Chapter 21 A Trip to the Beach
Ranma walked out of the house, wearing only a sleeveless undershirt that had molded itself to his torso and a loose pair of trousers, to find his father and Akane waiting for him. Akane had taken the time to change into her gi, and was loosening up on the broad steps of the dojo. Ranma smiled at her and said, "I think it's about time for you to learn to fight with more of the Saotome style. Pop, did you ask Mr. Tendo if it was alright for you to train Akane?"
"Actually, boy, I did. He said that he had named you as her sensei, and so I needed to ask your permission to train her," Genma growled, slightly unhappy that he had to kowtow to his son.
"Oh, I guess I didn't think about that. That's right, he did put her in my care. I've been treating her as a training partner for so long, that I don't really think of her as my student," Ranma said, with a sheepish grin.
Akane hugged him hard and said, happily, a big grin on her face, "That's another nice thing you said. Taking me seriously as a martial artist like that."
Ranma bent down and kissed her forehead, and then asked his father, "Well, Pop, you think you can teach her some of our moves? I've shown her several things already."
Genma grinned and replied, "I won't go too easy on her, boy, you know that."
Akane fumed and said, "Hey, I'm standing right here."
"Okay, Pop. Let me wear you down a bit for her," Ranma said with a smirk, "I need to pound on something for a while and it looks like you're elected."
"Bring it on," Genma growled.
Ranma smiled toothily and began his attack.
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Kasumi stood at the window in her kitchen, watching the sparring match in the back yard, while she worked on dinner. She saw Akane staring intently at her fiancé, cataloguing his every move, her eyes glued to his frame, her face not hiding the desire she felt. Kasumi tore her eyes away from her sister, and began to watch Ranma herself. Her eyes were watching Ranma intently as she saw him flow seamlessly from one stance to another, trading blows with his father, seemingly shrugging off strikes that would cripple a lesser person. As she did, she also saw how his muscles rippled under his skin, and a slight flush began to show up on her cheeks.
She began fanning herself slightly and thought, 'Oh my, I really need to talk to Tofu about firming up our wedding plans. Watching Ranma and Akane dance around while they were both girls was bad enough, the way the sparks were smoldering between them, but now, watching the two of them together like this is not helping my libido at all.'
Nabiki walked into the kitchen to steal a snack and saw her older sister staring through the window overlooking the practice area and the dojo. As she had strolled by the family room, she had seen her sister, Ranma and his father through the open doors and realized that must be what Kasumi was gazing at. As she got closer, she saw the hue of Kasumi's cheeks, and to her surprise, a slight sheen of perspiration on her brow. Her sister was watching Ranma's every move. "Hey, sis," she asked with a smirk, "What are you looking at?"
Kasumi jumped and stammered, "N-n-nothing. What ever do you mean?"
"It's just that you've been staring at Ranma for the longest time. Don't tell me you've got the hots for him?" Nabiki asked.
Kasumi blushed and replied, "No, it's nothing like that. I will admit I do love him, but only as a sibling. He's the little brother I always wanted, and a sister I care for as much as I do you and Akane."
"Oh, and that cute butt and wonderful physique of his doesn't do anything for you? Not to mention that animal magnetism of his," Nabiki teased.
"He is a treat to look at, but Tofu is nearly as good looking as Ranma," her sister said calmly.
"I don't know, that wasn't the look I thought I saw in your eyes when I walked in. You sure looked like you were about to start drooling, and I'm pretty sure it wasn't because Mr. Saotome was out there," Nabiki said slyly.
"Actually, I was just thinking that Tofu and I need to get serious and set a firm date," Kasumi replied evenly.
"Sounds like my sister wants to get laid," Nabiki teased.
Kasumi blushed bright red and exclaimed, "Nabiki, that isn't true!" 'Well, maybe, partly,' she thought, as she remembered the last date that she and Tofu had had, and the way she had felt at the end of the evening. Then she smiled wickedly and asked, "So when are you going to find a boyfriend? Maybe if you had one, you wouldn't be worrying so much about my sex life. Or Akane's for that matter."
Nabiki grinned toothily and said, half to herself, "Oh my, Kasumi wants to play. What woke her up?" Then she continued, "None of the boys at school are interesting at all. Either they're dumb jocks, with no brain cells to speak of, or they're a bunch of wimps afraid of me. None of them are worth my time. Akane managed to snag the only good one in the bunch. No, I'm afraid my prince hasn't managed to come in on his white horse as of yet."
Kasumi giggled prettily, and said, "True, from what I remember of them when I was at school, most of them were pretty lame. They always seemed to be too young to me. And you know what I think about younger men."
"Well, some of them have their uses, I suppose," Nabiki drawled, "No, I'm sure I'll have to wait to find someone in college. Though, I want to be known as Nabiki Tendo, businesswoman, not so-and-so's wife."
Their attention was drawn by a particularly loud crash, as Mr. Saotome, who sometime during the match had turned into a panda, hit hard against the wall. Both girls eyes widened in surprise as they saw that it was Akane who had thrown him. While she was panting a bit heavily, she stood easily in a casual looking stance, one she had obviously copied from Ranma, her face creased in a wide, cocky grin that they recognized as one usually gracing Ranma's face. "What's the matter, old man? Is this little girl too much for you?" she taunted.
The panda shook his head angrily and charged her. As they watched in awe, Akane sprang into the air, and soared toward him. The panda leaped as well, but mistimed his jump, allowing Akane to land on his head, and bounce off to the ground below. The panda landed hard, cracking the ground slightly. "You're right, Ranma," Akane whooped, "This is fun!"
Ranma smiled and yelled back, "Like I always told ya, if you aren't having fun, you're doing it wrong." Then he grinned even bigger, and asked, "Okay, tomboy, are ya done playing with the b-team? Think you can handle the varsity?"
"Oh my, my fiancé wants to beat on me. He's so violent, I'm scared he's gonna hurt me," Akane replied back, with a look of mock fright on her face.
"Hey, you're the violent one," Ranma protested, laughing at her, "I've seen what you do to the training dummies and what you do to the concrete blocks should be a crime."
Akane giggled at Ranma and said, "Okay, your turn. Come on and take it like a man."
Ranma ran quickly around the house, where they heard a loud splash. Then she came running back around, and said, "Nah, I think I'll take it like a woman." The two girls giggled at each other, ignoring the panda groaning in the middle of their arena.
