Author's Note: Almost done, I'm guessing that there will be at least six more chapters until this book is over. I hope you readers have been enjoying the story so far. Anyway, this chapter's pretty slow, but it sets up the action for the next chapter. Without further interruptions, let's get to the story.



Chapter 26: The Beast and I



January 4, Western year 1867, that was the day I joined the Satsuma Clan. I woke up to the sound of water dripping, the brightness of the sun seeping into the darkness in my eyes, and a small breeze tickling my nose. I turned to the side when I opened my eyes, and right there, sleeping right next to me, was Shion.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" was my first reaction as I quickly shot up to my feet.

"Huh...," Shion's eyes slowly opened. "Good morning, lover," she winked after.

"WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM?!" I yelled at Shion. "Why were sleeping right next to me, and in the same futon too?!"

"Don't you remember what happened last night?" she asked, her usual smile stretched across her face.

"Oh god, this can't be real," I started chanting to myself, "there's no way I'm no longer a virgin! What will Shinta think when he finds out about this?! Oh my god, I can't believe she took advantage of me..."

"Aha ha ha ha," Shion laughed a second later. "You're so uptight, Mina, I was only joking," she assured me, that stupid grin still perched on her face, "I just slipped into your futon five minutes ago, I didn't do anything, I swear."

"Yeah you did," I grumbled, "you took twenty years off the end of my life."

"Well, then, shall we go get breakfast?" she changed the subject.

"Hai," I nodded, "I am kinda hungry."

I hadn't had anything to eat since the morning before, so yeah, my stomach was grumbling. Shion was the first to exit our barracks, pulling the shoji door to the side with ease. I was able to catch a good glimpse of the camp now. The night before, I was too fixed on my loss that I didn't even bother to look at the camp, I just buried my face in Shion's back. The camp was in even worse condition than it was the last time I came here. Each of the houses and huts looked like they were about to fall apart, there was at least one hole in each one. There was barely any hay on the roofs, the remaining dried grass looked as if it was about to fall off at any moment. The smell of tobacco and dirt was abundant in the air, and the constant hacking of coughs soon followed. As Shion and I made our way to the dining hall, I was able to get a glimpse of most of the men. There was not one who was dressed decently; there was a tear in their kimono's sleeve or hamaka, some didn't even have sleeves on their kimonos, as if it were torn out of place. Each one was wrapped in white linen somewhere on their body, and a spot of crimson could be found painted all over the bandage. Some of the men even wore eye patches, others had pegs in place of one of their legs. These men were obviously in very poor condition, unlike the soldiers for the Cho Shu Clan. Shion then lead me to a room at the end of the dining hall, thankfully averting my eyes away from the grisly images of these soldiers. Inside the room lay a man I had met on several occasions, the leader of the Satsuma Clan, Saigo Takamori.

"Is this the Cho Shu survivor you brought in last night, Shion-kun?" he asked as he took a sip of his tea.

"Hai," she nodded, "I believe you know her. Himura Mina, also known as Hitokiri Kensai."

"It's an honor to meet you again, Saigo-dono, that it is," I bowed.

"Let's skip the formalities," Saigo insisted, "so what happened to the Cho Shu Clan yesterday?"

"...I don't know, sir," I answered with my head hanging low. "The truth is, when we were attacking the Shogunate's shipment of Western weaponry, I was knocked out cold in the midst of our retreat. When I came to, I was all alone and I found most of my allies dead. I tried returning to the Cho Shu Clan's inn, there was nothing but rubble there. That's when Shion found me, that it was."

"Well you were a lot of help," Saigo said sarcastically as he got another sip of his tea.

'Well you're the same prick you always were!' I insulted him inside my head.

"Saigo-sama, I think it would be best if we told Kensai what we know of the Cho Shu Clan's disappearance so far," Shion suggested.

"Very well," Saigo sighed. "Just like you, we are pretty much in the dark in this situation. We know that the Bakufu does in fact have a hold of the shipment they brought in yesterday, in fact, they used it to demolish the Cho Shu Inn. Another shipment is coming in today, but with our current forces, we can't halt this shipment."

"So are you saying our forces have basically lost?" I asked.

"Not quite," he answered, "we know of the man who arranges these shipments. He is a member of the Kyoto Shoshidai, Yamazaki Todo. If we can eliminate this man, then we can prevent future shipments, so all is not lost, but why should this concern you, you aren't a member of this clan."

