Disclaimer: Ranma ½, Street Fighter, King of Fighters, or any other anime series/characters or games characters that might be mentioned.
Powers Comes With A Price
BY: Confucius
Chapter 2
Ranma was walking in no particular direction while he was formulating a plan for his current situation. For the moment, he hopes that his luck would improve and let him stumble onto something that would help him. As fate would have it, a rich aroma swift by from the northeast direction and was caught by Ranma's nose. His stomach started to growl each time that he stiffed the air. He followed the sweet rich aroma that was a block away to what seems like a local restaurant. As he set foot in the entrance, the restaurant employee greeted him. He noticed that there were only a couple of people eating, and the person that greeted him was the only person standing behind the big table grill.
"Welcome to Ukyo's Okonomiyaki!" Ukyo greeted. "Today's special is the shrimp seafood okonomiyaki." The young chef looked at her new customer and realized that she never saw him eating at her restaurant before or around town. The guy is cute, she thought.
He swiftly made his way towards an open seat. No one could tell that he was blind from the way he was moving. He couldn't actually read the menu so he decided to go with the special. I'll have to start learning brail, he thought.
"Are you new in this part of town?" Ukyo asked. "You're about my age and I don't recall seeing you around school."
"I guess you can say that I'm new here," Ranma replied. It didn't seem to be a big deal to give her some information. "I'm planning on staying around this area for awhile but I don't exactly have a place to stay yet. Do you know where there are affordable housing?"
Ukyo gave some thought to his question and answered that there are some cheap places by the eastside district. The boy was in the same situation as she was, she thought. Her father passed away and she had no other relatives. Therefore, she has to look out for herself and that was why she opened up this restaurant. Her family was known for their Okonomiyaki Martial Arts. If only her dad had found her a suitor when he was alive. That way, she would at least know what to do with her life. Her daily routine consists of work and going to school, which completely demolish her chance of having any kind of social life. Rent here was pretty expensive in this part of the area so she needs all the customers she could get. People know that food here was one of the best so it helps that customers returns and even spread the rumors of how delicious the food here is.
"Eastside district huh. By the way, do you know any place that is hiring? I'm good with my hands so I don't care if there are a lot of hard work involved." He then notices the chef's movements in making the okonomiyaki. Her hands were very skillful and quick. It was as if she was doing some sort of kata while cooking. The spatulas she was using were like apart of her. It was if the things were an additional set of hands that she could control like her arms. He has heard rumors of weird and martial arts styles like the drunken fist and the neko-ken, but never guessed he would come across one. He wonders if there were other weird styles such as these. Maybe styles like tea ceremony martial arts or bath fu martial arts existed some place. He chuckled at his bad little joke. There are no such things, he told himself.
"That's a nice trick you got there," Ranma appraised. "The motion you used to prepare the food is very interesting."
"Just wait until you try out the food, sugar. My family practices Okonomiyaki Martial Arts. I am the last descendant of my clan to inherit its style."
"To tell you the truth, I have never even tried okonomiyaki before."
"You've what?" Okonomiyaki was Ukyo's life and it is her mission to serve her food out to everyone so they could learn to appreciate her family's recipe and the hard training one goes to learn how to make it. The way of a true okonomiyaki chef is fraught with expensive training and a life with no love since her big ass spatula scared the shit out of all the potential boyfriends. Anyway, seeing how the cute customer hasn't ever tried one out yet, it was now her mission to create the best okonomiyaki ever so that he could appreciate the food (and come back for more later).
"I've been out of the country for eight years so I've missed out on a lot of stuff."
Ukyo nodded.
"But from what I can smell, I'm sure I'll be in for a treat." He was staring at the direction of his newfound friend. If a chance comes up, he wouldn't mind learning how to make okonomiyaki from her. Out of nowhere, the stinging sensation was back. Ranma then found himself in Ukyo's mind. He saw a little version of her standing beside an older man at an okonomiyaki stand. From what he could deduced, the older man was her father while Ukyo was ten years old at that time. His face darkens again once he saw Genma in her memories. His ex-father and the fake Ranma were training nearby their okonomiyaki stand. Ukyo and Ryouga didn't get quite along well with each other because she was terrible annoyed that he always gets lost. When her father asked if she wants to be engaged to him, she quickly refused. After that small talk, her father began to agree with her that the boy was short of a few lug nuts. She felt sorry for whoever was unlucky enough to be engaged to him.
His face quickly brightens up when he ran across her memories and knowledge of making okonomiyaki. Earlier, he was focusing on her thoughts as he wonders what was running through her mind while she was displaying her unique skills and suddenly he was in her head prying at things that don't belong to him. Since he was there, he might as well note down her knowledge of the martial arts. One of her techniques was throwing mini-spatulas around. He thought that it was cool that simple spatulas could be used as weapons. Her throwing techniques were different from his since the knife that he shoots out travel in forward linear motion, while her technique let her spin her weapon in a circular motion like a ninja star. Of course, her techniques won't work with his because of the different tools. After the download of her okonomiyaki knowledge was complete, he lost interest and found himself out of her mind.
"Are you ok sugar? You were a little spaced out for a minute."
