Disclaimer: I do not in any way own the rights to the works of Rumiko Takahashi, I am simply writing this for my sheer enjoyment.
A/N: Hey there folks, sorry for this chapter taking so long, there were quite a few complications to say the least! I'll get to more on that later though, as well as some other things.
Until then, happy reading!
Just across from the same run down diner, at the same time as Mousse and Ukyo quarreled, two not so same individuals sat down at a just as same sleazy bar; drowning out their woes in cheap liquor. Yuzuki Yamamoto had practically spent hours planning his heist of that little Kudo girl. Once he had nabbed her and gotten properly paid, his small "gang" would have finally hit it big! But now everything was ruined! Two thirds of the people he had managed to recruit had been left smashed in on the pavement and were now going to be sent off to rot in a jail cell somewhere. What was worse was that his only companion around was the dimwitted Chuzzley of all people!
"Things can't get any worse," he sullenly mumbled; quickly chugging down a shot of sake; paid for with practically the last of their already meager funds. Currently both he and his associate had taken off their masks; revealing the two contrasting faces that were held underneath. Yuzuki himself had short cropped hair that slicked back naturally on itself. Donned on his face were two beady eyes held right above his large, pig-like snout. His small bulky frame did nothing to alleviate the previous woeful features.
Sitting directly to the left of him though sat Chuzzley, who couldn't have been anymore different. He was tall and lanky, with frizzled hair that looked as if he'd been struck by a bolt of lightning. His face was a sight, with two giant eyes that constantly seemed to be filled with childlike wonder, which in turn only brought attention to his tiny dot of a nose. "Aww, cheer up boss! Least we got outta dere okay! We'd a been in a real pickle if ya hadn't jumped outta dat alley in time!"
Growling and taking another shot, Yuzuki turned to his companion and let out his frustrations. "Chuzzley ya idiot, we ain't got nothin' now! Just think about it! We have to start from scratch! Do ya know how hard it was jus' scroungin' up just those couple a thugs in da first place? And the worst of it all is it's a bunch a kid's faults for screwin' us over!" he yelled, uncaring of his surroundings. Once again his dreams were shattered to pieces. "What I wouldn't give ta show those punks what for…"
As he watched his boss stew in his own juices, Chuzzley continued to try and cheer him up. "Ey' uh, it ain't all dat bad there boss! I still managed ta nab dis here thingamajig!" He said, pulling out a small, pink, diamond encrusted bracelet out of his side-pocket.
Barely managing to keep the liquor he had just swallowed down, Yuzuki's eyes widened as he looked over the parcel. "Ch-Chuzzley, ya dumb ole' genius, where da heck did ya get that thing?" the pig-nosed thief asked, quickly using his mangy paws to inspect it. "Aw yah, dis here's the real deal alright! My folks used ta hoard glam like dis all the time!"
The frizzle haired man simply just rubbed the back of his neck in a bashful manner. "Aww geez boss, I jus' found it lyin' next to da lil' girly's bed, and I thought it'd made a real pretty souvenir!"
Yuzuki just let out a hearty belly laugh as he tossed the trinket in his hand. "Ya know Chuzz? I rememba now why I keeps ya's around! Ya may be an incompetent halfwit of a doofus, but ya sure gots yourself a heck'ova streak a luck goin' fer ya!" Taking a quick moment to let out another full chuckle, he continued on. "Nows we's gots somethin' here! We'll be eatin' good fer weeks once we pawn dis baby off!" Flipping the bracelet once more in his hand, Yuzuki simply just stared off in the distance for a moment. "Now if only da other fellas could be here now for the celebratin'…"
As quick as his jubilation appeared, it vanished. Before he had this new money-ticket fall into his hands, Yuzuki was fed up, broken, and could only bemoan his own failure; uncaring of the consequences. But now, now he had leverage! He'd survive to see another day alright, but the humiliation of being bested by a bunch of brats would sting longer than any sort of hunger would. He knew that if he were to ever gain any credibility at all, he'd have to show that he wasn't a man who let himself get pushed around like that! "Chuzz, this little doodad may be a life saver fer us, but it ain't gonna do us no good in the long run! If we wanna prove dat we're tough, real manly men, we're gonna have ta beat up dos' kids!"
A grimace appeared on the other thug's face as the gears in his head start to churn. "Aw, but boss, didn't dey say dat they was hoppin' on a boat at Toyama or somethin'? How're we gonna get ta em'?"
Yuzuki's eyes widened at this reminder of the current circumstances. Despite making his disappearance from the scene earlier, he had attempted to stay back on the nearby rooftops to scope things out for a while. As they tried to find a way to catch their annoying interlopers off guard and retake the girl, they managed to score out some seemingly useless information. But now though, it appeared as if they were currently placed under a tight time limit if they wanted to enact at least some form of revenge!
Despair coming over him once more, the beady-eyed thief banged his head on the countertop they were at. "Criminy, it's pointless! There ain't no ways we's catchin' up to dem at dis rate, and even if we could, we'd just get our butts whooped again!"
Not liking seeing his friend in such a down state, Chuzzley patted Yuzuki on the back. "Aww, don't get sad dere Mista Y! Who cares if we dun beat up a few kiddies? We's still got da jewels!"
Growling once again, Yuzuki ceased his head-pounding and looked up at his associate, grabbing him by the shoulders. "Damn it Chuzzley ya knuckle-head! Use ya pea-brain fer once an' think about it! If we get our rears whooped by a bunch o' brats, then who'll wanna join up in our crew, huh? Do I have ta remind ya that we're a few member's short already?" he yelled out, shaking his companion a bit to get his point across. "Now, ya see, if we's were dealt a propa hand, den da smart thing ta do would be's ta go back and smash in dos' punks! Den, everythin' they did ta us would be negated en' such!" he finished, nodding his head. His logic was flawless.
Clapping his hands, the tiny-nosed companion gained a dumb grin upon his face. "Wowzers boss, ya sure are smart! I'd a never figured dat out all by myself!"
Yuzuki though merely sniffed as he jutted his nose upward. "A'course ya wouldn't! Ya noodle up dere is da size a my little pinky! Dat's why ya follow me! I'm da brains a da operation!"
But before his ego could be boosted any higher though, his mood took a 180! "But don't ya see though? Now dat we can't get payback on dos' punks, we'll neva get any real credibility around here! We'll be da laughin' stock a crime, a joke heard round da district! We'll be nothin'! Kaput! A whole lotta zeros!"
As Yuzuki continued on about their disastrous situation, over off in a shadowy corner of the bar, another person sat watching. He had spent the last sum odd of time listening in to the amusing conversation that the two men were having as he rested and enjoyed himself. Although at first only taking mild, novel interest in the two bumbling fools, his opinion on the matter quickly changed once he saw the diamond bracelet that they were flaunting. He just knew he had to investigate!
Getting up from his table, he casually strolled over to the two bickering bozos, intending to interject into their conversation. "Why allo there, gentlemen! A pleasant afternoon's greeting to both of you, yes. Vould you mind if I joined you here for moment?" he asked with a polite and formal tone, though with business-like seriousness.
Yuzuki was so busy ranting that he hardly even noticed the other person saying anything, let alone coming up to him. And it was, in fact, his frizzled haired friend's mouth oddly hanging agape that caught his attention overall. "I'm tellin' ya! Everythin' ru- Hey, what da heck are ya lookin' at me like dat for? Can't'cha show some respect to ya leader? After everything I've done for ya's…" As he demanded this, Chuzzley could only point and stare; not even able to turn his eyes away from the sight before him. "Ehh, wazzat ya- ahh!" The pig-nosed man screamed as he turned to take a look at what was perturbing his companion. But the image before him shocked any sense of anger or indignation right out of him!
The newly arrived stranger's overt seriousness broke as he let out a deep, hearty belly laugh; taking a step forward and revealing his alien features. The man had pale blue skin that looked smooth to the touch, with an odd amount of scales littering his form. Adding more to the strangeness were his humongous webbed hands and what looked to be gills that were protruding out of his neck! His large muscle-bound body only aided to make him more intimidating.
"Hahaha! Ey see my appearance scare you little, da? Ha! Is no problem. Ey get it all time, am not offended!" the large fish-like person boisterously exclaimed, his tone growing warm and friendly despite his frightening form. "Am Vladimir Lagunov by way, good meet you all, yes?" the hulking man asked; jutting his hand forward in a welcoming gesture.
"Wait… wait a second, V-Vlad Lagunov?" Yuzuki shouted, an odd bit of shock in his voice.
Immediate fear leaving him after the strangely friendly gesture, Chuzzley was the first to respond. Taking the webbed hand and shaking it generously, he enthusiastically spoke back. "Well, wadda ya know? A real live talking Tuna sandwich! I's always wanted ta meet one a yous!"
His boss could only continue to gasp. "Vlad Lagunov!"
Said "Vlad" only let out another laugh his he took a seat directly to the right of the two. "Haha! Skeeny man is faunny! Am not tuna! Is long story, no want bore you…" he explained, helping himself to a shot of sake that looked like it would hit the spot at the moment.
Snapping out of it upon seeing his delectable drink being drunk, Yuzuki turned to his frizzle haired companion and bonked him on the head. "Damn it Chuzzley! Ya can't jus' go an' insult a man like dat! That's Vladimir Lagunov! Don't ya get it?" he demanded. "He's a highly professional mercenary! Ya should show im' a lil' respect!"
A sad frown appearing on his face, the gangster's companion turned his head down. "Aww, geez, sorry boss. I didn't know! Why's he a fish though? That ain't somethin' ya see every day!" he asked, taking a glance at the "highly professional" man who was currently chugging their liquor.
