A Midsummer Night's Beauty, Part II: Queen of Extreme
by rkOujirou
Author's note: This story is a continuation on the Ranma 1/2 anime, including the OVA's and movies. Therefore, keep in mind that anything exclusive to the manga hasn't happened in this story.
Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 is not my idea, it was created by a very talented manga artist named Rumiko Takahashi. The only characters I'll claim are my own original characters that I've added into this story. Just so you know.
Chapter 11
*tap tap tap tap...*
Four days after her grueling quarter-final gymnastics match, Kodachi Kuno sat on the wooden walkway bordering her home and stared out at the garden with a bored look in her eyes. She'd gotten back from school not even an hour earlier after taking the last few days off due to her battered condition, which had since steadily improved to the point that she could make the trip to St. Hebereke School for Girls without much discomfort. Her back and arms were still very tender, but for the most part she was now able to move around just fine.
What bothered Kodachi the most now wasn't the pain from her previous match, but rather her own impatience.
"Sasuke!" the Black Rose called out to her servant, taking a break from her constant tapping on the wooden boards she sat on.
*thud!*
Sasuke let out a loud groan just before he emerged from beneath the estate holding his cranium. The Kuno family servant had been sweeping underneath the house when the sudden call caused him to hit his head on the floorboards.
"Nngh...yes, Mistress?"
"Why is Ringo not here yet?" the dark-haired girl asked.
Sasuke appeared confused as he looked up at her. "Miss Ringo? Don't you remember, Mistress? She said she wouldn't be able to come again until later tonight."
"What?" Kodachi shrieked. "I do not remember hearing of this!"
"Really?" Sasuke scratched his head. "As I recall, she was quite clear about being busy with her job and such today."
The expression on the face of Kodachi only grew more sour. "And what am I to do now? I have important matters to discuss with her!"
"Oh? Well, if it's really that urgent, I'm sure Miss Ringo wouldn't mind if you stopped by the restaurant to speak with her," the ninja suggested.
To say Kodachi was appalled by the suggestion would be an understatement. "Go to that place? Are you mad? I would never go within 30 feet of that horrid love nest of Ranma and the Chinese bimbo!"
Her reaction didn't come as a huge surprise to Sasuke, especially considering how hard Kodachi had taken the whole Ranma situation months earlier.
"Right...forgive me, Mistress. I shouldn't have suggested such a thing."
Figuring he wasn't needed any further, the Kuno family servant quietly went back under the house and resumed his sweeping duties.
"Aha! I see how it is!"
*thud!*
Startled by the shrill voice of his mistress, Sasuke again smacked his cranium on the floorboards.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch..." he rubbed his head in pain. As Sasuke turned back toward the daylight, he could see Kodachi's head hanging down from over the edge of the walkway. "W-what it is, Mistress?"
"You think I am a coward, don't you?" Kodachi glared at him.
"What? No, of course n-"
"You believe I am afraid of going to that restaurant! Admit it!"
"I would never think such a thi-!"
"Well I am no coward, and I am not afraid! And I shall prove it!" the proud gymnast stated. "I am marching down there right this instant to speak with Ringo! Just you watch!"
Her bold declaration made, Kodachi promptly hopped down from the walkway and headed for the gate of the Kuno estate.
Sasuke, meanwhile, looked and felt mentally tired following the peculiar verbal exchange with his mistress. "I don't understand why she needs to come up with an excuse to go see Miss Ringo," he muttered to himself. "Then again, this is Mistress Kodachi we're talking about..."
Elsewhere, over in the land of China, the trio of Ryoga, Meilin, and Akane were currently resting on the bank of the Yellow River. With the resurrected Sorceress Jusenkyo after Akane, the group had endured several stressful days of being on high alert in anticipation of being attacked. Thus far, however, Jusenkyo was nowhere to be seen.
Meilin, in particular, was quickly losing her patience with this mission. Gibbon, whom she'd sent to the Cursed Springs to do some investigating, still hadn't gotten back to her on whether or not Akane's story seemed plausible, which left her unable to let her guard down around the girl from Japan for the time being. Perhaps more aggravating to her, though, was the lack of privacy she and Ryoga were now saddled with. She'd expected Jusenkyo to come after them from day one and for Akane to be on her way back to the Land of the Rising Sun by now, but with days having now passed, the absence of her usual "alone time" with her man had her in a foul mood.
"Hey," the white-haired warrior glared over at Akane, "where the hell is Jusenkyo, you liar? Why isn't this guy coming after us?"
"I wasn't lying!" the daughter of Soun Tendo was quick to defend her story. "I...I don't know where he is..."
