Kisame looked up at Itachi in disbelief. Itachi watched Kisame with cold piercing eyes. Feeling the life leave him, Kisame fell backwards onto his back, staring up toward the sky. "So this is how it ends?" Kisame asked himself. "For you at least," Itachi said. Itachi watched as Kisame closed his eyes, dying right where he lay. After a good minute, the person that Kisame had mistaken for Itachi turned around and started walking away, but not before he said something to himself. "Itachi-niisan, may you rest peacefully," "America seems retarded," Ranma said bluntly. "And just what's wrong with America?" Storm seemed offended at the comment. "Well, let's take football for instance," Ranma said, "Why does America call it soccer when it's known as football in every other part of the world? And why is football in America something completely unrelated either what football is everywhere else?" "America can be quirky like that," was Jean answered. "Actually, that's probably why most of the world can't stand American," Ranma shrugged, "America tends to think its citizens better than all others in the world," "Ooh, this should be interesting," Urd snickered. Much like the way Ritsuko loved taking battle in a heated debate, Urd loved listening. Misato smirked as she turned toward the X-Men, "You guys are from America, what makes America so special? Most people that live in America truly believe America to be the greatest country in the world. Do you think this is true or do you think the people who claim this are just plain ignorant?" Cyclops jumped in, "Well, if you think about it, Ranma's comment about America being so-called retarded seems to be one born of ignorance," "Oh?" Ranma perked an eyebrow. "One of America's main appeal is the freedom its citizens have," Cyclops said. "I guess that be why other countries in the world hate America, because they're jealous, huh?" Ranma smirked. "Don't go putting words in my mouth," Cyclops said. "Well, almost all of us are adults here," Ranma leaned back in his seat, "It should be amusing having such an adult conversation," "So are you saying Japan is better than America?" Storm asked wryly. "Actually, it is," Skuld pointed out. "Hey, no fair," Ranma pointed toward Skuld, "You don't get to take part in the conversation," "And why not?!" Skuld shouted at Ranma. "Because you're God, stupid!" Ranma answered, "Exactly how do you expect people to debate the sayings of God?" The X-Men held their breath, as if expecting some horrible wrath of God to occur because Ranma called God 'stupid' right to her face. But for some odd reason, nothing happened. "Oh yeah," Skuld bonked the top of her head, "Nevermind. I'll just remain silent and listen," "How's Japan better than America?" Jean asked curiously, clearing her throat, "Now that it's already known, it's useless that anyone try to contend that America is better," Skuld said, "Oh, because I like Japan," "So what you're saying is that because you like Japan, Japan is automatically better than America?" Cyclops asked. "Hell yeah," Ranma said, "In your world, America is considered the greatest country, right?" Ranma asked. "Most of its citizens think that, yes," Cyclops had to agree, "However, I'm pretty sure every citizen would think the same about their country," Ritsuko decided to jump in, "While I don't have animosity toward the United States, I must say that some of that country's views seem crazy," "Like what?" Beast seemed genuinely interested in hearing Ritsuko's views. Beast looked like his human form, a holograph emitter on his person giving off such an impression. Skuld created the device right before they left Ranma's house for the restaurant. "Well, for instance, America views eating dog as disgusting," Ritsuko commented, "Yet there are billions of people outside America that view it as perfectly okay. What makes America think their views is right over that of the billions of others?" "Care to take it, Beast?" Jean asked. "In America, dogs are considered pets," Beast said, "An attachment usually occurs with an owner and his or her pets so it's perfectly understandable that one would consider something as disgusting as eating one's own pets. For instance, it's no different than you thinking cannibalism is disgusting even though there are certain tribes that view it as perfectly acceptable," "Douche," Ranma smiled. "It's touché," Akane muttered toward Ranma. "Oh," Ranma gave a shy smile. "I guess that could explain why American's have no problems eating cows, even though cows are viewed as sacred creatures by the Hindu," Ritsuko said. "Yes," Beast said. "Aw, that's no fun," Ranma said, "I was hoping Ritsuko and Beast would argue against one another. It should make for interesting listening," "I'll play Devil's advocate," Ritsuko said, smiling, "Okay, Beast, you do have a point. However, what makes you think creating an emotional attachment to an animal is right?" "Well, pets provide a sense of companionship," Beast stated, "Throughout history, people feel a sense of companionship or emotional attachment to creatures or