Tanuki To Ryuu
Hey, its me again! Sitting in my computer room at 1 AM trying to write this fic
because I can't sleep due to extreme allergies. Tanuki To Ryuu is one of the few joys I
have right now. Thank you fans for your kind words. And please keep the e-mails
coming! I think the response is the only reason I can keep going right now.
Chapter 6: Rumors and Exaggerations
***
The dark employer sat in silence as he pondered the events that were just reported
to him. The woman defeated Akiro the Destroyer, when dressed in a kimono no less,
and the man she claimed engagement to was indeed the Hitokiri Battousai. That made
matters difficult. He decided to send his small group of ninjas, the Five Shadows, to spy
on the pair and report what they discovered after a few weeks of observation. He needed
to plan better before he could use another one of his top soldiers. There were only 4 left
of the elite after Akiro's defeat and he suspected he needed to keep them in reserve.
***
Kenshin sat on the rooftop of Kaoru's house and watched the clouds float
gracefully by. It was one week after Akiro the Destroyer's defeat by Kaoru's hand.
Afterwards, he was arrested under suspicion of murder by the local police. Akiro's
silence and blank stare as he was dragged away showed his broken spirit after his second
defeat by a woman. Yahiko and Yutaro were treated for minor injuries and resumed
their lessons the next morning.
Kaoru exited the dojo in her kenjutsu outfit and pinched the bridge of her nose.
"I swear those two kids will drive me insane," she muttered. "Kenshin? Kenshin,
where are you?" Kaoru shouted. She then sensed his presense and smiled when she
realized where he was. Kaoru threaded her bokken into her belt and lept onto the roof.
Kaoru really enjoyed wearing a hakama for the freedom of movment when compared to a
kimono. "Kenshin," she said as she walked towards Kenshin. "What are you doing up
here?"
"Ah, Kaoru," Kenshin said as he turned to face her, "I enjoy watching the clouds
on a day like this. After the harvest there will be a rather strong winter, so days as bright
as today will be rare for the rest of the year," Kaoru sat down next to him and looked up
at the clouds.
"Kenshin, when will we tell everyone that the 'engagement' is a lie?" Kaoru
asked. The embarassment she received from the rumor was almost intolerable if not for
the occasional displays of affection Kenshin showed in public to keep the rumor going.
"I already defeated Akiro, so the danger should be past, right?"
Kenshin's head didn't turn when he answered her. "Kaoru, the person that spied
on us that night wasn't Akiro," he turned to face her, "Whatever is going on is rather big,
and for whatever reason, you are the target," Kenshin smiled at Kaoru then sighed.
"Kaoru, truth is, about this engagment? I think," and at that moment a pigeon flew
right into the back of Kenshin's head, "OROOOOO!" Kenshin cried in pain as the bird
landed on Kaoru's shoulder.
"Kenshin!" Kaoru cried, worried, "Are you alright?" Kaoru then noticed the bird
on her shoulder and that it had a note tied to its leg.. "What's this?" Kaoru wondered as
she pulled the note off. When the note was free from the bird's leg, the bird prompty
took off and few into the sky. Kaoru unrolled the note and started reading it. "Kenshin!
This is a note from Misao and Aoshi!" Kenshin moved closer to Kaoru to read the note
with her.
"Why did they send us a note? Is it good news or bad?" Kenshin asked.
"Hmm," Kaoru pondered, "It seems Misao wrote it. Oh," Kaoru blushed, "she's
congratulating us on our engagement. How the heck did she know about it in less than a
week, and in Kyoto no less?" Kenshin chuckled slightly and glanced at the letter.
"Well, she is a ninja," Kenshin answered. Kenshin glanced at the bottom of the
letter and saw the handwriting changed. "This bottom part seems to be from Aoshi.
He's mentioning an increase of activity in Tokyo and that he'd appreciate if we keep our
eyes open,"
"What kind of activity?" Kaoru asked as she scanned the bottom part of the letter.
