Disclaimer: I am surprised to say that I find myself still alive. XD I would have thought someone would have hunted me down for the time it was taking me to update this. So I'm happy to say, I still own my life and I still, unfortunately, don't own Rurouni Kenshin.

Scars of the Past

Chapter Eleven

Pain. That's all I can feel…all I can see. Just blinding red pain, spreading through my body, much like the way a river flows along its course. It won't stop. It won't go away. It's just there.

I never knew it was possible to feel like this. To actually wish you were dead. To just want the pain to go away. I've always cherished my life…after all, who doesn't? Once your life goes, everything does. All of your dreams. Your goals. Your love. You cease to exist.

But now…I don't care. I just want out. I want everything to stop. Everyone is getting hurt because of me. Soujiro's dead. I did that. Yutaro was probably hurt pretty badly. Again, my fault. And Kaoru and Kenshin…and Misao. What happened to them? They might be dead too. And it's all my fault.

Because I got involved in Gasuke's yakuza and Anohorea found me. And now that I've been found and rescued, my friends are paying the price. Why did Kenshin ever bother to take me from Gasuke anyway? If he hadn't, then none of them would be hurt…none of them would be involved and I wouldn't feel so guilty.

The floorboards creaked near my head and I winced, curling myself tighter into a protective ball. "What's wrong?" asked my captor, squatting down beside me. "Does it hurt?" he asked, voice still soft and deadly. "Not just your body, but knowing you're the one responsible for all the misery you've caused your friends."

I didn't answer, biting my lip to keep from whimpering from the internal pain that started to grow even more in my heart as his words struck.

"The Tenken is dead," he smirked. "It's a pity rather, he would have been a great asset to me. And the pretty little ninja girl, she's alive." I felt a ray of hope before it left my eyes a second later. "I can't really say for how long though. Once the Tozuma ninjas are done with her, she'll probably just want to die anyway."

I clenched my fists, my entire being wishing Misao were free. I had a good idea of what they were going to do to her…the same thing that would have happened if Soujiro hadn't saved her the first time. My throat constricted painfully as Soujiro's smiling face swam into memory.

"And let's not forget the famous and feared Battousai," Anohorea sneered. "He's dead, and so is his little bitch. It was great entertainment, forcing him to watch as we cut the woman's body into pieces, her calling for him to save her. Which he never did."

Kaoru and Kenshin were…dead? That couldn't be. Kenshin was the best. He wouldn't just let a bunch of ninjas beat him. He beat Jin-e! Shishio! Gohei! Toma! He just couldn't be. "You're lying," I hissed, slowly sitting up and glaring daggers at the bronze skinned man. "Kenshin is too strong to be beaten."

"You think?" he snorted. "I'd have someone fetch the bodies, but the police are bound to have found them by now, and I'm not going to risk getting caught."

"Coward."

The next thing I knew, I was airborne, Anohorea's fist catching me in the stomach and sending me flying back till I hit one of the walls, my body crumpling to the floor, a new wave of agony running up my back. "YOU DON'T SPEAK TO ME LIKE THAT!" he bellowed, picking me up by my hair and ramming my head against the wall, stars appearing in my vision.

"Why?" I panted, my body tensing in anger. "It's the truth."

I was slammed to the ground, one of Anohorea's booted feet pressing into my bare back, directly in the middle of my scar. "You know," he whispered, voice lethal. "If you want a quicker death, it would be best to keep your damn mouth shut."

"You didn't kill them," I repeated, voice slightly muffled as my mouth was pressed against the ground. "They'll come and save me, just like last time."

"You honestly believe that the Battousai is going to come?" He chuckled, before bursting into loud, raucous laugher, the sound rebounding off the walls and echoing around the empty room. "You really are stupid. They're dead. They're not coming. You're alone. You always were."

"They'll come," I said stubbornly, though already my heart was beginning to fall apart. Could they really be dead? I can't imagine life without them. If they're gone…there's really no point in me living anymore. What would there be to live for anyway?

