Oh, your chapters are always so satisfying and well worth the wait. I love the work you put into maintaining historical accuracy. It's the attention to detail that helps draw the reader into such a sophisticated plot. Your characterization is great, too. Kenshin truly has the demeanour of one who has lived more than a few lifetimes over and sees the world for what it is, and Yoshida is a good supporting act.

Looking forward to reading more.

What a brilliant chapter - all the sleuthing, all the subtle characterizations, the wonderful interaction between Yoshida and Kenshin. One of the things I love about your portrayal of Kenshin is that he is smart - not just a genius swordsman but an all-round intelligent guy (which is unfortunately lacking in some other fanfiction).
It's taking me a while to catch up on all my reading but I get so much pleasure from your writing, I wish there was already more for me to read. (I guess I'll just have to go back and re-read your older work!)
And credit to older_woman too - isn't she great! (I have to go back and read Ichirizuka too...)

Thank you so much for new chapter! I just wanted to tell you that you've made my day happy :) All the best for you, as you certainly deserve it, and good luck!

First of all, I was so gleeful to get this update notice. Since it has been awhile, I decided I had to wait until I could enjoy rereading it all in one sitting. What really impressed me was how pitch perfect Kenshin is. That is rarer and rarer to find. I like how you had him walk the line between tension and trust in this chapter. Finding a trusted friend but guarding his words at all times, you make it clear that he hasn't accidentally mentioned Jin-eh. I found his cut to the chase so he could go to bed rather amusing. Perhaps life at the dojo has make him a bit soft after all. It's also fun to see all the implications of what choosing to stay in one place means. The showy explosive effects of Saito and Enishi showing up are replaced with the simmering, more prosaic problems like finding a job and paying taxes. (I loved the part earlier where he has to walk away from a good job because it would be with a damiyo's family that he had targeted. A very effective way to show how his past is not quite behind him.) It's great fun that you manage to explore this with an interesting plot twist. Kaoru has a past waiting to catch up with her that she doesn't even know exists. I look forward to Kenshin's meeting with this no good uncle who steals from babies (well, orphaned teenaged girls count)!

so should finsh the next chapter i was geting in to it and end the fanfic with them geting married

It's been so long; I was beyond delighted when an update appeared! As always, it's a joy to read, and I especially enjoy seeing Yoshida and Kenshin back together. I look forward to reading more!

Awesome, I love the background information presented here and you wrote it so well -- in a way that the information didn't seem like an overload. :D

On a side note, for some reason the story is in bold font. Gotta hate it when formatting errors occur!

I can't believe I'm barely running into this story now!
What you've got so far and unbelievable!
It must have taken a lot of research ^^ its all very well written and despite the talk of documents and what not, it was intriguing and easy to understand.
I honestly can say I'm eager to see how Kenshin's confrontation with Kaoru's uncle is gonna go ^^
All this talk of intimidation haha.
I wish you luck in your writing and I hope you post again soon!

~Silver

Thanks for another great chapter - and thanks to 'older woman' too, for her assistance. I like all the digging Yoshida and Kenshin are doing. It adds wonderful depth to your story and to Kaoru's family's past and all adds up to making the characters and their world more real.

The only quibble I have is that judo isn't really a kicking technique, although there are some kicks that are used in forms. If Yoshida is using kicks as an offensive-defensive fighting style, he is probably using karate, which is a mix of hand and foot fighting. It's very similar to the Korean Tae Kwon Do, which is literally "hand foot way". It's a small quibble, though.

I like that you're making Kenshin realize that he's not really a pariah and that there are people who truly care about him. I also like that Yoshida is realizing just how hard it is to live in the skin of "Hitokiri Battousai". Maybe between the two of them, they can find a way for Kenshin to show that slaughter is not inevitable just because he walks into town, and that people will start to look at him in a more positive light. Since it appears to have been widely known that his efforts in the war paved the way to the new era, he should at least have the support of the former Ishin Shishi families.

Okay, starting to ramble now! Great chapter and happy to read more whenever it appears, so don't sweat the length of time it takes to produce it. It is worth waiting for. :)

Pen

Yay! You updated!

I have been saddened that I haven't seen much in the RK fanfic update department, so I was very happy to get the notice of yours!

This chapter provides us with so much background into Kaoru's father's family and his life as a swordsman. It sort of made me wonder about her mother, if there was anything to her situation that prevented the banishment or if Kamiya was really such a superb swardsman that it was all on his own merit? I guess she was just the daughter of the gardener. Or the cook. Or the gardener and the cook. Still, it is an interesting look at the past of Kaoru's family.

I look forward to seeing how Kenshin will deal with the uncle, as well as how he will deal with the reality that he could help Kaoru out considerably in this situation by marrying her and then letting her continue on as she likes. Hopefully he did realize that that vow to "never marry" was followed by a silent "anyone other than Kenshin."

Good work and I look forward to your next update!

I love it. :3 Like, SO MUCH!

Love how the plot is unfolding, but most of all, love how Yoshida gets to see Kenshin again, and see who and what he's become. :D And vice-versa, of course!!

Great to have you back!

For a chapter that was primarily two guys sorting through dusty old documents, it was first rate! You manage to pack in so much history, such as mention of the bridges of Osaka, the Bakufu's preoccupation with documents, Choshu's "disastrous assault on the imperial palace" and the time Japan started using Western paper. It really put Kaoru's dad into perspective, to see how he fit in the events of the past. Kenshin and Yoshida's document search was certainly enlightening, but it was their interaction that kept me riveted. Yoshida's "If you're really serious about not being a rurouni anymore, then you've got to start acting like you're not a rurouni anymore, and that means placing some trust in other people" was spot on! I like Yoshida's style!

Good chapter. Liked seeing Yoshida and loved his interplay about "unworthiness" between the likable wife and RK. Enjoyed the CSI type of investigation as well. Kind of sneaky, giving us so much back story for Kaoru in a chapter she doesn't appear in. Really enjoyed it, but if you get a chance, please clean up the formatting because it seems your 'bold' for the title carried through the entire chapter.

I've been to Osaka and there certainly are canals, but I didn't know until I read your notes why the difference between your 'historical' city and the one I'd trekked about. Amazing!

Fantastic update! I has been a while neh? Well it was worth the wait! I cant wait to see the action start. Lol. Keep up the wonderful job!

Ari chan

SQUEE! I literally squealed with joy when I saw that you'd updated :D You do bring up a significant point in that we learn far more about Kenshin in the series than about Kaoru, and while she seems to constantly wonder about him I don't know if I've ever really noticed him taking similar interest in her (granted, the man is reticent and can pull a sphinx face like the best of them). Hopefully the next chapter will come easier :)