THE DISCIPLE

A story wriiten by

DELICIOUS GEARS

CHAPTER ONE : The Right Man For The Job

Ranma looked down at the blank sheet of paper, tapping his pen absently. It was still the middle of the last class of the day, and he was supposed to be taking notes, but he would be damned if he could ever consider writing down anything the teacher was saying at the moment.

It had been a few hours since Soun had given him and Akane a talk over breakfast, about their futures together as he put it. It was a long time coming, and everyone had been expecting it since the incident at Mt. Phoenix. It was time, Soun had told him, that he should start thinking seriously about his future as the head of the Saotome school of Anything Goes Martial Arts.

This was all well and good, except that Ranma didn't really have a good idea about what his future as the head of the Saotome school actually meant. He knew that he wanted to marry Akane, at the very least. But then what?

Akane was trying to study harder than ever, hoping to get into a university. He didn't even know that she wanted to go to university. He didn't even think that martial arts and higher education mixed.

And he... Well...

He was still thinking about what was happening this week. Still looking out the corner of his eye for somebody to challenge him. Ryouga hadn't been around recently, probably off helping with the Unryuu pig farm. Kuno was hardly a challenge. He hadn't seen or heard any trace of Ryuu Kumon since their fateful match.

Shampoo, Mousse and Cologne were off somewhere, maybe back in China for a spell. Ukyou and Konatsu were too busy trying to run their restaurant. Hell, the Principal was hanging out somewhere out of the way.

Everything was quiet.

And Ranma was getting restless.

Ranma was still staring at the blank piece of paper. The blank, empty piece of paper.

"Ranma."

The blank, empty piece of paper that seemed to be taunting him with its emptiness.

"Ranma!"

The blank...

"Ranma!"

Ranma jerked upwards as Akane's frowning face suddenly loomed into his view. "Hey! Don't just shove your face into mine like that!"

Akane scowled at him. "I was trying to get your attention for the past several minutes! What's been making you space out all day?"

Ranma motioned towards the blank piece of paper. "Taking notes? You know, the thing you've been doing all this time I've seen you?"

Akane quirked an eyebrow, her gaze passing over the blank, empty piece of paper. "You don't seem to have gotten the hang of it, I see."

Ranma's cheeks flushed. "There's more to taking notes than just writing stuff down on paper!" He grabbed the blank sheet of paper, scrunching it up into a ball and tossing it into the wastebasket ten feet away.

Akane wasn't impressed. "Is this about what Dad said this morning?"

Ranma blinked. "What does he have to do with this?"

"Only that you've been acting funny ever since he gave you that lecture on the future of our schools..." Akane's features softened a little. "Have you... Have you been thinking about it?"

Ranma desperately wanted to just say "I haven't been thinking anything," or at least something vaguely insulting to make her mad or something, but he knew that wouldn't put the problem off for long.

"I don't know what... It's..." Ranma struggled to find a thought. "So, like, I'm gonna marry you, and that'll unite the schools, right? And I'm going to inherit and become head, one day." He paused for a second. "I guess...?"

The question hung in the air for what felt like an eternity.

"You don't know what you're going to do after we marry?" Akane asked. "After we graduate from high school?"

Ranma just sighed. "Look, I don't know. Alright? I just don't know. I've been spending a good chunk of my life up to now just trying to stay alive and not get killed. So forgive me if I don't really have any long-term plans for the future, alright?"

Akane sighed back in frustration. " At least try and do something to get out of your rut or something. Maybe join a after-school club?"

Ranma looked at Akane for a moment.

Akane blinked. "What? You can't just hang around Hiroshi and Daisuke all day, or go bum food off Ukyou-san. You need to do something with your life!"

Ranma was silent, still looking at Akane. As the seconds passed, her cheeks started to heat up from the scrutiny that he gave her. After a while, he pushed his chair back and rose from his seat.

"You know what? You're right."

Akane blinked for a moment. "I am?"

Ranma nodded. "I should do something with my life. So I'm going to go and find myself a club to join here in the school." A flash of determination crossed his eyes. "And I'm going to be the best at it."

And with that, Ranma sprinted out of the classroom, Akane staring after him in surprise.

After some searching, Akane found Ranma roaming the hallways of Furinkan High, a sheet of paper held tightly in his hand. She had to reach out with her hand and grab Ranma by the waistband of his pants as he tried to move past her.

"What are you doing?" Akane asked.

Ranma turned around to peer at Akane. "I'm looking for a club to join, duh." He held up the piece of paper, which had a list of Furinkan High's club written on it. "I've been looking in and asking around, see if anybody would take me."

