ja ne,
- Rob
rob@mitsukai.com
Mitsukai!- www.mitsukai.com
Tokyo Teleport - www.tokyoteleport.com
"If I see that bridge
That is spanned by flights of magpies
Across the arc of heaven
Made white with a deep-laid frost,
Then the night is almost past."
- Otomo no Yakamochi
A DUET OF PIGTAILS: THE AGE OF THE BLACK BLADE=20
PART ONE: SHURADOU
Written by Rob Barba & VGAP
Based on the series by Libby Thomas & Rob Barba=20
Some characters and situations created by Rumiko Takahashi and CLAMP.=20
~*~
"Nabiki?" Ukyo tapped the shoulder of her friend. "Are you okay?"
"No, no I'm not," the older woman said. "I'm not sure if I will ever
be." At the mention of Nabiki's problem, Ukyo nodded soberly. It was
all she could do to put up a brave front as well. It was all any of
them were doing, especially in the past few days. Only four days had
passed since Akane's funeral, and a dark pallor seemed to nestle over
the entire neighborhood, as though the sun had only come for the
youngest Tendo daughter. For the past few days, it had been perpetually
cloudy; not raining, as though out of respect for Ranma, but not clear,
either.
=20
"How's..." Ukyo ventured asking, but trailed off on the end of the
sentence, unable to get the words out.
=20
It didn't matter, as Nabiki understood regardless - how could she not?
"Still won't speak to anyone," she commented, wistfully. "He sits in
the dojo and hasn't come out to eat or drink or anything. Everyone's
tried to do something, but it's no good. If it wasn't for Kasumi,
there'd be no one to take care of little Akama right now. It's not like
he's human anymore." Her eyes began to well.
=20
Ukyo's eyes also teared in understanding. She wished that she could do
something for her best friend and sometime love interest. She'd always
wanted her shot at Ranma, but Akane got in the way and in the end was
the one that successfully got him. Ukyo wanted another chance, but not
at this price...never at this price. She vowed to herself that she
would try again, but it would be a while down the road, when - if - he
would let anyone back into his heart again.
=20
A voice called softly from behind her, "Ukyo-sama, if you want to go see
Ranma-sama, I can keep the restaurant open for you." As always, Konatsu
was sacrificing for her benefit, allowing her to go to the man she
loved; just as he always did, even prior to Ranma and Akane's marriage.
=20
For the first time in a while, she realized how much Konatsu was just
like her, being nothing more than a friend, though wishing for more than
was possible at the present time - perhaps forever. It was not an
insignificant deed, even considering that Konatsu himself respected
Ranma almost as much as he adored her.
=20
Without comment, she turned and gave him a hug. "Thank you, Konatsu.
And I'm sorry."
=20
Konatsu, feeling uncomfortable, asked, "Why, whatever for, Ukyo-sama?"
But she didn't answer, merely letting go of her embrace and running
upstairs for a jacket. Turning to Nabiki, he asked, "Do you know what
that was all about, Tendo-san?"
Nabiki didn't answer him. She was too preoccupied in trying not to cry.
=20
~*~
=20
The dojo, dark and silent, just like the sky, just like the world.
=20
"Ranma, you're not doing any good to yourself sitting here like this," a
voice said, its owner on the verge of exasperation. "You've sat here
for four days, like some damn statue!" The speaker was a young man, 22
years old, with a mop of jet black hair tied somewhat in place by a
yellow bandanna. His green eyes flickered between concern and anger,
and whenever he opened his mouth, a pair of canines longer than the
human norm showed. He wore nothing but a faded black tunic and blue
monpei pants secured with a black belt. "Damn it," Ryoga said, his
voice filling with tones of exasperation, "why are you doing this to
yourself?"
=20
The person whom Ryoga addressed was a breathtakingly beautiful young
woman, though looks alone can oft be deceiving. She had long red hair
tied in a Chinese braid, though it was unraveling from the looks of it.
Her normally sparkling blue eyes were almost the same shade of red as
her hair; tear tracks down her face told the reason why. Her clothing,
consisting of a black long-sleeve Chinese tang, and matching mist-gray
pants, were rumpled, as though she'd slept in them for several days.
=20
Of course, that would imply that this person slept. Or ate. Or did
anything in the scope of humanity's basic functions. Such was, however,
not the case. Since her wife's untimely death, Saotome Ranma didn't
really live within the realm of human functions any more...nor did she
want to live in the scope of humanity. She wanted nothing anymore
except for the sweet pain of emptiness and entropy.
=20
*"DAMN YOU, RANMA!"* Ryoga screamed, unable to tolerate the redhead
statue bit any longer. *"WOULD YOU WANT AKANE TO SEE YOU LIKE THIS?!?!
HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN EVERYTHING THAT MADE HER LOVE YOU?!?!!? WHAT
HAPPENED TO THAT IRRESPONSIBLE BASTARD WHO SHE LOVED?!?!?!"* Ryoga grew
angry and more frustrated at his friend's ominous silence. *"WHAT ABOUT
YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS, RANMA?!?!?! HOW DO YOU THINK WE FEEL, SEEING
YOU LIKE THIS?!???! WHAT ABOUT YOUR SON?!?!? OR HAVE YOU GIVEN UP ON
HIM, TOO?!!?!?"* Ryoga got so infuriated that he punched forward
without thinking, slamming his fist into Ranma's face. The fact that he
lost control like that, when he'd spent so much time with Akari learning
to control that anger, worried him.=20
The thing that worried him more, though, was that Ranma took the blow.
Didn't block, didn't counter, didn't even try to dodge, but took the hit
right across her face and didn't flinch as it hit. She sat there, with
her cheek turning red from where he'd connected, continuing to stare at
the blank wall of the dojo.
=20
Ryoga, stunned by what he'd done to his closest friend, said, "I'm
sorry," and walked out the door, back into the Tendo home.
~*~
In another part of Nerima, a young woman walked down the street,
glancing at a paper every so often and looking at houses she passed by
as though she were searching for a specific address. She was apparently
in her late teens or early twenties, with short black hair, black eyes
and high cheekbones, all in a classic face. She wore no makeup, and the
loose sweater and jeans she wore hinted at a well-kept figure. Over her
shoulder, she had slung a long pack as though she was carrying a pool
cue or something of the like.
