Author's Notes –
This is a Ranma ½ and Tenjou Tenge crossover fic. Takes place after the end of Ranma ½'s manga run and picks up at the start of Tenjou Tenge. I admit I've just started reading the scanslated version of Tenjou Tenge, so my knowledge of it is limited.
I of course don't own either manga series, I'm just using characters and ideas from both for the purpose of entertainment. I'm not getting any thing for this other then some bad reviews (if I'm lucky) and maybe a few grateful readers.
There were few absolute truths in the world; at least things appeared that way to the sneaky ninja. The first was that his masters were crazy, and despite his odd sense of loyalty towards them, it was clearly evident that the Kuno family was crazy (probably a result of inbreeding due to the inability to find anyone who would be willing to marry into the family). The second was that despite their best efforts none of them could defeat Ranma Saotome. For various reasons the individuals known as Ranma Saotome (the black haired, pigtailed boy and the redheaded beauty) always ended up thwarting the ninja's masters' plans.
It hadn't surprised him in the least when the elder Kuno had finally had enough of the boy Ranma Saotome always interfering with his plans for the school and student body. Or that the younger Kuno had agreed to the secret plan to rid themselves of their hated nemesis. It was surprising that the two had actually worked together to come up with their plan. What had really been annoying though was that despite their positions and knowledge, they still relied on their loyal ninja servant to do the dirty work.
Eyeing the evil computer before him Sasuke sighed. Typing up a fake transfer request he wondered if it would truly solve his masters' problems. True, the pigtailed martial artist would not be around as much if he were transferred to another school, thus removing the skilled and stubborn obstacle from obstructing their various plans. Only the young mistress would be saddened, though at least she wouldn't have to worry about him being around his fiancés as much.
Clicking the mouse, the ninja servant sent the files electronically to the other school. If rumors of the school held true then at least Ranma Saotome would not be able resist the urge and allure of his new school.
The uncharacteristic humid early spring breeze drifting through the open windows of the classroom hinted at the approaching storm. Sighing, Ranma hoped that he could get back to his apartment without getting wet. Though he'd become accustomed to his cursed form, the skilled martial artist had yet to reveal it to anyone at his new school. Then again, it was only his second day at the school.
Sighing, he wondered just how he let his mom convince him to attend Todo Academy. Sure, it was full of strong fighters, though few he'd met were in his league of course (then again, there weren't that many who could claim to have defeated a self-proclaimed god or phoenix king).
If only his mom hadn't been so strongly against her son being a delinquent for skipping school until the whole transfer mess was resolved. As it was Todo Academy was very reluctant to let him transfer back, why no one was willing to say. Unwilling to shell out any yen to cover Nabiki's fee for finding out anything about Todo Academy, why he was sent there, or who was behind it, Ranma had simply accepted the transfer out of Furinkan High. After the failed wedding fiasco and all the havoc that the wrecking crew had caused since he'd arrived in Nerima the cursed youth had felt the need for a change of scenery. The transfer was in fact a blessing in disguise. Still, it sucked that he didn't know anyone in the school. Then again, it didn't help that he refused to wear the school uniform, choosing instead to wear his trademark sleeveless red Chinese shirt and black pants.
Hearing the bells announcing the end of the period and thus the end of the day Ranma casually gathered his things.
"Fight!" someone shouted.
Perking up at the news of something that actually interested the martial artist, he quickly looked out the window. Following the flow of students, some running to get help, others rushing to witness the violence, Ranma focused his senses. Sensing several battle auras flaring, he quickly stood up. Opening the window he leapt out onto a nearby tree branch before springing up to the fifth floor and grabbed hold of the window ledge of the classroom a floor up and directly across the quad from his own classroom.
"Yo," he said, announcing himself to the room. Though few people were actually standing (most having been floored by the large youth of African descent and his blond haired companion), the few who were conscious eyed the pigtailed youth as he pulled himself into the classroom through the window.
"Did he just jump through the window?" someone whispered.
"Isn't he the new transfer student?" someone else asked.
