Short Summary:

Disclaimer got even longer.  Part 2/4.


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--Razorclaw X (http://www.angelfire.com/art/rcxshizuka/index.html)


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-- File: ranffss7.txt

     Wheel of Fire Special #7: Hunting Wind

  Written by Razorclaw X (spiceoflife@NYChotmail.com)
  www.angelfire.com/art/rcxshizuka/ranma/ranff.html

  Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 and characters belong to Rumiko
Takahashi. Proper licenses belong to respective
properties and characters.  All other material herein
belongs to the author, and plagiarism of this concept,
in part or in whole or borrowing, in part or in whole,
will not only get you my ire but the priceless sight
of seeing you behind bars. No part of this document
may be reproduced, retransmitted, or altered, in part
or in whole, for monetary gain, incidental,
consequential, directly, or not at all, without
express permission from the author (if you are unable
to contact me then that does not grant you these
rights). Such condition applies to all my works, and
your ignorance is no excuse, as I reserve the right to
update this disclaimer, and it stands in whatever
shape or form it manifests in any work, appearing
there or not.

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The Day After-- Day 1 of Stage Two

  Nabiki simply did not want to put up with Shion's
banter on the other end of the connection.

  For time on end, ever since he got back home from
the tennis tournament Shion wanted to know everything
that happened since he left.  Not only did he want
that, he wanted to know why Nabiki didn't do anything
about it.

  The answer, of course, was: "What did you want me
to do?"

  Certainly, events didn't go as planned, and Nekurow
was beaten by the creature sleeping in Shizuka's
body.  However, neither one of them have been seen in
town since.  Ziel reported all that transpired in the
battle, but made no move to discern where Shizuka had
gone, or where Nekurow could be.

  Then there was the matter of Ranma.  When he was
helped home he was broken and beaten.  Early this
morning, however, he disappeared suddenly, having gone
on a training journey, Nabiki guessed-- to train alone.

* * *

  "Actually," Miranda Kusao said, leaning back in her
seat with a cup of coffee in hand, "there's only so
many places you can go if you want to be alone."

  Akane nodded, seated across the table in the outdoor
cafe that Miranda frequented every morning before
school, out of habit.  Although it was a school day,
Akane was far more interested in what Ranma was up to,
and, so it seemed, so was Miranda, one of Ranma's few
rivals remaining in town.

  News of Ranma's disappearance spread quickly--
even though it was only at most three hours since he
vanished from the Tendo household.  Akane wondered if
Nabiki was talking, or if her own inquiries were doing
it.  At any rate, her own search turned-up nothing; no
hints or any indications of where Ranma could have
gone, save that he obviously packed for several days.

  Without many avenues to turn to, she needed help.

  "So you'll help?" she asked hopefully.

  Miranda leaned forward, crossing her arms on the
table.  "You want to narrow it down for me, first?
I've got fans, you know."

  "Well, if you're too busy, maybe I'll ask someone
else," Akane said, getting up to leave.

  But the other martial artist was quick to stop her.
"I didn't say I wouldn't.  I mean, the big guys have to
look after the little guys, right?  You wanna go right
now?"

  Akane's eyes narrowed.  "Seriously, or image?"

* * *

  "You've been friends with Ranma since you were kids,
right?" Shion asked over the phone line.  Although
she hardly knew the guy personally, Ukyo knew this
he was one of Shizuka's acquaintances.  As to why he
was interested in Ranma, she was uncertain.

  "Maybe.  So what is it to you?" the okonomiyaki chef
replied.  "I don't know where he runs off to."

  "I wouldn't have tipped you off if I didn't have a
good idea," the mercenary replied.  "You see, it seems
someone matching your friend's description bought a
train ticket out to your neck of the woods early this
morning... well, not quite, but you're the closest
person available."

  "Why are you so interested in him, anyway?" she
asked, growing suspicious as she paced around the
mantle where the phone rested in her bedroom.

  "There are others who have a stake in him," Shion
admitted.  "I'm not actually getting paid to do this,
because... I am a concerned person."

  "I don't think Shizuka will be with him, if that's
what you're thinking," Ukyo replied, slightly
amused by the turn of events.  "From what you've told
me they left at separate times, and in different
directions."

  "Things have a tendency to work out," he assured
her.  "I'll wire you the money in an hour; you don't
have to go, but if you're his friend...."

  "Of course I'm going; who do you think I am?  You
wouldn't have called me otherwise."

  She heard the mercenary laugh on the other end of
the line.  "I like you, really.  Very witty."

  "Don't get too comfortable."

* * *

  "Why?" Chika asked her older brother as he cut the
phone line to his headset.  "Why are you going through
so much trouble just for one person?"

  She could not understand Shion's infatuation with
Shizuka at all; the moment she popped into her
brother's life Shion stopped paying attention to her
and devoted more time to thinking about Shizuka.  In
fact, ever since she entered his life he's been
seriously thinking about walking away from his secret
life.  Chika knew Shion loved to do what he did, and
made a lot of money doing it-- so why would anyone
throw everything away for one person?

  Leaning back in the leather pilot chair facing his
computer, Shion simply answered, "Don't you think it's
good to have such... good friends?"

  "Is that all she is to you?" she asked, becoming more
specific.

  "Remember when our parents got married?" the
mercenary king asked, seemingly drifting off on a
meaningless tangent again.  "I used to look out for
just myself and Mom.  I didn't want anyone to touch her
but me; you didn't want anyone to touch your dad.
Isn't it odd how things turned out like that?"

  "What?  I'm not jealous of that girl!"

  "I didn't say you were," Shion said, turning his
chair to face Chika, a bemused smirk on his face.  "I
think, if you got to know her better, you'd learn to
like her."

  "I've got enough friends," she stammered.

  "You can never have enough friends."

* * *

  "You're early."

  Kanna Rajura, a large travel bag slung across her
shoulder, and carrying a long instrumental case that
obviously hid her death scythe, walked across the
airport terminal to the one waiting for her.  She
dropped her luggage, giving Shizuka a friendly
embrace.

  "Actually, I'm late," the tactician corrected,
releasing her embrace.  "Sorry about that.  Flight
plans never go as planned...."  She laughed at her own
joke nervously.

  "It can't be helped now," the priestess of Genbu
said, reaching down to pick up the scythe's case.
Unable to lift it in a reasonable amount of time,
Kanna reached down and picked it up with one hand.

  Heading toward the exit, Kanna turned to Shizuka.
"So how come you wanted me to come here instead of
Tokyo?"

  "It's too late to go to Tokyo," Shizuka explained,
her left hand patting her left where her swords used
to be.  The officials definitely wouldn't allow her
to pick up Kanna at the airport if she walked in with
that, or any weapon, for that matter; she felt
completely naked.

  "I see."  Kanna nodded sagely.  "Explain what
happened along the way."

* * *

  Nekurow never felt so bitter in his life.

  Certainly, he hated the rogue beasts running loose
like caged animals infesting Earth.  He definitely
hated and envied their power.  Yet, that could not top
being completely humiliated by the creature he sought
to defeat.

  Lying in a borrowed bed, staring at the ceiling,
Nekurow barely remembered how he got there.  He craned
his neck to the right, and saw his sword lying against
an open chair, and his coat on a nearby rack, along
with his hat, and his boots lying on the floor below
it.  Reaching over his face to rub his eyes, he, for
the first time since awakening, realized that his
sunglasses were off, too.

  "Damn!" he cursed.

  "I see you are awake," his benefactor said,
appearing suddenly in the doorframe.

  Nekurow craned his neck up to see, then immediately
turned away.  "How can you stand to look at me?"

