The Three Saotomes

Part 31

The flame of depression.

++++++++++++++++++++++

Ranma Saotome woke up shivering. He wasn't sure why that was, or
the reason he was so uncomfortable. He slowly opened his eyes to the
sound of a gentle rain just outside. "Where?" he muttered as he
noticed his dull gray surroundings. "I'm..."

He was sitting inside a cement pipe, and was basically stuck there
until the rain let up.

"Shit," he grumbled as he shifted his position in order to make
himself more comfortable. It was morning, and he was probably already
late for class. "Might as well just skip today," he muttered under his
breath.

++++++++++++++++++++++

A limo pulled up to Furinkan high in the rain. The student body
froze as a large man dressed in a black suit stepped out of the
driver's seat and walked to the back door with an umbrella. He didn't
bother opening it until he was standing in front of the door and
pulled it open.

"Who?" stammered one of the girls near the front of the crowd. The
boy next to her simply felt his jaw grow slack at the sight of what
emerged. It was a stunning looking woman with her hair pulled into a
tight bun and a professional looking business suit on. She smirked at
the crowd and strolled towards the gates.

Tatewaki Kuno let out a quiet gasp as he staggered back at the
sight of her.

She simply walked forward with her escort holding the umbrella
over her head at her side towards the building.

Akane narrowed her eyes at the girl. "Hey. It's that Midori girl."

One of her friends turned her head towards her and whispered.
"What? You know her? Who is she?"

"I don't know her, she's a friend of Ranma's. I met her yesterday
when I was training. He seems scared of her."

"Ranma? Afraid of someone?" muttered the girl in shock.

"Yeah," agreed Akane quietly. The girl had been at the fight,
along with a good portion of the students in the crowd. Those that
heard her quickly spread the word around and within moments there
where whispers running through the crowd.

Midori smirked to herself at the sound of it. "Talking about me
already?"

"You made quite an entrance," said the stone-faced bodyguard
calmly.

"So it seems, I do wonder where dear Ranma is though, I don't see
him in the crowd."

"Perhaps he is inside?" asked the man calmly.

"Come, we'll ask some of the students first." She turned towards
the crowd and the man with her gave a slight frown at this.

A sound caught her attention though; she cocked her head and
peered at the newcomer who rushed through the gates. It was a familiar
looking boy with an umbrella in his hand.

"Jeez Ucchan, I would have been all right," muttered Genryu
Saotome as he looked at his wife in irritation.

"I don't need you catching cold. Besides, wouldn't you rather be a
man anyway?" said the boy who was standing next to him with a slightly
irritated frown. He had an umbrella of her own and looked like she was
growing irritated with the conversation.

"I know, it's just that we were almost late today. We could have
bought these later, I could live with it until we got here," said the
boy with a small sigh.

Midori narrowed her eyes slightly, but her cheerful smile quickly
returned. "Well, hello there. It's been a while since I've seen you
little brother."

Genryu froze in his tracks and stared at her.

"L-little brother?" muttered Kuno as he began to edge away from
the scene a little more.

Midori blinked at the sound of the voice that had floated over the
silent crowd. "Tachi?"

Kuno muttered a silent curse under his breath and tensed his body
suddenly. Everyone was looking at him and he froze. "It...has been a
while Midori," he said with a nod.

"Oh! It is you! Fancy meeting you here!?" cried the girl.

"M-m-m-" stammered Genryu with a horrified looking expression on
his face.

Ukyo promptly slapped him on the back of his head. "Spit it out
will ya?"

"Midori! Oh shit! I gotta warn..." he trailed off as he found his
path blocked by his wife. "Um..."

"You know her?" said the chef as she stared at the girl for a
moment.

"Um, kinda yeah..." said the boy nervously. He was shaking so
badly that he looked like he was about to drop his umbrella.

Ukyo didn't like the look of this. She turned towards the new girl
and frowned. "Who are you? How do you know my husband?"

The girl blinked at this. "Husband?" She peered closer at the girl
and realized that she was indeed female. "Oh! Oh my! How terribly rude
of me! You must be my future sister in law! I am Midori Tachibana. It
is a pleasure to meet you."

"Future..." muttered Ukyo as she stared at the girl.

