Hi people! This is one of those chapters where some questions get answered! I hope that this wouldn't spoil the story for some of you, because I know that for some readers, it is the unknown factor that makes certain stories interesting. However, this fic wasn't intended to be a mystery story, but more of a action thing, so sorry all mystery story fans!
Anyway, I do not own Rurouni Kenshin – period. I merely borrowed it (and I will be returning everything but Soujirou…. Drool…)
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Answers and more questions
The cigarette butt dropped from limp fingers, and lay on the ground, smothering slowly.
"Okita," Saitou heard himself say faintly, "what are you doing here?"
A faint, hoarse laugh answered his question. "What a way to greet a friend you haven't met since the end of the Boshin War, Saitou-kun," the dry, crackling voice said, "Or was our parting earlier than that? The memory tends to be fuzzy when you are coughing up blood all the time."
"You are dead," Saitou protested, feeling a weakness he had never felt before in his entire life, "I buried you after you died. I know you are dead…"
"I was, I suppose," the figure replied, "I do remember dying. But honestly, I haven't felt better in many years. It is when you finally don't' have to breathe any longer that you discover what a burden it was to breathe."
"Okita," Kenshin broke in suddenly, seeming to have better grip on his thoughts than Saitou did, "How did you get here?"
"I was brought back to life," Okita murmured, touching the sword at his waist, "at a price… of course." He smiled, and Saitou's lips twisted in a snarl. This was not the innocent, charming smile of the man he had once called his friend - this was the smile of a monster.
"What price?" Kenshin demanded quickly.
He got another smile, and the wide angelic eyes roamed the buildings and the streets. "Why, Battousai, it seems that the era of peace you have fought for has arrived," he said, his voice a mockery of the friendliness he was once capable of, "Quite honestly, I took a long look around before meeting with the both of you, and I was disgusted." His voice turned harsher as he faced Saitou. "I cannot believe that you have indulged this era, Saitou-kun."
"Our job is to defend Kyoto and Japan," Saitou spat, a bitter feeling gorging into him, "Not the era. What are you proposing, Okita? Don't tell me you are the cause of the murders that have been going on. I would have thought better of you."
"Oh no, not all of them," Okita's teeth bared in a smile, "Only the most recent one."
"The body in the well."
"Enishi…" Kenshin turned his head slightly and stared at the ground.
"Was that his name?" Okita questioned, with a curious lilt of the head. "I never asked, of course. That would have spoiled the surprise. I don't think he even realized I was behind him until I struck. Being dead has it advantages – like having almost no ki. Makes it so much easier to strike from behind."
"Okita!" Saitou roared, feeling the uncontrollable anger boil to the surface. "You are a Miburo! Even in death! How dare you!"
The transformation in the dead man's face was so abrupt Kenshin took a step back. "And how dare you shout at me, Saitou Hajime!" Okita barked. "Do you have any idea what it was like to die the way I did? You robbed me of my honour, Saitou, when you refused to let me commit seppuku at the war! You let me suffer to death!"
"Honour? What honour can you speak off now, bringing chaos to the city you once vowed to protect with your life?" Saitou snarled, "Killing a broken man and laying his flesh in the well?"
"He was by the well," Okita murmured, his voice suddenly falling to a pleasantly soothing level, "He fell in when I killed him, Saitou, and I had to go down to retrieve his bones. That would explain the dismal state of my uniform, of course." He stared with mock despair at the torn and dirtied uniform.
"Who brought you back to life?" Saitou snapped, striding forward recklessly. "Tell me who your new master is and I will slay him."
"You can't," Okita said, laughing, "Did you think I was brought to life by a human, Saitou? How silly of you, but you were always so… narrow-minded, even when I was still alive."
"Tell me!" Saitou roared, his sword flashing out, "Or I will send you to your grave again!"
"My dear Saitou-kun…" Before Kenshin could react, Saitou shot forward, and his sword went all the way through Okita's throat to the hilt. The sound of bone crunching in and collapsing filled the still air.
"Kami-sama!" Kenshin cursed, "Saitou!" He gripped Saitou's arm and pulled him back. "He is your friend!"
"No, he isn't," Saitou snarled, "He has lost his honour. He is no more my friend than Shishio was."
