The two girls stood in the ring at Hebereke. In many ways they were
similar.
Both were full of conviction to do their best.
Both were determined to defeat Kodachi at the next opportunity.
Both wanted very badly to face the Kuno girl in the match the very next day.
Both had practiced for many hours over the past week.
And both were named Tendoo.
They were different in many ways, too.
One wanted to win to prove herself, the other wanted to do her best because it was right.
One wanted to defeat Kodachi in return for an attack, the other wanted to face Kodachi because it was a definite challenge.
One wanted to face Kodachi to punish her, the other wanted to face Kodachi to test herself.
One had practiced alone, dead set on doing this all herself, the other had accepted help from friends and family, wanting to be at her best for this.
One was named Akane by her father, the other was named Kodora by her own self.
And neither was quite sure which was more important to her.
Winning, or ensuring the safety of her sister.
The question was, to whom would go the victory?
The one who was more willing to sacrifice another?
Or the one who was more willing to sacrifice herself?
**************************************************************************** *************
Passenger
Chapter 24: How Much is it Worth to You?
A Ranma 1/2 fanfiction by Selene Starblade
Dedicated to everyone who doesn't need a greater force looking over their shoulder to ensure they do right.
Disclaimer: I don't own them. Duh. If I did own them, I would be writing this for money. But if you so much as touch Kodora or Sin Ku in your fanfics without my permission....
I'LL SIC BARNEY ON YAS!!!!!!
Key:
" " = Japanese
= English
{ } = Chinese
[ ] = Jusenkyoo Cursed Signs
* * = Ranma/Kodora mental conversation
**************************************************************************** *************
"Shake hands and go to your corners!" Shouted the referee.
Kodora smiled and extended her hand. Akane, looking a bit less happy, took it and shook.
As she walked to her corner, Akane remembered what had happened in the dressing room.
******
FLASHBACK
(Wayne and Garth slide by sideways waving their fingers and saying "Doodleoodleoodleoodle" over and over again.)
******
Akane sat on the chair so she could pull the leotard over her legs.
This was going to be wierd. She would be fighting her sister in front of all those people. Two counts against her concentration already. She wasn't sure she'd be able to bring herself to fight hard enough to defeat the small girl.
Just as she finally got the whole leotard into place over her sports bra (the straps were a little close to her neck), a surprise happened.
"OHOHOHOHOHOHOHOOOO!"
Akane cringed as Kodachi dove in the window, wearing her usual black leotard. She turned a glare on the tall girl.
"What do YOU want??" Akane asked heatedly.
Kodachi grinned. "I have come to offer you a deal...."
******
END FLASHBACK
(Genma-panda slides by, waving large signs in semaphore)
******
Kodora strode to her corner, giving a nod to Noriko, her second. The other girl had insisted, and Kodora really hadn't taken much convincing to promise that Noriko would be her corner for this match and, if she won, for the match the next day.
As she took up her starting weapon, the hoop, she remembered what had happened in the dressing room.
******
FLASHBACK
(Ryoga wanders by, and the view follows him through several different locations on Earth in a matter of moments.)
******
Kodora was playing with the ribbon, waiting for the arena to fill so she could go out and meet her sister in the ring. She was still thinking about what she might be able to do with the ribbon, when...
"OHOHOHOHOHOHOOOOO!"
Cringe.
Kodora sighed. "What is it?"
Kodachi smiled evilly. The effect was helped a lot by her extremely heavy eyeshadow.
"Remember how I promised not to cheat?"
Kodora nodded slowly.
"Well, I have a deal for you..."
******
END FLASHBACK
(Kodachi hops by, spraying rose petals that obscure the view for a moment.)
******
Akane turned to face the center of the ring, holding the rope, her choice starting weapon.
She saw Kodora smiling happily at her, poking her tongue out slightly, her slight fangs showing. Akane couldn't help but smile back.
The bell rang.
The smiles dropped.
The fight was on.
******
A few weeks ago, Tendoo Souun would have been crying. Either fearing for one or the other of his daughters, bemoaning that they had decided to fight this out, or in ecstasy that two of his daughters had chosen to pursue martial arts.
It was a different Tendoo Souun who sat next to Kasumi that day. He merely sat silently and watched, beaming slightly that his daughters had apparently decided to keep this friendly. Their expressions were of concentration, not anger.
[Tendoo! Help me with this vat of superglue!]
Same old Saotome Genma, though.
******
The two girls circled about on the mats, eyeing each other warily, looking for an opening. Akane was using a Kempo stance, modified for the rope. Kodora, however, had absolutely no stance, constantly in motion from one position to another in no discernible pattern.
Akane took the first move, charging in with her rope swinging about wildly, too fast for the less-trained Kodora to effectively evade.
