Chapter 7
Ranma picked up his backpack and flung it over his left shoulder. He then adjusted his collar with his free hand. Ranma still wasn't used to wearing his school uniform. It still felt too constricting. Ranma walked out the door to his room and proceeded down the steps to the living room that would soon lead to the kitchen. It was his first school day since arriving back at his own time, and his mother wanted him to look his best.
Ranma then sat in his usual spot at the kitchen table and rested his chin in his hand, slightly hunching over. His backpack soon began to annoy him so he took it off of his shoulder and dropped it. It made a dull thud as it hit the ground.
That's when Nodoka and D-chan entered the room. Nodoka had woken up early to work on her garden and D-chan decided to keep her company. Though she was still a bit weary of D-chan. She had gotten somewhat used to the soul collector and didn't mind its company.
"Looking forward to school, Ranma?" Nodoka asked, walking over to the kitchen counter getting ready to prepare breakfast.
Ranma just looked at her with a stupid look on his face. He was still a bit tired and his collar was beginning to really bug him. He felt like ripping the stupid thing off and go collarless. Then he started to process what she said. His face took on a more intelligent look, but only a little.
"Uh, yeah." Ranma lied. He actually just wanted to go out and beat something up. Where was Ryouga when you needed him? Where were his father's morning workouts? He wanted to fight more demons damn it!
"That's nice dear." Nodoka said in a motherly tone. She really loved playing the part and making up for lost time. "By the way. Hojo called while you were still asleep. He wanted to walk to school with you today. Isn't it nice to be making new friends?"
"Wait a sec… Why?" Ranma asked. He really didn't know Hojo too well.
"Because he's your friend Ranma." Nodoka said, putting down the plates on the kitchen table. The eggs were almost ready. She didn't have time to make much of anything else, but wanted him to have a warm breakfast.
"When does that guy wake up anyway? I got up at seven fifteen." Ranma said with an annoyed expression on his face.
"He usually gets up at six on the dot. Why?" Nodoka asked piling food onto Ranma's plate.
"Seems kind of early. And I thought _I_ got up early." Ranma said, picking at his food.
At this moment the doorbell rang, telling Ranma that Hojo has arrived. He finished his food in record braking time and left for the door.
"Ranma can you pick up some rice on your way home? I'm all out." Nodoka asked, getting up from where she was sitting to clear away the table.
"Sure, see ya!" Ranma yelled as he left for school.
Nodoka finished with the dishes and returned to sitting at the table. She sat there thinking for a few minutes then looked over to D-chan whom was resting on the table.
"Do you think this will last?" Nodoka asked. D-chan lifted his head off the table cocking his head to one side.
"I don't think so either…" Nodoka said, resting her chin in her hands.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
"So Ranma, You over the flu. I would have visited but your mother wouldn't let me in." Hojo said on the way to school. "You know it's funny. You got sick around the same time as Kagome. She got sick a few days after you did…" Hojo said, in deep thought.
"Huh? I was…oh yeah. Sorry. I was sleeping most of the time so my minds a little off right now. Yeah I'm better now, thanks for asking." Ranma said, faking a smile.
'Couldn't ya have told me about your excuse mom?!'
"Well anyway Ranma. I heard that you know Kagome. Is that true? Anything you could tell me about her. I tried asking her out a few times but…something always came up." Hojo said drooping his head a bit.
"Sorry man. I don't know that much about her. Just met her actually. My mom knows her though…" Ranma said, scratching the back of his head.
'Man, he's got it bad!'
"Oh…Anyway. Wan to hang out after school. I just realized that I don't know you too well."
Ranma almost face faulted. This guy was slow, very slow. He was just now realizing that they just met not too long ago and hasn't talked to each other since.
"Sorry again man. Gotta go out and buy some rice for my mom…maybe some other time." Ranma said. Giving an apologetic look. He really did feel bad. Hojo seemed nice enough.
"Ah, that's okay. I understand. You got a really nice mother Ranma."
"I know." Ranma said, smiling.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
Nothing Special really happened at school. Ranma fell asleep during math…and every other subject there was to learn. He also aced P.E. How could he not. Ranma was bored to say the least. Very bored. And now it was time to leave. Too bad he had to go shopping. Ranma hated shopping. But right now he really didn't mind. He felt that he doesn't do enough for his mother. And if buying the rice made things easier, he didn't mind doing it.
