Ukyou sighed. Business was slow at her little restaurant today, but she kept herself busy. An important business conference was scheduled to take place over the weekend, and her restaurant was but a block away from the site where the conference was supposed to be held. If everything went right, she could very well make quite a bit of profit out of all of this. And Nabiki thought she was the only one who knew how to make a good profit. Ha! Still, she had to give credit to the famous - or infamous, depending who you talked to - major business corporation known as the 'BFC.' They were the ones heading up the conference. If not for them, it would probably be another weekend of hoping for someone to leave a large enough tip to help pay off some of the bills. Running a restaurant wasn't cheap, and nearly all of the money Ukyou made went straight to operating expenses. Even with customers like Ranma and now execs from the BFC, like that strange character, Mine, she wasn't making as much money as she liked. In fact, it was *because* of Ranma and some of the others, like Kunou and that hentai Tsubasa, that her restaurant often needed to spend more money on repairs... Still, she was now making more money, thanks to the people at the BFC. She wondered if she should raise prices slightly to compensate. The thought made her laugh: Ranma probably wouldn't like having to spend more money. A voice interrupted her thoughts. "Kuonji-san! Mail!!" "Hai!!" Ukyou quickly paged through the envelopes, and found, much to her disappointment, that her mail was, as always, mostly bills. However, the very last envelope caught her eye. It was an unassuming invitation addressed to her, inviting her to attend a martial-arts cooking competition this weekend. "All right!" she said without thinking. "I can show Ran-chan that I'm the best fiancee for him!" But wait, wasn't there something else about this weekend she had been thinking about not five minutes ago? The business conference. Oh, no... both the conference and the contest were going to be held at the same time! While her strong sense of pride and honor was trying to convince her she needed to be present at the contest, she couldn't afford to leave the restaurant to attend. She sighed, loud enough for the customers at the counter to hear. "Why can't things ever work out for me?" Across the street, in a vacant shop, Mine continued her stakeout. She'd needed a way to get closer to her intended target, and a few weeks of keeping a close eye on Ukyou's restaurant convinced her she had at last found a way to complete phase one of her plan. Soon she would be on her way to achieving supreme power, for her and the BFC. [OP: "The Girl is Magic" (Natsumi Title Theme)/Inoue Kikuko] (OP sequence: An unconcerned Kasumi stands in the main walkway of the Tendo yard, sweeping. Soon, Ranma and Akane appear, fighting. Then Ryouga, Shampoo and Ukyou join the fray. Genma appears, but Ranma throws him into the pond. Soun sits off to one side, crying. Akane slam-dunks Ranma into the pond, and the panda raises a sign that says, "What kept you?" Ranma takes a swipe at him with the sign. Finally, Nabiki and Mine appear in the background, seemingly trying to come to a business decision by various means, including rock-paper-scissors, as a large BFC building rises out of clouds of dust behind them all. Still unconcerned, Kasumi changes into Natsumi and uses her powers to sweep the whole mess away at an incredible rate, leaving a white screen for the title logo to fade into.) Richard Beaubien Presents Natsumi, the Magical Girl (wildly embellished by Mike Koos, again) Episode 2: Too Many Cooks It was another average day at the Tendo Dojo, which usually meant a couple of things. One, that Ranma and Akane were scheduled to be in the middle of their customary afternoon argument. Nabiki was sticking to her schedule of economic domination. But, unlike one would normally expect, Kasumi was elsewhere visiting her mother's shrine, alone. "Mother," she said in a near-whisper, looking as though she were about to cry. "Please help me... I don't know what to do. I want to be Natsumi, but I can't......" Nabiki, who had entered the hallway on her way to the kitchen, noticed her sister was indeed crying and started toward her. "Is something wrong, Kasumi?" "No..." Kasumi replied half-heartedly, wiping away her tears. "I'm just paying my respects." Nabiki didn't believe this, being one of the people who knew that Kasumi had a new secret to trouble her. "It's about the Natsumi business, isn't it?" Kasumi looked at her younger sister for a second, then nodded. "Yes... I don't know if I can do this, Nabiki. I'm not the superhero type." She paused. "I can't do this! I'm sorry, mother!!" She broke down and put her arms around Nabiki. Not one for physically emotional displays, Nabiki didn't return the gesture. "It's okay, Kasumi. You can do it. I've always had faith in you. And I'm sure Mom would, too, if she were here." "Nabiki-chan..." "Mom must have believed you could do this, or else she wouldn't have placed such power in your hands," Nabiki said quietly, holding back tears of her own. She had assumed she'd come to terms with her mother's