Insertion

    Part 74

    Dan vs. Nerima

+++++++++++++++

    It was a cold morning; Dan stood overlooking
the rooftops of Nerima with Kiima, a cold looking
smirk on his face as he glared out at the burg.
"Heh. So you want that map do you?"

    "Yes," she replied calmly, a blanket wrapped
around her shoulders.

    "No problem, it won't be easy though," said
Dan calmly. "I'll get it done. So relax."

    She nodded and frowned slightly. "You're
different than the others."

    "Maybe," replied Dan with a chuckle. He turned
to look at her and smirked. "See you later."

    The woman nodded and looked uncomfortable
again, she clutched the blanket a little tighter
and looked away.

    Dan jumped off the chimney and spread his
wings. He soared off into the sky, leaving her
sitting there with a frown on her face.

++++++++++++

    In the air, a familiar voice piped up in Dan's
mind.

    "Was it right for us to do that to Mom?"
whimpered Pissant.

    "She's not our mother," replied Dan calmly.

    "I know, but it still seems so...wrong,"
muttered Pissant.

    "Maybe it was, but I've got a feeling she
won't be complaining much when we get back with
that map," snorted Dan.

    "The others will probably know what happened
to us," replied Pissant. "Carrot will I think."

    "You're right," agreed Dan. "That is, if they
even realize we were gone at all. I doubt Xellos
and Phibrizzo will let them in on it."

    "What are we gonna do?" asked Pissant with a
worried sounding tone.

    "Kick Carrot's ass if he gets in the way, it
won't take him long to figure this out, even if he
doesn't know. We need to get to Plum."

    "You're not going to attack Carrot are you?"
whimpered the voice.

    "Naw, he'll probably attack me, if not, we'll
get our chance later. Heh." Dan narrowed his eyes
and floated down towards the ground. "I'm debating
whether or not we should even bother hiding."

    "It would make things easier if they don't
know," said Pissant.

    "It's late, they'll know we've been gone,
Carrot will suspect if nothing else."

    "Still, we should try," grumbled Pissant.

    "Your wussiness is starting to piss me off,"
snorted Dan. "We're going to fight them sooner or
later."

    "Maybe not," muttered Pissant.

    "Right, you keep thinkin that, I'm goin to get
that map, don't get in the way," snorted Dan as he
started walking towards the apartment. It was only
a few blocks away, and he wanted some time to
think before he got there.

++++++++++++

    "Welcome back," said Carrot as Xellos appeared
with the others at his side. They walked into the
room and looked around.

    Yohiko was wearing a bathrobe with a cup of
coffee in her hands. "Morning."

    Usagi walked out of the kitchen with some
toast hanging from her mouth and smiled.
"Gmrning."

    "Well, we're back," said Phibrizzo. "How's it
goin pop?"

    Carrot snorted at this and nodded his head at
the boy. "I thought you'd be here earlier than
this."

    "Where's Dan?" asked Xellos.

    "You know where he is, and I'm worried about
it," said Carrot as he frowned slightly.

    Plum was sitting at the table looking around
in confusion. "What?"

    "One of us is missing?" asked Ryoga with a
frown. "Why aren't you looking for him?"

    "Because I already have a pretty good idea
what happened to him," said Carrot with a small
sigh.

    Yusaku had a huge dumb looking grin on his
face as he sat down. He didn't care what was going
on, as long as he was back from that place the
sorcerers had kept him for all those hours. He
looked like he needed sleep, but it could wait a
little longer.

    "What happened to Dan?" asked Usagi in
confusion. She sat down next to her new 'half-
brother' and looked at him for a moment before
turning back to the problem at hand.

    "He probably got caught when he went out last
night. I'm betting that chick brainwashed him, and
he's working for them now," replied Carrot with a
small sigh.

    "What?" said Yohiko in shock.

    "No big deal, he's probably having the time of
his life. He needs to blow off some steam anyway,"
said Carrot with a shrug.

    "What?" replied most of the room dumbly.

