Ryoga loved the mail. It was fast and efficient and there were post offices nearly everywhere on all the islands of Japan. They even had mail in the rest of the world! But more than that, more than simple ubiquity, the mail possessed nearly magical qualities in Ryoga's eyes. The process of sending a letter was simple enough; one would write the name and address on the envelope and provide a stamp. But with such humble beginnings, and such a paucity of information, the letter would be whisked away to the intended receiver. Such precision! Such speed! How did the post office do it? How did they hone in on the recipient of each and every letter time and time again? Who wouldn't appreciate the ability to find a destination the first time, every time? There were superhumans living among us, Ryoga mused, and they answered to the name Yūbin māku.

*********

Bill presents:

Ranma ½, A Man's Woman

Part Ten: Bread and Circus

*********

"Hey Ranma, there's a letter for you. From a boy named Ryoga Hibiki." Kasumi walked into the living room while she leafed through the mail. Ranma looked up and tried not to stare. Kasumi was wearing a very low cut red blouse and a white mini-skirt that hugged her hips. She had on high heels and her long hair was held back by the pair of designer sun glasses that were perched atop her head. The whole outfit did a good job of highlighting Kasumi's knockout figure. From the brief meeting a few weeks before, Ranma had known that Kasumi was a pretty girl and fairly stylish, but now he could hardly tear his eyes off of her as she tossed him the letter.

"Kasumi!" said Akane and Nabiki, jumping to their feet and running over to their older sister. The three Tendo girls hugged for a moment.

"Wow, oneesan, you look like something else," Nabiki said, stepping back and giving her sister a critical eye.

"Oh, this old thing?" Kasumi twirled around, feigning nonchalance, but genuinely enjoying the attention from her sisters. "Kenshiro just got into business school and his parents are giving us a trip as a present. We're going to Hawaii!"

"When?" Akane asked, shocked. "Do mom and dad know?"

"No, we're leaving for the airport in a few hours. The whole thing was done very last minute. I wanted to stop by and say goodbye."

"How long are you going to be gone?" asked Nibiki, not bothering to hide the jealousy in her voice.

"Two weeks," Kasumi giggled as she sat down in the living room. Akane and Nibiki sat down as well and began peppering Kasumi with questions.

Ranma snuck another look at Kasumi and turned his attention to his letter as the girls chatted. The whole thing was very formal, but it boiled down to a fight of honor. Ranma noticed that the required date of the duel was the previous morning, but he was unconcerned; Ryoga was probably getting directions from some hapless farmer in Aomori right about now. Still, it didn't pay to underestimate his opponents. He could always train a little more. Akane had taught him that. Speaking of Akane and training, Ranma still wasn't sure whether or not to take her up on her offer about the Amazon Amaguriken. If Ranma were to be honest with himself, he would admit that he did want to learn the technique, but his pride was still providing a rather sizeable roadblock. Ranma shook his head and tried to think of other avenues. The Apian Fist was coming along rather well, even with his discovery yesterday. He would have to consult Mrs. Tendo on what he had found out. Still, his ribs were still healing and a fight might end very badly. Ranma wondered if there was a way to delay Ryoga, maybe placate him for a little while.

"Hey Ranma, are you spacing out?" Akane came over and sat down by Ranma. Kasumi had gone to see her parents and Nabiki had returned to her school work on the other side of the room.

"Nah, I just need to deal with this." Ranma showed Akane the letter. "I wish I could remember why he challenged me in the first place"

"Well, you must have done something. This is more than an everyday grievance."

"I guess there was this one time…"

*********

Kimiko set down the tea service next to Soun and began to prepare a cup. She placed the burnished silver steeping basket into a worn, but still beautiful ceramic cup, smelled the aromatic leave and then tipped out a measured amount. After packing the leaves down to create a space for brewing, Kimiko poured all-but-boiling water over them. Almost immediately the delicious smell of freshly brewed tea began to drift up from the cup and fill the room. Kimiko wafted her hand over the steam to catch a deeper scent of the steeping process. When the tea was just strong enough, without a hint of bitterness, she removed the steeping basket to a waste bowl. The rest, as they say, was just details.