things. It's similar to people feeling certain items present sentimental value even though those items that are non-living," "So what you're saying is that as long as you don't allow such a connection to come into fruition, it would be perfectly okay?" Ritsuko asked. Beast scratched his chin for a moment, "Well, if you bring that into the equation, then a sense of morality become an issue. Unfortunately, morality is purely subjective. And once a sense of morality becomes an issue, society is what dictates morality," Everyone could be seen trying to keep up with the conversation, some having trouble. "You're right, society is what makes you feel guilty or not guilty about what you do," Ritsuko nodded. "Yes," Beast said. Before long, the two of them ended up agreeing with one another. "Man, Ritsuko, you're not good at being a Devil's advocate in a debate," Ranma said. "And you can be any better?" Ritsuko asked, "While I like a good debate as much as the next person because it helps me see two sides of a view, I do have problems trying to disregard some of the things I know for the sake of argument," "Fine, I'll do it," Ranma said. He scratched his chin, "Okay, here's a good debate, evolution is fake," "Pardon me?" Beast seemed almost offended by such a claim, "Did I hear that correctly?" "Ooh, this should be interesting," Urd perked an eyebrow and the anarchy that would most likely occur from such a statement. "Are you saying that there is such thing as intelligent design?" Beast asked. Ranma pointed toward Skuld, "Yeah. We all know that God created existence. The question is....how far back?" Beast stopped dead in his tracks, "Hm...that's an interesting question," "That's actually a good question to ask yourselves," Urd said, "Exactly when did your world become a Godless world?" Beast felt like he was being put on the spot, "I never actually thought of something like that," Urd said, "As you know, I created your world back when I was God. However, what you don't know is when I left your world to run on auto-pilot so to speak. At what point in your world's timely do you think I left?" "Can you give some clues?" Beast asked, figuring he was just given the opportunity of a life-time, the opportunity to find out when his world became God-less, not that sitting down and eating with two former God and the new current God wasn't something to shake a stick at. Urd proceeded to provide subtle clues as to when she left the world of the X- Men, Beast making postulation at the rough time of when she left, all of them not even close. This went on for a good ten minutes before everyone started to realize that Beast was not going to figure it out. "I guess you're not gonna get it," Urd grinned, "It should be understandable because you are limited by human understanding," Beast sighed, "And here I was hoping I would get it," "Have you ever played a game 'Stanley and Ja-Kirbee'?" Ranma asked from out of the blue. "What's that?" Beast asked. "Nevermind," Ranma shrugged, "Figured I'd give you a clue," "What does a video game have to do with it?" Beast asked, "Are you saying I should find this game and play it to find out? Or does the name of the game have some subtle clue?" Ranma shrugged, "Who knows?" Beast continued to ask for more clues while Urd continued to be enigmatic in her answers. As Beast continued to pester Urd, the others began indulging in their own individual conversations. "Is Ranma a virgin?" Misato asked Jean as they sat next to one another. "What? Why are you asking me that?" Jean was taken back at being asked such a personal question. "Well, you have telepathy, right? Can't you use your telepathic powers to delve into Ranma's mind to find out if he's, y'know, done it with another woman?" Misato asked. "And why would you want to know something like that?" Jean asked. Jean regarded Misato for a bit. Misato seemed to be the most sexually aggressive woman she had ever met. However, it wasn't a form of aggressiveness that would label her a 'slut'. It was a quality that Jean couldn't quite figure out or label. To label her a slut would be shallow-minded of whoever who would actually even consider her one. "No one knows if Ranma's a virgin or not," Misato said seriously, "And no matter how much we try to poke and prod him for a definite answer, he isn't budging on the issue," Jean turned her attention toward Ranma, watching him for a moment as he seemed to enjoying himself and the company around him. Storm was sitting to one side of him. Oddly enough, she didn't seem to be displaying any hostility toward him or annoyance at sitting next to someone like Ranma. It was known among the group that Storm found his antics offensive and annoying, but he yet to ever really act on her anger. It seemed rather strange that a strong woman like Storm would not only tolerate Ranma's antics, but would not even try to nip it in the bud. Ranma obviously had some kind of quality that drew women toward him. If that was the case, he could probably have any woman he wanted and there was more than a likely chance she would sleep