Gratuitous Self 
Part 6: Down to the Nitty-gritty


	"Okay!"
	Takezo was ready. He had put off writing part 5 of 'Turning 
Road' for too long now. He had been prod so many times that, if they 
were physical prods, he would have died of electric shock a long time 
ago.
	Shutting off his modem, he sat down in front of the PC. A six-
pack of Jolt was set down on the floor beside him. A band of cloth 
tied around his head bore the words, 'Write or DIE!'. I'm going to 
finish this part tonight if it's the last thing I do, he thought.
	The last thing I do. Hmm. Um...The last thing I do tonight. 
That'd be more accurate. Yeah. Although it lacks the finality of 'The 
last thing I do.' Period. I suppose it's the finality of the statement 
that lends it dramatic effect. The last thing I do. People overuse 
that statement, y'know? As if it'd be the last thing they did. Huh. As 
in, 'I'll call her tonight if it's the last thing I'll do'. As if that 
were the case. Nooo, afterward, you'd want to see her in the morning, 
and then ask her out, then after that, probably go steady, then maybe 
get married, have kids, live 'til a ripe old age...
	Last thing I do. Right.
	Takezo glanced over at his clock. He had spent twenty minutes 
with that last train of thought.
	Something tells me I've been thinking about this too long. 

	Where was I? Oh, yeah! I'm going to finish this part tonight if 
it's the last thing I do!
	At this, he started typing like mad. No more thoughts of Kojiro 
and the Crusaders. No more thoughts of KatsuSando-Con and that girl in 
the Devil Hunter Yohko outfit. No more. All that mattered was the fic. 
Although that girl...
	Takezo shook his head to clear it. Fanfic. Must.... Write.... 
fanfic!!!

-----

	"So you're my roommate."
	"Yep!"

	This was not good. This...this idiot living in the same boarding 
house (Ryo Kurin Ryo) -- no, same QUARTERS as him. Takezo looked at 
Kojiro, the lout in question, who was beaming this annoyingly cheerful 
smile at him. "Um, are you sure? I..." think think make something up 
"...I snore. A lot."
	Kojiro simply smiled at him and said, "That's okay. So do I!"
	I am not getting through to this guy, thought Takezo.  "Um...My 
feet stink."
	"My girlfriend - my ex, anyway - complained about my feet, too." 
Kojiro pulled a foot out of one shoe and pointed it in Takezo's 
general direction. "See?"
	Takezo immediately pinched his nose shut. God, that foot is 
horrible. I may just let Nabiki have him so she'd contend with this 
herself. 

	The author refuses to be graphic about the foot in question. He 
has just eaten his dinner, and is not willing to lose it over a stupid 
description of a stinky foot. I know, I know, all this brouhaha of 
thoroughness of description on the mailing lists. There is a time and 
place for that. This foot is not it. If you want graphic, check out 
YOUR OWN roommate's foot.

