Ranma continued to dodge perfectly around Akira's attacks even if he turned to regard the new arrivals at the dojo. Perfect. He thought, knowing that with them as witnesses there would be no way Akira could renege from the terms of the challenge. Just as a punch passed in front of his face, due to him tilting his head to the side, he snaked into Akira's defenses impossibly fast and punched the youth right in the center of the jaw.
The blow wasn't especially hard, it was nothing Akira couldn't dish out himself, but it was still more than enough to make Akira's eyes cross and his knees buckle. The boy stared at Ranma in disbelief and was about to take the offensive again when he felt his legs kicked from under him. In a second he was laid on his back, his throat captured by Ranma's fingers.
The move was so fluid and effective that Kasumi, Kimiko and Hanamichi had to blink a couple of times to make sure it really did happen. Akane and Soun nodded, having expected for Ranma to improve tremendously over the years.
Ranma's family wasn't affected by the display. Even if they knew how good he really was they all saw him fight everyday, most of the times against them in Karmine and Seijuro's cases.
The pigtailed man ignored the shocked look on Akira's eyes and turned to Hanamichi. "Well?"
The boy shook himself out of his trance and raised one hand. "The winner, Saotome Ranma."
"Like hell! I… ugh!" Akira started to protest, only to have Ranma cut his supply of air by a slight tightening of his hand. While the boy wanted nothing more than to break free and show this annoying man a thing or two he couldn't ignore the fact that his throat was held in a firm grasp.
Ranma kept the pressure for a few seconds more, so there was no doubt in the young man's mind about who won the fight, before letting go and standing up. He offered a hand to his downed opponent.
"Akira!" Akane shouted aghast when her son batted the offered help away with a sneer. She usually never saw him act like this, and the fact that he was doing so with Ranma really bothered her. The pigtailed martial artist was, even considering their long separation, her best friend.
Ranma turned to Akane with a smile. "Don't worry about it, Akane." While it was true that Akira's action at first angered him, it was also true that it brought back memories. The boy's reaction was pretty much the same one Akane had once upon a time when she discovered the redhead that beat her was in truth a boy.
Akira was further enraged by the casual way in which Ranma brushed off his anger. It was almost as if the older man didn't consider him a challenge or a threat. He was taken aback, though, when Ranma turned seriously towards him.
The pigtailed martial artist gazed seriously at Akira and spoke very slowly to make sure the boy understood him. "You lost the challenge. I don't want to hear any more nonsense about you taking my daughter's rightful place as the heir to my school."
A light of understanding appeared on Akane and Soun's faces. The former decided to berate her son again for claiming a title that wasn't his while the latter could only shake his head and wonder if that kind of behavior came inherent in his line's genes.
Akira stared defiantly at Ranma and was about to retort when Akane snapped at him. "Tendo Akira! You will abide by the terms of the challenge and stop this outburst right now!"
The boy in question winced and turned to see just how upset his mother looked. Seeing he was in deep if he didn't comply with her wishes he lowered his head. "Yes, mom." Inwardly, though, he was not as cowed. This is not the end of it.
While Kimiko and Hanamichi went to see if Akira was alright, much to the boy's annoyance, Akane walked over to Ranma. "Did you have to do that?" That Akane just berated her son didn't mean she was happy with how humiliated he looked. Being a mother had made her enter more than one confrontation where she knew she was wrong just to support her children.
Ranma looked at Akane seriously. "I could've let Karmine settle things, but I didn't want him to be after my daughter the same way Ryoga was after me."
Akane inwardly felt offended at the implication, since Ranma was taking for granted the fact that his daughter was a better fighter than her son. She didn't say anything, though, wanting to avoid a fight. In her youth she would've raised to the challenge, but now with years of experience under her belt she was not so easy to jump the gun.
"You've really improved, Ranma-kun." Kasumi praised with one of her usual serene smiles.
Ranma returned the smile. "Thanks, Kasumi." The eldest of Soun's daughters had always been so easy to get along with. "It's what my old man would've wanted."
