Chapter 18: Epilogue
1.
Despite having a prepared speech and knowing the entire class already, or maybe because of both, Ranma felt far more nervous than she had at her first introduction. Back then, she had only been concerned with trying to avoid attention. That had been worrisome enough. However, now she was preparing to be truthful and reveal her past weeks of deception. That felt even more intimidating.
"Don't worry. We're right behind you," Sachiko said. She took a moment to adjust Ranma's neckerchief.
Ranma appreciated the gesture.
"It's time," Tanezaki said. She led the way through the hallways to the First-year Chrysanthemum Group classroom, followed by Ranma, Sachiko, and The Three Roses. They all walked in silence. Everybody knew what was about to happen.
"Stand. Bow."
Ranma could practically feel the tension in the room as she walked in. Her entering with Tanezaki in and of itself was most unusual. The presence of Sachiko and The Three Roses only added to that. The curiosity of the situation was only matched by the pressure.
Most of the class was looking at The Three Roses. A few girls looked at Ranma and Sachiko, though, as if trying to puzzle out the nature of the interruption. Ranma could feel the weight of their gazes upon her.
Tanezaki said, "Gokigenyou. If I might have your attention, there is something of a situation here. and the Yamayurikai has an announcement they would like to make to you." She nodded to her side.
Based on the angle, it was hard to tell which member of the Yamayurikai Tanezaki was nodding to, but Ranma took that as her cue anyway and stepped forward.
She could feel the eyes of the class snap to her, the new focus of the communal confusion and curiosity. She could do this, though. She had already done so five times: twice with the Ogasawara family, once with the Yamayurikai, once with the headmistress, and once with all the staff.
This would be the sixth, and hopefully final, time.
Ranma took a deep breath and began.
2.
The class set up the volleyball nets, split up into teams at semi-random, and took their respective positions. It was the start of another banal day of PE.
Ranma was the first to serve in her match. She held the ball low, ready to clumsily bump it across to the other side of the net. Then she stopped. The thought occurred to her that the whole reason she had been doing so little was because Genma had told her to blend in, so that she cold hide within the environment, so she could sneak in, so she could rob some rich girl. None of that applied anymore. There really wasn't a reason that she couldn't become more engaged. That would certainly be better than the thoughtless gestures she had been doing thus far in PE class.
"Ranma-san?" Miyu asked from beside her. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," Ranma said. She took three steps back and spun the ball in her hand. She then ran forward two steps, threw the ball high into the air, leaped up, and slammed it over the net. It plummeted to the ground and landed exactly between Satomi and Yume.
There was a quiet "ooohhh" from both teams.
While it had been satisfying that Ranma had pulled off the shot, it was equally a disappointment. Nobody on the other side had reacted, let alone had a chance to return her serve. Completely dominating the other side was just as boring as intentionally playing poorly; if she wanted to just practice serving and spiking, she could have done that on her own. In order to make it a proper match, apparently she needed some handicap.
Besides, developing the dexterity of her off-hand would be good to do as well.
Ranma played the rest of the match reverse-handed. Even so, she was decisively better than anybody on either team. She would need to put more thought into a better handicap in the future.
Once class ended, as they were putting everything away, Sumire approached Ranma. She said, "You've been holding back on us. You're really good."
"Thanks," Ranma said. She smiled. She always liked having her skill acknowledged, even for relatively basic things.
"Have you thought about joining the volleyball team?" Sumire asked.
"Oh, you should. You'd be really good," Satomi said. "We'd win all our matches."
3.
"Here. This is the place," Ranma said.
Shimono stopped the car right in front of the store from which Ranma had acquired her uniforms and other clothing on that first day, weeks earlier.
"Are you ready?" Sachiko asked.
"Yes," Ranma said.
"Okay. Good luck," Sayako said. She handed a thick envelope to Ranma.
Ranma opened the flap to look inside, and her eyes widened in surprise. She had thought that her allowance was a huge sum of money, and it was, but this put that to shame. The thick envelope held what must have been hundreds of bills. The weight of responsibility felt heavy in her hands.
She re-closed the envelope and put it into a pocket. She then stepped out of the already-open door and gave a nod of appreciation to Shimono. She took a moment to compose herself, and then she entered the store.
"Welcome!" the shopkeeper said. When he caught sight of Ranma, though, his pleasant attitude dropped. In a much more surly voice, he said, "You. What are you doing back here?"
"I'm sorry for what I did earlier," Ranma said, speaking formally. She bowed deeply and held it for a few seconds. As her head was down, she noticed out of the corner of her eye that Sayako was peeking in through a window behind her. Ranma stood up straight again.
"Hmm..." The shopkeeper was still grimacing at Ranma.
"I was not aware of what my father did. I'm here to make amends for the wrongs I have unknowingly caused you," Ranma said.
"Well... alright then..." the shopkeeper said.
"How much do I owe you for the uniforms and clothing?" Ranma asked.
The shopkeeper reached over to a calculator at his side and started typing out some numbers. His hands flew across the keys with the easy flow of somebody who had mastered his trade. He turned the calculator so Ranma could see it.
And Ranma almost passed out. She rubbed her eyes and looked again. She counted the digits one at a time, just to make sure she hadn't misread. She hadn't.
It was a prodigious amount of money. She tried to convert it into an equivalent amount of ramen, but upon passing a full month of meals, even that lost all concrete meaning to her.
The thick envelope Sayako had given her suddenly made much more sense.
Ranma started flipping through the bills, one at a time. As she counted them out, the thought occurred to her that it would be easy to take out a couple of extras ones and palm them into a pocket. Nobody would ever notice.
This was followed by a feeling of guilt for even thinking that, and she let the thought vanish like a fleeting breeze.
Ranma finished counting out the bills and then offered the thick stack to the shopkeeper with both of her hands, giving a bow as she did so.
The shopkeeper took the stack and counted it. He counted it a second time, and then a third time. He then pulled one of the bills off the top.
"You gave too much," the man said. He handed it back to Ranma.
"Oh," Ranma said. She took the bill and put it back in the envelope. She bowed one more time. "I'm very sorry for the trouble I've caused you."
"Hmm..." the man said. "I guess you're okay. Come back again some day."
"Gokigenyou," Ranma said. She gave one last bow, a short one this time, and left.
The car was waiting in front of the store when Ranma emerged. Sachiko and Sayako were sitting inside it, and Shimono was standing outside. She opened the door for Ranma to enter.
"How did it go?" Sachiko asked.
"It went fine, I think," Ranma said. She handed the decidedly-less-thick envelope back to Sayako.
4.
"Captain..." one of the girls said. She was dressed in armor, as were all the other girls in the room. The only one dressed in the standard Lillian sailor dress was Ranma.
It had been Rei's idea. They had an upcoming tournament, and Ranma wanted to meet and befriend everybody in the school. It was perfect. She could do some special training and fulfill both objectives. The trickiest part would be to not "hurt" the girls, as Rei had emphasized.
Maybe that would be the second-trickiest part. The trickiest part would be to actually remember the rules of kendo. After learning so many other martial arts, the specific rules of each one of them all jumbled together. In a real fight that didn't matter, but in a sporting match, quibbles like that were important.