Meilin continued to give the nervous girl a sour look. "We even went north because you said he went this way, and we still haven't seen him. Something isn't right here."
"I said I don't know, okay?" Akane told her, looking very emotional.
If there was one thing Ryoga didn't want to see, it was for the girls to be at odds with each other, especially with Akane already in a fragile state of mind. "Hey, Meilin, give her a break. She doesn't know."
Her eye twitching with irritation after her man came to Akane's aid, Meilin stood up and started walking away. "I'm going to report in to the General. You two have a nice time while I'm gone."
The directionally-challenged martial artist noticeably cringed as he watched his girlfriend walk off. They'd had their quarrels over the course of their relationship, but this one involving another woman was new territory.
"She doesn't like me at all, does she?" the young Tendo girl sighed as she stared out at the river.
"It's not that, Akane. She's just cautious, and...she worries about me," Ryoga tried to explain.
To the military prisoner's surprise, Akane actually began giggling to herself. She'd been so nerve-wracked and frightened over the past few days that Ryoga figured this was the first time she'd smiled at all since they'd found her.
"I still remember how surprised everyone was when we heard you had a girlfriend," Akane looked over at him. "How did it all happen?"
His cheeks turning red, Ryoga shied away from his friend's curious gaze and began twiddling his fingers. "W-well, you know, it was just...it was all really sudden," he laughed. "She just...and I...well..."
"Okay, okay, I get it," Akane chuckled. "I guess I'm imposing on you guys. Maybe that's why she can't stand me."
"Hey, don't worry about that, Akane. I'll make it up to her once this whole Jusenkyo thing is taken care of. I promise," her old friend assured her.
Falling back against the grass and looking up at the sky, a somewhat sad look crossed the face of the Furinkan High student. "You really are a nice guy, Ryoga. Maybe I should have scooped you up when you were still single."
Slowly turning to look at his friend, the expression on Ryoga's face showed just how stunned Akane's words had left him. Wide-eyed and speechless, he had no idea what to make of what she'd just said to him. He would have killed to hear Akane say something like that back when they were both still in Japan and he was available. But right now, those words were nothing more than a mere compliment to his character. He was already in a relationship with Meilin, and that wasn't going to change.
More than what Akane's words said about him, however, Ryoga also wondered what they implied about the current relationship between she and her fiancé.
"Say, Akane," he spoke to her, "I've been meaning to ask you about something. You said you wanted to get away from home for a while, but...why? Did something happen with Ranma?"
Upon hearing the pigtailed boy's name, Akane immediately closed her eyes. Then, her face starting to contort with a mix of emotions, she rolled over on her side and curled up into a ball. The youngest Tendo daughter didn't say a word.
"I-I'm sorry," Ryoga apologized, already regretting asking her about it. "If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. I won't ask again."
Whatever had happened, it was clear to Ryoga that his old rival had done something that hurt Akane a great deal.
"Ranma," he thought angrily, "...just what did you do to her?"
Back in the Nerima Ward of Tokyo, some stares were being directed toward the front of the Cat Café restaurant where a dark-haired girl was kneeling down outside the entrance. Appearing very suspicious to some of the passersby, she peered into the restaurant through the slightly opened door and watched almost in horror as the young waitress within went about her usual job duties.
"Such filthy menial labor...how terrible," Kodachi covered her mouth in disgust. "Why is Ringo smiling? She cannot possibly be enjoying herself in there. That job of hers is nothing short of torture!"
The wealthy daughter of the Kuno family, whose upbringing gave her a much more negative view of her second's job than most other people would hold, felt like rushing into the restaurant and dragging Ringo out of there for her own good. For the moment, however, there were two other people inside the business that were keeping Kodachi's feet planted right where they were. Those two were the Amazon girl working in the kitchen and the pigtailed boy that right now happened to be clearing off the table nearest the door.
"You were once such a proud man, and now look at you, handling the dishes of others," the younger Kuno sibling looked upon Ranma with pity. "I must get Ringo away from here, but I do not wish to meet eyes with Ranma. And I certainly do not want to be near that hussy that stole him from me! What ever shall I do?"
In the midst of her "rescue mission", there were a number of background noises that Kodachi was filtering out, both from vehicles and pedestrians in the area. But while this helped her concentration, it also left her susceptible to unexpected sources of interference, and one of those would happen to manifest itself in the form of a motorcycle that had just stopped outside the restaurant. Kodachi had ignored the sound of the bike approaching just as she had everything else, and that was a move she was about to regret.