  The black hunter's glasses were by no means for
style; not only did they help enhance his visual
perception, they also helped conceal his shame.  Three
large claw marks, given from his initial encounter with
Zhou Tian-long, passing from his right forehead down
to his left cheek, barely missing the places where
his eyes were.  In effect, one slash passed outside
his right eye, then between both eyes, and the last
outside his left eye-- it was the price he paid in
trying to stand up to the human-guised dragon.

  His family held a shard of the evil woman's Dragon
Pearl, the tool which a dragon derives its awesome
magic from.  The disguised dragon first appeared to
his family as a buyer of such a valuable relic,
offering untold riches.  However, his parents were too
hung-up on keeping 'their' family treasure, and
eventually the young man who would become Nekurow
would watch as his family was slaughtered.

  Twenty years ago, give or take a few years, Nekurow
was the only survivor of his household, left for dead.
Her supernatural power was ingrained on his memory for
all eternity, and it inspired him to train in order to
defeat such beasts.  Yet, his personal desire was to
prevent such tragedies from ever happening again, and
that equated into destroying the foreign creatures.

  "What is your name?" the other asked, curious, as
she entered the room.

  "My name...."  He sat up, holding his hand over his
face.  "My name is shadowed by shame; there is only
'Nekurow.'"

  He remembered his vow.  Upon learning Zhou
Tian-long's real name, Nekurow decided he would never
again use his true name until his journey was over.

  "Such an ominous name," the young woman said, taking
a seat at the bedside, obviously intrigued.  "Such a
mysterious name for such a strong, handsome man."

  She pulled away Nekurow's hand gently, and he did
little to resist, and simply stared at her.  "I'm
Ayame."

* * *

  "What?  Ranma is missing?!"

  Ryoga listened to Nabiki through the telephone,
letting all the words sink in.  He barely felt the
presence of Akari behind him as he balled his free
hand into a fist, feeling the urge to break something.

  "Yeah," the middle Tendo sister replied, in her
usual, bored tone.  "He's got Akane looking for him
all over the place, asking people if they've seen
him."

  "That jerk!" Ryoga cried, seething with anger.  "How
dare he force Akane to worry like that!"

  "Akane was just wondering if you kne...."

  He never gave Nabiki the time to finish her
sentence, as the receiver banged against the stand
which the telephone rest on.  Ryoga was already
planning what he was going to do to Ranma the moment
he found him, as he headed for his room.

  "Ryoga?" Akari said, surprised to see him so upset.

  "Akari, I'm going on a trip," he said, stopping in
his tracks, and lowering his voice to a more respectful
tone.  "I've got to help a friend of mine."

  He looked into her eyes, and knew she understood.
"I understand," Akari said, adding a smile.  "Say 'hi'
to Ranma for me."

  "I'll do more than that!" Ryoga promised, grinding
his fist into the palm of his hand.  He turned to
resume his task of gathering his pack together.

  Smiling to himself, Ryoga added silently, "There's
no better person to find someone who's lost than the
guy who always gets lost; then I'll teach that Ranma
a lesson!"

* * *

High Priestess' Chamber, Shrine North Tower

  Mizuki slid the door to the balcony open, taking in
the view of the seventh floor in silence.  The day
was still light even as the dinner hour was drawing
closer-- and in such lateness in the day she hardly
expected to entertain visitors.

  "You know," she began, resting her arms on the rim
of the balcony, speaking to the visitor inside, "I
used to fight the demons.  I used to have a sword.  I
used to travel around the country, looking for any of
those good deeds to do.  I used to be a demon hunter,
just like the rest of them."

  Closing her eyes, she shook her head, chuckling to
herself.  "That was a long time ago, and it wasn't my
true path.  I don't know why I started; I guess I was
feeling lonely after losing both parents in a car
accident.  I did things by myself, and I was by myself,
even amongst the people here in the Shrine."

  She opened her eyes, and stared into the clear sky.
"Then I met people.  I met Shizuka, who was rejected by
her parents.  I met people in my travels that I like to
call my friends... my family.  I met my fianc�.  And,
of course, I met my god.  All of them changed my life,
and guided my path, and I'm thankful for that."

  Turning around, Mizuki addressed her guest directly.
"People who have lost their way usually stop here
sometime or another.  Did you come to find a new
path?"

  "Nah," Ranma answered coolly.  "I'm here to
reinforce the path I chose, so jerks like Ziel can't
knock me off it again."

  "Yet you've left the path to do so," the high
priestess pointed out, assuming a serious expression.
"Coming out here, alone; you left your friends and
family to retrain yourself.  Are you certain this is
the road you want to walk?"

  "If I have to, I'll do it," he affirmed.

  "Then I think you came to the right place," Mizuki
concluded, folding her arms.  "You won't do battle
with just anybody; all our trained warriors are very
reliant on magic to fight."

  "That's what I'm counting on," Ranma said with a
proud smirk.  "The only way I can beat a Wind-User
like Ziel is if I stop thinking in terms of his
physical prowess and get used to people that fight like
him."

* * *

Mountain Retreat, Undisclosed Location

  Flames erupted from the summoning circle, and the
brilliant glow of red and violet bathed the small
clearing outside the small cabin Shizuka borrowed from
Mizuki on occasion.  Behind her Kanna stood waiting
patiently, her arms folded, unimpressed with the
dance of magical flames.

  A circular rift opened at the center of the circle,
and the summoned beast emerged from the Kami Plane
under the call of three summoning beads.  Bathed in
flame, the summoned beast was cloaked in an ash cloak,
and its eyes glowed in a flame that outshone the
summoning flame.

  In a heartbeat the flames scattered, disappearing
into nothingness, leaving only the salamander warrior,
Sokar na Kibarak, retainer of Lord Kolvar, in its
place.

  Shizuka bowed in greeting, respectfully.  "Master
Cinder, it is good to see you again."

  "Make it quick," the salamander intoned, his voice
still synthesized by his mechanical implants.  "We move
to war in the Inferno."

  "Yes, I know," the priestess said, nodding.  "You've
ignored summons from any other person... and just about
every other Infernal is ignoring their calls, too.  I
tried summoning my other beasts earlier, but they
didn't come."

  "The political climate is ever turbulent in such a
feudal society, huh?" Kanna noted.

  Cinder nodded, throwing back his hood.  Although it
has been some time since the one possessed by Suzaku
walked the earth, he still retained his mechanical
eye, and the rest of his prosthetics.  For one with
the Guardian's power it would have been simple to
remove them, but perhaps it was to the warrior's honor
that he retains his battle scars.  Shizuka wondered if
that made him rather popular among the other
samurai-like salamanders; it was considered a great
honor among them to be a summoned beast, she knew.

  "Now that the Star Crusher has ascended to the
Celestial Temple," he explained, referring to Sypha's
ominous title among the kami, "chaos reigns in the Kami
Plane.  She rules in all but name, holding the
Celestial Emperor hostage with her power-- as his chief
advisor.  In an unforeseen move to the other Celestials
and Surfacers she has forged alliance with Infernal
lords, and the entire world is in war.  My liege has
allied with the celestial dragon, along with many
other prominent lords the Star Crusher allied with
during her stay on Earth.  It is ours to subdue those
who refuse the New Order; those who enforce it are
rewarded well."

  "So the balance of power has shifted out of favor
with the 'good races,' eh?" Kanna noted, intrigued.
"Sounds like a real battle; not like those small-fries
back in China."

  Bending her knees, Shizuka scooped up a wrapped
bundle that lay by her side.  "Master Cinder, I know
you're busy, but I request a favor of you."  Holding
it out in both arms, she presented it to Cinder.