	Anyway, Takezo was still wracking his brain to think of an 
excuse to get rid of Kojiro, who was turning out to be an even worse 
deal than he thought.
	"I...I'm messy! I like to throw my stuff everywhere!"
	"Mm-hmm." Kojiro was unpacking. Actually, the only way for one 
to truly appreciate the way he was 'unpacking' is to get the Scatter 
Diagram for Grenade-Like Missiles in your nearest available Dungeon 
Master's Guide and roll a 1d10 for every article of clothing.
	A sock decided to drape itself over Takezo's head (the result of 
a successful THAC0). "I give up," Takezo muttered to himself as he 
threw the sock into the nearest closet. He sighed and lay down on his 
bed, which was the upper bed of their double-decker.
	"Hey, Takezo," called out Kojiro as he put away a long wrapped 
bundle...a sword?
	"Whaaaaat?" said Takezo in a very weary tone. God, this guy was 
so exasperating to be around.
	"What's the plan for that double date?"
	Erk. "I dunno. Eat out, catch a movie..."
	"What movie are you planning to watch?" asked Kojiro as yet 
another sock made its way toward Takezo.
	"The new Bond flick, maybe?" said Takezo as he batted the sock 
away.
	"You mean, 'PorcineEye'? The one where he faces off against the 
United Brotherhood of Pigs?"
	"That's the one."
	"I dunno. It doesn't particularly strike me as a date movie."
	"Oh?"
	"Plus that ending where all the marines pop up out of nowhere to 
save him and the girl just in time to escape the self-destruct 
sequence of the OinkStar Satellite was so corny..."
	Gee, thanks for telling me the ending of a movie that I HAVEN'T 
EVEN WATCHED YET YOU COMPLETE AND UTTER MORON!!!!
	Takezo didn't show any sign of this thought outwardly, though. 
Instead, he just laughed (eheh ^^;) and said, "Well, what do you 
recommend?"
	"I figure," said Kojiro, 'putting away' the last of his 
underwear, "that we should watch a romantic film. Preferably tragic. 
How about 'My Goddess'?"
	"Isn't it that childhood romance thing about a boy who meets a 
goddess? They're showing it again? I didn't get to watch it the first 
time."
	Kojiro nodded. "Yeah, they're showing it at the AniPlex Theater. 
Man, the part where Keiichi dies because of a bug-sting.... God, that 
was tragic."
	AAAAAARRRRGH!!! I'M GOING TO RIP YOUR STUPID HEAD OFF!!!
	Takezo, showing a herculean feat of self-control, simply smiled 
and said, "Ah, well, don't you think we should watch something more 
upbeat? I mean, it's only your first date with Na..." grumble grumble 
"...with Nabiki, right?"
	Kojiro looked crestfallen. "I guess you're right. 'Seven'?"
	"Aw, man, 'The Seven Samurai' again?"
	"Fine, fine, we'll settle for 'Sleepless in Shikoku'."
	

	"So, what's the plan, Takezo?"
	"Uh?" Takezo was too busy eating his okonomiyaki to even think 
about the plan. "Oh, right, the plan..."Well, there are two 
alternatives."
	"Which are...?" asked Ukyo, cooking another okonomiyaki for 
another customer.
	Takezo extended his index finger. "Ichiban (No.1), we let the 
date play through, letting Nabiki suck Kojiro dry."
	With a flick of the wrist, Ukyo took out a tiny spatula and 
proceeded to spin the okonomiyaki. "That's not really fair to the poor 
jerk, is it?"
	"No, but..." 
	"I mean," continued Ukyo, "it's not really his fault, now that 
you think about it, is it?"
	"No...but...he..." Takezo twiddled his thumbs. He's a complete 
sleazebag. How can I possibly say that?
	"He...what?"
	Takezo fiddled with the remains of his okonomiyaki. "I know it's 
irrational, but..."
	"But...what?"
	"But..." Takezo finally broke down. "OKAY! OKAY! I ADMIT IT! HE 
ANNOYS THE HECK OUT OF ME!!!"
	Ukyo was taken slightly aback by this display. "Eh?"
	"I know it doesn't make sense to you, but...he just bugs the 
heck out of me! I'm sorry!" Takezo started to sob uncontrollably.
	A bead of sweat began to form on Ukyo's temple, as she patted 
Takezo on the shoulder. "Okay, okay, calm down...Well, what's the 
second alternative?"
	"Ahem, let me just regain my composure." In a flurry of nose 
blowing and eye wiping and hair combing, Takezo was once more fresh as 
a daisy. 
	Ukyo applauded heartily. "Nice comeback!"
	Takezo grinned and made the 'V' sign. "Heheh...Anyway, there." 
He pointed at the 'V' sign's two fingers. "Niban (No.2). We totally 
humiliate Nabiki."
	"Oh?" Ukyo wasn't convinced. "And how do you plan on doing that, 
that most impossible of tasks?"
	"I'll think of something. For now, all you have to do is wake me 
up."
	Ukyo smirked. "Meaning when you zone out, thinking about 
Nabiki."
	"Uh, something like that."