*whack!*
Kodachi shot to her feet and let out a pained howl as she felt someone slap her on her ailing back. Tears welling up in her eyes from the stinging sensation between her shoulders, the furious gymnast spun around to see just who had the audacity to strike her. The culprit, a familiar looking pink-haired girl wearing a leather jacket, didn't appear to bear any ill will as she flashed the St. Hebereke student a carefree smile.
"You! Sakura!" Kodachi scowled at her opponent of a few days ago.
"What's up, 'Dachi?" the gymnast most recently eliminated from the Queen of Extreme Tournament, Sakura Okazaki, greeted her.
"Wha-...how dare you? Not only do you attack me from behind, but you even have the gall to butcher my beautiful name! It is Kodachi! Ko-da-chi, you brute!" the irate Kuno chided her.
The girl nicknamed Heavy Metal didn't seem too worried about offending her fellow gymnast. "Whoa, lighten up! Why so hostile?"
Kodachi looked at her in disbelief. "Why? WHY? You knocked me onto a mound of thumbtacks, that is why!"
"I know! Wasn't that great?" Sakura grinned, pointing to the bandage on her forehead. "And you split my head open with a golf club. So what?"
"So what?" Kodachi growled at her. "Now you listen...wait a moment, why are you here? You do not live anywhere near this area!"
The pink-haired girl nodded her head. "Yeah, no kiddin'. I took a little road trip to come talk to ya. Got some free time?"
"You...you came to speak with me?" a confused Black Rose blinked. "But how did you know where I was?"
"Oh, I stopped at your place and this ninja guy said you'd be here," Sakura explained, taking a quick look at the restaurant's exterior. "What're you doin' here, anyway? Come to get a snack?"
Hesitant to answer the question, Kodachi was quickly starting to feel embarrassed. She didn't want to admit that she'd come to this place just to see Ringo. "W-well, I...yes, I was feeling a bit famished," she lied, hiding her true intentions. "But I am feeling much better now, so-"
Kodachi let out a gasp as she suddenly felt Sakura's hand wrap around her forearm.
"Y'know, the trip here made me kinda hungry, too," the wild girl admitted. "C'mon, we can talk over some grub!"
The younger Kuno sibling's heart nearly skipped a beat as she saw Sakura's other hand reaching for the door to the Cat Café.
"No, stop this! Unhand me, you-!"
Kodachi tried to pry herself free, but the other girl's notably strong grip was too much for her. She could only watch in dismay as her unwelcome visitor flung open the door to the restaurant and dragged her inside.
"Table for two!" the pink-haired girl loudly announced.
With her notepad in hand, Ringo, who was in her pink waitress' outfit, was the first to address the new customers. "Sure! Just sit anywhere you li-...eh...Sakura? And...Kodachi?"
"Hey...you're her second, ain't ya?" Sakura gave Ringo a perplexed look.
Noticing that his former female half seemed distracted, Ranma wandered over to see what the issue was. "Yo, Ringo, what's...err...Kodachi? And you're..."
"Ah! You're that guy that beat up my crew!" a surprised Sakura exclaimed, recalling the incident on Odaiba months earlier. "You guys all know each other?"
"Ranma, what going on?" Shampoo asked, sticking her head out from the kitchen. "Aiyaa! What crazy Kuno girl do here? And that one...is that gymnast girl that ride motorcycle!"
"You, too?" Sakura shouted upon seeing the lavender-haired cook. "What the heck! How do you know all these people, 'Dachi?"
Kodachi Kuno, now finding herself faced with everyone she was trying to avoid, hung her head and began shaking as she was overcome with embarrassment and anger.
"'Dachi...?" the Joudai High student quirked an eyebrow at her fellow gymnast.
Shampoo, who couldn't simply ignore the presence of the girls in her restaurant, hopped over the counter and joined her boyfriend and waitress. "Ringo invite those ones?"
The red-haired girl quickly shook her head. "It wasn't me. I wonder why they came..."
"I dunno, but Kodachi don't look too happy 'bout it," Ranma pointed out.
Sakura had to grab Kodachi's wrists as the Black Rose suddenly tried to wrap her hands around her throat. "Whoa! Hey-!"
The younger Kuno sibling had a crazed look in her eyes. "You wicked, wicked little-! What grudge do you bear against me?"
"Hey, it really is Heavy Metal!"
"And the Black Rose, too!"
Sakura and Kodachi both stopped for a moment as two high school boys brushed past Shampoo and hurried over to them. They weren't anyone the grappling gymnasts had seen before, but the two boys certainly seemed to be familiar with them.
"Sorry to bother you, but we had to come meet two of the EGF's best!" the taller of the boys said to them.
"Ohh, fans, huh?" Heavy Metal beamed with pride.
