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Ranma 1/2: New Challenges
Trials
Chapter 8





Shampoo awoke in a comfortable bed. This confused her, since
she had been sleeping in either a tree or thicket of bushes ever since
her curse had been mutated. Her foggy mind decided it would be a good
idea to find out exactly where she was.

Opening her eyes and raising her body to a sitting position,
she discovered two things. One, that she was in a cabin room, and two,
was that she was feeling weak and tired, despite the fact that she had
just woken up.

Then the memories of her fight with her mysterious attackers.


She glanced at her arms and dispaired at the long scars on them
from her unknown foe's bladed weapons. Matching scars were found on her
body and legs as well. They looked like they would heal in time, but the
intellectual part of Shampoo's mind noted that they were pretty serious
wounds, so she knew she must have been out of it for some time.

Before she could make any more thoughts, the door opened and an
elderly woman walked in with a bowl of water and a towel. She gasped
when she saw Shampoo was up.

"Oh my, you're awake, dearie!" she said in Chinese while making
her way to the bed. "I was worried when they brought you in. You had
some nasty wounds and had lost a lot of blood."

Shampoo could only sit there dumbfounded as the little old
woman checked her wounds. She then washed them with a rag and applied
some crushed herbs which, by the smell, Shampoo could tell were from a
plant native to the Joketsuzoku area. They were used to accelerate
healing.

"Where am I?" the feral-girl asked at last in her native tongue.
"Who are you?"

The old woman smiled at her. "Oh, my name's not important. You
are in Fen Wu's cabin. You were brought here several days ago with
another young boy. You were both wounded, though his was not as great as
yours."

Shampoo thought.

As the old woman began working on Shampoo's arm, the feral
Amazon realized something. "You... not afraid of me? I not look.. ugly
to you?"

"Oh, heavens no!" the old woman laughed. "I'll admit I was a bit
surprised, but everyone is unique and has their own story. I know you
must have been through a lot and the last thing you would want is for
people to hate and fear you." She finished with the arm, and with that,
she began to pack up her things. "Now you should get some rest. You lost
a lot of blood and your body needs time to replenish it." She began to
walk back towards the door. "I'll be right back with some food," she
promised as she disappeared through the door.

True to her word, the old woman returned shortly with some
soup, vegetables, and strips of pork, then left again without a word.
Shampoo rapidly devoured the meal, but then felt like she had to get up
and move around. She took a minute to stretch her muscles, then walked
to the window to have a look outside. What she saw there made her gasp.

Mousse was out there with another man, who she presumed to be
Fen Wu. Both men were stripped to the waist, blindfolded, and were
running through a kata side-by-side. They moved almost as one through
the punches, kicks, and parries. As she stared at Mousse, his face and
muscular chest glistening with sweat, she was reminded of the times she
had spied on Ranma while he was training, and of how it had affected
her.

What scared her, is that those same feelings were resurfacing
as she watched Mousse calming and expertly run through the kata. It
reminded her that though he wasn't as good as Ranma, he was a highly
skilled warrior and martial artist in his own right.

Her legs began to feel weak, though she told herself it was
just because she wasn't fully recovered yet. She quickly made her way
back to bed and tried desperately to forget what she had seen.

But it wouldn't go away.






"Ranma! No! Come back!"

Akane continued to fight against the rapids, trying to reach
the red-head that was disappearing beneath the waves. Her arms felt like
lead and her legs refused to respond, but still she swam on. It was no
use, however. Despite her efforts, the water continued to pull her down
into it's watery depths.

She opened her mouth to take a breath, but water filled it
instead. Her eyes closed as she choked, but then she felt hands grabbing
ahold of her, preventing her from moving. She tried to scream, but more
water flooded her mouth. She wouldn't be able to hold out much longer.

Then she heard the voice. "Hold still! You're alright!"

Akane's eyes snapped open while her body froze. She was soaked,
but it was from sweat as opposed to river water. And she wasn't on the
dirt ground of the shore, she was in a bed, the sheets were tangled in
her limbs and the body of another woman draped over her. As she relaxed,
the woman let go and climbed off her.

"Kami-sama, you're strong, girl," the woman, who appeared to be
in her 40's, told her. Her hair was showing a few gray strands,
intermixed with her dark brown ones, and several wrinkles lined her
face. "You darn threw me across the room twice. Are you all right now?"

