Nabiki-Tatewaki Relationship

This is a page describing the unromantic relationship between Nabiki Tendo and Tatewaki Kuno, including hints.

Canonically, Nabiki and Kuno not only do not share a romantic relationship, but actively seem to dislike each other: Kuno is disdainful of Nabiki's mercenary ways and constant swindling of money (particularly from himself), while Nabiki seems to regard Kuno as nothing more than a vaguely amusing, more often irritating, source of frequent cash. However, a number of fans believe that the two have the potential to establish a romantic relationship, noting the somewhat playful teasing and insults that Nabiki gives Kuno (particularly in the anime, where she mockingly calls him "Kuno-baby"), the fact she has done small favors for Kuno (such as taking him to the nurse's room after Ranma first knocks him out cold), and, in a less idealistic note, the fact that Nabiki enjoys manipulating others and money, whereas Kuno is both easily manipulated and very rich.

The anime and the manga have each hosted a story where the idea of Nabiki and Kuno as a couple was brought up, and both times it was treated as a joke and the two were shown to have no interest in each other. That said, the same thing happens with virtually every other relationship in the series.

In the anime, the story was the episode Extra, Extra! Kuno & Nabiki: Read All About It! which was based around one of Sasuke's old friends, Gindo, a gluttonous but supposedly very talented fortune teller, coming to visit Kuno's manservant. Upon hearing of the fortune teller's skill, Kuno asked for a firereading to determine who would be the girl he would marry. However, roughly halfway through the reading, the fire begins to run out of wood and, not knowing that Gindo uses a very special wood, Sasuke adds a bundle of regular firewood, which Gindo will later claim threw the reading off. Following the fortune teller's instructions, Kuno ends up meeting with Nabiki and assumes that he is destined to marry her. Being a strict believer in fate, Kuno tries to forget his obsession with Akane and Ranma's female form, but is unable to do so (admittedly, Ranma shows up in female form at one point to taunt him, and while Nabiki is content to enjoy his sudden generosity, she otherwise does not treat his new "feelings" for her at all seriously). At the episode's end, after arousing the wrath of all three girls by proclaiming to the school that he will wed Nabiki and keep Akane and "the pigtailed girl" as his concubines, he discovers that the prediction was wrong, angrily assaults Sasuke and Gindo both, and promptly forgets all about trying to forge any sort of relationship with Nabiki.

In the manga, Kuno and Nabiki are one set of victims of the "Together Umbrella", a magical old umbrella that causes whoever is under it at the same time to fall in love with each other for as long as they are under it. While under it, Nabiki asks Kuno for over 1000 yen to be allowed to stand there, which he pays her. When they are seperated, Nabiki is aghast that she would ask so little for allowing Kuno to stand beside her so intimiately.