"What's with all these crazy new kids in school?" a third person questioned.
Ranma watched as the pair of fighters wiped the floor with the dozen or so punks remaining in the room. Yawning as he watched the blond brawler Ranma noted the kid's lack of style and technique. Though it was clear that he was powerful and could take a good hit, the blond was obviously the weaker of the two. The large well muscled black student was using an interesting style. The wide sweeping kicks, flips, handstands, and spins could be disorienting to inexperienced fighters, but to someone as quick as Ranma there were obvious gaps in the martial artist's defense.
Eyeing the path of destruction that the blond and his companion had made in the hallway and classroom Ranma sighed. "What's the point of fighting these weaklings? If you're really looking for a challenge, why not try me?"
Slipping into the standard opening stance of Anything Goes, Ranma waited for the two to figure out their move.
"Bob?" the blond asked, pointing to Ranma.
"Sure, why not," the large dark skinned youth nodded. Disposing of the remains of the guy he'd just knocked out, Bob eyed the new challenger.
Having never actually met anyone of African descent in all his travels Ranma wondered what techniques the well muscled youth would use as the taller of the two approached him. Watching his opponent's rhythmic steps the experienced martial artist could tell that despite his muscles the big guy was fairly flexible.
Ranma quickly dodged the series of sweeping wide kicks that his opponent unleashed against him. Clearly his opponent was taking advantage of his advantage in reach.
"Capoeira," Ranma said as he easily evaded another kick. "Like that guy Eddie from Tekken, right?"
"Dunno," Bob replied, "never played it."
Shifting his stance Ranma began to mimic the moves he'd seen from watching his opponent and from the screen as others had played Tekkan. Several people blinked, amazed that the red shirted youth was attempting to provoke the strong fighter who had just knocked out several of their classmates by stealing his moves.
Lashing out blindly with several quick kicks Ranma flipped back to his feet. "So, shall we see whose Capoeira is better?"
Slipping into their respective stances the two moved around each other. Lashing out with several kicks and punches Bob quickly became frustrated at Ranma's apparent mastery of the Brazilian style. For his part Ranma simply toyed with his larger opponent, blocking and countering with the different style as he read Bob's movements.
Though he knew he could easily beat the black youth Ranma knew that if he really went all out Bob wouldn't last more then a few seconds. Reading his opponents moves the heir to the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts lashed out with a quick counter each time the larger boy initiated an attack. Using his advantage with speed against his opponent's longer reach, Ranma began to strike at the dark skinned youth's joints. After several counters of increasing strength and power it was clear that Ranma had the upper hand.
Pulling back Bob once again eyed Ranma. "Why don't you fight me for real? No more holding back."
Ranma shrugged, "Why? It's clear that you're not in my league, why don't you just admit defeat and let it go at that? Or do you want me to knock you out?"
Grunting, Bob rushed in only to be greeted with a blindingly quick kick to the face that sent him sprawling on top of several overturned desks. "Huh," the pigtailed martial artist exclaimed, "at least he knew to jump back when I kicked him."
Not wanting to beat up on those weaker then him Ranma turned to leave.
"Hey, it's not over yet!" the blond shouted.
"It is for me," Ranma replied. "I don't fight guys that are weaker then me."
"What about me?" another voice asked. "I'll tell you now, I'm strong."
Ranma paused as he eyed the child sitting on one of the other student's shoulders. The silver-haired girl emitted a small amount of ki, yet it was much larger and pronounced then anyone else in the room except for the boy she'd arrived with.
"Sorry, I don't beat up little kids either."
The girl sighed, "Well, okay. If you say you don't like my appearance I'll change it so it's a bit easier to fight."
Springing off of her companions shoulder the girl muttered something.
Sensing a surge of ki Ranma half expected the girl to pull out a 500 yen piece or something of the sort so that she could drain the battle aura from the remaining fighters. Watching as she suddenly grew (and not just in height), the cursed martial artist understood why most of the other boys had looked forward to the transformation.