"And if I remember correctly, there was another brat with you, wasn't there?" Anohorea drawled, foot still pressing down and smearing the blood from my earlier whipping. I froze, Yutaro's face filling my mind. "He's dead too."

"Yutaro isn't dead," I spat, picking my head slightly off the ground. "I saw you only knock him out. He's still alive."

"Hai, I only knocked him out. But that doesn't mean I didn't send someone else in to kill him. After all, I wanted to get back here and have some time with you."

I remained frozen, my whole body going numb, no longer caring at all about myself as I was flung about the room, whips lashing down and knives digging themselves into my skin. I deserved this. I deserved to be in pain and suffer. Everyone else did.

What's worse…is I'm beginning to believe Anohorea was telling the truth. I know Soujiro died…I saw it. And that was my fault. Not just that he was there, but because of my warning. Maybe he didn't need it. Maybe he would have sidestepped and not have gotten stabbed. Maybe…maybe he would still be alive.

It all comes down to one thing, one simple fact, one truth. It's my fault. All of this is my fault.

"Are you okay?" she whispered, one arm on my shoulder to help steady me on the narrow branch.

"Fine," I replied softly, though in truth I felt the complete opposite. My head was swimming and my vision was going in and out of focus, making it impossible to see much in front of me. An icy tingle was spreading from my chest and I suddenly felt very cold.

"No, you're not," she sniffled. "Please," she begged. "Go back into town and get Megumi. She could try and help you!"

Sadly, I shook my head, wincing as the world spun in a circle. "I can't, Misao. My duty is to help Yahiko-kun."

"But Sou…"

"Come on," I said, effectively ending the conversation. "We'd better keep moving…" I slowly stood on the branch and hauled myself up onto the next one, blinking to try and clear my vision slightly.

'Come on, I berated myself as I my hold slipped. 'You're Tenken no Soujiro! You're not going to die now. Just a little while longer.' I slowly made my way up the tree, Misao occasionally reaching out to try and help me balance as I teetered slightly.

"Just one more branch," she encouraged, one of her hands closing over my own and helping to pull me up. We both sat on the wooden planks outside a door, catching our breath. "You should stay here," she whispered, rising to her feet with a kunai gripped tightly in each hand.

"I'm going," I said firmly, gripping onto the ninja for support as my knees buckled beneath me, my whole body now growing numb.

Tears shone in her aqua colored eyes, before she silently opened the door and we both entered, Misao leading the way. Just as we were rounding the corner, one of the Tozuma ninjas walked straight into Misao. She froze, not quite sure of what to do. She'd never killed anyone before, and I don't think she was quite ready to get blood on her hands yet. Stepping forward, I slit the guard's neck before he could even utter a sound.

Misao stared in horror at the blood that began to pool around her feet, a violent tremble going through her body. "Leave him," I said, turning and taking off down the hall, wiping the blood off of the kantana with my sleeve. After a few seconds, I heard Misao approach behind me and gently placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Where do you think Yahiko is?" she asked after a while of silence, the two of us simply creeping down the hall.

"Not a clue," I answered truthfully. "We'll just have to keep looking until we find him." Misao glanced nervously around the empty corridor. "Don't worry," I comforted, stopping and looking over my shoulder at the girl. "I won't let them hurt you."

"But I don't want to lose you, Sou," she whispered, pulling me into a tight hug. "I don't want you to go."

"We'll meet again later," I smiled, running a hand through the black hair.

"Or you can just both meet each other now," snarled a voice from down the hall. I turned slightly, quite surprised to see a group of ninjas standing at the end of the hall. The poison must be making my senses weaker…I couldn't sense them or even hear them coming.

"How are you still alive, Tenken?" one of the men spat, brown eyes glistening in rage. "You were stabbed with poison, how is it you are not dead?"

"I am stronger then I look," I responded evenly, drawing the kantana from my waistband and pointing it at the ninjas. "If you tell me where you're keeping the boy, I won't have to harm anyone here."