"Hmm, weapons being moved into the area and some murders. That does seem a bit
strange," Kaoru handed the note to Kenshin. "How do we contact them when we do
know something?"
"I guess a normal letter would be good as anything," Kenshin answered. Kaoru
then looked back at Kenshin and realized their earlier conversation was cut short.
"Hey, what did you want to say about the engagement?" she asked as she looked
at Kenshin with a curious expression.
Kenshin scratched the back of his head and nervously chuckled, "Its just that I
think its not a bad," Kenshin started when he was interputted by the shouts of Yahiko.
"Hey Kaoru, tell Yutaro he can't throw his shinai!" Yahiko shouted from the door
of the dojo.
"It was a fair hit!" Yutaro countered. The two boys then started to argue. Kaoru
got up and sighed slightly.
"I better keep them from killing eachother," she said as she walked to the edge of
the roof. Kaoru gracefully stepped off the roof and landed onto the ground. Kenshin
heard her as she shouted at her two students in the dojo, "Yahiko! I thought you matured
more than this! And Yutaro, you should take this more seriously! Ok, I want the two of
you doing a thousand strokes, perfectly!"
Kenshin smiled as he heard Kaoru instruct her two students and he slipped
Aoshi's note into his sleeve. Kenshin stood up and felt a light autumn breeze rustle his
clothes. He then suddenly sensed something secretive nearby and saw some shadows
blur on the dojo's roof. Kenshin narrowed his eyes and concentrated, but sensed no
actual hostility. 'Spies', he reasoned, 'ninjas, and not very good ones at that. They
must be gathering information. Its best if I corner one alone and interrogate him.'
Kenshin decided. But to do that successfully, he needed Kaoru's help.
***
After Yahiko and Yutaro were dismissed from their lessons, Kaoru was extremely
surprised when Kenshin grabbed her in a tight embrace and carried her into her room and
closed the door. "Kenshin! What do you think you're doing?" Kaoru protested.
Kenshin remained quiet for a moment and Kaoru got scared. "Kenshin, please" Kaoru
pleaded, as she feared the worst. "I'm not ready, please," Kaoru wimpered as she moved
slowly to the other side of her room.
Kenshin looked at the situation and realized how bad it looked. He smiled at
Kaoru and moved closer to her, slowly and whispered, "Maa maa, Kaoru, its nothing like
that. There are ninjas on the roof," Kenshin explained, "I had to make a show. Can
you scream convincingly? I have a plan to capture them,"
"Sure Kenshin," Kaoru answered and she made a loud estatic scream of
"KENSHIN PLEASE!", then looked back at Kenshin. Kenshin blushed at Kaoru's faked
scream. "Now what is your plan?" she whispered.
"We ambush them tonight in town," Kenshin answered with a smile.
***
The five shadow's leader had no idea his team were found out so early on their
reconnisance mission.. He was currently following the woman and her fiancee as they
walked through the streets of Tokyo. He was unable to hear what the two said to
eachother, but it looked like the normal lovey-dovey stuff young couples say. He
signaled for his 4 comrades to keep moving.
His employer seemed to think that these two were a threat to his plans. The man
seemed fragile and the woman was a tomboy, but regardless of the leader's opinion, the
Five Shadows watched them. Earlier that day, the man and woman, to the best of the
leader's knowledge, were physically intimate for half an hour. The man and woman
laughed together and seemed to genuinely enjoy eachother's company. The Five
Shadows watched the two walk into an area that they knew was a blind alley, yet they
followed.
When the ninjas reached the rooftops above the alleys, they were surprised that
the alley was empty. "Looking for us?"said a man's voice and the Five Shadows turned
around to see the man and the woman on the roof. The man drew his sword and handed
the sheath to his woman. The woman held the sheath like it were a bokken and both
looked like they were ready for combat. The man regarded the ninjas then said to his
woman, "Kaoru, you take the ones on the left," and he then blurred as she moved forward
to attack.