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Genma walked warily into his wife's house to find her walking out of the kitchen. She had made it painfully clear that it was indeed her house, and that he was only a guest the day that they had moved in. Fortunately, it had been late enough in the evening by the time they reached the house that she had gone straight to bed. Unfortunately, she had also promised that tonight was the night that she was going to be having the long awaited talk about the training techniques that he had used on the trip. Genma was really not looking forward to that conversation at all.
"Genma, dinner is almost ready. You should just have time to get cleaned up from your training with my son," Nodoka said, her eyes chilly.
Using one of the Saotome Secret Techniques, Genma simply replied, "Yes, dear," and fled upstairs to the small bathing chamber.
"Don't call me dear," Nodoka called after her fleeing husband. She then returned to the kitchen to finish cooking the meal. The rice was basically done, the soup was simmering nicely, and the mackerel was flaking just perfectly. She carried the rice cooker over to the table, and then divided the miso soup into the two bowls she had ready for it and carried those over to the table. As she brought the teapot over, Genma raced in and sat down at the table. Nodoka frowned slightly at the dingy gi that her husband was wearing, vowing to herself to burn that disgusting rag. Then she divided up the fish and placed it in two bowls and brought them to the table.
"Now, husband, we will talk about you and your training of my son. I know that some of what you did was necessary to toughen him up, but much of what you did was sheer torture," Nodoka began.
Genma paled at the expression on Nodoka's face, as he began to stammer, "But, Nodoka, I did everything for that boy. I mean, look at him, he's perhaps the best martial artist that I've ever seen."
"Everything! Don't forget I've read your diary," Nodoka said icily.
"Journal! Men don't have diaries!" Genma retorted.
"Whatever," Nodoka said, dismissingly, "You've managed to get him terrified of cats with that idiocy of the Neko-ken training, you've engaged him to several women just to feed your own appetite and on top of that, you got him cursed at Jusenkyo. How could you have been so stupid?"
"I wasn't thinking very straight that day, I have to admit. My head was pounding from the moment I woke up that morning," Genma began.
"Why did you have a headache? Were you drinking?" Nodoka asked.
Genma paled even more as he mumbled, "Well, maybe a little the night before."
Nodoka's eyes blazed as she stood up. "MY SON GOT CURSED BECAUSE YOU HAD A HANGOVER!!!!!!!" she screamed.
Genma cowered at the sight of his wife's battle aura as she slowly struggled for control. "Now, No-chan, he seems to be able to handle it without too much trouble," Genma said. He threw himself down on his knees and bowed his head to the floor, saying, "I'm sorry," over and over again.
"DON'T CALL ME NO-CHAN!" Nodoka said, "You've lost that right, you stupid, selfish man." She stopped and took several calming breaths. Finally, she sat back down, and said to herself, "I should never have let you take him. It's just as much my fault as it is his." Then she said, "We have to set things right for him. You did do one thing right, he is a good martial artist, but the Tendo girls have taught him more about relationships than either of us have. Me, because I didn't see him for so long and you, because you are a fool."
"Hey!" Genma said in protest from the floor.
"Oh, get up off the floor, you look ridiculous. Besides, I'm not going to kill you, at least not yet. You have to pay back all of the money that you took when you engaged Ranma to the Kuonji girl. So first you'll need to find a job," Nodoka said. She paused, lost in thought for a moment, and then continued, "If only Ranma hadn't already asked me to help the Amazons out in their restaurant while they go on that training trip. Oh well, I can see about helping Ukyo out once everyone is back from that. I can't have you help her, you'd eat up everything."
"Ranma told me that I'm going on the trip with him," Genma said as he sat back down, "The ungrateful boy said that maybe I'd learn something from the Elder."
"Ungrateful, is he? What's he to be grateful for? You almost single-handedly ruined his life. I find it amazing that he turned out as well as he did," Nodoka replied, her eyes angry again, "As for you, he's right. Just in the little bit of time I've spent talking to her, Cologne impressed me with her talents. You might be surprised at what you can learn from her. You will go on that trip and obey her."
"But…" Genma started.
"But nothing, you've had ten years with him. Now that he's back, it's my turn with him. I will help the Tendo's with his social skills that you so sadly neglected and turn him into the fine young man I know he can become. He may still be your student, but after watching the two of you spar, there appears to be little more that you can teach him. You're too slow to keep up with him, probably because you are too fat. That reminds me, you're going on a diet, starting today."
Genma looked at the food in front of him and realized that she was serious. "But I need a lot of food. Being a martial artist means I burn a lot of calories," Genma whined, "This won't be enough to keep me going."
Nodoka laughed in his face. "Genma, as far as I can tell, the only thing you've done since you got back is drink with Soun and play a little shogi. Then the little bit of sparring with Ranma and Akane. All you really do is lie around and get fat. And, I've already talked to Kasumi, so she's fully on board with this, so don't think you can go over there and get a handout from her," Nodoka replied.
Genma's face fell as he realized she was serious. He finished shoveling the last of his food into his mouth, and then asked, "Do we have anything to drink in this house?"
Nodoka again looked at him coldly, and replied, "No. If you think you can sit around this house and that I'll pay for you to drink, you're out of your mind. If you want anything, you'll have to pay for it out of whatever you earn."
Genma began to protest, but one look at the set of her jaw told him that there wasn't anything he could do or say that would make her change her mind. "Yes, Nodoka," Genma said in defeat, "I guess I don't have any choice in the matter, do I?"
"Not if you are going to stay here and try to salvage something out of our marriage," she replied, in a soft voice.
His eyes opened wide and he asked, in a voice filled with hope, "Does that mean I haven't ruined it completely between us?"
"Not completely, Genma. It wasn't just Ranma I missed. It'll take a while, but I would like the man I married to return to me," she said, "I hope that one day you'll become that man again."
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Kuno approached the office door very reluctantly, only his honor driving him to open the door and walk through. When he reached the young lady, sitting at the receptionist desk, he cleared his throat and said in a rusty voice, "I have an appointment. My name is Tatewaki Kuno, upperclassman, the rising…" He paused, a look of pain flashing across his face. "No, my name is just Tatewaki Kuno. I am here to see Doctor Hojo."
"He's waiting for you, Kuno-san," the girl replied, "Please, follow me."
For a second, an odd look flashed across Kuno's face, as if he was going to protest the honorific, but then he gave up.
