A Fanfic done by Saint. All Ranma ½ characters are owned by Rumiko Takahashi.
Chapter 2: The Master's in Town!
Ranma woke up to the sound of fighting. He grumpily covered his ears with his pillow and tried to go back to sleep but the noise was to loud. He guessed that Shampoo and Ukyou must have tried to deliver him breakfast again but ended up fighting.
"Can't you be a little bit quieter down there? I'm trying to sleep here!!!" he yelled. Apparently nobody heard him, or nobody was listening, because the fighting continued.
"What's the deal with fighting so early in the morning anyway! It's too early!!!" he grumbled. Ranma made one last attempt to block out the din with his pillow, and then just gave up. Might as well get some breakfast. He stood up and stretched, and then opened his window and looked out.
It wasn't Ukyou and Shampoo after all. The combatants faced each other by the koi pond. One was a guy he had never seen before. He had long brown hair tied in a loose pony tail behind his back, and he wore a blue gi with the sleeves torn off. His weapon was a staff, and he really knew how to use it. He used it with precise movements against his opponent, a blue- haired girl.
She looked awfully familiar, but he knew he'd never seen the likes of her before. He knew he could never forget if he'd seen her before, she had some kind of magnetism that made you stop and look at her. She was beautiful, graceful… but it wasn't those that drew the attention. It was something else. The beautiful girl wore very ordinary clothes, a white shirt and denim shorts, but she made them look so damn sexy.
She was weaponless, and she stood motionless as the brown- haired guy charged at her. Ranma almost launched himself out of the window to save the girl when she suddenly moved.
Was… was she dancing?!? Yes… and No, she was nimbly evading and sidestepping the guy's attack, then launching an attack of her own, doing circles around the guy. He tried to pin her with his staff, but the girl blocked it and then countered with quick jabs to his chest. The guy blocked most of them and did a low kick that got in though her defenses. She was quick to her feet, though and the guy didn't have enough time to pin her in place. She jumped away to safety. They were pretty good.
Ranma hurriedly dressed himself up to go downstairs and have a better look.
"Good morning!!!" Kasumi greeted Ranma as he came down the stairs. As usual, she wore her ever present cheerful smile as she was setting up the table for breakfast. Ranma greeted her likewise and then hurried to the porch.
Nabiki, Mr. Tendo, and his father were already there watching the fight. He called out good morning to them, but his greeting was ignored. He shrugged. The two men were watching the fight intently, while Nabiki looked like she couldn't care less. Ranma sat down beside her.
"Care to make a bet?" she asked him.
"No, I don't have any money left. I spent my allowance all up," he replied sheepishly. Nabiki shrugged non-committally, and returned to watching the battle. Ranma followed her example.
Up close, the feeling of that he knew the girl combatant increased. There was no doubt he didn't know the guy, but the girl looked like someone he knew… Briefly, he wondered who the girl was, but soon he was drawn into the fight.
"I, Hotori Kamiya will surely defeat you now!!!!" the brown- haired guy was saying.
The girl smirked, and crossed her arms on her chest. "Let's see," she merely said in response.
It looked like she was playing with him. Since she fought weaponless, she had to fight close range. Pressing her attack, she danced around him while throwing well- aimed kicks and punches. The guy blocked her attack with his staff, then jumped out of the way when he got an opening. He didn't fight well when he felt crowded. It didn't help either that he couldn't think straight when she was so near and staring at him.
"Cyclone Spinning Staff of Oblivion!!!" The guy yelled out as he whirled his staff in front of him and made a mini tornado directed at the girl. Ranma was impressed, the guy was good!!!
Confidently, the girl met it headlong, and dived to the center of the whirling wind. Grabbing the spinning staff, she stopped the tornado, and then slammed it against his chest. The poor guy was thrown against the wall. He lay dazed for a moment, and then slowly, he stood up and faced her again. They watched the guy launch a barrage of jabs with his staff. She jumped high in the air to escape the attack, and then propelled her body into a dive for the guy. The guy anticipated her action, and held the staff like a spear. The girl's eyes grew wide, as she saw the staff pointed straight for her. She deftly grabbed the staff's end, and used it to propel herself into a back flip. She landed face to face with her opponent. For a moment, the guy stared at her blankly. Suddenly, she smiled at him and then pushed him roughly away.
It all came downhill from there. His attacks grew weaker and weaker. His defense was slipping, too. He was letting her get near to touch him. It was just a matter of time until the fight is over.
Ranma felt confused. She was quick and strong, but he can tell she was controlling her kicks and punches. Heck, he wasn't even bleeding yet. Her opponent's weakness didn't come from her physical attacks. Was she using some kind of magic, or was it acupressure? It didn't look like it. Her attacks were pretty straight forward, though they were delivered very skillfully. Then why was the guy wearing a blank expression in his face?
The guy in question suddenly flew back against the wall again, courtesy of a powerful shove to the chest. Painfully, he raised himself to his feet.
"This is far from over, girl!" he gasped out.
