Disclaimers: Sony, Viz and whatever, let's get this straight. First, you're definitely not suing me; second, I'm gonna sue you for suing me. Do I make myself clear?
A/N: sorry for the long delay, I'm having problems with uploading my file. Thank you for all the reviews (hugs reviewers so their eyes bulged for three times their normal size)!!! And special thanks to my double reviewers (hugs double reviewers so their eyes bulged for six times their normal size)!!! You're all wonderful! Please check the A/N under the story, reviewer-sama!!!!
Ch4 The negotiation
"He's late. Late." Kenshin declared, balancing himself on his sakabatou carefully. Deciding he had enough of lying in bed, the former hitokiri just threw the sensei's warning completely out of the windows.
Saitou made no move to remind him of the sensei's words. If he had been in the ex-hitokiri's place he would also have hopped out of bed long ago. That's for sure.
"Wait a minute, can't you," the Miburo said lightly, but he was also frowning. From all that interactions with the Battousai, past or present, he knew it was completely out of Himura Battousai's character to be late.
"It isn't that hard to tell, isn't it? He's hiding something from us. What if..he is engaged in a fight or something?"
" If that's the case you won't be able to do anything. He is his own man and I don't suppose he'd like to be mothered around by anybody, eh?" The wolf merely poked his head out of the window.
"Sessha is not mothering him," Kenshin argued meekly, crossing his arms over his chest. "Right now we just don't need more complications to add to the list."
Saitou grinned almost devilishly. "Complications are fun."
The Hiten swordsman had to battle down the strong impulse to hit the lanky cop with something real hard. "I'd like to see you try it," he hissed through gritted teeth, but his expression turned worriedly thoughtful, " This whole time error - it's not like having an impromptu brother coming out of nowhere or anything like that. It's really that complex feeling, like.like you're being multiplied or something. All the while you know you're talking to yourself but you can never get used to it, I mean, your past is supposed to be something inside you, set and unchangeable, not something that can run around and make decision for itself. You know what I mean?" he concluded, at a total loss for words.
Saitou eyes searched the man's face with something akin to shock. Evidently he'd never expected their conversation would lead to something like this. He closed his eyes, trying to imagine the complicated situation the ex- hitokiri was in, but failing miserably.
"So, how are you going to settle him after all this? I don't suppose you have a way of sending him back to the Bakumatsu."
"Sessha has to. Anyway, I have a feeling that this..this insane situation is only temporary. It has to end. In any way possible. It's..getting on my nerves," the ex-Ishinshishi said in bafflement, "my past is not that..well..pleasant to me. But right now he is going to live as my brother, for how long I don't know."
The former Shisengumi Taichou nodded in acknowledgement with his back to Kenshin. "But you must have noticed, while he reminds you of the dark past you are his bright future. Think how he can survive the Bakumatsu after this little interaction with his future self. But, in addition," he tucked his hands behind him, "think how the Choshu clan can triumph without their trump card."
The redhead gave a tiny gasp. He had completely forgotten about that since the first day he met Battousai; there was too much going on and too much to think about. Saitou stared unseeingly out at the crowd jostling on the street below, thinking about the same matter that concerned his own past.
"Just imagine, at this very moment -it is Kyoto in Bakumatsu, the bloodwashed capital of chaos. Somewhere in the Ishin headquarter someone peered into the Himura Battousai's room just to find that the lone hitokiri is missing. Nope, he isn't out on a mission, not at any part of the quarter, nor out anywhere to relax. He has just dissolved into thin air." The Miburo chanted in a somewhat distant voice, " after a few fruitless searches, the someone panicked. He had the head - probably Katsura or Katagai - informed. The whole clan panicked. Their trump card - not to mention the most important asset -has disappeared and is currently nowhere to be found. There are predictions, probably a hitokiri like him has been killed by the Shisengumi or whatever Shogunate clan. Without that hitokiri boy that all have taken for granted, the Ishinshishi samurai are now no more than a bunch of rebellious farmers. They cannot win against the Shogunate. The Meiji government is never formed. Thus." He abruptly turned around to face the rurouni.
"..we are living in a world that never exists."
The other samurai's eyes flashed in understanding, but evidently he didn't want to accept it. "What are you getting at Saitou?"
"You understand this as well as I do, Battousai. A world that does not exist disappears. Or, more precisely, it won't even need to disappear because it never exists. The very presence of this boy is a threat to this world. He has to be eliminated, although.." He trailed off, sounding a little upset. Obviously the cold-looking wolf had taken a liking to the little hitokiri boy.
"Eliminated?" the younger man returned blankly, "but..those you said are predictions. Maybe.there is some other way the Meiji government would be set up without Battousai. If that is the case it's alright for him to stay here. " He found his thoughts rather conflicting; the selfish part of him just want the lad out of his peaceful routine; the loving part of him wanted to take care of the lost boy. Whatever the case, he didn't want to hurt the hitokiri boy in any way.
"Oh, get real Battousai. You should know your comrades' ability better than I do. Before they recruited you, the Shisengumi never take them seriously, so as to say. You are their sole victory."
Kenshin muttered an unconvincing "demo", falling into an exhausted silence. His head swam. He was truly tired, both mentally and physically. The ex- manslayer wasn't in a good enough state for prolonged discussion, and surely not a complicated one like this. "Let's leave it for later."