"Yeah, I'm okay Ukyo." He then found himself making a mistake that could of cost him his life if he was on one of Shadowloo's mission. He finds that his mind operates at a much faster rate and was able to come up with a remark. "The restaurant's title is Ukyo's Okonomiyaki, so should I assume that your name is Ukyo?" Ranma was proud that he was able to recover so quickly.
Ukyo on the other hand didn't really care how he knew her name. It was probably from her restaurant's sign anyways so its not like he got the information from something illegal or improper. Then she realized that she still don't know that name of the handsome boy in front of her. "You know my name, so what's yours sugar?"
"My name is Ranma."
Ranma followed Ukyo's direction to the eastside district however he failed to find any place that would accept him. He had a hard time at first to actually find openings until he decided to skim the minds of passing strangers for what he wanted. It was weird when he ran across a person's desires or some information that they don't want people to know about. Some of the things he found were down right weird, freaky, and funny as hell. He managed to find some spots but found that he was too young to rent an apartment without credentials. He couldn't go off that he was a young master of Shadowloo. In other words, he had no past, which would be difficult. Ranma then decides that it was best for him to check into a motel so he could plan his next move. He was on his way to search for a motel where he could spend the night until he felt another feeling in his head.
This feeling however was different from the others he has had so far. This one hurts and the pain was growing stronger. In fact it got too strong to the point where he had to clutch his head to make sure it won't explode. Then the real pain starts. It felt like someone had stab millions of knives into his head and having someone stomp on it afterwards. He screams out load, unable to control his himself. There was now only the pain as other thoughts had quickly rushed away. A sudden force began to form from his body and rammed everything out of the way that was close to him. Plants that were near him had already been out rooted and thrust at a distance. What looks like an energy bubble surrounded Ranma as he screams out for his dear life. The ground started to shatter and the bits that were broken were also thrust away from him. What felt like an eternity of pain for Ranma lasted for thirty-five seconds. The area where he was standing was wreaked.
Ranma was breathing hard after that half minute of torture. He could not comprehend why his head was hurting so much. In truth, it was a side effect from being in the psycho drive that pulled forth the powers that he was not supposes to have. It was a punishment from disobeying the laws of what should have happened. It was the price he pays for receiving great powers. To have a curse that would last as long as he command his psychic abilities.
Ranma decided to move out of the area in case troubles find him for the damages he has caused. He still needs to find a place for him to sleep tonight, and also a place to work.
It was nighttime and Ranma has not succeeded in finding a motel. Sure he has super senses, but they don't really help him in this situation. He had skimmed quickly through a couple of people's minds but nothing was useful. Right now, he wants to take a long break from reading minds. He could live without knowing some of the things that he knows now. What he needs are his eyes so that he could read the street signs and read the names of the buildings. He was in what looks like to be in downtown since it was very busy even at this hour. It was getting cold and his body started to shiver. He clapped his the weighted gloves he was wearing together to warm up his body. It was weird though because he finds himself getting a bit warmer every time he thinks of warmth. It must be one of his powers, he thought. Right now, he needs to find a place to stay so that he could work out the kinks to his abilities and find out how it works exactly.
Even though it was night, the streets were still full of pedestrians and drivers. He made his way towards one of the walls of a nearby building so that he could rethink on his situation when he started hearing the distinctive sound of people bashing each others head. He concentrated on the noise and followed it. The sound led to an underground fight club that was beneath one of the building's basement. He knew it was a fight club because people were cheering and complaining about losing money. He could also smell blood that was coming from the ring. He actually felt like he was home. This was wear he belonged. This was exactly the perfect place where he could make money.
As he tried to enter the place, the bouncers stopped him up front. Seems like he was too young to be invited and there was no chaperone around him.
"Come on guys," said Ranma. "How about letting me in?"
The biggest looking bouncer stood in front of the boy and glared at him. He then proceed to grab Ranma's vest with both his hands and started shaking so that the boy would listen up. "Go away kid! You're too young for this kind of stuff. Why don't you go home and watch some anime. A boy your age should be doing that instead of being here."
This guy is starting to piss me off, Ranma said to himself. "Why don't you take your hands off me before you lose them. How about that idea huh? Look, I can see that you guys need to be persuaded." Ranma then brought out a ten thousand yen and handed to the money grubbing fellas. He was able to distinguish the bills apart from the touch of bill's surface. Ranma was wearing fingerless weighted gloves and his fingers could feel the number ten thousand on the bill.
"That's more like it," said one of the other bouncers. "Just make sure you stay out of trouble all right. Go on in."
As soon as he made it in, Ranma focused on locating the guy who was in charge of the fights. He succeeded in finding the guy and also talked him into letting him fight for three matches in a row. Sure, the guy thought Ranma was crazy and was looking for a beating but the crowds loves entertainment. Ranma also successfully betted on himself, so it looked like the money was flowing in on its own.
Ranma stepped into the ring when it was his turn to fight and was already receiving the audience's displeasing greetings. It didn't matter to him of course, since he was here win money and not to become famous. Being famous was last of his priority list since it could bring him trouble from Shadowloo. He watched his first opponent enter the ring. The guy has a medium build and has a hint of cockiness in his eyes.