Akane realized all she was wearing was her panties and quickly
pulled the blanket over her body. "Who are you!?" she demanded. "Where
am I?"

The woman chuckled. "Show some gratitude, girl. I found you in
the underground well last night and carried your half-drowned body up
here. You've been asleep ever since. Nobody's taken advantage of you."

Akane thought to herself, then blinked as the
memories came pouring back. "Did you see anyone else? Like a
girl with red hair?"

The woman shook her head. "Nope, sorry. Was there supposed to
be someone else with you?"

Akane's head dropped. "My... friend. She saved me."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Akane could tell the woman's voice was
sympathetic. "My name is Kobayashi Noriko. You're welcome to stay with
me for a few days to get your strength back."

Akane closed her eyes and sighed. "Arigato nasai. But I should
leave soon to search for Ranma." Her eyes opened again. "By the way, I'm
Tendo Akane of the Tendo Musabetsu Kakuto-ryu in Nerima."

"You're a martial artist?" The woman's eyes reflected mingled
surprise and amusement for a minute, but then it vanished.

"Yes."

Noriko changed the subject. "Well, get some rest right now,
Tendo-san, and I'll go bring you some breakfast." She got up to leave.
"Oh, and if you're wondering about your clothes, they're hanging out to
dry right now. If you like, though, I can find some other ones for you
to wear until then."

"Arigato, that would be nice," Akane replied. Then the woman was
gone, and Akane turned to gaze out the window. "Where are you, Ranma?
You'd better be okay..."







"Urrrg..." The girl on the beach stirred slowly, then awakened
and began to cough up the dirt in her mouth. "Akane no baka."

Ranma-onna slowly sat up and scanned her surroundings. She was
on a beach, near a river that fed into the ocean. Judging from the sun
rising over the ocean horizon, she knew she must be on the eastern shore
of Japan. A forest canopy presented itself to the west, but there was
nobody around to tell her exactly where she was.

She remembered losing consciousness temporarily after throwing
Akane to safety, then waking up long enough to pull her own tired body
to a shore where she fell asleep. She rotated her arms to work the kinks
out, but her stomach immediately growled, telling her she better get
some food soon.

Standing, Ranma made her way into the forest.






"How is she?"

"Still asleep," Satsu replied, taking a seat on the floor next
to Konatsu in the empty training hall. "Last night took a lot out of
her. I'm not certain how she'll fare in the days to come."

Konatsu thought back on the seemingly short time he had known
the spunky ninja girl. "She is strong."

Satsu nodded while stroking his goatee thoughtfully. "That she
is. The question is, what do we do now?"

"We go after Kenji," came a tired, but determined voice from the
doorway.

Konatsu was instantly on his feet. "Yuri-sama! You should rest
more!"

"I'm tired of resting!" she exclaimed fiercly. "I need to do
something! I'm not some fragile thing to be protected and coddled!"

"Then lead the clan," Satsu said softly from his postion on the
floor. He hadn't turned to look at her.

"I don't know anything about that!" Yuri protested. "I'm not a
leader! I want to find my brother. I'm not going to lose him again."

Satsu stood slowly. "What left last night may not have been
your brother."

Yuri was stunned. "My brother was kidnapped, sensei! How can
you say that?"

"The text said that the earth would open and an ancient one
would ascend," Satsu replied. "Kenji-san went down, and something we
thought was Kenji came up. The cave has since closed back up again. Now
Oka is dead, something the Kenji we knew, would never have willingly
been party to."

"Are you saying Kenji-sama is not who he appears to be?" Konatsu
suggested with wide eyes..

The old man turned and regarded the two teens with a hard look,
and nodded. "I think it's safe to say that, for all intents and
purposes, Kenji is already dead."






"So, is he back yet?"

"No, but I've been told this isn't unusual for him or his
fiancee." Natsume let her teeth show. "You can fight me instead."

Ryu frowned. "I said I don't fight little girls, and you aren't
even a Tendo."

"They were adpoted into this family, so legally, they are
Tendos," Nabiki declared from the house doorway. She had heard about the
run-in with Ryu Kumon yesterday, and decided it would be financially
beneficial to get involved. Oh, and it would be fun, too.

"So Natsume can accept your challenge," she continued. "Or you
can withdraw it and I can make it known that the great Ryu Kumon was
scared away by a girl."

