Due to the length of the damn chapter, I've been forced to split them up
into parts coz my stupid email proggie can't handle it, sigh. Read on from
the last part.
***************
"RANMA!!! Now I’ll prove once and for all who’s the stronger! This has been
a long time coming, Saotome!!" Ryoga, recovering from the uppercut just in
time to see Ranma jump out of the hole into roof to land just a few feet
away from him. Ranma nodded solemnly, he heard what Ryoga said but wasn’t
really paying attention. He HAD wanted to beat Ryoga for a while now, but
his mind was reeling with what Akane has yelled in his face a few moments ago.
<What if she really didn’t like me? What if she really did think of me that
way?…Could it be that all I’ve done these past years were all for nothing?>
Ranma’s mind was throwing out these possibilities and he wasn’t paying
attention when Ryoga’s kick connected with awful force and he was sent
flying into a nearby wall, leaving a nice imprint.
"What’s wrong Saotome?! Too scared to fight? Now that you don’t have anyone
to stop the fight when you need it, you’re scared huh? Admit it! What would
Akane think if she saw you in this state, you make me sick!" Ryoga taunted
as Ranma slowly prised himself from the wall, not looking at Ryoga.
"DIE RANMA!!" Ryoga yelled as he launched himself at Ranma, not fully alert,
Ranma took the brunt of the attack Ryoga dished out and was getting pounded
against the wall, feebly trying to stave off the brutal fists that were
threatening to rip him apart.
<What’s wrong with him? Why doesn’t he fight back?> Ryoga thought as he
prepared to deliver the final blow. Ranma meanwhile, battered and bleeding
badly from dozens of small cuts and from his nose and mouth, was still
thinking.
<If Akane really hates me, if that’s it…Then there’s no damn way Ryoga’s
going to get her, even if she does hate me…> His eyes suddenly shot open, in
time to see Ryoga draw his fist back for the Bakusai-Tenketsu.
************
"Mr. Shimada, Mr. Shimada, what about the 1001 shares of...."
"Mr. Shimada, the newspapers are asking for comment on the proposal for the
upcoming Tenkai-Ichi Bodukai...."
"Mr. Shimada, these documents require your immediate attention..."
"Mr. Shimada, Mr. Shimada, a Mr. Atsuko is on Line 6, he wants to talk about
the..."
"HOLD IT!!!" everyone froze from Jyusei Shimada’s sudden outburst. The
hectic scene around the office in which everyone was bustling about trying
to get Shimada’s attention for a moment appeared to simply freeze on the
spot, like time standing still. "Now let’s all take a deep breath and relax
shall we?" Shimada said evenly, catching a breather as he surveyed the
expectant faces of his staff assembled before him, waiting to see which
pressing problem he would handle first. Everyone nodded and as ordered, took
a deep breath and relaxed...For about 10 seconds. Jyusei Shimada turned on
his heel and walked into his office, ignoring the pleas and gibbering of the
staff behind him, all begging for a moment of his time. He locked the door
and crashed onto the couch, exhausted. Outside, the noise became louder as
his staff attempt to attract his attention to the matters at hand.
"Mr. Shimada, the shares..." an employee yelled through the door.
"Mr. Shimada, the reporters are becoming impatient..." another employee yelled.
"Mr. Shimada, these documents..." yet another employee bellowed as he
knocked loudly on the door, trying to entice Jyusei Shimada out.
"I really need to give myself a raise..." Jyusei sighed to himself as he
closed his eyes and attempted to relax from another ‘usual day at the office’.
Outside, the noise level remained constant, Jyusei was used to his
employee’s ways of trying to get his attention by making a problem seem more
important than it really is. <Hmmph, those reporters can go fuck themselves>
he thought as he recalled the recent proposal made by one of his Directors
at the latest board meeting. <There is no fucking way I’m sponsoring no
insane Martial Arts Tournament>.
***************
"...Of course, you do know that the possibilities are endless..." Jyusei was
dropping off as he listened to one of his Directors drone on about possible
ways to increase revenue etc. Thinking back, he realised that to date, not
one of these morons have been able to offer a useful suggestion. "...Then
again, another possibility is to hold a ‘Tenkai-Ichi Bodukai’" Jyusei perked
up at this as the rest of his Board of Directors gaped at the suggestion.
