Subject: [FFML] [FFML][Ranma][SM] Coming of Age teaser
From: ShortYes@aol.com
Date: 10/29/1999, 11:14 AM
To: ffml@fanfic.com

Happy Holloween everyone.  

Anyways here is a teaser

all C&C welcome

Ranma and SM Characters not mine

10/22/99


    On the eight planet of the Milky Way, a man was walking around a little 
nervously.  

    Today was going to be a very hectic but also joyous day for Genma 
Saotome.  Today was the day that an heir to the Saotome School of Anything 
Goes Martial Arts was to be born. Yes, today was a joyous occasion indeed.  
Looking back at the last two days just made the father to be smile even more.

* * * * *
 
    Inside a room, a man with the look of excitement coupled with a tingle of 
nervousness sat next to a woman lying upon a hospital bed with the same look 
mirrored upon her face as well.

    "It'll be any day now, dear. Just think, soon I'll be able to pass down 
my knowledge of The Anything Goes School of Martial Arts to my son, Ranma," 
Genma said with pride, a smile spread across his face and lit the room which 
made Nodoka smile as well. 

    "You've forgot our agreement, dearest Genma, although I can't blame you 
in light of the possibility of an heir to your school and another member of 
our household.  Remember though, if the child is a boy his name shall be 
Ranma and it will be your responsibility to train him in the arts as well as 
being a man among men.  But if the child is a girl, then we'll going to be 
naming her Ranko and I can finally fulfill the promise I made to my mother.  
I'll be able to pass down the knowledge that was given to me by my mother as 
it was passed down from her mother to her," she explained.  

    "Of course, honey."

    *Wouldn't it be nice to have another female around the house,* Nodoka 
thought.  Although she had many friends, the joy of having a daughter and 
being able to teach her, see her grow up and marry created great anticipation 
and emotions that brought tears of joy to Nodoka.  Then reality and a sense 
of dread hit her as she thought that there might be a chance of something 
going wrong and her or the baby would die.  Dreaded thoughts of the many 
possible dark outcomes started to surface from her imagination but a light 
kick from her swollen belly stopped it.  Placing a hand to the source of the 
kick, Nodoka smiled.  *Thank you for reassuring me, my child.*

* * * * * 

    Genma was snapped out of his daydream by the shout from his wife.  
Rushing into the room and followed seconds later by a few nurses and a 
doctor, the grandmaster of the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts 
was witnessing the birth of a new life into the world.  

    "A little more Mrs. Saotome.  I can see the head emerging now. Just push 
a little more. You're doing fine, " encouraged the doctor a little later on. 

    With sweat forming and slowly descending down her face all the while 
tracing its curvature before falling onto the bed that Nodoka was currently 
on, she gave one final push and cry before collapsing due to the stress and 
activities of the day.  All her problems and the effort of the past couple of 
hours seemed far away as she heard her child cry as it came into the world. 
    
    "You're the proud mother and father of a healthy baby boy, Mr. and Mrs. 
Saotome," exclaimed the doctor. 

    Although at this time, Genma had passed out sometime around Nodoka being 
carted into the operation room and Ranma's cries as he entered the outside 
world. 

    "Thank you, sensei," Nodoka smiled at the doctor.  Looking down at her 
sleeping husband, "Please let him rest there for a few moments, he has not 
had a good nights rest in over a week and decent food by the sound of his 
stomach, " replied Nodoka.  Nodoka was still wondering how someone who had 
faced life and death could faint at one of the most natural things on Earth.  
Holding onto Ranma and smiling at the scene that her husband was making on 
the floor, *nothing could be more right in the world at this moment,* she 
mused. 

* * * * *

    "Happy fifth birthday, Ranma!" everyone around the table shouted.

    "Make a wish and blow out the candles, Ran-chan," Nodoka urged him.

    There were a few awes from the surround females, as Ranma looked adorable 
trying to think up of something to wish for.  "I wish I could attend the 
academy when I grow up!" Ranma said and quickly blew out all of his candles. 

    Looking over a Genma, Nodoka could see the proud expression on her 
husband's face.

    "That's my boy!" Genma said.

    "If you study really hard, you might never know," Nodoka encouraged him.  

    "Thanks, mommy!" Ranma exclaimed.  "Can I open my presents now?" young 
Ranma asked.

    "Yes you can," Nodoka answered.

    With that having been said all the kids started to shout about cake and 
who's present Ranma was to open first.

    "Open mine!" Ryou shouted.

    "No mine!" Karou called out.

