Rurouni Kenshin

Synopsis

Continues the story of Samurai X: Trust and Betrayal

In the days leading up to the Japanese Revolution, Hiko Seiijuro, a wandering master swordsman and hermit, comes across bandits ransacking a slave wagon. With the hope of saving as many lives as he can, Hiko cuts down the raiding bandits, yet only manages to shield one child from the slaughter. He leaves the child behind, telling him to head to a nearby village where the locals can raise him. A few days later, Hiko returns to check on the child he saved and is struck by what he finds: the boy has shaped gravestones for both the slaves who had become his friends and the bandits who had killed them. Seeing great potential in the child, Hiko takes him in, gives him the name Kenshin—meaning "heart of the sword"—and mentors him in the swordsmanship of the Hiten Mitsuruugi Ryu. As his ideals clash relentlessly with the cruelty of reality, Tsuiokuhen tells the sorrowful and dark tale of Himura Kenshin, one of the most dreaded assassins of the Japanese Revolution: the Hitokiri Battousai.

In this installment

During the twilight of the Bakumatsu era, the dreaded assassin Hitokiri Battousai instilled fear throughout the land with his unmatched lethal prowess before vanishing into obscurity amidst the Japanese Revolution. Although a decade of tranquility has followed, the mere mention of Battousai still sends shivers through former soldiers. Unbeknownst to them, Battousai has forsaken his violent path to pursue redemption, now living as Kenshin Himura, a cheerful and spirited rōnin. Having sworn never to claim another life, Kenshin dedicates himself to shielding the weak. On one destined day, he encounters Kaoru Kamiya at her kendo dojo, which faces a threat from an imposter posing as Battousai. After Kenshin aids her, Kaoru extends an invitation for him to reside at the dojo, where the former killer stays for some time. Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Romantan chronicles Kenshin's journey to assist those in need. Yet, as adversaries from both his past and present begin to emerge, can the reformed warrior maintain his new principles?