Nabiki fishes a soaking wet Shampoo-neko out of the Koi pond. No one else is around, as Akane, and Ranma with a female body, and a feline mind have drawn everyone else away. "I wonder if Cologne chose your cursed form as a joke. You are her cat's paw after all."
"Nyaaa?"
"Whether or not you will wind up with Ranma, you are years away from being a leader of your tribe. I'd make a better leader than you right now, even though you could defeat me easily. While you are in Japan, you have the perfect opportunity to acquire some personal power. If you capture Ranma, your grandmother will whisk you back to China. Your grandmother's position in the tribe will improve, while you and Ranma blindly support her power. You may get Ranma, but you will never lead people like that. If you ever want to get some personal power that isn't a hand-me-down from Cologne, visit me without Cologne knowing. You'd better get back to the Nekohanten, before Akane remembers you, and tries to exact revenge while you're still a cat."
Shampoo-neko jumps away, giving Nabiki a strange look before running off.
* * *
Later that evening, Nabiki receives a visitor in her bedroom. Shampoo (now in human form) leapt onto Nabiki's window sill, and entered her room. "Why do you say you are a better leader?" Anger and curiosity are both evident on her face.
"You completely ignore everything else in your pursuit of Ranma. While you chase after Ranma, you should be improving yourself. You could return to China with money, or more experience, or at least with Mousse a devoted follower of you. None of these things would help or hinder your fight for Ranma. If you change your mind, I could help you pursue these goals, and I'd profit also."
"Now I understand. You would be willing to work with me on something other than Ranma. Maybe I need a new hobby. You are right, Cologne holds much more power in village than I. How do you think I can get more power?"
"Using our skills we could get money without anyone else knowing you have it. Hidden money is much more powerful than money others know about because it allows you to do things others think you couldn't. You could also look at all of the ways Cologne uses Mousse. Mousse hates her, but she keeps him under her thumb, you have no way to deal with your enemies but fighting. You should also look at making connections with people outside your village that might help you within your village. You should learn from people here that are masters of things other than martial arts."
"OK, you are best here at making money. You show me how to make money?"
"I already have one plan, It would be easier if you can work with Mousse. It doesn't involve Ranma. Do you think you can work with him?"
"If Grandmother can get him to wash dishes, I should learn to make him do what I want."
"Good, my next choice would have been Kodachi or Happosai, and they're both too crazy to be safe allies. How do you feel about robbing criminals?"
* * *
The next night, Mousse and Shampoo show up to Nabiki's room. "Mousse, has Shampoo explained my proposition to you?"
"She has, but I am still unsure if I will do it. What do I need money for?"
"How about medical expenses for improving your vision, overhauling your chains, buying high tech knives that can outperform your steel ones, and the ability to fly places by plane instead of as a duck? None of these would be available to you until after you two return to China with or without Ranma, but it would make your life better after Ranma's fate is decided whichever way that goes."
"You're talking about enough money to improve my sight?"
"If it can be improved medically. We'll be living the same as we are now while we work on this, but at the end we should have a small fortune to divide up. It also means you can spend time with Shampoo without the usual crowd of people hanging around, if you can behave in such a way that Shampoo doesn't ask you to leave. If you profess your love for Shampoo on a job, or treat her in a way she doesn't want you to, you're out; if you can manage this you can spend more time with Shampoo."
"OK, sounds good. What do you have in mind?"
"You two would make some of the best cat burglars around, but we don't want to draw attention of anyone, especially the police. We are only going to target thefts of stolen items. The police won't be involved, because no one will report it. We will leave no traces, because you two have exceptional skills in martial arts, plus your cursed forms, plus equipment I'll buy, and plans I'll be making. If someone starts to suspect, we can stop at any time. As they say in the pop-music scene, `you've got the Brawn, I've got the brains, let's make lots of money'. Our first step is to locate some people who have stolen items."
* * *
No one notices as a cat and a duck enter an upper floor of a Tokyo police building late at night, each with a camera around their necks, and a small bag of cylinders attached to the duck's leg. Two hours later they leave, leaving nothing changed, but a damp spot on the floor near the water-cooler, and several well worn files in the filing cabinet being flipped through one more time.
The next morning, Nabiki picks up a bag of used film rolls from under her bed, and places them in her school bag. and proceeds like nothing has happened.
During the school day, Nabiki spends some time in the school's dark-room. She has a reputation for developing pictures there, but these are prints Kuno isn't likely to ever see.
That evening she spends a little more time in her room than she normally does on her homework. No one notices; no one ever notices Nabiki, unless she is actively doing something. After all, Ranma and Akane are always providing enough distractions to keep everyone else's attention.