So she caught it with her hand. It stung her palm slightly as it wrapped itself around her fist.
Akane reacted immediately, pulling the rope in an overhead swing, which took Kodora cleanly off of the ground, flinging her far up, and in an arc that would likely leave her outside the ring. There were several depressed sounds from the crowd at an apparent quick ending.
Kodora smirked, hoop held out behind/above her, and spun, unwinding the rope from her hand before reaching the perigree, leaving her flying up into the air above the ring. As it was, her trajectory would still take her out of the ring, but she had something else in mind.
Kodora stopped her spin by flinging the hoop out over the audience. This also lost the light girl enough of her momentum. As Akane tossed the rope to one side and called for her clubs, Kodora landed on the top rope with one foot.
Akane caught the clubs and immediately launched into another charge. To her surprise, the hoop had arced around, and Kodora caught it as she jumped up, tossing it downwards. Akane bounced off of the ropes, and when she tried to regain her balance, she stepped on the hoop, causing the other end to swivel up and smack her lightly in the back of the head. Classic step- on-the-rake. Kodora landed in the middle of the ring a second later, and immediately began dodging the furious assault Akane was mounting with the clubs, a series of straight-strikes with the weighted batons.
Akane pressed her advantage, forcing Kodora backwards a few steps. Not wanting to be backed against the side of the ring, the smaller girl tucked into a reverse somersault, trading a few strikes to her lower legs for some breathing room.
Kodora pulled out of the somersault and winced slightly as she called for two balls.
Ranma, incapable of being a distant observer, noted to himself that Akane actually had quite a bit of raw strength, although Kodora seemed quite adept at ignoring pain when she so chose.
Indeed, as Kodora flung the first ball at Akane, she moved as though her legs had been untouched, despite the slight bruise already visible. Akane smacked the first ball away with her clubs, then looked at Kodora slightly puzzled, wondering where the other ball was. She didn't have very long to wonder.
With an audible SMAKK!, the ball, which Kodora had thrown while Akane was occupied, struck her hard in the legs. Much harder than she had expected from her slight opponent.
Kodora crouched slightly to pick up the other ball, which had rolled near her.
She spoke the first sentence of the match. "I like dodgeball. FIVE BALLS!"
Then the ball she held was speeding towards Akane.
Akane, still processing the idea of dodgeball skills into her sister's abilities, dodged left as Kodora caught the first ball Noriko had passed, and immediately flung it high, forcing her to duck. The second ball came in low, and Akane barely managed to hop it. The third skimmed the top of her head as she peaked her jump, the fourth caught her in the stomach, hard. Even as she bent over, the fifth, spiked by a high-jumping Kodora, hit the ground and bounced up into Akane's chin, landing like an uppercut.
Akane, slightly out of breath and dizzy, barely managed to turn her fall into a roll that took her up against the ropes. She hoped the world would stop spinning soon so she could get to her feet right. On instinct, Akane let go of the top rope and somersaulted forward as Kodora flung one of the balls she had retrieved, the other already pulled back for another throw. The ball came zooming in low, straight at Akane.
WHAMMMM!
Kodora had just enough time to blink before the ball smacked her dead in the face, and it was her turn to clutch onto the ropes.
Sincerely glad she hadn't needed vision correction since Joining Ranma, Kodora opened one eye to see Akane lower her fist from the punch as she got up.
That would probably be it for the balls for now, each knew just how well the other could use them.
Kodora rubbed her face as she stood straight. That had stung quite a bit.
Akane took advantage of the opportunity to gain a few deep breaths. Kodora definitely had a throwing arm.
The smaller girl winced as her 'elder sister' regained her breath. She'd forgotten herself and gotten a little too serious for a moment. She walked over to Akane, but the other girl looked up, saw her coming, and held her hands up in a warding gesture.
"It's okay..." Akane said to Kodora's dismayed expression. "I got carried away too..."
******
Kodachi, in the audience, sat and fumed. Not only did she have no control over who she would wind up fighting, but she'd lost a bet to that vile mercenary, Nabiki Tendoo.
She didn't understand why neither of the Tendoo sisters had agreed to let her help them. This battle would be already over if they had, the rigged equipment would have let one gain an early advantage with a serious snowball effect.
At least she was getting to see their methods.
Or would have, if this damned panda hadn't accidentally glued everyone near it to their seats. And why on earth had the hairy beast chosen to sit in front of HER??
******
Kodora sighed in relief and backed off slightly.
Akane nodded to her. "Win by removal from the ring?"
Kodora nodded back. "Sounds good to me."
There were two weapon calls, and they were at it again, Akane having skipped the hoop (she had learned that she really REALLY sucked with it.).
