Ranma knelt down and put Neko-Xian Pu on the ground. “Now do you understand what I want you to do?”
Neko-Xian Pu nodded her head. She was overjoyed that Ranma could hold her in her cat form. She had purred the whole way here from his apartment.
Ranma slipped a lacy collar around her neck. “This collar has a mic and transmitter laced into it. It’s also made out of a super-elastic material, so that it won’t choke you if you transform for any reason. Now remember, I only want you around the sides and on top of boxes. You are to be out of sight at all times. Understand?” Neko-Xian Pu meowed in the affirmative. “Good. Whatever you do, don’t do anything stupid like risk your neck. There’s absolutely no reason to on this operation. We should be able to just go in, meet the guy, and get out. Are you sure you got all that?”
Neko-Xian Pu nodded again. She was so happy at the way he was trying to look out for her welfare. In her younger days she would have been offended at the fact that a ‘weaker male’ was trying to keep her out of battle, but she knew now that this concern could easily turn to affection, something she desperately wanted from him.
Ranma smiled. “Good. Just remember I’ll be listening the whole time, and I’ll be on the roof if you need me. Just meow and I’ll be there.” He pulled a hood over his head that matched his completely black outfit. The hood covered everything but his eyes, which he had put brown contacts in to hide his blue. “Now, go find a nice place to hide in there. They should be here at any moment.”
Neko-Xian Pu meowed and turned and ran off toward the warehouse. She wouldn’t do anything to mess up this opportunity.
Ranma watched her until she went into one of the holes that were in the side of the warehouse. He was still wondering what was being shipped in, but he knew he was close to figuring out who was running the Triad operations in Tokyo. Only thing that would be left would be to find out who was running the Yakuza part of the plan. He adjusted the earpiece he was wearing and heard Neko-Xian Pu’s padded footsteps as she searched the warehouse. Content that everything was in working order, he leapt to the roof of a nearby shed and then to the roof of the warehouse. He found the most convenient skylight and waited for the visitors to show up.
The night lit up as a burst of lightening cut across the sky. The heavy downpour quickly followed. Ranma shook his head. “It’s a good thing I stopped by HQ for my shots.” He thought.
Neko-Xian Pu walked carefully through the crates that were all over the warehouse. She tried to find one with any loose boards so that she could see what they contained. No such luck.
She shook her head an resignation and leapt atop one of the eves on the steel framework that made up the perimeter of the warehouse. She hunched down, ready to pounce at any moment, and waited for what was to come next.
Atop the warehouse, Ranma heard the tone of the horn of an incoming freighter. He pulled out his waterproof PDA and checked the shipping schedule. No ship scheduled for another five hours. This must be the one they were waiting on. He was about to have half of his case solved very shortly.
He finally saw the forward lights of the ship cut through the falling rain. The ship pulled up along side the docks in front of the warehouse. Ranma pulled his binoculars up to his eyes and watched the ship.
A pair of men leapt off the deck of the ship and secured the ship to the dock. The ship dropped anchor, and the gangplank started to reel down. After the men on the docks secured the gangplank, the passengers began to disembark. They were all wearing heavy cloaks with the hoods pulled over their faces. They all marched in organized columns and went straight for the entrance to the warehouse.
Ranma moved back to the skylight and peered in. “This isn’t good.” He thought. “They’re either military or mercenaries. Either way they could be trouble.” He wiped away the fog on the skylight and watched the men fan out around the warehouse, still all wearing their cloaks.
At last a taller cloaked figure stepped in. Ranma saw Neko-Xian Pu run around the rafters to get closer. Ranma listened intently to his earpiece.
“Get those crates loaded on the trucks in the next warehouse. We’ll pass out everyone’s visas and IDs once everything is taken to our base of operations.”
Ranma growled as he recognized the voice instantly. “Of all the places for him to show up again.” He thought. “Of course, El Toro should have been a dead give away.”
The leader barked out a few more orders and the cloaked figures started to carry the boxes out. Neko-Xian Pu caught a glint of something from under the cloak of one of the men. She jumped down and snuck up behind one of the men. She gazed up under his cloak and saw something that she didn’t expect to see again in her entire life.