Ranma picked up a shinai from a container and checked it. It was new and of high quality. She tapped it on the ground, resulting a satisfying clatter of bamboo slats. She tested it in her hands as well. It had a relatively high amount of flex. That would make some techniques easier but other ones harder.
"Captain..." a different girl said. Ranma tried her best to remember her and the others in the room. It was the point of the event, after all. It was hard without having a name to tie to the face, though.
"Rei-san..." Amane said.
"Ranma-kun knows what he's doing. He can help. Trust me," Rei said. She sent a warning look to Ranma.
Ranma saw that everybody was staring at her. She asked, "What?"
A girl approached Ranma and offered her a handkerchief and a helmet.
"Nah, don't need them," Ranma said, waving her off. A true martial artist just took whatever came her way and used it to improve herself. It wasn't like an surprise attacker would pause to allow you to put on armor. Learning how to take a hit, and even better how to avoid taking a hit, was also a part of martial arts.
"Captain!" another girl exclaimed.
"Ranma-kun," Rei said. She gestured with her hands.
"Fine, fine," Ranma said. She was supposed to be trying to fit in, after all. She reached down, took the handkerchief the girl offered, wrapped it around her hair, and then slid the helmet over her head.
The reduced vision and muffled audio cues were an annoyance, but in proper Anything Goes fashion, it was training, too. She practiced fighting with impairments too infrequently, and this was a good reminder that she might not always have access to all her senses and limbs. She would need to train that more often.
"Mikoi-san, you go first," Amane said.
The girl in question put on a helmet and walked to one end of a long mat which had been spread out in the center of the room. At Rei's urgent gesturing, Ranma walked to the long mat as well.
"Just one thing," Ranma said while standing opposite of Amane. "Can you remind me what the rules of kendo are? Is this the one I can only hit the torso?"
"Captain!" Several girls shouted this time.
"Rei-san..." Amane said tensely.
Rei looked like she wanted to crawl into a hole somewhere. She said, "Ranma-kun..."
Ranma was tempted to add in some buffoonery and insults to really throw them off balance and off guard. In a fight, it was a critical error to let an opponent get to you in any fashion. This wasn't a real fight, though, and it had been emphasized to her that being polite and respectful would meet with much more success in this endeavor.
"Okay. I'll figure it out as I go," Ranma said. She was sure Mikoi's weapon was safe to hit. She had never encountered a martial art which used weapons that considered the weapons themselves as invalid targets. That alone would be enough to get started.
Rei stepped forward to the center of the mat and raised her hand. Mikoi reacted by raising her shinai into a guard position. Her grip was terrible.
Ranma likewise raised her shinai into a guard position.
"Begin!"
Ranma stood there leisurely, waiting for Mikoi to commit herself. And she waited. And she waited.
After several seconds, Mikoi sent a look at Rei and the rest of the kendo team.
It wasn't exactly the type of commitment that Ranma had been expecting, but it was an opening nonetheless. She dashed forward and slashed upward with her shinai. She got a clean hit, which knocked Mikoi's weapon spinning up through the air. Ranma transitioned her slash into a thrust and stopped with the point of it held a centimeter from Mikoi's helmet.
"The first thing you need to do is work on your focus and avoid distractions," Ranma said. She held out an open hand behind her, and Mikoi's flying weapon snapped into it. "The second thing you need to do is fix your grip."
A collective gasp went through the room.
"Incredible."
Ranma stepped back, tossed Mikoi's shinai towards her, and then turned to Rei. She asked, "Now will you tell me where I'm supposed to strike?"
5.
Ranma spent long hours in Lillian. Much of this time was spent going to all the different clubs and teams there. Even more time was spent answering questions from and having discussions with the various girls she encountered in the hallways and along the paths around the school. Her days were filled with demonstrating, participating, and, above all, talking. They started busy, and as the week progressed, they only became busier; she expected that that was a good thing.
She was in the process of walking from the greenhouse to the Rose Mansion when she was interrupted by something completely different than a hesitant girl who had some questions. A rustle to the side drew her attention, and a few seconds later, a boy emerged from the hedge there and onto the path.
He wore a dusty tunic and a spotted bandanna, and he carried an enormous backpack on his back. His gait was stable and steady, leaving no openings as he moved. All combined, it was clear that he was a martial artist on a training trip. How good he was, Ranma couldn't say, but he was at least past the basics.
He looked left and right. He then walked straight at Ranma and asked, "Where is Furinkan High School?"
"Huh?" Ranma asked. She looked behind her, in case he had been addressing somebody else. There was nobody there, though. Ranma pointed at herself and asked, "Me?"
"Yes, you," the boy said. "Where is Furinkan High School?"
"Furinkan High School?" Ranma asked. "Never heard of it."
"You have to know. It has to be around here somewhere," the boy said. He reached behind him and extracted a sheet of paper from his backpack. "This is Tokyo, isn't it?" He turned the page a quarter turn to the left. He then turned it another quarter turn.
"Yeah, this is Tokyo," Ranma said. She sprang over to stand next to the boy and looked over his shoulder. More accurately, she looked around his arm, considering how much taller he was than her; it was hard to be sure, but she thought he was somewhat taller than her male form.
The page was clearly a map, but Ranma didn't recognize it. She grabbed the boy's hands, which stiffened at her touch, to stop his third turning of the page. She then turned it herself such that the labels of the streets and buildings were correctly oriented.
"That it?" Ranma asked. She pointed at the labeled building in the center of the map.
"Y..yeah..." the boy said. It hadn't just been his hands. His entire body seemed to have gone rigid.
"No idea," Ranma said. She didn't recognize anything on the map. Then again, even if she had gone past that area, it would have been hard to notice; as practical as navigating by landmarks was, it did make it harder when trying to use a map.
"Wait, I know. Come on," Ranma said. She started walking forward again. She had been on her way to the Rose Mansion, and somebody there would be able to recognize where this school was.
She had only gone a few steps when she saw Eriko in the distance. She called out, "Rosa Foetida!"
Eriko stopped, looked around, spotted Ranma, and approached. Once they got close enough to talk without shouting, she said, "Gokigenyou."
"Gokigenyou," Ranma said. "Do you know where Furinkan High School is?"
"Furinkan High School?" Eriko asked. "I don't think so. Should I?"
"I don't know. We're trying to find it. Do you recognize this?" Ranma asked. She extracted the map from the boy's hands and handed it to Eriko.
Eriko looked down and said, "This looks familiar." She traced a finger across the paper. "Isn't this in Nerima? No, I'm sure of it. It says it right here."
"Nerima? I thought it was in Tokyo," the boy said.
"It is. Nerima is a special ward in Tokyo. It's a few kilometers northeast of here," Eriko said. She handed the map back to the boy.
"Then I am close. Soon. Thanks," the boy said. He took the map and shoved it into his backpack. He then ran off. If it had been an hour later, it would have made for a properly dramatic exit into the sunset. As it wasn't though, he just quickly disappeared into the distance.
"Who was that?" Eriko asked.
"I don't know. He just showed up looking for directions," Ranma said. Something struck her as odd about the boy, though. She thought about it more, looked up, and checked the position of the sun. She said, "Wait a second. Didn't he run west?"
