Night Visitors By: Kyokukou Disclaimer : I don't own the characters from Rouni Kenshin , and I don't pretend to . I am receiving no profit whatsoever from this . So ie don't sue me ! Note to readers : This contains MAJOR SPOILERS for those who have yet to see the Revenge story arc in the Anime or Manga . If you don't want the surprise to be spoiled then read no further , if you couldn't care less than why are you still reading this warning ? Why did Sano have to always walk so fast ? Being a head taller than most men let Sano stride along at a pace that forced him to double his pace to keep up . While it was no inconvenience to him he did worry about Kaoru . A glance behind confirmed his concerns . " Sano , would you please slow down a bit , Kaoru-dono and Megumi-dono are falling behind us ." " This is a really rough part of Tokyo , Kenshin ." Sano grunted . " They'd just better hurry . The sooner we're out of here the better ." " If you say so Sano ." He conceded the point rather than argue . " Kaoru-dono , Megumi-Dono ." He called to them , gesturing for them to hasten and keep up with them . " Honestly ," He overheard Kaoru mutter to Megumi . " They're our escorts but they seem intent on leaving us behind ." " If I'm going to treat opium addicts then I can't stick to the pretty and polite parts of Tokyo ." Megumi answered tersely . " You wanted to come along for some unfathomable reason ." " I was worried about Kenshin ." Kaoru protested . " He's the strongest swordsman in Japan , and you're worried about him ?" His attention was called away by a young woman clad in a kimono that seemed intent of slipping off of her brushed by him . The sultry smile , cinnamon perfume , and a lingering hand on his arm left no doubt about what her profession was , or what she offered . " Oro ?" " Sorry lady we ain't got the time or the cash ." Sano barked at her . " Yes ! I am worried about him ." Kaoru snorted at the harlot that was blowing a kiss to said swordsman . " I see ." They continued onward a few minuets before Sano came to a halt . A brief glance about told him why . " Sano , isn't this the same noodle stand that we passed soon after we left the clinic ?" " I know ." Sano growled , closing a fist . " I don't come to this part if I can avoid it so I guess I don't know it as well as I should ." Sano grated through clenched teeth . " You couldn't have picked a better time or place to get us lost could you ?" Megumi snorted at Sano's back . " Well forgive me Fox lady ." Sano sneered at her over his shoulder . " It's getting dark ." Kaoru observed . " Not my fault ." " Fault doesn't matter ," He stated . " What matters is that we do need to get back to a better part of Tokyo before nightfall ." " Kenshin's right ." Kaoru said needlessly . Now with him in the lead the party set off once more . While they did appear to be on the right way to more familiar ground night fell before they could . The last rays of the sun set cast a soft deep crimson air over everything . As he paused at a intersection to consider which way to take old instincts began to chant warnings in his mind . His hand was on his sword's hilt before he could think not to alarm his companions . Sadly his fears were not unwarranted . Several kis , flaring with deadly intentions , were in ambush positions around them . " Kenshin wha-" Kaoru's question was cut short by the sudden battle cry of one of the attackers . There were fifteen of them , all were seasoned street brawlers by their movements and intense kis . Five rushed in on him , the rest moved in on the others . As always with the calm of battle settling on his mind time slowed . The movements of his opponents all but froze in time . One man threw a knife at him aimed for his throat . It tumbled end over end at him lazily . Ignoring what wouldn't be a danger for a while he took in the positions of the two men closest to him . One was off to his left and charging . The other was behind him and to his right , attempting to blindside him as he was busy with the other man . In one motion he drew his sword in a huge circular arc that began with sending the first man into the air , then overhead and down to drive the other into the ground before veering off to deflect the knife before it came within arm's reach of him . The other three men gaped with surprise but didn't even break stride in circling around him with a speed that surpassed what normal riff raff was capable of . Still , they were nothing compared to him . The drawing of knifes from their sleeves triggered his reaction . Barely exerting any real effort he circled round at a charge , his reverse blade sword extended out to his left . Each man made a sizeable dent in the surrounding walls at the end of their brief flights . Time reverted back to it's normal pace