Ah ha, she reviews at last!

And my, what a fitting end you've put to a fabulous story. The final confrontation at Bayushi's place was thrilling; gotta love savvy negotiator Kenshin and Aoshi & Misao's sweet ninja skills. And yay for Kenshin & Kaoru reconciliation WAFF! You wrote the scene so beautifully; it was very sweet but not at all sappy. That's a hard line to balance but you did it effortlessly.

I found the last meeting between Kenshin & Senzo extremely interesting. From the very beginning of the story I liked Senzo despite his villainy; he was funny, wisecracking, ingratiating, clever, and smarmy all in one, and he seemed more *real* than Yamato with his brutal harshness or Bayushi with his cold honor. Senzo, I think, is a very unique - and intriguing - character to be introduced into the RK fandom.

And yet in the final chapter we have Kenshin stating clearly that, for all his likability, Senzo is far *worse* than Bayushi or Yamato could ever be - they had deep-seated reasons for their actions, but for Senzo it was just about the bottom line: how much money can he get for this man's life? Of the three, then, it is Senzo who is morally bankrupt.

I hadn't thought about it that way before, and it really puts a different spin on things. (I'm not as fond of Senzo now as I was before, heh.) And that's what I've always loved about TJ: it goes so much deeper than your standard adventure story, and I'm so pleased (yet sad!) to see it end in such a marvelous way. Bravo! *applauds wildly*

(And now, I can't wait for the omake. )

Oh my God, I love this story. This is the first Rurouni Kenshin fanfic I have ever read! WOOT.

I loved the ending!

Unfortunately, I have only read volumes one and two of Rurouni Kenshin, so I had trouble understanding some concepts. But that's my own problem- you did a great job.

This is the first time that I have read this story and I love it! Everything, from Kenshin's capture to his rescue was beautifully done. I couldn't help but smile evilly when Saitoh went after Yamato. That was a truely great scene. You charecterasation of...well, of *everyone* was very enjoyable to read. Anyway, I greatly enjoyed reading this story!

Nekotsuki... I just realized... you were my first reviewer ever! ::bows:: I'm terribly honored.

A splendid ending to a splendid story. I liked very much your portrayals of the characters - everyone seemed to be very much in character, and yet not caricatured; all of them very distinct. And the plot... wow, what a plot. I'll be looking forward to your future work!

And yes, I also squealed with delight at the final appearance of everyone's favorite Shinsengumi captain. Though Kenshin would certainly disapprove, sometimes "aku soku zan" has its place.

Shinsengumi... they're so dreamy!

I think you did very well with the action scenes. They're not really that hard, are they? In fact, I really admired how you handled the all-out hair-pulling scramble aspects of Kenshin's last tussle with Yamato. Somehow, I think that kind of fight must be harder to write than swordfights.

What a ride.

Yokata, review page is working again! Sorry for the lack of reviews the last several chapters. All I have to say is, by now I worship the ground on which you walk, Nekotsuki-sensei. Or the keys on which you type. Something like that.

"The incomparably cruel fanfiction writer..." But kind, too, since you let Kaoru and Kenshin get together at last.

So Sano was a little bit brutal, but he had a good reason to be. I mean, I think he's really scared about what happened to Kenshin. What you had him do with the sword was totally awesome. Toughness is his selling point, after all.

I guess I understood why the merchant came back. He was really after Sano after all? And it didn't matter if he left Sano alive. (So scary!) At least that's two more henchmen down for now. I have a vicious hope that Sano can track down Senzo before he makes it back to Tokyo and beat the crap out of him. But that wouldn't necessarily help him rescue Kenshin.

This is so great! I don't know what to say, but I'm breathless with the action/suspense/anticipation. I loved this line: "...but no; some vestige of the gentleman still lurked in Sagara Sanosuke’s heart." And I see you haven't forgotten Yahiko's early career as a pickpocket... good and stealthy...

Trust Kaoru to find the traces! Kenshin's hair-tie and a bit of his clothes, soaked with blood no less! Awesome!

I'm really enjoying this. You're developing the plot nicely, with plenty of intrigue, and clearly setting things up for the future storyline. I love it when writers plan ahead. :-)

They were SO CLOSE, Kaoru and Sanosuke! Argh!

I think you're reflecting Kaoru's personality quite well. The others, I can't really say, since I haven't thought as much about how they would react in given situations.

On to the next chapter...

Don't worry too much about the fight scene; I think it's fantastic. It's hard writing fight scenes involving Kenshin; he's so good that it's only interesting if either he's fighting some of the very best (hard to introduce in a fanfic - it's not like we can try to compete with Aoshi or Shishio's bunch), or he's disabled in some way beforehand! (I know I've done that to him too...)

Another very nice chapter. I liked Kaoru's reaction - nicely in character. She's so much more than just a hysterical girl. And I'm glad that you showed us that last little bit; it's good to know Kenshin's not bleeding to death in between chapters!

Another awesome action-packed chapter! Of course, Kenshin is too smart to go down without a fight. I really like the tactic that you chose for him.

One small comment (from previous chapters, that I forgot to mention before): In a few places, you use "he/him" to refer to two different people in a short space of text, which I found a little confusing. It may be necessary to use names or references (like "the merchant") in such places to keep it reading smoothly. But I haven't noticed it any more in Chapter 5, so maybe you've sorted it out already!

Yay~! It's awesome! Actually...

Wow! I can see why your fans pestered you to update when they were forced to read chapter-by-chapter!

The fight scene was beautiful, elegantly written. And oh my gods! What a cliffhanger ending! This is fantastic! I really admire your writing skill and style.

This is awesome! I really liked the image of Kaoru murdering the vegetables. They'll get the "cutting-board flavor" tonight... I was alarmed to see it dusk already. Kenshin stayed out late! I must admit I don't really know the significance of Tanabata, except that it's a summer festival (?). But it sounds like it's the kind of night you don't want to leave your girl alone.

Kenshin is going to be in big trouble with those guys watching from the trees. Is the merchant in on it? I'm guessing he is, but I'm not sure. Eek! Kenshin is pretty good at telling when something feels wrong, but not so good at identifying what it is that's actually out of place.

The scariest line: "Now, we wait. Battousai will win, shortly. After that … he will run. And we will strike." Why will he run? Augh the suspense!