The boy with the black tanktop and camouflage pants didn't like
where this was going, but didn't see any way out. "Fine, but I won't go
easy on you, so don't blame me if you get hurt."

Nastume gave Ryu a smile that was almost an exact duplicate of
Nabiki's current one. It was one that could also be found on a great
white shark as it approached it's prey.

"The same goes for me," she replied, eagerly.

Nabiki decided that was enough preamble and pressed a button on
a remote hidden in her hand, behind her back. In the dojo, she knew a
camera was now running. "Well, then, contestants, to the dojo!"






"You can't be serious, old man!"

Satsu fixed Kazao with a penetrating gaze. "It was Oka's wish
that her granddaughter take her place. She has that right."

"Provided the girl proves to be competant!" the angery ninja
countered. "And we know very little of her, except that she's too
emotional and her brother's a murderer!"

Yuri, who had been patiently sitting nearby while Satsu
addressed the conclave, shot to her feet. "My brother is not a
murderer!"

Kazao smiled thinly. "Maybe, maybe not. The evidence points to
the former. No one could get this far into the camp without someone
knowing about it. You, yourself, said that Oka was alone with your
brother when you left, and now she's dead and he's gone."

Yuri's mouth opened and closed several times while she steamed.
"He's not a killer!" she yelled at last.

Kazao crossed his arms over his chest and smiled. "Then prove
it."

There were several murmurs in the crowd to this comment while
Yuri wondered what was going on.

Satsu's face hardened. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Kazao nodded. "Soyokaze Kenji has murdered one of the clan, his
own grandmother no less! Therefore, Soyokaze Yuri is unfit to lead." He
turned his gaze to Konatsu. "And this little freak ninja, who thinks
he's a girl, does not belong here, either."

Satsu allowed his own smile to show. "Then would you consider
facing Kenzen Konatsu-san to determine both his own worthiness, as well
as the matter of clan leadership?"

"Sensei..." Yuri tried to say, but Satsu waved for her to be
silent.

"Very well, I accept," Kazao stated eagerly. "And once I finish
the little runt, then-"

"-The matter of clan leadership will be up to the conclave to
decide," Satsu finished to Kazao's annoyance. He then turned to Konatsu
and Yuri. "It's up to you, Konastu-san."

"Sensei!" Yuri protested. "What are you doing!?"

"In effect, Kazao has stated that you are unfit to lead, due to
the fact that one of your family members killed a member of our clan,"
Satsu explained. "Since the exact details of Oka's death are unknown, a
trial of combat will be held to determine what happened. That would
normally result in you fighting Kazao, but he has also declared issue
with Konatsu. I merely combined the two issues into one trial, so
Konatsu will fight instead of you, Yuri-san. The fates will hold that
the victor's ideals stand."

"Do you think I can win against him, sensei?" Konatsu asked.

"Kazao is one of our best, but you have an enormous amount of
raw skill, Konatsu-san," the old teacher replied. "Trust in your
abilites and I believe you can emerge victorious."

"If you're through, old man, we have a trial to commence," came
Kazao's voice. He was brandishing a silvery katana with a eager grin on
his face.

Satsu nodded to Konatsu, who cautiously stepped into the
circle. He then drew forth his takemitsu and prepared to face his
advesary, but Kazao broke into laughter.

"You're going to fight with a bamboo sword!?" he asked
incredously through his laughter and that of his followers. "Very well.
I'll try to go easy on you." He manged to get his laughter under
control, but didn't lose the grin.

In the next instant, Kazao attacked.






Natsume defended herself against the flurry of blows her
opponent was delivering, blocking them all with her rugbeater staff. She
grinned and returned the attack, sliding around Ryu and striking him in
the back. He grunted with the cold impact, but still managed to lance
out with a backhand that caught the girl in the shoulder.

She flipped away and stopped, studying her opponent even while
he was doing the same. "You're not bad," she commented.

"I'll admit you got some spunk, girl," Ryu answered back. "But
the fight's not over yet."

"Indeed, it's not," Natsume agreed.

As one, the two charged each other once again while Nabiki and
Kurumi watched from the sidelines. The younger girl wanted to be in the
fight as well, and she couldn't understand why Natsume had wanted to
take on Ryu alone. They almost always fought as a team.

