Ranma Hard Core
'1'
Disappointment.
Disappointment wasn't a feeling Nabiki Tendou was accustomed to. Whenever she didn't get her way, she was capable of glossing over the situation as if it were insignificant. But this time, as she stared at the seemingly sullen redhead, she couldn't overlook this particular emotion. Though as upset as she was, she couldn't fault the girl before her. She had been quiet, not the shy type of quiet, but a hardened misery type of quiet that comes from too many hardships. Nabiki couldn't read the true depths of what she presumed though, as the buxom girl kept her eyes down, not allowing anyone to see them directly.
"How can you be Ranma? I was ensured that Genma had a son," Soun replied, hoping to get to the bottom of this charade. His old friend Genma, always the joker, although sending this girl with her pet panda to them wasn't the best jest he could have made.
"Does this look like a 'son' to you?" Nabiki said sharply, pressing her finger into the redhead's breast. The girl did not say anything, just looked up, allowing the middle Tendou Sister to see her eyes.
Nabiki let a tiny gasp escape, the girl's aquamarine eyes seemed too hard on her young face, they seemed like twin crystals without luster. The frown on her face was slight, almost neutral, but Nabiki could see the dis-appreciation in it. Akane saw her eyes too, and her heart went out to the at least temporary guest of the Tendou family.
"Nabiki! She's a guest, treat her with some dignity!" The girl that the panda claimed was Ranma looked at the youngest Tendou, and gave the slightest nod in appreciation.
"Join me in the practice hall? I'm Akane, want to be friends?" Akane's smile opposed the expression on the girl she was addressing, and her won the silent battle, as the girl curtly nodded. Though the gesture was almost cold, Akane saw the small flicker in her eyes. "Poor girl, she must have so few friends."
_____________________________________________________
"Do you know Karate?" Akane asked, trying to get the other girl to open up. Her reply was another frank nod, "Then let's have a little match."
"Tournament rules?" the girl asked, speaking her first two words since entering the Tendou Household.
Akane tilted her head slightly, "You have a nice voice, you should use it more often," Akane had said in jest, but the girl's face darkened further, "Yes, tournament rules, point for successful strike."
The nod this time from the girl was a bit more drawn out. Ranma took her usual stance, a wide footed boxer's stance, with her right hand pressing softly against her right temple, and her left hand in a fist that extended about a foot forward. Her head was down, allowing her chin to be guarded closely from the side by her shoulder, while her arms made a firm guard against it receiving any straightforward attacks.
"Hmm, very defensive fighter," Akane thought, taking her standard kempo stance, "she must be a beginner, she doesn't seem to hold any finesse."
On a silent command, Akane began the match. Rushing at Ranma, Akane threw a left jab to feel out the girl. Ranma shifted her weight back only slightly, and opened her left hand opening from her fist to lightly pat away the punch. Akane's attack was not weak, but she was fooled instinctively to retract the punch. Akane then shifted her stance so her weight was distributed onto her right leg, and brought her leg up for a prime textbook example of a crescent kick towards the other girl's head.
Ranma slid her left foot forward about a half a foot and twisted her right hip forward and brought her right heel up off the ground. She shifted her balance forward a bit, as her right fist went out about an inch while her left hand opened up from a fist again, this time with the back of the hand pressing against the side of her face to protect it. He right forearm braced against Akane's leg, just behind the knee, robbing her kick of her power, and Akane slightly of her center of balance. An almost squeaky shuffle was heard, as Ranma suddenly twisted her left hip forward, twisting the ball of her left foot off the ground so that her heel pointed out a slight diagonal from perpendicular of her stance, at the same time her left fist shot out, and lightly tapped Akane in the center just above her breasts.
Akane blinked, she had kept her right arm down in guard against her side in case of a retaliatory strike from the side or such, not expecting a straight on punch against her roundhouse as she thought the small girl would have been at least pushed off balance, "Pretty good, point to you," Akane said cheerfully, then added with a hint of challenge, "I guess I won't underestimate you now."
"Underestimating your opponent will get you killed," Ranma said neutrally, Akane's eyes widened slightly, the girl had said it so cavalierly.
"Right then, begin again," Akane announced. She once again dashed in with a left punch, quite a bit stronger than before. Ranma performed a 'matador'; shooting her right hand out at Akane's arm just before the elbow, and stepped out at a forty-five degree angle, at the same time extending her right arm fully against Akane's left arm and swinging her left leg out towards the direction she stepped. Ranma bounced her left foot on the ball for a retaliatory strike to Akane's forward leg, but quickly caught herself. This slight hesitation allowed Akane to shuffle back away to safety, a bit unnerved at how open she had just been put, but glad the girl wasn't fast enough to take advantage. Sliding her left leg back, Akane went for a thrust kick with her right, causing Ranma to push slide away with her forward foot out of it's range. Ranma immediately slipped forward to the outside of Akane before her opponent could lower her leg, bringing a tight left hook towards Akane's temple.
