Part Five

SNAFU'S NOTES: (whips out a pair of shock paddles) CLEAR! *zap* This story isn't dead. It still lives. While I was busy working on my other stories, I was busy working on this one. Then I scrapped the chapter and reworked it again. Rinse and repeat...for FIVE. LONG. YEARS.

Finally, I got to this version. This is number 114 (yes, I counted), and after a brief revision and a touch of chopping and screwing, I'm happy with it. So I decide to run with it. Also, some of the Consequences stories are in the same universe (Mortal Kombat, Love Hina and Ranma), while some are not (Game of Thrones, Naruto).

With Nabiki...

"...and that was Roxy Cage with her No.1 smash hit 'A Cruel Angel's Thesis,'" the radio deejay's voice boomed from the radio. Nabiki had it on an English-speeaking radio station. Even she got tired of listening to J-pop. But she wasn't grooving to the music.

No, she had a deadline to make, one that had far-reaching consequences. Quite possibly even further when she screwed Ranma over. Should she fail, it could mean the end of her family.

No, Yuni wouldn't go as far as to kill them, but there were fates worse than death. Nodoka, on the other hand, had no qualms about putting her head on the chopping block. She had to be careful in her attempt to contact Ranma, despite the fact that the former Saotome quite possibly hate her as much as he hated Happousai.

"It's 15 past the hour, now we got some news," the deejay continued. "Renowned manga artist Cailyn Kurata fought off an attacker earlier in the day. The suspect in question, identified as twenty-nine year-old Naru Narusegawa-Sakata, attacked Kurata whilst she was out with family and friends at a posh restaurant in downtown Tokyo. The wife of archaeologist Dr. Chris Kurata, the female Kurata defended herself to the point in which Narusegawa-Sakata was forced to flee, only to be struck by a delivery van out in the street, killing her instantly. Narusegawa-Sakata, originally an aspirant to Tokyo University, was known not only for having the highest cram school scores in the nation, but is most infamous for her role in framing her former kanrinrin..."

Nabiki felt another headache coming on as she turned off the radio. No, not a headache. A migraine. She had been getting these ever since Kurosawa's ultimatum to bring her Ranma.

So far, nothing. Not hide or hair of the former Saotome. Going to his mother was out of the question. Nodoka had made it clear that if anyone from the Tendous or her ex-husband came within 10 feet of Ranma, then the offending party would be forced to commit seppuku, followed by a blood feud being declared on the survivors.

Nabiki groaned. Most times, when she was alone, she always wondered where did it all go wrong. Six years ago, she was the Ice Queen, with Nerima as her kingdom. No one dared to oppose her.

But Ranma did.

All of the blackmail, the schemes, the family honor that had been showed down his throat, and the numerous fiancees that Genma had put on him...Ranma had snapped.

She had seen the signs following the failed wedding. But she chose to ignore them. Her greed and the fear of losing her cash cow had overrode her judgement.

She wanted to teach him a lesson. But that damned gnome of a sensei had been the proverbial wrench in her plans.

It was the threat of Nodoka bringing down the full weight of the Mamiya clan on her and her family, as well as Genma, that was the turning point.

Her money reserves had started to dry up, and the nightly pup crawls her father and Genma were doing didn't help matters. She had realized that thanks to Ranma's presence, that the various criminal elements stayed away from Nerima. Her kingdom was safe. Now, with Ranma gone, that protection was lifted.

It had started when she was visiting some of her underlings at Fuurinkan High. By chance, she caught one of the new schoolteachers having a private lunch on the school's rooftop with her lover, a man she had never seen. If she wasn't having an affair, then she was violating Fuurinkan's code of conduct, which barred public displays of affection.

The following day, Nabiki confronted the teacher, demanding money for her silence. Nabiki knew that her husband worked for the Japanese government, which meant plenty of money. What she didn't know was that her husband was an assassin employed with the Japanese government.

Then, Kasumi was sent to the hospital. An accident whilst out in the markets. She fell down a flight of stairs, breaking her wrist.

A day later, Nabiki was confronted by the teacher's husband. With a tone of refined malice, concealed under faux politeness, he made Nabiki back down.

Even now, Nabiki remembered his threat. And given what had happened to Kasumi, his threats were far from empty.

"So how is Kasumi? Heard she took a rather nasty fall. She really should watch her footing. Especially with those stairs she takes for a shotcut. She's lucky that she broke just her wrist. Next time, she might break her neck. And Akane? She really should pick a better jogging route, preferably one where there's more people out and about. Lots of accidents happen nowadays. Especially those that can be potentially lethal."

Wisely, Nabiki backed down. There was a difference in making one's life hell and not living.

Right now, she was focused on trying to get in touch with Ranma...without raising the ire of Nodoka and the Kamiya.

With Genma and Soun...

"In retrospect, it was the honorable choice at the time." Genma pulled off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. "But even I could not have foreseen the Master using the moxibustion point on the boy."

