Ranma � belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.

I ain�t making any money of this so bugger off, you blood suckers!

Thanks to Maybeso for his permission to use his ideas.

< Matt here. Well, H-Packrat decided to take up my offer on taking one of
the possibilities I'd outlined for Soul of Ice, one path, one choice. Which
path? Which choice? You'll just have to read along with me to find out,
won't you? ^_^ >

Soul of Ice: The Path He Walks.

Up on the roof of the Tendo Dojo, a figure was sitting deep in thought as
the rest of the family slept.

Here Ranma pondered the question of what to answer the two grandmasters,
which contest for him. Both were extremely skilled and either could advance
his training considerably.

A sudden noise made him tense in preparation for anything. But nothing moved
in the night that did not belong there. After a while, Ranma returned to his
thoughts.

It took him a moment to remember what he was thinking of, but soon
remembered his dilemma.

Ranma sighed at the dilemma that was presented to him. Both wanted him to be
their heir. Both wanted to use him against the other. The problem was both
offers were very tempting and their insights into his life frighteningly
accurate if one sided.

But which one should he choose? Cologne? Happosai? Both? Neither? Cologne
had behind her the Amazon�s entire martial lore to back her up, while
Happosai had his three hundred years of personal combat experience against
hundreds of master-class and grandmaster-class opponents.

On the one hand, he didn�t want to be Cologne�s puppet, unable to learn or
move but at her say so. On the other hand, he didn�t want to end up like
Happosai either.

Again the noise repeated itself.

This time Ranma was sure someone was there. It�s a sure bet whoever is
there, can mask their ki, because Ranma couldn�t feel them.

�Whoever you are, come out,� replied Ranma in his normal tone, sure that the
intruder would hear him.

The person, who emerged from the shadows, was the last person he expected to
be out at this time of night.

�Hello, Ranma,� greeted Tofu, setting down his medicine bag, as he sat down
beside Ranma. �It�s been a while since you came to the clinic.�

Relaxing, Ranma replied, �Oh, it�s you, Dr. Tofu. Yeah, it�s been a while.
What are you doing out at this time of night?�

�Oh, I�m just returning from an emergency house call from Mrs. Watasabe,�
explained Tofu. �Seems her husband fell down the stairs and threw his back
while trying to get a glass of milk from the kitchen��

The two of them talked about little things for a while as they caught up on
each other�s lives.

�So why are you up here this late, Ranma?� asked Tofu, �It�s getting pretty
late.�

With a sigh, Ranma explained, �I�m trying to come to a decision about
something, so I came here to think.�

�Oh?� commented Tofu, �Is it about your engagements?�

�No,� replied Ranma. �Happosai and Cologne have each asked for me to
formally become their students. The problem is I�d have to choose between
�em. Seems they have this rivalry about each others martial arts.�

�That�s great, Ranma,� congratulated Tofu. �Either one of them would make a
good teacher for you.�

�That maybe true, but I can�t see myself following either of their martial
philosophies,� explained Ranma, looking at Tofu. �You see, Happosai�s
Anything-goes martial arts is based on passion, where the martial artist
creates his own style based on what he enjoys doing. While that might be
great, I don�t want to end up like him, being unable to control himself in a
fight.�

�Cologne�s Amazon martial arts, on the other hand,� continued Ranma, looking
out over the sleeping Nerima, �is based on rigid control, where the martial
artist relies on absolute control over himself and those around him to
defeat his enemy. While that would be great for a fight, it tends to suck
out the pleasure in the art.�

With a sigh, Ranma lay down and said, �Only my messed-up engagement w/
Akane, is more difficult to decide on.�

Silence descended on the two as both pondered on what was said.