"Milk and sugar or lemon?" Kimiko asked, looking up at Soun.

"I think I should indulge. Just a bit of sugar, please." Soun rumbled, accepting the tea with his good arm. He scooted over slightly so that he and his wife could return to looking up at the newly risen moon. It was one of the last truly fine days of the season and Kimiko had suggested that Soun needed to relax after his trip to Australia. They both settled down onto pillows and gazed up at the celestial calm.

"How did you say that you broke your arm again?" Kimiko asked, removing the tea service to one side and settling down next to Soun.

"I didn't." Soun blew over the rim of his tea and took a small sip. This particular roast of tea perfectly complemented the hazy orange moon that hung low over Nerinma around this time of year. Soun murmured his approval to his wife.

Kimiko slipped her arm around Soun's back, careful not to disturb his sling. "I suppose I don't really want to know, do I?"

"Did your father ever talk about it?"

"No, but I think he wanted to. Some nights, I think he needed to. Please don't hold back because you think it might disturb me. I too was trained to be a…"

Kimiko stopped herself as the screen slid open behind the both of them. Kasumi slipped softly through the opening and closed the door behind herself. She had her eyes downcast, a look that was almost entirely incongruous with the outfit she was wearing. "Hey Daddy. Hey mom,"

Kimiko turned to look at her daughter, paused for a moment with her hand over her mouth and then stood to embrace Kasumi. "My word, Kasumi, what on earth are you wearing?"

Soun stood as well, walked over and put both women in a one-handed bear hug. "Oh, leave her alone Kimiko. I think she looks lovely."

"Really Daddy? Kenshiro picked it out."

"A man of impeccable tastes." Soun laughed. "Perhaps we could get something similar for your mother."

Kasumi giggled along with her father. Kimiko, though, didn't crack a smile. "I love to see you home, daughter, but don't you have midterms starting next week?"

Soun interrupted, gesturing both women back into the room. After making them both sit, he endeavored to make another cup of tea with only one hand. After several clumsy attempts, Kimiko and Kasumi began giggling together and Kimiko took the tea service away to do it herself. Soun winked at Kasumi and indicated that she should continue.

"I actually took all my midterms yesterday," Kasumi said, pulling out a small piece of paper from her purse, "I aced them."

While Soun took the grade sheet to scrutinize, Kimiko handed Kasumi a cup of tea and continued, "I am glad, but why did you do that?"

"Ah…" Kasumi paused for a moment, "Because I wanted to go with Kenshiro on a trip."

"A trip? That sounds like fun. Where to?" Soun said, handing the grades over to Kimiko.

"Hawaii," said Kasumi, looking up hopefully at her mother.

"Hold on a moment, Kasumi. Just you and Kenshiro, alone, in Hawaii? Where will you be staying? How can you afford to get two separate rooms? Just when are you leaving? How long have you even known Kenshiro?"

Kasumi wilted under Kimiko's barrage of questions. "We're leaving tonight, actually."

"Tonight?" Kimiko said, her voice rising. "And you thought that you could just waltz in here in that outfit and tell us that you're flying off to America with some boy?!"

"Now, Kimiko, just hold on a moment." Soun patted his wife's knee reassuringly. "Kasumi is a college girl. I'm sure she's old enough to make decisions like this on her own."

Kimiko, however, would not be placated. She shifted her knee out from under Soun's hand. "Old enough? How old were we, when we took our first trip alone?"

Soun sighed and rubbed his forehead with one hand. He looked up at the moon. Where was a little celestial calm when you needed it?

*********

"Mrs. Tendo, do you have a minute?" Ranma asked, standing in the doorway of the study.

Kimiko, still angry about her conversation earlier in the evening, stamped around her study. She was packing books and papers into a suitcase. "I've really got to get these things ready. Can it wait?"

Ranma stayed by the doorway, "I just wanted to ask you something about the Apain Fist."

Kimko stopped stuffing papers into the already overflowing pack and turned back towards Ranma, "Alright. Come in and sit down."

