Hi, It's been a while. Yes, I know it's been such a long time and I owe everyone here a sincere apology over my absence. So, my deepest apologies. I've been so busy over the past year. So busy that the time to write has been almost non-existent. To be perfectly honest, this chapter has been ready since early this year. But unfortunately I've been really unhappy with how it turned out and I still am, actually. I've been wanting to go over it again but I never get around to it, mostly due to time constraints. But since it's been such a long time and I did promise everyone an update, I decided to put this up. I'm very sorry for the quality of this chapter, and I promise to deliver something at least marginally better next time. Once again, my apologies.

Please, Enjoy. Oh, and I have two other fics up, one titled 'Fornication Under Consent of King' and 'So, What Now, Genius?!' for which I've written small production notes (in case you're silently muttering, 'Oh GAWD, Zeni's gone and written MORE new fics...').

Disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina. It belongs To Akamatsu-sensei.

A BIG thank you to David Alan Abramczyk for kindly proof-reading this. And thank you to all the TFF folks who helped round off what was what could only be described as a really sad attempt at a chapter. THANK YOU!

Chp4: Encounter

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Somewhere in Hokkaido…

"Where is she…" Kojiro wondered as he walked down the frozen streets of a small town on the edge of Hokkaido. "Where could she have disappeared?" He suddenly noticed a young teenage girl in a white dress and blue vest in the middle of the street, holding what looked like a small humanoid-shaped piece of paper.

(Author's note: if you don't remember who Kojiro is, he's the guy who tried to confess to Tsuruko in chapter 1. He somehow clawed his way back into the story again…surprised me too)

"A shikigami (Japanese magically animated paper constructs, capable of forming live copies of just about anything or anyone)…I should've known…" She sighed, crumpling the small piece of paper in her fist. "Tricking me with a paper copy like that…leading me all the way to Hokkaido…how on earth did she notice she was being followed…" the girl muttered to herself. "KAMI-SAMA!" She wailed up at the sky, before sighing and turning around, coming face to face with a slightly bewildered Kojiro.

"Errr, excuse me…did you see a young woman in a hakama and gi come by here?" Kojiro asked.

"Nope. Sorry, bud, if you're looking for the cosplay contest, it's that way." She said testily, jabbing an unhelpful thumb over her back and walking past him.

"A…are you sure?" Kojiro turned around to ask her again. For just a moment he was aware that he was wearing a simple hakama and gi in the middle of a small Hokkaido town. Yes, cosplay was the word. When he turned around, she was already gone.

"Grr…that girl is wily one…" A figure standing in the darkness of a nearby alleyway muttered, before dissolving into the darkness.

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"NYAAAAAA!" Shinobu shouted a Sunday morning cartoon equivalent of a battle cry as she delivered a well calculated series of thrusts and slashes. Tsukuyomi, was quickly getting cornered, though she had managed to parry and dodge each and every attack.

Just as Shinobu was about to deliver the finishing thrust, she found herself stepping on air. "KYAAAAAAAA!" She flailed around as she realized she had run out of space on the small landing. Tsukuyomi, who was a few steps below, smiled her usual bright smile.

"Awww…such a cute fighting style" she cooed, as Shinobu lost her balance and fell backwards on her back. "You've never really had real battlefield experience, have you? It's all well if you have good footwork on solid flat ground…but in a real battle you'd have to adapt to your environment…" She said in a sing-song voice, before she started running up the stairs straight at Shinobu who was still on the ground.

"Itadakimasu!" Tsukuyomi shouted, dragging her katana through the concrete steps, blasting it apart and leaving a wide trench in the concrete. She swung it upwards at Shinobu who barely managed to roll backwards out of the way.

Tsukuyomi followed through her attack with another downwards thrust. Shinobu brought her blade up to counter. Sparks and ki discharge blew over them as the two steel edges struck one another. They continued to exchange blows as they moved backwards and forwards across the narrow landing.

Shimmering waves of light were sparkling all along Tsukuyomi's katana's edge as she swung it around. Wide arcs of bluish white ki discharges followed in its wake as it started to pick up speed and power.

Shinobu's blade shook violently with each strike. It was ringing. The shocks were threatening to shatter all the bones in her arm. She leapt backwards out of the fray, gasping for breath.