Akane looked down the hallway that Ranma just came from. "Those are the martial arts and sports clubs down there, right?"

Ranma snorted. "Yeah, but I figured that any place where Kuno might be won't be a fun one."

Akane sighed with grudging acceptance. "Well, you can try the Karate Club, I suppose. You'd probably get in easily..." She turned and walked off down the hall. "Come on! I'll take you there!"

It didn't take long for Akane and Ranma to reach the gymnasium where the Karate Club met and practiced: it was a small building, with a curved roof, that sat just a few yards from the back of the school, next to the athletics track.

Akane and Ranma approached the door, Ranma peering through the frosted glass windows. Loud shouts and grunts came from inside, muffled slightly by the closed door.

Akane turned back to look at Ranma. "Remember to be polite," she whispered, before she pushed open the door to the gym and the voices came through louder, accompanied by the smell of stale sweat.

The two quietly stepped inside, leaving their shoes at the inside of the entrance. The inside of the gym reminded Ranma of being inside the dojo at home, except that instead of the traditional varnished wood floor and paper walls, there were more modern stucco walls and a wood floor covered with soft white mats. The centre of the room had the largest mat, marked with a red octagon in its centre. In the corner were some heavy looking dumbbells and a barbell, while another corner had some large punchbags that looked like they had some serious use put in them. Around the room were several youths of various sizes, all dressed in the same familiar white gi, sparring and working the bags, working up a healthy seat.

Ranma looked at the various students sparring: he was pretty sure that he could remember seeing one or two of them in the big morning brawls when he first went to school with Akane, before he beat Kuno up and got them to back off. From the look on Akane's face as she looked at them, he could guess that she recognized a couple of them too.

One of the members sparring, a large looking guy with a super short crew cut, quickly noticed them. He paused for a moment, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing, before a disturbingly huge grin spread across his face, and he all but dashed towards Ranma and Akane.

"Akane-san!" The large youth said. "It's nice to see you here in our little gym!" He stepped closer to Akane, and Ranma had to fight the urge to step in front of her. "What's the occasion today?"

Akane was thankfully undaunted by the big senior's unsettling closeness, and stood her ground. "Munekata-senpai, I was wondering if your club could take in a new member?" She looked aside towards Ranma, and Munekata followed his gaze.

Ranma looked up at Munekata hopefully. The senior had a good six more inches on him, and probably looked like he was twice that in girth. To somebody who would be a neophyte in martial arts, the guy would be a frightening person to deal with.

To Ranma, he just looked like a walking target.

The grin on Munekata's face grew bigger. "Saotome? Seriously? Since when did he want to learn Karate?"

"I'm not looking to learn anything," Ranma said. "I'm here to enrich my school life." He looked aside to Akane for a moment, then looked back. "Or something like that."

Munekata's smile barely changed. "Well, that's all well and good. But you know, we got ourselves a policy here at the Furinkan High Karate Club." His arm rose in a flash, fist tightly clenched in front of Ranma's face. "When a newbie joins, all the students get first crack at him." His grin grew even bigger. "The beginners first. Then the seniors last."

Akane blinked for a second. "You have seen what Ranma's done since he came here, right? You know what he's done to Kuno, and the Golden Pair?" She looked over at Ranma, who seemed to be tuning out of the conversation. "I'm sure that you've seen him fight. He's more than just a newbie!"

Munekata sneered at Akane. "What are you saying? You think me and my boys haven't been training to beat this boy's ass since he came here?" He leaned in towards Akane, and Ranma took a step forward. "It's gonna be real fun crushing your little boyfriend here."

Akane just narrowed her eyes up at Munekata. "Munekata-senpai, could you please not get so close? You smell all sweaty."

Munekata stared at Akane for several seconds, before he whipped his head back towards the room. "Listen up, you turds! We got ourselves a special guest here today!" The condescending tone on the words "special guest" were unmistakable. "I wanna see all of you give him a nice warm welcome!"

Almost all of the students turned towards the entrance, and towards Ranma. Almost all of them, it seemed, except for one skinny youth with short black hair turned away from the others. It took Ranma a moment, but he noticed that he seemed to be more busy washing one of the windows of the gym. He definitely looked out of place among the other members of the Karate Club, as he was still wearing his school uniform instead of the training gi the other members wore.

"What about the guy by the window?" Ranma asked. "Ain't he a member of your little club?"

Munekata snickered. "The pipsqueak? Why worry about him? He's here so he can wipe your blood off the mats."

Ranma just snorted. "Who's saying that it's gonna be my blood on the mats?"

