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Nabiki appears onscreen, looking bored.
"Hey." She says dully. "Do you think most Dragon Ball Z fanfiction has no plot? Are you tired of every single original female character displaying power greater than any of the Z fighters-"
She is cut off, as a dark shadow appears on-screen and mutters to her.
"Look." She answers with a glare. "If you want me to act excited about this, you'll have to pay me much more than that. I don't even LIKE Dragon Ball Z."
The shadow mutters again.
"Fine. Fire me. I don't really care, I was just bored."
Nabiki walks off.
Suddenly, Ryouga steps through the backdrop, which shows an area of canyon, causing it to fall down behind him, revealing a "green screen" like weathermen use.
He gives the shadow hardly a glance.
"Excuse me, but... where is this? I really need to get back to Nerima to try and beat my rival in a duel."
Kodora walks on-screen, opposite the shadow.
"Ryouga, this is the wrong universe. Try going back three steps, then walk in circles for an hour, clap your hands, and jump forty feet."
Ryouga nods. "Got it" and backs up three steps, wandering off before he completes the first circle.
The shadow mutters at Kodora in a disbelieving tone.
"Well," she responds, "It's as likely to work as anything else is with him, right?"
The shadow shrugs, then mutters again.
"No, that's not actually me. Neither is this. We're just SI characters. Can we get back to filming this ad for my DBZ fanfiction now?"
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Passenger
Chapter 15: Don't forget to stop and dodge the roses.
A Ranma 1/2 Fanfiction by S. Starblade
Dedicated to all the people who laugh wierd. EEEEEE- heeheeheeheeheeheehyaahyaahyaahyaahyaaaaaaa...
Warning: Okay, enough jokes here too. Besides, I'm beginning to run out of material. I borrow ideas and concepts from people that will fit here. The concepts, not the people. Anywhich, I'm not committing plagiarism: nothing is exactly copied. Besides, suing me won't even win you enough money to pay the lawyers.
Disclaimer: The standard Ranma 1/2 characters don't belong to me, they are owned by Takahashi-sama. I don't consider the Viz Video people to actually own them.
Key:
= English
" " = Japanese
[ ] = Jusenkyou Cursed Signs
{ } = Chinese
* * = Internal conversation between Ranma and Kodora.
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It was the Furinkan High School basement.
Currently it was occupied by three people. Or two people and a thing, depending on how you define person. Heck, with a specific definition, none of the three would really have counted.
The first was a tall young man, with black hair, deep blue eyes, garbed in a kendo hakama, reminiscent of that worn by shinto priests and priestesses. He clasped a bokken in one hand, and his other was pressing a ward to the forehead of another of the basement's occupants. His name was Kuno Tatewaki. Heck, for all anyone knows, it still is his name.
The second was a short, scrawny, even younger boy, wearing the Furinkan High uniform. The male uniform. Although, considering him, the female uniform wouldn't be too far of a stretch. He had bags under his eyes, and a curious headband held two lit candles to his head. Oddly enough, he never set his hair on fire. His name was Gosunkugi Hikaru. Actually, his name was Gos, or That Scary Kid, or The Quiet Guy. He just aspired to the name Gosunkugi Hikaru. That and his parents liked to call him that.
The first two were staring at the third.
The third was presumably female. She was short, maybe coming up to a full height of 5'4" or 5'5". Not counting, of course, the quills she had in place of a head of hair. These quills were nice and thick, possibly enough to constitute lethal weapons. Toward the back of her head, they became longer, and a soft, white, silk bow bound them into a sort of a loose ponytail. The end of the ponytail, incidentally, ended just above where her real tail began. It was brown-furred, and catlike, although she could consciously control it if she exerted a bit of concentration. At the time in question, the tail was lashing slowly. Also, her irises were crimson, and she had two distinct fangs, although small ones, that tended to peek out of her mouth like they did now. All this identified her as other than human, possibly excluding her from the group known as "people". She was wearing a (very) baggy tang, and also far outsized kung-fu pants and slippers. Her name was Saotome Kodora. She'd chosen it herself, and that was that. She would suffer no other name but "Ranma", and that only by people who didn't know better.
