Juuban Saibouko - by DS Wynne

***

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon, Ranma 1/2, Dragonball Z and other genres do not belong to me.

Note: This story takes place during the "Buu Saga".

Special Note: Since I haven't seen the entire saga in its entirety, comments and criticisms will be VERY helpful. Anyway, enjoy!

***

"Strange Days"

"Oh, man, what happened?" asked Ranma, as he woke up on some sort of bed. He then looked around to notice that he was in a Nurse's Station.

"Hey, Ranma-kun," said a familiar voice.

"Huh? Oh, hi Ami. I'm surprised to see you here."

"Well, a friend of mine was suppose to be here, but an emergency forced him to ask me to cover for him. Since Minako was coming here to co-host, I figure I could get a lift over here. Besides, the Martial Arts tournament will allow me to monitor you and the gang's physical prowess. For research, of course."

"Leave it to you to take the fun out of fighting…Wait! Is Mako-chan okay?"

"As a matter of fact, yes she is. Makoto was only stunned by Juuban's blow."

"Speaking of Juuban, you've seen her around?"

"You mean the one who looks like Usagi?"

"Yeah. You seem nonchalant about a girl who looks like your old best friend."

"Ranma, there is a logical reason for her appearance. While Juuban is here, I'll be monitoring her. If she is Usagi, I'll know."

"But that's the thing. I didn't know Usagi for very long, before she was taken by Cell, but she did something to remind me of my…Akane."

"Hmmm. I'll keep that in mind. Here." Ami gave Ranma a senzu bean.

"A senzu bean?"

"Well, you do want to compete, don't you? The officials are almost finished in their evaluation."

"Right. Gotta go!"

And off Ranma went, leaving Ami alone in the Nurse's Station.

"Heh. Let's see…Computer?"

"Working," replied Ami's now sentient electronic computer.

"Assume hard-light form."

A "chibi" version of Sailor Mercury appears.

"Hola!"

"Hello. Mercury, run a spectrum analysis on Juuban."

"Okay."

"Then I want you to compare your findings with the medical records of Usagi Tsukino and Akane Saotome."

"Okay."

"Get going."

With that, Mini-Mercury disappears in a shower of light. With her gone, Ami takes out her electronic data pad, and picks out a picture of Usagi reveling in merriment at her bachelorette's party. The picture was taken a few days before Cell tore through her town.

"Please," Ami spoke softly to herself, "be for real…"

After all the qualified contestants were accepted (which included Vegeta blowing up the punch bag), everyone who was to participate in the tournament were in the holding pen.

"Hey, can't we get something to eat around here?" yelled Goku.

"D-A-A-D!" whispered Gohan urgently. "Please, don't embarrass me!"

"Relax, Gohan," said Videl. "They're going to serve lunch shortly."

"I know, but I am trying to keep a low profile."

"Really, Gohan, you ought to be proud of your Say-jin heritage," quipped Veggeta. "Who cares if these pathetic creatures learn of your secret?"

"Hey, leave the kid alone," said Lady Ryoko, who had arrived late to the competition. She and her husband Lord Tenchi, and his other wife Tsunami were on Earth visiting family, when Ryoko got word of the competition. The former space pirate has traveled with her friends Goku, Ranma and Makoto from time to time, mainly to get out of that stuffy environment that is the House of Jurai. So, even though she hasn't had the constant training that her friends did, Ryoko was a lot stronger than she was during the Cell Games.

"And what of it, woman?"

"There's two ways we can settle this. We either do so inside or outside the ring. Of course, in either scenarios, you won't face Goku."

"Bah!" Then again, Veggeta knew that Ryoko possessed a hidden power that rivaled his.

"Now, now," said Krillan. "We don't need to get work up so soon."

"Must you always be the voice of reason?" said Android 18 surly.

"But, honey-"

"You know, maybe that's why I married you," she replied, followed by a peck on her husband's cheek."

BLUSH!

"Aw, how cute," said Makoto.

"Yeah, a kodak moment indeed."