with the sheathing of his reverse blade sword . But before he could check on Kaoru and the others the flaring of a killing ki prompted him to dodge out of the way of a surprise attack . He turned to face a man armed with a sickle . He loosened his sword by a flick of his thumb . The man reacted with a speed that caught him unprepared . The sickle flashed out and caught his sword , nearly wrenching it from his grip . The roundhouse follow up almost hit him . Almost . This man was very good , very good indeed for a gang leader , but still not in his league . Rising from his crouch after the foot had sailed over him he calmly thrust an elbow into the man's throat . Reeling back from the blow the man dropped his sickle . One lighting stroke later he was lying unconscious in the street . Finally free from opponents he looked over to see if Kaoru and Sano had finished with their opponents yet . He saw Sano lying face down with a growing stain of blood spreading on his jacket . Megumi was begin held with a knife to her throat , and two remaining men were circling a shaky Kaoru . The ajundant Master's shintai was broken near the end and scarlet blood was spreading from several knife wounds . The six that attacked him had only been a diversion . He felt the anger well up from deep within . It's promise called to him , promising him the power that it could restore to him . Promising the satisfaction he would know after killing those that hurt his friends and his beloved . It was hideously tempting to give into it . He did not , he could not , he fought it down . Before he knew what he was doing both men that had been circling Kaoru a instant before were sailing through the air . Turning he launched himself towards the one holding Megumi hostage . Only to stop barely a arms length from them . The bastard was clever , he had his back to a wall and was positioned so that even a lighting blow to the head would only cause the knife to slit her throat as his grip relaxed . Only one way to do this then . He turned his blade over . " NO !" Kaoru screamed from behind . His sword flickered in the dying light of the ending day . Crimson blood sprayed through the air . He felt the sickeningly familiar sensation of the hot liquid splattering his face . Kaoru screamed again . The knife clattered to the ground . " Kenshin no wh- huh ?" Kaoru rushed up behind him only to stop short . The man knelt in the street clutching his bleeding forearm . " You didn't kill him ?" Kaoru sighed more to herself than to him . " The way he had the knife positioned , even if I hit him in the head he still would have made the cut . So I prevented his arm muscles from doing it by wounding the opposing ones forcing him to drop the knife ." He explained . " Thank you Ken-san ," Megumi breathed putting a hand to her throat . " but I wish you would have done it sooner ." " Megumi-dono , please tend to Sano and Kaoru-dono . I'll keep watch until we can get them back to the dojo ." * * * " So you're saying they just wanted a reputation ?" Kaoru asked incredulously . " I'm afraid so ." The police man bowed his head . " They had heard about the times we , the police , had turned to you . They thought that if they killed you then we would be to afraid to stop them from taking over Tokyo's underworld ." " Just gangsters with delusions of grandeur ?" Megumi snorted . " Not delusions , they were a whole lot better than I'd seen a long time ." Sano winced at his bandaged wounds . " Are you sure there will be no follow up attack ?" Kaoru asked . " Quite ." The police man nodded . " Himura-san took down their leader and best men , they have been cowed ." " I hope you're right sir ." He said from where he leaned against the wall . " So do I Himura-san ." The officer made a move to stand . " I'm sorry to leave so soon , but I must . Goodnight ." After chorused reply the officer left . Megumi fused over everyone's wounds until she was satisfied and left for her own home and bed . " I'll explain what happed to Yahiko in the morning ." Kaoru said . " If the brat notices anything's wrong in the morning ," Sano snorted . " and that's if he wakes up ." After a unnoticed 'goodnight' he excused himself from the bantering and retreated to his room . There he laid out his futon , sat down beside it , and waited . Letting time flow by an hour passed in a few breaths . Stretching out his senses he picked out three distinct breathing patters . Sano , Yahiko , and Kaoru , all deeply in slumber . It was safe . It wasn't as if he was going to do something dangerous , it was just that he did not want to worry any of them . They might think it odd , or a bad sign , or perhaps just sentimental . All things considered , it was best for them not to know . With a sigh he took his sword . Holding it out in front