Title: A Legend reborn
Author name: Trugeta
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by Rumiko Takahashi and VIZ as well as Akira Toriyama and many others. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. Note further that I don't own any of the trademarks mentioned in this story. So suing is senseless.
This story takes place after Movie 10 of Dragonball Z and at the beginning of the Ranma series. It's an AU, and reviews are welcome and appreciated.
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Chapter
9
The
next morning started earlier for Ranma than he had anticipated, even
considering that it was a school-day. The pigtailed youth could not
be sure if it were the effects of the alcohol, that made his father
act this way, or his general thoughtlessness. But anyway, the result
was the same. Ranma gradually woke up when he noticed that he was
flying out of the window and into the direction of the Koi-pond.
He
landed in said pond with a loud splash, and the impact, plus the cold
water served to awaken him completely. When he came up from below the
surface Ranma first spat out a mouthful of pond-water, and his facial
expression reminded a certain Genma, who had been standing in the
windowsill with a big grin, that this was not the boy he had been
able to boss around.
Ranma
came out of the pond with a smooth jump, and the growl he emitted
towards his father did not bode well for the Saotome patriarch. With
another jump Ranma landed on the windowsill and entered the
guestroom. That he was dripping pond-water did not matter to him much
at the moment. Only his father, who was retreating more and more
towards the door, mattered.
When
Genma tried to make a run for it Ranma turned into a blur and
suddenly appeared in front of his father. Genma managed to gulp
before he was lifted into the air by the neck of his shirt. But why
the boy was so angry, the Saotome patriarch had no idea. He had woken
him up like he had planned to do, just like a thousand times before.
It was 6 a.m., the perfect time to start some sparring! His boy
couldn't be angry with him that he had woken him up, could he?
Genma
got his answer when a pair of cold blue eyes was directed at him.
"Wake me up like that one more time, baka oyaji, just one more
time, and I'm gonna rip ya ta pieces. Ya got that?" he growled
out, his tail swishing behind him.
Seeing
that the boy obviously meant business Genma nodded his head
repeatedly and fast. It would not bode well for his health should the
boy get really angry with him. He had experienced firsthand what his
son was capable of after Jusenkyo when he got really angry, and there
was no need for a repeat performance.
Ranma
nodded satisfied, but instead of letting his father down to the
ground, as Genma had obviously expected, a decidedly evil gleam came
to Ranma's eyes. "Methinks you need a bath, oyaji." he
said, as he pretended to sniff the air. "You stink."
Genma
wanted to yell a "No!", but Ranma was faster. Aiming for
the pond Ranma launched a certain baka of a father out of the window,
and watched his father sail through the air. "Oops!" Ranma
exclaimed, "Now that was too close to the shore for oyajis
comfort, I'd say." he said with a snicker, as he watched his
father impact into the outer regions of the pond.
The
pandafied Genma floated motionless on the surface of the pond for
some time, face down. Then he began to tread water, and returned to
the shore, growfing and growling. An indignant expression plastered
onto his face, he held up one of his wooden signs. # Was that
really needful, boy? # Flip. # I had already taken a
bath yesterday! # Flip. # And besides, is that the way
you treat your poor father? # Flip. # I'm shamed, boy.
Don't you have any respect? #
Ranma,
who had jumped down to the ground, snorted. "Give me something
ta respect and I might consider it. Now shut up and let's spar."
Genma-panda
growfed, and he did not even bother to change back before their
sparring match. He had made the experience that his cursed form gave
him an advantage over his normal form in the regard of his
combat-weight, and his reach was also better. Thus, Genma-panda
charged, and Ranma actually allowed his pandafied father to connect.
After
a vicious blow to the right side of the ribcage Genma-panda
retreated. His sign read # You're getting sloppy, boy. #
Flip. # Has hanging around the weak girls made you weak too?
# Flip. # Hah hah, my son is a weak girl! #
Ranma
snarled. What followed afterwards was short, brutal, and extremely
painful for the panda. Not only had he called Ranma weak, but also a
girl! And here he'd thought that he'd broken him off the habit of
throwing insults in a fight. Hmm, it seemed as if Genma needed some
more 'sparring-sessions' to 'convince' him that his stupid
convictions were not appreciated in the slightest. 'Heh, it would
be a real treat if I could train the girls to be better in the Art
than Pops. Wonder what he´d say then.' he thought with a
grin.
When
Genma-panda came to a few minutes later he still had swirls for eyes,
and he had the distinct feeling that he'd been hit by a truck.
Repeatedly. # Unh… give me the license number of the truck
that hit me # Flip. # so I can sue the driver. Ohh…
#
Ranma
snorted. "Baka pops, haven't I told ya that I react badly to
being called that? If ya ever do that again then what I did ta ya now
will look like a walk in the park. For your information: I held back
voluntarily because I wanted to test out a theory. And no, I won't
tell ya. Now get up so that we can resume sparring. Though if ya call
me names or insult me one more time then I'll show you a world of
hurt that will make the ninth degree of hell look like a picnic. Got
me?"
