A Ranma ½ Get Backers crossover fanfiction
Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma ½ and Get Backers, although I dream about it every other day, especially a certain someone who wants nothing more but to find out his own limitations in battle, ah, sweet bloody sword.
A Life Renewed
By Insane Blight
Analogous Beliefs
"Hai, Kuroudo Akabane desu…"
Ranma was about to respond when his phone rang, he immediately picked it up without ever breaking his gaze at the man in front of him.
"Ran-kun? It's me, Hevn… I got the information from Paul. Your partner is Kurodo Akabane a.k.a. Dr. Jackal, he is known for being a ruthless murderer. Not much else is known about him but he is a very dangerous man, I think you should back down from the mission Ran-kun."
"It's a little too late for that." Ranma whispered.
Jackal walked towards the preoccupied boy with a smile. "May I know your name? I think that it is customary for two people working together to know each other's names at least." He inquired in an extremely polite tone that had the pigtailed boy wondering if he really was all that bad.
"Ranma."
Akabane put his hat back on. "Ranma-kun is it? I hope we could work well together in this mission."
The pigtailed boy shrugged. "Whatever, you do your job and I'll do mine… simple as that." He said as he exited the warehouse.
Dr. Jackal stood there for a minute before he chuckled at Ranma's attitude. He held the tip of his hat with his fingers as he smiled. "A professional way of thinking, it seems like we'll get along just fine Ranma-kun."
=====
The mission was fairly easy compared to what Ranma was used to during his past missions. That's why he was currently wondering why that is considering Hevn's track record for giving him very difficult missions up to this point. He effortlessly broke into the building's defenses and alarms while his partner Jackal just watched a few feet from behind him, as if he was observing how the pigtailed boy worked.
"Just out of curiosity, why are you following me? You're job for the mission was to be a transporter not as a retrieval agent much less an infiltrator." Ranma whispered to his partner.
Akabane smiled under his hat. "Yes, I was assigned as a transporter but I would also like to entertain myself during my missions." he replied.
Ranma was about to ask more when the two of them heard an alarm go off. The pigtailed boy cursed saying that the guards he knocked out must've regained consciousness already. Akabane on the other hand, seemed pleased at the commotion that was currently going on inside the building.
"My, my, it looks like I will enjoy this mission sooner than I thought." Jackal said excitedly as he saw a couple of armed individuals charging right at them.
Ranma watched with raised eyebrows as Dr. Jackal pulled out four surgical knives from his closed right hand. 'Hidden Weapons Technique? No… it's something else… what the heck was that?' He snapped out of it when Jackal dashed towards the guards with such speed that to the untrained eye, it may look like he was teleporting instead of running. Jackal stopped a few feet behind the guards and he held the tip of his hat once more.
The guards screamed as blood gushed out of their backs as a very large wound in the form of the letter J appeared on it. Akabane looked at his partner and he couldn't help but be surprised at what he saw. Ranma was as calm as one can be; he just stared at the bloody scene in front of him with an emotionless face. 'Oh? A mere boy in his late teens reacting like that at this kind of bloodshed? Very interesting Ranma-kun.'
"Are you done playing around? We still have a mission to complete doctor… damn!" he cursed as he recognized the man in the photos Hevn gave him hurriedly went inside a very expensive car and proceeded to leave the building at high speed.
Ranma quickly opened the sixth floor corridor window and did a series of jumps and flips that resulted in him landing on the ground floor safely. He then ran after the car with speed that rivaled the one Akabane used earlier. Speaking of which, Akabane watched from the sixth floor as Ranma slowly vanished from his line of sight. "Ranma-kun… it seems that there is more to you than what you've shown so far…"
=====
"He's slowing down… good, he actually thinks that nobody is following him." The pigtailed boy said as he chased after the car via roof hopping. 'Looks like Hevn's track record still stands.' He thought with a wry smile.
