Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ Ranma OneHalf: First steps ❯ Book Four, Chapter 4 ( Chapter 36 )

Ranma Onehalf: First steps. Book Four.

Chapter Four.

Naota came out of his room and stretched. His father looked up at him from the table and arced an eyebrow.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

Naota said as he headed to the door. "Out."

That made his grandfather look up from the couch.

"Oh? Going off to spend some quality time with your fiancee?" he asked, a smirk on his face.

Naota scowled at his father as he pulled his sneakers on.

"No. For your information I'm going to be babysitting Lias little brother." he said.

"Ah, the old 'babysit little brother to get in good with her' trick." Kamon said.

"Oh, shut up." Naota said as he pulled his sweatshirt off its hook. "Me and Kenji are watching him because the rest of his family is buying him birthday presents."

"Right." Kamon said.

Shaking his head in exasperation Naota pulled his hood up and stepped out the door. Walking three doors down he stopped at Kenjis doors and leaned against the balcony. As he waited Naota pulled his hood back slightly and focused his ears forward.

As they focused Naota heard the semi -muffled voice of a woman, obviously Kenjis mother. Kenji answered her back and then another male voice replied, similar to Kenji but deeper and older.

"Surprise, surprise, the old man is actually at home for once." he thought.

Naota had a low opinion of Kenjis parents for various reasons. One of which was the only time Kenjis father had any time for him was when Kenji wasn't performing to expectations.

Another reason was the fact Kenjis parents wanted him to go to college and be a salaryman like his brother and father before him. Hearing the voices behind the door rise and grades start being mentioned Naota decided to step in.

"Time be saved by the bell." he thought as he pressed the doorbell.

He stood back as he heard the voices stop and then footsteps came up to the door. Naota immediately recognized them as being Kenjis. There was a pause then the intercom beside the door popped to life.

"Naota?" Kenjis voice asked.

"Yeah." Naota said as he pressed the talk button.

"I'll be out in a second." Kenjis said.

There was a pause as Kenji slipped his shoes on. The locks clicked and the door opened. Stepping out Kenji handed his travel mug to Naota to hold while he put his coat on.

Handing Kenji back his mug they began to walk to the stairs. Sipping his tea Kenji looked at his friend.

"Thanks Naota." Kenji said.

"Your welcome." Naota said.

When they reached the ground the boys turned and started walking in the direction of the Saotome dojo. As they walked along Kenji glanced at Naota again.

"So we're babysitting today." he said.

"Yup." Naota answered with a nod.

"And I am wasting a perfectly good Saturday afternoon why?" Kenji asked.

"Because it's either us or Lias grandma watches him." Naota answered.

Kenji shuddered at the mention of Nodoka Saotome. He had only met her a handful of times, but she had been the reason behind four of the most embarrassing hours of his life after he had passed out from seeing Matokos bloomers clad rear when she had been getting up....

Pinching his nose Kenji leaned his head back and ran multiplication tables in his head to calm down. Naota saw what Kenji was doing and smirked.

"Remembered the kendo incident, huh?" he asked.

"Don't remind me." Kenji said.

"You know Kenji, most guys would have killed to have been in your position then." Naota said.

"Would you have wanted to have been in my place?" Kenji asked.

"No." Naota answered with a shake of his head. "One, I'm not that kind of guy, and two, Lia would have killed me."

Kenji released his nose and tilted his head back to the regular position. After for a nosebleed he looked at his friend.

"I'm just glad Lia didn't see what happened. Otherwise she would have killed me." he said.

The boys chuckled at the memories as they walked. Naotas nose twitched and he wetted a finger and tested the wind.

"You smell something?" Kenji asked.

"Yeah. Lia and Christian." Naota said.

Kenji glanced at his friend, a smile tugging at his lips.

"Figures you would pick up her scent first." he said.

Naota glanced out the corner of his eye at Kenji.

"Yeah, and I know you're sweet on Matoko." he said. "If you had my sense of smell you'd pick her up first too."