"Totally!" the other boy affirmed. "That match you guys had on Sunday was amazing! Everyone's talking about it!"
"It's not often we get to see Heavy Metal bring out her best tools, and then for Kodachi to take all that punishment and not give up...it was so cool!" the taller boy added.
Looking down at the dark-haired gymnast, Sakura noticed that she appeared to be genuinely surprised by the praise.
"Cool? Moi?" Kodachi batted her eyes.
"Yeah! You were awesome! Oh, hang on...!" the shorter boy said, fishing a pen and his daily planner out of his pocket. "Would you two sign my planner?"
"Oh, mine too! Would you?" the other boy asked them.
"Hell yeah! Anything for a couple of fans," Sakura grinned. "How 'bout it, 'Dachi?"
As would become evident, Kodachi Kuno's ego was still very much intact. Presented with praise and admiration by the two young gentlemen, her mood almost instantly brightened up to the point that she was laughing with exhilaration. "Oho...ohoho...ohhhohohoo!"
Though she was receiving some funny looks from Ranma and the others, Kodachi brushed them off to address her adoring fans. "I am quite the star, am I not? If you desire my autograph so badly, I suppose I shall bestow this wonderful gift upon you."
"Um...great!" the taller of the boys gave his friend an uncertain look.
Both of the gymnasts proceeded to sign the covers of the boys' planners. The young men were a bit taken aback by Kodachi's unique attitude, but gracious for the autographs nonetheless.
"Wow, thanks so much!" the shorter boy said excitedly.
"Yeah, this is so cool! Everyone's going to be so jealous!" the other added. "We'll get out of here and let you eat. And Miss Kuno...umm..."
"Hmm?" Kodachi tilted her head.
The taller boy seemed much more serious than before. "Well, we were hoping Metal would do it, but since you beat her...please, beat Priscilla! You're the only one left in the tournament who can do it!"
"That's right! We're rooting for you all the way!" the other boy agreed with his friend.
With their goals accomplished, the boys took their leave. Confusion was evident on the face of Kodachi, however, who wasn't sure who they were talking about.
"Priscilla?"
"Tch, they beat me to it," Sakura smirked, drawing a curious look from the dark-haired gymnast. "Whatever, let's sit down. We got things to talk about."
"And why should I?" Kodachi fussed, shooting an uncomfortable glance back at Ranma and Shampoo. "I...I should not be in here..."
Apparently willing to let bygones be bygones, Shampoo shrugged her shoulders and pointed her finger at the Saotome pair. "Is okay with Shampoo, but you no let Kuno girl make mess."
"Gotcha," Ranma smiled, placing his hand on Ringo's shoulder. "Take a break and go chat with 'em. Just, y'know...make sure Kodachi don't break nothin'."
"Okay," the redhead chuckled as she waltzed over to the gymnasts. "Hey, Kodachi!"
"Greetings, Ringo," the Black Rose replied, starting to wonder why she hadn't been asked to leave yet. "They do not mind my being here?"
The young waitress shook her head. "Nope! They said it's okay, but only if you promise not to break anything."
"R-really..." Kodachi batted her eyes in surprise. "Well, then...I suppose I can bear it for a short while."
"Great, now sit down already. My stomach's growlin' like my bike's engine," Heavy Metal groaned.
The three girls sat at a table for four, with Kodachi sitting between the other two. Before Sakura could bring up what she came to discuss, however, Ranma came over to the table to take their order.
"You guys want any food?" he asked them.
Kodachi, clearly still tense around her former love interest, had to turn away from him as her cheeks started to turn pink. Sakura, on the other hand, had no such issues.
"Don't need a full meal, but I could go for some snacks. Any suggestions?" the hungry gymnast asked.
"Mmm...well, Shampoo makes some mean potstickers," the pigtailed martial artist spoke from experience.
"Ohh! Sounds good!" Sakura said excitedly, practically drooling already. "How 'bout you, 'Dachi?"
"Stop calling me that!" the younger Kuno sibling snapped at her, quickly turning away again as to avoid Ranma's gaze. "I-I do not need anything. I shall eat at home later."
Ranma threw his hands up in the air indifferently. "Suit yourself. I'll get the potstickers out here in a few."
Intrigued by the behavior of the Black Rose around Ranma, Sakura gave her a sly look after he'd left. "Someone sure got shy all of a sudden. You crushin' on that guy?"
"N-no, I am not! And it is none of your business!" Kodachi shot her back a nasty glare, her cheeks still showing some color. "Now tell me, what did you come all this way to speak to me of?"
Seemingly content with letting the romance talk go for now, the pink-haired girl settled back in her chair. "A couple things, but mostly I wanted to talk to ya about Priscilla."
