A/N- I'm glad everyone is enjoying this story so far. I want to clarify one point though so no one will be confused or disappointed. Since this story takes place ten years after the Bakumatsu I do portray Kenshin as both Rurouni and Battousai. Just FYI.

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh. Oops, wrong fic. I do not own Rurouni Kenshin either. I own a sunrise cactus plant that never flowers. Now I'm depressed, stupid disclaimer.

Unseen Hand

Chapter 2

There was something both reassuring and disconcerting about her discovery. There was a loose board behind the cupboard she had found the clothes in. Behind the board was a sword. Kaoru didn't know what she had been expecting to find, but not this. When she pulled it out, she saw there was not one but two swords, the second significantly shorter than the other.

"The two swords of the samurai," she spoke softly as she set them on the floor before her. She stared at them for some time, noting the tie that bound the katana in its sheath. These swords had not been used for several years, if the decadence of the cabin had not been a hint as to that. The binding on the sword told her that whoever had left them hidden had no desire to wield the blade again.

Finally she reached for it and pulled on the hilt. The tie gave and the sword slid free from its sheath with a soft metal rasp. Light flickered off the fine silver blade and Kaoru knew its owner had cared for the weapon with the greatest attention. Its blade was sharp and rust free, no doubt sharpened and shined with, if not loving at least respectful strokes.

It was heavier than she was used to, she noted as she stood and gripped it firmly just as her father had taught her. Her injured shoulder was not happy about the weight, but she found herself quickly forgetting to favor it. There was something intensely possessive about the weapon. Power seemed woven into its steel, coursing up the length of the blade and reaching into her arms. Startled by the bizarre feeling, she dropped the sword and it clanged loudly on the floor.

"Unreal," she muttered as she stared at the sword. It took nerve for her to touch it again, and when she did, she wondered if she had imagined the first impression. She didn't feel anything reaching out to her from the weapon, but she could not shake the distinct feeling that the sword had a dark history clinging to it.

Her mind turned to a more practical thought. "Now maybe I can catch some meat to enhance my food supply."

With that she tied her hair up in a pony tail, slid the sword through the belt of her new found clothes and left the safety of her cabin for the storm changed world. She sunk in the snow to just above her knees and suddenly questioned her decision to leave the cabin. No, I must have food and just after the storm it's possible some animals may leave their dens on the same search.

She had barely reached the tree line when she felt exhausted from the struggle, but determination and stubbornness would not let her turn back. After a moments rest, she pressed on and soon found herself surrounded once again by trees.

It struck her how truly alone she was up here on the forbidden mountain and she smiled. Never had she thought she would live beyond those first few days. It was suicide to enter the thick forest in winter without provisions, but with death following so quickly and hungrily behind her, she had no choice.

I can be happy here, she thought to herself, trying to ignore the fact that as long as she stayed she would never see another person's face. The stillness of the forest and the silence of the mountain would be her company and protect her from the not so distant past.

"I've been alone most of my life," she told the forest softly. "I can be happy here, and safe."

There were no sounds to draw her attention, no motion or shadow that should not have been, yet in that moment she had an intense feeling that she was not as alone as she believed. Her hand rested on the hilt of the sword by instinct and she glanced around nervously with eyes that still had not regained their previous luster.

The forest is playing tricks on me, she told herself and shuddered as if she could shake the feeling away, but it didn't quite leave her. She merely pushed it to the back of her mind as she could see nothing and no one watching her.

But she did find her meal. Well, it would have been her meal if she had caught it. The rabbit blended perfectly with the landscape, but its scurrying movements caught her eye. Kaoru silently pulled the sword free and held it prepared before her, waiting as still as a statue as the unsuspecting creature went about its business and hopped nearer.

Now! Her leap would have been superb, if not for the uncalculated hindrance of the deep snow. She landed with a terrific flop, snow scattering in a furious white cloud as she sunk several feet into the drift. She lay face down, arms and sword extended, two feet deep in powder. After a moment she pushed herself up onto her knees and shook snow from her hair, frowning after the rabbit that had paused in its flee to stare back at her and no doubt laugh at the picture she presented.

Kaoru chuckled softly and then sighed. "I'm too tired to chase you now. I guess this is your lucky day." She ungracefully used the sword to pull herself up and was startled to find her legs trembling and weak. It had been a long time since she had exerted so much energy and it frightened her as she realized how far she must have come from the cabin.

