Author's Notes –
Yeah, it's been a while since I've been able to post anything regularly.
Trying to work out and lose some weight, but I've also started watching anime on Netflix as I work out. And football season started too, so let's see how much I actually update.
Just started watching some anime… Not sure what to think of Trinity Blood, but it's enjoyable. I liked the way the music was used and how it blended with the mood and setting.
I'm currently jumping between Negima!? Magimaster Negi Magi. I somehow can't get over the dubbing and the accents. Still, it's okay.
Also watching Black Blood Brothers… It also has its moments.
That's it for now.
Enjoy.
"Wow," exclaimed his companion, "if it's this cool right now it's got to be worse when Asuna's running her deliveries."
"Never thought about it, I guess."
"It's not this cold at your house," Negi observed. "Probably because of the onsen."
In truth his place had been significantly warmer lately, thought that was due to an entirely different reason. Then again heat and cold really didn't bother him too much.
"It'll be good to get to class early today," the young Springfield said.
Initially he'd thought that the young boy was merely jet-lagged, but after observing him for much of the summer and the first few weeks of the term it was clear that Negi Springfield was simply not a morning person. As a homeroom teacher it was the boy's responsibility to arrive to his class on time and thus set a good example for his students. Unfortunately Negi had barely arrived at his class on time for much of the first month of the new fall term.
As Negi's host and as a fellow teacher it thus fell onto Ranma to ensure that Negi arrived at the campus on time. Monday and Wednesday had been successful, but on Tuesday and Thursday Negi had barely managed to arrive on time. Today their casual morning stroll took them down a different path as they picked up breakfast at one of the various vendors.
The usual morning rush clearly amazed Negi as he made his towards campus. With extra time to actually enjoy the stroll they opted to take another route. For Ranma it was the Claire's route as he enjoyed the French breakfast pastries. As one of the few teachers that taught classes at both the boy's and girl's campuses his schedule alternated, placing him on the girl's campus on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and on the boy's half the rest of the week, giving him different options on where to pick up breakfast when he was short of time.
Not only were the shops surrounding each gender's academies different, but the energy of their respective student bodies was different. The girls appeared cheerful and jubilant but the closer one looked beyond the surface the more evident it was that there were tensions amongst the numerous clicks and groups. Rivalries between different classes, clubs, and grades simmered unchecked at the overcrowded girls' school. The boys were much more relaxed and though some were quick to temper personal squabbles rarely affected the overall atmosphere of the boys' school.
A prime example of this was the morning ritual of various challengers gathering just outside of the girls' campus. Officially Ku Fei was the campus champion though unofficially she'd lost that title to Chao in a match that no one talked about. The two dozen or so fighters were the best of the boy's clubs – boxing, kick boxing, Chinese martial arts, karate, judo, kempo, kendo, fencing, mixed martial arts, jujitsu, sambo, jeet kun do, tae kwon do, and a collection of self-taught students stood just outside of the train station, each waiting to defeat the young champion.
Yet the challengers themselves were merely puppets being manipulated by a multitude of puppet masters. After a full term of teaching he'd barely scratched the shroud hiding the puppeteers as a tangled web of youthful romances, broken hearts, wounded pride, and other teenage angst proved to be more difficult to decipher than one of the many bills being passed in the parliament.
"We're this early and there's still a crowd out here," the ever curious boy stated.
Ranma nodded, "It's Friday."
"Friday?"
"The martial arts clubs don't meet today," the older teacher explained.
"Huh?"
He paused, choosing not to explain things for once.
"Why are there so many boys here?"
There were days when Ranma couldn't help but wonder how one could be so smart yet so clueless. Then again, the same could have been said about him in his youth.
"Negi-sensei," several girls from 2-A greeted, "Saotome-sensei."
"Hey girls," Ranma returned.
Offering a formal bow, Negi instead addressed each of the girls. "Good morning Ayase, Asakura, Yukihiro, Chao, Nakase; do you know what's going on here?"
Shifting his focus to the gathered students Ranma began to sift out the fighters from the spectators. Almost twenty fighters stood tall, each wearing something that identified the style of fighting that they employed.
As interesting as he was in watching others fight, Ranma had long ago grown disinterested in the level of skill involved. Sure, Mousse's little girl was top notch, but she was nothing compared to her father. It would have been easy for him to have Tenma defeat her in public, but given her Amazon heritage he was loathed to do that to his remaining son.
Though he and Ryoga had not discouraged public fighting, they had stressed the importance of knowing where they were and the appropriate use of their skills and power. Add in the fact that Ranma had explained the significance of defeating an Amazon and the young teens had opted to forgo challenging Ku Fei. Tenma had his fair share of challenges as well, though those were now reserved for Sundays as the truly serious martial artists had spread word of the young heir to their less informed peers.
