Hey! I'll give 'ya two guesses as to who the charachters of Tenchi Muyo! belong to! No, not me, guess again. That's right! Tenchi Muyo! and it's characters belong to AIC Pioneer! There, there's the legal stuff, so don't sue me or anything. I'm broke anyway. BUT the events and plot of this fanfic belong to *ME*. That means that I own this fanfic and taking it without my consent is strictly prohibited. Okay, so heres the story... Sho-ro Muyo! No Need for Crying---Part One by kaeru chan Tenchi crawled into his bed thinking about, well, nothing but getting to sleep. He had spent a day training with Ryoko under his slavedriver of a grandfather. His whole body ached and all he wanted was to close his eyes and... "TENCHI!" The scream hit him like a pile of cabbit doo. Damn, didn't the world ever leave him alone? He walked down the hall, dragging his aching feet. "What? Who called me?" he yelled through the house as he walked. "Lord Tenchi! Oh, where are you?!" It was Aeka. "I probably should've guessed...," his voice trailed off as he entered the kitchen to find a distressed Aeka standing in the middle of it looking like an abslolute wreck. "Oh Lord Tenchi I'm so glad you came you see I came downstairs to see if Sasami was here because she wasn't upstairs and she wasn't here and,(she takes a gasp of air) OH I DON'T KNOW WHERE SHE IS!!!" Tenchi absorbed this as the First Princess of Jurai stood panting after the barrage of words she had just thrown at him. "Have you checked by Funaho's lake?" was all he said. "Well, no. I didn't think of that. You're probably right. She most likeley is having trouble sleeping again. OH TENCHI! You're so, so- I don't know what I'd do without you!" With that, she gave a very stunned Tenchi a quick hug and raced out the door to prove the theory correct. Tenchi just stood in the middle of the kitchen for a second, trying to muster up the strength to drag himself back upstairs. Aeka arrived at the lake where her bother's spaceship tree towered out of the water to form a peaceful green canopy. She found Sasami, just like Tenchi had said. "Sasami..?" Her sister's voice startled her, but the young princess was relieved to see that it was someone she trusted, and not one of the people in her dr-...in her nightmares. "Sasami, what is troubling you? You haven't slept for almost a full week. Are you having bad dreams again?" "Aeka, if I tell you, will you promise not to let anyone else know?" "Certainly Sasami, but why would you want to keep it a secret?" "Well," Sasami started,"I, I don't want anyone to worry. I'd feel awful if I put the family in a stressful situation." "Oh Sasami, it's alright. Everyone will love you, no matter what you do or think you do wrong." "Thanks Aeka. Well, for a long time now, I've been having this same dream. Ryoko's there, and Tenchi, too, and then something awful happens..." Tenchi had managed to pull his worn out body up to his room and into his bed. He fell asleep the instant he hit the sheets, not even bothering with the comforter. Ryoko had heard the commotion, and decided to see what the problem was. SHE knew where that sweet little girl, tormented by her own mind, went when she was about to go over the edge of an emotional breakdown. She wondered why Aeka couldn't just ask her, who she KNEW had a link with Ryo-ohki who always followed Sasami around. She snorted. *It's obvious*, she thought to herself. *She's too good for me. I'm just a lowly space pirate, what do I know. Jeez.* She phased into Tenchi's room, knowing full well that he was too tired to even put himself to bed. She hovered over him, righting his head on the pillow and covering him with his comforter as she did so. "He looks so peaceful, yet serious, when he sleeps," she noted quietly. "Hmm...," she sighed as she teleported to her own bed, exhausted after all the training. She reminded herself to do something rotten to "old" Yosho as she drifted to sleep. "There's a horrible smell, like something, something, um...dead," Sasami explained to her sister back at the lake. Aeka could see that this one word pained her deeply. Sasami never liked to see anyone hurt, much less dead. She hated to think of things having to do with pain. "Well, suddenly, Tenchi and Ryoko start to scream and yell, but not loud, like they're being strangled by weak hands. Then K-," she stopped her explanation and started to choke on her tears. "Sasami, it's okay, I'm here." The little princess looked at her loving sister and the tears subsided. "Well, Kagato appears, and the smell gets stronger. It gets into Tenchi and Ryoko and they, they, they stop screming! Oh Aeka! I'm so scared! What if it means that Ryoko and Tenchi are going to die?!" Sasami suddenly burst into tears and collapsed onto Aeka. She sobbed and the warm tears soaked int Aeka's nightclothes as the blue-haired child sat trembling all over. She was on the verge of crying, too. "Come, Sasami, let's go to bed and think about it in the morning when everyone is awake." She led her sister onto