Quantum Destinies
A Ranma 1/2 Fanfic
By Jurai Knight (sthesken@earthlink.net)

Ranma 1/2 and its characters are owned by Rumiko Takahashi.  This story 
is inspired by her works and the stories from some of my fellow fanfic 
authors.  Among these are D.B. Sommer's "Shampoo 1/2", Jim Bader's "A 
Very Scary Thought -aka- Nabiki 1/2", and John Biles' Elseworlds 
series.  All C&C is welcome.

Other chapters of this story may be found at this website, or you can 
email the author for them:

The Quantum Destinies Homepage
http://home.earthlink.net/~sthesken/fanfics/qd.html


The list of worlds reoccurring in this chapter:
Earth  0.000,0.000 - The world of Scholar Ranma (Baseline cluster)


What has gone before in this story (or at least what will help you 
understand what is going on):

On a parallel Earth that diverged from the standard Ranma timeline over 
five hundred years ago, the Empire of Japan rules almost half the world 
and has done so for almost a century.  A young scientist named Ranma 
Saotome, through a device of his invention, is now possessed of the 
skills and memories of a martial artist version of himself.  After 
viewing some other alternate lives and dealing with some unexpected 
situations, Ranma decided to intensify his workouts to bring himself up 
to the level of his counterpart.  Dean Fuyutsuki mentioned a mysterious 
plan that involved Ranma and several of the cast.  Meanwhile, Soun put 
the first stage of his plan into play to ensnare Ranma, and Hinako 
learned something about Ranma's past.  Nabiki snuck into Ranma's lab 
and managed to activate his device, contacting and duplicating the 
skills from an alternate version of herself, one who went on the ten-
year training journey with Genma instead of Ranma.  Forever changed by 
the experience, Nabiki dealt with two enemies using her new skills and 
has decided to make Ranma an offer that will prove difficult for the 
boy scientist to refuse.


xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Chapter 6 - Travelling the Path of a True Martial Artist, Part II

         There are no set paths to the future.  Your path will
         only form after you run forward.

               -Tomoe Midoh: Battle Athletes Victory, Ep. 26

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


*** Earth  0.000,0.000

Nodoka arrived at Hanna Miller's and looked over the exterior of the 
building.  Earth-toned paint colored the walls, broken up by fancy 
woodwork on the eaves of the roof, and around the windows, that were 
painted green.  It had the ambiance of a French restaurant, and it was 
a very popular place to eat among the trendy.  Nodoka had heard that 
the service was good, as well as the food.

"Welcome to Hanna Miller's," the maitre d' greeted her when she came 
in, a smile on his face as he bowed to her.  "Do you have a 
reservation?"  Beyond him, Nodoka could see that the eating areas 
looked quite full.

"Well, I am meeting someone here for lunch," replied Nodoka.  "Do you 
happen to have a reservation in either the name of Mitsuma or Saotome?"  
She waited as the middle-aged man checked through his list, occupying 
herself with watching the waitresses efficiently moving around the 
restaurant.

"Ah, here it is," said the maitre d' with another smile, looking back 
up at Nodoka.  "Mitsuma, party of two.  Let me summon your waitress to 
take you to your table."  He caught the eye of an attractive brunette 
with a long ponytail of hair and waved her over.  She looked to be in 
her late teens at the oldest.  The girl practically sprinted on her way 
to the front, and she bowed in a very perky manner to Nodoka after she 
stopped in front of her.

"Good afternoon," said the girl.  "I am Yuka Takeuchi, and I will be 
your waitress."  Nodoka returned the girl's sunny smile.  Like the 
other young women working in the restaurant as waitresses, Yuka wore a 
snug white blouse with a frill of ruffles that ran down the middle of 
the front, and she appeared to be extremely well-built for her age.  
Her long, chestnut colored hair matched the color of her eyes and was 
tied with a red ribbon that was the same color as her uniform dress and 
the small bows on each of her short, puffed sleeves.  Unlike the other 
girls, Yuka wore a pair of tan, fingerless gloves that appeared to be 
weighted above the wrists, and her feet were shod with red and white 
athletic shoes.

Nodoka followed the girl to the table, one of those next to a window up 
front, and sat down.  She smiled at Yuka when the girl handed her a 
menu.  Such a nice, young lady, Nodoka thought.  Yuka bowed to her once 
again before heading off to another of her assigned tables.

Nodoka picked up the menu and was looking it over, trying hard to 
distract herself from her sudden nervousness.  This will be such a big 
step in my son's life, she thought with a worried smile as she browsed 
through the various dishes available on the menu.  I hope that Ranma 
appreciates the delicacy of what I'm about to do for him, but I'm sure 
that he will.  After all, such a decision is one of the most important 
ones that he will ever be involved in.  I just have to make sure that I 
pick a girl for him that will match all of his temperaments.  Ranma 
needs a woman who can provide him with a good home, and also be a good 
mother for his children.

While waiting for Otsu Mitsuma to arrive, and also trying to decide 
what to order, Nodoka thought a bit about her plans for the rest of the 
day.  She had a session scheduled with her best friend, Achika Masaki, 
for some sword practice, (actually it could more correctly be called 
one of their usual duels), and she didn't want to have anything too 
heavy in her stomach for it.  Achika was a very crafty opponent, 
possibly the best kendo fighter that Nodoka had ever faced, and she did 
not want anything hindering her fighting movements.  She and Achika had 
been getting together for such matches three or four times a week since 
their own school days, so many years past.

Nodoka briefly found herself remembering the history that Achika and 
she had had together, and the other friends and enemies that they had 
lost touch with over time.  So many years have gone by, she realized, 
wistful over the days of her past youth.  Nodoka was still amazed 
sometimes that she and Achika had ever managed to become as close of 
friends as they now were.  After all, they had been semi-bitter rivals 
at one time, mainly due to each of them being equal contenders for the 
topmost slot in the Martial Arts Club at Shibaiki Women's Finishing 
School.  Achika was usually the one who seemed to emerge the victor in 
their fights, but the two women had somehow slowly forged a close 
friendship where once only a warrior's rivalry had existed.  But they 
still tested each other's skills on a regular basis.  The training 
helped them both keep their figures trim, after all.

Despite Nodoka's rivalry with Achika, they had both always backed each 
other up when enemies from outside their school had challenged the 
strength of their club.  She sometimes found herself wondering whatever 
happened to some of those fierce, teenaged girls that used to regularly 
test her and Achika's combat skills in those wonderful days of their 
youth.  But Nodoka's regular opponents were the ones that she still 
remembered best.

For example, there had been Kenseiko Idomo, the haughty and nasty girl 
from Blackhall Academy, who had always worn her long hair done up in a 
ponytail.  She was a strong opponent with her chosen weapons, a pair of 
war fans.  However, Nodoka had always enjoyed humbling the obnoxiously 
arrogant girl whenever she came around to pester her.  It was a great 
stress reliever, and it was also a lot of fun.  Kenseiko had always 
refused to admit that Nodoka was clearly the superior fighter, and she 
kept coming to bother her with challenges.

Then there had also been Kimiko Nakakami from Furinkan Military 
Academy, perhaps Nodoka's most mutually-disliked rival in martial arts 
ability in those days, far more than even she and Achika had ever been.  
Her many close-fought duels with Kimiko, their wooden blades flashing 
as they both gave their all to best the other, had been glorious.  
Kimiko was the one opponent that Nodoka occasionally found herself 
missing over the years, and she thought that to be strange, since they 
had been about as far apart from being friends as one could imagine.

However, towards the end of their schoolgirl days, their rivalries with 
each other had faded away in the face of their oncoming adult lives.  
In her thoughts, Nodoka had always imagined that, like herself and 
Achika now were, both other girls were now wives and mothers whose 
husbands were probably not even aware of their past adventures as 
brawling teenagers.  Nodoka had certainly never mentioned any of her 
own hellraising days to Genma, since she did not want to spoil her 
present image as a gracious lady.  To tell her husband and son that she 
had once run around and fought with a gang of juvenile delinquents as a 
teenager was unthinkable.  Neither of them would ever understand, so it 
was a dark secret that she would take with her to her grave.

Nodoka was so absorbed in the selections available on the menu that she 
did not immediately notice the woman who was approaching her table, led 
by the waitress, Yuka.

"Saotome-san?" asked Otsu pleasantly.

Nodoka looked up and bowed in greeting without arising from her seat.  
A tall woman, with her lustrous black hair worn straight, stood next to 
her table, dressed fashionably and carrying a small attaché case.  She 
smiled pleasantly as Nodoka looked up and returned the smile.

"Yes, I'm Nodoka Saotome," replied the matriarch of the Saotome family.  
"It is an honor to meet you in person, Mitsuma-san."  Nodoka gestured 
for the new arrival to join her, and the tall, older woman sat with 
regal grace.  Yuka quietly handed her a menu and bowed before she left.  
Otsu set her attaché case on the table.

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, Saotome-san," said Otsu with a 
mild frown.  "Traffic was more than I was expecting in this region of 
the city during this time of day."  She flipped open the attaché case 
and removed several thick portfolios from within it.  When she had all 
that she needed, she closed the case and placed it onto the floor under 
the table.  The portfolios were placed onto one of the empty chairs 
where they would not disturb their meal.

"Do not be concerned, Mitsuma-san" said Nodoka pleasantly.  "I have 
been enjoying the ambiance of the restaurant while I examined their 
menu.  They have quite a selection."  Nodoka flipped through the pages 
of the menu for a moment before looking at Otsu.  "I confess that they 
have so many selections that I never know what to try."

"I am told that the onion soup here is simply the best," said Otsu with 
a smile.  This will be easier than I initially suspected, thought Otsu 
contentedly behind her fake smile.  The Saotome woman is obviously off-
balance by being in a restaurant such as this, one that she must not 
normally be able to afford, so manipulating her into a proper decision 
should be child's play.  Then I can collect my promised bonus and take 
a vacation.

"I was extremely pleased that you called me when you did," said Nodoka 
with another smile, looking up from her menu once more.  "A very good 
friend of mine used your agency in the recent past, and they found her 
son an excellent girl that he is now engaged to.  I have high hopes for 
what you can do for my son."

"I'm sure that one of the three will make a fine match for your boy, 
Saotome-san," said Otsu cheerfully.  She perused the menu in front of 
her with a smile.  Since this was all going onto an expense account to 
be presented to Soun, she planned trying some of the more expensive 
foods on the menu.

Both women finally made their choices and Nodoka caught Yuka's eye with 
her own.  Nodoka decided to go with a lighter lunch: a bowl of French 
onion soup and shaved roast beef served with a roasted mushroom sauce 
over wild rice.  The attractive brunette made her way over to their 
table, her notepad out and a pen in her hand.  She smiled at the two 
women brightly.  "May I take your orders now?" asked Yuka.

Nodoka and Otsu were making light conversation when their soups 
arrived.  She picked up her spoon and tasted the thick, brown broth, 
and she discovered that Otsu had not led her astray at all.  The French 
onion soup was very tasty indeed, and Nodoka consumed it with well-
mannered gusto.  The shaved roast beef and rice that she had ordered 
went down in the same manner.  When Nodoka was done with her food, she 
dabbed at her lips with the cloth napkin while Otsu finished her own 
meal.  Nodoka was not long in waiting for that.

"That was simply delicious," said Otsu with a smile after she set her 
napkin down on the table.  "There is nothing like eating a good meal 
before conducting business, I always say."

"I thank you for inviting me to meet you here," said Nodoka with a 
gentle smile.  "The food here is excellent."

"I'm glad that you enjoyed it," said Otsu, her smile still firmly in 
place.  She was eager to get her business done, but such could not be 
seen from her mannerisms.  After the dishes had been cleared from their 
table, they relaxed with some green tea.  Otsu pulled the three 
portfolios nearer to her, and Nodoka's eyes lit up with happiness.

"I can hardly wait to see what you have to show me from those," said 
Nodoka sincerely, an undertone of eagerness in her voice.  Each 
portfolio only had a code number on the outside, instead of a name.  
Nodoka supposed that it was how Otsu's agency kept their records.

"So what did your husband think when you told him about your meeting 
today?" said Otsu as she picked up one of the portfolios with a smile.

"I... have not told him yet," said Nodoka slowly, feeling somewhat 
embarrassed.  "He and I have discussed the matter of obtaining the 
services of a matchmaker several times, but he felt it was too soon for 
Ranma.  My husband has said that to engage Ranma now to a young lady 
would be foolishly premature, as if a mother does not know what is 
right and good for her own son."  Nodoka's voice had risen a bit in 
volume as she related her irritation with what she obviously felt was a 
very silly attitude of Genma's, and she quickly lowered it back down as 
she continued to speak.  "He told me that I may do as I wished, but he 
wouldn't participate in it.  Men simply have no understanding of how 
important a thing this is, so feel free to ask me any questions about 
my son or my family."

"I'm sure that we'll find your son a fine bride," said Otsu in an 
attempt to reassure Nodoka, as she picked up the first portfolio.  "I 
am sure that you already know that many of the very finest families in 
the Empire are registered with us.  When I was researching the Saotome 
family, I was very impressed.  From what I saw, you seem to have 
managed to accumulate a very distinguished history.  Your husband's 
father even earned the Imperial Star during the War, I saw.  That was 
quite an accomplishment."

"Genma's father, Colonel Saotome, was a brave and honorable man," 
agreed Nodoka, smiling with a hint of sadness.  "My husband took his 
loss rather hard though.  It happened shortly before he finished his 
time at the Imperial Academy, where our son Ranma is going now, and it 
changed Genma.  Sometimes I think his father's death, while fighting 
for the honor of the Empire in Russia during the Global War, was what 
might have finally turned Genma against following the way of the 
warrior."  Nodoka paused and looked thoughtful for a moment, as if 
unsure how much to say on this matter to a stranger.

