Guest Ki: Chapter 12
The Corner Pub
"Oh, dear! Ryoga, you naughty boy," the imposing woman continued, glancing at Ranma and Akane. "You haven't been leading these girls on, have you?"
If the girls were flabbergasted, Ryoga was both dismayed and annoyed. "I am not your husband!" he bellowed.
"But you're my wittle piggy-wiggy," she cooed at him amused.
"I am not… bwee-e-e-e!"
Janet Kolberg obviously knew Ryoga's secret and 'pigged' him with a glass of water. Himamashi, who was chuckling over the exchange, stood frozen with shock as the angry young man disappeared, leaving a pile of clothes and… something struggling in them? His eyes went round as a black piglet struggled free and made angry squealing noises at the tall gaijin woman. She picked him up by his bandanna and laughed.
"What is going on, Jani-san? What did you do to my worker?"
"We could tell ya," came the clear quiet voice of Ranma. She and Akane moved close to the woman. "But right now we're more interested in how she's going to put him down and back off. Preferably before she gets hurt."
"Oh, yes, you're martial artists, too." She glanced between them, trying to assess their abilities.
Himamashi started to get angry. He wasn't certain who he should be angry with, but he wanted no uncontrolled combat at his bar. There were numerous breakable items; the many mugs, goblets and glasses were particularly vulnerable. The ceiling was tiled in mirrors and a huge mirror was set in the wall behind the bar. Numerous decorations were inherently fragile and, while they were positioned out of the way of the average brawl, with a couple of top-level martial artists going all out, even the building's structural frame might be damaged. And what happened to that young man? The old sumo felt somewhat obligated to him. All three of the teenagers had worked hard and well at their jobs. Finally he focused on the tall, blond woman.
"Jani-san, I demand an explanation!" he bellowed. "And none of your Amazon tricks. These youngsters have been…"
"Ah, shit!" snarled Ranma interrupting, "She's Joketsuzoku?"
"You've heard of us?" the woman inquired sweetly.
"You could say that," Akane commented with a savage grin. She was almost eager to try out the new techniques Ranma had taught her.
"Ryoga, you sly dog… I mean, pig!" their opponent commented with a snicker. "How did you get so many pretty girls trailing after you? Willing to fight, even knowing Amazon traditions? You must be even better than I thought." Ryoga/P-chan 'bwee-ed' and spun in a circle from the impetus of a futile swing at the woman.
"Get ready, Akane," Ranma murmured. The breathing focused, muscles tensed and began to unleash…
Janet Kolberg laughed like a lunatic and set P-chan down on the bar-top. The pig glared at her and shook himself. Glancing over at his friends, he made a disgusted sound and shook his head. Turning his back on all of them, he sat down in a sulking huff. But they didn't drop their guard just yet.
"Himamashi-san, could we have some hot water, please?" Ranma asked quietly. She felt the moment of combat was past and signaled Akane to relax a little. They both glared at the hysterical woman, who nodded at their request.
"Get it, Otaro-san! HA-HA-Ho-hoo! You'll love this!"
When it arrived, Ranma snatched at it, but was stiff-armed by the longer reach of the Kolberg woman. She gleefully poured a generous dollop over the slouching pig. Almost instantly, Ryoga appeared, naked, slumped with his hands in front of him to protect his modesty, if not his dignity.
"Thanks so much, Kolberg-san!"
"You are so welcome, airen."
Ranma snickered.
"What are you laughing at?" snarled Ryoga glaring her way.
"P-chan, didn't ya learn anything from my troubles? Wadja beat her for? That's the only reason she'd be sayin' airen to ya."
"It was an accident," Ryoga grumbled. "Could somebody give me my clothes? I'm not decent here!"
"You look fine to me, piggy," purred Janet, as Ranma retrieved his clothes from the floor and handed them to him.
"Could someone tell me what's going on?" Himamashi drove his bulk between them all, trying to gain control of the situation again. "How did you turn him into a pig? Why are you calling him 'husband'? How do you all know about the Chinese Amazons? But most of all, why is everyone picking fights in my bar!" He turned to the tall woman. "You first, Jani-san."