The young woman stood up from her chair and led Kuno to a closed door. She knocked on the door, and then after receiving some sort of signal that Kuno missed, she opened the door, and gestured for Kuno to enter.
"Thank you for your kindness," Kuno said to her, as he entered the room. As he cleared the door, it closed behind him, shutting out all of the exterior noise. He looked around, to see a pleasantly appointed room, three walls of which were covered with bookshelves, filled with an imposing number of bound volumes. A large mahogany desk was in front of the one wall without shelves, a wall covered with several different landscape paintings. An elderly gentleman, with a pleasantly lined face, and a shock of jet-black hair, was sitting at the desk, but was rising as Kuno finally saw him.
"I am Doctor Hojo," the man said, "Doctor Ono suggested that I see you, Kuno-san."
"I thank you for squeezing me in today, Doctor," Kuno said, bowing politely to the older man.
"Tofu was one of my best students, and when he asked me to see you, I was happy to oblige. Please, why don't you have a seat in one of the chairs, and we can talk for a while," the doctor said.
"How much did the good doctor tell you about me?" Kuno asked as he sat down in one of the extremely comfortable, overstuffed armchairs.
The doctor moved over and sat in a second chair, and pondered the question. Then he replied, "That you basically had a manic episode where you tried to sexually assault a woman in the mistaken belief that she would then confess her love for you."
"That's succinct enough," Kuno replied, with a bitter laugh. He paused and said, "For several months I have been madly in love with three different women, all at the same time. All three of them have rebuffed my advances. I just thought they were playing hard to get."
"You wanted three women? You do know that the ancient Chinese symbol for trouble was two women under the same roof, don't you?" the doctor asked.
Kuno chuckled dryly and replied, "I never said I was completely sane. All three of these women had defeated me in combat, more than once as a matter of fact, so I just 'knew' they were worthy of being my wife. And since I considered myself a Samurai, I convinced myself that there was no problem in my having all of them."
The doctor shook his head in disbelief and asked, "So why didn't they date you?"
"Well, the fair Akane Tendo and the Amazon princess Shampoo both have fiancés, at least so they claim. The fiery red-haired girl, Ranma Saotome, on the other hand, always said that she was in love with someone. She was always with the fair Akane Tendo, and I could tell that she cared a great deal for her. It wasn't until I talked to my sister a couple of days ago that I found out that the lovely Ranma claimed that she loved a girl. A lesbian is what my twisted sister called her. That word sickened me and I refused to believe it, but then I started thinking about all of the odd looks I had seen her give the fair Akane Tendo, and then remembered some of the rumors that I had heard, and I went insane. My sister indeed said that because of my ardent pursuit of the fair maiden…" He choked, and then continued, "That because of my pursuit, Ranma Saotome, that vision of loveliness, had sworn off men completely."
"And so what happened?" Hojo asked.
"I, Tatewaki Kuno, disgraced myself, and my clan," the young man said simply, "I attempted to force myself on the fiery Ranma Saotome. Fortunately for both of us, she is a puissant foe, and was once again able to vanquish me. Then, being the kind and noble person she is, one of large heart, she took me to the estimable Doctor Ono, and left me in his capable hands. She even went so far as to forbid me to perform seppuku to atone for my actions."
"Do you think seppuku is the appropriate course of action for you?" the doctor asked, his eyes watching carefully.
"That option is not for me. The fiery beauty has forbidden me that. In fact, she told me that she would never forgive me if I killed myself," Kuno answered, "and indeed, I would not want her to feel responsible even in part for my death. She stated that death would be in this case the coward's way out. I have come to realize that she is correct. And while I will never have her love, I think it is possible that one day I might be worthy enough to be called her friend. That gives me a goal worth striving for."
The doctor turned his wise eyes onto the young man and said, "That is something that I can help you with, then. Today has been a good start. So long as you recognize that there is a problem with your view of reality, then we can begin to show you the true path." A pleasant chime began to sound from somewhere in the room.
Kuno looked troubled, as he said, "I thank you, Doctor. I hope you can assist me. I have been like this for a long time, ever since my mother passed away, and my father disappeared. I guess it was my way of coping with that abandonment."
"We'll work on that in our next session. I'm afraid that sound is saying that it's nearly time for my next appointment," the doctor said, "I'd like to see you tomorrow at the same time, if that is possible. If you wish, you can leave through this door." The doctor pointed to a small door that Kuno had managed to overlook, discreetly tucked away behind a small screen.
Kuno replied, "Yes, right now there is nothing more important for me to be doing." He rose from the chair, and bowed politely. "Again, thank you for seeing me on such short notice," he said, then turned and walked through the door.
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Finally, school was over for the summer, and the students of Furinkan High School scattered to the four winds. Ranma and Akane raced to the Tendo home to meet with their family for a quick lunch, and then the rapid dash to the Nerima train station for the long ride to the beach. As they reached the train station, their friends, Yuka, Sayuri, Daisuke and Hiroshi, each of them carrying a small suitcase for the trip, met them. The group waited impatiently for the train to arrive. Once it finally showed up, the party of eleven rapidly boarded, making their way to their seats. Ranma made sure that he was sitting next to Akane as they sat down, and then put his arm across her shoulder, a move that was quickly copied by Daisuke and Hiroshi with their respective girlfriends. Nabiki rolled her eyes at the antics of the younger set.
Once they arrived at Kamakura, they quickly got off of the train and made their way to the cabin that Nabiki had booked. As it turned out, it actually was two cabins, each with three bedrooms.
Nodoka said, as she stood by the door to one of the cabins, "The adults will be in this cabin. The rest of you will share the other."
Kasumi led the rest of them to the other cabin. In one bedroom, they found a single queen-size futon, in a second, they found two queen size futons, and in the third two twins. Without hesitation, Akane dragged Ranma into the room with the single futon, allowing the others to figure out the rest of the rooms for themselves. As she shut the door behind them, she glared at the other teenagers, daring them to say anything.
Kasumi smiled gently and said, "I guess the girls will have the one with the queen size futons, and you two boys will get the other room."
'I wonder what they would pay to keep the parents from knowing that they are sharing a bed,' Nabiki thought.
"Oh, and Nabiki, dear, " Kasumi said, with just a hint of a frown, "I would be most unhappy if you told the parents about this. Ranma and Akane won't do anything that they shouldn't, so there's nothing improper with them being in the same bed. And I just know that you wouldn't want to cause them any problems."
