Chapter 61: Old Friend

"Wait, Dai... you're comin' ta Tokyo this weekend?" Kousaku asked, slipping into his Kyushu accent as he talked with his childhood friend.

"Mhm. So, let's see how ya've done with our little bet," his childhood friend/rival replied from the other end of the line.

"Hey, wait a minute! I was s'pposed ta have another few weeks!" Kousaku shouted at the phone.

"Eh, it's yer sixth month. We said six months. It counts," Daisuke replied, his smug grin audible over the hundreds of kilometres of copper wiring. "See ya Sunday!"

Before Kousaku could protest there was a click. Then the disconnected sound started.

What was he going to do now?

"A yen for your thoughts?" Nabiki said as she walked past down the hallway.

Kousaku shivered as the beautiful middle Tendo girl raised an eyebrow at him. It felt like staring down a tiger.

"Uh, well... I kinda—kind of made a bet with my friend back home," Kousaku explained.

Nabiki nodded. "I'd gathered that much. What was the bet about?"

"I, uh, if I could get a girlfriend in six months," he muttered, twiddling his thumbs in an attempt to seem innocent.

"Ugh," Akane's voice grumbled as she walked past from the kitchen. "Talk about a dumb bet."

She was wearing her gi, with a t-shirt underneath. A bit of sweat was running down her skin in a way that Kousaku found rather distracting. How she looked so good in such simple clothing, he'd never understand. Girls were on another level.

"Yeah, I, uh... I didn't realise how intimidating Tokyo girls can be," he said, glancing between Nabiki and Akane.

Akane rolled her eyes and started heading upstairs.

"1500 yen an hour and I'll pretend to be your girlfriend," Nabiki said with a smile. She also said it just a little too loud, as if she was trying to make sure Akane could hear from the stairs.

"I'm not paying a girl to pretend to date me," Kousaku muttered, crossing his arms in a huff.

His eyes then betrayed him, by drifting up to where Akane had just vanished from view. Swallowing, he nodded to himself and started heading towards the stairs.

"1200 an hour is the lowest I'll go," Nabiki called out as he climbed the stairs. "You'll have to grovel for that rate, though."

Kousaku's knees almost failed him as a wave of nervousness washed over him, but he resisted and headed to Akane's door. He gave it two sharp knocks and then waited. Akane opened it a moment later, having shed her gi top, but still wearing the pants and the t-shirt underneath.

"Yes?" she asked, an eyebrow raised.

"I-uh... Wouldyouliketogooutwithme?" he blurted.

"Oh, how romantic. You think I'm low hanging fruit. No, Sakamoto, I'm not going to date you just so you can win your bet," she replied flatly, closing the door in his face.

"It's not just about the bet!" he shouted through the door. "I've thought you were beautiful since the moment I first saw you. Intimidating, but all the more wonderful for it. I just need the bet to shove me into actually taking the plunge!"

"Sure, I totally believe you," Akane called back through the closed door.

"You're perfection on a level I could never truly feel worthy of. I will try to at least make myself worthy of your pity! I'd never stop trying to be enough to bow before you."

The door opened, revealing that Akane had changed into a baggier t-shirt and loose track pants. "I'm a human being, Kousaku. Also, I'm a human being with math homework to do. Just give Nabiki the money she wants, and then worry about finding a girl you can see eye to eye with after."

Kousaku stammered, unable to find words as Akane closed the door in his face once again.

Ranma lit up at the news Tsugumi had given her after school. "It's over? I can go back to guy mode?"

The eldest Oozora sister nodded. "Judging by what you've said, yes. I think it's safe to say you got through your period."

The redhead let out a sigh of happiness. The pain being over was nice, and the freedom of changing again would be delightful.

"I wonder how long the waterproof soap is gonna take to wash off," Ranma said, scratching her chin. "Well, I'll find out after school today."

Ranma let out a soft moan of joy as he changed back. He'd missed... him. He didn't dislike his girl side. Far from it. But he needed variety. Just like eating the same meal over and over again would bore anyone eventually, no matter how good of a meal it was, having the same body and being pushed to present the same gender day after day was something Ranma couldn't handle anymore. Not after being given the power to escape it.

