Rurouni Yahiko

A Rurouni Kenshin Continuation fic
by Chester Castañeda

The continuation of the fight between two counterparts and the revelation of the truth behind the fake Battousai.

Disclaimer: All characters used in this fanfic (save some others) are the rightful property of Nobuhiro Watsuki and Sony. Don't sue me please, I'm very poor.

Chapter 5: Refrain

Chizuru had been worriedly pacing back and forth inside the Sakaguchi Soba Shop for hours on end since that fateful afternoon. Little wonder, because she did have a lot to think about. 'Why is that brat taking so long?'

She remembered Yahiko's earlier statement; it resounded in her consciousness as clearly as an echo would in a deep valley.

"The vagabond's true name is not Battousai. It's Himura Kenshin," she repeated to herself. "Kenshin. What a weird name." It wasn't that the name was strange; to Chizuru, it just appeared unbelievable for the rurouni to even have a name.

She shook her head vehemently. "Who would have thought that that rude young boy could actually know... much less be in league with... the Battousai himself? Unbelievable."

Actually, it was possible in a sense. After all, the Battousai she knew, the wanderer, was a complete and total wimp. For the vagabond to associate with a foul-mouthed brat like Yahiko... and, say, a look-alike of herself and a strong, gangster-type of fellow... wasn't really that much of a stretch of the imagination. In fact, it seemed rather... apt.

Chizuru's mouth went agape. "Where did that come from?" She was having bizarre thoughts again. This wasn't the time for such silliness.

The young lady looked at the small clock atop a nearby table worriedly, and even more so at Nonoko's sleeping form on the counter across her. "Poor Sakaguchi-san. To have her husband transferred to another district was tough enough, but to also have her daughter run away like that during a sensitive time like this is another matter entirely."

The Kaoru doppelganger recalled the last thing Yahiko told her before he left abruptly.

"Later. I won't be long."

'Full of himself, as usual,' Chizuru regarded derisively. "I do hope that that braggart samurai wannabe can put his money where his mouth is," she whispered to herself, imagining several gory scenarios in her head as she expected the worst.

Yahiko had gotten there too late as he saw Kyoko... dishonored.

Yahiko, though he fought valiantly, was overwhelmed by the group of thugs.

Yahiko, his eyes wild, could barely react in time as a sword flew towards his neck...

'That's enough,' Chizuru berated herself. "Dammit, kid. I hope you know what you're doing."

"I hope I know what I'm doing," Yahiko murmured to himself as he eyed a nearby bamboo grove behind him. He quickly backed up towards said grove, keeping his wary eyes on the quickly approaching geysers on the ground care of Soujiro's rapid footwork.

"Always remember that the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu is a defensive martial arts school. It isn't designed to overwhelm an opponent with pure offense. It's no Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu!" Yahiko could almost hear Kaoru lecture in his head. "The best way to execute a Kamiya Kasshin Ryu maneuver is to fight defensively; at least Yuta-kun understands this."

'Shut up, old hag,' Yahiko mentally scolded, berating the voice in his head. 'Okay then. Let's remember the important things raccoon-girl said.'

"First rule: Set up the distance properly. A mere inch may mean the difference between life and death," Yahiko began reciting to himself mockingly, mimicking Kaoru's high-pitched whine and enumerating everything in his head as if he had it all memorized by heart.

The beatings on the ground started to get louder as they came nearer the Tokyoite.

"Second rule: Position yourself carefully so that you could limit your opponent's movements. Use your environment and surroundings to your advantage."

He took a deep breath as he placed himself in front of a cluster of bamboo in such a way that it looked like he was cornered at a dead end. In reality, it helped Yahiko limit Soujiro's choices of attack; a side attack would be too awkward and a rear attack was out of the question with such a position. There was only one option of assault... a frontal one.

"Third rule: Anticipate. As an inch may mean the difference between life and death, so does a mere fraction of a second. It's all about timing. You may be able to execute a move perfectly, but if the timing is off, then it'll all be over for you."

Yahiko fell into his usual ready stance, his eyes fixed on the zigzagging patterns of Soujiro's mostly undetectable assault.

He heaved a frustrated sigh.

He looked at the charging Soujiro in chagrin. He was looking in chagrin because he couldn't see a charging Soujiro at all.

'Hmmm. I may have a little problem with that third rule Kaoru gave.' The Tokyo Samurai's Son grinded his teeth in frustration. If he attacked with the Hiza Hijiki too early, he'd be wide open. If he attacked too late, well, he'd be too dead to regret it. 'Dammit, of all the people I get to fight, why did it have to be Kenshin Junior?'

Yahiko flinched as a gust of wind brushed up against his face. Thinking that it was Soujiro finally ready to attack, he reflexively backed up a few paces in surprise.

He groaned as he retreated too far into the bamboo grove, his injured shoulder accidentally bumping into one of the stalks. He felt pain anew. His eyes blurred ever so slightly as he fought through the soreness. He concentrated hard to regain focus.

'Shit. I'm all beaten up.'

A thought occurred to him through his haze of anguish. 'Kaoru once said that a swordsman can only open the eyes of the heart once he closes the eyes of man. I'm not completely sure what that means, but I guess it's worth a shot. It's not as if I can see Psycho-Kid anyway.'

Yahiko closed his eyes.

'I only got one chance. No matter how fast he is, his quickness technique is still basically a charging move like the Gatotsu. Once he moves in for the kill, there'll be no turning back for him. The momentum of his assault won't be easily broken.'

Yahiko could hear his heart beating faster and harder, as if it were ready to jump out of his chest. 'It's only a question of when he'll attack.'

"Fourth Kamiya Kasshin Ryu rule: Know your enemy as you know yourself," Yahiko whispered to himself as each passing second became an eternity to him. 'What are you thinking about, Psycho-Kid?'

