Project A-Ko Fan Fiction / Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Vampire Hunter (Darkstalkers) Fan Fiction ❯ Nabiki 1/2 (A Very Scary Thought) ❯ Mastering the Senkens... ( Chapter 99 )

Nabiki 1/2

(A Very Scary Thought)

Written by Jim Robert Bader

Proofread by Shiva Barnwell

Based Upon the Altered Destinies Storyline

Inspired by the works of such fans as

Wade Tritshler

Richard Lawson

James Jones

And Many Others

Standard Disclaimer: This is inspired by the work of Takahashi Rumiko and is not my original creation. All characters belong to her. This is only a fanfictional work, and is not intended to compromise the rights of the original owners, distributors and publishers of the Ranma series. I have no money to spare and would very much appreciate if no one tries to sue me.

Nabiki drew in a deep breath then solemnly pronounced the word, "HAJIME!"

At once, Natsume and Kurumi attacked her, coming at their adopted sister from two angles with weapons drawn, rug-beater and red-ribbon moving in concert to provide a double-assault that the elder Tendo girl neither avoided nor deflected, yet somehow managed to be elsewhere than where the attack had been driven.

No sooner had the pair discovered this startling fact but Nabiki was on them in a wave of furious punches and kicks that instantly drove the two girls on the defensive, a fact that was impressed with special force upon Natsume, who had not expected Nabiki to excel this far in one short training mission. Even the fleet-footed Kurumi had trouble matching her speed and soon found herself wound up in her own ribbon as Nabiki moved to cut the odds in half, then set to work on finishing the match against Natsume.

Off to the side, Akane reacted to the speed with which Nabiki finished off the pair with upraised eyebrows, and in an astonished tone she said, "Wow! I never thought Oneechan had gotten that good with her training."

"Goes to show what a couple of weeks with the Old Woman can do for you," Keiko remarked, less impressed than Akane but still rather smugly pleased at seeing the over-proud Natsume humbled in such short order.

"Indeed," Kodachi agreed, "And yet for all our friend has proven once again her fearsome mettle, still it seems to me as if she is less than pleased with herself, as though she were expecting something better."

"It's not that, Guys," Ukyo remarked, "It's Ranma. She's just seen proof positive that she's way lots faster and stronger than she used to be, which means she has that much more of an edge over Ranchan."

"Saotome's going to have his work cut out for him if he thinks he can go up against that," Perfume concluded rather sadly.

"Poor Nabiki," Akane shook her head sadly, "Still all tied up in knots about her baka boyfriend. Still…even I'm starting to wonder if Ranma can improve so much while training with his father."

"I am certain that Ranma will try and improve as best he is able," Kodachi assured, "Still…it would be less than candid to say that the odds do not favor him much in that direction."

"Maybe so," Perfume conceded, "But I'm hoping his old man will come through after all with something spectacularly different, or at least spectacular enough to help Saotome put in a good showing."

"You're rooting for him?" Keiko asked with raised eyebrow.

"Well…" Perfume was caught by the questioning stares of the other women before responding, "He is the lynch-pin of our five-way engagement, and if Saotome can't pull it off…"

"I follow you, Sugar," Ukyo nodded, "Ranchan's self-esteem will probably take the plunge into the basement if he can't at least hold his own in the coming challenge."

"Whew," Nabiki stretched herself, "Good workout, guys. I needed that, honest."

"You don't need to feign with us, Oneechan," Natsume groaned as she fought to recover from her pounding, "Pretending to be winded for our sakes is more condescending than respectful."

"Sorry," Nabiki smiled sheepishly, "I didn't want you guys to feel it was too easy for me, even if you did try a conventional attack. Next time, try something a little more complicated, and don't refrain from using your special attacks in combination. I want a real workout, and I know you can give me one if you give it some effort."

"I think I liked it better when she was buttering us up, Oneechan," Kurumi murmured to her sister in low stage whisper.

"Open mouth, insert foot," Natsume agreed in the same low level, "And here I thought that was a Saotome illness…"

"Nihao!" Shampoo called cheerfully as she entered the dojo, "Is you still working out, Airen? Come have too-too-delicious lunch that we cook up in kitchen. You beat up rug-girl and ribbon girl later."

"I guess I have been working them pretty ragged, haven't I?" Nabiki smiled, then clapped her hands and said, "Break time guys! We can resume this in a couple of hours, after we've digested our…"

"FOOD???" Kurumi brightened up, then like a shot she bolted from the dojo, all but leaving skid marks in her passage. Shampoo's long purple locks flowed at a nearly horizontal angle as the resident speed demon whizzed on by, leaving her sister to cock an eyebrow and heave a small sigh of exasperation.

"Sometimes I fear Kurumi is more stomach than almost anything else," the dark haired girl remarked, "Where she finds room to store it all is a wonder…"

"She's just a growing kid," Nabiki remarked, then turned to Natsume and said, "Daddy told me you guys put on quite a show for the tournament masters, even managed to punt the old goat over the skyline as the highlight of your performance."

