SLIGHT SPOILER WARNING!!!
Liv: Spoiler? Didn't it happen in the past?
Onna: Kenshin's gonna say something incriminating! In case our readers did not watch the OAV or read the manga (comic), we have to keep the spoiler warning up.
Liv: Ohhhh!
**********
"Ano..." Kenshin said, bowing to the group. "Sessha wa Himura Kenshin de gozaru. Just call me Kenshin. I am the thirteenth master of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu, the Flying Sword to Heaven philosophy."
"I thought you said his name was Himura, Strife?" Sephiroth turned to Cloud with a slight glare.
Cloud shrugged innocently. "I'm not supposed to understand their weird language."
"Watashi wa Kamiya Kaoru," Kaoru said next. "You may call me Kaoru. I am the assistant master of Kamiya Kasshin Ryuu. I am yet to perfect the succession technique my late father taught me."
"A female swordsman?" Cid said incredulously. "Shouldn't you be back in your home playing housewife?"
"Cid!" Tifa said indignantly. "You talk as if Yuffie, Aeris and I don't fight with you!"
Aeris giggled. She turned to Kaoru with a small smile to her face. "What is the philosophy of this... Kamiya Kasshin?"
Kaoru gave her a proud grin. "To protect without killing."
Cloud whistled. "Wow! That's a philosophy that's pretty hard to fulfill."
"My father was able to do it, and I plan to follow in his footsteps."
Yahiko was next. "I am Myoujin Yahiko, Busu's student. I'd rather be called Yahiko."
"Busu?" Barret parroted with accent. "What the hell's a 'busu'?" Every time he mentioned 'busu', he said it slowly.
"YAHIKO NO BAKA!!!"
"Come on! Doesn't she look ugly to you?" Yahiko grinned.
"..." Cid's eyes are showing his confusion.
Kaoru, fuming, grabbed a broom from the corner and began beating the boy to a pulp. "You dare insult your master?!"
"BUSU!"
"Yahiko-chan!"
"Maa maa!" Kenshin cried, pulling Kaoru off Yahiko.
Tifa gave a short laugh. "Don't worry, Kaoru. I'm sure Kenshin thinks you're pretty." Being the one who often motivates the group, it was pretty expected of her to say that.
"Oro?!" Kenshin flushed.
"Anyway! I am her number 1 student, Tokyo samurai!" Yahiko said proudly.
"You haven't even finished your training..." Kaoru muttered.
"Ore wa Sagara Sanosuke desu," Sano said, eyeing Cloud warily. "You can call me Sano. I'm Kenshin's constant companion in battles. I fight with the style called Futae no Kiwame, which I will not go into detail."
"So you guys can fight," Cloud murmured. "Interesting... I'd like to see your sword, Himu- Kenshin."
Kenshin nodded, unsheathing his sakabatou. Cloud's eyes widened as he observed the blade. The sharp edge was on where the blunt side was supposed to be, and so it was with the blunt edge.
"Reverse-edged," he said softly. "Kenshin, why a reversed blade?" He studied the sword, moving it slightly to see the different angles.
"I'll explain later," he said
apologetically. Cloud nodded.
Cloud sat on the floor, cleaning his sword when Kenshin came. "Hey, Ken."
"Hai de gozaru?"
"You said something about telling me why you carry a reverse blade."
"Aa," Kenshin nodded, removing his sword from his belt. "I wasn't always carrying this sword. I used to kill, every night, in the streets of Kyoto, where I came from."
Cloud nodded for him to go on.
"I was known as Hitokiri Battousai. People say I brought in the new era. But I'm... not proud of what I did, especially after losing someone I loved. When that happened, I continued to give my skills to the cause until it was all over. I threw my sword away and replaced it with this reverse blade. I became a rurouni, a wanderer, trying to atone for my sins. Until Kaoru-dono gave me a home."
"She gave you, a total stranger, a home?" Cloud asked.
Kenshin nodded, smiling. "She's so innocent, so trusting. I swore to protect her from the day I met her."
**********
Japanese Terms (again):
1. Rurouni- There is no such word. Nobuhiro Watsuki actually made this word up from playing with a word "ronin" meaning samurai with no master. Rurouni is roughly translated as "wanderer".
2. Busu- Ugly
3. Hitokiri Battousai- Battousai the Assassin; Kenshin's alias when he killed.