Disclaimer: I do NOT own Peacemaker Kurogane or Rurouni Kenshin. They are the properties of their respective creators and the Shinsengumi and Ishin belong to history. This is an insanity fic not to be taken seriously.

MaekoNohara: Kenshin's not out of the woods yet. Take care.

GirlWaterShaman: What? When did I write that? In your dreams? (Frantically checks previous chapter)

YamiChikara: Yes, I like going crazy in the fics once in a while. A got the idea for this fic to clarify some incidents mentioned in the earlier newspapers, like the Kenni-Sou friendship and the pint-sized demon duo of Sano and Katsu. A reunion coming up!

Lolopopoki: I loved your fic! Do continue. Okina's a prev. If you've read my other fics, you'll know that. I mean, trying to proposition Umeko-san through her own column, harassing the womenfolk of Kyoto until they needed self-defence classes. And let's not forgot how the ladies of Kyoto celebrated his near-death at the hands of a certain okashira. As for the foster son thing, I'm showing how close Sou and Kenni were back then. I mean, those two would've got along well not withstanding the fact the clans they're with hate each other's guts.

A-chan: I am glad you like Umeko. As to whether Soujirou will be staying with the Kenshingumi, it depends on Kaoru, right? Sheltering a wanted fugitive can't be good for the rep of her dojo after all that bad press in the Bulletin. As to whether Sano will freak…let's see.

Sake Shack LIVE! 3: Young Comrades-in-arms

Welcome back to the Sake Shack! I'm Katsura Umeko and I will be dealing with a very touching topic tonight, friendship…

(Backstage)

"Sorry, Souji, I can't let you as my best friend, disgrace yourself on stage…" Hijikata dragged an unconscious Okita to the broom closet. The young captain is tied and gagged. San-nan and Chief Kondo looked on with unease.

"Toshi, is this a little extreme?"

"No, not at all…"

(Onstage)

Okita Souji? Calling Okita… Oh my, I better move on to our next guest then. Also on friendship, I invite Sano and Katsu! First Sano! Not Harada Sanosuke! (Pushes Harada off the stage) I mean Sagara Sanosuke! A warm welcome! (Applause as the Sake Shack door swings open)

Sano is holding a bouquet of wildflowers and dressed in a very outlandish outfit. "Princess… what the?" He blinked as he looks around him. "Hey, I was about to be invited for supper by a charming Native American princess! What gives?" Nami escorts him to the stage.

And Tsukioka Katsushiro!

Katsu enters wearing a very ragged set of clothes and trailing an iron chain and ball. "I demand to be released! The people have a right to free press!"

Also known as Tsunan, the editor of the Whole Picture tabloid, that was shut down last year. My source states that he was exiled to a Hokkaido prison without a fair trial… Okay, lads… What about telling us about your shared past in the Seikihoutai and prior to that?

"Umeko-san? But you're dead! I attended your funeral!"

Ahem, insanity fic…And don't get too spooked, Sano…Sano is looking a tad pale.

"Oh, we met at the orphanage in Mibu after Sano got sent there… and that was the day we met taicho,"Katsu got over his initial shock.

(Flashback reel)

Young Katsu is merrily scrawling on wall when a teacher drags in a tied up Sano. Young Sano glared at the teacher. The teacher saw Katsu's handiwork. Both boys are dragged off to the closet and locked inside. "That's it! No supper for the both of you! One's runaway street rat and the other's a vandal! Sheesh!"

Both boys are scared and hungry. They hear a voice. Sagara's voice. "You can't lock kids up without supper, it isn't right…"

"Don't tell me what to do! You're just some lame excuse of a samurai on the community project from the YMSA!"

All the same, Sagara lets the boys out and gets them some onigiri. Soon the trio are sitting on the veranda.

"What you need is some education…" Sagara tries to get the boys to write their names in the sand. Behind them, Okita and Kenshin are playing scissors, paper, stone over a plate of sweets.

(This little scene draw a ripple of laughter from the audience, and a groan from Hijikata…)

"But that's for lousy samurai, not for peasant kids like us…" Sano kicks the sand. Katsu tries to write his name in Hiragana but ends up scrawling "Tsunan" instead.

"Sano, Katsu, everyone deserves an equal shot at school…" Sagara corrects Katsu.

(End flashback)

"I still stand by that principle," Sagara smiled as he stepped up onto the stage. "Even though they booted me out of the YMSA for not being of a samurai family. Thank goodness Takasugi-san helped me with the Seikihoutai…"

"Taicho!" Both Katsu and Sano give their mentor a hug. Sagara turns red in the face from embarrassment. "Easy, boys…"

Sano and Katsu ran away from the orphanage and were quite unmanageable for a while after Sagara left. In particular, you terrorized a certain temple complex.