"Pure improvisation I assure you," Natsume smiled as she slung her trademark weapon over her back, "It seems, however, that it would pale to insignificance when compared to the truly inspiring improvements that you have made on your training mission. Next time you simply must bring Kurumi and I along, if only so you won't continue to have such an unfair advantage."

"Believe me, I'd love to have you two along," Nabiki assured her adopted sister, "You could learn a lot from studying with the Old Woman."

"I believe you," Natsume smiled, "It's good to have you back, Sister…if anything, it has been rather quiet around here without you."

"Oh?" Nabiki arched an eyebrow, "The Old Man stopped going on panty raids? Mousse hasn't been coming around bugging you about Perfume's whereabouts?"

"Grandfather vanished shortly after Kurumi and I chased him off," Natsume replied, "No doubt to sulk and plot some form of vengeance. As for Mousse…well, Kurumi seems to have that lout well in hand. I am, however, more than a little concerned about what you have told us regarding you iinazuke, whom you say has gone on a training mission of his own with his father."

"Ah…yeah…" Nabiki lost her smile and sighed, "I'm kind of worried about that too. It's been five days and no word about the baka…or of Ryoga too, but Pops promised they'd be back at the end of two weeks, so I guess we'll just have to wait and see if Ranma-kun learns anything useful."

"I am certain that he is thinking of you even now, 'Neechan," Natsume reassured her, "And if not…well…we have the best trackers around in this dojo who will be more than willing to hunt him down and drag him back here for an accounting."

"You've got that right," Perfume affirmed, then noticed the odd look at Ukyo and the others were giving her and said, "What?"

"Well," Keiko clapped her hands, "Don't know about the rest of you, but if dinner's on the table, then what are we doing waiting around here? You want Kurumi to pack it all down before we even get there?"

"Hey, that's right," Akane blinked her eyes, "If Kurumi gets started without us…"

"We could be eating take-out," Kodachi finished for her.

"Can't have that," Nabiki smiled as Shampoo took her firmly by the hand and all but dragged her from the dojo, "Hey, I'm coming already! You don't have to dislocate my arm…"

"Airen talk too much," Shampoo chided as they made their way across the garden to the extended dining table, which was still-miraculously enough-laden down with enough food to satisfy everyone, though Kurumi sat at one end and salivated like a hound chomping down on the bit, restrained only by the watchful eyes of her tolerably indulgent adopted father.

Shampoo made certain she has seated Nabiki down before composing herself at her wife's side with chopsticks ready and already plucking at a morsel with which to feed her. The others politely pretended not to notice this fawning display of wifely affection, (though there were more than a few hidden smiles about the table) which had always fairly embarrassed Nabiki before growing accustomed to the way the Amazon took delight in spoiling her proper. Kurumi was finally given the nod from Soun to begin, and it was all the others could do to keep their own plates well protected as food began to evaporate off the table, and the meal was just getting started in earnest when a voice politely chimed out a name.

"OOOhh Sooouunn-chan…?"

Nodoka, who appeared at the doorway with a freshly laden tray of food in both hands, froze like a statue at the sound of that voice, and then she turned a sharp look at the figure who appeared from around the back way, tall and leggy with a magnificent figure shown off to great effect by the yellow dress that she was (allegedly) wearing, chestnut brown hair falling in wavy tresses down her back in a luxuriant shower. Soun froze with his chopsticks poised mid-way to his mouth, and then his eyes turned to regard this radiant vision of loveliness, which caused him to involuntarily swallow.

"Ah, there you are, Soun-chan," the vision bowed politely from the waist, "My apologies…I had no idea that it was so close to noon. I did not mean to disturb you when you and your family have been enjoying a communal meal together…"

"Why, hello," said Kasumi as she appeared from around the motionless Nodoka, "Hinako-Sensei, it has been a while, hasn't it?"

"About three days, actually," Natsume murmured sidelong to Nabiki, "Which for her is indeed a record."

"I am so sorry to be a bother," Hinako said with a smile that was more fitting for her underaged other self, "But I was hoping to have a parent-teacher conference concerning the end of spring break and the beginning of the new quarter two days from now. I was hoping to find everyone would be here and ready to get started with their newest class assignments, which I have been coming around to homes in order to distribute…"

"Homework assignments?" Akane asked with lifted eyebrows, "You want us to do homework before we've even begin the final quarter of the semester??"

"Is that even legal?" Ukyo murmured with a questioning expression.

"Now, now," the teacher waved a chiding finger (which was not presently clutching a coin-much to everyone's intense relief), "There's no time like the present to waste when you could be getting a good education…"

"Why, how thoughtful you are," Kasumi complimented, "Indeed, a good education is the most essential ingredient in forging a successful future. How lucky my sisters are to have a teacher who takes such a personal interest in the welfare of her students."

"Oh yeah," Kurumi noted faintly, "That's just swell…"

"Hinako-san," Soun turned to regard the stunning teacher, "I do appreciate that you want what is best for my daughters…"

"I want what's best in everyone's interests," Hinako replied with a dazzling smile, "Soun-chan."