"All right ladies and gentlemen," said the announcer. "Our next fight is between a newcomer to our arena, Ranma. I hope he has insurance folks because he will be facing against the Predator!"
"I can't believe they sent me a kid to fight," said the man. "Don't expect me to go easy on you kid. I thought that I had to fight someone tough but looks like I'm going to wheeze by this easily."
Keep talking asshole; I've killed people who were three times your size, Ranma said to himself. He then proceeds into his fighting stance. "So your nickname is Predator huh? How did you ever come up with that one?" Ranma chuckled. "I had a very bad day so it looks like you're going to be my designated punching bag. In my eyes you are nothing but a small time prey. What an irony don't you think?" Ranma chuckled. What people didn't know was that Ranma had about thirty small throwing knives on him hidden in his vest. Only one was needed to kill this sucker, but everyone would probably jump him or cause some riot if that happened. Sure, he didn't really care about that situation cause he has a good feeling that he could handle it but he wants to avoid the hassle. He came here for money and beating the shit out of this guy was just an extra bonus. Ranma gave the guy an evil grin.
"Oh, I am very going to enjoy this you little punk." The fight started as the Predator rush to his foe.
Ranma knew exactly what the so-called Predator was about to do from hearing the guy's heart beating faster. He predicted that with the speed that guy was going, it would be hard for him to stop and react quickly to attacks. He waited for Predator to come within ten paces and delivered a kick to the chest with an ordinary sliding side kick. He put a lot of power into the move, which knocked the man backward on his back to the other side of the ring. Ranma then casually moved the foot that he used to kick the guy back towards his waist and sweep the dirt off it.
Predator was hurting bad. He had all the air knocked out of his lungs. His chest bones probably were damaged from that blow. He felt pain so it might conclude that something was broken or fractured. He didn't have a chance to recover as his eyes widen to see his opponent move in for what he knew was the final blow.
Ranma didn't want to let the man recover so he dashed to the guy. His senses didn't warn him of danger so he assumes that he was in the clear. His assumptions were right as he find himself transferring an axe kick to Predator's head. He made sure that he put enough power as to not snap that guy's neck or cave his skull in.
The announcer declared Ranma the victor of the fight and had already sent in the next challenger. "That was a good fight between Ranma and Predator, but could the newcomer defend himself against the Big Bear?"
With his name mentioned and the crowd starts cheering, Big Bear made his way into the ring. He was a lot bigger than Predator was and had a better winning average. He was not as big as a sumo wrestler and not as muscular as a body builder. However, the size of his arms spoke of power. "You did good on your first round kid, but don't expect me to lose that easily."
"You don't really think you could intimidate me with your words do you? Let your action speaks louder than your words. Hopefully, you could give me a more decent fight than the last guy who had to be wheel chaired…"
Without letting Ranma finishing his sentence, Big Bear made his move. He thought that he could surprise his opponent but was shocked on seeing the kid dodges his attacks. His style of combat is more intended for brawling in a pub and it is not as refined as other arts of combat. He heavily relies on his strength to bash his opponent into unconsciousness and over power them but it looks like it won't work this time around.
The buzzing sound flared again as the bigger man was about to smash his arms down on him. He moved to the side, where he knows it was safe because the buzzing sound had reduced. However the buzz was still flickering because Big Bear was still a threat and will soon be making another move against him. Of course, he won't let him have that opportunity. Ranma instantly struck twenty punches in what seemed to be just one punch and moved behind Big Bear to see his own praise worthy work. "I'm so sorry to tell you this but your name is even lamer than the first guy. I understand though. All the good names must've been taken."
Big Bear toppled over and wrapped his stomach from the pain. Saliva was drooling down as his mouth hung open. When the pain was subsiding a little, he got up and growled at his foe. He swiped the drool from his face and then cracked his knuckles. Some people just don't have brains, and the way he continued to use the same tactic that didn't work the first time proves it. Bear charged blindly at Ranma, in hope that he could surprise the boy with a body slam before throwing a combination of submission holds.
Ranma sensed what was coming and decided to meet his opponent head on. He launched forward while turning his body 180 degrees in the air and connect his left elbow to Bear's throat.
Unfortunately, Bear had his arms up during his lunge, which was in a position that was directly in front of his neck. Ranma's elbow went straight through and broke his right hand wrist from the impact before reaching his neck. Bear clutched his neck with his good hand while he dropped to his knees to cradle the damaged wrist. The position he was in left him right open for any sort of attacks, which Ranma took advantage of.
Ranma swung back his right leg and brought it forward to Bear's face. It was a simple kick that spectators could see when someone punts a football.
Bear's head felt like it was going to detach itself from the neck as his upper body flew backwards and let gravity brings it down. The impact of his body hitting the ground gave out a huge noise. People were astounded and the room became silent. They have just witnessed a smaller guy beat up a much bigger adversary before but never a teenager his age doing this kind of feat. They chatted among themselves and wondered if this match was all a setup.
