Author's Note: From now on, responses to only certain key reviews that advance the understanding of the setting or story will be included in the chapter. I will still respond to them all, barring ones from guests which don't have the reply link as an option. I also reserve the right not to post ones in the chapter that are too spoiler-ish.
TJG1: You're very correct. The impact of the revelation of ki onto the wider world cannot be understated. Martial Arts Acting is going to be a very profitable skill to have. Spiritualism, Medicine, Entertainment, Sport, Civil Service, Warfare...all will be impacted. The only reason I don't discuss this in more detail in the reviews is that every single thing you've mentioned is something I want to explore later~
zeynel: Oh yes, there will be consequences for the martial arts world. When the modern world is forced to acknowledge the existence of ki once more and realizes that they've truly missed out on something amazing, it's going to be looked into. Nodoka has every right to be furious, as does Soun. Regarding Happosai, you're right. Happosai's love of the Art is notable, and the fact Ranma is spreading it at such a young age elates the old man. His love of children helps that out, too.
I know you've all been waiting a while for Ran to arrive. I needed to give Ranma a head start and Ran a means to develop off-screen for a bit. Cologne couldn't be expected to head out without becoming more familiar with her body, either. Three days and nights seemed like enough time. Regarding the Saotome family dynamic, Nodoka will be elated. That's obvious enough for me to say without it being considered a spoiler.
Tribun: Genma and Happosai's personalities are very warped to the point where both draw wrong conclusions rather readily. Genma's is parsed through fear of Nodoka's pledge and through Ranma's own readiness to become a Master and let Genma mooch off of him in obligation. Nodoka's personality is a bit less rigid here, as you've noticed, and breaking through the misconceptions that would otherwise have warped it.
Regarding the television matter, I've accepted your idea and retconned the chapter with an edit already. I've also made the appropriate corrections. Thanks for the input!
As for the rest of your comments? Well...the best I can say is "you'll see".
Chapter 14: Among the Cherry Blossoms
March 26, 1977
When Ukyo awoke, she noticed that Ranma had again escaped from her grasp. Her pride once again slightly wounded by his evasive skill, the girl grumbled gently in irritation as she rose from her futon and looked around for the escaped bed warmer. Roughly half of the gymnasts had already risen, which was a testament to her own discipline that she awoke at the same general time as the high-level sports team. Natsume seemed to show signs of beginning to wake, but Mariko and Kurumi were still sound asleep. There was no Ranma in sight. The light patter of rain could be heard on the roof and outside, but Ukyo remembered that last night's forecast said it should end by the time the festival started. The rain was of little concern to her, but a few of the awake gymnasts had gone out on the veranda and were watching something. When Ukyo joined them, she finally found the boy she sought.
Ranma stood in the light rain while practicing a slow and fluid kata, his eyes closed with a serene smile on his face. Only those who had carried a heavy burden in life and been freed of it could truly understand the sensation of freedom and quiet elation that Ranma felt at this moment. Oh, Ranma had known in his head that he wasn't cursed anymore. It was only now though, as he enjoyed the first rain since finding himself in the past, that his heart knew this as well.
Ukyo held back from shouting out to Ranma so as not to disturb the others and simply waited as he enjoyed the sensation of freedom. It was a strange sight for her, seeing him so content. The fact that she was so unaccustomed to this side of Ranma made her realize that he needed this vacation just as much as she did.
When Ranma was finally done and noticed the others, he approached the veranda to step back inside. He was tempted to pull out the Kinjakan to dry himself but instead decided to try something else for the sake of training. With a flash of hot ki and a warm wind that blew at the yukata of the gymnastics team members watching, steam escaped his clothes and he found himself mostly dry. He stepped back onto the veranda and smiled, proud of himself, while Ukyo wondered how to do such a thing. "Mornin' everybody! I hope this rain lets up before the festival like they say it's s'posed to."
Ukyo blinked, a bit confused. "I thought you were liking the rain, Ran-chan. You looked happy."
Ranma pondered how best to explain this to her. He pondered for a moment before giving an answer. "I hated the rain for a couple of years because of somethin' Pop did. My reason for hatin' it's gone, though. I was just reminded of that. I'm just feelin' free now that it's behind me, you know?"
The brown-haired cook didn't push further, knowing that Ranma wasn't comfortable talking about all the things his father had done. "Well, breakfast should be soon. We should get ready-" Suddenly, Kurumi was wide awake and intruding heavily upon their personal space. Judging from the look in her eye and the drool at the corner of her mouth, she awoke upon hearing a certain culinary keyword and had managed to clear the distance between herself and Ukyo in less than two seconds. Natsume stirred and awoke to find Kurumi's futon recklessly dumped on her head from the sudden acceleration. A few girls had been awoken by Kurumi using their bellies as stepping stones as well.
Three previously prepared okonomiyaki for Kurumi and two apologies from a groggy Natsume later, they finally managed to pull up the futons and left to enjoy their breakfast in the Soviets' room. They were barred from entry for a few minutes, however, forced to watch from outside as Sachiko spoke Russian as part of a broadcast with a Russian woman attached to the Soviet Team. Nadia stayed outside with the group of gymnasts to explain what was happening. "Need few minutes. Recording for SSSR." Ranma and a number of the others were confused until it was explained that the spoken 'SSSR', written as 'CCCP' in the Cyrillic used for the Russian written language, was what the Soviet Union called itself. Only once the interview ended were they able to go in and have breakfast together.
The room actually had a few pictures and awards the team had previously won put on display for the sake of the broadcast and there were a few cameras that had recently been used, but things got back to normal soon enough. This was in spite of a moment where Kurumi had ruffled a few feathers by innocently asking 'who's the funny bald man' in reference to a picture of Vladimir Lenin.
Sachiko stayed close to Ranma, talking with him and showing interest in his travels across Japan. She was quietly collecting more information on ki and on Ranma's travels for the police, and could probably assemble all of this stuff to report on at a later date. It was a win-win. Right now, they were discussing weird places in general.
"Monkeys? Really?" The woman asked incredulously. Her eyebrow was raised in amusement.
"Hey, don't mock their skill. I don't know how they learned the Art, but the monkeys of Hourai Mountain are well above what most Martial Artists could handle. That's one of the reasons people don't visit that place anymore. I mean, sure, they ain't gigantic like the animals at Ryuzengawa, but they're still extra dangerous."
Natsume looked frightened at that comment. "So that's why you thought that bear was so easy to fight compared to a Hourai Mountain Monkey."
Sachiko and the gymnasts looked confused and looked amongst each other before Ayako spoke. "What's this about fighting a bear?"
The elder of the orphaned siblings looked a bit sheepish at the question but spoke up. "Kurumi and I were attacked by a bear yesterday in the forest when we got too close to its baby. Ranma knocked it out in less than three seconds with a kick and some fast punches. At least I think they were punches. His arms and hands just blurred."
Kurumi and Ukyo nodded in unison, making the women in the room pale. This was even more pronounced when Ukyo pulled out a photograph that the NHK crew had developed for her the previous night. It certainly did show the kids in the vicinity of a bear that had been knocked unconscious. Sachiko suspected that copies had been quietly made for the police by now and were on their way. Tatewaki regarded the image with particular interest and some envy of the skill this clearly required.
The teens and young adults didn't want to believe the children, but when a child who considered bears defending their cubs to be a mere inconvenience warned you seriously about truly dangerous fauna, it was best to listen. Sachiko gave a sigh as this finally sunk in. "It's not easy to acknowledge that we might not be the apex predators we think we are."
"Nah," Ranma said with a smirk. "That title belongs to Kurumi. She wanted to eat the bear after I knocked it out. At least until she realized it had a baby to care for." Kurumi blushed a little but gave a grin at the comment. Natsume whispered an 'it's nothing to be proud of' before continuing her meal.
"At least the monkeys are alive and aren't youkai. Some youkai are pathetically weak, or are okay and aren't lookin' for a fight, but others...ugh, well, Ucchan knows what I'm talkin' about." Ranma said, taking a sip of tea. The talk of youkai made the others in the room wonder where the line between truth and fantasy was.
"I still can't believe you used a ki attack to blast apart its soul, Ran-chan. I'm sure they saw it all over Yaotsu." Ukyo said in response to this as she gave a shudder at the memory of what she'd seen. A number of people who had read the newspaper about the 'Yaotsu Light' looked to Sachiko with wide eyes. The newscaster, acting as a source of factual authority, responded with a quiet nod of confirmation.
Ranma grumbled a bit as the assembled group listened intently. "It tried possessin' Kasumi when attackin' us failed. I did exactly what needed doin'. I had to brute force it since I ain't all read up on exorcisms and stuff, though."
"Why not tell us about the giant animals?" Ayako asked so as to change gears since Ranma clearly didn't like this line of conversation. The boy clearly welcomed the shift and started to describe the huge animals while those present struggled to determine if what they heard was a child's fantasy or an esoteric truth. Unlikely as it seemed, Ranma had shown them enough proof of the bizarre for them to suspect the latter.
Freshly rested, Nodoka sat with a number of martial artist consultants, police officers, and JSDF personnel at a prefabricated JGSDF building set up at the Nekoyama Cat Shrine in Yaotsu. Major General Kensuke Ishida was present and had been showing the troops in the upcoming operation the hole that had been created by the ki attack. The building had a whole room dedicated to the study of the five-meter-wide hole in the ground. Said hole had walls that were vitrified as if created by a form of nuclear weapon. Every single group shown thus far had to be reassured that it was not radioactive in nature.
The soldiers were also shown the area where a Shin Neko-ken Ranma fought the youkai, the stone walls in the area damaged or cut through with slashes. When each was informed that the huge hole they entered through and the smaller cuts in the walls were made by their target's six-year-old child, and that one of the wrecked stone walls was one the kid had been thrown through without much effect before eventually winning the fight, those things drove the point home. They were fighting someone who sired a child that didn't abide by typical human limitations.
Layers of bulletproof glass were set up in the hole in the cliff face, allowing Nodoka to see the morning view spread before her. The Kiso River and the large, forested hills beyond did little to distract her. The thought that her child had fought for his very life here was something that Nodoka was keenly aware of. Part of her mind whispered that it was to be expected for a man among men to do such things to protect himself and others, but another part that was growing louder felt compelled to note that such things were not supposed to be mandatory.
More and more, while watching these people who chased her husband to protect the public, Nodoka was realizing that it was the choice to do such things that was honorable. To demand it as an obligation was little more than enslavement.