Later that week Kasumi accepts delivery of a small package delivered to Nabiki. No one thinks twice about it, as Ryouga attacks Ranma that evening at dinner, everyone has more interesting things to discuss.
* * *
"OK, Shampoo, Mousse, I think I've got your first mission planned. I've bought you some equipment that'll make your jobs easier. These small boxes have two compartments. One is large enough to hold minimal clothing for you to wear as humans, including gloves and cloth facemasks to protect your identities, the other can keep water hot for a few hours, and spray it when you press here. With this, you can sneak in as animals, and change to human when convenient."
"I've also got these goggles for Mousse, They're a little stronger than your current prescription, reasonably shatterproof, and incorporate starlight scope technology. This'll lessen your sight disadvantage. Neither of you should wear anything that might be traced back to you. This includes leaving behind all of your usual weapons, I'll buy untraceable ones of whatever you think you need, but leave your usual stuff at home. Unfortunately, you won't be able to use bonbori or a swan potty, if anyone saw those, you'd be more easily suspected."
"If either of you can learn to use them, I've got lock-picks of several different kinds, and glass cutters. Both of these could be grounds for being arrested if someone sees them, but you should have no problem keeping them concealed. A cat and a duck who can move through glass and locks should be able to go nearly anywhere."
"You'll still be vulnerable to infrared beams, motion detectors, heat sensors, ultrasonic echo-location, pressure pads, capacitance detectors, human guards, animal guards, alarms based on air pressure, and a host of new technologies, but this stuff should make most simple operations a cakewalk. Since we won't be robbing normal folks, you'll be encountering alot more security than normal. Luckily you two can case a place out beforehand in your cursed forms without raising suspicions."
"When we gain a bit of capital, we'll be buying more equipment to alleviate these weak spots. We'll also be laundering our gains by investing in medium growth businesses. The stock purchases will be made from a broker up North. Before we do that, I'll investigate the companies thoroughly through the information they are forced to disclose, and then you two might investigate some more to make sure the owners aren't running any scams themselves. This will significantly decrease our chances at a loss, will keep the money growing, and the money will be used productively by the company. Unfortunately, the profits from the investments will be taxable, but the returns will be money unlinked to any crimes. I'm ready to set up a dummy group who will own the stock, and who will cease to exist once we divide the profits. The corporation will be foreign owned, so that our money will be outside Japan and China when we start to draw from it."
"I've compiled the information you've photographed from the police files, and I've got a few targets in mind who the police suspect, but can't convict yet. The files on Yakuza was especially interesting, but if we steal from them, it has to look like the money was irretrievable lost, not stolen. If no one suspects that we exist, we'll be safest."
"Our first target is Matsumoto Hikaru ..."
* * *
For the third time Mousse lets himself into Matsumoto's apartment window. Apparently the only security this apartment had was a few pressure pads on the floor, and alarms on the front door and the windows near the fire exit. As a duck, Mousse didn't weigh enough to trigger the alarm, and he entered and left through an unguarded window. So far he'd found no trace of the money, and was beginning to suspect it didn't really exist, or wasn't kept here.
Matsumoto was a medium-level executive, who traveled on business out of Japan. The police believed that he was using those trips to smuggle in a moderate supply of narcotics, and smuggle out money into a foreign bank account. The police were waiting for his next trip to try to trace the method he got the drugs into the country, in order to assure a conviction. They had already verified that he carried a satchel of yen on his last trip out of the country. Mousse's mission was to find where the money was hidden. Apparently the police had invented some pretext to search his office building, and found nothing.
Shampoo, in cat form, was on a building across the street, watching for a return of Matsumoto. She'd only had to yowl once before to alert Mousse to leave early. On previous trips, Mousse checked all of the places he could without ruffling anything that might be detected. This time he had more luck, looking through Matsumoto's clothes. Rolls of bills large enough to choke horses were stuffed in the toes of his shoes, and inside one suit was a flat, hanging bag of Yen notes.
As per their plan, he arranged everything as he found it, and picking up a feather he'd lost, he flew out the window and closed it behind him.
* * *
The next evening finds Shampoo on the roof of the building with a basket and cable the color of the side of the building, and a bucket of water. Inside the bucket is a pile of clothes.
Shampoo spots Mousse flying towards her in duck form. This was the signal that he saw Matsumoto drive off, and Mousse was about to enter through the window again. Shampoo lowers the basket to the window, and Mousse pulls it into the apartment with his beak.
Now it is Mousse's turn to be busy, as he fills up the basket with all of the money he found. Tugging on the cable, he helps Shampoo get the basket out the window. While Shampoo raises the loot, Mousse covers every trace of his activity he can find, and flies off to an alley besides the building. There he waits for Shampoo to lower the basket to him. He removes the clothes, changes back into a man, and gets dressed. He pulls a sports bag from the basket, and puts the basket and the money into it.