'Damn it, Kasumi,' Nabiki thought. Then she wilted under that gaze. "One of these days you're going to teach me how you do that," Nabiki groused. She turned and said, "Okay, that goes for the rest of you too. Don't even tease them about it where our parents can hear."
The other four took one look at Nabiki and agreed. "Sure, their secret is safe with us," Yuka said, with a giggle, "Besides, I don't want Kasumi unhappy with me."
"Kasumi, unhappy, brrr, what a horrid thought," Sayuri agreed.
"Oh my, you two are being so silly," Kasumi said, her eyes dancing with mirth. She herded the other three girls into their room, leaving the two boys behind.
Daisuke and Hiroshi just shrugged their shoulders at each other, and then dropped their suitcases into the last remaining room.
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Ranma turned to Akane and asked, "Are you sure this is such a good idea, Akane? Your sisters are gonna give us a hard time about sharing a bed."
"I talked to Kasumi about it before we got here. She told me that she had seen us in bed together the last two mornings. I told her why we ended up together and after thinking about it for a few minutes, just told me to be careful. She also said that she would take care of Nabiki for us," Akane replied. She began taking her clothes out of her suitcase and hanging them up in the closet or putting them in the dresser that was in the room.
After a minute, Ranma joined her. While he was unpacking, he lost himself in thought and then said, "But this is still a big step, Akane. Before, you snuck into my bed after I was asleep, or I did once you were asleep. This will be the first time we deliberately share a bed. Are you sure we're ready for this?"
Akane shrugged her shoulders and replied, "We're just sharing a bed, Ranchan. That's all. I trust you not to do anything that I don't want you to." Then she grinned and continued, saying, "And Kasumi told me to tell you that she trusted you to be a gentleman about the situation." 'Or as much of a gentleman as I want him to be,' she thought, 'Bad Akane, you shouldn't think those thoughts.'
"Or maybe a lady, as the case may be?" Ranma asked with a chuckle. He added, "If your okay with it, then we'll try. But I think it'll be easier for me if I'm a girl when we share the bed at first. After all, I'm going be spending most of my time as a girl, except in the evening. It would be kind of pointless to try to go to the beach any other way." Then with a truly evil grin, he asked, "Besides, what do you think Pop will do when he sees me in that one swim suit? The one that you are to afraid to wear?"
Akane snickered and replied, "Well, he'll certainly turn an interesting shade of red. Won't your mother give you a hard time about it not being manly though?"
Ranma looked at her with a disgusted look and replied, "No, she's decided that while I have to be a man among men when I'm male, she's decided I'm also gonna be her daughter, too."
"What's that mean?" Akane asked, curious.
"That I'm supposed to dress appropriately when I'm a girl. You should see some of the clothes she's bought me. She obviously has a warped sense of what is appropriate. She's not convinced that that swimsuit that you're so jealous of is sexy enough," Ranma said, his ears turning red.
Akane gaped at him, and then said, in shock, "NOT sexy enough! There's not enough material in that thing to make a good handkerchief."
"That's a little bit of an exaggeration, Acchan, but yeah, she's not going to give me a hard time about wearing that, at least when I'm a girl," Ranma said, then he snickered, "Kami help me, she's bought me some bras and panties that are even worse." Then he got a mischievous look in his eyes and said, "Though I wouldn't mind seeing you in some of them or at least ones like them one of these days."
"Pervert," Akane said, affectionately, as she put the last of her stuff away.
"Hey, you'll look good in them," Ranma protested, with a smile. Once he put the last of his clothing away, he asked, "So do you want to work out a little or go hang out with the guys?"
Akane smiled brightly and replied, "Maybe we should spend some time with the guys. We can work out tomorrow after they get exhausted at the beach and want to lie around being tired."
"Works for me," Ranma replied. The two of them opened the door to their bedroom. They walked into the common room, and found their four friends already sitting around talking.
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Ranma groaned softly as Akane kissed him, pressing her body against him. Reluctantly, he pulled away. "I can't take too much more of this Akane," he said softly, his voice raw with emotion, his eyes nearly glazed with desire, "I'd better go change."
Akane looked at him, puzzled and then saw the longing in his eyes, and understood the effect that she was having on him. In fact she understood the effect only too well, as her body had responded ardently to the kisses that they had been sharing.
Ranma walked out of the bedroom that he and Akane were sharing, his body aflame from where she had been touching him. As he neared the kitchen to find some cold water, he ran into Kasumi who was staring at the window looking up at the stars in the sky.
Kasumi jumped back, startled, as Ranma appeared next to her. "I thought you had already gone to bed, Ranma," the older girl said, trying to get her heart to calm down.
Ranma blushed and stammered, "Well, we were in bed, but we hadn't actually tried to sleep yet."
Kasumi turned and looked at the blushing Ranma, and asked, "Are you okay? You look a little flushed for some reason. I hope you're not running a fever. You also sound like you're breathing a little heavy."
Ranma couldn't look Kasumi in the eye as he answered, "We were kissing a bit, and I got a little excited, so I figured I better leave for a moment." He hesitated and then asked, "Can we talk for a moment, Kasumi?"
"Sure, I thought you looked a little troubled," Kasumi replied gently, as she walked to the freezer and pulled a carton of chocolate ripple ice cream out and then dished out two small bowls. She looked conspiratorially at Ranma and said, "Don't tell Nabiki, but this is hers." She sat down at the small kitchen table, and waited for Ranma to tell her what was on her mind.
Ranma sat down next to her, not taking his eyes off of the older woman that he had come to love like the sister he had always wanted but never had. He took a bite of his ice cream to delay but then began. "Something happened the other day that has got me scared, Kasumi," he said softly, his voice artificially flat.
"The day you came home so early from the clinic?" Kasumi asked gently.
Ranma hung his head and said, "Yeah. I was on my way to the clinic, when Kuno jumped me. He caught me by surprise, and stunned me with a blow to my head." He turned away and mumbled, "And while I was dazed, he tried to force me. Well, French kissed and groped me."
"Oh my, poor Ranma," Kasumi said, her eyes wide in shock. "I assume you beat him off before he did anything?" she asked.
Ranma nodded and asked, "What kind of martial artist does that make me, if a nobody like Kuno can sneak up on me like that? I beat him to a pulp after his grab of my breast woke me up, but still he shouldn't have been able to lay a hand on me."
