Dragon Ball Z/ Sailor Moon/ Ranma ½ fanfic.
"Past, Present and Uncertainty."
By Julian Soullard (e-mail: jnsoullard@hotmail.com)
Warning: All characters from this fanfic are copyright from Akira
Toriyama (Dragon Ball Z), Naoko Takeuchi (Sailor Moon) and Rumiko Takahashi
(Ranma ½) so don't sue me. By the way, also worth mentioning, this story is
a sequel to my other fanfic "Boy meets girls". In other words, there will be
a lot of things you won't understand in this story if you haven't read "Boy
meets girls" (and its side stories) first. If that's the case... then what
the Hell are you doing here still reading this? Go to
http://lavender.fortunecity.com/flamingos/122 instead, and start at the real
beginning of the story like you're suppose to!
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AND NOW ON WITH....
Chapter 4: Purple into black, and red on top to give it flavor.
Patience was definitively not one of Ranma's merits. Even if he had
nothing better to do all day, standing stupidly while waiting for Akane was
not the best way to kill time.
Once again, Mr. Tendou and his dad had somehow managed in sending
the two would-be couple out for shopping. It was rather common now, as well
as quite exasperating for Akane and Ranma, to have their fathers pressuring
them in going out together more often. Even if it was just to buy clothes.
Then again, Ranma had already planed to go buy himself a new pair of
trousers. So he didn't offer much resistance in accompanying Akane in the
end. After all, this mall wasn't in Nerima; which reduced the possibilities
of being ambushed by one or several of his rivals and/or suitors. That was
a big plus.
The fact that he had to tag along with Akane though, did put kind of
a damper in all that. Not because of the company the girl represented, since
he had grown used to her in a way and she in return didn't hit him as often
as before. The problem was the waiting thing. Unlike guys, girls took too
long when shopping.
To Ranma's brain it was quite simple:
When a guy wants to buy a pair of trousers: he goes to the mall and
thinks [Trousers, trousers, trousers, trousers, trousers...] all the time.
When he finds what he's looking for, he checks the color, he checks the size
and then he checks the price (things which take up to 5 minutes to do and
not more). If it's what he's looking for, he buys them and then leaves for
home. If not, he goes on with his journey and repeats the three steps over
and over until he finds 'the' trousers. Then he leaves for home. Simple as
that.
Girls are different:
When a girl goes to buy something, she has a vague idea of what she
wants. Therefore she gets distracted easily. Maybe she's after shoes, but it
only take a simple dress in a showcase to mislead her from her true purpose.
Then comes the 'trying it out' part. Unlike guys, girls take up to
an hour in putting on the damn thing. Add all this to the decision making
process on whether to buy the dress or not which takes twice as long.
Bottom line: girls take at least twice the time in buying the same
amount of clothes guys do.
At least, that's how Ranma saw it.
"Okay, Ranma, I'm done." said a voice behind a fitting room.
Oh, yeah... let's not forget the 'asking-the-guy-you-came-along-with
-for-his-opinion' part. Another part of the ritual which only delays even
more the shopping. Ranma made a note to be as brief as possible in order to
leave soon.
Out from the dressing room came Akane wearing a yellow summer dress.
The outfit was simple yet very well designed in boosting up a woman's
femininity. Akane was not an exception.
The cleavage was just about right and the two stings which held the
dress up from the girls shoulder gave it a delicate appearance, something
Ranma didn't get the chance to see often in his fiancée, but no less
enjoyable to notice.
"Nice." he said with wide eyes.
Akane just smiled and took a look at herself in a nearby mirror.
After turning around several times and analyzing her reflection, she decided
to buy the dress.
As his fiancée spun, Ranma began to think that waiting maybe wasn't
so bad after all.
"Well, that's that." the pigtailed boy brought out as the two of
them left the store. "I guess we should head for home now."
"Ranma? Akane?" said a voice to their left.
The couple turned towards the voice's origin. Heading towards them
were Makoto Kino and Minako Aino. This last one being the one who called
their names.
"Hi, girls!" Akane beamed.
"What a coincidence of finding you here." Makoto began, "What brings
you two to Juuban?"
"Just shopping for clothes." Ranma answered casually.
"Look what I bought." Akane told them as she pulled her new dress
out of her bag.
"Hey, it's really nice." Minako stated, as she took a close look.
"Do you have the right shoes for it?"
"Well... now that you're telling me, I don't think so." the youngest
Tendou sister pointed out.
[Uh oh.] thought Ranma. Somehow, he could already tell what was
going to happen next.
"Well, why don't the two of you come with us?" the blond suggested.
"Mako-chan and I are doing some shopping ourselves. I'm sure we'll be able
to find you something."
Yep... looks like this wasn't over yet.
Akane, not surprisingly, accepted the offer. Ergo, Ranma had to go
with her. If he even dared to go back to the Tendou household without his
fiancée, he'd never stop hearing the end of it from his old man.
"Besides," Minako added jokingly, "You wouldn't dare to abandon
three lovely girls inside a dangerous mall, now would you, Ranma?"
"Oh, yeah." the pigtailed boy responded sarcastically as he rolled
his eyes, "Gotta keep my eyes open in case one of those vicious perfume
salesmen tries to spray your arms with free samples."
**********
[Ryuji Yamasaki...] he thought. [Naaaaaa.]
Trunks rested his back against the chair and moved his eyes off the
computer screen and up into the ceiling.
This was his second day in this world and he decided that getting a
new ID should be one of his top priorities. This had turned to be easier
than most people though, since Bulma was smart enough to give him a complete
forgery equipment for his trip.
There was one little problem though. Trunks just couldn't decide on
a new name.
[Ralf Jones... Nope.]
Setsuna had been quite persistent on the subject as well. If Trunks
was going to walk around Tokyo, he needed a new name. It was just a
precaution, but it was essential.
[Robert Garcia... No, I don't even look like a Latin-American.]
A sudden ring interrupted Trunks thoughts. In a single motion, he
reached for a communicator nearby and turned it on with the flip of a switch.
Bulma's face appeared on the screen.
//Hi, sweety, how are you doing?//
"Hi, mom," the Saiyajin hybrid responded, "okay, I guess."
//Has the enemy showed up?//
"Well... sort of." Trunks began, "Yesterday there was some sort of
monster on the rampage, but it was really nothing serious. Can't get too
confident though."
//What are you doing right now?//
"Braking my skull as I try to find a name to use in this world."
//Hmm... how about Jockstraps Briefs?// her mother suggested.
"Er... I don't think that'll do, mom."
//Really? Sounds like a good name to me.//
[I'll bet...] he thought. "People in this world use different names.
I was thinking more in the lines of Hiroshi or Seishirou."
//You're too goo looking to be named like that.// his mother pointed
out. //Anyway, I'm on my way to a business meeting, I just wanted to check
on you. Take care.//
"'Kay, mom. Bye."
The screen went black again and Trunks returned to his name
searching problem.
[Chang Koehan...] he went on, [Doesn't sound right either.]
The dimension traveler got up from his seat and began to walk around
the room. After several minutes of frustration and brain drilling, he
finally made up his mind. However, he was interrupted a second time. This
time it was the phone.
Trunks couldn't help in finding this rather unusual. After all, he'd
been here for only two days and hadn't told anyone his phone number. Mainly
because he didn't knew the number himself.
The only person he could think would call him would be Setsuna,
since she was the one who got him the apartment and probably the only one
who knew it's phone number as well.
The Saiyajin hybrid was surprised yet a second time when he picked
up the receiver and found out that Rei Hino was at the other side of the line.
"Rei?" he asked just to make sure.
//Yes, it's me.//
"How did you find my phone number?" he asked, "I don't recall being
in the phonebook. I don't even have a name yet."
//Setsuna gave it to me.//
[Figures.] he realized. "So, what can I do for you?"
//Do you think you can come to Hikawa Temple now?//
"Now?"
//Don't worry, there's no one here but me. It's very important.//
"Okay, I'll be there in a sec."
//Okay, I'll be waiting for you.//
**********
"So, your Raider was defeated." the Lord pointed out.