"Getting tired?" Tsukuyomi smiled, twirling her katana. "And it's your first real battle too….what a pity. Well…you're not what I came for. Besides, you're too cute to kill." She smiled a small smile as she turned to continue up the stairs, as if Shinobu had been an interesting pebble she had stopped to stare at on her way up. "If only I weren't here to meet Motoko-sempai, I would've taken you for myself." She giggled.

Shinobu's body was shaking uncontrollably. She realized that. It was fear. Pure, cold, fear.

Her legs could barely move. She felt it in her knees. They were starting to give away. Her arms were aching from the repeated shocks. Blisters had started to form on her hands. She looked up at Tsukuyomi. Then she remembered her sempai. A new strength took control of her. She clenched her fists around the handle of her prized katana and scowled up at her opponent.

"No! Stop!" Shinobu cried out. "URASHIMA-RYU! Hoshi no Mai!" She screamed as she rushed out at the girl, her blade blazing bluish white with concentrated ki as it rushed through the air.

"You still have a bit of fight left, I see…" Tsukuyomi smiled. "All right then…let's play a little more…" She smiled, raising her katana once more.

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"This place is kinda nice, actually…" Shana said to herself, looking around as she dashed across the front courtyard…before bumping into something soft.

"Ouch! Hey! Watch where you're going!" Shana shouted at the object. Then she noticed that whatever it was, it belonged to someone. She slowly raised her head up to look into the face of the said owner. "Oh, so you put those two soft things there. Well, excuse me, I've got to meet someone." She said, navigating around the light-blue haired girl.

She bumped into her again. "Hey! Get out of my way!"

Rei stubbornly remained in place.

Shana slowly stepped to one side. Rei followed and placed herself in front of her.

Rei quickly shifted in the other direction. Rei followed.

"Ok, so you won't let me through?" Shana asked.

Rei just stood motionless, looking down at Shana. A few silent moments went by. Well…silent aside from the sound of clashing steel and the battle cries coming from the steps below.

"Wait! I know you!" Shana started, pointing a triumphant finger at Rei. "You're…"

"Not this again…" Rei shook her head, sighing.

"That girl from Wonderful Days!" Shana cried.

"NO! THAT'S JUST A SPINOFF FROM NGE! NOT TO MENTION YOU GOT THE TITLE WRONG! IT'S FRIGGING ANGELIC DAYS, YOU MORON! AND MY HAIR AND EYES ARE COMPLETELY NATURAL! I'VE GOT A CLINICAL CERTIFICATE TO PROVE IT!" Rei screamed, throwing her katana to the ground before jumping up and down on it.

"Do I detect the birth of a recurring gag?" Shana asked, cocking her head to one side thoughtfully.

"No, it was already brought up this afternoon." Rei said, lowering her volume back down to a bare whisper.

"Ah…" Shana pouted. "And I thought I was the first. So it's already a recurring gag? Wait….that means your name's actually Rei Ayanami? And you've got a wardrobe consisting of only your school uniform?" Shana asked, gasping.

"….." A dark aura permeated into the air surrounding them as Rei gently kneeled down to pick up her katana. As she rose, a blast of cold, dark aura blew up from the ground she stood on.

"Geez, no need to get that angry. At least I didn't suggest you might have a pair of cracked specs belonging to your crush sitting atop your dresser in your miserable, austere little room." Shana sighed, shaking her head. She looked up at Rei and noticed she was quivering. "Oh…so you DO have a pair of cracked specs belonging to your crush sitting atop your dresser in your…."

An explosion suddenly rocked the Hinata-Sou's front courtyard. What happened afterwards could only be described in terms of blast radius.

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"What…?" Tsukuyomi wore an expression of utmost surprise. Her katana, crackling violently with pure ki, had stopped a mere few centimetres from Shinobu's head. Shinobu's katana too, still shaking with pent up energy, had stopped a few centimetres from Tsukuyomi's frill-clad body.

There was a katana and a sheath in the way. Both Tsukuyomi and Shinobu traced the katana and sheath back to the hands of its owner who was smiling brightly. "Oro? Is this the Hinata-Sou?"

Tsukuyomi and Shinobu couldn't help but look at one another before giving the owner of the katana another look.

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"So tell me! Why did you ditch Shinji in favour of that man who saw nothing but his dead wife in you?!" Shana shouted, throwing out a horizontal slash at Rei.

