****
Suteko and Cologne spoke quietly while waiting for the girls to return. Shampoo was the first back. “This right color, great-grandmother?”
Cologne took the small box and checked. “Yes, child. This should do nicely.” She turned to Doctor Tofu. “May we use your bath?” Tofu nodded and led them inside his living quarters.
As they were drying Suteko’s hair, now a deep black like Ranma’s Akane showed up with a set of clothing. She stopped suddenly when she saw a familiar face, “Ranma?”
The face smiled and it was then that Akane spotted the bandage still on Suteko’s face. “So, I was right.” Suteko was relieved. “If I can fool you, even for a moment, I should have no trouble at the estate.”
“It’s uncanny.” Ukyo added. She walked around Suteko. “With the right clothes you can definitely pass for Ran-chan.”
“Here.” Akane thrust the bundle of clothing at Suteko. Suteko turned and walked back into Tofu’s living quarters to change.
Cologne turned to face the girls. “Now that we have the physical disguise set I need to know just how good a fighter this Suteko is.”
“She’s not bad.” Ukyo looked thoughtful.
Akane added. “This morning she defeated Mr. Saotome in combat. So she does have ability. Why?”
“In all things dealing with son-in-law there seems to be a battle of some type. I want to be sure this girl can carry her own weight if she must.”
Akane and Ukyo spoke up quickly in Suteko’s defense. “I sparred with her last night and she had me on the run the whole time. She wasn’t even using her full potential.” Ukyo looked amazed.
Akane added. “Besides she’s Ranma’s sister. She has the same potential.”
Suteko stepped back into the doctor’s office. “I can take care of myself, elder but I will say that I am no match for my brother’s skills.”
“Ah, there you are.” Cologne looked over Suteko’s disguise. In male form, with black hair, Suteko was a near perfect match for Ranma. The only difference was in how Suteko held himself. It was obvious that he wasn’t comfortable in the body he know wore. “I see our first problem. You don’t spend much time like this, do you?”
Suteko blushed. “No, I prefer to stay a girl.”
“Well, it may cause a problem. Try walking for us.”
Suteko moved across the room. He had the unconscious grace of a martial artist but there was still a hint of uneasiness in the walk. Cologne pondered for a moment. “There is little we can do about this now. But once we have retrieved son-in-law you will need some training. If you have the curse you must learn to deal with it.”
Suteko nodded slowly. He didn’t want to think about that right now. He turned to Ukyo. “You bring my pack?”
“Yep. Here you go.”
Suteko noticed the disarray inside but didn’t comment. Reaching inside he pulled out a tube and undid the stopper. “When Uncle Tanto was last in Japan he picked up a set of these.” He pulled out a roll of papers and spread them out on the table he had been working on before. “These are floorplans for the Fukushuu compound.”
All eyes turned quickly to the plans. “How did he get these, child? The head of the clan is known for his overcautious nature. I thought these were all destroyed.”
Suteko looked proud. “Uncle Tanto was a great man. Even though he disagreed with the usage that his father put the family skill, he was the greatest of the family’s heirs. He knew every technique and counter. He knew when he last visited that someday the floorplan would be needed so he ‘appriated’ a set.”
“It is good that he did, child.”
“Yes, now,” turning to the unrolled plans. “As you can see the compound is walled and there are checkpoints around the parameter. The only place that isn’t patrolled is the family temple, here.” He pointed at a medium sized building on the northside of the compound. “Uncle Tanto told me of a secret tunnel running from a shop, under the street and up into the temple. It was used by some past mistress to visit the then clan leader. He said that the tunnel had been forgotten by the current generations. He found it on his way out and it was inches deep in dust. We should use this as our entrance into the compound.”
“Hopefully no one has discovered this secret passage in the time since he last visited.”
“We will just have to hope. Now, I will go in first and distract any of the guards in the compound. You three should then head here.” Suteko pointed to a room in the basement. “As far as I can tell, this is where Ito keeps those he wants something from.”
