Tofu and Nabiki exchanged a glance at seeing Ranma be called a girl and doing nothing about it. In fact he smiled as he straightened and motioned for the blonde man to step in.

They did a quick study of the man. He was 1.83 meters tall with a strong build. His short blonde hair was combed back and he wore an expensive looking suit, though the suit seemed a bit worn out. The expression on his face reminded them of a predator, his eyes burning with the same light Ranma's had after releasing the Raging Storm. His stance, even if relaxed, made Cologne and Tofu wary of the man. He was confident, almost to the point of arrogance, but they had the feeling he could back it up.

Kasumi smiled as she invited Geese into the house. "It's good to see you in good health, Howard-san."

Chuckling, Geese entered the house. "I've told you a hundred times to call me Geese, Kasumi."

"Hai, Howard-san." She said in a teasing tone of voice.

Geese sighed and turned to Ranma. "Would you mind terribly if I killed your wife?"

Ranma smirked, knowing Geese would rather be a good guy than hurt anyone in his family. The pigtailed man's expression sobered then as he asked. "What to you know about the others?"

Geese shook his head. "Aside from my son and my wife I haven't seen anyone else. I was actually out on business when I felt you use your chi."

Kasumi shook her head as she saw Geese was carrying a briefcase. "Not even two weeks on this world and you're already doing something illegal."

Nabiki finally got out of her shock and inquired. "What's so illegal about carrying a briefcase around?" As soon as the words left her mouth she felt stupid. This was Geese Howard they were talking about. Even if Ranma had spoken very little about him it was enough to get a general idea of his 'business.'

Geese smirked as he studied Nabiki. He could tell she was a smart one, just a little shaken right now. "Nothing, if the briefcase is filled with papers instead of cocaine." He then turned his attention to Tofu and Cologne, his eyes centered on the old Amazon for a moment and then he turned back to Ranma. "I take it this is your home world?"

Ranma nodded and grinned. "We don't have to worry about someone coming into the house to kill you, do we?" It had happened more than once in the other world and Ranma knew his master wouldn't change.

Geese chuckled. "Don't worry. I got it from some Yakuza that found themselves suddenly lacking life. There were no witnesses." The casualness with which he spoke of taking lives, even the ones of the hated Yakuza, made Nabiki, Tofu and Cologne very uncomfortable.

Cologne narrowed her eyes at the study the man did of her. She didn't know why, but she had the urge to hurt him for it. Not that she would ever try such a thing against someone that radiated an aura strong enough to make Herb's look like a beginner's in chi control. If anything Ranma had made a severe understatement when he talked about his master's power. That other world must truly be an interesting place if the few fighters she had met from it were any indication.

Kasumi invited everyone to return to the dining room, to which Cologne, Tofu and Nabiki said they had to go. They knew there would be no more story-telling for the rest of the night and they all had things to do in the morning. That and the fact that Geese's presence was sending chills down their spines. Even Cologne, the more experienced of the lot, felt at unease around Ranma's master.

Cologne activated Shampoo's and Mousse's Jusenkyo curses and left with the small animals in her hands. She promised to return to hear the rest of the story. Tofu offered to walk Nabiki home and they also left the Todo grounds. Nabiki told Ranma she would be back tomorrow after school. There was no way she was letting him off that easy; she'd get the whole story.

"Would you like to stay here, Howard-san? There's plenty of space, though we'll need to build more rooms if people keep showing up like today." Kasumi said with a smile. She didn't know if her parents were alive and she didn't dare hope for fear of learning otherwise, but seeing her friends again when she thought they were gone was doing wonders for her mood.

Geese raised an eyebrow at that and turned to Ranma, who smiled and kept his mouth shut as he entered the dinning room. Geese raised an eyebrow at seeing Iori and Leona waiting for them. "Howard." The red-haired man greeted.

Geese nodded as he sat down. "Yagami."

Kasumi poured her 'father-in-law' some tea and placed her hand on Ranma's. "This makes eight of us who survived." She said.

Leona turned to Geese. "That means your family survived as well." After receiving a nod in response she continued. "Then we must expect for more people to have survived."

Geese smirked as an idea popped into his head. "And I know just the way to find out who." *And at the same time rebuild my empire. I wonder, if what Ranma said about this Nabiki girl is true then...* He trailed off, already making plans that made him smile evilly. Not that he smiled any other way either.

