Rurouni Kenshin: Unleash the Battousai

[6] Ritikitae

Kenshin ran towards the river, where he would find his opponent. Finally, his breathing labored from the long sprint, Kenshin appeared at the riverside field. There was a man with a long brown braid down his back. And next to him, crumpled on the ground, was Sanosuke, surrounded in a pool of his own blood,

"What have you done to Sano?!" Kenshin yelled to his enemy. "He's bleeding out!"

"Once you win, you can bring him to that lady-doctor of yours. That is... If you win." The brown-haired swordsman, Ebony, replied.

"How... Did you know about Miss Megumi?..." Kenshin asked Ebony, confused and frightened. If Ebony could do what he thought he could do... Only the Battousai would be able to kill him.

"I have a way of sneaking into one's soul through the eyes." Ebony chuckled. "Everything you could ever want to know about a person lies within the eyes. And if you take advantage of this talent... You can do wondrous things."

He snapped his fingers, and Sano sat up weakly. "I can communicate through other people." Ebony's voice came out Sanosuke's mouth.

"Put him down!" Kenshin exclaimed to the 'puppeteer'. "You cannot use humans as puppets!"

"Yes actually, I can." Ebony replied as Sano fell to the ground once more. "When you are dead, you will be my next one."

Kenshin simply laid his hand onto the handle, ready to draw it. Ebony did the same.

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"I do hope Sano's okay." Megumi told Kaoru. "He may be hurt."

"You know, Megumi, this is the first time I've seen you care about Sanosuke." Kaoru giggled.

"I just hope he isn't hurt." Megumi replied, her fiery aura surrounding her. "Don't you feel the same?"

"As long as Kenshin wins, everything will be okay."

"But, what about the... Battousai?"

"Kenshin said that he was locked away. We should take his word for it."

"Kaoru, I'm no psychologist. But Kenshin was lying."

"I know that. But he was lying for a reason. Whatever it is, I want to respect that reason."

"Whatever you say."

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Both manslayers drew their swords, and the metal blades clashed. Ebony turned to face his opponent, who was already upon him.

The two fought fiercely, but Ebony was stronger than Kenshin. After a few minutes, Kenshin's sword was knocked away, and Ebony stared into his eyes.

"Battousai is right there." Ebony replied, disbelief in his voice. " He's just waiting for something to push you off the edge."

With that, Kenshin felt his body being taken. But he resisted. The force that was pulling his spirit into nothingness was being stopped by willpower alone. With one final ounce of strength pushed the nothingness away fully.

"No one ever resists the Ritikitae... Nobody!!!" Ebony shouted, obviously angered by Kenshin's actions.

He brought his sword down onto Kenshin, who grabbed his own sword and help it up like a shield.

When the swords touched, the reverse-blade sword shattered. Pieces of metal flew everywhere, embedding themselves into the ground.

Kenshin's sword was his oath. His oath to never kill again. And now that his sword had been broken... His oath would be, as well.

Grabbing the sharp end of Ebony's sword, he yanked out of the puppeteer's hands and into his own. He then drove the weapon through Ebony. The last this the puppeteer saw before death?

Eyes like they were made from gold.