Disclaimer:  Ranma ½ was created by Rumiko Takahashi.  I had nothing to do with it.  Please do not sue me; Money doesn’t grow on trees, ya know!

However, the original characters that appear in the story were created by me.  How do you like dem apples?

The sun had set hours ago.  The moon was the only source of light for the streets of Nerima.  On these streets three women were currently tracking someone whom their people had deemed the fiercest of enemies. 

“This is the town, right Lotion?” asked the fairly young pink haired girl who seemed to be the leader of the group.

Her light, blue haired companion simply nodded.  She was older than the other two, who seemed to still be in their teens.  Lotion, as she was called, looked around 24 or so.

The other girl, a short blonde, looked back at her current leader.  Her fists were clenched and her face read of someone who had lost everything dear to her.  “So when we find him we kill him?”

The leader promptly slapped the back of the head of her comrade.  “If you recall, Elder Cologne gave us specific instructions to watch, not engage.  You know what he’s capable of, Soap.”

The blond lost her temple at this.  “Of course I know!  I was there, damn it!  I saw what that monster did to our sisters!  I swear by the ancestors that I’ll be the one to end his life!  Where were you when he killed our friends and family?”

The leader didn’t have the chance to answer as she was cut off by Lotion.  “There he is.”

Soap began looking around furiously.  “What? Where?”

Lotion pointed to a nearby roof top.  Running across was none other then Ranma Saotome.  Not stopping to notice the trio the pony tailed boy leapt unto the next roof in the direction of the old junkyard.

The leader gasped.  “That’s him?” She had expected a brute of a man, not a handsome boy her age.

The older woman frowned when she saw the girl’s expression.  “Don’t forget who he is and what he has done, Comb.”

Comb’s face became stern.  “I know that.  We’ll follow.” Her eyes looked straight at Soap.  “But we will not fight him.  Not yet.”

         

         

Chapter 5

Underneath the Moon so Bright

A few hours earlier, at the Tendo Dojo.

The remaining Tendos, Genma, Ryoga as well as Ranma were all sitting at the dining room table.  Kasumi had prepared tea for them as they discussed the abduction of Nabiki.  The middle Tendo sister had been kidnapped by a bounty hunter who called himself “Sin.”  Despite the laughable title he had given himself the man was seemingly a skilled ninja.  He had come to Nerima to find Ranma.  According to Sin, the pony tailed boy had a price on his head.  Confusing Nabiki as Ranma’s girlfriend the ninja had taken her as some sort of motivator for the boy to fight with all his power.

An hour had passed since then.  Everyone had calmed down by now (Much to Ranma’s delight as he had become the victim of Soun’s “Demon Head Attack”).  By now they had begun to understand just what they were dealing with and started to formulate strategy.

Akane had been the first to blame Ranma for this mess.  “What exactly did you do to have a bounty put on your head?”

Ranma shook his head.  “Nothing, as far as I know.  But I’ve been around, you know.  Maybe I pissed off some rich guy and he put out a bounty on me as a means of revenge.”

Ryoga shook his head.  “We all know what really caused this.  Obviously Genma stole something, got caught, and used Ranma as a bargaining chip.  Now the guy wants to collect.”  He put the fat martial artist in an aggressive head lock.  “Spill it, old man!  Who did you sell Ranma to?”

“It wasn’t me, I swear,” Genma choked.  “I don’t remember selling Ranma to any rich people!”

Ryoga strengthen his hold.  “Aha!  So you admit that you’ve sold Ranma in the past!”

“BE QUEIT, THE BOTH YOU!!!”

Both martial artists turned to an irate Soun.  He had grown impatient at their bickering.  “My little girl is out there somewhere, crying in pain.”

Soun-o-Vision

Sin: Now you’re all mine!

Nabiki: Eek!  Stay away!

Sin: I’ll have my way with you and then kill you, just like in all those TV              dramas!

Nabiki: Daddy, where are you?!

Soun began wailing and crying, seemingly losing his sanity at his own imagination.  He stood up and started running around the house screaming Nabiki’s name.

Kasumi gave Ranma a meek smile.  “It would seem that Father will not be helping you rescue Nabiki.”

The pony tailed martial artist shrugged.  “Sin said to come alone, right?  I’ll be going there on my own.”

Both Akane and Ryoga raised an eyebrow at this.  The youngest Tendo girl spoke first.  “What do you mean?  I’m going too.”

Ranma shook his head.  “I don’t think so.  Sin may kill Nabiki if he sees that I came with help.  Besides, you’d only get in the way.”

Akane nearly exploded.  “What?!  I’m a martial artist too, ya know!”

“I know that, but I don’t want to have to worry about you too.  I don’t know how strong this ‘Sin’ guy is, but I‘m confident that I can handle it alone.”

Akane wasn’t really satisfied, but she had calmed down.  “Your ego is going to get you killed.”

Ranma’s trademark grin appeared on his face.  “Ranma Saotome can’t be killed.”  With that he stood up and headed toward the stairs.  He stopped suddenly and turned his head in the direction of Ryoga.  “That goes for you too.”

The lost boy eyes widen.  “What?  Hey wait a second!”  He stood up and dashed after his old friend, desperately praying he didn’t get lost at this crucial moment. 

