Intro: HA!!! Thought I was dead, didn't you?! Well, I'm alive and kicking with another chapter of Chaos OneHalf for ya. I hope the rest of the story doesn't go this slow...
Warnings: Some manga language. Unedited.
------------{ Chaos 1/2 }-------------
------{ Episode 06: Tough Training! Ranma is a Teacher? }------
Akane bounced down the stairs, dressed in a modified version of her jogging outfit, with a pair of sweat-pants over her shorts and a jacket over her tank-top. "Okay, I'm ready, Sensei!"
Ranma paused in his bouncing on one foot and gave her a once-over. He nodded, "Good enough. Let's go." He resumed bouncing and moved out through the door.
Akane followed him, watching him strangely, "-What- are you -doing-??"
He smirked and turned around, still bouncing, "Training. It helps my stance, and my jump height. See?" He took his hands out of his pockets to reveal a black sphere in each hand. He held it out for Akane to look at, and she leaned forward.
Slowly she made out the letters engraved on the surface of the sphere, "1-0-0-l-b..." Her eyes bugged out and she teetered forward, resisting the urge to face-fault, "100 pounds?!! Where did you pick something like that up??!"
Ranma shrugged, "I dunno, ask Pops. He's the one that comes up with all this weird stuff." He reached into a backpack resting by the gate and pulled out a vest, a pair of bracelets, and a pair of anklets, "Meanwhile, here's a little somethin' for ya."
Akane looked at him questioningly and he nodded, "Go 'head, put 'em on."
She nodded and moved to pick the items up, only to grunt in exertion attempting to pick the vest up. She looked at him incredulously, "-What- is this stuff -made- of?!"
Ranma smirked, "Don't ask. Just put it on."
Once Akane had finished putting on the accessories, she was breathing heavily, " Oooof! This is HEAVY!! How long do you want me to wear this anyway?"
" 'Till you get used to it, then we add more weight. Now come on, let's go." He waved for her to follow him, then set off at a brisk pace. Akane stared after him for a moment, then hurried to catch up.
------{ Streets of Juuban }------
"And just how do you expect to be able to locate this guy anyway?! We know nothing about him!!" Exclaimed Sailor Mars irritably.
Sailor Mercury glanced up from her computer, "Well, I was going to scan for his energy signature, but he doesn't seem to be anywhere in sight. It's almost as if- " She paused as her computer beeped urgently, then sighed, "Scratch that, we've got a youma to fight." She pointed, and the group was about to head off when a flash of light followed by a roll of thunder and a roar of pain caught their attention. They all glanced up at the clear sky, then at each other, and nodded, "Let's hurry!"
They all arrived on the scene to see Ranma finishing off another of the Black Rainbow monsters with a kick to the back of it's neck. They all winced at the viciousness displayed by his actions. They were about to drop down from the roof they were watching him from when he dusted off his hands and turned to his companion, a girl with long, dark-blue hair wearing an exercise outfit and a vest.
"See? They're pathetic wimps, Akane."
She frowned at him, "I still think you should leave this sort of thing to the Sailor Senshi."
The red-haired boy just shook his head and laughed, "What? Are you kidding?! They had more trouble with it than -I- did! In fact, they were getting their asses kicked!"
"HEY!!!"
Ranma looked up at the roof, where Sailor Mars was looking down at him indignantly, and shrugged helplessly, "Well, you WERE! Hi, girls! Ready for Round Two??"
Sailor Moon pushed her way forward and held out her hands placatingly, "Wait a minute! We don't want to fight you! We just want to talk!"
"Who says??" muttered Mars under her breath.
Ranma simply smirked, "Well, too bad! -I- wanna fight!!" With that, he leapt toward them, falling far short of the tall building, but jumping off of the wall to the opposite building, where he triangle-jumped again until he reached the top. He took up a battle stance, "Are you ready??"
Not waiting for an answer, he jumped high into the air and landed directly in front of Sailor Moon, only to sweep her feet out from under her. She shrieked in surprise as she fell, flailing her arms wildly. Ranma was already in the air once more, heading for Sailor Mercury. The blue-skirted girl reacted quickly, raising her hands and summoning a thick fog to blind the red-haired martial artist. Ranma immediately stopped where he was, then began moving again, this time staying as quiet as possible.
Suddenly his danger sense screamed at him and he leapt upward desparately, just in time to avoid a screeching bird of flame as it flew straight at him. He emerged from the fog like a rocket, noting the position of the other Senshi as he rose. They noticed him at about the same time, and Venus fired a Crescent Beam at him as he reached the peak of his jump, forcing him to twist awkardly to avoid it.
He twisted and flipped as he came down, somehow landing on his feet in the middle of the fog. Not pausing, he leapt sideways toward Sailor Jupiter, who blocked his first kick with her own leg, then grabbed his second kick out of the air. But before she could throw him, Ranma had jumped and kicked with his other leg, hitting her on the side of her head and stunning her. As her grip loosened, he pulled his first leg out and finished the spin, landing on his feet once more.
Instead of finishing her off, he jumped for Sailor Mars, who swiftly made some symbols in the air and fired a Burning Mandala at him. Ranma shifted in mid-air, diving straight through the center of the attack and knocking Mars off of her feet with a powerful kick to her torso.