She rolled her eyes and grinned mischievously. "Spoil-sport." She jerked a finger at Ryoga. "He made the mistake sometime of falling into one of the cursed pools at Jusenkyo. Anything that falls into those hundred-plus pools ends up with an alternate form or personality based on what originally was drowned in that pool and what magical rites were performed to fix the curse – or at least that's the story granny told me. Ryoga here could, theoretically be cured by jumping into the Nannichuan." She leaned forward and smiled wickedly. "Or not. Sometimes the curses mix."
Ranma swallowed heavily and exchanged glances with Akane. They'd wondered exactly how Pantyhose had managed his mixed curse.
Janet missed or ignored their reation. "Cold water activates the curse. Hot water reverts you to your birth form." Himamashi swore sulphurously and paled at the idea. She smiled sweetly at the half-dressed and glowering Ryoga. "I called him 'husband' because he beat me in combat. Well… it was really a bar brawl in Okinawa. But Amazon law states that if an outsider man beats an Amazon woman, he becomes her husband."
"Isn't it a little inconvenient that you are already married?" Otaro Himamashi asked gruffly. Janet burst into laughter again as Ryoga paled.
"She's married?" Ryoga's voice was a mixture of horror and disbelief. "Then, why are you…? Do they allow…?"
"Isn't he cute?" Janet snickered. "You should have seen him when I told him I was Joketsuzoku. White as a ghost! I couldn't help teasing him. Then he got away before I could explain I was married and the combat law didn't apply. You should have seen him! WA-HAH-HAH-Ha-ha-hooo!"
Ranma groaned and climbed on a stool to slump, head in hand, near Ryoga at the bar. Akane sat down with a thump on the side of the stage they had built.
"But you're not Chinese," Akane protested, perplexed. "How can you be an Amazon?"
"Adopted." It was a straight answer and unexpected. She smiled and relaxed a little. "I tagged along with my researcher-parents on an under-funded mission to the Bayan Hara Range. Mountains are treacherous and a landslide left me wandering, five years old, orphaned and homeless, till the Amazons found me." She sighed, looking sad. "I spent the next ten years learning their ways, competing with other Amazon girls and getting an Amazon-style education. Then my grandparents found out I hadn't died and had the contacts to put pressure on the PRC government. The Matriarchy decided to send me back to the USA. That made me an orphan all over again."
"That's so sad." Akane sniffed. Her obvious sympathy further relaxed the Amazon's reserves. Almost companionably, she detailed her story.
Ranma and Ryoga exchanged glances. It looked like a fight wasn't going to break out after all.
"I drove my grandparents crazy with the wild things I'd do." She grimaced. "They were nice people, but had no idea what to do with a girl who was always practicing martial arts. When they tried to stop that, I turned to practical jokes and stunts designed to meet with their disapproval." She shrugged. "Granny always said, 'Life is full of pain, child, but it doesn't have to be sad. Always try to appreciate when the joke's on you.' I just followed that concept. It kept me sane till I met Kazakasai, who was a foreign exchange student. He was a martial artist in aikido, the only man who has ever beaten me. Except for Ryoga here, of course, in that bar in Okinawa."
"Kolberg-san!" Ryoga looked daggers at her. She stuck her tongue out at him.
"We knew he'd have to leave sometime, so I practiced my Japanese, ripped into my schoolwork and managed to do the exchange student thing back the other way. We got married right after graduation."
"Kazi is currently in Tokyo doing stunt coordination for a movie," offered Himamashi. "They're almost never together. I'll never have grandchildren at this rate," he added grumpily. Ryoga, Ranma and Akane glanced his way, finally seeing where everything connected up.
"Now what about you two?"
