####  ****  ####

Shampoo sat staring after Ranma for a long time.  There had been a
sadness about him that had worried her a bit;  his last fight with
Akane must have been a bad one.  She knew that Ranma had cared
for Akane, but she had always been sure that she was the one who
could make him the happiest.  "You come back to Shampoo soon, yes?
If you no come back, Shampoo come after you..."  she whispered.

She looked down at the envelope Ranma had left with her.  Of course,
Shampoo being Shampoo, the first thing she did was open it.  But
Ranma had learned his lessons from the wily Amazon, and had
anticipated her.  Inside the envelope, Shampoo found yet another
envelope addressed to Mousse - and sealed with tape.  There was
also a note that was addressed to her.  Shampoo looked at it in
surprise.  The note read simply:

Shampoo-
If you open this one, I will know about it, and I will never speak to
you again.
-Ranma

Shampoo paled.  She looked for a long moment at the remaining
envelope, weighing her chances.  Eventually, she decided that it was
a risk that she was not willing to take.  She gathered up the envelope
and went off to find Mousse.

####  ****  ####

Mousse had been surprised to get a letter from Saotome.  He had also
been a little annoyed at Shampoo - she had not been able to resist
gloating a bit when she had given it to him.  She was always making
fun of him!  He loved her so much, but she would hardly look in his
direction.  One of these days, he would show her;  he would show
them all.

Mousse went back to his room to read the letter.  Shampoo had
wanted him to read it where she could see it as well, but it had been
marked 'private', and Mousse was an honourable if obsessive man.
Besides, it made up a bit for her taunting.  It was a small thing, but it
made him feel better.  Once he was sure he was alone, he opened the
envelope.


Mousse-
As you read this, I am on my way out of Nerima - and I am going to
need your help.  Shampoo has been told that this is a letter of
challenge, but I'm sure you know that by now.  (Mousse did indeed.)
In a way, it is.  I challenge you, Mousse.  I challenge you to take care
of Shampoo and to make her happy.  She deserves someone who can
be devoted to her without reservation or condition.
Enclosed, you will find a snapshot that Nabiki took of me after a fight
with Akane.  When the time comes, you can use it as evidence that
you won *this* fight.
Tell Shampoo that I just could not bear to face her after having lost,
and that I have gone away.  Eventually, she may accept it.
I suggest that you destroy this note.  I've done all I can - the rest is
up to you.  Be well.

-Saotome Ranma


Mousse read and reread the note several times in sheer disbelief.
Finally, he looked in the envelope - and sure enough, there was a
photograph of Ranma, badly beaten and unconscious.  The
background was non-descript enough, Mousse could not tell where
the photo had been taken.  It was perfect.  Shampoo would at last be
his!  Mousse sobered as he thought about Ranma.  He was not sure
what was going on, but he was determined that Ranma's sacrifice
would not be a vain one.  He would see to that.

"Wherever you are going, Saotome," Mousse said to himself, "I hope
you find what you're looking for."

####  ****  ####

Ranma spent the rest of the afternoon tying up loose ends, and
avoiding people.  He shopped around for a few odds and ends to
make life on the road easier, and he stocked up on consumables.  He
spent several hours in another kissaten while he re-packed his
belongings more efficiently, making sure that he would be able to get
to the things he would need more easily.

By the time he was finished, evening had fallen, and it was time for
him to make his final stop before leaving the city.  This was the big
one - the direction that his future was to take would hinge on this
moment.  Whether he won or lost, the time had come.

Ranma arrived at the Ucchan about half an hour before closing.  The
place was packed.  Ukyou, looking a little harried, saw him and
smiled, waving him over to a corner booth.  Ranma waved back and
headed for the indicated table.  Ukyou met him there with a plate
full of okonomiyaki and a pot of hot green tea, which Ranma
accepted gratefully.  Ranma ate while Ukyou tended to the needs of
the rest of her customers.  It really was amazing.  Ranma could
remember a time when there were no tables in the Ucchan, just the
long counter.