Akane was now using the ribbon, while Kodora had switched to the rope.
Akane frowned slightly. No matter how she looped the ribbon to circumvent the shield provided by the rapidly spinning and lashing rope, Kodora would always bat it solidly away. In her hands, the rope was as a solid weapon from its momentum, never ceasing in motion, though she held it in only one hand, folded at half length.
Akane gave up her assault, twirling the ribbon in a lazy spiral around herself, set to block any attack her sister made with the rope. Much to Akane's surprise, Kodora immediately lashed out with the rope, letting go of one end, and the other flung out and wrapped itself in a tangle with the ribbon. With a swift yank, Kodora tried to rip the ribbon from Akane's grasp, but Akane had already braced herself, with both hands on the handle of the ribbon. Kodora shifted, and began pulling with her legs. Inexorably, Akane was being dragged towards her.
Several of the boys from Furinkan gasped to see Akane being straight out out-powered in any way at all by anyone short of a nine-hundred-pound gorilla or perhaps that panda over there.
However, Kodora's legs were only so long. Once she reached full stretch, she would have to lose her grip on the mat with both feet to re-brace herself to pull further. Plus, her shoulder was starting to hurt a lot.
"BALL!" she shouted out. Catching it with her free hand, she bounced it high off the mat. Letting go of the rope, she spun. Akane stumbled back as the force she was bracing against disappeared. She saw in slo-mo as Kodora spun around once, leg extended and slightly back. The ball hit position just as Kodora swung her leg hard for a bit of extra force.
Akane could see as the ball changed shape, almost to bursting, from the force of the kick. She couldn't move but in slo-mo as well, her feet slowly gaining her balance back. She could tell, as the ball, deformed into an oblong by it's speed, rushed towards her, that she couldn't get her balance back in time to dodge it. So she pulled her legs out from under herself, and fell. Time went back to normal with a snap.
Kodora snapped the ribbon Noriko had just tossed her taut between her hands, then gaped. The ball she had kicked had caught the top rope, which had thrown it back at her just as hard as she had kicked it in the first place. She started to bend backwards, keeping the ribbon in guard position. There was a second snap as the ball broke through the ribbon. She continued to limbo, trying desperately to get out of the way of her own projectile gone awry.
It didn't quite work. The ball sped on, barely hindered by the ribbon, and smacked her in the center of the chest, flinging her the remaining half the width of the ring into the ropes. The ball itself deflected into the air, spinning at incredible speed, moving in a shallow arc that ended in the face of a panda. The force was enough to rip the panda's fur out of it's butt, as the beast fell backwards off the seat that it's fur was still stuck to.
There was a desperate "AAAAA-" that cut short as the panda landed on Kodachi.
Kodora got up. That was it. Her ribbon was broken, she had one last weapon to call on. Akane, too, had only one remaining thing she hadn't used yet.
"CLUBS!"
"BALL!"
Most of the people in the audience gaped at Kodora's clubs. Specially made, they were really mostly just a pair of sticks. They were only slightly wider at the end than at the handle, and smooth all along. They were also made of heavy plastic.
Akane caught the ball as she jumped up, and spiked it towards Kodora. Kodora crossed her arms over herself, each arm holding it's club wide to the other side of her body.
"DONKI HASAMI!" (Blunt Scissors)
She brought the clubs in wide swings, and they met each other at the base as they caught the ball with a heavy blow on both sides at once.
The inflated ball, being made of rubber, gave in and popped.
Akane blinked. That was new. Yumi hadn't told her about that one. Akane glanced at her corner, who shrugged. Apparently, Kodora had pulled that one from thin air.
Akane decided to fight fire with fire, and switched back to her clubs.
******
A very large panda that had been slumped on the row of seats behind it sat up, very suddenly paying close attention to the match.
Kodachi slumped out of her seat, took a breath of sweet, sweet air at last, and passed out.
******
Souun looked surprised. "A new technique? She invented that on her own?" He muttered to himself.
The only person he'd known who'd done that before was Genma.... And he'd gone on to create two very powerful sets of highly advanced moves, eventually.
******
Somewhere in a mountain range, a storm was occuring. The shrine in the Tendoo Dojo shook, but did not fall. Noone was watching it, there would have been no point.
A lightning bolt struck a rock covered in paper wards. The boulder shattered, and half fell into the hole it had sat in front of.
There was a muffled "Ouch!" from inside the hole.
An avalange triggered, burying the hole.
Ryoga, standing on top of the mountain, threw another pebble off, thought a moment, and then continued on, umbrella held carefully overhead.
