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basetani · 9 months ago

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otome masterlist

Warning: May have spoilers.

🌕 - Routes I have finished. 🌑 - Routes I need to finish. 🌗 - Routes I have started but not finished. 🌟 - Games I have finished. 🕒 - Games' Developers/Publishers

-> Mystic Destinies : Serendipity Of Aeons 🌟

🌕 Shou Hatori 🌕 Shinji Hirayama 🌕 Takumi Arai 🌕 Tatsuya Yukimura 🌕 Hikaru Kazama

-> Amnesia : Memories 🌟

🌕 Toma 🌕 Ikki 🌕 Shin 🌕 Kent 🌕 Ukyo

-> Nightshade 🌟

🌕 Kuroyuki 🌕 Gekkamaru 🌕 Goemon 🌕 Chojiro 🌕 Hanzo

-> Seduce Me

🌕 Sam 🌕 Damien 🌕 Matthew 🌕 Erik 🌕 James 🌑 Suzu 🌑 Naomi 🌕 Andrew 🌕 Diana

-> Seduce Me 2 - The Demon War

🌕 Sam 🌕 Matthew 🌕 Erik 🌑 James 🌑 Damien 🌑 Diana

-> Demon Crashers

🌕 Kael 🌕 Orias 🌕 Akki 🌑 Mirari

-> The Men Of Yoshiwara: Kikuya

🌕 Hayabusa 🌕 Takao 🌑 Kagura 🌕 Kagerou 🌕 Iroha 🌗 Iroha 2nd Season 🌑 Tokiwa

-> The Men Of Yoshiwara: Ohgiya 🌟

🌕 Ageha 🌕 Utsusemi 🌕 Takigawa 🌕 Gakuto 🌕 Asagiri

-> Seven Boys 2 🌟

🌕 Vincent 🌕 Randle 🌕 Bevis 🌕 Kevin 🌕 Aaron 🌕 Clement 🌕 Rock 🌕 Julian

-> Soulset 🌟

🌕 Yvonne 🌕 Shira 🌕 Apris 🌕 Verin 🌕 Shirr 🌕 Marco 🌕 Feathor 🌕 'Secret'

-> Hustle Cat

🌕 Reese 🌑 Finley 🌑 Hayes 🌑 Landry 🌑 Mason 🌑 'Secret'

-> This World Unknown

🌕 Asa 🌗 Luca 🌑 Garett 🌑 Val

-> The Royal Trap: Confines Of The Crown

🌕 Callum 🌕 Oscar 🌗 Nazagi 🌑 Gaston

-> Let's Not Stay Friends

🌕 Frenz 🌕 Taf 🌑 Burain

-> Nameless: The One Thing You Must Recall

🌕 Red 🌕 Lance 🌕 Yuri 🌕 Tei 🌑 Yeonho 🌑 ???

-> Hakuoki: Kyoto Winds

🌕 Souji Okita 🌑 Toshizo Hijikata 🌕 Hajime Saito 🌕 Heisuke Toudou 🌕 Sanosuke Harada 🌑 Shinpachi Nagakura 🌕 Keisuke Sanan 🌑 Susumu Yamazaki 🌕 Hachiro Iba 🌑 Kazue Souma 🌑 Ryouma Sakamoto 🌕 Chikage Kazama 🌑 Independant

-> Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms

🌕 Souji Okita 🌑 Toshizo Hijikata 🌕 Hajime Saito 🌕 Heisuke Toudou 🌕 Sanosuke Harada 🌑 Shinpachi Nagakura 🌕 Keisuke Sanan 🌑 Susumu Yamazaki 🌗 Hachiro Iba 🌑 Kazue Souma 🌑 Ryouma Sakamoto 🌕 Chikage Kazama

-> Re Alistair 🌟

🌕 Derek 🌕 Travis 🌕 Shiro

-> Backstage Pass

🌕 John 🌕 Benito 🌕 Adam 🌕 Matthew 🌑 Lloyd 🌑 Independant 🌑 Nicole 🌑 Alvin

-> Dream Daddy

🌕 Joseph 🌕 Robert 🌕 Craig 🌑 Mat 🌑 Brian 🌑 Hugo 🌑 Damien 🌑 Joseph Secret Ending

-> Fashioning Little Miss Lonesome

🌕 Saito Shinjou 🌑 Miki Hiraizumi

-> Monochrome Heaven 🌟

🌕 Kamishiro Akito 🌕 Kamishiro Asuka 🌕 Kamishiro Riku 🌕 Touma 🌕 Misaki Ryuuto

-> Dandelion: Wishes Brought To You 🌟

🌕 Jisoo 🌕 Jiwoo 🌕 Jihae 🌕 Jiyeon 🌕 Jieun 🌕 Wizard

-> Amplitude

Katy's Route 🌕 Jon 🌕 Ari 🌕 Simon and Bunny 🌕 ??? Jon's Route 🌑 Michelle 🌑 Katy 🌑 Liz 🌑 Luna 🌑 Grace 🌑 Eric

-> Cinderella Phenomenon

🌕 Rod 🌕 Karma 🌕 Fritz 🌕 Waltz 🌑 Rumpel

-> Home For The Heart

🌕 Joshua 🌑 Philippe

-> The Letter

🌕 Luke x Rebecca 🌕 Luke x Hannah 🌑 Luke x Marianne 🌕 Hannah x Zachary 🌑 Hannah x Marianne 🌕 Ashton x Rebecca 🌕 Ashton x Isabella

-> Crossroad

🌕 Wolf 🌕 Hunter 🌑 Fox 🌑 Wizard 🌑 Main Route

-> Night Class: A Vampire Story

🌕 Rowan 🌕 Aaron 🌑 Both? I think?

-> Miraclr

🌕 Lucifer 🌑 Michael 🌑 Gabriel 🌑 Uriel 🌑 Raphael

-> Heart No Kuni No Alice

🌗 Boris Airay 🌑 Peter White 🌑 Blood Dupre 🌑 Julius Monre 🌑 Twins 🌑 Ace 🌑 Elliot 🌑 Gowland 🌑 Vivaldi

-> 7'Scarlet 🌟

🌕 Isora Amari 🌕 Hino Kagatsuchi 🌕 Toa Kushinada 🌕 Sosuke Tatehira 🌕 Yuzuki Murakumo 🌕 True Route (Toa Kushinada) 🌕 Bonus Character Route (Hanate Yatsukami)

-> Steam Prison 🌟

🌕 Eltcreed 🌕 Ulrik 🌕 Adage 🌕 Ines 🌕 Yune 🌕 Grand Ending 🌕 Fin

-> Destiny's Princess

🌕 Sanada Yukimura - The Twin Brother 🌕 Takenada Hanbei - The Fiance 🌕 Fuma Kotaro - The Ninja Reinforcement 🌕 Oda Nobunaga - The Father 🌑 Date Masamune - The Commander

-> London Detective Mysteria

🌕 Holmes 🌗 Watson 🌑 Akechi 🌑 Jack 🌑 Lupin 🌑 Kobayashi 🌑 Baker Street Boys 🌑 Grand End

-> Psychedelica Of The Black Butterfly 🌟

🌕 Real World Ending 🌕 Bud Ending 🌕 Happy Ending 🌕 Bad Ending 🌕 Kagiha Ending 🌕 Hikage Ending 🌕 Yamato Ending 🌕 Monshiro Ending 🌕 Karasuba Ending 🌕 Karasuba Good Ending 🌕 Kazuya Ending 🌕 Yamato Good Ending

-> Red Embrace: Hollywood

🌕 Common 1 🌕 Common 2 🌕 Randal 1 🌑 Randal 2 🌑 Randal 3 🌕 Randal 4 🌑 Randal 4 (Leader) 🌕 Randal 5 (S.E.) 🌑 Heath 1 🌑 Heath 1 (Leader) 🌕 Heath 2 🌕 Heath 3 🌕 Heath 4 (S.E.) 🌑 Markus 1 🌑 Markus 1 (Leader) 🌑 Markus 2 🌕 Markus 3 🌕 Markus 4 (S.E.)

