A Noble Endeavor

AN: I hope everyone had a Happy Valentine's Day! It's been a while, I know! However, Valentine's Day has come, and after missing Christmas and New Years, I have finally broken through my writer's block to bring you all a new chapter!

Without further ado, enjoy!

Chapter 5: Like a Princess

The second day after the attempted assassination found Ranma out of bed, although only after Nasu had extracted a promise from Ryoga not to let the redhead strain herself. Fortunately, Ranma's first destination was not far; the dining room. While the food rivaled even Kasumi's cooking, the meal was marred for Ranma by the handful of assorted pills she had to take with it, a stark reminder of her current condition.

"I'm surprised that Nasu let you out of bed already. Usually even a cold and she keeps us for 'observation' for days," Ryoma said as he approached the table. As Ranma looked in his direction, she saw someone ducking out of sight behind his large form. Noticing the redhead's glance, he looked over his shoulder with a chuckle and said, "There's no need to be shy, little sister. Now, introduce yourself properly."

A young woman, likely a year or two Ranma's junior, stepped hesitantly from behind the crown prince. She was dressed in the garb of a shrine maiden, with hair the same soft pink as her blushing cheeks. Without raising her gaze from the floor, she stuttered out, "G-Good morning. I a-am Sakura, youngest d-daughter of his m-majesty the Emperor. I-I-It-is-a-pleasure-to-meet-you!" She gave a deep bow as she rushed out the end of her introduction.

"I'm, uh, I'm Ranma Saotome, heir ta the Anything Goes style of martial arts. Sorry 'bout this," Ranma replied, feeling a bit awkward about being already seated.

"There's no need to be so formal, little sister," Ryoma reassured the pink-haired girl. "Ranma's the one who saved me a few days ago, and you may not remember him, but the man next to her is cousin Ryoga." With a glance towards Nabiki, he cautioned, "I would be a bit careful around the other one, though."

"'Oh, the highly trained martial artists are fine, but be careful of the ordinary schoolgirl.' Is that what you're saying, your highness?" Nabiki asked, having become a bit less formal with the Crown Prince over the last day.

"That's just it, though. I finally remembered where I recognized your name from, Tendo Nabiki," Ryoma said, as he gave her a piercing look. "And I'd rather not trust my sister around someone that the Public Security Intelligence Agency felt the need to mention to my father by name. I just hope for your sake that they're looking to scout you, not that they see you as a threat."

Nabiki's chopsticks clattered against her plate, as Ranma and Ryoga were treated to one of the rare moments that the mercenary girl was left completely shocked.

"What's the big deal?" Ranma asked. "It's not like your bets or blackmail were exactly secret, ya know?"

"For once, I have to agree with Ranma," Ryoga admitted, looking confused as well.

"It may not have been secret in Nerima, but for a national agency to take note is another issue. And besides, if it was the PSIA, then it was probably the information brokering," Nabiki said, too distracted by her racing thoughts to think to charge them for the explanation. Under her breath, she muttered to herself, "I must have sold info to the wrong person. Or the right one. Damn, how they see this could decide the entire course of my future. I could still profit either way, but one would be a lot more difficult and dangerous..." Suddenly, Nabiki stood up, declaring, "I need to head home. The sooner I can get on top of this, the better. Besides, someone needs to explain things to our families before our fathers decide that Saotome and I eloped."

"I have a press conference about the 'incident' this afternoon, but I have time to escort you back before that, if you would like me to. If nothing else, it will let me keep an eye on you a bit longer," Ryoma offered. Turning to his sister, he asked, "You have today off from your lessons, correct, Sakura?" Seeing her give a slight nod, he went on as he gestured to Ranma and Ryoga, "Then, could you please show these two around the castle? I believe there have been some renovations since cousin Ryoga was last here, and Ranma-dono has never been here before."

"A-As you wish, elder brother," Sakura replied, still seeming quite nervous despite Ryoma's reassurances.

Once the pair had departed and Ranma had finished eating, she and Ryoga followed the youngest princess through the castle. As the tour progressed, Sakura seemed to relax around them a bit more, but Ranma found herself tiring much faster than usual, especially for what amounted to a casual stroll. Noticing his rival's unusual fatigue, Ryoga said, "We should find a place to take a break. Nasu will kill me if something happens to Ranma on the first day out of bed."

"Th-There's an exit to the training grounds up ahead and the w-weather's nice, so we could sit outside for a bit. I mean, i-if you want to," Sakura suggested.

"Did ya just say 'training grounds'?" Ranma asked, excitement overcoming fatigue for a moment. Seeing Ryoga about to say something, she waved it off, "Yeah, yeah, I know I can't train yet, but it ain't like I can hurt myself just watching some of the guards train, right?"

"Oh, it's not for the royal guards, " Sakura cut in. As the other two focused on her, she shrunk away slightly. "Th-That is, it is only for the royal family and those they permit to use it. I-I shall show you to it."

As the trio headed outside, they were greeted by the sound of wood clacking together. The training grounds were fairly humble, consisting of an open area of packed dirt with some archery targets and training dummies along one side. In the center of it was two figures in protective gear sparring with facsimiles of some type of polearm. It only took Ranma a few moments to recognize the fighting style as one designed for use with a naginata.