"Yes, my Lord," Eron confirmed, "just as expected, a group of
defenders showed up to protect the Juuban citizens."
"humph! How typical." Arlakk declared. "I'll never understand how
can some people be stupid enough to throw away their lives for such a
meaningless purpose."
"Be that as it may," the Lord cut in, "Those individuals have always
proven to be excellent pickings. Eron, how long will it take you to
determine the extent of these defenders' powers?"
"My most optimistic guess would be in a couple of Earthling weeks.
Maybe even more than a month." The scientist reported.
"Take all the time you need, but remember to be cautious. Do *not*
make any foolish decisions before learning everything that is needed."
"There is no need to worry, My Lord," Eron replied confidently, "I'm
convinced that you'll be more than satisfied with the end results."
"You wish..." mumbled Arlakk.
"Now, passing to other matters," The Lord began, "Sorine, has there
been any advances on your project?"
The woman, who had remained silent so far, stood up to give her
report. Her eyes, lacking any sort of expression moved towards a strange
device she held on one hand.
The object itself resembled a calculator and a gun at the same time.
As she entered a code, a three dimensional holographic image appeared at the
center of the room.
"Project 'Dark Snowfall' is 78% complete." she said, with a voice
that matched her look perfectly. "There were some serious damages on the
units since our last mission, but my staff is taking care of the problem.
The report goes as follows..."
Eron took that moment to doze off. Sorine's reports were just too
boring. The scientist saw from the corner of his eye that Arlakk wasn't
paying much attention either. Not surprisingly though, since the sorcerer
was well known for his anti-technology bias.
Never the less, ignoring Sorine's techno-babble wasn't really a dumb
thing to do, since the Lord was certainly the only one who understood what
it all meant.
At least, Sorine's technological intervention had proven extremely
useful in previous missions and Eron had to give her credit for that.
However, even though he was quite knowledgeable in computers and advanced
hi-tech calculus, the scientist was nowhere near Sorine's level, which made
it almost impossible for him to understand what the woman was talking about.
"We also seem to be short on prime materials, My Lord." she concluded.
"Then let's make the best of things and take whatever you need from
the world we're about to conquer." The Lord stated. "Eron, make your Raiders
fetch everything Sorine's needs. Like that we'll kill two birds with one
stone."
"Yes, Lord." Eron acknowledged. "This will also help in diverting
the defenders' attention. If they believe that the Raiders' mission is other
than testing *them*, it will make my research more efficient."
"You're relying too much on the subjects' naiveté." Arlakk cut in.
"The defenders are bound to find out, sooner or later, that you're observing
them."
"And what if they do?" Eron countered. "They don't know anything
about us, so there's no real threat."
**********
"Come on in." Rei told her guest as she made her way inside her house.
Trunks took off his boots and followed his host. He took his sight
around the place, a little unsure if he should go in or not.
"Don't worry." Rei told him. "Grandpa and Yuuichiru will be out for
a couple of hours. As far as I know, Usagi and Mamoru are out on a date,
Minako and Mako-chan are at the mall and Ami is in one of her special classes."
"Yeah, sorry. I guess I'm a little paranoid." Trunks said. "So, what
do you want to talk to me about?"
"This." she answered, as she passed him a small box.
Trunks raised an eyebrow as he read the box's inscription.
"You want to dye you hair black?" he asked dubiously. "Isn't it
already black?"
"It's not for me, silly. It's for you." the Shinto priestess made clear.
"Me?"
"Let's be realistic, Trunks. A long purple haired guy calls too much
attention. Since you're here 'incognito', you need a disguise so no one will
recognize you. Black hair definitively isn't as obvious as purple hair.
Besides, imagine you're walking by the street, minding your own business,
and suddenly you stumble upon one of the girls. They'd recognize you in a
matter of seconds, unless you had some sort of disguise."
"I hadn't thought about that." Trunks realized. "Guess you're right.
So, what do I have to do?"
"Leave everything to me." Rei told him, confidently. "Now, take off
your jacket and wait for me inside the bathroom. I'll bring everything we
need to turn you into a whole new person."
Trunks did as he was told and laid his jacket on top of a nearby chair.
After that, he went into the bathroom. Rei didn't took too long to join him
while carrying some hot water, brushes, towels and other hairdressing
instruments he wasn't familiar with.
The girl couldn't help but stare as Trunks' naked arms were exposed.
He certainly looked even stronger than before. Not to mention that his loose
black undershirt also allowed her a glimpse at his solid chest.
"So, what now?" Trunks asked her, snapping her out of her reverie.
"Wh? Oh, yeah! Sit down and put this towel on your shoulders." she
gestured her as she approached a stool. "I'll take care of the rest."
The Saiyajin warrior obeyed and sat in front of the bathroom mirror
while Rei took care of his hair.
"Since this will take some time, how about telling me what you've
been up to these last years?" Rei began, trying to open up a conversation.
"Where would you want me to start?"
"How about the moment you left this world."
"Okay... After I took off, I actually made it to the past like I was
supposed to." Trunks started. "When I arrived though, there wasn't a second
to waist as I sensed an enormous ki approaching. It appeared that Frezza, an
old enemy, was about to come to Earth with the intention to kill everyone.
At that time, only Goku-san was strong enough to defeat him. Unfortunately,
he wasn't there at the moment. So I had to take care of Frezza myself."
"Was it a tough fight?"
"Not really." he responded. "Frezza was strong, but his power was
below a Super Saiyajin's. I took care of him quickly before the Earth
suffered any sort of damage. As soon as that was over, the Z-senshi showed
up, except for Goku-san who was still in outer space."
"It must have been quite an impression for you to see them when they
were still alive."
"No kidding. My father was with them at the time. You can imagine
the look on my face."
Trunks went on narrating the events of his life: how he met the
Z-senshi, the time he was with them when the Jinzouningen appeared, as well
as the confrontation with Cell. Rei was somewhat startled when he told her
about his death and resurrection during and after the Cell games.
In return, the young Shinto priestess put him up to date with
everything that had happened with the Sailor Senshi for the past three years.
Since Setsuna and her were probably the only senshi Trunks would see from
now on, Rei felt a certain obligation in becoming a good friend to the
Saiyajin hybrid. Probably she was feeling sorry for her guest since he had
to hide himself from the rest of his friends.
Many persons criticized Rei for being a grouch, unfriendly and
probably cold with other persons. Most of it wasn't true. Although she was
aware that she could be rude towards other people, this didn't mean she was
whiling to ignore a friend when he needed her help.
Being away from home, alone in a completely alien world was
certainly very rough for anyone. However, in spite of that, Trunks came here
by his own free will in order to confront the upcoming threat. Rei just
couldn't force herself to ignore this act. If she was going to be his only
friend, she vowed to herself to be a good one at it.
"I can imagine the look on Usagi and Mamoru's faces when they found
out that that little girl was their daughter from the future." Trunks
chuckled. "Sounds like 'deja vu' to me."
"You should've seen the look on all our faces." Rei added amused. "I
bet it was priceless."
"I still can't believe that Usagi and Mamoru are going to be future
sovereigns of this world." he said.
"You're telling me. I can't believe Usagi is actually going to get
married *and* have a child." the Shinto priestess went on teasingly.
"Well, at least she'll know how to name her." Trunks joked.
"Personally, I can't picture myself as a mother yet." Rei began.
"School and protecting the planet have been quite enough trouble as it is.
If I added the thought of raising a child to all that, I'd be having a
nervous breakdown."
Her guest just chuckled to that comment. Little did he know that Rei
was actually manipulating the conversation in order to learn more about a
certain aspect of Trunks life.
"How about you?" she asked, "Have you ever thought about raising kids?"
There was the question. And a great opening as well. Whichever
answer Trunks gave her, would be enough to know if he was married or single.
"Well... no."
"..."
Okay... maybe not *all* answers were helpful to determine Trunks'
civil status.
Rei decided to push a little harder on the questions. It would be bolder and
she would be exposing herself, but she simply had to know.
