Tenchi-Muyo! (No Need For Tenchi!, This End Up) is (c) AIC * Pioneer LDC, Inc.
Aa! Megami-sama! (Oh My Goddess!) is (c) by Kousuke Fujishima, Kodansha, TBS and 
KSS Films. 


Aa! Megami-sama Muyo! (Ah! No Need For My Goddess!)
A Tenchi-Muyo! and Aa! Megami-sama! crossover fan fiction
By Luna Hinomura
http://fly.to/Luna's

Chapter 8: Demon's Pawn

	She watched as I yanked another carrot out of the ground and deposited it 
in the basket, meowing in jubilee as she anticipated how wonderful it would 
taste.  Smiling at the innocent cuteness she emanated, I patted her on the head.

	"Not yet, Ryo-ohki," I said gently, and she reluctantly backed off.  
"Later, Tsunami will make you a big dinner with your favorite carrot dish."

	"Miya!  Miya-miya-miya!" Ryo-ohki meowed happily, dancing around.  Then, 
she hopped off in the direction of the new bathhouse Washu had built.

	"Cute little thing," I quipped, staring at the strange bathhouse floating 
precariously over the lake.  It never ceased to worry me; I was always afraid it 
would come tumbling down into the calm waters below.

	Then again, since *Washu* had built it, I suppose I shouldn't need to 
worry.  It looked like a giant semispherical bubble attached to a rock.  The 
reason she'd built it is because Ryoko and my Dad got us kicked out of the 
Kamidake Inn; a few days after the monster Ryoko had summoned destroyed half the 
inn, my great-aunt had caught Dad at his voyeurisms, and dragged him out by the 
ear with us in tow.

	Suddenly, I heard Ryo-ohki hissing and meowing in fright, and I turned in 
her direction.  She'd never made it to the bathhouse, but had stopped before she 
was even halfway there.  Now, her eyes were wide open with her teeth bared at 
the sky.  All around me, snowflakes began drifting slowly down.

	"Oh, so that's it.  You've never seen snow," I said, smiling.  "There's 
nothing to worry about, Ryo-ohki.  It's only snow."

	Unheeding my words, she only turned and hurriedly ran off towards the 
bathhouse with more haste than before.

	"Well, that's odd."  I returned to my gardening, the snow slightly 
dampening my spirits.  When I was little, I used to love the snow, but after my 
Mom died, I began to hate it.

	The day she'd died, I was still very young, and I remember dancing in the 
snow, trying to catch the flakes before they hit the ground.  If one happened to 
miraculously land in my palm, I stared at it in wonder until it melted.  I can 
remember laughing in excitement when my Father returned, but one look at the 
immense sorrow on his face was enough to erase all memories of joy I'd had only 
moments before.

	I can hardly remember what had happened after that.  The rest seems like a 
dream.  I know he told me what had happened to Mom, but I can't remember his 
words, only the tears flowing down his cheeks, and how I doubted we would ever 
smile again.

	Bitter tears had sprouted from my eyes as well, and I recall sobbing into 
my sleeves, and my Dad's strong arms surrounded me as we shared our grief 
together.

	I still miss my mother.  It's sad how I can remember everything about her 
death, yet barely anything else of her remains in my memories.  Don't get me 
wrong, I don't hate the snow anymore; I just wish my Mother hadn't left us when 
I was so young.  When *she* was still so young, with so much to live for.

	A lone tear emerged from my right eye, and I wiped it away with one hand.  
Now wasn't the time to think of her -- I had to finish the day's harvest 
instead.

	The sounds of shattering glass from all around me shook me from my daze.  
I glanced around for a moment before I realized the sound had come from above 
me, from the bathhouse.  The top half of the glass bubble was gone, and an eerie 
green light flashed for a few seconds there, but vanished.  I dashed down the 
path and went through the teleportation pod Washu had set up, appearing on the 
woman's side of the bathhouse.

	"Is anyone hurt?!" I yelled worriedly before I realized everyone was still 
wrapped in their towels and staring at each other.

	"It was the Demon, Kagato," Kiyone said, looking at the strange wristwatch 
she wore.  "One of the Earth Angels Agency's top priority criminals.  We'll get 
to the bottom of this."

	"Mm-hmm," Mihoshi agreed, nodding stoutly.

	"Who is Kagato?" Ayeka said before she noticed me.  "Oh, Tenchi!  Ryoko's 
been kidnapped!"

	"Kidnapped?!" I exclaimed.  "By this Kagato person?"

	"He came in here while we were bathing, and we know she recognized him, 
because she cried out his name in fear and tried to run.  While she was 
attempting to escape, he used a force bolt to stun her.  We were caught off 
guard because we only assumed he was a voyeur, and he took off with Ryoko while 
she was unconscious," Kiyone explained.  "*We* have to go after him.  You and 
Ayeka should stay here with Washu and Tsunami.  They're still in the house, 
right?  Don't worry, Tenchi, we'll handle it.  It's our duty."