******
The battle had become a fast, furious set of countered club-strikes. Twice now Kodora had used the Donki Hasami to break the head off of one or the other of Akane's clubs. Yumi didn't have any more to throw.
Kodora had taken her share of hits each time she had focused for the special attack, though. She needed to get Akane out of the ring before her opponent could land too many more blows, and the Blunt Scissors just weren't cutting it.
Pun intended.
Kodora upped her speed, sacrificing all form of power to execute a flurry of rapid blows. She had used this in the past to tickle people. It dropped all accuracy and power for sheer speed, allowing her to strike an area she chose beforehand with a set of totally random strikes. She was used to doing it bare-handed, and contacting with just her fingers.
Akane let go of one club as the hand holding it took several hits in the space of a second.
Then, Kodora had it.
Dropping her clubs, she rolled forward, spinning midway through the somersault. She hoped Akane would forgive her for this. She unrolled backwards, ramming into Akane with her back. Her sister stumbled, dropping the other club. Kodora grabbed Akane's still-outstretched hand, and rolled forwards again, taking Akane with her. Akane, surprised, wasn't able to shift her center of balance far enough, and flew in a short arc over Kodora that terminated in a surprisingly soft landing on the mat. Kodora kept rolling, however, mashing her sister slightly into the mat. Her feet landed on Akane's belly, and she kept up the somersault, pulling Akane up above her again. As Akane continued through the air, Kodora planted her back on the mat, and her feet in Akane's gut, legs bent.
"HA!" she grunted, letting go of Akane's hand, and shoving with her feet for all she was worth.
Akane went flying. Reaching out with one hand, she managed to snag the top rope, but that was all. The grip caused her to pivot about it, and slam into the side of the ring. She fell to the floor outside the ring as she reflexively let go of the rope at the impact.
Kodora got up, rubbing her tail, which was tied around her waist again. Those rolls hadn't been easy on it.
The referee walked up to her, but she waved the taller girl off. Kodora bowed to the audience, who were cheering wildly, and walked over to the edge of the ring. She lay down and poked her torso over the edge, looking down at Akane.
Akane had a huge grin on her face. "You realize, if I'd gone all out, you would have lost."
Kodora grinned. "Sure you would Akane. The Donki Hasami really wouldn't have hurt at all if it hit you. Not in the least."
Akane reached out, grabbed Kodora by the shoulders, and pulled.
"ACK!" Squeaked the smaller girl, as her sister pulled her into a tickle- fight.
Some of the audience kept cheering, some said "Awwwww...", and others looked mildly sick at the display of sibling affection.
The Tendoo clan just smiled.
And so, in the end, neither was more willing to sacrifice the other for their own sake.
The answer to the question is that the question is not applicable.
Both merely did their best, and enjoyed it.
And it was good.
**************************************************************************** *************
Okay, notes time!
I hope you like the way I did the fight scene.
So, Kodora now has a special technique. A new one. The Donki Hasami. What else will she and Ranma come up with?
Particularly, what will she pull out to use against the Black Rose?
Good question.
As to the review suggesting that Ranma marry Kodora...
Okay, that's kinda a wierd idea. 'Specially since it doesn't leave either of them free to marry anyone else.
And it's kinda gross, considering that they consider each other brother and sister, as well.
And what on earth WOULD they do for a honeymoon?
No, that's just too, too strange.
Tell me where you got what you're smoking, so I can STAY AWAY from there.
Okay, so it's not that wierd an idea, but still....
Hmm... what else...
Oh, yeah! I'm still looking for someone who's willing to give all of my fanfiction a home on their website. Please?
That includes my Mega Man X piece that I'm also working on right now.
That's all for now!
Ja ne!
**
Los Angeles... He walks again by night.
(We hear a man walking and whistling over a foghorn.)
Out of the fog, into the smog.
(Coughing.)
Relentlessly.
Ruthelessly.
("I wonder where Ruth is?")
Doggedly.
(Dogs barking. "Hey! Get away from me!")
Toward his weekly meeting with...
The Unknown!!
At 4th and Drucker, he turns left.
At Drucker and 4th, he turns right!
He crosses McArthur Park and walks into a great sandstone building!
(Smak! "Ow! My nose!")
Groping for the door, he steps inside.
Climbs the thirteen steps into his office.
(Old phone begins to ring.)
He walks in!
He's ready for mystery!
(Door opening and shutting.)
He's ready for excitement!
He's ready for anything!
(Walking and whistling finally stops.)
He's...
(Phone picked up.)
"Nick Danger, Third Eye."
"Uh, I wanna order a, uh, pizza to go, and no anchovies."
"No anchovies? You've got the wrong man. I spell my name: Danger!"
(Phone hung up.)
"What?"
-Excerpt, "The Further Adventures of Nick Danger", Firesign Theatre.