Kasumi reached around and held Ranma in her arms and said, "Something Daddy always told me was that there is no such thing as a person who can't be beat. Even someone as good as you can lose. The difference is to not stay beaten. That's always been your strength." To her surprise, Ranma began to cry on her shoulder. She waited for the storm to subside and then asked, "So are you going to let this beat you?"
Ranma wiped the tears from his eyes and looked up at her from her shoulder. He looked sheepish and replied, "I know how to fight a physical enemy, Kasumi. I don't know how to fight something I can't see. I guess that's why I so emotional right now. I was a bit scared, and a lot angry, when it happened. But now, I'm mostly afraid. It's tainted what I feel about Akane just a little bit. I've started wanting her so bad that I'm afraid that one day we'll begin to kiss, and just won't stop. I almost lost control in there with her, that's why I had to leave. It would be so easy to try to prove that I'm still a man with her." Then he added bitterly, "After all, that would show that I'm manly, wouldn't it?"
"Ranma," Akane said tenderly from behind them, "Is that why you ran off? Because you're afraid of your desires and the way your body was reacting?"
"I didn't want you to think I was a pervert," Ranma replied, blushing bright red, thinking 'I really, really wish she hadn't been there to hear that.'
Akane giggled for a second. "Ranma, if you didn't react like that, I would have been angry with you. I really would have thought you were a pervert. It's okay to want me; Kami knows I want you too. But we both promised to save that for when we wed," Akane said. She walked over and joined Kasumi in the embrace.
Kasumi added, "And don't worry about not being manly enough. It takes a real man to admit that he is scared, that he has fears, and then to act in spite of those fears. You stopped before you went further than you two wanted to, and that's the important thing."
"And you don't have to prove that you're manly to me, Ranchan. I know that when our wedding night comes, you'll, um, rise up to the challenge," Akane said.
Kasumi giggled while Ranma looked a little blank. "Are you feeling a bit better about things now, Ranma?" Kasumi asked.
"I think so," Ranma replied, "Don't let the parents know about this. Mom wouldn't think it was manly, and Pop would never understand. Hell, he never even told me about the facts of life. I had to find out the hard way from a book."
"Sure, Ranma. And Daddy would just sit and cry that the schools would never be joined," Akane replied.
Ranma hugged Kasumi and then kissed her shyly on the cheek. "Thanks for listening, big sis. Tell Doc he found a good woman and that if he doesn't hurry up and set a date, I'll be talking to him," Ranma said. He grinned to show that he was teasing.
Kasumi blushed and then replied, "You're welcome, little brother. I don't think I'm the only lucky person in this room though."
Ranma finished what was left of his ice cream, and then walked to the sink. After pouring some cold water on his head, she turned to Akane and said, "It's getting late, Acchan. I think I'm ready to sleep now."
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Akane woke up slowly, her eyes adjusting to the dim light seeping through the curtains. Once she was completely awake, she realized that she was snuggled up tight to Ranma's back, with her arms wrapped loosely around the other girl. She tightened her grip, pulling Ranma tightly to her.
"That feels good," Ranma said softly, "I like waking up in your arms like this. I don't think I've slept this good in I don't know how long." Reluctantly, though, Ranma rolled over to her back and she continued, "Don't be embarrassed. You're not responsible for where your hands ended up while we slept." She finished rolling over so she was face to face with Akane. She scooted over and lightly kissed Akane on the mouth, and then got out of bed.
Akane stared open-mouthed as Ranma walked over to her dresser drawer and pulled out THAT swimsuit. Ranma then began to pull her undershirt off over her head only to hear Akane begin to protest.
"Ranma, what are you doing?" she said, her face turning red with embarrassment.
"Changing clothes, what does it look like?" Ranma said, without turning around, "After all, I'm a girl right now, so there's nothing that you haven't seen in the girl's locker room or in a public bath before. Once I'm done, I can leave, and you can change in peace." Then she smiled, and added, "Unless you want me to stay of course." She then slid her boxers down her legs and stepped out of them. Quickly, she slid her swimsuit bottoms on, and then asked, "Can you help me with the top? I always have a hard time with the clasp on this one for some reason."
Akane got out of bed and walked shakily over to the other girl and fastened the clasp on the bikini top. Then she gazed at Ranma and had to admit to herself that the suit looked good on the neo-girl. Basically a string bikini, with just enough black material to cover what needed to be covered; the suit definitely was only for tanning. Akane giggled and said, "Your father is gonna have a heart attack when he sees that on you."
"That was kind of the idea," Ranma said with a smirk. Then she asked, her eyes smoldering, "Do you need any help?"
Akane swatted her on the rear, and replied, her cheeks red, "NO. Now you get out of here, you shameless exhibitionist."
Ranma shrugged her shoulders, and said, "Hey, it's not like I asked for this body, you know." She walked to the closet and found one of her Chinese shirts, and put it on, buttoning the bottom button only.
"True," Akane said, with a chuckle, "But you certainly know how to flaunt it. You better take a handkerchief or two for the boys. They'll take one look at you and start having perverted thoughts."
Ranma growled, and said, "They better not." She turned and sashayed out of the room, stopping at the door to turn and say, "The only one I want to have perverted thoughts about me is you." Then she ducked out the door, dodging the pillow a laughing Akane threw at her.
Ranma waited at the door for Akane to join her, and then the two girls walked into the common room to find their friends already up and waiting for them. Kasumi said, "We're supposed to eat breakfast in the other cabin. As soon as Nabiki joins us, we can go on over."
"Where's Nabiki?" Akane asked.
Kasumi smiled angelically, and replied, "She saw what Ranma was wearing, cursed under her breath and ran back into the bedroom. I think she growled something about not being outclassed by some boy in a bikini."
"Oh this little thing," Ranma said, with a titter.
Sayuri looked at Ranma and said, "Little is the operative word there, Ranma."
Hiroshi closed his open mouth as he thought, 'Man she looks hot in that suit! Wait a minute, I can't be having these thoughts about her, I mean him.' His face turned bright red.
Yuka turned and glared at him, promising a world of pain if he said one word.
At that moment, Nabiki ran in, wearing a swimsuit that rivaled Ranma's for showing more or covering less. She had a pullover top in one hand, ready to walk out the door. Kasumi hid a smile and said, "Oh my, Nabiki, Daddy will start crying as soon as he sees you in that. You'll have to beat the boys off with a baseball bat."