         

Ranma faced his mother’s sword, which sat upon the mantle he had set up in the guest room.  For what seemed like hours he simply starred at it.  Finally he muttered in a soft tone barely over a whisper “Not yet.”

“What’s the big idea telling me I can’t come?”  The words of Ryoga Hibiki interrupted the pony tailed boy’s train of thought.  He looked over at the door way to see the boy standing there.  The bandana clad fighter had gotten lost trying to follow Ranma but thankfully found the guest room of the Tendo home relatively easy.  “I can understand Akane; she’s just a living target, but what about me?  We’ve done this kind of thing lots of times.”

The Chinese clothed boy wore a serious expression.  “I’m doing it alone.  Your help is not desired.  I’ll save Nabiki with my own two hands”

Ryoga eyes narrowed.  “Why are you making this so personal?  Do you love this chick?  Did you fall for her while you’ve been living here?”

Ranma expression betrayed no emotion; however Ryoga knew he had somehow touched the boy with what he said.  “It’s not that,” the pony tailed boy responded.  “It’s just that…I’m sick of people getting killed because of me!  I won’t let anyone else die because I was too weak to save them!”

The lost boy finally understood.  He shook his head in disbelief.  “You still blame yourself for Tenma.”

Ranma could not hold back his emotions anymore.  Tear began pouring from his eyes.  “I couldn’t save him.  He’s dead because I was too weak to save him.  Mom’s dead because I couldn’t save her!  Everyone who I care about die!”

Ryoga’s face became stern.  “First of all there was nothing you or I could have done to save Auntie Nodoka.  Second of all there is no reason for you to mourn Tenma.  He wasn’t even human!  He was a shadow, not a person!  Besides if he had lived he would’ve just caused trouble.  If not for us than someone else.”

“Don’t give me that!  He had thoughts and dreams just like anyone else.  So what if he was born differently?  So what if he was misguided?  He didn’t deserve to die!”

There was a long silence.  Neither boy dared speak another word; they simply starred at on another.  Finally Ranma spoke.  “I’m going.  I’ll be back soon with Nabiki.”

Ryoga sighed, but stepped out of the way.  His friend walked past him, not saying a word.  The lost boy did notice that Ranma was caring a bokken rather then his mother’s sword.  He shrugged it off, not putting much thought to it. 

As the pony tailed boy stepped out of his room he saw Kasumi standing out in the hallway, her head lowered trying to hide her expression.  “Umm…I heard you two in there.  I’m sorry but I couldn’t really help myself.”

Ranma sighed, but kept calm.  “Well there you go.  Tenma is someone I let die a year ago.  Does it sicken you to have a murderer living in your house?”

The oldest Tendo sister raised her head and met Ranma’s gaze.  It was the first time the pony tailed boy had really looked at the older girl’s eyes.  “I…I don’t believe that you are capable of such an act.”

The Saotome heir starred blankly at the girls, but didn’t get a chance to respond as Kasumi continued.  “I believe that you are a kind person who wouldn’t hurt someone unless you had to.  I’ve seen how you act around the house when you think no one is looking.  You’re in constant suffering.  You’re filled with pain and regret.  These are not the traits of a killer, Ranma.”

The pony tailed boy showed no emotions at Kasumi’s words.  He simply walked past her, not making eye contact again.  As reached the stairway the girl added “Please bring Nabiki home safely.”

Hearing this Ranma turned back toward the girl.  He smiled warmly and said “Don’t worry.”  With that the young martial artist left the Tendo home.

Nabiki Tendo was not a fighter.  She had given up her father’s art many years ago.  She knew the very basics but nothing more.  Though every few months she would wish had kept at it.  Usually this was when some jock refused to pay her money he had lost in some bet.  Had she been a strong martial artist she could easily extort the money from the guy through violent means.  Today was one of the times she wished she didn’t forsake the Anything Goes School.  At that moment the Ice Queen was starring death right in the face and she was totally defenseless against it.

They were at the junkyard, just as the ninja called “Sin” had told Ranma earlier that night.  Nabiki found herself tied to a random piece scrap metal as her kidnapper stood a few feet from her starring at the moon. 

She was growing impatient.  “You know, this doesn’t really have anything to do with me.  I’m not sure what you think you saw earlier but Saotome and I aren’t a couple.”

Sin did not even look at her.  “Regardless of whether or not you believe that, Ranma Saotome seems to care about your well being.  The look in his eyes as I held you were burning with rage.  I’m sure he’ll give me the fight I’ve been waiting for.”

Nabiki kept her calm, though she did momentarily wonder if what he said was true.  She decided, as a means to pass the time, question him about the bounty he claimed was on Ranma’s head.  “So why are you so hot to catch Ranma anyway?  What’s this bounty about?”

Sin surprisingly turned to face his prisoner.  Though it was hard for Nabiki to see through his black mask, the ninja was smiling.  “How well do you think you know your friend?”

She was about to answer positively though she hesitated.  She knew a good amount about Ranma, but there was still much he wasn’t telling her.

Sin laughed when she didn’t speak.  “You may think that I am an evil man for doing all this, however it is your friend who is the real monster.  Have you ever heard of the Amazon Tribe in China?”

A chill went up Nabiki’s spine as she nodded.  Ranma had told her that an amazon had killed his mother. 

“During the last two months your friend has been dubbed the Demon of Joketsuzoku!  The unstoppable powerhouse that single handily wiped out the amazons and burned their village to the ground!”

