(-chan implies endearment, familiarity)
(-san implies extra respect)
"The Illusion of the Abyss"
Ranma returned to herself, and groaned at such a forgetful mistake. Her true ki reserves did not, could not change. Practicing for eighteen hours increased her ki ability. . . . . until next morning. Simply, her own body limited her technique.
'Wait, didn't I explode?' Jumping out of the pond in joy, Ranma performed a lazy backflip, feeling her muscles stretch. Relief, like a strong cup of tea, warmed her stomach. Death was irrelevant.
"Shut up boy!" Chastised Genma, coming in with a leaping kick.
Ranma realized she was laughing and couldn't stop, and opened herself, Kissing the Face of Life.
No slouch in the threat the department, Genma recognized his child held tremendous power at about the moment Ranma blasted him, sending the fat man through the Tendo wall.
"Heh. Time to get serious." Said Ranma between chuckles, upping the speed of energy absorption.
Shortly thereafter, Nerima exploded.
As she died unafraid, Ranma spread across the universe, drifting. Becoming one with the Dao, as her Tibetan instructors blathered. She felt pulled by an enlightened tunnel, but before the way opened, awareness deserted her.
--
Death was indescribably soothing. Ranma wanted to rethink her priorities, after experiencing quasi-transcendence.
'When you embrace the endless, you leave the useless, petty part of yourself behind in this world. Or perhaps, taking a part of the Dao back with you, merely pierces all illusions.' Such deep thoughts, Ranma's inner voice mused. . . . . . . 'First, that technique will be mine!'
Determined to triumph, Ranma defined how quickly she could draw in and release ki. Eleven spectacular explosions led to the twelfth day changing her fundamental self. She struggled with her deepest inner being, against sweet obliteration. Surrender was defeat, and Ranma Saotome did not lose the battles she decided to fight.
The twelfth attempt, she achieved a mental state poorly described as oneness, zazen, or pre-emptive deja vu. Her ki became the pure white of total self-acceptance; her thoughts clarified. Ranma realized her curse was a blessing, and marrying soon wasn't the ultimate solution. She felt a hole in her mind, but it vanished from her conscious awareness.
Realizations unbound her inner energies, allowing greater control over the technique she called Kissing the Face of Life.
Until Akane could live with herself, sharing her life would be sharing Akane's own painful self-recrimination, and Ranma was not a masochist. Ucchan wouldn't be happy unless Ranma was happy, and Ranma doubted that future. The fiancée-tangled knots of honor still bound her, but now she saw ways to unravel them.
Epiphany.
'Time, I have enough time, limitless time,' thought Ranma, discovering a simple way to activate his curse with cold and hot ki, only to find it ineffective while in the koi pond.
Noticing her father and the Tendos staring in fearful awe, almost broke the oneness. Examining her outward self, she glowed with an ever-building amount of stark white, serene ki. The water in the pond began retreating from her feet in perfect ripples, and she became male.
He stopped drawing power with effort, and hesitantly sought the damaged part of his mind -- the catfist. Slowly, he cleansed this darkest cornerstone of his psyche. Traveling beyond death made his fears insignificant, and Ranma doubted physical pain would bother him again. He could concentrate while energy overload ripped him apart, a redefinition of limits he thought impossible before. If he lost, it would be from his body being too damaged, not lack of will. Emotional uncertainty might unnerve him, but Ranma would no longer cringe from stinging memories of sharp teeth and claws.
Nekoken's feral state was gone forever, abandoned near the triumphant trumpets of Valhalla. Ranma did not mourn; the activated Nekoken had unbalanced his ki, literally breaking his mind. Minus the unrestrained ferocity, he could mimic the catfist's claws with Musubetsu Kakuto Ryu
Fighting a power-high, he forced gathered ki out slowly as waves of diffuse benevolence, avoiding destruction. As zazen left, a last realization came -- depending on any emotion, even it, would be unhealthy. Too much confidence meant he ignored problems because they would solve themselves. Too much tranquility meant he would ignore problems because they could not truly hurt him, and therefore did not matter.
Returning his full attention to the physical world, she (now that the waters of the pond had returned) found Kasumi kneeling at her feet, her parents having sex, Soun Tendo in a posture of relaxed meditation, and Akane crying.