The stunning beauty before him quickly grabbed her bokken. Dashing in, she swung at the pigtailed martial artist.
Used to dealing with stunning beauties and bokkens (separately not together as Kuno was definitely not a beauty, though his sister could be if she ever lost that insane glint in her eyes), Ranma barely avoided the first strike as he relied on only his natural speed and not the ki enhanced speed. Having fought the first fight with just his natural ability the gender changing youth mentally scolded himself for not expecting something more from the girl as he'd just seen her transform. Adjusting his ki input to his muscles Ranma easily evaded the girl's next series of follow up attacks. Feinting with a kick to disarm her, he waited for her to shift the direction of her swing before he expertly trapped her wrist between his thigh and calf of his left leg as he poked her forehead.
"Point," he stated, releasing the girl.
Smiling, he once again moved to leave. Sensing someone rushing him Ranma instinctively lashed out, kicking the blond kid with a kick to the stomach that sent him flying out of the window. Rushing to the window the quartet of fighters (Ranma, the girl, the guy she came with, and Bob) took note of the hole in the roof of the building in the quad.
"He wouldn't die from a fall from this height," Bob stated.
But I'm not worried about him, the girl thought, Aya was in the showers.
Ranma watched is silent amusement as the busty brunette known as Aya Natsume chased after the blond boy. Having been on the receiving end of such energetic affections the cursed martial artist knew just what the idiot blond was going through. Still, it felt good to not be the one being chased and just be a spectator for once.
Apparently he wasn't the only one to end up in compromising positions with girls as Bob's associate had landed on top of a naked Aya Natsume. Though he felt slightly responsible (as he had kicked the blond kid out of the window and into the shower room) Ranma couldn't help but snicker at the other boy's misfortune.
Sensing the now familiar presence of Bob, the pigtailed youth simply nodded as the other fighter calmly sat down across from him.
"Yo," Bob smiled, "you know we've yet to pay you back for the other day."
Casually Ranma continued to eat his Bento tray. It wasn't in his nature to constantly beat up weaker martial artists, but if they continued to pester him and eventually challenge him like his old rivals in Nerima then as a martial artist he had to respond and accept their challenges. Looking back at his time in Nerima the pigtailed martial artist could count the number of days that Kuno had not challenged him on his fingers and toes, though most of those days were due to injury (usually to Kuno), illness, or being away for competition (as Kuno was the captain of Furikan's Kendo Team).
"Fine," Ranma finally replied, grabbing his juice and taking a sip. "Just make sure you're actually a challenge for me next time."
Bob grunted as he set down his lunch, eyeing the mysterious oddity that was Ranma Saotome. "So how many guys in the school are as powerful as you?"
"Just me," the cursed martial artist replied.
"So you're the best in the school then?"
"Yep," the pigtailed youth replied.
Clearly his statement did not sit well with many of the students around him as a good majority began to slowly move away from the table that the pair sat at.
"You think you're the best one in the school after only a few fights?" the childlike Maya questioned as she hopped off of her companion's shoulders. Looking at the guy, Ranma couldn't help but think that he knew the guy from somewhere.
"I'm out of your league kiddo," Ranma stated, finishing his light meal. "I haven't fought anyone because I didn't think anyone was in my league, just like I proved yesterday. I don't like to beat up on people who are weaker then me, and since I already know that everyone here is weaker then me, why should I pick a fight?"
"You just got in a lucky shot!" the blond shouted from the entrance to the cafeteria.
"So I take it you lost her?" Bob asked.
"No," the blond replied dejectedly, "she's right behind me." Pointing with his thumb he indicated the busty brunette's shadowy figure behind him.
"Luck and skill is often interchangeable," Maya stated, answering on Ranma's behalf.
"It's all skill baby," Ranma boasted, letting his ego override the small shred of humility that he had. "Even if all five of you came at me at the same time I doubt that you'd last more then two minutes if I was to go all out."
"Settle down Nagi," Bob said calmly. "I know you're good, but even you can't handle all of us."