They gulped as the bar owner's glare focused on them in return. It also crossed their minds that he hadn't paid them yet. Ranma sighed, crossed her arms in front of her and looked up at the big man. "That's really our business, Himamashi-san," she said looking him straight in the eye. Then she shrugged casually. "We've got some Amazons visitin' down our way, an' I got ta know 'em as well as anybody."
Suddenly, Ranma flinched aside and Ryoga ducked, as a glass of cold water splattered the bar between them. "Stop that!" they chorused.
"You have a curse, too, don't you?" Janet accused Ranma, grinning wickedly. "I can tell. Which one is it?"
"Leave Ranma alone, Kolberg-san," growled Ryoga as he came out from behind the bar. He glanced between the two female warriors and shook his head. "Ranma, leave Kolberg-san alone! You have enough trouble with Sham—umph!" Ranma's hand clapped firmly over Ryoga's mouth.
"Let's not drop any names, shall we, P-chan?" she said sweetly.
"Probably a good idea," Janet said, eyes gleaming. "Since you're a girl, it's almost got to be the 'kiss of death' you're worried about. You never know, I just might give my sister Amazon a call as to where you are!"
"I ain't worried 'bout no 'kiss of death', okay?" Ranma answered flatly. "But speakin' of that, how do you justify this 'Ramen Noodle Wrestling'. I can't believe ya never lose."
"Justify it?"
"Yeah! Ya know. 'Kiss of death', an' all?"
"But I'm an outsider to begin with, Red. It doesn't apply to me," she protested. "Besides, this isn't combat; it's entertainment. And I don't lose."
"Yeah, right! Just a summer job ta finance medical school," Ranma sneered sarcastically.
"However did you guess?"
Himamashi cleared his throat. "We still have some work to do," he reminded them. "I have a restaurant coming with the ramen for tonight's fights. Would you believe I have reservations so far for over twenty competitors at eight thousand yen each? That's besides the spectators at twenty-five hundred yen each." He grinned at them. "Of course, drinks are extra…"
Ranma whistled and Akane looked startled. Ryoga shot Ranma a glance.
"Maybe you should enter, Ranma," he said in a whisper.
"Not a chance, P-chan. Those are gonna be warm noodles in there."
"Oh." He looked at Akane.
"Don't go there, 'piggy-wiggy'," warned Ranma.
"Don't be ridiculous, Ranma, I'd never ask her to do that!"
They got back to work. Ranma double-checked the stage and steps and repaired a few tables that were wobbly. Akane helped clean dishes and equipment under Himamashi's supervision and Ryoga cleared lumber scraps away and mopped the floor. By 4:00 P.M. they were done, except for unloading the fifteen hundred liters of ramen that was being delivered in fifty-liter buckets. The nondescript truck pulled up to the front and Ranma, lying on the roof snoozing for lack of better things to do, paid it no mind. They'd call when they needed her.
Barry, through Ranma, had been treated in the interim, to some free ice cream courtesy of Himamashi. Barry had suggested a confection of French vanilla, heavy with fudge sauce and whipped cream. Ranma agreed and quickly determined that it was thick, disgustingly sweet and rich, in other words, good! She patted her stomach and snoozed. Female taste buds were far superior when it came to that sort of thing. At least, Ranma's were.
The impact of feet, lightly on the roof, disturbed her snooze, but not enough to really wake her. She unconsciously decided Akane had joined her. This turned out to be a misconception.
"Airen!" (GLOMP!)
"SH-shampoo?" (Urk!)
"Ranma, you womanizer!"
"Mousse. You, too?"
"Hello, son-in-law."
Ah, shit! "Hello, Granny."
"You haven't gone and done something stupid, have you, son-in-law?"
Akane went still with shock when Ranma walked back in with Shampoo on her arm, a glowering Mousse and a pogo-ing Cologne. Shampoo went still with menace when she recognized Akane and confirmed, in her own mind at least, that Ranma had arranged to be alone with her rival for the past month.
Cologne was generally unconcerned. She believed from watching Ranma, that the boy had not yet consummated the relationship with the Tendo girl. In her experience, the signs were nearly unmistakable, even before she laid eyes on Akane to confirm it. She wondered why, though. It was almost inhuman for two like these, who were so close, to remain apart unsupervised, without experimenting a little, at least.