The tray fell from Nodoka's hands, but Nabiki had been anticipating this and sprang up from the table in time to catch it and avert a culinary tragedy. The older woman hardly paid any notice as she frowned at Hinako, and had she been carrying her trademark katana, there was little doubt in anyone's mind that there would soon be violence.

"By the way," Hinako frowned ever-so-slightly as she seemed to just-then take notice of the others seated around the table, "Where is Saotome-san and his son, Ranma? Or Ryoga-kun for that matter?"

"They're…away on an extended training mission, Sensei," Nabiki replied as she hastily exchanged empty plates for fully laden ones around the table, "Uncle Genma wanted me to convey his regrets…"

"How irresponsible," Hinako's frown deepened, "And Saotome a recent father too. Young men these days just have no sense of responsibility about them…"

Nabiki had started to straighten up with the tray now full of empty plates in hand, but that comment caused her to halt in place, while Ukyo just glanced down with a guilty expression and stared listlessly at the table.

"Anyway," Hinako brightened up once again as she handed a small pile of work sheets to Soun, then held up a handful of letters, "Here are the assignments for the week, you should have no trouble filling them out, though I suppose I'll have to give a work extension to Saotome and Hibiki. Oh…and I took the liberty of examining your mailbox…here are some letters for you, addressed to the head of the house…Oh…and Ms. Tendo…I believe this one is addressed directly to you from China."

"From China?" Shampoo arched her lavender eyebrows.

"You're reading our mailbox now?" Akane bristled.

"Hooboy," Keiko murmured, "Talk about your ultimate teachers…"

"Makes me almost glad that I'm attending a different high school," Kodachi softly agreed in the same low voice.

"Is strange," Shampoo said as she examined the return address, "Is from Shampoo village…but handwriting no like that of Shampoo Mother and Father…maybe is from Shampoo sisters?"

"Well, don't keep us in suspense, Cousin," Perfume urged, "Open it up and find out who it is."

As Shampoo complied with the request, Nabiki came out of the kitchen once again and said, "Sensei…will you be staying for lunch? We have more food if you are hungry?"

Nodoka looked at her as though the younger girl had just gone crazy.

"Oh, I couldn't," Hinako grinned sheepishly, "I mean…I…food did you say? Well…maybe just a little…"

"Neechan?" Natsume turned a questioning look in Nabiki's direction.

"Trust me," Nabiki smiled back sweetly, thinking that whatever charge Hinako presently carried was bound to wear out in another few moments, restoring her to her kid-form directly in front of their father, whom she hoped would be sufficiently deterred from the sight from any potential romantic inclinations.

Room had just been made for Hinako, and the teacher had begun to set down and enjoy some rice and pickles, when the doorbell rang from the front, surprising everyone.

"Now who could that be?" Kasumi asked.

"Good question," Keiko mused, "Who do you guys know that uses a doorbell?"

Perfume noticed the number of looks turned her way and towards Shampoo, but at the moment her cousin was too busy absorbed in reading a letter composed in excellent Chinese handwriting. To the Enforcer's considerable surprise she took note of the fact that her adopted cousin's hands were trembling.

Kasumi, naturally enough, was the one to answer the doorbell, and then she gave a pleasant note of surprise as she said, "Daitokuji-san, Managi-san…this is most unexpected…"

"May we come in?" Beatrice asked of the older girl, "I was hoping that Alison and I might have a few words with Nabiki and the others.""

"By all means," Kasumi stepped back to allow the unusual pair access, accepting a packaged gift that Beatrice handed her with a polite bow, as was proper custom for visitors paying their respects to a household (a practice-sadly enough, Kasumi tacitly acknowledged-more recognized in the breach than the observance).

"Hey," Nabiki turned around as she saw the pair enter the dining room, Alison strangely reticent though Beatrice had a more than slightly sheepish expression, "Didn't expect to see you two so soon…"

"We need to talk," Alison spoke first before her partner, "Alone, okay?"

"Uh…sure," Nabiki blinked her eyes then pointed towards the stairs, "We can chat in my office. But what…"

"Fine…" Alison growled and stormed off towards the stairs, pausing to add, "You too, Beiko."

Beatrice just sighed, giving Nabiki an apologetic look, which-in light of recent developments between these two-Nabiki did not find the least bit surprising.

"Mmm…excellent pickles!" Hinako chimed brightly, looking almost like a kid again, which was what the others around the table were privately hoping for, Soun not included, "Can I have some more?"

"Yes, by all means," Soun said graciously, turning to gather up a fresh bowl of steaming rice and thus not catching when Hinako turned to the party next to her-Natsume-and pressed a coin against her forehead.

"Hey…what…?" Natsume no more than blinked when she felt the heat of her suppressed battle aura being drained into the teacher.

"Thank you," Hinako smiled, her voice once more strengthened as Natsume slumped a bit against the table.

"Hey, no fair!" Kurumi protested.

"Eh?" Soun asked, having missed the critical transition.

