TWISTED ROADS WE FOLLOW

Copyrights metioned in first story part.
Colliding SYmphonies Production.

By- TJ Hamilton

part 2

Ranma, for once, decided to stay after school. Of course he only bothered to
tell Nabiki. (Yeah for once I'm thinkin`.)

He figured that no one would bother him if the only source of the knowledge of
his where abouts started at 2000 yen.

So with that, Ranma laid on the outer wall of the school while various clubs
were performing on the campus grounds. The girls rack team would come by,
chanting "Fight-o!" in step. Occasionally Ranma would hear a crack from the
baseball field behind the school.

Ranma was quite relaxed as he stared at the late afternoon clouds. He felt a
presence near him. (Um. . .below. . .to the right. . .in front. . .about 5
meters. . .) Ranma sat up, looking where he had predicted.

His co-ordinates were right on the mark. Sakura had her fists on her hips as she
looked up at Ranma. Her school bag was double harnessed over her shoulder and
she was wearing knuckle guards. "Hi," Ranma said dully.

"Uh-huh," Sakura dead-panned. She was quite annoyed with the individual on the
wall. "Who was that girl chasin you around?"

He turned away from her as he answered "None of your business." How dare he look
away from her!

"Oh? Words out that she's your fiancee`," she dished out, skeptically. The jerk
snapped his head back, his eyes lit with fire as he responded.

"Yeah? what about it, huh?" Ranma yelled down at her. Her anger was at her
boiling point as she prepared to unleash her sermon to this male-pig.

"Just because you know some moves doesn't give you the right to treat people
like trash!" she declared triumphantly.

He flinched for a moment. Yeah, think about that, you jerk. "What the hell are
you talkin about? She's the one who treats me like trash!" His voice was neither
deep, nor high, but it was very intense as he yelled down at her. She winced a
bit, her position faltering marginally. "But what do you care? All girls never
listen to me. . .cept for u-chan. . ." he looked away. She'd have to find out
who U-chan was later.

"Enough of your lip, pig.. . lets. .

"FIGHT!" a loud male voice finished for her. She saw a second boy come crashing
downward at Ranma with a jump kick, but he dodged off the wall like lightning
and came to stand beside her. How the boy was higher than the wall enough so
that he could jump down at Ranma failed to register to Sakura as the other boy's
kick destroyed the wall where Ranma was a moment ago.

"Down, Ryouga!" Ranma yelled loudly.

Sakura looked at the boy. His matted brown hair was quite unkempt, other than an
odd bandanna pushing the bangs up. He wore a trail pack that looked more like a
crate, an umbrella and bedding bound to it at the top. He was wearing something
that kinda looked Chinese, but Sakura couldn't be sure.

"FIGHT!" he yelled again, rushing Ranma. Ranma pushed Sakura out of the way and
ran at Ryouga. As Ryouga swung a punch at Ranma's head, Ranma ducked low and
grabbed Ryouga's arm and leg.

"Not here, blockhead! We're at school!" He yelled up at Ryouga's face. Sakura
watched in fascination as the two calmly let go of each other. If she didn't
know better, she would have thought the Ryouga boy had slightly grabbed Ranma's
ankle with his other hand, but she couldn't be sure. "You just mangled the outer
wall!"

Ryouga looked back at the wall, then panned to look at his surroundings.

Sakura finally found her throat. "Who the hell are you? I was the one who was
gonna fight him!" Ryouga turned to regard the small girl in front of himself and
Ranma.

"He's mine!" he declared fervorently. "He shall pay for making my life the
unending suffering it has become!"

Sakura looked back at Ranma, who had hung his head down, holding his temples
with one hand. "So you bully other people too?"

"Ranma will never bully me!" Ryouga yelled, his pride swelling at the girls
remark.

"Well, I want a piece of him too, so you're going through me first, pal."

Ryouga gulped. "You didn't just challenge me did you?"

"Ryouga no!" Ranma shouted. "And not here either!"