"What!? No way, do you realise..."
"Come ON, a tournament like that would only..."
"Like he says"
"Give me a break, do you have any idea how much Shimada Industries stands to
lose..."
"Hold it! I’d like to hear him out..."
The Board fell silent as Jyusei spoke up, the Director who made the
suggestion brightened at Jyusei’s words and continued his speech.
"Mr. Shimada, I seriously suggest that the company sponsor the upcoming
Tenkai-Ichi Bodukai that is to be held here in Nerima next month. In doing
so we gain valuable advertising benefits for the company as well as..."
"Yeah, but do you also realise the possibilities for loss and..." the
Director was cut short as another piped up
"…also, what if..." another jumped in. The meeting continued regardless.
However now Jyusei wasn’t paying the least bit of attention, his mind was
considering the possibility of his Director’s suggestion.
<Sponsor the Tenkai-Ichi Bodukai, hmm, it has possibilities. It isn’t the
first such Tournament to be held here, last year’s was reasonably
successful, even though the so-called ‘Anything Goes Martial Arts’ school
won it again> he thought...
Now as he lay on the couch going over the week’s events in his mind, he
regrets ever mentioning it to the newspapers. Over the week the suggestion
had seemed more absurd with each passing day, and with the reporters
hounding him every single day for details, he’d grown to reject the idea.
<What was I thinking anyway? a silly Tournament like that is a dead loss
from the get-go, sheesh!> he nodded to himself. Eventually the clamour
outside died down and he was able to drift off into sleep. As his eyelids
closed, he didn’t notice a small glowing sphere of light that had stopped
outside his window...
**************
"RYOGA!! STOP!!!!!" Ryoga froze at the sound of Akane’s yell, he turned in
her direction to see the entire dojo out on the porch, watching the fight.
Kasumi, Nabiki, Soun and Genma were gaping at the scene before them while
Akane was watching with both fists clenched tight to her chest, trying to
get Ryoga’s attention. Ryoga powered down and withdrew his fist, mere
centimeters away from Ranma’s face, the blow that would have killed him.
"Akane!?..Why?...I’m about to beat Ranma once and for all! Why are you
stopping me?!" Ryoga started as he saw Akane’s eyes, brimming over with tears.
"Ryoga, stop it, don’t fight anymore. I...I..." Ryoga saw Akane’s tearful
gaze and slowly nodded. He had waited for, dreamed of this moment, the day
he would finally surpass Ranma, for months now. Yet he was denied his
victory at the instant of the kill.
"Thank your lucky stars Akane saved you in time, Saotome. At least now we
know who’s stronger, don’t we?…You are no man! You are not worthy of a great
fiancee like Akane!" That last comment was said with a hint of mockery as
Ryoga, knowing that he would have won, was rubbing salt into the wound.
"Oh my! I hope poor Ranma’s all right!" Kasumi exclaimed in a worried tone
as she saw the blood-stained Ranma. Genma(in his panda form) was waving
signs about saying "How could you lose, Boy!? You’re a disgrace to the
Saotome name etc etc" Soun was still frozen in a slack-jawed pose as Nabiki
waved a hand in front of her father’s face before coming to the conclusion
that there was nothing there.
"Looks like Daddy’s ‘gone’ again" Nabiki said evenly with her arms folded.
"I wonder what Kuno-baby would pay to know that Ranma isn’t ‘Mr. Invincible’
after all?" she added with a sly grin, the dollar-signs already floating
above her head.
"Nabiki!!! How could you?!?!" Akane snapped at her older sister.
"I’m joking ok?! Sheesh, u need to relax a little Akane." Nabiki coolly said
back, ignoring Akane’s pained look.
<Grrr, first Akane, now Ryoga, that’s IT!! I’ve had all I can take! Akane
hates me anyway, so it’s as if I give a damn about what happens to her
beloved ‘P-Chan’!!!…If anything, this I am going to enjoy!> Ranma, still
entrenched in the wall, was oblivious to the conversation around him as his
mind was working overtime trying to sort out the situation. As he resigned
himself to that conclusion, his eyes suddenly shot open and a blue ki-aura
began to glow around him. Everyone stopped talking for a moment to look in
stunned silence at Ranma, who was now practically ‘on fire’. With a
blood-curdling yell, Ranma exploded from the wall with both fists clenched
at his side, his power level burning to a new level. Ryoga flinched as he
saw the blue flame around Ranma flare up to an almost blinding intensity.