Using the momentum provided by the kick, he headed for Sailor Moon again, this time grabbing her arm and swinging around her body, thus changing the direction of his leap, and at the same time pulling her off balance again. This time he headed for Sailor Venus and touched down just before reaching her, but kept going, leg extended in a sliding kick. She also shrieked as she flipped into the air and landed on her back, the breath knocked from her lungs.
By this time Mercury had dissipated the fog, and she fired a Shabon Spray Freezing at the red-haired boy as he headed for her once more. Surprised, he dove to the side and rolled, coming to a stop only inches from the edge of the roof. His danger sense screamed again as Sailor Jupiter dove at him with a jump kick, and he rolled to the side, only to snag her arm as she flew over the edge, causing her to slam to the the side of the building.
Not wasting any time, he pulled her up and jumped at Mars, leaving Jupiter gasping for breath and wondering at his actions. Mars fired another Fire Soul Bird at him, which he flipped over. He landed in front of the red-skirted girl, and snapped five kicks in succession into her torso, breaking through her hastily raised guard.
Still moving almost to fast for the Senshi to react, he jumped at Sailor Moon again and landed directly in front of her. Straightening, he put his hands to the sides of his head and made a face, "BOO!!!" Startled, she jumped back, tripping over her own feet and landing on her butt.
Ranma finally stopped and straightened, chuckling, "Heheh... Seriously though, you guys need some serious training before you can take on those monsters. You've got the speed and the power, but the skills aren't there." He turned to face Mercury, "By the way, g-" He was interrupted by Jupiter's Sparkling Wide Pressure hitting his unguarded back. His only reaction was to shake his head as if dizzy and glare at Sailor Jupiter, "HEY! That was uncalled for!!"
The Senshi all stared at him in surprise as he raised a finger and summoned a small ball of lightning, "Well, it's not like it matters since I can't be hurt by my Element, but the question is, can you??" That said, he pointed at Jupiter and fired the lightning bolt. Too stunned to dodge it, she twitched spasmodically as the mild shock connected. Ranma smirked, "Well, I guess that answers THAT question." He then turned back to Mercury, "By the way, nice defenses."
Having said his piece, he waved good-bye before leaping high into the air, "I'll see ya around girls. Flash Point!!!" A bright bolt of lightning slammed into their midst, blinding the Senshi long enough for Ranma to make his escape. By the time they had recovered, both the red-haired boy and the dark-haired girl were gone.
The Senshi looked back and forth at each other for several seconds before anyone said anything. Sailor Mars finally broke the silence, "Well, that settles it. -I- say he's a Youma."
Sailor Mercury shook her head, "While I'd normally be inclined to agree with you, the Mercury computer indicates that there was no change in his Bio-energy readings during the fight, except for raising in power level while he was active. It went back down after he stopped fighting. Which is perfectly normal, except for the high level it reached."
"Alright, so he's got a powerful Ki. What about that Lightning he summoned? Doesn't that count as a Youma ability?!"
"The Mercury computer did not indicate anything other than a slight drop in Bio-energy levels when he created that electricity. The strange part is that there didn't seem to be any Magic involved, even though he does have a rather strange magical aura..."
"What do you mean by that?" Sailor Venus piped up.
"Well, he appears to be under some sort of curse, but that's not the strange part. It's almost as if there are two souls in one body. Which, as you know, is impossible." Sailor Mercury tilted her head quizzically, "Although it -would- explain his abnormally high Bio-enegy level."
Sailor Moon broke in, her calmness indicating that her Queen Serenity persona had come to the fore-front, "Perhaps he was reincarnated like us, but something went wrong? Still, none of us were severely hurt. It's almost as if he was testing us."
Sailor Jupiter joined in, still involuntarily twitching every once in a while, "He DID save me from going over the roof back there.... for what it's worth. Then again, he did hit me with a lightning bolt..."
Sailor Venus asked the question they'd all been thinking, "So... is he a friend or an enemy??"
They all looked at each other again, before Sailor Mercury closed the Mercury computer and said, "Perhaps this will best be discussed over ice cream?"
"Yay!!! Ice cream!!!" Obviously, Usagi was back to her usual self.
------{ Ice Cream Shop, Juuban }------
"Okay, how did you and Kasumi get here again??"
"Well, Ranma, I saw the live television broadcast of your fight with that Youma and came to check it out."
"Ara, Ara. I was just looking for an especially rare ingredient for tonight's supper."
"Uh-huh... Well, while we're all here, why don't you all have some ice cream, my treat!"
Nabiki eyed the red-haired boy suspiciously, "ALL of us, Ranma? You'll pardon my skepticism, but you don't strike me as the type to have a lot of money."
Ranma smirked knowingly, "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, eh Nabiki?" The short-haired girl narrowed her eyes at him and crossed her arms. "Eh... trust me, you don't want to know..." She continued staring at him. "Uh..." He finally wilted, "Look, I went back and mugged those muggers from last night, okay?!"
Akane face-faulted while Nabiki simply slapped her face with a palm. Kasumi... The corner of Kasumi's lips twitched, "Ara, ara. That wasn't a very nice thing to do, Ranma-kun." Another twitch.
Ranma scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, "Ah... heh heh... Um, are you guys gonna order or not?"