Both were full of conviction to do their best.
Both were determined to defeat Kodachi at the next opportunity.
Both wanted very badly to face the Kuno girl in the match the very next day.
Both had practiced for many hours over the past week.
And both were named Tendoo.
They were different in many ways, too.
One wanted to win to prove herself, the other wanted to do her best because it was right.
One wanted to defeat Kodachi in return for an attack, the other wanted to face Kodachi because it was a definite challenge.
One wanted to face Kodachi to punish her, the other wanted to face Kodachi to test herself.
One had practiced alone, dead set on doing this all herself, the other had accepted help from friends and family, wanting to be at her best for this.
One was named Akane by her father, the other was named Kodora by her own self.
And neither was quite sure which was more important to her.
Winning, or ensuring the safety of her sister.
The question was, to whom would go the victory?
The one who was more willing to sacrifice another?
Or the one who was more willing to sacrifice herself?
**************************************************************************** *************
Passenger
Chapter 24: How Much is it Worth to You?
A Ranma 1/2 fanfiction by Selene Starblade
Dedicated to everyone who doesn't need a greater force looking over their shoulder to ensure they do right.
Disclaimer: I don't own them. Duh. If I did own them, I would be writing this for money. But if you so much as touch Kodora or Sin Ku in your fanfics without my permission....
I'LL SIC BARNEY ON YAS!!!!!!
Key:
" " = Japanese
= English
{ } = Chinese
[ ] = Jusenkyoo Cursed Signs
* * = Ranma/Kodora mental conversation
**************************************************************************** *************
"Shake hands and go to your corners!" Shouted the referee.
Kodora smiled and extended her hand. Akane, looking a bit less happy, took it and shook.
As she walked to her corner, Akane remembered what had happened in the dressing room.
******
FLASHBACK
(Wayne and Garth slide by sideways waving their fingers and saying "Doodleoodleoodleoodle" over and over again.)
******
Akane sat on the chair so she could pull the leotard over her legs.
This was going to be wierd. She would be fighting her sister in front of all those people. Two counts against her concentration already. She wasn't sure she'd be able to bring herself to fight hard enough to defeat the small girl.
Just as she finally got the whole leotard into place over her sports bra (the straps were a little close to her neck), a surprise happened.
"OHOHOHOHOHOHOHOOOO!"
Akane cringed as Kodachi dove in the window, wearing her usual black leotard. She turned a glare on the tall girl.
"What do YOU want??" Akane asked heatedly.
Kodachi grinned. "I have come to offer you a deal...."
******
END FLASHBACK
(Genma-panda slides by, waving large signs in semaphore)
******
Kodora strode to her corner, giving a nod to Noriko, her second. The other girl had insisted, and Kodora really hadn't taken much convincing to promise that Noriko would be her corner for this match and, if she won, for the match the next day.
As she took up her starting weapon, the hoop, she remembered what had happened in the dressing room.
******
FLASHBACK
(Ryoga wanders by, and the view follows him through several different locations on Earth in a matter of moments.)
******
Kodora was playing with the ribbon, waiting for the arena to fill so she could go out and meet her sister in the ring. She was still thinking about what she might be able to do with the ribbon, when...
"OHOHOHOHOHOHOOOOO!"
Cringe.
Kodora sighed. "What is it?"
Kodachi smiled evilly. The effect was helped a lot by her extremely heavy eyeshadow.
"Remember how I promised not to cheat?"
Kodora nodded slowly.
"Well, I have a deal for you..."
******
END FLASHBACK
(Kodachi hops by, spraying rose petals that obscure the view for a moment.)
******
Akane turned to face the center of the ring, holding the rope, her choice starting weapon.
She saw Kodora smiling happily at her, poking her tongue out slightly, her slight fangs showing. Akane couldn't help but smile back.
The bell rang.
The smiles dropped.
The fight was on.
******
A few weeks ago, Tendoo Souun would have been crying. Either fearing for one or the other of his daughters, bemoaning that they had decided to fight this out, or in ecstasy that two of his daughters had chosen to pursue martial arts.
It was a different Tendoo Souun who sat next to Kasumi that day. He merely sat silently and watched, beaming slightly that his daughters had apparently decided to keep this friendly. Their expressions were of concentration, not anger.
[Tendoo! Help me with this vat of superglue!]
Same old Saotome Genma, though.
******
The two girls circled about on the mats, eyeing each other warily, looking for an opening. Akane was using a Kempo stance, modified for the rope. Kodora, however, had absolutely no stance, constantly in motion from one position to another in no discernible pattern.
Akane took the first move, charging in with her rope swinging about wildly, too fast for the less-trained Kodora to effectively evade.