=20
As she rounded the corner, she heard a voice call out, "Fair maiden that
I have not seen before, thou hast caught the attention of the noble and
magnificent Kuno Tatewaki. Who are you, thou vision of loveliness?"
=20
Without looking up from her map, or even stopping, she said, "My name is
Keiei. Fuitamu Keiei of the School of Combined Jigenryu and Bushin
Arts." Her voice was so lacking in interest, a recorded response of a
phone service would have sounded livelier.
=20
"And what is your reason for arrival, oh goddess who I see before me?"
She considered answering with a response along the lines of "None of
your business, bozo," but correctly determined that such a turn of
phrase would not repel him. Still peering into her map, she replied,
"It is a burning desire for revenge and a promise to keep. I come back
to Tokyo to seek revenge against my rival and to find the person who I
am to be with."
=20
"Well, I can help you with the latter, for if fate is to be true, then I
challenge you!"
=20
Keiei looked up from her map, wondering if she'd heard the moron
correctly. "Come again?"
=20
Kuno raced in towards her, bokken at the ready. "The contest rules are
set: if I win, I shall date with you. If you are the victor, than I
shall allow you to date with me!" He brought his bokken up as he
charged, the brown-lacquered wooden sword held in a thrusting position
as though one solitary strike would be all that he would need.
=20
Muttering to herself, "Great. Just great," she folded her map, slid it
in her back pocket, then stopped. Hearing his approach, she turned her
head slightly and followed his path with her eyes.
=20
Tatewaki Kuno, at the age of 23, was already a grandmaster of Kendo,
also the national champion in the same field. Though not respected by
most of the other martial artists in Nerima, he was skillful with his
weapon and knew the art of swordsmanship quite well. No ordinary
martial artist could hope to defeat him.
=20
Keiei was anything but ordinary.
=20
In a move that few could have matched much less countered, she spun,
pulled out a long, jet-black object out of the pack, and screamed
"Shippu-kurogen!" Keiei slashed the bokken at an incredible speed, far
faster than Kuno could have even hoped to accomplish. There was a flash
of dark, and in one move, Kuno's bokken was pulped as surely as if it
had been thrown into a wood chipper. Something slammed him to the
ground and had there been a bystander, that person would have noticed a
pressure wave, warping the air, forcing Kuno to the prone.
=20
As for Kuno himself, he stared in vague fascination at the tip of the
blade, as dark as a moonless night, and the pectoral it rested against.
His pectoral. Slowly he raised his eyes to meet her cold pair.
=20
"Do you yield?" She held the blade at him, the look of someone annoyed
at a distraction in her eyes.
=20
Predictably (to those who knew him), his face took a look of adoration.
"You have proven your worth, O Beauteous One! The heavens themselves
must smile upon thee indeed, given thy divine skill and magnificence.
Truly such perfection can be cherished only by one such as glorious and
noble as-Irk-"
=20
Keiei spared a moment to admire her handiwork; a slit, less than an inch
deep, on this idiot's chest courtesy of her katana. Confirming that she
had not caused permanent damage, she repeated, "Do you yield?"
=20
Kuno nodded, the lone hamster operating his mind seeking a refugee
status in another country and thinking about retirement.
=20
She toyed with the idea of scaring him some more but decided against it,
not wanting to attract attention. Deliberately slowly, she withdrew her
blade, taking a moment to wipe off the blood on Kuno's hakama. She did
not look back as she left behind a frozen swordsman.
=20
For once, Kuno Tatewaki met a woman that even his somewhat formidable
mind could not handle.
~*~
=20
"Ryoga, is he...?" a woman's voice asked.
=20
"No, he isn't, Saotome-san," Ryoga answered to Ranma's mother. "I wish
he would." Looking clearly dejected, Ryoga sat at the table, joining
Nodoka and Kasumi. A short distance away, a Panda was playing a
solitary game of go. The seat across from him, almost always occupied
by the owner of the house, was and had been empty for the past few days.
It didn't appear as though it was going to change anytime soon.
=20
"Would you like some tea, Ryoga?" Kasumi asked, which Ryoga took gladly.
Since Akane's death, Kasumi had hovered near the Tendo home, as did
Nodoka. Although she lived with her husband now, she knew that her
family needed her more than ever. Sadly, though, things had seemed too
quiet: her father, still hurting all these years after their mother's
death, had not come out of his room since Akane's funeral; likewise,
Ranma was doing much the same thing in light of his circumstances. The
fact that two men of such different generations could act the same
bothered Kasumi.
=20
She looked around the room. There weren't any smiles there, and there
shouldn't have been, to be honest. The pain was still present,
permeable and palpable. Time would heal the wounds, but the key there
was time, and in a strange sense, it seemed very much as if time refused
to march on, as though they would all be doomed to a melancholy
existence which made the chaos of years back seem like a blessing.
=20
The wail of a baby sounded in Ranma's room, sharp and piercing in its
tones. Young Akama was crying, calling out to be fed by a mother that
could no longer do so for him. Kasumi thought that only the baby, a
mere two weeks old, would be the only one spared the pain of what had
happened. Akama would grow up, never knowing his namesake personally,
though she knew Ranma would tell his son all about Saotome Akane.
=20
Instinctively, both Nodoka and Kasumi rose to their feet. Both women
knew the call of motherhood well, as Nodoka was now a grandmother and
Kasumi was in her first trimester, though it had yet to show on her.
Either one would have gone for the formula sitting in the refrigerator,
if Nabiki hadn't come in at exactly that moment and heard the child.
Hearing Akama, she handed her jacket to Ukyo, then turned towards the
kitchen, commenting, "I'll get it, you two. Stay put." Racing upstairs,
bottle in hand, Nabiki said, "I'll be back in a few moments, Ukyo!"
=20
Nodoka and Kasumi looked at each other and gave a sort of smile. If
there had been one good thing that had come out of this, it had been the
change that had come over Nabiki in the past few days. Nabiki was
tending to Akama with a determination as though he had been her own
child. Somehow, a new sense of compassion had been engendered in the
young woman, and hopefully it would stay there.
In the meanwhile, the okonomiyaki chef pulled a seat right next to
Ryoga. "How is he?" she asked, as Kasumi poured a cup for the new
arrival.
=20
"Not well, Ukyo," Ryoga admitted. "I spent the past hour trying to get
through to him, and it...." Ryoga shook his head in frustration.
"Arrgh, damn it, it's like he doesn't want to live, Ukyo! It's like
he'd rather join Akane!"
