Chapter 7: Sensei's

"No…I can't believe…I lost to you…" Yahiko gasped in agony as he lay sprawled on the floor.

"Baka, your fate was sealed as soon as you challenged me," Yutarou spat back, shouldering his bokken with a grim smile on his face.

"You truly are…number one…gah…"

And with that, Yahiko passed out, letting the bokken in his hands clatter to the ground as Yutarou was suddenly overcome by a wave of fangirls, all squealing happily and yelling "Yutarou-kun! Yutarou-kuuun!"

Oh yeah, life was good.

"Yutarou-kuuun! Yutarou!"

There was something familiar about their voices, though…

"Yutarou!"

Hmmm…he'd think of it sometime…

"Wake up!"

Yutarou shot up in bed, his eyes darting around him as he sleepily muttered, "S'matter…?"

"Yutarou, please, help me!" Yutarou's eyes finally focused as he blinked the sleep out of them, and he saw a pair of large and frightened wide blue eyes staring at him.

"Ack!" he yelled in surprise as he fell back onto his futon, "…Mei-Mei…?"

"You're awake!" she exclaimed in a hushed voice, "Thank the gods!"

"What're you doing here?" Yutarou asked, sensing the urgency in her voice.

"I need a doctor," she explained hastily, "Yutarou, he's sick. He's so sick. I don't know what to do." He could almost feel the desperation radiating from her as she grasped his hand with a trembling hand. "I need help getting a doctor. Please, come with me to find one."

"Doctor?" Yutarou echoed, and one person instantly popped into mind. "Sure, I'll help you."

-

"Calm down, calm down, I'm coming!" Megumi yelled out as she made her way to the front door of the clinic. "Why on earth must you be so loud in the middle of the night!" she exclaimed as she threw the door open.

"Takani-sensei!" Yutarou exclaimed as soon as the door opened. "We need you!"

"Eh, Yutarou-chan?" she said, eyes widening, "What's the matter? Has someone gotten hurt at the dojo? It's just like the old days, only it can't be that rooster this time."

"No, it's not that!" Yutarou explained hastily as he pointed behind him. Mei-Mei was standing anxiously, wringing her hands as she bit her lip with worry. "She's found him! She's found that Enishi guy! It's just that he's in really bad shape and she needs a doctor!"

But all Megumi could mutter as her heavily lashed eyes widened in shock was, "Yukishiro…? Alive…?"

"Come on!" Yutarou yelled exasperatedly, knocking her back to her senses. She hurried down the hall, got her medicine box, and followed the already departing Chinese girl as she led the way to their destination.

Past

Enishi shouldered his watou, stepping outside into the bright afternoon light. Everything, at least for now, had been taken care of. Finally he could take a break.

It was only until he made his way out into the yard that he noticed a large bundle of blankets on a chair on the porch. He quirked an eyebrow when he realized it was Mei-mei, sleeping soundly with a book clutched in her hands, as if she had fallen asleep reading it. It had been several months since she began learning how to read, and he often found her with a book under one arm whenever he saw her.

He ignored her and began his kata, fluidly bending his legs and positioning his sword as it swung through the air with deadly precision. He had memorized the book Tantou Housen, the guide to his Watoujutsu, a long time ago, and now merely sharpened his skills whenever he had the chance.

As soon as his plans were completed, he would have acquired the strength to crush him.

Enishi's sharp ears picked up the sound of rustling fabric.

"What are you doing?" she asked sleepily. He turned his head to look and saw her stretching luxuriously as she slipped out from beneath the large comforters, placing the book down gently.

"It should be obvious," he stated simply as he stepped into another kata. He had answered her question, but he could still feel her watching him, the back of his neck prickling under her gaze. Finally, he could stand it no longer and turned to face her with an annoyed, "What?"

She cocked her head to the side and asked innocently, "You're an arms dealer, right?"

"Yes."

"Then why do you use a sword?"

He shrugged, "It would be pointless to defeat the one I want to kill with a fire arm." He grinned evilly. "I want to beat him to the ground in his area of expertise."

"Oh?" she asked, raising her eyebrows slightly but showing no other sign of surprise. She walked toward him and held out her hand, "May I see it, Master?"