The Miburo nodded in agreement. "I agree..hmph, moron."
Kenshin blinked, wondering how he'd merited that remark; but then realized that Saitou wasn't referring to him at all.
The former Shisengumi was leaning out of the window, eyes fixed disgusted at a certain something. Kenshin didn't need a look outside to see what the something was.
"Hey, what d'you bring him for? The rooster-head's useless."
"Dammit Saitou, I am more pissed off to see your evil face, you know!" Came a very audible bark from below. A lot of people swiveled around to see what had caused the commotion.
"Maa, maa.." the rurouni, always being the peacemaker, leaned out of the window. "Stop bickering, will you? Sano, come on in. And you too, Kentai."
"Hai," Battousai replied casually, much in a little-brotherish way. Sano, however, wasn't one who'd been used to following orders.
"Oi Kenshin," the ex-gangster greeted enthusiastically, but then his face darkened as he saw the front of his chest wrapped in bandages. "You hurt?"
"Daijoubu." Kenshin said lightly.
Sano frowned, didn't believe it. He had heard too much of Kenshin's "daijoubu"s to actually buy it.
"Hang on there, I'm coming in." With that he entered the house with a light sprint, Battousai following with a small smile on his face.
"You're bringing trouble along, boy," the Miburo said the moment the shouji to Kenshin's bedroom was slid open, "you spent the whole day fetching the moron here? What a waste a of time."
"I'm not a boy, badass Miburo," retorted the hitokiri, earning an amused grin from Sano. Saitou glared at him with half a heart.
Damn, what a good reminder. He was starting to understand why Himura Battousai was constantly underestimated by various opponents. It was really hard to imagine a vengeful monster when what stood before you was a really fragile looking teenage boy. The wolf grimaced at the thought of calling him boy. He of all people should have known better than calling Himura Battousai "boy" while this "boy" was nothing but more than capable of successive murders.
Kicking the musing out of his brain, he redirected his sight on the teenage hitokiri once again. What's with that naïve look...you're one hell of an actor, Battousai.
"Anyway lunatic cop, I have taken the liberty to inform Sanosuke-san of our plans while we're on our way here," the hitokiri boy said almost cheerfully, still holding that small smile on his lips. "We could use some help."
"Or some hindrance."
"You!"
"Sessha said 'stop that'," the rurouni intercepted firmly, "Kentai, go on."
Encouraged by the rurouni's words, Battousai continued as if there was no hindrance at all. "Our crazy Mibu wolf said that we're meeting the group at this warehouse somewhere in southeast Kyoto. Really smart place, there. It's ambush-proof with lots of escape routes." He fumbled through the heap of parchment looking for the particular map. Kenshin, reading his thoughts, fetched a roll lying on the windowsill and handed it to him.
"Thanks, nii-chan," the boy said absently, but his tone was absolutely natural. "There. This is the place." Battousai pointed to a miniscule building on the map marked with a red X. "Apparently the head of this gang thing must have some brains, because there is definitely no hiding place for any number of armed cops, whether we like it or not. So now we'll have to discuss our escape routes, which is the only thing left. Their true intention is currently unknown to us; but seriously; their wanting to negotiate sounds rather weird to me. So, we'll have to play safe. Agreed?"
Saitou looked mildly surprised while the ex-gangster actually goggled at him. The hitokiri may hate meetings, but he surely had the ability to lead one. Right now he was making up an undoubtedly well-organized plan without paying much attention to previous discussions.
"You've been listening all this time?" the wolf questioned, annoyed at himself all over again. I've underestimated him again. He's got guts, brains and power. Time to treat the lad as an equal, stupid wolf. He looked sideways at the rurouni, annoyed at his annoyance. The older Battousai was smiling in a knowing sort of way, not at all surprised at his younger counterpart's display of wisdom. Hell, of course he isn't surprised. That boy is him, he thought.
'Guess you can say so. Boring as it is, I can't just go help you without knowing anything beforehand. I'll be a hindrance if anything happens. Better plan things first so we don't go confused when it comes to fighting." Battousai replied nonchalantly.
Saitou nodded. That boy was certainly a great help, not a hotheaded idiot that would get in the way like a certain somebody. He threw a dirty look at the certain somebody, and was surprised that the 'somebody' still had the minimum amount of wisdom to understand this look.
"Hey Saitou! What was that look for? Are you thinking I'll be a hindrance when it comes to fighting, you murderous bastard of a wolf?"
"No need to state the obvious, rooster-head," retorted Saitou calmly, "just think you have a lesson to learn from him, especially when it comes to the part that concerns the brain." He pointed at Sano's head briefly, then turned his head to look at Battousai again.
Sano opened his mouth to voice some sharp comment, but swallowed it back whole when the younger Himura gave him a piercing glare.
"You two are surely not on good terms, ne?" Battousai muttered critically. He gave each of his companions a stern defiant stare as if daring them to interrupt again. "As I was saying, we need to play safe. Therefore, I have inspected the warehouse this morning and discovered that..what's wrong? " his tone changed from matter-of-fact to bafflement as he surveyed the older two of his companions.