All at once Shampoo exclaimed a word in epithet and backed away from the table, staggering to her feet as she clutched at the sheets in her hand, her face as pale as the proverbial ghost while her face was transfixed with a mixture of mingled horror and outrage.

"Cousin?" Perfume asked, "What is wrong?"

Shampoo did not immediately answer…instead she turned and fled in the direction of the kitchen.

"What was that all about?" Ukyo asked.

"I'll find out," Perfume replied, and immediately got up to follow her cousin.

Normally Perfume preferred to avoid the kitchen when it was in service, not least because the assault to her senses caused by the presence of so many herbs and spices were enormously confusing to her finely honed sense of smell, but also because the place so often radiated such a happy aura that one could almost think that they had walked onto the stage of anime by Disney. The place was so full of the warming radiance cast by Kasumi, Nodoka, Shampoo (and sometimes Natsume), who so delighted in cooking up a meal for their family and loved ones that every pinch of ingredients carried with it their love and devotion. Just now, however, it was occupied by a Shampoo who was half-bent over the sink and looking quite stricken. Perfume approached her tentatively and spoke her name with a note of inquiry, but rather than verbally reply the Amazon passed the letter to her hands, which consisted of several sheets of neatly handwritten calligraphy in their native Mandarin.

Perfume accepted these pages and started reading, her eyes going very wide as she got mid-way and gasped, "N-N-NO…it-it cannot be!"

"Is her handwriting, no?" Shampoo responded in a tight voice, "See name sign on letter? Is same as before…but how this could happen?"

"'Love and affection…yours truly forever, and in good hopes of your happy marriage…" Perfume choked on the final words, the mong written there in a name that neither one of them had thought to hear again spoken of any child of their own generation. Her eyes slowly rose to exchange a questioning look with her tear-stained cousin, and then both sets of eyes clouded with immediate anger, which in turn gave to pure outrage.

"GREAT-GRANDMOTHER!!!" they each cried, and far away-tending to a certain restaurant-a deceptively old-looking "crone" looked up from her cooking and wondered why she was feeling a chill wind all of a sudden…

"Think of the body as a house," Ryu faintly murmured as he stood in the middle of a clearing, "A tree grows up from the earth and draws nourishment from the soil…wood is controlled by water and controls the earth, and a house is made from a harvested tree…and therefore a house is like a tree…and I am that tree, which must needs defending…"

He tried to picture himself as a house with the head forming the roof, the chest forming the front hall with the arms standing in for the front gates, the legs being the supports, his backside being the back door and his feet being the under-flooring. A house drew its strength from its foundations, so the earth was its natural roots while the head lay exposed to the elements and the torso became the area most in need of defending.

Then he thought of the Yamasenken and how it could be used to break down barriers by the front way, a loud and brazenly aggressive approach to invading a sanctuary. Then he contrasted each move of the Umisenken and took notice of how the quieter moves could be used to sneak past one's guard and overcome the Yamasenken. Against two such strong attacks a house appeared to be such a relatively fragile thing, far too vulnerable to attack and thus hardly worth the effort.

And yet the challenge for him was to devise a strategy of defense that could effectively counter both Yamasenken and Umisenken attacks. Such a thing did not seem possible at the onset, and yet…and yet some instinct told him it was anything but impossible. After all, houses and castles had been fending off would-be attackers for millennia…not perfectly, of course, but enough so that the average burglar might be deterred at the onset…

"YO!" a pleasant voice called out to him, "You spacing out on me again? Can't have that, not when I've packed you hearty lunch that should please you."

"Go away," Ryu complained, "I'm not hungry."

"Now is that any way for a boy to talk to a girl who's come all this way out here just to find you?" Kaoih pouted, "Honestly, Ryu-chan, I could almost get the impression that you don't ever want to see me…"

"It's not that," Ryu sighed, realizing by now that resistance was futile, "It's just that I need to concentrate by myself. It has nothing to do with you, it's all about the training…"

"You don't need to lecture me about training," the girl said brightly, "I work out every day just as hard as you do in order to make my act perfect for the paying customers, so don't think you can give me any lip about it."

Ryu forced himself to turn his head and actually look at the girl whom he was addressing, but in doing so he quite forgot what he had been about to say. Kaoih did not seem noticeably all that different from the last time he had seen her, and yet…and yet there was something different about her…something noticeably different, and just what that was he could not quite put his finger on the matter.

She was long-legged and lean with a really nice figure, a pair of substantial breasts poling out from beneath the tied-off shirt that she was wearing, which exposed her bare midriff to full view, giving him a good look at her washboard-smooth belly. A pair of earthen sandals protected her shapely feet from the rough terrain, and he even paused to wonder why she painted her toenails such an odd pink coloration. Looking up into her face was like casting his gaze on a porcelain beauty that could have graced a supermodel, and yet there was something confoundingly rugged and devil-may-care in her expression. Her curly brown hair fell about her face like the mane of a lion and highlighted a pair of magnificent blue eyes that seemed unusually large and magnetic, and it was to this face that he found the strangest kind of sensations sweeping over his body.