  Accepting the bundle, the fire master quickly
unwrapped it.  Buried within the folds of cloth was
the hilt, and the broken blade, of Mizuki's sword.

  "I am no artificer," Cinder admitted.  "I cannot
repair what you ask."

  "But surely, in your world," Shizuka continued,
"you have the finest smiths in the underworld.
Whether it be among the dead, or your people, surely
someone there can repair the sword."

  "Why do you not get another sword?" he asked, eye
narrowing.  The mechanical eye rotated, focusing in.

  "This sword is the twin of my other," the priestess
explained, patting the remaining sword at her side.
"This sword was a gift into entrance of my lifestyle.
That one you hold was passed to me by my mentor."

  "So you wish for me to mend your mentor's honor,"
he noted, neutrally.

  "I'm not worthy of the sword," Shizuka admitted.  "I
couldn't live up to the promise of keeping her family
relics.  I will gladly bestow the blade on you, if only
you repair it."

  "I have no use for such a blade," Cinder replied.
"However, I will take your request into consideration.
I will not promise to devote all my time to this."

  "You're saying that, after all she's done for you?"
Kanna balked.

  "Hold your tongue, human!" the salamander snarled.

  "You wouldn't even have the luxury of being home if
it wasn't for Shizuka!" she continued.  "If she didn't
bring you back to the Shrine, you wouldn't have become
Suzaku, and you wouldn't have been in the position of
going home."

  "I could have done it myself eventually."

  "Kanna, shut up," Shizuka said, agreeing with the
salamander.  "Things don't work that way with the
spirit folk and the like; it's not the same with
manipulating humans."

  "I don't care if Cinder's human or a toad," Kanna
shot back, angered.  "When people do favors for each
other, they don't ask questions-- they do it, or they
don't do it.  And besides, this is Earth, not the Kami
Plane, so our rules apply."

  "If we went by that logic, then we wouldn't be
summoning Cinder, huh?" countered the priestess.  "I
should've been burned at the stake already."

  "If our business is concluded," Cinder interrupted,
"then I shall take my leave."

  "Of course, Master Cinder," Shizuka said.

  A new rift opened beneath the salamander's feet, and
flames rose to consume him.  The flaming form sunk into
the rift, and vanished from sight, leaving the two
girls alone.

  Turning back toward the cabin-- rather, a full-
fledged house that looked like a dinky cabin-- Shizuka
added, "And you can insult other people for speaking
out of turn, too.  Isn't that great?"

  "Stupid etiquette... that's what I think," Kanna
said, shaking her head and falling in behind Shizuka.
"Now that business is taken care of, let's say we get
started early tomorrow, eh?"

* * *

  "Look," Ziel yelled into the payphone's receiver,
standing in the crowded subway station in downtown,
"I don't know where the hell she went, okay?  I know
I'm supposed to watch her, but I wasn't going to get
that close to Deathclaw.  You didn't even tell me what
that... that... thing could do!"

  He switched hands, placing the receiver on his
other ear.  "Do better research!  That breath weapon
ages things at a hyper-accelerated rate!  What makes
you think I'm getting any closer to her with that guy
around?"

  Ziel turned, his back to the people, and faced the
wall, planting his free hand against it and lowering
his head.  "What do you think I'm doing?  I'm laying
low; two girls are going around town asking about
Ranma Saotome, who's also turned up missing.  Everybody
disappeared after the fight but me, and you know
someone's going to ask questions.  I didn't do
anything; that's the problem!"

  "Yeah, I'll see you later."  He slammed the receiver
back, cutting the connection.

  Sighing wearily, Ziel Kagura whipped open his fan,
and ran air in circulation to his head.  There was
something about yesterday's events that was causing
him a lot of stress-- in combination, of actually
beating the renowned martial artist Ranma Saotome, to
losing track of Shizuka and Nekurow, and almost
getting a taste of Deathclaw's deadly blast of wind
that, thanks to Ziel's own wind, nearly got circulated
past its concentrated area.  It was all he could do to
keep it confined in the park once it began, and even
then he was at risk of getting exposed himself.  Not to
mention at least four guys who realized he beat Ranma
wanted to make names for themselves by beating the one
who beat Ranma, particularly since all of them
perceived Ziel a frail loser.

  He hated being in the enclosed subway; it was no
box, but it seemed just as confining.  Ziel knew Shion
knew he had a slight claustrophobia, and purposefully
put his typical connection line in the subway station.
It was, as Shion told him, a good way to keep the
Wind-User alert through his arrogance.

  The bastard was clever-- for a human.  Ziel Kagura,
having come from a family descended from demons living
at least four-hundred years ago, inherited the Wind
Power, and such made him feel special.  Superior, even,
to regular, lowborn humans.  Those that knew of his
lineage, and misunderstood, thought he was a bastard
from a bastard family... but each of them soon learned
the error of their ways.  Ziel Kagura was simply
superior to them, and he knew it.  He just had to make
sure everybody else knew it.

  Few earned the Wind-User's respect, much less
attention.  As one of the founding members of the
Inner Circle, the underworld organization of cyber-
mercenaries and general no-do-wellers, Ziel had deep
respect for both Shion Kagami and Kanna Rajura, the two
other main founders.  Both of them were smart, and good
at what they did; Shion had vision, and Kanna cunning,
with both tempered by Ziel's gift.  He held a bit more
respect for Kanna, in her ability to fight, but her
earth-based techniques seemed limited in his eyes.  Of
course, that was a simple mistake he made early on in
their first formal battle, as Kanna's lack of
technique was certainly made up by her tactical
genius and planning; she was certainly fond of traps.

  He first met Shizuka a lot sooner than the current
job he was contracted for; Shion introduced her to the
rest of the Inner Circle, and demanded that they give
her the same treatment as they would give him.  The
girl, of course, didn't want any of it, but she got it
anyway, being the boss's girl.  It was well-known that
she flat-out rejected joining the organization, as she
preferred to work alone, and didn't appreciate the
subterfuge involved.

  Shizuka's arrogance proved to be an attractive point,
after a fashion; Ziel and the priestess initially hated
each other.  They hated each other for quite some time,
as either saw the other as arrogant and stuck-up.  The
turning point of all that turned out to be something
unexpected-- the Shadow Weaver Hokuto  appeared and
switched Shizuka's personality with that of a
subconscious one, which was far nicer and pleasant to
be around... yet, at the same time, scary.  Although it
was the first time he understood that yes, she is a
girl, Ziel also found that it was simply... not right.
Of course, the switch was soon undone, and Shizuka was
back to being ruthless as ever, but Ziel did take the
effect to heart.

  So much, in fact, because he himself felt the draw
of another side of him, and it scared him.  The
construct he put up for himself was one of order and
control, whereas the other was a foundry of chaos and
ruin.  Ziel heard tales of his ancestors-- more
blooded that he is-- losing control of their Wind
Power to their demonic blood.  Such was not an
uncommon problem, Shizuka explained to him, as others
with similar lineage have that type of problem.  Each
one of them feared the other, more dangerous,
subconscious personality.

  Everyone was just fortunate that a full human like
Shizuka had an incredibly stupid, if somewhat alluring,
'other half.'  Shizuka not so affectionately calls it
'Seraph,' because, oddly enough, she thinks she's
evil.

  He had no idea why he told her; it was, perhaps, his
greatest secret, and perhaps his greatest weakness
which nobody other than Kanna and Shion knew.  It was,
however, something Shizuka understood completely, and
Ziel kind of expected it.  She didn't laugh at him,
nor did she blabber it to others; Shizuka merely
patted him on the shoulder, told him, "I understand,"
and walked away quietly, as her name says.  He looked
into her eyes for the first time that day, and knew
that she shouldered a lot of ugly truths in her mind,
yet remained her 'elegant self.'  Ziel didn't know what
kind of crap she knew, but he was certain most people
would have gone mad knowing what she knows.