She was trying to stare where the others were staring, and failing, largely because it is very difficult to stare at the front of one's own forehead.
From her forehead was emanating a white light, which shone past the ward, which was of the ofuda type.
"It... tingles..." She managed to comment, before the light washed down her, leaving all of her glowing white.
Kuno dropped the hand from the ward, using both arms to shield his eyes. The ward stayed in place, however. Gosunkugi also tried to shield his eyes from the blinding glow.
Gradually, the glow died down, and the two looked at Kodora.
She was standing there, still as stone. Clasped in one hand was a small ball of opaque blue, which was slowly coruscating with different shades. The ward was gone from her forehead.
Oh, and she was floating a few inches off the floor.
She blinked, twice.
"Whaaaatttt..." She stopped speaking as she noticed the strange echo in her voice.
Kuno, having known what the ward was, and for once prepared, threw a handful of seeds at Kodora. Instinctively, she flung the ball at the seeds. It struck one and was suddenly absorbed.
There was a soft thump as Kodora landed on the floor, whatever had been supporting her leaving instantly.
There was also a large THUDD as a fully-grown rosebush fell to the ground from where the seed she'd struck had been.
The three in the basement performed a unified blink. Then Kuno began to grin, which made Gos lose his cool and run for it. Kuno grinning was NOT a good thing.
"Aha! My second surmisal was correct! That ward, made at high expense to contain force of life and demon-banishing, was absorbed, and redirected to grant lifeforce to the rose seed! You never were a demon, o Feral One!"
Kodora just stood there, watching the kendoist rant.
"You are a KAMI!" he declared. "I would date with you! And so, I must first defeat you in combat again! On guard!"
To heck with guard! Kodora ran for her life.
******
Something was very wrong, thought Kodora, as she was being chased around the school grounds.
Last time she'd fought Kuno, he had been faster than this. He couldn't possibly have slowed down this much: she still wasn't up to snuff from the atrophying of her leg muscles in the cast. She couldn't understand it, and told Ranma as much.
*Ah, Kodora, maybe he's holding back? You know, because he's fighting a girl?*
*Oh. D'yknow what, Ranma?*
*What, Kodora?*
*It really burns my toast that he's that chauvinistic, y'know?*
*...oh.*
*His attitude about this, just assuming that I think he's right about this whole dating thing, that totally scratches my record, y'know?*
As they were running, Kodora and Kuno failed to notice that the other students had started arriving and were watching them run back and forth.
"You may stop playing hard-to-get, my wild beauty! Come, embrace your love!" Hollered the bumbling kendoist, as he chased the small girl.
Only Ranma knew how upset Kodora was getting. It tended not to show on her face.
*Now he's assuming that I LOVE him? I don't even KNOW him! One more stupid comment and...*
Some of the members of martial arts clubs started backing away through the crowd as they saw the demon-girl's battle-aura beginning to manifest in an enraged, neon blue.
*You need not hide behind the mask of maleness, my love! Tell all your true name and nature and hide no more as the false man Ranma!"
Ranma immediately shifted from trying to calm Kodora down, to rooting for her to maul the nitwit.
She was only too happy to obey at this point.
Screeching to a sudden halt, she waited half a second for Kuno to come within range, and slammed one foot out in a one-legged mule-kick.
"HRRRKKK!" Exclaimed Kuno, as his breath was driven out of him. He teetered, but managed to stay on his feet long enough to take a mean right cross from his diminutive opponent. Head spinning, he barely avoided falling down.
Kodora was getting frustrated. She wasn't even knocking him over at all. Frustration made her angrier.
Grabbing the bokken, she ripped it from his grasp, and held it out to one side. Turning, she gripped it with both hands, and twisted her torso away from him.
Kuno, still slightly dazed, pulled out another bokken, straight into guard position, just as Kodora spun full-circle, smashing the bokken in her hands into the one he held. Hers broke where it had hit the one he was holding. His broke at the same spot.
Everyone stared at the splintered bokken, and made mental notes not to get these two angry.
