"Bastard."
Even the word stung, the hoarse whisper raking his lungs, hands clenching in the cold sheets. His eyes ached. His chest burned. His body refused to move.
"Bastard," Sano hissed again. Kenshin's side of the bed was cold. The apartment was empty. Not a note. Not a message on the answering machine. Just him, alone in their bedroom, and Yahiko, asleep on the couch.
The bastard.
He'd left.
He'd been such an idiot, to listen to him. Kenshin had professed to being worried about him and Yahiko, told them to rest. He'd been so persuasive, promising he'd wake them if anything happened. Promising he would tell them what Richards had said, whenever he decided to say it. Promising nothing would happen.
He'd searched the apartment the minute he had woken. The girls were gone, as well as everything they had owned. They had been taken away.
They had been taken away, and that son of a bitch hadn't even told him. He hadn't even woken him so he could even... so he could even say goodbye.
And he hadn't even left a fucking note.
His knees nearly gave out as he stood from where he had been resting, the mattress creaking in protest. He hadn't taken anything with him. Not clothes, not food, not even a cent from the savings. He was just... just gone.
Like he had never been there.
His side of the bed was even perfectly made.
Sano swung against the wall, felt every knuckle crack as it impacted. Bastard. He swung again. And again. And again. Son of a bitch. Another swing. How could he have done this? After everything they had been through- He pounded the wall, feeling the siding fracture and split, the plastic covering groaning, his fingers aching, his eyes burning, his cheeks wet. Bastard. Bastard. Bastard!
"Sanosuke."
His fist crashed into the wall one last time, and then he turned, knowing he was shaking with fury, knowing that fire was only fanned by despair. And he knew it was obvious on his face.
Yahiko stood in the doorway, holding his pillow in one small hand, hair still mussed from slumber. There was no sleepiness in his eyes, though... only grim understanding. He knew, he knew even now what had happened.
Sano slumped against the wall, hearing it complain under his weight, staring his little brother in the eye, bruised hand hanging by his side.
"He's gone, isn't he."
"Yeah," Sano said numbly. His chest was cold. "Gone. No note. He didn't take anything."
Yahiko's dark eyes contemplated him for a long moment. Sano tried to breathe, his chest heaving and shuddering, his blood racing even as every fiber of him chilled, scalding him inside... Gone. He couldn't understand it. Gone. How could he? Gone. What had he done wrong? Gone.
"Well?" Yahiko finally huffed, stalking into the room further, dark eyes flashing.
"Well...?" Sano stared at him blindly, bewildered, aching, empty... even the rage had fled him. He was gone. Kenshin was gone. 'Jou-chan was gone. Misao was gone. They'd had everything. Everything. A family. A home. Love. Peace. Everything. And now it was gone, it had all been taken away from them while they were only sleeping, they woke up and everything was gone...
"Aren't we going to go after him, dumbass?" Yahiko snapped. "He can't have gotten that far. Did he take the keys? It can't have been more than six hours since he left."
Go after him.
That thought raced through his brain like a drug, smoldering in his chest, burning him. Go after him. Of course. Go after him and punch his lights out, drag the asshole home. Of course. How dare he leave him here? How dare he leave him, after everything-
"Get your stuff together, Yahiko," he said sharply, pushing up from the wall, cracking his knuckles against his palms. "We're going."

"So he didn't take the car."
"Nah, he's on foot." Sano scanned the sidewalks briefly, then ran the red light without even thinking. "Idiot. How's he gonna get anywhere on foot?"
"Is he going somewhere in particular?" Yahiko was staring out the window, voice tense.
"How the Hell should I know?" he snapped. "You know just as much as I do."
They drove on in silence but for the screaming of his tires, the broken turn signal clicking on and off.
Until he found the street he was looking for, of course, and pulled into a crowded parking lot. Sano cursed under his breath and parked on the grass, throwing open his door and clambering out. "Get your bag," he ordered hurriedly into the car, then slammed the door shut. Yahiko climbed out, bursting backpack in hand, puzzlement in his eyes.
"What are we doing here?" he queried, following Sano as he made for the front door.
"Just come on."