The
panda growled, but nodded. What other choice but to comply had he? #
Okay, boy. Bring it on! # he signed.
In
the next hour the two sparred, and Ranma allowed himself to be hit
several more times. He wanted to find out if he really got stronger
when he was hit or even injured, and thus he even took some of his
pops vacuum blades that inflicted quite some damage. But if Genma
thought that he'd win because of those hits then he'd better think
again. Despite his wounds Ranma managed a clean defeat, and when his
father was knocked out for the second time a bleeding and bruised
Ranma noticed that he was quite hungry.
However,
when he was about to enter the house Ranma noticed that he was
dripping blood. And considering the fact that he'd messed up the
guestroom already he decided to call Kasumi. From sniffing the air he
knew that someone was already up and preparing breakfast, and he
expected it to be Kasumi. After all, she had prepared and served the
lunch, thus it was only logical to assume that she'd prepare every
other meal. "Kasumi!" he called, "Could you come to
the entrance of the hallway for a moment?"
Instead
of getting an answer, shuffling steps could be heard, and moments
later Kasumi appeared in the hallway. At the sight of a bleeding and
bruised Ranma she reacted as expected. "Oh my! Whatever happened
to you, Ranma-kun?"
Genma,
who stood behind Ranma in Panda-form, signed # The boy is
slacking off. # Flip. # That's what happens when he
hangs around weak girls… #
BAM.
An elbow to the head ensured a flying panda, which landed ten yards
away on the ground, groaning. "Nobody calls my friends weak, not
even you, baka oyaji." he growled.
Kasumi
blushed. "Oh my, it's nice of you that you consider me a friend,
Ranma-kun. But it was improper to hit your father like that, even if
he deserved it." she scolded.
Ranma
grimaced in response. "Kasumi, screw proper when dealing with my
father. Remember what I told you about him. He deserves far worse,
and this is the only language he understands. Now, could you please
get me some bandages? I don't want to make a mess."
The
oldest Tendo daughter nodded. "At once, Ranma-kun. And for you,
just for you, I will screw proper." she said with a wink
before hurrying away.
'Whoa!'
Ranma thought as he watched her cute backside disappear. While he
waited he had time to reflect on what he had perceived of Kasumi.
She
was breathtakingly beautiful, had the most beautiful face he'd ever
seen, a cute smile, and she was pleasant and nice. So much for the
pro-side. On the con-side, she seemed to be docile, introverted and
used to serving others. Also, she seemed to have incarcerated herself
in some kind of shell for some reason. He'd have to keep his eyes
open, for a decision on a fiancée or no fiancée should
be made fairly. To ensure that he'd give each Tendo girl the same
chance; although he already had the gut-feeling that Akane was firmly
against becoming his mate. Her dislike of anything male under
twenty-five seemed to run deep indeed.
For
further reflections he had no time, seeing as Kasumi reappeared in
the hallway with a first aid kit. She produced the necessary
materials with practiced ease, as far as Ranma could tell. Ranma took
his shirt off so that the bandages could be applied, and the
pigtailed youth could have sworn that he saw her blush when she took
sight of his firmly muscled body.
Soon
Kasumi had finished her ministrations, and Ranma smiled at her.
"Thank you, Kasumi. That was nice of you."
Kasumi
smiled back. "You're welcome, Ranma-kun." she said, and
muttered "This I'd love to do again..."
Ranma
smiled and held the eye-contact while deepening his smile. "I
noticed the ease with which you handled bandaging me. Do you plan to
work as a doctor?" he asked with genuine curiosity.
From
the shadow that appeared on her face he could see, that he'd somehow
asked the wrong thing. But Kasumi answered anyway. "I work as a
nurse at the practice of Dr. Tofu from time to time, Ranma-kun. And
yes, if it ever would be possible I'd like to become a doctor. But
that is something which is in the far future."
Ranma
nodded. "Do you mind if we go into the kitchen? I'd like to
learn more. Maybe I can help you somehow." he said with a smile.
Kasumi
nodded too. "I don't mind. Though I doubt that you'll be able to
help me; it seems to be a lost case and I'd rather leave it at that
and look forward. But let me finish preparing breakfast first. The
others will get up soon, especially after the racket your father and
you made. I bet even my deep sleeper of a sister Nabiki will be awake
by now. And if she does not get her morning coffee she'll be
disgruntled and not to bear." she said with a smile.
Ranma
smiled too and followed Kasumi into the kitchen. He was really
curious how the girls, whom he knew for not more than a day, were in
every day life. After all, if he wanted to marry one of them he had
to know everything (or at least a lot) about them. He'd learned a lot
already, but surely there was much more to learn.