Ranma walked into the room hesitantly and sat down. He knew anger when he saw it and remained ready to run on a moment's notice. Still, his desire for answers warred with his reticence. "So, I was practicing some Bua Gua yesterday and something weird happened."

Kimiko stopped scowling. Her interest was piqued. "Weird? How do you mean?"

"I was stepping around the trigrams, like I'm supposed to, and I made a mistake, right? But as I looked down, to correct myself, there were all of these little colored threads of chi,"

"Threads of chi?" Kimiko asked, sitting down in her chair on the opposite side of the desk from Ranma.

"Yeah, like bits of silk, really fine. As I looked more closely with the Scent, I could just barely see more threads stretching out, leading away from the next position of the form. What do you think that means?"

Kimiko leaned forward in her chair and rested her elbows on the desk. She spent a minute lost in thought, absently staring out past Ranma. When Kimiko did begin, she started slowly, "I'm no expert in Fung Shui, but it is true that people can harmonize with the currents of chi in a space, even create them. Maybe that's what this is. Couldn't you be tapping into a flow of energy when you perform Bua Gua?"

"I guess, but what does that mean?"

"Well, right now, probably nothing. I would keep an eye on it, though. It couldn't hurt to be aware of how your techniques relate to the potential energy of a place. Let me know if anything changes, ok?"

"I'll do that." Ranma stood to leave and turned back as Kimiko returned to stuffing books into her pack. "Um, Mrs. Tendo, what are you doing?"

"Oh, I'm sorry Ranma. I've already told the girls. Soun and I are going on a last minute trip tonight."

"Really? Where to?"

"Hawaii, for two weeks." Kimiko nearly spat.

Ranma shied back, "Yeah that does sound pretty awful."

As Kimiko looked at Ranma, there was something slightly ridiculous about his nervousness. He was afraid of being yelled at by a woman, Kimiko thought to herself. Ranma's nascent fear made some of the anger run right out of Kimiko and she slumped back in her chair. Kimiko waved her hand absently towards her books. "No, it really isn't that bad. I have some work I have to take care of, but it can probably wait till we get back. It's just…when you have children, sometimes it is better to tell them no even when they want to hear yes. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah." Ranma scratched his head, "I guess everybody needs limits."

"Exactly. You would do well to remember that when you have children of your own."

"I'll, ah, try to keep it in mind." Ranma stood up from his stool and turned to leave the room. As he walked out of the door, he called back over his shoulder, "See ya, Mrs. Tendo! Have a safe trip."

*********

A light, playful wind whistled across the athletic fields at Furinkan high school. It carried the smell of flowers and freshly cut grass from a nearby field. Students turned their faces into the warm breeze and sighed. Summer was ending, but it was having a lovely time saying goodbye to the teenagers gathered on the sloping green. Only Ranma and Ryoga failed to notice the fine weather. But then, both of them were too busy glaring daggers at one another across the playing field to care about the last fine day of the season. A group of hopeful students were gathered around together off to the side, placing bets on Ranma and the newcomer. Hiroshi and Daisuke, two of Ranma's classmates and the bookies of Furinkan's little Vegas, were having a difficult time giving odds on either of the boys involved in the grudge match. Ranma was known to be a precise and dedicated fighter: he had crushed Kuno his first day, after all. But Ranma was injured; healing, but it was still difficult to say how it might affect his game. The boy with the bandanna, on the other hand, was a complete unknown. He had fire in his eyes and he had done something to win Ranma's respect, but who was to say? Still, the day was so nice and the yen were flowing so freely, Daisuke decided, why not give even odds and let the chips fall where they may?

"So, you've come at last?" Ryoga demanded, facing Ranma defiantly.

"Me? I've been here for a week!" Ranma shot back. He glanced around the field quickly to make sure everyone was clear and as he did so, he caught sight of Akane dressed in her freshly pressed school uniform, sitting next to Nabiki. They both smiled and gave him the thumbs up. It was nice to have his own little cheering section. Things had gotten a little better in the past week with Akane, Ranma mused, and she was still so darn cute. Ranma was so caught up in his own thoughts that he nearly missed what Ryoga just said. It was best not to let this escalate into a fight.

"…you cur!"

