The next morning Kasumi asked, "Akane, would you be a dear and show
Ranma the way to school? I'm really busy with housework this morning."
"Do I have to?" said Akane.
"You're closest to his age. At least, most of the time you are," said
Kasumi.
"Oh, all right," Akane said, not very cheerfully.
As Ranma walked on top of the fence on the way to school, Akane said to
him, "I can't get over your dad impersonating you. It's too weird...
How can we tell you apart if he does it again?"
"Easy. He's polite and I ain't. I'll be sure to call you names like
'uncute' and 'tomboy.' The old man would never say that..."
"I should hope not!"
"...to your face," said Ranma, rushing ahead.
"Why you, come back here, you jerk!" Akane wasn't really that angry.
He was such a relief from the way his father had portrayed him that
she found herself almost liking him.
As Ranma rushed by a gate that opened onto the sidewalk, the little old
lady who was always scooping water onto her path to settle the dust
threw a scoop onto him. Instant Genma.
"What now? They won't let me into school like this!"
"Oh, come on. We'll get some hot water from Dr. Tofu. I have to break
some bad news to him gently before he hears it from someone else. Wait
out here for a second, OK?"
Akane went in, "Hello, Dr. Tofu, are you here?"
Dr. Tofu smiled broadly, "Good to see you, Akane. It's a little early
in the day for an injury, isn't it?"
"It's not that. I just needed to borrow a little hot water."
"I have a tea-kettle going now. Wouldn't you rather have some tea?"
"It's a long story, but I just need the water. And I have some news
for you. Maybe you should sit down. My older sister has gotten
engaged."
"Oh, that's nice."
"It doesn't bother you?"
"Why should it? Please give Nabiki my congratulations."
"Uhmm, actually... it's Kasumi."
"K-Kasumi?!!" Dr. Tofu's glasses fogged, but something was different
this time. Instead of a happy daze there was an expression of rage.
His eyes focussed on the skeleton hanging at the side of the room.
"How dare you listen in on our private conversation, Betty! You need to
be taught a lesson!" He began to attack the bones, breaking them apart.
"Please don't take it so hard, Dr. Tofu! You have friends to stand
by you!" Akane pleaded.
Finally, Dr, Tofu seemed to calm down. "Here's your hot water, Akane.
Please come by any time." If was as if he had forgotten what she had
said about Kasumi. She didn't want to set him off by mentioning it
again, so she hurried out with the kettle and poured hot water on
Ranma/Genma.
"What was that crashing noise all about?" asked Ranma as they continued
towards Furinkan High School.
"Dr. Tofu took the bad news harder that I hoped he would," said Akane,
blinking back tears.
"You really care about him, don't you?"
"Yes. Ever since I can remember he was the one to take care of me when
I was injured, and he's a great martial artist." She sighed.
"I thought you hated guys."
As they approached the gates of the school, a crowd of high-school boys
dressed in every kind of sports equipment rushed towards them.
"Right! I hate guys! I hate guys! I hate guys!" Akane chanted. She
tossed her book bag to Ranma and charged, fighting off the boys, throwing
them right and left. Finally, one remaining older student with a bokken
spouted off a poem and threw her a red rose.
"Kunou," she groaned to Ranma.
"What's the deal with all this fighting, Akane?" asked Ranma.
"No time to explain, just stay out of the way."
"Aren't you being a bit familiar with my Akane?" said Kunou dangerously.
"No one is permitted such intimacy without defeating her in combat first,
as I, Tatewake Kunou, the Blue Thunder of Funrinken High, have decreed.
And what I decree, I enforce!"
"And I'm Ranma Saotome of the Anything-Goes School of Martial Arts. I
accept your challenge!"
As the leaping, slashing fight started, rain began to fall. Suddenly,
another copy of Ranma rushed in, leaping up into the fray. To Kunou, it
seemed he was suddenly being kicked by both Ranma and an old man. He
fell to the ground unconscious. Akane, Ranma/Genma, and Genma/Ranma
rushed inside.
------------------
Akane and Ranma arrived late for class.
"You'll have to stand out in the hall with buckets of water for
punishment," said the teacher. "But first, Mr. Saotome, do you know who
that man was who joined in your fight?"
"Yeah, that was my pop. He sometimes gets overprotective. I was
doin' just fine without him."
"We don't approve of parents coming into school grounds to intervene
in student quarrels like that. Please tell him we said so."
"Yeah, ok."
Ranma and Akane were standing in the hall with buckets of water.
Akane had just finished explaining why she had to fight off the
boys every day when the furious Kunou appeared in the hall.
