Battle Front: Chapter 7

Kaoru felt like her lungs were ready to explode. She regretted having quit her daily jog months ago and was suffering the consequences as she tried to pick it back up. Sanosuke had been gone for a week and a half and Soujiro had still not arrived.

His transfer to Gamma base was at least a month delayed. Megumi had decided to move back into their apartment almost as soon as Sanosuke had left for his mission. However, the two women still didn't talk. Yahiko was the only person Kaoru could consider a friend on the base and it made for a lonely existence where the only thing she had to look forward to were letters from her sister and the hope of a letter from Aoshi.

The soles of her tennis shoes pounded upon the dusky trails near the base. The sun had not breached the horizon yet but its heat was starting to make its presence known. She was contemplating the decision whether or not to turn back and return to base when she heard someone running towards her. There was a brief moment of panic.

Had she run too far? Had enemy troops sought her out? Was she about to be murdered?

Or worse yet…

Was she about to be embarrassed for not being able to keep up with the rest of the Army men?

"I didn't know you ran in the mornings," Enishi greeting, pulling up beside her and matching his pace with hers.

Kaoru's brows knitted together in annoyance and she sped up, trying to leave him behind. He easily caught up. "Today's the first time; I decided to pick the habit back up."

"I usually run at this time, right before the masses of divisions go for their daily jog." Enishi ran smoothly alongside her, without so much as a drop of sweat. Kaoru glared at him, gasping for breath, and hated him at that moment—more than she usually did. "We could run together," he suggested.

"No thanks."

Enishi reached out and caught her upper arm and stopped her from running. She yanked her arm free from his grasp and placed her hands on her knees to catch her breath. "What?" she asked sharply.

"Look, I'm trying to make up for earlier, all right?"

"You already apologized," Kaoru bit back, face flushed in heat and anger.

""Yes and you didn't accept, I realize that. In case you didn't notice, we're in the middle of a war," Enishi continued. "It's certainly not safe for you to be running out here by yourself. It's not safe for any of us to run out alone," he added before she could protest.

Kaoru stood straight. "Fine. We can run together, just don't talk to me."

Enishi grinned at her, the action so surprising Kaoru felt like she had been punched in the stomach. He was actually handsome and almost looked friendly. "Don't worry, I know you need to conserve your breath for all the huffing and puffing you do while attempting your jog."

Kaoru glowered at him. "Jerk," she muttered. She took a deep breath and looked back in the direction of the base. It sure did seem like a long ways off now that she was so tired. Maybe she over did it this morning. "I need to head back."

"Patients to see?" Enishi asked as he started off in the direction towards the base with her. They went at a slow, leisurely pace for him and a grueling one for her.

"Day off actually," Kaoru said in a gasp. She flashed him a quick smile. "Need to head back now because it's probably going to take me a few hours!"

"I don't have a few hours, so if it gets to be too long I'll just pick you up and carry you," Enishi warned, pressing the pace a little.

Kaoru clenched her jaw in determination. She didn't need some man, must less that arrogant jerk, to carry her. She was perfectly capable of pulling her own weight. And if she wasn't, she'd rather die of heat exhaustion trying!

"I haven't seen your friend Sagara around lately," Enishi commented after they had run the distance of a mile.

Kaoru nodded silently, all her concentration focused on running and breathing. Enishi didn't speak to her for the duration of the run after that. They arrived at the base; he had just barely broken a sweat across his forehead whereas she was drenched in comparison. He looked her up and down and gave her shoulder a quick pat.

"Keep yourself hydrated," he advised before walking past her on his way to his quarters.

Kaoru narrowed her eyes at his retreating figure. "I'm the doctor," she muttered. She whirled around to march back to her apartment for a shower when she ran smack dab into a solid frame—again. A pair of cobalt blue eyes a few inches higher than hers greeted her. "Oh my God, Soujiro!" she screamed in excitement wrapping her arms around her future brother-in-law and hugging him.

Soujiro had braced himself for his overly-enthusiastic future sister-in-law so he didn't stumble back too far when she threw herself at him. He began to laugh as he returned her hug, ignoring the fact that she smelt of sweat and desert heat. "Been out running I see?"

Kaoru let go of him immediately with an apologetic expression. "I'm so sorry, I didn't even think about it." She frowned at the obvious wet stains she had pressed onto the front of his fatigues. "That was so gross of me."

Soujiro shook his head, a smile on his lips before he reached out and hugged Kaoru. "I don't care; a little sweat never hurt anyone. It could have been worse considering what you do for a living. I'm just glad it's not blood and guts." He kissed her cheek and held her out at arm's length. "It's really great to see you. You're a much lovelier sight than Aoshi."

"How is he?" Kaoru asked anxiously, her heart doing summersaults in her chest. "I"ve gotten one letter from him. Has he not been receiving the ones I've sent?"