"Sister in law?" muttered Akane as she moved up next to the girl.

"Yes, I am Ranma Saotome's fiancee," said the girl with a heavy
blush on her face.

"Saotome! It could not be! I would never wish such a fate upon my
most hated rival!" cried Kuno out loud.

Midori turned slowly and looked at him. "Pardon me?" she said
cheerfully.

Kuno stared at her, a shocked and horrified expression on his face
as he realized that he had spoken out loud. "'Twas a mere slip of the
tongue. Ranma Saotome, my dear friend and comrade in arms, is most
fortunate to have such a lovely bride. The cur I speak of, would never
have such fortune fall upon him!"

The student body blinked in unison. Tatewaki Kuno had just called
the man who had broken his family sword a 'dear friend'.

"How sweet!" said Midori cheerfully as she pinched his cheek and
jerked it a little. She released him and Kuno found himself rubbing
the spot in irritation.

"You're Ranma's fiancee?" said Akane as she stared at the girl.

"Yes," said Midori cheerfully.

"Oh. Nice to meet you I suppose," she said with a simple shrug.
She started walking towards the school without much interest in what
was going on any longer.

"Hold, don't I know you?" said Midori.

Genryu stepped in before Akane could respond, much to her
annoyance. "She's from the sister school to our own. Ranma's teaching
her some of the more advanced forms."

"Oh?" said Midori with her eyebrow arching slightly. "Yes, you
were there that day I met with him in his home."

"That's right," said Akane coldly. "When he ran away from you."

Midori barely managed to keep her eye from twitching. "He's just a
little shy."

"I doubt that very much," muttered Kuno.

"What was that?" said Midori as she faced him again.

"Ranma Saotome is anything but shy, it is no doubt he wished to be
presentable for his future wife. Meeting one's future spouse is
something one does not do after such an arduous workout," said Kuno
quickly.

"Oh. I suppose you're right," said the girl. "I probably should
have called first, but I couldn't wait to meet him again! It had been
so long!"

"More like you didn't want to give him the chance to escape,"
grumbled Genryu irritably.

Ukyo stared at him for a moment, but the girl didn't seem to
notice his words. "What's going on here?" she whispered harshly.

"Later," replied Genryu quietly.

Ukyo nodded with a serious frown on her face.

"Where is my darling Ranma anyway? I don't see him here," she said
as she looked around the campus for a moment.

Various mutters about how lucky Ranma Saotome was could be heard
in the crowd as the act gave everyone a good look at her.

"Saotome is not present today," said Kuno calmly. "Perhaps he is
late."

"He's not here?" said Genryu in confusion.

"No, Saotome has not yet set foot upon these hallowed grounds,"
said Kuno with a serious nod.

"Well, I suppose I shall catch him another time," said Midori as
she turned back towards her car. The man followed her, keeping the
umbrella over her head as he did so with practiced ease.

Kuno frowned as she left them standing there. "Midori Tachibana?
Ranma Saotome, I shall pray for your very soul."

"You know her?" said Genryu as he stared at the boy.

"Indeed, we attended the same junior high school," said Kuno
seriously. "Nabiki Tendo will know of her as well. She is not one that
anyone should tread on. She is dangerous." The boy rubbed at his
shoulder absently for a moment with a frown on his face.

"Ucchan, I've got to go. I've got to find Ranma and warn him about
this," said Genryu seriously as he faced his wife.

"He already knows," said Akane as she moved back into the group.
"She showed up last night when I was there for my training."

Genryu nodded at this. "Still, he's going to need my help."

"Wait! What the hell is going on here? Who the hell is that?" said
Ukyo irritably.

"We'll meet at the restaurant tonight, I'll explain everything
then," said Genryu as he gave her a serious nod.

Ukyo looked uncertain about this for a moment, but finally nodded.
"All right. You'd better show up Genryu."

The boy nodded and turned towards the gates.

Akane frowned at this and snorted.

Kuno merely stood up straight and turned away.

"Are you two going to show up as well?" asked Ukyo.

"Ranma can deal with his own problems," said Akane coldly.

"I would not involve myself with anything having to do with that
woman. I feel Saotome's pain, but I am not his ally," agreed Kuno
stoically.