Kenji sighed and hung his head. "You're right." he said. "I would."

Naota 'hehed' as they turned the corner and saw Lia and Christian at the other end of the street. As they approached Naota noted that Christian was in female form.

"How the heck does this keep happening to me and not you?" Christian asked.

"Because it's a water -based curse Christian." Lia said. "That's why I'm always in cursed form."

"But I don't want to be a girl all of the time." Christian countered.

"Do you think I want to be a catgirl?" Lia asked. "You'll just have to accept it Christian. You're going to be a girl whenever you leave the house."

"Hmpf!" Christian said. "I hate being cute."

Lia chuckled and ruffled Christians bangs as she looked up and saw Naota and Kenji.

"And speaking of cute..." she said. "Hi Naota, hi Kenji."

"Hi Lia." Naota said as Kenji nodded. Looking down at Christian continued. "So when do you want us to bring her-"

"I'm a boy!"

"-sorry, him back?" Naota asked.

"Why don't we meet back up at the magazine shop at around six?" Lia asked.

Naota blinked and he looked at Lia. "You don't want us to bring Christian home?" he asked.

"Grandma Nodokas gonna be there." Lia explained.

"She's still worked up about the clan thing?" Naota asked.

"That, and somebody opened her big fat mouth and mentioned the demon part too." Lia said, looking pointedly at her younger sibling.

"Hey, I'm a boy!" Christian said, taken aback slightly. "And it was accident."

"So she knows about my other problem." Naota said.

Lia nodded. "Yep." she said. "And unless you want to be purified or sealed you might want to keep away from the house for the next week."

"Definitely a good idea." Naota said.

"Okay." Lia said. "I'll see you around six."

"Okay. See you then." Naota said.

Without warning Lia reached up and gave Naotas ears a tweaking.

"Hey!" Naota said.

"Sorry." Lia said with a shrug. "Couldn't help it."

"Well ask next time." Naota said as he rubbed his ears. "I don't mind you doing it, but give me a heads up next time."

"Okay." Lia said. "See you at six!" she said before she turned around and walked off.

Naota watched Lia go, then looked down to see Christian smirking at him.

"What?" he asked.

"You do like my sister." she said with a smirk.

"Quiet you." Naota growled.

"Hmpf!" Christian retorted.

Naota looked down at Christian and smirked as a thought struck him.

"Hey Christian, you had better watch out." he said.

"Why?" Christian said as she looked around.

"Because if you're not careful Mamimi sooner or later will be your girlfriend." Naota said.

"AACK!" Christian said. "We're friends! Nothing more!"

Naota smirked and squatted down to be on Christians level. Holding out his hand he smiled at her.

"Even?" he asked.

"Even." Christian said as she took his hand.

Standing back up Naota and Christians stomachs growled. Looking sheepish Naota looked at his companions.

"Anybody want breakfast?" he asked.

_________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ________________

"So what are you going to buy Christian for his birthday?" Lia asked Mamimi as they wandered around the mall.

Mamimi thought for a couple of seconds before looking at Lia.

'I don't know." she said. "But I'll know when I find it."

"Okay." Lia said.

Glancing over at Mamimi Lia saw she the girl was beginning to wander away. Stepping over to her Lia tapped Mamimi on the shoulder.

"Mamimi..." she said. "Going off somewhere?"

"Huh?" Mamimi said as she looked around. "Oh sorry. I'm used to following Chris -chan."

Lia smiled and nodded her head. "You can't live without him, can you?"

Mamimi nodded. "He's my guide."

"Well, I'll try to be your guide today." Lia said. "Take my tail. That way you can follow me."

"Thank you." Mamimi said as she took Lias tail.

They began walking again, scanning the front of the stores looking for something that Christian would like. They passed by the games store as Christian wasn't really a gamer, usually preferring the arcade if he was in the mood for animated violence.