Stepping out of the furo, a towel wrapped only around his midsection and legs, he found himself tackled by Hibari.

"I haven't even gotten dressed yet," he protested as she clung to him.

"Or is it that I haven't gotten undressed yet?" she asked, looking up and wiggling her eyebrows at him.

"Don't you still have a couple days left until you can wash your soap off?" he asked, confused. "An' I didn't think ya'd be in any rush fer that anyhow?"

"Your immunity to innuendo continues to baffle me," she said, staring up at him. "It's a good thing both your faces are cute. Missed those pects, too."

"So you don't want to use the ba-oh. Oh. You meant-is that safe to do on your period?" Ranma asked, as Hibari stopped clinging to him.

"Um... I think so? I don't see why it wouldn't be, but... I'm not totally sure. I guess I should ask Tsugumi. Or Cologne..." Hibari replied, looking thoughtful as she leaned against the wall.

Ranma nodded, before glancing down at his clothes. Then back at Hibari. "So, uh... did you want to leave so I can get dressed?"

"Nope. I plan to stay and get the full show," she replied with a grin.

Ranma let out a soft chuckle and started changing. He wasn't ashamed of either of his bodies, so didn't mind the audience. Hibari's happy clapping at certain angles led to him laughing and posing a little for her.

Dressed, Ranma headed downstairs, planning to work out his balance again in the dojo. His plans were mildly derailed by spotting Kousaku standing nervously in the genkan (being glared at by one of the Oozora's thugs).

"Yo, Kousaku, what's up?" he asked with a wave.

"Saotome! I was wondering if you could help me out with something?" the tanned boy asked.

"Sure, sure, let's go talk in the dojo," Ranma replied, wrapping an arm around the other boy's shoulder and leading him off.

Kousaku blushed at the contact, some part of his brain still not sure how to register Ranma. He was very thankful he didn't have to deal with that confusion more than once or twice a week.

"So, what did you need?" Ranma asked as they reached the dojo entrance.

"Um, well, you see... I made this bet with a friend about finding a girlfriend, and... uh..." Kousaku began, growing more flustered by the physical contact with Ranma as he thought about what he planned to ask. "Um... I kind of botched asking out my crush."

"Oof. That's rough, buddy," Ranma replied with a nod, before walking over to stretch.

"Uh, yeah... anyhow, we're friends, right?" Kousaku asked.

"Somethin' like that, ya?" Ranma replied, stretching into a tree pose.

"Could, uh... could I ask you to pretend to be my girlfriend for an afternoon then?" Kousaku asked, dropping into a deep and stiff bow. "If I lose the bet I've gotta shave my head, and I already had a whole ordeal about that with the principal."

"If Ranma says no, my going rate is 2 500 yen per hour," Hibari said as she poked her head out from around the door frame.

Kousaku slipped, having not stopped the inertia of his bow when Hibari spoke and ended up flopping on the floor. He scrambled back up to a seated position, cheeks pink with embarrassment at his request being overheard. "I'm not-hey! That's almost twice as much as Nabiki was asking!"

Hibari shrugged. "I guess I'm just more in demand than she is."

"Either way, it feels wrong to pay a girl for something like this..." Kousaku protested as he got back to his feet.

Hibari let out a huff and wandered off, muttering about Kousaku not respecting the 'oldest profession'.

"As a friend, I'll help ya out," Ranma replied with a soft smile. "If you cover my meals."

"Yeah, sure. That would be expected as part of the set up anyhow," Kousaku replied.

"Sounds good, then," Ranma said, his soft smile turning into a full grin.

"Nice, nice. So, it'll be Sunday at 11am at Tokyo Station. My pal is taking the overnight train," Kousaku replied.

"Gotcha. So... did you wanna spar for a bit while you're here?" Ranma offered. "I'll bet Akane doesn't practice ground work with ya much?"

