Disclaimer time: Rumiko Takahashi, Shogagukan, Kitty and Viz
Communications own Ranma 1/2. Yuzo Takada and A.D. Vision own All-
Purpose Cultural Girl Nuku-Nuku. This fic is based on Gregg Sharp's Nuku
Nuku idea from chapter 30 of 'A Reluctant Bet' (and is used here with
his permission).

C&C appreciated:

Corwin (ely7@inter.net.il)
http://corwin.anifics.com/corwin.html

Ginrai (ranmafics@hotmail.com)
http://members.tripod.com/lwf58/fan_fiction/ginrai/index.html

* Previous chapters can also be found at:
http://phu.anifics.com/
http://tannim.anifics.com/

Thanks to Brian Randall for pre-reading this.




All-Purpose Jusenkyo Girl Nuku-Nuku

Chapter 3 - Old acquaintances, gratuitous female appearances and Happi
nowhere in sight!

Jumping over the gate into the front yard of Furinkan, Nuku Nuku calmly
landed on her feet, showing no sign of weariness from the running she
did to school. Smiling as she breathed in the warm, fresh air, the
catgirl turned around to see if either Ranma or Akane were near. 'I
wonder why they don't want to run,' she thought. 'Especially when the
weather's this good!'

Filing that as another one of those things that only humans would do,
Nuku Nuku went on to think of more important things. Like whether or not
Kasumi made fish for lunch.

Before she was able to start drooling over the delicious thought of
fried fish mixed with steaming rice, Nuku Nuku heard footsteps as
someone walked up to her. Thinking it was Ranma, she turned to face the
newcomer.

Instead, the catgirl came face-to-face with a brown-haired girl of
medium height looking somberly back at her. Her aura seemed to show such
dark despair that even the most cheerful of people would instantly
become unhappy once within.

"Morning, Mio!" Nuku Nuku said, smiling happily, not at all affected by
the gloom that the other girl seemed to emit.

"Ominous," Mio said in a mysterious, yet monotonous, voice.

"Eh?" Nuku Nuku asked confusedly.

"I see bad things happening to you in the next couple of days."

"Why is that?" she asked, having no idea what the other girl was talking
about.

Staring at the ground, as if to compose herself for what she was about
to say, Mio answered in a disturbingly calm voice, "I... have psychic
powers. I can partially see what goes on in the future." Looking up, she
saw the girl whose fate was doomed staring back at her with a blank
expression. Sighing, she continued, "This morning, while sleeping, I saw
the image of my grandfather. He told me that the school will be in
danger and it will all center around you." She pointed towards the
catgirl. "A girl whose movements resemble that of a feline's."

The psychic was too much into her speech to notice Nuku Nuku wiping off
the large sweatdrops on the back of her head.

"And then, an image formed in my head. Upon sight it brought a fear to
my heart that I never felt before. One whose features were so terrifying
that I immediately woke up and frantically drew a picture of what my
mind beheld, lest I end up forgetting how it looks, thus ensuring our
end." Taking out a piece of paper from her schoolbag, Mio handed it over
to the catgirl. "This is what I drew."

"What's this?" Nuku Nuku asked, looking at the strange drawing in front
of her. It looked like a massive, purple blob wearing a furry, grey hat.
She tried turning it around onto different sides to see if maybe she was
viewing it wrong.

Mio looked back at her and calmly said, "It's... a laughing hyena on top
of a ten-foot tall dinosaur."

"WHAT?!" Nuku Nuku was aghast, taking a step back to recoil in shock.
She had no idea what the psychic meant, but now that the figure in the
picture had a name, it _must_ be something bad. The catgirl knew what
she must do and leapt over the wall in frantic search of Ranma and
Akane. If anything, they'll tell her what to do when a laughing hyena on
top of a ten foot-tall dinosaur attacked.

"You... You jumped off the wrong foot," Mio said, staring at spot where
the catgirl just left. "We're all doomed."

--------------------------------------------------

Walking casually on the fence towards school, Ranma wondered, not for
the first time, whether or not Akane was ignoring him on purpose. 'Geez,
just because I said that Nuku's Chinese dresses weren't the right size
for her... Ah, well. I'm guessing she's one of those people whose mood
changes rapidly.'

"Ranma! Akane!"

Hearing the shout, the pigtailed boy hopped off the fence and looked up
to see Nuku Nuku running towards him and Akane, her facial expression
giving off a sense of urgency. "Hey, Nuku. What's up?"

Panting after having overexerted herself to reach her friends, the
catgirl grabbed both of them by their shoulders and shouted,
"MioSaysThatALargePurpleDinosaurAndALaughingHyenaAreAfterMe!"

Akane, annoyed at being suddenly grabbed, blinked and asked, "What are
you trying to say?"

Nuku Nuku showed Ranma and Akane the drawing and explained in detail
what Mio told her.

Feeling her right eyebrow ever-so-slightly twitch, Akane asked the
catgirl, voice becoming icy as she continued, "You mean to tell me that
you came all the way here and stopped us from going to school because
you think that a dinosaur is after you?!"

The pink-haired girl shook her head, saying, "That not what Nuku Nuku
mean." Seeing she got Akane's interest, Nuku Nuku said, "Think that
laughing hyena _on top_ of ten-foot tall dinosaur is after me."

One massive scream of frustration later, Akane turned towards Ranma, who
throughout this looked like the epitome of calmness. "And what do _you_
think of this, Ranma?"

"Eh. It could happen. I've seen weirder things."

Both eyebrows giving off a noticeable twitch, the raven-haired girl
walked away from the other two, not caring if they follow her or not.
She wondered if she was the only normal one around. It seemed that way
lately, especially with Nuku Nuku's absurd belief. 'Besides, it would
make so much more sense if it was a ten-feet tall dinosaur riding a
laughing hyen--' Akane slapped herself a few times, not wanting to
continue that thought.

