Hiiiiii. I know, when lats have I updated this recently? But... I'm trying to take control of my life. Let's see how long this lasts :)

Adeleye-san, please don't miss work on my account! The economy isn't playing with us these days. I'm glad you enjoyed this story though! Msulle-chan! I could kiss you someday UwU. Don't give up on Ken-man yet, he's just a very crusty chicken nugget. He'll come around. Gin-san, let's hope the samurai has finally learned something? Don't hate him, life's just been extra hard on him. He doesn't know a good thing if it hit him in the face every other day.

I know I said the last chapter conclude's Yahiko's arc. But it's this one, for real for real this time. I hope it did a good job!

Anyways, happy reading! =UwU=

Yahiko was fed with a basic meal of bread, peanut butter, jelly, and sake. After living with Kaoru for a while he found that he was confused at first when adults offered him alcohol, but then it occurred to him that a holiday home for a mob boss likely had no orange juice available. The boy thanklessly accepted his meal in what was essentially a nicely furnished prison room. It was certainly no better than the rooms he had snuck through. The sandwich was certainly welcome after a day of no food. The boy sat down on his hard lean bed and stared at the ceiling.

It didn't feel like he was going to die soon.

Whether it was because he was going to chose to work for Ikubo or because he was hoping that the bounty hunters were coming, he couldn't tell.

His mind drifted to Kaoru, who would definitely be worried to near-death that he hadn't returned. Would she tell the guys? Would they find him? What if he made his choice then?

Maybe Kaoru would find him dead. But he didn't think that she would.

The sound of a door opening and closing got him up, but it was the room beside him that made the sound. Yahiko didn't recognize any voice but the sound of a whimper through gagging. His hand fisted into balls. Ushijima was a coward and Yahiko would kill him whether he chose to die or not. The sound of laughter and metal and slaps was muffled through the wall though, and that kept Yahiko up.

The whimpering and begging turned into muffled screams and groans of pain.

Yahiko quietly reached for his untouched sake.

...

'Is she snoring?'

'Yeah?'

'Damn.'

'Yeah.'

Sanosuke sighed. His network had picked up from the slums of the industrial district that a man had been mobbed and chased by a group of angry locals shouting at him and calling him a criminal. Photos quickly ran an ID scan and linked him to Ushijima Kuujo's profile. Several accounts of the inciting incidents came through, including that a woman had shown up with a child and accused him of being a deadbeat, a young man had burst into tears and started hitting him, calling him a cheater, a girl had called him a pet thief and a boy had found his grandparents' quack physician and accused him of killing them. He had quickly gathered that somehow Yahiko had caused a ruckus to make the man a target in the public eye and desperate enough to take a risk.

However, the precise moment the incident had happened was early in the afternoon, and by the time he had received any information, it was just a couple of hours away from sundown. By the time Sanosuke had gotten a hold of another lead that Ikubo had Ushijima Kuujo in his custody, twilight was fast approaching. The rumours around the lead included a busted money heist, mass execution of inside moles by a private pool, a gang rape on Kuujo, and that there was a little girl in the gang's custody. None of that made any of them confident, and Kaoru had burst into tears until she exhausted herself.

'Are you gonna move her?'

There was silence, then the sound of standing up and fabric moving.

'Yeah...'

Kenshin seamlessly slid Kaoru into his arm's bridal style, his eyes softly watching her peaceful face for any change of expression. Sanosuke's words had made him extremely uncomfortable for many reasons, and one of them was because they were true. He had turned everything around to make it look like it was all on her during their argument. But in the weeks since she threw his flowers at him in anger, he had known that he had been unfair.

He shouldn't have befriended her from the start.

It was too late for that though and trying to change that was just unfair on someone like Kaoru, who had entered adulthood alone and deserved to have people in her life. Friends she could care for and that could care for her.

Certainly not someone like him, but he had been the one she found fair and square. That someone kind, amazing and generous like her had chosen to be his friend was more than he could hope for and pushing her away was stupid. That it took Sanosuke of all people for him to realise this - and not the fact that Yahiko was in danger - was eye-opening and humbling.