She had wanted to go with Detective Nogura to Komagane, but had confessed her fear that the urge to run off and see Ranma at Takato would have been too great if she went. Ranma and Ukyo needed a chance to rest from their movement, and might simply slip back into their travels if pushed. Since Genma Saotome had gone off-script and was seen heading in their general direction, forces dedicated to the planned assault at Matsue had either worked to slow him down or were attempting to outpace him here to Yaotsu to make their stand. She was vaguely aware of discussion in the room, but her own thoughts were focused on one thing.
Ranma might be beyond her reach for the moment, but she could still confront her husband. Toward that end, the woman had dried her tears and readied her sword.
The attention in the room shifted when a JSDF logistics officer came in and put down a wooden crate. The sudden sound grabbed Nodoka's attention. Grabbing a crowbar, the officer jammed it under the lid and pried it open. Within, wrapped in padded cloth bags, were strange goggles that Nodoka had never seen before. The man then started to speak and Nodoka gave her undivided attention.
"Everyone, you may have heard that Genma Saotome has the ability to conceal himself and turn invisible. Well, you're half-right." Lieutenant Yamada, as his rank and patches identified him, earned himself a few strange looks with that statement. "He's not invisible, but inobservable. He has a way of making us unable to perceive him even if he's right in front of our eyes. Thankfully, that trick has its limits. The engagement at Sapporo showed that the man still emits light that can be picked up by cameras and that he still shows up on infrared. It also shows that an observer monitoring him in real-time through such things can see him just fine. That's what these are for."
Picking up an example of the goggles, that seemed to wrap around and strap to the head, he smirked. "These are tank operator goggles based on the American-made AN/PVS-4, and part of the new second-generation of night vision systems currently in evaluation. Now, this model has proven problematic. Their resolution is great, but their magnification and brightness are too low to actually be used in their intended roles. As such, they were rejected. But for what we need, they'll work just fine. Keep the zoom on 1x, don't stare into the sun, and the target won't be able to escape even with that little hiding trick of his."
Hideki Yamamura of the Yamamura School of Martial Arts Mountain Climbing grumbled at the goggles as he inspected the rejected military hardware. "Fighting with zero peripheral vision? I don't look forward to that." Seto Tachibana of the Tachibana School of Alcoholic Martial Arts just sat there smugly, one of the few who had no need for the goggles to fight Genma.
"It's the best we have on such short notice. Really, we're lucky to have gotten our hands on this much. All we can do is be as ready as we can be when he comes." General Ishida responded. Complaints ceased and basic training in the use of the goggles began. Nodoka claimed a pair as well, focused on the coming battle.
As the dawn gave way to day, the NHK news crew started their broadcast from the Takato Castle Ruins Park. They were surrounded by people in assorted types of kimono, from yukata to the even more formal. Sachiko wore a pink cherry blossom-print kimono with a pastel green sash, with her hair done up in traditional fashion, as she started the coverage of the event. "This is Sachiko Hinata of NHK, broadcasting from the Takato Castle Ruins Park for the beginning of the Takato Sakura Matsuri! This cherry blossom festival, long considered one of the top three such events in Japan, runs from today, March 26th, all the way through April 30th. It usually starts on April 1st, but early bloomings like those this year sometimes push the date a bit earlier."
Ranma and his group were in the small crowd gathering behind the cameras, wearing kimono of various types that Kasumi had given Ranma. He was thankful that the hotel was willing to launder them. The traditional outfits were of fine quality and had survived the years well thanks to whatever magic had been in that basement's storage area. The girls wore their hair without ribbons and Ranma also wore his hair loose, to avoid being as readily recognized after appearing on international television the previous day. Kuno attempted to convince Ranma to wear a top-knot, while Kocho Kuno offered to give him a buzz cut, but the boy had declined. He and the girls were now listening to Sachiko, who provided context for the event.
"Takato Castle was built in the Sengoku period by the clan of the same name, only to be lost to rival clans. It changed hands many times through both conquest and reassignment of its masters by the shoguns through the rest of the Sengoku and the whole of the Edo periods. The castle was disassembled in 1871 save for its moat, ramparts, and a few secondary structures. It was then when these cherry trees were planted, many say as a much-needed symbol of peace and unity in the Meiji era's unified Imperial Japan rather than a castle which was no longer needed." Indeed, the trees filled the park and had spread to areas outside of it over the past century. Light pink filled the vision of the visitors, even proving a nice display for the visiting Soviet athletes in spite of the lack of cultural symbolism. The cherry blossom represented fleeting beauty and the concept of impermanence to the Japanese, something to be enjoyed while it was available rather than to be lamented as a missed opportunity later.
Given his experiences, Ranma couldn't help but agree with this sentiment. He saw his return to the past as a second chance to live rather than the newest challenge to return to the same old Tendo Dojo from. He felt that he loved Akane in some way when he saw her thought-dead form after the fight with Saffron, but even that didn't fix the abuse that had continued thereafter. Akane's favor seemed impermanent, just like the cherry blossoms.
Ranma was distracted from this thinking when some very familiar ki signatures arrived nearby. Looking over and scanning the crowd he was in, he saw her. Standing near her family was a six-year-old girl in a navy blue pageboy haircut and a yellow kimono with a red sash, brown eyes watching the blossoms with glee. Kasumi and Nabiki were standing next to her doing the same, the latter wearing an honest and pure smile he'd never before seen on her face along with a green kimono with a gold sash. Kasumi wore a light pink kimono which gradually darkened to a deeper pink on the way down to the bottom with a red sash. Soun was also there, holding the handles of a wheelchair in which sat a woman in a dark blue kimono who could only have been the mother of his children. Kasumi's serene smile conspired with Akane's hair color in the woman's features to make this abundantly obvious. Ranma's gaze lingered a few seconds longer than it should have, but he thankfully looked away before he was noticed by the Tendos.
"...Ran-chan?" Ukyo had noticed, however. Her eyes following the group, she immediately noticed Soun and Kasumi. Thinking his recent escape from them to be the cause of his distraction, her eyes narrowed. She grabbed Ranma's hand and started moving away from them. Natsume and Kurumi followed, unaware of anything but the serious look on Ukyo's face. Sachiko couldn't follow due to her job, while the Kunos stayed behind with their father. The children moved quickly and hid inside the old Shintoku-kan school built shortly before the castle's destruction.
"What's wrong, Ukyo?" Natsume asked once they'd gotten far enough away from Soun for Ukyo to calm down. Ukyo hesitated for a moment, unsure if she should explain but gave a sigh.
"There's a guy out there who really wants Ran-chan to marry his daughter. He runs the Tendo Dojo that Ran-chan mentioned to you. I guess he's supposed to be a good martial artist, but I don't trust Ran-chan with him after what he pulled." The girl focused, peeking out and watching Soun while getting a bead on his larger-than-normal ki. "We can still have fun, but if I sense him coming, we need to move to another part of the park. Okay?" Receiving a couple of nods, and a hesitant nod from Ranma, Ukyo smiled. She wouldn't let that man ruin her and Ranma's vacation.
After Soun and his family had moved along, Ukyo would move behind them with the next group. She was thankful that her camera had a timer function, as she would often set it up and pull Ranma into frame. Natsume and Kurumi would also be photographed with them, the kids having a great time. They explored the old school building, the various walls and ramparts of the temple, a traditional wooden bridge, and assorted other areas. Of course, Ukyo couldn't quite get the shot of the bridge that she wanted without someone holding the camera. She grumbled until she saw a nice looking young man with glasses. "Hey, Mister!" Ukyo exclaimed.
Tofu Ono looked to the group of children in kimono, the one speaking to him holding a camera. She smiled up at him. "Oh? What can I do for you?" The high school student squatted down and asked as he kindly regarded the children. The lack of an adult with this roaming pack of children was a bit odd, but at least they didn't seem to be misbehaving. They all seemed to have more ki than most, now that he focused on them. The girl talking to him was significantly stronger than Akane, and the boy's ki was far above what a child his age should reasonably possess. Perhaps they were with a martial arts school?
"Can you take a picture of us on that bridge, please? I can't get the wide shot I want with the timer..." Ukyo asked politely. Ranma, meanwhile, recognized the future Doctor Tofu readily enough but said nothing.
"Ah, of course! Let me know when you're all ready." The young man smiled happily as he accepted the camera and got it ready for the shot. Ukyo beamed and grabbed Ranma's hand again, dragging him with her onto the bridge. The two sisters also got into the shot to their left. Ranma smiled, even as he felt familiar ki come up next to him...
"Say Cheese!" Tofu called out on the signal from Ukyo, and a chorus of seven voices rather than the expected four rang out an enthusiastic 'Cheeeeese!' The shot was taken, and Tofu smiled.
"Please stay put, alright? I need one with my camera as well!" Dr. Tofu said while swapping cameras. The reason was not clear to Ukyo but was clear enough for Ranma. Akane, Nabiki, and Kasumi had all seen Dr. Tofu reading a picture in their general direction and approached the bridge to get in the shot. The two sisters thought he was photographing them, though Kasumi suspected otherwise. The eldest sister simply smiled knowingly at Ranma but said nothing.
"Alright, I'm ready! Say Cheese!" Tofu called out again. After the group obliged and had a picture taken of them once more, the man smiled and put away his camera. He then walked to the bridge and handed Ukyo her own. "Thank you. I know the girls next to you, so I had to take a picture for them as well."
Akane was embarrassed. "E-eh? You weren't taking the picture for us? I'm sorry!" The blue-haired girl bowed to Ukyo since she was the one to whom Tofu returned the camera. Ukyo was more than a bit confused, especially seeing Kasumi there.
"Well, it is appropriate," Kasumi said with a smile. "to mark our meeting again. It's nice to see you, Ucchan. Ran-chan."
"You know them, Kasumi?" Nabiki asked while Tofu took stock of this fact. It was a bit surprising to run into kids that Kasumi knew here. The girl made a show of putting a finger to her chin in thought.
"Just the two of them. I don't think I've met the other two. This is Ran-chan, and this is Ucchan. These are my little sisters Nabiki and Akane...and this is Mister Tofu!" Bows were made by each in turn as they were introduced.
"Ah, nice to meet you..." Ranma said, slightly nervously. "This is Natsume, and her little sister Kurumi. You might or might not run into Tatewaki and Kodachi, we know them and met up with them here, too." The two sisters bowed as well, though Kurumi's bow was a little awkward. She was both the youngest and the least accustomed to employing her manners. In a group that included one Ranma Saotome, that was saying something.
"Girls, where are your mother and father?" Tofu asked the Tendo sisters politely.
Nabiki and Akane simply looked a little confused. The eldest spoke in response, however. "Mommy and Daddy are talking under the tree where they met. I thought they needed some alone time. We're going to see some of the vendors outside the park! Do you all want to come?" The girl asked, smiling. Kasumi didn't seem interested in revealing who Ranma and Ukyo were, at least. Ukyo, meanwhile, relaxed on hearing that Soun and his wife wouldn't be there.