His heart skipped a beat.

It was now or never.

"Tsuka no Gedan...!"

Segments of bamboo stalks flew from where Yahiko's neck was just a moment ago.

Yahiko, ducking just in time, was already on the ground, ready to execute the second part of his move. 'I knew it! He held back on his speed again.'

He grinned as he opened his eyes, his vision focusing on the now-visible Soujiro. 'He may be all smiley-smiley on the outside, but on the inside, he definitely still has his fighter's pride. If there's one thing I learned as a petty thief under the yakuza, it's that stronger enemies tend to underestimate their weaker opponents too much.'

'A ducking technique?' Soujiro noted to himself in dull surprise. 'I see. It's a technique used to disable a charging opponent. Well, the Shukuchi is no ordinary charging technique.'

"Hiza Hijiki!" Yahiko shouted as he determinedly charged with the sakabatou aimed directly at one of Soujiro's knees. 'There's no way he could stop his momentum now!'

Soujiro rapidly let out several furious beatings from his powerful legs to halt his momentum. The Ex-Heaven Sword then quickly retreated a good distance away from Yahiko as the younger boy overextended himself.

'Impossible! How could he...?'

Yahiko was now wide open.

With no further disputation or contention, the former Ten Ken shattered the distance between him and Yahiko as he dashed again with his Shukuchi.

Kyoko almost let out a scream as Yahiko left himself vulnerable to Soujiro's counterattack. 'No! Soujiro-kun! Don't!'

'What now?' Yahiko heard himself think as he just crouched there, stupefied. Another voice... a familiar one... provided him with the answer. The voice was his own.

"The marriage of two techniques: One of perfect defense and the other of unstoppable offense," Yahiko chanted to himself as he saw Soujiro vanish in the blink of an eye. He immediately readjusted his overextension as he took on a different pose.

The exhilaration from Yahiko's own adrenaline rush overwhelmed him so much that his overexcited breathing started to suffocate him. He followed through the Hiza Hijiki, the perfect defensive move, with that of an unstoppable offensive one.

"Imitation Technique! Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu: Ryu Sho Sen!"

For the third time in a row, Yahiko was able to detect the undetectable Shukuchi.

The sakabatou clanged hard on Soujiro's own sword. For the first time since the fight commenced, Yahiko was able to cross swords with his opponent.

The furious impact of the two swordsmen's respective strikes flung them in opposite directions. Yahiko winced hard as his shoulder once more bumped against a bamboo stalk, yet he laughed heartily at his achievement. He didn't mind the pain at all.

Kyoko almost celebrated alongside Yahiko, but stopped herself short of doing so. 'I'm not siding with this person, am I?' she mused. 'But Soujiro-kun, you're enjoying yourself in this fight as well, aren't you?'

Soujiro effortlessly recovered from his unceremonious flight by means of his effective use of the Shukuchi. After which, he stared at the maniacally laughing Yahiko curiously. "You seem so delighted over such a small accomplishment, Yahiko-san."

Yahiko stopped laughing altogether. He addressed Soujiro derisively, though his smirk was still there. "I guess I just can't help myself. You're a really funny guy, Psycho-Kid."

"Hmmm? What exactly do you mean?" Soujiro inquired.

Yahiko cackled with gusto, though it sounded a bit strained this time around. "You've been using the same speed three times in a row. It's as though you haven't listened to a word I've said. Holding back won't work on me anymore," he explained half-mockingly and half-scornfully through clenched teeth.

Soujiro made an apologetic, chopping motion with his hand. "My bad, Yahiko-san. I'll take you more seriously from now on. I promise." 'Calm down. Deep breath. Composure,' Yahiko recited to himself as he fought against the growing annoyance inside him. Soujiro was one of the few people that could really get under his skin.

The sixteen year old was just about to retort with something nasty about Soujiro's ancestry when he stopped himself cold after he saw the look in his opponent's eyes.

Those eyes; they chilled Yahiko to the bone. It was as if he was staring Death in the eye.

"You seem very fond of Himura-san's Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu. However, you do not have a monopoly on his techniques."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

Soujiro chuckled. "You'll see, Yahiko-san."

'Is that a smirk on Psycho-Kid's face?' Yahiko contemplated as he stared at Soujiro in disbelief. He backed away ever so slightly as the elder boy advanced by one step, and then disappeared.

Yahiko could hear his heartbeat throb in his ears as goose bumps filled his skin. 'This is it. This time, it's the real deal.'

His face paled in shock and panic as the zigzagging gushes from before surrounded him in a multidirectional attack. 'Oh my God, is this Psycho-Kid's true speed? He's so fast that he can come at you from all angles at once!'

The Tokyo Samurai Descendant was now in a fix. His former advantage... being positioned at a dead end as a way to limit Soujiro's mobility... was now his disadvantage as he just stood there, trapped and cornered, unable to defend against the older boy's furious advance. Even the cover of darkness was not enough to protect Yahiko now.

'Man, three times in a row, I was able to get him, but I'm still not sure how I did it. It was as if I only relied on instinct. Was it the supposed 'eyes of the heart' that helped me do it?'

The Acting Master of the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu struggled hard to catch his breath as panic and alarm besieged him. 'Jeez, my heart is pounding so hard that I can hear it in my ears.'

For Yahiko, that was an intimately familiar state whenever he faced Soujiro's Shukuchi. A pulsating heart and a shortness of breath; it was as though he needed the jolt of adrenaline every time he confronted the former Ten Ken's pure speed.

Was he really that scared of it? Perhaps he wasn't truly over the phobia he experienced just a while ago. Would the fear consume him? It was overpowering. It was suffocating. It was breaking him down steadily. It was a coldness that threatened to paralyze him altogether. He remembered Kyoko, her voice trembling and her stance wavering as she struggled to face Soujiro when he couldn't. Yahiko narrowed his eyes. 'If Kyoko can face her fear, so can I.'

