Walking Through Hell
A Ranma ½ Continuation ficcy
Disclaimer: Yeah right... you really think I even own a small part of Ranma? Get real...
How did we end up like this?
Both of us, lying on the ground, exhausted. I felt lines of my own dried up blood covering my back, some of it still not dried up because of it mixing with my sweat. Ryouga is even more exhausted than me; he's barely awake beside me. I tried to sit up, but the searing, burning pain exploded from my back, draining me of my strength once again.
How did we end up like this? More importantly, WHY did we end up like this?
Maybe it was supposed to be like this right from the start. Maybe...
We were twelve, right before me and the old man left for China, before everything went straight to hell, that's when I met up with Ryouga. We used to fight all the time, although I'll admit, sometimes we fight over the oddest things, but still, we fight. It was one a Friday when it happened, the event that driven our rivalry to this ending.
Like always we were fighting, this time, over the famous bread feud between me and him. I think it was the curry rice with pork bits, mixed with peas bun covered with sweet glace. Yeah, I know, they make the weirdest bread in that school. Anyways, true to my school, I was dodging all of Ryouga's attacks, waiting for just the right time to make my own counter attack to devastate him when I noticed a squirrel in my path.
You'd think by then, the squirrel would've run away. I think it's because my and Ryouga were putting out our battle auras or something like that, but either way, it stood there, staring at us.
"WHOA WHOA STOP!"
Yeah, I said that. Imagine, the great Ranma Saotome who never ever backs out from a fight, calls it to stop just because of a squirrel. Not one of my best moments, so bite me.
Ryouga stopped and blinked. Well, he wasn't thirsting for my blood to gain vengeance back then, if it was just few months ago, he'll just plow on through.
"Whats up?"
"Squirrel."
"So?"
"Don't want to step on it."
"Ah..."
"Err, why don't we just skip the fighting just for today? I'm sure pops have some instant noodles, I'll treat you to some, to make up for the bread?"
Ryouga thought for a second before agreeing. It was this Friday where we made an unspoken agreement where we won't fight on this day. It's the official day of truce between me and Ryouga, imagine that huh?
Something else happened that day.
Ryouga asked me, as we started to eat the instant noodles that I cooked over Ryouga's stove, "Why do you always fight? I mean, sure it's fun once in a while, but you seem to do it WAY too much."
I shrugged, but for the first time in my life, something happened. I doubted the reason why I fought...
I think this is the reason why I didn't like Ryouga all that much, as much as I tried to like him, not that he's making it very easy, I just can't seem to like him after that day.
All in all, that little bit of my life ended with the duel in the lot behind Ryouga's house, on a Friday. It was meant to break the truce between us to signify something I think... Ryouga picked the day. He always had a flare for dramatic things.
Actually, I don't think that bit of my life ended on that day my old man dragged me to China. I think it ended just now.
Took him four years to find me again, bring with him his thirst for vengeance and the pig curse. We fought during that year, as usual, but for some reason, the truce we had still held even through Ryouga's vengeance, even though I wanted to smash him into bits for making my already complicated life even more complicated and for doubting the reason I fight.
I guess science does have it's uses sometimes, anything in this world breaks. You just need to apply enough force to the object and it'll break eventually. And after the whole Saffron episode:
It finally broke...
The truce, the agreement between me and Ryouga finally broke. For once in my life, I actually tried to break an agreement, although it wasn't bounded by honor, I knew it's going to end up very ugly.
We agreed on fighting in an empty lot on Friday. So I waited for Ryouga on that lot on Friday.
Took him only three days to find that place, no surprise there really, but never the less, he came. So we waited for another four before we began our fight.
I have to admit, we never did have a decisive win over each other. Even during the Shi shi hokodan thing, I fainted just a few seconds after Ryouga did, not really a victory, but in the eyes of the spectators, I won. To me, that was just me somehow still managing to stay awake after being beaten.
Our duel on Friday was the same, we knocked each other out.
Nothing really spectacular really happened, no fancy chi moves or uninvited participants suddenly joining in. It was just like how it was when we were twelve, fist against fist.
After we woke up, something suddenly came to me. This had to end.
I think the same thing came to Ryouga because right after he woke up...
"Ranma, lets go to China."
"Yeah... I think that's where it gone bad."
"Tomorrow?"
"Yeah, that last punch you did to my chin is still killing me."
"Yeah? That last kick you did, I don't think I'll be breathing easy for a while."
We actually talked to each other without throwing even one insult for two whole hours. Just like when we were kids.
It took us almost a month to finally reach Jusenkyou, but that wasn't the place I was planning to go, Ryouga thought this is it, but this is where it all went bad, no, this isn't the place I wanted to end this.
To say that Herb was surprised to see us would be an understatement.
"Saotome! What are you doing here!"
"Herb, I want to ask a favor."
"I owe my life to you, ask."
