She was awkward around him. After the whole ordeal with P-Chan, she couldn't tell whether to take him seriously or to just sock him in the face. She was already punching him though, but because of the sparring, not really because of her slight anger. Although, she did pass everything off as if it were fine. She was still stunned about the whole situation. For nearly a year and a half, the lost boy, the strong and shy Ryoga, also had a jysenko curse. What concerned her more was that every time she'd need to vent or need to cry about Ranma drama, he'd always be there. P-Chan and Ryoga. Now it made more sense to her why she just clicked with him more. Because she was telling her pet and friend the same things at the same time. She couldn't wrap her head around it, nor could she wrap her head around Ryoga's feelings. Akane certainly liked him -she was even able to admit he was more good-looking than Ranma-,but the thing that always settled in her mind was how jealous and violent he could be. She summed it up to the whole, "macho guy" type of issue both of them struggle with, but Ryoga was a lot more dramatic than she would've thought, and realizing that Ranma was the reason for his curse, she couldn't blame him for trying to always kill Ranma. Maybe not kill, but at least launch a thousand miles away.

Both she and Ryoga were resting from their recent sparing. Akane was covered in all kinds of bruises and cuts, the Bakusai Tenktsu was a force to be reckoned with. No wonder Ranma always hated fighting Ryoga. She could tell that when she was feeling tired, his assaults were a lot more lenient, but she later realized that he was going easy on her anyway. This chewed at her thoughts and began to eat her up. Ryoga, who was sitting next to her had a sour look on his face as he saw Akane's subtle fidgeting. He tried speaking to her, but every time he would it felt like tape was over his mouth. Akane was fidgeting a lot more this time and he was slowly beginning to get concerned.

"Akane?" He asked, removing the fictional tape from his mouth. "Am I being too hard on you? I can ease up on it a little more if you'd like."

"I'm tired of you easing up on me. I'm not fragile!" Ryoga looked into her eyes, subtly looking at her cut body, which told a different story. "Disregarding the whole, 'love' thing," Ryoga internally winced as she said that, "I want to train to become better. A better martial artist. And you pussyfooting around me isn't helping either."

Ryoga, taken back by her rather crude comment defended himself, "If I were to do the same level of Breaking Points I'd do to Ranma, you'd be dead by now. Resistance training is about taking a little at a time, before the big stuff. Not just getting the big stuff and nearly dying from it." Akane scoffed audibly and went inside the house.

"I'm going in the kitchen. Don't follow me. And even if you tried, I don't feel like spending an hour trying to find you." She'd get up with a "harrumph" and leave Ryoga to himself.

He shook his head and cringed as he kept replaying Akane's words in his head. It's been about a few weeks since they started the training and Akane's been acting like this around the second week they've been training. He'd thought about leaving, just telling her to forget about it. But she kept pleading him to stay and it was starting to get on his nerves. Despite the many times of him crushing on Akane, he'd never spend so much time with her; now he was slowly starting to see Ranma's side of her annoyance and unnecessary aggression. Ever since the confession and the P-Chan reveal, things changed between the two. Instead of Akane giving her usually friendly and cute remarks, she'd be sour and act like she wouldn't want to talk to him. It hurt him, considering the fact that he was still trying to get with her. It dawned on him that he didn't know what he'd do if she rejected him. Before, it was a thought that was constantly on his mind due to Ranma, but he was out of the picture, Ryoga made his chance and even gotten a kiss -granted a kiss on the cheek- from Akane, but everything was ruined because of the piglet transformation. Things have been rocky thereon. Akane had taken him in because of the resistance training. Originally, Soun wasn't happy about this, until he realized just how much of an asset Ryoga was. He'd live there free of charge as long as he helped Akane and repaired the Dojo anytime it was destroyed. A decent trade-off in his mind. He'd been sleeping in Ranma and Genma's room for the time being, making it a little more "Ryogaish" by putting all of his items haphazardly in the room along with his travel pack by the window, in case he needed a quick escape for whatever reason.

His thoughts were interrupted by Akane, who nosily sat down beside him again and handed him a water bottle. He took it with a smile, but Akane only turned away.