She stepped away when she heard a loud crash to her left. She turned and scurried over to see what it was.
Ranma saw the purple cat rush over to where two of the men had dropped a crate. “Damn it, you stupid woman!” He cursed under his breath.
Neko-Xian Pu saw one of the boards fall away from the crate and she saw the contents. She knew she had seen enough and it was time to get out. She was about to turn about and leave, when she was grabbed by her neck and thrown against the wall. She reeled a bit before she was kicked in the side and thrown against another wall. She cried out as she rolled to the floor.
The leader picked her up again. “What do we have here? An Amazon spy?”
Through blurring vision, Xian Pu cursed in the cat’s tongue. She continued hissing as he threw her against the wall again. He picked her up by the nape of the neck and stared her in the eye. “Tarou!” She shouted in her mind.
He rubbed his chin. “Now where have I seen this scene before? Oh yes, when I had you tied up on top of that mountain.” He chuckled to himself.
“You know, your life is a lot easier if you’re nice to your pussy.” Came a heavily accented voice over Tarou’s shoulder.
Tarou turned to see the figure dressed in all black sitting on top of the pile of crates. “Who are you?”
The figure smiled from under his mask. “I’m the one you have to thank for the quiet night.”
Tarou laughed. “You obviously missed a detail. Kami is still making racket out there.”
Ranma shrugged. “Well, at least Kami doesn’t have any troops here to interrupt your little midnight run.”
Tarou chuckled. “Well, Ikari, what do I owe this audience to the great and resourceful assassin?”
Ranma bowed with a flourish. “I was just curious as to who was signing my checks.”
Tarou smiled. “Well that would be kind of hard, seeing as how you only take cash.”
“It’s a figure of speech.”
“So now you’ve met me. Aren’t you a little curious as to my name.”
“Not really, El Toro.” He smiled as Tarou gave him a raised eyebrow. “My woman tells me everything.”
Tarou eyed the man speculatively. “Aren’t you the least bit curious as to what we’re doing here?”
Ranma shrugged. “Hey, my name’s paul and that’s between y’all. I was just curious who was making me whack politicians.”
Tarou narrowed his eyes. “That’s a strange accent you have. You’re not originally from Japan, are you?”
Ranma smiled. “Now that’s my little secret.”
Tarou’s suspicions were rising. The accent could easily be faked and the eyes could be changed, but there’s one thing that would clinch it for him. He smiled. “Catch!” He threw Neko-Xian Pu at Ranma.
Ranma casually caught the cat and started to pet her in his arms. He saw that she was in pretty bad shape. He hid his anger behind his training. He also continued to suppress his apprehension to holding a cat in his arms. “This is certainly a unique cat. I’ve owned a few Persians and tabbies, but I’ve never seen a cat this color before. Can I keep it?”
Tarou shook his head. “It can’t be him.” He thought. “He would be screaming like a girl right now.” He continued aloud. “Sure, but I’ll warn you not to give her a bath.”
Ranma raised his eyebrows. “Oh really. Why not?”
Tarou took a thermos off of his belt, took the lid off, and threw it at Ranma. The warm water splash over the cat and transformed it into a naked and unconscious Xian Pu. “She has a tendency to eat more and be a pain in the ass.”
Ranma faked surprise and then got an evil look on his face. “Hey, how about we make a deal? You can only pay me half and I’ll keep the cat.” He lifted his eyebrows up and down twice.
Tarou laughed. “Won’t your ‘woman’ be jealous?”
Ranma’s smile was still dark. “She won’t say a word about it. She’s completely submissive to my will. Hell, I could probably talk her into a hot threesome.”
Tarou laughed. “Okay. Just one stipulation, you keep her from ever leaving this country until I say so.”
Ranma shrugged. “She’s probably never going to leave her room. Well, not without a leash anyway…”
Tarou shook his head. “Whatever you do with her is up to you. I have a feeling I’m better off not knowing.”
The sounds of sirens cut through the air. Tarou scowled. “You double crossed me!”
Ranma scowled right back. “No way! My plan was perfect!” In the back of his mind he was screaming, “Who the hell called the cops?”