=20
In spite of the situation, Ukyo smiled. "You know, it wasn't that long
ago that you would have wanted him to be...." She trailed off, rather
than state that word. At the moment, it just didn't seem like the right
thing to say.
=20
"I know," he said, his voice dropping to a whisper, as his head lowered.
The reaction was so unlike Ryoga, everyone did a double take. "That was
before I realized that he was my closest pal, before I realized a lot of
things."
Ukyo turned to Nodoka. "Auntie, isn't there anything we can do about
Ranma?"
=20
"I don't know, Ukyo," she replied gently. "I just don't know."
=20
The group stared at the table in collective silence, trying to fathom
reason from the unreasonable, and hoping for some sort of answer to the
problem that lay before them, an answer that would never come unless one
could turn back the tides of time.
=20
~*~
Half an hour later, Keiei gave a disgusted sigh and put away the map
again. "Argh! Just where *IS* that dojo?" She growled in obvious
frustration, irritated at having to stand in a waiting line while her
lifework's fulfillment was virtually around the corner.
=20
"A dojo?" A man's voice answered, apparently overhearing her. "Do you
mean the Saotome-Tendo Dojo?" Turning around, she saw a bespectacled
man appear from the building she had just passed. He appeared to be
about a decade older than her, and had a wise look on his face. She
also didn't miss that he was moving in a way best suited to conceal his
existence; strange, considering that she also sensed no harmful intent
from him, as well as the aura of a healer radiating from him. =20
Trying not to sound too eager, she replied, "Yes. Can you direct me to
it?"
=20
"Go straight on this road, turn right at the fourth intersection, then
just keep going. You can't miss it." He frowned, eyes narrowing in
suspicion. "What business do you have there?"
=20
"I'm a dojo-yaburi." She presented the customary lie with a straight
face, appearing sincere if a little unusual for a typical "dojo
breaker". It wasn't her habit, but she didn't want to cause any
complications by revealing her true purpose. "I have heard of the fame
and strength of the Musabetsu Kakutou Ryu, and wish to challenge it."
The man relaxed slightly at hearing this, as though it were commonplace.
Odd, that. "Well then, I'm afraid you came at the worst possible
moment."
=20
"Why is that?"
=20
The man hesitated visibly, choosing his words carefully. "Well, you
see...the grandmaster of the school...his wife-" Ono Tofu had a glimpse
of shock, horror, and frustration racing across the young woman's
features before she turned and rapidly ran, presumably toward her
destination. Staring at her rapidly receding back he mumbled, "Now what
was that about?"
~*~
=20
Ukyo sat down, heavy-hearted. Those who knew her were bothered to see
her without the usual air of cheer on her. She resembled an okonomiyaki
missing a vital ingredient, such as flour, but in this room, she was
merely just another dour face in a dour time.
=20
"No luck?" Ryoga asked, hoping against hope that he was wrong and Ukyo,
whom he knew to be much more understanding of Ranma than he, had
succeeded. However, he knew that the likely case was that she would
meet with as sound a defeat as the rest of them, leaving the broken soul
remaining in the dojo. Sadly, of all times, he was right on this
occasion.
=20
"No luck." Ukyo looked ready to break down. Considering that her
lifelong friend/fiance was near death in mind with body gradually
catching up, he was surprised she hadn't done so already, as he had just
done. "I tried everything I could think of. I even tried meowing like
a cat." Her fists clenched tightly. "I feel so powerless! I can't do
anything to help him!"
Nabiki sighed, looking no less tired than any other occupant in the
room. "Don't blame yourself, Ukyo. I don't think he would do so much as
bat an eyebrow if I placed a keg of Nanniichuan water in front of him."
It was not a joke, and everyone knew it. "If only I could do something
more...."
=20
"Yes, yes, if only Akane didn't die. If only those damnable Amazons
didn't exist. *If only I kept my son in my arms, like a mother should.
IF ONLY ANY OF THIS DIDN'T HAPPEN AT ALL!!*" Everyone stared at Nodoka,
startled by her hysterical outburst. For a moment the Saotome matriarch
seemed ready to shriek some more, then regained her center and took a
deep breath. "I am sorry...that was undignified of me. Just...please
don't mention 'if only' around me. I'm not sure I can restrain myself."
The mood dropped to new depth, nobody daring to speak out the thoughts
haunting them; unfortunately, said thoughts weren't about to give them a
break. Was this how the rest of their lives were going to be? Slowly
losing sanity, then life? Would there ever be an end to the reign of
woe upon them?
=20
A loud *TWACK* rang across the household, interrupting the cicadas' rock
concert and dragging everyone out of their misery. Ryoga stood and
examined the object embedded on the outer wall, frowning when he saw
what it was.
=20
"Ryoga? What is it?" Ukyo asked.
=20
He pulled, yanking it out from the wood. "It's an arrow. With a paper
attached to it."
=20
Nabiki groaned. As if the last one didn't do enough damage, fate saw
them fit to send another letter. She mentally gave it 1 to 500 odds of
being anything good, figuring the odds of it being a blessing being too
astronomical to count. "Who is it from and what does it say?"
=20
"Only one way to find out." Ryoga removed the piece of paper tied to
the arrow, rolling it open. Within seconds of reading the message to
himself, he crumpled it and threw it away, a decidedly annoyed look on
his face.
=20
"Ryoga-kun? What is it?" Nodoka's query was ignored by the fanged young
man as he approached her currently inhuman spouse. Genma blinked as an
irate Ryoga picked him up like a sack of potatoes with a single hand.
=20
"Okay, you pile of useless fur, what did you do this time?" Ryoga all
but snarled. His fabled depression, having been accumulated due to the
obvious, was begging for an outlet, and he was severely tempted to use
the beast in his hand as a punching bag.
=20
Ukyo, never one to leap to Genma's defense, ignored the Panda as it
protested its innocence via wooden signs; instead she retrieved the
paper and carefully straightened it before reading it aloud:=20
To Saotome Ranma's current wife,=20
Appear at the vacant lot along Sakura-fubuki Dori at 5:00 p.m. with your
husband. Be prepared to carve your old family name in your gravestone.
Ranma's true fiancee, Fuitamu Keiei=20
Ukyo let out a groan that was echoed by other women in the room.
Meanwhile, Ryoga kept Genma's body a foot above the floor.
