Posted: Wednesday 25 April 2007

Re-posted: Sunday 03 June 2012


Disclaimer: This fanfiction uses existing ideas, characters and or worlds, but is an independent work of art. I own nothing, hence the reason for publishing my writings here instead of in real books where I could make some money.


Change of Power

Book One

Chapter Two – Learning to Write


For the next few days, Ranma remained at the temple, and got accustomed to his Neko Ken Mastery. By the time he left, Ranma didn't require being in meditation to form a weapon, but it still required time to pull it together, and he could only hold it for a minute and a half before it dissolved.

But Ranma was satisfied with the large increase of chi control over only a few days.

And his stuff space could now hold the backpack for half a day before ejecting it.

This could mean one of two things; one, he was expanding his reserves, or two, his control was improving so he let a little less energy go to waste.

Personally, Ranma hoped it was a little of both, because it would come in handy to have larger reserves and control.

After an awkward goodbye with the priest, Ranma was off, wandering on foot because taking a train would take him too close to Tokyo for his tastes, and that was probably where everyone were searching for him.

No, the fastest route from point A to point B is, and always will be a straight line. But as he had to follow the varying terrain he would have to get it as close as he could.

It was already the fifth day after he had awoken from his comatose state, and he had made camp for the night.

At the edge of his camp stood two boulders he had found while gathering firewood, and he had plans for them.


-CRASH!-

"Ow. Still not good enough. Again!"

-Whirr!-

-Whirr!-

-CRASH!-

"Ow. Closer."

Had someone heard this, they would have started to wonder what on Earth was going on.

The explanation was simple; Ranma was slamming a boulder into himself repeatedly through a semi-complex setup of ropes and improvised pulleys, while he himself was suspended from another rope with the rope controlling the pendulum swing of the boulder by being pulled and released.

The reason for this self-torture was also very simple; Ranma was teaching himself the Breaking Point technique. Or rather, he had already learned the mechanics of it from having seen it repeatedly, and was building up the resistance that usually came with the technique. Had he tried to perform the technique without that endurance to blunt damage, he would likely have been seriously injured by the shrapnel caused by the blast.

-CRASH!-

"Ow …"

Normal people might think such punishment to be inhumane, that no living person could survive going through such a venture, that it was simply insane to even think about doing anything like it.

They would be wrong.

-CRASH!-

"Ow …"

To Martial Artists such as Ranma, this kind of punishment may be painful at first, but after a few days it becomes less so as an endurance develops until such a point where they can have a boulder crash into them without even noticing it.

-CRASH!-

"Ow …"

Ranma still had some enduring left before nearing that point.

"Okay, enough for today," Ranma sighed. "I still have to carry the other boulder around tomorrow, and I can't do that if I'm trying to recover from bruises."

Untangling himself from the mess of ropes he was tied up in proved no problem for Ranma, as he had plenty of practice growing up with Genma, and having been on all the adventures he had been on. Getting out of ropes was almost a necessity.

With his endurance training done for the day, Ranma set about starting the camp fire.

To add some more training to his day, Ranma emptied a bag of chestnuts into it once it got going.

A kettle filled with water was then placed over the fire, and a bowl of instant noodles were prepared while the water was heating.

After a few moments, the smell and popping rising from the fire told him the nuts were done, and the additional training began.

"Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken!"

The call of the technique wasn't as loud as it had been when he first learned it, but the speed hadn't suffered from that fact. In fact, Ranma was certain he could go faster than the last time he had used the technique. It seemed his training had been paying off in more areas than anticipated.

Just as Ranma finished his training and snack, the kettle started to whistle, signaling that it was ready for use.

A brief shudder ran through him as he remembered the meal Akane had tried to make for him when Ryoga had learned the Bakusai Tenketsu and Genma had tried to teach him a counter to the technique. This trip would have been very unpleasant if Akane had come with him. And had his father come, there would have been no possible way for him to Master the Neko Ken. The old man would have dragged him away the moment the priest had started making him meditate, and would have yelled at him for thinking such a stupid idea was going to make him stronger.

No, even though he missed them, this trip would be better off without anyone following him.


A week later, Ranma was getting nearer his destination.

It had been slow going at first, lugging a heavy boulder around on his back. But after a little while moving became easier, but not by much. In the evening, Ranma would search for another boulder, and if one could not be found, a large tree was cut down, stripped of branches and suspended by a rope, and used for the endurance training instead.