Ranma increased his speed once more before he decided to jump on top of the car. He proceeded to break the glass window on the driver's side, he grabbed the man by the collar and he forcefully dragged him outside through the broken window. He quickly snatched the small suitcase from the driver's clutches and not soon after that, the car started to careen out of control. Ranma knocked the driver out with a single punch, he grabbed the man's waist and then he jumped away from the out of control vehicle.
The car crashed into a thick wall and it exploded upon impact. The pigtailed boy placed the driver down on the floor; he tensed once more as he felt Jackal's presence suddenly appear behind him.
"Here!" he said as he handed the disk that was inside the small suitcase. "It's the same one from the photos I have. I've done my part, it's all up to you now… I'm going home, ja na… Dr. Jackal."
He walked a couple of steps before his muscles tightened. 'I knew it…'
=====
Ranma jumped just in time to avoid being stabbed by the operating knives. Jackal quickly took out four more knives and threw it towards the airborne pigtailed boy. Ranma manage to deflect two of the knives but the other two managed to graze his face and neck. The pigtailed boy landed roughly, he glared at the dark figure in front of him.
"Jackal… you…"
Akabane held the tip of his hat as he smiled. "I must say that I am impressed by your abilities Ranma-kun. I knew there was something about you that was so familiar… I am glad that I was finally able to figure it out." he politely said.
Ranma wiped the blood on his face. "Oh yeah? What is it?"
"You and I are the same. You hid it so well that I almost overlooked it… you have already taken a life before haven't you?" Akabane asked.
The pigtailed boy's eyes widened briefly before returning to the glare he had earlier while Akabane's smile widened even more, that reaction was more than enough proof to his speculation.
"As I suspected… you are just full of surprises Ranma-kun."
Ranma screamed before he lunged at Jackal with a right hook but to his surprise, Jackal was already gone. He was even more shocked when he sensed the transporter's presence behind him. Akabane immediately summoned his knives and he began to carve his trademark 'J' onto Ranma's back. Jackal stopped when he noticed that only the shirt was being ripped, he turned his head to his right and chuckled slightly.
"My, my, you never cease to amaze me Ranma-kun. I truly am enjoying every minute of this mission; I am getting more than I bargained for…" Akabane said as he pulled out another set of knives from his hand.
Ranma's glare never faltered. "Just shut up Jackal… Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken!"
Countless number of punches worked their way into Akabane's defense. The transporter's quickness was truly astounding but he couldn't dodge them all, a few of the punches connected to various parts of his body. Akabane knelt from the barrage but Ranma wasn't about to give him a chance to recover, the pigtailed boy jumped high and performed a downward flying kick that was aimed for his 'partner'. It came to a surprise when Akabane merely smiled under his hat, he held out his arm and something red can be seen coming out of it.
"Bloody Sword…"
Blood gushed out of Ranma's chest as Akabane did a diagonal slash with his new weapon. The pigtailed boy rolled backwards as he clutched his chest in pain. He looked up and finally got a good look at the weapon, a blood red long sword with a cross style hilt. 'A sword…? An energy sword or is it another one of his knife techniques?'
Akabane smiled. "I never thought that I would use this technique that quickly in a fight. You are turning out to be quite an adversary Ranma-kun… I do hope that you are the one that can bring out the full extent of my power."
Ranma got up albeit shakily and he shook his head to snap him out of his musings. He recklessly charged forward once more. Akabane frowned at the boy's straightforward tactics; he waited until Ranma was in range before doing a downward strike with his bloody sword. The transporter's eyes widened as the pigtailed boy caught the sword with his right hand, not really minding if that hand gets wounded or not. Ranma then concentrated as he arched back with his other hand.
"Mouko Takabisha!"
The golden wave of ki swallowed Akabane whole and Ranma felt the bloody sword slowly dissipated from his grip. The pigtailed boy saw the tattered remains of Akabane's clothing that was slowly falling to the ground but there was no sign of Dr. Jackal anywhere.