Kasumi
went straight to the kitchen and placed the first aid kit back into
the cupboard, and after that she prepared the dishes and everything
that would be needed to set the table. Ranma saw that and offered his
help, which a smiling Kasumi accepted all too gladly. It had been a
long time ever since that someone had offered help to her, and the
support was a nice change to the usual routine.
At
any rate, she really liked this strong young man. He was the first
she was interested in since her schooldays, and due to the
reciprocated interest in her that Ranma showed Kasumi turned up her
considerable charm. Smiling often and moving her hair counter to the
motion when appropriate Kasumi managed to bewitch Ranma, much to her
satisfaction. It had been years since she'd last flirted, but it
seemed as if she hadn't lost her touch. Smiling to herself she
continued her work beside Ranma, letting her natural beauty work for
her.
Between
the two of them it did not take long to set the table, and as
breakfast was already prepared it was served in the next step. While
they were working, Ranma questioned Kasumi about her life, and he
learned that she had graduated as the best of her grade, but had not
been able to go to college because of her family of which she had to
take care of. Akane had been too young at the time, Nabiki had
already earned the money for the family and had not been able to help
in the household, and Soun had been practically useless as he had
wallowed in self-pity.
Ranma
knew that there was much more to the situation, but he already knew
that the death of their mother had forced the girls into roles that
they had never expected to be forced into. Kasumi had been forced to
take over the role of the mother who kept the household, educated
Nabiki and Akane, and saw to it that everything pertaining the
household was treated to.
In
return she had had to give up her youth, her hopes and her dreams,
and it seemed as if she had gotten used to it. A rotten deal if he'd
ever seen one, was Ranma's opinion. However, the housework seemed
to fulfil her, but Ranma asked himself if that was really all that
Kasumi expected out of her life.
He
was nearly sure that the answer would be no. And the few glimpses he
had gotten on the real Kasumi, the one behind the mask of the
seemingly serene housewife convinced him, that the gain would far
outweigh the effort needed to bring out the real Kasumi from behind
her mask. Their talking and downright flirting right now had made
that clear. He had to admit, he was quite interested in the oldest
Tendo sister; not only her beauty made her interesting, but also the
quiet and underlying strength she possessed. She was definitely a
candidate for a mate, but he wouldn't make a decision without having
seen the real Kasumi.
His
thoughts wandered to another beautiful and interesting Tendo girl.
Nabiki. Well, the death of her mother had apparently forced her to
bring home the money. A job, that would have normally been her
fathers' duty. Ranma could not really reciprocate how a man could go
to pieces so much so that he would forget to take care of his
daughters. Wouldn't it have been his wife's wish that he'd ensure the
best possible life for his three daughters?
But
he had to admit, Nabiki fascinated him. The middle Tendo girl seemed
to have two sides, and somehow she had managed to combine them in a
way so that they did not clash. On the one hand she could be helpful,
caring, cute, fun and open, but on the other hand she could also be
cool, uncaring, and completely businesslike. Her ice-queen façade
which she had put on when she had dealt with Akane was an impressive
mask. But it was just that, a mask.
A
mask, so Ranma assumed, which Nabiki put on when she did her business
deals in order to earn money for the family. But maybe that would
change after today. If their plan worked as expected they would be
able to have a steady income from the dojo, and Soun Tendo would have
an obligation to teach. After all, he had promised he would, should
students arrive by Tuesday.
Akane,
well, she was cute, but she had obvious temper-problems. But
considering her problems at school, was that a surprise? He supposed
anyone would turn into a man-hater under these circumstances.
Hopefully the meditation techniques, which he had learned from a
master in China after he had been given his new body could help her
like they had helped him. But he was confident. After all, Ranma
Saotome did not lose.
-.-
After
washing up and enjoying a quiet breakfast without a certain stupid
father due to the fact that he was still not able to move, Ranma was
ready to face the day. Akane and he had gone over the plan once more,
and considering her wrongful judgement from the day before she tried
to be objective about the pigtailed young man; she was still looking
for perverted behaviour, but his manners were... acceptable.
Nabiki
had not joined in on the conversation, considering that she needed at
least three large cups of coffee before her brain had woken up; once
that had been the case it had already been time to get to school, and
Kasumi had wished them good luck.
Now
the three teens were on their way to Furinkan high, the satchel Ranma
had borrowed from Nabiki hanging from his right shoulder while he
scanned the area. They walked the way in silence, and the Saotome
youth had explained the reason why; he wanted to memorise the whole
area in case a fight took place, and considering Kuno and his horde
future fights were probably a given for the foreseeable future. At
least until the horde had been disbanded and Kuno had been dealt
with. However, there was still the Amazon threat, and he wanted to be
prepared for all eventualities.
Ranma's
secondary motive consisted of security reasons; he wanted to be
informed about the power-levels in this area. He could sense a
concentration of sixty-two powerlevels ahead that were slightly above
average, and one that was well beyond average. It was too bad that he
could not measure powerlevels in numbers, that would have made things
a lot easier. What he could tell was that those sixty-three signals
were all males, and in a state of aggression and excitement to boot.
