Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ Hell's Conquest ❯ The Evil of The King ( Chapter 4 )

Hell's Conquest

Chapter 4

The Evil of the King

"Miss Yumi! Miss Yumi! I think we'd better go! Lord Shishio is waiting for you to get up and-…"

"Houji! Leave Yumi alone. She should sleep a little more." Shishio said from off in the distance.

Yumi looked around. The sun had risen probably 3 or more hours ago…and Shishio had been feeling generous enough to let her sleep. She lifted herself from the ground, straightening her kimono. She walked over to Shishio and stood beside him.

"So Yumi are you feeling better now?" he asked, his eyes filled with concern.

"Huh? Oh…yes." Yumi replied.

"Good. You slept long enough." Shishio accused.

"Now all we have to do is wait for that villager to come back." Houji said, wringing his hands impatiently.

"Do you think we can trust him? I mean he might come back with demons. If Usui's in charge and he comes to fight in person…" Yumi started.

"Why are you afraid of him Yumi?" Shishio asked, looking deep into her eyes.

Yumi didn't know what to say. She couldn't admit the truth. Though she wished it were that simple; to just go out and say, "I'm afraid of Usui because he might kill you." It wasn't that easy.

"I think you know why!" she blurted out angrily.

"Well…I see." Shishio said, amused at Yumi's anger.

Houji didn't get it.

"You know not to worry about me. So don't." Shishio commanded.

Yumi didn't answer. She was still worried no matter what he said.

"Anyhow, I don't think this man is ignorant enough to bring demons against me. Ah here he is."

Houji watched in surprise at how Shishio was correct.

Here was Seikoru, just like he'd said, without a host of demons.

"Incredible!" Houji thought to himself. "My master is truly a demon himself!"

"Well I'm here. Now I'll take you to Usui, as you requested…Lord Shishio is it?"

Seikoru asked, trying to suck up to Shishio.

"Well that's what I prefer." Shishio played along.

"Good. Now let's go…HA!!!!" Suddenly Seikoru pulled a knife from his shirt and attempted to drive in into Shishio's throat.

"LORD SHISHIO!!!" Yumi cried worriedly.

Shishio didn't move aside; he simply moved his hand and grabbed the knife by the blade.

"Truly you didn't think you could assassinate me did you? It was a sloppy attempt you know. And lying to me only works if I trusted you from the beginning. And I don't necessarily like to trust people." Shishio said casually, snapping the knife in his palm and throwing it away.

"Why did you try to kill him?!!!" Yumi said furiously.

"I-I-I was t-trying to help Usui!" Seikoru stammered.

"Well it won't work on Lord Shishio! I always knew that Usui would be a traitor, sir. Right from the beginning I-…"

"Oh shut up Houji." Shishio commanded and instantly Houji fell silent.

"Now punish him for trying to kill you Lord Shishio!" Yumi suggested, wanting Seikoru dead.

"Now w-what g-good would I do you dead? You need me alive to find Usui!" Seikoru stammered, still fearing for his life.

"Yes. That's true. Of course, you could live without legs…"

"Alright! I'm on my way! Let's go find Usui!!" Seikoru said with new energy.

The trio followed Seikoru through the same village they'd just been yesterday, Yumi being careful not to keep her eyes off him in case he tried anything again. But she couldn't help looking at the children playing in the streets. What had they done to deserve this? Four children were chasing each other and one lone little black-haired girl was sitting with her head on her knees, most likely crying. She had a small doll in one of her hands that was full of dirt…and blood. Yumi couldn't help but feel sorry for her and the others. Maybe if Shishio would give her a chance, she could talk to the children. Yumi hated her curiosity but she had to know why they were here.

"Lord Shishio? Could I…stay here and rest for a while? You and Houji can…go on ahead with that businessman. I'll catch up." Yumi requesting, hoping Shishio wouldn't know what she was truly doing.

He didn't trust the people here and he was already protective of Yumi to begin with. Shishio stopped and turned to face her.

"Alright. But if you're not caught up in 10 minutes, I'm coming back here for you and I'd rather not do that." he said, anxious to move forward.

"I understand." Yumi said thankfully.