	Miss Ayeka didn't look like she wanted Kiyone and Mihoshi to succeed in 
bringing Ryoko back and capturing Kagato, but she nodded.  So did I.

	"He's still around," Mihoshi said, her wristwatch beeping suddenly.  "I 
don't think he came here just to look for Ryoko."

	"Well, he's got Ryoko, so why do you think he'd still be here?" I asked.

	"He's probably just shy and doesn't want to have to *ask* to use the 
wonderful bathhouse Miss Washu created!" she replied.

	The sounds of our mass facefault could probably have been heard all the 
way from the house.  Kiyone was the first to get up.  Deciding it would be of no 
use to reprimand Mihoshi, she turned to me instead.  "Get Tsunami and Washu," 
she ordered.  "*I'm* going to track him down."

*	*	*	*	*

	The tree called Funaho that Ayeka and I had visited looked no different 
than it had before, yet for some reason it attracted both Kiyone's and Mihoshi's 
attention.  Nodding to each other, they both drew their pistols and carefully 
aimed them at the tree.

	Mihoshi broke the silence first.  "Kagato!  I know you're in there!  You 
cannot escape us!"

	Nothing.

	"Kagato!" Kiyone said.  "Show yourself!"

	"Oh, my," a man's voice said sarcastically.  It seemed to come from 
nowhere and everywhere all at once.  "You're rude for Angels, now, aren't you?" 
the disembodied voice continued, minus the sarcastic edge.  A green sphere 
appeared between the tree and us, right where Kiyone and Mihoshi had been 
pointing their guns.  A man with white hair and tiny glasses that rested low on 
the bridge of his nose floated out of it.  Like Ayeka and Tsunami, he wore 
layers of robes.  His skin was very, very pale shade, and the 'whites of his 
eyes' were actually yellow, the same color of his corneas.  He eyed Ayeka, and 
she took a step back in fear.  Kiyone moved in front of her protectively.

	"Earth is our jurisdiction, and we forbid you to harm any civilians!" 
Mihoshi said.  "Don't make me fire!"

	Smirking, Kagato only laughed, his deep voice resounding in my ears.  "Go 
ahead and try," he dared.

	Narrowing her eyes, Mihoshi took aim and fired over and over.  Each time, 
his Life-force Energy shield deflected the pistol blasts.  Soon, Mihoshi was out 
of ammo.  "Oh, no!  I need to charge my pistol with Energy again!" she cried.

	"Mihoshi, leave this to me!" Kiyone barked.

	"Pathetic," Kagato quipped.  "None of you are a match for me.  As for your 
so-called 'jurisdiction,' you have no right to take Ryoko from me."  He gestured 
with his hand, and she appeared next to him, landing hard on the ground with a 
thump and a groan.  "She rightfully belongs to me, and is therefore my personal 
property.  She is, how do you say, excess waste in an experiment of mine.  I'm 
sure she's caused you a great deal of trouble."  He eyed Ayeka again, and she 
nodded slowly.  Tightening his right glove, he gestured over at Ryoko again.  I 
stepped in between them and ignited the Tenchi-ken.

	"Liar!" Washu screamed, accusing him. 

	"Oh, so *you* have that sword.  Tell me, where is the owner of that 
sword?" he asked, ignoring Washu, and suddenly intrigued with me.

	"I don't know," I said.

	"I tire of this," he said.  "I'll ask you once again, are you a suitable 
owner of that sword?"

	"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not," I replied vaguely.  Like Washu, I knew Kagato 
was lying about Ryoko, because Washu herself had informed us of Ryoko's origin.

	"Well, then," he decided after a pause, "come, I'll test you."  He floated 
down towards me and created his own sword, one much longer and wider than 
Ryoko's or Ayeka's.  Their swords were thin and round, but his sword was 
flatter, and looked more like a green medieval broadsword.  Taking one swipe at 
me, the sword blasted through the ground around me and knocked me back.  "This 
is no fun," he said, as I was thrown back again and again.  "Stop making me 
waste my time."

	I felt my Achilles' tendon connect with a tree root behind me, and I fell 
down hard on my back.  Ryo-ohki leapt at Kagato and bit his hand through his 
white glove, but he flung her away.  Unable to get up, I only sat there as the 
blue light from the Tenchi-ken flashed once, then faded into nothingness.  I 
closed my eyes and heard the girls screaming as Kagato looked down at me and 
took a final slash.

	Then, Ryoko's arms were around me and she grabbed me, pulling me out of 
Kagato's reach.  "Tenchi!  Don't let him have the sword!" she warned, and flew 
back in rage at Kagato.  Likewise, Tsunami and Washu both took a step towards 
him, but were thrown back by an invisible force.  Ryoko crashed into his Shield, 
and screamed in pain as green lightning began wracking her body.

	My body ached but I pushed myself up anyway.  Igniting the sword again, I 
dashed at Kagato.  This time, Ryoko leapt up and countered my block.  She was 
grinning more demonically than I could ever remember, and the whites of her eyes 
had turned green.

	"Ryoko!  What are you doing?!" I yelled.