"Uh..you've checked upon the site already?" the rurouni was barely able to conceal his surprise. The wolf, likewise, was wondering what the boy wasn't able to do in such a short time.
"Aa, why not?" Battousai waved his wide-eyed surprise away detachedly, " they've already heightened security and I have a bad feeling about this. It's like they're preparing for a battle. Anyway," he pointed to the two detached lines on the map that represented the main gates of the warehouse, " there are four guards here, another eight in the inner door, sixteen in the courtyard, and about thirty inside. They're patrolling in a certain complex formation, like this - he positioned his second and third fingers of both hands on the map and began moving them in an imitation of the formation mentioned. The two Bakumatsu warriors watched gravely in recognition.
"Pretty impressive." Saitou remarked, "one of the Ishin's favourites, eh Battousai?"
Kenshin nodded, and so did Battousai. "An almost flawless formation which we'd applied.."
"..to protect Katsura-san and other important leaders." The hitokiri continued subconsciously.
Saitou rummaged through his pocket for yet another cigarette. " So the leader is former Ishinshishi after all. But what's interesting is that my informant has never told me any of this formation stuff." He scowled as if insulted by this. At the side Sagara shifted uncomfortably; clearly formations were something of a foreign matter to him.
"Maybe he cannot recognize the form, that's all," Battousai said consolingly, "after all that's supposed to be Ishin top secret - that is till the end of the Bakumatsu, of course."
"Sou ka?" Saitou chose to lay that matter down, at least for now.
"And then.." Battousai muttered as his finger traced the outline of the warehouse, "windows all locked, the whole place full of explosives, a lot of secret doors that are not accessible unless you know how to..in short, it's hard to escape if we have the need to. But we don't want to be trapped there needlessly. "
"And your suggestion would be?" the rurouni inquired, knowing that he wouldn't point out the whole imperious situation for nothing.
The hitokiri smiled at his counterpart's attempt to cooperate with him. "I was just thinking if our badass Miburo's informant would do us a favour."
The next two days passed without further trouble. Sano had agreed that Kaoru should not be informed of the current affair since all were sure she would be extremely worried; and had returned to Hiko's to think up some crackpot story as to where Kenshin had gone. It wasn't entirely successful, however. A disgruntled Sano told two chuckling Kenshins afterwards that he had very nearly been skinned by an enraged Kaoru who simply refused to be denied the truth; out of ideas, the tanuki girl had resorted to tagging Sano around the mountain. Sano, in return, brought her for a prolonged game of hide-and-seek before finding himself in a totally foreign part of the forest.
Which meant, once again, that our brilliant Sagara Sanosuke had lost his way.
Battousai, meanwhile, had trusted no one else but himself to collect intelligence on the Vanguard of Justice Group. He was out early in the morning and back late at night. Kenshin had reassured him that he was recuperating well; he was, at least, able to move freely except for a slight stiffness in his stance. Saitou was back at his station half the time as if to arrange things necessary; but had appeared at Kenshin's temporary home every so often to share new information and strategies. He also told the two Himuras that his informant would do the special "favour" for them.
To Battousai's relieve, Zenei Makimoto and his group never appeared as they had promised; surely there would be enough time to deal with them after the ordeal is over.
How wrong he was.
The redheaded boy slid through the darkened alleys of Kyoto, having collected some information that would be extremely helpful if they were ever to engage in a fight. His eyes darted around the corners, making sure that he was not being followed.
No one indeed.
He emerged from the shadows to enter the house where his older counterpart was. Suddenly, a hand gripped his right shoulder and another attempted to clamp over his mouth.
Battousai's heart plummeted. He was damned sure that no one was there..the boy panicked, and for a fleeting second the hitokiri sense took over.
Twisting his body, he flung the hand off his shoulder and ducked the other aiming for his mouth, using the twist to unsheathe his katana in a wide circle aimed for the opponent's head; but somehow the other opponent managed to produce a screen of blinding white light before him. As the katana made contact with the screen, Battousai was thrown backwards as though a vigorous electric current was emitted from it.
"Argh! Dammit Zenei, why do you have to jump at me like that? You scared me out of my wits!" Battousai growled furiously, tilting his head upwards.
Zenei approached him with an apologetic expression. "Gomen, Himura. I forgot you couldn't see me at normal times. I just don't want you to shout out, that's all," he offered a hand to Battousai, who took it with an additional glare.
"Why are you looking for me?" demanded Battousai, already knowing the answer.
"About the time turner.."
"Iie, I don't recall what I've been doing when I got transferred here." Battousai said, intercepting him. Zenei stared at him with penetrating dark eyes much like the way Hiko would when he had done something wrong. Battousai flinched internally; there was something with those eyes..
"Don't." said Zenei quietly.
"Huh?" inquired Battousai, momentarily puzzled.
"Don't lie to me, Himura. I have the ability to see through lies." His voice was reasonably calm, but it was taking the Ishin hitokiri all his will to resist the urge to reach for his katana. He took a deep breath; his answer was resolute.
"No, I will not."
"Why?"
"I don't want to kill anymore. I want to help others like my present self does. Help others as a rurouni, not as a hitokiri."
Zenei looked at him for a moment. "That was good of you, Himura. But that is no excuse to alter history. Please give me the time turner."