"Oh yes it is,' the girl countered. She stood, looking relaxed in her white shirt and shorts. Silently, the combatants contemplated each other. The guy was gasping for breath, while the girl had hardly broken into a sweat. She waited patiently as her opponent tried to catch his breath. Then suddenly the guy rushed at her. She quickly shifted into a ready stance. They understood this was the guy's last attempt for victory, this was his last burst of energy. He charged at her with his staff like a raging bull.
Suddenly, the girl started running, too. She quickly evaded the thrusting staff and entered the guy's defenses. Then she grabbed his collar and vaulted over him with a backflip, lifting him up in the air after her. The guy landed on his back in a daze. The girl stood over him for a moment in triumph, and then she leaned closer to the fallen martial artist.
"Yield?"
"Yield. …would you like to go out with me sometime?" the guy asked as he struggled to sit up. The blue- haired girl laughed and offered him her hand in assistance.
"I don't think so… but I'll think about it" she replied with a friendly smile. They bowed formally to end the fight. The blue- haired girl helped the other martial artist to the gate.
"Breakfast's ready!" Kasumi announced. With the fight over, Ranma stood up to go. He noticed that Mr. Tendo and his father were waving victory flags. Nabiki also stood up but she made no move to go inside, instead she remained holding a towel with her. Ranma shrugged, and started to walk back inside. Behind him, he heard his father ask who the combatants were.
"I'm not sure, he introduced himself as Hotori something, right? I think he came from Hokkaido. Is that correct, Nabiki?"
"Uhuh"
"and what about that girl? She's quite a fighter, and very beautiful, too. Makes me think about my younger days" Genma said slyly, "and why're they fighting here in the dojo anyway?" Suddenly, Soun's demon head loomed over the bald martial artist. Genma sweatdropped. Meanwhile, the blue- haired girl chose that time to come back from the gate.
She gave a small coin purse to Nabiki, and accepted the towel offered to her. Then she moved to Soun's side.
"Don't ever ATTEMPT to even think indecently about my daughter Akane!!!" the demon head scowled ferociously. When he heard what Soun said, Ranma lost his balance and crashed to the floor. Genma just stared slack jawed then toppled over.
"Wha-? Akane? Nnnnn…." Genma blabbered as he sat up and stared at Akane. Ranma also recovered himself and stood up. He had a look of total unbelief plastered on his face. Akane and Nabiki both wore identical smirks on their lips.
"Should have brought my camera with me! Stupid! Stupid!!!" Nabiki muttered. Akane giggled. Together, the sisters walked out of the room, followed by Ranma and Genma's unbelieving stares. When they were gone, they looked back at Soun who still wore his demon head scowl.
"Errrr…. Ranma, I saw you slip earlier. You're getting slow!!!! To the dojo with you!!!!" Genma suddenly yelled at his son.
"Uhhhh…. You're gonna regret that, old man!!!! Come on!!!!" Father and Son suddenly moved into action and leaped out for the dojo.
-0-o-0-o-0-
Akane muffled her laughter but Nabiki didn't even try to hide hers. "Well, that was fun!" Akane stated. Nabiki nodded. "Especially since we've gotten our primary income, your challenges back," she added while playing with the small coin purse. The two sisters settled down at the table while Kasumi brought the breakfast dishes out.
"That was a very good fight, 'Kane- chan," Kasumi chirped while arranging the table. She flashed a happy smile at her sisters. "… though I think you got a little bit soft because of lack of practice."
The youngest Tendo sister nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, I thought so, too… but I know I'll be back to my old self again after a week or so," she replied.
"You better! Dozens of Challengers are on their way here even as we speak," Nabiki said as she took her cup of coffee.
"Uh-huh… just like the old times…" Akane said with a faint smile on her lips.
-o-0-o-0-o-
Ranma wiped the sweat off his brow, and stretched. Sprawled at his feet was his father in panda form, knocked out cold. He glanced at the house. Right now he wasn't sure he wanted to go in there and see the Tendos. Not even his growling stomach could persuade him to face them.
He didn't know what to think. All his emotions were jumbled together. Was it possible to feel relief, loss, anger, and confusion all at the same time?
He was relieved because in a way, the pressure on him to marry Akane had lessened somewhat, or was it the other way around? Now that Akane had professed she'd given up on making him love her, it was up to Ranma to break the engagement… or to make it work. He just has to say the word, and he'll be free, then why was he feeling like he lost something valuable? Another thing… what was the deal with making him fall in love with her? Was it purely for her family's sake? Or could it be possible she was also doing it because she was in love with him, too…
He also felt confused because he now realized that the Akane he'd known wasn't the real Akane at all, and he felt angry at her because she'd duped him all this time. And he didn't know what to do next. Should he and his father leave? Should they stay? Should he be happy with the turn of events? What about his feelings for Akane? Ranma's gaze fell on the Buddha guarding the dojo.
Outside, the wind blew softly. "Look into your heart and you will find the answer to your questions…" the breeze suddenly seemed to whisper to him.
Ranma's thoughts were interrupted by a groan from the panda. Ranma glanced once at his father and decided to leave the dojo to take a bath before he regains consciousness.
-o-0-o-0-o-