She hadn't seen any wedding ring on his guest's fingers, but that
didn't mean anything. Maybe people didn't use that in his world. Not to
mention that not being married didn't mean you weren't involved with someone
in particular.
"So... you haven't found the right girl yet?" she asked again.
Trunks couldn't help to turn his head around to see the girl while
giving her a dubious look. Rei looked as if she just said something really
stupid.
"I'm single." he said simply.
The Shinto priestess didn't knew how to interpret that answer.
"I'm sorry... I asked too much." she apologized.
"There's nothing to feel sorry about." he told her. "After all, it's
been technically eight years since you last saw me. A lot of things can
happen during that time. So don't feel worried if you want to ask me
something."
"Okay." she acknowledged, but decided to stop asking questions and
pressing her luck.
"Rei!!" shouted a voice from outside.
The couple tensed as both recognized who the voice belonged to. What
the heck was Usagi doing here? She was suppose to be on a date!
Trunks jolted up from his seat, preoccupation obvious throughout all
his face.
"Hey, Rei!" said another voice, "Are you here?"
Makoto... Oh no. This wasn't looking good.
Without wasting a second, Rei rushed out of the bathroom. Not only
did she saw Usagi and Mako-chan, but Minako, Mamoru and even Ranma and Akane
were accompanying them as well. Worst of all, they had already made their
way inside her house.
She had to do something and she had to do it fast. Quickly, she
closed the bathroom's door in an attempt to hide her dimension traveling
guest from her friends. The door hadn't even slammed shut when she noticed a
certain blue jacket, with the Capsule Corp. logo on the side, hanging on a
chair.
In less than a second, she grabbed it and threw the 'possible
incriminating object' inside her bedroom, which door was luckily open at the
time.
"I'm here!" she told her friends, who entered the room she was in
once she finished her phrase.
"Gee, don't mind in barging in!" she added in an upset tone.
"Haven't you hear of something called manners, Usagi?"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" said the odango girl as she seemed somewhat
restless. "But I have to use your bathroom."
"My... my bathroom?" Rei asked nervously. "Wh... Why? Why do you
wanna go into my bathroom?"
"Why do you think???" her friend answered impatiently as she clenched
here teeth. "Do you want me to get graphical?? Com'on, Rei! I *really* have
to go!"
"But... er.. you see..."
"Is there someone in?" Usagi interrupted, obviously in a hurry.
"No! Not at all!" the priestess responded.
"Then *I'm* going in."
Unable to stop her friend, Rei could only hope that Trunks had found
a way to hide.
Usagi quickly turned the knob and opened the door, just to stop
abruptly the moment she saw what was inside the bathroom.
"What the..." she began.
[Damn it!] the fire senshi thought, [The show's over.]
"Hair dye?" Usagi asked dubiously. "And black? Rei, why would
you... unless..."
Although concerned about Usagi's observations, Rei could at least
pull a short sigh of relief as she realized that Trunks wasn't in the
bathroom anymore. He could've taken the dye with him though. Now it was
going to be one heck of a task explaining why the product was there in the
first place.
"So *that's* why you didn't want me to come in."
Rei's heart began to race again. Usagi was showing an unusual
deductive ability right now. This worried her even more when she realized
that Trunks' boots had been left at the entrance. If Usagi had seen those,
it was quite probable that she could determine what was going on here. Not
to mention that Rei wasn't 100% sure that her friend hadn't seen her getting
rid of Trunks' jacket.
"There's only one logical explanation for this." Usagi stated as she
began to grin.
Rei gulped.
"You're starting to have gray hair!" she said triumphant.
...
......
Relief? No, that wasn't what Rei felt right now, although probably
later. Surprise? Yes, probably a little bit of that. Shock? Definitively.
Confusion? You bet'cha.
"Excuuuuse me??" the young priestess asked, still not able to
assimilate Usagi's deduction.
"Why else would you be dying your hair black when it already *is*
black?" the blond remarked wickedly.
Oooohhh, the urge she felt at the moment to prove her wrong.
Unfortunately, she couldn't tell her the real reason why such
product was there. Otherwise she'd be turning Trunks in.
As much as Rei hated it, she had no other choice but to pretend that
Usagi was right. Even if this meant that her friend would probably tease her
endlessly about this so-called 'gray hair'.
Usagi began to laugh as Rei's silent just proved that her
observation was right. The Shinto priestess ignored this as she could still
feel that Trunks was inside the bathroom. Not surprisingly though, since the
window which lead outside was just too small for anyone to fit through it.
But then... where was he?
A small water drop which fell on top of Rei's head made her realize
where her guest was hiding.
[Please don't look up! Please don't look up! Please don't look up!]
Trunks repeated in his mind as he levitated horizontally with his back
pressed against the ceiling.
It would've seemed that his host had somehow guessed what he was
thinking and restrained herself from looking up.
He had to get out of here before things got even more complicated.
Unfortunately, even though he could move faster that the eye could see, the
only way out was through the door... which was being blocked by the two
girls.
Fortunately, Rei came to the rescue once again.
"Okay, Usagi," she told her friend, "now you know my darkest deepest
secret. Now that that's out in the open, how about going to the toilet like
you were supposed to?"
Rei began to push her friend away from the door while this last one
began to tease her about getting old so soon. At least Usagi was too
entertained with the priestess to realize that there was someone else in the
bathroom.
This was his cue. Time to get out of here.
"What was that??" Ranma asked as he looked at the bathroom door.
"What was what?" Mamoru asked, not understanding what the martial
artist was referring to.
"Something came out of the bathroom." he explained.
"I didn't see anything." Akane said. "Are you sure you're not
imagining things?"
Without answering, Ranma quickly ran out of the house and into the
garden, where he last saw that blurry black form. He began to scan his
surroundings, not with his eyes, but with his ki. He then took his sight
towards the roof.
"There you are!"
After jumping on top of Rei's house, he clearly saw how the intruder
he spotted earlier was already flying away. He couldn't tell who it was,
especially since he/she was moving so fast that Ranma could barely locate
him/her.
"Come back here!" he shouted as he began to fly after him.
Unfortunately, Ranma's efforts were in vain as the intruder
immediately flew faster, losing his pursuer completely.
As he could only see how his pray had easily eluded him, Ranma began
to feel like a certain cartoon coyote who chased after a roadrunner.
*That* was fast flying!
Being left without a choice, he reluctantly went back to Hikawa
Temple empty handed. The girls were already outside waiting for him, as well
as an explication he guessed.
"Ranma, what was that all about?" his fiancée asked him.
"Like I said, something came out of the bathroom." he told her as
his feet reached the ground. "It was moving very fast. I tried to catch it
but I lost it."
"Are you sure you weren't mistaking?" Minako asked dubiously.
"Maybe it was master Happosai who followed us." Akane suggested,
which only managed to get the senshi shivering at the thought of him.
"That would explain why he moved so fast." Makoto analyzed. "Rei,
didn't you sensed him?"
"Well... er... no, not really. I was kinda distracted." the priestess
answered.
"How come?" Ranma asked surprised. "You're the one who always locates
him before he gets a chance to do anything?"
"Well... that doesn't really matter right now." she went on, "If he
already left, then there's nothing to worry about."
"I guess you're right." Minako said.
"Anyway, changing the subject," Rei began, "what brings all of you
here?"
"We all happened to be at the same mall at the same time." Makoto
told her. "Since we turned out to be quite numerous, we though that maybe we
should all get together and go see a movie or something."
"We also had planned to catch Ami on her way out of her special
class to see if she wants to come along." Usagi added, once she came out of
the bathroom. "Feel like joining us, Rei?"
"Sorry, but I still have a lot of chores to do." she answered. [Not
to mention, a certain Saiyajin hybrid to find.]
"Okay. If you're done early, meet us at the movie theater. I think
the movie starts at five." Minako pointed out.
"I don't think I'll make it." she said, "But I'll see you there if
otherwise."
The six visitors then took their leave. Once they all vanished from
her sight, Rei let out one big and long sigh of relief.
That was too close.