Eriko got a puzzled look on her face. She said, "I don't know. Maybe?"
"It's the afternoon, and the sun's over there," Ranma said. "Yes, he definitely went west."
"Really? Strange," Eriko said. "Maybe what he's looking for isn't actually in Furinkan High School?"
"I guess that would make sense," Ranma said. She didn't put too much thought into it, though. She still had to meet with others in the Rose Mansion for further planning and coordination. There was a lot to do and too little time.
6.
"And then the judo team asked me to join them, too," Ranma told Sachiko as she poured her a cup of tea.
"Don't forget. The offer to have you join the kendo team is still open," Rei said from across the table.
"The dance club would like you to join as well," Youko said.
"And them, too. What do you think I should do?" Ranma asked. She put the kettle back on the side table, and then she took her own seat.
"That depends. What do you want to do?" Sachiko asked. She took a sip of tea.
"There is one of them I'm interested in," Ranma said. She reached over and took a roll of bread.
"Which one is that?" Sachiko asked.
"The cooking club," Ranma said. She bit into the yakisoba bread she had claimed.
Sei laughed and asked, "Why am I not surprised?"
Youko said, "I guess we'll need to reexamine their budget. I think we still have some of that reserve fund we've been keeping around."
"Do you think this is an emergency?" Sei asked.
"Do you think this is not an emergency?" Youko asked.
"I guess you're right," Sei said.
Youko raised her teacup to Sei and then took a sip.
Ranma disregarded the antics of the two third-year students and asked, "But what should I do about the others? I can't go around making them all angry."
"Consider this another learning opportunity. Turning people down gently is a very important skill to develop," Sachiko said.
"Okay, but how do I do that?" Ranma asked. Her declination to Genma had been performed with her fists and her feet. That didn't seem like the most appropriate technique to use with the various clubs and teams approaching her.
"The advice that I've been told is to think about what you feel and why you feel that way. Then explain yourself clearly to the other party. They won't know what you are thinking otherwise," Sachiko said.
Youko nodded.
"I know. Why don't you practice with me?" Rei asked. She stood up and walked around the table to stand next to Ranma. "Ranma-kun, have you given any thought on our offer to join the kendo team?"
Ranma thought about what Sachiko suggested. How did she feel? What were her reasons for not wanting to join the kendo team? How to express herself clearly?
"I have. I don't want to join the kendo team because I'm way better than all of you and it would be a waste of my time."
The room fell silent as everybody snapped over to stare at Ranma.
Sachiko's face turned pale.
Then Youko started giggling.
Sei, in contrast, was slapping her hand on the table in front of her and was outright laughing. Between gasps of breath, she said, "You two really are perfect for each other."
Sachiko coughed. She said, "Okay. That was a good first attempt, but maybe you shouldn't be quite as clear as that. Let's try that again, but maybe be a little less direct this time."
7.
Shimako raised her hand. The unusual action drew the attention of everybody in the room.
"Yes?" Youko asked.
"I have something important to say," Shimako said. Her voice was as shaky as her hand was.
Youko turned to look at Sei.
Sei shrugged at Youko and then turned to Shimako. She asked, "What is it?"
"Now that Yoshino-san has returned and everybody is here, I'm..." Shimako said, "... I wanted to say, I would like to run for the position of Rosa Gigantea next year."
Sei's eyes widened. She asked, "Is that so?"
Youko sent Sei a confused look, but she got nothing in return. She then sent a look at Eriko, who looked back, equally confused.
"Okay. I think we had all assumed that you were going to," Youko said.
"Shh..." Sei said. "Let her speak."
Youko sent Sei another confused look, but then she nodded to Shimako. She said, "Excuse me. Please go ahead."
Shimako remained silent for a few seconds with her eyes downcast. She then looked up and said, "The thing is, I've been keeping a secret." Everybody became much more focused on Shimako, and she seemed to wilt under the combined attention. She persevered through it and said, "And I need to tell you all now. If Ranma-san passes his referendum, it will feel cheapened, and if Ranma-san fails, then... then I don't know if I will be able to."
The room fell silent, waiting for Shimako to gather her courage.
"The truth is..." Shimako faltered. She gathered herself and started over. "The truth is... my father is the chief priest of Shouguu Temple!"
The room fell silent again.
Shimako seemed to have lost her nerve, so Ranma tried to help prompt her to continue. She asked, "And?"
Everybody turned to stare at Ranma, which was a signal she was starting to associate with her having done something wrong. What that was in this case, though, she had no idea.
"And what?" Shimako asked.
"And what's this big secret then?" Ranma asked.
"Shouguu Temple is one of the largest Buddhist temple in all of Tokyo," Sachiko said.
Ranma still didn't follow. She asked, "So what?"
"It means my father's the chief priest of a major Buddhist temple," Shimako said.
It slowly dawned on Ranma that that statement had in fact been the entirety of Shimako's confession. "That's the big secret? That's stupid!"
"Ranma!" Sachiko exclaimed.
"But it's true! Who cares what Shimako-san's parents are?" Ranma asked. She certainly didn't want to be judged based on Genma.
"As Ranma-kun has so rudely..." Youko sent a sharp glare at Ranma, "... put it, why did you think that was important?"
Shimako looked down to at the table in front of her. She said, "This is a Catholic school, and... and my father is a major priest of Buddhism."
"Then let me officially tell you that that isn't important. Do you know what my parents are? Or what I am?" Youko asked. "There's no requirement that everybody in Lillian be Catholic, and even if there were, you're still the most devout one of all of us here."
"Oh," Shimako said in a small voice.
"Congratulations," Sei said. "Good job."
Shimako visibly relaxed, as if a great weight had sloughed off of her shoulders.
Youko turned to Eriko and said, "So now I believe that it is Rosa Foetida's turn."
"My turn for what?" Eriko asked.
"Rosa Chinensis en bouton petite soeur is really a boy. Rosa Gigantea en bouton's father is the chief priest of a major Buddhist temple. Naturally, Rosa Foetida must also have some big secret to complete the pattern," Youko said.
"Oh, I see," Eriko said. She put her hand to her chin and looked upward. "Well... I have a boyfriend. Does that count?"
"You do?" several girls exclaimed.
"Who is it?" Sei asked.
"What does he look like?" Youko asked.
"Where did you meet him?" Sachiko asked.
"What's he like?" Rei asked.
"Just kidding!" Eriko exclaimed.
It was like the room deflated.
Sei raised her hand. She said, "Rosa Gigantea would like to go on record protesting Rosa Foetida's actions."
Youko raised her hand as well. She said, "Rosa Chinensis seconds that protest."
Eriko clapped her hands together and quickly bowed her head to everybody. "Sorry, sorry. I really don't have a big secret like that. Maybe we have the pattern all wrong. It could be that it's really the three first-year students." She turned to Yoshino. "How about you, Yoshino-chan? Do you have some big secret you should share with us?"
Yoshino startled. She paused for a moment and then said, "I wasn't planning on saying this until later, but I suppose I could tell you all about my heart now."
"That's hardly a secret. Everybody already knows about your heart condition," Rei said.
"Not that. I'm going to be getting surgery for it this Sunday," Yoshino said. She tapped her chest.