=20
The phone rang out suddenly, saving the eldest Saotome from icy stares
for exactly two seconds. Kasumi went to the hallway to get it, and
their attention was returned to Genma.
=20
"Who is this Keiei?" Nabiki asked in a flat, cold tone that had not been
used for a while. It was the tone she used for her "business dealings,"
the very tone of a master of blackmailing and extortion that had earned
her the infamous titles of Yen Cobra and Ice Queen.
[[I don't have any idea! Honest!]] Genma's sign read. Upon seeing this,
Nodoka stood up and quietly left the room, unnoticed by anyone.
Ukyo withdrew her monstrous spatula with a deliberate slowness. "You've
got a lot of nerve, saying something like that with *ME* around."
=20
The obvious implication at their past relationship was not lost on
Ryoga. "You've sold Ranma almost as many times as I get lost." Raising
his other fist to the Panda's face, he seethed in dangerous tones,
"Maybe it's time you get lost. Permanently."
=20
[[Exactly!]] Genma wrote, frightfully ignoring Ryoga's first comments.
Another sign was produced, then flipped over. [[I can't remember every
person I engaged Ranma to!]]
"In that case, I can improve your memory." Nodoka stepped back in,
cradling an all-too-familiar long bundle of silk. Beneath the covers
her family heirloom slept, thirsty for blood and hungry for flesh even
in its slumber.
=20
None knew these better than Saotome Genma did. He quickly materialized
a big sign and started writing on it, only to be interrupted by Nabiki
via scalding hot water from the teakettle. "Talk." Her voice left no
doubts about her intentions if he didn't cough up *ALL* of information
she wanted.
=20
~*~
=20
Even though she had set the place for the duel, Keiei had trouble
finding it. What should have been a fifteen minutes walk from the Tendo
dojo had instead taken an hour. She could care less, however, chalking
it up to the giddiness she felt at the moment. One of her dreams, one
she had devoted her last six years to, was close to fruition. What was
an hour next to that?
=20
Like all who had been traumatized in their life, the memories of her
happy childhood when tomorrow was filled with promise were hazy and
almost unrecognizable. Those memories were all shattered into barely
recognizable shards by the events that tore up her life as well.
Perhaps if one could have been able to reconstruct them, they might have
told the story of a girl who was denied her moments of glory by those
better than her, but probably not. To Keiei, they were the broken,
jagged reminders of who she was and who she became - and the people
responsible for making her that way:
She was thirteen, never defeated by anyone in her age group. She was in
the finals of a Kendo tournament, virtually assured of victory. So had
her parents and friends, and audience opinion was generally leaning on
the case of her domination of the competition. Some of her opponents
even conceded the match entirely, not willing to experience what they
saw as a brutal beating. So, upon seeing that her last opponent was a
mousy redhead that didn't look at all confident, she decided to go easy.
What harm could it possibly do?
=20
The type of harm that would haunt Keiei forever.
=20
She was caught off guard in first round and lost a point by face. She
then held nothing back, and won the second round. But at the third
round, her accursed enemy somehow slipped through her fierce offense and
launched a counterstroke, taking the point, the match, and the victory
of the entire tournament, to a complete upset by the crowd. Even worse,
it was announced that this was the first tournament for the girl,
someone who had very little experience in the Art prior to.
Keiei remembered very little of the rest of the announcer's statements.
She only remembered the next few seconds very vividly. Her mind had
shut down, unable to comprehend the alien concept of defeat. Fuitamu
Keiei, the scion of her family, a family that was nigh unstoppable in
these tournaments, trumped by a girl not as talented, a neophyte
pretender to the throne of greatness wrested from Keiei's grasp.=20
Then that... that... *BITCH* offered her a hand, and said something that
she didn't understand. She only knew it as a sentence to her failure,
and so ran from Shidou Hikaru.
It was a year later, after a year of cursing her enemy, hating herself
for not being good enough, and enduring the look her relatives threw at
her, when the Saotomes challenged their school and she had regained
hope.
At first she had thought nothing of Ranma. Nothing before he defeated
her father with his bare hands. Nothing before seeing him fight like a
creature specifically designed for it. Nothing before he attacked,
defended, and moved with a grace and perfection she had previously
deemed impossible. Nothing before she realized that if she could have
him, could be with him, she would once again be the best and never have
to worry about losing that status.
After the fight, she had managed to be alone with her father and begged
him to convince the Saotomes to take her with them. He was all too
happy to do so, preferring to lose his daughter rather than the dojo
sign, the mark of their tradition. Thus her joy was beyond description
when it was agreed that not only she would be taken along, she would
actually be engaged to her idol.
Equally great was her sorrow at next morning when they found the
Saotomes gone, with the dowry taken and Keiei left behind. She was
deemed unworthy, that was the conclusion everyone reached. After all,
who would want a failure like her?
=20
But this time, instead of being crashed again, however, this time her
passion and fervor had reawakened with vengeance. She threw herself at
training, ignoring education, friendship, and other distractions. She
improved herself until she surpassed any of her family members and thus
was worthy of her hero. She dreamed of the day when Ranma would look at
her with love and adoration, when Hikaru would be lying dead at her
feet, when finally she would once again be the best there was.
Now it would come true.
=20
Keiei got out a well-worn oilstone out of her pack, and set to her task.
Her katana, Murasame, was of a fine quality rarely seen even in the
impressive standards of Japanese blades, but it could never be too sharp
to drink the blood of soon-to-be-deceased Mrs. Saotome. She would slay
her obstacle and claim the hand of her one true love, the most and only
ideal man for her.
=20
~*~
=20
Kasumi walked back in, a slight frown on her face. She had been doing
it so often these days that she wondered if she could ever smile
sincerely again. "That was Tofu. He said that a young woman with a
katana asked for directions to get here."
"That's probably this Fuitamu woman," Ryoga noted.
=20
"How did she get engaged to Ranma?" Kasumi asked.
=20
"It's a little different from the usual case. Genma made Ranma fight her
father and tried to get some money in exchange of not taking the dojo
sign. Instead she was offered as a bride - with a dowry, of course.
The rest is history." Nabiki snorted. A month ago, she would have been
watching this with amusement and trying to figure out a way to make some
profit. Now, the thought didn't even enter her mind.
"Well, I needed to get some money somehow..." Genma cringed under the
looks he received. "And besides, the daughter offered herself! There's
nothing wrong with refusing part of a present you don't want!"