Even a quick glance told him that none of the gathered fighters were actually capable of doing little more than giving Ku Fei a light workout. No, if the young Amazon truly wanted a challenge she'd have to challenge someone at the Grill.
"It's the daily challengers," Nakase explained.
"Yeah," Ayase chimed in, "everyday some of the best fighters on campus gather to challenge Ku Fei."
Negi blinked, "Why?"
"She's the campus champion," Yukihiro added. "She won the tournament during the Mahora Festival last spring. And since the next tournament isn't until the spring term…"
"But"
Ranma quickly clasped his hand over the boy's mouth. Looking down at the runt he shook his head. Having Negi publicly state that Ku Fei had lost to someone recently, even if it was just a sparring match at the Grill, would do untold damage to Ku Fei's reputation, not to mention to all those who regularly challenged her.
Like Akane before her, Ku Fei's skills were being squandered. Though the Amazon could clearly handle the gathered challengers she was now focused too much on dealing with groups rather than with individuals. Broad, sweeping attacks were fine when outnumbered and in tight quarters, but against a single, skilled opponent such moves were easily countered.
In just over a minute the fight was over, with none of her challengers even managing to land a blow and each going down to just one blow. To the untrained eye it appeared as though she'd managed to take each of them out with a single blow each, but the truth was that several had managed to avoid her strikes though others had failed to avoid those attacks. There was no way to describe it other than sloppy.
"Ku Fei!" The sound of his voice boomed through the quad, drawing everyone's attention. "Your father would be ashamed of you! You feed your own ego by defeating opponents unworthy of challenging you when the truth is that you aren't even half the fighter your father was!"
Everyone gasped, surprised by the verbal and public reprimand.
"I will show you your father's art!" he declared as the crowds parted before him. "Hidden Weapon's technique!"
Weighted chains sprang from his wrists, catching the young champion by surprise. Though she managed to deflect or avoid most of the weights, a single weight caught her square in the chest, knocking her back nearly a meter.
"Swan strike!"
Suddenly the chains vanished, replaced only by a staff with a swan sitting on the end of it.
Everyone gasped as the swan took to the air, flying directly over Ku Fei. Even the young martial artist was intent on the majestic bird, allowing Ranma to slip in past her guard and strike her repeatedly in the chest and shoulders with the end of staff before sweeping her feet out from under her with the staff.
"Where the hell did he get a swan from?"
"Where was he hiding the staff?"
"What happened to the chains?"
Throwing the staff to the ground Ranma grabbed hold of Ku Fei's blouse. A quick twist and throw sent her flying towards the fountain in the quad.
Heart pounding, he stole a glance at the victorious 'champion'. As much as he wanted to reprimand her for wasting her skills in such a manor he knew that she honestly believed that such public displays helped her improve her skills so that she might one day be able to avenge her wounded pride. One day she'd fight Cao Lingshen again, but today was not that day.
"How was fight?" the young Amazon asked Cao as the blond approached her classmates.
"I'm so impressed," Negi exclaimed.
Shaking clear the last vestiges of his daydream Ranma put everything behind him. "We're going to be late."
Try as he might Ranma couldn't help but think about Chao Lingshen. His initial glances at her as she walked into and out of the few classes he had with 2-A yielded little, aside from the fact that she'd been able to hide herself in plain sight. Yes, Ku Fei was the local champion, but it was Chao who had defeated the champion first.
Considering her many academic feats most overlooked her athletic abilities, though with the multitude of athletes in 2-A it was easy for one to blend in and even get lost in the crowd. As such it would be hard to observe her without her noticing. From what Eva hinted at it was more than likely that Chao was just as manipulative as the day walking vampire if not more so. If that was true then she'd already be wary of any of his students and their friends, making it unlikely that she would put herself in a position where she was forced to face them unless she wanted to.
"It doesn't seem like he's been up to much other than getting to know the girls," he announced. The weekly meetings with Evangeline and Chachamaru had grown boring over the past month as Negi focused on his students and shied away from using magic. Aside from the loss 2-A suffered at the hands of the Black Lilies nothing of note had happened in the past month.
"Yeah," Eva sighed, her face scrunching as she contemplated her options.
"But if he's going to get to know the girls, who else should we direct his way?" the young immortal offered. "He already knows of a few magi in the class but there are others."
"Aside from me and Misora, there are no other active magi in our class," Eva stated.
"Really? What about Akashi or Chao?"