	"So they're supposed to meet us here, huh?"
	"Yup," said Takezo.
	The day of the date had come, and Kojiro and Takezo were waiting 
outside Ucchan's. It was, unfortunately, a particularly beautiful 
sunny Saturday afternoon, a perfect day for a date.
	Stupid stupid stupid sunny day! thought Takezo. What a stupid 
day for great weather! Why can't this day be rainy, or swelteringly 
hot? Why must everything go right for this idiot?
	Kojiro simply grinned, looking as perky as the weather.
	Takezo grinned back, a drop of sweat forming on his right 
temple. Oh Kami make this date a bust I swear I'll visit the shrines 
more often than I do.....

	With a slide of the front door of the restaurant, Ukyo was 
there, hair set in a simple ponytail instead of in its usual ribbon. 
She wore a white shirt, a black vest, and a pair of black trousers 
that gave her a sort of boyish charm that appealed to Takezo. No one 
could possibly mistake her for a boy, though (unless you were a monkey 
boy who lived in the wilderness alone all your life...'You mean you 
can tell it's a girl just by looking at her?').
	Takezo waved at Ukyo. "Hi! Great outfit!"
	"Heya, Takezo...I see you're dressed for the occasion, too."
	Takezo was wearing an untucked, unbuttoned deep blue polo shirt 
over a plain white t-shirt, which was tucked in a pair of black jeans. 
He grinned at Ukyo and struck a pose. "You like it?"
	Ukyo gamely applauded. "Cool! Although, Kojiro here's...well, 
he's dressed for an occasion, alright..."
	The comment completely went over Kojiro's head, who was dressed 
in a neatly pressed three-piece suit, complete with necktie. "What? Is 
there something on my face?"
	"Nevermind," Takezo and Ukyo said in unison.

	"Been waiting long?"
	And there was Nabiki. How did she do it? In that pair of light 
brown slacks and that black halter top (that halted in just the right 
spot, Takezo thought), she had somehow made Takezo forget all about 
sunny days and ruining dates and stupid roommates and revenge and 
debts to be paid...
	Ukyo's hand on his shoulder woke him up from his trance. "Don't 
lose sight of why we're here, Takezo," whispered Ukyo.
	Takezo shook off his stupor. "You're right. I kinda lost it back 
there."
	Ukyo grinned. "I know. That's what I'm here for."

	"Oh! Hi, Nabiki!" Kojiro was all smiles. If he was all smiles a 
moment ago, well, he was all smiles now and then some.

	"Hi, Kojiro! Er...Nice outfit!"
	Kojiro laughed sheepishly. "Thanks."
	Nabiki turned to Ukyo. She nodded, "Hi, Ukyo."
	Ukyo nodded back. "Hi."
	Finally, Nabiki turned to Takezo. "Hey."
	"Hey," Takezo answered in the flattest tone he could muster.
	

-----	
	Takezo tapped his fingers on his monitor. He stared at it for a 
while, apparently lost in thought...
	"Aaagh!! Why?! Why can't I think of a way to humiliate Nabiki?"
	Takezo stood up, pacing around his room. "What to do, what to 
do..."
	He finally sat back down. "Stall for time, stall for 
time...Until I think of a way...must keep.... writing!!!"
-----