Rei dodged with a side roll and raised her katana. "I'M NOT SOME COSPLAYER! AND I DIDN'T COME FROM NGE!" She screamed, pure ki discharge flowing down her katana. "I HAD THAT NAME AND APPEARANCE FIRST! IT'S NOT MY FAULT THEY DECIDED TO MAKE…." Rei paused for breath. She decided to forget the rest of the sentence. It was stupid anyway.

"Hah! I don't see what Shinji saw in you, but he was a pretty sad boy anyway." Shana smirked, raising her katana to defend herself. Sparks and ki discharge blew across the courtyard as their blades met with a resounding clang. Shana sidestepped the deadlock and executed a perfect spiral upwards slice, sending a spiral wave of burning red ki outwards.

There was no escape. Rei raised her blade to defend. The impact from the ki threw her backwards across the courtyard. "I'M…." She began, screeching to a stop. "NOT SOME OTAKU PLAYTHING!" Rei screamed, raising her katana. She executed a clean slice downwards which sent a wave of ki roaring through the concrete straight towards Shana, leaving a huge trench in its wake.

Shana leapt up into the air to avoid the wave but quickly found the error in her action. Rei was already above her, waiting for her, her katana raised above her head.

"Well….I know there's a lot you can do with an N2 mine such as blowing yourself up….but what could you do with a katana?" Shana taunted, raising her katana to counter.

They crossed swords, releasing ki discharges in all directions as they descended towards the earth. Just before they hit the ground, both drew back their blades.

"Eat this FLIPPED Child…" Shana shouted.

"DIE!" Rei screamed.

Both lashed their katanas out at each other. The explosion resulting from the ki discharge sent both reeling backwards to opposite sides of the courtyard.

"Not bad…for a shy little introvert…" Shana smirked.

"And I've just figured out where I've seen you before…" Rei said, smiling.

"Oh really? It can't be the same loserville you came from." Shana returned the smile.

"Shakugan no Shana." Rei pointed out.

"…." Silence reigned supreme for a few moments.

"H…How dare you…..you compare me to….to that…that….snobbish, sardonic, bitter, world weary brat of a sacrificial warrior…." Shana hissed in a low voice. "DIE!"

"BRING IT ON! LAME DAZE!" Rei shouted. (quick note – Rei was making a pun on 'flame haze', Shana's title.)

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"Yes….I've heard a lot about you, you're Shinobu Maehara…Keitaro's told me a lot about you." The smiling young woman in the hakama and gi persisted, as if all that was happening was a Saturday morning social call. "But I don't remember him mentioning you, though…but you do look familiar…"

"Ah…me?" Tsukuyomi suddenly said in a sweet voice. She threw aside her katana, which dissolved into the darkness of the forest.

"Remember me, sempai? It's Tsukuyomi-chan! From the dojo, remember?" she said excitedly, as if all that had happened before was a figment of everyone else's imagination. There was, unmistakably, a large sweat-drop down one side of her face.

"Oro, fancy meeting you out here, Tsukuyomi-chan. I didn't recognize you in that….is that a dress? It looks like you dropped it in a mincer instead of a washing machine…" the young woman said with concern. "Perhaps I could fix it for you?"

"N…no. It's fine. It's supposed to be like that." Tsukuyomi smiled sweetly. It was obvious that this little girl was one who knew power when she saw it.

"So you've moved out of the school? How nice…It's good to get training in the outside world." The young woman smiled. "Did I intrude on an argument of some sort?" At that exact moment the Universal Tome of Records automatically recorded the Universal record for understatements.

"Umm…anou…" Shinobu blushed profusely, suddenly feeling a bit silly holding her katana out. She quickly sheathed her katana and hid it behind her back. There was something about this woman…as if the last thing you wanted to happen, or indeed, will be the last thing that will happen to you, is for her to find out you've committed some naughty little deed. "No…" She mumbled awkwardly.

"Well then, that's very nice." The woman smiled her strange smile. "Next time you should settle your differences around a nice cup of tea…I always find that very…nice…" She said, in her sing-song voice. It carried overtones of a heavier, darker kind, which basically said, "If I find you children fighting like that again, heads will roll, and it won't stop at heads." The words were hidden, yet apparent to the inner-child of everyone in her presence. It was the perpetual fear of maternal reproach, the kind with a chainsaw behind it.

"Now…we'd best go in. Children shouldn't be out in the dark at this time of the night." The woman smiled, steering Shinobu and Tsukuyomi up the stairs.

