Subject: [FFML] Shadow of Nerima[Part 6][Dark][R.5/Batman]
From: Ryoga P Hibiki
Date: 9/19/2000, 10:01 PM
To: ffml@fanfic.com

	Previous chapters may be found at my site. The address is at the end of
the fic.


	Shadow of Nerima.

	Part Six.

	Chaos.

	

	"Reign of the Bat!" It was the headline on the evening edition of the
paper. Sayuri snorted in disgust and tossed the page across the room.
"What the hell is this boys, some kind of joke?"

	Hiroshi and Daisuke stood in front of her desk with embarrassed looks on
their faces. "Um, no it isn't chief. This thing is real, me and
Hiroshi..."

	"Hiroshi and I you half wit. Look I don't have time to chase urban
legends around. We've got more important matters to deal with. All those
heroine related deaths lately for example. If you idiots want to spend
your spare time chasing ghosts, then fine."

	"Yes ma'am," muttered the two men as they shuffled out of the office
looking dejected.

	After the men left Sayuri picked up the paper and frowned as she read
the headline again. If the story was even remotely true, she wasn't sure
it was a problem she wanted solved anytime soon. They tolerated more from
the Yakuza factions, and they weren't exactly helping. Things were going
to hell in a hand basket rather quickly in her little section of Tokyo,
and anything that might help solve the problem or put a little fear into
the average street punks life was fine with her. Unfortunately that was a
view she couldn't voice openly. Especially since she was trying to get
her foot into the office of commisioner.

	"Batman..." she closed her eyes and sat back in her chair.



	"Donut delivery?" said Hiroshi skeptically as he looked at the box in
confusion. There were several stacks of them in the office. 

	"Yeah, some nut in a clown suit dropped them off. Supposedly there's
some shop opening in town that delivers," snorted one of their
compatriots crudely.

	"Jeeze, what do they think we are? Americans? Better get rid of these
things before the Chief sees them, she'll blow her top,"  warned Hiroshi
as he grabbed his hat and coat and headed for the door pulling Daisuke
along with him.

	"I suppose you're right," agreed the man with a sigh. He stuffed the
last remains of his meal into his mouth and motioned for some of the
other officers to come over to him. "Help me get rid of these things will
ya?"

	

	Outside the pair of officers walked down the steps into the street. They
walked by an air conditioner repair van and moved to their squad car.
"Honestly, she's turned into such an anal person over the years,"
commented Hiroshi lazily as he flopped down in the drivers seat.

	Daisuke slid into the passenger side and snorted. "Why don't you just
say bitch, we all know you mean it."

	"Well, I am trying to be nice, we've known her for years after all.
She's still a friend at least, even if we don't really act like it
anymore."

	The pair drove off into the city leaving the office behind them as they
started their patrol.

	

	"Have all the packages been delivered?" 

	"Yes boss, I don't see why we did that though," came the confused reply
from the speaker phone.

	"Because I felt like it. Even prisoners get a last meal," replied
Kodachi sharply.

	"Gee boss, that sure was nice of you," said the voice on the other end
of the line. Kodachi could almost feel the stupidity oozing through the
speaker.

	"Just make sure everything goes smoothly."

	"Yes boss."

	She turned in her chair and gazed out across the city. "Sasuke, I do
hate waiting."

	"Yes Mistress, but if we move too soon..."

	"Yes, yes." She waved him off casually and the ninja fell silent. "What
do you want to do first?"

	"Personally I'd like to visit the library," replied the diminutive man
lazily.

	"With a flame thrower of course," added Kodachi cheerfully.

	"Of course Mistress."



	Nabiki turned and backed away from the man who had her in his grip and
fell to the ground with a look of fear in her eyes. "D..Daddy?"

	"Yes Nabiki?"

	"All this belongs to Ranma doesn't it?"

	"Yes daughter, it does."

	"That means that..."

	The man merely nodded in reply and motioned for her to follow him down
to the living room. She complied without much thought and sat across from
him at the table.

	"The whole housewife thing, it was just an act." Her thoughts spun into
a spiral as she began to piece together the events of the last few weeks.
"What the hell is going on Daddy?!"

	"Nabiki, calm down. Ranma knows what he's doing," replied the man
sagely.

	"Like hell he does! He's out of his mind!" snapped the girl in retort.

