Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Blood and Amber ❯ Chief- Part II ( Chapter 11 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Bookkbaby84 
Okay, the Chief gets attacked! Slightly OOC characters.....
Anime/Manga: Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Drama / Action | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 07.26.2004 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.6K | Visits: 688 | Status: Completed
Okay, the Chief gets attacked! Slightly OOC characters.....
Anime/Manga: Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Drama / Action | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 07.26.2004 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.6K | Visits: 688 | Status: Completed
Sano had caught up to Kenshin, just as the rurouni reached the laundry.
"What's wrong with you?" sano asked- not rudely, as some may have expected. He asked it as though he had asked 'what's wrong?'. However, it was clear that- despite his tone of voice- that Sano wasn't happy.
"I was going to tell you about the murderer, but you found out from the chief. Now you're acting all funny. What's with you? Does it have something to do with the Incident? What exactly happened?" Kenshin turned to Sano, eyes sad and .....lost, somehow, as though he had tured so bas=dly astray that he couldn't see his path anymore, much less follow it.
"I can let the police handle this one, Sano." Kenshin said. "I have no sakabato. The police will handle this, I am sure of it." Kenshin turned and knelt next to the basein for the laundry, grabbing the first piece to be washed. Sano sighed and turned away, walking out of the dojo.
If he had looked, he would have noticed that Kenshin seemed to scrub his hands at least twice as often as he scrubbed the dirty kimono.
Kenshin scrubbed the red kimono as hard as he could, not minding in the least if he got his hands a few times.... he did it on purpose. He sighed and sat back, not even noticing Kaoru approaching.
"Are you okay?" she asked quietly, making him jump.
"I'm sorry, I did not realize that you were behind me." he said, then smiled a big, fake smile. "I'm fine, I just do not wish to help this time. I want to settle into a quiet life." Kaoru groaned inwardly. What could she say to that?
''Quiet life?' Kenshin's life will never be quiet. He should know that.....' Kaoru looked him in the eye.
"You're a swordsman, Kenshin. You will always return to the sword. Be it a katana, bokuto, or sakabato, you will return, and soon." She knelt next to him, but he dropped her gaze. "I trust you, Kenshin, but why can't you trust yourself? To me, you're still the same Kenshin, and I can't stand to see Kenshin sad. I know that you won't kill again- I've told you a thousand times that you won't." Kaoru stood up and walked away.
"I like it when Kenshin is happy. Please, cheer up." She left, heading to her room presumably to change for the day's practice.
'I don't trust myself. She may trust me all she wants, but how do I repair my broken trust? Self-trust, once broken, is the hardest to heal.' Kenshin looked back into the wash basein.
A man's face stared back at him, the surrounding water bloody. Kenshin froze in shock and horror. He almost backed away before he saw through the illusion. The red kimono that he had been washing, and the air bubbles had made a pattern like a face in the red material.
'My own demons haunt me now, too, in the daylight. When will I be free of that memory?' Kenshin shuddered and quickly put his hands back in the soapy- not bloody, he told himself- water.
He scrubbed his hands more than the clothes from that point on, causing a short chore to last until he had to prepare dinner. He left the drying material on the rack and went to the kitchen area. lamost as soon as he entered, he noticed that they were out of rice.
'Now I'll have to ask Kaoru for the money to go buy some more....' he thought, searching for the kenjutsu teacher. She gave him the money with a smile.
"See you soon." she said. He looked out the window.
"I'll be back a little after sunset." he said out loud. "I can prepare dinner then." She nodded, and then he was on his way.
The chief was panicking. He hadn't been lying. He hadn't lost three men in one go since the fake 'Battousai' incident when Himura-san had first arrived. It was terrible, just terrible.
He was looking through the papers on the desk, going over the facts for anything he might have missed.
"At least twenty bodies..... smell attracted Akabeko's nose after a few days, forcing him to close down..... no weapon found... weapon used to kill is unknown..... building in woods was where the murders took place...... victims seemed to be unconscious when blade went in.... all had already suffered minor wounds from same weapon... only one was found nearly beheaded, in a room by himself." he sat back, wishing he knew this. It seemed that one thing was the key to all of this seemingly useless info. He was missing one piece of the puzzle- but what?
'It couldn't have anything to do with the kidnapping of that Kamiya girl a little while ago?' the chief thought.
He dismissed the idea.
'No way Himura-san would kill, let alone that many people.' The chief thought, locking up the station for the day. All afternoon he had poured over the info, and he had no more clues than when he started.
He walked away from the station, still pondering.
"I know that there is only one or two things I'm missing." he said, not feeling the eyes that watched his back. He stopped at a hill near his home to watch the sunset. It might help him think.
Kenshin had purchased the rice, and was now back on his way to the dojo, the bag slung over his shoulder.