	This was not fair.
	Nabiki wasn't even touching the mixed pizza they were having. 
Damn it, she's onto me, thought Takezo.
	"No thanks," he heard her say as she refused the piece Kojiro 
offered her. She grinned at Takezo, and he grinned back, but it was 
all he could do to keep from gnawing at his napkin.
	He felt a hand at his elbow. It was Ukyo's. Well, he thought, 
THAT snapped me back to my senses. He looked at Ukyo.
	Ukyo nodded at him, then took a piece of the pizza. She bit into 
it and chewed delicately, which seemed incongruous with her boyish 
manner.
	Man, Takezo thought, I never knew Ukyo was so cute! He grinned, 
more to himself than to Ukyo, who wasn't really looking at him.
	She looked back at him. "Is anything the matter, Takezo?"
	He realized he was staring at her. "Uh? Oh! Was I staring?"
	"Yep." She grinned at him and chuckled.
	He chuckled, too, although he sighed in relief. Thank God she's 
a good sport.
	He suddenly heard a grunt, or at least, he thought he did. He 
looked at Nabiki and Kojiro, but all he saw was a lighthearted 
conversation taking place between them. Nabiki even had a big grin on 
her face.

-----
	Takezo stared at what he had just typed. Oh my god THAT'S IT!!!
-----


	This was not going well, Nabiki thought.
	Sure, Takezo was visibly squirming in his seat. Sure, she wasn't 
falling for the 'caught in the act' highway robbery scheme Takezo was 
obviously pulling. She could also see right through this 'make Nabiki 
jealous hit on Ukyo' plan. At least, she thought it was a plan. Wasn't 
it?
	Anyway, Ukyo was responding positively. This was not good.
	Wait a minute. Why the heck do I even care? I mean, it's not 
like Takezo's THE big man on campus or anything. It's not like he was 
drop-dead handsome or anything. It's not like he's even RICH or 
anything...
	"Eyes front, sugar," giggled Ukyo. "I've got a fianc�, or have 
you forgotten already?"
	"Oh, was I staring again? I'm sorry," teased Takezo. "It 
completely slipped my mind..."
	The side of Nabiki's mouth twitched with displeasure. What the 
heck am I talking about? Like I said, why should I even care?


	It wasn't very hard for Takezo to pretend he was having a 
natural, even lively, conversation with Ukyo. Am I pretending? he 
thought. Am I really doing this just to spite Nabiki?
	He looked at the pretty young thing in front of him
	She was smiling. He had never seen her smile like this before. 
True, she was devoted to that fianc� of hers, but, well...I guess this 
means she trusts me. This is...nice, he thought, in a platonic sort of 
way...I've never really had a platonic relationship with a girl 
before. I guess now's as good a time as any to start...
	"Takezo," Ukyo smirked and smiled all in one expression, "you're 
staring again."
	"Oh, was I?" Takezo said, with what felt like a very wide grin 
on his face. "Does it bother you?"

	This is sweet, thought Kojiro. These two seem to get along quite 
nicely. Kinda like me and Nabiki...Ooooh, stop it, Kojiro, he thought. 
This is a date! This is no time for a daydream! Get back to your 
senses boy...
	He suddenly noticed that everyone was looking at him. He had 
apparently been blushing and twiddling his thumbs and giggling the 
whole time. 
	"Uh," said Nabiki, "are you alright, Kojiro?"
	If it was at all humanly possible, he turned an even deeper 
shade of red. "Um, uh, um...*tee hee hee* I'm o-okay, Nabiki-ch...."
	He heard someone clear his throat. He wasn't sure who it 
was...but he quickly changed it to "Nabiki-san."
	"Oh," said Nabiki in the sweetest voice he had ever heard, 
"that's okay, Ko-chan."

	Takezo's teeth were aching. That was the most disgustingly 
saccharine tone of voice he had heard her use yet. He could feel an 
ant colony form beneath his feet. He surmised that the ache in his 
tooth had less to do with his gnashing and more to do with the 
resulting cavities from the obviously calculated sweetness she was 
exuding.
	Still he kept on that drawn smile on his face, although every 
muscle concerned was crying bloody murder and regrouping for a scowl 
attack.

	She...she called me Ko-chan!!!
	Kojiro was on that cloud again...he was 'a-walking on the moon', 
like Sting would say.

	"Um," Nabiki called out to Kojiro under the table, "I'd 
appreciate it if you stopped swooning..."