They worked out the plans. Cologne pointed out a few problems that were easily worked out. The girls then left. The first eight hours were almost up and they needed to get to Ranma before the second treatment was delivered. Though it was reversible, it would be best if they didn’t need to.
****
As the four rounded a corner they heard to voices crying out Ranma’s name.
“Saotome how dare you!!”
“Ranma I’m gonna make you pay for leaving me at the airport!”
Two blurs rushed toward Suteko. He dodged to one side of Ryouga’s flying fist but ran straight into Mousse. “Wait!!!”
Shampoo grabbed at Mousse and pulled him back. “Stupid Mousse, that no Ranma!”
“Ryouga, that’s Suteko!”
Both boys stopped and looked confused. “Akane, what are you saying? That’s Ranma.” Ryouga did a quick double take. “Wait a minute, since when does Ranma have green eyes?”
“He doesn’t Ryouga.” Suteko spoke. “It’s me.” He looked embarrassed.
Ryouga pointed. “You have a curse too!”
“No kidding, sugar. Now can you two back off, we gotta rescue Ran-chan.”
“Why does Saotome need rescuing?”
The girls quickly filled in the two and they agreed to join in the rescue. They all set out again.
CHAPTER NINE
Infiltration
OR
It's time to save Ranma
Suteko and the crew stood inside the shop across from Fukushuu compound. “All right, you all know the plan.” He looked them over. Each face looked back steadily. “Stick together and avoid any guards you see. Remember our goal is the room with Ranma, no extra fights.” He shot a look at Akane, Ukyo and Shampoo. They nodded.
“Good. Now follow me and when we reach the end of the tunnel, give me ten minutes.”
The rescue team entered the trap door and slid down the ladder. The passage was dark and filled with cobwebs. The shop owner passed down a couple of lanterns and some flashlights. Suteko thanked him and passed them out. As they set out, Akane came forward to walk at his side. “Are you sure we can trust that man?”
Suteko nodded. “Mr. Tsuirno was Uncle Tanto’s closest friend. They vowed brotherhood. He would never betray my uncle or me as his heir.”
The trip through the tunnel was tense. Each member was readying their various weapons. Mousse adjusted his sleeves, the faint sound of metal echoing in the stone hall. Shampoo hefted her Bonbori and slid them back into place. Ukyo checked the hang of her bandoleer and gripped her battle spatula tightly. Finally they reached the end of the tunnel without mishap. Suteko stopped them just before the entrance. He nodded to each team member and then stepped and disappeared.
The temple was quiet inside. The faint scent of incense rested in the air. Suteko eased past the statue and looked about. Things looked very different when he was using this technique. The colors of things were off and any movement seemed slow. The temple was empty and he moved out of the temple into the courtyard. He spotted two guards over by the main house and moving quickly he pulled his staff out and came into view, just in front of them.
“Hello.” He smiled as the men did a double take and then quickly rapped them each on the skull. The first obstacle was dealt with. He dragged the men away from the building and into the temple. After Suteko tied and gagged the two guards, he returned to the house. Sl
ipping inside was amazingly easy. He left the side door open for the others and moved silently along the halls. Between the ability to sidestep and an intense training in stealth, Suteko was more like a ghost than a person. On the ground floor he found it easy to avoid the various people working there. He chuckled as he appeared and disappeared. The first time he decided to appear to a person was in the kitchen. It was an old and fun trick. When a young girl first learning to step sideways she used to pop up in the kitchen, scaring her uncle’s cook. With a chuckle he stepped into the room and demanded food and water, making a real nuisance of himself until just when the food was ready , then he disappeared. The next time was across the ground floor in what looked to be a trophy room. When Suteko stepped into the room it was empty. He examined the various weapons on display. The variety of edged weapons and the still visible blood stains made him shudder. He stood contemplating one particularly bloody piece when a man walked into the room.