with him. While she was in love with Cyclops, Jean had to admit that there was a couple qualities she did found more attractive on Ranma than her own husband. Ranma's unpredictability was a both an aggravating and attractive quality. That was probably one of the main traits that drew women to Ranma. Being around Ranma kept women on their toes because they never knew what would happen next. While all women preferred stability in a relationship over adventure, there was a quality to Ranma that gave off the impression that he could provide both stability and adventure. It must be his ability to deal with children, Jean thought. Women are maternal by instinct. Seeing Ranma interact with children usually made most women's heart skip a beat because he was so good with children that it gave the impression that he would be the perfect father. Perhaps that was why Storm didn't outright hate him, because deep down inside, she could not bring herself to hate him. Storm had once watched Ranma deal with a crying baby in the street once, while she had been on her way to the Laundromat. It was one of the most incredible things she had ever witness. Perhaps Ranma appealed to women's subconscious and instinctual side, the realization that he would make for a perfect parent should they have children. Cyclops, who sat next to Jean, noticed Jean staring at Ranma, "Is there a reason why you're staring at Ranma like you're trying to burn a whole through his head?" Jean blushed as she said, "Of course not. If that were the case, it'd probably be easier for you to do that," Cyclops chuckled. Misato leaned in toward Jean, "So what do you think?" Cyclops regarded both Jean and Misato, wondering what they were talking about. Misato looked at Cyclops for a second before she asked Jean, "So you think there's anything on your world to alleviate menstrual cramps?" Cyclops immediately turned his attention away, diving back into eating his meal as he realized they were having women talk and he wanted nothing to do with it. Misato snickered, "There's no faster way to get a guy to stop trying to eavesdrop than to talk about women problems," Jean laughed. Misato was definitely an amusing individual. She could definitely see herself getting along fine with Misato. "So, do you think you can find out if Ranma's a virgin?" Misato asked. "Well, yes, I can, but I don't intend to do so," Jean said, "It's an invasion of Ranma's privacy," "Bah," Misato waved a dismissive hand, "How can you be like that when he's probably done the same to you?" Jean thought about that comment for a moment before realizing that it did happen. Ranma had invaded her privacy to suit his own needs. Sure, he did so just to find out what her measurements were, but that wasn't the issue. "You know what? Maybe I should," Jean said, more to herself than Misato, "However, why would you want to find out anyway?" "Well, you're happily married so I guess it's okay to tell you since I don't have to worry about you wanting to go after Ranma," Misato said. "I may be married but I am also a woman," Jean said. A second later, she brought her hands up over her mouth as if she couldn't believe what she said. It sounded like being married and being a woman were two different roles. Misato said, "Well, aren't you curious if he's a virgin or not?" "No," Jean said. The problem was that she now found herself curious, no thanks to Misato planting that seed of curiosity in her head. "What kind of woman are you?" Misato asked. Considering they were talking woman-to-woman, the comment seemed almost offensive, as if Misato was questioning her female nature, "And what's that supposed to mean? I'm married," "Ah, so that's the reason for not being curious," Misato chuckled. "Yes, it is," Jean said, "That's never crossed my mind until you mentioned it. And why should it matter if he is or not? Heck, it's pretty obvious that he isn't," "What? What makes you think he isn't?" Misato asked, smirking. Ritsuko had tried to hypothesize whether or not he was a virgin. If Ritsuko couldn't come up with a definite conclusion after all that researching, then Misato was very sure Jean would not know either. "Unless you actually slept with him or actually saw him sleep with someone, I think you're simply speculating," Jean found herself almost at a loss of words, "Because...how can he not?" "That's speculation," Misato said. "Let's say that he is, why does it matter?" Jean asked. "That means he's a virgin," Misato grabbed Jean's arms and shook her a bit, "That means he's as pure as snow," "It also means he'll be inexperienced," Jean had to add. Misato said, "No. If anything, he's more experienced than any man could possibly be on Earth," Jean found the comment ludicrous, "Okay, I've got to hear how you came to that conclusion," "Ranma used to be cursed," Misato said, "He used to be cursed to change into a woman," Jean asked, "W-what?" "Yeah," Misato nodded, "When he was young, he used to be cursed in a way that he would change into a female when splashed with cold water and change back into a male when