Both tossed aside the broken bokken, and Kuno pulled out a fresh one, backing off.
Kodora stood, head down, shaking with rage. Her innate battle aura was starting to pick up even more with anger.
She began to growl, as Kuno backed off further.
"Rrrrrrrrrrrrrr....."
Kuno prepared for his special attack, toned down this time.
"RRRRARAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!" Kodora snarled, charging straight at Kuno.
"Thousand Strikes!" He exclaimed, lashing out. But he was stopped at the first strike. Something was attatched to his bokken. He traced it away from his hand, and paled.
Kodora stood, frozen, the bokken impaling her through one side of her abdomen. Soft pink blood was running from the wound, though not at a life- threatening rate.
Kuno, fearful of just what he had done, let go of the bokken, backing away slowly, shaking.
The audience was pale and unmoving.
Kodora fell to her knees, battle aura flickering out.
Kuno looked up to the heavens. "What have I DONE???" He shouted out. He didn't expect an answer.
"....." said Kodora, slowly raising her right hand to the bokken, as that hand was closer.
Everyone stared at her.
"...what?" asked Kuno, not believing this.
Slowly, Kodora stood again, not using her hands to complete the motion. Her right hand slowly inched up to the bokken, and grabbed it. With a wet, sliding sound, she slowly and carefully pulled it from the wound.
Most of those watching turned green.
Then a sound began, reminiscent of nails on a chalkboard.
kreeeeeeeeeeEEEEEE
The small girl's hand trembled where it gripped the bokken.
EEEEEEE-FATCH- Went the bokken, as the part in her hand fused into a lump, and the rest splayed out into splinters.
"I said..." Kodora repeated, barely audible, as she walked towards Kuno, dropping the ruined practice sword.
Reaching out, she grabbed his arm.
Suddenly, defying most physics, not that a typical Neriman would have cared, she took his wrist in both hands and swung him high overhead, slamming him back-down into the ground.
WHAM
"YOU'VE"
She swung him over the other way, slamming him down face-first.
WHAM
"PISSED"
Back over.
WHAM
"ME"
This time, she jumped into the air maybe six feet, hauling Kuno up and over as she went into a midair somersault. The startled, beaten kendoist felt the world go over one, two, three times before she let him go at high speed.
"OFFFF!!!!!!"
WHAMMO Went Kuno, slamming into the building, making a noticable crater in the wall.
Unfortunately for her, this sent Kodora flying the other way, right into a tree with a loud THUDD.
Kodora got back up.
Kuno didn't.
Breathing heavily, Kodora looked around until she spotted Akane.
"Akane..." she said, in a raspy voice. "H... Help me to the doctor?"
Moving swiftly, Akane ran over to the small girl, just in time to catch her as she passed out. Barely stopping to scoop Kodora up, Akane ran for Touhuu's.
After about ten minutes staring at where Kuno had become a semipermanent wall fixture, Nabiki started charging the loiterers for the show.
Which, of course, was everyone's cue to head back inside.
******
"Well," Said Touhuu, finishing with Kodora's bandages. "Compared to last time, this is very good. You only passed out from exhaustion, and this wound isn't so bad. Nothing major got damaged, and if you turn back into Ranma, it should heal in no time, based on what you told me."
Nodding, the girl poured the water on herself, returning to a him just in time to keep Touhuu from cinching the bandages too tight. Indeed, what had been a rather nasty-looking hole in Kodora was instantly reduced to a simple, if still large, puncture-wound in Ranma, and the bleeding instantly died away to nothing.
"Ranma, has Kodora considered martial-arts training to prevent this sort of thing?"
Ranma nodded. "Mr. Tendou's gonna teach 'er, since pops won't." He poked at the wound, focusing on it like his father had taught him to, to accelerate the healing. Then Ranma nodded to himself again. "Should be okay in maybe three hours. C'n I go back to school?"
Touhuu nodded. "Here's a note for your teacher. Good luck, and try to pay attention, okay?"
Ranma waved and grinned in return, and headed out the door somewhat sedately.
******
Despite the large bag of bean buns in her hand, Kodora was grumbling.