Luckily, there seemed to be plenty of boulders, so the tree alternative had only been a one-time thing.

Ranma had at the end of that week, replaced the boulder with a larger one he had found, and used the previous one to smash against himself.

For dietary variation, Ranma had done some hunting just after setting up camp. Using a bow and arrow of chi to hunt might be practical and good training both in control and accuracy, but the arrows had a habit of continuing their trek for several meters even after impact.

While this was not a problem in itself, it was a scary thought that if there had been a human behind his target without him knowing, that human would have been skewered without having a chance to get out of the way or blocking it.

As he came back to his camp, Ranma saw a shadowy shape rooting through the tent.

Carefully discarding the rabbits he had gotten for his supper, he snuck carefully into camp. This was another thing the Mastery of the Neko Ken had given him; higher stealth capabilities.

Unfortunately, Ranma wasn't careful enough and stepped on a twig, which made enough sound for the shadow to hear.

With a roar, the shadow slashed its thick weapon at him, and Ranma stepped back, only to discover that the staff had something on the end that brushed against his chest.

For some reason, Ranma found himself unable to move just after the sensation of the weapon sweeping across his chest registered.

"Tsk … how rude of you, barging into someone's camp like that," the shadow lectured.

"This… is … my … camp!" Ranma managed to ground out with a lot of effort.

"Impressive, boy," the shadow complimented. "You must either be very stubborn or well trained to manage resisting the complete effects of the Paralysis Seal."

"Martial … Artist," Ranma grunted. This technique was very strong. He could hardly do anything, and even talking was exhausting to do.

"Is that so?" asked the shadowed person. Stepping out of it was a very old man with a long, white, wild beard, and hardly any hair on his head. His weapon was a giant brush, and by the looks of him he had not taken a proper bath in months. "So you would be on a training trip, then?"

"Yes."

"Very well, then, I'll release you, if you give me a meal, deal?"

"Deal," Ranma grounded both out of frustration and strain.

With another swipe of his brush, Ranma fell to the ground, his entire body aching more than it was after his first day of the Bakusai Tenketsu training.

As Ranma rubbed the pain away, the old man sat down next to the unlit fire and crossed his arms expectantly, his weapon of choice resting across his lap.

"Well, how long do you plan on making your guest wait for his meal?" the man demanded imperiously.

Ranma grumbled about the unfairness of it all as he lit the fire, and trudged back to pick up his rabbits.

It was thirty minutes later, and an unending stream of impatient complaints from the old man, that Ranma finished a stew from various vegetables, herbs and rabbit … he had not gotten potatoes, but he wasn't much of an enthusiast where the roots were concerned. He used rice as a substitute for potatoes.

After the meal was finished, Ranma looked expectantly at the old man.

"Well?" he asked. "Are you going to introduce yourself?"

"I am the Master of the Kimen School of Martial Arts Calligraphy," the man announced with pride.

Ranma groaned. This was just his luck.

This man was the one he was sent to find!

Confusing the old man, Ranma got up from his seat on the ground, and started rummaging through his backpack until he found the letter the priest had written.

"Here," he grunted and dropped the letter in the old man's lap.

The old coot picked the letter up, curiously, and after checking for traps started reading.

Throughout the letter, the man's expression varied greatly, but mostly towards mirth.

"So, it appears old Yama-kun thought I could use a student," he finally chuckled.

"Not really my idea," Ranma grumbled. "But with the challenges I've faced, he thought it would be wise to have the skills of your school in my arsenal."

"Yes, the letter said as much," agreed the old coot. "But why should I, the respected Master of the school of Martial Arts Calligraphy, take on a student I do not know?"

Ranma upended his backpack, and found a box containing a score of instant noodle packets of a well known brand.

"Because if you teach me, you get these …"

"Food," the man moaned. "My greatest weakness … I can't resist … You've got yourself a deal!" snatching the box from Ranma's hands, the coot added. "No take-backs!"

Had Ranma known what he was getting himself into, he wouldn't have been smirking in triumph as he watched the man slink into a shadow and caress the box while whispering "My precious …"


Sitting in the middle of a clearing was Ranma.

It was the second day of his training under the old coot, as Ranma had taken to calling him under his breath. The coot insisted on being called Master or Sensei, as he was his instructor.