"That's kind of the idea, right Ranma?" Nabiki said with a smirk.
"Well, there's no boys I want to have crawl all over me," Ranma said demurely, ignoring Akane blushing furiously.
Hiroshi shared a look with Daisuke, and both boys groaned as beads of sweat popped out on their foreheads.
Akane said, "Baka," under her breath and then swatted Ranma playfully, "If you think I'm gonna put up with that, you've got another thing coming."
Fortunately for Ranma, Daisuke's stomach began to growl. "Looks like it must be time to eat," Ranma said, with a giggle.
"Yeah, I'm surprised that you haven't joined him," Nabiki teased.
"Wouldn't be ladylike," Ranma said, sticking her tongue out at Nabiki. They quickly emptied the cabin and ran the short distance to the other cabin, where Nodoka was just placing the finishing touches on the breakfast.
Ranma sat down next to her fiancée, holding each other's hands, while the other couples gathered together. Kasumi and Nabiki sat next to Ranma, while Soun and Genma were still gathered around the ever-present shogi board. Nodoka handed around the bowls containing the breakfast that she had prepared, and the crew began to dig in.
Finally, Genma took notice of the red-haired girl sitting demurely with Akane. He stared at her in anger, only to hear the sound of several shogi pieces being placed on the board. "Ranma, what are you doing?" he growled.
"Pop, I'm going to the beach. Guess what, there's cold water there, so I bet anything I get wet. Besides, I wanna teach Akane how to swim, so that means I'll have to get in the water. Don't ya think I ought to be dressed appropriately then? While I'm sure that Daisuke and Hiroshi wouldn't object to me starting out as a guy in just a pair of trunks, I ain't about to flash my boobs at them when I change. Yuka and Sayuri would appreciate a bit of feminine modesty on my part, wouldn't you girls?" Ranma replied.
"Sure would Ranma," Sayuri said in reply, "And Daisuke better not be having any perverted thoughts about your body anyway."
"What she said," Yuka agreed with a glare at her boyfriend, "Just because she has that body, doesn't give you the right to drool over it."
Nodoka smiled and said, "True, you shouldn't walk around topless, that wouldn't be proper. But that swimsuit you're wearing will attract male attention. You should be proud of that."
Ranma took a deep breath, causing Daisuke and Hiroshi to quickly blush and turn away. She said, "Mom, in spite of appearances, I'm still a guy inside. I don't want boys to get perverted thoughts about me. The only reason I have this suit is because I like the feel of the sun on my body."
"I understand, dear," Nodoka replied pleasantly, "But I have a beautiful daughter and I want her to be proud of the way she looks."
Ranma grimaced slightly and exchanged glances with Akane. "See, what did I tell you?" she asked under her breath. Then she glared at the two boys who were avoiding her eyes, as they stanched the small trickle of blood from their noses. Then she looked at Yuka and Sayuri and smiled sadly and said, "Sorry about that, girls. It's not my fault."
The two girls simply glared at their boyfriends. Yuka muttered, "Hentai," under her breath.
"Well, let's finish breakfast so we can head to the beach," Nodoka said pleasantly. Once the meal was done, Nodoka and Kasumi took the dishes into the kitchen and quickly washed them, with Ranma helping to dry.
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The morning went pleasantly enough. The only oddity about the morning had been the strange looks that they had received for having a panda as part of the group. The party had gotten to Yuigahama beach early enough to find plenty of room to claim their territory. The towels for sunbathing were spread out over the brilliant white sand, and the coolers, hampers and bags holding their food and belongings staked out the area. Ranma and Akane were lying on the towels, along with Kasumi, Nabiki and Nodoka. Soun was sitting down, reading his newspaper, while the panda was being buried in the sand by a veritable horde of little children. The other four teenagers had wandered off, claiming that they were going to go surfing. Nodoka had raised an eyebrow at that and then relaxed.
Once everyone was situated, Nodoka took off the top she had been wearing to the beach, leaving her in just her swimsuit.
Ranma was only slightly surprised by the swimsuit that she was wearing. After all, she had somewhat expected that her mother's ideas about swimsuits had been slightly skewed after all of the comments that Nodoka had made. While technically a one-piece, the panels that had been cut out of the sides, and the cut of the top and bottom, left almost as little to the imagination as the ones that Ranma and Nabiki were wearing.
Akane merely raised an eyebrow, being somewhat warned by what Ranma had said earlier.
Nabiki didn't react at all, other than to say, "Now I know where Ranma gets her modesty from."
Kasumi simply blushed bright red, and then asked, "Where did you get that, Auntie? I wouldn't mind one like it."
Ranma and Akane exchanged identical shocked looks.
"Hey, Akane, do you need some suntan lotion on your back?" Ranma asked, "You already look a bit pink."
Akane smiled her thanks and handed Ranma the squeeze bottle, and rolled over onto her stomach. With a smile, Ranma began massaging the lotion into the smooth skin, taking care to cover every square inch of exposed flesh. She pressed down a little bit, feeling the firm muscles in her girlfriend's body. As she worked, Akane began moaning slightly in pleasure at the firm, yet gentle strokes that Ranma was using to work the lotion.
At the sound, Nabiki smirked and asked, in as suggestive voice as she could manage, "When you're done with her, would you like to do me, Ranma?"
"Oh my, me too," Kasumi begged, her eyes dancing.
"Hey, go find your own boyfriend," Akane grumbled, "This one's taken." Her voice took on a very possessive tone as she finished her sentence.
Ranma giggled, and said, "Oh, I don't mind putting the lotion on them. But it's nice to hear you care." 'Real nice,' she thought, 'she better not realize what that tone does to me. Good thing this bra has a little padding in the cup.' With a light swat on Akane's bottom, she said, "Okay, you're done. Nabs, it's your turn."
Nabiki promptly rolled over onto her stomach and waited in anticipation. "Watch where your hands go, Ranma," Akane warned half in jest.
Ranma smiled and proceeded to rub the sun tan lotion onto Nabiki's back and legs. Her strong, steady strokes quickly induced Nabiki to begin purring in pleasure. Ranma jumped and asked, softly, "Nabs, could you not do t-that, p-please?"
Sleepily, Nabiki asked, "Do what, Ranma dear?"