-> Psychedelica of the Ashen Hawk 🌟

🌕 People 🌕 Heroes 🌕 Bad 🌕 Lord 🌕 Lavan 🌕 Heroine 🌕 Levi 🌕 Lugus 🌕 Hugh 🌕 Traveler 🌕 Links 🌕 Wolf

-> Dark Nights

🌗 Zeikun 🌑 Junoru 🌑 Sachiro 🌑 Kurato

-> Gods Of Love 🌟

🌕 Lysander 🌕 Helder 🌕 Exinious 🌕 Rhane

-> Re:Birthday Song 🌟

🌕 Yoru 🌕 Kairi 🌕 Syun 🌕 Ame 🌕 Nami

-> Ayakashi Gohan

🌕 Inushima Yomi 🌕 Serigano Manatsu 🌕 Hana Suou 🌕 Inushima Uta 🌗 Ibuki Haginosuke 🌑 Kimura Asagi

-> Bad Medicine ~Infectious Teachers~

🌗 Kuzuha Kakeru 🌑 Shido Kaname 🌑 Yanagi Ryota

-> Taisho x Alice I 🌟 🌕 Red Riding Hood 🌕 Cinderella

-> Taisho x Alice II 🌟 🌕 Gretel 🌕 Kaguya

-> Taisho x Alice III 🌟 🌕 Wizard 🌕 Snow White

-> Taisho x Alice Epilogue 🌟 🌕 Alice

-> Taisho x Alice Heads & Tails 🌑 Cinderella 🌑 Red Riding Hood 🌑 Kaguya 🌑 Gretel 🌑 Snow White 🌑 Wizard 🌑 Alice 🌕 Ryouishi

-> Ozmafia 🌕 Caramia 🌑 Kyrie 🌑 Axel 🌑 Scarlet 🌑 Caesar 🌑 Soh 🌑 Pashet 🌑 Robin Hood 🌑 Brothel 🌑 Hamelin

-> Fxxx Me Royally!! 🌑 Kaoru 🌑 Ryuusei

🕒 Cheritz

-> Mystic Messenger 🌟

🌕 Jumin [valentines confession|http://aminoapps.com/p/200ytad] 🌕 Yoosung 🌕 707 🌕 Zen 🌕 V 🌕 Ray 🌕 Jaehee

🕒 Voltage

-> Love 365

🌕 Yamato - My Forged Wedding 🌕 Yuma - Buter Until Midnight 🌕 Genji - In Your Arms Tonight 🌕 Sosuke - Finally In Love Again 🌕 Subaru - My Sweet Boyfriend 🌕 Eisuke - Kissed By The Baddest Bidder

🕒 Visual Wordplay

-> Locked Heart

🌗 Sol D'Lockes (Mama Bear) 🌑 Royal LeBlanc (Papa Bear) 🌑 Deon D'Lockes (Baby Bear)

🕒 Hunex Co. Ltd.

-> Ephemeral

🌕 Shiba The Werewolf (R) 🌗 Shiba The Werewolf (L) 🌑 Nagi The Invisible Man (R) 🌑 Nagi The Invisible Man (L) 🌕 Ray The Vampire (R) 🌗 Ray The Vampire (L) 🌕 Natsume The Mummy (R) 🌕 Natsume The Mummy (L)

-> On The QT 🌟

🌕 Hibiki 🌕 Keima 🌕 Akira

-> Ephemeral - Miniature Garden 🌟

🌕 Hisui 🌕 Rion 🌕 Yugu

-> My Lovey

(Secret Crush) 🌟 🌕 Soshi Kujo 🌕 Masaki Kirigaya 🌕 Kotaro Kurumi 🌕 Reo Takatsuki

(Fantasy Of The Mind) 🌟 🌕 Julius 🌕 Kay 🌕 Lucian 🌕 Diorca

(Shinobi Kakuran Musou) 🌗 Hayate 🌑 Mikage 🌑 Kugumo 🌑 Yukinojo

🕒 NTT Solmare Corp. Games

-> Story Jar

🌕 (Deluxe Ver. The Last Sacrifice | The Demon King's Desire) 🌕 (The Last Sacrifice | Forbidden Ties)

(The World Or You)

-> Ninja Love

🌕 Sasuke Sarutobi 🌑 Goemon Ishikawa 🌑 Saizo Kirigakure 🌑 Kotaro Fuma 🌑 Musashi Miyamoto 🌑 Munenori Yagyu 🌑 Rennoshin 🌑 Hanzo Hattori 🌑 Nobunaga Oda

-> Obey Me 🌟

🌕 Lucifer 🌕 Mammon 🌕 Leviathon 🌕 Satan 🌕 Asmodeus 🌕 Beelzebub 🌕 Belphegor

🕒 Hanabi Media Games

-> Love Magic 🌟

🌕 Minuet 🌕 Paris

-> Love Magic 2

🌕 Minuet 🌑 Paris

-> High School Love

🌕 Tetsuya 🌑 Naoki

-> Love Triangle 🌟

🌕 Tsukasa 🌕 Kazuya

-> Ghost Love Story

🌕 Kyle 🌑 Vincent

-> Vampire Love

🌑 Tom 🌕 Sam

🕒 Ciagram Co. ltd.

-> Princess Closet

🌕 Reo 🌑 Shuu 🌑 Kai 🌗 Akito

-> Nightmare Harem

🌕 Lucia 🌕 Kaim 🌕 Levy 🌕 Mikael 🌗 Noel 🌕 Ricardo 🌑 Mefy 🌑 Oswald 🌑 Lucas

-> Dateless Love 🌟

🌕 Soji Okita 🌕 Toshizo Hijikata 🌕 Shota Yuki 🌕 Yoshinobu Tokugawa 🌕 Akinara Aiya 🌕 Shinsaku Takasugi 🌕 Ryoma Sakamoto 🌕 Shuntaro Furutaka

🕒 Genius Inc.

-> My Twin Romance

🌗 Haru 🌑 Yuki 🌑 Both 🌑 Shizuki

🕒 Seec Inc.

-> Jimi-Kare My Quiet Boyfriend 🌟

🌕 Prince Ending 🌕 Arrogant Ending 🌕 Dark-Side Ending 🌕 Princess Ending

-> In Search Of Haru 🌟

🌕 Haruka 🌕 Takaharu 🌕 Bad Ending 🌕 Haruto

🕒 Day7

-> Miss Detective's Undercover

🌕 Sean 🌗 Jeremy 🌑 Walter 🌑 Mystic Thief

-> Love Signal: D-Mate

🌑 Simon Lane 🌑 Richard Upton 🌑 David Mason 🌗 P:Ure 🌕 Greg Odell 🌑 Tay Caden

-> Marked By King Bs 🌟

🌕 Ashton Griffin 🌕 Nicholas Rosada 🌕 William Kal 🌕 Zack Snyder 🌕 Joel Barret

-> Loved By King Bs

🌑 Ashton Griffin 🌑 Nicholas Rosada 🌗 William Kal 🌑 Zack Snyder 🌑 Joel Barret 🌑 Erick Blanche

-> Sleeping Delivery

🌗 Damian Kraus 🌕 Luke Morris 🌕 Julian Parker 🌑 Leo Reinhardt 🌑 Sebastian Weiss

-> Beauty Rental Shop

🌑 Toby Lowell 🌑 Lucian Vasilis 🌗 Soren Rayne 🌑 Kylar Xander

-> SECRET Fan Crush

🌑 Leon 🌑 Woobin 🌑 Haejin 🌑 Dohwon 🌑 Taehee 🌕 Parang Ki

-> Proposed by A Demon Lord

🌑 Penn 🌑 Hael 🌗 Laika 🌑 Riley 🌑 Vernius 🌑 Ren 🌑 Cornell 🌑 Isaac

🕒 Avocado Entertainment

-> Vampire Idol

🌑 Edgar 🌑 Kang Tae Jun 🌑 Ian 🌑 Lee Sun Woo 🌑 Baek Do Ha

🕒 DeareaD Inc.

-> Monster's First Love

🌗 Achille 🌑 Ibuki 🌑 King

🕒 StoryTaco.inc

-> Dangerous Fellows - Romantic Thrillers

🌕 Zion 🌕 Eugene 🌑 Lawrence 🌕 Harry 🌕 Ethan

-> Queen's Number - Jackpot is not my concern 🌟

🌕 Aaron 🌕 Freyr 🌕 Gon 🌕 Mo-wan

🕒 Nix Hydra

-> The Arcana : A Mystic Romance

🌗 Julian 🌗 Asra 🌑 Nadia 🌑 Lucio 🌑 Muriel 🌑 Portia

-> Storm Lover Kai!!

