They Are My Noble Masters Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Virtua Fighter Fan Fiction ❯ Nodoka 2/1 ❯ Chapter 04 - The Art of Getting Further Lost ( Chapter 4 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Nodoka 2/1
The Chroma Series
Act 0 Part 04

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DISCLAIMER
Most of the characters and other elements are owned by people who are not me, though I did make up a few here and there... but none of the main ones. The rest are owned by many talented people, and a few faceless corporations, such as Rumiko Takahashi and Sega respectively.


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AUTHOR'S NOTES

First off, thanks for reading; I hope you are enjoying it so far. This chapter was originally going to be part of the last chapter, but it got too long, so this is kind of Chapter 3b.

Special thanks to my "Agent" and "Publicist" Hiryo, for proofreading, prodding, posting advice and so much more.


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GLOSSARY (from the last chapter)


Okiya = Lodging for Meiko and Geisha, during their contracted period, or 'nenki'. This is the first step toward becoming a geisha, where they begin training as a Meiko. Kyoto is the only place left children under eighteen can still train, and even then typically don't start until age fifteen in modern age

Geisha/Geiko = literally 'Art Person/Girl or Artist', entertainers, and hostesses, much like Bards. Geisha do NOT perform sex acts for money, see Joro

Maiko = Geisha in training, literally 'dance child/girl', also called 'hangyoku' [half-jewel] because they would get half the pay of a geisha, or even O-Shaku, which means 'one who pours [booze]'; early Maiko are called Minarai, lit. 'learning by watching'

Joro = Prostitute, many called themselves 'geisha girls' to soldiers in WWII

Fuma Shuriken = a fictional weapon, supposedly used by the Fuma Clan ninja, that can range from a basketball in size to a large person, they are used for melee, shields, and throwing weapons, and can be thrown like a boomerang. Many have a handle in the center to grip them, and allow them to be used like a staff.

Gojira = Godzilla

 Hentai = literally, 'abnormality', can also mean 'pervert'

Shinai = a bamboo practice 'sword' for kempo beginners. Not to be confused with a Bokken or Bokuto, a wooden sword for more advanced trainees

 Me = pronounced 'mae' or 'meh', meaning 'no!; don't!; tsk!; used to scold small children and pets

 Katanuki - shape poking (lit. die cutting) or katanukigashi (lit. Die-cut Candy) Sometimes it is shortened to just 'nuki', there is a shape outlined on a piece of barely edible candy, usually wrapped in paper, where the 'player' tries to break off the outside of the candy, usually with a pin or toothpick (but can even be done by hand), leaving only the shape behind, if you do so without breaking the shape you can win a prize based on the complexity of the design

 Kunai - is a Japanese tool possibly derived from the masonry trowel, in the hands of a martial arts expert, it could be used as a multi-functional weapon. It is commonly associated with the ninja, who used it to gouge holes in walls. In the mythology of ninja, the kunai is commonly portrayed to be a Japanese knife that is used for throwing as well as stabbing.

 -dono = an archaic honorific, used between nobility and the upper-class, to show respect, without showing deference.

 Neko-Chan = Hello Kitty

 Kawaii = cute; adorable; charming; lovely; pretty; (2) dear; precious; darling; pet; (3) cute little; tiny;* obviously not that last one in this case

 kawainoshishi = bush pig

kawaikochan = popsy; cutie; sweetie

 Nee/Onee = Older sister.
 Nii/Onii = Older Brother

Ne = 'isn't it?'; 'wouldn't it?'; no?; yes? Used to end a sentence when you assume the listener agrees with you. "I know, huh?"

 Daimyo = a powerful lord, working under the Shogun.

Shimatta = damn it! damn! oops! oh dear! oh no!

...and I am going to repeat this one, because it is such a common mistake
Kote = Okonomiyaki 'Turner', the small baker's peels. (what most people incorrectly call a 'spatula').

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CHAPTER 04
The Art of Getting Further Lost

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Flipping though a food magazine, Ryoga came to a picture of a steak. Beginning to drool, he tore out the page, cut the picture out and placed it on his plate. Using a knife and fork, which, strangely enough, were around, he cut off a piece of the picture and shoved it in his mouth.

 "Oh, I can't wait until lunch at school tomorrow, I hope I make it in time to get real food."

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Having arrived at the fishing village the innkeeper had indicated, the trio of adventurers set off in search of clues about this 'demon' they had been told about. A water spirit, who had been troubling the people of this small town.

 They decided that the best place to start their search would be the waterfront, so they headed off in that direction. When they started to get close, they saw a man crawling onto shore. At first glance, he seemed rather old, but as they ran closer, they saw that it was actually a younger man, who was looking rather pruney and gaunt. "Are you alright man? Do you need anything, water perhaps?" Ranma offered the man a bottle of water from his pack.

 Taking the bottle, he guzzled it down in one long drink, looking slightly better for having done so. In between ragged breaths, he gasped out, "Thank you! Thought I was gonna die... Only one, to get away... Monster, in the water..."

 "You're welcome sir, could you tell us what happened? We are here to help if we can."

 His breathing started getting better, as the drained man related his story. "We were out, fishing on our boat, when one of the boys noticed something odd in one of the nets. First there seemed to be what looked like green hair tangled in the net, we originally thought it was seaweed. Now movement in the net is not unusual, the fish do a lot of flopping, but there was blood leaking out of the net, and that had never happened before, so we were all a bit unnerved. We had all heard th' stories of about people being attacked, but none of us believed them. We just assumed people were trying to scare us off, and keep the good fishing spots for themselves.

 "That's when the inhuman screams began coming from under the pile, as claws tore their way free of the net. Covered in the blood and guts of the fish that it tore through to get out of the net, the fish person with glowing red eyes, set to work dismembering and sucking the life out of my fellow crewmembers. Many of us jumped into the water and tried to make it to shore, while those who looked directly at it froze, dead in their tracks. I tried to jump, but my leg was caught, and I could feel my life fading, I kicked at the hand holding my ankle, broke free and started for shore. When I finally looked back, all I could see was blood and body parts, floating in the water. I made straight for the shore and didn't look back again until I hit land."

 While listening to the man's story, Ranma had been examining his ki, and noticed it was very weak. He began feeding some of his own into the man, so that by the time he was done, the man looked much healthier and the only wrinkles remaining were from being in the water for too long.

 They gave their sympathies to the man and Ranma planed their course of action. "Kaa-san, see if you can find the owner of this rental boat, and buy it or something, it might not make it back, Ucchan and I will take it out and try to find and lure this demon back toward the shore, where you can provide ranged support with your bow, since your aim is better than any of us."

 As the three of them moved into action, the man looked worried, "WAIT! You can't go out there! Weren't ya listening to my tragic story? It's dangerous! That thing killed everyone!"

 "Well, I am not willing to write off everyone just yet, others may have also gotten away, and 'protecting the weak' is what a martial artist does. Come on, Ucchan, let's go."

 "Hai, Ranchama!"

 Not wanting to ruin their moment of looking cool before they head off to their deaths, the fisherman just watched them go. "I tried to warn them, where is a Magical Girl when you need one?"

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Rowing out to the area that the fisherman had indicated, they found remnants of the boat and its crew. "Ewww! I think he may have been right about 'no other survivors', Ranchama. Do you sense anything?"

 Extending his senses as far as he could, he picked up something after a few moments. "There's something down there, with a LOT of ki ...and it's coming this way, FAST!" He grabbed the oars, and started to row toward the shore as fast as he could.

 Just as they started to move, the surface of the water broke, right where their boat had been moments before, causing waves that helped propel the boat even faster. Using her fins, the mermaid directed her descent toward the small craft, barely missing it thanks to Ranma's last burst of speed.

 Moments later the Mermaid's head broke the surface again, "Ranchama, it's gaining on us, maybe this will slow it down. Take this, Flour Bomb!" Hitting the mermaid in the face with her bag of flour had the desired effect, as the mermaid had to slow down and clean the, now dough, thanks to mixing with the salt water, off of her face. As the mermaid went below the water's surface again, Ukyo grabbed one of the oars and helped Ranma row them back to shore where Nodoka was waiting for them with an arrow nocked in her bow.

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  Having just arrived as the chase began, Nodoka readied her bow, and waited for the perfect moment to fire, not wanting to hit one of the children by accident.

 The mermaid broke the surface of the water again, and gave chase, her speed in the water practically unmatched, she was gaining 'ground' rapidly. When she had almost caught up to them, she leaped into the air to attack again. 'The female will die for her annoyance, but the male, looks so tasty, his life energy would last me for months, and the young ones are just so much more tasty!' Her thoughts were interrupted when, just before landing, she felt a sharp pain in her left shoulder, and was knocked back into the water. Looking down, she noticed an arrow protruding from her shoulder, and yanked it out. 'Another who will have to die for their effrontery!'

 The small craft reached the shore, where the children joined their mother, preparing for an attack. The mermaid stayed under the water as long as she could, trying to avoid getting hit with another arrow. As she got closer, she started to sense a feeling of power, her people had legends about such a power. Something thought to be lost to the ages, not having been seen in many generations.

 "I sense something, something old, something powerful... Something ...over there!" At breakneck speed, she made a B-line straight for the trio, able to quickly dodge the ranged attacks, now that she had been expecting them. Not having the best mental faculties, and being a creature of instinct, she leaped toward what she hoped would be her next few meals only to have him pushed out of the way of her webbed claw, and ended up grabbing the screaming girl instead.

 "NO! I won't let you have him! Take ME instead!"

 "I don't eat girls, but don't worry, you will die anyway for what you did earlier. Your boyfriend, on the other hand, will make for a fine meal, several in fact!" As her hand tightened around the girl's neck, the mermaid once again felt a pain, this time in her tail, which had been pierced by another arrow. The pain caused her just enough distraction that she had also failed to notice that another hand had gone around her own neck, and that hand was getting uncomfortably warm for her. As a matter of fact, her meal now appeared to be on fire, from his blazing aura. This worried the woman, for more reasons than just the fact that she preferred her food raw.

 "LET! UCCHAN! GO! NOW!" Each word had been emphasized by the boy's flaming fist pounding into her face, something she did not enjoy, not in the slightest. It did not help matters that when he struck her it caused her grip to lessen just enough for the girl to escape. Not only did her insides feel as though they were being cooked by his aura, and several more arrows were poking out of her hide, making her feel like a pin cushion, but to make it worse, her furious flaming food stuff was beating her so badly that she was starting to get the idea that she was not going to get to enjoy her meal after all (no one had ever accused her of being bright).

 Seeing that Ukyo was safe, and the mermaid was starting to look like a grilled fish, Ranma's anger started to subside. "So, are you going to quit terrorizing the people here, or do I gotta get rough with you?"