"Ah, look Ryoga. I'm sorry about what happened at school. Here take this." Ranma tossed out one of the packets he held behind his back.

Ryoga snatched the plastic bag out of the air and stared down at the contents, "What is this? A joke?"

"Fine, you want all your stupid bread. Here!" Ranma threw out the rest of the lunch snacks he had brought. Maybe this would be enough to placate Ryoga.

Ryoga held the growing pile of treats in his two hands. "You…think…this is about bread!"

"I stole your bread and I'm sorry. Let's just forget about it."

"How can I forget about the hell you put me through?" Ryoga shouted, crushing the bread and brining his umbrella to bear.

Ranma yelped and danced out of the way. Ryoga, though, was relentless, jabbing with his umbrella as Ranma dodged. The fight began in earnest and both combatants roamed all of over the field, rapidly spinning back and forth. Ryoga cursed, frustrated that Ranma was so fast. But as the chase continued, Ryoga began to notice something about Ranma: he was favoring his left side! Ryoga was an expert fighter and he knew the tell tale signs of an injury when he saw them. Ranma had probably hurt his ribs; he wasn't counter attacking because he couldn't! In a flash, Ryoga abandoned all pretense of defense and charged recklessly at Ranma.

"Wait a minute!" Ranma shouted, launching himself up and away from his crazed opponent. "What's this all about?"

Ryoga, though, would not be dissuaded. He smashed his umbrella into the place Ranma had been seconds before. "Because of you, I've seen hell."

"What are you talking about?" asked Ranma as he landed lightly across the field. It would probably pay to put some distance between himself and Ryoga.

Ryoga snapped open his umbrella and wound his arm back. "Do you think mere words can convey the depth of my suffering?"

Ranma, though, had seen this move before and he swiftly sidestepped the heavy umbrella that Ryoga flung at him. Ranma quickly checked over his shoulder to mark the flight path that the umbrella was taking. In that split second of inattention, Ryoga pulled the yellow bandanna from his forehead and struck. Ranma found his wrist bound and Ryoga's snarling face inches from his own. Ranma gasped in surprise: Ryoga still had another bandanna around his forehead!

Akane saw the fight going much as she imagined it would. Ranma was trying to be nice to Ryoga, giving him his bread back, dodging rather than offering a real fight. This just seemed to enrage Ryoga and he fought like a wild animal. It was clear that Ryoga had only one think on his mind: defeating Ranma. Akane watched as Ryoga had let his killer umbrella fly in a fit of rage. The umbrella arced past Ranma and flew out past the periphery of the field. Akane was sure that Ryoga wouldn't care if the umbrella hit any of the watching students and she was up in a flash, chasing after the errant weapon. Just as it appeared that the umbrella would smash Hiroshi into a drinking fountain, Akane managed to lay her hand on the weapon's handle. Akane's finger's closed around the rough wood and she was yanked aside by the umbrella' surprising weight, bumping her hip into the concrete of the fountain.

Akane regained her footing and hefted the umbrella. It weighed a ton and now Akane could see why: the top was made of steel! Akane turned back towards the fight. "Ranma, get away from him! He has the strength of a monster!"

Ryoga, hearing this over his shoulder, bared his teeth in a grim parody of a smile. "Looks like you found out a little too late."

As Ryoga struck, Ranma casually reached out and batted at the fist that was streaking towards his nose. Ryoga hit Ranma, but his blow had all the force of a wet noodle. Ryoga's arm fell slack. Ranma smiled back in Ryoga's face. "What? What did I find out too late?"

Ryoga shook his arm, but the limb refused to move. But he had not come all the way to let a little bit of paralysis stand in his way.

"You think this will stop me!" Ryoga shouted, lashing out with a kick. Momentarily surprised, the foot caught Ranma on his injured side and he gasped in pain. Ryoga took advantage of Ranma's weakness and began to beat him over the head, using his limp arm like a club. Ranma tried to fight back, to defend himself, but wounded as he was, Ryoga was just too strong. As strike after strike crashed down on Ranma, he caught sight of Akane moving onto the field carrying Ryoga's umbrella.

"Don't interfere!" shouted Ranma, flashing blue claws into Ryoga's side and leg.