The announcer was getting a bit worried of the crowd's attitude because it is this type of situation that could start a riot. He quickly made his announcement of the kid's third match. If everything went well then the crowd would become happy again and forgot that they lost. "Now wasn't that a good show people? Looks like our new contestant is on fire folks. Will his flame remain strong at the end of this next match or will it wilt into nothing? The next challenger up is none other then our very own Taski Umenokouji."
The crowd immediately recognizes the name and cheered for him. It seems like Taski was one of the undefeated fighters in this arena. He had pretty good skill and also gave a good entertaining show. That was why everyone liked to watch him fight. The crowd started betting on him of course because of his outstanding status record. The kid down in the ring must be exhausted by now or a little drained from his fight and Taski was still fresh.
Ranma pinpointed his opponent who just walked into the ring. His heart was more in shape than the first two fighters, which mean he hasn't been slacking off in the training department. He didn't notice that he was smiling because he might actually get a decent fight. "You're name is Taski? Don't you have a nickname like the other two losers or did the martial arts union forgot to provide you one?"
The old man smiled at Ranma. He liked the boy's attitude. "Actually I do have one. I am also called Morpheus, because I specialize in putting people into a deep sleep." He looked over the young lad that was in front of him. It didn't seem like he was all tired from his last two fights. The kid used very little movements so he was able to save his energy. Unlike the other two fighters before him, he walked towards his opponent slowly and in his defense stance. He made sure that he didn't underestimate the boy and leave any openings.
Ranma sense the guy was advancing slowly. "Morpheus huh. Sounds like you came right out of the comic book pal." His guard went up at the moment his opponent got his arms up. Deciding not to just in one place, Ranma circled around the ring so that the man could not deduce his movements.
Things were getting nowhere as they were studying each other. So that was when they went into offense. Ranma and Taski were locked in hand-to-hand combat - each of them trying to get into the other's defense. When that didn't work, Ranma decided to use his legs as well. Ranma used his knees only to feel them being blocked by Taski's hands.
Taski was shocked that he was in a stalemate against a kid. Every attempt he made to counter attack was blocked or knocked aside from Ranma's attack. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought that his opponent knew what he was going to do before even he did. What annoyed him was that Ranma was smiling during all this. How dare he mock me, he told himself.
Unknown to his opponent, Ranma was actually using him to practice mastering his senses. Unlike the last two fighters, Taski had some skill. Of course, not being at his level but still good. Ranma nicknamed the buzzing sound as his danger sense. It was quite helpful on informing him if he blocked too late and had to dodge. During the fight, he made sure that he left some openings in his defense so that all his sense was tested. While his danger sense informed him of immediate danger, his hearing helped inform him of when his opponent decides to attack from the heartbeat and tells how tired he was from the breathing and the heartbeats. The air current that touched his skin forms a picture in his mind of what his opponent was doing. His brain was working at a super fast rate so he was able to deduced Taski's moved before moving into them and found the best way to counter it.
The fight had been going on for 3 minutes and the crowd was cheering for the awesome entertainment. Now they don't really care about cheering for whom, as long as they continue to do wicked moves. To the crowds, it looked like the fight was even, however to expert martial arts, it was the boy who had the advantage.
Ranma decided it was best to end the fight now since he still has things to do afterwards. Although he was getting good training on practicing his new abilities, he was getting tired from the long day. Taski's heartbeat and breathing rate was telling him that he was tired. Ranma also noticed that his opponent's speed was dropping so it there was no point to continue. Ranma on the other hand was still bursting with energy. He couldn't tell with it was due to the adrenaline or maybe from an ability he hasn't figured out or thought about yet. Now was not the time to figure that one out.
Ranma began to speed up and easily broke through Taski's defense. Several blows were made to the upper area Taski's chest and succeeding in knocking the man down. Ranma grinned at his opponent as if daring him to stand back up. "Stay down if you don't want to get hurt."
"You're good boy. Better than what I expected. You were just playing with me huh?"
Ranma decided not to break the man's heart so he went and lied. "No man. You did well. In fact, you went and make me give you everything I got."
"Don't lie to me boy. You don't think I can handle the truth? You're just insulting me that way."
Ranma just stared at him as if he doesn't have anything left to say and wanted to finish things. He clenched his fist together tightly and popping noise could be heard. If he wasn't wearing a long sleeve black shirt under his weighted vest, then people could see his muscle tightens in his arms. As he moved slower to Taski, he was stopped at the hand raised towards him.
"No need to finish me off. I know when I'm going to lose and I rather be able to come home tonight than waking up from unconsciousness. I give."
The announcer saw the undefeated Morpheus putting his hands up and surrendered. "Looks like our winner is Ranma!"
The crowd started to cheer this time for Ranma. It was one of the best matches that they've seen and probably one that they won't forget. Sure they lost their money but for the moment, they have totally forgotten about that.
After collecting his money, Ranma was about to make his exit until a familiar face stopped him.
"That was a good fight boy," said Taski. "Where did you learn how to fight like that?"
"Here and there," Ranma replied. He can't really tell the guy that he was trained under the lord of Shadowloo and six of his elite warriors.
"So where are you headed right now?"
