Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma except for some graphic novels.
"" Speaking
>> Thoughts or telepathy
# Sound Effects
( ) Writer has a chance for a pun or comment and uses it
Diary Interlude 1:This morning has been very strange. Nabiki was apparently out all night, but claimed she was only out for a little bit when her sister asked her. Then she saved my son twice from harm, without charging him. It isn't like her at all.
But, as I look at her today, I am haunted by the fact that for some reason she really resembles her mother. I mourn everyday for my old friend and how she could never marry the good doctor she loved. As far as I know, only myself, and Tofu ever knew that Nabiki wasn't Soun's daughter. I promised Kimiko on her deathbed that when Nabiki turned eighteen that I would tell her the truth. But I'm still figuring out how to do that.
How do you tell a girl that the man she's known her entire life isn't her father. It isn't that easy. But, I made a promise on my honor and I will keep it.
She has announced that she plans to go shopping this afternoon. I have offered to accompany her. Hopefully today, I can keep my promise.
Nodoka SaotomeEnd of Diary Interlude 1:
Chapter Two: Revelations>Now, where to start?> thought Nabiki as she entered the mall with auntie Nodoka by her side.
She had been planning to just spend the day shopping and then a quick training session with Aurora, her feline spirit, but even Aurora found it hard to not let Nodoka join them. Plus, before they entered the mall, Nodoka said that she had something she needed to tell her at lunch. She wondered what that was.
"So Nabiki,…" Nodoka began to ask. "Where shall we start?"
"I'm not sure." Nabiki replied as she looked around. "I just thought I'd get a brand new look."
"Well, then we should start with that." Nodoka replied. "Why don't we decide how you want to look?"
"Sounds good to me." Nabiki agreed as they headed for a couple of shops.
>AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!> screamed the voice of Aurora inside her head.
>What's with you?> asked Nabiki as she winced from the scream.
>Sorry. We just walked by a fur coat store.> said Aurora with a shudder in her voice.
>Understood.> said Nabiki as she looked at the store.
"Nabiki?" Nodoka said getting her attention.
"Huh? Oh sorry." Nabiki responded. "I kinda spaced out there."
"That's okay." Nodoka nodded as she looked around. "I don't think we'll find what we're looking for on this floor. Let's try the second floor."
"Okay auntie." Nabiki agreed as they headed for the escalator.
Nabiki waited until auntie wasn't watching and she released a small chi ball into the fur coat store. Seconds later it detonated setting off the stores sprinkler system.
>Touchdown!> exclaimed Aurora. >Nice one!>
>Thank you very much.> Nabiki answered doing her best Elvis impression in her head. She also did her best to refrain from taking a bow.
Nabiki and Nodoka spent the next few hours buying clothing from several different stores. Nabiki decided she wanted to dress confident and sexy. She got several short and revealing tops, tight pants and shorts, new shoes and boots, and finally some really sexy underwear. Nodoka had looked surprised when Nabiki asked her to wait on a nearby bench for a few little while, and entered a tattoo and piercing parlour.
She came back out with her belly button pierced, and three tattoos. One was a curled red rose at the base of her spine. The second was a coiled blue dragon on her hip, which no one would see unless she took her pants and underwear off. The last one was a tattoo was a celtic symbol of some kind wrapped around her right forearm.
"Those are permanent you realize?" Nodoka inquired.
"I'm aware." Nabiki responded.
"Very well." Nodoka replied with a chuckle. "I can't complain though. I didn't when I got a tattoo."
"You have a tattoo?" Nabiki exclaimed shocked.
"I wasn't always the proper lady I am today." Nodoka explained. "I was a lot like your mother."
"You knew her?" Nabiki responded amazed.
"Of course. She was my best friend after all." Nodoka nodded. They ordered food at the food court and found an empty table and sat down before she continued. "We both went through what we called our honorable rebellious phase."
"How do you be honorable, and rebellious?" Nabiki asked confused.
"It wasn't easy." Nodoka joked. The two of them shared a heart felt laugh before continuing.
