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Atonement	By : twistedgirl Category: Rurouni Kenshin > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 2469 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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Disclaimer- I don’t own Rurouni Kenshin or any of the awesome characters, nor do I make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter Three

            Enishi gazed indifferently out the small window at the passing landscape, hypnotized by the clacking sounds on the track as the train sped along its morning route to Edo. This country no longer held any beauty–not since Tomoe’s death. Being back in Japan, surrounded by once-familiar sights that used to comfort him, now haunted him with their emptiness.

            Soon, though, Battousai’s suffering would bring light back to this bleak country. These trips twice a day, an hour each way, from Yokohama to meet with Battousai were starting to wear on him. Nevertheless, this was what Tomoe wanted.

            Enishi idly fidgeted with his glasses. His eyes burned. He’d hardly slept, fuming about the events of the previous day. Even now, his mind was in overdrive; how it felt to be inside his most hated enemy, every gasp and moan the man had made, the way his body flexed as Enishi fucked him. And even worse, had his beloved sister also heard those same moans, or had that body against hers, or inside her? He could not push these thoughts out of his mind. More perplexing, though, was how his heart raced every time he recalled how Battousai had cried out his name; the desperate, pained tone of his voice. Although he felt great satisfaction having been able to evoke such a humiliating reaction from Battousai, a new emotion gnashed within his gut, on the precipice of breaking free from his control.

            Enishi frowned. After the previous day’s events, his once-focused mind was clouded with images and sounds of his enemy, including the intimate details of his physique–which pissed him off most of all. The way he had lost control of his plan was ridiculous. He felt like a fool. There was no way that a skilled assassin like Battousai wouldn’t have noticed his inexperience. But to have the audacity to refer to the act as insufferable was a huge blow to Enishi’s ego. Of course it was unbearable! It was punishment! That’s why ‘insufferable’ should’ve been the words he wanted to hear. Enishi had tried to remind himself of that all night. Still, Battousai’s words stung.

            Enishi’s eyes narrowed. Battousai wouldn’t mock him this time! He had to get a hold of himself before meeting with the man again. Even his comrades back at the mansion in Yokohama had cast him suspicious glances when he’d flown into a particularly violent rage upon his return the previous day. One growl instructing them to mind their own business had immediately ceased their interest.

            Enishi closed his eyes and silently begged for his sister’s guidance for this vengeance. He still planned to carry out his Jinchuu in seven days at the Kamiya Dojo. Should he abandon these trysts before he lost himself and everything he’d worked so hard to accomplish? Tomoe, my beautiful sister, help me decide what to do.

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            Kenshin walked down the path to the shack. Many questions nagged at him. He’d hardly slept the previous night, thinking about Tomoe and her brother. He recalled Enishi as a temperamental child when they had first met–the boy even bit Kenshin’s hand. He had spent most of the night thinking of a way to tone down Enishi’s rage and get him to listen to the truth without upsetting him further. Not only was Enishi stubborn, he was troublesome because he was both emotionally immature and strategically adept; a sinister combination.

            Dread overcame Kenshin as the shack came into sight. His body already ached all over. How could he endure another fight, if you could call what Enishi did to him, a fight? Was that what Enishi wanted–to wear him down physically and mentally? Or perhaps Enishi’s plan was to keep him away from the dojo, thus preventing him from preparing for battle. Regardless, he had to pacify Enishi before he harmed others. Kenshin was sure Tomoe would watch over them both.

            The moment Kenshin stepped inside the shack, Enishi grabbed him and slammed him into the wall. “You’re late!” he growled. He seized the man’s sakabatou and chucked it to the floor.

            Kenshin remained stoic. “Listen to me, Enishi,” he said sternly. “I’ve done as you’ve asked, so it’s your turn to listen to me.”

            Enishi roared with malicious laughter. “I don’t care what you have to say, Battousai!”

            Kenshin’s eyes narrowed. “I know you hate me, and I understand, but you need to at least hear my side of the story before this goes any further.”

            Enishi’s smile immediately disappeared. He didn’t appreciate Kenshin’s tone.

            Kenshin continued, “Tomoe’s death was–”

            “I told you not to say her name!” Enishi bellowed, slamming Kenshin into the wall again. His teeth gritted with fury.

            This time, Kenshin resisted. “Stop, Enishi! This isn’t what Tomoe would want!” He grabbed Enishi’s forearms to stop him. That only enraged the man further. The next thing he knew Enishi hurled him onto the floor and pounced on him.