His
piercing blue eyes met those of the Tendo sisters. "There're
sixty-three boys ahead of us. All of ´em are quite... excited.
Those the boys that are trying to beat you, huh?" he asked
Akane.
Her
answer consisted of a growl. "Yes!" she spat. "Damn
perverts, I'm going to trash them!"
"Whoa,
calm down there, sis. Remember, don't use your mallet or things will
get nasty. Just lay them out and let Ranma deal with Kuno, as
planned. It's important that you stick to the plan, or things will
remain like that forever. And we don't want that, do we?" Nabiki
reasoned.
Ranma
smiled at Nabiki. "Well spoken. We need to stick to the plan..."
"Stop
smiling at my sister like that, you pervert!" a red-faced Akane
exclaimed.
"Akane..."
Nabiki warned, and just managed to beat Ranma to the punch; his angry
retort died when he saw Akane lowering her head.
"Sorry,
it's force of habit." Akane said, looking chagrined. "And
just a reason more to stick to the plan and sock Kuno a good one! Its
bokken-for-brains who is the pervert, and soon everyone will know
just how much!" she finished with an evil gleam in her eyes.
Nabiki
smirked. "That's more like it, sis. Never forget to lay the
blame where it's due."
Ranma
clasped his hands together. "Ladies, lets make this Kuno look
bad..."
Two
minutes later Akane approached the gate that led to the compound that
hosted the highschool known as Furinkan high, widely regarded as one
of the worst highschools in the entirety of Japan. But due to the
fact that it was damn near similar to a private school due to the
fact that it was led by a rich and sadly influential man there was
little that could be done about it; even if Gruocho Kuno, the
principal and owner of Furinkan high was currently spending his time
on Hawaii.
His
son was currently lurking behind his usual tree, supervising his
'troop'. Not that he ever expected them to win against his fierce
tigress Akane Tendo, but the lowborn peasants had the objective to
weaken his desired enough so that she'd eventually fall. And then he,
the knight in shining armour would intervene and would save the
damsel in distress from the uncivilised lot. Soon Kuno was lost in
his fantasies where Akane was his wife; a wife, who practically
praised the ground he walked upon, and who fulfilled his hearts every
desire. Little did Kuno know that his fantasies would go up in smoke
soon, for ever.
-.-
As
soon as Akane approached the gate the boys positioned as sentries had
caught sight of her and had alerted their comrades. The gate was
pushed open and a disorganised mob of over sixty boys emerged and ran
straight at Akane; the boys were yelling declarations of love while
they swung their makeshift weapons at the object of said
declarations, the discrepancy of actions and words entirely lost on
them.
The
youngest Tendo girl gathered her strength from deep within herself
and used it to remain calm; by using some of the meditation
techniques Ranma had shown to them she managed to stay focussed
enough so as not to give in to her customary rage; the result
consisted therein that she wasted a lot less energy than else, and
the overly amorous boys were soon laid out with few, precise strikes.
Akane
smiled to herself. The basics of the Tendo school had been sufficient
to lay those losers out, and here she had degraded herself before by
allowing it to become a mindless brawl over the past year. Ranma had
been right; she'd played by Kuno's rules, but not any more. Now Kuno
would reap what he'd sown. He'd made her into someone who hit first
and asked questions later, and he'd pay for it.
The
delusional Samurai wannabe just stepped out from behind his hiding
place and threw the customary rose at her when she more felt than saw
Ranma appear at her side. The pigtailed young man plucked the rose
out of the air and looked at it critically. Then he looked at Kuno.
"Why the hell did ya throw a rose at me? Yer gay or something?"
he asked in disgust.
Kuno
sputtered in confusion. "Who art thee, lowborn peasant, to ask
the mighty Blue Thunder of Furinkan high such a ridiculous question?
But halt, it is customary to give ones own name first. Know this,
peasant, I am Tatewaki Kuno, age seventeen, the rising star on the
Kendo firmament, also known as the Blue Thunder!" he exclaimed,
and lightning flashed in the distance.
"Nice
trick. Got any more flashy special effects?" Ranma asked
completely unimpressed. Then he glared at the other boy while
towering over him. "Anyway, ya rambling all that shit doesn't
explain why yer threw the rose at me. To get this perfectly straight,
I am straight. If you're looking for companionship from yer
shore then look on, Blue Blunder." Ranma countered, and the
watching girls sighed, stars visible in their eyes.
"He's
such a hunk!"
"Kuno
is gay?"
"Who
cares? This new guy makes Kuno look like Pauly Shore!"
Nabiki,
who was observing the going-ons from the shadows, felt a strong pang
of jealousy rising up in her, and she didn't try to suppress it.