Nabiki was fighting down the grin, while inwardly calculating
how much she could win on this fight depending on which odds she set.
While both fighters would be relative unknowns at Furinken, she could
pump up the excitement by editing the tape to show bits and pieces.

Yes, she knew she was going to make a bundle on this one.





The conclave watched in awe as Konatsu parried all of Kazao's
attacks by striking the flat side of his opponent's katana. He had even
managed a few return strikes that bruised Kazao's body. All of this
served to infuriate his adversary.

The older ninja wasn't stupid, however. He forced his anger
back down and concentrated instead on how to break through the younger
boy's defense. He grinned and unleashed a group of caltrops, tossing
them around the kunoichi's feet.

Konatsu stumbled a bit as he tried to avoid the spiked balls
and Kazao, sensing weakness, attacked. The male kunoichi was only
partially able to deflect his opponent's katana, and pain flared in his
shoulder as the blade scratched him. Then he was turning, and Kazao
realized he had been fooled as Konatsu completed the twist and pushed
the other ninja into the trap that had been set for him.

The Garou clan warrior winced as his right foot was cut on a
spike, but he bore it and flipped out of the mine field, cutting his
hand on another spike as he did so.

He then paused and regarded his rival with newfound respect,
and a little fear.






Ryu growled, growing frustrated at the way the battle was
going. The Muy Thai Kickboxing he had been training in at another dojo
wasn't working as well as he'd hoped. Of course, he was expecting to
face Ranma when he returned to the Tendo dojo, not some upstart girl. So
far, they had traded an even number of blows, but both were tiring. It
wouldn't be long before someone fell.

He readjusted the boxing pads on the back of his hands while he
calculated his next action. Really, there were only a few more moves
left to him, but they were finishers, designed to end the fight when he
held the advantage. But maybe, just maybe, they would be what won him
this fight.

Natsume was breathing more heavily now, but feeling better
about this fight. This Ryu was good, there was no doubt about that, but
he wasn't as good as Ranma or Akane, and she had been training with them
for the past few months. She just needed one good opening, and she had
an idea about how to do it.

The two martial artists closed again in a flurry of attacks.
Ryu swung in with a right-left straight punch combo that Natsume blocked
with her staff, then he dropped low with a sweep that she hopped over.
Ryu continued to turn however, and planted his hand on the floor,
lifting his body into the air to swing both feet around in an inverted
hurricane kick.

Natsume again blocked a spinning foot with her staff, but the
second one caught her off-guard and inplanted itself in her stomach. She
went tumbling away, but managed a recovery, using one hand to flip back
to her feet. Seeking to reclaim the initiave, she launched two mini-
tornados at her opponent, and had the satisfaction of seeing his eyes
widen in surprise at the attack.

But Ryu held his concentration, and launched two uppercuts with
each hand. A thin orange trail was left in the wake of the punches,
which formed a boomerang shape and launched towards the tornados,
dissipating them when they made contact.

He grinned, feeling elated at having performed the Cutting Wave
attack in combat. For good measure, he launched two more at his
opponent, then charged in behind them.

Natsume frowned, then gathered her ki while the room dropped
several degrees in temperature. He staff took on a faint blue hue, which
she used to obliterate the two boomerang-shaped waves that came at her.

Then Ryu was upon her, his hands glowing a flaming orange.
Powerful shockwaves shook the dojo as padded fist met staff in a serious
of fast, high-powered attacks, but this confrontation was different.

Natsume spun the staff around, leading Ryu's attacks with it.
As she thought, he had gotten too focused with her weapon, and not with
her. Taking a calculated risk, she spun the staff out of her hands.







Konatsu had abandoned his takemitsu and was now using a pair of
sai. Using them, he had disarmed Kazao of his katana, and now the other
ninja was mimicking his own weapon choice.

The two advesaries closed again, the sound of metal pinging off
metal as lightning-fast attacks were exchanged, almost too fast for the
eye to see. The two ninja fairly danced around each other, as each
pushed their stengths and speeds to the limit, holding nothing back.

It was clear that, thought Kazao was taking more hits, he also
had more endurance and stamina. The gathered conclave had just about
reached the decision Kazao was going to win, when something happened
that caused them to gasp in amazement.