 She morphed her face from its shark-like form, to a more human, yet still badly beaten appearance, the look of defiance still shown in her eyes, yet she remained silent.

 Nudging him in the side, Ukyo interjected, "Ranchama, this reminds me of a legend I heard while studying at the okiya. They say that anyone who eats the flesh of a mermaid gains immortality."

 Looking down at their foe, the three got a glint in their eyes as Ranma said, "Reeeeeeallly? That sounds interesting, maybe we should try it out, it's a rare opportunity after all."

 The mermaid stiffened in fear for the first time she could recall in recent memory (the stupid do not scare easily after all), the hungry look in their eyes chilled her overheated body to the bone. "NO! That's just a myth! I taste awful! I won't bother anyone again! I swear!" With that, she bolted for the water, moving almost faster than the eye could see, even for their well-trained eyes, causing waves to kick up as she cut through the water, and was out of sight within seconds, hoping to find a place to nurse her wounds and partially cooked organs. She would need another meal again quickly, but she would not be stopping here again for food anytime soon. "I prefer Chinese anyway!"

 The three martial artists fell down laughing at the sight they had seen, Nodoka almost wished she'd had her camera readied instead of her bow.

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Earlier that day, on the other side of Tokyo...

Nabiki was having a good first week in her new school. The classes were going well, her teachers were nice, most of the other students were pleasant, the food was GREAT, and she had even been chosen as the freshman representative to give a speech during the welcoming ceremonies (meaning she had the highest score on her entrance exam). The only real problem was that there just was not a club that she wanted to join, and as an 'upper class' student, she was required to join one. At least until her senior year in high school (third year high school students were not required to be in a club, so that they could use the time to study for college entrance exams, if they needed it). She was starting to think her only option would be to start her own club. Which is what brought her to where she was now, sitting in the front office, waiting to speak with Tenjoji-kouchou. Nabiki knocked on the door and announced her presence. "I am first year, middle school student, Nabiki Tendo."

 A stern voice came from within, "Please, enter."

 "Thank you, I'm coming in." She entered the back office, and bowed to the two women inside as she did so.

 Kaede Tenjoji was sitting behind her desk, on which there was a computer, that Nabiki could tell was running, but the monitor was powered off for some reason. "Good afternoon, Nabiki-kun, you've met my assistant Mikan-chan, the head instructor?"

 "Hai, and Kasumi-nee-chan and Fubuki-chan have told me all about her." She said with an unreadable expression on her face. "Aren't the two of you a bit too young to be running a school?" It was true, the two women did 'look' more as though they should be attending high school, or at least college classes, rather than being in charge of them.

 "Yes, yes we are. My father owned this school before he passed, and I took over after I graduated, but rest assured, that Mikan is one of the best instructors in the nation, even if she does need to loosen up a bit..." That last part was mumbled under her breath.

 A steely glint in the other woman's eye indicated that she not only heard, but was not thrilled with the commentary, "What was that, Chairman?"

 "Oh, no, I didn't say anything. Ahahaha! Don't break my keyboard again, please!" With this last part, she bowed her head, and put her hands together above her head, asking for forgiveness.

 Turning back toward Nabiki, Mikan continued, "Now, what can we do for you, Nabiki-kun."

 "I am not particularly interested in any of the clubs you have available here, and I would like permission to start my own club, since participation in a club is required of all 'Uppers'."

 "Yes, club activities provide one of the primary opportunities for young ladies to learn peer socialization, learn useful skills and how to pass those skills on to your kohai."
{*Kohai = 'underclassman' or 'junior' at work or school; see notes for more*}

 "So would a co-ed school."

 Kaede's face lit up, she was instantly in front of Nabiki, grabbing both of her hands, "I know, right? I have been trying to convince the board of directors to allow it ever since I took over!"

 Freeing her hands, she reached into her pocket, "Well, I run a detective agency, here is my card." Holding the top two corners, each in one hand, she presented the card facing them in the customary, professional way. Taking it, Kaede's eyes lit up even further, it was quite a professional card too, yet with a cute, child-like flair. It even had a cute drawing of a pony in the top left corner, 'Chaos Pony Investigations (CPI), Nabiki Tendo, Detective', then it gave an address and a phone and pager number. "I would like to start the 'Kai Bu', or Mystery and Wonder Club! We would research mystery fiction, study real cases and investigate strange events. Personally, I specialize in debunking paranormal phenomenon."

"We prefer ladies to join more useful clubs, like Tea Ceremony, Flower Arranging, Music, Art, things which a Lady of High Society is expected to know." Sensing the briefest of flashes of killing intent from the child, and seeing the stars in the eyes of her 'superior', she knew she would need another angle.

 "While I'm not so sure how 'useful' any of those skills are, wouldn't that be what the 'servants' are for? Besides, starting my own club, will give me far more opportunities for training others in the skills I have learned, as well as help me better learn how to organize and run a group. Which is something I WILL need to know." To herself, she started thinking, 'Maybe she has a reason she doesn't want an investigation club investigating, I should investigate that!'  

 "Right! Right! You've got quite a head on your shoulders! Doesn't she, Mikan-chan?"

 Mikan knew she lost, and needed another tactic to have any hope of salvaging this situation. 'Young ladies should behave as such, after all.' "Well then, in order to become an official club, you need at least three other members to qualify, and while servant class students are allowed to join club activities, they do not count as official members for things like budgets and minimum memberships."

 "Well, it could have been worse, I could have asked to start a different kind of 'Kai Bu' like the 'Underwear Club', or the 'Pleasure Club'."

 "Mystery Club: Denied! Underwear Club: APPROVED!!!" Nabiki was actually quite taken aback, that was NOT the reaction she expected, she had started to worry for a moment that she would end up in the 'Underwear Club' after all...

Mikan was NOT about to let that stand. She threw one of her trademark fountain pens (yes, she throws fountain pens) into the floor in front of Kaede, which stopped her dead in her 'tracks'. "Did you say something chairman?"

 "No, I don't believe I did..."

 "Now, as I was saying, find three more upper-class students to join your club, and your 'Mystery and Wonder' club, will be approved. Have them fill out these forms."

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As they left the elder's house, they started looking for an inn where they could get a meal and a bed for the night.

 "What an odd little man he was, strange how he didn't want to take 'No, we don't need a reward' for an answer, what part of 'It's a martial artist's duty to protect the weak' is so hard to understand?"

 "Well Ranma-kun, not everyone is as honorable as you are, some only do good deeds for rewards, and not because it is the right thing to do."

 "Is there a way to tell, something in the aura maybe?"

 "Well, according to Kyoshi-sensei, as we get better, we will be able to read it, in their aura, in the way they move, the way the ki flows through their bodies, everything about them."

 "Maybe it's about time we took her up on her offer of more training then. Ucchan never got to meet her, and she can check to make sure I did her ki modifications correctly. I wanted to learn more healing techniques anyway, and maybe SHE will be willing to tell me more about this massage thing I am doing, since neither one of you will tell me."

 Nodoka was not able to contain her mirth, almost falling over she was laughing so hard. "You do that son, you do that."

 Ukyo on the other hand looked a bit unhappy, "If I knew how to explain it to you, I would Ranchama. I just don't understand it myself."

 "I know, Ucchan, I know. You, I am not holding it against."

 Before they could find an inn, they were startled by a yell that came from near by, "WHERE THE HELL AM I NOW?!?!?!?!" They turned toward the sound to see a boy, about the same age as Ranma and Ukyo, with black, unkempt hair, wearing a dirty school uniform, a yellow and black bandanna and carrying a very large backpack. He was staring at the ocean in disgust and frustration, looking quite miserable.

 They decided to see if they could help the poor lad out, and walked up to him, "Oi! Do you need a hand, you seem lost, are you hungry?"

The boy looked up, noticing them for the first time, looking sheepish, he replied, "Can you tell me where Takanawadai Elementary School is located, please?"

 "We're not actually from around here, do you know any landmarks that might help find it?"

 "Well, it's in Takanawa, near Tokai University."

 "Takanawa? But, that's, Tokyo!?!"

 "OF COURSE!"

 "But, this is, Aomori Prefecture, that's more than seven hundred kilometers away!"

 "Of course, it would be, sorry to bother you." Dejected, he turns to walk away, the wrong direction of course.

 Nodoka would have said something at this point, but she was to busy getting this strange boy, and her son's manly actions on tape. Ukyo was too dumfounded that anyone could be THAT lost, to even be able to find words to respond. So once again, it fell to Ranma to be the spokesperson of the group. "Oi, Kid!"

 "Hibiki."

 "What?"

 "Hibik i, Ryoga Hibiki, that's my name."

 "Ranma Saotome, that's my mother over there, and this is my 'concupine', Ukyo Kuonji."

 "Concupine? What's that? Some kinda pet?"

 "WHAT?!? NO! I don't know, she's like my helper, or something."

 "I'll help him do anything!"

 "Whatever, it's nice to meet you, now if you don't mind, I have a long walk ahead of me..."

"Hibiki-kun, why don't you come have dinner with us, and we will get you on the train in the morning, that has to be faster, and you look like you could use a meal, and a rest."

 Ryoga was pretty sure there had been an insult in there somewhere, and would have voiced a complaint about it, but his stomach beat him to it, with the obligatory well-timed growl. "See man, we're all hungry, and the trains don't make stops this late way out here anyway*." Turning to his mother, "Oi, kaa-chan, isn't Takanawa near where Kyoshi-sensei, lives?"
{*-I really do not know if this is true or not.}

"How serendipitous."

 Having taken too long to get a meal at a roadside inn, they had to find another option. Luckily they found one restaurant that was just locking its doors, but once they found out that they had stopped the mermaid attacks, they were welcomed in with open arms, treated to huge portions of food that they refused to take money for (mostly because they were closing for the day, and much of what they had eaten would have been wasted anyway).

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'Who knew recruiting was such hard work?' Nabiki had figured that even amid all of these rich girls there would be a few mystery buffs. Some seemed to misunderstand what kind of club it was, others seemed scared of her. 'In hindsight, maybe writing the 'Kai Bu' in English characters wasn't the best plan, but why would they be scared? That just does not make sense... Disdain or disinterest I could understand, but fear? That just doesn't fit.' While Nabiki enjoyed solving the puzzles of a mystery, 'pieces that did not fit' bothered her. She had a hard time letting them go until she figured out their place in the big picture. She needed more information, but she was starting to think something funny was going on with this whole thing.

 She had not wanted to get her sister involved in this. While Kasumi did seem to enjoy mysteries, she seemed to prefer to be a bystander rather than a participant, even if she did like to figure it out before the story ended. While her onee-chan was always willing to help, whenever asked, she had always just seemed to find other activities more fulfilling, and she really did seem to enjoy the tea club. However, it was starting to look like she may have to do just that. If nothing else, the tea and other treats her sister and Fubuki could make would be an asset in trying to recruit others. She was not a bad cook herself, but they way the two of them could turn the simplest of things into a heavenly treat, was well beyond her skills. Having a third-year student in her club, even if it was her onee-chan, would certainly not hurt her credibility either.