Ranma had gone out cruising to get a snack after school, when he'd gotten splashed, winding Kodora up with this chore.
Unfortunately, where a cute, female Ranma would normally have been able to kawaii a few extra buns out of the merchant, she'd had to threaten and scare the man into letting her buy them in the first place.
Morosely munching a bean bun, Kodora paused, hearing a commotion on the other side of a wall.
Immediately, she engulfed the whole of the bean bun into her mouth, swallowing and clutching the bag with her teeth. She jumped up as high as she could and just managed to get her hands on the top of the six-foot wall. With some effort, she clambered up to sit on top of it, only to witness a very strange scene.
Three people in 'invisible man' getups, meaning bandaged all over, and jogging suits, were surrounding a girl in an unfamiliar uniform. The three bandaged people were brandishing what looked like mutant bowling pins.
"Pardon me..." asked the unfamiliar girl. She was tall and elegant, with black hair in a single, slightly lopsided ponytail. She also seemed to be wearing a LOT of eyeliner. That or she had excessively thick eyelashes.
"But, you are from Furinkan High School, are you not? Please, no need to rush on my account. If I'm not mistaken, our school match is in one week."
"No more talk!" Shouted the shortest of the trio. "We've got you at last!" Chimed in the tallest.
*What a strange way to dress for combat.*
*You're tellin' me, Kodora. What's WITH the 'invisible man' outfits, anyways?*
"We're finishing you off here and now!" Concluded the thinnest of the trio.
"Prepare to die!" They chorused, charging with gymnastics clubs held high.
Kodora engulfed another bean bun.
*Better than a movie, anyways.*
Ranma mentally nodded. *And if it seems unfair, then you can get some fighting practice!*
Kodora winced, remembering her injury earlier that day, although it was pretty much healed by now. *You sure that's a good idea?*
*Eyes on the fight!* proclaimed Ranma, snapping Kodora back to what was happening in the empty lot.
Snap indeed, for the tall girl was whipping her three downed opponents with the ribbon she had seemingly produced from nowhere.
Dropping the now-empty bag, Kodora hopped to the ground and ran over to the scene. The three in sweatsuits began to sweat and shiver at the appearance of the nonhuman girl even as she caught the ribbon with both hands.
The blackhaired girl froze at the snag in her ribbon, and looked warily at the diminutive person holding the other end.
"I think," began Kodora, "That's more than enough. You've already won, and I really doubt they're going to keep attacking you like this now. Right?" She angled her head so she could glance meaningfully at the three on the ground.
Scared by the tail, quills, red eye, and fang that they could see, the three nodded rapidly, looking like their heads would come off any moment.
"See?" Asked Kodora, her tail lashing rapidly. "I think that's really quite enough."
The much taller girl shifted her grip on the ribbon. "You caught my ribbon. You're no ordinary girl."
Kodora almost facefaulted. "No, really? Ya think?"
Obviously this girl was as blind as Kuno, just in a different way. Kodora and Ranma were both thinking just this.
How right they were.
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Whoa. Longest chapter yet.
In the last two chapters, in notes at the end, I asked for reviews and responses to a couple questions. I still would like answers.
The questions were:
1)What do you think of how I handled the Nekoken's effects on Ranma and Kodora?
and
2)What do you think about getting Kodora some martial arts training?
Please, if you have any backed opinion on these things (that means reasons for your opinion too), review. I welcome comments.
Oh, and if you were hoping to suggest techniques or technique names, I've got that more than covered. I've even got something like seven name options for variations on the Amiguriken-punch technique. And maybe thirty ideas for new techniques that don't appear in other peoples' fanfictions or manga. And that's without spending more than a couple minutes brainstorming.
Heh. I love having an imagination. Of course, that's what this is all about, isn't it?
Oh, and yes, I am starting work on a DBZ fanfiction. It won't appear anytime soon though. Whereas with this one, I'm posting it as fast as I write it, I plan on writing a large part of my DBZ fanfiction, then releasing it one chapter per week or something like that.
Until next time,
Oyasumi Nasai, minna-san! (it's 10:06 right now)
Nabiki appears onscreen, looking bored.
