The sunlight hit the back of Kenshin's sweating neck as he continued to struggle against the larger man. The two of them were moving down the back road from the mansion - different from the one he had used to get there. Gritting his teeth, his feet weren't even touching the ground and his arms and wrists were already sore. 'This guy... he's strong...'

Ceasing his resistance, Kenshin lifted his yellow-eyes to his adversary, "Ki-sama! Let me go! If you think you can just take Kaoru away from me, you're f--king wrong!"

Ozawa glanced at his face briefly, muttering in non-expressive voice, "Uresai, Swordsman." After a long pause, he finally let go of Kenshin and backed away a step, "I suggest you leave here and don't come back. You will never see Kaoru-sama again."

This only made the samurai even angrier, "Teme! What the hell are you talking about!?" He swiftly drew the sakabatou - in the same instant, striking the man in the side. Ozawa stumbled another step backwards, clutching his wound, though his face showed no expression. Kenshin wasn't finished, blood boiling and violence in his thoughts, "She belongs to me... anyone who tries to keep us apart has to deal with me!!"

Again, Kenshin came at Ozawa, blade crashing down on his shoulder, him being thrown against a tree, leaving a dent from the impact. Still not satisfied, Kenshin let out an angry yell, breaking out with his deadly nine hitter - "KUZU RYU SEN ".

Beaten to the ground, Ozawa was motionless for a moment. Then without warning, he lifted his non-expressive face as he moved onto one knee. "My mistress dislikes the presence of swordsmen. She sees them all as 'demons'. You being the Hitokiri Battousai - the strongest of them - only makes you the very devil."

Kenshin lifted an eyebrow. 'Nani?! Then... it's not because of my past... but just because I'm a swordsman? Demo...' He watched as Ozawa stood, hands to his side, "I don't give a damn about what that old woman thinks... I love Kaoru!"

"Hmp." Ozawa suddenly chuckled, a slight smile creeping on his lip, "... that's fine, Swordsman... daga... nothing will compare to my love for the Shidou family."

"F--K YOU!" Kenshin snapped, breaking into a run, sakabatou ready.

Up ahead, Ozawa just stared. Then he lifted his hand - everything happening in a split second... Kenshin... barely saw the movements or the smile on his face... as he fell to the ground, wounds ripping all over his body...

"Matte..." he uttered weakly, in view the back of the man as he turned to walk back to the mansion, "... matte..."

The only reply he could get was: "Don't come back here, Swordsman..."

Kenshin closed his eyes, his fingers grasping at the grass, before the last bit of his strength gave way. He fell into the numbing darkness, the pain gone from his senses, 'Kaoru...'

* * *
Sanosuke sat outside the inn in a fitful mood, chin leaning down on his hands and he glared at the mansion atop the hill. "Can't believe Kenshin and Jou-chan ditched us... I mean, I thought we were all going together..." he sighed, fish bone in his mouth, "Dammit!"

Next to him Yutaro smiled cheerfully, "Surely, it would have been rude for all of us to come at once. It's good manners to make personal greetings prior before inviting such a large party, ne?"

"Whatever... I still think they could've told us first and not running off so early in the morning. Cheh, trouble always seems to pop up where ever those two go. Can't trust them alone for one minute."

"Sanosuke-san, you're being overly worried aren't you??"

"Mind yer own business, Kid." he grumbled, shoving the boy aside, "Where's Yahiko when ya need him! That asshole wouldn't be putting up with this waiting shit either!"

Yutaro rubbed his sore head; his long bangs falling into his brown eyes, "Yare yare... Patience is a good thing too, y'know. And what good would it do to make a scene over nothing? Just wait a bit longer. They ought to be back soon."

"Speaking of which," Sanosuke uttered, turning around, "Whatcha doing, Tsubame-chan?? You've been quiet for a long time."

"Ano..." she stammered, lifting her head, "I-I was just writing another letter to Yahiko..." Already the two boys had gathered around her, trying to get a peek. She quickly covered the paper with both hands. "D-Dame yo! It's... kind of... personal..."

Both Sanosuke and Yutaro chuckled, “She’s writing a love letter to kono yarou!” At this, she turned even redder - and a bit more forceful in protecting her private writings. Then, all of a sudden, Yutaro and Sanosuke went flying, “UWAAAAAH!!”

Megumi stood over them, hands on her hips, her hair tied back and a floral shawl on her back. “Honestly! What are you two idiots trying to do, tormenting this poor girl?!”

“Sumimasen!” Yutaro cried, bowing his head, “Aa… demo… where are you going, Megumi-sensei??”

”Oh, I figured since Ken-san and the girl went out, there’s no use waiting around for them. I think I’m going for a walk and look for the herbs I was talking about before. Would you like to come with me, Yutaro-kun?”