"Oh, hi Ranma. I see that Ami released you."

"Yeah. It's a good thing that I had been qualified earlier."

"Good. By the way, Minako is going to be the celebrity guest for the event."

"Huh. Just like her to interject herself into everything," said 18.

"Listen up, folks!" said the announcer. "Once you have selected your number, you will be paired up at random. Remember, once you are paired, any rule that you break will disqualify you. During the elimination round, you are to conduct yourself in a proper manner. The final battle will determine the winner of this year's martial arts tournament.

"Good luck!"

Meanwhile, in another dimension…

Sitting on a lawn-chair on a patio of the Grand Kai, Setsuna Meiou is sipping a glass of tea. There, she is having a casual conversation with her former queen and friend Serenity.

"So, how goes it, Your Highness?" Setsuna asked. "I'm surprised that the Supreme Kami has allowed you to visit from the higher realm."

"Well, it's nice to have a corporal form now again, rather simply being a celestial being."

"I see."

"I also came down to talk to you about my daughter's present situation."

"I see."

"You seem to repeat yourself, old friend. Will she be alright?"

"As you know," Setsuna began, "Usagi has been 'enchanted' by a former enemy of Earth's protectors. Unfortunately, it will be difficult to unravel said enchantment."

"I…see. So what steps are you taking to fix this problem?"

"See for yourself. Here's a glimpse of the future."

Serenity sees future events, and slightly frowns.

"You think that all this death and destruction is necessary?"

"Don't think of me as cruel when I say 'Yes, it is.' If these events do not take place, Crystal Tokyo will NOT come to pass."

Serenity gives a far away look, before replying.

"Make the arrangements then. Let the people who need to know this know what's going on."

"I've already have done so. And I'll make sure to minimize as many casualties as possible."

"That's all I ask of you. Besides, Shenlong is getting tired of having his gifts abused."

Later…

"Ah I gots ya now!"

BAM!

"Wha-?"

Poke.

"Arrgh!"

"And the winner…Ranma Saotome!"

"Wasn't that fight special, Gordon?" yelled Minako.

"Thank you, thank you!" Ranma said, as he waved to the crowd. Defeating the kickboxer "Killah" was a piece of cake. Heck, during the first few minutes, Ranma simply stood still and blocked each blow…while reading the latest issue of "Martial Arts Monthly". He still had a lot of back reading to do afterall.

"Man, if his head got any bigger, he could be a float in a parade," quipped Makoto.

"Man, how pathetic are these fighters?" mused Krillan. "You'd think that the promoter would have a better roster than this."

"You must admit that it'll get better after this," said Gohan. "Still, I don't know why Picolo backed off from that match with that Shin guy."

"Hey, don't worry about Piccolo," said Goku. I'm sure he has his reasons."

What power does this guy have? Vegeta thought. "He's hiding something."

"Hey guys, wish me luck," said Videl.

"Yeah," said Gohan. "You'll do great."

Meanwhile, Juuban, who opted out of competing, sat next to Yamcha, Bulma and the others in the stands. She was disappointed that after all the training she endured, she didn't compete.

"Cheer up, Juu-chan," said Yamcha. "I'm sure you'll compete next year."

"I guess…"

"Besides," interjected Oolong, "These guys are WAY advanced than you are."

POW!

"OW!"

"I don't want hear that type of talk from you!" said Bulma.

"I was just kidding…"

"Mercury here."

Throughout the tournament, Ami was monitoring the situation. Already, she discovered who two of the competitors were working for, and where their master was located.

"We got Babbidi's ship monitored," said Heruka. Both she and Michiru used the premise of a romantic camping trip to track down the foe. "We detect multiple lifesigns on board. What should we do?"

"Continue to monitor. And be careful. According to Pluto, the enemy is particularly strong. Once the Z Fighters know, that's when we'll rally are forces."

"Good. How are you and Minako doing on your end?"

"Well, Mina-chan is still doing her hosting duties, since she is a celebrity, Artemis and Luna are working the crowd, and I'm expecting someone to help us."