"Really? Are you joking?" Eriko asked.
"No. I'm really going to have heart surgery this Sunday," Yoshino said.
"You are?!" Rei's exclamation was louder than all the other shouts combined.
8.
Yoshino had been correct. Rei was sulking. That meant there was only one thing to do. Ranma slashed out with the shinai in her hands.
The bamboo slats smacked into Rei's side with a satisfying clatter.
"Oww!" Rei turned around, her morose apathy temporarily overcome by the shock from being attacked. "What was that for?"
"Special training. How are you supposed to win the tournament like that?" Ranma asked. She flipped the shinai to rest on her shoulder and adopted a more casual stance.
"What do you care about that?" Rei asked.
"Go ask Yoshino-san. She's the one who sent me to check on you," Ranma said. "Good thing she did, too. You're totally off guard."
"Yoshino? But she hates me," Rei said. She got a distant, even dour, look on her face. She was clearly going out of things again. Ranma quickly redressed that issue.
"Oww!"
"How could you possibly think that?" Ranma asked.
"Of course she hates me. Why else would she schedule her surgery on the same day as my tournament," Rei said.
"You're..." Ranma started saying, but then she stopped herself. Sachiko and the others had told her that being so direct was rude. She needed to be more indirect. "That's really stupid." That sounded better. "You've got to know Yoshino-san better than that. I've only known her for a few weeks, and I know her better than that." True, Ranma mainly knew because Yoshino had told her directly, but that didn't change the fact that she did know.
"If you're such an expert, then you tell me. Why did she schedule her surgery on that day? Why is she avoiding me?" Rei asked.
"She's doing it for you. She wants to get stronger for you," Ranma said.
Rei said, "But she doesn't need to. I'll always be there to.. Oww!"
"This isn't about you. This is about her. She doesn't want to be depending on you so much. Sometimes a man's got to be a man, even if she's really a girl," Ranma said.
"That doesn't make any sense," Rei said.
"I can't believe you were voted Mr. Lillian. Haven't you read any of those books of hers?" Ranma asked.
"Not really," Rei said.
"Then let me put it plainly for you. Yoshino-san wants to be strong so she can be your partner, but how can she do that if you're always there protecting her? She scheduled her surgery that day to prove that she can do this on her own. So you shouldn't be worried about the surgery. What you should be worried about is how you're going to face her after it. What do you think will happen when you tell her that you lost because of her? So pull yourself together!" Ranma swung again, but Rei blocked it with her own shinai. She blocked Ranma's follow-up swing as well. "There we go. That's better."
"Oww!"
"But don't let down your guard," Ranma said.
9.
In the distance, there was a boy wearing a spotted bandanna, a dusty tunic, and an enormous backpack. He was staring at a piece of paper in his hands.
"Isn't that that boy we saw a few days ago?" Ranma asked.
"I think so," Eriko said.
"Who is this?" Youko asked.
"Some boy Ranma-kun was talking to a few days ago. He was asking for directions somewhere," Eriko said.
"Furinkan High School," Ranma said.
"That sounds right. I just remember that it was someplace in Nerima," Eriko said. "I wonder what he's doing back here again."
The boy looked in their direction and then approached. When he got close, he asked, "Where is the special ward?"
"What special ward?" Youko asked.
"The special ward," the lost boy said. "I'm looking for Furinkan High School."
"Isn't that the same place you were looking for last time?" Eriko asked
"Yeah."
"Okay. It's called 'Nerima,' not 'the special ward,' and it's still northeast of here, about 5 or 10 kilometers away," Ranma said.
"Thanks," the lost boy said. He turned left, then right, then turned back to Ranma. He blushed and asked, "Which way is northeast?"
"That way," Ranma said. She pointed.
"Thanks," the lost boy said. He started running in the indicated direction.
"What do you think that's all about?" Eriko asked.
"I don't know. At least he's going the right way this time," Ranma said.
A loud series of cracks caused everybody to turn and look. In the distance, straight in the direction the lost boy had run, a human-sized hole was now visible in the hedge there. The shattered remnants of a fallen tree was visible on the ground beyond it.
"Did he just do that?" Eriko asked. She stared at the hole.
"I didn't see," Ranma said.
"The environmental care committee may need to request some extra funds to fix that," Shimako said. She was also staring at the hole.
Youko pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes. She said, "Have Mikako-san make a formal request, and we'll figure something out."
10.
Ranma had always thought that the sweet taste of victory was best feeling in the world. She had been wrong.
"Congratulations!"
Several ribbons decorated the walls and there was a large cake on the conference room table. It was like the welcoming ceremony all over again, only this time, it was for "Ranma Saotome" rather than "Ranko Sugita." The smile on Ranma's face was so big that her cheeks hurt.
"You'd better be careful, or Ranma-kun's going to run for Rosa Chinensis next year and take it away from you," Eriko said to Sachiko.
"Then what would we call Sachiko? Rosa Chinensis grande soeur?" Youko asked.
"Nah. I wouldn't do that," Ranma said. She was honestly curious if she could surpass Sachiko's skill in Martial Arts Socializing. She was fairly sure she could, if she spent the next few months in focused training, but she would never do that to Sachiko.
"I guess you're safe for now," Eriko said to Sachiko.
"Come on. Let's cut the cake," Ranma said.
A laugh went around the room.
Sachiko handed Ranma a knife and said, "You do the honors."
Ranma distributed some cake to everybody else before she cut a slice triple the size of the others for herself. That also drew a laugh as she heaped it onto her plate.
After everybody had been served and had taken a seat, Youko said, "We do have a serious piece of business to discuss today." She sliced off a forkful of cake as she spoke.
"What's that?" Sei asked. She then took a bite of her own cake.
"Hanadera is still not talking to us. We need to figure out what to do about them," Youko said.
"What can we do? Ranma-kun even sent that apology letter and everything," Eriko said. She winced and then slid her plate of cake away from her.
"Maybe we need to do something bigger. What if we invite them to a banquet, like as a peace offering?" Youko asked.
"What if they turn us down? Then our situation would be even worse than now," Sei said.
There were some general nods of agreement from around the room.
"Nah, you're going about this all wrong," Ranma said. Everybody turned to look at her. "If you want Kashiwagi-san to make up with us, it's easy."
"Oh? How?" Youko asked.
"I'll just send him a challenge letter. That'll fix everything right up," Ranma said.
"What?" Youko asked.
"Yeah. We'll have a duel. They'll send a champion. I'll go as Lillian's champion. We'll have a big fight, and then everything will back to normal. It works every time," Ranma said, waving her hand dismissively. She had gone through the process enough times that it was practically routine.
"What?" Eriko asked.
"I went to tons of different schools back when I was traveling. It was always the same: get bullied for a while, and eventually get into a big fight with the boss of the school. Then bam! We're friends. Or eternal rivals. Hmm..." Ranma had never figured out what determined which outcome occurred. She shrugged. "Eh... either way, they won't be ignoring us anymore."
"What?" Sei asked.
"Those schools of yours," Sachiko said. She shook her head.
"That sounds like a terrible idea," Youko said.
"It does, but the real question is, 'Do we have any better ones?'" Sei asked
11.