"Are you okay, Akane?" asked a concerned voice from behind.

She jumped up in shock, eyes wide, turning around right away to see if
anyone knew what she was thinking of. Seeing it was the two from before,
Akane said, straightening herself up to try and look as normal as
possible, "Umm, yeah. I'm fine. Might as well walk with you two to
school." She didn't want to be caught off guard like that again.

Nearing Furinkan, she took note on how quiet it was. Ever since Shampoo
and her friends gave the boys an ultimatum - fight them and get
instantly turned into a girl - the morning fights stopped. 'With the
weapons those Amazons have, I can see why. Though Kuno's trying to
attack Ranma to try and 'free his loves'... Idiot.' Akane shook her
head. In the end, Kuno was still Kuno.

Passing through the gates, Akane gave Nuku Nuku a look of satisfaction.
"See? What did I tell you? I can't believe you got worked up over
something so stu--"

"Saotome, prepare yourself!"

--------------------------------------------------

Ranma immediately stiffened, becoming as rigid as a board. Once the
initial shock set in, his muscles unclenched, allowing the pigtailed boy
to regain control of his motor functions. Sweating profusely, Ranma
looked around in an attempt to locate the course of the voice. "Oh, man,
I can't believe she found me!"

Nuku Nuku turned to look at Ranma confusedly. Flicking an ear, the
catgirl asked, "What are you talking about?"

"She..." He took a deep breath to calm himself before shouting in reply
when he was satisfied he could say an entire sentence without
stammering, "She's the epitome of EVIL; the one spelled with big,
capital letters!"

"Evil?" Akane repeated, not sounding convinced.

"EVIL!!!" Ranma insisted, nodding frantically.

"You don't like this girl very much, do you, Saotome?" Nabiki
deadpanned, making a mental note to try and find out as much as she
could about someone that made Saotome nervous. Aside from the Amazons,
that is, but they were after Ranma's manly bod-- Hey! Maybe that was
what's been going on now?

A chilling laugh interrupted Nabiki's train of thought, making her wince
involuntarily. "Ohohohohoho!"

"That laugh! What is my sister doing here?! Saotome, you cur! How dare
you ensnare my sister!" Kuno, who had appeared seemingly out of nowhere,
grabbed the cringing martial artist and yelled at him.

Relaxing after a few moments, Kuno blinked and released Ranma. "Oh. This
is not my twisted sister." He picked up Ranma again and started shaking
him. "Saotome, how _dare_ you ensnare this young and virile woman..."

"Give it a rest, will you, Kuno!" Ranma shot at the swordsman with a
frown, planting a foot in his face.

"I want to become one with you, Ranma. Body and... hmm, your body is
enough for me!" the beautiful long-haired girl announced, before
breaking into laughter once more.

"Ease off on the laugh, Biiko!" Ranma commanded, before continuing
ominously, "So, you've found me at last..."

"For two whole years I have searched the world for you, going as far as
the top of the Everest and the heart of the Arctic..." Biiko replied,
raising a shaking fist to the heavens.

"Did ya try China?" the pigtailed boy queried casually.

Biiko just fumed silently in response.

"Anyway, read my lips. I ain't interested. You're pretty an' all, and
the money can't be all that bad, but there are other things in life."

Puzzled, Biiko looked at Ranma, and asked, "Like what?"

"Umm, I dunno. Friends?" Ranma replied, scratching the back of his head.
"Ice-cream is nice... and--"

"Enough! You _will_ be mine, Ranma!" Biiko shouted, before discarding
her school uniform, revealing a very flimsy hardsuit underneath.

Ranma noticed the high heels that really clashed with the metal bikini
and sighed internally. Not overly impressed and ignoring one of the
spectators shouting, "My eyes! Oh, my eyes! Dear sweet kami! I'm blind!"
he looked at his companions for some insight.

Akane, who had been stunned into silence throughout the conversation,
was blushing furiously and trying very hard not to look at the severely
under-dressed girl. Nabiki had a calculating smirk on her face, and
Ranma noticed her left hand reaching for a miniature camera that she
habitually carried, as he'd discovered earlier that week upon
accidentally meeting her in the dressing room of the furo. Turning his
head towards Nuku Nuku, he suppressed a laugh at how her right eye kept
on twitching violently. Unless he somehow got his facts wrong, the
catgirl was getting territorial again.

'Oh well, at least we're not in a village filled with Amazons anymore,'
Ranma thought, shuddering internally. Giving Biiko a glance, he
announced firmly, "I don't think so."

Turning to go into the school, Ranma petted the pink-haired girl on the
head and added in a sing-song voice, "Nuku, try not to make too big of a
mess, okay?"

"Alright, Ranma!" Nuku Nuku replied cheerfully, smiling widely and
brandishing her translucent ki claws.

"Umm, wait... No, don't..." Biiko protested, madly jumping all over the
schoolyard in an attempt to avoid the catgirl's claws. "Ahhhh!!!"

Grimacing, Akane grabbed the pigtailed boy's shoulder and yelled,
"Ranma! That poor, defenseless girl will be slaughtered! How can you
just stand here and let your pet kill that completely normal--"

"Akagiyama missiles!"

"...girl," Akane finished lamely, as explosions sounded all around her,
miraculously missing the present students, who opted to flee in fear.

Raising an eyebrow, Ranma asked, "Defenseless?"

"Just shut up!" Akane shot back at him, stomping away.

"Play nicely, now!" Ranma called out to Biiko with a smile, before
finally entering the school.