death, yet there was always something that said all she had done was lock her feelings away... like that package from Mom. That junior business set had been an eye-opener. She still had feelings; she wasn't just an opportunist. She was still Human. She had a weakness and could be hurt, just as she was when her mother died. Nabiki noted Kasumi's expectant gaze. "Nabiki-chan?" "Ah... excuse me, I've got some work to do, Kasumi," she blurted, moving away from her older sister. She couldn't let Kasumi see her cry. She couldn't let people know she had a weakness. Fortunately, Akane came in time to provide a diversion. "Kasumi-oneechan! Guess what!" the youngest of the three Tendo daughters exclaimed excitedly. "I've been invited to attend a martial-arts cooking contest this weekend." A note of determination appeared in Akane's eyes. "I'll finally show everyone what a great cook I am, just like Mom said I could be..." The words 'Akane' and 'cook' together in the same sentence usually made everyone except Kasumi and perhaps Ryouga cringe. Nabiki shrugged it off, figuring that if a contest was involved she wouldn't have to eat the end result anyway, and continued walking. "That's great news, Akane!" Kasumi exclaimed, all signs of her earlier sadness suddenly gone without a trace. "Yeah, and I bet you'll win, too, Akane..." Ranma managed, appearing out of nowhere. It was obvious that the words weren't coming easily to him. Compliments and encouragement were not his usual style. "Really, Ranma?" Akane looked at Ranma in a different light. It was almost as if everything was all right with their relationship. Of course, it wouldn't last long before... "Yeah, your cooking is already classified as a lethal weapon so--" Akane finished Ranma's sentence for him - with a large wooden mallet at high velocity. "Ranma no... *baka*!" Why did Ranma do things like that? Every time the moment seemed to be turning tender, why did he always have to slip in some stupid or childish insult like that? Akane didn't know anymore, but had come to fully expect it from Ranma. In the adjoining hall, Nabiki sighed. At least some things remained the way they always were. She could almost set her watch by it all. Which meant that their usual unwarranted visitor should be popping in right about... "Nihao, Ranma!!" Today's guest, Shampoo. "Oh, man, not Shampoo..." "What are you doing here, Shampoo?" Akane asked, the usual hint of venom to her voice. "None of your business, violent girl. Shampoo here to tell Ranma that she will win cooking contest for him." Cooking contest? Oh, no... "The martial-arts cooking contest?" "Why, yes! Once Shampoo win it Ranma sure to marry her!!" Shampoo yelled, emphasizing her words with the aid of a microphone that she pulled from nowhere. "Oh, no you won't. *I'm* going to win the contest," Akane stated. "Ha! Violent girl lucky if judges even survive food..." "How dare you! I'll show YOU a thing or two about cooking..." From the looks on both Akane and Shampoo's faces, Ranma guessed they were about to renew their rivalry. He sighed; wondering if he should take the invitation to compete in the contest, if only to prevent Akane and Shampoo from wrecking things. The invitation hadn't actually been to *him*, but Ranko. That had given Ranma a moment's pause. It wasn't like Ranko had applied for a job or put her name on anything official, so how had they known about her? How had they even known where to find her? He'd considered ignoring the invitation, but a martial-arts contest was a martial-arts contest, and his pride wouldn't let him turn down a competition with the words 'martial-arts' in the title. Even if the contest turned out to be insanely stupid. Kasumi's innate ability to avoid this sort of impending confrontation lead her to the kitchen. She figured it wouldn't hurt to make some sandwiches, since the combatants were likely going to be at it for a while. She had begun slicing a second round of pieces of bread when Nabiki entered the kitchen. "There are some sandwiches on the counter if you want any, Nabiki." "No thanks, big sister. I came in here to ask you a question." "What is it?" Kasumi tried to read Nabiki's expression but couldn't. "Would you be interested in entering the martial-arts cooking contest as Natsumi?" "Why?" Kasumi didn't know what to make of the question. "Oh, for two reasons: One, it might be a good opportunity to train for any more fights, just in case." Nabiki settled for a dramatic pause. "And it couldn't hurt to give Natsumi a little more exposure. It's an excellent marketing opportunity." A huge bead of sweat appeared on Kasumi's forehead. What, was money the only thing that Nabiki thought about? Still, Nabiki had been right about one thing - she definitely could use the training. Although, she continued refusing to think of herself as a fighter... "All right, I'll do it." "Thanks, sis! You won't regret it! I'll take care of the details!" Nabiki raced out of the kitchen. If things worked out, she could make a killing in marketing and Kasumi might pick up the self confidence every magical girl-slash-fighter for justice needed. Nabiki smiled. She'd found herself another couldn't-lose plan to make