of him he slid it a quarter from it's sheath . The reverse blade shone a soft blue in the dim moonlight that seeped through the rice paper outer wall . It's tainted now . The blade that does not draw lifeblood has tasted it . This sword was not meant to ever kill . It almost did . What he did not tell the others was that he only saw the solution during his charge . He had begun the attack with the intent to cut off the man's head to prevent any muscle spasm . But he had found a better way , this time . Still , now the blade smelled of blood . He knew that there had not been enough to cause the blade to smell , especially after he had flicked the blood from it . Yet , just as the Battousai could only taste and smell blood as the madness coursed through his being . He smelled blood on the once pristine blade even though he knew there was none . He had become the Battousai so many times since he had met Kaoru and the others . He had once thought that ten years was enough to fortify his being from the madness . He had been fourteen when the first man fell under his hitokiri's sword . He had left killing behind when he was eighteen . Well over a thousand fell under his blade in those four years . He had grown up killing , he had unlocked the savage violence that was safely locked away in most men . He had grown up with it raging through him instead of locked away as it should have been . As a result it was a part of him . The truth is evident now . Ten years have only let him push the Battousai aside , not lock him away . He should have seen the way before he had charged . Would he next time ? Would the Battousai let him ? The mirror of his sword offered no answers . Sighing he slid it back into it's sheath , placed it aside and went to bed . Sleep came soon after . " Himura-san !" A deep voice called him out of his light slumber . " Hai ?" He answered , his hand to his sword's hilt . Getting up he padded over to the door and slid it open . The man handed him a black letter without a word . He took it likewise . A curt bow of dismissal and he returned to his room with the ebony paper in his hands . Narrowing his eyes unconsciously he unfolded the message and read . Himura Battousai - Your target tonight is named Sato Hiro-matsu , the man entrusted by the emperor to account for all rice production in the lower regions of Japan . His elimination will send chaos through the higher ranks . Now they will be forced to spread their guard among a wider range than simply the military . He is a stout , bald man with a close cut beard and a scar on his forehead . But be warned he is samurai and a swordsman of some skill . Nothing you cannot handle , but combined with his eight guards cause enough to be careful . You will be given his location on your way out . Good luck our Hitokiri . It was time to kill once more . He was given the address by the old woman who ran the inn before he left . Walking alone in the still crowded streets of Kyoto it did not take long to reach his destination . The sun was down , but he waited until the moon was rising , and the streets empty before he began . The home was still . No torches were lit , none were about . He leapt into the outer yard over the house wall . A burst of speed took him to the shelter of the shadows before any could spot him if someone were about by chance . Sensing none raise alarm he made his way into the home . He stalked down the main hallway without a sound . Only to freeze in mid step at the sight of a young maid rounding the corner . " Drank too much tea once more ." The maid scolded herself . " You would think these night trips would teach me bu-" The maid's eyes widened as she took him in . Her mind realized that the man wearing swords in the house at night did not match any who belonged here at night . " HELP ME !" The terrified maid screamed , though her feet were rooted to the spot . Cursing he rushed forward with his infamous kami-speed . She had already screamed , the warning had been given . He rushed past the still screaming servant girl and down the narrow hall towards the master of the house's quarters . A door in his path burst open and a samurai shot out into his path , sword drawn . The poor fool's move was easier to read than a shop's sign . The guard raised his sword , tip angled a little to his left . It would be a diagonal slash . The sword fell slower than a snowflake's fall with no wind . His own blade leapt from it's scabbard and through the man . He was past the body before it's two halves could fall to the floor . Reaching the master chamber he kicked the door in to find four men in his path . All had swords drawn and stood at the ready . Behind them were two others who stood with their master behind them scrambling to don his own blades . Even before he took a