Ranma figured that it wouldn't hurt telling the older man where he was headed. Maybe the guy could actually help him in locating a place. "I got no place to go actually. I need to find a place to sleep tonight so I could continue searching for an apartment tomorrow. I'll also need to find myself some sort of employment so that's another thing I'll do doing tomorrow."
"Well, that's funny you should say that because I was going to ask you if you want job." Morpheus then stepped aside to let an older man come through.
"You're fight is splendid. I don't remember the last time Taski had such a battle like that. I heard that you need a place to stay and a job to go along with that. Maybe I can help you."
"Oh? What kind of job are you asking me to do?" Ranma knew better than this. He has worked in Shadowloo for a long time and knew how things like this works. If the guy was offering him a job and it was what's he's thinking, then he was qualified to do it.
"It won't be anything bad now for a boy your age, at least not now. Let me introduce myself. I am Nakago Umenokouji, Taski's older brother. I own a few small business…"
"Yeah, I pretty much got the idea," Ranma interrupted. It was what he thought and he didn't want to waste more time. Nakago was probably the head honcho for some Japanese yakuza. "Okay, I'll accept."
Nakago was surprised that the boy agreed so soon. "But you haven't heard the rest of my…"
"I don't need to sir. I think I have a good idea of what I'm getting into. We can talk more about it later but right now I'm hungry and tired."
Nakago laughed. "Of course you are. I am going to appoint to as my bodyguard, which means that you'll be staying at my mansion."
Ranma followed behind Nakago and Taski. He still hasn't decided what to do with his life. The first option was to go back to Bison and relaim his proper place as the second in command of Shadowloo's forces. The second was to overthrow his father and take up the throne as the new lord of Shadowloo sooner than expected if Bison proved to be difficult. If thing does not go as planned, he could always kill his present boss and take over the yakuza. He kind of feels that being a leader of the yakuza was a low rank compared to being the young master of Shadowloo but he can't help it now. This was an opportunity for him to have a place to stay and has work that would let him train in his powers. I will make you proud father, he told himself.
Three years has passed since Ranma left Shadowloo and became a member of the Umenokouji Yakuza. He was now nineteen years old. As he hoped, Ranma had mastered many of his abilities during his stay with Nakago and his family. He even found out several others abilities that seem to appear along the years. He already has superhuman senses with the ability to sense danger, read minds, and control over telekinesis. As far as his body goes, he found out that he could enhance his strength, speed, flexibility and agility, to an incredible rate as long as he focuses on that expect. In addition, Ranma now finds that he has control over the elements of nature as well. The power of fire, wind, water, ice, earth, and lightning could be called on to do his bidding. Collecting concentrating ki from his body and from his surroundings was simpler to do. Everything comes down to his will and imagination. His abilities will activate as he wills it in his imagination. It takes a lot of energy to do some things, but it gets less stressful and tiring from practice. Ranma also gained something else besides his psychic abilities. It seems the alarming headache he had three years ago was not the last time he has it. Every now and then, his brain would go haywire and ballistic, which cause him serious amount of pain. It was unpredictable too. He might have the symptom twice a day or once a day or once every few days. The pain is unbearable and it seems to grow stronger as his powers grow.
While his psychic abilities still remains a secret, Ranma has become legendary for his skills in throwing knives. His shot is very accurate and one knife was only needed to kill his prey. Even if there was multiple people in that path, the knife is able to pass through their bodies, killing them and the actual target depending on how much force Ranma put into the throw. In that legend that spoke of him, it was said that he hold a powerful weapon called the Ragnarok Blade. In truth, the Ragnarok Blade is actually a special technique where Ranma infused his throwing knife with ki and sharpens its edges with his psychic energies. There is no way for someone to survive if they are hit with that technique. It is faster than his regular knife throw and it could penetrate into some of the most difficult objects. Each knife is four inches long and was shaped like a small saber. The silver knife is a one sided blade that starts from the tip. The handle is thin as the blade itself and had a red string attached.
Even after working for the yakuza for many years, none of them knew of Ranma's abilities and that he was blind simply because he wears sunglasses all the time. Ranma and Taski have become pretty good friends. They trained together and even worked together in some assignments. Taski even talked him into getting himself nickname to use on the field to cover up his identity. He waved it as a stupid idea at first but changed his mind. He loved telling people what to do since he had grown up commanding people around. One day when Taski and him were at a local Chinese restaurant, he opened up a regular fortune cookie and had a perfect idea. He took on the name Confucius as his code name when he was on the field. When he goes out, he felt safe in giving people his real name since it is not one that people feared.
His new occupation was sometimes very dangerous. Nakago usually have him working as a guard. When Nakago was displeased about someone, he was sometimes called to take that person out, hence was where his alter ego was infamous. Ranma also does some thievery work when they were something crucial or valuable that Nakago wanted. Having an alter ego was actually helpfully in his life. Right now he was a little tired of his disguise, and planned to move on to better things.