Munekata's smile, for once, actually slipped. "I am, you little punk! Unless you pay your senpai his proper respect! Now get your ass over here so we can greet you properly!"

Ranma gave Akane a quick glance before her stepped onto the mat, unbuttoning his shirt as he did so. He hung the shirt on one of the punching bags, before stepping inside the octagon.

Slowly, the rest of the karate club spread out around the octagon, each of them giving Ranma a cold stare. Some of them looked like they were looking forward to stepping in the octagon with him. Others seemed a bit more nervous, obviously not feeling up to facing Ranma down. Munekata looked like he was in total glee. Even the boy who was washing the window had turned to look at Ranma. The look in his eye, the one not covered with his floppy lopsided fringe, didn't betray any feelings at all.

Ranma just smiled. It looked like he might have a good workout on his hands after all.

Munekata looked over towards one of the younger, greener looking boys. "You're up first, Sato."

Sato stepped into the octagon. He gave Ranma a grin, before he raised his fists and charged forward.

A second later, Sato was reeling back out of the octagon, tumbling off the mat to slam into the back wall. A terrible silence descended on the gym.

Ranma stood on one leg, the other still extended from the kick that sent Sato out of the octagon. He lowered the leg slowly. "Maybe we should skip the beginners? I don't want to hurt anyone too much..."

Munekata's eyes darted back and forth among the other youths, some of them already shrinking back from Ranma. "Don't just stand there and gawk, losers!" He stabbed a finger at Ranma. "Get him!"

Another fighter charged into the octagon, and Ranma spun himself around, rolling past his speeding fist, to whip his forearm into the back of the head. That guy kept running, straight out the other side, off the mat, and into the wall face-first. He slowly slid down the wall as two more of his would be opponents leaped in.

Ranma danced through the flying fists and feet, his body moving like a swirling breeze, buffeting back anyone who tried to stand in his path. He kicked aside one, smacked back another with his palm, tripped over another charging towards him.

Despite the dwindling of the club members, it seemed that their enthusiasm wasn't flagging: it was all the boys could do to not rush Ranma en masse.

Ranma twirled past another punch, sending the puncher smack into a sandbag, and assumed a ready stance, one leg up. "Is that the best you've got already? Or are you just saving that for last?"

Five boys charged Ranma after he said that. But he simply leaped upwards, driving his feet into the back of the head of one boy and sending him to the mat. He landed, only swerving to dodge the chain another boy swung.

Ranma briefly wondered where the boys managed to get themselves some weapons, before dashing past the second swing and punching the boy in the stomach and leaving him crumpled on the mat. "Okay, that's just not sporting. I thought you guys were professionals!"

Ranma turned his head to look at Akane again. But instead, he caught the eye of the boy who was hanging back, the boy Munekata called "pipsqueak". The curious look that the boy was giving him before the session started was gone, replaced with a much more intense gaze. For a moment, Ranma remembered the eyes of Ryouga when he was getting serious during a fight, or Herb when he was mad. The boy had eyes just like that.

The sound of pounding feet snapped Ranma out of his reverie, and he moved again, barely dodging Munekata's fist as it barrelled towards him. Ranma turned to face his senior, smirking. "So you've finally decided to have your shot at me?"

Ranma looked around the gym. Many of the club members were on the floor, groaning in pain, or propping themselves against the far wall trying to stand up again. Some other boys were pinned against the wall, cringing in fear; probably the younger members, Ranma guessed, who had the fight taken out of them at the sight of Ranma taking down so many of their fellow friends.

Munekata was the last man on the mat. Looks like it was time to wrap things up.

"You got a lot of nerve comi-," Munekata said, before Ranma's foot slammed into his gut. After Ranma brought his foot back and then whipped into his face, all the sounds he made were strangled cries of pain.

Munekata fell backwards onto the floor like a domino. Just like a domino, he didn't get up again.

Ranma turned to look at Akane again, smiling. "So does this mean that I'm a member now?"

Akane just groaned and turned away. "Jerk." And then she blinked as she noticed the boy, the "pipsqueak", still staring at Ranma. "What are you looking at?"

The boy's intense gaze shifted from Ranma to Akane. "I'm looking at you," he said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Akane's cheeks turned red. "No, I mean... Why are you..." She paused for a moment to collect her thoughts. "What are you still doing here? Aren't you supposed to be a member?"

"I guess so," The boy said, in the same tone. "I did some training here and there in the martial arts clubs in middle school. So when I came here, I thought I could keep on training with the Karate Club." His face turned sour as he nudged the bucket with his foot. "But the captain said I needed to learn discipline or something."

"Yeah?" Ranma asked. "So is that all you do here? Just... washing windows?"

