Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or creations from Rurouni Kenshin. But I do share ownership of the original characters with other authors/readers. There's my disclaimer, so… have a nice day… or night.

The Black Sakura Book I – The Birth of Warriors – By Cherry Chibi

Chapter One

A/N: I apologise for advance if the beginning is a bit slow but I needed to introduce the characters.

~*~ 1/ Shadows ~*~

The night, cool and pitch black. Battousai, a powerful vampire of his time, walked at a steady pace on the gravel path in the forest. His fangs were sharp and the tips were stained with blood from his victim. Behind him followed a smiling vampire assassin and a woman. Eighteen year old Soujiro was walking silently closely behind Battousai, a smile etched on his face.

The woman had mid-back length brown hair with visible golden highlights as the moonlight shined on each strand. She had brown eyes with visible golden flecks in them. Athena was a full pledged witch with hints of vampire in her. She looked 17 but was actually 100 years old.

 "Battousai, do you sense it?" Athena asked cautiously, it was already bad enough the she and her older brother had an earlier on argument. It was lucky that Soujiro had been there or else there would have been an unnecessary earthquake.

 "That shockwave, it's the third time tonight…" Soujiro muttered. He looked up to the sky, "Could it be something about the Blue Moon tonight? Maybe someone's going through their transformation…"

Battousai's amber eyes pierced through the two impatiently; making them edgy. "We have no time to talk, get moving, we have to get to the Shadow Gates before Hiko pulls his tricks." (A/N: Battousai doesn't have an X scar yet, he only has on scar that is the one Tomoe's fiancé did)

 "Don't let my older brother get to you," Athena whispered to herself.

 "Shall we continue?" Soujiro asked, he was still smiling. "I sense humans coming,"

Athena nodded. They continued to walk. Battousai knew what was going on, he didn't live 230 years for nothing, the stories, the legends, the prophecies… whatever they were, he knew some of it had been true.

The Black Sakura was here. She would be the one to bring peace or destruction onto the three realms. Depending on who raises her. His frown deepened, 'The Black Sakura would have unbelievable power, I have to find her and keep her away from Death's Truth.'

The rest of their trip was silent. Creatures that lurked in the darkness scrambled away from the small group as they passed by. Everyone feared Battousai, his handsome face even sent chills down a being's spine. His blood-red hair made him distinctive.

 "Athena, you're floating again," Soujiro hissed, pulling Athena's black cloak to drag her back down. "You're… 100 years old and you act like a 14."

 "17 mind you," Athena answered.

 "In other words, you act dumber than me." Soujiro muttered.

 "Whatever," Battousai grunted as a warning to the two that his tolerance was running thin.

Lightning flashed above in the skies. They felt an energy surge pass through. Battousai's eyes shone a ravishing burning amber flame, something was going on. Thunder storms don't come during spring.

 "Looks like there's a new person in town," Soujiro said cheerily.

 "He can't take things seriously…" Athena felt the urge to use her magic and see if the boy was healthy in his mind. She mentally kicked and reminded herself. 'Soujiro did go through tough things after all…'

The group hurried on. They followed Battousai towards the Shadow Gates. Athena used a channel of energy and opened the entrance. Upon entering, Soujiro closed up locked them.

 "Home sweet home," Soujiro said happily.

 "Did you idiots remember to bring my sake?" Hiko emerged, he wore his stern face. Before he was the predecessor of the Shadows, he taught Battousai everything that was compulsory and handed the control of the group called Shadows over to him.

 "Yes papa," Athena made a bottle of sake appear and floated it to her father. "You know that you shouldn't drink so much…"

Hiko grunted. He took the bottle from mid-air. "Have you four noticed the storm?"

 "The Black Sakura is here." Battousai said.

Athena's eyes widened, she hesitated to believe. 'Snap out of it, I should trust his judgement… after all… he is older than me by…' Athena hooked her brown hair behind her right ear. "Shouldn't we be on the alert now? Since she is the only key to being able stop the war between the Humans, Kindred and Beasts?"

Hiko stared expectantly at his son. "Well?"

 "Athena, Soujiro," Battousai muttered, the two perked up, "Take Ixchel with you and investigate into this issue, I want to find out who is The Black Sakura, pinpoint where Death's Truth is and make sure that they don't go any further towards this area." His amber eyes held a deep power as usual.

After the other two left, Battousai took a seat opposite of Hiko. "What is it now?"

 "You say that the Black Sakura is here…" Hiko said, "Do you know what you're supposed to do?"

Battousai decided not to answer.

 "You will find her and stay with her. You will meet her soon, Athena has told me about her… premonitions and your… nightmares." Hiko started, he clear his throat, "Save yourself trouble and buy yourself some time, I know who the girl is."

Battousai's attention was intently focused on the words. "Who?"

 "A girl named Kaoru Kamiya, she is a friend of the troublesome part vampire, part demon girl named Surreal," Hiko said.

Amber eyes bored into Hiko's expression. A small smirk reached his lips before he vanished.

