Author's Note: Woohoo! Another chapter up! In this chapter we have some
more Soujiro/Misao interacting so Soujiro/Misao fans rejoice! Now, after
rejoicing, please read the chapter and leave a review once you're done
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The sudden sound of footsteps was the evidence that the Tenken had returned. Though his pace once had been one of confidence and power, it now showed that his power had.....weakened. And his confidence became that of uncertainty. Even his smile seemed a bit different. His sheathed sword gave off the scent of recently spilled blood.
'Such strange things he had said,' Soujiro thought to himself. 'What had Himura done to him? Before, at the village, Himura should've killed Senkaku.'
Slowly, Soujiro's train of thought went towards the meeting with Senkaku.
*************************************************************
Senkaku sat near the river, looking down at it. The sun's rays reflected against the water's surface as he stared into the watery depths. His back was turned to Soujiro, who stood a few feet away from him with his back also turned, except he was standing. There was a long silence, which was only broken by the running river.
"Are you here to kill me?" Senkaku finally asked.
"Shishio said you weren't a problem since he didn't tell you anything important or give you any real responsibility," exclaimed Soujiro. He paused, as Senkaku suddenly sighed, his expression coming of ease. That was until Soujiro continued with, "Shishio said that but.....Senkaku how can you stand being alive? Himura defeated you."
Senkaku's expression immediately became one of surprise. His eyes moved to where he knew Soujiro was, despite his back being turned to the Tenken. His expression suddenly softened, and he looked back down at the flowing river. "He didn't want to kill me," he spoke again. "If he didn't show me mercy, I would have been killed by Shishio and I would be floating in a pool of blood in hell right now."
He looked over his shoulder at Soujiro before continuing, "But I'm alive to see another day. I thank him." He once again turned to the river, closing his eyes and letting the peace around him comfort him. "Battousai isn't only a strong person. He isn't like Shishio who lives to see others die."
Soujiro stared at nothing in particular. His mind slowly digested the words Senkaku had spoken, his expression slowly turning into one of confusion. He then turned around, just in time to see a bird suddenly streak towards the river, it dived into the water and appeared a second later with a small fish in its mouth.
In that instant, as Soujiro watched the bird fly off with the morsel, Shishio's teachings rang loud and true. The strong survive and the weak die.
Soujiro turned to Senkaku, the giant's back turned to him. Senkaku is weak.....he should die. The Tenken smile appeared on Soujiro's face as his hand wrapped around the handle of his sword.
A minute passed, Soujiro having already disappeared. Senkaku still sat near the river, never moving.
But that was because he couldn't.
Senkaku's eyes were now wide and lifeless. The river continued to flow before him, with his blood mixing with the water.
*************************************************************
'After all, this world is a survival of the fittest,' thought Soujiro, thinking the same thing that Shishio had told him. 'The strong live. If not, they die.'
Soujiro had thought that. He had thought of it when he went to find Senkaku, thought of it when he spoke with Senkaku, and had thought of it after he killed Senkaku.
But.....for some reason.....he couldn't help question his master's teachings.
Soujiro roughly shook his head, scolding himself. "Shishio can't be wrong," he said aloud, though no one was around to hear him. "Himura has to be wrong." He sighed, not really knowing where he was going. He was just letting his feet do the walking.
'I don't know why, but I can't understand Himura. This non-killing Kenshin Himura.....non-killing Himura. It's just wrong. His reverse blade was wrong.'
In the end, Soujiro couldn't help but compare Himura's destroyed reverse blade sword with the weak. Himura's reverse blade was weak. It was destroyed, just like people die when they are weak. His sword reflects himself. His sword was weak, and so was he. His sword was destroyed, and when Soujiro faced Himura again, Himura will die.
Soujiro's feet suddenly stopped. Curious at where they led him, he looked up to see what was in front of him.
"Interesting," he murmured to himself, staring in front of the door to Misao's prison.