"As long as your Daddy won't be there. I'm still mad about being grabbed from behind like that when he thought I was you. And the other stuff that happened. Kasumi's still a friend though, right Ran-chan?" Ukyo smiled as she looked to Ranma, wanting to join them. Ranma pondered, seeing a hopeful look on Kasumi's face.
"Yeah, we're still friends. Kasumi didn't do anythin' wrong back then. Checkin' out the vendors sounds like fun, too. If we meet any shady vendors tryin' to trick people, I can teach Ucchan how to humble 'em." Ranma said, smirking.
"You already did. Remember Maihara? I enjoyed that one after what he pulled on the other kids." Ukyo smiled, remembering that incident with the Gambling King fondly as the group moved. Tofu quietly took up the role of guardian for the flock of children as they went to the road outside of the old castle grounds. After all, it sounded like Kasumi's friends might not be the best of influences.
Kimiko Tendo smiled, enjoying the scenery as she sat upon the picnic cloth. The earlier rain had necessitated the laying of a tarp under the cloth to avoid it soaking through due to the damp grass, but that didn't break the atmosphere. It was the same as it was on that meaningful day in 1965, after all. She sat with her husband, enjoying the blossoms with her husband seated next to her. The children were being watched by Happosai, at least as far as the two knew, leaving them some time to themselves.
"The view hasn't changed at all, Soun. It's hard to believe that it's the twelfth anniversary of our meeting here..." Kimiko smiled, recalling the day.
"That's right. You were apprenticing at the nearby shrine and wore your miko attire. I was a weak-willed young man unfit to inherit my uncle's estate, being hurried and dragged around to learn lessons meant for my departed cousin..." Soun smiled, arm around his wife as they enjoyed the pink of the petals contrasting the blue in the sky.
The woman laughed gently, recalling the details. "Yes, it had rained that morning, too. You were fleeing a maiden who bore ill designs toward your family's estate, and slipped on the ground here and hit your head. The maneuver of a future master of the Art."
"Indeed," Soun recalled. "Thank goodness you found me first. I don't know what I would have done otherwise. I don't think that she was expecting a judo throw from a shrine maiden. Even today, Mother enjoys telling the tale of your defense of my honor."
Kimiko smiled at the fond memory, though her smile faded a bit. "To think...I couldn't do that for you today. How I've weakened with time...I can't even pick up Akane to hold her anymore."
Soun held the woman more firmly, his expression turning stoic. "I will be strong for us, Dear." Kimiko noted his expression and knew he honestly believed that, but she knew better. As skilled as he was in the Art, it had been forced upon him. She and the girls were Soun's world, and if something happened to her, he would waver. She wanted to convince him and Nodoka to marry once she was gone, but it wasn't the time. This was the time for happy memories.
Gently smiling, she leaned against her husband and simply enjoyed his presence among the cherry trees as they bloomed.
Ranma had to stop Ukyo from setting up her cart by impulse. It was the type of setting she was used to serving in rather than enjoying for herself. Ramen, takoyaki, candy apples, ice cream, all sorts of fun food was enjoyed. The young boy pondered which stall to go to next, before he and Ukyo heard something which made them do a double-take.
"Oh-ho-ho-ho! It won't be long now! You and that Joker are going to be the best of friends until the end of the game!" There, sitting at his usual stall, was the Gambling King. He was in the process of trying to fleece Tatewaki while Kodachi looked on. If they didn't intervene, the Kuno family would probably take a financial hit.
"Hey, Gambling Joker!" Ukyo called out in anger. The voice made the Gambling King freeze in shock as he turned and saw Ukyo. He might not have recognized her and Ranma in passing, but the expressions they bore were unmistakable. "How'd you get outta jail! We thought the cops arrested you in Maihara for this!"
"The police? What did this man do?" Kodachi inquired. Tatewaki was also surprised, and Ranma elected to elaborate.
"He tricks kids out of their money by cheating at cards! The first time we met him in Kyoto, he tricked us. The second time at Maihara, we won and made him give back all the money he stole from the other kids there. He's supposed to be in jail!" Ukyo revealed, glaring at the Gambling King.
Tatewaki looked to the man critically, noting that he was sweating bullets. "T-that's not true! I was released by the chief of police after a rousing game of chance for my freedom!" The Gambling King said, which surprised Ranma and Ukyo.
"You mean...you actually cheated your way out of jail? How's that legal?" Ranma asked, incredulously. The man opened his mouth to speak, closed it when words failed him, and elected to grab the pot of winnings and run instead. Ukyo called forth some of her Yakisoba Rope from ki-space, chucking it the man's way. She awkwardly made the rope flail with her ki after it wrapped around his legs, forcing him to become as entangled as possible. Not only did he drop the pot of winnings, but extra jokers fell every which way.
Ukyo approached and glared at the man on the ground. She spoke to clarify matters for the Kunos. "See? He has all those extra Jokers so he can cheat at Old Maid. He was trying to steal your money." Ranma cracked his knuckles, and Ukyo pounded her fist into her hand as she continued. "So the first two beatings weren't enough for you? Fine by me!"
"Now, now. That's not necessary." Tofu smiled, approaching the man...and touching a spot in his back that made his legs give out. Ranma realized that it was a similar move to what the other Doctor Tofu had pulled when Ranma had first arrived at Nerima, but less practiced and without a time delay.
"E-eh? W-what did you do to me, brat?" The Gambling King asked, in terror.
"Don't worry. It's just a little something temporary to keep you from moving until the police arrive. It wouldn't do for you to to get time off of your sentence just because the police took pity on a man for being beaten up by children. No matter how strong they are." Tofu said this without cruelty, but the aged man still took on a horrified expression with his mouth hanging wide open. Tatewaki retrieved the money he had put up, a sizable 20,000 yen, and various children who realized they were cheated were getting their money back as well. As the day had just started, he thankfully hadn't done much damage. "I'll have to wait here for the police to arrive. You can enjoy yourselves, but don't go too far." Tofu said this to the Tendos more than the others, though.
"Okay, Mister Tofu. We'll be good~" Kasumi said, smiling. Akane gave the bound man a look of contempt before moving on with the other children.
"You should be more careful with your money, Tatewaki. I know you have a lot of it, but if your parents learned you had been wasteful..." Kasumi looked to her underclassman with concern, only for the boy's head to hang down a bit. Nabiki blinked, part of her having thought the Gambling King's efforts were clever until she saw the consequences.
"It is as you say, Tendo-sempai. They would not have been pleased had I lost my pocket money in such a way. I will endeavor to be more careful. P-please don't tell them, okay? No harm came of it in the end." Kuno said sheepishly to his upperclassman. Ranma hadn't been aware that the two knew each other aside from in passing, but it seemed that Kasumi went to the same elementary school as Tatewaki in this era.
As Kasumi acquiesced to the humbled kendoist's request, Kodachi smiled as she saw something that interested her. "Oh, look! That booth is selling mirrors! Sasuke broke mine when he was packing it. I must see if they have something acceptable to replace it." Ranma walked with the others, more than a bit surprised to see none other than the innkeeper of the Mirror Mansion. He had a stall on which hung assorted mirrors, as well as offerings of compacts and hand mirrors. Kodachi immediately started looking into those. "My, my. These are antique, are they not?"
"Indeed, young lady! These come from the Mirror Mansion, and have been in its possession for decades and, in a few cases, centuries. Every now and again, I come out to share its contents with the world." Ranma's eye appraised the mirrors and found that a number of them had spots, chips, small cracks, or were otherwise damaged. He soon realized that this was the B-stock, the worse stuff that he wanted to get rid of. The hand mirrors and compacts were in better condition, thankfully, which was why Kodachi had not noticed.
Ranma perceived that one of the mirrors was half-burnt as he regarded the wares. His well-honed instincts compelled him to regard the charred bronze mirror more closely, and he was taken aback by what he saw upon a second look. The part that was not burnt showed his normal body, but also silhouetted was a yellow-tinged and translucent version of his eighteen-year-old self overlaid upon it! Ranma had no idea what to think. Of course, he didn't have time to think before Ukyo spoke up. "What's up, Ran-chan?" Ranma sputtered a bit before holding the mirror to himself to hide its reflection from the girl in panic, accidentally pulling it off of the stall's wall in the process. He immediately felt a weak drain that reminded him of the ki-draining power of his high school English teacher, Hinako.
"Oh, you're interested in that old bronze mirror?" The innkeeper asked, surprised when he saw Ranma take the mirror off of the wall. "That one's the most damaged one, but also one of the oldest. It was in a fire at a shrine many years ago, but I don't know much else about it. I'll take...how about 1,500 yen?"
Ranma hadn't even heard the man and was instead analyzing the mirror. Though it seemed to be absorbing his ki, it wasn't forcibly draining him fully like the stronger 'fifty yen' version of Hinako's technique. It was more like the lesser 'five yen' version that only took what ki he emitted and was easy enough to cut off. The surprise grew as one of the burnt and somewhat jagged corners of the mirror seemed to get just a little smoother in his grip before he cut off the energy flow. This new surprise kept him from responding when Nabiki blurted out "1,000!" The boy and the innkeeper looked to the girl in surprise, seeing her smiling and looking proud of herself.
"Heh heh, I'll take 1,200 yen and not one less," the innkeeper-turned-salesman said with mirth and apparent ignorance of the power in the item he was selling. Ranma, committed at this point, kept holding the mirror as he got out the money and paid wordlessly. Magic was rarely a good thing in his life, but it wouldn't do to let someone else get their hands on the thing and abuse it. "Enjoy your purchase, child!" The innkeeper stored away the money, having sold what he considered the greatest eyesore among his wares.
Kodachi grabbed the man's attention to show her more wares before Ranma could finally give any verbal response. Ukyo started chatting with Akane about her own choices, while Nabiki smiled and stayed near Kodachi. The girl clearly wanted to haggle on the price of whatever Kodachi bought just for fun, but hadn't thought to charge a fee for her services yet. Kasumi, meanwhile, approached Ranma with curiosity and spoke quietly. "Ranma...I'm sorry about what Daddy and Uncle Jiro tried to do. I just want you to remember that I promised not to tell anyone about you and I don't plan to. Your mommy set Daddy straight. You don't have to worry about that happening again for a long time. Just...try to see her sometime?"