--------------------------------------------------

A quarter of an hour later, the catgirl showed up at class, the hem of
her dress looking slightly singed. Despite that, she was cheerful as
ever. Taking her seat beside Ranma just as the bell rang, she told him
that Biiko finally flew away. The pigtailed boy just shrugged, and
closed his eyes, preparing to sleep until the lunch period.

No one bothered Ranma, as the female students stared at him with lustful
and adoring gazes, sighing occasionally. The male population of the
class unanimously settled for drooling over Nuku Nuku's revealing
clothing, some of the more daring boys occasionally sneaking peeks at an
Amazon or two when they thought the female warriors weren't looking or
brandishing their weapons about.

Professor Yamagata made an attempt to wake Ranma early on into the
period, but the piece of chalk thrown at the pigtailed boy was deflected
by a small, curved dagger that continued on its course and imbedded
itself a few centimeters away from the teacher's right ear. The teacher
turned his head oh-so-slowly towards Shampoo, who gave him an evil smirk
and held up two more daggers between her fingers. Their wicked blades
were pointed lower... much lower.

Once she was satisfied that her message had come across, Shampoo turned
around happily and resumed watching Ranma sleep. Since she would be
leaving soon with all of the other Amazons to find a place to stay, the
purple-haired girl wanted to etch a picture of her beloved into her
mind, to comfort her in the time they must regretfully spend apart.
Besides, he was just too too cute like that, and anyone who would dare
wake him up would feel the full wrath of the proud Amazon nation!

--------------------------------------------------

Ranma woke up at the sound of the bell, and stretched his arms, yawning.
Glancing at Nuku, he frowned upon realizing that her dress had been
damaged more than he had initially thought. Signaling the purple-haired
Amazon to come closer, he whispered to her conspiratorially, "Hey,
Shampoo, do you mind giving Nuku another dress?" Frowning, he added, "I
don't like the way all those guys are ogling her... more than usual,
that is."

Shampoo nodded happily, giving the pigtailed boy a smile. "Is no
problem, Ranma! Leave it to Shampoo!" Bouncing over to the catgirl, the
Amazon grabbed her right hand and started pulling her towards the
window.

"Where are we going?" Nuku Nuku asked in confusion.

"Shampoo give wife better dress. Is good, yes?"

Nuku Nuku seemed to accept that reason, and followed the Amazon. They
reached the window next to Ranma's desk in no time, and Shampoo was
about to jump out when the pigtailed boy asked her, "Why don't you use
the door?"

Shampoo frowned, and pointed at the window, saying, "Is Amazon way." Her
frown disappeared immediately afterwards, and she waved at Ranma,
jumping out of the window.

Nuku Nuku mirrored her gesture, and followed the Amazon.

Ranma stared off into the distance for a few moments, before shaking his
head. "I won't think about it," he muttered, returning his attention
towards his book bag. Fishing out his bento from it, the pigtailed boy
turned towards Akane, waving at her. When she pointedly ignored his
presence, Ranma walked over to her, smiling. "Hey, wanna have lunch
together?"

"You just want to steal my food," Akane grumbled, hugging her bento
protectively to her chest. She wasn't about to forgive him for his
earlier comment.

Ranma's face took on a hurt look. "How can you say something like that
about me?"

"I know you just want to shove your dirty chopstick into my bento!" she
snapped at him. "Stop playing those perverted games with me!"

"Perverted games?" Daisuke asked no one in particular, promptly getting
hit by Sayuri.

"Idiot!" she hissed at him in lower tones. "She means foreplay!"

"The imagery is kinda weird, isn't it?" Yuka murmured. "Is that some
weird food fetish?"

Hiroshi shrugged, taking out a small and worn out notepad. "I dunno. The
Americans say something about salami and an oven, so this isn't too far
fetched." He turned to a new page and began to write, talking out loud
while doing so. "Akane says 'Shove dirty chopsticks into bento'."
Reading what he had just wrote, he exclaimed, "Ohhh... Kinky!"

Akane grabbed the notebook from Hiroshi's hands and ripped it to shreds,
her face red not unlike a ripe tomato. "Stop saying those perverted
things about me!"

"Ahhhh!!!" Hiroshi yelled, dropping to his knees and picking up the torn
out pages. Lifting a tear-stricken face at Akane, he sobbed, "How could
you do this?! This notebook... is my life!"

Akane stomped on the notebook once more for good measure and huffed,
walking out of the classroom stiffly. Ranma followed her closely,
attempting to start a conversation with the girl.

"M-My notebook..." Hiroshi mumbled, before raising his head to the
Heavens and howling, "NNNOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!" madly.

"His uncle gave it to him," Daisuke told Yuka and Sayuri sadly. "Hiroshi
said it was very educational..." A sudden frown creasing his forehead,
he scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Though I'm wondering why he's
getting so worked up over it. If I remember correctly, Hiroshi has a box
full of these back home."

Daisuke promptly got smacked on the head by Hiroshi, who hissed at him,
"You're ruining the scene!" Winking, he continued, "Besides, the more
angst I show, the better chance I have to get a girl..." Realizing that
Yuka and Sayuri were still in listening distance, the boy turned around
slowly, chuckling nervously, one thought dominating his mind. 'Uh oh...'

--------------------------------------------------

Ranma, Nabiki and Akane were sitting together in the courtyard. The
youngest Tendo daughter was still ignoring Ranma, though her older
sister didn't have any such qualms.

"Say, who was that girl that showed up earlier today, Ranma?" Nabiki
asked him nonchalantly between bites. The look she gave him out of the
corner of her eye betrayed her interest at his answer, though.

"Biiko," Ranma replied simply, continuing to attack his bento with a
gusto.

"B-ko?" Nabiki repeated after him with a raised eyebrow.

Ranma shrugged, snatching a pickle with his chopsticks and admiring it
for a brief moment, before popping it into his mouth. "Close enough."

