Hello there… Still have writer's block, but I think it's almost over. Ideas are starting to come back to me. So um, yeah. And today is my birthday. Yay.

---Kouji Tamino

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Shinichi awoke, yawning. "Wow, that was a really, really weird dream last…" He sighed. "Cat girls, huge tongues, magical girls, things melting…" Suddenly, there was a huge explosion. Shinichi whined. "What is it now?" He got out of bed, left his room and walked down stairs. He sighed as he saw the living room completely trashed. "What's happened now?"

"I knew she couldn't be trusted!!" Junko screamed. "But no! No one ever listens to me!!"

Ami sighed. "It's a shame… I thought she was our friend, too…"

"Wha?" Shinichi raised an eyebrow. "What's going on?"

Megumi sighed. "It's Sakura… She attacked us, then stole your mother's prized earring…"

Shinichi's eyes widened. "Oh, no… She's going to kill me…"

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Love Hina Next: Second Phase

Chapter 22: Betrayal! And the Return of Tenshi?!

Shinichi rolled up into a ball. "Oh my god, I am so dead…"

Junko scoffed in disgust. "What's the big deal? You can always buy another one…"

"You don't understand!!" Shinichi screamed, grabbing his head. "Her jewelry is custom made, she's crazy about those things! Once, some guys tried to snatch her necklace! She had a new necklace in there and… Well, one guy is still hospitalized, the other is dead…" The girls all gasped in horror. He stood up and smiled. "Don't get me wrong, she's probably the sweetest woman in the world under normal circumstances…" His expression grew dark. "But you just don't screw around with her and jewelry…"

"And according to this letter…" Naoko began, reading a piece of paper. "Your parents are coming back in 3 days!"

Shinichi slumped his shoulder. "I'm so screwed…"

Megumi walked up and gave him a hug. "There, there…" She glared. "We'll find that bitch and get your mother's earrings back…"

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Meanwhile, in a moving limo, Sakura was sitting opposite a tall man with brown slicked back hair, wearing a brown suit and shoes. The man stared at her. "So, did you get both earrings?"

Sakura nodded. "So, were you successful in getting the rest of the items, father?" She smiled as he nodded. "So tell me… How was it that you were able to get out of jail?…"

Mishima grinned, flicking his lighter over and over in a clichéd manner. "Let's just say that I know the right people…" He stopped with the flicking of the lighter and stared at his daughter. "Now we move on to the next phase of our plan…" He leaned forward and looked her in the eyes. "I hope your time over there hasn't given you… feelings for those people. You cannot let your emotions get in the way…"

Sakura stared back blankly. "You have no need to worry… I have absolutely no feelings whatsoever for them…" She looked away, staring out the window. "None at all…"

Mishima sat back, crossing his legs. "Good… Wouldn't want you to chicken out. This plan will not only bring my soda empire back, but eliminate any competition in my way, no matter where they are in the world! Soon, people will be forced to import Mishima Soda from Japan, bringing me several times more profit!" He burst out laughing. "Think about it, my dear… Soon we will be richer than that fool Suichi! What kind of family name is that, anyway?"

"A stupid one…" Sakura muttered, staring at he floor.

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Shinichi finished putting on his normal outfit. He walked back into the living room. "So, how are we going to find her anyway? She's got to be miles away by now…"

Ami smiled, holding up a circular device. "I got this locator from Rikina, and I got a hair from Sakura's pillow. With her DNA, we should be able to locate where she is…" She turned on the locating device, and watched as fast moving dot 'blipped' across the screen. "Ah ha! Got her! She must be traveling in a vehicle!"

Naoko frowned. "But… How will we catch up to her?"

Suddenly, a van crashed through the front wall, causing everyone to leap out of the way. A few seconds later, Keitaro opened the door and hopped out. "Hey there, everyone! Ami called me and asked if I could give you guys a lift, so I said sure!!"

Yamato popped his head out of the passenger side of the window, rubbing his head. "Damn dad, work on your friggin' parking…" He looked to the others and smiled. "Oh hi! When I heard about what happened, I came over to help out, too! No one messes with my friends!"

Shinichi groaned as he stared at the huge hole in the wall. He looked to the two older men and waved. "Hello, Mr. Urashima… Hi, Urashima-sensei…"

Keitaro lookd at the hole and chuckled. "Oh, sorry about that… I'll get it fixed."

"That's a 602,484 yen wall…" Shinichi explained, whimpering.

Keitaro sweat dropped. "Whoa, that is a problem…" He shrugged. "Oh well, good luck getting it fixed!"

Shinichi fell to the ground. "Ugh…"

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Junko stared at the ground, a look of pure horror on her face. "Please slow down, please slow down, oh god, please slow down!!"

Naoko simply sat next to her sister, twitching and wide eyed. "P-please… don't… don't drive like that… I'm… I'm sorry… Mommy!! WAAAAH!!!"

Shinichi was rolled up in the fetal position, writing on a piece of paper. "… and to my uncle Kenta, I leave my entire collection of coins…"

Yamato sweat dropped as he watched everyone's reactions. "Um, dad? Don't you think you should slow down a bit?"

