{I apologize for the inconvenient formatting. However, my

computer died and this is the best that could be salvaged...}

THE WOLF DIARIES

A Ranma « - Ruroni Kenshin Crossover

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

DISCLAIMER: Ranma belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, et

al; Ruroni Kenshin to others. I make no claims to ownership of

any of the characters, concepts, settings, or plots of these series.

This fanfic is not to be distributed for commercial or personal

gain.

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

It was a rainy March night when a small, dim light flickered on

in the guest room of the Tendo home for the first time. It was

the quiet announcement of a new guest at the Tendo Dojo, a

student who was carefully preparing for bed. But first, he had a

promise to keep.

'Dear Father,' Ranma Saotome wrote, carefully composing his

words in a battered leather journal. The book had a weary look,

as if it were an aged fighter who had spent too many days on

the road, and Ranma was well into the book. 'How are you? I

hope you rot, you old bastard.' Ranma frowned and crossed

that last bit out. While technically accurate, it wasn't what he

wanted his father to hear. 'How are you? I've met your friend

Tendo-san for the first time today, and begun my study of the

family art. I also met my fiancee today, which was something of

a shock. I had left my tent in the woods and walked into town

earlier that morning, and waited until the rain had stopped

before going to the dojo...'

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

Ranma read the address in his hands as he stood stiffly in front

of the Tendo home. Sure enough, this was the place where the

only remaining master of his father's art resided. Ranma

adjusted his clothes slightly: a deep purple silk shirt, almost

black, of Chinese cut, and loose pants tied over shiny stiff

boots, well shined despite the rain and mud of the day.

Shrugging off the large pack he carried, Ranma set it against the

wall and placed his bokken next to it. He knocked solidly upon

the door and waited for an answer.

A minute later a girl with one brown ponytail thrown over her

shoulder opened the door slowly, holding a broom. "Yes?" she

asked him cautiously.

Ranma relaxed a little and smiled slightly. Executing a small

bow, Ranma replied, "I'm here to see the master of the dojo.

May I speak to him?"

The girl frowned slightly. "My father isn't taking students at

this time, I'm afraid." The boy was better mannered than most

hopeful students, she figured, but that simply meant he wasn't

after Akane, in all likelihood.

Ranma got a slightly flustered look. "Ah, it's not about that, not

exactly. It's a matter of family honor that I need to see him."

Ranma straightened up a bit and gave Kasumi a serious look.

"He'll understand, I think."

"I'll get him." She closed the door and turned towards the

house, her hand covering a smile. That boy was a little too

serious sounding for his own good. She hurried in to get her

father, wondering how honor was involved here. Well, her sister

wasn't the only one who could eavesdrop.

Ranma, for his part, stood there and looked around with bored

curiosity. "All challengers please use rear entrance?" he read,

blinking. He picked up his bokken and idly poked at the dents

and gouges the wood had taken. He was rough on his bokken;

this one didn't have much more life to it. Maybe another fight

or two, that was all. "Hey! Who are you? Another one of

Kuno's kendo goons?" Ranma blinked and turned around.

There was a girl in shorts and a tank top, with a towel draped

loosely over her shoulder, squaring off in a kenpo stance.

Ranma laughed and put his hand behind his head.

"Heh, well, I can see where you'd think I'm a kendoist, but I'm

not. Actually, I'm here to see the master of the dojo. Say, do

you live here? You resemble the girl who answered the door."

Ranma said, wondering why most of the women he met seemed

hellbent on fighting him.

The girl smiled and touched her hair, looking away. "You think

I look like Kasumi?" she said, laughing. 'I wish' she thought.

'Then Dr. Tofu would fall for *me*'.

"Sure." Ranma said, sweating a little. He had no idea what was

going on here, but if it avoided another pointless fight, he was

all for it. He was about to say more, but the gate opened again,

wider this time, and he turned to face both the first girl and the

man beside her. "Are you Tendo-san, the master of the dojo?"

Ranma asked calmly.

The man nodded curtly and looked solidly at him. "Yes, yes I

am. Come with me to the dojo and tell me why honor brings

you here." Ranma picked up his pack and put it on the inside of

the wall, and followed the man to the dojo.

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

Soun Tendo frowned deeply and exhaled, blowing a large cloud

of smoke in Ranma's face. Ranma's nose twitched slightly, and

he was glad he had come in his uncursed form. "No. I cannot

take you as a student."

Ranma bowed deeply, from the waist. "I ask for your

forgiveness, then. I wanted to learn the school of my dead

father, but I see this isn't so." He crouched, getting up. Well,

that was a disappointment, but when hadn't his life been full of

those? A man among men endured trouble stoically, and

Ranma's face set into an impenetrable mask.

"Sit." Soun said, his eyes still closed. "I did not say I would not

teach you, merely that I could not take you as a student."

Ranma sat back down, confused. "You probably are unaware of

this, but before you were born, and we were students under..."

Soun looked around nervously, confusing Ranma, but he

shrugged it off as being just another one of Soun's mood

swings. "When we were students together," Soun amended,

"we made an honorable agreement that we would join our two

families through the marriage of our children!" Soun finished

triumphantly.

Ranma chuckled nervously. 'He's GOT to be kidding. Pop, you

better have been drunk when you did this to me...'

"I have not taught Anything-Goes in quite some time, but I

would make an exception for my son in law." Soun added,

nodding to himself. Ranma was too busy sweating to notice the

three thumps from outside the dojo.

He smiled nervously. 'An arranged marriage... just great, Pop, if

you weren't already dead, you would be now.' Ranma was at

least saved from having to say anything by someone barging

into the dojo from outside. It was the jogging girl.

"Daddy!" she yelled. "What is this? How come we weren't told

about this?" Two more girls followed her - one the girl from the

door, Kasumi, and the other someone new, a girl with short

brown hair.

"Daddy, we could have used a heads-up." the newcomer said.

"I'm sure Ranma is a perfectly respectable boy, Akane."

Kasumi said sternly. It would be good for Akane, she felt, to be

betrothed to such a disciplined young man. He might be a little

stiff, but that was just what her little sister needed to mature. It

might end the daily challenges too.

Akane, however, took Kasumi's remark in an entirely different

light. "If he's so respectable, you should marry him, Kasumi!"

she said. That would free up Dr. Tofu for herself.

The middle sister seized on this rather quickly. She knew

nothing about this boy save that his father was dead and he

hadn't even known about his own engagement. That couldn't

possibly be good. "Yeah! Kasumi would be perfect!" she added,

mentally congratulating herself on being quick to back Akane

up on this one.

Kasumi herself got flustered now. "But, Nabiki!"

Nabiki didn't stop, though; she knew the only way to avoid any

chance of getting married off was to bulldoze these two. She

turned to the boy. "She's a great cook, Ranma, you two will be

happy together!"

Ranma sweated more . "But-"

"Kasumi needs a little adventure in her life!" Akane said, having

heard - or overheard, rather - about his trip to China. She didn't

want Ranma or Kasumi to get a foothold in this conversation.