By closing time, Ranma had finished the food, and the tea, and was
feeling a lot warmer.  Ukyou locked the door after the last customer
was gone, and Ranma set about helping her clean up.  They worked
in silence for a time, and the Ucchan was spotless in short order.
Ukyou put on a fresh pot of tea and they sat down to talk.

For the first time since he'd gotten there, Ukyou took a really close
look at Ranma.  He looked like hell.  There were bags under his eyes,
fresh bruises that were just beginning to fade, and he looked like he
hadn't really slept in a week.  There was also a sadness in his
expression that she could not quite define.

"Another fight with Akane?" she asked.

Ranma reddened slightly.  "Is it that obvious?"

"To me," she said simply.

Ranma smiled, a little tightly and sighed.  "Yeah, you could say we
had a fight.  Of course, we were always fighting, weren't we?"  He
paused for a gulp of tea.  "Well, not any more."

Ukyou did not like the sound of that.  "What do you mean by that?
What happened?"

Ranma stared at the tabletop for a long moment before answering.
"It's a long story..."

Ukyou smiled at him.  "I have nowhere to go, Ran-chan."

"As it happens, neither have I," Ranma said.  He took a deep breath
and started his story.  He told her about the newest iinazuke that had
turned up, the fight that had ensued, and the fight that he'd had with
his father about it afterwards.  He did not tell her about the decisions
that he had reached that afternoon; that would come later.  Then he
told her briefly about the fight with Akane.  When he looked up, the
hurt in his eyes was apparent.

After Ranma had finished, Ukyou was silent for a long time.  Like
Shampoo, she knew that Ranma had cared for Akane, even if he
would never have admitted it.  "So you're leaving," she said finally,
indicating the pack.

"Yes."

"Where will you go?"

"I don't know that yet."

Ukyou paused for a moment.  "Isn't this kind of sudden?  Shouldn't
you think about this?"

"Believe me," said Ranma, "I *have* been thinking about it.  This has
been building for a while now... Biiko was just the last straw, and the
fight with Akane last night... well, that finally got through.

"Your father will have kittens, you know."

Ranma paled at the mention of kittens, but his expression was hard.
"Too bad.  A lot of this mess is his fault, and while I can't do anything
about that, I can at least try to clean up my own messes."

"By running away?  That isn't like you."

Ranma winced.  "What else can I do?  If I stay, it'll only get worse.
Anyway, I certainly can't stay at the dojo anymore.  If Akane and I
ever did get married, both of us would be miserable.  Duty may be
enough to arrange a marriage, but it's not enough to sustain one, and
I won't marry anyone against her will.  Akane doesn't want me, and
never will."

"Are you certain of that?"

Ranma smiled grimly.  "Pretty sure."

Ukyou let that slide for the moment.  "What about Shampoo?  She
wants you - badly."

Ranma had the grace to look guilty.  "I guess she does, but it would
never work.  I mean, I like her... a lot... but I can't marry her.  She's
pretty and all, but she can be so catty at times, (Ukyou winced)  and
she's almost as potion happy as that fruitcake Kodachi.  I have to
know that my feelings are mine and not the product of one of her
great grandmother's concoctions.

"She's not going to give up on you easily - you know that."

"I know."  Ranma sighed.  "But I've planned for that as well as I can.
She's not gonna be happy at first, but it's for the best.  Right now she
thinks that I'm off training to fight Mousse."

"What'll she say when you don't show for the fight?"

Ranma told her about the note he'd sent to Mousse, and the picture.
Ukyou nodded thoughtfully.  "It just might work...  for a little while,"
she conceded.  "But one thing I still don't understand.  Why are you
telling me all of this?"

Ranma took a deep breath.  This was it.  He had spent all afternoon
preparing for this moment.  "Ucchan... I can't marry Akane because
she doesn't want me.  Neither of us really wanted that engagement.
I can't marry Shampoo because... because I don't want her..."

Ukyou's eyes widened.

