(2095)
Walking along an unmarked path along the forest, the youth trudges towards a small clearing overlooking the city of Tokyo. Pushing back a braid of red tresses, she locates the shrine that would become her residences just a few minutes away. It had been awhile since she'd been back to Tokyo... not since what happened so many years ago. However, she needed her now, and she could never refuse her anything. Adjusting the large knapsack containing her life's belongings, the young lady hops up the branch of a nearby tree to continue her trek above, her red mane fluttering.
The silent rustling of leaves give way to the sound of "ki-ya"s and "hora"s as she nears the shrine. She slowly releases a bit of Qi to calm the surrounding temple area and shroud her presence, and jumps up to sit on the outer wall under the shade. These things come second nature to her now. She didn't practice any religion, but valuing life, human or otherwise, was one of the few things she learned under the tutelage of the master. "One is everything; everything is one." It is precisely because of it that calming and stealth skills became important to her.
From her vantage point, she noticed a teen currently reducing the ranks of armed disciples on the temple. A younger one, probably a sibling, watching in admiration. She smiles looking at the young lady as memories flutter around.
"She's just like you then..." Ranma mutters to herself. Finally understanding the message she was left a few days ago, she prepares to go down but stops herself, noticing the master of the temple creeping. Seeing the sudden discomfort of the young lady a moment later, she decides on a better course of action, reaching for a small piece of broken tile. Flicking the rock, it hits the forehead of the bald master, snapping it back, while his arms block a chop from above.
"You still haven't changed your habits, Yakumo-kun; sloppy as ever. Haven't you been practicing properly?" Gaining their attention, she hops down the wall and sets her pack down. Perceiving the sudden wariness of his protégé, the bald master steps forward to greet his guest, rubbing the bruise on his forehead.
"Yare yare... You really know how to greet your elders, Ranma-kun. And I have been practicing daily. Some things just seem come more naturally to some than others."
Turning to the siblings, she snorts at the comment. "Well... Your body seems to be out of shape."
"But of course. There are more ways to fight than with just one's fists. Ara ara... I nearly forgot." Turning to the siblings, he relaxes his warding stance to introduce his guests to one another. "Ranma-kun, these are the siblings Shiba Tatsuya and Shiba Miyuki. Oh, only Tatsuya-kun practices here, by the way. Shiba, this is my guest Saotome Ranma. She will be staying here for quite a while."
"Hajimemashite," the elder Shiba salutes with a stiff bow.
"Dozo yoroshiku onegaishimasu," the younger lady greets back with a formal bow from the waist, hands folded on one-another.
Bowing a bit more awkwardly, she returns the greetings with a bow of her own, hands on her side. "Kochira koso. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu."
"Anyway, since I have time to spare before heading to school, want to spar, Yakumo? It's been quite a while, so I might as well start training again."
Chuckling, the man clad in dark blue readies himself into an attack stance. "Haha... Surely you jest. Nevertheless, it would be an honour to train with you once more." Along with the other trainees, the two siblings stand on the side surrounding the short lady and the master. Balancing herself on the balls of her feet, she raises a hand, motioning for him to start whenever he was ready. At once, the shinobi disappears, but the young lady only sways and raises one hand to divert the torrent of blows. The Shiba siblings have known that the master had always been holding back and to finally see him go seriously against an opponent was rare; but to meet someone actually match incoming attacks with ease was a feat on its own. More incredulous though is...
"Sloppy... Sloppy... Sloppy... Sloppy... Bend that knee lower. Sloppy.. I said lower, didn't I? Better. Twist those hips properly."
More than a sparring session, it looked more similar to Tatsuya's situation - master training a student. Against such a diverse mix of attacks from different arts and direction, the young lady with a red mane only blocked, swayed, skipped, and diverted all of it. If she held a baton, one could easily visualize her hitting each of the mistakes to point them painfully.
"Onii-sama, isn't this..." Miyuki could not find the right way to describe the one-sided match in front of her. A slight miscalculation cost Yakumo his arm, and he immediately lost his balance and lay stomach flat on the floor with an arm lock. Sighing, Ranma releases the arm she was holding.
