Chapter 160: Thoughts at Dawn

(Early the next morning, Kaoru is sitting alone at the table.)

Tsubame (entering the room): Good morning, Kaoru.

Kaoru (turning): Oh, good morning, Tsubame--

(She freezes.)

Tsubame (her hair sticking up every which way): Isn't Mr. Himura back yet?

Kaoru: Tsubame, you really slept on your hair funny.

Tsubame: I did? Ack!

(Kaoru sits her down in front of a mirror and begins to comb it straight.)

Tsubame: I'm sorry, this always happens when I change pillows.

Kaoru: Hm, then morning will be tough for a little while. You must have been up pretty late last night.

Tsubame: Yes. I was scared, so I watched from the shadow of the dojo, but--Kaoru?

Kaoru: Yes?

Tsubame: These things that keep happening, they're so terrible. What's going on?

Kaoru: Tsubame, you don't have to worry about that. That's what I'd like to say, anyway. To tell the truth, I don't know what's going on either. (suddenly fuming) Sanosuke knows all about it...

Tsubame (as her hair is being pulled): Kaoru, that hurts...

Kaoru: When Kenshin comes home, I'll try asking him again.

Tsubame: I don't think he'll answer, though.

Kaoru: You're too smart. Kenshin always tries to handle everything by himself. It's his personality.

Tsubame: Kaoru, you're not too worried? When Mr. Himura left for Kyoto, you were so...

Kaoru (looking embarrassed): Ah ha ha ... please forgive me for that. I was so pathetic. There's no excuse for doing that to you all. (The readers were pretty harsh about that too... ) You're right. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried. But ... You never know what the future holds, but whatever happens to me, whatever happens to Kenshin, there will never be another good-bye like that one. After the battle in Kyoto, it's the one thing I'm sure of ... okay?

(She goes back to combing Tsubame's hair.)

Tsubame (thinking): Kaoru and Mr. Himura ... they should be happy together.

Kaoru: Okay, all done. It's almost dawn. It's a little early, but let's wake Yahiko up and have breakfast.

Tsubame: Um, his door was slightly open so I peeked in. He's not there.

Kaoru: What? That's weird. That lazybones never gets up early ... Unless he never came home last night?!

Tsubame: What??

(They charge down the hall looking for him.)

Kaoru: That idiot! Kenshin told him to be careful! I'll--Yahiko!

(He's standing just outside the gate, wearing his sleeping kimono with his shinai strapped to his back.)

Yahiko: Kaoru ... So you aren't going to teach me the succession techniques?

Kaoru (surprised): Yahiko, we talked about this before. You're very strong for your age. But it won't help you to be stronger now. Really, that came out of nowhere--

Yahiko: It did not. You know something is going on right now! That's why I need to be strong. Strong for my age is the same thing as being weak. I'm so sick of that ... I'm the only one ... I'm sick of being the only one who's weak!

(A moment of silence.)

Tsubame: Yahiko...

Kaoru: Yahiko. (thinking) He's crying...

(Elsewhere, Kenshin is walking home. Chief Uramura's daughter's words echo in his mind.)

How could they be so cruel? What did father--what did we do? Kenshin (thinking): The reason is "Because he was connected to Hitokiri Battousai." Like the Maekawa Dojo ... Like the Akabeko ... This unfair, almost indiscriminate violence--I'll stop it next time. But after that, what should I do? If it keeps up like this, I can't settle things by just defeating one opponent. That Otowa said there were six of them. They probably vary in ability, but that's still six opponents. Out for revenge, under the code they call Earthly Justice. It began with a sin I committed, a killing ... How can I make them forgive me? Apologize? Die? Or something else, something totally different...

(He comes to a small bridge. Standing on it, backlit by the rising sun, is a figure with white hair, wearing glasses and Chinese-style clothing.)

Kenshin (shielding his eyes against the sun): Who's that...

(Beside him, he seems to see a small boy, his clothes tattered, also with snow-white hair.)

Kenshin (eyes widening): You're ... Enishi...

(And beside the boy, he sees a sad woman in kimono with a shawl.)

Kenshin: Tomoe!

(The sun rises a little higher. Enishi is alone.)

Enishi (smiling): What's wrong, Battousai? You look like you've seen my sister's ghost.