	"Maybe I am," said a familiar voice from the room they had just vacated.

	"Ranma!" gasped the girl in shock. He stood looking down on her from the
top of the stairwell dressed in a formal and very feminine Kimono. He was
currently in his female form and had his hair tied up in a tight bun
behind his head. The resemblance between him and his mother was almost
startling to the girl and she almost fell over again.

	"It's good to see you again sister," said the red haired woman a little
too politely.

	"What the hell is going on here?"

	"Ranma is dealing with his wife's death," replied Soun quietly. If Ranma
heard him she didn't respond, she merely sat down across from the pair
and waited patiently for them to continue the conversation like a dutiful
housewife. 

	"Is this the real you? Or is it that thing?" said Nabiki as she glared
at the woman with a hint of anger in her eyes.

	"Ranma Saotome does not exist. There is only me now," replied the woman
diplomatically.

	"And who are you?" pried Nabiki. "I know this act is hard for you Ranma,
I've seen you struggling in the kitchen, trying to become Kasumi. It
won't work."

	"Perhaps, but I don't have much choice. Soon Ranma Saotome will be
forgotten," she raised her head and looked out towards the yard with a
small pang of regret.

	"Is that what you want? Is that what Akane would want?" snapped the girl
in reply.

	"It is necessary," said the girl simply.

	"Necessary for what?" said Nabiki with a little calm returning to her
voice.

	"For what I have to do," replied the girl with a shrug.

	"And what is that?"

	The woman's demeanor changed instantly her eyes went from gentle and
playful to cold and hard in an instant, even her voice became almost
unrecognizable. "Fight. I don't want what happened to me to happen again.
I can't stop it completely, but I can manage to help if I hit the right
places."

	Nabiki blanched and turned away from the pair as they sat almost
emotionlessly across from her. "Your thinking of taking on that new
Yakusa boss aren't you?"

	Ranma did not reply.

	"You don't have the resources you need for something like that! What the
hell are you thinking?! Street crime is one thing, this is..."

	"Is what?" asked Ranma gently. 

	Nabiki turned away from her, she couldn't look into the woman's eyes
again. "Look, if you want to take on something like the Yakuza, you're
going to need something more than some scary outfit."

	"Enlighten me," said Ranma calmly as she poured tea for the three of
them.

	"Like a brain. Damn it, I know you're not stupid, but this is beyond
you. You never were the brightest bulb in the world Ranma. You can fight
and that's about it."

	The woman merely looked at her and said nothing. There was not even the
slightest hint of a reaction from her. "And what do you suggest I do
about that Nabiki?"

	"I'm sorry if I've wounded your pride Ranma, but you don't know what
you're dealing with. You could get all of us killed!" Nabiki stood up
from the table and paced back and forth across the room angrily.

	"I've always managed to protect this family before," replied the girl
simply.

	Nabiki stopped cold and glared at her. "Accept the one time your
opponent was armed with a gun."

	That got a reaction out of Ranma. She stopped what she was doing and
placed her teacup on the table. "I see."

	"You'd better Saotome. It's not just myself I'm worried about here. What
about Kasumi and Tofu huh?"

	"I can't stop. It's too late," replied the woman as she picked up her
teacup again. "Why do you think I wear a mask?"

	"How long do you think it will take for them to put it together? It
might take a while, but eventually they will damn it! Your reputation
alone is enough to arouse suspicion. Someone will see you in this area a
lot and put it all together Ranma. Can't you see that?"

	"I can't stop, I swore..." insisted the woman with a confused stare. "I
can't break my promise to her, not again."

	Nabiki froze. She looked into her brother in law's eyes and felt tears
forming in her eyes. "She was right you know. You really are a fool."

	"So it seems," replied the woman as she hung her head low. "But that
changes nothing...I will not allow my family to be hurt by this."

	"You're far to late for that," said Nabiki with the ice returning to her
voice again.

	Ranma nodded and stood up moving towards her bedroom door.

	Nabiki watched her leave and turned around on her heels heading for the
door. She snatched her jacket and almost violently put it on as she
moved. "Damn that stubborn son of a..."

	The door slammed and Soun Tendo was alone again. He looked around in a
daze and then turned his attention back towards his tea. "Hmm, he's
getting better at this," he commented as he looked into his cup after a
moment.