Nabiki promptly ordered the most expensive thing on the menu, while Akane stuck with a Sundae. Kasumi hung back, looking longingly at the menu. Ranma immediately noticed this and spoke up, "What's the matter, Kasumi? Aren't ya gonna to get somethin'?"
The mild-mannered girl looked back at him with a vaguely concerned expression on her face, "Ara ara... It's been so long... I don't think I should-"
"What are you talkin' about? Just pick somethin' an' enjoy it!" He gestured at the menu to emphasise.
"Oh, um... If you insist..."
A short time later, they were all enjoying their respective deserts when a group of girls walked in, chatting amongst themselves. None of Ranma's group took any notice of the other group until they sat down at their table and the girl with brown hair in a tall ponytail said, "I still can't believe he hit me with a lightning bolt!! I mean, how did he DO that?"
"SNORT!!! COUGH-COUGH-HACK-COUGH!!!"
Kasumi looked up from her chocolate-fudge-dipped-in-chocolate-syrup-and-sprinkled-with-chocolate-chips dish in concern, "Ara ara, are you all right Ranma-kun??"
The pony-tailed boy held up a hand, "Just- wheeze fine, Kasumi... cough"
After he had recovered from his coughing fit, Ranma continued to nurse at his chocolate cone (sans fudge, syrup, and chocolate chips)while listening carefully to the conversation across the room. The short haired one with blue hair was the next to speak, "To tell you the truth, Makoto, I don't know. All I can say for sure is that it wasn't magic he was using."
The long-haired girl with black hair spoke up next, "He may have been using his Ki, but I've never heard of -anyone- using their Ki like that."
The blond with twin odangos stopped stuffing herself long enough to say, "We STILL don't know if he's a friend or an enemy. After all, he did say when we first met him that Setsuna told him to help us. But on the other hand, he doesn't seem very inclined to listen to her."
After Ranma had realised who they were referring to, he had switched over to his Ki-senses to identify the girls. It took some examining to tell, but their auras seemed to be the same as the Sailor Senshi, only less powerful. A plan formed in his mind while he finished off his cone, then crossed the room to introduce himself, "Uh, excuse me? I thought I heard you say someone was supposed to be training you and backed out?"
As one the girls all froze and stared at him.
No one moved.
All was silent.
Ranma was sweating bullets.
Ami finally broke the ice, "Um... I'm sorry. Do we know you??"
Ranma nearly wiped his forehead in relief, [Whew! They didn't attack! Must be some sort of transformation, then.] "No, I don't think so. But it sounds like you're having trouble with bullies??"
Makoto sweatdropped, "Uh, yeah. You could say that..."
He grinned "Ah, then I know just the thing! You girls need some lessons in self defense!"
Makoto began to protest, "But I already-"
She was interrupted by Ami's hand on her arm, "Wait a moment, Makoto. This may be just what we need." Ami's eyes bore into Makoto's, driving her intentions home. If they could gain training from the very opponent they were fighting, they would have a much easier time defeating him. He would be the device of his own defeat!
"...Oh. Uh, yeah... Maybe that would be a good idea..." The brunette finished feebly. The rest of the girls all looked at Usagi, waiting for her permission. The blond-haired girl finally swallowed the mouthfull of ice cream she had been holding since Ranma had stepped up and nodded.
They turned back to Ranma and Ami spoke again, "That sounds like a great idea... Um...." She trailed off, reallizing that they had yet to get his name.
The pony-tailed boy swept into a loose western bow, "Ranma Saotome, at your service."
Ami returned his bow from her seat, "Well, then. Take care of us, Sensei."
Ranma gestured at Akane, "You'll be training alongside Akane Tendo, here." He raised his voice slightly, "Hey, Akane! Come here and meet your new training partners!"
The dark-haired girl scowled at him, "What's the big idea, Ranma?! Don't have enough pretty girls around, NOW??!"
Ranma looked taken aback for a second, then replied, mimicking her scowl, "What's the big idea, Akane?! Don't have enough honor to help someone in NEED??!"
Akane was the one taken aback this time, "What??! Don't you dare bring honor into this!! You're just trying to pick up girls!! You're just a pervert like the rest of them!!"
Pale blue eyes narrowed, "Take off those weights, Akane."
-That- got through to her, "W-what??!"
"You heard me." An icey face matched his tone perfectly. "If you act like that, you're not fit to train with me."
Her offense was really faltering, now, "But.. you-"
"But -nothing-, Akane. You had no right to protest my right to take on new students." He informed her calmly. "Now take off those weights."
She looked back and forth between him and the weights several times before she responded, "Fine. If you wanna be a pervert, do it when I'm not around." She removed the straps and the vest, letting them fall to the floor with a thump. She stretched, then said stiffly, "I'm going home." With that she stalked out the door, ignoring her unfinished Sundae.
Ranma watched her leave, icey expression still in place. Once the door closed, his entire body relaxed and he sighed heavily, "Damn. I thought she was ready... Guess I was wrong..." Putting it behind him for time being, he turned back to the group of girls, "Sorry about that... Listen, is there a park or something nearby where we can meet?"
Rei nodded slowly, "There's a park not too far from here, maybe seven or eight blocks."
"Great!! I'll meet you there after school tomorrow, then. Is that all right with you?" He looked at all of them in turn, and they nodded.