Letting out another guttural growl, Yuzuki pulled his bumbling companion in close and whispered. "Damn it! Do I have ta explain everythin' to ya's?" he asked, figuratively. "Now listen and listen good! A while back I read an article about him in 'No Good Scum Quarterly', and apparently he was like, a kid when dat big explosion in Russia happened and released all dat radiation. But cause he was so tough, it didn't kill him or nothin'! Just changed the guy inta a fish thing and made im' super strong!" he finished, nodding as he recounted the story with an overall glint in his eye.
Chugging down remnants of the sake, Vladimir laughed. "Haha! Yes! Leetle fat-man know lot about me, am flattered! Ees not exactly what happen though... Long story short, tiny little Vlad am tiny little boy living in tiny little village, who just love swim, every day, every night! Is fun! But then, radiations come and make vater strange. Vlad no longer just swim with fishes, he become fish! Haha!... Is not bad though, made me unbelievably strong, da!" he exclaimed in an energized and upbeat tone. "After that, eh, just typeecal life I suppose, you know. Grow up, use powers as advantage, become mercenary, wander round world, meet nice lady, marry nice lady, have preetty daughter, and still wander world today having lots of adventures!"
Yuzuki simply stared on in awe. Now this was a guy livin' the life! "Dat's great there Mr. Lagunov! But, umm… do ya want or need somethin' from us? I'd a think dat a guy like you'd a be busy with more important things!" he asked, curious, but feeling a bit fearful. A bruiser like this could snap him in two!
The talking fish-man's tone shifted and became more professional. "Actually, da, there ees something zat Ey wanted to talk to you both about. Ey couldn't help but listen een to za conversation that you were having earlier. It seems as eef that you and your friend are een a bit of pickle, no?" he asked, placing his right elbow on the counter and turning directly towards the two. "Well, I'd be willing to help. For price, of course."
A consternated look upon his face, Chuzzley was the first to respond. "Aww well, dat's real swell an' all, but we ain't got no money ta pay ya with!" he exclaimed, sticking his pockets out to show they were broke.
With a grimace, Yuzuki quickly jabbed his partner in the ribs. "Uhh, what he means ta say is, our current funds are situamated into several otha ventures at da the moment an' as such, we cannot purchase ya services… A cryin' shame that dat might be," he stated, doing damage control on their problematic situation. He didn't want themselves to look even worse in other people's eyesthan they already did!
Letting out another deep, baritone laugh, the Russian irradiated fish-man simply patted the bulky man before him on the shoulder, quickly returning to his jovial attitude. "Haha! Is alright. Direct payment is not always, how you say, necessary. Am willing to take it in other forms too, such as maybe… nice bracelet that you two be having?" he stated, peering his eyes over at the trinket.
Blinking at this statement, Yuzuki gripped the bracelet in his hand and started to grin broadly. "Oh, uh… dis' thing? You uh, want it, do ya? Hehe… now what could a guy like you do wid' one a dese?" he rhetorically asked, not expecting his recent good luck charm to pay off as quickly as it seemingly had.
The fish-man just smiled. "Da, looks nice. Never seen van like it. One of kind, special made, I'm guessing. It very important that I get it. You caught me in bit of jam here." Coughing once, he explained. "You see, Vlad promise mein little dotchka that he would bring huge present to her once he get home from recent job. Thing is, I complete job, and still have nothing her can bring her!" Vlad stated, nodding twice. "So tell you what. Eef you give me tiny bracelet so I can make daughter happy, I help take revenge on those people you vant to find. Is good deal, yes?"
Even though he was not exactly the brightest bulb in the box, Chuzzley knew giving away their only meal ticket probably wasn't the smartest idea. "Hey uhh, boss? Ya really wanna jus give it ta im' like dat? What'll we do fa food?" he asked rather urgently.
Growling again, Yuzuki pulled Chuzzley aside to give him a few choice words. "Damn it man, don't blow dis fer us! I knows what I'm doin'. Jus' think about it for a second!" He held up the bracelet to emphasize. "What'll dis lil' thingy get us anyways? A month or two a instant noodles? A week a fast food? Nothin' good in da long run! But dat' guy back dere? He's been in a magazine dat's probably read by hundreds! If we can say he's officially worked fer us, just think about how much cred it'll net us! We'll have thugs linin' up round da block ta join up! We'll be on top fer once!"
Seeing his companion's eyes widen, Yuzuki continued on. "And who cares about a few ready-made dinners anyways? Once we're really in business we'll be eatin' lobster so often you'll be sick a it! So just trust me alright? What could go wrong?" He let out a chuckle, this was gonna work out great!
Nodding quite enthusiastically at the idea, Chuzzley simply responded. "Aww wow, dat sure does sound swell! I can't believe I eva doubted ya boss!"
Turning to the mercenary; bracelet in his hand, Yuzuki felt full confidence in his actions. "Alright Mr. Lagunov, ya got yourself a deal dere. But just ta make sure dat we got everything squared an' such, I'll only give ya dis lil' bad boy afta da job is done, ya hear? It shouldn't be too hard. Da only reason dey took us in da first place was cause they caught us off guard! With us fully prepared, wipin' the floor wid em' should be a cinch!"
Rubbing his chin with a finned hand, Vlad contemplated the minor stipulation of the agreement. Shrugging once, he simply just nodded. "Ah, is fine! Should not take that long anyway! Only few hours at most… you have deal!" He thrust his hand forward, in a final gesture.
With a wide glint in his eye, Yuzuki grabbed at the man's finned fingers; shaking them vigorously. "Haha! Ya made yourself a fine choice dere pal! Dis'll be a piece a cake with you on board. We'll pound dos' punks, no problem!"
Happy that everything seemed to be, for once, going well for them, the big-eyed bumbler absently looked down at hit watch, which caused him to gasp! "Uh oh, fellas. The big hand on my thing here went around again! Dat means it's…. two o' clock!" the dimwitted Chuzzley exclaimed, urgency filling his voice.
Yelping, Yuzuki grabbed the wrist of his friend and examined things for himself. "Aw crud, he's right! We really won't ever make it in time now!" the stoutly man exclaimed; letting go of his counterpart's arm; just about ready to start bemoaning his tragedy of a life once again.
Grimacing slightly, Vladimir though stayed strong and took the initiative. "Excuse me… just vhen you say they be leaving?" he asked with curiously.
An annoyed look still plastered on his face, Yuzuki simply replied, "Four o' clock I hear. I don't think we can make it in time."
As if a light bulb went off in his head, the talking fish-man smiled and waved his arm off at the statement. "Haha! That not issue at all! They go Toyama, yes? We make it in time."
Lips pursing, Chuzzley craned his neck upon hearing the rather cocksure response. "Aw, but how we gonna do dat, Mr. Tuna-man?"
Turning to completely face his two new employers, Vlad's fish-faced smile never left his face. "You know how I say I travel world so can make money? Vell, when I am in Germany, mein favorite thing to do is travel… on zee autobahn."
Seated in the backseat of a limousine that was currently speeding itself across central Japan, five intrepid adventurers sat resting and relaxing in luxury; readying themselves for the next harrowing part of the journey ahead. Akane was treating herself to one of the various soft drinks found in an adjacent cooler, while Shampoo was attempting to hold a conversation with her Airens, as well as marveling the soft cushioning of the seats. And all the while Ryoga was simply just taking in the joy of not having to worry about getting lost; for at least the moment, anyway.
"It sure was lucky that we managed ta hitch a ride like this just sort of out of the blue," Ranma's male form exclaimed from within Shampoo's grasp; a sense of relief filling his voice. "I'd a hate having to sweat it bustin' our butts tryin' to high tail it to the bay on foot!"
Ryoga, while absently looking out the window, just snorted. "Who'd be the ones 'high tailing' it anyway? We're the ones who're doing all the work."
Not one to take that lying down, a particular red chúi interjected, "Hey! How many times do we have ta go over this with ya? It ain't our fault that stupid spell didn't give us any legs! Besides, we're tryin' to fix everythin' right now anyway! So just cram it!" she exclaimed; narrowing her eyes.
Shampoo, not wanting to put up with their bickering throughout the entirety of their trip, tried to mitigate. "Airens and pig-boy no need fight. Everything is okay now, remember? We riding in too too nice car that take us to too too nice boat! And then, we get Ranmas all fixed!" she exclaimed in a upbeat tone; finally glad that things were, for once, going their way.
Taking a sip from her soda, Akane just nodded. "That's right everyone! We should be happy. Ryoga's little detour actually managed to help us in the end."
"Yeah, well, let's just hope that we don't have to put up with too many 'detours' once we get to China," The obsidian chúi warned; not even liking to think about running around a place that huge to find the bandanna wearing boy. "I may a spent a bit of time trainin' there, but the place is friggin' massive! Trust me pig-breath, if ya get yourself lost there you're on your own! It'll probably take years ta find ya!" 'Tryin' ta find a needle in a haystack? Ha! More like tryin' ta find an ant in an elephant's cage… or, err, somethin'.'
Actually taking Ranma seriously for once, Ryoga just grumbled, "Yeah, yeah, I'll be careful. I know we've got business that needs to be taken care of, so I won't screw up, okay?" he stated, crossing his arms. Despite his arrogant tone, he was paying attention. He didn't want to make a fool of himself again.
"And no more a those dumb 'heroics' ya been pullin'!" the red chúi abrasively said, remembering back to earlier. "I don't know what angle you've been tryin' ta pull lately, but ya need ta cut it out! We can't go stoppin' every five minutes fer ya ta rescue a cat outta a tree!" She "hmphed"; really wishing she could bop the idiot on the head for his antics.