"Fine," said Ukyo with a small shrug.

+++++++++++++++++++++++

A short distance away...

Ryoga Hibiki stared out over the rooftops of Tokyo with a frown on
his face. "So, I'll be there soon." He clenched his fist at his side
and started off with the same dead look in his eyes. "Genryu Saotome,
I cannot defeat you, but I can take you with me. It is all I can hope
for."

+++++++++++++++++++++++

Ranma rubbed at his head as he sat in thought on top of the cement
pipe that had been his prison not even an hour before. The rain had
stopped and he was free to go, but instead he merely sat and
contemplated his situation. "Damn. I knew she'd find me sooner or
later. This really sucks, I don't have a clue what to do about her. I
can't piss her off, there's no way I'm gonna marry her. Pop might
actually be of some use in this, but I doubt it." His frown deepened
at the thought of it.

"Genryu should be relatively safe, he's not staying with me
anymore."

With a short nod he stood up and stared forward towards the
street. "I guess this is my problem. I'd better find a way to deal
with it fast." He jumped down off his perch and started walking.

+++++++++++++++++++++

Midori smirked as she stood in the rain watching the Tendo dojo.
She chuckled silently as she simply stared at the gates for a time and
did nothing. "So, this is where Ranma was staying."

"Yes, he recently moved back in with his mother due to an injury,"
said her bodyguard calmly. "According to our reports, it is some kind
of heart condition."

The girl frowned slightly at this. "Pardon?"

"Ranma Saotome, has a weak heart," replied the man calmly.

"That isn't good," said Midori as she scowled at him.

"There is little we can do about this situation," replied the man
calmly. "Someone like him, is not a fitting heir to the Tachibana
family fortune."

Midori's hand moved like a snake as she slapped him across his
face. "That is for me alone to decide!" Her voice was a hateful hiss
as she glared at him with a barely checked fury. "Ranma Saotome is
mine! I shall do as I please, he is the one I have chosen!"

The man said nothing and merely nodded at her.

"See that your tongue does not slip again!"

"This place has no real interest to us," said the man as he
quickly changed the object of the conversation.

"Perhaps not," said Midori calmly. "Still, it is possible that
this Tendo girl wishes to take my love away from me. I have heard that
she visits him on an almost daily basis."

"Her reasons are sound," replied the man simply. "The Tendo family
and Saotome family do have a rather long personal history."

"That worries me even more," growled Midori. "I'll deal with it
myself."

"That is not wise," replied the man calmly.

"I hate having others do my work for me," she said quietly. "I'll
deal with this, and soon nothing will stand between me and Ranma."

"Very well," said the man calmly as he waited patiently for her to
finish staring.

++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ranma sat in his home with a scowl on his face as he sipped at his
tea.

His mother sat across from him with a cheerful smile on her face.
"Well, that was quite exciting!"

"Midori?" he muttered irritably.

"Yes, I haven't seen her in years. It was some time ago that her
family moved away. About a year after you left actually."

Ranma merely nodded and frowned. "Why would she show back up after
all this time though? It was bad enough when we were little."

"Oh Ranma. She's your childhood sweetheart, don't be that way,"
said his mother with a blush on her face.

"Did you have anything to do with this?" he muttered with a heavy
sigh.

"No. I wish I had thought of it sooner. She could be good for
you," said the woman with a wistful smile.

"Don't even think it. I'd rather marry that student of mine."

Nodoka blinked. "Ranma?"

"Nevermind. I forgot who I was talking too. It was meant to show
how much I disagree with that idea."

"Midori is a sweet girl though," pointed out Nodoka.

"Midori burned off my hair when I was five mother," replied the
boy calmly. "That little pyromaniac, I'd never marry her."

"Ranma! She's grown up! You don't really think..."

"Mother, Midori Tachibana is the one girl my father has refused to
engage me too in his entire life. She's rich, and that's saying a lot
concerning Genma Saotome."

"He's not still upset about that is he?" muttered the woman as she
blinked.

"He never grew his hair back mother. I'd say he's still a bit
bitter," was her son's reply.

"It's true, she was a rather active child..." muttered Nodoka.