Ranma stammered and replied, "P-p-purr." She quickly finished her ministrations on Nabiki, as the other girl pouted slightly once her fingers left her body. "You've got some pretty firm muscles in your legs, Nabiki. You ought to work out in the dojo; I bet Akane or I could teach you some katas that would help."
Nabiki chuckled dryly and replied, "Thanks, but that's your thing. Akane, dear sister, are you sure you don't want to share?"
"NABIKI!" Akane growled dangerously, her tone very, very possessive, "HE'S MINE!"
"Just teasing, sis," Nabiki replied, "You're just too easy."
"Enough chatter, Ranma, it's my turn," Kasumi said, a bit aggressively.
Ranma turned to find Kasumi on her stomach, her straps pulled down off her shoulders. She groaned to herself, and then began working on Kasumi. Kasumi giggled at the sound as Ranma spread the lotion over her exposed back and began to rub it in.
"That feels so nice, Ranma," Kasumi breathed, "Almost as good as Tofu." Soon she too was moaning just loud enough for Ranma to hear.
"Where did you learn that, Ranma?" Nodoka asked.
"I ended up working in a massage parlor for a few weeks while we were trying to pay off some of Pop's debts. He tried to run out on a bill from there a couple of months before I turned fifteen," Ranma replied, "I had learned a few tricks at some of the dojos we trained at, but there was this one girl who was an expert at the massage parlor who taught me the rest of it."
"What else did she teach you?" Nabiki asked, with a grin.
Nodoka rolled over on her stomach and said, with an evil grin, "My turn, daughter."
Ranma blushed and worked the sun tan lotion into her mother's back, being even more careful with where her hands went as she spread the lotion around. Finally, she finished.
"That was very pleasant," Nodoka said.
"Okay, Ranma, your turn," Akane said, her eyes dancing.
Ranma gulped and lay down on her stomach, closing her eyes. Akane scooted over, and with her strong, yet gentle hands, slowly caressed Ranma's legs, rubbing the lotion into the smooth skin. Ranma began to breathe a little heavy and then froze as Akane straddled her and began to rub the lotion into her back. "Akane," she moaned. 'Damn, I'd forgotten what that felt like,' she thought, as she began to get aroused from the firm strokes on her back. 'Soul of Ice, Soul of Ice,' she thought frantically. Finally, to her relief, Akane finished, and slid off her bottom.
"Like that?" Akane purred seductively, letting her fingers glide teasingly across the tightly stretched fabric covering Ranma's derrière, causing her to quiver in response.
"Just you wait until I can get you alone," Ranma teased, in response.
Akane giggled and said, "Oh why, do you want to have your way with me?"
"Well, I ain't exactly equipped to do that, now am I?" Ranma replied, dryly, "But I'll think of something."
Akane plopped down next to Ranma, and clasped her girlfriend's hand as the five of them enjoyed the warm morning sun.
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After lunch was over and the dishes were put away, Ranma found one of the cabanas scattered around the beach and changed into her red one-piece swimsuit. Then she dragged Akane down to the water's edge. "Okay, you need to know that I'm not gonna teach you the way Pop taught me. I figure you'd not want to get tossed into the water and told to sink or swim," Ranma said once they got there.
Akane gathered her courage and then the two of them waded into the water until it was about mid-chest on the smaller girl.
"Okay, first I wanna teach you how to float," Ranma began, "So I'll want you to lie on your stomach while I hold you to keep you from sinking." She made a cradle of her arms, and Akane leaned forward until only those strong arms supported her.
"One of the problems we're gonna have with this is that you don't have a lot of body fat on you, Akane. All that strength training you've done has given you a lot of muscle. Muscle is denser than water so you're gonna naturally sink a bit when I let you go. When I do, just relax and don't panic," Ranma continued, her voice calm.
She slowly lowered her arms, with Akane promptly sinking until she was just at the surface of the water. Akane rose spluttering as a wave caught her just as she took a breath. Akane turned and glared at the other girl as Ranma laughed. Ranma grimaced and said, "Sorry, I guess we should have started with getting your face wet and learning how to breathe."
They started over, with Ranma holding the larger girl in her arms. "Let's try just putting your face in the water and then when you need a breath, turn to shore and bring your mouth out of the water. When you do, go ahead and breathe normally," Ranma suggested.
Akane spent the next several minutes practicing her breathing, secretly enjoying the feeling of being held by Ranma. Once she was satisfied that Akane had mastered that step, the two of them returned to learning how to float. That proved to be slightly frustrating for both of them, since Akane appeared to have at best neutral buoyancy in the salt water. But they persevered and finally, just before they were called in to leave for the cabins, Akane was able to stay afloat without flailing around. After watching her float for several minutes, Ranma pronounced herself satisfied that Akane had learned how to do that, and pulled her up out of the water. Akane hugged the other girl in her excitement.
"Okay, tomorrow we can concentrate on learning how to kick in the water. I'll start you off with scissor kicks," Ranma said, as they ran up the beach, "If you can get that down, then the rest of it will be easy. Then we can work on your arm motions. As strong as you are, you should be able to move through the water pretty fast, but you'll be using your muscles differently, so they'll get a bit sore."
As they reached the group, Daisuke and Hiroshi turned away as they saw the affect that the cold water had had on the two girls. The two girls looked at each other and then blushed as they realized how well their suits had molded themselves to their curves. They grabbed their towels and began drying themselves off, while Yuka and Sayuri giggled at their boyfriends.
Akane muttered, "Perverts," under her breath.
Ranma simply shook her head in disgust at the boys and replied, equally softly, "You're right. All boys are perverts."
Akane glanced at her in surprise, and then started giggling.
"Huh, what did I say?" Ranma asked, her eyes pretending to be innocent.
"That's supposed to be my line," Akane replied, her eyes dancing with mirth.
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Ranma sat on the roof of the cabin that evening, right over the bedroom that she was sharing with Akane, the last kiss that they had shared still fresh on her mind. After leaving Akane to go change, Ranma wanted some time to think by herself, and had climbed up on the roof instead of rejoining her fiancée. She sighed happily, thinking about how different things were this time through, especially now that they had admitted their love for each other. 'The dates that we've gone on have been a lot of fun; we really didn't know what we were missing before. And the necking that we've been doing, I can't even begin to believe how good that makes me feel. I'm not sure I want to wait until we're seniors before we get married,' she thought, a tender smile appearing on her face. Then she grinned as she recalled their most recent date, the one they'd shared on Tanabata day. This year, the seventh of July had fallen in the middle of the week, so they had only had a few hours to really enjoy the festival. Her eyes grew distant as she recalled that evening.