Unfortunately, 'a few moments' was also how long it took one of the individuals to knock their opponent's weapon wide, sweep their feet out from underneath them, and place the wooden 'blade' of their weapon against the throat of the floored figure.

"...Surrender," the loser said slowly, as if taking a moment to process their defeat.

Rather than celebrating their victory, the winner let out a sigh of exasperation. "Come on, Setsuna. I know you're better with a bow, but I'm sure you can do better than-" The victor cut off abruptly as they noticed the onlookers, and although the headpiece of their training equipment kept Ranma from seeing their face, she got the strange feeling that they were looking straight at her. Approaching the trio with their training weapon over one shoulder, the victor asked, "Who are they, Sakura?"

"Th-This is cousin Ryoga and Saotome Ranma, the one who saved elder brother Ryoma the other night," Sakura explained.

"I see," the figure replied as they removed their helmet. Ranma's eyes widened at the messy red hair that was revealed, nearly the same shade as her own, while the brown eyes beneath it reminded Ranma of Ryoga, suggesting that this girl was another one of his cousins. This was confirmed a moment later as she introduced herself. "I am Hinoka, eldest daughter of his majesty the Emperor. You have my thanks for saving my brother."

"Well, it's not like I'd just stand by and let someone get attacked," Ranma replied. Eyeing Hinoka's hair, she added, "Y'know, now I get why everyone kept asking about my hair. I figured Ryoma was exaggerating when he said I looked like ya. Guess I won't have ta kick his ass for saying I look like a princess after all!"

Hinoka just stared at her for a moment before bursting into laughter. Ranma looked at her in confusion until the other redhead calmed down enough to explain. "I don't think I've ever heard someone threaten to 'kick the ass' of the crown prince before! Be careful who you say that around, though, Saotome-san. If my younger brother had heard you, you would probably be under arrest for lèse-majesté!"

"Err, right, sorry about that," Ranma replied, rubbing the back of her head awkwardly. "And ya can just call me Ranma, by the way."

"Call me Hinoka, then," she said.

"Alright, Hinoka. Your not half bad with that thing," Ranma commented, as she gestured to the weapon resting against Hinoka's shoulder.

"I certainly hope not with how long I've been training with it," she replied with a laugh. "From what I hear, you're a martial artist yourself..."

As the two continued to chat, Ryoga had been watching from the side before lowering his head, deep in thought. Noticing that he was distracted, Hinoka drew close to Ranma and whispered, "So, you and Ryoga... Are you two dating?"

Ranma's eyes bugged out at hearing that. "WHAT!? NO! Why would ya even...?"

"Well, the reason you were able to save my big brother was because Ryoga brought you as his date, wasn't it?" Hinoka asked in confusion.

"No, nuh-uh, no way," Ranma replied crossing her arms in an 'X' in front of her. "I only came along ta keep him from getting lost on the way to the bathroom. Besides, I'm a g-" Ranma wanted to say 'I'm a guy', but since she could not turn back right then to prove it, if she ever would be able to turn back again, Ranma settled for saying, "I ain't into guys."

Hinoka glanced over at Ryoga, but despite Ranma's outburst, the Lost Boy was still lost in his own thoughts. Turning back to the other redhead, she whispered, "Does Ryoga know that? I mean, seems to me like a pretty easy excuse to ask you out on a date. Especially since you are his type of girl."

"Of course he- wait, what do ya mean, 'his type'?" Ranma asked.

"Well, when we were younger, he stayed with us for a while and ended up confessing that he had a crush on me. Of course, we were both kids, and he left soon after, so nothing ever came of it," Hinoka explained ruefully. "Anyway, he said he liked girls with unusual hair colors that practiced martial arts."

"Oddly specific, but sounds right for him," Ranma replied as she thought about Akane's dark blue hair and (relatively amateur) fighting skills. Eyeing the training weapon still in Hinoka's hand, Ranma tried to steer things back to the previous, more comfortable topic. "Speaking of martial arts, I hear you've won with that thing."

"Well, not this one specifically," Hinoka replied. "Once you've recovered, we should have a match."

"Sorry, I don't fight g-" Once more Ranma stopped short, as the 'don't fight girls' ideology once more reminded her of the fact she may never be a man again. Rather than dwell on it, she just said, "I'll think about it."

As the two redheads continued to talk, Ryoga remained distracted, thinking about nothing other than the very confession that Ranma had just learned about. 'First Hinoka, then Akane, now Akari... It isn't fair to any of them,' Ryoga thought. 'Becoming like Kuno is the last thing I want. I need to resolve my own heart first, before I can expect a positive response from any girl. But how can I decide?'

Ranma was so engrossed talking to her new friend that it was quite some time before she noticed the aura of depression around her rival.

AN: And there we go! For those unfamiliar with the terms, the Public Security Intelligence Agency (or PSIA) is basically Japan's equivalent of Amaerica's FBI, while lèse-majesté is the crime of threatening the dignity of royalty.

Again, I apologize for the wait on this chapter, but life has been quite busy of late. If you want to help me have more time to write, consider supporting me. FFN does not allow direct links, so PM me if you are interested. My fanfiction will always be free, but the less time I'm working, then the more time I'm writing!

What will come of the crown prince's visit to the Tendos? Will Ranma be able to return to being a man after recovering? Find out in future chapters of A Noble Endeavor!