"And what about this Juuban girl? Do you think that she's really Usagi?"

"I'm not sure, but I'm looking into it."

"Good. The sooner we get the princess back, the better."

"I agree. Give me a call if something comes up."

Once Ami closes her communicator, she turns around…

"Oh, I didn't hear you come in-"

FIFT!

As Ami falls to the ground, her last thoughts were of Juuban's welfare. Her assailant quickly leaves, as a pool of blood forms.

***

"Videl, stay down!" yelled Gohan. He and the other Z Fighters couldn't believe at the turn of the events.

It all started simple enough. Videl's match was with a competitor named Sapowitcz, who was both big and mean. However, what set him and the rest of the competition apart was the fact that both him and his partner Yuma had the letter "M" tattooed on their foreheads. Incidently, Ranma noticed something strange about Videl's foe. At any rate, the match began normally. However, it quickly became apparent that something was wrong, after Spopovitch rotated his neck back into place without any difficult, as well as display the ability to fly (though this part was, in itself wasn't so unusual).

When Videl was on the verge of being beaten badly, Gohan was about to fly out to rescue her.

"I got to go out there!" Gohan said, as his rage forced him into "Super-Sayajin" mode.

"Stop!" said Yuma. "That's enough. We are here on a mission…remember that."

Spopovitch looked at his partner before throwing Videl out of the ring.

"And…the winner is Spopovitch!" Gordon said nervously. Minako was still in shock over the turn of events.

The person in question merely grunted before leaving the arena.

"Thank you for taking me to the bathroom," said Marron.

"No problem," said Juuban, as she held her little friend's hand. "I figure that I could make myself useful, since I won't be competing."

"You're real pretty. I guess that's why Gohan likes you."

"Really? I…I never knew that."

"You can tell by the way he looks at you."

"Maybe, but I bet he would like Videl better."

The two made their way to the concessions stands.

"Juuban, can't we get some ice cream?" asked Marron.

"Sure, why not? Chi Chi gave me some money for the day, so I don't think that it'll be a problem."

"Goody!"

The two went to the ice cream stand to order.

"May we have-"

"Scoops of Rocky Road for the girl with the odango hair."

The two turned to see a tall, good-looking man. Both his dark hair and his clothes were immaculate. Juuban couldn't tell what demeanor the man had, particularly because of his front bangs and dark shades were covering much of his face. Still, his cock-sure smile had put Juuban and Marron at ease.

"Is that okay?"

"Um, sure," said Juuban. If I can save some money…

"And, little girl, what do you want?"

"Um…Sherbet!"

"Excellent! Two scoops of Sherbet for the little lady, please."

Once the two girls got their ice cream, they became like ravenous dogs.

"Just like I remember…"

"What?"

"Nothing. Anyway, enjoy the rest of the show."

With that, the man turned to leave.

"Hey! That nice man dropped something, Juu-chan!"

Juuban looked down to see a single red rose. She picked it to examine it.

"Pretty strange-"

Suddenly, Juuban's mind is bombarded by images…of a girl who looked like her. Briefly, Juuban could see that the girl, who was dressed in a fancy gown, was dancing with a young man in a tuxedo. The two appeared to be in love, as the two danced the night away at an elegant ball.

"Juuban!"

"What-?"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm…okay. Just felt weird. Anyway, let's get back. I don't want Chi Chi and Bulma become worried about us being gone too long."

As the two left the ice cream stand, the nice man who bought the two desserts slicked his hair back, which revealed a fancy version of the letter "M", and took off his shades.

"I'll get you back, Usagi," said Momaru Chiba, as he put his shades back on. "Count on that."

Tbc.

A/n: Sorry for the delay, but I finally put out another one. Expect another one REAL soon.

Next time: The tournament goes horribly wrong, as our heroes realizes that something big is about to go down. Be here as they deal with "The Traitors Amongst Us", next time on "Juuban Saibouko". See you then!