"Ah, Akane," Kasumi ventured; she herself was getting an

expression just as lost and confused as Ranma's. "I-"

"Then it's settled!" Soun said, jovially slapping his hand against

his knee. "Ranma and Kasumi are engaged!" That got the other

two sisters to surreptitiously high-five each other. Ranma and

Kasumi each winced. With family honor tied into this, it would

be incredibly difficult to extricate themselves from this mess.

Kasumi was the first to recover. "Father, don't we get any say

in this?" She gripped her broom, which she had carried over to

the dojo when eavesdropping, and shot her sisters a quick

glance.

Soun shook his head. "No. It was the fondest wish of my

departed friend that our families be joined. Honor demands we

carry out his wishes."

Ranma slumped over, having been pierced by honor. There

wasn't going to be any way out now that his dead father had

been brought into it.

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

'... still think Kasumi's a nice enough girl, although her sisters

are another matter. Sticking her with the engagement like that

and being happy about doing it. I don't think Kasumi would

have done the same, if circumstances were reversed. And I

blame one of them for removing the occupied sign on the baths.

Fortunately, I heard Kasumi-dono in the baths and did not

enter.' Ranma set his pen down for a second and shook loose

the day's accumulated stress. Trembling, he sat quietly back at

the desk and continued to write. 'I can't believe you have stuck

me with this and then had the gall to die to make sure I couldn't

dare resist it. You don't even know what I'm going through for

you, you ungrateful bastard.' Ranma smiled, dissipating what

remained of his tension. For once, he'd leave the angry words

on the page; only the idiocy of Jusenkyo surpassed this, and

Jusenkyo was as much his and Ryouga's faults as his father's.

'Jusenkyo. I did not reveal the curse, thinking I would only

study here during the day. How am I to break the news to

them? When will I break the news to them?'

Ranma felt that was a very good question - one good enough to

sleep on. The light in the window darkened, and restful sleep

claimed another victim.

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

Well, what do you think? I've decided to rewrite the Ranma as

Saito's great-great-grandchild fic, seeing as there was a fairly good

response to the idea. The original was intended for a spamfic, so a

substantial rewrite was needed. My thanks to Therm for prereading

this for me.

I'm on a roll....

THE WOLF DIARIES

A Ranma «« - Ruroni Kenshin Crossover

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

DISCLAIMER: Ranma belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, et

al; Ruroni Kenshin to others. I make no claims to ownership of

any of the characters, concepts, settings, or plots of these series.

This fanfic is not to be distributed for commercial or personal

gain.

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

Fanged boy, fanged sword.

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

Ranma wrote her next entry with a scowl on her face. The

reason for the scowl would be evident to anyone who could

have seen her - she was cute. Nauseatingly cute. Of course, this

was the normal state of affairs for her cursed form, but usually

her boring and oppressive clothes canceled that out, leaving just

the intimidating face of a powerful martial artist instead. But

today, all her clothes were in the wash. Hence her current attire,

a pink set of overalls with the word 'China' on the front. She

grumbled, then settled down to writing. 'Hello, father, how was

your day? I had a normal day: beat on Kuno, go to school, beat

on Kuno again, practice Anything-Goes, practice my Hirazuki,

retire. My old rival Ryoga dropped by and got lost as well,

though unfortunately we had no fight. I think soon I will

practice my unarmed kenpo on Kuno and forgo the bokken. He

is too useless for further practice with the sword.' She smiled

and made no mention of her attire. 'Kasumi-dono seems to have

gotten used to the curse. At least, that is the only explanation I

can have for being given these clothes today...'

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

"How do they fit, Ranma?" Kasumi asked, looking at her

unintended fianc‚‚. The fact that said fianc‚‚ was currently a girl

dressed in one of Akane's outfits currently brought a slight

strain to her smile, but she put up with it. Ranma's curse was

the one blemish on an otherwise fine young man, well-

mannered, disciplined, and skilled in the art. It had given her

quite a shock, when Nabiki told her about the curse, and

Ranma's subsequent demonstration. Even now, whenever she

saw the redhead she was slightly frightened by the presence of

something supernatural, a magic previously denied to exist.

"It seems to fit well enough," Ranma said, ignoring the fact that

it did not, in fact, fit well enough. It was a little tight in the

chest and loose in the hips. But Ranma figured that was

something best left unsaid. Sparring with Akane in Anything-

Goes was annoying enough already - she steadfastly refused to

admit how much of a disadvantage her unarmed style had. Sure,

an unarmed fighter couldn't be disarmed and was more flexible

- but a weapon gave a fighter more than enough range and

power to compensate.

Ranma gave Kasumi a little smile before going out to the dojo.

She still hadn't figured out whether this was some passing

phase with Mr. Tendo, and therefore something just to outlast,

or something more serious, in which case she should either

figure a way to stop it or learn to live with it. Ranma dismissed

it on entering the dojo; either way, she should simply stall right

now. She looked at her sparring partner for kenpo, currently

sporting a huge shiner. Ranma's unarmed Gatotsu had been

quite the surprise to Akane, that first time.

"So, Ranma, you ready for today's match?" Akane said, giving

Ranma a glare. The redhead simply cracked her knuckles and

gave Akane a bloodthirsty glare.

"I'm always ready. The question is, are you ready?" The two

dispensed with such preambles as bowing or taking stances.

This was a pure fight between the two; and they both already

knew all they needed to know about their opponents. Every

time Ranma and Akane fought Ranma came as a girl, to even

the odds a bit. In any fight with Ranma she would give away

speed and attitude. Adding reach and weight to that would

negate the point of sparring.

Ranma smirked and blurred, causing Akane to instinctively step

back and guard her face and ribs. There was a time when Akane

always went on the attack and neglected her defense. That had

lasted only two matches against Ranma's inhuman speed and

brutal, unsophisticated attacks. 'She might be invincible with a

sword,' Akane thought, deflecting the first, blindingly fast

punch to her head, 'but she's got a lot to learn about kenpo!'

These fights had taught Akane all the difference in the world

between skill and power.

Ranma exploded into a foot sweep, turning the momentum of

the missed punch into another attack, just as she would have

with her bokken. Akane slammed one fist into her leg as she

struck, robbing her blow of much of its strength and sending a

jolt of pain up her leg. It was easily ignored, however; Ranma

had received much worse in her kenjitsu training. Ranma

jumped up from the ground, using her lower body strength -

undiminished, unlike her upper-body strength - to drive a

powerful punch into Akane's jaw, knocking her back.

Ranma and Akane sized each other up again. Again Ranma

blurred forward, nearly vanishing from Akane's sight. This time,

however, her block met air, as Ranma had simply moved to her

side. She received a punch to the ribs, and then Ranma

exploded all over her, hammering her with repeated hooks and

straights as if she were a boxer taking on a punching bag.

