Author's notes:
	Wasn't sure I could finish it but here it is.  I'm contemplating
starting other projects in the more traditional Ranma fanfic sense.
Chapter 5 may or may not be delayed, not that I'm on a timetable.
	Here's Chapter 4 which centers around the mysterious stranger.  If
I don't recieve mail and/or C&C for this little chapter I'm going to
unlease my gratuitous otakufic to the list.  Muahahaha!!!

	And I quote: "It's not what you think..."


Chapter 4 - Secret Asian Man

[...]

	Kune awoke with a start, he nearly fell off the roof of the
Nekohanten.  The rain had ended before the sun rose.  It was a bright new
day, the sun was bright and the birds were chirping.  Obviously there would
be nothing but trouble.

	He didn't have to wait long before he heard the screams.  This time
he did fall off the roof, right in front of the restaurant.  His fall was
cushioned by Happosai, trying to make his escape.

	Fortunately landing on Happosai broke his fall, unfortunately that
meant he landed in Spice's line of sight.  The serving tray she threw at
Happosai nailed him in the head, which knocked him off of the old master.

	The angry mob of girls, upon catching up with Happosai took the
opportunity to beat the hell out of him.  "That's what you get, ya old
lecher!"

	Their business done, the lot of them wandered back to where they
came from.  A few decided to have a bite to eat first.  Spice waited for
the dust to settle before helping Kune to his feet.  "I so sorry Kunchan,
but you should have tell me you want to help with old pervert."

	Still a bit dazed he got to his feet.  "No problem, I was just in
the neighborhood."

	"Come inside, I get you breakfast."

	Kune followed meekly as Spice took him by the hand.  They were
almost to the door when a booming voice called to them.  "You will pay!"

	They turned back to the old man, picking himself up slowly from the
sidewalk.  He was glowing brightly as his battle aura began to flare.  "You
will both pay!"

	Happosai pulled himself up to his full height and suddenly there
was a lit explosive in his hand, a large one.  Spice was trained to deal
with many situations, but crazy perverts with explosives was not among
them.  Like Kune she stood frozen, unsure of what to do.

	The next thirty seconds felt like forever to Spice as she watched a
shape come down between her and Kune.  She saw the old man winding up for a
throw but he never finished the motion.  The stranger acted without
hesitation, he knew what he was going to do before his feet touched the
ground.

	He shoved the startled Kune directly at Happosai and tackled Spice
to the ground.  Unprepared, Kune fell into the old man whose eyes widened
as he realized he couldn't release the happodaikarin in time.

	He took the brunt of it as Kune plowed into and over him, the force
of the blast sent Kune into a nearby bush.  Time returned to normal as the
explosion rattled the walls of the Nekohanten.  Spice felt almost nothing
as the stranger took her share of the damage.

[...]

	Sakura and Noriko sat quietly over a go board.  Generally they
didn't like hanging out around Sakura's estate, but her mother and uncle
were both at school preparing for the summer session.  "What should we do
about dinner?"

	"Any leftovers in the fridge?"

	"I wouldn't trust the food in this house," Sakura sighed and placed
another piece on the board.

	Noriko shrugged.  "How about Chinese?"

	"We ate at the Nekohanten yesterday," Sakura said thoughtfully.
"How about okonomiyaki?"

	"I hope you're still talking about the Nekohanten," Noriko
continued playing.

	"Just a thought!  I always feel kinda sorry for Mr. Konatsu."

	"I thought Mr. Konatsu was a woman," she looked up with a puzzled
expression.

	"Shows how much you know," Sakura grinned at a particularly good move.

	"Why don't we just order some pizza," Noriko sighed.

[...]

	Kune rolled from the hedge he took out and got to his feet as best
he could.  He looked around quickly for any signs of the old man.  The
blast had knocked over the rain collectors and the area in front of the
Nekohanten was a total mess, but there was no trace of him except for blast
marks on the concrete.  He looked to Spice who was being helped up by
someone in a familiar chinese shirt.  The same someone he realized who
pushed him into the old man.

	"Hey you!"

	The stranger turned, it was then that Kune saw the facemask he wore
which covered everything below his eyes.  He didn't answer but examined
Kune for a moment and turned his attention back to Spice, who was still
shaken by her ordeal.

	Kune walked up to the pair and put his hand on the stranger's
shoulder.  "What's the idea?  Were you trying to get me killed?!?"

