Hana's Story
I do not own Rurouni Kenshin. I only own Hana. This chapter is three times longer that all my previous chapters.
Chapter Three: Chou
/:Hana's P.O.V.:/
Misao-chan lost it when he said that he wouldn't make a new katana, it was amusing. Okina-sama stopped her and asked why he couldn't make a new katana.
"People who come to me with requests for katana's know about my father's quest for the "Katana That Kills." He used to tell me "The katana's I make will bring in a new Era." But I didn't accept my father's beliefs. The katana's he shaped with those beliefs stole many lives. What does killing have to do with bringing in a new Era? I wasn't convinced. During those times of violence there was nothing I could do, but it's the Meji Era now. The age of peace has finally come." He started to explain. Himura got this look in his eye. I understood after we were the ones to take many of those live being Hitokiri's.
"The samurai have thrown away their katana's, so I too will throw away the art of sword making. I've decided to earn my living by making tools of everyday life."
"I see, so you're a Pacifist in principle, in complete opposition to your father." Okina-sama seemed to understand to.
"Well, I don't know about principles,…" he scratched the back of his head as he said this.
"But I love peace as would anyone." So simple minded. Not everybody loves peace, there are those who live for the sake of killing. Misao-chan exploded as he said this, this was worse than earlier. It also seems we once again have the same belief as me, just is more expressive.
"This one understands Seikuu-dono. I'm sorry to have brought you a futile request. Thank you for your time." Himura said as he restrained Misao-chan.
"That's It! Himura!" Misao-chan yelled as we walked away.
"Misao-chan…" I whispered, she looked at me so I continued.
"Seikuu-san wants peace with his whole heart. So much that even a sakabatou, that cannot kill, is an internment of war. There is no way that we could ask him to make such a thing." I explained to her.
"The search for the sakabatou has begun again." Himura said as we walked home. Once again Misao-chan and Okina-sama were in front of us.
"Hana-dono…do you think this one is doing the right thing?" He asked. This surprised me, why would he ask this of me?
"If you believe that it is the right thing to do, then what you do will always be right. But if you lose sight of your goal and start doing things that you don't believe in then it's wrong, so tell me do you believe what you did was right?" I love when I can quote him, he told me those words when I doubted myself when we first started as Hitokiri's. He raised his head to look at me, with wide eyes. I smiled at him, we were like that for a while before he closed his eyes and smiled.
"Yes, this one believes that what was done was indeed the right thing to do."
"Good. Now let's hurry up before Misao-chan starts to complain, she's already cross with you." I stated grinning at his fearful look.
"You were silent during this outing." Now this statement surprised me more than his earlier question. I thought about it for a little while before grinning.
"I suppose I just had nothing to say that Misao-chan didn't." He smirked at that.
"Himura Kenshin, you in your search for a new sakabatou went to the son of the sword smith Arai Shakkuu: Seikuu. But Seikuu, out of respect for this Era of peace, no longer makes katana's." Misao-chan ranted on and on to the point where I tuned her out after this. Until she started shouting saying Himura was too nice. We both looked up from our meal in surprise, apparently I wasn't the only one who tuned her out.
"You could see it in his eyes, in every word he said—that guy was a wuss. If you'd just leaned on him a little he would have done anything for you."
"Misao-chan! Don't say such things!" I scolded her. Himura just put down his chopsticks and smiled saying:
"No, this one has no right to force one's self into Seikuu-dono's peaceful life." Misao-chan just grumbled say that that was to nice.
"Even if he forced him to make it, he could not rule the sword-smith spirit; it would be poor work." I tried to explain to her when Okina-sama walked in.
"If he faced Shishio with a katana like the one broken by Seta Soujirou, Himura's death would be certain. It would be completely useless if it only had the shape of the sakabatou. The new sakabatou has to surpass the old one!" He said seriously.
"I raised you myself and you don't even understand that?" Okina-sama sighed playfully, but it still made Misao-chan mad.
"What's that supposed to mean? At least he'd have something to fight with!" she yelled, pulling Okina-sama's beard.
"Well there're sword-smiths n Kyoto for that."He muttered.
Himura smiled as all this was going on. He looked at his hand, the one he use to shake Iori hand. I could tell he was thinking about what happened. Well he was before Misao yelled :'People are worried about you and you're lost in your own world!' then used both her feet to jump kick him so hard he went flying thru the window.