"Ryoga......." Ranma said slowly in a low, dangerous tone. "...This
battle....Is not yet finished!..." Ryoga took an involuntary backstep at
Ranma’s sudden power up. He hastily powered back up, a bluish-green flame
surrounding him momentarily. He was uncertain now, and a little afraid. He’d
never seen Ranma in such a state before, Ranma was never so...so vicious! He
usually fights with a carefree abandon, not with the savagery of a demon.
The two fighters faced off once more, Ranma still flaring with his blue
battle aura, while Ryoga’s had faded, the ki-flame usually does not last
into a fight, Ryoga was extremely apprehensive that Ranma was still flaring
up. Akane, in the meantime, was getting extremely worried, without a final
thought, she ran up to Ranma and began shaking him, much to the worry of
everyone else who yelled "Akane!!! NO!!!". Ryoga, noticing Akane had stepped
between them, was even more reluctant to fight.
"Ranma! RANMA!!! Snap out of it will you!?" Akane yelled while shaking Ranma
who took no notice. Noticing this, Akane pulled out her trademark mallet and
raised it to smash Ranma over the head. Never encountering resistance
before, she, and everyone else watching, was shocked to the core when Ranma
punched at the wooden shaft of the mallet, snapping it like a twig. Akane
stood with a gaping expression on her face, looking at the broken shaft of
wood in her hands.
"Ranma..." she said softly. She took a backstep and fell onto her butt when
she saw the piercing gaze Ranma shot her, for the first time ever there was
nothing in those eyes, which were usually filled with care, worry or even
smugness. This time, they were empty, Akane had never felt so...so...cold in
her life, it was as if Ranma didn’t care anymore. "Akane!
Get...the...hell...out...of...my...way!" Ranma said, in that low dangerous
tone. Akane started, tears filling her eyes as she stepped out of ‘the line
of fire’.
"R..Ranma...I..." Akane sobbed as Ranma turned back to Ryoga.
Ryoga, seeing Ranma’s cold treatment of Akane, was angered and driven to
fight once more.
"Ranma!! You’ll pay for treating Akane like that!!" he yelled, his battle
aura flaring for a moment then fading. Ranma merely sneered.
"Heh, then come get some, Pig Boy!" At that, Ryoga lost control and dashed
toward Ranma, intending to finish it with one blow.
"Yaaaahhhhhh, Saotome, prepare to DIE!!!" Ryoga aimed a flying kick at
Ranma’s head, under any normal circumstances it would have knocked him out
and back into the nearest wall, ending the fight. Ryoga was shocked beyond
belief when his kick connected, it was like striking a brick wall, Ranma
didn’t even flinch at the blow.
<What the?!?> He thought.
"Is THAT the best you can do, P-Chan?!?" Ranma sneered again. Ryoga, now
extremely pissed-off, threw a flurry of punches and kicks, all of which were
dodged with startling ease by the maxed-out Ranma. With a final attempt,
Ryoga powered up and, drawing his fist back, decided to try the
Bakusai-Tenketsu again.
"Ranma! Take this!! BAKUSAI-TENKETSU!!!!!" He yelled as he punched at
Ranma’s face. Everyone watching the fight was basically dumbstruck up to
that point, when they regained their wits and yelled for Ranma to get out of
the way. Kasumi covered her eyes and didn’t look. Soun’s jaw hit the floor
and a large panda was waving a sign about "Get out of the way, Boy!". Nabiki
for the first time probably had nothing to say. Akane on the other hand was
crying and yelling for both of them to stop it. However, everyone, Ryoga
most of all gasped in shock when the Bakusai-Tenketsu struck home, with
little effect. Ranma was knocked slightly back at the force of the blow, but
not much else.
<Uhh!! N..Nani!??> Ryoga, in a state of shock thought.
