ok, this chapter is quite a bit shorter than the last two, but there is a very good reason for that. each chapter has an outline of what it needs to achieve, and this one just so happened to achieve its goal quicker than the rest.
also, the next chapter will have a Q&A, so submit any questions into the reviews or message me directly if thats possible and I'll try my best to answer them all.
"It's not butting in Akane, I have my own bones to pick with Kuno."
"I don't care, it's my fight and I have been doing just fine without your help!"
"What do you want me to do, stand there and let him kill me?"
"Just stand outside the gate while I fight him."
Two children bickered. It had been a couple of weeks since school had started, every morning Akane dealt with the hentai horde, an army of boys vying for Akane's affection. Of course Akane beat every single one of them without breaking a sweat, but they were never the real problems in the first place. Without fail, after every lowly jock and commoner had fallen to the fierce onslaught of punches and kicks, HE showed up. Kuno Tatewaki, the True Blunder of Furinken high.
On the first day of high school, Kuno had declared that should someone defeat Akane in battle, they would be given the right to date her, something the girl in question never agreed to. Ever since that day, Kuno would show up after Akane had beaten the hundreds of boys, and even a few girls, into a pulp and attempt to defeat her while Akane was winded. It got worse though. After Ranma had arrived and Nabiki had let it slip that Akane had been engaged, Kuno had challenged Ranma to a duel. Things didn't go as planned for the young kendoist however, as Ranma had turned into a girl and ended up beating Kuno as a girl. Ever since that fight, Kuno has been trying to defeat Ranma in combat, hoping that would allow him to date both Akane and Ranma's girl form dubbed 'The Pig Tailed Goddess'.
That brings us to today. Ranma, Akane and Xayah are walking to school together, the former two arguing about who should get to use Kuno as stress relief from their fathers and each other. Ranma was wearing his usual red blouse and black slacks to school, the uniform requirement not influencing him in the slightest. Akane was wearing her school uniform, consisting of a white dress with light blue covering and a pair of polished black shoes. Unlike Ranma, Xayah had chosen to wear a similar uniform as Akane, opting to modify it slightly to allow her to carry her usual arsenal.
As the not-couple bicker and spit, Xayah's eyes scan the surroundings for any potential threats. Xayah woke up just as the sun rose, much earlier than her usual routine. That was strange, she thought, she always woke up at the same time. Trying to sleep had left her staring wide eyed at her ceiling, too awake to even try and pretend to sleep. Seeing as Xayah had two and a half hours to herself, she decides to get in a few extra hours of exercise. However, try as she might Xayah could not concentrate on whatever she was doing, always getting distracted by the smallest movement or change in the air. Despite Xayah's best efforts however, she fails to notice that for the past several hours she and her entourage were being followed by a pair of very hungry eyes.
A pair of harrowing eyes watched from around a corner as its prey continued onward, unaware of where its predator had hidden. Oh the struggles these eyes had faced, oh the shame they had to endure. Just remembering what had happened relights the boiling rage and shame, resolve reinvigorated to do what must be done.
The stalker silently and carefully moves through the alleys, careful to avoid drawing attention to itself. Seconds pass, and the hunter moves closer and closer to its prey, fingers itching to grab its weapons and strike. No, patience is a must, a hunter can't afford to act rashly, lest the prey catches wind of the fangs about to pierce its throat before the first leap.
Almost there, the strike must come quick and close, striking true and deep. Waiting, the stalker waits the last few seconds until its prey is too close to dodge, holding a single mace along with a metal water bottle.
With the prey within reach the stalker jumps out with a war cry "Shampoo kill!"
After Ranma got cursed by the spring training ground, the guide had begun leading them back to a port that could take them to Japan. As the trio walked, hungry and tired, they encountered an amazonian village.
"This here is Amazon village, women are in charge of fighting here." Says the guide, pointing to a crowd of women. Crowding around a wooden platform, the well built and bulky women paid little attention to the two bright haired women, preferring to instead focus on the much more entertaining spectacle before them. Centered on the platform were two martial artists, one with flowing purple hair with two buns on either side of her head, and the other with hair so matted and torn it would be impossible to tell what it originally looked like.
Well, Ranma was about as interested in the fight as the amazons were in him. Instead, Ranma turned his attention to the giant pile of food sitting on a wooden pedistal, motioning for the rest of his crew to follow him.
When was the last time Ranma ate? ah right, it's been at least 3 days since Xayah ran out of rations, maybe more. Ranma was too hungry to think in the presence of food, and the same could be said for Genma and Xayah.
"Sirs, that is prize for Amazon tournament, only given to winner of battle!" Yells the guide after the food had all but disappeared. This doesn't do his customers any good however, as the tournament had already ended, and a victor had emerged. The violet haired martial artist emerges from the crowd glaring at those who decided to steal her prize, and readies her weapons.
"Is Shampoo, that my prize you eat, only victor gets prize." Says the girl
"So the victor takes the prize huh? All I have to do is beat you then." Replies Ranma.
The girl snarls at Ranma, but doesn't deny him. Instead, she swings her mace at Ranma's midsection, planning to take her opponent out quickly. Ranma easily counters the blow by leaping over her blow, and using his full weight to knock the girl down with a downward kick. Having been knocked onto her ass, the girl can do nothing more than to begrudgingly admit her defeat and loss of prize. Having assumed that the fight was over, Ranma fails to realize that his opponent had gotten back up before it was too late. However, instead of a blow like he had been prepared for, Shampoo instead leans in and-
A collective gasp leaves the audience and the trio stands there shocked, Ranma most of all. Shampoo had stolen Ranma's first kiss, did getting beat make her fall in love with Ranma? Did Shampoo enjoy receiving pain from others? Was Shampoo a lesbian who enjoyed a little combat in the sheets?
