We went back to the dojo. “Please stay here, Aka,” my brother told me.
“No way! I’m coming. Kaoru was my friend first,” I insisted and he sighed.
“Fine, but please don’t get involved in the fight. Jin’eh is after me, not you,” he said.
“Fine,” I replied. Unless your life is in danger. Then I’m jumping in. I can’t lose you again. When it was close to midnight, Kenshin left a note for Yahiko, then we went into the forest to the location that Jin’eh had said. Sure enough, when we got there he was waiting for us. He had Kaoru tied up in an abandoned temple. I made my way over to my best friend.
“Alright, now its time for the fun to really begin,” Jin’eh smirked.
“Kenshin! Aka!” Kaoru called out. I looked at my brother and saw anger in his eyes. Jin’eh saw it, too.
“Heh, I like those eyes. It means you’re angry,” he said. Of course I was angry as well, but I had a bad feeling about this. My brother’s personality had changed.
“Yeah, angry at you for putting Miss Kaoru in the middle of this, and angry at myself for not being able to stop you,” Kenshin told him. That voice...this is not gonna end well. My brother and Jin’eh took out their swords.
“I sense a pleasing desire to kill from you. Now you only have to flip the blade on that silly sword and the legendary manslayer will be born again into this world,” Jin’eh said with a chuckle.
“Shut up,” Kenshin replied with anger and determination in his voice. That’s not the Kenshin I know. This is new, even for me. They started fighting and Jin’eh tried the shino ipo again. “I don’t think so,” my brother said as he quickly broke free from it.
“Get angry! Get angrier, Battosai! Come on, is that all you can do?” Jin’eh taunted. They continued to fight and Kenshin got a deep cut on his left shoulder.
“Kenshin, no!” Kaoru exclaimed with a gasp.
“You’re not there yet. You’re still far from becoming the Battosai you used to be. It’s because as angry as you are now, you still don’t want to kill me yet. As long as you keep thinking you can defeat me without killing me, I can kill you without even breaking a sweat. You’re beginning to bore me,” Jin’eh mentioned.
“Kenshin!” Kaoru called to my brother. “Don’t you have a shred of humanity? Are you some kind of monster? You’re a horrible beast,” she then told Jin’eh, who chuckled evilly.
“Go on, let the anger build within you,” he said to Kenshin before turning to us and using the shino ipo. I...can’t breathe. What shino ipo...is this? I fell to my knees.
“Ken...shin,” Kaoru struggled to say.
“Miss Kaoru! Aka! You bastard! What have you done to them?” Kenshin asked with worry and anger.
“It’s a stronger version of the shino ipo. It’s so strong that I paralyzed their lungs. They will last at most five minutes before they suffocate,” he replied.
“What?” Kenshin asked, glaring at him and holding the wound on his shoulder. Jin’eh laughed evilly. How can I beat this and help Kaoru so Kenshin can stay focused on the battle at hand?
“There are only two ways to undo this. The first is for the targets to overcome it by themselves, but that’s possible only for someone with a very strong swordsman spirit. Heh, it’s utterly impossible for those girls. The second way is for the one who cast the shino ipo to die. In other words, unless you kill me, the girls die,” he explained. Don’t underestimate us, Jin’eh. We’re both a lot stronger than you might think. “What’s wrong? There’s no time to lose. Are you going to let them die without lifting a finger? Death by suffocation isn’t pretty,” he chuckled.
“Jin’eh,” I heard my brother mumble as he gripped his sword.
“We don’t have time for small talk. If you have something to say, then say it with a sword, with that silly sword of yours,” he replied. Kenshin stood and disappeared momentarily before reappearing and hitting Jin’eh in the face hard. He recovered with a laugh, even though it looked like his nose had been broken. “That attack just now, not only couldn’t I see the sword’s path, but I couldn’t even see your body follow through with the attack. This is the Hiten Mitsurugi style! This is Battosai the manslayer!” Jin’eh said with a chuckle.
I looked at my brother. His eyes had turned red. “As you said, there’s no time for talk. If you want me to kill you then please hurry up and prepare for death,” he said in a voice I’d never heard before and it scared me.
“Oh no,” I mumbled.
“If I want you to kill me, huh? Very good. A threat worthy of a manslayer. So you’re finally back,” he replied, pleased. Jin’eh took off his coat, revealing a tight, black long sleeve shirt. “Welcome back to the Revolution. Welcome back, Battosai,” he added with a smile.
“Kenshin...don’t. You...mustn’t,” I heard Kaoru manage to say.
“Alright, that’s it!” I said, breaking the shino ipo and getting between them.
“Akasuki, this doesn’t concern you,” my brother said.
“Yes it does, Kenshin. I won’t let my big brother return to being a Hitokiri,” I said with determination. I attacked Jin’eh and we fought for a minute. All I was able to do was give him a bruise on his arm, but he was able to stab me in my right side. I fell to my knees and put my hand on the wound.
“I underestimated you. Killing the Battosai’s little sister will be an added bonus,” Jin’eh said. I saw the shadow of him raising his sword. Focus. You can still stop him.
“Jin’eh! I’m your opponent!” I heard my brother call. I turned and saw him lower his sword as he turned to face Kenshin with a laugh.
“And so the true battle finally begins. I’ll finish her off after I kill you. Here I come, Battosai!” Jin’eh exclaimed as he charged at Kenshin but then suddenly stopped.
“What’s wrong?” my brother asked.