This time Akane remembered to guard her face, and quickly twisted her to her left so that she could step away from Ranma and face him again. She didn't get into full rotation before feeling Ranma's fist tap her in her left kidney.
"I guess that's another point for you," Akane stated, almost a growl. Her competitive nature began to take over; she would not let this girl get another point against her.
Akane went back to the center of the dojo, and waited for Ranma to take her stance again.
"Okay, this time, IT'S FOR REAL!" Akane thought, becoming extremely focused. She shot out with a strong left reverse punch, presuming the girl wouldn't be able to 'pat' it away this time. Ranma suddenly switched her stance so her right leg was forward; her right hand now low and open almost against her right leg, and her left hand only slightly open in slack tension and holding the centerline of her body at chin level. The Redhead then started to bounce slightly on the balls of her feet
Akane's eyes widened a bit, "What the...?" she thought before her fist could connect. Ranma twisted to her left, allowing Akane's punch to connect with the back of her right shoulder instead of her chin which was snugly behind it and her now palm open left hand. Then, as immediate as an explosion, the pigtailed girl twisted her torso back, sending Akane's fist off and redirecting the rest of its power, while bringing forward a stiff, and obviously strong, right cross.
Akane slid on the ground for a few meters. When she came to a stop, she rubbed her chin, "OW!" She looked up to see Ranma bouncing in her position again that placed her right side forward instead of her left, "What is that?"
Ranma stopped bouncing and relaxed, "Jeet Kune Do." the girl answered calmly.
"Jeet Kune Do? Like that movie actor, Bruce Lee?"
"It is a conceptual form that compliments any other martial arts form," Ranma explained as if she were a college professor lecturing a class, "it's very effective."
"I'll say," Akane said in a slightly hushed voice, feeling for any swelling in her jaw, "You're pretty good." Akane stood up to take her leave, "I'm glad you're a girl, I'd really hate to lose to a boy." She didn't notice the clouded expression on the redhead's face, as she walked out of the dojo.
_______________________________________________
"Wouldn't you like to take a bath?" Kasumi asked as a proper hostess. Ranma sullenly shook her head, her mind still focused on what the youngest Tendou had said.
"Really, it wouldn't be proper for you to go around sweaty after your workout, I insist you use our furo. It's really rather nice," Kasumi ordered, shoving the towel into Ranma's hands, then turning her in the direction of the bath. Ranma begrudgingly headed forward to wash up.
_______________________________________________
Ranma sat on the stool for a few minutes, thinking about recent events. She didn't know what to think about what Tendou girl said, but had decided that she needed to learn the truth. She raised the bucket of cold water over her head to begin rinsing off.
Akane walked in, and noted the redhead starting to scrub herself, "Oh, I didn't know it was occupied already, you mind if I join you?" Akane blinked as Ranma shook her head with more animation than she had shown the whole night.
"Oh, don't be so nervous! It would give us a chance to talk. So how was China, I bet you've seen a lot of interesting things there," Akane asked, starting to disrobe. Ranma shot up, and caught Akane's hand before she could fully unclothe.
"No, there is something you need to know before you do this." Ranma stood up and pulled a towel off of the rack, and then wrapped it around her waist. Opening the door to the furo, Ranma walked in then stuck her hand into the hot water.
Akane gasped as she watched the girl get taller, her hair shift from red to a crow's black, and her breasts shrink.
________________________________________________
"Indeed Tendou, once the boy gets back out here, we'll explain everything." The man with a bandanna over his head stated, "Where is he anyhow?"
"My eldest daughter told me she went to take a bath," Soun replied casually.
"Hmm? I sent Akane in there too, I guess they're taking a bath together." Nabiki stated, setting the bowl of snacks between her father and the strange man across from him.
"YOU PERVERT!!!!!"
The man's eyes went wide, and he shot towards the bathroom. Nabiki, Kasumi, and Soun blinked in unison.
________________________________________________
Akane wildly brought her right fist towards the boy's nose. In a split second, Ranma narrowed his eyes, and shot his left fist forward, intercepting and intergating Akane's punch to send her own fist straight for the girl's own nose.
Somewhere within that split second, Genma managed to intercept Ranma fist before it connected.
