Kanami silently bussed the table in the small cafe she worked at.  She
looked towards the front door when she wiped the sweat from her brow.  A
small frown forming at her brow when she witnessed Menchi run into the
restaurant.

Menchi was a perverted little kid around her age, twelve, who took delight
in talking 'dirty' to her and occasionally groping her.  She had complained
about his actions, but was told to endure it, in a hope that he would
eventually grow out of this stage.

She had considered telling Kazuma or Kimishima, but the two hot-heads would
probably only exacerbate the situation by beating on the boy, therefore
incurring the wrath of the Mayor, Menchi's father.

Menchi ran swiftly to Natsumi, the owner.  She exchanged greetings with him
before bending down to listen to his whispers.   Menchi proceeded to nod in
confirmation of his news before running out of the caf�.

Exhaling in relief, Kanami was thankful the little rodent either didn't see
her or he didn't have the time to bother her.  Either reason was fine with
her.

Curiously, Natsumi started walking around the small establishment, talking
to the waitresses.  Natsumi wasn't prone to any discussion with the help,
with the exception of the occasionally barked out order.

An attractive woman in her mid-thirties, Natsumi was a bitter woman.  Kanami
had heard she was quite the socialite before the war, being reduced to
running this place when she lost her husband and most of her possessions
during it.  She wasn't mean per se, just frustrated.  Frustrated at being
reduced in station and having to work for a living in the sole building
remaining that her late husband had owned.

She apparently finished her business with the waitresses, apparently deeming
the information not worth imparting on the small girl, she headed back to
the kitchen.  As soon as she left the room, a tall man walked in.  He was
wearing yellow tinted sunglasses, a big red coat and had platinum-blonde
spiky hair.  All told, Kanami found him extremely attractive for a stranger.
He had an imposing presence, not threatening, like some of the outsiders
that found there way into town, but someone who should be treated carefully.

She went to greet him, dutifully fulfilling one of her assigned tasks and
trusting that he meant no trouble..

"Hi, welcome to Natsumi's," she greeted him politely.

"Ah... Hi.  Do you by any chance have donuts?" he asked and frowned,
apparently worried that she would answer in the negative.  He looked cute
that way, almost begging for a donut, as his mannerisms calmed her.  She
fought her desire to have some fun with him.

"Freshly made this morning," she responded with a small smile.  She was
answered by his face lighting up like a skyscraper, reminiscent of the
pictures she had seen of the cities before the war.  A time she had been too
small to remember.

"Would you like a table?  Or would you prefer to sit at the counter?" she
asked by rote.

"The counter would be just fine."  He smiled at her, a very pleasant one.
It made her feel like he had really paid attention to her, not ignoring her
as so many other adults did.

She returned his smile, hoping to show her gratitude for his attention.
"This way."  They made their way past the two tables populated by families
and arrived at the counter.

"Tell him about the donuts," she quipped to Miyuki, the waitress behind the
counter, who in turn giggled nervously and grabbed a menu.

"Enjoy."  She smiled brightly and returned to her other duties.

On her way back to cleaning tables she heard a small crash, the sound of
dishes breaking upon the wooden floor.

In the kitchen doorway stood Natsumi, staring at the man she just seated.
After a minute of slack jawed staring, she finally seemed to noticed the
whole restaurant was in turn staring at her.  "Kanami, come clean this up,"
she called to the young girl and then proceeded to turn around and return to
the kitchen.

Kanami jumped at the mention of her name.   Grabbing her cleaning bin, she
made her way over to the mess her boss had made and began to clean up the
broken bits of plates, and food.

She glanced at the newcomer.  Who waved a donut filled hand towards her,
before taking a huge bite out of it.  A smile came unbidden to her lips, a
manifestation of the silliness he displayed.

Curious about the owner's reaction to him and needing to empty her load, she
headed towards the kitchen hoping to get some answers.

The object of her search had busied herself in her office, rifling through
papers in a frantic search for something and moving at a speed that made her
hands appear to blur.

"Yes!  It's him!"  she cried out, apparently finding what she had been
looking for.  She clutched the paper to her heart for a second as she again
called out, "Yes!"

"Who's him?" Kanami asked, her curiosity winning out against the trepidation
she felt confronting her currently crazed boss.

"Oh, it's you," she said, obviously recognizing the other girl's presence
for the first time.  "Vash the Stampede!  We're going to be rich!" she
shouted triumphantly and shoved the paper into Kanami's chest.

Kanami's hand flew to her chest reflexively, securing it before she had a
chance to examine its contents.  A wanted poster met her gaze.  A brief
description of the man she had recently seated was displayed front and
center, with the caption, "Wanted for, Murder! Destruction of Property!
Public Nuisance! 60,000,000,000,000 Yen reward for capture! Is Armed and
Dangerous.  He is also a pacifist." prominently displayed at the bottom.

Her eyes widened as she looked at the description in shock, trying to
associate the man she had met with the man described here.  That they were
one and same, was most likely true, but he seemed as harmless as a newborn
babe in person.

"Go make sure he doesn't leave before I get back out there," her boss called
from  the bureau that stood in the corner.  She had begun frantically
searching again, for what, Kanami couldn't tell.

"Well, get going!"

The second call broke Kanami of her paralysis, sending the girl stumbling
out the door, with her head spinning from surprise, and the little shaft of
hope that began to circulate in her heart.

