Hopefully this version of the prologue is better done. I got a lot of C&C on
the last version, and thanks to all of you ( yes, even you ) who sent it. 

I'm not rewriting the author's notes, and if you want to know what game it was
I was playing, ask me privately.


	Author's notes:
		This is not my first fanfic, but is pretty darn close. It 
began as an idea being thrown around during an evening playing a 
certain anime roleplaying game, namely that heroes with pigtails seem 
to be the most powerful in their series. The three specifically brought 
up were Saotome Ranma, Shidou Hikaru, and Masaaki Tenchi. 
Someone discussed what would happen if the three were brought 
together to fight an incredibly powerful foe, and the idea was born. All 
the characters in this story are the property of their respective creators, 
including those few I put in. Please don't sue me, I have no money.

	Prologue

	It has been four years since events in Nerima Prefecture died 
down. After all, everyone has to grow up, eventually...except Happosai. 
Yes, he still causes problems every so often, going on panty raids and 
generally making a nuisance of himself. However, he has broadened his 
horizons, and only comes to Nerima about once a month. Thank Kami 
for small favors.
	Less than five years ago, my ex-fiancee, Saotome Ranma, 
finally revealed to the world his love for Tendo Akane, and she 
immediately reacted...by fainting. Of course, chaos broke out, and I'm 
ashamed to admit that I lost control, myself, but nothing would sway 
him. 
	Shampoo and I both came to the conclusion that trying to 
separate the couple would only make us like Kodachi, and neither of us 
wanted that. We both got drunk at my place one night, where she 
confessed that she was actually almost willing to settle for Mousse. She 
also convinced me that my own obsession with him was unhealthy, and 
I should find someone else. She jokingly suggested Ryoga, but that was 
shot down quickly. He had Akari, and the cute little girl loved him 
unconditionally. 
	So, I dove headlong into my running my restaurant. The next 
year was a fog, but I vaguely remember Ranma and Akane's wedding, 
where he took her name; Ryoga and Akari's wedding; Shampoo and 
Mousse leaving, with Cologne sighing as she said how Mousse 
wouldn't be a bad  husband for her great grand daughter (just not a 
good one); and Kuno marrying that martial-arts cheerleader. Tarou 
hadn't been seen in a long time, and Konatsu had left, only telling me 
that he had family business to attend to.
	One morning, Ranma came walking in, as he frequently did. 
Akane was with him, as she often was, and they sat down at the 
counter. I had long ago gotten over him, but I still felt a little lonely 
when I saw them together. They still fought, but there was a bond there 
that was hard to deny. We chatted for a while as they ate. Then the door 
opened, and we received the shock of our lives.
	Gosunkugi Hikaru, the skinny guy known as "Voodoo Spike" 
back in High School because of his obsession with magic, came 
walking in, arm in arm with a very pretty girl. While that, in and of 
itself, would be enough to render us speechless, the girl, herself, was 
even more surprising. She looked exactly like Ranma's female form.
	Gosunkugi noticed our shocked expressions, and made the 
introduction. "Kuonji Ukyou, Tendo Akane, and Tendo Ranma, I'd like 
to introduce you three to my fiancee, Shidou Hikaru."
	The girl bowed slightly, and smiled a dazzling smile. "I'm 
pleased to meet you. Hikaru has told me about all three of you."
	Ranma recovered his wits first, which was yet another 
surprise. "I'm pleased to meet you, too. Um, just what did he say about 
us?"
	"Not much. All he said was that you were all three good 
martial artists, and that there were some unusual events around here a 
while back. He also told me he used to have a crush on you, Akane."
	"Hikaru!" Gosunkugi looked embarrassed.
	"What, Hikaru ?"
	"Whoa, whoa, stop," I said. "That's going to get extremely 
confusing around here. We tend to call...Hikaru... either Gosunkugi, or 
Gos."
	Hikaru laughed. "Okay, around you guys, I'll call him Gos-
chan. Now, I'd like to try one of those okonomiyakis, please."
	Over the course of the day, we demonstrated Ranma's curse, 
which explained to her our reaction upon seeing her. In fact, the only 
way to tell them apart was that Hikaru was slightly thinner, and she 
actually wore makeup. Not much, just enough to set off those dazzling 
eyes of hers. She then told us about her friends, Umi and Fuu, and 
made some sort of cryptic remark about having had some adventures of 
her own.
	"So, Gos, how the heck did a guy like you end up with her, 
anyway ? asked Ranma. He never could help blurting out the first thing 
that came to mind.
	"Raanmaaaa!" growled Akane.
	"Hey, I was just askin', what's wrong with that?"
	"Because you were rude about it, that's why." She was 
beginning to glow, ever so slightly. It wasn't bright, and anybody but a 
martial artist wouldn't notice her battle aura.
	"That's okay, Akane, I don't mind. We both happened to be at 