"That is understandable," said Otsu with false sympathy. "Please go 
on."

"My husband was once a great martial artist in his youth, taught by his 
own father," said Nodoka, after taking a sip of her tea.  "He even 
spent an entire year training and travelling in China right before the 
War.  But when his father died, I think that something died inside of 
Genma as well.  He decided against following his family's traditions 
and becoming a warrior like so many of his ancestors.  He even stopped 
studying the martial arts entirely, but, as his wife, I can tell that 
he still misses it quite a bit.  I keep encouraging him to take it up 
again for his health, since it is such good exercise for a man of his 
age, but he hasn't as of yet.  However, I'm sure that I'll wear down 
his resistance eventually."  Nodoka's smile turned a bit 
conspiratorial.

"I'm sure that you will," agreed Otsu, remembering how she was with her 
own husband when he proved resistant to her wishes.

"My husband is a good man though, and he raised our son to be a fine 
scholar," Nodoka said, pride showing in her eyes.

"I'm sure you must be proud of him," said Otsu with some genuine 
emotion.  "Your son Ranma seems like he is an outstanding, young man 
indeed.  Earning an invitation to study at the Imperial Academy is 
quite an achievement after all."

"Ranma is a credit to his generation," said Nodoka proudly.  "As his 
mother, I just know that he will do great things for the Empire.  I 
only hope that I can find him a bride that will be able to stand at his 
side as he goes forward to meet that future."

"Well then, on that thought, let us begin to look at some of the fine 
young ladies that have been selected for your son," said Otsu, flipping 
open the first of the three thick portfolios with a smile.  She settled 
it before her to use as a reference, and then looked at Nodoka with a 
smile.

"The first of them comes from a fine family in the Koga Mountain 
region.  Her name is Ukyo Kuonji."  A palm-sized photograph of a 
serious-looking teenaged girl was presented to Nodoka, a head and 
shoulders shot.  In it, Ukyo was dressed in a traditional yukata with 
her hair worn in a single ponytail that was tied with a white ribbon.

"She's a lovely girl," said Nodoka, noting the spirit displayed by the 
girl in the picture by the set of her jaw and the no-nonsense look in 
her eyes.  Such a one as this does have the clear look of a warrior, at 
least in manner, Nodoka thought approvingly.  The girl reminded her of 
herself at that age, for some reason.  I am sure that she would bear 
strong children to my son and raise them well.  She looked up from the 
picture to focus in again on what Otsu was saying about Ukyo.

"Centuries of traditions are represented by the Kuonji Clan, and many 
past members have served Emperors ably," said Otsu.  She noted Nodoka 
nodding approvingly with a sinking feeling in her stomach and continued 
on, "They are descended of a proud line of warriors, and are reputedly 
one of the last of the true Shinobi Clans still in existence in the 
Empire.  Her family now takes care of a large Shinto shrine in the 
mountains near Koga, one that they have held for generations.  There is 
even a legend that an Oni is imprisoned in a cave behind it."

"An Oni?" asked Nodoka with a smile.  "In this day and age they still 
believe such things exist?"

"According to the Kuonji Shrine's legend, this particular monster's 
spirit is held fast by the power of a holy katana blade buried to the 
hilt into a stone in a cave behind the shrine, trapping it forever," 
said Otsu with a somewhat more genuine smile.  "It is said that one of 
Ukyo's ancestors defeated the evil creature and bound it with the power 
of the blessed weapon hundreds of years ago, one that was rumored to 
have been created by the swordsmith Arihoshi.  Since that time, the 
Kuonji Clan has apparently devoted its energies to only two things: 
perfecting their shadow warrior arts, and to maintaining the wards 
which contain the Oni."

                   ******************************

The trees barely whispered with the light breeze, and the noonday sun 
kept the day warm.  A single figure slowly maneuvered down the walkway, 
lazily sweeping away the dust and stray leaves from the broad stone 
path.  It was a teenaged girl, dressed in the white and red robes of a 
Shinto shrine maiden.  Her chestnut-colored hair was pulled back into a 
single loose ponytail that fell to just below her shoulders in the back 
and was tied with a white ribbon.  Behind her, a short distance away, a 
large shrine building loomed, dominating the background with a sense of 
ancientness.  In front of her was a long series of stone steps that led 
down to a small mountain lake.  It was a tranquil scene as the insects 
buzzed in the trees around her.

Ukyo paused in her sweeping and closed her eyes, letting the mild 
breeze dry the sheen of perspiration from her forehead.  She took a 
deep breath and sighed, scratching at her side at a reoccurring itch.  
In addition to being hot and rather uncomfortably heavy, her robes were 
itching her again, and she looked forward to removing them and changing 
back into her more comfortable boy's clothes for her afternoon martial 
arts practice.  However, for the present, her mother had insisted that 
she stay clothed in the proper garb for a shrine maiden as she did her 
chores, in case there were visitors.  It was another reason why Ukyo 
missed her time in the back mountain regions with her grandfather.  

Mother just doesn't understand, thought Ukyo disconsolately.  She 
picked at the material of her robe, frowning.  This isn't me, some 
frail and feminine girly-girl.  Dressing and acting like a guy is just 
so much more comfortable to me, but Mother just won't even try and 
understand my feelings.  Ukyo sighed once again, recalling her mother's 
numerous and desperate attempts to find her a husband over the last 
several months.  Things were just so much simpler when it was only me 
and Grandpa, training in the mountains.  After all, I don't need some 
dumb guy around complicating my life, and all of them are just a bunch 
of hormone-driven perverts anyway.  Well, except maybe for one, but 
he's been too dense to figure out that I'm really a girl, for all the 
years that he's known me.

Opening her hazel-green eyes, Ukyo looked around the temple grounds 
with a sudden smile as her thoughts turned to happier things.  Her 
grandfather had promised that he would come around today to test her 
skills.  She wanted to show him how hard that she had practiced at 
them.  It was then that she noticed a sudden silence; the insects had 
stopped sounding.  Ukyo glanced around, her hand moving to release a 
catch on the handle of her broom, readying her weapon from its place of 
concealment.

Ukyo's ears heard the faint whisper of cloth against the bark of a tree 
a moment before a figure came leaping at her from a high branch.  She 
dodged away from several shuriken that came streaking at where she had 
been standing.  The deadly blades buried themselves into the wood 
bordering the walkway as her body soared over the head of her attacker, 
her robes rustling.  Her acrobatic leap landed her ten feet away from 
where she had just been standing, facing her assailant.  The only sound 
upon her landing was the soft clopping of her sandals against the stone 
walkway and a final rustling sound from her robes.  Her broom had been 
transformed into a short naginata in her hands.

"Well done, my young apprentice," said her assailant.  She relaxed as 
her attacker was revealed to be the wizened figure of a man, dressed in 
the traditional black garb of a ninja but without the mask.  He was 
shorter than she herself was by several centimeters.  "Your skills have 
grown greater, my boy.  I actually had to work a little bit to sneak up 
on you.  Your mother must be so proud to see how her son has grown up 
into such a fine young shadow warrior.  Your disguise as a woman almost 
fooled even me."

I see Grandpa hasn't changed a bit, Ukyo thought with a mental sigh.  
As much as I love him, the senile, old fool just refuses to see that 
I'm really a girl.  She had given up trying to correct the old man as 
to her gender a long while ago, and she had even taken to binding her 
breasts for the last few years of her training to keep from upsetting 
him. It was an act that she still retained mostly out of long habit, 
especially since she saw how all of the guys at her local school 
treated any girl, so she just attended school as a boy.  It was much 
easier for her, even though it freaked her mother out a lot, but it 
made Ukyo a little sad that no guy had penetrated her disguise yet.

However, she was very happy to see the old man.

"Grandfather!" Ukyo exclaimed with a smile at the sight of the familiar 
figure.  "Do you really think that I've gotten better?  I've been 
practicing everything that you ever taught me."  Her face broke out 
into an even broader smile.

"I can see that, Ukyo m'boy," the kindly-looking old man agreed with a 
thin smile.  "But now we will test your combat abilities.  Prepare 
yourself."

"We?" asked Ukyo in surprise.  She glanced around as fully half a dozen 
ninja warriors seemed to materialize from out of the trees.  They were 
dressed in the traditional garb of the ninja, only in camouflage 
colors.  Her eyes narrowed briefly as she quickly studied each of her 
new opponents.  "Oh, I see."  Ukyo's look turned confident.

Ukyo shrugged out of her heavy outer robes and sandals in a few 
moments.  Her bare feet were not making even a whisper of sound as she 
stood in the light underclothes that she had worn under her robes, her 
breasts were held down by her tight chest bindings as was her usual 
habit.  Her build was a bit broad-shouldered and barrel-chested to be 
called girlish from her years of martial arts training, and her close 
resemblance to an attractive boy was more obvious now without the 
female clothes.  She fished a pair of light shoes out of a pocket of 
her discarded robes and slipped them on.  The total time for her quick 
wardrobe change was under five seconds.

"Ready," Ukyo called out with a grin.  She flipped her ponytail back 
over her shoulder to rest between her shoulderblades and took a firm 
grip on her weapon.

The six figures came at her in pairs, attempting to flank her and 
quickly overwhelm her defenses.  Ukyo went into a blur of motion as she 
met the first pair at a dead run.  Her naginata whirled into proper 
position with ease against her attackers' blades, blocking both deadly 
strikes with great skill.  Her right foot slammed hard across the jaw 
of one ninja, the blow spinning him about to receive the haft of her 
weapon across his skull a moment later.  The shadow warrior went down 
hard.

One, Ukyo thought to herself.

The first ninja's companion was a female.  Like the first, Ukyo did not 
recognize this one from her stance or her movements, but she had a high 
measure of fighting skill, enough to occupy her for several very 
critical moments.  Ukyo dueled with the girl, naginata against sword 
blade in a rapid-fire exchange of strikes and blocks, even as the four 
remaining ninjas raced towards her.  Each girl tried to power her way 
through her opponent's defenses, but Ukyo's far greater skill quickly 
showed.

The female ninja was a fraction of a second too slow on one block, and 
Ukyo quickly slashed her across the stomach, twisting her wrists 
outwards at the last moment.  Dark fluid quickly dampened the heavy 
cloth on her opponent's belly.  It was a bloody blow, but Ukyo had 
pulled it so it was not deep enough to kill.  The female ninja fell 
back, her sword falling from her hands to clatter loudly upon the 
stones, clutching her stomach in pain as her vital fluids leaked from 
between her splayed fingers.  Ukyo quickly spun around and hit her with 
a solid backfist blow, knocking the girl unconscious in an instant.  
Her opponent's body fell to the earth and did not move.

Two, Ukyo thought, her body just warming up to the movements of combat.  
She became even more fluid and swift in her actions.

The third and fourth ninjas both leaped at Ukyo from right angles to 
each other, their deadly blades aiming to spill her brains from her 
skull.  Leaping off the ground to meet them in midair, Ukyo blocked one 
with her weapon and the other with her hand.  Before any of them began 
to fall back to earth, her foot buried itself hard into the gut of one 
of them, in a blow that he felt all the way through to his spine.  That 
ninja warrior went down hard, clutching his stomach helplessly as he 
slammed into the ground.  The other ninja joined him barely a moment 
later from a quick knee strike up into his groin, followed up by a 
hard-driving elbow strike up under the jaw as his head came down in 
reflex.

Three and four, Ukyo thought, a grin on her face now.  She alighted on 
the ground with the grace of a cat and posed briefly with the blade of 
her weapon flashing from the sunlight.  She was in her element now, the 
intense rush of combat upon her.

The last two warriors didn't throw themselves at her in a mad rush like 
the first four had.  Instead, they moved to opposite sides and began to 
test her defenses, but Ukyo wasn't having any of that.  She swiftly 
feinted at one with her naginata, and then she leaped at the other.  
Her powerful thighs locked around his neck as she fired two quick 
punches into his face.  Before the one had even begun to fall, she 
sprang off his now unconscious body to deliver a spinning roundhouse 
kick into the shoulder of the other one.  He immediately dropped his 
sword as his fingers splayed open in reflex, and Ukyo followed up with 
a smashing punch to his jaw.  She saw the last ninja's eyes roll back 
into his head behind the mask, and he fell to the ground with a dull 
thud.

Five and six, Ukyo thought triumphantly.  She was guessing that the 
entire fight had taken less than thirty seconds to do.

An arm suddenly wrapped around her windpipe, and the familiar sounds of 
her grandfather's voice breathed into her ear in a serious tone, 
"Always be aware of any potential new opponents coming up from behind 
you."  She briefly struggled against his grip, knowing that he could 
snap her neck in an instant if he applied the proper pressure.  For 
several tense moments, neither of them moved.

Then, as quickly as her grandfather's arm had grasped her around the 
throat, it withdrew when he let go of her again a few moments later.  
Ukyo whirled to face him with her weapon ready, only to see his kind 
face smiling at her.  She blushed at falling for his attack so easily.  
It was a stupid thing for her to do, and she frowned at her 
foolishness.

"Sorry, Grandfather," Ukyo said as she bowed her head to him.  "I let 
my overconfidence get the better of me.  I was arrogant."  A ninja 
groaned softly behind her.