Sighing, Ranma eyed the quintet around him. "I doubt that your boy Nagi can land a punch on Takayanagi," he said, pointing to Maya's companion and his classmate. That's where he remembered the guy from.
"Me?" the boy pointed to himself, not sure why Ranma had pointed him out. Of course they were in the same homeroom, but other then the fight the other day they had never really interacted with each other.
"Takayanagi?" Maya asked in disbelief, wondering just how much Ranma knew about her shy companion. Was his ki sense that good that he could tell how skilled a fighter Takayanagi was just from observing him in class?
Ranma watched gleefully as he had successfully deflected the attention from himself to the fairly plain looking Takayanagi as Nagi attempted to blindside the older boy with an uppercut from behind.
Blocking the punch with a pair of chopsticks the older student eyed the new comer, clearly not impressed with the blond. As Nagi twisted his hips to throw another punch at Takayanagi, the older boy countered with a powerful twisting double palm strike to the chest that sent the blond flying.
"Come on Nagi!" the brunette Aya shouted at the downed blond.
Catching the quick flash of despair that was suddenly replaced with rage Ranma couldn't help but think that the relationship between Nagi and Takayanagi was an odd parallel of his relationship with Ryoga. It was odd though because Ranma normally was the one dishing out a beating on Ryoga while in this case it was the reverse as Takayanagi was clearly getting the better of Nagi. Maybe they weren't the same in regards to equating them based on skill, but they clearly were when it came to Akane and Aya.
Then again the blond did remind Ranma of himself in that he hated to lose. Shuddering at the comparison, Ranma couldn't help but think that he'd never been that weak. He'd never been beaten so badly by any of his opponents, and he always managed to get a shot or two in, usually twice as many as his opponents at least. Clearly the kid had potential, but his skills were definitely lacking. A glorified brawler he lacked the basic forms of discipline and technique that any self-respecting martial artist needed. Sure, he had power and stamina, but without any discipline he wouldn't be able to get too far on just those elements alone.
Yawning, Ranma stood up.
"Where are you going?" Bob asked. "You're the one that started that fight."
Ranma blinked. "Even if your friend manages to get a good hit in it's only because the other guy is holding back," the pigtailed youth replied. "I was hoping to see Takayanagi's true potential, but he's holding back and still beating Nagi handily. I doubt there's anything Nagi can do that'll bring out Takayanagi's full potential in this fight."
Behind him he could hear Nagi hitting the floor after Takayanagi connected with a blinding flurry of kicks.
"Get up Nagi!" Aya shouted encouragingly. "No man of mine is going to lose to anyone!"
Nagi's fading battle aura quickly flared, signaling that the fight was not over. Slowly he pulled himself to his feet. "I'm sorry," he apologized, "you're kicks were so boring that I almost fell asleep."
Bloodied and bruised he managed to stand back up.
Too far away to clearly hear what the blond was saying to his opponent as the gathered students began muttering and cheering their respective fighters (most favoring the older student). Ranma watched, noting that his classmate's battle aura was still fairly passive despite the fact that he was charging in with a powerful haymaker. Distracting Takayanagi as he held up the Bento box that she had made for him, Nagi connected with a powerful counter to the still airborne Takayanagi.
"Ha!" he shouted victoriously. "There's your one shot!" Looking around for Ranma the blond failed to notice the growing bloodlust in his stunned opponent.
I guess I was wrong, Ranma thought as he felt the powerful battle aura. Though it was nowhere near as powerful as even Mr. Tendo's, it was impressive given the caliber of fighters at Todo Academy. Seeing Aya and Maya jumping to intervene Ranma sighed. It was his fault that the two were fighting, and obviously things would not look good for him if he allowed Nagi to get seriously injured.
Despite the girls' best efforts Takayanagi shrugged off their attempts to restrain him, managing to hit Nagi with a powerful knee to the chest that forced the air out of the blonde's lungs and sent him crashing into the ceiling before gravity carried him back down to the ground.