Keitaro chuckled. "Nonsense! I'm only going 65!"

"Dad!" Yamato screamed. "The speed is 30 miles per hour, you idiot!!"

Keitaro raised an eyebrow. "It is?" He stomped on the break, the van screeching to a halt. "In that case…"

"Oh my, that was fun!" Kairi said, appearing between the two Urashima men. She had her eyes closed, and will continue to do so unless in 'living form'. "But I've heard that you can get in trouble for disobeying the speed limit…"

"Gyah!!" they screamed. "A ghost!!"

Shinichi laughed, sitting up. "Relax, that's just Kairi… She's really nice, so don't worry!"

Kairi waved. "Hi! Sorry I scared you!"

Keitaro sighed in relief. "Heh, heh… That's all right…" He looked back at Ami. "So, where are they headed now?"

Ami looked at the locator and pointed at the display. "It looks like… They are headed west toward the air port… They must be up to something big…"

Megumi growled. "I still can't believe she did that to us… And after we gave her a chance… When I find her, I'm going to… Ooh, I'm so angry, I don't know what I'll do!"

Shinichi sighed. "I know… It feels weird, going against someone that we thought was our friend…"

Naoko nodded, look of hurt on her face. "She… she said that she was going to teach me how to play Go…"

Junko patted her sister on the head. "Don't worry, sis…" She curled her fist. "I'll make sure that lying traitor pays!"

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Soon, they were at the airport. Ami began to look around with some high powered binoculars, also from Rikina, to try and find Sakura. She gasped. "I see her! But… she's with some big guy…"

Junko grinned. "Must be some sort of body guard! Won't help her, though. Once I mop the floor with his face, I'll go and kick her ass!"

"Wait, wait!!" Shinichi yelled, waving his hands. "We can't just go and beat them up! We're in a public facility, it will make us look bad!"

"So?" Yamato replied, cracking his knuckles. "That's never stopped me before…"

Keitaro put a hand on his son's shoulder. "That may be the case, but what will Tokimi think if her fiancé gets arrested?"

Yamato sighed sadly, slumping his shoulders. "You're right… I'm sorry…"

Keitaro patted him on the back. "It's all right… You must have gotten your fighting spirit from your mother… Then again, she was never much of a fighter…" He touched his cheek and smiled. "But she sure has one hell of a punch…"

"I don't mean to be rude, but could we get going?" Megumi asked. "Sakura and that big guy are getting away!"

Shinichi nodded and began to run after them. The others followed, pushing through the crowds of people. "Scuse us, coming through, got some ass to kick!" Junko easily plowed through the groups of people, running ahead of the others and clearing a path for them.

Soon, they were right behind Sakura and Mishima. "Sakura stop!!" Shinichi yelled.

They stopped, Mishima reaching into his jacket. Everyone got a worried look on his face and looked on as he pulled out Mrs. Suichi's earrings. They glowed white and blasted our heros, freezing them in time. Mishima grinned and walked off.

A bit later, Shinichi and the others unfroze. They looked around and saw that Sakura and the man she was with were gone. "Damn it!!" Junko screamed. "They got away!! How?! They were right there, and then they weren't!"

"The Suichi items…" Kairi said softly.

"Huh?!" Shinichi yelled, looking to her. "What do you mean?"

Kairi looked to him. "The powerful items that once belonged to your family…" She got a worried look on her face. "If Sakura and that man have them in their possession, the world is in grave danger…"

Shinichi smacked his forehead. "Oh great, why me?"

Ami looked into the locator. "They're going to America…"

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Now on a plane, Kairi explained the entire story. "Over 150 years ago, before even I was born, 2 years into the Meiji Era, the newly renamed Suichi family greatly opposed this new era. They were a family of Samurai, and they were very passionate. So, they came to my family, makers of magical weapons, and requested 8 powerful items… And so, they were created. The SuichiStaff, it's ability allows the user to become the type of person they aspire to be… The SuichiEarrings, which as you have seen, allow one to 'freeze' anyone they wish… The SuichiRing increases one's power by ten-fold. The SuichiMask gives you super human speed. The SuichiDaggers can split you into several different solid copies. The SuichiClaws have the power of teleportation, and the SuichiArmor makes you invisible. Finally, there is the most powerful item of all… The SuichiSword. It is made of one of the strongest materials in the known universe, and can nullify the powers of all the other items." She got a grave look on her face. "But when used together, they can destroy the world! Which is why we must stop them!"

"So um… Where'd you get that whopper of a story from?" Junko asked, staring in disbelief. ?"

Kairi frowned. "I'm not lying!"

Keitaro rubbed his chin. "Well, stranger things have happened… Remember those cute aliens that invaded years ago and a group of little girls had to stop them? And also, there was that battle between magic users down in Kyoto just a year or two after that!"

Shinichi sighed. "So Kairi, this means our families are connected in some way?"

She nodded. "Yes… I truly apologize for my familes actions…"

Shinichi shook his head. "No, my family was the one that requested the use of the items…"

Junko crossed her arms. "So… How was the Suichi family of the Meiji Era defeated?"

End of Chapter 22.

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And a new storyline begins! I'm back, and it feels good!

---Kouji Tamino