"Saotome, you had your father standing by to help you in the fight!
Such an act of cowardice must not go unpunished, fiancee of Akane's
older sister Kasumi or not!" yelled Kunou.
A chorus of students pushed out into the hall, yelling, "Ranma's engaged
to Kasumi? He goes for older women -- what a weirdo!" and so on, with
Ranma and Akane both protesting that the engagement was not by choice.
"So, villain, do you fear a fair fight?" demanded Kunou.
Ranma glanced out the window. The rain had stopped -- good.
"No, if you want a rematch I'm up for it. Follow me." he launched
himself out and Kunou followed.
"Ranma, you fool! This is the third floor, and the swimming pool
is right below!" yelled Akane, too late.
...
Kunou stalked through the school grounds, dripping wet. "I'm sure that
was Ranma's father once again in that pool. He should not protect his
cowardly son so. Does he not know that a coward dies a thousand deaths,
and brave men die but once? He must let Ranma face me in fair combat
and die but once as is fitting."
Shampoo leaped into a tree near the high school. Her airen was supposed
to be here somewhere. He hadn't been that hard to track down. In
matters of honor such as the kiss of death a warrior had to avenge herself
alone, but finding a straying husband was a different matter. Her great-
grandmother had helped her. Also, they knew his name: Ranma Saotome. She
longed to hold him and kiss him again. Suddenly, she heard his name being
called out!
"Ranma Saotome, where are you, coward? Face me and die!" shouted Kunou.
Shampoo gracefully leaped out of the tree, landing on his head and flipping
in a back somersault to land lightly on her feet.
"You want kill Ranma, must fight Shampoo!" she announced.
"You wish to fight me, lovely one? Very well. If you defeat me I,
Tatewake Kunou, will permit you to date with me."
"Even if win, no can date Shampoo. Shampoo belong Ranma!"
"He has enchanted you most foully! But allow me to win your heart with
a demonstration of my prowess in battle."
Kunou advanced and swung his bokken. But the warrior woman leaped high
into the air, springboarded off his bokken to drive him off-balance, and
finished with a smashing blow of her bonburi, knocking him flat.
"Guess what, Kunou. Ranma Saotome even better than Shampoo!" she said,
walking off disdainfully.
"Chinese-accent girl, one day you will be mine," sighed Kunou, losing
consciousness.
Ranma the way to school? I'm really busy with housework this morning."
"Do I have to?" said Akane.
"You're closest to his age. At least, most of the time you are," said
Kasumi.
"Oh, all right," Akane said, not very cheerfully.
As Ranma walked on top of the fence on the way to school, Akane said to
him, "I can't get over your dad impersonating you. It's too weird...
How can we tell you apart if he does it again?"
"Easy. He's polite and I ain't. I'll be sure to call you names like
'uncute' and 'tomboy.' The old man would never say that..."
"I should hope not!"
"...to your face," said Ranma, rushing ahead.
"Why you, come back here, you jerk!" Akane wasn't really that angry.
He was such a relief from the way his father had portrayed him that
she found herself almost liking him.
As Ranma rushed by a gate that opened onto the sidewalk, the little old
lady who was always scooping water onto her path to settle the dust
threw a scoop onto him. Instant Genma.
"What now? They won't let me into school like this!"
"Oh, come on. We'll get some hot water from Dr. Tofu. I have to break
some bad news to him gently before he hears it from someone else. Wait
out here for a second, OK?"
Akane went in, "Hello, Dr. Tofu, are you here?"
Dr. Tofu smiled broadly, "Good to see you, Akane. It's a little early
in the day for an injury, isn't it?"
"It's not that. I just needed to borrow a little hot water."
"I have a tea-kettle going now. Wouldn't you rather have some tea?"
"It's a long story, but I just need the water. And I have some news
for you. Maybe you should sit down. My older sister has gotten
engaged."
"Oh, that's nice."
"It doesn't bother you?"
"Why should it? Please give Nabiki my congratulations."
"Uhmm, actually... it's Kasumi."
"K-Kasumi?!!" Dr. Tofu's glasses fogged, but something was different
this time. Instead of a happy daze there was an expression of rage.
His eyes focussed on the skeleton hanging at the side of the room.
"How dare you listen in on our private conversation, Betty! You need to
be taught a lesson!" He began to attack the bones, breaking them apart.
"Please don't take it so hard, Dr. Tofu! You have friends to stand
by you!" Akane pleaded.
Finally, Dr, Tofu seemed to calm down. "Here's your hot water, Akane.