"Ranma you bast-"
But before Ryoga could finish his retort, the car swerved and made a hard right; causing the teens to abruptly jolt in their seats. Akane smoothly managed to spill a large amount of the sticky carbonated drink all over her face as well. "Oh darn it, now that's just great," she mumbled as she rummaged through her pack, looking for the set of wet wipes.
Still tightly holding on to the pair of chúi, the purple haired Amazon let out a breath she was unconsciously holding in. "Stupid–stupid idiot car-person! Don't he know there peoples back here? He could make people hurt!" she asked sharply, glaring daggers up at the unhearing driver.
Slightly confused at the mild case of "road-rage" the girl was having, Ranma's male form began to inquire; trying to start up a conversation. "Hey, what's the matter Shampoo? You're actin' like ya ain't never been in a car before or somethin'," he asked before adding a tale of his own. "Heh, I remember a few years back, my Pop's managed ta swindle a guy outta his in a card game. And man he drove like a maniac! We only had it a few weeks before he crashed the thing into a river..."
Still feeling her indignant mood, Shampoo only really managed to take mild interest in what he said. "Is funny story Airen… but it nothing like that. Shampoo definitely been in car before, it just she no do it too often. Much prefer bike, it good exercise!" she exclaimed, her tone lightening up slightly.
"Hehe, yeah, ya sure do. If I was human I'd probably still have the bruise from when ya rammed me with that ten-speed tumbler a yours!" the black hammer exclaimed in a rather amused tone, though with a tinge of annoyance in his voice.
Blushing slightly, the chúi wielding warrior started to feel a tad embarrassed. "Ah, Shampoo sorry about that Airen! I sometimes get excited sometimes! Hehe!... She sorry." the girl stated rather apologetically. Shampoo had always seemed to have had a bit of trouble keeping control of her inhibitions. It was one of her main Achilles heels when it came to fighting. She could never really focus enough on a single emotion for her to learn some of the heavier hitting ki attacks. It was for that reason that she preferred to specialized in weapons more than anything else, though she was still able to master a few, such as her ki tracking technique.
Chuckling nervously a bit, Ranma's male form flinched; figuring he had accidentally hit a sore spot. "Eh, don't worry about it Shamps. I'm just teasin' ya, is all! Everythin' bout' that is water under the bridge, okay?" he asked in a rather nonchalant tone; hoping she wouldn't take him too seriously. 'Stupid… Me an my big mouth! Why the heck do I keep on screwin' up like this around people?'
Looking up from where she was hiding her face, the purple haired girl simply just nodded unsurely. If she hadn't of stopped to greet him on that day, then all the trouble they were going though might not have happened. "You mean it?.."
Ryoga at that moment interjected. "Are you kidding me? That idiot's stupid insults are half the reason I learned the Shishi Hokodan in the first place! The best way to handle em' is to just try and ignore the jerk."
"Oh please, like you even learned to do that!" The fiery red chúi exclaimed; really wishing she could stick her tongue out at the boy right now. "Otherwise me just talkin' to ya wouldn't be tickin' ya off so bad!"
Finally finishing her impromptu clean up, Akane joined in on the conversation. "Now don't get started like this right now, you two! What'll that make it, the fourteenth time today you've started going at it?" she asked, eyes darting between both the Ranmas and Ryoga. "Could you please give it a rest for once?"
"Yeah, fine, whatever,we'll try and cool off at each other, I guess…" the black chúi mumbled, trying to shrug things off as best as he could. "Anyway, like I said, there's nothin' to worry about Shampoo. Besides, Akane smacks me way harder than that bike a yours any day!" he exclaimed, trying to lighten the mood.
Smiling a bit, the violet haired girl joined in the charade. "Mmm-hmm, is true!" she nodded, fully getting into the act. "Pervert-girl always smash Airen like brick! Shampoo wonder how your head take it!" she exclaimed in a mocking tone.
"Oh yeah, don't get me started on that time one a her hits left me in a cast!" Ranma's female form continued on. "Luckily, I healed up real quick. But that still doesn't top when she…"
Growling and clutching the hem of her dress, the youngest Tendo tried her best to bear the barrage of vocal blows; though after another minute or so of them going at it, she was ready to explode! "Oh, would both of you just quit it already? When I said to stop bickering with Ryoga, I didn't mean for you to try and go after me!"
Wanting to make himself look good in front of the woman he admired, the eternally lost boy couldn't help but join in to assist her. "Yeah Ranma, you should stop being so damn childish. Akane deserves better than that!" he yelped, pointing his index finger towards the two chúi.
Ranma's male form just let out a snort. "Heh, lighten up for a minute, tomboy. We're just havin' fun. Besides, there ain't all that much we can do right now, ya know?" he said, trying to ease tempers.
Shampoo just nodded enthusiastically at the statement, her momentary minute of discontent quickly leaving her. "Mmm-hmm, Ranmas is right! Is too, too boring in here right now. We need thing to talk about!" she yelped in a "matter-of-fact" tone.
Ryoga just narrowed his eyes at the lot. "Yeah, well, let's just hope you don't get like this too much while on the boat," he mumbled in a annoyed tone. Two Ranmas was bad enough, having the Amazon girl join in on their antics would annoy him to no end!
It was at that moment, that the group found themselves coming to an abrupt halt as the car's engine powered down and the rumblings of the vehicle ceased.
"Huh? Hey, we stopped!" the red chúi exclaimed, the first one to say anything. "W-wait! Are we there? Did we finally make it to that damn ship?" she questioned, her eyes darting over to anyone who might have the answer.
Taking a look out of her window, Akane's eyes widened at the sight as the mid-day sun started to sparkle across the bay of Toyama prefecture's namesake, creating a beautiful visage that was a welcome change to all the troubles they had come across as of late. Clapping her hands she turned to the rest, who were peering out into the distance as well. "Oh, we must have gotten so preoccupied with ourselves that we completely missed out on just how far along we've gotten! This is great!"
"Heck yeah, it is!" the black hammer exclaimed. "Finally, we can get started on movin' on ta China and getting this damn problem over with!"
At that moment, the limousine's door opened, ushering in brightness as the driver who brought them all this way stood before them. "I do believe we've reached the destination that you all specified. We're right in the industrialized tip of the area. Is this as far as you would like me to take you?" the Kudo family's assistant asked; holding the door open as the teens made their way out.
"No, is alright," Shampoo stated, literally hopping out in her happy state. "Great-Grandmother gave us map; is not that far from here. It should only take few minutes!"
"Question is, do we even have that?" Ryoga asked while stretching, finally glad to be able to move his legs once more.
Blinking at the statement, Akane turned her eyes towards the watch strapped to her wrist and gasped "Guys, it's fifteen minutes to four! We're going to be late if we don't hurry!"
"Aw crap!" The black hammer exclaimed, a new worrisome expression forming upon his face. "Hey, mister! Thanks for the ride, but we really gotta bolt! If we don't get goin' right away we'll be stuck here for who knows how long!"
After several agreements, "thank yous", handshakes and various apologies for spilled liquids, the five to rushed off. They had a boat to catch!
Deep within the bowels of the S.S. Water Dragon's cargo hold, three men sat hidden, waiting for when their prey would arrive so they could strike. Vladimir had driven at practically subsonic velocity to get his two employers to their destination. And against all practical odds he had managed to do just that. While though battered and bruised from the sudden jerks of movement in the automobile, they managed to get there well before their marks could even touch the soil below their feet.
"I still can't believe we managed ta stash ourselves away in ere'," Yuzuki whispered, trying and failing to get himself comfortably situated amongst the wooden cargo around him. "I mean, swimin' along da side an' punchin' a hole fer us ta squeeze through? Mr. Lagunov, ya sure are a genius. And who'd a thunk ya actually had scuba gear right in da trunk? Ya came prepared fer everythin'," he stated, indicating towards the attire that he and his bumbling friend were currently wearing. His special treasure was also hidden away in one of the pouches that adorned the suit.
Quieting down so as to not be heard, Vlad only let out a small laugh. "Haha. It come with territory, friend. When you fish-man, you swim. When you mercenary fish-man, you work with people who need swim," he stated; moving his eyes over to their recent entry point. "Just hope people driving no notice anyting suspicious about boat. Vlad try and fix hole he smash in, but it may look like leetle ding from outside..." the Russian man warned, peering at his comrades. "We probably take off before ven, though."
Sitting in between both of them, Chuzzley couldn't help but hold a curious glint in his eyes; wondering just what this tiny ship was actually carrying. "Aww gee dere fellas, dese guys suuuure are carrying a lot a stuff right here. I wonda what all it is…"
Wanting him to stop fidgeting, Yuzuki gave his friend an eye. "Keep ya mitts ta yourself dere Chuzz. We got otha things ta worry about! We can ransack dis joint afta we take care a business," he finished, a tiny smile appearing upon his face at the fact that they'd have a load of extra doodads to pawn off after the end of things.
Growing more serious at the moment, the blue skinned hired hand tried to vocalize some of his thoughts. "Yes… it is shame though that we no get to think up proper form of assault against targets. But I vould think simple gorilla tacteecs should suffice on such a tiny vessel. If worse come worse, we just sink ship!" he said, pounding one of his gilled fists into his palm to finalize things. "But tell, before vey get here, who exactly vill we be figh-" But before he could finish, a loud thumping from up above caused a momentary end to their conversation as the sounds of people stirring waved through their ears.
Over on the deck of the Water Dragon, Shampoo, Akane, Ryoga and the two chúis boarded themselves on the boat with great frenzy and anxiousness, having just spent the last ten or so minutes dodging and looking around for this exact ship.
"This it? We finally here?" Ranma's male form asked urgently, ki eyes darting about in an erratic fashion.
