Send C&C to: oddball22@hotmail.com Find my stories at: www.geocities.com/kaiphantom2000 Ranma 1/2: New Challenges Minor Disturbances Chapter 7 "Find anything?" the martial artist asked his two female companions. Kae shook her head. "Nothing, Tenma-san." She continued to look through the battlefield that was once the rebel army headed by Tendo Senshin. It wasn't a pretty sight. Dead bodies were everywhere, mixed with equipment, weapons, and ruins of tents. Some fires still burned nearby. "By the looks of it, Tendo-san's army put one hell of a fight," Tenma remarked. "More than half these bodies belong to the dark shogun army." His brow creased in thought. "But what I don't get, is the fact that there doesn't seem to be enough bodies." "What?" Kae asked in surprise. Tenma mentally slapped himself. "I mean, there doesn't seem to be enough bodies to account for all of Tendo-san's army." Kae let out a breath. "You mean some of the army survived?" He nodded. "Looks like it. There's only about 200 bodies." Tenma knew he shouldn't have been so clinical in his estimation, but he also knew that if he allowed himself to feel too much at the moment, he'd go numb and shut down. Just like Akara was now. He took a moment to glance over at the youngest Tendo where she was kneeling down next to a tree stump, seemingly in a state of shock. He tried to imagine what she must be feeling, thinking that your family and friends were most likely dead. True, they hadn't actually found the bodies of her father or sisters, but it didn't look too promising. He looked at Kae, who nodded in understanding, before deciding to approach the obviously distraught girl. From behind, he gently put a hand on her shoulder. "Akara, they're most likely still alive. The whole army didn't die here." "This was where my father's tent was, next to this stump," she said quietly. "And my father is a man who would fight to the death if it would save some of the lives of his soldiers." She drew her cloak tighter around her body and shivered. Tenma felt pangs of sympathy, but he knew they couldn't stay here long. Agents of the dark shogun could still be in the area. "I understand how you must be feeling, but-" She cut him off. "You understand nothing!" She turned to face him, standing up and forcing his hand off her shoulder in the process. Her eyes glared at him and Tenma fought the urge to recoil. "My family is dead. DEAD! You can't possibly understand how I feel!" The eyes narrowed. "Spies probably followed us from that inn the night I met you. I told father it was a stupid idea to risk himself meeting a total stranger. In the end, I `convinced' him to let me go instead, so I could minimize the risk to him. But now, thanks to you, not only is my family dead, but the hope for crushing the shogun is ruined!" She turned around and started to stomp off. "Now wait just one minute!" Tenma yelled. "I know you're looking for someone to blame, but make sure you blame the right person. I had nothing to do with this and you know it!" She stopped walking and Tenma used the oppurtunity to continue his vent. "As for understanding, consider this: I never knew my family. For all I know, they could be dead. I have no idea where I came from. The only thing I know is my name, and that's because my master found me with the name sewn into my clothes. Be thankful you had a family growing up. Satsu-sensei was my only family, and he's dead now." He saw her head drop a bit as she abosorbed this information. He took a breath. "The best thing we can do right now is continue on and finish what your father had begun; that's what he would want and you know it." For a few minutes there was silence as neither one moved. Then, slowly, Akara turned around and looked at him. He could still see anger and hate in her eyes, but it was considerably less then there was before. "Of course I'll continue on," she stated. "I'm not about to let the bastards who did this get away and escape justice. You can tag along if you wish, but I warn you not to get in my way." And then she turned and walked off. This time, Tenma made no move to stop her. Suddenly, Kae materialized next to him and it startled the martial artist. "Hey! How'd you do that? Nobody's been able to sneak up on me like that!" What passed for a smirk, flitted across the ninja woman's face. "Sorry. I've searched the field, but I haven't found any survivors. As far as I can determine, the rest of the army must've retreated northward." He nodded and started walking while Kae kept up with him. "It's a good thing that's the direction she's headed then. I doubt she'd listen to anything else right now." "You may be right, but you should go easy on her," Kae advised. "After all, the poor girl's just lost her family. She is going to be hard to deal with for awhile." "You're probably right." Tenma sighed. "Still, it's going to be a rough trip, and she'll need to keep her cool if any of us want to make it through this war alive." Up ahead, Akara glanced back as she left the battlefield plain and entered the forest. Apparently, Tenma and Kae were talking, laughing, and getting along just fine. She felt a momentary twinge as she watched their faces; watched, as they got along. Forcing her gaze foreward once more, she briefly wondered where that twinge came from. It couldn't be that she was attracted to him. Her face darkened. Her fists