The boy shrugged. "And the floor, and the mats. And getting drinks for the seniors, and the captain. And carrying all their bags. And-"

"Okay, okay," Ranma said, "I think I get it."

Akane just sighed. "Great. I guess I should've known that the Karate Club are just as much jerks as the Kendo team."

"Not as smart as the Kendo team, though." Ranma replied.

Slowly, the club members that were still able to walk slunk out of the gym, trying not to get any more attention brought on themselves from Ranma and Akane. They grabbed the still unconscious bodies of the other students, and dragged them out with them. In the space of a few short minutes, the gym was completely empty with the exception of Ranma, Akane, and the strange new boy.

Akane looked around the empty gym for a moment, before looking at the boy again. "So… Um... What's your name?"

"Ichimonji Hayate. First year student, Class C."

Ranma stretched out, still standing proud in the center of the mat. "Yeah, nice to meet you. Are you going to have your turn with me, or are you just gonna run out like the others?"

Akane jerked, before turning around to face Ranma. "You've already done enough as is! You've probably wrecked the Karate Club single-handed!" She gave Ranma her best hard stare. "Don't think you can just come in and push everyone around just because-"

"Hey."

Akane stopped.

Ranma looked up.

"I want to have my turn," Hayate said, before stepping onto the mat.

Akane stared at Hayate for a moment, before slumping her shoulders. "Just be careful, alright? And for pity's sake, Ranma, go easy on him!"

Ranma just grinned as Hayate raised his arms, assuming a stance. "Haven't I been going easy this whole time?" He turned back to look at his opponent, only to pause.

That intense look in Hayate's eyes was back again. And it was focused squarely at him. Ranma felt a sense of unease just looking at the boy's eyes. Was it just naturally like that?

In a flash, Hayate sprang forward, fist raised. He swung hard, his fist careening towards Ranma's jaw. But Ranma simply twisted out the way, foot arcing upwards into the empty space where Hayate's head had been.

Wait.

Hayate's shoulder slammed into Ranma's chest, taking him nearly off his feet. It was an impressive counter: maybe a bit lower or a bit harder and Hayate could've knocked the wind out of him. Instead, Ranma grabbed Hayate's head in a front facelock and twisted, spinning them both around and letting Ranma out of Hayate's grasp, before Ranma swung his body around and under Hayate's.

Ranma skidded along the mat on his knees, before hopping up to his feet once more. Hayate stumbled slightly, but managed to turn himself around. The two youths stood on the mat again, Hayate moving back into his basic stance.

Ranma smiled. The boy was definitely learning through watching his moves with the others. Now things were getting interesting.

Hayate sprang forward again, his fists blazing towards Ranma, who danced between his blows. Ranma was almost reminded of sparring with Akane again as he moved, the boy's ferocious punches moving with him.

Hayate kept barrelling forward, trying to hit Ranma, trying to keep up the pressure so Ranma could slip up, or trying to overwhelm him. But Ranma was still playing cool.

"At least you're showing some improvisation," Ranma said. "You're pretty smart for a newbie!"

"Yeah?" Hayate replied. "Well, how about this?!"

Suddenly, Hayate leaped upwards towards Ranma, his foot extending into a downward kick aimed straight for his face. It was child's play for Ranma to step backward enough so Hayate's kick flew right past him.

What Ranma didn't expect was Hayate landing on the extending foot and bracing it down, knee bending, and suddenly springing on that foot forwards to send his other knee right into Ranma's face.

Ranma reeled backwards from the blow, still managing to stay standing despite the stars dancing in his eyes. He could hear Akane gasp in shock as he tried to regain his sense, before Hayate could take advantage and press the attack.

Playtime was definitely over.

As Ranma's eyes focused, he could see Hayate sprinting forward to deliver another blow. On instinct, he reared back, knee bent, and lashed out with a lightning fast thrust kick to the face.

He felt his foot impact with something solid, and heard the thump of a body on the mat a moment later. When he looked again, his vision clear, Hayate was sprawled out on the mat unconscious.

Akane carried Hayate down to the nurse's station on her back as Ranma cleaned up afterwards. Thankfully, he didn't wake up again until a few minutes after he was placed on a bed, and Akane had sat beside him.

Hayate winced as he rose to a sitting position, his vision wavering slightly. "Where am I? How long was I out?"

"Probably a couple of hours." Akane said. "I have to hand it to you, you're probably the only person in the Karate Club to even touch Ranma, let alone hit him twice. At least they'll be more serious about letting you train, at least after you recover from a hit like that."

