Side B : Love Negima!

Written by Shaun Garin

Love Hina and Mahou Sensei Negima is owned and created by Ken Akamatsu. All characters are used for entertainment purposes only.

Chapter 4 : A Sudden Pinch? The Attack Of Eastern Magi!

"The Third day of vacation," exclaimed Keitaro, stretching out. "Good morning everyone!"

"GOOD MORNING!" Shouted Su and Sarah, appearing out of nowhere and kicking him into the back of his head. Keitaro "GAH!"ed and fell into Naru's chest.

"AND GOOD MORNING TO YOU TOO!" Exclaimed Naru, punching him away.

"Vile desecrator!" Finished Motoko, adding her own morning welcome.

Negi grinned but Asuna bonked him on the head. "Hey, Negi-bozu, don't think you got away for doing the same thing this morning," she snapped.

"Yes Asuna-san," said Negi, rubbing his head. He too had gotten a morning kick and he had fallen into Konoka's chest and gotten punched away and Setsuna came to her defence with a similar sword-based attack.

"Bastard," snapped Motoko as she stood threateningly over Keitaro. "Remember you are merely a visitor here. If you continue to harass the women here, you will not be welcome, even if I must use force."

"Yes ma'am." said Keitaro timidly. "Say, where's Seta?"

"Papa ran off this morning to Osaka," said Sarah, a bit put off. "He left me here for a little while."

"Geh? What kind of guy is he?" demanded Keitaro.

"Meh, I'm getting used to it," said Sarah.

"Ooooh, poor Sarah!" Exclaimed Shinobu, grabbing her into a hug.

"Argh, lemme go!" exclaimed Sarah, arms waving.

"A pity, I was hoping for lessons," said Keitaro. "Well, breakfast looks good actually!"

"Fu fu fu, if you want to, I can teach you, Keitaro-sensei," said Kaede. "Everything is training."

Keitaro laughed and his chopsticks hit ceramic. Keitaro blinked twice and looked at his now empty rice bowl. "HUH? When did...?"

Kaede merely smiled and held up the last of the rice and ate it. "Training is everything," said Kaede and Keitaro spiked in shock as she ate his fish and attacked his pickles.

"NOOO!" Exclaimed Keitaro, frantically attacking his own food as Kaede casually slipped under his flailing chopsticks and ate his last pickle. "Uggh... my food..."

"Training," repeated Kaede, waggling her chopsticks in a vaguely threatening manner to Keitaro's food that had been refilled by Shinobu. "So sensei, are you up to it?"

Keitaro laughed and stabbed his pickles. "Yes Kaede-sensei."

"Um, so why am I here?" asked Setsuna. She was dressed in one of Motoko's smaller hakamas as she stood with her sword in one hand. Kaede had merely opted for casual clothing, a pair of formfitting jeans that had no top button and hung low on her hips and a t-shirt that read "Overclocked". Keitaro stood to the side, looking a bit more nervous as he was dressed in casual pants and a hooded shirt to keep the chill of the morning air off.

"Fu fu fu, Keitaro-sensei needs to learn how to deal with sword users," said Kaede.

"Go Sechan!" Shouted Konoka from the sidelines and Kitsune raised a beer in salute. "Aim for the legs!"

"Wow, that sword looks like it could cut Keitaro in half," observed Negi.

"Be careful Aniki, I think Kaede-neesan is going to do something crazy with you as well," said Kamo.

"Here you go," said Su cheerfully, pressing a baseball bat into Keitaro's hands.

"Eh? Wait, she's got a sword! What is THIS supposed to do?" demanded Keitaro.

"Go sensei!" cheered Asuna. "You can do it!"

"Ready sensei?" said Kaede and without warning, stepped aside. "Fight!"

At the word go, Setsuna sprang forth, drawing her incredibly long nodachi as she swung into an overhead strike. There was a scream from Keitaro and a crunching sound and everyone stared in shock as the remains of the baseball bat fell to the ground.

"He..." stammered Motoko who had deemed to watch the fight.

Keitaro stood there, one knee planted on the ground, both hands up in a bare-handed catch. The blade shimmered in the light and Setsuna stared in absolute shock.

"He saw her strike!" Whooped Kitsune.

"OH YEAH, THE SENSEI IS BADASS!" Added Kamo, sticking a middle finger up in the air.

"I WILL NOT ACCEPT THAT!" Shouted Motoko, storming into the field of battle. "You stopped the blade of a Shinmei Ryu warrior? I cannot... no, I WILL NOT accept this!"