Over the three years, Ranma had tried to find some information on Shadowloo and their other whereabouts. He had hoped that being in a yakuza would help him find the information he needed easier. When he was sent to other cities, he also tries to investigate Shadowloo's hideout but it was like finding a needle in a haystack. Ranma has managed to run into minor Shadowloo agents but couldn't get any valuable information that he desperately needed to find. After scanning their brains, he found out that Shadowloo became more secretive so these low rank thugs wouldn't know where their bases were. He never stopped thinking about his friend. He doesn't doubt that she has already been doing Shadowloo's dirty work. I wonder how much she has changed, he asked himself. Ranma looked over his hands and he could still see how it was still covered with the blood of his victims, even though in reality it was clean. He felt that he was now ready to move to the next phase of his plans. Find Cammy, rescue her and take back his rightful place in Shadowloo.
Four years ago, at the Shadowloo fortress near the coast of Spain, Ranma and Cammy were training by the rocks that were sticking out from the ocean. Cammy thought that she needed a change in scenery and Ranma agreed. They were both training until Cammy decided to take a break.
"Taking a break already?" Ranma asked. "You're so lazy that you'll never become a great fighter."
"Who said that I wanted to become a great fighter," Cammy replied. "Being a good fighter is enough for me. Besides, you need to relax a little more or else you'll blow a gasket."
"My whole life has been about becoming the best there is. Everything that I have worked hard for would be for nothing if I stopped right now. That's what all my sensei says and even father."
"Well, that's no fun. We're still kids you know and we should be having fun instead of working our ass everyday."
"Training is fun for me already," said Ranma as he cross his arms and feeling proud of himself.
Cammy on the other hand wasn't quite impressed so she pushed him off the rock's surface and into the ocean. After seeing Ranma being surprised and shocked, she went after him. The two began to splash each other and laughed. Both of them were enjoying the little break from adulthood and actually acted their age.
"See, you're having a good time," Cammy pointed out. "This is how it should be rather than training all the time."
Ranma smiles at her. Things were quite different with her around. Sometimes he forgets that he was human and not just the heir to Shadowloo like how he was groomed to be. He was floating on top of the water as like Cammy.
"What do you think will happen to us when we get older? You will command all of Shadowloo someday but then what about me?"
"Are you afraid Cammy? You'll probably be promoted to become a high rank sanitation officer."
"What the?! I'm not going to be no janitor!"
They both shared in a laugh.
"Don't worry Cammy. I'll look out for you when we grow up, even if we're both old."
The ex-Saotome has been eating at Ukyo's Okonomiyaki at least once every week for the past three years. For some reason, he felt that he was safe there. He liked the environment and he had become friends with Ukyo, the owner of the restaurant.
"What's wrong Ranma? You look down today."
Ranma looked up at Ukyo and gave her a smile. "I think it is time for me to go."
Ukyo was confused by his words. "What do you mean?"
"I'll be leaving Osaka soon. There was something that I was running away from but it is now time for me to come back. Can't run away from your problems forever you know."
Ukyo was now having her feelings mixed up. Over the past years, she had started to develop strong feelings for Ranma but she knows that he didn't feel the same way. He wasn't showing it if he was. She has been asked out many time by boys from her school but she turns them down hoping that Ranma would ask her out one day. Now it seems like that day will never come. A tear started to flow from her eye and ran down her cheek.
Ranma's hearing picked up the changes in his friend's heartbeat and breathing rate. It started as soon as he told her he was moving. Ranma wasn't dumb so he knew exactly why she was feeling the way she did. Tell her something that isn't stupid and be thoughtful of her feelings, he told himself. "We'll always be friends."
Ukyo's face became sadder.
"Duoh!" Smooth move moron, was replaying continuously in his head. "I'll come back and visit whenever I'm back in town. Our paths would pass again you'll see." He hoped that his words had helped cheer her up a little. Sadly, he just didn't feel the same way she did.
"You better you jerk, or else I would never forgive you."
Back at Nakago's mansion, the head honcho had other ideas for Ranma.
"Are you really sure that we must do this," asked Taski.
"Ranma has proven himself to be very loyal to our clan, however it seems that he is too uncontrollable. Once he finished his last job, you know what to do." Nakago, was also a cold calculating man. He had noticed from time to time that Ranma was eyeing at his family's legacy. The boy seems to be too strong for his own good. Sure the kid had done many things for him and he had repaid him with a roof over the kid's head. It was a shame, but it was for the best.
Taski just nodded his head. He didn't like the idea, but he must do what he was ordered.
Ranma received a cell phone call from Nakago. His next mission was to assassinate Nakago's main rival in power, who was another yakuza boss. "Looks like I have one last job to do before I give my boss my resignation."
"What kind of job do you have to do?" Ukyo asked.
"Nothing very important or hard. Otherwise I wouldn't do it since I'm planning on leaving soon. Of course, things may go unexpectedly to make things difficult but I can't really do anything about it. Work is murder I guess."
"I agree to that sugar."
"All right, I guess I'm off."
"Wait a second. Can you do me a favor? Take of your glasses and show me yours eyes. I never got the chance to see them even though we see each other every week for the past three years. I bet that they're wonderful."
Blast it, I knew she was going to ask about that sometime, Ranma said to himself. It really wasn't a good idea to let her see his eyes. She might get freaked out or something and it'll ruin their relationship. She'll then be asking to many questions that he can't give her. The answer might endanger her and him if the information happens to fall into the wrong hands. That was one thing he can't allow. He still needs his freedom to find Cammy, wherever she is. "Sorry, my eyes burn without my sunglasses. Ever since I was young, my eyes were too weak to take in the sun's rays. That's why I'm wearing these to help protect me. I hope you understand."