So she caught it with her hand. It stung her palm slightly as it wrapped itself around her fist.
Akane reacted immediately, pulling the rope in an overhead swing, which took Kodora cleanly off of the ground, flinging her far up, and in an arc that would likely leave her outside the ring. There were several depressed sounds from the crowd at an apparent quick ending.
Kodora smirked, hoop held out behind/above her, and spun, unwinding the rope from her hand before reaching the perigree, leaving her flying up into the air above the ring. As it was, her trajectory would still take her out of the ring, but she had something else in mind.
Kodora stopped her spin by flinging the hoop out over the audience. This also lost the light girl enough of her momentum. As Akane tossed the rope to one side and called for her clubs, Kodora landed on the top rope with one foot.
Akane caught the clubs and immediately launched into another charge. To her surprise, the hoop had arced around, and Kodora caught it as she jumped up, tossing it downwards. Akane bounced off of the ropes, and when she tried to regain her balance, she stepped on the hoop, causing the other end to swivel up and smack her lightly in the back of the head. Classic step- on-the-rake. Kodora landed in the middle of the ring a second later, and immediately began dodging the furious assault Akane was mounting with the clubs, a series of straight-strikes with the weighted batons.
Akane pressed her advantage, forcing Kodora backwards a few steps. Not wanting to be backed against the side of the ring, the smaller girl tucked into a reverse somersault, trading a few strikes to her lower legs for some breathing room.
Kodora pulled out of the somersault and winced slightly as she called for two balls.
Ranma, incapable of being a distant observer, noted to himself that Akane actually had quite a bit of raw strength, although Kodora seemed quite adept at ignoring pain when she so chose.
Indeed, as Kodora flung the first ball at Akane, she moved as though her legs had been untouched, despite the slight bruise already visible. Akane smacked the first ball away with her clubs, then looked at Kodora slightly puzzled, wondering where the other ball was. She didn't have very long to wonder.
With an audible SMAKK!, the ball, which Kodora had thrown while Akane was occupied, struck her hard in the legs. Much harder than she had expected from her slight opponent.
Kodora crouched slightly to pick up the other ball, which had rolled near her.
She spoke the first sentence of the match. "I like dodgeball. FIVE BALLS!"
Then the ball she held was speeding towards Akane.
Akane, still processing the idea of dodgeball skills into her sister's abilities, dodged left as Kodora caught the first ball Noriko had passed, and immediately flung it high, forcing her to duck. The second ball came in low, and Akane barely managed to hop it. The third skimmed the top of her head as she peaked her jump, the fourth caught her in the stomach, hard. Even as she bent over, the fifth, spiked by a high-jumping Kodora, hit the ground and bounced up into Akane's chin, landing like an uppercut.
Akane, slightly out of breath and dizzy, barely managed to turn her fall into a roll that took her up against the ropes. She hoped the world would stop spinning soon so she could get to her feet right. On instinct, Akane let go of the top rope and somersaulted forward as Kodora flung one of the balls she had retrieved, the other already pulled back for another throw. The ball came zooming in low, straight at Akane.
WHAMMMM!
Kodora had just enough time to blink before the ball smacked her dead in the face, and it was her turn to clutch onto the ropes.
Sincerely glad she hadn't needed vision correction since Joining Ranma, Kodora opened one eye to see Akane lower her fist from the punch as she got up.
That would probably be it for the balls for now, each knew just how well the other could use them.
Kodora rubbed her face as she stood straight. That had stung quite a bit.
Akane took advantage of the opportunity to gain a few deep breaths. Kodora definitely had a throwing arm.
The smaller girl winced as her 'elder sister' regained her breath. She'd forgotten herself and gotten a little too serious for a moment. She walked over to Akane, but the other girl looked up, saw her coming, and held her hands up in a warding gesture.
"It's okay..." Akane said to Kodora's dismayed expression. "I got carried away too..."
******
Kodachi, in the audience, sat and fumed. Not only did she have no control over who she would wind up fighting, but she'd lost a bet to that vile mercenary, Nabiki Tendoo.
She didn't understand why neither of the Tendoo sisters had agreed to let her help them. This battle would be already over if they had, the rigged equipment would have let one gain an early advantage with a serious snowball effect.
At least she was getting to see their methods.
Or would have, if this damned panda hadn't accidentally glued everyone near it to their seats. And why on earth had the hairy beast chosen to sit in front of HER??
******
Kodora sighed in relief and backed off slightly.
Akane nodded to her. "Win by removal from the ring?"
Kodora nodded back. "Sounds good to me."
There were two weapon calls, and they were at it again, Akane having skipped the hoop (she had learned that she really REALLY sucked with it.).