            “You want to say her name again, Battousai?” Enishi threatened as he pinned his enemy beneath him, his face mere inches from Kenshin’s. His strong fingers clamped the man’s shoulders with a viselike grip. “Do it! It’ll be the last thing you ever say!” His breaths were heavy, his face scarlet, and his eyes murderous.

            Kenshin’s skin prickled beneath those ferocious eyes.   He wasn’t accustomed to feeling helpless. There would be no talking about Tomoe today. He would have to find another way to get through to Enishi.

            For a few moments, both men stared each other down. Enishi exerted his superior physical strength as he easily restrained his enemy. Just as he’d expected; Battousai was no match for him without his sword.

            Enishi’s jaw tensed as dark thoughts of this man touching his sister roiled in his mind. And her bloody death–he squeezed his eyes shut to push them aside, albeit unsuccessfully. His chest ached. He choked back his next words, lest he sound weak. Instead, he trembled with rage, motionless, his body pressed against his sister’s killer. He felt his upper lip begin to quiver.

            “I’m sorry for what I’ve taken from you, Enishi.” Kenshin understood Enishi’s loneliness, since it was Tomoe’s death that had finally opened his own eyes to the suffering of loved ones of the many men he’d slain. Her death had helped shape his decision to become a wanderer and use his sakabatou to protect lives; atonement for the many lives he had taken. To lose the only important person in your life was devastating, but Enishi was going about this all wrong if he hoped to heal his grief.

            Kenshin painstakingly wriggled his arm up between their bodies and lightly brushed a tear from Enishi’s cheek with his thumb.

            Enishi jerked his head away. “I will never forgive you, Battousai!” Enishi hissed. Sympathy from his enemy was unacceptable! Furiously, he tore open Kenshin’s kimono to bare his chest. His sword-calloused hands crudely prowled across the man’s torso and traced each scar with his fingertips. Whoever had left these scars must have been a skilled swordsman to have left a mark on Battousai. Enishi knew he himself was the better swordsman of any of them; probably the only man who could defeat Battousai.

            Enishi grabbed the ties on Kenshin’s hakama. His enemy’s jumpiness excited him, as did his panic-stricken eyes. He roughly forced Kenshin’s legs apart with his knee. His body was already reacting wantonly to this close proximity to Battousai’s body, so he had to focus on his rage. He couldn’t let Battousai discover these new desires he harbored, that even he himself couldn’t comprehend.

            Kenshin pushed Enishi’s chest to hold him back. His brother-in-law’s rigid cock pressed insistently into his hip. “This is wrong, Enishi!” Wasn’t Tomoe watching over them? Wasn’t she going to stop her brother?

            “Then why did you come back?” Enishi barked as he held Kenshin down with one hand, the other still holding the man’s hakama ties. “You took my sister from me! You’ll do exactly what I tell you to do!” Although he ached to be inside this man again, he couldn’t move–his body torn between what he wanted and what his sister’s apparition demanded.

            “Fuck!” Enishi roared, disgusted with his own weakness. How had he come to this? How had his plans gotten this screwed up? Why did thoughts of fucking Battousai now consume his every thought? His rage escalated. He grabbed Kenshin’s shoulders and repeatedly slammed the man’s head to the dirt floor, the thud sounds only adding to the heat of the moment in Enishi’s mind.

            “Does it hurt, Battousai?” Enishi queried with bitter triumph. “This is nothing compared to the pain of losing my sister!” His breaths turned to pants as he was again drawn into the pleasure of punishing this man. Tomoe...

            Kenshin could do little to defend himself, except to hold fast to the man’s arms to lessen the force. If anything, he wanted to embrace Enishi and tell him everything would be all right–that he could overcome this anguish if only he would listen and accept the truth. To see Tomoe’s brother in so much pain broke his heart. What would it take to heal this man’s wounds?

“Why did you kill her, Battousai?” Enishi howled. “Why?” He tightened his grip on Kenshin. “You didn’t have to kill her!” His assault became more forceful, more desperate as his anguish increased. Tears streamed down his cheeks.

            “I didn’t mean to kill her,” Kenshin weakly protested. “I already told you that it was an accident...” The maniacal rage etched into Enishi’s face chilled him to the bone.

            “LIAR!” Enishi thundered. “Have you already forgotten what I told you? I WAS THERE! I saw what you did!” Kenshin’s denial only incensed him further. His anger became more frantic. He was going to brutalize this man until he admitted that he intentionally killed her, or until he broke into pieces!