She walked swiftly through the kitchen, trying to concentrate on her task,
instead of her hopes and dreams for a better town.  She took a look at the
man, Vash as she now knew his name to be, as he quickly finished another
donut.

"Mmm these are great," he spoke between bites, a silly grin adorning his
face.  "Can I have some more?" he pleaded.  A boyish smile of gratitude
exploded onto his face when Miyuki nodded yes and brought the man another
half-dozen.

Kanami caught Miyuki's eye, furrowing her brow, and mouthing a question
concerning the quantity of donuts ordered.  After a second of contemplation,
Miyuki flashed her hands nine times, the final time, she only held up two
fingers.

"No way," she said out loud.  Hands flying to her mouth, as if to stop the
words from coming out.  She looked at Vash again, his plate reduced to two
donuts, in the space of a few seconds.  She was forced to considered the
possibility that he really had eaten forty-two donuts since he sat down,
forty-eight now.

Vash finished the last of his food and wiped his mouth clean of the donut
crumbs.  He leaned back in his stool and rubbed his stomach affectionately.
"Mmmmm, That was great!" he exclaimed.

"Glad you liked it, sir," Natsumi called from the kitchen doorway.

"Oh, Ya.  Donuts are one of my favorite foods.  Yours are the best I've had
in years."

"Great," Natsumi answered in a voice that sounded more sinister than
pleased.

"Can I have some more?"

"Sure." An evil smile appeared at her lips when she spoke.

Miyuki was well ahead of her boss, as another plate appeared in front of
him.  He began eating as if he was eating his first food in days, not as a
man attempting to eat his weight in donuts.

After his attention was focused completely on his food, Natsumi headed
around the counter, going straight for Vash and walking strangely.  A
shuffle more than a stride, as she kept her left arm at her side, slightly
behind her body, either injured in the few minutes since Kanami had last
seen her, or concealing something.

The serious and determined look in her eyes scared Kanami, almost as much as
the metallic glint that came off of the object that the other woman was
carrying at her side.

Kanami, apparently wasn't alone in her sense of trepidation; the other
workers, and even the customers must have felt something in the air, the
tension in the room had become a tactile property.  A small bead of water
had formed and was currently trekking down her neck, behind her ear, and was
moving forward, heading towards her chin, all in response to the baleful
quiet that had descended.

This had all occurred in the few seconds that passed since Natsumi had last
spoken, which in turn had seemed like hours to young Kanami, as she watched
the woman walk.

Kanami leaped at the sound of the front door banging open, followed
instantaneously by children's squeals as a boy came running into the diner
carrying a toy gun, trailed closely by another with a similar object in
hand.

Kanami grasped her chest, trying to restrain her quickly beating heart as
the boys sped through the small establishment, shouting and firing at each
other, loud bangs ringing throughout the small room with the firing of the
prop guns.

"Oww.  You got me," the first boy said theatrically, while clutching his
shirt tightly and pretending to stumble.

The spectacle had enraptured the entire room.  All eyes were on the
staggering boy as he headed towards the counter, and Natsumi.

The woman in question realized her imminent meeting with the youngster a
little too late.  Attempting a small hop to remove herself from the path of
the small boy, she ended up spinning; the inept movement was most likely
derived from the fact that while she had turned to face the playful kids,
she hadn't moved her feet, leaving them planted and pointed towards Vash.

She ended up losing her balance and stumbling forward before crashing into
Vash, who had quickly and deftly vaulted from his stool to catch her,
preventing her from hitting the ground.

A thud was heard followed by a short skid.  Kanami turned to locate the
source of the sound.  Her suspicions proved correct, when she spotted the
gun laying bare upon the floor, obviously lost from her boss's grasp when
her fall was broken.

The room became silent again, as the two boys realized they stumbled into
something.  Unsure as to what the situation was, they looked around with
puzzled expressions on their faces.

"You okay, miss?"  Vash asked as he helped Natsumi to straighten up and
stand under her own power.

"Y... yes,"  She said a little hesitantly, looking over his shoulder at her
gun, laying a few feet away.

He must have caught the look she was giving, along with the nervousness in
her eyes and voice, because he turned around quickly, a perplexed look upon
his face.  He smiled, as if in understanding, and moved quickly to retrieve
the gun.

Disappointment flooded Kanami as she watched the gun go into the criminal's
hand, while he smiled proudly and turned it over in his hand to examining
it.  Fear began to take over when she began to wonder if he would hurt
anyone, the poster had mentioned murder and destruction, if she remembered
correctly.

No sound was forthcoming from anyone in the room, the children had followed
the example of the adults, all staring at the strange man.

Her muscles became taut when Vash frowned, and her heart seized up when he
looked at Natsumi and began speaking.

"You should be more careful, Ma'am.  Guns can be dangerous," he said as if
he were a child, scolding an adult.

The entire room went into shock as he took Natsumi's hand and proceeded to
place the gun into it, curling her fingers closed around it while covering
it with his hand.  Kanami sat down, something she never did while she
worked, lightheaded from the scare and unable to control her racing heart.

"It would be a shame for such a lovely woman as you to be hurt."  A caring
smile adorned his face, while the rest of the room continued to look on
stunned, unable to fathom what they had just witnessed.

"Ah... sure, Mister.  I'll be more careful."  Natsumi finally uttered.

"Great!" he enthused and then jumped back onto his stool to continue his
meal of donuts.