The magazine shop was out as well for Christian really wasn't a manga fan either but Lia did stop in for a Pocky fix. The various multimedia outlets were rejected for the same reasons as well.

After a dozen stores and the beginnings of sore feet in Lia the two stopped and sat down at a table in the food court. Sighing Lia blew her bangs out of her eyes.

"This is incredible." she said. "I've heard of the question what do you get for the man who has everything, but what about the one who want's nothing?"

"I know." Mamimi agreed. "Chris -chan really only follows martial arts, so there's really nothing we can buy him."

'At least not here." Lia said as she looked around the mall.

"Or maybe there is." Mamimi said as she perked up. "Look."

Lia followed where Mamimi pointed and saw a accessory place. Scratching her head Lia looked at Mamimi.

"But he doesn't do that sort of thing Mamimi." Lia said. "Christian wouldn't be caught dead in there."

"I know." Mamimi said as she got off her chair. "But I go in places like that. And there's something in there he can use."

"What is it?" Lia asked as she got up after Mamimi.

"Hair ribbons." Mamimi said as she approached a display case and pointed.

Lia bent down and saw what Mamimi was pointing to. It was a packet of hair ribbons, about two centimeters wide and twenty centimeters long in a multitude of colors. Flipping through several of them Mamimi selected four packs in the blue spectrum and held them up.

'There." she said. "These will be perfect for Chris -chans ponytail."

"Hair ribbons?" Lia asked. "Why not use schrunchies like I do?"

Mamimi shrugged. "Because it looks better with ribbons." she said. "And also Chris -chan doesn't like them."

"Oh." Lia said. "They are the only things I can use in my pigtail." she said, waving her braid which was half coiled on the floor.

Mamimi looked at her companions braid and sighed. "I wish I could have my hair that long." she said. "But I can't."

"Why not?" Lia asked as she stood up.

"Because I travel a lot." Mamimi answered as she began to carefully walk to the register. "Keeping it short makes it easier to deal with."

"Oh." Lia said. "Well, if Christian is your navigator why don't you grow it out? With him you don't get lost do you?"

"No, I don't." Mamimi said thoughtfully. "I think I will. Thank you Lia."

"You're welcome." Lia said as Mamimi put the packs on the counter.

"Ring these up please." Mamimi asked the clerk.

After paying for her purchases Mamimi and Lia left the shop and as they left Lia saw a clothing store. Narrowing her Lia realized that the shirts on display were like what Naota would wear.

"Hey Mamimi, I think I may have found a store for some of my gifts." Lia said as she nodded in the direction of the store.

"A clothing store?" Mamimi asked.

"Yeah." Lia said. "I think my little brother could use a change in attire, don't you?"

Mamimi nodded as they started walking.

_______________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ __________________

Elsewhere in Nerima Christian shivered as a chill ran up her spine.

"Brrrrrrr....." she said as she hugged herself.

"You okay?" Naota asked.

"It felt like someone walked on my grave." Christian said.

"Oh." Naota said.

Scowling Christian started to glance behind herself before she stopped.

"You missing something?" Kenji asked.

"No. I was just double checking to see if Mamimi was there, but I forgot that she's with my family." Christian said.

"Ah." Kenji said with a nod. "You must worry about her."

Christian nodded. "Yeah. She's my friend." she said.

"You two really get along well." Naota said. "You're more like brother and sister than friends."

Christian looked up and glanced at Naota. "Whats wrong with that?"

"Nothing's wrong that." Naota said.

"I agree." Kenji added. "You're lucky you get along so well with your sisters. My brother and I don't get along nearly as well."

"You have a brother?" Christian asked.

"Yeah." Kenji said with a nod. "He's in college."

"Oh." Christian said. "What's he going for?"

"Business management." Kenji said. "He's going to be a salaryman like our father."

Christian made a face and Kenji chuckled at her reaction.

"That's my opinion too." he said.

"What about you Naota?" Christian asked. "Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"No. It's just me." Naota said with a shake of his head. "I'm an only child. Just me, my dad, and my grandpa."