"Then I will make myself plain. I refuse to return the time turner to you. I am sorry."
A dreadful silence fell as the boy awaited Zenei's answer.
"I do not want to hurt you," Zenei said, raising his voice a bit.
"I am ready for that," the boy's hand hovered above the hilt of his katana.
Both tensed, ready for the inevitable battle. Battousai went into a battoujutsu stance, but Zenei stood upright, seemingly harmless. Battousai knew better than that - just by looking at the light screen he'd created, there was no doubt Zenei was capable of mass destruction.
"Let us begin."
Without further ado, Battousai leaped into the air. "Ryu Tsui - "
He was about to attack when something invisible struck him in the stomach; it sent him falling solidly on the ground. He reeled around, gasping for breath.
He's a devil..what did he hit me with? A single thought swirled around his mind as his lungs cried for air. He was panting on all fours, vision darkening.I cannot hold against him any longer. I'll have to return to the Bakumatsu in the end. I..I lost..
The hitokiri dropped unconsciously onto the ground, his katana released from his hand with a clatter.
" Kenshin! Kenshin!"
Battousai sat hold upright, nearly bumping into another person who was kneeling at the side of his unconscious form.
"Rurouni? Why am I here? What happened to me? I."
The rurouni signaled for a stop, putting a hand on his shoulder consolingly. "You must calm down first, Kenshin. Think. What has happened to you?
The boy closed his eyes. He could remember his midnight assignment, then..yes, he met Zenei Makimoto, and..
"I got knocked out by him. He's a devil."
"Huh? Who?"
One single thought popped into the hitokiri's mind. He did not know of Zenei Makimoto..he need not know of him. Will he hesitate to send me back to the Bakumatsu when he finds out about this? I hope not.
"Eh, what did I say?"
He felt the ex-hitokiri's hand on his forehead. "Man, is he delirious?" Kenshin muttered worriedly.
Resisting the temptation to smile, Battousai chose to play along. "Don't think I am feeling well..maybe I have a slight fever, that's all."
"Maybe you should rest tomorrow. You're in no state to fight the Vanguard of.."
"NO." Battousai said, louder than he intended.
Battousai jerked awake to the distant sound of birds calling. Wiping the sweat off his face, he tried to steady his ragged breath. Just another bad dream, he realized. I've not been killing anyone, no. There is no blood on my hands, darn it. How many more times will I have to go through this?
The boy cradled his hands into his chest, holding back the tears that threatened to fall down his face. I've almost forgotten about the bad dreams since I got here. I was too happy. And they've stopped bothering me.But now they're back. There must be something to do with that Zenei guy, the teenage boy decided. Closing his dampened eyes he recited a very colourful curse directed at the dark-haired man.
And speaking of bad dreams..
Battousai glimpsed at the rurouni sleeping in his futon at the other end of the room. He would never forget that expression on the rurouni's normally placid face.
Kenshin's features were scrunched up in an agonized expression, his mouth slightly ajar in a soundless scream. His breath came in shallow, quick gasps; for a heart-stopping moment the hitokiri thought he was dying of some heart disease.
"Rurouni!" the frightened boy scrambled up from his sleeping spot at the corner and darted to his older self's side. "RUROUNI!"
He shook him vigorously but to no effect; the rurouni simply lolled his head to the other side and went on with his coma. "Damn it, rurouni, wake up!" the hitokiri shook him harder - under the faint glow of the first rays the wanderer's face looked pearly white.
He would have kept shaking him if not for the three syllables whispered hoarsely from the older Kenshin's lips.
"To-mo-e.."
"Please, what are you talking about," Battousai said desperately, "c'mon, just wake up will you?"
"Why does this happen? I am the murderer. I should be the one who's dead. I deserved it. You don't. NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Battousai froze, cold sweat soaking his yukata. Who was the rurouni talking to? No matter who, that person was certainly dead by now, judging by Kenshin's seemingly random words. And what was this girl's name? Tomoe? What the.
An idea clicked into his mind. This was just too bizarre. The boy ran out of the house, stooping at the edge of the well in the courtyard he pulled up a bucket of water. Then jumping into the bedroom through the window in his hurry, he dumped the whole pail of water upon the wanderer's head.
"Oro! " startled violet eyes met lavender ones, and the hitokiri dropped to his knees.
"Kami-sama.I was terrified! You - won't - wake- up! I.." the red-haired boy breathed out, trembling from head to foot.
The rurouni himself looked shaken, but he smiled soothingly nonetheless. "Daijou - "
The hitokiri stared fiercely at him, his eyes slightly red. "Don't you 'daijoubu' me, rurouni. I'm you! I think like you do, I act like you do, and a difference of fourteen years cannot deny the fact that we are one! Or have you forgotten that as well?" he laid a hand on the rurouni's, his tone softening to a pleading one. "Please, Kenshin. Stop closing yourself to me. Leave the 'daijoubu'-ing to everyone else, but not me, okay? Because I know you don't mean 'daijoubu' when you say it." He added, pouting in a childish way.
The wanderer smiled, closing his eyes. "Gomen, Kenshin. Sessha should know better. I had a bad dream, de gozaru."
The hitokiri's expression softened at the long awaited confession. "That I know, I have those bad dreams frequently too. But what did you dream about? Bloodshed? Or our victims?"