"That would be fine." Ami spoke for all of them once again.
"Alright, then. I'll just leave you girls to finish your ice cream, then. I'll see you tomorrow." With that, he turned and went back to his table, where Nabiki and Kasumi were just finishing off their respective dishes. "You guys ready to go?" After getting an affirmative, the small group left, hoping to catch up to Akane.
------{ The Next Afternoon, Juuban Park }------
"Okay, girls. The first thing you will do is put on these weights." Ranma held up several sets of weights identical to the ones Akane had shunned yesterday, "You will wear these at ALL TIMES, even while you're not training with me. You may take them off for showers or baths, but that's it."
Minako raised her hand enthusiastically, "But what if we get into a real fight??"
Ranma leveled a stare at all of them. "YOU... won't be GETTING into any fights," he stated firmly.
"But-" Ranma cut her off by raising a hand warningly.
"NO... FIGHTS.... Now put them on and we can get to the training." He smirked maliciously. The girls suddenly felt a shiver run up their spines.
Once the girls were "dressed", Ranma studied them for a moment and nodded, "Right. Now, training will consist of you trying to hit me and me trying to hit you. In other other words, we spar." He looked them over again and pointed at Makoto, "You. you're first."
Needless to say, the fight didn't last very long. A battered and bruised Makoto staggered back to the others and flopped to the ground, "You know, I never thought that training could be this painful..." Usagi started to say something, but was distracted by Ranma, who was pointing at Rei.
"You! You're up next!" Rei winced and slowly went to put her head on the chopping block- I mean, spar with Ranma.
The rest of the training went very similar, with one of the girls trying to hit Ranma while he pointed out holes in their defense and took advantage of those same holes at the same time. Many of the moves he used on them were examples that he showed them how to do later.
At one point, Usagi managed to tag him completely by accident, but tripped over her own feet as she danced a little victory dance. After sitting up, she started to cry, "Whaaaa!!! I'll never get it straight!! I'm so clumsy!!!" She sniffed sadly.
Ranma walked over to her, "Hey, Meatballs. How old are you?"
She looked up at him sharply, clumsiness forgotten for the moment, "What?! How dare you call me Meatballs!! And why should I tell you how old I am?? Don't you know that you're not supposed to ask a woman her age??!"
Ranma shrugged carelessly, "Sheesh! Touchy, touchy. Just answer the question. Meatballs."
"For your information, I'm fourteen. Not that's it's any of your business," she finished huffily.
Ranma nodded thoughtfully, "Mmmm-hmmm. I thought so."
All of the girls looked at him curiously. He looked around at them and grinned, then turned back to Usagi, "The reason you're so clumsy is because you're having a growth spurt. You'll grow out of it soon enough. It's perfectly normal."
"Aaahhhhhhh..." A collective sound of understanding passed over the girls, followed by, "Why didn't -I- think of that?!!"
------{ Juuban, Downtown Mall }------
Later that week, Ranma finally found another of the Ebony Monsters. This time he noticed that he had had a more difficult time killing it than he had the other Monsters. He sported a cut on one cheek, and a couple bruises on his arms before he managed to kill it. The resulting black ooze had just evaporated when an indignant cry from a nearby rooftop alerted him to the presence of the Sailor Senshi.
"Hey! No fair!! You got to it before we did!" Sailor Moon's voice whined.
Ranma looked up at the ensemble of girls above him and grinned, "What, were you LOOKING for a beating?? Well, you missed the monster, but -I'll- be happy to oblige!!" He tensed and leapt for the rooftop, using a couple less triangle-jumps than the last time.
Sailor Moon waved her arms defensively, "W-w-wait!!! Aren't you supposed to be HELPING us?!! I thought you said Pluto told you to help us!!"
Ranma shrugged as he landed, "Yeah, but you wimps are beyond help. There's no way you could get good enough to beat that thing in time." He hadn't actually found out -when- the Entity would arrive, but the Senshi didn't need to know that.
"Y-you mean you know when that thing will get here??!" Sailor Mars gasped, horrified.
He smirked suddenly, "Yeah, but that's..." He trailed off.
Sailor Venus rose to the bait, "That's what?"
Ranma winked and waved a finger at them, "... A secret!" The Senshi did a group facefault.
Ranma chuckled to himself as they recovered, "Heh, heh!! Well, looks like Round Three to me. Let's go!"
------{ End Episode 06 }------
Next episode: So Ryouga, how's your training goin'? ...... You got knocked into a spring?! ...... Which one? ...... You can do WHAT now?!!
Author's Notes: Whew! Took me long enough, but I got it out. Introduced some plot twists here. Akane quits (not necessarily permanently), the Senshi start training, and the monsters are getting tougher. I don't really count the ending as a cliffhanger, since the outcome of the fight is pretty much predetermined anyway. Heh. Points go to anyone who correctly guesses which spring Ryouga is gonna fall into.
Ah yes. As I type this out ( -/-/-), Finishing Moves Chapter 2B is about halfway done, but don't expect an update for another month or so. My output speed has slowed down drastically. For that matter, don't expect the next chapter of Chaos OneHalf for several months, at least. On the other hand, I may finish that one sooner simply because I'm finally where I can start lining MY story up with the TV storyline again. BTW, I only intend to stick with it until the end of the first season, then I'll take whatever direction I want to after that.