Soujiro took Kaoru's arm in his own and began to walk with her down the hall. "Why don't you show me where you live, that way you can take a shower?"

OOOOOoooooOOOOO

Soujro had made himself at home on Kaoru's apartment couch, flipped on the television, and was watching the news. He quickly turned down the volume when a beautiful woman came out of the second bedroom with an annoyed expression. She looked at him and the annoyance melted into confusion.

"Who are you?"

Soujiro stood. "Lieutenant Sourjio Seta, it's a pleasure to meet you." He extended his hand towards her.

She reluctantly shook it. "Doctor Megumi Takani." She looked towards Kaoru's closed bedroom door. "You're a friend of Kaoru's?"

Soujiro smiled invitingly at her. "More than friends, I'm her soon to be brother-in-law," he explained. "I'm the reason she chose this base to be stationed. I was supposed to be here a month ago, but things happen." He shrugged.

Megumi nodded in understanding. "Yes, things happen," she agreed. She gestured towards the kitchen. "Would you like some breakfast? I was just about to make an omelet for myself." She gestured towards Kaoru's closed door. "I don't believe she even knows how to turn on the oven."

"She can turn it on, its turning it off that is the problem," he confided with a wink.

Kaoru came out of her bedroom dressed in casual jeans and a tank top to find her estranged roommate and co-worker sitting at the table with her future brother-in-law. And they were having a conversation and smiling! She walked towards them and pulled out a chair doing her best to not feel betrayed in some twisted fashion.

"I see you two have met," Kaoru observed.

"Yes, Lieutenant Seta is such a good man. Your sister is quite lucky," Megumi said, not taking her eyes off Soujiro. She pointed towards the kitchen counter where a blue plate with an omelet sat with a few tendrils of steam rising from its surface. "Your breakfast is on the counter."

Kaoru stared at her roommate in disbelief. They'd been living together for over a month and Megumi had never made her breakfast before. Come to think of it, it was strange that Katsu wasn't there either. "Thank you Megumi, that was kind of you," Kaoru said as she rose from the table. She picked up her plate and brought it to the table.

"You two wouldn't believe what it's actually like out there," Soujiro explained as he finished off his breakfast. He drank some of his orange juice before continuing. "I've been in the service for five years now and I've never seen fighting this intense before. I just don't think it's going to end anytime soon."

"That's terrible!" Kaoru exclaimed with her fork poised halfway to her mouth.

"Eat your food Kamiya and calm down," Megumi admonished. "That's job security for us."

Kaoru blinked at her callous words in disbelief.

"Calm down Kaoru, she's obviously joking," Soujiro explained.

Kaoru silently ate her breakfast.

"She doesn't get sarcasm very well," Soujiro said to Megumi. She nodded, indicating that she was already familiar with this aspect of her roommate. "There's rumor that a special operation is going to find a way to end the war quickly."

"Really?" Megumi leaned with her elbows on the table, closer to Soujiro. "What's the rumor?" Her dark eyes had grown bright in curiosity.

"If I told you, I'd have to kill you," Soujiro answered mischievously.

His words echoed familiarly in Kaoru's mind, eerily similar to her last conversation with Sanosuke. She was really missing him, more than she expect to at least. "Where's Katsu?" Kaoru asked suddenly.

Megumi frowned at her before tossing back her long dark hair and rising from the table. She took her plate to the sink and began to rinse it off. "Not that it's any of your business, but I broke it off with him."

Soujiro looked at Kaoru, his expression clearly indicating he wanted to know who she was talking about. She ignored him and focused on Megumi, her thoughts focused on Ssanosuke. "You were too good for him anyway," Kaoru told her.

Megumi turned back to her, obviously surprised by the statement. "You think so?"

"There are many handsome men out there," Kaoru started. She met gazes with Soujiro briefly before continuing, letting him know she wasn't just speaking for Megumi. "The key is to find the man that appreciates you the most. You need to find the man you can live without but would live so much happier with."

Megumi smiled sadly at Kaoru before walking over to her. She touched her shoulder lightly. "I have to go to work, we can talk later." Soujiro rose to his feet and took Megumi's hand and kissed the back of her fingers.

"It was a pleasure meeting you," Soujiro said. After Megumi left Soujiro returned his attention to Kaoru. "I have a feeling the two of you are not close."

"You always were good with those feelings," Kaoru agreed. "Tell me about Aoshi," she requested quietly.

Soujiro sat down and leaned back casually in his chair. "He misses you. He says you two aren't broken up, just on a break."

Kaoru's brow arched at that declaration. "Did he now?"

Soujiro's expression turned serious. "Who's Sanosuke?"

"How do you know about Sano?"