His mother? She was involved? He wished he could have been there to hear what had been said if it was strong enough to get Mr. Tendo to back off. "Oh, that? It's okay, nothin' happened thanks to Ucchan and it ain't your fault anyway. She's pretty ticked off about bein' grabbed though. Hey...do you sense somethin' off about this mirror like I do? You're miko-trained. I felt somethin' and figured I shouldn't leave it here." Kasumi blinked as Ranma pulled it away from his body and turned it to her, keeping his own form from being reflected. The girl blinked as she saw a faint violet outline around her reflected image.
"Oh my! This color...it's the same as my ki, isn't it? It's faint, but...yes, I can see Ukyo's green ki around her in this as well. Is that what you saw? Your own ki reflected at you?" Ranma gave a nod. He figured this might be technically true. The ki of his eighteen-year-old self rather than his six-year-old form.
"Well, if that is all it does, I would not worry. I can still ask my uncles on the phone later, though...oh! Nabiki! Please do not insult him with too low of an offer!" Kasumi was forced to go rein in her sister while Ranma regarded her words. A mirror that could reflect the ki of the user and possibly repair itself by absorbing energy given to it. If that was all, it was certainly better luck than most other forms of magic he'd run into. Not thinking much more about it, he carried it along with him to check out the other stalls once Kodachi had finished her purchase. He didn't quite trust it enough to toss it in his ki-space just yet.
Genma Saotome awoke with a start as his cramped living space was moved sharply. He didn't enjoy this method of travel, but the man was at the very least warm and hidden. Even the best of military technology couldn't defeat the Master's teachings. He had no way of knowing what time it was, but he could at least see rays of sunlight shining through the slats above him into the confines of this cramped space. The feeling of a good night's sleep was something which was a thankful change, even if he was still hungry.
Pulling out the convenience store lunch box, he started to scarf it down without care of the crumbs he was getting on his immediate surroundings. He didn't plan to stay here long, anyway.
Akane grumbled as the paper in her scoop fell apart again at the fish catching tank. The stall was a common one at Japanese festivals. One used a plastic scoop called a poi with a paper center and attempted to scoop goldfish out of the water tank and into a cup with the implement. Without skill and finesse, however, the paper part of the scoop would easily tear. For someone like Akane, who attempted to replace finesse with raw effort once frustrated, it was not working well.
"NnnnnnghhHH!" Akane was clearly frustrated, while Ranma hung back, arms up and behind his head. He was tempted to make a snarky comment but managed to bite his tongue.
"Don't worry, Akane. I'll catch one for you!" Kasumi said, smiling.
"No, Kasumi! I have to do it myself!" Akane said, irritated and at risk of losing her savings. She'd refused a free goldfish from the vendor after failing enough times, and he didn't know what to do. Ranma grumbled a bit but focused himself. Upon being reminded of Ukyo's spatulas by the general shape of the scoop, however, he had an idea.
"Hey, Akane. Mind if I have a turn and make it into a martial arts lesson?" Ranma asked. This immediately got Akane's attention.
"Martial Arts Goldfish Scooping? Is that a thing?" Nabiki asked in confusion. Ranma shrugged.
"If it ain't yet, it might be after today. I see a trainin' opportunity. Anybody with ki-sense should focus on this. Ucchan, you're gettin' to where you should be able to do this. Kasumi, you might be headed that way too." Akane stepped aside, curious, and Ranma purchased a few tries with more scoops. They were normal poi, just like the ones Akane had used. With care, Ranma focused and those endowed with the ability to perceive ki could perceive the form and shape of the ki Ranma placed in the scoop. Everyone else merely perceived a golden glow. Even the goldfish scoop vendor could tell as the light entered the visible spectrum.
Kodachi's eyes widened in surprise. "R-Ran-chan? What is that golden glow?"
"Ah, this is for the benefit of the ones without ki-sense. If you concentrate ki enough, it becomes visible. What I'm doin' though, is ki-strengthenin'. It's like what martial artists do with their arms and legs to make stronger blows, but applied to weapons. Like Tatewaki's sword or Ucchan's spatulas." This solidified their attention as Ranma put the scoop into the water and stirred it around quickly, enough to tear that paper apart, but it was still intact and even dry when he pulled it up and caught a red goldfish with the scoop. Once that was done, and the fish was in a bag, he handed it to Akane.
"I can't take it with me, bein' on a trainin' journey and all. Can you take care of it for me?" Akane, dumbfounded, accepted the fish from Ranma. The girls and Tatewaki all attempted to employ the technique after that. Tofu, who had seen to the arrest of the Gambling King by then, had been watching the scene quietly with surprise. His surprise grew as Ukyo quickly actually managed to figure out the basic concept and make it work.
"Hey, this is even easier than trying to make the ribbon move! I'm just makin' it stronger, instead!" Ukyo asked, smiling widely.
"Oh my! I think I understand...let me see...how is this?" Kasumi smiled as she managed to learn it as well, based on how her Shin Neko-ken's ki-claws and her Serenity of the Gentle Butterfly techniques maintained cohesion. Ukyo may have learned it first, but she was envious of the fact that Kasumi's managed to glow into the visible spectrum while hers could not.
"Great job, you two!" Ranma said, smiling. "Though Kasumi, the light show was just so people could see it for...uh...educational purposes. That's what they call it. It ain't part of the actual move. In a fight, makin' it glow is just a waste of energy if you've got the control not to. And the rest of you...err..." Ranma noticed that Akane was particularly upset that she couldn't do it, tears starting to form. Not one to act well when a girl cried, he quickly spoke up. "A-Akane, it just takes time! Ucchan and Kasumi have had their ki unlocked already, so they figured it out quick is all! You'll get there if you practice, don't worry!"
"That's right, Akane." Tofu said, smiling as he approached the kids. Ranma noted the man's return and effort to placate the child. "It's something your father and my family know as well. It can be used by a surgeon to make cleaner incisions, so it's important for medicine too. You have people around you to teach it to you, so move at your own pace."
This seemed to placate Akane, her smile even returning to her face as Tofu asked about her new pet goldfish. Ranma sighed in relief. That was a close one...
"Something isn't right." Major General Ishida said, distracting Nodoka from looking at a photograph relayed to the government from the NHK Team in Takato. It showed Ranma and some girls immediately after he had taken down a bear, which was also in the picture. The television was also on, showing the Takato Cherry Blossom Festival, but nothing of note was shown on screen relating to Ranma. For now, she was ignoring the broadcast.
"What do you mean?" Nodoka inquired, wondering what the general meant. The General seemed uneasy, even though they were as well prepared as they could be. The Martial Artists were suppressing their ki as much as they could over extended periods, and the site was ready for Genma's arrival.
"Genma hasn't been seen or heard from since he arrived in Tottori. I could understand him getting a night's sleep, and I know he's a slothful man, but I thought he'd have been sighted moving again by now. Something's wrong." The General wasn't pleased. Of course, he wasn't used to singular manhunts. He was accustomed to either rescuing people who wanted to be found from disasters or attacking groups of assailants. Following a singular man was as problematic for him as it had been for the police. Still, it made little sense.
"He should have been here by now." The General concluded with concern.
Ranma took aim with the cork gun. The man who was running the rigged shooting gallery was confident, though he wasn't aware of Ranma strengthening the cork with his ki. Ranma fired the gun, the cork moving at an impressive speed and flying more true than it perhaps should have at the pyramid of ten soda cans. Just before the round would have hit and penetrated with the excessive force, the ki was released in an invisible shock wave. The effect was akin to a close-range shotgun blast, knocking all of the cans off of the shelf...even those which had been glued down. The boy smiled when he heard the crack of splintering wood as the cans were forced to yield, and the dishonest vendor's jaw dropped.
"T-that was amazing, Ran-chan!" Ukyo said in awe. She recognized the crooked vendor from her father's rounds selling Okonomiyaki at these events, including how he glued down some of the targets to avoid having to pay out the prizes. Ranma immediately decided to engage in practicing his own ki-strengthening skills in more exotic ways.
"I still have two more shots." Reloading with another cork, Ranma managed to pop off two more well-placed shots and toppled more equipment...claiming the first, second, and third place prizes. With the increased police presence in the area, which he didn't know was due to the Gambling King, the booth operator had little choice but to pay up. Ranma distributed the prizes afterward. Nabiki got the first-place prize, a Canon AE-1 35mm camera which was highly desired by amateurs and some professionals. She gawked at simply being given such an expensive camera. Ukyo got the Polaroid SX-70 camera she wanted for instant shots, and Akane got a giant black stuffed pig plushie. Ranma almost laughed at seeing her with a representation of P-chan, but managed to keep his cool.
Since Nabiki didn't know how to use her camera just yet, Tofu let her borrow his to take a picture of Akane with her huge plush toy. "I can't believe you're just...letting me have this! It's very expensive!" Nabiki was not used to someone just giving her something that cost upwards of 30,000 yen on sale.
Ranma shrugged. "Eh, didn't cost me anythin' and I don't need it. Better it goes to someone who appreciates it than temptin' a bunch of kids to give money to a cheat." The man glared at the kids as he went to open a crate to get out some more plush toys, but Ranma simply didn't care. That is until the man stumbled back in shocked surprise. Ranma and the rest of those assembled looked to see a man in a dingy gi leap out of the crate, knocking a bunch of crumb-covered panda plushies into the air with him.
Genma Saotome had found a crate headed for Takato, stuffed himself inside, and it had paid off. Now, his ki perceivable after dropping from the Umisenken, the man looked to the gaggle of kids. Genma was not pleased, and simply ignored the irate man who lamented the condition of his prizes. At the very least he'd found Ranma surprisingly quickly. "Ranma, playtime's over. We're leaving."
"R-Ranma?" Akane asked, she and Nabiki confused as they heard the full name of their new acquaintance for the first time and started to make the connection. Kasumi stood in front of Ranma, wearing a stern expression, while Tofu also realized the situation and called to Genma.
"Wait, Mister Saotome!" The martial artist blinked as he looked to the bespectacled high-schooler with light irritation at the delay. "I'm Tofu Ono, a family friend of the Tendos. These are his three daughters. I ask that you reconsider and let us take him to the Tendo Dojo. That's what you always wanted, right?"
Genma was more than a bit surprised and regarded Soun's children for a moment, but crossed his arms in consideration. "Soun's daughters? Tempting, but I'm afraid Ranma's not yet ready. No, Soun will have to wait a while longer. Another fifteen years might be enough. Ten if we really push it."
The stocky martial artist dodged a metal spatula flung at him like a shuriken, and looked to the girl who threw it. He was momentarily surprised to see a light green ki radiating from the enraged girl. He did not recall Ukyo being able to do that just a week ago. "What about me? You engage Ranma to me knowing he's already spoken for, steal my dowry, make my father abandon me, and now you just plan to waltz off again? Get lost!"