Ranma was hers! Should the hormonal, boy-crazy girls go and find
themselves their own hunk! However, looking over at Kuno she had to
suppress her laughter. The delusional boy was looking downright
livid. 'Kuno-baby, if you think that's bad you're in for a nasty
surprise.' she thought with inward glee.
Predictably
Kuno bristled and readied a (what he thought) witty retort. "How
dareth thee to insult the great Blue Thunder thusly, lowborn cur!
Have at thee!" he exclaimed and pointed his bokken at Ranma.
Said
pigtailed boy looked downright revolted. "Point yer thing
somewhere else, ya sicko! I ain't that way, get that straight!"
he exclaimed loudly, somehow managing to look even more revolted.
Nabiki
barely managed to hold her laughter in at Ranma's performance, and
she saw that her little sis had similar problems. It added to the fun
to see how Kuno tried to manoeuvre himself out of this. "Peasant,
how dareth thee to accuse the mighty Blue Thunder of partaking in
such unnaturalness! This rose was intended for my fierce tigress,
Akane Tendo!"
"Suuuure!"
Akane exclaimed, "That's why you threw the rose at him.
Riiiiight, Kuno."
Kuno
sputtered once more. "B... but my fierce tigress, it's not
true!"
"I
saw it with my own two eyes! You threw that rose at him!" she
exclaimed, pointing at Ranma.
Ranma
snorted. "I betcha that whole 'challenge-Akane-to-get-date-gig'
is just ta deflect people from yer gayness. Can't even admit yer
prefs and harass poor, innocent gals ta hide 'em. Sicko."
At
just that moment Kuno couldn't take it any more and charged at Ranma.
"I attack!" he screamed, and his bokken slashed through the
air.
Both
Tendo sisters watched in awe as Kuno displayed skills he'd never
shown before; his bokken-strikes compressed the very air and sent
air-pressure strikes at Ranma! They were just barely visible as
distorted air and travelled fast towards the Saotome youth, but Ranma
regarded them lazily and dodged each strike effortlessly, and that so
fast that he left afterimages.
While
the wall that surrounded the school crumbled Ranma regarded Kuno with
a bored look. "That all ya got, bokken-in-ass?" he asked
lazily.
Kuno
seethed, but the watching girls were beside themselves; this display
had been incredible!
"He's
so cool!"
"I
wish he were my boyfriend!"
"Is
he single?"
"He
looks just like my sempai!"
These
and similar comments were uttered, but Ranma did not care; he was
solely fixated on his opponent. As no answer from Kuno beside
mutterings about 'sorcery' and 'tricks' came forth Ranma decided to
act. "Seeing as a gay bokken-wielding sicko like ya ain't worth
my time I'll show ya what yer messing with. Approach my backside
again and ya will regret it."
"How
dareth thee..." Kuno began, but Ranma suddenly blurred and
vanished from sight.
A
second later blows being dealt could be heard, but not seen. Another
second later Kuno slumped down to the ground, utterly unconscious and
very battered looking. Ranma was standing over him, not even
breathing hard. A kick into the side ensured that the delusional boy
was really out of it, and Ranma glared hard at the members of the
Hentai horde.
He
cracked his knuckles for effect and popped his joints. "You
there!" he growled, and pointed at a young man who was also
carrying a bokken. "If this gay idiot ever tries to lay hands on
me again I'll do worse. Much worse. So take him to the nurse
ta be patched up and tell him ta leave me well nuff alone. I'm
straight and sure as hell don't swing his way! Got that?"
The
boy Ranma had addressed bopped his head up and down rapidly. "Y...
Yes, sir. Got it!"
Ranma
smirked dangerously. "Good. If this gay piece of junk ever again
dares to send you guys forwards on Akane in an attempt ta hide his
prefs I'll first hurt him so bad that he won't be able ta get outta
the hospital for a year, and then I'll do the same ta ya.
Understood?"
Nearly
all boys nodded, except for Kenta, the Kendo clubs second in command.
"What is it to you? Why do you care about Akane? Admit it, you
just want her for yourself." he stated bravely.
However,
when the pigtailed boy was all of a sudden standing right in front of
Kenta, seemingly without having moved over the distance of ten yards
at all, Kenta's bravery died a sudden death. "Why I care?"
he asked with a growl. "Why, you ask? I care because that
honourless, cowardly gay idiot dared to issue a challenge to a fellow
practitioner of the Anything Goes. As her not romantically involved
sensei I care about my student. And consider, I'm gonna teach Akane
the techniques I just employed." he finished with a nasty grin.
Gulps
could be heard from the group as they imagined what an already strong
Akane would be able to do with such techniques. In that case they
could say their prayers. Grinning to himself as Ranma saw realisation
dawning he pressed on. "So ask yourself the question: do you
really want to suffer because of a gay coward? A boy who is afraid to
admit his own prefs? There ain't anything wrong what with being gay,
but what he does is! To hide his gayness and to appear straight that
guy pretends to be after Akane! That's why he uttered that stupid
challenge! To deflect all of yer from the truth! With yer actions yer
have all sullied Akane Tendos honour. Yer have been blind to the
truth. Now wake up or I'll give all of yer a wake-up call." he
said and cracked his knuckles for emphasis.
