Sorry for the delay. I am done traveling so it should go back to updating weekly. Here's the next chapter. I hope you enjoy.
The Storm
Things had been tense since Eichi had shown up, but nothing happened. Kenshin stopped showing up, much to the disappointment of the girls, so he was left to entertain them. Kaoru had assured him that Eichi couldn't do anything without proof. After all, there was more than one red haired man in the city. She continued her lessons and he continued working. He occasionally saw Eichi watching them from a distance. His anger was always easy to detect. Saito had gotten away safely, to their knowledge. He had cut off contact to be safe.
"Yahiko can you clean the room," Kaoru asked him as she cleaned her tools. He nodded, he knew the process by now.
Things happened in a flash. There was a loud bang as someone kicked the door in. The noise startled him, and he tripped over the sheets he had piled on the floor, falling into the closet. Kaoru shouted something but was cut off part way through. There was a distinct sound of someone being hit. He struggled to get back on his feet to help Kaoru.
"Search the place for the boy," A male voice said. And he could hear people moving around.
He couldn't hear Kaoru or any sounds of a struggle. She was probably unconscious, he wouldn't let his brain consider any other options. He wanted to run out and face them, to save Kaoru, but they had taken care of her so easily. What chance did he stand? He had a second to decide what to do before they came in. Gritting his teeth, he took the option he hated. Reaching the back of the closet he opened the hidden door and crawled inside.
Tears of frustration ran down his cheeks as he heard the men searching the apartment. Hiding was the coward's way out. Kenshin wouldn't have hidden. But he wasn't Kenshin. If he did what his pride wanted, there was a good chance he would end up like Kaoru. Then no one would be able to tell Kenshin, and someone needed to do that. Kenshin and his friend would be able to help. He knew Kaoru would be proud of the choice he made, but he still hated himself.
"The kids not here," another voice said.
"Then we check where he works. You two, go to where he works and figure out where he is," the first voice said. Yahiko's blood ran cold. Tsubame was there.
I'm sorry Kaoru, he thought. He couldn't turn his back on two friends. Only two of them were going to the restaurant. He stood a chance if he could fight them one on one. Once the men had been gone for a while he left his hiding place. His heart soared when he didn't find Kaoru's body or blood outside. Whoever they were, they wanted them alive. Taking every shortcut he knew, he ran to the Akibeko.
He ran to the back of the Akibeko to find Tsubame and her sister standing outside, facing down two men. The men were large and intimidating but the girls stood their ground.
"We don't know who you are taking about," Tsubame said.
"Come on girls, you gain nothing by protecting him. It will be much less painful if you just tell us where he is."
"Behind you," Yahiko said. Attacking them from behind would have been easier for him but his honor wouldn't let him. The two men turned around and smiled. He didn't need to sense ki to know they were dangerous and that he was facing them down with a wooden sword. But it was better than watching them hurt his friends.
"Remember, we can't kill him," one said to the other.
They attacked, and he block to the best of his abilities. Using what Kaoru had taught him about using his opponents force against them. His smaller size helped him dodge blows and nimbly move around them. They landed blows, he wasn't skilled enough to block everything, but his time on the streets had taught him how to take a beating. They landed blows, but he stayed on his feet.
Finally, he was able to knock over one of the men which gave him the opportunity to focus on the other. They didn't see him as a threat, so they weren't taking him seriously, which meant there were holes in their defenses. He just needed to find one he could use. Seeing an opening, he took it and delivered a hard blow to the man's temple. He dropped to the ground.
Unfortunately, the other man was back on his feet by then and he sent him flying with a hard blow to his side. Yahiko stared up at the man, momentarily stunned. He knew the other man would knock him out before he could get back on his feet. Kaoru would scold him later for leaving himself open like that. His body tensed in preparation for the strike to come but it didn't. Instead the man jerked suddenly as something hit his head and he fell to the ground. Tsubame and Tae stood where the man had been standing, holding a wooden log that they had used to strike the man.
"Yahiko!" Tsubame said running to his side. "Are you ok?"
"Ya," he said sitting up and shaking his head to clear it. "Are you two?"
"Were fine," Tae said. "Who were they?"
"I don't know. They broke into our apartment and took Kaoru."
"Oh my, we should call the police," Tae said.
"No," Yahiko said. His gut was telling him Eichi was behind this. "Kaoru and her police friend had a falling out." Tae nodded.
"So, what do we do?" Tsubame asked.
"I need to go find Kaoru's friend," he said trying to stand up but falling over. He had hit his head pretty hard.
"You need to sit for a while," Tae said going into nurse mode. "You probably have a concussion. Wandering around in your condition would probably end up with you lost and unconscious. I'll go grab some ice and the first aid kit. Tsubame, you help him upstairs."