splashed with warm water," "That's crazy," Jean said. "Do you not get it? That means he's the only guy with actual physical knowledge of the female body," Misato said, "No man actually has that knowledge so that means he has an edge over every guy on the planet," Jean said, "Well, what about people who have had sex changes?" "That's not the same," Misato said, "For instance, let's say you were a guy that had a sex change into a woman. Your equipment isn't quite the same as an actual woman's. With Ranma, it'd be like a woman that changed into a guy, but the equipment is perfect," Jean said, "Man, I can't believe I'm having this conversation. This is the weirdest conversation I've ever heard?" "What, you want me to talk to you like a white person?" Misato asked, "So, what do you think of this here weather? It's atrocious, don't you think? At least it isn't as bad as last year. Hey, how did you get here? Did you take the I-90 or the I-287?" "Huh?" Jean asked, "Aren't you being a bit racist?" "What, don't all white people talk about the weather and driving routes to certain locations?" Misato asked, "Okay, maybe that might not be the case, but I wouldn't be surprised if Cyclops ends up talking about that stuff with other married people, that you introduce him to," Jean was silent for a moment, "You're just like Ranma. That's something I would expect Ranma to say," "I guess I've been around Ranma for so long it's rubbing off on me," Misato said. "So, what would you do if it turns out he isn't a virgin?" Jean asked. She found herself wishing she had other subjects to talk about. It was either whether or not Ranma was a virgin, or what White people talk about, two very odd subjects. Misato said, "Then I'd go after him more. Because that means he has done it before and it would be possible to get him to do it again. However, if he isn't, that means I have to go after him as well so I could be his first," Jean said nothing for a second, "If Ranma's a virgin, you're going to go after him because he's never had sex. If Ranma isn't a virgin, you're going to go after him because he has had sex," "Basically," Misato nodded. Jean said, "Um, I don't know if you know this, but those aren't exactly good reasons," "Oh, there are other reasons also," Misato quickly said, "Y'know, reasons like I'm in love with him and want to spend the rest of my life with him and want to raise of family with him," Jean was taken aback by the comment, "Oh, I didn't realized you had those reasons as well. I just figured your initial reason was your one and only reason," "Nah," Misato said. "Has it ever occurred to you to ask him if he's a virgin or not?" Jean asked. "Ranma, Jean is wondering if you're a virgin," Misato called out across the table. The soda Cyclops was drinking shot out of his nose when he heard that. He turned toward Jean, "What?" Everyone around the table suddenly became quiet. "Wouldn't you like to know?" Ranma answered before resuming his eating. Misato turned toward Jean, "You see? It doesn't help to ask. He always leaves you guessing," "That's not the issue!" Jean said, "I never wanted to find such a thing out. Why are you making it so that it seems like I'm the one who wants to find out!" "Honey, what's this about?" Cyclops asked. Jean said, "It's nothing. Misato's messing with me. She's curious if Ranma's a virgin and wanted to make me uncomfortable, which obviously did work out that way," "I'm just messing with her," Misato smiled. "Ah," Cyclops smiled, as if relieved. "You're a virgin?" Logan asked Ranma. "Maybe I am, maybe I'm not," Ranma shrugged. Logan started laughing, "Heh, virgin, huh?" Every woman glared at Logan. "What's wrong with being a virgin?" Skuld asked first before several others asked that same question, giving indication that several of them found Logan's comment about their sexual inexperience or their sexual choice to wait to be offensive. "Ooh, you're screwed, Logan," Ranma burst out laughing, "This is not gonna turn out good for you," "Ranma you jerk!" Asuka shouted at Ranma as she chased him down the hallway in her pajamas, trying to hit him with a bokken Akane given her as a present. A portion of Asuka's face was covered with shaving cream, Ranma having decided to wake Asuka up in an amusing but aggravating manner, but putting shaving cream in one of her hands and tickling her face while she slept. "You were sleeping so peacefully I couldn't resist," Ranma ran through the house, laughing. Asuka looked ready to explode. Even though she liked receiving attention from Ranma, she didn't like this kind of attention. It was early morning and she had forgotten to set her alarm clock for school. When she didn’t come downstairs, Ranma had gone up to wake her up and decided to play a funny, albeit childish, joke on her. "Hey, at least it worked, you're wide awake now," Ranma smiled, backpedaling while skillfully dodging her bokken swings. "Pervert!" Asuka called out, remembering the secret code to shout out in order to hit him. It seemed like there was something fundamentally odd with this world where