herself some money. Kasumi remained unmoving in the kitchen, wondering if she was up to the challenge. A voice seemed to come to her from the direction of her mother's shrine. "You can do it, Kasumi. I know you can." She sighed. "Mother, I hope you're right." **** Lunch at the BFC was generally like lunch at every other major corporation in the world. People would gather in the corporate lunchroom and discuss business, or perhaps the fate of their favorite sports teams. The BFC superiors, on the other hand, had their own agendas; sure, they would do the same thing, more or less, discuss business... but the business of a much more sinister enterprise. Such a high-level meeting was taking place this particular afternoon, involving Mine, a younger youma servant, and their immediate superior. "My Lady, I would like to know why she's been given the authority to go ahead with this ludicrous 'martial-arts cooking contest?'" Mine asked, making sure to hurl an acid glance her co-worker's way. "She has provided a rather interesting plan to recruit some martial artists for our cause without attracting suspicion to the BFC like the first plan did." "Using one of our dummy corporations, Sabre 2000," the youngest attendee spoke up, "we will lure the best of this area's martial artists into a trap they can's possibly escape from. My little cooking contest. Ha!!" Mine raised an eyebrow. "'Sabre 2000?'" she echoed. "Sounds like a steak knife set, not a corporation. And your plan sounds like the typical 'bad guy setup' for a trap. Do you *really* expect it to work?" The youth was about to respond to Mine's question when their superior cut her off. "Enough in-fighting. We're on the same side here, after all. Mine, my decision stands. She will go ahead with this trap." Their superior straightened. "I will not tolerate any more squabbling over my decisions, either. My decisions are made with the best interests of this company in mind and the 'Master Vision' BFC has for the future. Do you understand?" "Yes, my Lady." "Good. I hope we do not have this problem in the future. As for the other plan, I see no reason why it should not proceed. If it is successful, the BFC will control the best natural resources in the world. If it fails, then the failure will be accounted for, with the usual penalties for wasting company resources." The younger youma froze upon hearing the words. She knew the price of failure, and didn't intend to pay such a severe price. "I won't fail you, my Lady." She disappeared from the office. "Well, Mine, any other questions?" "No, my Lady, I'll be leaving now." Mine bowed, leaving the office by foot. She kept a slight smile to herself. What her impetuous co-worker didn't know was that Mine had known about her plan from the very beginning, and had wanted her to proceed with it. It would, after all, lead to total failure, and the elimination of another potential adversary. The one person Mine needed to complete Phase 1 of her plan would be left out of the snafu because of the business conference she had scheduled for the weekend. With the conference, Ukyou Kuonji would be hers for the taking. **** It was the day of the cooking contest, and it seemed like everyone in the entire district was present to enjoy the spectacle. "Okay, everyone! Sabre 2000 is proud to present the best of the best, the greatest of the greatest! All together in one location for the martial-arts cooking contest! Be sure to get your tickets now; you won't want to miss this one! We'll be starting in about two hours!" And everyone did rush to get their very own ticket, each person not suspecting the setup to be an average evil-demon-type trap. But the announcer really didn't care; if this plan worked the BFC would have a vast amount of new... 'recruits.' None of the martial artists recognized the trap, either, but most of them had preoccupied themselves with different concerns. Akane was busy recalling different ways to prepare cup ramen, and thinking of ways to trounce Shampoo. Shampoo was running through plans to take Akane out of the running - none of which involved Akane's safety and well-being - and ways to win Ranma's heart. Ranko was wondering how in the world she was going to keep the property damage to a minimum. And the others had come without suspicion. Who in their right minds would plan a cooking contest with evil in mind? Everyone was so distracted that they had overlooked any signs that would point to a trap, and normally that would mean it was smooth sailing for the youma's plan. However, it wasn't going to be that easy. "What do you MEAN Ukyou Kuonji hasn't shown up, yet!?" The youma yelled at her underling. She liked the feeling of being in charge, though she wisely kept that to herself. Now wasn't the time to be drunk with power, anyway. If Ukyou didn't show up, the small circle of four of the most powerful martial artists this town had to offer would not be complete, and there was no way the youma wanted to present her superior with an incomplete package. The end result? Failure, with the 'usual penalties.' "I need another martial artist *right now*! Find me one, or be prepared to face the consequences!" Nabiki allowed herself