"Its my turn now, Pig Boy!" Ranma said evenly before he grabbed Ryoga’s
extended fist and with a deft twist sent him flying into the wall. He then
followed up with a series of punches and kicks on the hapless Ryoga, each
blow connecting with awful force.
"Kachuu Tenshin Amaguriken!!!!" Ranma yelled as blow after blow smashed into
Ryoga. Akane was now sobbing and was begging for the two of them to stop it.
Everyone now agreed that this had gotten WAY out of hand.
"Ranma!!! Stop it please! You’ve won ok!?" a crying Soun said as a large
panda held up a sign "Like he says!".
"Uhh, Ranma, I think you can stop now...". Nabiki said rather uncertainly as
Kasumi simply refused to look. All of them were shocked though when Ranma
turned to look at them, the same icy-cold look he shot Akane, before turning
back to the battered and broken Ryoga.
"Uhhhh, Ran...ma..Arrgh!" Ryoga managed to get out, barely able to move.
Ranma grabbed him by the remains of his shirt and lifted him bodily into the
air.
"Heh, did you really think I was so easy to beat? I’ll have you know you
couldn’t beat me on your best day, I’d kick your ass anytime. Think about
that while on your way to hell!" Ranma spat in Ryoga’s face before he flared
up once more, his battle aura burning a bright blue while waves of energy
surrounded him as he powered up for one final move.
"This is it Ryoga, DIE!" Ranma yelled as he drew his fist back.
"Hiryuu-Shoten..." Ranma uppercutted Ryoga, sending him into the air with
the aid of the cyclone generated by the Hiryuu-Shoten-Ha. Then to everyone’s
utter shock, he rode the cyclone up as Ryoga crashed to the ground. Ranma
looked down at the battered Ryoga before diving off the cyclone
"..Kuurin-Dan!!" Ranma dove toward Ryoga at terrific speed, his outstretched
fist burning with a bright yellow flame. Everyone knew that if this
connected Ryoga would be dead, like REALLY dead. Soun, Genma, Kasumi and
Nabiki covered their faces, not wanting to look. Akane, acting on an
impulse, ran forward and pulled Ryoga out of the way a split-second before
Ranma’s fist struck the spot where Ryoga was lying a moment ago. The ground
cracked under the force of the blow and everyone fell over as a
mini-earthquake shook Nerima for a few seconds.
"Ranma!! What do you think you were doing?!? You were going to kill him!?" a
sobbing Akane yelled at Ranma, who was standing over them, his right fist
still flaming yellow. "Bah, what do you care?, You couldn’t care less what
happens to me, right?!" Ranma snapped back at Akane, who was cradling the
unconscious Ryoga.
"Ranma...I...I..."
"You what?!? You admit it right?!?"
"Ranma..." Akane said softly, "If you’re talking about what I said back
outside the bathroom, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it that way. It..It just
slipped out..."
"Yeah, like a whole lot of other things that just ‘slip out’ huh?" Ranma
said back, not wanting to believe Akane.
"Ranma, I’m sorry ok? Let me make it up to you..." Akane smiled through her
tears. Ranma paused, not knowing what to say, as if he was thinking about
the situation at hand. Everyone else had recovered from the little
earthquake and had run to Akane. Kasumi was tending to Ryoga’s wounds while
Nabiki was on her mobile phone to Dr. Tofu. Soun was still in shock over the
whole episode and didn’t say a word while a large panda held up a sign
saying "I bet that really did Hurt!".
Akane looked hopefully at Ranma, who was still silent.
"Akane...I’m sorry, but I can’t...Not this time…"
"WHAT!?!" Everyone exclaimed with a shocked look on their faces. Akane was
sobbing again "R...Ranma...W...why N...not?"
"I need time to think this over. If I say yes, you’d be nice for a while
then go back to being your old self again. I’ve had enough of being taken
for granted...I...I have feelings to you know! It isn't as if I enjoy being
your punchbag all the time..." Ranma turned and looked at a sobbing Soun
then to his father, and slowly shook his head.