    "Those bird people have these egg things that
take over people's minds and stuff. No big thing,"
said Carrot calmly. "He's workin for Kiima."

    "So, we have to fight Dan now?" asked Yohiko
with a small snort.

    "You don't sound very upset about that,"
commented Xellos.

    "None of us like each other much," replied
Carrot as he shrugged. "I'd rather it was me, but
I suppose Dan deserves to get himself a chick now
and then too."

    "Funny you should put it that way," commented
Yohiko with a small frown.

    "Yeah, no pun intended," said Carrot as he
smiled at her.

    "This is strange," said Plum as she frowned at
the situation.

    "I've seen worse," replied Usagi as she leaned
her head on her palm and lost interest.

    "Yeah, you get used to this sort of thing if
you're around them a lot," said Phibrizzo
cheerfully.

    "Oh," said Plum as she shook her head. "Still,
what we do now?"

    "Well, Kiima will probably send Dan to get
that map. I suppose we should try and stop him,"
said Carrot with a small shrug.

    "You don't sound very sure of that," commented
Yohiko flatly.

    "Well, sooner or later, we'll end up in China.
L-sama isn't likely to let us off this easy," said
Carrot as he sighed and turned to look at her.
"You know how it is."

    "Who's L-sama?" asked Usagi.

    "God," said Carrot calmly.

    "Yeah, him," agreed Yohiko.

    Everyone in the room blinked and stared at
them.

    Xellos spoke up next. "Well, now that it's out
of the way. What are you going to do now?"

    "Ignore you, you're not going to help us
anyway," said Carrot. "At least, not directly.
Neither one of you idiots wants to get your hands
dirty I'll bet."

    "So cruel!" cried Phibrizzo in mock insult.

    "Still, he's correct. We can't interfere. Not
directly anyway," agreed Xellos. "We've got other
concerns, remember?"

    "Right," said Phibrizzo cheerfully.

    "You're not planning on telling us what those
concerns are?" said Yohiko.

    "Nope," said Xellos cheerfully.

    "So, these two are useless," said Carrot with
a sigh.

    "What are they talking about?" muttered Usagi
as she looked at the adults for a moment and
frowned.

    "It's a secret," said Yohiko before Xellos
could open his mouth to respond.

    The Mazoku frowned and crossed his arms.
"You're no fun."

    The woman smirked and looked at Yusaku. "You
go home and get some sleep before you pass out in
that chair. We'll come and get you later on, if we
need your help."

    The man nodded his head and stood up, slowly
walking towards the door.

    Plum sighed and rested her head in her palms.
"So, we wait for this Dan person now?"

    "Basically. There isn't much else we can do,"
replied Carrot.

    "Can I go outside?" grumbled Usagi.

    "No, put your wings away and just be patient,
you'll be sick of them by the end of the week,
believe me," replied Yohiko calmly.

    Carrot smirked at this and turned his head
towards Plum. "Give me that map will ya?"

    The girl looked up at him and frowned. "What
for?"

    "Would you rather have Dan attack you to get
it, or me? He's going to head right for you,
unless he knows someone else has it," said Carrot
as he smirked at her. "I'll take Usagi outside,
we'll get some training in, she can break in her
wings, and Dan will have something besides our
apartment to blow up. I'd like to get our deposit
back ya know."

    Yohiko turned her head towards the shattered
window and frowned. "What's left of it anyway."

    "Right, you get the idea then," said Carrot
cheerfully.

+++++++++++++

    Carrot smirked as he stood off against Usagi
in a small open lot near the home. "Well, your
mother has been training you has she?"

    "That's right," said the girl with a slightly
nervous frown.

    "Relax, I'll go easy on you. This is more to
get you accustomed to your wings than anything
else."

    The girl blinked at this and smiled. "Really?"

    "Right, you're going to be using them a lot in
the near future I think, we've got to fight off an
entire race of bird people after all," said the
boy as he grinned at her.