"By the way, forgive my rudeness. I haven't even introduced myself, have I, Shinobu-chan?" The woman said. "My name's Aoyama Tsuroko…I think you know my sister."

Almost imperceptibly, both Shinobu and Tsukuyomi gulped. They couldn't help but give each other worried glances.

As they came up onto the courtyard…correction, decimated courtyard, their eyes fell upon two figures who had froze mid-strike as Tsuruko arrived.

Shana, who was running up towards Rei, had froze with one foot in the air. She wobbled uncertainly, still frozen with shock, before falling over. "Ah….ahahahaha….Tsuruko-sama…" Shana laughed uneasily, quickly stowing away her blade in her convenient black cloak.

"Oh, Shana-chan. I didn't expect to see you here too. Did you move out together with Tsukuyomi-chan?" Tsuruko asked, smiling her usual gentle smile.

"Ah…" Shana looked over at Tsukuyomi who immediately gave an urgent nod. "Ah, yes, Tsuruko-sama, we thought we'd go out and follow in Motoko-sempai's footsteps." Shana quickly spurted, scratching the back of her head, bobbing up and down uncertainly.

"Tsuruko-sama." Rei gave a respectful little bow to Tsuruko.

"Oh, Rei-chan. I didn't know you were living here too. That's comforting to know." Tsuruko bowed gently in Rei's direction. "By the way….what happened here?"

"Oh, this? Uhh…we were just helping this lady here cleaning. I think a brief yet powerful typhoon hit Tokyo today…" Shana explained, still laughing her nervous laugh.

"Oro, is that so? How very nice of you." Tsuruko clapped her hands together. "Well, I think I should go look for the manager…oh, and my little sister off course. Shana, you shouldn't stay out too long. Little children should be indoors at this time of the night." She kindly reproached.

"Yes, Tsuruko-sama. We're on our way inside, right now." Shana said. "After you, Tsuruko-sama." She gestured for Tsuruko to lead.

"Why, thank you, Shana-chan." Tsuruko said.

"What do we do?" Shana hissed urgently to Tsukuyomi as they fell into step behind Tsuruko. Tsukuyomi could only shake her head and sigh.

Shinobu tailed close behind, somehow feeling comfortable for the company, even if it was a company of enemies. They seemed as harmless as her laundry compared to the beautiful, elegant, yet modest looking woman now striding up towards the Hinata Sou.

And was that a katana she saw Rei hide? 'must've been my imagination…' She thought.

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"All right….this is it, Urashima!" Motoko bellowed, aiming her katana at him. They were all oblivious to the chaos that was happening back at the inn. The water fall thundered behind them as they prepared for their final showdown. Well…at least Motoko prepared. Keitaro, on the other hand, was making a show of not knowing how to hold a katana. "I officially challenge you! If you win, I'll do whatever you like. If I win, you get the hell out of Hinata-Sou!"

"Huh?! Wait, I can't defeat you at kendo!" Keitaro shouted.

"Shinmei-ryu! Ougi! ZAN GAN KEN!" Motoko cried, sending a wave of ki screaming in Keitaro's direction. Keitaro yelped and leapt out of the way as the ki wave blasted a rock behind him into smithereens.

"HWAAAAA! SAVE ME!" Keitaro wailed, running for his life as ki wave after ki wave raged after him, shredding everything in their path.

"Hehe, go Keitaro!" Suu shouted from the sidelines.

"Yeah, just try and stay alive!' Mitsune added, swigging down beer. Naru meanwhile, was watching with an expression of mild interest mixed with slight boredom, a very queer combination.

"HEY! You guys can't just watch as if this is just some cheap snuff movie!" Keitaro cried, running across the battlefield as Motoko blasted everything in his wake.

"Oh, there they are…" Tsuruko smiled, entering the clearing by the waterfall.

"How did you know they'd be here?" Tsukuyomi asked, slightly curious.

"I can smell them…" Tsuruko playfully patted her nose.

"Awawawawa! Keitaro-sempai is fighting Motoko-sempai! Someone's got to save him!" Shinobu cried frantically. Keitaro had taken to hiding behind a convenient rock.

"Don't worry, the victor's decided." Tsuroko said in a satisfied manner. Motoko split the said no-longer-convenient-rock in two.

"but…but…if Motoko-sempai wins, Keitaro-sempai will die…" Shinobu cried in panic. Keitaro scrambled across the decimated battlefield and hid behind the waterfall.

