The Fire
Sutra - A Ranma 1/2 Fanfic By Ashoka Roque
Book 3 of "Ashoro's Ranma Sutras"
Warnings and disclaimers; See Chapter One
C & C appreciated ashoro@excite.com
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Chapter Two: Indiscretions
The shadow of the gingko tree in the Tendo courtyard lengthened as the autumn day drew to a close. Its shade slowly stretched to tickle the green boots of a certain bandana-wearing martial artist, who had adopted a pose of threatening intent.
"Prepare to die, Saotome Ranma!" screamed Ryouga, rather convincingly.
"Give it up, Ryouga," replied Ranma, eyes flashing, "You'll never defeat me!"
Both boys began to spar vigorously. The other residents of the Tendo compound looked up briefly from their evening activities. Then, with a shrug, Genma-panda continued to munch his bamboo, Kasumi returned to preparing dinner, and Soan resumed reading his evening paper. It was just another battle between the rivals, nothing out of the ordinary.
But one member of the Tendo clan felt something *was* different about this fight. While not an expert in martial arts, she was particularly observant - especially for a Tendo. Ti Xiu had aptly characterized the Tendo's as "unable to see obvious facts about themselves and those close to them." More precisely, the small monk has said this curse effected -most- of the Tendo family. That evening, one daughter in particular noted a visible difference in the boys' scuffle. An obvious hesitation to put too much weight behind their punches. Unusual eye contact. A close grab that lasted just a fraction too long before the pair broke away.
Hmmm, just what happened between those two on their trip? mused Nabiki. And is there any way I can make something out of it?
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Well, after a long day, I could certainly use a bath! thought Akane. It can't help but improve my mood.
Akane walked into the bathroom after first calling out a warning. She did not need to be confronted by a naked Ranma, Ryouga, Genma or father tonight! With a small pleased sigh upon discovering that the room was free, she hung her favorite bathrobe up by the door, and sat down on the bath chair to clean up.
Honestly, my hair certainly needs attention, Akane admonished herself. Placing the shampoo ring on her head to keep the thick foam off of the rest of her body, she vigorously massaged the lavender-scented shampoo into her scalp, enjoying how this simple act released some of the tension between her temples.
After rinsing and removing the shampoo ring, Akane didn't bunch up her hair in a towel on top of her head. Instead, she shook it out gently and got into the tub for a long soak.
Akane's hair hung lower when it was wet. She enjoyed the warm, moist feeling of it lying softly across the back of her neck. While she preferred her short haircut, moments like this made her recall what it had been like to have long, flowing curls cascade gently down to her shoulders. Akane sighed, just a little bit wistfully.
"Pensive today, aren't we?" came Nabiki's voice from the washroom door. "Do you mind having me as company?"
"Of course not," answered Akane, with a small smile. "I'm just in a little mood today."
Nabiki hung her bathrobe by the door. "I would think you'd be excited, with the big game tomorrow," she said, as she sat on the bath chair, stuck the still-damp ring on her own head and began to shampoo her hair.
"Well, this stupid wedding business is starting to get to me. Did you see those awful invitations?"
"Akane-chan," said Nabiki, looking up from under her shampoo hat, "Those 'awful' invitations cost 30,000 yen. You should be glad I was able to add it to Dad's loan."
Despite being up to her chest in deliciously warm water, Akane's insides grew slightly chill. Why does it always come down to money, with her? She doesn't seem to care about anything else.
But Nabiki was concerned for her sister. Talk of the upcoming wedding reminded her about Ranma and Ryouga, and her recent discovery. After a little mental exercise, and some further observations over dinner, she had a pretty good idea of what was up between the two of them. They had better learn to be a little more discrete, thought Nabiki, quietly shaking her head. Not than anyone else around here is likely to notice, but the rest of the world isn't so naive. While this recent revelation wasn't particularly a shock, Ranma was an area where Akane was especially shortsighted. And if Akane might be hurt, this was an occasion when potentially useful information just couldn't be held back.
Nabiki finished rinsing her hair, and got into the tub next to her sister. "You know, Akane-chan," began Nabiki, turning slightly towards her sister, "There's something about Ranma I need to tell you."