Warnings: Some manga language. Unedited.
------------{ Chaos 1/2 }-------------
------{ Episode 06: Tough Training! Ranma is a Teacher? }------
Akane bounced down the stairs, dressed in a modified version of her jogging outfit, with a pair of sweat-pants over her shorts and a jacket over her tank-top. "Okay, I'm ready, Sensei!"
Ranma paused in his bouncing on one foot and gave her a once-over. He nodded, "Good enough. Let's go." He resumed bouncing and moved out through the door.
Akane followed him, watching him strangely, "-What- are you -doing-??"
He smirked and turned around, still bouncing, "Training. It helps my stance, and my jump height. See?" He took his hands out of his pockets to reveal a black sphere in each hand. He held it out for Akane to look at, and she leaned forward.
Slowly she made out the letters engraved on the surface of the sphere, "1-0-0-l-b..." Her eyes bugged out and she teetered forward, resisting the urge to face-fault, "100 pounds?!! Where did you pick something like that up??!"
Ranma shrugged, "I dunno, ask Pops. He's the one that comes up with all this weird stuff." He reached into a backpack resting by the gate and pulled out a vest, a pair of bracelets, and a pair of anklets, "Meanwhile, here's a little somethin' for ya."
Akane looked at him questioningly and he nodded, "Go 'head, put 'em on."
She nodded and moved to pick the items up, only to grunt in exertion attempting to pick the vest up. She looked at him incredulously, "-What- is this stuff -made- of?!"
Ranma smirked, "Don't ask. Just put it on."
Once Akane had finished putting on the accessories, she was breathing heavily, " Oooof! This is HEAVY!! How long do you want me to wear this anyway?"
" 'Till you get used to it, then we add more weight. Now come on, let's go." He waved for her to follow him, then set off at a brisk pace. Akane stared after him for a moment, then hurried to catch up.
------{ Streets of Juuban }------
"And just how do you expect to be able to locate this guy anyway?! We know nothing about him!!" Exclaimed Sailor Mars irritably.
Sailor Mercury glanced up from her computer, "Well, I was going to scan for his energy signature, but he doesn't seem to be anywhere in sight. It's almost as if- " She paused as her computer beeped urgently, then sighed, "Scratch that, we've got a youma to fight." She pointed, and the group was about to head off when a flash of light followed by a roll of thunder and a roar of pain caught their attention. They all glanced up at the clear sky, then at each other, and nodded, "Let's hurry!"
They all arrived on the scene to see Ranma finishing off another of the Black Rainbow monsters with a kick to the back of it's neck. They all winced at the viciousness displayed by his actions. They were about to drop down from the roof they were watching him from when he dusted off his hands and turned to his companion, a girl with long, dark-blue hair wearing an exercise outfit and a vest.
"See? They're pathetic wimps, Akane."
She frowned at him, "I still think you should leave this sort of thing to the Sailor Senshi."
The red-haired boy just shook his head and laughed, "What? Are you kidding?! They had more trouble with it than -I- did! In fact, they were getting their asses kicked!"
"HEY!!!"
Ranma looked up at the roof, where Sailor Mars was looking down at him indignantly, and shrugged helplessly, "Well, you WERE! Hi, girls! Ready for Round Two??"
Sailor Moon pushed her way forward and held out her hands placatingly, "Wait a minute! We don't want to fight you! We just want to talk!"
"Who says??" muttered Mars under her breath.
Ranma simply smirked, "Well, too bad! -I- wanna fight!!" With that, he leapt toward them, falling far short of the tall building, but jumping off of the wall to the opposite building, where he triangle-jumped again until he reached the top. He took up a battle stance, "Are you ready??"
Not waiting for an answer, he jumped high into the air and landed directly in front of Sailor Moon, only to sweep her feet out from under her. She shrieked in surprise as she fell, flailing her arms wildly. Ranma was already in the air once more, heading for Sailor Mercury. The blue-skirted girl reacted quickly, raising her hands and summoning a thick fog to blind the red-haired martial artist. Ranma immediately stopped where he was, then began moving again, this time staying as quiet as possible.
Suddenly his danger sense screamed at him and he leapt upward desparately, just in time to avoid a screeching bird of flame as it flew straight at him. He emerged from the fog like a rocket, noting the position of the other Senshi as he rose. They noticed him at about the same time, and Venus fired a Crescent Beam at him as he reached the peak of his jump, forcing him to twist awkardly to avoid it.
He twisted and flipped as he came down, somehow landing on his feet in the middle of the fog. Not pausing, he leapt sideways toward Sailor Jupiter, who blocked his first kick with her own leg, then grabbed his second kick out of the air. But before she could throw him, Ranma had jumped and kicked with his other leg, hitting her on the side of her head and stunning her. As her grip loosened, he pulled his first leg out and finished the spin, landing on his feet once more.
Instead of finishing her off, he jumped for Sailor Mars, who swiftly made some symbols in the air and fired a Burning Mandala at him. Ranma shifted in mid-air, diving straight through the center of the attack and knocking Mars off of her feet with a powerful kick to her torso.