"Nor Nodoka's reprisals against those responsible." Soun shuddered as he remembered Nodoka dumping the bloodied remnants of the Kunou clan's weapons onto the table. "The last thing we need is to invoke the fury of Nodoka and her family. But what can we do, Genma? Nodoka has made it more than clear that if any of us that if we do, it's our heads on the chopping block."

"I know that!" Genma slammed his fist on the board, causing the pieces to jump and scatter. He sighed in frustration as he calmed himself down. "I know that, Soun. You should have reined Nabiki in. Most of this mess is her fault."

That much was true.

"She should have given Ranma some time to cool down. Things had been too...hectic following the failed wedding," Genma continued.

"So what do we do now?" Soun asked.

"We need the boy," Genma grunted. "As much as the idea turns my stomach, we need Ranma."

"So how do we propose to making contact with him without riling up your ex-wife?"

"Nabiki has some ideas. Hopefully that worthless son of mine will do what honor demands and help us in our time of need. He may not be part of the Anything Goes school anymore, but he is my son."

"Nodoka might have something to say about that," Soun rebuked. "You signed away your parental rights in the days following Ranma's...fall. At sword-point, if I'm not mistaken, and in your blood."

Genma looked at the back of his hand. The scar from where Nodoka had drove her fountain pen into the back of his hand was still there. Genma had answered a summons by Nodoka and her family, where he was forced to sign a blood oath in regards to his parental rights. "It means nothing. Why should we fall to the whims of some half-breed whore with delusions of grandeur? A half-Japanese is as bad as an Ainu or a burakumin."

Soun flinched slightly. Genma was xenophobic towards the Ainu, and the less said about the burakumin, the better. He had nearly beaten a burakumin man to death back during their days training under their late master. He could almost imagine the rage from Genma if he knew his secrets.

'The half-breed bastard daughters of an Ainu whore with a cuckold for a husband.'

"Soun? What's wrong?"

Genma's voice broke Soun out of his reverie. "Nothing. Nothing," he replied.

"You acted as if your daughters were Ainu or burakumin." Genma laughed. "Be thankful that Kazume was of good, pure Japanese stock."

"Yes. Of course..."

With Kasumi...

Kasumi couldn't help but to think that most of the misfortune that had befallen her family was her fault.

But Genma did have a valid point. Ranma was useless to them, and therefore a potential burden to the two families. She had lost her engagement to Tofuu, which led her into the arms of Samara's uncle.

After that night, Kasumi never touched alcohol again. While Nabiki didn't blame her for losing her rackets, Kasumi blamed herself for losing control.

But now, as she approached her father and Genma with a tray of tea and snacks, she caught the tail end of their conversation. While not as astute as Nabiki, Kasumi immediately caught on to Soun's uneasiness in regards to Genma's proclaimations regarding the Ainu and burakumin. Kasumi also shared the same views, albeit on a much lesser scale.

'Just what exactly was Father hiding?' Kasumi wondered as she served the two old men their midday snacks and tea.

With Akane...

She had punched the wooden training dummy to the point that her hands were raw and bloodied. The pain from Nabiki's slap was long since gone, but the fact that Nabiki had called her a fraud hurt more than Yumi's Silat techniques.

She was no longer the best in Nerima. That title had been taken by Ranma first, then by Mari Kazahana. She was, to the people of Nerima and the martial arts world at large, a fraud and a joke. The Anything Goes School was exposed as a joke and a fraud, also thanks to Mari Kazahana.

Akane slumped to her knees, looking at her damaged hands. She thought she was on Ranma's level. But in truth, she had gotten lucky after Happi caught him with the moxibustion point. Even now, Mari was spoken with great respect, while she was spoken of with scorn. Even the townspeople still remembered Ranma fondly and condemned Nabiki's actions towards the pigtailed martial artist.

Ranma wasn't even a sex-changing freak anymore. The curse was lifted upon death, and Ranma had been legally dead for two minutes before he was revived. Since then, no one knew where he was, his location guarded by Nodoka and her family.

But there was a silver lining in all of this mess. The Kunous were dead and that Chinese bimbo was now a porn star. Akane, however did not know just how deep the reprisals of the Mamiya had gone. She didn't know that Ryouga and Mousse were both dead, and that Nodoka had ordered Happi's execution. Only Ukyou was able to get out of this mess unscathed, as she helped Cologne in saving Ranma.

But Nabiki was right about one thing though. Ranma wasn't around to pull her bacon out of the fire. It took being kidnapped and nearly subjected to a gangrape at the orders of the Suzuhara brothers to realize that. Before the failed wedding, she could always count on Ranma to save her.

It reminded her of what Nodoka had once told her when she was still pressing for Ranma to marry her.

"Kindness and sympathy are tied together. If you trample on the former, then you lose all courtesy of the latter."

Only difference is that Akane didn't trample on Ranma's sympathy and kindness. She took a mallet to it. Repeatedly.

Her hands were starting to hurt. Akane turned and staggered out of the dojo. First things first, she needed to find that first-aid kit. Then, she needed a bath. A long, hot bath.