the luxury of a slight grin, having overheard the entire conversation. Ukyou, not attend a martial-arts cooking contest? Hmm, maybe Nabiki's influence was rubbing off on her. Nabiki liked the idea: a little competition was good for business. Oh, well, Ukyou's loss, Natsumi's gain... "Excuse me," she cleared her throat. "I may be able to help you find another martial artist." The youma looked relieved. "You can?" "Hey, you can trust me," Nabiki replied, in a voice that did everything *but* encourage a sense of trust. "Just hurry! I need him or her up there, now!" "Okay!" Nabiki yelled, rounding the corner and heading for the ladies' room. Kasumi was there, waiting for Nabiki's signal. "We're in," Nabiki told her older sister. "How are you going to change into Natsumi?" Kasumi seemed confident. "Like this--" "Love Power...... *TRANSFORM*!!!" A strange yet familiar warm glow enveloped Kasumi. Her outfit seemed to dissolve away as brighter strands of living energy circulated around her body. A lemon yellow skirt coalesced around her waist, and a lime-green top appeared above it. A bright yellow bow, boots of the same unassuming color and elegant white gloves finished off the ensemble while the brooch settled into its place, nestled within the center of the bow. "How do I look, Nabiki?" Nabiki kept her mouth shut. "Fine. That should do. I just have one more question, though..." "Yes?" "Would you mind terribly if I filmed your transformation scene for the etchi market?" A large bead of sweat appeared on Natsumi's forehead. "Nabiki!!" "Just kidding, sis. We'll stay with the kids' market; it's more lucrative anyway," Nabiki smirked, leading Natsumi out of the restroom. Natsumi studied her sister with an untrained eye. Although Nabiki usually came up with some extreme plans to make her money, when it was necessary Nabiki would always pull through for her family. It was Nabiki's handiwork that kept the dojo expense account in the black, even considering all the dojo repairs that had to be made on an almost-daily basis, ever since Ranma and Genma had come to live with the Tendo family. Right about now, Nabiki wore that look of grim determination that said no one had better cross her or her family, unless they wanted to face the consequences. She'd directed this gaze at the youma running the entire show, but her target didn't catch it. Instead, the youma was busy sizing up the fighter Nabiki had brought, and began to curse Fate for bringing her a magical girl, of all people. "I guess you're in," the youma muttered in a tone of defeat. She wondered if it was too late to start a less stressful job, perhaps something along the line of hostage negotiating... "Was there ever any doubt?" Nabiki gave Natsumi a quick hug, whispering, "Do your best!" Natsumi smiled, proceeding to the main arena where the contest was to be held. She still had doubts as to whether she would succeed or fail. But with Nabiki and her mother watching over her, Natsumi felt like she could do just about anything. The youma - on the other hand - thought she couldn't do anything right. Her brilliant plan would be ruined by the appearance of this magical girl, whoever she was. Still, there was one way she could save face in front of her boss... eliminate this pest of a magical girl, or better yet, bring her and the martial artists for her superiors to do with as they pleased. Yes, that would prove once and for all her status as the best corporate youma in the BFC, and that she deserved to be promoted. A nervous smile formed on her face. Today would either be her greatest victory, or her greatest defeat. **** The arena was packed to the rafters with spectators anxiously awaiting the start of the contest. There were two main reasons for this. For starters, everyone loved a good fight, and there had been no shortage of that lately. Plus, the crowd would double as the judges for the event, meaning free food for everyone... Maybe that was the reason the majority of the crowd looked like college students, Nabiki thought. But irregardless of the age groups, the crowd was excited, and no one was going to take that away from them. It took a high-pitched squeal from the PA system to silence the crowd. For the moment, anyway. "Ladies and gentlemen, it gives me great pleasure to welcome you to the first annual Sabre 2000 martial-arts cooking contest! Where it's not just size, speed and skill that counts, but taste, too!" Someone in the crowd groaned at the attempt at humor. "And now, for our four competitors. Hailing from the Tendo Dojo, Akane Tendo!!" Akane entered the ring to a round of applause, though some of the audience more familiar with her cuisine turned blue at the thought of actually having to eat such things. "Next, from China, please welcome our next competitor, Shampoo!" Another round of defined applause greeted Shampoo. Hmm... with Shampoo in the running, the thought of having to eat Akane's cooking wasn't as intimidating. In fact, more people knew about the Nekohanten and Shampoo's own brand of cooking, especially since Shampoo's great-grandmother had made a name for her restaurant. The oddsmakers were also interested. For whenever Shampoo and Akane were in