The vampire eyed him, trying to read his body and aura.
"Akashi's old man is one of the school's top mage," he reasoned. "She's got potential but he doesn't want her to know about magic."
The blond nodded slightly.
"And Chao… she's got a rap sheet as long as her awards, probably the only reason why she hasn't been expelled or had her memory wiped." He waited for her to absorb the information. "But she's up to something."
For once Eva smirked. "Both girls have talent, but I've yet to see anything at suggests that either is a magic user."
'Ah, she's hiding something… I wonder just what Chao has on Eva that even she's backing down.'
"If he's really going to be ready for me next term he's going to need to improve drastically," Eva finally stated. "He's having far too easy of a time lately and he's got nothing pushing him to improve as a mage. I doubt that the girls in my class will give him too hard a time, especially since they're so enamored with him."
It was Ranma's turn to smirk, suggesting that he was at least interested in her new line of thinking. For now the matter of Chao was forgotten, but at least he knew that he'd have to keep his guard up with Eva whenever Chao was mentioned. "Who else has beef with 2-A?"
"Huh?"
"Well, not 2-A as a whole, but individuals maybe. I know some of the guys that challenge Ku Fei regularly are being manipulated by girls, but I haven't figured out who they are yet."
"Ah, well, that's pretty easy. Look at the girls in the various martial arts clubs that have lost to her last year during the tournament. While the captains of the girls' teams accepted their defeats the seconds and their friends weren't so gracious, especially the high schoolers."
"Ku Fei's got her situation handled," he surmised. "But who else has issues with 2-A?"
"Kazumi's got her share of enemies," Eva supplied. "From all the dirty secrets she's exposed."
Ranma nodded.
"The rest are your girls," the blond stated. "Everyone else is pretty well liked and respected because of their roles in the other clubs or sports teams."
Again he nodded. As much as he hated to admit it, she had a point. "If someone comes after my girls I'd probably have to get involved," he surmised. "I guess we'll just have to wait to see what or who else is going to start things for 2-A."
Heavy drops of rain pounded everything, hitting and bending the firm, green leaves that made up the thick canopy of the forest. Muddy streams flowed down the mountain trail, washing way her scent.
As refreshing as the night air was it did little to sooth her. Even the chill of the pounding rain failed to wash away the uncertainty that gripped her.
"You should get inside," a familiar voice suggested.
Startled, the kunoichi spun around, her hands immediately grasping for the hidden kunai she always carried. By the time her cold fingers found the hilts of her weapons Kaede spotted the speaker. "Tenma, what are you doing here?"
"This is my father's land," the emotionless boy stated. "I should ask you what you're doing here?"
"Master Saotome suggested I train here this weekend." It was a believable lie.
"Isn't that kind of training usually done under a waterfall?"
Kaede blinked away the rain in her eyes.
"Water training?" he added. "Though I doubt ninja do that kind of training."
She couldn't help but shiver at the word. Once, not too long ago, she'd been one of the many who adored and idolized ninja, or at least the idea of ninja. The harsh reality though had since sunk in, shattering the fantastic daydreams she'd once had.
"I doubt that Uncle wanted you to stand out in the rain all night," Tenma finally said as he turned towards the empty cabin.
A wave of unease ran through her body. Before she even realized it she was in Tenma's arms as the shorter fighter held her up. "You're so cold," she muttered.
"You're burning up," he replied as he pressed his forehead to hers. "You need to get out of your clothes."
An unseasonal storm raged outside of the dojo, a stark contrast to the silent dojo and house as Ranma entertained his lone guest.
"In all my years I never understood the appeal of ice cream," the redheaded prince stated even as he contemplated which flavor to consume.
"That's because you've only had the over-produced crap that's packed full of artificial flavors and preservatives," lectured the immortal. "It doesn't help that all you've had was melted then re-frozen."
Saffron nodded as he pointed at the mint chocolate chip. "It's a good thing you like to make your own ice cream."
"Well, I have to," Ranma insisted as he finished adding in fresh mint and chocolate chips into the soft frozen treat. "Tenma may not eat much, but the girls love eating it when they get out of the onsen. The only way I get any is if I go to the stand on the western side of the girls' campus or if I make some for myself. This will probably be gone by noon tomorrow."
The two stood silently as the two finished their project. Finally the redhead licked his lips at the finished product.
"Watch it," cautioned Ranma. "I don't want to make another batch just because you got excited."
Taking a deep, calming breath, Saffron stood straight. "Alright, I get it already. This is an exercise in patience and self-control."