women seemed to develop increased strength as well as one hundred percent accuracy with any forms of attacks or weapons as long as they said the word 'pervert' and were in melee range prior to hitting a guy. Asuka struck Ranma in the head, causing him to wince in pain. "No fair using that cheat!" Ranma said, as he took a leap back to dodge Asuka's second attack. He was able to dodge it because she didn't say 'Pervert' a second time. "Pervert!" she said again as she struck him a second time in the shoulder. Ranma quickly blocked the attack with his forearms but winced in pain as the attack seemed to pass right through the heavy bracers he wore and into his arms. It felt much like trying to block a baseball bat while wearing a suit of armor. The impact still passed through. Realizing Asuka had no problems using 'God-mode' to attack him, Ranma quickly turned tail to run out of the house. God-mode was the term Ranma called the temporary power bestowed upon women that wanted to hit a man after saying the word 'pervert'. To him, using that trick was basically cheating in the utmost form, like using a 'God-Mode' cheat in a video game. Wanting to outrun Asuka before she hit him again, he made a mad dash for the front entrance. God-Mode was proximity based so as long as he got out of melee range of Asuka, he would be safe. He quickly opened the front door and darted out, just as Jean and the others were walking up to the front entrance. They were there that morning to say their goodbyes before returning to their world. Jean was standing in front of the group, about to ring the doorbell when the door opened up and Ranma shot out straight toward her like lightning. "Oh oh!" Ranma said as he realized he was going too fast to dodge Jean. The two of them collided into one another, Jean tumbling backwards where they ended up toppling over everyone behind her. When the dust cleared, Ranma was lying on top of Jean while Jean on top of everyone else. "Ugh," Ranma muttered, his head hurting. "Pervert!" he heard Asuka's voice before a sharp pain shot up his back. "Ow!" he shouted as he quickly rolled around on the ground to see who was attacking him. His eyes widened as he saw Asuka, her face covered in shaving cream, holding a bokken high above her head as if ready to strike her opponent down. "Pervert!" Asuka shouted again as she tried to hit Ranma. Ranma quickly scooted backwards where the bokken barely missed him. "What the?" Asuka seemed in a state of shock, "How'd that miss? It's not supposed to miss," She was within melee range and used the 'Pervert' God-code against a male opponent, so that meant it should have connected. "Asuka, what are you doing?" Ranma said, held his hands up defensively, as if ready to use telekinetic powers to prevent the bokken from striking him should Asuka try and attack again, "Why are you trying to hit me? It's me, Jean!" Asuka looked down at Ranma, a confused look on her face, "What did you say?" "Huh?" Ranma said. He looked down toward his arms and noticed bracers on them. That was strange, Jean thought. She didn't wear bracers on her forearms, "Where did these come from?" All of a sudden, she heard movement from behind her. "Ugh," came a female voice. Ranma turned around and looked and was shocked at what she saw. On the ground she saw what looked like an exact clone of herself as she tried to get up off Cyclops and the others. "What the?" Ranma said. Her clone got up and proceeded to dust herself, "Shit, sorry about that. I didn't realize you guys were gonna be right outside the door like that," "What the heck's going on here?!" Ranma asked. Her clone turned around toward her. They stared at one another. Ranma looked shocked, as if he found himself staring at a mirror image of himself even though the person in front of him was actually Jean. Ranma stared at Jean as if he though Jean was the mirror image of himself. "Jean?" the clone asked. "Ranma?" Ranma asked. After a moment, the clone pinched the bridge of her nose. "This can't be happening," "Hi, who am I speaking to?" Jean spoke into the telephone. Jean and the other's were in Ranma's house. Because of the sudden turn of events, Jean had taken it upon herself to call Skuld or Urd for help. "Peroth?" Jean asked, "Hey, this is Ranma. I know, my voice sounds differently. Something stupid happened. Anyway, is Skuld or Urd around? It's kind of important," Everyone watched as Jean spoke and listened to the phone for several minutes before hanging up and sighing. "Looks like we're screwed for now," Jean said with a shrug. "And what's that supposed to mean?!" Ranma shouted. It was as if Jean, now in Ranma's body, wasn't used to the extra testosterone which made her more easily angry. "Urd and Skuld are both busy," Jean answered, "It seems like we missed the both of them. They both left Heaven to go instigate an alien invasion of a parallel world," "What's that supposed to mean?" Storm asked. "It means there's no one around to change us back," Jean answered frankly, "The only two people that can change us back easily is Urd or