Akane rolled back with the punches, then tripped Ranma by

extending her leg slightly and punching Ranma over it. She then

spun fully around, bringing her leg up and swinging it down in a

brutal axe kick. Ranma simply thrust out her legs, catching her

knee with her feet as she started the downswing and throwing

her to the ground.

"STOP!" Soun yelled, having seen enough for today. Both of

his students sat up, waiting to listen for his analysis. Ranma had

a relaxed, even bored, expression on her face; Akane seethed

and breathed with repressed anger and energy. Already her face

began to swell up with the bruises of today's fighting, and blood

started to dry on her cheeks. Soun turned to Ranma first.

"Excellent. You've improved much in the adaptation and

improvisation required by the school of Anything Goes. Still,"

he said, holding up a hand and ticking off points, "for one, you

still haven't gotten your kenpo forms down correctly. Second,

you rush to the attack too readily. And third and most

importantly, you concentrate on the attack in the fight too

much, even more so than Akane did." Ranma nodded; that was

the same trouble he had been having ever since he started this

training a week ago. The years of training in the Hirazuki, the

parallel thrusting techniques of his school, had instilled a lot of

habits which were the complete opposite of Anything-Goes.

"Akane, you've improved quite rapidly ever since you began

sparring with Ranma." Soun said. Akane went from concern

over how she'd look tomorrow to attentiveness. "You've

improved in your ability to react to improvised and unorthodox

attacks, especially given Ranma's lack of kenpo training. Also,

you are no longer always throwing the first strike in your

fights." Privately, Soun thought that this lesson had been taught

only because Ranma was even more aggressive and ten times

faster in her footwork. "And your endurance improvement is

nothing short of remarkable. Why, it was just last week that

Ranma took you out with one punch." That punch had been

Ranma's unarmed Gatotsu, which also put a hole in the dojo

wall and sent Akane into the pond unconscious. That one blow

had completely deflated his daughter's ego and allowed him to

start actually training her again.

"Still, you both have lots of room for improvement. Ranma,

stand up and copy this kata..."

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

Later that night, Ranma was practicing her kenjitsu in the back

yard, repeatedly thrusting at the air with the blade. There was a

steady whoosh-whoosh-whoosh rhythm. made by the blade that

calmed Ranma. Her bokken was relatively unblemished,

showing only a single nick from when she had fought Kuno

earlier in the day. Of course, it was only a day old, her previous

bokken having snapped on Kuno's thick skull. Kuno had seen

her female side for the first time and gone completely nuts over

it, challenging her for the privilege of a date and getting himself

even more thoroughly clobbered than usual. It was the second

time she had used her powerful technique, Gatotsu, on the fool,

but in her mind there was no question the fool deserved it.

Unfortunately, she thought she had revealed her curse to the

idiot boy by using that technique. Even more unfortunately, she

was wrong. He really did redefine stupid.

Nabiki snapped several photos of Ranma slashing at the air in

Akane's pink overalls from her perch in the bushes. She had a

zoom lens on, as Ranma seemed to have some sort of people

radar that alerted her to her presence. Even the normally

unnoticed Gosunkugi had been seen by Ranma. Still, photos of

'the pigtailed girl' were worth big bucks from Kuno, and she

was determined to get them. "Hello, Nabiki. You're not taking

pictures of Ranma, now, are you?" Kasumi said, surprising

Nabiki.

"Ah..." Nabiki said, realizing there really wasn't any way of

hiding it. "I suppose I am." She looked at what Kasumi was

carrying. "You bringing Ranma something to drink, sis?" she

asked.

"Of course." Kasumi answered, smiling. She wasn't distracted,

however. "As long as you're taking pictures of Ranma working

out like you do of Akane, I won't say anything. But if you start

taking other pictures...."

"I get the hint, OK, OK," Nabiki said, having Kasumi off. "Go

over there and talk to her before she snaps out of whatever

trance she's in."

Ranma didn't notice Nabiki snapping away or Kasumi walking

towards her because her mind was solely on stabbing at the

image of Kuno she saw with her mind's eye. "Ranma?" Kasumi

said, causing Ranma to immediately stop and turn to her,

blinking. "Would you like something to drink?" Ranma wiped

away the sweat from her face and realized just how angry she

had been, and how much control she had lost, simply because of

the twit.

"Sure, Kasumi, I would." Ranma poured herself a cup of the

lemonade Kasumi had brought out for her.

"I heard you and Akane sparred again today." Kasumi said

conversationally, as Ranma downed the entire cup in one gulp.

"Feh." Ranma said, looking away. She then poured herself

another cup of lemonade and stared at it for a few seconds.

"She's really not that bad, you know, for an unarmed fighter. She's

just.. you know.." Ranma trailed off, searching for a diplomatic

way to put it. Failing, she shrugged. "She's stubborn."

"Is it really so necessary to fight her so hard?" Kasumi asked.

"I've never seen her with so many bruises before." She then

drank her own cup of lemonade.

"Better I put them there than someone else. 'Sides, I wouldn't

have to work her over so much except I'm doing it barehanded.

Give me my bokken and it's over in one shot, same as Kuno."

Ranma said, then gulped down her second cup of lemonade.

"Thanks, Kasumi," she said, handing her back the empty cup. "I

dunno. She needs to learn just how hard a fight can be right

now. There's no way she'd beat some of the people I've tangled

with the way she is now. If she wants to be a 'real martial

artist', she's just going to have to realize bruises come with the

territory." Ranma resumed stabbing at the air again.

Kasumi watched her for a while, unquestioning, simply wearing

Ranma down by boring her eyes into the back of Ranma's head.

"I know, I know, she ran to her father after I used that modified

Gatotsu on her. That was overkill and we all knew it. But your

father knew that that was a lesson Akane had to learn

someday." Ranma put her bokken down and glanced over at

Kasumi. "I guess he couldn't do it himself."

Kasumi watched Ranma as she continued her practice. "Where

did you learn your kenjitsu, Ranma?" she asked. Ranma hadn't

ever really said anything about it. "What style is it?"

That certainly got Ranma's attention. She sat down next to

Kasumi and put the bokken in her lap. "My family's style traces

itself all the way back to the Bakamatsu, the Revolution,"

Ranma said, warming up to his subject. "There are plenty of

arts that are older, but it has a lot of history in it even so. The

Hirazuki was first developed by the Shinsengumi..."

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

'..she was really interested to learn about my style of kenjitsu.

It's kind of funny, because she doesn't seem to know much

about the history of Anything-Goes. Oh well. I'm thinking of

teaching her a little bit of kenjitsu myself, and maybe Akane as

well, if I can get her to train with a weapon she's associated

with that dunce Kuno.' Ranma paused, then resumed writing. 'I

still haven't solved my major problem, though, which is what to

do about the lack of a suitable sparring partner. Sure, I can fight

Akane, but that's only approximating an equal match because I

have to stick to straight kenpo as much as possible. Maybe

Ryoga will stay around next time he shows up - probably in a

few years. He only was here for what, five minutes before

getting lost? Anyhow, I'm turning in. Stupid curse. I wonder

what you would have turned into, fi you had come with me to

Jusenkyo? A sloth, probably, or maybe a big, fat, ugly pig.