clenched at her sides, but she released the pressure and deflated. "Daddy, I swear I will avenge you and my sisters," she said quietly, but with conviction. "I will kill the dark shogun if it's the last thing I do." They made camp later that night. After setting up the sleeping mats and starting a fire, Tenma went to take a bath in a nearby stream while Kae went off the scout the area, leaving Akara alone to poke the fire. She had done much thinking that day, and had come to a nasty conclusion when her anger cooled: she hadn't been very nice recently. She had let her susupicion of Tenma cloud her judgement of him. Of course it hadn't helped that the army had been sacked while they were away. Her thoughts also traveled back to the talk she had with her dad before they left to meet with the ninja glan Garou... "Akara," he had said when he found time to pull her away. "It would please your father very much if you could learn to get along with Tenma. My old friend Satsu spoke very highly of his student and it seems the two of you would get along well." She couldn't believe her ears. "Daddy, how can you say that!? You're still pushing that stupid engagement idea?" "Honey, listen. You're 19 now, it's time you began to look for a husband. I may not survive this war and I don't want to die knowing you'll be all alone..." "I won't be alone, I have my sisters. I can understand what you're trying to do, but I'm not interested in boys." Her father sighed. "I'd hope to have to not tell you this, but, I've talked it over with your sisters, and they agree with me, that you're the one best suited for Tenma since you're both the same age and both martial artists. When you come back from your mission, I'm making the engagement between you two official." Akara was so stunned, she couldn't say anything as her father continued. "I agree with Satsu that he is a fine man who will treat you right. He also told me that is was vitally important that the Saotome line continue. Akara, you can't go through life hating men because of that one incident. And you have to trust that your father knows what's best for you." She found her voice. "What's best for me!? No, I don't think so! You just want to use me as a whore for that... that boy! I can't believe this!" She turned her back and stomped off. "I hate you daddy! I'm leaving now!" A tear ran down the youngest Tendo's face, and it was soon accompianed by a few others. "And now I won't ever see him again," she finished softly. She caught the sounds of footsteps and looked up, quickly drying her tears on her sleeve. Tenma was walking into camp wearing only pants, with a towel wrapped around his neck. Heat suddenly spiked in her body as her gaze traveled over his muscular chest. She looked away suddenly to hide the blush, and hoped Tenma hadn't noticed her reaction or her tears. If he did, he gave no sign. Instead, he went over to his backpack and pulled out a shirt, slipping it on before joining her at the fire. Akara tried to banish the feelings that had built up from seeing him shirtless, but they only remained by his continued presence nearby. Akiko ignored them for the moment and pushed on to say what she had been thinking earlier. "Tenma-kun?" "Hmm?" He didn't look up, but continued to study the fire. "I.. I owe you and... apology." "I haven't been very fair to you since we've met. There's a lot that has to do with it, but I can't say so right now." He looked up and blinked at her, then moved to put his hand on her forehead. "Are you feeling alright? Maybe we should head to a town and find a doctor." Akiko's temper flared. "I'm fine!" Her right fist came up and pelted Tenma back. "I'm trying to apologize, you baka!" Tenma recoiled and felt his cheek where she hit him. "Now that's the Akara I know!" He grinned at her and she deflated somewhat when she realized he was joking with her. "Apology accepted. I should also apologize, too. I may not have been as nice or as understanding as I could have been." She sat back down, her anger appeased; for the moment. "I was just wondering if, you know, you'd maybe like to start over... as friends?" She twiddled her thumbs in her lap. Tenma smiled. "I think I'd like that." He held out his hand. "Friends, then?" She took it. "Friends." She released his hand then, and internally debated whether to tell him more. "One more thing. You remember when you first met my dad and he tried to engage you to one of us?" He nodded; he did. "Well, my family talked it over and he decided to make the engagement between us official, not that I'd really marry you or anything. But, he was going to annouce it when we got back." Tenma looked surprised at this, and wondered briefly if Satsu had some hand in this as well. Back when he was still training with his sensei, Satsu had dropped several hints that Tenma should marry, or at least find a girl, but the young martial artist wasn't interested in that, only in continuing his training. Well, there was that one girl in the nearby village. He went over to her restaurant to eat frequently and she had started acting all sweet on him. She seemed nice enough, but she could be a tad possessive and clingy. And all because he happened to offhandedly call her `cute' once. She was a nice friend, but she wasn't what he was looking for in a potential bride. She lacked that inner fire that he liked in a woman. Like Akara