Skuld," "What about Luna Inverse?" Cyclops suggested, remembering the soft-spoken but wise young woman that sat with them during Friday Dinner, "Isn't she the most powerful magic user from her world? Would she and her sister, Lina, be able to help?" Jean said, "Yeah, but she said she and her sister were off to visit another world for a few days. Unfortunately, I have no idea which world they went to. I could ask Urd or Skuld where and they can find out for us, but alas, I can't reach them either," "Well, why not call Heaven and ask them where you can find Skuld or Urd?" Cyclops asked, "That way, they can tell you where Luna and Lina are," "I can't," Jean gave a sheepish smile, "I'm kinda on Heaven's, um, shitlist, so to speak. Skuld and Urd seems to have left specific instructions with Heaven not to let me know where the alien invasion is taking place outta fear that I'll go there to take part in it and ruin their plans," No one said anything, the comment leaving them all speechless. There came a knock at the door. Jean walked over and opened the door to reveal Misato, Ritsuko, and Sylia. "Hey, guys, what brings you here?" Jean asked. Misato gave Jean an odd look, wondering why Jean was opening the door for Ranma, "Um, we're here for Akane," Since it was the weekend, Misato and the others had come around to pick up Akane for a day out around town. "How come you're answering the door?" Misato asked, peering over Jean's shoulder, "Isn't Akane or Ranma or the others around?" "It's me, Ranma," Jean said, jerking a thumb toward the interior of the house, "I accidentally bumped into Jean and we switched bodies," "You're kidding me, right?" Misato asked. Jean shrugged, "Doesn't bother me if you believe me or not," The women followed Jean into the livingroom where they saw Ranma acting very odd, seemingly in a state of panic. "Of course I'm not calm, I'm in someone else's goddamn body!" Ranma shouted toward Cyclops, "And no, this is not like using telepathy to temporarily take control of someone. It feels so much more...pervasive," "Heh," Jean chuckled. "Ranma! Fix this!" Ranma shouted toward Jean, "I'll be damned if I'm going to be stuck in this body for any minute longer!" Jean said, "And just what's wrong with my body?" "It's a man's body, that's what's wrong," Ranma said, "I'm a woman and I like being in a woman's body," "Jean, would it be too much to ask you to masturbate into a test tube so some of us can have Ranma's child?" Misato asked from out of the blue. "Yes, it would be too much to ask!" Ranma said loudly, "Jeez, what's with you women?" "Hey, I'm being considerate," Misato said, "It's not like I asked you to have sex with me since you're married," Jean raised her hand, "Um, I'm still in the room, y'know," "All right, never mind that I asked," Lisa was in front of her computer in the livingroom browsing the Internet that morning when there came a knock on the door. "Come in, it's open," Lisa called out, turning around in her chair to look at the front door. Motoko rubbed her arm as she entered Lisa's apartment. "Good morning, Lisa," Motoko said. "Oh, hi, Motoko, what brings you here?" Lisa smiled. "There seems to be something wrong with this arm," Motoko commented, "Ever since you upgraded the servos in my arm, there seems to be some odd vibration," Lisa sighed, "I guess you didn't bother to follow my advice about waiting a day or so before trying to test out your upgrades more rigorously. There's a break-in period, you know," Lisa was a wizard at cybernetics, a quality she always possessed ever since she was young. Anything that had to do with cybernetics, Lisa was the person to go to. Even though boomers were outlawed in the world, that didn't mean her knowledge and abilities from prior to the outlawing were to be wasted. "I couldn't help it," Motoko said, somewhat apologetically, "I was in pursuit of a criminal yesterday," Motoko was part of an elite division of AD Police that specialized in Internet-related crimes. Lisa's apartment was more of a personal laboratory than an actual home. While it was illegal to make boomers, it wasn't illegal to make cybernetic parts. She constantly tinkered with improving existing cybernetic parts. Motoko and Bateau were perfect 'guinea pigs' for her to do her testing and she had no problems with constantly upgrading their existing parts. While one may think testing out new theories in cybernetics on friends was morally unsound, Lisa was so skilled in her craft that there was no possible chance of harm befalling either of her two friends. Besides, she was used to fixing and upgrading Akane's body all the time, Akane always breaking it from constantly punching Ranma, that tinkering with cybernetic arms and such was child's play. "Alright, let me take a look at the damage you've done," Lisa said, actually eager to work on Motoko again. Lisa didn't work with cybernetics as much as she wanted to and was actually very happy when Ranma brought Motoko and Bateau home with him. She asked Motoko to take off her shirt so it would allow her for easier access to the panel