"Leave, Pop." That low tone carried more impact than any of the other words said and made Genma freeze. "I wish ya the best, but I ain't followin' ya anymore. After the pit, I know better. Now get goin' before somebody else sees you and makes trouble."
Never before had Ranma met his father with such a response, and Genma's personality and plans would not tolerate it. Within seconds, the cheating man's stall was but a collapsed and torn memory as the fight erupted into being.
Nodoka and the Major General watched the television broadcast on NHK General TV in horror as Ranma and Genma battled it out on a road and entered a half-empty parking lot. The martial prowess being displayed was surprising, even though the video failed to do it the proper justice.
"Why is he attacking that poor child?"
"You're coming with me whether you like it or not, Boy!"
"Pretty sure the police huntin' you down for child abuse and torture say I don't have to do squat, Pop!"
"Child Abuse? Torture? It was all for the Art and you know it! What an ungrateful child I've raised!"
"Someone call the police!"
Sachiko Hinata could be heard yelling at someone to set up the high-speed camera typically used for instant replays in sporting events as the madness continued. It was a good thing they'd brought it along for the Rhythmic Gymnastics Exhibition yesterday.
"This is Sachiko Hinata of HNK, where the wanted criminal Genma Saotome is attacking his young runaway son, Ranma. The man is known to be guilty of fraud, theft, jailbreaking, child endangerment, willful torture of a child, dozens of counts of animal abuse, aggravated assault of police and military personnel, and other charges in his rampage across Japan. It is this reporter's hope that local law enforcement or the JSDF can intervene quickly for the child's sake!"
Nodoka watched, her heart pounding, while activity erupted in the room. People worked to coordinate the contingency plans.
"Deploying two infantry-equipped helicopters from reserves at Matsumoto Airport!"
"Sending out two more helicopters with infantry from Komagane's staging area!"
"Targets are at the Takato Castle Park Ruins Parking Lot!"
Advance forces from the backup sites were being deployed, but there was no way of knowing if Ranma would last long enough for them to be of any use. General Ishida had been outmaneuvered and could only do his best to catch up. Even if he left now by helicopter, he and the main forces at Yaotsu were still at least a half-hour away.
To his credit, Tofu had done his best to intercede when words failed. The high school student was skilled for his age in the Art, but he was neither strong nor fast enough to hinder Genma for long. By the time the young man pulled himself from the remains of the cork gun festival stall, he knew he wouldn't manage to protect Ranma from his father.
"Here, Kasumi! Hold this!" Ranma only had just enough time to entrust the mirror to Kasumi before his father charged for him. The child bounded off and retreated to the parking lot nearby, his father noting the sheer speed which his son employed. Thinking it merely the effect of the Neko-ken, Genma was still confident. His son didn't have the control to use such moves well in a fight, and he would exploit his son's reliance on such a crutch.
Soun Tendo soon arrived, pushing his wife along in her wheelchair. He'd felt Genma's presence battling Tofu's and rushed to check on the children. Tofu, bearing some scratches but thankfully not injured seriously, was pulling himself from the debris while surrounded by eight children...including Ukyo. "Y-you're the girl with Ranma! Ukyo! Is he-" Soun stammered, before hearing the sounds of battle.
"Ran-chan!" The young chef paid Soun no mind as she followed in worry, even taking to the branches of the nearby trees to move faster. Again, her worry compelled her to make leaps and travel in a way which most would not have thought possible. By the time everyone arrived, things were developing at an alarming rate. NTV had several cameras on the action, including one high-speed camera normally reserved for slow-motion video for referees to evaluate sports plays. The Japanese and Soviet Rhythmic Gymnastics Teams were present, among many other observes, with the members of the Japanese team having auras of anger manifesting. Even Happosai, who was concealing himself and watching from a tree, observed with interest.
"Are you done running, Boy? We have places to be!" Up to this point, Genma had been attempting to simply knock out the child so he could be taken away from this place. There were too many people for his liking. However, Ranma had proven too evasive to simply be rendered unconscious in a single strike. In that regard, the child had improved notably.
"I ain't goin' with you anywhere, old man! Just takin' this away from those hundred-year-old trees since you're determined to make a nuisance of yourself!" Ranma said, surprising his father. The amount of disrespect was something he'd never had to contend with before. Until the Neko-ken, Ranma had been fairly obedient in his innocence. The look in Ranma's eye was different now.
"Watch your tongue, you ungrateful child! I'm your father and your master, and you will obey! I'm the one who knows what's best!" Genma said with mounting irritation. This, however, seemed to set Ranma off.
"You say you know what's best? You mean that suicide pledge you had me finger paint on when I was two years old and couldn't read? What was so good about that? Or how you tricked Mom into givin' me up to you and pretended I didn't have one? Had to find out about her on my own! Or how about all the girls you engaged me to so you could steal dowries from 'em? Or torturin' me by lettin' me get attacked by starvin' cats?" Ranma was irate and yelled at his father, the child staring at the younger version of his father. Though Ranma loved him, that didn't stop Ranma from being absolutely furious.
Genma, meanwhile, stared at Ranma in shock. Somehow, the boy was informed of far too much and it was causing him to question things better left unknown. The Master of the Saotome School grumbled. "Your mother would have held you back, boy! The training isn't something a weak woman could stomach watching her child go through! For the sake of my retirement, I had to-!" Genma froze. The words that had come out of his mouth weren't the right ones.
"Your retirement, Pop?" Ranma inquired, a bit too quietly as his expression darkened.
"T-that's to say our future! So you might become a Master of the Art as soon as possible! After that, I can retire and-" There it was again. Something was keeping his mouth from obeying his mind. When he sought to lie, the truth would flow from his lips instead!
"Yeah, that's your plan. Hitch me to your friend's daughter so I inherit his Dojo as a dowry, and you retire to mooch off my hard work trainin' students as early as possible. All the other engagements were just practice for swindlin' the Tendos." Ranma's blue eyes regarded Genma with an intensity that seemed out of place on a child's face. He'd long suspected, but this all confirmed it. Kasumi gasped from behind the mirror she was holding in front of her as she watched the situation descend into madness. She looked to Soun, who simply looked at the situation in front of him with an unreadable expression.
"With your needs met, I bet you'd never have let me meet Mom, would you?" Ranma asked, only to be met with some indignant sputters. Genma tried to say something but abandoned this effort when it became clear that his mouth would not do as he commanded. There was something at work here. Something dangerous. "Get lost, Pop! I ain't your meal ticket or anybody else's!"
The boy had learned everything in the worst possible way. Deception wouldn't work. He had to get the boy out of here quickly and thus decided to pull the big guns. "Ranma, quit complaining! You sound like a girl! It's the duty of a child to care for their parent in their old age, and if you abandon that duty and don't come with me right now, there will be consequences!" Ranma stayed put, wondering what such 'consequences' might be. Genma glared at his son's obstinance.
"I am the Master of the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts. I can forbid you from practicing the Art with but a word. I can even renounce you as my heir, and then you'll have nothing. Now, for the last time. Come with me." Genma said, stern-faced as he tried the ultimate gambit to force his son's compliance. Ranma stood there for a time, processing this...the hesitation, however, shook Genma's confidence. "Well?"
The child glared at his father, clenching his fists. He'd had nothing in his life except the art, so Genma's threat to take it away would be a living nightmare for him. That was the whole point, Ranma suspected. "You could do that...couldn't you?" Genma smirked at the surprised response, at least until he saw Ranma square up and take a combat stance on the wet asphalt.
"Then I'd better fix that...I formally challenge you, Pop! For complete Mastery of the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts, and everything that carries!" Ranma's response stunned Genma for a moment before his expression turned to one of complete stoicism. The man had not expected Ranma to double-down and stand against him in this way. Though he was mostly irate at the sheer disrespect, part of him felt a strange sort of pride. It was, in his mind, a last-ditch effort that would enable Ranma to make a final stand and go down fighting. Something Genma could respect, even if only a little.
"Foolish boy. You are clearly overconfident just because you've improved a little." The man took a stance, preparing to battle his son more seriously. "So be it. Don't blame me for what happens, Ranma!" The two squared off, staring at each other for several tense moments before Genma charged. He delivered a stronger punch than before which was meant to knock Ranma out in one blow, only to find the boy capable of evading and entering his guard. Ranma retaliated with several strong strikes to his father's abdomen, stunning the man before the child did a leg sweep and attempted to knock his father to the ground. Genma leapt away, only to immediately re-engage. As the two battled, Genma smirked.
"You've learned to supplement your strikes with ki? I guess you've improved a hair more than I thought, Boy. But strengthening those tiny muscles of yours will take a lot more ki than you can maintain, and it's not like you can compensate for your reach. I wonder how long you can keep up before you tucker out!" Genma was more impressed than he let on and started to suspect that the boy hadn't been slacking after all. Conscious ki control was something that separated most of the world's martial artists from the best. With his ability to do so unlocked, Ranma had entered that realm at the tender age of six.
"Plenty long enough to handle you, Old Man!" Ranma growled, silently noting that Genma was correct on one point. His reach was abysmal because of his shorter limbs. Pondering on how best to rectify it, Ranma pondered using blunted ki-claws to augment it. However, this both cost ki and would be quickly understood. The genius martial artist quickly parsed through his encyclopedic knowledge of Martial Arts and hit upon a solution. Shifting his fists into a nukite, or spear hand, he mixed his own skills with a technique from Kuno's swordplay of all things. He started delivering punches at Amaguriken speeds and using air pressure alone to strike his father with hundreds of ranged blows. Genma had no chance to raise his guard, and Ranma was able to deliver enough force to knock the man away and flat on his rear end with a splash on the wet pavement.
"What...did he just do, Daddy? Was that a ki attack?" Akane asked, stunned. She didn't quite understand what that was, but it looked like magic to her. The gaggle of children looked to the martial arts master for an explanation. Soun, thankfully, had enough enhanced perception to at least begin to see what had happened and piece together what the high-speed camera would reveal to the world upon later analysis. As Ranma was able to deliver hundreds of blows in the span of a single normal strike, his hands could easily exceed the speed of sound. With sufficient control, the boy was able to use his hands to create hundreds of literal sonic booms and launch the focused air turbulence at his opponent. Changing the shape of his hands to a more aerodynamic form in the spear hand made it easier to break the sound barrier with weaker sonic booms as a consequence, but enough training would allow normal punches or even palm strikes with larger shock waves to be possible.
"No, Akane. Ranma is simply able to punch so fast that he can deliver many blows that look like a single strike. The wind generated by his punches alone was enough to knock down his father. A frightening power..." The idea made Soun shudder to his very core. The man hadn't seen that kind of martial prowess in anyone save the Master. The said master remained in his hiding place in the trees, continuing to analyze the skill of the prodigy through the fight.