"Bloody Rain…"
Ranma was introduced to a number of bloodied knives that fell from up above. Akabane reappeared behind Ranma's back once more; his upper clothing was gone to reveal his scarred body with two very noticeable marks. One was the obvious, thick and ugly looking scar that runs from his collarbone to the navel. The other one was a strange tattoo that was marked onto the upper part of his left arm.
The pigtailed boy did not even wait for Akabane to talk, he ignored the pain of the stab wounds as he performed two consecutive leg sweeps but the transporter merely hopped backwards to avoid the attack. Ranma was still in his crouching position when he attempted an upward palm strike that connected to Akabane's stomach. He followed it up with another leg sweep that successfully knocked Jackal off of his feet. Ranma jumped with the desire to crush Jackal's head with his feet but the good doctor had that smile once more.
Ranma's eyes widened when his back was struck by a couple of knives. 'H-how…?!' His thoughts were cut short when he noticed that Akabane was already on his feet and it seems like he was eagerly awaiting his descent. Akabane held his palm up and a red cross shaped symbol appeared on it.
"Bloody Cross!"
Akabane watched with a frown as Ranma was flung to the other side of the area, leaving blood splatters on the floor as he did so. 'Was he smiling when my bloody cross connected?' He slowly approached the bleeding pigtailed boy, who was currently slumped against a wall and there was a large wound that almost covered his entire chest area.
Ranma spat out some blood. "Fi… finish it… Jackal… kill me." he basically pleaded to Akabane but he said it with a small smile on his face.
Dr. Jackal summoned another set of knives but he quickly retracted them a few moments later. He chuckled slightly before he began to walk away from the downed pigtailed boy. "It seems that you did not use your full strength Ranma-kun, I am very disappointed in you for doing that. I will not continue this fight for I wish to see the real you… I would like to fight the one that can perhaps bring out everything that I have."
He then turns and gave Ranma another smile. "Well then, I must not keep the client waiting. I do hope that we can fight seriously next time."
"Jackal!!!" Was all Ranma could say before unconsciousness claimed him.
=====
Paul looked at the distraught woman that was sitting miserably on a stool inside his café. She came in here just a few minutes after he opened the shop and immediately asked for his help to find Ranma. Hevn already received a call from the client saying that the disk was delivered as promised and the mission was a success but the pigtailed boy they had grown to care about in just a short period of time hasn't returned yet.
"Here Hevn… drink this, it will help calm down the nerves."
Hevn nodded as she drank the cup of tea. "I just couldn't help but worry about him. I got him into this line of work… I didn't do anything to even change his mind back then so I feel as if I'm responsible for his safety." she finished sadly.
Paul had an understanding look on his face. "True… when he recovered from his wounds the first time we met him you already offered him a job as an all around agent with the abilities he has and Ranma accepted the offer without any hesitation whatsoever."
He gave a reassuring smile to the blonde woman. "Don't worry too much Hevn, he's very strong you know and I think that Dr. Jackal won't be that big a problem for him. I even bet that he can survive through anything if he wanted to."
The blonde sighed. "I guess you're right… I'll probably stop by his place tomorrow morning to see if he has returned." she said as she began to leave the café.
Paul watched as the blonde took her leave. 'Problem is… does he really want to live? His eyes told me that he doesn't… I had those very same eyes once as well.'
=====
"How is he?"
"I managed to treat most of his injuries but the rest will be up to him. Don't worry sister, there is a high probability that he will fully recover but I'm a bit worried… whoever attacked him must still be in the area."
"Let's not worry about that now."
----
Splash!
A cute red-head popped up from the canal she just fell into. She stood up while muttering curses that she can think of at that moment in time.
"Hello down there! Do you need any help young lady?"
Ranma-chan looked up and saw a beautiful auburn-haired woman in a kimono looking down at her in concern. The woman grabbed the bundle she was carrying earlier and offered the end of it to help the soaked red-head out of the canal.
"Here, hold on to this and I'll pull you up."
