Hello! This is my first published RK fanfiction. I'm a bit of a fanfiction addict, so I read and read and read. I hadn't written in about 6 years when this came to me. I hope everyone enjoys it! Please feel free to leave a comment or review, I'd really appreciate it!

All Standard Disclaimers Apply. ASDA!

The smell of battle still clung to his clothes as he returned to the inn that served as the headquarters of the Ishin Shishi that night. Blood, gunpowder, sweat, dirt, and death seemed to cling to him more than the others. He was surprised to discover the whole of the organization assembled in the tearoom, apparently waiting for someone. Someone who wasn't him; apparently. Katsura nodded at him, face grim but a glint of mischief in his eyes.

"Battousai, I am glad you've returned in time to meet our newest member! Please wash up quickly and return, I want you here to greet him," Katsura's voice ordered, strong and commanding with an undertone of amusement that unsettled the Battousai. He ran a bloody hand through similarly colored bangs before closing his amber eyes and nodding in assent. He turned from the room and slowly ascended the stairs, wondering who would be important enough to warrant such an assembly.

After closing the shoji to the room in which he resided (he didn't dare consider what he was doing living, at that point), he lost his proud posture. Shoulders slumping with exhaustion, he quickly washed and changed into clean clothes. Grey gi, black hakama, and a black haori; it was practically his uniform. He ran a comb through his disheveled red hair before gathering it up into a high tail, like he always wore it. After slipping on his sword and a clean pair of tabi, he squared his shoulders and returned to the common room to await the arrival of the newest member of the Ishin Shishi. He slid into place behind Katsura, at his right hand. His commander turned his head slightly and grinned at him.

Unsettling. What in all the hells is going on tonight? The Battosai thought irritably, he was exhausted and sore and just wanted to haul his ass back upstairs to try and sleep away the horrors of the day.

The minutes passed slowly, inching by until the sound from the front of the inn jolted him out of his thoughts. He heard murmuring outside the common room; the innkeeper was speaking softly to the new arrival as he led him to his audience. The shoji slid open.

Well, this wasn't the kind of person he had been expecting at all. Instead of a strong, burly man the new arrival was short and slight. Hell, he looked even more feminine than Battousai himself!

The young man, no, more of a boy was dressed in black hakama and a black gi. Long obsidian hair was pulled up and back in the traditional samurai style, bangs shadowed his eyes as he bowed respectfully at the assembled imperialists.

Battousai snorted softly. All this fanfare for a soft little boy!? He doesn't look any older than fifteen, what could he know that would be beneficial to us?

Then he noticed something out of the ordinary. Instead of wearing his daisho at his waist, the boy wore them strapped to his back. The hilts of the katana and wakizashi jutted up, each easily reachable right over his shoulders. The kid sighed and straightened up, staring directly at Katsura and spoke.

"I received your invitation, Katsura-san. As you can see I have accepted your offer of recruitment." His voice was soft and slightly husky, obviously he was younger than Battousai thought; his voice hadn't even changed yet!

"Ah, Kamiya Kaoru-sama, I am so very glad you have to decided to pledge your skills to aid our effort. I was very sorry to hear of your father's death and the loss of your dojo…I assume your wounds have healed sufficiently? I trust things in Edo haven't been overwhelming for you." Katsura managed to sound cordial and sympathetic at the same time. The boy…Kamiya-sama tensed and bowed his head before replying.

"Hai, I am fully capable and ready to complete my assignments here in Kyoto. Edo has been quiet since the dojo was burned. "

The red-haired hitokiri bristled at the young man's overconfidence. Surely the whelp had never shed the blood of another in his life, what made him so special?

"Katsura-sama," he asked softly. "Surely someone so young has yet to achieve the skills we require, if it is permissible that I test his skills?"

Kamiya-sama's head flew up, serious sapphire eyes blazing into his own as one of his black eyebrows raised slightly.

Katsura laughed heartily. "You want to test his skills yourself, Battousai?"

"Hai, I do," replied the Battousai, his eyes never leaving the stubborn glare of the small samurai standing in the center of the room. The other operatives in the room murmured among themselves, surprised at this turn of events.

"You are the Battousai?" The boy asked him, serious blue eyes never wavering.

"Himura Battousai at your service, boy," he replied with condescention, waiting for the telltale backtracking from the boy. Almost everyone, once learning his identity, groveled as if it would somehow curry his favor and save their lives.

