Disclaimer: I don't own RK.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX time/scene change

Last Chapter:

I was in a really bad mood. I shouldn't have gone. It probably would have been better if I had just stayed home. I don't know what's wrong with me. I've been so irritable lately. I wouldn't usually snap at Kaoru like that. It's just something about that Higurashi kid that has me…feeling on edge. That and the constant stress I've been going through for the past two weeks. I sighed again as I got up and brushed my teeth. I returned to my room and turned off the lights. I blindly walked to my bed and pulled myself under the covers.

I stared blankly at the black ceiling. I should apologize to Kaoru tomorrow. I'll think of a way to make it up to her in the morning. I turned my head to my left and looked out the windows. The stars were shining brightly tonight. I closed my eyes and slowly began to drift off. Before I knew it, the morning light was shining on my face and I had to get up and go through another day.

Chapter 14:

I sat quietly in the doctor's office as he gave me instructions.

"You still need to be very careful with that arm. It is still a bit fragile and will break again if put it under enough stress," he said with a stern look on his face.

I nodded to show that I understood and soon we were on our way back home. I slowly rolled my left shoulder.

"How does it feel?" asked my mom.

"Uhh…okay I guess," I murmured as I looked out the window at the buildings whizzing by.

My mother turned up the car radio and focused on driving the car home. I frowned as I thought about what the use of my left arm meant for me. Now that the cast was off, I didn't have a reason to skip kendo practice. Shishou is going to make me start up kendo again as soon as he learns that my arm is fine. I've been kind of trying to avoid kendo for the past three weeks. I haven't even laid eyes on my sakabatou since the incident. I figure it's either at Shishou's house or still in that warehouse.

I blinked as we suddenly pulled into the driveway. I must have been really absorbed in my thoughts to not have realized that we were already home. I got out of the car and shut the door behind me. My mother began to walk up to the front door.

"Kenshin, can you go get the girls from Uncle Koshijiro's house for me?" she asked as she fumbled with the keys.

"Sure," I called out as I crossed the front lawn to my neighbor's house.

I stepped up to the door and knocked on the door. A few seconds later, a woman with dark brown hair and blue eyes opened the door.

"Hi Auntie Sakura!" I greeted with a smile.

"Kenshin!" she said returning the smile. She glanced down at my arm and her smile grew larger. "I'm glad you finally got that cast off," she said. "I'm assuming that you're here to pick up your sisters."

"Yep!" I replied. As she was about to turn around to get them, I stopped her.

"Aunt Sakura, is Kaoru here by any chance?" I asked here. "I need to talk to her."

"I'm sorry Kenshin, but Kaoru went to her friend's house. She had a group project to do and they wanted to get it down as soon as possible," she said. "I'll be right back with your sisters."

"Okay," I said.

A few minutes later, I heard little feet running across the wooden floors. "Ken-nii! Ken-nii!" chanted the little girls as they threw themselves on me. "Yay! Your arm is better!" cried out Ayame happily.

"Betta! Betta!" chanted Suzume.

I chuckled. "Yep! Ken-nii's arm is all better now," I said as I picked them up. I said a quick good-bye and began the trip across the yard back to our house with the two girls happily in each arm playing with my long red hair hanging off of my high ponytail. I stepped into the house and set the two girls down. They joyously ran into the kitchen where I suspect my mother was.

I walked at a more leisurely pace into the kitchen. The minute I got there I wished I could just run into my room and lock myself in. There sitting comfortably at the table was none other than Uncle Hiko with a mischievous smirk marring his face. "Uhhh…hi Shishou," I said slowly backing out of the kitchen.

"Well, well, well… look who finally got his cast off," he said with an evil glint in his eyes.

"…"

"I guess that means that we can finally have practice today," he said.

"W-what!" I sputtered in surprise. I knew he would make me go to practice on Monday, but I didn't think that he would make me start kendo again with an arduous Saturday practice.

"You heard me. You have practice today. You're the co-captain of the kendo team and it wouldn't be good to show the team that you are out of shape now would it," smirked my uncle.

"But…" I started.

"No buts, get changed and meet me in the car," he said as he got up and walked passed me into the living room where my sisters had gone.

I sighed and looked at my mom with a pleading look.

"Don't look at me like that Kenshin. You know how your Uncle is," laughed my mom. I sighed in resignation and slowly made my way to my room. I grabbed my blue gi and grey hakamas and quickly changed into the loose fitting clothing. I threw my tabi sandals and socks into my gym bag along with a towel, water bottle, and my house keys and grudgingly made my way down the stairs.

"Be careful with your left arm," said my mom as I passed the kitchen. I stepped outside and locked the door behind me. Shishou was already in his car waiting for me.

"Oi! Hurry up Baka Deshi!" he yelled through the window.

"Yeah, yeah," I mumbled as I jogged to the car and got into the front seat.