"Oh, uh... I guess," Kousaku replied, trying to ignore those weird feelings bubbling up in him again.

He was never quite sure if he should treat Ranma like a guy or a girl. Grapple practice seemed like something very off limits with a girl, but... well, Ranma was in guy mode right now, right? So it was fine. Surely?

It took about 15 seconds for Ranma to put him in a pin Kousaku had no hope of escaping. That seemed like all the reminder Kousaku needed to think of Ranma as masculine. Focused again, Kousaku did better.

He managed to last 35 seconds without getting pinned in one round of practice.

By the time Ranma seemed to think he'd had a proper training session, the Kyushuite boy was a sweating, exhausted mess. He barely had the energy to sit up. The idea of walking home seemed daunting.

"Feels good to spar with another guy as a guy again," Ranma said, doing some cool down stretches.

"Why were you stuck as a girl for all that time, anyhow?" Kousaku asked as wiped some sweat off his forehead.

"Oh, that's simple. Hibari's sister said that w-that I was just playing at being a girl, because I'd never had a period. And challenged me to try to go through one. It finally ended this morning, so I got to change back," Ranma replied.

"Oh, that ma-," Kousaku said, before he felt the blood drain from his face, as his brain thought about blood flowing out of somewhere else.

The idea of bleeding down there filled him with utter terror.

"W-wait, does that mean you're a girl now?"

Ranma stared at him. "No. I'm a guy right now?"

"N-no, I mean, like, since you had a period. Does that mean you've switched sides?" Kousaku asked.

"Nah. A bit a' blood ain't gonna change if I'm a guy or a girl. Regardless a' whatever Tsubame says. It's not like a girl becomes a guy if she ends up missin' a period or somethin'," Ranma replied, repeating the assurances he'd been told by others. "Shampoo ain't had one in months, with her curse, and she's still very definitely a girl."

Kousaku nodded slowly. Learning that Shui was Shampoo was something else he still found unsettling. The idea of having his masculinity so eclipsed by a girl who was actually a babe like Shampoo...

"Uh, anyway, see ya Sunday mornin'!" Kousaku blurted, before hurrying off.

Things in Wakaba got so much more confusing than in Furinkan.

Saturday had been quiet. So Ranma had gotten an early start Sunday morning. Hibari helped her pick out something cute to wear. Nothing too tight or revealing, because Ranma agreed she'd like to get a little money before giving that good of a show. Ranma did like the mobility of leggins, but they decided to pair that with a pastel striped polo shirt and a light denim jacket for a casual enough look.

The response Genma had to the outfit as Ranma set off confirmed it was feminine enough for her needs today. Ranma then jogged off to the local train station. Things were going smoothly as she got to her transfer point at Toshima station. The station was massive, and a bit of a maze. The fact it was connected to a pair of giant department stores just made things worse.

Taking one wrong turn in the unfamiliar station, she found herself in what seemed to be the men's fashion section of one of the department stores. She was in the middle of debating trying to go outside to find her way around when a familiar voice caught her attention.

"I'm asking you a question, pal!" Ryoga's voice shouted.

The stout lad looked like he hadn't slept in at least two days, judging by the bags under his eyes. The fact that he was yelling at a mannequin led her to suspect three days might be a safer estimate.

"Oy, pork breath, stop yellin' at inano-things that can't talk and take a nap or somethin'," Ranma said, strolling over to the sleep deprived boy.

Ryoga spun to her, mild panic in his eyes. "Ranma? What are you doing in Manhattan?"

"Yer in Tokyo, pig brain," Ranma replied. "What are you doin', wanderin' around like a zombie?"

"I'm being chased by a pink nightmare that keeps insisting my name is Charlotte," he said, eyes slightly glazed over. "She's been pursuing me since Berlin. Chased me across the Himalayas. I think I lost her when I crossed into Brazil, though..."

"Yer ideas about directions make even less sense when yer this tired," Ranma replied, "'nyway, I got somewhere t'be. Try to find somewhere to get some shut eye."

Ryoga nodded. "Good idea... wait."