'With the way things are right now you can't go in there alone.'

Kenshin turned to his partner after laying Kaoru comfortably on the couch in the lobby. He had a flat expression on his face. Sanosuke rolled his eyes.

'I'm not you okay? Jeez,' he exclaimed defensively, running a hand through his head. 'Besides Ikubo isn't on Tokyo's bounty.'

'Yahiko is though.'

'Not as Yahiko he isn't. Besides if it's an issue I could just talk it out with them. I still got my rep.'

'As a mercenary?'

'Amongst other things!' The younger man huffed in protest but Kenshin only continued to stare at him flatly. 'Kenshin throwing yourself into the fray as Ninja Jesus won't get you on everyone's good graces. Do you know what will? An apology.'

The samurai sighed at this and made his way back to the piloting area. Sanosuke's face was the perfect picture of smug satisfaction.

'So you want to call on the cops to help out?'

'Well yeah. Getting out without trying to kill anyone would put Yahiko and Kaoru in the crossfire, so it isn't viable .' At Kenshin's expression, Sanosuke nodded stiffly. 'Right. Killing isn't an option period. Getting in would put them in the crossfire. So back up is needed.'

'Okay. Great. But that would mean we would have to lose a percentage of the bounty to the police. Can you live with that?'

Silence met Kenshin's question, and the rooster head slammed his fist into his palm.

'Shit!'

'Because however, this goes down, I'm putting money into the dojo.'

Sanosuke glared at his partner as he made his way back to his co-piloting seat and sat down.

'When we cut the ice cream and dango bills from our budget, I'll remind you of this day.'

Kenshin met his partner's heated expression with a cool one, unflinching at the threat.

'Dango won't be cut from the budget.'

The two held glares for a little while longer,

'Is Yahiko's life in the balance because of a budget? For desserts?'

'Kaoru-dono~!' Kenshin jumped to his feet at the sound of her incredulous-sounding voice. He turned to find her staring at him, with surprise at how he had referred to her on her face. Behind him, Sanosuke sighed as he got out his phone to dial in Tokyo Space Police headquarters.

'Ugh, philanthropy's gonna kill me someday.'

...

Yahiko was found gazing unfocused at the wall opposite him, the small empty bottle of sake in his hand.

'Is he dead?'

'How, Ranma?'

'Alcohol poisoning?'

'How, Toma?'

The two shrugged behind the hulking dark man with the sword on his left.

'You think he heard you and the guys dealing with Ushijima, Benji-san?'

Benji let out a grimace.

'Isn't he met to be desensitized to shit like that?'

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Yahiko's subconscious wondered the same thing.

'He looks dead either way.'

'Na, just broken inside I guess?'

Benji let out a groan and facepalmed.

'Will you two fetch the kid and take him to see the boss?'

And so the two hoisted Yahiko to his feet, binding his arms behind him and leading him to where Ikubo was waiting for him. They made their way out of the house through the kitchen and then descended to the arsenal garage, where weapons and luxury cars alike were kept. Yahiko moved as he was led, devoid of any emotion. The boss was surprised to see him that way and shot his top men a questioning brow.

'He's dead.'

'He's broken inside.'

Benji let out a long-suffering sigh after his colleagues had voiced their opinion unanimously. Ikubo was not impressed.

'He's tipsy, you clowns.' He sighed and raised his hand to signal his goons. They came out of the shadows, and two of them brought in Kuujo, whose head was covered in a potato sack and body was worse for wear. Yahiko turned his eyes on him and felt sick to his stomach. Ikubo took no notice of this, motioning to his men to bring him to his knees before the child.

Benji pulled off the potato sack and revealed Kuujo's bruised, battered and tear-streaked face, while Ranma untied Yahiko's hands and Toma gave him his gun. He took it in his hands and pointed at his parents' murderer without a trembling bone in his body, making Ikubo grin with amusement. 'Well see Myojin-chan making more smart decisions around here-'

The boy hurled all over the assassin. The three henchmen behind him cringed and took a step back, looking away. Ikubo scowled and glared at Benji.

'He is broken inside! He was in the other room, wasn't he?'