Natsumi aimed the gun at the back of his head.  "All right, Mr. Vash the
Stampede.  You're captured."  She turned to Kanami and yelled, "Kanami, run
and tell the Mayor, we've captured him!"

Excitement flooded her as she bolted out of the room, her hope had been
restored, and joy fueled her steps.


*******************


"Damn," Vash said.  "You're too pretty to be a bounty hunter," he whined,
hoping to catch some sympathy and maybe get her to see things his way.  He
couldn't believe such a flower of loveliness could do something so
underhanded like arrest him.

"Looks can be deceiving," she replied.

"Yeah, I guess.  But it's not such a nice thing to do," he whined.

"Heh.  Well, nice is nice, but I have to live.  And this run down town
desperately needs the infusion of cash."

Vash turned around in his chair to face her.  Looking deeply into her eyes,
he frowned sadly, thinking about what a lovely lady she was and how harmless
she must be.

"What?" she asked.

"You won't hurt me.  You're too kind a person," he said softly, a sad smile
decorated his face.

"Don't test me," she threatened, placing her finger on the trigger.

"I haven't done anything.  You should let me go."

"I can't.  The town needs this.  There are people starving here.
Reestablishing the industry would create jobs and trade.  We might even be
able to make this dump into a respectable city, close if not better than
before the war," she said emphatically as she gestured to the run down caf�.

"I know.  But I have things I have to do.  Maybe... maybe after I'm done...
I can help you," he whispered sincerely, wishing he could help everyone.

"Ha.  Don't make me laugh.  I ain't falling for something so stupid."

Vash stood up slowly, seeking to appear non-threatening, he held up his
hands.

"No, it's the truth.  If you let me go, I promise you can capture me after I
'm done."  He looked into her eyes, offering all the sympathy he could
muster.  "On my honor," he added, hoping to get through to her and avoid a
confrontation.  He hated people getting hurt, but it seemed to happen
wherever he went, with growing frequency of late as those bounties kept
popping up.

"Sit down!" she ordered.

"I can't do that."

"Don't make me... cause I will!" she growled, as her hand started to wobble.

"Well, I'm really sorry, but I've gotta go.  Thanks for the donuts.  They
were great," he gushed again before he started to edge around her.

His eyes watched her finger on the trigger, as they had been since he turned
around.  He had just taken his third little step when he saw the almost
imperceptible movement of the trigger.  Taking that as his cue, he bent over
sideways, hearing the sound of the hammer hitting the bullet, and the bullet
traveling through the space his head had just vacated.

"Oops," he said, shocked that she had actually fired. A quick shuffle of his
feet and he bolted towards the door, head bent low to help increase his
speed.

"Stop!"  He heard her yell from behind him as his senses kicked in and he
shifted his body to the left, dodging the bullet.  A second later he was out
the door and running down the street, headed in the direction of the town
gates.

He made a right at the next intersection, hoping to avoid running into
people, and a sad recap to the last time he was chased through a town, that
had been Tokyo.   That had proven embarrassing, he hadn't realized the
people chasing him were guards of the Queen, or that wall he had gone
through would lead to her bedchambers.  The activities he had seen in that
room still caused him to blush when he recalled them.

"That's him!" someone shouted from behind.

Vash turned around, and witnessed a pair of men wielding swords, take up the
chase.

An alley conveniently presented itself and he ducked down it, hoping it
would provide cover for his eventual escape.  He bent backwards under an
extremely low hanging fire escape, arms flailing wildly as he made the
maneuver off-balance.  Righting himself, he headed down the alley, only to
slide to a stop when a small group of people came into view at the exit of
the alley, carrying rifles and pitchforks while singing.  The words were
clear enough to cause a deep seeded feeling of dread, as he made out a few
phrases, "We chop of their heads and boil them in oil... They come over here
and we take of their hands."

He filed the information away, along with a mental picture of people he
definitely had to avoid.  Turning to head back whence he came, he stopped
abruptly and swore.  The pair of men, that had originally chased him, had
spotted him and were headed down the alley.

The people singing the lynching song also spotted him, and headed down the
alley after him, effectively trapping him in the area.  The situation
reminding him of too many others, as he jerked his head around looking for
an escape, when it hit him, literally.

He grasped his head in pain, giving the fire escape a withering glare,
before grabbing a hold of it and pulling himself upwards.

He heard the cries from the street as he made it to the second floor, and
found a convenient window in front of him.  Annoyed when it didn't open, he
tried again, putting his strength into budging the obstinate window, when
the first shotgun blast was fired.  The dings he heard when some of the
buck-shot ricocheted off of the iron structure forced Vash into a quick
decision.  He braced himself for impact as he threw himself thorough the
glass and was followed closely by another shot, right before the symphony of
destruction began in full force.

Rolling amidst the glass he stopped to look back at the window, stunned to
see a good portion of the frame gone, removed by the gunfire that was still
blazing, intent on turning the window into a full-sized door.

A second later found Vash through the door on the other side of the room,
and into another room.  "Oops!" he yelled, startled by the scene in front of
him.

A young couple turned to look at him from under the covers, that were
partially masking their endeavors, but only partially.  He caught ample
sight of ripe melons and a flash of sausage when they turned to face him, to
confirm their actions during this compromising situation.

"Sorry.  Ignore me and continue on," he said seriously, forcing down his
feeling of deja vu and racing for the other door in the room.