🌕 Kyosuke Mikoshiba 🌕 Yuto Uzuki 🌑 Mio Ikari 🌑 Rikka Toratani 🌑 Soya Tatsuhara 🌕 Takumi Mishiro 🌑 Tsukasa Sugai 🌑 Chihiro

-> Collar x Malice 🌟

🌕 Kei Okazaki 🌕 Mineo Enomoto 🌕 Takeru Sasazuka 🌕 Kageyuki Shiraishi 🌕 Aiji Yanagi

-> Code Realize ~Guardian Of Rebirth~ 🌟

🌕 Arsène Lupin 🌕 Abraham Van Helsing 🌕 Victor Frankenstein 🌕 Impey Barbicane 🌕 Saint-Germain

-> Piofore: Fated Memories

🌗 Nicola Francesca 🌕 Dante Falzone 🌑 Gilbert Redford 🌕 Yang 🌑 Orlok 🌑 Finale Route

-> Birushana 🌕 Noritsune Taira 🌕 Shungen 🌑 Benkai Mukashibo 🌕 Yoritomo Minamoto 🌕 Tomomori Taira

-> Cupid Parasite 🌑 Allan Melville 🌑 Raul Aconite 🌑 Gill Lovecraft 🌑 Shelby Snail 🌑 Ryuki Keisaiin -> Virche Evermore 🌟 🌕 Lucas 🌕 Mathis 🌕 Scien 🌕 Yves 🌕 Le Salut (Adolphe/Ankou)

-> Hana Awase New Moon Here I am considering each game as a single route. 🌕 Iroha Volume 🌕 Mizuchi Volume 🌑 Karakurenai/Utsutsu Volume 🌑 Himeutsugi Volume

-> even if TEMPEST 🌟 🌕 Crius Castlerock 🌕 Tyril I Lister 🌕 Zenn Sorfield 🌕 Lucien Neuschburn 🌕 Ish

To Play 1. Olympic Soiree 2. Butterfly’s Poison; Blood Chains

#otome #otome game #cybird otome #otome romance #english otome #visual novel #sympathy kiss #game #masterlist #list

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gabriel-gabdiel · 1 year ago

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【Draft】 Rurouni Yahiko Chapter 60: The Curtain Falls

We now discuss the aftermath of another assassination attempt by the infamous Brigands Guild.

The Seiryu Clan are now gathering to protect their masters, the hatamoto-class samurai family of the Minakatas, like it's the Tokugawa Era all over again.

As the final daimyo of Shimabara, Tadachika Matsudaira of the Matsudaira Clan pledged his allegiance to Emperor Meiji.

As a show of good will towards the tenets of "Sonno Joi" of the new administration, Matsudaira allowed the new Meiji Government to hunt the Hidden Christians down and eventually crush the new Shimabara Rebellion of Nidaime Amakusa Shiro Tokisada (Shiro Tokisada Amakusa the Second).

Soon afterwards, the Shimabara Domain was abolished in 1871 and it became part of Nagasaki.

To avenge the death of his master (the blind swordsman Hyoue Nishida) at the hands of Hyoue's nephew Shogo Amakusa (at the time known as Shiro Amakusa the Second), Kinta Minakata agreed to infiltrate the ranks of the Kakure Kirishitan (Hidden Christian) cult to destroy it from within on behalf of the Meiji Government.

With his skill with the sword, the former Mimawarigumi Battousai learned to become Amakusa's Kagemusha (literally "Shadow Warrior" but figuratively "Body Double") and master Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu as they continued their insurrection, treason, assassinations, and terrorism of Japan.

Only for Minakata to double-cross the Christians and defeat their cult leader Shiro Amakusa (real name Shogo Muto) in mortal combat. He became their literal Judas Iscariot.

Nevertheless, successfully deploying Kinta's Nisshoku (Solar Eclipse) against a formidable supersonic technique like Shogo's Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki (Heavens Gliding Dragon Flash)wasn't possible to do with just the Aoitsuki O Tsuki Nari (Blue Moon Slash).

The Blue Moon Slash—actually a Double Full Moon Slash done at the fraction of a fraction of a second—might be able to match the Hirameki in speed, but not in power.

Especially since the Amakakeru's left-footed torque gave it enough centrifugal force to create a vacuum or vortex of empty air, thus doubling the impact of the second strike.

Instead of creating a second Full Moon Slash, Kinta used his great skill and timing to reverse the direction of his circular slash from an upwards slash to a downwards one, moving the flipped blade on the same trajectory as before but backwards.

Reversing his momentum gave his sword the torque it needed to match the strength or even surpass the speed of the Hirameki's second slash, thus enabling him to do the Solar Eclipse counter on Shogo's ultimate technique.

Like a reverse-direction Blue Moon Slash that slashed at the same empty space he'd already slashed through previously before the air could fill it up again, resulting in a frictionless strike that perfectly transferred its total energy without any wind resistance.

That was the Tsubame Gaeshi (Swallow Return). This was the ultimate hidden skill taught to Kinta by Amakusa's Uncle Hyoue.

The same one that the black sheep of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu discovered when he hesitated to deliver the killing blow to his own master, Seijuro Hiko XII.

A reverse-momentum riposte after missing with initial the battoujutsu or iaijutsu slash that sliced faster than the Blue Moon Slash and struck as hard as the second Hirameki slash.

***

Rurouni Yahiko

A Rurouni Kenshin Continuation Fan Fiction Story by Chester Castañeda

Take a bow. The night is over. The Brigands Guild latest assassination attempt has been foiled by Yahiko Myojin, the Sanada Ninjas, and Kinta Minakata… for now.

Disclaimer: All characters used in this fanfic (save some others) are the rightful property of Nobuhiro Watsuki, Shueisha, Shonen Jump, Viz, Sony Studios, Fuji TV, Studio Gallup, Studio Deen, and ADV. This disclaimer also covers all the other copyrighted material that are far too many to mention here. Don't sue me please, I'm very poor.

***

Chapter 60: The Curtain Falls

***

Back at the front yard of the Minakata moneychanger office…

It was finally over.

"Ugh, NOOOOO! DAMMIT!" cried out Lucas Grant into the darkness, a velvet cloth of his own blood draping over his consciousness like a curtain over a theater stage, the light from his eyes fading.

He had him. Well, he almost had him. But he had him. He was so close. But he tripped at the finish line and underestimated him.

Or maybe Luke gave Kinta too much respect because his estranged brother truly was a saint among sinners when compared to the rest of his… their scumbag family.

Faster than even a Blue Moon Slash, he got sliced open from hip to shoulder. What just happened? What hit him exactly as he strode on the verge of victory?

"What was that technique?" Luke demanded to know, his body shaking like a leaf, his blood pooling below him.

"The Tsubame Gaeshi," answered Kinta while brushing away his matted hair in between belabored breaths, his face as pale as a ghost's.

While the bloody Lucas steamed with rage, high-blood pressure, and disbelief, Kinta exuded cold sweats, alabaster skin, and a dropping blood pressure.

In spite of himself, Luke laughed, blood spurting all over him in a shower. "Well done, Samurai."

The Prodigal Son then heard the self-proclaimed Fuuma Ninja Kai Hidaka scream something about getting over there.

Luke's head snapped into attention and stared to his side, only to see Kai engaged in battle with a tall blonde woman wielding a naginata.

His vision blurring, Luke had a brief dream of himself practicing the art of kenjutsu with his elder brother Kinta and that same European(?) girl he just saw like they were old childhood friends.

As if his delirium had taken over.

Only for the fantasy to shatter with the reality of him living in squalor as one of the forgotten burakumin (untouchables) of Japan, after the Minakata Family forsook him and his mother.

Only to see a vision of the Minakata’s disowned daughter working in the Red Light District of Yoshiwara to make ends meet for them, which roused him from his dead faint.

As he understood it, they quietly sent her away to preserve the dignity of the Minakata name, whatever that meant.

Tetsuo Akahori revealed the truth about him and the traitorous Minakatas who disowned his mother for having an affair with a foreign dignitary during the heightening tensions and growing anti-foreigner sentiment of Japan at the dawn of the Bakumatsu.

The single mother and her son became collateral damage against the hostility between the kowtowed shogunate, the restless samurai, and the gaijin who forced to open Japan's borders by force, revealing how backwards and primitive the country had become thanks to its isolationism.

No, wait. This was far from over.

***

Many years ago, before Niitsu Kakunoshin became the disciple of Hiko Seijuro XII…

A young, non-blind Hyoue Nishida faced a dilemma.

The deeply religious man needed to kill his beloved (if strict and no-nonsense) Master Hiko to learn the succession technique of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu and become the newest inheritor of the swordsmanship school. However, doing so was at odds with his beliefs.

What was he supposed to do? He really needed to complete his training to protect the Hidden Christians from exposure and persecution from the Shogunate.

He'd heard of the horror stories of how the government tortured anyone they caught practicing this forbidden "foreign" religion, such as nearly drowning them by dunking them upside-down into a well or putting long carpentry nails into their fingertips until they recanted their faith.

Some Christians even had their fingernails plucked right out of their bed. Or they were outright crucified like their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Fearing how Western nations used Christianity to colonize other countries, the Tokugawa Government had a zero-tolerance policy against any citizen converting to Christianity.

This was the reason why the Hidden Christians remained hidden in plain sight, with their churches located inside caves and their statues of Jesus or Mother Mary as well as the cross put under lock and key in secret compartments.