"Why are you acting like this towards me? At first, you seemed determined to do this..."

"I was, but the more I thought about the more I realized that you lied to me Ryoga. You lied to me for nearly two years," she said coldly. Ryoga got goosebumps from her stares. "I almost don't care if you turn into a pig, but you lied to me. And you got Ranma in on it. I don't know how many else people know either, but it's got me mad." She began to drink her water, slightly crushing the bottle every time she glanced over at him.

"I get it Akane, but can we just talk it out? As you said, it's better to talk things out than to keep the anger in."

"I know what I said, but it just got to me okay? How would you react about this?" He sat there in silence giving a contemplative look and eventually a downcast expression. "Exactly. I don't mean to be harsh Ryoga, but right now...I'm just not sure what to feel. I do like you, but your emotions are so strong. Literally. Even if I did love you, you'd probably kill me with a simple hug."

"Well isn't that the reason why we're doing this training? So you can build resistance and so I can't kill you?"

"For the most part. Yes." It was silent for a moment as the two stared at each other. Both having a flurry of thoughts and emotions running through their mind.

"Well." Ryoga squeaked, breaking the silence, "What can I do to change your mind?"

"Maybe not lie to me and I'll warm up to you again, but right now, I'm just split Ryoga. I'm sorry."

He nodded softly and had gotten up from the porch. "I think I'm going to rest for a while. I think we did enough today." He quietly said as he treaded through the hallway. He'd meant to go into his room but instead wound up in the bathroom. Not like it mattered, he just needed to get away from her before she kept ripping his heart to shreds. He'd sit on the floor, misty-eyed as he stared at himself in the mirror. He felt a Shi Shi Hokodan coming but quickly drew it back with just a violent punch to the mirror. The glass had made his hands bleed, but at least now he had something to deal with instead of the violent suicidal explosion. A little more wandering and he'd eventually make it to his room. After a moment or two, he heard a small knock on the door. "Go ahead." Kasumi had entered, looking at Ryoga with a warm smile, which quickly turned into a sad frown as she saw Ryoga's expression.

"Are you okay Ryoga? I heard some noise coming from the bathroom and wanted to check up on you."

"I'm fine Kasumi-san. I just have to go out and replace a mirror is all."

"Oh my. So that's what that was. You're not expecting to go alone are you?"

"Not like I can go with Akane." Kasumi hummed to herself as he made note of Akane.

"I could go with you if you'd like. Just so you won't get lost." Ryoga sighed and gotten up from the floor. He trekked past Kasumi and attempted to make his way down the stairs, resulting in him going into a hall closet. Kasumi slightly giggled, but still felt bad for poor Ryoga. "Maybe a walk would do him some good?"

...

Both Kasumi and Ryoga were making their way to the busier part of Nerima, there was a hardware store a little farther out, but this only gave Kasumi an excuse to see what Ryoga's been thinking. Ryoga, who was dreading any conversation sweated when Kasumi simply said his name.

"Y-yeah?" He squeaked.

"Are you following my advice Ryoga? To stay calm and keep level-headed?"

"I've been trying. It's just difficult. I'm not sure what else to do regarding her."

"I see. Well, why don't you try being forward with your feelings towards her?"

"That's all I've been doing. I'm almost starting to feel like Ranma at this point. She was so determined to do this, but it's like the more we continued, the less she felt like doing it." Kasumi looked at the ground and began to drag her feet a little more. She was beginning to get lost in thought as if looking for a solution that didn't exist.

"I think you should just give her some time. Akane's sensitive and she can't handle news like that really well. I'm sure if you were to let her come to her own conclusions soon and try to get back on decent terms with her then everything ought to be alright." Ryoga nodded, but still had doubt plaguing his mind.

"I guess the best thing for me to do is try and focus on my training with her. If she wants to become a stronger martial artist, the least I can do is help her." The pair had continued their walk into town as the busy streets had recognized the both of them, either saying hi to Kasumi or gossiping about the Lost Boy. The attention Ryoga was getting felt unwanted. He was already tired of the one person he loved, being judgmental. Why can't I ever just escape? He'd instinctively begin walking in the wrong direction before Kasumi ushered him. He wouldn't mind being lost this time, but before he could he had to fix this window and be on his way.

