Author Notes:
	I feel like taking a break.  this means of course that i'll
probably make chapter 6 the final chapter.  Just like when I started the
original ANK, I didn't have a set ending in mind.  I just started writing
and I let the story unfold by itself, if I don't quit somewhere I'd be
writing this story forever.
	Lately I've been of the opinion that my writing quality has been
dropping, that in turn generates less readers, that in conclusion means it
time to wrap things up again.
	The entire ANK2 will be reposted as a whole after completion of 6.
Minor revisions done beforehand.  Comments as always are welcome.  This as
far as I know is the shortest chapter yet, just as the last one was the
largest.

In the last chapter:
	In a fight with Kune, the mysterious stranger is revealed to be a
member of the Jusenkyo crowd.  The first of the next generation, but is he
the only one?  Sakura, Noriko, and even Midori have their own theories of
who he is.


Chapter 5 - The Cat's Out of the Bag

[...]

	Spice looked up into a face she knew as well as her own.  "I not
think you have it in you."

	He crouched to face his sister sitting on the sidewalk.  "We have
to talk."

	She took on a faraway look and sighed.  "At least I not have to
marry you."

	"Damnit sis, will you shut up and listen for a sec?"  He waited for
her undivided attention and then did a quick scan of the area.  "Let's go
inside, someone might be watching."

[...]

	Midori opened her eyes with great effort.  She was recovering
faster than last time but she urgently felt the need for a bath or sleep or
both.  Noriko slapped her gently on the cheeks as Midori's eyes rolled
around loosely in her head.

	Sakura let out a puff of air.  "That must have been some kiss."

	Midori could see she was inside the Kuno estate now.  She
recognized the two girls as the ones she delivered the pizza to.

	Noriko released Midori's head which fell back, producing a dull
thud as it hit the wall.  "So what should we do with her?"

	Sakura sat back on her haunches.  "Well she can't stay here, mom'll
be back in a couple hours."

	"Maybe we should find Xian," Noriko said thoughtfully.

	"Hey, keep your mind on the problem!"

	"I am!  I just figued if he did this he could undo it."

	Sakura sighed.  "Well it looked like he was heading to the
Nekohanten.  At least that would make the most sense."

[...]

	Spice followed her younger sibling to the back corner of the
restaurant.  He took a seat with his back to the wall where he could get a
good view of the front door.  The feeling began returning to her arm as she
took a seat across from him.  "You want talk, we talk."

	He took a moment to collect his thoughts.  He decided he would
start with the most pressing matter.  "Do you remember Tsu No?"  He
surprised her with his Chinese, Xian was always better with languages than
she was.  Rarely using their native toungue was one of the little things he
did to annoy her.

	She realized suddenly that it would be best to keep the
conversation private, she reverted to Chinese as well.  "Snow?  Always wore
white.  The only person to train with daddy besides us?  The crazy bitch we
grew up with?"  Spice started to fume, but caught herself.  "Yes.  I
remember her quite clearly.  I haven't seen her since she was banned from
the village last year."

	"Okay, well I guess you could say I have."

	Spice nearly jumped from her seat.  "She's here?  In Japan?"

	"Well yes, but there's more to it than that."

	"Where is she?!?  I'll kill her this time!"

	He sighed.  "That would make my life alot easier, but there are
some things you should know," he took a deep breath.  "First, you can't
kill her.  She is your sister by law."

	Spice stood up suddenly, fire in her eyes.  "That ended when she
was banished."

	He sighed again.  "True, but that was before she married me."

	Spice fell back into her seat, her fire doused.  "What."

	"She jumped me near the Great wall.  We fought.  I lost," he
shrugged.  "I couldn't do anything about it.  Insted of killing me she
decided we were married.  I've been running ever since."

	Spice stared straight down, her head resting on the table and her
arms splayed out around her.  "How long ago?"

	"Last month I guess."

	She remained motionless until it occured to her.  She looked up
with a puzzled expression.  "You weren't in China last month."

	"That's the other thing I should explain..."

[...]

	Seki dumped the first load of dishes into the sink.  His sister was
handling most of the customers while Spice and her brother sat at the back
table a few feet from him.

	Kune decided to hang around with Seki after lunch.  He didn't have
anywhere else to go so he figured he'd stay and help out.  He stood a
little ways from Seki and dried off some glasses that were just washed.
"Have fun the other day?"

	Seki had his attention focused on Spice who was too focused on her
conversation to notice.  "Huh?  What?"

	"When you kissed Megumi.  Did you have fun?"

	The mention of Megumi snapped his attention back to Kune.  "Oi
Kune, I'm so sorry.  I swear it wasn't my fault."

	Kune put his hands up to calm Seki down.  "Don't worry, it's
nothing like that."

	"So you're not going to kill me?"

	"Kill you?  I should be kissing your feet.  She's been nicer to me
in the last two days than she's been to me in the last two years."

	"Really?"

	"Yeah, I figure it's some sort of guilt thing."

	Seki pondered that thought.  "So you want me to do it again?"

	"Don't push your luck," Kune picked up a nearby cup of dishwater
and threw it at Seki.  Prepared for the reaction he ducked, sending the
water into the dining area.  Seki turned around to come face to face with a
slightly damp, very annoyed tiger.

[...]

