White Plums
A scream shattered the silence. I stumbled as people yelled at me. "Run!
Run!" And I ran. I ran and ran, but I made the mistake of looking back. I
turned my head to see my cousin fall to the ground in a spray of blood.
"No!" I turned around, lurching towards my cousin's fallen body. "Oh no you
don't!" I was snatched up by one of the invaders. Suddenly he gave a grunt
and dropped me. My sister flung her arms around me. She crouched over me,
protecting me from these people who had raided my village. "Stupid woman!"
They towered over her, sneering. "Please, please, spare the boy.please."
She begged them to spare me, to leave me alone. I huddled in her arms
shuddering. One of then grinned, raised his sword and drove it into my
sister's back. The tip of the blade dug into the soft fabric of my clothing
but I was unharmed. My sister gasped, blood spilling from her mouth. I
remembered how she looked like at the moment, her pale orange hair falling
over her eyes, the sun glaring into my eyes, surrounding her with a golden
halo. The men heard something and looked away from us. Before I knew what
was happening, they were lying in pools of blood around us. A tall, dark
haired man stood towering over us. Sis rolled over, gasping again. She
looked up at the man, eyes already glazing over. "Protect him." With a
faint shudder, she was dead. The man looked at me, questioningly. Then he
walked away.
I stood up, dripping head to toe in blood, the dark red color of the blood
mixing with my fiery colored hair. I started digging. I didn't know what
else to do. Emptiness was forming inside me, a knot tying itself in my
stomach. I dug and dug, dragging the bodies to the graves that I had dug
for them. I lugged the body into the hole and kicked soil over it. I buried
the whole village. It was then I realized I was the only survivor. My hands
were rubbed raw and the skin had torn and was bleeding. The day turned to
night, golden sky sinking to dark blue. But still I dug. By sunrise, I was
exhausted, having buried everyone, making rough crosses out of the remains
of the wooden houses. I sank to the ground, not knowing what to do. I heard
something and turned. It was the man who had saved me from being killed the
day before. He paused, observing the messy burial area and the rough
crosses tied together with strips of cloth. He knelt down, tipping wine
over the grave of his sister, which he was sitting next to, as a sign of
respect. "Still here?" He sat down beside me, taking a sip from the bottle
of wine that he held. I remained quiet. "Clam kid, aren't you? Just had
your whole village murdered in front of your eyes and you just bury them
and sit there." He eyed me for a while. I kept my head down, red bangs
falling down my face. "Name?" He asked, prodding me slightly. I looked up
finally. "Shinta." I whispered, not wishing to disturb the peace around me.
The man stood up. "I'm Hiko. From now on, you'll be known as Kenshin." And
that was how I became Himura Kenshin.
2 years later.
I was learning swordsmanship from Hiko. Training was hard. By then, I was
already 7 and Hiko thought it was the right age to start learning. We would
fight everyday with wooden swords, training beside a waterfall. After a few
months, I started to form a skill of my own. I called it Hiten Mitsurugi
Ryuu.
5 years later.
"Get out of my way, scum!" A gang stood in front of me, clearly drunk and
wanting trouble. I stood there, staring at them, violet eyes flashing. "You
asked for it, scum!" They charged at drawing their swords. I moved, jerking
my sword from its sheath. I drove my blade into the stomach of one and
slashed it across the chest of another. They were falling like flies,
injured. "We'll get you yet!" They cried before running off to lick their
wounds. I heard someone start clapping behind me. I spun around, alert and
wary. "Very good." A formally dressed man was standing behind me. "I think
skills such as your should be rewarded. Come with me and have a cup of
tea." I followed him, not knowing why I did so. He invited me into his home
and I sat at a table and drank tea. After a while of silence, he asked,
"Have you killed before?" I shook my head. Hiko had always taught me to
kill only if I had a reason. He nodded slowly and asked me a question that
changed the course of my life forever. "Would you like to kill?"
3 years later.
I was an assassin. Almost everyday, I would receive a black envelope that
contained information on which I was to kill. I had worked like this for
three years, killing and traveling. People started calling me Battuosai,
the manslayer, the bringer of death and I lived up to my nickname.
One night, I received a letter, which requested me to kill an official. I
strolled down the street, hiding in the shadows. I passed a group of three
men, the night guards of the house where the official lived. They were
talking loudly, laughing. I ran forward, killing the first two before they
knew what struck them. The third one was scared; I could see it in his
eyes. He had short hair, tied into a bun. My blade snapped forward and he
blocked it. I knew he didn't have much skill, the way he held the sword and
the way he moved when fighting. The only thing keeping him alive now was.
the fact that he had something to live for. He fought desperately; hoping
to tired me out. He slashed forward and to my surprise, I felt a stinging
pain burning on my cheek. I struck him again and again until he finally
fell to the ground, a dark pool of blood spreading slowly around as he
died. "No. I can't die.I will not die.my wife." He gasped, losing strength.