Ranma walked towards the market, taking his time. He really didn't mind the peace and quiet, but he still had other things on his mind right now. Like how familiar that bandanna clad boy with the map that just passed him looked right about now. 5…4…3…2…1…
"RANMA SAOTOME! PREPARE TO DIE!" The boy yelled hurling a red umbrella at Ranma's head. Ranma just ducked and let it pass over him.
"Hey man! Haven't seen ya in a while, how ya doin?!" Ranma asked excitedly. Finally a fun fight and someone he was familiar with.
"Ranma! How could you leave Akane like that? Answer me!" Ryoga yelled. Holding out his hand waiting for his umbrella to return to him. When he did he put it back in his backpack and charged Ranma.
"Simple really. I don't like getting hit." Ranma said, weaving in and out of Ryoga's punches.
"How dare you say that about Akane?!" Ryoga yelled.
"Say what? I just told you that she hits me a lot. Nothing to get mad over." Ranma said, grabbing Ryoga's next punch and throwing him over his shoulder. Ryoga landed and took up a fighting stance.
'How the hell did Ranma get so good? I haven't fought him that much since Saffron…maybe that's it.' Ryouga thought. Which was basically true.
"C'mon, Ryoga! I gotta buy rice for my mom. How about we fight after that. Is that okay?" Ranma asked. Ryoga wasn't as much of a challenge as he thought.
"No! Now!" Ryoga yelled, charging.
"Man! You sound like a little kid!" Ranma yelled, jumping into the air flipping behind Ryoga and hitting him in the back of his head, causing him to go flying.
Though that probably wasn't enough to take Ryoga out, Ranma didn't feel like sticking around. All he wanted to do was buy some rice and go back home. D-chan was probably bored out of his mind and Ranma had things to do. Ranma walked towards the market fingering the shikon shard around his neck.
"Now how much rice does she need? With my appetite probably a lot, four sacks full should be enough!"
Ranma then sprinted in the direction of market.
Ranma walked through the door to his house. One sack of rice balanced on each shoulder and one sack of rice under his arm. It was really quite hard to open the door like that without dropping the rice. He shut the door with his foot and dropped the rice sacks onto the kitchen table, not certain as to where his mother wanted him to put it.
"Mom, I'm home!" Ranma yelled.
Nodoka walked into the kitchen with D-chan wrapped around her shoulders. She really has grown fond of Ranma's pet, especially because he helped her weed the garden.
"Oh…I see you got the rice…" Nodoka said with a surprised tone. She really didn't need that much.
"Yep! Where do you want me to put them?" Ranma said, preparing to lift the sacks again.
"That's okay. I'll move them later. You should get dressed into your normal clothes. I don't want you getting your school uniform dirty." Nodoka said, noticing that her shoulders felt a tad bit lighter. D-chan had already moved to Ranma's shoulders and started rubbing its head against Ranma's face.
"Okay. Call me if ya need anything." Ranma said, running towards the stairs, already unbuttoning his shirt.
Ranma decided to go for a different color this day, so instead of wearing his usual Red shirt, he switched to his blue sleeveless one. He loved the red, but even Ranma felt like switching every now and again.
Ranma went to hang his uniform back up so that it wouldn't get in his way until the next day. He put the clothes on the hangers and hanged it in the wardrobe. Before Ranma shut the door however. He took a long gaze at the wardrobe. He still wondered what would happen if he decided to just go back to feudal Japan. He took a long look and then got a curious look on his face. He put his hand in the wardrobe and pushed against the back. There was a glow and his hand went through. He smiled. Thinking it was pretty cool that he was in his own time, but his hand was in feudal Japan. He then felt a small pain in his hand like someone was hitting it or something.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
Back in feudal Japan.
Kaede walked into her hut. She remembered that she had left her broom in the wardrobe for some crazy reason so decided to get it. It was about time she cleaned the place after all.
But what she saw scared her half to death. There was a hand coming out of the wardrobe. It was just there, flexing itself. It obviously wanted to kill her for some odd reason. So she did what anyone would do. Grab her broom and start hitting the evil thing like hell.