Both combatants fell to their knees, Ranma from pain and Ryoga having lost all movement on one side of his body. Both boys looked at each other and snarled. But it was Ryoga who moved more quickly, lunging forward and snapping at Ranma with his teeth.

"You're crazy!" shouted Ranma, throwing himself backwards and slipping out of the bandanna that held his wrist immobile. As Ranma somersaulted to his feet, there was a ripping noise and he looked down. A huge rent had been torn in his shirt and even the bandage beneath was lying in tatters. As Ranma raised his eyes to his opponent, he saw Ryoga kneeling before him with a mouthful of blue silk.

"That was my favorite shirt." Ranma shouted, leaping up. He was on Ryoga in a second, pounding the other boy with dozens of blows. Despite the burning pain in Ranma's side, he wheeled around and smashed a spinning kick through Ryoga's face, flinging him away.

Somehow Ryoga managed, midflight, to work the feeling back into his paralyzed limbs. His arm and leg still felt distant and fuzzy, as if they belonged to someone else, but he could use them. As Ryoga landed awkwardly, he looked up to see Ranma perusing at full speed. This was not going as planned, Ryoga thought as he rapidly back peddled. Ranma was fast and strong where he should have been pathetic and injured. Was Ranma only feigning damage as a trick? No, even now as Ryoga dodged backwards, he could see how Ranma was compensating for at least one broken rib. It was no trick, Ryoga cursed inwardly; Ranma was that good. It was just a matter of time before Ranma was on him again. Ryoga slipped past another flying kick and desperately searched the field for an advantage. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the girl who had smiled at Ranma standing next to a drinking fountain. She was holding his umbrella! Ryoga gave a cunning smile as he whipped dozens of bandannas off of his head and sent them spinning towards Ranma. Let Ranma deal with that, Ryoga thought as he made a mad dash across the grass.

"Give me that!" shouted Ryoga as he reached the girl, snatching at the handle of his umbrella.

As Ryoga turned to face Ranma, he felt a tug that brought him up short. He looked back and found that the girl was still holding onto the umbrella's handle, yanking it back. Ryoga pulled again, counting on his superior strength. The girl was stronger than she looked, though, and she refused to relinquish her hold. Glancing over his shoulder, Ryoga saw that Ranma was now airborne, streaking towards them. He really had no choice.

"Let go!" Ryoga shouted, kicking the girl full in the stomach and sending her tumbling backwards.

Ranma wavered in midair as he saw Ryoga knock Akane down. Ryoga, on the other hand, did not falter and spun back, smashing Ranma aside with the umbrella. Unready for the sudden blow, Ranma crashed through the concrete drinking fountain. He felt a snap as something in his side gave way. The burning pain nearly knocked him unconscious, but a torrent of icy water from the destroyed fountain kept him awake as it shot him into the sky. Ryoga, for his part, flipped open his umbrella and deflected the water as he leapt to safety. Ranma had no such luck and he, now transformed into a she, crashed down onto the turf.

Akane was up and at Ranma's side in a flash. Ranma noticed that Akane's uniform was soaked from the fountain as she bent down. "Here, let me help you up."

Ranma winced, but let Akane help her to her feet. As Ranma disentangled herself, Akane could hear a touch of steel in the redhead's voice. "I know he hit ya too, but you shouldn't interfere in a man to man fight."

"I know, I just…" Akane started and then stopped. This was a fight of honor, she had to remind herself. It was difficult, with as terrible as Ranma looked. Beneath the redhead's torn shirt, Akane could see the black and blue of a new bruise overlaying the sickly green of the injury that had already been healing. But Ranma was standing on her own two feet, defiant, and Akane didn't think she could take that away. Akane leaned in and whispered as she let Ranma go. "Beat the snot out of him."

"A man to man fight?" Ryoga interjected, laughing. He had been standing off to the side and had seen the entire transformation. "It looks like we're one short, Ranma."

"You like hitting girls, so it shouldn't be a problem," Ranma shot back, staggering slightly to one side. "And so what? Go ahead and laugh! Maybe you've had it bad, but look at me. Look what this curse had done to my body!"