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After Ryoga had gotten lost in the room's closet while trying to find the bathroom (that was down the hall), more than once, they concluded that his sense of direction was well beyond abysmal. Moreover, even if they put him on a train, it would have been a waste of money, since he would still not likely reach his destination. Luckily, for Ryoga they had decided to go to the same general place. Unluckily for our heroes, as they had to (literally) drag Ryoga along, to keep him from getting lost, even while on the train. The boy could barely even manage to follow them, he was that easily sidetracked.

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Ranm a had sensed the hostile intent, and immediately pinpointed where it was coming from, he leapt straight up, grabbing the hand straps, and used them to crawl across the ceiling of the train car, over to where the 'offender' was 'offending'. The hostile vibes were coming from a man who seemed to be grappling a teenaged girl, who was screaming, and trying to push him off. Ranma was not exactly sure what a 'pervert' was, but that was what the girl had been calling her attacker when Ranma dropped down, planting both feet in the man's face. In response to this, the 'pervert' felt obligated to crumple to the ground. Unfortunately, for the girl, his hands were still in her skirt, which came down with him. Ranma felt obligated to tie the man up and toss him into the baggage compartment. After the girl pulled her skirt back up, she thanked Ranma, over the cheers and applause from the rest of the people nearby (none of whom bothered to help the girl, not even the few who had seen and were close enough to do something). Ranma decided not to call them on it, and just enjoyed the praise. Needless to say, there was not another 'incident' during the remaining eight hours of the trip, on that particular train car.

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Early that morning, Nabiki had set up a table in front of the school, where almost every student would have to pass by when they arrived. With the help of her elder 'sisters', she had made a sign. This time she wrote the 'Kai-Bu' in Kanji, Hiragana and English. She had started learning English early on, because so many good mystery novels were written in English, and translations always lack the nuances of the original language. She may not have developed the verbal skills, having no one to practice with, but her skills with the written language were quite good, especially for her age.

 Soon after she had set up her table, with her poster, her stacks of flyers (and business cards), Kasumi and Fubuki arrived, followed by Maid Guy, who was carrying several vary large boxes. Nabiki thanked her 'sisters' as they opened the first box, pulling out a large rack of onigiri made into various shapes, question marks, magnifying glasses, ghosts, and various other 'mystery' themed shapes, all with Kasumi and Fubuki's magic teamwork touch.
{*Onigiri - Rice 'balls', usually wrapped in seaweed. They can be made into various shapes, usually balls or triangles.*}

On any other campus, a child-maid, helping a student with their activities at school, would be a strange sight, but not so on this one. Maid Guy, on the other hand, WAS an unusual sight, and not necessarily a welcome one in the eyes of most of the high-strung girls, some of whom fainted at the sight of him. The girls wound up having to send him away. Akane might well be upset with them and how they had been able to accomplish such a feat. They sacrificed their cute imouto-chan, and suggested that she might be more in need of his assistance than they had been. No, she would not be happy at all.

 Once the Maid Guy had been removed, and the unconscious girls revived, things started to look up. They began to attract some interest, mostly in the onigiri. Nevertheless, they handed one out with a flyer and a card, to each student who would take one. Even if some of them felt they were too good for a 'simple rice ball', many were amazed at how cute they were. Sadly, most were too 'lady-like' to eat theirs out in the open, in such a place. Nonetheless, in part, thanks to her 'assistants', and their hard work, she was not getting quite the negative response she had gotten the day before. Thus, word began to spread, slowly, sometimes still inaccurately, about the 'Kai-Bu'.

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Arriving in Takanawa, the quartet disembarked the train, glad to be off of the crowded public transportation system, where they could stretch their legs.

 "Well, let's see if we can find this school of yours, do you know what the address is?"

 "If I knew that, I wouldn't have been lost!"

 "Really? I don't think that's how that works... I don't know why I was asking you anyway, really." Ranma pointed out a nearby police box, and the group walked over to it. The officer, seeing Ryoga in the group, slaps himself on the forehead and reaches over to grab a piece of paper from a large stack in the corner. When the group got to the box, the officer hands the paper to Nodoka, who is just as surprised as her children, at this, and looks at the paper in her hand. On the paper is a small map, with three stars on it. One star had been scribbled out, the second said 'Takanawadai Elementary School', and the third said 'Hibiki House'.

 The officer let out a big sigh, "At least with someone helping him, he may make it. Good luck, you'll need it."

 Sweatdropping, Nodoka asked, "So this is a common occurrence?"

 "Someone helping him? No, but the Hibiki's have 'lived' around here for quite some time now, and they are always lost."

 "That's awful, why does no one help them?"

 "Oh we've tried, we even had a patrol officer assigned to just that purpose. They have been known to break walls when they are lost, it's in the public's interest to keep them, 'not lost', but you know, government cutbacks... We used to have two people assigned to each booth too, one to stay with the booth, the other to help people, but now it's just one person per booth, and we can't leave unless it's an emergency, and frankly, a Hibiki being lost is just Tuesday."

 "Didn't you just say it's in the public interest to keep them 'not lost'?"

 "Yes, yes I did, and yes, yes it is. But we are only allowed to do so much. The boys and I printed these things up ourselves, but it's about all we can manage these days."

 This time it was Nodoka who let out a large 'sigh', while she rubbed her temples. "Oh, my." She looked up again, "Well, I have to ask, why is this star crossed out?"

 "That was where his mother worked, but, since she hasn't shown up in close to a year, they said she no longer needed to bother."
sou
Ryoga stops his fuming at that, "What? Mom's been fired again?"

 "Well, when was the last time YOU'VE seen her?"

 "Um, I'm not sure... I just thought we were missing each other. She's been home a few times... I keep finding the food she'd made for me, even if it is spoiled."

 "Oh you poor boy! Well, it is too late for school today. We will take you to your house and figure out what to do next. We need to find a place to stay near here for a while anyway."

 "The school is just up that street, if you turn right there, his house is a few blocks up."

 "Thank you officer, could you also point out a good restaurant close by?"

 "It depends on what price range you are looking for, Chardin's is right over there if you are into that fancy food, or if you prefer something more simple, there is a really good beef bowl around the corner there, well priced as well."

 "While there are many French things I like," She said with a bit of a grin, "their entrees are not among them. Are beef bowls sound good to the rest of you? How about you officer, would you like us to bring one back to you?" '

"Oh, no you don't have to do that."

 "It would be our pleasure, you were quite helpful."

 "Well, I'm only doing my job, ma'am. Helping people is why we are here ...when we are able." He got a distant look on his face as he reminisced about the old days when he was allowed to do more than give directions and take reports.

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They arrived at the Hibiki home quite easily, once they had left the beef bowl with the helpful officer, after they had eaten their own dinners, triple portions each. Ryoga was himself, stunned at how easily they had arrived, he couldn't manage it if his life had depended upon it. It probably would have taken him a few days at best, had he been on his own. After undoing the various locks on the door, he invited them in, and only after falling victim to one, did he remember to warn them of the various traps. Little did he realize that his warning was too late, since his houseguests had not only noticed them, but were deftly avoiding each one.

 Ryoga showed Nodoka where their phone was located, checked to see that they still had a dial tone before handing it over to her. Then he went to clean out the refrigerator and throw away the dinner his mother had made for him ...the last time she had been there, which, it turns out, was about a week and a half ago, not long after he had left the last time, and thankfully, was not still in the oven, 'cooking', again. After throwing away a lot of spoiled food, he wrote a reply note, telling her about her job, in case she still hadn't found it, and telling her about his recent 'adventures' and the family that had helped him.

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Nodoka was surprised to learn that not only was the empty lot behind the Hibiki house available, both houses next door had been abandoned as well and were for sale, cheap. Apparently no one wanted to live next door to a family that shouted at the top of their lungs 'WHERE THE HELL AM I NOW?!?!?!' every time they walked into the wrong room, or closet, which happened a LOT. Never one to let a 'good' investment opportunity go by (everybody makes mistakes), she scooped up all three, figuring she could rent them out, or sell them later if she needed to. It never hurt to own more property, and with any luck, maybe she could give it to Ranma when he gets married. If the way things had been going were any indication, her manly son might need a really large first home (although it might need some sound proofing, due to her son's skills). Visions of grandbabies danced in her head briefly before she regained her composure, and asked her contacts to get her an interview with the best art and Mandarin language instructors available at Todai.
{Todai is one of the top Universities in Japan, and located very near Ryoga's elementary school}

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Akane was in her last year of elementary school, and she had gathered quite a following. She was not just the best female athlete in the school (and maybe even the district), but she was also likely the best over-all athlete, of either gender (especially since her sisters were now going to school in another district). With the exception of certain events (like swimming, or gymnastics, where she had no skill at all), few in her age range could even come close to her prowess.

 She really loved being at school, it was when she got the fewest interruptions from the meddling Maid Guy, and she got a lot more respect. At home, she was the 'baby', always needing to be 'looked after', while at school, she was the top dog. The problem was that this was her last year of it. With the coming of the next year she would have to transfer to that rich girls' school, and while the thought of an 'all girls' school DID appeal to her, none of her friends' families could afford to send them there, and she didn't want to leave her friends behind again. 'That stupid principal said she was trying to make them let boys in anyway someday. Not to mention that most 'rich girls' she had met, were rude and haughty.' They tended to snub her, and insult her and her hobbies. If that was the way they wanted to be, then they were no better than boys!'

 {Right! If anyone was going to be a snob, it was going to be her!}

 "Hey, watch it! Don't think, just because you are the author, that I can't come pound you, Baka!"

 {Shaking in his 'boots', the bias author returns to the story, already in progress...}

 ...they were no better than boys! She didn't think that she could take six years of being around them, being in the servant classes would probably be better than that!

 Her family had been very insistent about her going to this school, saying it would help her out in the long run, but these were the same people who said she needed the Maid Guy to help her. She really was not sure, if she wanted to go there or if she wanted to make her father pay to send her to a normal school. She had a lot of thinking to do in the very near future.

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Ranma was meditating, having gotten up earlier than his training partners, as was usual these days. He was really becoming a morning person, the peace and tranquility of early mornings did wonders for his peace of mind. The only thing that could top it was watching the stars on a clear evening. He had started water for tea, and prepped the tools for the day's training. The only thing left was to meditate on his ki training. He was working on expanding his awareness with his ki sight, sending it out in all directions, reading the auras of all things in his ever-growing range. Due to which he was completely unsurprised when Ukyo walked up and said...

"There you are Ranchama. What'cha doooin'?"