"Priscilla? The same one those boys were talking about before?" Ringo joined in on the conversation.
"Oh, yes. Who is she?" the Kuno girl asked.
"Who is she?" the other gymnast nearly fell out of her seat. "She's the Extreme Gymnastics Federation Champion! You entered the tournament and didn't even know that? She even won the Queen of Extreme Tournament three years ago when you were there! How do you not know her?"
"How was I to know? I paid no attention to that silly tournament after I was defeated!" the St. Hebereke student said in her defense.
Sakura started rubbing her forehead as she settled in again. "Good god, you of all people oughtta know her. Priscilla Winters? As in the little sister of Katrina Winters? The one who trained you?"
Glancing over at her partner, Ringo could tell that the name "Katrina Winters" had some sort of meaning to her as Kodachi looked unusually uncomfortable. "Are you okay, Kodachi? Who is this Katrina?"
"Hah! Only the greatest champion the sport of martial arts rhythmic gymnastics has ever seen," Sakura laughed at the young waitress. "Katrina 'Cat Five' Winters. She was freaking unreal!"
The Black Rose clearly had some complex feelings when it came to discussing Katrina as she didn't seem to feel like joining in.
"Um...what does 'Cat Five' mean exactly?" a confused Ringo asked.
"Ah, she got that nickname over in America," the pink-haired gymnast explained. "They've got this thing called the Saffir-Simpson Scale that they use to categorize typhoons where Category One's the weakest and Category Five's the strongest. Anyway, people over there used to compare facing her to fighting a typhoon 'cause she came at 'em with so much, so they started calling her 'Cat Five'. Pretty cool nickname, huh? And 'Dachi here somehow got that legend to train her."
Kodachi and Sakura locked eyes, the former none too happy that the girl sitting next to her had brought up this touchy subject.
"So," Sakura continued, "how's she been doing?"
Her discomfort evident as she bit down on her bottom lip, the daughter of the Kuno family folded her arms and looked the other way. "How am I to know? I'm sure she is having a wonderful time in America," she said bitterly. "That woman had the nerve to leave without even a word to me. I haven't a care in the world what she is doing now."
"So she really did train you," Ringo said, looking impressed. "I never knew someone like that taught you gymnastics."
"I never wanted you to know either, but this blabbermouth went and blurted it out," Kodachi sneered at Sakura again.
"It ain't like it's a big secret, y'know," Heavy Metal pointed out. "Still...didn't you ever think of goin' there to see her? To America, I mean."
Kodachi didn't appear thrilled with the idea. "Absolutely not! Why would I go see some woman who would not even give me the courtesy of a goodbye? I never wish to see her again!"
"Really? That's too bad," Sakura let out a sigh, a small smile crossing her face afterward. "Katrina was my idol. Still is. The first time I went and saw one of her matches live, it made me feel somethin' I'd never felt before. She was so damn cool...I wanted to be just like her."
"Is she the reason you became a gymnast?" Ringo asked her.
"Yeah, I started training the very next day," the pink-haired girl replied. "Every day I'd work my butt off and keep thinking one thing over and over again. No matter how long it took, I wanted to have a match against her, and I still do. That's why I'm hoppin' on a plane and goin' to America after I graduate in the Spring."
By now, the wild gymnast's passion had drawn Kodachi's gaze back to her.
"I'll go there and take on the world's best 'til I get to face Katrina," Sakura closed her eyes and smiled. "'That's my dream, and nobody's gonna stop me."
"Wow, that's great to have a dream like that!" Ringo admired the gymnast's aspirations.
Kodachi wasn't so impressed. "Hmph," she snorted. "Are you going to drop her in thumbtacks, too?"
Having to think about that one for a moment, the Joudai High School representative raised her hand up and began rubbing her chin. "I wonder if I could..."
"Nevermind," the Kuno girl said with annoyance. "And not that it matters, but I do remember seeing that woman's younger sister. I'm fairly certain her name was not Priscilla, though."
"Really?" Ringo blinked. "What was it then?"
"I cannot recall," the Black Rose replied, not interested in putting much effort into trying to remember the girl's name. "I only saw that brat a handful of times, and she always gave me this filthy look of contempt for no reason."
Next to her, Sakura didn't look surprised in the least. "I've never heard of her having a different name, but the dirty looks make sense. Priscilla hates everyone from Japan."
"W-what?" the young waitress sitting across from her faltered. "Why would she hate us?"