"Hey." She says dully. "Do you think most Dragon Ball Z fanfiction has no plot? Are you tired of every single original female character displaying power greater than any of the Z fighters-"
She is cut off, as a dark shadow appears on-screen and mutters to her.
"Look." She answers with a glare. "If you want me to act excited about this, you'll have to pay me much more than that. I don't even LIKE Dragon Ball Z."
The shadow mutters again.
"Fine. Fire me. I don't really care, I was just bored."
Nabiki walks off.
Suddenly, Ryouga steps through the backdrop, which shows an area of canyon, causing it to fall down behind him, revealing a "green screen" like weathermen use.
He gives the shadow hardly a glance.
"Excuse me, but... where is this? I really need to get back to Nerima to try and beat my rival in a duel."
Kodora walks on-screen, opposite the shadow.
"Ryouga, this is the wrong universe. Try going back three steps, then walk in circles for an hour, clap your hands, and jump forty feet."
Ryouga nods. "Got it" and backs up three steps, wandering off before he completes the first circle.
The shadow mutters at Kodora in a disbelieving tone.
"Well," she responds, "It's as likely to work as anything else is with him, right?"
The shadow shrugs, then mutters again.
"No, that's not actually me. Neither is this. We're just SI characters. Can we get back to filming this ad for my DBZ fanfiction now?"
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Passenger
Chapter 15: Don't forget to stop and dodge the roses.
A Ranma 1/2 Fanfiction by S. Starblade
Dedicated to all the people who laugh wierd. EEEEEE- heeheeheeheeheeheehyaahyaahyaahyaahyaaaaaaa...
Warning: Okay, enough jokes here too. Besides, I'm beginning to run out of material. I borrow ideas and concepts from people that will fit here. The concepts, not the people. Anywhich, I'm not committing plagiarism: nothing is exactly copied. Besides, suing me won't even win you enough money to pay the lawyers.
Disclaimer: The standard Ranma 1/2 characters don't belong to me, they are owned by Takahashi-sama. I don't consider the Viz Video people to actually own them.
Key:
= English
" " = Japanese
[ ] = Jusenkyou Cursed Signs
{ } = Chinese
* * = Internal conversation between Ranma and Kodora.
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It was the Furinkan High School basement.
Currently it was occupied by three people. Or two people and a thing, depending on how you define person. Heck, with a specific definition, none of the three would really have counted.
The first was a tall young man, with black hair, deep blue eyes, garbed in a kendo hakama, reminiscent of that worn by shinto priests and priestesses. He clasped a bokken in one hand, and his other was pressing a ward to the forehead of another of the basement's occupants. His name was Kuno Tatewaki. Heck, for all anyone knows, it still is his name.
The second was a short, scrawny, even younger boy, wearing the Furinkan High uniform. The male uniform. Although, considering him, the female uniform wouldn't be too far of a stretch. He had bags under his eyes, and a curious headband held two lit candles to his head. Oddly enough, he never set his hair on fire. His name was Gosunkugi Hikaru. Actually, his name was Gos, or That Scary Kid, or The Quiet Guy. He just aspired to the name Gosunkugi Hikaru. That and his parents liked to call him that.
The first two were staring at the third.
The third was presumably female. She was short, maybe coming up to a full height of 5'4" or 5'5". Not counting, of course, the quills she had in place of a head of hair. These quills were nice and thick, possibly enough to constitute lethal weapons. Toward the back of her head, they became longer, and a soft, white, silk bow bound them into a sort of a loose ponytail. The end of the ponytail, incidentally, ended just above where her real tail began. It was brown-furred, and catlike, although she could consciously control it if she exerted a bit of concentration. At the time in question, the tail was lashing slowly. Also, her irises were crimson, and she had two distinct fangs, although small ones, that tended to peek out of her mouth like they did now. All this identified her as other than human, possibly excluding her from the group known as "people". She was wearing a (very) baggy tang, and also far outsized kung-fu pants and slippers. Her name was Saotome Kodora. She'd chosen it herself, and that was that. She would suffer no other name but "Ranma", and that only by people who didn't know better.