Stepping out of the water, she triggered the change, and dried his clothing with hot ki.
He helped Kasumi up, and eldest Tendo asked reverently, with water dripping from her clothing, "Ranma-sama, make me your disciple and I will do anything: bear your children, become your wife, renounce my family name, even commit honorable suicide."
Taken by surprise, he replied briskly: "You need not debase yourself for me Kasumi, I promise to teach you when today and tomorrow are no longer the same. We start at four-fifteen next morning."
Kow-towing, Kasumi left to finish breakfast, ignoring the dripping mess her clothing had become and the mud on her brow. (Kow-tow -- a very deep bow, meant to show extreme humility, in which one's forehead touches the ground.)
"Akane-chan," he asked, "why are you crying?"
"I don't like myself that much," she said between sobs.
Ranma smiled, "Don't worry, you'll get better."
Her tears stopped, and she smiled hesitantly, making his heart jump. She wouldn't remember this transformation tomorrow, he reminded himself.
"R-Really?"
"I promise."
"Then I'm happy." Akane stepped inside around his parents, collecting herself.
Soun looked up from his ponderings. "Ranma-san, whenever did you become so eloquent?"
"Hinako-sensei helped me with pronunciation and language."
Sighing, Sound replied, "Ah Hinako, such a good woman, I should marry her."
Nodding, Ranma went inside for breakfast. After tempering his ki control, he needed the advice of a math professor at Tokyo University.
His talk with Minamoto-sensei lasted into the night.
----
Next morning, Ranma attempted the grisliest facet of Nodoka's advice; an appeasement for when he broke the endless moment. Honorable suicide couldn't truly kill him.
"If it means you'll stay alive, I'll sleep with you right now!" Akane's outburst greeted a stunned breakfast table, after Ranma announced her intent.
"Would you, could you, with a woman Akane?" Grabbing her teacup, Ranma poured hot water over her head, and used a hidden bubble of cold ki to prevent the change.
When Akane hesitated, Nabiki spoke decisively "If she won't, I will, and I know both Shampoo and Ukyo will too. Is that 'manly' enough for you Nodoka-san?"
Ranma watched her mother nod her head, but snarled, "It ain't enough for me! Mother, dojo, now!"
Watching Nodoka gather the katana, she found Kasumi standing in her way.
"If it matters in this decision, I will also trade my virtue for your life, Ranma Saotome." Kasumi was in tears; this admission cost much.
Struck by this plea, Ranma didn't react fast enough. Nodoka drew the honor blade, and turned to Akane. "Break this now Akane-chan!" she said urgently.
Nabiki dashed to the phone, and speed dialed Ukyo, then Shampoo. Yelling, she demanded their presence in an emergency.
With a kiyahh!! Nodoka's katana snapped.
Smiling, Nodoka regarded her daughter. "My honor is not more important than my child. So which caring young girls will you sleep with first?"
Ranma stepped into the Umi-sen-ken and vanished, watching as they fruitlessly searched. It gave her a warm feeling, this touching concern.
The last lingering doubts about her manliness and Jusenkyo vanished from Ramna's mind. Before falling into sleep that night, she spoke the truth, "I am who I am," and meant it.
----
Awakening in the koi waters, she challenged Happosai with a flashy release of pure feminine ki, summoning him from whatever hole he lurked in.
This time, Ranma outlasted the Chilling Lips of Death. When he entered zazen, channeling self-acceptance, the technique could not unbalance his ki. He felt centered within and without, noticing no pain. This contentment meant he failed to counter with Chilling Lips of his own, interested in the beauty of the leafy weeds on the ground.
Observing the aura around his student, Happosai bowed his head. "Musubetsu Kakuto Ryuu imitating the Sharp Edge of Nirvana." Summoning ki, the ancient grandmaster invoked a technique to banish rampaging demons.
Hundreds of tendrils of ki assaulted Ranma, different in temperature, emotion, power, length, and intent. If Escher designed a kaleidoscope, he might have envisioned how the spinning patterns behaved.
As they enveloped Ranma, Genma realized none were able to touch his son, that Ranma's battle aura seemed to be spinning. . . . . until it exploded outward in a ki-vortex larger than a house.