Meanwhile Shampoo changes to a cat, packs her clothes, and takes everything with her, but the empty bucket.
"Nyaaa?"
"Whether or not you will wind up with Ranma, you are years away from being a leader of your tribe. I'd make a better leader than you right now, even though you could defeat me easily. While you are in Japan, you have the perfect opportunity to acquire some personal power. If you capture Ranma, your grandmother will whisk you back to China. Your grandmother's position in the tribe will improve, while you and Ranma blindly support her power. You may get Ranma, but you will never lead people like that. If you ever want to get some personal power that isn't a hand-me-down from Cologne, visit me without Cologne knowing. You'd better get back to the Nekohanten, before Akane remembers you, and tries to exact revenge while you're still a cat."
Shampoo-neko jumps away, giving Nabiki a strange look before running off.
* * *
Later that evening, Nabiki receives a visitor in her bedroom. Shampoo (now in human form) leapt onto Nabiki's window sill, and entered her room. "Why do you say you are a better leader?" Anger and curiosity are both evident on her face.
"You completely ignore everything else in your pursuit of Ranma. While you chase after Ranma, you should be improving yourself. You could return to China with money, or more experience, or at least with Mousse a devoted follower of you. None of these things would help or hinder your fight for Ranma. If you change your mind, I could help you pursue these goals, and I'd profit also."
"Now I understand. You would be willing to work with me on something other than Ranma. Maybe I need a new hobby. You are right, Cologne holds much more power in village than I. How do you think I can get more power?"
"Using our skills we could get money without anyone else knowing you have it. Hidden money is much more powerful than money others know about because it allows you to do things others think you couldn't. You could also look at all of the ways Cologne uses Mousse. Mousse hates her, but she keeps him under her thumb, you have no way to deal with your enemies but fighting. You should also look at making connections with people outside your village that might help you within your village. You should learn from people here that are masters of things other than martial arts."
"OK, you are best here at making money. You show me how to make money?"
"I already have one plan, It would be easier if you can work with Mousse. It doesn't involve Ranma. Do you think you can work with him?"
"If Grandmother can get him to wash dishes, I should learn to make him do what I want."
"Good, my next choice would have been Kodachi or Happosai, and they're both too crazy to be safe allies. How do you feel about robbing criminals?"
* * *
The next night, Mousse and Shampoo show up to Nabiki's room. "Mousse, has Shampoo explained my proposition to you?"
"She has, but I am still unsure if I will do it. What do I need money for?"
"How about medical expenses for improving your vision, overhauling your chains, buying high tech knives that can outperform your steel ones, and the ability to fly places by plane instead of as a duck? None of these would be available to you until after you two return to China with or without Ranma, but it would make your life better after Ranma's fate is decided whichever way that goes."
"You're talking about enough money to improve my sight?"
"If it can be improved medically. We'll be living the same as we are now while we work on this, but at the end we should have a small fortune to divide up. It also means you can spend time with Shampoo without the usual crowd of people hanging around, if you can behave in such a way that Shampoo doesn't ask you to leave. If you profess your love for Shampoo on a job, or treat her in a way she doesn't want you to, you're out; if you can manage this you can spend more time with Shampoo."
"OK, sounds good. What do you have in mind?"
"You two would make some of the best cat burglars around, but we don't want to draw attention of anyone, especially the police. We are only going to target thefts of stolen items. The police won't be involved, because no one will report it. We will leave no traces, because you two have exceptional skills in martial arts, plus your cursed forms, plus equipment I'll buy, and plans I'll be making. If someone starts to suspect, we can stop at any time. As they say in the pop-music scene, `you've got the Brawn, I've got the brains, let's make lots of money'. Our first step is to locate some people who have stolen items."
* * *
No one notices as a cat and a duck enter an upper floor of a Tokyo police building late at night, each with a camera around their necks, and a small bag of cylinders attached to the duck's leg. Two hours later they leave, leaving nothing changed, but a damp spot on the floor near the water-cooler, and several well worn files in the filing cabinet being flipped through one more time.
The next morning, Nabiki picks up a bag of used film rolls from under her bed, and places them in her school bag. and proceeds like nothing has happened.
During the school day, Nabiki spends some time in the school's dark-room. She has a reputation for developing pictures there, but these are prints Kuno isn't likely to ever see.
That evening she spends a little more time in her room than she normally does on her homework. No one notices; no one ever notices Nabiki, unless she is actively doing something. After all, Ranma and Akane are always providing enough distractions to keep everyone else's attention.
Later that week Kasumi accepts delivery of a small package delivered to Nabiki. No one thinks twice about it, as Ryouga attacks Ranma that evening at dinner, everyone has more interesting things to discuss.