That village had the same name as the one Ranma had described to her.  Despite that she didn’t buy it.  Ranma didn’t seem to be the type of guy who would (Or could for that matter) destroy a whole village. 

Though he did have a motive.

Sin turned his back on the girl.  “It’d hard to believe that a single man could defeat the entire amazon force alone.  I don’t completely believe it myself.  None the less the surviving amazons shortly after the attack offered their entire treasury to the warrior who could bring Saotome down.”

Sin paused a bit before he went on.  “But the real reason I took the job is because I want to test my skills.  In all my days training in the martial arts I have never had a rival who could challenge me.  I became a bounty hunter in the hopes of finding worthy foes.  Can Ranma give me that fight?”

Nabiki remained silent.  When she didn’t respond Sin went on.  “In about one minute we’ll find out.  He has arrived earlier than I told him too.  He must be anxious to fight.”

In the distance, within the darkness, a pony tailed shadow was quickly approaching

Meanwhile back at the Tendo home things had become quiet.  Ranma had left, Soun and Genma had drowned themselves in alcohol and Kasumi had gone on as if things were normal.  She was currently in her room.  Akane had decoded this was the perfect time to sneak out to the junkyard.  Ranma didn’t know it yet but he would need her help (At least that’s how Akane saw it).  The youngest Tendo sister had silently moved through the house without being noticed.  “Heh, I would have made a pretty good ninja myself,” she silently whispered.

“Where am I now?” She heard a familiar voice ask from within the darkness.

Both Ryoga and Akane found themselves facing each other.

“What the hell are you doing?” The both demanded.

“I’m going to help Ranma!”  Both responded.

Ryoga started giggling.  “Yeah right.  How are you going to help Ranma when you can’t even touch him in a sparring match?”

Akane growled at what the lost boy said.  “Well, what about you?!  From what Ranma told us about you it would take you a week to find the junkyard!”

Both martial artists said nothing for a while before they said in unison “Maybe we can help each other out.”

 With that Akane began leading Ryoga down the fastest route to the junkyard.

It wasn’t hard for Ranma to find the place.  He was early, but he didn’t feel that he needed to obey that jerk’s demand.  He’d beat the snot out of the guy, rescue Nabiki, and get home well before breakfast.

Upon arriving on the scene Ranma saw that Nabiki had been tied up and, strangely enough, Sin was standing out in the open.  The pony tailed fighter was sure his opponent would try to get set up some sort of trap. 

“You’re early,” Sin stated.

Ranma shrugged.  “Yeah well, I got a test in the morning and can’t stay out late tonight.”

Sin frowned at the boy’s sense of humor.  “You should take this seriously.  I am not a foe to be taken lightly.”

Ranma smiled his cocky grin.  “Heh, you obviously don’t know Ranma Saotome.”

The ninja pulled out dual a long sword from seemingly nowhere and pointed it directly at the boy.  “I know you better then you think, Ranma the Demon of Joketsuzoku!”  With that, Sin dashed at the boy such blinding speed that Nabiki could not keep up with as she looked on.

The pony tailed boy but however wasn’t too impressed by this.  As the ninja kept slashing his weapon Ranma easily dodge with little or no effort.

Sin grew angry at this display.  “Don’t underestimate me!”  Ranma suddenly found himself being attacked with too sword, both moving at much faster speed.   The Chinese clad martial artist was still able to doge but this time he just barley managed to escape being sliced to pieces by the ninja’s attacks. 

Ranma was able to leap back giving himself some room.  At that time the boy had realized that his shirt and pants legs had been torn.  Not only that, the Saotome Heir quickly felt his beloved pony tailed with his hand finding it to have had its tip cut off.

Sin evilly laughed as his opponent became distressed over his inability to dodge of the ninja’s attack.  “Do you understand now, Ranma?  Not only have I mastered the art of the ninja, but I have also integrated the Hidden Weapon Style into my fighting technique.”

Nabiki had suddenly become worried.  She had assumed, just as Ranma had, that her sister’s fiancé would easily dispense of Sin; however it seemed that the ninja was too strong.

Both Sin and Nabiki found themselves shocked to see Ranma laughing loudly.  “I admit ‘Sin’, you’re better than I thought.  But let’s see how high and mighty you are after I stop playing around.” 

With that, the pony tailed boy suddenly vanished in a blur, appearing right behind the ninja.  Sin had no time to react as the boy delivered a swift kick to his back sending him crashing into a pile of car parts.   The bounty hunter climbed out from underneath the heavy mercenary, hurting badly, only to find Ranma giving him the “victory” sign and smiling confidently.

The ninja, enraged, leapt at the boy using the same technique as earlier:  A barrage of insanely quick sword swipes.  This time Ranma was ready for it.  He drew his bokken and surprisingly was able to block each attack without even damaging the wooden sword at all.  Jumping over the last slash, the pony tailed boy landed gracefully several feet from his opponent. 

“C’mon, I’m sure you can beat me if ya try harder,” the boy mocked as he pointed his bokken directly at the ninja.

Sin responded by hurling a massive amount of knifes (Though oddly enough he did not seem to have them a second ago) at the pony tailed martial artist.  Unfazed, Ranma managed to dodge them all with little effort.  The bounty hunter had run out of ideas.  He had sorely underestimated his opponent and now there was almost to way to reclaim the advantage.  So with nothing left to lose he charged in an all or nothing attack.  Slashing, and kicking, punching and slashing, no matter what the ninja threw he was either blocked or dodged.