"Boat's name is 'Water Dragon', it has to be. Great-Grandmother no lie," Shampoo answered back assuredly, scoping out the area. The ship around them was simple, but neatly kept. It had a modern design that was colored in white with a dash of blue streaks painted on to cancel any sense of monotony. It was roughly medium in size and looked to be able to hold about a dozen or so individuals.
"Not bad," Ryoga stated, taking a look around while setting down the various packs and carry-on items that he had insisted he keep a hold of for the girls.
It was then though that three black suited men discretely made their way out onto the deck from the interior portion of the boat. While seemingly not aggressive, to the teens they did look quite intimidating. Never one to let her guard down, Akane formed a fighting stance out of habit. It was only when one of the sharply dressed suits placed out his hand in a welcoming gesture did she snap out of it
"You must be our clients for the time being, I assume?" the middle professional asked, still holding out his hand. "We were starting to wonder if you were going to show up. Luckily though you all arrived just on time."
Blinking, Akane accepted the gesture, shaking the man's hand firmly. "Yeah, um, sorry about that… It's- it's a long story," she smiled; sheepishly.
"Mmm-hmm, just glad it over," Shampoo stated with a sense a relief in her voice. "Oh, hello there peoples!" she added, hopping over to the forefront with Akane.
The man to the farthest right of the group just smiled. "Ah yes, you're Ms. Shampoo, the Granddaughter to Madame Cologne, right? How is she? I do hope she's doing well," he asked, looking down at the girl before him.
Nodding wholeheartedly, the lavender haired girl replied, "Great-Grandmother doing just fine! She say you alls hope you enjoy new shipment of supplies! She pick out best especially for you!"
A curious glint in her eye, the red hammer inquired, "Hey, how the heck do ya guys know the old ghoul anyway? No offense, but ya don't seem ta be the type that she'd hang out with all too often."
Unfazed by this, the one farthest left answered, "Madame Cologne provides us with an assortment of herbs and incenses that are hard or nearly impossible to find on the market nowadays. We buy them off of her and any sort of profit we make, she gets a percent of. Currently, along with you, we're shipping some of her products."
Understanding now reaching him, the black chúi responded, "Ah, I get it… So you're like, what's that word Nabiki said once?... A bunch a exporters and junk," he reasoned, clarity in his voice. "So that's why you're lettin' us come with you! We're basically jus' hitchin' a ride!" he finished in a "matter-of-fact" tone.
Giving stoic, unintelligible glances between each other, one of apparent traders answered, "Yes. something of that sort."
"What I'm more wondering is just why you guys don't seem to be freaking out that you're talking to a hammer," a certain lost boy wondered, gripping his hand on to the rail of the ship, not wanting to wander off.
The central "businessman" was the first to respond. "Well, let's just say that in our line of work, oddities and other strange factors are quite commonplace. And regardless, it's not our place to ask." Smoothly though, he changed subjects. "Though I'm sure you're all ready to get a move on with things." Turning to his two associates, he bellowed his orders. "Get the others and prepare everything for launch. I think it's only right if I give our clients a tour and show them where they'll be staying while on the Dragon."
From there on the group was given a brief walk around the ship; showing them their chambers, the kitchen, bathroom and even giving them a glance at the helm, for novelties sake, as the varying members of the small crew prepped the remaining tasks for take off.
It was a short time after launch though that the lot of teenagers was settling down in their cabin, unpacking their supplies and generally relaxing. The room they had was rather small, with just a single twin size bed, two bunks and a desk. Cozy would be the "polite" way to describe it.
Unfortunately though, polite was not a word most often used in a certain black chúi's dictionary. "Man this place is a dump." he said, deadpan. "Hey, Shampoo. How long ya say we'd be riding on this thing again? I don't wanna go catchin' a case a cabin fever!"
Plopping herself down on the twin sized bed and placing the two chúis next to her, Shampoo stretched; glad to have the weight of both her weapons off of her. "Shampoo remember last time she ride here. It no take long; just two days or so. We be in China real, real soon!" she happily exclaimed, before an odd look formed itself on her face.
"So umm, just how leaky is this boat would you say?" Ryoga awkwardly asked, shifting around. "Like, did you ever get, soaked or anything?" He looked directly at Akane.
Blinking a few times but still keeping her features scrunched, Shampoo responded in a dazed-like state. "Ah… no. No. Shampoo no get splashed when last time she ride with peoples. Though this not same boat as before," she finished, shifting her gaze about as if she was looking for something.
Picking up on this, Ranma's male form began to inquire. "Hey uh, Shampoo, you doin' alright? You're actin' as if somethin's wrong.," he said in a slightly worried tone.
"She's probably just getting her sea legs," Akane stated, trying to keep her balance before sitting down, taking the bottom bunk of the bed. "I know I am."
Shaking her head Shampoo refuted, "No, no… it just… well, you know ki tracking move Great-Grandmother teach me? Shampoo feel something familiar. She no know what yet though," she finished, her tone shifting to quiet and sober.
"Whadda ya mean 'familiar'?" the red Ranma asked. "Maybe it's just one a the guys who's taking us that you remember from before," she tried to reason, not really liking the sound of what she was hearing. 'Oh geez, like we need another thing screwin' us over an makin' things worse!"
Shaking her head again, the young Amazon elaborated, "No… that not it at all. Shampoo never met these same peoples before. It was different bunch that take me last time. They just work for same persons as before," she said, as if it made all the sense in the world. Feeling anxious, she stood up and started to pace. "But Shampoo not sure… it not seem too familiar, just recent, like seeing same person out on street twice. No know why we find them on boat though."
Shrugging off the Chinese girl's ruminations, Ryoga waved his hand. "Eh, it's probably nothing. I mean who'd be dumb enough to try and do anything to us here?"
As if on cue, moments after the lost boy uttered his last syllable, an explosion ruptured throughout the ship; shaking and wobbling it to the core. As the group held on, a ruckus could be heard right on the deck above them, with people, both of the crew and not, yelling about. What was even more curious to the kids was the sound of gunfire ringing through the boat's corridors.
"The hell's going on?" the black chúi yelled, having already been picked up by Shampoo; her not wanting to lose them due to some strange happenstance.
"I don't know, but we're not going to figure it out just standing here!" Akane exclaimed.
Seconds later, up topside, the group could only stare wide eyed as the image before them played out. Several of the crew members fired what appeared to be handguns at a gigantic fish, and curiously enough, two of the thugs that they had thought to have vanquished earlier; both of them donned in scuba gear.
"Unbelievable!" The Captain exclaimed, firing his pistol at the annoyingly dodgy gentlemen before him. "These people are actually trying to commandeer aship under the control of The Triads! Damn it! Kill these bastards; we've got to protect both the passengers and the cargo!" he ordered, reloading his gun as another of his men was slammed against the boat.
Vladimir was currently not in the best of moods, having come across a bump in the road in their plans. "You did no tell me vat boat workers would be armed!" he exclaimed, batting back a barrage of bullets with his oddly durable finned hands; using them like miniature shields.
Dodging the slugs and dancing about like a bunch of fools, Yuzuki and Chuzzley were just as at ends as the fish-man was. "I didn't have a clue eitha! What do dese guys need so damn many guns fer?" he loudly questioned, angrily sucker punching one of the men in his frustration.
An extremely fearful expression on his face, Chuzzley could only do everything in his power to avoid getting shot. "Aww geez boss, I'm startin' ta think dat goin afta dese guys was a baaaad idea! I don't wanna end up like a piece a Swiss cheese!" he wailed, weaving his way through the bullet hell; managing to perform an overly dramatic karate chop that surprisingly managed to take out another of the crew.
It was at that moment that a certain black chúi slammed itself into the part-fish, catching him off guard and getting him nicked in the shoulder by one of the ricocheting shells. "I'll say it again: What the hell is going on?"
"Shampoo recognize ki now, Airen!" The purple haired Amazon exclaimed, forming her battle stance. "It from peoples we fought earlier!"
"These creeps managed to follow us all the way here?" Akane asked, taking her combat form right next to Shampoo. "Did we really make them that mad?"
"I knew these punks were no good from the start!" Ryoga stated. "Stealing a kid is one thing, but boat-napping? That's one step too far. But I don't recognize that blue guy with gills. I don't think he was with them last time…"
"You all!" Yuzuki yelled, finally pounding the last of the remaining non-Nerimian resistance unconscious. "It's because a all of you's dat I lost most a my gang! Ya practically ruined me!" he rambled, anger and rage within his voice. "So now we're gonna pound ya and prove we're all not just a bunch a wimps!"
Noticing that they were the only ones left, with the entirety of the crew incapacitated, the red chúi grimaced. "Crap, these guys don't know how to take a punch, do they?"
Taking the initiative, Ryoga stepped forward and cracked his knuckles. "It doesn't matter at this point. Let's just beat the stuffing outta these guys and get it over with!" he yelled with finality.
Putting pressure on the area where he was lightly bleeding, Vlad only grunted and turned to his two employers. "Fighting gun-person's was only minor set back. Everything ees good to go now. We beat up these people, you save face, I get bracelet. Sound good, da?" he asked, forming a battle stance. "After that, we go separate ways."
"As if we're gonna let ya!" Ranma's male form exclaimed. And with that, Shampoo and the other fighters leapt forth after each other as the rocky boat careened about dangerously. The purple haired girl and Ryoga charged to take on Vlad, leaving Akane to deal with the two other idiots singlehandedly.
Only going at a limited capacity, not wanting to sink the ship due to some foolhardy actions, Shampoo and the depression wielding ki user only started off their initial assault with a barrage of standard strikes. Shampoo slammed her hammers into her foe's sturdy chest, while Ryoga beat on him with a bombardment of strong punches and kicks earned from years of training in the wilderness. The fish-man tried to do his best to block everything.