On the ground before Ranma, was a flat board with a sheet of paper on it. Next to that, was a writing set, complete with ink stone, ink stick and brush. The brush was in his hand, and the ink stone held the mixed ink that had been ground from the stick. It was a tool the old coot had made him run to town to buy, along with a vast amount of paper and scrolls.

A little beyond the paper Ranma was about to write on, was an open scroll, showing several characters.

Carefully inking his brush, Ranma started copying the symbol.

-Whack!-

"Again!" demanded the coot. "And don't make them so squiggly!"

Rubbing the back of his head where the giant brush had struck him, Ranma tossed the paper into the fire, as he had been instructed, and started again.

This had been going on all through the day since breakfast, which had come after Ranma's morning exercise. It had been his tenth try at copying the same character, and he had hardly been allowed to finish a single one before he was reprimanded.

-Whack!-

"Again! Faster!"

Grumbling about annoying old coots, Ranma started over.

On his twentieth try the old man was satisfied.

-Whack!-

"Now repeat it until noon!" grinned the grizzly old man. "By the time I'm done with you, you'll be able to draw every character in that scroll blindfolded, behind your back, and in correct order for your use!"

Still grumbling about how he hadn't thought he would have to train his writing skills, Ranma continued drawing the character repeatedly until noon.

-Whack!-

"Ten minutes break for food!"

After a brief lunch, Ranma was to read about the symbol he had been drawing, and answer random questions about it when done.

"When I agreed to learn this," Ranma finally snapped after being whacked on the head for the thirtieth time that day. "I thought it was going to learn how to make demon seals and such! Not getting hit over the head or improve my writing skills!"

-Whack!-

"Before you run, you must learn to walk!" the coot quoted sternly. "Before you take a dive into a pool, you have to learn how to swim! You do not just jump into the complex without having a thorough understanding of the basics, or you'll get yourself killed!"


This was how the next two weeks went.

Ranma would get up early in the morning to practice his known skills, such as the Stuff Space technique, the Chi Weapons, the Soul of Ice, Meditation, the Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken, the Iron Cloth technique, his father's Sealed techniques and his kata, then he would perform vertical push-ups with a boulder balanced on his feet for strength and balance, and if he had time smash himself once or twice with a boulder.

After breakfast, he would learn two or three new symbols, if not more. Apparently the old coot had gone easy on him the first few days. And after lunch he would be questioned about all the symbols he had learned, and sat down to read more theory about those symbols.

When dinner was done, Ranma had until bedtime to figure out new techniques based on his thoughts and written ideas.

He had already worked out how to do the "Tree-climbing" and "Water-walking" he had seen in Naruto, after all he had seen the lesser version of the last performed by Cologne, and had practiced a low-level version of the first himself. It was only a matter of improving them, such as spreading his weight over a larger area with ki, instead of finding purchase on an object floating in the water. And using his ki to adhere onto the chi of the surface he was trying to cling to.

Granted, two days had been spent trying to figure out how to do either, and he had to explain about the curse to the old coot, but it was worth it even with the perverted jokes and lewd suggestions he threw at him. The old coot hadn't made a pass at Ranma in female form, but rather hinted at the secrets he could learn if he dared explore the female anatomy further than he already had.

Ranma had suggested the man check himself into a brothel if he was so desperate for women, a suggestion that was rewarded with another whack over the head.

-Whack!-

"Concentrate!" yelled the man. "If you make even one mistake, all of your work will have been for nothing!"

Ranma grumbled as he paused and checked the paper he was drawing the designs on for imperfections, yet finding none. He voiced his opinion to his Sensei.

"You can't see it?" asked the old coot pointing to the middle of the paper with a gnarled hand. "Those two are too close together, and that makes them spaced too far from the border design! This seal is useless! Hardly worth the heat produced as it burns in the fire! If you paid a little more attention, and a spent less time daydreaming, you'd have saved yourself half an hour's work!"

Tossing the paper into the fire, Ranma started once again.

The seal he was trying to assemble, was the basic demon seal that once applied, would force a demon to leave this plane of existence, be it from a possessed body, object or a free-roaming demon. It also worked on ghosts and evil spirits, and used their own energy to do so, which was what made the seal so useful.

"I'll have you know everything I teach you so well, you'll be able to do them in your sleep!" added the coot in a maniacal cackle.