By unspoken agreement, the masters present endured, until the fury faded. Grateful, Ranma said, "Thank you for teaching me such a technique Master Happosai. My turn: Musubetsu Kakuto Ryuu imitating the Nekoken."
"Very well, Master Ranma, Musubetsu Kakuto Ryuu imitating the Essence of Sea."
They clashed, and Ranma faced an inconceivable defense: Happosai took no damage from the claws of ki; he channeled Ranma's ki around himself, much like waves broke over a rocky shoreline. So this was what Ucchan meant.
Retreating, Ranma replenished his energy by Kissing the Face of Life, and he watched Happosai pull out a scarlet bra and panties, doing the same.
"Break!!" Yelled the old letch in a tone of command Ranma instinctually obeyed. Later he identified this as a ki-voice.
"I award upon you the rank of Master of the Musubetsu Kakuto Ryuu, Ranma Saotome, however I will not permit a grandmaster challenge until you create a ball of ki like this one."
Abruptly, a ball of swirling pink and muted purple ki pulsated in the air above Happosai. Looking at the emotions, Ranma admitted he could not create a ki-ball of consummated love.
"As I thought, Master Ranma." The wizened gnome seemed disappointed. "So many pretty ladies, and you haven't had one yet?" His eyes became teary at opportunity lost.
Ranma held the bridge of his nose, disgusted. Then the old man came over and demonstrated the ki flows needed to use the Chilling Lips of Death in the empty air. Ranma matched him exactly, and Happi beamed in pride.
"M'boy, I learned that technique from a French prostitute seventy-five years ago. It works around the yin/yang; male and female. If used by a man on a man with weaker inner strength, the stronger ki will imbalance the weaker, leading to immense pain. I don't know what happens if a woman uses it on another woman. The Chilling Lips is best if used by a man on a woman, or a woman on a man. It's how my unworthy students convinced their wives to marry."
Genma nodded. "My son, please only use that technique on a woman you can truly love, for she will follow you to the ends of the world, and forgive anything."
Soun added, crying sadly, "Yes, my dear wife would never have looked at a poor man like me without such an awesome technique. To my shame, I overused it, and she developed wasting sickness. Be careful with such responsibility, especially around my daughters!" A demon-headed Soun roared.
The masters of Musubetsu Kakuto Ryuu left the field of combat, having gained in strength by one. For now, Happosai's willingness to teach was exhausted, but surely, his father kept secrets.
----
Shaking off the lingering koi, Ranma rose into a strange stance. Genma, who recognized the form in dread, aborted his leap, backing away fearfully. 'This time you aren't getting away old man.'
Experimentally slashing at the air, the red-headed girl watched in satisfaction as a shallow cut appeared on her father's hide. Remembering early mastership duels, she diffused ki throughout the Tendo backyard, setting a ruse.
When the older Saotome vanished with his Way of the Silent Thief, she yelled "Ha!!" using a ki-voice like Happosai's. Beads of her aura condensed and blasted Genma, ruining his escape. The blast echoes sounded like thunder crashing down upon a parched meadow, hanging solemnly in the air.
Ranma stepped out of the pond, and quickly wove the hot-ki trigger upon his curse. He continued toward his father; this reckoning had been building over the years.
The Hell's Cradle technique had been infuriating, but the Thousand Fists earned his respect. Having battled Happosai with his father's techniques, he knew why Genma had not bested his Master. None accounted for the next level of ki control, a level his father never reached. A level he expected to surpass shortly.
Slowly approaching, he spoke in cold anger. "Old Man, this is your last chance to impress me. In my lifetime I've gone from utter trust in you, to utter contempt. Trying to run my life for the benefit of your lazy ass. The catfist!" He swiped the air, shredding Genma's gi and leaving a bloody gash his chest. "The Curses!" She triggered the transformation, and continued onward. "The Engagements!" Now she faced her father. "You have one last chance old man, before I leave you a begging, bleeding wreck. Don't bother with that pathetic Crouch of the Wild Tiger, face me like the man you've forced me to become!"
Genma Saotome acknowledged his fate with an ironic nod at his female son. With odd nobility, like a prisoner walking the plank with his chin high, Genma assumed a stance unknown to Ranma. He bowed his head, and left his arms at his sides, appearing to relax. "Musubetsu Kakuto Ryuu imitating the Ghosts of a Thousand Fists. This technique I never perfected, never recorded, never had the will to unleash. Know this my son: you have made me proud. On three, we finish this, and perhaps, I will be redeemed."