"Misao-chan!" I yelled with wide eyes. I quickly ran out of Aoiya with Misao-chan in tow.
"Himura! Don't die!" She yelled as she sank down to the fallen rurouni. I smiled and walked towards her.
"He's fine a fall like that won't kill him. Now help me take him inside ." I told her gently. She looked up at me and nodded.
"See what happens when you fool around like that. Don't do it again." Okina scolded her as I bandaged Himura's head.
"No, this one was careless."
"In any case you're going to give up on having Seikuu-san make the katana for him!" Okina-sama ordered. Himura agreed with an 'exactly.' Misao-chan tried to protest, but was stopped by Okina-sama pushing her head down. I noticed the look in her eyes, and got the feeling that she wasn't going to give up. Great~. I sense more work than necessary.
Okina-sama, Himura, and I were have a cup of tea, when we heard a screeching noise. Then suddenly a pigeon flew right into Himura's forehead.
"Isn't that the first Ru from Shige?" I asked Okina- Sama as I got more bandages for Himura's new wound.
"Yes, it is. An essential was of conveying information for the Oniwabanshuu. The districts of Kyoto are giving one to three characters from the Iroha and matched with one of the 141 carrier pigeons." He explained for Himura. He took out the piece of paper and started to read it.
"Oh! It's from Misao. She went out bit—" He started before his face went grim. Himura also noticed the change in demeanor.
"Seikuu's son was taken hostage by one of Shishio's men." He finally said. I froze, I was tying the end of the bandage. Himura looked at me, and I nodded.
"Go, I'll catch up with you." I whispered, then got up and sprinted to my room. I vaguely heard Okina-sama yelling at Himura, telling him that he couldn't fight with a broken katana.
I took off my kimono, the same only I wore when I first saw Himura, and quickly put one a different one. This one was midnight blue, with an black obi, and end just above my knees, so it was easy to move in. I untied my two pigtails and retied my pale pink hair in a ponytail. In my closet as a box that held a moderate sized whip and two small daggers, I haven't used in ten years. 'No! Now is not the time to think about the past! I have to hurry!' Quickly I put the two daggers in the back of my obi so that they formed an X shape, and decided that I wouldn't need my whip.
Jumping out the window I speed across the rooftops of the houses in the direction of Seikuu's house. Taking Speed over stealth.
"Oh! So you can look like that too? It's bad to be unwilling to give people things. You were unwilling to give me that look from the start." A man with hair that looks like a broom said before he took off his top and reveled some kind of silver wrapping around his torso. What the hell did I miss?
"Silver armor? SO that's how you withstood the Ryuuhousen." Himura said. This guy took a hit with Ryuuhousen and is still standing? WHAT THE HELL DID I MISS? I decided to make my presence known.
"Himura…" I didn't get to finish before Okina-sama, Misao-chan, Seikuu-san, and his wife can running up the stairs to the shrine.
"Ah, they already started!" Misao-chan exclaimed.
"I wouldn't have thought Himura would be so short-tempered. Well, he seems to be getting the better of him." Okina said. Nobody seemed to have noticed me. I was standing by the edge of the forest, the opposite side of Iori.
"Stop! That thing wrapped around his waist!" Seikuu-san yelled to Himura.
"My father made it after making refinement after refinement. It's one of the later killing katana!" Well that explains that. Now just who was this guy? Mystery man started to grin.
"Chou, katana-hunter of the Juppangatana. From now on, it's true madness." His name is Chou…I really don't like this guy.
"Just watch."He said reaching behind his back.
"Watch out Himura! He still got a hidden sword!" Misao-chan yelled.
"no… that silver thing is the sword…" I whispered to myself. Just then the tip of a blade was heading towards the back of Himura's head.
"What do you thing? This is my favorite blade of all." So I was right the thing was a blade. It's almost like a whip.
"The Killing Sword Hakujin no Tachi!" Chou yelled. Okina-sama and Misao-chan marveled at the ability of the blade. Himura was just barley dodge.
"No, that's not enough." I whispered to myself once again. And was proven right when Seikuu-san yelled that dodging by a hair's breadth wouldn't work. Meanwhile Chou's grin never faltered. All he did was move his wrist down in a quick motion and the blade curve and hit Himura in the thigh.