From now on, all of her meetings with Trunks were going to be held
at his place instead of here.
She took a seat and began waiting for her guest to return. After all,
she still had to complete his hair job. Not to mention that Trunks would
probably want to get his boots and jacket back.
She didn't had to wait long as Trunks' ki began to show minutes
later. The Saiyajin hybrid landed next to her looking no less relieved that
everything had turned out okay.
"I think that in the future it will be safer if you come to my place
instead of me coming here." he began.
"That's exactly what I was thinking about a moment ago." she pointed
out while getting up. "Com'on, let's get back inside and finish what we
started before we get another surprise visit."
"Agreed."
"By the way, Trunks," she started, "how come you didn't sensed Usagi
and the others when they arrived?"
"Because they weren't showing any signs of ki." he explained
matter-of-factly. "When you girls are in your senshi forms, it's easy to
detect you with all that power swirling around you. But that's not the case
when you're in normal civilian form."
"But then, how come you felt Yuuichiru's presence yesterday?" she
asked again. "I mean... he's as normal as they come."
"Yuuichiru?... Ooooohhh, the guy from the stairway." Trunks realized.
"No, I didn't feel his ki."
"Then how did you know?"
"Well, I just heard footsteeps approaching from the stairway, so I
assumed someone was coming. It's not really hard to hear someone moving closer
when you're in the yard, unlike your bathroom."
Rei couldn't help to sweatdrop. Yes... that sounded kinda logical.
"I wasn't expecting Ranma though." the Saiyajin added. "Looks like
he learned how to fly already. He almost saw me."
"Yeah, Ranma has been training a lot and has become stronger since
the last time you were here. He learned a few tricks through these years.
Flying was one of them." Rei pointed out. "I think he already learned how to
sense other people's ki as well. But I'm not completely certain of that."
"I'll have to talk to him too."
"I don't think that'll be necessary." she told him. "Since he lives
in Nerima, you won't get to see him around here much."
"Still, last time I was here, he discovered my identity as Super
Saiya-man." Trunks brought out. "Might as well clear things out with him in
order to avoid further complications."
"He knew you were Super Saiya-man???" Rei asked quite surprised.
"Wow! He really kept the secret well. He never told us that, even after you
left."
"Does he know that you girls are..."
Rei just shook her head in sign of no.
"Well, you can worry about Ranma later." she stated as she opened
the bathroom door. "Right now let's finish your hair. Oh, and by the way, I
strongly suggest that you change your wardrobe as well. That blue jacket of
yours almost gave you in if I hadn't hid it."
"Don't worry, I'll take care of that."
**********
The girls began to discuss which film they should see. This became
somewhat difficult since everyone had a particular taste. The boys, namely
Ranma and Mamoru, limited themselves to hear the suggestions. At least
Mamoru was paying attention, Ranma seemed to be lost in his own little world.
"Huh?" asked Ranma, who finally realized Akane was talking to him.
"I said: how about we see this new gai-jin movie?" she repeated.
"The one with the guy and the famous movie star falling in love?" he
asked, not really sharing the same movie taste his fiancée did.
"Oh, I've been waiting a long time to see that one!" Usagi commented,
anxiously grabbing her boyfriend by the arm. "Let's go see it! Pleeeeeaase!"
"I wouldn't mind seeing it again." Makoto added. "It's a real cute
story."
"I'm really in the mood for a love story." Minako said.
"So, do we agree then?"
"Ranma?"
"Huh? What?" this one answered.
"Were you even listening?"
"Er..."
"The movie."
"Oh, that." he said, "Actually, I wanted to ask you a favor, Akane."
A favor? This wasn't usual in her fiancé. But then again, Ranma had
been acting a little strange ever since the group left Hikawa Temple.
"I just remembered I have to check something out." he explained. "I
really have to split, but I'll be back for you once the movie's over."
"Well gee, don't mind dumping me." Akane stated with sarcasm.
"Really? Okay, thanks!" he said, not really analyzing the meaning of
his fiancée's words.
Without giving Akane a chance to protest, the pigtailed boy quickly
gave her his bags and flew away in a blink of an eye. Akane, left without
much of a choice, just growled as she saw Ranma disappearing in the blue sky.
Ever since her fiancé learned that trick, he'd been even more elusive. If
this would've happened a couple of years back, she could've at least chase
after him and force him to come back. Thing which she couldn't do now since
Ranma had gone airborn. There was one thing she could say though, and it
would at least help her to dish out her frustration.
"Ranma, you JERK!!!!" she yelled.
**********
"Voilá!" Rei stated as she took off the towel from Trunks head.
The Saiyajin hybrid looked at himself in the mirror after he felt
his hair loose.
It was... different. That was for sure. Not necessarily 'bad
looking', but different no less. Rei even took the trouble to dye his
eyebrows as well. Not surprisingly though since leaving his eyebrows purple
would make him look odd.
"You could easily pass for my older brother now." the priestess
added amused.
Trunks just raised a now black eyebrow to that comment.
"Well, I guess that's that." the Saiyajin hybrid declared, "I might
as well go now before your grandfather or someone else shows up."
"Okay, I'll go visit you at your place if we need to meet again.
Like that we won't have to go through all the mess we did today." Rei added.
"Yes, that would be for the best. We have to be on the look out too
since we don't know when the enemy will strike."
"That's right." she acknowledged, "I've been getting this strange
feeling that another encounter is near. I'm almost certain that something is
about to happen... soon."
"Let's be careful then." he told her. "I'll keep an eye on you girls
during the battle. You won't see me, but I'll be near."
"By the way, Trunks," Rei brought out, "This just hit me, but what
are you going to do if you need to interfere? I mean... you're not going to
dress up as Super Saiya-man again, aren't you? That would be like telling
the rest of the girls who you are."
"Don't worry about that," he reassured her, "I already took the
necessary precautions for that. Besides, I'll show up only if you have
troubles. If you're able to handle the enemy, you won't be needing my help."
"Let's hope that's the case." she confessed, "The easier the enemy
is, the faster we'll get rid of him."
"Yes, let's hope that's the case," Trunks affirmed while nodding,
"Anyway, I have to leave now."
"Okay, I'll see you soon, I guess."
"Oh, and Rei..."
"Yes?"
"Thanks for helping me out." he told her, "And I'm not saying that
just for the hair."
"Don't mention it." she said with a smile, "You came here to help us
too, so it's the least I could do."
With a last smile Trunks took the sky and went back to his new home.
**********
It was all too strange. What happened at Hikawa Temple that is.
Ranma had been giving it some thought lately and had only reached new
questions respecting the identity of the bathroom intruder.
Akane said that Happosai was probably the one hiding. But Ranma
doubted that. Even if the old lech had learned how to fly as well, he was
quite sure he couldn't reach the speed he witnessed an hour ago. More
importantly, if Happosai was the one behind all this, then why did he flee?
Knowing the old master, he would've tried to glomp one (or several) of the
girls even if this included a severe beating later. Escaping just wasn't
logical for him.
Then there was another thing. Why didn't Rei sensed the intruder's
presence? The girl was not a martial artist, but Ranma had to recognize that
she had a unique sense in detecting someone's aura. An ability which was,
even if he hated to admit it, more refined than his.
If he could've felt the presence without really focusing, the most
logical thing would be for her to feel it as well.
This was just too strange, and that's why he was heading towards
Hikawa Temple now. He wasn't sure what good it would do, but maybe he could
get some answers to his doubts.
**********
Trunks stopped in mid air as he felt another ki approaching. After
carefully analyzing it, he guessed who was it's owner.
[Ranma's heading towards Hikawa Temple.] he thought. [He seems to be
alone too.]
Without doubting too much, the Saiyajin hybrid turned back and went
to meet the young martial artist. He wanted to talk to him anyway and since
now he appeared to be by himself, so much the better.
[Let's hope he's willing to cooperate too.]
End of chapter 4.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author notes:
In case you didn't guess, the names Trunks came up with at the beginning of
this chapter belong to several characters from the "King of Fighters" series.