  Maybe that was why Shion was so obsessed over her.

  Snapping his fan shut, Ziel looked for the nearest
exit, and hoped those snooping girls won't find him.

* * *

Day 2 of Stage Two

  Mousse found it exceedingly annoying to find one
person.

  Holding a road map of Japan out in front of him the
Chinese martial artist stood in front of the entrance
of the airport terminal, with Shampoo standing behind
him, her arms folded, tapping her foot impatiently.
It took the two of them quite some time to run across
the length of China, then scrounge up enough money to
get themselves to Tokyo from the mainland, and neither
were looking forward to scrounging up the money for the
trip back.

  "What's taking so long?" Shampoo asked impatiently,
trying her best not to seize the map from Mousse.

  Adjusting his glasses nervously Mousse lost hold of
part of the map, and quickly snapped it back before
it fell too far.  "I told you we should've figured out
the directions while we were on the airplane!"

  Of course, he knew that was a useless suggestion;
both martial artists slept the entire flight, having
left in the middle of the night in order to get to
Japan that morning.  That fault was partly his own, in
his haste to chase down his quarry.

  Mousse never felt the exhilaration since chasing
Shampoo to Japan the first time; he was risking
everything-- particularly his pride-- on chasing after
a girl.  He wasn't certain as to what his feelings
were this time, but the exhilaration was the same-- he
enjoyed the hunt as much as achieving the prize.

  Kanna Rajura served as an advisor to the amazon
tribe during her stay in China, and her advice was very
useful in keeping the village in one piece, what with
the free-for-all going on in the Valley.  She took
time-off from college in order to play out her
fantasies, but, despite living in the middle of
nowhere, she still brought along modern conveniences
with her-- particularly a rather expensive-looking
portable computer to keep connected with her friends
back in Japan.

  It was not that she was unadjusted to living a less-
sophisticated lifestyle; Kanna 'adjusted well' after a
few days of awkwardness.  Mousse himself knew she spent
quite a bit of time to herself studying or writing
home.  She never complained, nor asked for anything in
return, but helped nevertheless.  She never complained
of being homesick.  So it came to a surprise to him
that Kanna suddenly disappeared from the village five
days ago.

  Kanna left, taking her belongings with her-- probably
slipping out late in the night, or early in the
morning.  No matter; she left a brief note at her bed
with the contents: "Forgive me for leaving so suddenly;
I must return home immediately.  You have very capable
people here, and I'm thankful for your hospitality
during my stay.  You guys can take care of yourselves
from here on if you follow my previous suggestions.
Thanks for everything.  Kanna."

  Cologne understood the contents of the notes
precisely, and advised Mousse not to go after her.
Yet, moving against her wishes, he went after her
anyway, unsure as to why himself.  The old hag sent
Shampoo along to look after him, but Shampoo didn't
seem to mind... too much.

  He wondered why, exactly, she would want to come.

  Shampoo's patience wore out at that moment, and
Mousse realized the map was no longer in his hands.

  She pointed her index finger away from the airport.
"We're going that way!"

* * *

Mountain Retreat, Undisclosed Location

  Kanna felt at peace with herself as she felt the
rush of water over her head and shoulders.  She kept
her eyes shut to the dawning day as the unpolluted
mountain stream washed over her from over the side of
a crag.

  Her thoughts never drifted far when Shizuka beside
her suddenly pulled herself from under the waterfall,
yelling and screaming about the temperature.

  Annoyed, the strategist opened her eyes to see the
priestess knocking the water out of her soaked training
gi uselessly-- it was a silly human habit.  The other
girl shook her arms of water, then her head, probably
with more incentive to get warm after the ice-cold
morning shower.

  "So much for discipline," Kanna snorted, relaxing a
bit in her seated position.

  "It's COLD!" Shizuka complained, her voice echoing
off in the distance.  Kanna was certain that roused a
few animals that had not awakened yet.

  "I can see why you need my help," the tactician
noted.  "I can also see why you never succeeded your
mentor's technique, and broke her sword."

  "It's too much hard work," Shizuka said, folding
her arms, and lowering her tone a notch.  "I'm too
weak to fight like that."

  "Then why are you trying?"

  "Because if he can do it, so can I!"

  "What kind of reasoning is that?!" Kanna asked,
growing more annoyed.  "Most fighters don't ever fight
on an even playing field!"

  "They should!" the stubborn priestess replied.  "This
is nothing like Chess."

  "Of course it's not like Chess; Chess makes all sides
even, giving the same pieces to each side.  Chess is a
poor simulation of real battles, because nobody ever
fights with the same exact pieces each time.  You're
supposed to use what you have, and THEN win.  Plan
ahead!"

  "A lot of help that's going to do!" Shizuka cried.

  Rising to a standing position, the falling water
barely fazing her, Kanna sighed.  "You've got focus,
and you've got your code of honor.  Of course, both of
those mean nothing right now, because you lack any
sort of discipline.  If you studied under my family's
school, you would've quit the first day."

  "I'm not a martial artist."

  "Then STOP trying to fight like one!" Kanna yelled,
her pent-up annoyance given life.  "Right now your code
and focus are working against you.  You have a strong
desire for an even match, and are so fixated on that
you don't see any other options.  You asked me to kick
the stool out from under you, so that's what I'm
doing.  I didn't fly all the way out here to help just
anybody; I came here because I want to help a friend
that's dear to me."

  She pointed to the position next to her, where
Shizuka sat earlier.  "Now shut up, sit down, and
think about what else you can do."

  Shizuka grumbled to herself, staring at Kanna for
several moments.  Uncertain as to what the priestess
would do next, Kanna shrugged, and resumed her seated
position.  Closing her eyes, she felt the other girl
move to take back her position under the waterfall
again.

  "We both know that's a lie," the priestess said,
settling in, "so there's no use maintaining such a
pretense."

  This is definitely going to take a while, she
decided, talking to herself.  Shizuka is strong; I
know it.  Her sharp tongue and mind are proof enough of
that; she has all the puzzle pieces in front of her.
It is only a matter of time before she figures it out
on her own.  She's just too fixated on her self-image
of weakness to realize it.  Until she can stop thinking
of herself like that, she'll never beat anybody.

* * *

Courtyard, Shrine of the Four Gods

  If Kanna was stressing-out over training Shizuka,
Mizuki was having her own problems dealing with Ranma.

  She watched as the martial artist attacked one of
her juniors, Reiko Shiwasu, in vain.  Long before the
mock battle began the younger priestess erected an
energy field around herself, and for that Mizuki was
pleased.  A good defense was critical for those who
could not take much punishment.

  Yet, that hardly seemed to dawn on Ranma, who got
electrocuted by the egg-shaped field around the girl,
then sent flying back several meters.  He entered into
an attack with punches, kicks, body slams, and even
threw a chunk of rock from around one of the craters
he made in the courtyard.  The rock even bounced off
the shield and nearly beaned him, too.

  This was how Ranma wanted it; he said Ziel's air
shield possessed such qualities... save for the shock
field.  Mizuki devised the shock field on her own,
observing that smart creatures usually don't like
touching the field on purpose.

  She began to doubt the young man had any.

  "Are we done yet?" Reiko asked, bored.  "I've got to
feed my gerbil."