"She was a psychotic firebug, she nearly killed me more than once,
and decided that I should be in love with her somewhere along the
line. I never agreed, please don't call her my 'childhood
sweetheart'."


"I'm sure she's changed," muttered Nodoka with a blush forming on
her face.

"It's obvious she's still fixated on me, it's been ten years,"
replied the boy irritably. "I was hoping she'd forget about me."

Nodoka frowned at this slightly. She didn't quite understand why
her son was so worried about the girl. She seemed nice enough after
all, she was pretty, she was rich, her family was in excellent
standing, and she seemed very interested in him.

Ranma found himself wondering if his mother even remembered all
the times she'd tried to kill Genryu for 'getting between them'.
"Probably not," he muttered under his breath as he put his head down
on the table and stared at her for a moment.

She smiled at him in a motherly fashion and stood up. "Well, I
suppose it's up to you my son. I've got some work to do around here
today."

"Yeah," he muttered as she left him there.

+++++++++++++++++++++

Genryu was walking along the fence towards his mother's home. He
gave a small sigh and kept his eyes forward. Midori was bad news, and
he now that he knew that his brother already knew about her, much of
the urgency was gone from the situation. Still, he wanted to find him
and at least find out what they were going to do about it.

His trek forward was halted by a familiar voice. "Genryu Saotome,
I've found you at last!"

The pigtailed boy stopped and turned. He looked somewhat confused
by the boy standing behind him in travel clothes. "Ryoga? What the
heck are you doing here?"

"I've come, for my final revenge, Saotome," replied the boy
coldly. His voice was calm and oddly devoid of emotion.

"Revenge? What the heck have I done now?" grumbled the pigtailed
boy.

"That's enough, just fight," said Ryoga in a dead tone.

"Not right now. I gotta find Ranma, he's in trouble," said Genryu
as he turned away. "We can fight later."

"Heh. I'm not giving you a choice, Saotome," replied the lost boy
as he jumped forward with his fist extended in a punch.

"Jeez, aren't you pushy?" snorted the boy as he dodged the blow
easily.

"You won't take this lightly Saotome," growled Ryoga as he jumped
back to avoid the kick that was meant to counter his strike.

"Come on," snorted Genryu lazily. "I ain't got all day."

"You've got your entire afterlife! Shishihokoudan!" Ryoga extended
his palms forward and a ball of energy formed there. It expanded and
Genryu went flying through the air. The pigtailed boy landed roughly
against the chain link fence and bounced to the ground.

He stood up and stared at Ryoga in shock. "What the heck was
that?"

"Do you like it, Saotome?" replied Ryoga with a cold frown on his
face. "It's the force of your destruction!"

Genryu stepped back in a defensive stance. "It's like...a solid
wave of air? How is he doing this?"

"Shishihokoudan!" cried Ryoga as he sent another of the blasts
towards his opponent. Genryu grunted as he found himself unable to
defend and took the full brunt of the attack.

"Damn!" he growled as he found himself flat on his back a few
yards down the sidewalk. "I can't defend against that!"

"This is too easy," muttered Ryoga as his eyes fell a bit more. "I
was hoping you'd give me more of a fight."

"I'll give you one you won't forget!" snapped Genryu as he jumped
into the air towards his opponent.

Ryoga snorted and simply raised his palm. "Shishihokoudan," he
whispered calmly.

Genryu was thrown back once again. He landed hard and pushed
himself up with his arms. "Damn."

Ryoga simply stared at him. "You've got three days. I'd kill you
now, but I'd rather do it with the perfected technique. Be ready."

"It's not perfected?" muttered Genryu as his eyes went wide. He
was staring at the pavement with his jaw slack. "No way! Ryoga!
I'll..." When he looked up, the lost boy was gone. "Damn."

He staggered to his feet and looked around at the empty street.
"This can't be happening." He glanced towards his destination and
frowned. "Ranma..."

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

Akane Tendo frowned as she stared at her television. She was
wearing her dogi and still had a light sweat from her practice after
school. Ranma hadn't been home, so she had returned and gone to the
dojo instead. Apparently, by the time she had gotten there, he was
still gone from when he'd run off the day before. Things around the
dojo had been relatively quiet since the two Saotome brothers had
left. Genma was still there, but he largely ignored her.