Hayate just sighed. "Yeah, if they even come back. Munekata-senpai was going on a lot about how he could beat Ranma because he was trained in a serious martial art instead of magical woo bullshit."

Akane crossed her arms and huffed. "I hope you're quoting Munekata-senpai verbatim there." Her expression softened after a moment. "I guess if you give them a few lessons in martial arts, some people just think they can take on the world. It's like Kuno all over again..."

Hayate shifted a little on the bed, turning towards Akane. "So all the stories I keep hearing about the guy are true?"

Akane nodded quietly. "Everything except for the one about being bitten by a king cobra." She smiled a little bit. "Apparently Nabiki spread that one because she thought it would be funny."

Hayate stared at the ceiling. "Great. Turns out that I got played like a chump, along with everyone else at the Karate Club."

"You managed to make his nose bleed, at least." Akane smiled a little at the memory of Ranma trying to pass off the blood as Hayate's own.

"And then he damn near kicked my head off," Hayate replied. "It's a wonder that I'm still alive after facing him."

"And you have the black eye to prove it." Akane said. "Too bad the Karate Club fled before they could give you a chance." She mulled it over for a moment, before an idea popped into her head. "Maybe you could train with us! We could train you!"

Hayate gave Akane a skeptical look.

"You're still a beginner, but you've got some talent." Akane began to smile. "You have the will to learn, but you haven't found yourself a decent teacher yet. And Dad had been talking about us being more serious about our school..."

"You mean like I become Ranma's student?" Hayate still had the skeptical look on his face.

"Well, not Ranma's student," Akane replied. "You'll be mine."

"You're seriously going to train that kid?" Ranma asked, as he pulled his outdoor shoes on. "I thought you had things more important to do than martial arts!" His serious tone was somewhat less imposing, due to the large cotton swabs stuffed up his nose to soak up blood.

Akane scowled at Ranma. "Just because I'm studying for university doesn't mean that I'm leaving martial arts behind." She motioned towards Hayate standing behind her, his skeptical look still on his face. "Dad said that we needed to think more seriously about the schools we'll inherit. We're going to not just be fighters anymore, but teachers too!"

Ranma looked between the two, his expression unreadable for a moment. "Are you really serious about this? I mean, once we get married, it's not like you're going to be still doing the martial arts thing..."

Akane's expression hardened. "And what exactly do you mean by that?"

Ranma's brows furrowed and he looked away. "I mean, you're not exactly going to need to do anything more than take care of the house and..." He paused mid-sentence, as if he just remembered exactly how Akane might take a sentiment like that.

Akane, to her credit, didn't react as badly as he anticipated. But her face was dark and stormy, and still had a promise of a lot of pain. "And I suppose you know all about what I want to do with my life, don't you?"

Ranma still looked away. "I was just thinking about how Mom is like." He said, trying to muster in his voice what indignance he could.

Akane stepped forward a couple of steps, and Ranma tried not to back up with every step. "Well, you should know that I'm not your mother, Ranma. And I'm not going to choose the life she is living." She walked a couple more steps past Ranma, towards the school doorway.

After a moment, she turned her head back. "Hayate-kun, aren't you coming home with me?"

Ranma blinked as Hayate stepped quietly past him. "Where's he going?" He turned around to face Akane and Hayate. "What are you doing?"

Akane looked at Ranma. "I'm going to take him back to the dojo, aren't I? He wants to learn martial arts, so where better than our dojo?" She looked over at Hayate. "Come on, we're leaving."

Ranma watched the two walk off towards the school gate, barely illuminated in the fading sunlight. He sighed, and started running after them, but being careful to keep his distance.

Akane and Hayate were quiet most of the way home, while Ranma followed, walking along the canal-side fence. It took a while before somebody broke the silence.

"So I'm guessing that you have some trouble getting along at home," Hayate said quietly.

Akane just sighed. "I suppose so. But he has been staying with my family for some time. Maybe a year or two? I couldn't really tell. Even though he can be a real jerk, we've never really kicked him out."

"No matter how hard he tries?" Hayate asked, looking at Ranma out the corner of his eye.

Akane shook her head. "I suppose so."

Hayate sighed and pulled his bag further up on his back, looking along the street corners. "Never been 'round this part of Nerima before. My house is five miles in the other direction from the school." He peered around a street corner, noticing the light of Dr. Tofu's surgery down the street.

"Hey, could we save the tour for later?" Ranma said irritably. "I want to get home before dark." He took off along the fence at a dead sprint, zooming down towards home.

Akane gave Ranma a hard stare as he passed by her, before quickening her pace, Hayate following.