'1'
Disappointment.
Disappointment wasn't a feeling Nabiki Tendou was accustomed to. Whenever she didn't get her way, she was capable of glossing over the situation as if it were insignificant. But this time, as she stared at the seemingly sullen redhead, she couldn't overlook this particular emotion. Though as upset as she was, she couldn't fault the girl before her. She had been quiet, not the shy type of quiet, but a hardened misery type of quiet that comes from too many hardships. Nabiki couldn't read the true depths of what she presumed though, as the buxom girl kept her eyes down, not allowing anyone to see them directly.
"How can you be Ranma? I was ensured that Genma had a son," Soun replied, hoping to get to the bottom of this charade. His old friend Genma, always the joker, although sending this girl with her pet panda to them wasn't the best jest he could have made.
"Does this look like a 'son' to you?" Nabiki said sharply, pressing her finger into the redhead's breast. The girl did not say anything, just looked up, allowing the middle Tendou Sister to see her eyes.
Nabiki let a tiny gasp escape, the girl's aquamarine eyes seemed too hard on her young face, they seemed like twin crystals without luster. The frown on her face was slight, almost neutral, but Nabiki could see the dis-appreciation in it. Akane saw her eyes too, and her heart went out to the at least temporary guest of the Tendou family.
"Nabiki! She's a guest, treat her with some dignity!" The girl that the panda claimed was Ranma looked at the youngest Tendou, and gave the slightest nod in appreciation.
"Join me in the practice hall? I'm Akane, want to be friends?" Akane's smile opposed the expression on the girl she was addressing, and her won the silent battle, as the girl curtly nodded. Though the gesture was almost cold, Akane saw the small flicker in her eyes. "Poor girl, she must have so few friends."
_____________________________________________________
"Do you know Karate?" Akane asked, trying to get the other girl to open up. Her reply was another frank nod, "Then let's have a little match."
"Tournament rules?" the girl asked, speaking her first two words since entering the Tendou Household.
Akane tilted her head slightly, "You have a nice voice, you should use it more often," Akane had said in jest, but the girl's face darkened further, "Yes, tournament rules, point for successful strike."
The nod this time from the girl was a bit more drawn out. Ranma took her usual stance, a wide footed boxer's stance, with her right hand pressing softly against her right temple, and her left hand in a fist that extended about a foot forward. Her head was down, allowing her chin to be guarded closely from the side by her shoulder, while her arms made a firm guard against it receiving any straightforward attacks.
"Hmm, very defensive fighter," Akane thought, taking her standard kempo stance, "she must be a beginner, she doesn't seem to hold any finesse."
On a silent command, Akane began the match. Rushing at Ranma, Akane threw a left jab to feel out the girl. Ranma shifted her weight back only slightly, and opened her left hand opening from her fist to lightly pat away the punch. Akane's attack was not weak, but she was fooled instinctively to retract the punch. Akane then shifted her stance so her weight was distributed onto her right leg, and brought her leg up for a prime textbook example of a crescent kick towards the other girl's head.
Ranma slid her left foot forward about a half a foot and twisted her right hip forward and brought her right heel up off the ground. She shifted her balance forward a bit, as her right fist went out about an inch while her left hand opened up from a fist again, this time with the back of the hand pressing against the side of her face to protect it. He right forearm braced against Akane's leg, just behind the knee, robbing her kick of her power, and Akane slightly of her center of balance. An almost squeaky shuffle was heard, as Ranma suddenly twisted her left hip forward, twisting the ball of her left foot off the ground so that her heel pointed out a slight diagonal from perpendicular of her stance, at the same time her left fist shot out, and lightly tapped Akane in the center just above her breasts.
Akane blinked, she had kept her right arm down in guard against her side in case of a retaliatory strike from the side or such, not expecting a straight on punch against her roundhouse as she thought the small girl would have been at least pushed off balance, "Pretty good, point to you," Akane said cheerfully, then added with a hint of challenge, "I guess I won't underestimate you now."
"Underestimating your opponent will get you killed," Ranma said neutrally, Akane's eyes widened slightly, the girl had said it so cavalierly.
"Right then, begin again," Akane announced. She once again dashed in with a left punch, quite a bit stronger than before. Ranma performed a 'matador'; shooting her right hand out at Akane's arm just before the elbow, and stepped out at a forty-five degree angle, at the same time extending her right arm fully against Akane's left arm and swinging her left leg out towards the direction she stepped. Ranma bounced her left foot on the ball for a retaliatory strike to Akane's forward leg, but quickly caught herself. This slight hesitation allowed Akane to shuffle back away to safety, a bit unnerved at how open she had just been put, but glad the girl wasn't fast enough to take advantage. Sliding her left leg back, Akane went for a thrust kick with her right, causing Ranma to push slide away with her forward foot out of it's range. Ranma immediately slipped forward to the outside of Akane before her opponent could lower her leg, bringing a tight left hook towards Akane's temple.