She sheathed the sword and turned back in her tracks, relieved that she at least had her own footprints to follow back to the safety of her new home. Darkness was beginning to creep up on her and she silently urged her body to hurry. In reply, her legs buckled.

Kaoru fell with a gasp to her knees, her fingers curling in the cold snow. No! I am not going to go through this again! I know there is safety just ahead of me and I know I can make it back!

She pulled the sword, sheath and all, free from her belt and used it to pull herself back up. As expected, her legs shook severely and she was grateful she had something so solid to lean on. Forgive me for disrespecting you, she silently told the weapon, but she had the distinct feeling it did not care one way or the other, that respect was something it had long since lost.

Weak and weary, she stumbled back into the meadow and up to the porch of her cabin. Another tasteless soup awaited her, but at least she knew it was no longer the only option. She needed meat to regain her strength. It might prove even more time consuming and exhausting hunting said meat, but not trying was a far worse option. If she was to survive the winter on the forbidden mountain, she must hunt successfully.

She collapsed gratefully before the hearth and shoved another log into the dying fire, wincing at the pain shooting through her arm. Warmth blossomed in her shoulder and she shoved her fingers beneath her gi to find her skin sticky. The wound had reopened. It had not fully closed up the first time before she had escaped into the forest. The range of motion as she swung the sword must have been more than the tender wound could bear.

With a weary sigh, Kaoru set about locating the bandages she had found several days before during one of her searches. If there was anything the cabin was not lacking, it was bandages. This will present a problem with my hunting techniques, she decided as she bound the wound tightly and washed the blood from her gi.

The revived pain made it difficult for her to sleep, but if there was anything she could do, it was sleep. Only then did she not have to think about how she was going to survive the long lonely winter ahead.

Doesn't look like he is coming out, Himura the Battousai thought to himself as he watched the cabin from his vantage point. It had been years since he had wintered on this side of the mountain, so it shouldn't have surprised him to find someone else had taken up residence in his cabin. But he could not help being irritated, having anticipated shelter and a meal after being trapped in the storm the last few nights. After all it was his cabin. He had built it himself up in the mountain where people were too afraid to go so that he would not be bothered.

Long before he reached it he had smelled smoke. It curled lazily from the little funnel in the roof and warned him before he even got close that there was someone where someone should not be. He watched vigilantly to see who the squatter was, when he emerged mid-day after the storm.

It was a young samurai wearing a familiar dark green gi and gray hakama with a sword residing readily at his waist. His long black hair was pulled up high even as Battousai wore his, to keep it from interfering with battle.

He must be very young, Battousai thought as he realized the boy could not be taller than himself when he stepped off the porch and sunk deep into the snow. There was purpose in his stride as he made a beeline for the trees, pausing at the edge for a moment before continuing on.

I wonder what he is up to.

He followed the young samurai from a good distance, stopping when he stopped so that he might not make any noise to draw attention. At one point the boy seemed to stiffen and spun quickly to scan the forest warily. His gaze drifted right over the Battousai's hiding place without even taking notice of the man.

A bit skittish, he is, Battousai thought wryly as the boy turned away and continued further into the forest. Finally he found what he was looking for and Battousai watched with amusement as the boy pulled his sword free and held it ready for the attack. His stance was perfect, but his calculations off as he sailed only a short distance into the air and flopped down into the snow in a flurry of white powder puffs. Battousai chuckled softly as he stared at the place where the boy had disappeared into the drift. After a moment he sat up and shook his head, conceding victory to his prey. Using the sword, he pushed himself to his feet. Instead of making a second attempt, he sheathed his sword and turned back in his tracks.

Why would he give up so quickly, Battousai wondered as he stood to follow. After only a short distance, the young samurai fell to his knees in the snow. He pulled his sheathed sword free and used it to pull himself back up, swaying uncertainly when he regained his feet. As he continued down the path leaning heavily on his sword, the Battousai understood. The young samurai was injured and this most likely was why he had sought refuge in the forbidden mountain.

He followed the boy all the way back to the cabin, oddly relieved when the door closed behind him and he was safe inside the cabin again. Watching his stumbling walk and determination to not give in to his weakness struck a cord in Battousai's heart. He could identify with the boy in his solitude and injured state and decided then that he would do nothing to remove him from his cabin.