"Really?" replied Akane, suspiciously, "And I suppose it will only cost me 5000 yen. You must think I'm stupid. No thanks, Nabiki-chan."
Nabiki's jaw locked. Subtle veins of red shot across the top of her chest and up her neck. Why do I even bother? she thought. Nabiki was often the only Tendo who clearly saw through to the heart of the family's problems. As a small child, she had tried to help by sharing her insights. Father needed to remarry, but he ignored Nabiki's gentle reassurance. Kasumi obviously needed a life outside of the kitchen, but Nabiki only encountered a blank stare when she tried to talk about Dr. Tofu's obvious affection. The child Nabiki had often cried at night - bitter, frustrated tears over her family's naivete. Eventually Nabiki hardened, and developed a flippant way of responding to every situation. And she simply stopped trying to help her family members in any way other than the one they accepted.
Tendo Kasumi assumed the motherly role of nurturing domestic spirit when Soan's wife had died. And everyone showered Kasumi with love and affection in return. Nabiki, on the other hand, had taken up the Japanese mother's traditional role as custodian of the family finances. She devoted her time to keeping the Tendo family's leaky economic boat afloat just a little bit longer, even when it meant doing something ethically questionable. But her success only resulted in everyone viewing her as manipulative, greedy and opportunistic. And Nabiki gradually grew to perceive all her relationships as a financial calculation - what was the cost, and what was the profit? And though she loved her family, she couldn't help but feel superior when they were acting self-delusional. As a result, she sometimes seemed devoid of normal human emotions like compassion and affection.
Nabiki realized all of this about herself, of course, but Akane's words still hurt.
"Why don't you just go to hell, Akane?" Nabiki quietly replied, her voice shaking slightly. Slowly getting up out of the tub, she wrapped a towel around her head, put on her bathrobe, and left the room in silence.
"Wait, Nabiki-chan, I'm sorry!" cried Akane, belatedly. Nabiki did not return, and Akane finished her soak in a miserable mood.
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The day of the big game, the entire Tendo-Saotome clan descended on the ball field behind Furnikan early enough to get good seats.
Genma and Soan both made sure that Kasumi packed enough refreshments for a full afternoon. Nabiki, Ranma and Ryouga rounded out the sextet. The group settled on a bleacher bench that offered the best view of shortstop position, so that they could cheer Akane. Ranma and Ryouga watched both teams warming up on the field. Yuri was throwing practice pitches to Akane, while Ukyo was warming up by swinging three large spatulas stacked together.
Hmm, though Ranma, I thought she only had one of those. Ranma's musing was interrupted by a familiar shout.
"Hey, Ranam-kun!"
Ranam looked over to see two of his classmates, Hiroshi and Daisuke, walking towards where he, Ryouga and the others were sitting. Both boys wore the Furinkan school uniform - the standard white shirt and gray-blue Nehru jacket. The pair settled in on the bench behind Ryouga and Ranma.
"Sorry, Ranma-kun, but we can't stay here too long," said Hiroshi.
"Yep," declared Daisuke, "We have to go down to the field and take some action photos for the school paper."
Both boys leaned forward, to rest their arms familiarly on Ranma's shoulders. "You're the lucky one, Ranma-kun," said Hiroshi, almost breathing heavily into Ranma's right ear. "You live under the same roof with the beautiful Tendo girls."
"Yeah," added Daisuke, almost breathing heavily in Ranma's left ear. "All we can do is dream. Too bad most of those American girls are so...overly athletic."
Both boys momentarily wrestled Ranma backwards, pinning him against the bleacher seat between them.
"Don't you ever forget..." began Hiroshi.
"...how lucky you are, Ranma-kun!" finished Daisuke.
Having established their point, the pair released Ranma and made their way down from the bleachers.
During this incident, Ryouga's eyes had developed a slightly feral slant. "Well, well, Ranma-kun. It sure looks like those two are pretty touchy-feely with you."
Ranma looked around nervously, making sure no one was paying attention to their conversation. "Ryouga, it's nothing," he whispered. "They always act like that."