"Use your own weakness to your advantage. Make it your strength. That's one of the tenets of Kamiya Kasshin Ryu," Kaoru had orated to him. It was a generic saying he heard from her thousands of times before. 'Easy for her to say,' Yahiko dismissed.

The gnawing fear inside him was a cold fire that threatened to burn and consume him utterly, yet at the same time, it was his greatest source of strength that helped him survive the duel so far. It was the dual extreme he needed in a contest where he couldn't win through his skill alone.

He was so terrified in battle that the pace of his breath and the beat of his heart seemed to move in cadence with Soujiro's own quick and fleeting footwork.

'No way. Could it be?' Yahiko pondered. 'No, it's too silly. But is it possible to...? Not that I have any other options. Besides, I can't setup any sort of elaborate technique in this awkward position. I'll just have to rely on that experimental strike I've been working on and this so-called instinct of mine.'

Yahiko firmly drew his sakabatou back until it nearly touched his spine. He closed his eyes once again as he walked towards Soujiro's charge, his only certainty his doubt.

"What the hell, here I go."

He struck as hard as he could with the sakabatou, putting his trust on an ambiguous gamble.

'Oh no! This is...!' His eyes bugged out. 'Is this what he meant by...?' "You seem very fond of Himura-san's Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu. However, you do not have a monopoly on his techniques," Yahiko remembered Soujiro say, finally understanding the true meaning behind the unsaid threat.

Soujiro was enjoying himself immensely. True, though Yahiko was giving their battle everything he had, it was just a matter of time before he ran out of tricks. The former Ten Ken had seen it all before. It was tragic, really.

But still, it didn't hurt for him to enjoy the fight in the meantime, did it? Though if they ever did come to the point where Yahiko wouldn't be able to fight back at all... 'Oh well.'

There was a time when Soujiro would have been slightly upset at the younger man. There was a bygone period where he would not have held back at all. He would have killed the boy then and there. It was painfully obvious that Yahiko was outmatched, and the weak deserved to die. That was his philosophy.

Then again, that was his... no, Shishio's belief. As it was now, he wasn't very keen on any particular idealistic view. Nonetheless, it did endlessly fascinate him how Yahiko could still keep on fighting even when faced with impossible odds.

Was it courage or stupidity? Soujiro was not sure. Even so, he was undoubtedly intrigued.

'Let's up the ante a bit, Yahiko-san,' Soujiro drawled to himself as he at last prepared to strike. 'Perhaps not even the one step before the Shukuchi is enough for you. How about this?'

Soujiro harkened back to a move that Kenshin Himura had used on him when they had battled. He had dodged it, but he seriously doubted Yahiko could... especially with the help of his Shukuchi.

He had not practiced it much, though he had tried it on a few unarmed shrubs, a couple of trees, and the occasional thug or two. Besides, he wanted to see its effectiveness in actual combat. 'You're not the only one who could learn a technique by merely watching it, Yahiko-san.'

"Kuzu Ryu Sen."

Soujiro's eyes twinkled in surprise and astonishment.

'Damn, Soujiro's going to execute a multi-hit attack? No good. I'm completely defenseless! I won't be able to counterattack!' Yahiko reflected in panic. His body twitched. 'Oh no! This is...! Is this what he meant by...?'

"Kuzu Ryu Sen," Soujiro plainly announced as he became visible for a mere split-second before his arms blurred as he executed the deadly Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu technique.

Yahiko couldn't believe his ears. 'He can... He can use that move? What kind of guy is he?'

Soujiro's limbs seemingly turned into tentacles armed with nine sharp blades. He sliced through Yahiko so speedily and effectively that not one drop of blood was spilled during the instant that he did his offensive. Nearly all his phantom appendages felt the tensile sensation of metal cutting through soft flesh as he flew into the darkness.

Needless to say, though not all of the nine strikes of Soujiro's Kuzu Ryu Sen struck home, it was still undoubtedly a painful altercation.

Yahiko's samurai blood was sprayed all over the landscape a moment later.

Yahiko had never felt pain like this before. He begged to the heavens, to whomever disembodied god or deity was out there, to stop his mindless, unceasing, and indescribable suffering. Even to the point of being mercy killed. "Somebody, please help me," he pleaded to no one in particular as his bodily functions started to shut down one after the other.

'It's over,' concluded Soujiro as he quickly rolled to the side. His eyes subsequently dilated in mild surprise, almost completely mimicking Yahiko's shocked face just a while ago excluding the older boy's ever-present grin. 'What is this?'

'Dammit! Shit!' Yahiko cursed desperately as he nearly succumbed to the peaceful darkness. 'Even after all that had happened, it... still... came... to... this?'

From there, an all-encompassing blackness wrapped itself around Yahiko's wavering consciousness.

'Oh no. It looks bad for Yahiko-san!' Kyoko assessed grimly after she witnessed the awesome might of Soujiro's Kuzu Ryu Sen firsthand. 'Soujiro-kun is just too fast and powerful for him. Did he even have a chance from the start?'

Soujiro easily spun away from Yahiko's position as a crimson spray exploded from the various lacerations on the younger man's body.

Kyoko reflexively winced as she heard Yahiko's maniacal scream of pain and frustration. She could almost feel the teenage boy's agony because of the piteousness of his shriek. She looked at her ever-smiling friend in utter puzzlement. 'Why? Why must you do this, Soujiro-kun? Are you even enjoying this? Why must you bully Yahiko-san?'

Kyoko got a good look at Soujiro's weapon. The blade was mostly clean, even after its sordid task. It just went to show how much of a skilled swordsman Soujiro was, being able to swing his sword so fast that not even the blood of his slaughtered enemies could stain it.