***
The battle was over in mere seconds. Kenshin dispatched three of the ninjas with
practiced ease while Kaoru knocked out a fourth with the aid of Kenshin's sheath. The
fifth fled in terror when he realized he was grossly outclassed. Kaoru was about to
pursue the fifth but Kenshin put his hand on Kaoru's shoulder and stopped her.
"We got four of them," Kenshin stated. "The fifth will report the group's failure
to their boss," Kenshin tied three of them up as Kaoru tied up the fourth. The two
waited until the ninjas regained consciousness. "So, which looks like he knows the
most?" Kenshin asked Kaoru.
Kaoru pulled the masks off all four of their captives and studied each one with a
harsh eye. "I think this one" she said as she poked him on the head like she was
selecting a fruit. Kenshin flipped his sakabato over to show the sharp edge then kneeled
down to look at the ninja Kaoru selected.
"Really? He looks kinda stupid to me," Kenshin answered. He then poked
another one of the ninjas. "What about this one?"
"I don't know, Kenshin," Kaoru said, "He has that cross-eyed look 'duh' look,"
Three of the ninjas were scared for their lives and decided to sell-out their leader.
"It was him! He is our leader!" three of the ninjas shouted as they gestured with
their heads at the fourth. Kenshin and Kaoru grinned at eachother then tethered the three
other ninjas over the roof of the building, then dragged the fourth back to the dojo.
***
The Five Shadow's leader sat on the dojo floor, scared out of his wits. He heard
that the man was the Battousai but doubted it until he saw the man blur before his eyes.
The woman was also fairly skilled as well, which he already knew when he heard she
defeated Akiro not once, but twice.
The Battousai and his woman walked into the dojo with their arms full. The
Battousai held a large watermelon and the woman had several sets of kunai in her hands.
"Are you sure, Kenshin? Misao only gave me a few lessons in this," the woman asked.
"You'll do fine," the redheaded man assured her as he gave the leader an evil
grin. The man set the watermelon down a good meter away from their captive and said,
"This is a little game. Kaoru hasn't ever been extremely good at kunai practice, even
with some instruction, so she'll practice with this watermelon first. Remember Kaoru,
your goal is to miss the watermelon!" he shouted back to his woman. The woman
grinned and threw a handfull of the kunai and all of them struck the watermelon head-on.
The leader started to sweat as he saw the man grab the kunai and pull them out of
the watermelon. The man walked back to the woman and handed the kunai to her.
"Sorry, Kenshin," the woman apologized, "Every single one hit the watermelon. I guess
I'll do better with a live target, BLINDFOLDED!" The woman tied a heavy blindfold
over her eyes and stood in position to throw.
"WAIT!" the leader cried in terror as he felt his bladder give. "I'll tell! My
employer has a mansion near the river front! Past the old stone bridge next to the well!
Please don't make her throw those thing at me, PLEASE!" the man pleaded. The
Battousa roughly picked the ninja leader up and dragged him to the police.
***
Kenshin and Kaoru charged the mansion with a fierce battlecry. Kenshin Kuzu-
Ryu-Senned the gates wide open and Kaoru ran in with her bokken ready. When the
dust settled, both Kenshin and Kaoru wre surprised to see that the mansion was deserted,
apparently for only an hour or so. "Damn!" Kaoru cursed under her breath. "We just
missed them!"
Kenshin kneeled down at the courtyard and examined the ground. "There were
at least 30 men here, maybe 40," he said as he stood up, "But you're right, Kaoru, they
are gone," Kaoru looked at Kenshin, a frightened look on her face.
"Forty?" she asked with slight fear. "Why would anyone assemble 40 people just
to attack me?" Kaoru asked to herself as she stumbled.
"It can be 400 men, and I won't let them touch you," Kenshin assured her. "I
also think that this person's purpose is more than to attack you. Something about this
seems bigger,"
***
The dark employer knew he barely avoided a confrontation with the Battousai.
The one ninja that did escape informed him quickly of their failure. That meant, of
course, that the Battousai would eventually get the location of his base. It was easy
enough to transport his men and their equipment to the secondary location, but it was still
a loss. He, of course, swiftly disposed of the failure of a spy a good distance from the
old base. He didn't need the Battousai to know who he was just yet.