"Get back you evil spawn of SATAN!!!!!!!!!" Kaede yelled at the top of her lungs.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
"Ouch!" Ranma yelled, withdrawing his hand from the wardrobe. "What the heck was that?!" Ranma yelled.
Ranma stood there for a few more minutes. He sat on his bed, and then stared at the wardrobe some more. It was almost as if it was calling to him. He loved feudal Japan. Constant battles with demons and adventure, but for some reason it was different than his already hectic life. It was as if he belonged. Or did he love feudal Japan at all. Maybe it was something else calling him there. Ranma wanted to go back.
Ranma proceeded to go down stairs to tell his mother that he planned to go back to feudal Japan. He just hoped that she'd take it well. He didn't want to worry her or upset her. But he just had to go back.
"Mom…could I talk to you?" Ranma asked, twiddling his thumbs a bit. This got Nodoka worried.
"Yes. What is it Ranma?" Nodoka said, straitening up, taking a perfect posture.
"Well. It's about feudal Japan. I…want to go back." Ranma said, tensing up, expecting the worst.
"Really? That's great! Next time you come back, bring that nice Kikyou girl with you that you keep talking about. I really want to meet her!" Nodoka said, cheerfully. "And I thought you were in trouble or something."
"Uh…right…Just thought I'd tell ya. Guess I'll just get going now…c'mon D-chan." Ranma said, shakily. He really didn't expect that answer.
Ranma spent the next ten minutes of his life packing for the trip. Though it was a very small trip. He didn't know how long it would take him to come back. He definitely wanted to find Kikyou. But D-chan said that he could sense Kikyou, so it shouldn't take too long. He also thought about what he'd say. Though Ranma was sure that they formed some kind of friendship, he still wasn't sure what to say to her when he sees her.
'Knowing her, she'll probably just frown and tell me how childish I am, or to do what I want, or something like that.' Ranma grabbed his pack and threw it over his shoulder. He had everything he needed and it was time to go.
"C'mon D-chan!" Ranma said with a weird gleam in his eyes. D-chan nodded and followed Ranma into the wardrobe.
…………………………………………………………………………………………
Back at Kaede's place.
"So you're close to finding a jewel shard are ye?" Kaede asked.
"Yeah. We think it's close by. Maybe in the next town even!" Kagome chimed. She was really enjoying the fact that the next shard was close to the well.
"Feh! Just as long as we keep this one! No more doing favors Kagome!" Inuyasha barked.
"What is Inuyasha's problem today? It's different than usual." Kaede asked. She was used to Inuyasha complaining at everything, but today was a bit different.
"Oh! Some human guy about Kagome's age beat him in a fight! That's why he's so angry. OUCH!" Shippo was cut short. Inuyasha started beating his head in repeatedly.
"Shut up! He took me off guard! I'll beat him this time for sure!" Inuyasha yelled.
"From what Kagome tells me, Inuyasha. This is no ordinary human." Mirouku suggested. Not that it helped or anything. Inuyasha was just too pigheaded.
"It doesn't matter how unordinary the guy is! I'll beat him!" Inuyasha yelled, raising his fists.
"Why's that Inuyasha?" Shippo asked.
"Cause humans are weak!" Inuyasha said, smugly.
"I'm human too Inuyasha, am I weak?" Sango asked, clutching her trusty boomerang.
"Your different. You were trained to fight demon." Inuyasha said, nodding his head.
"Wise answer." Mirouku said with his eyes closed. Shippo nodded.
"If I ever see him again I'll, I'll…kill him!" Inuyasha yelled standing up.
"Hey! I sense a shard!" Kagome squealed.
And at that moment, Ranma came bursting out of the wardrobe. At first it was a very awkward moment. Ranma looked at everyone in the room, and everyone in the room looked at Ranma. Then two people from different time came face to face. At first they looked at each other in confusion. Then they got their bearings strait.
"YOU!" They both yelled pointing at each other.
"Inuyasha. SIT!" Kagome yelled.
Splat!
"Ouch." Ranma cringed. "I feel your pain man. I feel your pain.
To be continued.
"So Mr. Higurasi. I should start out with diabeetees and work my way up?" Nodoka asked.
"Yes. Starting a firm foundation that your child is sickly is escential!" Kagome's father said, all knowingly.
"Ah, I see."