Ranma swallowed, and summoning all of his resolve, said, "When I
was six, I told Pop that I loved okonomiyaki more than I loved you.
I'm not going to make that mistake again.  You were the best friend
I'd ever had then, and, you're my best friend now.  They say that's a
pretty good start for a relationship.  Besides..." Ranma smiled a bit
sheepishly.  "You're the only iinazuke I have left."

"You... You're... You're here to..."

Ranma took her hands in his and gazed solemnly into her eyes.
"Kuonji Ukyou...  will you marry me?"

Ukyou looked at him in shocked disbelief.  "Ma... Ma... Marry you?
Are you serious?"

Ranma's face fell, and he sighed heavily.  He had not really expected
her to say yes, given the circumstances, but it was time for decisions,
and he had made his.  "Gomen ne, Ucchan... perhaps... I'd better be
going..."

Before he could move, Ukyou grabbed him in a great big teary hug.
"Of COURSE I'll marry you, Ran-chan!"

As her answer penetrated fog around his brain, Ranma felt his arms
go around her and a wave of relief wash over him.  He had always
resisted this temptation in the past.  Ukyou was perhaps the only
real friend he had.  He could talk to her, and he knew he could trust
her.  He had always been afraid that if he let it become more than
that, he risked losing everything.  Recent events had taught him
though, that some risks were worth taking.  After all, if he could not
get along with his best friend, what chance would he have had with
anyone else?

Gently, Ranma freed himself from her embrace and looked into her
eyes.  <They truly are beautiful eyes,> he thought to himself.  For the
first time in days, he really smiled.  His expression turned serious
again.  The road ahead was still a rough one - a long and winding
road, with no obvious end in sight.

"Think about this carefully, Ucchan.  The path... the path I've chosen
is not going to be easy.  This was NOT the way that I'd have done
things if I had been given a choice.  There are going to be...
difficulties."

"What sort of 'difficulties' do you think could possibly make me want
to reconsider marrying you?" she asked.

"Well, for one thing, I end up as a girl a lot of the time..."

"Feh.  I don't give a damn about that, Ran-chan.  You know that.  I
would marry you if you were a girl *all* the time.  I've dressed as a
boy so long, nobody'd even blink!  It's the person you are that I'm in
love with.  Not the body."

Ranma smiled at her affectionately.

"In a way," she added thoughtfully, "it can even be an advantage..."

"Nani?!"

"Think about it - you are in a unique position to look at things from
both sides.  It makes it easier for you to understand how a girl feels
about things from time to time, even if you won't admit it.  Each of us
can see the other's point of view.  I know the time I spent
masquerading as a boy gave me a... 'special' perspective."

"I never really thought about it that way," said Ranma.  "I know that
you've always said the curse didn't matter...  but...  It's just that with
Shampoo out of the picture, it looks like I might never find a cure,
and I don't want it to come between us."

"Don't let it bother you.  What other silly things are you worried
about?"

"I won't be able to stay here - I'll have to leave.  If luck holds, I
figure I've got about five, maybe six days before Pop and the
Tendous discover that I'm not coming back.  This is going to make
some people very angry, and I expect that they are going to come
after me."

"And your point is?" asked Ukyou.

"I'm not sure when I'll be able to come back for you."

"What do you mean, 'come back for me'?  I'm bloody well coming
with you!"

Ranma blinked.  "But... but... Ucchan!  You have a very successful
business here, and I have nothing to offer as a replacement - I can't
just ask you to give all that up.  It wouldn't be fair."

Ukyou smiled.  "Trust me, that's not a problem, Ran-chan.  With
okonomiyaki, you can make money anywhere.  This time, I am going
*with* you!  Just give me a day and a half to get ready."

Ranma looked embarrassed.  "But we'll have no destination..." He
shook his head ruefully.  "It may be a long time before we can stop
running."

"Dad had a yattai, remember?  (It was Ranma's turn to wince.)  I
grew up on the road - I don't mind going back to life on the road,
when it means I'll be with you."

"You're sure about that...  You know what you're getting into..."

"Ran-chan, I've been waiting for this day since I was six years old.
This place," she spread her arms, indicating the restaurant around
them, "This place gave me a way to be close to you.  It's done its job.
I've never been more sure of anything in my life."