***
Yahiko and Yutaro arrived at the dojo early the next morning. They bickered, as
usual, on the way to the dojo. When they entered the gates, however, they were both
surprised to see Kaoru dressed in her kimono and deep in conversation with Kenshin.
"What are you two guys doing?" Yahiko asked Kenshin and Kaoru. "We came
for our lessons,"
"Yahiko, today is your day off, same for you Yutaro," Kaoru said. "Kenshin and
I have to make. arrangements,"
"Arrangements for?" Yutaro asked. He didn't want to miss too many lessons.
"Arrangements for our wedding!" Kenshin announced as he pulled Kaoru close to
him for emphasis. Yahiko looked at the two spectically then pointed at the sheet of
paper between them.
"Then why are you two writing a letter to Aoshi and Misao? There's a battle
coming, isn't there?" Yahiko asked in exictement.
Kaoru coughed to get Yahiko's attention, "They're being invited, you idiot!
Now go out and visit Tsubame! You have a day off!" Kaoru shouted at Yahiko.
Yahiko walked out of the gates with Yutaro right behind him.
"So who is this Tsubame?" Yutaro asked with interest.
"No one that you'll meet!" Yahiko shouted.
"Oooh, Yahiko's got a girlfriend!" Yutaro taunted as the two of them left the
dojo's gates.
***
"Whew, that was close!" Kaoru sighed. "You're right, Kenshin. This
engagement is really useful!"
"It is," Kenshin replied. "So does the letter say everything we've discovered?"
"We didn't discover much," Kaoru answered. "Besides, why can't you write this
letter?"
"Oro? You saw my handwriting before, right?" Kenshin asked with a puzzled
look on his face. Kaoru giggled in response.
***
That's Chapter 6! The mystery continues to unfold! Everyone, please don't feel shy
and e-mail me!
In Chapter 7. The mystery unfolds. some more?
Hey, its me again! Sitting in my computer room at 1 AM trying to write this fic
because I can't sleep due to extreme allergies. Tanuki To Ryuu is one of the few joys I
have right now. Thank you fans for your kind words. And please keep the e-mails
coming! I think the response is the only reason I can keep going right now.
Chapter 6: Rumors and Exaggerations
***
The dark employer sat in silence as he pondered the events that were just reported
to him. The woman defeated Akiro the Destroyer, when dressed in a kimono no less,
and the man she claimed engagement to was indeed the Hitokiri Battousai. That made
matters difficult. He decided to send his small group of ninjas, the Five Shadows, to spy
on the pair and report what they discovered after a few weeks of observation. He needed
to plan better before he could use another one of his top soldiers. There were only 4 left
of the elite after Akiro's defeat and he suspected he needed to keep them in reserve.
***
Kenshin sat on the rooftop of Kaoru's house and watched the clouds float
gracefully by. It was one week after Akiro the Destroyer's defeat by Kaoru's hand.
Afterwards, he was arrested under suspicion of murder by the local police. Akiro's
silence and blank stare as he was dragged away showed his broken spirit after his second
defeat by a woman. Yahiko and Yutaro were treated for minor injuries and resumed
their lessons the next morning.
Kaoru exited the dojo in her kenjutsu outfit and pinched the bridge of her nose.
"I swear those two kids will drive me insane," she muttered. "Kenshin? Kenshin,
where are you?" Kaoru shouted. She then sensed his presense and smiled when she
realized where he was. Kaoru threaded her bokken into her belt and lept onto the roof.
Kaoru really enjoyed wearing a hakama for the freedom of movment when compared to a
kimono. "Kenshin," she said as she walked towards Kenshin. "What are you doing up
here?"
"Ah, Kaoru," Kenshin said as he turned to face her, "I enjoy watching the clouds
on a day like this. After the harvest there will be a rather strong winter, so days as bright
as today will be rare for the rest of the year," Kaoru sat down next to him and looked up
at the clouds.