"Himura!" I yelled in shock, again nobody even noticed me.
"Right on target. Just see if you can still move around now."
"The Hakujin no Tachi, it was forged to be as thin as possible while still maintaining the strength of the blade. The tip is weighted so the slightest flick of the wrist can direct it." The sword-smith explained.
"If you're wounded like that and trying to fight the Hakujin no Tachi, I'm afraid…"He didn't finish his sentence.
Chou glanced at the four by the entrance of the shrine.
"Looks like we attracted and audience before I knew it. I guess it's time we get this show on the road. I'll show you my own style Orochi." I'm not even going to begin to think about what the sword did, all I know is that it sliced through Himura's sheath.
"You blocked well, but you're still going to die!' Chou had this crazy look in his eyes, and I didn't like it. Himura tried to dodge but his leg wound stopped him, so all he could do was roll out of the way.
"Dear?" Seikuu-san's wife asked as he took a step forward.
"I'll give up my father's katana! In any case, I'll save Iori. I can't get him away from this scene of violence too soon. The man from Osaka is distracted by the fight. If I get the chance I'll…"
"You're using Himura as a decoy?" Misao-chan cut in.
"You know he can't fight with a broken katana! And Himura was the first to get here! You're…" Now it was Misao-chan who got interrupted.
"I didn't ask him to, he chose to fight." Seikuu-san said with a blank look in his eyes. This angered Misao-chan, as well as myself, but I can understand where he was coming from.
Misao-chan raised her fist to hit him when Okina-sama stoped her.
"Seikuu-san as this girls grandfather, I also understand your present state of heart."
"But Himura chose to fight to protect Iori because he also understands that too." I finally spoke up. Everyone finally turned to look at me, but was then distracted by the fight at hand.
"Why don't you just give up and die? At least then your death will be less painful.? Chou questioned. Of course he won't just give up and allow himself to be killed, he has to much a stake to just give up.
"Those eyes are really getting on my nerves. Don't you understand what's going on? That you about to die! Just to protect a little brat, you still won't draw your katana?"
"In the old days, to bring in the new Era, this one killed a lot of people." Himura said as he slowly stood up.
"Oh, so now you're bragging? Do you think that y recounting stories of your glorious past that I'm going to let you go?"He didn't understand, those years were glorious, they were horrible and painful for everyone.
"It's been ten years since the new Era began, the result of bloodshed and duels to the death for which there can be no redemption. But this is the first time the new Era has shown this aspect to a child, raised by a good family, who knows nothing of duels or bloodshed. TO you he is nothing but a brat, but to this one he is a heaven-sent child of the new Era. Even if it costs this one's life, this one will return Iori to the Seikuu family safe from harm." Himura then slightly turned his head to make eye contact with Seikuu-san. I know that look, he's going to use himself as a decoy.
"SO now you're the ally of Justice? Then I guess I'm the bad guy who is hated by everyone. But your part is now over. Soon under Shishio-sama I'll make a New Era with the Hakujin no Tachi. So die in peace." He still doesn't understand, the poor fool.
"Sorry, But I don't think you can create a new Era. Swords cannot make an Era. For this you need people!" after Himura said this it seemed that something snapped in Seikuu-san, because he started to run. He bypassed Iori, yelling that he would be safe soon, and went to the shrine. Broom-head didn't like that very much.
"What's a spectator doing on stage?" He yelled as he directed Hakujin no Tachi at Seikuu-san. It was about to hit when Himura flicked his sakabatou knocking the sword off course. I put my dagger, I was about to throw it at the sword.
"Now you really are getting on my nerves." Oh, if he is annoyed fight Himura I would piss him off if we fought.
I am not interested in this fight. I wonder who will get the katana.
"I'm pissed off now! I'm not going to take this anymore!" he then started rambling on about this hair, I snickered at the comeback Himura gave.
"I'll cram this in your stupid serious face, you fool! You Goddamn little…" So now he's calling Himura a fool, well they said it takes a fool to know a fool. Broom-head swung his sword at Himura, who at the last second used what was left of his sheath to stop the hit and redirect it. He then moved in and elbowed Chou in the forehead. Misao-chan was excited about the hit but I was skeptical a hit like that shouldn't be enough to take out someone like Chou.