The pacifistic swordsman Nishida wished to have the power to protect these persecuted faithful without spilling any bloodshed. He wanted to practice the Sword of Life the same way he followed the gospel or the Word of Life.

He wished to use Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu as his Sword of Life to wield for the sake of others and to protect people. His people. The Hidden Christians of Shimabara.

He wanted to do so through the same sword that defeated entire armies and saved whole villages during the Sengoku Era.

Those wielding the Sword of Life were absolutely not allowed to kill or to lose. To lose would not only spell their doom but also the doom of the ones they were trying to protect.

If his only options were to kill his master to succeed him or get killed himself, then he'd find a third option to save them both, so that everyone could end up happy. So he wouldn’t break one of the Ten Commandments.

After praying over and over again to God for guidance, the Christian peacemaker found his answer.

'God is great. Praise be to God,' Nishida had taught at the time. 'I leave my fate in your hands, oh Lord Jesus. I trust in You. Thy will be done.'

***

Back at the front yard of the Minakata moneychanger office…

Kai Hidaka couldn't believe his eyes. The damage sponge and unstoppable juggernaut known as Lucas Grant had finally fallen against the hands of the so-called Kagemusha in a single exchange.

At the same time, he heard the righteous indignation from the voice of the blonde bombshell known as Satsuki Sakaguchi (also known as May Brooks) for good measure, with her charging forward with her trusty naginata (polearm blade) in tow.

"Keep your mitts away from Kyoko-chan and Mr. Sakaguchi!" screamed Satsuki at him.

Hidaka, her opponent, also currently looked like a dagger pincushion thanks to the efforts of Zan of the Sanada Demons.

Man, today just wasn't their day, was it? By "them", he meant the Brigands Guild.

Cursing under his breath, Kai charged, ignoring the agony of his body that served as a knife holder to Zan's daggers.

As for May's part, she saw red as soon as she got a look at the state of Kyoko Sakaguchi and her father Satoru. She didn't even have time to register that Kinta Minakata himself faced his own death match just a few yards away.

Like a purebred mare with blinders on, she focused solely on the ninja with the destroyed gas mask. A traitorous Japanese or East Asian man on the side of gaijin assassins.

He'd touch not one hair on either of them. Her Grandpa Sakaguchi's family. No, her family.

Something weird then happened. Kai found himself in the same predicament as before with Zan. Satsuki could reach and slash at him with Old or Young Moon Slashes at will with an insane reach.

Like she had an infinite supply of throwing knives that she used to suppress Hidaka from getting anywhere near Satoru and Kyoko Sakaguchi. Except it was a blade on a stick so she recycled her throwing knives by stabbing the same blade every time.

After struggling against a strange centipede version of the lion dance mascot with reinforced steel carapaces, razor-sharp limbs, and experienced Chinese kung-fu experts serving as its puppeteers earlier, she could finally let off some steam against one of the brigands.

She intended to defeat Kai like she did the gigantic human centipede mascot: By controlling the distance and taking him apart piece-by-piece, like her taking down those martial artist hooligans one-by-one. Thusly, that was what happened.

The already exhausted Fuuma Clan Ninja couldn't even touch the Caucasian martial artist, her naginata's slashing and stabbing range as far as that of a thrown projectile. Or, ironically, one of Hidaka's rope hooks and darts.

She unloaded on him like a Gatling gun onto an advancing army. Or even a Maxim gun. Every time Kai tried to get near her, it felt like he just dove face-first into a cactus patch. Or a shower of flesh-rending broken glass.

***

Many years ago, before Niitsu Kakunoshin became the disciple of Hiko Seijuro XII…

Hyoue Nishida found a way to master Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu and learn the Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki without murdering his beloved master over it, and it rooted from him hearing about tales of the inimitable Kojiro Sasaki battling against Musashi Miyamoto.

Hyoue had never seen Kojiro's signature technique before, but he heard stories about how the riposte moved so quick it allowed Sasaki to cut apart a sparrow or swallow (hence its name) in mid-flight.

He had been secretly practicing the Swallow Return over and over ever behind his master's back since he first heard about its legend leading up to his confrontation with his master.

He tried to figure out its mechanics from merely hearing about how it worked. To reverse-engineer a move he'd only heard about from rumors, legends, and folktales.

Hyoue threw caution to the wind and let his fate in the hands of his Christian God, the Almighty Yahweh. If he died in his attempt to spare his master's life, then so be it.

That was the kind of man Hyoue Nishida was.

And so the day of him learning the succession technique arrived. He was able to do the Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki but intentionally missed with his first strike.

His master blocked then did the Kuzu Ryu Sen (Nine-Headed Dragon Flash) to force him to do the even stronger second follow-up strike. A surefire killing blow with any normal katana (as opposed to the sakabatou).

However, Hyoue refused to do the second strike that would've finished Seijuro Hiko XII off.

Instead, he did an imperfect version of the Swallow Return, resulting in him getting blown back by Master Hiko's Kuzu Ryu Sen.

A miracle then happened during the fateful duel between master and student.

Hyoue ended up slipping off the cliff he and his master fought on, dropping into the waterfall below after getting lacerated all over by his master's multi-hit move.

However, he avoided death from his refusal to do the succession technique properly because the Tsubame Gaeshi managed to shatter Seijuro's sword in turn, so his cuts ultimately ended up shallow and non-fatal.

Later on, after recovering from his wounds, he'd thank God for helping him learn not one but two new skills—the Hirameki and the Tsubame Gaeshi—while keeping his master from dying by his hands in order to learn them.

***

Back at the front yard of the Minakata moneychanger office…

Kai Hidaka had enough of Satsuki Sakaguchi's "Death by a Thousand Cuts" nonsense and pulled one of the daggers on (or in) his person to throw it at the wobbly and spent Kinta to complete their assassination mission.

Predictably, this made Satsuki charge and attack up close, deflecting the dagger before it could even reach Kinta's back. With her moving right into Kai's range so that he didn't need to close the distance between them.

"That's right. GET OVER HERE!" screamed the Fuuma shinobi.

At such a close range, her long-ranged polearm was rendered moot while Kai Hidaka could move freely with his sword daggers and entangle her with his rope darts.

"Satsuki-neechan, watch out!" cried out Kyoko as she covered her face by reflex yet peeked out of her open fingers to see what happened next.

'Ha. Women are so emotional and predictable,' thought Kai as he withstood May’s flesh-cutting slashes and dodged the stabbing attempt that would've run him through.

May Brooks smirked. For the last few weeks, she'd been sparring with Yahiko Myojin to learn how to dodge and defend herself from close-range, knowing that was her previous weak point.

'What the hell…!?' thought Hidaka as Brooks shortened her grip on her polearm and held it closer to the blade, like a regular sword.

This allowed her to parry his quicker, shorter swords with her blade or even use the freed up space on her pole to deflect his attacks from there, with her gripping it like a sword with an extra-long handle.

"MIKAZUKI O TSUKU NARI (CRESCENT MOON SLASH)!"

She could throw Crescent and Quarter Moon Slashes at that midrange as well. Whether it was from the Waxing or Waning Stance.

And, when Kai attempted to escape from her close-quarter rampage to regroup, she merely gripped her naginata normally by its base to slash at him from mid-range to long-range. He couldn't escape from her at all.

The bloody Kai dodged those slashes regardless and moved in even closer, intending to grapple with the tall woman, grab her from behind, and then slit her throat.

The adopted Sakaguchi daughter merely stepped back and responded with a, "HANGETSU O TSUKU NARI (HALF MOON SLASH)!" that, lucky for Kai, hit him by the blunt pole end instead of the sharp bladed end.

Kai dropped to his side like a bag of hammers. Fortunately, he avoided having the knives in his person stab him any worse than before.

***

After Hyoue Nishida spared himself and his master Hiko Seijuro XII from needing to kill each other to master Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu...

Nishida would later become one of the founding fathers of Musou Madden Ryu, the swordsmanship school Kinta would eventually master.

The Seiryu Clan helped him develop his own swordsmanship skills divorced from Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu, which in turn allowed him to protect the Hidden Christians from harm and discovery against the Tokugawa Shogunate.

He became the bane of many an officer of the law, samurai, or local authorities in Shimabara, hiding under the masked identity of Kirisaki of the Hidden Christians. Their divine protector from persecution and death.

Notably, Kirisaki the Christian freed jailed and tortured Christians or helped them find refuge among other Hidden Christians while never taking the life of their enemies.

The ruling shogunate also tolerated Kirisaki’s presence because on top of rescuing rogue Christians, he also helped catch criminals for them.

As though exchanging the lives of the criminals for the Christians he saved.

Kirisaki became an asset to the government it defied, so they turned a blind eye on its treasonous activities of hiding and rescuing essentially fugitives of the law in exchange for his vigilantism.