"I'm still a part of the Ishin Shishi!" I stomped. "Cho Shu, Satsuma, what's the difference, we're all on the same side, aren't we? I can't just sit back and let the Shogunate take control!"

"We've already prepared ourselves for Yamazaki's assassination," Saigo informed me, "Hitokiri Shion," a black letter suddenly dropped into his hand from his sleeve, "I want you to assassinate Yamazaki."

"Hai," Shion nodded.

"What about me?" I asked. "Let me help!"

"You belong with Cho Shu, you have no need to interfere in our affairs," Saigo returned to his tea.

"Your affairs?!" I yelled as I knocked the glass out of his hand.

"Mina!" Shion looked at me shocked.

The entire room grew silent, I knew I had gotten his attention now. My eyes began to narrow as they moved to the edge of my eyes, preparing to counter any attack those sorry excuse for soldiers would've made. Instead, they all returned to their duties, and I turned back to Saigo, my eyes still narrowed.

"I see you're willing to help us," Saigo said calmly. "Very well, I'll allow it. Your skills would be of great value to us," Saigo said as he began eyeing my figure, "although you don't look like you'd be a fitting warrior."

"I'm here to help, not be insulted!" I snapped.

"You have a lot of spirit, that's good," Saigo smiled. "Very well, here is your task, Hitokiri Kensai. I want you to live up to your name's sake."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"The name 'Hitokiri', have you really earned it?" he asked. "Have you ever killed in the shadows and written a page in history but never used your name before? I'm talking about making you a real hitokiri, Himura Mina. A warrior of the shadows, one who kills those that make this nation a travesty of what it once was."

I don't know why, but my legs suddenly locked when he said those words. It's not that I haven't killed before, but the way he described to me my new occupation, it just shocked me. Did I really alter history up to that point, I mean, I did kill a lot of people prior to that day, but they were all simple grunts, no one important. This was my opportunity to make my mark in history, but I began to hesitate before making my decision.

"Well, how about it?" Saigo asked. "Are you afraid to take the job, Hitokiri Kensai?"

"Mina, if you wish to be strong, then be strong in your own way, that way you will be stronger than me," Shinta's voice echoed through my head.

"If I wish to be strong...," I murmured. "...all right, I'll take up on your deal, Saigo-dono," I answered a few moments later.

"Very well, welcome," Saigo extended his hand.

There was a moment of hesitation before I took hold of his palm, my fingers slowly wrapping against the back of his hand a second later. Each shake felt as if the earth was crumbling, each second seemed like an eternity, I felt as if I had just sold my soul to the devil, yet I didn't know why back then. It brought me great relief when he finally let go, and then he handed me the first dark papyrus that I would write my first page of history in.

"Yamazaki Todo?" I read the name aloud. "But isn't this..."

"You and Shion will be working together for this assignment," Saigo explained, "she will be your teacher for the first few nights, and then we will give both of you individual assignments."

"Don't take this the wrong way," I began to take my leave, "but this is only temporary. Once find my brother, I'm leaving, you got that?"

"That's fine with me," he said and I continued to make my way out of the dining hall. "That is, IF you find your brother."

His last sentence froze me for another moment. Anger and sadness began to boil in my veins once more as my fingers began to ball into a fist. I wanted strike my new boss down with my katana, but knowing Shion, she'd probably defend him. Without another word and without wasting another second, I took my leave with Shion following close behind.

"Saigo is such a bastard," I complained once Shion and I were away from the dining hall.

"I suppose he can be at times," Shion agreed, "but he is our leader."

"Che, I guess you're right there, that you are," I sighed.

"You aren't joking, are you?" Shion asked a second later.

"Joking?" I stopped in place.

"About leaving once you found your brother?" Shion asked.

"Of course I'm not joking," I answered, "did you see those guys in the mess hall, they were so... ugh!" I stuck out my tongue after recalling their disgusting images.

"I suppose you have a point there," Shion sighed, "but you have to understand that this war hasn't been easy on any of us. I'm sure there were men like that in the Cho Shu Clan."

"There were a few," I answered, "but then again, most of our guys would die on the battlefield."

"You needn't worry about the battlefield anymore though," Shion reminded me, "your place is now in the shadows."