Good night,' she finished, then turned out the lamp.

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

Ranma's next entry was far more exultant in tone than most.

Flush with the glow of victory, he hastily scribbled down his

thoughts on his best fight to date. "I bet you'd be proud of the

fight I had today, you fat slob! Ryoga beat the odds and found

his way back into town in only five days. I tried to make

restitution to him for the bread feud, but, luckily, he refused. I

knew I would get a true test of my abilities when I saw the look

in his eyes...'

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

"Enough talk!" Ryoga yelled. "Die, Ranma!" He ran forward,

jabbing at Ranma with his umbrella. Ranma easily rolled the

weapon aside and stood his ground, forcing Ryoga to look him

in the eyes from about five inches out.

"You don't suppose you could tell me what this is all about

then, do you?" Ranma asked, then dodged a point-blank punch

from Ryoga. "Guess not! Then I'll beat it out of you." Ryoga

jumped back quickly and then leapt at him.

"It's because of you that I've seen hell!" he yelled, swinging at

Ranma, who easily dodged the attack and swirled into a

powerful slash, which Ryoga deflected by opening his umbrella

to use as a shield. Ranma's slashes bounced off of the makeshift

shield, and he had to scoot out of the way as Ryoga tried to

batter him down with the shield.

"What is that, kevlar? Nice touch." Ranma said, noting the

strength of the fabric. "Let's see if I can put a hole in it

anyhow." Ranma took up the now-familiar stance of the

Gatotsu, sending a ripple of murmurs through the crowd.

Ranma exploded forward in a cloud of dust kicked up by his

powerful lunge. Ryoga's umbrella snapped open again, ready to

deflect the powerful thrust of the Gatotsu - just as Ranma

expected.

The tip of Ranma's bokken skated along the side of the

umbrella until it reached the open air, and then quickly became

a sideways slice that chopped into Ryoga's right armpit, nearly

causing him to drop his umbrella. Ranma's return strike met his

umbrella in a bone-rattling collision. Ryoga, desperate, thrusted

the umbrella right at Ranma's head, using his injured arm to

push the bokken down. Ranma quickly raised his bokken and

disarmed him, sending the umbrella flying back.

Ryoga, though, was also looking to take away his opponent's

advantage. He quickly tied one of his bandannas around

Ranma's wrist to prevent Ranma from getting out of hand-to-

hand range. "This is it!" he yelled, punching at Ranma, secure in

the outcome of the fight now that he was inside Ranma's guard.

Ranma twitched his head to the side, causing Ryoga to just clip

his pigtail, then stomped on Ryoga's foot with one of his heavy

boots. Ranma then smashed the butt end of the sword against

Ryoga's head, trying to break Ryoga's grip and get away.

Ryoga pulled Ranma forward violently and snapped his fist into

Ranma's cheek full force, causing the bandanna to snap and

Ranma to fly back and roll along the ground. Ranma groaned

and rubbed his face. Ryoga leapt at Ranma. "This is it! The final

blow!" he yelled.

"That's right!" Ranma said, suddenly crouching, his face a

bruised mess on the right side. "Gatotsu, third stance!" he yelled

out as Ryoga closed in. The bokken snapped aloft, outer edge

facing up, the back edge cradled in Ranma's hands as every

muscle in his body tensed like a spring. His body flew upwards,

a rocket, and struck Ryoga in the ribs with thunderous force

that snapped the bokken five inches above the hilt. Ranma

landed, throwing the useless chunk of wood away; Ryoga

crashed into the ground, a crumpled ball.

Ranma looked over his shoulder for a second, then turned away

and headed for the dojo, soon to be followed by Akane, Nabiki,

and the other students of Furinkan High, many of whom patted

Ranma and congratulated him on his recent victory. Ranma was

still smiling and laughing when Ryoga stood up shakily and

froze everyone. "It's not over yet." he said, holding his side. He

was sure a few ribs were broken. Never mind. It was an

unarmed fight, now, and he was sure he could beat Ranma.

Ranma waved off the crowd. "He's not down yet." he said, and

took up a loose stance, legs set apart in order to easily move.

Ranma realized that Ryoga's endurance meant that he'd have to

finish this quickly, while he was still in major pain from the anti-

air Gatotsu he had used against the lost boy. Looking around he

saw Ryoga's umbrella behind the lost boy. Ranma smiled and

blurred, shooting towards Ryoga.

Ryoga screamed out a challenge and fired a powerful kick at

Ranma, only to have Ranma throw himself to the ground and

tumble past Ryoga. Easing out into a slide, Ranma picked up

the umbrella - which was surprisingly heavy - and got in the

Gatotsu crouch again. "The advantages are all mine." Ranma

said, smirking.

"That doesn't matter to me! This is about more than bread!

More than the curse!" Ryoga said, waiting. He didn't have long

to wait. Ranma once again surged forward with the incredible

force of the Gatotsu, but Ryoga undid his belt and slashed

through the umbrella's sides as if it were a sword. Ranma

quickly turned the now useless thrust into a punch into Ryoga's

battered ribs, causing him to cough up blood. But he

persevered, slashing Ranma along the arm with his sword-belt

before Ranma unloaded several more shots into his broken ribs,

sending him into a dreamless sleep.

Ranma dropped Ryoga's battered, bleeding body on the

ground. "Well, there's no doubt about it this time. He couldn't

get up if he tried. Let's get him over to the doctor's."

"The doctor needs to look at you, too, Ranma." Nabiki said,

concerned. Ranma hefted his battered opponent over one

shoulder and started lugging him towards the clinic.

"I've gotten lots of injuries like that. It comes with the

territory." Ranma smirked arrogantly. "Ryoga didn't do enough

to make me need to see the doctor."

"He had enough to ruin your bokken and shirt." Akane said

drily. "Are you sure you don't need to see the doctor? How

about your face?" Akane said, then poked the giant bruise

developing on his face.

"Ow! Damnit, that hurts!" Ranma said, cringing. "I didn't say it

didn't hurt, you idiot, just that I don't need doctors poking it."

"You should have Tofu look at it anyhow. He's very good."

Akane said.

"Very good," Ranma said, annoyed. "What, you have a crush

on him or something?" Ranma completely missed the

embarrassed and angry expression on Akane's face, or the

mirthful one on Nabiki.

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

"He didn't say." Ranma told Dr. Tofu, as the doctor bandaged

Ranma's arm where Ryoga had cut it. "He just kept going on

about how it was all my fault."

"Maybe it was about Jusenkyo." Tofu said, wrapping tape

around the bandage to hold it securely in place. "I wouldn't be

very happy if someone cursed me to turn into a piglet."

Ranma dismissed that. "Sure, he was angry, but we had a fight

there. It was both our faults and he knew it. This is something

else. Something that happened afterwards. But what?" Ranma

remained deep in thought, trying to think of what it could

possibly be.