"Yeah, okay. I guess that's understandable."
There was silence that lasted a couple of seconds.
"Just remember to visit or write to me once in a while," said Ukyo.
"Will do… Ucchan."
It was late at night when Ranma chose to start on his last assignment. Using stealth techniques, Ranma successfully made it to the backside of the house. He quickly leaped up onto the roof, which was easy for a man of his skill. He quickly used his keen hearing to locate the boss. He actually never met the man before, so he couldn't track the guy's scent. After a minute of searching, Ranma believes that he was able to pinpoint his target.
His target was talking on the phone about a drug deal that was going to take place two days after at the docks. Ranma smiled at the information that may be useful to him. His hearing had also detected two people in a close proximity with really good heartbeats. One was inside the house while the other one was arriving here at a fast speed about twelve yards away. Ranma decided to wait awhile longer to see what was going to happen. The person in the house with the strong heartbeat had walk into the same room as his target. Ranma decided to wait a bit longer to see if anything comes up.
"Ryuji Yamazaki, just the person I was looking for," said the boss.
"Have you called for me?"
"Are you ready for tomorrow night's task? It is going to be a big shipment, so try to be prepared. I'm paying you a lot of money so don't let me down."
"That's your problem," said Yamazaki. "You should know the risk of hiring me. I get the money no matter if I did or didn't do the job successfully. Otherwise, you will find yourself hanging from a rope and having your skin peeled by me."
The boss didn't try to respond to that. He knew it was risky to hire the madman but it would be worth it. One mistake in his word could cost him his life. The shipment will give him a bundle of money and bring him another step closer to his dreams of controlling the city's crime. The minute he comes into complete power, he would first get rid of Nakago.
Ranma decided to unfocused on the two below him and focused on the other strong heartbeat. It had already made its way to the facility.
Gen had made it to his destination with no problem. He has studied the area before coming so he knew his surroundings well. His ride was only two blocks away, so he could make a quick getaway once he completed his mission. He was moving along the side of the mansion when the coast was clear. He then moved towards the windows and tries to open them. It took him a few tries until he finally succeeded in finding one that was not closed all the way. A fatal mistake, he thought. Gen then proceeds to open the window slightly so he would not cause much disturbance. As he got in, he then opened the door with a little crack leading to see if there was anyone in the hallways. Although he did not have Ranma's keen hearing ability, Gen is a superb warrior and he had learned to use his ears for detecting movements.
As the hallways seem clear, Gen made his way out and proceeds up the stairs. He was moving faster than most people could who was younger than he was. As he spotted a guard, he quickly made his way towards the unlucky fella and covered his mouth. Gen quickly delivered a blow across the guard's neck.
Someone just died, Ranma thought. He had been following the new heartbeat that just came across another one. He heard the other guys trying to scream behind the hands of his killer. The person's heart stopped beating, which meant only one thing. It looks like someone was going to do the job for him if he just sticks around and do nothing. As Ranma focused on the heartbeat again, he found that it was already in the same room as his target and Yamazaki.
"Protect me and I will double your payment," the yakuza boss cried.
"Double?" Yamazaki repeated. "Sounds good."
"Young people these days have no respect for the old," Gen quoted. "Are you so rude as to beat up this worthless weak old man?"
"Weak are you? I doubt that pops, although I could agree on the worthless part. I just got my payment doubled so you're in for it." Yamazaki quickly got out his dagger and swung at the old man. He was surprised to see the old guy dodged and knocked his weapon out of his hand.
Gen quickly got into his Sou-ryuu stance and started his onslaught. He quickly jabbed three of Yamazaki's pressure point with his fingers, which should have caused the big man to collapse. Instead, the man roared in retaliation and did a back fist, which caught nothing but air. Gen smile, because this may be the match he was looking for. Gen is searching for a death match that could end all matches and so he could die from battle then from a disease.
Yamazaki was in pain. He didn't know what the old man just did, but he could feel like his body was trying to shut itself down. If it wasn't for the Orochi blood within him, then he might have already. I guess I'll have to take this up to the next level, he thought. He straightened himself up and cracked his neck as if he was trying to intimidate this opponent. He straightens out his posture and sticks his left hand into his pocket while pushing his chest out. He then proceeds to lower his head forward at Gen and taunted the man.
Gen had a lifetime of experience in his hands so he wouldn't have fall from a trick like that. He was eyeing Yamazaki and noticed his surroundings. He then moved forward and did a straight front kick, however it was just a fake move to lure his foe into lowering his security. He then uses that same foot in a fast motion and knocked a nearby chair at Yamazaki.
After being fooling by the old man's lame attack, he proceeds to move close when he just realized he had made a mistake. At the corner of his eyes, he barely caught the object coming towards him. Instantly, his instinct told him to destroy the incoming threat. "Hebi Tsukai Joudan!" He did an uppercut towards the object, which was infused with the power of the Orochi. The attack lighted the sky with his power. The chair was instantly shattered to pieces from the attack. His impressive display of power was short lived when he felt his ribcage burning with pain. He finally did collapse to the ground and saw what was in store for him next from looking straight up from where he laid.
