Kenshin knelt before the swords, reaching out his hands towards them, but before he could touch them, Yu's hand stopped him. Yu grasped Kenshin's arm with his last strength, jolting Kenshin awake from all the dreams he had built.
"Kenshin-chan." Rising to her feet upon hearing Makoto's voice, Kenshin walked over to her. Makoto quickly rushed into his arms, holding him tightly. Kenshin felt comforted by Makoto's warmth. "Why are you here, Makoto?"
"I... I was so worried about you, you can't blame me for being here. I had to come."
"Hahaa, okay okay, Makoto, I don't blame you. Having you here makes me feel relieved."
"I didn't want to fight with you. It's nice to be welcomed like this."
Kenshin smiled at Makoto and hugged her again. His longing for her seemed endless. "Hey, Kenshin... you're embarrassing me." Kenshin hugged her even tighter. Makoto, blushing furiously, buried her face into Kenshin's clothes.
"Hey, hey, what's going on here?" Makoto was shocked to see Yu's body lying on the ground. "Wow, my Kenshin, defeated him all by himself."
"If it weren't for Yasushi, I couldn't have won."
"But ultimately, you defeated him alone. That's an undeniable fact."
"You're being unfair to Yasushi, Makoto."
"This is my Kenshin. Seeing how thoughtful you are, ahh... it takes me back to the old days. I've missed you so much, Kenshin."
"I've missed you too, Makoto..."
"By the way, since we've solved all the problems. Accomplished everything. Umm..." Makoto turned to Kenshin, making a circle with one hand by joining her index finger and thumb, and inserted the index finger of her other hand into that hole. "Can we make a baby, Kenshin?" Kenshin blushed at this sudden question. "M- Makoto, do you think this is the right time for that?"
"Why not? I've been with Ken for quite some time and engaged in action, but I never planned to have a child with him. Hehehee, don't get me wrong, I was just doing those things with Ken because I saw you in him..." Makoto grinned mischievously at Kenshin. Kenshin sighed and stroked Makoto's hair. "You're right, when we first met, we talked about becoming parents, but we never took that first step together. Because we were young."
"That's true." Makoto snapped her fingers.
"Okay then, Makoto, I want this as much as you do, but first, we should take care of things here."
"Hooray! Let's do it quickly." They began to carry Yasushi and Yu's bodies together. Kenshin had decided to leave the swords on the mountain. Those swords no longer belonged here.
"Our great hero Yasushi, we honor him with gratitude. Now, I call upon our other student Kenshin to deliver a speech." Master Shen had decided to hold a commemoration ceremony in front of Yasushi's grave. Kenshin had brought together people from both realms for this occasion. There was a large crowd in front of the grave.
"Yes, Kenshin, we eagerly await your speech." Kenshin felt somewhat awkward standing in front of the large crowd. It was the first time he had been in a place with so many people. Makoto was quietly shouting to encourage him. Kenshin felt a bit relieved by Makoto's gestures. For a moment, he thought about Masaru being here, but he dismissed the idea. He didn't need Masaru's speaking skills. He could do this himself. "Dear people... in this great triumph, I offer my eternal gratitude to Yasushi, who fought by my side. Thanks to him, we have now defeated the darkness from Seiren. And I also want to express my endless gratitude to all of you. You all struggled to rid Seiren of the darkness and worked for a new peaceful life. And I want to give my special thanks to my mother. It may sound a bit selfish, but I'm sorry, my mother was really important to me. She was my true hero. She made me a hero..."
"Hey, but don't I get any thanks?" Makoto pouted, feeling angry. Kenshin smiled and continued his speech. "I also want to thank Makoto. If she hadn't been by my side all the time, I wouldn't be here now." Makoto was overjoyed by this response.
"Did I give a good speech?"
"I think it was more than enough, Kenshin... to be honest, I loved your speech."
"Haha, thanks Makoto, I really love you."
"I love you too, Kenshin, I really do." As they hugged each other passionately, a shadow fell over them. Kenshin could guess who had arrived. "What do you want, father?" Makoto glared angrily at Kazou. "I'm just sorry, Kenshin... I'm really sorry... it's all my fault, I know. If I hadn't made a deal with him that day, you wouldn't have experienced all this."
"It's okay, dad."
"Ah... alright." As Kazou began to walk away, Kenshin stood up. "Hey dad, are you going to greet your grandson with such a tired face?"
"Huh... what?"
"I'm saying, are you going to be a grandfather with such a face?"
When Kazou turned around, his eyes widened in astonishment. "You... when did you do this?" Makoto hugged Kenshin's neck and smiled. "We haven't done it yet, but we'll do it soon. Get ready to be a grandfather, Mr. Kazou."
"O- okay." Kazou's sorrow was replaced by surprise and joy. His son didn't hate him. Moreover, he was going to hold his grandson. As Kazou thought about this, he remembered that he needed to go to Amy's grave and apologize again and again. He quickly ran to Amy's grave.
"Are you sure about this, Kenshin? The person who will become a father is the one who turned your and your mother's life into hell."