He wanted to just ignore her and leave, but his inability to stand up made it impossible. So, he let Tsubame help him upstairs into their house. The moment his head was clear, he would go find Kenshin. He didn't know where to look, but he would keep looking until he found them.
It had been three days since they had heard from Kaoru. Kenshin was worried but there was nothing he could do. Trying to contact her would only make her situation worse. So, he waited and worried. After hearing from Kaoru, they had tried to fine Saito to make sure he was ok, but he had vanished. This only mad him worry more.
"Worrying isn't going to help," Master Hiko said.
"I know. But not worrying is hard, that it is."
"Your woman is strong. Have a little more faith in her."
"I do, but I still worry. And she is not mine," Master Hiko just snorted.
"I could ask Megumi if she knows anything," Sano said joining them.
"That could put Miss Megumi in danger."
"Well I'm heading home for a bit, so I'll ask her if I see her. No harm in that. I'll make sure she knows the danger," Sano said.
"Make sure you're not being followed," Aoshi said.
"Ya ya," Sano said waving and left.
The room descended back into silence and Kenshin returned to worrying. They were all on their feet, hands on weapons, when they sensed a foreign ki appeared. Whoever they were, they were strong. There was a light rap on the door. Kenshin moved to look through a hidden peephole they had installed near the door. If it weren't for their ki, he would have guessed it a local drug dealer by the wooden box he carried on his back. Their face was hidden by a hat.
Once everyone was in place, Aoshi moved to open the door. "Can I help you?"
"Can I interest you in any pain medicine? It comes at a discounted price," the man said. He recognized the voice.
"Saito?" he said, coming out of his hiding place.
Saito met his eyes and smiled. Now that they knew who he was, they quickly brought him inside. Aoshi and Misao left to make sure he hadn't been followed.
"How did you find us?" Master Hiko asked, still on edge.
"Not easily. I've spent the last three days looking. I wasn't sure this was it. I just guessed based on the guy who left earlier."
"You're a swordsman?" Master Hiko said, not relaxing. The sword on Saito's back had been hidden by the box. Kaoru hadnt told him anything about that.
"I have studied my whole life but it is of little use in todays world," He took the sword off his back and handed it to Master Hiko. "If it makes you more comfortable." Master Hiko took the sword and relaxed.
"Have you heard anything from Miss Kaoru?"
"No, I cut off contact after Yahiko called me to keep her safe. I apologize for showing up like this, but it seemed like the best option."
"Its fine," he said once he got Master Hiko's silent approval. "We tried to find you once we heard from Miss Kaoru, but you had already disappeared."
"I got out the moment Yahiko called me."
"Well, welcome. Come sit and join me for a drink," Master Hiko said. "Kenshin, go on patrol before you worry a hole through the floor.
He nodded and left. Master Hiko wanted him to leave before he started badgering Saito with questions. He wandered around the city keeping his eyes and ears open but otherwise didn't have a goal in mind. Eventually he found a nice place to sit, out of eyesight from prying eyes, and he sat down and watched the city. He didn't dare go anywhere near Kaoru's home, but he could look towards it.
The day went by and he stayed where he was, not finding a reason to move. When the sun started to set he decided he should head back before the others started to worry. Slowly he started to meander his way back. Not long after he started walking, he heard crying. Cautiously, he went to investigate. There were two small figures crouched in an ally way, they had to be children. Checking for any obvious signs of a trap, he slowly approached, staying in the shadows.
One of them said something he didn't catch. The other one then stood up, pulling the smaller one up. "I'm hungry too but we can't stay here."
His eyes widened, "Ayame?" He said quietly. They turned around quickly and looked at him with wide, frightened eyes. It was hard to see them in the dark, but it was them. Ayame was holding Suzume's hand. Suzume was in tears. Ayame looked close to tears but she was fighting them back with all her might.
"What are you two doing out here alone?" He asked kneeling. His senses stretched as far as they could to make sure no one was there. The moment they recognized him, they ran over to him. Ayame finally let her tears out. He picked them up and moved further into the ally, so they were fully in the dark.
"You're ok, that you are. Did you get lost?" They were too upset to listen, so he just let them cry until they started to calm down. "We should get you two home, that we should." This caused Suzume to start crying again, much to his confusion.
"We can't," Ayame said.
He tried to get more of an explanation, but she just started crying again. Their crying would start attracting more attention, so he decided to bring them back with him until they calmed down enough to tell him what was going on. Then he would worry about getting them home.
"We are not an orphanage," Master Hiko said when he walked through the door. The girls had calmed down, but he didn't want to risk them crying again. Not where it wasn't safe. He didn't need them seeing that side of him.
