A/N: Okay, so…. Hi! I'm Squee and this is my very first Kenshin fan fiction, and I'm really excited about posting it! I'll try to get one chapter a week uploaded, but I'm not sure how that will work out. Sometimes I get distracted and I don't work on it for a VERY long time. I'll try not to let that happen, but it might. About the chapter lengths, they generally vary. I've had very long chapters and extremely short chapters all in the same story! All the places I mention in this story are real places, and they are located where I say they are. Why? Because I'm weird!

A/N (cont.) Now, the first time I mention a Japanese word it will be in italics. This is because I like to feel like I know a lot of Japanese words. Most of the italicized words will be really easy ones that everyone knows, but there might be a few you don't know. At the end of the chapter, I'll have a word index with all those words in italics. And you'll probably know every single one of them! I hope you enjoy reading my story!

Disclaimer: I don't own Kenshin! Slavery is wrong! I do own a few characters (some of the ones you guys don't recognize) but I don't think they a very interesting ones. You can steal them from me, I don't care!

The Revolution

Chapter One: Chief Yagatoro

Himura Kenshin stepped into a tiny room- the bedroll took up most of the floor space- and looked around. Underneath the bedroll was a very worn and unwelcoming tatami, stained with blood, dirt, and Kenshin did not want to know what that slimy purple stuff was. The walls were plain and as unwelcoming as the tatami on the floor, and were decorated with stains, not unlike the floor ones, although missing the purple residue, and a small, square window. He looked in disdain at the closet sized room. This tiny and battered space was his new home.

He sat down cross-legged on the bedroll, with the point of his katana at his feet and the hilt resting lightly on the middle of his shoulder, and looked through the window, out into the night. It was late, and Kenshin was tired. It had taken him many days to reach the Ishin shishi, and over those days he had slept very little. The journey had, in fact, taken 7 suns to be completed, and most of that time was spent in the forest-covered mountain, Kaikomagatake in Yamanashi. Then, from Yamanashi, he had to head over to its neighbor on the east side, Tokyo. He slept only two nights, and ill-tempered bandits had interrupted both of them. By the time Kenshin had reached the Ishin shishi, it had been dark, and he had been exhausted.

But when he had arrived, he still needed to find the chief of the military so he could enlist. That had taken quite a while. Not only was chief Yagatoro very difficult to find, he had also been very wary about letting a mere boy join the military at the tender age of 13. He was, in fact, very convinced that Kenshin was simply too young! So, Kenshin had to spend time convincing Yagatoro otherwise.

"You're making me angry!" Kenshin had exclaimed. "You wouldn't like me, when I'm angry!" With those fateful and dreaded words, Kenshin Himura slowly began morphing into a different person. His hair quickly shortened and changed color to brown, he grew muscles the size of pumpkins, and his skin turned into an odd shade of green.

Umm… I'm just kidding! Actually, the truth of the matter is that Yagatoro had been enthusiastic about Kenshin's arrival; a large number of trainees had just been appointed to different squads and divisions, so they were very short on numbers, and they didn't have many to begin with. He talked to Kenshin about the importance of different ranks, fulfilling your duty, and a lot of military stuff that was very important. He was in a very deep conversation with himself about the meaning of the word "honor" when he realized that it was very late, and that the 13-year-old boy was probably tired. So he gave Kenshin a room, and that was that.

Kenshin stopped thinking about the night's previous events and he slowly drifted off into a light and fitful sleep. He'd always been a light sleeper since… Well, I'll tell you later, you aren't ready to hear it yet.

Kenshin awoke when the first rays of sunlight stretched over the treetops and in through his window. As the light began to dance upon his face, revealing his features, his eyes snapped open. He slowly straightened out his bedroll on the tatami, and carefully stood up. He left the room looking the exact same as it had when he first entered it the previous night. He walked around the halls quietly, as to not wake anyone up. The hallway had wooden floors and very plain walls.