It didn't take long to repair the mirror. Ryoga subtly admired his handiwork, before starting to use the bathroom himself. He did a good job and it looked like nothing had happened. Ryoga had stripped and turned on the hot water. As the tub filled up, his skin jumped from the heat, but his tense muscles relaxed with a long sigh, he'd take a long bath, something he hadn't done in a few days. He'd look up at the ceiling and reminisce hearing sweet Akane's voice, the cuter side of her anyway. The one that made his heart flutter and the one that gave him strength. But the daydream was short-lived, the nice Akane instead being replaced by the Akane he now encounters. Rude and standoffish. Yet, he still loved her, even when she was mad. The rose full of thorns, he was starting to relearn Akane. She was still soft and cute, but right now she was quite the opposite. What could Ryoga do to increase his chances with her?

He drained the water and dressed into his regular attire. He'd still haven't collected himself. He could use another trip outside. As everyone in the living room was eating dinner, Ryoga paid no mind to them and miraculously found his way to the door. "I'm leaving. I'll be back whenever I find the door."

He'd find himself leaving the dojo. It was rather late, but he was used to spending nights out and about, it was the type of thing he was used to. Even if he got in trouble, he could defend himself well, so he could do whatever he'd like. The only issue would be figuring out how to get back, but he'll get to that when necessary. He didn't even understand why he left like that, it's not like he really had anywhere to go, but in all fairness, he never did. Taking that into consideration, he'd just walk aimlessly. He'd admire the prettiness of the Nerima at night, observing the park and the moon glistening in the waters, the many stores being open, and still a plethora of people out. He forgot how nice his hometown could be if he'd just stop and smell the roses. Speaking of smelling, Ryoga had gotten interested in the slight spicy smell that filled the air. Following it, he was outside of Nekohatten and simply shrugged while walking in. There weren't many people there, but it seemed like enough to get Shampoo and Mousse busy.

"Aiyah, Lost Boy! You customer or nuisance?" Ryoga smiled to himself, due to Shampoo's blunt attitude.

"Customer today. I'd like a bowl of ramen."

"Aiyah, in moment. Have other orders first." Shampoo skated away into the back of the restaurant while Mousse was doing clean-up around the tables. He saw Ryoga and sat down next to him.

"What brings you here Ryoga? I thought you liked Ucchan's better?" Ryoga shrugged.

"Couldn't resist a classic bowl of ramen I guess!" Mousse laughed and pushed up his glasses. He then scooched up to Ryoga and began to faintly whisper.

"So. What happened with Saotome? I thought he came back?" The lost boy shook his head and Mousse had a sigh of relief.

"Not yet, I was just dressed as him for a while when I came back here. Don't ask, it's a long story..."

"I've got time. We're gonna close in a few minutes anyway and I'm sure Cologne won't mind if you stay since you're familiar with her." Ryoga rubbed the back of his head sheepishly and nodded. With a sigh, he began his story.

...

It was about an hour or so later. Nekohatten was closed and Shampoo and Mousse were both attentively listening to Ryoga's troubles. Each of them had some tea and ramen as he told the story, both either gasping or laughing at his misfortune but Shampoo did slap Ryoga, because of him beating Ranma with a tree. After he finally summed everything up, Mousse was looking calculated and stared at Shampoo for a moment, before glancing at him and pushing his glasses up. "So that's why you look like a mess, huh?" Ryoga frowned but nodded nonetheless. "I think what this calls for is another date..."

"What? Won't that just make things worse?"

"Listen to me, I have the perfect idea. All you have to do is not screw it up."

"Well tell me."

"There's a hot spring in Osaka that's also a common hotspot for martial artists. Around that area is a hotel and I think if you two spend some quality time together, then she might fall for you." Shampoo nodded affirmingly. Ryoga shook his head and was afraid of the outcome.

"Shampoo have special soap for no pig curse. I ask Great Grandmother for bar for you." Shampoo left the two boys behind to finish the rest of their chatter.