"Haha! Leetle children are very strong! Am quite impress!" Vlad exclaimed, a wide grin upon his face. "But I warn you, I been fighting peoples like you for years!" he swiftly said, before a sudden shimmer of light bounced off of one off his fins and he jutted his arm forward; slashing Ryoga with blade-like precision.
"Gahh!" the part-time pig moaned in the gutter of his voice as he shot back in pain; his chest bleeding.
"Ryoga!' Akane yelled, worry in her tone as she attempted to take on the two nit-wits before her, finding it surprisingly hard to manage to get a hit on them. "Hold still damn it!" she said, throwing another punch but in return receiving a knick to her chin as the bumbling buffoon Chuzzley got a hit on her
The eternally lost boy though just grimaced as he put pressure on the wound he had just obtained. It wasn't bad thankfully, not even that deep, but the sharpness and how fine of a cut the fin made was what surprised him. "What the hell are those things made of? Steel or something?"
Vlad meanwhile was fending off against Shampoo, who had doubled in her efforts once Ryoga had momentarily backed out of the foray. He was surprised that such a pretty young girl held herself in such a manner of a warrior. Nevertheless though, he replied to the boy with his usual enthusiasm. "Haha! Is very good, yes? My fins are very special. They so big, they block attacks! But edges so sharp, they cut people! They are, how you would say, very handy, yes? Hahaha!"
With that, he once again thrust forth his dynamic digits;aiming to take out Shampoo from the mix. The Amazonian heroine though managed to quickly duck from the blow and in return slammed the blackchúi into his left knee, causing him to scream and land hard on his back. "Stupid fish-person! Hand attack is just dumb trick! She no fall for it!"
Flinging her other arm down, about to unleash the final blow, Vladimir deftly spun around clockwise and struck her just as she had him. "Leetle purple girl must know, powers not just in hands! Vlad ees fish, so his skin's sleeck like one too!" he exclaimed, jumping upwards but still rubbing his struck leg. "Got to hand though, you pack big wallop. Was not expecting at all!" he affirmed. "So tell you what, because you so strong, Vlad show you some very faunny moves, okay?" he asked with a large smile plastered upon his face.
Growling, Shampoo slowly got up. "Airens, I's think this guy is just playing with us right now! We need finish this too too quickly! No want to hurt boat!" Turning her head down, she directed her visage to the black hammer. "Guy-Ranma, Shampoo need you to transform! We use super powerful new move yous come up with! We blow stupid silly fish-man away!"
Blinking his ki eyes, the black chúi unsurely responded, "Are ya sure that's a good idea Shampoo? This'll be the first time we used it in a real fight! Who knows what'll happen!" he exclaimed, a slightly worried sound in his voice.
Smiling down at the boy, the bubbly Amazon just nodded excitedly. "Uh-huh, Shampoo really want to use it! It look like too too much fun! Pleeeease?..." she giddily asked, acting much like a child on Christmas.
"Well, alright, I guess..." he said, still reluctant, before reaffirming himself. He simply couldn't refuse the pleading look in her eyes. "Hey uh, Ryoga, are you good to go? We need ya ta hold this guy off while we charge up fer a minute!" he stated, directing his ki eyes over to the lost boy.
Nodding his head once, Ryoga finished applying a bandanna bandage to his cut and prepared to enter combat once more. He whipped out his umbrella as Shampoo and her black metallic companion began to charge their assault. "Whatever moves you might have won't work! We're on an important mission here and you're not going to stop us no matter what!" he vowed, charging forth as he unleashed a flurry of sharp strikes at the man, who continued to block and dodge anything that was launched before him. 'Damn, this could be over so quickly! But I can't risk using the shishi hokodan or breaking point right now. It could destroy the entire ship!'
"Haha! Umbrella man talk big, but you much too eager. Makes you… look… sloppy!" Vlad exclaimed, pushing the part-time pig back before something rather strange happened. The fish-man's body stance changed, loosening himself up as a thick bulge expanded outward from his neck! And before anyone could question or ask about, it Vlad rapidly started shooting out what looked to be giant globs of water from his mouth, right at Ryoga!
Eyes swiftly widening at the implications, Ryoga put his all into dodging and avoiding the shots; knowing regardless of how much they might hurt, getting soaked would mean an inevitable pounding via Akane Tendo! Thoughts of all the time he spent with the blue haired girl as P-chan were now finally coming back to haunt Ryoga's mind as he ran amuck aboard the ship. What made things worse, was upon hitting the boat, the blasts would cause huge chunks of debris to splinter off, giving him a nasty set of cuts! "Geez! What the hell kind of attack is that?"
"Wai-wai-wait! Is that- is he?- Is he spitting at us?" the red hammer asked with a disgusted tone in her voice, still waiting for Shampoo to finish preparing the male-Ranma's transformation.
"Haha! You like, no?" Vlad asked, in between firing shots. "It great fun move I learn many years back. It turn out that I can store water in body and fire it out at extra high velocity! It come in very handy, haha!" he exclaimed, continuing his onslaught. The ship was not in good shape at this point. With no one at the helm it had been careening off course for a while now, and the excess damage going about was in no way helping it keep afloat.
"You bastard…" Ryoga bellowed. "Wipe that smug grin off your face! Just stand still, I'll get you one way or another!" Though truthfully, he was at wits ends here. He simply couldn't get within close range without risking becoming more porcine. And that would ruin everything, especially for him!
It was just then though, as he seemingly lost track of his surroundings, that another barrage of deep blue spittle shot itself right toward him. Doing his best to maneuver around it, he absently forgot that a certain purple haired girl was currently channeling her ki at Ranma just a few feet behind him!
Shampoo's eyes widened as her shocked features could only stare at the shot of water coming directly towards her. Unable to move due to her ki charging, she winced.
Shampoo got splashed.
At the same time as this, Akane was doing her best to decommission her own set of wily weirdos. Despite their silly appearance and strange antics, they were actually quite competent at fighting. It was honestly starting to make her annoyed. What was starting to make her more annoyed though, was listening to both of them venomously insulting her!
"Ey, dis lil' dame actually ain't dat half bad, I gotta admit!" Yuzuki exclaimed while attempting to slam his elbow into her gut. "Who'd a thunk a chick like dis could be so macho, huh Chuzz?" he asked in a surprisingly non-condescending way, which to Akane simply made things worse.
"Dah, yeah, I know what ya's sayin' dere boss; she can wallop one real good!" Not being a slouch himself though, he tried his own measure of attack, after dancing around a sharp kick from the girl, he gave her a sharp kick to the back!
Growling at the hit, Akane leapt forth. "I can be perfectly feminine when I want to be you two idiots! The very image of a proper young lady even!" she reaffirmed, before continuing. "But not right now! Stand still so I can wring your necks!"
His short and stout size working quite well for him in this instance, Yuzuki lunged away, escaping her grasp. Sadly though, Chuzzley was not so lucky, as his tall and lanky form made his neck ample for plucking! Not being so cruel as to just strangle him to death though, Akane juggled the man in midair, giving a flurry of fisticuffs, free of charge! Kicking him back, the frizzle haired fiend slammed himself right into an empty crate.
Akane smirked as she cracked her knuckles. "Pretty neat huh? I've been watching Ranma a lot lately, checking out his moves! That right there was my take on the chestnut fist! It's not up to par yet, but it still packs a heck of a punch!" she said, glad the amping up of her training was finally paying off. While nowhere near as good as Ranma's, the blue haired girl figured being able to throw at least fifty punches in the span of a second wasn't too shabby.
Moaning over himself, Chuzzley wobbly raised his arm and gave a "thumbs ups". "Uh, umm, I'm okay…" he muttered, picking himself up.
Rubbing his hand over his face, Yuzuki could only just grimace at his partner's ineptitude. The pig-nosed thief decided he needed to kick things up a notch. "Alright, alright! we gotta stop screwin' around like a bunch a idiots!" He hopped backwards, preparing for something big. "It's time dat we's whipped out da big guns an' end dis thing once an fer all! I wanna take on dat bandanna punk myself!"
Flinching a bit at the remark, the blue haired girl focused herself. 'These guys haven't been half bad up to this point! If they're not taking me seriously now, then I may be in trouble… I've gotta take em' down!' she thought as she assessed the happenings around her. She knew if she wanted to do this properly, she'd have to get angry! As such, she started to rile herself up! 'Oh… why the complete nerve of those idiotic jerks! First calling me macho, and now not going full out from the start? Who do they think they are? I should pound them right into the pavement!'
As the girl started grinning, already feeling the heat rising up in her, the pig-nosed thief made sure to not let her get a chance at things! Using his brilliant on the spot planning, he started to unleash his ultimate finishing move! Leaping forward, he pulled out what looked to be a patchwork potato sack! "Yuzuki Yamamoto's Special Specialty: Snatch an' Steal!"
"Uwah?" Akane could only yelp out as she was forcibly forced into a linen prison!
Tying a knot quickly and sealing it shut, the yakuza wannabe let out a deep chuckle over his triumph. "Ahahaha! Did ya get a good look at da chick's face dere Chuzz?" he said, swinging the bag violently. "It was absolutely priceless!"
Clapping his hands, Chuzzley could only cheer his friend on, finally recovered from his recent blow. "Aww wow, dat sure was a a nice trick ya pulled dere boss! Trappin' her in da bag just like ya did da little blonde lady!" he roared, watching the Tendo heir writhe within her confines. "But whatta we gonna do with her now, huh?" he asked.