	Afterwards, at the local moviehouse...

	Takezo was not enjoying the movie. It seemed like total crap to 
him, what was obviously meant to be written as a date movie. All these 
cliches of guy meets girl against all odds, fighting outside forces 
and inner conflicts and, ultimately, ending up together, holding hands 
in the sunset, sometimes with kids in hand, like now. That little brat 
that was the male protagonist's kid was annoying the heck out of him.
	"Kill the kid," he mumbled.
	"Yeah," he heard Ukyo say. "Kinda reminds me of that dog in 
Johnny Quest."
	"Or those two sidekicks of Space Ghost."
	"Or..."
	And all throughout the movie, much to the annoyance of the 
people actually watching (ruling out all those couples making out in 
the corners), Ukyo and Takezo had a conversation about those silly 
things that ranged from Saturday morning cartoons to the three 
principal plots to whether or not PM Hashimoto was doing his job 
properly.

	Nabiki was not enjoying the movie.
	She had to hold Kojiro's hand personally this time, instead of 
passing it off to some old lady seated next to her like she always 
did. It's not that she didn't like Kojiro, although he was a little 
more overcome with boyish ardor than most, and that his choice of 
clothes were obviously a product of his intention of giving her a good 
first impression of him.
	It's just that she HATED going against her set plans just to 
ruin Takezo's. She HATED having to restrain herself from running 
Kojiro dry just to spite Takezo. She HATED passing up that nice blouse 
she saw on the way here. She HATED having to hold Kojiro's hand, 
instead of her CHOOSING to do so. Of course, whether she'd choose to 
do so or not is another question.
	"Actually," she heard Ukyo say, "the supposed 'Nice guy gets all 
the girls' principle in anime doesn't always apply."
	"What?" Takezo said incredulously. "That's a law already, I 
think!"
	"Well, if that's one of the rules that holds anime together, 
think again! Think 'Speed Racer'."
	Takezo blinked. "Oh my God, you're right! The anime universe 
ceases to exist!!!"
	A collective 'SHHHH!!!!' prompted Takezo to lower his voice. "So 
sorry..."
	Nabiki snorted. What a twit this guy is. Why do I even bother?

	Kojiro was not enjoying the movie.
	He was too busy enjoying Nabiki's hand.
	He was also busy trying to find anything that might offend or 
'turn off' Nabiki, his hair, his smell, his nails, his breath...
	He was SURE the suit did it for him, though. Yeah, that was it.

	At this point, the author leaves it to the reader to use his/her 
common sense to figure out which thoughts belong to whom.

	What do I have to do to get even with Nabiki? This date is 
turning out to be a pointless exercise...
	"I think you're right," Ukyo said to him. "Rumiko didn't really 
flesh out the Stormtrooper's identities. Only the anime did it."
	Heheh...Maybe this wasn't so pointless after all.

	Just when I thought I wouldn't find any intelligent 
conversationalist guys in this town, this guy comes along. Actually, I 
kinda like him...er...in a platonic sort of way.
	"Yeah," Takezo agreed with her, "although it's kinda weird to 
think that Takahashi-san didn't come up with those four jokers...I 
kinda like them."
	Yeah. It's too bad this is all part of his plan to make Nabiki 
jealous...

	Why do they have to enjoy their conversation so much? It's 
getting on my nerves.

	Oh, she's squeezing my hand tighter! I think she likes me!


	"So," Ukyo said as they left the theater, "I had a great time."
	"Yeah...me too..." added Kojiro in a dreamy voice.
	"Oh, Kojiro," Nabiki said in that sucrose-laden tone of hers 
that made Takezo's teeth hurt,  "I had a wonderful time. Thank you."
	I've had enough, Takezo said. I admit defeat. She's got me beat. 
With a sigh, he turned to Ukyo and said," "I'll take you home.."
	"Sure," said Ukyo. "Maybe I can interest you in some 
okonomiyaki. Well, see you guys."