"Hmm…I had thought you would be taller," Kamiya returned confidently, eying him carefully.

"Battousai, you may test Kamiya-sama's skills right now. Kamiya-sama, prepare yourself!" Katsura ordered.

Battosai smirked unpleasantly at the young upstart; he couldn't wait to knock the brat down a few pegs as he stepped out of the shadows. The other men began making their bets as the small Kamiya-sama began to stretch quickly. Once finished, he slid the katana and wakizashi partially out of their sayas and back in to make them easier to draw when necessary. Battosai had his katana out and ready, then he charged the empty-handed boy.

The boy just stood there as the hitokiri descended upon him with his godlike speed. The older man grinned, the stupid child had yet to even draw his blade. This would be over before it had even started. He expected his blade to meet flesh, but he was rebuffed with a sound counter-strike. Battosai skidded to a stop before the young samurai, carefully masking his surprise as the young man stood in a battle stance, both of his blades in hands.

"Rushing in with too much confidence is unwise, Battousai-san," he said softly to the red haired assassin. "It takes more than a split second to judge an opponent." He tilted his head slightly, a flash a disappointment sliding across those dark blue eyes. "It dishonors you."

Battousai frowned, unused to being criticized by a pipsqueak…even if the little brat had a good point. He leapt back; giving his new opponent some breathing room as he scoured the small body for weaknesses as he slid the katana back into its saya. He found none, despite the odd way Kamiya carried himself…he'd rarely seen a samurai use both katana and wakizashi at one time outside of battle. He wondered how the two would work together.

Elegantly twirling the wakizashi in his left hand, the dark-haired boy carefully paced around the now dead-silent tearoom. His dark eyes never left the amber ones of his opponent, taking on an eerie cast as they picked him apart. Battosai felt strangely uncomfortable under the gaze of the young swordsman, and there was no doubt now that the boy was a full-fledged swordsman. There was no trace of the bedraggled traveler left in his stance or ki. He was so busy feeling the ki of the young man that the swift katana strike almost caught him off-guard. Almost. He wasn't the Battousai for nothing! Using one of his favorite, or if not favorite; most successful and relied-upon Battou-jutsu moves the scarlet haired man brought his sword down on the boy with a heavy downward strike. Designed to disarm and startle, he was slightly nonplussed when the Kamiya boy blocked swiftly with both swords well over his head. He pressed down, determined to break through the swords and strike the shoulder of his opponent. The boy twisted, catching his blade between the blades of the wakizashi and katana, nearly wrenching Battousai's sword from his grasp.

Heat flared through him, while still relatively young (he felt ancient) he refused to be bested by an upstart boy who was barely into puberty! He smoothly disengaged and was about to dispense the whelp when a strong voice broke the tense silence.

"That is ENOUGH!" Katsura's usually mellow voice split the tension like a ripe melon and the men broke apart, both breathing hard from the tension and exertion.

"Battousai, I cannot let you harm Kamiya-sama, he is still recovering and we cannot spare the time for him to heal from wounds gained here. This was a test and nothing more. I find you feel he is acceptable?

Battousai frowned slightly as he sheathed his sword, his eyes still locked onto the small young man, who was busy resheathing his own swords. The boy felt his scrutiny and flinched slightly as he raised his right arm to replace the katana in its saya. Few would have caught the slight hitch in his smooth movements, but only Battousai and Katsura caught it. Realization dawned on the red-haired man as he though back over the skirmish. A healing injury would be a good reason for the boy to have only gone on the offensive once, and he had spent the rest of the short fight on the defensive. But not had not been fearful. Not for the first time Battousai wondered about the origins of the strange young man.

"He is acceptable." He replied, unwilling to give voice to his questions but refusing to speak of the slight weakness he had caught.

"Thank you for your attention, Battousai-san," the light voice of the boy startled him slightly as he turned to look at his once opponent. He was shocked when the boy respectfully bowed to him, like it had been a training match in a bloody dojo! He really is just a kid, Battousai thought to himself as he carefully returned to his place behind Katsura's and his cold tea. The leader of the imperialists motioned for the boy to sit on his left, and Battousai found it a little odd. Why should an unknown recruit be chosen to sit to Katsura's left? It made no sense to him, even though there was ample evidence that the two were acquainted.