had. He blinked. Where had that come from? Akara? Her declaration that she was going to be his fiancee had caused him to look at her in a whole new light. She was quite attractive, in her own way. And... just maybe, he could see... maybe... being married to her. He sighed. She didn't seem to like him, though, so it probably wasn't going to happen. Dimly he realized she was waiting for him to say something. "Yeah, don't worry about it. It's not like it's going to happen now." He saw her facial expression drop. "I'm sorry, Akara! I didn't mean..." She waved him off. "It's okay. He may not be dead, it's just that... my last words to him were less then kind." A new tear formed in her eye, despite her efforts otherwise. "His last memory of me is that I hate him!" She definitely couldn't stop the tears now. Before either of them knew it, Tenma had his arms around her to comfort her as she cried into his chest. To him, it seemed like the only thing he could do to help her. After all, she was probably going to be his fiancee. To Akara, who momentarily forgot herself as the day's events finally caught up to her, she felt oddly comforted in her current position. Her angry words, to both her father and Tenma, her loss of family, and all the other emotions she had bottled up inside came pouring forth in sobs that were almost painfully ripped from her. After ten minutes or so, Tenma noticed that she had quieted down and had actually fallen asleep! Perplexed at this sudden change, he decided the best thing he could do was to place her in her sleeping mat and pull the covers over her, before returning to the fire. Kae silently joined him a few minutes later, but they didn't speak much with the exception of saying good-night. His main thought was of this strange and complex girl that could be distant and angry one minute, then friendly and passionate the next. His other thought flowed in a similiar vein and troubled him even more. Was he actually falling for her? Miyo awoke, gasped a huge intake of breath, and took a moment to orient herself. She was in her bedroom and it was still dark. She sat up shook her head, letting the world return to normal. That had been the longest and most realistic dream yet. She could actually feel the anguish of Akara and the confusion of Tenma, and her heart went out ot them, despite the fact that they had been dead for nearly 1000 years. Kae was still a bit of an enigma to her. Where had the kunoichi come from? And what were her feelings and motivations? The dreams had yet to tell her that. Knowing she wouldn't get anymore sleep, she once again dredged out her notebook and began to record. "Well, how did it go?" Mousse asked as he came down to help prepare the Nekohanten for opening. The twin amazon girls were already setting things up. "No good," LinLin replied. "I think she know I follow her. I lose her after only three blocks." Mousse sighed and began to prepare the kitchen. "So we still have no idea where she goes each night that makes her sleep all day?" The twins shook their heads. "Maybe we should get some help on this. As much as I don't want to admit it, maybe Ranma can..." "No!" came the forceful reply in stereo. "Ranma no good!" RanRan declared. "This Amazon affair, no outsiders!" LinLin added. "Besides, we no really know where Shampoo go each night. Maybe not big problem and big sister Shampoo go back to normal after awhile." Mousse looked back and forth between the two girls, but it was clear he wouldn't be getting them to admit they needed any help dealing with the problem. And he definitely saw it as a problem, since this was not Shampoo's usual behavior, or anything remotely like it. "Maybe Shampoo's cursed form has something to do with it," the Amazon male suggested. "After all, cats do usually go out at night and sleep most of the day." "It possibility," said RanRan, tapping her chin with her fingers. Mousse resumed his prepatory kitchen work and mumbled to himself. "I just hope you know what you're doing. Shampoo's life could depend on it." The magnificence of Kuno Tatewaki strolled down the street in silent contemplation of his romantic life. Once upon a time, that would have entailed deciding between the fearsome Tendo Akane and the fiery pig-tailed girl (or just having them both). Now, he knew the pig-tailed girl as Ranma and he knew Akane's true feelings for him, which were not what he thought. All thanks to a demon named Galfgar. When his clouded mind was freed, he sought out another love and found it in the middle Tendo sister, Nabiki. Why? Mainly it was because she was the only one who took the time to help (usually for a fee) when he needed it. She dragged him to the nurses station to get patched up, furnished him with pictures and information, and was one of the few people who actually talked with him. Not to mention she was quite attractive in her own way. So, he had made use of the Kuno fortune to attempt to win her over. But was that the right move? After all, that approach never worked with Akane nor the pig-tailed girl. Still, Tendo Nabiki seemed to enjoy the attention and money he spent on her, and he enjoyed her company immensely. She may not be a fighter, but she could fight mental battles better than anyone he knew, as witnessed by her latest fued with Soyokaze Kenji. "Excuse me?" a voice broke him out of his reverie. Kuno turned to see a short