Ranma's eyes widened at that.  He looked at her closely.  Her smile
was genuine, and he saw no hesitation in her eyes.  He finally
allowed himself to start to believe that it might just work.  He smiled
and chuckled a bit as the tension drained from him.

"What are you laughing about?" she asked him.

"I never realised just how good it would feel to have this decision
behind me."  he said, smiling at her.

Ukyou's answer had no words.  For a moment, Ranma was too
stunned to move, but he quickly found himself returning her kiss
with equal fervor.

####  ****  ####

They had talked late into the night, until Ranma's lack of sleep had
finally caught up with him.  Ukyou had put him on a futon in the
spare room over the Ucchan, and set about starting her own
preparations for their departure.

She got her pack out of storage and began to gather her clothes and
possessions.  As it had with Ranma, life on the road had taught her
the value of a somewhat Spartan lifestyle.  Once she had the pack
ready to go, she set it beside Ranma's along with her large spatula
and her bandoleers of minis.

There were still a few loose ends she needed to tie up, but they
would have to wait until morning when people had once more gotten
into their offices.

For the past six months, one of the more aggressive real estate
concerns in the area had been after her to sell the shop.  Their offer
had been very generous, more than three times the actual value of
the property.  Since the shop had been her primary means of being
near Ran-chan, she had always refused.  Now, however, that was no
longer a concern.  In the morning, she would call and tell them that
she had decided to sell.  The money would pay off the mortgage
balance, and keep the two of them going almost indefinitely.

<Still,> she thought as she looked over the shop once more.  <There
have been some good times here.  I will miss this place.>  She looked
up, towards the back where Ranma - *her* Ranma - was sleeping so
peacefully and smiled.  <But not much!>

####  ****  ####

The next morning Ranma and Ukyou both slept late.  Ukyou for the
sheer luxury of it, and Ranma out of need.  But by nine o'clock they
were both up and once more making preparations for departure.

Ranma had pulled all of the material out of his pack and was re-
arranging, to make room for some of Ukyou's things.  Ukyou noticed
a plastic bag with a number of wideban in it.  Curious, she opened it
to look at the manga.  "Caravan Kidd...  Outlanders... what are these?"
she asked him.

Ranma glanced over at her.  "Oh, those are my Manabe collection...
Look inside the front covers... I got them autographed at the last
comic market..."

Ukyou flipped absently through one of the volumes.  "I must say, I
like his art style.  Ooops!"

Ranma looked up at Ukyou's exclamation to see a number of the
photos that he had tucked into the manga drifting lazily toward the
floor.  "Damn!" he said.  "I forgot about those..."  He set about
retrieving the scattered pictures with Ukyou helping.

"Hey, I remember this!" chirped Ukyou, as she glanced at a photo.
"Boy!  Was Akane ticked, or what!"

Ranma froze for an instant, and then seemed to deflate.  Ukyou saw
his reaction and sobered instantly.  "I'm sorry, Ran-chan... I didn't
mean..."

"It's okay, Ucchan."  Ranma took the picture she handed him and
looked sadly at the girl in the photograph.  "I was always making her
mad, wasn't I?  It's no wonder that she hates me."

The sad tone in Ranma's voice cut through Ukyou like a hot knife.  He
sounded so forlorn at that moment; looked so vulnerable.  It was
more than she could stand.

Ukyou looked sadly at Ranma.  She wanted this... wanted it more
than anything... but not at this price.  Ukyou took a deep breath and
did the hardest thing that she had ever done in her life.  "Are you
*sure* about that, Ran-chan?"

"I'm sure..."  Ranma sighed.  "She's said it so much, and for so long...
but I never really believed her... until now."

"Ranma," she said softly.

Ranma looked up at her.

"Ranma...  Akane doesn't hate you.  I think...  I think that maybe she
loves you."

"She has a peculiar way of showing it..." muttered Ranma.

