Author's note: Crystal Method CD... found (Tweekend folks... consider it
the ST to this story). Next chapter of story done. Ummm... yeah this one
is a bit strange. It took me forever to find the names of one person in
particular but one site had excellent coverages of all characters:
http://www.sitepros.net/kenshin/ Great site...
Thanks for all the reviews ^_^ This is totally insane... there were like 21 just for the first chapter and I can't hope to thank you all personally. So I'll just say thank you in general. There were two things though that I thought I'd better address personally though...
And yes Jason... I think you've managed to cover all the mistakes ^_^ It was very amusing to watch the reviews come in in rapid succession while you were reading it though. Ah well, at least I can go back and edit the stories... eventually.
Yuki Shinomori - I'd never flame you!! In fact, I think it's a great idea... only, it's your idea and I'd hate to steal it. So why don't you write it? I'm sure it'll be great ^_^
And yes... those are real questions that customs people in Vegas have to ask visitors.
* * *
Sano's hands gripped the side of the chair and his eyes were clenched tightly. He wasn't going to look, nothing on this world could make him look. It would be over in a second, all he needed was a second and it would be...
There was a large thud and Sano's eyes flew open. A huge rumbling under his feet caused the sweat to start pouring from his head. The walls around him shook and Sano felt himself being pulled forward. That's it... this is it... he was going to die...
"Ladies and Gentlemen, on behalf of All Nippon Airways and United Airlines, let me welcome you to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas Nevada. The temperature outside is currently 87 degrees Fahrenheit with a high of 101. Local time is 8:30 am, Tuesday. We'll be arriving at Gate D32 in a few moments. Please stay seated until then with your seat belts securely fastened..."
"Sano?" Kaoru asked, looking over at the terrified man.
"Oi, tori-atama," Megumi said, hitting him on the head. The motion made him fall forward onto the chair in front of him.
"Is he alright?" Kenshin asked looking over.
Megumi shook her head. "It's like he passed out cold," she said, reaching down into the seat pocket in front of her. She pulled out the small bottle of sake and opened it up, waving it under Sano's nose.
Sano's eyes blinked a few times and he looked around. "Hey we made it... that wasn't too bad."
Megumi just rolled her eyes. Yeah, passing out was a completely normal reaction to landing, she said to herself. She grabbed her things and made her way out of the plane, glad to stretch her legs. She frowned watching the first class passengers walk off before everyone else and then pass through customs without any problems.
She tossed the passport at the US Customs official with a scowl. He looked up at her, asked a few questions and passed her through without much of a wait. Kaoru followed, smiling nicely for all the officials there and chatting with her American law enforcement brothers as best as she could in English.
The customs official in the next aisle held the passport up to his eyes and looked at the smiling picture. He lowered the book and looked over at the man in front of him, who was smiling in the exact same way. He held up the passport again and checked the nationality again. Japanese?? After few more seconds, he shrugged and passed it back to him.
Meanwhile, two rows down, Sano was leaning up against the counter as the official began to ask him questions.
"Where are you coming from sir?"
Sano paused and translated the words as best he could. Hey, he could manage in English but wasn't quite as fluent as the rest of the group. "From the airplane," he responded, somewhat puzzled.
"No sir, I mean what is your place of origin?"
"Oh... uh, Japan?"
"The city sir?"
"Tokyo. Do you need the address?"
"No, sir. Where are you going now, sir?"
Sano paused. "The baggage claim?"
"After that, sir."
"Ah... the hotel."
The custom's official sighed. It was going to be a long day. "What hotel sir," he asked, struggling to remain calm.
"Bela...be all... belal.."
"Bellagio, thank you sir. What is the purpose of your trip?"
Sano raised an eyebrow. "Isn't this Las Vegas?"
The custom official looked at him. "Yes sir... it is..."
"Well, then the only thing to do here is gamble, right?" Sano said with a smile.
The official forced a smile back and checked 'pleasure'. "Sir are you bringing in more than 10,000 US Dollars today?"
Sano paused. "What?"
"Do you have $10,000 or more with you?"
Sano looked at him and started to laugh. "Are you joking?"
"SANO!" Looking over, Sano saw Megumi standing with her hands on her hips. "Hurry up already!" Sano glowered and turned back to the official just in time to get his passport back. The official looked so pleased to see him go.
Baggage claim was complete chaos, which was not a surprise since flights have a way of coming it at the same time. Kenshin and Sano pushed their way to the front to catch the groups' belongings. Five minutes later, Sano was attempting to balance five piece of luggage that belonged to Megumi. Muttering something about how women always over pack, Sano pushed his way through the crowd, leaving Kenshin to get the rest of it.
The red haired man sighed as he put his foot on the edge of the baggage carousel. Next to him, a small family laughed as the father tried to get the large suitcase off the moving treads. Kenshin leaned over and helped, earning him a few grateful smiles from the children.
He smiled back before turning back to the moving bags. This was a good life, he realized. The circumstances that brought him to Las Vegas now were so much better then the reasons he had come before. Looking over his shoulder, he could see Kaoru trying to pull apart Megumi and Sano, the man having cracked a joke about the amount of luggage she had brought.
