Neko_no_miko presents ~ A Rurouni Kenshin Fan fiction
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The Passage Of Time: Chapter Four
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A willowy figure raced through the forest greenery with pure exhilaration.
'How I missed the freedom of travelling alone, no Jiiya nagging, no
bothersome matters to care or fret about. And of course, no gloomy faced
okashira loitering in a temple to be served.' The female being Misao,
stopped at this seeimgly sombering thought of Shinomori Aoshi being the
reason she left in the first place. With a firm shake of her head, Misao
managed to ignore the stupid insistant voice that kept questioning her if
she may have made a hasty and immature conclusion that Aoshi would not
continue her omitsu traning since he left when she was only ten.
A light that was shining on a particular area of clearing in the forest
let her released a sigh of relief. She may not need to stay on her toes
for the rest of the night to watch out for wild animals or threats nor
having to run all the way out of the forest. With a expulsion of breath,
she let her bundled up luggage fell from her thin shoulders to the dry
hard ground with a thud. Rolling up her sleeves, Misao collected the
sufficiently suitable firewood and grass to prepare a camp fire. She was
in the middle of preparing porriage with roasted sweet potatoes dugged
up along the way, when a familar voice startled her.
'Nice aroma of food you have there. Can Ojousan (Missy) spare a little
to a harmless rurouni?' Misao scanned the trees in her honed ninja skills
but nothing came out until a person dressed in blue appeared soundlessly
from out of nowhere in front of her.
"Seta Soujirou!" Misao stiffened in horror. Not knowing how to respond
to an ex-rival from the Jupongatana, she considered screaming for less
than a second before realising no one can hear her in the wilderness
anyway.
'Shimatta!' Misao braced for the swift blow that will kill her without
any pain. Non came but the smiling swordsman nodded his head in greeting
before making himself comfortable at the warmth produced by the fire. He
inhaled the invigorating aroma of the food and reached for the sweet
potatoes already well done.
Misao saw red. Dangerous or not, no one gets in the way of her dinner
and especially not if if was her own effort of preparing the meal itself.
She pounced on the shocked ex-killer and wrestled away her precious
nourishment.
"Oh no you don't! That's my reward for the day and you have to get your
ownfood!' The crankiness of her voice amused the pale blue eyed Tenken
as he raised his hands in surrender.
"I can't cook that well and I have enough of wild fruits and greens for
days. So how about a trade?"
The placating smile annoyed the ninja girl to no end as she demanded,
"Do you have any money?" Soujirou scratched his head as he sighed,
"Erm, no?"
"Then get OUT!!!" Misao bellowed with all the impressive capacity of
her lungs. Soujirou continued to look calm, abeit a little blasted in
the ears and suggested instead.
"How about if we deal in terms of non material gains?"
Misao was about to turn his suggestion down flat when she wrinkled
her forehead to weigh the deal. "Okay, if you will teach me a few
tricks in fighting and swordsmanship, I'll consider feeding you as
a form of payment. Deal?"
Soujirou raised his eyebrows in puzzlement, "Don't you have your own
teacher to instruct you? Besides, I'm supposed to be the enemy the
last time we met."
Misao snorted in derision and replied, "The instructor who used to
teach me is tucking himself in a corner and you're a wanderer without
any commitments to jupongatana already, am I correct?"
Soujirou flashed a huge smile at the ninja girl and jumped forward to
grab the warm sweet potato, "You have got yourself a deal."
Misao grinned at the sight of the infamous tenken devouring the soft
vegetable as she poured two bowls of porriage to her sensei and
herself.
Tomorrow will be the beginning of her training indeed and food is the
basis of energy to advance.
*********************************************************************
Aoshi woke up to the gentle shaking of his shoulders. The automatic
reflex since his trainig as an omnitsu caused him to jump up and put
himself in a defensive stance. An elderly monk dressed in meditation
robes smiled gently and pat him reassuringly on the shoulder. "Do
you wish to go home?"
Aoshi almost flinched in reaction to the scarcely rare human contact.
Further evidence of how much he has kept himself from any normal
resemblance of interaction with other people. "Iiya. I no longer have
a home back there. No one knows me anymore and neither do I care execpt
to make peace wthin myself and my past."