~*~ 2/ Black Sakura ~*~

Screams and thunder shocked a group of people from their sleep. Maya, a twenty one year old woman rushed out of her futon and slammed open the shouji door, she rushed through the halls, her raven coloured hair shone in the moonlight, and her deep blue eyes were in alarm. When she reached the room where the screams were coming from, she was pushed back by a force.

 "What's going on?!" Hitoshizuku appeared with her twin kodachi drawn. Panic skimmed over her tone. She blocked her ears as fresh scream enlightened. "She's having those nightmares again…" Hitoshizuku had midnight blue hair and crystal blue eyes. There was a barrier around the door, making it hard for the two women to enter.

Maya felt a different energy force from inside the room. "Toshi…"

Hitoshizuku faced Maya. "What is it?" Her face seemed to be paler than usual.

 "Jacky is in there, Kaoru will be alright… Jacky will be able to guide her through her nightmares tonight…"

 "Maya, this is not right…" Hitoshizuku said worriedly, "This has been happening too often lately," Lightning lit the building.

 "There's nothing we can do but go to rest," Maya replied. "You better get some rest; I'll go and check on the kids." She walked passed Hitoshizuku, "Good night.*

 "Night," Hitoshizuku replied with gritted teeth. She glared at the door. 'Kaoru, I know that you have extraordinary abilities, but I don't want them to kill you…' She vanished her kodachi and hesitantly headed back to her bedroom.

* * * *

Sweat broke on Jacqueline's forehead as she held Kaoru down with her magic. She tried to ease Kaoru's nightmares. 'Kaoru, don't let your mind shatter on me now…' The elf concentrated her magic.

 "STOP! PLEASE STOP!" Kaoru screamed. Tears were streaming from her eyes. Lightning flashed and lit the room. "LET THEM GO!!" Her nails dug into her blankets. Kaoru's back arched and then her body limped under the blankets. The storm stopped.

Jacqueline's black eyes eased open. She gulped deep amounts of breath. "Kaoru… you'll be alright now." She stroked Kaoru's forehead. "Get some rest…" Her eyes widened, a black sakura mark appeared on Kaoru's bare right shoulder. She stood. Her black hair cascaded down her back, reaching over her waist. She left the room and let the cool air swim over her face. 'This is unbelievable…'

It was getting harder by the day. Kaoru's powers were growing stronger. Her nightmares were becoming more regular. The cause was obvious but extremely unbelievable. Tonight, under the Blue Moon, her identity was awoken. She was her.

 'Never in the 30 years of my life…' Jacqueline thought, 'Have I ever felt such extreme power for anyone,' She felt weary and decided retreat to her bedroom. 'She's going to need us more than ever…'

* * * *

Maya pulled the blankets over the young boy vampire, "Everything will be alright Tori… Aunty Kaoru will be fine." She watched as six year old Tori fell asleep. She stood and eyed all of the young children who Kaoru had taken in sleep. Altogether, there were five children.

When she was sure that they were resting, she left the room and slid the shouji door shut silently. Her short form moved gracefully through the shadows. When she reached her room, immediately, she sensed something wasn't right.

Something or someone was lurking in the dojo. She summoned her sword from its fiery hell, the blade shone the hidden flames that burned magically and mysteriously in it and followed her instincts.

Her eyes darkened when they met with red eyes. She immediately attacked at the being but missed. She spun around but the presence vanished. 'These next few days are going to be hell…' Maya thought as she vanished her sword.

~*~ 3/ Shadows ~*~

 'My God, her strength…' Surreal, a fifteen year old girl thought as she walked on a gravel path through the woods. Her mid-back black hair was tied back into a braid, her red eyes faded back to lavender-violet. Her lips were curved into a small smile. 'I will definitely be honoured to serve a great leader like her…'

Suddenly, a woman around 22 leapt in front of her. Surreal eyed the woman. Her eyes were a mixture of green, yellow and brown, her long hair was brown with natural red highlights. Surreal knew at that point that this woman was a vampire because of her fangs.

*What do you want?* Surreal questioned through her telekinetic ability. She hadn't used her voice for five years. Her calm expression still held a small smile.

*Dinner human* Ixchel replied maliciously, *You are trespassing on Lord Battousai's territory.*

Surreal's pupils narrowed into serpent like slits. *I'm no human and I'm not afraid of Battousai or any of his companions. Now, I warn you… Ixchel, if you dare lay a fang or finger on me…*

Ixchel's eyes narrowed. 'Her scent is definitely familiar, but from where? And her smile…' Her temper and ki were rising. Surreal just tilted her head to a side and had her calm and serene look on her face, still smiling. Ixchel called in a short sword. *You should know the rules in this territory, Lord Battousai gives me permission to kill all enemies.*

Surreal sighed, 'Great,' She flicked out her double bladed black sceptre – 'Ebony Kiss', from the sleeve of her spring dress. 'I should've worn my other clothing.'

 "Whoa! Ixchel! What are you doing there?! We've been looking for-," Another woman entered the scene. Her brown hair had been teased by the wind. She turned her attention to Surreal and fell silent. "Another human…" She muttered. "Alright, dinner time for you but I'm out of here."

*I'm not human,* Surreal sent a sharp message to Athena. 'Why does everyone think that?' She thought to herself. A small meaningless smile was still plastered on her face.