It wasn't long before Akane and Hayate managed to get home, stepping through the gate and heading for the front door. Akane waved towards Soun and Genma as they played Shogi in the living room, before heading through the front door.

"I'm home!"

Kasumi turned as Akane stepped out of her shoes, and Hayate stepped inside. "Akane! Welcome home!" Her gaze turned towards Hayate. "Oh, and you've brought a guest?"

Akane nodded. "He's here to learn martial arts and train with us. He used to be part of our Karate Club at school, but Ranma tried to join today and, well..."

"First year student, Ichimonji Hayate." Hayate bowed low towards Kasumi. "Nice to meet you."

Kasumi bowed in return, smiling brightly. "It's a pleasure to meet you too, Hayate-kun. You're welcome to stay here for dinner if Akane doesn't mind."

Akane moved down the hall past Kasumi. "I don't mind, Sis. Hayate is welcome here tonight. I'm going to get changed, then we're going for a spar in the dojo."

Hayate watched Akane leave down the hall before turning back to Kasumi. "She's surprisingly nice. The guys at school all talk about her like she's really dangerous."

"What do you mean, surprisingly nice?" Ranma suddenly blurted out from behind Hayate, making the boy jump. "She's only nice to you because you're sucking up to her so much!"

Hayate stared at Ranma for a moment in silence, partly from Ranma's surprising him from behind, and partly from the words Ranma spoke to him.

"Let me tell you something, kid," Ranma continued. "You think she's all nicey-nice right now, but I guarantee that if you put one step wrong with her, she'll lay you out flat!" He prodded Hayate's chest to punctuate his words. "Just remember that."

Kasumi frowned slightly at Ranma (which, for Kasumi, was a stinging condemnation). "But if you weren't so harsh to Akane all of the time, Ranma-kun, then she wouldn't lash out at you so much..."

Ranma gave Kasumi a slightly hard stare, tempered slightly by Kasumi's motherly aura still being in full force. Then he stalked past Hayate, dumping his shoes on the inside entrance and went into the living room.

Hayate snorted. "Never thought that the great Saotome Ranma was a whiner..."

Ranma poked his head back in the hall, a significantly frostier glare aimed at Hayate. "Wanna make something of it, punk?"

"Ranma-kun, don't be so cold." Kasumi said quickly. "Hayate-kun, Akane's probably waiting for you at the dojo by now. You should go and see her."

Hayate just grunted a "yes," pulled his sneakers off and set them together properly against the edge of the inside entrance. Then he stalked down the halls, towards the dojo, ignoring Ranma's glare as he did so.

Akane, true to Kasumi's word, was waiting inside the dojo, dressed in her white gi. As Hayate stepped inside, she bowed towards him. Nervously, Hayate returned the bow.

"Welcome to the Tendou Dojo," she said, standing proudly in the middle of the room. "This is the dojo my Dad built for me and Ranma to inherit, as the heirs to the combined schools of Anything Goes Martial Arts."

"Anything Goes..." Hayate asked, looking around the hall. "Is that like MMA?"

"I suppose so," Akane said. "Though it's more for use in general circumstances than in sports. My dad taught me martial arts with the intent to be effective with any style and with any weapon that came close to hand. And Ranma, he was taught to be able to adapt to any situation as they happened."

Hayate blinked. "Isn't that kind of the same thing?"

Akane nodded. "I'd think so, though I think Ranma might disagree." She stretched out, and started preparing herself. "You want to start off with some sparring, I suppose?"

Hayate nodded. "Please excuse me still wearing my uniform. The Karate Club wouldn't supply me with a gi or anything." He shucked off his jacket, tossing it to the side. Then he started to mimic Akane's stretching routine. "So I'm pretty much stuck with this for the moment."

Akane just nodded. "Well, you wouldn't be required to wear a proper gi, just wear something comfortable for exercise." She assumed a fighting stance. "Now, Hayate-kun, show me your moves!"

Hayate rose back to his feet, a jagged grin spreading across his face. "Bring it!"

When Ranma went over to the dojo a few minutes later, the battle was in full swing: Hayate was swinging fists ferociously at Akane, only to bounce harmlessly off her solid guard or sail clean past her. Ranma felt the urge to step in and stop Hayate, but the look in Akane's eyes stopped him; she didn't even look like she was tired, even though she was drenched in sweat.

Then Hayate stumbled on his feet and collapsed to his hands and knees, breathing heavily. His head hung low, out of Ranma and Akane's sight.

Akane leaned forward a little. "Are you alright, Hayate-kun? You need a rest?"

Hayate rose, trying to get to his feet. But his knees trembled and gave out from under him, sending him to the floor again.