“As expected of the legendary manslayer, you’re truly a different person when you’re ready to kill. It is time for me to take this battle seriously, so that I can defeat the Revolution’s strongest man. Shino ipo induces an illusion that paralyzes the victim. I will now use it upon myself. In other words, I will induce an illusion upon myself that will maximize my full potential,” Jin’eh explained. He then raised his sword and used it like a mirror. “I am undefeatable! I am invincible! I am the strongest ever. The hidden usage for the shino ipo: the Hioki spell. This is the first time I’ve used it in the past fifteen long years since I left the Shinsengumi,” he said before hitting a rock seven times with his sword, cutting grooves into it.
“You can use as many skills as you want. However, now that I have said that I will kill you, your death tonight has been assured, Jin’eh,” Kenshin said, putting his sword away and getting into the battoujutsu stance. “Come. I’ll let you taste a little sample of why they call me the Battosai,” he added.
“Let’s begin, Battosai!” Jin’eh yelled as he attacked Kenshin. I slowly got to my feet. I...have to stop...this. Jin’eh dodged my brother’s fist attack and went to counter attack.
“I’ve won this match, Batto-”
He was cut off by another attack from Kenshin, who had used his own sheath to injure his opponent’s right arm. I knew that technique; it was called soryusen, also known as double dragon technique.”Hiten Mitsurugi style battojutsu - soryusen. I’m fully aware that the reverse blade sword is not suited for battoujutsu. The name Battosai comes from the fact that I have perfected everything concerning battoujutsu. I crushed your elbow joint and tore the ligaments. Your life as a swordsman is now over, and so is your life as a human being,” Kenshin explained as he flipped his blade while Jin’eh laid on the ground. No...don’t do it, big brother. I...can’t lose you. He raised his sword as a small breeze blew for a moment. Kenshin paused.
“What’s wrong? Why are you hesitating? In order to free the girl of the shino ipo, you have no other choice but to kill me,” Jin’eh said. He’s really determined to die. This guy’s insane.
“To protect Miss Kaoru and my little sister, I will become a manslayer once again!” Kenshin declared.
“Haha, that’s the way! Let me die enjoying the taste of the blade of Battosai the manslayer,” Jin’eh smirked.
“Die,” my brother said as he went to kill him.
“No!” I exclaimed as I ran over and blocked his attack.
“Kenshin, don’t!” Kaoru cried, breaking the spell. I looked over at her. Tears were running down her face. Jin’eh and Kenshin looked over too. I then realized that his eyes were back to the normal purple. “Kenshin, don’t go back to being a manslayer. You can’t use swordsmanship...to kill,” she said before fainting.
“Miss Kaoru!” Kenshin exclaimed, running over to her and catching her. I went over too, keeping my free hand on my wound. “Miss Kaoru, you’ve got to hold on, that you do,” he said as he held her.
“I’ve got to...hold on, that I do,” she replied after a few moments, slowly opening her eyes.
“You will be alright, that you will,” my brother said reassuringly. I knew he was also saying it to reassure himself. Kaoru sat up.
“Yes, I’m alright, that I am,” she said with a small smile.
“Huh?” Kenshin asked. I chuckled lightly.
“I’m fine now. Don’t worry, Kenshin,” she told him.
I saw Jin’eh stand up and I moved between him and my brother, gripping my sword. “To think that my shino ipo could be defeated by girls like them,” he said. He had a short sword in his left hand. My brother didn’t even bother turning around.
“Stop it, Jin’eh. You have no chance of winning, that you don’t, especially with only a short sword and your left arm. It’s over now. I recommend that you let the police take you peacefully, that you should,” he said.
“No, it’s not over yet,” Jin’eh replied as he raised his weapon. I got ready to defend my family. I saw my brother grab his sword too. “One last thing that I must do,” he said before stabbing himself in the chest. “What a...nice feeling,” he said as he fell to the ground. Okay then… Kenshin and I looked at him.
“Don’t look at me like that, Battosai. I much prefer...the look in your eyes when you said...you were going to kill me. Within every fiber of your being, you are truly a manslayer. I am also a manslayer so I know of what I speak. A manslayer is a manslayer until the day he dies. He can never be anything else ...I'll be watching you from the edge of hell to see how long you can keep saying you’re a wanderer,” he said before taking his last breath as a breeze blew.
“Kenshin?” Kaoru asked.
“We’ll let the police take care of the rest,” he replied as we started back to the dojo.
“He’s wrong, you know. You’re not a manslayer anymore. Sure, it’ll still be a part of your past, but you...we can overcome it together. You have friends - family that will help you,” I told my brother. He simply nodded and gave me a small smile, which I returned but I knew it was still bugging him. As we were crossing the bridge, Kenshin turned to Kaoru.
“So tell me, you’re really alright now, Miss Kaoru, aren’t you?” he asked. She nodded.
“I’m alright,” she replied then stopped. “Um, Kenshin? Thank you very much for saving me, and you too, Aka. I just wanted to tell you that, that’s all,” she said.
“No, I’m the one who should be thanking the two of you. If you didn’t stop me back then, the old Battosai the manslayer would’ve returned. Thank you so much,” he said. I smiled and nodded.
“That’s what family’s for,” I said and he smiled back.
“Yeah, that’s right. I should probably return your ribbon to you, shouldn’t I?” Kenshin said as he got it out, but there was blood on it.
“And what’s this?” Kaoru asked.
“It must be blood from my wound,” my brother replied nervously.
“That was my favorite ribbon, Kenshin. I can’t believe this! I should have never lent it to you!” she yelled as she chased him.
“I’m sorry, Miss Kaoru!” Kenshin replied as he ran away from her. I smiled and laughed, but winced slightly, remembering my own injury. I put my hand over it. Note to self: don’t laugh when you get stabbed in the side. We were able to save my brother this time, but if it happens again...will we be able to stop him, or…?
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