Gulps
and very nervous looks were his answer; Ranma harrumphed and marched
towards the door, leaving the stunned Hentai horde behind; Akane
walked by his side while Nabiki stayed behind to inform the curious
students about the newcomer. Even though she'd stop doing
questionable acts she still had to keep appearances and thusly sold
all the information that had been deemed safe.
While
Nabiki made a quick profit the others members of the Kendo club
approached their unconscious leader tentatively, now that the
pigtailed boy was gone. "Holy shit! He has blow-marks all over
his body!"
"And
that guy hit all his weak points!" uttered another.
"But
that newcomer only had a second to do it! What is he?"
"One
helluva lot better than Kuno!" exclaimed another Kendoist.
Kuno
decided to wake upat just that moment, and he felt around dazedly. He
touched one of his fellow kendo club members inadvertedly, and
Keitaro back-pedalled in horror. "It's true! Kuno is really
gay!"
Said
Kuno, still half-unconscious, muttered "My fierce tigress...",
but due to his slurry speech he couldn't be understood.
To
the others it sounded differently, and the boys moved backwards and
away from their leader, expressions of disgust visible on their
faces. "He really seems to be gay!"
"Yeah.
That sicko! He shall drag himself to the nurse!" another
exclaimed.
Nabiki
was grinning from where she stood; in the meantime she'd moved up to
her office and was counting the money she'd made. Additionally she
had already begun to spread the newest rumour regarding Kuno. Their
plan had worked even better than even she had expected. Already even
the members of the Kendo club believed in Kunos apparent prefs, and
that was a very good start. She'd see what the public opinion would
be by the end of the day.
-.-
Ranma
and Akane were walking towards Akane's classroom, 1 F. The girls in
the hallways were practically drooling over Ranma, but neither the
pigtailed Saiyan nor Akane noticed; they were too engrossed in
gloating. The youngest Tendo sister had a very satisfied smile on her
face. "That showed the pervert!"
"Sure
did. And bokken-in-ass might even prove to be a decent punching bag.
Those pressure strikes ain't bad." Ranma commented.
"Yeah,
I never knew he could do something like that." Akane said,
shaking her head.
Ranma
looked at her. "Then it seems he held out on ya. That makes him
even more honourless. Samurai, my ass!"
"What
do you mean?" a genuinely curious Akane asked.
Ranma
grunted and stopped in front of the door that led to classroom 1F and
opened it. Plopping down into a seat he growled; Akane sat down to
his right. "That bokken-wielding idiot never went all out on you
in my opinion. He never used the pressure-strikes on ya, did he?"
the pigtailed young man asked.
Akane
shook her head. "No..." she said; then it dawned on her.
"That absolute ass! He's so... so honourless! And the next time
I see him so dead! You're right; that he held back shows that he
never took me seriously! He never saw me as a worthy opponent and let
me walk all over him! I can't believe that... that... boy!"
she growled while producing a sizeable aura.
"Akane,
snap outta it. Remember the meditation techniques." Ranma said.
"You!
You're not off the hook either. One perverted act and its kapowie to
Pluto! Got me?" Akane exclaimed.
Ranma
employed the meditation techniques himself by now, trying to curb his
own temper. "Hey, I ain't the enemy here! That's bokken-in-ass,
and he's lying out there. If ya gotta blow off steam use him!"
Ranma growled.
Akane
wanted nothing more than to yell back an angry retort at first, but
moments later she realised that Ranma was right; Kuno was the
enemy here, no one else. And to achieve victory over him they had to
be a united front. "Sorry, Ranma. I'll try to keep in mind who
the real enemy is. But I can't jump over my own shadow; due to what
he" the "he" was growled out with hate, "put
me through I simply distrust and despise boys. I always suspect they
want to jump me the moment I look the other way. I don't and can't
even trust you, Ranma. In my experience boys always have an ulterior
motive, and that's often brought up by their little heads!" she
growled.
Ranma
nodded. "I understand; and for the honourlessness Kuno put you
through he'll pay. We'll take away what bokken-for-brains loves most:
the attention from the girls and the respect he holds. And I've got
an ulterior motive too:" he said, and Akane bristled, "I
want to pay baka oyaji back for as good as ruining my life and
honour; and that's best done by ruining all of his plans. I'll set
all hell in motion to prevent that any of us are forced into
anything. I'll do everything in my power so that the fat panda
ain't living off of me ever again! I ain't a fucking commodity or
sumthin´ he can use as he pleases." he finished with
blazing eyes that looked... teal?