It wasn't a very heavily guarded apartment building, but that suited their purpose at the moment, as Sano pulled his little brother up the front staircase and down the second floor hallway. Yahiko was silent, unprotesting, at least up until they reached the walnut door.
"What are we DOING here, Sanosuke? I've never even been here before, do you think this is where Kenshin is-?"
"No," Sanosuke said shortly. "You're staying here." With that, he rapped loudly at the door.
"WHAT-?!"
The door opened almost automatically, but only so far as the chain would let it. Two familiar coal-black eyes judged him, then the door shut again. After the jingling of the chain being removed, they were welcomed into the small apartment.
"And what can I do for you, boys?" Meg asked calmly, eyes twinkling.
Sano slammed the door shut behind them, and as an afterthought, he slid the chain back into place. He heard her gasp audibly behind him, and he turned back to face her, face set in hard lines.
"The girls were taken away," he said harshly. "Kenshin's disappeared. I need you to watch after Yahiko while I go after him. He has all his clothes and things with him. I don't know when I'll be back."
Meg stared at him, face paling, one slim hand rising to her lips. "Ken-san is gone...?" she whispered, dark eyes widening, undoubtable fear rising there, more fear than he could account for. "And Misao, and- and Kaoru-chan-"
It was there her cheeks went bloodless, and she froze. Sano stared at her, heart pounding uncomfortably in his throat. He had never seen her so unsettled, so afraid... she had always been the cool one, the one no one could ruffle. For this to rattle her so badly, too...
It meant his feeling about this wasn't mistaken. Something was going on here. Something more than they could see.
Something just felt... wrong.
"Can I trust you?" he asked seriously, taking a step forward, lowering his voice. "Somethin's goin' on here, girl... I need Yahiko to be with someone I can trust."
Meg stared up into his eyes silently for a moment, then nodded, still pale. "You can trust me, Sanosuke," she affirmed softly, gravely. "I'll watch after him."
Sano took her slim shoulders in his hands, watching her eyes. She trembled slightly under his grasp. She was shaken, it was obvious, shaken to the core... He'd never expected this girl to show weakness to him. Something was wrong, something was very wrong...
"Meg," he said softly, "you know something about this."
He didn't know why he thought it. But he did. She knew something. That was why she was so afraid, why she hadn't discounted his worries, why she had agreed so readily, why she had immediately become so serious at the mention of Kenshin's name.
Meg shook her head, silken hair brushing over his fingertips, her full lips thinning as she bit them from the inside. "I- I don't know anything, nothing conclusive. I... I'm just afraid-" Her voice cracked, and she broke away from him, her arms crossing over her chest, tightly. "I'm just worried about them. That's all."
"If you know something-"
"I don't know anything!" she snapped, whirling back to face him, dark eyes flashing. "One of Jim's clients came sniffing around after Ken-san's medical records. He expressed some interest about the girls, looked through their records too. That's all I know! Jim sends him cocaine through the mail, he runs some insurance agency. I don't know any more than that."
"And you're afraid he's going to do something to them." Sano caught her wrist. "Meg, come on-"
She was silent after that, and Sano relaxed his grip, feeling how she shivered. Meg refused to meet his eyes.
"Yahiko's going to stay with you," Sano said more gently.
"Sanosuke-!" Yahiko spoke up for the first time, elbowing him in the side. "Why do I have to stay here? I'm not a little kid! I-"
Sano winced at the hurt and anger in his voice. He turned from Meg, then knelt down, one hand settling on top of his little brother's head. He was so small... still only ten, still a little boy, no matter what he said. Just a little boy.
"Yahiko, you're staying here," he said softly, firmly. "I need you to watch after the girls, do you understand? Meg needs to be protected too, if what she said is true. She needs somebody too. You stay here. You keep an eye on things. I'll go after Kenshin."
Yahiko met his eyes, then nodded once, face somber. "All right," he said quietly.
Sano clutched his shoulder, the small bones strong under his grip. "You'll be fine," he reassured. "You'll be fine. You're a strong kid, Yahiko." His voice roughened, and he clutched him tighter. "You're my brother, Yahiko, you'll be fine. And I'll come back for you, or die trying."