"Well, you don't have a lot of room to talk there, do you?"  Ukyou
indicated the picture that Ranma was holding.  "Did you ever tell her
that you liked her?"

Ranma looked at her strangely.  "What are you saying, Ucchan... You
don't want me either?"

"NO!  I want you more than I've ever wanted anything in my life!
But not like this!  Not because you believe something that isn't true!"
Ukyou looked at the table.  "There was a time, you know, when I
would have just grinned, grabbed you and run... but I don't really
think that I could live with myself if I did that.  Ranma, Akane
doesn't hate you.  Really she doesn't."

There.  She had done it.  She had given him back to HER.

Ranma smiled sadly.  "I wish that I could believe that.  Hell, maybe
it's even true."  Ukyou flinched.  "But Ucchan..." Ranma took her
hands in his, "It doesn't matter."

Ukyou looked up, a surprised expression on her face.  "Na... nani?"

"It doesn't matter, Ucchan.  I've made my decision... and it's the
*right* decision.  Maybe you're right.  Maybe she doesn't hate me
now.  But it could never work - we're oil and water, Akane and me.
We don't mix.  We fight so much that sooner or later she'd say that
she hated me and she *would* mean it.  Look at me - I almost had
myself convinced that Akane really was uncute."

"But... but Ranma..."

Ranma put a finger to Ukyou's lips.  "Akane and me... perhaps we're
just too much alike.  We fight; we say things without thinking - it's
simply too volatile.  Someday I would say something really wrong,
and her smile would be gone forever.  I won't do that to her... or to
myself."

"But... you love her, don't you?"

"As a friend, Ucchan.  As a friend.  It might have been more, once.
But I've thought long and hard about this," Ranma smiled, "and for
the first time in my life, I feel really good about the choices that I've
made."

Ranma paused, searching for the right words.  "This last iinazuke that
showed up... I should be grateful to her.  She made me realize some
things."

"What were they, Ran-chan?"

"She made me realize that I had been making a mistake.  I was
waiting for things to get better before I made this decision.  When
she showed up with HER claim on my hide, it dawned on me that
they weren't GOING to get any better.  They COULDN'T get any better
until this choice was made."

"I'm not sure that I understand..."

"The longer I waited, the more likely it was that something would
come along and really screw things up.  Biiko was what, the third
'iinazuke' that's shown up just in the past six months?  How many
more do you suppose there are out there that Pop hasn't told me
about?"

Ukyou shrugged.

"Right.  Then there were the 'original' iinazuke to think about.  I had
been putting this off because I didn't want to hurt people that I
cared about, but I was still being selfish.  No matter who I married,
no matter when I decided, someone was going to get hurt.  It
occurred to me that maybe I was just prolonging the agony.  The
time to choose was before anyone got hurt more."

Ukyou nodded.  "Go on."

"Of course, there was still the purely selfish reason that the whole
situation was really starting to drive me crazy.  Not," Ranma added
sheepishly, "that it would be much of a drive."  He returned Ukyou's
grin.  "So, I made my choice."

"You chose me..." prompted Ukyou.

"For purely logical reasons."

Ukyou arched an eyebrow at him.  "Indeed?" she said with mock
gravity.

Ranma shrugged.  "You're my best friend.  I know where I stand with
you and I trust you.  More than that, I can talk to you... you at least
listen to me before you beat the snot out of me for doing something
stupid."

"Well, not even *you* could be to blame for *everything*, Ran-chan,"
she said with a smile.

Ranma laughed.  "Ucchan, do you remember the argument that I had
with that delivery truck last year?"

Ukyou shuddered.  "How could I forget?  Those were the scariest ten
days of my entire life."

"But you were still there for me... with me the whole time.  Do you
remember, just before we left the Medical Centre, how I told you
that I didn't know what love was?"

"Yes... I think so."

"Well, now I know.  And this time, I'm not letting you go!"

####  ****  ####

That afternoon, once the lunch rush was over, the Realtor came by
the shop with some paperwork for Ukyou to sign.  They spent half an
hour going over the contracts, before Ukyou was satisfied that she
understood all the terms.