The only event worth speaking of was the arrival of the Dojo
Destroyer a few weeks ago. She'd handled that rather easily, he was
large, but not very skilled once he lost his signs.

Still, it wasn't all that bad having a period of peace and quiet.
Kuno still bugged her, but he wasn't near as persistent as he had
been. The crowd at school was long gone. What was left?

"I'm fuckin bored," she stated finally.

"Lovely Akane," said Nabiki as she peered over the cover of her
magazine for a moment.

"Oh my!" muttered Kasumi as she blushed at the comment.

Soun and Genma both looked at her for a moment. They were both
relatively used to her bursts of profanity as of late. Kasumi seemed
to be the only one having a hard time with it.

The girl fell flat on her back and spread her arms. There wasn't
really anything to do, maybe she could go pick a fight or something?
Her brow furrowed at that, no doubt her father wouldn't approve of
things like that. "I gotta find something to do."

"You could go out into the dojo," commented Soun.

"Quite so Tendo, one should never pass up the opportunity to
better one's self," agreed Genma.

Akane snorted as she jumped to her feet. "Whatever," she turned
towards the door and glanced at her older sister. "I should be back
before dinner. I'm gonna go for a walk and get some practice in."

"Oh. All right then," said Kasumi cheerfully.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ryoga Hibiki was lost, that was normal. He didn't particularly
care where he was at the moment though. He had three days before he
had to be somewhere, and he knew he'd probably be late. He sighed as
he strolled through the park and looked at everyone surrounding him.
He was given a wide birth as he plodded forward.

His forward motion was halted by a familiar voice.

"Hey, I know you. Ryoga Hibiki right?"

He was somewhat surprised to hear anyone who recognized him by
name. He was usually not in the same place long enough to get more
than a passing glance from someone. "Yeah? Who wants to know?" he
muttered.

It was the girl from the tournament. "You?"

Akane found herself smirking as she stared at him. "Yeah. Me."

"What do you want?" snorted Ryoga as he turned away from her. He
had no real interest in the girl.

"A challenge," she replied simply. "Ranma's still gone, Genryu is
probably busy with his wife, I've got no one to practice with."

"Why should I?" replied Ryoga calmly.

"Because, I challenge you," replied Akane as she stepped into a
stance and smirked at him coldly.

Ryoga narrowed his eyes at the girl. "I went easy on you the last
time we fought."

"Now you know better," she replied calmly.

Ryoga actually found himself giving a short snorting chuckle. "All
right. If you really want to lose, I'll oblige you."

Akane narrowed her eyes at him. "I don't care if I win or not, all
I care about, is becoming better than Ranma Saotome."

Ryoga was actually somewhat surprised by that statement, but he
didn't show it. His icy cool hadn't broken yet, even when he had
laughed it was still there. "Ranma? I'm only interested in his
brother."

"Then we won't get in each other's way," replied Akane.

Ryoga merely nodded. "All right, it's a challenge then! Fight!"

++++++++++++++++++++++

"Shishihokoudan?" said Ranma as he stared at Genryu calmly. They were
sitting at the table across from each other. The younger boy had a
frown on his face.

"Yeah," said the younger boy as he frowned at this.

Ranma nodded. "I've heard of that technique."

Genryu actually looked surprised to hear it. "You have?"

"That's right. It's a chi blast, a dangerous one at that," said
the older boy calmly.

"I can't think of a way to counter it. I've got to learn it!" said
the younger boy as he clenched his fist.

"That's a bad idea," said Ranma calmly.

"What?" said Genryu as he stared at his brother.

"The Shishihokoudan, it's a dangerous technique, both to your
opponent, and yourself. You'd be better off finding another way to
counter it."

"I can't think of anything though," growled Genryu angrily. "I've
got to figure out how he does it, and copy him. That's the only thing
I can think of."

"Heh. If you really think so, go ahead. You'll never be able to
match Ryoga Hibiki's power with the Shishihokoudan," replied the older
boy calmly. "You just don't have what it takes for that move. Neither
do I for that matter."

Genryu frowned at this. "So, you can't help me?"

Ranma smiled. "I never said that."

This caught the younger boy's attention in an instant. "What?"