Inserting himself between the fallen blond and his berserker classmate Ranma slipped into his standard stance. Stepping into Takayanagi's attack he skillfully caught the powerful punch with his own left. Redirecting the force of the strike, Ranma channeled it into his right as he connected with a palm strike to the berserker's ribs. Stopped dead in his tracks Takayanagi's eyes glazed over as he crumpled into Ranma's arms.
Setting his classmate down Ranma cracked his shoulders, releasing the tension that his counter attack had built up due to the excessive force that he had not redirected into the strike. Sighing, Ranma almost wished that Ryoga would wander by – at least he was a decent challenge.
"Did you hear, that new kid thinks that he's much better than everyone else?"
"I've never seen him wearing the school uniform."
"He's totally disrespecting Todo Academy!"
"It won't be long before the Executive Council sets him straight."
"I hear that the Maya's personally trying to recruit him for the Juken Club."
"He beat the younger Takayanagi with just one punch!"
"I heard that he forced the other new kid to attack Takayanagi then hit him when he was distracted!"
"Either way the President won't stand for his brother getting beat up!"
"No way, the president and his brother aren't close at all. There's a reason why the younger brother isn't on the Executive Council."
The busty redhead listened casually to the rumors her schoolmates were spreading. Though much of it was unconfirmed, she knew for a fact that the enigmatic Ranma Saotome had managed to best her rival. It was no small feat to be able to subdue the elder Natsume daughter. As one of the most powerful fighters in the school everyone respected Maya and those few who had ever fought against her knew that she was not someone to take lightly. Listening to the wild rumors that were currently running rampant through the school Emi Isuzu knew she needed to report to the President. Even though the President wouldn't care too much that his brother was beaten up, he might care that the mysterious Ranma Saotome was apparently being recruited by the Juken Club.
Walking into the President of the Executive Council's office the Vice President smiled at the white haired warrior before her. Dressed in his usual tight fitting black clothes that enhanced the appearance of his well muscled body and exuding an aura of power he flipped through the file in his hands.
"I know why you're here Emi," the fighter stated. "It seems that our newest students have made an impression, none more so then Ranma Saotome."
The redhead nodded. Clearly the President had not been unaware of recent events surrounding the mysterious pigtailed youth or the Juken Club.
"In just three days he's already beaten Natsume Maya and my younger brother," he added. "If rumor is to be believed he's openly stated that he's clearly the best in the school but doesn't feel the need to prove it."
Emi nodded again. "Such open disrespect for the Executive Council will not be tolerated," she said with a bow. "I'll take the Enforcement Committee and put him in his place tonight."
"There's no need for that."
Opening her mouth to protest she stopped as the larger fighter looked at her. Closing the file he tossed it onto the desk.
"Even though he may not be one of the feathers, he's obviously an accomplished fighter," he added.
"But how would it appear if you, the President of the Executive Council, were to fight a new transfer student during his first week?" she asked. "Don't you think that would send the wrong message Mitsuomi?"
Flinching at having used his given name and not his family name, the redhead bowed. "I'm sorry, I'm out of line."
Brushing off the incident the elder Takayanagi son nodded. "I'm not looking to fight with him," he stated. "I simply want to know more about him; if a fight ensues then so be it."
"But…"
"If he was able to best my brother and Maya, then he's clearly in the top ten, if not the top five fighters in the school already," Mitsuomi rationalized. "Even though you are the Vice-President of the Executive Council, I think that I will need to handle this issue myself. It has been awhile since I've had a good spar, hopefully he's as good as he thinks he is."
Emi bowed, accepting her senior's decision even though she disagreed with it. Who was she to tell him what to do?
"Until then, spread the word," he added. "No one is to fight Ranma Saotome unless he initiates it. If anyone does then the Enforcement Committee will have to take action."
"What of the other new students?" Emi questioned.
"What of them?"
"They've been stirring up trouble and appear to be aligning themselves with the Juken Club," the redhead explained.
"Keep an eye on them," Mitsuomi ordered. "If they continue to cause trouble then I'll be forced to send Ryuuzaki and the Enforcement Committee to teach them a lesson."