Kasumi nodded; saddened by the reminder of Genma and Nodoka's fate, but glad to see Ranma had learned to cope with it.
The pigtailed martial artist turned to regard his wife and smiled. She was looking at him with a raised eyebrow, probably over the way he protected their daughter even if she was old enough to take care of herself. Can deal with that later. In truth the winged woman didn't care that much about Ranma being overprotective; it was just routine to bring up an argument over it so they could later make up.
"What do you all say we go to the dining room and have some refreshments? I'm sure some of you would like a glass of lemonade."
Hanamichi perked up at the offer. "Sure, aunt Kasumi!" He was enjoying his day free from school, and now he'd get to taste some of Kasumi's snacks. Things couldn't get any better than this.
The pigtailed man turned to Kasumi with an apologetic smile. "You don't mind if we take a little while to train, do you Kasumi?"
"Why not at all, Ranma-kun." Kasumi returned.
Karmine groaned. "You're not giving it a rest even on vacation?"
Ranma smirked at his eldest daughter's attitude. "Of course not! And neither are you."
"What!"
Everyone but Akira laughed at the question asked by the startled Karmine. The girl obviously wasn't expecting to be roped into her father's training session.
Ranma looked at Karmine sternly. "Daughter, you know as well as I do that to be the best you have to train constantly."
"But I thought we could rest a little while out of the Mountain." While Karmine tried her best to act like a grown woman, a soldier at Mount Phoenix, there were times when she acted like the teenager she was. This was such a time, as evidenced by her whining.
The pigtailed martial artist nodded. "And we will. Instead of the full training regimen we'll only be doing some light sparring."
Karmine's pale face clearly confused the Tendos, since none of them could understand what was so hard about sparring. Neither of them knew, of course, that the kind of 'light sparring' Ranma engaged in with his daughter usually left her sore all over for at least a couple of days.
Seijuro snickered silently and rushed out of the room. He didn't want to attract Ranma's attention to him.
"Just don't knock her out, love." Kiima said as she walked out of the room. "If you do you're the one carrying her back to Kuonji's."
"Mom!" Karmine protested at her mother's obvious amusement for the situation. It was only to her growing frustration that Kiima ignored her completely. The others left as well, leaving the girl alone with her father for another session of bonding, the physical kind.
"Your sister is very strong." Kimiko commented trying to start a conversation with Nodoka. Both girls were in the kitchen preparing some more snacks, even if Kasumi protested they wanted to give the woman a rest, while the rest were in the dining room. All but Ranma and Karmine, of course.
Nodoka smiled at the older girl. "That she is. Daddy says she's stronger than he was at her age."
Kimiko raised an eyebrow. "That must certainly mean something. I grew up listening to stories about your father and his many adventures." And misadventures, she added to herself.
Ranma's youngest daughter beamed at Kimiko, she really liked the older girl from what little they had a chance to talk. "It does. Karmine is one of the best fighters back home and daddy's heir." Usually Nodoka was very reserved about talk of fighting, but Kimiko was very easy to talk to and she was very proud of her sister's achievements.
Kimiko smiled at the tone of reverence in which Nodoka spoke of the silver-haired girl, who was currently training with her father.
The two girls continued talking till they returned with the snacks to the living room, where Akane was telling the tale of the fight against the Golden Pair. Kiima smiled in amusement when she heard her husband accepted a challenge for Martial Arts Ice Skating without having been on a pair of skates before in his life. It sounded just like him to do something in the heat of the moment like that.
Kasumi thanked the two girls with a beaming smile, even if she protested it was wonderful to have help in her chores, and turned to the remembrance of times long past. Even if she wasn't as involved as her sister was, she did have her fair share of adventures involving the pigtailed martial artist. Wonderful time that it was, everything calmed down when he left.
She didn't mind Ranma's return, however, not one bit. She'd gladly take the weirdness back if it meant to have Ranma and his family in their lives.
