OK, as promised, review responses!
Chiki-san, Thanks for having me in your faves list! Thanks for being so enthusiastic about the fic! And thanks for telling me that I'm not alone with the fanfic writer blues. I don't deserve the honor, you're a better writer! ^_^ I do better work in the dialogue style, but you write in the description style, the way I'd like to. I'm sorry you didn't understand Commercial Life too much. That's OK.
Keiko-san, I'm sorry for all the tense mistakes. It's rather ironic, you know, since I check student papers for tense mistakes as a part-time job. Argh, my fics are their revenge on me. ^_^ I guess the outside-reader position helps, but I don't have one right now, unfortunately. I do tell myself now to keep to the past tense, and I hope to do better.
Sky Fire, thanks for the enthusiasm. Get me a root beer, too, OK? ^_^
Crystal-san, my kababayan, thanks for coming back, and coming back, and coming back!
Naomi-san, thanks for reviewing. Nice fics at your site! Sorry, I haven't signed the GB yet. ^_^
Nena-san, thanks for reviewing, and I hope you're still enjoying what you're getting.
I'm writing fast, while the concept is still in my head, and before other more important things have to bother me.
That's a long intro. Let's go!
..................
DAY FOUR
"Troops, this is Himura Kenshin. He is the assigned guard, directly responsible for the American ambassador."
Kenshin bowed to the police force, which stood before him. Beside Kenshin stood Chief Uramura. The chief continued.
"While he is directly under my command, understand that I consider Himura- san more as a friend than a subordinate. Therefore, I will ask all of you to treat him as you would treat me. I will also ask you to follow any and all of his instructions, because I trust his judgment implicitly. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Sir!" the force unanimously responded.
"Disperse!" the chief ordered.
So far, so good. It was as Kenshin remembered October 4. He recalled that he was very impressed with the Tokyo police that day. He even felt confident of the ambassador's safety, aside from the personal protection he would provide, of course.
As Chief Uramura and Kenshin mingled among the troops, the chief stopped every so often to introduce him to valuable men among the force. Among them, Kenshin was introduced to the head of intelligence --- who was incidentally Fujita Goro --- and to the head of the parade.
But as he bowed before the tall commander, Kenshin looked up in shock. The man had a large scar across his forehead.
"Himura-san, this is Commander Sayama Hiruki." The commander politely bowed before Kenshin.
Sayama! The man at the river! The man with a scar on the forehead! Threatened with his life to help kill the ambassador!
"Uramura-dono, are you certain that Sayama-dono is head of the parade?" Kenshin had to make sure that he heard right.
"Yes, Himura-san, he is," the chief confirmed. "We're rather lucky to have him, actually. He's one of the best bodyguards and policemen in Japan, and he was just recently transferred to Tokyo."
"W-w-what are his credentials, Uramura-dono?" Kenshin asked, placing one hand on his sword imperceptibly.
"Astounding credentials," the chief assured him. Sayama lifted his chest a little higher. Kenshin tensed even more. "He has stopped no less than 10 riots, arrested 100 people, solved 50 cases by himself. And there is more..."
"That would be quite enough, chief," Kenshin concluded. He nodded to Sayama. "It is an honor to know you, Sayama-dono."
It was an honor, Kenshin fumed angrily to himself. It was not a pleasure knowing you, Sayama. I have no idea what you are planning to do during the parade, but I will NOT let you do it! Not while I am alive!
"Begging your pardon, Uramura-dono," Kenshin bowed to the chief, "but I have to see Fujita-dono."
The chief gave him leave, and talked to Sayama. Kenshin walked away and made his way to Saitou's office.
When Kenshin knocked, Saitou's voice was heard from inside, curtly ordering him to "Enter!"
Kenshin entered a meticulously organized office. Books were arranged well in a bookcase near the window. The floor was newly swept, and kept clean. Papers were filed neatly to the side of a clean table. An inkwell with a fountain pen stood at the opposite end of the table. And behind the table, writing a report, sat Saitou.
He sat in the chair in front of him and waited to be acknowledged.
He had to wait a full five minutes.
"What do you want, Battousai?" Saitou then asked without looking up from his work.
Kenshin got straight to the point, and said it seriously. "I want you to remove Sayama-dono as head of the parade."
"And why would I do that?"
"Because he is an accomplice to an attempt to assassinate the ambassador!"
It was only then that Saitou looked up and looked at Kenshin. "Talk."
Kenshin related to Saitou what he overheard at the river as accurately as possible. He included his description of the two men.
"Insufficient evidence." That was all Saitou commented.
Kenshin's eyes turned from violet to gold. The blood rose to his head. "What do you mean, insufficient evidence?!"
Saitou began writing his report again. "There is not enough proof in what you said, to convince me that Sayama will help assassinate the ambassador. Besides, I have only your word to go by."