"Whatever it was, it's enough for him to be beyond all reason."

Tofu said, glancing at the still unconscious and heavily

bandaged fighter on the other bed. "You'd better talk to him

about it."

"Can't, not while he's out cold," Ranma said, putting his shirt

back on. "Dumb stubborn pig probably won't tell me when he's

awake, either. Tell him to look for me at the Tendo Dojo,"

Ranma said as he walked out the door.

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

'..in retrospect, telling Ryoga to look for anyone anywhere was

an amazingly bad move. Still, my old rival seems to have

improved greatly since I last fought him in Jusenkyo. I didn't

think anyone could have taken a full-strength Gatotsu, third

stance, and kept fighting, much less pressed me as he did. Still, I

really want to know what has him so angry.' Ranma drifted off

into thought for a while, still trying to figure that one out. "I

suppose I'll find out sooner or later,' he wrote after returning to

reality. 'In the meantime, I have a good sparring partner again.

My kenjitsu skills may finally improve again. Just remember that

when I join you someday. You have a lot to answer for, old

man.'

Ranma turned out the light again and went to sleep. He figured

he had at least a week before Ryoga healed enough to fight

again and an undetermined amount of time beyond that until

Ryoga found his way back. That was more than enough time to

work on his unarmed skills and close the considerable hand-to-

hand gap between himself and the fanged fighter.

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

A burst of Carrot-ken, and another chapter finished! Hah!

THE WOLF DIARIES

A Ranma «« - Ruroni Kenshin Crossover

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

DISCLAIMER: Ranma belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, et

al; Ruroni Kenshin to others. I make no claims to ownership of

any of the characters, concepts, settings, or plots of these series.

This fanfic is not to be distributed for commercial or personal

gain.

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

Wolves on Ice!.

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

In what was now becoming his accustomed hour to write at the

Tendo home, Ranma Saotome opened up his journal and

penned another entry. 'Hello, old man.' he began, as usual. 'I

truly expected Ryoga to be back by now; however, he seems to

be more lost than usual. Or perhaps he was more injured than I

expected. Either way, I've gotten less practice than I'd like.

Kuno is an idiot, nothing else but, and I'm not getting any

better fighting him every day. In fact, I now have the school

Kendo team begging me to challenge him for the school team.

Too bad for them I'm not much of a team player. I'm coming

along well enough in the Anything-Goes style; I've even gotten

Akane to agree to a bit of kenjitsu training. My personal

opinion is she just wants to be able to embarrass Kuno at his

own game. Akane may be luckier than I in having opponents;

Kodachi the Black Rose gave her a good workout in the school

Martial Arts Rhythmic Gymnastics match. Too bad she broke her

wrist trying to copy my Gatotsu - I will give her points for

being crazy enough to try it, however. As far as my fiancee

goes, I may yet forgive you. Kasumi is a nice girl, though I now

need to train her to fight...'

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

"I didn't know you knew how to skate, Ranma." Kasumi said,

gliding along next to Ranma in the town skating rink.

"Well, I didn't until I was training." Ranma said, thinking

back

to the things his uncle would force him to do. "See, it's hard to

get a big push off the ice with your legs. You can't explode

quite the way you can on dry land. So my uncle would have me

practice on the lake behind his house in the wintertime. And

sometimes I'd skate on the lake because I had nothing better to

do, too."

Kasumi silently followed along for a while before talking.

"That's the most I've ever heard you say at once." Ranma

scratched his head and looked sheepish. "For me, ice skating

reminds me of my mother. She brought Nabiki and I out to this

rink sometimes when we were little." Kasumi smiled. "It's

funny. Nabiki avoids ice skating rinks for the same reason,

because it reminds her of mother."

"Look, there's Akane." Ranma said, pointing.

"Hey! Ranma! Oneechan!" Akane said, getting out on the rink

with a few of her friends from Furinkan. "What are you doing

here?" She then remembered something. "Ranma? What about

the ice? Uh, doesn't that count as cold water?"

"I don't plan on falling." Ranma laughed.

"I forgot you two were out here. Otherwise-"

"Oh, it's OK, Akane." Kasumi said. "We don't mind."

Kasumi

didn't know whether Ranma minded or not, actually, but she

elbowed him to let him know he'd better not mind. He just

nodded.

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

Ranma and Kasumi later escaped Akane's group and made their

way to a nearby ramen shop. While it wasn't really the greatest

of dates, it wasn't really supposed to be, either. Ranma had

helped Kasumi get her chores done early to get her some time

to enjoy herself.

Except that people weren't letting Ranma enjoy himself.

"Come on, Ranma, you've got to know something about this

girl!" It was a few of his classmates from Furinkan High

harassing him about his girl side. Ranma simply stonily ignored

them and ate his ramen with a scowl. "Damn, man, don't give

us the cold shoulder like that!"

"Yeah, it's your duty to help out your fellow man!" another

student chimed in, missing the fact that Ranma's irritation was

growing. Akane and Kuno had conditioned them to expect that

'angry' was equal to 'screaming'.

"No." Ranma said, taking half a second away from his food.

"Please, stop bothering us," Kasumi pleaded. "He doesn't

want

to talk about her."

"Yes, you should leave her alone." The new speaker, Ranma

saw, was a jackass. He had smarminess written all over him. He

paused, chopsticks halfway to his mouth, as he waited. Sure

enough, the guy put his hand on Kasumi's chin and lifted it up.

"Such a one as this should-" SPLAT. Noodles slid down his

face, expertly flung there by Ranma.

"So," he said, then stopped, sizing up Ranma. Ranma had

returned to eating his ramen, as if nothing had happened, sitting

ramrod straight in his chair. "I'll consider that a challenge."

"Consider it accepted as well." Ranma said, patting his bokken

under the table, where it couldn't be seen. "Do you want to get

beaten senseless in here, or would you rather get clobbered out

in the street?"

The man cleared his throat, fully aware that all eyes in the

ramen shop were now on him. "My name is Mikado Sanzenin-"

"If you're going to fight TAKE IT OUTSIDE!" The owner of

the ramen shop pointed to the door. "I don't need you damn

kids destroying everything again!"

"-As I was saying, I am Mikado Sanzenin. And I would not

challenge you to such an uncultured duel. We will meet on the

rink, in a week's time."

Ranma pulled out his bokken and laid it on the table. "Fine with

me." Mikado looked at the bokken and raised his eyebrow.

Well, this was Nerima...

"Just so the two of you are ready. See you next week." Mikado

walked off. Ranma nearly fell out of his chair - nearly, but not

quite.

"The TWO of us?" Ranma said, surprised.

"Yes!" Akane said, suddenly running up to the two.

"Where have you been?" Ranma wondered.

"What?" Kasumi said. "I can't fight!" She was still sitting in

shock.

"Mikado is a practitioner of Martial Arts Figure Skating. That's

always a pair competition," Akane explained hurriedly, "so it

wouldn't just be you, it would be you and someone else."

"What?"