Once he was past that obstacle, he heard an earth-shattering shriek from the
room he had just exited.  Ignoring the sound, he concentrated on his escape
and found himself in a living room.  Scanning the area as quickly as he
could, he ran to a door on the far-side, believing it to be the exit, from
the assortment of locks fastened to it.

After an extraordinarily long five seconds he found himself in a hallway,
inside a small apartment building he presumed from the appearance.  After a
quick check of his bearings he headed towards the door, marked with a dimly
lit exit sign, only to jump back in shock as people burst through that door.

Taking the clue, he turned and ran through the nearest doorway, down the
hall and through another door.

"Pervert!" Greeted him right after the doorway gave way to his body mass.
He turned and spied an attractive looking girl with an arm partially
covering her assets, and the other in a follow through motion.

"Clang!" he heard the wash tub impact against his head, as his eyes shut
from the shock it produced.

"Sorry.  Accident!"  He yelled out.  "I didn't see any breasts here."

"Degenerate!" she shrieked.

He tried to open his eyes to get his bearings as a barrage of items bounced
of his head.  No matter how he tried to move, they seemed to hit him square
on the forehead, right above his eyes.

He stumbled as another item tagged him, causing him too finally loose his
balance and fall backward.  He flailed his arms, muttering about stupid
tomboys, and trying to find a grip to steady himself.  A shattered window
was all that came of his attempts, as he fell backwards over the ledge, and
out of the bathroom.

"Crap!"  Were his last words before gravity took over...


**********************************


Ranma walked slowly through the town, heading towards a diner he had been
told about.  He had completed his reconnaissance of the town, committing the
layout and main features to memory.  He had talked with a few of the
townspeople, trying to get a feel for the place.  Unfortunately, the few
that hadn't bolted at the sight of a stranger didn't mentioned seeing any
other strangers in the past few days.  It was a long shot that a local would
talk, but sometimes he got lucky right of the bat, especially when the
person he was looking for had made a nuisance of themselves in town, as
those he would track generally did.

He was trying not to think about that girl's plea when he had parted from
her earlier.  Maybe it wasn't a plea, but it felt like one, and for some
reason he was having trouble removing her request from his memory.

Maybe it wasn't her at all, maybe it was his recent sighting of Vash, and
the realization that part of his quest might be completed.  The first year
had been a struggle just to survive, and then piecing together a trail for
the two brothers had proven more difficult than imagined at first.  It was
almost like Knives had fallen of the planet, or died.   That thought also
presented conflicting emotions, he wanted to be the one to take their lives,
not some random happening, or illness.

Vash, on the other hand, had been spotted.  Seen with his own eyes.  And his
heart skipped a beat when he thought about it.  Finally.  Vengeance for the
fallen.

He kicked himself for letting those girls distract him.  One goal.  Two
targets.  That had been what he'd striven for while moving about this
wasteland of a country.  And it was close, one of the targets was so close
he could feel it.

"Ouch!" he exclaimed, when he felt something sharp bite into his hip,
followed closely by the a small thud.  He looked down to see a small girl
sitting on her rear, panting lightly and looking slightly dazed.

"Hey, Watch where you're going!"   The instant he saw the young girl's
cringe, he regretted uttering those words, or at least using that tone.  He
had yelled more from annoyance at not sensing her, than any real trouble the
collision had caused him.

"Um... Sorry.  I didn't mean to yell," he said, trying to bite down his
irritation.   "You, okay?"  He extended a hand to the young girl and felt a
little better about himself when she grasped it with a wan smile.

Hefting her up a little too quickly for her unsteady legs, she stumbled and
fell into him.  She grasped his waist tightly to preventing herself from
falling again.

After a moment for her to capture her bearings, he moved away a step,
keeping a hand on her shoulder to make sure she could stand on her own.   He
looked at her fully, for the first time, noting how cute she was for a young
girl, beautiful green eyes, long brown hair, and red bow...  His mind
flashed a picture of the Minako, her bow flashing when she turned her head.

Annoyed at himself, he quickly blinked his eyes, clearing his mind of the
unwanted thoughts.

"I'm sorry about that.  I didn't see you."

"Hey, no trouble.  It's not like you could hurt me, or anything," he said,
trying to make her feel better.

 She smiled, looking embarrassed before her eyes widened and she suddenly
yelled, "Mayor Lukkosai!"

Ranma turned swiftly, seeing a shriveled man, wearing a top hat and tails
standing in the street, apparently trying to locate the source of the call.
He froze when he caught a glimpse of the man's the face, not-believing it
could be who it appeared to be.

"Hap... Hap.. Happosai," he stammered out.

The man in question finally located the source of the summons, smiling to
the young girl and revealing Ranma's misconception.  This wasn't his father'
s perverted master, just another shriveled up old man.

"Kanami, my dear.  What can I do for you?  This isn't about Menchi again? Is
it?  He's supposed to be running errands that are more important than his
training." the man said patronizingly.

The young girl frowned at the mention of Menchi and Ranma wondered why the
name caused the girl discomfort, or why the Mayor would mention him
instantly.

"No.  Natsumi caught Vash at the caf�!"

"What?!?" Ranma and Lukkosai shouted in tandem.

"Where's this caf�?!?"  Ranma confronted the girl, grabbing onto her
shoulders.

She looked fearful, staring into his face, as she turned and pointed.
Ranma looked in the direction she pointed, the fading image of Lukkosai
marked his course.