"OOH, careful, careful. It's not too good to make fun of you. That attack mad me angry, but I'm calm again. You won't fool me a second time. I'll chop you into five pieces and put them on display at the Shjou Gawara." Chou said from his place on the ground.
"Now he has no chance of victory. How are we going to get everybody out of here without casualties." Okina said.
"Really? Please tell me you didn't just ask that Okina-sama. I am indeed right here thank you very much."I bit out. All he did was sweat drop and turn his head in the other direction.
"Himura-san!" Seikuu-san yelled as he burst out of the shrine holding a katana.
"This is my father's last Katana! Please use it!" He yelled as he threw it to Himura. So, he choose Himura…but will Himura be able to use the katana? A shocked Himura caught the katana.
"Huh? The stage-hand's a little late throwing in the props. Well, whatever. I'll destroy you and take the last work two birds with one stone. Draw it. I've had enough let's settle this now. We're two equal swordsmen. It'll be easy to tell which will kill and which will be killed."
"Go, Himura! Now you've got a katana, it'll be easy!" Misao-chan yelled. No, no it won't be easy. The look an Himura's face said that loud and clear.
"It's no good. Himura won't draw that sword." I said walking over to the three.
"No he probably can't" Okina-sama agreed.
"Himura has sworn to be a rurouni who does not kill. It's forbidden for him to draw any katana other than the sakabatou." I explained for Misao-chan and the other lady.
"But… that doesn't count at a time like this! I don't know what kind of killer Himura was before but he has to kill one more time!" Misao-chan protested.
"That 'one more time' is the problem. When you set him against a strong enemy like Chou the scales become balanced. Himura is teetering on the edge between the rurouni who does not kill and the Hitokiri Battousai." Misao-chan was shocked when I said this.
"Hitokiri…Battousai…?" She asked shocked.
"If he draws that katana now and kills, his heart will break its bonds. He'll slide down into the violent nature of the Hitokiri. He'll never be able to become a rurouni again." Okina-sama picked up. This shocked the other three listeners.
"If only the sword's sheath wasn't plain wood, but iron like that of the sakabatou." Okina-sama mussed.
"You're the Hitokiri Battousai, and yet you hesitate to kill. Alright if you've forgotten the joy of killing, I'll make you remember." Chou said pointed his sword at Iori.
"Based on this performance. I'll destroy what you call a heaven-sent child of peace!" Misao-chan and Okina-sama pulled out their weapons, but I started to run towards Iori. Himura was willing to risk his life in this battle I will too. But before I could reach Iori Himura let out a yell that stoped everybody and rushed towards Chou.
"Come on! I'll pay you back for making a fool of me!"
"No! He's lost his head!" Okina-sama yelled. Right as the sword was about to make contact with him Himura jumped into the air.
"Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuukansen Tsumuji!" he yelled as he drew the katana, and struck Chou.
"No…" I whispered. As Chou fell to the ground bleeding. I saw his violet eyes change to gold as he stare at Chou;s body. But quickly changed back when Iori said something.
"Himura… that katana…" I whispered loud enough for him to hear me. He looked down at the katana, as did everyone else.
"It's a sakabatou!" Misao-chan yelled
"Shakkuu's last work was a sakabatou, like the one he gave Himura before!" Okina-sama exclaimed.
"No..This feels better in my hands than the old sakabatou." He mumbled.
"Himura! Look he's still alive! You didn't break your vow!" Misao-chan yelled as she pointed at Chou.
Just then Chou woke up and started talking about how Himura shouldn't get cocky just because he beat him, just going on and on about Shishio's army.
"Jiya." Misao-chan asked as she held out her hand.
"Here." He gave her his chain weapon.
"Just Die Already!" Misao-chan yelled as she hit Chou over the head, nocking him out.
"What are we going to do about him?"
"We can get a lot of information out of him. Let's take him back to Aoiya."
"No, let's turn him over to the police. I don't know if he's arrived or not, but there's a man here who has complete authority over the Shishio affair. It'll be safer that way." Himura said.
"You mean that guy." Misao-chan said with an annoyed look on her face.
"My father's last work was a sakabatou…I don't understand. Why?" Seikuu-san said shocked. Just then the wood stared to break.
"The Katana its breaking!" Misao-chan yelled.
"Himura's technique was too much for the wood to bear." Okina-sama said. The wood fell off and Himura dropped the sword.
"It's okay the blade was unharmed…What…What is this?"