"Nabiki, I have something to tell you that may shock you." Nodoka began. "This may even make you hate me for telling you."
"Okay, what is it?" asked Nabiki curious what Auntie had to tell her.
"You see, that is…" Nodoka muttered for several second. Finally she just decided to come right out and say it. "Soun isn't your real father!"
Nabiki waited a couple of seconds. Then she responded.
"Yeah. I know."
"I know you must hate me for telling you this but I…" Nodoka began before stopping. Then what Nabiki had said sank in. "Wait a second? You know!"
"I've known since I was fifteen,…" Nabiki began. She sipped her soda before continuing. "… when I found my mothers diaries."
"Oh thank god!" Nodoka said releasing the breath she'd been holding. "I was so scared that you would hate me for telling you this."
"Auntie, there are only two people in this world I hate more then anything." Nabiki replied. "Those people are Soun and Akane Tendo."
"Why would you hate them?" Nodoka inquired as she ate some of the burger she'd ordered.
Nabiki then began to tell her entire life story to Nodoka. She started with the challenge from Akane, then went on to the day she found her mothers diaries. She told Nodoka everything and when she was finished, she waited for Nodoka's reaction. Auntie looked fine, but then tears filled her eyes as she began to weep.
"I can't belive they did that to you." Nodoka whimpered. "I should have been there more for you. I promised Kimiko I would always take care of you. I wouldn't let Soun and his own view of honor hurt you, and I failed."
"He may of hurt me then, but I'm not hurt anymore." Nabiki explained. "Tofu-daddy has personally seen to my training in the arts since then. I am just one move away from mastering his school of martial arts. That is one thing, Soun and Akane can never take away from me."
"You've almost mastered the Tofu school!" Nodoka exclaimed proudly as she dried her tears. "That is so wonderful! Good for you! Your mother would be so proud!"
"Yes, father tells me that all the time." Nabiki said blushing. "But I'm worried I won't have the time it'll take to master the last technique."
"Why's that?" Nodoka asked curious.
"Because if I don't earn the money to pay our rent, then we'll lose the dojo." Nabiki answered. "Normally I wouldn't care that Soun and Akane would be living on the streets, but it's my mothers dojo. I refuse to lose it. Plus it's been a long time since I've trained so I'm going to need even more time to get back into shape."
"I see." Nodoka responded thoughtfully before she answered. "I believe I can help you on that."
"How?"
"I will pay you the money it will take too keep the household running." Nodoka responded sipping her drink. She set it down and continued. "It's the least I can do."
"Can you afford to pay it?"
"I should. How much is it?"
Nabiki told her and Nodoka laughed.
"My family usually finds more money then that underneath the cushions on our couch." Nodoka replied.
"Say what?"
"You didn't know?" asked Nodoka. "I figured with your sources you would have realized my family is very wealthy."
"WEALTHY!" exclaimed Nabiki. "How wealthy?"
"Very. These are our net earnings every year." Nodoka responded writing a figure down on a napkin and showing it to Nabiki.
Nabiki looked at the figure and nearly wet herself.
"Holy shit!" She exclaimed. "You make that much a year?"
"Yes." Nodoka responded. "My family just doesn't like to brag about our wealth like some others do."
>Damn that's a lot of money!> said the voice of Aurora.
>You got that right!> said Nabiki to her feline spirit.
"So paying those expenses will be no trouble." Nodoka explained. "You can quit being this, ice queen, they call you and be a normal teenage girl."
"A chance to be myself for a change." Nabiki replied as tears filled her eyes. "To actually give up being the ice queen."
Nabiki sat there in shock before responding again.
"Thank you Auntie!" said Nabiki giving her a hug. "Thanks to you I can finally take back a piece of my soul."
"Your welcome child." Nodoka replied hugging her back.
The next day Nabiki walked into Furinkan High School a changed woman. Lots of students looked at her in shock. Not only because of the tattoo on her forearm, but before they'd went home, Nabiki convinced auntie to let her get her hair dyed. It was now black with neon red highlights.
