Disclaimer: As much as I would love to, I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.
Chapter Two: Return of a Friend
Kenji ran down the road to see what had happened, Chiharu closely following. When they reached the spot, they were able to make out the body of a man, around his forties, wearing a faded, bloodstained green coat that had bits of twig sticking out from the ripped seams. He had thick brown hair that had scattered all over his muddy face. He looked as if he had been traveling for miles. Kenji turned him over and looked into the face of the unconscious man.
"Who is he?" asked Chiharu; "I've never seen him around here before. And why's he so beat up?"
"I don't know," said Kenji.
Suddenly, the man's eyes slowly opened. He stared at Chiharu for a moment and muttered something. Then he turned to Kenji and took a deep breath.
"Kenshin," he uttered in a hoarse whisper; "I'm glad to see that you're fine. I've come with a warning! You must----"
He wasn't able to finish what he was going to say, for he had become unconscious again.
"Oh no!" yelped Chiharu; "What are we going to do now? If we don't find help soon, I don't now what's going to happen."
"Mr. Myoujin's house isn't far from here," he replied; "Lets hurry, this man must have known my father so he should be able to tell us who he is."
He placed the man's arm over his shoulder and, after regaining his balance, began to follow Chiharu along the path.
They reached Yahiko's around ten minutes later. Tsubame was busy doing the laundry while her baby, Makiko, napped peacefully by the porch.
"Oh!" she said cheerfully to greet them as they approached; "Kenji! Chiharu! It's nice of you to visit us again. What do you have there?" she said pointing towards the man on Kenji's shoulder.
"We have no clue," he answered; "He just came out of nowhere and collapsed. We thought you might know---"
At that moment, Yahiko slid open the front door and beamed at his two visitors.
"Ah," he said; "It's good to see you two again. Have you been enjoying your trip? Well I know Hiko so it must be a relief. I've just been---"
He froze as he looked over to them.
"No! It can't be," he whispered as he walked toward them; "SANOSUKE!" he yelled with surprise as he got a clear view of the man; "But I thought he was still in Mongolia!"
They all looked at him with curiosity.
"Sagara Sanosuke?" whispered Tsubame; "But what happened to him, he's a wreck!"
"Who's Sagara Sanosuke?" asked Chiharu.
"An old friend of Yahiko," she answered softly; "and Kenji's father."
Kenji looked at her with surprise; "Huh?"
"He was," she said; "And one of his closest too. He had a huge tab at the old restaurant."
She forced a small chuckle but then stopped and looked at her husband with pity.
"OH NO!" he suddenly shouted; "Tsubame! You have to go and fetch Megumi! Hurry, he's bleeding!"
Kenji could only watch as Tsubame dashed off along the trail. Yahiko, meanwhile, was trying to stop the blood, which was now slowly covering his already stained cloak.
The rest of the afternoon went by in a flash. Megumi had come running to them a few minutes later, closely followed by Tsubame. They then rushed Sanosuke into one of Yahiko's spare bedrooms.
"Tsubame," said Megumi as soon as they had settled down; "I'll be needing your help, he isn't in a very good condition."
"Why her?" asked Yahiko; "I can help out as much a she could. And I can't stand to wait here while my friend's like this."
"Because as I recall, you were the one that always needed treatment. And that's not going to help much." she said sarcastically.
"Dumb fox lady," he muttered under his breath.
"I heard that," she said. And she closed the door.
Kenji, Chiharu and Yahiko went to sit at a table in another room. Every thing was silent until Chiharu became a little nervous.
"So why did he suddenly turn up here if he was all the way in Mongolia?" she said to start a conversation.
"I don't know," he replied; "He might have left to evade the police. But he knew that someone would recognize him if he ever returned."
"Why was he running from them?" she asked.
"He didn't have a very clean record," he said; "Sanosuke used to gamble, start street fights and, as I recall, he tried to plant explosives in a government building once, he didn't like them very much. And he had an awful relationship with one of the officers, Hajime Saitou."
"Know wonder he was one of my father's friends," said Kenji; "They were both useless."
"It wasn't like that," replied Yahiko in a more serious tone; "As a matter of fact, Kenshin, your father, was the one that stopped him from some of them, well, not all."
"Whatever," he muttered; "It's not like I'm going to start liking him because of that."
"Your father was a great man," he said; "once he even---"
Suddenly, a baby's cry rang through the house.
"Oh!" he continued in a much calmer voice; "I guess Makiko just woke up. I'll just go check on her."
He stood up and went in the direction of the wails, which ceased a minute later.
"Are you okay?" Chiharu asked Kenji; "Don't worry, you'll find out the truth about them soon enough."
"Yeah," he answered; "but it won't make much of a difference."