"Does it have to be me?" Kasumi asked.

"That's the stupidest martial art I've ever heard of, and I

thought-"

"I'll take your place, Kasumi! Don't worry!"

"-that Kodachi girl practiced was whacked, but this-"

"Oh, dear, but I think they expect me to fight-"

"I'll make that pervert let me fight!"

And so Nerima remains Nerima - full of chaos, insanity, and

surreality, no matter its inhabitants...

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

'...so I decided to train Kasumi anyhow, just in case they don't

accept Akane as a substitute. I don't understand this town and

its insane martial arts disciplines. Nabiki read me the riot act for

getting her older sister involved in a challenge. How was I

supposed to know? I firmly believe that Akane would also be

pissed, if she wasn't hellbent on replacing her sister in the

contest.' Ranma set his pen down. He had much work to do

before the fight, and a week, in his opinion, was not enough

time. "Besides," Ranma said, addressing the ceiling as he laid

down to bed, "I don't know would be more of a liability,

Kasumi, who knows only the barest rudiments of martial arts,

and is rusty in those, or Akane, who still has a broken wrist.

Either way, it's two on one, basically..."

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

A week later Ranma sat down, still making up his mind even as

he wrote down his entry prior to the fight. Usually Ranma

wrote his entries at night into his battered journal, however,

addressing his thoughts to his hated and fortunately dead father

was always guaranteed to put him in his correct, intense frame

of mind for the fight. 'Hello, father,' Ranma began in his usual

tone, 'I've been training for a week, excepting time taken out

for school and chores, and practicing with Akane and Kasumi.

You would probably view this as a waste of precious time, but

as I viewed you as a waste of precious air, I'm afraid we will

just have to disagree. It was difficult to choose between the

two, however, Akane and Nabiki insisted on Akane's replacing

Kasumi. It turned out to be irrelevant anyhow...'

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

Ranma walked onto the rink calmly, his bokken resting on his

shoulder as he surveyed the crowd. "Impressive."

Akane twitched. "Don't stand like that. You remind me of

Kuno."

Ranma simply moved the bokken to his other shoulder. "How

about now?" he joked.

"Baka." Akane muttered. "Here they come." Sure enough,

the

announcer hyperventilated through their introduction,

showering praise upon Mikado and his partner Azusa, complete

with spotlight and laser light show. "What a bunch of

showoffs!" Akane sniffed.

Ranma smiled and waited until it was their turn to skate out.

Showered with boos from the crowd, Ranma ignored the

masses of people in the stands, except for a small contingent of

Furinkan students which had come to cheer him on. Most of

them were Akane's admirers from the morning crowd, but not a

few of the kendo club were waving signs for Ranma, usually

saying things along the lines of "Save us from this madman!".

Ranma flashed them a quick thumbs-up as he lazily skated to

the center of the rink.

"You are a hard person to find." Mikado Sanzenin said, staring

levelly at Ranma. "Else I would have told you this before - but I

shall steal the lips of your partner." He then looked at Akane,

blinked, and then looked back at Ranma. "Even if she does not

look as good as the girl you were with last week."

Ranma quickly grabbed Akane and wrestled his bokken back

out of her hands. "Just wait a few minutes. I can't clobber him if

you kill him."

"Let me go!" Akane yelled, struggling with Ranma, who

dragged her back. Mikado and Azusa gracefully looped back to

the far end of the rink.

"Let the match begin!" the announcer yelled. "No holds

barred!

Only a complete knockout will finish the fight!"

Ranma held Akane's arms down by her side as she squirmed.

"Don't go off half-cocked. Remember the plan." Turning

around, Ranma extended his bokken defensively, hoping to

keep the two more experienced skaters at bay. Sure enough,

both opposing skaters veered off, unwilling to fling themselves

on Ranma's outstretched blade.

Quickly turning into a tight circle, Azusa on the outside, the

duo had gone halfway around before Mikado dug his skates in

and suddenly spun Azusa around, letting her skates scythe

through the air. "Duck!" Ranma yelled, and Akane let her legs

drop from under her. Ranma spun around and swung his

bokken out to intercept Azusa's kneecaps.

Seeing what was about to happen, she pulled her legs in a bit,

causing the blow to slam into her ankles instead. Fortunately,

her skates took some of the shock, but when Mikado let go of

her she still stumbled to the ice. "Now!" Akane quickly

scrambled back to her feet and the two of them started chasing

Mikado, who skated backwards.

"Two on one, hentai. Let's see you get out of this one." Akane

yelled, as the two chased Mikado across the ice before Azusa

got back in the fight.

Mikado yawned. "Amateurs." He then turned hard in Akane's

direction as he neared the wall, then suddenly spurted forward,

ducking under her wild haymaker as she tried to turn with him.

Ranma, whom he had correctly guessed was much more skilled

at skating, had turned with him and gotten run down by Akane.

"You can always count on amateurs to make at least one fatal

mistake."

Azusa came over, still looking pained. Still, she grabbed

Ranma's ankles and pulled him back, causing him to grab on the

only thing not slippery - Akane - with his left hand in order to

get up. Mikado then grabbed Azusa'a ankles and lifted the

whole mess in the air.

"The dreaded couple cleaver - the Goodbye Whirl!" the

announcer yelled. "No one has ever escaped from this! It's the

end!" The whole group was spinning rapidly now, whirling

madly in the corner of the rink.

"Release her and I'll stop spinning!" Mikado yelled.

Ranma seemed to think about this for a second. "OK." Ranma

opened his left hand, timing it so Akane would slide across the

ice instead of slam point blank into the wall.

Then Ranma gripped his bokken with both hands, and,

overpowering the centripetal acceleration holding him aloft,

curled inwards towards Mikado and Azusa and smashed the

bokken between Mikado's legs in a vicious chop.

Hard.

The Goodbye Whirl immediately fell apart, sending Ranma and

Azusa flying. Azusa slammed into the wall headfirst and was

knocked out cold. Ranma slammed into it shoulder first,

grunting, and then got up. 'That will bruise. Badly.' Ranma

thought, grabbing his injured shoulder.

"That was... uncalled for." Mikado squeaked, his breath coming

in reedy wheezes as he clutched his privates.

'Whatever. Oh, and sorry, but the rules are quite specific about

this." Ranma picked him up by his hair and kneed him in the

face, then let his head bounce off the ice as Mikado's eyes

rolled back into his head.

"Ranma! Look out!" Akane yelled, pointing behind Ranma.

The

crowd shouted too, not in victory - or, as the crowd had mostly

been cheering or Mikado, in defeat - but in alarm.

Ranma turned around to see someone leaping through the air,

descending rapidly at him, fist outstretched, purple hair flying

through the air. Ranma easily slid back a few feet and watched

her crater on the ice.

"T-tone."(1) Shampoo said weakly, her head still embedded in

the ice.

"Shampoo, that was disgraceful," a withered old troll said as it

hopped over the wall surrounding the rink. "Really. Using a

suicide attack as an opening move..."

