Innocence of Mine Chapter 6 Ready! Set! Flush!, a ranma fanfic

Innocence of Mine

By Douglas Helm and "Tuxedo" Will Wolfshohl

Those characters that are original and the story "Innocence of Mine" are copyrighted ©2006 ShoujoFiction .com by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl. Ranma ½ characters are copyrighted by Rumiko Takahashi.

This story and our many other stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction dot com domain.

Arigato for the great comments. We have included Japanese Terms (Romanji) resource page on our Shoujo Fiction site for anyone who would like the definitions. For those who hate Romanji under any circumstances, we do have many other stories on our site from which to choose. Only a fraction is posted to FanFiction dot net. Some stories such as our World of Velaria™ series, do not use any Romanji. Please keep those comments coming!

Comments are welcomed and encouraged.

Chapter 6 - Ready! Set! Flush!

After supper that evening, Nabiki Saotome found herself in the unusual position of having her father's undivided attention while Akane was present. Her older sister was sulking in a corner of the dojo and Ranma was pointedly ignoring the girl's bottom lip, which was so far out, it threatened to trip anyone that came near her.

Akane was mad not because her kid sister was there. She wasn't even that upset that Nabiki was showing off her (in Akane's humble opinion) rather lame excuse for a baton twirling routine. She was pouting because her father had informed her that she'd just have to wait until she was ten before she could learn a special kata she'd discovered in an old scroll of Happosai's.

Na-chan for her part couldn't really understand why her sister was mad. On the other hand, Nabiki Tendo thought that Akane was simply jealous of Na-chan's presence. The older girl considered the dojo her turf, and in most cases, it would have been. Their father, however, had been very pleased with his youngest daughter's math score. That deserved to be rewarded.

As a treat to her invisible companion, Na-chan had gathered up her courage and asked her father if she could show him her baton twirling routine. He agreed to watch. Nabiki immediately began her routine but only got a few seconds into it before her father interrupted it. "Hold it, Nabiki." He turned to his other daughter. "Akane!" Ranma snapped. "Come over here, and watch Nabiki properly."

"I can see it fine from over here, Daddy."

"Akane!" Grumbling, she came over and sat in seiza beside her father. "You know, Musume, not learning every single kata that the Kami created by your tenth birthday is not going to kill you." The nine year old mumbled something that sounded like, "Is too," but neither father nor sister could tell. "Na-chan, please show your onee and I your baton routine."

"Hai!" Nabiki happily squeaked and began her routine again. Things soon deviated from the normal into the surreal.

Ranma for his part wasn't sure whether to be slaw-jawed impressed or severely annoyed by his youngest daughter's prowess. The tiny eight year old had started out with a simple ordinary routine but she had rapidly progressed into increasingly more complex moves. The pigtailed martial artist watched the display in awe; his normally shy daughter was demonstrating a confidence that rarely emerged. Now if only he could get her to apply that dedication of baton twirling toward martial arts. That brought up a thought. Was there a martial arts baton twirling discipline? He would have to check into that.

One reason there was such conflicting emotions for the father of two was the fact that midway through another set, Nabiki had suddenly produced a second baton. He made a mental note to ask Mousse if he'd taught his daughter any of the hidden weapon techniques because Ranma couldn't figure out from where she had pulled the second baton. If that wasn't enough, his petite little girl didn't even appear to be paying attention to what she was doing, yet she hit her marks every time. He considered... Martial arts gymnastics for Nabiki? 'Not likely,' he decided. 'No reason for Nabiki to associate with Kodachi Kuno. That girl is nuts.'

Akane for her part was watching in a wide-eyed dazed fashion.

Meanwhile, unknown to either Ranma or Akane, Nabiki Saotome and Nabiki Tendo were having a private conversation about their next day ice skating session. They were debating whether they should try to get Ruri and Minako to come too. Both believed that Ruri could come but doubted that Minako would be allowed.

The baton twirling routine continued for a couple minutes more before coming to an end. "Sugoi!" Ranma praised his daughter while clapping his hands. He became worried when Nabiki didn't respond. She just stood and stared out into space, her eyes slightly unfocused. "Na-chan?" The youngster shook her head as if just waking up and looked around. "Ne, Musume, are you okay?" Na-chan nodded. "I said that was sugoi." Grinning, Nabiki dropped the batons to the mat and flung herself at Ranma who hugged her. "Maybe we should give you a braided ponytail like mine," he teased while gently tugging on one of her pigtails.