"You can barely stand," scoffed another. "Come and try to take us. We aren't saying anything."

"Stay here," I ordered Misao, looking at the girl sternly. "I don't want you to get hurt."

"Sou?" she murmured as I took a step away. "Be careful." I nodded and ran down the hall, speed increasing with each step. A second later, my sword had clashed with another, sparks flying from the blades. Whirling around, I blocked a dagger and drew my sword across one of the ninja's necks, his guttural cry of pain his last sound.

I pivoted again, narrowly missing a sword, when I felt something plunge into my side and I cried out as it was shoved in deeper. Misao's scream echoed down the hall, and I forced myself to stay on my feet, knowing that when I fell, I wouldn't be getting up.

Retreating a few steps, I looked down at the knife driven deep into me, and with a moan, I pulled it out and dropped the bloodied weapon on the ground, before looking back up at the ninjas. "What's wrong?" one smirked, several kunai appearing in his hands. "Are you quitting already?"

"I'm not done till you're all dead," I hissed, the smile gone from my face to be replaced with a frown of determination, my eyes as hard as ice. Darting forward again, I stabbed one through the stomach, ignoring the pain as another sword scraped across my back, and I felt something being driven into my leg.

I saw only red as I slashed out, the ninjas blurring together to form a black wall. But soon, the black wall began to grow bigger, not smaller as it should have, before black was the only thing I saw.

I bolted upright in bed, sweat trickling down my brow. Had it really happened? Or was it just a nightmare? Not taking any chances, I grabbed my jacket from the floor and dashed out of my house, heading straight for Megumi's. "Yo! Fox! Open up!" I called, pounding on the front door.

Megumi came to the door, her face in a scowl. "What do you want, Sanosuke? It's nearly two in the morning."

"I think something happened at the dojo…something bad."

"I'll be out in a minute," she said, face turning pale. I waited quite impatiently on the doorstep, before she finally emerged, a bag of medical equipment in hand. "Let's go."

"What are you wearing?" I grinned, looking at the doctor's new choice of clothing.

"We have to hurry and I can't very well run in a kimono," she replied, already starting down the road. "Besides, a hakama is actually quite comfortable." Shaking my head, I ran to catch up with the fox. When we arrived at the dojo…I only wish we'd gotten there sooner.

Bodies of ninjas littered the yard, the coppery smell of blood filling the air. "Kami-sama," Megumi gasped, eyes widening in terror. "Where are Ken-san and the others?" she cried in alarm, not seeing the dojo occupants.

I was already in the yard, making my way around the dead and into the dojo. "Kenshin? Jou-chan?" I called, voice wavering slightly when no one answered. "Yahiko? Yutaro? Misao? Someone answer." Silence. "DAMNIT! SOMEONE ANSWER ME!"

A low groan sounded from the kitchen and I cautiously made my way in, Megumi following closely behind. "Kaoru!" the other woman exclaimed, dashing over to the owner of the dojo. "Kaoru, speak to me! Kaoru!"

I knelt down beside Kaoru and gathered her in my arms, shaking her softly. "Come on Jou-chan," I whispered, tears pricking at my eyes.

"Sano?" she whispered, blue eyes blinking open slowly. "Megumi?"

"That's right," I smiled, hugging the tiny woman to me. "What happened?"

"They came," she moaned, eyes closing once more. "They wanted Yahiko."

"Where's Kenshin?" I asked urgently.

"I…I don't know."

Megumi was currently examining Kaoru, and sat back on her heels a few minutes later. "You'll live," she breathed, a smile on her face. "Can you lie right here until Sano and I finish looking around the house?"

"Hai."

I gently lowered my friend back to the ground and Megumi and I left the kitchen, now peering into doorways for any sign of Kenshin and the others. "Sano," Megumi whispered, pointing shakily at a figure lying beneath several fallen beams from the dojo's roof.