*************************************************************
Angel Misao was seated on the same chair that she had knocked Devil Misao off of. She only stared at Misao, who was looking down at her folded hands with the thoughts of what her shoulder angel had just told her. The winged Misao fixed another string to her harp. Her wounds from the catfight with Devil Misao had been healed, and even her halo had been repaired.
She suddenly stopped on the repairs of her harp to look up at the door. Slowly a smile formed as she sensed the presence of someone behind the door. Knowing who it was, she turned to Misao and her smile seemed to widen. She stood up from her seated position, dusting herself off.
"I will be going now," she spoke, causing Misao to look up at her. With a smirk she said, "Have fun Misao." Before Misao could comprehend what Angel Misao had meant, her angel self had disappeared in a puff of white smoke.
Almost immediately, the door to her room suddenly opened. Misao looked up, just as Soujiro entered her room.
She saw it right when he walked in.
Behind that mask, she saw conflicting thoughts battle against each other. His eyes, smile, even as he stood before her, she saw that something had changed within the Tenken. What event that took place after he had left her the first time, she didn't know. All she knew that this Soujiro, was slightly different then the Soujiro she had spoken to a few hours ago.
"Greetings again Misao," greeted Soujiro, smiling his new smile at her. "How has it been going while I was away?"
"Like hell," she replied simply, glaring at him, though her glare seemed to be a bit weaker then it normally was.
Soujiro chuckled, and even Misao couldn't help notice how THAT changed too. Everything about Soujiro had changed. It left Misao to wonder what had happened. Despite how she had only known Soujiro for about an hour, she couldn't help but think she had known Soujiro completely during that time. He was a heartless killer, taking orders from an oversized and overcooked bacon wrapped in bandages, and all that he lived for was to kill. But now, even though these changes within him were small, Misao now knew that she didn't know him at all.
"I want to know something," said Soujiro, sitting on the ground so he was face to face with Misao. "I would've asked Senkaku that but I guess I forgot to ask him."
"Then why don't go find him again and ask him?"
"Well it's simple really." He continued to smile even as he spoke the next two words from his mouth. "He's dead."
Misao's green eyes widened. It didn't take a genius to know how Senkaku had died. "You killed him?"
"Yep." Soujiro unconsciously let his hand grasp the hilt of his sword. He slid it out slightly, just enough for the blood covered blade to reveal itself. "And the weak die."
Misao only stared at the sword. "You killed him," she said, this time knowing it instead of questioning it.
"Yep." He slid his sword back into his sheath. "But enough of Senkaku. There is something I want answered."
"What makes you think I'll answer it?"
Soujiro chose to not answer it. Instead he asked, "Why did Himura use the Ryu-Sho-Sen before?"
"What?" asked Misao, blinking, unsure of the question. "Ryu-Sho-Sen?"
"Back at the village, he revealed it to Shishio on purpose," continued Soujiro. "But he could've defeated Senkaku without the Ryu-Sho- Sen. So why did he use it?" He stared at Misao with his blue eyes, patiently waiting for an answer.
He wasn't expecting the answer so soon.
Misao only stared at him, a surprise look on her face. Then her expression became one of anger before she exploded. "You stupid or what!?"
Soujiro blinked. He hadn't expected that. The question seemed hard for him to answer. "Hm?"
"You don't understand Himura at all!" shouted Misao, poking a finger against Soujiro's chest. "Shishio told Senkaku that if he didn't force Himura to reveal one of his techniques, Shishio would kill him right?" Not waiting for him to acknowledge her, she continued to poke her finger against his chest as she explained. "So Himura gave up his technique because it would save Senkaku's life! Just because he was an enemy, he still respects life. Because Himura is like that!"
Finished speaking, Misao crossed her arms over her chest and had a triumphant smirk. Soujiro could only stare, eyes wide with surprise and confusion. Despite Misao's answer and how much sense it made.....he still didn't understand. None of it did.
'Non-killing,' he thought, the word seeming to haunt his thoughts. 'But.....that can't be right. The strong survive and the weak die.' He paused, and then suddenly finished his thought with, 'Right?'