Finally after a while of dancing with his opponent, Ranma used his “V-Slash” technique.  Sin was torn into, left alive only because the sword used was only wooden.  That did not save him from being launched through the windshield of a nearby car.  The fight seemed to be over.

Ranma let out a sigh of relief.  He had been bluffing with a good amount of his trash talk, but luckily Sin wasn’t as strong as he bragged either.  He looked over at the captive Nabiki and gave her thumbs up.

“Don’t just stand there feeling good about yourself, Saotome! Untie me!” The girl yelled.

Ranma smiled at her.  “Aww, c’mon.  That was great!  Did you see how I manhandled that guy?”

“Indeed I did, Ranma Saotome,” a feminine, though familiar voice called out from the shadows.  The pony tailed boy soon became pale as he instantly recognized the voice who spoke to him. 

A girl, who couldn’t be older than sixteen stepped from behind the car Sin had been introduced too.  She was a foreigner, with long blonde hair, and incredibly beautiful.  She wore a very expensive dress, not something that one would find in the average clothing store.  Nabiki had noticed all of this and to her this new arrival didn’t seem like the typical fighter.  So why had Ranma suddenly become so worried?

The boy in question was having trouble breathing properly.  “E…Emily Tisdale?  W-w-what the hell are you doing in Japan?”

The blonde smirked evilly.  “To kill you of course, as well as rescue my beloved Ryoga from this filthy country’s grasp.”

Nabiki made a quickly analysis of the girl’s accent.  It seemed to be an English one, but she could have very well been mistaken. 

The girl called Emily went on when she saw Ranma had not responded. “I’m sure you have not been keeping track of the lunar cycle since you escaped me almost three years ago.  Did you not realize that tonight is a full moon?”

Ranma had begun sweating bullets, but still had no reply for this seemingly old enemy.

The foreign girl gave the pony tailed martial artist a seductive smile.  “As you can tell I have not yet looked upon the moon.  I thought we could look at it together.  Don’t be upset, Ranma.  You’ll be able to die beautifully under the moon’s brilliant shine.”

Ranma looked at the girl with a pleading look, something Nabiki had not seen he boy use as long as she had known him.  He was not just afraid of this girl, he was terrified.  “Don’t do it,” the boy practically begged.

Emily did not pay the plea any attention as she titled her head starring directly at the full moon.  Ranma felt his heart stop.   The Chinese clothed boy, as well as Nabiki, could only watch in horror as the English girl began her terrifying transformation.  Her figure grew into a large mass of muscle, so large that she tore her clothing to shred.  At the same time her blonde hair and began to change into a grayish color. The same hair began to cover her entire body.  Her facial features, once that of an attractive human, had changed into a ferocious wolf.  It became clear to the middle Tendo sister just why Ranma had been so scared.

“What the hell is she?!’ Nabiki demanded in a panic.

Ranma, who was also panicked, took a few seconds before he answered “Umm…she’s a werewolf.”

Nabiki had never believed in werewolves, or any of those stupid stories about monster that lurk in the night.  Even though she had met a boy who could change into a girl through a magical cure as well as a man who changes into a mythical monster Nabiki’s strong belief that creatures such as vampires, zombies and werewolves were just silliness had remained firmed.  Unless this was a dream, and she severely hoped it was, than her belief system would need to be reexamined.

The now transformed Emily smiled a hideous and toothy grin at the two.  She spoke in a monstrous tone.  “My dear Ranma, can I assume that that delicious looking female behind you is your lover?  How fitting that I shall deny you your chance at love just as you have denied me in the past.  I will not just kill you, I shall break you and leave you helpless as I devour you girlfriend before your eyes!”

With that the werewolf leapt at the pony tailed fighter at a speed that left him with little time to react. 

Tatewaki Kuno’s mindset the last few days has been a mystery to all that knew him.  His sister Kodachi, who truthfully didn’t care too much for him, had taken notice of this.  Her brother had been spending the majority of his time practicing in his private training hall.  All day every day the boy trained.  The martial art gymnast couldn’t help but wonder what had driven her brother to this.  She had heard that he had been embarrassed by losing in a kendo match against a mysterious new student at Furinkan.  No doubt that had something to do with it.

Tonight was the usual routine.  Rather than sleeping, Kuno had chosen to practice.  He had not bothered to be quiet about it either.  This would cause Kodachi to investigate (Or more accurately shut him up).

“Brother dear, do you have any idea what time it is?” the girl asked tiredly.

Her brother was quick to answer though did not cease practicing his forms. “Does justice know night or day, sister?  Does honor?” 

Kodachi rolled her eyes at her “Beloved” brother.  He fashioned himself a samurai, a warrior of justice and honor, and he never stopped talking about the two.  It annoyed the gymnast to no end. 

“Really brother, all this over one loss.  Can you not go to bed now and resume your delusions in the morning?”

Kuno’s eyes twitched.  He did not enjoy it when his sister referred to him as delusional, especially considering the state of her mind.  If there was one thing that the kendoist sure of it was that Kodachi was horribly insane.