 With a wink he replied, "Practicing watching you from afar."

 Blushing a bright pink, she shyly looked away, "Aw, Ranchama, you know how I feel about the thought of being watched."

 "Yeah, it makes you excited, why do you think I do it?" Smiling, he gets up from his lotus position, "Well, most of the morning prep is done, and we have some time before mom gets up, you want to do a quick spar before we take our bath?"

 "Sure Ranchama!"

 "After breakfast I have a new technique I have been practicing that I want to show you guys. When you get good at it, we can make it into a game."

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After breakfast, and dropping Ryoga at his school, Ranma, Ukyo and Nodoka gathered in their practice area, "Okay, today we are going to try something new. I have been trying to work on ki projections. This one is based on Jan Ken Pon, I call it 'Jan Kenpo'." Taking up a Janken stance, he shouted, "Jan! Ken! Po!" As he shouted this, and his fist struck his open hand for the third time, he gave the sign for 'rock'. When he did this, a huge rock shaped ball of ki formed in the air in front of him, and slammed into the ground, leaving a large dent. Repeating the steps, a large pair of scissors appeared, cutting a practice dummy in half. On his third attempt, a large creation appeared that looked like a cloth, with net-like cables on one side. Bringing the 'net' down over Ukyo's head, it soon covered her completely. It lifted her into the air, flipping her over as it did so. Floating back toward its creator, it slowly dissolved, depositing a startled Ukyo into Ranma's outstretched arms.
{*Janken = the game that is the origin of Rock, Paper, Scissors.*}

Leaning into his chest, she held him tightly, too amazed to do anything other than enjoying Ranma holding her. Nodoka was busy picking her jaw up off of the ground, and dusting it off.

 Once they had sufficiently recovered, Ranma began showing them how he was able to solidify his ki, and walks them through the steps needed to project it.

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 So far, Nabiki had gotten some return on their investment. Unfortunately, much of the response had been from girls who wanted to join the cooking club, or at least get the recipe for the onigiri, especially from the servant class girls.

 Nabiki had been starting to get frazzled, if only some of her 'information network' had been able to gain admission to this school as well. It would take a lot of work to build a new one. She would really need to start spending some time with the servant class students, the so-called 'ladies' tended to ignore their maids, as if they were a part of the furnishings. She could use that fact in a number of ways, the first being that is a good way to get information, the other being that by treating them nicely, like fellow human beings, she might be able to win their trust, and service. She was certainly not above exchanging favors either, and many of them were from poor families, and could use the help.

 Nabiki decided she would do just that, and decided that the easiest place to begin would be the lunchroom, and headed that direction. Now they may call this a 'lunch room', but it looked more like one of the fanciest dining halls you could ever hope to see in your life. It had huge vaulted ceilings, with plate glass windows running from the floor to the ceiling along two of the walls. One side, giving a beautiful view of the campus below, and the other had glass doors that opened up onto a lovely patio that overlooked the garden. There were fancy tables, spaciously located all around the room, instead of the elongated, bench-like tables you find in a more normal school.

 Each of these tables were 'looked after' by one of the girls from the servant classes. Where each maid would take care of any girls who 'sat at their table' as if they were her 'master', like a 'Maid Cafe' where each table had its own personal waitress. It would be a good place to get a 'captive audience', and let her begin to build up a rapport.

 As she went to sit at one of the empty tables, a young girl, with short black hair and a beauty mark beside each of her large, beautiful, grey eyes, that seemed to smile at her as she came twirling over to greet Nabiki, and hold her chair, blushing as she did so. So cute was she, in her black and white maid's uniform, that when she spun, it seemed as if shiny bubbles sparkled all around her. "Welcome, goshujin-sama." Standing on Nabiki's left, she handed her a menu. "Today's 'recommended dish' is Italian, chicken pasta, with an Alfredo sauce. Would you like me to get you a drink while you decide?"

 "Whatever tea you recommend would be lovely. The name's Nabiki Tendo and you are?" Nabiki looked up at her expectantly.

 "Your humble maid, Mori. I shall return with your tea in a moment." She twirled to leave, as she hurried off to make Nabiki's tea.

 Thinking to herself, 'Wow, could she get any more perfect? I really wish I knew how she sparkled like that, need to ask about it later.' She started taking notes while she waited for Mori's return.

 Moments later, the maid returned with a steaming cup of tea. She bowed deeply, after she placed the cup on the table, in front of Nabiki. "Your tea, goshujin-sama."

 "Thank you, but call me, 'Nabiki', please. I would rather be your friend than your 'master'." Nabiki gave the girl her warmest smile.

 "Thank you for your kindness, Nabiki-sama, though I am not sure if that is allowed. We must keep up appearances after all. Would you like something to eat?"

 "I will take the 'recommended dish', thank you." Once again, Mori sparkled as she twirled and hurried off to place Nabiki's order.

 While she was waiting, Nabiki studied the other 'maids' in the room, looking to see if any of them looked to be receptive to a deal. She had one advantage in this, unlike most of the 'ladies', she could relate to them a bit, thanks to her 'training'. It would take her a while, but 'every web is built, one strand at a time'.

 Before long, the effervescent maid returned with Nabiki's meal. Everything was quite fancy, and the presentation was beautiful, everything was perfect. It had not taken Nabiki long to get used to the strange utensils, and she found that she was really enjoying all of this rich, foreign food. Nothing could top Kasumi and Fubuki's cooking, but then, they never tried anything like this.

 As Nabiki enjoyed her meal, she attempted to hold a conversation with Mori, and considering the girl, never moved, other than to refill her tea, and her lips never moved, said conversation went rather well. When Nabiki would ask a question, a tiny voice would sound from just behind her ear, so low she was sure that she was the only one who could hear it. Nabiki had asked about it and she had replied,

 "In addition to being graded on our performance, and rest assured, we are always being watched, the perfect maid is seen but not heard, and a Japanese lady, should never be seen speaking."

 Nabiki had been amazed at how old fashioned her ideals were. She also figured that was at least part of why the girl, who had to be about her age, seemed so mature. The fancy uniform did not hurt either.

 When she had finished eating and Mori was about to clear her dished, she asked her to pick a dessert. Soon after, she returned with a slice of "turtle" cheesecake. Chocolate, caramel and pecans, combined into such a fluffy texture that just melted in her mouth. "Oh, this is just divine!"

 Nabiki slowly savored every bite as she inquired is Mori had any 'special needs' that she was having trouble filling. Mori was not 'poor' by any stretch of the imagination, her mother worked for a, very, rich family after all, but she was not allowed to leave the campus under most circumstances, and so she had trouble getting items from the outside world, like manga, junk food and toys. And thus, Nabiki's 'network of informants' began to grow.

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For the second day, Ranma and Ukyo were walking Ryoga to school, but unlike the day before, Nodoka was with them was well. Ryoga was in a strangely good mood, for the second day in a row, he was going to make it to school, on time. Nodoka had been making sure he ate regularly, and stayed clean, and they had even helped him with his homework. It was nice to have a mother who looked after him, even if it was not HIS mother, still, he could really get used to this.

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After dropping Ryoga off at his school, our heroes arrived at Kyoshi's home. Kyoshi herself was going through an exercise after having hung her laundry out to dry. Seeing that she had company, she immediately stopped and walked over to greet her new arrivals. "Nodoka-chan! Ranma-chan! Welcome back, I hope life is treating you both well. And who is this cute young lady you have with you today, you didn't mention you had a daughter."

 "I didn't have one then, but I do now. Kyoshi-sensei, I'd like you to meet, Ukyo Kuonji. We picked her up near Osaka, her father was too sick to care for her, so we are taking care of her now."

 "I'm gonna be Rachama's concupine!!!"

 Kyoshi gives Nodoka a strange look, "I don't know WHERE she gets these ideas from..."

 "But, Okaa-sama, you said that... ow!" Ukyo stopped talking as Nodoka's hand quickly shot out and lightly pinched her side.

 Looking a bit on the sheepish side, Nodoka tried to cover with, "From the mouth of babes...."

 Making a mental note to ask the kids about this later, after all 'From the mouths of babes and drunkards, you will learn the truth.', Kyoshi gave Nodoka a strange look for a moment, but decided not to 'sweat the small stuff' for now, and moved on, "And Ranma-kun, what a handsome young man you are growing into, I hope you are using what I taught you to protect girls in trouble, and not abuse them, or treat them badly, like so many other men."

 Ranma blushed at the compliment and said, "Thank you Sensei, and of course! It's a martial artist's duty to protect the weak! ...not that girls are weak, I mean the ones who can't take care of themselves, er, I mean, ...It's a martial artist's duty to protect those who need it! Yeah, that's what I mean!"

 Always one to jump to Ranma's defense, even after he stuck his foot in his mouth and unintentionally insulted her whole gender. Besides, he was so cute when he got all flustered like that. "That's right Sensei-sama, Ranchama has saved me more times than I can remember! That's partly why I swore my oath of loyalty to him, and why I will follow and serve him for the rest of my life!" Pride and determination emanated from her very being.

 One did not need to be able to read auras to see her loyalty. Added to what she had already gathered from their auras, Kyoshi was quite pleased. She was quite glad that she had made an exception and trained the boy, and that his lovely mother had kept her word, he truly was becoming a fine lad. Deciding to ignore Nodoka, who was trying not to draw attention to herself, she focused on the two children before her. "So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your company again, did you come for more training, or is this just a social call?"

 "Well, both really, but as for training, we had several things we wanted to check with you about. First the technique you did on us when we first got here, I tried to do it on Ucchan and I wanted you to check and make sure I did it correctly."

 Examining the girl's aura again, paying extra attention to her ki pathways and reserves. "Considering I never actually showed you how to do that technique, you did an amazing job, but you see here, and here there are still a few partially blocked paths, and I think we can give her more of a boost if we do this. Do you see how that works?"

 "Hai Sensei!"

 "How do you feel, Ukyo was it?"

 "Great! Thank you, and yes, Ukyo Kuonji's the name, and serving Ranchama and okonomiyaki's my game! Well, actually, I know a lot of other games too, part of the geisha training, but those are the main two, and Ranchama comes first!"

 Turning back to her prodigy student, she says with a wink, "Well, Ranma-kun, you must be doing something right. Her aura has some of the most loyal blues I have ever seen. She may not pick things up as quickly as you, which is nothing to be ashamed of, I can't even learn new techniques as quickly as he can, but in most other ways, her ki should almost equal yours, with some practice. We will get to why you are here, but first, let me see how far you have progressed. Start with the basics, charge up your auras and let's see what you can do."

 The three 'students' did as instructed, flaring up their battle auras and used it to enhance their abilities. Gauging the size, intensity and speed of their build-up, Kyoshi turned to them and said, "Okay, now Jump!" All three of them were instantly in the air, soaring as high as they could go.