He shook his head, his smile appearing once again. "He should have killed him then," he spoke, surprising the ninja girl. "Himura with his strange non-killing ideas. He made Senkaku say such weird things."
"Weird things?" questioned Misao.
If Soujiro had heard Misao, which he obviously did, he chose not to answer her. Instead he shook his head before ending up staring at the floor. Misao blinked when she noticed that Soujiro's smile was still frozen on his face even as he thought. Misao tilted her head so she could look at his eyes. His eyes showed conflict like before. And again, like before, she saw that destroyed innocence flash through his eyes again between the conflict of thoughts before resorting back to their normal emotionless gaze.
"What happened?"
Soujiro looked up at her. "I told you what happened. Senkaku said weird things and I killed him."
Misao shook her head. "No not that."
Soujiro tilted his head at her. "I don't know what you mean Misao."
Misao pointed to his upturned lips. "Did you always smile like that?"
His smile faltered, but regained itself a split second later. Her question caught him off guard and at first he didn't really know what to say. And then finally he gave her an answer.
The truth.
"No."
*************************************************************
"Hm.....I see," spoke a younger Shishio. Though he was younger, he was still his burnt up and bandaged self. The only thing that was different was his age. "They're like insistent rats, huh."
He sat upon some barrels of rice. Across from him sat a small child. No features were seen because of his face buried in his arms.
"After you get beaten like that," Shishio continued, "you still smile huh?"
"Huh?" asked the small child, suddenly raising his head from his arms, revealing the face of a much younger Soujiro. "What?" His young mind suddenly figured out what Shishio said. "Yeah I know. Strange, isn't it?"
Shishio only stared at him, waiting for him to continue.
"But I wasn't always like this," Soujiro spoke again. "When I first came here, I used to cry or get angry. But if I got angry and resisted, or started to cry, they'd beat me even harder saying, shut up, don't talk back. But if I kept smiling, they lose interest in me. Even when the pain gets unbearable, or I want to hurt them.....I just keep smiling."
Soujiro lowered his face into his arms again. Shishio continued to remain silent, only watching Soujiro with a searching look. A few seconds later, Soujiro raised his head again and stared at Shishio with his young smile.
"That's the way it is. I was adopted.....and I'm not their real child."
"You're wrong," Shishio suddenly spoke, catching Soujiro by surprise.
"Huh?"
"It doesn't matter who was beating you," exclaimed Shisho. "It's because you're weak. That's why you're wrong. The world is a survival of the fittest after all. If you're strong you survive. But if you're weak you die. A false smile does not stop this world from beating you for pleasure."
Soujiro only stared, his smile forgotten and looked at Shishio with a puzzled look. 'The strong survive,' he thought, 'and the weak.....die.' He suddenly blinked with surprise when Shishio suddenly held a short sword to him, a wakizashi.
"See what you can do with this. Take it as a rent for allowing me to stay here."
Soujiro again only stared, now with surprise then puzzle. He hesitated, but slowly he raised his hands and took the sheathed sword.
*************************************************************
"What happened to you Soujiro?" Misao asked again. "I can tell you were never like this."
For a moment, Soujiro didn't speak. He became deep in thought, memories running through his mind, his smile forgotten. When he did react, his Tenken smiled had returned. And before Misao could react, Soujiro's blood stained sword was held to her throat.
Misao immediately held her breath, her eyes wide. She didn't move, didn't speak, or even breathe. She could only stare at Soujiro and the blade held to her throat.
"You're weak," Soujiro spoke. "You should die."
'He's going to kill me,' Misao thought, for once feeling fear clench her heart.
But to her surprise, Misao suddenly saw the Tenken's hand that held the sword suddenly shake. There was a sudden clatter as the sword suddenly fell from Soujiro's hand, which was now on his head. Misao's first instinct was to grab the drop sword.
She would too, if something wasn't holding her back.
Instead, she only watched as Soujiro's smile disappeared, and had a pained look on his face. He only held his hand to his head, wondering why it pounded so painfully. Wordlessly, with a hand still to his head, Soujiro used his other hand to grab the dropped blade. He sheathed it before standing up and walking to the door.