"Give me your word," Yahiko ordered.
"I give you my word, 'touto," Sano whispered. "And a Sagara never goes back on his word."
With that, the boy nodded in grudging acceptance. Sano smiled down at his little brother one last time, then stood up and turned back to the dark-haired girl who leaned against the wall. She was pale, silent, trembling where she stood. He moved closer to her, then clapped one hand on her shoulder, feeling awkward.
"You take good care of him, Meg," he demanded. "And yourself, too. I want you both safe when I bring Kenshin back."
"I will," she whispered, lips still trembling. "I swear I will."

*** *** ***

He paused for a moment, then knocked on the fine walnut door, jaw clenched tightly. He refused to use the doorbell, he hated that stupid thing... it rang, and rang, and echoed... It was eerie, in such a big house...
After a few moments, the door creaked open, and familiar blue eyes peered out at him. Sano tried to manage a smile for his friend, but was aware of how badly he failed when Katsuhiro winced.
"Do you want to come in, Sano?" he asked quietly, but refrained from going on when Sano shook his head without a word.
This was humiliating.
"Katsu, I need some money," he gritted out. "For gas. And food."
At that, his cool eyes went wide. "What happened, did Himura kick you out? I didn't know there was any problem, you should have-"
"He's gone," Sano hissed, fists clenching at his sides. "The adoption agency took the girls away, and he just disappeared. I'm gonna go after him, I just, uh..." He winced, shamed, but plunged forward anyway. "I need some money. I'll pay you back, I-"
"How much do you need?" Katsu asked calmly.
Sano stared dumbly at him for some time, then blinked and shook his head, staring down at his feet. "I- I dunno. I guess a twenty-"
The wallet was in his hand before he could complete the sentence. "Here's two hundred," Katsu informed, closing Sano's stiff fingers around the gift. "If you need any more, just tell me."
"Th-thanks," Sano managed through numbness. He should have expected as much. Of course Katsu wouldn't expect him to take care of himself. Of course Katsu wouldn't ask why he hadn't just taken some money from Kenshin's savings. Katsu would understand why he felt he had no right to that money, that he had been a deciding factor in Kenshin losing those girls and so didn't deserve to touch their hard earnings. Of course Katsu would understand that.
"So you think you can catch him with a wallet and a prayer."
Every tiny hair on the back of his neck rose at the sound of that voice.
"O-officer Fujita...?" Katsu's voice seemed very far away through the blood that was pounding in his ears. "Is there a problem? My parents are inside-"
"Not at all." Saitou dismissed Katsu with a wave of a white-gloved hand, the light motion visible out of the corner of Sano's eye as the lean man approached him. "You realize your tags are expired. Ahou."
"Fuck off." His voice was painfully cold, fists tightening by his sides. He had already slid the wallet into one pocket, that necessary treasure reassuring him with its weight. He wasn't going to deal with this bastard now. He had to find Kenshin, find him before something happened. He had to find him now.
"You realize he's far gone by now," Saitou continued, tone practically conversational.
"What the Hell do you know?!" Sano snapped, twisting to face him. "I wouldn't put it past you t' have a hand in this, you bastard. But if you dare tell me that-"
"I know that he's gone off to become who he once was in defense of that taken away from him," Saitou observed, amber eyes glinting in the darkness. "I know that his instincts have enlightened him to what is transpiring around him, in one way or other... In short, he's off to fight for those little girls of his. And you're apparently not invited."
"What are you TALKING about?" he snarled, chest heating. "There's nothing happening besides some idiot social worker and some rich guy on crack, from what I've heard! You're paranoid, lost in the past!"
"Am I?" Saitou lifted his cigarette to his thin lips for a moment, taking a long drag and then raising one pencil-thin eyebrow. "I suppose a shop teacher with a dishonorable discharge from the army who is planning on using his students to overthrow the nation's government isn't a concern to you, then?"