"Who are you?" Ranma said, bored. His shoulder twinged,

which he ignored.

"Hmm, you are just as rude as Shampoo said." The elderly troll

squinted at him, meeting Ranma's bored stare. "Very strange.

Are you sure you're a martial artist?"

"Ask Shampoo." Ranma said. "I've beaten her up enough."

"Ranma, who is this girl?" Akane asked, crouching by the

purple haired girl pulling herself out of the Shampoo-sized

imprint in the rink.

Ranma continued to stare down the old troll. Not even looking

at Shampoo, not even moving a muscle, he answered her.

"She's this crazy Chinese Amazon girl who's been trying to kill

me. Or marry me. Or something. She doesn't make much sense.

And her Japanese is as bad as my Chinese."

"She's my great-granddaughter," the old troll said, "and your

future wife." She stared back just as intently at Ranma.

"Already got one." Now Ranma's eyes hardened into a steely

squint of their own, as the two engaged in a battle of wills.

"Already have a wife?" Not so much as a blink.

"No, already have a future wife." Ranma cooly answered.

The two remained locked in their staredown for another few

minutes, which had sufficiently bored the audience that they

wandered off, leaving the four of them alone in the rink.

"Shampoo never see anyone stand up to Hiba-chan like this

before." Shampoo said, now standing next to Akane. Cologne

twitched slightly at Shampoo's voice.

"Ha! You twitched!" Ranma said, pointing at her.

"It was a nervous tic," she grumbled back.

"Still, you moved."

"Let's see your muscles remain fully under your control when

you're half my age, sonny."

"No control? You'd better get off the ice. The janitors won't

like it if you crap all over the ice." Ranma said irritably. There

were much better things he could be doing right now - such as

put some ice on his shoulder. It was already quite swollen.

"Impudent little.." Cologne steamed, then poked him in the

chest when he brushed his shoulder. "Let's see how you like

that."

"How I'll like what, you old troll?" Ranma said, turning away.

"You'll see. You'll see." Cologne laughed as she turned away

as well. "Come on, Shampoo."

Shampoo looked at Cologne, then back over to Ranma. "But

hiba-chan..."

"But nothing. Come on. He will come to us soon enough."

Cologne hopped back over the wall and away, quickly bouncing

out of sight. Shampoo followed a few seconds later.

"Whatever. Come on, let's go home." Ranma said, resting his

bokken on his uninjured shoulder.

"Ranma?" Akane said, twitching.

"Oh yeah. Looks like Kuno." Ranma jammed his bokken

through his belt and walked home.

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

Later that night a female Ranma was writing in her book. 'I've

never had the urge to kill anyone except you, father, until today.

I can't believe what that old bitch did to me.' Ranma stopped

for a moment and looked at her hand. It was outlined with a

sickly purple-red haze of energy, her battle aura, which she

usually kept tightly controlled. 'I'll get her for this. And I'll get

cured.' Ranma cut short the entry in her journal and wandered

over to her pack. Strapped to the side was a long, slim bundle,

which she swiftly unwrapped. Smoothly, steadily, she drew the

blade out a bit, letting the razor edge catch the moonlight and

send a silver spray of light across her face.

Down in the family room, the Tendos collectively shuddered,

not knowing why.

Smiling, Ranma slid the sword back in her sheath. Not yet, not

now, as pleasant as it would be. She wrapped it back up.

But there was a time coming when she would need steel.

She could feel it.

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

And.. the chapter is finished.

THE WOLF DIARIES

A Ranma «« - Ruroni Kenshin Crossover

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

DISCLAIMER: Ranma belongs to Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, et

al; Ruroni Kenshin to others. Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko

Takeuchi, although that series is barely used...I make no claims

to ownership of any of the characters, concepts, settings, or

plots of these series. This fanfic is not to be distributed for

commercial or personal gain.

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

Cat's Tongue, Wolf's Mind

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

'All things in life are ironic, some moreso than others,' Ranma

wrote in her journal, still female from the effects of the Cat's

Tongue Pressure Point, 'yet nothing in my martial arts career is

more ironic than this. The Anything Goes School, which prides

itself on flexibility, shuns the advances of modern society, while

my own school, the Hirazuki, which is as inflexible as adamant,

embraces it. But that is fine, it's something useful in this case...'

Ranma's mind drifted off as her pen continued to write, almost

on its own, recounting the events of the day.

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

"She says the only way to change back is something called the

Pheonix Pill. Naturally, she will only give this to me if I consent

to marrying Shampoo and returning to China" Ranma said,

adjusting the straps on her new boots. The problem with having

an alternate body was that nothing fit. Hot water and the

possibility of suddenly having too much foot in too little space

generally required her to wear her male form's footwear, but

seeing as she was stuck for the forseeable future in her female

body, she felt a well-fitting pair of boots for her female form

was both necessary and desirable.

"That's blackmail." Nabiki noted. She and Kasumi were on the

porch, wondering what Ranma was planning. There was no

school today, and Ranma had just returned from the restaurant

that Shampoo and her great-grandmother had opened.

"It's more than blackmail." Ranma said, smiling. "She knows

I

can beat Shampoo easily - I've done it many times, after all. To

such a female-dominated martial society, that's insufferable

It's not enough to blackmail me. She's got to break me."

Ranma took a cup of tea from Kasumi, who had leaned her

broom against the doorframe, and sat down next to her

currently female fianc‚‚. "Thanks, Kasumi."

Nabiki sat down as well, on a convenient rock Akane had left

there. Akane had recently taken to running while carrying the

rock in an attempt to build endurance. "What do you mean? She

doesn't look that tough."

Ranma smiled, her normal cold smile, and looked at Nabiki.

"She's very fast. Her hand speed is greater than mine. Plus, I

don't trust her. And the events of today justify my distrust. She

showed me a technique that would build up handspeed when I

declined to try to take the pill from her."

Kasumi stopped sipping her tea. "How does that make her

untrustworthy? It sounds as if she's trying to be fair."

Ranma smiled again. "Yes. Except the technique involves

grabbing things out of a fire."

"And you've got that pressure point which makes you sensitive

to heat." Nabiki said, the scheme's full dimensions becoming

clear to her.

"Exactly. She teaches me a technique which I cannot learn at

the time, in hopes of breaking my self-confidence." Ranma

finished off her tea in one gulp and set the cup down, then

turned around to lean in the doorway. "It's a stupid ploy, one

which relies on the victim being arrogant, foolish, and easily

tricked. I'm only arrogant." Nabiki laughed while Kasumi

rolled

her eyes.

"Ranma..." Kasumi sighed. She couldn't help but find

Ranma's

current I-am-an-evil-genius look funny, especially on the petite

face of Ranma's girl side. "What are you planning?"

"Oh, you'll see. That old ghoul will find that things have

changed in the past 300 years..."

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

"Hiya doc." Ranma said, walking easily into the laboratory.

There were better labs, but the doc here owed her big time.

Besides, they had worked together in the past, because of Karo.