"Ah, so - they always hang on you. Well, that's certainly reassuring."
Damn, thought Ranma, Who would have guessed that Ryouga would be so possessive?
"You know," said Ranma, attempting to diffuse the situation, "You are especially kawaii when you're jealous."
"Hmmph..." sniffed Ryouga, eyes softening slightly, "I suppose I can postpone your death for a little while longer, then."
As it grew closer to gametime, the stands filled up with locals eagerly anticipating the day's event. Eventually, the P.A. system squealed.
Welcome,
everyone, to this exhibition girl's
softball game between the Furinkan Tsunami...
At this point, applause broke out in the stands. The announcer waited for a respectful moment, before continuing.
...and the American team, the Sapho Sluggers!
Polite applause this time, except from the small cheering section behind the American dugout, which immediately broke out chanting, "U...S...A..!, U...S...A..!, U...S...A..!" very loudly and enthusiastically.
"Our distinguished referee," continued the announcer, when the noisy yankees had finally quit cheering, "is none other than Yoko Haruko, former president of the International Girl's Martial Arts Softball Federation. She will oversee today's match - a full seven innings played under Martial Arts Softball rules!"
This announcement resulted in some murmurs from the Furinkan fans and team members. None of them had ever heard of Martial Arts Softball. "Don't worry, girls!" said Yuri, reassuringly, "If it's martial arts, Akane and Ukyo can handle it, right?"
"Right!" affirmed Ukyo and Akane, voices united.
Up in the stands, a few latecomers were straggling into the remaining open seats. "Move away from Airen, Pig-Boy!"
Ryouga and Ranma looked up to see Xian Pu and Muu Su. As Ryouga moved over, Xian Pu grabbed Ranma in a rib-crushing hug. Ranma's face grew red as he gasped for air. But this momentary irritation was quickly overshadowed by the pleasant surprise of seeing the third member of the trio.
"Ti-sensei!" cried Ryouga.
"My boys, how good to see you!" Ti Xiu said, with his subtle smile. The little monk quickly explained that he had returned unexpectedly to Nerima on an errand for his monastery. "But it appears I will need to wait a few days before I can finish my business here. Before I could visit the dojo, I happened to run into Xian Pu and Muu Su, who are old friends from back home."
"I thought you lived in Nepal?" said Ryouga, puzzled.
"Stupid Chinese government," snapped Xian Pu, eyes flashing. "They tell Father Ti and other monks leave China."
"Yes," agreed Mu Suu, "It was a highly unpopular decision."
"Things are as they are," replied Ti Xiu, "but the government of Nepal has been quite gracious."
"Okay!" declared Xian Pu, releasing Ranma and standing up. "Muu Su and I go now! Make lots money selling food to chubby Americans!" With that, she proceeded to make her way down the bleachers.
"Wait for me, my dearest darling!" cried Muu Su, hurrying after his beloved.
Poor Muu Su, thought Ranma, watching the boy leave. I know what it's like - to want someone you can't have. Well, at least I have Ryouga now. Ranma gave Muu Su what he hoped was an encouraging wave as he chased after Xian Pu.
Ryouga, noticing Ranma's attention, assumed the worst. Why is Ranma such a flirt? I, Hibiki Ryouga, will not tolerate this type of philandering behavior in my potential life partner!
"He is very nice looking, isn't he?" said Ryouga, under his breath.
"Uh, what, Ryouga-kun?" asked Ranma, turning his head to look at his partner.
"Oh, I was just saying," continued Ryouga, in a normal tone of voice, "That Muu Su is quite a fine looking fellow. Especially that long, flowing hair."
Ranma winced. Ryouga's formerly long hair was only now starting to grow back from the crew-cut he had suffered as the result of a fight between the two of them. And Ryouga knew how guilty Ranma felt about it, too.
"Ah, so," agreed Soan. "Long hair is the pride of a great martial artist." This comment resulted in loud protestations from the cue-ball headed Genma.
Boy, I might have him now, reflected Ranma, But how am I going to deal with him now that I got him?
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The Fire Sutra continues in Chapter Three: THIS is Shounen Ai?
C & C appreciated Ashoro@excite.com