located by her shoulder blades. "You should wear a bra you know," Lisa commented as she poked Motoko's breasts, "The fact that you have the body of a perfectly human female makes men want to stare at your chest. The fact that you don't wear a bra under your shirt makes them probably unable to stop staring," Lisa began re-adjusting the servo motors within Motoko's arm. "There's no need for me to wear them," Motoko said bluntly, "Women wear bras for support, not appearance. This body doesn't need such support. It's more efficient," "Um, you do know you are a woman, right?" Lisa said, smirking, "Just because you've gotten used to a cybernetic body and actually capable of being put into a male body at your discretion doesn't mean you're not a woman," Motoko said nothing for a short while, "You have a point," "Afterall, why else would you have a secret crush on Ryoga?" Lisa laughed. Motoko quickly turned toward Lisa, "And what makes you think that?" Lisa laughed, "The only person oblivious that you have thing for Ryoga seems to be Ranma and Ryoga," Motoko said nothing, as if embarrassed. "Don’t worry, I won't tell on you," Lisa smiled warmly, "I'm sure you'll confess to him when you feel the time is right," There was a long moment of awkward silence as Motoko contemplated what to say. "Well, it's not like it really matters since he likes Akane," Motoko said, somewhat cold. "I guess it's a one-sided love thing," Lisa said with a shrug, "Don't worry, I know how it feels," Lisa had a one-sided crush on Ranma for quite a while but somehow fell out of love with him. Perhaps it was because she loved her work in the field of computer and electronics more than Ranma and working along side Ritsuko made her realize this. Eventually, over time, she found herself simply fond of Ranma. "Who knows?" Motoko smirked. She found it amusing that Lisa wasn't aware that Bateau seemed to have feelings for her. Lisa constantly upgraded Bateau's cybernetic parts that he eventually started having feelings for her, mostly due in part to them spending lots of time together chit chatting to pass the time while Lisa went about upgrading his cybernetic body. "There, done," Lisa stepped back to admire her work. "You're already done?" Motoko was surprised at Lisa's efficiency. "You didn't damage your servos," Lisa said, "They simply needed to be re- adjusted. That's it," There came a knock at the door. "Who is it?" Lisa asked. "It's me, Ranma," Lisa hear a female voice. "That sure don't sound like you," Lisa said, a bit weary. "No shit," came the female response, "You won't believe what happened. Let's just say I did something stupid again," That was definitely Ranma's mannerism. Lisa stopped what she was doing and handed Motoko her shirt back, "Here, put your shirt back on," Motoko simply looked at the shirt but made no effort to put it on. She didn't care about modesty so it didn't bother her at all who saw her naked, even Ranma. "I see no need," Motoko stated firmly, "I'm not ashamed of my body. If it bothers someone that I'm topless, it's their fault," Lisa sighed as she walked over to the door and opened it. In the doorway, she found herself staring at the woman she knew as Jean Gray. "Jean?" Lisa asked, "Why are you doing here? Weren't you leaving for your world today?" She looked behind Jean and noticed Ranma as Ranma looked rather annoyed. Standing next to Ranma was Cyclops and Ryoga. "Lisa, you won't believe what happened," she saw Jean say in fluent Japanese, jerking a thumb toward Ranma, "Jean and I got switched bodies. Right now, I'm stuck in Jean's body and Jean's stuck in my body," It took a good minute before Lisa responded, "W-what?!" "To make a long story short, I crashed into Jean and we accidentally exchanged bodies," Jean said, "In the process, her communicator got broken and we came here to get it fixed," Jean produced the broken communicator from her pocket and held if forward for Lisa to inspect. Lisa continued to regard the woman in front of her, basically in shock. "Can you fix it?" Jean asked, "Jean and Cyclops and Ryoga and I are gonna head over to another world to get this little problem fixed," Motoko appeared by the doorway, now wearing her shirt, "Hi," "Hello," Ryoga said, "It's nice seeing you here," "Likewise," Motoko smiled warmly, "So, what brings you here?" "Jean....Ranma.....um.....I bumped into the person that is supposed to be Ranma," Ryoga answered after a moment, "We were supposed to spar today but now that this incident happened, that might be postponed," "Well, it's not like it really matters since I'm sure you'll beat him," Motoko said. "Hey, it's not like I'm not here," Jean muttered. "Thanks," Ryoga smiled at Motoko's comment. Motoko smiled back. "She's acting like a schoolgirl," Lisa snicker. "Huh?" Jean asked. "It's nothing," Lisa said when she noticed Motoko stare daggers at her, "Anyway, come on in. Let me take a look at it," Jean said, "Thanks," Jean, Ranma, Cyclops, and Ryoga entered the apartment and went to the livingroom. Lisa checked out the communicator and noticed that it was