a/n: all right my peeps, I hope that this chapter will be satisfactory. Enjoy ^_^

Chapter 10

Scars

Karou ran as fast as she could in her kimono. Rounding the corner she burst through the gate into the dojo. "Kenshin!" She called, her eyes searching the yard. Not seeing anyone she took her quest inside the Kamiya Dojo. "Kenshin, there you are!" She called up at her red-headed rurouni.

"Oro?" Kenshin said as he fell backwards from the stool that he was standing on to reach the spider webs in the corner of the house. "Wha?" He asked as he laid there with a swirly-eyed, dazed look upon his face.

"Kenshin!" Karou immediately scolded. "This is no time to be laying down on the job. You've got an important letter from the chief of police."

"Really?" Kenshin asked, rubbing the back of his head as he sat up from his position on the floor. "I mean truthfully?" His kind, deep-violet eyes, searched hers with an urgent sense of worry shown in them. "I mean, it isn't like the last letter I got?"

"Of course not!" She assured him as she handed the sealed papers to him. "A policeman in town gave them directly to me, instructing me that the letter was of top priority and of great urgency, and that I must get it to you as soon as possible.

"Hmm." Kenshin said as he accepted Karou's hand as she helped him up. Carefully he broke the official seal on the letter and opened it slowly as if he had all the time in the world at his finger tips.

"Well? Hurry up and read it Kenshin!" Karou glared menacingly in his face.

Kenshin shrunk under the glare of his huffy girlfriend. "Yes ma'am, right away." Kenshin cleared his throat and stared uneasily at the woman beside him as he studied the letter.

"Well?" She pressed.

"It says that the emperor is coming to Tokyo."

"So? What's the big deal with that?" She questioned.

"It also says that the police have uncovered a plan against the emperor's life and that they want me, and any other trustworthy people to travel to Kyoto by train and help escort the emperor here." Kenshin continued. "It states that the emperor has been traveling by train with a relay of guards. That means that the bodyguards switch from time to time."

"Yes Kenshin, I know what that means." Karou glared.

"Eep!" He yelped, quickly reading on in the letter. Finally finishing it he looked up at Karou.

"So, should we go?" She questioned, a much lighter tone her voice.

"It says here that the chief of police will be coming here tomorrow to ask of our decision and then if we accept we will receive our special passes that will allow us to travel with the emperor.

"So can we go?" She questioned.

"It will be dangerous, of that I am sure Karou-san. But I would think that it be better if you came along, along with Sano and Yahiko, of that I'm sure." He answered.

"EEH! Thank you Kenshin!" She wrapped her arms around his thin body. "There's no way I was going to be left behind anyway." She smiled at him.

"Oro?" He stood in her grasp, slightly dazed by the lack of oxygen due to her hugging.

__

Lord Toshi punched a hole in the wall in anger at the report given to him by his right hand man, Akio. "Those fools! They've ruined my whole plan!" He shouted. Kaiya shrunk smaller into the corner in which she was kneeling, trying to make herself as unnoticeable as possible.

"At least his anger isn't aimed at me." She thought to herself, almost pitying the poor Akio who had to deal with such a mess.

"Lord Toshi, I promise, something like this will never happen again." Akio bowed, groveling for forgiveness.

"It's to late now. Now that two of your fool apprentice ninja's have been caught I'm sure they've blabbed my whole plan to save their pitiful lives!" Lord Toshi shouted in his rampage.

"On the plus side sir, I have some very juicy news." Akio tried to suck up to his boss.

"Spill it Akio! What did you find out?" The enraged Lord Toshi questioned.

"I have found out that the day after tomorrow the emperor of Japan will be travel in secret by train to his Tokyo palace." Akio grinned, knowing that his boss was pleased.

"Excellent!" Lord Toshi beamed. His eye suddenly caught sight of the huddled figure in the corner. Striding over to the poor little ninja he picked Kaiya up by the front of her shirt. He smiled broadly over at Akio as Kaiya struggled in his grasp. "What do think, Akio? Is it time to put our little pet project to work?"

Akio thought a moment before answering. "Yes, I believe that this would be a good test run."

"No! I will never work for you!" Kaiya shouted. Her legs dangling in the air, she kicked with all of her might. Finally she hit Lord Toshi in the spot that is vulnerable in all men. Doubling to the floor in pain, Toshi released his grasp on Kaiya who scrambled to get to her feet and run away.

"Not so fast." Kaiya was caught off guard by the unforgiving blade of Akio's double-tipped dagger. He lunged at her, but her ninja senses kicked in and Kaiya dodged his attack, almost. The twin blades of Akio's double-tipped dagger missed her throat and rammed themselves in her cheek. Kaiya screamed out in agony as the blades raked through her face, leaving two nasty parallel gashes on the left side of her face.

It was all over in a matter of seconds. Kaiya lay on the floor, whimpering as she tried to stop the wounds on her face from bleeding all over the place. Akio walked over to her and delivered a sharp kick to her stomach, sending her skidding across the smooth floor.

Lord Toshi began to rise. "Why you little weasel." He sneered approaching the crumpled form of Kaiya. Picking her up once again by the collar of her shirt he held her so she could not avoid looking into his eyes. "You will work for me, or else!"

"Or else what?" She stated bravely.

"Or else I might just have to send Akio to visit a certain little dojo in Tokyo, if you get my drift. Will that give you the motivation you need?" He frowned angrily as he threw a might punch to her face that sent her sprawling unto the floor across the room. "Akio!" He shouted.

"Yes boss?" Akio came sidling up beside him.

"Lock her up for now, but make sure that she will be ready for her mission, and don't hesitate to do anything to get her motivated." Toshi chuckled wickedly as Kaiya was being drug out of the room.

"Yes sir!" Akio bowed smartly before backing out and following his charge back down the long, dark corridors that were Lord Toshi's hideout.

a/n: Okay, so you may think that was some pretty good action, right? I just have to tell you though, that that's not even the heart of the action yet. It's coming up, just wait and see. (and don't forget to review!)