She also carried a big duffel bag with her as well as her school bag. She quickly sought out her lieutenants. She found them where they usually sat, under the big oak tree on the far end of the grounds.
"What's up boss?" asked one of the girls.
"I'm retiring, ladies." Nabiki answered with a straight face. "From now on you two are free to do whatever you want."
"Yeah right boss." The second girlreplied thinking she was joking. Thenshe noticed the look in Nabiki's eyes. "Your not serious are you?"
"I am." Nabiki responded. She lifted the duffel bag before she continued. "In this bag is every single blackmail file I have on the students of Furinkan High. Today this bag is going to be destroyed."
"You can't be serious!" said the first girl.
"I am." Nabiki replied. "As of today, the ice queen is dead."
With that said, she left the girls and went to find the first of the students on the list.
Diary Interlude 2:
Hi. It's been awhile since I wrote in this. Unfortunately I've got the usual rivals looking to kick my ass and girls trying to marry me so I've been busy.
Anyway, I'm writing this because I'm not sure what the hell is going on anymore.
It all started when for some reason, Nabiki asked me why I still use the arts after I killed Saffron. After that I noticed a huge change in her both physically and emotionally. She has actually given up on being the Ice Queen and is acting like a normal teenage girl. She was even crying while watching a soap opera on TV called 'Samurai of the Modern Ages.' (A K-Dog original production.) To my surprise she was crying because some Dr. Takamura had chosen to marry some girl he'd been seeing named Yeiko, thus leaving his fiancée in America Tori-Lane of over six years behind.
When I asked why she was crying she said that she was so happy the doctor had chosen to marry the woman he loved, instead of that other girl Tori-Lane, even though she was also sad that Tori was all alone now. This made absolutely no sense to me. For one thing, Nabiki never lets a thing like a TV show get to her. Second, Tori-Lane was going to dump the doctor after she'd realized she was into girls after she'd slept with that lesbian Himiko.
Uh, not that I actually watch this show mind you! I've just been watching to see if Mr. Yamaguchi will ever awake from his coma, after his wife tried to kill him in a car accident, so she could inherit all his money and marry her new love the gardener.
……………
Anyway, Nabiki has also changed physically. She has several new tattoos and her belly button is pierced. When she isn't wearing her school uniform, she wears several reveling outfits. Today she's wearing a black leotard with a black leather skirt. I have to admit she looks pretty sexy.
She's also taken to wearing a pair of black gloves with the fingers cut out and the knuckles exposed. They kinda resemble the kind I've seen some street fighters wear before they get into a fight.
I've mentioned these changes to the Tendo's and they've all looked at me like I'm weird. Well, Akane called me a pervert and malleted me into the floorboards for checking out her sister, but that's beside the point. Don't these people ever notice her? Do they even care?
I thought for sure they would freak when she dyed her hair but they didn't. How do you not notice when a girl who has had brown hair her whole life, suddenly has it black with neon red highlights.
Do the Tendo's ignore her that much?
Only Kasumi has noticed but she just thinks it's a phase she's going through right now.
I've also noticed something else weird going on. Every night for the past three months, Nabiki has been sneaking out of the house late at night when everyone else is asleep. I only noticed because I had trouble sleeping one night. I have no idea what she's doing, but she always returns at the crack of dawn before everyone else wakes up.
Then I noticed the bruises. They were well hidden, but only to an untrained eye. As a martial artist, I always look for any weakness on an opponent so I spotted them easily. Akane had malleted me again for checking out her sister, so I never got the chance to bring the subject up. Especially since I know those bruises.
They are the bruises of someone who is under heavy training under a very powerful sensei. A sensei who bruises to make a point. But this is Nabiki, she never even practices the art so that idea is just plain ridiculous.
I'm really staring to get worried about her. What could she be doing to get these bruises? I'm thinking of following her tonight to see what she's doing. I feel bad about it, but I'm just really concerned.
I gotta go now. The tomboy is calling and I'm sure I'm about to travel Air-Akane for some reason.
