A Saiyan Tail.
Part 11
The rise of the Demon.
Ranma Saotome sat on the roof of the Tendo home looking into the
distance wistfully as the family inside mourned the loss of Nabiki Tendo
in relative silence. It had been decided that since she would be brought
back in a year or so no funeral would be held for her. Her body was
currently in a morgue in the police station a few miles away. He frowned
deeply as he watched the clouds float by over his head. Various feelings
of regret and sympathy went through his mind as he watched the puffy
white water vapors float away slowly as the sun fell below the horizon.
Ryoga had seemed genuinely sorry for killing the girl and he might be of
help in collecting the dragon balls when the time came. Ranma's thoughts
floated back to his rival and his frown deepened. He sighed and sat up
looking over the rooftops of Nerima.
"Ranma?" said Akane as she placed her hand on his shoulder gently. "Are
you all right?"
"I'm fine, just thinkin about what I'm gonna do about Ryoga," said the
boy honestly.
"I'm going to kill him," snapped the girl angrily as a look of hatred
crossed her face.
"No!" screamed Ranma in shock, "You stay away from him! He's way to
strong for you to handle Akane, I don't want to see you end up like your
sister!"
Akane visibly cringed at the words; his face was serious and angry.
"If I train hard enough I can beat him!" she retorted angrily slapping
him across the face again.
Ranma frowned at her and sat down again, "Akane, Ryoga is my problem.
I'll deal with it in my own way."
"I'm a martial artist too Ranma!" screamed the girl as her emotions took
over.
"A martial artist who can't even fly yet, a year of training isn't going
to be enough Akane. Let me handle this!" snapped the boy in reply without
looking up at her.
Akane stepped back with tears in her eyes as she stared at her fianc�e
in shock. "Promise me you'll kill him!"
He looked up at her and sighed realizing what she was asking of him. "I
won't do that Akane."
The girl burst into tears and rushed back into the home slamming her
window shut in anger. He looked at the display and shuddered for a moment
before lying back down on the roof tiles with new problems to deal with.
Soun stood waiting for Akane inside her room, she turned in shock and
looked at the man with wide eyes. "Akane, what is the matter?" he asked
calmly. His face was still stained with tears, but his face was hard and
serious.
"Ranma is such a jerk! I'm never going to marry him!" screamed the girl
as she dove into her bed and cried into her pillow.
"Not even if he was right?" asked the man with a maddening calm in his
voice.
Akane looked up at her father in shock and opened her mouth to speak.
The elder Tendo raised his hand and silenced her.
"I was playing Shogi with Goku down stairs, everyone in the house could
hear you Akane. I'm sorry if it wounds your pride so daughter, but Ranma
is correct. If you were to face Ryoga Hibiki with only a year of
training, even under the Turtle Hermit himself you would share your
sister's fate. The dragon balls can only bring someone back once, do not
even think of facing him."
Akane glared at him, "What do you mean?" she asked warily.
Soun Tendo sighed deeply and sat at the foot of his daughter's bed.
"Akane, you have already been brought back by the dragon god once
before."
Akane stared at her father in shock and said nothing. The man bent his
head in shame and tears started to flow down his face.
"Once we were on a family vacation in a place called Ryugenzawa, it was
when your mother was still with us. I had been training you for a little
while using the very techniques Saotome has been using. You got lost in
the woods and ran into a vicious monster. A young boy saved you at great
personal sacrifice to himself and tried to get you to leave the forest.
Unfortunately the training had gone to your head and you attempted to
fight the beast despite your young age. A few hours later we found the
boy carrying you through the forest to his home in an attempt to save
you. We tended to his wounds and were able to save his life, but
unfortunately it was too late for you." Soun shuddered from the memory
and put his hand up to his face. "You were already dead, Goku and I went
and collected the dragon balls to resurrect you and succeeded, but barely
so. The Demon known as Piccolo was also hunting them down, we defeated
him and saved you. This is the reason I was forced to promise never to
teach you the higher forms of the art." Soun stood from the bed and
walked out of the room leaving his daughter with a look of terror on her
face.