Iori smirked. "And of course, being the asshole you are, you won't tell us till the last possible moment." He chuckled when he saw Geese shrug his shoulders.

The fighters in general shared a good laugh. It was good having a reunion like this after the months they had spent without seeing each other. They started talking about the things they'd done during their short stay in this world. During some point in the conversation Geese got out a cell phone and dialed a number. He spoke a few words no one was able to overhear and hung up.

Iori and Leona excused themselves for the night. They had traveled the entire day and they were finally showing signs of fatigue. Kasumi left with them to show them their room and then to check on Yoko.

That left Geese and Ranma still sitting on the table. They shared a comfortable silence for several minutes. Ranma finally broke the silence. "I take it you called 'Okasan' so she came over?"

Geese smirked at Ranma's nickname for his wife. She took it the wrong way the first time and gave Ranma a sound beating for even hinting on her age. After that she always laughed it off as her 'daughter's' twisted sense of humor. "Indeed. I didn't call her before because I didn't know what I would find."

Ranma nodded somberly. "You were expecting me to be dangerous."

The older man humped. "If Kasumi and Yoko weren't with you right now, you'd be nothing more than a murdering beast." He took a sip of his tea and admitted. "I know I wouldn't be any different if my family wasn't with me."

"We're pathetic, aren't we? The strongest and 'most evil' fighters of the world admitting to weakness." Ranma said jokingly.

Both 'evil' men chuckled at that. "I wouldn't have it any other way. That weakness you speak of actually makes us strive to become stronger. When was the last time you slacked off in your training?" Asked Geese rhetorically. He knew Ranma would rather starve to death than skip on his training.

Ranma smirked as he got up. "I'm looking forward to starting our sparring sessions again. If you're planning what I think you are then we're gonna need the practice."

Geese smirked as he saw the pigtailed martial artist excuse himself to go check on Kasumi and Yoko. *When did I get so soft? I remember a time when I would've killed someone for even suggesting my need to get stronger.* He dismissed it as something that came with age and made his way to the front door. He could feel his wife and son were almost here. *Tomorrow is going to be one interesting day.*

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"ROCKY!" The childish scream of delight filled the room as Yoko hugged Geese's twelve-year-old son. Her features made the adults in the room smile as the happiness she emanated flooded the room.

Rock Howard scowled at the little girl and tried to pry her off, though he didn't try very hard. "I've told you not to call me Rocky. My name is Rock, squirt." He was actually glad to see his little friend and could put up with the annoyance.

Geese shook his head and commented casually. "Irreverent just like her mother. Both of them need a spanking."

"I'll see to it. It should be fun." Ranma said jokingly. He suddenly found himself a she when a glass of cold water was emptied over her head. She realized with dread that her foot in mouth disease had gotten her in trouble once again.

Ranma turned ever so slowly and could see Kasumi was holding the empty glass. "Hentai." She accused as she turned around and entered the kitchen. She was glad she was able to hold her smile till she was out of sight. *That should keep Ranma on his toes.*

Ranma saw her wife exit the room and quickly followed. "Kasumi." She called, and to everyone in the room it sounded apologetic almost to the point of begging.

Iori chuckled. "He's in for it now. I wonder who will spank who." This brought a laugh from the adults and drew confused looks from the two kids.

Rock suddenly turned to Iori. "Sensei, can we do some training?"

Geese sighed as Iori looked at him questioningly. He nodded to the red-haired man and saw as Iori, Leona, Rock and Yoko all made their way to the dojo. That left him alone with his wife, who placed a supportive hand on his shoulder. "I'm fine. I know Rock can't tap into my techniques anyway, not like Ranma does. Besides, he needs to control his blood and Iori is the perfect person to teach him that."

She shuddered at that. "Indeed. I remember what Iori did to Vice and me when he lost control in the Riot of Blood. I remember it too clearly." Had it not been for Hopper she would've died because of the blood loss alone. She still didn't quite forgive him for that, but he was somewhat of a friend now and she understood he wasn't in control during that time. "It wasn't something I like thinking about, but if Yagami can teach our son how to control those urges then it's worth it."

Geese nodded. He wasn't upset because Rock looked up to another. *If the boy kept pestering me I'm not sure I could contain myself from beating the crap out of him. It worked with Ranma.* To him, Rock was being pampered. The boy had only been knocked unconscious when training with either Ranma or Geese, and after that he didn't want to train with them. Iori and Leona were more careful even if Rock did sport some bruises later on. That would make the boy soft and later, when he had to fight in a live or death situation, probably incapable of facing a real opponent.