"Hello, old ghoul."
She had been aware of the body leaning against the wall, but ignored it in her assessment of Ranma and Akane. She looked up into the angry mocking eyes of Ryoga Hibiki and gasped. Shampoo and Mousse turned at the unusual sound and Shampoo gasped as well.
Mousse of course, couldn't see the figure very well and started to lean forward, only to be snatched back by a lunging Shampoo. "Is pig-boy, Mousse. He here!"
Mousse backed away with a startled curse and the three regarded Ryoga as if they expected an immediate outbreak of hostilities.
Himamashi groaned. At this rate, everyone who walked through the door today would be at each other's throats. He wondered if he should take out more insurance.
"Am I missing something here?" Ryoga looked from one Amazon to another in bafflement.
"We thought you were, boy," commented the old woman dryly. "Missing something, that is. When did you leave the Tendo's?"
"Just a few steps ahead of the vet's knife." His features darkened. "Hey, how do you know about that?"
Akane butted in. "Did you have something to do with my dad trying to neuter P-chan?" she demanded, ire showing. "That was low, Shampoo! Maybe I should have caged you and taken youto the vet."
Shampoo flinched and looked guilty, while Mousse attempted to put himself between the two, a dangerous proposition at the best of times.
"So, the secret's out," Cologne noted concerning the Ryoga/P-chan duality. Mousse and Shampoo jerked in reaction. "I notice you said, 'tried to', Akane Tendo. Am I correct in assuming they did not succeed?" Cologne looked at her impassively.
"Of course not!" Akane snapped. "I mean… But… I mean… I didn't check to find… out. Ryoga, they didn't do it, did they?"
"Hell, no!" yelled the embarrassed bandanna wearer.
"Ya walked inta that one, Akane," Ranma muttered with a smirk. Akane punched her.
Cologne smiled beatifically. "That sneaky girl," chuckled Cologne.
"Who?" Akane blurted, startled, turning from the crouched redhead. "Me? Ranma?"
"Grrr!" Shampoo caught on. "Mercenary-girl fool us! Make us think they castrate pig-boy!" She grabbed Ryoga by the front of his shirt and shook him. "You know I punished for nothing? Try three, four times to get to Ryoga to give him warrior's death! Mercenary-girl pig bit me." She was beside herself with rage and shook Ryoga violently while Mousse stood back and debated whether he should be jealous of this or not.
Janet Kolberg stuck her head around the corner and squealed in joy.
"Granny!"
"Jan-Jan, so good to see you again," Cologne answered from the depths of a huge hug. "Now put me down, child. I'm a Matriarch and I'm supposed to keep my dignity and my breath. Besides," she continued, straightening her robes. "We need to bring in the broth and noodles for your competition tonight."
"Awww, man," Ranma groaned. "I shoulda headed for the hills as soon as we found an Amazon around." Shampoo glomped her again and was burning her ear off about what Ranma and Akane better not have been doing. It was really more than Ranma or Barry wanted to hear.
"Uh… Granny? Why is Shampoo hanging all over that girl?" Janet looked on with interest. "Is that why she never went for Mousse?"
Shampoo glared at her scandalized. "This Shampoo's airen, by combat rules. Airen have Jusenkyo curse. Get hot water, I show."
Ranma groaned and dropped her head.
"I knew you had a curse," Janet exclaimed. She charged into the kitchen and returned with hot water. Himamashi wandered over to see what the hold-up was. He jumped back when hot water spattered over the pretty redhead's hair and she changed drastically.
"Dammit, Jani-san!" he exclaimed, shocked. Cologne brought her staff down with a firm thump on his head, an interesting combination of hop, spin and swing. Rubbing his head, he glared at her but continued, "Do that when the customers are here and I won't have any customers!" He looked at Ranma and shivered. "You poor thing! You fell into the pool of the drowned boy?"