 Ukyo was impressed with herself, this was the first time she had almost matched Ranma's jump, he had always been able to get about five meters higher and at least a good ten meters further than her, but not this time. She only started her descent a fraction of a second before him, she felt as if they almost cleared four stories. She made a mental note to make sure and thank Kyoshi-sensei again for the help she had given her, as the ground quickly approached. Preparing herself for the landing, she braced her legs, ready to absorb the impact as she pushed ki out through her feet to cushion her landing.

 "Using only your auras, deflect or absorb these attacks!" Kyoshi began slowly tossing pebbles at her favorite pupils. At first, the pebbles got through, hitting them, but not hard enough to do any damage. However, as their battle auras got stronger, the pebbles got bigger, and were thrown harder and faster, less of them were able to hit their intended targets, being pushed to the side, or in a few cases, completely consumed in the blaze of power and his aura continued to grow in intensity. He powered it up with not only his own internal ki, but he took some from the ground and air around him as well, it grew to the point that it more than completely enveloped all three of them. Nodoka and Ukyo were almost distracted enough to let theirs drop, as feelings of warmth and safety washed over them. Realizing that they were no longer 'protecting themselves, they started focusing their ki into Ranma, essentially combining their auras, and causing it to flare up once again, almost tripling in size, disintegrating any projectile that got close. Or rather it did, until Kyoshi threw her last, and smallest, pebble, which she also charged with her ki. This pebble completely ignored their combined aura, and hit Ranma's forehead, leaving a small bump.

 "Very good, very good. You can charge your auras, you can charge yourselves, can you charge objects, like weapons?"

 In response, each of them pulled out their preferred ranged weapon. Nodoka picked up her bow, Ukyo pulled out some of her kote from a bandoleer hidden somewhere inside her training outfit, and Ranma pulled out his deck of cards. Kyoshi looked at them for a moment, "Alright, you said earlier that okonomiyaki was a passion in your life, so I get that, themed weapons, and the bow, while it is an uncommon weapon for a martial artist, it IS a weapon, but cards? Really? Cards? That's the weapon you picked? There has to be a story as to why you are using that?"

 "Well, the story was, a guy was running away after cheating at cards, I needed something to throw and they were close by. It took me a few tries to get the hang of it, but I got it, busted him and was able to return all of the money and stuff he took from Ucchan and the other kids. As for why I still use them, why not? They are cheap, easy to come by, easy to carry, inconspicuous, and most of all, fun!" He grinned broadly at that, he held up the queen of clubs and said, "Watch this."

 Ranma threw the card he had charged, and it sped straight away. Once it had gotten about ten meters it made a ninety degree turn, and shot straight up only to curve back toward them, where it circled around Kyoshi a few times before it embedded itself into the ground behind her.

 "Fun is all the reason you really need, and that, Ranma-chan, was quite impressive. I knew training you was the right thing to do." She always used the '-chan' honorific when she was especially pleased with him. It helped her forget she was not training a girl, and he was so adorable when he was embarrassed. Ranma was not exactly thrilled about the fact, but if that was the price for what she could teach him, it was well worth it, and this horse was not going to look gift training in the mouth!

"Alright, who's next?" Nodoka stepped up with her bow, readied her arrow, and let it fly. It was difficult for even them to track the arrow, but after a moment, it was easy to see the branch of a large tree split down the middle, upsetting a squirrel and several birds in the process. "Simple, direct but effective, Ukyo-chan, you're up."

 Ukyo, rather quickly, set up her gas grill, and whipped up an okonomiyaki, tossing it into the air. As it spun in the air, without losing a single topping, she threw four kote into the air with her other hand. They sliced through the okonomiyaki, cutting it into four equal 'slices'. Each piece of the okonomiyaki landed in the mouth of one of the four people present, she then caught the four kote, two in each hand with a flourish.

 "Delicious!"

 This inspection went on for several hours, first with demonstrations of skills, working up to the most recent special moves they developed, the Jan Kenpo. Kyoshi was pretty impressed that he had come up with this on his own, and it didn't take long before she was playing along with them. After that, they moved onto sparring, first with Ranma and Ukyo, and later Nodoka joined in, using her bow as a bo-staff, helping Ukyo double team Ranma.

After they had finished sparring, Kyoshi felt she had a good read on their current abilities, and what they were ready to learn, while Ukyo and Ranma helped each other to make each of them, several okonomiyaki for lunch. It was precisely moments like this, when Ranma tried to help her, that Ukyo was the most torn, she wanted to insist that she should be the one taking care of it for him, but at the same time, she wanted to spend every moment she could with him, and it was fun to work together, so she almost always gave in and let him help, and then felt guilty about it afterward.

After they had finished eating, Kyoshi looked slyly at Nodoka, "Sooo, Nodoka-chan, after such a workout, I was thinking we should all soak in the hot spring, it has good restorative powers, and we all certainly need a bath after all that sweating." She finished up with a bit of a leer.

 "OH! You'll love it, Ucchan, she has her own private, open-air hot spring!" The children were noticeably excited at the prospect, there was nothing quite like a good soak, in a natural hot spring.

 Nodoka, on the other hand, was decidedly less thrilled about the prospect of a hot bath, an unusual thing to be sure. In fact, she had stiffened a bit remembering what happened the last time. She had needed to be quite the gatekeeper around the amorous ki master. "Um, that's okay. We'll, um just have ours when we get home..."

 "But, kaa-chan, her bath is sooo nice!"

 Matching Ranma's 'whining' tones, "Yeah, kaa-chan, my bath is sooo nice! It will do wonders for your skin, and help ki flow. Come on, I'll wash your back!" Kyoshi and the two children dragged and/or pushed Nodoka along to the bathing area. Nodoka had been planning to give the children a sexual education soon, since they were getting close to that age, but this was certainly not the way she had wanted to go about it, she did NOT want to be the example. Especially after last time, she didn't want to feel anything like that again, at least not, like that.

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Nodoka had been quite surprised that Kyoshi had not done much more than a little harmless skinship, after what happened last time, she had expected the 'worst'. It is not that she is opposed to the idea, exactly, but she had taken an oath of faithfulness, and while the oaf she married saw little reason to fulfill his marital duties once she had begot him a son, her honor would not allow her to break that vow. Children learn by example, after all, and she wanted to make sure her son knew that his mother kept to her word. She did get a chuckle when Ranma started to inquire about his 'massage' technique, it took everything she had to keep herself from laughing at the thought of her salacious sensei, getting her just desserts. She was only disappointed that they had taken so long in the bath that they didn't have time for a 'demonstration' today, they were already running late.

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They ran as fast as they could, hoping against hope that they would make it to the school before Ryoga 'accidentally wandered off'. Not seeing him by the gate as they ran up, they started to assume the worst when they heard the sound of a commotion. Turning toward the noise, they are relieved to see Ryoga, only to be a bit concerned to see he was fighting, and even more concerned to see what he was fighting with!

 "Wait here, on the off chance I need back-up." Chuckling a bit, he strolled over to see if his friend of a few days needed help. "Oi, Ryoga! What did you do to that vending machine, kick it to get free food?"

 Both of them turned to 'look' at the source of the interruption. The vending machine remained silent, not really surprising anyone present. Ryoga, not wanting anything to think he was a thief, defended himself, "This is all your fault Saotome!"

 "How do you figure?"

 "If you had been here on time, I wouldn't have had to put money into this vending machine, only to have it not give me a sandwich! I reached inside to get my food and grabbed something I shouldn't have, and it's been attacking me ever since! It should at least give me my money back if it's not going to give me a sandwich!"

 "Don't worry about it Hibiki-kun, I can make you a better sandwich than you could ever get out of a worn out old vending machine like this!"

 Said vending machine was not exactly thrilled about being insulted, and decided to make that fact known to the general public. "Hey! Never in my life, have I been this insulted! Been made to suffer such indignation! Char, Charge I say!!!"

 Quickly dodging out of the way of the oncoming vending machine, Ranma watched as it smacked into the wall surrounding the school, crumpling to the ground. Ranma walked over to the fallen snack dispenser, poking it a few times, "Oi! You okay?"

"Just wait, I'll get you both! ...as soon as I get up."

 Not really wanting to get involved, but not having learned the paralysis pressure point yet, Ranma did the closes technique he knew. Using his ki, he penetrated the back of the 'costume' and hit the spot he had been practicing on Ukyo so much lately, finding it easily despite it not being in the spot he expected. The moment his ki unraveled the 'knot', the 'machine' started convulsing on the ground.

 "Well, that's done. Let's get back home and make some dinner. You going to join us, Hibiki-kun?"

 "Will it be okay?"

 "Sure, you can join us for meals as long as we are here. No problem!" Ranma gives him a friendly grin, and pats him on the shoulder.

 "No, I meant that 'it'." He pointed to the convulsing costumed creep.

 "It should be." He pointed toward Ukyo, "She is always happy when I practice on her. It's a massage technique."

 "Maybe I should get you to do it on me, my shoulders get kind of stiff from that backpack I carry when I am not trying to find the school."

 "Well, there is a side effect, which is why I used it here, it turns the person's legs to rubber for a short time and besides, I am not all that comfortable massaging guys... I'm not really sure why, but it feels weird."

 "You just did!"

 "That was a guy? The voice was so high pitched... Well, it IS hard to tell inside a vending machine..."

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EARLIER THAT DAY

Nabiki, Kasumi and Fubuki had gathered to discuss strategies in the back of an empty classroom. Nabiki had been poking around, and Fubuki trying to listen in to see if she could hear anything related to why their club was being snubbed so hard before it had even formed, since both of them were able to maintain a 'low profile'. Kasumi did not have that option, she had a difficult time finding any time where she was 'unnoticed'. In her short time going to this school, she had gathered quite a following, which only grew once again with this year's influx of new first year students. Popular among both the upper classes and the servant classes, she was considered the school's 'idol', every girl wanted to be near her, hoping some of her perfection would rub off on them.

 This thought gave Nabiki an idea. However no sooner had had they each given their 'report' on their 'findings' thus far, when a cute girl with long black hair, short bangs and a large 'ahoge', strolled in and 'apparently' not noticing the other girls, began to change out of her maroon school uniform, and into something that looked like it could be from a manga. She stashed her other clothing somewhere in the costume she was now wearing, and left quickly, not having paid attention to the other three girls in the slightest.
{*Ahoge = cowlick, (lit. 'Stupid Hair')*}

This completely derailed their trains of thought, crashing them into a smoking pile of rubbish. It took several minutes for them to 'reboot' and get back on track and return to the topic at hand.