    "Sounds like fun!" she said cheerfully.

    "Doesn't it though?" replied Carrot as he
spread his feet apart and sprouted his wings. They
flapped once before settling back in a folded
position. "Go ahead, we'll probably get
interrupted soon, but hey."

    The girl nodded and sprouted her wings as
well, flapping them and pulling herself off the
ground. Carrot smirked and followed after her.

    Usagi wobbled a bit, but soon found a
comfortable rhythm and managed to hover about a
hundred feet in the air. Carrot did the same and
the pair faced off. Usagi took up a combat stance
and frowned.

    "What the hell are you doing?" asked Carrot as
he smirked at her.

    "What? I'm getting ready for you!" said the
girl in confusion.

    "You're acting like we're on the ground,
you're wide open from above and below," said
Carrot.  "You can't think that your opponent is
going to come right at you in the air." To
demonstrate this point he swooped at her, curving
and weaving in the air, almost coming down on top
of her as he lashed out with a kick. "You can't
defend a circle anymore Usagi. You've got to think
in terms of a sphere. An enemy can attack from any
position now, above, below. You don't have a plane
like the ground, or limits like walls, to work
with."

    The girl took the hit, it was light and didn't
hurt at all, but she saw his point. "So...what do
I do?"

    Carrot chuckled and stared at her for a
moment. "Defend yourself, the only real way to
learn, is by doing."

    The girl's eyes went wide as he attacked, she
desperately tried to block his strikes and counter
them, but it was a losing battle. Luckily, he was
being rather gentle with her, and she only
received a few bruises from the assault.

    Finally, he stopped and smirked at her. "Good
job kid. Better than I thought, you've picked this
up rather quickly."

    Usagi was gasping and flying in a circle
around him. She was trying to catch her breath,
and doing a rather poor job of it as she gasped
and swallowed repeatedly.

    "You're not as fast as you could be,
Katsutenshin Amaguriken is it?"

    The girl nodded at this as she continued to
circle him.

    "Hmmm, you have been practicing it seems," he
said with a smirk on his face. "Not bad for a
newbie, kid."

    The girl frowned at this and managed to start
hovering again. "Hey! I..."

    "Come on, we should land before Dan gets too
impatient," said Carrot as he winked at her and
started to dive downward.

    He hit the ground lightly, and smirked as
Usagi slammed into the dirt face first. She lay
there for a moment looking dazed.

    "Ouchie!"

    "You've got to learn how to land kid," said
Carrot calmly. He glanced around and sighed. "Come
on Dan. I don't have all day."

    "Teaching the kid a few tricks?" asked Dan as
he stepped out from behind a wall and chuckled.
"Never expected to find you out in the open."

    "Have fun last night?" asked Carrot
cheerfully.

    "Loads," replied Dan.

    "What was she like?" asked Carrot cheerfully.

    Dan frowned at this and snorted. "None of your
business."

    "Hey! Don't be like that! I told you what
Yohiko was like when you asked. Come on, be a
pal!" said Carrot as he leaned on Dan's shoulder
and smirked.

    "What? Well, I guess so..." grumbled the man.
"Never mind about that. You know why I'm here!"

    "If you tell me, I'll give you the map," said
Carrot as he grinned at the man. He held it out to
the man and Dan simply looked at it.

    "I...ummm..." said Dan as he looked at Carrot.
"Heh. Okay."

    "Great. Don't worry about her, she's still out
cold from her landing. I guess I'm gonna have to
teach her about that before China."

    Dan shook his head and sighed. "I suppose so.
Just keep her out of my way will ya?"

    "No problem, we'll get our chance to fight
soon enough," agreed Carrot. "Come on, I'll buy
you a drink. You can tell me all about her." He
pointed at a small cafe that was near to the site
and started walking.

    Dan shrugged and walked after him with his
hands in his pockets.

    After a moment the pair were sitting across
from each other at one of the tables.

    "Claws?" asked Carrot with a slight shudder.