An explosion rocked the small town, knocking Ranma and the girl off their
feet.  Twisting his body slightly, Ranma ensured that he would provide a
cushion for the girl, while he landing on his rear.

As soon as he was able, he looked towards the source of the explosion, a
tower of some kind was ablaze in the distance, not more than five kilometers
from where they sat.  As quickly and gently as he could, he stood, bringing
his passenger up with him.

"I don't think he's caught anymore," he said, more to himself than to her.

"Go someplace safe, this could get messy," he instructed her and then waited
for her nod of agreement before he ran off in the direction of the now
collapsing tower.


**********************************


Ranma had been running for a good ten minutes, following the destruction
that had besieged the town, but always too late to catch the fleet footed
Vash.  On a hunch, he changed tactics, running for one of the sections of
town that was still stable.  He vaulted atop a row of houses, heading
swiftly for a presently quiet area.

He scanned the area as he ran, impressed with and saddened by the amount of
damage the small town had sustained already.  The destruction here put
anything that had happened in Nerima to shame.   Houses and buildings were
missing windows, doors, walls, and those were the lucky ones.  A few had
caught on fire, and were being ignored by the townspeople other than the
owners or some of the residents of the buildings, threatening to spread the
disaster to the rest of the town.  There were other buildings that were now
just rubble, they had most likely imploded from lack of structural support
as they had been dismembered by the rampaging mob and its elusive prey.

A flash of red in a nearby section caught his attention.  Hopeful that it
was the correct target, he headed towards some nearby buildings attempting
to cut-off Vash.

A few leaps later he was perched on the edge of a building, trying to keep
his heart rate under control as he awaited the first step of his redemption.

Moments later, Vash rounded the corner, moving swifter than Ranma remembered
the boy capable of.  A short breath, and a quick leap, found him descending
towards the ground, with his legs tucked and tense, ready to strike.  He
watched the distance between close as he readied himself, foregoing the
warning cry he would normally shout, feeling that Vash had foregone that
consideration.  Timing his impact to a perfection that he had decades hard
for, he took back his movements from gravity and whipped his leg forward.

"Gottcha!" he shouted, when his heel connected with the back of Vash's head.
Instead of changing his momentum to leap away, he followed through with
force, collapsing the other man head first into the ground and driving
himself on top of him.

The force was a little too much for him to sustain his balance.  His leg
shook with the weight of his body crashing down on top of him.   His knee
buckled, causing him to collapse over the boy and roll clumsily forward.

He felt a slight twinge in his knee, and ignored it as he stood, upset at
himself for not bracing for impact as he should have.

"Bastard!" he yelled, as he watched Vash moan and unsteadily climbed to his
feet.

"Why?"  Vash asked when he had arisen.  His eyes sad, showing pain and hurt.

Ranma wasn't going to fall for his tricks again.  He had and his brother had
proven themselves to be dishonorable murderers, and they deserved to be
punished as such.

"Shut up, asshole!"   Ranma surreptitiously checked then weapons he carried
and small bracers he had taken to wearing.  He wouldn't be fooled by the
fact that Vash appeared to be unarmed.  That mistake had cost him dearly
before, and Ranma Saotome never fell for the same tricks twice.

He rushed in, intent on pummeling the young man before he finished him off.
He noticed with distaste that Vash failed to put up any defense; instead, he
stood still, looking like someone had killed his puppy.

"I won't go easy on you because you're not defending yourself!"  Ranma
screamed.  His fist impacted on the boy, hitting square in the jaw and
knocking him through the air and into the nearby wall.   Vash indented into
the wall, and then hung there for a second before sliding down onto his
knees, leaving a nice Vash-shaped imprint.

Ranma walked slowly over to him, annoyed at the lack of resistance.  He
wanted more of a challenge, more of an outlet for his pain.

"If you think this act will save you," he said as he lifted the prone boy
with one hand.  "It won't!" he screamed.  Using all his pent-up rage and
sorrow, he threw the boy across the alley, watching with satisfaction as
more Vash-art appeared on the wall.

"Pathetic!" he spat.  Hoping to get a rise out the boy and make this into a
real contest.

"You're going to suffer like I have.  Like pops did.  Like Ukyou did!" he
cried.  He was letting his rage overtake him as he lifted the boy again and
punched him, as hard as he could manage in the gut.

A quick exhale of breath, was Ranma's reward.

"Do you have anything to say?"  Ranma asked.

Vash slowly lifted his head, sorrowful eyes regarded Ranma.  "I'm sorry.  I'
m sorry about what happened to them."

"You're sorry!' Ranma roared and threw the other boy back across the alley,
quickly running at him again.

"Venus Love Me Chain!"

The shout was all the warning Ranma needed to escape the attack.  He sprang
into the air and looked down to see a golden glowing chain shoot underneath
him.  Twisting to face the root of the chain, he spied three girls in skimpy
schoolgirl outfits.  Three of the five from yesterday, if he remembered
correctly.

"Stop it!"  The one in orange trim yelled.  The same one that had shot that
glowing  chain at him.

"Mind your own business!" he yelled back.  "I don't want to have to hurt
you."   Landing lightly on his feet, he regarded the girls, while making
sure to keep Vash in the corner of his eye.

"You don't need to kill him," the orange trimmed one replied, a look of
concern on her face.

"Like I said, mind your own business."

"No!  Mars, let's do it!" she yelled.