'I thought he was desensitized!'

'Told you.'

'Shut up, Ranma,' Toma muttered back. Kuujo promptly puked as well and then burst into tears. Everyone groaned, looking away from the mess as Yahiko wiped at his mouth and took a step back so the vomit wouldn't touch him.

'You sick bastard... traumatizing an eight-year-old like that...'

'I'm ten.' The boy grumbled weakly as he covered his mouth. No one paid him any notice.

'Dude he worked for the Hiruma brothers! No kid there was okay!'

'Damn Benji.'

'I didn't do shit!'

Ikubo pinched his nose bridge and then looked at Yahiko.

'Do you want to shoot him?'

The boy shook his head and the boss could only sigh.

'Can't say I blame you, knowing you heard the man's ordeal. Benji's a cruel man, Rated 18 and all that.' Yahiko nodded numbly and looked away from Kuujo, not quite feeling anything other than nausea. It wasn't an unfamiliar feeling. Or an unfamiliar reaction. Ikubo watched him carefully, before letting out a sigh. 'Bring him over and let's wrap things up here. Someone cash Kuujo in tomorrow morning for black bounties before we leave.' Benji started to move towards the boy but Ikubo shook his hand. 'Not you Benji you might make him puke again or something.'

Toma tied his hands again and led the boy to Ikubo, while Benji ordered the goons to clean up the mess and take Ushijima Kuujo away for clean up. Ranma started to move the other out to open the gate and escort the men inside.

'Is he still good for us boss?'

'Of course he is. He was gonna make the choice anyways,' Ikubo said confidently. 'Just wanted to give him the satisfaction of revenge so he'd have no regrets and all. But Benji here couldn't be more thoughtful to consider a hapless witness to his sadistic pleasures.' They ignore Benji's yells of protest. 'The boy will adapt soon enough.'

'We could put him on the void trade route. Mine the fucking null of all its starcrypto.'

'Can he do that?'

'He's good enough to pick it up with training.'

Ranma ran back from the entrance of the arsenal garage with a worried look on his face. Toma raised a brow and Ikubo met his henchman with a cool, blank gaze.

'What is it?'

'Cops?'

'What?' Toma gaped at him. Are you serious?'

'They've surrounded the place boss!' Ranma ignored Toma and looked at Ikubo desperately. 'I saw a lady sensei with them! I think she figured it out!'

'Kaoru...' Yahiko whispered faintly, his eyes growing wide. Ikubo's grip tightened on the boy's shoulder and the boy looked up to meet the older man's furious gaze.

'Did you tell her about your plans?'

'She doesn't... she wasn't supposed to know-'

'Did she send you here?' Ranma asked angrily. 'Were you a fucking snake the whole time?'

'Kaoru's a teacher. She has no business with you.' Yahiko pointed out softly.

'Bounty hunters might though,' Benji pointed out grimly as he approached them, armed with a machine gun. He had ordered the goons to arm up and stay ready. He gave Yahiko a look. 'Well punk?'

'I didn't meet them either, Kaoru had me follow them because of her boyfriend.' The lie came easily to him. Revealing the identity of the bounty hunters wasn't a gamble he'd take in case their reputation was an element of surprise.

'What the hell?' Toma snapped. 'You didn't run away! So she never expected you to not come back?'

'She's been looking for you,' Ikubo said finally, softly. And then growled at the child. 'And you knew all this while, you shitty little mother fucker...'

'I wasn't sure they'd catch up, honestly,' Yahiko said quietly.

'Fuck you kid!' Toma hissed and then let out a breathless laugh. 'The fucker had a one-up over us all along...'

'Ther's no time for this,' Ikubo snapped and held out his hand for a weapon. Benji handed him a pocket knife and the boss held it to Yahiko's neck. 'Make any smartass moves and you're finished, I'll deal with you later. Sneaky little cat, just like your folks.'

Something in Yahiko's eyes flashed and he scowled.

'Don't talk about my parents.'

'Fuck you.' Ranma retorted and hit the boy upside his head when Ikubo pulled the knife from his neck. 'Boss is gonna hand you over to Benji when this is over.'

