Long time no see. Writers block needs to die! This chapter has been rewritten like four times, so if its doesn't make sense tell me, because I may have left something out. In an act of desparation, I will begin to add other characters from themanga it this story.Origanlly it was only going to be Kenshin and Kaoru, plus a Choshu but Ifigured if i added Sano, Yahiko, and others, the story will be more interesting...hopefully.
Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin or any of the characters.
Chapter Seven: The True Meaning of Tenchu and the Rebirth of Himura Kenshin
Kaoru shivered. Her heart had stopped. Inches above her neck was a razor-sharp blade that could easily severe it. With a casual downcast flick, her life could be draining from her at this moment. She would have to say goodbye to the life she only recently began to enjoy. But another sword crossed the blade and she was at the mercy of her savior.
Kenshin, who appeared out of nowhere, saved her from certain death. But the greater shock was seeing the eyes of her savior blazing with hate. Her blood ran cold. Kenshin didn't come to her rescue; the Battousai did.
Shiro lifted his sword away. He stared at the Battousai, with fear flickering in his eyes. Kenshin continued to glare, boring holes in the man's spirit. Kaoru looked at his face. It was strange for her to see another side of him. In a sense, he was a different person all together. What really scared her wasn't his murderous glare, but that the fact that the Kenshin she knew was gone…
"K-ken-shin?" She said; her voice was like whimper. The Battousai didn't look at her. But she knew he heard her. The tension in the clearing was nearly unbearable. Kaoru felt Kenshin's aura suffocating her in a strange embrace. Warmth surrounded her body while fear made her blood run cold.
"Kaoru, get out of the way." He said. His voice was commanding. He had called her by her name without the honorific, again. Kaoru knew this wasn't Kenshin. He was always polite. "Kaoru." He looked down at her for the first time. He froze. His face softened and he added. "Kaoru-dono. Get out of the way or you'll be hurt."
Kaoru rolled over and got to her feet. She staggered away avoiding Kenshin's gaze. She felt a warm hand on her wrist. She turned to see golden eyes. His grip was firm but gentle at the same time. It was all he needed to assure her that the Kenshin she loved was not gone forever. He was near the surface ready to fight and protect her.
That's right, she thought. He promised he would always protect me. Even after I said those things to him. She smiled forgetting her fear. Kenshin was here, and he wouldn't let her be hurt. "You can do it." She cheered under her breath.
"You have a lot of nerve waltzing in like that." Shiro said. "I should kill you, but my order, were to bring Kamiya-san with me." He looked at Kaoru. "Wolfe-sama will have you." Kenshin tightened his grip on his hilt.
"Over my dead body." Kenshin said and lunged forward swinging his sword at Shiro. Kaoru watched in fear at the fight that unraveled. Shiro was stronger than she expected, but Kenshin easily had him matched. Kaoru grew anxious watching from the sidelines. She cried out when Kenshin was slashed across the chest. She sighed in relief when she realized it was a shallow cut.
Shiro was skilled, that was no doubt about it. He wasn't as fast as Kenshin but he didn't appear to be working as hard. He easily glided through well-practiced lunges and slashes, like a performed dance. His movements had a rhythm that was beginning to become predictable. Kenshin, growing tired of a pointless fight, cut Shiro's unprotected leg. As if expecting his blow, Shiro's blade changed mid-swing to the back of Kenshin's hand. He groaned as steel went through his flesh. Shiro grinned as he pulled back. He wounded him more severely this time.
Kaoru heard footsteps behind her and she spun around alarmed. Standing before her was her nightmare. Bradley Wolfe stood in all his trench coat glory. He wore a hat that shielded his face from view. Seeing Kaoru he grinned baring white teeth that Kaoru had imagined to be pointed. It was a straight flawless smile, despite its lack of warm. "Kaoru," he said. His eyes darted to her stomach. It was as skinny and flat as always. He muttered a curse. He was unsuccessful. "You better stop your…" He paused searching for the right word. "Friend. He will be killed."
"Kenshin can't be beaten by Shiro!" Kaoru hissed. Wolfe merely chuckled. He looked at the fight and winced dramatically. Kaoru whipped her head around to see Kenshin and Shiro with their blades locked. One glimpse at Kenshin revealed that the Battousai was loose again. Kaoru gasped in horror as she foresaw Shiro's fate. Anyone who fought the Battousai was marked for death. Her throat closed. She wanted Shiro dead, but she couldn't bare Kenshin being the one who killed him. She knew every time Kenshin swung his sword with the fury of a hitokiri, he lost a part of his soul. Shiro was scum but she couldn't allow him to be the one who pushed Kenshin off the edge. Besides Shiro was…she shook her head. It didn't matter who he was. He severed any relation to her years ago, along with her father.