”H-Hai!” he gasped, red-face and leaping up on his feet. Unfortunately, he tripped over Sanosuke and stumbled into a fall. “Waaaaaah!!” But then, he was caught, two arms encircling him and holding him up. He went dizzy as his face went straight into a warm, soft chest. “Mff…!!”

Holding onto him, Megumi shook her head. “Whatever is wrong with you, Yutaro-kun? It’s not like you to be clumsy.” she uttered, releasing him and going to feel his forehead, “… you’re burning up too. This really concerns me.”

”Aa… I-iyaa! Daijoubu desu!!”

“Maa, if you say so. Let’s go, shall we?” she said, the two of them turning for the road. Again, Yutaro tripped over a rock and almost fell, Megumi catching him by the arm. “Ara, you are being so cute!”

Tsubame couldn’t take her eyes off the spectacle in front of her. ‘What’s wrong with me?? What is this feeling…? I mean, it isn’t my business… I should just look away, demo… why does this bother me??’

Sanosuke popped up behind her, patting her on the head. “Heh, looks like Yutaro-kun has a crush my Megumi. Heheheheh! That’s so damn funny!”

She dropped her head, staring at the letter in her hands, but it was all just a blur. Her concentration had left her completely and all she could think about was Yutaro drooling over the attractive doctor, “Sanosuke-san… demo… doesn’t it bother you??”

He grinned, standing and putting his hands into his pockets. “Iya, it doesn’t.” he chuckled, leaning against the wall. Gazing off into the clouds, he uttered, “Megumi… I know she only loves me… I don’t have anything to fear at all.”

Tsubame frowned a bit, the answer she was given too good to be true. “Sou…” she sighed, the paper slipping out of her hands, ‘Datte… is there really such thing as “certainty”? How… how do you know?’ She too turned towards the sky, confusion filling her mind as a name came to her lips in a whisper, “Yahiko…”

* * *
Yutaro and Megumi were walking a bit away from town when they heard a commotion. “I wonder what’s going on… Stay here, Megumi-sensei! I’ll go check it out!” Yutaro said, running ahead.

There were a group of townspeople chatting outside the major crowd. Yutaro got a chance to overhear what they were talking about: “They found a body… all covered with blood! Seems to be swordsman…”

’Eeh?! A swordsman?!’ Yutaro thought, eyes widening, ‘S-Sonna! Kenshin-san?!’

Another voice exclaimed, “Nani?! Is he still alive?!”

“Just barely!”

Yutaro turned around, rushing back to Megumi and grabbing her by the arm, “Megumi-sensei!!! Emergency!!” he cried, dragging her into the crowd. Before she could protest, he blurted out, “It’s Kenshin-san!!”

At this, Megumi could feel the severity of the situation, and without a word, was willing to go anywhere. Heart pounding, she pushed her way through the crowd to see the motionless rurouni lying in a pool of red. Tears filled her eyes as she ran to him, crying out, “KEN-SAAAN!!!”

* * *
Under the cool shade, Ame was coming up the familiar path. She stopped at the crossroads, seeing the mansion on one side. Instead, she took the other direction, whistling as she walked on. In her hand was a wooden bucket with a flower, soaking in some water.

‘Hmmm?’ She stopped, gazing ahead of her. There was a vast cemetery full of large memorial tablet. One in particular caught her attention. Already, there were dozens of flowers planted in front it. Ame couldn’t but smile as she approached the grave. ‘Looks like he beat me to it again.’

Kneeling down, she folded her hands and paid her respects. A soft wind blowing her hair over her shoulder. When she opened her eyes, she felt a shadow over her. Turning around, she saw that it was Ozawa.

”Nan desu ka?” she asked, not getting up, but smiling cheerfully at the tall man, “Ozawa-san, did you tend to Kari-san’s grave just now?”

”Aa…” he uttered solemnly, “There isn’t enough room to put more flowers unfortunately. She deserves more flowers that she could ever count…”

”You’re too kind.” she replied, “You always replace the flowers before any of them wilt... so the garden is always beautiful and full of life... just as Kari-san was. Your devotion has always been diligent. It’s rare to find men like that anymore.”

“Arigatou.”

“Demo ne… Kari-san would have liked it for a flower to bloom fully and live its life out before it was taken away.” Ame said thoughtfully, gazing at the gravestone, “Kari-san… she had such a great heart. It always got the best of her.”

“Aa…” Ozawa said, also staring at the grave, brown eyes glassy, “Kari…”

* * *
Kenshin could feel a warm hand stroking his face. Just barely, his senses were returning, but still he couldn’t move or open his eyes. ‘That bastard…’ he thought, remembering his final moments with Ozawa, ‘That move…’ He could see the hand lifting and moving so swiftly – faster than any battou move. ‘Naze… naze… it’s just like…!!’

