Morning came swiftly, and the moment Kenshin awoke, he was not surprised to hear Kiryu and Algren still going on with their "marital duties" to put it politely. Honestly, could a man and a woman not tire of one another after so long? They were married more than a year, and still, they could not keep their hands to themselves whenever they were together... Although there was no denying that he was truly happy for the two of them, but, it kind of disturbed him, the fact that dear Miryu, his childhood friend, being in a man's arms... Miryu, who was always there whenever he looked around, Miryu, who was with him when he cut down hundreds of men to defend the coming of a new age...

"Himura, good morning!" Misao's chirpy voice rang as the teenager opened the shoji doors to his room, her expression changing quite instantaneously when she found that he was already dressed for the day. "And I thought that I would catch you half-asleep," she muttered, but skipped towards Miryu's room, only to scream many thousands of apologies. No doubt, the child would be scarred for life, Kenshin mused slightly as Miryu could not stop giggling.

Several minutes later, Okina came up with Graham, and by then, Miryu and Algren were already ready, and Misao had already recovered from her shock. "Now that you are all ready, why don't we show Himura around town?" he asked, to which Misao and Miryu immediately agreed, while conspiring to make a few purchases of their own.

Kenshin, on the other hand, was rather uneasy with the idea. He and Miryu had already revealed themselves to Shishio, not to mention Algren, and there was a high probability that he would have sent his spies and thugs to kill them. That may not be a problem for them, but it may be the greatest danger to the people around them, and the bystanders who are innocent...

"Well, Kenshin, if you would," Graham said, "It is a known fact that Shishio would attack any time, no matter how much you run or hide." For awhile, Kenshin looked stunned, but then, he remembered how efective Graham was in attaining information, even without the Police's information network, or the Oniwabanshuu's intelligence. There was no denying that he knew a lot about the current situation, and that he was absolutely right.

Miryu smiled and said, "Even when we were the shadow hitokiri, we still ventured out in broad daylight," In the corner of her eye, she saw one of the Oniwabanshu members handing a piece of paper to Okina, regarding more information, no doubt. She never imagined that she would be right in the Kyoto base of the fabled Oniwabanshuu, as guests of their inn... Turning towards the elderly onmitsu, she asked, "Okina, is there anything that you need to tell us?"

Nodding, Okina explained, "The search for the person you were looking for had already begun yesterday, and we have the location you need... However, Arai Shakku, the one who made both the titanium katana and the sakabattou has been dead for eight years,"

That was not good news at all. While Miryu could do with a common katana, it was Kenshin who would be at a disadvantage if there was no other sword-maker who could forge another sakabattou... Hitokiri Battousai would resurface again, and he would not stop killing... The effect would be one even worse than Shishio's victory. It was a result that he could not afford to let happen at any cost.

"Okina, wouldn't this Arai Shakku have a son, or someone he taught his life's work to?" Algren asked, breaking the horrendous silence. To his understanding, the swords made by this legendary craftsman were sought after all over Japan, even to this day. Not only Kenshin and Miryu's katana, but that of his grandfather in-law, Reiyama Reiji as well... And he had met several diplomats who were willing to shell out massive amounts of money just to get the lesser-known katana under Arai's name... The list was rather endless.

Luckily for them, Okina said that Arai Shakku had a son, Arai Seiku, and that he was just as adept in the craft of sword-making as his father had been. The only thing was that in those times of relative peace, he no longer makes katana, but tools for everyday life as well. "And if you would like, we can go visit this Arai Seiku, to see if he would make new weapons for our young saviors," Graham said, and sped off at the same speed as Okina when both Miryu and Kenshin quietly agreed.

Laughing, Miryu said, "One would think that they were twins from another lifetime, Graham and Okina," At least, there was still the sound of laughter and the antics of goofy old men to lighten the mood. No one would have thought that the future of the country would be dangling on whether or not two of Japan's finest warriors would be able to acquire replacements for their damaged weapons.

"This is where Seiku lives now," Okina said, pointing to a small house by the roadside. It was not a shabby little hut, but it was not a lavish mansion as well. It was enough for a small family. There was a small stand before the entrance of the house, where there were knives and sharp tools on display.

Miryu looked about, and asked, "Is anybody home?" To their surprise, a little baby popped from under the display, shocking them to no end. "Why is a child here?" The boy literally had no fear of strangers, extending his little hand, demanding handshakes from Kenshin until his mother appeared from the entrance and picked him up.

Bowing, the mother said, "Forgive my son... May I help you with anything?"

"May Sessha try a kitchen knife de gozaru ka?" Kenshin said, nudging Miryu to aside as they reached for the same knife. Beaten, she smiled and picked out another one. And strangely, he picked a radish from his gi, and threw it into the air. As it fell, both Kenshin and Miryu each cut the radish, and when they caught the pieces, they held them back to the original body... Just as Misao was about to ask what they were doing, three pieces were joined together, as if the radish had not been cut.