From his sitting position by the table Akira frowned as he heard story after story with Ranma in the spotlight. His scowl deepened when Kiima made a comment about Karmine having inherited Ranma's luck, which had caused her some serious trouble but made her stronger in the long run. He was still sore over having lost to both Karmine and Ranma, even if Karmine took him by surprise and he could convince himself he could beat her Ranma humiliated him, showing him off as an amateur. Ryoga's son growled low in his throat at that thought, sound that was drowned by the laughter around him.
"Too slow, girl. There's still a lot of room for improvement in your footwork," Ranma said as he stood in an easy stance, barely starting to sweat.
Karmine gasped for breath as she held her abused stomach. She didn't say anything, instead opting to regain as much strength as she could before her father decided to attack once more. At least now he does start to sweat when we fight. The thought wouldn't sound reassuring to someone that had never fought Ranma before, but to Karmine it meant the world and a half. The pigtailed martial artist held back in their fights, she knew that and was grateful, yet the gap between them continued to become smaller and smaller as her training continued. She always protested vocally and whined about the unfairness of it all, but she wanted to train with Ranma. It was just her rebellious nature to do those things.
Ranma had never pressured his children into training. Sure, he had them train in their early days before they could take a decision on their own, but as soon as they were old enough the choice was theirs. Take Nodoka, for example. The girl did train when she was very little, but she'd mostly forgotten what she learned because her gentle nature wouldn't allow her to train with the passion Karmine shared with Ranma for martial arts. She was to follow the path of a healer, and Ranma respected that choice.
"Did you get your breath back?" Ranma asked with a smirk that brought Karmine back to the here and now. She was barely fast enough to step to the side, avoiding a fist to the gut, and raised her knee to retaliate.
Ranma felt a surge of pride when Karmine managed to avoid his attack and he twisted around, robbing the knee strike of much of its strength as he spun on himself to deliver an elbow that the girl blocked with both forearms.
Karmine winced as she could tell a new bruise would form because of that block but kept on the offensive anyway. She started delivering a series of punches and kicks meant to keep Ranma in the defensive. Granted, she'd tire rather quickly this way, but the sparring session would last longer than if she allowed for the pigtailed martial artist to bash through her defenses.
Ranma kept on the defensive, studying Karmine's form as she attacked relentlessly, and couldn't help but smile widely. There were no holes in Karmine's guard, even as committed as she was to the attack. It was only because of his superior physical abilities and more experience that he held the advantage in the match, skill wise they were about even. The girl was a lot like him, soaking up techniques and styles and adjusting them for her own use. It was that fact alone that Ranma took in consideration when he made Karmine his heir. She could've been a lot weaker, defeated by other opponents, and he would still pick her because she was a physical representation of the Saotome Anything Goes School of Martial Arts. Just like he was.
Karmine could feel her lungs burning as they protested the abuse, as her muscles were about to give out at any moment. She narrowed her eyes and growled low in her throat as she pushed herself beyond her limits. She was not going down without having at least tagged her father. Just once, that was all her pride required of her, that she managed to hit him at least once. When she felt her reserves totally depleted she bellowed and launched a full-out attack.
The pigtailed man had been fighting his daughter totally on the defensive, stretching the fight and giving the girl a workout she'd be feeling in the morning, and could tell Karmine's strength was almost spent. He wasn't surprised when she cried out and threw everything she had left into the fight, it was something she always did when they sparred, and he held his ground in preparation for the coming maneuver. Karmine never repeated her tactics.
Karmine plowed through Ranma's defenses with a powerful double punch, her arms snaking in at an angle to avoid his blocking arms, and landed solid blows to his sternum and jaw. She was rewarded with a kick to the midsection for her trouble though, and was sent sprawling to the floor.
Ranma blinked his eyes as he lowered his leg. Karmine was a lot more reckless than usual. Maybe being here is affecting her more than I thought. He approached the wheezing and violently coughing girl and knelt down next to her.