'Soujiro-kun's onslaught was so ferocious that his sword is actually vibrating!' Kyoko noticed something amiss. 'Wait a second. Why is it...?'

Soujiro's crouching apparition disappeared a moment later.

Yahiko's limbs felt like lead. It was as if every inch of his body was aflame. He screamed hysterically as vague concepts and notions emerged from the depths of his mind. 'The Kuzu Ryu Sen is painful enough when executed with the sakabatou, but when used with a real sword, it becomes downright lethal. Psycho-Kid is too powerful for me to handle. I should've run away when I had the chance.'

The soothing, tempting darkness covertly overwhelmed the exhausted boy. 'I... just want to sleep now. Too tired. Need rest... so that... pain will go away.'

As Yahiko bent down, he saw for an instant a dirty red string tied to his sandals. 'Eh? Why would I tie a red string to a good pair of sandals? Weird.'

Sleep again teased him as his exhaustion pushed him further into unconsciousness. But something stopped him short of regressing into oblivion altogether.

'Remember...'

"Do your best, Yahiko-kun! You can do it!" a feminine voice in his mind earnestly cheered.

'Tsubame?'

The last vestiges of slumber and exhaustion disappeared from his person then and there. 'No. I still have to fight. Not yet. It's not yet over!'

He felt a swift presence, like a stiff breeze of some sort, brush up against him. A fraction of a second later, he felt the cold bite of steel on the surface of his neck.

Perhaps he had his realization a bit too late?

'Split-second speed; the multidirectional attack wasn't his true speed, this is! He came before the droplets of my blood had fallen on the ground; before I could open my eyelids after closing them in a reflexive blink; before my life could pass before my eyes; before this thought even started. Am I already dead? God, I can't breathe...'

Yahiko's vision, as well as the haze in his mind, eventually cleared a moment later. He noticed that he'd already swung his sakabatou a second earlier. He could still feel tiny vibrations emanating from his blunted blade.

'No. It couldn't be. These thoughts came after the spray of my blood had fallen and my blinking eyelids had opened. Moreover, my life didn't pass before my eyes. In fact, other than these thoughts, my mind is a total blank.'

Right in front of the Tokyo Samurai was Soujiro, still smiling his enigmatic smile. From the position he was in, it would seem that he too had just executed his attack. But whether or not he was actually successful with his assault, Yahiko couldn't tell.

The sixteen year old felt his neck. It was warm with his blood. Was the cut fatal? Was he to die minutes later? He got a good look at Soujiro's sword... Soujiro's broken sword. 'Oh my God. The top half of that sword! It's missing. Did I...?'

The heavily wounded young man flung his head wildly over Kyoko's direction. He spotted the other half of the broken katana embedded deep into one of the bamboo stalks.

Yahiko's mind raced as several questions began to form in his head. 'What happened? Did I do this? Did I... win?'

Yahiko certainly didn't feel like he'd won because of the various wounds covering his whole body. 'Humph. I haven't even laid a single sword strike on Psycho-Kid himself.'

His eyes alighted on Soujiro's weapon again. 'But what can he do with a broken katana? Hopefully, not much.'

The teenage samurai struggled hard with his breath, warily looking at the perfectly motionless Soujiro as one more realization entered his mind. 'Is it over? Is the fight really over?'

Soujiro blinked in wonder. 'I didn't expect that,' he admitted to himself. 'Oh well. I guess I'll just have to do this.' He started to calmly sheathe his sword.

An overwhelming sense of relief flooded Yahiko's whole body, but he still kept his guard up just in case. 'He's sheathing his sword! Is he finally giving up?'

Soujiro coolly shifted into battoujutsu stance.

'Shit, he knows battoujutsu too? He's not human!' Yahiko deduced in aggravation. 'Even though his sword is broken, most of it is still intact. If he gets close enough to me, he can still do a battoujutsu strike with little trouble!'

"I admit that I'm impressed. You've forced me to use the one technique that I can call my own... the only technique that I named. This is the Shun Ten Satsu. Prepare yourself."

'Giving up? The hell he is!' Yahiko reckoned as he shifted into his own ready stance. 'Can I take him on in this condition? With his natural speed multiplied tenfold with the speed of his battoujutsu?'

To Soujiro, he retorted, "Instant Heaven Murder? What a puffed-up name for a technique. Let's see if it's really all that."

'This is it; the final exchange!' Kyoko realized as she looked at the two combatants in worry. 'Does it really have to end like this?'

Soujiro unexpectedly relaxed his guard.

Yahiko was taken aback by the gesture. Was it some sort of ruse? 'Are you going to get all sneaky-like on me again?'

Soujiro excused himself, saying, "Hmmm. For a while. Pardon me," as he checked the open flap of his kimono.

Yahiko almost facefaulted then and there. "What the hell? Could you get on with that Shun Ten Satsu crap already?"

Soujiro merely ignored Yahiko as he fiddled with the inside of his clothing some more.

"..." Yahiko rejoined as Kyoko gasped.

'What's going on, Soujiro-kun?' the seventeen-year-old girl queried, perplexed.

"Ah, here it is," Soujiro celebrated as he finally found what he was looking for: a pocket watch of western design. Checking the time, he sighed in disappointment. "Just as I've thought. I'm late. My, how time flies when you're enjoying yourself."

He turned towards Yahiko and politely bowed. "I'm really sorry, but it looks like this battle is over, Yahiko-san. I'd love to continue our duel, but I do have another appointment to keep. I hope you do understand."

Yahiko let out a bunch of dirty expletives upon hearing Soujiro's statement. That done, he remarked, "If you think for a second that I'll let you get away with murder..."

"I wasn't the one who killed those men," Soujiro bluntly revealed.