"What's the matter?" she asked, cocking her head to one side as she took notice of his expression, "You look like you've never seen a girl before."

"Ah…" Ryu found himself looking away with an odd flush about his cheeks. Instead he took notice of the picnic basket that she was carrying in one hand and asked, "Is…that for me…?"

"Actually, I was hoping it would be for the both of us," Kaoih replied matter-of-factly, "I'm hungry too after hiking up along that trail, so why don't you take a moment and join me while I spread out a blanket and turn this into a real lunch date."

"Lunch…date…?" Ryu found his eyebrows arching.

There seemed no graceful way of refusing her offer, so before too long Ryu found himself sitting down on the blanket watching Kaoih lay out the plates and food that she had brought him, along with some bottled water and some eating utensils, as if she had planned on sharing the meal with him to begin with.

"So," she asked casually, "How is the training coming along?"

He sighed, "Not too well…I'm having trouble thinking up this new Wood style as something that can counter the other Senkens."

"So, what appears to be the hold up?" Kaoih asked as she uncapped a plastic container of freshly cooked chow mien, which she spread over the rice that she had already dished out onto their plates.

"It's just that…defense really isn't my strong point," Ryu admitted.

"Heh," the girl sniffed, "I could have told you that."

Ryu frowned in annoyance and asked, "Well…what would you do that's all that different?"

"It isn't a matter of being different," Kaoih remarked, "It's just that you probably are having trouble thinking of a defensive style because you've never really had a roof of your own over your head. You live like a vagabond so you think like a hermit…but most of us who have a home tend to think of it as a refuge, a sanctuary in which to hide. This Senken you've been practicing is supposed to batter it down and destroy that sanctuary, while the Umisenken goes in quietly and takes what it needs without anyone being the wiser."

"Go on," Ryu urged, finding himself curious in spite of his normal aloofness.

"Well," Kaoih resumed, "The Senken you're working on is supposed to keep burglars and attackers from getting what they want. You either have to keep the bad guys on the other side of the door, or-if they should get in past your guard-you want to neutralize them as an effective threat. In a way it's kind of like rape prevention for a girl…."

"Rape prevention?" Ryu was surprised at the analogy.

"Sure," Kaoih replied, "Men are larger and stronger than women, so they have a natural advantage when it comes to forcing their way. It used to be believed in ancient societies that a girl who got raped did something to encourage the rapist…that she-in effect-had it coming…"

"That's ridiculous!" Ryu scoffed.

"No argument there," Kaoih replied, "But it's human nature to blame the victim. Some people do make themselves easy targets by doing the wrong sorts of things to try and discourage or repel an attack, but it's not like they asked to be victimized. Being a victim just means that you were probably careless and left an opening that the bad guy exploits."

"I…never looked at it that way before," Ryu admitted.

"Don't be fooled by appearances," Kaoih assured him, "A rapist or burglar is someone who knows what he's looking for, and when he finds it he goes in and takes what he wants from his victim. Because most such guys have a tendency towards violence, it used to be believed that a woman's only real defense was to submit to the attacker and do whatever he wants. It was thought that angering an assailant would just make things worse overall…but later studies debunked this as nonsense. You're just as likely to get hurt doing nothing as you would be if you fought back, and plenty of rapists get deterred if he thinks that the woman is too much trouble to go after. The same thing applies to robbers, they tend to go after easy marks and ignore the tough guys."

"I've always believed that the best defense is a strong offensive," Ryu soberly noted, trying not to think of the girl before him as a potential victim.

"That works just fine unless the guy you attack knows how to defend himself," Kaoih replied, "Me, I know lots of ways to hurt or disable an opponent, I wouldn't be a pushover if some sicko thought he could have his jollies with cute little old me, but it stands to reason that a guy like you could force himself on me with very little effort."

"Hah?" Ryu blinked, "Me?"

"Sure thing, Tough guy," Kaoih remarked with a jaunty little smile, "With your strength and skill you could have your way with me and I'd be powerless to stop you. That's how many women feel about men…that they're all but defenseless in the face of relentless male appetites, which is why many women these days believe in some form of private protection they can use in a crisis, even if it's nothing more complicated than a whistle."

Ryu's mind froze up and threatened to shut down at the simple thought of someone trying to take advantage of Kaoih Sanosuke. The girl was desirable enough from a physical aspect, but there was something about her personality too that seemed only slightly less blustery and full of bravado than she pretended, which meant that she knew full well that she had the potential of becoming a victim.

"I guess it really does all boil down to a question of what you value more…your safety or your life," Kaoih remarked, "In a real fight I guess you wouldn't have the luxury of holding back or fighting with less than your full effort. The consequences of losing can be pretty horrific, so surrender really is not a practical option."

Ryu blinked his eyes somewhat. That was the very thing he would have said in response to questions about losing a regular street fight.

Kaoih thought a moment then said, "I guess maybe the real question about what you're looking for is deciding what to defend and which parts of a house you need to protect.