her feet and to her bed. Aeka sang to her and told her it would be alright until she finaly stopped shaking and fell asleep. In her lab, Little Washu woke up to find a suprise. Ryoko was floating above her, asleep. The tiny genius got up, stretched, and prodded her daughter awake. "Good morning sunshine!" she said cheerily as Ryoko sat up in mid-air rubbing her eyes. Ryoko descended to stand on the floor and stretched until Washu thought she would rip herself limb from limb. "Morning, uh," she saw the look that Washu gave her, "MOM!" The little scientist practically shone with rays of happiness at this, and promptly gave Ryoko a motherly embrace. "Okay mom, that's enough! I've really got to talk to you!" "What's the matter sweety?" "I've got a slight problem," she began as Little Washu let her out of her death-grip, "You see, I'm worried about Tenchi. He's been acting very worn out lately. Ever since that battle with, you know, Kagato, he's been very tired, he's not been like himself when we train. What do you think's wrong with him Wa- uh, mom?" "Well, I'll need to do some tests on him,*heehee*, but I'm sure he's just worn out from all the excitement lately. Bring him to me and I'll give you any results I find. Okay?" This seemed to be enough to satisfy Ryoko, and she phased out and returned with Tenchi, who was still asleep. She let go of his arms and he fell onto an operating table, where a dozen metal arms held him down in a dozen different places. Tenchi, of course, was still to tired to even wake-up, and he slept while Washu typed in numerous figures onto her transparent holotop. Sasami was asleep, for the sun was just coming from behind the trees, and she was being wrought by horrible preminitions...again. In her dream, she is helping Tenchi and Ryo-ohki pull carrots in the field. They are laughing and having fun watching the little cabbit try to lift a heavy basket full of the orange veggies. Ryoko is lounging in a tree across from them, munching on an apple while she watches the clouds. Then, a bolt of lightning hits the tree, throwing Ryoko towards them. The Souja appears and a coldness creeps across the carrot furrows. An evil laugh splits the air, and Kagato appears, looking straight at Tenchi, who has gone to Ryoko and is helping her up. Kagato readies a massive green sphere of bright energy and- "AAAH!" Sasami sat bolt upright, sweat rolling down her face and back. It took a minute for her to realize where she was, but she figured out that she was safe, and left her room, running downstairs to take her mind off things by, you guessed it, cooking something. But the hairs on the nape of her neck won't seem to go down, and ice-cold shivers are running up and down her spine, causing her to shiver. Washu emerged from her laboratory shortly after brekfast, to a very cocerned Ryoko... and Aeka. It seems that she had noticed the space pirate pacing in front of the door to the subspace, and demanded to know the facts. Ryoko, not caring for anything but her love's well being, had told the snooty bitch to go away, and, Aeka being the person she is, just had to say to piss her enemy off. "Mom" handed a printout to Ryoko, who almost at once dashed into the lab to find a half-awake Tenchi, moaning and groaning about his sores and aches and pains. He brightened up at Ryoko's face, though, and she soon had him in the kitchen sitting down to some of the rice porridge and tea Sasami had made for breakfast. Aeka quickly scooted in on the opposite side of Tenchi, and began to butter some toast for him when he realized what time it was. "Oh my God!" he exclaimed through a mouthfull of rice, "I have to get to the fields!" "But Tenchi! You haven't been feeling well, and Wash- I mean mom's printout says that you have to get some sleep! You used up alot of energy keeping the Light Hawk Wings going for so long! What if an emergency comes up and you're too tired to do anything? I can't defend this place by myself!" He shot her a broad wink. "I'll be fine," he said, "I promise I'll rest when I get back." "Lord Tenchi, please don't overwork yourself," pleaded Aeka, "Why don't you let us help you?" He thought for a moment, realizing finally how tired he really was. "Okay, you guys can come help. I don't see any problem with it, and besides, the company will be nice," he said. Aeka and Ryoko's eyes suddenly got very big and teary, but that only lasted for a few seconds before they gave eachother warning glances, then they went back to looking like puppies in a pet shop window. The entire household was at work, except for Mihoshi, who was, *ahem*, sleeping on the couch. Yosho was at the shrine, Nobiyuki was at the office, and Tenchi and the girls were in the carrot fields. Ryoko, who had felt she had done her part by sending a jolt of energy through the rows of carrots, loosening the dirt from them and making them much easier to pull, was relaxing on a high branch of a tree. Aeka and Ryo-ohki were pulling stems off the carrots that Tenchi and Sasami threw