Hero Needed

By Kanne80

Disclaimer: Ranma and all characters from the Ranma1/2 series are the sole property of the Queen of Anime Rumiko Takahashi

Chapter 3: To Hire a Hero

Eight hours later Nabiki stepped out of a small private jet on a desolate airstrip and into a jeep that would take her to Ranma's current training grounds. Within thirty minutes she began to see the effects of his training on the landscape; broken trees, deep gouges and marred patches in the otherwise lush and overgrown forest. When she noted clouds of dust and debris she had the driver pull to the side of the track so she could continue on foot.

"Hmm, just like home… only less expensive… at least he is keeping up." She mused as she gingerly crossed a fallen log and into a small clearing. Standing at its edge she surveyed her surroundings for signs of life.

She found him perched in the branches of a tree at the far end of the clearing, one of the few that had not been felled. His pose was a study in relaxation though she did not miss the fact that her sudden appearance commanded his full attention. A shiver ran down her spine as his gaze slid over her and she mentally reviewed her arsenal of persuasion tactics. Slowly, as if approaching a cornered animal, she reached the center of the clearing and raised her hand in a wave.

"Hello Ranma, we need to talk." She was pleased to note that her voice did not shake though she suspected he could hear the frantic pace of her heart as she sent a rare prayer to the Kami for help.

"Talk or negotiate Nabiki?"

"Quite possibly both."

"You don't have anything I want." His statement was flat and simple.

Refusing to be deterred by his demeanor she responded, "That may be true, but you have something I want and I am willing to pay for it handsomely."

"What could I have that could make the 'great' Nabiki Tendo come all this way on hands and knees to ask me for personally? It can't be good seeing as she hasn't yet said what it is."

"I need your services as a bodyguard/bounty hunter. Whichever you deem most appropriate."

"You need me to be your body guard?"

"Actually, I need you to be Akane's bodyguard."

"Isn't that her husband's job?" he asked as he turned his head a little too casually to be believable to her well-trained eyes.

"Akane's never been married." He regarded her a moment then said.

"Well, she's a big girl, she can take care of herself. She's certainly strong enough to take on almost anyone. Why are you coming to me?"

"On most occasions I would agree with you, but it's not a normal guy that's out to get her. And you are the only one I know strong enough to fight him. You are also the next person on his 'hit list'. I figured you'd appreciate the opportunity. He's already put Akane in a coma and Tokyo PD believe he is responsible for the disappearances of four other young women… all of whom you know."

"Who has he killed already?"

"I didn't say he killed them… though they have been missing long enough that you are probably right. Akari, Kodachi, Shampoo and Ukyo are all missing. No one realized they were connected until he attacked Akane and admitted to it on the surveillance camera. Akari was probably the first to disappear. Everyone thought Shampoo was back in China. No one missed Kodachi. It was Konatsu who reported Ukyo missing, at first I thought maybe she had set out to find you again… until the tape anyways...that was four days ago. I have the Nekonron team guarding her for now."

Nabiki watched the play of emotions across Ranma's face as it shifted from shock, sadness, anger, and finally settled on cold rage.

"Who is he?"

"Ryoga."

He jumped down and landed gracefully in front of her then passed her and walked in the direction she had come from, leaving her to follow. Over his shoulder he called "We'll talk about payment on the way… Do you know where he is now?"

Nabiki let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and followed him through the broken brush back to the jeep. "The last report I received said he was in the Sasebo area and that he somehow survived the barrage of bullets that kept him from kidnapping Akane."

"Hmm, I never thought I'd ever go back to Nerima willingly."

"Oh, we aren't going to Nerima. Akane changed her name and moved to the U. S. for a fresh start and to get away from the 'craziness and crazies of home' as she put it… only I guess it wasn't far enough. She's been running a bookstore of all things."

"Oh… guess I'll need to stop for my passport."

"No, that's already been taken care of. It'll be on the plane when we get there, along with your whole 2 bags of clothing."