Speaking together, the girl and her father counted, and began on the third beat in cadence, heedless of the watching Tendos. Heedless of the shocked expressions, and soft disbelieving mutters of their audience.
"Ancestral Demon Whip Kick!" Genma yelled, as his form blurred, appearing ghostlike. Dodging both the kick itself, and the follow-up vacuum pulse, Ranma appeared to hover in the air as she bounced off small platforms of semi-solid ki, building momentum and velocity.
Anticipating Ranma's plan, if baffled at the mechanics, Genma whispered "Embracing Raging Anger." His form blurred further, and with bloody sweat soaking his gi, the master of a thousand fists heard the air buzz angrily.
When Ranma's Meteor Kick met her father's vacuum barrier, Genma's form blasted through the walls of the Tendo compound, coming to rest across the street in a neighbor's living room. In upsetting the equilibrium of her father's aura, Ranma had entered a huge triggered vacuum guillotine. So tightly controlled was her ki, that it merely shredded her clothing and left deep, arcing gashes across her leg and stomach, rather than cutting her into three pieces.
Using semi-solid ki to stop herself from bleeding to death, she forced pressure on her wounds, and walked to her unconscious father. Either the neighbors weren't home, or they weren't coming out.
Idly, she formed small bitter ki balls and lobbed them at Genma's face, slapping him awake. The overmatched man struggled upright, dislodging fragments of furniture caused by his impact. Like a scolded dog, he looked to his son.
"It's not finished yet old man," she told him icily, "neither of us in the hospital yet." With a circle of multiple images, Ranma mercilessly pummeled him in the remains of a stranger's living room.
Not even trying to block, Genma closed his eyes and whispered in a pained and breathy gasp "Angelic Feast of Souls." A technique meant to cleave opponents apart, when surrounded. Three expanding circular vacuum waves emanated from Genma, destroying Ranma's images, and the structural integrity of the house they fought in.
Learning from her earlier mistake, Ranma employed the Essence of the Sea, and sharp air broke around her in a mighty thunderclap, shattering a television screen. The old man's ribs were at least cracked, plus his right leg fractured. The price Genma paid for defeating Splitting Cat Hairs
Noting her father had fallen to one knee and assumed another vacuum shield, she idly disrupted it with hot and cold ki. It collapsed in a loud boom, leaving Genma missing a large chunk of his upper arm.
Satisfied, she said, "It is enough. You have permission to collapse. I'll make sure you live."
Shortly thereafter, Ranma jumped out the house carrying Genma. Immediately, it rumbled in on itself, falling in pieces cut with finer tools than human hands allowed.
Forcing pressure on her father's wounds, she absently told Kasumi to call an ambulance. When the Tendos and her mother began berating her for reckless behavior, she released part of her aura, lighting up with command presence. In the sudden silence, Ranma recognized an unfamiliar emotion in those she cared for: mindless fear.
Refusing treatment, she spent the remainder of the day at Ucchans, not noticing she never returned male. As she walked off, Akane sadly whispered, "Ranma, what have you become?"
----
"Ucchan, you told me before you managed to get rid of Tsubasa Kurenai while I rearranged Jusendo. What happened?" He didn't date with her now, but the pleasant company of his best friend drew Ranma back.
"Hmm, those adventures are not mine to truly share Ran-chan. But, this much won't hurt! I needed his help, so I promised to get Tsubasa laid." Her expression of satisfaction involuntarily made Ranma step backwards.
Horrified, he stuttered "Y-you mean. . . . . you did it . . . . . with him?" Betrayal brought an almost physical illness.
Applying her spatula to his head, she recaptured his attention.
"No, moron, I made him disguise himself as the cutest, teeth-rotting, let-me-barf-now thing he could dream up. Then I brought him over to Azusa Shiatori's and he got inside her panties within fifteen minutes. Once he found out how to spread Azusa's legs, Tsubasa stopped chasing me."
Relief made him observe he'd raised a small aura. Dismissing it in nonchalance, he said, "I didn't know you knew that little ditz Ucchan."
"How could I forget the story of Slutzenin and your ill-omened first liplock as a girl?"