"That is a dubious privilege of the young," her elderly grandfather 
replied sagely.  "Even a warrior as highly-skilled in the deadly arts 
of our Clan as you are should always remember to watch his back when 
alone.  If I had been a true enemy, then you would be dead, your neck 
broken like a sapling tree.  The Kuonji Clan can ill afford to lose 
such a promising warrior as yourself to arrogant carelessness."  He 
frowned at her slightly.  "I taught you better than that, Ukyo."

"Yes, Grandfather," said Ukyo as she bowed her head again.  "I swear 
upon my Clan's honor that I will not repeat such a mistake.  I will do 
you and your teachings proud, and I intend to be the finest shadow 
warrior that I can."

"You are a dutiful child, Ukyo," said the elderly man.  He clapped her 
on the shoulders.  "You make an old man proud that he can soon rest in 
the earth, leaving the future of our Clan to one such as yourself.  I 
have given as much of our lore to you as I have been able to pound into 
that thick head of yours, Ukyo m'boy."  He rapped her hard on her 
skull.  "So don't waste my time by falling for such simple tricks as 
that in the future."

"I won't, Grandfather," said Ukyo with a grin, only to earn another rap 
on the head from the old man.

"Remember, Boy," said her grandfather.  "After I'm gone, you will be 
one of the last of the true Shinobi.  So many of our kind have fallen 
victim to the lure of serving one of the Noble Families, who prize us 
only as a child would a shiny toy.  They are no longer pure.  And too 
few of my peers in these mountains passed on what they knew to the 
younger ones, and jealously hoarded their lore until it was too late.  
On the other hand, I have tried my best to educate you in the true way 
of the Shadow Warrior, the Path of Hidden Honor, so do me proud."

"I will, Grandfather," said Ukyo with a serious look.  "I will make our 
Clan strong once more."

"The deeper Shinobi magics are yours to command, what few that you have 
managed to learn so far," said the old man as he gazed at her face.  "I 
expect you to pass on all that you know to your children, and to your 
children's children."  His solemn look promptly changed into a slight 
grin.  "So, when are you going to find a nice girl for yourself and 
settle down, young one?"

Ukyo coughed.

"Uh," muttered Ukyo.  "I'm working on it."  She blushed at the thought 
of marriage.  A year ago, her grandfather had made her study some 
scrolls brought back from some Korean village named Sinanju by one of 
her ancestors, on the twenty-seven steps to bring a woman to the 
heights of sexual ecstasy.  Ukyo had tested a few of the steps from the 
scrolls on herself, out of curiosity to see if they really did work, 
and she had found herself unable to concentrate well enough to progress 
at all beyond step six.  She strongly suspected that any man who used 
all of the twenty-seven listed steps on a woman would reduce even the 
most frigid to a quivering, happy, mindless sex slave.  Just the 
thought of having every step that was on those ancient scrolls used on 
her by a vague future husband made her blush even more intensely.

"You're working on it?" asked the old man, sounding somewhat 
disappointed.  "Boy, I expected to hear far more from you than that."  
He shook his head slowly as he stared at the ground.  "Why, when I was 
your age, I had the women simply flocking to me.  There must be at 
least a couple of dozen pretty girls your age in the regions around 
this village that would love to be your wife.  I think I'll speak to 
your mother about this."

"NO!" shouted Ukyo, before chuckling nervously.  She rubbed at the back 
of her head with one hand.  "I mean, I'd prefer to do this on my own.  
I need to find the right, uh, girl to be with."

"Do like I did," said the old man with a grin.  "Just pick some cute, 
likely-looking girl that you see and go after her.  Your grandmother, 
(God bless her soul.), became my wife that way.  There isn't a woman 
alive that can resist one of us Kuonji men, especially after you use a 
few steps from those scrolls of secret techniques that I made you study 
on your fifteenth birthday."  The old man nudged Ukyo in the ribs with 
his elbow and grinned lasciviously up at her.  Ukyo's blushing face 
somehow grew even brighter.

"Yes, Grandfather," squeaked Ukyo, her cheeks a bright red now.  I 
swear that I'm going to die right here of embarrassment if he keeps 
talking about this, she thought fiercely.  She found herself hoping for 
another fight to take her mind off her thoughts, but none appeared to 
be forthcoming to her.  So she quickly replaced her shrine maiden's 
robe in an attempt to occupy herself.

Her grandfather watched as a few members of the Clan emerged from the 
trees to tend to the several fallen warriors.  Ukyo moved up to stand 
beside him, enjoying the cool breeze from across the valley that had 
suddenly sprung up.  The old man suddenly looked up as he sniffed the 
wind delicately, and then he slowly turned to her with an enigmatic 
smile.

"You have been my very finest apprentice, Ukyo," said Grandfather 
Kuonji.  "But I can sense something coming for our Clan, looming on the 
horizon.  I want you to be prepared for it."

"Yes, Grandfather," said Ukyo solemnly.  "I promise."

                   ******************************

"This young lady seems like she would make a fine daughter-in-law to 
me," said Nodoka with a pleased smile.  "Such an illustrious family 
background that she comes from.  I am deeply honored that you feel that 
my son is worthy to marry a daughter of such a Clan."  Nodoka put the 
picture of Ukyo Kuonji away with a smile.  Ukyo seems to me like she 
would make an excellent match for my son.

Hmm, thought Otsu, a little bit surprised at Nodoka's unexpected 
reaction.  That wasn't how it was supposed to go here.  She closed the 
portfolio and placed it on the bottom of the pile.  I even played up 
the warrior aspects of the girl as I was told, and Nodoka seemed even 
more pleased with her.  I suspect that Tendo-san has grossly misread 
this woman, but I will proceed with the plan as he instructed me.  I 
suppose that he is counting on the face-to-face meeting to torpedo the 
matchmaking, rather than doing so at this time.  She picked up the 
portfolio that contained Kodachi's information next.

"This next young lady comes from one of the Minor Families of the 
Imperial Nobility," said Otsu, noting that Nodoka's eyes had lit up a 
little at that one.  She passed to Nodoka a palm-sized photograph of 
Kodachi.  This one showed a smiling Kodachi wearing her best clothes 
for the picture, and it was a head and shoulders shot as well.  "Her 
name is Kodachi Kuno, the only daughter of the Kuno Family, and she 
comes with a sizable dowry.  While the Saotome line was ennobled by 
Imperial decree a century ago in reward for the faithful service that 
your husband's family has given to the Empire for many generations, the 
Kuno family, being of the Imperial Nobility, actually has Imperial 
blood flowing within it from a direct link to the Royal Family some six 
centuries ago."

A daughter of one of the Nobility, thought Nodoka breathlessly, gazing 
at the picture with a smile even greater than the one that she gave to 
the one of Ukyo.  Her place in society alone will enable Ranma to start 
in a position that would normally take years to get into.  She paused 
and contemplated the possibilities.  My only son, a Lord of the Empire.  
Of course, he would be expected to take several mistresses or second 
wives, and I'm sure that the other two girls would be thrilled to be 
ennobled themselves.  My son is so manly, he must have them ALL!

Nodoka studied the picture more closely.  I recognize her! she suddenly 
realized with surprise, and what she remembered about the girl in the 
photo only increased her favor in Nodoka's eyes.  She won the gold 
medal in France some months back, at the World Gymnastics Competition.  
Such a lovely child, and an obvious athlete as well.  She looks like 
she will be able to bear many strong children, but there is also 
something vaguely familiar about her face.  It is just on the edge of 
my memory.  I wish that I could put my finger on it.  Nodoka tapped 
gently at the top of the table with one fingernail as she listened to 
Otsu begin to speak about Kodachi.

"Kodachi Kuno is an accomplished athlete in gymnastics and dance," said 
Otsu, her smile once more firmly on her face.  "She comes from a 
background that has taught her to be a gracious lady for a household.  
The Kunos have served the Empire for many centuries, and their 
landholdings extend throughout the length and the breadth of the 
Empire.  They are descended from solid warrior stock, and they are 
rumored to be raised from birth to respect strength of arms above all 
else.  However, Kodachi is a gentle child from all accounts that I have 
been given, unwilling to cause harm to anyone."

                   ******************************

I swear that I shall punish Akane Tendo severely for her gross 
effrontery when it comes to her attempting to claim Ranma for her own 
property! thought Kodachi fiercely.  She walked along slowly at his 
side, and he was carrying her bookbag; his own he had apparently left 
in his lab space, or so he had told her when she asked.  She calmed 
herself and smiled as she looked at Ranma once again, another soft sigh 
escaping her lips.  You need a loving woman to care for your every 
need, Ranma, not some barbaric savage like that little hussy, Akane.  A 
brief blush crossed her cheeks as she felt another surge of desire for 
him when she stepped closer, and her thoughts turned to wondering about 
some of Ranma's 'needs.'

"Are you sure that you're feeling well enough to walk, Kodachi?" asked 
Ranma solicitously.  "I mean, you took a couple of pretty bad hits from 
Akane."

"I can walk just fine, Saotome-kun," said Kodachi a little stiffly, 
feeling her pride warring with her desires to have him carry her home, 
but her family's traditions of martial strength was affecting her mood 
as it never had before.  "My injuries from that altercation with Akane 
Tendo are not causing me any difficulty."  After she finished saying 
that, she stumbled a bit and fell against Ranma.  His arms went to hold 
her up, grabbing her at the waist, and a warm quiver went through her 
at his touch upon her body.

Oh, thought Kodachi dreamily.  She leaned against Ranma, her head 
angled down away from his view as a bright blush heated her face.  It 
felt so good to her for him to simply be holding her that she could 
hardly believe it.  She heard her own blood thundering in her ears as 
her head lay pressed against Ranma's chest.  She could hear his heart 
beating, even over the sound of her own pulse in her ears, his heart 
thudding strongly in his chest.  After a mere moment, she felt his 
whole body stiffen up at her nearness, and he immediately dropped his 
hands from her waist where he had caught her and prevented her from 
falling.

Ranma swallowed and kept his eyes locked straight ahead of him.  His 
mind had gone strangely blank, and he felt himself to be frozen in 
place.  His body was giving him all sorts of weird signals that he had 
never felt before.  To deal with it, he just let himself react with his 
natural impulses, since that seemed to be the logical thing to do.  He 
quickly backed away from Kodachi.

"S-sorry," said Ranma nervously, regaining his voice when he was a few 
feet away from her.  "I was just trying to keep you from falling."

"What?" blurted out Kodachi.  She cocked her head slightly to one side, 
very puzzled by his reaction to her being close to him.  "It's all 
right, Saotome-kun.  Thank you for helping me.  I guess maybe my legs 
are still a little unsteady."  She extended one leg and looked it over, 
and Ranma's eyes tracked down by reflex.  She noticed his attentions 
out of the edge of her eyesight and smiled.  She lowered that leg and 
raised the other, appearing to be looking it over for injuries.  She 
saw Ranma swallow once more, and he seemed to be sweating a little.

"We should get you home then," said Ranma quickly.  He broke eye 
contact with her legs and turned around.  He held her bookbag behind 
his back and began rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet, a 
tuneless whistle coming from his mouth.

"Home isn't far," said Kodachi, starting out once again.  Ranma quietly 
followed her.  She noticed that he continued to remain wary of getting 
near her, and a delicate frown appeared on her lips.  Does he find me 
unattractive? she thought with a strong note of worry.  Am I being too 
forward with him?  Perhaps I should take it a little slower with him.  
Kodachi nodded as she thought about it.  Yes, I will let Akane Tendo 
scare him away from her with her forwardness, the brutish, little thug.  
I, on the other hand, shall play the gracious lady and win his heart 
with gentleness.  After all, that little barbarian is no match for me 
in such things, so Ranma is sure to be mine!  A smile of victory 
crossed her lips.

Unaware of Kodachi's thoughts towards him, Ranma walked along a pace 
behind her on her right flank.  The young noblewoman would have been 
extremely disappointed to learn that his thoughts had already shifted 
from her to his appointment with Nabiki.  I wish I could figure out 
what Nabiki's game is, he thought, studying the ground in front of his 
feet as he walked.  I guess I'll just go easy on her until I can figure 
out what she's up to.  After all, it's not like her martial arts skills 
will be any threat to me.  I dealt with Akane pretty well, and I doubt 
that Nabiki will be as tough.

Kodachi and Ranma eventually arrived at the main exterior gate of the 
Kuno Mansion after another several minutes of walking.  At the sight of 
the immense stone and wood edifice atop the hill, Ranma found himself 
comparing it with the memories from his counterpart's life and finding 
the present reality's version to be even more amazing and awe-inspiring 
in scope and size.  The mansion's surrounding grounds, for example, 
easily constituted several city blocks in both directions, an almost 
priceless amount of real estate for the region in which it lay.

Impressive, was Ranma's first thought, as he was studying the tall, 
forbidding-looking stone walls that surrounded the grounds as he walked 
alongside Kodachi.  Ranma dropped back a pace as she walked up to a 
smaller side gate and removed a magnetic access card from her bag, 
before quickly sliding it through a reader.  The light atop the unit 
turned green quickly and the door unlocked with a faint buzz and a 
click.  Kodachi opened the heavy metal gate with a smile back in his 
direction.

"Come on, Saotome-kun," said Kodachi, beckoning him to follow her as 
she held the small gate open.  "Let me show you where I live."

With a bemused look, Ranma followed her through the portal, onto the 
spacious grounds of the Kuno Mansion.  On the other side of the gate 
was a short tunnel that led to a small flight of stairs.  Ranma just 
followed along behind Kodachi as they both climbed the stairs that 
finally emerged in a garden area with a koi pond.  A Zen rock garden 
stood off to one side, the patterns in the gravel and the placement of 
the stones a rather soothing thing for him to behold.  He was tracing 
out the patterns of the gravel when he felt a tugging on his sleeve.