Genma got up and rubbed his jaw as he fought the ringing in his ears. Ranma had not only gotten far faster, but he had successfully translated that speed into air pressure strikes. If he could do that, he'd quickly figure out out the vacuum blade if Genma employed it in this battle. Rather than feeling pride, Genma started to get angry. He was a master in his prime, and his six-year-old child had first blood? It was time to reassert dominance. Electing to ramp things up further, Genma closed in and attempted to beat his student black and blue. It was a shame for him that Ranma wasn't exactly compliant. His fists were often dodged or redirected and the boy was often able to slip into Genma's guard. The Chestnut Fist lanced out to make direct contact at these times, battering the man across his frame through the exchange. Only when Genma finally got a good hit in was Ranma forced back, and even then he merely slid on his feet across the wet asphalt for a few meters after having absorbed the blow. Ranma was soon ready for more, and Genma puzzled over how Ranma had gotten tough enough to handle a blow like that. What did he do, hit himself with rocks?
"Hnn...a training idea for later," Genma grumbled to himself.
The more the pair fought, the more impressed and irritated Genma became. Ranma's speed wasn't all that had gone through the roof. So had his defense and technique. His Art had also been refined to a ridiculous degree, something Genma could only attribute to some aspect of the Neko-ken. Perhaps his child had cause to be confident, at least if they stuck with the basics.
The audience gasped as Genma vanished from sight with the Umisenken, Soun included. Ranma quickly felt several strikes against his person when he tried to dodge, suddenly finding himself on the defensive. Genma had gotten used to employing the technique, though Ranma did have a counter of sorts. Leaping away while staying low to the ground, he raised an arm in a block and touched the ground with a finger as he moved. Genma, following his son, was suddenly caught in an explosion of asphalt which tore at his clothes and flesh. The boy was used to it from his Breaking Point training, but Genma certainly was not. A crack was heard as one of the lenses of Genma's glasses proved the victim of this attack.
"That's not fair!" Ukyo called out, responding to the invisible Umisenken. Some of the children agreed, while others simply remained stunned. Soun, however, kept his arms crossed and remained stoic.
"Perhaps, but if this too is part of the Saotome school, Ranma opened himself up to such strikes by making this a battle of Mastery. He must be proficient enough to contend with anything that his school has to bear. This being a Mastery Evaluation of Anything Goes also means that I cannot interfere except as to serve as a witness." Soun said, though he was unsure of if he could bring himself to interfere either way. Genma was still his friend, even though Genma's actions toward Nodoka and Ranma offended the nature of the family man. Could he truly fight to take Genma's child away? He was lucky he had an excuse for staying on the sidelines. Soun was aware of Kimiko turning her head to look at him over her shoulder with suspicion. In time, after Soun tensely stayed put and endured her gaze, she looked back toward the battle. Only then did he let go of the breath he'd been holding.
During this time, while Ranma resisted the various techniques of the Umisenken, Kasumi pondered carefully. How could this be resolved? She wanted to help Ranma, but couldn't do so in a fight. It was then that she remembered what she was holding. A mirror that reflected ki and made it visible. With that realization, the girl rushed to the edge of the battlefield and held the mirror up in front of her. "Ranma!"
"Kasumi, what are you doing?" Soun exclaimed in worry as she got close to the edge of the battle. He was forced to let Tofu tend to his wife and chase the girl.
While Genma ignored this as a cry of concern from one of the boy's girly entourage, Ranma immediately recognized Kasumi's intent. The mirror displayed not only himself but his invisible father. Though Genma had concealed his body and ki from human perception using the Umisenken, they were still reflected in the mirror. Using the mirror to observe his father, as Perseus did to track Medusa in ancient myth, Ranma was able to evade Genma's next blow from behind and smash the man's gut with an elbow strike.
Genma phased back into sight, stumbling from the blow. In his rage, he looked toward where Ranma had been, only to see nothing. With a blink, the man tried to process the lack of an opponent until he felt a solid strike to the back of his neck. With a groan, he managed to endure and leap away...briefly seeing his child again fade from view with his own Umisenken.
Meanwhile, Soun caught up to his child at the edge of the parking lot holding up a burned looking mirror. "Kasumi, what are you doing? You might be in danger here! Please, come back to a safe distance."
The child shook her head. "Sorry, Daddy, but Ranma's mirror can reflect ki and make it visible...I have to help him by showing him where his father is!" Soun was surprised at the claim. Looking at the fight, and then walking around to see the mirror, he saw that it indeed revealed the hidden Ranma and served as a counter to the power. The man was conflicted, but gently took his child's arm.
"I appreciate that you want to help him, Kasumi. And a way may yet appear to permit this. But this battle of Mastery between Student and Master shouldn't be interfered with. Otherwise, if Ranma wins, he'll always wonder if he could have won on his own. If he had truly earned his position." Soun knelt down, distracting Kasumi and blocking the mirror with his body. "Besides, this mirror helps Genma just as much. Please, Kasumi. Come rejoin the rest of us. It's not safe here."
Kasumi looked to the fight, then to her father. Without much choice in the face of her father's logic and concern, she was forced to relent. The girl could only hope that Ranma found a way...
"T-tch...to think you've even learned that much..." Genma said from his own position back on the battlefield, allowing his surprise to escape at the idea that his son had achieved even the Umisenken. The battered man jumped back, leading Ranma to a particularly wet part of the pavement at the cost of several blows to his person.
Closing his eyes, the man focused himself. Ranma may have achieved the Umisenken, but Genma was the one who invented the technique. Smiling as he heard the splashes of water which indirectly revealed his son's footsteps on the wet asphalt, he delivered a kick which knocked his child into the air and onto his back. Once Genma re-entered the Umisenken as well, the battle became one of splashes, strikes, and the occasional Ranma becoming visible from a hit before soon vanishing.
"I can still find you, boy! Don't think you can out-do me with my own technique!" Genma said, only allowing himself to be perceived long enough to taunt his son. The taunt worked in shaking Ranma's confidence. Ranma was having trouble finding his father, but he'd be attacked with an invisible limb every time he dared to move to attack. Every effort to evade was pursued. The battle had shifted. Moreover, Soun had stopped Kasumi from helping. The boy didn't give up though.
There had to be a way to beat the Umisenken. His father was using it, and the mirror was using it. Perhaps it wasn't perfect and the user still emitted some traceable ki? The boy had to find out. Pushing his active ki-sense to its limits, Ranma tried and failed to find the way Genma and the mirror were able to see through the Umisenken.
But he succeeded in finding his own way to defeat the technique.
As he focused and became aware of the concentrations of ki in the air around him from the fight thus far, as well as the pollen of the cherry blossoms and the other minutiae of life in the air, he perceived movement. It was an empty silhouette of nothingness that became perceptible against the ambient ki on the battlefield. The Umisenken worked too well in erasing the presence of the user, creating a void one could track once their active ki-sense was sufficiently developed.
A flicker of a grinning Ranma briefly failing to contain his mirth was all the warning Genma had before the tide of battle shifted yet again. Ranma started getting in more hits than Genma did, even managing to dodge his father's strikes. An incredulous Genma eventually thought that Ranma was using the splashes of footsteps in the standing water as well, but Ranma's accurate assault continued even when Genma leapt onto a more dry section of the parking lot in an attempt to gain some respite. In attempting to save himself, Genma inadvertently removed his ability to track his child while failing to remove his son's advantage.
"That's it!" Genma's anger broke through, dissipating his Umisenken completely due to its prerequisite of emotional control. The man's battered gi was wet, frayed, and torn in various places. His cracked glasses hindered his vision. His anger hindered his judgment. His child remained invisible, displaying a mastery of the stealth technique exceeding that of his irate father. The very concept was a mockery to the exceedingly proud man. "You think yourself my equal? Do you, Boy?"
Ranma smirked as his own Umisenken faded, though the child clearly allowed it by choice. "Nah, Pop. I don't think I'm your equal." The boy decided to throw in a further taunt to file up the old man. "I'm better."
This apparent overconfidence had the intended effect as Genma rushed forward with a roar of anger, attempting to strike his son. The boy, however, allowed his smirk to fade as he tapped into the Soul of Ice. Having determined that the spectators were at a safe distance, he elected to finish this. The wetness on the asphalt quickly turned to frost and ice wherever he stepped as his father charged, being led into the technique's prerequisite spiral step. The audience and camera were able to observe Ranma's footwork as a result, the parking lot being marked with what appeared to be dance steps of ice. None were able to comprehend its meaning right away, with the exception of one man.
Happosai saw the movements and smirked. "Well, well. That brings back memories. To think that I'd see Cologne's moves in a place like this..." When Soun looked up in horror upon hearing the voice in the tree above him, Happosai hopped down and used the man's forehead as a stepping stone before easily reaching the ground.
"E-eh? You're the pervert from last night!" Ukyo said, readying her spatulas. This introduction confused everyone further, giving Soun the time needed to recover as he rubbed his forehead.
"M-Master?" Soun asked, noting the pleased expression on Happosai's face.
"Kids, you'll want to hit the dirt by the time they reach the center of that circle. Watch carefully and brace the cameras with something, because this will get rough." Soun quickly locked Kimiko's wheelchair and braced it against a tree, shielding her with his own body. If the Master was actually giving them a warning, this could be bad. Knowing who Happosai was due to his often newsworthy panty heists, Sachiko Hinata complied by rushing to brace the high-speed camera. Her crew did their very best to keep reporting.
His son's movements registered in Genma's mind as unusual, but Ranma's taunts and jabs kept the man angry enough not to question his course of action. He kept attacking and hammering, trying to get a hit in, even as he was led into a spiral by his disobedient child. When they got to the center of the circle, Ranma struck. His fist surged upward, though the height difference meant that Genma wasn't just sucked into the tornado. No, the updraft formed right under the man's chin and struck him full force as it erupted into being. The spiral of their combined energy tore through the parking lot and rose into the air as a tornado, shaking nearby trees and making people shriek in fear. The news crew managed to hold the cameras in position, though one of the cheaper cameras was unfortunate and its lens shattered. Some of the microphones were also damaged.
"Target area is too turbulent for landing! 'Plan A' no longer possible! Commencing 'Plan B'!" A radio operator conveyed from a JSDF helicopter in the air near the battle. Four imported UH-1B Iroquois, known domestically as 'Hiyodori', had flown in as pairs from Komagane City and Matsumoto Airport. Determining a direct on-site landing to be too risky, they elected to land at further points from the battle in progress and let their infantry force proceed the rest of the distance on foot.