Ranma suppressed a smile. Unlike his other students Saffron had little problem with the physical lessons, but like the others the young phoenix's powers metaphysical powers far exceeded his physical abilities. The short, personal lessons though weren't just to help Saffron control his powers, but to help him develop the social skills needed to survive in the world.
He knew from his own personal experiences just how much trouble teens like himself could get into and how their lack of social and people skills often amplified the situations that they got into. Add to that the power (and egos) that they packed and things could easily get out of control. Looking back at all the property damage they'd incurred decades ago Ranma couldn't help but wonder how they'd managed to get away with what they did.
"So," Saffron said, breaking him out of his reverie, "what are you going to do about Negi?"
Ranma blinked as he collected himself, then smirked. The rare unguarded moment put aside, he eyed his former rival turned student. "If he's anything like me, I'm sure that we won't need to do anything. Trouble will find him soon enough. We just have to be there to make sure it doesn't get out of hand."
The pounding rain greeted Kaede as she awoke from her unplanned slumber. A gentle breeze informed her of the unseasonable chill of the late autumn even as it told her that she was surprisingly dry and warm. Her senses dulled, she slowly took in her surroundings.
"You're awake," a familiar voice whispered in her ear.
Reflexively her body stiffened even as she realized that the speaker had his arms around her.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to alarm you."
"Saotome-senpai."
"It's alright," he assured her, "nothing happened last night. If you want I'll turn around while you get up."
"That's unnecessary," she replied as she allowed herself to enjoy his warmth.
"'A kunoichi knows no modesty'," the young martial artist quoted. "I may not have completed my uncle's training but I know of the unspoken rules."
His unintentional words stung causing her to stiffen in his arms.
"I see," he said as he removed his arms from around her. "The reality of your life as a ninja is getting to you. Father suspects that you've been sent on your first kill mission. Death is no stranger to a ninja."
Even as his body warmed her his words sent a soothing chill down her spine, easing her troubled soul as the rain could not. "Thank you."
For untold minutes the two lay there, listening to the heavy rain.
"My words may lack the eloquence of my father's, but I understand why he prefers to use them instead of his fists."
Attuning his enhanced hearing he listened to her breath, waiting for her to fall asleep once again before he gently pulled away from her. Even in the virtual darkness of the night Tenma dressed quickly and effortlessly, careful to not disturb the sleeping girl.
Night quickly passed, turning into day though the unrelenting rain continued to drench the mountain.
He didn't know why, but the cyborg found the rain to be soothing. Perhaps that was why the young ninja had been out in the rain, though it was also possible that she was trying to build up her own endurance to the weather. Logically the latter made sense, but something inside of him suggested the former.
The flow of time stops for no one, especially an immortal. Even as Ranma waited for something to happen to Negi the illusionist couldn't ignore his other duties.
The fleeting warmth of the house was due in part because Saffron had left with Luke, though it was not because of the lack of his control over fire and heat. No, the house only felt warm when there were others there to enjoy it with. For the first time since he'd moved in the house felt cold.
"It's like that saying you picked up while traveling in southeast Asia," a familiar voice called out from the shadows. "Something to the extent that a warm house is one filled with happiness."
"I guess that's why everyone likes it at the restaurant," the immortal retorted.
Stepping out of the shadows Konatsu looked down at his adopted brother. "Perhaps."
Even that little exchange helped warm the house.
"I hear that you've been working hard," the cross-dressing ninja stated, drawing a shrug from the true Saotome. "You know about Kaede?"
Ranma nodded. "Her first kill mission - beats a seduction/kill… how did you manage that one?"
Konatsu's lips curled ever so slightly. "Dead men tell no tales."
"But you're not dead and you're a man."
"And even I have secrets that I can't tell you," he replied quickly. "Of course, I'm not here to talk about my past missions."
"You came because you ran into something that's more along my line, right?" Ranma interjected. "What is it?"
"Vampires."
The young immortal paused. "How many?"
"We're not sure," Konatsu answered. "But there are enough of them that they wiped out a cell jounin."
"Their mission?"
"Classified. But what I can tell you is that they are associated with one of the local yakuza."
A slight tingling sensation ran up Ranma's spine. "American or Russian?"
"American."
He didn't like the sound of that. "The yakuza's using the westerners to expand their turf."
Konatsu gave a slight nod.
"Americans… so that means that they're operating close to one of the US bases…." With a wave of his hand he brought up an illusionary map, the areas closest to the American bases glowing a light orange. "Where?"
"Tokyo."
"Nerima?"
Again Konatsu gave a slight nod. "Nerima."
A/N
That's it for now. Maybe I have been watching too much vampire anime…
Dreamingfox