Ranma picked up his backpack and flung it over his left shoulder. He then adjusted his collar with his free hand. Ranma still wasn't used to wearing his school uniform. It still felt too constricting. Ranma walked out the door to his room and proceeded down the steps to the living room that would soon lead to the kitchen. It was his first school day since arriving back at his own time, and his mother wanted him to look his best.
Ranma then sat in his usual spot at the kitchen table and rested his chin in his hand, slightly hunching over. His backpack soon began to annoy him so he took it off of his shoulder and dropped it. It made a dull thud as it hit the ground.
That's when Nodoka and D-chan entered the room. Nodoka had woken up early to work on her garden and D-chan decided to keep her company. Though she was still a bit weary of D-chan. She had gotten somewhat used to the soul collector and didn't mind its company.
"Looking forward to school, Ranma?" Nodoka asked, walking over to the kitchen counter getting ready to prepare breakfast.
Ranma just looked at her with a stupid look on his face. He was still a bit tired and his collar was beginning to really bug him. He felt like ripping the stupid thing off and go collarless. Then he started to process what she said. His face took on a more intelligent look, but only a little.
"Uh, yeah." Ranma lied. He actually just wanted to go out and beat something up. Where was Ryouga when you needed him? Where were his father's morning workouts? He wanted to fight more demons damn it!
"That's nice dear." Nodoka said in a motherly tone. She really loved playing the part and making up for lost time. "By the way. Hojo called while you were still asleep. He wanted to walk to school with you today. Isn't it nice to be making new friends?"
"Wait a sec… Why?" Ranma asked. He really didn't know Hojo too well.
"Because he's your friend Ranma." Nodoka said, putting down the plates on the kitchen table. The eggs were almost ready. She didn't have time to make much of anything else, but wanted him to have a warm breakfast.
"When does that guy wake up anyway? I got up at seven fifteen." Ranma said with an annoyed expression on his face.
"He usually gets up at six on the dot. Why?" Nodoka asked piling food onto Ranma's plate.
"Seems kind of early. And I thought _I_ got up early." Ranma said, picking at his food.
At this moment the doorbell rang, telling Ranma that Hojo has arrived. He finished his food in record braking time and left for the door.
"Ranma can you pick up some rice on your way home? I'm all out." Nodoka asked, getting up from where she was sitting to clear away the table.
"Sure, see ya!" Ranma yelled as he left for school.
Nodoka finished with the dishes and returned to sitting at the table. She sat there thinking for a few minutes then looked over to D-chan whom was resting on the table.
"Do you think this will last?" Nodoka asked. D-chan lifted his head off the table cocking his head to one side.
"I don't think so either…" Nodoka said, resting her chin in her hands.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
"So Ranma, You over the flu. I would have visited but your mother wouldn't let me in." Hojo said on the way to school. "You know it's funny. You got sick around the same time as Kagome. She got sick a few days after you did…" Hojo said, in deep thought.
"Huh? I was…oh yeah. Sorry. I was sleeping most of the time so my minds a little off right now. Yeah I'm better now, thanks for asking." Ranma said, faking a smile.
'Couldn't ya have told me about your excuse mom?!'
"Well anyway Ranma. I heard that you know Kagome. Is that true? Anything you could tell me about her. I tried asking her out a few times but…something always came up." Hojo said drooping his head a bit.
"Sorry man. I don't know that much about her. Just met her actually. My mom knows her though…" Ranma said, scratching the back of his head.
'Man, he's got it bad!'
"Oh…Anyway. Wan to hang out after school. I just realized that I don't know you too well."
Ranma almost face faulted. This guy was slow, very slow. He was just now realizing that they just met not too long ago and hasn't talked to each other since.
"Sorry again man. Gotta go out and buy some rice for my mom…maybe some other time." Ranma said. Giving an apologetic look. He really did feel bad. Hojo seemed nice enough.
"Ah, that's okay. I understand. You got a really nice mother Ranma."
"I know." Ranma said, smiling.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
Nothing Special really happened at school. Ranma fell asleep during math…and every other subject there was to learn. He also aced P.E. How could he not. Ranma was bored to say the least. Very bored. And now it was time to leave. Too bad he had to go shopping. Ranma hated shopping. But right now he really didn't mind. He felt that he doesn't do enough for his mother. And if buying the rice made things easier, he didn't mind doing it.