Tarou growled out some orders to the other men. He turned back to the man in black. “If I find out you’ve had a part in this, you’re a dead man!”
Ranma’s nostrils flared. “I’m a dead man if they catch me!”
Tarou turned and left. “Well, it’s better to not leave any evidence…” He said on his way out.
“What?” was all Ranma could think before the building exploded.
Outside policemen dove for cover as Tarou’s men drove off in their trucks full of crates. Tarou smiled. “He was a good assassin, too bad.”
The rains quickly abated the flames from the explosion. Ranma walked out of the front of the warehouse that had been blown wide open, carrying Xian Pu in his arms. Most of his clothes had been burned away and there were several lacerations and bruises on his body. He chuckled as he leapt to the nearest rooftop and off toward his apartment. “Feels kind of like old times. He didn’t have to use so much explosives though…”
Ranma opened up his window from the outside and carried Xian Pu into his apartment. He carried her into the bedroom and set her on the edge of the bed. Ranma wrapped her ribs and one of her arms. He treated a few minor wounds before deciding that she would be okay. He put a blanket over her and left the room.
He took a quick bath and came in to check on her again. He came back just in time to hear her groan as she regained consciousness. Ranma couldn’t help himself. “So you’ve decided to join the land of the living.” He quoted her from when he had awoke in her apartment.
Xian Pu opened her eyes and smiled at him. “Thank you, Ranma.”
He frowned at her. “What were you thinking? I told you not to stick your neck out!”
She blanched a bit from the shout. “Keep it down. It still feels like someone is playing my head like a drum.”
Ranma sat down on the bed. “Sorry, but why did you come out of hiding?”
She rubbed her head. “I saw something and I wanted to see if it was what I thought.”
Ranma narrowed his eyes. “What?”
She rose up on her elbows. “They were Musk, Ranma. All those men were Musk warriors and all the crates were filled with weapons. They’re planning something big, I know it.”
Ranma frowned. “This just keeps on getting better. What would the Musk want in Japan? An why was Pantyhose Tarou leading them and not Herb?”
She shook her head and lay back down. She winced in pain from the move. “I don’t know. They usually don’t make a move without Herb. Even though Tarou was one of them, I still don’t see him leading an attack for them.”
Ranma nodded. “I’m sure. We may have to pay the self-proclaimed emperor a visit.”
Xian Pu thought about what would happen if she were seen by any of the Amazons. “I can’t be seen by anyone if we go.”
Ranma nodded. “I know. Plus, we probably don’t have the time to make a trip like that. I have a feeling things will be coming to a head soon. Get some rest and heal up.” He stood up to leave.
Xian Pu reached out to him. “Don’t go!”
Ranma turned to her. “What?”
“Don’t go.” She repeated.
“Why not?”
“I don’t want to be left alone.” She had a hopeful look in her eyes.
Ranma rolled his eyes. “This is not the time, Shampoo. I’ve told you before.”
Xian Pu looked hurt. “I’m hurting, Ranma. I don’t want to be left alone.” A tear started to come to her eye. “I promise not to do anything.”
Ranma felt like he had ‘sucker’ written all over his face. He shook his head. “Let’s get you something to sleep in.” He went over and pulled out one of his old shirts. “Here, put this on.” He turned his back to her.
She was a slightly disappointed when he turned his back, but she still put on the red silk shirt. She reveled in the feel a bit, realizing that this was one of HIS shirts. She smiled at the thought and lay back down. “Okay, I’m decent.”
“That remains to be seen.” Ranma scoffed. He turned around with a smirk on his face. “Now your turn.”
She gave him a confused look. “What?” Ranma gave her a motion of moving his finger in circles. “Okay.” She put her hand over her eyes. “I don’t know why I’m doing this. I’ve already seen you naked several times, and I know you sleep in boxers and undershirt.”
Ranma had already shucked his clothes by the time she had finished talking and looked down at himself, realizing that that was indeed what he was wearing.
She pulled her hand away. “See. Told you so.”
Ranma shook his head. “Now I know where you’ve seen me naked, yesterday aside, but how did you know what I slept in?”