"Come on, Saotome-kun," implored Kodachi, a smile on her face.  Ranma 
ignored the tingle that briefly raced up his arm at the slight contact 
of her hand against his as she let go of his sleeve.  He smiled at the 
koi pond, extremely grateful that he had nothing at all to fear from 
all of that cold water, especially since volumes of it did not seem to 
seek him out in this life like it did his counterpart.  With a swift 
shrug of his shoulders, he followed her.

Kodachi kept up a running description of the places that she took him 
to see around the mansion area: the tennis courts and enormous swimming 
pool in the backyard region; the outdoor training area for the 
household, neatly arranged with wooden practice forms and other such 
accessories; the flower garden, filled with such a wide variety of 
botanical splendor that even Ranma found himself hard-pressed to 
remember the names and scientific designations to the plants neatly 
arranged and pruned; and finally, the garage area, filled with a large 
assortment of vehicles, including a collection of motorcycles of all 
styles, both classic and modern.

Ranma admired the shining chrome and painted steel with wonder visible 
in his eyes, and Kodachi smiled to see his interest.  She quietly 
watched him running a hand gently along the curves of one of the 
motorcycles, one of her father's latest acquisitions, a Mendo Motors 
Katana Class 9000.  Her father had once told her in one of his more 
candid moments that it was reputed to be one of the fastest motorcycles 
in current production.  Kodachi smiled gently as she thought about the 
many hours that the Kuno family patriarch spent polishing his small 
collection of treasures, and it appeared that Ranma might share a 
little of that interest.  That pleased her a great deal, since getting 
her father to like the pigtailed boy was part of her ultimate plan to 
win Ranma's heart for herself.

"They're magnificent," said Ranma in a soft tone.  Despite their 
glaring inefficiencies as a method of transport, Ranma had long held a 
love for vehicles using an internal combustion engine, especially 
motorcycles.

"They're my father's," said Kodachi with a smile.  She saw Ranma turn 
to look at her with an odd smile, as if hearing something that did not 
quite compute to him.

"Princip-, I mean, Lord Kuno rides them?" asked Ranma with a great deal 
of surprise.  He turned to look at the row of both classic and modern 
motorcycles and whistled.  There must be over two dozen bikes here, he 
thought with amazement.  The thought of Kodachi's father on one of them 
simply wasn't meshing with his preconceptions about the man, based on 
his memories of the Hawaiian-obsessed man from his counterpart's life.  
I guess I should watch out for pre-judging others, based on what I 
think I know about them.

"Oh yes," said Kodachi brightly in answer to his question.  "Father has 
an absolute mania for motorcycles and the mystique surrounding them.  
Some of the household servants have confessed to me that he was a bit 
of a rough sort when he was a teenager."  Kodachi pointed at the wall, 
and Ranma turned to see a black-and-white photograph in a frame there.  
"That was my father back then.  He's the one in the middle."

Ranma peered closely at the old and faded picture and saw in it several 
rather disreputable-looking young men, a few of them armed with various 
martial arts weapons, all casually posing around one young man in 
particular.  The specific young tough that Kodachi was pointing out 
looked a little bit like Tatewaki, Ranma noticed.  In the weathered 
picture, the then-young Lord Kuno was wearing a dark leather jacket and 
casually held a bokken in one hand, resting the other end on his 
shoulder, as he mugged for the camera.  His eyes were hidden behind a 
pair of dark sunglasses.  Ranma was curious as to who the other 
teenagers were, but water damage or something had blurred all of the 
forms in it, except for that of Kodachi's father.

"I've been told by several of the older servants that my father was 
quite an interesting sort in his younger days," said Kodachi, with a 
smile evident in the sound of her voice.  "But I am told that he calmed 
down a lot after Mother was engaged to him.  However, I look at them 
now and occasionally wonder what they were like when they were our age.  
I cannot ever see Father acting as the roughcut young hellraiser that 
the older servants have described him as being like in his youth."  
Kodachi walked up beside Ranma as he stared into the photograph hung on 
the wall.  "Other than Mother, motorcycles are the other major love of 
his life.  I would learn to ride myself, but she does not think it is 
very ladylike."

"Kuno-sama," said a voice behind them.  Ranma almost levitated into the 
air from his surprise at recognizing the voice that had spoken up.  He 
turned to see Sasuke standing there, dressed in a dark pair of pants 
and a gray shirt, rubbing his hands on a dirty cloth.  Oil stains were 
spattered on his clothes.  He stepped forward and gave Ranma a mildly 
suspicious look before turning to smile at Kodachi.  His tone with her 
was gentle and very respectful.  "Milady, why aren't you in school?"

"Uh, well," said Kodachi, looking uncertain.  Sasuke took a closer look 
at Kodachi in the dim light and blinked in surprise.

"By the Emperor!" exclaimed Sasuke as he saw the mussed state of her 
clothes and the several small bandages arrayed on her face and nose.  
"What happened to you, Milady?  It looks like you were in some sort of 
accident or a fight.  You weren't fighting again, were you?  Has your 
mother seen you yet?"  The little man began wringing his hands and 
looking very worried as he noticed that she looked embarrassed.  "It 
was a fight then.  The Mistress will be absolutely frantic to see you 
like this.  You know how she feels about fighting."

"I know, Sasuke-kun," said Kodachi with a pained smile.  Kodachi well 
remembered the long lecture that had greeted her on her return home 
after her first fight with Asuka the White Lily.  Her mother had been 
absolutely horrified to see her little girl in the shape that she had 
been in after that first combat.  She had gone on for over an hour on 
how a true noble lady does not brawl in the streets like a commoner, 
and also how "when she had been Kodachi's age, she had never engaged in 
such activities."  It was an experience with her mother that Kodachi 
was not looking forward to repeating.

"I ran into a little trouble today," said Kodachi quietly.  "There is 
no need to trouble yourself over it."

"T-trouble myself?" choked out Sasuke, looking like she had just kicked 
him right in his manhood.  "Milady, as a loyal ninja in service to the 
House of Kuno, it is my sacred duty!  Any threat to you must be dealt 
with immediately and without mercy.  Towards that end, I shall assemble 
a squad of our finest shadow warriors, as soon as you inform me of the 
perpetrator of this crime against your most noble personage!"

"Take it easy, buddy," said Ranma suddenly, watching the little man 
working himself into a mild frenzy.  "Kodachi's all right.  She was 
just a bit beaten up in a fight, but she gave as good as she got."

Ranma, sighed Kodachi, sending him a loving look as she felt a new 
surge of purpose filling her.  I must strive to be worthy of him by 
crushing Akane Tendo utterly in my next combat with her.

"Who are you to dictate to me how I should act in the course of my 
duties, sir?" asked Sasuke stiffly.  He eyed the pigtailed scholar with 
obvious distaste for a moment, before he turned to Kodachi.  "Milady, 
who is this rude person with you?"

"This is Ranma Saotome," said Kodachi, amused at Sasuke's little 
antics.  "He is my... friend."  Her look suddenly turned cross.  "I 
order you to treat him with respect.  I expect that you will be seeing 
much more of him around the grounds in the future."

"B-but, what of Master Tatewaki?" asked Sasuke nervously, his eyes 
twitching between Kodachi and Ranma.  "He won't like this."

"What my dear brother thinks is no concern of mine, dear Sasuke," said 
Kodachi, a touch of irritation in her voice.  "I am almost a grown 
woman, and I can be friends with a boy if I so desire."

"Yes, Milady," said Sasuke, bowing low to her.  "My apologies if I have 
given offense."

"Come along, Saotome-kun," said Kodachi, entwining her arm with his.  
"I suppose that I could use your support when I go to speak with my 
mother."  With that, the two of them walked off, Ranma caught up in a 
new wave of tingling from Kodachi's nearness, and Kodachi clamping down 
on her renewed desires for the pigtailed boy through sheer force of 
will.

"So you have ninjas running about on the grounds?" asked Ranma with a 
hint of nervousness.  He realized that, other than Sasuke, he had not 
seen a single servant walking about, not even a gardener for the 
expansive gardens.

"Oh, yes," breathed Kodachi, smiling.  "All of the household staff are 
from a small Ninja Clan that has served under the Kuno Family for 
generations, the Makimachi Clan.  Sasuke is the sole exception to this, 
for reasons that my father has never chosen to explain.  Mother has 
even lately been pressuring me to take on my own personal ninja 
guardian."

"Really?" asked Ranma, surprised.  He looked around casually.

"Well, many in the nobility have them," said Kodachi cheerfully.  "It 
is a sort of status symbol, but I am quite capable of defending myself.  
I look on that as a point of pride."  Her eyes sought out his own, and 
her expression turned unreadable.  "You do not think a woman who can 
fight is unfeminine, do you?  Too, well, butch?"

"Uh, well, no, of course not!" stammered Ranma.  He laced his fingers 
behind his head and chuckled softly.  "I would never call a girl who 
can fight 'butch.'"  He was rewarded with a gentle smile from Kodachi, 
her eyes twinkling a little.

"Good," said Kodachi, very obviously pleased.  "I am gladdened that my 
fighting ability does not repel you.  I would like to be your friend."  
She turned her face from his, blushing slightly.  "I have not really 
had any friends before I met you."  The young noblewoman turned back 
and gave him another gentle look that left Ranma confused as to what to 
say or do, so he remained quiet.  They continued on their way into the 
manor house.

Looks like another thing to be aware of that's different, mused Ranma 
with a smile.  The Kunos with a whole Ninja Clan at their disposal.

A few minutes later, Ranma was within the halls of Kuno Manor, removing 
his shoes at the rear door and slipping on one of the many pairs of 
house slippers available.  He forced himself to look away from admiring 
Kodachi's trim form once again as she slipped off her school shoes and 
put on a pair of house slippers as well.  He was apparently getting 
used to her touch upon him, but the smell of her delicate perfume was 
still mildly intoxicating.  It kept filling his mind with strong 
desires for her, so he kept a very tight rein on his feelings because 
of it.

"Dachi-chan!" came a female voice calling out to them.  Kodachi winced 
a little and turned to face the oncoming figure of her mother as she 
swept into the room.  Ranma took the opportunity to move a little bit 
aside from Kodachi as she greeted her mother with a wave and an abashed 
smile.

"Hello, Mother," said Kodachi, but the very attractive woman had 
already turned from her and rounded on Ranma.  She was more than a 
little surprised to hear not a single comment from her mother on her 
beaten-up appearance, but it seemed that her showing up with a boy in 
tow was an even more interesting thing for her.  She hoped that her 
mother would not embarrass her, but that hope died quickly.

"Is this your new lover, Dachi-chan?" asked her mother brightly, as she 
examined Ranma from up close.  "My, he does seem to be a very fine 
specimen of a young stud.  I approve of your taste."

Ranma blinked and started to look extremely nervous.  Such intense 
scrutiny as he was now undergoing made him feel like a horse about to 
be purchased.  He even half-expected her to open his mouth and check 
his teeth, but Kenseiko never actually touched him.  Instead, he put up 
with feeling as if he was being undressed by her eyes and his manliness 
judged.

"Mo-ther," said Kodachi, drawing out the word a little bit in her 
embarrassed exasperation with her parent's antics.  "Ranma is not my 
lover.  How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"Well, why not, dear?" said Kenseiko with a smile.  She looked Ranma in 
the eyes and examined his face.  "Such a handsome boy.  I imagine that 
you have to fend off the young ladies with a stick, young man."

Ranma started to sweat a bit, and his mind was depressingly blank.  He 
was finding Kodachi's mother to be a bit overwhelming to his 
sensibilities.

"She's not normally like this," said Kodachi softly, as she sidled a 
bit closer to Ranma.  She gave her mother a scathing look, as only a 
daughter can give to her mother.  Her voice had a note of annoyance in 
it as she spoke through gritted teeth.  "I think she is only doing it 
to try and embarrass me."

"I-it is an honor to meet you, Kuno-sama," said Ranma, grateful to 
finally get some words out of his mouth.  He bowed to Lady Kuno very 
deeply.  "I only meant to escort your daughter home, since she was 
injured fighting, uh..."  He looked helplessly at Kodachi, but her eyes 
had gone wide.

"Fighting?" asked Kenseiko, a moment before she gave Kodachi's bandaged 
face her full attention, and her steel-gray eyes took it all in with a 
glance.  Her tone turned very serious.  "Kodachi Kuno, have you been 
fighting again?"

"Uh, maybe I should be going," Ranma ventured to say.  He was afraid to 
find out what Lady Kuno would do if she learned that her daughter had 
been fighting over him.  When no one replied to him, he found that he 
could not bring himself to move.  To do otherwise would be to offer 
possible insult, so he remained at his position and listened to the 
uncomfortable conversation.

"It wasn't anything that I could not deal with on my own, Mother," said 
Kodachi, shuffling her feet a little bit as she refused to meet her 
mother's gaze.

So much like I was at that age, thought Kenseiko with an internal 
grimace.  She looked at Kodachi and found herself remembering some of 
the times when she herself had come dragging back home to face her own 
mother's stern reaction at seeing her daughter in such shape.  It was 
only the knowledge that her opponent was injured almost as badly as her 
own bruised self that had made it palatable to her.  She pulled a fan 
out of her yukata and waved it absently in front of her face as she 
considered Kodachi's injuries, and also the expression on her 
daughter's face that was so much like her own had been in the same 
situation.  I wonder who she was fighting?  She sighed softly.