over to them. Washy was experimenting with different plant foods. "Lord Tenchi, we've almost got a full basket! Would you like me to take some to the house?" asked Aeka in a sing-song voice. "Yeah, that would be great! It's not too heavy for you?" "Oh no," she replied as she walked off toward the house in front of Azaka and Kamidake, who were levitating the bushel of carrots between them. Ryo-ohki watched after them longingly for a moment before she realized that there were more carrots being thrown in a pile near her. She put them in an empty basket, filled it up in no time and was trying to lift it. That's when Sasami remembered. "Um, Tenchi? I think we have enough carrots for a while, so why don't we go home?" "Why, Sasami," he asked, noticing the sudden look of worry on her usually cheerful face. "Well, I just think we should go. I have this very bad feeling that something is going to happen and-," Before she could finish, an earsplitting rumble split the air, and she looked behind her where Tenchi was already running to help Ryoko who was sprawled on the ground. "AAA HA HA HA HA HAA!" There was that laugh. Sasami knew wha was coming next, and she yelled for Tenchi to draw Tenchi-ken and defend himself. He did so, and Ryoko, after composing herself, formed the red ball of energy in her palm that she squeezed into a glowing sword. The laugh came again, this time, it was louder and echoing. It was the unmistakeably vile and insane laugh of Kagato, the man who was supposed to be dead. Tenchi didn't believe that it could possibly be him, until the Souja, or a ship like it, hove into view. Then came the madman. "Greetings, oh Masaki family!" he said wih a horrible twisted smile,"I've come back from the 'dead', happy to see me?!" "Leave here now, Kagato, or I will have to kill you AGAIN!" Tenchi threatened him with the Master Key, but Kagato didn't budge an inch. Instead, he completely ignored Tenchi and his sword, brushing the warning off like an annoying insect. "Professor Washu, what a pleasure to meet you again, do you like what I've done with the Souja?" he asked in a greasy voice. "I don't care what the hell you did to it," she replied rather calmly, "It will never be as good as the original." "You seem rather confident, but just wait until I use it's new power to oblittereate your family!" "HA! Don't you realize that these two," referring to Tenchi and Ryoko."will just humiliate you again?!" "Impossible!" he bellowed,"I beat your poor excuse for a creation last time and I can do it again! And as for the boy, well, I'll just let you wait and see!" He began to laugh insanely and fired a small barrage of green energy spheres. Ryoko blocked some with her sword, and hit some away as if they were nothing. She looked for a place to attack Kagato, but he had dissapeared. "He's not using his full power, not even close. That bastard's got something up his sleeve, I know it." As she said this, Tenchi moved around in front of her to the spot where Kagato had been. "WHERE HAVE YOU GONE!?" he yelled to the sky. He stood on the spot while a large lazer beam engulfed him in reply. "HAHAHA! That was too easy, but knowing this boy, he is still half alive. Well, come on! HAHAHA!" Kagato laughed as the dust and smoke cleared to reveal three Light Hawk Wings projecting from Tenchi. "My my, so here he is! Well boy, come and get me!" Tenchi made no move to attack. "What's the matter? I'm threatening your very existence and you don't see fit to kill me or even attack. That's not enough motivation? If not, I'm sure this will be!" Kagato turned and fired a powerful blast at Ryoko. "NO KAGATO!" Tenchi was upon him in an instant, slashing away with his Light Hawk sword. "Amazing!" exclaimed Washu, punching keys on the holotop. Sasami and Ryo-ohki were crouching behind her. *I feel awful* was all Sasami could think, but her thoughts were interrupted by a beam from the Souja. The three of them were being transported onto the ship! "Don't want to have you contacting Tsunami, princess." Kagato had stopped Tenchi's attacks for the moment, and Ryoko was running across the field with her sword over her head. She leaped into the air and sliced the arm that was restricting Tenchi off. It disintagrated, and the madman screamed in pain. In a matter of secons, though, he had created a new one, and he was soon coming in contact with two swords at once. He pushed Tenchi and Ryoko backwards, gaining the upper hand. Right, left, right, over, under, lunge, the blows kept coming, barely missing open areas of his two combatants. He swung down hard and the three swords locked together. Kagato pushed away even harder than he had swung, and he managed to knock his opponents back a couple yards. "Damn, he's strong," Ryoko said with a hiss. "We can't go on forever like this," said Tenchi, obviously winded. "Can you keep him busy for a second?" Ryoko gasped to Tenchi. He nodded to her and Kagato came rushing in for another attack. He met with them, and Ryoko quickly teleported herelf behind