"Er, it's a once in a lifetime thing," said Keitaro as Tama-chan landed on his head.

"Myuh," added Tama-chan.

"HOW DARE YOU MAKE A MOCKERY OF THE SHINMEI RYU STYLE!"

"EEEEEEEEK!"

The sword came down faster than coherent thought and the wind blew as Motoko's eyes widened in shock. "Wha...?"

"Myuh!" Exclaimed Tama-chan happily as she held the sword in place with both front flippers.

"KYAAAAAH! TAMA-CHAN IS AMAZING!" Cheered the girls as they danced around, throwing Tama-chan into the air as Keitaro stood, slack jawed in shock.

"Hmm, so Turtles do dabble in high level sword reception techniques," said Kaede with a smile.

Motoko sagged to the ground in incoherent shock. "How... all my training... the name of the school, all for naught? How... could this happen?"

"Sempai?" asked Setsuna as Motoko managed to rise to her feet and grasped a traveling bag she hid somewhere.

"I... I cannot be your sempai anymore," said Motoko. "Sakurazaki Setsuna, you are the... new heir to the Shinmei Ryu."

"GAH? MOTOKO-SEMPAI!"

With a choked sob, Motoko ran from the grounds.

"Motoko!" Shouted Naru. She turned to Keitaro and struck him. "You idiot, go after her!"

"Huh? What did I do?" asked Keitaro, feeling the blood spurting from his head.

"You made her cry! You and that turtle of yours!"

"Keitaro!" Keitaro looked up as Negi zoomed up, hovering on his staff. "Get on. We'll be back with her, don't worry everyone." With that, the pair took off with Keitaro hanging on for dear life.

Kaede raised an eyebrow and simply vanished from sight.

"See her?" asked Negi as Keitaro perched on top of the tree.

"No, I don't," sighed Keitaro. "I don't get it. It was a sheer fluke that I caught Setsuna's blade but when Motoko-san freaked like that, I didn't think she'd come after me as well."

"I think it's also a point that her sword was stopped by Tama-chan," said Negi.

"Myuh?" asked Tama-chan.

"It's okay, Tama-chan, you did what you did," said Keitaro. Getting back onto Negi's staff, the pair rode off towards the east. "How far do you think she went before stopping for the night?" asked Keitaro, shielding his eyes as they stared off into the sun.

"We've been out here all day," said Negi. "I'm sure that someone like Motoko-san could hide her presence rather well. It is getting late."

Keitaro sighed. "Why can't life be normal around us?"

Negi chuckled as he pulled lower to the trees. "Keep an eye out for smoke. That usually means she's probably found a place to camp for the night."

"Right."

As the sun started to dip lower and lower, the pair kept searching for the runaway Kendo-ka.

"I'm going to find Motoko-sempai," said Setsuna as she stood up. "Negi-san and Keitaro-sensei have not returned yet and I am worried about her."

"Wait, Sechan, it's getting dark," protested Konoka. "I'm sure they'll be back sooner or later."

"Ojousama... I must go. I'm sorry." With that, Setsuna ran out into the weaning sunlight.

"I hope she'll be okay," said Konoka and Asuna clasped a hand onto her shoulder and squeezed a bit.

"I'm sure Sakurazaki-san will be fine," said Asuna. "C'mon, lets get inside."

"Right."

As the pair headed back into the inn, Asuna felt a shiver go up her spine. Turning around briefly and seeing nothing, she followed the other girl indoors. Unseen to the pair, a pair of glowing eyes watched them and then flitted away into the darkness.

With a dull ka-chunk, Keitaro retrieved the cans from the vending machine and tossed it back and forth as the warmed can made his hands burn. "Yow, careful, it's hot," he said, tossing the can of coffee at Negi.

Negi caught it and tossed it around in his hands before wrapping one hand in his long sleeved shirt. Popping the top of the hot coffee, Negi took a slow sip in order to keep from burning his mouth. "We should be getting back," said Negi. "And then head out during first light."

"No, I think that's not going to be wise," said Keitaro with a shake of his head. "It took us the better portion of the day to get here. We must be halfway to Kansai by now. We should find a hotel somewhere. I have some savings with me."

A snap of a dry twig alerted the pair and Negi whirled with his staff outstretched. "Yo," greeted Kaede lazily.

"K-Kaede-san!" Exclaimed Negi.

"What are you doing out here?" asked Keitaro curiously.

"I thought you two needed help, so I've been at the bottom of the trees, searching the ground," said Kaede with a smile. "She's not anywhere within a fifty meter radius, so I'm thinking she must have hopped a train near the closest town."

