Big Confusion! Boy or Girl?

Ranma was exercising in his private training yard when an attendant came to the entrance. "Sensei Chan wishes to see you immediately!" the attendant said.

"I need to shower, first!" a very feminine voice called out.

"No time!" the attendant replied. "She wants to see you now!"

Ranma was worried. What could Sensei Chan want with him that was so urgent, that he couldn't return to his true form before seeing her?

Ranma jumped to the roof of the nearby building and dashed to the opposite corner. He jumped down and kept to the shadows, in order to keep from being recognized. He quickly slipped into the outer room of Sensei Chan's office.

"Go right in," the secretary said. "She's expecting you."

Ranma entered Sensei Chan's office and found both his teacher and another woman within. The woman was rather stocky in appearance, with greying hair. She looked at Ranma with intense interest.

"Ah, Ranma," Sensei Chan exclaimed. "Come in, come in."

She indicated the stocky woman. "This is Mrs. Kanagawa. She is the headmistress of the Tamibaki School for Girls. She is here to check up on a rumor she heard."

"She is?" asked Ranma. "What rumor is that?" He was still trying to figure out what was going on. "I see that you are confused. Forgive me," Sensei Chan said. "The rumor in question is that there is a boy on campus here."

"A boy?" Ranma Chan asked incredulously.

"Yes," Sensei Chan replied with a laugh. "Namely, you!"

"Me?"

"Yes, you!" Sensei Chan said. She turned to Mrs. Kanagawa. "As you can see, Ranma looks nothing like a boy."

"My students are quite sure that it was a boy they saw with your students yesterday," Mrs. Kanagawa said in a befuddled manner. "They have never been wrong before."

"There is always a first time," Sensei Chan laughed.

Ranma began to fathom what was going on. He started to get in on the act.

"I think that I can explain the discrepancy," he said.

"Of course!" Sensei Chan exclaimed. "Your clothes! That has got to be it!"

She turned to Mrs. Kanagawa and explained. "Ranma is something of a 'tomboy'. She prefers to wear shirts and slacks when she goes out on the town. From a distance, she could be mistaken for a boy, with such attire, especially since she wears her hair short. That could explain your students' mistake."

"Well, I don't know," Mrs. Kanagawa mused. "It is possible. However, I still can't see my students ever making such a mistake."

"It happens," Sensei Chan assured her. "It's nothing to worry about."

Mrs. Kanagawa slowly got up from her chair. She inspected Ranma on more time, then, shaking her head, started for the door. "Sorry to have bothered you," she said to Sensei Chan.

"No bother at all," Sensei Chan replied with a smile. She bowed towards Mrs. Kanagawa, who returned the bow. Mrs. Kanagawa then left the office, still shaking her head.

"What was that all about?" Ranma asked.

"It seems you made quite an impression yesterday," Sensei Chan replied. "The whole Tamibaki School is buzzing about it."

"That's the rival school the girls told me about yesterday?" Ranma asked.

"Yes. We've been at odds with each other in athletics, enrollment, and, unfortunately, in the streets.

"In fact, I want to thank you for your chaperoning the girls yesterday. When I heard that the Tamibaki girls were in town, I expected trouble. I've had to discipline our girls on several occasions for street brawls and property damage. Thanks to you, there was neither. I do believe that you are starting to rub off on the girls."

Sensei Chan smiled at Ranma, who started to feel quite uncomfortable. Sensei Chan laughed at this. Just then, an attendant came in with a pot of hot water. Ranma gratefully took the pot and poured it over himself, thus returning to his normal form.

"As part of our little rivalry, I thought it might be a good idea to keep our rivals guessing for now," Sensei Chan continued. "While Mrs. Kanagawa is a nice enough person, many of her staff are just as snobby as the students."

"Sounds like a couple of people I know," Ranma said.

"Ah! You know the type."

Both Ranma and Sensei Chan laughed at this for a few seconds.

Sensei Chan looked at Ranma with a twinkle in her eye. "I would like it if you could help us keep our rivals off balance by changing from boy to girl and back again from time to time, when it is convenient for you to do so, of course," she said. "It would be a great joke to play on our rivals."

"Just how would this work out?" Ranma asked, his interest piqued.

"While on the school grounds, you would retain your male form," Sensei Chan replied. "When going on errands in town, or enjoying an evening out, you would be in your female form. We would have pots of hot water in strategic places, so you could change back into a boy at a moment's notice.

"The girls who spy on you while on campus would see a boy. Those you meet in town would see a girl. This would keep them guessing for a long time."

Sensei Chan chuckled. "I would love to see the expression on their faces as they try to figure this one out. It may just bring them down a few pegs."

She looked at Ranma expectantly. "Well?" she asked.

"I'll do it!" Ranma exclaimed.

"Good!" Sensei Chan laughed.

Ranma turned to leave. "There is one other thing," Sensei Chan said to him, in a more somber manner.

"What is that?" Ranma asked, a bit nervously.

"Mrs. Kanagawa informed me that several of her girls were in a state of disarray when they returned to their campus last night. It seems that they were attacked by person or persons unknown. What the reason for this was is unknown as well, but I have a feeling that our girls had something to do with it. Can you give me any clue as to what happened?"