"I...I’m sorry Pop, Mr. Tendo. But it’s going to be this way until things
cool down a bit and I’m myself again...I need a little time by myself, to
think things through..." Ranma then looked at Akane, who was sobbing more
with grief now. Ranma knelt beside her and pushed her hair out of her eyes
"Akane, I’m sorry...But it’s best for the both of us, you’ll see." With that
he drew her sobbing face in and kissed her gently on the mouth, her eyes
widened in shock for a moment then closed, tears running down her cheeks.
Ranma gently brushed them away with his thumb and pushed her hair out of her
eyes again. "Goodbye..." he whispered gently into her ear before standing
and facing the gate.
"R..Ranma...don’t go, please don’t" Akane tried one last time. Her
sentiments echoed by Soun and Genma (with another sign). Ranma cast another
look back at the group before. walking slowly out the gate, leaving behind a
sobbing Akane and Soun and a dumbstruck Genma, Kasumi and Nabiki.
***************
<Uhh, YIKES!!>. Jyusei Shimada awoke with a start, sweating profusely over
the nightmare he had just had, one in which he was fending off an unseen
attacker, trying to prevent it from corrupting his mind and soul.
"Strange, why did I suddenly dream of a spiritual attack?" he muttered to
himself. "Could it be that spring I fell into this morning?" He thought for
a moment, the old guide had been extremely forceful in telling him to back
the fuck away from the pools, *especially* the one near the middle, the one
that was covered with some kind of spiritual seal and of course, the one he
fell into because of his curiosity in what mysteries the pools held. <Damn
that old bastard, what was the big deal with those fucking pools anyway? It
wasn’t like they were cursed or anything!> Jyusei eventually rubbed the
sleep out of his eyes and pondered the old man’s attitude this morning, when
he decided to, at one of his Director’s insistence, take a look at the
so-called Jusenkyo training ground. The whole trip was going quite well too,
until he decided to ‘take a closer look’ at one of the pools. Wonder what
‘marketability’ there was in that damned place anyway.
<Remind me to fire the guy who suggested I go to Jusenkyo. The bastard had
me going all the way to China for nothing but a free swim! Ah well, I guess
it was kind of funny> he mused as he straightened his tie and walked over to
the doors leading into the main office. As he was about to open the door, he
took a quick glance back at the window.
<Hmm, nah, I’m getting paranoid> he laughed to himself as he exited his
office and was immediately swarmed by the same employees who were trying to
get his attention earlier on. None of them noticed the fact that Jyusei’s
black eyes were now a strange shade of emerald green…
**************
That night at the Tendo Dojo, no one was speaking, dinner was a quiet
affair, everyone eating their meal in silence. Dr.Tofu had, upon Kasumi’s
insistance, stayed for dinner after patching up Ryoga, who suprisingly was
still alive, though just barely. Dr.Tofu had commented on the extent of
Ryoga’s injuries, asking how the hell he could have been injured to such a
degree. However, given the nature of the situation, and Akane’s current
unstable state of mind, no one said anything, offsetting the doctor with a
fabricated story on how Ryoga had gotten run over by a panda, to which Genma
scowled).
Ryoga, who was lying upstairs, heard every word. He was ashamed at Akane
having to save him from defeat, but that shame was nothing compared to the
fact that he lost when he should have had the situation well in hand, lost
to Ranma even.
<Shimatta *UGH* How could I lose? How could I…*ACK*> Ryoga winces from the
pain of his injuries, though he was too proud to admit it, the painful truth
was still there, Ranma had beaten him…badly. "Damn, I’m still not strong
enough…*ARGH*" Ryoga lets out an involuntary yelp, wincing from pain, which
promptly brings most of everyone downstairs running.
"Hey Ryoga, you all right?" a worried-looking Akane asked while Dr.Tofu
checked his bandages and changed the ones that were soiled from excessive
bleeding. Ryoga felt deeply ashamed, in all his life he had never felt so…so
helpless as he does now.
<Curse you Ranma, I’ll make you pay for this…I swear it!> Outside, storm
clouds were gathering, a solemn testament to the mood inside the Dojo.
However, no one noticed the dark shape lurking outside the window, which
vanished soon after the first droplets of rain began to fall.
***************
Ranma, walking down the streets of Nerima in a dejected mood, failed to
notice the brewing storm until it was on the verge of breaking. Hearing the
thunder rumble high above him, he began to look for shelter.