"Thank you for escorting my daughter home, young man," said Kenseiko, 
turning to face him.  "I presume that your name is Ranma Saotome, he 
who she has spoken of at the dinner table?"  She saw Ranma startle a 
bit at that question.

"Yes, Kuno-sama," said Ranma nervously.  "I mean, my name is Ranma 
Saotome.  I am happy to be of service."  Ranma bowed once more to hide 
his growing uncertainty.

"You will of course have dinner with my family one night," she said 
solemnly.  It was not phrased as a question, but as a command.  "I can 
tell that my daughter favors you, and I find it good to see my little 
girl spending some time with a responsible, young man."  Ranma glanced 
at Kodachi out of the corner of his eyes and bowed once more.

"Yes, Milady," said Ranma.  "Whenever you desire.  I am at your 
command."

"You may go, Saotome-san," said Kenseiko, gesturing with her fan.  "I 
wish to speak some with my daughter.  Again, you have my thanks for 
escorting her home.  You appear to me to be a most honorable and polite 
gentleman."  She favored him with a smile.

Ranma practically bolted from the house after slipping his shoes back 
on.  The two Kuno women watched him run across the grounds with 
differing expressions.  Kodachi had a slightly amazed look on her face, 
and her mother wore an amused expression.  Kenseiko raised one of her 
eyebrows slightly when she saw Ranma run up the wall in one corner, his 
feet bouncing from one side to the other as he ascended, before finally 
vaulting over it, one hand poised on the top as he swung his legs over.  
A moment later, he was gone.

"Such an interesting, and obviously quite athletic, young man," mused 
Kodachi's mother.  "He does not strike me as a 'despoiler of an 
innocent virgin,' as I believe that your older brother accused him of 
being."

"Ranma is every bit a true gentleman," said Kodachi with certainty.  
She looked her mother squarely in the face, a defiant fire burning in 
her eyes.

So much like me at that age, Kenseiko thought once again.  She had 
tried her best to raise Kodachi up to be a very quiet and shy girl, 
representing what she saw as being best in noble womanhood, hoping that 
her own little girl could avoid the life that she had lived.  And yet 
somehow, that delicate flower of femininity that she had worked so hard 
to cultivate had very recently grown thorns, but Kenseiko could not 
bring herself to be truly angry with Kodachi.  As if from out of 
nowhere, for the last several weeks she had seen the warrior's fire 
begin burning inside of Kodachi, the same that had once burned so 
strongly in her own heart at that age.  She had thought at first that 
it was only due to a new boy in her life, but it seemed to be more.  
She fanned her face slowly, pondering the many changes in her once very 
shy and retiring daughter.

                   ******************************

Such a fine, young lady for my Ranma, if perhaps a little bit quiet 
from your description of her, thought Nodoka solemnly as she gazed at 
the small picture of Kodachi.  If Ranma does not find the young ninja 
girl Ukyo to his liking, as I hope that he will, then perhaps this one 
will be more appealing to him.

"But now we come to the finest of the lot, in my humble opinion," said 
Otsu with her usual smile, perhaps a little more broad than the 
previous ones.  She flipped open the last remaining portfolio and 
handed a color picture to Nodoka.  Nodoka took the photograph with a 
sense of anticipation.

The finest of the lot? wondered Nodoka with amazement.  After listening 
to the impressive qualities of the first two, she was practically ready 
to engage Ranma to this girl on the spot without even hearing anything 
further.  If Mitsuma-san favors this one, then how could I think to do 
otherwise?

"The next family is one that is currently in high favor among the 
Imperial Court," said Otsu with a smile.  "The Tendo family has three 
daughters, but the middle daughter is the one that I present to you 
now, a descendant of a very proud military history.  The family has 
served with notable distinction within the Security Directorate for 
almost two centuries."  Otsu gently tapped her finger on the photo in 
Nodoka's hand.  "Her name is Nabiki Tendo."

"She looks like an attractive and intelligent girl," said Nodoka with 
definite approval in her voice as she looked over the photograph of 
Nabiki, dressed in her Imperial Academy Security cadet uniform.  Nodoka 
studied the face of her third prospective daughter-in-law, and her 
initial reaction was that she seemed like she would be a very fine 
addition to the Saotome family register.  The middle Tendo daughter 
managed to convey an air of grace, intelligence, and feminine strength 
as she smiled brightly into the camera.  Nodoka was also strongly 
convinced that she had seen this girl somewhere before.  Much like when 
she had looked at Kodachi's picture, there was something in the eyes 
that was strangely familiar.

"Nabiki scored second only to your son on the Imperial Academy entrance 
examinations," said Otsu, a fact that even impressed herself.  "She is 
currently attending the Tokyo Imperial Academy, the same as your son 
is, only Nabiki is in the Officer's Training Program for the Security 
Directorate.  Since her admittance, Nabiki has quite regularly received 
the highest marks across the board from all of her instructors.  From 
all accounts, she is a charming young lady, and I am sure that she 
would be able to give you many fine grandchildren."

Nodoka smiled with great interest.

                   ******************************

The walk home with Akane was a quiet one for Nabiki.  She spent most of 
her time thinking about the events of the day since she had awoken this 
morning.  In a few hours I have my first sparring match with Ranma-kun, 
she mused.  Instead of sounding unpleasant to her, there was a feeling 
of almost breathless anticipation that accompanied that thought, and 
Nabiki found herself studying the ground in front of herself casually.  
I'm actually looking forward to the challenge a great deal.  How very 
unlike me.  Yet for some reason, the oddly pleasant feeling was not 
going away.  She had been challenged, and as the new, even though 
unofficial, Heir to the Anything-Goes School on this Earth, she felt 
strongly that that challenge must be answered by her.

"What'cha thinking about, Nabiki?" asked Akane quite suddenly, 
intruding upon her older sister's train of thought.

"Oh, nothing much," said Nabiki.  She absently closed her hand into a 
fist, studying the calluses gained from her Academy combat training 
that were on it.  "I was just thinking about a private affair that I 
must deal with later today."

"An affair?" said Akane, her brow furrowing a little bit.  "It almost 
sounds like a date."  She grinned at her older sister and was surprised 
to see a brief blush cross Nabiki's cheeks before her usual cool look 
was restored.

"No, not a date," said Nabiki calmly.  "Just a demonstration of sorts.  
There is an individual who needs to be taken down a peg or two in 
arrogance, and I feel that I'm ideally suited to do it."  She smiled a 
wolflike smile.  "I'm actually rather looking forward to it, and I was 
just savoring the anticipation."  Nabiki lowered her fist to her side 
and relaxed it back open.

"All I'm looking forward to is a long soak in the furo," said Akane 
with a tired grin.  "That fight with Kodachi was quite a workout."

"I noticed that," said Nabiki, a rather smug look briefly crossing her 
features.  I wonder how long it would have taken me to win against 
Kodachi?  The thought of losing never crossed her mind.

"She's a strong opponent," admitted Akane with a smile.  "I really 
enjoyed the fight with her."  Nabiki looked at her younger sister with 
a neutral expression.

The sooner I get you away from Ranma, the better, little sister, Nabiki 
thought.  I'm a much better match for him than you are, and that goes 
double now that he and I have gone through the experiences that we 
have.  We have a connection of sorts now, a common bond between us.  It 
will be interesting to see how our skills measure up against each 
other.

The couple continued walking towards home in silence.

                   ******************************

"Three young ladies to choose from for my son already," said Nodoka 
with a smile.  "A mother should always have such problems."

Otsu nodded as she said, "I am pleased that I was able to meet you 
today and go over the candidates."

"As am I," agreed Nodoka with a bright smile.  "I can hardly wait to 
show him the choices available to him for his new bride.  I plan to do 
it after dinner tonight."

"You will not make the choice yourself?" asked Otsu, feeling a small 
amount of panic arising.  "I thought that you, and possibly your 
husband, would be making the final selection."  She began putting away 
the three portfolios, leaving Nodoka with only the pictures that she 
had been given.

"Ranma will be allowed to make the final choice himself," replied 
Nodoka.  "But I will want to meet them all in person myself to judge 
their fitness to marry my son.  However, based on what I have seen and 
heard of these three candidates so far, any one of them would be 
acceptable to me for my future daughter-in-law.  I suppose I could even 
engage him to them all, and then let him choose one for himself."  
Nodoka briefly chuckled at her little joke while Otsu raised a single 
eyebrow, and then she looked at Otsu with a serious expression.  "I do 
want my son to marry for love though, Mitsuma-san.  Genma and I were an 
arranged marriage in our youth, but we love each other too."

"Well, my personal recommendation is the Tendo girl," said Otsu mildly 
as she closed up her attaché case.  "Based on what I now know of you 
and your son from talking with you, I feel that Nabiki would be the 
best choice.  I hope that you will keep Chrysanthemum in mind when it 
comes time to plan the wedding."  Otsu resumed her smile as Nodoka put 
the pictures of the three girls away into her purse.

"Oh, I shall," said Nodoka.  "I know, whichever girl he chooses, that 
Ranma will make the right choice."

I hope so, thought Otsu with an internal grimace.  I sincerely hope so.

                   ******************************

As he tried to leave the Kuno mansion, Kodachi remembered that Ranma 
had to go back to the Academy.  Unable to think of him being late 
because of her, she insisted that the family car drive him back.  He 
fought the suggestion until her mother announced that he would ride in 
the car or her family's hospitality would be dishonored.  Because of 
this, he found himself alone in the changing room a full half-hour 
before his match with Nabiki Tendo.

Ranma was surprised to find an unexpected present inside his locked 
locker when he first opened it: a large folded-up shopping bag resting 
within.  He still had not yet opened it up, and the humble package had 
mocked him silently as he undressed.  However, while he stood there, 
dressed only in his boxer shorts and socks, his curiosity could no 
longer be denied.  He set down the T-shirt that he had been about to 
put on and pulled the bag out from his locker.  It was a plain brown in 
color, of a type that could have come from any one of ten thousand 
different shops in Tokyo.

I wonder where this came from? he thought as he unfolded the bag open.  
Inside it were several soft objects wrapped in tissue.  He reached in, 
and his questing fingers pulled out a disturbingly familiar item from 
among one such tissue-wrapped bundle, a silk Chinese-style shirt in red 
with white cuffs.  A small piece of paper fell from within the shirt to 
softly land on the floor at his feet.  Ranma did not move for several 
moments, his eyes studying the shirt with an oddly fascinated look in 
them.  After a moment, his eyes shifted to look down at the small 
innocent-looking piece of paper, and he bent down to pick it up.

The kanji was precisely scripted in a feminine style, and he read the 
short message silently, 'Wear these for our first match - Nabiki.'  He 
held the small piece of paper in his hands with disbelief writ large in 
his eyes, but a moment later his gaze quickly shifted to the red silk 
shirt held in his other hand.  A mirthless smile slowly came across his 
face, and he mentally slapped himself for not putting things together 
even sooner and figuring out who his unexpected visitor was already.

So it was you, eh, Nabiki? he thought, with that same, odd smile still 
on his face.  This will make it interesting, after all.  His few 
retained memories of that life, where it was Nabiki who was Heir to the 
Anything-Goes School, instead of himself, were not as clear to him as 
the imprinted ones from his first test.  However, he suspected that he 
was in for a true challenge of his newly-gained martial arts skills.  
His smile grew broader.

A short time later, Ranma emerged from the locker room, dressed in an 
outfit that felt like a second skin upon him, not something that he 
wore for the very first time: a red, Chinese-style silk shirt with 
wooden ties holding the front together and broad white cuffs folded 
back, a pair of black gi pants with the cuffs tied tightly at the 
ankles, a thin black belt around his waist, and a pair of black 
slippers on his feet.  The feel of the clothes on his body was both new 
and all-too-familiar to him at the same time.  However, it felt oddly 
right to be dressed this way, and that feeling brought a hint of 
genuine amusement to his eyes.

Nabiki looked up when Ranma walked around the corner of the building, 
and she had a smile on her face that was very similar to the one he 
wore.  It looks like I figured correctly, she thought, noting how 
easily he moved in his new clothes.  Ranma now looked identical to the 
image she had from her new memories, and her expression changed to a 
pleased smirk at the sight.  Red suits him, she finally decided, 
nodding her head to him for a moment as she continued to stretch out 
her long legs in front of herself and limber up.  When her gaze briefly 
locked with Ranma's, she noted the light of battle that appeared in his 
eyes upon sight of her, one she was sure was also within her own.

A few seconds before meeting Nabiki's gaze, Ranma had eyed her sparring 
outfit with a smirk, showing not a whit of surprise on his face, as if 
he had simply confirmed something for himself that he had already known 
to be true.  Her outfit was nearly identical to his own, except for her 
wearing a light blue shirt instead of a red one like he was.  He had 
met her gaze with a cocky look on his face, still confident in himself.  
Their eyes had locked for a moment, and he took note of the confident 
look she wore as well.  The desire to test himself against her grew a 
little stronger, and from the look on her face, he was sure that she 
felt similar desires.  A breeze arose briefly, blowing a few scattered 
leaves and cherry blossoms between them.

Then the moment was gone, and their gazes broke from each other.  
Nabiki's eyes slowly moved up and down his body, studying him in an 
appraising fashion, as Ranma shook his head briefly to clear it.  What 
had been the most jarring thing to him in that moment though was the 
incredible feeling of rightness at being in her presence, being dressed 
as he was, and seeing her dressed as she was.

Besides, Ranma thought, studying the Chinese-style clothed girl, she 
actually looks pretty cute dressed like that.  After he thought that, 
Ranma shook his head worriedly once again and tried hard to put a 
neutral expression onto his face.