"Yeah, yeah, don't get all philosophical on me," I told her with the wave of my hand. "So when are we supposed to get this guy, huh?"

"According to our sources, Yamazaki enjoys going to the brothels around the hours of eight to midnight," Shion read from our orders, "our best bet would be to catch him around midnight when he leaves."

"Che, Bakufu dogs are all the same," I sighed, "still, this should make our job easier. By the way, where's Tetsu at, I haven't seen him since I got here," I changed the subject.

"We'll see Tetsu later tonight," Shion assured me, "he's currently off duty."

"I see," I said, "so then what are we supposed to do until tonight?"

"We're off duty until then," Shion answered.

"Great...," I scoffed.

The rest of the day went by really slow. I hadn't had anything to eat after leaving the dining hall, I lost my appetite after seeing all those men in the mess hall. Shion showed be around the entire Satsuma Camp, but it only ate up half an hour of the day. I just lay around in Shion's barracks the entire time, she didn't seem to have anything to do in her room. She had a few books on top her dresser, but there were all romance and drama novels. I flipped through a few pages of one book, but I quickly lost interest. When the moon finally came, I was on the verge of death from boredom.

"Mina," Shion knocked on the door, "it's time."

"Finally," I sighed as I pushed myself from my seat in the corner.

Shion lied to me, it wasn't time. It was the hour of seven when she got me, that was one hour before our target would be in the designated area. Regardless, she took me into the city.

"Why did you drag me out of the camp?" I groaned as we walked down the city streets. "We still have about an hour until eight and you said that it would be best to take care of him around midnight."

"I've had a change of heart," Shion told me, "I'd like to get this job out of the way as soon as possible. Besides, I noticed you were pretty bored just laying around in my room."

"Well whatever," I sighed. "So how are we supposed to know which guy he is, there's a whole bunch of Shogunate supporters that like to attend brothels."

"There's a key to knowing who your target is," Shion told me. "Normally our targets are usually old men who have a lot of bodyguards around them. In this case, we are to assassinate a member of the Kyoto Shoshidai, that gives us a clue about our target's appearance. All men who work directly under the Shogunate have a distinct haircut. It's always bald in front and then they have a small ponytail that's folded inward at about their eye level. The length of the ponytail is usually the length of a thumb and is folded inward by a black band."

"My guess is that you've had your share in these kind of targets, that you have," I told Shion.

"Well, when you've been in the business as long as I have, you gain a knack for these kind of things," Shion smiled.

The next thing I knew, Shion and I were already in the brothel district of the city. The area wasn't very well kept. Shadows had engulfed the entire area, it was difficult to even see the area just before my feet. It's not that there wasn't any light in the area, it's just that all of it was locked within the many buildings within the district. It was awfully noisy too, I'm pretty sure I heard five different conversations going on in one moment, along with a lot of moaning in the background. A small flash of light could usually be seen whenever someone entered one of the facilities, though it would just reach a few feet in front of the entrance, never shining down upon me nor Shion. I felt rather comfortable just standing outside, just hearing the moans and conversations made me feel... I don't know, dirty I guess. I turned to Shion who stood right next to me, her eyes shut, her arms folded, and her back against the wall, it looked like she was already focused on our kill.

"Well, well, what have we here?" the voice of an old man echoed from behind.

I turned to the source of the voice and there stood a well dressed old man and six other individuals. The elder of the seven had a few wrinkles on his face and a grin on it as well. His pupils were a dark gray color, the area surrounding those orbs were a yellowish white. His head was virtually bald, although he wore a small ponytail that was folded inward on the back of his head. He wore a daisho on his belt; the swords and their sheaths were a just black, they were barely visible in the current lighting of the area. His outfit was also black, but it was of a lighter shade. There was a symbol of three sakura on the upper left half of his kimono, and once I saw that symbol, I instantly knew who it was.

"Yamazaki Todo, I presume?" Shion said as she pushed herself off the wall.

"Are you two the new girls?" the old man's eyes began drifting up and down our figures. "Personally I like the goods on you, missy," the old man told Shion, "but the red-head here..."

"We're here for your head," I broke the old man's speech.

"Excuse me?" Yamazaki said puzzled.

"As ordered by the Satsuma Clan of the Ishin Shishi, we must kill you," I repeated.