The gleam in said henchman's eyes made Yahiko nauseous again.

'Everyone! Guard the fucking entrance and don't shoot till my command, got it?' Benji yelled and then gave the boy a maniacal grin, tongue in cheek, and a slicing motion across his neck. Yahiko held back a gag as Ikubo pushed him forward. The man raised his voice to be heard.

'Well and my! Do we have guests?'

...

Sanosuke's eyes grew wide as he spotted Boss Ikubo make his way into view with the boy and squeezed Kaoru's shoulder tightly.

'Jou-chan, don't panic, everything's going to be fine.'

'What a-' Kaoru followed his gaze and covered mouth to hold back a shout at the sight of Yahiko being held at knife-point. She looked up at Sanosuke with tears in her eyes. 'They're going to kill him... and it's all my fault.'

'No, they won't Kaoru. Let the Kenshin and the police do their job. Yahiko will be fine, alright?'

Kaoru nodded stiffly and hugged herself.

'Ikubo Chojiro!' A portly officer declared from his police jet over the megaphone. 'Release the bounties in your possession and submit yourself to the authorities for questioning.' In the distance, Sanosuke saw Ikubo bark out orders to one of his men who quickly retreated a megaphone for him.

'That's a raw deal Chief. I came to Tokyo to get away from the nagging of Osaka women, and not one, but two trespassers come into my home! They're coming with me to face justice with Osaka laws, so no need for you here!'

'There's no legal protocol for that in the legislation sir.'

'Well that's not my problem, but you can come and make it my problem,' Ikubo pressed the blade hard enough to draw blood from Yahiko. 'Then this bloodied child corpse can be your problem too!'

'You will be charged guilty of homicide if you do that. One way or another we will bring you in, Ikubo.'

'With a minor's life on the line? You'll take that gamble? We'll kill Ushijima Kuujo too!'

'Lay down all your weapons and surrender or we will forcibly take you into custody Ikubo Chojiro.'

Sanosuke had to cover Kaoru's mouth to keep her from yelling out.

'Don't Kaoru!'

'The police don't care if they kill him!'

'They won't have to take that risk!' Sanosuke whispered back. 'Kenshin's already inside! Just let everything play out, okay?'

'All you have to do is make me Chief!' Ikubo taunted over the megaphone. 'Give the order and paint the road red!'

Murmurs erupted among the police that surrounded the entrance of the arsenal garage.

'We want the kid alive, Ikubo. That's all.'

'I want a boy too. Smart little fucker. He knew you all were coming all along, did you know-? -shut up brat,' the man lowered his voice but the last of his words could still be here. 'We want the bounty hunter who brought you here upfront. And his girlfriend too.'

'Girlfriend?' Sanosuke snickered in the background. Kaoru glared at him as he slipped a hand around her neck. 'Well you're no Kitsune, but you'll do.' He dragged her along as the police cleared a path towards the mob boss.

'See we can give you Kuujo instead and we'll keep the kid.'

'No!' Kaoru burst out of Sanosuke's arm and ran past the end of the clearing and towards the mob boss

'Jou-chan don't-!' He started to yell but she didn't listen.

'Please give Yahiko back!'

'Don't come forward Kaoru! You dumbass!' Yahiko yelled in a panic. 'What if he kills you?'

'He won't!' Sanosuke called after her. 'Not unless he wants to deal with us!'

'My my, is that Zanza?' Ikubo whistled, giving the boy an annoyed glare for not telling him the identity of the bounty hunter. 'Well, I certainly don't want to deal with him!' The blade was coated by a thin sheet of blood from the small incision on Yahiko's neck, and Kaoru gulped. Sanosuke tightly gripped her wrist and shook his head. 'Okay, we will give you the boy. But I want the girl to follow us to the edge of the region as a guarantee. Zanza can follow us and get off at the astral gate with them before we jet. We keep Kuujo and our freedom! You get your boy!'

'Or?'

'Rivers of blood my good sir police chief, and may the best man win! The good old fashion way!'

The silence in the air was palpable, as they waited for the police to communicate among themselves and come to a consensus.