A
moment later Ranma's eyes were blue as the ocean again, and Akane
waved it off as an optical illusion. And she´d progressively
deflated throughout his speech; it really seemed as if she had a
knack for judging him wrongly. Where had her ability to judge people,
something she had been really good at, disappeared to? Had it fallen
prey to Kuno and his horde completely? She sighed. "I only hope
that my father won't join your very idiotic father in his stupidity.
I don't want to be forced into anything either, and I appreciate what
you did. Me, I'm too young for marriage, and thanks to Kuno I don't
like any boys my age group. But I'd like it if we could become
friends, maybe."
Ranma
smiled. "What I did, I did gladly. And I'd like that too."
-.-
A
little while later Ranma was on his way to the office of the vice
principal, intent on disrupting yet another one of his fathers'
plans. He smiled to himself as he contemplated the situation; his
manipulative father had obviously had the idea that placing him into
the same class as Akane might spark some feelings between them;
however, after their recent talks Ranma was quite sure that Akane was
out of the running as a future mate.
Firstly
she had said herself that she didn't want to marry in the near and
most probably even the foreseeable future; then there was the fact to
consider that Akane had indeed been tainted in regards of boys. It
was quite possible that she had suffered long-term psychological
damage due to the Kuno situation; all the more reason to destroy
Kuno's rep utterly, thought Ranma with a growl as he opened the door
to the office of the vice principals' secretary.
A
quick appliance of his charm later he had talked the secretary into
allowing him to be tested; his father had registered him for Akane's
class, but he planned to bust this plan. He'd prefer to be placed
into Nabiki's class; after all, she was one of two favourites for a
fiancée, and if he remembered right Kuno was going into the
same class. Heh, that would be a world of fun.
Hanging
to these thoughts Ranma smirked as the aide led him to a classroom to
be tested; he had nothing to fear from the testing, and the pigtailed
youth grinned at the reasons; his own father had brought this about
when he had walloped him into the spring. When he had received the
new body he had also received a new, different brain. Not only had it
apparently cured him off the neko-ken, but also of the effects of the
several head trauma he had suffered from under the training of his
father.
Suddenly,
after he had been transformed he remembered things he had learned
years before as clearly as if he had learned them yesterday; all the
things he had been taught by the various monks and priests at the
shrines, temples and monasteries. Not only had they taught him
martial arts techniques, but also common knowledge, maths, science
and much more. This knowledge had been poured free, and he had taken
full advantage of his improved (or was it recovered?) intellect ever
since. All things considered it should be suffice to pass the test.
A
little while later Ranma sat at a standard school desk with his head
in his hands; the Saotome youth sighed. Maths, physics, chemistry,
science, geography, native and foreign language (English) were easy,
while subjects like politics, history and art were… problematic. In
those three he more often than not made something up on the spot.
One
hour of scribbling later Ranma sat back in his chair and folded his
hands behind his back; he was satisfied with himself. The Saotome
youth suspected that he hadn't aced the test, but in his opinion it
would be suffice to be placed in Nabiki's class.
Seeing
that he was finished the aide took the test from Ranma, and after an
immediate correction done by three teachers who were on their free
period (and especially grumpy about having to spend it here) the
Saotome youth was deemed safe to be placed into class 2 E. Was his
pops ever going to be happy, Ranma thought with a grin, as the aide
led him to his new class; he had already received a list of things
he'd need for class, and it might be a slight problem to acquire the
necessary funds to buy them. But he was confident that he'd find a
solution.
-.-
Outside
the increasing rain gradually woke up a certain Tatewaki Kuno;
slowly, ever so slowly the delusional boy propped himself up on his
elbows, wiping away the water from his face once he had secured
himself in a stable sitting position. Damn, he felt like he had been
hit by a truck!
"So
a vile sorcerer has dareth to appear in my magnificent presence,"
Kuno muttered, "no doubt trying to ensorcel the beauteous Akane
Tendo. But I, the Blue Thunder, say ni!" he exclaimed and held
his bokken high into the air, only to be toasted by a flash of
lightning.
Moments
later Kuno propped himself up again, and a minute later a wobbly and
singed Blue Blunder made his way to the entrance, using what remained
of his once proud bokken as a walking-stick. "Methinks it might
be a good idea for the Blue Thunder to seek the aid of the healers.
But beware, vile sorcerer, the revenge of the heavens is slow but
swift! Mark my words, the Blue Thunder will come for you!"
-.-
After
having taken his placement-test Ranma had received the excuse from
class he had requested so as not to overly disturb the ongoing class.
The lesson would only go on for five more minutes, and the aide had
agreed that it wouldn't make sense for him to partake in class for
this short amount of time. Five minutes would at least be needed for
his introduction.
Thus
Ranma did what he did best when he had some free time at hands; he
trained. The pigtailed youth was just busy with his two-hundredth
vertical push-up on one finger when a cry suddenly rang out.
"Aha!
The vile sorcerer who fled my glorious presence so cowardly dareth to
show his demonical face again!" a bandaged Kuno shouted. "Have
at thee, vile beast!"