	The stranger turned his head and locked eyes with Kune.  "There was
no real danger," he turned away again and started walking.  "And you look
like someone who can handle himself."

	The voice was familar, but through the mask Kune couldn't place it.
Danger or no danger he didn't appreciate being someone's pawn.  "Care to
find out?"

	He stopped but didn't turn.  "Don't pick fights you can't win."

	"I never do," Kune took a breath and lowered himself into an attack
stance.

	"Your move."

	Kune raced towards him with an open handed strike, it was a
controlled move to test the waters.  A simple shove to bring the stranger
down a notch.  Kune executed a flawless motion, both silent and direct.
Before he could connect, the stranger sidestepped and planted an elbow in
Kune's ribs.

	Surprised by the attack, Kune staggered back as the stranger turned
to face him.  His followup attack stopped short of the mark as Spice
stepped in and gripped his arm in mid flight.  Instinctively his free arm
went for a backhand strike against her but that too stopped before contact.

	Kune used the oppertunity to feign a head shot to cover his real
attack.  If he was going to lose a fight, at least he wanted to know who he
lost it to.  At the moment before impact he opened his hand and grabbed the
strangers mask.

	Expecting the blow he threw his head back to roll with a punch.  He
felt his mask rip away as his head swung back.  With a supreme effort he
broke free of Spice's grip and threw himself at his only salvation, the
large pool of water formed by the toppled rain collectors.  It only took a
second for the transformation to occur.  He felt his skin become a coat of
fur, from his head down to his paws.

	It stretched out on all fours, its tattered clothes forgotten.  It
turned its attention back to a startled Kune and gave out a massive roar.
Kune instinctively jumped for the safety of Spice's arms.  Like everyone
who didn't run, namely her and Kune, she froze dumbfounded.

	The tiger stared after them for a few seconds before picking up its
mask making a mad dash, sending people jumping for cover in all directions.
They watched as the tiger rounded a corner and vanished, leaving only the
shredded remains of his chinese shirt and pants behind.

[...]

	Midori rounded the corner with a slight spring to her step.  For
some reason it was really busy back at the pizzaria.  She skidded to a stop
as she heard a familiar voice call to her.  "Midorichan!!!"

	This was the moment she'd been dreading ever since she ran away.
She looked behind her slowly, prolonging the inevitable.  There he was,
just a few blocks away, her old master Happosai.

	He started to run after her, joy in his eyes.  She nearly fell
trying to get back in motion.  Even with rollerblades on, he was fast
enough to catch her eventually.  She rounded corner after corner until she
came face to face with her second surprise of the afternoon.

	Happosai leaped every obstacle in his way and ran along fences when
he could.  It kept Midori in sight constantly until she rounded the corner
by the Kuno estate.  The walls were too high for him to use effectively so
he hopped down and continued on foot.  The streets were empty, in the
silence he could hear Midori come to a stop.

	He rounded the corner and came face to face with a very large, very
annoyed tiger.  It roared directly at him for effect, its mouth wide enough
to swallow him whole.  With a massive swing, it sent him into a low earth
orbit to land somewhere in a neighboring district.

	Midori sighed in relief and gave the mighty beast a hug.  "Good kitty."

	It rubbed up against her and purred, the bass reverberating through
both their bodies.  The tiger shook her off and extended it's paw.  With
one claw it scratched out the words that Midori read aloud.  "Hot water and
towel please."

[...]

	Sakura and Noriko looked out from the second story window.  It only
took a moment to spot Midori.  The girls knew something was up as soon as
she asked them for the hot water and towel.  Since she said she'd bring it
right back, they knew whatever it was would be nearby.

	Neither of them were prepared for what they saw though.  A large
bengal tiger sitting patiently near their front gate.  Sakura was about to
yell out a warning to Midori, but was stopped by Noriko's hand on her
shoulder.  "Wait a second."

	They didn't have to wait long as the tiger knocked the kettle from
Midori's hand into the air.  It came down in an explosion of wate and the
tiger was gone.  It was miraculously replaced by a naked boy.

	He had his back turned to Midori, but from their vantage point both
girls could see what Midori could not.  Sakura placed a hand over her mouth
loosely.  "Oh my."

	Noriko tried to get a better look at his face but she only caught a
glimpse of it before he put a mask on.  "It couldn't be."

	He grabbed the towel from Midori's limp hand and wrapped it around
himself before she could react.  She didn't know what to expect from a
literate tiger, but this caught her totally offguard.