Like Morihei Ueshiba with the development of Aikido, the Christian swordsman considered Musou Madden Ryu as a synthesis of his martial studies, philosophy, and religious beliefs.

It combined everything Nishida learned from Sengoku Era Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu and old-school battoujutsu with Hasegawa Eishin Ryu, an iaijutsu koryu from the 16th Century founded by Chikaranosuke Eishin Hasegawa.

By the way, the Sakaguchis previously studied under Hasegawa Eishin Ryu prior to the development of Musou Madden Ryu.

From under this school did Hyoue, the Sakaguchis, and several others derive their take on modern iaijutsu or iaido before and after the Bakumatsu commenced in earnest.

Some students followed Hyoue's pacifistic "Sword of Life" lessons. Nishida and Ueshiba shared the same goal of creating a martial art that practitioners could use to defend themselves while also protecting their attackers from harm.

Others insisted in continuing to go the path of the "Sword of Death" or old-school kenjutsu and iaijutsu because in reality, kenjutsu was the art of killing and katanas were weapons used for murder.

They merely used "Sword of Life" as a safe way to practice and temper their deadly skills. Like doing no-contact sparring and kata drills before engaging in "the real deal".

However, as Japan went to civil war and heads of state rolled in Shimabara, the old officers that tolerated Kirisaki and his protection of Hidden Christians died out.

The "Sonno Joi" movement also led to renewed hatred of everything foreign, including Christians who followed the religion of foreigners. They got hunted down like stray dogs in times of famine soon after.

Years after Hyoue rescued his young nephew and niece from being purged for being Hidden Christians, he'd later get blinded by a teenaged Shogo Amakusa because he wanted revenge against the new government.

Hyoue would later train how to use the "Sword of Life" while blind, using his other sharpened senses to deal with people safely in battle, with him only using violence as a last resort.

All this time, even during the middle of the Bakumatsu, Nishida never took a life. He wasn't a pure pacifist. He was willing to draw swords and do battle when push came to shove. However, like Kenshin as a rurouni, he followed a non-killing vow.

And his nephew Shogo bitterly blamed this vow for the deaths of their people.

In the end, the Swallow Return was also the last technique Nishida used before dying in the hands of his nephew, the self-proclaimed Second Coming of Shiro Amakusa, Shogo Muto.

That was the blind swordsman's last-ditch effort to keep his nephew Shogo from going the dark path of cult leader and domestic terrorist.

Hyoue remained defiant to the end, unwilling to compromise on his Christian beliefs and unwillingness to take a life even at the cost of his own.

***

Like a newborn fawn, Lucas stood and wobbled on shaky legs, his clicky knees knocking together like the Shinsengumi knocking on your door, thinking you were harboring an Ishin Shishi fugitive.

By sheer force of will, he trudged forward.

Despite everything, the wheezing Kinta also sacrificed himself to land that last attack when by the tail end of their protracted battle, no Full Moon Slash or Double Full Moon Slash could land on Lucas.

Doing a Full Moon Slash iaijutsu from the start subjected the swordsman’s body to muscle-tearing or even bone-crushing centrifugal forces, especially one involving a reverse-momentum riposte like the Swallow Return!

It was hard to imagine the damage he was doing to his body, but surely it was enough to push him over his own limits!

Kinta's gasping mouth went agape as his little bastard brother marched towards him. Like an unkillable zombie. Like the Ochimusha the Minakatas were allegedly descended from.

What did it take for Luke to go down? How was he still standing?!

What did he go through all those years after he and his mother were banished from the Minakata Family that pushed him beyond his human limits?

Kinta himself sheathed his sword and hobbled in anticipation of his bastard brother's final attack, his scratchy throat withholding a bloody cough.

The Prodigal Son of the Minakatas had every right to wipe out their sinful clan.

However, it remained Kinta's duty as the grandson, nephew, and son of the family to protect his uncles and grandmother.

Lucas then leaped towards his unlucky brother as soon as his body gave in and he coughed, blood spraying from his mouth.

At the side of the entrance, both Yahiko Myojin and Sho Kojima—who accompanied Tatsuya Minakata back to the office to rescue Kinta —ran as fast as they could towards the Prodigal Son as soon as they spotted him attacking a coughing and defenseless Kinta.

Alas, they were too far away to make it.

Ditto with May Brooks, who'd just made short work of the injured Kai Hidaka.

She ran blindly at Lucas Grant, unaware of his connection with Kinta Minakata, but stopped short from running him through in spite of herself.

After years of living in Japan as the only other "gaijin", it was the first time she'd seen someone who was Caucasian like her, which sent a shock to her system for about a second.

A second was all the time Luke needed to finish off the huge wall that kept him from enacting revenge at the evil Minakata Family.

A flying kunai not unlike those wielded by Zan of the Sanada Demons flew in between Grant's eyes.

"Who…!?" a frothing Lucas demanded as used his sword's handle to deflect the weapon, his one second of opportunity to assassinate Kinta now gone.

Did that damn persistent Zan revive and get in his way again? No, it was the dagger of the other ninja bodyguard who was also from the Sanada Ninja Clan. Their young master, Kaita.

Luke swiped at Kinta regardless, blindly hitting the invisible ninja instead as his crossed short blades broke under the weight of the heavy bastard sword.

The Prodigal Son then turned and blocked a sudden naginata slash with his blade, leaving him open to a number of other incoming attacks. Turning the full-rotation Full Moon Slash into a Half Moon Slash.

"Get the hell away from Kinta-sama…!" screamed Satsuki Sakaguchi, who remembered who she was now.

Or rather, who she became: A devoted student of Musou Madden Ryu and the adopted granddaughter of the Sakaguchis, who in turn loyally served under the Minakata Family since the olden times of the Shogunate.

It was Luke’s turn to wonder where he was and why he was fighting a blue-eyed blonde Caucasian warrior woman in full martial artist garb wielding a Japanese glaive, his brain unable to process what he saw.

'Wait a minute. This girl…!' he thought. He couldn’t possibly be mistaken.

Unless he met another tall, white (creamy pink, more like) golden-haired woman in Japan, he had seen this girl before. The chances of meeting two foreign blonde girls who spoke fluent Japanese in Japan were next to nil!

Lucas then noticed the incoming attacks of his other hindrances.

The charging Yahiko's temple then got clipped by a hook punch from the struggling Luke, but as he fell to the ground, he pushed forward and did the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu Tsuka no Gedan—Hiza Hijiki knee strike that made the Prodigal Son buckle.

Finally, Sho unsheathed his sword and let its handle fly into Luke's gut, knocking the wind out of him and making him drop his sword in wincing pain, which embedded itself to the ground.

This was another form of the Lunar Eclipse: A half-drawn blade with the handle aimed at the opponent's gut before either could fully draw their blades.

Like a rampaging gorilla, Luke punched, kicked, elbowed, and threw the people nearest him, his eyes solely focused on his half-brother Kinta, who had already recovered from his coughing fit.

Yahiko shook his head in disbelief. What did it take to put this man down? He seemed as strong as Sanosuke, if not stronger…!

Soon, a dogpile occurred. Multiple coppers were called into the Yokohama Chinatown to seize the assassin. They became messy entanglemen of limbs, sai, wooden swords, and rope.

The police finally arrived along with Chizuru Raikouji and Abelia La Cerca.

The dead-tired Yahiko surveyed the carnage. Blood spilled everywhere. Several people were injured. Multiple bodyguards were killed inside and outside the moneychanger building.

Regardless, the Brigands Guild's invasion in Chinatown had ended, at long last.

'It's finally over,' thought the exhausted Kinta as Abelia tended to him and his wounds.

***

The Yokohama Police had quite the busy night, with them arresting criminals working with foreign invader assassins left and right, most of which were Chinese nationals from the local Chinatown criminal syndicate.

However, only Lucas Grant ended up getting arrested. Somehow, someway, while they were all distracted by Luke's last-ditch attempt at taking out his half-brother Kinta, Kai Hidaka disappeared.

The aching Yahiko suspected that The Faceless had something to do with it. He probably fetched his fellow Brigands Guild member in the middle of the chaos.

He almost had him too during their duel, but the strange masked brigand had more tricks up his sleeve like the experienced mercenary that he was. Like he changed personalities and styles depending on the mask he wore.

‘Now who does that remind me of?’ the teenaged samurai thought with a smirk.

However, their boss had now been caught by the authorities. Will they still continue with their mission of taking out the wealthy and influential Minakata Family?

Meanwhile, little Abelia attended to the gasping and wheezing Kinta after applying first-aid on Satoru Sakaguchi and his daughter Kyoko along with the other medics on the scene looking for other survivors.

Bandages and salves were also handed off to Yahiko Myojin and Satsuki Sakaguchi.