"Something to protect?" Ryu looked at her in a curious manner.

"Uh huh," she replied, "Maybe it's not even just a matter of protecting the front gate, maybe letting a burglar get inside a house would actually make it easier to catch him since a lot of robbers and rapists think they've won at that point and tend to lower their guard, which makes them open to a counter-attack…"

"That's it!" Ryu straightened up, "That's what I've been looking for! That's the answer!"

"It is?" Kaoih turned and looked at the boy oddly.

To her utter amazement he reached out to her and cupped her face with both hands as he cried in delight, "Kaoih-chan…you're a genius!"

"Ah…I am?" she asked, his touch sending a thrill throughout her body that was wholly unexpected.

To her great disappointment, Ryu let her got and straightened up, "I've got to put this into practice immediately. Forgive me…I'll eat lunch in another moment, but…this has to be worked out right now! I think I'm really onto something…I think I may know how to create the Morisenken!"

"Uh…really?" Kaoih asked, wondering if the handsome boy were genuinely inspired, or losing it altogether.

"I just have to think about what is important and what needs defending," Ryu explained, moving off a little bit and squaring his stance as he concentrated, "Now…if I imagine myself as the one being attacked by the Yamasenken…"

He began to launch himself into a series of katas, pausing to take note of what he was doing as if to commit it to memory, he then moved on to the next set of motions, and before too long he was moving his body in a way that drew Kaoih's eye like a lodestone. The young man was poetry in motion, and seeing him enact a new system that he was creating on the spot was inspirational. She found herself smiling before too long and having to suppress the urge to outright applaud his performance.

At some point Ryu paused and said, "I need to write this down…I've got to remember each movement and refine it further with practice…"

"Would this help?" Kaoih asked as she reached into her picnic basket and pulled out a pen and a writing tablet, "I sometimes like to draw when I'm alone, but if you need a blank sheet of paper…"

Ryu accepted the tablet and studied it for a moment, flipping open the pages and finding herself amazed at the sight of a series of hand drawn sketches, one of which captured his own profile, which caused him to look up at her in utter amazement.

"You drew this?" he asked in wonder.

"No," she made a face, "It drew itself. Obviously I'm employing some talented fairies who do sketches for me freelance."

"Ah…" Ryu colored once again.

"Hey, I'm just kidding you, guy," Kaoih said brightly, "What's the matter, can't take a joke? Do you think it might negatively impact on your tough-guy image?"

"Er…no…it's not that," Ryu forced himself to turn to a blank page, and then accepted her pen as he began to make notes and do rude sketches much like the illustrations of the Yamasenken and Umisenken.

"That's not too bad," Kaoih remarked, "You've got steady hands and a good eye for detail. Ever thought about being an artist yourself?"

"Ah…no," Ryu replied, "The idea…never came up before…"

"Well, you certainly do seem to be in the throes of genius," Kaoih said with genuine amusement, then she straightened up and said, "You know something? Watching you work out like that's been causing me to work up a real sweat. There's a really nice lake just a little ways back on the trail that's almost perfect for skinny-dipping. If you want to join me, I'll be cooling off there after you finish your lunch."

"That's nice," Ryu said as he finished doing another sketch, only to have the pen fall out of his hand as he gasped, "Skinny…dipping…?"

"What's the matter?" she teased, "You never went naked before in front of a lady? Well, suit yourself…I'll be back in another few minutes, after I've washed away all my cares and troubles."

Ryu sat motionless as the girl got to her feet and started to turn away, and then he set the tablet to one side and calmly covered the cap to the pen, then thought a moment about what had been implied in that understated offer…and swallowed abruptly.

"I've got to be out of my mind…" he said dryly, then realized that a cold shower was the thing he most needed just hanging around with a girl like this Kaoih Sanosuke…

"Here we go, my boy," Happosai said brightly, "A construction yard where they're building a house, just the place you need to be while you contemplate the Kosenken."

"A construction yard?" Ryoga dubiously asked, wondering why he had let himself be talked into accompanying the ancient hentai. It was not exactly as if he thought of the old man as his own great-great grandfather…

"Do you know of a better place to learn how a house is put together?" Happosai remarked, "Mind you, the construction of any building may seem deceptively simple, but if you do it the wrong way the foundation may be off or the roof may leak or the plumbing won't work right, or any of a number of things that most folks take for granted, so building a place where people can live is important. Besides, it's a useful skill you might find to your advantage should you go live in a place of your own with Akane."

"With….Akane?" Ryoga got a far-off expression as he tried to imagine what building a house for her would be like…and his imagination faltered. In truth he was better at knocking buildings down than he was at construction…

"Hey, you there!" a man with a hard-hat called out, "The kid with the bandana!"

"Uh…me sir?" Ryoga asked.

"Are you the new day laborer I was told to expect?" the older man looked skeptically at him, "Kinda young for construction work…"

"He's the one I told you all about," Happosai spoke up, "May not look like much, but he's got a strong back and a good set of arms. He's still a trainee, though, so you'll have to talk him through the basics."