"Why are you being so nice to me? Is this some sort of trick?" Ryoga glanced at Mousse who had his hands up defensively.

"N-No trick! Honest! And besides, we Jusenkyo victims have to stick together. And everything will just work out if you do this right. You have Akane, I'll eventually beat Ranma, and get Shampoo. So it's bound to work!"

"Still having trouble with Shampoo, eh?"

"I'm working on it. Recently she stopped calling me an idiot and started calling me a moron!" Ryoga facepalmed. "It's not as bad. I think. Either way Hibiki, you can do it, just don't be stupid in your execution." Ryoga nodded curtly and shook Mousse's hand.

Shampoo had come back and presented the soap to Ryoga. It was in a small box with a green bow tied on it. "Use soap and no more curse. No change in day if used." He took the soap and smiled at the Amazons.

"Thanks, guys. This means a lot."

"You're just a member of the Jusenkyo victims. We have to watch out for each other." Mousse put a hand on Ryoga's shoulder and nodded. With that, Ryoga had gotten a burst of energy and waltzed out of Nekohatten.

As long as he could convince Akane for real and serious training in Osaka, she'd be in his hands. Mousse hadn't actually told him what to do to make Akane happy, but he'd figure it out along the way. He did with their first date, so this wouldn't be any different. Hopefully. The only question would be when to ask Akane. If he'd ask now then she might just say yes and they could go the next day. But, that was harder said than done. If he could get Akane calm and reasonable, he could ask. But, how could he do that...?

He figured out the answer.

...

"So. You want me to cook for you?" She said slightly embarrassed and puzzled.

"Yes. I really do enjoy your cooking Akane and I think I'd love to have some of it. Plus, you'd be getting your cooking practice in for housewife training!" Akane pondered to herself and clapped delightfully.

"Alright! I'll make anything you want! I promise it'll be good!"

"Cook what's comfortable for you Akane. Just as long as you enjoy it and know the recipe, I'll eat anything you make." She smiled and dashed out of her room. Despite it being late, Akane had turned on the kitchen lights and stove and began to work on whatever she could think of. Ryoga sighed of relief, realizing how simple that was, but the hard part was now figuring out how to ask her. His trademark nervousness was showing up again, but he quickly controlled it to a punch to the stomach, a punch that might've been a little too hard. At least it calmed his nerves, giving him something else to worry about; the pain in his now collapsing stomach.

He'd spend most of his time in the hallway pacing around, trying to figure out what he could even say to her. To an extent, he was asking her out, but it was also training. Maybe if he could propose it like a training trip, maybe he could have better chances? Ryoga had nodded to himself and sighed heavily. If this wouldn't work then nothing would, in his eyes.

"Ryoga! It's finished!" Akane yelled out, resulting in said boy wandering down the stairs. He'd nearly walk out the door, but found his way to the main room and sat down. Akane gave him a cute smile and placed down a bowl. "I hope you like it!" She said sweetly. Ryoga inspected it and it smelled nice, but he couldn't make out what it was. If he was going off the last time Akane cooked, it was great, so hopefully, whatever that was would taste good too.

"Thanks, Akane! You really know how to spoil someone!" He grabbed some chopsticks and dug into the food. He took another whiff and it smelled really sweet, yet he picked up a hot fragrance as well. With a shrug, he shoved it in his mouth. CRUNCHHH! That didn't feel right. He kept chewing, but he kept feeling like his teeth would fall out. "Mm. What is this?" He asked in-between crunches.

"Ah, it's just something I whipped up. It's a secret so don't worry!" She gave the same innocent smile before, but Ryoga was starting to feel sick. Unfortunately, in order to really sell this, he had to eat all of it. He shoved more of the food in his mouth and laughed sheepishly at the taste.

"So, uh. A-Akane." She turned towards him, "I-I've been thinking. After that walk I had earlier, I encountered Mousse and he told me about this place." She sat attentively, yet had a slightly sour look on her face. "It's this hot springs and I heard from him that it's a great place to practice training. I was thinking about taking us there. Would you like to go?" Akane had a split look, but she eventually shrugged and smiled.