"You call that a curse!" Ryoga laughed, yanking off several more of his bandannas. He began to spin them lazily in the air with one hand. "Whining about your misery with such an adorable figure!"

Ranma coughed and his side seized up in pain as Ryoga rambled on. It was hopeless. He was just too tired. His ribs ached too much. Ranma knew that there was no way that he could possibly avoid every single one of Ryoga's attacks. And even if he did, how could he get past Ryoga's defenses? Ranma cursed. He could even see the Begger's Bait point on Ryoga's torso, lit up like a clown's nose, teasing him. All he would have to do is tap that stupid spot and Ryoga would go down. As Ranma focused on the chi point, however, his vision began to grow a bit darker around the edges. He was fading. Ranma shook his head to clear it, but his thoughts began to wander. It looked like the chi point was drawing in all the color from the world around him. As his vision dimmed, Ranma saw a small thread of color, barely visible, extending out from the point on Ryoga's chest. Stupidly, Ranma followed the thread with his eyes. Several times he lost it, but eventually Ranma found that the thread led back to his own index finger.

"This fight is over!" screamed Ryoga. With savage glee, he heaved his heavy umbrella straight at Ranma and at the same time launched the razor sharp bandannas into a dozen different arcs. As Ranma watched the maelstrom of slaughter explode out towards him, he saw the thread twist and weave, marking a clear path through the barrage. Inexplicably, Ranma felt a compulsion to chase down the thread.

Ranma, seeing no other alternative, threw his body towards Ryoga, coiling in the path of the thread. As the umbrella streaked forward, Ranma curled himself around it in midleap, feeling the heavy steel tip brush past him with crushing force. Several of the bandannas ripped through Ranma's clothing, scoring the skin, but ultimately leaving him uncut. Ryoga's eyes widened as Ranma burst through storm of weapons. Ryoga had no time to shield himself, merely throwing up his hands to ward Ranma off. The thread, though, bent around Ryoga's defenses and Ranma struck.

*********

Akane wrapped her arm around Ranma's petite waist and heaved the redhead up to standing. The rest of the student body were already on their feet, cheering. It was seldom that anyone saw a fight the likes of which had been waged today. Daisuke and Hiroshi were already declaring it the battle of the century. Several of the more excited students ran onto the field to congratulate Ranma, but they were brought up short by a look from Akane.

"Hey, Akane, I won." Ranma said, sagging against Akane's arm. Akane, for her part, didn't seem in too big a hurry to let go.

"Yeah, Ranma, you won."

"Can I get a rematch with you?" Ranma asked.

Akane chuckled a bit and smiled down at Ranma. "Maybe later. What should we do about this guy?"

Ranma looked where Akane was nudging Ryoga's prone form none too gently with her foot. "I say we let him sleep it off. The Begger's Bait point hits like a ton of booze. He's going to have a pretty severe hangover when he wakes up."

"He deserves it," said Akane as she helped Ranma step over Ryoga's inebriated body. "Home?"

"Yeah, home."

As they walked off of the playing field, Akane supporting Ranma's weight, the warm, playful wind sprang up again. It blew Akane's hair wildly, whipping it back and forth. She stopped for a moment to gather it up, one handed, into a pony tail. After Akane had gotten her locks back under control, she leaned down to Ranma, "Hey, Ranma, do you think I need a hair cut?"

"Nah, it looks good like this."

*********

Author's notes:

Please pardon my little joke at the end. It was very difficult to cut out the part where Akane loses her hair, so to speak. But I also felt as if that scene and the ones that followed were part of Akane growing up a little bit in the cannon. My Akane is a different character and while she still has a good bit of growing up to do, it is going to happen in an entirely different way.

More on Kimiko's father and what he did later. I promise that it will be good. As for other character changes, Kasumi definitely has a different personality in this little story and I tried very hard to show that. She's a bit of a daddy's girl and a bit of a flirt. That came out here. In other news, I tried to make this fight between Ranma and Ryoga my own and I think I succeeded. I hope you enjoyed it.

Remember to take it easy!

Oh, and C+C always welcome. The more the better, I say!