"I hope the journey from Edo wasn't to stressful, Kaoru-kun. What did your student say when you accepted my invitation?" Katsura asked the young boy softly.

"It was quiet, it seems the bandits were focused on much more important things than someone like me," the boy replied, with a hint of wry humor in his voice.

"Kaoru-kun, I hope you didn't hurt anyone too badly," Katsura chuckled before sipping his tea thoughtfully. "And your student?"

"Yahiko-kun was angry with me, but we talked and he understands why I had to leave after what happened at the dojo. I think he was more offended at losing his master than the dojo having been burned down around our ears!" Kamiya replied, a little light entering his serious blue eyes as he reminisced about his student.

"Aren't you a little young to have a student?" Battousai asked suddenly, his eyes darting to the young man on the other side of his leader. To his shock, the boy laughed softly before drawing himself up to his full height. As he was opening his mouth to answer Himura's rude question, Katsrua cut in.

"Battousai-san, you aren't the only one who is older than he looks," Katsura chuckled, his mind made up. "I have decided, Kaoru-kun, you and the Battousai shall be partners!"

Two sets of eyes widened at the proclamation; a scandalized Kaoru, whose pale cheeks reddened, interrupted Battousai's argument.

"Uncle! You can't! I worked alone in Edo; you know I can do it here! I don't need a partner!" He exclaimed, his black eyebrows lifted in chagrin. The new partners stared at each other across the still form of their superior, who attempted to smother the mirth that threatened to break loose.

"Kaoru-kun, no one knows Kyoto as well as Battousai; and I would have you know your way around before letting you loose upon the population. I promised my sister, that I would keep an eye on you if you came into my service. Of course I assumed it would be farther in the future, but the Isshin Shishi need your skills." Katsura finished softly, raising a hand to ruffle the young man's hair affectionately.

Himura the Battousai looked away, his brain going a mile a minute as he put the pieces in place. He stared hard at the opposite wall of the tearoom as the thoughts moved through his mind. So, the boy is Katsura-sama's nephew? Didn't realize he had a sister who married, let alone a man with his own dojo and sword school in Edo. So is that what this is, nepotism? So I am to be tour guide and saddled with a kid who's never done the job before. Fantastic. But why refer to the kid with –sama if he's just a nephew…? Something's fishy here. Angered, he smothered a frown and smoothed his face into its standard dispassionate expression. He listened as the two chatted quietly together, sipping his stone-cold tea resolutely.

"Uncle, I told you that I'd come and help when I could get away…the attack and the burning of the dojo just hastened that. I wouldn't have come if I didn't think I could be of service." Kaoru muttered while snagging a small rice ball from his plate. Katsura smiled grimly as he watched the young man attempt to wolf it down as politely as possible.

"Kaoru-kun! Why didn't you tell me you needed something to eat? Would like for my physician to check your bandages as well?" Katsura asked, his intense black gaze directed at his errant nephew.

THAT caught Himura's attention and he quickly swallowed his cold tea, trying to eavesdrop as unobtrusively as he could. Information was extremely important to a hitokiri, information on one's enemies could turn the tide of battle, and information could save a live or end it.

"I am fiiine. I'm healing and can handle things well enough on my own. Takani-sensei taught me a lot, and her salve is very helpful," the boy replied, a subtle hand moving towards his ribs. "The burns are healing…the other wounds as well, they won't get in the way of my work,' he continued solemnly.

"That's very good to hear, nephew. I was terribly worried when I heard about what happened…Shinsengumi sympathizers, in Edo of all places! It was very suspicious, Kaoru-kun…I hope you didn't leave any loose ends when you left," He replied, noting Himura's feigned disinterest. Fascinating…he's interested already! "Himura-san, I know the inn is terribly crowded at the moment, would it be too much of an imposition for Kaoru-kun to stay in your room? I wouldn't trust him with anyone else."

Hiding his shock at the commander's non-sequitor, he set down the teacup and nodded sharply. He didn't really want anyone in his space, but if it was an order...orders were to be obeyed.

"Of course, it would be acceptable, Katsura-sama."

Katsura tried to smother the grin of triumph that almost split his usually stoic countenance, the red haired hitokiri wouldn't know what hit him once Kaoru was let loose. Now, he would sit back for a few days and watch the fireworks explode. His niece, Kaoru, would change that man's entire worldview.