"I like my pigtails, Daddy!" Nabiki protested.

"I like them too, Na-chan. You look very kawaii especially with those pink ribbons," Ranma remarked. Nabiki beamed.

It took the youngster a moment or two to spot the fact that she had two rather than one baton. "I did it again?" Na-chan inquired, sounding annoyed. Ranma chuckled.

"That was very good, ne Akane-chan?"

"HAI!" Akane agreed and then added, "I'm jealous!"

The eight year old blinked. "Why?"

"'Cause I can't twirl a baton to save my life. Gomen, Na-chan," the older girl admitted. She hoped to make up for some of the things she'd done the day before.

"You're fibbing!" Na-chan exclaimed in shock. "Onee-chan, that's not very nice!"

"Honto?" the gender-changing man challenged. "Na-chan, let's sit here and see if your onee is telling a fib." The little girl rapidly nodded. Akane was really smart and athletic. It should be no problem for her. To Nabiki, it was a given that Akane could do anything she could do even better. She hoped someday to be as good as her sister. She waited to be impressed. Ranma decided Akane could stand a little humility in this situation.

'Oh man!' the teen Nabiki complained as Ranma helped into a "proper" sitting position. 'Seiza position... Kami-sama, our feet are gonna go to sleep!'

'But Onee-chan, Ojii-sama always sits like this.' The teen didn't bother pointing out that Happosai had about 300 years of experience doing it. 'I hope he gets back soon, Na-chan. Hai! Happosai said we'd get a present. Present?' The teen Nabiki nodded. 'If we did really good on our math test. I don't 'member... He promised to give us a treat. Oh...'

# # # # #

The next day it turned out that neither Ruri nor Minako could go with Nabiki. Ruri had a music lesson that afternoon. As for the little ribbon-wearing blonde, her parents had grounded her for a week. Instead of getting dessert, Minako's parents had decided she would do twenty math problems before being sent to bed early. Her cat figured she should have gotten a spanking and grounded. Neither Ruri nor Nabiki questioned the fact that Minako's cat (named Artemis) could talk. After all, Miko and Niko did and they were bunnies.

Minako later admitted that she would have much preferred a spanking; at least it would be over with quickly. Na-chan, naturally, had a hard time even conceiving of such a notion. Then again, Nabiki had never been punished in that manner that she could remember. Akane had on occasion and Na-chan had always felt badly for her sister after it happened. The teen Nabiki strenuously requested they change topics, say to the lump on Akane's head she'd received from the baton the night before.

'Thank the Kamis!' Nabiki Tendo breathed as the school bell sounded. 'Nani?' Na-chan asked. 'Nothing,' the invisible teen answered in a grumpy tone. Na-chan sighed. 'I hope I stay a kid forever!'

The morning seemed to drag on forever but finally it was time to pack up to go home. Nabiki waved farewell to her seven year old friends and ran out of the building. She was happy to see that both Ranma and Kasumi were waiting for them. Once Akane joined them, the little family headed off to the ice rink.

'I wonder if Azusa will be there?' the older Nabiki mused. 'I hope not! Why? 'Cause she tried to take my skates!' Na-chan frowned as the teenager roared with laughter. 'It ain't funny! Hai, it is. No, it ain't. I was still in 'em! She kept calling me Charlotte!' Much to the pigtailed child's annoyance, her passenger laughed even more. 'Oh don't be mad, Na-chan. You are very kawaii,' Nabiki Tendo soothed.

Na-chan might have remarked on that comment but a low moan from her father caused her to look up. Just then, a massive truck went by throwing water up so that the entire Saotome family was drenched.

Thankfully, Ranma had taken the brunt of the water blast, which had instantly changed the martial artist. Not for the first time, Nabiki Tendo wanted to have a camera fast enough to catch the transformation. She wanted to watch in slow motion as his sculpted muscles, manly chest, and six-pack became soft and sexy curves and large breasts of a fully-grown woman.

Both Nabiki's attentions were drawn to Akane who was cussing loudly. She had changed from her school uniform at school into a T-shirt, sweater, and a favorite pair of jeans. Thanks to the water though, those same jeans made the nine year old look as if she'd wet herself.