He doesn't have to know that.the rurouni thought sternly. "Yes, my victim." He said softly. And a very special one as well
"Tomoe?" the boy said slowly, acknowledging this.
Kenshin's blood froze. He must look quite frightening because Battousai actually backed away from him in fear.
"How..how d'you know that?" he asked carefully, the expression vanishing from his face as he realized his shock.
He's being evasive again, dammit, Battousai thought angrily. "Ahou, of course I know! What do you expect, after you've shouted it in your dream for the whole street to hear? I don't care, but you are telling me who- she-is!" Battousai yelled, standing up in his anguish.
"You need not know." The rurouni said solemnly, rising along with his counterpart, "for your own happiness."
"So you think I'll be happy with you hiding everything from me, huh? You're telling it to me now!"
"Iie," Kenshin said quietly, "Sessha is sorry."
"FINE! Do it your own way, you stupid rurouni! I-AM-GOING." Turning around with a extraordinarily colourful curse that Kenshin had forgotten he even know Battousai snatched up his neatly folded blue gi and grey hakama and stomped out of the room, looking hurt on top of angry.
Kenshin made no move to stop him, but his tired eyes followed the Ishin hitokiri as he made his departure. He appeared mournful although Battousai had missed it, being too engaged in his fury.
"A nice boy," Kenshin looked down at the figure leaving through the main door, dressed in the blue gi and grey hakama again. Enraged as he was the boy couldn't possibly go anywhere in his sleeping robes. The ex-hitokiri smiled amusedly at this.
"He doesn't deserve to know. This punishment is for me and me alone."
Saitou arrived two hours later, wearing his usual bright blue uniform that gave him quite an I-am-an-innocent-policeman look. That is, if you were not staring at his eyes.
Kenshin peered gloomily at the window. Saitou was standing cross-legged at the porch, waiting for the famous ex-hitokiri to sense him.
"Saitou."
"Battousai."
"Are you ready?" Saitou said as if calling for a picnic trip.
Kenshin nodded seriously. "Aa."
The rurouni walked down the stairs, looking a little puffy-eyed. The Miburo was somewhat amused. "What's wrong, Battousai? Haven't got enough sleep?" he asked in a sardonic tone.
"Shut up," snapped Kenshin, unable to stifle a yawn. As usual, this seemed entertaining to the ex-Shisengumi Taichou. He snickered as he started walking back out of the porch the way he came.
"Where's the other one?" he inquired, fairly surprised that the younger Himura wasn't with Kenshin.
"He isn't going." The ex-Ishinshishi replied simply, but there was a hint of storminess in his voice.
Saitou wasn't the sort of people to ask why; his only reaction was a brief rising of his brow. "Even so, his investigations came in useful. Real help, that kid.
Kenshin muttered a vague reply, suddenly filled a pang of guilt. He should have stopped the boy from wandering off. Though Kenshin was sure no one was capable of hurting his shadow self he was worried about his health. There's something wrong with him, he'd just fainted a couple of hours ago on the street.He should be resting, but somehow sessha made him go berserk..
"Something wrong?" asked Saitou walking alongside him.
"Iie."
"If that's something about the other Battousai, I suggest you leave it for later. Right now, just concentrate." The wolf advised grimly, turning towards the mouth of an alley. Kenshin followed.
He has a point. It's no time for worrying. I should be thinking about the negotiation. What I should say to that group of apparently desperate people. He thought he could understand their feeling - there were certain laws exercised by the Meiji government that really deserved a hard blow on the idiot-brains of those lawmakers. And the widespread of corruption had sent the people's blood boiling.
That was why Kenshin often heard mutterings in the streets saying it would be really nice if Battousai could just pop out of nowhere and slice the politicians' drunken heads off.
Of course, they were only joking.
The Mibu wolf led him through main streets and dark alleys, and Kenshin noticed that the crowd was gradually thinning. Which only meant, in a way, that their destination wasn't in the middle of a bustling town but somewhere more remote.
And for that, the ex-assassin was exceptionally grateful.
They walked for another half hour. Both had memorized the whole town map thoroughly (for Saitou's case, he was in there so often there was really no need to memorize it) and were having absolutely no problem in locating their destination.
"Is this the place?" Kenshin looked up incredibly at the warehouse, which looked rather miserable with a ran-down roof and chipped windows. This was his first look at the building since he was lying in bed most of the time.
Saitou looked unimpressed. "From what the boy told me, it was something like the Purgatory. You see what I mean."
Kenshin scrutinized the building again. It even had the look of a long- abandoned warehouse, though the ex-Ishin soldier was sure there were a huge bunch of men in there. "Uh-huh. Whoever designed it is a genius."
The wolf nodded his approval. "We have to be careful. Don't think you can solve this with the way you did with Raijuta. This guy's (he tilted his chin towards the warehouse) got brains."
The ex-Shisengumi halted in front of the rusting iron gate, Kenshin following suit. Battousai's intelligence was flawless - there were indeed four guards at the main gate, hidden behind the bushes.
One by one they appeared, staring at both dragon and wolf in a knowing way. The one in the middle approached them, bowing with courtesy. "Himura Battousai-san, Saitou Hajime-san. Master is expecting you. This way, please." Extending a hand in the direction of the house they led the duo through doors and corridors.
