Kenjutsu Beauty

Damsel in Distress

A fuzzy headed Kamiya Kaoru opened her eyes to the sight of a new day. Just a few weeks ago she had been saved from the Hiruma brothers by a man named Sanosuke. Now she could hear him rummaging around in her kitchen looking for food. Personally, Kaoru thoughtshe could have handled them on her own.

Nevertheless, because of Sano's valiant rescue, Kaoru was stuck with a freeloader eating all her food. A particularly loud yelp following a large thud from the kitchen caused her to giggle. She didn't mind the company all that much.

Speaking of company, just after Sano came to stay with Kaoru, she found a young boy. He was trying to pick her pocket but she didn't have anything for him to take. Later she found out that a local gang was using him to do their thieving. So, Kaoru saved him and invited him to live with her. She hadn't figured out what to do with him yet, as she couldn't really be the mother figure in his life. There was one thing she could teach him, but he'd have to come to her first. He seemed like he wanted to learn, but was too proud to ask for help learning swords from a girl. He'd come around eventually

Kaoru stretched and yawned when she finally decided to get out of bed. That day was going to be just like the other days since she picked up two freeloaders. Hopefully there wouldn't be any more of them

Yahiko looked up from his meager breakfast as Kaoru walked into the room. He'd wanted to ask her for a few days, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Seeing her like this just out of bed…who would want to learn swords from her? She looked just like any other girl. Except with less grace. Same long silky black hair. No extra muscles bulging out where they shouldn't. She didn't look anything like a man. So how could she be good at what men do?

"Good morning Yahiko, where's Sano?" Kaoru asked with a girly voice, just like he expected her to have. If he was going to learn swords from her, why did she have to be so girly?

"He left early today. He said he had some business to attend to." Yahiko shrugged at this. It wasn't really any of his business where Sano went.

"Business? That freeloader! Are you serious?" her voice raised sharply and almost caused Yahiko to cringe. Why did it have to be her?

"Yeah, but he did mention it'd be at a restaurant. He said he'd be at the Shuueiya, though I thought that was more of a gambling hall these days."

The look Kaoru sent him almost caused him to start laughing right in front of her, but that wouldn't be smart. She might have been girly but he had already learned the hard way thatshe had a nasty temper.

"Gambling Hall! He doesn't have the money to spend at a gambling hall!"

In a small room in the back of an old restaurant sat seven men.

"Alright what'll it be guys? Place your bets," the dice thrower said, looking at each of the men individually. He knew them all as close friends. How often they came, why they wouldplay, what their lives were like at home. He even knew who the lucky ones were, which people would most likely win.

Definitely not Sano. Sano was the most unlucky guy the dice thrower hadever seen. He didn't know it was possible to loose that much. He thought loosing so much would make a guy quit. Not Sano. Sano figured it's a game of chance, therefore the more he lost, the more likely he was to win next time.

"I'm saying it's a five-six split!" said a guy in the back. He only playedbecause of the company. He gets lonely at home, alone. He had a wife, but she thought he was a nobody. So he would come to Shuueiya to play with the guys and he'd win quite a bit.

"No way, I'm saying it's lucky seven," that was Sano talking. He was a fighter for hire with no family as far as anyone could tell. Nobody even knew where he came from. The only clue wasthat white jacket of his, with the character for evil on its back. Despite his mysteriousness, Sano was a pretty decent fellow always helping the ladies. Of course, he would also lookfor a fight wherever he went. He was tough, but he was a good guy.

The dice thrower threw the dice and everyone watched as they went tumbling over themselves.

"Five-six split!" he called when they finally stopped. He watched the boys with a knowing expression as each of their familiar reactions occurred.

"Yes! Hand it over Rooster head!" the guy in the back called, rushing forward to claim his prize, a huge grin plastered to his face.

"Alright alright, you got it this time, but let's just see who wins next time!" said Sano, lounging back with a fishbone in his mouth. The other guy grinned, also knowing how things usually went. It was all fun and games. No one wouldmake or loose a fortune.

"So where's Yoita from the candy shop? That gambling fool hasn't been here today," Sano commented. He had noticed Yoita was gone earlier, but it had been too early to think anything of it. But it waswell into the afternoon and Yoita would usually have been there hours ago.

"You didn't know, Sano? Yoita died earlier this month," the guy said gently. He knew Sano and Yoita were friends.

"What! He died—was he sick? Or did he get in an accident?" Sano said sitting up suddenly.

"It was opium. It was a mistake. He smoked a lot once, and . . ."