man standing nearby and looking up at him. "Sasuke? What be the meaning of yon interruption?" `Sasuke' grew red-faced. "I'm not Sasuke! I wish everyone would stop calling me that!" "Surely, thou jests," Kuno replied, chuckling. "Thou art mine manservant, thou can be no other." The Sasuke look-alike visibly calmed himself. "I am not Sasuke. My name is Denoki and I am the student and vassel of Sukebe. You are Kuno Tatewaki, correct?" Kuno nodded slowly. "You are a fighter of some renown and my sensei wishes to challenge you to a duel of skill. Will you accept?" Kuno decided to play along. "Indeed, I do accept." Denoki bowed. "Then if you'll just follow me a short distance away..." Kuno followed the short manservant, who looked a lot like Sasuke, to a small empty lot nearby where he met his opponent. He blinked as he beheld the face of his would-be advesary. "Kuno Tatewaki-san, it is in honor to meet you," Sukebe greeted. "I hear you are one of this districts best fighters." Kuno bowed slightly. "You are too kind. The Blue Thunder is indeed one of the mightiest samurai." "Ah. Then in that case, shall we begin?" He assumed a stance that Kuno had never seen before. Correction, he had seen it before, or at least something similiar. And that time he lost, badly. Quelching his nervousness, he drew his bokken and prepared. Sukebe was on him almost immediately. He awoke sometime later. How much later, he didn't know. A washcloth was on his head and he could detect several people were nearby. "Welcome back to the land of the living, Kuno-baby," came Nabiki's voice. To anybody else, it sounded like her normal voice. To Kuno, it was the normal voice with a little worry etched in. "Where am I?" he croaked opening his eyes. "Wow, you used only three words," Nabiki said, somewhat surprised now. "You must be hurt worse than we thought. But to answer your question, your in the living room at the Tendo dojo. Kenji-chan found you passed out in an empty lot and brought you here." "Could you please stop calling me that!" Kuno could detect Kenji's annoyed voice. Nabiki smirked. "Why of course, Kenji-chan." "Argh! Now that I know your boyfriend's alright, I'm leaving!" Kuno sat up slowly to watch Kenji stomp out. "He'll break soon," Nabiki commented, offhandedly. She looked back at recently awakened kendoist. "So, you mind telling us what happened to you?" Before he could answer, four girls entered the room and it was clear they had been working out. He recognized Akane, but the other three he had only heard about, and had yet to actually meet. Two were supposed to be Akane's new sisters adopted by the Tendos. The last girl he was unsure of. "You're getting pretty good, Akari-chan," Akane said. "A couple more days and we'll make sure you can take that fiancee-stealer." "Arigato," Akari replied, blushing a bit. "I sure hope I'll be ready enough to take her. She's good and I have a feeling I only got lucky last time." Her face turned determined. "But I'm not going to let her take Ryoga from me!" "That's the spirit, Akari-san," one of the other girl's said, the one carrying the strange staff. The other one spoke, the one with the ribbon. "I'm gonna go see if Kasumi-oneechan needs help in the kitchen." "Don't spoil your appetite!" Natsume called after her sister as she disappeared. "Oh, Kuno-sempai, how're you feeling?" Akane asked, turning her attention on him. "It pleases me to hear your concern for my welfare," he returned. "But fear not, for nothing keeps Kuno Tatewaki down for long." Nabiki spoke back up. "We were just getting around to what put you down in the first place. You've been out of it for several hours." Kuno looked downcast. "'Twas a demon in human form. The fiend moved like lightning and I could nary land a blow on him! Since my skills were insufficient to the task, I fear he may well be nigh unstoppable." "He just hasn't run into me yet," came a highly recognizable and haughty voice from behind. Kuno turned to see a pig-tailed martial artist hanging upside from the ceiling. "I would caution thee to beware, Saotome, but sound advice oft eludes the arrogant ones such as you." "Hey!" Ranma objected. "It doesn't matter what'cha say, I say I can take him. Besides, I've been beatin' up on you for long time. It's not such a hard thing ta do." "Ranma!" Akane's voice rang out. "Stop picking on Kuno-sempai! And it would be good for you to exercise a little caution. I swear, your ego know no limits." Ranma dropped down to his feet and rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I think I'll go on a jog and see if I can find Ryoga. He only wandered off a short time ago, so I should be able to find him before dark." "Baka," Akane muttered as her fiancee departed. "Sorry about that Akari-chan." "No problem, Akane-chan," the pig-farmer returned. "I'm okay with Ryoga's directional problems because I know he'll always come back to me. And Ranma-kun only teases him because they're such good friends." Natsume stretched. "Well, I think I nice bath is on order. Would you care to join us, Akari-san?" "That sounds great!" she replied. As they walked off, Kuno could hear her add, "I'm as sweaty as a pig!" --------------------------------------------- Author's note: Real minor thing here for those who don't know. Pigs don't sweat. Instead, to keep cool, they roll around in the mud. It's true, look it up for yourself. :)