* * *
"OK, Shampoo, Mousse, I think I've got your first mission planned. I've bought you some equipment that'll make your jobs easier. These small boxes have two compartments. One is large enough to hold minimal clothing for you to wear as humans, including gloves and cloth facemasks to protect your identities, the other can keep water hot for a few hours, and spray it when you press here. With this, you can sneak in as animals, and change to human when convenient."
"I've also got these goggles for Mousse, They're a little stronger than your current prescription, reasonably shatterproof, and incorporate starlight scope technology. This'll lessen your sight disadvantage. Neither of you should wear anything that might be traced back to you. This includes leaving behind all of your usual weapons, I'll buy untraceable ones of whatever you think you need, but leave your usual stuff at home. Unfortunately, you won't be able to use bonbori or a swan potty, if anyone saw those, you'd be more easily suspected."
"If either of you can learn to use them, I've got lock-picks of several different kinds, and glass cutters. Both of these could be grounds for being arrested if someone sees them, but you should have no problem keeping them concealed. A cat and a duck who can move through glass and locks should be able to go nearly anywhere."
"You'll still be vulnerable to infrared beams, motion detectors, heat sensors, ultrasonic echo-location, pressure pads, capacitance detectors, human guards, animal guards, alarms based on air pressure, and a host of new technologies, but this stuff should make most simple operations a cakewalk. Since we won't be robbing normal folks, you'll be encountering alot more security than normal. Luckily you two can case a place out beforehand in your cursed forms without raising suspicions."
"When we gain a bit of capital, we'll be buying more equipment to alleviate these weak spots. We'll also be laundering our gains by investing in medium growth businesses. The stock purchases will be made from a broker up North. Before we do that, I'll investigate the companies thoroughly through the information they are forced to disclose, and then you two might investigate some more to make sure the owners aren't running any scams themselves. This will significantly decrease our chances at a loss, will keep the money growing, and the money will be used productively by the company. Unfortunately, the profits from the investments will be taxable, but the returns will be money unlinked to any crimes. I'm ready to set up a dummy group who will own the stock, and who will cease to exist once we divide the profits. The corporation will be foreign owned, so that our money will be outside Japan and China when we start to draw from it."
"I've compiled the information you've photographed from the police files, and I've got a few targets in mind who the police suspect, but can't convict yet. The files on Yakuza was especially interesting, but if we steal from them, it has to look like the money was irretrievable lost, not stolen. If no one suspects that we exist, we'll be safest."
"Our first target is Matsumoto Hikaru ..."
* * *
For the third time Mousse lets himself into Matsumoto's apartment window. Apparently the only security this apartment had was a few pressure pads on the floor, and alarms on the front door and the windows near the fire exit. As a duck, Mousse didn't weigh enough to trigger the alarm, and he entered and left through an unguarded window. So far he'd found no trace of the money, and was beginning to suspect it didn't really exist, or wasn't kept here.
Matsumoto was a medium-level executive, who traveled on business out of Japan. The police believed that he was using those trips to smuggle in a moderate supply of narcotics, and smuggle out money into a foreign bank account. The police were waiting for his next trip to try to trace the method he got the drugs into the country, in order to assure a conviction. They had already verified that he carried a satchel of yen on his last trip out of the country. Mousse's mission was to find where the money was hidden. Apparently the police had invented some pretext to search his office building, and found nothing.
Shampoo, in cat form, was on a building across the street, watching for a return of Matsumoto. She'd only had to yowl once before to alert Mousse to leave early. On previous trips, Mousse checked all of the places he could without ruffling anything that might be detected. This time he had more luck, looking through Matsumoto's clothes. Rolls of bills large enough to choke horses were stuffed in the toes of his shoes, and inside one suit was a flat, hanging bag of Yen notes.
As per their plan, he arranged everything as he found it, and picking up a feather he'd lost, he flew out the window and closed it behind him.
* * *
The next evening finds Shampoo on the roof of the building with a basket and cable the color of the side of the building, and a bucket of water. Inside the bucket is a pile of clothes.
Shampoo spots Mousse flying towards her in duck form. This was the signal that he saw Matsumoto drive off, and Mousse was about to enter through the window again. Shampoo lowers the basket to the window, and Mousse pulls it into the apartment with his beak.
Now it is Mousse's turn to be busy, as he fills up the basket with all of the money he found. Tugging on the cable, he helps Shampoo get the basket out the window. While Shampoo raises the loot, Mousse covers every trace of his activity he can find, and flies off to an alley besides the building. There he waits for Shampoo to lower the basket to him. He removes the clothes, changes back into a man, and gets dressed. He pulls a sports bag from the basket, and puts the basket and the money into it.
Meanwhile Shampoo changes to a cat, packs her clothes, and takes everything with her, but the empty bucket.