Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Tanabata Jasmine ❯ Costly Complacency ( Chapter 4 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer: As usual, I don't own Rurouni Kenshin and associated characters.

Tanabata Jasmine Chapter 4

Costly Complacency

He remembered telling Kaoru, long ago. I'm sorry, but I have no skill with the shinai at all. He'd been staying at the Kamiya Dojo for all of a week, and she wanted a sparring partner. A few moments after his apology, crossing the bridge, Yahiko had picked his pocket deftly, only to have Kaoru tackle him. That meeting had led to a confrontation with yakuza members and a new student for the adjutant master, and thus Kaoru had not asked him to spar again, her hands full enough with Myoujin Yahiko.

True enough, the shinai was far from his chosen weapon, but that did not mean Kenshin was unskilled in its use. He smiled briefly, ruefully, in the darkness outside the cottage as he turned to face Senzo. Forgive me, Kaoru-dono.

“Senzo-san,” he said aloud. “What are the terms of your challenge?”

“I have no desire for either of us to be beaten senseless,” the merchant replied mildly. “One stroke match - a tag to the head or shoulders. There is no need for blood to be spilled, ne?” He tapped the edge of the shinai to his forehead in irreverent salute.

They faced each other quietly a moment longer. Then, with an inarticulate cry, Senzo Karanai launched himself at his opponent. Despite the merchant's aggressive speed, his overhead swing was easily read ahead of time; Kenshin swept his own shinai up horizontally in defense. There was a resounding crack as the two weapons connected and locked above Kenshin's head. He gritted his teeth; Senzo was stronger than he looked. Giving up on defense, he flicked his own weapon upright and down, scraping down the side of Senzo's shinai to his wrist even as he pushed the weapon aside from its original target.

The merchant's shinai whistled harmlessly down a hair's breadth from Kenshin's shoulder; then, predictably, Senzo withdrew before his counter, yanking his hands out of reach before the bamboo could connect with his wrist.

They grinned at each other, a warrior's grin, flat and feral in the dark. There is no animosity, Kenshin realized. He's enjoying this. Strangely enough, so was he. It had been too long since he had been engaged in an honourable duel.

He waited, tip of the shinai down, watching the merchant carefully.

Senzo chuckled briefly. Then, this time silently, he swung again. The power behind his second attack had waned, and Kenshin batted it away with ease. So it went; he held his ground, using the shinai in defense only, observing his opponent's style. Senzo had power and accuracy, but he overreached himself. Every time he completed his strike, the too-powerful swing of his shinai left him vulnerable to counterattack as he struggled to recover himself.

Kenshin refused to take the easy opening. He parried again and again, mind engaged in thought. How to end this fight in a draw? Senzo deserved satisfaction for his sister's sake, but his skill level was far below Kenshin's own. Perhaps if he allowed Senzo to disarm him—

Senzo stepped back, away from the fight. “Don't, Himura-san.”

He blinked. “Nani?”

“I may not have your predictive ability, but I can tell what you're thinking,” the merchant said, tapping a finger to his forehead. “It isn't fair. I can hardly tell my sister I fought for her honour under these circumstances.”

At Kenshin's baffled look, he continued patiently. “Himura-san. I have challenged you for her sake. It is honour, skill against skill. If you insist on merely toying with me like this, to salvage my feelings, it is no fair fight at all. The only thing I could tell my sister is that you wouldn't even meet my challenge as a man.”

He's … right. Kenshin smiled again, ruefully. “Gomen nasai, Senzo-san. Your words shame me. This time, sessha will not hold back.”

“Better,” Senzo grunted. “Let us begin anew.” He took two steps forward and swung the shinai upward in a wide arc, a backhanded swing calculated to connect with the redhead's jaw.

Kenshin snapped his weapon up, knocking the shinai away with force enough to jar Senzo's grip. His second stroke completed the disarm, slamming just above the hilt. The shinai fell from his opponent's nerveless fingers as Kenshin swung the tip of his sword upward in flawless form to kiss the hollow of the merchant's throat.

There was silence, broken only by the clatter of Senzo's discarded shinai as it landed on the ground nearby.

Then Kenshin ever so gently tapped his shinai to flesh. “Strike.”

Senzo blinked, then lifted a hand and pushed the weapon away with two fingers. “Match,” he said. And smiled. “Arigatou.”

It began to rain.

---------

I saw him earlier today. He was heading home, but he might have decided to find something for Tanabata. I hope he did. It would be a wonderful surprise for Karou-chan!

Tae's words, when Sano stopped by the Akabeko to ask after Kenshin's whereabouts. He made the mistake of delaying enough to eat a hot meal (on his tab, of course), and by the time he was done, the rain had come flooding down.

He'd sprinted for his next destination, despite the weather, despite Tae's half-motherly attempts to keep him indoors. Kenshin's absence was nagging at him. If it had been any other day than today, it wouldn't have bothered him so much. But to vanish on Tanabata? Even Kenshin wasn't that clueless. Or callous, to abandon Kaoru on such an evening, despite his denials about their relationship.

It's probably nothing, he thought. And it's Kenshin. It's not like he can be mugged.

But he wasn't infallible. Kyoto, and Makoto Shishio, had proven that.

He thumped on the door to the Oguni Clinic, thoroughly sodden. “Oi, Megitsune! Lemme in, I'm drowning here!”