Konatsu had started the battle uncertainly, but as it
progressed, he grew more and more confident. Now, as he entered the
fastest and most intense phase of the conflict and knowing there was
little room for error, he grew strangely euphoric. It was if the skill-
pushing battle were some of drug, taking him to a new high. His body
seemed to instinctively know what to do and, since he was fascinated by
the euphoric high, he let it take control.

The audience watched in awe as Konatsu seemingly split in two
as the two ninja danced around. Confusion replaced the joy in Kazao's
mind, of thinking he was going to win. Now he was striking at living
shadows, not knowing which was real and which was fake. That confusion
only grew, when the two Konatsu's split again.

Four versions of the male kunoichi flowed around Kazao, while
the real one struck his opponent mercilessly with the sai. In short
order, the Garou clan ninja was disarmed and brought to his knees,
aching with all the blows he was receiving.

On the sidelines, Yuri watched in awe, never knowing Konastu
could do what he was doing now. Beside her, she heard Satsu whisper.

"Body duplication illusion," he told her reverently. "A
technique which has been lost to our clan for hundreds of years."

In the circle, the battle was coming to a close. The four
versions of Konatsu suddenly flowed together in front of the kneeling
ninja, the male kunoichi pausing for a split second in a pre-strike
position. Then, with a flash, Konatsu blurred past Kazao and stopped,
right hand outstretched.

All was still for another second, then Kazao collapsed.







Disbelief was written on Ryu's face as he punched the whirling
staff away. With crystalline clarity, he knew he'd been duped. He would
have laughed if Natsume's furious hand strikes would have allowed him
to.

The first half-dozen punches stunned him, long enough for the
girl to finish the job. As Ryu stumbled back, Natsume flipped to a hand-
stand and wrapped her legs around Ryu's neck, her powerful thighs
locking around him. She then gave a mighty tug, and slammed Ryu to the
ground, hard, legs still closed around his neck.

Ryu knew he had lost, but something else was consuming him at
the moment. As he lay on the floor staring at the girl who had beaten
him, he couldn't help but notice how exquisitely her heavy breathing
made her chest rise and fall. He was fascinated by the drops of sweat
that flowed down her neck to disappear into the swell of her breast,
just visible above her bodysuit's tanktop lining. Her fierce blue eyes
were staring back at him, pools of water on her face, framed by her hair
which was matted against her face with sweat.

It was the most incredible sight he had ever seen, and it
scared him to death.

Natsume was also studying Ryu, noting for the first time how
his brown eyes sparkled. Fighting had always been a sort-of turn-on for
Natsume, finding a wonderful release with each battle. Victory,
especially, drove her higher than she had ever been before. Now, as her
current victory had her with her legs locked around a boy with a lean,
muscular chest, and with his hands resting on her legs in his futile
attempt to free himself, Natsume was strangely confused.

It was one of the most incredible feelings she had ever felt,
and it scared her to death.







Noriko was surprised at the young girl's recovery. Despite
being half-drowned in a the raging underground river, she was up in
couple of hours insisting on helping out around the house. So, borrowing
a shirt and a pair of jean shorts, she went around helping with the
housework.

Of course, Noriko then discovered that, though the girl was
strong, she wasn't much for the kitchen arts. So she directed Akane to
just clean, which the young girl did quite well. She also helped repair
some of the damage the house had sustained over the years and she
appeared to be quite good at that as well. By early afternoon, Noriko
was impressed to see the house clean and in better condition than it had
been for some time, so she called a break for lunch.

And almost regretted it. Akane had a ravenous appetite and
quickly downed everything that was placed in front of her. When Noriko
attempted to comment on it, the girl only muttered something about a
`baka of a fiance'. Noriko declined to pursue the matter further.

They called it even after that. Akane was grateful for the
rescue, but she needed to leave to find Ranma. Noriko was almost sad to
see her go, after living by herself for so long, it was good to have
someone to talk to after all this time. Akane promised to return
someday, though.

So, with her now-dry school dress folded into a bundle under
her arm, Akane started in the direction Noriko had told her was where
Tokyo, and Nerima, lay.





A couple hours later, Noriko was still working in the garden
when she spied a red-headed girl matching the description Akane gave
her, so she called the young girl over. Sure enough, it was the right
person and the older woman pointed out the direction Akane had gone.

Ranma gave her thanks and started after her iinazuke.