There was no end to the amazement on Okina and Graham's faces, and the both of them took turns to explain what had just happened. "The return cut," Graham exclaimed, "Years ago, this technique was formulated to test the quality of a blade!"

"Not only that!" Okina added. "Nothing has been crushed on the lines where the cut was, hence, the pieces are able to be joined together! This not only shows Himura-dono and Miryu's skill, but that of Arai Seiku's!"

The child's mother, bowed at the praise of her husband's skill. "Madam, please, is your husband here?" Miryu asked, "We need him to make new katana for us."

Said husband approached them from behind. He was tall, but not stocky as his father had been, and had none of the imposing gait that Arai Shakku had. However, he was his father's son. There was a kindly smile to him, and his appearance, Miryu could tell that Shakku's mother had not been adulterous at all. "Sorry, I am Arai Seiku," he told them, "I heard what you have said, and forgive me, I will not make any more weapons for any one..."

Algren scanned the young man up and down, and asked, "Why?" Miryu looked at her husband and clasped her fingers around his. "I mean, we are in desparate need of two katana right now."

Seiku bowed in apology once again. "Every since I could remember, my father told me that his swords would be the ones that will bring about the new age, but I disagreed with him. What his weapons ever did was kill thousands of lives, but in those times, there was nothing I could do..." Kenshin and Miryu looked at one another, and Miryu took in a breath of air, bracing herself for the words that would come. "And now, even the samurai have cast down their katana, I shall turn down the art of making katana as well."

"Yes, yes, peace is important to everyone," Graham said, while Okina restrained Misao from attacking the man. "Now, forgive us for disturbing you..."

Even as they left, Seiku's wife said to Seiku, "They have come all this way for katana, perhaps we should give them the two last ones..."

"No, this is now the age of peace, no one needs katana anymore."

Miryu looked at Algren and Kenshin, and back to her notched katana. "What are we going to do? Most of the makers of the katana would not make weapons for former Ishin-Ishishi members like us, and the only one with Shakku's skills refuses to make one for us," she sighed. "What are we going to do?"

Okina smoothed out his beard and said, "Miryu, during the Bakumatsu, there were reports of you using other weapons as well..." She smiled and told the old man that the weapons that she handled on the side were daggers for throwing and whips, nothing in comparison to actual katana. Indeed, there was no mistake that she was a samurai to the core.

"If Seiku made weapons for us, Shishio's men would have eliminated him and his family de gorazan," Kenshin said, "At least, there is another person to meet..."

If there was another word to describe Shishio Makoto, Hiryuko would deem him to be a cunning "human resource manager". He was an excellent judge of character, and was able to source the best men to work for him. Take this Chou character, for example. He was a vicious killer, and a collector of katana to boot. "Nagasaki Hiryuko-san!" he exclaimed when he met her walking with Shishio and Yumi, as well as the man who was Shishio's head advisor, Houji. "I never thought that you would be one of us."

Hiryuko scoffed. "One of you?" she asked. "It would be more accurate to say that I am Shishio's equal partner... Say, those are beautiful katana, how many have you killed with those?"

"Quite a few, would you like me to tell you about them?" Chou asked with a wild twinkle in his eyes. "Or, I can show them to you."

Chuckling, Shishio said, "Come on, Chou, do not flirt with your boss, no matter how ravishing she is." It was strange. He would desire women like Miryu and Yumi, but he had no shred of desire to Hiryuko, even if she was dressed in a suit of leather that showed every curve of her body, just like Mryu would always wear. "And you will have the opportunity to show off your skills very soon, if Houji's reports are right."

"Yesterday, Himura and Battouryu made contact with a man named Arai Seiku, who is Arai Shakku's son, to replace their katana, but he refused," Houji said, confirming Shishio's words. "Now, we have news that there are two last katana in a shrine that only he knows the location of."

A sly smile crossed Hiryuko's elegant features. "So, the little dragons have lost their claws," she joked, feigning sympathy by batting her long lashes as she spoke those words. "Who shall remove them of their misery?"

At her words, Houji said, "It would be disastrous if the two of them get to the Juppon Gatana!"

Nevertheless, Chou started to walk towards the exit of the underground fortress. "I will be looking to get the last words of Shakku," he annouced. "Hey, boss-lady, I shall be looking to have a round of celebratory drinks with you when I come back."

The blond-haired woman nodded and blew him a flying kiss while rolling her eyes towards Yumi, who giggled to her reaction. "Chou, do not make a mess," Shishio said. Once Chou was gone, he turned to Hiryuko and asked, "How long before your darling cousin and Battousai defeats him?"

"Both of them?" came the reply, "I don't think he will survive even one."