The door flew open, and a feminine hand latched onto his gi and dragged him inside, slamming the door behind him. Megumi shoved him forward into the room. “Must you be so obnoxious?” she hissed. “I have a patient here. I hardly need you making a racket.” Then she took a closer look at him, and burst out laughing. Sano's usually upstanding hair had taken the full brunt of the rain; it slicked down the sides of his face and into his eyes. Water trickled down the back of his gi and pooled at his feet. “I like the new look. It's very flattering.”

“Very funny,” he said through his teeth. “Mind if I dry off?”

She tossed him a cloth. “Here. I'd hate you to catch cold. More work for me. What do you want?”

“You're all heart,” Sano said dryly. “You seen Kenshin today?”

---------

They made it back into the shelter of the cottage before the rain truly started to hammer down. Kenshin looked outside with a glance somewhere between horror and amusement.

“You're not going to make it back home while it's like that.” Senzo said from behind him. “Not if you want that bouquet to remain in one piece.”

“Oro…”

There was a snort of amusement. “Himura-san, you can't go against nature. Here, look.” Kenshin turned to find the other man holding up a jug. “To celebrate our duel, while we wait. Would you honour me with a drink of sake?”

Senzo Karanai was an odd man, Kenshin reflected. Upon the result of the match, and the ensuing rain, he had only grown more cheerful. In fact, the rain had seemed to fill him with positive satisfaction. I suppose because it traps me here as a drinking partner. He hesitated a moment, head tilted to the side as he considered the possibility. Hnh. Late, sodden and with sake on his breath. Kaoru would kill him. “Sessha really shouldn't…” he trailed off. Senzo was already pouring for two, a bland look on his face.

“I insist,” said the merchant. “I've no intention of getting you drunk, or in trouble with your lady friend. Take the one drink with me to celebrate our meeting. It truly was a pleasure, Himura-san. I'd like to finish our meeting well.”

He had to smile. “The pleasure is mine, de gozaru yo. To meet a man who deals with past grievances in such a fashion … it is refreshing. You are an honourable man, Senzo-san.”

“Aa, well…” They knelt on either side of the table as Senzo placed the sake down. “Not truly, I'm sure. I've done some quite underhanded things in the name of business. I suppose that, to make amends, I am as honourable as I can be in other areas.”

Kenshin eyed him curiously for a moment, and then decided to let it slide. He pushed the tofu bucket and bouquet to the side to make room for the sake, and accepted the saucer. “Arigatou.”

They drank in silence, listening to the drumming of the rain on the roof. While cluttered and dusty, the cottage at least seemed to hold out the deluge. Kenshin's gaze wandered, falling onto the delicate, silken flowers in their bundle. He could still pick out their delicate fragrance amidst the dusty smells of the room. Jasmine.

Odd, where a desire to please Kaoru had taken him this day.

“Your creations are wonderfully made,” he said, breaking the long silence. “Have you been doing this long?”

“Years, now. They're a side project, you know. I deal in silks for tailoring, usually, but inevitably I'll have scraps left over. I don't waste them.” Senzo shrugged. “Tanabata is the only day I will sell the flowers alone. They're very popular.”

“Sessha can see why.” The sake was potent. He could feel the warmth settling over his chest. He resolved to refuse a second drink if it was offered.

“Your lady friend will like them a great deal, I'm sure. She's just a friend, you said?” Senzo set his own drink down. “Perhaps the gift will encourage her to become more than that, hmm?”

If he'd been drinking at the time, he would have choked. “Iie! Kaoru-dono shouldn't be more than that. She should find someone her own age and be happy. She shouldn't …” He trailed off, shutting his mouth. It was potent sake. Babbling defensively to a man he'd only just met was unlike him.

Potent sake.

Something is wrong.

“Shouldn't what, Himura-san?”

He glanced up at Senzo, and noted with dread how the room seemed to blur at the edges, coming into focus only when he stayed still. The merchant was still smiling, but the cheer was gone from his face. Instead … a tinge of sadness, laced with regret.

Very wrong.

He closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the edges of sudden vertigo. It was a mistake; the darkness in his mind threatened to drag him under. Eyes flaring open again, he dropped his gaze to the table to confirm his suspicions.

Senzo Karanai's sake was untouched.

“Himura-san?”

They locked gazes for a moment, violet eyes to black. Betrayal. Acknowledgement of that betrayal.

I've done some quite underhanded things in the name of business.

With a snarl, Kenshin locked a hand around the tofu bucket and flung it, contents and all, into the merchant's face. He was not gentle. Senzo reeled backward with a yelp, holding his face as the bucket clattered to the ground, blood pouring from his nose.

By the time he cleared the tears from his eyes and could focus past the sting of his broken nose, Kenshin had vanished into the night, stopping long enough to snatch his sakabatou up from its resting place.

“Gomen, Himura-san,” Senzo said softly to the empty room. “I didn't expect you to be so damn likable. But…business is business.” He glanced up to the figure that appeared in his now-open door, sodden in the downpour.

“He won't get far,” he said. “Run him down.”

---------

Bakabokken: Heh, yeah, but I knew I'd probably just get you as a reviewer. It can't hurt to repost though, right? ::glomp::

And if you areactually reading, it is nice to know what you think. Asalways, constructive criticism is welcome. Review away!