"No mom?" Christian asked.

"No." Naota answered. "She passed on awhile ago."

"Sorry." Christian said.

"It's okay." Naota said. Deciding to change the subject he looked at Christian. "So what else can you do besides the sk8ter technique?"

"So far the only other thing I can do is the Umi -Sen -Ken." Christian said. "What about you? What's it like now that your , uhhh, changed?"

Naota shrugged. "Nothing much. I can punch steel beams, move really fast-"

"How fast?" Christian asked.

"At least as fast as your father." Naota answered as Christian nodded. "I can roof hop, my endurance is phenomenal, I have incredible healing capabilities-"

"Healing?" Christian asked.

Naota nodded. "Healing." he said. "When I first changed, I went full out with Lia and ended up looking like I got hit by a tank. The next morning I didn't have a scratch."

"Huh." Christian said. Looking up she saw a tori gate silhouette against the sky. "Hey, isn't that the temple we went to on New Years?" she asked.

"It is." Naota said. Knitting his brows together he started towards the steps leading up to the temple. "Hey guys, lets take a detour."

Seeing his friend head to the steps Kenji panicked.

"Naota, wait!" he said.

"What?" Naota asked as he stopped and turned around to face his friend.

'That's a temple!" Kenji said. "You can't go there? Remember what you said what happened at the church?"

"Yeah, but I'm testing out a theory." Naota said.

"Oh?" Kenji asked. "What is it?"

"I went into the new shopping district the other day, right after it opened." Naota said.

"So?" Kenji asked.

"It had been blessed by Shinto priests when it opened." Naota said. "There was no reaction when I came in. So I want to see what happens when I go into a temple."

"Okay." Kenji said. "But I want to be standing next to you just in case."

"Fine by me." Naota said. "Lets go."

Naota turned and headed up the stairs to the temple. Kenji caught up to Naota in one and a half long strides and continued up the stairs with him while Christian trailed behind.

________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _________________

Ita Katsushika was puttering around in the shrine when the crows in the trees around the temple took wing in a cawing and flapping horde. Looking he heard the ofuda in the shrine and the ema rustle and rattle.

"Something's coming." Ita thought.

Stepping out he saw a pair of teenage boys and a young girl reaching the top steps of the shrine, As he walked over to greet them he saw the shorter of the two boys had what looked like tattoos on his face and Ita could have sworn he also had cats -ears.

"What is with youth these days?" Ita thought. "Always piercing or tattooing themselves. Though I wonder where cats ears come into play."

"Good morning." Ita said as he came up. "And how can I assist you?"

"Well, we have some questions for you." the shorter boy said. "But first, let us introduce ourselves. I am Naota Sano."

"Well then, I am Ita Katsushika ." the priest said. "And I'm pleased to meet you Mr Sano..."

Ita trailed off as he saw his eyes weren't deceiving him earlier. The shorter boy -Naota- actually had cats ears on the top of his head, which twitched and moved to focus in on him. And now that he was up close Ita was surprised to see that the boy had sky -blue cats- eyes.

Seeing the priests reaction Naotas mouth quirked into a smile, revealing a set of pearly white fangs.

Seeing Naotas smile Ita held up his hands.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to pry..." he began.

'Oh, don't worry about it." Naota said. "My appearance does tend to attract attention. In fact, our questions are connected to it."

"Oh, how so?" Ita asked.

"I'm a demon." Naota said.

There was silence for several long seconds as the breeze blew through the trees and traffic noises rumbled in the background. Finally Ita cleared his throat and spoke.

"Oh my." he said. Swallowing he rubbed his hands together. "That is something." he said.

Naota nodded. "That's putting it mildly." he said. "The thing is, I was turned into a demon a while ago."

"Ah." Ita said.

"So what I need actually is advice." Naota said. "I don't know the first thing about being a demon."

Ita nodded and turned back to the shrine.