"I know what you're thinking, Geese Howard." His wife said sternly. "And if you think I'll let you beat my son black and purple you've got another thing coming. He might decide to train harder in a few years, but you're not forcing him into your training." It still amazed her, even after being married to him, the concept Geese had of training. From the entire group the only other two people that thought alike were Wolfgang and Ranma. Iori did fight and train himself like a raving lunatic, but when it came to training others he was gentler. Even Rugal declined some of the more violent sparring sessions, besides the fact that he trained no one but himself.

Geese smirked. "I won't have to wait long, Mature. Even if Rock doesn't have as much drive as Ranma he's still a warrior. He will come to Ranma and me and we will turn him into a true warrior."

Mature grinned at Geese's boast. "You're so modest I'm not sure why I married you at all."

Without hesitation Geese casually said. "Because of the sex." Of course he didn't mention they had other reasons now after years of marriage, even if none of them would admit to one of them being love. But in the beginning that was the main reason to get married.

Mature's eyes turned mischievous as she placed her arms around his neck. "Maybe you need to remind me. I'm starting to feel the urge to get a divorce." She pecked him on the lips with a light kiss.

Geese chuckled as he circled her with his arms. "You do that and I'll kill you."

Someone clearing his throat brought them out of their little interaction. "Sorry to interrupt, but there seems to be a couple of challengers to the dojo waiting outside." Iori said with a smirk that was insulting just because of existing.

Mature and Geese were used to it so they didn't pay it any attention. "Shouldn't Ranma take care of that?" Asked Geese. "I don't want to waste my time with a bunch of losers whom will get their butts handed back to them." Indeed. He was waiting for Nabiki to arrive from school to corner her on talking about this little district. If all Ranma said was true, then the girl would know just about all he needed to know to start operations.

"They want it to be a five-on-five fight." The red-haired man said with a smirk.

"Really?" Geese asked matching Iori's expression. Seeing Ranma beat the crap out of amateurs was boring after a while, but actually participating had a lot of appeal.

Ranma and Kasumi entered the room and Iori informed them of what was going on. Very quickly Iori and Mature were left alone in the room, the others having left to change clothes. The blonde woman turned to Iori and asked. "Should I call an ambulance?"

Iori raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know you cared about people."

She remained perfectly calm. "I don't. But I don't think Geese can get away with maiming someone like he used to." She stood up and made for the phone on the other room. As an afterthought she added something as she exited the room. "Yet."

Iori simply chuckled and returned to the dojo.

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Ranma and Kasumi entered the dojo to find everyone already there. The children were sitting with Mature as the others prepared themselves for the 'fights.'

On the opposite side of the dojo stood five men wearing karate GIs. Ranma assessed them quickly and found them to be on a decent level of skill. He raised an eyebrow. *That says a lot for a single dojo. They might not be much, but they're good for this world's standards.*

Kasumi stepped forward. "Gentlemen, I was told you wanted to challenge this dojo." She said politely.

One of them, apparently the one with the highest rank, looked at Kasumi as if she was nothing and then turned to Geese. "You the one in charge here, old man?"

Ranma, who didn't take well to the dismissal, scowled dangerously at the dead fool and started forward, only to be stopped by Kasumi. He nodded to her and stepped back, yet his eyes never left the leader of the challengers.

Kasumi sighed and turned back to the group, who didn't miss the exchange. "Are you challenging the dojo for its sign?"

The guys looked at each other and finally the leader spoke to the little woman. "We don't care about a sign, lady. We are on a training journey and if we have anything to learn from you we'll stay around after we beat you."

Ranma shook his head and hid a small smile. That sounded a lot like his training trip with Genma. Of course, these guys didn't have a chance in hell of winning the fight even five to one, but it would be fun to watch their expressions after they got their butts kicked.

"We noticed only three of you seem to practice your school. The challenge was made for five-on-five matches. The side to get three out of five victories wins." The same guy said. "You don't have enough people."

Kasumi nodded. "You're right, but our students still aren't ready for real combat. Since you're not here for the sign would you mind if two of our friends participated?"

The challengers looked at each other and seemed to think about it for a few seconds. In silent agreement the man stepped forward. "The terms are acceptable. I'm Hajime Kojiro and I'll be your first opponent." He finished and fell into a kempo stance emphasizing offense.