"Would you referee a match between me and Ryouga?"
Surprised? You really think me and Ryouga would do something else? Get real.
There's a difference between what happened this time and what happened in Nerima. This time, we held back nothing.
Chi blasts flew everywhere, rocks exploded everywhere, bandannas littered the floor and whirlwinds suddenly appeared out of nowhere. I would like to think even Herb was impressed with the display, but after that fight, Herb just snorted and said, "Nice tricks, but really, what a waste of chi, I thought you could do better than that Saotome, that last move you pulled on me during OUR fight was much more impressive that this side show."
The fight ended in a draw again, just as I expected. Ryouga nodded contently but I could still see the anger in him. No, this hasn't ended yet. There is still more thing to do.
I asked for the Chiisuiton from Herb, with this, it would end...
So I laid here, the water from the Chiisuiton spilt.
What happened?
I let the doubt that Ryouga planted in me grow. The day our truce broke, I finally realized, that the fight means nothing to me anymore. So I let Ryouga kill me.
This day, Ryouga Hibiki finally got his vengeance. Ranma Saotome died by his hands.
How did he do this?
I goaded him into doing something he would never do to me.
He stared at me, straight into my eyes. I felt myself shaking. Was it from fear? Or something is it from something else?
The moment he knocked me to the ground, ripping my Chinese shirt, I know, Ranma is about to die. But what I didn't expect was me being born. Pain, as Ryouga roughly held my wrist over my head, pain, from the cuts and scratches on my back. Curiously, I felt a burning sensation within me that cries out for more as he touched me all over. All of a sudden, everything melted into a swirl of pain and pleasure and with that, I was born.
Well, I guess the goading only finished what the drugs I took from Shampoo did.
So that's how we ended up like this, me by Ryouga's side, resting my head on his chest, embracing him. Like I said, Ryouga finally killed Ranma.
And me? I guess I just need to make a new life to live.
I once again tried to lift myself from the ground and succeeding, although I felt like crumbling to the ground again because of my weak legs, I still stood. I clothed myself from some of the girl cloths that Herb had gotten me from some of his maids, gave Ryouga one last glare before turning away. Ryouga really did show Ranma hell, the one hell that Ranma never wanted to experience.
I staggered slowly away from the camp that we have set up at sunset. The moon has already risen showing me the path I should take.
I expected me to hate myself after this, but somehow, I couldn't. I don't want to copy Ryouga, but I have to say, because of him, Ranma has seen hell. But I can't bring myself to hate him like I expected, all I feel now is the warm feeling within me and the soft tingling sensation that lingered in me as the pain quickly subsided.
Nothing ever goes as I plan.
Not even as I plan Ryouga's vengeance for him. But if I do say so, I think I did a pretty good job and it ended up pretty good.
I looked back at Ryouga's sleeping form again.
It ended.
When I woke up, he was gone. Or should I say she? I don't know anymore. I always thought that at the end, I'll be standing over Ranma's crumpled form gloating over my victory and getting my vengeance. I never expected myself to on all fours over Ranma.
He, or she, must have walked away. Getting some food or something...
Who am I kidding, after that; I think Ranma would be somewhere killing himself.
I never expected Ranma to plan my own vengeance for me. The whole fight with Herb as the referee was a great cover. I really thought of ending our rivalry right there, but I can still feel the festering anger in me even after that fight.
I don't feel it anymore.
It is as if the last moment from last night purged me of it, yet, instead of the anger, all I feel is this empty feeling and guilt.
Yes, I killed Ranma, and I think the guilt will be burdening me forever.
It took me a week to get back to the Tendo Dojo, took another day for Nabiki to gather everyone. So I told them, I killed Ranma.
Mrs. Saotome was devastated. She almost announced a blood feud between our family until Mr. Saotome convinced her that it was the result of a full out duel.
Let him think that, Ranma deserves a warrior's death, even if he did sacrifice all he believed in for me so I can live without anger.
Kasumi had this cold expression on her face, trying to push away all the emotions and adopted a blank expression and started to comfort everyone, or at least tried to.
Nabiki was the same as Kasumi, except her cold expression turned even colder. Not the chill you get when Ranma uses his soul of ice, but rather, a burning cold like what you get if you touched dried ice too long.
Akane. I don't think I can face her anymore. She starts denying Ranma being dead, then she starts begging me to tell her that what I said was all a lie or Ranma blacked mailed me to play a really bad practical joke on her.
Watching her made me want to unleash the mother of all Perfect Shi Shi Hokodans.
Mr. Tendo, didn't cry. He stared blankly out the porch into the koi pond.
Shampoo shook her head sadly and leaped away, and is quickly followed by Cologne. This was mimicked by Ukyou and Tsubasa.
Kuno and Mousse, I thought both of them would celebrate, but instead, they just stared at me with wonder, wonder that I can actually kill Ranma.