It was moments like this that he could almost forget all the years with the Hiten yakuza. But they were still there, just hiding the recesses of his mind. He might not be an assassin any longer but there was no escaping his past. And Las Vegas was littered bad memories.
He sighed. Well, maybe this time, he'll get the chance... to...
Kenshin froze, looking across the carousel and locking eyes with the man there. The man did the same and neither of them moved for a moment, too shocked by what they were seeing. Kenshin hadn't been imaging things on the plane!! It shouldn't have been possible but there he was, standing across from him with a surprised look on his face.
Kenshin's eyes narrowed and he paused for a minute while trying to make a decision. Too bad that the time he needed to think was all the time that someone else needed to act.
"HIRUMA GOHEI!" Kaoru suddenly called from behind him. Kenshin turned just in time to see Kaoru running through the crowd, past him and onto the carousel.
"Kaoru-dono!" he managed just as she hit the moving treads. It never phased her, never unbalanced her at all. It took Kenshin a second to try to understand where her motivation was coming from. Of course, Hiruma had been a police officer! They must still have been looking for him in Japan.
Kaoru dodged a few bags as she went up and over the carousel, heading right for Hiruma. The Tokyo PD had been looking for him for the past five years and here he was, right in front of her. Screw vacation, this guy was going down.
Hiruma decided it was in his best interest to run. As if seeing the Battousai himself wasn't enough to shake him to his core, the woman running at him and screaming at him to stop in the name of the Tokyo PD was all he needed to start running.
The hefty man pitched backwards, breaking through the crowd and trying to run away. But the baggage claim area didn't afford him much free space and a few steps later, he was already at the neighboring carousel.
"Crap," Hiruma said, jumping up onto the treads, shooting a glance behind him to see both the woman and the assassin after him. Unfortunately, his balance was far from perfect and a few steps later, he fell face first onto the treads.
His only saving grace was that it happened to be right at the luggage exit and he was swept away from the baggage claim area. Kaoru didn't pause but ran in after him, followed quickly by Kenshin. Sano ran up shortly afterwards but stopped at the flaps. Screw this, he was going to find airport security to shut the damn thing down.
The Las Vegas airport had just upgraded their baggage claim system. A web of interwoven moving treads filled the underground warehouse, shuttling bags back and forth from planes to the different terminals. It was the most advanced system to date and the trio riding it may have been impressed if they weren't so intent on catching each other.
Hiruma cursed and stood up, grabbing a near by suitcase and flinging it back at his pursuers. Kaoru realized what was happening at the last second and managed to take the side step the bag. The only problem was it completely unbalanced her and she pitched to the left side, tumbling off the tread.
Kenshin shot forward and tried to reach her but a second bag from Hiruma caught him off guard and he hit the right side of the track, flipping over the small barrier there and falling below.
Hiruma smiled as he surveyed the damage. Both his pursuers had probably just tumbled to their death and he was in the clear.
The track he was on suddenly pitched down and Hiruma barely managed to stay standing. He looked up and saw the black haired woman slowly approaching him from the neighboring track. She knelt down and picked up what appeared to be a ski pole. And from the look on her face, Hiruma knew he was in trouble.
Kaoru waited until the right moment and then jumped, landing next to him. She brought the pole up, holding it like a sword and advanced forward. She threw a head strike and followed it with a sideswipe for good measure. Hiruma used a small suitcase a shield and barely managed to avoid getting hit.
Worse than that, he could see a flash of red from his right, moving fast towards him. This wasn't going to be good. He pushed the bag forward, letting the ski pole spear it through the center. He gasped as the pointed end came way too close to his throat for comfort.
He saw the assassin jump and took his chance. Hiruma pushed the bag away from him, sending the pole and Kaoru tumbling backwards, right into the path of the incoming Kenshin. The two of them collapsed into a heap onto the track and Hiruma took his chance to jump away to a neighboring track, watching them disappear out of one of the exits.
The track took both Kenshin and Kaoru back onto the carousel they had started from. Collapsed as they were, it was almost as if they had been caught in the middle of a lover's tryst. A couple of people covered their children's eyes and of course, the carousel decided at the moment to come to a grinding halt.
Kaoru looked up and blushed feverishly, realizing what it looked like. She turned to all the gawking people, embarrassment suddenly turning to anger.
"Why don't you take a picture! It'll last longer," she called out in English, remembering the phrase from a movie.
But unlike the movie, the people didn't turn away. In fact, cameras seemed like just the thing for a moment like this. Kenshin, rather wisely, decided the whole swirly-eyed look was going to be better then looking conscious enough to be a target of Kaoru's anger. Sano watched the scene unfold and very wisely decided not to tell them who had got the tracks to stop. Megumi just snickered as flashes filled the small area.
* * *
Misao looked over at the computer screen with a frown. Yumi... her escape plan was flawless. It had taken the Tokyo PD almost half a day to realize that she was gone! Worse than that... several of the Juppongatana members had gone missing hours after her escape.
The Juppongatana should have been destroyed with Shishio's death. But instead, it seemed they were regrouping. Was there a new leader coming to power? Or were the remaining Juppongatana members seeking an alliance with another family?