He frowned. She only called him "master" when she was either mocking him or asking him for something (e.g. more books). He looked at her, but saw that her face was candid, a small smirk on her face.

"Fine," he finally muttered, seeing no harm in letting her hold the sword.

She grasped the hilt with both hands, but felt the opposite tip fall slightly as he let go; it was extremely heavy, yet he handled it so easily and with such grace. She lifted it so she could examine the hilt more, then traced the blade with the tips of her fingers. It was so cold, her reflection gazing back at her on the pale blade. Something so deadly… yet it was so beautiful, she thought as she ran her fingers over the large hilt.

As he watched her gaze at the sword, he couldn't help noticing her reflection in the large blade. Her frigid blue eyes seem to glint more in the metal than in any mirror in the house.

"It's interesting," she said finally as she handed it back to him. He quirked his eyebrow. "Interesting"? His sword was "interesting"?

He said nothing as he took hold of his sword again, expecting her to go back to her book, or at least move away so he could get started again. Instead she did nothing, gazing at it with a mystic expression on her face.

"Who are you going to kill?" she asked suddenly, her gaze not shifting from the sword. He said nothing, realizing now that this was what she had been after from the beginning. Screw the sword, she just wanted to know who he planned to kill.

"Why do you want to know?" he asked placidly.

She shrugged, now looking up at him with a similar look of indifference, "You're always either working or practicing; I just want to know why you put so much energy into it when you could be enjoying yourself in a teahouse like every other male in Shanghai."

He gave her a look of annoyance, "Teahouses don't interest me."

"Obviously," she snorted. "But why waste time trying to get stronger physically when you have an army's worth of artillery? Why not just completely wipe out your enemy?"

"Because that kind of revenge would be a waste of my time," he said simply.

"Revenge?" she echoed, not bothering to mask her interest. She didn't ask who it was, but simply continued looking up at him, obviously expecting him to either elaborate or tell her to screw off.

She wouldn't forget this conversation, and she'd tail him until she got her answers if he didn't appease her now.

"He killed my sister," he stated icily as she watched a flash of anger pass through his aquamarine eyes. It's not like it was a secret; he had no problem saying the past ten years' work was done to kill one man.

"Oh…" she said rather lamely, and he was mildly surprised to see her sadden slightly. "I see."

For some reason the silence seemed more awkward than it usually did, and Enishi resisted the urge to jump on the roof to get away from her troubled expression.

"Where is he now?" she asked, her eyes unfocused as she looked at a point besides his elbow.

"Japan."

"And you're going to kill him?"

"No." She looked up at him with a slightly startled look to see he was smirking viciously. "I'm going to make his life a living hell first."

"Hmm," she murmured vaguely as her eyes traveled up and down his body. She could see his chiseled arms holding the large sword, which was propped on his shoulder, and a faint outline of muscles showing from underneath his sleeveless shirt. He was strong, one of the most powerful men in Shanghai.

He would be able to kill this man and take revenge for his sister.

But what did she have?

Nothing.

"Teach me," she said suddenly, looking up at him in time to see the look of surprise on his usually composed face.

"What?" he asked, a white eyebrow disappearing into the messy fringe of bangs.

"Teach me how to use a sword," she repeated, her brow knitting in determination.

"Why?" he asked, not understanding why she had the sudden urge to learn Watoujutsu.

She shrugged, "If you're going to go to Japan, then that's when I'll have the chance to run away. Still, I'd rather be able to defend myself in case you decide to leave one of your lackeys around to keep an eye on me."

At this he smirked, silently admitting to himself that she would definitely need to be able to defend herself if she was going to keep that attitude around other men.

"Fine," he said, "Go grab a sword from the armory." He pointed to a small building on the other side of the yard. She gave him a fleeting grin as she turned and headed to the closet-sized building, wondering if he had any idea just what he had gotten himself into.

Present

"Get lost," he growled once more, waving his hand gruffly at the three people standing before him. "It's one thing to let a girl in, but to have her bring along an entourage is ridiculous. Rakuninmura is not a place for a doctor and a shrimp, so get lost."