"Great," sighed Keitaro. "What a mess this day has turned out to be."

"You two want supper?" asked Kaede and their stomachs roared in unison.

A few minutes later, the trio sat around a campfire, nibbling on fish that Kaede had caught and cleaned out. "I never expected you did this often." said Keitaro. "I was wondering where you got to during the weekends."

"Mmm," said Kaede, nodding as she ate her own roasted mushroom and nibbled on the roasted fish. "Out in nature is where I feel comfortable usually. Just to get away from the hustle and bustle of normal life, it's quiet and you can see the stars above."

"So Kaede-san, are you some kind of Ninja?" asked Negi curiously and Keitaro coughed in surprise.

"A ninja? Of course not, there's no such things as ninjas," said Kaede with a smile.

Keitaro coughed something along the lines of "Yeah Right" before busying himself with his fish.

"Motoko-san really seemed depressed," said Negi as he finished his own fish. "It must be hard, being the heir to the Shinmei Ryu."

"Mm," said Kaede. "Motoko-han is something of an interesting person. One may say that she is an unfeminine woman but she has the grace and poise of many girls envy. Her skills with the sword however are ever growing and I suspect she is trying to hone the skill somewhere in this area."

"Some kind of super ninja technique?" Negi teased and Kaede giggled softly.

"Maybe," she said cryptically. "I made up some leaf beds for us. Not completely comfortable but enough to keep our backs from giving out the next day."

"Evil Cutting Blade, Second Form!"

The bolt of spiritual power flared out and struck the rock that stood at the other side of the clearing. The rock had a straw dummy strapped to it as Motoko panted. With a crack, the boulder splintered and the dummy burst into a hail of straw. "Not yet... I..." Motoko struck the ground angrily as tears fell to the ground. "Why? Why can't I get it right? Was Aneue right? Is the sword... not just my life? ARGH!" Motoko hit the ground once more, cracking the earth below her. "Tell me Aneue! Tell ME!"

Nothing but silence greeted Motoko as she curled up and cried herself to sleep.

The next thing that Motoko felt was the sensation of heat on one side, cold on the other. Opening her eyes, Motoko found herself sleeping on her side, her bag propped up as a pillow under her head. Across the way, Setsuna sat cross-legged, her sword propped up in her arms as she watched her from the other side of the small campfire. "Sempai," greeted Setsuna as Motoko pushed herself upright.

"Don't call me that," whispered Motoko. "I don't have the right to be called your sempai, or the heir."

"That's not true, Motoko-sempai," said Setsuna, a sharp edge to her tone. Shifting to a more comfortable position, Setsuna took a deep breath and said, "When I was a child, I grew up isolated and alone. The Shinmei Ryu school brought me in, even though I was the daughter of a human woman and a man of the bird tribe of Oni. Many of them, looked down on me, belittled me; saying that I was a mere half-breed that was unworthy to become part of the school. I tried many times to win approval, and then, one day, when my sorrow was at the lowest, you helped me."

Setsuna looked up to meet Motoko's gaze. "You, the heir of the school, the younger daughter of the strongest Swordswoman known to date, you, Motoko Aoyama came to me and said, 'Aneue said you are a nice girl. I don't like seeing you sad. Do... you want to be friends?' And from that point on, I decided to try harder."

"I was barely five," said Motoko. "I remember. Everyone teased you, the kids would call you named like freak and half-breed, and the adults did not care for you like myself and Aneue."

"The adults were furious that someone like me befriended the heir, the bloodline of the strongest of the Shinmei Ryu. So I was sent to protect Konoka-ojousama. We were close as children, and then when I followed her to Mahora Academy a year later, I had resigned myself to protect her from the shadows."

"I see," said Motoko.

"Motoko-sempai, you deserve the title more than I do. I'm just a half-breed who doesn't deserve it."

"No," said Motoko, drawing a startled glance from Setsuna. "I will receive it when I am ready. You are stronger than you look, Setsuna, able to put up with the looks and names of the more cruel of our school. I admit that I am not perfect, but that is something I would like to achieve. My sister told me once though, that the sword is nothing all what matters. Somehow, now, I may be able to put that into perspective."

Motoko bowed her head and blushing a bit, said, "Setsuna-sempai, will you help this lost Ronin find her way back home?"

Setsuna blushed and bowed deeply. "Motoko-sempai, I only wish the same from you. Let us work together."

For the first time, Motoko was able to smile once more.