And he sighed as he slumped back into his seat.
Chapter Two: Return of a Friend
Kenji ran down the road to see what had happened, Chiharu closely following. When they reached the spot, they were able to make out the body of a man, around his forties, wearing a faded, bloodstained green coat that had bits of twig sticking out from the ripped seams. He had thick brown hair that had scattered all over his muddy face. He looked as if he had been traveling for miles. Kenji turned him over and looked into the face of the unconscious man.
"Who is he?" asked Chiharu; "I've never seen him around here before. And why's he so beat up?"
"I don't know," said Kenji.
Suddenly, the man's eyes slowly opened. He stared at Chiharu for a moment and muttered something. Then he turned to Kenji and took a deep breath.
"Kenshin," he uttered in a hoarse whisper; "I'm glad to see that you're fine. I've come with a warning! You must----"
He wasn't able to finish what he was going to say, for he had become unconscious again.
"Oh no!" yelped Chiharu; "What are we going to do now? If we don't find help soon, I don't now what's going to happen."
"Mr. Myoujin's house isn't far from here," he replied; "Lets hurry, this man must have known my father so he should be able to tell us who he is."
He placed the man's arm over his shoulder and, after regaining his balance, began to follow Chiharu along the path.
They reached Yahiko's around ten minutes later. Tsubame was busy doing the laundry while her baby, Makiko, napped peacefully by the porch.
"Oh!" she said cheerfully to greet them as they approached; "Kenji! Chiharu! It's nice of you to visit us again. What do you have there?" she said pointing towards the man on Kenji's shoulder.
"We have no clue," he answered; "He just came out of nowhere and collapsed. We thought you might know---"
At that moment, Yahiko slid open the front door and beamed at his two visitors.
"Ah," he said; "It's good to see you two again. Have you been enjoying your trip? Well I know Hiko so it must be a relief. I've just been---"
He froze as he looked over to them.
"No! It can't be," he whispered as he walked toward them; "SANOSUKE!" he yelled with surprise as he got a clear view of the man; "But I thought he was still in Mongolia!"
They all looked at him with curiosity.
"Sagara Sanosuke?" whispered Tsubame; "But what happened to him, he's a wreck!"
"Who's Sagara Sanosuke?" asked Chiharu.
"An old friend of Yahiko," she answered softly; "and Kenji's father."
Kenji looked at her with surprise; "Huh?"
"He was," she said; "And one of his closest too. He had a huge tab at the old restaurant."
She forced a small chuckle but then stopped and looked at her husband with pity.
"OH NO!" he suddenly shouted; "Tsubame! You have to go and fetch Megumi! Hurry, he's bleeding!"
Kenji could only watch as Tsubame dashed off along the trail. Yahiko, meanwhile, was trying to stop the blood, which was now slowly covering his already stained cloak.
The rest of the afternoon went by in a flash. Megumi had come running to them a few minutes later, closely followed by Tsubame. They then rushed Sanosuke into one of Yahiko's spare bedrooms.
"Tsubame," said Megumi as soon as they had settled down; "I'll be needing your help, he isn't in a very good condition."
"Why her?" asked Yahiko; "I can help out as much a she could. And I can't stand to wait here while my friend's like this."
"Because as I recall, you were the one that always needed treatment. And that's not going to help much." she said sarcastically.
"Dumb fox lady," he muttered under his breath.
"I heard that," she said. And she closed the door.
Kenji, Chiharu and Yahiko went to sit at a table in another room. Every thing was silent until Chiharu became a little nervous.
"So why did he suddenly turn up here if he was all the way in Mongolia?" she said to start a conversation.
"I don't know," he replied; "He might have left to evade the police. But he knew that someone would recognize him if he ever returned."
"Why was he running from them?" she asked.
"He didn't have a very clean record," he said; "Sanosuke used to gamble, start street fights and, as I recall, he tried to plant explosives in a government building once, he didn't like them very much. And he had an awful relationship with one of the officers, Hajime Saitou."
"Know wonder he was one of my father's friends," said Kenji; "They were both useless."
"It wasn't like that," replied Yahiko in a more serious tone; "As a matter of fact, Kenshin, your father, was the one that stopped him from some of them, well, not all."
"Whatever," he muttered; "It's not like I'm going to start liking him because of that."
"Your father was a great man," he said; "once he even---"
Suddenly, a baby's cry rang through the house.
"Oh!" he continued in a much calmer voice; "I guess Makiko just woke up. I'll just go check on her."
He stood up and went in the direction of the wails, which ceased a minute later.
"Are you okay?" Chiharu asked Kenji; "Don't worry, you'll find out the truth about them soon enough."
"Yeah," he answered; "but it won't make much of a difference."
And he sighed as he slumped back into his seat.