"Akane said a naughty word!" Na-chan exclaimed.

"Get a backbone!" Akane retorted, brushing at her damp pants.

"Akane Saotome..." Kasumi began.

"Let's go! I'm gettin' cold!" Na-chan whined, hoping to distract her parent. It worked and the hurried on their way to the ice rink.

# # # # #

Fifteen minutes later, both Nabikis were very pleased by the change of clothes their mommy produced. Kasumi had brought a set of pink leotards, a pink miniskirt, and a white T-shirt to wear under a fluffy pink turtleneck sweater. To top it off, a yellow beret and yellow mittens. Akane looked disgusted when she came out of the changing rooms.

"You're just jealous, Onee-chan," Nabiki observed and stuck her tongue out before carefully stepping out onto the ice and skating slowly away. She liked her skating outfit.

'I like our outfit too, Na-chan,' Nabiki assured her younger counterpart. 'So do we just skate around in circles?' Not that the teen would've minded that but she decided she had better ask in case Na-chan decided she wanted to go play and gave her the reins.

'We can do figure eights, Onee-chan,' Na-chan replied, 'Akane-oneechan can do lots of stuff though. She's REALLY good! She's the bestest onee.'

'Akane maybe, not me. I'd likely fall flat on my face,' Nabiki commented. 'I can skate but...' She had a hard enough time walking in this tiny body.

Akane skated up beside her, and then around her. "Try skating backwards, Imouto."

"Can't."

"Come on, Na-chan. Just try," Akane encouraged. "I tried your baton act." Nabiki looked dubious. She knew how that act had turned out for her sister. "I'll help you."

Reluctantly, the younger girl agreed. After several painful minutes, little Nabiki was skating backwards. The only problem was she could only go in a straight line. Finding this boring, she went back to her regular albeit undemanding skating habits.

"Akane-chan!" Akane looked around. "Hey Akane-chan!"

"Who's that, Onee-chan?" Nabiki asked. She saw Akane wave back at an older girl.

"That Misako. She's in my class."

"Oh..."

"I'm gonna go say hi." When Nabiki started following her, Akane amended, "Alone, Nabiki."

"I can say 'hi' too, Onee-chan."

"She's not calling you," the nine year old argued and then skated away at a rapid rate. Nabiki stuck her tongue out at her sister's retreating figure and then giggled at her own daring before going back to her own skating.

'Could we twirl a baton?' Na-chan asked her older half. And then added as an afterthought, 'You should let your hair grow so you can put it in pigtails, Onee-chan... You'd be kawaii.'

'We could try twirling...' Nabiki interrupted, sounding slightly dubious.

Ranma in girl form, who had been skating backwards while holding his wife's hand, glanced around the rink to check on his children's whereabouts. He was annoyed to find that Akane was not with her little sister.

"Oh don't worry, Ran-chan," Kasumi soothed when her husband commented on the fact. "Nabiki's a little embarrassing to Akane."

"That wouldn't happen if we didn't coddle her so much."

"You want Na-chan in tears most of the time?" Kasumi asked with an eyebrow raised. She stopped and had her hands on her hips.

"Iie," the gender-switching male countered, "But it would be nice to see Nabiki being naughty for a change. She's a milquetoast."

"That's not fair!"

"Hai... Gomen, gomen, 'Sumi-chan, but a strong sneeze would send her ass over an apple cart." Ranma glanced about searching for the timid eight year old. When he saw Nabiki, he tripped over his own feet and the couple went down to the ice in a heap. "I'm seriously going to have a talk with Mousse!" Nabiki had done her "hidden baton" technique again.

Kaji perched on a rafter high above the rink laughed. The demonic arbiter didn't mind lending a bit of magic to allow little Na-chan to do the trick. It was harmless as well as it helped raise her self-esteem. It was time to pay his business partner... correction "little" friend a visit. With a snap of his fingers, he vanished. Time stopped for everyone except Nabiki Tendo.

Down on the ice, the teenaged Nabiki was alarmed to see Kaji appear right in front of her. Small arms and legs flailed wildly as she suddenly found herself in control. She was saved from a fall when Kaji reached out a hand and snagged her.

"Kami-sama! Don't DO that!" Nabiki hissed angrily. "I could get really hurt! Worse, Na-chan could get hurt!"

"Gomen, Nabiki-chan," Kaji replied, sounding as if he meant it. "I just wanted to visit and see how things are going?"