The red-head nodded and grabbed the end of the bundle… only to scream in pain as her hands were suddenly slashed wide open. She took one look at her bleeding hands before she looked up and saw that the one she grabbed was the katana without the sheath. Her blue eyes widened when she saw a shadow loomed behind the woman, the shadow pulled out the knife and held it against the woman's neck and then…
----
=====
Ranma woke up wide-eyed as he frantically screamed. He tried to sit up but someone was preventing him from doing so. He turned to the side and saw a woman with long brown hair, brown eyes and has a pink cloth wrapped around her forehead.
"Please calm down! You'll only aggravate your injuries if you recklessly move around!" the woman pleaded.
The blue-eyed boy took a few more minutes before he was finally able to compose himself. He then allowed himself to be assisted back to bed. "Who are you? For that matter, where am I?" he asked with a wince.
The brown-haired woman smiled slightly. "I'm Kakei Sakura, pleased to meet you. My brother Jubei and I found you near the car crash last night here in Mugenjou, you were bleeding pretty badly and there were times that we thought that you weren't going to make it… you're injuries were quite unique Mr…?"
"Huh? Oh, Ranma. My name's Ranma, pleased to meet you." he replied while trying to ignore the pain. "Um… thank you for saving me Kakei-san."
Sakura smiled. "Don't mention it Ranma-kun."
"Please, just Ranma. I've heard enough of that last night." He glumly replied.
The girl nodded. "Alright… in return, you can just call me Sakura."
Ranma chuckled slightly. "Yeah, I'll do that."
=====
"Darn it, those guys are so persistent." Paul mumbled as he removed a flyer that was posted on the caf's front door. He was about to go inside when he noticed a young, dark-haired girl in a school uniform standing a just outside the café. The girl stood there for a little while and then she slowly made her way towards him.
"Um… is this the place where I can find the retrieval agents called the Get Backers?" she timidly asked.
Paul raised a curious eyebrow. "Eh?" 'Those idiots, turning my café into their headquarters.' "Err… kind of, let's talk inside. I'm sure that those two will be here shortly."
The two entered the café; Paul felt a migraine coming from the antics of those two idiots while the girl looked sad for some reason. Paul decided to lighten the mood a little; he put down his newspaper and began to cook something for the teen.
"Here you go… my special pizza, on the house." Paul offered to the downcast girl.
The girl's mood brightened a little. "Really?" she asked, Paul nodded with a smile. "I think I'll take a bite… wow, it looks good!" the dark-haired girl exclaimed. She took a bite of the pizza and then she complimented on how delicious it was.
"Why are you looking for those two anyway?" Paul asked, curious as to why this young lady decided to hire those two idiots for work. 'Kami-sama knows how pathetic they look like in advertising their line of work.'
The girl returned to her downcast look. "I… I want them to get back something very important to me. It was given to me by the person I cared about the most so I have to get it back…"
The two talked about small things to lighten up the mood. The girl couldn't finish her pizza as a single slice was still on her plate, she mumbled her apologies but Paul just shrugged and said that she was about to see two wild animals that will fight to the death just to fill their stomachs. True enough, the door opened and a spiky-haired man in sunglasses and a blonde man greeted Paul as they entered the café.
"Yo! Ah!!! Pizza!!!"
The two men darted past the orange-haired man and began to fight for the lone slice of pizza.
"Give it to me Ban-chan!" the blonde shouted.
"No way! I saw it first Ginji!" Ban snapped back.
Ban immediately distanced himself from the blonde man and then he drooled at the sight of the pizza slice in his hand. Ginji on the other hand, had sparks flying around his body… literally.
"Ban-chan… you're so mean! You're so mean!"
The spiky-haired man's eyes widened as Ginji began to gather his energy. "Oi! Stop it munch Gin-gulp-ji!" he said as he gobbled up the pizza slice.
Ginji grabbed Ban by the neck and proceeded to electrocute the spiky-haired man. The blonde man would have continued if Paul hadn't decided to get their attention.