Akane was now using the ribbon, while Kodora had switched to the rope.
Akane frowned slightly. No matter how she looped the ribbon to circumvent the shield provided by the rapidly spinning and lashing rope, Kodora would always bat it solidly away. In her hands, the rope was as a solid weapon from its momentum, never ceasing in motion, though she held it in only one hand, folded at half length.
Akane gave up her assault, twirling the ribbon in a lazy spiral around herself, set to block any attack her sister made with the rope. Much to Akane's surprise, Kodora immediately lashed out with the rope, letting go of one end, and the other flung out and wrapped itself in a tangle with the ribbon. With a swift yank, Kodora tried to rip the ribbon from Akane's grasp, but Akane had already braced herself, with both hands on the handle of the ribbon. Kodora shifted, and began pulling with her legs. Inexorably, Akane was being dragged towards her.
Several of the boys from Furinkan gasped to see Akane being straight out out-powered in any way at all by anyone short of a nine-hundred-pound gorilla or perhaps that panda over there.
However, Kodora's legs were only so long. Once she reached full stretch, she would have to lose her grip on the mat with both feet to re-brace herself to pull further. Plus, her shoulder was starting to hurt a lot.
"BALL!" she shouted out. Catching it with her free hand, she bounced it high off the mat. Letting go of the rope, she spun. Akane stumbled back as the force she was bracing against disappeared. She saw in slo-mo as Kodora spun around once, leg extended and slightly back. The ball hit position just as Kodora swung her leg hard for a bit of extra force.
Akane could see as the ball changed shape, almost to bursting, from the force of the kick. She couldn't move but in slo-mo as well, her feet slowly gaining her balance back. She could tell, as the ball, deformed into an oblong by it's speed, rushed towards her, that she couldn't get her balance back in time to dodge it. So she pulled her legs out from under herself, and fell. Time went back to normal with a snap.
Kodora snapped the ribbon Noriko had just tossed her taut between her hands, then gaped. The ball she had kicked had caught the top rope, which had thrown it back at her just as hard as she had kicked it in the first place. She started to bend backwards, keeping the ribbon in guard position. There was a second snap as the ball broke through the ribbon. She continued to limbo, trying desperately to get out of the way of her own projectile gone awry.
It didn't quite work. The ball sped on, barely hindered by the ribbon, and smacked her in the center of the chest, flinging her the remaining half the width of the ring into the ropes. The ball itself deflected into the air, spinning at incredible speed, moving in a shallow arc that ended in the face of a panda. The force was enough to rip the panda's fur out of it's butt, as the beast fell backwards off the seat that it's fur was still stuck to.
There was a desperate "AAAAA-" that cut short as the panda landed on Kodachi.
Kodora got up. That was it. Her ribbon was broken, she had one last weapon to call on. Akane, too, had only one remaining thing she hadn't used yet.
"CLUBS!"
"BALL!"
Most of the people in the audience gaped at Kodora's clubs. Specially made, they were really mostly just a pair of sticks. They were only slightly wider at the end than at the handle, and smooth all along. They were also made of heavy plastic.
Akane caught the ball as she jumped up, and spiked it towards Kodora. Kodora crossed her arms over herself, each arm holding it's club wide to the other side of her body.
"DONKI HASAMI!" (Blunt Scissors)
She brought the clubs in wide swings, and they met each other at the base as they caught the ball with a heavy blow on both sides at once.
The inflated ball, being made of rubber, gave in and popped.
Akane blinked. That was new. Yumi hadn't told her about that one. Akane glanced at her corner, who shrugged. Apparently, Kodora had pulled that one from thin air.
Akane decided to fight fire with fire, and switched back to her clubs.
******
A very large panda that had been slumped on the row of seats behind it sat up, very suddenly paying close attention to the match.
Kodachi slumped out of her seat, took a breath of sweet, sweet air at last, and passed out.
******
Souun looked surprised. "A new technique? She invented that on her own?" He muttered to himself.
The only person he'd known who'd done that before was Genma.... And he'd gone on to create two very powerful sets of highly advanced moves, eventually.
******
Somewhere in a mountain range, a storm was occuring. The shrine in the Tendoo Dojo shook, but did not fall. Noone was watching it, there would have been no point.
A lightning bolt struck a rock covered in paper wards. The boulder shattered, and half fell into the hole it had sat in front of.
There was a muffled "Ouch!" from inside the hole.
An avalange triggered, burying the hole.
Ryoga, standing on top of the mountain, threw another pebble off, thought a moment, and then continued on, umbrella held carefully overhead.
******
The battle had become a fast, furious set of countered club-strikes. Twice now Kodora had used the Donki Hasami to break the head off of one or the other of Akane's clubs. Yumi didn't have any more to throw.