him. Kagato remembered this little move, and swung backwards, cutting deep into Ryoko's side as she brought her blade down. She screamed in agony and fell to the ground, her sword flickering and finally going out completely. "Now that that little pest is out of the way, I will have no trouble disposing of YOU!" he yelled in triumph. Tenchi's face twisted into a look of pure hate and anger. he would kil Kagato. He was royally pissed (no pun intended). He let out a long and deafening yell, and the ground began to shake. There was a blinding flash, and Kagato shielded his eyes. He was pushed back by a sudden blast. "What the hell is going on?!" he asked to no one in particular. The light and noise dimmed, and as he uncovered his face, he beheld three colossal Wings sprouting from Tenchi, who was in his familiar Light Hawk outfit. He stood in front of Ryoko, protecting her from any attack with the Wings. "So, you might actually put up a fight now. Good, killing you will be a challenge this time!" Kagato spread his arms. A thousand small red lights shown from the Souja. They were lazers, and he was planning to fire them, all of them. "HAHA! Fire!" he screamed, and a thousand streams of red light hit Tenchi's position, causing a crater to form around it. Tenchi was unscathed. "Give it up Kagato, or I will give you a worse death than the one you will already get!" "WHY WON'T YOU DIE!!!!" was his only response. He jumped into the air and landed far across the field from Tenchi. "If you won't die that way, maybe you'll fall to THIS! Come to me, Souja!" he called to the heavens. The large ship began it's descent, picking up speed as it did. Tenchi closed his eyes and concentrated hard. The Souja was nearing closer. Inside the ship, Ryo-ohki recieved a message from someone. She thought it sounded like Tenchi, but that was impossible. He didn't have a link with her, did he? No matter, she thought, she merely did what the voice told her to. She ran to the front ot the ship and grew into her spaceship self, creating a large hole in Souja's hull in the process. Washu and Sasami climbed aboard her, and she took off, out of the ship and into the sky. *Good* thought Tenchi. *They're safe now.* Souja was still falling, though. Tenchi once again began to concentrate, and the air vibrated with the power pulsing through it. "NOOOOO!!!!" Kagato was outraged and filled with pain from the pressure that was in the air around him. The sip neared the Light Hawk Wings, and Tenchi let forth all of the power he could summon. Then the Souja imploded. There was no fire, and no release of energy, just the giant ship being smashed into its own molecules. Kagato's scream could be heard in space, on Ryo-ohki, and her passengers cringed at the bloodcurdling sound. It was over. Tenchi relaxed his mind, and the Wings absorbed int him, and his outfit changed back to his usual clothes. "Goodbye, Kagato." Tenchi turned and ran to Ryoko. She was laying in a puddle of dark blood, and Tenchi's eyes filled with hot tears at the sight. Battles had their prices. He knelt down beside her, the redness soaking into his jeans. Gently, he picked her up in his arms and stood. The tears were running down his face by now, and he let them flow freely. He pressed his hand against the gash below her ribs. Blood ran through his fingers, bringing even more tears. Tenchi hugged her close to him, and began to cry uncontrollably. "Don't cry," came a faint whisper in his ear. He jerked his head back to look into Ryoko's tear-streaked face. "Please Tenchi, don't," she clasped the hand that was over her wound, "It hurts me to see you cry, more than this," she said, indicating the gash. "Ryoko!" Tenchi said, squeezing her hand back, "I thought you were dead. I was afraid I would lose you. I couldn't stant losing another person that I-," he stopped short. "Another person that I loved," he said after a moment. Ryoko looked at him. He was loking straight into her amber eyes. "I won't die unless I know that I'll be meeting you on the other side," she whispered to him. "Likewise," he said, and kissed her, first on the forehead, and then moving down to her lips. She kissed him back, because, as we know, she loves him, too. Tenchi knew that he loved her now, as he always had. The two wished it could've lasted forever, but Ryoko pulled back, letting out a little groan. The swordthrust to her side had done alot of damage. Tenchi realized this and began to run toward the house, Ryoko slowly slipping into unconsiousness... TO BE CONTINUED... Well, did you like it? I know it wasn't that good, but don't flame me too bad, it's my first. I'l start writing the next part very soon. Believe me, this is only the beginning. Don't worry, I won't make the next part so long. Speaking of the next part... In the next installment of "Sho-ro Muyo!", Ryoko's in trouble. Will she live? Can she survive her devistating injury? What's happened to Aeka, Washu, and Sasami? Only "Sho-ro Muyo! Part Two" has the answers. Coming soon, promise!