The monk looked at Aoshi with a kind and fatherly countenance and with
a slight bow, motioned to the seats on the floor. "Do you mind if I
share an advise with you, honourable sire?"
Aoshi quickly returned the bow and shook his head. "Not at all."
Both men settled themselves comfortably on the floor in zenza positions
and enjoyed the silence for a little while. However, the peace was not
to last as the monk smiled yet again.
"A man must know the inner peace he required within himself. Peace
however, does not mean depriving oneself from feeling other emotions nor
cutting all ties with the world." The monk studied Aoshi comtemplatively.
Aoshi felt like an opponent being sized up by the frail man so
unconsciously, his muscles tensed and he had to control his breathing
to retain the usual pace. "Really?"
The monk grinned and Aoshi had to blink at the unsettling understanding of
how well the monk seemed to read him mind. "Besides, you yourself know what
are the exact matters that are still troubling you."
Aoshi realised how futile it was to hide things from the monk and decided
to forsake some of the pretentance he carried even before Misao. "I don't
understand why my clan and my people can forgive a matter as grave as my
betrayal of loyalty so fast and so easily. I should have been thrown out
and declared all the honour forfeited. Yet my title was still given back
to me and they have welcome me back to live amongst them."
The monk peered into Aoshi's blue eyes for quite some time and sighed out,
"Do you doubt the sincerity of their acceptance or do you reject their
desire to have you back?"
Aoshi was starled at his inner struggles to be put so so blachantly. "No.
They are far too honourable to reject a man who was once part of the clan,
the honour they had binds them to take me under their cover."
The elderly man smiled sympathatically and almost with a touch of
understanding of what Aoshi has gone through, rose up and placed his hand
on the slightly quivering shoulder of Aoshi. "Perhaps you have mistaken
their intentions. Do not allow the complexity of mind fool what has
already been recognised in the heart."
Aoshi's forehead creased with these words echoing in the deep recess of his
mind as he gave a slightest bow to see the monk off.
A face with deep fathomless blue of the ocean and a carefree smile beckoned
him.
Perhaps it is time to pay a visit to Battousai.
****************************To be continued*********************************
------------------------------------------------------
===========================================================================
The Passage Of Time: Chapter Four
===========================================================================
A willowy figure raced through the forest greenery with pure exhilaration.
'How I missed the freedom of travelling alone, no Jiiya nagging, no
bothersome matters to care or fret about. And of course, no gloomy faced
okashira loitering in a temple to be served.' The female being Misao,
stopped at this seeimgly sombering thought of Shinomori Aoshi being the
reason she left in the first place. With a firm shake of her head, Misao
managed to ignore the stupid insistant voice that kept questioning her if
she may have made a hasty and immature conclusion that Aoshi would not
continue her omitsu traning since he left when she was only ten.
A light that was shining on a particular area of clearing in the forest
let her released a sigh of relief. She may not need to stay on her toes
for the rest of the night to watch out for wild animals or threats nor
having to run all the way out of the forest. With a expulsion of breath,
she let her bundled up luggage fell from her thin shoulders to the dry
hard ground with a thud. Rolling up her sleeves, Misao collected the
sufficiently suitable firewood and grass to prepare a camp fire. She was
in the middle of preparing porriage with roasted sweet potatoes dugged
up along the way, when a familar voice startled her.
'Nice aroma of food you have there. Can Ojousan (Missy) spare a little
to a harmless rurouni?' Misao scanned the trees in her honed ninja skills
but nothing came out until a person dressed in blue appeared soundlessly
from out of nowhere in front of her.
"Seta Soujirou!" Misao stiffened in horror. Not knowing how to respond
to an ex-rival from the Jupongatana, she considered screaming for less
than a second before realising no one can hear her in the wilderness
anyway.
'Shimatta!' Misao braced for the swift blow that will kill her without
any pain. Non came but the smiling swordsman nodded his head in greeting
before making himself comfortable at the warmth produced by the fire. He
inhaled the invigorating aroma of the food and reached for the sweet
potatoes already well done.
Misao saw red. Dangerous or not, no one gets in the way of her dinner
and especially not if if was her own effort of preparing the meal itself.
She pounced on the shocked ex-killer and wrestled away her precious
nourishment.