She frowned and closed the laptop. Something was wrong. It sat in her stomach unhappily and made the ever-perky spy just a bit unnerved. She hated not knowing what was going on. There had to be a way to get into their organization like Kaoru had done.
Misao stretched back in her seat, shooting a glance over at the sleeping Aoshi. She was still amazed he actually slept. Since she had known him, he seemed so intent on his work that he wouldn't waste a moment on sleep. Of course, he still had the same look etched on his face. She sighed... she almost missed the days when they were just cop and informant. At least he had seemed a bit more human then.
She reached forward and pulled the magazine from the seat pocket in front of her. Working for the JIA had its benefits... travel was not one of them. What had Okina said again?
"How do you expect to sneak in to Vegas if we fly you on a private jet or in first class?"
Misao frowned. Cheapskate. Like anyone would be looking for them in Vegas. It was just an excuse to save some cash.
She flipped through the magazine, reading a couple of articles before it finally hit her. She paused and pulled the page out of the magazine, earning her a few glares from her neighbors.
She stared at them before flipping open her laptop. She needed to do some cross checking but this idea might just work. Of course, trying to convince Aoshi to let her do it was an entirely different matter but maybe... maybe she could get Kaoru to help instead.
* * *
"Tell me again what happened?"
Kaoru frowned. She knew her English wasn't good but she thought she was making things rather clear. It didn't help that most of the airport security had stumbled onto the scene and spent more time trying not to laugh then asking her questions.
"I'll take it over from here."
Kaoru blinked and looked up watching the tall man take a seat across from her. He was rather handsome with his short black hair and determined face. She smiled a bit, recognizing the facial features as Japanese.
"Gomen," he started in Japanese. "I was stuck in traffic otherwise I would have been here sooner."
"Not at all," Kaoru smiled, happy to be speaking in Japanese again.
"I'm Shouzo Rorenzo," he said. "I work for the Las Vegas Police Department."
"Kamiya Kaoru," she said with a smile. "Tokyo Police Department."
"Yes, I know. It's nice to meet you," he said with a small bow of his head. "I apologize for all this inconvenience but we had to do a quick background check on all of you." Kaoru's heart clenched. Did they know? Is that why Kenshin and Sano were not here with her?
"It all came back fine," he continued, opening up his bag and pulling out a yellow pad of paper. "But before we let you go, we just want to know what happened."
Kaoru nodded and related the story quickly, trying not to embellish too much and growing rather silent towards the end of.
"Who is this Hiruma Gohei?" Shouzo asked.
"An ex-officer for the Tokyo PD," Kaoru responded with a frown. "It turned out he was on a couple of the yakuza payrolls though. We've been trying to arrest him for years! I just couldn't believe he was here in Las Vegas."
"May I make a suggestion?" Shouzo said. Kaoru nodded slowly. "The next time you see a felon, try contacting us first." Kaoru blushed sheepishly and nodded again.
"I guess," she started, "I was just so upset to see him here that I didn't think much."
"Well," Shouzo said standing up, motioning for her to follow, "it's done now. We'll put out an all-points bulletin on him just like we did for that other mobster."
"Other mobster?" Kaoru asked as she followed him to the door.
"Komagata Yumi," he said, opening the door. "We got news this morning from Tokyo."
Kaoru's face froze in shock. She barely recognized the rest of her friends as she stumbled outside.
"Once you've gotten to your hotel, please give me a call," he said handing her the card. "We may need to ask you more questions."
Kaoru nodded slightly and took the card from him, barely watching him disappear. Megumi walked up next to her and looked at the card in Kaoru's hand.
"Shouzo Rorenzo?" Megumi said reading it off the card. "Well, I don't blame you for the look of absolute shock. I didn't think Japanese men could be that handsome."
"OI!" Sano called, slightly annoyed by what she had just said.
Megumi just shot him a look and then looked back at her friend. "Kaoru?" she asked.
"I think we might have a problem," Kaoru finally managed.
* * *
"Ladies and Gentlemen, on behalf of Japan Air Lines, let me welcome you to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas Nevada. The temperature outside is currently 98 degrees Fahrenheit with a possible high of 101. Local time is 1:45 p.m. Tuesday. We'll be arriving at Gate D35 in a few moments. Please stay seated until then with your seat belts securely fastened..."
Misao yawned as she waited for the seat belt sign to turn off. Aoshi moved next to her, finally awake. She smiled a good morning but just got his normal stoic glare in return. She frowned and decided that a cup of coffee was in order the moment they got off the plane.
They stumbled through customs, got not problems despite the fake passports, and managed to make it over to the baggage claim area. Misao decided to let Aoshi take care of that and went off in search of coffee.
Of course, this being the United States, she only had to walk a few meters before she hit a Starbucks.
"How much are you charging for a cup of coffee?" she asked with surprise after reading the board. The man repeated the price and Misao laughed. And they said coffee was expensive in Japan.
"Oh... and a copy of the local paper too," she said as he handed the coffee.
"Here you go," he said. "The afternoon edition just came out."
Misao smiled and handed him some money before walking back to the baggage carousel. She tried to sip her coffee and read the paper at the same time. It proved rather difficult to do so while balancing everything.