"Looking pretty good, Ranma-kun," said Nabiki with quite genuine 
appreciation when she finally lifted her gaze back up to look him in 
the eyes, catching Ranma right in the middle of admiring her and 
causing him to look uncertain once again.  Feeling playful, she sat 
back, resting her hands palms-down on the ground behind her, the artful 
pose emphasizing the swell of her breasts beneath the silken shirt and 
bringing a large lump to Ranma's throat.  Apparently quite satisfied 
with the effect that she had had on him from the look on his face, 
Nabiki smirked at him very confidently and seductively asked, "So, are 
you ready to test your might against me today?"

Before Ranma could make any sort of response to that, she shifted her 
position forward, her hands reaching down her legs to grasp both 
slippered feet as she lowered her head down, another intentionally 
artful pose on her part that earned her a faint sort of groaning sound 
from the pigtailed teen.  As Nabiki went back to stretching out her leg 
muscles some more, she heard Ranma settle himself nearby with some soft 
grumbles.  His proximity to her was once again evoking the same mildly 
pleasant tingling within her that it had always done before, but they 
were now given a new depth, colored by her new awareness of him as a 
rival in combat skill.  Nabiki found herself grinning, and her sense of 
anticipation for the match was increasing.

"Just be ready to lose, Nabiki," grumbled Ranma, a little sullenly, as 
he began to do his own stretching routine.  He sat a little ways away 
from Nabiki to give them both plenty of room to warm up, and he tried 
to ignore her presence as best as he was able to at the time, focussing 
all of his mental faculties on his own body and preparing himself for 
the match.  However, his eyes kept drifting back to look at Nabiki 
during random moments, and he found himself admiring the clean lines of 
her body.  He was just studying her for possible weaknesses, or at 
least that was what he kept telling himself that he was doing.  And, 
much as it had been before his match with Akane, Ranma felt his pulse 
quickening, his breathing deepening, and the same competitive fire that 
had filled his soul then began burning within him once more.  It helped 
him focus his thoughts on his current purpose for being, to fight with 
all of his skill, all of his strength.

Nabiki had her legs spread wide apart, straining slightly against the 
resistance of the muscles in her inner thighs as she found her eyes 
once again drawn to Ranma, flustering her concentration a little bit.  
Other than her confrontation with him in the Dean's office, this was 
the first time that she had seen him since her experiences the night 
before, and her new awareness of him as a person, as an equal, left her 
feeling oddly agitated.  She forced herself to ignore the feelings that 
Ranma was evoking within her merely by his nearness through sheer force 
of will, and her thoughts finally calmed.  She continued to limber 
herself up for the match, feeling her body almost instinctively 
readying itself for combat, her mind clearing of all other thoughts but 
for a single, driving purpose, to unleash the warrior soul now within 
her.  Nabiki sensed her heart rate speeding up, the blood within her 
body beginning to flow more strongly as her muscles loosened up, and 
her breathing deepening.

The two coaches, Takami and Fujinami, watched the young couple from a 
short distance away.  Takami had casually pulled the other man away 
when Nabiki emerged in her unexpected choice for workout garb.  They 
consulted with each other quietly, both feeling something in the air 
was about to happen.  Shortly after Ranma walked out in a similar 
outfit to Nabiki's, Dean Fuyutsuki had emerged from the main building 
to stand with them.

"I see that I am not too late for the show," noted Fuyutsuki with a 
mild smile.

"No, you're right on time," said Takami.  "They should be ready to 
begin in a little while.  I was planning on having them get the 
sparring match out of the way first, before I put them through their 
paces."

"They make an intriguing pair," rumbled Fujinami, eyeing the two 
similarly-garbed cadets.  He was a rather large-framed man, almost six 
feet in height, and his heavily-muscled build showed very few signs of 
deterioration, despite the bright streaks of gray stretching back from 
his temples.  "They both show surprisingly great internal strength to 
my eyes, despite their youth."  Fuyutsuki turned to face him.

"Indeed?" asked Fuyutsuki.  "Fascinating."  He turned to look at the 
two teenagers, a broader smile appearing on his face, and he felt an 
almost paternal pride now that he was about to see them in action.  He 
set down the small video camera and data recorder where they would be 
able to capture all of the action, or so he hoped.  I can hardly wait 
to see them begin, he mused.  This is so thrilling.

"Watching them fight each other will prove instructive for me, so that 
I may better gauge their abilities," said Fujinami.  "I feel that 
today's match will be most... enlightening."  A very rare smile crossed 
the man's craggy face.

Dean Fuyutsuki nodded at that, but most of his attention was on 
activating the small pieces of equipment near him.  He eyed the small 
video monitor in his hand, and then he activated the miniaturized data 
recorder unit.  A stream of very tiny numerals began scrolling on the 
screen as the small computer began its task of gathering data on the 
two youths.  It would not be until after the end of the match, when he 
was able to analyze the data using the more powerful computer in his 
office, that he would be able to obtain a rough estimate on their 
current combat capabilities.

After their initial warm-up drills were over, Nabiki and Ranma both 
moved back onto the large, padded mat that had been laid out on the 
concrete for their match.  They knelt across from each other, only a 
scant few feet of mat separating them now, and then Ranma once again 
smiled confidently across at Nabiki, his cool, blue eyes level with her 
own gaze.  She returned the smile with an equally confident, perhaps a 
trifle smug one of her own as they both studied each other carefully, 
and, as if by mutual consent, they each eventually found themselves 
held by the other's gaze.  There was almost a gentleness in their gazes 
at each other, a calm sensuality in the attraction that they both felt, 
so unlike the raw sexual need that Ranma had experienced with Akane at 
a similar time.
 
"Think you can take me, Ranma-kun?" asked Nabiki suddenly, a soft husk 
in her voice as she spoke, briefly breaking the subtle spell between 
them for a moment.  Her body felt ready for combat.  Her focus was now 
exclusively on Ranma, her chosen opponent.  However, other unexplored 
feelings for him hovered in the back of her mind as an almost 
comforting presence.

"That sounds much more like a question that I should be asking you, 
Nabiki," replied Ranma with a steady look into her unwavering gaze.  
"It looks as if we will soon see who takes who though."  Ranma felt 
very much aware of himself and his surroundings, especially of the 
attractive and intelligent-looking girl now kneeling before him.  He 
felt oddly intimate with her at this time, but also very much aware of 
the subtle cues that her body was giving off that told him that she was 
a capable opponent, and one to be respected.  It was a strange mixture 
of desire and challenge, and the moment of truth between them was very 
near now.

"Yes, we will, Ranma-kun," said Nabiki, almost absently.  Her lips 
parted slightly as she felt her passions kindling and building within 
her, mixing into her awareness of Ranma as an opponent and as a man.  
It was like a primal instinct was awakening and flickering into life 
within her.  Her gaze did not waver at all as she noticed the faint 
aura that suddenly emerged around Ranma, a bluish light that aroused an 
almost carnal awareness of him from somewhere very deep within herself.  
She continued to hold fast to his gaze, while wearing her now vaguely 
predatorial smile, one that matched his.  Nabiki felt a deep longing 
growing within her, as if she burned with a desire to fulfill the 
purpose to which she was born to, one which she had been unaware of 
until she saw it reflected from deep within Ranma's own eyes.

To Ranma's view, there suddenly seemed to be an odd halo of dim bluish 
light that rose up around Nabiki's body, an almost unnoticeable nimbus 
of energy.  At perhaps that same moment, he felt himself being 
surrounded by one as well, clothing his body like an intangible and 
invisible veil.  It was as if something within him had apparently 
answered to, or perhaps even also had given, the unspoken challenge as 
the result of a previously unknown instinct.  It was as if he and 
Nabiki had each triggered something in the other, something new to both 
of them, a mere hint of a previously unsuspected and untapped power 
within each of them.  The odd effect only lasted for a few moments 
though, dissipating almost as rapidly as it arose.  Ranma's eyes 
remained firmly locked onto Nabiki's, as her gaze was still riveted to 
his own.

"Fascinating," murmured Fujinami.  The energy, invisible to the average 
eye, had been quite clear to his trained senses, and he again marveled 
at the sight of the two youths.  That they appeared to have done it 
only by reflex, rather than by conscious intention, made it even more 
astonishing to him.  As he studied the two youths, he was oddly 
reminded of two powerful predators suddenly finding themselves face-to-
face with each other, especially from the odd smiles that they were 
giving to each other.  He slowly walked over to them to act as the 
referee, and he sensed them become aware of him without taking their 
gazes from each other.

"This is only sparring, you two," said Fujinami in his very deep voice.  
"So keep the damage levels down to a low roar, but show me what each of 
you is capable of.  This is to be a test of skill, not an Arena 
bloodmatch.  I assume that that is acceptable?" Both of them nodded 
with a jerk of their heads as they stood up, eager to begin, and their 
attentions were mainly on the opponent who stood opposite them.

Unlike when he had faced Akane, Ranma did not feel himself to be 
possessed of the same, almost animalistic, desire to assert his male 
dominance over Nabiki, not quite.  There did exist an oddly intense 
awareness of the girl before him, but he also felt a strong sense of 
camaraderie with her as well.  Ranma wanted to win against Nabiki, but 
he didn't exactly want to bend her to his will as he had felt himself 
desiring to do with Akane.  Instead, he felt an eagerness to challenge 
himself against an equal, one whom he subconsciously recognized as 
somehow being both a rival and a friend at the same time.  They were 
both accidentally-adopted Heirs of the Anything-Goes School, and that 
created a subtle bond between them that was undeniable, both within the 
ring of combat and outside of it.
 
As the last few moments before the sparring match was to begin 
dwindled, Nabiki experienced a multitude of sensations and feelings 
filling her that were both new and exciting, yet they also felt as 
familiar to her as her own breath.  She felt the muscles in her body 
almost humming with the desire to begin, and her nerves and reflexes 
felt sharp as she studied Ranma.  Her lungs filled and emptied of air 
in a deep, regular pattern, and the blood almost seemed to sing in her 
veins.  She flipped Ranma a quick thumbs-up and a coy smile before 
raising her hands up into a guard position.  Nabiki felt ready for 
anything.

Coach Fujinami moved off to one side.  He was reasonably certain that 
they understood the instructions, and neither of them looked like they 
intended to kill the other anyway.  He slowly raised his hand and then 
dropped it swiftly.

"BEGIN!"

Nabiki and Ranma came together in a rush, and they met each other in 
the exact middle of the space between them.  Their initial exchange of 
blows was almost cautious, despite their mutual eagerness for what they 
were now doing.  Still, each of them held nothing back of their martial 
arts skills, as Fujinami watched them carefully, analyzing their new 
abilities with care.  The two young fighters began to test each other, 
both of them quickly becoming caught up in the thrill of the struggle 
going on between them, as they each drove the other to the limits of 
what they were capable of.

Nabiki quickly found herself to have a modest edge in speed over Ranma, 
despite his many recent weeks of intensive physical training.  However, 
she was now undergoing her second year of the Academy's physical 
training program, and she was at the very top of her class in ability, 
even if she hadn't really been pushing herself to her body's full 
limits.  It was also quite clear to her that her martial arts skills, 
so newly-gained from her counterpart, were roughly equal to Ranma's own 
(and possibly better), but it was difficult for her to judge since 
neither of them had managed to land a solid blow on the other yet.  
However, she did know that she was enjoying this test of her new skills 
a great deal, finding an intensely powerful sense of satisfaction in 
challenging herself and her skills against a very worthy opponent, like 
Ranma was quickly proving himself to be.

As he struggled to overcome Nabiki's surprisingly equal level of skill, 
Ranma quickly discovered that he was not feeling the absolute certainty 
of victory now that he had against Akane, and yet that very same 
uncertainty filled him with an excited thrill.  He was even now pushing 
his speed, power, and martial arts skills to their present limits, and 
he was finding that Nabiki was able to match him every step of the way.  
As their struggles against each other continued, the balance between 
them quickly swung back and forth, yet it never seemed to move too far 
from equilibrium.  Ranma was finding that it was only his slightly 
greater physical strength and reach that enabled him to offset Nabiki's 
marginally faster speed and equal skill.

Coach Fujinami analyzed the patterns of their attacks and defenses as 
both young fighters moved at an astonishing level of speed against each 
other.  What intrigued him most was that they were both using a common 
central style to their movements, but it was one that he had never seen 
before in his entire life.  This mysterious central style was very 
difficult to pick out as they moved against each other, yet it was 
undeniably present.  To his added amazement, he also counted no less 
than three dozen different martial arts styles being utilized in the 
two young warriors' individual combat repertoires.  Bits and pieces of 
each form's best elements were all being overlaid on top of this 
unknown, central style.

Amazing, thought Fujinami with a solemn look.  Their skills are most 
impressive indeed.  I look forward to training them to reach the limits 
of their capabilities, if they even have any.  Never before have I seen 
two fighters with such high levels of potential.  He remained standing 
at his position, his impassive, stone-gray eyes calmly watching the 
events proceeding before him as the two adolescents fought hard against 
each other.  It was appearing as if Nabiki was gaining the upper hand 
ever so slowly, but it was difficult to say for certain.

You're good, Ranchan, thought Nabiki with a wolfish grin as she ducked 
under his fist.  You're very good indeed.  Her lightning-fast 
counterstrike narrowly missed his jaw as he parried it with a forearm.  
Her knee blocked a kick, and one of Ranma's quick evasions kept her 
foot from slamming into his gut on her next counterstrike.  However, 
after over ten minutes of heavy sparring, Nabiki was starting to feel 
the first hints of exhaustion beginning to slow her limbs, but she just 
forced her body to maintain its present, full-speed fury.