Ranma hadn't really planned to wait, but Ryoga grabbed her arm as she tried to walk away.

"What are you doing dressed like that," he asked. "Trying to fool some other guy into thinking you're a girl so you can break his heart?"

"For your information, the guy I'm goin' to pretend to be the girlfriend a' asked me to. He needs a fake girlfriend to win a bet," Ranma replied, raising her nose in protest.

"Increasing your web of lies, are you..." Ryoga fumed, eyes narrowing. "Prepare to DIE!"

With that, Ryoga unlatched his umbrella from his backpack and swung it at Ranma. She barely dodged, dropping low as Ryoga smashed through a rack of clothing.

"Can we do this another time?" Ranma asked, sidestepping another swing of Ryoga's.

"NO!" the fanged boy bellowed.

Ranma hopped onto a mannequin's head, looking around for a quick escape route. She only had a split second before Ryoga smashed the stand of mannequins. Ranma bounced from the falling plastic form and slammed into Ryoga's face with a flying kick. She then bounced off, trying to hide amongst the clothing racks.

"Breaking point!" Ryoga shouted, causing a rack to explode.

The shrapnel ripped through the clothing on surrounding racks, revealing Ranma's crouched form. Ryoga then leapt into the air, slamming down where Ranma had been a moment before with one of his diving umbrella strikes. The force of the impact caused a crater. Within a moment that crater spread across the floor and the area just under Ryoga collapsed. The fanged boy fell to the level below. Ranma peaked down and saw that he was at the level of the metro concourse. That certainly made getting to her transfer easier.

Ranma leapt down. Ryoga threw his umbrella up at her before she landed, the red paper portion popping open just as she thought she'd swerved enough to avoid it. She found her small form slammed into a concrete ceiling. She felt something break, but let out a sigh of relief as she began to fall and realised it had been the tiles of the ceiling, not any of her bones.

"Seriously, though, Co-chan," she said, hugging her pained torso, "can we do this another time? This outfit isn't really made for fightin'."

She took a moment to gather her breath as the crowds of subway users rushed away from the fight. Ranma wanted to get a move on, but it was probably best to give bystanders some time to run away before she started leading Ryoga around the station.

"You broke my heart! Losing one outfit is nothing next to the pain you put me through!" Ryoga shouted, rushing over and picking up his umbrella.

Ranma let out a sigh and dodged another strike, glancing towards the directions on the walls. The eastbound platform was behind her. Now she just had to figure out what to do to distract Ryoga.

She dodged another strike as his umbrella slammed into the wall where she'd been standing. She supposed she could also try just fighting him. Ryoga normally took a while to wear down, but if he was operating on next to no sleep... she launched herself forward with a rapid burst of amaguriken punches into his side. Ryoga winced and stumbled a little, but showed no serious sign of being slowed down.

She slipped under another umbrella swing to hit him with an uppercut. That caused him to fall back. Unfortunately Ryoga rolled with the fall and was back in a crouching position again in no time. He did drop the umbrella at least.

"Breaking point!" he shouted, lunging her way with an extended finger.

Ranma dodged, but found herself peppered with rubble from the wall that Ryoga had just blown a hole in. Ranma decided to answer with an ax kick to the back of Ryoga's head before he could turn around. That slammed his head into the dirt behind what had been a concrete wall. Switching feet, Ranma launched a barrage of near amaguriken speed kicks into Ryoga's back, trying to drive him deeper into the dirt.

Pausing for a moment, she saw he was quite firmly wedged into the earth. It was unlikely to hold him for more than a minute, but she could get off the concourse in that time. She sprinted towards the eastbound platform, taking the entire staircase in a single leap. Landing, she hoped a train would arrive soon.

"Ranma! You coward!" Ryoga yelled from above.

Anything further was cut off by the roar of an approaching subway. The train came to a stop, and a swarm of passengers exited, ignorant of the chaos that awaited them upstairs. Ranma slipped between the crowd, noting a few faces confused at the lack of people boarding the train.