It's funny though. Nowadays when I look at Nabiki, I have to admit she looks even prettier then usual. I almost kinda wish our engagement could have gone better.
Ranma SaotomeEnd of Diary Interlude 2:
Ranma couldn't sleep. He tossed and turned but he just couldn't get any rest. Luckily, he knew why he was this way.
He was worried about Nabiki.
Ever since he'd seen those bruises on her arms and torso he'd been worried. As far as he knew anyone who would hurt Nabiki, would probably do it to get to him.
#Creak, creak, creak.#
>What was that?> thought Ranma as he leapt quietly to his feet.
He then carefully opened his bedroom door and looked around the hallway. He quickly spotted a figure tiptoeing down the hall. Ranma was about to step out and find out who this person was, when he/she passed the window. Since it was a full moon tonight, the moonlight lit up her face long enough to see whom it was. It was Nabiki sneaking out again.
>I wonder where she goes at night?> thought Ranma as he decided that enough was enough.
He had to know who was hurting her. He quickly invoked his father's forbidden technique, the Umi-Sen-Ken. (Hope I spelled that right. Let me know if I didn't.)
While Nabiki went outside through the front door, Ranma leapt out an open window on the second floor. He waited until she left the Tendo complex then he followed. As he followed her, he noticed something weird. She was talking to herself.
"I'm really nervous. Do you think I'll ever master it?" She asked herself. She then nodded her head like she answered. "Yeah, I guess your right. Daddy wouldn't teach it if he didn't think I could do it. I just need to train harder to get back into shape."
>What's Mr. Tendo got to do with this?> thought Ranma as he spotted Nabiki turning into a really ritzy looking neighborhood.
She continued walking until she reached a very large house, which looked to be about over ten times larger than the Tendo complex and had more floors. Nabiki quietly walked up to the door and Ranma watched as she pulled out a key and opened the door. He quickly rushed in past her as she entered before she could close the door behind her and relock it.
"Dad!" Nabiki called out as she hung up her jacket. "Are you here?"
"I'm in the kitchen." A voice from another room called out.
>What the hell?> Ranma quietly thought. >That's Dr. Tofu's voice. What the heck is going on here?>
Dr. Tofu exited the kitchen carrying a large tray with two cups, a teakettle and two very large plates of sushi on it.
"I prepared some snacks." He announced as he placed the tray on a coffee table while Nabiki sat on the sofa.
"Yum. My favourite!" Nabiki exclaimed. She looked up to thank Dr. Tofu when she noticed a weird look on his face. "Is something wrong?"
"We have a guest." Dr. Tofu said. He then looked at the spot where Ranma, still using the Umi-Sen-Ken, was standing. "Welcome to my home Ranma."
"Ranma?" Nabiki replied confused as realization dawned on her. "So that's who I felt following me! I thought I was imagining things."
"Ranma, are you going to drop the Umi-Sen-Ken, or am I going to have to call the police about an intruder?" Dr. Tofu announced.
Deciding he had no other option, he dropped the move and tried to look embarrassed.
"Hi. Sorry about breaking in here." He said.
"Don't worry about it." Dr. Tofu replied. "May I ask the reason for this late night meeting?"
"Well…" Ranma began to explain.
"He probably followed me after noticing my late night schedule." Nabiki interrupted. "Am I right?"
"Well, yeah." Ranma agreed. "You can't blame me for being concerned."
"You'd be the only one." She muttered under her breath.
"Now Nabiki, I'm sure the Tendo's care about you." Dr. Tofu said as he walked back to the kitchen. He came back with another cup and plate of sushi. "Snack Ranma?"
"Sure." Ranma responded as he sat next to Nabiki. "So, why do you think the Tendo's don't care about you?"
"If they did, then Soun and Akane wouldn't have tried to fuck up my life." Nabiki answered. "Kasumi is the only one of them I consider family."
"Isn't that a little harsh to think of your father and sister like that." Ranma offered as advice.
