Author's notes: Okay, I didn't like the previous chapter very much. I think I used the same words too many times... I hope you were satisfied with it. Now, all the possible troubles came up before this chapter. The notes I had made to write this fic are lost, and I must try to remember what I had written. I also had to do some research for this chapter, I'm sorry it took me so long. And my computer wouldn't let me upload this chapter for two days. I'm sorry!

The Quest

Next morning Kenshin woke up early. He was still a little nervous of being back to this place and couldn't sleep very well. The sun was rising when he opened his eyes. He sat up and saw Seijuro still sleeping. But from what he remebered, he never slept late. Kenshin didn't feel like staying still, so he took a bucket and left to get water from the river, not even knowing if it was necessary. While he was walking down the path, he wondered how would he be able to find the next lead towards the mysterious lady. Maybe he should just do as Seijuro had said, wait for it to run into his arms. Kenshin wasn't sure if it would be any help, but he couldn't remeber Seijuro ever being wrong about anything. He had thought so when he was fourteen, but now, later, he understood it had been him who was wrong.

When he reached the river and bent down to fill the bucket, his thoughts wandered back to his childhood, the short childhood he had ever had. How many times had he bent down by this same river, ordered by his teacher...? Kenshin smiled at the memories. He remebered that with Seijuro, he had smiled the first time for years when he had been a child. He looked around. Everything was excactly like they had always been. Nothing had changed. The only thing that was different was him. Only he was different than years ago, learning Amakakeru ryu no hirameki, or over fifteen years ago, leaving the place to fight and murder. Only he had changed since then.

Kenshin stood up and left back. Once again he thought about the odd mission he had. 'Something you've dreamed of since you were made a swordsman'...? What could it mean? He didn't remeber dreaming about anything else than being strong or being happy, and he was both. And the lady couldn't give him something like that. What had she meant?

When he arrived to the hut, he saw Seijuro sitting on the log outside. The fire was burning happily in front of him, and he was obviously preparing breakfast. Kenshin went to him and nodded his head. Seijuro did the same.

"I got some water", Kenshin said.

"Okay", Seijuro answred. "Good thing, I was running out of it."

Kenshin smiled at him and went inside to take the tea pot, poured water into it and put it hanging above the fire. His eyes moved to the sky and he thought what was happening in Kamiya dojo. They were probably wondering the same thing as he was; what was going on?

He sat down opposite to his master. For a while they were both quiet, until Seijuro spoke:

"How have you been?"

"Very well, thank you", Kenshin answered. "Or perhaps, thanks to you. What about you, shishou? Are you not bored living all alone?"

"No", Seijuro said. "I'm used to it."

Another pause followed the short dialogue. After a minute or two the tea pot whistled and Kenshin rose to pick it up.

"I'll go get cups", he said and returned inside. He took two cups from a ledge and was about to leave, when he noticed a light yellow piece of paper lying on the ledge. The first thing Kenshin thought was that Seijuro had left one of the clue papers there, but picked it up from curiousity. His eyes widened and were almost twice as big as the cups in his hand. Speechless, he rushed outisde and pointed at the paper in his hand unable to say a word. Seijuro looked at him, thinking he had lost it, but took the paper from him.

"What is this?" he asked, frowning. Kenshin sat besides him and stuttered:

"I-it must be the next hint! See, the paper is, it's the same kind, like the two, see? It has to be!"

"Wild duck of the stream. What kind of a hint is that?" Seijuro muttered, but the tone of his voice was a little curious.

"Well, I'm not sure", Kenshin said. "But it has to mean something. You wouldn't have such a thing in your house, would you?"

"Absolutely not", Seijuro murmured. "Wild duck of the river... doesn't say too much."

For the rest of the day, Kenshin and Seijuro came up with several ideas and theorys, but after a second thought, they jettisoned the all of them. In anything they did, they tried to figure out what the writing had meant, never getting a proper answer. But while sitting inside having sake in the evening, something finally happened.

"It wouldn't mean we have to find a duck that has a paper in its mouth?" Kenshin suggested, but anyone could tell he wasn't being serious. He was laying on his stomach, leaning onto his elbows. Seijuro instead was sitting in front of him in a tailor's seat. They both had a half drunk cup of sake in front of them.

"I wouldn't be surprised", Seijuro sighed. "The whole thing is too weird. Anything could be possible. Wild duck... what wild duck?"

He rubbed his forehead. The men's brains were tired after thinking. Kenshin yawned.

"Could it have something to do with the stream nearby?"

"I doesn't have ducks in it", Seijuro said. "The bigger rivers do, but -"

Suddenly, he froze and his eyes widened a little. Kenshin looked at him curious and a little surprised.

"I got it", Seijuro muttered and quickly bent down to pick up the yellow paper. He glanced it and took another piece of paper from his bourdet. He wrote something on it and showed them both to Kenshin.

"It's written in hiragana in this clue paper, but if we write it in kanji like this, it's written in the same way as the name of Kamo River. Wild duck of the stream means Kamo River."

Kenshin's face melted into s mile as he sat up and looked at the papers.

"You're a genius, shishou! How didn't we notice it earlier?"

They had another cups of sake and decided that Kenshin would go to check on the river next morning. But even if they both agreed he should wake up early to avoid heavy traffic, it took fully five cups of sake before they went to sleep.

-End of chapter 4

I'm sorry it's short... but now I've got over the difficult part and from now on I know what's going to happen. Can you believe how difficult both Kenshin and Seijuro are to write? Brrr! Next time I'll write a story of a vegetable that Kenshin cooks for lunch. Vegetables aren't so difficult.

-Deer