Wolfe laughed softly. He grabbed Kaoru's ponytail. "Go stop him like a good little girl." He released her hair from his grasp and turned to leave. Kaoru ran to Kenshin and Shiro.
Kenshin's blade was at Shiro's throat when Kaoru cried. "KENSHIN!" At first he didn't seem to notice, but then he turned to look at her. His expression was neutral but his eyes were confused. Shiro was still. "Kenshin, do not kill him!"
"Why not?" He asked rather carelessly. How could he not care about the man's life? Kaoru thought fiercely. "He deserves to die for harming you." Kaoru's nerves fluttered in spite of herself, but she quickly rationalized herself. She was supposed to be pissed, not flattered.
"He deserves to die a million times over, but why are you the judge?" It was a rather stupid question to ask a hitokiri. This was the true meaning of Tenchu. Why didn't Kaoru understand the philosophy of the hitokiri?
"If nobody else is going to punish him I will." He said. He was angry that Kaoru was fighting with him. He was angry she wasn't on his side. "So why shouldn't I kill him."
"If you kill him, you kill a part of yourself. Your soul will be damned and eventually dissolve. Is it worth killing your soul for this man?" Kenshin considered her logic, but his hardened expression told her wasn't convinced. Kaoru was growing desperate.
"Kill me Kenshin." Shiro taunted. "It would leave a shame in your reputation if you let your prey live." Kenshin flinched. "It's sloppy for a hitokiri to show mercy."
"You're right." He said slowly. Bringing his sword up. "I can't let another one slip through my fingers." Kaoru didn't question him about what he meant. Perhaps if she did she would finally understand the mystery of fate. But all she could think about was stopping him. She threw her arms around him unexpectedly. Kaoru left her dead weight drag him down as looked at her in surprise. She grasped the front of his gi in her tight fist. "Kaoru-dono?" He asked.
"Don't…kill." She said tears forming in her eyes. Kenshin was touched by her affection, but he was in the middle of something important. Kaoru's body began to shake. Kenshin froze, the Battousai fading away from control. Shiro had passed out from the pain of his wounds. Kenshin dropped his sword and lifted Kaoru's thin frame on to her feet.
He placed his left hand under her chin; his right hand was still bloody. He tilted her face to look at him. "What's wrong? Why don't you want me to kill?"
"I don't want you to kill because it destroys who you are." Kenshin's eyes turned violet. He looked more like a man and less like a monster.
"But I am a hitokiri." He said as a matter-of-factly. "I can't change who I am."
Kaoru sighed. "Yes. You can." Kenshin released her face. "Trust me." She added with the most haunted and forlorn look Kenshin had seen. He sensed that was the end of that topic and didn't press the matter. He would try another day.
Kaoru slipped her hand in Kenshin's. She lifted his injured hand to her eyelevel and winced. It needed to be bandaged quickly. Kaoru pulled the blue ribbon from her hair. Kenshin watched intently, patches of red burned on his cheeks. When Kaoru began to wrap his wound with her ribbon he jumped back. "You can't ruin your ribbon because of me." He said dazed.
"Hush." Kaoru said firmly. It left no room for argument. Kenshin noticed she tended his wound so delicately like a mother's kiss. "I can always buy a new ribbon." It was obvious to Kenshin she didn't care too much about replacing it. But he knew she loved that ribbon.
"There. Now let's get home and bandage up the rest of them." Kaoru looked at him brightly, but he knew it was an act. She was afraid of what happened. She was afraid of him…
Kenshin and Kaoru returned to the Choshu Camp to find it overfilling with people. Dread filled their hearts as the truth dawned on them. The camp was attacked while they were away and this was the aftermath. Kenshin passively watched the bodies of his comrades be pulled on stretchers. His fist clenched. Kaoru placed a hand of his shoulder and whispered into his ear. "Deal with this after your wounds are healed." He gritted his teeth but otherwise didn't protest. He was in great pain and arguing would tax him strength he didn't have. Even healthy, arguing with Kaoru was a huge drain on him, so to try to in his current state would be a one-way ticket to no return.
Ayaka was bouncing around with bandages. Kaoru hadn't expected the woman to be doctor. Trailing behind her was a woman nearer to Kenshin's age than Kaoru. The woman glimpsed at Kaoru with light brown eyes, her long glossy black hair framing her face. She stopped and ran to Kaoru. "Here." She said handing her a bundle of bandages. "For your friend." She said and disappeared. Kaoru was dumbstruck. Did the woman actually expect Kaoru to take care of Kenshin all by herself?