"They say she got made fun of pretty bad in school just for bein' a blonde American girl," the pink-haired gymnast told her. "Kids are cruel, y'know? It gets better though. When she was 14 and scouting high schools, the EGF Champion at the time was the president of the gymnastics club at a school she went to visit. So Priscilla goes in the gym to get a look at the team, and the president acts like a total bitch. She tells her she won't let her on the team even if she does choose their school."
Though quiet, Kodachi was listening intently to every word of the story.
"That's horrible! Why would she do that?" Ringo felt sorry for the girl.
"Dunno. Maybe 'cause she was a foreigner, or maybe 'cause the champ thought Priscilla might be better than her," Sakura suggested. "I guess that's what finally made Priscilla snap, though. She was already gonna enter the Queen of Extreme Tournament that year, but the champ really lit a fire under her ass. So she entered the thing the same year me, Kiriko, and 'Dachi all entered for the first time."
Now even more intrigued, Ringo turned to her dark-haired partner for further information. "Did you see her back then, Kodachi?"
"Only at the qualifying event," the Black Rose responded. "Even then, I did not see much of her."
"They were on opposite sides of the bracket, so they had their early matches on different days," Heavy Metal informed the waitress. "Anyway, so Priscilla and the champ made it all the way to the finals. It was a tight match, but Priscilla finally hit her hard enough that she couldn't make the ref's ten count, so she won and became the new champion. Then after it was over, the ex-champ tried to save face and shake Priscilla's hand. Guess what happens?"
Both Kodachi and Ringo were noticeably interested in what went down.
"What?" the redhead asked.
"Not only does Priscilla not accept the handshake, she laughs in her face," Sakura chuckled a bit at the memory. "Now the ex-champ don't like this and she tries to hit her, but Priscilla pulls out a club she was holdin' and WHAM! Nails her right in the chin and knocks her out cold. And the crowd, they didn't know the history between 'em, so they see Priscilla do this and they start booing her. So what does she do? She smiles and raises the championship belt over her head, lovin' every bit of it. She probably felt like she'd just stuck it to every one of us that ever made fun of her."
"Wow..." Ringo said in amazement.
Kodachi shook her head at the enjoyment her fellow gymnast seemed to get out of telling the story. "You certainly seem to admire what she did."
"She made a statement. It's hard not to like," Sakura admitted. "She can go to hell for everything she's done since then, though. Screw her and her little three-year undefeated streak."
"What?" the younger Kuno sibling finally lit up. "You mean to tell me she has not been beaten even once? Even my Master was met with defeat in her early days!"
"A bunch of wins, no losses, and one draw against yours truly," the pink-haired girl ran off Priscilla's record. "And what pisses us all off even more is how she does it. She's got no second, she only uses the basic gymnastics tools, and she purposely has every match of hers at her opponent's school if she has a choice."
Not one of those three details went unnoticed by the tandem sitting with her.
"No second? And not one special tool?" the Black Rose had confusion written all over her face.
Ringo seemed particularly interested in the third characteristic. "Why wouldn't she have her matches at her own school? I don't get it."
"It ain't easy to find a second when you hate everyone and go outta your way to make everyone feel the same about you. Instead, she just dumps a bunch of tools around the ring and snaps 'em up with a ribbon when she needs them." Sakura explained. "Special tools? She's fine without 'em. Nobody likes to admit it, but she's the best technical gymnast in Japan. She's so damn good with regulation tools that she can fight on par with anyone that uses special ones. And as for the school thing, well...you can guess. She likes goin' into hostile environments and shoving it in the fans' faces by beating their school's reps in front of them. She's one hundred percent bitch."
"She really doesn't get along with anyone? She must feel so lonely..." the young redhead said with a sad expression.
"Hey, don't you go feeling sorry for her! She brings it on herself," Sakura snorted.
Seated between the two, Kodachi loudly cleared her throat, successfully grabbing the attention of both of them. "While I am appreciative of this information, I do not quite understand the point. You do realize that I am facing Kiriko next and not this Priscilla, do you not?"
A smirk crossing her face, Heavy Metal seemed understanding of the inquiry as she sat back in her chair again. "I get that, and I know how much you wanna get back at her for knockin' you outta the tournament three years ago. But you need to get this..." she gave Kodachi a serious look. "We don't all like each other a whole lot, but it's the goal of every other gymnast in the EGF to take the title of Champion off of Priscilla Winters. If any one of us has a chance to do it, the rest of us are behind them. We hate her that much. And the point of all this? Everyone knows that Kiriko Nakajima can't beat her except for Kiriko herself."
Kodachi raised an eyebrow, seeming genuinely curious about this unflattering opinion of her old nemesis. "And pray tell, why is that?"