Using the momentum provided by the kick, he headed for Sailor Moon again, this time grabbing her arm and swinging around her body, thus changing the direction of his leap, and at the same time pulling her off balance again. This time he headed for Sailor Venus and touched down just before reaching her, but kept going, leg extended in a sliding kick. She also shrieked as she flipped into the air and landed on her back, the breath knocked from her lungs.
By this time Mercury had dissipated the fog, and she fired a Shabon Spray Freezing at the red-haired boy as he headed for her once more. Surprised, he dove to the side and rolled, coming to a stop only inches from the edge of the roof. His danger sense screamed again as Sailor Jupiter dove at him with a jump kick, and he rolled to the side, only to snag her arm as she flew over the edge, causing her to slam to the the side of the building.
Not wasting any time, he pulled her up and jumped at Mars, leaving Jupiter gasping for breath and wondering at his actions. Mars fired another Fire Soul Bird at him, which he flipped over. He landed in front of the red-skirted girl, and snapped five kicks in succession into her torso, breaking through her hastily raised guard.
Still moving almost to fast for the Senshi to react, he jumped at Sailor Moon again and landed directly in front of her. Straightening, he put his hands to the sides of his head and made a face, "BOO!!!" Startled, she jumped back, tripping over her own feet and landing on her butt.
Ranma finally stopped and straightened, chuckling, "Heheh... Seriously though, you guys need some serious training before you can take on those monsters. You've got the speed and the power, but the skills aren't there." He turned to face Mercury, "By the way, g-" He was interrupted by Jupiter's Sparkling Wide Pressure hitting his unguarded back. His only reaction was to shake his head as if dizzy and glare at Sailor Jupiter, "HEY! That was uncalled for!!"
The Senshi all stared at him in surprise as he raised a finger and summoned a small ball of lightning, "Well, it's not like it matters since I can't be hurt by my Element, but the question is, can you??" That said, he pointed at Jupiter and fired the lightning bolt. Too stunned to dodge it, she twitched spasmodically as the mild shock connected. Ranma smirked, "Well, I guess that answers THAT question." He then turned back to Mercury, "By the way, nice defenses."
Having said his piece, he waved good-bye before leaping high into the air, "I'll see ya around girls. Flash Point!!!" A bright bolt of lightning slammed into their midst, blinding the Senshi long enough for Ranma to make his escape. By the time they had recovered, both the red-haired boy and the dark-haired girl were gone.
The Senshi looked back and forth at each other for several seconds before anyone said anything. Sailor Mars finally broke the silence, "Well, that settles it. -I- say he's a Youma."
Sailor Mercury shook her head, "While I'd normally be inclined to agree with you, the Mercury computer indicates that there was no change in his Bio-energy readings during the fight, except for raising in power level while he was active. It went back down after he stopped fighting. Which is perfectly normal, except for the high level it reached."
"Alright, so he's got a powerful Ki. What about that Lightning he summoned? Doesn't that count as a Youma ability?!"
"The Mercury computer did not indicate anything other than a slight drop in Bio-energy levels when he created that electricity. The strange part is that there didn't seem to be any Magic involved, even though he does have a rather strange magical aura..."
"What do you mean by that?" Sailor Venus piped up.
"Well, he appears to be under some sort of curse, but that's not the strange part. It's almost as if there are two souls in one body. Which, as you know, is impossible." Sailor Mercury tilted her head quizzically, "Although it -would- explain his abnormally high Bio-enegy level."
Sailor Moon broke in, her calmness indicating that her Queen Serenity persona had come to the fore-front, "Perhaps he was reincarnated like us, but something went wrong? Still, none of us were severely hurt. It's almost as if he was testing us."
Sailor Jupiter joined in, still involuntarily twitching every once in a while, "He DID save me from going over the roof back there.... for what it's worth. Then again, he did hit me with a lightning bolt..."
Sailor Venus asked the question they'd all been thinking, "So... is he a friend or an enemy??"
They all looked at each other again, before Sailor Mercury closed the Mercury computer and said, "Perhaps this will best be discussed over ice cream?"
"Yay!!! Ice cream!!!" Obviously, Usagi was back to her usual self.
------{ Ice Cream Shop, Juuban }------
"Okay, how did you and Kasumi get here again??"
"Well, Ranma, I saw the live television broadcast of your fight with that Youma and came to check it out."
"Ara, Ara. I was just looking for an especially rare ingredient for tonight's supper."
"Uh-huh... Well, while we're all here, why don't you all have some ice cream, my treat!"
Nabiki eyed the red-haired boy suspiciously, "ALL of us, Ranma? You'll pardon my skepticism, but you don't strike me as the type to have a lot of money."
Ranma smirked knowingly, "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, eh Nabiki?" The short-haired girl narrowed her eyes at him and crossed her arms. "Eh... trust me, you don't want to know..." She continued staring at him. "Uh..." He finally wilted, "Look, I went back and mugged those muggers from last night, okay?!"
Akane face-faulted while Nabiki simply slapped her face with a palm. Kasumi... The corner of Kasumi's lips twitched, "Ara, ara. That wasn't a very nice thing to do, Ranma-kun." Another twitch.
Ranma scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, "Ah... heh heh... Um, are you guys gonna order or not?"