A slight cough attracted their attention. Saitou grunted in disbelief and Kenshin paled when Okita reach out and drag the sword out of his throat. There was no blood on the blade, only a thin sheen of clear liquid.
"How rude," Okita murmured, "and I was once rather fond of you, Saitou, but apparently it doesn't matter to you anymore." He dropped the sword on the ground and scratched the wound in his throat absent-mindedly as it leaked the same clear liquid that greased the sword. "I cannot be killed," he went on, "not anymore, because technically, I am not alive." He gave a feline smile. "And neither can the poor boy I killed be killed again, which actually reminds me of what I'm doing out here."
"Paying your price?" Kenshin asked coldly.
"Partly," Okita purred, "This Enishi… where is he? You should know, Battousai, since you call his name. I do not recall leaving the boy in a state that leaves no doubt about his identity."
"I do not know where he is." Kenshin shut his mind against the thought of a lifeless Enishi, walking around dazedly, confused as to why he was no longer human… no longer alive.
"Well," Okita murmured, turning around and starting to walk away, "If you do find him, do let me know, wouldn't you, Battousai? My master is most angry with our little raven haired, blue-eyed baby for going against his wishes."
"Okita!" Saitou growled and his former friend paused. "When we meet again, I will destroy you."
A flash of a smile, and for a moment, there was a hint of sadness in it. "Maybe you will, Saitou. Till we meet again." And he was gone, vanishing between the buildings.
Kenshin turned to face Saitou, and was shaken by the paleness in his friend's face. "Saitou? Are you ok?"
"Of all the Shinsengumi members in the world," Saitou said wearily, "the last person I would have expected to become corrupt would have been him… it would have been him."
"I know," Kenshin said quietly, "but death does horrible things to one's mind. He died at such a young age when he was still in love with life, and suddenly, to have life returned to him. It would drive any man crazy."
"That is no excuse!" Saitou snapped, appearing to have pulled himself together, "There can be no excuse for corruption. He will be terminated, and I will be the one who will end his reign of corruption." He dug out a cigarette and tried to light a match.
Kenshin nodded slowly then his eyes suddenly filled with confusion. "Saitou…" he said slowly, "Enishi… Enishi doesn't have raven hair."
The match froze, millimeters from the cigarette. Then both of them exchanged startled looks.
"Oh god," Kenshin choked as he broke into a desperate run, "It's Soujirou… it's Soujirou…"
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Megumi's legs gave way under her and she sat heavily on the ground, staring in terror up at the boy who was standing before her.
"Y… you… you…" she stammered, clutching her face, "Y…"
"Yes." He looked down at her with mournfully sad eyes.
"You're… you should be… d… d…"
"I know."
A low groan escaped her throat and a sour taste rose to her mouth, but she could not tear her eyes from him… from the unnatural kink in his neck… from the way it stuck out in a manner that could only mean that his neck was broken.
So captivated was she that she failed to notice that the two of them were no longer the only ones in the room until a warm hand clasped onto her shoulder and pushed her gently out of the way.
"Seta Soujirou," Saitou growled, his eyes already hot with fury, his sword unsheathed.
"You know now, Saitou-san," Soujirou said softly, "Everything is clear." Slowly, he reached out and grabbed the sides of his head, and slowly pushed. There was another low crunching sound then the bones of the neck snapped back into place again. There was another gasp from behind as Kaoru and Yahiko, who had just arrived, caught sight of his performance.
"Not everything is clear," Saitou snapped, "What manner of a monster are you?"
"Hold on, Saitou," Kenshin said calmly, putting his hand on Saitou's shoulder very much the same way he had put his on Megumi's shoulder, "You heard what Okita said – Soujirou has been defying whatever orders he has received. That puts him on our side, at least until we hear what he has to say."
"Then speak," Saitou spat, "so I can put an end to your miserable existence."
"Soujirou?" Kenshin advanced cautiously towards the young man, ignoring Megumi's frightful cry for caution. "Tell us, Soujirou. Maybe we can help you."
"Himura – san…" Soujirou began then his face collapsed as he sat down suddenly, "I should be dead… I don't know why I'm still here… I should be dead… I should be…" Then he leaned his head against his knees and tears started to run rapidly down his face.