Much like the previous times Ranma had entered, all the girls in the kitchen turned their attention to her as she walked in.
"Ranma-san, welcome back," Mone said.
"Gokigenyou," Ranma said. She took an extra apron hanging on a wall and put it on. "Is the offer to join the cooking club still open? I want to join."
"Wonderful. That's great to hear. We'd love to have you." Satomi looked to the side and tapped her fingers together in front of her. Her speaking slowed down and grew more quiet. "The thing is... that is to say... traditionally new members are tested... by having them cook something for the club first." She looked back at Ranma and quickly added, "But you don't need to do that right now! You can think up something to prepare for next time. Or whenever you want."
"A challenge, you say?" Ranma asked, a grin coming to her face. She let the water in the sink faucet run for a few seconds to flush out any hot water remaining in the pipes. "I'm sure I can handle it now. What are the rules? What's the secret ingredient? What's the handicap?" Ranma plunged her hands into the cold stream to wash them.
Satomi looked confused. She said, "Uhh... nothing. Just cook whatever you want."
"Anything goes, you say?" Ranma asked, her grin growing larger. As she wiped her hands dry, she surveyed the area: chicken, tofu, an assortment of vegetables, a decent spice rack. There were definitely things to work with. She picked up a knife and almost started spinning it idly in her hands before she remembered the reaction the Yamayurikai had had to that and restrained herself.
Satomi gave a hesitant nod.
"Sounds easy enough," Ranma said. She walked over to one of the cutting boards, picked up the tomatoes sitting there, and tossed them high into the air.
12.
It was the first time Ranma was returning to the Ogasawara mansion on her own.
As she had with Sachiko before, she made her way to the bus stop near the front entrance of Lillian. There were six girls waiting there, and Ranma joined them at the end of the queue.
"Gokigenyou."
"Gokigenyou."
As she waited there, the thought occurred to her that she absolutely could go home that way. She had taken the trip with Sachiko enough times that she knew how it went. She could wait for the bus to arrive. And then wait for all the red lights while the bus made its way to the train station. And then wait for all the other stops the bus made. And then wait for the train to arrive at the train station. And then wait for all the stops as the train went on its route. And then wait for the next bus to arrive at the destination train station. And then wait for all the red lights while that bus made its way to the stop near the Ogasawara mansion. And then wait for all the other stops that bus made on its way to that destination stop.
Alternatively, she could save a lot time by just going to the Ogasawara mansion directly. It would be even better than that. The run would serve as a good warm-up as well, saving even more time.
"Gokigenyou." Ranma stepped out of the queue and started running.
She made her way through the paths and the streets in the direction of the Ogasawara mansion. Any time she saw a fence, guardrail, or anything else elevated, she hopped onto it and ran along it for as long as she could. She dodged into and through the crowds with the agility honed by countless escapes from pursuing officers in train stations.
As Ranma got closer to the Ogasawara mansion, she started to recognize various landmarks all around her. There was the convenience store, and the park, and the tall building, and Sachiko.
"Onee-sama, gokigenyou," Ranma said. She slowed down to a walk and joined Sachiko.
Sachiko startled and looked around. She said, "Gokigenyou. Where did you come from?"
"Lillian," Ranma said.
"You took a taxi?" Sachiko asked.
"No. I ran here," Ranma said.
"You ran here? All the way from Lillian?" Sachiko asked.
"Yeah. I figured it'd be a good warm-up. Faster, too," Ranma said. She felt the pleasant hum of energy coursing through her. She was all ready for some serious training.
"But..." Sachiko said. She floundered. "You shouldn't do that."
"Why not?" Ranma asked.
"It's dangerous... or rather, you'll get your uniform all sweaty..." Sachiko took a closer look at Ranma, who wasn't sweating, "... or rather, you'll stick Lillian students with the label of 'always running around everywhere in the city.'"
"And that's bad?" Ranma asked.
"Yes. At least change your clothes before you do that," Sachiko said.
"Uhh... okay," Ranma said. Changing clothes before training wasn't that unusual, even if she never really understood the point of it.
13.
"What do you think about France?" Tooru asked Ranma over dinner.
"France? I don't know. I haven't really thought about it. Why do you ask?" Ranma asked. It was like the Atlantic Ocean or the Great Barrier Reef: it was there, and it was important in an abstract way, but it was so distant and removed that it didn't warrant any real thought. It just wasn't relevant to his life in any meaningful way.
"I have some business there, and my wife wants to go visiting some people. I thought we'd make it a family trip," Tooru said.
"That sounds like it could be interesting," Ranma said. It wasn't as if he had anything else in particular to do. Well, he did have his training, but he could do that anywhere.
Upon further reflection of that last thought, though, Ranma did start to get excited at the prospect of visiting France. China had been full of obscure martial arts techniques, and that was just across the Sea of Japan. France was continents away. They had to have new and interesting martial arts there. He said, "No, that sounds like it could be really good. When's the trip?"
"During the upcoming after-exam break in school. Do you still have your passport?" Tooru asked.
"Passport? What's that?" Ranma asked.
"Your passport. The thing you used to travel to China," Tooru said.
"We didn't use anything to travel to China. We just swam there," Ranma said. It had taken days for his pack to dry out after the trip.
"You swam across the Sea of Japan?" Sayako asked.
"Yeah," Ranma said. "How else would you get there?"
Tooru said, "I guess we'll can try to apply for a replacement one or something. That can't be too uncommon for minors."
14.
Ranma approached the center of the field.
Behind her stood Sachiko, Yoshino, Youko, and Rei. Most of them looked worried and skeptical. Yoshino looked excited, and she held her hands clenched into fists in front of her.
It was at times like this that Ranma realized exactly how short she was in her female form. A mountain of a boy stepped forward to meet her. He towered over her by a half meter. He wore a dingy keikogi, and muscles could be seen bulging out through its numerous tears.
For her part, Ranma was dressed in a policewoman's uniform. She didn't foresee any real challenge in this duel, and limiting herself to the formal forms of Martial Arts Traffic Directing made for a good handicap; in the worst case, she could always revert to the more pragmatic Anything Goes fighting style if she needed to. There had been an incidental and unexpected benefit to doing this as well. Now that she was actually wearing a pencil skirt, the stances and footwork of the forms finally made sense to her.
The mountainous boy looked over behind him, to where Kashiwagi was standing with two other boys. Most of them looked on with a mixture of incredulity, disdain, and dismissal. Kashiwagi looked eager for revenge.
"Her? This little girl?" the mountainous boy shouted out to the group standing behind him, pointing at Ranma.
"Yes! Her!" Kashiwagi shouted back.
The mountainous boy turned back to Ranma, a look of confusion on his face.
Ranma continued to stand in a casual-looking but ready martial arts stance. Tradition stated introductions should be said at the start of a duel, but it wouldn't be the first time somebody had tried to steal an advantage of a sneak attack. A lifetime training with Genma had told her she should always be ready for the unexpected, even if she didn't appear to be.
The mountainous boy said, "I am Taito Ookubo, third dan... No, sorry, I need to ask. Why are you dressed like a police officer?"
Ranma maintained her guard in case this was a distraction. She said, "A friend of mine doesn't believe Martial Arts Traffic Directing is an actual form of martial arts. I thought this would be a good chance to demonstrate."