"Kuniko, put on some tea!" Ita called.

Once the tea had been brewed and Naota had introduced his companions they all sat down in the shrine to talk. Naota had been hesitant about going in, but Ita had calmed his fears.

"Well," Ita said as he cradled his teacup in his hands. "Before you start asking questions, keep in mind I only know the most basic things about demons and such."

"It's better than what I know now." Naota said. "So for beginners, why am I able to sit here in this shrine and yet I cant even step foot onto the grounds of St. Baccus?"

Ita pursed his lips for several seconds before replying.

"Well, only reason I can think of is how the blessings on each religion's holy sites are done." Ita said. "From what I have researched of Christianity is that it's more of a blanketing effect, probably due to how things are defined in black or white terms."

Naota nodded, remembering the many sermons he had gone through over the years. Sipping his tea Ita continued.

"With Shinto it's different. Things are more defined, with specific enchantments and so on." he said. "That's the reason why you're able to be here in this shrine. There haven't been any anti- demon wards on this shrine since March 9th, 1945."

Christian blinked and looked at Kenji.

"Whats so important about that?" he asked.

Kenji sighed and tried to figure out how to explain the horrors of war to a child. He was saved by Ita responding first.

"That was when over three hundred B -29's hit Tokyo in a firebombing raid." Ita said. "The shrine, along with much of the city, was destroyed in the firestorm."

"Oh." Christian said.

"Anyways, that's why you're able to be here. And there's no demand for the wards, so you're not likely to run into them."

"Except in convenience stores." Naota said.

"Pardon?" Ita asked.

"Some teenybopper in a miniskirt tried slap one on me when I was checking out a while ago." Naota said.

Ita nodded sagely as he heard Naotas explanation. "Well, this is Nerima. The unexpected is a given." he said.

"True." Naota said. " What do you know about the physiology of demons?"

"Absolutely nothing." Ita said.

"Okay then." Naota said. "How about this: Is there a hierarchy for demons? Are there sub -classes and so on?"

"Yes." Ita said. "But I don't know them, and most of this isn't written down. It's preserved verbally as folklore. I'd have to call around."

"Could you please?" Naota asked. "I'll give you contact information."

"Okay." Ita said with a nod as Naota pulled a notebook and pen from inside the voluminous pockets of his sweatshirt.

"Here it is." Naota said as he wrote. "I have a lot of questions, but I'm gonna have to get them in order and written down."

Tearing the slip of paper off Naota handed it to Ita. Taking the slip he nodded.

"Send them to me as they come to you." he said. "This is a fascinating chance to look into the history of mine, and other shrines."

"Glad to be of service." Naota said with a smile.

_________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ________________

Lia and Matoko slurped their ramen happily as they took a lunch break and discussed the main subject of the day, Christian. As Mamimi chattered on about an after school adventure of theirs Lia chewed on her lip as she though about a subject that had been in the back of her mind for a while.

Putting her chopsticks down Lia looked at Mamimi.

"Mamimi, may I ask you a question?" Lia asked.

"Yes." Mamimi asked.

"Why does Christian tease me about Naota? He never did anything like that before." Lia said. "I was wondering, since you two are so close."

Mamimi was silent for a few moments as she slurped her ramen and thought.

"He's a little jealous." Mamimi said.

"Jealous? Why?" Lia asked.

"Because you and Matoko were the main part of his life, and then Naota comes along and your not there anymore." Mamimi said.

"Oh." Lia said.

"But I think he's getting over it." Mamimi said.

"That's good to hear." Lia said as Mamimi nodded.

"I wonder what Chris -chan is doing right now?" Mamimi asked suddenly.

'What time is it?" Lia asked.

"Let me check." Mamimi said as she pulled a stopwatch from her pack. Checking the time she put it back. "It's eleven thirty -seven." she said.

"He's probably getting lunch." Lia said.

"Oh." Mamimi.

Naota stared at his plate in slight confusion.