"It didn't count! It didn't count!" Ranma made a mental note to kick Sanzenin's ass tomorrow. 'Damn it! It -didn't- count.'
Laughing, Ukyo served him a chef's special, fresh off her grill.
-----
What had those fools meant about the true nature of the Chilling Lips of Death? Their warnings made no sense. Happosai had winked at him when Soun blew up about his daughter's safety. Ranma decided to test a weak version of the technique on a normal girl.
The closest normal girl was Kasumi Tendo.
---
"Kasumi, can you help me with something?" Having finished her morning chores two minutes ago, Kasumi had yet to start lunch for the household. Ranma cornered her in the laundry area as she finished folding.
"Shouldn't you be in school, Ranma?" An undertone in Kasumi's voice projected disappointment in him, as she moved the folded clothing into a basket.
"Hinako-sensei needed the time with Akane more, and asked me to leave. Your sister is very worried about her exams and sensei thought my presence distracting."
"Well, if that's the case, I could spare a few minutes for a simple task." Kasumi's voice returned to her normal cheer.
"A ki-technique I discovered has different applications based on gender. I would like to use a mild version on you, and for you relate the experience." Ranma's clinical tone reassured her and Kasumi nodded
"Very well, come to the kitchen after I put these away." Carrying a basket of laundry, Kasumi left.
Three minutes later, he faced Kasumi, who stood in a focused posture in the middle of her kitchen. Her eyes closed, and her breathing became rhythmic. Ranma invoked the Chilling Lips of Death at low intensity for thirty seconds.
Kasumi started breathing faster. Her hands, previously motionless at her sides, closed into tight fists. Sweat beaded her forehead, and she tightened her facial muscles, appearing stern. When he ended it, she made a surprised involuntary grunt.
Collecting herself, Kasumi twisted her hips a few times, then walked slowly over to the sink and wiped her face with a clean blue dishtowel. Breathing deeply, she took sixty seconds to speak.
"Ranma, promise me you won't use this technique before marriage."
"What do mean? What happened?" He asked.
"I forgive you because I know you acted in ignorance." She sounded strained. "That type of power is dangerous. What your technique did was make me feel good. Too good!" The intensity in Kasumi's voice made the last statement into a soft chiding shout. Ranma stood through the scolding with a dawning sense he inadvertently committed a terrible crime.
"Now, please excuse me while I bathe and change." Walking slowly and with additional motion near her waist, Kasumi left, distracted by herself.
Not understanding, Ranma didn't promise anything. He could try a stronger Chilling Lips tomorrow, but he didn't want to do anything Kasumi felt she had to forgive. He needed another normal girl instead.
Where would he find one today?
---
"Hiroshi, where's a good place to find women?"
"Hey Ran-man, you already have a collection, why not let some range free?"
"Yeah, whatever. How about if I pay, and you bring Daisuke too?"
"Cherry Blossoms. It's a night club for high school students trying to score at the college level, but the cover charge isn't cheap."
"Don't worry, I'll take care of everything."
---
Cherry Blossoms was half full, and they noticed a brand new red hotrod being taken away into valet parking as the taxi dropped them off.
Whistling, Hiroshi began gushing about vintage cars, how those tires were original and newly rethreaded. . . . .
Leaving their enraptured compatriot behind, they went in, letting the doorman know the babbling idiot's cover was paid.
Ten steps inside, Daisuke froze, and looked like he'd had a large wooden plank broken over his head.
"Yuka what are you doing here?"
Ranma and the newly entered Hiroshi exchanged glances, verifying the other's ignorance.
"You don't own me you idiot! I wanted to see how a real man could treat a lady. Groping my breasts a movie theater isn't a date, you know."
Yuka's glare melted off Daisuke's lecherous grin.
"Hey, when you let -your- hands wander down my body, I took it to mean the invitation was open!"
"I didn't 'let my hands wander' – you stuck the popcorn between your legs and picked seats so I couldn't see! If I hadn't been half falling out of my chair trying to watch the movie, I'd have -never- touched you there! You arranged for me to make that horrible mistake!"
Swiftly walking away, Ranma and Hiroshi held a whispered conversation.
"You know, I can almost sympathize, but let's cut to the chase Ranma -- I see serious babes over there!"