“Ken…” a voice was calling him, the hand moving to his mouth, touching his lips so softly, “…Ken…”

Kenshin flinched. All of the pain was coming back. He felt uncomfortable and soreness in his head. ‘… is it Kaoru? …iya, it can’t be… she’s… she’s…’ He began to fight with the darkness, struggling to open his eyes. He could feel the person now breathing on him, ‘Dare?! It can’t be Kaoru! Then who…?!’

Immediately, his eyes flew up to see Megumi just inches away from his face about to kiss him. “ORORORORORO!!!!” he screamed, making her back away screaming too. He then fell back painfully onto the futon, “ORO!”

Megumi clutched her kimono, still gasping. “Ken-san! You’re away! Yokkata!!” she cried, breathlessly. But when she neared him again, he just glared at her, looking very cautious. “Nani?? I’m just going to check your wounds.”

”Iyaa!” he blurted out, “Beforehand de gozaru! What the hell were you doing?!?!”

She blushed, pressing her index fingers together, “Ara… I thought since the others went out to get some supplies and we were alone, I could get a little… OHOHOHOHOHO!!!!”

Kenshin dropped his head, which had bandages encircled around, his red hair sticking out awkwardly. “Oro… Megumi-dono, what would have happened if Sessha didn’t wake up??”

”OHOHOHOHOHO!!”

Just then, they heard hurried footsteps, the door flying open. “I’m back with the stuff you asked for!” Sanosuke said, carrying the large bag of supplies. Behind him Yutaro and Tsubame also had their arms full. “Kenshin!! Oi! You awake?!”

”Aa,” Kenshin uttered, now noticing that he was completely naked besides his bandages. Clutching the blankets, he sighed in relief that the others had returned. “Daijoubu de gozaru.”

”Just barely.” Yutaro pointed out, lowering the pile onto the floor. He blushed a bit, rubbing his head, “Thanks to Megumi-sensei, we were able to treat your wounds as quickly as possible!”

Tsubame had also put her thing down and sat across from Kenshin. “Demo ne, I was wondering… doushite… why weren’t any of the townspeople helping you, Kenshin-san? They were just standing there, and you were barely hanging onto life. It doesn’t make any sense at all…”

”Datte,” said a voice from the door. Everyone turned to see Ame, her hands folded inside her sleeves, some flower petals stuck in her hair from her walk outside. She then uttered, “Swordsmen are not really welcome in this town.”

”Nan de?!” Sanosuke asked, going towards her, “You mean, if Megumi didn’t show up – Kenshin… !?”

”Nn, sou desu.”

“D-Doushite?” Tsubame asked.

Ame just looked towards to Kenshin, the two of them making eye contact. ‘Naze?’ Kenshin thought, ‘Why does she look so sad?’

Then, Yutaro’s voice interrupted, “Where’s Kaoru-san?” Everyone turned to him, also wondering. At last, they turned to Kenshin.

“Kaoru…” he uttered, “Kaoru is…”

Again the scene replayed in his head. The man before him, making a slicing movement with his hands – a great blast of razor-like winds coming at him. Don’t come back here, Swordsman…

‘That technique… Kaze-Sakuseigijutsu... is … is… just like Yashiitomo’s… but even stronger… naze?!’

“Oi, Kenshin,” Sanosuke was saying, waving his hands, “What’s the matter? Why you look so serious?? Where is Jou-chan?”

Finally, he went on to tell them the story – how he and Kaoru showed up at the mansion, how the grandmother reacted to meeting him rather irrationally and having him thrown out by the personal guard. But the final encounter with this man had left him near-death in the road. This man, Ozawa, was definitely dangerous. To think that he would be actually in the same house as Kaoru…

“Demo,” Yutaro replied, “Surely, Kaoru-san’s grandmother won’t allow any harm to come to her own granddaughter. And there possibly can’t be any way they’re holding there against her own will. Don’t worry! I’m sure she should be on her way by now, especially when she hears about your injuries.”

Tsubame nodded. “Sou ne! And that man, Ozawa, surely if we say that he was behind it, he’ll be punished for almost killing you. I mean this kind of crime cannot be passed so easily. Don’t worry, Kenshin-san.”

There was a long pause in the room. Megumi suddenly spoke, “But if the girl is not being held against her own will, then where is she? It’s been hours since you left the mansion… and word about this incident has already gotten all around town. Do you suppose that the girl… ”

”Chigau de gozaru!” Kenshin exclaimed, so angry he tried to move towards her, but only to feel a great throb of pain surge though him, “… KUU!” he gasped, flinching. When she tried to help him, he knocked her hand away, his eyes slant, “Megumi-dono… I know Kaoru will come!”

“Ken-san…”

Ame turned away from the door and tried to walk away, but Sanosuke stopped her with a hand on her shoulder, “Matte… You have some explaining to do…”