It proved down right impossible when she saw the picture at the bottom. It was from earlier this morning and well... the caption kind of said it all. Except the names of the two people. Not that Misao needed it.
"Let's go," Aoshi said dropping the baggage near her and taking the cup of coffee. He went for the paper but Misao dodged. He looked at her strangely.
"I'm not finished with it," Misao said quickly.
"Then just give me the front page," Aoshi replied, reaching to pull the page from her. "I want to see what's going on in this town."
"I really don't think it's a good idea," Misao said dodging again.
"Misao..." he said firmly. "What's going on?"
Misao smiled broadly. "Nothing. Why would anything be wrong?"
"Then give me the paper."
"No!"
"Misao..."
"Why would you want to..." Misao trailed off, realizing Aoshi was no longer paying attention to her. He was walking towards the newsstand. Before Misao could do anything, he picked up the local paper and read off the front page.
There was a few seconds of silence.
Then his face cracked its normal stoicism and his eyes got that look most fathers did right before they went for the shotgun.
* * *
"See!" Megumi said. "I told you it would work out. We'll just split the room in half and I still get the bedroom with the bathroom and whirlpool."
Kaoru sighed and collapsed on the sofa. She gave up. Megumi was hell bent on enjoying some sort of luxury on this vacation. Losing first class tickets had been hard enough but she wasn't about to give up her suite with the hot tub to down grade to two rooms.
"Feh, all this stuff will take up half the room," Sano complained as he dropped the bags on the ground. "What the hell did you pack anyway?"
"I'm giving several presentations," Megumi snapped back. "Why didn't you just have the bellhop do it?"
"And tip him with what?" Sano replied. "We lost half the day with airport security and never got the chance to exchange our money."
"Maa maa," Kenshin said walking in. The bickering hadn't stopped since they left the airport. Well, at least between Sano and Megumi. Kaoru was resigned to muted looks. He wished it was just over the fact the Yumi might be in the area but considering the glare she gave him every time he looked her way, he was pretty sure that it was partly his fault.
There was a knock at the door and Megumi went up to answer it. She exchanged a few words with the man there and walked back in with a paper in her hand.
"He just said that someone called Aoshi was waiting downstairs with a little girl. It must be Misao."
"That was fast," Sano said. "They must be here for Yumi."
Megumi shrugged opening the paper. "They'll tell us soon enough. I told him to send them up... as... soon..." Megumi trailed off.
"Nani?" Kaoru asked, walking up to her. She saw the front page. She saw the picture. She saw the caption. She saw three shade of angry before looking over at Kenshin. And then suddenly...
"Megumi..." Kaoru said softly. "You don't think Aoshi might have seen this?"
Megumi's eyes opened up and she went to say something just as there was a pounding on the door. Kaoru and Megumi rushed to the door, pushing against it to hold it back.
"What's going on?" Sano asked.
Kaoru frowned. "Ummm... well remember how Aoshi's usually very emotionless?" she asked. The two guys nodded. The door behind them pounded.
"Remember how he gets whenever Kaoru was in trouble?" Megumi asked. The two guys nodded, a bit slower this time. Aoshi's voice was very clear now.
"Remember how he likes to play the big brother routine?" Kaoru added.
"Try to think of what he would be like if he saw that picture and that caption without knowing the real story," Megumi finished.
"Kaoru! Open this door or I'm shooting in the lock."
"Aoshi... calm down already I'm sure there's a..."
The sound of a gun being chambered echoed in the hallway. Kaoru and Megumi exchanged a glance and Kaoru put her hand on the handle. Firing a gun in a hotel would cause way too many problems and neither of them were sure if Aoshi was just kidding.
Sano nodded at the action, realizing there was no choice, and grabbed Kenshin, dragging the red haired man towards the window. "Okay, if we aim right we can hit the water in front of the hotel and just swim away."
"Sano!" Kenshin protested, pulling away. "We're about 30 stories off the ground. We can explain this..."
Kaoru opened the door and Aoshi walked in. Amazingly enough, he still looked calm. Kenshin relaxed a bit, realizing that maybe the girls had just over-exaggerated things. Maybe he was really just going to ask calmly for an explanation.
Or maybe this was just the calm before the storm.
"You," Aoshi said, pointing at Kenshin, his voice so steady it was unnerving. "I knew there was a reason I didn't like you."
"Aoshi..." Kaoru started but the man was already advancing on Kenshin.
"There's a very good explanation," Kenshin said with a smile. "I'm sure that... oro!"
Aoshi threw the punch and Kenshin ducked. He threw another punch and Kenshin ducked again with a little oro. Aoshi rounded up for the third but found his arm locked in place. Looking back he saw that Kaoru had latched on his elbow and was leaning back, using all her weight to prevent him from continuing.
"Aoshi!" Kaoru snapped. "Stop this right now!"
"Kaoru, don't...."
"Do you think that little of me? That I would ever do something like that?" she asked, looking up at him with angry eyes. He paused for a moment before he let in sink in and his anger broke.
"I'm sorry," he said softly.
"You're damn right you are," Kaoru said, putting her hands on her hips. "You should all be sorry! This is our vacation! And all everyone has done is fight since we landed! Well, it stops now. We are going to have fun!" she said firmly. "Do I make myself clear?"