"Yeah, poor guy, I bet she told him to hold the popcorn and picked the seats herself." Happened once to him, when escorting Akane and her temper to a movie.
Implementing his brilliant plan with perfect calm, Ranma walked up to the indicated booth of four college girls, and asked, "Hey ladies, I'm a wandering martial artist, and I need some help with a technique I'm working on. It will only take a minute, and I'll pay your bill here tonight if you help."
Hiroshi watched, awed by his friend's audacity.
"Ayane, that pick up line has to be lamer than the last one. You owe me 300 yen!"
"No way! 'Let me take you for a ride with my smashing cherry red hotrod, and smell the burning rubber, baby' was far more sexist; like that loser could afford rubbers." Turning to Ranma, she added: "Women are more than just sex organs, you know." Ayane's generously condescending statement was greeted by the squeals of the other two girls from across the table, which caused a vein to throb in her forehead.
"Jun Ken Pow!" (rock crushed scissors) "Jun Ken Pow!" (scissors clashed) "Jun Ken Pow!" (paper covered rock) "Jun Ken Pow!" (rock was enveloped by paper) "Jun Ken Pow!" (scissors cut paper)
"Ha, that's three out of five; this hunk is mine! Move your overly generous ass out of the way for me and my new date!" Glaring at her friend reproachfully, the chubby girl on the aisle side of the booth exited to make room.
Emerging was a girl who would take non-descript as a complement. She wore thick glasses, and a generic green/black school fuku, though she seemed college age. By her grooming habits, she learned fashion sense from half-dead geriatric squirrels.
Shaking his head sadly, Hiroshi wondered if Ranma would accept a desperate college nerd-girl. The two babes looked like they were only here to help their friends. Compared to Ranma's other options, this was tossing giant lobsters away for the chance to catch minnows with mercury poisoning. Watching his friend sit the girl down at an empty table, he slunk closer.
"Ok, er, um..."
"Meiko!"
"Yeah, Reiko, sit and relax, this should be quick."
Not caring the hunk had butchered her name, the girl leaned back in her chair, and tensed up tighter than a tongue against a metal pole at –50 degrees.
With moderate concentration, Ranma focused a low-grade Chilling Lips of Death on the girl, not knowing what to expect. An almost invisible flickering in the air indicated the technique's activity.
Meiko arched her back, sucked in a deep breath, unexpectedly sneezed, and then frantically grabbed a napkin across the table, inadvertently spilling a glass of ice water. Gasping loudly, she overturned her chair, and appeared to knock herself out on the carpeted floor.
Noticing the return of his feminine side, Ranma switched back unnoticed while the fainting girl held everyone's attention. He arranged Meiko comfortably at an empty booth with Hiroshi watching her, and left after paying her tab.
Walking home, he deduced the Chilling Lips of Death made girls clumsy and distracted by making them feel good. Marginally useful in future fights, when he didn't want to hurt a would-be fiancée. Awfully complex for so little result, but then it probably acted like a mild aphrodisiac. Knowing his trouble with love potions and such, Kasumi had probably overreacted.
'Nabiki would be proud of me for figuring it out,' thought Ranma smugly.
Hiroshi examined Meiko intently after Ranma left. She appeared to have a nosebleed, her fuku was soaked though the ice water spilled toward Ranma, and an odd grin adorned her face.
Minutes later, the nerd-girl awakened with the face of an inquisitive Hiroshi blocking her vision.
"Damn that felt good!" Meiko shared happily. "I've never had one like that, especially one in public. Scandalous! I've got to go back and change my underwear now, here's my meishi "(she handed a damp card with her phone number on it to Hiroshi), "please tell your friend to call me, and that I'd like another demonstration. . . . . .. Kami. . . . . . I'd do anything to experience that again!"
Watching the girl stagger away, Hiroshi frowned. It might hurt more than he could dream, it might slaughter his grades and ruin his college chances, but he'd learn that technique if it killed him!
"Ayane, why is that strange boy laughing?"
"Hormones. Let us have a moment of silence for men who won't get laid until they are over thirty."
The three girls bowed their heads solemnly.
-----
Armed with a technique to unbalance a woman, Ramna entered the grounds of the Kuno mansion. His mission objective: to make Kodachi Kuno face the reality of his curse.