Sano merely stared at him for a moment, then doubled over, laughing so loudly he could hear the sound echoing off the walls of Katsu's house. Once his mirth had subsided, he looked up at Saitou again, wiping his eyes, grinning. "Are you INSANE?" he yelped, still quivering. "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard! A shop teacher? Overthrowing the government? You've been watchin' too much TV, man! Besides, why would anyone with an idea like that start HERE, in Hicksville, USA?"
Saitou leveled a contemptuous look on him, one that was icy enough to shut Sano up. "Apparently, Battousai considered it enough of a threat to leave his home without more than the clothes on his back," he explained, as though to a misbehaving child.
"Oh, come on!" Sano snapped. "You expect me to believe that's why he left? How would you know, anyway? Been out givin' speeding tickets, that's what you've been doin'!"
"I know it because I've spoken to him," Saitou said dryly. "We met five hours ago and discussed it."
Sano stared at him, the amusement suddenly fleeing and leaving him cold. "You've seen him?" he whispered, starting forward, nearly reaching out to grab hold of the man's sleeve. "Where? Where is he? Where did he go? Was he okay? What-"
"He's going to follow a lead in a town some miles from here," Saitou answered curtly. Then he sighed, shaking his head as if in some regret. "Imagine, the two of us working on the same side... Perhaps those bums with the cardboard signs are right, it truly is the end of the world..."
"What town?" Sano pressed eagerly. He could find him tonight and end this whole mess! He could drag him home and-
"Nowhere you're going." Saitou eyed him with something that resembled skepticism. "He left you behind, ahou. For a reason."
"What?!" Sano felt the pleasure that had been swelling in his breast shatter to indignation, to anger. "Whaddya mean, he 'left me behind'? He just WALKED OUT, he's not STABLE, you stupid asshole!"
"Battousai knew what he was doing," Saitou informed coolly. "He left you because you are weak."
"WEAK?!" Sano exploded. "What the HELL do you think you're talking about? I'm NOT-"
"Look at yourself!" Saitou scorned, hard eyes glinting. "You're a child, a fledgling! You expect Battousai to think you're strong? He is an assassin who's killed scores of men, men with three times his physical strength, men with more training in self-defense than you could dream of. You are a classroom bully who can manage to incapacitate little children. Next to us, you are nothing. And you expect him to bring you along on his important jobs, little fledgling?"
Weak.
The strong win, and the weak lose. So it's the weak who are evil, in the eyes of history. You wanna be a good boy? Then you've gotta be strong.
Those words echoed in his mind, those black eyes staring into his, pupils dilated with whatever drug he'd been strung out on... That boy had been barely older than him, and yet he had been powerful enough to destroy an entire orphanage with his influence.
Those grinning eyes. Those triumphant eyes.
And after that, he had struggled to be strong. He didn't want to lose again, he didn't want to lose everything to someone else's power. Never again. He wouldn't suffer that again. He wouldn't let someone destroy his life again.
"I'm not weak, don't you DARE call me that!" he snarled, fists clenching harder, settling into a familiar stance, ratty sneakers digging into Katsu's manicured lawn. "I'm not WEAK."
"You're a child. Battousai calls you his weakness." Saitou's tone was only faintly smug, his amber eyes dissolving into crimson as rage tainted his gaze. The red curtain fell, and he swung.
He would show Saitou just how "weak" he was!
His knuckles cracked on the man's forearm, and Sano grimaced. Blocked, so fast. But it didn't matter- he swung again, and again- He wasn't going to let Saitou even get the chance to fight back. If he just kept hitting him, if he kept up the steady battering, he'd be sure to win-
When the fist crashed into his shoulder, just out of sequence with the blows he had been landing, the burst of agony came seconds after he felt his cheek meeting the recently cut grass. It was his left shoulder, it didn't matter so much, he could hit better with the right anyway- He pistoned his right foot into the ground and spun back, balanced still on the ball of his other foot, and threw all his weight into another swing.