Never one to shy away from the odd looks those others gave him (he did turn into a girl occasionally after all), Ranma strolled through Todo Academy. With his better then average hearing he could clearly make out the fact that a good majority of the student body was talking about him behind his back. Sure, a good number of them were impressed with his recent accomplishments of besting the elder Natsume sibling and the younger Takayanagi sibling, but a good majority was clearly upset that he'd stated that he was clearly the best in the school. Sure, he'd yet to actually fight the best in the school, but from what he'd seen he really didn't need to.
With nothing to do (as he had yet to join any clubs despite the fact that now was the prime recruitment time as the new freshmen class had just arrived) Ranma simply walked the grounds of the campus. The early spring afternoon was very refreshing as the storms from the previous day had cleared out the humidity as well as washed away the scents that lingered with the unseasonable heavy air.
As other students headed into the clubs or sports activities Ranma found himself on the roof. Laying himself out on a table he soaked in the bright spring sun, letting it warm him as he dozed off.
The sudden splash of cold water woke her up from her short nap. Springing into a crouched position Ranma looked around for the source of the water. Spotting a tall, well muscled white haired freak she screamed, "What'd you do that for?"
Given all that Mitsuomi Takayanagi had seen in his life it was rare for him to be shocked by anything. This was one of those times. Having stumbled upon an unconscious Ranma, the white haired fighter had tried to wake the new transfer student up. First it had started with gentle coughing, then louder coughing. When that had failed he had tried to gently kick at the pigtailed boy, only to have the sleeping student roll out of his range. After several repeated attempts to wake Ranma up with light strikes (so as not to damage the roof accidentally) Mitsuomi was starting to think that the pigtailed martial artist had been playing him for a fool. Even though the strikes were aimed at waking the apparently sleeping student up somehow Ranma had managed to expertly avoid all of the larger fighter's kicks. Finally resorting to a cup of cold water as a means of testing the raven haired fighter to see if he was actually asleep or merely faking, Mitsuomi was surprised as the water not only spilled onto the sleeping Ranma, but changed his form.
The change in hair color was probably due to a bad dye job, but the change in height (from about 175 cm to about 160 cm) and the sudden appearance of breasts beneath the smaller fighter's red Chinese silk shirt made the larger fighter think of Maya's transformation. Was Ranma Saotome really a girl masquerading as a boy? Was she using ki to manipulate her form and conserve her ki reserves? Or was Ranma like Emi in that she could alter her appearance to throw off her opponents in battle? Clearly there was more to Ranma Saotome then meets the eye.
"Well answer me asshole!" Ranma shouted.
Blinking Mitsuomi composed himself. "Yes, I splashed you with the water," he replied. "Are you Ranma Saotome?"
"Of course I am!" the redhead hissed.
"And you're really a girl?"
Clearly pissed at being called a girl Ranma subconsciously shifted into an attack stance. "Who you calling a girl?" she shouted defiantly. Taking into account the fact that she was now wet, and slightly cold, Ranma growled. "I'm really a boy!"
Seeing the disbelieving look on the white haired boy's face Ranma clenched her fists. "Damn it! I really didn't want anyone at this school to know about my curse."
"Curse?" the larger fighter repeated.
"Cold water turns me into a girl, hot water turns me back into a guy," Ranma explained. Though she was obviously used to explaining things it had been a long time since she'd needed to. "It's a magical curse I picked up while traveling in China."
Clearly there was a lot more to Ranma then the brief report that the school had received. From what he'd read of Ranma Saotome's file the President of the Executive Council had expected a troublemaking delinquent. Daily fights with his former school's captain of the kendo club, occasional fights with other delinquents from other schools or dropouts that came to his school to challenge him, fighting with other school's various martial arts clubs members, skipping school for days, sleeping in class, as well as destruction of school property had been just the start of the now redheaded girl's rap sheet. It was obvious that she was skilled, but to best two of the school's top fighters was another thing altogether.