"Tom-." I drove my sword into his body and he twitched and died. I raised
my hand to my cheek. It was wet. I looked at my damp hand. Blood.
The assassination went well and I treated myself to a drink a week later,
when I received my pay. It was raining heavily. I sat in the eating-house,
sipping wine. I don't know why I even drank wine. I hated it. It tasted
like blood. Since I became an assassin, the wine tasted more and more like
blood every time I drank it. I figured the scar that ran along my cheek,
from below my left eye to my jaw. It was the scar that that guardsman I
fought the other day gave me. I raised my head when I heard two men start
to talk loudly to a lady sitting in the booth beside mine. "Hey, lady. Mind
if we sit here?" The lady ignored them and continued sipping her wine.
"Hey, don't you know who we are? Show us some respect!" One of them reached
for his sword. In a flash, I was standing there, hand on hilt. "You draw
your sword and you'll die." I said. They glared at me but backed down. I
nodded, when all of the sudden I heard something. The clanking of chains
was faint but I heard it anyway. I quickly left. I followed the sound until
I reached an alley. A dark figure stood in front of me, blocking my way.
"Vengeance is mine, Battuosai." He yanked forward his chain and I blocked
it with my sword. His weapon was a long chain that had blades at each end.
He leapt up into the air landing on a roof. I did the same and we fought.
He struck me across the shoulder and knocked me off the roof. I felt his
chains circling me, tightening around me. The long chain wrapped around my
neck, arms and legs. I gasped for air as the chain jerked, cutting off my
air supply. I struggled, and he leapt down. At the last moment, I pulled my
arm up, which was holding one end of his chain, blade gleaming wetly in the
night. My muscles strained against the chains and I finally tore free. The
blade at the end of the chain sliced the man into half as he dropped from
the roof, hoping to land on me. The two halves fell away, splattering me
with blood. I heard footsteps and turned. It was the lady from the eating-
house. She, too, was covered with blood. "Had she seen me kill the man?" I
wondered. "I could kill her before she ran away." I decided. I glared at
her in shock. Her long black hair fall to her waist and her beautiful sad
eyes stared at me. She was holding an umbrella in one hand but it fell to
the ground with a splash. "I wanted to thank you for helping me at the
eating-house." Her eyes glazed over slightly and he gazed at the sky. "It's
true then. You can make it rain blood." She fell forward and I caught her.
She had fainted.
I bought her back to the inn where I stayed. The hostess bought her to a
room and cleaned her up. I sat down neat to the futon she was sleeping on,
leaned against the wall and fell asleep. The next morning, I awoke to find
the room empty beside myself. I hurried down the stairs and found her
carrying a tray of food. "What are you doing?" I asked her. "What do you
think?" she replied and walked off. I glared at her back. In the light, I
could tell that she was older then me. "She's working here now. She asked
if I needed help and I do." The hostess was standing behind me. I sighed
and strode away. That day, I went out on a job and came back late. My
clothes were spattered with blood. I stood at the washbasin and scrubbed my
hands furiously. I scrubbed my hands until the skin tore and bleed. It
reminded me of when I buried my village. I hated the smell of blood. Three
years of doing this and I still hated it. I rubbed at my hands, trying to
get rid of the smell of blood that hung heavily in the air. Later, I went
up to the lady's room. She invited me in and I sat down, placed the knife I
found in her clothes on the wooden floor. "This is yours?" She nodded and
thanked me, keeping her knife. "How are you?" I asked. "Fine, thank you.
I'm sorry I got drunk and caused you all this trouble, sir." I noticed she
kept her head down all the time, staring at her hands that were in her lap.
"Call me Kenshin." I was surprised at myself. I never told strangers my
name. "I'm Tomoe." She replied quietly.
The nest day, I was taking a nap in my room. I leaned against a pile of
books, in a sitting position, my sword resting on my shoulder. I was
sitting next to the open window and I could feel the gentle breeze blowing
though my hair. The wind tugged playfully at my ponytail. I had long red
hair that was usually tied up in a ponytail. I sighed, when I felt someone
enter the room. My muscles tensed and the person knelt down and touched my
scar. I leapt up, drawing my sword in one smooth movement and placed it at
the intruder's throat. It was Tomoe. I remember seeing fear in her eyes;
she was showing emotion. I shoved her away and she tumbled to the floor,
knocking the pile of books down. "Sorry." I muttered when I realized a
blanket was placed on my arm. "Thank you." I told her. "I thought you would
be cold." She reached over and started picking up the fallen books. I
nodded my thanks again. She paused and I looked at what she was staring at.