At long last, Kenshin found his way to the dining room. This room was very similar to the other rooms he had seen, dirty wooden floors, worn tatami mats, and excruciatingly plain walls- though he wasn't very surprised about that. But it was also different. It had a very long table in the middle of it and it a few scattered people in it. There were 9 young men, he wagered between the ages of 18-21, a few serving maids, and himself. No, that wasn't it. There was also a young woman with stunning blue eyes dressed in a simple kimono with her black hair pulled back into a high ponytail1, and she seemed about his age. He ate onigiri that was placed in front of him by a serving maid, and didn't even pay attention to the taste. Instead his eyes darted across the room, watching everyone and the doorways, checking for new people. His ears tuned in the low rumble of voices and he picked up parts of many conversations. When he had finished his onigiri, he learned everyone's name, including the ponytail girl- Kaoru; he learned that she had just turned 13, and that she was the Chief's daughter. He also learned that everyone else found this training all but completely useless.

He stood up to excuse himself at the exact same moment that Yagatoro walked in with another important looking man; a captain, thought Kenshin. He sat back down, so he wouldn't seem disrespectful. Chief Yagatoro cleared his throat to gain everyone's attention, though he hadn't needed to, everyone was already watching him and the other man closely.

Yagatoro began talking, "Yesterday morning we had 22 men. Yesterday afternoon 13 left us to go to their assigned units, our numbers were down to 9. Yesterday evening we gained one more man, Himura Kenshin." Yagatoro paused to gesture to the young red-haired man in front of him, before he continued, "Last night, I also received some assistance, which you can see is standing on the left of me. The man standing next to me has fought many battles and won most of them. He has been vital to the success of the Ishin shishi thus far in the revolution. This man standing next to me is the Captain Hotokiru!"

Kenshin's eyes focused in on the young man standing next to the chief. He had black hair that might've been short once, but had grown out a little since, and he had very confident green eyes. Commanding eyes. His eyes told you that he was a guy that you wanted on your side. And young Kenshin believed those eyes that he did! (A/N I know, I got carried away with the eyes, I'm sorry! But I like eyes! I believe eyes are windows to your soul. So I do focus on them a lot!) Kenshin thought the man to be 28, and this man was obviously a big deal, because excited whispers could be heard from the other 9 men. Even still, Kenshin had no idea who this Hotokiru guy was.

The Chief, Yagatoro spoke once again, "Captain Hotokiru will oversee your training today."

The Captain took that as his cue, "Follow me." He commanded, and he led them out of the plain dining room, through the plain hallways, and out of the plainest building Kenshin had ever been in. They continued playing follow the leader, until they decided that leapfrog was a much more enjoyable game.

Wait! That's not how the story goes! No, the continued following Hotokiru as he lead them through a long, tricky path in the woods. They followed that path until they reached a clearing, a wide grassy meadow. All 10 of the trainees looked around and saw 11 thick wooden poles wrapped in a heavy rope stuck in the ground. Captain Hotokiru grinned and stepped out in front of everyone, looking each of them in the eye with a firm gaze, which faltered only when he looked at Kenshin. It was Kenshin who was the only one who noticed that instant; the firmness gone and a look of pity replaced it. Only for a quick moment was it there. He then got the strength back in his eyes, and announced to all, "Today's task is for each of you to cut, smash, or otherwise batter a pole until it splits in two. Good luck."

A/N: Okay, that's the end of chapter one! I'm so proud of myself, it actually seems okay! This is one of the first times I've ever written a fairly good chapter or story that I actually like! Okay soo… Yeah! That's the chapter. And the subscripted 1 was there because I have a comment about it. Here it is:

… with her black hair pulled back into a high ponytail…

Like someone else we know, eh?

Tatami- Straw matting use on the floor. (Normally found in Japanese houses)

Katana- A Japanese long sword. (Seriously folks, you know that!)

Ishin shishi- The group of revolutionaries that Kenshin fought with as Battousai.

Kaikomagatake- A mountain that stretches 2967 meters tall! (That's big!)

Yamanashi- A western city to Tokyo. Much larger, but a lot less people!

Tokyo- That was a joke. Seriously, if you don't know what Tokyo is…

Kimono- Another joke! I swear it! Honestly!

A note about reviewing- Review or I will hunt you down and cook for you! And you don't want that! Seriously… I'm worse than Kaoru that I am!