"Who is she?" Nabiki couldn't help but ask, mentally shaking her head in
disbelief as she recalled the events which transpired in the morning.
'Flying hardsuits packed with dozens of missiles? If I hadn't seen a
Jusenkyo curse, I'd never believe that...'

"Just some crazy chick that's after me," the pigtailed boy replied
quietly with no small amount of resentment in his voice.

"You don't like her much, then?"

"Like her?!" Ranma snapped, glaring at Nabiki for a few moments before
reigning in his anger and averting his gaze. "I can't even stand her
laugh!"

"Did you defeat her too, Ranma-baby?"

"Not really... Nabs."

Nabiki froze, and leveled a frosty glare at him. "Don't you ever call me
that name again."

"I won't..." Ranma drawled out, "if you won't call me 'Ranma-baby'...
Nabs." The pigtailed boy smirked at the expression of quiet rage that
appeared on her features before she managed to school them into an
emotionless mask.

"Stop flirting in broad daylight, you perverts!" Akane snapped at the
two, finally finished with her lunch.

"What's the matter, Sis?" Nabiki smirked, having found an easier target
to vent her frustration at. "Jealous?"

Stunned for a moment, Akane was speechless. She shook her head
vehemently and made a face, stomping off on her own.

"You still haven't answered my question... Ranma," Nabiki pressed on
when they were alone.

"About what?"

"That B-ko girl."

Ranma sat in silence for several moments, before sighing. "You might as
well know the full story. That chick's full name is Biiko Daitokuji. We
stayed at her old man's place for some time during the training trip. In
fact, that was the only place where we didn't get kicked out when Pop
tried to steal something." Smiling, he added with amusement showing
clearly in his voice, "Probably cause it helped test their security
system every time he tripped on an alarm."

"So that's how you got your money?!" Nabiki exclaimed, congratulating
herself on her perfect deduction skills.

"Nah." Ranma shook his head to the negative. "I never stole anything in
my life."

Nabiki gave him a level look. "Anything?"

Ranma rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Well... I never stole
anything expensive. Food, on the other hand..." Ignoring Nabiki's smirk,
Ranma continued, "Pop, however, just doesn't like to work... and he's
too lazy..."

"I think I get the point, Ranma," Nabiki said dryly.

The pigtailed boy kept on talking, counting on his fingers as he did so,
"... too stupid... too ugly..."

Nabiki's left eyebrow twitched, and she smacked him on the back of his
head. "I said I got the point!"

The pigtailed boy looked at her for a long moment, before nodding
slowly. "Right." With a shrug of his shoulders, he continued his story.
"Anyway, I think he wanted to engage me to that Biiko chick, but was too
scared of her. We ended up running away and going to China. Pop must've
been really afraid that time."

"And you just went along with it?!" the Tendo girl asked incredulously.

Ranma shrugged. "I didn't want to stay with her, so I couldn't care
less. I didn't like sneaking out, but I doubt she'd have let us go
otherwise."

"What do you mean?" Nabiki scrunched her forehead in mild confusion. "B-
ko would've kept you locked in her apartment?"

"Her mansion. And yes, she'd probably lock us in some dungeon. She looks
like the type who'd have a dungeon."

Nabiki boggled at the money the Daitokuji family must have and at how
casually Ranma talked about it. Before she could try to get more
information from him, however, the bell rang, signaling the end of the
lunch period. They two stood up, brushing a few crumbs that got on their
clothes away and reached the school, heading towards their respective
classrooms.

--------------------------------------------------

Throughout his years of strenuous training, Soun Tendo had taken upon
many small hobbies to keep himself from going insane.

One of them was bird watching.

Ever since that day several years ago, when he had paid actual attention
to a winged creature glide through the air without a care for the first
time, Soun had wondered how it would feel to be able to have another
level of freedom when the ground just wasn't enough. That, and he was
curious as to why certain birds seemed to fly head-on into solid
objects.

Now that he experienced this form of journeying first-hand, Soun
realized that he just wasn't cut out for flying. Throwing in the fact
that animals, especially ones with sharp beaks, kept heading towards him
as if he shouldn't exist, made his decision all the more easier.

"Saotome?" he asked his currently pink companion, who was actually doing
all the heavy duty work as far as air travel went. "Just why is it that
on certain days you have this sudden impulse to flap your ears and fly?"

Genma-elephant's trunk twisted upwards, holding a sign in front of
Soun's face. [For practice, of course!]

"Ah, I see." He realized that his friend was just trying to get used to
his cursed form, in case there was ever a moment when it was truly
necessary to take on the elephant form. Soun's eyes suddenly widened in
shock. Pointing out forward, he shouted, "Saotome, watch out for that--"

But it was far too late as Genma-elephant crashed into a tall tree. His
thick cranium lessened the effects of the blow, though it was enough to
prevent him from flying as he toppled backwards.

It was a sight to behold as both rider and carrier fell through the air,
shrieks of 'Why?!' and frantic bellows heard every now and then, vainly
trying to grab onto something as to stop their descent. Soun vaguely
felt violated as several long objects too slippery to be tree branches
brushed against his behind. However, being in public, he couldn't bring
himself to ask a small pink elephant in whether the creature had tried
to molest him.

Unfortunately for Soun, he was the one to reach ground first, followed
by Genma-elephant right on top of him. "That... hurt," he moaned,
finding out the hard way that elephant cubs are quite heavy, before
drifting off into an unexpected rest.

--------------------------------------------------

As a new school day started, Ranma, along with Nuku Nuku and the Tendo
girls, walked towards Furinkan High, his thoughts not quite on the
upcoming schoolwork but on other things. Most of them having to do with
a certain girl and prayers that he would never have to see her again.
'So far it's been working with regards to _him_. Only thing that could
be worse is if I see them both at the same time.' Ranma shuddered, not
wanting to even fathom such an unholy meeting. Deep in thought, he
didn't pay attention to what was around him, eyes only staring at the
sidewalk in front.