Nabiki promptly ordered the most expensive thing on the menu, while Akane stuck with a Sundae. Kasumi hung back, looking longingly at the menu. Ranma immediately noticed this and spoke up, "What's the matter, Kasumi? Aren't ya gonna to get somethin'?"
The mild-mannered girl looked back at him with a vaguely concerned expression on her face, "Ara ara... It's been so long... I don't think I should-"
"What are you talkin' about? Just pick somethin' an' enjoy it!" He gestured at the menu to emphasise.
"Oh, um... If you insist..."
A short time later, they were all enjoying their respective deserts when a group of girls walked in, chatting amongst themselves. None of Ranma's group took any notice of the other group until they sat down at their table and the girl with brown hair in a tall ponytail said, "I still can't believe he hit me with a lightning bolt!! I mean, how did he DO that?"
"SNORT!!! COUGH-COUGH-HACK-COUGH!!!"
Kasumi looked up from her chocolate-fudge-dipped-in-chocolate-syrup-and-sprinkled-with-chocolate-chips dish in concern, "Ara ara, are you all right Ranma-kun??"
The pony-tailed boy held up a hand, "Just- wheeze fine, Kasumi... cough"
After he had recovered from his coughing fit, Ranma continued to nurse at his chocolate cone (sans fudge, syrup, and chocolate chips)while listening carefully to the conversation across the room. The short haired one with blue hair was the next to speak, "To tell you the truth, Makoto, I don't know. All I can say for sure is that it wasn't magic he was using."
The long-haired girl with black hair spoke up next, "He may have been using his Ki, but I've never heard of -anyone- using their Ki like that."
The blond with twin odangos stopped stuffing herself long enough to say, "We STILL don't know if he's a friend or an enemy. After all, he did say when we first met him that Setsuna told him to help us. But on the other hand, he doesn't seem very inclined to listen to her."
After Ranma had realised who they were referring to, he had switched over to his Ki-senses to identify the girls. It took some examining to tell, but their auras seemed to be the same as the Sailor Senshi, only less powerful. A plan formed in his mind while he finished off his cone, then crossed the room to introduce himself, "Uh, excuse me? I thought I heard you say someone was supposed to be training you and backed out?"
As one the girls all froze and stared at him.
No one moved.
All was silent.
Ranma was sweating bullets.
Ami finally broke the ice, "Um... I'm sorry. Do we know you??"
Ranma nearly wiped his forehead in relief, [Whew! They didn't attack! Must be some sort of transformation, then.] "No, I don't think so. But it sounds like you're having trouble with bullies??"
Makoto sweatdropped, "Uh, yeah. You could say that..."
He grinned "Ah, then I know just the thing! You girls need some lessons in self defense!"
Makoto began to protest, "But I already-"
She was interrupted by Ami's hand on her arm, "Wait a moment, Makoto. This may be just what we need." Ami's eyes bore into Makoto's, driving her intentions home. If they could gain training from the very opponent they were fighting, they would have a much easier time defeating him. He would be the device of his own defeat!
"...Oh. Uh, yeah... Maybe that would be a good idea..." The brunette finished feebly. The rest of the girls all looked at Usagi, waiting for her permission. The blond-haired girl finally swallowed the mouthfull of ice cream she had been holding since Ranma had stepped up and nodded.
They turned back to Ranma and Ami spoke again, "That sounds like a great idea... Um...." She trailed off, reallizing that they had yet to get his name.
The pony-tailed boy swept into a loose western bow, "Ranma Saotome, at your service."
Ami returned his bow from her seat, "Well, then. Take care of us, Sensei."
Ranma gestured at Akane, "You'll be training alongside Akane Tendo, here." He raised his voice slightly, "Hey, Akane! Come here and meet your new training partners!"
The dark-haired girl scowled at him, "What's the big idea, Ranma?! Don't have enough pretty girls around, NOW??!"
Ranma looked taken aback for a second, then replied, mimicking her scowl, "What's the big idea, Akane?! Don't have enough honor to help someone in NEED??!"
Akane was the one taken aback this time, "What??! Don't you dare bring honor into this!! You're just trying to pick up girls!! You're just a pervert like the rest of them!!"
Pale blue eyes narrowed, "Take off those weights, Akane."
-That- got through to her, "W-what??!"
"You heard me." An icey face matched his tone perfectly. "If you act like that, you're not fit to train with me."
Her offense was really faltering, now, "But.. you-"
"But -nothing-, Akane. You had no right to protest my right to take on new students." He informed her calmly. "Now take off those weights."
She looked back and forth between him and the weights several times before she responded, "Fine. If you wanna be a pervert, do it when I'm not around." She removed the straps and the vest, letting them fall to the floor with a thump. She stretched, then said stiffly, "I'm going home." With that she stalked out the door, ignoring her unfinished Sundae.
Ranma watched her leave, icey expression still in place. Once the door closed, his entire body relaxed and he sighed heavily, "Damn. I thought she was ready... Guess I was wrong..." Putting it behind him for time being, he turned back to the group of girls, "Sorry about that... Listen, is there a park or something nearby where we can meet?"
Rei nodded slowly, "There's a park not too far from here, maybe seven or eight blocks."
"Great!! I'll meet you there after school tomorrow, then. Is that all right with you?" He looked at all of them in turn, and they nodded.
"That would be fine." Ami spoke for all of them once again.