“Blue Thunder” turned toward his sister and frowned.  “Be gone, I must continue my training.”  He said no more to her and refused to even acknowledge her presence. 

Kodachi was annoyed at her brother’s attitude but intrigued over the man who had caused Kuno to develop such a mindset.  It wasn’t as if Tatewaki was plotting revenge, though she wasn’t too sure what went on in her brother’s mind.  She decided that she would like to meet this person who defeated her brother.

As Kodachi exited the training hall another figure silently and stealthily made his way in.

“Master Kuno,” the new arrival called out to employer.  His name was Sasuke, a faithful ninja servant to the Kuno clan.  “I was making my nightly rounds as usual when I discovered something of interest to you.”

Kuno did not stop practicing, but motioned his Sasuke to speak.

“I witnessed Ranma Saotome on his way running along the rooftops,” the ninja reported.

This got the kendoist’ attention.  He abruptly stopped his training and turned toward his servant.  “Saotome! Why would he be out running around the city at this ungodly hour?”

Sasuke continued.  “I followed him, as you had instructed me to keep tabs on the boy should I see him.  He headed toward the old junkyard.  There was a warrior there waiting for him.  A ninja in fact.  They seemed to be enemies.  Surprisingly Nabiki Tendo was there as well.  There were also at least two other parties in hiding, observing just as I was.”

Kuno’s relatively small brain took a few minutes to process what he had just been told.  Finally his face became serious.  “Fetch me the Kuno family blade.”

As the ninja left to does he was told Kuno smirked wickedly.  Someone would taste steel this night.

Nabiki could not believe her eyes.  After seeing all the fights Ranma had gotten into since coming to Nerima she was quite certain the boy was invincible.  True he was defeated by Ryoga, but just barley.  Any other opponent hadn’t lasted that long once the pony tailed boy got serious.  However now she was seeing something she never thought would happen:  Ranma was being manhandled.  The monster that had come to end the boy’s life had been merciless. 

  Ranma picked himself up from the ground, having been slammed into it painfully by Emily.  She had backed off, not wanting to end it just yet.  The pony tailed fighter was a mess.  His clothes had been ripped to shreds and he was bleeding from various cuts and scratches that covered his body.  He also thought that his left shoulder might be dislocated. 

And the fight was far from over.

The monstrous Emily laughed (Or what would be considered a laugh in werewolf tongue).   She could see that the mighty Ranma Saotome didn’t have much fight left in him.  “What’s wrong, my dear Ranma?  Feeling a bit tired?  Perhaps you should lie down and rest.”

“You bitch!!” Ranma screamed as he vanished in a blur.  He appeared right behind the werewolf and attempted a kick on his unsuspecting foe.  However the girl turned monster had seen it coming and caught the boy’s foot before it could connect.  She began swinging him above her head violently by the leg.

“Getting dizzy, Ranma?”  Emily mockingly asked.  “Then I, being the generous person I am, will stop the spinning.”  With that the beast of a woman tossed the pony tailed boy into a pile of car parts.

Damaged, but alive, Ranma climbed out from the junk pile.  He spat up a combination of vomit and blood.

The wolf girl frowned at this display.  “Disgusting!  Have you people no shame?  You shall pay for your vulgar behavior!”  Emily dashed at the victim with super human speed with the intention of finishing him off.

Ranma over was not ready to die yet.  He drew his bokken, which he had been saving.  “Stupid bitch, just go to hell!  V-SLASH!”

The attack connected with the incoming monster.  The force of the blow caused her to fly backwards, however unlike most of Ranma’s other opponents Emily landed gracefully on her feet.  She felt her chest.  Sure enough the attack had created a “V” shaped scar.  The wolf girl howled in rage.  “You scum!  I’ll crush you!”

Ranma suddenly found himself directly facing Emily.  Too weak and tired to move he was wrapped by the massive arms of his opponent.  She began to squeeze the life out of him.

Nabiki Tendo, who had watched all of this, could do nothing to help him.

Not too far from this scene, three amazons watched in shock as the man who destroyed their village was slowly being crushed to death by a mere werewolf.  Was he holding back?  Or perhaps this man wasn’t the same one.

In either case the continued to watch, not wanting to risk the former.

Akane and Ryoga had made it to the junkyard in relative ease (Though Ryoga kept wandering off or walking in the wrong direction).  What they found there was not a comforting sight.  Nabiki was tied up, Sin was no where to be found, and Ranma was being held by a monster.

Akane, not having seen such a creature before, was not only scared but confused as well.  “What the hell is going on?  What is that thing?  That’s not Sin is it?”

Turning toward her companion she found herself shocked once more.  Ryoga’s face was pale and was obviously scared of his wits.  “It…it can’t be her.  How did she track us down?”

Akane confusion only increased when the lost boy said this.  “Ryoga, what’s going on?  What is that thing?”

The bandana clad youth closed his eyes as he remembered his first encounter with that monster.  He and Ranma had barley been able to escape with their lives that time.  “That’s Emily Tisdale.  She’s werewolf, and totally insane.  I can’t explain it all right now, but to be honest Ranma most likely won’t get out of this alive.”

The youngest Tendo sister gasped at Ryoga’s comment.  Was he serious?  Was Ranma truly going to die this night?

The lost boy dashed toward the direction of the fight.  Not bothering to turn back at Akane he yelled “Get Nabiki out of here and run.  This is no place for you!” 