<Uhhh *argg* Damn Ryoga sure can hit! *Hnngg*> He winced from the pain of
his injuries that had only recently begun to bother him.
"I suppose I better get moving, don’t really want a free shower…" Ranma
mused as he quickened his pace slightly. As the first few droplets of rain
began to fall, Ranma quickly ran under the nearest awning for shelter, in
time to avoid the full force of the storm with quickly followed. "Heh, guess
I just made it" he smirked quietly to himself.
<Hmm, where am I now?> Looking around, he saw the sign to the place, it
read: ‘Nekohanten’. <Shrug, since I'm here, may as well go in for a bite,
I'm starving> his stomach reminded him through the pain.
The inside of the Nekohanten was deserted, as it was quite late and the
restaurant had closed quite a while ago. Ranma took a chair off one of the
tables nearby and collapsed into it, his exhausted body finally giving out
on him.
"Sorry, we closed". Shampoo said from behind the closed window of the
counter. However, sensing the person was still there, Shampoo sighed and
walked out to see who it was.
"Sorry, we closed, Shampoo afraid you have to…AIYA!! Ranma!! What happen?!?"
Shampoo gasped in shock at the sight of a bloodstained Ranma draped across
one of the tables. Upon hearing her voice, Ranma looked up weakly.
"*Uhhhh* S…Sham…Shampoo…I ..Hhh…*uhh*" Ranma managed to get out before
fainting. Shampoo ran to catch him as he fell off the chair.
"Great-grandmother!! Come quick!!" she yelled "Ranma need help!!"
"What is it child?" Cologne said as she pogoed out from behind the curtain.
"Good lord! Who could have done this?! Quick, get him inside and prepare the
medicine" Cologne too was surprised at the state Ranma was in, she knew that
while not quite the master she was, Ranma is one of the hardest opponents to
beat on his best day, so whoever could have done this to Ranma, had to be
someone damn good.
"Yes Great-grandmother. Come Ranma, Shampoo carry you…" Shampoo draped the
unconscious Ranma over her shoulder and gently carried him into the back,
giggling all the while, leaving Cologne to ponder the exact facts of what
happened.
<This is most interesting, maybe my future son-in-law ran into an old
adversary? No, that’s not it…> the old prune thought as she hopped into the
back room on her staff after locking up the Nekohanten.
************
"This miserable rain! The audacity of it to keep one such as I, Kuno
Tatewaki, 17 years old, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High, indoors at a time
like this, when I could be out rescuing my pigtailed goddess and the
virtuous Akane Tendo from the vile clutches of that demon Saotome!" Kuno
said to no one in particular as he cursed the raging storm outside his
window. "Who would have thought that I, the high and awesome…Ahh Sasuke, you
have returned, tell me, what news there be of my pigtailed goddess and of
the noble and virtuous Akane Tendo?"
Sasuke, dripping wet all over the expensive carpeting due to his exposure
to the rain, drew a disdainful gaze from Kuno as he made his report.
"There is no news of the pigtailed one, Master Kuno, however it appears that
there has been some trouble at the dojo recently involving Tendo Akane and…"
Sasuke was cut short as Kuno grabbed the soaking-wet ninja and shook him
violently, demanding more.
"WHAT!? What could possibly trouble the noble Akane Tendo?! Speak, speak I say!"
"W…W…W…ell…llll. It…it appears that…that…" Sasuke managed to get out as Kuno
continued shaking until he realised that Sasuke couldn’t speak until he
stopped. This being so, Kuno dropped the soaking lump and folded his arms, a
look of disdain on his face.
"Now speak, tell me of these ‘troubles’ that plague the noble and virtuous
Akane Tendo!" Kuno commanded, looking out the window at the driving rain.
"Y…yes Master Kuno" Sasuke, visibly shaken, literally, continued his report.
"Well it appears that Saotome Ranma and Hibiki Ryoga were involved in a
fight recently. As we speak, Ryoga is recovering at the Dojo, there is no
sign of Ranma."
Kuno pondered this, Ranma and Ryoga fight almost every day, but this is the
first time which there has been any kind of real damage actually been done
on one of their fights.