Misao watched him go. He opened the door and disappeared behind it, closing the door behind him.
"A psycho is guarding me," Misao said to herself.
"I told you he was crazy," spoke a fully healed Devil Misao, appearing on Misao's shoulder. "He's going to kill you instead of guarding you one day. He almost did today. What about tomorrow?"
Misao didn't respond. She only stared at the floor, fingers laced together.
"If I were you," continued Devil Misao, "I would think about escaping right now."
And Misao found herself agreeing.
*************************************************************
It was raining that unusually cold night. Raindrops dropped on the ground, creating a nice rhythm. The door to the warehouse opened, and Shishio stepped forward to see the scene before him. He knew this was going to happen, and he had been planning on it to happen.
Bodies were littered on the ground, five bodies to be exact. These are, or were, Soujiro's "family". The said younger Tenken stood in the center of the carnage, the short sword Shishio had given him clutched in his hand.
And the sword had been stained with blood of the dead victims.
Soujiro let his bangs hang in front of his face, his expression hard to figure out. Shishio leaned against the warehouse door, his knuckles against his face as he stared at Soujiro. Suddenly his eyes narrowed.
"Are you crying?" he asked.
Soujiro didn't respond. Instead he raised his head to the sky, letting the rain splash against his face. Finally he turned to face Shishio, his smile on his face.
"No."
Shishio grinned.
*************************************************************
'What's happening to me?' Soujiro asked himself, his hand never leaving his pounding head. 'Why is my head pounding?' Memories of that dreadful night bombarded his thoughts. He leaned against the wall, his breathing rather forced.
For some reason, as he thought of reasons why this was happening to him, it ended up on Misao.
"She's doing this to me," he said aloud, grimacing as another wave of pain shot through him. "But.....how is she doing this to me? And.....why?"
*************************************************************
Author's Note: Truthfully, I'm quite proud of this chapter. I loved how it came out. I used some of my downloaded RK episodes for reference, and now you have this wonderful chapter you have just read. So did you like it? Hate it? Well whatever, just leave me a review please!
*************************************************************
The sudden sound of footsteps was the evidence that the Tenken had returned. Though his pace once had been one of confidence and power, it now showed that his power had.....weakened. And his confidence became that of uncertainty. Even his smile seemed a bit different. His sheathed sword gave off the scent of recently spilled blood.
'Such strange things he had said,' Soujiro thought to himself. 'What had Himura done to him? Before, at the village, Himura should've killed Senkaku.'
Slowly, Soujiro's train of thought went towards the meeting with Senkaku.
*************************************************************
Senkaku sat near the river, looking down at it. The sun's rays reflected against the water's surface as he stared into the watery depths. His back was turned to Soujiro, who stood a few feet away from him with his back also turned, except he was standing. There was a long silence, which was only broken by the running river.
"Are you here to kill me?" Senkaku finally asked.
"Shishio said you weren't a problem since he didn't tell you anything important or give you any real responsibility," exclaimed Soujiro. He paused, as Senkaku suddenly sighed, his expression coming of ease. That was until Soujiro continued with, "Shishio said that but.....Senkaku how can you stand being alive? Himura defeated you."
Senkaku's expression immediately became one of surprise. His eyes moved to where he knew Soujiro was, despite his back being turned to the Tenken. His expression suddenly softened, and he looked back down at the flowing river. "He didn't want to kill me," he spoke again. "If he didn't show me mercy, I would have been killed by Shishio and I would be floating in a pool of blood in hell right now."
He looked over his shoulder at Soujiro before continuing, "But I'm alive to see another day. I thank him." He once again turned to the river, closing his eyes and letting the peace around him comfort him. "Battousai isn't only a strong person. He isn't like Shishio who lives to see others die."
Soujiro stared at nothing in particular. His mind slowly digested the words Senkaku had spoken, his expression slowly turning into one of confusion. He then turned around, just in time to see a bird suddenly streak towards the river, it dived into the water and appeared a second later with a small fish in its mouth.