This time Akane remembered to guard her face, and quickly twisted her to her left so that she could step away from Ranma and face him again. She didn't get into full rotation before feeling Ranma's fist tap her in her left kidney.
"I guess that's another point for you," Akane stated, almost a growl. Her competitive nature began to take over; she would not let this girl get another point against her.
Akane went back to the center of the dojo, and waited for Ranma to take her stance again.
"Okay, this time, IT'S FOR REAL!" Akane thought, becoming extremely focused. She shot out with a strong left reverse punch, presuming the girl wouldn't be able to 'pat' it away this time. Ranma suddenly switched her stance so her right leg was forward; her right hand now low and open almost against her right leg, and her left hand only slightly open in slack tension and holding the centerline of her body at chin level. The Redhead then started to bounce slightly on the balls of her feet
Akane's eyes widened a bit, "What the...?" she thought before her fist could connect. Ranma twisted to her left, allowing Akane's punch to connect with the back of her right shoulder instead of her chin which was snugly behind it and her now palm open left hand. Then, as immediate as an explosion, the pigtailed girl twisted her torso back, sending Akane's fist off and redirecting the rest of its power, while bringing forward a stiff, and obviously strong, right cross.
Akane slid on the ground for a few meters. When she came to a stop, she rubbed her chin, "OW!" She looked up to see Ranma bouncing in her position again that placed her right side forward instead of her left, "What is that?"
Ranma stopped bouncing and relaxed, "Jeet Kune Do." the girl answered calmly.
"Jeet Kune Do? Like that movie actor, Bruce Lee?"
"It is a conceptual form that compliments any other martial arts form," Ranma explained as if she were a college professor lecturing a class, "it's very effective."
"I'll say," Akane said in a slightly hushed voice, feeling for any swelling in her jaw, "You're pretty good." Akane stood up to take her leave, "I'm glad you're a girl, I'd really hate to lose to a boy." She didn't notice the clouded expression on the redhead's face, as she walked out of the dojo.
_______________________________________________
"Wouldn't you like to take a bath?" Kasumi asked as a proper hostess. Ranma sullenly shook her head, her mind still focused on what the youngest Tendou had said.
"Really, it wouldn't be proper for you to go around sweaty after your workout, I insist you use our furo. It's really rather nice," Kasumi ordered, shoving the towel into Ranma's hands, then turning her in the direction of the bath. Ranma begrudgingly headed forward to wash up.
_______________________________________________
Ranma sat on the stool for a few minutes, thinking about recent events. She didn't know what to think about what Tendou girl said, but had decided that she needed to learn the truth. She raised the bucket of cold water over her head to begin rinsing off.
Akane walked in, and noted the redhead starting to scrub herself, "Oh, I didn't know it was occupied already, you mind if I join you?" Akane blinked as Ranma shook her head with more animation than she had shown the whole night.
"Oh, don't be so nervous! It would give us a chance to talk. So how was China, I bet you've seen a lot of interesting things there," Akane asked, starting to disrobe. Ranma shot up, and caught Akane's hand before she could fully unclothe.
"No, there is something you need to know before you do this." Ranma stood up and pulled a towel off of the rack, and then wrapped it around her waist. Opening the door to the furo, Ranma walked in then stuck her hand into the hot water.
Akane gasped as she watched the girl get taller, her hair shift from red to a crow's black, and her breasts shrink.
________________________________________________
"Indeed Tendou, once the boy gets back out here, we'll explain everything." The man with a bandanna over his head stated, "Where is he anyhow?"
"My eldest daughter told me she went to take a bath," Soun replied casually.
"Hmm? I sent Akane in there too, I guess they're taking a bath together." Nabiki stated, setting the bowl of snacks between her father and the strange man across from him.
"YOU PERVERT!!!!!"
The man's eyes went wide, and he shot towards the bathroom. Nabiki, Kasumi, and Soun blinked in unison.
________________________________________________
Akane wildly brought her right fist towards the boy's nose. In a split second, Ranma narrowed his eyes, and shot his left fist forward, intercepting and intergating Akane's punch to send her own fist straight for the girl's own nose.
Somewhere within that split second, Genma managed to intercept Ranma fist before it connected.