"The kiss of death. Sirs you mist run, losing to outsider women great shame for amazons, promise to kill you till ends of earth!" Yells a panicked guide, already running for his life. Ranma was still too shocked to move, and Genma was too fat and fluffy to make any sudden and drastic moves. That left Xayah. The guide said that the kiss of death was for women, but since Ranma was a man, how would that work? Having decided it was worth a gamble, Xayah pulls out her last thermos of hot water and doesn't even bother taking the time opening the lid, instead throwing it at Ranma and splashing it mid flight.
"Kiss of death is for women right? Hate to break it to you but Ranma is a man." Xayah says, stopping Shampoo in her tracks.
Shampoo stood there, her body quivering with rage and shame. Xayah was right, the kiss of death was only valid for women, but Ranma was a cursed boy. Ranma had a curse, Jusenkyo curse. Shampoo had promised to kill girl Ranma. Ranma is a boy at the moment, but who said Shampoo had to get her revenge on Ranma right away? Shampoo smiles and lets her blood-lust show, enjoying the cold shudder that takes hold of the foreign trio.
Since than, Shampoo would always ambush Ranma as he fled China. Shampoo wasn't a threat since she could never properly surprise attack, though her splashing Ranma before every fight meant that Ranma was almost always in girl form until he reached Japanese soil. It had been almost a month since Shampoo's last raid and Xayah was hoping she would finally get a somewhat calm morning again, couldn't that girl take a hint?
The same as it always does, Shampoo starts off by splashing Ranma from a bottle of cold water,triumphantly landing in front of Ranma.
"Shampoo help musk find open kettle, get locking ladle and broken kettle as reward." Says Shampoo in her broken Japanese. It really didn't matter though, even if Shampoo had spoken perfectly neither Ranma nor Akane or Xayah would have understood what Shampoo had meant. Ranma looks over to Xayah, but Xayah just shakes her head to show that Shampoo hadn't brought any allies. Before anyone could decipher what Shampoo had just said, their assailant moves first and lands a kick into Ranma's midsection, but not enough to do anything more than stun him. It was enough for Shampoo though, as she takes the moment to perform an overhead swing with her mace onto Ranma's head. Shampoo finishes her motion, but her weapon doesn't manage to hit Ranma.
With her blade unsheathed, Xayah stands in front of Shampoo, who was now holding only the handle of her weapon, the business end having flown off into someone else's property. It was now Shampoo's turn to be stunned, as she had not prepared a follow up strike in case her first one failed, allowing Ranma to send a single full powered uppercut to Shampoo's jaw.
"Let's go back, it would take longer to get to Tofu than it would be to just go home." Says Akane, after the long period of silence.
"So what was that all about?" Akane continues. Ranma sighs, and gives Akane a brief retelling of how he met Shampoo in the several minutes it takes to reach the Tendo home, with Xayah occasionally giving more detail regarding specifics like what an Amazon was and that they did not in fact live in the Amazon Forrest.
The trio arrive at their destination just as Ranma finishes the last details about how Shampoo had chased him throughout his entire journey back to Japan, and Ranma heads inside.
"We'll wait out here, alright?" Says Akane as she leans against the outside wall of her home. Thinking back, Akane didn't ever really have a friend to walk to school with, not really. Sure she had some friends in school, but it was more-so just girls she had lunch with, not really anyone she could count on if she needed help. Actually the only person Akane could count on for help was , there was Kasumi but she didn't want to burden her already over burdened sister anymore than she had too.
Akane frowned. Thinking of Kasumi always reminded her of the day that she lost her mother. Akane didn't remember her mother all that well, she was too young. She did remember some things, she remembered her sisters crying, she remembered how her father just stared into the wall for weeks on end, she remembered Kasumi taking on the responsibilities that needed to be done, she remembered so much that wasn't her mothers face.
"Daddy, when will mommy come home?" Akane remembered asking her father. God she cringes whenever she remembers that, the looks of pure horror on Nabiki's face, the tear stricken grief from Kasumi, and worst of all was her father. Soun's face didn't change, same blank stare he had as he stared into the wall, except now he was facing Akane. She remembered how scared she got when she called out to her father only to be met by the loudest silence she had ever heard, loud enough she should have gone deaf that evening.
Finally, Akane's memories turn to what little she had of her mother, her only memory of her. Akane remembered a night before the effects of loss crippled the fragile sanity of her young sisters, Akane remembered the beautiful glow of un-trampled snow.
It was late at night, winter cold pricked Akane's face. The snow had finished falling a few minutes ago, and was still fresh, reflecting a beutiful blue from the unempeded moonlight. To Akane's left was her father, smiling without a care in the world as to his left he held Nabiki's hand. Akane rarely sees this face on her father anymore, making this memory all the more precious. Akane looks left and sees her mother holding Kasumi's hand, but no longer able to remember what her face looked like, voice too. It hurt not remembering her own mothers face, it hurt seeing her sisters take on the burden of loss before there time, and it hurt to see what her father had become. Sure, Akane knew that it was only right for children to bury their parents and not the other way, but wasn't this too soon?
"KYAAAAAAAAAA!"
Akane stops, that was most certainly not from her memories. That was Ranma's scream, though high pitched and girly meaning that he had yet to get any hot water. Xayah snaps Akane out of her reverie by plunging herself through the door so quickly that had she opened the door a fraction of a second slower then she would have taken down the whole wall. Akane barely follows Xayah as she reaches a crying Ranma sitting on the floor, red skin and steaming hot water in a puddle around him, around HER. Ranma was weeping and mumbling something under his breath, but was still in girl form. Xayah and Akane lean in to better hear what Ranma was saying and to comfort the redhead, something the distraught redhead was too shocked to react too.
"I can't change back." Ranma whispers.