Please come by any time." If was as if he had forgotten what she had
said about Kasumi. She didn't want to set him off by mentioning it
again, so she hurried out with the kettle and poured hot water on
Ranma/Genma.
"What was that crashing noise all about?" asked Ranma as they continued
towards Furinkan High School.
"Dr. Tofu took the bad news harder that I hoped he would," said Akane,
blinking back tears.
"You really care about him, don't you?"
"Yes. Ever since I can remember he was the one to take care of me when
I was injured, and he's a great martial artist." She sighed.
"I thought you hated guys."
As they approached the gates of the school, a crowd of high-school boys
dressed in every kind of sports equipment rushed towards them.
"Right! I hate guys! I hate guys! I hate guys!" Akane chanted. She
tossed her book bag to Ranma and charged, fighting off the boys, throwing
them right and left. Finally, one remaining older student with a bokken
spouted off a poem and threw her a red rose.
"Kunou," she groaned to Ranma.
"What's the deal with all this fighting, Akane?" asked Ranma.
"No time to explain, just stay out of the way."
"Aren't you being a bit familiar with my Akane?" said Kunou dangerously.
"No one is permitted such intimacy without defeating her in combat first,
as I, Tatewake Kunou, the Blue Thunder of Funrinken High, have decreed.
And what I decree, I enforce!"
"And I'm Ranma Saotome of the Anything-Goes School of Martial Arts. I
accept your challenge!"
As the leaping, slashing fight started, rain began to fall. Suddenly,
another copy of Ranma rushed in, leaping up into the fray. To Kunou, it
seemed he was suddenly being kicked by both Ranma and an old man. He
fell to the ground unconscious. Akane, Ranma/Genma, and Genma/Ranma
rushed inside.
------------------
Akane and Ranma arrived late for class.
"You'll have to stand out in the hall with buckets of water for
punishment," said the teacher. "But first, Mr. Saotome, do you know who
that man was who joined in your fight?"
"Yeah, that was my pop. He sometimes gets overprotective. I was
doin' just fine without him."
"We don't approve of parents coming into school grounds to intervene
in student quarrels like that. Please tell him we said so."
"Yeah, ok."
Ranma and Akane were standing in the hall with buckets of water.
Akane had just finished explaining why she had to fight off the
boys every day when the furious Kunou appeared in the hall.
"Saotome, you had your father standing by to help you in the fight!
Such an act of cowardice must not go unpunished, fiancee of Akane's
older sister Kasumi or not!" yelled Kunou.
A chorus of students pushed out into the hall, yelling, "Ranma's engaged
to Kasumi? He goes for older women -- what a weirdo!" and so on, with
Ranma and Akane both protesting that the engagement was not by choice.
"So, villain, do you fear a fair fight?" demanded Kunou.
Ranma glanced out the window. The rain had stopped -- good.
"No, if you want a rematch I'm up for it. Follow me." he launched
himself out and Kunou followed.
"Ranma, you fool! This is the third floor, and the swimming pool
is right below!" yelled Akane, too late.
...
Kunou stalked through the school grounds, dripping wet. "I'm sure that
was Ranma's father once again in that pool. He should not protect his
cowardly son so. Does he not know that a coward dies a thousand deaths,
and brave men die but once? He must let Ranma face me in fair combat
and die but once as is fitting."
Shampoo leaped into a tree near the high school. Her airen was supposed
to be here somewhere. He hadn't been that hard to track down. In
matters of honor such as the kiss of death a warrior had to avenge herself
alone, but finding a straying husband was a different matter. Her great-
grandmother had helped her. Also, they knew his name: Ranma Saotome. She
longed to hold him and kiss him again. Suddenly, she heard his name being
called out!
"Ranma Saotome, where are you, coward? Face me and die!" shouted Kunou.
Shampoo gracefully leaped out of the tree, landing on his head and flipping
in a back somersault to land lightly on her feet.
"You want kill Ranma, must fight Shampoo!" she announced.
"You wish to fight me, lovely one? Very well. If you defeat me I,
Tatewake Kunou, will permit you to date with me."
"Even if win, no can date Shampoo. Shampoo belong Ranma!"
"He has enchanted you most foully! But allow me to win your heart with
a demonstration of my prowess in battle."
Kunou advanced and swung his bokken. But the warrior woman leaped high
into the air, springboarded off his bokken to drive him off-balance, and
finished with a smashing blow of her bonburi, knocking him flat.
"Guess what, Kunou. Ranma Saotome even better than Shampoo!" she said,
walking off disdainfully.
"Chinese-accent girl, one day you will be mine," sighed Kunou, losing
consciousness.