"Don't play your mind games on me again, Psycho-Kid! We saw you cleaning your blade, and..." Yahiko trailed off somewhat once he realized some important inconsistencies in his reasoning. 'Okay, so a swordsman cleaning his blade at the scene of a crime isn't enough to label him a murderer. But if it wasn't him, then I don't know whether I should be ashamed or angry!'

"It does kind of make sense, what Soujiro-kun is saying," Kyoko chimed in, blushing a bit in embarrassment. "We might have been rather presumptuous."

"HA! Yeah, right! If it wasn't Psycho-Kid, then why did he attack us in the first place, huh?" Yahiko rejoined smugly.

Soujiro shrugged. "You... amused me, Yahiko-san. Also, I was a bit slacking in my swordsmanship."

Yahiko facefaulted then and there. 'I was used for practice? Let me at that Psycho-Kid!'

"Again, I must say it was a superb fight, but I'm afraid that you were both mistaken with your presumptions," Soujiro continued. "When I got here, most of those men were already dead. I'm afraid you attacked the wrong person."

"Well, if it wasn't you, then who...?" Yahiko felt a cold shiver up his spine as he remembered what Keisuke, the leader of the now-defunct "Battousai Group", stated.

"Red hair... Cross-shaped scar... Please, get him away from... m-me! Help me!" Keisuke had beseeched before he was put out of his misery.

"That's impossible. It couldn't be Kenshin! It couldn't be Battousai!" Yahiko exclaimed in disbelief.

"Of course it wasn't Himura-san," Soujiro concurred. He considered leaving it at that because he didn't want Yahiko or Kyoko to be involved in any of this "Battousai" business. However, he felt obliged to explain everything to them after getting such a splendid duel from the boy.

"I was assigned by my employer to monitor the activities of a person claiming to be the Hitokiri Battousai. Apparently, Battousai-san didn't appreciate having common hoodlums as his alleged namesakes, so he eliminated them all. Pity I didn't make it in time. Well, I guess that's that. Good-bye."

"Hey! That's it? You can't just...!"

"Wait a minute."

Soujiro stopped mid-way from executing his "sprint beyond all sprints". Kyoko was the one who beckoned him. He turned his head towards his dearest friend in askance.

"Keisuke-san was the only one who survived the Battousai's massacre," she mentioned, not able to look Soujiro in the eye. "Were you the one who finished him off?" It was more of a statement than a question.

'Keisuke's the guy who attempted to rape Kyoko. Did Psycho-Kid know about this?' Yahiko pondered.

Soujiro's smiling expression was completely unreadable. "Like I said before, I'm not clean enough for redemption. Contrary to what your mother believes, I am no angel."

"Soujiro-kun, I..."

"Till we meet again."

The former Ten Ken waved farewell as he disappeared into the night.

Yahiko growled. "COME BACK HERE AND FIGHT, PSYCHO-KID! We ain't through yet!" he howled, shaking his fist in anger.

"C'mon, Yahiko-san! Stop calling Soujiro-kun that. It's not very..." Kyoko complained, but stopped herself short after she realized that Yahiko had already collapsed to the ground.

"YAHIKO-SAN!"

One realization seemed to recur in Soujiro's mind as he traveled through his otherworldly Shukuchi. 'Yahiko-san. Himura-san's prodigy. Hmmm. Very interesting indeed.' He chuckled. 'I found his last two techniques very intriguing.'

His mind journeyed back to the climax of his fight with the Tokyo Samurai Descendant. 'The technique that broke my sword was interesting enough, even though it seemed that he did it more out of desperation than anything else. From what I have seen, it was more of an experimental strike rather than a polished technique passed down from generation to generation.'

Step-by-step, he reviewed the execution of Yahiko's last reckless move. 'At first glance, the overhead slash seemed like it was one powerful strike, but in actuality...'

Soujiro stopped at mid-thought as he put his concentration back into his furious sprint, hopping and weaving through the many obstacles in his way. Soon, he would be going through an open plain. He could relax and brood there.

After reaching the aforementioned location, the twenty-something swordsman resumed his musings. 'That technique was simply three consecutive strikes on the same spot of my sword. It relied mostly on the recoil of the first strike and unerring pinpoint accuracy. He must really have been desperate, knowing that after the first strike, he won't have another chance to strike again.'

He easily passed the featureless land in six seconds flat. The main road was already nearby. He was making good time with his current speed. 'What really caught my eye was the strike that he used during my Kuzu Ryu Sen.'

Soujiro's ubiquitous smile grew wider in reminiscence. 'The strike that was able to make my sword vibrate furiously was the same strike that broke my hand guard a while back.'

He chortled. 'It was even able to chip a large portion out of my sword's blade... the very same chip where Yahiko-san used his three-hit technique.'

The young man had reached the main road by this time, his employer's mansion already in sight. 'Myojin Yahiko. What an interesting fellow indeed. I wonder if he even realizes the power of that sword strike of his? Oh well. One thing's for sure, Yahiko-san is almost as interesting a character as the one currently claiming Himura-san's infamous name.'

"The Hitokiri Battousai," Soujiro whispered to himself as he at last arrived at his destination.

"Hey," a silhouette of a man casually greeted his quickly approaching cohort. The long-haired fellow stayed motionless within the shadows of a crude, rundown shack despite feeling rather uncomfortable hiding there like a rat. "How was last night's hunt?"

"Please don't start," the younger companion warned in monotone as he approached the older man's makeshift hut. "You've entrusted me with this mission, so I implore you to respect my decision."

"Very well; as you wish. But really, you should have let those thugs be. What if Akahori's men found out about you? That would seriously ruin our timetable, y'know."

"I could have killed them all."

"And what of the prodigy?"