  Mizuki winced, reminded that Shizuka's boa
constrictor ate the girl's last pet when Thanatos let
himself out of Shizuka's room.  In fact, said snake was
in Mizuki's room right now, and she began to wonder if
the escape artist was going to work again.  Thanatos
somehow managed to slide doors open and break open
locked cages easily, but so far, nobody knew how he did
it.

  She hoped he wasn't planning on eating the gerbil;
Reiko wanted to flay the snake alive enough as is, and
Mizuki didn't know how much longer she could keep
Thanatos out of trouble while Shizuka was gone.

  "No," Ranma said, getting back to his feet for the
umpteenth time that morning, wiping his chin with the
back of his hand.  "No one's gettin' breakfast until I
get through!"

  Mizuki held out her left wrist, and pulled back her
sleeve.  "Speaking of breakfast, I think it's time to
take a break.  Fast."

  "Can't you guys give me a hint?" Ranma complained.
"I mean, if your shields were this good, shouldn't
there be more of you guys running around?"

  "Very good," the high priestess said, nodding.  "You
did notice something after all.  Of course, you still
haven't figured out what."

  "Yeah, that's right," he remembered.  "I don't need
any hints."

  "Make up your mind already!" the junior priestess
moaned, stomping in place as if she needed to pee
badly.

  Ranma smirked, cupping his arms in front of him.
"Heh, well, maybe if physical attacks don't work so
well, how about...."  Throwing his arms out, he cried,
"Moko Takabisha!"

  That was more than enough to have Reiko running for
cover, as the energy ball, although small in size,
rocketed toward her.  The junior priestess threw
herself onto the ground, the solid air projectile
rushing overhead, continuing until it slammed into the
opposing wall of the courtyard Ranma faced.

  And yet, even though he missed, Ranma seemed to gain
a bit of confidence.

  "Well, now we're gettin' somewhere!" he proclaimed.

  "Are you certain?" questioned Mizuki, taking
deliberate steps toward the martial artist.  "Perhaps
Reiko was simply scared of your unforeseen attack.
Perhaps the shock made her waver in her position."

  "Or perhaps it can pass through the field," Ranma
chipped in.  "C'mon, people who routinely use fields
like that know their limits.  She was afraid of solid
air," he added, jabbing a thumb at Reiko.  "So maybe
I'm on the right track."

  "Maybe," Mizuki conceded, unwilling to encourage the
young Saotome further at the moment.  "Perhaps you can
think about it... over breakfast."

  "Breakfast sounds nice," another said, butting into
the conversation.

  Both Mizuki and Ranma's attentions were fixed on the
newcomer.

  "Hey," Ranma said, his voice betraying both surprise
and elation, "what are you doing here?"

  Ukyo Kuonji smiled in her infectious manner-- the
one Mizuki remembered from their previous encounter--
and folded her hands behind her back, behind the large
spatula slung over her shoulder.  "Nice seeing you
again, Ranchan."

  "I was unaware you were expecting guests," Mizuki
said, directing her comments toward Ranma.  "I thought
you didn't want to be disturbed by your friends."

  But he was already at Ukyo's side, leading her by
her left arm.  "How about some breakfast?  I've worked
up an appetite...."

  "You look kind of beat up," Ukyo said, sounding a bit
concerned.  "Everybody's been looking for you."

  "Eh, I've been training, that's all," he replied,
shrugging.  "I'm sure they'll understand."

  Mizuki sighed, falling in behind the two friends as
they lead her to the eating section.  She looked back
in Reiko's direction, but she was already headed back
to the North Tower to check on her gerbil... or regain
her composure.

* * *

  "I'm the only one that knows you're here," Ukyo
explained at the table, watching Ranma eat his second
helping.  She glanced in Mizuki's direction.  "Well,
except you guys, of course."

  "Of course," the high priestess replied neutrally.

  "Just so long as Akane doesn't know," Ranma said,
stuffing his face.  "This stuff is so good...."

  "Why's that so much of a problem?" the okonomiyaki
chef asked, her expression betraying confusion.  "I
thought you two were past those things."

  "It's just I don't want to drag her into this," Ranma
answered.  "I've got to show everybody that I can do
things by myself, and I can still win."

  Ukyo nodded, remembering that Ranma lost his last
two formal duels with Kanna and Miranda.  Although
Kanna didn't see hers a victory, either, Ranma was
counted as having lost.  It didn't help that Miranda,
the other opponent, was lording over her victory.  In
the following events Ranma wasn't given time to
challenge Kanna a second time before she left the
country, and last she heard Miranda refused to battle,
feeling too good about herself to risk losing.  The
issue was most definitely pride.

  If pride was a sin, then Ukyo herself was a glaring
beacon of it.  There wasn't anything wrong with having
some kind of pride....

  "I won't get in your way," she promised.  "If it's
really that important to you, I won't tell the
others where you are."

  "You don't have to go away," Ranma said quickly,
forcing down the contents of his mouth to make himself
clear.  "I mean, you came out this far... so you may
as well stay."

  "Is that all?" Ukyo replied with a sly smile.  "I
thought maybe it was because of my cooking."

  "Umm... that, too," he admitted.

* * *

  Mizuki folded her arms as she leaned against the
doorframe, with Ukyo standing beside her.  Both watched
Ranma rush out back into the courtyard, testing for
himself on how large he could make his energy bullet
at the moment.  For all the high priestess knew he was
trying to make it bigger.

  "So who told you?" she asked finally, having noted
that Ranma never asked the question himself.

  "Shion did," Ukyo answered quickly.  Shrugging, she
added, "I don't know why I trusted him, but I guess it
paid off."

  "I'm not surprised," Mizuki said, nodding.  "Shion
certainly does have a way of getting information."

  "He's also looking for Shizuka, who also disappeared
the day before Ranma," the okonomiyaki chef added.
"So, do you know where she is?"

  "That would be telling," came the canned response.

  "So you're not going to tell me."

  "Nope."

  Ukyo sighed.  "It's not just him, you know.  Lots of
people in Tokyo are looking for Ranma.  I heard from
Shion that Akane's been recruiting help in her search,
because she doesn't know where to look."

  "It's only a matter of time," Mizuki said.  "I hope
Ranma is finished before Akane finds him."

  "Why?"

  "Ranma's thoughts always go back to Akane," she
explained.  "In effect, it's somewhat of a distraction
to him.  All of you people are, actually, which is why
he wants to get away.  He believes he lost his recent
duels because he relied too much on others to
supplement his fighting abilities, and now Ranma wants
to be able to stand on his own again.  Kanna and
Miranda were within his reach, but Ziel was far beyond
his current ability.  He needs a few days to catch-up
for the rematch."

  "I don't remember him doing that for a long time,"
Ukyo noted, impressed by her old friend.  "I always
thought, in the past months, Ranma's been losing his
touch, but the more I see him today, the more I
remember how it used to be that first year I stayed in
Tokyo."

  "Ranma needs strong opponents like this Ziel," she
continued.  "I think, if it wasn't for people like us,
and maybe a few others along the way, Ranma wouldn't be
what he is right now.  Martial arts is what he truly
excels at."

  "It will take more than drive for Ranma to beat
someone like Ziel," Mizuki countered.  "From what I
heard about him he won without contest, and has a far
greater range of abilities than most of the training
magicians here have."

  "Except for Shizuka?" Ukyo asked.  She wondered if
the girl that hated her guts meant anything in the
big picture.

  "Shizuka has her own problems," Mizuki stated.  "Her
problems are far different from Ranma's.  She is very
able, but doesn't know how to apply herself.  The god
Genbu wants her, but Shizuka herself isn't ready."