"This is a burger?" he asked.

Christian nodded, being too busy with the juicy goodness of her own burger to speak.

"It's huge." Naota said as he gingerly picked up his burger.

Swallowing Christian looked at Naota. "This place isn't WacDonalds Naota." she said.

"Tell me about it." Naota answered. "How did you find this place?"

"My dad found it." Christian said. 'He says it's the only place in Japan where you can get a decent burger."

Naota nodded before he took a bite. Immediately his sense were overloaded by the taste of the meat, combined with the spices massaged into it and the onions and other toppings. A tingle ran down his tail as Naota closed his eyes in ecstasy as he started to purr.

Seeing Naotas reaction Christian smirked. "Good, huh?"

Naota could only nod as he attacked his burger, purring loudly. Kenji said nothing, being immersed in the heaven that was his burger. As they ate a large Caucasian came out of the kitchen and walked over to their table.

"Hello Christian." he said.

Christian looked up and smiled. "Hello Mr. Thomas." she said with a smile.

"Ran into cold water again, huh?" Thomas asked.

"Yep." Christian nodded.

"You want some hot water?" Thomas asked as Christian shook her head.

"No, but thank you." she said.

"Okay." Thomas said with a nod. "By the way, who are your friends?"

"Oh." Christian said. "The cat boy is Naota Sano, he's a friend of Lias. The tall guy is Kenji Mashida, he's a friend of Matoko."

"Hello gentlemen. I'm Jonathan Thomas." Thomas said with a nod to each of the teenagers.

"They're watching me while everyone's out buying my birthday presents." Christian added.

"You should have told me Christian." Thomas said. "I would have made something special for you." he said.

"Sorry." Christian said.

"And how old are you, anyways?" Thomas asked.

"I'll be nine." Christian said.

"Nine. Amazing, you don't look it." Thomas said.

"That's cause I'm a girl at the moment." Christian said.

Thomas nodded and patted Christian on the shoulder. "Well, happy birthday." he said. "I'd stay and chat, but I have to get back to the kitchen."

"It was nice talking to you Mr. Thomas." Christian said before Thomas walked away.

__________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _______________

After they were done eating the trio wandered around until they came across a arcade. On a whim they wandered in and stepped up to a shooting game. Christian looked up at the sign ,which was in English and squinted as she tried to read the sign.

'What's it say?" she asked. "I can't read it."

Naota and Kenji looked at Christian in surprise.

"Why not?" Naota asked. "You're Lias brother."

"Yeah. But I can speak it. I can't read it." Christian said. "So what's it say?"

Looking back at the game Naota read it and carefully translated it into Japanese.

"It says I.P.S.C.(1) World Challenge. It's a pistol shooting game." Naota said.

"Feh." Christian said dismissible. "Guns."

Naota narrowed his eyes and looked at her. "You don't like them?"

"They are for the weak." Christian said. "I have no use for them."

"You wont use them." Naota said.

Christian nodded. "They're too easy, too simple to use."

"Really." Naota said. "Then lets see you use them. You up for a challenge?"

Christian looked at Naota and grinned. "You're on, kitty -boy."

"Bring it on, girl." Naota said as he dug in his pockets for change.

"Allow me." Kenji said. And I'm playing too." he said as he pulled out a few bills from his pocket.

"Your funeral." Christian said as Kenji headed to the change machine.

Fifteen minutes later a shell shocked Christian stepped out of the arcade followed by Kenji and Naota. Shaking her head she walked aimlessly down the street.

'I can't believe I lost to Kenji!" she said.

"What I can't believe is I forgot just how damn fast that trigger finger of yours is." Naota grumbled.

Kenji merely smiled serenely clasped his hands together. "It's all in the mind." he said.

"Oh, shut up." Naota countered. "You can drop that Buddhist monk act. I've seen you play Quake. You're one of the biggest psychopaths on the servers."