Kousaku felt the sweat running down his back as Ranma missed the arranged meet up time. The sweat got worse as Daisuke's train pulled up. Kousaku began to wonder what his plan B was as his short rival spotted him and waved.

The diminutive lad hurried over with a grin on his face. "Hey dere, Kousaku. Wherez the girlfriend?"

"She's running late, I guess," Kousaku replied, eyes scanning the platform for Ranma.

"Mhm, likely story," Itagaki Daisuke said with a waggle of his eyebrows. "Ya sounded so smug about her on de phone last night."

"She'll be here. She'll be here," Kousaku protested as he and Dai walked towards the main entrance area. "She prob'bly just missed her train or somedin'."

"I got de clippers wit me right now, if ya wanna drop de act quicker," Dai replied.

"H-hey! De bet said you had ta have a girlfriend in six months too! You got any proof Nomura-chan acchually said yes to ya?" Kousaku countered, completely sliding back into his Kyushu accent.

"Pfft. Nomura-chan's old news," Dai replied with a dismissive hand wave. "I went for a higher goal den her."

"R-really?" Kousaku asked, despite himself.

He didn't want to know how badly he'd actually lost the bed, regardless of if Ranma took to show up to save him or not.

"Mhm, Setsu-chan and me 'ave been goin' out fer months," Daisuke replied with a grin.

"S-Setsu? As... as in..."

"Saotome Setsu, yep. Da cutest girl in de school," Daisuke said, his grin now reaching from ear to ear.

Kousaku felt his heart do a backflip. "S-S-SAOTOME-CHAN!?"

"Yeesh, I know I'm late, but ya don't have to yell," a voice interrupted.

Kousaku and Daisuke both turned and blinked. Kousaku let out a sigh of relief at the sight of a certain curvaceous redhead.

"And who are ya?" Daisuke asked, leaning in to check Ranma out (with all the subtlety of a dump truck on a one way street).

"Saotome Ran. Kousaku's girlfriend," Ranma replied with a grin.

"S-Saotome?" Daisuke said, suddenly looking rather pale. His eyes slid to Ranma's chest. "Oh, yeah. Definitely a Saotome."

"Q-quit checkin' out hi-my girlfriend!" Kousaku protested.

Hibari sat in front of the tv, watching reruns of old anime with Suzume and eating some chocolate. She'd found having a period gender affirming for the first couple days, but this was day six. It was getting excessive. She could handle it (training with Akane and Ranma had increased her pain tolerance), but she was still a bit tired of it.

"I was just thinking, Ranma-chan is really beautiful, right?" Suzume asked while some commercials played..

Hibari nodded, not sure where the little bluenette was going with this. "She's gorgeous. Either form."

"She's probably out of Sakamoto-kun's league then, right?"

"Yeah, easily," Hibari replied.

"So what if Sakamoto-kun's friend doesn't believe they're dating? And wants proof? Do you... do you think they might have to kiss?" Suzume asked, her face very serious as she asked.

"I... I'm not going to let that happen," Hibari said, hopping to her feet. "Call Shampoo. I need a ride to Tokyo Station."

Nabiki knocked on Akane's door. It took a moment for her sister to answer, the short haired girl dressed in those baggy masculine clothes again. Nabiki was beginning to feel like she should ask about that, but there was a more pressing concern on her mind.

"You really aren't going?" Nabiki asked.

"Going where?" Akane replied, seeming honestly confused.

"To meet up with Kousaku and his friend? To stop the fake date with Ranma?"

"Why would I?" Akane asked.

"So you weren't just being all tsundere about things? I... huh. I thought you honestly liked Sakamoto. You get along with him better than any other guy I've seen you spend time with," Nabiki said, surprised she'd actually gotten things wrong for once. And with her own sister.

Akane shrugged. "I'd be willing to be pals with him, but... he's definitely not my type. And he definitely thinks I'm something I'm not."

Nabiki raised an eyebrow. "I'm going to want to know more about both of those statements, but... later. I have somewhere to be, if you don't."

"Huh?" Akane asked, as Nabiki hurried off to her room.