Ranma walked towards the market, taking his time. He really didn't mind the peace and quiet, but he still had other things on his mind right now. Like how familiar that bandanna clad boy with the map that just passed him looked right about now. 5…4…3…2…1…
"RANMA SAOTOME! PREPARE TO DIE!" The boy yelled hurling a red umbrella at Ranma's head. Ranma just ducked and let it pass over him.
"Hey man! Haven't seen ya in a while, how ya doin?!" Ranma asked excitedly. Finally a fun fight and someone he was familiar with.
"Ranma! How could you leave Akane like that? Answer me!" Ryoga yelled. Holding out his hand waiting for his umbrella to return to him. When he did he put it back in his backpack and charged Ranma.
"Simple really. I don't like getting hit." Ranma said, weaving in and out of Ryoga's punches.
"How dare you say that about Akane?!" Ryoga yelled.
"Say what? I just told you that she hits me a lot. Nothing to get mad over." Ranma said, grabbing Ryoga's next punch and throwing him over his shoulder. Ryoga landed and took up a fighting stance.
'How the hell did Ranma get so good? I haven't fought him that much since Saffron…maybe that's it.' Ryouga thought. Which was basically true.
"C'mon, Ryoga! I gotta buy rice for my mom. How about we fight after that. Is that okay?" Ranma asked. Ryoga wasn't as much of a challenge as he thought.
"No! Now!" Ryoga yelled, charging.
"Man! You sound like a little kid!" Ranma yelled, jumping into the air flipping behind Ryoga and hitting him in the back of his head, causing him to go flying.
Though that probably wasn't enough to take Ryoga out, Ranma didn't feel like sticking around. All he wanted to do was buy some rice and go back home. D-chan was probably bored out of his mind and Ranma had things to do. Ranma walked towards the market fingering the shikon shard around his neck.
"Now how much rice does she need? With my appetite probably a lot, four sacks full should be enough!"
Ranma then sprinted in the direction of market.
Ranma walked through the door to his house. One sack of rice balanced on each shoulder and one sack of rice under his arm. It was really quite hard to open the door like that without dropping the rice. He shut the door with his foot and dropped the rice sacks onto the kitchen table, not certain as to where his mother wanted him to put it.
"Mom, I'm home!" Ranma yelled.
Nodoka walked into the kitchen with D-chan wrapped around her shoulders. She really has grown fond of Ranma's pet, especially because he helped her weed the garden.
"Oh…I see you got the rice…" Nodoka said with a surprised tone. She really didn't need that much.
"Yep! Where do you want me to put them?" Ranma said, preparing to lift the sacks again.
"That's okay. I'll move them later. You should get dressed into your normal clothes. I don't want you getting your school uniform dirty." Nodoka said, noticing that her shoulders felt a tad bit lighter. D-chan had already moved to Ranma's shoulders and started rubbing its head against Ranma's face.
"Okay. Call me if ya need anything." Ranma said, running towards the stairs, already unbuttoning his shirt.
Ranma decided to go for a different color this day, so instead of wearing his usual Red shirt, he switched to his blue sleeveless one. He loved the red, but even Ranma felt like switching every now and again.
Ranma went to hang his uniform back up so that it wouldn't get in his way until the next day. He put the clothes on the hangers and hanged it in the wardrobe. Before Ranma shut the door however. He took a long gaze at the wardrobe. He still wondered what would happen if he decided to just go back to feudal Japan. He took a long look and then got a curious look on his face. He put his hand in the wardrobe and pushed against the back. There was a glow and his hand went through. He smiled. Thinking it was pretty cool that he was in his own time, but his hand was in feudal Japan. He then felt a small pain in his hand like someone was hitting it or something.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
Back in feudal Japan.
Kaede walked into her hut. She remembered that she had left her broom in the wardrobe for some crazy reason so decided to get it. It was about time she cleaned the place after all.
But what she saw scared her half to death. There was a hand coming out of the wardrobe. It was just there, flexing itself. It obviously wanted to kill her for some odd reason. So she did what anyone would do. Grab her broom and start hitting the evil thing like hell.