"Sure. I guess it's better than just destroying the yard over and over again." Ryoga nodded but eternally squealed louder than P-Chan ever could.

"Alright. We can go first thing tomorrow morning! Be prepared, because I won't go easy on you anymore!" Akane perked up.

"You're on. P-Chan," she humiliated him before going upstairs. As she turned the corner and went to her room she was still surprised the Ryoga didn't mind eating rocks covered in honey and wasabi. I guess that he really does love my cooking then.

The couple was on the train sitting next to each other. Ryoga really meant first thing in the morning. They had left at the crack of dawn and Akane was still half asleep. The soothing rocks of the train made her dose off, unintentionally leaning on Ryoga's shoulder. He couldn't help but realize how cute she was. If only days like this were a reality, but right now in order to make that a reality, he'd have to make sure to spend time with her. Outside of training. Taking a train from Nerima to Osaka was quite a distance it was about three or four hours before they made it there, so this gave Ryoga ample time to think. He had everything in his head planned out. For the first time, he actually planned out a strategy. He brought his travel pack with him -in case of emergency- and he'd put the curse-free soap in his pocket.

Akane was still asleep on his shoulder and he was preventing himself from getting a nosebleed. This was the first time in a while that he and Akane were a little intimate. Recently, she'd been just teasing him a lot more almost as if he were Ranma. The nicknames, the slight passive aggression, yet there was still something that was mesmerizing about her, especially with her sleeping like this. It had been a while since Ryoga saw her slept -as odd as that statement sounds- he didn't remember her being so peaceful. Her lips slightly pursed, yet still full, it was such a tease. So soft. So sweet. Oh, Akane...I yearn for your love...He'd take a moment to realize what he'd just said before bopping himself on the head. Man. At this rate, I'm turning into Kuno. Akane softly sighed in her sleep which made Ryoga jump. Keep the daydreams to a minimum, he reiterated to himself.

Eventually, the train had stopped and everyone was starting to leave. Ryoga gently woke Akane up from a short nap. She'd groggily skootch out of the seat carrying a few of her items. Ryoga took a look at her weary expression. If he didn't know any better it seemed like he woke her up in the middle of a good dream. After they both had gotten out of the terminal, Ryoga had taken out his massive traveling map. "Hm. Let's see." He said scratching his head. "Well, we want to head towards Keihanshin and it looks like it's north from here." After some more fiddling with the map and cramming it into his backpack, he'd storm completely in the opposite direction and Akane adjusted him in the right direction.

Ryoga was somewhat familiar with Osaka. During misdirectional trips, he'd find himself in Osaka plenty of times, but where Mousse told him to go wasn't that far away. It was actually quite an extravagant place, thankfully, Ryoga did have some yen on him. Working odd jobs around Japan did have its perks. The only thing that concerned him was making it there before it became too late. He'd have to hand Akane the map or ask for directions if they still want to make it there by daylight. He was absent-mindedly walking in one direction as he skirted past several people. Akane was noticing his tunnel vision and spoke up.

"Ryoga? Do you know where we're going? I can use the map if you want me to," he'd stop in his tracks and sigh. He pulled out the slightly crumpled map and handed it to Akane. She eyed the map and looked back at Ryoga. "S-so we're going to Keihanshin?" He nodded. She began to fiddle with the map more and looked around her surroundings. "It seems like this place isn't that far from here. It might take us an hour to get there, but since this is for training I guess this is nothing!" Ryoga could only nervously chuckled as he let Akane lead the way.

...

"So," She began, "This is the place where we'd get some 'training' done?" She gestured to the massive inn in front of them. It certainly was nice, but no place to train, especially for someone like Ryoga who could cause millions of dollars in property damage in two seconds.

"W-well y-yeah. Mousse was the one who told me about it. We could just go into the mountains and train and stay here for a day or two till we're finished!" Akane closed her eyes and hummed to herself. She shook her head and puffed, before giving Ryoga a rather disingenuous look.

"Alright. (She sighs) Let's just get started on the training. I've been waiting for this all day."