"Who the hell are you calling a shrimp?" Yutarou yelled indignantly at the large man blocking their way. He reached behind him and grabbed the shinai that was strapped to his back, holding it before him as he spread his feet into a defensive position, getting ready to fight his entrance into Rakuninmura.

The large man laughed, causing the other misfits around him to cackle as well, "Listen, just turn back now before we have to throw you out."

Yutarou gritted his teeth, knowing for a fact that he wouldn't be able to take on all the men guarding the entrance.

"DAMMIT!" Mei-Mei yelled out in Chinese, and before he knew what she was doing she had taken his shinai. She held it over her shoulder, parallel to the ground, as she crouched slightly. "Get out of the way," she growled to the men, who didn't need a translation to know what she meant.

"I think it's time for you to leave," the man said stiffly as the others cracked their knuckles. He charged forward, but not before she had sprung toward him and stabbed his shoulder fiercely. Had it been a real sword, Yutarou doubted that man would still have an arm. She continued to attack all the men who charged towards her, stampeding through them as Megumi and Yutarou followed hurriedly behind her.

"Dang!" Yutarou grinned in admiration. "She's strong!" Megumi didn't reply, feeling uneasy at seeing Watoujutsu once again.

The shinai was ill-suited for Watoujutsu, and she could feel herself tiring as hundreds more bums seemed to crawl out of nowhere. She wouldn't be able to last much longer, but she at least had to get to Enishi.

"STOP!" a loud voice yelled out. Suddenly all the ragged men stopped, looking in astonishment at the old man Oibore. He was standing outside the ring of unconscious men and had a grave expression on his face. No one had ever heard him raise his voice before.

"Please," he said in a quiet voice that nonetheless traveled to every ear in the yard, "Let them pass."

"Hey!" said the large man, who was getting up off the ground and clutching his shoulder, "Oibore! You know the rules! It's not up to you who gets to pass through!"

"That's right, it's up to all of us," Kuma agreed, appearing from behind a decrepit building. "If we don't want them coming in here, old man, there's nothing you can do."

Oibore said nothing, but gazed at Kuma with a piercing look that was foreign to the old man's face. "Please," he pleaded quietly.

Kuma was taken aback. He almost had to wonder if it really was Oibore, who had often sung "oh well, what the hell" repeatedly to the point of annoyance, that was standing before him. Kuma glanced at the others around them with a grave expression, and noticed that they, too, saw how strange Oibore was acting.

Then, as if they all suddenly came to an understanding, they all parted, leaving an open path for the group to escape the surrounding miscreants. Mei-Mei, Yutarou, and Megumi were now free to get to Enishi. No one else would stand in their way.

Mei-Mei gave an appreciative look at Oibore, who simply smiled cheerfully back. As quickly as the other Oibore came, he was soon gone.

"Heh heh!" he laughed heartily as groups of men ambled by clutching injured limbs, "That's what you get for picking on a girl!"

-

"He's simply malnutritioned," Megumi said with a doctor's voice, "Just keep feeding him, give him this medicine—" she handed a small bag to Mei-Mei, "--change his bandages, and he'll be fine." Yutarou quickly translated for Mei-Mei, and she smiled gratefully.

"Arigatou," she said as she bowed her head.

"I'm just…doing my job," Megumi said tiredly as she packed her things. A piece of her that still hated Yukishiro Enishi was yelling at her for helping him, while the other piece of her was yelling at herself, hating the fact that she hated the pitiful bandaged man that was lying beside her on a dirty straw mat.

She smiled at Mei-Mei, "Come see me if you run out of bandages." Then she looked at Yutarou, who had just finished translating for Mei-Mei, "We should get going. Kenshin is probably worried."

"You think he noticed?" Yutarou asked, dusting himself as he got up.

"I'm sure he's known ever since she snuck into the dojo," she said wisely. Yutarou suppressed the small bubble of worry in his chest, wondering what Kaoru would think if she found out he ran off with a girl at night, then turned to Mei-Mei with a grin.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," he said in Chinese.

"He'd better be," she smiled weakly, "I didn't come all this way just so he could die."

Yutarou laughed, "Well, I guess I'd better go now."