'Accepted!'

'Excellent!' Ikubo gestured to Kaoru and Zanza. 'Lady and gent, if you would please. Our guests never need weapons.' Goons rushed to relieve them of their weapons and tie their hands behind their backs, and all the while shame riddled Yahiko's cheeks.

'Kaoru...' he started and then looked away from them both. 'I'm sorry I ran off.'

'No Yahiko,' she shook her head regretfully. 'I'm sorry I sent you after them at all. I should have just let him go.'

'So Kenshin really didn't come over?' Sanosuke quickly snapped his head at the brat to shoot him a silencing glare.

'Whose Kenshin?' Ikubo frowned at them.

'Cop.'

'Housekeep.'

The bounty hunter resisted the urge to facepalm as Ikubo scowled and pressed the knife against Yahiko's neck threateningly. The boy winced as the blade made fresh contact with his wound.

'Idiots...'

'Alright punk, spill it. Is there a third pe-'

Screams cut him off from his interrogation before he could even start.

'It's a demon!'

'Devil!'

'How the fuck is he so fucking fast?'

'I didn't even see him move!'

'Oh thank God.' Sanosuke exhaled in relief and then rolled his shoulders to test for the discomfort of his bound-up hands. 'Time to kick ass.' He leaped into the air with a spin and kicked Ikubo to the side, having the knife draw an even deeper cut across Yahiko's skin. Kaoru screamed at the sight, too terrified to notice he wasn't dying.

'I'm okay Kaoru!' Yahiko assured her. 'It's still shallow!

'Pick up the knife and cut her loose Yahiko!' Sanosuke yelled as he made work of the gang members.

The boy squatted by the knife on the floor and began to struggle with his bindings, while the police started caving in on the men that Sanosuke had beat down with nothing but his kicks.

'Hey punk!' Those holding Kaoru down left her to get Yahiko but Kaoru immediately undid her already loose bindings and dropped into a sweep kick to trip them all to the floor. She picked up her sheathed sword and made quick work of those who neared her without drawing out her blade, before running to help cut Yahiko loose.

'You're so freaking slow you brat!'

'Shut up and set me loose you useless old hag!'

And even though they threw barbs at each other, tears of relief started to stream down Yahiko's face.

'Yahiko you're crying!'

'Shut up!' He sobbed and threw his arms around Kaoru after she cut him loose. 'Just shut up...' he held onto the front of her haori tightly. She held him close to her, her own eyes brimming with unshed tears.

'Okay...'

A police guard nervously approached them in the midst of the all-out chaos as police, Sanosuke and an unseen Kenshin took down the gang.

'Excuse me, Kamiya-san, Myojin-san... I'm afraid this is not the time or place for-'

'Leave the crackheads alone and get the mob boss before he kills somebody!' Sanosuke yelled, and the officer quickly turned to find a bloody-headed Ikubo reaching for a gun one of his men had dropped in the fray. The policeman quickly ran off to apprehend him, leaving Yahiko to sob into Kaoru's shoulder as she held him.

Sanosuke took a brief moment to appreciate them before facing his opponents and drawing out his compact sword hilt. With his hand on the button base, Zanbatou unfurled in all its glory and the hunter made his way through the goons. Inside the arsenal garage, Kenshin - who had snuck in after finding the path through which Yahiko had infiltrated the property in the first place - cut down through the goons with relative ease and was now in a seven against one with Toma, Ranma, Benji, and four other henchmen and women of the same caliber. Despite being against swords and guns, Kenshin was not losing.

'I like you~,' Benji grinned sadistically at Kenshin, relishing every time he exchanged blows with the samurai. Kenshin's face was cold at the expression.

'I know exactly what you are.'

'Do you now?' Benji teased with a predatory smirk.

'I hate it.'

'They all do.'

'Stop flirting with the enemy Benji! Catch him first!'

Kenshin quickly decommissioned Ranma and one other henchwoman, to the shock of the others.

'Maybe he is a demon,' Toma said in slight awe as let his reloaded gun open at the samurai after Benji and the other bladed henchmen leaped back.