"Haven't you learned your lesson trying to connect a Muay Thai knee to a Capoeira jumping overhead yet? And you haven't corrected that loss of centre whenever you reach for a grapple. If anything, I think it's gotten worse, but I'll have to see it again to correct whatever is making you lose balance."
Reaching up to the offered hand, Yakumo pulls himself up and rolls his strained shoulder. "Very much appreciated. It's almost unnoticeable, and I'm actually shocked that you noticed it considering this is probably just the second time you've seen it. So, shall we head back now and prepare for the day?"
Heading back, the petite red-head picks up her pack resting by the wall, leaving a small circular depression on the floor where they were practicing. After setting her belongings into her room and dressing into the uniform provided to her, it amazed her how sharp the memory of her benefactor still remained considering they haven't seen one another for two decades at the least. From the overcoat to the inner shirt and vest, everything fit just right for either of her form. The shirt-sleeves and pants had to be folded to appropriate length, but well, it could be considered a minor inconvenience since it couldn't be helped. Even with the advancement of magic, clothes that could grow longer and shorter at will would probably still be worlds away.
Sauntering to where Yakumo is sitting with his protégé and sibling sitting by the porch, Ranma surprises both the Shiba with her uniform. Ignoring the stares, she puts on her slippers to head to the school; she didn't want to be late for her first day. It wouldn't be a good impression for her benefactor, especially due to their status.
'It's such a nice day to continue training again too, and I still have so much filtering to do.' Sighing internally, she suppresses further contemplation and complaints, and adds it to the growing list of things to do in the evening.
Nearly getting lost, Ranma reaches the school gates after following the trail of students wearing the same uniform. Stopping by the signage of the First High, she releases a sigh and reaches into her bag for the letter of introduction. It is suppose to "ease her acceptance" into the prestigious institution, but no clear instruction or briefing has ever been mentioned other than the one objective. The red-head could only haphazardly guess how to go about it; the only windfall is that she had full reign on how to accomplish the objective.
To be surrounded by people again brought along its own set of challenges. Rechecking the control on her power, she eases her tenseness and looks around for someone she could ask for directions to the Director's office. Garnering the attention of a trio of sempais, the one with waist-length black tresses approaches her. A black-and-white striped ribbon holding the soft mane from billowing with the wind, a lock of hair is pushed behind her ear.
"Ara... Are you lost perhaps?" The sempai of nearly the same height notices the gathering whispers among the crowd. Looking at the direction their eyes were staring towards, it becomes easily recognisable that it was directed to Ranma's unusual ensemble. Maybe a few decades before the war, the set of coat, shirt and slacks on a young lady would have been normal for uniform; but in the current age of... conservatism, it was simply considered not proper. Much of which flies over our red-tailed new student, rather unfortunately.
"Ah! I'm sorry if I would be troubling you a bit. I was told to report to both the Student Council office and Disciplinary Committee office to explain my... circumstances."
"I see. In that case, shall we accompany you? We were just on our way there ourselves." The student in slacks unknowingly follows her intended into the maze known to most as the high school building. Small talk introduces them to one another and eases the trip up from the lobby to the rooms where the trio of sempais hold regular meetings. Handing the "Letter of Introduction" to the Student Council President, Mayumi suddenly feels a sudden chill after reading, and her eyes stare at the seal representing the sender. Worried and anxious looks wait upon her two friends, they peek at the letter only to hold short gasps themselves. Clutching at the letter, she needed to verify.
"So Ranma-kun, please do correct me if I am wrong, but am I to understand that from today onwards you represent the clan here in First High?"
Easing on her chair, Ranma shrugs a non-committal yes. "She never said I had to, but knowing her, it would best to think of it as so. I know the arrangement may sound unusual, but please do understand that while I can teach, I still have much to learn myself which is why I am attending as a student. What I offer in return is that external danger will not dare to step forth once they know that the clan's representative stays here. They would be much too foolhardy to reason with if they do. In such cases, I would be dealing with them directly and quickly to protect everyone within the vicinity."
The letter in question was shortly penned.
"To whom it may concern,
Please accommodate dear Saotome Ranma as he stays at First High."
Undersigned with the insignia of a four-leaf clover.