"You do not understand, Saitou. If you do not get Sayama off the parade, as assassination will occur...."
"Where is your proof, Battousai?"
It was the last straw. In a second Kenshin swung to Saitou's half of the table, and furiously grabbed his collar, held it tightly in his right fist, until his face was only inches away from Kenshin's.
"Understand this, Saitou!" he shouted at him passionately, desperately. "If you do not do anything, a shooting will take place during the parade. Civilians and officers will die! Many more will be injured! And the ambassador will only barely escape with his life.......because Kaoru will take a bullet to her back and die!! Now GET SAYAMA OFF THE PARADE!"
"Impressive." Saitou was unfazed by Kenshin's spectacular display of emotion. "How do you know all that?"
Suddenly Kenshin found himself with nothing to say. He released his hold on Saitou's collar. "I can't tell you. Even if I did you would not understand."
"Try me." Saitou dared him, as he flattened out the creases to his uniform.
Kenshin's eyes returned to their usual violet. He sighed, and took the dare. "I've seen it all happen, in the future. I've went back in time, to ensure that it does not happen. I don't care if you believe me or not. I promised that I will not allow Kaoru to die. Are you going to help me? Get Sayama-dono off the parade."
Saitou continued to write his report for two agonizing minutes. Then, he answered.
"No, I will not help you."
Kenshin lowered his head in defeat.
"I do not care about your woman. I do not care about Sayama's alliances. And the only time I know is the present. Until you give more evidence of your claims, I cannot help you, Battousai."
The former Battousai suddenly laughed an insane, dejected laugh.
"You're right, Saitou. Who was I to expect anything from you? Kaoru-dono will die, she will die, because I have 'insufficient evidence'. The parade will go on as usual, and people will die, because I have 'insufficient evidence'! If Saitou will not listen to me, who else will? Chief Uramura? Not likely!"
He walked out the door. He continued to talk like a half-crazed fool. "My time-travel is gone to waste. No one will even know I tried. Oh, yes! Saitou will, but he does not believe me, like everyone else will not believe me if they heard. Thank you for your time in the present, Saitou! I'll see you tomorrow morning.....Uramura-dono told me to come by and meet the ambassador...."
"You're losing it, Battousai!" Saitou called after him. That was all.
The guardian angel grew more anxious about Kenshin.
"Kenshin, why did you do that?" she asked kindly.
"Why?" he snapped aloud and angrily, as he walked home alone from the precinct. "Why do you even ask? Don't you want to be saved, after all, Kaoru-dono?"
"Calm down, Kenshin. There are two more days before the parade," the angel soothed his wrath. "A lot of things can still be done in two days."
"You're right, Kaoru-dono," Kenshin agreed sadly, "In two days, Sayama-dono can plan out how to carry on the assassination, and report to a superior by the river."
"No, that's not what I meant. YOU can still do a lot in two days."
Kenshin did not reply, and kept silence until he reached the dojo.
Kaoru was waiting by the door to welcome him, but he only brushed her off without a word. He could not allow himself to get close to the woman he could no longer save from death.
He walked without thinking, back to the practice area, back to its far end, and allowed himself to slump again to the floor.
"Let this horrible memory die with me. Kaoru will die, and I can do nothing about it! Nothing! Kaoru is not for me to save. Not for me to save...."
Kenshin did not realize that he could actually be heard by the Kaoru in this world. He went on mumbling sorrowfully about Kaoru......she will die, and I can't stop it......I can't......Daigoro-dono's efforts are wasted on me.....she will die.........
"No, she will not."
And Kaoru wrapped her arms around her distraught redhead.
"I don't know why you keep talking about me dying, Kenshin, and why you can't stop it. I don't WANT to know. But I will not die ahead of you, Kenshin. And whatever it is that you keep saying, I believe that you CAN stop it and save me."
"You don't understand......Kaoru.....you don't.....know what I know....you did not see what I saw........"
"I do not have to, Kenshin. I believe in you. That is all that I have to understand. I know that you never go back on your word. That is all I have to know. And I see a man who has been through trials I cannot even imagine, yet manages to live every day in new hope. That is all I need to see."
She felt Kenshin calm down considerably. He returned her embrace with tearful eyes that she did not see.
"I will keep you alive, Kaoru-dono, I swear I will......"
"No more words, my friend. No more words. I have all that I need. Now let's go to bed."
....................
This time I hope all of the verbs that should be in the past tense, are in the past tense. ^_^ That was hard to write. I am sending poor Kenshin into a roller-coaster of emotions, pity the redhead. ^_^ Thank you again for the reviews, keep 'em coming! I never liked the notion of keeping the fic still for a while to collect reviews, but I still like getting reviews like everyone else. Until next time!