"I'm afraid not," Ranma replied. "This is all news to me. I informed the girls of the curfew hour, then went to the rendezvous spot myself. It was a pretty uneventful walk."

"I see," Sensei Chan said. "I thought as much."

"I could talk to girls if you like," Ranma offered.

Sensei Chan playfully chided him. "Discipline on this campus is my responsibility," she laughed. "I'll talk to them."

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It was a few days later. Ranma Chan was on a shopping trip for supplies for the school. As foreseen, several girls from the Tamibaki School were in the area.

Ranma Chan smiled to herself, as she spied a couple of the girls duck around a corner behind her. A lot of tongues must be wagging back at their campus. She continued on her way, confident in the fact that she was still being followed.

Ranma Chan thought back over the past few days. Sensei Chan had indeed talked to the other girls. They had confessed to the mysterious events of the previous evening. They had reported that Ranma had inadvertently stopped an assault on his person by two of the rival school's students, and that the others wanted revenge. Ranma's fellow students felt compelled to protect their chaperon, and have some fun at the same time.

Sensei Chan had praised them on their self-control during the situation and asked them to keep a sharp lookout for the Tamibaki girls over the next several days. They had done so with great efficiency, spotting several of their rivals with binoculars on the wall surrounding the campus, trying to get a glimpse of Ranma as he went about his daily routine.

Now, these same girls were getting the shock of their lives as they trailed a female Ranma, when the one seen at school had been a male. Something strange was going on, and they were determined to discover what it was.

Ranma Chan laughed inwardly. This was a great joke that Sensei Chan was playing on the rival schoolgirls. He was happy to be part of it. It was so seldom that he got to have any real fun.

Ranma Chan finished the shopping and returned to the martial arts academy, the grey-skirted girls following close behind. As the doors closed behind Ranma Chan, the investigators rushed for the wall. As they looked over the top, an amazing surprise met their eyes. There, carrying the basket, was a boy!

Several of Ranma's fellow students came out to meet him. They had also been let in on the joke, although they had not been informed of Ranma's secret. Instead, they had been told that Sensei Chan had succeeded in making Mrs. Kanagawa believe that Ranma was a girl rather than a boy, in order to confuse their rivals. Several girls had volunteered to go out dressed as Ranma, to further the deception. This had worked out quite nicely.

Like Ranma, these girls also sported pigtails, so it was a simple matter to dress them up in clothes similar to his own. They would leave the academy singly or in groups of two or three. The latter groups really caused confusion, as they would be reported as spotted in several parts of the community almost simultaneously.

"Are they still up there?" Ranma asked one of the girls he walked through the group.

"Yes," came the giggled reply. "They are as befuddled as ever, too!"

"You should see the look on their faces," laughed another. "They still can't get over the shock of seeing you."

"Wish I could, but I can't," Ranma replied with a laugh. "That would give the game away. Much better to keep them guessing."

With that, Ranma walked into the main complex, the girls dancing around him as he walked.

------------

Akane had been able to get out of the house and back to Ranma's summer school once again, and was touring the town when she saw a familiar figure. She raced toward the intersection, calling out Ranma's name. When she reached the spot, she got the shock of her life. Upon turning around, the person in question revealed herself to be a girl wearing clothes similar to Ranma's. Her face, however, was completely different.

Akane was dumbfounded. The hair was the same, and the clothes were the same, but the person was somebody other than Ranma. Just what was going on here?

Akane saw a movement to her right. Another pigtailed person was running by. This time it was Ranma. Akane gave chase. So did a group of grey-skirted girls.

Ranma dashed into an alley and quickly lost Akane. The grey-skirted girls, however, were still hot on his trail. Ranma rounded a corner, found a bucket of cold water, poured it over himself, then resumed his run, allowing the grey-skirted group to close the gap.

They soon pounced on the person they thought to be Ranma. They were half right. In reality, it was Ranma Chan. It was evening, and the shadows were long, so Ranma's pursuers were unable to verify their target.

The group of grey-skirted girls half carried and half dragged Ranma Chan to a small warehouse a few blocks away. "We got him!" one exclaimed, as the group entered the building.

"Let's see him," a calm voice called back softly.

There, in the middle of the room, was a fairly tall girl, seated in a chair. She was the leader of the grey-skirted mob.

A group of three girls dragged Ranma Chan to her. She carefully inspected their captive. A look of concern crossed her face. "There's something wrong here," she said.

The others looked at each other in shock. "What is it?" one asked nervously.

"Something just doesn't seem right," their leader replied. "Are you sure that you stayed on his trail throughout the evening?"

The rest nodded affirmatively.

"Well," the leader said in a befuddled manner. "Our captive seems to be a girl."

"A girl!" the others chorused.

"Yes," their leader replied.

"But we were chasing a boy!" one girl said, almost panic stricken.

"Do I look like a boy to you?" Ranma Chan cried out angrily.

"No," the leader said, shaking her head. She motioned for her followers to release Ranma Chan.