Sighing, Kenshin knelt down beside him and patted his shoulder helplessly, unfortunately unaccustomed to dealing with tears from a man. "What happened, Soujirou? What happened to you?"
"I…" With a sigh, Soujirou rubbed the tears away and started speaking softly. "The last time I remembered… being alive... I was heading towards the outskirts of town. There, I stopped at a well… for a drink of water. I… I was leaning over the well… drawing the water out and…" He stopped suddenly, staring at the ground and refusing to meet Kenshin's eyes.
"What is it?" Kenshin pushed.
"I felt a blow to both my shoulders then to my neck..."
"Okita's Sandanzuki."
"Probably. What happened next?"
"I… I felt my head come off."
Megumi gasped and turned her head away immediately, the memory of the unnatural break in the neck all too fresh.
"But I wasn't dead then," Soujirou went on, suddenly gripping Kenshin's wrist hard, "I could… could see what was going on. My head was on the ground… and I saw a man… about my age, but he… he felt older and… and…"
"We know about him," Kenshin said smoothly, patting the hand that had his wrist in a vice grip.
"He went into the well," the boy continued, his voice growing fainter, "my body fell into the well… and… he pulled it out. It was… bleeding… so much. Then he peeled the skin off and he was… humming a… tune. I think I cried… but he kept saying something about how it will be better and less painful… and he… he took my… my… the… skin off and he… cut off all my… the… flesh and threw it back into the well. I… I… he… took the skin… and my head… and he… he wrapped my head to my… body with my skin… then he…" The voice finally broke down completely into tearless sobs.
There was a long silence, which seemed to stretch for hours. Finally, in a very quiet voice, Saitou murmured, "What happened next, Soujirou?"
"I blacked out. I was in darkness… in fire and blood… and I heard a voice detailing my crimes and what punishment I must receive." A brief smile flashed across the broken face. "It was almost a relief… to rest, because wandering isn't what it is made out to be, and I was so tired and hungry… but another voice came in and pulled me… pulled me to the light, all the time telling me… things. And when I woke up, I was in the cart with a man leaning over me with a knife."
"The coroner," Saitou said dryly, "Must have been quite a shock for you."
There was another tensed moment then Megumi started to chuckle at the look of disbelief on Soujirou's face. Eventually, Kenshin started to laugh as well, and even the edge of Saitou's lips quirked up slightly. For the first time since he died, a smile graced Soujirou's face.
"More shocking than waking up in hell, actually," Soujirou admitted, causing Megumi to laugh again, "though, I think watching myself getting skinned alive has to take first place."
"Anyway," Saitou said gruffly, "that voice that pulled you up to the surface…"
"You wanted to know what evil brought me to life," Soujirou said solemnly, "it would have been that voice. I didn't understand quite a lot of what it said. All that I know is, it claimed to be my master, and it wanted me to kill for it. Oh… and it said it wasn't human, and it gave me a glimpse of itself, or so it said."
"What was in it?" Kenshin asked curiously.
"A really… bright glaring light. Looking at it was so painful I almost died," Soujirou started then paused shortly and continued, "almost died again, I mean. I saw a cave, with very odd rocks. They were all… a bluish kind of gray. Inside, there was something that looked like… well, an altar or a temple, but it wasn't any temple I have ever since."
"Hmm…" Saitou was mumbling, "And?"
"That's all."
"That's all?"
"Yes."
Saitou crossed his arms, looking a little more than irritated. "Do you hear that voice again?"
"Sometimes," Soujirou confessed, "It keeps telling me I should be returning to him and that it has… people looking for me."
"How many?" Saitou demanded.
"Many. I think… I think the three… me included, that you have identified are not the only ones."
"There are more?" Kenshin said in an almost mournful voice. "I thought… wait, if skin and bone is what is needed to raise the dead, how did he raise Okita's body?"
"I don't think the skin is really necessary," Soujirou said quietly, "If what Saitou told me on one of his previous visits is true, he has raised Shishio-sama and the Juppongatana as well."
There was another tensed silence then Saitou exhaled painfully. "Battousai," he said, "I am going to get more men relocated to this region." As he walked past Megumi, she heard him mumble, "At least six hundred this time. Kami… might as well bring the whole freaking army in."