*Direct and to the point. I could get to like this guy.* Ranma said as he stepped forward. *After I beat the crap out of him, of course.* He fell into his battle stance and waited for the others to give them fighting room. Since the challenge wasn't against the dojo things could be a little less formal. "I'm Todo Ranma. Whenever you're ready."

Kojiro didn't waste any time and jumped forward to deliver a quick jab-cross combination. He was surprised when Ranma not only blocked both, but also managed to land a sidekick on his midsection that hurt like hell. He doubled over but had the common sense to jump back to get some breathing room. *This guy's strong!* He thought as he recovered. The kick would leave a bruise but wasn't really anything to worry about.

Ranma patiently waited for his opponent to recover. "You shouldn't neglect your defenses when attacking." He commented.

Kojiro nodded and assumed his stance again. He decided to approach more carefully now, studying his opponent's stance for any weaknesses. He could find several openings, but they were probably just there on purpose. Several attacks were thrown to test those weak spots, and he found each and every one blocked perfectly and followed by a powerful counter that made him think he was fighting his master as a white belt again. He stopped advancing and moved from offense to defense. *Let's see if he's as good attacking as defending. There's no chance I'm winning like this.*

By now Ranma was getting bored. When he saw Kojiro assume a defensive stance he decided to finish things. In the blink of an eye he was inside the defenses of a very startled Kojiro. Two quick punches to the face and an axe kick that landed on his shoulder were enough to have the challenger seeing all the pretty stars.

The next three fights went in pretty much the same way. Kasumi, Iori and Leona tested their opponents and then quickly and efficiently finished the fights with little effort.

Geese finished his opponent a little more violently.

"DID YOU HAVE TO BRAKE BOTH HIS ARMS?!" Kasumi all but yelled on his face. Geese had delivered a palm strike with enough strength that when his opponent blocked with his arms they were both broken, together with a couple of bruised ribs.

The four challengers left standing were glaring daggers at the man. Geese gave off a relaxed sigh. "I did find it very therapeutic. Maybe we should do this more often."

Leona and Mature rolled their eyes. Kasumi sputtered and continued glaring at Geese. Iori and Ranma simply chuckled. Rock stared at his father with respect from his seat. Yoko was busy laughing at the faces her mother was doing when talking to grandpa.

The four guys heard the man's comment and found it to be very unnerving. When Mature informed then that an ambulance should be arriving shortly they took their friend and left, never taking their eyes off Geese.

Geese got tired of being verbally assaulted by Kasumi and turned to Ranma. "Enough! Girl, get over here. I need a real workout."

Kasumi blinked when Geese was suddenly no longer in front of her. Instead of him there was Ranma winking at her as he recovered from a punch. "Try not to break anything." Kasumi said in a tired tone of voice and Ranma smiled.

"I'M GOING TO RIP YOUR HEAD OFF!!!" Geese bellowed as he got up and charged Ranma with a wicked combination that sent the other man reeling back in pain.

Everyone left Geese and Ranma fighting it off in the dojo. It had been fun to watch the first couple of years, but those two never got tired of it.

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Hours later Nabiki arrived and heard the sounds of fighting coming from the dojo. She found it weird but went over to check it out.

If she ever doubted what Ranma said about him and Geese fighting it out until one dropped she was convinced otherwise instantly. She arrived to the sight of Geese punching Ranma in the face with enough force to make him turn, blood spraying from the pigtailed man's mouth and all over Nabiki.

She left out a small cry of surprise and attracted their attention. Ranma, bloodied like she'd never seen him before, smiled at her with red teeth. "Hi Nabiki!" He turned back to Geese and delivered a front-kick that made the older man spit out blood. Growling the pair continued beating the crap out of each other with a savagery she couldn't believe.

Nabiki had been around martial artists all her life, so she was very good at recognizing skill when she saw it. Geese and Ranma were the most skillful fighters she had ever seen in her life. Considering their style was not flashy like others, especially the Anything Goes, that said a lot.

Maybe Ranma wasn't the young fighter that fought incredibly strong opponents anymore. But she put good odds on this new Ranma beating the crap out of those same opponents.

Not able to stomach some of the things the fighters were doing to each other she decided to go see if Kasumi was in the house. *I thought Ranma had changed.* She thought thinking of the calm Ranma from the past week. An image of a grinning and bloodied Ranma filled her thoughts. *I was wrong. He got worse.*

END PART 14