The pair had hiked their way off of the property and into some woods. Akane was ready to spar with Ryoga and he was getting himself ready. After tightening his bandana and getting into his fighting stance, he called. "Okay, Akane! Give it your all!"

She started to charge with a roaring battle cry and gave Ryoga a swift chop on the head. He stood there unflinching and shook his head. She grimaced, but threw out a kick, connecting to Ryoga's back, he didn't budge. One more attack. The one to end them all. Akane had pulled out her trusty mallet and smacked Ryoga on the head. He'd stumble and fall to the ground unceremoniously.

He'd get up and snatch the mallet from her hands. "No! No mallet! No hammer!" He said chucking it away like a baseball.

"But you said 'give it your all'!"

"'Give your all' doesn't mean knock me out with a mallet! Where do you even keep those things anyway?!"

"Well actually, it's a funny story. One time me and Kasumi wer-." Ryoga audibly sighed.

"Hand-to-hand combat only. Now give your all. Without weapons."

Both teens were in their typical fighting stances. Ryoga figured that he really should give Akane a taste of everything he had. He'd rush towards Akane and gave moderate punches to her arms, signifying her to block. Once she got the memo, the strikes were harder, with a few added kicks. Akane was already looking tired, but he decided to not ease up on her. His flurry had proved to be relentless, but Akane had tried looking for any sort of opening, as she was still guarding herself against his devastating blows. She had noticed the pattern that Ryoga was doing. She focused and had managed to parry one of his attacks and make him stagger backward slightly. She saw this as an opportunity to strike Ryoga's chest and knock him onto the ground. He was caught off guard but impressed by her rapid improvements. Despite her weakness, he had to give her some credit, she knew how to take advantage of weaknesses. Ryoga had hopped up from his back and assumed his fighting stance again. He decided to mix it up and instead used his Bakusai Tenketsu to emit dust and debris from the ground. Ryoga had used the dust to sneak behind Akane and punch her from behind, he'd then wince as he heard Akane yelp in pain. He attempted to pick her up, extending a hand for her to reach. She took his hand and pulled him in close to chop his face. Dirty. He thought to himself as he'd hop up again. Although her trick was rather clever, Ryoga could tell that the punch had knocked the wind out of her. He'd take this as an opening and perform an aerial strike on her, landing onto her in the process. She was struggling to get him off her, but Ryoga slightly relented and had gotten off her. Akane grabbed her bearings but began to violently cough. Ryoga had become immediately concerned for her and walked up towards her. Her face was red. He might've overdone it a little...

"Akane! I'm sorry! Did I hurt you? Man, why am I so stupid?!" Ryoga began to punch himself as compensation for her pain. She started to laugh a little, but continue hacking.

"I-I'm fine Ryoga. Really! I was just caught off guard is all." Ryoga rushed towards her and gave her a deep embrace, which only made Akane caught more off guard.

"You really worried me Akane! I wouldn't know what I'd do to myself to see you seriously hurt..." He'd continue to hug her. Originally, she was going to push him off and break away. However, she realized that his hug didn't hurt. It didn't hurt. She fully accepted the embrace and embraced Ryoga back.

"You're my best friend Ryoga. I know you wouldn't want to hurt me and I'm sorry for being rude. I just didn't know how to feel," she said still enjoying the warm hug.

"I already forgave you Akane. No need to apologize..."

They were still hugging and hadn't moved. Akane had realized that she'd become sturdy enough to become closer with Ryoga. Said boy hadn't realized this at the time but was thankful -and slightly surprised- that she didn't let go. It felt like hours of them just hugging even though it was only about twenty seconds. Both of their minds racing of them having such intimacy together. Eventually, Akane broke away from the hug and smiled at Ryoga. The same cute and warm smile he'd become accustomed to. Her face shone in the light and Ryoga thought she looked angelic. So beautiful. Even with her covered in dust and drenched in sweat, she could somehow still look cute to him. He couldn't understand it.

"Do you want to keep going Ryoga?" She huffed.

"..H-huh? O-oh yeah, sure." He said scratching his head and blushing while assuming his stance again.