In that instant, as Soujiro watched the bird fly off with the morsel, Shishio's teachings rang loud and true. The strong survive and the weak die.
Soujiro turned to Senkaku, the giant's back turned to him. Senkaku is weak.....he should die. The Tenken smile appeared on Soujiro's face as his hand wrapped around the handle of his sword.
A minute passed, Soujiro having already disappeared. Senkaku still sat near the river, never moving.
But that was because he couldn't.
Senkaku's eyes were now wide and lifeless. The river continued to flow before him, with his blood mixing with the water.
*************************************************************
'After all, this world is a survival of the fittest,' thought Soujiro, thinking the same thing that Shishio had told him. 'The strong live. If not, they die.'
Soujiro had thought that. He had thought of it when he went to find Senkaku, thought of it when he spoke with Senkaku, and had thought of it after he killed Senkaku.
But.....for some reason.....he couldn't help question his master's teachings.
Soujiro roughly shook his head, scolding himself. "Shishio can't be wrong," he said aloud, though no one was around to hear him. "Himura has to be wrong." He sighed, not really knowing where he was going. He was just letting his feet do the walking.
'I don't know why, but I can't understand Himura. This non-killing Kenshin Himura.....non-killing Himura. It's just wrong. His reverse blade was wrong.'
In the end, Soujiro couldn't help but compare Himura's destroyed reverse blade sword with the weak. Himura's reverse blade was weak. It was destroyed, just like people die when they are weak. His sword reflects himself. His sword was weak, and so was he. His sword was destroyed, and when Soujiro faced Himura again, Himura will die.
Soujiro's feet suddenly stopped. Curious at where they led him, he looked up to see what was in front of him.
"Interesting," he murmured to himself, staring in front of the door to Misao's prison.
*************************************************************
Angel Misao was seated on the same chair that she had knocked Devil Misao off of. She only stared at Misao, who was looking down at her folded hands with the thoughts of what her shoulder angel had just told her. The winged Misao fixed another string to her harp. Her wounds from the catfight with Devil Misao had been healed, and even her halo had been repaired.
She suddenly stopped on the repairs of her harp to look up at the door. Slowly a smile formed as she sensed the presence of someone behind the door. Knowing who it was, she turned to Misao and her smile seemed to widen. She stood up from her seated position, dusting herself off.
"I will be going now," she spoke, causing Misao to look up at her. With a smirk she said, "Have fun Misao." Before Misao could comprehend what Angel Misao had meant, her angel self had disappeared in a puff of white smoke.
Almost immediately, the door to her room suddenly opened. Misao looked up, just as Soujiro entered her room.
She saw it right when he walked in.
Behind that mask, she saw conflicting thoughts battle against each other. His eyes, smile, even as he stood before her, she saw that something had changed within the Tenken. What event that took place after he had left her the first time, she didn't know. All she knew that this Soujiro, was slightly different then the Soujiro she had spoken to a few hours ago.
"Greetings again Misao," greeted Soujiro, smiling his new smile at her. "How has it been going while I was away?"
"Like hell," she replied simply, glaring at him, though her glare seemed to be a bit weaker then it normally was.
Soujiro chuckled, and even Misao couldn't help notice how THAT changed too. Everything about Soujiro had changed. It left Misao to wonder what had happened. Despite how she had only known Soujiro for about an hour, she couldn't help but think she had known Soujiro completely during that time. He was a heartless killer, taking orders from an oversized and overcooked bacon wrapped in bandages, and all that he lived for was to kill. But now, even though these changes within him were small, Misao now knew that she didn't know him at all.
"I want to know something," said Soujiro, sitting on the ground so he was face to face with Misao. "I would've asked Senkaku that but I guess I forgot to ask him."
"Then why don't go find him again and ask him?"
"Well it's simple really." He continued to smile even as he spoke the next two words from his mouth. "He's dead."
Misao's green eyes widened. It didn't take a genius to know how Senkaku had died. "You killed him?"