'The Battousai isn't a demon.' Benji laughed out loud, much to Kenshin's annoyance. 'That's a man in top form, the best there ever was. Even after he put down the blade!'

'You know who I am and yet.' Kenshin glared at him, the bitterness in his voice thick, but Benji laughed again.

'Oh, that is precisely why, Battousai!'

'The kid didn't mention the bounty hunters were Zanza or the fucking Battousai!' Toma yelled as his bullets finished again, letting Benji and the other henchman engage him while he and the rest reloaded. 'That little shit really played the long con didn't he?' Benji didn't respond, because Kenshin had struck the side of his head with enough force that it would be fatal on another day. Toma blanched and exchanged nervous glances with his colleague. 'Well... fuck me.'

...

'Thank you for your help once again, Zanza, Battousai.'

'Oh it's no pleasure, we're grateful we can still count on the police despite everything!'

Yahiko watched as the police spoke to Sanosuke and Kenshin, snuggled in a warm towel, leaning against an ambulance and sipping on a carton of orange juice. His hand absently felt at his bandaged neck, and his eyes fell to Kaoru, who was talking to an officer and giving her a statement of the whole ordeal her relationship with him. His eyes found Ushijima Kuujo being guided into a police car, feeling strangely empty on seeing him. Being only a wall away from the ordeal the assassin suffered, Yahiko had come to realize the value of all life. One life didn't deserve to die through slaughter for another because one life wouldn't bring back the other. His parents didn't need to die the way they did. They deserved to be judged for owing money maybe, but not to be murdered. And Ushijima deserved judgment, not to be murdered.

Or to endure whatever the hell Benji had put that man through.

'Yahiko.'

'Kenshin?' The older samurai took the child by surprise, drawing his attention from the man whom he once wanted dead. The redhead gave him a tired smile.

'May I join you? Ask a few questions, maybe?'

Yahiko snorted softly.

'You a cop or something?' But even then he scooted aside to make room for the man. 'Kaoru already scolded me. I know I deserve more, but so does she! You told her not-'

'Kaoru is an adult and can make her own decisions. You are a child, and can't make all those decisions yet.' Kenshin appraised the boy with an amused expression, even as the child pouted petulantly. 'This is on her.'

Yahiko kept his mouth shut, not expecting Kenshin to say that at all. He frowned at the older man.

'You know that's what I thought when you two fought last time, but then you won the argument.'

Kenshin let out a sigh and leaned his head back.

'So you think I was being unfair?'

'Well, you put her in a shitty mood. And that was unfair for me during practice. And you did promise to teach me, so getting stuck with someone that's emotionally volatile is unfair too...'

'Yahiko~' Kenshin chuckled despite himself, and the boy stopped his obnoxious rant to crack a grin, before sighing.

'I mean you look like someone who's been through a lot, so I kinda understand why you got hesitant about keeping someone all hoity-toity like her from risking getting caught up in that. But she doesn't know that and I don't even know for certain. Telling her would have been nice. Make her not feel like she was a problem or something.' He stared at the floor. 'I never ever talked about Kuujo. I pushed him from my mind, but I'm lucky he's a sucky assassin and his name never came up. If he was someone with yours and Sanosuke's type of reputations, his name would have come up sooner and because I had all this unprocessed stuff in my head, it would have gotten me killed or something.' He shrugged and sipped on his juice. 'But I have Kaoru and you guys now. You came guys came after me and now I know I can talk to you anytime.'

'Will you though?'

'That's...' the boy trailed off and then let out an uncharacteristic giggle. 'That's a good question, Kenshin.'

The man smiled at this and put a hand on his head.

'You're pretty smart, you know that?'

'Apparently, it's why I'm not dead yet.'

'That's not a lie.' Kenshin mused and ruffled his hair. 'Take it easy on Kaoru-dono, okay? She was worried sick about you.'

'If she gives me timeout of practice for mental health reasons, then sure.'

'...somehow I doubt that.'

'I'll settle for not driving her crazy then.'

The two laughed yet again. Kaoru spotted the two of them, and she beamed at Yahiko, making her way over with a small bag in her hand.