Just goes to show you how poor my imagination was at the moment ^^;;
See you in chapter 5...
"Past, Present and Uncertainty."
By Julian Soullard (e-mail: jnsoullard@hotmail.com)
Warning: All characters from this fanfic are copyright from Akira
Toriyama (Dragon Ball Z), Naoko Takeuchi (Sailor Moon) and Rumiko Takahashi
(Ranma ½) so don't sue me. By the way, also worth mentioning, this story is
a sequel to my other fanfic "Boy meets girls". In other words, there will be
a lot of things you won't understand in this story if you haven't read "Boy
meets girls" (and its side stories) first. If that's the case... then what
the Hell are you doing here still reading this? Go to
http://lavender.fortunecity.com/flamingos/122 instead, and start at the real
beginning of the story like you're suppose to!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AND NOW ON WITH....
Chapter 4: Purple into black, and red on top to give it flavor.
Patience was definitively not one of Ranma's merits. Even if he had
nothing better to do all day, standing stupidly while waiting for Akane was
not the best way to kill time.
Once again, Mr. Tendou and his dad had somehow managed in sending
the two would-be couple out for shopping. It was rather common now, as well
as quite exasperating for Akane and Ranma, to have their fathers pressuring
them in going out together more often. Even if it was just to buy clothes.
Then again, Ranma had already planed to go buy himself a new pair of
trousers. So he didn't offer much resistance in accompanying Akane in the
end. After all, this mall wasn't in Nerima; which reduced the possibilities
of being ambushed by one or several of his rivals and/or suitors. That was
a big plus.
The fact that he had to tag along with Akane though, did put kind of
a damper in all that. Not because of the company the girl represented, since
he had grown used to her in a way and she in return didn't hit him as often
as before. The problem was the waiting thing. Unlike guys, girls took too
long when shopping.
To Ranma's brain it was quite simple:
When a guy wants to buy a pair of trousers: he goes to the mall and
thinks [Trousers, trousers, trousers, trousers, trousers...] all the time.
When he finds what he's looking for, he checks the color, he checks the size
and then he checks the price (things which take up to 5 minutes to do and
not more). If it's what he's looking for, he buys them and then leaves for
home. If not, he goes on with his journey and repeats the three steps over
and over until he finds 'the' trousers. Then he leaves for home. Simple as
that.
Girls are different:
When a girl goes to buy something, she has a vague idea of what she
wants. Therefore she gets distracted easily. Maybe she's after shoes, but it
only take a simple dress in a showcase to mislead her from her true purpose.
Then comes the 'trying it out' part. Unlike guys, girls take up to
an hour in putting on the damn thing. Add all this to the decision making
process on whether to buy the dress or not which takes twice as long.
Bottom line: girls take at least twice the time in buying the same
amount of clothes guys do.
At least, that's how Ranma saw it.
"Okay, Ranma, I'm done." said a voice behind a fitting room.
Oh, yeah... let's not forget the 'asking-the-guy-you-came-along-with
-for-his-opinion' part. Another part of the ritual which only delays even
more the shopping. Ranma made a note to be as brief as possible in order to
leave soon.
Out from the dressing room came Akane wearing a yellow summer dress.
The outfit was simple yet very well designed in boosting up a woman's
femininity. Akane was not an exception.
The cleavage was just about right and the two stings which held the
dress up from the girls shoulder gave it a delicate appearance, something
Ranma didn't get the chance to see often in his fiancée, but no less
enjoyable to notice.
"Nice." he said with wide eyes.
Akane just smiled and took a look at herself in a nearby mirror.
After turning around several times and analyzing her reflection, she decided
to buy the dress.
As his fiancée spun, Ranma began to think that waiting maybe wasn't
so bad after all.
"Well, that's that." the pigtailed boy brought out as the two of
them left the store. "I guess we should head for home now."
"Ranma? Akane?" said a voice to their left.
The couple turned towards the voice's origin. Heading towards them
were Makoto Kino and Minako Aino. This last one being the one who called
their names.
"Hi, girls!" Akane beamed.
"What a coincidence of finding you here." Makoto began, "What brings
you two to Juuban?"
"Just shopping for clothes." Ranma answered casually.
"Look what I bought." Akane told them as she pulled her new dress
out of her bag.
"Hey, it's really nice." Minako stated, as she took a close look.
"Do you have the right shoes for it?"
"Well... now that you're telling me, I don't think so." the youngest
Tendou sister pointed out.
[Uh oh.] thought Ranma. Somehow, he could already tell what was
going to happen next.
"Well, why don't the two of you come with us?" the blond suggested.
"Mako-chan and I are doing some shopping ourselves. I'm sure we'll be able
to find you something."
Yep... looks like this wasn't over yet.
Akane, not surprisingly, accepted the offer. Ergo, Ranma had to go
with her. If he even dared to go back to the Tendou household without his
fiancée, he'd never stop hearing the end of it from his old man.
"Besides," Minako added jokingly, "You wouldn't dare to abandon
three lovely girls inside a dangerous mall, now would you, Ranma?"
"Oh, yeah." the pigtailed boy responded sarcastically as he rolled
his eyes, "Gotta keep my eyes open in case one of those vicious perfume
salesmen tries to spray your arms with free samples."
**********
[Ryuji Yamasaki...] he thought. [Naaaaaa.]
Trunks rested his back against the chair and moved his eyes off the
computer screen and up into the ceiling.
This was his second day in this world and he decided that getting a
new ID should be one of his top priorities. This had turned to be easier
than most people though, since Bulma was smart enough to give him a complete
forgery equipment for his trip.
There was one little problem though. Trunks just couldn't decide on
a new name.
[Ralf Jones... Nope.]
Setsuna had been quite persistent on the subject as well. If Trunks
was going to walk around Tokyo, he needed a new name. It was just a
precaution, but it was essential.
[Robert Garcia... No, I don't even look like a Latin-American.]
A sudden ring interrupted Trunks thoughts. In a single motion, he
reached for a communicator nearby and turned it on with the flip of a switch.
Bulma's face appeared on the screen.
//Hi, sweety, how are you doing?//
"Hi, mom," the Saiyajin hybrid responded, "okay, I guess."
//Has the enemy showed up?//
"Well... sort of." Trunks began, "Yesterday there was some sort of
monster on the rampage, but it was really nothing serious. Can't get too
confident though."
//What are you doing right now?//
"Braking my skull as I try to find a name to use in this world."
//Hmm... how about Jockstraps Briefs?// her mother suggested.
"Er... I don't think that'll do, mom."
//Really? Sounds like a good name to me.//
[I'll bet...] he thought. "People in this world use different names.
I was thinking more in the lines of Hiroshi or Seishirou."
//You're too goo looking to be named like that.// his mother pointed
out. //Anyway, I'm on my way to a business meeting, I just wanted to check
on you. Take care.//
"'Kay, mom. Bye."
The screen went black again and Trunks returned to his name
searching problem.
[Chang Koehan...] he went on, [Doesn't sound right either.]
The dimension traveler got up from his seat and began to walk around
the room. After several minutes of frustration and brain drilling, he
finally made up his mind. However, he was interrupted a second time. This
time it was the phone.
Trunks couldn't help in finding this rather unusual. After all, he'd
been here for only two days and hadn't told anyone his phone number. Mainly
because he didn't knew the number himself.
The only person he could think would call him would be Setsuna,
since she was the one who got him the apartment and probably the only one
who knew it's phone number as well.
The Saiyajin hybrid was surprised yet a second time when he picked
up the receiver and found out that Rei Hino was at the other side of the line.
"Rei?" he asked just to make sure.
//Yes, it's me.//
"How did you find my phone number?" he asked, "I don't recall being
in the phonebook. I don't even have a name yet."
//Setsuna gave it to me.//
[Figures.] he realized. "So, what can I do for you?"
//Do you think you can come to Hikawa Temple now?//
"Now?"
//Don't worry, there's no one here but me. It's very important.//
"Okay, I'll be there in a sec."
//Okay, I'll be waiting for you.//
**********
"So, your Raider was defeated." the Lord pointed out.