"I know of the Shishihokoudan because I studied it at one time. I
could never get it to work right. Then, I became as I am now, and it
was rendered useless."

"You know the Shishihokoudan?" muttered the boy in shock. "You
never showed me?"

"You weren't ready," replied Ranma calmly. "I think perhaps you
are now. I'll share the secret of the Shishihokoudan with you, and a
new technique that you will be able to use to counter it."

Genryu simply stared at his older brother for a moment. "I..."

"Heh. The Shishihokoudan's perfect form however, you'll never be
able to overpower," replied Ranma as he glared at his brother firmly.
"You'll have to defeat him, before he can use it."

The boy growled at this and hung his head. "If I can get through
that defense, I know I can."

"Better be sure," replied Ranma calmly.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Akane screamed as she charged forward with her foot extended in a
kick. The lost boy blocked with his arm, but she hooked her foot
around his forearm and used it to launch herself into the air in a
jumping crescent kick that slammed across his jaw and sent him flying
back.

Ryoga staggered and wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of
his wrist. "Not bad."

Akane was waiting calmly as she hopped in place. She took
controlled breaths and simply watched him.

Ryoga didn't keep her waiting long as he charged and they clashed.
His fist tore through the air and was blocked with a quick shove. She
countered with a knee to his stomach, but that was blocked as well.

"I'm still holding back," said Ryoga calmly.

Akane growled in anger and jumped straight up into the air. The
lost boy was caught off guard by the maneuver and found himself flat
on his back as she kicked him in the face. "See what it gets you?"

Ryoga staggered to his feet. "Yeah. Guess I'll have to stop now."

The girl readied herself and tensed as he skid his foot across the
ground creating a small cloud of dust as he set himself.

Ryoga growled and jumped forward. His speed increased suddenly and
he punched at her with a few quick jabs. Akane kept up with him,
barely. Her face was serious as she set her foot into the ground and
pushed herself back suddenly, breaking off contact with the fighter.

"You're better than I'd thought," conceded Akane.

"You're much more improved than I had thought," said Ryoga
respectfully. "It's still not enough though."

"We'll see," said Akane firmly.

"Not ready to give up yet?" snorted Ryoga.

"I'm still standing aren't I?" she cried as she charged forward.

Ryoga raised his palm. "No. Shishihokoudan."

Akane was no longer on her feet. The girl groaned painfully as she
lay on her back for a moment. "What the?"

"You've improved a lot, I wish you luck," said Ryoga as he frowned
at her. "You've still got a long way to go though."

Akane pushed herself onto her elbows and looked at the boy. "Wh?
What was that?"

Ryoga smirked at her. "I'd tell you, but you're Ranma's pet
project. I don't want him finding out about it before I can kill his
brother."

Akane growled. "Tell me. I swear I won't tell them. I might be
able to defeat Ranma with it!"

"Do you really think it will help? You saw what he can really do,"
said Ryoga as he turned away from her.

"It's a start," she grumbled as she stood up and dusted off the
pants on her dogi.

"I'd help you, but I've got training of my own to see to. That
technique hasn't been perfected yet." The boy turned away again and
started walking. "If you really want it, find it yourself. Everyone
has heavy Ki, but perhaps you and I have more than most."

Akane blinked at this. "Heavy ki?" She stared down at her hands
for a moment and then turned to watch the lost boy wander off. "A new
technique?"

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Where are we going?" asked Ranma as his little brother pulled him
down the street.

"Ucchan's," replied Genryu.

"Why?" asked the older boy.

"Cause I told Ukyo I'd bring ya," replied the boy as he tugged on
the front of his brother's shirt. "C'mon."

"Why the hell does she want to see me?" muttered Ranma irritably.

"We're gonna talk about this whole Midori thing," said Genryu as
he snorted at his brother's attitude.

The older boy's face fell. "Damn."

"Quit complaining, we can't ignore this until it goes away," said
Genryu irritably.

"Why not?" grumbled Ranma. It was obvious that he knew why, but
that didn't make dealing with it any easier.

"Just get in there," grumbled Genryu as he shoved his brother
towards the restaurant that was now across the street.

"Fine," muttered the older boy.