Ranma had had enough. "I'm a guy, dammit! I fell into the pool of the drowned girl!"
Himamashi was aghast. "Then why…?"
"Cold water triggers the curse; hot water reverses it. Which do you think is easier to run into?"
"You have a point." He shuddered, an awesome sight, that amount of skin crawling. "Still, I would have rather known…"
"Sorry, Himamashi-san." Ranma groaned as Shampoo happily squeezed him and Akane's glower began to reach dangerous levels. "I was hopin' to get away before anyone found out. That's why I stayed girl. Less chance of changin' in front of everyone unexpectedly."
The big man sighed and stood up straight. He looked with suspicion at Akane and Shampoo. "Are they girls? Or are they cursed too?"
Shampoo released with one hand and waved it to get his attention. "I change cat. Mousse change duck. If see cat or duck around, ask before put in pot, please?"
Otaro Himamashi's eyes were bulging and his skin was turning a remarkable shade of red. He looked at Akane who was beginning to glow obviously. "What about her?"
"Oh, Akane's not cursed, certainly," offered Cologne easily. "However, she bears the distinction of being the only living person to presently have an active pool among the springs of Jusenkyo. The Akaneichuan was created only about four months ago, so we don't know yet whether changes in Akane will cause changes in whatever jumps in the pool." Cologne glanced at the subject of conversation and decided it was time to break the tension. "All right, you lazy-bones!" she shouted laying about her with her staff. Akane stopped short of her goal, as both Ranma and Shampoo were among those on the receiving end of the old woman's attention. "Get to work! We have fifty buckets of broth outside, and a hundred kilos of noodles. There's a show to put on, so let's get cracking."
Afterwards, Ranma, Akane and Ryoga stood around politely, waiting for Janet to return from changing for wrestling that evening. Even Ryoga was beginning to appreciate the joke she played on him, but they wanted to get their train tickets and escape before Shampoo was free to follow. The buckets of ramen broth were being carefully emptied into the pool, where it steamed, waiting the introduction of noodles.
Finally, the tall woman returned, and three pairs of eyes went round in shock as she twirled before them.
"What do you poor innocents think?"
"You're gonna wear that?" Ranma and Akane boggled at the next-to-nothing bikini Janet was wearing. Even Nabiki would think twice before going out in public in something like this. It was a thong-style made of some stretchy, thin, blue fabric that left nothing to the imagination. Ryoga expressed his opinion with a spray of blood and loss of consciousness.
"Isn't he sweet?" Janet asked, indicating the reclining Ryoga.
"Grandmother, I try?" asked Shampoo, bouncing over.
Ranma paled. He had a sudden premonition of what was coming. If only there were some way to get Akane out of here before it happened… But seconds after Cologne's nod, it came.
"Shampoo in contest Ramen Noodle Wrestling now. Pervert-girl brave enough, face Shampoo?" The violet-tressed Amazon smiled and curved past Akane with feline grace. Akane was trembling with rage. "Promise because Jan-Jan rules, no 'kiss of death' if Shampoo lose; but Shampoo no lose. Akane pretend-martial artist… just like she pretend-fiancée of airen."
Akane turned briefly toward Ranma, eyes flaming, ready to counter his protests. To her surprise, he rolled his eyes and shrugged; he wouldn't interfere. Smiling grimly, she looked scathingly at the Amazon and said, "You're on; but I need to get a suit." She grabbed Ranma and dragged him away from the startled and annoyed Shampoo and out the door.
Ryoga slipped out close behind. He immediately started berating Ranma. "Ranma, you pervert! I can't believe you let Akane get mixed up in this."
(SMACK!)
"I was the one challenged, Ryoga," she growled as he held his cheek astonished. "It was my call and Ranma stayed out of it for a change." She stared at her fiancé for a second. "Or did Barry tell you to stay out."
Ranma's jaw clenched. "This is Barry, Akane," the young man replied. "Ranma makes his own decisions and don't you ever forget it! He's not happy about this business, but agreed that if you were challenged, you were honor-bound and competent enough to handle it."