"Ranma, are you okay?" Nuku Nuku asked once again, concerned about why
he wasn't his usual playful self that day, only muttering at times about
huge robots.

She did everything to try and get his attention from waving her hands in
front of him, to running in front to make him stop, though all that did
was have him swerve away from her, to even licking his ear. The last one
seemed to get the attention of Akane, who muttered something about all
boys being perverts. Nuku Nuku still couldn't understand these humans
that well. Wasn't it customary to lick someone all over to get their
attention?

'Did Baka-san do something?' she wondered, recalling how different and
slightly pale Genma looked when talking to Ranma during the morning
spar. The catgirl wondered if bribing the elephant with peanuts would
get her some answers from him.

Her curiosity about Ranma still high, the catgirl walked over to ask
Akane if anything happened. "Nuku Nuku worried about Ranma. Try
everything but Ranma still not react. It's so hard to get him going.
Does Akane know if anything happen?"

At first the other girl blushed before realization set, causing her to
shout back, "How should I know?!" walking away in a huff...

*SPLASH*

Right into the water an old lady was tossing out of her pail.

"Nuku Nuku go back to Ranma now," the pink-haired girl replied before
smelling the air and adding, "Akane should take a bath. She doesn't
smell nice anymore." And with that she cheerfully ran off, leaving dust
in her wake. When the dust cleared, a wet and fuming girl could be seen.

--------------------------------------------------

Not having noticed that two of the girls were left behind, Ranma walked
on, still in a trance-like state.

'Just one sign, that's all I want. Any sort of sign pointing towards
Biiko not being here.'

As if on cue, everything around him got dimmer while a single ray of
light shined briefly on the pigtailed boy.

'Thank you!' Ranma, taking it as 'the sign', thought with glee as he
looked up... to see Biiko, smiling and standing in front of the school
with twelve huge figures covered in cloth behind her.

"YOU LIED!!!" he screamed up to the heavens.

"Greetings, my love," the silver-haired girl stated in a haughty tone,
tracing her fingers through her hair, not taking notice of the boy's
distressed state. "Such a nice day, don't you think?"

"You still around after yesterday? Didn't ya have enough?!" Ranma shot
back.

"But, Ranma-sama, I have discovered the key to your love," Biiko
replied. Putting up three fingers and counting them down, she went on,
"Wealth, intellect, a good breeding... all these take a second place for
you in a woman."

"What the hell are you rambling 'bout there?" Ranma asked, confused but
not liking the tone of the conversation one bit.

Before Biiko could continue, a cloud of dust appeared behind the other
two and stopped next to Ranma. When it cleared, Nuku Nuku was standing
by Ranma's side, mouth agape in awe of the huge, cloth-covered figures.
Then, seeing the girl standing in front of the figures, she smiled and
waved at her. Maybe the girl wanted to play with her again and be
kissed, like her friends from the Amazon village.

Hearing someone else running into school grounds, Nabiki turned and saw
her sister, who had dried herself before arriving.

By the time she reached Nabiki, Akane chose to glare at Nuku Nuku before
looking towards Biiko. Something major was about to happen, she noticed,
and certainly those two need her martial arts skills for this!

For a split-second Biiko recoiled at the sight of the catgirl before
composing herself.

"The way to win your heart, Ranma, is through power!" she shouted,
punching a fist in the air for emphasis. Then, pointing a finger at her
beloved, Biiko continued, "Saotome Ranma, I challenge you! If my robots
defeat you, then you'll marry me..."

"And if I win?" the pigtailed boy asked in a hopeful tone.

"Ohohohohohoho!" the girl responded. Looking at Ranma in the eyes, she
said, "My robots are the embodiment of power! But, if you shall manage
the impossible, I shall take your leave, my darling."

"Just what I wanted to hear!" Ranma smiled, striking a fist into the
palm of his other hand, ready as ever for the fight.

"Ranma! You can't agree to this... this... lunacy!" Nabiki screamed
towards the two, terrified at the possibility of Ranma and Nuku Nuku
dying. All the fun they could have together, and the money she could
have made, gone because of this. It would be the greatest waste ever!

Biiko, glaring at Nabiki, shouted back, "Shut up, insolent wench!"

Turning around, Ranma added, "Nabiki, this is my best chance to get rid
of that fruitcake once and for all!" Then, looking back at Biiko, he
looked at her gravely and said, "I accept your challenge, Biiko. Nuku
an' me will go against your robots. And as you said, if we win, you'll
leave us alone."

"Are we going to play again, Ranma?" Nuku Nuku asked, jumping up and
down at the thought of all the fun they were going to have.

"Yep, Nuku." Smiling while cracking his knuckles, Ranma shouted, "Bring
it on, Biiko!"

With a victorious grin, Biiko pulled out a remote control and pressed a
few commands on it, causing the dozen huge robots to remove the cloth
that covered them previously, making everyone present recoil in shock.

"I based them on what seems to be a popular show that commoners
adore..." Biiko announced proudly, gesturing lazily at the closest
robot. "They appear to be the epitome of love!"

Paling, Hiroshi pointed at the mecha, shouting, "Oh dear God! It... it
looks just like that... that evil THING from that God-awful show!"

"I can't believe they were able to twist a pure and beautiful emotion
such as love that badly," Daisuke remarked with a groan.

The girls opted to point at the bulky robots and whisper amongst
themselves. "I know what they mean. What was it called, something about
friends?" Yuka asked Sayuri.

Whirling to face the two, Hiroshi immediately shushed them, making a
scary face to the girls. "You actually remember that much of that damned
name?! I've been trying to forget ever since..."