Flashback
Ranma waited impatiently for Akane to finish dressing. He had changed into his only kimono, one that his mother had insisted on buying for him for occasions like this. His wait was rewarded when Akane made her appearance, followed closely by his mother who had helped her get everything just right. Ranma's jaw dropped as he gaped in surprise at how pretty Akane looked. His eyes glazed over for a second and then he said, hoarsely, "You look fantastic, Akane." He waited until she joined him at the foot of the stairs, and then he offered her his arm. The two of them walked over and joined Kasumi and Tofu, who smiled at them.
"You two cleaned up real well," Tofu said with a chuckle, "It's hard to believe that you're that little girl I used to treat Akane."
Akane blushed prettily and then daringly, reached up and kissed Tofu's cheek. "Thanks, Tofu. That's kind of you to say," she said.
"I've got the tanzaku paper here for us to write our wishes on, Akane," Kasumi said softly, "Then we can go hang them on one of the bamboo plants in the park."
"We'd better head on over there before it gets too much later," Tofu added, "I know Kasumi said she wanted to look at all of the displays on the way."
Ranma chuckled and said, "Then we'd better get going. No one in their right mind wants to upset Kasumi."
Kasumi giggled prettily and said, "Just for that, I'm going to let Akane cook for you."
"Gee, let me get my wish up first," Ranma teased, then he said, "Ouch," as Akane poked him in the ribs.
"Making fun of my cooking again, Ranma," she growled, as they walked out of the house and started down the street toward the park, joining the throng of people already heading that direction. The two couples walked down the street, holding hands with their partner.
"Nah, actually you're getting pretty good at the few things we've tried together," Ranma said, rubbing his side, "We'll work on a few more things when we go train with Cologne. Remember, she has to come back to the restaurant for the weekends, anyway, so we'll be cooking those meals."
Once they reached the park, they entered through the main gate and headed down toward the small lake in the center, and the bamboo plants that were growing on the shore. The four of them were amazed at the decorations that were scattered throughout the park, all of the streamers flying from the branches.
Ranma chuckled and pointed at several Kinchaku hanging from some of the trees. "Nabiki's been here, look at all the bags asking for wealth," he said. The other three joined him in laughter.
"It's been a real pretty day," Soun said, "Looks like princess Orihime and prince Hikoboshi will be able to meet tonight on the Milky Way."
"Someone has made a lot of origami and put them in the trees also. Look there's a crane," Akane pointed out. They soon reached the stand of bamboo, and they wrote their wishes on the colorful strips of paper that Kasumi handed them. They folded them carefully and then placed them on the nearest bamboo.
Akane and Kasumi then kissed their respective boyfriends. Tofu breathed deeply as his glasses fogged up, and then cleared as he brought himself back under control. Ranma's pigtail straightened up as he responded to Akane's passionate kiss.
"Oh my," Kasumi said, as she fanned herself. The four of them then headed over to look at some of the displays.
End Flashback
"That was a good day," Ranma said to herself as she stared off into the distance, "Even if I did get splashed on the way back. Should have known not to get that close to the damn fountain." She yawned and decided that the stars could watch themselves. She jumped down to the ground and went and found her room. After crawling into the bed, she gently kissed the sleeping Akane on the forehead and curled up next to her, listening to the gentle sound of her breathing. Soon, the combination of the afternoon's activities, and the warmth of the girl next to her, had Ranma drifting off into never-never land.
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Author's Notes: Thanks all for the wonderful reviews. Sorry this chapter took so long, but Chapter 22 is about half done. I'll try to post it after I get back from skiing. As always, comments and constructive criticisms are welcomed and encouraged. Flames, of course, I use to brew my tea. Specific responses follow:
Amasaki Reyoko: Thanks. And yes, Ukyo will try something. That won't happen for a little while though. If you haven't noticed, she's kind of taking on the obsessed Kodachi role in this story.
Lord Strife: Soun is beginning to figure it out. Though Genma will get a chance to redeem himself. Now whether or not he takes it….
The Shadows: Thanks. As far as research goes, I have read a few things so hopefully Ranma will look like he's reacting correctly. As to that time of the month, it's why he/she flew off the handle as much as he did, so yeah it'll show up some more. I'm still not quite sure what was over the top in your story by the way. I didn't think you went over an R rating. Oh well, what do I know.
Sierra-Falls: Thanks. I tend to do that as well when I find a long fiction that I like. Happosai will show up soon, the pervert, and yes, I intend for him to be a bit dark.
Psycho-King: Yep, I've had a few weeks like that. And yeah, Ranma really didn't want to be bothered by Ukyo about what had happened. That's kind of why he went off on her like that.
Eames: Well, that's for a later chapter of course. She will be involved in the first confrontation with Happosai.
Dana-san: I have several different plans in mind for Kuno. Hopefully you'll enjoy them. And yes, him seeking help for his obsessive behavior is the beginning of his journey towards a hopeful redemption.
Daouid: He basically just hid the honor blade of course. Hopefully Genma won't find it. Probably the last thing Ranma would do is talk to his mother about what Kuno tried to do. Their relationship is still a little shaky, after all it's only been a few weeks.
ZRO4825: Yeah, I was a little surprised that some of the readers were shocked. Kuno wasn't the most stable person in the world, so it wouldn't take much to shove him over the edge.
Taxzombie: Thanks for the kind words. Yep, I like fleshing out Kasumi a bit more. She does tend to get overlooked in a lot of stories, so I enjoy making her a bit more of a character. And I think she definitely thought of Ranma as her little brother. As to what happens when Kuno finally finds out the truth about Ranma, that scene will happen, I just haven't decided which way it will play out.
Mysticalflame: Basically we're in book 5 of the manga, fixing to go to book 6, I just had Ukyo show up a lot earlier. Starting in the next chapter, we'll be doing the Breaking Point training with my own particular weird twist to it. As for Piccolo Chardin showing up, I don't know, maybe, but if so, it will happen much later.
Materia-Blade: I'm not sure Toma will show up. I didn't really like that OVA much. Kirin will happen, I just don't know when yet. Of course, I won't exactly follow the anime that closely.
Wonderbee31: Yeah, Nabiki does tend to pry a bit, doesn't she? Ukyo will try something else, that will happen in a later chapter though.