Sprinting over, I began to pull the planks off, praying to every god that he was still alive. "Get out of my way," ordered Megumi, pushing me to the side so she could examine her newest patient. "He's been poisoned," she said softly, taking one of the deathly pale hands in her own.

"You can cure him though, right?" I asked, heart clenching painfully when I realized I might lose him.

"Yes, but I'll have to hurry. Go look around for the others, I'll get to work on Ken-san." Nodding, I took off down the corridor to the training hall. Lying directly in the moonlight pouring in through the gaping hole in the wall lay Yutaro, still and unmoving, a shinai lying on the ground next to him.

But as I approached, he shifted slightly and my hopes rose. If he was moving on his own, he had to be all right. "Yutaro?" I whispered, kneeling down next to the boy.

"Sanosuke?" he queried, golden brown eyes looking up at me.

"What happened?" I asked, gesturing towards the destroyed wall.

With a start, he jumped up, looking wildly around the room, before slumping back down to the floor. "Yahiko and I came in here to get me a weapon," he said softly staring at his hands. "Soujiro and that lead ninja came in here through the wall…Soujiro got hit with a poisoned sword, but he killed the other guy. But he died too. And then that man you all talk about came…I don't really remember what happened after that."

"If Soujiro's dead," I mused, "Then where is the body?" It was true. Lying several feet from Yutaro was the ninja, a sword embedded through his head. But Soujiro was no where to be seen, save a large puddle of blood on the floor. "Can you make it into the kitchen?" I asked, looking at Yutaro with concern. "Jou-chan's there. Just keep her company till Megumi gets to treating her, okay? I'll go look for the others." Yutaro nodded and made his way through the door, while I went through the wall.

Blood was splattered across the ground, men lying dead outside, a clean mark cut across their neck, no doubt the work of Soujiro, since he was the only one aiming to kill here. Stray kunai littered the ground, but unlike the ninjas', these ones had a small 'o' carved in the top for the Oniwabanshu.

Following signs of a scuffle into the woods, I could tell that Misao had been taken, since there was no body and no bodies lying where the foot steps ended. 'Ninjas probably took to the trees.' Going back to the blood spots by the training hall, I followed them a few steps into the woods, realizing at once who it was. But just to make sure, I went back into the training hall.

Where Soujiro had supposedly been killed was the blood, but also long smears going out of the room, like he'd been dragging himself. "He went after Yahiko," I murmured, feeling some of the anger I'd been holding since meeting Soujiro fade somewhat.

But he was hurt…pretty badly too. There was no way he was going to make it on his own. Going back into the dojo, I saw that Megumi was now tending to Jou-chan, Yutaro sitting nearby and Kenshin lying on top of a futon. "I have to go," I said.

The fox looked up sharply. "Go?"

"I'm going after Yahiko."

She bit her lip before nodding. Rising from the floor, she buried her face in my jacket, sobs wracking her slender form. "Please come back," she whispered, stepping away and drying her eyes.

Pulling her into my arms once more, I gave her a light kiss on the lips, her eyes widening in surprise. "Just sealing a promise," I grinned, before my face turned solemn. "I'll be back as soon as I can. With Yahiko and Misao."

"What about Soujiro?" she asked, looking around the room for the Tenken.

"I think he'll be dead before I reach him. Watch yourself." And with that, I left, following the blood trail Soujiro had left. "Hang on guys," I whispered, "I'm coming."

Author's Notes:

Wow! Look at all of the new reviewers! It's great to meet you all:D

Sorry for the outrageously long wait. The story kinda lost my interest for a while (I'm more of a Soujiro girl now, not so much for Yahiko), but I will finish this! I quite enjoyed writing this chapter. So many different emotions, and so much confusion. Poor Yahiko…he thinks everyone is dead.

I've decided to stop doing RC's for my fics because it is taking much to long for me to do. I'm quite amazed I even got this up…I should be doing my chemistry homework. Whatever. XD

I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Please do review, they're kindly appreciated!