The group watched in helpless awe as the ki-charged air buffeted them to a degree far less than Genma was enduring. Kasumi held the mirror as a shield in front of herself and her little sisters, straining to keep them safe...only for the mirror to glow a brilliant white. The wind around the children lessened as the mirror absorbed Ranma's cold ki and promptly repaired itself to a pristine state, and also served to disrupt and reflect Genma's hot ki. This was a surprise as well, but one which was not considered too deeply before the tornado finally ceased.
It was quiet as cherry blossom petals and very fine snow made from the water on the asphalt drifted to the ground, kicked up by the tornado. The transition of winter into spring was embodied for those fleeting seconds by the aftermath of the technique until the quiet was broken by Genma Saotome plummeting to the ground and impacting hard to make a half-meter-deep crater in the asphalt. The man, clearly unconscious, had taken the full brunt of the initial updraft and the winds of the tornado thereafter.
"Hmph. Looks like my win. Enjoy your nap, Old Man." Ranma said as he looked upon the battered man. Satisfied that Genma would be alright and was merely unconscious, the boy turned his back on his father and walked away.
Nodoka rode on the helicopter en route from Yaotsu with General Ishida, his aides, and a few of the various martial arts contractors. Their eyes were glued to the 5 inch black and white screen of the suitcase-sized portable television which had been hurriedly bolted to the frame of their transportation. The audio was hard to hear over the rotors, even with the headsets they'd been provided, but the sound still came through.
The woman was not pleased with the revelations which had been confirmed by Genma's lips. Her husband never had any intention of returning to her. Ranma was never supposed to see her again and was to live solely to assure Genma's financial independence from her. The contract, which she had clung to for four long years, was made in bad faith. Her grip on the ever-present bundle in her lap tightened.
She then watched Genma do worse and try to coerce their child to go along with his plans by threatening to take away the one thing Ranma had been allowed to have in his life, but Ranma did not stand for it. Instead of settling for the privilege of pursuing the Art by being obedient in his father's schemes, Ranma challenged his father and secured it as his right. The conclusion of the battle was one that had Nodoka in awe and had secured her child's freedom from his parasitic father. That, at the very least, pleased Nodoka.
That pleasure faded quickly, however. Kasumi handed Ranma something circular and reflective, and Soun attempted to approach Ranma to speak to him. Ukyo shouted something in warning, getting between him and Ranma. Nodoka didn't even need sound to understand the situation. Ukyo considered Soun a danger because of his conduct at the Nekoyama Shrine.
"Oh no...P-please, Ranma. Don't leave again..." Nodoka pled, her voice drowned out by the rotors as the helicopter did its best to arrive in time.
"Stay back, you creep! I remember you! You're one of the guys trying to get Ranma married!" Ukyo called out in irritation. She had her spatulas out, ready to fight, while Soun tried to placate the angry girl. The child hadn't forgiven him for what happened, and clearly had no reason to trust him.
"I'm not here to force anything right now, Ukyo. We'll find an honorable solution for this. Just-" Before Soun could do much to resolve the situation, he was interrupted.
"Soun! Go check on Genma. When he wakes, inform him that I recognize the transfer of the title of Master of the Saotome School from him to Ranma, and then keep him from interfering with Ranma's departure." Happosai ordered while taking a puff from his pipe with his eyes closed. These words surprised Soun immensely.
"T-transfer, Master? Wait, departure? You intend to just let Ranma leave?" The mustached man asked, for clarification. Happosai's eyes opened to give Soun a glare which made the man freeze.
"Genma only ever taught one student in spite of his position, Soun. That student went through things no child ever should, just so Genma could then leech off of the fruits of my Art like a parasite. In practice and intent, Genma has disappointed me and proven unfit for his position. Besides, Ranma's exact challenge which Genma accepted was for complete Mastery of the Saotome School, and that is what he now has." Happosai's icy tone made Soun shiver as he conveyed his intent to use this to effectively revoke Genma's mastery. Still, Soun couldn't rightly blame him. As much of a friend as Genma was, he had abandoned his wife and abused his son. The anger at Genma eventually won out over the urge to keep Ranma here. The small man then waved his hand in a motion of dismissal, reminding Soun of his task. The man obeyed, looking back to the children only once before leaving to tend to his fallen and dishonored friend.
Happosai looked to Ranma and smiled. "Hello, Ranma. You probably don't know me, but I'm Happosai. I'm the Founder and Grandmaster of Anything Goes Martial Arts, and your father's and Soun's Master. Congratulations on taking your father's place." The man was pleasant and cheerful, probably because Ranma was still a child. The meeting was like night and day from the Happosai that had demanded subservience from his male half and skinship from his female one.
"Ah, I found out about you! But not from Pop. He tried to keep you a secret like he did Mom. Pop had the Saotome School, Mr. Tendo has the Tendo School, and you have the Founding School. Right?" Ranma said cheerfully as he maintained the 'young child' act so as not to arouse suspicion. Happosai wasn't happy about Genma not mentioning him, but at least Ranma had found out through other means.
"That's right! Genma was in charge of his own part of Anything Goes, but the two schools still answer to me. Grandmaster, then Master, then Student. Of course, I intend to teach you more of the Art in time and perhaps have Soun assist as well. For now, though, you are responsible for the three students you've taken on. Your training journey can hardly end now, can it?" Happosai gave a wink, and Ranma understood. Happosai's priority was the spread of the Art. If Ranma was doing a better job to develop and spread it than his father, of course the old lech would give Genma the boot after all of this.
"No, it can't. Thanks, Grandmaster!" Understanding, and maintaining the act of respect, Ranma stepped back away from the others and pulled out a bedsheet from the sleeve of his kimono. Cameras rolled as he used the sheet to conceal a space from view just long enough to summon the okonomiyaki cart and the Kinjakan into being. Nervous applause from the apparently impossible magic trick was ignored as Ranma took a pre-made harness made of pipe and slid it onto the handles of the cart. Ranma then attached the Kinjakan to the harness to where the whole thing resembled a rickshaw. The rushed boy noticed Ran's letter when he hopped atop the cart, and his face bore a look of significant confusion, but he then stuffed it inside the chest of his kimono without doing more than looking at who it was for. He'd deal with it later. They had no more time to waste. "Ucchan, Natsume, Kurumi! Hop on and hang on!"
The trio was compliant, promptly getting on the makeshift vehicle with Ranma. "It was fun, everybody! Sorry we have to cut the vacation short!" Ranma called out to the Tendos and the Kunos. Tofu and Kimiko were only now beginning to understand what was happening when the Kinjakan's disk started to spin and pull the cart and passengers along with it. It sped along to the east while Soun and Genma were indisposed.
Happosai gave a pleased smirk as Ranma escaped, wondering what the outcome of this would be. He was soon aware, however, of someone approaching him. Turning to look at the kimono-clad woman, the pervert in him threatened to come to the fore.
"Hello, I'm Sachiko Hinata from NHK. I understand that you are the Grandmaster and Founder of the Martial Arts style the Saotomes employ. Might you be willing to give commentary on what we've seen today and about Anything Goes in general? There are many viewers who are very confused about what they just saw." Happosai was aware of the microphone being held in front of him, as well as the woman's beauty. Should he partake in her company, or enlighten the ignorant masses about his Art? Such a difficult choice...
"Gruuuhhh...w-what happened?" Genma groaned, sitting up in the crater he'd made. He wasn't recovered from the fight yet, but he'd be fine in time. Waving away some people with first aid kits, he took note of Soun as he approached. "Tendo. What are you doing here? Where's that ungrateful boy?"
Soun's expression was one of pity, even with everything that had been revealed. Still, Genma had trespassed heavily by abandoning his wife and abusing his son. Genma even planned to use the Tendo family for his own ends. "Saotome. You lost the fight. I don't know what you were thinking, accepting it as a Mastery challenge of all things, but the Master is here as well." That made Genma tense up, as Soun knew he would.
"The Master...saw this?" Worry that was a short step away from horror crossed Genma's face.
"He did, and he heard you as well. The Master knows you intended to train no one but Ranma and then compel him to spread the Art in your stead. Saotome...your son did not earn a new mastery. Your standing has been transferred to your son by our Master's own word. You are no longer able to teach the Saotome School." Soun felt for his horrified friend, he really did, upon seeing that expression. While a parent wanted their child to succeed them one day, the manner in which it happened to Genma was horrible. Even if it was richly deserved.
"B-but...Ranma's training wasn't even complete! How could he be a Master at the age of six?" Genma complained to his comrade, but Soun wasn't the one who needed convincing. Besides, Ranma had clearly fought with complete knowledge of the Saotome School. Genma struggled to understand how this could include techniques that Ranma had never been formally taught. Had the Neko-ken somehow unlocked his memories of every technique he'd ever seen? That had been when things all fell apart, after all.
He should never have tried to teach his child that technique. It had changed Ranma irrevocably.
"The Master believes Ranma to be better suited. He already has three girls his age seeking to learn from him and sharing on his training journey, one of which whose ki he has successfully unlocked. You know how the Master feels about the prospect of young women being brought into the Art." Soun reminded Genma of their perverted master's preferences. While he used women as a source of energy, he also liked them to be strong and for his Art to spread far and wide. Ranma was starting to do just that simply by pursuing the Art on his own terms. Add to that the fact that Happosai favored children and there was little surprise that he'd see Ranma with favor.
When Genma looked back to his son and the Master in the distance and saw Ranma pull out a cart of all things from his ki-space with the ease of a magic trick, Genma gawked. When he saw the boy take out a clearly valuable weapon and affix it to the cart, he was puzzled. And when the boy sped off in the makeshift vehicle, he attempted to pursue. "Wait, you ungrateful boy!" Genma bellowed, only for Soun to cut off his movement. The stockier man with glasses was surprised at the movement of his long-time friend.
"You abandoned your wife and intended to leech from our children and the Art like a parasite. The Master has ordered me not to allow you to pursue Ranma. Nodoka and Kimiko would be inclined to agree. Let it go or face me in your weakened state, Saotome. Defeat me, and you will still contend with the Master's ire." Genma wanted to rage at this comment, but he knew from looking at Soun's expression that doing so would solve nothing. He took on a stoic expression and assumed a stance.
"I will forgive this, Soun. You have no choice. I only hope you return the courtesy because I have no choice either. You order me to abandon my son, after all." Standing in front of each other, with the slightly more skilled of the martial artists in question weakened by the battle with his son, the pair exploded into action as Takato Town and people watching their televisions across Japan were graced once more with a display of martial prowess.