This time, the blow was to his jaw, and he had flipped himself back to action before he had even staggered back two feet. The next came to his chest, then to his forearm. And each time he threw himself back into the fray, he wouldn't lose this, he couldn't lose this, he wasn't weak, he wasn't WEAK-
But it was the final blow when white-gloved fingers curled around his right fist, fingertips digging cruelly into the half-healed tendons, the ripped muscles, the bone chipped by sheet metal. Saitou knew his wound hadn't healed, Saitou had been there the day he'd done it, Saitou had provoked him into it, Saitou knew it was his only weak spot and-
That hand clenched and Sano felt a scream of agony tear from his throat, his knees buckling, the bones crunching and scraping, oh GOD he could feel them breaking, slowly, fracturing through crack by crack-
Until suddenly, those fingers released, and Sano collapsed with a whimper, cradling the hand that had so nearly be ruined again tight to his bruising chest. He could feel Saitou staring down at him, he could feel the contempt in those inhuman eyes, judging him, reviling him-!
"You're nothing but a little boy," the policeman pronounced. "A fledgling."
Sano watched the boots stalk away, nearly catatonic with pain he'd never dreamed was possible... and yet, he flexed his hand once he could bear to, and nothing was broken. Nothing was even really harmed.
The bastard was just making a point.
He stumbled to the car without saying a word to Katsu. He'd never come in contact with such great power before. He'd never seen anything like it. Kenshin had told him that Saitou and Battousai had been nearly equal in skill, all that time ago...
How could so much power be housed inside Kenshin...?
He pulled the door shut after him, ignoring the screams of pain from his hand. How dare he. How dare he leave him behind. How dare he call him weak, after all he had done for Kenshin, after all the times he had sacrificed to protect him, after all the times he had lied to save Kenshin's ass! After how much he had loved him, how much he cared, how he had promised to stay no matter what!
Sano switched on the ignition and squealed out of Katsu's driveway. No. Saitou wanted to convince him he couldn't do anything, he'd show him, dammit, he'd show him! He'd show him, and he'd show Kenshin, he'd show Kenshin he wasn't weak!
How could he say that...? After everything he'd done for him...?
"More than that..." Sano whispered into the steering wheel, staring at his hand. "More than these wounds... Kenshin calling me his weakness hurts ten thousand times more."

*** *** ***

He'd been driving for hours.
He didn't know what he had expected to find. His body in a ditch. Maybe just him walking along the side of the road. Or some kind of indefinable clue to where he was, where he was going.
But he had expected to find something.
Something. Anything at all. And yet, not a trace of him, as though he had never existed.
Sano pulled up to a red light, decided to stop just this once, then leaned back in his seat with a heavy sigh. He thumped a fist against the steering wheel, staring blankly down the road. Nothing. Nothing at all. The little redhead had just skipped out of his life, damn him, like nothing had happened, nothing at all, damn him...
His eyes settled on the dimly glowing lights of the Y, just across the intersection. Kenshin wouldn't be there, he knew that. Too many people, too loud, too friendly. He wouldn't be there, not in a state that would have driven him to just leave.
To leave without his medication.
He hadn't dared tell Yahiko that. Yahiko knew how important the medication was to Kenshin's state of mind, and Yahiko was smart enough to know what that would mean. He didn't want to worry him more than he already had. It wasn't something he even wanted to think about, not at all, not when Kenshin was wandering the streets, cold and alone, he didn't want to think of him walking on not alone...
It was too much to think about.
Annoyed at waiting for the light to turn, Sano pulled through the deserted intersection. It was late enough that there was absolutely no one around, and it was safe to drive like a maniac. He had never used to worry about stuff like that, thinking that if he got killed Yahiko would probably end up with better parents...
But Kenshin had managed to convince him to watch his driving.
Kenshin, who was lost somewhere without a car or money.
The damn idiot.
The anger was choking, blinding. The idiot had just left. Left, with nothing. Not bothering to consider how it would hurt him. What it would do to him. How it would tear him apart inside.
Sano pulled into the parking lot of the YMCA, tires screeching in protest as he swung into a parking space. It was too dark to go looking for him now... If Kenshin had any sense, he would have found someplace to stay by now. A spare room in a sympathetic house. An all-night cafeteria somewhere. A homeless shelter. Anywhere. But he wouldn't be out walking, not now. No sane person would-
He switched off the engine, that thought sinking into the pit of his stomach.
And there was the rub, as 'jou-chan would say.