The silver haired girl coughed violently as she fought for breath and resisted the urge to puke her guts out. She held her stomach in a fetal position as the pain seemed to overcome her completely drained body. That last kick hurt! She was entirely committed to her attack and didn't have any energy left to protect her own body. Karmine was suddenly gathered from the floor and Ranma sat her on his lap, cradling her weakened body close with a soft smile on his face.
"You did great, girl." That was probably the main, and only, difference between Ranma and Genma when it came to training. While the latter never gave his son words of encouragement, he thought it would make him weak, the former always made sure to let his children know how proud of their achievements he was. Karmine was Ranma's first-born and heir. He loved all of his children equally, yet he spent the most time with his eldest daughter. "That last attack would've defeated almost anyone."
Karmine sighed in contentment, once she had recovered her breath, and laid her head on Ranma's shoulder. She was a grown woman, or so she'd like to think, and it was improper of her to act like daddy's little girl. In moments like this she found it didn't matter, regardless of what happened Ranma would always be her daddy and she couldn't be happier about it. He could be the harsher of teachers, as evidenced by her current state, and yet the bond they shared was even stronger because of it.
Ranma smiled widely as he felt his daughter relax and snuggle closer to him. He knew Karmine only acted this way when they were alone now, and while he missed having a loving and carefree Karmine around him most of the time it sure made these moments all the more special. "That last attack was just sloppy, Karmine."
Karmine smiled at the teasing tone her father was using. He wasn't reprimanding her, but rather playing with his child. "It worked, didn't it?"
The pigtailed martial artist chuckled. He had to admit the attack was very powerful, so much that had it been a normal opponent against Karmine she would've won the fight. "Anything Goes."
"Anything Goes."
Ranma took a deep breath and decided to ask something he knew his daughter wouldn't answer under normal circumstances. Even now, with her guard down, it wasn't certain that she would. "Girl... What bothers you so much about coming here?"
Karmine stiffened slightly at the question, but she relaxed shortly after as she felt her father's warmth all around her. "It's not that I don't want to come meet your friends, dad..." She admitted slowly. "I... Well..."
Ranma smiled and gave his daughter a reassuring squeeze. "You can tell me, Karmine-chan."
The silver-haired girl smiled softly. "Dad... daddy... it's just that you've spoken so much about coming here in the last couple of weeks. Mom told me how this was the first real home you could remember."
"And you're afraid I'll decide to stay here, forcing you to stay with me," Ranma finished for her in understanding. The word 'daddy' from her lips made him hold her a little tighter, it was so rare to have her call him that nowadays. "Karmine-chan, this dojo is the first home I remember, your mother was right about that. I'll always hold this place close to my heart." He paused to gather his thoughts, words still weren't his strong point and he tended to mess up from time to time. This conversation was too important to mess up. "Many things happened here, good and bad, and I'll always treasure the memories... but this isn't my home anymore."
"Daddy?" Karmine asked with a small frown at the longing in his voice.
Ranma closed his eyes with a smile. "I ain't tied down to a place, Karmine-chan. I've come to learn over the years that having a home isn't having a place to live where you feel comfortable. For me being with your mother is being at home. Having her by my side makes the place where we are unimportant."
The girl pouted cutely as she turned in his embrace to face him, having recovered some of her strength. "And what about us?"
The pigtailed martial artist chuckled in amusement. "You three will eventually make your own lives, Karmine-chan. Or are you telling me you want to be looked after all your life?" He laughed at her panicked expression. "Don't worry. We still have a couple of years for you to get used to the idea. Know this, though..." He smirked and pinched her nose. "You'll always be my little girl, even when you're old and gray."
"Father!" Karmine protested audibly, reflexively reverting to her more formal address for him. "You're impossible!"
