Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Undying Hatred ❯ Toxic ( Chapter 5 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

(Hey everybody. This account isn't owned by Ash anymore. I'm Conner, and I'm taking over. I don't write exactly like Ash does, but I'll promise you guys a good story, none-the-less. I suppose I do write a bit like her... Well, I might anyway, after reading what she's got of the story so far. I don't know what she intended to do with it, but I bet it isn't the same thing as what I'm going to do with it. I'm probobly gonna have to kick the rating up a few degrees, too... *maniacal laughter* ...Right. Anyway...)


"Yahiko?" "WAAGH!!" Yahiko screamed and spun around, his heart racing, to face Kenshin. "Aw... Okay... You scared me half to death, Kenshin." He said with a half-smile and a bit of a blush. "My apologies." Kenshin replied. He looked pale, sick and tired. He had been outside since that morning, searching for any clues as to where Kaoru might have been taken, finding none. "Yahiko, could you please tell the police chief about what has happened to Kaoru-dono?" Yahiko looked slightly taken aback, but nodded. Kenshin didn't normally involve the police, especially if it was something between him and another samuri from the revolution. He decided not to question him, and without a backward glance, left the dojo for the police station. "And Yahiko?" Kenshin continued, remembering that letting Yahiko go off on his own might not be a good idea, "If you find Sanosuke, explain to him, and have him stay with you. It isn't a good idea for any of us to be wandering around on our own, that it isn't." Yahiko went a few shades paler and nodded. He turned around again and headed for the door, hoping Kenshin wouldn't scence his fear. He always liked to appear braver and stronger than he really was, especially to Kenshin. But, if Kenshin thought they were in danger, then they really were. Wiping the sweat off of his brow with the back of his hand, he disappeared from Kenshin's view and out of the dojo. Kenshin heaved an exasperated sigh, crossed his arms and began pacing. Akinori... He knew he'd heard that name somewhere before, but couldn't put his finger on exactly who... Frustrated, he ran his fingers through his hair and wandered toward the well for a drink of water. It was still raining, but not as hard as it was the night before. Atleast the well would be good and full, he thought. He was right. He heard the bucket splash into the water not long after he dropped it in. The scent of the fresh liquid made his mouth water with thirst as he pulled the bucket out of the well and carried it back into the dojo. As he went, he noticed something different about it. The water wasn't clinging to the sides of the bucket in beads like it usually was. It was a very subtle detail, but it sparked his intrest. He put the bucket down in the mud and crouched beside it. In the dim light, he couldn't see very well, but plunged his hand into it and felt the bottom. It was gritty. He drew out his cupped hand and looked into the water. There was a fine, gray powder settling on his palm. Letting the water drain from between his fingers, he examined the powder and smelled it. Poison. He felt hot bursts of anger in his chest. This Akinori character wasn't the normal lunatic samurai who came after him. He wasn't interested in the glory of defeating 'Himura Battousai' face to face, and was prepared to murder him, his family, and anybody else who happened to drink from their tainted well. He forced the feelings of anger away and picked up the bucket, dumping it and the polluted water back into the well. He tied a knot in the rope, hoping anybody wanting a drink would recognize it as a sign that the well wasn't any good, and went inside to write a note. He knew it wouldn't last very long in the rain, and told himself he had to go back and replace it every now and again, as well as telling Sano, Yahiko and Megumi in person that there was a problem. He returned with a piece of parchment with a warning scrawled on it, and attached it to the crank with the first thing he could find; a sewing needle. He hoped that by attaching it below the wood, it would be sheltered from the rain, atleast for the time-being. He looked critically over his handiwork for a moment, then he departed for the woods once more. He wouldn't be satisfied until he'd found atleast one clue to Kaoru's disappearance. There had to be one out there.

"Well, Yahiko, if you could let us speak to Mr. Himura, maybe see this note he told you about, it may answer some questions." The police chief trailed after Yahiko, trudging through the mud and the rain. He didn't look very happy. "I'm gonna try to find him for you, okay?" Yahiko snapped back. The man had been pestering him to talk to Kenshin since he'd found him. "All I know is that some wacko has Kaoru, he left a note, and he did it cuz he hates Kenshin." The Chief rolled his eyes. "Was she kidnapped?" "I dunno, I guess! Quit askin' me stuff I don't know!" the boy shouted back. Obviously, he didn't believe that anybody deserved his manners. Not even The Chief of police. "All I know," He said, angrily untying a knot in the well's rope and muttering about the bastards who did it, "is that she's not here, and that Wacko has her." He grabbed the crank, cutting his hand on the needle and knocking the parchment into the thick layer of mud on the ground. As he struggled to draw up the heavy bucket, he stepped on it. "Here." He said, shoving the bucket into The Cheif's hands, slopping it all over his uniform and trudging into the dojo, tracking mud across the floor. The Chief turned a dark shade of pink, a little more than frustrated with Yahiko, and followed him into the dojo, making a futile attempt to clean his shoes of mud before entering. He put the bucket down on the table, and Yahiko scooped a cupful from it, chugging one cupful and then refilling for a second. The Chief helped himself to his own cup and did the same as Yahiko did, but, of course, had better table manners. "When do you think Himura will be back?" He asked, sipping his drink. "I dunno." Yahiko replied curtly, tossing his cup onto the table and sitting down, glaring off away from the Chief. "I'm freakin' hungry..." He muttered. "No idea at all?" The man asked him, wanting badly to hit him but knowing he wasn't allowed to. "Well he was gone for a few hours, last time he left..." His rude grimace fading from his face as he went slightly paler. The Chief felt his stomach wrench uncomfortabley when he noticed the expression on the boy's face. "...Are you alright?" He asked, his frustration turning to apprehension. Yahiko shot him a terrified glance and jumped away from the table, his heart racing and his head pouding. He staggered uneasily and slumped to his knees at the side of the table, his breathing harsh and uneasy. His eyes darted around the kitchen frantically, as if he were seeing things that wern't there. The Chief got to his feet, his knees trembling slightly. "Yahiko??" He had just enough time to get his name out before the boy lurched violently forward, and explosively vomitted blood onto the kitchen floor.