	Ukyou tried in vain to stop the customers from running out of the
Nekohanten, but once the first person started screaming it was all
downhill.  She had been watching when the transformation took place, it was
the only reason she didn't run and scream herself.

	After the first wave ran out she threw her towel down and stomped
on it.  She took a deep breath and walked up to Spice and her feline
friend.  "I'm not even going to ask Spice."  She turned to the tiger who
was trying to remain incognito.  "I suppose you'd like some hot water?"

	The tiger nodded vigorously, an innocent grin on it's face.  Ukyou
grabbed it by the nape of it's neck and walked it into the kitchen.  Kune
and Seki backed away.  It gave them both an evil eye in passing.

	Ukyou pulled at the tiger's neck to keep it moving.  "Seki, go get
a change of clothes and a towel for kitty here."

	Seki was eger to obey, jumping down from the counter and running
into the back.  He returned quickly, Ukyou already had the hot water from
the tap ready.  She grabbed a nearby bowl and filled it in the sink.  "Why
don't you two go check on Spice while he changes."

[...]

	Spice sat in an almost catatonic state.  She didn't even bat an eye
as Kune and Seki took seats on both sides of her.  They exchanged worried
glances.  Seki was the first to speak.  "Are you okay Spice?"

	She blinked slowly and continued to stare out into space.  "My
little brother is a bengal tiger."

	Kune sat back, relieved to hear her speak.  "So we've noticed."

	Seki smoothed back the burgundy hair on Spice's head.  "Are you
going to be okay?  Do you need to lie down or something?"

	Spice nodded meekly.  "That sound good.  I think I take a little
nap now."  Her body went limp as her head hit the table.  "Nite nite."

[...]

	The cries of 'Wild Tiger, run for your lives' could be heard for
blocks.  Sakura and Noriko just looked to each other as they got within a
couple blocks of the Nekohanten.  Between them they dragged along Midori
who was still too dazed to walk.

	They thought about leaving her behind, but it seemed kind of rude.
Progress was slow despite the excellent shape the girls were in.  It helped
that Midori was still wearing her rollerblades.

	Somebody pushed past Sakura and nearly knocked all three of them
over.  Like a white blur, it was gone before Sakura or Noriko could say
anything.  Sakura considered it briefly, for someone of their size they
were packing alot of weight.

[...]

	Kune started on his way home, he decided against waiting for the
dust to settle.  Things were getting too weird, and guilt or not Megumi
wouldn't be too thrilled to find out he spent the entire day in the
Nekohanten.

	As he rounded a corner he was nearly knocked over by a white blur.
It was female, but the only other thing he noticed was the wicked looking
battleaxe she produced while flying past him.  It nearly took his head off,
but Kune wasn't one to hold much of a grudge against a female.

	He looked once in the direction she came and by the time he turned
back she was gone.  Kune shrugged it off and tried to remember which way he
was going.  It was one of the strangest days he'd ever had and he wanted to
get home before it got any stranger.

	"Hey Kune, you missed a great movie."

	Kune sighed.   Too late.

[...]

	Ukyou gave Spice a little shake to wake her up.  She snapped up and
looked around quickly, unsure if she was still dreaming.  She spotted her
brother over Miss Kuonji's shoulder.  He was wearing some new clothes and
drying his hair with her 'Hello Kitty' towel.

	"You didn't mention Jusenkyo."

	"I was just getting to that part."

	"How long you cursed?"

	"It's not what you think Spice, there's more to it.  Hear me out on
this."

	There was a loud crash.  Everybody looked to the front door.  Spice
and Ukyou barely had enough time to dodge the giant battleaxe that came
flying at them.

	"Duck!"  Spice yelled to her brother.

	Used to projectile attacks he grabbed a nearby searving tray and
swatted it out of the air.  It hit the table next to him and spit it in
half.  He used the same tray to block the assortment of knives and shuriken
thrown by the same person.  "Dangit Snow, you have a serious attitude
problem."

	The stranger in white smiled at her prey.  "What can I say dear, I
don't take rejection too well."

	"I got two words for you: seek help," he emphasized his point by
throwing down his mutilated serving tray.

	Spice got back up to stand near her brother.  He readied herself
into a defensive stance which she mirrored perfectly.

	Snow took on a crazed look, reflected by the twin broadswords she
pulled from each sleeve.  She poised herself to pounce like a cat who has
her prey cornered.

	Suddenly Spice was noticably shaken, even moreso after looking at
her brother standing next to her.  The only difference was the grin on his
face.  It was the final taunt that prompted Snow to action.

	Before she could charge though, the world went dark and she
collapsed in heap.  Her swords clattered to the floor uselessly.  Xian bent
down to examine the fallen amazon grabbing another handful of movie popcorn
as he did.  The same hand he used to pinch the nerve in her neck.  "Do I
have to do everything myself?  I thought you said you'd handle it."  Xian
looked up to Spice.  "Hey sis.  Are there any leftovers?  The theatre
raised it's prices again."

	With one situation under control, Spice used every ounce of
strength she had left to remain calm.  "If you there, who the hell this?"

	The person next to her scratched the back of his neck and tried not
to look too sheepish.  "It's not what you think Spice."

	The Xian at the door swallowed his popcorn and took that as his
cue.  "Oh.  Well sis, meet your brother Xiang."

	"Hiya," Xiang wiggled his fingers as Spice turned to stare at him
dumbly.

[...]