“What are you doing in here?” His voice was surprised and when Suteko turned to face him the guard’s eyes grew big. “You!” As far as the guard knew, the boy before him was supposed to be asleep in a room off the master’s workroom.
“Me.” Suteko smiled and fell into a combat stance. The man took one look and ran out. He knew that the master had plans for this young man and he didn’t want to get in the way. Suteko laughed out loud. This was fun. Looking like his brother could come in handy in the future. Still chuckling he turned and went out and continued his reign of confusion.
***
Meanwhile back in the tunnels, the team was preparing to leave.
“It’s time.” Akane pointed her flashlight at her watch.
“Let’s hope Suteko has taken out the guards.” Mousse said grimly. The others nodded as they started up the ladder. One at a time, they came up into the old temple. The saw the two unconscious guards and made their way quietly across the yard. They slid into the back hall and after a quick check at their map, they headed toward the room that Suteko believed Ranma to be held in. Their movement through the halls seemed too easy and Ukyo commented on it.
“Where is everyone?” She looked around nervously.
“Suteko is just doing her job.” Akane whispered but she too was nervous. From all Cologne and Suteko had said it should have been much harder to get where they were. But they walked thorough the empty halls much too easily.
***
The concern was well founded. Inside many of the walls were sophisticated surveillance cameras. Ito had been informed of the team’s progress through his home. He also knew of the duplicate Ranma’s presence. When first informed of his prize wandering loose he had been surprised. He had just to look through the doorway to his left to see the boy. Who was this duplicate? He had no report of a second boy matching Ranma’s description. He thought about the possible identity of the boy. Before him were files on the boy and his friends. He knew of the curses that they suffered from. Could the new person have a curse too? He watched the monitors in his desk and after the encounter in the trophy room he was sure that the boy was in reality his great-granddaughter. She was the only other living member of the family who knew the secret. Her mother was a simple woman. He had bought her soul with the offer of true revenge on that Genma person. He had been surprised at the skill the child had shown. She would be an excellent compliment to her half brother. With some training she might even match his skills. Ito smiled cruelly. He would take all these children and have just the tools he needed to take down his old enemies.
Each of the children heading toward the “secret” room were of a high skill level. The two boys having in one great strength and endurance, the other a great weapon skill and the art of hiding those weapons. Of the three girls, only Ranma’s fiancee, Akane, held no interest for him. She was a good fighter but held too much temper. Her ability to pull a massive mallet from no where was interesting but not enough to go to the trouble of keeping her. He would use her as the first test of Ranma. Killing her would prove the boy was his. He stood and walked to the bedside of the slumbering boy. It was time to administer the second treatment, wiping the boy’s memories. It was too bad that this wasn’t all he needed to do. The memories could be brought back with a simple blow to the right spot on the skull. Luckily none of the children below were up to the boy’s ability. He watched as the boy started to wake and then reached out and tapped his skull again.
Ranma opened his eyes slowly. Nothing looked familiar. He searched his mind for anything that was. He blinked in confusion at the face of the old man above him. Ito looked down and spoke. “Hello, my son.”
***
The team made it easily to the corridor leading to the basement room. Akane peaked around the corner and counted. Pulling her head back she whispered. “There are seven men in a large room. One sitting at a desk, four at a table and two by the door.”
“What do they have weapon-wise?” Mousse asked, pushing up his glasses.
“I didn’t see any guns but I did see a couple with swords.”
“I will deal with those.” The others nodded. Mousse’s hidden chains would be best for taking out the swords.
“Let’s go,” Ryouga cracked his knuckles impatiently.
As one they ran around the corner and attacked. The guards sprang up and pulled out their hidden weapons. Each of the team found themselves facing opponents.