"You girls must be joking," the old man chuckled as his guards stepped forward.

"Even if you scream now, your voice will never again reach the Shogunate," Shion said as she drew her blades.

"I guess you two really are serious," the grin on the old man's face melted. "Kill them!" Yamazaki ordered his bodyguards.

"Stand back!" one of the guards ordered the rest. "Now die!" he yelled as his blade pulled him forward.

Grabbing the katana from my belt I quickly swung it sheath and all at the man's ribs. The crack that followed after the impact was muffled by the conversations floating around close by, and they soon muffled his cry after my katana's blade etched itself between his broken ribs. I didn't waste much time as I pushed forward after, prying the corpse on my blade away with my sheath. Another charged forward, his blade above his head. I sliced upward, the steel kissing his limbs and throat. A small cry escaped his mouth before a cherry red geyser erupted from the craters my sword created. Two more followed, one behind the other. I swung my sheath first this time, catching the lead man at the leg. He fell forward for an instant, his sword clattering to the floor. My shoulder met with his face as it pushed his back against the man behind him. With my feet pushing against the ground with all my might, I launched myself forward, my sword leading the way. Crimson sprayed onto my being once more as it pressed through one man and into the other. Their screams were again muffled by the noise coming from within the brothels, though they were still dissonance in my ears. I killed the noise with a pull of my blade, slowly prying it upward as it grinded against bone and muscle. More fountains of blood began to rain down on me, but I didn't care at the moment. Two of the men dropped their blades at that instant and began to run. Before I could make chase, I soon found a flurry of debris flying in their directions, nailing the two against the wall soon after. I turned to the attack's source to find Shion with her naginata's main blade pointed upward. The battle cry of the remaining bodyguard soon entered my ear the moment I turned my head. His sword was pointed to the east as he dashed forward, sliding westward as it flew toward my side. With a sigh, I simply swung my blade to the side to catch his attack, my sheath following in my sword's direction to strike at the side of the man's skull. At the moment he fell to the floor, I plunged my sword downward just above his chest. I had to twist the blade a few times before I could extract it, and by then, the target had already began to run.

"Go after him," Shion ordered.

"Hai," I nodded and followed without question.

"Someone help me!" Yamazaki cried as he ran down the streets.

A second later, one of the old man's feet got caught on his other's heel, sending him chin first to the ground. My run broke into a walk after, my blade practically gliding over the surface of the ground as I approached my target. He quickly rolled over to his back, dragging his entire body back as he crawled to the nearest wall. His eyes were wide open, his mouth was open enough to fit several mochi, it was obvious that this man was afraid of me.

"Please don't," he began to beg, "I'll do anything you want. I'll give you all the money I have, just spare me!"

"Spare you?!" I spat. "Why should I spare you? Did your comrades spare the Cho Shu Clan when they were attacked by the weapons you arranged for yesterday? Did you order your men to hold back when you ordered them to kill me and my friend?! I think you deserve this fate that's about to fall upon you!" I said as I rose my blade once more.

I remember the man's face as my blade struck the top of his skull, my eyes were left unblinking as the ruby fluids splattered against my face. Something just didn't feel right after I had done the deed, I didn't know what it was at first. I heard a small footstep coming from close by. At first I thought it was only Shion, that is, until I heard a scream different from Shion's own voice.

"Thought you could get away huh?" I turned the corner to find Shion pointing her blade at the source of the scream.

Normally I wouldn't have cared if Shion had pointed her blade at an enemy's throat, only this time, she wasn't pointing it at an enemy, it was a young girl.

"Please don't kill me," the girl begged, "I haven't done anything wrong!"

"Shion, what the fuck do you think you're doing?!" I yelled at her.

"She saw what happened," Shion answered, "she has to die."

I looked back at the girl for a second. Her eyes were a sky blue hue, her hair as dark as a raven. Sweat and tears trembled down her skin as Shion's blade barely touched her neck. Her mouth was quivering, her entire body was trembling. Her teeth clicked as whimpers escaped her lips between her breaths. The poor girl was scared to death, I'm sure the feel of Shion's naginata against her throat had kept her from falling unconscious. She looked no older than twelve, the sight of that girl in fear had reminded me of myself, when I found myself on the verge of death two years ago until Shinta saved me.