With that Akane was alone.  Shrugging off her confusion as well as the danger she faced just being there the heir to the Tendo School raced toward where Nabiki was being kept.  She hoped her older sister had some answers.

Ryoga, ignoring his hesitancy of hitting girls, ran toward the werewolf and delivered a tremendous axe handle smash to the back Emily Tisdale.  This caused her to drop the battered Ranma.  The werewolf girl turned toward her assailant with the intention of ripping off his head, but found herself pleasantly surprised when she saw it was her one true love.

“My love,” she said sweetly (As sweetly as possible anyway).  “I did not expect you to be here.  Please wait a moment while I kill Ranma, then you’ll be able to express your true feelings for me.”

Ryoga nearly lost his mind when she said that.  “You crazy bitch!  You think I’m gonna stand around while you kill my best friend?  To get to Ranma you’ll have to go through me first!”

Emily sighed at this.  Ranma’s evil hold over her love was strong.  “I see.  The spell he has over you is still in place.  You don’t realize your love for me.  Well then I’ll have to show you that you love me.  If I have to do it by beating you within an inch of your life than so be it!”

And so Ryoga began the fight of his life.

The turn of events that had just taken place was not totally unexpected for Nabiki.  Since Ryoga and Ranma were such good friends it was obvious that the lost boy would arrive sooner or later.  But this creature had just torn Ranma up in a relatively short time.  How much of a chance does the lost boy have?

The Ice Queen’s attention was drawn away by the appearance of a familiar face.  “Hey sis,” Nabiki’s sister greeted as she reached the spot where the middle Tendo had been tied down.

Akane found herself surprised with Nabiki.  The girl usually had a cool demeanor, one she never let slip no matter the situation.  However what the youngest Tendo found was a Nabiki whose face was full of fear.  Akane didn’t know what her sister had been through while she was here but she made a silent promise that someone would pay for it tonight.

“Akane, what are you doing here?” Nabiki asked her sister.

The dark haired girl tried her best to give a reassuring smile.  She quickly began untying the ropes “Rescuing you, of course.  I thought that was obvious.”

Once free, Nabiki instantly nearly fell over.  Luckily she was caught by her sister.  Akane realized then just how out of sorts her sister was.  “Was it really that scary?”

Nabiki thought the question was a bit odd.  She hadn’t really been scared. Sure, that girl turning into a monster was a bit weird and shocking; but no worse than seeing Genma changes into a griffin.  “Of course not.  Way do you ask?”

“You’ve been crying,” Akane said simply.

The brown haired girl placed her hand upon her check.  It was wet.  She hadn’t realized she had been doing it but she had indeed been crying.  She didn’t understand why she had been doing so.

Akane interrupted the older girl’s thoughts by stating the obvious.  “It looks like Ryoga has drawn the thing away from Ranma.  We should probably take advantage and help him.”

Nabiki nodded.  She turned toward the pony tailed boy.  He was slowly trying to get to his feet, using his bokken as a crutch.  When she saw him bloody and battered the middle Tendo girls felt a warm liquid flowing down her cheeks.  She then understood:  Her tears were for this boy, who had been utterly destroyed by his opponent.  Her fear was not for her own safety but for that of her would be rescuer.

“What’s wrong with me,” she thought. “Why the hell am I crying over this guy?  It’s his fault I’m in this mess in the first place.  It’s not like we’re friends or anything.  Sure maybe I feel a slight attraction to him, but still…”

Nabiki would not have the opportunity to find an answer to her question.  She and Akane headed toward the injured Ranma.  The boy was obviously hurt badly, but still refused to stay down.  His tenacity was to be admired.

Akane, upon reaching him, offered her arm.  “Let me him you up.”

Ranma refused the gesture.  “I can get up on my own.”

The youngest Tendo sister started to become angry.  “I was just trying help, you jerk!”

Nabiki rolled her eyes at her sister.  “Akane, is this really a good time for you to lose your temper?” 

Akane complied and ignored Ranma’s statement.  However her curiosity about the whole situation was still ragging.  She questioned Ranma on the status of Sin and the identity of the monster Ryoga was fighting.

The pony tailed by this time was standing up.  He spoke in an exhausted voice.  “I took care of that Sin jerk with out much effort.  That thing Ryoga’s fighting is a girl named Emily Tisdale.  She’s this crazy chick from England.  She’s from this weird aristocratic werewolf family that has a lot of power and money where she’s from.  It sounds crazy but it’s true.  She’s also a complete psycho who thinks she’s in love with Ryoga.”

Nabiki raised an eyebrow.  “Let me guess; you’re in the way so she needs to kill you.”

Ranma nodded.  “She’s too strong for me or Ryoga to take her on alone.  I’ll help him out.”

Akane eyes narrowed at Ranma’s proposed idea.  “Don’t be stupid, you can barley stand.  How are you going to fight?”

He got a chance to answer as he was cut off by the sound of thunder bolts in the distance.  As if on cue a familiar kendoist suddenly appeared from the shadows.

He smiled evilly.  “It would seem that Ranma Saotome has been defeated.  The foe is stronger then what Sasuke implied.  Not just a ninja but a demon from the depths of hell itself.  Fear not Saotome, for your defeat shall be avenged!”  He drew a dangerous yet elegant looking katana as thunder again boomed in the distance.