step inside the room he felt the attack coming . Without looking up he took a battou-jutsu stance for a instant before cleaving his blade into the man that had dropped from the rafter above to attack . Another step to up the falling body behind him and he leapt into the air . He flipped to catch the rafter on his left foot before pushing off and to the side . Another flip let his right leg catch the wall before he pushed off in a horizontal flying battou-jutsu stance . With one long strike he ended the lives of all four . Sliding to a halt he considered the remaining two guards . Both were still in occupied realizing that their four comrades were now dead . Neither would present any real resistance . He rushed forward , drawing his wakizashi as he went . Stepping between the two he stilled the beating of two more hearts . " N-no ." Sato Hiro-matsu stuttered . Without a word he raised his katana for the killing stroke . Only to read a battou-jutsu from the fat man a instant before he committed . Changing the strike to a parry , he narrowed his eyes . This man was more than he appeared , but still only a stone to the mountain . Holding Sato Hiro-matsu's blade with his own he slashed the man's throat with the wakizashi . " I can only wish you all a better life in the next world ." He sighed to the corpses littering the room about him . The maid down the hall paused to for breath to scream again . The time that it took for a terrified young girl too scream once was all it had taken for nine men to die . Turning he kicked through the wall and into the outer yard . Another leap took him into a alleyway , where he began to run . Houses flew past him until he was too far to distant for the second scream of that terrified servant girl to reach even his ears . But the sent of nine men's blood still swarmed about him just as their blood soaked through his kimono to chill his skin with the night wind . * * * When he returned from his bath he found his freshly clean kimono folded neatly in his room . Okami was very good a getting blood stains out of his clothing . He inspected her work for a moment , noting that she still could not rid the kimono of the hint of blood that lingered on it . But , Okami did cover it up with a hint of cinnamon perfume . " Himura-san ?" A maid inquired from outside his closed door . " You may come in ." He answered . The door slid open to admit the girl carrying a tea kettle and cups on a tray . Behind her stood Iidzuka , with a grim look . The maid seemed not to notice , and promptly stepped inside . After placing the tray between himself and where Iidzuka was preparing to sit she took her own seat off to the side and waited to serve them . " Iidzuka-san , it's trouble isn't it ?" He began . " I'm afraid so ." Iidzuka cast his eyes on the tea cup in his hands . He sat there , motionless , and waited for the news . " I'm afraid that ten of our spies have been discovered and killed ." Iidzuka swallowed some tea before continuing . " Kogoro-san says that we must show the Shogun that we cannot be quelled that easily . So you are to kill everyone that was involved in the deaths of out men . It will be tonight ." Iidzuka reached into his kimono to come back with a black envelope . " This contains the specifics ." * * * This was not going to be a regular assassination . This was meant to be a bloodbath and a bloodbath it was going to be . He stood before the gate , it was closed , but he knew that at least a few inside were growing aware of his presence . Now was the time . After thumbing his katana loose in it's sheath he leapt over the wall . Four men stood guard in the forecourt . All were instantly aware of him , their heads snapped up and their swords snapped out . He landed . They charged bellowing battlecries and brandishing swords . Time slowed and it began . The two closest to him were going to open up with right diagonal downward strikes , the one in the back was waiting until he could try a stab , and the short one trying to flank him was going to see if a horizontal battou-jutsu . The answer came easily . He drew his katana in a battou-jutsu that slashed under the guards of the first two , and continued on in a circular arc to decapitate the short man . Bringing the blade back in a under arc he severed four main arteries before the last man could even start that stab he had been planning . Utilizing his famed god-speed he dashed around the bodies before the last one had even hit the ground . One stroke severed the bolt that locked the main door , a savage kick and he was in . Facing him , were the two door guards . Both went for their blades . Both their throats were slashed before either sword could be drawn . Before him was a long hallway that lead to a veritable maze of rooms and corridors . His targets