Well now, another fic, another sleepless week full of ideas which I will never get down on paper. And therefore I will have to use my creativity to supply stuff instead. I hope it´s up to the job at hand. Anyway, my second fic is on it´s way, but for now, a little teaser will do. Enjoy!



Slightly disturbed productions present

A Ranma 1/2 FanFiction by WhiteIckyThing(Patent pending)

The Masters of the Art

Trailer

Disclaimer: I have made no money and will not make money from this piece of fiction, and it´s not really mine either, only the storyline itself can be called my property. So buzz off, lawyers!

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Somewhere, beyond the moon and west of the sun, Toltiir lay napping. He was rather satisfied, for a cat. After all, there had been all those Bet entries to entertain him. It would probably be a week before he was bored again.

Suddenly his ears pricked up. Something was coming towards the well and the crowd that was already there. There was never a moments peace since the craze began. This thing, however, seemed a bit different. For one thing, it seemed to be heading straight for the well, unheeding of who might be in its way. And for another, it wasn´t anything the currently cat-shaped Toltiir had seen before. The cat noticed a hand poking out of a sleeve of a long, brown robe (since when was it wearing a robe?) and incredibly he let out a sigh, as if he had been expecting tentacles. He then noticed that the hand seemed to stray from what would be the normal three dimensions, going through various planes of existence before stabilizing again, and Toltiir decided that even if it WAS a hand, there was definetly the option of tentacles at a moments notice.

"The Bet is over, bub. You can go away now." The cat didn´t really mean it: After all, it would always need further amusement and besides, it was fun to watch various entities squabble over who made the best timeline.

"I am here for my own purposes, and there are already quite a lot of people here." This voice was... well, not excactly creepy. It was a blend of every sound ever heard and many never heard, such as a rock´s sigh or an asteroid colliding with a strawberry. Try overwhelming.

A minor demon raised it´s head to look at the stranger, and walked up to it, a classic small time bar bully.

"Who you callin´ People, little thing?" it said, flexing it muscles in a threatening manner and grinning stupidly down at the newcomer.

Without missing a beat, the stranger raised a gloved hand (strange, where did the glove come from?) and disintegrated the poor thing.

The stranger then nodded apologetically at it´s feline host and walked to the well, suddenly clear of bystanders. He looked into it and witnessed Ranma´s beating of some psycho which he recognized as Akane, with a smug Kodachi standing nearby. The sadistic Ranma finished his task, before taking Kodachi in a passionate embrace.

Everyone backed away when the strange man (or is it female?) made a slight noise of disgust at what he saw, and cleared the image with a sweep of his hand(Where did the glove go?). A small thing of indeterminate gender/age/occupation/species held out a small pebble at him, but then withdrew its hand when the stranger simply stared at it.

The young (Old?) man glanced at Mimir´s well, and the assorted audience looked as time flew past, to before Jusenkyo, before the Neko-ken, before Ranma´s birth, and then stopped.

There were two men, laughing happily at having sealed their master in a cave to rot, slapping each others backs with merriment. The stranger looked at the image and suddenly ripples appeared on the surface.

"Where´s the change?" asked Toltiir, marveling at the deft use of the well.

"A single stray thought in the mind of the one known as Genma," came the answer.

Everyone´s attention was now fixed on the well, anxiety and excitement apparent on many of the faces.

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Genma Saotome was happy. He had beaten the master, freeing him and his friend from his slavery and now he was free to do what he wanted. Suddenly, a stray thought came into his mind, and with true Saotome Foot-in-mouth acuity, he immediately voiced it.

"Now I am the true master of the Anything-Goes school of Martial Arts! Finally, I am free from the clutches of that old man!"

His friend stopped laughing, then frowned a bit.

"Surely you mean WE are the masters, Saotome?"

Genma paused slightly, thinking of this. Surely there could be only one master?

"What do you mean only one master, Saotome?"

"Did I say that out loud? Then again, why not! Why must there be two when the master himself was always alone in his endeavors, perfecting his Art?"

"What is this treachery, Saotome? Do you not remember our agreements, our promises? What is there to be gained in such a thing?"

"Perhaps, Tendo, this is what martial arts are truly about. Never rely on others, especially when they try to pull you down with them!"

Soun took a fighting stance. "Say it isn´t so, Saotome. Must our friendship end like this? Think, man! You´ve been under the masters influence for too long!"

Soun showed not a single sign of tears, for this was a determined young man, and was ready to prove it.

Genma took up a stance of his own and looked threateningly at his now former friend.

"We shall see who of us is the greater."

And the two men fought. At first this was not a problem, for neither could really believe what was happening, but soon they became more serious, using crippling attacks and deadly blows, the two of them ever watchful for the other´s attack.

They fought on, Punch meeting punch, kick for kick, block for block, attack for attack, for what seemed like hours, neither giving any quarter to the one they formerly trusted with their lives. night fell, and the moon rose, and still they fought on, not caring for time nor place, completely absorbed in the fight. The only thing that mattered was victory, the only goal, survival. There would be no mercy, no remorse and no regret. The fighters battled on for hours, neither weary nor any less cabable, in a battle that shook the very earth around them, devastating the surrounding trees and rocks completely.

Soon, as the sun rose above the horizon, the two great masters, for that is what they truly were, stopped. they looked at each other, standing in a relaxed position with fierce glares in their eyes, and then Soun spoke.

"The true test of a master of the Art lies not in skill, but in how well you teach others that skill."

"Unfortunately I agree, Tendo. What do you suggest?"

"Let us go our separate ways, and train one of our children as our heirs. When they come of age, we shall pit them against each other in a challenge. The better student will win, showing us and everyone else as well who is the true master of the Anything-goes."

Genma considered the offer. It would be the perfect method to properly motivate a trainee, and any son of his would have to be good at the Art.

"Very well, Tendo. I agree. When our students are ready we will meet again, and then you shall see who is worthy."

Then the two nodded in agreement and set off in separate directions, never looking back.

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Toltiir looked into the well, then at the stranger, then back again. Then the cat looked up once more.

"Just where are you going with this?"

"Perhaps you will find out. If the audience shows interest, then I will continue."

Then he looked at the audience with a small, welcoming smile and gestured towards them, the incident earlier seemingly forgotten.

"Of course, it is up to these gentlemen, women and things that are present. What do you say?"

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Well, you heard the man. It is up to the reviews I get wether I continue this or not. Feel free to say whatever you wish and please don´t hesitate. Only by expressing our thoughts do we truly become free ^_^ .