    Glancing over her shoulder at the heated argument, Nodoka smiled for a 
moment before she put on a neutral face and walked over to a man standing 
near the back.

    "You have quite a boy there," the man complimented her.

    "Arigatou, uncle.  But does he have the gift?" Nodoka asked a bit 
nervously.

    With a sad expression, he shook his head.  "I can't detect a single ounce 
of magic in the boy and that is strange considering his lineage, having come 
from a long line of mages, he should have some, even weak, but at least 
some," he explained a bit puzzled himself.  Looking over at Nodoka, he 
smiled.  His niece was a powerful mage in her own right with the gift of 
healing while her husband was gifted with control of wind.  Her power level 
was enough to make her one of the top twenty healers within the Kingdom.  Now 
if only the lazy fool that was her husband would apply himself, he could have 
gotten a full mage ranking instead of just a magician class ranking.      

    "Genma would be disappointed but we've come to expect this after he 
showed no signs around his third birthday," she replied.

    "Fret not, he is still a healthy and handsome child," he continued to try 
and calm his niece.        

    "Thank you, uncle.  Will you stay for dinner?" Nodoka asked.

    "No, I have things I have to attend to back on Saturn," he informed her.

    "I understand.  Please come by and visit.  Ranma loves those tricks you 
do."

    "Those are not tricks but true magic," he said, acting a bit hurt but the 
smile reassured Nodoka that he was only joking.  Having said that, he closed 
his eyes and vanished.

    Sighing, Nodoka went to tell her husband the bad news.

* * * * *

    "Trust me, son.  This will make you a powerful martial artist," Genma 
said while holding his six-year-old son over a pit.  From the pit there were 
sounds of hissing and meowing.  

    "But I'm afraid!" Ranma shouted.

    "Don't you want to be a man?" Genma asked his son.  "I promised to make 
you a man among men and that is exactly what I will do.  The shame when I 
heard you had no magic powers.  You're dishonoring your family and what it 
stands for," Genma continued his relentless attack, trying to persuade the 
boy to accept the training.  The Nekoken was suppose to be one of the most 
powerful battle techniques ever devised.  The best part was it did not need 
magic to use.  It was so powerful even that Genma had to travel to Saturn and 
sneak into the academy's storage vault and borrow it to even give Ranma a 
chance at learning it.  "Don't you want to make your mother proud and also to 
go to the Academy on Saturn?" Genma finally used his trump cards.

    "Hai!" Ranma shouted.  He didn't want to disappoint his mother and also 
wanted to go to the Academy.  "I want to grow up to be a great martial artist 
and help protect the Silver Millennium!"

    "Well then, in you go," Genma said and tossed his son into the pit of 
starving cats and closed the lid.  

    After the first try and failure, Genma spent the whole day using various 
other type of food products in hopes of teaching Ranma the Nekoken.  After 
throwing in Ranma was the unprecedented time, he sat down and took the 
booklet out.  *I must be doing something wrong,* he thought.  *Let's see,* he 
mused.  "Dig a pit.  Check.  Gather starving cats into pit.  Check.  Tie 
student up in fish sausage.  Check.  Throw him in pit and cover entrance.  
Check," He read each of the instruction out loud.  *What am I doing wrong?* 
he thought.  Flipping the booklet over in his hands, Genma finally spotted 
something strange.  It seemed like the last few pages were stuck together.  
*Strange how did that happen?* Genma thought while separating the pages.  
There were several strange red-brownish dots that had held the final pages 
together.  The next page made Genma a little pale.  'Warning.  Do not attempt 
this technique at any cost.  It's GARENTEE to make your student insane.  
Death is also a possibility.' Running to the pit, Genma first thought was to 
get his son out.  The second was to think how stupid the person who invented 
this technique was.  The third was why it was so quiet and his final thought 
was Nodoka was going to kill him as he remembered his conversation with her.

* * * * *

    "Genma Saotome!" Nodoka shouted.

    *This is not good.  It's rare when his wife lost her temper and shouted, 
rarer still when she used his full name and rarest still when she used them 
both,* he thought.

    "You think I'm going to let you take our son on a training trip for an 
unknown amount of time?  I do not think so.  You know that Ranma doesn't have 
any magic and thus will live his life like a normal citizen of the Silver 
Millennium."

    "But, love."

    "No but.  It's not right that a mother will outlive her son.  I will not 
let you take him away from me.  He only has a century to live at most and I 
will not be separated from him for any amount of time," she argued.

    "That's my point.  With you codling and sheltering him, he will never be 
a true martial artist.  He will never live up to his true potential."

    "Is it wrong to try and make your son happy?"