"From the way Megumi tells it, you're the one who knows Sano real well. Do I need to let Aoshi know he has competition?" Soujiro asked, only half-joking.

"Sano and I are good friends—great friends—really. He's a great man, Sou. However, his heart belongs to Megumi. She's just too blind and stubborn to realize it," Kaoru explained. Mentally, she made a note to clear up that misconception with Megumi, considering they were now on speaking terms. It was the least she could do for the man that made her first couple of weeks in this desert bearable. "I sure seem to know a lot of great men that are in love with other women," she mumbled.

"Plenty of great men love you too," Soujiro told her seriously, reaching out and clucking up her chin with his finger. Kaoru shrugged her shoulders and jerked her chin away from him. "How about you give me the grand tour of this place?"

"Sure, not much to see though," Kaoru warned.

OOOOOoooooOOOOO

Enishi waited as the men he was about to pilot into the thick of the war climbed into the back of his helicopter. These men were not about to engage in the bloody battles that resulted in severed limbs but rather were about to invade the enemy's headquarters under cover.

They would work to destroy the enemy from the inside and this was to be the first of several missions. Enishi had been called off his typical transport of wounded soldiers' assignment to drop off the Special Forces. He had been requested by name, though he wasn't sure why. He was good, but he didn't think there was anything special about him that would warrant him to be specifically requested.

At least, he didn't understand until he saw the man in charge of the group. The man wasn't very impressive in size and was slight of build. However, his eyes were another matter, fierce amber that revealed calculated precision. The man's codename was Battousai, but Enishi knew him better as Kenshin Himura, his brother-in-law.

He was slightly surprised to see at least one other familiar face. Captain Sanosuke Sagara was present as well. The two men locked gazes, both caught off guard at the appearance of the other. It wasn't that Enishi didn't like Sagara, he respected the man. He couldn't help the feelings of jealousy he had regarding the brunette's ability to have such a blunt personality. Perhaps the envy stemmed from the fact that Enishi was struggling to gain the friendship of the new Dr. Kamiya when Sagara had blundered his way into establishing a lifelong bond within the first few hours of knowing her.

Enishi didn't recognize the other men, but he didn't need to recognize them. It was better if he forgot they existed, that was the way of covert operations. He knew Himura well enough to know that he would make certain all his men made it in and out of the operation intact and uncompromised.

Himura might have been a rotten husband, but he was a fine leader.

Himura walked over to Enishi after his men was secured in the back of the helicopter. They both entered the cockpit at the same time, Himura would be serving as his co-pilot. "These are the coordinates," Himura said softly, before rattling off some numbers that Enishi processed automatically without really listening.

"The time frame?" Enishi asked, emotionlessly. He just had to do his job. He would serve his country and ignore the man sitting next to him.

"Two hours, then meet us at the rendezvous point for retrieval."

"Aye," Enishi confirmed as he started to lift off.

OOOOOoooooOOOOO

Aoshi sat in the nurses' station, pouring over the various references books in search of an answer. He hated to admit that he wasn't sure what illness his patient suffered from, but he was just fresh out of medical school. He wasn't expected to know everything, but it upset him greatly that he didn't.

His patient hadn't been on the battlefield in several weeks. So he didn't think it was exposure to some kind of biological weapon, but it could have been. The senior doctor was of no use, he told Aoshi that this was his patient and his responsibility to figure it out. He wasn't being paid to baby him.

That response had pissed off the young doctor to no end. The man's symptoms were rather vague and generic. He was fatigued, had full body aches in both muscles and joints, and cough. His physical exam was normal for the most part, his chest x-ray was clear, his blood work was unremarkable. There was slight anemia, but not enough to be causing such symptoms as this. His lymph nodes were enlarged, so he was obviously fighting a virus. But his throat wasn't red, nor did it hurt him. And there were no lesions on his skin.

In summary, Aoshi had no clue what was wrong with the man. He had him in isolation so as not to expose any of the other soldiers, but he feared that he himself had been exposed now. He slammed shut his reference book in aggravation. His eyes landed upon the telephone sitting on the counter.

It was a long shot, but maybe Kaoru knew. She didn't have any more experience than him but maybe she had picked up and learned something that he didn't know. He hadn't been allowed to call her, that privilege hadn't been earned yet, or some such nonsense. He could spend all day and night saving lives, but he hadn't earned the right to call his girlfriend. All right, his ex-girlfriend, but he wasn't about to admit that to anyone.

Decision made, he began to punch in the code for long distance calls. He knew Kaoru's phone number from memory. Gamma base, unlike his base, allowed the residents to have their own phone lines.

He dialed the number and waited with raw nerves as the phone began to ring. He looked out the glass windows of the nurses' station, feeling like the guilty child who broke the neighbor's window playing baseball.

On the third ring the phone was picked up.

"Hello?"