"I'll come with you," Kenshin said hurriedly, "Yahiko." He turned around and faced the pale-faced youth behind him. "Kaoru." He smiled at his wife. "The dojo is in your hands."
Then they left, leaving nothing but an awkward silence behind. Megumi stared at Kaoru, Kaoru stared at Yahiko, Yahiko stared at Megumi, and Soujirou just stared at the floor and smiled idiotically.
"So anyway," Yahiko blurted out, "Is the King of Hell really a fat man with a goatee?"
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After the initial awkwardness, during which Kaoru had to run off twice in answer to Kenji's cries and Yahiko had excused himself five times to do his training, things had started to settle down a little and return to normal.
Especially Megumi's professionalism.
"I cannot believe that I was so scared I dropped a head with a broken neck," she declared firmly, coming into Soujirou's room with a filled kettle, "that was inexcusable behavior on my part as a physician."
"I…" Soujirou smiled blankly, uncomfortable that he could no longer escape into the silence brought about by their ignorance. "It didn't really hurt. After all, I am dead."
"Not only that," Megumi went, pouring a cup out to him, "your neck was actually in place, but I dislocated it with my probing. Inexcusable! How am I supposed to be a physician when I am this clumsy?"
"It was kind of fragile," Soujirou mumbled, looking deep into the cup, "I know that during my stay here, I have dislocated it numerous times just by turning my head."
"Which is why you locked us out of your room," Megumi deduced, nodding sympathetically, "I can't believe I didn't see it all this time! And your shoulders…" She gripped his arm and pulled his shirt down, causing Soujirou to gawk and turn pink. "Horrible! I haven't seen such terrible swellings in years! How could I have not noticed this? Inexcusable! Absolutely inexcusable!"
"Well… it is not often a physician has to attend to a dead man who is still alive…"
"And there were so many clues!" Megumi went on, "Your need for water, for example. A human body is 70 percent water, so you needed water to regain your bulk. That means, this isn't all muscle, this is water as well." She placed a hand on his chest and Soujirou's already wide eyes widened even further. "And why you didn't need food and didn't need to use the bathroom. You lose water through breathing, perspiration… so every single drop you regained was eventually lost… so you didn't need the bathroom. Elementary! I was so stupid!"
"Megumi – donou?" Soujirou began, trying to break into her monologue. "Aren't you still afraid of me?"
"Afraid?" Megumi scoffed, "I was merely surprised. Now that I've gotten over my shock, there is no reason why I shouldn't go back to taking care of you."
"Why…"
"Oh, you are such an adorable boy," she sighed, pinching his cheeks then wincing when his neck dislocated again, "but so mindless, just like Ken-chan. Mmm… I always felt that a son between Ken-chan and I would be something like you. Black hair… with his attitude." Without breaking a stride, she snapped his neck back into place as Soujirou stared open-mouthed at her.
"I'm dead," he said finally, "when they destroy whatever it is that pulled me back, I will die as well."
"Of course you will," Megumi replied firmly, "and you should be thankful for that. I don't know about you, but if dying and reincarnation means not remembering having my head whacked off by some dead Shinsengumi captain, I would be more than happy to die."
"I…" Soujirou gave up and returned to staring tragically at the sheets. "Why are you always so… positive, Megumi – donou?"
"What else can I be?" she replied, laying him back on the sheets, "but…" It was at that moment Kaoru chose to storm in.
"I could swear I heard something about you and Ken-chan and Soujirou," she fumed, "Megumi, I thought you got over that years ago!"
To Soujirou's amazement, the firm, profession doctor seemed to dissolve into the perfect example of a kitsune. "But Kaoru-chan, I thought I did… only seeing such an adorable boy made me think of how things could have been between me and Ken-chan."
"Megumi!"
Soujirou stared quietly as the fight between the two women erupted suddenly, his forced smile fading rapidly. The other night, when he was still alive, he had walked past the Kamiya dojo. He had found it tempting to stop and visit his new model in philosophy, yet courtesy had stopped him from interrupting their sleep in the middle of the night. Right now, he wondered how things would have changed had he stopped. If only he had stopped, things could have been so different. He wouldn't be dead… wouldn't be living a borrowed life with a glaring presence always hanging somewhere at the back of his mind… wouldn't be staring constantly at the wall and feeling so empty deep inside.
If only he had stopped.
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