=20
*"A PRESENT!?"* Ukyo screeched. "This is a *human being* we are talking
about, *not some object*! Did you think about how heartbroken the poor
girl would be? About what kind of humiliation she would have to face?
And that's not even considering the fact that you engaged Ranchan off
yet again!"
=20
Genma did the wisest thing he could. He shut his mouth.
=20
"Ukyo, please calm down," Nodoka said in hopefully calming tones. She
was starting to get a headache while she was dealing with the other
pain, the one she was married to. "We must deal with one thing at a
time. Now, what shall we do with Keiei-san?"
=20
"Can't we just ignore it? Akane's...well, you know. There's nobody to
take up this challenge, so it shouldn't be dishonorable to do so,"
Nabiki suggested.
Nodoka shook her head. "I'm afraid that it's not so simple. In this
circumstance, the duty of answering this challenge lies in you, Nabiki.
Giri demands that it must be so."
=20
Nabiki blinked, followed by others. "You have got to be kidding! I
haven't trained for more than a decade! How do you expect me to defend
myself, much less beat this challenger who very obviously wants to kill
me!?"
=20
Nodoka repeated her earlier gesture. "The honor and bonds between our
families demands so, as does the responsibility of Akane's position. I
know that it's unreasonable, even cruel, to ask you to do this, but
there is nobody else to answer this."
=20
"Yes there is! I can!" Ukyo canted.
=20
The others turned to look at her with varying looks. Kasumi with
gratefulness, Ryoga and Genma with incomprehension, Nabiki uncertainty,
and Nodoka challengingly.
=20
"I was, and still am, Ranma's fianc=E9e...now the only one left, other
than this newcomer." Ukyo paused a moment to lick her lips before
continuing with her speech. "It's within my right and duty to answer
this challenge to defend my position, even if the challenge was directed
at Akane."
=20
The woman acknowledged as the best okonomiyaki cook in the world met the
gaze belonging to an older woman who, under different events, would have
become her mother-in-law. She still had every intention of making it
so, no matter how long or what it took.
After several tense seconds, Nodoka finally allowed a smile to appear on
her face. "Well said, Ukyo. I shall assign this task upon you, and wait
for your victorious return."
=20
Ukyo grinned back, her face shining vivaciously at last. She, for the
moment, was back to the "Ucchan" that everyone were familiar with.
"Count on it! I have years of experiences fighting for Ranchan! Just one
thing though."
Nabiki asked suspiciously, "You aren't asking for Ranma's hand in
exchange for this, are you?"
=20
Ukyo snorted. "Give me a break. I'm just asking you all to make sure
this jackass won't escape before I come back." She pointed at the
cringing Genma. "I have a lot of things I want to 'discuss' with him."
=20
Before Genma could bolt for it, Ryoga grabbed his collar and picked him
off the ground once again. "Get in line, Ukyo. I always wanted to see
if the Bakusai Tenketsu worked on bones."
=20
Everyone, save for Nodoka, shared a good laugh at his pathetic scream.
Nodoka merely turned to the window, wondering if Ukyo's impending combat
would be an end to all this, or the beginning of a worse crisis.
=20
~*~
=20
Keiei opened her eyes, but did not turn around to face her opponent, nor
did she relax from her meditative posture. "You have come."
=20
Ukyo, having made no attempt to conceal her presence, was not impressed.
"Yeah, I did."
=20
The swordswoman stood slowly and turned around. What she saw puzzled
her somewhat; a relatively tall woman with middle-length chestnut hair
tied with a simple bow, wearing a blue gi-like clothing with the kanji
for 'like' printed all over it. The spatulas, both the small ones on
her front and the huge one strapped on her back, did not help with her
confusion. "Is this a joke?" Keiei narrowed her eyes. "You do not seem
like a warrior of any sort."
=20
"Don't underestimate me." Ukyo got into a stance, whipping out her
weapon. "I'm Kuonji Ukyo, practitioner of Kuonji-ryu Way of
Okonomiyaki."
=20
Keiei stared at her with a mixture of curiosity and frustration.
"Kuonji? Not Saotome? Are you not Ranma's wife?"
((Not for lack of trying,)) Ukyo mused silently though she answered
with, "No. I'm her friend and I'm filling in for her."
"What happened to Ranma's wife?"=20
"She is unable to answer your challenge," Ukyo shrugged. "Not that it's
any of your business. I'm the one you should be concerned with, not
her."=20
Keiei snorted derisively in response. "Pathetic. After I'm finished
with you, I'm going after the coward by myself."
=20
Ukyo glared at her. "Don't be insulting my friend." ((Especially when
she's deceased!)) she added to herself. "Stupid question, but I suppose
you can't be talked out of this?" she asked in softer tones, despite the
menace on her face.
=20
"Certainly. If you get your weakling of a friend to hand my fianc=E9
over, I would prefer to avoid unnecessary bloodshed."
=20
"Right." Ukyo held out her spatula in a defensive position. "Ready
whenever you are!"
=20
Even though she was looking at her opponent directly, Ukyo still had
trouble following the other woman's motion. With a grace that could
have been called artistic, Keiei whipped out her katana and thrust in a
single motion, impacting against the flat of her spatula half a moment
later. Had she been going for the first blow, the match would have been
over right then and there.
=20
Luck was favoring her at the moment, for the staggering caused by the
unexpectedly fast blow also moved her out of the range of Keiei's
subsequent rising slash...just barely. Again the sharpened metal met
the tip of her unusual weapon, but this time she used the impact to leap
backwards, away from Keiei and towards better ground. Six feet from the
ground, the okonomiyaki chef threw three of her smaller spatulas,
sending razor-sharp utensils at Keiei.
=20
Upon landing, Ukyo wasted no time in rebounding and vaulting at Keiei
with a sharp battle cry. Her opponent was fast at parrying away the
projectiles as well, but not fast enough to launch a successful
counter-attack. A giant spatula collided with a black sword, producing
a loud metallic scream.
=20
Ukyo locked her weapon with Keiei's, noting with satisfaction that she
was slowly but surely pushing down the other woman. The victor of this
unofficial muscle contest did not, however, notice the foot zooming at
her stomach until she was propelled up into the air in a manner similar
to the tomoe-nage of judo.