"Yes I did!" she yelled, getting into a fighting stance. "C'mon! And don't give
me that I don't fight girls crap. I'm more than enough for you."

Ranma was about to argue further, but knew it was a lost cause when Ryouga
slipped into a crane stance. He leaned at Ryouga. "Don't kill her," he said
lowly.

"Unlike you, I know how to pull a punch," he said mockingly. As Sakura shifted
towards him, he faced Ranma. "Besides, its not like I can't through the fight. I
don't need to win all the time."

Sakura came into kicking distance, and Ranma seemed to take an off stage que and
backed away from Ryouga.

Ryouga tried to remain calm. (Okay. . .easy, now. She challenged me so she has
it in her head to beat me. All I have to do is walk around that. . .) His
thoughts were cut off as Sakura swung an upward heel kick at his chin. He leaned
back in a dodge, but she followed up with a jumping exchange kick with her other
foot. Ryouga managed to get his hand up and block, but her force was
surprisingly strong. Ryouga swung a minimal speed punch in reply, but she dodged
by ducking and whacked him 3 times in the ribs with her buffalo punch.

She was used to guys doubling over after hitting them with that. He seemed to
absorb them, and now here hand hurt a little. Only one other man she knew took
her blows like that.

Ryouga swung again, at full speed, ready to check it. She reacted so he didn't
hold back. To his surprise, she actually caught it, but she had to use both her
hands and even then she was pushed back  by his fist about 2 feet, causing her
chucks to skid noisily on the concrete.

(she's good, but she's holding back.) Ryouga train of thought was derailed as
she pulled on his arm to get closer. Too quickly, she jumped on his chest and
kicked off from him, causing him to fly backwards. He tried to flip as best he
could, but sloppily did a one-handed back hand spring to recover. (Wow.) he
thought, truly impressed. (And here she comes. . .)

Sakura rushed him again. (He's way too strong, I've got to finish this, now.)
She faked a jab several times, Ryouga going for none of them. She swung with a
round house, and he ducked. She followed up with an over-the-top instep kick.

"HANA-KYAKU!"

Ryouga took a hard whack to the head, causing him to sit rather than kneel. He
did a back roll and kelt again, but Sakura followed him, trying to hammer fist
him. Ryouga grabbed her wrist, half of her forearm disappearing in his hand. She
tried to pull away, but he was immovable.

Ryouga through a weak sweep to get her off her feet, which move like fresh
grass. Sakura gracelessly hit the ground on her butt, and Ryouga stood, still
firmly gripped on her arm.

Using that arm, he pulled her up into his modified full nelson, using his legs
to keep her from dropping. He held back the submission pressure, fearing he'd
break her in half.

Sakura was in a bind. She gulped. (Think fast, school girl. . .)

"Do you yield?"

Sakura's answer was to pull her legs up to stand on Ryouga's knee which
prevented her from dropping down. Instead, she walked -up- his chest until she
Sailor Shot off of him a second time. (Gotta finish this,) she reminder herself.

Ryouga stumbled from her counter/escape, when he realised her arms were around
his neck.

>From Behind.

(How did she?) was all he though before he felt the pressure. At first he
thought is was some kind of sleeper, but the pressure he felt was nothing like a
sleeper. After a bit of struggle, he realised he was being strangled.

Ranma watched in fascination. The girl had slapped a turk on him while he was
standing. She couldn't lock up his legs for the pressure the real move required
because she was too short, but instead, she hung like dead weight on Ryouga's
back.

(C'mon! Pass out already!) Sakura though as she squeezed with all her might.
Ryouga suddenly spun like a top before using his back and neck muscles to haul
Sakura forward and over him. Sakura managed to flip and recover, but she was
shaken. (How did he do that!? No one is strong enough to break that strangle!)
She glanced at his red neck and then past him at the wall he demolished.

Sakura was scared.




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| "You too small. You should learn to run, not fight."  |
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|   Karate master speaking to Master Tatsuo Shimabuku   |
|  as a child. Master Tatsuo later founded Isshinryu    |
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