It was now, during their current jockeying for dominance in their 
sparring match, that Nabiki finally realized something interesting to 
her.  On her counterpart's world, that Nabiki Tendo was clearly the 
best by far to any of the other young fighters in her peer group, and 
she presumed that it was the same on that other world where Ranma had 
gained his own, equally impressive skills from.  But here, neither of 
them could claim to be the clear and absolute best, and that fact 
intrigued her a great deal.  So they continued to duel against each 
other, their full skills unleashed, both battling intensely for control 
of the course of the fight, and each refusing to yield the smallest 
amount to the other.

"We seem to be even on the ground," admitted Ranma as he eyed Nabiki 
momentarily during a brief lull.  They had broken apart from each other 
to circle warily, each of them mustering their strength back up before 
engaging the other once again.  "So let's see how you deal with this."  
Ranma gathered his legs beneath him and sprang into the air to attack 
Nabiki from above, or at least that was his plan.

"Nice try, Ranma-kun," said Nabiki with a wolfish grin, her reflexes 
already triggering her legs to leap up to meet him in midair, before 
she had even begun to consciously think about it.  "But aerial combat 
is a specialty of the Anything-Goes School.  You should know that."  
The two of them came together in a furious display of martial arts 
skill, fists and feet flashing against each other for the brief time 
that they almost seemed to hang suspended in the air.

Such skill they both have, such wondrous martial arts skill, thought 
Dean Fuyutsuki, gazing with unabashed admiration as he watched the two 
adolescents battling hard against each other, a sort of paternal smile 
upon his face.

For several long minutes, the two struggling martial artists had 
managed to achieve a rough stalemate with each other, but it could not 
last forever.  They landed only a few feet apart, but each was now 
filled with a desire for victory that would not be denied, both caught 
up in the passions that were swirling between them.  A single moment 
later, they each launched into the sky once again, and another rapid-
fire exchange of blows occurred, neither one quite able to penetrate 
the defenses of their opponent.

Until the final moment.

Time seemed to stand still as there was the distinctive sound of two 
fists striking solidly against flesh and bone.  The two young martial 
artists seemed to hang suspended in the air for a moment, as the three 
onlookers finally saw what had just happened.  Nabiki's left fist had 
caught Ranma squarely across the jaw, a powerful blow backed by her 
whole shoulder behind it that had kayoed him almost instantly upon 
impact.  However, Ranma's right fist had slammed into Nabiki's cheek at 
exactly the same moment with equal strength, driving it through the 
small hole in her defenses and achieving a double knockout.  Both 
fighters wore very surprised looks on their faces in the moment before 
they each fell unconscious and plummeted down to land sprawled out upon 
the mat.  Ranma ended up landing face-down, his jaw already purpling, 
and Nabiki fell to land face-up, her face also bearing a large bruise 
on her left cheek.

"Hmm," murmured Fujinami.  "A cross-counterstrike punch to end their 
first match.  Interesting."  He slowly settled himself next to Nabiki, 
bending his knees deeply as he reached out one hand to turn her head 
from side to side.  He looked up at Fuyutsuki.  "She appears to be 
simply stunned and should awaken shortly."  He moved over to Ranma and 
gently flipped him over onto his back, before his fingers moved to 
lightly touch the unconscious boy's jaw.  He grunted when he was 
satisfied that there was no significant damage done to either of them.

Fuyutsuki moved nearer, his thoughts unreadable behind a mask of 
professional calm as he looked down at Nabiki, her face slack-jawed and 
bruised.  You did very well, my dear, even though it was a tie.  I now 
know that you will be able to obtain your five victories against young 
Saotome, which will stifle his protests as to your capabilities.  After 
what I have just witnessed, I don't see that as being any sort of 
difficulty now.

"They were fighting using the same style," noted Fujinami, looking over 
at Fuyutsuki, who was now squatting down to study Nabiki's unconscious 
form more closely.  "It was a kempo style, of that much I am sure, but 
it was nothing like I have ever seen before.  I heard the girl call it 
the Anything-Goes School during the match.  I have to confess that I 
have never heard of any such school of martial arts."

"Indeed?" asked Fuyutsuki, his eyes studying the fallen Nabiki and 
Ranma.  Where could they have gained such skills?  It does not make any 
sense.  He paused in his thoughts and smiled slightly.  Still, it does 
not really matter.  They have them now, and I intend to see how far 
they are able to drive each other.  Now, more than ever before, I am 
certain that the two of them will make an excellent pairing.

After several minutes, Nabiki groaned and blinked her eyes open, her 
hand moving up to touch her cheek and wincing at the pain.  I guess I 
lost, she thought, sitting up slowly only to see that Ranma was 
returning to consciousness now as well.  Perhaps not.

Owww, was Ranma's first conscious thought, his jaw feeling like someone 
had hit it with a sledgehammer.  He blinked his eyes open to see Nabiki 
sitting there near him on the mat, her knees pulled up in front of her 
as she smirked at him.  I lost?  To Nabiki?  He stared at the Chinese-
style clothed girl for a moment.

"Welcome back to the living, Ranma-kun," said Nabiki, a more normal 
smile now on her face.  She noticed his attention being drawn to the 
bruise on her cheek, and smirked at him again.  "You hit pretty hard, 
Saotome-kun.  Trying to break my face?"

"Not especially," said Ranma, sitting up himself.  He felt the pain of 
his jaw pulsing in intensity, but it was ignorable.  "You hit pretty 
hard, too."  He paused, a half-smile on his lips as he continued, "for 
a cute girl, that is."

"You got that right, Saotome-kun," said Nabiki, staring him right in 
the eyes, her smile turning almost coy.  "Don't you ever forget it, 
either."  She lowered her knees slightly and rested her palms on the 
ground behind her once again.  She saw Ranma's eyes drifting down her 
front reflexively before he pulled them away.  She felt pleased at his 
attention.

"Ah, I see that my two new pupils are now awake," said Fujinami in calm 
tones, interrupting the scene, his deep voice rumbling.  "You two 
youngsters show a lot of promise as martial artists."  He walked over 
from where he had been talking with Coach Takami.  Dean Fuyutsuki was 
no longer present.

More than you know, thought both Ranma and Nabiki at almost the same 
time.  They looked at each other briefly, appraisingly.

"But now that you're both recovered, it's now time to train," said the 
large man.  "So get off your butts and hit the track.  I want each of 
you to finish six kilometers.  You have twenty-five minutes."  He 
frowned when they did not immediately get up, and he roared at them 
with a truly astonishing amount of presence, "I said, GET GOING!  And 
because of your laziness, whoever comes in last must give me a hundred 
sit-ups and push-ups after we finish the rest of your workout today!"

The two of them leaped to their feet and took off at a run, the dust of 
their departure scarcely settling before they were halfway to the 
track.  Coach Fujinami stared after them with a neutral look on his 
craggy face, but inside he was smiling.

                   ******************************

Fuyutsuki took the small disk from inside the recorder unit that he had 
taken with him and inserted it into the computer on his desk.  He 
hummed softly as he waited for the software to download the data and 
images that he had recorded of his two special students.  A nameless 
computer technician had developed this particular program a few years 
earlier for use in the Arena, to evaluate the combat potentials of the 
various fighters for odds-setting purposes, but it was also ideally 
suited for Fuyutsuki's current needs.  He made a mental note to get a 
record of Kodachi Kuno's data, in addition to a video of one of her 
fights for his analysis of her progress.

After several minutes, the system finally beeped that it had finished 
processing the data and video images, and Fuyutsuki leaned forward to 
see the results on the monitor.  He punched up Ranma's information 
first and watched as the screen cleared and a video sample taken from 
the fight was displayed in one window.  In another box, the computer 
began running down its preliminary calculations for the teenaged 
martial artist's vital statistics.

Name: Ranma Saotome
Age: 16
Sex: Male
Height: 1.71 meters
Mass: 67 kilograms
Physical Capabilities:
    Structural Integrity:  82.51
    Muscle Strength:  85.78
    Lung Capacity:  83.24
    Eyesight:  82.96
    Auditon:  94.98
    Dynamic Eyesight:  94.63
    Metabolism:  95.19
    Neuroreflex:  93.99
Offensive Capability:  80.75 
Defensive Capability:  83.94
Recoverability:  88.92
Speed:  86.45
Perseverance:  87.89
Objectivity:  82.38
Perception:  90.12
Judgment:  87.44
Adaptability:  89.65
Estimated Current Fighting Capacity:  1490.82

"A most excellent beginning, Ranma," said Fuyutsuki, smiling.  "I have 
very high hopes indeed that you will only grow stronger still.  As it 
stands, your abilities would stand up against some of the best Arena 
fighters of around your same age.  Now, let us see how Miss Nabiki 
Tendo is rated."  He punched a few more keys and the view on the screen 
quickly changed to a few highlights of Nabiki's movements and a new 
list of calculated statistics appeared.

Name: Nabiki Tendo
Age: 17
Sex: Female
Height: 1.68 meters
Mass: 52 kilograms
Physical Capabilities:
    Structural Integrity:  80.27
    Muscle Strength:  80.29
    Lung Capacity:  81.99
    Eyesight:  83.22
    Auditon:  96.05
    Dynamic Eyesight:  95.11
    Metabolism:  95.37
    Neuroreflex:  94.82
Offensive Capability:  81.39
Defensive Capability:  84.25
Recoverability:  88.14
Speed:  88.72
Perseverance:  88.06
Objectivity:  85.11
Perception:  91.25
Judgment:  89.86
Adaptability:  87.41
Estimated Current Fighting Capacity:  1491.31

"A little better than Ranma's, but so close as to be almost the same," 
noted Fuyutsuki with mild surprise.  A difference of fifty basis points 
or less was considered to be roughly an equal match.  "It will be quite 
interesting to see how they do, now that they will be competing against 
each other.  I must make a point of monitoring their training more 
closely now."  With the tap of a few keystrokes, he quickly saved all 
of the files, and then he closed down the software with a somewhat 
bemused look on his face.

Fuyutsuki steepled his fingers together and turned his chair to face 
out the window in his office, watching the shadows lengthening around 
the building as the sun lowered in the sky.  He was mildly troubled by 
such an unexpected, overnight improvement of the two cadets as 
fighters, but it had put him ahead of his timetable so he did not 
question his good fortune.  I am sure that I will learn the reason why 
in time, he mused.  He smiled, content for the moment at the course of 
events.

                   ******************************

Ranma hung his head wearily as he stood beneath the blast of hot water 
that was sluicing down on him from the shower nozzle.  He and Nabiki 
had hardly spoken during class, both of them concentrating on outdoing 
the other, and the extra push-ups and sit-ups that he had to do for 
coming in a single pace behind Nabiki had used up almost the last of 
his reserves.  The ache in his jaw had finally stopped a while ago, and 
he rubbed the back of one hand gently against it.  To find out that he 
and Nabiki had tied had been a surprise to him, but he was looking 
forward to their rematch tomorrow.  He planned on practicing a little 
before classes in the backyard, to try and give himself some sort of an 
edge that he could use against the girl he now had to contend with.

Nabiki beat me, he thought, feeling just a little irritated at that. 
Well, actually she tied me, but the principle is the same since I 
didn't win.  He lifted his face up and let the hot water spray him in 
the face.  It feels rather strange to meet a girl who is now my equal 
in skill, especially with it being Nabiki.  I wonder how the other 
Ranma would handle it?

His tired mind was not giving him the answer though, and it was perhaps 
just as well.  He shut the water off and let himself drip dry for a few 
moments before grabbing his towel and drying off briskly.  He sauntered 
out to the locker area and opened up his locker.  He pulled the dirty 
workout clothes from within and placed them back into the paper bag, 
taking a moment to examine the red silk shirt with a slight smile.  He 
then stuffed the bag into his bookbag.

Ranma quickly changed clothes, and put his uniform back on.  He slung 
his bag up onto his shoulder and walked out of the locker room.  It had 
been a very long, odd day today, and he simply wanted to go home, eat, 
and not have to think about girls, martial arts, or the very chaotic 
confusion that his life seemed to be quickly becoming.

                   ******************************

At the main gate, the setting sun illuminated the waiting figures of 
Tatewaki Kuno and Mikado Sanzenin.  They had been standing, solemnly 
waiting, for the better part of an hour after the last cadets had filed 
out past them, but the target of their wrath had not made an appearance 
yet.  It looked like he had already left, and Kuno was feeling more 
than a little put out by that.  Mikado was simply bored.

"I don't think that he's coming," observed Mikado.  He tapped the tip 
of his wooden weapon against the ground.

"That wretch, Saotome!" grumbled Kuno, his hand gripping the handle of 
his bokken more tightly.  "He probably saw me waiting for him and has 
fled like a coward from my awesome prowess!"  His stomach suddenly 
rumbled loudly, and Kuno grimaced.  "Perhaps I shall pursue my 
vengeance anon, but my wrath shall be even greater for the delay."

"I should be getting home to dinner as well," noted Mikado.  "I have to 
face my prospective fiancée once again."  He sighed at the thought of 
having to marry a ditzy, little airhead like Azusa Shiratori, but the 
girl's family was gaining in prominence in the Empire and his father 
thought it would make a good match.  Of course, now that Kuno is so 
concerned about his sister spending time with this Saotome fellow, 
perhaps now might be a good time to try and persuade my father to 
pursue a match between me and sweet Kodachi-chan, he thought with a 
calculating look towards his friend.