=20
Both of the combatants relied on their instincts at this point. In a
desperation maneuver Ukyo cried "Merikenko Bakudan!" and threw an object
over her head. Keiei slashed downwards, intending to strike both the
projectile and her fallen opponent. She instantly learned why that was
not a good idea when dealing with a pack of flour.
=20
Ukyo rolled to the side before standing up as quickly as she could,
automatically holding her weapon in blocking position. Thankfully it
was unnecessary because by then Keiei had finished coughing away the
powders in her lungs. Hair and face pasted white, she glared at Ukyo
with a scornful anger. "You *ARE* a joke! You're a clown, not a
fighter!" Her glare turned into a cruel smile. "But I can be quite a
comedian too. Let me show you some of *my* tricks!"
=20
"Do your worst!" Ukyo yelled back, making no attempt to hide the fact
the she was offended. Any pity she earlier felt for the enemy who had a
similar experience was long gone, replaced by a growing dislike for
someone who resembled two of her least favorite women in the world:
Shampoo and Kodachi.
=20
"Tenka-gohatto Ken!" Keiei charged like a gale, her body blurring in
sheer speed. Ukyo fought off a wave of panic and stood her ground.
Just one step before her reach, Keiei swung down her sword vertically,
its tip failing to graze the tip of Ukyo's spatula.
=20
Ukyo took a step forward.
=20
Keiei moved her katana as if she was about to sheath it.
=20
Ukyo raised her spatula over the right shoulder and prepared to swing.
=20
Keiei thrust backwards, the blade missing the scabbard by mere
centimeters.
=20
Ukyo put all her weight into the horizontal attack.
=20
Keiei caught the dull side of her weapon with her left hand, and pushed
it forward like a reversed staff.
=20
There was a sickening sound.
=20
The giant spatula, painstakingly close to its target, fell from Ukyo's
hands as her knees buckled. She stared, dumbfounded, at the short knife
extending from the tail end of Murasame's handle that sank in her ribs.
Looking up to Keiei's smug smile, she hoarsely whispered, "You bitch..."
=20
Keiei smiled and pulled her sword back, retracting the short dagger on
the end of her sword from Ukyo's body.
The okinomiyaki maker crumpled to the ground, staring in fascination at
the grass pricking at her forehead. She heard Keiei say, "Why do you
think I gave it a name like that? And to think, you were fighting for
the *Musabetsu Kakutou* Ryu? Do you even know why it's called 'Anything
Goes'? Obviously not." Keiei huffed, and Ukyo could see the woman
turn, walking away. "If you aren't prepared to become the best one way
or another, you shouldn't even try."
=20
Then the grass in front of her faded, along with her vision.
=20
~*~
=20
Nabiki measured out the powders in teaspoons carefully and as precisely
as she could. While she couldn't cook anything more advanced than
frozen foods, mixing a baby formula was something any human being could
do...barring her late sister. She now wished she could take back the
insult poorly disguised as a joke said just before Akama's birth; it was
along the line of how Akane would have to get Ranma to fix her baby's
nutrient once her milk ran out.
=20
When one looks back at his or her life, one would inevitably find
something he or she would wish to undo. Few had as many of those
regrettable memories as Tendo Nabiki did. Her reputed lust for money
began with her mother's death, when they could not afford the treatment
to prolong her life. That moment was when the seven year-old girl
decided that money was the key in life and became determined to collect
it as much as possible. Through various means she fought her way into
economics, more often than not disregarding other things for her
purpose. It was recently she learned that money could buy only so many
things. It could not buy time, friends, family, love, or life.
=20
Right now, as she entered Akama's room, she was berating herself for the
mistake not even two weeks ago...for the thousandth time. ((If only I
pressed Akane harder, Nabiki thought while fighting back the tears. If
only I got rid of those Chinese psychos earlier. So many 'if-only's.
Was I wrong? Am I powerless after all? I was trying to help my family,
and look at where I got. How pathetic.))
=20
Nabiki shook herself back into the reality, noticing that Akama was
rejecting the bottle. "Come on baby, aren't you hungry?" The youngest
Saotome continued to avoid the feeding, crying harder. "Drink up,
Akama. Please."
=20
It was no use. No matter how much Nabiki pled with the infant, he
continued to cry steadily harder. With every decibel raised, Nabiki's
self-worth dropped. Not knowing what to do, she discarded the bottle
and picked him up, trying to soothe him into sleep.
Walking out in the garden produced the desired effect; Akama was
becoming calmer and showing signs of fatigue. She sighed at the picture
she imagined two of them must have made. When a young woman is holding
an infant in her arms, a casual bystander can make only one possible
assumption.=20
"So you are that woman."
=20
Slowly and holding down her surprise, Nabiki turned to see a woman in a
sweater and jeans. The katana hanging on her side gave away her
identity like a name-tag to Nabiki's razor-sharp mind. "Fuitamu Keiei, I
presume?"
The younger of the two brushed her hair back casually. "You are
correct."
=20
Noting the faint trace of flour in her hair, Nabiki forced her words
out, willing her voice not to shake. "What have you done with Ukyo...?"
=20
Keiei gave an amused sneer. "She wasn't my target, so I let her live.
She should be crawling back here to report her failure in a few hours."
She lazily drew out her weapon, and spoke in a tone full of venom of
hate, "You, on the other hand, aren't so lucky, soon-to-be-ex-Mrs.
Saotome."
=20
An idea to tell off the intruder by correcting her misunderstanding was
formed and rejected in Nabiki's head within the same second. If the
bloodthirsty woman didn't believe her, which was the most likely
scenario, it would only serve to set her off. If by some miracle Nabiki
convinced her, she would simply start going after somebody else in the
dojo. "What do you hope to accomplish by killing me?" she finally said,
putting more effort into tamping down her fear. Nabiki wasn't trying to
reason with this madwoman; she was trying to stall for time. "Ranma
would only hate you."
Keiei fired a laugh that was quieter than Kodachi's, but somehow even
scarier. "My love is the best among the best. Such a man needs a
worthy woman, and I can prove my worth by killing you."
=20
"Like hell!" Nabiki shouted, desperately hiding her fear. She was
horribly aware that it was not successful. "You would never be worthy
so much as to lick the ground he walked on!"
=20
Keiei smiled in a way that, under different circumstances, could have
been called cute. The naked blade in her hand dispelled that illusion
instantly and thoroughly. "Interesting words, coming from the mouth of
a coward. But I did not come here for a talk."