"That fight I might actually enjoy. There's no reason to fear. Akahori will die."

"But killing all those worthless scum for the sake of a name? How very petty, Battousai-dono."

The young assassin at last revealed himself as the sun rose. He was what appeared to be a youthful man of fifteen years of age, sporting the most basic apparel for a hitokiri of the bygone era: the daisho, the usual katana-wakizashi combination. His fire-red hair flowed gently in the morning breeze as he lightly fingered his blood-encrusted outfit. The cross-shaped scar over his left eye was very noticeable in the light of morn.

"It makes me sick how they use the name 'Battousai' so proudly," the person identified as "Battousai" stated, a sleepy-eyed expression on his face.

"That's hypocritical, since you make use of the very same name," the older man conjectured calmly as he regarded the Battousai doppelganger cautiously, a hint of concern in his voice.

"Not proudly," the younger man corrected as he made his way past his elder companion in a huff. "Never proudly."

Yahiko opened his eyes as he winced at the approach of sunlight. "It's morning already? What happened?"

"It's good that you're awake," Kyoko quietly mumbled as she lugged Yahiko on her back. "You're starting to get heavy."

Yahiko hastily stood up as soon as he realized the precarious position he and the older girl were in. He winced in agony as he felt his pain return. He plopped down the ground in anguish. 'Dammit! This time, I really am beaten up.'

"You shouldn't be moving so much. You're hurt badly. Come on, I'll help you up," Kyoko fussed primly as she took Yahiko's arm over hers.

"T-Thanks," Yahiko sputtered, a faint blush on his cheeks. He could only guess what Tsubame would have thought if she saw him now.

Kenshin Kamiya (nee Himura) and family's jaws metaphorically dropped on the floor as Tsubame unconsciously tore a page of Yahiko's letter apart with her bare hands, the Akabeko waitress not even completely aware of it.

Tsubame blinked after she noticed the two torn halves of paper. "I-I'm so sorry!"

"C'mon! I wanna know what happened to big bwotha!" Kenji cried, pouting as he crossed his arms. "Did he meet with the smiley man again?"

"I-I think it's still okay," Kaoru surveyed as she put the two torn pieces of paper together. "There we go. No harm done, Kenji! Now, where were we? Oh yeah, the part where the girl Kyoko and Yahiko went back to the village together."

The sound of ceramics crashing on the floor was heard, followed by profuse apologies.

'That is, it's going to be okay as soon as Tsubame gets past that sentence,' Kaoru appended as she eyed the sixteen year old warily.

"What happened afterwards, honey?" Kenshin asked eagerly.

"So you really want to know what happened to the boy, Seta Soujiro?"

"Yes. I admit that I am intrigued," Kenshin confessed.

"I'm more worried about what happened to Yahiko," Kaoru countered, grimacing. "That Soujiro boy gave him such a hard time. Was he really that good a swordsman?"

"Soujiro was able to slash me from behind when we fought against each other in Shishio's stronghold," Kenshin revealed. "He even destroyed my original sakabatou with his self-taught battoujutsu skill. Believe me when I say the boy... although disturbed and damaged by trauma beyond our imagination... is good." He grinned at his wife serenely.

As Kaoru gave Kenshin a cross and worried look, the ex-wanderer reassured, "I'm sure Yahiko's fine. After all, he was able to write and send this letter to us. Although he openly admitted that he wasn't sure how he survived the fight, what's important is that he did survive."

"I guess." Kaoru relaxed a bit. She beamed inwardly, pride apparent in her eyes. She afterwards huffed, stating, "Humph. And here I thought he was going to brag about his oh-so-great Revisal Techniques again. But he's still so full of himself to write such a detailed account of his experiences."

"For Yahiko to write about it word-for-word, I'd bet it was probably an important event to him," Kenshin theorized, amused.

"Kenshin, you said that this Seta Soujiro is a good swordsman. We're fairly sure Yahiko survived this attack. Do you really believe that he was actually able to best Soujiro, knowing that he's outmatched?"

"I have no doubt that he fought with all his strength," Kenshin answered as he nodded affirmatively, adding, "and that he'll never break his promises. Not one of them."

Yahiko eventually noticed that all of his wounds were already dressed. Kyoko probably found some bandages in the massacred hoodlums' camp. That was already more than enough help for him.

"Look, you really don't have to do this. Give me a minute and I can get back to the village on my own."

Kyoko shook her head as she gingerly made her way out of the woods. "I insist, Yahiko-san."

"But...!"

"It's the least I can do."

Yahiko was taken aback by that.

It was Kyoko's turn to blush. "Thank you for fighting Soujiro-kun for me even though it was, in retrospect, largely unwarranted. He simply didn't want us to get involved, which was probably why he didn't say anything before."

Yahiko bit his lip in remembrance. "Yeah. Stupid Psycho-Kid, using me like that for sword practice."

Kyoko smiled wanly upon hearing Yahiko's remark. Afterwards, she let loose and giggled daintily.

Yahiko's face reddened deeply, this time for a different reason altogether. "Hey!"

"Sorry." Kyoko expressed her regret in an unregretful manner as she tittered some more.

Yahiko harrumphed, looking away.

"But I do appreciate it... what you and Soujiro-kun both did. I'm glad that I didn't have to use my grampa's Fuyutsuki back there in the East Valley. Thank you also for what you said earlier. Nobody has ever called me 'brave' before."

Yahiko scratched the back of his head embarrassedly. "Well, that's because... you were." He then coughed once as he attempted to change the subject. "But don't be so thankful for Psycho-Kid's 'help'. I don't trust him. He probably knows more about this Battousai business than he's letting on."

"My, my; what a nice mood you two are in. Aren't we as pretty as a picture?"

Both Yahiko and Kyoko jumped back in surprise after they were greeted by a half-happy, half-irritated Chizuru Raikouji. They were finally back in the village, it seemed.