"Shion, she hasn't done anything, just let her go," I tried to convince her once more.

"No," Shion said with the shake of her head, "all those who see the deeds of a hitokiri must die!" Shion said as her blade began to draw blood from the girl's neck.

"Stop it, Shion!" I yelled. "Let her go, she hasn't done anything wrong, she just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, that she has."

"There is no such thing as a wrong place at the wrong time," Shion glared, "everything is decided by Fate. It was Fate that had Keisuke and my family killed that evening, and it was Fate that brought this girl to where she is today!"

"Shion, you're crazy, just let her go already!" I ordered once more.

"I have a better idea, you kill her," Shion turned to me.

"NANI?!" I said shocked.

"You want to be a hitokiri, don't you?" she asked. "Then your first test will be to kill this bystander."

"She's not even involved in this conflict!" I yelled. "THIS IS POINTLESS!!!!!"

"All those you kill are involved," Shion replied, "that's what you told me a year ago, wasn't it?" the words struck my heart.

It was true, I did tell Shion that a year ago, on my birthday to be exact. She was feeling guilty after killing some men and I told her this phrase:

"But if you plan on taking down the Shogunate, the ones responsible for the creation of samurai families, then doesn't that mean all those you've kill are involved?" I asked her back then.

"...I don't know," she had answered, "excuse me then...."

"Well, weren't they?" Shion asked once more, returning me to the present.

I couldn't respond, only silence escaped my lips. I turned to the girl once more, more whimpers were escaping her mouth, ones that could put a dog to shame. The tears were falling faster than ever now, her entire body was trembling even more, the river of crimson running down her neck was growing even more rapid. I couldn't stand to see her like this, I had to get her out of this.

"Forgive me for what I am about to do...," I said as a translucent tear began to crawl down my cheek.

Another scream had filled the area, one that would haunt me for the rest of eternity. Before I could realize what had happened, I found a crimson blade in my hand, it's ruby fluids trickling to the stone floor. Opening my eyes, I found the remains of that poor girl, lying there, her head sinking to the floor, and her torso leaking of scarlet liquid. I had sliced her from the shoulder to the abdomen, I had felt as if I had killed for the first time. My mouth began to quiver upon seeing my latest victim, and my hands began to shake. My eyes began to drift away from the corpse, turning to my hands. My hands, they were covered in the very same ruby substance that was etched on my blade. My skin felt as if it was burning once I had taken a glance of the fluid, yet my eyes were searing from an even greater fire. Rivers of tears rushed down my cheeks, trying to cool the fires on my body. My knees weakened and I found myself kneeling to the floor.

"Forgive me," I cried, "please forgive me! I didn't want to kill her, but... Oh God, please forgive me for the sin I have committed this evening, please forgive me!"

"God can never forgive the sins one has committed," Kensai's voice echoed in my head.

"Mina...," Shion's hand took hold of my shoulder.

"Forgive me...," I chanted again.

"You can't be forgiven," Kensai said once more.

"Please forgive me...," I cried.

"You will never be forgiven," Kensai said.

"Forgive..."

"Redemption..."

"Me..."

"Is..."

"Please..."

"Unnecessary..."

"For God's sake, PLEASE FORGIVE ME!!!!!!!" I screamed.

I began drowning in my own tears soon after, my face rubbing against the road and my fists striking against the dust and ash below. I could feel Shion's arms wrapping around my body, her cheek soon nestling against mine, taking some of the wetness on my face.

"It's all right," Shion tried to tell me, "you did what was necessary."

"You really did," Kensai's voice echoed in my head. "She was destined to die this day, to die by your hand, her blood now runs on your blade. How it quenched the steel slab's thirst, I wish I could feed it more."

"It wasn't necessary," I sniffed, "it was wrong. It was..."

"It was her fate," Kensai said.

With Kensai's last words, I balled my fingers into fists once more and rose them into the air, pushing Shion away in the process. A scream had escaped the top of my lungs and mouth, though it was not heard as the conversations from within the buildings had muffled my cry. Darkness had consumed me after, and the last thing I recall was my body falling to the floor.