were somewhere in that maze , and waiting for him . As he was preparing to charge down the foyer a burly man stepped out from a hidden doorway . The katana and wakizashi of his daisho were already in the man's hands . " A Hitokiri I presume ?" The man scoffed . " A bit scrawny aren't you ? I'm Taro Kazumasa , the man about to kill you ." Kazumasa stepped to the middle of the hallway . " And you are ?" " As you said , a Hitokiri ." He fell into a ready stance . " So eager to die ?" Kazumasa actually sounded surprised . The stupid man would pay for such arrogance . He leapt froward and slashed downward . To his surprise Kazumasa parried with his wakizashi and struck out with his katana . Leaning to one side he let the blow fly past before striking again . Kazumasa crossblocked with his daisho , catching the sword neatly . " Too bad , that's a good sword ." Kazu smirked before attempting to break the katana . Only to be disemboweled by a wakizashi battou-jutsu . A left handed battou- jutsu is not something that many people even knew existed . Kazu gaped at his spilling entrails before falling . " Poor idiot ." He shook his head before stepping around the body . He did not bother to even try running . He had sensed the arrival of another challenger half way through Kazumasa's introduction . Barely ten steps were between him and his latest kill when the challenger made his appearance . The man was short , about his own height , but of sturdy build . The challenger's ki flowed like liquid fire , without the braggart's flare of Kazumasa . Still , a unreasoning hatred burned deep within this new challenger . The man had stepped halfway out from a side door , but it was apparent that he carried his sword resting on his shoulder . " Are you warmed up yet Hitokiri-san ?" The man asked in a deep but silk soft voice . " I am Mandou Genma a Hitokiri such as yourself , shall we see which of us is better ?" Genma took three steps into the massive hallway , to reveal that his sword's blade still protruded well into the room he came from . This man held a masamune , a katana that's blade was longer than he was tall . " I suppose we shall Mandou-san ." He answered , once again stepping into a ready stance . Genma made no reply other than to bring his own weapon to bear once he had made it to the center of the hallway . Holding the long katana vertically it's edge coming a arm's length from the ceiling . Both of them stood in deceptively relaxed stances , studying one another with cold intensity . He made the first move . Shifting forward he charged only a few steps before leaping off to the right to avoid the long sweep of the masamune blade . Flipping , his right foot struck the joint of the wall and ceiling propelling him horizontally , just a finger's length below the ceiling . But Genma had read the move's intent , and countered with a overhead arc aimed at bisecting him down the middle . Bumping his shoulder onto the ceiling he changed direction slightly , the long blade hissed past him leaving a hairline cut in the spot that his shoulder had touched . Flipping once more he rebounded off the wall for another pass . His katana hissed out for Genma's throat . The long blade whipped about to parry in a display of prodigious control and speed for a blade of such length and weight . twisting in mid air he managed to deflect Genma's counter attack . One last flip brought him to a landing on his feet . He relaxed into a standing position , letting the sword drop in the formless stance . Genma followed in suit , his masamune stretching out before him . Slowly they began to circle each other counterclockwise . Each step twice the speed of the last until both were running faster than a horse galloped . But he had the advantage this time . He closed the gap with a burst of god-speed , only to nearly have his legs cut out from under him by a sudden twist of Genma's masamune . Landing from the leap that had saved him he considered his opponent . " I've finally met a man who can read peoples moves like I can ..." He thought to himself . " It's a shame that I have to kill him now ." Stepping forward he waited for Genma to strike . A shallow angle diagonal strike , but he made no move to dodge . Instead he struck out with his wakizashi the blow turned the long blade's edge down at just the right angle . Leaning into the strike he parried the masamune and held the blade with his own . Wasting no time he ran up along the blade holding it with his own . While Genma had no time to counter the attack he did , however , have time to see his death coming . The other Hitokiri's eyes widened with surprise , and he relaxed with resignation to his fate . It only took a fraction of a eyeblink for him to follow the blade to it's source , arc his own up off the masamune and