Sakaki gapped at the young woman as well. He hadn't been expecting that from her. The force of the blow had caught him off guard and now he was weaponless. He looked from the girl he had known all his life to the Battosai, and back. There was most definitely love here. How could she love such a man knowing what great evils he had committed? This man had killed his wife and child, his cousin and his best friend, all without even pausing to think, and yet here she was, protecting him.

"How can you love such a man Kaoru-chan? How?" He asked. Her eyes were hard and determined as she looked at him.

"Kenshin is not like that anymore. He regrets everything that he has ever done and yet still he lives." She told him. He was surprised at the passion in her voice.

"Any lesser man would not have survived so long with such horrible sadness and regret. Any lesser man would have killed himself for what he done...but not Kenshin. This is why I love him." He saw the young woman's gaze drift over to the other man and saw his opening. He moved quickly, taking her bokken and spinning her around, using it to keep her pinned to him.

"What are you going to do now Battosai? I have your woman, and I will kill her so that you can feel the pain I once felt when you killed my loved ones!" He cried. He had become almost hysterical. He would not lose. Not to this man, not to this man. He edged over to his abandoned katana and picked it up, holding it parallel to her neck. He laughed giddily as he edged further away.

Kenshin's gaze did not falter as he followed the man's movements, his keen gaze tracking every move, looking for any opening possible. There were none that would avoid any harm to Kaoru, and he did not want to hurt her. He had been surprised at Kaoru's sudden confession. Had she really said what he thought she said? It almost seemed impossible, and yet the words seemed to fit, as though some part of him had been missing and now it was found. He watched in horror as Sakaki moved his arm back and went to slit her throat. Kenshin's eyes widened.

"No!" He yelled, trying to think of anything he could possibly do to stop the nightmare that was about to occur. Then, the nightmare changed, and though it was not as it had been, it was still petrifying. He watched as Sanosuke appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, and went to strike the man that held Kaoru captive. Sakaki let go of Kaoru and swung back, plunging the blade's tip into his side.

"Sanosuke!" The distraught cry sounded distant as rage and fear engulfed his senses. Everything went into slow motion as he ran over to help his friend, catching his head just as it was about to hit the ground. Then everything seemed to speed up again and he could feel the uncontrollable shaking of his body as it went into shock.

"Sano? Sano speak to me." He said, more calmly than he felt.

"M-Megumi?" He asked hoarsely. The doctor pushed through them and knelt beside the man she was in love with.

"I-I can fix it...you're going to be okay, I can fix it." She said quickly as she looked at him. Kenshin saw the look of hysterical despair written on her face. An expression he had seen too many times before, and he felt the weight in his heart strengthen its hold becoming heavier. He took the doctor in his arms and hugged her tightly. She tired to get free, but Kenshin held her fast.

"There's nothing you can do." He told her, his voice breaking. "It's a fatal wound, there's nothing you can do." Tears fell down his face as the doctor started to weep.

"Megumi..." She looked over at him. Kenshin let go of her so that she could go to him.

"Megumi...I lov-" His eyes rolled back into his head and he was still. Kaoru was also weeping,, though it was silently. Kenshin stood up, his violet eyes filled with grief.

"You have fulfilled your wish Sakaki-san...please leave us alone now." He said quietly. Tears streaming down his face.

"It must've been horrible to lose such a woman Battosai." He said. Kenshin clenched his fist and shut his eyes against the rising fury that was coming from the depths of his soul to engulf his logical mind.

"Shut up!" He hissed, trying to keep the anger under control.

"Did you feel as much grief when you killed your own wife as you do now?" He heard both women gasp and opened his eyes to look at them. The look of pure mortification on Kaoru's face was almost more than he could bare.

"Are you happy now! Get out! You have had your revenge, now get out! Or I will end your miserable existence." His eyes flashed a dangerous amber and he narrowed them as far down as they would go. Sakaki looked afraid for a moment, and then he sneered at him.

"Now for this wench." He said and started for Megumi. He moved quickly, more so than the eye could see and he swung out with the sakabatou, catching the man heavily in the stomach. He gasped and stepped back the air forced from his lungs.