Kiima walked into the dojo to fetch her husband and daughter to meet with a heart-warming sight. She was met with the joint laughter of Ranma and Karmine as the girl sat on his lap in a warm embrace. Will wonders ever cease? She asked rhetorically to herself. After learning all about Ranma's childhood she'd expected for him to be a stern father, having trouble with outward expressions of love. He was a stern trainer alright, but when it didn't involve training he was so loving and comforting it was amazing he was Genma's son. Ranma was protective by nature, that had never and would never change, but she was still surprised he turned out to be such a loving father. Maybe it was the lack of love when he was growing up. Whatever the case the winged woman couldn't be happier about the hand given to her in life. "Are you two done training?" She asked and watched in amusement as Karmine colored upon realizing her position.
Karmine blushed furiously at being caught still acting like a child and jumped out of her father's arms. Even if she was comfortable acting like that with him from time to time it didn't mean she liked everyone to know. Not even her own mother. "I was having trouble with my balance..." She said as an excuse, which made both Kiima and Ranma to share an amused look, before rushing out of the dojo.
Once left alone the silver-haired woman turned to regard her husband with a soft smile on her face. "Did you work things out?"
"Yeah," Ranma admitted. "How're Nodoka and Seijuro taking the trip?"
"Better than Karmine, for the most part. Nodoka is a little nervous, and her first impression of Akira was a bad one, but she relaxed a lot talking to Kasumi's daughter. As for Seijuro..." Kiima trailed off and Ranma nodded. The boy was so confident in himself he had little trouble adjusting to the change of scenery. He had what it took to take over Nodoka's school.
Ranma smirked slightly as Kiima approached him and he quickly took a hold of her. He was just about to pull her down with him when she dropped down and sat across his lap, a playful smile on her face. "One step ahead of you, love." She kissed him lightly on the lips and didn't object when his arms circled around her waist.
They broke the kiss and the pigtailed martial artist smirked at his wife. Even after being married for so long their relationship remained intense and passionate. It was a fact neither of them questioned, they simply accepted it and were happier for it. "So how does it feel to be back after so long?"
Ranma pondered the question for a few seconds. "Well... considering what just happened between Akira and Karmine... like I never left. Now all that's lacking in the picture is someone claiming her as his fiancée."
Kiima gave her still smirking husband a mock glare. "Not even in jest, Ranma." While it was true that once they were married his fiancée problems seemed to vanish, his life before that was not something she wished for her children. It was obvious he was joking, but even then it wasn't funny.
"What are you going to do?" Ranma asked. "Have me sleep on the couch?" By his tone of voice it almost seemed like that was precisely what he wanted. And he did, since every time Kiima sent him to the couch she would invariably join him and they'd fall asleep holding each other tightly after making up.
Kiima rolled her eyes and kissed him again to shut him up.
"One thing's for sure. You definitely are a Saotome." Akane's comment made Karmine blush in embarrassment while the others, save for Akira, laughed. Nodoka did seem a little embarrassed over her sister's actions, but it was a common occurrence so she did manage to giggle as well.
The silver-haired girl swallowed and gave Akane a sheepish smile. "My apologies. Usually I don't eat like this but..."
"It is quite alright, Karmine-chan," Kasumi said with a beaming smile. "It's so nice to see such a healthy appetite. Especially after training so hard with your father." This earned some strange looks from Kimiko, Akira and Hanamichi. Kasumi had always instilled into them the importance of good table manners, yet here she was almost congratulating Ranma's daughter over eating like a starving woman.
Soun watched as Karmine tried to eat with manner pertaining of a young lady, and smiled wistfully when she gave up and started demolishing the food with gusto once more. Just like you, old friend, he thought as he remembered the many food fights between Genma and Ranma when they stayed as guests under his roof so many years ago. Karmine, the almost living image of Ranma's cursed form, reminded him of times when he would spend countless hours in front of the shogi board playing against his most trusted of friends. He sighed. I thought of the both of us you would be the one to bury me, Saotome. You were always the strongest of us. Learning that Genma died fighting a war that didn't concern him came as a big surprise. He'd never struck Soun like the hero type.