"You mean you think I can beat Shampoo?" Akane was startled. She was also sure she would not have heard Ranma's opinion without Barry's interference.
Ranma nodded grudgingly. "Mind ya, don't challenge her to a regular fight just yet. She's better'n you are and likely will be for a while, but ya might surprise her. Yer real good on ground-based forms. Shampoo's usually more a dancer an' a leaper like me, and yer fast enough ta plug me sometimes." Ranma suddenly reddened. "Keep yer feet planted solid an' ya might throw her outa the pool using grappling and throws. But yer gonna hafta lose yer modesty."
"My what?" Akane's eyes twitched up. "What are you talking about?"
"Ya think Shampoo'll worry if she was dancin' around in there stark naked? Barry says these shows are ta flash tits, not set rankin' fer martial artists. It's expected that sometimes the girls will lose their suits and if that's a problem, well… too bad. In fact, Shampoo might wanna embarrass ya even more'n she wants ta beat ya. So, ya gotta decide up front. What'll ya do if ya lose yer suit in front of a hundred guys with their tongues hangin' ta the floor?" Ryoga blanched and stifled a nosebleed.
Akane stopped dead and gulped. Her mouth was suddenly dry and her knees trembled. "R-Ranma, what did I g-get myself into?"
"Shit, of course. Now we gotta find the best way ta shovel it, as Barry'd tell ya." They continued down the street until Ranma saw a shop that displayed bathing suits. "Let's see what they got."
"Um, I'll wait out here." Ryoga said. Ranma glanced at him, then at the shop and reddened.
"Ya got a point, piggy-wiggy." He ignored Ryoga's growl and looked around. Not far away was a public fountain. A few slaps of cold water and girl-type Ranma sauntered in, with Akane following.
The selection of suits was small but varied. That is most of the suits were small, as in minimum coverage. Actually, there were quite a few bathing suits offered; surprising, unless you considered that most onsen were found in the mountains. Looking at the selections, one bathing suit in a deep violet material similar to Janet's caught Ranma's eye.
'That wouldn't make half of a decent napkin, Ranma,' commented Barry. 'Two band-aids and a cork would do better.'
"I know," she replied, snickering. "But it would tick off Nabiki no end, if I wore this thing at the beach next time we go. She always wants to be the most with the least." She yipped as the suit was taken out of her hands. "Hey, I want that one!"
"Mine, Ranma," Akane said briefly. She looked at the suit and shuddered.
"You can't be serious," Ranma protested. "You never wear bikinis! And how do you expect to keep that on? Get this one-piece! The strap across the back will…"
"That's why it's not right for this." She sighed and gazed at her fiancé. "You know what Shampoo will wear. If I play it safe, it's the same as surrendering. I have to outdo Shampoo in every way to win. And I want to win!"
"Oh, man!" Ranma looked like she was about to burst a blood vessel, then her expression changed.
"Barry here again. Akane, if you're really set on this, I may have an idea. Ranma's told me that you've done some acting?"
"I like acting, Barry, but I haven't done much," Akane replied curiously.
"Why don't you consider the Noodle-Wrestling as a stage," Barry suggested. "I've acted in high school and college, in both comic and serious roles, and from my experience, if you immerse yourself in a role, you can ignore all sorts of things that would normally distract you."
"I suppose," Akane nodded, moistening her lips nervously with the tip of her tongue.
"Then let's find out just how good and actress you can be," Barry caused Ranma's face to take on an almost evil glint.
Ranma groaned in the confines of his own head. What the hell was Barry up to?
Ukyo sighed and waved good-bye to the couple whom had taken her in.
"Come visit me sometime in Nerima at Ucchan's!" she called out. 'I hope,' she added silently.
They waved in turn and there were tears in their eyes as she turned and walked down the road to the town. Her plan was to take the bus to the nearest train station then head back to Nerima the best way.