Chiki-san, Thanks for having me in your faves list! Thanks for being so enthusiastic about the fic! And thanks for telling me that I'm not alone with the fanfic writer blues. I don't deserve the honor, you're a better writer! ^_^ I do better work in the dialogue style, but you write in the description style, the way I'd like to. I'm sorry you didn't understand Commercial Life too much. That's OK.
Keiko-san, I'm sorry for all the tense mistakes. It's rather ironic, you know, since I check student papers for tense mistakes as a part-time job. Argh, my fics are their revenge on me. ^_^ I guess the outside-reader position helps, but I don't have one right now, unfortunately. I do tell myself now to keep to the past tense, and I hope to do better.
Sky Fire, thanks for the enthusiasm. Get me a root beer, too, OK? ^_^
Crystal-san, my kababayan, thanks for coming back, and coming back, and coming back!
Naomi-san, thanks for reviewing. Nice fics at your site! Sorry, I haven't signed the GB yet. ^_^
Nena-san, thanks for reviewing, and I hope you're still enjoying what you're getting.
I'm writing fast, while the concept is still in my head, and before other more important things have to bother me.
That's a long intro. Let's go!
..................
DAY FOUR
"Troops, this is Himura Kenshin. He is the assigned guard, directly responsible for the American ambassador."
Kenshin bowed to the police force, which stood before him. Beside Kenshin stood Chief Uramura. The chief continued.
"While he is directly under my command, understand that I consider Himura- san more as a friend than a subordinate. Therefore, I will ask all of you to treat him as you would treat me. I will also ask you to follow any and all of his instructions, because I trust his judgment implicitly. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Sir!" the force unanimously responded.
"Disperse!" the chief ordered.
So far, so good. It was as Kenshin remembered October 4. He recalled that he was very impressed with the Tokyo police that day. He even felt confident of the ambassador's safety, aside from the personal protection he would provide, of course.
As Chief Uramura and Kenshin mingled among the troops, the chief stopped every so often to introduce him to valuable men among the force. Among them, Kenshin was introduced to the head of intelligence --- who was incidentally Fujita Goro --- and to the head of the parade.
But as he bowed before the tall commander, Kenshin looked up in shock. The man had a large scar across his forehead.
"Himura-san, this is Commander Sayama Hiruki." The commander politely bowed before Kenshin.
Sayama! The man at the river! The man with a scar on the forehead! Threatened with his life to help kill the ambassador!
"Uramura-dono, are you certain that Sayama-dono is head of the parade?" Kenshin had to make sure that he heard right.
"Yes, Himura-san, he is," the chief confirmed. "We're rather lucky to have him, actually. He's one of the best bodyguards and policemen in Japan, and he was just recently transferred to Tokyo."
"W-w-what are his credentials, Uramura-dono?" Kenshin asked, placing one hand on his sword imperceptibly.
"Astounding credentials," the chief assured him. Sayama lifted his chest a little higher. Kenshin tensed even more. "He has stopped no less than 10 riots, arrested 100 people, solved 50 cases by himself. And there is more..."
"That would be quite enough, chief," Kenshin concluded. He nodded to Sayama. "It is an honor to know you, Sayama-dono."
It was an honor, Kenshin fumed angrily to himself. It was not a pleasure knowing you, Sayama. I have no idea what you are planning to do during the parade, but I will NOT let you do it! Not while I am alive!
"Begging your pardon, Uramura-dono," Kenshin bowed to the chief, "but I have to see Fujita-dono."
The chief gave him leave, and talked to Sayama. Kenshin walked away and made his way to Saitou's office.
When Kenshin knocked, Saitou's voice was heard from inside, curtly ordering him to "Enter!"
Kenshin entered a meticulously organized office. Books were arranged well in a bookcase near the window. The floor was newly swept, and kept clean. Papers were filed neatly to the side of a clean table. An inkwell with a fountain pen stood at the opposite end of the table. And behind the table, writing a report, sat Saitou.
He sat in the chair in front of him and waited to be acknowledged.
He had to wait a full five minutes.
"What do you want, Battousai?" Saitou then asked without looking up from his work.
Kenshin got straight to the point, and said it seriously. "I want you to remove Sayama-dono as head of the parade."
"And why would I do that?"
"Because he is an accomplice to an attempt to assassinate the ambassador!"
It was only then that Saitou looked up and looked at Kenshin. "Talk."
Kenshin related to Saitou what he overheard at the river as accurately as possible. He included his description of the two men.
"Insufficient evidence." That was all Saitou commented.
Kenshin's eyes turned from violet to gold. The blood rose to his head. "What do you mean, insufficient evidence?!"
Saitou began writing his report again. "There is not enough proof in what you said, to convince me that Sayama will help assassinate the ambassador. Besides, I have only your word to go by."
