Nabiki watched the conclusion of the battle between Ranma and Kuno from her classroom. It was as she had predicted, after all. Ranma managed to win, but only fighting Kuno for a full fifteen minutes. Last week he managed that in only two seconds, by merely kicking the kendoist away as if Kuno was nothing. But today, Ranma had to use a myriad of techniques and attacks to even keep Kuno on the ground for a few seconds. But in the end Ranma managed to kick away Kuno's wooden sword and with it Kuno's chances of winning. Stunned, he could only watch as Ranma punched him 500 hundred times in five seconds. This time he stayed on the ground.
Ranma was panting and heaving. He never thought fighting Kuno would be that tiring. He looked at his bracelet. It gave a faint glow, reminding him that it was the reason he had to work his own butt off to kick Kuno's. He began to walk away when he realized that Kuno was slowly getting up to his feet.
"Halt, Saotome"
"Don't you get tired of kissing my shoes, Kuno?"
"Satisfy my inquiry and with it, I shall decide on which path I will pursue"
Ranma shrugged and turned back to face Kuno. "Okay, I guess."
"Thou hast not utilized your foul sorcery today; yet with acting with barest hint of fairness, thou managed to evade the justice of the Blue Thunder. The injuries on thou foul body bear testament to I tenacity and resoluteness. Alas, thou won, even thou snatching the last light at the evening's dusk. Perhaps thou are mending thou crooked ways. Answer I thou reasons for doing so"
"Uh..." Ranma thought about what in the hell Kuno was blabbering about. He was tempted to answer Kuno with usual statements, but decided to change his tactic. "Ah, my noble warrior" He tried to stifle his chuckle of embarrassment as other students' eyes widened in disbelieve. "The fair and fierce Tendo tigress has decreed that the only path to her heart is only through the path of righteousness"
Kuno nodded sagely. "Thou hast done well to achieve such a small enlightenment on thy damned and darkened soul."
Ranma thought about what to say next. Suddenly inspiration came to him. He looked down, as if very sad. "It was not without a sacrifice. I have to release and renounce my attachment to the pigtailed goddess"
"Oooh… The pigtailed goddess. Truly, you have shown to yourself that the path of deceit is not an honorable way to live"
"Alas, it was without its complication"
"Tell me, o repentant one"
Ranma's face scrunched as he tried to remember something he accidentally gleaned from one of Nabiki's books that she was reading while he did the calculations for her. He briefly wondered where she stored those weird books. Probably stashed inside fold-space, the same place used by Akane to store her mallets. "The pigtailed goddess is actually a succubus"
"Tell me it is not so! Thou dare speak ill of the pigtailed goddess!"
"Tell me thou hast not been trapped in her web of seduction and lies. Hark! By the translucent liquid dripping by the side of thee mouth it is evident that thou will be ensnared by her evil vile and charm if thou practice neither caution nor restrain. I have such an experience before I fell into her dark side. I learnt sorcery in order to serve her, but now due to thee valiant and noble effort, I have realized my sins"
Kuno wiped his saliva in disgust. "So, the female is a servant of the darkness. Then we seek to reveal her wickedness" Blood began to drip from his nose as he thought about which part he should reveal first when he got his hands on her, succubus or not.
"Yet, trying to destroy her is what caused I soul to be captured by her. No. Wise sages have told I that a succubus charm can be negated by not following the lust nor the desire to go toward her. We must practice abstinence from her presence"
Kuno frowned. After a few seconds he said, "Very well. We will isolate her in her own debauchery"
"Without an enslaved soul to feed her, she will wither" 'Yeah, like getting rid of my curse is that simple. And I must remember to check what's the meaning of debauchery' "By the way the fair maiden Akane has revealed something that is of utmost importance. She indicated that she would never tolerate the barbaric war launched toward her by those foul knaves who seek to gain her hand by defeating her. Surely you have heard of such incursion to her privacy and modesty?"
"Yes. I have heard"
"Yet, words from a foul sorcerer such as I cannot be trusted, despite my repentance" Ranma bowed. "It is best to seek knowledge from her"
Other people aside from Kuno and Ranma were listening to the exchange with surprise as there was no one who managed to talk to Kuno at his wavelength.
"Those fiendish beasts! How dare they mock the fair maiden by treating her as if she is nothing but a prize to be won?"
One of the basketball club members who were lying at the school entrance craned his neck to hear Kuno's words and then turned toward a member of the school chemistry club who was lying beside him. "That Kuno-sempai really should make up his mind. Last year he told us to fight for a date with Akane. Then he told us to stop. Then he told us to continue and now he was angry with us. Someone has to remind him about that"
"You tell him" The man beside him answered. "I'm still unconscious, remember?"
"Oh right! I'm still unconscious too"
Kuno looked around, trying to locate who was badmouthing him. Not finding any, he turned back his attention to Ranma to see a swan origami in his hand.
"Do you intend to cast an evil spell on the paper creature, Saotome? I thought that you have found the light"
"Don't be worry. I'm above it now. The bare-chested..." Ranma barely dodged a kick by Akane. "Correction. The fair maiden has unconsciously revealed to me the ways noble men must follow to win her affections"
"Do share your knowledge with your brethren, oh enlightened one" Kuno said while holding Ranma in a desperate hug.
"Yeah, do tell us" Nabiki said quietly from the window of her classroom.
"Release your brethren as he needs the air to sustain his lungs" Ranma squeaked.
"My sincere apologies"
Ranma held out his hand. Instinctively, Kuno filled it with 3000 yen. Ranma turned toward Nabiki and grinned. The mercenary girl has trained Kuno very well.