"I blame society!" Daisuke exclaimed, choking back a sob. "No, better
yet, I blame my parents for making me watch that horror!"

More than a bit annoyed at the murmurs of the crowd and at the smiling
faces and waves Nuku Nuku made to her creations, Biiko shouted, "Enough!
ATTACK!!!"

The robots moved towards Ranma, Nuku Nuku and the two girls. Nabiki
wisely stepped aside and took cover as the other three fell into their
stances.

Suddenly, a breeze that came out of nowhere swept through the area,
kicking up a dust cloud in its wake. Once the dust settled somewhat, the
outline of a teenage became visible in its center. The figure walked out
of it until it was in front of Akane, revealing itself to be an
upperclassman in a kendo outfit, and grasped her right hand.

"My fair lady, I shall vanquish those foul demons and be free to date
thee!" he announced bravely, blind to the amount of sheer disgust that
appeared on his beloved's face. Holding up his bokken proudly, Kuno
charged at the robots, only to be swatted aside in an anticlimactic
fashion like an insignificant fly by a purple mecha.

Akane followed Kuno's trajectory, hearing another student shout out,
"Kuno-sempai got hurt again!" until he became one with the school's
wall, and wisely decided to step out of the attacking robots' way and
move over to stand next to her sister. If there was anything that Ranma
and Nuku Nuku's arrival had taught her was that while it was
embarrassing to withdraw from a fight like this, it was much more
embarrassing, not to mention painful, to actually participate in one of
that caliber.

Besides, without her superior skills, those two perverted jerks would no
doubt get the beating of their lives!

--------------------------------------------------

The closest mecha to Ranma wasted no time and launched a lightning-fast
punch at the pigtailed boy's head. Ranma's features blurred momentarily,
as he jumped onto the overextended appendage and jogged upwards,
flinging his body towards the mecha's head when he reached its shoulder.

The purple robot tried to swat at the nuisance with its left arm, only
to stop short when Ranma's body went through its head, somersaulting
through the air and landing lightly on his feet.

The mecha staggered, and fell forwards heavily, raising a cloud of dust
as it did so.

"Let's get them, Nuku!" Ranma shouted excitedly, rushing over to his
next victim.

Squealing in delight, Nuku Nuku ran towards the nearest robot and
grabbed it by its foot. It was play time again!

Raising the giant metallic monster over her head, she twisted in her
place several times, before letting go of it. Flung by the kinetic
energy generated by the centrifugal forces, the bright red mecha
impacted upon another of its kind, a distinctly yellow one. The two
robots hit their heads together and fell to the ground, taking a third
one, green this time, with them. The three robots together combined a
bizarre, colorful sandwich, lying on top of one another motionlessly.

High-fiving each other, Ranma and Nuku Nuku turned towards a neon-cherry
mecha that stared at them dumbly. Exchanging a glance and a smile, the
two double-teamed it, raining blows all over its legs, completely
destroying them in the process. When the giant robot sagged down, Ranma
and Nuku Nuku each grabbed one of its arms, pulling on the count of
three. The mecha was neatly torn into two more or less equal halves.

Down to only seven robots out of what only moments before had been a
whole dozen, Biiko ordered them to open fire. White-hot plasma streaked
from the robots towards their two targets, making them scramble for
cover, madly dodging all the while.

Lasers joined in on the fun, as two of the robots shot precise beams of
concentrated red light at Ranma. Nuku Nuku wasn't fairing much better
than him, having to dodge the collective fire of the remaining five
mecha.

However the case was, both combatants managed to avoid getting hit, and
Biiko began to fret. Normally, she'd just wait for her opponents to tire
themselves out... but this was Ranma!

The snobbish girl narrowed her eyes, when she saw Ranma take out a small
keypad seemingly out of thin air and punch in a few numbers, before
leaping away once more to dodge the incoming attacks. Biiko had the
distinct feeling that she was running out of time, and decided to go for
broke.

Utilizing the full capabilities of her robots, Biiko ordered them to
fire their entire missile load. A thunderous roar caused by their launch
shattered windows in a five mile radius, as missiles literally covered
the sky, soaring overhead in a circle and even going as far as blocking
out the sun.

All of the spectators looked at them in awe, and even the combatants
stopped fighting, and looked at the heavens quizzically.

And then, all of the missiles slowly started to form a gigantic sword,
whose tip pointed at Ranma, Nuku Nuku... and the entire student body
that was too close to them to escape unharmed.

Screams sounded all over the school yard, as all the spectators ran away
in horror. The mechs made things especially difficult by resuming their
fire. Glancing gravely at the missiles, Ranma signaled for the catgirl
to shield him, and wasting no time turned away, taking out a small,
sleek datapad. Knowing what was at stake, Nuku Nuku redoubled her
efforts against the robots, tearing out a metallic drainage pipe and
batting away the plasma shots, while simply reflecting the laser beams.

As Ranma punched furiously at the little device, the catgirl managed to
deflect a laser beam into one of the mecha, and then successfully
redirected three plasma bolts into it while the orange robot was
immobile. The remaining six mecha withdrew and regrouped, opting to fire
at the pink-haired girl from afar.

Nuku Nuku tried to deflect their shots, but the larger distance between
her and the robots worked against the catgirl, giving her opponents time
to move out of the way, while continuing to fire methodically. And,
unlike them, she didn't have that luxury. Moving away would mean that
her human would get hurt; as simple as that.

It was her duty to protect her human.

Knowing in her heart that Ranma would solve the problem if given the
chance, Nuku Nuku continued to stand her ground. She only winced when a
stray shot came to close to her body, going through her skirt and
setting it on fire. Not bothering to put the fire out, Nuku Nuku tore
the burning section off, idly throwing it aside.