The two sparring mates grinned at one another and crossed their weapons together. Their lengthy training sessions at the Sakaguchi Dojo had paid dividends tonight.

"Good work, Joshua-kun!"

"You too, Satsuki!"

Chizuru herself pinched one of Yahiko's ears like an irate mother and chewed him out for not being careful and needlessly involving himself with other people's business to the point of risking his life.

Like she didn't know better by now.

Yahiko rolled his eyes and allowed the lady to scold him as he withheld a wistful smile that sneaked into the corners of his mouth. Again, though she’d hate to hear him say it, Chizuru reminded him so much of Kaoru Kamiya back at the Kamiya Dojo.

Yahiko had actually reunited with Gan and Minoe earlier, in the middle of him, Kojima, and Kinta's uncle returning to the moneychanger office.

The pair of Munenori Minoe and the Great Gan took down the Chinese mercenaries wearing the lion dance costume in typical violent fashion.

Indeed, Minoe ended up helping out with the mission despite viewing Kinta Minakata as the traitor to Shogo Amakusa’s rebellion, but he was unwilling to join Yahiko any further.

The Tokyo Samurai Descendant thanked the wandering terrorist with the eye patch and wig regardless.

Yahiko had no idea how Kinta Minakata betrayed Munenri, Amakusa, and the Hidden Christians, but he thought better than to pry right now.

The Battousai Group was the furthest thing from his mind at the moment. He’d have to deal with them eventually, of course.

After all, there were foreign invaders afoot. Someone hired them to finish off the so-called Seiryu Clan.

He also had a gut feeling that Amakusa’s faction and the current turn of events were all interconnected somehow.

It seemed too convenient for a Fake Battousai Group to harangue the Sakaguchis, only for the real one to finish them off.

Perhaps Keisuke used the name of one of the Sakaguchis’ enemies for himself. Or perhaps the Battousai Group was the enemy of the Minakatas, which in turn made them the enemies of the Sakaguchis by proxy.

***

Kinta took a long drag of his asthma cigarettes—not made of tobacco, but instead from the leaves of Datura stramonium (thorn apple) that were widely sold in the 1800s and into the early 1900s—given to him by Abelia La Cerca to relieve his respiratory emergency.

The cigarettes provided a means of delivering an inhaled treatment that would be later known by 20th Century medicine as an antimuscarinic alkaloid.

Other than almost suffocating to a dead faint due to exhaustion, he was none the worse for wear. He barely had any cuts deeper than a laceration on him. Most of the blood on his clothes were from Lucas.

Nevertheless, he was the one who almost died instead of his stamina monster of a brother. That (literal) bastard pushed him to his (present) limits.

His whole body trembled and ached from muscle strain. He felt like going into a deep sleep, afraid it’d turn into a coma he wouldn’t wake up from.

Kinta's adrenalin probably still kept him up and standing like his brother did before he was apprehended.

"Are you okay, Kinta-sama?" said Officer Satoru Sakaguchi, who himself got injured by one of the brigands of the Brigands Guild. "It’s time for you to head home and rest."

'He still calls me, Kinta-sama, eh?' Wistfully, Kinta looked up at the endless blackness of the sky and its infinite stars then marveled:

"It's been 17, almost 18 years since the Meiji Era started. There's no reason for you to be trapped into a master-servant relationship with our family."

After a brief pause, Lieutenant Satoru answered, "Don't be silly. Just because of the administration's edicts, we're going to throw away hundreds of years of gratitude? Don't be a stranger, Kinta-sama."

"It's a stupid old tradition," insisted Kinta. "Your family shouldn’t be shackled to mine. Samurai no longer exist. The hatamoto class died out along with the Shogunate."

"Come on, don't make me say it, Sir Kinta." Satoru grinned. "The bonds between our families run deeper than mere traditions and classes. We Sakaguchis are loyal to you because we choose to! We’re bound by fate at this point."

***

Yahiko poked around and eavesdropped on the Yokohama Police chatting with the "Sword of Life" swordsman and drunkard earlier. His name was Sho Kojima, wasn't it?

Sho seemed to have finally sobered up after using his mix of the Drunken Fist and Musou Madden Ryu swordsmanship at The Faceless.

Myojin overheard something about them apprehending three of five known Brigands Guild members.

One had been jailed already—someone who almost killed a squad of Yokohama Policemen had they not been saved in time by that other foreigner girl the size of a ten year old who knew all about western medicine and drugs.

They also put in chains a swarthy hairy giant of a muscular man who wielded a huge ax like it weighed as much as an ordinary sword. They arrested him back in one of the Minakata Family’s many mansions.

And now they actually caught the mastermind of the mercenaries with a direct link to the Minakatas, Lucas Grant. Right on time too, before he could murder one member of their family.

However, it was at the risk and cost of the lives of many of Yokohama’s Finest and their hired private bodyguards, one of whom Lucas impersonated in order to get close to the family.

Had the Minakata Family drama not have national security consequences when push came to shove, Yahiko would rather not interfere with it.

Also, the Akahoris were also somehow intertwined with Minakata busines. Nepotism ran deep in the Meiji Oligarchy, after all, as evidenced by the likes of Jusanro Tani.

Could it be that the Akahoris were also in league with the Minakatas? Could it be that the shared the same enemy, which was Amakusa’s faction?

If so, then why did it seem like Minoe had nothing to do with these Brigands Guild of mercenaries? He was willing to take them down, even for Kinta’s sake.

Yahiko scratched his chin. Maybe he needed to send a carrier pigeon to the Kyoto Oniwabanshu so that he could glean more info on this Seiryu Clan and Minakata Zaibatsu.

Myojin decided then and there to keep digging deeper. What was the reason behind Amakusa's use of Kenshin's name Battousai? Why did he and Minoe’s other self, Kaede, know how to use Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu?

How was Kinta related to the Battousai Group? Did it go beyond him once being called the Mimawarigumi Battousai? Was he another Battousai wannabe too, by that logic?

Just like how Minoe, without the wig and eyepatch, or his other self, Kaede, if she were another gender, was the spirit and image of Kenshin himself?

Oh wait. That last technique Kinta did. The Swallow Return. That was legendary iaijutsu or battoujutsu invented by the famous Kojiro Sasaki himself! Musashi Miyamoto’s chief rival!

Could such a legendary technique from a historical figure like Kojiro Sasaki match the power of the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu’s Heavens Gliding Dragon Flash? Yahiko could only wonder in amazement.

Moreover, was Kinta comparable to Kenshin the same way Soujiro was? The Tokyo Samurai Descendant barely touched the Heaven Sword when they fought. Was Kinta as good, if not better, than Kenshin?

'No way,' Yahiko thought, waving the notion off.

Would there also come a time when he and Kinta Minakata would clash swords themselves?

He wasn't sure. By the looks of things, Kinta and Amakusa left each other in bad terms, judging by Minoe's claims that he was a traitor.

Maybe Minakta wasn't part of the Battousai Group anymore, but Myojin wasn't sure. How loyal were the Minakatas to the Meiji Government despite being one of their favored oligarchs?

As far as Yahiko knew, Kinta and his family were on the side of the oligarchy (of course).

In any case, the Mimawarigumi Battousai was indeed a formidable opponent to be able to dispatch the likes of The Faceless and his own estranged brother like that with techniques like the Swallow Return.

However, to Yahiko, being Kenshin-like wasn’t about techniques and strength. It was more than just being named "Battousai" as well.

It was about moving forward despite all the suffering and crippling depression he faced. It was about being honorable in the face of an imperfect new government filled with corruption.

It was about the strength of defending life after being burdened by the unwashable guilt of taking so many lives.

It was about viewing the true nature of samurai as to improve, become stronger, and become knowledgeable than you were before. Being a samurai meant self-improvement in every sense of the word.

Rather than the other face of samurai being armed thugs serving the Shogunate who were born with privilege. And when that privilege was taken away from them, the samurai became no better than bandit and criminals.

Most importantly, what was the deal with this so-called Seiryu Clan he kept hearing about?

***

"Ah! I almost forgot ‘bout you! Hold still, Señor Samurai!" said the foreign-looking little girl with rust-brown hair who appeared out of nowhere and began bandaging Yahiko’s wounds.

Yahiko took one look at the kid and then called out to the nearby police, "Hey, there’s a lost child here. Might be a foreign kid from the Yokohama Foreign Settlement or something!”

This earned him a bonk on the head from the violent kid. She was a brat, truly.

"OW! Hey! What was that for?"

"What do you mean, 'What was that for?' You called me a lost child!" the girl pointed out, her cheeks inflating cutely like a squirrel's.

Then, to Yahiko’s utter befuddlement, the taciturn Kinta turned towards him and told him, "She's with us."