Several
classroom-doors flew open just as Ranma jumped upwards from his
one-fingered handstand and landed gracefully on his feet. "And
what are ya playing at, bokken-in-ass? The attack of the gay mummy,
or what? Behold, the gay mummy is here!" he exclaimed in
mock-horror, eliciting more than just a few laughs.
Kuno
bristled, and one could see his red face even through the bandages.
"How dareth thee to propagate such vile lies about the Blue
Thunder! Who art thee to commit such an audacious act?" he
exclaimed, and pointed his spare bokken at Ranma.
Said
Ranma crossed his arms over his massive chest, emphasising his
healthy and very muscular state; several girls sighed, and Nabiki,
who had entered the hallway together with the rest of her class
barely managed to restrain a growl. Damn it, Ranma was hers and hers
alone! And the other girls better caught on to that fact fast, or
else.
However,
a smirk appeared on her face when she saw the expression in Ranma's
eyes. Oh yeah, Kuno was so in for it. Out of the corner of her
vision she saw something white, and on second look she saw that her
younger sister was also grinning; so Akane had caught onto it too.
'Hmm, if we play this right we could make Kuno look really
bad.'
"Who
I am you ask? Well, I'm the man who won't sit back and watch how a
gay Samurai wannabe pesters a fellow student of the Anything Goes so
as to hide his true nature. As her sensei I demand that you stop this
vile travesty! To use Akane to distract from your own preferences is
just so low." Ranma stated.
"Yeah!"
Akane exclaimed, stepping beside Ranma, nodding. "To use me
thusly, Kuno, is truly horrible! Get out of my sight, you pervert!"
Kuno,
who had been a hairsbreadth from charging at Ranma again looked
confused as his little dreamworld was shaken up for a moment; then he
slicked his hair back and threw a pose. "I see the vile sorcerer
has managed to ensorcel you, my beauteous and fierce tigress! But
fear not, for I shall free thou!" he exclaimed and threw a red
rose at Akane.
Whatever
the delusional kendoist wanted to achieve with this act, it would
backfire spectacularly. With a barely hidden smirk Ranma plucked the
rose out of the air with a motion that showed that he clearly
regarded Kunos' actions as an attack. With a scrutinising look
Ranma examined the 'weapon'. "And here I thought you had the
honour to attack me with a weapon. But what do you do? Throw another
rose at me. What the hell did ya throw a rose at me if yer not gay?
Confused much?"
"That
rose was not for thee, vile peasant!" Kuno exclaimed heatedly.
"Yeah,
sure. That's why ya threw it my way, yer liar! Lying ta yerself like
that, pathetic!" Ranma countered vehemently.
By
now Kuno was sputtering. "I tell thee, that rose was for the
virtuous Akane Tendo!"
There
and then Akane saw her chance. "But you threw it at Ranma!
Pervert! KUNO NO BAKA!" she exclaimed, and with her usual
battle-cry Kuno was launched through the roof, courtesy of a strong
upper-cut.
Ranma
stepped beside her and observed the hole in the roof. "Nice
form, Akane. Need to work on your follow-up, though." he said
with a smirk.
"Yes,
sensei." Akane said, much to the surprise of many.
It
was this what gave the story Ranma had told about being Akanes'
sensei credibility; sensing a business opportunity here, and seeing
as the students were busy gossiping about Kuno's apparent sexual
orientation she deemed the time right to distribute some flyers.
Needless to say, after the performance Ranma had given they sold like
hotcakes.
Nabiki
grinned, and she, Ranma and Akane had every reason to be satisfied.
Operation make Kuno suffer had started out brilliantly, and they were
bound to get a lot of students for the dojo. In one day with Ranma
they had been able to achieve more than without him in a whole year.
It was crystal clear that life with and around Ranma Saotome was
bound to be very interesting, and the middle Tendo daughter planned
to savour every second of this. By his side…
to
be continued…
Thanks
to everyone for helping me with suggestions, comments, ideas and c&c
in general. Special thanks go to the people at Shinjis' board and
to my beta Rose Vaughn. Happy new year!
Many
thanks to those of you who were kind enough to leave reviews for the
last chapter:
nevets309anonymous, Shadow Kage, Gohan Zero formerly matt zero,
ron, Anime-Freak317, Bobboky, Phoenixmb, kd8gun, Jetsmillion,
Wonderbee31, Lord Oberon, Rejhan, This, Ranko, psycotic boy,
MarshmellowDragon, Jim Ohki, Taiki, Jax9, majinbuu7985,
johnanon, nissepisse, michael68, kinguofdoragons, ss4-link, Xtor49,
Peter Kim, RockBane, Dumbledork, BTB, borg rabbit, ranger5,
blindelf22, shi izen fumeiyo, Torph, Lightsfaith, Master Chaos,
Neon-Ronin, MysticSuperSaiyanGohan, Slade13, Akram Hellfire Gibril,
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Silverscale