"Yep." Soujiro unconsciously let his hand grasp the hilt of his sword. He slid it out slightly, just enough for the blood covered blade to reveal itself. "And the weak die."
Misao only stared at the sword. "You killed him," she said, this time knowing it instead of questioning it.
"Yep." He slid his sword back into his sheath. "But enough of Senkaku. There is something I want answered."
"What makes you think I'll answer it?"
Soujiro chose to not answer it. Instead he asked, "Why did Himura use the Ryu-Sho-Sen before?"
"What?" asked Misao, blinking, unsure of the question. "Ryu-Sho-Sen?"
"Back at the village, he revealed it to Shishio on purpose," continued Soujiro. "But he could've defeated Senkaku without the Ryu-Sho- Sen. So why did he use it?" He stared at Misao with his blue eyes, patiently waiting for an answer.
He wasn't expecting the answer so soon.
Misao only stared at him, a surprise look on her face. Then her expression became one of anger before she exploded. "You stupid or what!?"
Soujiro blinked. He hadn't expected that. The question seemed hard for him to answer. "Hm?"
"You don't understand Himura at all!" shouted Misao, poking a finger against Soujiro's chest. "Shishio told Senkaku that if he didn't force Himura to reveal one of his techniques, Shishio would kill him right?" Not waiting for him to acknowledge her, she continued to poke her finger against his chest as she explained. "So Himura gave up his technique because it would save Senkaku's life! Just because he was an enemy, he still respects life. Because Himura is like that!"
Finished speaking, Misao crossed her arms over her chest and had a triumphant smirk. Soujiro could only stare, eyes wide with surprise and confusion. Despite Misao's answer and how much sense it made.....he still didn't understand. None of it did.
'Non-killing,' he thought, the word seeming to haunt his thoughts. 'But.....that can't be right. The strong survive and the weak die.' He paused, and then suddenly finished his thought with, 'Right?'
He shook his head, his smile appearing once again. "He should have killed him then," he spoke, surprising the ninja girl. "Himura with his strange non-killing ideas. He made Senkaku say such weird things."
"Weird things?" questioned Misao.
If Soujiro had heard Misao, which he obviously did, he chose not to answer her. Instead he shook his head before ending up staring at the floor. Misao blinked when she noticed that Soujiro's smile was still frozen on his face even as he thought. Misao tilted her head so she could look at his eyes. His eyes showed conflict like before. And again, like before, she saw that destroyed innocence flash through his eyes again between the conflict of thoughts before resorting back to their normal emotionless gaze.
"What happened?"
Soujiro looked up at her. "I told you what happened. Senkaku said weird things and I killed him."
Misao shook her head. "No not that."
Soujiro tilted his head at her. "I don't know what you mean Misao."
Misao pointed to his upturned lips. "Did you always smile like that?"
His smile faltered, but regained itself a split second later. Her question caught him off guard and at first he didn't really know what to say. And then finally he gave her an answer.
The truth.
"No."
*************************************************************
"Hm.....I see," spoke a younger Shishio. Though he was younger, he was still his burnt up and bandaged self. The only thing that was different was his age. "They're like insistent rats, huh."
He sat upon some barrels of rice. Across from him sat a small child. No features were seen because of his face buried in his arms.
"After you get beaten like that," Shishio continued, "you still smile huh?"
"Huh?" asked the small child, suddenly raising his head from his arms, revealing the face of a much younger Soujiro. "What?" His young mind suddenly figured out what Shishio said. "Yeah I know. Strange, isn't it?"
Shishio only stared at him, waiting for him to continue.
"But I wasn't always like this," Soujiro spoke again. "When I first came here, I used to cry or get angry. But if I got angry and resisted, or started to cry, they'd beat me even harder saying, shut up, don't talk back. But if I kept smiling, they lose interest in me. Even when the pain gets unbearable, or I want to hurt them.....I just keep smiling."
Soujiro lowered his face into his arms again. Shishio continued to remain silent, only watching Soujiro with a searching look. A few seconds later, Soujiro raised his head again and stared at Shishio with his young smile.