It was an old black envelope that I got a few days ago but now, it was of
no importance. I took the envelope from her, carefully watching for her
reaction from the corner of my eye. She was unsurprised and continued
picking up the books.
When it was done she asked me, "How do you decide to kill people? Those
innocent bystanders." I was shocked at this strange question. I finally
answered. "I'll kill any one who was holding a weapon." I blinked at her
thinking. "So she knows I'm an assassin." She looked at me, with those
wonderful sad black eyes. "I see." She nodded, "So.would you kill me if I
had a weapon?" I jerked my head up, startled. "Wait! No-!" but she had
already left the room. I signed. It was not a good day.
One day, I went for a walk long the river. It was peaceful and quiet. The
birds chirping and the sharp smell of trees and grass were in the air. I
stood at the bridge that was overlooking the river. I felt a presence join
me and I knew it was Tomoe. We stood at the bridge in silence, enjoying the
peace and quiet. I thought about earlier that day. My 'boss' had visited me
that morning. He was the one who assigned me all my 'jobs'. He told me that
there was a mission for me. I had to live as a farmer for maybe, a couple
of months at this cottage located in countryside. He wanted me to go there
and find someone else to go with me and act as my wife. I was alarmed at
this request but it was my job after all. I had to do it. "Tomoe." I spoke
up suddenly. I didn't know what made me say what I said next but I did. "Do
you want to come and live with me?"
We moved to the cottage a week later. She married me and I found out she
was eighteen. I was so amazed; I spent an hour staring at her. She then
asked me how old I was. I was embarrassed. I was fifteen. After weeks of
living with her, I found it wasn't so bad. We rarely talked and the only
sound around the household would be me chopping firewood or her cooking
dinner. She then started trying to make me sleep lying down. I didn't
really like it. After all, I spent my whole life, sleeping sitting up.
Sometimes when she was sleeping, I would watch her. She was very beautiful
and I often found myself thinking about how wonderful she was. "I could
stay awake, just to hear you breathing, watch you smile while you're
sleeping, while you're far away and dreaming. I could spend my life in this
sweet surrender. I could stay lost in this moment forever. Where every
moment spent with you, is a moment I treasure. But you'll never know, what
I feel inside because there's no way that I know to say how much I love
you. And if you'll only give me a chance." I fell asleep, a single crystal
teardrop forming at the corner of my eye.
The days passed and everything was as usual. I decided to bring Tomoe
shopping. I waited for her outside chopping wood, deep in thought. Whenever
I bought the axe slashing down to chop another piece of wood, the blade
would flash. I saw images in my head, of all the murders I had committed. A
sword gleaming in the dark as it sliced through human flesh. The screams
and pleas of the people I killed as they died. She finally came out and
apologized. Then we went out. I bought her to the shops and we ate there.
We walked and Tomoe bought food to cook and other things. We visited a
river nearby and stood there for a while, enjoying the view. The wind was
blowing strongly and I had to help Tomoe climb up the slippery rocks when
we climbing a steep hill. I bought her a mirror and we returned home. It
started raining and she slipped and fell. I helped her up and supported her
as we continued to walk home.
One night, we were eating dinner when Tomoe suddenly asked. "You don't
care do you?" I looked up. "What?" She sighed slowly. "You don't care where
I come from or whatever. you never ask." I blinked. "Do you want me to
ask?" she smiled, a faint smile. I shrugged and asked her what her family
was like. She grew sad and told me that she lived in Edo with her father
and brother, Enishi. She was going to be married to this man whom she loved
a lot. He was a kind man but his job made him very busy as he used to work
as a guard. Something prickled at the back of my mind but I ignored it. I
asked her what happened and she started to cry. I immediately regretted
asking. "He d-died." She sobbed. I moved over and wrapped my arms around
her, hugging her. I felt her body close to me for the first time and the
heat from her body warmed me too. She cried into my shoulder until she
clammed down. She gently stroked my scar, taking deep breaths. I held her
to me, feeling happy and content. "I will protect your happiness forever."
She bowed her head. "Thank you." And we fell asleep in each other's arms.
When I woke up, she was gone. A little black book was on the ground in
front of me. I touched it cautiously. It was Tomoe's dairy. I quickly
flipped through it, a sense of dread filling me. Phrases jumped out at me.
Husband. killed. Battuosai. revenge. As I continued to read, I felt a pain
start to burn in my chest. Destroy. happiness. like me. hate.him. I refused
to read anymore. I threw the book down. I wanted to cry but somehow, I
couldn't. A note fluttered out from the book. I read it, fury now boiling
in my veins. I set out in a run and headed for the woods. It started
snowing.