the same ring, it was bound to be an interesting fight. "Our third competitor, also representing the Tendo Dojo... Ranko Tendo!" Everyone applauded for Ranma, including Shampoo, whom Akane tried to stop with a glare of ice. Not everyone knew who Ranko was, but those who knew Ranma's secret and Ranma in general knew that he or she wasn't going to disappoint anyone in the fighting department. With Ranma, Akane and Shampoo present, there was going to be a great fight, indeed. "Our final competitor hails from parts unknown. She's a mystery, all right... Let's give a warm welcome for, Natsumi!" By now the arena was in an uproar - not for Natsumi, but anticipation over the impending showdown between the three known martial artists. Which of the three would survive? Only four people truly paid any attention at all to Natsumi, one of which was Nabiki. The other three... were her opponents. "All right, everyone take your places, and let's begin!" the announcer exclaimed, as the youma took her place in the crowd. The four fighters rushed to their would-be kitchens to plan their individual strategies. Akane glanced at the mysterious newcomer and decided not to face off against her unless it was absolutely necessary. She couldn't quite place her finger on why, but this Natsumi reminded her somehow of Kasumi. She also decided to steer clear of worrying about Shampoo for the moment and focus on Ranma as her first target. After all, Ranma was a decent cook herself when she had to be, and Akane didn't want to think about having to live through the humiliation of Ranma beating her in a cooking contest. Again. Ranma decided against attacking Natsumi, though not for the same reasons as Akane. She wanted to wait and see what kind of skill this new opponent had before they had to fight, something Ranma usually didn't do until much later in the game. She also decided to keep her distance from Shampoo, who would only get emotional and cause an avalanche of problems. At least this Natsumi wasn't going to pound him for any of that... was she? So, she settled for the only option left: Akane. Shampoo's strategy was even more simple. She had to eliminate two people - Akane, and this Natsumi person. And Shampoo would take care of the newcomer first, so she could spend the remainder of her time humiliating Akane as much as possible. Natsumi, for her part, wasn't planning an attack. Rather, she was the only person out of the four who had actually been cooking something. She had already set aside a completed pot of miso soup when she heard something moving nearby. Natsumi instinctively managed to duck an incoming bonbiri and move into a defensive stance as she prepared for another attack. Before her stood Shampoo, equally prepared and ready to strike. "You give up, so Shampoo no have to hurt." "I'm sorry, but I can't give up!" "Then I attack!!!" Shampoo suddenly sprinted towards Natsumi with her remaining bonbiri in one hand. Natsumi merely stood there as Shampoo ran in to attack. But Natsumi was able to move out of the way as Shampoo arrived, grabbing Shampoo's wrist and levering her onto her back. Shampoo recovered immediately and readied herself for a counterattack. Natsumi once again lapsed into a defensive stance, but now her thoughts were beginning to seep into her concentration. She wondered how she had been able to do such a move, since she hadn't studied martial arts except for a brief period during her childhood. Her mother had insisted she be trained in other things instead, and Soun Tendo, sure that he would later have a son to carry on the family name, agreed. Shampoo interrupted Natsumi's flashback with a spinning side kick that Natsumi was able to duck. The crowd was enjoying the fight between Natsumi and Shampoo. They hadn't expected the newcomer to be such a good martial artist, yet she was putting up a great show against Shampoo. Nabiki was yelling at the top of her lungs, hoping Natsumi would show Shampoo who was the better fighter. There was also concern in Nabiki's voice. Where had Kasumi picked up this level of martial-arts skill? Not from the brooch, if anything. No, this skill could only come from years of training, training Kasumi never had. The youma was also enjoying the fight, though for different reasons than the crowd. She enjoyed seeing the magical girl squirm, trying to fend off Shampoo's attacks. Unfortunately, Natsumi seemed to be doing a decent job of defending herself. The youma still had her advantage. With Natsumi distracted by Shampoo, she could initiate her attack now and take all four warriors by surprise. And Natsumi would go down in bitter defeat. **** Yelling a battle cry at the top of her lungs, Shampoo launched herself toward Natsumi with a drop-kick. But before she could connect, her path was blocked by a wall literally made up of millions of large chow-mein noodles. The noodles quickly encircled the ring, cutting the four warriors apart from the outside world. "I hope you're ready for the final showdown! 