The camp was shorthanded with doctors, so no doubt Kenshin wouldn't get the attention he needed if Kaoru didn't step up. Seeing Ayaka, she realized that if she explained the situation, she would drop everything and tend Kenshin. For some unexplained reason it made her mouth taste sour. If Ayaka could fix him, so could she. "C'mon," She said albeit forcefully. A startled Kenshin looked her as she clenched the linen strips in her hand. "Let's go to your room and I'll fix your wounds."
"But Kaoru-dono." He began but Kaoru wasn't in the mood to reason with him. She half-dragged him behind her, momentarily forgetting that he was injured and her forceful manner was probably not helping the situation. He had no choice but to follow along.
Kenshin was sitting on his futon as Kaoru unrolled the linen strips the doctor had given her. Slowly, as if embarrassed, Kenshin removed his gi to reveal a scarred wiry body. Kaoru watched him through lowered lashes. She turned to face him and noticed that his bangs veiled the majority of his face but she could make out bright red patches on his cheeks. Kaoru gently cleaned out the wound of his chest. He stiffened at first, but under her gentle touch Kenshin relaxed. Kaoru's delicate fingers began to trace old battle scars.
"Where did you get some many scars?" She asked. Kenshin jerked out of a trance and stared at her with a guilty look. He mumbled some analogies and asked what the question was. Kaoru repeated herself and he sighed.
"I don't know." He said. Seeing Kaoru's strange expression, he added. "Being a hitokiri isn't the safest job." That was the biggest understatement in Kaoru's life. She stifled a giggle and Kenshin continued as though he did not hear. "I get them all the time and don't really think about them anymore." After awhile he looked at Kaoru who had tears forming in her sapphire eyes. Kenshin sat up confused. Was it something he said?
"Sorry." She mumbled. "I probably look like such a wimp crying all the time." Kenshin didn't know why he would think that. She was a tough girl; there was no doubt about that. But she had also been through a lot.
"It's good to cry some times." Kenshin remarked. It was strange coming from a hitokiri. He didn't truly believe in it, but it seemed to cheer her up. And that's all that mattered. Kaoru looked away. Kenshin leaned forward and wiped her tears off her cheek. She looked at him startled by his impulsive display of affection. "You don't have to hide from me Kaoru-dono."
Her heart beat way too fast. She felt her cheeks grow warm. "You don't have to hide from me, either." She retorted, trying to cover up her flattery. It didn't work because Kenshin chuckled seeing through her façade. Kaoru's shoulders slumped. She could feel Kenshin next to her. Suddenly she noticed how close they really were. She flushed but didn't feel like moving. To her surprise she found herself enjoying the warmth of Kenshin's leg against hers.
"How are you feeling?" She asked rather abruptly. Kenshin grinned. Kaoru felt her heart melt at his smile. It was genuine. She blinked as she noticed his eyes were a warm violet. Then she knew. This was the true Himura Kenshin.
"Better than I felt in ages." He replied honestly. "Thanks to you." Kaoru froze. She looked up at his sparkling eyes. After she felt her insides melt in a way she never thought possible.
"You don't mean it." She said sadly. Kenshin's eyes flashed and he moved closer. This startled Kaoru.
"Yes I do." His eyes were looking through hers. Whatever he saw in them, Kaoru didn't know but he must have liked it. He placed his right hand that was still wrapped in a Kaoru's ribbon on the side of her face. She turned a bright red but didn't struggle against him. He leaned in, his lips slanting down across hers. Kaoru was surprised but returned the kiss. It was a simple chaste kiss that didn't last long. Kenshin pulled away but continued to cup her cheek. Kaoru looked at him with dazed eyes pleading for more.
"Ok." She said. "I believe you now." It took all the self-control she had to keep her voice light. Kenshin laughed. The hitokiri actually laughed. He no longer sounded like the legendary Battousai, but the seventeen-year-old boy he was.
Suddenly his face was thoughtful as he considered something grave. Kaoru looked at him expecting him to tell her. But his closed expression made her shrink away. He let her in and now he was just shut her out so harshly. Kaoru sighed and looked away scandalized. "Kaoru-dono?" Kenshin said. "I know I shouldn't be asking this but…" He trailed away, obviously nervous. He was treading on thin ice. "How do you know Shiro-san?"
For a long time she didn't say anything. Kenshin was about to apologize for asking when she finally answered. "Shiro has been working for Wolfe-san since he become the leader of the Gouka. I guess he is the second-in-command."
"Yeah, but don't you hate him?" He wanted to know the real reason why she didn't want him to kill.
Kaoru closed her eyes. "My hatred is irrelevant." She said softly. She turned and looked at him directly in the eyes. "As much as I want to deny it…Shiro is my brother."
Who saw that coming? Huh?
Did you like the scene with Kenshin and Kaoru? Any sugguestions to make it better?
-S.M.R.-