    "Yeah, my back is still sore. Man, don't they
have something besides these girly tea things
here?" He frowned at the menu and sighed. "Anyway,
she does the cutest thing with her wings when
she's embarrassed..."

    "KAHH! What the hell are you doing?" screamed
a familiar voice.

    Dan and Carrot looked up to see Kiima floating
above the ground, glaring at them both. "Huh?"

    "Hey Hon! I'll have that map in a few
minutes!" said Dan cheerfully.

    "You're having tea with him?" snapped Kiima
angrily. "What the hell are you two talking
about!"

    Carrot blinked. "Women. I told him about my
girlfriend, it's only fair."

    Kiima's face was a mask of rage as she landed
next to Dan and slammed her fist into the back of
his skull.

    "Ouch!" muttered the man. "Come on! Don't be
angry!"

    Carrot shrugged, "Will you two quit hiding and
just come out?"

    Masara and Koruma both appeared with huge
blushes on their faces. "You don't really make
that noise do you Captain? I mean...he's
never...ummm..." They both looked at Dan.

    "What of it?" snorted the man as he glared at
them.

    "But, he's your pet landling!" cried Masara.
"Captain! You didn't!"

    "Who are you callin a landling?" snorted Dan
irritably as his wings sprouted again. "Look you
stupid punks..."

    "Now, now! Calm down!" said Carrot as he put
up his hands. "Come on Kiima, don't be mad. He
really likes you!"

    "You'd better have that map, Dan," snarled the
woman.

    "Actually, I told him I'd give it to him if he
told me about you. We're pals, it's nothing to
worry about. Don't be angry," said Carrot.

    "What?" muttered Kiima as she looked at the
man.

    "Well, he did tell me about his girl..." said
Dan sheepishly. "I mean, it's not like I was
saying this out of the blue or anything."

    "I wouldn't call her my 'girl' either," said
Carrot with a small frown.

    "Well you snore!" snapped Kiima.

    "Yeah, tell me about it," agreed Carrot with a
frown on his face.

    "Hey!" snapped Dan.

    Masara and Koruma had gone pale as they glared
at the two men.

    "We're roommates! It's not like that you
perverts!" snapped Carrot as he glared at them.

    "She makes these little whistling bird noises
in her sleep," whispered Dan.

    "How cute!" said Carrot cheerfully.

    Kiima was beet red, she wasn't sure what was
going on, or how she should react to this. "I'll
kill them both!" she announced finally.

    "If it'll make you feel any better, I'll let
you tell me embarrassing things about him too,"
offered Carrot.

    "Yeah," agreed Masara and Koruma.

    "You two! Get lost! This is a private matter!"
snarled Kiima.

    "Great, now she's mad at me!" said Dan
irritably. "You did tell me to do whatever it
takes to get the map, and this is what it takes."

    Kiima blinked at this. "What?"

    "Oh yeah, here ya go buddy. Ya know we're
gonna be following you, I kinda have to lie about
how you got this from me." Carrot winked at the
man and handed him the map as he pat his shoulder.

    "Oh, right. Thanks," said Dan cheerfully.
"Here ya go hon, mission accomplished."

    Kiima accepted it and simply stared at the
pair for a moment, unsure of what to say or do.
"I...Enough of this! Dan, come with me! We'll
return home at last!"

    "Right," agreed the man cheerfully. "See ya
around, Carrot."

    "Later man, we'll have to beat the hell outa
each other next time!"

    "Right, I look forward to it!"

    Masara and Koruma rushed out after their
master. "Wait! Captain! Wait for us!"

    "Bye!" said Carrot as he waved at them as they
vanished into the sky.

    He sighed and walked over to where Usagi was
sitting on the ground in the middle of the
abandoned lot. She had a scowl on her face, and
there were several craters on the ground now.

    "Hey. Did you get it yet?" asked Carrot.

    The girl looked at him and blinked, tears
started to form in her eyes. "I can't land!"