"Why that..." Nabiki seethed, knowing very well that he was making fun of her twice in less than twenty hours.
"The noble justice bringer! I have come to the knowledge that the fair maiden prefers courtship via the normal way"
"That preposterous!" Kuno roared. "How could the fair maiden be subjected to such a degrading treatment?"
Ranma signaled for him to come closer and he did. "Haven't you realized that our fair maiden wishes to protect the feelings of the female subjects in the kingdom?" Ranma whispered to his ears.
"OH! HOW NOBLE!" Kuno shouted, tears streaming from his eyes. He turned toward all club members who were still on the ground. "Come, my rivals in love. I shall reveal to you a profound knowledge, so as we will partake in the chivalrous courting of the fair maiden together" With that Kuno ran to the school gymnasium. Two seconds later, all the club members on the ground disappeared, leaving a trail of dust behind them.
"What was that all about, Ranma?" Akane asked worriedly.
"Don't know. Seems like I managed to get him to listen to me, after all" Ranma shrugged.
Then the school bell rang.
"Way to go, Ranma" Daisuke said while looking at the huge mound of gifts that covered Akane at desk. In a short span of time, the rumor mill, led by Nabiki, has spread Kuno's proclamation that the only way for interested parties wanting a date with Akane was to give gifts in hope that she will date them in return. "You managed to change the Hentai Horde to Gift Group"
Ranma turned to look at a struggling Akane as she made her way out of the pile.
"Ranma. This is your fault!" she sputtered.
He tried to find out a suitable reply but in the end raised his hands in a placating manner. "Hey, at least you can get Nabiki to sell the items for a handsome profit"
Khu Lon was busy cooking at the kitchen when she saw a red streak heading toward the window in front of her. It wasn't a bird. It wasn't a plane. It was Ranma. Opening the window, she moved slightly to the left. The pigtailed martial artist made a wonderful somersault before landing on the tip of his foot. Khu Lon held up a sign showing 9.8, at the same time wishing Ranma would land on her granddaughter's lap that easily.
"Hi ya, ol... antiquated… gho... citizen"
Khu Lon decided to ignore the insult. "Hello, Ranma"
But Ranma wasn't paying attention to her. He was sniffing around, captivated by the delicious smell coming from a wok. He stretched out his hand but a slap on his wrist stopped him.
"Pandas, not martial artists take things without permission, son-in-law"
Ranma's face darkened as Khu Lon's words caused him to remember many unpleasant things his father had done while they were on the road, some conveniently labeled as 'training' or 'what martial artist must do' "Sorry" he said meekly.
The elder Amazon only nodded as her eyes were transfixed at the bracelet on Ranma's wrist she had slapped. She could never believe it! Someone has given Ranma a Tenchiryu bracelet! Khu Lon, in her youth, has scoured all over the world seeking people who can forge the Heaven and Earth Dragon bracelet for her. But people with such a skill were very hard to find. And to make it worse, every one that she met turned down her request even though she had begged them, threaten them, bribe and do everything she can to get them to make one. And here was Ranma, sporting the bracelet, looking as if he didn't really know what it was.
Despite being wise and mature, Khu Lon felt a little jealous. "Nice bracelet you have there" she remarked.
"Huh? Yeah. Ah this one" Ranma chuckled while trying to hide the bracelet. "It's nothing"
'It's nothing! Sometimes even you make me think that all males are clueless' "It fits your female body nicely," she said, cackling gleefully.
"I hate having to wear this"
"I see. So Akane forced you to wear it. She has a discerning taste"
"Nah. Nabiki got it for me. All I got from 'Kane are free trips to your restaurant"
'Aha! I must reevaluate my opinion of the middle Tendo daughter' "Why do you wear it then?"
"Training"
'So she knew about its powers. This means she has at least a working knowledge of magic. The bracelet wouldn't function without proper activation steps' Ranma didn't know it, but with just a few careless words from him, he managed to make Nabiki become the most formidable opponent to Shampoo's claim to Ranma in the Amazon matriarch's eyes. "I see. Well, you better return to your school now"
"Huh! Yeah. Bye now"
Khu Lon watched as Ranma sprinted away. After a few seconds, she continued laboring over the stove, making a mental note to herself to observe Nabiki more as well as get further information on magic wielders.
1
Author's note (11 January 2005)
1. That's it for my January quota. It's time for me to replenish my buffer chapters just in case I'm being hit by writers block.
2. The above chapter is the first time I'm doing 'classics'. Sorry if it turns out a half-baked idea. My idea of classics would be the 'Starwars' or 'Rambo'trilogy
Stones and Lore
In many societies, certain stones are believed to be lucky. For example, Chinese wears jade for prosperity. But for some communities, it is believed that some spirits, whether beneficial or not, resides in some of the stones. A good example of such beliefs will be the genie inside the ring Alladin received from the wicked sorcerer (I think the Disney's version omitted that). If you go to many place in Asia, the chance is there that you will find a seller selling rings with various odd looking stones (some are downright ugly but unique nonetheless). Now, the seller may claim that a ring may contain a tiger or a phoenix spirit residing in it, but unless you know how to call them, it's hard to tell. There's one test. First, get a long hair and stretch it across the stone, ensuring that the hair makes a full surface contact with the stone. Then, using a lighter or a match, try to burn of the part that's on the stone's surface. If the hair isn't burnt, then the stone is a good one (no guarantee of any spirit inside it). Or if you have time to spare, try dowsing with stone, asking it questions about itself.