"That idiot … getting mixed up in something like opium. But wait, he didn't have that much money, he shouldn't have been able to buy that much …" his voice was cut off by a woman bursting into the room. She was gorgeous, and seemingly out of breath, but Sano couldn't care when he had just found out that his friend was dead. He wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone.

"What do you want?" he asked, as though she had no right to be there.

When she looked at him there was only a moment of hesitation before she launched herself into his arms.

"Save me! Some terrible men are chasing me. Please save me!" she sounded desperate enough, but really what kind of woman would degrade herself to this? Sano was about to push her away when her pursuers dashed in after her.

"Megumi, you can't run anymore!"

There were two of them. One of them had a big bushy beard and the other was wearing glasses. Megumi looked like she wasn't sure what to do. Would Sano protect her and help her escape? She looked up at him when he cursed lightly.

"One thing after another. What do you want?" he asked, sounding very annoyed. This just wasn't his day. When this was all settled he was going to go visit Kaoru and the kid. Their light-hearted banter could make anyone feel better.

"Shut up! Stay out of this! Just hand the girl over, or else—" Now he was the one beingcut off though a bit more violently as Sano hadpunched him in the face.

"I'm in a bad mood right now, so watch who you're talking too." Sano didn't really care what he did at that moment. He just wanted it to be over. He looked at the two men with disgust when he noticed they were shaking.

"What – what do you think you're doing? We're the personal bodyguard of Mr. Kanryuu! Stand against us and you'll be his enemy."

They were pleading, how pathetic. Sano kicked the guy not very hard but enough to get his point across. Those guys weren't worth wasting too much energy on.

"I warned you small fry," he pulled back his foot to kick him again as a warning, but showing an astonishing amount of wit the man scrambled away and out the door.

Sano turned to look at Megumi, trying to decide what to do with her when the other gamblers start talking.

"Takeda Kanryuu…"

"This isn't good."

"That's the Takeda Kanryuu that's amassing his own private army."

Still looking at Megumi but hearing what the others are saying Sano asks her, "If they're Kanryuu's soldiers, are you his mistress?" when he asked her that her eyes got all big and she looked stunned for a second before she blinked and suddenly looked defeated and desperate.

"No! I really don't know anything about all this. Not even that man Kanryuu—"

"It's not nice to lie Megumi," a voice reprimanded her. It turned out to bea small man with slit eyes, sitting in the corner of the room. "You thought you only had two guards. But you're always watched by one of the Okashira's followers. In the bedroom. In the bath. Even in the toilet."

He seemed so calm and careless. Megumi was struck by this sudden revelation that she was being watched, but remembered to hold her image in place. She straightens up and looks the man straight in the eyes.

"But it's true. I'm not his mistress. Go back and tell Kanryuu! This time I'm escaping him!"

The way he was looking at her made her think he was going to consider doing what she said, butthen he started to cackle.

"Cute. Especially when you think you're running out of here …" he smirked and then pulled out two pellets and struck down the men on either side of her. "That was just a warning. Next it will be your legs as punishment for trying to run away." As he said that Sano had rushed over to the two guys looking furious.

First his friend is dead, then this woman comes in being harassed, andnow his two other friends are lying on the floor wounded. That was the last straw.

Sano stood up to go pound the guy to a pulp but the man had seen him and had panicked. Sano was left seething in anger. He was just thinking that he needed something to pound when Megumi walked up to him and clung to his arm.

"Hmm, you're strong. Well, how about it? Will you protect me from Kanryuu as I escape? I'll pay you twelve times the reward," she smiled seductively as she said this, hoping to catch his brutish masculine attention. She was sorely surprised when he didn't seem phased.

"You'd better explain yourself first," he said looking very serious. Megumi couldn't believe he didn't fall for her trick. Maybe he was just a little smarter than that.

"A gentleman wouldn't ask about a ladies history," she snapped. Sano grabbed her wrist out of anger but he was still trying not to hurt her.

"Two of my friends are hurt! You can't tell me it's not important to know the reason why!"

Megumi angrily snatched her wrist back. "Ow that hurts! Don't grab so hard!"

Sano was about to say something else but he noticed some paper packets falling out of her sleeve. He gave her a confused look before bending down to pick them up. He looked at her again before breaking one open. What he found made his blood boil.

"When you spoke of a reward, did you mean opium?"

Megumi just stared back defiantly.

"Damsel in Distress: End"

AN: Hey guys, if you haven't read this before, it's my first fic. To those of you who have, I just wanted to make it look a little better, nothing in the story has actually changed.