'Cause if you are, you aren't gonna be disappointed!" the youma yelled, transforming her appearance. She leapt into the supposedly edible ring, landing in front of Natsumi and lauging the typical evil-youma laugh as she did so. "Well, I see you're all tied up at the moment. But don't worry; you'll be dead soon, and the others... let's just say they're going to have a little career change in their immediate future!" the youma gloated, now looking like one of the large rubber monsters from those shows Natsumi had never really watched to begin with. "Now, prepare yourself for my final attack! Take-out Food NIGHTMARE!!!" At that point an undeterminable amount of take-out dishes began to materialize about the youma. Those high enough in the stands to still see what was going on in the ring above the wall of chow-mein - and whom hadn't fled in terror and panic - might have enjoyed the thought of having one of those apparently tasty dishes, but Nabiki, still at ringside, ignored them. She was more concerned over Kasumi and what those dangerous dishes might do to her. A sphere of green energy formed around Natsumi. In a matter of moments the noodles that had bound her had vanished. To the youma's shock, Natsumi began powering up for an attack. "Cooking should be something done for pleasure, not used as a tool in an act of terror." Nabiki thought. "I won't have you using the art of cooking to further your acts of evil! In the name of love and honor, I'm Natsumi, the magical girl!" More bright green energy came to life, swirling about Natsumi. The youma sighed. She had decided to pass on trying to escape - this 'death' would be far less painful to bear than the one she would experience at the hands of her BFC superiors. "......Love Power Strike, NOW!!" The Strike caught up with the youma, encasing her in a sphere of that same green energy. The youma screamed, and turned into a fine powder that blew away on the wind. Natsumi collapsed onto the arena's mat, exhausted. How could she help save the world if she kept falling into these stereotypical youma traps? She was supposed to save people from them, not fall victim to them herself, wasn't she? The sight of Shampoo running toward her interrupted this particular train of thought. Natsumi warily prepared herself for an attack, weak as she was, though what Shampoo did instead surprised her. Shampoo bowed. "You are capable fighter, Natsumi-san. We no fight each other." But then a cat-like smile appeared on Shampoo's face. "For now." That said, Shampoo left to see if she could tend to Ranma. Natsumi let out a huge sigh of relief. She really hadn't felt like fighting anyone right about now. Or anything else, for that matter. Yet those remaining from the crowd had different ideas. They cheered and clapped - some even catcalled - and asked for an encore. Some even shouted, wanting to know if they could go out on a date with her. Natsumi gave another sigh, leaving the building. She wasn't sure if she was ready to be a hero, but she was definitely sure of one thing: she didn't want to be an idol. Nabiki, in contrast, was delighted. Natsumi would be a marketing tool to help her achieve financial success. She had visions of mutual funds dancing in her mind when she suddenly recalled a news article she had read a few months ago. She recalled that all of the controlling shares in the Sabre 2000 company had been agressively bought up by another corporation. BFC. The corporation that had a hand in the first youma attack. It was one hell of a coincidence, and coincidence was one thing Nabiki refused to believe in. **** Ukyou sighed. The business conference that was supposed to have made her quite a tidy little profit, had in fact brought in little more than a lousy five yen. It almost seemed as though there weren't even a conference in town as nobody had come to the restaurant at all; most likely everyone had gone to the cooking competition, Ukyou thought sourly to herself. One person *had* come in, but Ukyou knew she would have had better luck had she attended the contest. She might have been able to win the love of her true fiancee, Ranma Saotome. "What's wrong, Kuonji-san?" Mine asked, feigning concern. "I thought today was going to be a great business day, so I stayed here instead of doing something else I should've done." "The martial-arts cooking competition?" Mine spoke into her thoughts. Ukyou was surprised. "Yeah. How'd you know?" Mine smiled. "Call it a hunch." "Anyway," Ukyou gestured to the empty restaurant, "this is what it got me." Mine appeared thoughtful for a moment. "Well, I'm sorry to hear that. Perhaps I can do something to make the day a better business day for you." The windup, and the pitch. "How would you like to join the BFC in a joint venture to produce a restaurant chain?" Mine saw she had Ukyou's attention. "Think of it... your name could be on everyone's minds from everyone in Japan! And the same for your food! Maybe one day, you can even have restaurants around the world!" Ukyou smiled. Mine was perhaps being a little overzealous, but she *was* offering Ukyou a great shot at financial success. "Sure, why not? I'd love to!" "Great! Come back with me to my office, then, and we'll work out the paperwork!" Mine tried to hold back her laughter. Phase one of her plan would soon be complete, as soon as Ukyou Kuonji was turned into a youma slave... To be continued...