"Kenshin, when will we tell everyone that the 'engagement' is a lie?" Kaoru
asked. The embarassment she received from the rumor was almost intolerable if not for
the occasional displays of affection Kenshin showed in public to keep the rumor going.
"I already defeated Akiro, so the danger should be past, right?"
Kenshin's head didn't turn when he answered her. "Kaoru, the person that spied
on us that night wasn't Akiro," he turned to face her, "Whatever is going on is rather big,
and for whatever reason, you are the target," Kenshin smiled at Kaoru then sighed.
"Kaoru, truth is, about this engagment? I think," and at that moment a pigeon flew
right into the back of Kenshin's head, "OROOOOO!" Kenshin cried in pain as the bird
landed on Kaoru's shoulder.
"Kenshin!" Kaoru cried, worried, "Are you alright?" Kaoru then noticed the bird
on her shoulder and that it had a note tied to its leg.. "What's this?" Kaoru wondered as
she pulled the note off. When the note was free from the bird's leg, the bird prompty
took off and few into the sky. Kaoru unrolled the note and started reading it. "Kenshin!
This is a note from Misao and Aoshi!" Kenshin moved closer to Kaoru to read the note
with her.
"Why did they send us a note? Is it good news or bad?" Kenshin asked.
"Hmm," Kaoru pondered, "It seems Misao wrote it. Oh," Kaoru blushed, "she's
congratulating us on our engagement. How the heck did she know about it in less than a
week, and in Kyoto no less?" Kenshin chuckled slightly and glanced at the letter.
"Well, she is a ninja," Kenshin answered. Kenshin glanced at the bottom of the
letter and saw the handwriting changed. "This bottom part seems to be from Aoshi.
He's mentioning an increase of activity in Tokyo and that he'd appreciate if we keep our
eyes open,"
"What kind of activity?" Kaoru asked as she scanned the bottom part of the letter.
"Hmm, weapons being moved into the area and some murders. That does seem a bit
strange," Kaoru handed the note to Kenshin. "How do we contact them when we do
know something?"
"I guess a normal letter would be good as anything," Kenshin answered. Kaoru
then looked back at Kenshin and realized their earlier conversation was cut short.
"Hey, what did you want to say about the engagement?" she asked as she looked
at Kenshin with a curious expression.
Kenshin scratched the back of his head and nervously chuckled, "Its just that I
think its not a bad," Kenshin started when he was interputted by the shouts of Yahiko.
"Hey Kaoru, tell Yutaro he can't throw his shinai!" Yahiko shouted from the door
of the dojo.
"It was a fair hit!" Yutaro countered. The two boys then started to argue. Kaoru
got up and sighed slightly.
"I better keep them from killing eachother," she said as she walked to the edge of
the roof. Kaoru gracefully stepped off the roof and landed onto the ground. Kenshin
heard her as she shouted at her two students in the dojo, "Yahiko! I thought you matured
more than this! And Yutaro, you should take this more seriously! Ok, I want the two of
you doing a thousand strokes, perfectly!"
Kenshin smiled as he heard Kaoru instruct her two students and he slipped
Aoshi's note into his sleeve. Kenshin stood up and felt a light autumn breeze rustle his
clothes. He then suddenly sensed something secretive nearby and saw some shadows
blur on the dojo's roof. Kenshin narrowed his eyes and concentrated, but sensed no
actual hostility. 'Spies', he reasoned, 'ninjas, and not very good ones at that. They
must be gathering information. Its best if I corner one alone and interrogate him.'
Kenshin decided. But to do that successfully, he needed Kaoru's help.
***
After Yahiko and Yutaro were dismissed from their lessons, Kaoru was extremely
surprised when Kenshin grabbed her in a tight embrace and carried her into her room and
closed the door. "Kenshin! What do you think you're doing?" Kaoru protested.
Kenshin remained quiet for a moment and Kaoru got scared. "Kenshin, please" Kaoru
pleaded, as she feared the worst. "I'm not ready, please," Kaoru wimpered as she moved
slowly to the other side of her room.