"Wait!" she cried stopping him at the door. "What about mom? Can she
be..."
Soun frowned and looked at her gently. "Your mother died of natural
causes Akane, don't think I didn't try. The dragon will not bring back
anyone who dies of natural causes. That is the reason I gave up on the
art."
Akane stared at him in shock, she had never really thought about it, but
it fell into place. She had never seen him practice since her mother had
passed on, not even once. He cared for the dojo and kept up the school,
but never again had he taught the art or practiced on his own.
Goku floated down next to his son with a look of worry on his face.
"Ranma?"
"I think Akane is mad at me again pop," said the boy simply.
"I wouldn't worry too much about it son, Tendo has gone to talk with
her," he landed gently next to the boy and sat down. "Thinking about that
boy?"
"Yea, I don't know how to handle him. He looked sorry about killing her
pop, maybe he'll help us get the dragon balls if we talk to him."
Goku nodded with a small swell of pride at his son's wisdom. "Maybe so,
collecting the dragon balls is difficult enough as it is."
"But, I can't count on that," said the boy without looking away from the
sky.
"We may have to deal with him son, I've been thinking you needed a rival
for some time now, but not like this."
Ranma nodded grimly and kept silent.
Meanwhile on the other side of the world...
Ryoga stood on the edge of a great desert, he frowned as he landed on
the ground and examined his surroundings. Various rocks and canyons
dotted the landscape with a few cactus sparsely spotting the ground. He
started to walk into the dry climate and frowned as he felt the power
that had drawn him here grow ever closer. Then it was there, standing
before him. The demon Piccolo floated in the air with a serious gaze
boring into his chest.
"So, you have come," said the monster as he smiled slightly.
"What do you want?" snarled Ryoga angrily.
"The question is, what do you want boy? Your rage and anger drew you to
me, tell me what it is that you want," his white cape billowed
dramatically as a wind blew by as a period of silence passed between
them.
"I don't want anything from you!" snarled the lost boy bitterly as he
finally spoke. "I know what you are and I don't want any part of it!"
"I know better than that boy, your rage and hatred have made you strong.
You're not any different than I am," his eyes kept a constant bead on
Ryoga as the boy stepped back and growled at the green man.
"I'm no pushover demon, let me pass peacefully!" warned the boy angrily.
Piccolo laughed throwing his head back and crossing his arms in front of
his chest. "You were drawn to me boy! Do you think I'd waste my time
searching for a weakling like you?"
Ryoga started suddenly and frowned. "I may be a lot of things monster,
but I'm definitely not weak!"
"So, show me," responded Piccolo without moving.
Ryoga looked at him for a moment and spread his feet out in the dust.
"If that's the way you want it."
Piccolo smirked as the boy rushed forward and punched at him angrily
slamming his fist into a rock and shattering it as the green man dodged
the strike easily. "Pathetic."
Ryoga turned and performed a complex assortment of punches and kicks
that were equally easily dodged or blocked. The lost boy jumped back away
from his opponent and snarled as the rage built up inside of him.
"Look at you, you're wasting your energy on pointless attacks, I could
beat you blind folded," the demon smiled again slightly as he assessed
the boys abilities.
Ryoga hid a smile of his own, up until this point he had been holding
back. His tail uncoiled from around his waist and waved in the wind
behind him.
Piccolo's face fell as he grit his teeth in anger. The boy's hair
suddenly stood up straight as if pushed by some unforeseen power as his
abilities suddenly tripled. "What?!"
Ryoga laughed and charged forward at full speed punching through his
opponent's chest, he gasped when he didn't meet any resistance as the
image vanished from in front of him. "No!"
Piccolo slammed into his back sending him into a rock formation head
first, the boy turned around immediately jumping from the crater created
by the impact towards him again. The demon vanished again, but Ryoga spun
around catching him a few feet behind him with a punch that was blocked,
but it forced the demon back.