'I should leave the dojo. Next time I kill, it may be Yahiko, Sano, Megumi, or even Kaoru.' He shuddered. In his mind, there was no doubt that he'd kill again. He had gone off when someone had nearly cut off her pinky, and then sliced her back. Who was to say that he wouldn't go off if someone hurt her in any way?
'She reminded me of Tomoe.' he thought. The events that he had witnessed long ago- the death of his wife at his hand- had sort of tied in to the present moment. He had seen Kaoru- the woman he loved more than life- jump in front of his to try and save his life. Well, not exactly jump, but it was the same difference.
He stopped walking. He saw the chief sitting on a nearby hill.
'I should go apologize for my rudeness earlier.' he thought, but an uneasy feeling crept inside his mind. Something was wrong.
It felt as though he was being watched.
Kenshin glanced around, trying to locate the eyes he felt on his back. He saw a shadow move.
'There. I can feel the fighting ki all the way over here.' he thought, one hand reaching down to grab the hilt of his sakabato... His hand grabbed air.
'That's right.. I don't have it anymore.....' Another pang of loss for his sword. The shadow sprung past Kenshin, heading towards the chief.
'It wasn't me- the murder case. I'd bet anything I own that this is connected.' Kenshin thought, heading after the shadow. Apparently the shadow hadn't noticed him, or chose to ignore him. Kenshin saw a blade in it's hand, but the blade was.... strange.
'I recognize that weapon.' he thought, but couldn't place it. At the moment, he stopped thinking about it.
The shadow had reached the chief.
'There is something I'm missing... what is it?' the chief wondered, watching to sun go down. Suddenly he heard a rush of displaced air, and he heard running steps. He turned around, but slowly.
A man dressed completely in black was running at him, a blade drawn. Something about the man told him that this was the murderer they searched for. He stood up as quickly as possible, one hand on the hilt of his own sword.
What told him that it was the murderer? Maybe it was the merciless, cold and bloodthirsty look in the man's green eyes? Perhaps it was the blade? It was different from any other blade..... but didn't he recognize this one?
"Halt!" he ordered. As expected, the man kept running. He drew his sword. Just behind the man, the chief caught sight of someone else.
'Himura-san!'Too late- the man was upon him. The chief didged teh first thurst, but the return of the blade caught him off-guard, nicking his shoulder.
'That's supposed to be teh dull edge! Maybe he's using a double-edged katana?' The chief got his first good look at the blade while dodging.
'That's-!' He looked at the face of the man.
The man grinned.
"You were onto me. I knew that you would figure it out." The man tripped the chief and hit the chief's wrist with the front edge of the katana, forcing him to drop the blade that he held.
"Goodbye."
"What's wrong with you?" sano asked- not rudely, as some may have expected. He asked it as though he had asked 'what's wrong?'. However, it was clear that- despite his tone of voice- that Sano wasn't happy.
"I was going to tell you about the murderer, but you found out from the chief. Now you're acting all funny. What's with you? Does it have something to do with the Incident? What exactly happened?" Kenshin turned to Sano, eyes sad and .....lost, somehow, as though he had tured so bas=dly astray that he couldn't see his path anymore, much less follow it.
"I can let the police handle this one, Sano." Kenshin said. "I have no sakabato. The police will handle this, I am sure of it." Kenshin turned and knelt next to the basein for the laundry, grabbing the first piece to be washed. Sano sighed and turned away, walking out of the dojo.
If he had looked, he would have noticed that Kenshin seemed to scrub his hands at least twice as often as he scrubbed the dirty kimono.
Kenshin scrubbed the red kimono as hard as he could, not minding in the least if he got his hands a few times.... he did it on purpose. He sighed and sat back, not even noticing Kaoru approaching.
"Are you okay?" she asked quietly, making him jump.
"I'm sorry, I did not realize that you were behind me." he said, then smiled a big, fake smile. "I'm fine, I just do not wish to help this time. I want to settle into a quiet life." Kaoru groaned inwardly. What could she say to that?
''Quiet life?' Kenshin's life will never be quiet. He should know that.....' Kaoru looked him in the eye.
"You're a swordsman, Kenshin. You will always return to the sword. Be it a katana, bokuto, or sakabato, you will return, and soon." She knelt next to him, but he dropped her gaze. "I trust you, Kenshin, but why can't you trust yourself? To me, you're still the same Kenshin, and I can't stand to see Kenshin sad. I know that you won't kill again- I've told you a thousand times that you won't." Kaoru stood up and walked away.
"I like it when Kenshin is happy. Please, cheer up." She left, heading to her room presumably to change for the day's practice.
'I don't trust myself. She may trust me all she wants, but how do I repair my broken trust? Self-trust, once broken, is the hardest to heal.' Kenshin looked back into the wash basein.