Happosai had initially tried to grope the news anchor while being interviewed, but her reminder that children were watching and a pinch from the nearby Kimiko made him behave himself. To a point, at least. Sachiko had seen Happosai's file but was not prepared for what she heard. "So you're saying one of the most advanced hybrid martial arts in the world was developed for the purpose of...stealing women's' underwear?" Sachiko asked in an effort to confirm the story, more than a little stunned at the truth.
The pervert gave a sage nod, unfazed by Genma and Soun's battle in the background as he carried on the interview. "That's right. Of course, it's not just for what they represent. Items that are worn close to a person hold on to their ki. Healthy women produce ki that I can process and use to extend my own life. I have been around since the dawn of the Meiji era, and yet I'm able to fight at a level beyond what normal people can ever hope to dream! Of course, panties were less common back in those days. The competition for them back then was fierce..."
"And what of your students? Do they too have this ability?" The woman asked, worried that the school was training people in this manner. Happosai shook his head, thankfully.
"No, though one young girl can absorb ki from people directly so as to mitigate her medical condition. Otherwise, none of my students have the ability. Soun is very loyal to his wife even with her being in this wheelchair, Genma doesn't have the skill required, and Ranma far is too young to appreciate women in spite of his massive potential. I still look forward to seeing what he can do in ten or fifteen years' time, and can't help but feel that Anything Goes Martial Arts has a bright future." Happosai finished with a smile. He didn't even react when Genma used the Umisenken to momentarily evade Soun and knock him into a festival stall, making it collapse on top of him.
It was then that Kimiko spoke to clarify matters. Letting Happosai describe the school without a filter could be very bad, after all. "In spite of its origins, Anything Goes is a very versatile and powerful Art which has split into a number of Schools with different purposes and doctrines. Grandmaster Happosai runs the Founding School as the only one involving undergarments, my dear husband Soun Tendo runs the ground-based Tendo School, and the Saotomes have the aerial-based Saotome School. When Genma attempted to use his authority as Master of the Saotome School to force Ranma to obey him, Ranma responded by taking the school from him in a formal challenge. Now the Saotome School is Ranma's to do with as he pleases. Within the bounds of reason, of course." Kimiko could see the look on Sachiko's face and continued.
"And no, it is not common for a six-year-old child to become a Master by any measure. Ranma seems to be an absolute prodigy with the work ethic to take it further. I can actually attest that the child held back several devastating techniques. Ones he has previously used to save my eldest daughter's life. I understand that the police are still struggling to come to terms with the incident, but at the very least accept his role." Kimiko's words were not a surprise to Sachiko, but they probably would be to the world at large. Of course, the newscaster didn't have much time to reply before she noticed Happosai's expression turn a bit more serious as his eyes turned toward the west.
"Hmm? What is it, Grandmaster?" Sachiko queried when his attention shifted. The sound of running feet on wet grass could be heard, and the camera took aim. Working to surround the parking lot, newcomers in JSDF uniforms moved readily with machine guns, stun grenades, knives, gas canisters, and night vision goggles with gas masks. The truly unusual thing, however, was that the headgear was all contained inside a theme park worker's helmet based on the titular character from Hello Kitty.
Various people still watching were surprised by the dichotomy of armed soldiers wearing such a childish piece of attire, but it had a purpose. Genma's shaking knees seemed to confirm the reason for their attire, and Happosai groaned. "Hotcha...so you went and burdened yourself with something unnecessary, Genma." Happosai said with irritated comprehension.
"Genma Saotome! By order of both the Emperor and the Diet of the State of Japan, you are hereby ordered to surrender to the Japan Self Defense Force! This is your only warning!" One of the men called out, clearly irritated at having to wear that silly helmet. At the very least, it had the intended effect. With these new interlopers, the battle would be different. The Saotome School wasn't as good at dealing with multiple attackers as the Tendo School was, though Ranma seemed to know moves that could mitigate this disadvantage.
Genma struggled with himself, wondering how to proceed, before clenching his eyes shut and yelling to the soldier. "I-if you want me, you will have to do more than wear s-silly hats and talk about the Emperor!" Trying to think of the cartoony helmets as being those of foxes instead of cats, he slipped into the Umisenken with some difficulty. The soldiers' eyes tracked him, however, and the battle resumed.
Happosai didn't seem to be that impressed. The soldiers didn't seem to have much in the way of martial arts experience or strong ki. The best they could do was stall for time. "Hmph. While my idiot disciple endures the consequences of his actions, do you have any other questions? I can explain the origins of some of the moves that Ranma used today. A few of them came from this ancient tribe of women in China I visited about ninety years ago..."
"Great job, Ran-chan! You're the Master of the Saotome School now! That sure messes up your daddy's plans!" Ukyo grinned widely. Seeing Ranma literally beat Genma into the ground had been cathartic and something that Ukyo enjoyed immensely. "What were those other moves you used, anyway? You two went invisible, and then POW, tornado!" As the vehicle sped off through the forests and into the Akaishi Mountains, Ranma reinforced its ki. The ride was admittedly a bit rough, but the children were made of sterner stuff. Natsume and Kurumi paid rapt attention, in awe of what they'd just seen the boy do.
"Well, the stealth technique is one Pop invented. It's called the Umisenken, and he made it for stealin' stuff. The entry-level technique of the Umisenken makes you imperceptible. It has a flaw Pop doesn't seem to know about that I used against him. The other technique with the tornado is called the Hiryu Shoten Ha. It turns your opponent's fightin' spirit against them if they ain't in control of their emotions. Both are techniques that ain't easy for kids to learn unless they've got some emotional control or a weird upbringin'...but I think you could eventually learn it, Ucchan. There's a lot to learn before you get there, though." The town of Takato faded from view behind the foothills of the mountain range as the children moved along, rushing to get clear before anyone could pursue.
Natsume sat in thought as the two slightly younger children spoke. She had wanted to get strong enough to defend Kurumi, and Ranma was nice enough to train them and even take them to see his mother to try and find them a place in the world. He might in time become their new family, but for now... "Then we'll just have to follow you until we're able to do such things, Master."
Ranma blinked at the word, very surprised to be called such a thing. He couldn't tear his attention from the lands through which he steered, but he did stammer. "N-Natsume? What did you just..." The slightly older girl smiled at the boy's surprise.
"You're a Master, and you're teaching us. That's official now, right? That means you're my and Kurumi's Master. Maybe Ukyo's too?" Natsume recognized Ranma's new authority with a formality he never expected. Kurumi paid close attention, and Ukyo considered Natsume's words with care before she finally responded.
"I-I don't know. Even if Daddy...abandoned me...I'm still a student of his school. Can I really call someone else my Master just like that?" Ukyo was unsure of if she should commit to being Ranma's student formally, even if she knew that she was getting the full benefit of such already. "I need to think on that, Ran-chan. Sorry."
Ranma gave a light sigh of relief. The idea of Ukyo calling him 'Master' was a strange one that was hard to process. In the future, he would have been overly proud of it and even insisted upon it to the point of becoming an irritant. Friendship was something he felt that he was starting to understand more deeply now, though. "Don't apologize, Ucchan. I just challenged Pop because I had to either give up my future, give up the Art, or seize the Art from him. You're still my best friend and I'd still be teachin' all three of you either way. I ain't makin' you call me anythin' you don't want to call me." As Ukyo clung to and hugged a surprised Ranma out of relief, Natsume simply considered the attitude to be one more reason Ranma was worthy of the respect the title carried.
"Speakin' of teachin'," Ranma continued, "this ride's a good time for me to teach you and Kurumi how to sense ki..."
At the outskirts of the Joketsuzoku village, Ran stood with Cologne and Shampoo. The young woman was puzzled, unsure of why she hadn't gotten a response from Ranma yet. She'd attached the letter to the okonomiyaki cart, and it had been pulled from their shared ki-space. Perhaps she was just being impatient. Ranma had other things to tend to if he was training Ukyo. Ran's gaze went to Shampoo, who was beating up Mousse for trying to sneak along with them. Even the threat of having his memories wiped didn't dissuade the boy.
'Mu Tsu, leave Xian Pu alone. You are not coming with us. That is the end of the matter.' The youthful Cologne said with a measure of restrained irritation.
'You can't fool me! You're after that Luanma guy I heard the council rambling about! The young god killer! You're going to try to force Xian Pu to fight him and marry her!' Mousse didn't like the idea of some other boy their age being anywhere near Shampoo, in any era. Ran took note of this and watched very carefully for Cologne's response. She wasn't too keen on Ranma being railroaded into such a thing either.
'Mu Tsu, we already have that boy's blood in the tribe in the form of Lan. What happens will happen, but I am going after the ancient enemy Happosai to regain our treasures or to take his head. That alone is my mission. To maintain my clan's, including Xian Pu's, honor. Not that it is your place to question or complain. My great grandchild is not yours to claim or control.' Mousse was a bit eased with the explanation, even if he didn't like the idea of her leaving or the implication at the end, but Ran noted that it wasn't a true denial. It just sounded like one. She'd heard enough of Nabiki's efforts to know.
'Come back soon, Xian Pu! I will be training to face you again!' Mousse said with confidence while facing Ran. Shampoo was irritated, wishing the boy would just drop that and be a friend instead.
'You won't win against her if you can't even see her. Wear a stretchy head strap or something. The other you wouldn't have been cursed or run into half the trouble he did if he just kept his glasses on his face.' Ran conveyed, taking her finger and pushing the bridge of Mousse's glasses down off of his forehead and onto his face. Realizing who he was speaking to, Mousse stepped back in surprise. The boy hadn't taken to Ran well, but he knew she was right. His future self became corrupt and sent the 'god killer' back with a forbidden technique over his eagerness to seize Shampoo from a man who did not want or claim her. His efforts had also gotten him cursed due to his own ineptitude. Because Ran was older and stronger, Mousse simply grumbled lightly in response to the advice. 'Ranma did not desire a wife then and does not want one now. While not malicious, he would rather not interact with the Joketsuzoku, Musk, or Phoenix People at all. We burdened him unduly at every turn.'
Cologne understood Ran's statement clearly. It was her way of saying that trying to engage Shampoo to Ranma was a bad idea from the onset. Still, such a thing wasn't Ran or Ranma's decision in her mind. 'Xian Pu, come along. It is time to start our journey!'
The girl had been nervous when leaving home but now wore a huge smile as she waved to her mother and father. She did not wave to Mousse, because he didn't warrant it at the moment. 'I go now on my first mission! See you later, Mother! Father!'
A smiling mother and a crying father waved back and saw her off, the trio of martial artists heading out to cross the bulk of China and intercept their target in Japan. The retribution of the Joketsuzoku was ninety years in coming, and would not be denied for much longer.