"Let the results of the battle speak for itself," Satsu intoned.
"Kenji is innocent of the murder charge, at least until undisputable
proof is obtained. Furthermore, the clan has born witness to the
abilities of Kenzen Konatsu. I think we can all agree, that his
inclusion would benefit the clan as a whole, greatly."

There were several murmurs at this, but most agreed, still
stunned by what they had seen.

"And Soyokaze Yuri is our new clan leader," Satsu continued.
"Until such time as she steps down, or her soul passes from this world."

Yuri's gaze had been locked with Konatsu's since the battle
ended, but with the mention of her name, she turned toward Satsu who
motioned for her to speak. As she stepped up to address the clan, she
thought she would have nothing to say, but the words came to her
nonetheless.

"It was Oka-sensei's last wish that I take her place," She
began. "I do not know why she wanted me to, nor did I feel up to doing
so. I do not think for a minute I could ever truly take the place she
held in this clan."

The faces of her clan were focused upon her, but strangely, she
did not feel nervous, even though several were giving her dark looks.
However, there were plenty others of the clan that were nodding their
ascent, as if they understood her position.

"I will do the best I can, however," she was saying. "In the
short time I knew my grandmother, I learned how she would often seek
advice and council from others, so I will do the same. I would ask that
Satsu-sensei, Neko, and Kenzen Konatsu-" her voice almost faltered at
this point, but she regained control of it "-help me in this difficult
time, as my personal advisors." She fixed each one with a look as she
said their name, but Konatsu's amused her the most. He had a reverent
look on his face, as if Yuri was a goddess and had just asked him to be
her head priest.

"This will not stop me from seeking advice from the rest of the
clan. It's just that these three have helped me the most so far, and I
trust their judgement." She bowed to the assembled clan. "I thank you
for your support, because I will be needing it in the days to come. You
are dismissed."

She lost it then, and had to turn away lest the clan see her
her fear and nervousness. Neko and Satsu were right with her then,
supporting and helping her back to her cabin, but they were stopped by
Konatsu in their path.

"Yuri-sama," he said, dropping to one knee. "I am at your
disposal. I vow to help you and protect you to the best of my ability. I
only hope I can be-" his eyes mirrored the nervousness in her own, "-
worthy, of the trust and faith you placed in me."

Yuri almost giggled at Konatsu's solemn vow. "Thank you,
Konatsu-chan." She favored him with a warm smile that, to her delight,
made him blush. She then glanced at the old man to her right who was her
teacher, and the older woman to her left who was her friend. "Thank you
both, as well."

Neko smiled back at her. "Hey, what are friends for?"





"And the winner is: Tendo Natsume of the Tendo Dojo!" Nabiki
declared, startling the two combatants out of their moment.

With an embarrased blush, they seperated as quickly as possible
while a bubbling Kurumi attached herself to her older sister. "Oneechan!
You won!"

"Of course I won," Natsume replied. "How could I lose with you
cheering for me?" She then looked back up at Ryu. "Good match, Kumon-
san."

"Uh, yeah, you too," Ryu responded. Then he got his bearings
back. "But don't think this changes anything, you just got lucky!"

Natsume scowled. "Is that so!? If you have another challenge, I
would gladly accept, just to show you that luck had nothing to do with
my win!"

"People, people," Nabiki interjected. "We can discuss a rematch
later. For now, I think Kasumi has prepared a meal we could all use
right now." "Oh, you're welcome to join us, Kumon-san."

Ryu glanced uncertainly back and forth between the two girls,
but his rumbling stomach reminded him that he could use a good meal.
"Uhh, I suppose."

Nabiki smiled. "Good. Then let's go eat!"

Kurumi jumped up and down. "Yay! More food!"







Late that night on the western shore of Japan, a man touched
down in the shallows of the water. For a minute, he gazed inland, at the
land he was supposedly forbidden to enter. Then, marshalling his will,
he strode foreward.

In his hand, an orb began to glow as he neared the shore.
Taking a hesitant step upon dry land, he felt a strange tingling all
over his body, even as the orb began to flare brightly. With a second
step, his body was entirely on dry land and the tingling feeling passed.

He started to chuckle then, escalting it until he was laughing
out loud. He held the orb aloft, whose glow had dimmed to a dull red,
then he placed it within a pouch he carried around his waste.

Still chuckling to himself, Drakon entered Japan.