	"She can't hear you now," Kagato said.  "She's only a mere puppet."

	"You bastard!  Release her!  Ryoko, you can break free!"

	My cries came to no avail, and once again I was thrown back, unable to 
stand up to her.  Suddenly, I felt a breeze come from behind me as one of the 
other girls blasted her with a wind spell, knocking her into the lake.  Turning 
around, I realized it was Ayeka who'd done it; the same spell she'd cast on 
Ryoko at the Kamidake Inn.

	The sword was suddenly yanked out of my hand while I was distracted, and I 
yelped in shock.  But when I looked back at Kagato, he wasn't holding it.

	"Are you playing with something that isn't yours?" I heard my grandpa say 
from my left.

	"G-grandpa?!" I exclaimed.

	"Ah, I've been looking for you for quite some time," Kagato said.  "It 
seems Ryoko has finally found what I desire.  So *there* you are, Yosho!"

	Yosho?!  Grandpa is...Yosho?!  But that meant...  That meant...

	Washu was -- *is* -- my Great-grandmother.

	Holy crap.

	The realization came over me like a flood, and I nearly went into shock.  
Grandpa.  Is.  Yosho.  Who'd have thought?  He'd fooled everyone: his mother, 
Washu...  Me, his grandchild...  Even Ayeka, who'd loved him more than I could 
even begin to express.

	<My grandfather is Yosho, and immortal blood ran in his veins.  The blood 
of the Goddess, Washu.>

	The Goddess of Chaos.

	Did immortal blood run in my veins as well?

	"Surely, *you* of all people must know the secret of Jurai's power, a 
power which dwarfs the abilities of any other beings.  Tell me," Kagato 
persuaded.

	"Even if there *was* a way to comprehend Jurai's power, it couldn't be 
used by a Demon!" my grandpa yelled.

	Kagato's eyes narrowed.  "Perhaps little persuasion is in order," he said, 
pointing his palm at Grandpa.  A force-bolt flew at him, but he dodged by 
turning his head aside at the last minute.

	Grandpa ignited the Tenchi-ken suddenly and launched himself at Kagato.  
Kagato was taken aback for a moment, but then drew his own sword and parried.  
The melee continued, and I stood there in shock, watching them battle like in a 
samurai movie.  Sparks flew whenever their two swords clashed into each other, 
but then, Grandpa leapt up in the air and landed on Kagato's outstretched blade.

	"Hmph," Kagato snorted.  "Do you enjoy toying with me?"

	Grandpa only chuckled.  He made a quick motion with his hand, and a cut 
suddenly appeared on Kagato's cheek.

	"Come, Ryoko, I'll give you another chance..." Kagato murmured, raising 
his hand towards his face.  The slash disappeared.

	Coming out of nowhere, Ryoko dive-bombed down at Grandpa, sending her own 
blasts of Life-force Energy flying from her hands.  Having no other option but 
to retreat, Grandpa did a back flip off Kagato's sword and met Ryoko's instead.

	"Hiding behind a woman?!" Grandpa barked at him.  "You coward!!"

	"Grandpa!  Stop fighting her, help Ryoko!" I yelled.  I could have sworn 
he nodded in the middle of all the sword fighting, but I could be mistaken.  Of 
course, this *is* Yosho I was talking about, so who am I kidding?

	"Ryoko!  Snap out of it!  Break free!" Grandpa said to her, but Ryoko's 
face retained its apathetic look.

	"The gem!" Washu called.  "The gem is what links her to the power of 
Demons!"

	Nodding again, Grandpa dispersed the Life-force Energy shield he'd been 
using to block Ryoko's strikes, and grabbed her hand when she tried to hit him 
with her sword.  One quick motion, and her hand was slashed off, the gem re-
embedded on the hilt of the Tenchi-ken.

	"Huh-wha?" she said, before she landed in the lake again.

	"Worthless," Kagato quipped, then turned back to my grandpa.  He pulled 
back quickly when he realized Grandpa was drawing his arm back to throw 
something, but it flashed right past Kagato and hit the tree, Funaho.

	Staring and blinking at Grandpa, Kagato gradually realized that Grandpa 
wasn't holding the Tenchi-ken any longer.  He turned to look at Funaho, where 
the hilt Tenchi-ken was jutting out from the bark.  "So you surrender...?" 
Kagato wondered, reaching over to pull out the sword.  Like Ryoko, the Demon 
wards prevented him from being able to hold it, and he gave a yelp of pain as 
the electricity shocked him.

	"I see.  So then, this boy is your...'successor.'  Well...  It seems I 
underestimated you," Kagato said.  "I will never make that mistake again, I 
guarantee it.  Come, Ryoko."  Unconscious again, Ryoko floated up and out of the 
lake as if an invisible hand was picking her up.  Before we knew it, both she 
and Kagato had disappeared again.

	Grandpa and I both sighed tiredly, but Ayeka and Washu ran up to him and 
knocked him off his feet.

	"You!  You're Yosho!" they both cried, clutching at his shirt.

End of Chapter 8