"Martial Arts Traffic Directing? Are you kidding me?" Ookubo asked. His look of confusion remained, but it was joined with equal measures of disbelief and disgust.
"Not at all. I guess I get to give you a demonstration today as well," Ranma said with a smirk. She never understood why people were so dismissive of things like Martial Arts Crocheting and Martial Arts Tax Accounting. That didn't prevent her from enjoying the moment of shocking admiration from the spectators when they saw them in action, or even better, the moment of despair from her opponents when they realized they were about to be defeated by them. A judo throw was fun enough, but literally tying them up with red tape was even more satisfying.
Ookubo turned back around to Kashiwagi and shouted out again, "Her? Really? Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure! Get her!" Kashiwagi shouted back.
Ookubo turned back to Ranma once again. Resignation now dominated his bearing. It filled Ranma with delicious anticipation. Underestimating an opponent was always a critical mistake, and Ranma was eager to teach Ookubo the folly of his ways.
"Like I was saying, I am Taito Ookubo, third dan in karate, first dan in jiujutsu, and captain of the Hanadera's Academy for Boys karate club. Nothing personal," Ookubo dropped into a traditional karate stance, "but apparently I got to beat you up."
"I am Ranma Saotome of the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts, Rosa Chinensis en bouton petite soeur of Lillian Private Girls' School." Ranma transitioned from her casual ready stance into one of the stances of Martial Arts Traffic Directing: feet together and slightly bent, one arm held forward with hand raised and palm facing towards Ookubo, and whistle held in between her teeth.
She then turned her outstretched hand over, gave a beckoning motion, and blew her whistle.
15.
Ranma had to fight against her ribs, which protested her temerity for wanting to stand up straight. Still, she did so. It would do no good to show weakness while the Hanadera students were still in view.
In the distance, Kashiwagi and the other boys were dragging Ookubo away. His feet were still entangled with Ranma's whistle, several scraps of paper could be seen sticking out of his hair, and the light dusting of chalk which covered Ookubo left clear marks on the other boys' clothing.
"So... what exactly was that?" Youko asked.
"I told you. Martial Arts Traffic Directing. The basics at least. I'd need an paint ball gun for the intermediate forms," Ranma said.
One of the boys turned to glance at Ranma. Ranma smiled and waved back at him.
"That was incredible," Yoshino said. Her hands were flailing around in a poor imitation of the techniques of Martial Arts Traffic Directing.
In truth, the fight had gone terribly. Ranma hadn't realized exactly how much of an effect her shorter arms and legs had. Against a more serious opponent, it could have been decisive. She decided she would need to spend some serious time familiarizing herself with her female form as soon as she could.
Even so, Ranma felt good. She had handily won, even if what should have been a flawless victory had instead been a painful win. She had also earned either a friend or an eternal rival in Hanadera. She wasn't sure which prospect excited her more. No matter which outcome, it would be great. Having a friend in the school would be good if anything happened in the future, and having an eternal rival was great for her martial arts.
"Rei-chan?" Youko asked.
"It's really real..." Rei said. "That's... crazy..."
Another one of the boys cast a glance at Ranma. Ranma smiled and waved back to him as well. She then turned to Yoshino and said, "See? Defense and counterattack."
"That's only one example!"
16.
"I don't understand it. Hanadera's talking to us again and everything's back to normal. What's going on?" Youko asked.
"It's like I told you. We have a fight, I beat their champion, and problem solved," Ranma said. She felt good for having successfully fixed everything.
"But how? Why?" Sei asked.
"Hmm..." Ranma said. She had never really analyzed how it worked before. It just sort of happened.
She tried to put her intuition into words.
"Well, I fought Ookubo-san and beat him, right? So now Kashiwagi-san's got to be feeling better about himself. I mean, sure, he got beat, but Ookubo-san was beat, too, and Ookubo-san's way stronger than him, so what hope did he ever have? So now that Kashiwagi-san's feeling better about things, he's not going to cause any more trouble. And since he's the top guy in the school, everybody else follows his lead."
Ranma nodded to herself.
"But what would have happened if you had lost to Ookubo-san?" Youko asked.
"Lose? To him? Never," Ranma said. Ookubo was certainly a proficient martial artist, but proficiency was a very low bar that Ranma had surpassed years ago. The fight had gone as poorly as it possibly could have, short of some unexpected outside interference, and she had still handily won.
"But what if you had?" Rei asked.
"Never gonna happen," Ranma said.
"What if he had, I don't know, eaten some special soba to make him super strong, or gotten some magical bird which made unbeatable, or something else like that?" Yoshino asked.
Ranma stopped to think about that. If Ookubo had found some kind of secret artifact or special weapon, then she supposed he could theoretically have beaten her. She thought about what she'd do if that had actually happened.
"In that case, I'd have to dedicate my every spare moment training to get better than him. Once I thought I was good enough, I'd challenge him to a rematch and beat him," Ranma said. She nodded again.
"What would have happened between Lillian and Hanadera?" Shimako asked.
"Hmm... in that case, I think Kashiwagi-san would feel really good about getting revenge on me, and he'd stop it with the silent treatment. He'd probably gloat at me, but that would just be between him and me. Well, maybe Onee-sama, too. I guess Rosa Chinensis was also part of that, depending on how he felt. The rest of you would have been good, though, so as long as Rosa Foetida or Rosa Gigantea was the one doing the talking to them, it would have been fine. So no matter what happened in the fight, everything would be all worked out between our two schools. See? Just send them a challenge letter, and everything's fixed right up. Easy."
"Wait," Sachiko said. "Does that mean that Ookubo-san is currently dedicating his every spare moment training to beat you?"
"I hope so," Ranma said. She grinned.
Sachiko looked around the table. She said, "Boys are weird."
A few others nodded in agreement.
"Where on earth am I now?" The shout was loud enough to clearly penetrate the walls of the Rose Mansion.
"Speaking of weird boys, he's back," Sei said.
"Who's that?" Sachiko asked.
"Some strange boy who keeps showing up and asking for directions," Youko said.
"I'll get him," Ranma said. She grabbed one last forkful of cake before standing up and exiting the Rose Mansion into the cold afternoon air. She looked around for the lost boy, but she didn't see him anywhere. From the window of the conference room, though, she saw the other members of the Yamayurikai pointing. Ranma followed their directions.
The lost boy looked the same as always. When he caught sight of Ranma, he said, "H..h..hello."
"Gokigenyou," Ranma said. "Furinkan High School again?"
The lost boy blushed. He said, "Y..yeah. Northwest?"
"Northeast," Ranma said.
"Thanks," the lost boy said. "Uhh..."
"That way," Ranma said. She pointed. She then saw a problem. "No wait."
She walked over and grabbed him by the arm. The lost boy's whole body went stiff. She pulled him a few meters to the side such that there wasn't a hedge directly in front of him. There was no reason to give the environmental care committee any more work than they already had.
"Now. That way," Ranma said. She pointed.
"T..thanks," the lost boy said. He then started walking. He weaved left and right as he went.
17.