"This way," said Kaede as she darted across the ground, nimbly running across the rocky terrain as Negi and Keitaro flew behind her. "I can feel the wind. It is saying that there has been live steel in this direction."

"Not a ninja girl my ass," muttered Keitaro into Negi's ear and Negi bit back a chuckle.

Rounding a grove of trees, Kaede came to a halt and the pair landed close behind. "Did you find them?" asked Negi and then pulled up short.

Lying next to a campfire that was on its last embers were Motoko and Setsuna, cuddled up for body heat. "Aaaah, that's so cute!" Exclaimed Negi as the girls stirred from slumber.

"Mm? Sensei! Negi-san, Kaede-san! What are you three doing here?" asked Setsuna, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

"We were worried so we came looking for you," said Keitaro as he looked around the ruined training ground. Many trees and rocks were felled around the area, a sign of either heavy training or a tiring battle. "Are you two all right?"

"Yes, we're just tired from training all night," said Motoko as she got up from were she lay. "Bastard, er, I mean, Keitaro, I'm sorry for attacking you."

"Ah, no damage done," said Keitaro and Tama-chan Myuhed from his shoulder. "So, are you two ready to come home now? We're a day and a half out from Hinata City."

"No, not just yet," said Motoko. "Setsuna-sempai has been teaching me."

"Eh? Since when did Setsuna-san become your elder, Motoko-san?" asked Negi. Kaede cocked her head in curiosity as well.

"There were many things I needed to learn still," said Motoko. "You see, there was a strike that my older sister taught me, but I never mastered. Maybe today, we will be able to do it."

Setsuna smiled. "It is called the Evil Cutting Blade, Second Form. To protect the innocents that may be in a battle, the Shinmei Ryu developed this attack in order to quell the aggressor without damaging the person in front of them who could be used as a shield. If you would be so kind, Keitaro-sensei, we could use your assistance."

A moment later, Keitaro cried out, "Is this the meaning of assistance!" as Negi and Kaede cheerfully tied him to a rock overlooking the small waterfall.

"You can survive this easily," pointed out Kaede with a smile.

"Now, prepare yourself, Urashima!" exclaimed Motoko as she aimed her weapon at him. "My weapon is ready, and my success rate is growing!"

"WAAAAH! I don't like the sound of that!"

"EVIL CUTTING BLADE, SECOND FORM!"

The blast of chi arced out and Negi and Tama-chan jumped away in a panic as Kaede simply seemed to slide to the right. The attack impacted and there was a slicing sound. As the blade of chi dissipated into the waterfall, Keitaro's glasses suddenly exploded outwards as the rock fell apart in two neat pieces.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaa... I thought I was going to diiiiie," moaned Keitaro, slumping to the ground.

"YAY!" Exclaimed Negi happily. "Motoko-san you did it!"

"Sempai," said Setsuna with a brilliant smile. "You did it."

"Yes... thanks to all of you." Said Motoko as she grabbed the others and laughed.

"Wow, this was something of an adventure," said Negi with a laugh as they soared overhead. With five people, it was a bit more slow going, but they were in no rush to get back home. "To think we came so far. It's going to be another day or so before we get back."

"I think it's good at least, that we're not hurrying," said Keitaro. "I'm sure the girls are happy to be in a man-free zone for a day or so!"

"Yeah. Hey, what's that?" said Keitaro as they slowed to a stop. A black object seemed to be moving at a rapid rate towards them.

Setsuna stopped and shaded her eyes. And then, she gaped. "It's a missile!"

"WHAT!" Screamed Keitaro and Negi as the black missile with an eye stuck onto the top plowed into the pair, sending them plummeting to earth. There was a flash of movement and Kaede caught Negi and Keitaro crashed to the ground.

"Keitaro! Are you all right?" called out Negi as Kaede leapt to the ground.

Motoko walked over and pulled the missile free of Keitaro's head where it gushed some blood like a fountain. "It is a message pod," she said, pressing a button on the side. A screen opened up and there was a picture of Su as there was numerous explosions in the background.

"Everyone! Some weird people stormed in and kidnapped some of the girls! Naru-yan and the others are chasing them but they're headed for Kyoto!" Su ducked and there was a tremendous explosion. "Launching now! Get to Kyoto!"

In a burst of static, the recorded image ended.

"Kyoto," said Setsuna. "We're already in the direction. How much further to the nearest Shinkansen platform?"

Kaede looked around and pointed. "That way, about three miles. There's a town where you can hop a ride."