Kenshin looked at the situation and realized how bad it looked. He smiled at
Kaoru and moved closer to her, slowly and whispered, "Maa maa, Kaoru, its nothing like
that. There are ninjas on the roof," Kenshin explained, "I had to make a show. Can
you scream convincingly? I have a plan to capture them,"
"Sure Kenshin," Kaoru answered and she made a loud estatic scream of
"KENSHIN PLEASE!", then looked back at Kenshin. Kenshin blushed at Kaoru's faked
scream. "Now what is your plan?" she whispered.
"We ambush them tonight in town," Kenshin answered with a smile.
***
The five shadow's leader had no idea his team were found out so early on their
reconnisance mission.. He was currently following the woman and her fiancee as they
walked through the streets of Tokyo. He was unable to hear what the two said to
eachother, but it looked like the normal lovey-dovey stuff young couples say. He
signaled for his 4 comrades to keep moving.
His employer seemed to think that these two were a threat to his plans. The man
seemed fragile and the woman was a tomboy, but regardless of the leader's opinion, the
Five Shadows watched them. Earlier that day, the man and woman, to the best of the
leader's knowledge, were physically intimate for half an hour. The man and woman
laughed together and seemed to genuinely enjoy eachother's company. The Five
Shadows watched the two walk into an area that they knew was a blind alley, yet they
followed.
When the ninjas reached the rooftops above the alleys, they were surprised that
the alley was empty. "Looking for us?"said a man's voice and the Five Shadows turned
around to see the man and the woman on the roof. The man drew his sword and handed
the sheath to his woman. The woman held the sheath like it were a bokken and both
looked like they were ready for combat. The man regarded the ninjas then said to his
woman, "Kaoru, you take the ones on the left," and he then blurred as she moved forward
to attack.
***
The battle was over in mere seconds. Kenshin dispatched three of the ninjas with
practiced ease while Kaoru knocked out a fourth with the aid of Kenshin's sheath. The
fifth fled in terror when he realized he was grossly outclassed. Kaoru was about to
pursue the fifth but Kenshin put his hand on Kaoru's shoulder and stopped her.
"We got four of them," Kenshin stated. "The fifth will report the group's failure
to their boss," Kenshin tied three of them up as Kaoru tied up the fourth. The two
waited until the ninjas regained consciousness. "So, which looks like he knows the
most?" Kenshin asked Kaoru.
Kaoru pulled the masks off all four of their captives and studied each one with a
harsh eye. "I think this one" she said as she poked him on the head like she was
selecting a fruit. Kenshin flipped his sakabato over to show the sharp edge then kneeled
down to look at the ninja Kaoru selected.
"Really? He looks kinda stupid to me," Kenshin answered. He then poked
another one of the ninjas. "What about this one?"
"I don't know, Kenshin," Kaoru said, "He has that cross-eyed look 'duh' look,"
Three of the ninjas were scared for their lives and decided to sell-out their leader.
"It was him! He is our leader!" three of the ninjas shouted as they gestured with
their heads at the fourth. Kenshin and Kaoru grinned at eachother then tethered the three
other ninjas over the roof of the building, then dragged the fourth back to the dojo.
***
The Five Shadow's leader sat on the dojo floor, scared out of his wits. He heard
that the man was the Battousai but doubted it until he saw the man blur before his eyes.
The woman was also fairly skilled as well, which he already knew when he heard she
defeated Akiro not once, but twice.
The Battousai and his woman walked into the dojo with their arms full. The
Battousai held a large watermelon and the woman had several sets of kunai in her hands.
"Are you sure, Kenshin? Misao only gave me a few lessons in this," the woman asked.
"You'll do fine," the redheaded man assured her as he gave the leader an evil
grin. The man set the watermelon down a good meter away from their captive and said,
"This is a little game. Kaoru hasn't ever been extremely good at kunai practice, even
with some instruction, so she'll practice with this watermelon first. Remember Kaoru,
your goal is to miss the watermelon!" he shouted back to his woman. The woman
grinned and threw a handfull of the kunai and all of them struck the watermelon head-on.