"Yes, my Lord," Eron confirmed, "just as expected, a group of
defenders showed up to protect the Juuban citizens."
"humph! How typical." Arlakk declared. "I'll never understand how
can some people be stupid enough to throw away their lives for such a
meaningless purpose."
"Be that as it may," the Lord cut in, "Those individuals have always
proven to be excellent pickings. Eron, how long will it take you to
determine the extent of these defenders' powers?"
"My most optimistic guess would be in a couple of Earthling weeks.
Maybe even more than a month." The scientist reported.
"Take all the time you need, but remember to be cautious. Do *not*
make any foolish decisions before learning everything that is needed."
"There is no need to worry, My Lord," Eron replied confidently, "I'm
convinced that you'll be more than satisfied with the end results."
"You wish..." mumbled Arlakk.
"Now, passing to other matters," The Lord began, "Sorine, has there
been any advances on your project?"
The woman, who had remained silent so far, stood up to give her
report. Her eyes, lacking any sort of expression moved towards a strange
device she held on one hand.
The object itself resembled a calculator and a gun at the same time.
As she entered a code, a three dimensional holographic image appeared at the
center of the room.
"Project 'Dark Snowfall' is 78% complete." she said, with a voice
that matched her look perfectly. "There were some serious damages on the
units since our last mission, but my staff is taking care of the problem.
The report goes as follows..."
Eron took that moment to doze off. Sorine's reports were just too
boring. The scientist saw from the corner of his eye that Arlakk wasn't
paying much attention either. Not surprisingly though, since the sorcerer
was well known for his anti-technology bias.
Never the less, ignoring Sorine's techno-babble wasn't really a dumb
thing to do, since the Lord was certainly the only one who understood what
it all meant.
At least, Sorine's technological intervention had proven extremely
useful in previous missions and Eron had to give her credit for that.
However, even though he was quite knowledgeable in computers and advanced
hi-tech calculus, the scientist was nowhere near Sorine's level, which made
it almost impossible for him to understand what the woman was talking about.
"We also seem to be short on prime materials, My Lord." she concluded.
"Then let's make the best of things and take whatever you need from
the world we're about to conquer." The Lord stated. "Eron, make your Raiders
fetch everything Sorine's needs. Like that we'll kill two birds with one
stone."
"Yes, Lord." Eron acknowledged. "This will also help in diverting
the defenders' attention. If they believe that the Raiders' mission is other
than testing *them*, it will make my research more efficient."
"You're relying too much on the subjects' naiveté." Arlakk cut in.
"The defenders are bound to find out, sooner or later, that you're observing
them."
"And what if they do?" Eron countered. "They don't know anything
about us, so there's no real threat."
**********
"Come on in." Rei told her guest as she made her way inside her house.
Trunks took off his boots and followed his host. He took his sight
around the place, a little unsure if he should go in or not.
"Don't worry." Rei told him. "Grandpa and Yuuichiru will be out for
a couple of hours. As far as I know, Usagi and Mamoru are out on a date,
Minako and Mako-chan are at the mall and Ami is in one of her special classes."
"Yeah, sorry. I guess I'm a little paranoid." Trunks said. "So, what
do you want to talk to me about?"
"This." she answered, as she passed him a small box.
Trunks raised an eyebrow as he read the box's inscription.
"You want to dye you hair black?" he asked dubiously. "Isn't it
already black?"
"It's not for me, silly. It's for you." the Shinto priestess made clear.
"Me?"
"Let's be realistic, Trunks. A long purple haired guy calls too much
attention. Since you're here 'incognito', you need a disguise so no one will
recognize you. Black hair definitively isn't as obvious as purple hair.
Besides, imagine you're walking by the street, minding your own business,
and suddenly you stumble upon one of the girls. They'd recognize you in a
matter of seconds, unless you had some sort of disguise."
"I hadn't thought about that." Trunks realized. "Guess you're right.
So, what do I have to do?"
"Leave everything to me." Rei told him, confidently. "Now, take off
your jacket and wait for me inside the bathroom. I'll bring everything we
need to turn you into a whole new person."
Trunks did as he was told and laid his jacket on top of a nearby chair.
After that, he went into the bathroom. Rei didn't took too long to join him
while carrying some hot water, brushes, towels and other hairdressing
instruments he wasn't familiar with.
The girl couldn't help but stare as Trunks' naked arms were exposed.
He certainly looked even stronger than before. Not to mention that his loose
black undershirt also allowed her a glimpse at his solid chest.
"So, what now?" Trunks asked her, snapping her out of her reverie.
"Wh? Oh, yeah! Sit down and put this towel on your shoulders." she
gestured her as she approached a stool. "I'll take care of the rest."
The Saiyajin warrior obeyed and sat in front of the bathroom mirror
while Rei took care of his hair.
"Since this will take some time, how about telling me what you've
been up to these last years?" Rei began, trying to open up a conversation.
"Where would you want me to start?"
"How about the moment you left this world."
"Okay... After I took off, I actually made it to the past like I was
supposed to." Trunks started. "When I arrived though, there wasn't a second
to waist as I sensed an enormous ki approaching. It appeared that Frezza, an
old enemy, was about to come to Earth with the intention to kill everyone.
At that time, only Goku-san was strong enough to defeat him. Unfortunately,
he wasn't there at the moment. So I had to take care of Frezza myself."
"Was it a tough fight?"
"Not really." he responded. "Frezza was strong, but his power was
below a Super Saiyajin's. I took care of him quickly before the Earth
suffered any sort of damage. As soon as that was over, the Z-senshi showed
up, except for Goku-san who was still in outer space."
"It must have been quite an impression for you to see them when they
were still alive."
"No kidding. My father was with them at the time. You can imagine
the look on my face."
Trunks went on narrating the events of his life: how he met the
Z-senshi, the time he was with them when the Jinzouningen appeared, as well
as the confrontation with Cell. Rei was somewhat startled when he told her
about his death and resurrection during and after the Cell games.
In return, the young Shinto priestess put him up to date with
everything that had happened with the Sailor Senshi for the past three years.
Since Setsuna and her were probably the only senshi Trunks would see from
now on, Rei felt a certain obligation in becoming a good friend to the
Saiyajin hybrid. Probably she was feeling sorry for her guest since he had
to hide himself from the rest of his friends.
Many persons criticized Rei for being a grouch, unfriendly and
probably cold with other persons. Most of it wasn't true. Although she was
aware that she could be rude towards other people, this didn't mean she was
whiling to ignore a friend when he needed her help.
Being away from home, alone in a completely alien world was
certainly very rough for anyone. However, in spite of that, Trunks came here
by his own free will in order to confront the upcoming threat. Rei just
couldn't force herself to ignore this act. If she was going to be his only
friend, she vowed to herself to be a good one at it.
"I can imagine the look on Usagi and Mamoru's faces when they found
out that that little girl was their daughter from the future." Trunks
chuckled. "Sounds like 'deja vu' to me."
"You should've seen the look on all our faces." Rei added amused. "I
bet it was priceless."
"I still can't believe that Usagi and Mamoru are going to be future
sovereigns of this world." he said.
"You're telling me. I can't believe Usagi is actually going to get
married *and* have a child." the Shinto priestess went on teasingly.
"Well, at least she'll know how to name her." Trunks joked.
"Personally, I can't picture myself as a mother yet." Rei began.
"School and protecting the planet have been quite enough trouble as it is.
If I added the thought of raising a child to all that, I'd be having a
nervous breakdown."
Her guest just chuckled to that comment. Little did he know that Rei
was actually manipulating the conversation in order to learn more about a
certain aspect of Trunks life.
"How about you?" she asked, "Have you ever thought about raising kids?"
There was the question. And a great opening as well. Whichever
answer Trunks gave her, would be enough to know if he was married or single.
"Well... no."
"..."
Okay... maybe not *all* answers were helpful to determine Trunks'
civil status.
Rei decided to push a little harder on the questions. It would be bolder and
she would be exposing herself, but she simply had to know.