	As Kojiro started to lead her back to her place, Nabiki grit her 
teeth at Takezo and Ukyo's backs.
	So you think you've got me beat, eh, Takezo? Hmph. This ain't 
over yet.


	"So," Takezo said as they reached the front door of Ucchan's. 
"This is it, then."
	"Yeah..." Ukyo appeared to start to sigh, but then she perked 
up. "Well, your plan worked perfectly. Nabiki was seething with 
jealousy."
	Takezo blinked. "Plan? She...she was? I hadn't noticed. What 
plan?"
	Ukyo nodded. "She was. Trust me. We women can sense these 
things." She opened the door and gave him a warm smile that strangely 
came across to him as...sad..."Your acting was great. Our 
conversations seemed so natural. I almost couldn't tell you were just 
acting."
	Takezo could only look at her silently.
	"Well, I had a great time, Takezo. I'd ask you in, but I have to 
prepare for opening up shop tomorrow...I wasn't in all day, as you 
already know..." As she closed the sliding door, she peeked out and 
waved at him at him. "Well, oyasumi nasai (good night), Takezo-kun."
	As the door slid shut, Takezo could only stare...
	"But...but I wasn't acting..."

-----
	Takezo blinked as he reread that last part. This 
was...unexpected. I didn't mean for it to turn out this way. Why does 
that happen? Why do stories not turn out the way you plan it to? Even 
if you're the writer?
	Takezo looked at the ending. "Well, whatever."


	"Milord! Turning Road Part 5 is in!"
	The KowaiMuck server was, once again, carrying the full load of 
the Crusaders of Nabiki Tendo.
	This announcement came...rather late into the meeting. The older 
knights were starting to grumble about 'false alarms' and 'inept 
intelligence agents'.
	Actually, the problem lay in the reactivation of the main 
Mailing List. It was now up and running, bringing back happy spammy 
days to everyone. Unfortunately, the temporary lists were STILL 
operational, causing some people to grumble about 'unnecessary spam', 
a redundancy in itself. Actually, grumbling about spam on a mailing 
list seems rather pointless, since it would simply be 'spam 
complaining about spam'. What a concept!
	So, sifting through numerous reposts of previous fanfics posted 
on the temporary lists (they even got treated to a second helping of 
the earlier parts of 'Turning Road'), they finally found the next part 
of the tome of heresy itself (much to Kojiro's chagrin...he had been 
working on part 5 himself).
	The hall was silenced. Not by Lord High Commander Templar's 
calls for order, but by the mere mention of the name, Turning Road.
	"At last," Templar said as he opened his mail browser, "my final 
victory!"
	"We shall see," Kojiro said under his breath.

	"YOU CALL THIS VICTORY, TEMPLAR?!" Kojiro shouted. Consequently, 
the whole MUCK heard this, and a bunch of people in the know 
chuckled...
	However, in the hall, a near-riot was ensuing, calling for blood 
to be shed...
	"How DARE you address me without my title, mister Sasaki!"
	"I'll address you in any manner I want! Flawless plan 
indeed...not only did he totally ignore your C&C, he used most of the 
negative points you pointed out AGAINST MY CHARACTER!!! You are not 
fit for leadership of this congregation! I hereby strip you of all 
your titles and all the privileges your rank provides!!!"
	"You can't do this to me!!!"
	"Yes I can! I have the entire congregation behind me! You stoop 
down to use subversive methods - which, may I point out, is against 
all tradition of our order - and it totally backfires! Everyone agrees 
that you must be replaced."
	"And who would replace me? YOU?!"
	"Perhaps. As of now, you are hereby expelled from the 
congregation. You are further excommunicated, and branded as heretic."
	"But...only the High Commander has the power to do that!"
	"Then I guess I'm it."
	Templar pleaded. "But all I did was use subversive methods!"
	"No. You used subversive methods and UTTERLY FAILED!!! That is 
almost as much blasphemy as Takezo's sin! You used the methods of our 
goddess...AND YOU FAILED!" Which, frankly, went a long way to 
explaining exactly WHY the Crusaders didn't use subversive tactics 
often.  Very few within the order had the gift of pulling off dirty 
tricks and getting away scot-free. "Now," said Kojiro finally, 
"BEGONE!!!"