 "Well, I did have one idea before we were so entertainingly interrupted. I was thinking, with Kasumi-onee-chan being as popular as she is, we could make chibi-plushie versions of her, and have two of them for 'prizes' for the first two people who become fully fledged members of the club, or three, and then Kasumi could go back to her tea club, if you want to. I can talk to Tenjoji-kouchou, I think she is on our side, and might approve of our idea."
{*Chibi = small*}

Kasumi was rather embarrassed at the idea. "I cannot imagine anyone would want such a thing, let alone be enough motivation to switch clubs, especially if you are right and people are afraid of it. I am nobody special." Kasumi did not care to be the center of attention, she was generally a shy girl, and only really truly 'opened up' to a very select few people. Most of whom, were in this room with her. "I really don't think that would work at all."

 "I disagree, Kasumi-sama, I think it would be very effective, the question is, do you want people in your club whose sole motivation to join is the prize?"

 "I admit, it's not an ideal situation, but I am getting desperate, if I do not find enough members soon, I will have to join another club. Well, let's try making one tonight, and I will present it, and our idea to the principal in the morning ...assuming you do not object, my cute onee-chan."

 "Ara, I do not think it will work, and it is embarrassing, but if you two think it will help, I guess it will be okay."
{*Ara = 'Oh my!' etc.*}
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The next day found Ranma and company once again, training with Master Kyoshi. She had shown Nodoka a training exercise for her and Ukyo to practice, mostly to keep them busy, and took Ranma inside to her medical 'office' to work on his message and other healing arts.

 First, they reviewed what he remembered from their training and what he has learned since then. After that, she started showing him new techniques for healing not only himself, but now others as well. When she had started to show him pressure points, for deadening pain and other healing practices, Ranma relayed what happened the day before with the strange person in the vending machine, and asked if she would PLEASE help him to understand what it was he was doing.

 Kyoshi had asked his mother about it, in private, yet she had still refused to speak about it, and she could not help but admit to herself that she was quite curious to find out. "Well, might as well do it right then, give me the 'full treatment' and I will see what I can tell you about it." Never the shy one, she stripped and laid down upon one of her padded examining tables, relaxing as much as she could, sparing just enough of her senses to 'watch' what he was doing.

 Ranma, being used to mixed bathing, was unperturbed. "Thank you Sensei." Bowing, he waited for her to lie on the table and relax at which point he began. He started with her extremities and worked his way toward her heart. First, her feet and legs, next her hands and arms. Then he started on her scalp, working his way down her neck to her shoulders, slowly moving down her back. By the time he had gotten to her lower back she already felt like her body had been turned into pudding, but when he got to a point near her tail bone an ache set in, one unrelated to soreness. Her body began to twitch and spasm as waves of pleasure radiated from within her. Unlike Nodoka, who had tried to stifle hers, Kyoshi made no such attempt, and began to moan as she felt a release, unlike any she had ever felt before. And also unlike with his mother, he was more practiced, and not too concerned about hurting her with it, so he poured more effort into it, instead of stopping right as he had hit it, as he had the first time.

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Previously...

Nodoka and Ukyo were very curious, partially about what Ranma would be learning, but mostly because they expected him to give her a demonstration of his new 'massage technique'. Their curiosity each stemmed from a different place, though neither of which were any less intense. Ukyo wanted to know what she had been feeling these past weeks, and from somewhere she was not used to getting instructions, a desire to watch Ranma giving this woman a massage sprung forth, and it was quite overwhelming to her. Nodoka on the other hand, was eager to watch the woman, who had tormented her with offers of pleasure that Nodoka could not bring herself to accept, squirm, even if it was in pleasure.

 They each took turns, going back and forth between practicing and peeping, as they waited for the massage to begin. Once it had, they knew she would be distracted, and they could watch in earnest, both of them enjoyed it for altogether different reasons. Nodoka had to bite back a laugh, and Ukyo a mild wave of jealousy for not being included, as they saw Kyoshi almost pass out from the sheer bliss she was feeling.

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It took some time before Kyoshi had been able to regain her faculties enough to control her movements, or even speak, almost grateful that she had been unable to move, for fear of what she might have done with the underage boy. Two things did not really sit well with her ...Oh, if only he were a few years older, and a girl! She was still panting heavily and her eyes were finding it difficult to focus completely, but she was able to sit up now, thanks to Ranma's help. "Sensei, are you all right?"

 "I couldn't be better. Thank you Ranma-chan, I needed that, it has been far too long. And you two Peeping Toms can come in if you are not going to practice."

 Ukyo was almost instantly, by Ranma's side, but a reluctant voice from outside came in through the window, "No, thank you though, considering the situation, I think I will stay out here and practice for this part... It's going to be hard enough to give 'the talk' after this as it is."

'So you are going to leave me to do it... fine. The boy certainly needs to know what he is doing.' She looked down at the two children, who looked up at her expectantly. Shaking her head, she steadied herself again, and thought about how to go about this. "Where to start? Well, first off, the pressure point you hit is commonly referred to as the Grafenberg Spot, or the 'G-Spot'. Not all women have one, or rather the skin in that area isn't thick enough to have many nerve clusters and therefore it's not as 'receptive'." She pulled a yukata on loosely, and pulled out a diagram, pointing to the 'spot' in question. "What is amazing, and almost scary, is how you hit it. Normally you have to, come at it, in a, different way. Somehow, the way you did it, was far more effective than any physical touch has been. You will want to learn to adjust your ki, and come at it with different waves and patterns. After all, you don't want to be a 'one trick pony'."

 "But, what about that guy yesterday? That was, apparently, a guy."

She pulled out another diagram, this time a cross section of the male organs. "The Prostate Gland, also sometimes known as the 'Male G-Spot', it is located around here." She said pointing to her chart. "Now mind you that everyone is different and it won't be in the exact came place for everyone, but you seem to have a knack for figuring that out on your own."

 He looked a bit sheepish, "Well, Ukyo has let me practice a lot, so I have gotten pretty good at finding it now." Ukyo blushed a bit at this, though she was not really sure why, but she felt like she should. "But, I know how to find it, that's not the question, what we want to know is, what does it do?"

 Now it was Kyoshi's turn to blush a bit. As unabashed as she was about sex in general, talking about it with children was more embarrassing then she thought. "Well, you SAW what it did, it makes someone feel REALLY good." A goofy smile, plastered itself across her face. The inquisitive looks on the children's faces told her that would not be enough of an explanation, "Well, I suppose we should start at the beginning then. Before too much longer, your bodies will begin to go through some changes, not just getting taller, but you will begin to develop in lots of other ways, both physically and emotionally." She went on to have one of the most difficult conversations of her life. Finishing up with, "...and while you will both be at the age of consent very soon, as a doctor, I recommend you wait a bit longer than that, your bodies are just not ready yet at that age. But if you do, be sure to use protection, like a condom, you will not be either physically, nor emotionally ready to have a child for a very long time."

 Glad to have finally finished 'The Talk', Kyoshi began to put her charts and books away, only to have her heart sink as one of the children asked, "What's a 'condom'?"

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Kasumi had not stopped blushing the entire time they had been working on her chibi-self, she was so adorable, that Fubuki and Nabiki worked it into their design. They had made two, about fifteen centimeters tall, one in her normal clothes, and the other in Kasumi's 'battle gear', her maid's outfit holding a small broom.

 Nabiki had waited until she had a free period, when she knew that Mikan-sensei was teaching a class, so that she could get Kaede-kouchou alone. Kaede seemed to be receptive to her ideas, and was a fanatic about anything cute, or that reminded her of an anime. The hard part was to catch her when she was not being 'restrained' by her 'assistant'. Mikan had a way of putting a damper on anything 'fun'.

 The meeting itself went quite well, as Nabiki had hoped, Kaede had not only given her permission for her plan, but had even offered to show their dolls to a contact of hers, who offered to produce as many as they wanted (for another 'donation' from Kaede, who sponsored a lot of their work). The downside to that was they would have to wait to put said plan into motion, since she had to give her the dolls so they could be copied. Kaede had also given her an extension on her deadline for needing to join a club (Mikan would not be pleased when she learned of it). If she did fail, maybe she could go into the Crafts Club, making those dolls HAD been pretty fun.

 When she returned to the 'empty' room they had been using for their meeting place, Nabiki ran into the same girl from the day before, once again, changing into some silly costume in the room.

 "Oh, hello again."

 The strange girl looked up as Nabiki entered the room and addressed her. "Have we met?"

 "Not formally, but we started using this room for our meeting place yesterday. You, apparently, didn't see us, but we saw you."

 Said girl had the decency to look embarrassed, for a moment, then shrugged, "Oh well, we're all girls anyway. Hey, I know you, you're the one looking to start the 'underwear club'! I want to join!"

 Nabiki grimaced at being mistaken for the underwear club again, but stayed calm as she explained, "No, we are starting the mystery and wonder club, where we plan to study mysteries and investigate strange occurrences."

 "Ooo, That sounds fun! Not as fun as the underwear club, but still, fun. Can I wear detective cosplay?"

 Now normally Nabiki would have turned the strange girl down flatly, but she was getting desperate. She could not be positive that her plan would work, and even with her extension, time was running out. She needed all the help she could get ...even if it was strange help. This girl seemed more like the type who should have been on the other end of an investigation, but, beggars could not be choosers, after all. "I don't see why not. Nabiki Tendo, it's nice to meet you."

 "Great, then I guess I will still join. It's nice to meet you too, my name is Sakura Nankyoku but my friends call me 'Penguin'." She grinned broadly, as she bowed to Nabiki. "I guess I'll go tell Kaede-oba-chan that I am going to join."

 "Aunt Kaede?!?!? Your aunt is the headmaster?" 'Penguin' nodded. "I guess I can see that, you two DO look a lot alike, and you both have similar personalities..."

 Chuckling, she replied, "People say I take more after her than my mom. But she doesn't like it when I call her aunt, says it makes her feel old, but she's almost twenty! That IS old! But she's still fun, more fun than my mom anyway!"

 "Well, let's get your forms filled out, so Mikan-sensei doesn't get mad at me. Welcome to the club. Well, assuming we get one more member..."

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Before long, Ryoga had all but moved in with them. He stayed with them until it was time to go to bed, when someone would lead him to his room. Then one of them would pick him up in the morning, where they would usually find him in a closet or someplace where he had gotten lost while trying to find the bathroom, or kitchen, one time he was even in the, mostly empty, refrigerator! They would then take him to school when he needed to go, and pick him up when his school day was through. The rest of the time, he would follow Nodoka around like the proverbial 'lost puppy'.