The jeep ride was a silent one as they watched the scenery slide by, each concentrating on their own thoughts. It wasn't until they reached the tarmac that Ranma broke the silence. He looked at the airplane emblazoned with Biki Airlines on the tail then turned to Nabiki. "Is that actually yours or is it just a coincidence?"

"Ranma, have you ever seen anything be 'just coincidence' with me?" The familiar gleam in her eye made him chuckle a he shook his head and climbed in.

"I'll take that as a 'Yes.' Nice."

"Yeah, it's really more of a convenience than a necessity I guess. But you know… I just love convenience…"

"Same old Nabiki…"

"Hey, I'm not old! And you stink. There's a shower back there if you want to clean up some."

"Let me guess… 5000Y for the shower."

"No, I'll put this one on the house seeing as you let me whisk you away without even stopping to get clothes… Actually there might be some T-shirts and jogging pants back there too…"

They bickered back and forth for a little while and slowly the tension between them loosened as they slipped into old habits.

Ranma left to take his quick shower and found an old set of his shirt and pants waiting for him. The fit was a bit snugger in the chest and arms but otherwise still fit fairly well as long as he left the neck open.

When Ranma returned to his seat Nabiki called a flight attendant to bring a late lunch. When the attendant left Ranma asked the questions he had been avoiding and Nabiki had been expecting.

"What happened? How come no one told me she didn't marry him?"

"She almost did, the day of the ceremony Hapossai tore through the guests on one of his infamous panty raids. He pushed someone who accidentally spilled water on Ryoga… in front of Akane. Suddenly a lot of things made sense and she was furious. She burned the license and almost killed him. It would have served him right if she had chosen to make pork curry for dinner that night. Kasumi even threatened to make him into dinner if he ever came back… Me, I made damn sure every girl in Nerima knew who the 'cute little piggy' really was… Akane was pretty mad at you too you know. After she found out about his curse all the dancing around you did finally made sense and it was obvious that, one, you knew and two, you didn't tell her… By the time she'd had enough time to cool down and think clearly you were long gone. She decided you'd be happier away from Nerima so she didn't try to find you… instead she copied you. That was when she changed her name and left home. Kasumi and Dr. Tofu inherited the dojo after dad died last year."

Ranma let out a low whistle. "Wow, I guess a lot has changed hasn't it?"

"Yep. Sure has. So was she right?"

"Hmm? Who about what?"

"Akane, about you being happier away from Nerima?"

Ranma stopped to consider the question. "Well, there've been times when I probably could have killed for some of Kasumi's cooking… and all the really good fights seemed to happen there but it is definitely more peaceful away from Nerima and without a line of fiancées. No, I guess I don't really miss Nerima."

"I guess I can see why… well, changing the subject, what do you charge for your services now a days?"

"I don't know, I usually get paid in food and board… How about we tally it up to 500,000Y plus expenses later…"

"I guess that sounds fair… we'll tally it up later… make sure you keep your receipts Ranma."

"Yeah, ok."

They lapsed into silence again. A while later Ranma began to doze. Nabiki stood up and went to the back of the plane to pick up a medium sized box. When she came back she balanced the box on Ranma's knees. Ranma woke with a bit of a start. "Huh, what's this?"

"Something I should have given you a long time ago. Open it."

Inside he found bundles of pictures of his younger self and the negatives that went with them. He gave Nabiki a questioning look and she explained.

"I meant to give these to you a while ago but I wanted to make sure I had all of them first. Then you left and well, I just kept putting off finding you. There are still a couple of copies that I couldn't recover… actually I think Hapossai has them. Anyways, I figured they are rightfully yours so… well you do with them what you want. I already returned Akane's to her."

"Oh. Uh, thanks… you don't mind if I burn these do you?"

"Um, well, they are yours so do what you want with them. Although you might want to flip through them first, I might be biased, but some of them are really good and you might like the trip down memory lane…" saying that Nabiki left Ranma alone and headed for the cockpit to chat with the captain.