They had heard out the long involved story of Ukyo and Ranma, and wept with her through her frustrations and recriminations. From Ukyo's tale, they were angry with Ranma for not settling the issue immediately and horrified by some of the actions she admitted to taking. Ukyo's story probably sounded much worse than it was, as she had little cause at this point to comment on times when she saved the lives of others in the gang.
Yoiko reached out and held her, as she had so often held her own children, and waited for the sobs to stop. "It seems to me, sweeting, that you have not told the whole story. You made yourself sound an ogre and we know you are not. And the boy, Ranma, obviously cares for you in some way or you would be in jail now, not wandering around the countryside." Yoiko stroked the girl's head, as she wept harder at the thought of what Ranma might or might not feel. "You have done bad things, but you should do good things and try to repair the harm. Matters of the heart sometimes go beyond honor, Yasashi, and they can make us very foolish. I am willing to bet our lodge here, that if I asked any of your former rivals or Ranma himself, I would hear many good things about you, and not just how wonderful your okonomiyaki is!" Ukyo laughed at that, but had not really been convinced by her arguments.
So now, she marched down the road, tears in her eyes and her sorrow darkening her heart. She wasn't even sure she wanted to go back, but Ucchan's was all she had now. Maybe her best bet was to see if she could settle with Ranma, so that the damage she had caused would be set against that damnable yatai her father had pledged so long ago. Then, she would pack up, leave and go somewhere else.
She sobbed suddenly, remembering the times when they all charged off on some crazy quest to save Ranma from his own stubbornness, usually rescuing Akane… 'Dammit!'
If only she'd admitted to herself that Ranma wanted a friend in her, not a lover or wife. But Ranma was so special that even being in the running was worth the risk, wasn't it? She sniffed and wiped her eyes. She better pay attention to where she was going. It felt like she had wandered off the road. She looked up, then spun around in consternation.
Later that afternoon, a lone figure trudged up the road to the lodge. Dusty, tired, the slender man staggered up to the manager's desk and rang the bell. Zadai appeared after a few moments. He had not been expecting anyone. The young man (yes, he was pretty sure it was a young man) looked exhausted but determined and worried. Before he could introduce himself, his new guest had burst out, "I am looking for Ukyo Kuonji. I understand that she worked here for a time under the name of Yasashi. Could I see her please?"
"And you are?"
"Just tell her it is Konatsu. I am looking after her restaurant while she is away. Is it true she could not remember who she was?" The words were bursting out of the young man faster than Zadai could work out answers.
"Well, it is true her memory was lost for a time, but when she left this morning…"
"This morning?" Konatsu gasped. "So close! Did she say where she was going?"
"Back to Nerima, I understand. She asked us to visit if we ever had the chance to go. Is everything all right?"
"I hope so," said the ninja sincerely.
Somewhere in the north woods, a ragged girl stumbled through the underbrush. She tried backtracking herself, but her trail wandered here and there, often circling and obscuring itself. Breathing heavily, she found a young ash tree and worked on extracting it, snapping it off a meter and a half long. She left the bark on for a better grip.
She knew that somehow she had gotten lost. Was this how it was for Ryoga? You lost yourself first in your anguish and depression, then found you had no idea where you were. At least Ryoga had grown up with it, expecting the disorientation. She was just scared and lost and starting to get hungry. Was this what she had done before? Don't panic. Think! How do you find a town? People?
Find a stream and follow it down. That was the trick. Eventually, you'd come to people. People tended to live along watercourses. She stumbled downhill and found a tiny stream.
By the time darkness came the stream had disappeared into the ground. Depressed, Ukyo slumped against a tree, then looked around for dry wood. It looked like she was spending the night. She finally got the fire started and pulled out the pocket lunch she had packed before she left. She was almost too tired to eat.
'It just isn't fair!' she cried to herself. 'Was what I did really that evil? I loved him!' And she had lost him… and now she had lost herself as well, again.
"Where am I?" she screamed at the night sky.
Nothing answered and the verdant growth soaked up the sound of her scream as if it had never been.