"HE IS NOT MY FATHER!" Nabiki yelled. "HE NEVER WAS AND HE NEVER WILL BE!"
"Nabiki!" Dr. Tofu scolded.
"I apologize for raising my voice father." Nabiki responded bowing her head.
"Father? Why do you think Doc here is your father?" Ranma asked eating some of his sushi.
"Ranma, I think you need to learn the truth. But first you must swear on your honor never to reveal it to another soul without our permission." Dr. Tofu told him. Ranma thought about it and decided.
"I swear." Ranma promised.
"Nabiki, you can tell it better than I."
So for the next hour, Nabiki told her life story to Ranma. Everything from the challenge she 'lost' to Akane, to finding out Dr. Tofu was her real father. When she finished telling him about her returning to the arts, he sat there quietly for a few minutes before speaking up.
"I…I can't believe it." Ranma said. "How could Mr. Tendo do that to you like that? Taking Akane's side over yours."
"It okay Ranma." Nabiki insisted.
"No it's not Nabiki!" Ranma protested. "He should have been fair and impartial, not give in to the cries of a spoiled brat. I wanna apologize for their treatment of you, even if they won't."
"Uh, thanks." Nabiki said taken back.
"Ranma, I was wondering if I could use your help with something." Dr. Tofu politely asked.
"What is it?" asked Ranma curious.
"As you know, Nabiki is now the heir to my families school, but she needs to get back into shape." Tofu explained. "I would like your help in training her. In return, I will train you as well in my school."
"Well,…" Ranma said thinking the offer over.
"Hold it! I can get back into shape on my own!" Nabiki objected. "I don't need his help!"
"Let's test that then." Tofu replied. "How about a sparring match between the two of you?"
"Your on!" Nabiki insisted.
"But, I don't hit girls." Ranma protested.
"Why? Scared they'll win?" Nabiki taunted.
"What?" Ranma exclaimed. He couldn't believe the ego of this girl. "That's it! Your on!"
"Well then, let's go to my dojo." Dr. Tofu announced.
"Where's that?" asked Ranma as Dr. Tofu got up and walked over to on old grandfather clock.
"Here." Dr. Tofu stated as he turned the clocks hands to ten twenty-six.
Suddenly a large trapdoor opened in the floor next to the sofa. Inside it was a very long stairway leading down.
"Let's go." Tofu stated as he walked down the stairs, followed by Nabiki and Ranma.
When they reached the bottom, Ranma looked around in amazement. This dojo was incredible. It was roughly the entire size of his houses compound and about a hundred feet straight up. But what really amazed Ranma was the layout of the dojo. It was like an indoor garden. There were trees, grass, rocks, dirt, water to simulate rivers, and much more to create on entire outdoor training area indoors.
"This is amazing!" Ranma announced looking around.
"Thank you." Dr. Tofu said. "I spent many years perfecting this. It's nice to see it appreciated by someone other than Nabiki."
"Your welcome." Ranma replied as he looked at the roof and noticed sprinklers.
"The sprinklers are to simulate a rain environment." Dr. Tofu explained noticing where Ranma was looking.
"Sweet." Ranma responded with a whistle. Then he noticed someone was missing. "Hey, where's Nabiki?"
"Probably in the changing room." Tofu told him as a door opened behind them. Nabiki then exited it wearing a red silk gi.
"We ready to do this?" She asked tying the belt.
"Yes." Dr. Tofu replied. "The match will be until a knockout or a submission."
Ranma and Nabiki each took their respective places opposite each other. Then they each took a defensive stance.
"Begin!" Tofu called out.
Ranma decided to try and end the match quickly by charging Nabiki and immobilizing her. Nabiki had other plans though and jumped over his head when he reached her. Then she lashed out with a spin kick knocking him into the ground as he passed underneath her.
"Had enough?" She taunted.
"Oh it's on now!" Ranma taunted back as he pulled off his Chinese top and prepared to fight in the muscle shirt he wore underneath.
"Good." Nabiki replied as she pulled of her gi top and prepared to fight in the gi pants and a sports bra.