	And with one fell swoop, Takezo begun the reign of Kojiro 
Sasaki, Lord High Commander of the Holy Crusaders of Nabiki Tendo.


	"Well?" asked Takezo, peering over the manuscript Bob was 
reading and finishing off his bowl of gyudon. They were at some tiny 
restaurant, hidden away in one corner of a building complex. The place 
was small, it was cramped, and they could only serve so many people at 
a time. They served the best gyudon in town, though, and the copies of 
Weekly Shonen Magazine that were there for reading weren't bad, 
either...
	For a moment, Bob was speechless. Then..."Why?"
	"What do you mean why? Why did I let that happen between Ukyo 
and Takezo? I dunno. I'm trying to find the reason for it myself."
	"No...Why do you waste your skills as a writer writing gawd-
awful self-insertion stories?"
	"Gawd-awful?" Takezo crossed his arms in front of him.
	"Yeah...well...no...Damn it! Why did you have to write the damn 
thing well? I thought this was going to be just a phase for you, but 
nooo, the way this is going, you'll be writing that stupid fic for 
life!"
	"Hey!" said Takezo indignantly. "It worked for Matsumoto, 
y'know."
	Bob looked incredulous. "Reiji Matsumoto? Who'd he insert 
himself as? Harlock?"
	"Not REIJI Matsumoto, silly, IZUMI!"
	"Izumi Matsumoto? Are you joki..." Bob suddenly stopped. "Hey! 
You're right!"
	"Yep! The earlier drawings of Kyosuke even look like he did 
before he got all fat."
	"My god, you're right!" Bob was amazed, but then he caught 
himself... "Wait! No! I am not going to see things your way! That'd 
make me be pro-self-insertion!"
	"I think," Takezo said, "you already are."
	"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!"

In Part 7: What will the Crusaders be like under the new leadership? 
Does absolute power corrupt absolutely? Will Kojiro finally get his 
revenge on Takezo with part 6? Will Takezo give up on his dream to 
write the best self-insertion fic he can make, in the manner of who he 
calls his favorite 'self-insertion' author, Izumi Matsumoto? I think 
not...

=====

	This part was written with a HUGE CHUNK of 'Turning Road' for 
those of you who requested that I advance that part of the story, 
since I had neglected it in part 5. Well. Here it is. I hope you liked 
it.
	Waitaminute. You mean, you guys actually like the otakufic 
Takezo is writing? Oh, you mean IN CONTEXT. Oh. Okay.

	As usual, request for earlier parts will be heartily accepted.

Scorecard:
Ryo Kurin Ryo: 5 pts.
Scatter Diagram: 5 pts for those who know it, and a 'Duh?' to all 
those who actually use it.
United Brotherhood of Pigs: 5 pts.
Stormtroopers: 5 pts.
Izumi Matsumoto: 10 pts.
And if anyone can remind me what the three principal plots are, 10 pts 
and my gratitude.


Until Part 7 then.

TimeRunner, April 5, 1997

=====
TimeRunner's Page:
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Towers/7482

icq: 7153134 (Keiichi)
=====

"The story grew in the most convoluted way, as many people will be
surprised to learn. Writing episodically meant that when I finished one
episode I had no idea about what the next one would contain. When, in the
twists and turns of the plot, some event suddenly seemed to illuminate
things that had gone before, I was as surprised as anyone else."

--- Douglas Adams, "A Guide to the Guide"

"Mos people who want to be writers don't really want to be writers. They
want to HAVE BEEN  writers."

--- James A. Michener