(Insert flashback. Shinsengumi HQ. Random guards on duty. Two homemade bombs sailed over the wall.)

Guards: Argh! Not again! (Mad dash for cover)

BOOM! BOOM! (Katsu and Sano high-five-ing in an alley before running to flee the wrath of a wolf pack. The wall in the alley reads 'Mibrou sux', ''Down with the wolves' and 'Okita pig-kissing pansy'. And a caricature of Hijikata as a pig. )

(After San-nan's death, Okita's room. Okita's really depressed. Strains of children's voices singing from the temple yard.)

Okita killed San-nan… Okita- nichan killed Uncle San-nan…" Okita bangs in his head against the table in despair.

Outside, young Katsu and Sano are directing a group of children in chorus…Sano threatening to beat up anyone who does otherwise.

"Okita killed his friend…"

With a groan, Okita crawls into his futon and pulls the blankets up around his ears.

(End flashback)

"After lots of complaints, I finally get Takasugi-san to accept Sano and Katsu as full members of the Seikihoutai. For some reason, he was against the idea after a tragic incident with some under-aged samurai…" Sagara added. "However, these two imps still persisted with their pranks…"

"Yeah, itching powder in our pants, random morning dousings and smoke bomb attacks…" Random soldier adds in as Sagara winces again.

(Flashback. A moonlit night in the bamboo forest near Kyoto tower. Two ten-year-old boys are standing guard over a morgue cart, supposedly. Actually, young Katsu and Sano are digging a wolf pit. )

"Katsu, I'm bored! Let's take the cart for a spin!"

"No. Taicho ordered us to stay put! Think we'll trap a wolf?"

"Spoilsport! We can put in the stakes after our spin. When Sakamoto and his friend rode that cart through town, it seemed so fun! We'll be back before taicho even knows we're gone."

"OK…"

Both boys rode the cart down a steep slope. "WHEEEE!" SPLASH! They landed in the river. Back in the forest, an armed Ichimura Tetsu is hurrying to a secret duel between Okita and Battousai.

Ichimura thinks: Can't let Okita-san get hurt…Can't…

"AIEEE!" CRASH! He found the half-completed wolf trap.

Enter Sagara with a wounded Kenshin on one arm and an equally injured Okita on the other. "Trust you boys to actually… Crap!" He finds his cart and young guards gone. "Crap!" He narrowly misses stepping into the pit. He sees an out cold redhead inside. Then he hears the approach of Okita's patrol mates. With a loud curse, he drags Kenshin along as he flees for safety away from a wolf pack, leaving Okita behind.

(End flashback)

"So you two were ones who dug that pit! And I thought it was Suzu's handiwork!" Tetsu exclaims.

"Baka Tetsu, as if I will pull such a cheap stunt on you…" Suzu adds from across the room.

Yet on that fateful night, Katsu-chan was nowhere near Sano… because on the night before…

"I took ill with a fever, okay?" Katsu made a face. "Spent a week with a peasant family."

"I tried to protect taicho, but I was just a weak boy then," Sano added sadly as he downs his eighth jar of sake. "The troop got massacred. And I swore to become stronger…"

"You called me into town in time to see taicho's head on a bench. I had nightmares for weeks."

"Katsu, you weren't the only one. Er, do you still wet your bed?"

"WHAT?" Katsu starts. Snickers from the Seikihoutai men.

"I mean, you wet your bed at the orphanage whenever you have a nightmare. If you still got that problem… I think Doctor Fox may be able to cure your chronic bed-wetting…"

"Sano! You promised not to tell!"

"Oops!" A very-much sobered Sano flees with an angry Katsu in pursuit. Katsu throws a couple of light explosives at Sano for good measure as Sano fled the shack. Claps and cheers from the Seikihoutai men. Sagara yells. "BOYS! Break it up!"

Isn't friendship beautiful? And isn't it amazing how a chance encounter can change lives? Our next guest for tonight, everyone's favourite PEACEMAKER, Sakamoto Ryouma!

(Cheers and applause from the audience. Spotlight on Ryouma.)

Ryouma: Aw, shucks, Sugar-plum… (signals Akesato aka Sara to move out of the spotlight. She obeys and pretends to be pouring a drink for San-nan.)

Come on up!

A/N

Katsu and Sano were little terrors in the New Kyoto Post. The Okita-Kenshin duel happened in the New Kyoto Post, as the morgue cart mystery and wolf pit. Poor Katsu. Sano is a tad brainless at times, no? In my previous ficcies, Umeko has something against Sara/ Akesato over Ryouma. The next chapter's about Ryouma!