Once inside, they found Ukyo doing what she normally was at that
time of day. She was standing behind the grill with a few scattered
customers sitting around her. "Hey."

"Yo!" said Ranma cheerfully.

"Sit," said Genryu as he pointed at one of the stools in front of
the grill.

"Don't be so pushy," grumbled Ranma.

"Quit complaining!" snapped Genryu. "You sound like a girl!"

"At least I don't look like one," said Ranma calmly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" said Ukyo as she glared at her
husband and leaned towards him over the grill.

"Relax, he was trying to use one of our father's insults to get to
me," said Ranma as he pushed her back behind the grill.

"Right. Now, who's this Midori? What's she got on you?" said Ukyo
as she frowned at the older boy.

"Midori used to live down the block from us when we were little.
She decided that I would make the perfect husband for her when we were
about six," said Ranma calmly.

"She's been chasing him for as long as I can remember. We had a
few close calls when we were on our training trip, but we usually got
away," agreed Genryu.

"So?" grumbled Ukyo.

"So? She's so psychotic, that my father refused an engagement from
a rich and powerful family," said Ranma flatly.

"What's the big deal?" grumbled Ukyo.

"This is the same man, who engaged his other son to a cross
dressing tomboy, for a Yattai," said Ranma as he glared at her.

Ukyo looked like one of the veins in her forehead was about to
explode.

"Um, another example?" said Genryu nervously.

"Okay, how about the time he sold Genryu here for a bowl of rice
and two fish, and a pickle?"

Ukyo stared at him, most of her anger was gone because of her
surprise. "What?"

"He stole me back later," muttered Genryu sheepishly.

"Midori is dangerous. She tried to kill him a few times because
she thought he was keeping us apart. Genma managed to whine his way
out of it usually, but we don't like talking about that."

"So, you're scared of this girl?" muttered Ukyo as she stared at
him.

"Terrified," said Genryu instantly.

Ranma blushed slightly at this. "I wouldn't go that far..."

"I would," replied Genryu calmly. "She burned off Pop's hair."

"Well, yeah..." said Ranma.

"Yours too," continued the younger boy.

"That's enough," said Ranma as he backhanded his brother in the
face. The younger boy fell silent as he found himself flat on his back
on the floor.

"She burned off your hair?" said Ukyo.

"She likes fire," muttered the boy as he looked away. "It was an
accident at the time...I think. We used to play together, but she got
worse as time went on..."

"This is..." said Ukyo as she stared at him dumbly. "Really
weird."

"I haven't seen her in a while. We lost her a few months before
China. I was kind of hoping she caught the hint after I ran away
screaming the last time..."

Ukyo sighed. "And apparently, she didn't."

"That's about the size of it, yeah."

Genryu snorted as he sat on his stool again. "What are we gonna
do?"

"You're not going to do anything. I can handle this on my own.
You've got problems of your own to deal with," said Ranma as he stared
at his younger brother for a moment.

"What?!" cried Genryu.

"You're off on your own, married, and you've got Ryoga Hibiki to
deal with. I'm hoping she'll ignore you since we aren't around each
other all the time anymore."

"So, you want him to stay out of this?" said Ukyo with a smile
forming on her face.

"If he can, yes. I want him to be on guard though," said Ranma
firmly.

"No way! I ain't leavin you ta..."

"Shut up. It's my problem, and she won't kill me remember?" Ranma
smirked at him. "I'll think of something, but for now, you just hang
back. It'll make things easier if she's not worried about you."

Genryu growled at this, but nodded his head.

"Well, now that it's taken care of, I'm gonna head home." Ranma
stood up and turned towards the door. "You kids behave yourselves.
Just stay out of the way for a while okay? I'll be fine."

"So, I guess we should leave him be for now," said Ukyo with a
small sigh.

Her husband merely nodded. "Yeah. I've got problems of my own." He
didn't look very comfortable saying that and stood up.

"Where are you going?" said Ukyo as she frowned at him.

"I got a challenge today. I gotta train some," replied the boy as
he walked out the door.

Ukyo growled at this. "Hey! You're leaving me to run this place on
my own?! You jackasss! Get back here!" She rushed out the door, but
wasn't fast enough to catch him. "Damn it!"