            “I hate you,” Enishi repeatedly rasped as tears flooded his eyes. He struck the man’s chest with his fists. Fuck! This wasn’t what he wanted to do! Nevertheless, it was either this or strip him down and slam his cock into the man’s ass until his rage quelled. Worse yet, now each blow he landed on Battousai elicited those sexy muffled groans and gasps for breath–the same ones he’d spent the previous night trying to forget.

            “SHUT UP! Stop making those sounds!” Enishi shouted like a lunatic, covering Kenshin’s nose and mouth with the palm of his hand, instantly silencing him. Enishi put his trembling lips to the man’s forehead.

            “Be quiet,” Enishi heatedly murmured between heavy breaths. If you don’t, I won’t be able to stop myself! He clamped his eyes shut, his heart pounding in his throat as he tried to calm himself.

            Kenshin tried desperately to pry Enishi’s grip loose, to no avail. He was sinking fast, disappearing to a faint whisper against his face. Enishi... Then everything went black.

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            Kenshin mumbled unintelligibly as he drifted in and out of consciousness. Every part of his body ached so badly, he didn’t want to wake up. His eyelids fluttered open and closed to the silence. Then, remembering what had transpired, he tried to sit up with a start, but his body screamed in protest. He fell back against the ground with a hoarse cry.

            He finally managed roll onto his stomach, though his body let him know it wasn’t willing. He looked up from this position to see Enishi sitting near him, staring apathetically. Angry and ashamed, Kenshin looked away.

            He spotted his sakabatou nearby and began to crawl toward it, when he felt a hand on his back.

            “You’re too weak,” Enishi stated dryly. “Can’t have you dying yet.” Had he been able to conceal his relief that his enemy had awakened?

            Kenshin ignored the man and reached for his sword.

            “Stay the night here, Battousai,” Enishi said, rather annoyed by Battousai’s pathetic display of stubbornness. “I have to leave anyway. I’ll be back tomorrow afternoon.” He knew the others back at the mansion would be suspicious if he didn’t return, not that he gave a shit about any of them. They were nothing, mere pawns. Still, he wanted Battousai to stay because he was worried the man wouldn’t return after what had just transpired. And he wasn’t through with him yet.

            Kenshin wasn’t about to spend the rest of the day and night in this place! He’d walk back to the Kamiya dojo if it killed him. He pulled his sword to his chest. And still, he felt Enishi’s stare, though he refused to meet it.

            He struggled to his feet and clumsily tied and adjusted his hakama. He stooped to grab his sakabatou and slid it through his obi at the waist of his hakama. Wordlessly, he limped to the door.

            “Fool,” Enishi muttered bitterly. “Stay here tonight. You probably won’t make it back in the condition you’re in right now.”

            Kenshin stopped in the doorway, refusing to turn around. “Don’t make the mistake of underestimating my strength,” he sternly warned. He paused for a moment before adding in a lighter tone, “Besides, my friends will worry if I don’t return.”

            Enishi unleashed a barrage of obscenities as he watched the swordsman go. Less than an hour ago, Battousai had blacked out beneath him. Enishi had immediately backed away; leaving his enemy’s body sprawled out, half-naked and vulnerable. After all, there was no use continuing if the man was not fully conscious to feel the pain. Enishi could’ve easily killed him then. Instead, he’d been unable to do anything but stare, unsure of what to do next. When he’d noticed the various bruises and distinct rope marks on Battousai’s wrists; deep crimson contusions against his pale skin from the previous day, Enishi had felt both exhilarated and strangely unfulfilled. Having to face the unconscious man’s partially nude body had only added insult to injury–mocking him with the very thing that had been tearing him apart from the inside out. If Tomoe weren’t still smiling, he’d think she was trying to destroy him.

            When Enishi was sure that Battousai was out of earshot, he jumped to his feet. With a guttural yell, he kicked a nearby broken table, breaking it into splinters. In his tempestuous fit, he whipped out his sword and slashed the remaining pieces of broken furniture–pulverizing them into an explosion of dust and wood particles. “Damn you, Battousai!” His face was contorted with fury. He was so tired of thinking of that man! Every waking thought steeped with images of that man’s suffering. No matter how much he punished Battousai, the man would not break! Were his friends that important to him? Or atonement? And he had ignored Enishi’s suggestion to stay the night in the shack! Most disturbing of all, why had Battousai pleaded for Tomoe when Enishi had removed his hand –just before he lost consciousness.