"I will have my driver drop you off on my way home," said Kuno.

"I thank you," replied Mikado.  "Perhaps we can try this again tomorrow 
morning?  We can catch Saotome when he arrives."

"An excellent plan!" exclaimed Kuno.  "The morning sun shall bear 
witness to the fall of Ranma Saotome at my hand!"

The two young noblemen turned around and entered the limousine that had 
remained waiting by the curb for them to finish their duel with Ranma.  
The long vehicle sped away from the front gate, back towards their 
respective manors.

                   ******************************

Less than two minutes later, Ranma walked around the corner of the main 
building, rubbing his neck with one hand to relieve a stiff muscle in 
it.  He headed out from the campus through the main gate area, his left 
foot stepping right where Kuno had just been standing, and then 
continuing past to continue on his way home.

When he arrived at the Saotome household, Ranma was very tired and 
hungry.  He slipped off his shoes and left his bookbag by the door.  He 
could smell dinner waiting, and he was powerless to resist its siren 
call.  His stomach was sending urgent messages to his brain.

Nodoka heard the front door open and close, and the distinctive sounds 
of someone fumbling around in the entryway area, as she was putting the 
finishing touches on dinner.  She turned down the heat on the stove and 
checked the rice cooker quickly, and then stepped into the hallway.  
"Ranma?  Is that you?"

"Yeah, Mom," Ranma replied as he pulled his shoes off.  "It's me."

He called me... Mom? thought Nodoka with surprise.  She then noticed a 
bandage on his face and frowned.  Since when does my son take to using 
slang talk?  What sort of uncouth people has he been spending time 
with?  Nodoka took a closer look at her son.  "What happened to your 
face, young man?"  Her tone of voice was one that mothers have used 
since the dawn of time.

"Just something that happened to me during my training class," replied 
Ranma, not meeting her eyes.  "It's only a bruise, really.  See?"  He 
quickly peeled the bandage away from it, revealing a purple and yellow 
contusion on his jaw to Nodoka's gaze.

He's been in a fight again, she noted as she narrowed her eyes a little 
at the sight, since it clearly looked like a fist strike to her eyes.  
He looks awful.  First there were all those bruises and injuries on him 
yesterday, and again he looks hurt today.  What is going on with him?  
Has Ranma joined some sort of gang?  She was more than a little 
concerned that her only son was coming home looking like he'd been in a 
fight once again, but she decided to refrain from commenting now.  So 
she put a smile on her face and welcomed him home.

"Welcome home, my son," said Nodoka.  "Your father said he would be 
working late at the Ministry tonight, so dinner will just be you and 
me.  Take your place at the table, and I will serve dinner."  She 
turned around, walked back into the kitchen, and busied herself at 
scooping food into serving bowls.

"That sounds great, Mom," said Ranma, a little tiredly, after her 
retreating back.  He walked over to his usual place at the table and 
slumped down there.  He noticed his mother looking over at him with 
concern.  Maybe before I go to sleep, I'll do a little research on the 
Datanet tonight, he thought with a slight yawn.  I'll see if I can find 
listings for some of the others.  If I'm here, and the Tendo's are 
here, then maybe Ukyo and Shampoo are too.  Ranma settled back to wait 
as he softly tapped his chopsticks against the table.

Nodoka came out of the kitchen with a serving tray.  She started to set 
bowls of food down on the dining room table.  Ranma felt his mouth 
begin watering.  His appetite had been going up with all of the added 
exercise that had been getting, and the urge to consume everything on 
the table was becoming almost overpowering.

"Tough day, son?" asked Nodoka.  Perhaps engaging him to Ukyo would be 
prudent, she thought seriously.  I'm sure that she could protect Ranma 
from whoever keeps beating him up.

"It wasn't one of my better ones," replied Ranma, a little sullenly.  

Nodoka set out the last item, a large serving bowl of rice.  She 
finished serving Ranma and herself, and he immediately began eating at 
a rapid pace.  Nodoka watched in stunned silence, her chopsticks 
halfway to her mouth with a piece of chicken, as Ranma consumed all of 
the food in his bowl in seconds.  Didn't he eat at all today?  She saw 
that Ranma was almost ready to hand her his bowl for another serving of 
rice when she set her bowl down and just stared at him, but he 
continued to eat at his manic pace.  She coughed politely into her 
fist, but Ranma didn't appear to notice her as he scooped up the last 
bits of rice.  She coughed again, a little louder as she looked at him.

Ranma paused, suddenly realizing what he was doing.  Uh oh, he thought 
worriedly.  Mom hates poor table manners.  He set his bowl down, and 
smiled innocently as he swallowed the food in his mouth.  Nodoka 
continued to look at him with a slight frown on her face.

"My goodness, son," exclaimed Nodoka.  "I haven't ever seen you so 
hungry before.  Did you skip lunch or something?"  She hurriedly dealt 
Ranma out another generous helping of rice and chicken, but she still 
frowned deeply at him.
 
"Uhm, sorry," said Ranma.  He had been so hungry that the other Ranma's 
instincts had just seemed to take over.  "I guess that I wasn't 
thinking too clearly."

"Yes, well, you clearly have had a rough day, Ranma, but that does not 
entitle you to display such atrocious manners at the dinner table," 
said Nodoka sternly.  "I would hope that all my weeks of coaching you 
in the proper etiquette would be showing more results by now.  Is this 
how you expect to eat when in polite company?"  Nodoka sighed.  She did 
not want to spoil her good news by upsetting her only son, so she 
smiled before speaking once again.  "But it's all right, Ranma.  Just 
don't make a habit of eating like this.  After all, how do you expect 
to win a girl's heart if you eat like some kind of wild animal?  I 
shudder to think how you may act when we have visitors next week."

"Visitors?" inquired Ranma of her as he picked up his bowl and began to 
eat at a more acceptable pace to his mother.  She smiled and set out a 
few photos in front of him.  Ranma glanced down in mild curiosity.  He 
almost swallowed his chopsticks when he saw the three faces that stared 
back at him from the photos.  The mouthful of rice he had just 
swallowed seemed to be lodged in his throat.

"Well, I had wanted to wait until after dinner to show you my little 
surprise," said Nodoka with a bright smile.  "But now is as good a time 
as any for it.  I took the liberty of visiting with a marriage broker 
this afternoon."  Ranma suddenly looked like he was having some trouble 
breathing.  "These are the three girls that she showed me as potential 
brides for you.  All of them are fine ladies from very good families.  
I'm in the process of making arrangements for you to spend time with 
each of them next week."

Ranma pounded his chest to get the rice he swallowed to go down.  He 
coughed for a moment, and then he gulped down some of his tea.  Nodoka 
looked on in concern.  I certainly never expected this sort of 
reaction,  she thought in surprise.  He almost looks scared.

Ranma finally got himself back under control.  He blinked several times 
as he stared at the faces in the photos, as he already knew two of 
them.  At least Akane isn't one of them, he thought with a measure of 
relief.  That would have been too much for him to handle at this time, 
what with the youngest Tendo recently developing some sort of 
potentially violent fixation on him.  The third photo was a pleasant 
surprise in comparison, but the thought of Ukyo Kuonji suddenly dropped 
into his life was worth a fear reaction all its own.

"M-m-marriage?" Ranma finally managed to stutter out.

"Why, yes," said Nodoka with a smile, puzzled by Ranma's strange 
reaction to the sight of the pictures.  "The nice lady that I met from 
the matchmaking service told me that all three come from fine families 
in the Empire.  You already know the Tendo girl, I think.  The middle 
one, Kodachi Kuno, lives not very far from here.  And the third girl, 
Ukyo Kuonji, comes from a very well-respected family in the Koga 
mountain area, one of the last of the ninja clans.  But her family has 
managed a large shrine in the area for several hundred years."

Ninjas? thought Ranma, getting a sudden sinking feeling in his stomach 
for a moment.  When did the Kuonji's practice ninjutsu?  But I guess 
that might explain how such a silly thing like a fighting style based 
around okonomiyaki could arise.  At least she's not going to be walking 
around dressed like a boy.  Then he realized that he was probably being 
silly over nothing.  What are the odds of anything strange happening?  
Kodachi is normal, Ukyo looks normal enough, and as for Nabiki, well, 
she did look awfully cute in that outfit.  His mother had gone back to 
looking at him with a puzzled expression.

"Well, what do you think?" asked Nodoka, noticing him holding Nabiki's 
picture the longest of the three of them.

"I guess I should meet them then," he said, somewhat grudgingly, after 
a moment.  "Since you're going to all this trouble of arranging things, 
that is."  Ranma tapped one of his chopsticks on the table as he 
thought.  "I am curious as to something though."

"What is that, my son?"  Nodoka took a sip of her tea.

"Well, why did you feel the need to arrange for a bride for me so 
soon?"  Ranma picked up his cup of tea, and noticed that his hand was 
trembling slightly.  He drank it down quickly.

"Well, you don't have a girlfriend," Nodoka replied.  "I wasn't ever 
sure if you would be able to tear yourself away from your studies long 
enough to find a girl to marry, so I decided, as your mother, who only 
has your best interests at heart, to arrange for you to meet someone 
suitable.  I'm having the marriage broker arrange for each girl and her 
parents to visit us over the next week."  Nodoka set down her teacup, 
and gave Ranma a reassuring smile.

Ranma wasn't feeling reassured at all.  When did I lose control of my 
own life?  But his stomach chose that moment to rumble loudly again, 
still not satisfied with what he had consumed so far, so he decided to 
leave off such worrisome thoughts until later.  His thoughts kept 
drifting to two particular girls though, each of them attractive to him 
for different reasons.  While he still felt a little like the walls 
were starting to close in on his life, he also felt a vague happiness 
at the thought of marriage to one of the two.

Finally, after four bowls of rice and a sizable amount of chicken and 
vegetables had crossed his lips, Ranma sat back and sighed, his hunger 
now satiated.  He got up from the table, thanked his mother for such a 
delicious meal, and headed up to his room with the intention of doing 
some research.

When Ranma got into his room, he eyed the computer sitting on his desk, 
eyed the futon laid out and ready for him, and sighed.  It can wait 
until tomorrow, he decided.  He peeled off the bandage, grateful to see 
that the bruise was much better than it was a few hours earlier, and by 
morning he was sure that it would be gone.  He undressed, laid down on 
his futon, and he was asleep within moments.

                   ******************************

Ranma found himself in the Tendo Dojo.  The other Ranma sat opposite 
him.  They were dressed nearly the same, except Ranma-chan was in a 
blue shirt instead of wearing a red one like himself.  He wasn't quite 
sure, but she seemed to be wearing the ghost of a smirk on her face.  
Ranma looked around while she opened her eyes slowly.

"Welcome back," said Ranma-chan.  "It looks like you've had a busy 
day."  She smirked more obviously at him.

"Tell me something I don't know," replied Ranma.  "Now I have my mother 
looking at Nabiki, Kodachi, or Ukyo to be my future fiancée."

Ranma-chan paused.  She dropped her feet flat to the floor and suddenly 
bent over as if in extreme pain, hugging her knees.  Her body began to 
convulse, and strange, muffled sounds were coming out of her.   While 
Ranma kept looking at Ranma-chan, she suddenly reared back and laughed 
deeply.  "Y-you-"  The rest went unsaid as the other Ranma just 
continued to laugh and laugh.

Ranma didn't sleep well that whole night.

                   ******************************

"I told Ranma about my meeting with the marriage broker during dinner, 
Genma dear," said Nodoka happily as she sat next to him in bed.  He was 
reading a book, and just grunted acknowledgment.  "I think that this 
will work out well for him.  Any one of these three girls seems like 
she would make a good bride for our son."

Genma just grunted again.  It had been a long day at the Ministry, and 
he simply wasn't interested in what he viewed as Nodoka's foolish 
chattering.  Nodoka, more than a little irritated at his inattention to 
her, grabbed the book away from him, and Genma blinked his eyes 
owlishly at her.

"Genma Saotome!" she thundered.  "You will listen to me when I'm 
talking about our son's future!"

"Yes, Nodoka-chan," he replied.  He put on his most attentive look.  "I 
still think that Ranma is too young to get tied down with a wife."

"Tied down?"  Nodoka blinked.  "Genma Saotome, are you going to sit 
there and tell me that you've felt trapped and tied down by being 
married to me?"  Nodoka folded her arms.  Genma sighed.

"Of course not, Nodoka-chan," he said in soothing tones.  I'm not that 
stupid, he thought quickly.  "I just think that you may be a little 
premature in trying to find Ranma a bride right now.  The boy still has 
some growing up to do."

"Marriage will do that for him," she said confidently.  "Our son needs 
a strong woman to give him guidance."

"You're probably right, dear," agreed Genma.  "Can I have my book back 
now?"

Nodoka narrowed her eyes angrily at him.  Genma gulped, and he started 
to sweat a little.  As much as he loved her, Nodoka had always 
intimidated him a little, and she had ever since they were married.  If 
you know what's good for you, my son, you'll prolong the decision as 
long as you possibly can, he thought sincerely.  He began placating 
Nodoka, and by the time the lights were turned out they were both 
occupied with something other than arguing.


xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


Special thanks go out to Jim Bader for his permission to borrow from 
his work Nabiki 1/2 (A Very Scary Thought) for Earth +1.614,+1.496 
(Ranma 1/2 cluster).

Thanks to my pre-readers for all of their help and advice:

Michael Allen
Jim Bader
Donny Cheng
David Eddy
David P. Gao
Doug_W
Rhialto
ShortYes
D.B. Sommer
T.H. Tiger