"Who said I was referring to Motoko?" Tsuruko said, a satisfied smile on her face. Motoko slowly came up towards the waterfall, raising her katana over her head, ready to murder the poor soul hiding behind the waterfall. She split the said waterfall clean in two, causing Keitaro to scream in fear. Cheesy thriller movie sound effect plays.

"But…but…Keitaro-sempai wouldn't raise a hand against anyone!" Shinobu cried. Keitaro scrambled and clawed his way up a tree.

"Ah…you've got a point." Tsuruko sighed. Motoko cut down the said tree, sending Keitaro spinning towards the ground.

"Is that Urashima Keitaro? I thought he was a lot stronger than that…" Shana said, folding her hands. Keitaro leaped in the river.

"Apparently so…but perhaps he saves his strength for real battles, rather than meaningless duels…" Tsukuyomi reasoned. Motoko followed Keitaro into the river.

"Oh, Shinobu-chan! We were wondering where you went…eh?" Naru walked over to the group by the opening to the clearing. "Visitors?". Motoko split the said river in two.

"Oh, more spectators?" Mitsune asked, standing up and following Naru. Suu too followed out of curiosity. Keitaro held up his katana in defense.

"Ah, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance. My name's Aoyama Tsuruko." Tsuruko bowed politely. Motoko split the said katana in two.

"Aoyama? So you're Motoko's sister?" Mitsune asked.

"Yes, I am. Thank you all for taking care of my little sister." Tsuruko said in a grateful tone.

"My name's Tsukuyomi." Tsukuyomi added. "It's a pleasure." Keitaro was desperately trying to climb the cliff by the waterfall.

"And I'm Shana." Shana said. Motoko split the entire face of the cliff in two.

Naru, Mitsune, and Suu proceeded to casually introduce themselves as Keitaro fell on top of Motoko. The impact knocked the two of them out.

"Oh, the battle's ended…" Tsuruko said, looking around and noticing that Keitaro and Motoko were both knocked out cold.

"Sempai!" Shinobu cried, tears streaming out of her eyes.

"…oh man…a tie?" Mitsune asked, scratching the back of her head.

"What were the chances of that, I wonder…" Naru asked.

"Well, well…hello there, you two…" Tsuruko said cheerfully as she looked down at the tangle of arms of legs sprawled in the mud.

"Unnhhh…" Motoko stirred. She slowly opened her eyes. They fluttered wide open when she realized who it was looking down at her. "ANEUE!" She cried out, trying her best to sink into the ground, with no luck whatsoever.

"Tsu-chan!" Keitaro cried in surprise as he too regained consciousness.

Motoko looked around at Keitaro in surprise, shock, and utter disdain.

"How dare you speak to my sister in such a heathen tone. You shall pay for your…" Motoko started.

"Greetings, honoured husband." Tsuruko greeted Keitaro, bowing slightly, a slight edge of playfulness in her voice.

"…husband?" Keitaro asked, slightly confused, his eyes narrowing as he tried to process this in his currently dimmed mind.

"….h…h…husband?!" Motoko stammered, before falling unconscious out of shock.

"What happened?" Mitsune asked as the others arrived at the scene. They had absolutely no idea what had happened.

"Oro…and I thought Motoko-chan knew…" Tsuruko giggled. "This is going to be fun, ne, Kei-kun?" Tsuruko smiled to Keitaro.

"Eh?" Keitaro just let his head fall back into the ground. All this was too much to handle.

"Hey, wasn't there supposed to be one more person on this mission?" Shana asked aside to Tsukuyomi. "If Tsuruko-sama's here then we're going to need reinforcements…."

"Oh, him? Well, they dispatched him yesterday, the same day they dispatched us, so he'll arrive here in about a week's time." Tsukuyomi said, shrugging.

"…a week?" Shana asked. "Why a week? He has a lot to prepare or something?"

"No. It's Ryoga." Tsukuyomi said, as if that one name explained everything.

"Oh….right…Ryoga…" Shana sighed.

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Meanwhile…in Kyoto….

"YOU SENT WHO?!" Tennouji boomed, squeezing his sake cup so hard it smashed into a thousand cheap ceramic pieces.

"…err…as I said, m'lord, I sent Shana, Tsukuyomi, and Ryoga…" The spiky red haired youth replied.