"How much longer, Ranma?" she asked raggedly, trying not to let any of
her tiredness creep into her voice.

"Almost... there..." the pigtailed boy replied, his breathing labored
and sweat pouring down his brow.

Nuku Nuku nodded to herself curtly, and narrowed her eyes at the mecha.
She was able to deflect a few more shots, before the metal overheated
and the catgirl was forced to drop it, so that she wouldn't get burnt.

A few stray shots went over her head, before one bolt of plasma went
headed straight for Ranma's head. Nuku Nuku knew that normally her human
would have no problem dodging the attack, despite the fact that it was
fired at him from behind. However, she also knew that he wouldn't move
from his spot, having total and complete confidence in her and her
abilities to defend them both.

Leaping to intercept the shot, Nuku Nuku winced she blocked it with her
left shoulder. But even that desperate act only bought her a few
moments, as three more plasma bolts headed her way menacingly. The
missiles that had finally gotten into their giant sword-like formation
and were rapidly descending towards them weren't helping matters either.

Unable to protect Ranma from that position anymore, the catgirl grabbed
him in a fireman's carry and leaped away. The tiny device Ranma was
working on fell to the ground out of the startled pigtailed boy's hands,
clattering to the ground.

When they were relatively safe, the catgirl put Ranma back on the
ground, and said, "Sorry we had to go, but Nuku Nuku couldn't fight on
that spot anymore!"

"Hey, that's alright, Nuku," Ranma replied, smiling at her reassuringly.
"I was just about to tell you that I was finished."

Unperturbed by the large boom that sounded from above, as explosions
wreaked havoc through the myriad of missiles, ripping them apart without
detonating their nuclear-tipped warheads, the pink-haired girl returned
his smile, cheerful as ever after the praise. Ranma's eyes involuntarily
traveled downwards all over her body...

And the pigtailed boy immediately noticed something. He could see a
whole lot of flesh; too much even for the carefree catgirl.

"Nuku, what happened to you?!" Ranma exclaimed, his eyes widening in
horror when he realized that her left shoulder was charred and bleeding.

"Stupid big and ugly robots don't play fair," Nuku Nuku replied
agitatedly, remembering her recent predicament.

And the evil things even tried to hurt her human!

Playtime was over.

Glaring at the gigantic mecha surrounding her in a wide semi-circle,
Nuku Nuku slowly crossed her hands in front of her chest, before
bringing them down sharply as light erupted around her knuckles where
her translucent ki claws came to life.

--------------------------------------------------

Biiko hurriedly dispatched orders to her robots, switching to backup
plan C. Somewhere deep in the recesses of her mind, a small part of her
was bothered that plans A and B were all failures, but Biiko couldn't be
bothered with such trivialities at the moment.

Plan C's success rate was over ninety-nine percent! Every simulation
she'd run the day before had pointed to that unanimously!

The remaining six mecha retracted the fingers on their hands, sprouting
long claws of diamond instead.

Amidst the chaos, Biiko's haughty laugh sounded through the wreaked
school yard, augmented by the remaining robots' external speakers.

"Soon, my love, you shall be mine... all mine!"

--------------------------------------------------

Ranma's left eye twitched violently, and he shook his head angrily. The
pigtailed boy was about to shout a degenerating reply to Biiko when the
entire school yard exploded in bright white light.

Shielding his eyes from the nearly unbearable glow, he noticed in awe
that it was Nuku Nuku who was generating the fearsome aura.

And then, the catgirl was gone.

One moment, she'd been standing next to him, seething quietly and
glaring at the mecha while her ki claws glowed menacingly, and the
next... she was all over the robots.

The aquamarine mecha didn't even know what hit it. Its sensors managed
to register an extremely agitated mewl before its body was literally
torn apart. The robot's smoking remains fell to the ground in eight
pieces, shrouding the surrounding area in dust and smoke.

A humanoid shape could soon be discerned in the cloud. A few moments
later, the catgirl stepped out into plain sight with a bowed head, her
hands and ki claws held at her sides.

The remaining five mecha involuntarily took a step back when Nuku Nuku's
head snapped back up, her eyes glowing with an unnatural emerald light.

--------------------------------------------------

"Ranma! Your fight is now with me!" Biiko shouted, ripping off her
school uniform and revealing the Akagiyama hardsuit underneath.

Throwing a short fit of laughter, Biiko pointed at Nuku Nuku, announcing
grandly, "Destroy that She-Demon, my beautiful creations!"

Looking at each other, the mecha gave an equivalent of a shrug and
charged the catgirl together, dogpiling her.

"Nuku!" Ranma exclaimed urgently, seeing his companion literally buried
under the bulky robots.

The pigtailed boy made a move towards Nuku Nuku, who was getting pounded
relentlessly by the mecha, which took full advantage of her momentary
disorientation. However, Biiko blocked his path.

"My darling, here is where you will realize your folly and bend to God's
will! Our love was written in the stars themsel--"

The rest of Biiko's rant was cut short, as Ranma's punch caught her
straight in the jaw, sending the girl dozens of meters away until she
became imbedded in a wall. Shaking her head to get her bearings straight
amidst the rubble her impact had created, Biiko smiled. "I see... you
still do not think of me as worthy to be your consort."

Torn between his desire to go help Nuku Nuku and fearing to leave his
back wide open for an attack, Ranma waited for Biiko to make her move,
his knuckles whitening from the exertion he was putting into his
muscles. 'C'mon, you psycho... attack me already!'

Wiping a slight trickle of blood that ran from her mouth, she charged at
Ranma with the speed of a freight train, shouting, "I won't hold back
anymore!"