"You will touch no more of my family." He told him. Sakaki was laughing huskily as he tried to catch his breath and then he swung out. Kenshin moved to the side, dodging the move with expert ease, not giving the other man a chance to react before her knocked him about the head. He fell to the ground, and Kenshin raised his blade. This could end now. He launched forward, the point of his blade ready for the kill. Then suddenly Kaoru appeared, using her body to shield the other man. Kenshin's eyes widened. He couldn't stop, she was in the way and he was traveling too fast to stop. It was happening all over again and the nightmare returned to his vision. Tomoe, her blood strewn about them as he impaled her with the blade of his katana. And then, it was like cherry blossoms falling about them, and it was Kaoru, not Tomoe that he held in his arms.

"No!" He cried, and he heard a distant clattering like metal hitting wood floor and he collided with softness and he wrapped his arms around it, not wanting to let go.

His body shook with fright, and he smelt Kaoru's light scent. Turning his head he found that he was faced with a smooth neck and silken hair. He squeezed tighter, afraid that she was really dead. Then, he felt her breathing and her comforting touch at the back of his head, stroking his hair. He wept with relief into her neck and then reached up and planted kisses all over her face, not stopping when their lips met and they embraced deeply. He broke the kiss and hugged her tightly once more. He didn't think he could ever let go.

"Ken-san!" He jumped and looked up just in time to see Sakaki readying to plunge his katana into his back. He rolled just in time, taking Kaoru with him, covering her body with his as they wheeled across the wooden floor. He let go of her and stood quickly and faced the other man.

"Sakaki-san we are through." He told him with finality.

"That you are." Kenshin turned his head quickly and was faced by the form of Saito, who stood in the doorway, a squad of policemen behind him.

" Sakaki, Toma-san...you are under arrest for the murder of Sagara, Sanosuke and the attempted murder of Himura, Kenshin." He informed him. The police squad came in and hand cuffed him, taking him out of the dojo before he could say anything. Saito tipped his hat solemnly and bowed to the dead body of Sano. Kenshin watched with a gape as the man left the dojo after his men, not stopping to look back. Had that been regret on his face? He looked over as tender fingers encircled his arm as he stood there. Kaoru stood beside him, her blue eyes wide with questions and grief.

"Kenshin...did you really?" She asked, very hesitant. He cringed and removed his arm from her hands and swept away silently, leaving the dojo and heading across the yard. He didn't stop when Kaoru called his name, he just kept walking.

It was his entire fault. So many things were his fault. He couldn't go a week in his life without someone suffering because of his name. He slid the gate opened loudly and then closed again. He looked from side to side, up and down the street until he decided which way he would go. He seriously considered taking the route to the police station but finally got the best over the rising dark inside of him and went the other way. He would go into the forest and contemplate. He needed, more than anything right now, to have a quiet place to sit and think and be by himself. He headed toward the lush growth that was situated behind the dojo and into the cherry grove. It was not spring and so the blossoms no longer graced the branches of the trees. It was a slight pity but it bothered him little. He would not be staying where they could find him so easily. He walked through them and into the denser forest. He was surrounded by towering pines whose scent tickled his sensitive nose. This was where he would stay. He strayed a little farther and then sat beneath one, its large branches serving as a perfect hiding place. Then they came. He couldn't stop them and so he let the tears trail down his face as he sat there, hunched against the tree. Sano was dead and there was no denying it. He wished that it had been him that Sakaki had stabbed. But he had been stupid and defenseless and had practically let Sakaki take Kaoru hostage. Sano had been a hero in his last moments on the earth and that was an honorable thing. Tomoe, too, had been a hero in her last moments. She had saved his life and given him the years that he would need to meet Kaoru and all the others. He couldn't help but think that perhaps it had been a bad thing that he had lived. Megumi's suffering, Sano, Kaoru, Yahiko...all had been a result of him. Too many had died in place of him, too many and it had to stop. It would perhaps be better if he just laid down there and gave up his life. Perhaps he could. Would it be that easy? Could one just give up and close their eyes and move on into the next life?

Soon he became weary, his eyes heavy from grief and he slept.