 During the days, the gang would train with Kyoshi-sensei, and Ryoga would go with them on days when he did not have school. Even if she was not willing to teach him directly, he wanted to be near Nodoka, and he did manage to pick a few things up by watching and listing in. She was willing to look him over to see what she could tell about his directional difficulties. Unfortunately for him, she had said that it was a magical curse, and not something in his ki or in the way his brain was wired, so anything she could try to do to alleviate the symptoms would likely cause the magic to compensate for it and remove any benefit. In addition, it was not worth the potential harm she could do trying. The slightest complication could, worst case scenario, fry his brain, or damage his ki, and with magic, there were 'always' complications. The only person who could remove such a curse would be an extremely powerful mage, the likes of which she had not heard of existing for a great many years, but if anyone could happen to run across such a person, it was a Hibiki!

Three evenings a week Ukyo and Ranma would study art with their tutor. They studied color theory, composition and blending. After a while, they would practice by competing for time while painting only by mixing the basic colors, red, blue, yellow, white and black to get the colors they needed. Ranma had blended this with his aura reading and ki manipulation and had begun to identify colors by their emotional spectrum counterpart (angry red, loyal blue, dynamic purple, and so on). Their ki training, especially his healing, would require them to keep a tight control of their emotions, and only feed the ones they needed into their ki for the effects they desired, and learning how each color could be blended and made was helping him considerably with that.

 On Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, all four of them would study Mandarin with another tutor. The Saotomes both picked up the language quickly, adapting to it like any other new style. Ukyo was no slouch either, she had already learned several dialects of Japanese, so with some hard study, she was able to do a passable job. Ryoga did not do quite so well, despite the help they had given him, studying was not something he had much practice with, since he rarely ever made it to school. At least he was able to learn some useful phrases, like 'Where the hell am I now?', 'Where is the bathroom?', 'Do you speak Japanese?' and 'Point me toward Japan, please.'

One of the few things he had ever really shown a talent for were the martial arts, but even then, he was mostly self-taught. His parents had shown him what they could when they were able, but they were around so rarely they were unable to do much. And it seemed to him, that the older they got, the worse their direction sense would get. He noticed that before the arrival of his helpful new friends that he had been spending more time lost than not lately, his parents were almost never home, and when they did manage to show up, they could never stick around for long. His father was the worst, he was not sure how many years it had been since the last time he had even seen his father. The only reason he even knew that he was still out there were the phone calls he would occasionally get from him, asking how he was doing, and if he had any recent news of his mother ...and then 'she' came into his life. Ryoga had long ago given up any thoughts of having a normal family life, but ever since they had arrived, his life had been closer to perfect than he had ever thought possible. He made it to school every day, he ate three meals a day, because she would also send him a lunch so he didn't have to try to find the lunchroom. Even the occasional ambushes by pieces of the scenery were not enough to put a damper on his, over all, 'better' moods.

 The day he had found himself more than 700 kilometers from home, was the luckiest day of his young life.

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Once Mikan found out that Nabiki had both the headmaster and her niece on her side, she gave up, and pulled Nabiki aside to speak to her in private.

 "Tendo-kun, let's make a deal."

 Nabiki perked up at that, this was not the attitude she expected.

 "I will not stop your club, even if you are the only member, but you will do something for me."

 "And what would that be?"

 "As it turns out, you still need a club advisor, and I happen to know that your teachers all help out a cub already. This being the case, it would likely be difficult for you to find one on your own. I will find you an advisor as well. In exchange, you will help me to keep an eye on the chairman. Help me make sure she does not shirk her duties, nor do anything too crazy, especially if it will harm the students!"

 "You have a deal, now who is going to be our advisor?"

 "Isn't it obvious, Detective-san?"

 'Oh no! Not...'

 "The Chairman, of course." It was everything Nabiki could do to keep from facefaulting as Mikan walked away chuckling.

 From there things started to look up for the club. Kasumi and Fubuki decided to stay. They started to gain many new members, most of whom were from the servant class, including Mori, who was one of the earliest recruits. To offset their low number of upper class members, they sold 'Chibi-Kasumi' dolls to give themselves a workable budget, and their 'advisor' was always willing to help out with anything else they needed as long as she got to join in the 'fun'.

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One day, after arriving home from their day's activity, Ranma found he had received mail. A small package had arrived for him. Opening the package, he found two 'dolls' and a letter. The two dolls seemed to be of the same blushing girl, who looked a bit familiar to him, but he could not quite place it. One wore a fancy school uniform, and the other was in a maid's uniform. Cute as they were, he was having a hard time figuring out why someone would send him girl's dolls.

 "Why don't you read the letter and find out, Ranchama?"

 "Oh, right, heh." He opened the letter, and began to read aloud.

 "Dear Ranma-kun,
I hope this letter finds you well, wherever you are now training.
 We are training hard as well, your father's school has been gaining many students, and we are helping to teach there. Our houses have grown, as well as the schools. Due to this, Kasumi-onee-chan, Fubuki-chan and I are going to the most prestigious school in Japan, and Akane-chan should join us next year. We want to thank you both, your family has helped ours out in so many ways, and a Tendo never forgets a debt (or was that forgives? I can never remember). The point is, none of this would be happening if not for your family. Our family will always be in your family's debt, thank you. Please thank your mother for us again, as well.

 Now, I will bet you are wondering why I sent you these dolls, and what that has to do with me thanking you. Long story short, these are the prototypes of the two dolls Fubuki-chan and I made of Kasumi-onee-chan, for a club project. The headmaster likes us, and has a lot of connections in the manga and anime industry, made a deal with one of them, and we are now selling these dolls for club funds (another long story). Kasumi-onee-chan is very popular, most of the campus idolizes her, and so they sell really well. The first one, that I made, was her school uniform. Fubuki-chan made the second one, and that is her 'battle outfit', when she is practicing the style your father developed for the maids and butlers, and Onee-chan named, Kaji-ken. There is even talk of them selling them in stores! As I said before, these are the first two, the ones from which all of the others were copied, and we wanted you to have them as a token of our appreciation.

 Sincerely, Nabiki, Kasumi and Fubuki."

 Ranma turned over the letter to find two pictures of Kasumi, one of each outfit, to match the dolls. Ukyo, seeing Ranma's reaction to the cute girl in the pictures, vows to herself to be even more feminine, since he seemed to like that. Ranma and Ukyo had thought that was a nice thing for them to do, and decided to tell them so.

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Soon after, Nabiki was returning home, and found that she had received a package. It was fairly large and flat, and had an envelope on the front. Nabiki decided to go for the envelope first, and opened up the letter.

 'Dear Nabiki, Kasumi and Fubuki,

We would like to thank you for your kind words and cute gifts. Please know that we will not accept that you owe us a debt. As old friends of the family and as martial artists, it is our duty to help and we couldn't possibly ask anything in return for it. If you want to thank us, then grow up happy, healthy and helpful people. 'Kindness, like rice, increases by sowing', as the proverb states.

 We have spent months studying with Master Kyoshi, learning better ki control, pressure points and the like. It's really been exciting for us, we have learned so much.

 We met this strange boy named Ryoga Hibiki. The poor boy's whole family is suffering under a magical curse, which affects his sense of direction so badly that he can get lost in a closet and not be able to find his way out! It is truly unbelievable. We found him over seven hundred kilometers away from his home, lost, trying to find his school! We have been helping him get to school and back while we have been here. I shudder to think what will happen to him when we leave. His parents are never around, they suffer from the same curse as well, it seems. In the months we have been here, we have not seen either of them. His father has called a couple of time, and his mother has apparently been there while we were gone, notes were left, and food was cooked... (not a bad cook, when the food is fresh).

 Oh well, I am sure you don't want to hear about my boring life, yours sounds much more interesting.

 To thank you for your gift, Ucchan and I wanted to give you something in return. These are not our best work, but they were done for speed. Ten minutes each, using only primary colors with white and black and we mixed all of the colors ourselves (soon I want to try one, using only the three primary colors). We tend to paint each other more often than not, and this time we were doing just that. We hope you like them.

 Sincerely, Ranma, Ukyo and Nodoka.

 'P.S. Ranchama thought the pictures were cute. -Ukyo'

Setting aside the letter, she opened the package. Inside, were two framed paintings. Each one of them showing a child painting behind an easel. The first one she saw was of a girl. This girl was wearing a dark blue yukata with white trim and had long brown hair, tied up in a bun. She had a look of intense concentration on her face, as she painted her own work. The painting was so well done, Nabiki could have sworn she saw it move. Despite the letter's assurances that this was painted using only 5 'colors', it contained a wide spectrum of colors, all mixed expertly. She felt like she could reach out and feel the silkiness of the girl's clothes and hair, dip her fingers in her paints or pluck the brush from the girl's hand. While Nabiki could not judge if the colors matched the originals, she could tell that they all looked quite realistic. She was very impressed. Setting this painting aside, she picked up the other one. The second painting was of a boy, which to Nabiki looked just as good at its counterpart. He was wearing black silk pants, a matching black top, with red trim, that was unbuttoned, and showed off his bare chest underneath. His long, black hair had been tied back into a long braid, his bangs hung in his face and his bright blue eyes seemed to sparkle in the light. His face was a mask of calm serenity, as he seemed to barely be paying attention to what he was doing, his arm a blur with a brush. While his chest was beautifully sculpted, it was his eyes that drew her in. There was something about those eyes, which she had never noticed in the photographs, that made her want to keep looking at it.

 It took Nabiki a while to come out of the 'trance' she had been in, and when she looked at a clock, she had found that more than an hour had passed since she had arrived home. She put the letter in a scrapbook they had been keeping, with all of the letters, pictures and many other things they had received from the boy and his mother (well, the things that would fit, obviously not the large items such as toys and clothes). She called the others to see them, to decide where they would hang the paintings, and show the other girls the letter where he complimented Kasumi and their work. Kasumi blushed profusely, squealing a bit, upon reading the postscript, being the first time she had ever been called cute by a boy, even if it was indirectly. The other girls could almost see the steam rising from her head. This caused Nabiki to pull out her trusty camera and fire off a few shots of her sister blushing.

 Thus, Nabiki and Ranma became 'pen pals', sending letters back and forth whenever they could. It started slowly, with a letter every month or two, and eventually got to where Nabiki would write her thoughts every day, like a diary, and sent it to him once a week. The other girls would also write him notes and letters occasionally as well. Ranma would answer each one as he had been able, always apologizing when he was unable to get the letters and they would build up. He got to where he would look forward to them, especially after they had been traveling for a while. Ranma found the stories of living a 'normal' life and going to school, fascinating, like reading a 'slice of life' manga. In return, he would tell them of his adventures, his training, and so on. Many of the more fantastical elements, Nabiki chalked up to him being superstitious and not having a formal education, but she found them fascinating none-the-less, like reading a martial arts, adventure manga.

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Ryoga had just gotten the worst news of his life. The Saotomes were planning to leave, not just the neighborhood, but also the whole country! He had known that they had been planning this trip for some time, but had always just hoped they would change their minds, they bought houses here after all!