a bookstore downtown, in the occult section. I was comparing what I 
knew with what was there, and I accidentally bumped into Gos-chan 
here. He dropped all the books he was carrying, then looked up at me, 
and began to stammer." Hikaru sighed. "He was so cute, like a puppy 
whose tail had been stepped on. I'd just gotten over a...bad 
relationship...and I took him to a coffee shop nearby to apologize. We 
started dating three weeks later, and the rest, well, you know."
	Ranma slapped Gosunkugi on the back, nearly knocking him 
off his stool. "Way to go, Voodoo Spike, I never knew you had it in 
ya!"
	Three weeks later, Gosunkugi began training at the Tendo 
Dojo. He would never be in even Kuno's league, because he started too 
late, and was never in the best of shape. However, his improvement in 
both health and ability was so great, that within a year students were 
flocking to the dojo for the night classes Ranma taught. He still went to 
college in the daytime, at Tokyo University, and had only one year left. 
However, he had problems with the number of people signed up for the 
intermediate classes, so he did something that surprised me. He asked 
Akane and me to help teach those classes. I refused, but was still 
flattered.  He pleaded and cajoled...and offered to pay me for my time. 
I'm no Nabiki, but I did have to make up for the time my restaurant 
was closed.
	As I was walking into class, I saw a familiar pigtail waving 
back and forth in the bustle of the other students. I walked up, and said, 
"Hey, Ranma, how's the class going ?" He turned around...and it 
wasn't Ranma. "Umm...sorry. I thought you were the sensei of the 
dojo."
	He smiled. It was a dazzling smile. "No problem. My name is 
Tenchi, Masaaki Tenchi." He tilted his head slightly, and put one hand 
behind it.
	"Kuonji Ukyou, nice to meet you. I'm helping Tendo Akane 
teach this class. I'll be primarily be dealing with weapon forms." I held s,
Umi and Fuu, and 
made some sort of cryptic remark about having had some adventures of 
her own.
	"So, Gos, how the heck did a guy like you end up with her, 
anyway ? asked Ranma. He never could help blurting out the first thing 
that came to mind.
	"Raanmaaaa!" growled Akane.
	"Hey, I was just askin', what's wrong with that?"
	"Because you were rude about it, that's why." She was 
beginning to glow, ever so slightly. It wasn't bright, and anybody but a 
martial artist wouldn't notice her battle aura.
	"That's okay, Akane, I don't mind. We both happened to be at 
a bookstore downtown, in the occult section. I was comparing what I 
knew with what was there, and I accidentally bumped into Gos-chan 
here. He dropped all the books he was carrying, then looked up at me, 
and began to stammer." Hikaru sighed. "He was so cute, like a puppy 
whose tail had been stepped on. I'd just gotten over a...bad 
relationship...and I took him to a coffee shop nearby to apologize. We 
started dating th, class. My name is Kuonji Ukyou, and I will be 
teaching weapon forms. If you have no desire to learn these forms, you 
can simply go to the back of the dojo, and continue sparring with each 
other." About half the class bowed, and went to the back of the dojo. 
Tenchi remained where he was.
	I began with the most common weapon in schools across the 
country, the sword. Bokken were handed out, and I began with the 
basics. It's not really much different from my own style, and I had 
picked up a lot while I was training to face Ranma, several years ago. I 
glanced at Tenchi, and saw that I was right. He held his bokken like an 
old friend, and, to my disgruntlement, looked a little bored with the 
basics. However, his form was flawless.
	"You!" I called out, pointing to him.
	"Hai, Sensei!" he responded, instantly.
	"You've had weapons training before, haven't you?"
	"Hai, Sensei. My Grandfather has been teaching me for many 
years now. The Masaaki school of swordsmanship."
	I blinked. I blinked again. Masaaki? That was the name of the 
old man who first started teaching me weapon forms, almost twelve 
years ago. "Your grandfather? Well, let us see what you have learned. 
After class, we'll spar."
	"Hai, Sensei." I think I saw a ghost of a smile.
	When class was over, we both walked over to a small weapons 
rack, and picked up shinai. We took our positions, and faced each 
other, bowing. The match was short, and sweet. When it was over, I 
had been struck twice in the ribs, and tapped once on top of the head. I 
heard clapping from the doorway, and saw Ranma there, grinning like 
an idiot. "Good speed, Tenchi. I think Ukyou wasn't expecting 
someone as good as you when she agreed ta spar. `Course, I don't think 
I've ever seen that style before."
	"Well, Sensei, its..." Tenchi and Ranma both stopped cold, 
and then dropped to the ground, writhing in agony. 
	I had no idea what was wrong. I was worried, Ranchan is still 
my oldest friend, and he was in pain. I did the only thing I could do. "Akane!
Get in here! AKANE!"



 - Valandar the Red
_________________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com