The lost boy smirked as Piccolo jumped away from him and up into the
air. He put his hand up and sent a powerful beam of energy at him.
Piccolo's eyes went wide as he stared at the blast in horror. He opened
his mouth and sent a beam into the attack that slammed into it stopping
it cold just long enough for him to move out of the way as it passed. He
landed on the ground on his knees and glared up at Ryoga; a small cut
appeared on his cheek and part of his shoulder pad had been burnt away.
The boy frowned and stood in a ready stance opposite him.
"Well, perhaps you aren't as weak as I thought," snorted the demon
casually as he stood up and walked towards Ryoga. "You haven't reached
your full potential yet though!" his fist blasted forward at an
impossible speed slamming into Ryoga's chest and sending him sprawling to
the ground. The monster fell on him and beat him mercilessly into the
ground before stepping away.
"With a man like you and a little training, perhaps I can even destroy
Saotome Goku and his impertinent brat," Ryoga's eyes went wide at the
mention of the name and he sat up despite his injuries.
"What did you say?" he stammered.
"I'm offering to train you boy, in exchange for a small favor," said the
Demon with a hard frown. "And then I'll destroy you as well, just to be
certain there are no loose ends," he thought to himself.
"What favor?" asked Ryoga, he dared only hope it was what he thought it
was.
"I want you to kill Ranma Saotome, so I can finally defeat his father
and conquer the world," said the demon with a slow burning rage in his
voice.
"I don't need you, Ranma Saotome is my enemy!" growled the boy angrily.
"I don't need any training to beat him either, I'm already more powerful
than he can hope to be! If that girl hadn't been killed I would have
defeated him already!" replied Ryoga as he jumped to his feet only to
wish he hadn't.
Piccolo gave him an unreadable gaze and turned away. "I've fought both
him and his father, you don't stand a chance. When you're beaten come
back and I'll think about offering you again."
Ryoga growled and turned away from the demon blasting into the air
towards Japan.
Meanwhile, a dark shadow jumped from the trees just outside of Tokyo. It
chuckled to itself as a group of girls passed by below it. One of the
young girls looked up and a gaze of confusion crossed her face as she
stepped out of the group and stared at something in the trees. "What's
that?" she asked her friends.
It sprung instantly towards her cackling to itself as it latched onto
her bosom. "Akane!" Screams of terror followed echoing through the
wilderness.
Ranma sighed as night fell and over Nerima, she was currently in her
female form and walking through the house with a towel over her shoulder
heading towards the bath. "What a day," she muttered to herself. She had
jumped down from the house directly into the Koi pond splashing water all
over the place. She walked through the living room and froze as a
familiar shadow appeared before her. "Uh-oh."
"Ranma! You take Shampoo to date!?" squealed a familiar voice. He turned
to see the bouncy Chinese Amazon staring into a Chinese Japanese phrase
book with a hopeful look in her eyes.
"Uh, not right now Shampoo," stammered the girl warily as she backed
away in terror.
The Amazon switched to Chinese instantly as she noticed the things Ranma
was carrying. [You're taking a bath? Can I come?]
Reflexively Ranma responded. [Sure I don't see why...Uh, I mean no.] he
caught himself just in time before turning away from her. [I just had
one, see? I'm all wet!]
[Beloved! I like it when you're wet!] cried Shampoo as she gave chase.
A half an hour later Ranma ducked into the home again closing the door
quickly behind herself. She had a strained expression on her face. The
chase had led her into a woman's bathhouse where she had been turned back
into a male again. Unfortunately after she had been beaten she jumped
into a puddle outside just as Shampoo caught up with her outside and was
forced to run away again as the girl jumped onto her back and attempted
to disrobe both herself and Ranma in the middle of the street. Luckily
she had managed to lose her after running into several restaurants
causing even more havoc and changes to herself. By her count she had been
changed back and forth six times during the ordeal.