After he'd walked from sight, Yumi walked over to the group of children playing the game.

"Hello. And what are you children up to?" Yumi asked, her voice sweet…as she used to use with Soujiro.

The oldest looking child with brown hair walked over to her while the others stopped playing.

"And who are you?" he asked, his spiky hair flying in the breeze.

"My name is Yumi. Who are you little boy?" she asked, her hands on her knees as she leaned down to see his face.

"I'm Hoake. These three are my brothers." he said calmly, pointing at three boys that looked to be about five or so.

Yumi was saddened for a moment. The name Hoake…

"Hoake? That's a nice name. I like it. You know what? That was my little brother's name. But…he's in heaven now. With the rest of my family." Yumi said kindly.

"Heaven? Why aren't you there?" the boy asked with child-like curiosity.

"Uh?…I don't deserve to be there." Yumi responded sadly.

"Did you drown too?" Hoake asked.

"I don't know what-…you…?" she asked, sitting with him on the ground.

"Me and my brothers…we all drowned. It all happened…like a dream. I was under the water and…I just stopped breathing. It wasn't bad like my mother said it would be. I know I'm a little weird but when I was down there, I felt like in the end…it was so bright and beautiful. I was happy." Hoake's expression currently didn't reflect this happiness he'd just described.

"How did you drown? If it hurts too much, you don't have to tell me anything." Yumi said gently, trying to respect his privacy as best she could.

"We were on a boat visiting my mother's friend by the Yangtze River when the water got too fast and our boat hit the rocks. We all fell in except my mother. She got to shore. The rest of us didn't. I remember her screaming and crying a lot before I went under, but that's all I remember." Hoake said sadly.

Yumi looked down at him. He was biting his lip not to cry. Just like Soujiro used to.

"I'm sorry…"

Then Hoake pushed Yumi away and ran off, trying to hide his sadness. The other children just went back to playing their game. Yumi then decided to talk to the little girl. She walked over to her, dust flying into the air as she stepped through it. As Yumi sat down next to her, the girl heard and looked up. Tears dampened her eyes and hair.

"Go away!" she yelled angrily.

"Oh I'm sorry. I just saw you crying and I thought…I wanted to know what was wrong." Yumi said, concerned.

"Well I don't want to talk to anyone so go away!!!" she yelled again.

"I'm…sorry you feel that way…it's just that I was wondering why a child like you would go to hell in the first place. Another little boy about your age, Hoake, told me how he died, but he doesn't seem like he'd deserve to come here."

"No. He doesn't. I do though. I'm a bad daughter. That's what my father told me. So I deserved to die. I stole some of his rice and…he got mad and…" the little girl squeezed her doll tightly in her arms.

"I was bad because I didn't love him. I loved my Mother. But she died too along time ago. This doll reminds me of her. I miss her so much. I even have her name: Kimiko Tsaruko."

Yumi couldn't believe this. She stomped her foot on the ground.

"Don't you ever think it's your fault!!!! Can't you see? You can't blame this on yourself!!!!" Yumi said fiercely, shaking the girl by the shoulders.

"I-I-I…Mother…" she fell into Yumi's arms, crying.

"These children…don't deserve this." Yumi said to herself softly.

Suddenly a man's voice erupted from behind.

"I know. But I think it's funny they're this stupid to believe it. Don't you?" Yumi turned around to see a tall thin demon dressed in regal clothes of elaborate patterns.

Yumi didn't know for sure, but she had a feeling this demon was evil and powerful. Nothing like the one Shishio had killed. This one didn't have a sword on him…but she could sense immense ki from him.

"Who are you? And what have you done to these children? Are you…the head demon here?"

"Yes. My name is Tetsumaoliko. And I understand you are the bandaged man's wench. Am I correct?" his words were as smooth as silk, though they dripped with malice.

"Yes. You are. I must tell you, you've made a wise choice to follow him, being how he is one of the strongest swordsmen I've ever seen. It was amusing to watch him for a while, but now he's no longer amusing. Now he threatens my kingdom. And since he cares for you, I think you should die."

The End of Ch.4

How is Yumi going to get out of this one?