Kenshin wasn't sane.
Sano rubbed at his temples, eyes squeezed closed, aching. Empty. No matter how much it killed him inside, he couldn't tell himself that Kenshin was perfectly sane. He heard voices that accused him of horrible things. Every now and then, he would lose track of what he was saying and end up on the opposite subject. He shared his body with other people, though Sano had no idea how many. He saw things that weren't there. He saw faces in the walls and silhouettes in the windows. No matter how fine he seemed in everyday life, Kenshin was severely disturbed. He wasn't sane. And because of that, he had no idea how to predict him... He never knew who would be in control!
He slammed the door behind him and stalked toward the glowing lights of the Y. He'd work out. His hand didn't hurt so much anymore, and-
He grimaced. Weak. He'd show them weak. He'd give them their goddamn weakness... He'd work out, he'd train, and when he found Kenshin he'd be just as strong as him- if not stronger! Even stronger!
Sano stalked through the darkened parking lot, stuffing his keys into his pocket. It was late, so the front lobby was deserted but for the receptionist, who Sano ignored. She made no move to stop him. She never had before, so why now? He scared the poor woman, and at the moment he didn't feel like being friendly. Not at all.
It'd been so long since he had been there... Feeling lost, Sano wandered past the pools and down the hallway by the changing rooms.
"Hey, Sagara!"
Surprised at the familiar voice, Sano wheeled about, then blinked into a rakish grin. "Joe Richards," he greeted, raising an eyebrow. "It'd figure I see you here."
"Well, I am a lifeguard." The cheeky grin didn't abate. "Whatcha here for, huh? Y'can't really sleep here, y'know. Can't trust those damn Village People."
"Yeah, damn them and their funky disco beat," Sano retorted. "I'm here t' work out a little, that a crime?"
"Oh!" Joe brightened. "Tony's back there on his break, I'll go with ya."
Sano followed him obediently, silently grateful for the guide. "Tony?" he
queried. "He your friend, there?"
"Hey, now," Joe protested, voice good-natured. "Tony's a good guy."
"Never said he wasn't," Sano answered, then left it at that.
After a few moments of silence, Joe opened a door in the concrete wall, and Sano followed him in. It was a small room, ornamented with several punching bags, racks of weights, and other exercise equipment.
The sole occupant of the room was one Sano recognized from the few football games he'd been to for minor vandalism reasons. He forgot what position he played, but Anthony had always been easy to spot. He moved fast enough, but the real thing that everyone noticed was his strength. He could knock people out of his way like they were cardboard cutouts. He was tall, muscled, dark hair shaved close to his skull, equally dark eyes glinting and focused.
"Hey, Tony!" Joe called cheerfully, and the teenager broke away from the punching bag long enough to nod hello, give Sano a measuring look, then caught up a Coke bottle and took a long drink from it. Sano eyed it hungrily, then lifted his eyes brazenly to Anthony's.
"Hey, can I have some of that?" he asked abruptly.
Anthony was silent, then nodded and tossed him the bottle.
Sano drank thirstily, then tossed it back. Anthony caught it easily, then returned it to its place by his foot.
There was a long silence as Anthony contemplated the punching bag.
"Hey, Tony, I'm gonna get goin', 'kay?" Joe broke the silence, voice hopeful. "I'll see you at the meeting tomorrow."
"You'll actually be awake in time? It's an early one... I know it's not your forte." There was a note of sardonic humor in his tone, and Sano blinked in moderate surprise. He'd never expected the slightest bit of wit from someone so... serious.
"Yeah, I'll be there! It's- it's important, right...?" His voice dropped off on that, and Sano blinked at him briefly. A sudden darkness had fallen over his face, a sudden hesitancy, even... even unease?
"Yeah. I'll see you tomorrow, Joe."
Sano watched the blond leave, unable to shake the feeling that something seemed... well, just wrong...
Within seconds, the sounds of fist against punching bag resumed, and Sano returned his attention to finding something to train with. Did he feel like lifting weights, or...
And then something exploded.