"Alright, then. I'll just leave you girls to finish your ice cream, then. I'll see you tomorrow." With that, he turned and went back to his table, where Nabiki and Kasumi were just finishing off their respective dishes. "You guys ready to go?" After getting an affirmative, the small group left, hoping to catch up to Akane.
------{ The Next Afternoon, Juuban Park }------
"Okay, girls. The first thing you will do is put on these weights." Ranma held up several sets of weights identical to the ones Akane had shunned yesterday, "You will wear these at ALL TIMES, even while you're not training with me. You may take them off for showers or baths, but that's it."
Minako raised her hand enthusiastically, "But what if we get into a real fight??"
Ranma leveled a stare at all of them. "YOU... won't be GETTING into any fights," he stated firmly.
"But-" Ranma cut her off by raising a hand warningly.
"NO... FIGHTS.... Now put them on and we can get to the training." He smirked maliciously. The girls suddenly felt a shiver run up their spines.
Once the girls were "dressed", Ranma studied them for a moment and nodded, "Right. Now, training will consist of you trying to hit me and me trying to hit you. In other other words, we spar." He looked them over again and pointed at Makoto, "You. you're first."
Needless to say, the fight didn't last very long. A battered and bruised Makoto staggered back to the others and flopped to the ground, "You know, I never thought that training could be this painful..." Usagi started to say something, but was distracted by Ranma, who was pointing at Rei.
"You! You're up next!" Rei winced and slowly went to put her head on the chopping block- I mean, spar with Ranma.
The rest of the training went very similar, with one of the girls trying to hit Ranma while he pointed out holes in their defense and took advantage of those same holes at the same time. Many of the moves he used on them were examples that he showed them how to do later.
At one point, Usagi managed to tag him completely by accident, but tripped over her own feet as she danced a little victory dance. After sitting up, she started to cry, "Whaaaa!!! I'll never get it straight!! I'm so clumsy!!!" She sniffed sadly.
Ranma walked over to her, "Hey, Meatballs. How old are you?"
She looked up at him sharply, clumsiness forgotten for the moment, "What?! How dare you call me Meatballs!! And why should I tell you how old I am?? Don't you know that you're not supposed to ask a woman her age??!"
Ranma shrugged carelessly, "Sheesh! Touchy, touchy. Just answer the question. Meatballs."
"For your information, I'm fourteen. Not that's it's any of your business," she finished huffily.
Ranma nodded thoughtfully, "Mmmm-hmmm. I thought so."
All of the girls looked at him curiously. He looked around at them and grinned, then turned back to Usagi, "The reason you're so clumsy is because you're having a growth spurt. You'll grow out of it soon enough. It's perfectly normal."
"Aaahhhhhhh..." A collective sound of understanding passed over the girls, followed by, "Why didn't -I- think of that?!!"
------{ Juuban, Downtown Mall }------
Later that week, Ranma finally found another of the Ebony Monsters. This time he noticed that he had had a more difficult time killing it than he had the other Monsters. He sported a cut on one cheek, and a couple bruises on his arms before he managed to kill it. The resulting black ooze had just evaporated when an indignant cry from a nearby rooftop alerted him to the presence of the Sailor Senshi.
"Hey! No fair!! You got to it before we did!" Sailor Moon's voice whined.
Ranma looked up at the ensemble of girls above him and grinned, "What, were you LOOKING for a beating?? Well, you missed the monster, but -I'll- be happy to oblige!!" He tensed and leapt for the rooftop, using a couple less triangle-jumps than the last time.
Sailor Moon waved her arms defensively, "W-w-wait!!! Aren't you supposed to be HELPING us?!! I thought you said Pluto told you to help us!!"
Ranma shrugged as he landed, "Yeah, but you wimps are beyond help. There's no way you could get good enough to beat that thing in time." He hadn't actually found out -when- the Entity would arrive, but the Senshi didn't need to know that.
"Y-you mean you know when that thing will get here??!" Sailor Mars gasped, horrified.
He smirked suddenly, "Yeah, but that's..." He trailed off.
Sailor Venus rose to the bait, "That's what?"
Ranma winked and waved a finger at them, "... A secret!" The Senshi did a group facefault.
Ranma chuckled to himself as they recovered, "Heh, heh!! Well, looks like Round Three to me. Let's go!"
------{ End Episode 06 }------
Next episode: So Ryouga, how's your training goin'? ...... You got knocked into a spring?! ...... Which one? ...... You can do WHAT now?!!
Author's Notes: Whew! Took me long enough, but I got it out. Introduced some plot twists here. Akane quits (not necessarily permanently), the Senshi start training, and the monsters are getting tougher. I don't really count the ending as a cliffhanger, since the outcome of the fight is pretty much predetermined anyway. Heh. Points go to anyone who correctly guesses which spring Ryouga is gonna fall into.
Ah yes. As I type this out ( -/-/-), Finishing Moves Chapter 2B is about halfway done, but don't expect an update for another month or so. My output speed has slowed down drastically. For that matter, don't expect the next chapter of Chaos OneHalf for several months, at least. On the other hand, I may finish that one sooner simply because I'm finally where I can start lining MY story up with the TV storyline again. BTW, I only intend to stick with it until the end of the first season, then I'll take whatever direction I want to after that.