"Ne, did you do this?" Everyone in the ice rink was frozen like a statue.

"Better that way."

"Did you regress Akane?"

"Hai! So how are things going, Nabiki-chan?"

"Good, things are tough but..."

"But?"

"Well... I don't want to complain but Na-chan's just too well-behaved. She's nice and all, Kaji, but I was never this well-behaved when I was little." She didn't mention that she was not this small at this age either.

"Indeed. And your point is?"

"If something doesn't change, she'll be clinging to Kasumi's apron strings her whole life. That isn't good."

Kaji considered and then offered, "Well, I could make you... her exceptionally naughty." The youngster's eyes opened wide. Pigtails and pink ribbons flapped about as the seventeen year old inside the eight year old shook her head. "Don't like that idea, ne Nabiki-chan? That would solve your problem."

"It's... not a problem... It's just... Kaji, I do like having Kasumi as my mommy. I really missed having a mommy..."

"And Ranma?"

"I dunno... He's into 'The Art' an awful lot. Na-chan doesn't like that kind of stuff."

"He could help with other stuff... say somersaults."

Nabiki tilted her head and placed a slender finger alongside her face. "Yeah, that would work." She sighed, "But Na-chan is..."

"A milquetoast?"

"Hai, pretty much," the teenaged Nabiki agreed. "I know you're doing this to show me something about being nice. Fact is though I think it's unrealistic." Kaji cocked an eyebrow. Nabiki sighed. She wasn't making much sense. She looked straight at the arbiter then. "Are you doing that baton thing? Daddy almost had a heart attack."

"Nani? Me? It's you're... I mean her skill." With that, the demon vanished, everyone instantly resumed their activities, and Nabiki Tendo found herself trying to calm a very irate Na-chan who was demanding to know why her onee-chan had abruptly kicked her out of the chair!

# # # # #

"A-KA-NE!" Kasumi called while waving at her eldest daughter. Akane, who had been attempting (and failing rather spectacularly) to perform a double axel, gave her a mother a grumpy look. She was annoyed because she was putting on a show for the others.

"Nani?"

"Come here!" Kasumi ordered, motioning the tween towards the entrance. Reluctantly, the girl skated over. "Akane, go find your imouto. We're getting some hot cocoa and she hasn't come out of the bathroom yet."

"Mommy! Why me?" she questioned while rubbing her bruised rump. She and Misako almost had it right.

"Because you are her onee," Kasumi replied. "Besides, you definitely need a break, Akane-chan."

Fuming, Akane came off the ice putting on a set of indoor shoes after taking off her skates. Misako said she had to leave. 'Baka little kids!' Akane whined silently and then sighed, 'I guess I shouldn't be mad. She is kawaii like this though.'

It didn't take Akane long to find the girl's bathroom. It took even less time to glean that the reason Nabiki hadn't appeared as someone was sitting atop her.

Nabiki had been startled to find Naomi, the bully from school, in the bathroom. The eight year old might not have even been harmed had she heeded the teenager in her head who was shouting to walk quietly away while the bully had her back turned. Na-chan, however, had a determination to be friends with everyone. So she had patiently waited for the bully to turn around.

By the time Akane arrived, the third-grader had pinned Nabiki facedown to the tile floor and had decided to use the youngster's slippers as a set of drumsticks. Na-chan was trying hard not to cry; the bigger girl had threatened to stick her head into a toilet and flush it if she did.

Hope swelled within both Nabikis when they heard Akane's angry voice. "What are you doing to MY imouto?"

"Piss off, little girl!" was the reply.

"Do you know who I am?"

Naomi paused in her drumming, much to Na-chan's relief. "You think you know about some fancy martial arts crap." The nine year old growled. She knew who this kid was. The girl wasn't in her grade but she was a known bully.

"It is not crap!" Akane shouted to the girl who was about of equal height and weight to her.

"That ain't like real fighting. That shit's only for Eta." Akane stiffened. Eta had been the lowest social class during the Shogunate era. Eta were always given the dirtiest, smelliest jobs. "So go away, little girl." With that, the bully turned back to her work.

"ONEE-CHAN!" Nabiki wailed.