So they've checked up on us pretty well, too. The two Bakumatsu survivors thought simultaneously, catching each other's eyes. They noted, too, that the formation aforementioned by Battousai was in operation. Eight in the inner door, sixteen in the courtyard, and about thirty scattered around the house. One small part of their minds also noticed how nice the house was decorated on the inside. Western-style ornaments blended with Japanese- style furniture to give the whole structure a luxurious air.
The whole place full of explosives, a lot of secret doors that are not accessible unless you know how to.Kenshin took in the sight around him, remembering his younger self's words. His eyes scanned the house. No explosives in sight, nor any secret doors.
Baka! You think they'll put all the explosives in front of your face? And secret doors are called secret doors because they're secret, Kenshin scolded himself, amused at his own naiveté. The whole house was like an extremely complicated maze. He'd be lost in no time if he continues to goof around, the ex-Battousai decided.
"Master is waiting for you behind this door." The leading guard declared respectfully, snapping Kenshin out of his jumbled thoughts. He bowed his way out, and both samurai bowed in return.
Kenshin laid his hand on the door. So, the main character for all this chaos was behind this thin layer of wood. Inhaling a deep breath, he pushed the door open.
It was like entering Shishio's hideout once again.
A magnificent stair was staged at the center of the hall, covered with a violet carpet embroidered with golden seams and strange signs that looked suspiciously like the badge of the group. Extending upwards like a giant violet snake, the wide stair was lined with people obviously from the highest ranked to the lowest. A black-clad figure sat at the far end of the stair and a variety of people stood behind him, dressed very differently from the others lining the stairs. Kenshin was forcefully reminded of the Juppongatana that was Shishio's best weapon before they disintegrated.
It'll be fine as long as they're not as good as the Juppongatana, Kenshin thought darkly. Without hesitating he stepped up the stairs to where the leader was, looking serenely determined. Those pawns on the stair steps fixed them with glassy, lifeless looks as if they were nothing but standing puppets.
Thud. Thud. Their footsteps reverberated in the deadly silent hall as they mounted the stairs. They were quiet as cats, Saitou mused as his amber eyes swept over his potential enemies in the room. Pretty good fighters, huh. Battousai and I are outnumbered to about fifty-to-one, including the five men standing behind our main man. He glanced sideways at Kenshin. Staring straightly ahead, the ex-Ishin hitokiri looked nothing but coolly composed. Guess his pretty words can't help this time.
The black-clad figure stood up with a swish of his cloak as the two samurai were halfway through the stairs. At a closer distance, Kenshin and Saitou could see clearly that the man was really young. About twenty-three or twenty-four, he still had an almost boyish look about him although the way he held himself suggested highly disciplined authority.
Kenshin stopped about four feet away from the leader, regarding the man with sufficient alert. With large pit-black eyes and curly brown hair braided into a complicated sort of ponytail, he strongly resembled Soujiro. Only he seemed even more sure of himself than Soujiro was. After all, Seta Soujiro was sort of lost.
This man certainly wasn't.
Much to Kenshin's surprise, the man gave him a warm smile along with a slight tilting of his head.
"After all those years we meet again, Kenshin-nii."
"Kenshin..nii?" the ex-hitokiri stepped back wide-eyed.
"Hai, Kenshin-nii," the man looked a little downcast. " Don't you remember who I am? There..who was that child you encountered at the age of fifteen? Who wept for you when he was informed about Tomoe-san? Who begged you for a single sparring session so that he could get strong?"
"You!"
"Yes, Kenshin-nii. Even now I can remember what you said to me in our last encounter..before you left without a goodbye, that is," the black-eyed man's eyes had a hint of sadness, and he deepened his voice a little in a perfect imitation of the 18-year-old Kenshin.
" 'Be strong, Tasuka. Be strong so that you could be the protector of the new era. Be strong so that you can protect your loved ones. You will witness the coming of a new age, and you will live in it...happy as all others will be.' That's what you said to me." Tasuka said quietly, staring into Kenshin's violet orbs.
Kenshin nodded in recognition. "Yashiro Tasuka."
"You were good, yet you treated me as an equal - a brat with nothing better to do than dogging you around. I worshipped you. I wanted to be a hitokiri." Tasuka said slowly as if he had all the time in the world.
"I told you no. A child is best kept innocent when he is still so." Kenshin replied, absorbed in old memories.
"Iie. I will help them. I've always wanted to help them. If I can't be a hitokiri to overthrow the Tokugawa dynasty, I will be one to overthrow the Meiji government." Tasuka continued casually. "I've always known that you will come. To know why we have used your name. To negotiate with us so as to avoid further bloodshed. Such is the character of rurouni Himura Kenshin, a good person as he was as a hitokiri." He smiled again, and Kenshin furrowed his brows. So he don't give a damn about my being rurouni or hitokiri like all others did, he mused.
"But we are just getting started. To be frank, we were waiting for you. Then we'll be starting on the big shots. But first.. we need you."
Kenshin gazed steadily at him, clearly at a loss for words. Clearly he couldn't believe a person such as Yashiro Tasuka would have any reason to overthrow the Meiji government.
"But.. Tasuka. Why?"