  Ukyo nodded silently.  Gaining the power of a kami
lord such as Genbu was the primary reason Shizuka was
jealous of her.  It was demonstrated to all that Ukyo
could easily attain the dragon god Seiryu's Guardian
power, as Cinder had done with Suzaku, but it was not
apparent if Shizuka herself could achieve such power.
Therefore, she was extremely jealous-- to the point
where Shizuka would attack or insult Ukyo on the
basis of a possibility.

  Yet, Mizuki seemed to know it was fact, and Ukyo
realized she was entrusted with crucial information
that Shizuka wasn't supposed to know.  At least, not
yet; Shizuka is literally a storehouse of truths once
she learns of them, and often behaves strangely because
of it.  If she knew ahead of time she would definitely
succeed in the Guardian power, there was no telling
how it would affect her.

  Knowing such things ahead of time could alter the
outcome, Ukyo knew, having actively resisted the
opportunity to take Seiryu's power for her own.

* * *

Inner Circle

  It felt good to be in his own office.  Shion moved
his base of operations out of his bedroom only weeks
earlier, as he was sick of having his mother complain
about him, a college student, lacking any discernable
source of income.  The master of the Inner Circle
claimed to have the option of 'working at home,' but
she didn't believe him when Shion couldn't come up
with a 'big name' company.  Only Chika in his familial
unit was privy to Shion's private company, and source
of income; he was uncertain as to what his mother and
step-father would think about it.

  In any case it now appeared that he wasn't shutting
himself out of the world; moving the office gave the
impression that Shion had a life outside his computer.

  Leaning back in his favorite leather captain's chair
Shion lazily rolled the mouse on the desk, and opened
his primary tools that contained the information that
would dictate the schedule of the day.

  He found many reports waiting for him on minor
tidbits on the 'Search for Ranma Saotome,' along with
three job offers, a status report on a side project,
and a number of warning flags of other people trying to
hack into his network, with none of them getting past
the first router in Paris.

  Shion fondly remembered one fool managed to get
through to the third router, who eventually became one
of his agents.  He appreciated inventive initiative
out of his co-workers, as the same fool's purpose is to
help keep other such fools out of the Inner Circle's
private network.  Such inventiveness brought people
such as Nabiki Tendo into the fold as well, although
Chika entered more by accident than anything.

  Amidst the reported multiple inquiries as to the
whereabouts of one Ranma Saotome all over Tokyo, Shion
caught wind of a more important piece of information.

  Some time ago two Chinese people appeared at Kanna's
apartment that she lived in while attending school; she
did earn enough money to afford living beyond the
dorms, after all.  Of course, neither one was met with
any sort of response, as the house was empty ever since
Kanna went on extended leave to China.  It was up to
Shion to watch over the house while she was gone, and
his installed monitoring equipment alerted him of the
two Chinese that should have been with Kanna in the
first place.

  Beside visual confirmation, he also picked up an
audio sample from her front door; it was definitely
Mousse, who specified that he had no clue as to where
Kanna could be, if she wasn't home.  The martial artist
theorized she could have gone to her parents, but the
other, Shampoo, refused to believe it, citing that
Kanna did buy tickets for Tokyo, as Kanna's parents
lived elsewhere.

  It was worth knowing that Shampoo and Mousse were
back in town, but Shion found it puzzling that Kanna
was back in Japan, too.  His quick check of the
records at the airport indicated that no one under
Kanna's name, or any of her usual aliases, arrived on
any flight over the past ten days.  Shion considered
going back farther, or extending his search to other
airports in other cities, finally considering looking
for her point of origin instead.

  There could be a number of places Kanna could have
gone to, but there was only so many places she could
have taken off from.  That was assuming, of course, she
was even in Japan, but those two martial artists were
good enough reason to believe that she was indeed in
the country.  Although their tribe appears rather
primitive by today's standards, Shampoo and Mousse did
have some uncanny knack at getting around when they
wanted to.

  He had to give their tracking ability some credit,
too; it sounded similar to the tale of Shampoo's first
trip to Japan.  Shion paused to consider if such an odd
tale had truth to it, after all.

  Discarding such thoughts the master of the Inner
Circle sat up in his captain's chair, and cracked his
knuckles over the keyboard.  It was time to hack into
the records of Chinese airports.  If Kanna was intended
to go to Tokyo, but, for some reason or another
changed plans, then the answer would likely be at the
point of departure.

  Shion hoped he didn't have to dig very far, or this
side-project would detract from finding Shizuka, or
ditching the people after Ziel for him.

* * *

Front Door, Tendo Household

  "So I asked a friend of mine," Miranda explained,
standing just outside the door speaking with Akane.
"Supposedly some guy matching the description of your
friend took off on a west-bound train."

  "And?"  Akane hardly saw what was so significant
about the information, since Tokyo was as far east in
the country as you could go.

  "He bought a ticket heading out for Kyoto," the
martial artist explained.  "Unless you can think of a
place where your hubby likes hanging out over there, I
can only think of one place out there."

  "Which is?" she asked anxiously.

  "There's a mountain retreat out there I used to go
to," Miranda continued.  "You know... one of those old
Shinto shrines out in the middle of nowhere.  Only
crazy people go out to places like that these days, so
it's relatively quiet and nobody's there to bother
you.  I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner."

  Akane looked back inside, considering.  Although
school was still in session and she was ready to go to
class when Miranda arrived the thought of seeing Ranma
again interested her more.  She already had her
decision made a day ago, after all.

  "Well, what're we waiting for?" she answered,
knowing it would only take a few seconds to get her
pre-prepared travel gear ready.

  Miranda smiled, amused.  "I thought you'd say that."

* * *

  "I'm sorry," Kasumi said, standing in the same place
where Akane was before while she was entertaining
Miranda earlier that morning, "but Ranma isn't here.
You just missed Akane, too."

  "I see," Mousse said, discouraged.

  Beside him, Shampoo maintained her composure.  "Where
did they go?"

  Kasumi shook her head.  "I don't know.  You know how
younger people are these days."

  Glad that he was wearing his glasses, Mousse's eyes
narrowed, with the self-imagined concealment of
contempt from the young woman standing in the door.
"Right...."

  "If Ranma or Akane come back," the other Chinese
warrior said, "let us know."  She handed Kasumi a
folded piece of paper, which Mousse knew contained
the location of their current rented rooms.

  "Sorry to bother you," he added, waving as he turned
to leave.

  Mousse sighed, knowing he was running out of options
in his search.  For whatever reason Ranma and Akane
were not available to help him; it seemed as if either
nobody saw Kanna ever since she left for China, or the
people he turned to for help were vanishing as well;
Mousse wasn't desperate enough to contact the Kunos or
Kusao-- the only other big martial artists left in
town-- just yet.  Something was definitely happening,
to say the least.

  It was only a matter of time before he would become
a part of it, he knew.

* * *

Mishima Estate, Guest Room

  For a long while, Nekurow thought it was a dream,
but the freshly-prepared meal on the dining cart beside
his bead was real.

  He could not recall when it was brought in, yet the
dark hunter remembered that girl-- Ayame-- bringing
it in only moments before.  Yes, she was real, too.

  It was breakfast, of course.  Nekurow could not
recall the last time someone made him breakfast.

  Sitting up in bed, he saw that his clothes, gear, and
sword, were in the same place as before.  The morning
sunlight was peaking through curtains nearly shut
tight over a window, illuminating the room slowly.

  Nekurow tensed in alertness when the door opened.
Instinctively, he reached to his side, but realized
too late that his sword was very out of reach.

  That girl-- Ayame-- peeked inside.  "Oh, you're
awake?"

  She stared Nekurow, seemingly waiting for a response.
Remaining cold-faced, he said nothing to the newcomer.