The leader started to sweat as he saw the man grab the kunai and pull them out of
the watermelon. The man walked back to the woman and handed the kunai to her.
"Sorry, Kenshin," the woman apologized, "Every single one hit the watermelon. I guess
I'll do better with a live target, BLINDFOLDED!" The woman tied a heavy blindfold
over her eyes and stood in position to throw.
"WAIT!" the leader cried in terror as he felt his bladder give. "I'll tell! My
employer has a mansion near the river front! Past the old stone bridge next to the well!
Please don't make her throw those thing at me, PLEASE!" the man pleaded. The
Battousa roughly picked the ninja leader up and dragged him to the police.
***
Kenshin and Kaoru charged the mansion with a fierce battlecry. Kenshin Kuzu-
Ryu-Senned the gates wide open and Kaoru ran in with her bokken ready. When the
dust settled, both Kenshin and Kaoru wre surprised to see that the mansion was deserted,
apparently for only an hour or so. "Damn!" Kaoru cursed under her breath. "We just
missed them!"
Kenshin kneeled down at the courtyard and examined the ground. "There were
at least 30 men here, maybe 40," he said as he stood up, "But you're right, Kaoru, they
are gone," Kaoru looked at Kenshin, a frightened look on her face.
"Forty?" she asked with slight fear. "Why would anyone assemble 40 people just
to attack me?" Kaoru asked to herself as she stumbled.
"It can be 400 men, and I won't let them touch you," Kenshin assured her. "I
also think that this person's purpose is more than to attack you. Something about this
seems bigger,"
***
The dark employer knew he barely avoided a confrontation with the Battousai.
The one ninja that did escape informed him quickly of their failure. That meant, of
course, that the Battousai would eventually get the location of his base. It was easy
enough to transport his men and their equipment to the secondary location, but it was still
a loss. He, of course, swiftly disposed of the failure of a spy a good distance from the
old base. He didn't need the Battousai to know who he was just yet.
***
Yahiko and Yutaro arrived at the dojo early the next morning. They bickered, as
usual, on the way to the dojo. When they entered the gates, however, they were both
surprised to see Kaoru dressed in her kimono and deep in conversation with Kenshin.
"What are you two guys doing?" Yahiko asked Kenshin and Kaoru. "We came
for our lessons,"
"Yahiko, today is your day off, same for you Yutaro," Kaoru said. "Kenshin and
I have to make. arrangements,"
"Arrangements for?" Yutaro asked. He didn't want to miss too many lessons.
"Arrangements for our wedding!" Kenshin announced as he pulled Kaoru close to
him for emphasis. Yahiko looked at the two spectically then pointed at the sheet of
paper between them.
"Then why are you two writing a letter to Aoshi and Misao? There's a battle
coming, isn't there?" Yahiko asked in exictement.
Kaoru coughed to get Yahiko's attention, "They're being invited, you idiot!
Now go out and visit Tsubame! You have a day off!" Kaoru shouted at Yahiko.
Yahiko walked out of the gates with Yutaro right behind him.
"So who is this Tsubame?" Yutaro asked with interest.
"No one that you'll meet!" Yahiko shouted.
"Oooh, Yahiko's got a girlfriend!" Yutaro taunted as the two of them left the
dojo's gates.
***
"Whew, that was close!" Kaoru sighed. "You're right, Kenshin. This
engagement is really useful!"
"It is," Kenshin replied. "So does the letter say everything we've discovered?"
"We didn't discover much," Kaoru answered. "Besides, why can't you write this
letter?"
"Oro? You saw my handwriting before, right?" Kenshin asked with a puzzled
look on his face. Kaoru giggled in response.
***
That's Chapter 6! The mystery continues to unfold! Everyone, please don't feel shy
and e-mail me!
In Chapter 7. The mystery unfolds. some more?