"It's okay, Makoto. I can see the heroism in my father. He just made a mistake, and we paid the price for it."
"Alright... I'm going to visit my parents' graves. If you want, you can come to visit your mother's grave, and I'll be right there."
"Okay, see you later, Makoto."
"It's a short goodbye, but don't forget."
"Hahahaa, okay, Makoto."
"Alright." With a smile, Makoto quickly disappeared. Kenshin felt that he needed to stop by somewhere before visiting his mother's grave.
"Ah... hello, master or grandpa, I wasn't sure how to address you, to be honest."
"Hahaa, dear grandson Kenshin. So, you wanted to visit me."
"Yes, while you two, standing in front of the graves of your beloved students, I thought about consulting you on a matter."
"Ah... Yu and Tadashi, they were like my sons. I miss both of them dearly. Anyway, tell me what you want to consult about, my child."
"I left the swords on the mountain, and I don't think Seiren needs those swords anymore."
"Hahaa, so that's it." Master Shen began to stroke his beard. "If you say so, my child, then so be it. I also think we don't need those swords."
"I didn't expect you to agree so quickly. After all, you come from the lineage of those who trained the chosen ones."
"I can understand why you would think that, my child, but if we all have a common goal, it's to have a peaceful life. And honestly, I don't think we need the chosen ones for that. Now, put aside these questions, my child, and go visit your mother. I think it was a mistake for you to come here to talk to me."
"Ah, okay then, I'll go." Kenshin stood up and began to walk away from Master Shen. "Hahaa, see you later, my child." Master Shen waved goodbye to Kenshin with a big smile.
"Mother, I don't know if I became the hero you wanted me to be, but I did it, mother. I contributed to making Seiren a place like we dreamed. Now you can rest peacefully, mother..." Kenshin started to cry as he embraced the soil of Amy's grave. "I still miss you so much, mother."
"I think you..." Kenshin felt arms wrapping around his neck from behind, and he heard a sudden voice. "You're the hero your mother wanted you to be." Makoto had indeed come quickly, as she said. "Are you sure, Makoto?"
"I'm absolutely sure. Now, umm..." Makoto leaned close to Kenshin's ear. "Can we start having some bedroom action together?"
"Come on, Makoto... right in front of my mother's grave?"
"So what?" Makoto stood up and stood proudly in front of the grave. "Mrs. Amy, I love your son, and I'll have a child with him. Don't worry, I'll raise our child as well as you raised your son."
"You'll definitely be a great mother, Makoto."
"And you'll be a great father, Kenshin." They held hands and started walking towards their home. They now had a new, big house. They had outgrown that little cottage.
"You know, Kenshin? I miss that little shack. It was a tiny place, but it always kept us close."
"We'll always be close here too, Makoto." Kenshin started to nuzzle Makoto's neck. Makoto blushed deeply at Kenshin's boldness. "Well, this was unexpected, but I like it."
"Then let's get this done."
"However you want, Kenshin..."
That day, they took the first step towards becoming parents. Makoto became pregnant and gave birth to a boy. Kenshin named his son Larry as a gesture to reconcile with himself. Kenshin visited Larry's grave every week and apologized to him. He felt deeply remorseful for not being able to think of him. While visiting Larry, he also visited his father's and Master Shen's graves. Master Shen had passed away from old age. Kazou had committed suicide, leaving behind a letter of apology to Kenshin. Kenshin was angry at his father for giving up so easily, and he would scold him every time he visited his grave. After a certain time, Kenshin returned to the sacred mountain to check on the swords again. When he returned, the sight he encountered was mesmerizing. The golden fields had returned, and the swords had disappeared. An idea came to Kenshin's mind with this sight. He decided to bring the real heroes of this land to these lands.
"Dad, where are we going?"
"Calm down, Larry, and hold on tight to daddy's back, don't worry, I won't fall."
"Okay, mommmm."
"Good job, my Larry." Makoto began to stroke Larry's golden hair. Larry enjoyed his mother's gesture very much.
"And here we are." Kenshin lifted Larry off his back and presented him with the magnificent sight. Master Shen, Larry, Amy, Kazou, and many more, he had made statues of them all with his own hands. And now, he was presenting them to his family.
"DAD, THIS IS AMAZING!"
"I'm glad you like it, Larry."
"Kenshin, this is truly amazing." Makoto was also amazed, just like Larry. "And now it's time to play here."
"Heyyyy!" Before Makoto could say anything, Kenshin grabbed both of them and started running around the top of the mountain.
"I hope you're watching me, mother, I hope you're proud of me." Kenshin had unintentionally voiced his thoughts aloud. Makoto smiled as she followed behind him. "Don't worry, Kenshin, your mother is proud of you." Kenshin was reassured by Makoto's voice. He smiled and spent hours playing games with his family. After all the pain, this future was an incredible remedy for him.
----
"Ahhh, so different choices, different events, and different endings... they really affect me." ??? After reviewing the entire journey, he left Seiren completely to find his own home.