 'If they leave, then my life will go back to how miserable it was before! I was even starting to do better at school, now I won't even be able to find it much anymore.' Ryoga's 'ideal' life (for him) was falling apart around him. There had to be something he could do. Fighting them was not an option, Ryoga did not like fighting girls, and nothing could get him to raise a hand against Nodoka, she had always been to kind to him. The times he had sparred with Ranma, showed him that he would still need a lot of work to even be a challenge to the boy. The worst part was that he knew quite well, from watching him sparring with the others that Ranma was holding back in all of the fights, matching his skills to his opponent's. It was only when all three of them grouped up on him that he even looked like he was trying, that infuriatingly calm look never leaving his face otherwise. Of the three of them, only Ukyo could really hold a candle to him on their own, the girl's motivation was just incredible to Ryoga, the way she pushed herself despite the fact that she never won (without a good distraction). Ryoga could tell it was not just stubbornness either, if there was one feeling other than depression he understood, it was being stubborn, but that girl had a drive unlike any he had seen before. The others had drive too, but things just seemed to come naturally to them, they didn't appear (at least to Ryoga) to have to put forth much effort at all, but no matter how drained or hurt the girl was, she would always get back up and keep pushing, trying to reach an unreachable goal.

 Thinking about the difference in abilities between them always made Ryoga depressed a bit, and he was in a bad enough mood already, so he focused on the task at hand, maintaining his happiness, and what options he had available to him.

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"Well, Ranma-chan, as always, you are the best student I have ever had. You and your nakama are always welcome back here. I hope to see you again soon."
{*Nakama = (n) company; fellow; colleague; associate; comrade; mate; group; circle of friends; partner;*)

 Bowing, Ranma says, "Better than a thousand days of diligent study is one day with a great teacher. Thank you sensei. I'll look forward to it."

 Ukyo also bowed saying, "Thank you for everything, Sensei-sama. I hope to be able to learn from you again."

 "So formal!" Laughing, she pulled two children into a warm hug, who surprised her by each kissing her on a cheek. "Such adorable children you are. You two be careful, and take care of your 'concupine' and your mother. I don't want any of you to be missing any pieces when I next see you." She winked at Ukyo as she had said 'concupine', remembering the girl's story about how that 'title' came to be, and how cute she had been in telling it.

 "Hai, sensei(-sama)!! We promise!"

 She let them go and added, "Now run along, I am sure your mother is waiting on you." She watched them as they ran off, heading back toward town, and wiped a tear from her cheek. 'I'm going to miss those kids.'

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Nodoka had just gotten back to the house after making her arrangements, and looking back through the house, searching for things they may have missed. When she finished searching the house the kids were staying in, she moved on to search hers, and found something she had not expected. Sitting on the floor in one of the rooms, she had found Ryoga, deep in thought.

 "Ryoga-kun, I did not expect to find you here, I thought you would be playing with the kids, you know we are leaving today, ne?"

 "Hai, Oba-san, but they went to say good bye to Kyoshi-sensei, and she wasn't my teacher. So I had them show me here so I could wait to talk to you."

 Nodoka raises an eyebrow at that, not sure where the boy was going with this, she started to think of ways to turn down the boy if he was about to confess... "You were?"

 Ryoga looked embarrassed and uncertain, partially confirming some ideas Nodoka had been having. "Hai. Well, you know how my life was before you got here?"

 She nodded. 'What do these young men see in an old woman, like myself?'

 "I don't want to go back to that again. I love..."

 Ryoga was interrupted, "Ryoga-kun, I know sometimes we have certain feelings, I once had a crush on an older man. One of my teachers, he was so manly, always helping us girls with whatever we needed..." Nodoka lost focus in her eyes as she thought back to her days as a schoolgirl for a moment.

 Ryoga was confused, he could not figure out where this topic had come from, so he continued when she paused. "...So, I love..."

 "Now, Ryoga-kun, I'm a married woman."

 "I know, but, I love being with y..."

 "But, ..."

 Dropping to his knees, he prostrates himself on the floor, he started speaking quickly, and loudly. "Please, hear me out! I love being with you and your family. I never thought life could be this good. I almost never see my mother, and I haven't seen my father in many years! I basically live alone and can't even find the bathroom on my own! I am begging you, if you have to leave, PLEASE take me with you!!!!! I can't go back to that life!"

 It took Nodoka a few moments to register what the boy had said, and visibly relaxed when she figured out it was not another 'love confession' this time. 'Oh, what a relief!' "But, what would your mother think?"

 "Well, I would hope that she would be happy that her son was not just wandering around lost, and that he found someone who is taking care of him."

 "Well, go write your mother a note, and I will put my contact information on it, but I have one condition you will have to agree with first, I do not want a repeat of what we went through the last time we took you on a train..."

 "I'll do ANYTHING!"

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Ranma and Ukyo were finally arrived home, ready to gather their things and head to the airport for the next leg of their adventure when they saw a sight that left them rolling around on the concrete sidewalk, unable to stop laughing.

 In between laughing and trying to draw breath, Ranma sputters out, "Always said, acted like, lost puppy, but, didn't know a 'lap dog', needed a leash! BuahHAhahaha!!!"

 Sure enough, a fuming Ryoga was standing there wearing a metallic woven 'child's leash', continually telling himself over and over again, "This is worth it, this is worth it..."

 Nodoka was holding the other end of the leash. "Now Ranma-kun, it is not very manly to make fun of someone when you know they can't help it. Just for that, you can hold this end of it until we get to China." Ranma and Ryoga were both unhappy at this decision.

 "WHAT?!!?!?!"

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Omake 04, by Hiryo

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Starring Ryoga and his special guests, from all over the world.

(It's recommended to hear the following song on YouTube, while reading the Omake:
"Discovery Channel Commercial - I love the whole world")

//Start//

Two farmers seeing a familiar sight, Ryoga walking with an upturned map into their shed.

Farmer A, "It never gets old, huh?"

Farmer B, "Nope."

Farmer A, "It kinda makes you wanna--"

Farmer B, "-break into the song?"

Farmer A, "...Yup."

Farmer A seeing his wife coming in with a tray with milk glasses, "I love the mountains..."

Farmer A's wife setting the tray down, doing so revealing her blue panties. Farmer B, "I love the clear blue skies." Getting him a confused look by Farmer A.

Ryoga looking up, seeing the Golden Gate Bridge and smiles, "I love big bridges."

Not caring that he was with his next step at another location on Greenland seeing a whale doing a high flip, "I love great whites fly."

Holding up his map of the world. "I love the whole world..."

There, the song of the iceman comes to his ears, "...and all its sights and sounds."

"Boom-de-yah-da, boom-de-ya-da. BOOMdeyahda BOOMDEYAHDA." Surprised, Ryoga stuck the whole ice cone into his mouth, then grins at the African tribe members. Letting them laugh at Ryoga's face, thinking the scene funny himself.

"I love the oceans." Ryoga steps from one fish to the other, then stops on top of a giant turtle, while totally concentrating on his map.

"I love real dirty things." Nodoka is leaving an "adult shop" with a large bag of items, she passes by a prostitute on her way out who sings...

"I love to come fast." Flashing to a pyramid.

"I love Egyptian kings." Picking up the bandages of the Egyptian king and keeps on laughing with the bandages in his hand, while the mummy chases after him.

For the first time, Ryoga sees all of his district, or so his new family told him. "I love the whole world..."

"...and all its craziness." Ranma leads Ryoga, via his new metallic woven child's leash, to school.

Ryoga comes into a festival... "Boom-de-yah-da, boom-de-ya-da. Boom-de-ya-da, boom-de-ya-da." ...only to end up with a children circle singing around him.

"I love tornadoes." Ryoga grins as the tornado brought him back to his better home with his new family.

"I love arachnids." Ryoga pulls out a deck of cards the headsized arachnids only nodded at him, and then begun to play in earnest for gold.

A whole city is destroyed by Vulcan magma. "I love hot magma." Thus sent Ryoga onto the right way home.

Grinning at his friend Toriko. "I love the giant squids." Then taking a huge bite out of the good roasted squid.

Overlooking from the mountains. "I love the whole world..." Seeing in the sun the image of his new family.

After turning around "...it's such a brilliant place." At night, Ryoga ended up in a have crossroad in New York totally blinding him.

Giving a cigarette user some fire. "Boom-de-ya-da, boom-de-ya-da. Boom-de-ya-da, boom-de-ya-da." Not noticing that the man caught fire, wandering to his next destination.

Banpai looks his sight on him "Boom.. de.. ya.. da." A 6-pack missile launcher pops out of Banpai's head.

"Booooooooooooooooom-de-yaaaaaaaa-daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa......" Ryoga quite crispy grins with the thought that he flies into the right direction.

//END//

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End Omake

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*AUTHOR'S NOTES*

The terms such as Kohai/Kouhai (Junior), Imoto/Imouto (Younger Sister), Oto/Ototo (Younger Brother) are words used to describe people in these positions, but not used to address them. Unlike the the opposite words used to describe elders (Sempai, (O)nee, (O)nii, etc.), which can be used, not only as a form of adress, but also as a title, honorific, or combined with an honorific, such as 'Kasumi-nee-chan'. But if she were to turn around and say back, 'Akane-imoto-chan' to her, whichwould be considered rude, and insulting. It is OK to say 'Kasumi's imouto, Akane-chan' however. Also, the older brother/sister terms can be used to describe/address 'any' older 'brother/sister' aged person, it doesn't necessarily mean that they are related, it's just a show of respect. All of the 'older person' family terms (mother, father, uncle, aunt, etc.) can be used the same way, to address anyone of the appropriate age group. Pretty much all 'titles' can be used either in place of, or in conjunction with, an honorific.

 Japanese letters are not written in this way, they actually have the addressee named at the end, along with the sender's name, and other issues, but I wrote these in the western style, to make it easier.

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*CHARACTERS USED*

{Here I will list all of the non-Ranma characters, used in the chapter and where they are from (not counting the omake).}

Kyoshi - I made her up, based loosely on a historical figure (her ancestor) with a light touch of Samurai Girls.
Kogarashi the "Maid Guy" - the title character from Kamen no Maid Guy
Fubuki - The future 'Maid Guy Tamer' from Kamen no Maid Guy
Kaede Tenjoji - The headmaster of Hakureiryo Academy from Ladies vs. Butlers.
Mikan is her 'assistant' and the Head Instructor.
Mori - A maid, who will later, like her mother, to whom she bares an uncanny resemblance, work for the Amatsuka family, in GJ-Bu.
Sakura 'Penguin/Pengi' Nankyoku - The title character of Penguin Musume (lit. Penguin Girl). She is a total Otaku, she comes from a VERY rich family, and can gain the abilities of whatever she is cosplaying as (to some degree). In this story, her mother is Kaede's oldest half sister (she also has one other).

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