"Tell me, my good Sasuke, what condition was the one called Ryoga in?"
"He appeared to be badly beaten, from what I could see from where I was
located above the window, it appears that the damage sustained in the fight
were extremely severe."
Kuno started slightly in shock for a moment before realising that Sasuke was
nearby and regained his composure.
"…And what of my lovely Akane Tendo?" Kuno asked, not wanting to think about
what the fight was like.
"She appeared extremely distraught, Master Kuno, I overheard one of the…"
Sasuke was cut short by Kuno’s sudden outburst.
"Hark! This simply cannot be! Fear not my love, I, Kuno Tatewaki, 17 years
old, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High, shall be by your side in your time
of need!" With that, Kuno, forgetting it was raining, dashed outside and was
promptly struck by a bolt of lightning. A few seconds later, a car ran over
a Kuno-shaped lump on the road, leaving tyre-tracks on what appeared to be
it’s back...
***********
The scene at the Tendo Dojo was a sad one. Since Ranma’s departure, Akane
had refused to leave her room and was crying most of the time, blaming
herself for Ranma’s leaving. Kasumi and Dr. Tofu tried endlessly to cheer
her up, to little or no avail. Soun mostly was wandering around the dojo
seemingly lost, sobbing all the time while Genma was silently cursing Ranma
under his breath for causing them such trouble. Happosai had tried on more
than one occasion to ‘cheer up’ Akane, only to get punted into orbit by
everyone. Nabiki was staring up at the new Happosai-shaped hole in the roof
and sighing.
"Akane, come out, you have to eat something or you’ll get sick" Dr. Tofu
said through the door.
"No! I don’t want to, just go away and leave me alone!" Akane yelled back
through the door, soon after sobbing was heard, along with occasional cries
of ‘Ranma’. Dr.Tofu sighed and turned to Kasumi.
"K…Kasumi, Y…you have to c..convince her to stop being like this, she’ll
only do herself harm at this r…rate." Dr.Tofu said to Kasumi, before his
glasses started fogging up and he began looking around for a skeleton.
Kasumi, for once wasn’t smiling and had a serious look on her face, she knew
how stubborn Akane could be at times and this was one of those times. They
were about to give up and leave when there was a knock on the door.
"Hello, is there anyone home?" a female voice said "The front door wasn’t
closed so I thought I’d …Oh my goodness! What’s wrong?" Nodoka Saotome
looked around and instantly sensed something was wrong, if the gloomy
atmosphere around the dojo wasn’t enough of a hint. Nabiki heard a voice and
went to the door.
"Oh hi, it’s been a while" she said as she forced a smile.
"Yes, what’s wrong around here, did something happen?" Nodoka asked, to
which Nabiki quickly responded negatively, saying that everything was just
fine. Nodoka didn’t buy it.
Soun heard her voice and went to greet her while there was a splash in the
backyard. Nodoka noted Soun was crying (actually quite normal) and that
Ran-ko and Panda wasn’t around. Well ok, Ran-ko wasn’t around, Nodoka came
across a soaking wet Panda in the carp pond, holding up a sign "Hello there,
_someone else’s_ wife" Nodoka smiled at Panda and asked him where Ran-ko
was. Panda held up a sign saying "Umm, err…" when Nodoka heard crying coming
from Akane’s room.
"Oh dear, what’s wrong with Akane?" she asked Soun who was stuck for a
reply. Seeing this, she walked upstairs and came across Kasumi and Dr.Tofu
standing outside Akane’s door. Dr.Tofu was blundering about, his glasses
fogged and he was holding a skeleton’s hand and calling it ‘Kasumi’ while
Kasumi was talking, or trying to, Akane through her bedroom door, with no
response.
"Oh, hello there" Kasumi said with a smile.
"Hello Kasumi dear, what’s wrong with Akane" Nodoka asked, Kasumi was stuck
for a reply.
"Um, well, you see, she’s…" Kasumi stopped when Akane threw the door open
and walked out. Nodoka saw she looked terrible, she was rather pale and her
eyes were red from crying a lot. Nodoka started in surprise when Akane threw
herself into Nodoka’s arms and began sobbing again. Nodoka held Akane in her
arms, gently rocking her back and forth all the while asking Kasumi what is
going on.