A foot lashed out with a blinding speed, catching Nabiki on the chin.
She fell back several feet, Akama still clutched to her chest
protectively, tasting the blood in her mouth. Painfully she rose her
head, seeing Keiei advancing on her, intentionally slowly and with fatal
deliberation.
Fear exposed completely on her face, Nabiki kicked her brain into
emergency mode, trying to see a way out of this situation with her head
and body connected. If her mind had been a computer, a big ERROR notice
would have popped up on the screen. There was no solution, none
feasible or possible. This woman beat Ukyo without a scratch, implying
an unusually high level of skill. Only Ryoga stood a chance against
her, and how long it would take his sense of direction to come to her
rescue was a question she didn't have an answer to, only that it
wouldn't be quick enough.
=20
Just as Nabiki would have screamed out in terror - genuine terror - for
the first time in years, Akama beat her to it. The future heir of
Anything Goes School cried his soul out in a single, long shriek that
had been heard throughout the neighborhood. It was a sound that could,
and did, pierce into one's heart.
=20
~*~
=20
It is said that at a moment just before death, one sees his or her
memories like a cinema roll, that each frame plays on in the theatre of
the mind, performed everlong for the individual nigh before life's final
curtain call.
=20
Ranma's was looping around the period between Akama's birth and Akane's
death. Over and over again she was forced to witness the most important
woman in her life march to her demise. The worst part was that she was
reliving through them, knowing what was going to occur, yet unable to do
anything. Those fateful scenes repeated endlessly, at a ludicrous
speed, non-stop and out of control. Like a nuclear reactor in meltdown,
it was contaminating her mind with its poison.
The first reaction was a denial; a refusal to accept the tragedy that
threatened to shred her heart apart.=20
Secondly came the realization; a forced acceptance of the undeniable
reality, the sadistic touch of a nightmare.
Following next was a shock; a numbness of heart that steadily
incapacitated every emotion known to mankind.
But the fourth stage of oblivion, a black hole swallowing her into a
loving hold of nonexistence, the step scheduled to be concluded by a
slow death, was interrupted.
=20
Called out from her dark haven, Saotome Ranma's eyes saw, for the first
time in days, the world of living. The eternally cursed martial artist
saw an injured Nabiki holding Akama. She also saw a woman armed with a
katana advancing on them.
To be or not to be? Ranma, albeit with reluctance, chose the right
answer.
=20
~*~
=20
Keiei's heart, although as black as her sword, still contained some
conscience within it. She hesitated a moment on a decision: should she
slay the child along with his mother? Though a baby of her enemy, he
was still undoubtedly innocent, and Ranma's child as well.
Perhaps...just perhaps...it might cause him to hate her....
=20
The next thing she knew was the surprise and pain of being knocked
aside. To her dismay, her weapon was wrenched out of her hands as well.
She got back up just in time to see a red-haired woman - where had she
seen her before? - throw it out of the residence, effectively disarming
her.
=20
Quivering with rage, Keiei took a good long sight of her new opponent.
A messy, petite woman with a strangely familiar scarlet hair done in a
pigtail, wearing a fairly androgynous clothing of Chinese looks. She
was in a stance Keiei hadn't seen in years: the Saotome Musabetsu
Kakutou! Getting into her own Bushin stance, Keiei asked in a tightly
controlled voice, "And who are YOU, to interrupt my mission of a
lifetime?"
=20
"Tendo Ranko." The redhead's voice was strangely flat, almost mechanic.
"I don't know who you are, or what you're trying to do, but if it
involves trying to hurt my...cousin, you'll have to get past me."
=20
Keiei snarled, "As you wish, harridan!" and leaped in with a very fast
roundhouse kick. To her shock, "Ranko" moved even faster and
sidestepped her attack, giving her back a rough shove and sending her
tumbling on to the ground. Keiei rolled out the momentum and stood up
quickly, only to find her opponent standing still and allowing an
obvious advantage to pass. "What is the matter with you!? Too scared
to attack me?"
=20
"Listen, whoever you are," Ranma replied with a world-weary voice, "I'm
*REALLY* not in the mood for a fight. Go away before my patience runs
out."
=20
"The only thing that will run out will be your blood!"
=20
Keiei rushed in with her fastest combos, going all-out. Ranma was
forced to block and dodge to the best of her abilities. She was losing
ground, but she still did not attack more than necessary. This served
to anger the swordswoman even more. As the fight dragged on, both of
the combatants' abilities became apparent in comparison. They were
nearly as fast as each other, but Ranma definitely had the edge in skill
and agility. Getting desperate, Keiei pulled out her last trick. "Take
this! Taifuu Shuu!" Keiei whirled and twisted her body to an impressive
degree before spinning herself in opposite direction and swinging her
leg out, sending a waist-high hurricane at Ranma. She also reached
inside her sleeve, throwing a concealed tanto.
=20
Ranma dodged the first projectile with relative ease, only to see the
second racing past her, heading straight to a wall. More precisely, to
a wall where Nabiki and Akama were leaning on.=20
Ranma cried out their names.=20
Keiei shouted in triumph.=20
Nabiki screamed and shut her eyes.=20
The knife struck.=20
Ranma cried out louder.=20
Nabiki opened her eyes, seeing the tanto sticking into the surface only
an inch away from her neck. She continued to stare at the reflection in
the blade, unable to believe that she was still alive.=20
Keiei cursed the powder from earlier that ruined her aim before seeing
"Ranko" rushing at her. She tried to counter by a spinning backhand,
not noticing the energy around her rapidly collecting in a swirling
pattern. She did notice when Ranma ducked into her range and launched
an uppercut.
=20
She, however, did not realize that this was the Ryu-ou Ken, a variation
of the Hiryu Shoutenha, an uppercut reinforced by the force of a
tornado. She also did not realize that she was being thrown out of the
Tendo-Saotome Dojo, for she was already unconscious.
=20
Nabiki finally succeeded in ripping her eyes away from the fascinating
reflection and moving them to her presently female brother-in-law's
back. She handed Akama to Ryoga, who, along with rest of the family,
had long since been attracted by the racket, and approached the silent
redhead. Licking her dry lips, she softly called, "Ranma?"
=20
There was no response. Ranma did not even move from the position where
she landed from the attack.
=20
"Ranma? Talk to me...please."
=20
A twitch in the shoulder was the reaction.
=20
"Ranma?"