Finally, it was Mr. Saotome that surprised me the most. For the first time that I've seen of him, he cried genuine tears. Not the, my son is so worthless cries or the school is going to be joined cries, real genuine tears. He turned to me and gave he a very hard look and said something that I'll never forget.
"Ryouga, you killed my son, the only man I consider my better in all aspects of my life. The man I raised to further the school of martial arts that I have joined in hopes that someday it will reach perfection. Remember this Ryouga, you may think you only killed a man, but you have killed much more. Remember this."
I started to wander around again after that. The Tendo family has forbidden me to step on their ground and the Saotome family is very hostile to me every time I'm near them.
Two years passed, before I saw one of Ranma's fiancé again.
I was attacked by a tiger and was wounded. I stumbled along until I saw a thin stone wall and a think wooden gate.
The only reason why I wasn't killed on site was probably Shampoo who recognized my umbrella.
She told me I changed a lot and if it wasn't for my back pack and my umbrella, she'll probably have killed me on site. I discovered that the Amazon is at war with the Musk again. I probably look big enough to seem like a Musk, and with that large back pack I carry around, the guards would probably not take any chance and kill me on site.
I was brought to a small hut on near the other side of the Amazon village close to the wall. A women with reddish brown hair, which was tied into a long pony tail, walked out and gave Shampoo a smile and chatted with her in Chinese.
"Ryouga, this is Sachiko, she'll be taking care of your wounds."
"Sachiko? She's Japanese?"
"Not really, but it seems fitting to give her a Japanese name, when she came to the village, the acting leader said she has forgotten everything. So the name Sachiko was given to her."
"Child of bliss..."
"Great grandmother said it seems fitting, when we first saw her, all she did was smile blissfully like all was right in the world."
The women, Sachiko brought me into her hut and started to fuss over me, applying some herbs, making me drink this odd tasting tea, and wrapping bandages around me. I don't know how long she took, it didn't matter really because she never got to finish wrapping the bandages.
A girl with a bright red hair ran into the room shouting mom in Chinese. She had this really big grin on her. I stared at her, more specifically, I stared at her grin.
Ryouga, I was named after my father because of the 'fangs' we have, and this little girl with bright red hair has the same fangs that I have.
"Ranma!"
The women gasped and dropped the bandages.
"I-it's been a long time Ryouga."
The girl stared at the two of us before Ranma spoke to in chinese with a gentle voice tell her to go somewhere.
"That girl is..."
"Yeah."
"I'm sorry Ranma..."
The women in front of me frowned and slapped me, "My name is Sachiko, never call me Ranma, he is dead, you killed him remember."
The two of us stared at each other before Ra, I mean, Sachiko stared to laugh, "Cologne always wanted to get me into her little Amazon family to 'strengthen' the bloodlines, and here I am, ironic isn't it."
"Sachiko, I..."
"Sleep Ryouga."
And I fell asleep.
When I woke up again, I was lying on a bed with Sachiko staring at me with this blissful looking smile. We start talking about how he was able to hide from Cologne how she started learning about herbs and where my travels have taken me. We avoided anything that even touched on how the people back in Nerima reacted to Ranma's death.
I stayed with Sachiko and our daughter for a few days to make sure I didn't catch anything from my wounds. It was on the last day that I stayed with them that made me swear to find her even if it will take me to the ends of the world again.
That night, I found out how completely I have killed Ranma, I found the person that filled this emptiness that seem to slowly eat away at me.
Never in my life have I felt like this as Sachiko and I embraced each other, everything about her calls out to me, her warmth, her scent, and her soft mewing voice, as we spent the night together.
When I woke up, Sachiko was already kneeling beside me, smiling down on me. I was about to greet her when she silenced me and quickly lead me out of the village to the center of a clearing near the village. Mushrooms grew all around making circles around us.
"Have something to eat."
I nodded and eat silently, curious as to why she brought me out here.
"Ryouga, what you just ate was a mind controlling drug; you won't be able to find this village ever again. Please don't try."
"But Sachiko-"
"I know Ryouga, it's for your own good. You deserve to be able to wander, if you stay with me just because of our daughter, you'll just make your life harder than it has to be. You don't need to support us."
"No, but I-"
I never got to finish what I was going to say, at that point, Sachiko gave me a hard palm strike, knocking the wind out of me. I fell to the ground, dizzied and when I re-orient myself again, she was already long gone...
And so, I wander again, in search for the person who used to be Ranma Saotome, this time, not for vengeance, but to find how she is able to fill the void within me. I'll do anything to feel so complete again.
I'll even walk though hell.
Where did this come from O,o
I think I can attribute this from re-reading Genma's daughter.
That or that whole 'Ranko' Ryouga pairing seem to always float around in my head finally got out and took over my body for a while...
Hope you enjoyed this little bit weird psychological thingy ma jig I wrote up O,o