"Her style don't match up well against Priscilla. Simple as that. She's too damn stubborn to admit it though, even after she got slaughtered in under a minute in the finals of last year's Queen of Extreme Tournament," Sakura groaned in disdain at the memory.
"Food's on!"
Distracted from her current train of thought, the pink-haired gymnast's eyes lit up as Ranma placed a dish stacked with potstickers onto the table in front of her. "Ooh! This looks great!" she smiled with delight. "Hey, Loverboy! You were at my last match against Priscilla, right?"
"Loverboy...?" Ranma grimaced at the odd name, no doubt a reference to their first meeting when he was on a date with Shampoo. "Yeah, why d'ya ask?"
Sakura's mouth watered as she brought one of the potstickers to her nose and smelled it. "What would you say was Priscilla's weakness?"
"Her weakness, huh?" the pigtailed boy thought back to the match while Sakura stuffed the potsticker in her mouth. "Even without a second, I dunno if she had one. She always had an answer when ya came at her head on. But...I guess she did have more trouble when ya pulled out somethin' really weird, like stuff she probably wasn't expectin'."
"Bhmgo!" the wild girl exclaimed with her mouth full, quickly downing the chewed potsticker remains to continue her point. "Like I said, she's the best technical gymnast in Japan. Come at her with somethin' she's prepared for and she'll throw it right back in your face. So the only type of gymnast that can beat her is one with an unorthodox offense, and the only one left in the tournament who has that is..."
"Me?" Kodachi asked, starting to see what her fellow gymnast was getting at.
The pink-haired girl gave her an affirming nod. "It's not just a personal thing with you and Kiriko. The rest of us need you to win, 'cause you're the best hope there is of dethroning Priscilla in this tournament. Those two guys that were here before? Most fans feel the same way they do. Even though you're just the 11th Seed in this thing, they believe in you. That's all they can do. Get it?"
The younger Kuno sibling narrowed her eyes as Sakura leaned forward and got right in her face.
"When you go out there to face Kiriko, just remember that we're all behind ya," a wicked smile crossed the face of Heavy Metal. "Kick her ass, Black Rose."
In the process of flopping back into her seat, Sakura flipped another potsticker into the air and caught it in her mouth. Kodachi, meanwhile, emitted an amused chuckle after the wild gymnast had finished saying what she'd come to say.
"Really, there was no need to come all this way to tell me such a thing. Whether anyone is behind me or not, I have no intention of letting that vile harpy leave our match with the ability to walk, much less with a victory," she declared, then shooting a stern glance at her second. "Ringo, training resumes tonight. Be prepared to go further than we have in any session yet."
Seeing the fire in her partner's eyes upped the level of excitement in Ringo herself. Now knowing what was waiting for them at the end of the tournament, she was more determined than ever to help Kodachi get past Kiriko.
"Right!"
A while later, the gymnastics duo of Sakura and Kodachi emerged from the Cat Café together, along with Ranma and Ringo who were seeing them off.
"Whew, that hit the spot!" the pink-haired girl rubbed her stomach after a satisfying snack.
Having painstakingly endured watching her fellow gymnast eat for longer than she ever would have liked, Kodachi shot a look of disgust her way. "Has anyone ever mentioned that you eat like a swine?"
"Hey, I gotta eat to fuel these muscles," Sakura flexed her arms, not seeming to mind the obvious insult as she glanced back at Ranma. "Hey, Loverboy! Tell your lady she's a hell of a cook for me."
The pigtailed boy cringed again at the nickname. "Again with the Loverboy stuff..." he muttered. "Yeah, sure thing. You'll have to come back sometime for a full meal."
"You bet!" Heavy Metal grinned.
While her brash visitor headed over to her motorcycle, Kodachi stopped for a quick word with her second. "I was not expecting things to turn out like this..." she said.
"Yeah, me either. I never thought you'd come here, and to show up with Sakura of all people, wow!" Ringo giggled to herself. "But you know, I'm glad you did. It was fun."
"Really?" Kodachi looked surprised at her reaction. "Well, I...I suppose it was not too bad. Perhaps I shall visit again another time."
"Sure!" the young waitress smiled. "You can even eat something next time if you want."
"Hah!" the Black Rose scoffed at the idea as she turned to walk away. "I said I may visit, not eat that other woman's deplorable food!"
The sharp tongue of the gymnast drew an amused look from Ranma. "That sounds more like the Kodachi I know."
Though she appeared as if she were leaving, the Black Rose began to slow down all of sudden, soon coming to a complete stop again. She then quietly looked over her shoulder at Ringo.
"Hmm? What is it?" her second blinked.
"No...it is nothing," the girl from St. Hebereke was quick to answer as she turned away again. "Tonight, Ringo. Do not be late."