"Why? Kenshin-nii, you must think I am a crazy nut like Shishio or something, trying to pull down the government you build up. But at the end you will understand. And you will help me."
Year 1864, Genji 2nd year
The fire was covering the whole place, Kenshin realized.
And he was going to choke to death.
He cut through yet another blockcade with a trembling slash. He couldn't see the exit anywhere. They were trapped. And the Shisengumi were behind..
The woman sputtered and fainted, becoming a dead weight in his hands. Kenshin went down on one knee, unable to balance the sudden weight. The hem of his hakama caught fire. The man following him screamed with fright.
Shinmatte! This is just getting worse, Kenshin thought, panicking. I am never going to make it out of here alive. But.he glanced at the man behind him, face covered in soot.... no matter what, Kaitori Yashiro-san is getting out of here in one piece. I promised Katsura-san. I promised.
"Hiramei-dono!" he shook her slightly, but in vain. The boy crashed straight through the burning door. He was suffocating, stars dancing in his vision..dammit, I can't see properly..he stumbled, tripping over a fallen beam. The sleeve of his blue gi smoked. He had no strength to stand up again..
"Take her and go! Now!" he shouted to the man, who was basically unharmed because of his protection. The man hesitated.
Undecided fool, Himura cursed. For one moment the world swirled around him in a multi-coloured hurricane. His head drooped and he lost conscious.
"Himura! HIMURA!"
Kenshin felt something cool on his forehead. He opened his eyes blearily; the image of his best friend Hiroshiya wove in and out of vision.
"The Yashiros! Are they all right?" Kenshin sat bolt upright, causing the wet towel to fall off his forehead. A few of the Ishin members were looking concernedly at him.
"Himura.you've done your best. Now lie down and stop talking." Hiroshiya said firmly, pressing the struggling Kenshin to the ground.
"WHAT?" Kenshin cried, pushing Hiroshiya aside roughly. The Yashiros were dead, he thought feverishly. And it was his fault.
I have broken my promise.
He stood up shakily, fell face-first, and stood up again stubbornly. The fire was still burning nearby, sending a wave of heat over him. He wasn't out for long, one part of his mind noted.
"He's still inside! Please, let me in!" someone wailed loudly. Kenshin turned his head; the two Yashiros were struggling against a member of the Ishinshishi, wanting to be let into the hell of fire that was once their home.
Mind filled with relief, Kenshin staggered to meet them. Hiroshiya followed, supporting Kenshin by his arm.
"Why isn't your son coming out with Himura-san? If he's in there you should have told Himura-san!"
"I've told you! I thought he was already out here because I didn't see him anywhere.."
"Please, you can't go in there!! It's too dangerous. You won't be able to come out."
"No!"
"Niji!" Kenshin panted.
"Himura-san!"
"What's happening here?"
"Yashiro-dono said her son is still in there!" Niji told him.
"WHAT!" Oh great. What a nice surprise. He was supposed to get the Yashiros out of there alive and unscathed.
The woman stumbled over, falling to her knees amid hysterical sobs. "Please, Himura-san.please save my son. If he's dead I..I.."
Kaitori Yashiro came over, but he looked at Kenshin's battered form and closed his eyes. "Don't do that, Hiramei. We can't sacrifice someone else's son because of Tasuka, we can't." He cradled his wife in his arms, tears sliding down his face.
"Sayonara, Tasuka," Kaitori whispered.
Kenshin clenched his fists.
I was the only boy there and I didn't have any parents, so I tried to protect them..
but they protected me..
"Well, I'll protect them now," he said aloud, making up his mind. "Hiroshiya, Niji, wait for me here. And don't let them get anywhere near the fire."
I must be totally crazy, Kenshin thought as he darted towards the fire- swathed building.
I must be undoubtedly hopelessly definitely impossibly stupidly extremely crazy.
He jumped over a barrier of burning shouji, feeling frightened once again. Kuso I am always afraid of fire..
He scanned the burnt area around him. There was no sign of any living things, let alone a boy. Coughing, he blinked as a cloud of black smoke billowed in his face. "Tasuka? TASUKA! Can you hear.argh!" He quickly slipped his feet out of his tabi, which had caught fire in the little while he was standing still.
The boy leaped backwards, colliding with a stone something..a well. He was toying with his life, he realized. Tasuka must be dead by now, thanks to his mother's ignorance. He could just back out now.
That was when he heard a simple, whimpering sob.
Suddenly excited, he looked around for the source of the sob. Nothing in sight. The hitokiri boy went to the other side of the well, deciding to sense rather than listen.
He was right.
Tasuka was curled up against the well, sobbing pitifully. His clothes were half burnt and he seemed to be slowly losing conscious.
Kenshin's heart plummeted. He considered drawing water to wet them both but decided against it. It would be far too risky.
Bending down he folded the small boy into his lap. The child gave no reaction; Kenshin doubted if Tasuka could even sense him.
"Just hold on, everything will be all right, you'll be seeing your parents in no time.." Kenshin muttered reassuringly, though seriously he wondered if they would be seeing Kami-Sama in no time at the rate the mansion was toppling.
I'll have to pass through the toppling house again, the Ishin men are on that side. Kenshin stared straight ahead, knitting his brows tightly. Let just hope that it don't collapse before I can get outta it.