Phase one of the operation was complete. The next thing to do was to be alone together in the hotel and confess.

Both teens were bruised and sweaty from their training. Ryoga had paid for a room overnight and both he and Akane would get themselves situated...after the 50 minutes of Ryoga trying to find their room. After the misdirectional hell, Akane was laying on the bed, still tired from the training, while Ryoga was sitting in a chair looking out the window, admiring the view. He was smart enough to get a room with two beds so both he and Akane could sleep separately, if he would've gotten one bed, he was almost sure Akane would make him get on the floor. He'd realize how eerily silent they'd been since they've finished training, Ryoga knew why he was silent but didn't know why Akane was. The thought only seemed to upset Ryoga slightly, it's possible that he had taken the hug too far and made things awkward between them again, but if that were the case, Akane would've broke from the hug. His mind continued to race until it was interrupted by Akane's yawn. He looked over at her and she blushed in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, I'm still kinda tired," She let out another yawn.

"It's alright Akane. Um." Ryoga started to twiddle his fingers while breaking eye contact with Akane. "Would you like to go to the Onsen? I'm sure it's divided!" Ryoga backpedaled. Akane looked at him but shrugged.

"I guess it would be pretty nice to soak in the water!" She with more enthusiasm than she anticipated. Ryoga nodded furiously and walked out of the room, Akane following behind him.

It was his chance. Both of them were walking together and Ryoga had his chance to try and confess to Akane again, but he'd end up being too nervous to form the words. It was only a matter of time until both he and Akane made it to the Onsen. He'd sigh and maybe confess after the soak. It would do it some good to clean himself and get himself more mentally prepped for the confession.

After splitting ways with Akane, Ryoga figured that he'd have most of the water to himself. It was late, but there were only a few people inside, mostly elderly. He'd hop in without a second thought and used the special soap Shampoo provided him. As he began to lather, he'd felt the world become smaller and slightly freak out due to the familiar sensation. Maybe the water was colder than he thought. He shrugged it off as no matter and scuttled towards a nearby sink and run some hot water. Using a pale, he'd fill it up and hop inside and he reverted back to his human self. (Nothing happens.) And he reverted back to his human self? (Still nothing.)

.

..

SHAMPOOOOO! Ryoga screamed internally. He'd begin having a fit inside of the water, continuously splashing in it, hoping something, anything would happen. But to no avail. It's fine. All I have to do is wait for this to wear off. He'd then remember what Shampoo had said to him. "No change in day if use." Day. The was another internal squeal. Ryoga had rushed out of the water and tried to figure something out. He couldn't let Akane see him like that. Again! Ryoga swore that when he'd get back in Nerima, he'd launch her to space.

"Achoo!" She sniffled as she began to rub her nose. "Aiyah, Shampoo be talked about maybe?" She said to Mousse who was on the rear of her bike.

"Maybe. You think Ryoga got with Akane?"

"Only if Stupid Lost Boy use soap right."

"I'm sure he did, he's smarter than you give him credit for."

A/n: I actually did some more research and there's a pretty well-known traditional hotel in Osaka, called Fushioukaku. It's a very nice looking area and I thought, eh why not, I feel like adding some small realism to Ranma wouldn't hurt anyone.

Although they don't interact all that much, I like to think Ryoga gets along with the Amazons better than Ranma. I see them as friends because all of their curses turn them into weaker, nearly useless versions of themselves. I've also had a headcanon that Mousse and Ryoga have a dynamic similar to Ranma and Ryoga's except it's a lot more civil. They still fight, but it's more in friendly banter and sparring compared to Ranma and Ryoga's fights that tend to get a little out of hand.

One more note is that yeah I admit that Akane might've come off as a little rude to Ryoga in a 180, from the last chapter. But, she does this with Ranma, and very often. Akane sort of lost some of her trust in Ryoga and had become a little more distant and she'd tend to act like that or similar if Ranma were to lie to her or deceive her, so I thought it would've made sense to incorporate it here.

Anyway, constructive criticism and reviews are welcome! Thanks for reading this chapter!