This in turn earned the already injured Kinta a bonk on his head, followed by an apology. "AH! I’m sorry, Señor Kinta! But that doesn’t clear things up with him at all!"

Rubbing the bump on his head as he watched the doting child scold the poker-faced Minakata, Myojin remembered where he first met the girl. Well, saw her.

It was at the Sakaguchi Dojo. She was with Kinta and that drunken swordsman dude who helped him take on The Faceless, Kojima.

According to the Yokohama Police, she was some kid that had connections with the Brigands Guild that was after the Minakatas. She helped saved them from one of the members, a poison-based assassin.

She was also a lot older than she looked apparently, like she was more of a little person than a child, but Yahiko wasn’t so sure about that claim. Big if true.

The adorable young/old person then turned towards Yahiko and asked, "What's your name again?"

"Huh? Me? Uh, it’s Yahiko. Myojin Yahiko."

"Charmed. My name is Abelia La Cerca. Como estas? I mean, how do you do?"

"Uh, I’m doing fine. Thanks."

'La Cerca?' thought Yahiko. The police told him that was one of The Faceless' many aliases. So she was related to one of the Brigands, huh? Could they trust her? What if she was the Brigands’ mole?

"But you're just a li'l kid," he almost muttered to himself rather than to Abelia.

"Right back at you, kiddo. You're barely a teenager," said the childlike girl midget before him. Girl midget? Gidget?

"Well, you're barely pubescent!" he said. "…Right?"

"It doesn't matter anyway," she said as she attended to Yahiko's wounds with ointment and bandages.

"Heard from the police you have connections with the Minakata's present enemies, the Brigands Guild. Like you're related to some of them or something."

This made Abelia pause. "What of it, Señor Samurai? Are you accusing me of something? Even though you're more of a rando yourself, snooping into other peoples' business?"

"HEY! I'm a friend of the friend of the samurai family serving under the Minakatas, I'll have you know!" blurted out Yahiko in defense of himself. "Also, the name's Myojin Yahiko, not Senyor Samurai!"

He felt a pang of regret from leaving out the part where he decided to intervene into the Minakata Familiy's affairs because of their Kinta's to Shogo Amakusa's Battousai Group.

That info was on a need-to-know basis, but at the same time, he was ironically becoming a hypocritical interloper on someone else's business himself.

"…Heard from Señor Kojima that you're some vagabond who volunteered to become Señor Kinta's bodyguard. And you didn't do half bad against, uh, The Faceless," Abelia said, changing the subject.

Yahiko rubbed the back of his head, flattered.

"Jeez, I was lucky to get some shots in against The Faceless and his fencing style! He actually kind of reminds me of this kid at my dojo. Cat Eyes, I call him. He said he learned fencing to do better at kendo or something."

The samurai kid then caught himself babbling in time to see the Hispanic gidget sneak away from him. "HEY! Nice try, girlie! Flattery will get you nowhere!"

"You sure it didn’t work? It got you talking all giddy for a second," Yahiko heard Abelia mumble.

"Cut the crap, kiddo! Tell me how you're linked with the Brigands! Why are you helping out the Minakatas in the first place even though you're related to them?" he asked.

He then gulped, taken aback by Abelia's teary-eyed confession of, "Just because they're family, it doesn't mean I'm on their side."

"H-Hey, easy there. Don't cry! I didn't mean to make you cry…!" he started, his hands seemingly fluffing an invisible pillow, motioning her to stop.

Abelia stuck her tongue out at Yahiko while pulling an eyelid with an index finger. "As if, you dummy!" She didn't kick the boy's shin in retaliation, but he still flinched and backed away by reflex.

"Kinta-sama saved me from getting killed by mi hermano mayor," she said, trailing off. To herself, she murmured, "Saved me from my own twin brother who had lost his mind. My allegiance is with Kinta-sama, not with the Brigands."

"Oh. Is that right? Your twin brother tried to kill you?" said Yahiko, taking a mental note of the new info while trying his best not to sound too blasé.

'So she has issues with her family that's on the Brigand’s side, huh?' He rubbed his chin with a dubious pout. 'Big if true.'

Then again, Yahiko was one to speak. He also had family issues himself when he served as the yakuza's gopher and pickpocket.

"Just because he's family, it doesn't mean we're on the same side," she said. "Like Kinta-sama, I too have a complicated history with my family."

"Oh," he said. "So his deal with his long-lost brother is the same deal as your brother, huh?"

Abelia left out the part where she and her brother were born as conjoined twins, with her serving as his parasitic twin. He then lost his mind after they were separated through 18th-century surgery.

That was on a need-to-know basis.

"I'm not just flattering you, y'know? You fought to the end. You never surrendered. Even Señor Sho was impressed with the way you held your ground against The Faceless, who was able to take on Señor Kinta on even terms."

Yahiko couldn't help but beam at that last bit of praise. 'So even the great Mimawarigumi Battousai had trouble with that son of a gun!'

Abelia shook her head in wonderment. This boy. This samurai who looked like he'd be no match against her father was able to hold on and keep fighting. Never giving up. Even if it was for the sake of strangers.

Even if the Minakata Family Feud with the Brigands wasn't really any of his business, he still fought with all he had.

She let out a long exhale. "My father isn't an easy man to deal with. "

"Wait a goddamn minute. The Faceless is your father?!" exclaimed Yahiko. "And we're all supposed to believe you're on our side? I mean, their side? Your whole family are practically part of the Brigands Guild!"

She wasn't listening, though. "What pushes you to fight, Señor Yahiko?"

"Hmmm? What do you mean? I was hired as their bodyguard. I was just doing my job!"

"But they're just strangers to you who you've just met, I heard! You fought like a loved one's life was on the line!"

Yahiko scratched his cheek. "Honestly, even if I just met Chizuru and the Sakaguchis recently, they all remind me of my family back home in Tokyo. Also, I can't leave anyone who's in need alone."

"Really? You’d interfere even if it’s none of your business?"

The teen laughed in spite of himself. "Interfering with someone else’s business is more his thing, to be honest, but…"

"Who?" she asked. "Whose 'thing' was it?"

"Someone I look up to," he answered vaguely. 'Someone who also interfered in something that had nothing to do with him just to save me from the yakuza,' he inwardly thought.

Kenshin Himura. The interloper no one asked for who always came to the rescue.

That too was on a need-to-know basis.

"I couldn't leave them well enough alone either, I guess. While there's someone in need before me, I can't help but act," he said.

"Just like the original Battousai, right?" she said with a grin.

"What? How did you…?" began Yahiko.

"Like I said, Señor Sho told me everything," she replied with a giggle. "No wonder you were so brave. You've studied under the man Kinta-sama was named after by the Mimawarigumi. The Hitokiri Battousai!”

***

As the Yokohama Police secured the perimeter, tagged the bodies, interrogated the witnesses, arrested the perps, and gathered evidence, Yahiko finally left that moneychanger office in Chinatown.

He'd finally told them his eyewitness account of what happened, so he was free to go.

Go home, perhaps? Nope, he was far away from Tokyo now. Well, maybe a train ride away, at least.

However, he was already in too deep. As the inheritor of Kenshin's sakabatou and the kanji of "Evil" behind Sanosuke's back, he had a job to do.

There were people using the Hitokiri Battousai's name in vain, creating a so-called Battousai Group meant to sow discord in the Meiji Era.

He had to take these insurgents down.

Furthermore, a former Mimawarigumi member and his Hatamoto-Class Samurai Family were in peril against literal foreign invaders at that.

This man, Kinta, might be his biggest lead yet in taking down the Battousaigumi before they could reform and wreak havoc in peacetime Japan, undoing all the hard work the Kenshingumi did in defending the country against Makoto Shishio's Ten Swords.

Yahiko's eavesdropping also helped him hear whispers about a certain Seiryu Clan and their… Black Book. A book full of names and secrets that could unravel the very fabric of the Meiji Government.

A literal government conspiracy was afoot in the middle of Yahiko investigating a bunch of terrorists sullying the good name of Kenshin Kamiya (nee Himura).

'I'll cross that bridge when I get there,' he thought while rubbing his temples with his fingers. 'What's important is that I've found another potential member of the Battousai Group while keeping an eye on another.'

Yahiko took a deep breath, remembering his misadventures with the eye-patched Munenori Minoe. Or rather, the volatile Kaede Morinaga.

Nevertheless, the Battousai of Speed had finally met up with the traitor to their cause, the Mimawarigumi Battousai, also known as the Battousai of Skill.

The young man scratched his chin. To whom was Kinta Minakata loyal to? The Meiji Government? His family and the family business, the Minakata Zaibatsu?

Or this so-called Seiryu Clan that both the Minakatas and the Sakaguchis belonged to as spies playing both sides of the Tokugawa Government and the Ishin Shishi royalists back in the Bakumatsu?