	He threw his wet hair back and checked his mask again.  "Thanks."

	Midori eye'd his muscular build and lost herself for a moment in
his deep blue eyes.  "Uh yeah.  Sure."

	"Anyway, I have to find myself some clothes.  See you later."

	She watched him for a moment before her brain connected the voice
to the night before.  "Hey wait!  You're the stranger from last night,
aren't you?"  He stopped allowing her to approach slowly.  He didn't react
as she stopped directly behind him, hope in her eyes.  "You promised."

	Before she could react he turned and whipped his mask off.  Midori
only caught the briefest glimpse before he took her in his arms and kissed
her passionately.

	From their window, Sakura and Noriko began to tear up and sigh
longingly in typical schoolgirl fashion.  It had been some time since
either of them could even find a boy interested in them.  They all ran for
cover upon learning of the girl's respective families.  It was like
something out of the trashy romance manga they loved to read.

	Down below the action continued until finally the stranger decided
to make his move.  Midori had never before felt so full of life, it was
like her internal battery was charged to full from just the sexual tension
in the air.  She felt like she could skate to the top of Mt. Fuji and back.

	Then she felt it.  A familiar jab to her rear, and suddenly she was
bone dry and couldn't even open her eyelids.  Her mind started screaming.
"No!!!"

	She could hear a voice as she felt her body being laid against the
sidewalk.  "In another time or place, but here and now it wouldn't be fair."

[...]

	A shadow slipped from the Nekohanten.  He paused at the corner of
the alley to look out, the clothes he took were inconspicuous but it didn't
hurt to be careful.  Satisfied he stepped out onto the street.

	A strong hand gripped his shoulder from behind.  "Not so fast."

	Spice had also been trained in the ways of concelment and stealth.
She took her hand back as the stranger turned to face her.  "Yes?"

	"Your fight not over yet."

	He studied her briefly before coming to a decision.  "Yes it is,"
he turned back around an began to walk away.

	This only infuriated Spice more.  She launched a jump kick, which
he ducked.  She knew he would but it gave her the chance to cut him off.
She threw a number of attacks which he dodged.  Her brow furrowed as the
stranger parried her punches with ease.  It was like he could read her
moves and dismiss them before she even attacked.  At least twice he let
offensive openings go.  Spice saw them too which served to fuel her fire.

	She broke with her amazon training and went to more versatile style
she'd been working on since coming to Nerima.  A surprise kick caught him
in the ribs and sent him flying into a nearby lamp post.  He barely got out
of the way before she followed up with another kick which left a large dent
in the lamp post.

	Hits were beginning to connect, and the stranger could feel himself
slowing down.  Her constant attack kept him on the defense until a break in
her sequence gave him the chance to strike back.

	Strike back he finally did, with a double knuckle strike to her
shoulder.  Spice's arm went numb as she stumbled back.  On the verge of
victory she was unprepared for the tide to turn.

	Determined as ever she shifted her stance to account for her bad
arm and launched another attack.  It was too late for an energy attack, a
one handed blast wouldn't have to stopping power she needed and that was
all she could muster under the circumstances.

	He caught her punch in mid flight and gave it a quick twist to
knock her off balance.  Along the way he managed to hit another nerve
center which cut off the use of her legs.  She went down in a heap, unable
to get up and continue the fight.

	It all happened so fast everyone froze for a moment, as if time
slowed down until everyone could comprehend it all.  All eyes were upon
them, until people began shuffling away.  Most decided it was no longer a
public matter, and many had seen Spice in a tirade before.

	Spice sat there in a daze.  She'd lost.  There was no escape, she'd
lost publicly to this stranger.  The fight was over but she had one last
trick up her sleeve, actually two.  Two six inch metal ones.  With her good
arm she threw the first blade with all the skill her father taught her.
The blade tore his mask loose without so much as touching skin.

	He whipped his head around on instinct.  The mirror image facing
him was one of shock and surprise.  The store glass reflected his every
facial detail.  He locked eyes with himself and then to the girl sitting
beside him.

	"You!"  She said, her voice a mixture of shock and anger.  The
second blade slipping from her fingers.

	He turned back to look at her straight in the face, there would be
no escape this time.  No convenient puddles or buckets of water or freak
rainstorms.  Resigned to his fate, he turned back slowly and leaned back
against the glass.  He let out a sigh.  "It's not what you think Spice."

[...]