  Letting herself inside, the girl, dressed in a
long-skirt sailor suit school uniform, held her book
bag out in front of her with both hands nervously.  Her
eyes darted toward the sword, as if she expected it to
leap out at her.  She introduced herself, "I just
wanted to see how you were before I went to school."

  "I'm... fine."

  "I... I'm glad to hear that," she replied nervously.
"You were pretty beat-up when I found you."

  "You found me?"

  "Yeah.  You broke through three walls, you know."

  "It doesn't hurt," he assured her.

  "Just rest and relax, okay?" Ayame suggested.
"You don't have to tell me what happened; I get beat
up all the time.  I won't tell anybody."

  The girl's words reminded Nekurow of his mission.
"Does anybody beside you and your friend know that I'm
here?" he asked, fearing that the Wind-User might
capitalize on his momentary weakness.

  "Well... just my friends," Ayame answered.  "Nobody's
said anything about you, really."

  Her eyes passed down to the dining cart.  "I think
you'd better finish that, 'kay?"

  Nekurow tore his eyes off the girl, and down to the
dining cart.  "How immediate are your needs to be in
school?"

  "Huh?"

  "If you're not in a hurry, stay freely.  I don't
have company often."

  "Umm... are you sure?" she asked, becoming far more
nervous than before.  "I'm not really into older
guys... I'm just concerned...."

  "I just want company," he assured her.  "I've eaten
alone every day for as long as I care to remember.
No strings attached."

  That seemed to calm her down a bit.  Ayame walked
over to the chair near the Orochi Sword, and put her
book bag down.  "Well... okay, but no funny stuff, you
hear?  I'm a whiz at Martial Arts Rhythmic
Gymnastics.  Kodachi's training me personally."

  "I see," Nekurow said.  "Then why do you fear being
'beat up?'"

  "Oh."  That seemed to stop Ayame in her tracks.
"Well... she and the other big martial artists can
still beat me up when they want to.  Miranda does it
all the time.  I'm still better than most of my team,
though."

  "Congratulations," he replied.  "You've taken the
first steps to rectifying your mistakes.  Yet, you're
still making a critical mistake."

  "Huh?  What mistakes?"

  "What is good is that you're trying to make up for
your weakness.  What is wrong is you're still getting
into fights you know you will lose."

  "It's not like I choose when she beats me up!" Ayame
complained.

  "And why would this Miranda want to fight you?"

  "Because Kodachi's teaching me how to fight, and I'm
her friend.  Miranda is one of Kodachi's oldest
enemies."

  "Guilt by association," Nekurow noted.  "There is no
avoiding it."

  "But, thing is, she always tries to pick me off
while I'm by myself," Ayame added, looking away.  "I
mean, if one of my other friends jumps in, too, Miranda
runs off and waits until I'm alone again.  She does
this to Kodachi, too... and this way she never finishes
her fights."

  "Miranda sounds like someone I know," the hunter
said neutrally.  "A warrior with a burning passion
for what she does, and the ability to do it."

  "But it's not fun being beat on all the time,"
Ayame pointed out.  "It's almost like a game now; I
don't think even Miranda remembers why she's doing it.
I know Kodachi doesn't know.  It's so ancient history
to both of them that they could be friends if they
weren't enemies.  It's like they're enemies solely for
the sheer heck of it."

* * *

Waterfall, Mountain Retreat

  Kanna held her double-bladed polearm ready as she
waited for Shizuka to initiate her attack.  The cool
stream leading away from the cascading falls nearby
ran up to her ankles-- a condition which hampered
movement slightly, but one which Kanna was used to.

  Shizuka held her remaining Viper sword with both
hands, holding the weapon low as she took hardened
breaths.  She raised the blade, letting out a war cry,
and kicked up water as she charged toward Kanna.

  Raising up the length of the metal pole to block
Kanna easily parried the overhead strike, leaving the
blades extended at each end.  Although the death scythe
had a built-in mechanism that allowed both blades to
curl into scythe positions, and it would make short
work of Shizuka's failed attack, such was not the
purpose of the exercise.

  "You hit like a girl," the tactician noted, sounding
bored.

  "Shut up!" the priestess seethed.  "Stop holding
back on me!  I can beat you whenever I want!"

  "Then stop saying you'll beat me and BEAT ME!"  Kanna
roared, heaving Shizuka back and away with the force
behind her polearm.

  The priestess of Genbu staggered back several steps,
then fell over backward into the stream, losing her
grip on her sword.  The cool water washed away beads of
sweat pouring down the girl's face as she sat up, and
reached for her submerged weapon.

  "Don't bother," Kanna told her, "we're done for now."

  As she turned to leave, Shizuka shouted, "Get back
here!  I'm not through with you yet!"

  Glancing over her shoulder, the tactician added,
"Maybe if you spent less time talking and more time
practicing maybe you could beat me.  Maybe.  It would
take someone like you years to best someone like me."

  "I don't have ten years," Shizuka hissed, standing
on her knees.  "And beside that, talking is what I
do."

  "Yes, I know," she replied, nodding.  "All talk and
no technique."

  "Fuck it!" the priestess yelled, flipping the birdie.
"You're not helping me at all!  You're ENJOYING this!"

  "To an extent, yes.  But you're just pathetic.  I
don't know why I'm trying to train you.  It hasn't
been a week and you're already throwing the towel."

  "Yeah, you just walk away!  I'll wipe that smirk off
your face and show you how bad I really am!"

  "Emphasize 'bad' more."

  Turning away, Kanna heard Shizuka slam a fist back
into the water angrily.  Shouldering her death scythe
she left Shizuka to wallow in her self-pity, heading
back to the cabin.

  What in hell does she think this is? she wondered.
Shizuka's definitely not a quick learner like Ranma or
Miranda are, and she refuses every training technique
I can think of.  She has the killing instinct,
certainly, but she'll never be able to kill anything.

* * *

Courtyard, Shrine of the Four Gods

  To Mizuki, it appeared as if Reiko finally got the
idea that she wasn't going to get hurt from Ranma's
little exercise.

  Just after lunch Ranma announced he was ready to
try again.  Although she was unwilling to go out again
Mizuki managed to convince Reiko to act as a target
again.  She knew the junior priestess really minded
about getting slammed for no good reason, but Mizuki
assured her that Ranma would not bring her to harm.

  Of course, Mizuki didn't mean it in the way events
were turning out.  Ranma Saotome, despite having worked
up the confidence to assail Reiko with numerous large
ki energy balls, could not penetrate Reiko's barrier,
which was at the same strength as before breakfast.
Reiko realized that Ranma couldn't do what he wanted,
and relaxed her tension.  In fact, as time passed she
looked anxious to be elsewhere, eager to satisfy her
boredom.

  Beside the high priestess Ukyo was shaking her head.
"You'd think he'd try something else."

  "He has the right idea," Mizuki replied, "but he's
not going to pierce through a defensive barrier with
a blunt projectile."

  "I take that's another hint I shouldn't be
dispensing?" the okonomiyaki chef assumed.

  "I'm certain Ranma will discover this sooner or
later.  It's better if he devises the means himself."

  "With him, yeah," agreed Ukyo.  "Although it doesn't
hurt to help him along, you know."

  "Nobody appreciates my help, anyway."

  Mizuki heard a ringing sound, realizing it was from
her cell phone.  Pulling it out of her pocket, she
silently excused herself from Ukyo's company, and
switched it on.  "Mizuki."

  "Hey," came a familiar voice from the other end of
the connection.  "It's me."

  "Oh?"  Mizuki raised an eyebrow, recognizing Kanna
Rajura's voice.  "I wasn't expecting to hear from you
this soon."