"Get back you evil spawn of SATAN!!!!!!!!!" Kaede yelled at the top of her lungs.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
"Ouch!" Ranma yelled, withdrawing his hand from the wardrobe. "What the heck was that?!" Ranma yelled.
Ranma stood there for a few more minutes. He sat on his bed, and then stared at the wardrobe some more. It was almost as if it was calling to him. He loved feudal Japan. Constant battles with demons and adventure, but for some reason it was different than his already hectic life. It was as if he belonged. Or did he love feudal Japan at all. Maybe it was something else calling him there. Ranma wanted to go back.
Ranma proceeded to go down stairs to tell his mother that he planned to go back to feudal Japan. He just hoped that she'd take it well. He didn't want to worry her or upset her. But he just had to go back.
"Mom…could I talk to you?" Ranma asked, twiddling his thumbs a bit. This got Nodoka worried.
"Yes. What is it Ranma?" Nodoka said, straitening up, taking a perfect posture.
"Well. It's about feudal Japan. I…want to go back." Ranma said, tensing up, expecting the worst.
"Really? That's great! Next time you come back, bring that nice Kikyou girl with you that you keep talking about. I really want to meet her!" Nodoka said, cheerfully. "And I thought you were in trouble or something."
"Uh…right…Just thought I'd tell ya. Guess I'll just get going now…c'mon D-chan." Ranma said, shakily. He really didn't expect that answer.
Ranma spent the next ten minutes of his life packing for the trip. Though it was a very small trip. He didn't know how long it would take him to come back. He definitely wanted to find Kikyou. But D-chan said that he could sense Kikyou, so it shouldn't take too long. He also thought about what he'd say. Though Ranma was sure that they formed some kind of friendship, he still wasn't sure what to say to her when he sees her.
'Knowing her, she'll probably just frown and tell me how childish I am, or to do what I want, or something like that.' Ranma grabbed his pack and threw it over his shoulder. He had everything he needed and it was time to go.
"C'mon D-chan!" Ranma said with a weird gleam in his eyes. D-chan nodded and followed Ranma into the wardrobe.
…………………………………………………………………………………………
Back at Kaede's place.
"So you're close to finding a jewel shard are ye?" Kaede asked.
"Yeah. We think it's close by. Maybe in the next town even!" Kagome chimed. She was really enjoying the fact that the next shard was close to the well.
"Feh! Just as long as we keep this one! No more doing favors Kagome!" Inuyasha barked.
"What is Inuyasha's problem today? It's different than usual." Kaede asked. She was used to Inuyasha complaining at everything, but today was a bit different.
"Oh! Some human guy about Kagome's age beat him in a fight! That's why he's so angry. OUCH!" Shippo was cut short. Inuyasha started beating his head in repeatedly.
"Shut up! He took me off guard! I'll beat him this time for sure!" Inuyasha yelled.
"From what Kagome tells me, Inuyasha. This is no ordinary human." Mirouku suggested. Not that it helped or anything. Inuyasha was just too pigheaded.
"It doesn't matter how unordinary the guy is! I'll beat him!" Inuyasha yelled, raising his fists.
"Why's that Inuyasha?" Shippo asked.
"Cause humans are weak!" Inuyasha said, smugly.
"I'm human too Inuyasha, am I weak?" Sango asked, clutching her trusty boomerang.
"Your different. You were trained to fight demon." Inuyasha said, nodding his head.
"Wise answer." Mirouku said with his eyes closed. Shippo nodded.
"If I ever see him again I'll, I'll…kill him!" Inuyasha yelled standing up.
"Hey! I sense a shard!" Kagome squealed.
And at that moment, Ranma came bursting out of the wardrobe. At first it was a very awkward moment. Ranma looked at everyone in the room, and everyone in the room looked at Ranma. Then two people from different time came face to face. At first they looked at each other in confusion. Then they got their bearings strait.
"YOU!" They both yelled pointing at each other.
"Inuyasha. SIT!" Kagome yelled.
Splat!
"Ouch." Ranma cringed. "I feel your pain man. I feel your pain.
To be continued.
"So Mr. Higurasi. I should start out with diabeetees and work my way up?" Nodoka asked.
"Yes. Starting a firm foundation that your child is sickly is escential!" Kagome's father said, all knowingly.
"Ah, I see."
