The smell of blood was thick in the air when Ryumiko and Hiko walked down the rabbit path of the mountain as they headed to the city. The sight of a severed arm shocked them both, but as they were regular killers, it did not matter. The main questions were: Who did the arm belong to, and why didn't they hear the duel?

"Oh no!" Ryumiko exclaimed when she saw Reiji's unconscious body on the grass not far from the arm. His body was cold, which worried her greatly, but was relieved when she found his pulse, however weak it was. "Who could have done this?" she asked, her eyes flashing amber with rage.

Hiko said nothing, went to get a closer look at the severed arm. Upon further inspection, he found the word, "Tsubasa" on the palm. It seemed to be tattooed with red dye. "Could it be Akarou?" he asked Ryumiko. HAN: Aka means red

She nodded her head and said, "Everyone in the Tsubasa clan have this tattoo on their right palm. Akurou has the word 'Aku' right next to his"

"Akarou…" Reiji said softly, "You must find Akarou! Before… it's too late"

"Why?" Hiko asked, "Hasn't he done enough harm to you and Ryumiko?"

"He will go to the Shogun on this matter, if so; the punishment granted will not permit us to commit seppuku. Our family will go down to ashes"

"Otou-sama, you must tell us what happened at the least" she said, her amber eyes increasing in their depth. "What does Akarou have to do with the Shogun? Why are we in danger?"

"The archives… I snuck into the Shogun's archives to see if Akarou sent any opium into the country…" Reiji muttered after Ryumiko gave him the antidote, which she stole from Akurou before she went to the Shinsen-Gumi headquarters with him and Akarou. "He caught me red-handed, and threatened to hand me in to the Shogun. The punishment would be execution, as I'll be unworthy of seppuku. If I am to die by the former, the Shinsen-Gumi and you would suffer greatly"

"So that is why you gave me to Akurou, because he wants a pretty wife and to quell Akarou" Ryumiko exclaimed as the truth dawned upon her. "I must return to Akurou… I swore to uphold the family honor and the Shinsen-Gumi"

"No! Akurou has already written a letter of divorce, Ryumi-chan", he said, regaining his strength. "The most important step is to remove Akarou from the face of this world"

"That's impossible, the Tsubasa clan will be easily notified of his death even if we manage to kill him" Hiko said, knowing that they had many spies based in Kyoto. The said clan were the ones responsible for the opium circulated in Kyoto and Edo, which caused much pain and suffering to the populace.

"We can get Oni-san and Okita to help, if we're lucky", Ryumiko said hopefully. "I'm sure that they'll chip in. Hiko-sama, can you stay here and help Otou-sama lest he needs anything?"

"I'm not letting you go, Ryumi-chan" Reiji said sternly. "Even if you do not care about your life, the child that you bear is innocent. Don't throw your life away just for vengeance"

"But… Otou-sama, I must, or you and the Shinsen-Gumi would be ground into ashes" she said. 'Furthermore, Hiko-sama will blow his cover"

"Don't worry, Ryumi-chan, Hiko-dono is a wise man, he will not put your efforts to waste"

"Ryumiko" Hiko said, holding her white hands, "I promise you that your companions and I will return safely"

HAN: I thank Patience Halliwell who reviewed EVERY CHAPTER, and hope the others would do so too. She's a good girl, know? Take her as a role model, okay…

Think of it as a Christmas present to me, please?