Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin…I just worship it!
Chapter 2: Uneven Parallel Bars
Kyoto
It was dark and cold. The moon's slow descent above the treetops gave off an ominous glow. A faint silhouette was noticeable in the woods surrounding the city of Kyoto. A hooded figure walked down a path in the forest, the soft moss on the forest floor silencing the foot steps, enshrouding the figure in complete silence. The small hoots from owls and forest animals alike could be heard. The large tree's towered overhead, their canopy keeping the light from penetrating the leaves. The figure that had been walking stopped in the middle of a clearing and sat down against a tree.
"I should reach Tokyo tomorrow morning if I keep going, so I think I'll rest for a little while." The voice spoke softly. The figure huddled against their knees and fell into a light sleep.
Tokyo
"Kyaa!" Yahiko swung his bokken with all of his might, sweat pouring down his face in rivulets. He was practicing with all the strength he could muster. He wanted to get stronger; he wanted to be as strong as Kenshin one day, whether or not that was possible.
"Good Yahiko, one-hundred more and you're done for the day" replied a cheerful Kaoru. She was happy that Yahiko was cooperating today with out any confrontation like the previous one. Kaoru stood idly by and watched Yahiko's stance as he practiced his strokes commenting every now and then how this or that should be done and commending him on good work.
"Come on busu, you've gotta be kidding me?" Kaoru turned around, the vein in her head pulsing. 'Spoke too soon' she thought to herself.
"Make that one-hundred-fifty." She smiled at the open mouthed adolescent and walked over to the shrine where Kenshin sat. He had been reading over the letter from Saitoh since early that morning.
"Damn it!" Yahiko cursed under his breath.
"Two-hundred." Kaoru called from over her shoulder.
"Ugh!" Yahiko moaned. Kaoru giggled to herself and sat down beside Kenshin, worry hinting her features. He was deep in concentration reading and re-reading the letter over and over.
"Kenshin, you've been reading that letter all day long. What's it say already?" Kenshin looked up and smiled apologetically at Kaoru. He hadn't meant to worry her.
"Sorry to have worried you, it just gives the gist of what Megumi-dono told us yesterday, and nothing else. I have a feeling that Saitoh isn't telling us everything though judging by the way he wrote. I feel like there's another underlying factor beside this gang he's talking about." Kaoru laid a hand on Kenshin's shoulder trying to alleviate his small amount of distress over the small parcel.
"Don't worry about it; I'm sure he'll tell us when he arrives." Kenshin smiled at Kaoru.
"Thank you Kaoru-dono, I'll try not to." She beamed at Kenshin and slid closer to him. Kenshin took notice of this and blushed a faint shade of pink. Suddenly noticing the presence of two other people Kenshin blushed even deeper.
"Oh-ho so Kaoru's making a move on Sir Ken, ne?" Megumi grinned beside Sano from the pathway to the Shrine. Kaoru flushed fifteen different shades of red not realizing that they had an audience. Megumi grinned and sat down beside Kaoru as Sano leaned against the mahogany colored pillar.
"So what's going on?" Sano asked as he placed a fish bone in his mouth. Megumi frowned and plucked it out from between his lips. Before he could protest Kaoru interjected.
"Nothing really, we still haven't received anything from Aoshi and Misao." Megumi eyed Kaoru up and down. She was sitting in her usual practice attire and couldn't resist teasing Kaoru.
"You know Kaoru, you look awfully unladylike sitting there in that sweaty hakama and gi, you should try wearing kimono's." she said. Kenshin and Sano's eyes bulged, that was definitely the wrong thing to say to her. Kaoru began to turn red when she suddenly calmed down. She sighed and turned her attention to Megumi. Sano and Kenshin exchanged glances, wondering where Kaoru's outburst was and why she seemed so composed.
"You know Megumi, I may look unladylike but at least I don't have uneven parallel bars." She retorted with a smirk. Megumi raised an eyebrow obviously not catching on to Kaoru's insult.
"Uneven parallel bars?" she asked. Kaoru smiled and pointed at her chest. Sano burst out laughing so hard he fell on the floor laughing while Kenshin choked and tried to compose himself. Megumi didn't get it; she looked at them confused. Kaoru smiled ruefully to herself, glad to finally have one up on the conniving doctor.
"What are you talking about?" Megumi looked at each one of them hoping they would produce and explanation. Sano laughed even harder at Megumi's question. He laughed so hard he made everyone but Megumi laugh. Not entertained by their little inside joke Megumi placed her hands on her hips, waiting for an answer.
"Hahaha...Megumi...hahahaha...she's referring to your...Hahaha...breasts...HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Sano held his stomach he was laughing so hard. Kenshin blushed, embarrassed for Megumi-dono as Kaoru sat there in all her glory. Oh yeah, she had gotten her revenge. Megumi flushed a deep red and folded her arms across her chest trying to divert all of the attention with no luck.
"You go Jou-chan, that was great!" Sano exclaimed through his laughter. Kaoru bowed her head and lightly tapped herself on the back for a job well done. Megumi stood there and just blushed over and over.
A/n: Stay tuned!