What happened between him and Shogo Amakusa’s Hidden Christians in the past? Did he really act as a double agent to their rebellion to destroy their cult from the inside and preserve the peace?

Also, what of the mysterious Latina, Abelia La Cerca? Could they trust her word that she wasn’t just a spy for the invading mercenaries, the Brigands Guild? Her very family was involved with them!

The next thing Myojin knew, a faint presence made itself know before him, the darkness parting before him like curtains from a stage play. Before him, garbed like a stagehand, was Kaita.

The ninja protecting the Minakata Family ended up being the related to the ninja who hunted down Kenshin several months ago.

The old man who took a bullet for him to save him from Hitokiri Gasuke—the late Masahiro Takae.

And before him was Kaita Takae. Son of Masahiro Takae.

The ninja warrior turned towards Yahiko, who almost flinched and turned away, but willed himself to stare at him eye-to-eye.

"…." Yahiko gulped, unable to meet the shinobi's fierce gaze.

"What is your name, Yojimbo?" asked Kaita, his resolve and his unblinking eyes practically piercing through Myojin’s awkwardness and discomfort.

"Myojin Yahiko," said Yahiko Myojin. "Son of Tokyo Samurai."

"Fine. Myojin Yahiko. Son of Tokyo Samurai," Kaita Takae pointed his kunai at the teenaged swordsman. "I am Takae Kaita. Son of Shinobi. Prepare yourself when we cross paths again."

Momentarily at a loss for words, the samurai kid sputtered, "But wait…! I have no feud with you! I don’t wish you harm…!"

And indeed, Yahiko did not wish to fight the son of the man who saved his life in exchange of his own, taking the bullet meant for him instead.

"Harm?" Yahiko could hear the smirk underneath Kaita's mask. "Don't flatter yourself, Yojimbo."

"I had no idea Takae was your father," the young Myojin said to Takae’s son honestly. "He said he was the last ninja of your clan."

"He was," said Kaita. "There is no Takae Clan any longer. We’ve been absorbed into the Sanada Ninja Clan by marriage."

'So that’s what that meant,' thought Yahiko, who then sputtered, "I'm so sorry for your loss. He was an honorable fighter who…!"

Kaita interrupted Yahiko, saying, "I know he's an honorable fighter. Even after his retirement as head of our clan, he continued being a mercenary. He lived as a shinobi and died as a shinobi."

From there, the Son of Tokyo Samurai understood Kaita's implication.

Kaita didn't care about the circumstances behind the death of his father. As far as he knew, he died honorably. Then again, Yahiko was partly responsible for Masahiro's death regardless.

Had he been a touch faster or stronger, Yahiko would've… should've defeated Gasuke without him harming Takae or anyone else.

Their eyes met, then Kaita asked, "Was he able to fulfill his final wish of battling the infamous Battousai?"

Oh yeah. Masahiro Takae took on the mission of aiding Hitokiri Gasuke take his revenge against the weakening Battousai than anything else, spying on him for weeks.

Initially, Yahiko thought Takae was a coward like Gasuke, taking on Kenshin after he retired from using the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu rather than fight him at his strongest.

However, Masahiro actually forced Kenshin to use an actual sword with his skill. Even with Himura's declining health and skill, he wanted a taste of what was left of his abilities.

Perhaps Takae, like Battousai, wanted one last duel. A grand finale. A final fight to the death between two old warriors who were past their primes, showing that they still had one good match left in them.

His closed mouth shrinking into a thin line of consternation, Yahiko nodded at Kaita in earnest.

Kaita Takae laughed. "What luck. So you're also connected to the Battousai himself, huh? Thank you, Father. I get to duel against the Battousai’s student!"

"H-Hey, wait…!" said Yahiko, only for him to backpedal when Kaita asked, "Your sword when used like a normal sword cannot kill. That's Battousai's sword, is it not? My father wondered why he'd hold back like that. Was he so skilled he needed a handicap?"

"Hey! It's not like that! Kenshin…!" Myojin tried to explain, but Takae laughed him off.

"It’s no matter. I'll find out soon. I'll let our blades do the talking. This isn’t over, Yojimbo. Until I kill you, make sure no one else does."

"…."

From there, the son of Masahiro Takae who inherited all of his tricks disappeared in the blink of an eye, his silhouette fading from the light and merging back into the shadows.

***

What a day. What a helluva day.

Yahiko took on a foreign group of mercenaries to protect an influential former hatamoto family that was currently part of the Meiji Oligarchy.

Their ninja bodyguard ended up challenging him to a duel to the death one of these days to avenge the death of his retired ninja father whom Yahiko actually met and fought months ago.

Before this, he also had to save the life of another politician from the terrorist cult of the second coming of Shiro Amakusa, also known as Shogo Amakusa. Shogo himself had an eye-patched underling who was sometimes a boy, sometimes a girl.

Furthermore, the grandson of the oligarchs is a former member of Shogo’s cult who betrayed them to the Meiji Government before they could do a proper rebellion.

All this happened in between him helping an old pirate friend, the Crimson Captain Shura, who’d become a privateer in order to avenge the death of a crewmember of hers who sank along with her ship, the Kobayashi Maru.

They rode a commercial ship and ambushed the Wokou responsible for sabotaging her before. Yahiko and friends even managed to get her, the Scourge of the Pacific, a new ship from the Wokou while they were at it.

He also almost forgot how, by sheer coincidence, he was able to meet up with his former crush, Mariko Ebisu. They had such a nostalgic time. Too bad their night turned sour in the end.

He considered leaving Yokohama and going straight to Kyoto to complete his Musha Shugyo (Warrior’s Pilgrimage), seeing that most of the members of the Brigands Guild had already been apprehended save for one.

He'd done his part in thwarting the assassination attempts of these mercenaries, even though to be honest, it seemed that the former Mimawarigumi Kinta Minakata could handle things well on his own.

Besides which, he'd already gotten his fill of training care of the Sakaguchi Dojo and the inimitable naginata-wielding blonde beauty Satsuki Sakaguchi, also known as May Brooks.

She actually beat Yahiko in their practice match, but it was a close enough match for the head of Musou Madden Ryu, Genzo Sakaguchi, to insist that they train together.

Satsuki helped Yahiko train in getting in close against long-range fighters who do a lot of thrusts, just like the foreign fencer of the Brigands, The Faceless.

'I can go to Kyoto and meet up with Master Hiko later,' thought Yahiko. 'Right now, I still have some unfinished business here with Yokohama and The Faceless. As long as he hasn't been arrested, the Brigands remain a threat to the Minakatas.'

He might as well. Helping out the Meiji Government, even though it was a hive of scum and villainy itself, was something Kenshin tended to do during his days as a vagabond.

If Yahiko truly was worthy enough to become the inheritor of the sakabatou, then taking on the yoke that Kenshin used to carry was the least he could do.

He'd been staying at the Sakaguchi Dojo for a while now to continue his tutelage under May Brooks, but as of late he'd been gradually transitioning back to roughing it outdoors with his bag of clothes that doubles as his tent.

And, as he prepared to sleep under the stars somewhere in a wooded area in Yokohama, his head full of thoughts of last night's events, he heard someone scream at him the following words:

"KECHO GIRI (MONSTER BIRD KICK)!"

"Huh…? HADOME…! (SWORD HALT…!)"

By instinct, Yahiko parried the oncoming high-flying kick with crossed wrists, with Kenshin's sakabatou in the ready in case he did the follow-up Hawatari counter.

Who just attacked him in the middle of the night in the forest?

"…M-Misao!?"

"Heheh. Long time no see, Yahiko!" declared Misao Makimachi in all her kunoichi (female ninja spy) glory, her normally long braid the size of a short pigtail that reached to the nape of her neck while decked in her full shinobi gear.

***

To Be Continued...

Yes. I combined elements of the Shimabara Arc and the Black Knights arc together for this fanfic's continuity. In light of that, you can consider this fanfic an "Elseworlds" type of story that happens directly after "Yahiko's Sakabatou".

It hinges on the alternative universe premise of "Had the Kenshingumi never met their filler villains (because Kenshin was too busy dealing with Enishi), what would've happened to them?"

It follows portions of the 1996 anime and the manga's Iinchu Arc but skips the filler episode seasons altogether. I do think that characters like Shogo Amakusa were wasted potential, especially since he was supposed to be more skilled than Kenshin and has his own signature move.

Shogo's Uncle Hyoue also fascinated me, particularly his motivation for learning Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu as a Hidden Christian.

Danke, Abdiel

#rurouni kenshin #rurouni yahiko #yahiko myojin #fanfiction.net #るろうに剣心 #brigands guild #seiryu clan

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