In fact, it was partially for some of Karo's junk that was

currently collecting dust out back that Ranma had come. The

rest of it.. well, Ranma didn't want to be reliant on any Phoenix

Pill.

"Who are you?" a voice said from a speaker. Ranma waved at a

video camera which had focused its unblinking eye on her.

"Hey, doc, this may be a surprise, but I'm Ranma Saotome.

Now, I know what you're going to say, 'Ranma Saotome is a

guy!', but you know what, I can prove it." Ranma paused and

drew her bokken overhead, setting up for a Gatotsu, second

stance. "Aku. Soku. Zan."

"Anyone who reads a few books can repeat that old

catchphrase," the tinny voice of the speaker responded.

"Shut up and open the door. It's freezing out here." Ranma

said, irritated. "I saved you and you daughter's asses before and

then saved it again from Karo."

The speaker remained silent for a few seconds. Then the door

slid open, revealing a graying-haired man by a computer. "I'll

take it on trust that you are Ranma, though I don't see why you

had the sex-change..."

"Not a sex-change. Magic." Ranma said.

"Magic. Yeah, right. Just something you don't understand, is

all."He pulled a stick of gum out of his pocket and popped it in

his mouth.

"No cigarette, Doc? What gives? Finally quit?"

"Don't be an idiot, Ranma, this is my lab. I don't smoke in the

lab, you know that. What's your problem? We only get together

when one of us is in trouble." The man got up and walked over

to a tabletop covered in petri dishes. "Besides, I've got work to

do."

"OK. I'll make it short. I'm female because I picked up a curse

in China that turns me into a girl. Hot water turns me back. An

old chinese woman knows this and used a pressure point to

make me extremely sensitive to heat. She's got a cure, which

she is blackmailing me with." Ranma adjusted the wrists of her

shirt slightly, waiting to see what the doc's first response would

be.

The older man was very familiar with the way Ranma's mind

worked. "You want a backup plan." Ranma smiled. "You

don't

want to use the cure immediately, because she might move to

another plan. You just want to be able to blow her out of the

water safely... right?" Ranma nodded. "OK. First things first.

It's a pressure point, that means she's stimulated some nerve.

Your body is not, I repeat not, actually being burned by the

lukewarm water, in that case."

Ranma frowned slightly. "But when I put my hand in the water-

"

"-it swelled up and turned red as if it had been burned. Nope.

That's an allergenic response." He scratched his head for a

second. "So she's somehow primed your system to develop an

intense allergic reaction to heat. Well, that's easily solved."

Ranma blinked. "It's just an allergy?"

"'Fraid so. You could just take Allegra or something. Would

clear it right up - for a while. I think you want something more

permanent, though. In that case, we're going to need to run

some tests."

Ranma sighed. Tests. Wonderful. "What exactly are you going

to do?"

"Nothing. I need better equipment than I've got here. By the

way, if you do get that Phoenix Pill, let me analyze it. If it

works as a permanent allergy pill, it would be worth a fortune.

I'll give you a cut if it can be mass produced."

Ranma nodded absently. That had been their deal before, and

why Ranma could afford to wander around Asia on her father's

mad training itinerary. "That's not all. Karo's traning equipm-

"

"Take it," the doc said, getting back to his work. "I've got no

use for his stuff."

"Thank you, Professor Tomoe." Ranma said, bowing. She

walked out of the laboratory and around to the back, where a

large trash heap of equipment surrounded what looked like an

ordinary trailer. Ranma kicked the junk out of her way and

checked the outside of the trailer, trying to gauge the damage to

the outside.'Seems to be in good shape,' Ranma thought, and

picked up the trailer hitch. She tied a piece of rope to it, then

began dragging it out of the yard.

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

Ranma finished setting up the trailer in the abandoned yard next

to the Tendo's house and ran a few extension cords out to it.

She then went inside and made sure all the equipment was in

working order. 'I'll show that Chinese mummy what she's

dealing with.' Ranma thought angrily. Being the target of such

clumsy manipulation infuriated her. When she came out, she

found all three Tendo sisters waiting for her.

"Hey Ranma, what's with the RV? Going camping?" Nabiki

asked. For once, she was genuinely mystified. She had seen

Ranma drag the thing into the lot, and that might be good

training, but she was apparently going to stay in it.

"Nah, just donated by a..." Ranma realized that Karo certainly

didn't count as a 'friend' at all, "associate. It's in aid of

accelerated training."

Akane looked at it. "How does this trailer help anyone train?"

Akane asked, looking at it. It seemed a perfectly ordinary

camper.

"It's depressurized, for the most part, but it also has a hgih-

oxygen hyperbaric chamber." Ranma said. She was about to

explain further, when Kasumi interrupted.

"Oh! I see!" Kasumi said suddenly. "Just like training in the

mountains!"

"Yes, exactly. And high oxygen-"

"-let's you heal faster." Kasumi said. "But you already heal

fast,

Ranma."

Ranma just smiled.

Akane's face paled. "Something tells me I'm going to need to

use that chamber too."

Ranma's grin spread even wider. "Exactly, oh practice

dummy. I'm going to train like I've never trained before.

Nabiki? Nabiki?"

Nabiki was running her hands over the outside of the trailer.

Why, with a trailer like this, or a few, she could make a fortune

renting them to the athletics clubs at Furinkan - and other

schools. "Has this been patented yet?" she asked greedily.

"Not to my knowledge. My tapes?" Ranma asked, holding her

hand out. Nabiki slapped a VHS tape into the outstretched

palm, which quickly made the tape disappear.

"They train over on the other side of the school, next to the

construction site. She seems pretty fast, Ranma, I think the tape

is a bit blurry."

"That's OK. I only need to know her general reflexes and

speed." That would give her a target to work for over the next

two or three weeks.

"Well, this is all very interesting." Kasumi said. "Dinner is

ready. And Ranma?"

"Yes?"

"I'll bring your things out to the trailer."

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

'..nothing beats modern technology for training. Nothing. The

finest ancient training grounds, in my opinion, can't match up

against something set up with modern science.' Ranma grinned

smugly in the dark. 'The old mummy, of course, knows nothing

of modern science. Her training methods are centuries too old

to match it.' Ranma then frowned, and returned to writing. 'Of

course, having a superior training setup doesn't mean anything

if you don't plan what you're going to do with it. I seriously

need to work on my hand-to-hand, which I will do with Tendo-

san and Akane. However, with my sword techniques, I don't

have any decent opponents. I plan to work on raw strength and

speed. And for a final surprise, I've always got Karo's little

secret.' Ranma turned away from the window, her voice rasping

in the thin air, muscles sore- but not too sore, after a stay in that

cramped high-pressure coffin - from all her training, and pulled

out a clear bag of purple goo. She smiled again, even in the rarefied

air.

Cologne would never know what hit her.

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

Well, that was probably unexpected - but, then again, Saito

always believed in Aku, Soku, Zan, and beyond that, relied on

strict functionality and direct action with his swords.