The hospital was a wooden structure which had probably been built hundreds of years ago. The only thing which kept it from being outright dilapidated was the obvious care and attention which had been put into its maintenance. Even so, it was a borderline case. The patches of discoloration in the walls showed where numerous holes had been repaired.
"Is this really the place?" Yoshino asked. Ever since recovering from her surgery, she had been entirely irrepressible. If she had started back when she was two-years old, she would have been an excellent rival.
"Looks about right to me," Ranma said. She walked past the open gate towards the building.
"Do you think Martial Arts Nursing is really real?" Yoshino asked.
"Yeah. Why wouldn't it be?" Ranma asked.
"It sounds kind of silly to me, like a bunch of cute girls running around in white minidresses handing out lollipops or something," Yoshino said.
"I hope so, or better, boys running around like that, too," Ranma said.
"What? Why?" Yoshino asked.
"The more specialized a martial art is, the stronger it is in that specialty," Ranma said. That frequently meant that it also had the crippling weakness of being overly specialized, but considering she was adopting techniques and not schools, that was perfectly acceptable. Martial Arts Sandcastle Building might be entirely useless in almost every situation, but if she were ever buried in a sandpit, she had the perfect technique to use.
"I see," Yoshino said. "So what do we do now?"
"We get the attention of the master of this school," Ranma said. She stopped and took a deep breath. "Hey! Who's the master of this place? Show yourself!"
Yoshino sent a questioning look to Ranma.
"We got to get their attention somehow."
"Okay," Yoshino said. She also took a deep breath. "Come on out, you coward!"
"Coward?" Ranma asked.
Yoshino shrugged to Ranma. Ranma shrugged back.
"Who're you calling a coward?" A large man wearing green scrubs with a stethoscope around his neck shoved his way out the door.
"Sorry, sorry," Yoshino said. She quickly bowed to the man.
"Is this the place for Martial Arts Nursing?" Ranma asked.
"Yeah," the man said. He moved his head in what could generously have been interpreted as a nod. "What of it?"
"I want you to show me. Uhh... show us," Ranma said.
"Is this some kind of joke? Don't waste my time," the man said. He turned around.
This was clearly a test. Masters were busy, and they hated wasting their time. This was normally when Genma would invent some convoluted story about why the master should demonstrate his techniques to them. Ranma wasn't willing to go that route, though. She needed to do something else to convince the man she was serious.
She looked around for inspiration and saw a potential idea. With a shout, she punched down with her fist, shattering the large rock beside her.
That caused the man to stop and turn around. He cast an evaluating glance over at Ranma and at the rubble she had created. He asked, "Is that supposed to impress me?"
Ranma reached down, picked up one of the sharp rock fragments, and slowly dragged it across her forearm. A bright trail of crimson streamed behind it.
Yoshino gasped. She exclaimed, "What are you doing? Are you crazy?"
Ranma disregarded Yoshino and directed the full weight of her challenge at the man. She said, "Oh no. I seem to have been cut. Whatever shall I do? If only there were somebody here who could help me somehow."
The man stared hard at Ranma. He grunted and flung his hand forward. A bandage flew out through the air and wrapped itself around Ranma's arm.
"Fine, kid. I guess I can show you some basics. Bring your friend along, too, if you want." He spat to the side and then barged back through the door of the hospital.
Ranma tapped at the bandage around her arm. It was secure, firm, and it completely covered her gash. She held it up to show Yoshino. "Take a look at this. Do you think that's a basic technique or an advanced one?"
Yoshino looked back with wide eyes. She asked, "Is it always like this?"
"Nah, it's usually harder," Ranma said. "Come on. Let's go check it out."
18.
Ranma ran around the small grove. She only had a few seconds to find a hiding place, and things did not look good for her. The scattering of well-tended trees around her were very scenic, but they did little to block any sight lines.
As she had no better ideas, Ranma decided that this was as good a time as any to try out those Umisenken techniques that Genma had demonstrated on that fateful night of the burglary. Irrespective of their origin, they were certainly very powerful, and she thought she had finally figured them out well enough to use in a non-training situation.
She adopted the slouching, ghost-like position of the initial form as she calmed herself. Genma had said that purging emotions was critical: act without intention, blend in with the surroundings, be like a tree in the forest.
Ranma slid to the side and off of the path.
Ookubo turned the corner. His eyes passed right over her, but he didn't stop. He kept running, apparently ignorant of the fact that Ranma was less than two meters away.
Ranma's practice had paid off. The warm satisfaction of accomplishment filled her.
"There you are!"
Ranma startled and looked behind her. Ookubo had turned around and was now running back at her.
"Eep!" Apparently she still needed more practice. She sprinted away, doubling back the way they had come.
As she ran, to her left across the field, Ranma saw Sachiko. She veered in her direction. "Onee-sama! Onee-sama! What should I do?"
"About what?" Sachiko asked.
"Ookubo-san," Ranma said.
"I don't know. Maybe you can send a challenge letter?" Sachiko asked.
"That's what got me into this mess in the first place!" Ranma shouted.
"Ranma-sama! Arrest me!" Ookubo shouted.
"Eep!" Ranma sprinted away and shouted behind her. "I told you, I'm a guy!"
"I don't care! I've been naughty! Punish me!" Ookubo shouted.
19.
Ranma spent a great deal of time in the ballroom practicing her martial arts. She was there again this evening, but this time it was special training.
She sat in a cross-legged position with a two stacks of textbooks beside her. She was currently holding her history book in front of her and was studying it intently.
Normally she wasn't that concerned about her grades. She did decently well, especially considering her erratic academic career. Books were one of the few forms of portable entertainment that could be taken while traveling in the wilderness, so she spent a fair amount of time reading, anyway. Plus the weight of the things helped with her endurance training.
This was not a normal situation, though. It was of vital importance that she pass all of her upcoming exams.
It was a simple equation. Bad exam results equaled special training in remediation classes, equaled no break after exams, equaled no trip to France, equaled no exploration of the martial arts of the exotic west.
Ranma even had a new passport which promised her that she would be able to visit the land of rapier, boxing, glaive, wrestling, falchion, and who knew what else, if only she could get there.
That called for special measures. For the next few weeks, she would need to re-prioritize, taking hours away from her martial arts practice and instead allocating them to academic practice.
Sachiko looked into the ballroom and said, "You're quiet in here tonight. What are you doing?"
"Special training. Exams are coming up soon," Ranma said. She lifted her book so Sachiko could better see it.
Sachiko's eyes widened in surprise and she more fully walked into the ballroom. She asked, "Why are you sitting on your head?"
"Regular training," Ranma said. Just because she was studying was no reason for her to not be getting in some strength, balance, and endurance training as well.
20.
The eternally lost boy with the bandanna and the dusty tunic stared at the compass in his hands. He said, "This says it's that way." He pointed straight at Ranma.
"It does?" Ranma asked.
"Yeah. Here," the eternally lost boy said. He handed the compass over.
Ranma took it and immediately saw that something was wrong with it. The compass was pointing at her, and she was not facing south. She took a closer look and saw the problem.
"It's broken," Ranma said.
"What do you mean?" the eternally lost boy asked.
"The needle came off the point. It's stuck. See? If I turn, it keeps pointing at me," Ranma said. She turned left and right to demonstrate.