	A few hours later Nabiki Tendo sat in her office brooding. Several files
were strewn across her desk. She couldn't work. Her mind kept wandering
off. She frowned and turned in her chair again moving from side to side
irritably. "Damn you Ranma." She jumped up and grabbed her jacket again
almost jogging out of her office. She turned towards the temporary worker
and paused. "Tell your boss I've filled your position. Thank you for your
services, take the rest of the day off."

	The woman blinked and stood up from her desk. "Uh, right..."



	Hiroshi and Daisuke passed the third precinct at a slow roll. "Here too,
you notice anything odd going on?"

	"Not really?" said Hiroshi as he looked at his partner in confusion.

	"I'm calling this in, it's too weird," Daisuke as he reached for the
radio. 




	Shampoo was feeling pretty good about this evening. Another high class
party had ended in profitable information for her a few weeks ago. She
had been watching this place for a while now, unwilling to move in due to
its proximity to a police station. She climbed skillfully up the side of
the building and smirked as she looked down at the rooftops below.

	"Too easy," she commented as she extended her claws and began to carve a
nice round hole into one of the windows. There was a light rain that
added a bit of challenge to the climb and the added danger of her
position above the station only excited her more. She paused and looked
down again. "Movement on the rooftop?" Almost reluctantly she tore her
eyes away. The men were dressed in overalls and looked like they were
working on the air conditioning system of the police department. She
reached inside the window and pulled the latch from the inside before
hesitating again. "At this time of night?" She turned again and pulled a
pair of goggles from her belt before holding them up to her face. 

	As she suspected the men were working with several large tanks of some
kind around the air conditioners. She frowned and focused the lenses in
more. They were all wearing light brown overalls with some half baked
repair services name embroidered across the back. She turned away from
her work and focused in deeper, something didn't quite seem right.
"Repair men working in the rain, at night, with guns? I think not." She
debated for a moment and shook her head before returning to work again.
"Let that stupid bat deal with them."





	"Is that all you have to report after all day?" snapped Sayuri. "I've
got the work order on my desk."

	"No one said anything about it and I thought it was kind of weird that's
all," said the voice from the radio. The dispatcher had originally taken
the call, but as luck would have it the Chief had been walking by at the
moment the call was taken.

	"It's awful late for these men to be working isn't it? I mean, it's
almost nine o'clock."

	Sayuri paused and looked at the dispatcher in surprise. "All of them are
working this late?"

	"I'm looking at the van right now," said Daisuke.

	"Check it out, I'm sending a team right now," replied the woman
reluctantly.

	Almost in reply a low hissing started from somewhere in the room. Sayuri
jumped into action immediately. "Everyone out of the building! Now!"




	Kodachi narrowed her eyes and glared at Sasuke. "It was most unfortunate
that they discovered our plan."

	"I'll inform the men. We'll just have to move up the timetable a few
hours. Most of them should be set up now anyway," replied the ninja
calmly.

	"Get to it," said the woman with a dark scowl forming on her face.

	"The calls have already been placed Mistress. I took the liberty when
those two fools called in almost ten minutes ago."

	"Very good Sasuke," said the woman cheerfully. She kicked him in the
stomach and he keeled over in front of her. "Just don't ever go over my
head again."

	"Yes... Mistress," replied the man between breaths.

	Kodachi held up a radio receiver and turned up the volume slightly as
the sounds of horrified laughter began to slowly filter through. "Oh my,
I suppose I should have told them to make sure the tanks were sealed
properly." She smiled and sat back down in her chair enjoying the sounds
that slowly began to grow louder.

	


	Hiroshi and Daisuke began to jog towards the third precinct as the
conversation with Sayuri ended. Daisuke put a restraining hand on his old
friend's shoulder. 

"Hiroshi."

	"What the hell is it? We're in a hurry!" snapped the man angrily.

	"What the hell is that stuff?" his partner pointed up towards the roof.
Hiroshi looked back and saw all the color was gone from the man's face.
He glanced up and saw a purple column of smoke rising from the rooftop.
The faint sound of laughter began to echo from above them.

	"Get the masks from the trunk partner."

	TBC...


	Next time: Tokyo's darkest hour.

	C&C to Carrotglace@juno.com

	URL: Http://www.geocities.com/misatira/




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