Upon further realization of their present posture, the pair quickly departed from each other's personal space.

"The prodigal daughter has returned. Welcome back!" Chizuru "cheerfully" greeted Kyoko as she twisted the younger girl's left ear. "Now go back to your mother so that she can cook up the proper punishment for you, young lady."

"Excuse me," the kowtowed Kyoko muttered as she hastily made her way back to her mother's soba shop.

Yahiko stared at the scene through half-lidded, cynical eyes. 'Chizuru is becoming more and more like the old hag as the hours pass by.'

"And as for you..." Chizuru snarled as she glared at Yahiko.

"W-What?" the sixteen year old stammered defensively, wincing as he expected the worst.

He was soon overwhelmed by a warm embrace.

"Eh?"

He also heard a bit of sniffling from Chizuru.

"Hey! You're not crying, are you? We just met yesterday! Don't tell me you were actually worried about a stranger! I'm sorry, okay? Stop crying!"

He felt Chizuru's embrace tighten as he heard a multitude of invectives from her, some of which he had just heard for the first time.

"'Cry,' my ass! I caught a cold after waiting for you two lovebirds to come back! I barely slept a wink! Sakaguchi-san was so worried! And here you were with Kyoko, cavorting around the East Valley like newlyweds!"

"Hey, lady! You got it all wrong! Didn't you notice the bandages? I was hurt trying to rescue Kyoko! And I didn't cavort with nobody!"

"Saving Kyoko-chan does not give you the excuse to be that familiar with..." Chizuru trailed off as she immediately jumped to conclusions. "Did something happen between the two of you? Did you get her pregnant? TELL ME THE TRUTH!" Her death grip on Yahiko further tightened as she held onto him like a boa constrictor.

Yahiko had only once felt pain like this before. He begged to the heavens, to whomever disembodied god or deity was out there, to stop his mindless, unceasing, and indescribable suffering. Even to the point of being mercy killed. "Somebody, please help me," he pleaded to no one in particular as his bodily functions started to shut down one after the other.

"Help meee..." Yahiko whimpered one last time before the silken bleakness again draped itself over his consciousness.

Three weeks later, inside the Sakaguchi abode...

"'I'm going. Chizuru, stay here,' you said. 'Later. I won't be long,' you said. Even though it took you the entire freakin' night to come back! A samurai's word is his bond. HA! Bullshit. Now look at you. You got the crap beaten out of you. This is exactly what happens to li'l braggarts like yourself! Now that's what I call KARMA! Why, I never..."

'Kami-sama, oh Kami-sama, please make her stop,' Yahiko implored anxiously as he silently suffered under Chizuru's constant badgering. Sure, he could retaliate... he did have a way with words... but now was not the time. After all, the irate woman was dressing his wounds. There was no point to bite the hand that gauzes you, or something like that. 'I thought I finally got away from the old hag when I left Tokyo, only to find a replacement Kaoru here in Shinshu. Oh joy.'

Yahiko unexpectedly felt a sharp pain on his ear as Chizuru callously pinched and twisted it. "And listen when somebody is talking to you!"

"..." Yahiko detailed, feeling as if he were replaying some sort of familiar event.

Chizuru gave Yahiko a bewildered look. "Is there something on my face?"

Yahiko just... stared at Chizuru, a combination of nostalgia, deja vu, and terror brimming inside him. 'Dammit, they must have been twins separated since birth! There's no other explanation!'

"Chizuru-san? Once you're done dressing Mister Swordsman's wounds, would you come down here for a moment? We need your help here." It was Nonoko Sakaguchi's voice.

"I'm coming!" Chizuru called out before she packed the extra bandages away.

"Busy day at the soba shop?" Yahiko inquired casually. The whole setup kind of reminded him of the old hustle and bustle he went through in the Akabeko. He kind of longed for it, strangely enough. 'Tsk. Barely a month away from Tokyo and I'm missing the place already.'

"You could say that. There are lots of people from all sorts of places coming to the shop. Even though Shinshu's now connected with the rest of civilization, I doubt that it has anything to do with the sudden flood of people today," the twenty-something woman observed ponderously.

"It's because of the announced assassination attempt, isn't it?"

Chizuru nodded in affirmation. "Word spreads fast. I heard from some rumors that the politician whose neck is on the line has offered a hefty reward to anyone who could protect him from this other Battousai."

Yahiko snorted derisively. 'Seems like politicians nowadays think exactly like Tani,' he supposed. To Chizuru, he resumed, "So that explains why there are suddenly a lot of people in this out-of-the-way little village in Shinshu."

"Probably. I don't know for sure," Chizuru replied as she helplessly shrugged. "All I know is that it's weird for Sakaguchi-san's shop to still be this busy. I mean, it's already way past lunchtime. Now's supposed to be the slow hours."

"CHIZURU-SAN! A LITTLE HELP, PLEASE!" Nonoko yelled loudly in a pleading yet insistent manner.

"Yes, yes. Coming, Sakaguchi-san! Coming!" Chizuru avowed. "Oh well. Duty calls. I'll just have to continue this little chitchat of ours later, boy."

"Sure, whatever," Yahiko softly answered as Chizuru went to her assumed destination.

The young lad was now alone with his thoughts.

The clattering of plates and the buzz of a large crowd drowned out most of all the other sounds inside the restaurant.

"WHAT? But that's impossible! He's still here?" Chizuru queried.

Well, most of the other sounds, anyway.

"Yes, it's possible, Chizuru-san," Nonoko beatifically acknowledged.

There was loud, bellowing laughter in the background followed by the deafening groan of defeat from the crowd that had gathered.

"Well, has he paid for it all? All that food he ate; he's eating you out of house and home!" Chizuru demanded, incensed.