Not even blinking, Ranma met her charge head on, barreling into the
long-haired girl and grabbing her right hand in a pain hold. He was
about to dislocate it and get Biiko out of the fight when an explosion
off to the side sent both of them tumbling to the ground. Turning their
heads towards its source, Ranma and Biiko could only gape at the massive
mushroom-like dust cloud.

Soon, a speck of light could be seen approaching them from the cloud.
The speck turned into a glowing line, its features becoming more and
more distinct until it could be identified as one of the beam sabers the
mecha used.

Ranma hoped beyond hope that the catgirl had ripped a saber out of one
of those robots during the last moments of the battle and was using it
as a weapon. Even though he knew that unlike him, Nuku Nuku didn't like
to use weapons, preferring to fight only with her body, he continued to
hope...

Only to have those hopes dashed utterly and completely when an orange
mecha stepped out of the cloud flanked by two others who had powered
down their saber weapons.

The scene finally cleared, revealing a gigantic crater and charred
pieces of what seemed to be two melted robots.

Nuku Nuku was nowhere to be found.

--------------------------------------------------

Ranma's heart sank and shattered into a million tiny pieces at the
realization that he had lost Nuku Nuku. He bowed his head, staring at
the ground next to his feet in shock. Losing... Nuku Nuku... The mere
idea was not perceivable! The catgirl had been a part of his life for as
long as he could remember, always helping his and generally staying by
his side...

And recently...

Nuku Nuku was a very special friend. She knew more about him than anyone
else possibly could. Whenever life would get difficult, or his father
would try one more of his idiotic training technique... Nuku Nuku would
always help him.

'What horrors would've happened to me if it weren't for her?'

Most of the people his father and he had met in their travels usually
treated Nuku Nuku as an 'it'... but Ranma knew better. One only had to
look in her eyes for a few moments, and see the deep intelligence
projected back.

He had always known in his heart that Nuku Nuku could understand him
when he would talk with her... sometimes for hours at a time...

If nothing else, her fast grasp of Japanese proved that theory. To learn
how to speak within a few hours from being changed into a girl for the
first time in her life was no mean feat.

And now, all of that had been lost.

The only cat he'd never feared in his life, despite the Neko-ken
training his father had put him through...

No, it was...

It was more...

His friend...

His best friend in the whole wide world...

The friend he made a pact with all those years ago...

Gone, and never coming back...

--------------------------------------------------

Biiko laughed triumphantly, satisfied in the successful execution of her
master plan. The demon was gone, and her enchantment over Ranma-sama
would surely be gone in no time, allowing him to see through the veil
covering his eyes and realize that only she, Biiko Daijkoku, was his one
true love!

Several moments later she realized that something was wrong. After all,
Ranma darling wasn't hugging her, declaring his undying love as he
should have.

After glancing at Ranma, Biiko recoiled in shock. She'd miscalculated
the demon's hold over him! What foul spell could have done that to him?!

Ranma had to be knocked out, she realized. It was only for his own good,
after all.

Her mind set, Biiko ordered the mecha to attack Ranma.

--------------------------------------------------

His hair unbound from the pigtail that had pretty much become his
trademark throughout the years, Ranma stared at the whisker that was
used to hold it in place. It used to belong to Nuku Nuku, but she'd lost
it during one of their fights with his father, when he'd gone too far
yet again and had to be stopped.

And now, it was the only thing he had left to remind him of her...

Ranma's hair changed color and became a deep blue, an unseen wind
picking up all around him. His eyes slowly darkened, until they were the
color of blood, and even the robots missed a step when Ranma raised his
head and stared at them listlessly.

And then, it was as if the dam had broke.

Energy coalesced all around Ranma's body, bathing him in an eerie white
light. It coursed through his hands, merging with his fingers. Sharp,
translucent claws came to life, extending from his fingers. Growling
loudly, Ranma leapt at the mecha in the center, slashing at him wildly
with his newfound claws. The remaining two robots tried to bum rush him,
but Ranma paid them no heed, idly batting both of the mecha away with
translucent walls of pure energy. The one on the left was flung high
into the sky towards the Kuno mansion, while the other robot impacted
heavily against Biiko, who stood to the side in shock, completely awed
by Ranma's display of power and unable to dodge the incoming robot in
time. They proceeded to traverse at high speeds towards one of the
nearby buildings, the mecha detonating on impact with the stone wall.

Before she slipped into unconsciousness, Biiko's last thoughts were,
'Such prowess... I must have him!'

Ranma didn't stop his attack for a few minutes, and when he regained his
senses, there was a deep trench in the ground from his claws. Of the
robot, there was no sign.

His adrenaline rush fading away, Ranma collapsed onto his knees, letting
his face drop into his hands.

"Nuku..." he sobbed, as tears flowed freely down his cheeks, falling
onto the scarred ground.

Ranma continued to cry openly, completely disregarding the beeping that
was coming from behind him. He was never even aware of the danger, even
when the green robot finally completed rebooting his system and pushed
the yellow and red ones off itself, getting on its feet. Ranma didn't
move a muscle as the robot grabbed his in its massive palm and started
squeezing slowly.

His vision started to fail, spots appearing all over it. Ranma's trained
body automatically tried to defend itself, but all the exertion it had
been put through had used all of the resources.

'So... this is how it ends...' Ranma thought sadly, comforted by the
fact that he wouldn't be alone in the afterlife.

Just before he passed out, Ranma heard a distant explosion, which was
immediately followed by a sudden gust of wind on his face.

Vaguely aware of someone calling his name urgently, Ranma tried to focus
his eyes on the blurred figure that was holding him.

'Wasn't a robot crushing me to death?' Ranma wondered drunkenly, getting
sidetracked by the bright colors assaulting his mind seemingly from all
directions.

A lock of red hair caught his attention, and Ranma mumbled a name before
finally succumbing to the bright light.

--------------------------------------------------

End of Chapter 3.