Himura Battousai
Copyright© 2007 by Trojan_85
Chapter 25: A Showdown of Strength
Yahiko: Hey, Kenshin. Is Sanosuke gonna be okay by himself? That patchwork guy looked pretty strong...
Kenshin: Sano will be fine. He won't need any help. (they approach the ballroom) We're breaking in. Hold on!
(back at the stairway)
Shikijou: Feh. So you call the one entrusted as Keeper of the Castle Gate "third-rate"? It looks like all we've got to be proud of is our arms. A literal test of strength.
Sanosuke: Great. Let's do it!!
(They grapple. Shikijou drives Sanosuke up against the wall.)
Sanosuke (thinking): What kind of strength has this patchwork guy got...
(Shikijou, grinning, headbutts him. Sanosuke slides to the ground.)
Shikijou: Poor, very poor. You let in the headbutt. As you can see from the scars, my whole life has been fighting. You can move the body in more ways than you think.
Sanosuke (struggling to his feet): You... bastard...
Shikijou: Stop. If you took that blow your skull should have been smashed. The shock should have reached your brain, and you should be unable to move a muscle. And yet... you made my hands shake. (glancing down at his hands, which have been gripped so hard they're torn and shivering). I like you, kid. How about it. Forget Battousai and join us.
Sanosuke: What?
Shikijou: We don't care about your background. All that matters is that you're strong. I was originally a spy from Satsuma, on the side of the Ishin Shishi. In the second year of Keiou I was sneaking into the Edo Castle for information about the upcoming war. I was crushed by the Okashira, even though he was only thirteen at the time.
Young Aoshi (standing over the fallen Shikijou, who has fresh cuts bleeding across his face): To kill someone whose strength is so extraordinary would be regrettable. Come to the Oniwabanshuu. If you were to use our secret muscle-building medicine you would become even stronger. Do so and join us, and you will be unbeatable.
The young Aoshi. It's really a design I had done for a different character, but I tried it here and it felt right (It was actually a girl, but oh well.) However, Aoshi's bangs really bother me now. --Watsuki Nobuhiro Shikijou: And so I gained my unbeatable strength! You are the same. You have the potential even now. If you used the Oniwabanshuu's secret medicine, you might rival Hanya or I!
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