"Reno….I told you to have Keitaro Urashima assassinated….not entertained. What are you trying to do, make him laugh to death?" Tennouji asked, standing up in a towering rage. "Shana's always too busy being a bitter, world weary sacrificial warrior who always stops to spit out sardonic, over-dramatized comments. Tsukuyomi's so bubbly and ditzy she can't help falling in love with anything frilly. And Ryoga can't find his own feet without a GPS!" Tennouji spat.

"Err….who should I have sent then?" the young man named Reno asked. "Well, perhaps we can send in Roronoa Zoro…or Sagara Sousuke…maybe I can go myself?"

"We need somebody with a brain….which means we can't send you. Somebody with a sense of direction….which means Zoro is out of the question. He believes north is whatever direction he's facing. And somebody who can take out the target quietly without drawing too much attention….which means trigger-happy Sagara is off the list completely. I want that heir killed. Not nuked."

"But…we have nobody else…except for….her…" Reno said, suddenly shivering in fear.

The lights suddenly flickered of their own accord. A roll of thunder boomed outside.

"…Send in Roronoa Zoro and Sagara. Be sure to give Zoro a GPS and Sagara a stick of bubblegum." Tennouji said.

"I can understand giving Zoro a GPS, but why a stick of bubblegum to Sagara?" Reno asked.

"Because if we give him a stick of bubblegum, the worst we can expect is an entire neighbourhood disappearing off the face of the earth. Now get moving." Tennouji said. Reno immediately ran off.

Then he came back. "Sir?"

"Yes, Reno?" Tennouji asked in a drawn out patient tone.

"What about….her, sir?" Reno asked.

The lights flickered again. This time, the ground shook slightly.

"NO RENO!" Tennouji screamed, picking up a tea tray and hurling it at Reno which smashed on the wall around which Reno disappeared.

More thunder boomed in the distance.

"SHUT UP!" Tennouji screamed up at the ceiling. "I'M NOT AFRAID OF YOU!"

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Meanwhile…far away in Hokkaido…

"Haa….haaatchoooo!" the young girl in blue sneezed. "Sniffle…I'll…I'll find you…Tsu-chan….I…HAAATCHOOO! I will….and…Rei-chan…I will kill you….sniffle…" She shivered as she dragged herself down the snowy street. "I….swear…"

"TSURUKO-SAN!" A voice called out in the night. The forlorn form of Kojiro stood atop a tall spire. "ANSWER ME!"

"SHUT UP!" Someone shouted from a window below. "WE'RE TRYING TO SLEEP HERE, YOU IDIOT!"

"Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me!" Kojiro shouted back before resuming. "TSURUKO-SAN!"

The silhouette of Kojiro against the pale white moon toppled and fell as what looked like a heavy bound dictionary made contact with his head.

"Ara? Is this Okinawa?" Another figure bent over Kojiro's prostate form and asked. "Ara? Oh, he's sleeping…" She said to what looked like a turtle that was perched atop her head.

"Myuuu…" the turtle replied, landing on the dictionary.

"Me too." The figure said. "I'm sure Okinawa was warmer when I left…and no, you shouldn't do that on the dictionary. I think it's more proper to use newspaper."

"Excuse me? Hi, my name's Ryoga. Do you know which way Tokyo is?" A voice asked from behind the Okinawan girl.

SPLASH…

"SHUT UP WILL YOU?! WE'RE TRYING TO SLEEP!" The owner of the dictionary shouted, pouring a bucketful of freezing cold water out of his window down into the street below.

"Ara?" The Okinawan turned around to face the source of the voice, only to see nobody. "Ara?" She looked around, before noticing a black little pig lying in a puddle of water in the snow. "Aww…so cute…" She cooed, picking up the little black pig, which frantically tried to escape. "Here, have a watermelon." She smiled, bringing a watermelon down on the pig which squealed in horror before it passed out from the having its snout crashed into a watermelon.

"Ara? You fell asleep?" The Okinawan asked. "Oh well, I can't take the watermelon with me and it'll be a waste if nobody eats it…" The Okinawan sighed. "Oh, I'll just give it to this sleeping man." She smiled at her brainwave. She held the watermelon over Kojiro's head and released it.

"Ah…it feels good doing good deeds…" The Okinawan smiled as she disappeared into the mist. The turtle made some half-hearted attempts at poking the watermelon covered body awake before giving it one last "myuu", scraping some dirt onto the body, and flying off after the Okinawan.

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To be continued….SEE YOU NEXT UPDATE!