Ranma tensed as she along with the Senshi in red trim rushed him, while the
last one, the one with that nasty looking pole-arm walked behind them.

The one in orange slowed, letting her companion take the lead.  Ranma didn't
have time to consider what their tactics meant as the red one leapt at him,
committing herself to her attack.

Ranma leapt away, hoping to discourage the females, without having to injure
them.

"Venus Love Me Chain!"

He twisted in mid-air, deftly avoiding the chain that passed through the
area he should have been in.

"I told you.  I'm too good for you guys and I don't want to hurt you."  He
did a back-flip in the air, to further emphasize his mobility as he faced
the girls again upon landing.

"We won't let you hurt a helpless man!"  The orange-one shouted.

"He more than deserves it!"

"Let us take him.  We'll make sure that he gets reprimanded," she shot back.

"Venus!" the one in red shouted and pointed down the alley.

Ranma and the girl he had been arguing with turned to follow the direction
that the girl had pointed.

"Shit!" he yelled, watching as Vash was creeping down the alley.

Exploding into action, he sprinted down the street, unmindful of the calls
behind him.

"Saturn!"  Twin voices rang out.

"Silence Wall!"

The air appeared to shimmer in front of Ranma, and he collided with a solid
force and rebounded against it, landing on his rear.  Growling, he quickly
got to his feet, ignoring the running he heard behind him as he tried to
examine the solid wall of air in front.

"Why can't you leave him to us?"  The blonde called from behind him.

"It's my job to see that he pays."  He decided he didn't have time to try
and go through the wall, so he looked to the side, towards the ledge of the
two-story building, and leapt.

"Just let it go.  It's not worth it!"

The statement reached him as he was alighting on the edge of the roof.  He
turned to see the three women gather around.  "He killed my family," he
responded.  Not waiting for their reaction, he turned and raced after Vash,
hoping to catch him, and settle this quickly.


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


Rei watched as Ranma turned and bolted away, obscured from their vision by
the roof.

"Damn," she muttered, uneasy about the prospect of someone being murdered.

"Poor guy," Saturn said, as she placed a hand upon her friend.

"We have to stop him!" Venus shouted, stealing her resolve.

"How?" Rei said.  "You saw him.  We can't take him unless we fight all out."

"We just have to make him realize that killing is bad, regardless of the
reason."

"Right."  Hotaru agreed.

"Let's go.  We won't let him become a killer!"  She started running in the
direction they had headed, assuming the others would be with her.


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


Vash raced ahead, his remarkable healing process quickly correcting a lot of
the damage that had been done.  He needed to find a way to talk to Ranma and
find out exactly what had happened.  Unfortunately he hadn't a clue as to
how to go about it.  He knew from experience that Ranma would only back down
and listen _after_ the fighting had been settled.  That apparently wasn't an
option in this case, because Vash really believed that if he allowed Ranma
to settle this, it would be with his death, an unacceptable proposal at this
time.

He had been overjoyed that Ranma had lived, rumors abounded, but he had seen
no trace of his adoptive brother since the war.  He had assumed the boy
dead, ignoring the rumors of "Ranma the Relentless" as coincidence, and not
the boyhood friend he had grown to miss.

After running into and eluding another posse of townspeople, he found
himself in a quiet section of town, spying an open door he jumped inside,
hoping to catch his breath and try and figure out a way to stop this
insanity.

He slammed the door shut, leaning against, and exhaling, while he closed his
eyes in an attempt to clear his mind.

The cocking of guns was the next thing he heard; the sounds forcing his eyes
open warily, to the sight of seven women all pointing various arms at him.
A moment later he recognized them and looked around, discovering he was in
the caf� that this whole fiasco had started in.

"Hehe," he giggled.  "Did I forget to pay?" he asked as he slumped to the
floor, mentally fatigued.


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


The three Senshi in town were frantically trying to catch up with either
Vash or Ranma.   They hoped if they could capture Vash, they could then take
him back to Crystal Tokyo, removing him from Ranma's vicinity, thus
preventing a possible murder.  If not, they hoped to find Ranma and either
talk him out of executing said crime and possible leading them to Vash, or
just leading them to Vash so they could capture him, returning to the
capital with their mission completed and murders avoided.

They had searched frantically for a trace of either man, finding plenty of
evidence of their passing, and run across most, if not all, of the town
taking part in their own search.

Entering a square that seemed located near the center of town they spied a
makeshift pavilion. It stood open on all sides, providing them with a clear
view of a short man sitting at a desk, apparently drawing something.  He was
surrounded by other men, standing around with binoculars and walkie talkies.

The men standing around all appeared worried, harried even, while the man in
the middle seemed calm and collected, completely engrossed in his work.
They approached deliberately, curiosity overwhelming their desire to search
blindly.

"Mayor, we lost him!" a voice yelled over the portable device on his desk.

The man dropped his brush, gripping the device he shouted into it, "I don't
care what it takes.  Capture him!  We need that reward money!"

"Yes, Sir!"

He replaced the receiver, and calmly picked up his brush, returning to his
drawing.  The exchange provided the girls a chance to see the man's face, a
shriveled thing, placing his age way past ancient.

"Ah...  Sir.,  Do you know you're destroying your own town?"  Mars asked,
wondering what kind of mayor would put his town through the destruction they
had been witnessing.