    "Oh, relax, it just takes a bit of practice.
My first landing wasn't that great either. Carrot
cocked his head and remembered the fight with
Valdis during the Silver Millenium. "Really hurt
too."

    "Really?" said the girl with tears in her
eyes.

    "Yeah," said the boy cheerfully. "Come on, we
should get back now. I'm sure your mother is
worried, or something like that."

    "Huh? What about that map?" asked the girl in
confusion.

    "Oh, yeah. Dan already showed up. You missed
it. I lost the map, and he ran off with that bird
chick. We gotta follow them to China now."

    "WHAT!?" cried Usagi.

    "No big deal," said the boy as he shrugged.
"Come on, we should go back. We gotta start packin
and stuff."

    "Oh man!" grumbled the girl as she hung her
head and sighed.

    "Cheer up! You get to go see China! It'll be
an adventure and all," said Carrot as he grabbed
her shoulder. "You'll love it there, it's very
pretty."

    "Oh, that's nice...I guess," muttered Usagi as
she seemed to think about it for a moment.

+++++++++++++++

    "You lost map!!!???" Plum grabbed the boy by
his collar and shook him.

    "Quit it! We'll just have to go get it, that's
all," muttered Carrot irritably.

    Plum released him and fell to the ground with
a saddened look on her face. "Great. Is just
great."

    "We have to go to China?" said Ryoga with a
frown on his face.

    "Yeah, you're coming along too lost boy,"
snorted Carrot. "We'll bring Usagi, Yohiko,
myself, Ryoga, and Plum."

    "What about Yusaku?" replied Usagi in
confusion.

    "What about him?" asked Carrot with a shrug.
"He's not far enough along in his training to be
of any real use. He'll just slow us down as he is
now."

    "He's right," agreed Yohiko reluctantly.

    "What about these two idiots?" asked Usagi as
she jerked her thumb back at Xellos and Phibrizzo.

    "They'll be there getting under our skin
whether we take them ourselves or not. I'd rather
force them to make their own way there."

    "Ouch," commented Xellos cheerfully.

    "My family hates me it seems," agreed
Phibrizzo.

    "You'll get over it," commented Carrot.

    "How can you be so mean to your own son!?"
cried Usagi in shock.

    "Yes, tell us father?" said Phibrizzo
cheerfully.

    "Well, I don't treat my daughter much better,
what are you complaining about anyway?" snorted
Carrot as he looked at the boy.

    "I'm not complaining, just agreeing with her,"
said the boy cheerfully.

    Usagi blinked. "Daughter?"

    "Oops, not supposed to let that slip was I?"
said Carrot cheerfully as he looked at Yohiko.

    The woman stared at him blankly for a moment,
after a few seconds it started to sink in. "You
wouldn't."

    "Already done," said Xellos with a small
shrug. "What's the big deal, you've already got
one love child. What's one more?"

    "You've got a daughter too? What kind of
pervert are you?" snapped Usagi angrily.

    "Yeah, you," replied Carrot calmly as he
scratched his ear and turned to look at her half
way.

    Usagi froze and stared at him for a moment.
"What?"

    Yohiko was looking at something on the floor
that she suddenly found rather interesting.

    "Well, isn't this interesting?" commented
Xellos as he smirked at the pair.

    "My father is dead!" snapped Usagi angrily as
she stood up.

    "No, your Dad is dead, your father is rather
enjoying himself right now," said Xellos as he
pointed at Carrot.

    "What?" muttered the girl in confusion. She
stared at her mother, not quite understanding what
was going on still.

    "Usagi, Keiichi wasn't your father...I just
married him after you were..."

    "I wasn't around, so she took the next best
thing," finished Carrot calmly.

    "Not around!" cried Usagi in shock.

    "Why do you think I stayed away for so long?"
snorted the man irritably. "Come back and find out
some loser wimp married your wife, and was raising
the daughter you never knew about as if she was
his own? I was pissed."

    Yohiko growled, "Why are you doing this to
her?"

