Author's Note: I told you that I was back! And now I'm here with a fic that is like my Prisoner. However, instead of having Misao simply captured, this fic is going to have one larger turn; Shishio being the victor. Yes, there's going to be some heartaches considering that our bacon man being the victor means that Kenshin and others have met their downfall. Still…I hope you don't injure me too badly for the character deaths…

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Misao had felt pain before, and she had shed the tears that came from it. She had cried when she discovered that she would never see her parents again. She had cried when Aoshi and the rest of the Oniwabanshu had disappeared, leaving Misao alone in Kyoto, wondering where they had gone and if they were okay. She had cried when she finally found Aoshi, only to discover that he had joined Shishio.

And now she cried because Aoshi was dead.

Himura Kenshin, the legendary Battousai, had left Kyoto, promising Misao that he would bring back Aoshi. He promised that everything was going to be okay.

And now he was dead too.

The recently appointed Okishira of the Oniwabanshu was only able to stare with wide emerald green eyes at the two bodies of Kenshin and Aoshi. Tears fell from those eyes as pain wrenched her heart. The pain was like no other, attacking her body and soul.

Near her was another who felt her pain. On her knees, face in her hands, Kamiya Kaoru released her own tears as she cried for the ones that have fallen.

Kenshin and Aoshi weren't the only casualties. Sagara Sanosuke had also perished.

Yahiko stood next to Kaoru, looking at the bodies of his friends. He sniffed, trying to fight back his tears but failing miserably. Misao could clearly see the tears that he was wiping away, only to have more replace them.

Around the three, police officers were disappearing into the cave that led to Shishio's hideout…where the bodies of Aoshi, Sano, and Kenshin had been found. They were digging through the ruins of what had been the hideout. Two police officers suddenly appeared from within the cave, both of them carrying a woman. Besides her crushed body, a wound in her chest that seemed to have come from a sword had been what killed her.

But Misao didn't care about the woman. She only cared about Aoshi, her Aoshi.

The tears wouldn't stop falling. She had been searching for Aoshi, wanting him to be with her again. But now that can never happen.

Misao dropped to her knees, her throat constricting, making it hard for her to breathe.

He couldn't be dead, not Aoshi. She couldn't lose him, not after all she had done to see him again. He couldn't…

Misao couldn't take it anymore. The pain, the sorrow, all of it churned within her, wanting to be released. And Misao did.

The Okashira looked up at the sky. Dark clouds had formed, and Misao felt a droplet of water land on her face. It started to rain, the very sky mirroring her sorrow.

And now Misao screamed, releasing her sorrow and pain that had wanted that release.

aaa

Exactly one week and three days ago, the bodies of Shinomori Aoshi, Sagara Sanosuke, Hajime Saitoh, and Himura Kenshin had been found at what had once been Makoto Shishio's establishment. The news is terrible to hear, but we have found Sadojima Hoji and Komagata Yumi, two of Shishio's followers, dead. Even Uonuma Usui, one of the members of Shishio's elite force called the Juppon Gatana, that had once been a hitokiri for the Edo Bakufu group during the Bakamatsu Revolution, is no longer alive.

Seven other members of the Juppon Gatan have been taken into custody and, as you have requested, we have given them the choice of working for the government. Most of them have accepted, but a couple had refused. One such person was Yuukyuzan Anji, a monk who has willingly given himself up to pay for his crimes. His punishment has yet to be decided.

Nine of the ten members are now either working for the government, in custody, or dead. There is one that hasn't been accounted for.

From our interrogations with the Juppon Gatana, he is Seta Soujiro. The Tenken, as he is called, had assassinated several government officials, including Toshimichi Ookuba. Search parties have been sent out to look for him, but having a week of a head start, I doubt that we'll find him anytime soon.

The body of Makoto Shishio hasn't been found. However, with the ruins that was his base of operations and that it was the legendary Battousai that you had sent to take care of him, I doubt that he is alive.

So with that I will declare, with your permission, that Makoto Shishio is dead, and his reign of terror has ended.

Signed,
Kojiro Amuro, Captain of the Kyoto police force

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Author's Note: Don't kill me! Their deaths shall be avenged! This seemed like a good…yet sad…start for this fic. Hopefully this fic had caught you guys' interest and hope you'll be reading this to the end!