There was a muted silence before they all nodded.
Misao looked in from the doorframe. "So... ummm... is it safe to come in yet?"
Thanks for all the reviews ^_^ This is totally insane... there were like 21 just for the first chapter and I can't hope to thank you all personally. So I'll just say thank you in general. There were two things though that I thought I'd better address personally though...
And yes Jason... I think you've managed to cover all the mistakes ^_^ It was very amusing to watch the reviews come in in rapid succession while you were reading it though. Ah well, at least I can go back and edit the stories... eventually.
Yuki Shinomori - I'd never flame you!! In fact, I think it's a great idea... only, it's your idea and I'd hate to steal it. So why don't you write it? I'm sure it'll be great ^_^
And yes... those are real questions that customs people in Vegas have to ask visitors.
* * *
Sano's hands gripped the side of the chair and his eyes were clenched tightly. He wasn't going to look, nothing on this world could make him look. It would be over in a second, all he needed was a second and it would be...
There was a large thud and Sano's eyes flew open. A huge rumbling under his feet caused the sweat to start pouring from his head. The walls around him shook and Sano felt himself being pulled forward. That's it... this is it... he was going to die...
"Ladies and Gentlemen, on behalf of All Nippon Airways and United Airlines, let me welcome you to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas Nevada. The temperature outside is currently 87 degrees Fahrenheit with a high of 101. Local time is 8:30 am, Tuesday. We'll be arriving at Gate D32 in a few moments. Please stay seated until then with your seat belts securely fastened..."
"Sano?" Kaoru asked, looking over at the terrified man.
"Oi, tori-atama," Megumi said, hitting him on the head. The motion made him fall forward onto the chair in front of him.
"Is he alright?" Kenshin asked looking over.
Megumi shook her head. "It's like he passed out cold," she said, reaching down into the seat pocket in front of her. She pulled out the small bottle of sake and opened it up, waving it under Sano's nose.
Sano's eyes blinked a few times and he looked around. "Hey we made it... that wasn't too bad."
Megumi just rolled her eyes. Yeah, passing out was a completely normal reaction to landing, she said to herself. She grabbed her things and made her way out of the plane, glad to stretch her legs. She frowned watching the first class passengers walk off before everyone else and then pass through customs without any problems.
She tossed the passport at the US Customs official with a scowl. He looked up at her, asked a few questions and passed her through without much of a wait. Kaoru followed, smiling nicely for all the officials there and chatting with her American law enforcement brothers as best as she could in English.
The customs official in the next aisle held the passport up to his eyes and looked at the smiling picture. He lowered the book and looked over at the man in front of him, who was smiling in the exact same way. He held up the passport again and checked the nationality again. Japanese?? After few more seconds, he shrugged and passed it back to him.
Meanwhile, two rows down, Sano was leaning up against the counter as the official began to ask him questions.
"Where are you coming from sir?"
Sano paused and translated the words as best he could. Hey, he could manage in English but wasn't quite as fluent as the rest of the group. "From the airplane," he responded, somewhat puzzled.
"No sir, I mean what is your place of origin?"
"Oh... uh, Japan?"
"The city sir?"
"Tokyo. Do you need the address?"
"No, sir. Where are you going now, sir?"
Sano paused. "The baggage claim?"
"After that, sir."
"Ah... the hotel."
The custom's official sighed. It was going to be a long day. "What hotel sir," he asked, struggling to remain calm.
"Bela...be all... belal.."
"Bellagio, thank you sir. What is the purpose of your trip?"
Sano raised an eyebrow. "Isn't this Las Vegas?"
The custom official looked at him. "Yes sir... it is..."
"Well, then the only thing to do here is gamble, right?" Sano said with a smile.
The official forced a smile back and checked 'pleasure'. "Sir are you bringing in more than 10,000 US Dollars today?"
Sano paused. "What?"
"Do you have $10,000 or more with you?"
Sano looked at him and started to laugh. "Are you joking?"
"SANO!" Looking over, Sano saw Megumi standing with her hands on her hips. "Hurry up already!" Sano glowered and turned back to the official just in time to get his passport back. The official looked so pleased to see him go.
Baggage claim was complete chaos, which was not a surprise since flights have a way of coming it at the same time. Kenshin and Sano pushed their way to the front to catch the groups' belongings. Five minutes later, Sano was attempting to balance five piece of luggage that belonged to Megumi. Muttering something about how women always over pack, Sano pushed his way through the crowd, leaving Kenshin to get the rest of it.
The red haired man sighed as he put his foot on the edge of the baggage carousel. Next to him, a small family laughed as the father tried to get the large suitcase off the moving treads. Kenshin leaned over and helped, earning him a few grateful smiles from the children.
He smiled back before turning back to the moving bags. This was a good life, he realized. The circumstances that brought him to Las Vegas now were so much better then the reasons he had come before. Looking over his shoulder, he could see Kaoru trying to pull apart Megumi and Sano, the man having cracked a joke about the amount of luggage she had brought.
It was moments like this that he could almost forget all the years with the Hiten yakuza. But they were still there, just hiding the recesses of his mind. He might not be an assassin any longer but there was no escaping his past. And Las Vegas was littered bad memories.