Ranma groaned, which caused him to nearly make a squiggle on the paper instead of a circle.

-Whack!-

"Again!" the man snapped. "And since you seem to strive for perfection, I want you to add a Good Luck charm to your work for the day!"

"Why do I have the feeling you're using me as labor to make the stuff you give to the old priest?" Ranma grumbled.

-Whack!-

"Less sass, more work!"

After three more ruined attempts Ranma had the finished product and was complimented for his work, in a manner of speaking.

-Whack!-

"Took you long enough! A blind monkey with no fingers could have done it faster!"

Ranma rubbed his head and glared at the old man.

"What are you waiting for? A treat? Get back to work!"

As Ranma went back to work, he noticed a satisfied grin on the man's face, not unlike the grins on Genma's face when Ranma had shown promise in learning a new style of Martial Arts. It was the grin of a teacher that was pleasantly surprised at their student's progress.

Though he himself was pleased at knowing he was doing well, he didn't comment on it. He didn't want to get "disciplined" with the brush more than necessary.

Taking extra care to steady his hand and measure proper distances, Ranma went to work on the second seal on his list for the day, namely one that would, if properly made, draw on chi from the surroundings and fortify whatever it was attached to, to nearly indestructible levels. Even Ranma could see the benefits of having such an advantage for moments of vulnerability, though it did raise the question of why the old coot hadn't sold these to banks, the military and lived like a king on the money he would undoubtedly earn from them.

-Whack!-

"Remember to channel some ki into the ink while drawing!" the man reminded him. "Or else you've only got a fancy note to stick onto the wall!"

"How am I supposed to do that?" Ranma exclaimed.

-Whack!-

"Show some respect," Ranma's Sensei barked. "It's very simple, even a baby could do it! You just focus your ki through the brush and into the ink as you draw. The ki will settle once the designs are done, and this will make the seal do what it's supposed to do. We covered this during the theory lessons!"

"Oh, I didn't remember that …"

-Whack!-

"Ow!"

"That's only a taste of how painful an incorrectly drawn seal can be! So pay attention, or you'll get hurt!"

"Yes, Sensei," Ranma grumbled.

-Whack-

"Less lip, more work!"


Training under the Master of the school of Martial Arts Calligraphy was no easy task, even after Ranma's newly acquired patience from his meditation practice, but the results started to show into the third week of training, when those whacks hardly hurt Ranma.

"Good," commented the coot as he examined the Storage Scroll Ranma had just finished after ten tries. "This one could actually hold up to a hundred kilos of items without bursting or weighing more than the scroll itself. Much better than your previous attempt …" gesturing to the torn remains of paper on the ground around a boulder, the old coot frowned. "Didn't I tell you to destroy all failed attempts?"

"Sorry, Sensei," Ranma grunted and quickly picked up all scraps, which soon burnt beyond recognition in the fire pit that had not died down a single time since it was lit that night three weeks earlier when Ranma first met his current Sensei. All the paper and parchment thrown into it kept it going longer when wood was added. Apparently, the ink served to prolong the flames after it was applied to paper.

-Whack!-

"Continue with your list!"

"But that scroll was the last one on my list!" Ranma protested, rubbing his head more out of habit than pain. The Bakusai Tenketsu training must have started taking effect if he couldn't feel pain from that kind of hit.

"It was?" puzzled, the coot snatched the list from the ground where Ranma had left it, and studied it for a moment. "You've done all of these already?" he asked to be certain. "All of them?"

"Yea, what's your point?" asked Ranma sourly. He didn't like it when people questioned his honesty. "You already out of things to show me today?"

"Actually," corrected the coot. "I am almost out of things to teach you. I only have a few things left but the rest you'll have to learn on your own."

"WHAT?" Ranma exclaimed incredulously. "I've finished your lessons? I've Mastered your entire school in under a month?"

"Not exactly," the coot corrected again. "I have only shown you the academic part of the school. The practical part is something you must find out alone. But I still have one or two things more to teach you before you start celebrating!"

-Whack!-

"Like respecting your Sensei when he is being serious! Now, make some more Storage Scrolls! Five scrolls should be enough. I'll be in the tent until then."

Grumbling internally to avoid another hit to the head, Ranma continued with his appointed task.

The Storage Scrolls were particularly difficult to make, as they required not only drawings on the inside of the paper, but on the outside as well. The inside of the scroll would of course be nearly illegible because of the squiggles and symbols, but the outside would look like it was covered mostly in red ink and a slim border of squiggles. This appearance could not be further from the truth.