Shrugging a little, Yuzuki just continued to swing the sack back and forth. "Ehh, it don't matta. We can throw er' inta da water I guess…" he said, before his eyes lit up. "Yeah, yeah… we can do it jus' like real mobster's do! We'll have her, ehehe, sleep wid da fishies!" he smugly stated, slowly making his way over to the edge of the ship.
But before he could accomplish his task, Akane ripped her impromptu jail cell to pieces, leaving the stoutly man wide eyed! "The hell you are!" she exclaimed, kicking him back while in midair! She simply stared the man down, slowly maneuvering her way over to him. "A bag? You thought you could beat me with a bag?" she furiously questioned; each of her steps rattling the boat as she enclosed on her momentary entrapper. "What kind of idiot are you?" she demanded, smacking him hard, right in the jaw with her clenched fist! In the process of doing so, she accidentally knocking the treasured diamond encrusted bracelet to fall out of his pouch and onto the floor below them. "Do you think I'm weak or something?" Hit. "Do you think I'm just some pathetic loser?" Punch. "Do you think I'm so worthless that a stupid little sack could hold me?" Kick to the face. "Well I'll show you… I'll show you how much of a weak, worthless loser I am!"
And just then, right as she was charging her ki up to deal the final blow, something unexpected happened! Flying through the air, the foolish idiot that was Chuzzley rammed his leg into her gut, forcing her to zoom away from her prey! "Get away from da boss-man! I ain't gonna let'cha hurt im' ya bully!" he cried, standing in front of her and the battered form of Yuzuki.
Landing hard, Akane grimaced. 'Erk… that idiot can actually hit pretty well when he wants to… and what was that thing he just said?' Shakily standing up, the blue haired girl wiped a small amount of blood that was forming on her lower lip. "What the hell are you blabbering about? He was the one who was about to try and kill me! Don't start acting like I'm picking on some little kid!" she growled. 'How dare these idiots try and take the moral high ground!'
Putting up the best defense he could muster, Chuzzley reaffirmed himself. "I don't care!" he said finitely. "I don't care what da boss did or nothin'! I ain't gonna let ya hurt im', cause he's ma friend!"
Simply just standing aghast for a moment, Akane intuitively crossed her arms. "No."
"Huh?" Chuzzley asked.
"No, I'm not letting you," she answered back. "Right now, you're about to deliver some sappy speech, but I'm not gonna let you." Akane answered, slowly directing ki into her hand. "If it's not some dumb story about wanting to get revenge, it's some sob story! I hear it every week!" Holding up her ball of energy, power flowed through her! "But you know what? You tried to drown me, and I'm not a big fan of water!" She took one step forward. "So I'm ending this now!"
"Uhh… uh oh…" Chuzzley gulped, his plan failing to seemingly even take off.
Looking down at the two, Akane could only just grin as she charged forth at her hapless foes! Running with all the might she thrust her arm forward. "Ogre's Roaring Rage!" she exclaimed as she rammed the fiery shot right into the tiny nosed man's chest. It merely just stayed there for a moment, leaving just enough time for him to let out a "gulp", before blasting both Chuzzley and Yuzuki far off into the horizon.
As the two bumbling thieves rode Akane airlines, Chuzzley could only just raise up his hands in a shrugging gesture as he apologized. "Well, gee dere boss. I sure did try at least! But hey, we still got's da jewels!"
"Chuzzley… you idiot…" Yuzuki's stated; his eyes widened though. Still flailing through the air, he used his mitts to fondle around for his precious prize, before he realized a certain parcel was missing. "Oh crap."
Back with Akane, she simply just smiled as she watched the two dolts fade away off into the sky. "So, what do you guys think of the new name I came up with, huh? I mean, Ranma always seems to think that I'm some sort of big ogre, so why not live up to it?" she asked, slowly turning around. But her smugness was short lived, as she looked just in time to see Shampoo get hit.
Time seemingly slowed for Shampoo as the water soaked into her and the magics of Jusenkyo's curse took hold. The two hammers could only stare as they were harshly dropped to the floor below, all ideas of defense whisked away as the terrifying sight of Shampoo turning into a cat was burned into their retinas.
Just as quickly as it began, existence rushed forward and the newly minted Chinese feline stared, confused, bewildered and a little frightened. Quickly going about and reassessing her surrounding, she turned around, locating the two Ranmas and started meowing profusely at them. Her cries though came to be unintelligible as only she could understand her kitty-speak. Sadly it was causing some very adverse effects for a certain pair of chúis.
Both hammers were finding themselves stuck in a particularly interesting spot of trouble at the moment. Usually, whenever Ranma came into contact with a cat, he or she would do their best to run, pull it off of them, or just generally get away from the monstrous beasty as soon as possible. But in their current hammer-ized states, immobility was one of their biggest annoyances. They honestly couldn't do anything as the cat blathered on about whatever it was speaking of.
Focusing himself the best he could, the black chúi tried to reason with the foul monstrosity. "S-Shampoo… ya, ya gotta go… ya gotta get outta here! Get some water or somethin'! I- dunno, just- just do it quick!" he exclaimed in a stuttered and broken speech pattern, trying his best to stay calm.
Sadly though, Ranma's female form was not fairing as well as her counterpart. Her thoughts were locked up. She could only stare into the soulless, evil eyes that only held death! It didn't matter that she knew it was Shampoo on the inside; once you become one of those hideous… creatures, any sense of true humanity has to be lost on you! It'd be the only way to stay sane! As she looked on, practically hypnotized by the meowing and hissing, Ranma could only mutter incoherently. "No… don't, no- no! Go away! Away! Away! No, no, no!" Her screams became frantic, eyes now darting to the ends of their reach. Quickly, her mind started to reminisce; of being tied up, the days in the pit, the cats, the fish… she remembered, she remembered so clearly. There were so many of them, and so little food! They just kept biting! They wouldn't stop, they couldn't stop. It was all, so… mildly annoying. She just couldn't take it anymore! It was all driving her mad!
But then, it happened.
The red chúi's eyes formed into slits. Suddenly, Ranma was gone and in her place, was a plucky young kitten who was quite confused! She didn't know where she was and what was worse, she couldn't even walk around! And she so wanted to take a peek at things. She thought she could see water over there! And where there was water, there was bound to be delicious, nutritious, dishes of fishes! And a snack sounded so good right now! But to her surprise, a huge fish was slowly closing in on them! And she wasn't exactly sure if she could eat this one…
Vlad was actually not laughing right now. Too confused to even attempt to try and get a chuckle out. While yes his deadly Spastic Spittle attack usually did surprise people, he had never seen someone magically turn into a cat from it! And frankly, that was just weird! Mind you, that's coming from him, a Russian mercenary! "Thees… this is confusing Vlad. How did purple girl turn into cat?" he asked, strolling over to her.
Ranma's male form though was not having a good time. Besides the fact that Shampoo was just not taking a hint and leaving, he had noticed that his female counterpart had gone into the cat fist! Though in her current form, she was completely useless! The extra mewling though wasn't helping in his mental state though. 'No- okay, no… I just gotta- I just gotta stay focused! We can- we can still turn this thing around… We just gotta think smart, that's all!' he thought, trying to hold off the mind altering effects of the cat training. Reaffirming himself, he once more tried to reason with the cat. "S-Shampoo… come on, you gotta, you gotta get outta here… I can't- I can't think with all this going on, you have to…" But then, his eyes widened! "Shamps, watch out!"
Just as the black hammer spoke those words, the talking fish-man finished his short gait and picked up the cat with his thick, webbed digits; staring at it with odd curiosity. "What are you leetle friend? Weren't you just human?" he asked, but flinched as the creature reached out to scratch him. It was a futile effort though. "Ahha! Tiny cat-girl is can understand Vlad! Very interesting! How do you work?"
Ryoga all the while simply stood, unsure of just what he should be doing. On one level, he knew that he should probably be helping his allies at this crucial point in the battle but then again, he knew if he got splashed, then he'd be in just as vulnerable a state as Shampoo! So the bandanna brandishing boy merely just waited, biding his time. It was only when he noticed the fish-man picking up the cat that he decided it was the ample time to strike! "Hiya!" he loudly cried as he leaped forth with his umbrella, planning to puncture him to pieces with some pokes!
But Vlad was a lot more aware than Ryoga thought as he managed to closely avoid each strike just in the nick of time! "Haha! Leetle umbrella-man use sneak attack! Nice try, but I am very good at gorilla warfare. I not fall for trick!" he exclaimed as he began to upchuck another set of volatile volleys of water!
Grimacing at his failed attempt to subdue his foe, Ryoga quickly unfurled his umbrella and tried to block the balls that were flying at him. Under normal circumstances, the sharp speed of the water would utterly destroy a meager tool such as his. But the lost boy's weapon was Hibiki approved, meaning it was built to last! Taking the brunt of several hits, the liquid ricocheted, narrowly missing his form. 'Crap, gotta move!' he thought as his mind reminded him of the dangers. Knowing that he couldn't take the risk, he once again moved himself back to relative safety.
Vlad wasn't going to just stand around though! He was a professional! "Ah, umbrella-man ees smart! You know how block attack! Am impress!" he exclaimed, raising up the still frantic cat to near-face level. "But I no stop now. Once I beat you, there only one left! Then can figure out other great mysteries. Isn't that right, kit- Arrgh!"
But at just that moment, the talking fish-man made a massive mistake! In all the few moments that had passed since her transformation, Shampoo had found herself in a raging wreck. She knew that by staying around Ranma in her state was in no way helpful to them, but with her thought processes completely jumbled from her recent stress and failures, she could only cling to the thought of not wanting to leave her Airen alone. And before she could get a hold of herself, that idiotic water flinger picked her up and started talking down to her! She tried her best to get him to release her, but in her diminutive state, she could do little to combat against his actions. It was only when a certain part-time pig jumped in to intervene did her foe leave an opening. And that's when she went for the finisher! Flinging out her ferocious claws, she slashed him right in the eye!
