Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ The Final Blow ❯ Chapter 3 ( Chapter 3 )

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin. I'm not sure who does but I know it's not me.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed. vinmy002, Palm*tree, wolf ^_^ X, KagomeKai, kasshin, koneko12, Jenn-chan, SHosha, minoko, thank you all for the reviews and thanks to everyone else who takes the time to read these.

A/N: Thanks for all those who read and reviewed. Sorry this took so long but my computer was locked up and it took us a while to get it fixed. The rest of the story will be updated much faster. A VERY big thanks to Justin16 who helped with the spelling and grammar and Romeo911 who made sure most of the facts were right. They were both irreplaceable as beta readers.

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Despite the fact that his speed had never failed him before, had in fact won him many battles, he just couldn't run fast enough. The same scenery which had been bright and vivid before not only faded into the background but disappeared all together. Every second that it took to make it to the dojo was filled with images of Kaoru. Sometimes he saw her as she was weeks before, smiling and laughing as if she had no worries. Then those images faded out to become her lying face down on the ground, blood pooling around her already cold body.

When the dojo at last came into sight, it was none too soon for Kenshin. As he raced up the front steps, he listened for any noises. Despite not knowing the man, Kenshin knew he would need all his wits about him to defeat Monkusai.

Rushing up the front steps, he slung open the front door of the dojo. At first he didn't see anything or anybody. Then he heard noises coming from Kaoru's bedroom. Of course he would have had to go in there to reach Kaoru. Dimly wondering where Yahiko was, he raced along the halls till he reached Kaoru's bedroom.

Sliding open her door, he didn't even stop to check out the rooms occupants. When he finally slowed down he realized that it wasn't Monkusai in the room but Sano, Megumi, and Kaoru.

"Miss Kaoru, are you," Kenshin attempted to ask her condition but she cut him off mid-sentence.

"Yes, I'm fine but he took Yahiko." Even though she said it in a whisper it had the power to stop Kenshin cold.

Ignoring Sano's "how did you even know he was going to be here?" Kenshin asked Kaoru what had happened.

"Megumi had come to check up on my condition, Sano came with her, and Yahiko was out in the yard. Even though I was injured I still wanted him to continue praticing on his own until I got well enough to instruct him. Megumi had just fininshed with her examination when we heard Yahiko shout. He sounded more mad than alarmed so we thought he had just slipped while training."

She had to pause to take a breath. The days events had taken a toll on her body. With the first intake of air, the room started to spin. She tried closing her eyes to block out the most recent wave of dizziness but that only made a carousal of colors explode behind her closed eyelids.She fought to stay conscious but the valiant fight was soon over. As darkness claimed her, Megumi and Kenshin both dove toward Kaoru's now unconscous body, Sano for once being the only one to stay calm.

While Kenshin spoke soft words trying unsuccessfully to awaken her, Megumi checked for a pulse. When she found it a little weak but steady, her fears were relieved. She wasn't surprised that the girl had finally passed out. Though she had doubted Kaoru's strength before, when she had fought so hard to stay alive, Megumi discovered that she wouldn't go down without a fight.

Pulling Kenshin away, she motioned for the two men to exit the room. Joining them soon after she walked in the direction of the porch, trusting that they would follow her. She had always found a source of comfort out in the yard. Something about the area surrounding the dojo gave off an indestructable feel. Perhaps she tried to associate it with their problems. No matter how many times it was broken or torn, enough teamwork and dedication allowed it to be rebuilt. She allowed herself a smile at her sentimentality. She had never felt that way before she had met these people, Kenshin in particular, but she liked this feeling. Only here could one feel such a strong sense of life at such a sad time.

"Kaoru will be fine. The shock was just a little too much for her already taxed state but you do need to hear the rest of her story," Megumi annouced once they were all sitting down. "Not a minute had passed before the door of Kaoru's room slammed open. That man," at which point she was interrupted by Sano.

"Monkusai was his name and as soon as I get my hands on him I'll make him regret what he did to Jou-chan and Yahiko. I'll..."

"What exactly did he do to Yahiko?" Kenshin interrupted him.

"As I was saying before the interruption, Monkusai burst through the door carrying Yahiko. Sano immediately charged at him like a madman," Megumi once again started to explain.

"Hey, he had the little squirt and had already hurt Kaoru. What was I suppose to do? Set around and do nothin'?" Sano defended.

"Just let me tell him what happened," Megumi said, loosing all pretense of patience. "He came in carrying Yahiko and Sano attacked him. It got the same results as his attacking Saitou only it was weird. Monkusai seemed as if he didn't want to hurt him. He just threw enough punches to where he was too weak to fight but when I checked him over there wasn't a single sign of lasting damage." Megumi trailed off, a searching look in her eyes.

Looking at Megumi and seeing that she had no intention of finishing the story, Sano decided to do so himself. "Since Fox Lady seems to to be kinda busy, I'll tell ya the rest. Megumi might say that he didn't try to hurt me, but it felt bad enough to me. Well after that he walked over to Kaoru. Megumi was leanin' over so that he couldn't see 'er but he just pushed her outta the way. He bent down beside her, and just looked her over. At first I kinda got the wrong idea and thought that I might have ta end up defendin' Jou-chan's honor, but he just stood back up. Since Kaoru wasn't awake he walked over to Megumi and bent down beside her. He whispered somethin' in her ear and then he took Yahiko and left. She wouldn't tell me what he said until Kaoru woke back up and asked what had happened. To tell ya the truth I don't even remember when she fell asleep but I was kinda busy. Anyways, when she woke up Megumi told us what Monkusai whispered to her. He told her that he wanted Kaoru to fight him. He wants her to be there two days from now and he wants her to be alone. If she's not then Yahiko dies," Sano finished lamely. He knew that it was another no-win situation. Either Kaoru was dead or they would lose Yahiko. He never doubted the little missy's strength but Monkusai was strong.

"She might not be there, but I will be," Kenshin stated before walking off.

"I know that's another problem," Sano softly whispered, knowing that no one could hear him. "Will Kenshin be there, or the Battousai?"

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Like I said before the rest of this story will come a lot faster. Thanks for all the suggestions, believe me, I can use them.