She was trying to stare where the others were staring, and failing, largely because it is very difficult to stare at the front of one's own forehead.
From her forehead was emanating a white light, which shone past the ward, which was of the ofuda type.
"It... tingles..." She managed to comment, before the light washed down her, leaving all of her glowing white.
Kuno dropped the hand from the ward, using both arms to shield his eyes. The ward stayed in place, however. Gosunkugi also tried to shield his eyes from the blinding glow.
Gradually, the glow died down, and the two looked at Kodora.
She was standing there, still as stone. Clasped in one hand was a small ball of opaque blue, which was slowly coruscating with different shades. The ward was gone from her forehead.
Oh, and she was floating a few inches off the floor.
She blinked, twice.
"Whaaaatttt..." She stopped speaking as she noticed the strange echo in her voice.
Kuno, having known what the ward was, and for once prepared, threw a handful of seeds at Kodora. Instinctively, she flung the ball at the seeds. It struck one and was suddenly absorbed.
There was a soft thump as Kodora landed on the floor, whatever had been supporting her leaving instantly.
There was also a large THUDD as a fully-grown rosebush fell to the ground from where the seed she'd struck had been.
The three in the basement performed a unified blink. Then Kuno began to grin, which made Gos lose his cool and run for it. Kuno grinning was NOT a good thing.
"Aha! My second surmisal was correct! That ward, made at high expense to contain force of life and demon-banishing, was absorbed, and redirected to grant lifeforce to the rose seed! You never were a demon, o Feral One!"
Kodora just stood there, watching the kendoist rant.
"You are a KAMI!" he declared. "I would date with you! And so, I must first defeat you in combat again! On guard!"
To heck with guard! Kodora ran for her life.
******
Something was very wrong, thought Kodora, as she was being chased around the school grounds.
Last time she'd fought Kuno, he had been faster than this. He couldn't possibly have slowed down this much: she still wasn't up to snuff from the atrophying of her leg muscles in the cast. She couldn't understand it, and told Ranma as much.
*Ah, Kodora, maybe he's holding back? You know, because he's fighting a girl?*
*Oh. D'yknow what, Ranma?*
*What, Kodora?*
*It really burns my toast that he's that chauvinistic, y'know?*
*...oh.*
*His attitude about this, just assuming that I think he's right about this whole dating thing, that totally scratches my record, y'know?*
As they were running, Kodora and Kuno failed to notice that the other students had started arriving and were watching them run back and forth.
"You may stop playing hard-to-get, my wild beauty! Come, embrace your love!" Hollered the bumbling kendoist, as he chased the small girl.
Only Ranma knew how upset Kodora was getting. It tended not to show on her face.
*Now he's assuming that I LOVE him? I don't even KNOW him! One more stupid comment and...*
Some of the members of martial arts clubs started backing away through the crowd as they saw the demon-girl's battle-aura beginning to manifest in an enraged, neon blue.
*You need not hide behind the mask of maleness, my love! Tell all your true name and nature and hide no more as the false man Ranma!"
Ranma immediately shifted from trying to calm Kodora down, to rooting for her to maul the nitwit.
She was only too happy to obey at this point.
Screeching to a sudden halt, she waited half a second for Kuno to come within range, and slammed one foot out in a one-legged mule-kick.
"HRRRKKK!" Exclaimed Kuno, as his breath was driven out of him. He teetered, but managed to stay on his feet long enough to take a mean right cross from his diminutive opponent. Head spinning, he barely avoided falling down.
Kodora was getting frustrated. She wasn't even knocking him over at all. Frustration made her angrier.
Grabbing the bokken, she ripped it from his grasp, and held it out to one side. Turning, she gripped it with both hands, and twisted her torso away from him.
Kuno, still slightly dazed, pulled out another bokken, straight into guard position, just as Kodora spun full-circle, smashing the bokken in her hands into the one he held. Hers broke where it had hit the one he was holding. His broke at the same spot.
Everyone stared at the splintered bokken, and made mental notes not to get these two angry.