Mousse sent his chains arcing out toward the two swordsmen. The first was ensnared but the second dodged and charged forward. Mousse dropped the chains and calmly brought out his hand claws. He and the guard slowly circled each other before dashing in and slashing at each other. Mousse parried the sword with one set of claws, trapping it between the thin metal blades of the claw. With the other clawed hand, he swung at the swordsman. The guard dodged back just in time - but not before the claws tore open his shirt, cutting deep enough to leave four long, thin red marks on his exposed skin. The swordsman showed surprise for the briefest of moments, but then smirked. “You are good, boy.” The guard stepped back and prepared for a second charge. Mousse took a defensive stance and waited for the attack to come.
Ukyo found herself facing a fighter holding twin tonfa, or short sticks. She held her battle spatula across her body, and charged, swinging. The woman easily blocked the giant cooking tool with the sticks and kicked out, aiming at Ukyo's knees. Ukyo jumped straight up to dodge the woman's kick, which shattered a decorative statue sitting nearby. The okonomiyaki chef counterattacked, flying downward with an outstretched foot, barely missing the tonfa woman, who had rolled out of the way just in time. Ukyo started to break a sweat. “This one's gonna be tough,” she thought to herself as her and the woman traded blows....
Shampoo leapt, flying with one foot out toward her opponent, a well-muscled man who held no weapon. “But from his look,” Shampoo thought, “he no need one.” The man sneered at the Amazon's attack and grabbed Shampoo's kicking foot, throwing her viciously towards the wall. Keeping calm as she accelerated towards the concrete barrier, Shampoo turned her body and used her feet to touch the wall briefly and jump off it, flying back toward her opponent. Pulling out her prized weapons, her bonbori, she flipped over once and brought the heavy weight on the end of one down in a slashing motion, intending to knock him out. However, the man managed to stop it - with his bare hand!
“Is that all you can do, girl?” the man said, hardly changing the sneer on his face.
“Aiyaa!” Shampoo spoke in disbelief. “He strong opponent!”
Still sneering, the large man threw Shampoo again, making her lose her hold on one of her bonbori. The other clattered on the floor, and moments later, Shampoo followed it, landing painfully. The big man advanced menacingly, holding the Amazon's bonbori in his hand like a club. Shampoo desperately rolled to her feet, and pulling a hidden shuriken from behind her ear, she threw it at the man. The man felt a sharp pain as the throwing star sliced his cheek on the left side. With a bestial roar, the man charged the now unarmed
Shampoo....
Compared to Shampoo's opponent, Ryouga's looked diminutive. A small man in Chinese clothes blocked his way. Smiling inwardly at his fortune at getting such a small opponent, Ryouga ran forward and punched the little man's face, sending him flying into the pavement. The little man stood up and smiled. Charging again, Ryouga tried a kick, which connected with the man's ribs. The man never changed his expression as Ryouga tried punches, kicks, and uppercuts, all of which failed to faze the man. “What's he made of?” Ryouga thought, getting frustrated. “I've hit him hard enough to smash open that stupid skull of his, and he's still standing! What do I have to do?” Ryouga yelled a battle cry as he turned quickly and performed a spinning kick to the man's head, hitting hard.
The little man only smiled as his head snapped back and attacked with a flurry of punches, causing Ryouga to flip backward and assume a defensive posture. “Grrr....” Ryouga growled “Bakusai Tenketsu!” Ryouga poked the cement floor, causing it to crack and rupture in front of the Chinese man, who dodged with little difficulty.
The little man finally spoke “Ah, so you know that little trick too....heh. Doesn't it go like this?” The man poked the ground with his own finger, causing it to rupture around a surprised Ryouga who had to jump to the side to avoid being swallowed up.
“So _that's_ how come I'm not getting him,” Ryouga thought. “He had the same endurance training I had! This is going to be more interesting than I thought!” Ryouga said aloud. “Come on!” He assumed a combat stance, re-thinking his strategy.
The little man took on a grim expression and flew at Ryouga with punches and kicks. Both connected with hard blows, and it didn't look like either one was going to fall anytime soon....