"Take this!" She yelled as she launched a punch at his head, which he effortlessly caught.
"Anything else you care to try?" Ranma asked as he caught the second fist she threw at his head. He now held her so tightly that she couldn't escape.
"Yeah. This!" Nabiki replied as several green lines appeared on her arms.
"What the heck?" Ranma said in shock, but not because of the strange lines. It was because Nabiki was actually lifting him into the air.
"Tell me Ranma, do you know how to do the twist?" Nabiki asked sarcastically as she began spinning around and around. This in turn gave Ranma flashbacks to the Good-Bye Whirl he'd faced awhile back in that ice skating match.
Ranma, realizing this wasn't going to work, let go and flew to the other side of the dojo. Luckily he landed on his feet. He was about to run back to where she was when he heard her voice call out.
"Care for some ketchup to go with that crow?" Her voice asked from out of nowhere.
"I haven't lost yet!" Ranma answered as she appeared behind him. He quickly turned and attacked. "Kashin Amarugin!" (Again, if I spelled it wrong, please help me.)
"Yikes!" Nabiki screamed as he launched five hundred punches at her at once. He's finally getting serious.
She dodged the punches as best as she could, but at least twenty of them got through.
"Had enough?" Ranma asked as she tried to catch her breath.
"I have not yet begun to fight!" Nabiki replied as her hands started to glow. "Time for me to get serious."
>What the heck is she doing?> thought Ranma as he stared at her hands.
"Cat's Fury!" Nabiki called out as she launched a chi attack at him. But as he dodged it, Ranma couldn't help but notice that the attack looked a lot like claws made of chi slashing through the air.
>I didn't think she knew chi attacks!> Ranma thought with worry as he prepared to launch his Moko Takabashi attack. (Again, if spelled wrong, please inform.)
It was then he noticed an important fact. Nabiki had vanished again.
While all this was happening, Dr. Tofu watched them from a safe distance. He had to admit he was impressed with the way Nabiki was adapting to Ranma's fighting style. As he watched, his body began glowing a pale green.
"You do realize those two are perfect for each other?" A voice from behind Dr. Tofu said.
"I am aware that they like each other." Dr. Tofu replied as a large black panther walked up next to him.
"It's more then liking each other. They're in love and they don't know it yet." The panther said.
"Is that so?" Dr. Tofu responded with a smirk on his face. "You always were better at spotting things like that then me Stalker."
"Your are right about that my old friend." The panther answered as they continued to watch the sparring match.
>Where is she?> thought Ranma as he began looking all around him, trying to find out where she was.
She wasn't anywhere around him, but then Ranma noticed all the trees around him. Dr. Toru had actually planted several large trees to simulate a forest in his dojo.
"Wait a sec!" Ranma exclaimed as he realized something. He looked up and soon found what he was looking for.
"Banzai!" Nabiki yelled as she leapt out of one of the trees to catch him off guard.
Ranma luckily spotted her coming and was able to defend himself. He caught her by the arm and tossed her. He'd expected her to land on her ass, but instead she landed perfectly on her feet.
"Try again Ranma." Nabiki said cocky.
"Bring it on!" Ranma yelled as the two combatants charged each other.
Ranma started blocking all of Nabiki's punches, until one broke through hitting him full in the mouth hard enough to snap his head backwards. Before he could recover Nabiki hit him again, this time with an uppercut that yanked the ground out from under his feet.
>Damn! She hits like Ryouga!> Ranma thought as he hit the ground too fast to roll, taking the full brunt of the impact.
A half second later Nabiki was standing over him, one bare foot on either side of Ranma's hips.
"I thought you said you were the best?" Nabiki asked cocky.
Ranma felt his cheeks flare red and started to push himself to one elbow, but Nabiki lifted one foot and slammed him back against the ground.
"Huh-uh!" She said shaking her finger at him. "Bad Ranma. Down boy. And stay!"
Despite the pain in his back Ranma felt his humiliation level rise above everything else. Who did Nabiki think she was talking to him like he was dog? He swatted her foot aside and levered his body upward, aiming to take advantage of that split second that Nabiki would be off balance-
and somehow everything went from bad to worse.