"Someone attacking the Hinata House?" asked Keitaro. "Why would they head to Kyoto though?"

"I can only think of one thing," said Setsuna, her expression grim. "Someone has kidnapped Konoka-ojousama."

"Eh? But why her?" asked Negi.

"Konoka-san is the daughter of the head of the Kansai Magical Association." said Motoko. "In her blood lies incredible untapped power, possibly greater than the Thousand Master's. We need to hurry, there's no time to check on the others at Hinata House."

"But we can't leave anyone injured there!" Protested Keitaro. "Shouldn't we call someone to check on them?"

"You're right," said Motoko. "But I doubt anyone brought a cell phone with them."

"I did," said Kaede as she fished out a flip phone. "What's the number of Haruka-san's teahouse?"

"Lower Hinata Tea House," said Haruka, picking up the phone.

"Haruka-san, we just received Su's message pod. What happened? Is everyone all right?"

"Most of them are fine," said Haruka as she stirred the potion set before her and then dipped a teacup into the liquid. "Some of them got caught in a petrifaction attack but I have some potions to cure that. Seta arrived to help drive them back but they took Konoka and grabbed also Shinobu, Nodoka and Haruka in the process. I think some of them aren't exactly smart enough to notice who is who in a dust cloud anyhow."

"Where is everyone right now?"

"I'm just curing Kitsune now," said Haruka, pouring the potion onto Kitsune's head. "The ones still here are Yue, Kitsune, Makie, Ku Fei and myself. Seta took Asuna, Naru, Su, Sarah and Kamo in order to catch up. You'll have to jump a Shinkansen to Kyoto and then head towards the Kansai Magical Association to rescue the girls still in their clutches."

"All right. Keep an eye on them, Aunt Haruka. We'll be back as soon as possible with the girls."

As the phone line cut, Haruka sighed. "Don't call me Aunt."

"We need to hurry and catch up with the Shinkansen," said Negi as they flew at top speed towards the nearest town. Setsuna, Motoko and Kaede took to the tree branches and were running along at a steady clipped pace. "What would they want to do with the power of Konoka anyhow?"

"Anything ranging from summoning a high level demon to even using her power to conquer the Kanto Magical Association." Said Motoko as she leapt to another tree branch. "The Shinmei Ryu are designed to combat this sort of uprising, but this is the first time that these mages have acted so openly since the Great War. We can only stand to assume they know what to do, because the grounds of Hinata House and the area around it is highly magical. There's enough magic there to place even the most unbreakable spells onto it for a hundred years or more."

"Right. Keep your eyes peeled. I'm sorry you were dragged into this, Keitaro-san," said Negi.

"Naw, it's okay. I have Konoka in my class. It's best it happens now than later on without any reinforcements," said Keitaro. His tone was calm but his expression was dark and angry. "We'll catch up, we have to."

"There!" Called out Kaede as they burst out of the trees and reached a train track. In the distance was the Shinkansen which was zooming along. "It's too fast, we'll have to get on it while it's moving."

"WHAT!" Screamed Keitaro but they were off, running parallel to the tracks once more.

Kaede was the first one to make the jump as the train slowed just enough to make the curve, followed by Motoko and Setsuna. Negi simply landed on the top of the train and the pair clambered down onto the back of the train. With a single slice, Setsuna slashed open the door and there was a whistle of escaping pressure as they swung inside. "Oh god, I thought I would die for sure," gasped Keitaro. "And you three! What was that, jumping onto a nearly 200 Kilometer Per Hour moving train!"

"Focus," warned Motoko. Peering around, she nodded. "Looks like this is a normal train. Let us rest until we reach Kyoto."

With a sigh, Negi slumped to the ground. "Right. Like today couldn't get any worse."

"It's a nice day for a drive," said Seta as he calmly weaved in and out of traffic. The others in the van were not too enthusiastic about this proclamation as Seta liked to drive like a maniac.

"We're gonna DIIIIIIIE!" wailed Asuna as the van popped onto two wheels and slid in between an oncoming pair of semi trucks. "Who decided to take the van!"

The van landed on both wheels with a jump as they careened over a cliff and righted itself on a lower part of the road, cutting off several vehicles at the same time. "I see them!" exclaimed Su as she pointed towards several figures running out of a train station in the distance. Four girls were slung over their shoulders and Seta smiled grimly.

"Theatre Village," said Seta. "It's a good place to hide because it's out of the way and anything odd is passed off as a movie production or an act. Hang on, I'm about to make a grand entrance!"