He sighed. Well, maybe this time, he'll get the chance... to...
Kenshin froze, looking across the carousel and locking eyes with the man there. The man did the same and neither of them moved for a moment, too shocked by what they were seeing. Kenshin hadn't been imaging things on the plane!! It shouldn't have been possible but there he was, standing across from him with a surprised look on his face.
Kenshin's eyes narrowed and he paused for a minute while trying to make a decision. Too bad that the time he needed to think was all the time that someone else needed to act.
"HIRUMA GOHEI!" Kaoru suddenly called from behind him. Kenshin turned just in time to see Kaoru running through the crowd, past him and onto the carousel.
"Kaoru-dono!" he managed just as she hit the moving treads. It never phased her, never unbalanced her at all. It took Kenshin a second to try to understand where her motivation was coming from. Of course, Hiruma had been a police officer! They must still have been looking for him in Japan.
Kaoru dodged a few bags as she went up and over the carousel, heading right for Hiruma. The Tokyo PD had been looking for him for the past five years and here he was, right in front of her. Screw vacation, this guy was going down.
Hiruma decided it was in his best interest to run. As if seeing the Battousai himself wasn't enough to shake him to his core, the woman running at him and screaming at him to stop in the name of the Tokyo PD was all he needed to start running.
The hefty man pitched backwards, breaking through the crowd and trying to run away. But the baggage claim area didn't afford him much free space and a few steps later, he was already at the neighboring carousel.
"Crap," Hiruma said, jumping up onto the treads, shooting a glance behind him to see both the woman and the assassin after him. Unfortunately, his balance was far from perfect and a few steps later, he fell face first onto the treads.
His only saving grace was that it happened to be right at the luggage exit and he was swept away from the baggage claim area. Kaoru didn't pause but ran in after him, followed quickly by Kenshin. Sano ran up shortly afterwards but stopped at the flaps. Screw this, he was going to find airport security to shut the damn thing down.
The Las Vegas airport had just upgraded their baggage claim system. A web of interwoven moving treads filled the underground warehouse, shuttling bags back and forth from planes to the different terminals. It was the most advanced system to date and the trio riding it may have been impressed if they weren't so intent on catching each other.
Hiruma cursed and stood up, grabbing a near by suitcase and flinging it back at his pursuers. Kaoru realized what was happening at the last second and managed to take the side step the bag. The only problem was it completely unbalanced her and she pitched to the left side, tumbling off the tread.
Kenshin shot forward and tried to reach her but a second bag from Hiruma caught him off guard and he hit the right side of the track, flipping over the small barrier there and falling below.
Hiruma smiled as he surveyed the damage. Both his pursuers had probably just tumbled to their death and he was in the clear.
The track he was on suddenly pitched down and Hiruma barely managed to stay standing. He looked up and saw the black haired woman slowly approaching him from the neighboring track. She knelt down and picked up what appeared to be a ski pole. And from the look on her face, Hiruma knew he was in trouble.
Kaoru waited until the right moment and then jumped, landing next to him. She brought the pole up, holding it like a sword and advanced forward. She threw a head strike and followed it with a sideswipe for good measure. Hiruma used a small suitcase a shield and barely managed to avoid getting hit.
Worse than that, he could see a flash of red from his right, moving fast towards him. This wasn't going to be good. He pushed the bag forward, letting the ski pole spear it through the center. He gasped as the pointed end came way too close to his throat for comfort.
He saw the assassin jump and took his chance. Hiruma pushed the bag away from him, sending the pole and Kaoru tumbling backwards, right into the path of the incoming Kenshin. The two of them collapsed into a heap onto the track and Hiruma took his chance to jump away to a neighboring track, watching them disappear out of one of the exits.
The track took both Kenshin and Kaoru back onto the carousel they had started from. Collapsed as they were, it was almost as if they had been caught in the middle of a lover's tryst. A couple of people covered their children's eyes and of course, the carousel decided at the moment to come to a grinding halt.
Kaoru looked up and blushed feverishly, realizing what it looked like. She turned to all the gawking people, embarrassment suddenly turning to anger.
"Why don't you take a picture! It'll last longer," she called out in English, remembering the phrase from a movie.
But unlike the movie, the people didn't turn away. In fact, cameras seemed like just the thing for a moment like this. Kenshin, rather wisely, decided the whole swirly-eyed look was going to be better then looking conscious enough to be a target of Kaoru's anger. Sano watched the scene unfold and very wisely decided not to tell them who had got the tracks to stop. Megumi just snickered as flashes filled the small area.
* * *
Misao looked over at the computer screen with a frown. Yumi... her escape plan was flawless. It had taken the Tokyo PD almost half a day to realize that she was gone! Worse than that... several of the Juppongatana members had gone missing hours after her escape.
The Juppongatana should have been destroyed with Shishio's death. But instead, it seemed they were regrouping. Was there a new leader coming to power? Or were the remaining Juppongatana members seeking an alliance with another family?
She frowned and closed the laptop. Something was wrong. It sat in her stomach unhappily and made the ever-perky spy just a bit unnerved. She hated not knowing what was going on. There had to be a way to get into their organization like Kaoru had done.