Both tossed aside the broken bokken, and Kuno pulled out a fresh one, backing off.
Kodora stood, head down, shaking with rage. Her innate battle aura was starting to pick up even more with anger.
She began to growl, as Kuno backed off further.
"Rrrrrrrrrrrrrr....."
Kuno prepared for his special attack, toned down this time.
"RRRRARAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!" Kodora snarled, charging straight at Kuno.
"Thousand Strikes!" He exclaimed, lashing out. But he was stopped at the first strike. Something was attatched to his bokken. He traced it away from his hand, and paled.
Kodora stood, frozen, the bokken impaling her through one side of her abdomen. Soft pink blood was running from the wound, though not at a life- threatening rate.
Kuno, fearful of just what he had done, let go of the bokken, backing away slowly, shaking.
The audience was pale and unmoving.
Kodora fell to her knees, battle aura flickering out.
Kuno looked up to the heavens. "What have I DONE???" He shouted out. He didn't expect an answer.
"....." said Kodora, slowly raising her right hand to the bokken, as that hand was closer.
Everyone stared at her.
"...what?" asked Kuno, not believing this.
Slowly, Kodora stood again, not using her hands to complete the motion. Her right hand slowly inched up to the bokken, and grabbed it. With a wet, sliding sound, she slowly and carefully pulled it from the wound.
Most of those watching turned green.
Then a sound began, reminiscent of nails on a chalkboard.
kreeeeeeeeeeEEEEEE
The small girl's hand trembled where it gripped the bokken.
EEEEEEE-FATCH- Went the bokken, as the part in her hand fused into a lump, and the rest splayed out into splinters.
"I said..." Kodora repeated, barely audible, as she walked towards Kuno, dropping the ruined practice sword.
Reaching out, she grabbed his arm.
Suddenly, defying most physics, not that a typical Neriman would have cared, she took his wrist in both hands and swung him high overhead, slamming him back-down into the ground.
WHAM
"YOU'VE"
She swung him over the other way, slamming him down face-first.
WHAM
"PISSED"
Back over.
WHAM
"ME"
This time, she jumped into the air maybe six feet, hauling Kuno up and over as she went into a midair somersault. The startled, beaten kendoist felt the world go over one, two, three times before she let him go at high speed.
"OFFFF!!!!!!"
WHAMMO Went Kuno, slamming into the building, making a noticable crater in the wall.
Unfortunately for her, this sent Kodora flying the other way, right into a tree with a loud THUDD.
Kodora got back up.
Kuno didn't.
Breathing heavily, Kodora looked around until she spotted Akane.
"Akane..." she said, in a raspy voice. "H... Help me to the doctor?"
Moving swiftly, Akane ran over to the small girl, just in time to catch her as she passed out. Barely stopping to scoop Kodora up, Akane ran for Touhuu's.
After about ten minutes staring at where Kuno had become a semipermanent wall fixture, Nabiki started charging the loiterers for the show.
Which, of course, was everyone's cue to head back inside.
******
"Well," Said Touhuu, finishing with Kodora's bandages. "Compared to last time, this is very good. You only passed out from exhaustion, and this wound isn't so bad. Nothing major got damaged, and if you turn back into Ranma, it should heal in no time, based on what you told me."
Nodding, the girl poured the water on herself, returning to a him just in time to keep Touhuu from cinching the bandages too tight. Indeed, what had been a rather nasty-looking hole in Kodora was instantly reduced to a simple, if still large, puncture-wound in Ranma, and the bleeding instantly died away to nothing.
"Ranma, has Kodora considered martial-arts training to prevent this sort of thing?"
Ranma nodded. "Mr. Tendou's gonna teach 'er, since pops won't." He poked at the wound, focusing on it like his father had taught him to, to accelerate the healing. Then Ranma nodded to himself again. "Should be okay in maybe three hours. C'n I go back to school?"
Touhuu nodded. "Here's a note for your teacher. Good luck, and try to pay attention, okay?"
Ranma waved and grinned in return, and headed out the door somewhat sedately.
******
Despite the large bag of bean buns in her hand, Kodora was grumbling.