"We're gonna DIIIIIIIIE!" wailed Asuna once more as the van leapt over the curb in a tight spinning motion and with a bone-jarring thud, landed neatly in a parking spot. The hood popped and the radiator hissed but other than that, the van survived intact.

Kicking the door open, Seta leapt out, followed by Su and Sarah who were grinning widely. Naru stumbled out of the van, as with Asuna. Kamo made no pretence to hide his illness and threw up in the bushes.

Wiping his face, Kamo scampered up to Asuna's shoulder. "Where did they go?"

"Hmmm... if I know them, they'll be hiding out as part of a production to make their way to a more defensible area," said Seta. "Girls, I hate to ask this of you but you have to follow my lead."

"Right, we'll do it to save them!" cheered Naru and the girls pumped their hands into the air with a resounding "YEAH!"

A few minutes later, Naru looked at her costume and made an "Urgh, this isn't what I expected mind you."

"Aw, I think it looks cute," said Asuna as she checked out her own reflection. Asuna was dressed a gi and hakama similar to what Motoko wore but with more embroidery on the sides and the pants were a deep rich violet with the top was a stitched pink. Hanging on her side was a reversed blade sword and her hair was tied back in a ponytail with her bangs all mussed up. The sword was the only real dangerous thing on her as it was marked with a Su brand label and was guaranteed by Su to cut through twelve inch battleship steel. The open hakama showed that Asuna had to bind her breasts and while letting her chest wrappings display how small she was, it was a bit of an amusement point on who she was dressed as.

"I didn't think Theatre Village put out Anime-based costumes," remarked Naru as she examined her reflection. Dressed in loose pants with a tight black top and a shoulder guard that had a lion's head on it, Naru hefted her Su brand giant buster sword. Her own hair was tied back and then mussed up into a style that had spikes sticking out. Kamo sat on her shoulder dressed as a miniature Red XIII. "We're in cosplay city, not Theatre Village," moaned Naru.

"Aw you look cute as Cloud Strife," said Asuna with a grin.

"Are you two done yet?" Cried Su as she kicked Asuna in the head. Su herself was dressed in the Akira Toriyama version of Son Goku, complete with her blonde hair messed up into Super Sayajin spikes as she proudly displayed the log of Kame on the back and the front. Hideously loud orange was the theme for her and Su was jumping around like she was a monkey tailed alien as well. Sarah then emerged from the dressing room, proudly bearing the fact that she was now dressed in forest green with a cap and tights. On her back was slung a blue hilted sword and shield, also Su make.

Naru giggled. "Son Goku of Dragonball Z and Young Link of Majora's Mask?"

"Stick with the classics," quipped Sarah. "My Master Sword is old school!" To prove a point, she drew it and fired a bolt of energy from the blade, shattering a wall into splinters. "I have a full Link Arsenal too!"

Asuna's eyebrow twitched in disbelief. "When did you get the chance to MAKE any of this, Su?"

"It's easy for a super genius like myself!" Cackled Su.

"Oh, are you girls done yet?" asked Seta, sticking his head in. "Ah good."

"Wow," said Asuna, swallowing. Seta had managed to find the time to shave and he was dressed in a set of robes that seemed both ornamental and functional. At his side hung a haft of wood and Seta smiled, bowing. "You, um, you make a very nice looking Katsuhito Masaki, Seta-san." Stammered Asuna, bright red.

"Good! I was hoping I could pull it off," said Seta. "Come now. We need to siege the castle where the lovely ladies are being held."

"You IDIOTS!" Shouted the shapely woman. "I said Konoka-ojousama, not Konoka-ojousama and three little girls!"

"But boss, they look the same in the dust," protested one of the Oni. The captive girls looked at each other in disbelief. With the faint resemblance between Nodoka and Shinobu and the long hair of Haruna and Konoka, it was a wonder that they managed to grab Konoka.

"RRRRRRGH," snarled Chigusa. "Well at least you got Konoka-ojousama. But hold onto those little girls. We may need to use them as bait."

"What the hell are you talking about with us being bait?" Snapped Haruna angrily. "Just who are you anyway?"

"Oh? You don't know? Well, I'll just let you in on a little secret. Little Konoka-ojousama here has vast untapped magical potential and we want that for our purposes. You see, you scum from the west took everything from the East and I don't like that. In fact, I think it's a good thing that you'll probably all be sacrificed to our purposes. How does that sound?"

"You're mad, lady," said Haruna.

"Am I? Well, I may be a bit unstable. But that makes things more fun."