"I…what?" Ryoga looked from the burly foreman to the ancient pervert and back again.

"Good enough," the larger man clapped him on the shoulder, "Right this way, Son, and I'll get you a hardhat. The pay's good, so I'll just need your signature on the tax forms that your grandfather filled out for me just yesterday. Just do what you're told and stay out of trouble and I won't have to fire you like the last ten jerks who conned their way onto my payroll…"

"Tax forms?" Ryoga blinked, now thoroughly confused as he went along with the older man's suggestions.

Genma appeared beside Happosai as they watched Ryoga be led away into the construction yard, and then the heavyset Saotome asked, "You got Ryoga an honest job, Master? Isn't that…kind of against your normal policy…?"

"It's a drastic move, true," Happosai sagely nodded, "You know how I've always felt about people who try earning a so-called 'honest' living, but this job's just the thing to teach that young buck all he needs to know about putting a house together. If he doesn't screw things up on the first day, by the end of the week he'll have mastered the Kosenken."

"A brilliant if disturbing move, if I do say so myself," Genma nodded, "I'd never have thought of it myself in a million years."

"That's why you're the apprentice and I'm the Master," Happosai sagely concluded, when the two men looked alert at the sound of a siren going off in the distance, "Well…what do you know…sounds like that other training idea of mine is about to get some practice."

"A fire, Master?" Genma asked, then suspicion caused him to add, "You didn't, by any chance, set it off for this reason?"

"No," Happosai replied, "But now that you mention it, that would have been a pretty good idea if I had. Guess we'll just have to chalk this one up to fortuitous circumstances, but just as long as your boy acts in character, before too long he'll have the Honosenken mastered."

"I certainly hope so," Genma allowed, "The rest, I suppose, is all up to Ranma…"

The Four-Alarmer brought the Eighth District Volunteer Firefighter detail storming onto the scene in a bright red fire truck manned by eight volunteers, only four of whom were experienced professionals. The building presently on fire was an apartment complex situated on the edge of the Furinkan Financial district, and eyewitness reports detailed that only half of the building occupants had managed to escape from the fire, which was believed to have been caused by a cigarette setting fire to somebody's mattress.

A fire like this was always a threat to public health and safety, but weather conditions were just right that it could well have spread out to engulf other buildings if not contained immediately. At present only a few floors were on fire, but that was enough for the police to cordon off the whole area to keep interested parties on the outskirts. The truck full of volunteers was permitted to cross he police lines, but at present there seemed little hope of putting the fire out before it could gut and destroy the entire building.

The leader of the Fire unit, a scar-faced Lieutenant named Hino Ikari, was an all-business martinet who expected his men to work like a precision drill team, and no sooner had they dismounted from their truck than he had them fast at work unpacking the firehoses and dismounting the ladders. Like a military performing a routine battle maneuver, they hooked up the hoses to a pair of fire hydrants on opposite ends of the block and soon had two streams of water pouring in at a broken upstairs window. The lieutenant then divided his group into two teams, one to hold the fort on the outside of the building, the other hand to follow him inside so that they could rescue any potential victims.

"Osaka, you're with Kamadaki," he pointed at the first two men, then directed his attention to a third and said, "You…you're the new guy, aren't you? You're with me…stay close and follow my lead, Rookie, and maybe you won't get hurt, do you get me?"

"Sure thing, Lieutenant," said Ranma from beneath his fireproofed yellow cape and hard hat, "I'm with you all the way."

"Good," the Lieutenant nodded, "Then let's move it, people!"

The four men scaled up the ladder and into a fifth story window that was relatively clear of smoke and fire. The men put on their oxygen masks and lowered their heat visors as they followed Ikari's lead down a narrow corridor, pausing to knock on the doors to check and see if anyone was in their rooms. As they went Ikari called back to his men and said, "Keep in mind…the worst part of any fire is the smoke it generates…it's mainly composed of either carbon dioxide or carbon monoxide, which can kill you if you breathe in enough of the stuff, not to mention the kami knows how many other chemicals that get burned in passing. A fire always goes where there is air and fuel, so be careful and don't make any mistakes that will give the fire an excuse to come at you."

"How can fire come back at you, sir?" Osaka asked, thus sparing the others from having to voice the question.

"You'll see," Ikari responded, "Fire isn't just a process, it's like a living thing, and it tries to get at you if you give it the slightest excuse or opening. When fire breaks out in a confined space it rapidly eats up all the oxygen, and it superheats the air so that it builds up pressure to go leaping to the next available source that you give it. Like here…" he indicated a door that he touched lightly with one hand, then withdrew it, "Feel that? It's hot to the touch! That means there's fire on the other side there, and what it wants to do is get out into this hallway where there's a fresh supply of air for it to consume. If it can't get out, it will look for the next available outlet, and when that happens you get what is called a backdraft. That's when superheated plasma comes racing at you like a jet stream of pure heat, and it can fry you where you're standing if you're not too careful."