"Is that how you act in front of a client?" Paul asked nonchalantly.
Both men blinked, comprehension slow in coming. They turned their heads to the side and saw the high school girl standing there with a smile on her face. "Um… my name is Natsumi Mizuki, pleased to meet you."
=====
Ranma stared impassively at his surroundings, Sakura told him not to move around yet because his injuries might act up again. She also said that she was the caretaker of this… Makubex kid so it was no problem taking care of him as well. He already met Sakura's brother Jubei and he could tell that the two of them are very trustworthy… though it still unnerved him on how much Jubei uses old fashioned speeches, that guy really needs to loosen up. His eyes suddenly hardened as he recalled what Akabane said.
"I wish to see the real you… I would like to fight the one that can perhaps bring out everything that I have."
'The real me…' he thought morosely.
"Are you feeling better Ranma?" Sakura asked as she entered the room.
Ranma looked up to see Sakura staring at him in concern. "Huh? Yes… I'm feeling a lot better, thanks for asking Sakura." He replied.
The brown-haired woman curiously looked at him. "Is something bothering you Ranma?" she inquired.
"Thank you for helping me Sakura, I really appreciate it but… I have to go. You see… I'm a retrieval agent and that car crash was my doing. I was assigned to recover a disk from the driver of that car. I succeeded but my partner, Dr. Jackal insisted on 'playing' a game… he was the one that left me a bloody mess." He explained.
"I see… but I insist that Jubei accompany you until you're outside Mugenjou at least. I think that you won't get far with that injury here…" she stopped when Ranma laughed softly. "…what's wrong?"
Ranma sobered up. "No, that won't be necessary Sakura. I'll just use this…" he said as he vanished right in front of her eyes. "Thank you again Sakura, maybe I'll come and visit some other time… goodbye."
=====
"Sigh… home, huh?"
Ranma tiredly opened the front door and then he slowly entered his home. He removed his shoes and upper clothing and was about to take a shower when he noticed a familiar blonde woman slumped on the sofa. Ranma blinked when he saw the phone she was holding tightly. 'Was she trying to contact me all this time?'
The pigtailed boy sighed once more; he walked towards the cabinet and pulled out a blanket for the sleeping woman. He covered her up to the neck and was about to go upstairs to his room when he suddenly found himself on the receiving end of a punch.
"Where have you been?! Paul and I have been worried sick when you hadn't returned yet from the mission! It's been two days…" Hevn paused in her rant when she finally noticed Ranma's bandages and injuries. "… What happened? Did you have a fight with Dr. Jackal?"
Ranma rubbed his cheek as he stood up. "Ouch… that was pretty darn good… for a girl." His patented foot in mouth acted up once more.
"What does that suppose to mean?!" Hevn shrieked as she did her own version of the demon head.
The bruised and battered boy shrank under the woman's fiery glare.
"Honestly! If I'd have known that you'd show up just to insult me like that then I wouldn't have bothered to worry about you at all! I won't give you a job for a week, you better remember that!"
While Hevn continued to complain on just about everything she can think of, Ranma just watched the blonde's tantrums with a small smile. 'Glad to see you too Hevn.'
=====
Makubex watched with interest from his computer as he played back the scene in which Ranma demonstrated his Umisenken invisibility technique on Sakura.
"Interesting, he left little to no trace of his presence in the area after doing that. Then if this Dr. Jackal can do that much damage to him… hmm… Ranma and Dr. Jackal."
He clicked a button on his keyboard and a few diagrams and schematics appeared on the monitor. 'The final pieces for this plan to work… I think I'll give this job to the two of them.'
=====
AN: Well, decided to do this chapter, R&R please. I wanted to do the scene with Akabane so much that I couldn't concentrate on my other fic. I'll probably put in a few more scenes from the anime to let the readers know which part of the series does the chapter take place (Like the scene earlier with Natsumi which was from episode 1).
Next Retrieval Agent Rivalries