She hadn't seen any wedding ring on his guest's fingers, but that
didn't mean anything. Maybe people didn't use that in his world. Not to
mention that not being married didn't mean you weren't involved with someone
in particular.
"So... you haven't found the right girl yet?" she asked again.
Trunks couldn't help to turn his head around to see the girl while
giving her a dubious look. Rei looked as if she just said something really
stupid.
"I'm single." he said simply.
The Shinto priestess didn't knew how to interpret that answer.
"I'm sorry... I asked too much." she apologized.
"There's nothing to feel sorry about." he told her. "After all, it's
been technically eight years since you last saw me. A lot of things can
happen during that time. So don't feel worried if you want to ask me
something."
"Okay." she acknowledged, but decided to stop asking questions and
pressing her luck.
"Rei!!" shouted a voice from outside.
The couple tensed as both recognized who the voice belonged to. What
the heck was Usagi doing here? She was suppose to be on a date!
Trunks jolted up from his seat, preoccupation obvious throughout all
his face.
"Hey, Rei!" said another voice, "Are you here?"
Makoto... Oh no. This wasn't looking good.
Without wasting a second, Rei rushed out of the bathroom. Not only
did she saw Usagi and Mako-chan, but Minako, Mamoru and even Ranma and Akane
were accompanying them as well. Worst of all, they had already made their
way inside her house.
She had to do something and she had to do it fast. Quickly, she
closed the bathroom's door in an attempt to hide her dimension traveling
guest from her friends. The door hadn't even slammed shut when she noticed a
certain blue jacket, with the Capsule Corp. logo on the side, hanging on a
chair.
In less than a second, she grabbed it and threw the 'possible
incriminating object' inside her bedroom, which door was luckily open at the
time.
"I'm here!" she told her friends, who entered the room she was in
once she finished her phrase.
"Gee, don't mind in barging in!" she added in an upset tone.
"Haven't you hear of something called manners, Usagi?"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" said the odango girl as she seemed somewhat
restless. "But I have to use your bathroom."
"My... my bathroom?" Rei asked nervously. "Wh... Why? Why do you
wanna go into my bathroom?"
"Why do you think???" her friend answered impatiently as she clenched
here teeth. "Do you want me to get graphical?? Com'on, Rei! I *really* have
to go!"
"But... er.. you see..."
"Is there someone in?" Usagi interrupted, obviously in a hurry.
"No! Not at all!" the priestess responded.
"Then *I'm* going in."
Unable to stop her friend, Rei could only hope that Trunks had found
a way to hide.
Usagi quickly turned the knob and opened the door, just to stop
abruptly the moment she saw what was inside the bathroom.
"What the..." she began.
[Damn it!] the fire senshi thought, [The show's over.]
"Hair dye?" Usagi asked dubiously. "And black? Rei, why would
you... unless..."
Although concerned about Usagi's observations, Rei could at least
pull a short sigh of relief as she realized that Trunks wasn't in the
bathroom anymore. He could've taken the dye with him though. Now it was
going to be one heck of a task explaining why the product was there in the
first place.
"So *that's* why you didn't want me to come in."
Rei's heart began to race again. Usagi was showing an unusual
deductive ability right now. This worried her even more when she realized
that Trunks' boots had been left at the entrance. If Usagi had seen those,
it was quite probable that she could determine what was going on here. Not
to mention that Rei wasn't 100% sure that her friend hadn't seen her getting
rid of Trunks' jacket.
"There's only one logical explanation for this." Usagi stated as she
began to grin.
Rei gulped.
"You're starting to have gray hair!" she said triumphant.
...
......
Relief? No, that wasn't what Rei felt right now, although probably
later. Surprise? Yes, probably a little bit of that. Shock? Definitively.
Confusion? You bet'cha.
"Excuuuuse me??" the young priestess asked, still not able to
assimilate Usagi's deduction.
"Why else would you be dying your hair black when it already *is*
black?" the blond remarked wickedly.
Oooohhh, the urge she felt at the moment to prove her wrong.
Unfortunately, she couldn't tell her the real reason why such
product was there. Otherwise she'd be turning Trunks in.
As much as Rei hated it, she had no other choice but to pretend that
Usagi was right. Even if this meant that her friend would probably tease her
endlessly about this so-called 'gray hair'.
Usagi began to laugh as Rei's silent just proved that her
observation was right. The Shinto priestess ignored this as she could still
feel that Trunks was inside the bathroom. Not surprisingly though, since the
window which lead outside was just too small for anyone to fit through it.
But then... where was he?
A small water drop which fell on top of Rei's head made her realize
where her guest was hiding.
[Please don't look up! Please don't look up! Please don't look up!]
Trunks repeated in his mind as he levitated horizontally with his back
pressed against the ceiling.
It would've seemed that his host had somehow guessed what he was
thinking and restrained herself from looking up.
He had to get out of here before things got even more complicated.
Unfortunately, even though he could move faster that the eye could see, the
only way out was through the door... which was being blocked by the two
girls.
Fortunately, Rei came to the rescue once again.
"Okay, Usagi," she told her friend, "now you know my darkest deepest
secret. Now that that's out in the open, how about going to the toilet like
you were supposed to?"
Rei began to push her friend away from the door while this last one
began to tease her about getting old so soon. At least Usagi was too
entertained with the priestess to realize that there was someone else in the
bathroom.
This was his cue. Time to get out of here.
"What was that??" Ranma asked as he looked at the bathroom door.
"What was what?" Mamoru asked, not understanding what the martial
artist was referring to.
"Something came out of the bathroom." he explained.
"I didn't see anything." Akane said. "Are you sure you're not
imagining things?"
Without answering, Ranma quickly ran out of the house and into the
garden, where he last saw that blurry black form. He began to scan his
surroundings, not with his eyes, but with his ki. He then took his sight
towards the roof.
"There you are!"
After jumping on top of Rei's house, he clearly saw how the intruder
he spotted earlier was already flying away. He couldn't tell who it was,
especially since he/she was moving so fast that Ranma could barely locate
him/her.
"Come back here!" he shouted as he began to fly after him.
Unfortunately, Ranma's efforts were in vain as the intruder
immediately flew faster, losing his pursuer completely.
As he could only see how his pray had easily eluded him, Ranma began
to feel like a certain cartoon coyote who chased after a roadrunner.
*That* was fast flying!
Being left without a choice, he reluctantly went back to Hikawa
Temple empty handed. The girls were already outside waiting for him, as well
as an explication he guessed.
"Ranma, what was that all about?" his fiancée asked him.
"Like I said, something came out of the bathroom." he told her as
his feet reached the ground. "It was moving very fast. I tried to catch it
but I lost it."
"Are you sure you weren't mistaking?" Minako asked dubiously.
"Maybe it was master Happosai who followed us." Akane suggested,
which only managed to get the senshi shivering at the thought of him.
"That would explain why he moved so fast." Makoto analyzed. "Rei,
didn't you sensed him?"
"Well... er... no, not really. I was kinda distracted." the priestess
answered.
"How come?" Ranma asked surprised. "You're the one who always locates
him before he gets a chance to do anything?"
"Well... that doesn't really matter right now." she went on, "If he
already left, then there's nothing to worry about."
"I guess you're right." Minako said.
"Anyway, changing the subject," Rei began, "what brings all of you
here?"
"We all happened to be at the same mall at the same time." Makoto
told her. "Since we turned out to be quite numerous, we though that maybe we
should all get together and go see a movie or something."
"We also had planned to catch Ami on her way out of her special
class to see if she wants to come along." Usagi added, once she came out of
the bathroom. "Feel like joining us, Rei?"
"Sorry, but I still have a lot of chores to do." she answered. [Not
to mention, a certain Saiyajin hybrid to find.]
"Okay. If you're done early, meet us at the movie theater. I think
the movie starts at five." Minako pointed out.
"I don't think I'll make it." she said, "But I'll see you there if
otherwise."
The six visitors then took their leave. Once they all vanished from
her sight, Rei let out one big and long sigh of relief.
That was too close.
From now on, all of her meetings with Trunks were going to be held
at his place instead of here.