"Oh no you don't! That's my reward for the day and you have to get your
ownfood!' The crankiness of her voice amused the pale blue eyed Tenken
as he raised his hands in surrender.
"I can't cook that well and I have enough of wild fruits and greens for
days. So how about a trade?"
The placating smile annoyed the ninja girl to no end as she demanded,
"Do you have any money?" Soujirou scratched his head as he sighed,
"Erm, no?"
"Then get OUT!!!" Misao bellowed with all the impressive capacity of
her lungs. Soujirou continued to look calm, abeit a little blasted in
the ears and suggested instead.
"How about if we deal in terms of non material gains?"
Misao was about to turn his suggestion down flat when she wrinkled
her forehead to weigh the deal. "Okay, if you will teach me a few
tricks in fighting and swordsmanship, I'll consider feeding you as
a form of payment. Deal?"
Soujirou raised his eyebrows in puzzlement, "Don't you have your own
teacher to instruct you? Besides, I'm supposed to be the enemy the
last time we met."
Misao snorted in derision and replied, "The instructor who used to
teach me is tucking himself in a corner and you're a wanderer without
any commitments to jupongatana already, am I correct?"
Soujirou flashed a huge smile at the ninja girl and jumped forward to
grab the warm sweet potato, "You have got yourself a deal."
Misao grinned at the sight of the infamous tenken devouring the soft
vegetable as she poured two bowls of porriage to her sensei and
herself.
Tomorrow will be the beginning of her training indeed and food is the
basis of energy to advance.
*********************************************************************
Aoshi woke up to the gentle shaking of his shoulders. The automatic
reflex since his trainig as an omnitsu caused him to jump up and put
himself in a defensive stance. An elderly monk dressed in meditation
robes smiled gently and pat him reassuringly on the shoulder. "Do
you wish to go home?"
Aoshi almost flinched in reaction to the scarcely rare human contact.
Further evidence of how much he has kept himself from any normal
resemblance of interaction with other people. "Iiya. I no longer have
a home back there. No one knows me anymore and neither do I care execpt
to make peace wthin myself and my past."
The monk looked at Aoshi with a kind and fatherly countenance and with
a slight bow, motioned to the seats on the floor. "Do you mind if I
share an advise with you, honourable sire?"
Aoshi quickly returned the bow and shook his head. "Not at all."
Both men settled themselves comfortably on the floor in zenza positions
and enjoyed the silence for a little while. However, the peace was not
to last as the monk smiled yet again.
"A man must know the inner peace he required within himself. Peace
however, does not mean depriving oneself from feeling other emotions nor
cutting all ties with the world." The monk studied Aoshi comtemplatively.
Aoshi felt like an opponent being sized up by the frail man so
unconsciously, his muscles tensed and he had to control his breathing
to retain the usual pace. "Really?"
The monk grinned and Aoshi had to blink at the unsettling understanding of
how well the monk seemed to read him mind. "Besides, you yourself know what
are the exact matters that are still troubling you."
Aoshi realised how futile it was to hide things from the monk and decided
to forsake some of the pretentance he carried even before Misao. "I don't
understand why my clan and my people can forgive a matter as grave as my
betrayal of loyalty so fast and so easily. I should have been thrown out
and declared all the honour forfeited. Yet my title was still given back
to me and they have welcome me back to live amongst them."
The monk peered into Aoshi's blue eyes for quite some time and sighed out,
"Do you doubt the sincerity of their acceptance or do you reject their
desire to have you back?"
Aoshi was starled at his inner struggles to be put so so blachantly. "No.
They are far too honourable to reject a man who was once part of the clan,
the honour they had binds them to take me under their cover."
The elderly man smiled sympathatically and almost with a touch of
understanding of what Aoshi has gone through, rose up and placed his hand
on the slightly quivering shoulder of Aoshi. "Perhaps you have mistaken
their intentions. Do not allow the complexity of mind fool what has
already been recognised in the heart."
Aoshi's forehead creased with these words echoing in the deep recess of his
mind as he gave a slightest bow to see the monk off.
A face with deep fathomless blue of the ocean and a carefree smile beckoned
him.
Perhaps it is time to pay a visit to Battousai.
****************************To be continued*********************************