through the neck of Mandou Genma . " I hope you will find peace now ." He sighed before rushing down the hall . Up ahead he sensed the presence of hundreds of people of various strengths . So many of them would not see the sun's light ever again . The first room he entered was full of cowering servant girls . Without pausing he proceeded to leap over them to kick down the door to the adjacent room . Amidst the screams behind him his senses picked out the faint hissing ring of a sword being drawn . Bringing his own to bear out before him he was not surprised in the least when a bade sliced through the door he was plunging towards . It met his blade with a resounding ring . Five killing kis were burning for his life's blood in that room . Let them try to take it . In the time it took for the severed top of the door to clatter to the floor all five were dead at his feet . On to the next room . The next two rooms were empty of targets , only cowering servants occupied them . The last door took him into a hallway swarming with samurai , scrambling to find the Hitokiri in their midst . The nearest door leading inward was at the end of this hallway . Only thirty six men stood between him and it . He charged forward , blade flashing like silent lighting . The slaughter was in near silence . The only sounds were rapid footfalls , flesh rending , blood spilling , and the sporadic clash of a blade meeting another blade . He paused to recite a silent prayer for all the dead that lay in the hall behind him . After flicking his blade to rid it of blood he sheathed it and prepared for a running battou-jutsu . He knew there were at least twenty men waiting in ambush in the rooms ahead . With a thrust of his elbow he slid the door open just enough for his slender frame to enter . Feeling the movement of his ambushes acting he charged . The fighting merged into a long wave after wave of bloody slaughter . It was all so easy , so easy that it made him want to tear out the throat of whatever kami of fate had set him to be death for so many . Could none take his life , as he took so many ? The day he took the life of another man for the first time he firmly believed that the same would be done to him . It was only karma , neh ? Now he was unsure . No death had come for him , even their most skilled still fell before him . He found himself standing on a veranda , the faint dripping of blood flowing off of it's side the only sound he heard . He looked down at his blades , both drawn and in his hands , awaiting further slaughter . Was the child of the new era -that he was supposed to be killing to protect- to be weaned in the blood of the old ? Blood that he provided in ample supply . But for tonight the killing was over , the building behind him was silent . Those that opposed were dead those that cowered had fled . It was over for tonight , now he could go home . * * * " Battousai-san !" One of the maids cried in slight alarm at the sight of his arrival . " The blood ! are you injured ?" She made ready to rush to his side . " None of it is mine , Kasumi-dono ." He nodded his thanks . " I appreciate your concern ." Himura Battousai , those that he worked for and with called him . Hitokiri Battousai those he hunted called him . Just how much difference was there ? Stepping into the bath house he shucked his clothing . Nearly wincing at the slap the soaked clothing made when it struck the floor . Stepping up to the bucket he paused to look back . Footprints of blood were what his feet left in his wake . As usual he awoke with a start . After ten years he no longer screamed or even sat up . He had conquered the profuse sweating with Tomoe's care , but after her death it had returned . Only to be conquered once more , but over the course of years . Now he merely jerked a bit , his hand reaching for his blade , his eyes snapping open and his lungs gasping . Sitting up he shook his head and snorted a few times to rid his senses from the lingering taint of blood . Kaoru and the others asked him every so often how he managed to get up day after day . His customary reply was a 'oro' or a smile . Little did they know that he would much rather sleep in as they did . Of course the night visitors never let him . Never . Nor should they , karma is karma and penitence is what it is . As he was already up and there was no chance of getting back to sleep after a visit he dressed . The laundry was waiting for him , not to mention breakfast , then there was tending to the others . Perhaps Kaoru would not object to breakfast in bed . He knew from experience that wounds hurt much more the morning after . All wounds did , everything hurts more in the morning . Taking a deep breath he fixed a smile on his face and strode out into the first crimson rays of the new morning .