I walked into the woods, walking and walking. A faint click caught my
attention. I spun around, and a ninja was aiming for me with his sword. I
blocked it in time and stabbed him in the chest, knocking him to the
ground. "Where's Tomoe?" I asked, my voice dangerously quiet. The ninja
glared back in defiance. "Tell me!!" I roared, planting my foot on his
chest wound and I swung my sword down and cut off his arms. He got up and
nearly lost his balance. Blood gushed from the stumps that were his arms.
He backed away and hooked his foot on something. The air exploded with
fire. I managed to escape the explosion but got slightly injured in the
process. I could feel warm blood flowing from my ear; maybe my eardrums got
infected during the explosion. But still I walked on. I walked in the snow
and it fell heavier. All I could think of was Tomoe. "Why? I had killed her
husband.the one who gave me that scar. And she had married me.she could
have killed me anytime. But she didn't.why did she go?" I thought about
Tomoe, and how we meet in the shower of crimson rain. "Tomoe." I was
tired.more tired then I ever had been. All I knew was that I had to save
her.
I was attacked by another ninja again. This one was strong. He had an axe
and wood plies were thrown violently at me. I ducked but one caught me in
the head. I heard an odd ringing in my head as sharp jabs of pain priced
through my numbness. I collapsed and the ninja advanced on me. A
desperation rose in me. I needed to save Tomoe. With a war cry, I pulled
myself to my feet and attacked. Then something hit me from behind.
Something with long arms and legs grabbed me and slammed me into a tree
trunk. I gasped, pain building up. The thing had a strange weapon, which
was attached to his fingers; sharp blades for each finger. He plunged a
hand into my shoulder, tearing through flesh and bone, blood drenching my
body. The other ninja was approaching. I jerked away, thrusting a dagger
into the freak's hand, pinning him to the tree. My sword planted itself in
the other ninja's heart. Before he died, the ninja tugged at a rope and a
bright light filled the air. The explosion blew apart trees and made a
clearing in the dense forest. I felt the light filling my eyes, burning
into my mind, filling my body with strange warmth. Hate. I was sprinting,
away from the explosion and into a clearing where a wooden hut stood. A
muscular man with a bread stood in front of the hut, sneering. "Come on
then, Battousai." And we fought.
He attacked me again and again; I knew I was losing. I flung my frail body
at him and he simply flung me away. He stabbed me a few times with the
dagger in his hand. I stumbled, losing blood fast. I was dying. I could
feel it. My breathing became shallower and it was more and more difficult
for me to get me after I've been knocked down. Everything was moving;
shifting in front of me in speaks of the white of the snow and the red of
blood. "Tomoe. Tomoe." her name rang in my head. Again. Again. Again. I was
thrown to the ground. I only had one last chance. I gathered the last
remaining energy I had, pulsing within me. "Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu!!" I
screamed. I leapt into the air, soaring in the sky. I could feel the wind,
how it lifted my body up, higher and higher. I dropped down. Swooping down
on him. I landed in front of him and brought my sword crashing down. I felt
warm blood rushing over my hands, splattering onto me. I looked up and my
heart stopped beating.
Tomoe fell to the ground a few seconds before the man did. I dropped to my
knees, watching a dark red stain spread slowly on Tomoe's white dress. A
long gash cut down from her left shoulder.through her heart. A sob escaped
me. I crawled towards her, clutching her head in my hands, rocking through
and fro. "Oh god.d-don't die." I was crying for the first time I could
remember. Crying. She opened her eyes and smiled at me. Her face was blurry
through my tears. "T-tomoe." I whispered. My tears fell onto her face,
mixing with the blood. Another drop fell. "T-tomoe." I cried harder,
sobbing so hard my whole body shook. "Don't cry." she stared at me, her
face as beautiful as ever, even with the blood. She lifted her hand and I
noticed that she was holding her knife in her hand. She pressed it against
my face and neatly sliced another line across the one I already had. There
was now a cross scar on my face. I only cried, letting the blood trickle
from the wound. "It's better this way." her voice was growing fainter. She
was dying. "N-o." I repeated. Refusing to think that I had killed her.
Killed my wife. "Please remember me." she stroked my cheek one last time
and her hand fell. Her blood mixed with the snow on the ground, turning the
snow a dark red. She took a last shuddering breath and. was no more. "But
you'll never know, what I feel inside because there's no way that I know to
say how much I love you."
"TOMOEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" I screamed and screamed and hugged her
cooling body to me, crying my heart out. It was then I realized she smelt
like white plums.