The large surface of "red ink" was really a sign that the scroll was finished and ready for use. The outside, apart from the slim border, turned a solid red after a series of intricately woven symbols had been drawn in black ink, so small and closely spaced in size that they would be impossible to draw unless the maker had a steady hand and their face was within a foot of the scroll.

This, Ranma realized, was why his Sensei had been so strict about his handwriting, which had been worse than a doctor's. Even the tiniest imperfection could lead to a non-functional seal at best. At worst it would start draining the maker's ki until either the maker died from exhaustion or until the seal blew up, wounding or killing the maker.

With a little extra flare of his wrist, Ranma finished the Storage Scroll he was working on. The flare did not cause anything to change the scroll, but looked and felt cool.

A dull glow covered the scroll for a moment, and then faded away, leaving the scroll rolled up, thick, black stick in the middle and red along the outside middle, with black on white scribbled border on the paper.

"One," Ranma counted and checked the time. He had spent half an hour on the scroll, and he still had four more to do.


When the fifth scroll was finished, Ranma sighed in satisfaction, and started cleaning his supplies.

He hadn't been told to do so, but thought that he might as well. Performance with those tools might be hindered if grit and dried ink wasn't cleaned away immediately. And as he had been told repeatedly; hindered performance would not bring good results.

Once the ink rock and brush had been properly cleaned, Ranma gathered the scrolls and went to the tent.

"Sensei, I'm done!" he announced, trying not to sound too smug about it as that would mean that he might get additional chores before long.

Silence.

"Sensei?"

Opening the flap of the tent, Ranma was surprised to find it devoid of anything living.

However, sitting in the tent, was a large stack of scrolls, calligraphy supplies and books and on the top of it, a letter.

Scanning the area quickly, Ranma could not find a trace after the old coot, so he opened the letter and started reading.

Dear Student.

As you may have noticed, I am not much for goodbyes. I prefer leaving in silence.

Though I have been strict with you, I would like you to know that you are the best, and only student I've had.

You've learned in only a few short weeks what took me decades to master. You've got great potential, boy, make sure to use it well.

The scrolls and books I've left behind are copies of the reference texts I carry around with me, with their help, you should be able to figure out how to make new seals, or maybe even improve on those you learned from me. The extra supplies are a gift. Call me sentimental, but I never had any children of my own to pass my school on to, and your being my student made me realize what I missed out on by being a hermit. It is too late for me to change my ways, but to celebrate my discovery, I am going to the nearest cat house to see if anyone there will help me with getting an heir of my own blood. Chances are slim, but you never know; some ladies like their men old 'n wrinkly!

That is all I have to say, good luck, have a good life, and remember to practice, or I'll come back as a ghost when I die and haunt you!

Ranma dropped the letter in surprise as he realized that his Sensei had actually complimented him.

The fact that the man had run away wasn't anything to think of, he had done the same just to get on the training trip and countless other times during the ten year training trip he had with his father. Though most of them were probably because Genma had stolen something and needed to get away quickly.

Looking over the scrolls and books that awaited for him, Ranma couldn't help but imagine what he might be able to accomplish with the help of those things.

He might even make explosive seals like those found in his favorite Manga, or info cards from the same Manga.

The possibilities were almost limited only to his imagination!


Author's Notes: I based the Master of the Martial Arts Calligraphy on the crazy old coot from the Manga, who drew the mark on Ryoga's stomach and made him all but invincible, not the one that apparently shows up in the Anime to challenge anyone with a nice writing.

The training Ranma receives is not knowingly copied from anywhere, I just pictured how a strict teacher would act and went with it.

I know I didn't show Ranma's Tree-walking or Water-walking training, but it tied better into the story as how it was written rather than any way I could have written. If it helps, imagine how a smart Naruto with better control over his energies would have figured things out if he had been shown how it was done, but not given any explanations.

And as for the credibility of the Master having a form of Storage Scroll, where else would he keep all his spare supplies? That ink stick he used when preparing to draw the symbol on Ryoga's stomach was almost as big as his torso, and the ink stone was bigger than a washboard, he has to keep it all somewhere, right? And what is better suited to his school than a Storage Scroll?

Edit: Cleaned up the grammar and punctuation.