indeed broken but could be easily fixed. "I can fix this," Lisa said, "It should take me a few minutes to replace the parts," Lisa left the room to fix the communicator. "So, Motoko-chan, what brings you here?" Jean smirked. Realizing that only Ranma spoke like that to her, Motoko realized Ranma was telling the truth, she responding to him the way she usually did, "It's none of your business," Jean shrugged, "Okay," "Hey, did I see you chasing after someone yesterday?" Ryoga asked curiously. "Perhaps," Motoko said, wondering when Ryoga saw her. She was pretty sure she would have noticed Ryoga even while distracted chasing someone. He kind of stood out among a crowd. Ryoga described the person she was chasing perfectly. "That's right, I guess you did see me yesterday," Motoko said. "Did you catch him?" Ryoga asked, "I'm sure you probably did since you're so good at your job of apprehending criminals," "Yes, I did," Motoko said, rubbing her arm, "However, in the process, I think I might have blown out one of the servos in my arm," "Gee, it seems you have no problems telling Ryoga about your business," Jean smirked wryly. Motoko realized that that seemed to be the case, the she seemed to be more open around Ryoga and willing to divulge more information about herself or what she did during her day just to keep a conversation going. "Hey, that's actually good timing," Jean snapped her fingers. "What do you mean?" Motoko asked. "We were on our way to another world to get our bodies switched back," Jean said, "That world specializes in Alchemy," "Alchemy?" Motoko asked. "On that world, people can not gain anything without sacrificing something," Jean said, "They must present something of equal value in order to gain something. That's the principle of equivalent trade in alchemy. Well, on that world, they seem to be on the verge of figuring out how to putting souls in a body," "Wait, you intend to go to this world and have them using this Alchemy thing to have them return you to your rightful bodies?" Motoko asked. Jean nodded, "Yep. I recall there is some guy called the Full Metal Alchemist that seems to be very knowledgeable of soul and body transfers. It couldn't hurt to find him and ask for his help," "What does that have to do with timing?" Motoko asked. "Well, even though that world centers around Alchemy, there exist this technology there called Auto-mail," Ranma said, "It's very much like cybernetic implants, but I heard its actually superior to our worlds cybernetics," "Are you questioning my abilities?" Lisa asked as she entered the livingroom, now with a fully repaired communicator in her hands. "Jeez, that was quick," Jean stated. "It was simple to fix," Lisa stated, "So, as you were saying, this Auto-mail is better than this world's cybernetic parts?" Jean nodded, "To the best of my knowledge, yes," "Interesting," Lisa said. "How about you come with us?" Jean asked, "You can learn up on this technology. Perhaps you might like it and derive future cybernetic parts from it," Lisa scratched her chin, deep in thought, "That sounds really interesting, but I think I'm going to have to pass. I like my own style of cybernetics and don't wish to copy or steal from other worlds," "Hm, I guess that's a good reason," Jean said. Lisa cast a glance toward Ryoga before casting a glance toward Motoko, "Motoko, you should go with them though," "Me?" Motoko was surprised at the suggestion. "Are all of you going?" Lisa asked Jean. Jean nodded, "Everyone you see here is going, yes," "So that means you're going, Ryoga?" Lisa asked. "I guess so," Ryoga said, "Once Ranma gets his body back, I want to spar him. I don't want him to run out on our duel," "Jeez, I'm not gonna run out on ya," Jean threw her hands up in the air, "Fine. Whatever. Come along. I don't care," "So, how about it?" Lisa grinned at Motoko, "How about you go in my stead?" "Um..." Motoko seemed hesitant. "Actually, I demand you go," Lisa felt the need to play matchmaker, "I've upgraded your body many times without any favors in return. As a favor, I want you to go with them to their world and bring back what you learned about this Auto-Mail stuff," "That sounds odd, a second ago, you said you weren't interested," Jean said. "I changed my mind," Lisa said. "Okay," Jean shrugged. Jean and the others got up off the couch. "Well, thanks for your help," Jean said, producing the nanban mirror from her pocket, "I guess it's best we be on our way. Adventure, here we come," Motoko cast Lisa a glance before she walked over to where Jean was. Lisa gave her the thumbs up. The fact that Motoko didn't seem angry at Lisa's sudden request for her to go with them made Lisa realize that Motoko seemed to not mind going with them since Ryoga was part of the group. Lisa watched as Jean shed a tear onto the nanban mirror where they became enveloped in a bright light, disappearing from sight a second later. She giggled to herself. "Hm, Ranma, Ryoga, Motoko, Jean, and Cyclops, together on some adventures. That should be an interesting story to listen to when they get back,"