With a bit of a flourish, and a grin for Ranma, she pressed her hanko
to the inkpad and affixed her seal to the documents.  Once the
paperwork had been taken care of, the Realtor left, promising to
return the following morning to drop off the check, and pick up the
keys.

Ranma and Ukyou watched her leave, and turned to each other.  It
was done.  This chapter of their lives was closing, and a new and
very different chapter was beginning.

####  ****  ####

Something was wrong - Genma could feel it in his bones.  Akane and
Ranma had been gone for two days now, so the house was certainly
quieter than was usual, but there was more than that.  Something
about the whole situation just did not *feel* right.

Restlessly, he continued to prowl the room he shared with his son.  It
appeared normal enough, but Genma could not shake the feeling that
there was something missing.  He searched at random, not knowing
what he was really looking for, and not sure he would recognize it if
he found it.

He was going through the drawers in the tansu when he was brought
up short.  In what was supposed to be Ranma's underwear drawer,
Genma found a small stack of picture frames.  The backs had been
removed, and the photos that had once occupied the frames were
gone.  As Genma surveyed the room once more, he wondered why he
had not noticed it before... all of Ranma's pictures were gone.  The
walls were bare.

Genma looked down again at the abandoned frames.  He did not like
this at all.  It didn't make any sense.  Why would Ranma take all of
these pictures down for a short field trip?  Why had he taken them
out of the frames, and where were the photos?  Genma lifted the
frames out of the drawer and placed them on top of the chest.  He
would ask Ranma about it when he got back from his class trip.

####  ****  ####

That evening, activity around the Ucchan was heavy.  Ukyou had
decided to have a massive going out of business sale and celebration.
All of the menu items were half off, and as word spread, the place
was packed.

Ranma took a cold shower, and pitched in waiting tables.  Ukyou had
been a touch surprised at first, but Ranma-chan just shrugged and
smiled at her philosophically.  "I figured that sales'd go better this
way," she said.

Ukyou's answering grin and wink warmed Ranma-chan's heart.
<Maybe,> she thought to herself, <just maybe, this curse isn't so bad
after all.>

At one point during the evening, while there was a lull in business,
Ranma-chan had drawn Ukyou aside.  "Are you sure about this?" she
asked.  She waved an arm in the direction of several clusters of busy
diners.  "Look, Ucchan, see what it is you're giving up.  You've really
built something here - are you *sure* that you want to toss it away
for life on the road?"

Ukyou had surveyed the restaurant with an air of satisfaction.  "It
has done rather well, hasn't it?"

Ranma-chan nodded.

Ukyou hugged Ranma-chan to her, and smiled.  "Second guessing
again, Ran-chan?"

Ranma-chan nodded once more.  "I want you to be sure - I have to
be sure that you know what you're giving up, and what you're
getting in return.  I'm... I'm tired of hurting people that I care for -
and tired of being like my father..."

"Ran-chan!  You're nothing like your father!"  Ukyou paused,
collecting her thoughts.  "I've told you before that you're the reason
that I opened this restaurant.  That's the truth.  It's done well
because I make the best okonomiyaki in the world - but I can do
that anywhere."

"But I..."

"You... are the best martial artist in the Musubetsu Kakuto Ryuu.
Between the two of us, there is nothing that we can't do - nothing
will be able to stop us."

Ranma-chan looked uncertain for a moment, and finally relaxed into
a smile.  Ukyou's optimism was infectious; and if she was willing to
give all this up to go running off into the aether with her, then it was
time to make sure that faith was returned.  Ranma-chan nodded to
her iinazuke, and the two of them once more set to the task of
keeping the last of the Ucchan's customers happy until closing.

Sales did indeed go well, and by the end of the evening, while they
had not run out of anything, it had been a near thing.  All of her
regulars had come in, and none of them had been happy to learn that
the Ucchan would be closing.  They had, however, all wished Ukyou
well, even though they were sorry to see her go.  No one could guess
why such a successful restaurant would close its doors so abruptly,
and Ukyou would not say.

####  ****  ####