Stirring himself, Tofu commented, �So you think that neither styles suit
your needs, eh? What if you were able to combine their teachings? Happosai�s
passion combined with Cologne�s control would seem to suit you best from
what you say. You could accept both as your teachers in the arts.�

�That�s what I thought too,� replied Ranma, then sighed. �But neither of �em
will go for it. They�re competing against each other to see who is the
better teacher and who has the better technique. They�re planning on using
me against the other.�

�I suppose secretly learning from both would be out of the question,� said
Tofu. �Anything you learn would immediately show in your stance and your
technique.�

�Yeah, that�s what I figure,� returned Ranma shaking his head. �On top of
that, they�ve said some very uncomfortable things about Pop, Mr. Tendo and
Akane.�

�What type of things?� asked Tofu, curious on what the two grandmasters had
to say about the practitioners of the Anything-goes school.

�Cologne says that the Anything-goes school is about excess,� explained
Ranma. �That Happosai�s perversion, Pop�s appetite, Mr. Tendo�s crying and
Akane�s anger are all part of the school�s philosophy. That if I continue, I
could become like �em, without control.�

�She even goes so far to say,� continued Ranma, �that Akane turned away from
beating me and is instead castrating me thru insults on my manhood and my
curse.�

A frown flashed across Tofu�s face, but he remained silent and motioned for
Ranma to vent his confusion.

�Happosai, on the other hand, says that they are a perversion of his school,
that the philosophy of his school is to develop one�s own style of combat
thru what one enjoys doing most,� said Ranma. �He says, that Pop�s was once
a practitioner of his school until he sealed away the Saotome techniques.�

�He also says that the reason why Akane�s always mad at me is that she can�t
handle being faced with the fact that she�s not a true martial artist,�
expanded Ranma as his arms gestured. �That she doesn�t have the correct
attitude of a true martial artist has towards martial arts.�

�The thing that gets to me is that they might be right,� confessed Ranma,
shoulders drooping in despair.

Silence once again descended on the two as Tofu digested what Ranma said.

Tapping his chin in thought, Dr. Tofu commented, �I can�t think of anything
to say to refute their observations, Ranma. Although none of their
statements were entirely true, there was enough truth in them that proving
them wrong would be very difficult.�

As Tofu looked at Ranma, he considered what he knew about the young martial
artist.

Ranma had great potential as a martial artist. His ability to learn
techniques quickly is matched only by his rival/friend and sparring partner,
Ryoga Hibiki. His ability to adapt in combat has no equal as far as Tofu
knew.

Ranma�s bad habits were greatly offset by his confidence, his caring nature,
and his cheerful, never-say-die attitude. That he has difficulty lying would
be considered an asset in an honest relationship, if it didn�t get his
killed first.

He knew that Ranma cared for Akane despite his protests to the contrary. He
has sacrificed a lot for Akane. From the letters that he received from
Kasumi, he knew Ranma has sacrificed his life and manhood many times saving
Akane�s life.

On the down side, Ranma was ill mannered, arrogant and ignorant of social
graces. His tendency to speak his mind without considering the consequences,
being a major source of his problems. Coupled with his curse to live an
interesting life, it was a testament to Ranma�s fortitude despite the many
burdens on his young shoulders. The addition of this does not make things
easier for him.

But what could Tofu contribute to help Ranma?

Reaching a decision, Tofu said, �As I see it, Ranma, the best thing for you
to do, if you do not wish to be a pawn in their contest, might be to combine
what you�ve learned from them and create your own martial arts philosophy.
Combine Happosai�s passion with Cologne�s control and create a set of
techniques on your own. That way, you won�t have to choose between Happosai
and Cologne.�

�But wouldn�t that be agreeing to Happosai�s point of view?� asked Ranma.
�After all, he wants me to create my own martial arts style.�

�True, you are using his philosophy to help you create your own moves,� Tofu
admitted. �But doesn�t every martial artist personalize what he or she
learns to a certain degree? Many have modified their moves to suit them
better. Happosai merely takes it one step farther. That doesn�t mean that
you choose for him to be your teacher.�

�If martial artists didn�t personalize their moves,� Tofu explained, �Then
there would only be one kind of martial arts being practiced instead of the
variety we have now.�

�And by creating your own moves, you are saying to them that you won�t allow
yourself to be a pawn in their game of one-upmanship,� pointed out Tofu. �Of
course, you would need to confront them to show them that you are their
equal and cannot be forced to bow to either.�

�Hmm, that�s true,� admitted Ranma. �It ain�t gonna be easy to do, but if I
can do it, then I�ve got two of �em off my back. But what about what they
said about Akane� and the others?�

Grinning slightly at Ranma�s slip, Tofu answered, �Akane is really a sweet
girl. Though what Happosai and Cologne say might be true, Akane doesn�t do
it intentionally or knowingly. After all, haven�t you insulted and teased
her many times without realizing that you have done so?�

Tilting his head back, Tofu added, �I guess the best thing that you can do
would be to confront Akane about this. You�ll notice that she is very
conscious of what other people say about her. If she knows what others think
of her, wouldn�t she likely try to change for the better?�

�But you have to remember that she can�t handle criticism very well,�
admonished Tofu. �She�s so afraid of disappointing anyone that she takes any
bad comments about her as an insult to her.  Coupled with her temper, she�s
like a glass of nitroglycerine that can go off if you even look at it
 wrong.�

�And since you insult and criticize her, that counts double against you.�
Shaking his head slightly, Tofu added, �Sometimes, I wonder if she still
blames herself for her mother�s death, for not being good enough to stop
 it.�

Eyes wide in disbelief, Ranma responded, �But what about the others? They
criticize Akane and she doesn�t get angry at �em.�

�Do they?� asked Tofu. �Her family rarely criticize her and tends to let her
get away with things that one normally doesn�t get away with. She can�t take
out her anger against them or her classmates since most of them are leery of
her strength and temper. Most of the time, they step carefully around
subjects that are sensitive to her or avoid it entirely.�

�Face it, Ranma,� said Tofu. �You, your friends and other martial artists
are the only ones who could take a beating from her. And you�re the only one
that allows her to get away with it. That�s why she tends to beat you,
because you�re the only one that allows her to release her anger violently.�

�But why doesn�t she beat Ryoga?� asked Ranma, more curious than appalled,
�Why doesn�t she take out her anger on him? He�s better able to take a
beating with his training.�

�But he doesn�t criticize her, does he?� pointed out Tofu. �He�s so blinded
by his infatuation of her that he never sees her faults.�

Lying down on the roof, Tofu commiserated, �Did you know I was aware of
Akane�s crush on me in the past, Ranma? Admittedly, I�m infatuated with
Kasumi, but that didn�t mean that I didn�t notice Akane.�

Ranma was amazed at this. He didn�t think that Tofu could see anything with
Kasumi around.

�Of course, I wasn�t interested in her, but I did wanted to be her friend,�
admitted Tofu. �Even then I saw that she needed some help, but I wasn�t
patient enough or brave enough to take the chance because she might end up
hating me instead.�

�Then I came along,� inserted Ranma understanding beginning to dawn on him.
�Someone who ain�t afraid to tell her what was wrong, even if it made her
mad.�

�Correct,� said Tofu. �But you not only criticize her, you also insult her.
So any help you give her goes out the window every time she looses it. In
fact, that might be why she�s attracted to you.�

This admittance by Tofu makes Ranma think about Akane and Tofu�s view of her
problems. There was a lot of truth in there and it would take a while for it
to properly set in his mind.

Setting aside Akane for now, Ranma asked, �So, you think you can help me
with the pervert and the ghoul?�

�I don�t have their knowledge or their expertise,� admitted Tofu. �But I
guess I can give you my books on pressure points and ki to help you decide
on how to go about it.�

�Thanks, Doc,� said Ranma. �I�m gonna need all the help I can get.�

*Personal note: Using �thru� instead of �through� is a personal quirk of
mine. They mean the same thing so there shouldn�t be any problems. And
although Tofu may not know ki-attacks, he would know the basic theories
about them. After all, he�s a martial artist, isn�t he? *

Up Next: Ranma and Akane go on a training trip. What does Ranma have in
mind? What does this have to do with his decision?