But the evidence before the President was so contrary the report. Sure, Ranma had been in a few fights since coming to Todo Academy, but he hadn't started the fights. He attended class regularly (for the three days he was a student there) but did occasionally fall asleep in class (most of the students did that from time to time).
Instinctively he stepped back as Ranma reached behind him. Clearly agitated by being splashed with cold water Mitsuomi had expected the redhead to pull out some type of weapon (as she had appeared to have nothing on her when she was a he, but with the sudden transformation who was to say that she, or he, hadn't been armed?).
Pulling out a metal thermos from stuff space (a nice trick he'd learned from Mouse before leaving Nerima) Ranma hoped that the water was hot enough to change him back. Opening it up, he poured half of the contents over his head, sparking the immediate transformation back to his true male form.
"So, what'd you wake me up for?"
No longer feeling the need to fight, Mitsuomi exhaled deeply, "I simply wanted to meet the self-proclaimed 'best fighter' of Todo Academy."
Eyeing the larger boy Ranma tried to read the white haired boy's ki. "I'd put you down in less then two minutes," he stated, taunting the well muscled student. Feeling his opponent's ki flare up, Ranma smiled. "You might make it to three minutes."
Mitsuomi blinked, not sure if the smaller fighter knew about his weakness.
"Good as you may be, I'd hate to think that fighting me would shorten your life," Ranma stated. "I've only started reading ki, but I know that yours is messed up."
The white haired fighter nodded. Clearly Ranma Saotome was much more experienced then the typical fighters their age. "So why do you fight?"
"To be the best," Ranma quickly replied.
"And what's that going to do for you in the long run?"
"Probably going to get married and take up the family dojo," the pigtailed martial artist answered.
"Already got a girl picked out?"
Ranma laughed, clutching his sides as he honestly laughed for the first time in a long time. Composing himself after a few moments the cursed youth stood up. "My pops set up a few fiancées for me already, then there are the psychos that are stalking me," Ranma started.
What an odd reaction, Mitsuomi thought at the smaller boy's display. "So, what's your family's style?"
"Anything Goes," Ranma boasted.
"Anything goes?"
"Actually it's the Saotome School of Indiscriminate Grappling, but some people just call it Anything Goes Martial Arts," the pigtailed boy explained.
"So does your dojo have a lot of students?" the white haired youth inquired.
"Um, actually, no," Ranma replied.
Mitsuomi nodded. "That's how it is for most these days. Most people don't have the time or discipline to study the arts to improve themselves; instead they rely on cars and motorcycles, guns, and other modern weapons. All across Japan there are fewer and fewer practitioners of the arts. What are you going to do with all your skill? Become a cop? Join the JDF? Become a mercenary? Or maybe you're going to join the Yakuza? What other options do people like us have?"
Ranma paused, not sure what to do or say. He'd always believed that he would get married to Akane, take over the Tendo's dojo, and take in some students, but hearing the white haired fighter lay out everything that he knew about the state of martial arts in Japan and in the world, the cursed martial artist couldn't help but think that he needed to re-evaluate things.
Sure, his skill and ability had been useful in Nerima, and China, but seeing how different things were in the more urban districts Ranma knew that it wouldn't be long before even Nerima became more urban rather then remain a rural district. What would he do with all that skill?
Seeing that Ranma was clearly deep in thought Mitsuomi smiled. Despite the new student's considerable skill and power it was clear that the pigtailed martial artist would be easy to manipulate. With the right triggers it wouldn't be long before Ranma was a part of the Executive Council.
A/N
I hope everyone likes this fic. It's a bit different then my other works, but I hope everyone enjoys it. I realize that Ranma's a bit of overwhelming compared to most of the Tenjou Tenge cast, but don't worry it'll balance out and Ranma will be forced to improve as well.
Please Read and Review. Any useful suggestions and constructive criticism would be greatly appreciated.
I'll be taking my time writing this fic as I'm throwing around ideas for another fic or two as well, not to mention finishing Ranma's White Wings.
Dreamingfox