Kenji merely said nothing and followed Christian. As she walked along there was a violet white flash and thunder boomed. Jumping she let out a girlish shriek and immediately clamped her hands over her mouth.

"I hope no one heard that." she thought. Turning around she saw Naota and Kenji smirking at her. "Oh, crud!"

"Nice one, Chris -chan" Naota said.

"Hey! Only Mamimi can call me that!" Christian said, pointing at Naota.

"Sorry." Naota said as he puts his hands up in a placating gesture. "I was just ribbing you a little."

"Hmm." Christian replied.

Before anything more was said the heavens opened up in a downpour. The three of them ducked into a doorway two wait out the downpour.

Looking at the rain Kenji shook water from his coat and shrugged.

"Huh. The forecast said a chance of showers, not a downpour." he said.

"That's cause I'm here." Christian said. "It's my curse. If there's a chance I'll get wet, I will."

"But you are already in cursed form." Naota said.

"I was thinking about changing back." Christian said.

'Ah." Naota said as he squatted down.

They stood and watched the rain in silence for the next few minutes before Naotas attention began to wander.

"You know, I never asked when Lias birthday was." he thought. "I should ask, and get her a late present."

Turning his head he looked at Christian.

"Hey Christian, when is Lias birthday?" he asked.

"April Eighteenth." Christian said.

"Thanks." Naota said as he sat down. "I was thinking about getting her a pres-"

fzzzzt-THWOCK!

Naotas eyes went to the size of dinner plates as a arrow embedded itself in the wall where his head had been a heartbeat ago.

Finely honed combat instincts took over and Naota grabbed Christian and Kenji by the waist and exploded out of the doorway. Another arrow embedded itself into the concrete where he had been half an instant later.

Adrenalin and demonic strength propelled him down the street faster than the eye could follow and made his friend and charge weigh nothing. A third arrow thunked into doorframe as the shooter fumbled their lead and missed Naota by a mile.

Ducking into the alley Naota disappeared and the street was quiet again and all was back to normal, with the exception of a couple of arrows sticking out of walls and doors. Eventually the rain slackened and stopped.

A solitary figure in a school uniform stepped out of another alley, and after double checking the street retrieved her arrows. From his vantage point in the alley Naota scowled and looked at the figure.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me." he muttered. " Please don't tell me that a teenybopper in a school uniform didn't just try to kill me."

"Oh man, this is embarrassing." Christian muttered from where she was hidden.

Noting the uniform Naota memorized it's design for future reference. Reaching into his pocket he pulled a monocular out and brought it up to his eye. Settling it on her he watched her examine the area where he had been sitting.

"C'mon, turn a freakin' round already." Naota muttered under his breath. "I want to know what your face looks like."

A car horn made the girl look up and Naota instantly got a good look at her face. He carefully committed her facial details to memory. Grinning he ducked down and faced Kenji.

"Hey Kenji, get out your sketch book." he said. "I got a job for you."

Dutifully Kenji replied and pulled out a black book from his coat along with a pencil. Opening it he thumbed to a blank page and nodded.

"Shoot." he said.

"Okay. Here's the girl. She has a normal sized face..."

"...and her uniform is a green/ white sailor uniform with a green miniskirt." Naota finished. "Did you get that?"

"Yeah." Kenji said with a nod. Tearing three pages out he handed them to Naota. "So, what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to find out the name of that girl, where she lives, the names of her family and friends, her and their habits, and then I'm going to show her that I'm one demon you don't want to mess with." Naota answered as he took the paper.

"So you're gonna get medieval on her." Kenji said.

"Yup." Naota said as he put the papers away. Standing up he checked his watch. "And it's going on six. What do you say we get going to the rendezvous point?"

'"Lets." Kenji said as he and Christian stood up. "I've had enough excitement for one day."

"Me too." Christian agreed.

"Hey Christian, have your father call me when you get home. I'll tell him what happened." Naota said.

'Okay." Christian said.

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(1)International Pistol Shooting Championship. World body governing competition handgun shooting.