She took a seat and began waiting for her guest to return. After all,
she still had to complete his hair job. Not to mention that Trunks would
probably want to get his boots and jacket back.
She didn't had to wait long as Trunks' ki began to show minutes
later. The Saiyajin hybrid landed next to her looking no less relieved that
everything had turned out okay.
"I think that in the future it will be safer if you come to my place
instead of me coming here." he began.
"That's exactly what I was thinking about a moment ago." she pointed
out while getting up. "Com'on, let's get back inside and finish what we
started before we get another surprise visit."
"Agreed."
"By the way, Trunks," she started, "how come you didn't sensed Usagi
and the others when they arrived?"
"Because they weren't showing any signs of ki." he explained
matter-of-factly. "When you girls are in your senshi forms, it's easy to
detect you with all that power swirling around you. But that's not the case
when you're in normal civilian form."
"But then, how come you felt Yuuichiru's presence yesterday?" she
asked again. "I mean... he's as normal as they come."
"Yuuichiru?... Ooooohhh, the guy from the stairway." Trunks realized.
"No, I didn't feel his ki."
"Then how did you know?"
"Well, I just heard footsteeps approaching from the stairway, so I
assumed someone was coming. It's not really hard to hear someone moving closer
when you're in the yard, unlike your bathroom."
Rei couldn't help to sweatdrop. Yes... that sounded kinda logical.
"I wasn't expecting Ranma though." the Saiyajin added. "Looks like
he learned how to fly already. He almost saw me."
"Yeah, Ranma has been training a lot and has become stronger since
the last time you were here. He learned a few tricks through these years.
Flying was one of them." Rei pointed out. "I think he already learned how to
sense other people's ki as well. But I'm not completely certain of that."
"I'll have to talk to him too."
"I don't think that'll be necessary." she told him. "Since he lives
in Nerima, you won't get to see him around here much."
"Still, last time I was here, he discovered my identity as Super
Saiya-man." Trunks brought out. "Might as well clear things out with him in
order to avoid further complications."
"He knew you were Super Saiya-man???" Rei asked quite surprised.
"Wow! He really kept the secret well. He never told us that, even after you
left."
"Does he know that you girls are..."
Rei just shook her head in sign of no.
"Well, you can worry about Ranma later." she stated as she opened
the bathroom door. "Right now let's finish your hair. Oh, and by the way, I
strongly suggest that you change your wardrobe as well. That blue jacket of
yours almost gave you in if I hadn't hid it."
"Don't worry, I'll take care of that."
**********
The girls began to discuss which film they should see. This became
somewhat difficult since everyone had a particular taste. The boys, namely
Ranma and Mamoru, limited themselves to hear the suggestions. At least
Mamoru was paying attention, Ranma seemed to be lost in his own little world.
"Huh?" asked Ranma, who finally realized Akane was talking to him.
"I said: how about we see this new gai-jin movie?" she repeated.
"The one with the guy and the famous movie star falling in love?" he
asked, not really sharing the same movie taste his fiancée did.
"Oh, I've been waiting a long time to see that one!" Usagi commented,
anxiously grabbing her boyfriend by the arm. "Let's go see it! Pleeeeeaase!"
"I wouldn't mind seeing it again." Makoto added. "It's a real cute
story."
"I'm really in the mood for a love story." Minako said.
"So, do we agree then?"
"Ranma?"
"Huh? What?" this one answered.
"Were you even listening?"
"Er..."
"The movie."
"Oh, that." he said, "Actually, I wanted to ask you a favor, Akane."
A favor? This wasn't usual in her fiancé. But then again, Ranma had
been acting a little strange ever since the group left Hikawa Temple.
"I just remembered I have to check something out." he explained. "I
really have to split, but I'll be back for you once the movie's over."
"Well gee, don't mind dumping me." Akane stated with sarcasm.
"Really? Okay, thanks!" he said, not really analyzing the meaning of
his fiancée's words.
Without giving Akane a chance to protest, the pigtailed boy quickly
gave her his bags and flew away in a blink of an eye. Akane, left without
much of a choice, just growled as she saw Ranma disappearing in the blue sky.
Ever since her fiancé learned that trick, he'd been even more elusive. If
this would've happened a couple of years back, she could've at least chase
after him and force him to come back. Thing which she couldn't do now since
Ranma had gone airborn. There was one thing she could say though, and it
would at least help her to dish out her frustration.
"Ranma, you JERK!!!!" she yelled.
**********
"Voilá!" Rei stated as she took off the towel from Trunks head.
The Saiyajin hybrid looked at himself in the mirror after he felt
his hair loose.
It was... different. That was for sure. Not necessarily 'bad
looking', but different no less. Rei even took the trouble to dye his
eyebrows as well. Not surprisingly though since leaving his eyebrows purple
would make him look odd.
"You could easily pass for my older brother now." the priestess
added amused.
Trunks just raised a now black eyebrow to that comment.
"Well, I guess that's that." the Saiyajin hybrid declared, "I might
as well go now before your grandfather or someone else shows up."
"Okay, I'll go visit you at your place if we need to meet again.
Like that we won't have to go through all the mess we did today." Rei added.
"Yes, that would be for the best. We have to be on the look out too
since we don't know when the enemy will strike."
"That's right." she acknowledged, "I've been getting this strange
feeling that another encounter is near. I'm almost certain that something is
about to happen... soon."
"Let's be careful then." he told her. "I'll keep an eye on you girls
during the battle. You won't see me, but I'll be near."
"By the way, Trunks," Rei brought out, "This just hit me, but what
are you going to do if you need to interfere? I mean... you're not going to
dress up as Super Saiya-man again, aren't you? That would be like telling
the rest of the girls who you are."
"Don't worry about that," he reassured her, "I already took the
necessary precautions for that. Besides, I'll show up only if you have
troubles. If you're able to handle the enemy, you won't be needing my help."
"Let's hope that's the case." she confessed, "The easier the enemy
is, the faster we'll get rid of him."
"Yes, let's hope that's the case," Trunks affirmed while nodding,
"Anyway, I have to leave now."
"Okay, I'll see you soon, I guess."
"Oh, and Rei..."
"Yes?"
"Thanks for helping me out." he told her, "And I'm not saying that
just for the hair."
"Don't mention it." she said with a smile, "You came here to help us
too, so it's the least I could do."
With a last smile Trunks took the sky and went back to his new home.
**********
It was all too strange. What happened at Hikawa Temple that is.
Ranma had been giving it some thought lately and had only reached new
questions respecting the identity of the bathroom intruder.
Akane said that Happosai was probably the one hiding. But Ranma
doubted that. Even if the old lech had learned how to fly as well, he was
quite sure he couldn't reach the speed he witnessed an hour ago. More
importantly, if Happosai was the one behind all this, then why did he flee?
Knowing the old master, he would've tried to glomp one (or several) of the
girls even if this included a severe beating later. Escaping just wasn't
logical for him.
Then there was another thing. Why didn't Rei sensed the intruder's
presence? The girl was not a martial artist, but Ranma had to recognize that
she had a unique sense in detecting someone's aura. An ability which was,
even if he hated to admit it, more refined than his.
If he could've felt the presence without really focusing, the most
logical thing would be for her to feel it as well.
This was just too strange, and that's why he was heading towards
Hikawa Temple now. He wasn't sure what good it would do, but maybe he could
get some answers to his doubts.
**********
Trunks stopped in mid air as he felt another ki approaching. After
carefully analyzing it, he guessed who was it's owner.
[Ranma's heading towards Hikawa Temple.] he thought. [He seems to be
alone too.]
Without doubting too much, the Saiyajin hybrid turned back and went
to meet the young martial artist. He wanted to talk to him anyway and since
now he appeared to be by himself, so much the better.
[Let's hope he's willing to cooperate too.]
End of chapter 4.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author notes:
In case you didn't guess, the names Trunks came up with at the beginning of
this chapter belong to several characters from the "King of Fighters" series.
Just goes to show you how poor my imagination was at the moment ^^;;
See you in chapter 5...