost forever because she would never see the kanji charm again.
Kaoru didn't even feel the arms that were wrapped around her tightly, nor the soft cooing in her ear. Her cries had quieted now, though soft whimpers still escaped her lips and she was trembling violently. For the better part of an hour she locked herself off from the world, but slowly she began to emerge from her cocoon of mourning to realize that Sanosuke had carried her back to her bed and was stroking her arm gently. Yahiko had her hand in his own, his eyes full of concern.
"Kaoru…" Sanosuke muttered. He looked as if he had a whole speech prepared but the second her swollen eyes met his, the words dissipated. He looked ashamed and guilty, but at least this time he didn't lower his eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispered, though he knew the words provided as much satisfaction as a single grain of rice did to a starving man.
Questions flooded the girl's mind but even if she could have truly handled the answers, her dry lips and parched throat disobeyed all commands to verbalize them. She wasn't sure if she even wanted to know how or when the unspeakable had occurred.
Sanosuke couldn't think of a single thing to do to comfort her. He merely sat next to her lying form, hoping that his eyes were able to convey all the information she needed to know.
For one thing, Sanosuke had never had to be the bearer of such horrible tidings, so he couldn't have known what to tell Kaoru in the first place. But to make it worse, Takeshi had been Sanosuke's dearest friend. They had known each other since childhood, and Sanosuke had been present for all the hardships the Kamiyas had to endure for nearly fifteen years. Kaoru was a sister, regardless of the fact that they shared no common blood. They were true siblings, as far as he was concerned, and seeing her so broken was agonizing. There were simply no words of consolation, and the only thing he could think to do was stay by Kaoru's side and try his best to support her.
He had decided to stay in one of the empty rooms for at as long as it took for her to get back on her feet. He'd stay close by until he was sure that she would survive the trauma, and though he knew it would be a long road to recovery, Sanosuke vowed to do everything in his power to be her beacon back to life.