The drive lasted a total of 5 minutes at the most. Shishou lived very close to us. As we pulled into the driveway, I followed my Shishou into the old fashioned home. We made our way through the house into the dojo that stood at the back. I set my bag down right beside the wall and stood in the middle of the dojo. "Wait here," mumbled Shishou as he left the room.

A few minutes later he returned and tossed my sakabatou at me. I expertly caught it and stared at it in my hands. This was the weapon that took a life away. I was snapped out of my thoughts by my Shishou's deep voice.

"Kenshin, you now know how it feels to kill. But even though a sword can take life away, a sword can also save lives. That is the basis of the Hiten Mitsurugi style. I have told you this countless times before, but I don't think you truly understand the worth of these words until you have actually killed someone. Hiten Mitsurugi ryu is a sword style that stands up for the innocent. In many ways, it is like the Kamiya Kasshin style that Kaoru is learning. It is meant to protect the innocent, the weak, but unlike Kamiya's style, Hiten Mitsurugi is a style meant to kill when needed. Keep the principles of the Hiten Mitsurugi Style in your heart and you will find yourself as an honorable swordsman," Uncle Hiko said with his dark eyes locked onto my amethyst eyes.

I nodded and solemnly slid the sakabatou into my belt sash. I quickly began stretching my limbs. First my legs, then my arms, being very careful with my left arm. I rolled my shoulders and brought my left hand to the hilt of my sword. I slid my hand down the hilt till it reached the sheath where I let my hand rest. I felt...strangly complete with a sword by my side, as if without it I had left something behind and now finally found it.

"Alright, I want you to go through your katas slowly, but correctly. Gradually increase the speed as you advance through the levels," instructed Hiko.

I nodded and slipped my right hand onto the sword hilt. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to focus myself. Slowly I drew my sword and began my dance. At first, I was slightly surprised with how stiff my left arm really was, but as I progressed through the easiest moves, I slowly felt it loosening up. As I ended the first level of katas, I began to speed up. I felt my muscles warm up and my Shishou opened the door to the huge back yard that he had. I continued going through the movements that I had learned and as I finished the 2nd level, I dashed outside where I would have more room.

I began the more advanced techniques outside. I did a series of high leaps and slashes, starting out on one side of the yard and a second later on the other side. As I brought my sakabatou into a downward strike, two men and blood flashed in my mind. I gasped and faltered on my next move.

"Oi! Stay focused, keep going!" I heard my Shishou yell.

I tightened my grip on my sword and forced myself to relax and continue. As I reached the final level filled with the most difficult attacks to master, I increased my speed even more. I began to realize how much I missed swordsmanship. I missed the feeling of ...contentness and calm that came with it. I leaped into the air and drew my sword down onto an invisible enemy below me. I landed gracefully and pivoted to the left slashing through the air. I began to slow my movements down as my dance ended.

I started the cooling down process to help my heart beat to return to normal. I was already breathing hard by now, but a part of me didn't want to stop. Slowly, I came to stop in front of my Shishou huffing and puffing from the workout.

"Well, at least you didn't get too rusty over the past three weeks, but I've got to say baka deshi you really are out of shape," Shishou laughed. "Look at you huffing and puffing like that."

I glared at him and tried to get my breathing under control. Suddenly, my Shishou disappeared and reappeared in inch in front of me. He grabbed the collar of my gi and threw me clear across the yard. I was so surprised that I was barely able to twist my body, by reflex, so that I didn't get hurt form the landing.

"Why the heck did you do that for?" I yelled as I glared at my Uncle.

"Well, I had to make sure that you still remembered how to fall without getting hurt. Lucky for you, I helped you develop those reflexes of yours, or else you would have re-broken your arm," he replied arrogantly. I shot him a glare and was caught off guard once again when Shishou suddenly charged at me. I yelped and pulled my sword up in defense.

"What have I told you Baka? Always keep your guard up!" he said as we began to spar.

The spar lasted for about an hour and by then I was exhausted and breathing hard. My Shishou struck at me again and I barely managed to block the attack before I was sent flying threw the air and onto my back. I lay there desperately trying to gather the air that was knocked out of me. "Get up Baka Deshi," said my Shishou gruffly.

I closed my eyes as the world around me began to spin slightly and continued breathing hard. Slowly, I managed to get myself back on my feet. 'I really was out of shape!' I thought to myself. My legs felt like jelly and they felt like they would collapse under my weight any second. I shakily re-sheathed my sakabatou and got onto the battoujutsu stance for the millionth time that hour.

"That's enough for today," said my Shishou and I inwardly sighed in relief. "There is a kendo practice Monday morning at the school's dojo. I expect you to show up now that your cast is off."