    "No but we have a tradition to uphold.  Remember what we agreed upon when 
Ranma was born.  You promised me that I will get to train Ranma to be the 
heir to the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts."

    "That was low," Nodoka replied, a tear coming to her eyes.

    "I'm sorry.  This is something I have to do."

    "Then promise me.  Promise that you will bring him back every once in 
awhile to visit me."

    "I promise."

* * * * *

    *She's going to kill me if something has happened to Ranma,* Genma 
panicked as he started to lift the cover form the pit.  

    When the lid of the pit was almost opened.  A gusher of cats exploded 
from the pit.  Each cat let out a unified shout of terror.  From the pit 
Ranma leaped out.  Landing on all four, he attack the source of his pain, aka 
his father.  

    Seeing Ranma alive calmed Genma somewhat.  Relief soon turned to 
puzzlement at studying his son.  First off, Ranma was on all four and had his 
back in an arch.  Second, there was a slight glow around Ranma yet Genma 
could not detect any sign of magic.  All this disappeared when Ranma rushed 
him faster than he had ever seen Ranma moved before.

    Reaching his target, Ranma clawed at the fat man.  

    Drawing on experience he had collected in his eighty-six years of life, 
Genma was able to recover in time and avoid the blow.   It was shocking to 
discover then that the air current itself had cut into his gi he had decided 
to wear today.  Using his magic sense, he discovered that the air spirits 
around Ranma was helping him in his movement and attacks.  *How!* he thought. 
 Genma had little time to wonder when he was forced to dodge again.  Calling 
air spirits to him, Genma started to enhance his speed as well.  Having done 
that, Genma was able to dodge Ranma's berserk attack and canceled the air 
currents that were directed at him with a few of his own.  

    Neko-Ranma was starting to get more than a little pissed off.  Not being 
able to touch his foe in the last few minutes, he stopped and studied his 
prey.

    Finally having time to organize himself.  Genma studies his son.  
*Strange he's glowing yet I sense no magic.  Could this somehow be part of 
the higher arts?  Could my son have actually mastered a ki or chi attack?* he 
pondered.

    Circling the balding and fat man, Neko-Ranma finally decided on a plan of 
attack.  Without warning he launched himself at his prey once again.  

    Again Genma was on the defense.  As far was he could tell there was no 
way to stop Ranma short of lethal moves.  One mistake and he could lose his 
head and so Genma bided his time, hoping to find an opening.  

    Slashing twice, Ranma flipped backwards.  The instant his feet touched 
the ground he sprung back into action.  

    The second rush made Genma upgrade his assessment of Ranma's threat 
value.  The second rush was faster than the first and Genma, a master of not 
only Anything Goes but also a practitioner of magic relating to wind and air 
magic, could see the spirits around Ranma draw closer to the boy.  When Ranma 
was in range, Genma started to dodge once again but was surprised when his 
son leaped over him.  Turning his head, he was just in time to see him 
rebound and launched himself as him once again.  Twisting in a vain hope of 
blocking or dodging the blow, Genma failed when his back suddenly flared with 
pain.  Seeing that there was nothing he could do, Genma utilized one of the 
Saotome family's most secret maneuvers.  He ran away, not wanting to 
permanently hurt his son and hoping to come up with a way to cure him or pray 
that Ranma would return to normal by himself. 

    Seeing his prey leave, Neko-Ranma licked himself clean and bounced away 
looking for food.  

* * * * *        

    "So what is the occasion, Pluto?" Karou asked.  

    "You know it almost time to pass on the mantle right?" Setsuna replied.

    "Yes.  I know the time for each of the Elder Senshi to pass the mantle 
and full power of their position to the Younger Senshi is coming soon.  Why 
do you ask?"

    "Because I was wondering if you could take Saturn under your wing as 
well?"

    A gasp escaped the lips of the Elder Senshi as she heard the request 
Pluto had asked.  "Saturn is being born?"  Seeing Pluto nod, she nodded as 
well.  "I see.  I understand the reason behind putting her under my care but 
can you tell me a little bit about the cause for her rebirth?"

    "I'm sorry but I can't."

    Sighing, "Have you told the others?"

    "I haven't told anyone but the Queen."

    "You know you could have told me about this piece of news on Uranus.  Why 
did you bring me to Neptune?"  

    "I got a message from my future self that hinted a picnic would be a good 
idea today and she also hinted that I should go to Neptune for the picnic.  
When I looked into the future, I did not see anything important but who is to 
argue with one's future self?" Pluto smiled a little at the comment as well 
as Elder Uranus.  

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