"Okay," Ranma said quickly, "I think that's enough sparring for the night." He walked over to Hayate and crouched over him, head cocked to one side. "No use blowing yourself out on your first night."

Hayate turned his head to look at Ranma. "I thought I had her. Hell, I managed to hit you a couple of times..."

"No, I was just prepared for you." Akane folded her arms. "You've got energy, but you obviously don't have the technique or the strength. Ranma wasn't taking you seriously, so he went easy on you, and you managed to get some lucky hits in."

Ranma scowled at Akane. "Yeesh, try and give me a little more credit, would you? I knocked him out, didn't I?"

Akane's expression didn't change. "And I had to make sure that he didn't have a concussion, thanks to you!" She turned on her heel and walked out of the dojo. "I'm going for a bath. You make sure Hayate recovers and clean up!"

Ranma sighed, looking towards Hayate again. "You see that? She gets one little bit of responsibility, and suddenly she's the queen of the block!" He rose to his feet again, pulling Hayate up with him. "When you get your breath back, dinner's probably gonna be ready. If you want some, you'd better get back to the living room before Pops eats it all."

Hayate looked up at Ranma, the same intense look in his eyes. "Did you want me here, then? Or are you just trying to make your fiancée happy?"

Ranma didn't say anything. He just turned on his heel and left.

Hayate just sighed, and staggered his way out of the dojo, in search for a place to wash off all the sweat.

By the time Hayate returned to the living room, Kasumi was setting out places for dinner. She noticed Hayate and gave him a reassuring smile. "How was sparring with Akane-chan, Hayate-kun? I hope you didn't hit her too hard."

"Fine," Hayate mumbled as he sat at the table. "It was fine. She was fine."

Nabiki stepped through the doorway. "Are you telling the truth, or don't you just want to admit that you got beaten by a girl?" She grinned slightly, even as Hayate gave her a withering glare. "I'm Akane's other older sister, Nabiki. Nice to meet you."

"Yeah," Hayate said, glare still in place. "Charmed."

Kasumi started setting out the plates for dinner. "You should be more polite, Hayate-kun. Nabiki was just admitted into Taian University. Akane-chan hopes to be there in a couple of years."

Hayate's glare faded slightly, mostly at the sight of the food that Kasumi had laid out. "Yeah? And Ranma?"

"You'll have to ask him that," Kasumi replied. "I haven't heard him say anything about what he wants to do after high school ends. Maybe he'll try and join Akane in university...?"

"Yeah, right." Ranma stood in the doorway, glaring at Hayate across the table. "Like I'd want to follow her anywhere..."

Nabiki smirked a little bit. "On the bright side, considering what I've heard of your grades, I don't see there's any chance of you following her there... Maybe if you're good and study extra hard..."

Ranma gave Nabiki a cold glare, before sitting down at the table. "Yeah, laugh it up. At least there's going to be less of you around the house to deal with."

Soun and Genma turned away from their game of Shogi to sit at the table as well. "Ranma," Genma said, "You have to remember that Nabiki doesn't have the responsibilities that you have, or the necessary will to keep them. She can do as she pleases."

Nabiki just smiled at Genma. "And you would know all about keeping responsibilities, don't you, Uncle Saotome?"

Genma didn't respond, but everyone could tell that Nabiki hit the mark. Instead, he just took the offered rice bowl from Kasumi and started eating.

After a moment, Akane returned from the bath, wearing pink pajamas and a cardigan. "I hope I didn't miss too much." She sat next to Hayate. "Did you manage to clean yourself up at least?"

"I used the faucet round back," Hayate said simply. "It helped a little, I guess."

"Ah, so that's why you looked so damp!" Soun laughed.

As Soun laughed, Hayate noticed Ranma glaring at him. He glared back, putting the full weight of his stare behind him.

Soun's laughter slowly died out as the two glared daggers at one another, both rock-still and silent. Even when Genma stole some food from his son's plate, Ranma didn't turn his eyes away from Hayate from a second.

A long moment of silence passed through the living room. And then Akane slammed her hand down on the table, the loud bang shaking the food. "Hayate-kun! Ranma! Stop staring at each other like that!" She paused as she realized that, along with Ranma and Hayate, everyone else turned to look at her as well. She flushed deeply, down to the roots. "We're supposed to be having dinner, okay? At least try to be civil with each other."

Ranma rolled his eyes. Hayate just nodded. And soon, everyone returned to their food.

After dinner, Hayate quickly made his excuses and left. He was lacing his sneakers at the inside entrance when Akane came up to him.

"Hayate-kun, I have to tell you something."