A sound escaped from the redhead; Nabiki realized that it was a sob.
Ranma turned around, no longer the near-invincible combat machine she
was but a moment ago. In its place stood a teary young woman, shaken to
her very core. "It... It hurts."
=20
Ryoga blinked. "I didn't see you get hit...."
=20
Nabiki glared at the eternally lost man briefly before enveloping the
younger woman in a hug. "I'm hurting too, Ranma. Everyone is."
Ranma leaned into her sister-in-law's arms, unable to hold the emotions
within her. The dam that held back her feelings was broken, and an
apocalyptic flood was taking place. "I, I just want to crawl in....
Forget about everything...."
=20
Kasumi approached them from behind and put her arms around the crying
girl as well, gently rubbing her back. "Do you want to forget about
Akane, too?"
=20
Almost violently, Ranma turned her head around, shouting, *"NO!"* Then
in softer tones, she continued, "But I... I don't wanna forget about
her. I'm afraid that I'm gonna forget her eventually if I live... I'm
scared of that."
=20
"You won't forget her, Ranma," Nabiki said. "You can keep on loving
her, forever, without killing yourself like this. You can get over her
death; we all need to...."
Ranma cried harder. "I don't wanna get over her! She was the only one
for me! I'm, I'm never going to find anyone else. I can never get over
her...."
=20
"Then you must live, my son," Nodoka intoned. "For the sake of your
deceased wife and your son - a child that needs his father more than
ever now. You must live for them, if for nothing else."
Ranma stared at her mother, who calmly looked back with wisdom in her
eyes. She then slowly disengaged herself from her position, and walked
up to Ryoga. She took the baby without a word, going inside of the
house before Ryoga could speak.
=20
The ominous silence was broken by Genma, of all people: "Well, at least
he's back with us...."
=20
Ryoga grimaced. "It's still not good enough. I looked at his
eyes...they're still the eyes of a dead man walking, or close enough.
He'll never be the same guy I knew." Again, Ryoga Hibiki was absolutely
right. Certainly enough was happening for such a miracle to happen twice
in row.
"For the better or worse, he will change," Nodoka sighed. "I can only
hope for the former."
=20
"Ranma...." Nabiki stared at the darkening sky, watching the stars
appearing slowly. "Why can't the poor guy have a break for a change?
If there's any god listening, give him someone else to love before it's
too late...."
=20
"Hey, a shooting star." Ryoga pointed up at it, trying to bolster hopes
at the traditional symbol of a wish understood by the kami. "Maybe your
wish will come true."
=20
"I certainly hope so." Nabiki sighed tiredly, feeling thrice her age.
"But I won't bet on it. Let's go get Ukyo."=20
~*~
=20
Keiei rubbed the bandage around her chin, not noticing the pain being
caused by the action. It was puny and unnoticeable when compared to the
maddening storm in her heart. She had lost. Again. Damn that Tendo
woman! Everything was going so well when she *HAD* to butt in. Just as
luck seemed to favor her, it turned around and spat on her. Simply
remembering her second failure sickened her at heart. It dug out her
long-suppressed inferiority complex from its grave, and she was afraid
that every moment without confidence and determination was eating away
at her sanity.
=20
Yet she was a warrior, not a helpless crybaby. She knew that everything
she fought for - the very core of her being - would be forever out of
reach the moment she stopped trying. Her will was her life.
=20
"Tendo Ranko.... Enjoy this victory while it lasts. I will see to it
that it will be short-lived, indeed." Thus vowing, she set out on a new
quest for power. Somewhere over that horizon was her future, where she
and her husband could protect their home, family and happiness; she was
certain of it.
=20
GLOSSARY:=20
Shuradou: "Way of the Damned."=20
Shippu-kurogen: "Gale Black Sword." A thrust attack as fast as a shadow.
(Mr. Barba's invention.)=20
Merikenko Bakudan: "Flour Bomb." Just what it says; believe it or not,
it was used at least twice in the original Ranma 1/2.=20
Tenka-gohatto Ken: literal translation: "Under the Sun Illegal Sword."
Better phrased as "Universally Forbidden Sword." Stabbing with concealed
knife on the handle.=20
Taifuu Shuu: "Tornado Kick." Simply a projectile attack with miniature
tornado created from a spin kick. Knife-throw follow-up isn't a
necessity.=20
Ryu-ou Ken: "Dragon King Punch." Hiryu Shoutenha-boosted uppercut.
=20
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
Here I had another chance to contribute to (spoil?) my favorite epic
fanfic, A Duet of Pigtails. But this time, I worked with Rob Barba, the
person who has supported Ms. Thomas's series more than anybody else has.
=20
What a big mistake.
=20
This part was what I expanded upon what Mr. Barba started on (did you
notice the sudden drop in quality in the middle of the story? ^_^;), and
he worked on the following part, named Fugutaiten. As you can see, my
part is embarrassingly short in comparison to Mr. Barba's part. I
cannot help but feel that I made this side-story-series inferior to what
it could have been. That is not to say I did not make efforts to write
this well (I revised it after completion, which I hate to do), but my
skill is simply not up to his.
=20
Well, enough with self-criticism. Ms. Thomas has asked for an
introductory tale for a new character/villainess, and so between our
discussions Fuitamu Keiei (actually she had several other suggested
names) ended up, in my opinion, as a combination of worst elements of
Ranma, Shampoo, Ukyo, and Kodachi. Normally I hate making up an
original character for a large role, but I think she ended up
interesting enough. =20
I would like to thank Libby Thomas for creating A Duet of Pigtails and
allowing me to be involved with it, Rob Barba for working with my
inconsistent writing habit, and YOU for reading this. I hope you at
least enjoyed it; right now, my ego is badly wounded. =3D_=3D;=20
Oh well, back to working on other fics....
=20
Tell me what you think:=20
VGAP <vg_ap@hotmail.com>=20
VGAP's weird page at:
<http://www.fortunecity.com/marina/thunder/181/index.html>=20
EDITOR'S NOTES:
With the revision of Duet under way, this part stands as the first in a
long line of works to come. Hopefully, we'll bring a greater depth to
this beloved series (with over 70000 hits, there's little doubt as to
the fic's popularity) and surprise you even in some of the reworked
chapters. If so, drop us a line and tell me or Libby what you think.
-Rob
rob@mitsukai.com
NEXT:
PART TWO: FUGUTAITEN
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