Akane acted purely on instinct. Rushing forward, she cocked her fist. The bully started scrambling upwards but wasn't quick enough. The enraged Akane's fist crashed into other girl's nose connecting right at its bridge point. Meanwhile, Naomi got a couple of good punches into her opponent's body before Akane backed away. Naomi began to pursue and as she came into range, Akane pivoted on the ball of her left foot, raised her right in such a way as it was behind the bully's knee and then, heaved with all of her strength.

Nabiki, who had by then had scrambled for cover under one of the washbasins, watched in horrified fascination as her tormentor sailed backwards in a shower of blood to crack her skull on the tile floor. Not one to give an opponent an advantage, the young martial artist pressed her attack. The fight might have gone on much longer but Ranma (still in girl form) came in at that point looking for both his missing children.

# # # # #

A span of minutes later, Nabiki found herself the center of attention. A small group was clustered in the skating rink's infirmary. Naomi sat on one of the beds, her mother beside her, looking miserable. The only damage to Naomi, at least physically was a bloody nose, a small bump on the head, and a throbbing ankle.

Akane was there as well sporting a few bruises. She was trying to be as unobtrusive as possible by standing behind the chair that her mother was sitting in. Nabiki for her part was being cuddled on Kasumi's lap while the little girl retold the events that had led up to the fight to her parents and Naomi's mother.

Ranma, now in male form, was glaring daggers at Naomi. "So you see," he explained once Nabiki's story had concluded, "Akane was just protecting her imouto. I believe this was honorable under the circumstances."

"I messed up, minna," Akane confessed softly bowing her head from her position behind her mother. The nine year old felt embarrassed. "I just wanted her to stop from hurting Nabiki-chan but I let Naomi get me mad."

"Akane, we'll talk about..." Kasumi began but trailed off as Ranma placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I certainly don't blame Akane-chan," Naomi's mother declared. "My Rei-chan would have stuck up for her imouto too. If Rei had been here with us instead of the movies with her friends, this likely wouldn't have happened." She then bowed her head and stated, "Saotome-sensei, please be assured that this won't be repeated. Naomi will be severely punished when she gets home... In fact, I think I won't wait that long."

Nabiki's eyes went wide. "Iie! Minna, it ain't Naomi-chan's fault. It's... It's my fault!"

"NANI?" the adults questioned.

"Well... I must've been bugging sempai." Akane sighed and slapped her forehead in frustration.

"Na-chan, let's go get you changed to go home."

# # # # #

Akane dressed in her gi paused in her stretching exercises as the dojo door opened later that afternoon before supper. She was a little surprised to see her petite pigtailed sister come through it wearing a rumpled and faded looking gi tied with a white belt. She recognized the gi as one of hers from when she was in kindergarten. Moreover, the fact that Na-chan had been crying was obvious because her cheeks were tear-streaked and her little nose was red. She sniffled a bit and wiped her nose with a back of her hand as she inched inside the dojo.

Ranma came in looking determined. "Crying isn't going to get you out of this, Nabiki," he lectured his daughter as he closed the door to the dojo. "Both of my musume are going to learn how to handle themselves."

"But Daadee...!" Nabiki wailed.

"No buts!" Ranma thundered and the eight year old bowed her head.

'Come on, Na-chan... Iie! Why not? 'Cause it's baka and Naomi-sempai got hurt! Akane-oneechan too!'

"Na-chan, go ask Akane to show you how to start stretching." The pigtailed child shook her head.

'Now is not the time to get a backbone, Na-chan!' Nabiki Tendo said in alarm. 'It's wrong?' was the younger voice's retort.

"Nabiki Saotome, I won't ask again."

'Listen to him!'

"I don't wanna learn the stupid Art!"

Much to Ranma's credit, he didn't explode. Instead, he bent down and asked, "You want to be Naomi and Rei's friend, ne?" Nabiki nodded. "Well then, you're going to have to practice with Akane and me, and you're going to have to learn The Art. Naomi only likes people who know it."

'Bullshit!' Nabiki Tendo commented.

"Oh..." was Na-chan's response, "Honto?" Ranma nodded. It made sense. "Hai..." she agreed after several seconds of thought, "But I still don't like it, Daddy."

# # # # #

"Kasumi-chan, am I in time for supper?" Happosai asked as he came into the living room of the Saotome residence.

"Konbanwa. You are back, Master!" Soun Tendo greeted him in a subservient position. "How was your trip?"