"I won't," Ringo waved to her.
Sakura, who had already started up her bike, tried to get her fellow gymnast's attention as she was leaving. "Hey, 'Dachi! Hop on! I'll give ya a ride home!"
"I am not going anywhere near that death trap!" Kodachi immediately snapped at her.
"Aww, c'mon! It ain't that scary!"
"Go home and leave me alone, you pest! Shoo!"
"Come on, don't be a scaredy-cat, 'Dachi..."
"AND STOP CALLING ME THAT!"
The two guests got further away and the sound of their bickering faded, leaving Ranma and Ringo by themselves outside the restaurant.
"Man, that got me nervous," Ranma admitted. "Good thing she didn't tick Shampoo off or this place woulda been trashed."
"Yeah, but it turned out okay I think," the red-haired girl smiled. "You know, even though they're really different, I think Kodachi and Sakura could be good friends if they got the chance."
Folding his arms across his chest, Ranma gave his former female half an interested look. "You're the one who looks like she's good friends with her. I can't believe you two are gettin' along that well so quick."
"Ahaha, yeah, I guess," Ringo laughed, a bit embarrassed. "I was still mad at her just a few days ago, but I guess things changed when I saw her trying so hard in her match against Sakura. She was really incredible."
The Cat Café's busboy patted her lightly on the shoulder. "And here I thought you didn't like fightin'."
"I still don't!" Ringo playfully stuck her tongue out at him. "Anyway, we'd better get back to work before Shampoo comes looking for us."
"Yeah..." Ranma said in agreement.
The pigtailed boy's actions didn't match his words, though. Ringo had approached the restaurant's door already when she noticed that her co-worker wasn't following her.
"Umm...aren't you coming?" she asked him.
Acting strangely, Ranma suddenly untied the black apron he wore to keep his clothes from getting dirty and tossed it to Ringo.
"Hey, do me a favor, will ya?" he said to the confused waitress. "Tell Shampoo I'll be back in a bit."
"Huh?" Ringo gave him a funny look. "Are you going somewhere?"
"Yeah...somethin' just came up," the pigtailed martial artist told her.
"Oh...okay..." the redhead gave him an unsure sounding reply. She didn't know what was going on, but Ranma's demeanor somehow had her concerned. Still, the waitress did as she was asked and went on into the Cat Café ahead of him.
Now by himself, Ranma Saotome took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, closing his eyes to take in the nearby sounds. Then, with the speed he loved to boast of, he jumped up and vaulted over a wall, starting to sprint the moment his feet touched ground on the other side.
He didn't let up even a bit as he stormed through the Nerima Ward, hopping onto houses and leaping from rooftop to rooftop. Several times he briefly looked over his shoulder, but never for very long. Then, after several minutes, the son of Genma Saotome saw his target destination come into sight.
After passing over a few more homes, Ranma jumped down and sprung off the top of a wall, finally landing in the vacant lot he'd used for battles numerous times before. The heir to the Saotome School of Anything-Goes Martial Arts made sure he was a good distance away from the wall and then spun around, kicking up the dirt beneath his feet as he skid to a halt.
"All right, where are ya?" he said under his breath.
Ranma felt he needed to be prepared to intercept an attack from any direction. He looked from side to side, in front and in back of himself, but wasn't able to spot anything as of yet. It was only when his ears picked up on an unusual sound that he realized he wasn't looking in the right direction at all.
"UP!"
Twisting downward from the skies above, a fiercely spiraling object entered Ranma's field of vision and slammed down into the earth. The incredible force of the impact sent a cloud of dirt and rocks into the air that circled the object like a tornado and forced Ranma to shield himself with his forearms to keep any of it from getting in his eyes.
Gradually, the object's circular motion slowed and the debris fell back down to the ground. Once the dust had settled, Ranma lowered his arms to get a better look at his visitor.
"Hey, you're...!"
Immediately recognizing his noisy guest, Ranma couldn't hide his excitement. He'd been waiting for this moment for months. Slamming his right fist into his other palm, he shot the familiar person an elated grin.
"Sure kept me waitin' long enough, ya jerk!"
There, at the center of the point of impact, a man in a dark green military uniform was crouched down near the ground. His dirty blonde hair obstructing his face and his brown-feathered falcon perched atop his shoulder, he pushed himself up to a standing position and returned the excited expression of the martial artist standing in front of him. Months after his initial challenge that was unceremoniously cut short, he had finally returned to finish what he'd started.
He was the now former member of the Chinese military, Codename: Jukai.
"I told you I'd be back, Pigtail..."
End of Chapter 11