Everyone starred at the kendoist in disbelief.  Ranma was the first to speak. “Kuno, umm, not that I don’t appreciate your help but don’t you kind of, you know, hate me?”

Kuno frowned hard.  “I bear you no love, this much is true.  However since our last battle I have begun to respect you.  No warrior had ever fought Blue Thunder to a draw in a battle of blades.  I have realized that the noble blood of samurais must flow through your veins, as it does my own.  Until the day where we cross swords again I shall protect you with my life!  I swear on the noble house of Kuno!”  With that the deranged swordsman walked slowly but confidently toward where Ryoga and Emily were fighting.

It took Ranma five seconds before what Kuno said sunk in.  “Hey wait a second!  That wasn’t a draw!  I beat your ass fair and square you jerk!”

The three watched the self proclaimed “samurai” march toward what was certain death.  What exactly was going on in Kuno’s head?

         

Ryoga was doing better than Ranma had against Emily.  Normally something like this would make the lost boy’s already large ego grow even bigger, however he was sure that the girl turned monster was holding back, not wanting to seriously hurt her love.  Even so the bandana clad martial artist was having trouble against his opponent.  He was taking more blows than he was landing and was positive that Emily hit harder than he did. 

Despite his high stamina, Ryoga had begun getting winded.  He wasn’t sure how long he could continue to fight.  Emily, noticing the boy’s heavy breathing, decided to take advantage of the situation.  She launched her fist in a slow but power manner in the direction of the lost boy.  Luckily it the bandana clad fighter was easily able to avoid the slow moving attack by leaping over it.  However Emily had predicted this.  While in the air Ryoga found himself swatted painfully by the back of the wolf girl’s hand.  The blow sent the boy crashing into a nearby wall.  He fell to the ground painfully leaving an imprint of him self where he landed on the wall.

          Emily smirked bearing her razor sharp fangs.  “I think it’s time to end this game, my love.  I have no problems with breaking you into pieces and bringing you back to England in a sack.”

The lost boy responded by picking himself up and using an offensive fighting stance.  The girl turned monster shook her head.  Why was love so difficult?  She never got an answer as her thoughts were cut off by the around of fighting hitting nearby metal.  Loud thunder was accompanied by confident laughter of a cocky kendoist. 

Kuno smirked as the wolf girl turned to face him.  “To think Ranma Saotome was defeated by such a beastly looking demon.”

Emily angrily growled at the newcomer’s statement.  “Beastly?!  You dirty peasant!  How dare you refer to me as beastly?!”

Kuno felt his eye twice.  “So the monster speaks like a man.  Let’s see if you can fight like one.”

And so Tatewaki Kuno used his incredible kendo skills to cut down the vile creature that had dared to face him in combat.  Or at least that’s how the kendoist will most likely remember it as in his mind later.  In reality he was swatted away like a common house fly before he could even draw his sword.  He landed several blocks away making his entire entrance completely meaningless.

Ryoga however chose to use Emily’s momentary distraction to his advantage.  The bandana clad fighter slammed his fist into the ground with all the strength he could mustered.  “DAIJISHIN BAKUHATSU!!”

The invisible ball of chi created a path of destruction as it made its way toward the girl turned monster.  The collision caught Emily off guard, but even so (Much to Ryoga’s shock) the wolf girl simply shrugged it off rather than being knocked off her feet as was the intention.

Emily’s eyes narrowed.  “That hurt a little.” 

Ranma, watching from the sidelines, had had enough.  He tried to move from where he was standing but quickly lost his balance.  He was caught by Akane.

“You’re not in any condition to help him,” Akane reminded the boy.  “Leave it to me.  I’m sure she couldn’t take both Ryoga and me.”

Nabiki lost her cool at her sister’s blind confidence.  “Akane, what chance do you think you have if she just swatted Kuno away?”

Akane did not want to admit that she there was nothing she could do to help.  Her pride as a martial artist was already shaken with Ranma and Ryoga living under her roof, but nothing hurts a strong fighter like the feeling of helplessness.  Especially when for a long time you had considered yourself the best.  Ranma too was experiencing this and he didn’t like any better than his fiancée.

Ryoga was out of ideas.  He had put all his strength into that last shot and was now pretty tired.  He wouldn’t last too much longer, but he’d be damned if he had to marry this psycho bitch!

Just as he was about to try an all or nothing suicide attack the lost boy suddenly found his left wrist bound to some type of rope that was attached to a nearby pole.  Looking closer he recognized it as the unmistakable material for pantyhose.

From the sidelines Ranma nearly screamed.  How in the hell could this get any worse?

Emily too had suddenly stopped what she was doing.  She had picked up a new scent.  Was there yet another fool who wanted to stand in the way of true love?!

“Stop right there, flea bag,” a male voice from the shadow called out to the wolf girl.  On cue a boy, around the same age as Ranma and Ryoga, stepped from his hiding place.  He wearing green Chinese style clothing and a cocky grin that made Ranma’s look modest.  He had a flask attached to the sash around his waist.  “If anyone’s gonna beat the shit outta that sucker punching bastard it’s me.  Now beat it before I call the pound.”

Emily shook her head.  Another asian fool who thought he could stand up to her strength.  “This is getting tiresome.  Who might you be, little man?”