"I didn't know where else to bring them," he said, setting the girls down on the floor. They were timid around Master Hiko, but not intimidated. The others were sitting around the room, watching the girls. They had been in the middle of dinner when he had come in.
"And who might you be," Master Hiko said crouching down so he didn't tower over them. He could be intimidating and unfriendly, but he wasn't mean to children. Especially ones as frightened as the girls.
"I'm Ayame and this is my sister Suzume," Ayame spoke up. "Are you a friend of Uncle Ken?"
"You must be the little missies Kenshin talks about," Sano said. "What are you two doing out so late?"
"We were looking for Uncle Ken," Ayame said, her eyes started to fill with tears again.
"Why were you looking for me?" He asked sitting down next to her. Suzume started crying again which caused Ayame to start crying. Misao was there in an instant. Picking Suzume up and speaking to her softly to calm her down. He reached out and rubbed Ayame's back, trying to calm her down so she could tell him what was going on.
"The bad men," she choked out. "W-we hid. Kaoru and Yahiko weren't there. I didn't know what else to do."
"Did bad men come to your home and hurt Dr. Gensai?" A nod and a shake of the head.
"They came and took him away. They made him fall over first," he interpreted this as they knocked him out. "Are they going to hurt him like they did our parents?" His heart ached for her, he didn't know what happened to her parents, but they were gone and from the sound of it, not by accident.
"I don't know," he said, unwilling to lie to her. "But I'm going to do everything I can to make sure he comes home safely. Why didn't you wait for Miss Kaoru?" This brought another wave a crying which caused his heart to sink. If something had happened to Dr. Gensai, had something happened to Kaoru?
"Was the missy not there?" Sano asked, Ayame nodded. "How did you know she wasn't coming back?"
"The door was broken, and everything was messy."
Kenshin went numb, something had happened. He should have tried to contact her, just to make sure she was safe. It felt like the floor had just fallen out from under him. His mind was spinning, and he struggled t focus, but he did. Ayame needed him right now, he couldn't lose it.
"You were very brave Ayame. Your safe now, that you are," he glanced at Misao. She nodded in understanding and quickly ushered the girls out of the room.
Sano jumped suddently to his feet, "Megumi wasn't home earlier. I didn't think much about it, but she doesn't normally have work then. I'm going to go check on her," he said and left. If the circumstances had been different, Kenshin would have teased him about knowing Megumi's schedule.
"What is going on," Master Hiko asked once they were out of earshot. "Is this the work of the police?"
Saito shook his head, "But Eichi could be behind this."
"When did Eichi come into this?" He asked, obviously he was missing something.
"Saito told us earlier about how Eichi found out about Kaoru's connection to you and how that caused her to cut off contact," Aoshi supplied.
"She didn't break the law, so he couldn't do anything as a policeman. He might have decided to take matters into his own hands. It sounds like he is solely set on catching you," Master Hiko added.
"But why would he go after Dr. Gensai, Yahiko, and maybe Megumi?" He asked.
"They are her closest friends. He might have assumed that they knew something," Aoshi said.
"Will he hurt them?" He asked fighting down his emotions.
"I don't think so," Saito said. "He cares for Kaoru, even if she betrayed him. He probably wants to use her to lure you guys out. Either you try to save her and maybe get caught or he destroys her trust in you. Either way he wins," Saito said.
"He is willing to indanger his friend and break the law just to catch Kenshin, why?" Master Hiko asked.
"I don't know. That would be a question for Kaoru."
"Do we know who is helping him?" Aoshi asked.
"Kaoru has many enemies, my guess is they are connected to the slave market," Saito said.
"So in order to help them, we need to find the people we have been unsuccessfully hunting for months," Master Hiko said bluntly.
"Or find Eichi," He said, desperately trying to keep his emotions under control. He couldn't lose it, not again. He might not be able to come back a second time.
"Lets compare information tonight and tomorrow we will start searching," Master Hiko said. Kenshin wanted to leave now and start searching but that would not help.
"The girls might know more than they think. I'll get Misao to talk with them tomorrow," Aoshi said.
"Is there anyone else he might target?" He asked Saito.
Saito sat in silence for a while before speaking, "Not that I know of. Maybe Tae but I doubt it."
"We should check on them none the less," he said.
"I'll go," Aoshi said, standing up. After getting a nod of confirmation from Master Hiko, he left.
"Now, Saito, tell us everything you know about the slave trade and Eichi," Master Hiko said. Kenshin settled himself against the wall to listen. His hands fiddled with the piece of string he had pulled from his pocket. It was the same string Kaoru had used to tie his sword shut when they first met. It was his only connection to her, and right now he needed anything he could get to keep his emotions calm.