"Let’s all go to the dining room, we’ll fill you in on what happened…"
Nabiki coming up the stairs said before walking back down, Kasumi nodded
quickly and left. Pulling Dr.Tofu after her leaving a distressed Akane to
cry quietly into Nodoka’s arms.
"What was that you say? My Ranma got into a fight?! Oh dear, how did it go?
Where is he now?!?" Nodoka asked, the others couldn’t answer.
"Well, he…he…he kind of, ran away after the fight" Nabiki said, wincing at
Nodoka’s pained expression.
"Oh, my dear boy, I hope he’s all right." Nodoka said with an extremely
worried look on her face. "By the way, if Ranma was here, where’s my
husband?" Genma(in panda form) began to sweat extremely profusely at this.
"He, err, he went off looking for Ranma…". Nabiki quickly replied. Panda
held up a sign while vigorously nodding "Yep, yep, like she says!." Nodoka
sighed, she had so looked forward to seeing her son and husband again, as
usual they weren’t around.
"By the way, where’s Ran-ko? It’s not like her to leave her panda behind now
is it?" Everyone began to sweat at this, except Akane who was still in
Nodoka’s arms.
"Auntie…Ran…Ran-ko’s…" Akane, still sniffling, began before looking at Panda
who was sweating madly holding up a sign saying "**PLEASE** don’t tell
her!!" in addition to making cutting motions across its throat with a paw.
"Ran-ko’s gone…l…looking for R…Ranma…t…too *sniff*" Akane lied, she had
wanted to come out and finally say it, considering the current state of
things. Nodoka sensed that Akane was holding something back, and in the back
of her mind an old fear surfaced itself, but she refused to show it and
since Akane was so upset, she decided not to press her until she’d calmed
down a bit. Across the table, Panda was nearly having a heart attack, Kasumi
was quietly wiping the excess sweat that had dripped off Panda onto the
floor with a towel.
"Well…" Nodoka began "If that’s all there is to say, I’d like to see the boy
who fought with Ranma, if that’s ok. Maybe he can tell me something." Nabiki
nodded and stood up, everyone else followed, except for Panda who was still
frozen to the spot, sweating enough to fill a swimming pool.
"It’s ok, just don’t pressure him too much, he’s still in a pretty bad
shape, considering what Ranma did to him its a miracle he survived
actually…" Nodoka looked shocked at what Nabiki said, it had never occurred
to her that Ranma could be so brutal. But then again it hadn’t occurred to
anyone else too until they saw the fight.
Nabiki led Nodoka upstairs to the room where Ryoga was resting.
"Ok, try to keep it down, he may be sleeping". Nabiki reminded Nodoka who
nodded and Nabiki opened the door, to everyone’s utter shock.
"What the?!? He’s gone!!!!" Nabiki gasped.
"What!?!?!? How can he, he could barely move the way he was!!" Panda held
out a sign.
"Oh my! I hope poor Ryoga is all right" Kasumi said, holding a hand to her
mouth. Akane simply looked into the empty room in shock, all that remained
of Ryoga was some bloodstained bandages that were used to dress his wounds…
*************
Outside, in the driving rain, a figure was perched on the tree above the
window, observing the scene inside. It smiled for a moment then was
encapsulated in a purple sphere of light before flying off, leaving behind
one perfect peach. on it’s back was dangled a limp figure wearing a telltale
yellow bandanna…
To Be Continued…..
*************
Author's Note:
Ok, I know that Ranma for one would never fight anyone with an intent to
kill like he did with Ryoga here. Don't go spamming me pointing out that
fact coz i already know ;) I decided to write the story and prolly all the
fight scenes to this level of intensity. Namely coz I've always wanted to
find out how Ranma and Co would react when their only choices in a fight is
either kill or be killed.
As some of you may have noted, this fic 'borrows' some concepts and ideas
from The King of Fighters though this is in no way a crossover. It just
opens up a few more possibilities :)
C&C is welcome, especially if you have suggestions for future chapters.
K u s a n a g i K y o
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"Kusanagi Flames, Yagami Tears, Orochi Blood"