The stranger lost his grin and replaced it with a deadly stare.  “My name is….not important.  What is important is that I came all the here to kick this guy and the pony tailed guy’s ass.  I don’t really care about puppy dogs, so you can just get lost and leave him to me!”

Akane and Nabiki were now starting to wonder actually how many enemies these two guys had.  Nabiki was the first to ask who this new guy was.  Ranma simply answered “Pantyhose Taro.”

The Chinese martial artist’s face became filled with rage when he heard his name being used.  He turned toward the Saotome Heir and screamed “Don’t call me that, you pony tailed son of a bitch!”

Emily decided to play a little mind game with this new challenger.  “Indeed I thought you Asian people had such ridiculous names before, but to think that I’d meet someone named ‘Pantyhose.’  Was you mother called ‘bloomers’ by any chance?”

 Taro lost his mind at this.  He grabbed the flask which he had been carrying.  “That’s it!  I’m going to take care of you first, Flea Bag!”

By this time Ryoga had managed to get free of the pantyhose he had been tied to and was quietly sneaking away.  Seeing his friend leave to scene Ranma decided that it would be a good idea to flee as well.  “There’s only one way to get out of this alive.  The Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts Final Technique.”

“And what might that be?” Nabiki asked curiously.

“Run away.”

Had they had been in the right mindset the Tendo sisters would have face faulted.  Instead they compiled with Ranma’s suggestion and carefully snuck away from the scene. 

After they made it outside to the entrance Akane finally asked “What about that guy back there?  Was it right to leave him there?  I know he seems to be an enemy of yours but…”

The dark haired girl was cut off by a very loud cry that sounded similar to that of an enraged cow.

Ranma shook his head.  “Don’t worry, that guy is the perfect sparring partner for that psycho.”

The three spent a few minutes searching for Ryoga before they gave up.  He seemed to have gotten lost somewhere after he left the scene.  

Ranma assured the girls that the moon would set before the fight ended and they wouldn’t have to worry about any unexpected werewolf guests for a while.  Despite that knowledge the three housemates were extremely careful as they treaded back home, praying another enemy of Ranma’s didn’t show himself.

The three females who had been watching the whole scene from the shadows were utterly confused.  Could this boy whom they had been following truly not be the same monster who attacked their village?  Between the three of them there was no way they could verify until it was too late.  They would wait for Elder Cologne to arrive in Japan

Kasumi had been trying to go on as if it was business as usual but after realizing that Akane had snuck out of the house she had become extremely worried.  Both her sisters were out there somewhere and she could not help them.  All she could do was wait for Ranma to return with hopefully both her sisters in the dinning room.

The sounds of the back door opening caused the eldest Tendo to sister to stand up and quickly race toward the back of the house.  Sure enough Ranma, being helped by Akane, stood in the doorway along with Nabiki.  All of Kasumi’s fears subsided.

Ranma cheerfully smiled at the older girl.  “I’m back.”

Kasumi warmly smiled at him.  “Welcome back.”

         

Sin climbed out of the car that Ranma had caused to crash into.  He had miscalculated his opponent and became too confidant.  The ninja looked around.  It was morning and the battle was long over.  However the area looked like a war zone.  He knew that it wasn’t just from the quick fight he and his pony tailed bounty had engaged in.

He shrugged it off.  It wasn’t important anyway.  As the bounty hunter struggled to his feet he quickly realized he was not alone.

“That was pathetic.  I had heard that one of the best bounty hunters in the world had taken the job to bring in Ranma Saotome.  I can’t believe that that was your very best.”

Sin found himself starring at a young Chinese boy, with long hair and back robes that just screamed cliché villain. 

The boy continued.  “I myself want to see Ranma dead.  However I know better than anyone that his power is too great to defeat him in a straight fight.  I’ve recently gained great strength myself and I still do not believe myself strong enough to defeat that monster.  Perhaps if I had an ally…”

Sin was beginning to catch on.  “I see.  I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to have a little help.”

The boy smiled wickedly.  He extended his hand.  “My name is Mousse, a former amazon.”

The bounty hunting ninja raised an eyebrow.  “Ummm, why are you asking that car bumper to shake you hand?”

Mousse quickly put his glasses on only to find he had been talking to car parts. 

To be continued…

Author’s Note:  Oh man, it took me forever but I finally finished another crappy chapter to my overly crappy fic.  Many factors delayed this chapter, but I mainly blame the fact that Christ break gave me so much free time that I didn’t know how to properly use it.  Anyways Chapter five featured the introduction of some new characters as well as steer this fic toward the main plot.  No killing this time, but I warn you now; don’t get too attached to any character in this story.  I’m perfectly willing to kill anyone off with out a moments notice.

Who is this Emily Tisdale?  What did Ranma and Ryoga do to Taro to make him so damn pissed?  What’s up with Mousse?  And more importantly did Ranma really attack and successfully defeat the amazon nation?  Regardless, in the next chapter many many many questioned will be answered including the one that has been asked since chapter one: Who (Or what) the hell is Tenma?

Revisions Note:  Mostly cleaned it up. Altered some sentences as well.

Next Chapter: Confronted by an angry Tendo clan, Ranma is forced to disclose most of the information regarding his travels.  This will include the identity of Tenma!  Meanwhile Nabiki tries to figure out her feelings for the pony tailed boy while others plot his downfall.