Akane walked by her as she panted at the doorway and looked at her
disapprovingly. "Ranma, you were supposed to get a bath before dinner!"
The girl looked at her and grimaced slightly, it would be too much
trouble to explain things. "I was just on my way."
"Hurry up, we have a guest tonight," said the girl as she turned around
and walked off in disgust.
"Guest?" wondered Ranma in confusion she walked into the house and
stopped cold.
"I'm really sorry about the loss Tendo, if there's anything I can do..."
said the man sitting across the table.
"No worries old friend, Goku and I are already planning for the trip.
The time will pass slowly until then, but we are prepared," said Soun
solemnly.
"Who is this guy?" asked Akane as she leaned in towards her sister with
a confused look.
"I don't know, but he seems to be an old friend of fathers," said the
girl with a shrug.
"Hey! It's uncle Kurillin!" cried Ranma cheerfully as she rushed forward
and grabbed the man in a rough hug.
Kurillin blushed deeply as he found his face in the chest of a buxom
young girl. He found himself dropped back onto the floor and had a stupid
looking grin on his face for a moment before he recovered.
He stared at the girl in shock and looked back at Goku. "You had another
one and didn't tell me?"
"Actually no, that's Ranma, he had an accident in China," replied Goku
with a cheerful grin.
A few moments later Ranma sat with his father next to him grinning
proudly. The particulars of Jusenkyo had been explained to the bald man
and he simply stared at him in shock.
"So, he's gotten pretty good now has he?" asked Kurillin.
"Yup, he'd give you a good work out," replied Goku proudly.
"Well, we'll see about that later," said the man with a smug looking
grin.
"Oh boy!" said Ranma with a look of pure joy crossing his face.
"Boys," growled Akane angrily.
"So, I hear you and Akane are engaged Ranma," Kurillin gave the boy a
questioning look and Goku smiled.
"Yup, they get along pretty good most of the time," said the man
cheerfully.
"Yea, Akane's real nice," agreed Ranma.
The girl in question stared at him in shocked anger for a moment but
said nothing as a deep blush crossed her face.
"I wish my parents had thought of engaging me, you don't know how hard
it is to find a good girlfriend now! Especially at my age!" Kurillin's
face fell for a moment.
"Well, Kasumi is available," said Soun with a thoughtful look on his
face.
"That's not funny Tendo! I'm old enough to be her father!" snapped the
man with a huge blush on his face.
"It was meant to be," replied the man with a shrug.
"Really father!" gasped Kasumi with a shocked look on her face.
"Well, you do like older men," said Akane with a slightly saddened look.
Everyone looked at her in shock. "Someone had to say it, and Nabiki
isn't here," she said wistfully.
"Don't worry Akane, me an pop are gonna take care of it," Ranma put his
hand on her shoulder reassuringly.
Akane sniffed at the air for a moment and wrinkled her nose. "Ew! Ranma
aren't you supposed to be taking a bath!?"
"Oh Yea!" said the boy as he rushed up the stairs.
"Say, Goku," Kurillin looked at his old friend with another serious
gaze. "About Ranma's curse, why didn't you just use the dragon balls to
get rid of it?"
The elder Saotome shrugged his shoulders and smiled. "I asked Ranma
about it, and he said he didn't want to waste a wish on something so
silly."
"Oh," said the man in confusion.
"It does sound like your son though," said Soun with a shrug. "I
honestly don't think he minds it at all."
"Yea, the pervert," muttered Akane halfheartedly.
TBC...
Next time: Ranma and Kurillin test each other's strength, and Ryoga
returns yet again to battle Ranma. A few unexpected turns as things start
to build up. Also a dark shadow looms on the horizon, but why aren't Goku
or Soun worried about it in the slightest?
C&C to: Carrotglace@juno.com
This and other fanfics at: Http://www.geocities.com/tokyo/fountain/3203