Misao stretched back in her seat, shooting a glance over at the sleeping Aoshi. She was still amazed he actually slept. Since she had known him, he seemed so intent on his work that he wouldn't waste a moment on sleep. Of course, he still had the same look etched on his face. She sighed... she almost missed the days when they were just cop and informant. At least he had seemed a bit more human then.
She reached forward and pulled the magazine from the seat pocket in front of her. Working for the JIA had its benefits... travel was not one of them. What had Okina said again?
"How do you expect to sneak in to Vegas if we fly you on a private jet or in first class?"
Misao frowned. Cheapskate. Like anyone would be looking for them in Vegas. It was just an excuse to save some cash.
She flipped through the magazine, reading a couple of articles before it finally hit her. She paused and pulled the page out of the magazine, earning her a few glares from her neighbors.
She stared at them before flipping open her laptop. She needed to do some cross checking but this idea might just work. Of course, trying to convince Aoshi to let her do it was an entirely different matter but maybe... maybe she could get Kaoru to help instead.
* * *
"Tell me again what happened?"
Kaoru frowned. She knew her English wasn't good but she thought she was making things rather clear. It didn't help that most of the airport security had stumbled onto the scene and spent more time trying not to laugh then asking her questions.
"I'll take it over from here."
Kaoru blinked and looked up watching the tall man take a seat across from her. He was rather handsome with his short black hair and determined face. She smiled a bit, recognizing the facial features as Japanese.
"Gomen," he started in Japanese. "I was stuck in traffic otherwise I would have been here sooner."
"Not at all," Kaoru smiled, happy to be speaking in Japanese again.
"I'm Shouzo Rorenzo," he said. "I work for the Las Vegas Police Department."
"Kamiya Kaoru," she said with a smile. "Tokyo Police Department."
"Yes, I know. It's nice to meet you," he said with a small bow of his head. "I apologize for all this inconvenience but we had to do a quick background check on all of you." Kaoru's heart clenched. Did they know? Is that why Kenshin and Sano were not here with her?
"It all came back fine," he continued, opening up his bag and pulling out a yellow pad of paper. "But before we let you go, we just want to know what happened."
Kaoru nodded and related the story quickly, trying not to embellish too much and growing rather silent towards the end of.
"Who is this Hiruma Gohei?" Shouzo asked.
"An ex-officer for the Tokyo PD," Kaoru responded with a frown. "It turned out he was on a couple of the yakuza payrolls though. We've been trying to arrest him for years! I just couldn't believe he was here in Las Vegas."
"May I make a suggestion?" Shouzo said. Kaoru nodded slowly. "The next time you see a felon, try contacting us first." Kaoru blushed sheepishly and nodded again.
"I guess," she started, "I was just so upset to see him here that I didn't think much."
"Well," Shouzo said standing up, motioning for her to follow, "it's done now. We'll put out an all-points bulletin on him just like we did for that other mobster."
"Other mobster?" Kaoru asked as she followed him to the door.
"Komagata Yumi," he said, opening the door. "We got news this morning from Tokyo."
Kaoru's face froze in shock. She barely recognized the rest of her friends as she stumbled outside.
"Once you've gotten to your hotel, please give me a call," he said handing her the card. "We may need to ask you more questions."
Kaoru nodded slightly and took the card from him, barely watching him disappear. Megumi walked up next to her and looked at the card in Kaoru's hand.
"Shouzo Rorenzo?" Megumi said reading it off the card. "Well, I don't blame you for the look of absolute shock. I didn't think Japanese men could be that handsome."
"OI!" Sano called, slightly annoyed by what she had just said.
Megumi just shot him a look and then looked back at her friend. "Kaoru?" she asked.
"I think we might have a problem," Kaoru finally managed.
* * *
"Ladies and Gentlemen, on behalf of Japan Air Lines, let me welcome you to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas Nevada. The temperature outside is currently 98 degrees Fahrenheit with a possible high of 101. Local time is 1:45 p.m. Tuesday. We'll be arriving at Gate D35 in a few moments. Please stay seated until then with your seat belts securely fastened..."
Misao yawned as she waited for the seat belt sign to turn off. Aoshi moved next to her, finally awake. She smiled a good morning but just got his normal stoic glare in return. She frowned and decided that a cup of coffee was in order the moment they got off the plane.
They stumbled through customs, got not problems despite the fake passports, and managed to make it over to the baggage claim area. Misao decided to let Aoshi take care of that and went off in search of coffee.
Of course, this being the United States, she only had to walk a few meters before she hit a Starbucks.
"How much are you charging for a cup of coffee?" she asked with surprise after reading the board. The man repeated the price and Misao laughed. And they said coffee was expensive in Japan.
"Oh... and a copy of the local paper too," she said as he handed the coffee.
"Here you go," he said. "The afternoon edition just came out."
Misao smiled and handed him some money before walking back to the baggage carousel. She tried to sip her coffee and read the paper at the same time. It proved rather difficult to do so while balancing everything.
It proved down right impossible when she saw the picture at the bottom. It was from earlier this morning and well... the caption kind of said it all. Except the names of the two people. Not that Misao needed it.