Kaoru moaned and sat up. Her head was pounding painfully, and the pitch dark room seemed to be spinning. She could still hear the rain, still hammering persistently away on the roof. 'What happened...?' She thought to herself, sitting up. She heard the rattling of chains and the entire scene came back to her. She'd been kidnapped. Her heart began to pound again as she reached down to touch her ankle to find the biting cold metal of a shackle. There was one on each of her ankles and both of her wrists, and she couldn't move further than five feet away from what felt like a wall. She let out a short wail of terror, and almost instantly regretted she did. The breath caught in her chest as she heard footsteps. She froze, wishing her heart would stop beating so loudly. She heard the sound of a traditional japanese door sliding open, then she heard it slide shut. She then heard the creaking of an american-style door opening. The kind with hinges. She looked toward the rather bright light coming from the hallway of a dojo that wasn't hers. A bare, wooden room was illimunated around her. She was in either a very small room or fairly big closet. A tall and lanky figure stood sillouetted before her, and as it approached her, her heart sped up even more. She heard herself give a short gasp of nervousness and fear. She wished her terror wasn't so obvious. She wished she could feel braver... He laughed darkly as he kneeled in front of her. She felt herself blushing and backed toward the wall; she was still dressed in what she was sleeping in. She now wished she'd dressed for the cold night. The very handome and slender man looked her up and down. His face looked youthful, perhaps he was in his early twenties, and he was well-built. She calmed down a little bit with the knowledge that Kenshin could easily take him down in a fight... It was if he'd read her mind.
"Battousai isn't here, Ragdoll." He said mockingly with a wicked smile. Her blood ran cold to the calm sound of his voice. Her mind flashed back to that rough hand gripped around her hot neck... "And he isn't coming." She felt bare, watching those piercing eyes look her up and down. "No. Nobody's coming." She tried to say something. It felt like a stone was wedged in her throat. Using up the small amount of courage she had, she tore her eyes away from his face and glanced down at the rest of him. He didn't have a shirt on. He had appeared thin and lanky before, but he looked well-built. She already knew his arms were strong from experience, and she now saw he had quite well-chiseled abs and a firm chest. She felt herself blushing again and looked away from her, tears streaking down her dusty face and her shoulders shuddering. "Oh, don't cry now..." He said in an eerily sympathetic voice. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm after that Battousai, but I'm not even going to hurt him for a while. Not until he finds this place. The longer he takes to get here, the longer he stays alive and well. You'd best hope he doesn't get here, Ragdoll." He smirked again, cruel confidence dancing in his eyes. "Until then though, you're mine." He laughed darkly as she looked fearfully at him again. She felt her lower stomach start to pound in sync with her heart. "My Ragdoll to do with what I will." He moved closer to her. She whimpered and moved away. "I'm Kaoru... I'm Kaoru Kamiya." She mumbled fearfully, her voice cracking. She knew she'd be so much braver if she had a weapon. "But I like Ragdoll so much better." "Well don't call me that." She said, moving away a little bit more and feeling her confidence grow. "I'll do what I want, Ragdoll and don't you get cocky." She wanted to slap him for putting emphasis on that word. Instead, she tried her luck with asking to be let go. "I want to go back to Kenshin..." She said horsely, feeling tears well up in her eyes at the thought that anything might happen to him. "And I want to KILL Kenshin. If you get what you want, then I'll get what I want." She was silent. "That's what I thought." He said, his smile returning as he pushed her against the wall, holding her shoulders down and hovering over her so closely that strands of his jet black hair brushed against her forehead. She scowled at him, finally looking braver than she felt. "Don't give me that look." He commanded, brushing his fingers across the delicate skin of her cheek. She angrily brushed his hand away from her face and backed away from him as far as the chains would allow. She hadn't expected to feel his rough hand closed around her throat a second later. "Careful Ragdoll." He said, gripping her throat, making her gasp. "Make one more wrong move and I might change my mind about hurting you." He let go of her throat and she gulped down air, a thin sweat forming on her face and fear shining in her eyes as she gazed into the insanity that flashed in his. "I can see why Battousai is so attached to you." He said, his eyes wandering up and down her curvey figure again. She drew her knees up close to her body. She felt too bare. "You're a pretty little thing." A chill crawled up and down her back and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. She stiffened. He noticed, and laughed cruelly. "I'll have my fun with you later." He got up and strode out of the room, closing the door behind him. She was submurged into cold blackness again, and heard the clicking of a lock. She buried her head in her knees and began to sob. She hated the dark...