The mercenary flinched back as the cat scratched him! Screeching at the sharp pain, he flailed his about arms! And, in a moment of rage, he flung the pesky feline with all of his might, not wanting to have the little menace anywhere near him!
Ranma's male let out a shocked gasp as he saw her flying right towards the edge of the boat! "Shampoo!" he yelled, fear fully in his voice. It didn't matter that she was a cat right now. She was in danger and he needed to help her! 'This damn stupid hammer body though! I can't move or anythin'!'he thought, his fear of losing Shampoo overriding any sense of terror brought on by her feline form.'Ah come on! She can't go overboard! If she does…'Rightas Ranma thought this his form began to brighten. 'She might be a little… weird sometimes, but she ain't half bad of a person! She can't- I just- I gotta do somethin'!' At that, the light he was emitting started to brighten even further! The power Shampoo gave him was apparently enough; he was transforming!
As this was all happening, Akane stared on, unsure of how to act on the matter. She had just taken on those two bumbling fools, using her most powerful attack on them. Frankly, she was pretty drained! She needed at least a moment to recoup before even attempting to join in and fight their last opponent, lest she wanted to get herself severely injured. But upon seeing the lavender haired girl turned-cat flying through the air, her reflexes kicked in. Moving as fast as she could, she ran over to Shampoo and leaped up in the air, catching her and saving the feline from a watery grave!
Shampoo all the while had her eyes shut, her arms and legs frantically trying to grasp something but to no avail. Her panic ceased though when she found herself planted firmly in the arms of her blue haired rival. Thankful regardless, she let out a tiny kitty-sigh and meowed in appreciation for being saved from the most deadly of disasters.
The young tomboy though was too preoccupied by the bright light that was coming from several yards away as the black hammer's form twisted on to itself. Its shape was growing and enlarging itself to something far bigger than a hammer. It grew more cylindrical, with a deep hole jutting out from its front, two sharp energized eyes right on the tip and a tiny fuse making itself known on its slightly wider opposite end! Adding more to the oddness was what looked like a wooden box with four metallic wheels materializing underneath the new weapon. Plastered on each individual sides were decorative yin and yang symbols, Ranma's motif.
As the brightness dimmed, one could clearly make out the form of a cannon! Modeled from the old pirate weapons of yore! The young Saotome had now been turned into an armament suitable for any scurvy dog! From the weapons front, an echoing voice could be heard bellowing the following: "Ranma-chúi Battle Mode MK 03: Cannonball Run!"
The rest of the onlookers could only stare agape as the once talking hammer had been turned into a sentient cannon. Vlad was personally amused, clapping his hands with childlike wonder.
"A… cannon?" Akane asked, her brow furrowing as she held Shampoo in her arms.
Said cat too was excited, glad that all of their training had actually pulled of! She wiggled herself in Akane's hands and starting mewling indecipherably.
Ranma's male form just narrowed his eyes. "Hmph, it's pretty neat, huh? Shamps and I came up with it durin' the whole few days we had off. I dunno about you guys, but I think it'll really pack a punch!" he exclaimed, moving back and forth in an ostinato-like rhythm. He was getting used to another keen feature this new weapon form had; the ability to actually move via its wheels!
The blue haired girl though wasn't entirely convinced. "But… but wait- hold on! Didn't- didn't Cologne say that you could only transform into things that were related to your original weapon state?" she asked, referring to the information that she was previously informed off. "What the hell does a cannon have to do with a hammer?"
With sage-like wisdom, Ranma did his best to inform the rest of the uncouth plebeians. "It's simple, really! What's a hammer used fer anyway? Well, when ya fight, their purpose is ta be blunt things that're used ta smack people!" he exclaimed. "And if that's a hammer, then well, what's a cannon? Think about it. It's a weapon that's purpose is ta shoot blunt things that're used ta hit people!"
The entire lot of them (except Shampoo) stayed quiet. An uncomfortable silence wafted itself through the air that was only alleviated by the continuing meows of both Shampoo and Ranma's female form. It was only when a certain lost boy broke in that the awkwardness ended. "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."
Ranma just stared at him indignantly. "O cram it, pig-breath! You're just jealous!" he said, as he turned his eyes to look at the blue fish-person in front of him. "Listen guys, I wanna take care a this jerk myself! I think I can now, since I'm able to move."
Akane wouldn't take that though. She didn't want to simply be left out! "Hey, now hold on a minute! Are you telling us that we should just stand around like a bunch idiots on the sidelines?" she asked, her tone growing annoyed.
"No, that ain't what I'm sayin' ya uncute tomboy!" Ranma said, sounding irritated, though an odd bit of uncertainty seemed to seep through. "It's just... it's just that there's more important stuff ta take care of is all!" the talking cannon uttered. "Like uh, ya need ta get Shampoo some water! Turn her back ta human and junk!" he said, though his nerves were holding up decently. Having cats around was simply not good for him! Besides, he really wanted to fight this guy mono e mono. He was tired of feeling so damn useless lately! It was time to burn off steam!
"And Ryoga… I guess, well, no one's steering the ship, so you can- wait- that's a dumb idea! Akane, do that too!" he said, figuring that putting his trust unto the captaining skills of someone who could get lost in a closest was not the most intelligent of thoughts. Knowing him, they'd end up at Atlantis!
"Hey!" the lost boy bellowed, moving a step closer to the sentient pirate weapon. "I swear. I'll-"
Completely ignoring the bandanna brandishing boy's incoming threat too, Ranma just barked out another order. "Ryoga, you just ah- try not be useless!" he said, before he came up with a real idea! "No, wait! You can get all the other guys who are still knocked out outta here!" he said, referring to the various beaten and battered crewmembers that were still conked out for the count. "Also, can ya get the other chúi-me away? She's freakin' me the hell out!"
The lost boy though just flinched back in shock. The complete nerve of that bastard! "What?Are you- are you serious? Do you think I'm your maid or-"
But just then, Akane's voice jumped in, once again not allowing him to finish. "Come on Ryoga, we gotta hurry! Ranma may be an idiot, but he can handle himself! Let him duke it out while we get everything that's actually important done!"
"Ah!- but- I!-" Ryoga was flabbergasted. He shifted his arms between the cannon and the blue haired girl. "No- I- I hate my life…" and with that he went to work.
As this was all happening, Vlad was kindly waiting for the three teens to finish their conversation. From his point of view, this would have certainly been considered sloppy work, but at the same time, he was honest to God being given an opportunity to be in a one on one fight with a talking cannon. He'd probably only get to do that two, maybe three times in his life. The only thing that worried him was that his employers might not exactly approve of his lollygagging
Turning his head around, he blinked when he noticed that they were nowhere in sight. In fact, the two were entirely missing from the scene! He started look around frantically. "Oh wait! No, no! Where did leetle fat-man go? He have Vlad's payment!" That was when he realized, the blue haired girl was the one who was fighting them! Was he so preoccupied in his own amused world that he completely missed their demise? "Oh no- no… you all ruin everything! My dotchka's… I- I keel you!" he exclaimed, noticing though that the girl had just left. He prepared himself to rush after her, when an explosion ripped its way right beside him!
"Not so fast ya fish-faced freak! You're goin' up against me!" the talking cannon shouted, having just fired a warning shot of what looked like a large ball of ki; destroying a fat chunk of the deck next to the Russian mercenary.
As this was happening, Ryoga was carefully pulling away the assorted bodies of the fallen crewmates that littered the upper portion of the Water Dragon, making sure to not injure them along the way. "Hey! What the hell are you doing? You'll sink the ship!" he uttered in a frantic tone.
Ranma though, wasn't having any of that. "This punk's been a thorn in our side for a good thirty minutes now! It's time ta take the bastard down with the ole' one-two cannonball to the face!" he bellowed; determination smirking.
"But-"
"Cannonball to the face! Now go deal with the other me. I kinda really wanna finish this stupid fight," Ranma's male form interrupted, not even giving Ryoga a chance to refute.
And at that, the two charged! Radioactive Fish-man and sentient cannon battling it out in a struggle of the ages, with victory their only prize. Ranma's swift wheels deftly dodged around Vlad's attempts at punching him, as he moved around like a miniature automobile. But the task was growing more and more difficult for him as his opponent's already aggravated state only helped to make his swift strikes that much more aggressive!
"Stand still Cannon-man! Vlad must crush you!" the mercenary uttered as he jibed at the young Saotome. Though not capable to get in a direct hit in, he was able to get lucky with slashing bits of shavings off of his enemy with his blade-like fins!
Ranma was slightly worried about the fact that he hadn't really planned all this out properly. Looking around, he realized that his bulky form just wasn't suited for the medium sized ship, as crates, debris and the occasional unconscious body that Ryoga was still working to get to, blocked his path. It was starting to get infuriating! What was worse though, was that every time his fish-lipped foe managed to hit him, he actual somehow felt hurt! He wondered how that worked, since his hammer form never suffered from that problem before. It was almost as if the magical system that transmogrified him into a talking tool was completely arbitrary and nonsensical! Though his wits quickly came to the conclusion that it had to have something to do with a piece of him actually being ripped off; he just hoped his ki could regenerate it!
It was right then when he found himself cornered between a barrel and the railing of the boat that he realized he was in actual trouble though, as he was unable to move! Stuck between the old fish-man and the sea!
"Cannon-man is a annoying! I will end this now!" the Russian yelled, clenching his fist and raising it upward. He was going to crack that pirate-y pain to pieces!