"Let's go," Aoshi said dropping the baggage near her and taking the cup of coffee. He went for the paper but Misao dodged. He looked at her strangely.
"I'm not finished with it," Misao said quickly.
"Then just give me the front page," Aoshi replied, reaching to pull the page from her. "I want to see what's going on in this town."
"I really don't think it's a good idea," Misao said dodging again.
"Misao..." he said firmly. "What's going on?"
Misao smiled broadly. "Nothing. Why would anything be wrong?"
"Then give me the paper."
"No!"
"Misao..."
"Why would you want to..." Misao trailed off, realizing Aoshi was no longer paying attention to her. He was walking towards the newsstand. Before Misao could do anything, he picked up the local paper and read off the front page.
There was a few seconds of silence.
Then his face cracked its normal stoicism and his eyes got that look most fathers did right before they went for the shotgun.
* * *
"See!" Megumi said. "I told you it would work out. We'll just split the room in half and I still get the bedroom with the bathroom and whirlpool."
Kaoru sighed and collapsed on the sofa. She gave up. Megumi was hell bent on enjoying some sort of luxury on this vacation. Losing first class tickets had been hard enough but she wasn't about to give up her suite with the hot tub to down grade to two rooms.
"Feh, all this stuff will take up half the room," Sano complained as he dropped the bags on the ground. "What the hell did you pack anyway?"
"I'm giving several presentations," Megumi snapped back. "Why didn't you just have the bellhop do it?"
"And tip him with what?" Sano replied. "We lost half the day with airport security and never got the chance to exchange our money."
"Maa maa," Kenshin said walking in. The bickering hadn't stopped since they left the airport. Well, at least between Sano and Megumi. Kaoru was resigned to muted looks. He wished it was just over the fact the Yumi might be in the area but considering the glare she gave him every time he looked her way, he was pretty sure that it was partly his fault.
There was a knock at the door and Megumi went up to answer it. She exchanged a few words with the man there and walked back in with a paper in her hand.
"He just said that someone called Aoshi was waiting downstairs with a little girl. It must be Misao."
"That was fast," Sano said. "They must be here for Yumi."
Megumi shrugged opening the paper. "They'll tell us soon enough. I told him to send them up... as... soon..." Megumi trailed off.
"Nani?" Kaoru asked, walking up to her. She saw the front page. She saw the picture. She saw the caption. She saw three shade of angry before looking over at Kenshin. And then suddenly...
"Megumi..." Kaoru said softly. "You don't think Aoshi might have seen this?"
Megumi's eyes opened up and she went to say something just as there was a pounding on the door. Kaoru and Megumi rushed to the door, pushing against it to hold it back.
"What's going on?" Sano asked.
Kaoru frowned. "Ummm... well remember how Aoshi's usually very emotionless?" she asked. The two guys nodded. The door behind them pounded.
"Remember how he gets whenever Kaoru was in trouble?" Megumi asked. The two guys nodded, a bit slower this time. Aoshi's voice was very clear now.
"Remember how he likes to play the big brother routine?" Kaoru added.
"Try to think of what he would be like if he saw that picture and that caption without knowing the real story," Megumi finished.
"Kaoru! Open this door or I'm shooting in the lock."
"Aoshi... calm down already I'm sure there's a..."
The sound of a gun being chambered echoed in the hallway. Kaoru and Megumi exchanged a glance and Kaoru put her hand on the handle. Firing a gun in a hotel would cause way too many problems and neither of them were sure if Aoshi was just kidding.
Sano nodded at the action, realizing there was no choice, and grabbed Kenshin, dragging the red haired man towards the window. "Okay, if we aim right we can hit the water in front of the hotel and just swim away."
"Sano!" Kenshin protested, pulling away. "We're about 30 stories off the ground. We can explain this..."
Kaoru opened the door and Aoshi walked in. Amazingly enough, he still looked calm. Kenshin relaxed a bit, realizing that maybe the girls had just over-exaggerated things. Maybe he was really just going to ask calmly for an explanation.
Or maybe this was just the calm before the storm.
"You," Aoshi said, pointing at Kenshin, his voice so steady it was unnerving. "I knew there was a reason I didn't like you."
"Aoshi..." Kaoru started but the man was already advancing on Kenshin.
"There's a very good explanation," Kenshin said with a smile. "I'm sure that... oro!"
Aoshi threw the punch and Kenshin ducked. He threw another punch and Kenshin ducked again with a little oro. Aoshi rounded up for the third but found his arm locked in place. Looking back he saw that Kaoru had latched on his elbow and was leaning back, using all her weight to prevent him from continuing.
"Aoshi!" Kaoru snapped. "Stop this right now!"
"Kaoru, don't...."
"Do you think that little of me? That I would ever do something like that?" she asked, looking up at him with angry eyes. He paused for a moment before he let in sink in and his anger broke.
"I'm sorry," he said softly.
"You're damn right you are," Kaoru said, putting her hands on her hips. "You should all be sorry! This is our vacation! And all everyone has done is fight since we landed! Well, it stops now. We are going to have fun!" she said firmly. "Do I make myself clear?"
There was a muted silence before they all nodded.
Misao looked in from the doorframe. "So... ummm... is it safe to come in yet?"