Athena stopped in her tracks and glared at Surreal. "That means that you're Surreal, the one who has been interfering with my brother's operations against Death's Truth."

*I had a score to settle with them,* Surreal replied sharply.

 "You must be skilled then, very in fact," Athena said wistfully, "I'll leave Soujiro to take care of you."

Surreal's eyes widened.

 "What? You're scared of that guy?" Ixchel asked scornfully. "You have some nerve girl. At least he'll finish you off quickly whereas I would-"

A smiling young man appeared. His sword was unsheathed. "I heard a lot of noise coming from here," Soujiro said, "Did someone mention my name?"

 "This girl is really bugging me," Ixchel mumbled to herself, "really impudent."

Soujiro turned to face the girl and immediately for the first time ever, Ixchel and Athena saw his face fault for a millisecond. "Surreal?"

Surreal opened her mouth to speak but couldn't manage to say anything, she didn't know what to say.

Battousai appeared, his red glare shot right at Surreal. She kept her cool and serene look which agitated him. "You have explaining to do."

*No.* Surreal replied. *I don't have to answer to you. I only serve one person.*

 "And who may that be?*

*The Black Sakura,* Surreal then gave a final glance at Soujiro before she started sprinting.

Battousai glanced at Soujiro.

 "Yes sir." Soujiro ran.

~*~ 4/ Black Sakura ~*~

Kaoru's Dream

A large Sakura tree stood on a small piece of land. Kaoru held onto its trunk. Around the small island was a vast sea of blood. She squeezed her eyes shut but only saw amber. When she opened them again, she saw blood but the amber was there. Amber eyes embracing her and shielding her.

 "You're mine."

Those words hissed continuously through her mind. Confused by the words meaning. Confused by who said it.

End

Kaoru's eyes opened and she swallowed a scream when her eyes were fixed with amber. She felt his amber eyes burn the pools of sapphire. Unable to take away her eyes from him, she sat upright. "W-who are you?"

Battousai leaned back against the wall. Silent. He watched amused as the seventeen year old shifted uncomfortably on her futon. He had expected something else of the Black Sakura but she was… unique.

 "Alright, whoever you are, please leave my room…" Kaoru's words were filled with fear and awe, "Or else, tell me what you want with me…"

 "You are the Black Sakura, therefore…"

Kaoru bit her bottom lip. How did everyone else know? It was a secret she had kept for a few years.

Battousai stepped away from the wall. He used his magic and lifted Kaoru from under the blankets, placing her into a standing position, "I will be keeping a very close eye on you." He took a couple of steps closer to her.

Her breathing quickened, he was intimidating, she wanted to feel strong against him but there was something about him that scared the hell out of her. "You can't just take over my life…"

 "I didn't say I was going to," He crooned, "But come to think of it, it wouldn't be so bad would it?" He smirked when he saw the terror fill her sapphire eyes. It was going to be very interesting getting to know this girl. Very interesting indeed.

When Kaoru realised that she had been staring at him, she cleared her throat, blushed and looked away furiously. 'What am I going to do? I'm in my room, alone. With a very, intimidating person…no… vampire…' When she felt his presence coming closer she bolted for the door only some sort of force held her back and swung her to the opposite wall. She gritted her teeth and glared at him. 'He's toying with me…' She then smiled innocently, 'Alright, fine.' Two can play that game. "What do I call you then? If you're going to be my captor?"

Battousai frowned. "You don't call me anything." He used his strength to hold her against the wall and keep her still.

Kaoru raised her ki and broke through Battousai's force. She walked progressively to him. "You don't know what it feels like to be the one who is the victim do you?" Kaoru questioned, "Because you were always the one toying with others."

 'Impudent child,' Battousai thought.

 "Well, let's see… why would no one toy with you," She started counting on her fingers, "One, you seem strong, only I'm stronger. Two, you seem smart, but I'm smarter. Three, you always where a glare to scare people, I wear a smile to scare the hell out of people." Kaoru scanned through her memory to match the rumours together so that she could work out who this man was.

 "You are being futile," Battousai warned.

Kaoru crossed her arms. "Now, now, now, Battousai, you're the one being futile, I'm stronger than you." Kaoru warned scornfully.

 "Bitch."

 "Twisted, arrogant toy." Kaoru spat back. Before she knew it, Battousai had pinned her against the wall by her shoulders, red eyes glaring straight at her. Big mistake.

 "Enough playing," Battousai growled, "I'm going to explain this to you once. I'm going to be watching you and everyone who comes in contact with you carefully. If I see anyone or anything I don't like, prepare for blood shed." He vanished.

Kaoru felt her hands tremble. How could he do that to her? Why didn't she use her powers to eliminate him? She shivered, not knowing whether it was because of him or whether it was because it was cold.

~*~

A/N: How did you guys like it? Not bad? Well, next, I'm going to introduce the next group, 'Oniwabanshuu'. Drop me a review on what you think. ^-^x

Thank you and see you!

~ Cherry Chibi

PS. I've just realised that I've got a three week holiday coming up so I might not update when I should. *damn* I'll try my best to keep up though. ^-^x