"That's the way it is. I was adopted.....and I'm not their real child."
"You're wrong," Shishio suddenly spoke, catching Soujiro by surprise.
"Huh?"
"It doesn't matter who was beating you," exclaimed Shisho. "It's because you're weak. That's why you're wrong. The world is a survival of the fittest after all. If you're strong you survive. But if you're weak you die. A false smile does not stop this world from beating you for pleasure."
Soujiro only stared, his smile forgotten and looked at Shishio with a puzzled look. 'The strong survive,' he thought, 'and the weak.....die.' He suddenly blinked with surprise when Shishio suddenly held a short sword to him, a wakizashi.
"See what you can do with this. Take it as a rent for allowing me to stay here."
Soujiro again only stared, now with surprise then puzzle. He hesitated, but slowly he raised his hands and took the sheathed sword.
*************************************************************
"What happened to you Soujiro?" Misao asked again. "I can tell you were never like this."
For a moment, Soujiro didn't speak. He became deep in thought, memories running through his mind, his smile forgotten. When he did react, his Tenken smiled had returned. And before Misao could react, Soujiro's blood stained sword was held to her throat.
Misao immediately held her breath, her eyes wide. She didn't move, didn't speak, or even breathe. She could only stare at Soujiro and the blade held to her throat.
"You're weak," Soujiro spoke. "You should die."
'He's going to kill me,' Misao thought, for once feeling fear clench her heart.
But to her surprise, Misao suddenly saw the Tenken's hand that held the sword suddenly shake. There was a sudden clatter as the sword suddenly fell from Soujiro's hand, which was now on his head. Misao's first instinct was to grab the drop sword.
She would too, if something wasn't holding her back.
Instead, she only watched as Soujiro's smile disappeared, and had a pained look on his face. He only held his hand to his head, wondering why it pounded so painfully. Wordlessly, with a hand still to his head, Soujiro used his other hand to grab the dropped blade. He sheathed it before standing up and walking to the door.
Misao watched him go. He opened the door and disappeared behind it, closing the door behind him.
"A psycho is guarding me," Misao said to herself.
"I told you he was crazy," spoke a fully healed Devil Misao, appearing on Misao's shoulder. "He's going to kill you instead of guarding you one day. He almost did today. What about tomorrow?"
Misao didn't respond. She only stared at the floor, fingers laced together.
"If I were you," continued Devil Misao, "I would think about escaping right now."
And Misao found herself agreeing.
*************************************************************
It was raining that unusually cold night. Raindrops dropped on the ground, creating a nice rhythm. The door to the warehouse opened, and Shishio stepped forward to see the scene before him. He knew this was going to happen, and he had been planning on it to happen.
Bodies were littered on the ground, five bodies to be exact. These are, or were, Soujiro's "family". The said younger Tenken stood in the center of the carnage, the short sword Shishio had given him clutched in his hand.
And the sword had been stained with blood of the dead victims.
Soujiro let his bangs hang in front of his face, his expression hard to figure out. Shishio leaned against the warehouse door, his knuckles against his face as he stared at Soujiro. Suddenly his eyes narrowed.
"Are you crying?" he asked.
Soujiro didn't respond. Instead he raised his head to the sky, letting the rain splash against his face. Finally he turned to face Shishio, his smile on his face.
"No."
Shishio grinned.
*************************************************************
'What's happening to me?' Soujiro asked himself, his hand never leaving his pounding head. 'Why is my head pounding?' Memories of that dreadful night bombarded his thoughts. He leaned against the wall, his breathing rather forced.
For some reason, as he thought of reasons why this was happening to him, it ended up on Misao.
"She's doing this to me," he said aloud, grimacing as another wave of pain shot through him. "But.....how is she doing this to me? And.....why?"
*************************************************************
Author's Note: Truthfully, I'm quite proud of this chapter. I loved how it came out. I used some of my downloaded RK episodes for reference, and now you have this wonderful chapter you have just read. So did you like it? Hate it? Well whatever, just leave me a review please!