"Huh," the man said, noticing the girls for the first time.  His eyes bugged
out and he leapt into the air.  "My poor town, please console me as it's
destroyed."

The three women were caught off guard as the man latched onto Rei's bosom.
"Ah, your sympathy is overwhelming," he cried as he nuzzled in deeper.

Mars' temper exploded.  "Gah!" she cried and gripped the old lecher by his
scruff and slammed him to ground.

"You didn't have to be so violent," the old man whined as he dusted himself
off. "I was only trying to console my grief."

"Well console it somewhere else," Mars fired back.

Lukkosai hopped up onto his chair.

"Why don't you call this off before your town is destroyed?!?" Mars shouted
at the man.

"I can't. We must capture Vash, the town's survival depends on the money to
reopen the industry. Without that, my life is meaningless," he cried and
rubbed at his eyes, wiping away tears that Rei couldn't see.

"That's commendable, Mr. Mayor," Saturn said sympathetically.  Mars felt
like throttling the man. He wasn't accomplishing anything but destroying his
town. At this rate, any money the received would have to be spent rebuilding
what they had an hour ago, not adding any industry to the place. A thought
crossed Mars' mind as she wondered about this man's plans.

"What kind of industry are you trying to recreate?"

"The most important industry in the world, lingerie!" he shouted. Mars could
swear his eyes took on the appearance of cups as they glossed over.

"You're destroying your town, for a few bras!?!"

"Not just bras, but panties, and nighties, and slips and all for the comfort
of the women of the world. They can no longer be subjected to the cruel
inhumanities of wearing old, destroyed, and cotton garments next to their
bodies!" He raised a fist triumphantly as he concluded his speech.

"He just wants better material to steal." One of the men around the table
said under their breath.

"And sexier women to peep on," another of the men added.

Lukkosai jumped up, hitting both offenders over the head. "I heard that!"

Mars stood flabbergasted.

"See. A picture of my new design." Lukkosai held up a drawing of a very
scantily clad woman, wearing a very revealing and frilly bra and panty set.

"Pervert!  Die!  Mars Flame Sniper!"

Lukkosai ducked under the attack, which had been aimed directly at the
painting. The painting disintegrated instantly, unable to stand the heat, a
few wisps of paper slowly floated down around the Mayor.

"Mars! Calm down!" Minako yelled, placing a hand upon the overwrought girl.

One of the walkie talkies beeped and was picked up by one of the other men.
He listened to what something that couldn't be discerned by the girl, his
face becoming paler as time passed.

"Mayor! At this rate, he is going to get away!" one of the subordinates
standing around shouted.

"Never fear. I have a plan."

"What?"

The ground shook, causing the Senshi to all frown and look at each other in
concern.

Lukkosai only smirked as he bent over his painting again and began to draw.
"Well, What is it?" Mars yelled as another rumble was heard, drawing closer.

Lukkosai only smiled as his hand started to go into overdrive.

"It's coming." A gleeful smile possessed his face as he continued to write.

"Grrr... If you don't tell me what's you secret plan. I'm going-"

"Done!" Another rumble shook the pavilion, causing the Senshi to turn
towards its source.

After a quick scan of the area proved inconclusive Mars returned her
attention and her glares to the old man. "What already!"

His Cheshire Cat imitation belied their apprehension, causing Mars a
seemingly unlimited source of irritation and anger since they had approached
him. She wanted to just leave him, but something compelled her to stay and
get answers from him, and she hated that.

He lifted up another picture, showing it to all those gathered.

"Die!" Mars yelled when she saw the picture, a realistically rendered
portrait of her in her Senshi skirt lifted up, revealing a pair of lace
panties, and nothing else.  To add insult to injury, he had done _too_ good
a job of approximating that which she knew she had well covered up.

Mars flew over the table, unfortunately for her, Lukkosai had adroitly leapt
over her, mindful to safeguard his newest creation. What he didn't know and
what Mars discovered when she turned, was that Saturn had been so shocked
her hands had flown to her mouth, releasing her hold on the Silence Glaive.
Which was now headed straight for the old man's head.

"Watch-out!" Saturn screamed and scrambled to regain her hold on her vicious
and most destructive weapon.

Lukkosai turned, either from the sound of Saturn's scream or the glee that
showed on Mars's face.  Leaping to the side, he lost control of his newest
masterpiece. The sharp edge of the glaive cleanly sheared the paper in two,
and then the brushes, ink, extra paper, and finally the table, which opened
up like a well-cooked clam.

Smiling smugly, extremely satisfied with the disposition of the drawing, Rei
walked over to the remnants of the portable studio. Picking up the two
halves of the unauthorized portrait, she proceeded to shred them into the
smallest pieces she could.

"My Masterpiece!" Lukkosai shouted.  He rushed to Mars, catching the papers
as they fell from her hands, weeping profusely.

The ground shook again, and a cowboy cry of  "Woo Hoo!" carried over the
Mayor's sobs.

The three Senshi turned to witness a behemoth of a man, slowly walking down
the street, a man sitting in what appeared to be a control booth on his
shoulder.  The monster, for no man could be that sized,  must have stood
twenty feet tall, with bulging muscles on his already oversized forearm.
His right hand and forearm were covered with a metal gauntlet, and their
seemed to be some kind of engine on his back.  Maybe the oddest thing was
his had, a metallic funnel, that looked like a small tapered chimney had
wafts of steam or smoke coming out of it.