Ranma thought things were going peachy when Nabiki's legs buckled. Unfortunately, the fall turned out to be completely controlled; as the middle Tendo sister went down she turned sideways and hooked one foot behind Ranma's neck. The other leg beneath one of Ranma's shoulders as Nabiki twisted her body. She dropped all her weight on top of his rib cage, bounced, used the momentum to twist his own body-
And suddenly Ranma was facedown against the ground, with both arms and legs pretzel-wrapped by Nabiki's own body. He literally couldn't move.
"How're you doing down there Ranma?" Nabiki asked affably. "Not very comfortable, is it?"
Ranma tried to yank free rather than answer. It was a huge mistake; pain razored through the joints of his shoulders and hips, and his neck felt strained to the point of cracking. He was in serious trouble here.
"Have anything to say Ranma?" Nabiki asked. "For the record, I can hold this move all day long."
"…" Ranma quietly whispered.
"What was that? I didn't quite hear you?" Nabiki taunted.
"I yield!" Ranma yelled admitting to himself he'd been defeated.
Nabiki's hands and legs shifted and Ranma got a nauseatingly hard twist-
then he was free.
Every muscle and tendon, every end of every bone throbbed with pain and release. Ranma pushed himself over until he was lying flat on his back and staring up at the roof of the underground dojo gasping for air. As he did this, Nabiki's face appeared in his line of sight.
"Need a hand?" She politely asked as he offered one.
He took it and, as the green lines appeared on her arm again, she effortlessly pulled him to his feet.
"Good match." Nabiki told him respectfully.
"Likewise." Ranma replied respectfully even though his body was in severe pain, but he was even more upset that he'd lost.
"Don't worry about losing." Nabiki explained. "I had you at a disadvantage."
"How?"
"Two reasons." She continued. "One, you didn't know how good I was. Second, I've been watching you practice since you first arrived in Nerima. If anyone is more familiar then you about the way you fight, it's me."
"I guess that makes sense." Ranma replied accepting her explanation. "I expect a rematch some time in the future though."
"Count on it." Nabiki answered as she suddenly collapsed. Luckily Ranma caught her.
"You okay?" He asked worried.
"Yeah." She answered. "I think I just pushed myself to hard. Maybe I will take you up on that training offer."
"I'd like that." Ranma told her. "You were really good. What was that thing you did when those lines appeared?"
"What? The Chi-Tattoos technique?" Nabiki asked. "It basically focuses your chi over certain parts of the body. It then increases the natural strength in that part. If you focus on the arms, you're stronger. On the legs, you'll run faster and jump farther."
"Wow." Ranma said amazed. "I can see I gonna like learning these techniques."
"Indeed Ranma." Dr. Tofu's voice said as he appeared out of nowhere. "However there is one thing you should really know."
"What's that?" He asked curious.
"Our school is considered forbidden, because many have tried to duplicate it only to fail miserably." Tofu explained.
"Why's that?"
"Basically too many people were throwing the trainee into pits of hungry cats." Nabiki announced.
"Hungry…cats?" Ranma responded. Then realization dawned on his face. "You…You don't mean that…You can't mean that…"
"Yes Ranma." Nabiki answered. "Myself, my father, his father before him, and so on, are masters…(Insert drum roll please.)…of the dreaded Nekoken."
To be continued…Author's Notes: Well, that's it for chapter two. I would like to thank everyone out there for the reviews. I'm sorry that Aurora threw you off, but her presence will be explained in the next chapter. I would also like to thank Yvonne Navarro who wrote the Buffy the Vampire Slayer book, Tempted Champions. It provided the basic description of the technique Nabiki used to immobilize Ranma with. In our next chapter we learn more of the Nekoken, and Ranma begins his training while he trains Nabiki. All this is to prepare her for mastering the final technique of the school, the Merger. Be here for Chapter Three: School is in Session. See-ya then. Ciao.