'We're gossiping about you, Tanuki-chan.'

'Don't be disrespectful!' she yelled, only half annoyed as she approached them. When she got there she handed them both doughnuts. 'The police said you guys should eat. Sanosuke's working on Yahiko's custody with some buddies from the force. Did you know he used to be a cop?'

'Him?' Yahiko snorted with disbelief. 'Wild.'

'Right?'

Kenshin smiled fondly as the two of them fell into a warm discussion. Kaoru looked at him and her expression dimmed into one of contemplation.

'I'm going to get more doughnuts,' the two of them only ignored Yahiko, who snorted indignantly as he gave them space. 'Unbelievable, sure, neglect the victim of abuse here, why not...' He shook his head as he slid off the car bonnet and left them alone.

'Kaoru-dono, I owe you an apology.'

'You owe me several.'

'Yes.'

'And fuck you.'

'Yes as well.'

Kaoru blinked, and then the two of them blushed and looked away.

'Please don't ask for context.'

'I wasn't planning to, dumbass.'

Kenshin nodded sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head.

'I... well... you know what the Battousai is?' She nodded in the affirmative, urging him to go on. 'And that I was that person in the past?' He waited for her to nod again before continuing. 'I imagine you know I have enemies...'

Kaoru nodded seriously for all of five seconds, before bursting into laughter.

'I know why you did what you did. It clicked when Sanosuke was yelling at us.' Both of them shivered involuntarily at the memory. 'Paranoia? Excuses?' She shook her head and then let out a tired sigh. 'I wish you said something. I really didn't need an auto-biography. Just an explanation of why who you used to be had a way of catching up with you.'

'I tried to,' he started weakly, but the sentence withered under her glare. 'But not very well, yes, I know.' He pinched his nose-bride tiredly. 'Believe me, it's been made crystal clear.'

'I should imagine.' Kaoru hugged herself and chewed on her lower lip. 'I mean now I understand why you don't want me on your missions. It sucks, but I get it. So I'll lay off to make you comfortable. Just... don't-'

'Make myself a stranger?' Kenshin offered with a small, rueful smile. 'I mean, if you're our partner, you can't really be a stranger, can you?'

'What?'

'I mean you have your whole life here, so it would probably only be when we're around, but we could totally run hunts here and use more manpower with the locals.'

Kaoru gaped at him, her heart under duress of extremely unsettled emotions as her mind tried to process what he was saying.

'Kenshin are you serious?'

'I mean - well, only because Yahiko can't work with us unsupervised, we need someone to protect him.'

'Damn you!'

But she laughed when she hit him and he laughed through her tears. And when Yahiko and Sanosuke joined them with the news that the authorities would Yahiko consider a student ward of the dojo till he left or turned eighteen, all felt right in Kaoru's world again.

It's over! IT IS DONE! The gang is back together again!

This arc was... certainly an experience to write. I actually had to divide the last chapter into two, hence why we are where we are and not in the previous chapter. Fleshing out the outlines felt like I was charting the plot all over again, in terms of coming up with new ideas. Hopefully, the OCs didn't mess with any of you too much. Who was your favorite and least OC by the way? And what did you think about Sano losing his patience with Kaoru and Kenshin? Did you think the pacing was too fast? Slow? Almost there?

I know a lot of people felt Kenshin was just an unsolicited drama queen - and he was, I made him so - but I do think that Kaoru and Yahiko slipped up too. They could have gotten lucky and then Kenshin would get all the hashing out and stuff, even though the other two kinda did enter an avoidable situation. It's not something explored a lot in fiction - adverse consequence, that is - but I'll try to put it in here even though the story is supposed to be generally upbeat. Makes for angst, and what is life without angst? certainly not my life hahahahahahahaha - help me.

I heard tomorrow our grades are coming out. Anxiety is why I'm here kids. Now you know the truth.

Anywaysss, hope you enjoyed the chapter! Reviews are always, always welcome. They cheer me up when I'm down and would probably help me with errors and stuff. Because there are no betas here folks, we die like real men.

I'll see you soon!

=UwU=