It was a beautiful day and Kenshin was trying to get the chores done quickly so he could enjoy a way in the nice weather before it got dark. He probably would have been finished already if a certain young "samurai" had been a little more enthusiastic about his chores. "Ugh, why does Kaoru still have me scrubbing the floors like I'm some kind of maid."

Kenshin chuckled softly at the boy's indignation. "If you are above scrubbing the floor, then perhaps you are also above walking on it." Yahiko grit his teeth and got back to work, grumbling to himself, while Kenshin just smiled gently. He wasn't sure when exactly he had become accustomed to the routine chores and rhythm of the Kamiya Kasshin dojo, but for the first time since his days as the battousai, he felt like he had a home. Sure, he had set his head down in many places during his travels, but nobody had made him feel as welcome or as comfortable as Kaoru. Indeed, Tokyo had it's fair share of strife, but he felt that his life here was worth fighting every now and then for. 

With the chores finished, Kenshin decided to go for a walk through the city, and perhaps meet up with Kaoru to help her take care of the groceries. The sword he wore on his side always seemed to attract attention, but recently it seemed to stir up some apprehension among the citizens. A new group of swordsman had moved in, flaunting their skills about aggressively, and that caused people to become nervous around anyone carrying a real sword. It was unfortunate, but there was really nothing Kenshin could do about it short of crashing their dojo and running them out of town. However, he would refrain from that so long as no innocents were being harmed...

And then Kenshin saw a young man brazenly pointing his sword at Kaoru's neck, and he knew that Kaoru wasn't the kind of woman to back down from something like that. He decided to head over and defuse the situation before a sword fight broke out in the middle of the street. "Excuse me," Kenshin said, walking up to the assailant with a pleasant expression. "Would you mind putting your sword away? You're scaring people who just want to go about their business."

Ryuuto kept his sword aimed at Kaoru's neck, but slowly rolled his eyes towards Kenshin, and then towards the sword at his side. "Do you have any idea who you're talking to?" Ryuuto said. 

Kenshin blinked and gave Ryuuto a blank expression. "I haven't the slightest idea..."

Ryuuto smirked. "You're talking to Tajima Ryuuto, number one disciple of the Tajima dojo. And just who the hell are you?"

"Oh, I'm just a wanderer," Kenshin said, maintaining his pleasant tone.

"Well then, Mr. Wanderer, I'll make a deal with you. If you bow down and show me proper respect, I won't stain this girl's kimono with her blood."

Kenshin thought about the proposition briefly. He was pretty certain that he could disarm this upstart with ease, but that would likely just start a feud with the dojo, and a feud was the last thing this city, and Kaoru, needed. So, he decided to oblige and see if Ryuuto was a man of his word. "So, I bow to you and you'll put your sword away without any trouble? Alright, sounds simple enough." Still, maintaining his pleasant expression, Kenshin got on his knees and gave a proper bow.

Ryuuto immediately busted out laughing. He kept his sword out but took it away from Kaoru's neck, and then placed his foot atop Kenshin's head. "A weakling like you doesn't deserve to carry a sword. Go ahead and eat some dirt for me!"