He spun, every danger sense he owned going off at red alert, only to see the punching bag Anthony had been attacking bouncing off the far wall. The chain that had held it dangled innocently from the ceiling, unbroken. Had it detached...?
No. The top of the bag was torn... the chain had ripped through it. He had knocked it off, without even breaking a link of metal.
There was a pulse of silence in the small room, and then Sano found himself blurting out like a little child, "How the Hell did you DO that?"
Anthony turned to face him, a peculiar look in his dark eyes. "It's something I taught myself," he responded almost warily. "You know, how you can pull a tablecloth out from underneath a pile of glasses and not disturb them... It all has to do with downward forces and-"
"I don't understand physics," Sano interrupted, waving a hand, heart pounding. "But you're saying... that if you hit it right, you can knock that thing off without breaking the chain, every time."
Anthony nodded silently.
Sano swallowed, then focused on him. "What would happen if you did that on a human body?" he asked, mouth dry.
He appeared to consider that for a moment, then nodded, eyes glittered. "That's what it was designed for, the technique. If done with the right amount of force to a torso, it will knock a two hundred pound man five feet backwards. If done with more force and at the correct area, it could easily knock a bone so far out of joint it would be unusable."
"Can you teach me how to do that?" Sano asked hurriedly, hungrily, hands clenching. "Can you? I mean-"
"I can," Anthony said softly. "It was never meant to be taught, but..." His dark eyes cased his figure, his arms. "I can teach you... but first..."
"Anything. Anything. What?"
"How do you feel about the present government?" Anthony asked crisply.
Sano stared at him for a moment, then blinked. "I hate it," he said honestly. "The government took away from me a man I once called my mentor, even my father. And it's taken away everything I had two weeks ago."
Anthony stared into his eyes, then nodded.
"It's based on resistance," he said calmly. "When hit, an object resists. A good deal of the force is wasted. If the first blow is of a certain strength, the object resists the force, but only uses as much energy as necessary. If hit in the instant it is resisting with a much stronger blow, the added force will move it without the force spreading to any other area of the object."
"Wouldn't that disintegrate it?" Sano blinked, trying to make sense of this.
"You've been reading too many comic books," Anthony observed, before moving towards the door. "I'll give you a month. You don't leave this room."
"I don't have a month!" Sano interrupted, hands clenching at his sides. "I don't have that much time. I-" He grinned rakishly, a realization dawning upon him.
"Seven days," he pronounced grandly. "I'll do it in seven days!"
Anthony stopped and considered him for a moment, then sighed and shook his head. "You're determined...?" he whispered, a dark brow raised . "Seven days?"
"Yeah!" Sano grinned, heart racing like mad in his chest. Yeah, he could do it! He could learn any fighting style now, now with his desperate ambition and flooding adrenaline...
And suddenly, the glint in Anthony's dark eyes froze to ice, and Sano bit back a sudden sense of foreboding. Something didn't look right, there... something he hadn't thought to-
"Fine. Seven days," the young man said shortly. "And as I have said, you don't leave this room."
"What?!" Sano yelped, interrupting. "I have to EAT, y'know! And-"
"There's a bathroom adjoined to this room," he cut in ruthlessly. " I work every night this week, so I'll leave you food enough when I leave. If you conserve it for meals or eat it all for breakfast is up to you. Before you even think of trying to leave, the door locks from the outside, and I'm taking the key home with me. There will be a sign posted outside to alert everyone that it is closed to public use."
Sano stared at him, jaw hanging open.
"And finally, at the end of the week..." Anthony's eyes bored into his. "We fight. If you haven't mastered the technique..."
"I kill you."
The door swang shut on those simple words, and Sano could do nothing but stare for what seemed like hours.
And then he summoned his strength and blasted a punch into the nearest bag. All right. So he was a little weird. Okay, more than a little weird, maybe rather addled. But he could handle that. It wasn't as if he wasn't used to strange things by now. A homocidal teacher. He could handle that.
He had to be strong.
Sano grinned, eyes closed, the bag already yielding under his fists. "I'll get stronger," he muttered under his breath, finding his rhythm. "Wherever you are, Kenshin, wherever you might be... I'll get there!"
"So wait for me there!"