You need it more than I, he decided and spent the rest of the night seeking his own shelter to wait out the winter. When dawn woke him, he eagerly set out for his favored vantage point and awaited the reappearance of his neighbor, but the boy did not show until nearly dusk.

Battousai watched his slow movements very carefully, noting how he favored his right shoulder as he hauled in a few pieces of wood and scooped snow into a bucket. These few simple tasks seemed to leave the boy exhausted and he disappeared back into the cabin for the rest of the night. There would be no hunting for him today and judging by the way he was moving, there would be no hunting for some time to come.

As far as I remember there was not much food stored in that cabin and much of what was there would have rotted over the years. He will not live long without meat.

At this, the red-haired swordsman turned away from his view of the cabin and stalked off into the woods, completely unnoticed by the one he watched.

Kaoru sat up with a jolt, wincing as her shoulder protested the fast action. The damage had been more than she thought, now that the wound seemed to bleed and clot alternately at its own will. She could not afford to lose blood in her already weak state, so it was necessary for her to baby the wound and keep her arm as immobile as possible. This meant no hunting.

What was that, she wondered as she glanced around the cabin. Light seeping through the window told her it was another new day and she must have slept halfway into it. So what woke me? I definitely heard something.

Pushing the blankets aside, she cautiously stood and stared at the door. Is there something outside? An animal maybe? Her mouth watered at the thought and she quickly reached for the sword.

Wait. I cannot risk further injury to my shoulder and that sword is so heavy I cannot wield it with one hand. So she grabbed the short sword and pulled it free from its sheath, balancing it in her left hand. It did not have the range of a katana, but range was little use to her if she had no power behind the blow.

Glancing out the window, she saw nothing out of the ordinary in the meadow, so she cracked the door and tentatively peered out. There was still nothing standing out in the too white landscape so Kaoru flung the door wide and stepped out onto the porch.

It must have been my imagination, she decided with a sigh and turned to go back inside. Her foot caught on something and she stumbled to keep her standing. What the…

She glanced down and stared dumbly at the rabbit sprawled before her feet. A few pokes with her short sword assured her it was quite dead so she stooped and lifted it by its ears.

"Where did you come from?" she wondered and then her eyes widened. Her hand tightened on the sword as she glanced around but there was no motion, no person to be found. Without a second thought, Kaoru hurried back inside and shut the door, sliding the security bar in place. She took a few steps back and continued to stare at the door, half expecting someone or something to start pounding on it in an effort to get in.

All she could hear was her own heavy breathing.

Who? Why? For a certainty there was a who. Rabbits didn't just die on one's front step. The noise that woke her must have been whoever had left it in the process of leaving it. Then why? Why would anyone care to help her? How did they know she was in need of meat? Did they know or was it some sort of a peace offering?

Kaoru shuddered as the stories came back full force on her, childhood images of the Oni that stalked the mountain. If it lived and it had found her, then why would it help her? She didn't know, nor did she trust the unseen hand and its gift with the hidden meaning. But she was not going to let it go to waste.

She cleaned and quartered the animal, and stewed it far longer than necessary for good measure. Her stomach craved the new food eagerly, but her wariness overpowered it and she ate slowly and thoughtfully.

When she lay down to sleep, her eyes stayed riveted on the barred door, the sharp reality that she was no longer alone on the mountain sinking in. Despite a pleasantly full stomach, she slept restlessly, tormented by the images of her fear-stricken mind. Now nothing could make her forget that she was on the forbidden mountain, because Oni had found her.

To my reviewers:

Pinay Tiger- I've read a lot of KK stories where Kaoru was portrayed as being weak or easily mowed over by circumstances and though they might be well written, I found them too difficult to read because in my opinion, what I love best and what Kenshin loves best about her is her determination and strong spirit. So I'm glad you think I portrayed her well as a survivor. I'm hoping through the story I demonstrate both sides of her personality in good balance, strength and weakness.

Ruby Soul- Is Battousai Oni? Hmm. Well it is only a legend… right? (grin)

Also thanks to Princess Shadowcat, materialthief06, blueunknown, Kairi7, Khrysalis, loveywhatever, Jbella, SirisAnkh, and mukyuu tenshi for your reviews.