            Enishi swung his sword at the wall, where it stuck into the wood. “You call out for Tomoe to help you?!” he seethed. “Why would she help the man who murdered her?” What game was Battousai trying to play? No matter, Enishi would defeat him.



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            As Kenshin limped painfully back to the dojo, he considered his-brother-in-law’s strengths and weaknesses. Enishi was strong; that much was apparent. Unfortunately, his emotional state hadn’t changed at all since Tomoe’s death. Still, Kenshin was convinced that Enishi wasn’t beyond hope. There had to be good in him and Kenshin needed to find it...for Tomoe. But how much more punishment could he endure in the process? Obviously, it was apparent that Enishi, although a powerful and formidable man, was still very unsociable, therefore Kenshin’s usual tactics of reasoning with his opponent weren’t going to work on Enishi. He would have to try a different, more risky approach.

            By the time Kenshin finally reached the dojo, he hardly had any strength left. It was all he could do to muster a smile when Kaoru waved to him.

            “Kenshin! Are you okay?” she asked, worried.

            Kenshin patted her arm as he stumbled past her. “I’m fine, just tired,” he mumbled as he trudged to his room too drained for conversation.

            Kaoru shot Sanosuke a worried glance. The man had already stood up to follow their friend.

            Kenshin removed his sakabatou and set it just inside the door of his room. His futon had never looked so inviting; however a warm bath would soothe his bruised body. He meticulously removed his kimono, folded it, and placed it neatly beside the end of his futon. Just then, a sound outside his door caught his attention.

            “May I come in?” Sanosuke inquired from the other side.

            Kenshin invited his friend in, and carefully sat on his futon as Sanosuke entered.

            Sanosuke plopped down beside his friend. His eyes darted to the rope marks on his friend’s wrists. The injuries were much worse than he’d thought, and appeared to be relatively fresh. He’d caught a glimpse when Kenshin had raised his arm to pat Kaoru. What was going on? First, Kenshin returned with a bruised neck two days ago. Then, yesterday, he had exhibited obvious fatigue and an unexplained disappearance before withdrawing to his room. Now today, limping and bruises all over his chest marked another episode of brutality.

            “You know I’m here for you whenever you need me,” Sanosuke said, his face grave with worry.

            Kenshin smiled weakly. “I know, Sano.” He tried his best to look and sound convincing. “I know that I haven’t been myself the past few days. I need some time. I’m doing all I physically can to prevent any more of my friends from being targeted.”

            “You’re hurt,” Sanosuke pressed, concern evident in his voice.

            “I’ll be alright,” Kenshin replied, smiling. “This is something I must do alone.”

            “You are a skilled warrior even without your sword,” Sanosuke began, “because you can always find your opponent’s weakness.” He paused for a moment as he thought. “Just remember, you’re not the only one with that capability.”

            Kenshin nodded, his smile fading.

            Sanosuke lightly ran his thumb along the rope-mark on his friend’s wrist, as if studying it. “Sometimes, an opponent’s weakness is so obvious that it’s initially overlooked.”

            Kenshin’s gaze met Sanosuke’s. “No need to worry.”

            After a moment, Sanosuke released his friend’s arm. “I’ll have Kaoru get a bath ready for you,” he offered as he left the room. Once outside the room, he clenched his fists. He knew exactly who was to blame for Kenshin’s wounds. Enishi! As much as he wanted to intervene, he had to honor Kenshin’s request to handle things alone. What was Kenshin putting himself through to avert the upcoming battle at the dojo? He needed to find out more.

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            The sun beat down on Kenshin, draining even more of his limited strength as he returned to meet Enishi. When the shack came into view, his stomach knotted knowing he would be enduring more of Enishi’s wrath. Somehow he had to disguise his continued pain. After tossing and turning most of the night, he was sure he had found Enishi’s weakness. Enishi’s initial reaction to touching him the first day of their meeting, coupled with his erratic sexual behavior had given Kenshin some advantage to work with. If words weren’t going to get through to Enishi, there were other ways.

            Kenshin drew a deep breath before entering the run-down building, unsure of what awaited him there. He found Enishi sitting near the center of the room, a ray of sunlight catching his white hair in a brilliant gleam, his smile as cruel and cold as the sheathed steel blade resting beside him. And he had redecorated. The few broken furniture pieces were now mere wood slivers and dust. Kenshin noticed something else–a bento and a jug of sake on the floor near him. Enishi was...eating?

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to be continued...

Author’s Note- Thank you for continuing to read and give this story a chance. And thank you for the reviews! Things are really going to pick up next chapter. ^_~   Thanks again!
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Atonement