A sheepish whine was heard amidst the ruckus.

"Well, he seems very confident that he could. So far, he has gained a lot of winnings from his little bets. As long as he keeps on eating, I'm sure he could pay."

"..."

"Is something the matter, dear?"

"You're too nice for your own good, Sakaguchi-san." 'Like mother, like daughter, I guess.'

"Mom! More soba! He wants more soba!" intoned a girlish, panicked voice.

"Coming, Kyoko!" The Sakaguchi matriarch turned towards Chizuru, stating, "Let's just keep on cooking, dear. I'm sure the strange, large man's little stunts will pay off big time in the long run."

"Eh? Why don't we just quit while we're still ahead, Sakaguchi-san? My elbow's killing me from all this damn stirring!"

The only response Chizuru got was a loud and long belch.

Yahiko squinted his eyes in remembrance as he struggled to piece together the information he had gathered so far.

"What are they saying about Battousai?" the young lad had asked during his first meeting with Chizuru.

"Oh, horrible things! Unfounded rumors and lies!" Chizuru had answered. "Like how he'd finally turned up now after years of anonymity, his plans to oust the Meiji Government because his theories of isolationism conflicted with their beliefs, him being evil... that sort of stuff."

'Huh. There are parts of the rumors that are true, but the other parts... Isolationism? What the hell?' Yahiko considered.

Chizuru resumed, "I've even heard that Battousai is already here, planning an announced assassination attempt on one of the premiere members of the Daijokan."

'One of the premiere members of the Daijokan; what Chizuru had revealed backs up Psycho-Kid's own statements.'

"I was assigned by my employer to monitor the activities of a person claiming to be the Hitokiri Battousai," Soujiro had divulged.

'I think it's pretty safe to assume that Psycho-Kid's 'employer' is somehow connected to that politician. It's all starting to make sense now, but what about that guy, Keisuke, and the stuff that he said?'

"Red hair... Cross-shaped scar... Please, get him away from... m-me! Help me!" the near-dead Keisuke pleaded, evidently trembling in extreme terror.

'I'm still not sure what to make out of that. However, I'd hate it if Kenshin were to be framed by this new 'Hitokiri Battousai' bastard. I have to meet him for myself. It's going to be me and him, face-to-face.'

A voluminous burp from outside ruined Yahiko's deep meditation.

'It seems like Sakaguchi-san's customers are really enjoying her soba,' Yahiko surmised as he licked his lips absently. 'Damn, I've been out like a light since morning that I've missed both breakfast and lunch! Maybe if I ask Chizuru nicely enough, she'll lend me enough money to buy a bowl or two. I'm starving.'

Soon, hunger got the better of Yahiko as he carefully moved out of his borrowed futon and into the restaurant.

"I AM THE SOBA KING! GUWAHAHAHAHAHA!" came the boisterous holler of a large, robust man wearing an off-white outfit and bandanna. His bulging muscles and pectorals were made much more obvious by the fact that he wore no shirt underneath his open vest. Unfortunately, girth replaced muscle on his stomach area as he finished off the remnants of his latest meal.

'Truly, I have mastered the art of soba eating. But even these sumptuous noodles cannot compare to the delicacy that is the meat bun!' the robust man ruminated, nodding sagely. He turned towards the crowd with a flourish, stating, "C'MON! I dare anyone to come and out-eat me in the next round!"

Silent, collective head shaking was the only response the brawny man got. He sighed in mock defeat. 'Ah. Finally, they got it into their thick skulls that they're no match against me. Good. I was getting real sick and tired of eating all these soupy noodles. Also, my stomach is already grumbling funny. Damn, I wish I went to a meat bun place instead of a soba restaurant. Oh well, time to collect my earnings, and...'

Swiftly, everybody went quiet as they all heard the shuffling of footsteps and the clattering of ceramics.

"H-Here you go, Yahiko-san," Kyoko timidly declared as she put down Yahiko's order on his table, a stark contrast to her moodier self three weeks ago. "Enjoy."

"Thanks, Kyoko."

Yahiko calmly sat on the table next to the "Soba King", his bowl of steaming hot soba ready for his hearty consumption. He parted his chopsticks and let out a loud, "Thanks for the food!" as he devoured his meal with the zeal of a hungry monk.

The well-built man felt it again; the "itch". The barely controllable itch he got on his hands whenever the prospect of "easy money" was at his grasp.

Yahiko looked up as the sizeable stranger coughed for his attention. The large man dramatically gasped, saying, "What's that you've just mumbled? Did I hear you correctly? You wish to challenge the Great Gan?"

Chizuru could only roll her eyes in disgust as she heard Gan's usual byline. "Great. Here he goes again. It looks like he found another prospective..." She blinked. "Hey, wait a minute. Isn't that...?"

The bandaged boy could only ogle in confusion as he looked at the bizarre, hoodlum-like man in askance. "Whuwuzzat?" he inquired through a mouthful of noodles.

The man who had identified himself as "The Great Gan" gasped again as he pointed at Yahiko and "whispered" to the crowd in a not-so-subtle manner, "He said, 'Bring it on, butthead!' What arrogance!"

"I said no such thing!" Yahiko exclaimed, feeling as though he were getting swindled somehow.

To be Continued...

Next: Gan the White Tiger.

Got to love that Soujiro, eh? Deux ex Soujiro, he is. To give you an idea of how I'm going to use him in this storyline (if it isn't obvious enough), it's like this: It's like how Inoue-sensei would use Rukawa of Slam Dunk fame or how Capcom would use Gouki of Street Fighter fame. Got it? Good.

There's a lot less Kamiya family interaction in the last chapter. Hopefully, once the mood of the story goes back to a more cheerful tone, they'll return.

Ja ne!
Abdiel