Learning his desire, Sasuke rushed him into Kodachi's room and fled. Having arranged for Tatewaki's absence, Ranma expected no interruptions.
Placing the grabby Kuno girl on the chair by her desk. Ranma gave a quick, clear explanation he knew she'd ignore, and triggered his change.
A red-headed girl looked back expectantly.
"Vile seductress, I don't believe you!" Kodachi began the attack.
"What would convince you?" Ranma ducked a razor hoop.
"Undeniable proof!" The exclamation was accompanied with a fine steel bola. Kodachi's lair held interesting toys.
"Fine!" Ranma switched genders. "This should make you listen!"
The Chilling Lips of Death, fully powered, struck Kodachi as she hesitated in the middle of throwing a taser web, surprised by the appearance of her love. Expecting ruined coordination and involuntary muscle spasms, Ranma received that and more.
This time no cold water interrupted the ki-composition of the flawlessly performed technique. No yin counterbalanced the magnetic yang.
Blushing severely, Ranma learned the true power of the Chilling Lips of Death, when a man used it on a woman. Doing his best to ignore the passionate screams, he politely turned away.
When the panting stopped, he turned back, and saw Kodachi had torn off the bottom of her leotard, and maintained a full split against her carpet throughout the experience. Her exhausted smile, along with the room's new musky aroma was statement enough.
"You wanted undeniable proof, right?"
Kodachi nodded.
Embarrassed by the necessity, Ranma removed his pants and boxers, setting them neatly on the floor.
"You are undeniably a man, Ranma-sama. I'd prefer you not proceed further for now, since I feel quite sore. See?" The girl held her crotch open with her hands, and with a gymnastic contortion put her feet behind her head, displaying herself.
Concentrating on his mission, Ranma asked, "Watch closely, and don't attack me, OK?"
With Kodachi's leering nod, he let cold ki trigger the curse.
"Normally, I would disbelieve such illusions, but I feel too mellow to fight. Can your trick pass this test though?"
Slowly untangling herself and hobbling over, Kodachi poked.
Feeling the intimately probing finger, Ranma asked with embarrassment, "Could you please stop that?"
After the finger withdrew, Ranma changed back, and winced as 'he' got grabbed. With Kodachi's hand in contact, Ranma switched again. Surprised at her palm's position, the gymnast poked upwards again, and then withdrew her finger quickly.
"Um, yes. . . . . the evidence is undeniable. Very well, I believe you."
Suddenly, as if something became aware of a new connection, Kodachi clutched her forehead in pain, and let loose a keening scream.
A corona of black energy surrounded her head, and staggering backwards, the girl fell onto her bed.
With great pain in her voice, she whispered: "By the nine spokes of heaven, grant me skill to overcome the corruption of eternity!"
A fine bracelet of silvery white appeared on Kodachi's hand. Streamers of light projected from it, obscuring her clothes, and coalescing into a black and white outfit with a prominent yin/yang motif. Embroidered on the sleeves were holy symbols of Japanese deities.
Jumping to attention, Kodachi stared at Ranma-chan with a black halo over her head, and incomprehension in her eyes. She burst into motion, a pattern unfamiliar to Ranma's experience. Attack or defense?
"Whatever you are, the balance of this universe is disrupted. It is my duty to eliminate the threat you represent! Weapon of my identity, emerge!"
Triply faster than her normal speed, the girl attacked Ranma with the weapon that appeared. Looking between dodges, Ranma saw it was a silvery white Kodachi (small Japanese hand sword; could be considered a large dagger) with a black rose emblazoned on the hilt.
"What are you supposed to be?" Ranma asked conversationally after a missed disemboweling stroke.
"I am the fulcrum of balance for this land; you will find yourself defeated by Devil Hunter Kodachi!" With an intricate set of attacks, the transformed girl proved she could talk and fight at the same time.
Snorting after a dozen dodges; Ranma infused her index finger with ki, and began parrying the weapon contemptuously. She ignored the small thin cut appearing on her finger from the first clash. An angry buzzing accompanied every parry, like a lightsaber duel from Star Wars. Upping her aura's power after the first block, Ranma felt the silvery-blue sparks as magic and ki struggled for dominance. Rather than fading, the energies peppered the room like surreal fireflies. Eventually, Ranma maneuvered Kodachi into slashing the dark halo overshadowing her head with a skillful redirection.