"We expected you earlier, ne Tendo?" Genma Saotome chimed in similarly paying his respects to their master. Soun nodded.

"Soun, Genma, I found some very lovely big br..." Happosai started before remembering that Akane and likely Nabiki were there. "Konbanwa Kasumi-chan, girls."

"Konbanwa Happosai-ojiisan," Kasumi greeted. "How was your journey?"

"Wonderful, I should have done it sooner!"

"I see you got lots of 'pretties', ojii," Ranma commented dryly.

The ancient master regarded Ranma who was in female form. "Of course, I did, Ranma-chan." He placed the gunnysack with its precious contents carefully in a corner. "So what's for eating, minna? I'm starved!" He was about to settle himself at the table when a low moan stopped him. Moving around the low table, he found little Nabiki stretched out on the floor on her stomach.

"My goodness. What happened to Na-chan?" Happosai asked. "And why is she wearing a gi?" The introverted child had never shown an interest in The Art, unlike her sister.

"Ranma has decided that Nabiki needs to be instructed in The Art." Genma and Soun shifted slightly, not wanting to draw Kasumi's wrath in their direction.

"I hurt all over!" Nabiki complained. "Ojii-sama, Otou-san is being REALLY mean."

"Ranma, what did you do to my poor kawaii little Na-chan?"

"I just worked her as hard as any new student, Sensei."

"Twice that," Akane still wearing her gi quipped. "It was kinda fun watching though, Daddy." She giggled then but immediately regretted it as her mother focused her glare on her.

"You're still not too old to be spanked, young lady!" Kasumi snapped while giving her nine year old daughter a repressive look. Akane cringed. Even her father wasn't stupid enough to cross Kasumi when she was riled. The mother of two girls was having a difficult time accepting the situation but she was unwilling to argue openly with her husband about it, especially in front of the children. In any event, she was certainly not going to stand for Akane goading her little sister.

"Poor Na-chan..." Happosai soothed. "Ne, what if I taught you The Art instead?"

"Honto?" Nabiki asked. She sat up suddenly making a remarkable recovery.

"Told you she was faking, Daddy," Akane pointed out to her father.

"Bed, Akane, now," Kasumi ordered.

"I'm not done yet, Da..."

"Bed," was all that Ranma said. Annoyed, Akane got up and left the room. Kasumi gave Ranma a long look but didn't say anything. "I'm not going to let you teach Nabiki-chan, Happosai."

"I'm the founding Master of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts. I can take on any student I want. Besides, Na-chan wants me to, ne?"

"Hai!" Nabiki squeaked, following the direction of her teenaged counterpart.

"What a wonderful idea, Master," Genma commented to Happosai.

"Hai, Tendo, a true Grandmaster of The Art..." Soun seconded before bursting into tears.

"Excellent... Since we are all in agreement... Na-chan, you better eat up and then get off to bed."

"Why Ojii-sama?" the little girl asked a bit confused.

"We start training early tomorrow."

"Nani? How early?" Nabiki questioned, eyes growing slightly wider.

"Oh... about 5 AM." Both Nabikis wailed. Ranma just sat silently. The world was being horribly unfair to them.

# # # # #

Akane Saotome crept down the hallway in her pajamas toward her sister's room. She paused near her parents' bedroom door to listen wondering what they were arguing about. She could hear them inside but couldn't make out what they were saying. The fourth-grader didn't waste much time on the matter.

She continued quietly down the hallway to Nabiki's bedroom door. Carefully, she opened it and slipped into the room, which was lit only by a small nightlight and the moonlight outside the window. Padding in her bare feet over to her little sister's bed, she carefully raised the sheets and slipped under them.

Nabiki hair down, wearing her bunny pajamas, and cuddling a stuffed Miko-chan animal cracked an eyelid open and asked sleepily, "Hmmm..."

"Shhh..." Akane cautioned, "Na-chan, it's just me."

"Na...?" the child groggily asked.

"I wanna sleep in your room tonight." Her sister rolled to her side, yawned, and started to fall back to sleep. "Don't be mad at me, Na-chan, please. I wish I could teach you The Art." Nabiki mumbled something and then fell silent. Akane snuggled closer and hugged the younger girl. "I'm YOUR onee."

"Bestest," was Na-chan's final response before falling dead asleep.

End of Chapter 6

Coming next in Chapter 7 - The New Trainee