Ranma had gone out cruising to get a snack after school, when he'd gotten splashed, winding Kodora up with this chore.
Unfortunately, where a cute, female Ranma would normally have been able to kawaii a few extra buns out of the merchant, she'd had to threaten and scare the man into letting her buy them in the first place.
Morosely munching a bean bun, Kodora paused, hearing a commotion on the other side of a wall.
Immediately, she engulfed the whole of the bean bun into her mouth, swallowing and clutching the bag with her teeth. She jumped up as high as she could and just managed to get her hands on the top of the six-foot wall. With some effort, she clambered up to sit on top of it, only to witness a very strange scene.
Three people in 'invisible man' getups, meaning bandaged all over, and jogging suits, were surrounding a girl in an unfamiliar uniform. The three bandaged people were brandishing what looked like mutant bowling pins.
"Pardon me..." asked the unfamiliar girl. She was tall and elegant, with black hair in a single, slightly lopsided ponytail. She also seemed to be wearing a LOT of eyeliner. That or she had excessively thick eyelashes.
"But, you are from Furinkan High School, are you not? Please, no need to rush on my account. If I'm not mistaken, our school match is in one week."
"No more talk!" Shouted the shortest of the trio. "We've got you at last!" Chimed in the tallest.
*What a strange way to dress for combat.*
*You're tellin' me, Kodora. What's WITH the 'invisible man' outfits, anyways?*
"We're finishing you off here and now!" Concluded the thinnest of the trio.
"Prepare to die!" They chorused, charging with gymnastics clubs held high.
Kodora engulfed another bean bun.
*Better than a movie, anyways.*
Ranma mentally nodded. *And if it seems unfair, then you can get some fighting practice!*
Kodora winced, remembering her injury earlier that day, although it was pretty much healed by now. *You sure that's a good idea?*
*Eyes on the fight!* proclaimed Ranma, snapping Kodora back to what was happening in the empty lot.
Snap indeed, for the tall girl was whipping her three downed opponents with the ribbon she had seemingly produced from nowhere.
Dropping the now-empty bag, Kodora hopped to the ground and ran over to the scene. The three in sweatsuits began to sweat and shiver at the appearance of the nonhuman girl even as she caught the ribbon with both hands.
The blackhaired girl froze at the snag in her ribbon, and looked warily at the diminutive person holding the other end.
"I think," began Kodora, "That's more than enough. You've already won, and I really doubt they're going to keep attacking you like this now. Right?" She angled her head so she could glance meaningfully at the three on the ground.
Scared by the tail, quills, red eye, and fang that they could see, the three nodded rapidly, looking like their heads would come off any moment.
"See?" Asked Kodora, her tail lashing rapidly. "I think that's really quite enough."
The much taller girl shifted her grip on the ribbon. "You caught my ribbon. You're no ordinary girl."
Kodora almost facefaulted. "No, really? Ya think?"
Obviously this girl was as blind as Kuno, just in a different way. Kodora and Ranma were both thinking just this.
How right they were.
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Whoa. Longest chapter yet.
In the last two chapters, in notes at the end, I asked for reviews and responses to a couple questions. I still would like answers.
The questions were:
1)What do you think of how I handled the Nekoken's effects on Ranma and Kodora?
and
2)What do you think about getting Kodora some martial arts training?
Please, if you have any backed opinion on these things (that means reasons for your opinion too), review. I welcome comments.
Oh, and if you were hoping to suggest techniques or technique names, I've got that more than covered. I've even got something like seven name options for variations on the Amiguriken-punch technique. And maybe thirty ideas for new techniques that don't appear in other peoples' fanfictions or manga. And that's without spending more than a couple minutes brainstorming.
Heh. I love having an imagination. Of course, that's what this is all about, isn't it?
Oh, and yes, I am starting work on a DBZ fanfiction. It won't appear anytime soon though. Whereas with this one, I'm posting it as fast as I write it, I plan on writing a large part of my DBZ fanfiction, then releasing it one chapter per week or something like that.
Until next time,
Oyasumi Nasai, minna-san! (it's 10:06 right now)