"So, what do we do if someone's trapped on the other side of that door?" Ranma asked.

"Not too likely in this case," the Lieutenant replied, "But if there is, then we have to work our way around the fire, give it another outlet where it can't get to us. Remember, fire works its way upward, but it burns down so long as there's fuel and air to sustain it, and even when there's not, the embers of a fire remain hot enough to spring back to life at the first sign of oxygen, so…"

"Sir!" called out Kamadaki from the back end of their line, "I can hear screams on the other end of this door! It doesn't feel as hot as the other one, but…"

"DON'T TOUCH IT, YOU FOOL!" Ikari snapped back, "If the fire's eaten through even part way…"

That was all the warning the man had before the door burst outward and a massive coil of flame shot out at where he had been standing…and had he continued to be standing there, the fireman named Kamadaki would have been fried to a charred crisp by a thousand degree flame that struck to the wall directly behind where he had been kneeling.

To the amazement of all present, Ranma had moved faster than the flames to tackle the man and bear him down to the floor a good measure behind him. Fire raced over the walls and ceiling as the plasma burst had the same effect of a flame thrower at close quarters, but Kamadaki and Ranma were completely unhurt (save for a few bruises on the former's person, which were infinitely preferable to the third degree burn he would have received).

"You idiot!" Ranma called into his ear, "Next time listen when somebody tells you not to touch things!"

Kamadaki would have said something to the effect of , "I'm sorry," but Ranma did not remain with him but instead scrabbled low to the floor like a crab and peered in through the burst out doorframe at the scenes of inferno within the room so mentioned.

"Lieutenant!" Ranma called out, "I see two kids! They're huddled under a table, but they won't last more than a few more seconds!"

"Can you get to them?" the Lieutenant asked, "Is the way clear at all?"

"I think so," Ranma said, "I'm gonna try it!"

"Wait-!" Ikari tried to call the younger man back, but Ranma was again too fast for belief as he vaulted into the room, moving low to the ground and vaulting over a raging fire that was blocking the way. A fallen wooden beam was about to strike the table and the two terrified children when a fast-moving blur of yellow came racing up at them, and then they found themselves engulfed in something rubbery as Ranma kept on going, using his forward momentum to carry them through the blazing mass of flame that had been a window moments before, releasing a Chi-burst ahead of himself that sucked the flames out of his path and left him a clear space through which to tumble.

For a moment Ranma was out and clear of the flames, which were licking so close to his heels that the edges of his clothing were catching fire. Ranma ignored this as he calculated the distance to the ground, then saw the life-saver that he needed in the form of the fire ladder, which was just close enough for him to snag with a foot as he turned his fall into a high-wire act that would have earned a gasp of approval from both Kaoih and her mother. Meanwhile, he shifted his makeshift rubber burden into a net as he found himself suddenly inverted upside down with only three storied between him and the asphalt. From there it was simplicity itself to effect a tumble to the top of the firetruck, and with out so much as bruising his charges as he let them down to the soft bedding formed of as-yet unused fire hoses.

"Here, take them!" he called out to a pair of astonished paramedics, lowering the young girl and her little brother into their waiting care, and only then taking the time to beat out the flames covering his body. Then he whipped his yellow jacket back over himself and scaled up the fireladder, selecting a route through which it would be safe enough for him to reenter the building.

The lieutenant and the rest of their team was just then trying to sort out what had happened of their junior colleague when Ranma came scrabbling along the floor ahead of them, calling out, "This way, Lieutenant! I found a clear route out of here!"

"Where the hell did you…?" Ikari began to reprimand the younger man, then thought better of it, "Never mind…this place is turning into an inferno! We've got to get down to the next level, so no more grandstanding stunts like that, you got me, Rookie?"

"Sure thing," Ranma said as he reversed directions and led the way to the as-yet-undamaged stairway, the other three men making haste to escape from the blaze that was turning the hallway into a convection oven as the fire raced in all directions.

Training had only just begun, and Ranma was determined to learn everything that he could from the fire and the experienced fireman who regarded him as a mere "Rookie." So far, the behavior of the flames was unlike anything he would have previously imagined, and it did indeed behave like a thing alive, an element of nature taking glee in the destruction of man-made things that dared to stand within its path. He had even seen the fire seemingly turn to look at him as though recognizing him as a challenger to its domain. This was one challenge Ranma intended to see through to the very end, and once he had mastered the flames he would be well on his way to finally understanding how fire could be related to a house, and how it could be either imitated or defeated, which would be the clue that he would need in order to master the Honosenken.

And thus would he be one step closer to mastering the Senken itself, which appeared to be the key to at last coming near to Nabiki's level as a fighter. He would challenge any odds, risk anything to that end, and eventually triumph as befit the heir to the Saotome Anything Goes Ryu. In the meantime there were lives at stake and more innocents in need of being rescued, and he would do his part to carry his weight on the team as he prepared for the larger battle to come, the battle to prove himself a man, and a man worthy of being Nabiki's iinazuke…

Continued

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