As Chigusa walked away, the Oni dropped the girls onto their backsides and left them tied up. Shinobu sighed and said, "So... this is new."

"We can't just let this woman do what she wants!" Exclaimed Haruna. "Konoka, they said you have magic, right?"

"Um... yes?"

Haruna gaped at her and Nodoka made a squeak of surprise. "You... you mean you DON'T KNOW!"

"No, not really," said Konoka. "Daddy never said anything like this before. I didn't even know I was in danger until yesterday."

"Oh this is PERFECT!" Haruna laughed ironically. "It's like out of a manga. So... any idea on how to get out of this?"

"Well, if Konoka is magical, couldn't we do a pactio?" asked Shinobu and the girls blinked.

"A pactio?" asked Nodoka.

"I don't know if it will work, but Su made a pactio with Negi-san. It's sort of a way to bind a wizard and a protective partner together in order to form a combat team. If that crazy lady says Konoka is magical, then maybe..."

"Hmmm... any benefits from this?" asked Haruna.

"Su got a giant gun."

"Point. All right, try it out!"

Shinobu blushed as she scooted over to Konoka. "Um, this is going to be a little weird... after all..."

"Shinobu-san?" asked Nodoka.

"I need... to kiss Konoka-chan in order to activate it," said Shinobu and Haruka and Nodoka fell to the ground in shock.

"WHAT! What kind of crazy thing is that?" demanded Haruna.

"It's better than sitting here and swapping blood!" protested Shinobu.

Konoka blushed heavily. "Well, actually, it doesn't sound so bad."

"Gwa..." chorused Nodoka and Haruna, leaning to the side with large wide eyes.

"Right... Well, here we go..."

Shinobu leaned in and Konoka leaned forward. Their lips were centimetres away when someone cleared their throat. "Forgive me for interrupting the love fest you two, but shouldn't you concern yourself with getting out of here?"

The pair of girls jumped as they looked over to see Asuna grinning at them from the window. "Hey."

"Asuna-san!" Exclaimed Nodoka. Asuna grinned, leapt into the room and drew her sword.

"Hold still you guys," said Asuna, severing their bonds. Helping the girls to their feet, Asuna gestured towards the door. "C'mon, Seta-san and the others should be making a distraction right about now."

With a thunderous boom, the foundations rocked.

Naru's sword cleaved through the nearest Oni as she wielded it like it was a piece of paper. Inwardly she marvelled at the construction of the weapon as she spun on the next few Oni. When Sarah had dropped a few Bomchuu's onto a suicide run into the castle, what Seta called Oni poured out of the castle. Many people still stood around watching what appeared to be a random play or act. Spinning the sword in the way Su showed her and stowing it on her back, the gemstones imbedded in the weapon glowed as she thrust out her hands. "THUNDER!"

On the sword, a small antenna rose and there was a thunderous crack of lightning that blasted straight through her gauntlets. It wasn't magic, not by a long shot but Su did the best she could. For a moment, Naru could have sworn there was a number value popping up above various Oni head when they scythed through them with weapons and "magic".

Sarah was in a brawl with a pair of giant moblin-like bruisers. The smaller girl at first seemed outmatched but clearly she could handle herself from the years of living with Seta. Ducking and rolling behind one, Sarah slashed upwards and kicked out, knocking the Oni into the other one. Aiming her sword, she blasted bolts of energy that sent them back to where ever they came from with explosive force. Pulling out a boomerang from her seemingly endless pouch, Sarah yelled "DOWN!" And hurled it.

Naru ducked as the boomerang arced overhead, smacking five at a time and ricocheting around heads and stunning many. They were then easily dispatched by Su who had taken to abusing her "Sayajin Powers" with attacks taken from all points of any of the anime. Su definitely enjoyed the fight as demonstrated by her over use of flight and "ki" attacks. Seta of course, easily handled anyone, taking to almost cheerfully ducking and weaving around, the blue blade of the faux "Tenchiken" cleaving in glowing arcs.

"This reminds me of the time when Haruka stumbled upon the brass demon horde of nineteen eighty seven," said Seta, easily dispatching two more Oni. "Forty, no, maybe fifty brass demons from the ancient times, at least ciria 2000 BC. It was me, Haruka, Tara and Nagi. Wow, that was fun actually. Nagi sort of looks at me and says 'I'll take the ugly one' which was funny because they were all ugly. But he then holds up his hand and what does he do? He Magic Archer's them for a hundred bursts. He had barely ANY spells under his belt but he manages to take out fifteen of them. Tara now she was a juggernaut and knocked off more than Haruka and I did.'