After she walked back inside, Genryu let out a heavy sigh of
relief as he stepped out of a nearby alleyway. "Man, that was close!
Guess I can't come back here for a few days at least..." He hung his
shoulders low and started walking. "I'll stop by the house and borrow
some camping stuff from Ranma." He had his own, but didn't want to
risk going back inside for them later on.

+++++++++++++++++++++++

Nabiki Tendo was alone in the house. It wasn't that bad of a
feeling really, especially with such a crowd at times. Rather than
revel in the feeling of freedom, she found herself working in her
room.

A notebook with names, numbers, and a lot of personal information.
Most of it she'd never used, but it was there if she needed it. It was
silent, and it made studying such things a little easier. With a lazy
yawn, she stretched her arms and popped her back.

"I'm hungry."

She realized that she was a little uncomfortable, and the reason
why all at once. She looked at her watch and realized that it was
still somewhat early. Dinner would probably not be ready for a few
hours even after Kasumi returned from the store. With a small shrug
she stood up and walked out into the hallway and down the stairs.

She turned into the kitchen and ignored the refrigerator. Going
directly to the cabinet where Kasumi kept the snacks, she pulled out a
bag of chips and opened it as she closed the door by pulling on one
end with her teeth. That would probably sate her appetite until dinner
came. She decided to get a soda and walked over to the fridge. After
she had what she needed she walked out of the kitchen and into the
living room while munching casually.

Something caught her attention as she passed the bathroom though.
It was a steady sound that she didn't recognize. Only the complete
silence of the house allowed her to notice it at all. She paused and
cocked her head, a potato chip still stuck between her lips. "What
the?"

She turned towards the sound and entered the dressing room. It got
a little louder, but she not much. With a frown she realized that it
was coming out of the furo.

She jerked the door open and flicked on the light. As she looked
into the room, her eyes went wide and the chip wedged between her lips
fell to the ground. "Oh shit."

+++++++++++++++++++++++


Akane walked home calmly. She was deep in thought and had a
serious expression on her face as she moved closer and closer towards
her destination. Her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice
though.

"Akane!"

The girl blinked and turned her head. Her sister was jogging up to
her with a bag of groceries on her arm. "Oh! Imagine meeting you
here!"

"Yeah," said the girl as a smile crept onto her face. "I was just
heading home actually."

"We can walk together then," said Kasumi as she smiled at her
sister.

"Yeah. Let me," she took the bag from the older girl and felt
herself relax a bit. "It's like when we were little."

"Oh. Yes," agreed Kasumi as she giggled a little.

Akane found herself smiling a little more. "I wasn't expecting to
see you here."

"Yes, Father and Mr. Saotome went out with Grandpa. He decided to
take them out for a while. They should be back in time for dinner, but
I didn't have enough food for everyone, so I had to go shopping for a
few things."

Akane nodded at this and smiled. The dojo was still a fair
distance away and they passed Tofu's office.

"Oh. I wonder if he's in?" said Kasumi as she looked at the
building.

"Only when you're not around," commented Akane.

"Pardon?" said the girl sweetly.

"Nothing," said Akane as she smiled at her. "Come on. We're almost
at the dojo."

"Oh. All right then," said Kasumi as she nodded. "Father should be
home soon anyway."

"Right," said Akane as she rolled her eyes. Eating dinner with the
old pervert who had shown up was not high on her list of things she
wanted to do. Still, she could defend herself to a point, and he
wasn't too pushy. That struck her as rather odd, considering how he
treated most of the other women he'd met. Kasumi and Nabiki were also
largely unmolested.

The pair quickly found themselves at the gate. Kasumi opened the
way and smiled at her sister. "After you."

Akane took a single step forward.

The house exploded in a ball of flame. The force of the explosion
threw both girls back. Akane found herself reeling and rolled across
the pavement as debris showered down on them from above. Kasumi was
slumped down against the wall that had surrounded the dojo with a
small trickle of blood running down her forehead.

The younger girl stared forward painfully from on the ground. She
gasped as she saw the burning remains of her home. "No! I..."

That was when the world went black.

+++++++++++++++++++++

TBC...

Evil. I am so evil. Tee hee! ^_^