Megumi looked down sorrowfully at Sanosuke. She had lost everyone dear to her and now he too was gone. She was tired of it. She had seen the look of absolute terror on Kenshin's face when that man had stabbed his best friend. That pitiful man who deserved to die. She hoped he got the death sentence. She looked bitterly at the bloody spot on his side, and she turned her head suddenly, considering. The blood had sort of clotted and, now that she thought of it, there were no vital organs where he had been punctured. Her eyes flicked to his chest and saw that he was indeed breathing very shallowly. She moved aside the coat with excitement and took out her family's ointment, applying it to the wound. Kaoru, who had been keeping vigil beside her, looked up at her in surprise. She turned bright eyes to her friend.

"He's alive." She could barely contain her relief. "Look!" She said, pointing to his rising chest.

"He must have fainted from the pain." Kaoru said.

"Hurry up and get me those bandages over there!" She ordered. Kaoru nodded and fetched them.

"Someone has to tell Ken-san! He'll be so relieved."

"Yahiko, go find Kenshin." Kaoru told him. The boy nodded enthusiastically and ran out the door. Now to move him to a bed.

Yahiko ran down the path, panting as he went. He had a hunch that Kenshin had gone into the forest and not into town. He looked all around the Sakura grove but found no trace of the man. He hurried further into the forest and into the pine trees. He started looking under them and calling Kenshin's name. There was no answer, but he kept looking. Then, there was something about ten feet away. He caught a look at some red fabric. He crawled on his hands and knees to get to it, cringing the whole time as the needles from the pines dug into his hands and his knees. 'You think he would've chosen a more comfortable spot.' He thought to himself as he made his way closer to the older man. He came to a stop at the pine tree and ducked under to find Kenshin, sleeping sitting up.

"How does he do that?" He wondered to himself out loud. At taking a closer look at the Rurouni he saw something he never would've thought possible...there were lines where tears had fallen down his face. He shook his head sadly and shook his role model gently, so that he would not jerk him out of his slumber. Violet eyes snapped opened and he looked over at him.

"Yahiko? What are you doing here?" He asked. He didn't sound or look like he had just come out of a deep slumber at all.

"Kaoru and Megumi sent me to look for you." He said. The man nodded solemnly.

"Wait! Before you say anything...Sano's alive." The violet orbs nearly popped out of his head.

"What?"

"Yeah, I couldn't believe it either." He told him. Kenshin took Yahiko under one arm and launched himself forward. Yahiko had never experienced such speed before and he was amazed by it. They were back at the dojo's gates before he knew it and Kenshin put him down gently before running into the yard and up to the house and in through the opened door, not bothering with his sandals.

Kaoru heard the slapping of sandals on the hard wood floors of the dojo and knew it was Kenshin. She stood and opened the shoji screen, poking her head out into the hall and spotting him.

"Over here." She called to him. He came at a dead run and nearly knocked her over as he came through the door. She watched as he knelt beside Megumi and watched the now awake, but very groggy, Sano.

"Hey Kenshin..." He said weakly. Kenshin nodded, seeming to have calmed down. He looked very content and relieved now that he had seen for himself that he was still alive. Kaoru smiled affectionately at him. She touched her lips absently. Had he really kissed her like that back there? He must've been very frightened by what had almost happened. And then she remembered what Sakaki had said about a wife being killed by his own hands. Did he love her like that then? Like a husband would a wife? These were all questions she wanted answered and yet couldn't have them. Not yet. She looked over as Yahiko came into the room. He also fixed his gaze on Kenshin. Kaoru couldn't stand there and watch any longer and she went over to Kenshin and knelt down at his side, taking one his hands in hers. She looked back at him when he fixed his lavender gaze upon her.

"Kenshin...I don't think less of you for knowing what you did...if it's true of course." She added. His eyes fell and he looked sadly at Sano who had slipped back into slumber.

"Yes...it's true. But, it was an accident. There was no stopping it. If only her scent had reached me moments sooner she would still be alive...and I would be married to her." His eyes widened at the realization of what he had said and Kaoru looked away sadly. Despite his feelings for her, he still longed for what he could not have. She went to slip her hand out of his but he squeezed her hand and she looked over at him.

"Gomen ne Kaoru..." He had done it again. He said her name, and she smiled. She had made a decision, from that moment forward she would forever devote herself to him, and she would repair the damage that so many years of blood shed had inflicted upon him. That was her promise. She would be the light beyond his darkness.

She kissed his cheek and he looked at her in surprise and she got up to leave.

"Good night everyone." She said. It had been a long evening and now it was time for sleep.