As Karmine continued eating, reminding the older Tendos about a certain pigtailed redhead, Hanamichi turned to Seijuro. He frowned slightly as he tried to study the boy's stance. Nodoka wasn't a fighter like Karmine, that was obvious even from the moment Akira stumbled into the girls that morning, but Seijuro moved as one. His stance, even while sitting down, was filled with confidence. Confidence to the point that it could easily be mistaken for arrogance. But unlike Karmine, whose movements were fluid and relaxed like Ranma's, Seijuro moved in a calculated manner. It was obvious to the trained eye that Ranma's son was trained very differently from everybody else in his family.
Seijuro watched in amusement as his sister made an ass of herself, or so he thought, and took a sip of his tea. He had to give it to Kasumi and her daughter, they both made excellent food and tea. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Akane's son, the younger of the two, staring at him carefully. He figured he was being assessed by the other boy and smirked inwardly to himself. You won't know what to think of me. Even his mother, who'd trained him for most of his life, didn't know the entirety of his techniques. Nodoka requested it so, leaving the scrolls needed for him to eventually take over her family style. Hanamichi would, at most, be able to determine he was a sword wielder. Nothing else.
Akira stared hard at Karmine as she ate, all the time thinking back to how she took him by surprise, he wouldn't admit she defeated him fair and square, and how Ranma humiliated him because of her. He was angrier with Ranma over it, but since he wasn't here Akane's son settled on his daughter. The girl was beautiful, more so than any of the ugly ducklings he'd dated so far, and that irritated him even more. The one girl he did want didn't fall for his charms, but instead defeated him in a fight and took his rightful place as heir of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts. And to top it off his own mother wouldn't allow him to challenge Ranma back for the title, since she was there when Ranma fooled him into accepting that challenge. He stewed in his anger in silence as Karmine finished with her food and his aunt Kasumi started to question the guests about how life in the mountain was. There had to be a way to get what he wanted, to defeat Karmine, without having his mother interfere. But what could...? I got it!
Karmine was retelling the story of the time she traveled with her mother to the Musk Citadel when she was suddenly interrupted by Akira. "There's a tournament coming in a couple of weeks. Why don't you all enter so we can have some fun?"
Everyone turned to regard the smirking Akira with varying expressions. Karmine was upset about being interrupted so rudely. Hanamichi stared at his brother suspiciously; it wasn't unusual for him to ask that very same question but... The remaining Tendos looked at Akira and, though Akane thought about reprimanding her son, considered it would be interesting with the Saotomes to compete as well. Nodoka and Seijuro remained impassive, since they wouldn't be entering.
Karmine looked at Akira more closely and could see the slight tension of his jaw and his tightened fists. She raised an eyebrow. "I don't think we should participate. We're not from around here, anyway."
"It wouldn't be a problem, Karmine-chan," Akane said with a smile. "Ranma still is very well known around here. No one will object if his children want to participate in the tournament."
"I don't know..." Karmine said uncertainly. She didn't want to walk into whatever Akira was scheming, but at the same time it would be rude to refuse Akane.
As it turned out the decision was taken from Karmine when Akira saw his opportunity of defeating Karmine in public, therefore proving he would be a better heir than she could ever hope to be, about to slip by. "Are you afraid?" He asked insultingly.
Karmine's eyes narrowed dangerously at that. "I'm not afraid, boy!"
The tension between the couple was almost a tangible thing as Akira smirked. "Then prove it."
"... Your funeral," Karmine said from behind gritted teeth.
Ranma and Kiima arrived to see the last exchange and the silver-haired woman turned to her husband with a raised eyebrow. Ranma groaned and slapped his forehead with his hand. Karmine was his heir alright... stupid reckless pride and all.
END PART 4
Author's notes: I had the first half of this chapter written down since November, but never seemed to be able to finish writing it down. Thankfully that's over and done with.
Karmine has just accepted into something way bigger than she would've bargained for. Next some of the other members of the old NWC make an appearance, as well as the members of the new generation.