  "Your little friend is pouting," she reported.  "I
tried my best, but everything I tried just makes her
more mad and full of herself.  Since she thinks she
knows what's best for her, she rejected all of my own
training techniques and struck off on her own."  Kanna
sighed, weary.  "I'm not sure why I came out here if
she's going to act like a spoiled brat."

  "You're doing her a favor," Mizuki pointed out.  "In
fact, you're doing exactly what Shizuka wanted you to
do."

  "What?"  There was an obvious tone of confusion from
the tactician.  "I thought you wanted me to get her to
learn your Shimozuki succession techniques or
something."

  "You're giving her the motivation to better herself,"
the high priestess explained, pleased with the results
of Shizuka's 'emergency' training.  "Shizuka
unconsciously knows she needs help in this; she doesn't
necessarily consciously recognize it."

  "I'll let you in on a little secret, Kanna: there is
no such thing as a Shimozuki-style.  Traced all the way
back to my samurai ancestor, who first used the Viper
swords, each member of the Shimozuki family devised
their own method of fighting, tailoring it to their
own needs and abilities.  It's actually because my
ancestor never taught his technique to anybody, so each
of his descendants had to teach themselves.  That is
the 'school;' Shizuka needs to find a way of combat
most suited to herself, and she won't be able to do
that unless she wants to.  No one can tell her how to
fight, and that's what makes the 'style' so powerful;
it's as strong as the person behind it."

  "Sounds quite similar to Saotome's style," Kanna
noted.  "Except there's absolutely no structure.  All
of it puts faith in the user and not in discipline."

  "In principle, perhaps... but isn't the true strength
of any martial art the wielder at its core?"  Mizuki
chuckled to herself.  "I tried to teach her my own
technique long ago, but of course Shizuka thought she
knew what was best.  I'm glad she recognized its nature
even then-- that proves her worthiness of the
succession technique."

  "So your 'no-style' succession technique is a self-
discovered fighting style?" Kanna said, piecing
together the puzzle.  "So what the heck is she going
to do?"

  "I don't know," Mizuki admitted.  "Shizuka is
primarily motivated to being 'right;' she won't stop
until she's proven that her self-discovered technique
can beat yours, or until she's satisfied she can beat
Nekurow.  It could take days; it could take weeks. It
could take a few hours.  In any case, you'll know when
it happens.  Keep an eye on her in the meantime;
Shizuka is her own worst enemy as well as her greatest
ally.  She needs all the allies she can get."

  "She's crazy; what makes you think I won't?  And how
about Ranma Saotome?" the tactician asked.  "How's he
holding up?"

  "He's making progress, but not as fast as I hoped.
He might be here a while longer."

  "Maybe we should put our two pet projects together,"
Kanna suggested.

  Mizuki reflexively shook her head, even though she
knew Kanna couldn't see it.  "They will do so when each
of them want to.  It's not good to put enemies together
as sparring partners, not at this critical stage, at
least."

  "No pointing games, huh?"

  The high priestess glanced back at Ranma, who looked
exhausted.  Ukyo was already making her way to help
him, and Reiko had long since vanished.  "If Ukyo is
any indication, I don't think he'll be running out of
friends anytime soon, either.  They will come to us,
just as each of them will come to each other.  We
don't need to do anything; events have been ordained
for us without our input.  We just have to make sure
things go in the right directions."

* * *

Central Park, Afternoon

  Ziel kept his right arm behind his back always,
within reach of the folded fan sheathed on the back of
his belt as he surveyed the damage from two days ago.
The stone fountain at the center once sprinkled water
into the air freely, but, since the pool below it was
cracked in many places, the head was shut-off as the
pool always drained.  Concrete walkways were upheavaled
and pieces strewn about in random locations dictated
by Ziel's own wind.  Whole areas of grass, bushes, and
trees became so much kindling, as columns of the
greenery were aged and killed instantly by Deathclaw's
deadly breath weapon.

  No one who used to frequent walks in the park came
to the battleground, and it was considered off-limits
by the authorities.  However, Ziel did not simply
walk in; he descended directly into the park without
ever having to deal with the people along the park's
borders.

  The Wind-User did not come for nostalgia, but rather
to choose an enclosed battleground.

  "Show yourself," Ziel hissed, his eyes scanning the
shadows around him.  "You've been watching me this
whole time, fiend; the charade ends now!"

  "As you wish," the dark one answered, emerging from
behind a tree.

  The newcomer was not much taller than Ziel, but hid
most of his features under a hooded gray cloak, his
hands folded under his loose sleeves.  Although he
carried the airs of a monk the Wind-User knew this one
was more than he appeared.

  "I should have known that a descendant of demonic
blood could sense me," the hooded one said.  "Unlike
most other demons haunting this Earth your line
survives because your ancestors were strong of will."

  "Why have you been stalking me?" Ziel demanded,
unsheathing his fan.  "Are you a friend of Ranma
Saotome, like the others?"

  The hooded one laughed.  "Sadly, this is not true.
He would be my enemy, if he knew of my existence.  But
that is neither here nor there; I engineered all these
events so I could get at you."

  "I'm flattered you think so much of me."

  "Your bloodline's true potential is sealed by your
frail human nature!  I will harness this power, and
use it to seize the Orochi Sword that Nekurow
possesses."

  "If you've engineered events," Ziel said, pointing
his folded fan at his opponent, "then why couldn't you
have taken it from your patsy then?"

  The dark one snorted in amusement.  "You guestimate
too much, but correctly.  It was I who sent Nekurow
the Hunter after you.  I needed a way to draw you out
into the open.  During your previous battle I could
attune to your biorhythms, which makes it easier to
track you down.  I expected you to defeat Nekurow
yourself, but that girl Shizuka is more than I
expected."

  "Nekurow got beaten up," Ziel pointed out.  "Why
don't you take his sword now?"

  "The black hunter is not a frail human," the hooded
one said.  "Even in his weakened condition his survival
instincts could easily overwhelm me."

  "So what makes you think you can handle me?" Ziel
said, feeling confident.  "If you can't hold a candle
to Nekurow, then you're no match for me!"  He flicked
his wrist, opening his fan.

  The hooded one unfolded his arms, and held out a
bone rod in his left hand, which, from Ziel's
perspective, looked as if it had a number of holes
drilled into its length, and the bone hollowed.  He
could almost make out a smile under the hood.

  "There was more than tracking you in the first
battle," the enemy added, assuming airs that puzzled
Ziel.  "You would never kill Nekurow because of your
human frailty.  I read your rhythm... and I will seize
that, and reorchestrate it into the perfect weapon!"

* * *

  It pained to watch... to observe... while the hooded
enemy raised his bone flute to his mouth as Ziel
Kagura spun off three tornados.  It hurt to listen to
the sound that issued from the enchanted flute, and it
hurt even more to watch Ziel stagger in pain.  The
Wind-User dropped his fan, and was clutching his head
in pain.

  Hokuto Takemasa, the Shadow Weaver, could stand it
no longer as she drifted off into her own shadow,
unable to watch Ziel succumb to the flute's power.
Although her order strictly forbid intervention on
the affairs of men Hokuto discarded such notions long
ago, and is considered a renegade for involving herself
in past events.  It was far too lonely and painful to
endure the suffering of others when wrongs can be made
right.

  In her order, the power of shadow was not something
to be used recklessly for personal want or gain.

  "Something must be done," she decided, "and fast."



-----------------------------------------------

Author's Rant

  Stay tuned for more.  Several scenes were edited from
the previous version.


-- Razorclaw X (spiceoflife@NYChotmail.com)
www.angelfire.com/art/rcxshizuka/ranma/ranff.html

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