For now, Gen was able to get the upper hand of the situation. When he knocked Yamazaki down, he went airborne and was descending down with his knees shooting straight down at his enemy. The impact made Yamazaki hurl and Gen was not finished. He formed two-finger on both his hands and prepared to strike onto the venerable points that were located besides the forehead.
Yamazaki was strutting with more pain and somehow he found himself reeling his fists back and rammed directly at Gen's face. Unfortuanately, the attack missed as his opponent dodged by flipping back to the other side to get some room. Mustering all the adrenaline he has, Yamazaki got up. He glared at the old man. He saw the man charged again, however this time he was ready. Taste what I could dish out, he said to himself. "Sunakake!" As he spins his leg in a powerful ark, a powerful gust of force reaches out and caught the old man on the chest and sent him back. The tables are turning.
Gen was caught by surprise by the younger man's technique. It seems that he was overconfident in the fight, which was a big mistake.
Yamazaki was now the one charging, and he pulled combos after combos at the old man. However he felt strange again as if his arms were getting tired, which was almost impossible since he wasn't that beaten up from the earlier attacks. Unknown to him, Gen had him a couple of pressure points on his arms that would momentarily weaken him while he was blocking Yamazaki's attacks. Yamazaki then found himself locked in a barrage of strikes.
The fight had continued on for only nearly two minutes and the room was a totally mess. Tables were turned over and destroyed, which was the same to the chairs. Holes were made on the walls and even the rug has seen better days. The two fighters seemed to equal out, and both haven't gone serious yet. If Yamazaki didn't have Orochi blood within him then he wouldn't have been able to survive from the old man's brutal style that was created to kill. He was in a bad shape now and Gen didn't even seem to be hurt.
This is the most fun I had in weeks, Gen thought. He smiled slightly as he watched his opponent jumped at him. Very bad move, he told himself. "Gekirou!" Gen's legs flew into the air at Yamazaki's upper body and connected three deadly kicks.
Yamazaki once again met the floor, but fortunately he landed right beside his dagger. He could already see the old man groin from the mistake.
Ranma was having a good time standing on the roof and listening to the fight. He could hear and feel them using ki in their attacks. He wasn't in the same room as them so he couldn't picture the fight scene from the feel of the air currents. All he could do is guess what they were doing from the sound of their heartbeats, and the noise they say and make. It really wanted to get into action too but that could jeopardize his mission. If Yamazaki was the victor, although it seems unlikely, he would then need to get into action and finish the job of what he and the old man was set out to do. His opponent would have already been drained, which would give him an easy kill. However, if the other assassin wins, he could just go home scot-free and start packing up his luggage. It was just too bad that Ranma's life still remains chaotic even if he does have a new life away from Nerima. Suddenly, his head began to feel a jolt of pain.
"Not right now," said Ranma as he began to clutch his head. The pain quickly increases to an astronomical rate. He gritted his teeth together but found that he didn't keep his pain in check. That was when he opened up his mouth and gave out a loud shriek of pain. His screaming could be heard from a far distance. He shook his head left to right, hoping that the pain would somehow deteriorate. At that moment, he just wanted to cave his own head in so the pain would stop but he couldn't let go of his hands due to the pain. His muscles around his neck and head tensed up severally, and not a single muscle was able to relax. His body was all ready losing control of the power it wields. An energy field projected itself around Ranma and grew in size. It scattered everything that was in a close proximity away from its wake. Unfortunately, the ground where he was standing on was made of tiles, which came off easily. Too much tiles under him had been removed and caused the structure he was standing on to collapse. The circular field that was surrounding Ranma had protected him from the fall and manages to slam everyone in the room away from him. It bounces off the floor and disappeared as Ranma's headache was disappearing.
Ranma was still clutching his head, trying to pull himself together after that brief moment of torture. He was breathing hard since his body was trying to recover from the pain. He then finds himself standing in the same room as his target and the two fighters he felt. His target was knocked unconscious from the surge on his uncontrolled power, while the other two were on the ground. Comparing the situation where he was two minutes ago with the situation he was in right now, Ranma let off one word. "Fuck."
The two fighters were also trying to get themselves together. The power of the energy that hit then was already subsiding when it hit them so they didn't feel its full power. That was a good thing.
"Oh, I'm sorry," said Ranma. "Is this a party for three or could I join in?"
The two fighters looked at him and wondered what his reason was for being here.
"Oh and by the way, my name is Confucius. And Confucius says, 'the boss man won't live pass tonight'."
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NOTES:
Introduction of Ukyo (Ranma 1/2), Ryuji Yamazaki (KOF), and Gen (SF).
Next chapter: Fight between Confucius, Gen, and Yamazaki. Who will be the greatest assassin? What does Nakago have install for Ranma? What were Genma, Ryouga, and the other Nerima Wreaking Crew doing for the past three years?
The Tendos and many other Ranma ½ casts definitely going to make their appearance! And who else you might wonder….
Confucius says, "don't miss it!"