"Well, I guess we'd better get going." Ranma said. "We still have business at the dojo to attend to."
"I'm coming with you." Ukyo said suddenly, standing up.
"But your store-" Nabiki began.
"I shall tend to the inventory, Lady Ukyo." Konatsu announced as he appeared with the chef's weapons of choice. "They need to know about Akane Tendo's sudden and inexplicable skill increase."
Nabiki arched an eyebrow at that. "What's going on, Ukyo?"
"Call me Ucchan." The chef said dismissively. "As far as what happened, about three months ago Akane started getting real good, real fast."
"A little too good." Nabiki mused, holding the door open as the family trooped out.
"And a little too fast." Ranma frowned. "Looks like the princess found another shortcut."
"That's not the half of it." Ukyo said frowning. "Every time she beats an opponent, within a day or two she's performing those same moves flawlessly, even if she's only seen them. She's got your old moves even."
"Interesting. And what do the other fighters think of this?"
"Cologne has forbidden the Amazon's from fighting her. She already knows the Chestnut Fist and the Hiryu Shoten Ha, and she doesn't want any more techniques in the hands of 'a reckless, incompetent, grandstanding amateur, outsider' as she put it. I refuse to let her steal my school. It's one of the few things I have left."
"I don't like this." Nabiki frowned. "It seems that Akane actually has the skills to back up her claim of Nerima's greatest martial artist."
"Nerima's greatest thief is more like it." Ryoga snorted.
"You have any idea what did this to her?" Ranma asked.
"Nope. P chan hasn't been near the dojo since a month after you left." Ryoga said. "Pity, though. It would be easy to figure out how this happened."
"No matter. If it comes to it, we'll handle her." Kenshiro shrugged as the group walked on, unaware of the eyes watched them from a nearby rooftop.
{"This will be perfect!"} Cologne cackled in Mandarin.
{"Great Grandmother-"}
{"Pay attention, Xian Pu. See what 3000 years of Amazon wisdom and experience can accomplish."}
{"But Great Grandmother-"}
{"Of course, none of this would be necessary if you had just stood your ground."}
{"But Great Grandmother-"}
{"Open your mind and close your mouth, child. You may yet learn something. I will swoop down on the group as they turn onto this block here."} She paused to point to at crude map drawn on the blueprint.
{"But Great Grandmother-"}
{"Then, using the ancient Amazon Hidden Weapons Technique I will herd them down the street where I have placed barrels of oil ready to be tipped by this remote."} Again she paused, this time to hold up the instrument in question.
{"But Great Grandmother-"}
{"Then when they slip on the oil and go sliding every which way, Rikku will make sure to keep her brother close and that will be her undoing!"} Cologne cackled in maniacal delight.
{"But Great Grandmother-"}
{"The two siblings will go sliding into a cage at the end of the street which will then be launched via a high powered catapult to a freighter waiting at the docks!"}
{"BUT GREAT GRANDMOTHER!"}
{"What?!?"}
{"I have a really, really bad feeling about this. I mean really, the ACME company?"}
Cologne glared at her heir before leaping from the building, her diminutive hands vanishing inside her voluminous robes.
The first volley went predictably wide, setting the group on the defensive. "Well well, what have we here?" Rikku asked rhetorically.
"A distraction." Ken said dryly, glaring at an incoming spear directed towards Nodoka. The spear spontaneously exploded into sawdust as the youngest Saotome parried a barrage of shiruken away as they began to retreat down the street. "We're being herded like cows."
"Moo." Nabiki drawled, spinning her staff around to deflect a dagger into the asphalt. "So what do we do husband?"
Ranma shrugged and twirled his cane to deftly deflect more projectiles. "Follow along and watch our backs, I suppose."
"We won't have to wait long, sugar." Ukyo called, looking over her shoulder. "Look!"
"An oil slick?" Ranma gaped. "This is nuts. Everyone follow me." He said turning and stepping onto the slick and jogging briskly for the other side. Rikku, Nabiki, and Kenshiro grabbed Ryoga, Nodoka, and Ukyo respectively and lead them onto the slick.
"See everybody, it's okay. You won't slip." Rikku said softly. "Now hurry on ahead before she tries something else." The others needed no further convincing to quicken their pace.
Cologne, meanwhile, stood dumbfounded as her enemies scampered away over the oil. "I don't understand." She said. "The plan was perfect. How could they have found traction on this ooooooiiiiiil!"
In fact the plan was proven right as the Amazon elder slipped on the oil, slid helplessly down the street into the cage, and flew away to the waiting freighter.
{"So honored elder, is this the result of Amazon experience, or Amazon wisdom?"} Xian Pu asked looking down at the insensate elder, who just groaned and made a mental note to give her student a good lump.
***
"Okay, Ranma, how did we just walk on oil?" Ryoga asked.
"Oh walking on oil is easy. Walking on water, now that takes talent." The others just stared at him flatly. "All right. I don't practice Anything Goes anymore. Neither does anyone in my family."
"So what do you practice?" Ukyo asked curiously.
"The Omni Ken." Nabiki said. "It incorporates the same principal of blending skills and abilities as Anything Goes but on a much larger scale. Magic, technology, spirit energy, ki, all of that."
Ryoga gaped. "B-but how can you control all those forces?"
"How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" Ranma said.
"That's easy! When you're in Yokohama go east until you reach Moscow, then head south till you hit Berlin, then keep going east and your there."
Ken blinked and ticked off his fingers. "The scary part is... that kinda makes sense."
"Practice." Nabiki laughed. "With us, everything is a reason to practice. Also, every individual follows one of many paths of the school. My path is the Earth path. Rikku's is Fire, Kenshiro's is supposed to be Water, but it's more like Ice on account of his personality."
"I've got a cold heart." Ken said running his fingers absently over the tear tattoo on his face. "Deal with it."
"And Ranma's is Air. I wouldn't want to deprive him of his joy of playing with falcons in midair." Nabiki smiled.
"So what I did was laid down a thin layer of texturized air magic beneath us as we ran along." Ranma grinned with well deserved pride.
Ryoga scratched his head. "Whatever you say guy's. It's all Greek to me."
Rikku chuckled. "Let's put it this way. In a cartoon you can do anything."
"That works." Ryoga laughed as the family approached the dojo.
"Think we should just let ourselves in?" Nabiki asked.
"Bad form." Ranma said, ringing the doorbell.
"Hold your horses! I'm coming!" A familiar voice bellowed.
"She has no idea how appropriate that is." Nabiki chuckled as the door opened.
"Can I help-" The words of greeting died in the oldest Tendo's mouth as she realized who was standing before her.
"Are we still welcome at your table, dear sister?" Nabiki asked quietly.
Kasumi stared in shock for a long moment with a hand covering her mouth, then in a blur of motion that same hand swept back striking both Ranma and Nabiki.
The family stared in awe at the mildest Tendo before Ranma began to chuckle. "You've been holding that for quite a while, haven't you Kaschan?"
"Yes," She breathed. "But I've been holding on to something else even more."
"What's that?" Nabiki asked.
"Hope." Kasumi whispered wrapping them both in a tight hug. "Always hope."
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(Posted Mon, 17 Jan 2005 08:08)
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