    "Easier in the long run," said Carrot calmly.
"Especially if we're stuck this way."

    Usagi was simply looking at him with tears in
her eyes.

    "She is my daughter you know. I'm not lying to
her," said Carrot calmly.

    "Sometimes I hate the fact that she's more
yours than mine," replied the woman as she turned
her head away and refused to look at the girl.
Carrot had based the girl after the male portion
of them's real daughter, one she had no part of.

    Usagi fell to her knees and stared at her
mother for a moment. "It...it's true?"

    The woman nodded slowly, not sure what else to
say.

    Plum and the two sorcerers hung back with
Ryoga.

    "What's going on here?" asked the lost boy.

    "I'm not sure," replied Plum.

    "Shhhh!" said Xellos as he munched on some
popcorn with Phibrizzo next to him.

    "Wow, this is like one of those soap opera
things," said the boy.

    "So, she is your sister?" asked Plum in
confusion.

    "Well, not really...but..." said Phibrizzo.

    "Actually, she is your sister," said Xellos.

    The boy looked at him and blinked. "Huh?"

    "You should have known better than to open
your mouth that way around them. It's how I got
stuck here in the first place," said the man as he
smirked at his companion.

    "You mean?" muttered the boy dumbly.

    "Uh huh," said Xellos cheerfully.

    "Oh man, I bet they think this is hilarious,"
grumbled Phibrizzo irritably.

    "Of course they do," said Xellos cheerfully.

    "Who is they?" asked Plum.

    "It's complicated," said Xellos.

    "Oh," muttered Ryoga as he looked at the
ground in frustration. "So, you're my cousin too?"

    "Apparently," said Phibrizzo with a small
sigh.

    "Well, we've all got a big day tomorrow. We're
going to China," said Carrot as he jumped up out
of his chair and smirked at them all. "This
emotional family stuff can wait until later."

    "What? You asshole!" cried Yohiko as she
slammed her chair over the man's head.

    "Ouch," grumbled Carrot.

    "Daddy!" cried Usagi as she burst into tears
and rushed into his chest.

    "Hey! I said wait until..." He sighed and
backed away. The girl was attached to his waist
rather firmly. He sighed and slumped down into the
recliner in front of the television. "All right,
fine."

    Yohiko snorted angrily, ready to pound him in
the dirt again. She paused when she saw her
daughter curling up in the man's lap, and the
strange expression that flashed on his face for a
moment. She wasn't quite sure what it was, but
decided to leave them alone for the time being.

    "So, we'll see you tomorrow then?" asked
Xellos cheerfully.

    "Ryoga, you stay here tonight," said Yohiko as
she turned to look at the boy. "Plum can stay in
Usagi's room."

    "Right," said the boy as he looked at the
woman for a moment and turned back to watching
Usagi for a moment. "Is she?"

    "She's fine," said Yohiko. "Don't worry about
her."

    Ryoga nodded and simply remained seated where
he was.

+++++++++++++

    "So, we go back to China?" said Dan as he
looked out over the ocean with Kiima at his side.
His head had several large lumps on it, and his
face was covered in tiny scratches.

    "Maybe next time you'll keep your mouth shut,"
snorted the woman irritably.

    "Hey, it was a one time thing," said Dan as he
looked at her and sighed.

    "So, what are we going to do with him
Captain?" asked Masara.

    "Yeah?" agreed Koruma.

    "Take him with us of course," said Kiima.

    Dan snorted as they looked at him warily.
"How? I mean, he's too big to carry."

    "I can fly to you half wits," snorted Dan as
he promptly thwacked the pair with his wings.
"These work fine."

    "How dare you attack...!" started Masara.

    "Leave him alone," snarled Kiima.

    "Thanks," said Dan with a smirk on his face.

    "He's one of our kind," responded Kiima
flatly.

    "I don't think he is," muttered Masara.

    "He's got wings, that's enough," replied
Kiima. "At any rate, it's none of your concern. He
won't betray me, his loyalty is unquestioned."