"You do not understand, Saitou. If you do not get Sayama off the parade, as assassination will occur...."
"Where is your proof, Battousai?"
It was the last straw. In a second Kenshin swung to Saitou's half of the table, and furiously grabbed his collar, held it tightly in his right fist, until his face was only inches away from Kenshin's.
"Understand this, Saitou!" he shouted at him passionately, desperately. "If you do not do anything, a shooting will take place during the parade. Civilians and officers will die! Many more will be injured! And the ambassador will only barely escape with his life.......because Kaoru will take a bullet to her back and die!! Now GET SAYAMA OFF THE PARADE!"
"Impressive." Saitou was unfazed by Kenshin's spectacular display of emotion. "How do you know all that?"
Suddenly Kenshin found himself with nothing to say. He released his hold on Saitou's collar. "I can't tell you. Even if I did you would not understand."
"Try me." Saitou dared him, as he flattened out the creases to his uniform.
Kenshin's eyes returned to their usual violet. He sighed, and took the dare. "I've seen it all happen, in the future. I've went back in time, to ensure that it does not happen. I don't care if you believe me or not. I promised that I will not allow Kaoru to die. Are you going to help me? Get Sayama-dono off the parade."
Saitou continued to write his report for two agonizing minutes. Then, he answered.
"No, I will not help you."
Kenshin lowered his head in defeat.
"I do not care about your woman. I do not care about Sayama's alliances. And the only time I know is the present. Until you give more evidence of your claims, I cannot help you, Battousai."
The former Battousai suddenly laughed an insane, dejected laugh.
"You're right, Saitou. Who was I to expect anything from you? Kaoru-dono will die, she will die, because I have 'insufficient evidence'. The parade will go on as usual, and people will die, because I have 'insufficient evidence'! If Saitou will not listen to me, who else will? Chief Uramura? Not likely!"
He walked out the door. He continued to talk like a half-crazed fool. "My time-travel is gone to waste. No one will even know I tried. Oh, yes! Saitou will, but he does not believe me, like everyone else will not believe me if they heard. Thank you for your time in the present, Saitou! I'll see you tomorrow morning.....Uramura-dono told me to come by and meet the ambassador...."
"You're losing it, Battousai!" Saitou called after him. That was all.
The guardian angel grew more anxious about Kenshin.
"Kenshin, why did you do that?" she asked kindly.
"Why?" he snapped aloud and angrily, as he walked home alone from the precinct. "Why do you even ask? Don't you want to be saved, after all, Kaoru-dono?"
"Calm down, Kenshin. There are two more days before the parade," the angel soothed his wrath. "A lot of things can still be done in two days."
"You're right, Kaoru-dono," Kenshin agreed sadly, "In two days, Sayama-dono can plan out how to carry on the assassination, and report to a superior by the river."
"No, that's not what I meant. YOU can still do a lot in two days."
Kenshin did not reply, and kept silence until he reached the dojo.
Kaoru was waiting by the door to welcome him, but he only brushed her off without a word. He could not allow himself to get close to the woman he could no longer save from death.
He walked without thinking, back to the practice area, back to its far end, and allowed himself to slump again to the floor.
"Let this horrible memory die with me. Kaoru will die, and I can do nothing about it! Nothing! Kaoru is not for me to save. Not for me to save...."
Kenshin did not realize that he could actually be heard by the Kaoru in this world. He went on mumbling sorrowfully about Kaoru......she will die, and I can't stop it......I can't......Daigoro-dono's efforts are wasted on me.....she will die.........
"No, she will not."
And Kaoru wrapped her arms around her distraught redhead.
"I don't know why you keep talking about me dying, Kenshin, and why you can't stop it. I don't WANT to know. But I will not die ahead of you, Kenshin. And whatever it is that you keep saying, I believe that you CAN stop it and save me."
"You don't understand......Kaoru.....you don't.....know what I know....you did not see what I saw........"
"I do not have to, Kenshin. I believe in you. That is all that I have to understand. I know that you never go back on your word. That is all I have to know. And I see a man who has been through trials I cannot even imagine, yet manages to live every day in new hope. That is all I need to see."
She felt Kenshin calm down considerably. He returned her embrace with tearful eyes that she did not see.
"I will keep you alive, Kaoru-dono, I swear I will......"
"No more words, my friend. No more words. I have all that I need. Now let's go to bed."
....................
This time I hope all of the verbs that should be in the past tense, are in the past tense. ^_^ That was hard to write. I am sending poor Kenshin into a roller-coaster of emotions, pity the redhead. ^_^ Thank you again for the reviews, keep 'em coming! I never liked the notion of keeping the fic still for a while to collect reviews, but I still like getting reviews like everyone else. Until next time!