The darkness flashed, and seemed to melt back into strangely dressed girl, who blinked, confused.
Lowering her sword, Kodachi spoke wonderingly: "I remember now!" Concentrating, she sighed. "I still can't recall how this happened; whatever controls my memories has suffered a temporary setback."
Uncomfortably, Ranma fidgeted under Kodachi's piercing stare, directed at her vagina. 'The loon is a demon slayer?'
"Why Ranma-sama, you appear to be under the affects of a curse. Would you like it removed?" Devil Hunter Kodachi dismissed her weapon and sat on her bed.
"Nah, that's alright, I have control over the blessings of Jusenkyo and they are part of my identity. Did you know I was accursed from the beginning?" Traitorous or stupid?
"No, I can only sense magic when I'm a normal girl, though I admit to hunting the red-haired 'witch' to see if she was a succubus controlling you. My brother has not the gift, but senses magic too."
So that was why Kuno thought him a sorcerer!
"Why not just transform and investigate?"
"My artifact only reacts to the intentions of hostile, dangerous agencies. My calling is maintaining the supernatural peace; if I abuse my power, it will leave me forever. From what little abilities I have naturally, I could tell your magic was harmless."
In disbelief, Ranma-chan recounted incidents that plagued her life in Nerima. (This took some time.) Dismissingly, Kodachi explained the circumstances weren't threatening enough to demand her attention: "No one died or used death magic. When I'm not hunting I can't even remember I have this power, and my relic reacts most selectively. I've only been called on twice, both before we met."
As if sensing the discussion, the bracelet began flickering, sending spheres of light around the room. Several touched Kodachi herself, but were turned away by answering pulses of darkness.
"Whatever is controlling my normal self is beginning to reassert itself. I'm sorry Ranma-sama, but I'll soon be trying to kill you again."
"Not if I can help it! White Snake Reliable Fist revised: Sweet Steady Chestnuts Bringing Illumination!" Striking with Amaguriken speed, Ranma attempted to vanquish what held Kodachi.
In under a second, the girl's entire body was bathed in purification. Using her well-earned ki mastery, Ranma saw the enemy hiding inside a blemish on Kodachi's aura that shouldn't exist. This unknown stain could not be cleansed, and ignored the energies brought against it.
"No use Ramna-sama, devil hunters like me are sanctified against direct possession by our artifacts. I only know an insidious non-magical attack opened a hole in my protection. Whatever torments me dwells in and is shielded by this hole."
Rallying against defeat, Ranma swore an oath: "Whatever happens Kodachi, I promise you I'll free you of this, by the honor of my soul."
Staring with infinite gratefulness, Kodachi spoke strongly with tears running down her cheeks: "Listen carefully, my hope, before it is too late."
Hugging the Devil Hunter, unmindful of her own semi-nudity, Ranma rubbed Kodachi's back and paid careful attention.
"If you fight too closely against the minions of the Abyss, you must take care not to become like them. No demon hunter escapes such a trap, which is why our society does not regard us great respect. It is why I am treacherous for fighting in all fairness." She laughed, not her usual, but almost like wracking sobs.
"Ranma-sama already I feel that which holds me in abeyance re-establishing itself. Remember my love: when carrying fights into the endless dark, avoid taking wounds. When you visit the Abyss, it visits you. In fighting too long, you match the enemy's methods. In whole reality, even darkness has a place. Be careful my love, see through the Illusions of the Abyss. I did not."
With a whimper, Kodachi clutched her head and began breathing erratically. The artifact granting her transformation unclasped, and fell softly on the floor. The girl reverted to her previous state of undress, her costume disappearing.
Hovering by the gymnast's side, Ranma gently whispered her name, with awed understanding.
Time passed.
The Black Rose opened her eyes, and saw the hated red-haired girl's exposed pubis. "Harridan!" She screeched, jumping up from her bed and wincing at an intimate rug burn, "Have you stolen my virtue within my own chambers? Have at thee!"
Mentally slapping herself for missing that little detail, Ranma grabbed her clothing and escaped with the Umi-sen-ken. This newest promise demanded immediate action.
But how?
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next: "337 Split Ends"