    "She's right about that," agreed Koruma.

    "He's acting funny," snorted Masara. "I've
never seen anyone..."

    "I'm a special case, besides, I like being
around. You'll have to beat me to get rid of me.
Think you two losers can handle that?" Dan eyed
them both coldly, and the pair backed off
slightly. "Good."

    "Quit squabbling and let's go!" snorted Kiima
as she rose into the air.

    Dan nodded and followed after her. "Come on
losers, see if you can keep up."

    The two birdmen growled and followed after
him.

    "Is that a challenge?" snapped Masara.

    "Sounded like one to me!" agreed Koruma.

    "Last one to China was a rotten egg!" replied
Dan as he sped forward.

    "No fair! You've got a head start!" snapped
Masara.

++++++++++++

    It was early morning and Carrot smirked as he
followed the others to wards the train station.
They were going to take the rail to the docks
where Plum's boat was waiting for them.

    "Hey, Just a minute," he said as he paused in
the middle of the street. He turned away from them
and jogged towards a familiar building.

++++++++++++

    Ukyo blinked as a familiar face poked his head
into the restaurant. "Huh?"

    "Hey, Ucchan. We're going to China. Want a
ride?" asked Carrot.

    The girl stared at him for a moment, not sure
what to say. "I uhhh..."

    "If you're coming, hurry up. There's people
waiting on me," said the boy cheerfully.

    "Wha?" stammered Ukyo as she looked at him for
a moment. "Um...okay. I gotta get my stuff and..."

    "Great. We'll just stop and have breakfast
while you pack. Don't forget anything."

++++++++++++++

    Plum waved the group on board the small craft
cheerfully. "Come on! The weather is just right
for sailing!"

    Ukyo stood on the dock looking at the boat
that would carry them all to China. "Not much to
look at is it?"

    "I've seen worse, should do though," said
Carrot with a shrug.

    Usagi blinked. "It's kinda small."

    "Beats swimming. That's how I had to get there
last time," replied Carrot with a shrug.

    "Yes," agreed Yohiko.

    "You bet! Especially in such cold water.
Brrr!" said Plum.

    "You guys be careful. This thing is just wood,
and I don't want to end up carrying anyone," said
Carrot as he looked at the martial artist gathered
on board.

    "Why are you going to China anyway Ryoga?"
asked Ukyo as she glared at the boy for a moment.

    "I'm going to help my family," replied the boy
as he looked at her in confusion.

    "So, you're not going after Ranma?" she
prodded.

    "Stop that Ukyo, he's not going to bother
Ranma," replied Yohiko. "My nephew is going to
fulfill a family obligation."

    The girl nodded and sighed. "So, this is your
daughter?"

    Usagi smiled at the girl. "Hiya! I'm Usagi
Hibiki! You're one of my mother's students?"

    "I hear you're not doing to well in school,"
said Ukyo.

    Usagi stopped speaking and simply froze. "I
uhhh. Heh..."

    "Oh, that's right," said Carrot as he put his
pack on the ground. "I brought your school books
with us. I figure you could use them. It's a long
trip."

    Usagi stared at the man for a long time.
"You're kidding?"

    "Nope, get to work," replied Carrot.

    "Why are there two of you?" asked Ukyo as she
looked at Carrot and Yohiko. It was obviously not
the first time she'd asked that, and she was
clearly suspicious.

    "Long story, and it's complicated," said the
boy with a small shrug.

    "Plus, it's a secret," said Yohiko as she
nodded towards Usagi and frowned.

    "You'll explain this to me later though?"
insisted the girl.

    "If we get time, yes. Not with so many ears
around," said Carrot as he frowned at her.

    "Right," said the girl as she turned her head
away and looked out over the ocean.

    "This is going to be a long trip," said Ryoga
with a small sigh.

    "You have no idea," grumbled Usagi as she
passed by him with an armload of books and tears
in her eyes.

++++++++++++++++

    TBC...

    Next Time: China!
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