Kodora had taken her share of hits each time she had focused for the special attack, though. She needed to get Akane out of the ring before her opponent could land too many more blows, and the Blunt Scissors just weren't cutting it.
Pun intended.
Kodora upped her speed, sacrificing all form of power to execute a flurry of rapid blows. She had used this in the past to tickle people. It dropped all accuracy and power for sheer speed, allowing her to strike an area she chose beforehand with a set of totally random strikes. She was used to doing it bare-handed, and contacting with just her fingers.
Akane let go of one club as the hand holding it took several hits in the space of a second.
Then, Kodora had it.
Dropping her clubs, she rolled forward, spinning midway through the somersault. She hoped Akane would forgive her for this. She unrolled backwards, ramming into Akane with her back. Her sister stumbled, dropping the other club. Kodora grabbed Akane's still-outstretched hand, and rolled forwards again, taking Akane with her. Akane, surprised, wasn't able to shift her center of balance far enough, and flew in a short arc over Kodora that terminated in a surprisingly soft landing on the mat. Kodora kept rolling, however, mashing her sister slightly into the mat. Her feet landed on Akane's belly, and she kept up the somersault, pulling Akane up above her again. As Akane continued through the air, Kodora planted her back on the mat, and her feet in Akane's gut, legs bent.
"HA!" she grunted, letting go of Akane's hand, and shoving with her feet for all she was worth.
Akane went flying. Reaching out with one hand, she managed to snag the top rope, but that was all. The grip caused her to pivot about it, and slam into the side of the ring. She fell to the floor outside the ring as she reflexively let go of the rope at the impact.
Kodora got up, rubbing her tail, which was tied around her waist again. Those rolls hadn't been easy on it.
The referee walked up to her, but she waved the taller girl off. Kodora bowed to the audience, who were cheering wildly, and walked over to the edge of the ring. She lay down and poked her torso over the edge, looking down at Akane.
Akane had a huge grin on her face. "You realize, if I'd gone all out, you would have lost."
Kodora grinned. "Sure you would Akane. The Donki Hasami really wouldn't have hurt at all if it hit you. Not in the least."
Akane reached out, grabbed Kodora by the shoulders, and pulled.
"ACK!" Squeaked the smaller girl, as her sister pulled her into a tickle- fight.
Some of the audience kept cheering, some said "Awwwww...", and others looked mildly sick at the display of sibling affection.
The Tendoo clan just smiled.
And so, in the end, neither was more willing to sacrifice the other for their own sake.
The answer to the question is that the question is not applicable.
Both merely did their best, and enjoyed it.
And it was good.
**************************************************************************** *************
Okay, notes time!
I hope you like the way I did the fight scene.
So, Kodora now has a special technique. A new one. The Donki Hasami. What else will she and Ranma come up with?
Particularly, what will she pull out to use against the Black Rose?
Good question.
As to the review suggesting that Ranma marry Kodora...
Okay, that's kinda a wierd idea. 'Specially since it doesn't leave either of them free to marry anyone else.
And it's kinda gross, considering that they consider each other brother and sister, as well.
And what on earth WOULD they do for a honeymoon?
No, that's just too, too strange.
Tell me where you got what you're smoking, so I can STAY AWAY from there.
Okay, so it's not that wierd an idea, but still....
Hmm... what else...
Oh, yeah! I'm still looking for someone who's willing to give all of my fanfiction a home on their website. Please?
That includes my Mega Man X piece that I'm also working on right now.
That's all for now!
Ja ne!
**
Los Angeles... He walks again by night.
(We hear a man walking and whistling over a foghorn.)
Out of the fog, into the smog.
(Coughing.)
Relentlessly.
Ruthelessly.
("I wonder where Ruth is?")
Doggedly.
(Dogs barking. "Hey! Get away from me!")
Toward his weekly meeting with...
The Unknown!!
At 4th and Drucker, he turns left.
At Drucker and 4th, he turns right!
He crosses McArthur Park and walks into a great sandstone building!
(Smak! "Ow! My nose!")
Groping for the door, he steps inside.
Climbs the thirteen steps into his office.
(Old phone begins to ring.)
He walks in!
He's ready for mystery!
(Door opening and shutting.)
He's ready for excitement!
He's ready for anything!
(Walking and whistling finally stops.)
He's...
(Phone picked up.)
"Nick Danger, Third Eye."
"Uh, I wanna order a, uh, pizza to go, and no anchovies."
"No anchovies? You've got the wrong man. I spell my name: Danger!"
(Phone hung up.)
"What?"
-Excerpt, "The Further Adventures of Nick Danger", Firesign Theatre.