"Nice time for a history lesson!" Snapped Naru. "Augh, get off!"

Sarah pulled out several bombs and hurled them into the crowd of Oni. More came to fill the spots and she sighed. "Man, they keep coming. We could use some help from here."

"Rastil Maskil Magister! Twenty Spirits of Light!"

Blinding shots of light rained down onto the Oni, driving huge holes in their ranks as Negi and Keitaro landed on the ground. The crowd cheered at their entrance as Negi laughed and said, "You were right, Keitaro-san. They really think it's a production!"

"Yeah, so lets cut loose here," said Keitaro. A moment later, he was running away from a horde of giant Oni. "AUGH, HELP ME!"

"Evil Cutting Blade, Second Form!" The burst of chi ripped through the Oni, passing harmlessly through Keitaro. Motoko gave Keitaro a look and said, "Stay out of the combat zone, Urashima. If you want to live that is."

"Er, right." said Keitaro, walking to the crowd. Kaede smiled and she sort of vanished into the pack. A group of Oni were then suddenly blasted upwards.

"Shall we, Setsuna-san?" said Motoko as she drew her sword fully once more.

"Yes, Motoko-sempai," said Setsuna, a smile on her face. With a yell, the two Shinmei Ryu swordswomen charged headlong into the fray.

Asuna's sword flashed as an Oni fell and vanished into mist. "C'mon, this way," said Asuna, leading the pack of girls down the stairs.

Reaching the fourth level on the castle the five girls found themselves in a wide reception room. "Which way?" asked Konoka.

"As far as I'm concerned, this is the end of the line," said Chigusa, sliding out of the darkness. With her were two boys about Negi's age and a girl dressed in a cute pink dress and wide hat. Behind them, a large Oni held a bow and arrow and it was taut with a wicked looking spear-like arrow notched onto it. "Fu fu fu, you didn't expect you could escape now, did you?"

"Geh," said Asuna. "Get to the side, I'll deal with her."

"You? A girl with nothing but a sword? Don't make me laugh. Fate, please take care of them."

The white haired boy walked forward and he started to chant, moving his hands in arcane patterns. Asuna, recognizing the chant that petrified some of the people at the Hinata House, charged with a yell. The boy finished his spell and pointed a finger as a beam of grey magic ripped through the air and it exploded right in front of Asuna. "It is done," said the boy named Fate.

"RRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Fate barely had a moment to realize his opponent was still alive as Asuna tore out of the cloud, sans clothing and her sword was pure stone. But with a shout, she ripped through his protective barrier and sent him flying across the room and through a wall. Chigusa threw up a barrier but another slash ripped through her own barrier as Asuna delivered a vicious spinning kick that sent her flying.

"What the hell are you doing you stupid Oni!" demanded Chigusa from the floor. "And you two! Do something!"

The pink clad girl shrugged and said, "I'm just here to deal with any Shinmei Ryu people."

"Meh, I don't fight girls," said the second boy.

"You said not to shoot unless Konoka-ojousama moves. She hasn't moved," said the Oni.

"Idiots, all of you," growled Chigusa. "Fine! RETREAT!"

Shrugging to each other, the pink clad girl and the other boy leapt out the window as Chigusa flew away with the Oni. The white haired boy had vanished from where he had fallen.

"Well that was one of the more interesting rescues I've experienced," quipped Haruna.

"Well, that settles things," said one of the Oni, suddenly stopping. "We were just sort of hired to slow you guys down but it looks like the woman who called us is fleeing. So later."

The Oni vanished into mist as Asuna and the girls walked out of the room. Asuna had found a discarded kimono robe and wrapped it around herself. "Hey!" called out Shinobu.

"Everyone, you're all right!" Exclaimed Negi as the spectators cheered wildly.

"Konoka-ojousama!" cried Setsuna. "You are not hurt?"

"Of course not, Sechan, you were coming to help me!" said Konoka brightly.

"Ojousama..."

Naru coughed into her hand. "So, we got the girls back. Now what?"

"Well, since we're here, why not we go visit Nagi's old place?" said Seta. "I doubt we'll run into problems later on and I'm sure Negi would like to see where his dad hung his hat while here."

"HUH!" Exclaimed Negi. "You mean...?"

"That's right," said Seta, puffing on a cigarette. "My friend who vanished fifteen years ago, was none other than Nagi Springfield, the Thousand Master."

"My... father..." said Negi.

"Well then! Everyone back into the van!" Exclaimed Seta and Naru and Asuna shared dreaded expressions.