Xian Pu smiled. “Let’s just say Kuno wasn’t the only one buying pictures of you from Nabiki.”
Ranma shook his head. He turned off the light and lay down beside her. Xian Pu rolled over and cuddled up next to him. “Isn’t this comfy.” Ranma thought. “It took me and Akane a few days before we found a comfortable position to…sleep…together.” His mind ground to a halt. “Shampoo?”
She took a contented breath. “Hmm?”
“You’ve done this before, haven’t you?”
“What? Slept with someone? Of course, I didn’t live a sheltered life, you know.”
“No, I mean slept with me.”
Xian Pu shifted nervously. “Well, do you remember the morning after I gave you the kiss of marriage? The time when Akane came in threw you out the window when she saw me curled up next to you?”
Ranma thought for a second. “Yeah, now I remember. I didn’t even know you were there until Kasumi finally told me that was why I was launched out the window, but still there’s no way we should be this comfortable. There’s no way you remember how to sleep with me after nearly a decade.”
She started to fidget a little. “Well, I kinda used to sneak into your room some other times, sorta.”
Ranma arched an eyebrow when he felt the nervousness go through her body. He didn’t want to make her uncomfortable, but he still wanted to know the truth. “What do you mean ‘some’ other times.”
Xian Pu took a deep breath. She felt that the game was up. She could lie to him, but that would only serve to alienate him. “When I was a teenager I had some trouble sleeping. That night I slept with you was the most restful night of my entire life. So when I couldn’t sleep, I’d sneak back into the Tendo Dojo and sleep with you sometimes.”
“How often was ‘sometimes’?” Xian Pu muttered something under her breath. “What was that?” She said the same thing a little louder. “Speak up!”
She sighed. “At least three times a week.”
“At least?!?!”
Xian Pu was feeling a little dejected about the whole thing. She was about to tell him he could sleep where he wanted to when he started laughing. “What’s so funny?”
Ranma settled down to a chuckle. “That’s why I was having so many sexual dreams when I was there. I noticed they lessened a lot when I married Akane. It’s also how you weren’t fooled by my sleeping act.”
She relaxed when she realized that everything was fine. She sighed and snuggled up to him again.
“How did you keep from getting caught?”
Xian Pu smiled. “After Akane caught me the first time, I figured out when she set her alarm clock and trained myself to wake up at that time. It gave me plenty of time to make my getaway. Your dad could sleep through a train wreck so he was no problem. The only other person that caught me was Kasumi. I told her about my insomnia and since I wasn’t causing any harm, she let me stay. Sometimes she’d even wake me up if I slept late.”
Ranma’s breath went out of him. “Kasumi was helping you?!”
“Yeah, so?”
“That doesn’t strike you in the least bit strange?”
“Why should it?”
“I was engaged to her sister! Why would dear, sweet Kasumi allow someone to sleep with her sister’s fiancé?”
Xian Pu shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe she felt sorry for me, or maybe she really did think you and Akane would not work out.”
Ranma rolled his eyes. “Me and her are going to have a serious talk in the near future.”
Xian Pu nuzzled his neck. “Just let it go. It’s in the past. There’s no sense in reprimanding someone nine years after the fact. Besides, I’m sure she was only doing it to help me sleep. I was always more calm when I slept with you. I didn’t get as many cockamamie plots when I got some sleep. Mostly because with sleep I knew that they would fail from the get go, so I wouldn’t bother. In fact I’d say you’d have to thank her.”
“Why’s that?”
“Without her your life would have been even worse.”
Ranma sighed. “Okay, I’ll give you that. I still don’t like being taken off guard like that.”
Xian Pu put two of her fingers on his lips. “Shh. Now let’s get some sleep. I haven’t been able to sleep well in years.” She lay back down and started to breathe slowly and deeply.
Ranma rolled his eyes and decided these new revelations about his teens could wait a while. He closed his eyes and went to sleep.
Xian Pu waited until she was sure he was out. With a quick flick of her head, a maneuver that obviously took a lot of practice, Ranma’s arm was around her shoulders. She sighed and slept a sleep that would make a baby jealous.