Hayate paused as he tightened the bow on his shoelace. Then, slowly, he turned his head around towards Akane.

"If you're still serious about learning martial arts, this house will always be open to you. And I also expect you to be in the Karate Club at school again tomorrow afternoon." Her eyes took on a glint of determination. "Martial arts isn't something that you just do for funsies, you know."

Hayate nodded. "I'll be there tomorrow."

Akane just smiled. "I'll see you there."

Akane watched Hayate as he stepped out the door and down the pathway to the gate. As he disappeared behind it, she turned around to see Ranma standing by the door-frame to the living room.

"You know," Ranma said irritably. "When Tendou-san said that we should start thinking about our futures as heir to the schools, I didn't think that you would decide to do something like this."

Akane blinked for a moment. "Why shouldn't I? I'm going to be the heir to the Tendou Dojo and the Tendou school. Why shouldn't I have somebody as my disciple now?"

Ranma glared. "Why? Well, you're not a master of martial arts, for one thing! You're not as good as some other people I can care to mention... And that guy just looks like a suspicious character to me!"

Akane blinked for a second. "You're jealous, aren't you?"

Ranma spluttered. "W-what?!"

Akane started to grin widely. "You are! You totally are! You're jealous that I've got a student of martial arts! And I got one before you did!"

Ranma's face started to burn. "I am not jealous!"

"Yes you are!" Akane pointed at Ranma. "You're supposed to be the better martial artist, but I know Hayate doesn't like you at all! You have no idea what it takes to be a teacher of martial arts!" She grinned widely, arms akimbo. "But I know, don't I?"

Ranma crossed his arms, scowling. "Feh! All you know is how to waste your breath. You talk a big game about landing yourself a student, but everyone knows you're on the bottom rung of all the people here who call themselves martial artists!"

Akane's smile faded as Ranma turned away from her, now in full-on "I-have-to-explain-everything-to-my-dense-macho-fiancee" mode.

"All I can remember you being good for is getting in trouble and having to be bailed out by me! What kind of student is gonna respect someone like that? I can't just let you get yourself into trouble just because you think you can be a better teacher than me!"

Ranma folded his arms, a scowl on his face. "You're my fiancée, so why don't you act like it, and stop getting ideas above your station? Carrying on the dojo should be a real man's job!"

A splash of cold water to the face jerked Ranma from his spiel.

"Well, you're going to have a real problem then, aren't you?" Nabiki said, a smirk on her face, holding a now-empty glass in her hand. "Or do Jusenkyo curses just not count?"

"You shut up, you!" Ranma shouted, shaking the water from her hair. "You don't even have the right to talk about what I've got to deal with!" She turned back towards Akane to follow up on her words, only for her fire to fizzle out completely.

Akane's face was red and puffy, and tears were streaming down her cheeks. But her eyes were focused squarely on her.

"She doesn't have the right?" Her voice was trembling, as the act of speaking just seemed to draw more tears. "I don't have the right?"

Akane's hand lashed out and struck Ranma hard across the cheek.

"Then who does?!"

Ranma watched Akane disappear up the stairs. A moment later, the slamming of her bedroom door resounded through the house.

"That was a stunning performance," Nabiki said idly, "even for you. I especially like how you managed to jab at her and me with that last remark."

Ranma just scowled at Nabiki. "She'll come around, won't she? Maybe she'll get over it?"

Nabiki just gave Ranma an ice-cold glare. "You want my honest answer? You better brush up on your apologising. By the morning, at the very least." She turned around and made her way up the stairs. "Daddy and Uncle Saotome might forgive you. But I know she wouldn't."

Ranma stood alone in the hallway, nursing the stinging handprint Akane left on her cheek. At that moment, thought of nothing more than regretting taking to heart what Soun had told her about thinking about her future.

Because as far as Ranma believed, the future was nothing but trouble coming her way.

to be continued

NOTES:

Hey there again.

So this is me bringing out something I had on the backburner for a long time now. I've been messing around with variations on Hayate Ichimonji ever since I came up with him for the Anime Addventure so many years ago. I've always wanted to write this character, as someone who was kind of a delinquent type, partly as a non-romantic, non-rival foil for Ranma and Akane.

I'm sure that there's a lot of fanfics out there where the Tendou Dojo takes in students, or Ranma has a disciple, but I wanted to write something where the whole thing about teaching martial arts as such is front and center. There's a little bit of History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi in there, to be sure.

This is currently my most major project as a fanfic which, considering the speed I usually write and put things out, means that it might take a little while between updates. But this is something I want to keep up on, regardless. So follow this story, subscribe, do whatever. And thank you for reading.