I nodded and shakily made my way to my bag where I proceeded to wipe my face with a towel. I greedily drank from my water bottle and tossed it back into my bag. "Let's go, I'll take you home," said my uncle as he walked out of the dojo. I hurriedly grabbed my bag and followed him into the car.

As the car began to move, I felt my body involuntarily slump into the car seat from exhaustion. I closed my eyes and before I knew it, we had already pulled up to my house. "Remember Baka Deshi, practice Monday. I expect you there at least 15 minutes earlier," said my Shishou.

"Yeah, yeah," I mumbled as I grabbed my bag and opened the door. As I stood up, I frowned at my stiff limbs that were already feeling sore. I knew that I was going to be in pain for the next couple of days. I really should have worked out a little during the three weeks I had a cast. I began to make my way up the walkway when I heard Shishou's car drive away and another car pull up to the house next to mine.

I turned curiously to my left and saw as Kaoru stepped out of the car. "Thanks for the ride Higurashi-san. I'll see you guys later," I heard Kaoru say to the people inside the car. I didn't really pay attention to what she said because I was kind of distracted by the look on Kaoru's face. Her bright sapphire eyes were shining and sparkling with life and happiness. Her raven hair seemed to glisten in the evening sun. The setting sun's glow seemed to make her face seem to have a lustrous sheen to it.

She is so beautiful. My cheeks burned as that thought suddenly popped into my mind. Kaoru turned as the car drove off and her face seemed to brighten even more. "Kenshin! Your cast is finally gone!" she cried out excitedly.

I smiled. "Yep! I'm finally free from that thing!" I said. The door to Kaoru's house opened and her dad stuck his head out. "Kaoru, you're back," he said as he saw her. "Come inside and wash up, dinner is almost ready," he said.

"Okay daddy!" replied Kaoru. "I'll see ya later Kenshin!" she said as she made her way towards the door. "Alright," I said as I too continued walking.

"Kenshin, I didn't see you earlier," apologized Kaoru's dad. "You want to join us for dinner?"

"No thank you, Uncle Koshijiro. My mom probably started making dinner and I don't want her food to go to waste," I declined politely.

"Okay then. You better go on in," he smiled. I nodded and waved as I pulled my keys out and opened the door. "I'm home!" I yelled taking off my scandals.

"Go get cleaned up and come down for dinner," yelled my mother from the kitchen. I made my way upstairs and took a quick shower. Dressed in my pajamas, I came down and had dinner with my sisters and mother. After our uneventful dinner had finished, I went into my room and flopped down onto my bed and closed my eyes. My cell phone started ringing and I grabbed it from the nightstand on my right.

"Hello?" I mumbled tiredly.

"Looks like Hiko gave you a pretty hard work out," said the girl from the other line.

"Yeah!" I moaned lifting my head to look out the window on my left. There was Kaoru whose room was conveniently located across from mine with a phone in her hands and an amused smirk on her face. I let my head drop onto my bed. "I'm sure he enjoyed beating me and throwing me around," I mumbled darkly.

Kaoru laughed on the other line. "Well, you know Hiko. He loves to tease you."

"Tease? It's more like tormenting me!" I replied.

Kaoru laughed at that and I joined in. After a few minutes, we were quiet again.

"Kaoru?" I said quietly.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry about the way I acted yesterday," I said.

"Don't worry about it. It's cool," said Kaoru.

"I'll make it up to you. I promise!" I said. "You doing anything tomorrow?"

"I'm sorry Kenshin, but I have a group project and we were planning on working on it tomorrow," said Kaoru.

"Oh, that's alright. So, who is this partner of yours?" I asked.

"…Hanzou…" said Kaoru softly.

"What?" I said in surprise. "Did you get to choose your partners?"

"…yeah. Misao and Megumi were doing it together and Hanzou asked so I said yes," Kaoru explained.

"Why don't you like him Kenshin? He's a nice guy and you never give him a chance," said Kaoru with irritation in her voice.

"It's just…I don't know, there's something about him…I get the feeling that he's hiding something. I just have a bad feeling about him…" I said trying to find the right words to describe how I felt.

"Well…he isn't hiding anything. I'll talk to you tomorrow," said Kaoru her voice laced with annoyance.

"Alright, bye Kaoru," I sighed.

"Bye," she responded.

"…and Kaoru, please just be careful around Hanzou," I said.

"Kenshin…alright," she sighed. "If it makes you feel better, I'll be careful around him. But I still don't see why I should. Hanzou is one of the nicest and politest person I have met."

"Thanks Kaoru," I said before hanging up the phone.

AN: Alright, there's the next chapter. I just love the interaction between Kenshin and Hiko, dont you? lol...anyway, Tell me what you think. This is kind of a build up to some kind of conflict involving Hanzou in later chapters with Kaoru right in the middle of it. Tell me what you think. Review Please! And thank you to those who have been reviewing. It's really been helping me!