"The Nebraskas!"  Mars couldn't tell who had shouted, as half the men ran
from the pavilion.

"Glad you could make it!"  Lukkosai yelled to the strange pair, old man and
beast.

"Yee Haw!  Of course we're here.  Now where is the bastard?"  The old man
yelled back.

"Natsumi's.  You know where it is, don't you?"

"Sure do.  Sixty trillion Yen!  Let's go, Junior!"

"I can't believe you let them go?!?"  One of the sycophants said.   Mars was
only half listening, watching the lumbering monstrosity travel down the
road.

"Who are they?"  Venus asked.

"Why not?  I'll just recapture them later, after they take care of Vash."
The mayor appeared bored, indifferent to his surroundings as he whipped out
a calligraphy set and paper from his coat and started drawing.

"Ah, who are they, again?"  Rei asked the trembling man, hoping he would be
more forthcoming with answers than Lukkosai.

"They're members of the notorious Nebraska family.  We had them locked away
in an old cave outside of town.  They're so ruthless, I can't believe he let
them go!"


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


Ranma spotted Vash ducking into a small restaurant, and smiled.  It had
taken a while for him to locate his little mouse again, but the cat now had
the mouse cornered, and the game would soon be over.

A satisfied smirk filled his face as he leapt down onto the road, quickly
crossing the street, and working his way swiftly down it, mindful to stay
close to the side, away from view of the murderer's hideout.

He checked his blade, intending to end it quickly, anxious to meet out his
own justice for the departed, lest someone or something interrupt him again.

Reaching the door, he took a deep breath, palming the handle on the knife.
He blurred in motion, flinging the door wide he glided into the room.

"Damn," he thought to himself as guns were trained on him.

Vash, who was sitting in the corner with a gun to his head giggled, "Hey...
Ranma.  I see you found me again."

Ranma took a step towards the man, only to stop when the barrels of various
weapons shoved in his face and he heard the tell-tale sounds of guns being
cocked.

He took a deep breath, unwilling to back down at this late date, after going
through so much.  He wouldn't allow himself to be deterred by anything,
especially women who thought they could handle a weapon.

"Listen, Ladies.  That man is mine!"

"Sorry, Mister.  You're a little late, the bounty is going to be ours."  A
woman in the corner spoke, apparently the leader of some sort.

While sighing, he raised his hands, portraying an appearance of compliance.
"Late or not, I'm here.  I intend to take him."  He surveyed the room.
Seven guns, the four trained on him were all rifles.  He concentrated,
bringing in his chi.

"Like I said.  He's ours.  Now why don't you leave peacefully?"

"Ain't gunna happen."   He said, eyeing the women aiming at him.  He could
see all their eyes and hands.  "Perfect," he thought smugly, as he began his
move.  Flaring his chi first to create an afterimage of himself, he moved as
fast as he was able, trusting his small illusion to throw off the aim of the
women.

The sounds of guns, along with his uninterrupted movement registered his
success as he raced around the women, easily disarming the four.  Well
three, one had managed to drop her gun on her own, unprepared for the
recoil.  He picked up each of the fallen weapons, breaking them over his
thigh.  All except for the last one, which he held at his side, pointed at
the ground, but finger on the trigger.

"Now," he said, satisfied with his display.  "Are you ready to hand him
over?"  He took a step forward.

The step seemed to force the leader out of her stupor as she pressed the end
of her gun to Vash's head.  "I'll kill him," she threatened, in a shaky
voice.

"Stop it!"  A female voce was heard, a second before Ranma felt something
wrap around his waist.

His arm reacted instantly, moving to strike at his attacker, when it stopped
inches away from a red bow adorning a small girls head.   The surprise that
he recognized her along with the shock that she had snuck up on him, again,
defused his anger.

"Kanami?" he asked, not sure if he remembered her name correctly.

When she looked up and nodded, he spoke again.  "Just go away and you won't
get hurt.  I promise," he finished sincerely.

A slow movement in the corner, diverted his attention, inducing him to raise
his  rifle in response.  "Don't try it."

The leader, who had been attempting to turn her gun on him, stopped, and
quickly placed the nozzle against Vash's head again.

"Just leave, Mister.  Please."  The girl at his side pleaded, voice shaking
with fear.

Placing his free hand on Kanami's shoulder he pushed her away as gently as
he could, and took a step towards the corner.

"I'll kill him!" The leader said, fear in her voice and eyes,

"Don't bother.  I'll do it for you!"   He pulled the trigger on the rifle,
scaring all in the room.

Vash moved his head to the side, avoiding the bullet.  Ranma had believed he
would be capable of it, but had still hoped that the bullet would have
struck true.

"I can't believe you shot at me!" Vash yelled.  His face was lit up in
shock, while the woman all looked on stunned.

Something was approaching, Ranma's intuition told him.  After learning to
follow his senses he stopped and began looking around while he strained to
find the source of his disquiet.  He heard what sounded like a rocket launch
from some distance away.

"Get Down!"  He turned and dived over Kanami, covering her with his body
when the wall caved in, and debris covered them.



^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

End of Chapter

Notes:  Thanks go out to Corwin, Merc, Falacy, MADS, and Lalandil for the
patience, help and support with this adventure.  Also to those who commented
on prior chapters.  Scryed was added because of my love for Kanami and it
filled in the pieces I was missing when creating this world the characters
are playing on.  Anyway, I hope you enjoyed.



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