She nodded at him, "Thank you."

"Anytime," he smiled. As he walked away with Megumi he turned his head to look back, watching as she brushed the hair out of Yukishiro's eyes before settling against the wall to sleep.

"Don't," Megumi said with a coy grin on her face.

"Don't what?" Yutarou asked, snapping his head back.

"Don't fall for older women," she smiled behind her hand, "They'll bring nothing but trouble."

"I'm not falling for her!" Yutarou yelled back, even though he couldn't keep the redness out of his cheeks.

He looked back at Mei-Mei just as they turned the corner, and couldn't help feeling a little disappointed that she had to stay here.

Note: Yes, Mei-mei kicks ass. After living with Enishi, why wouldn't she?

This chapter was a bit more iffy than the others (as I'm sure my beta reader noticed), but thanks to said beta reader, it's a lot better than it was before! Which is good, because I shall be leaving tomorrow and won't have a chance to update while I'm gone. Ahh, da beach awaits me XP.

(-evil insane cackle of doom and stuff-) Meh heh, me gets to see MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE this fall! I'm happy, can you tell? (-happy thoughts of Gerard Way-)

Reviewer Responses:

WhiteRabbit5: It's okay, Enishi-chan is just hungry! Well, that's what happens when you almost never eat. I think that's why he's so cranky all the time. Anyway, honestly, Mei-mei kind of surprised me. When I first started this fic, she didn't really have a set personality. I kind of like her being bad ass, but only because those rebellious chicks are so cool to me. Meow, I do like the past-present-boy-meets-girl thing, though, in my defense, my other fic isn't like that! lol I think it just gives more drama and such, and gives more of a chance for fuzzy moments :3. Gomen, my next chapter of ASoF my take a while, since I know what's gonna happen but can't make myself write it. Argh (-immense frustration at self-).

FairyMage: Heh heh, sorry 'bout that, but you should know that I wouldn't post a chapter without you! I value your input a lot, and like how you make my writing seem better. I honestly didn't like this chapter at first, but I was all like "screw it" and just sent it to you. I just re-read it, and I like it much better, thank you. I'm happy you're reading the Jinchuu ark again! It's my favorite ark, and I'm planning on actually buying the manga (rather than downloading scanlations) when it's released here (the American translation of RuroKen isn't that bad, at least I don't think so). Maybe you'll like Enishi-chan more! I personally think he's a great character with a lot of depth and drama, and it's so easy to aggravate him. It doesn't hurt that he's hot either. (-grin!-)

Liem: Ahh, do you know how much I like your reviews? Well, good thing someone can see Enishi prancing, maybe there's hope for the guy! Heh heh, what happened between Enishi in Mei-mei is what keeps the fic interesting! Expect cliffhangers just about every chapter until the end (especially near the end). MWA HA HA!

Kyouko: Merf, trying…so hard…to update…faster…not working…(-dies-). Please bear with me, I'm trying hard and I hope you stick around! If you read to the end, I shall give you a cupcake!

HarukoSohma: Meow! Well, Fooly Cooly is an anime where a freaky alien chick named Haruko comes and starts whacking people with guitars and running them over with her vespa. A bit strange, but really good all the same (I recommend it!). lol Yeah, Enishi and Haru are alike! They both seem all cool and stuff, but when you tick them off…(-shiver-). They're both really hot, too (-happy sigh-). Do you watch the anime or manga of Fruits basket:3

Enishifans: No! Don't just drop in! You should leave reviews for the chapters you read! PLEASE! (-desperate-). Nah, I'm just kidding (though I would like you to leave more reviews), I'm just glad you like it! Thank you!

Kenni: Mwa ha ha, so many questions, so little answers. You know I'd never answer the questions you're asking, right? That'd ruin the story for you! I hope you stick around to see what happens. And, yeah, I think the way you described their relationship is exactly how I think it is. Glad someone else thinks so too!

So, I got 7 reviews for the last chapter. SEVEN! I LOVE YOU ALL!

Please don't disappoint me. When I get back from Mexico I really want to see at least a few reviews for this chapter. If not…I'll be very sad and kill Enishi.

Enishi: Damn you, woman.

XD