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Remembrance 9: White Snow is the one hundred seventy-fourth chapter of the Rurouni Kenshin manga.

Synopsis[]

The snow falls from the sky where Inside their home, Tomoe tells Kenshin of her past. Her family originally hails from Edo, and her father was a good-natured man who treated everyone with respect. As for her mother, Tomoe says she was like her father, but was rather weak. When Tomoe's mother passed away after giving birth to Enishi, Tomoe acted both as Enishi's sister and mother figure. She describes Enishi as a good boy who judges people rather harshly, and threw a heavy tantrum when Tomoe's engagement was announced.

Kenshin continues to listen, though a bit shaken up after his wife's latest comment. Tomoe explains that her fiancé was the second son of a samurai family and a childhood friend. Not mentioning his name, Tomoe includes that he was hardworking and after his proposal to her, all Tomoe could do was give a look of wonder. She couldn't smile upon the time, leading her fiancé to seek other ways of making her happy. Tomoe's fiancé postponed their wedding and went off to join the Kyoto Mimawari Gumi in hopes of becoming a renowned warrior, but never returned. Tomoe went to Kyoto alone before waiting for the news to reach home, and told Kenshin that all along, Tomoe blamed herself for her fiancé's death. Kenshin holds Tomoe close in his arms to comfort her when she begins to tear.

When the snowfall grows heavier, both Kenshin and Tomoe find themselves covered by a blanket and seated next to a warm fire. Kenshin explains that he left his master in order to protect the happiness of the people. Battousai was born to help a new era rise, but Kenshin admits that one man cannot accomplish such a large task by himself nor bear the burden of man's happiness. Kenshin says he will stay a hitokiri until the new era is created and when that time does come, he would like to find a way to protect people's happiness without taking lives as atonement off his hitokiri deeds For once, a smile is seen on Tomoe's face.

The next morning while Kenshin is asleep, Tomoe is up and getting dressed and heads to the door. Leaving her diary and looking back upon the sleeping boy, Tomoe realizes that despite him taking her only happiness away, he gave her happiness of a new kind. In order to prevent Kenshin from being killed, Tomoe must leave the house. Once finished saying good-bye to her second love, Tomoe closes the door behind her and departs into the snow-covered outside.

Characters[]

Chapter Notes[]

The first two pages were originally released in color.

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