Samurai dressed in green-and-white haori were patrolling the outer area, searching for any chance survivors. Plainly the Shisengumi didn't want to go anywhere near the collapsing building, or think that anyone would still be there without being roasted.
"They do have a point, I am already roasting." Kenshin muttered to no one in particular. Cradling the boy protectively in his left hand he unsheathed his katana with his right. Battling his heightening fright the young samurai paved his way across the burning site, coughing so hard that his lungs ached dreadfully..
Once back inside the sizzling mansion, Kenshin started wishing that he had gone out the other way - the way where at least half a hundred Shisengumi, not to mention various other troops were currently patrolling. Anything would be better than what he was facing now.
There were no directions. No way in or out. Nowhere that can be passed over without attaining serious burns. Tongues of fire were reaching out to lick them, heat waves stifling them. They were doomed.
Hell would be better than this..
Time seemed to snail by as Kenshin thrashed pointlessly through the maze of fire. His mind became horribly blank, leaving only one thought in his mind -live, or burn to death. He kicked a burning something out of his way..live, or burn to death..the pit-black smoke was starting to recede..live, or burn to death..there was a porch somewhere at the corner of his sight, quite unaffected by the fire as there was almost nothing to be burnt..live, or burn to death..
What?
The hitokiri spun around. There was a small opening at his right, laden with burnt debris but mercifully free of the roaring flames. His eyes stung with tears of joy. The Yashiro boy is going to live after all. He skipped deftly over. They were free. And the boys' stupid parents would be waiting outside.
Except there was a horde of Shisengumi waiting instead of his parents.
A/U: (Jumping in joy) This little column is reserved for my reviewers! Thank you for your support! I'm sooooooo happy at the moment..
Koe-760-sama: Hehe! I'm sooooooo happy receiving your second review! Once again, your advices proved absolutely useful. I woke up sometime someday and suddenly an idea about that particular group popped into my mind. And then I start typing hyper-fast till four in the morning (actually I typed 1/5 of this chapter in that day) so that was the birth of Tasuka, Kaitori and Hiramei, all in three hours. Ah, how reviews can work! I found myself going out and wanting to just get the hell home so I could lay my hands on my computer so I could type the stupid story so I could post it in time so I could get reviews. And Koe-760-sama's name kept popping up on my Reviews Alert! Well I'm not making much sense. Sometimes I hope I can type faster because I want to get the Kenshin- Tasuka's past out! I'm getting really excited about that currently still thinking about why Tasuka should like to overthrow the Meiji like all other nuts Anyway, isn't down for a few days? I've been checking for reviews everyday (you know) and something like DNS Error kept popping up. See yah in the fourth chapter!
Sapphire Eyes-sama: Hi again Sapphire Eyes-sama! I'm not really sure you're out there but anyway I will write this (just in case!) I'm currently making more and more grammar mistakes (sweatdropping) but I hope it will improve! It has to! And arigatou for reading the story!
Boomerang-chan-sama: B-chan-sama, my wonderful double-reviewer! I was thrilled to see your review again(weeps hysterically) Yes, definitely, Battousai's messed up the past and he's gonna pay! He's messing up the future as well - Zenei was right, it was dangerous. But that's not in this chapter! I'll have finish with the Tasuka guy first! (kicks Tasuka as he is taking up my time) And Battousai just walked out of the screen?! No! He'll be back! And soon! With trouble tagging at his heels! (Authoress is being a maniac) And about Kenshin and Battousai after Kaoru, I doubt if Battousai has enough time left in Meiji to do that! (checks watch, kicks Battousai) Hey, Battousai, do you have the time? Battousai: (scowling): coz! I am a girl magnet! Give me 24 hours and it'll be ok! Authoress: (claps forehand) what a conceited jerk!
Liemtenshi-sama: Liem-sama! WELCOME BACK Oh by the way, is "tenshi" translated from Chinese or Japanese? Sounds like Chinese to me.(I am Chinese ) I'm having great fun with the story, mainly because of the reviews! And ( about time too) that the stupid chapter had decided to come out at the right format after the Authoress had Ryu-Tsui-Sen-ed the keyboard about 1000 times. (grins evilly) no one messes with the invincible Hitokiri-san!
Poppy-sama: Welcome to the third chapter Poppy-sama! This is getting a bit long (waves hand helplessly) as I've suddenly decided to add in something extra.the Vanguard of Justice thing.thanks for your patience with my extra- slow uploads!
Dork-in-training-sama: Hello Dork-in-training-sama! I've already ficed the second chapter (screams in delight) it was stupid! Keeps turning my any three dots into one . Someday I'll kill the uploading system(eyes gleamed amber)
Akima Miota-sama: Thanks for the special email! You're my most recent reviewer and I erally don't know what to say only a heartfelt Arigatou! I think I have sent you the copy of this story, I hope you've received it! I'm so happy (authoress feeling giddy) I'm not making any sense. I haven't spell-checked or grammar-checked this chapter so I think there's gotta be a lot of mistakes, By the way, do you like Hiko? I do though not as much as I like Kenshin. He's so cool. But there's only a few fic about him on I'm disappointed so I wrote one called In Innocence. It's a one-shot and very short. Every fic I write has Hiko in it