"I don't understand it," one of the grey-skirted huntresses muttered. "We were following a boy. How on earth did we catch a girl, instead?"

"Don't look at me," Ranma Chan said irately, as several pairs of eyes turned in her direction. "I was just minding my own business when I was accosted from behind."

"Did you see a boy sporting a pigtail go running past you, by any chance?" the leader of the grey-skirted girls asked.

"No," Ranma Chan growled. "Whoever heard of a boy with a pigtail in these parts, anyway?"

"Hmmm," the lead girl mused. "It appears that we have made a serious mistake. Please accept our apologies."

She clapped her hands twice. A couple of girls came forward.

"Escort this young thing back to where you found her," she instructed. "Then hurry back."

She then looked at the group in general. "The rest of you continue the search. He must be around here somewhere!"

"Who is he?" Ranma Chan asked, while being escorted out of the warehouse.

"Nobody that you need be concerned with," was the cold reply. "Just be grateful that you are not in his shoes."

It was all that Ranma Chan could do to keep from laughing out loud.

Several minutes later found Ranma Chan back in the same street where the abduction had occurred. The two escorts quickly faded into the shadows. Ranma Chan continued down the street, this time in a slow, easy-going manner.

"Ranma!" a familiar voice cried out from behind.

Ranma Chan turned around and found herself staring at Akane. Needless to say, Ranma Chan was quite amazed by this.

"Akane! What are you doing here?" were Ranma Chan's first words.

"Looking for you, of course!" was Akane's reply.

"Why?" was the next befuddled remark.

"Why not?" Akane said impatiently.

Ranma Chan had nothing to say to that.

"Just what is going on here?" Akane demanded. "Everybody is running around searching for something or someone. There are at least three girls out there dressed like you, leading others on a merry chase. There are other girls lying in wait in strategic locations. What on earth is all the excitement about?"

Ranma Chan laughed. Akane looked at him in amazement.

"To answer your questions," Ranma Chan said. "The person being sought after is me, the other three girls are decoys, and the ambush parties are there to protect the decoys."

"But why?" Akane exclaimed.

"It seems that the Great School of Martial Abilities has a rival school in the nearby vicinity. They got wind of the fact that a boy is attending their rival academy, an academy that is supposed to have gone all female long before now.

"We are giving the girls from the rival academy the shock of their lives. They cannot understand how they can see a boy on the campus, but find a girl in town. They are so used to being confident in their visual and observational skills that they are at a loss as to this strange new phenomenon that they are facing. It has been a major blow to their egos."

"But why do this to them?" Akane asked.

"It beats fighting them," Ranma Chan replied. "We prove our superiority and nobody gets hurt. Our rivals will never be that sure of themselves again.

"At the same time, the girls at my school learn that they can use their brains rather than their fists to settle matters between themselves and others. They are all having a great time, as well. I haven't enjoyed myself this much in years."

"Well, I think it's wrong," Akane said firmly.

"You would," Ranma Chan replied coldly.

"Huh?" Akane gasped.

"That has always been a problem of yours, Akane," Ranma Chan replied. "You never allow anybody to have any fun."

Ranma Chan turned to leave. "I'm afraid that I'll have to cut this conversation short. I'm due at the library in ten minutes. If you will excuse me, I must dash."

With that, Ranma Chan ran out into the growing darkness.

"Wait a minute!" Akane called out after Ranma Chan. "What do you mean, I don't allow anybody to have any fun?"

It was too late. Ranma Chan was already out of earshot.

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Back on the school grounds, Ranma and the girls were laughing up a storm. "Tonight was the culmination of our plans," Ranma cried out to the assembled girls. "We have succeeded in shaking the confidence of our rivals. It only remains now to really unnerve them. Mariko is attending to that right now."

At that moment, Mariko, the girl that had given Happosai the most trouble a couple of weeks before, was being accosted by some of the grey-skirted girls.

"We would like to speak to you," one of the group said.

"What about?" Mariko asked.

"Ranma," was the reply. "We've been trying to locate him all over town, without success."

"I see," Mariko said slowly. "Is there a reason for your search for Ranma?"

"It's personal," was the forced reply. The grey-skirted girls were trying to be polite, and they did not like it at all.

Mariko smiled at this.

"We did have one possibility," another grey-skirted girl stated, "but that turned out to be a bust."

"Oh?" Mariko asked inquisitively.

"Yes," was the soft reply. "The person we thought to be Ranma turned out to be a girl!"

Mariko laughed out loud at this.

"What's so funny?" came an irate demand.

"That girl was Ranma!" Mariko laughed.

------------

While Mariko was hammering the final nail into the coffin of the grey- skirted group's self esteem, Akane was riding the bus back home. Two things continued to bother her during the ride. The first was Ranma's remark about her not allowing others to have fun. She couldn't understand that one at all.

However, it was the second event that really worried Akane. The more she thought about it, the more worried she became. It had something to do with what Ranma had said when he was talking with her.

When Ranma had spoken of the Great School of Martial Abilities, he had used the term "my school".

To be continued...

Next Time: Ranma gets an unexpected afternoon off and some very unwelcome visitors. Is this any way to spend one's free time?