Eyes narrowing, knowing that if he didn't act soon he would take considerable damage, Ranma jutted his barrel upward! With a hard thrust he slammed himself right into his enemy's jaw, leaving a sickening cracking sound in its wake! Sadly, it still did not halt Vlad's attack entirely though, merely just diverting his punch to the cannon's wooden chassis, splintering off its right wheel!
Both of them flinched back in pain as the strikes struck, with the radioactive fish-man stumbling away clutching his mandibles. This, as well as his stabbed eye, only helped to worsen the excess amount of pain that had been delivered to his face today. Ranma though was fairing little better, as a good chunk of his body was ripped apart. Frankly, he figured it probably wasn't very good for him.
"Gahh! Come on! What the hell's goin' on? Why do I have ta start feelin' pain now? No matter how ya spin it, it doesn't make a lick a sense!" he screamed out as he tried to move in his three legged form. He still was able to do so, but his balance was off and everything was generally more awkward for him. This was not the ideal situation.
Vlad let out a large belly laugh as he wiped a bit of blood that dribbling down his lips, glad to see at least some of his efforts were not in vain. "Hehe, talking cannon person may have nerves of steel, but he still proves he has nerves! Haha!" he exclaimed, cracking his knuckles. "Once I am done with you, I vill break other friends as well! Then look around boat… There maybe something on here I could geeve her…" he threatened, though his overall concerns for his daughter's present taking priority.
The pirate weapon's eyes hardened at the statement. He wasn't going to allow that! "I don't think so! I ain't gonna go down that easy! I'm gonna show ya that I can kick anyone's butt!" he exclaimed, slowly and wobbly moving towards his enemy. "Whether I'm human, or a three legged cannon, it don't matter! You ain't goin' through me!" he bellowed in his echoing voice, determination filling him. Victory wasn't just his only reward here. He had something to prove! And the only way to do it was to beat up that gigantic Russian fish!
Elsewhere, as this was all happening, safe inside the confines of the ship, Ryoga had finished gathering up all of the rest of the groaning crewmates and had started to tend to their surprisingly minor wounds; having spent years perfecting his own form of impromptu first-aid. To his own annoyance though, a certain catty red chúi was lying right next to him as he wrapped up another injured person with an extra bandanna, just mewling away like the intrigued feline she was. "I hate you Ranma. I just- I just really hate you. For years you've just continued to ruin and destroy my life. You are, literally, the bane of my existence. I- I can't not tell you this enough."
"Meow?" Ranma's female form inquisitively asked. She really wondered where all those pretty spotted tails were coming from! They looked like fun!
"You're just a complete and utter God damn monster, you know that, right?"
In another portion of the ship, Akane was hurriedly boiling some water for her feline friend, inwardly letting out a sigh that Ranma wasn't there to see her. She just knew if he was he'd make a jab about how her cooking skills are so terrible that she couldn't even get this task done. Thankfully though she only had the eager eyes of Shampoo as her company, as she stared at the liquid that was just starting to bubble. "Now hold on, let me just-"
But before the blue haired girl could finish, the cat leaped, jumping into the water and nigh instantly transforming back into her human form! Standing before Akane was a sopping wet and very naked Shampoo. "Ah, aiyah! Thank you too too much Akane!" she exclaimed, a huge amount of relief in her voice before determination replaced it. "But I's got to go! Airen needs me!" And with that, she rushed off!
The youngest Tendo though, in-between covering her eyes, just yelled out, "At least wrap a towel around yourself!" She simply let out a sigh. 'Whatever, apparently I have a boat I need to go captain…'
Back with Ranma, his fight with Vladimir had only escalated. As both of them neither now wanted to get close to each other, they started to lob their own respective forms' projectiles. The fish-man, with his globs of fast and furious spittle, and Ranma, who was firing out his own cannonball ki blasts! Both had their own distinct advantages. While slightly less powerful, Vlad was shooting his shots out at a rapid rate, occasionally causing dangerous dents to dot the weapon's form! Ranma though wasn't going down that easy though! While none of his balls had actually managed to smack into his foe, slivers of the deck's shrapnel were able to leave cuts that certainly stung!
Both of them were reaching their limits. The pirate tool had simply just hadn't had enough time to train his new form and the Russian mercenary was now quite tuckered out. All the fighting was finally getting to him. Both of them knew that this was going to end, and soon.
Preparing themselves both for one final strike, the sun overhead beamed down. Vlad's bulging neck and Ranma's elongated barrel were both ready to shoot their full load. Their eyes sharpened; this was it! But just then, a tiny sparkle shined through as the light bounced around. It was the special diamond encrusted bracelet, lying right on the deck! Letting out a gasp, the mercenary couldn't believe it! By some good fortune the little fat man had left his prize behind! Not even thinking of the consequences, he dived for it! "My dotchka's!-" he yelped, grabbing onto to the parcel and holding it to himself, smiling all the while. He knew she would like this.
But sadly for him, Ranma was fully ready to strike! "Dotchka'?... Dotchka think ya shouldn't a let your guard down?" And with that, the final blow was struck- Ranma fired! A blinding ball of cocky ki was shot right at the fish-man, colliding into his chest and exploding on impact, sending the shocked man flying, and mimicking the exact same fate as his employers!
Vlad simply couldn't believe how amateurish of a mistake he made! But it all sort of happened in the spur of the moment! He just knew he had to get that bracelet regardless of the cost! Still though, as he flew through the air, he couldn't help but chastise himself. He knew that with his poked eye, shattered jaw and now broken ribs, it was going to probably take hours for him to heal! "Ah well. At least mein daughter vill be happy…" he said, examining the bracelet closely. But then, he noticed something. "Wait a moment!" Upon closer inspection, he saw that the diamonds were, in fact, made of cheap plastic, easily discernible from the real deal! The item was merely just a dime store children's toy! "But- but the fat-man!... he said… he said…" Vlad then poingiantly realized something else: Yuzuki was an idiot.
He screamed.
Back on the ship, Shampoo rushed to the scene, slightly late on arrival. (Simply because she begrudgingly had to go and "clothe" herself, as the various prudes demanded.) The rampant destruction around them made her thankful that the boat hadn't capsized. But any sort of relief was instantly shaken out of her as she looked at the black cannon before her! "Airen!" she yelled, rushing after him while donned in a pair of slacks and a T-shirt. She didn't exactly have time to make herself pretty.
Ranma was trying his best to show he wasn't wincing, which actually was quite easy since he couldn't really indicate anything, what with his limited body movement. His eyes brightened up though upon seeing the purple haired girl rushing towards him. "Haha! Did ya get a good look at that idiot's face when I blasted him Shampoo? It was priceless!" he exclaimed in a smug matter, completely avoiding the fact that he was heavily damaged.
The Chinese girl though was far more distraught, inspecting the various bumps and missing piecing that caused the cannon to be in its current state. "Ranma… You's- you's look hurt real bad!" she exclaimed.
The Caribbean cannon though just blinked. "Eh, this? Pfft, don't worry about it! I'm a-okay!" Of course though, he was lying, but it's not like saying otherwise would have helped the situation.
"But-"
Before the lavender haired girl could finish though, a certain lost boy interrupted. "Geez Saotome, what the hell happened to you? I thought you said you didn't need my help?" he asked in a rather annoyed and nonchalant matter.
Held within his hands, the red chúi was a bit disorientated. "Oh man… what the hell did I miss?" she asked, finally returned to normal from her cat-fist state.
"Other Ranma!" Shampoo gasped, taking the hammer from Ryoga as he handed it off to her.
"Yah, turned out dangling one of my bandanna's over her head for half a minute did the trick. You're damn welcome Ranma." the young Hibiki said, quite annoyed while crossing his arms indignantly.
"Just- just cram it pig-breath," she said, still coming out her daze. "I don't need any a this right now, okay?"
As the two of them bickered back and forth, a sharp light started to emanate off of the nautical weapon. It was starting to transform again. Brightness shined and illuminated the general vicinity, as within the span of a quick moment, the damaged cannon was morphed into a fully repaired chúi!
Quickly grabbing him midair, before he could hit the ground, Shampoo twisted her gaze between the two. "Airens!" she exclaimed happily. Inspecting his form she noticed that he was perfectly fine; no cracks or anything!
"Heh, kinda figgered I'd be okay. It's like ya Grandma said, I'm made a ki! So I probably just used some extra ta repair myself!" Ranma's male form replied, letting out a hearty laugh, proud of his genius and fighting abilities!
For a brief moment, his eyes flickered.
Shampoo let out a slight gasp. "What was-"
But before Shampoo could finish what she was saying, a gentleman made his way onto the deck, shocked at the damage that was surrounding him! It was one of the men they had talked to earlier, the ship's captain, awake finally! "Oh my, things certainly have gotten out of hand here, that's for certain."
By the time he had said this, several other members of the crew were making their away out, groaning and moaning all the while.
Ryoga just grunted. "Great, now they wake up."
The captain took another look around him and again at his bandaged form. Personally he found it rather odd that his wrappings appeared to look somewhat like tiger stripes, and strangely enough, felt like the ever sensual velour, but he had other matters to attend to that were far more pressing. "I think this could all very much so use an explanation," he remarked, inwardly noting that he'd need to contact his superiors about this once they reached China.
The four teens stared between each other. This was going to take a while.
Situated above at the helm of the ship, Akane stood, boat manual in one hand, wheel in the other, doing her best to steer the cruiser to with all of her capabilities. "What the hell is a 'star… board? Damn it! If someone doesn't get here quick we're gonna end up in Atlantis!"
7/20/11: Edited by R.T. Stephens and myself.