A man's face stared back at him, the surrounding water bloody. Kenshin froze in shock and horror. He almost backed away before he saw through the illusion. The red kimono that he had been washing, and the air bubbles had made a pattern like a face in the red material.
'My own demons haunt me now, too, in the daylight. When will I be free of that memory?' Kenshin shuddered and quickly put his hands back in the soapy- not bloody, he told himself- water.
He scrubbed his hands more than the clothes from that point on, causing a short chore to last until he had to prepare dinner. He left the drying material on the rack and went to the kitchen area. lamost as soon as he entered, he noticed that they were out of rice.
'Now I'll have to ask Kaoru for the money to go buy some more....' he thought, searching for the kenjutsu teacher. She gave him the money with a smile.
"See you soon." she said. He looked out the window.
"I'll be back a little after sunset." he said out loud. "I can prepare dinner then." She nodded, and then he was on his way.
The chief was panicking. He hadn't been lying. He hadn't lost three men in one go since the fake 'Battousai' incident when Himura-san had first arrived. It was terrible, just terrible.
He was looking through the papers on the desk, going over the facts for anything he might have missed.
"At least twenty bodies..... smell attracted Akabeko's nose after a few days, forcing him to close down..... no weapon found... weapon used to kill is unknown..... building in woods was where the murders took place...... victims seemed to be unconscious when blade went in.... all had already suffered minor wounds from same weapon... only one was found nearly beheaded, in a room by himself." he sat back, wishing he knew this. It seemed that one thing was the key to all of this seemingly useless info. He was missing one piece of the puzzle- but what?
'It couldn't have anything to do with the kidnapping of that Kamiya girl a little while ago?' the chief thought.
He dismissed the idea.
'No way Himura-san would kill, let alone that many people.' The chief thought, locking up the station for the day. All afternoon he had poured over the info, and he had no more clues than when he started.
He walked away from the station, still pondering.
"I know that there is only one or two things I'm missing." he said, not feeling the eyes that watched his back. He stopped at a hill near his home to watch the sunset. It might help him think.
Kenshin had purchased the rice, and was now back on his way to the dojo, the bag slung over his shoulder.
'I should leave the dojo. Next time I kill, it may be Yahiko, Sano, Megumi, or even Kaoru.' He shuddered. In his mind, there was no doubt that he'd kill again. He had gone off when someone had nearly cut off her pinky, and then sliced her back. Who was to say that he wouldn't go off if someone hurt her in any way?
'She reminded me of Tomoe.' he thought. The events that he had witnessed long ago- the death of his wife at his hand- had sort of tied in to the present moment. He had seen Kaoru- the woman he loved more than life- jump in front of his to try and save his life. Well, not exactly jump, but it was the same difference.
He stopped walking. He saw the chief sitting on a nearby hill.
'I should go apologize for my rudeness earlier.' he thought, but an uneasy feeling crept inside his mind. Something was wrong.
It felt as though he was being watched.
Kenshin glanced around, trying to locate the eyes he felt on his back. He saw a shadow move.
'There. I can feel the fighting ki all the way over here.' he thought, one hand reaching down to grab the hilt of his sakabato... His hand grabbed air.
'That's right.. I don't have it anymore.....' Another pang of loss for his sword. The shadow sprung past Kenshin, heading towards the chief.
'It wasn't me- the murder case. I'd bet anything I own that this is connected.' Kenshin thought, heading after the shadow. Apparently the shadow hadn't noticed him, or chose to ignore him. Kenshin saw a blade in it's hand, but the blade was.... strange.
'I recognize that weapon.' he thought, but couldn't place it. At the moment, he stopped thinking about it.
The shadow had reached the chief.
'There is something I'm missing... what is it?' the chief wondered, watching to sun go down. Suddenly he heard a rush of displaced air, and he heard running steps. He turned around, but slowly.
A man dressed completely in black was running at him, a blade drawn. Something about the man told him that this was the murderer they searched for. He stood up as quickly as possible, one hand on the hilt of his own sword.
What told him that it was the murderer? Maybe it was the merciless, cold and bloodthirsty look in the man's green eyes? Perhaps it was the blade? It was different from any other blade..... but didn't he recognize this one?
"Halt!" he ordered. As expected, the man kept running. He drew his sword. Just behind the man, the chief caught sight of someone else.
'Himura-san!'Too late- the man was upon him. The chief didged teh first thurst, but the return of the blade caught him off-guard, nicking his shoulder.
'That's supposed to be teh dull edge! Maybe he's using a double-edged katana?' The chief got his first good look at the blade while dodging.
'That's-!' He looked at the face of the man.
The man grinned.
"You were onto me. I knew that you would figure it out." The man tripped the chief and hit the chief's wrist with the front edge of the katana, forcing him to drop the blade that he held.
"Goodbye."