The next thing I knew, I was in a field, sitting before a bed of flowers. A crown of irises lay in my hands, my fingers twiddling with the green stems. The morning breeze blew against my face as I turned my attention to the sky. It was a cerulean blue, there was not a cloud in the sky. I turned my attention back to my flowers and suddenly the winds became stronger. I shielded my face with my left hand, but in the process my crown of flowers were blown out of my hands. The sky had suddenly become dark, gray clouds were hovering over my head now. I could feel another presence in the area, the presence was close, too close. I could feel her breath blowing against the back of my neck, I could hear the heave of her chest each time she inhaled, and I could smell the scent of blood on her. I stood frozen after acknowledging her presence, even my air passages had been blocked once I had sensed her. The strength in my body had suddenly been drained, I was paralyzed with fear, there was nothing I can do. My shoulder began to freeze a moment later, her fingers were now wrapped on it, traveling further down. Her other arm wrapped around my other shoulder, and then her hand met at the base of my neck, one atop of the other. I began to flinch, but then, I froze once more when she brought her lips close to my ear.

"We meet again, Mina," Kensai spoke.

"Kensai...," her name escaped my lips.

"You did what was right," she told me as her nose began drifting along my neck.

"How can you call it right?" I took up some courage to speak. "How could ending an innocent life be justified?"

"She wasn't innocent," Kensai said, placing her fingers underneath my chin, "she was in the way," she forced my face toward her's.

"In the way?" I forced my head to the side. "How? The girl was probably just wandering down the streets and made a wrong turn, how is that in the way?!"

"She's keeping you away from your brother, that's how," Kensai smiled.

"Away from my brother?" I asked, my eyes still averted from her's.

"Hai...," she said, "they're all keeping you away from your brother. The Bakufu, the Satsuma Clan, Shinsengumi, Bakufu, Saito, Tetsu, and Shion, all of them are in your way."

"Che, I've had enough of your nonsense!" I said as I brought my palm against her chest.

"Don't say that," Kensai grinned, "I speak the truth."

"How can what you say be true?!" I spat. "Why would my companions and friends keep me away from my brother?! If anything, Tetsu and Shion are willing to help me find him, so don't you go saying all this bull shit about how everyone's in the way!"

"What you're saying is bull," Kensai simply responded, "and you know it."

"All you speak of is nothing but blasphemy and lies!" I yelled.

"Well, I'm not denying that I do speak of blasphemy and lies," Kensai's simper stretched further, "but I have much more to say."

"If you have anything else to say," I began to reach for the katana on my belt, "then say it with a sword!"

"A sword?" Kensai chuckled. "Hm hm hm, ah ha ha ha ha! What makes you think you can defeat me? You're the one who always has to call on me for help when you're about to die!"

"Shut up and draw your blade!" I spat.

"Very well," she said with a sigh.

My fingers began to twitch around the air before the hilt of my sword, my left hand clutched the sheath of my katana with all of it's might. My left leg was bent back and my right went forward. My teeth began to grind as a drop of sweat began to fall from my brow, yet Kensai had remained calm, that evil simper stretched from ear to ear.

"Well, what are you waiting for," she asked, "aren't you going to attack?"

After saying those words, my right foot pushed forward an inch. My left leg then took a step forward, and then my right a second later. A half second after, my left took the lead once more. Right, left, right, left, my feet had broke from a walk into a run, and my fingers began inching toward my katana's hilt. Finally, they had clasped it, and my arm began to swing forward. Kensai still stood there, her hand reaching for her sword at that moment. Metal sliding against oak soon followed, her golden eyes glaring into mine as we drew our blades.

"Kyah!" we both screamed.



Chapter 26 Liner Notes



What is the Kyoto Shoshidai?- The Kyoto Shoshidai were officials who kept in touch with the Shogunate during the Revolution. They often reported the status of the war and made arrangements for new soldiers to arrive in Kyoto.



(Next time: "I've had enough of her lies and madness, I'm tired of tarnishing my blade with lives. If I can kill the beast that resides in my soul, will I finally be able to leave this dark world...?" -Himura Mina)



Author's Note: I told you it was slow in the beginning. Well, I hope you enjoyed the chapter regardless, so tell me what you think by leaving me a review, and no flames as usual. Oh, and I know that I've been making too much sexual tension or whatever between Shion and Mina/Kensai since Kenshin left, but don't worry, I'll cut it down from here. So yeah, check out the new chapter next week, it's Mina versus Kensai, one of the biggest battles to ever be fought in this book so watch out for it!