"That guy told me that it's supposed to always point in the same direction," the eternally lost boy said.
Ranma tossed the compass back and said, "That should be in the same direction on the Earth, not on itself. What's the point of a compass which doesn't point north?"
The eternally lost boy growled and crushed the compass in his hands. Between that and his crashing through that hedge, it made Ranma wonder exactly how strong he was. He could definitely be interesting to fight in a duel.
"You said it's that way?" the eternally lost boy asked. He pointed north.
"More like that way," Ranma said. She grabbed his arm, and his whole body stiffened at her touch. She turned him in the appropriate direction.
"T..t..thanks," the eternally lost boy said. He walked forward, meandering to the left and right as he moved.
Ranma didn't understand why the eternally lost boy found it so difficult to locate Furinkan High School. Nerima was just a few kilometers away, and once he got there, he had his map. Maybe one of these days when she had some spare time, she would just lead him there directly. Including the time to change into her tracksuit first, she could be there and back in under an hour.
She was taken out of her thoughts when the others walked forward to join her. Eriko asked, "You do know that he has a crush on you, right?"
"Who does?" Ranma asked. The only crush she knew of was Ookubo, and she didn't know how Eriko could think she didn't know about him already. By this point, she didn't know how anybody in Lillian could not know that Ookubo had a crush on her.
"That cute boy you were just talking to," Eriko said.
"He does?" Ranma asked.
"He does?" Sachiko asked.
"That sounds right to me," Rei said.
A pit of worry hit Ranma's stomach. She looked back and forth between Eriko and Rei. "Why do you say that?"
"He keeps showing up here and 'asking you for directions,'" Eriko said.
"You don't think he's just lost?" Ranma asked. There was a note of hopeful pleading in her question.
"No way. It's been weeks. He must have found Furinkan High School by now, if he was really looking for it," Eriko said.
"I'm sure he's just trying to get your attention, hoping that you'll notice him," Rei said.
"Is that how it works?" Sachiko asked.
"It can, sometimes," Youko said. "It does sound like a reasonable explanation. Nobody is that lost, and it's hard to imagine somebody who really is lost managing to stumble across Ranma-kun so frequently."
"Oh," Sachiko said.
The pit of worry in Ranma's stomach ballooned into outright dread. She had always just assumed that the boy's sense of direction really was that bad. If it was all a ruse, though, then she didn't know what she would do.
"But he doesn't even know anything about me!" Ranma shouted desperately. She already had one unwanted suitor. She absolutely did not want a second one.
"I'm sure that doesn't matter. He's probably just thinking how cute you are," Sei said. "He must be trying to get up the nerve to introduce himself. Maybe ask you out on a date."
"He's going to be in for such a surprise when he finds out you're a boy," Eriko said. She sounded positively giddy.
"That might not matter that much. Just think of Ookubo-san," Sei said. Her voice lowered in pitch and took on the breathy quality of a mock yell. "Ranma-sama, punish me!"
"That's it!" Ranma stomped her foot down and pivoted to face Yoshino. "Next time he shows up, you deal with him!"
"Ookubo-san or that boy?" Yoshino asked.
"Both!"
21.
Ranma held the folded stack of papers in her hands. They held the final verdict, and she was worried. The exams had been much harder than the previous schools she had attended, and she wasn't at all confident with how they had turned out. She needed to pass each and every one of them or her hopes of France were dashed.
She mentally prepared herself for the worst and then unfolded the stack. The sight of the circled 72 on the top of the first page was a promising start. The next number was a 64, then an 80, then a 61, and so forth. She could feel the relief surging through her. She had passed.
They weren't the best grades ever. They were probably average, maybe. She would need to do better next time. As Sachiko had said, the Yamayurikai were supposed to be role models for everybody else to follow. Besides, Ranma hated being on the losing end of anything. That would be a challenge for another time, though. For the moment, she had definitely passed. She did not need special training, and she would be able to go on the trip to France.
Everything was good. Maybe.
Ranma looked over at Yoshino, another stab of worry hitting her. Yoshino looked back, reflecting Ranma's gaze. They made eye contact.
Ranma gave a hesitant nod. Yoshino gave a hesitant nod back. Ranma smiled and nodded more decisively. Yoshino did likewise.
Everything was good.
22.
France was even better than Ranma's grandest imaginings.
The food had come as a complete surprise. It was superb. Sayako's grande soeur, who was an absolute delight in any case, had gone so far as to help translate some of the recipes in the cookbooks Ranma had bought into Japanese. The upcoming cooking club meetings back in Japan were sure to be extra exciting.
And there were the martial arts. So many martial arts. Some Ranma had only heard myths and legends about, and some Ranma had never even heard about before.
"Onee-sama, look over there," Ranma said.
The building's sign was written in French, as could be expected, but this one was different. It had a Japanese subscript which clearly read, "Martial Arts Dining."
"Do you want to take a look?" Sachiko asked.
"Yeah," Ranma said. It was difficult to imagine anything more perfect than food combined with martial arts.
They had only just eaten lunch, but the heady smells emerging from the building upon opening the door still caused Ranma to start salivating.
"Bonjour," a man at the front desk said.
"Gokigenyou," Ranma said.
"Welcome. Come in," the man said in proficient, if accented, Japanese. "Are you, that is to say, interested in the Martial Arts Dining?"
"Yeah," Ranma said. "What is it?"
Sachiko stepped past Ranma and picked up a pamphlet written in Japanese on the desk.
The man said, "This is the, so you say, 'La Belle School of Martial Arts.'"
23.
Ranma levered the sandwich up and around. She maneuvered it high enough such that she was able to clamp it with her teeth. Once it was secure, it was an easy matter to tilt her head upwards and let gravity pull the sandwich into her mouth.
"That's considered elegant?" Eriko asked.
"That's what they said," Sachiko said.
"How is that at all elegant?" Sei asked.
Ranma had her mouth full so she couldn't directly answer. She instead held both of her hands open in front of her and shook them.
"They said you aren't allowed to use your hands. That's the pinnacle of elegant eating, according to them," Sachiko said.
"Westerners are weird," Sei said.
"I think it's just them," Sachiko said. "Nobody else in France ate like that."
"That's Martial Arts Dining?" Yoshino asked. "That's really silly."
Ranma finished swallowing her sandwich. She asked, "What do you mean?"
"I mean how is that a martial art? What are you supposed to do with it?" Yoshino asked.
"Everything's useful somehow," Ranma said. It was one of the core tenants of the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts. There was a situation for every technique. And even if that situation never occurred, there was still value to be had in the preparation and training needed to learn it.
"How could that be useful?" Shimako asked.
"Like..." Ranma looked up in thought. "... like what if somebody kidnaps me and ties up my hands and feet, but leaves a key next to me."
"Things like that don't happen," Yoshino said.
"It could," Ranma said. She didn't foresee it, but there were countless things she hadn't foreseen that had happened to her in the past. It was good to know that if such an eventuality ever did occur, she would be ready for it.
"I still think it's silly," Yoshino said.
"It probably is more impressive when the masters of the school do it. Do you want to see? Their headquarters is here in Tokyo," Ranma said. If some of the others wanted to go, she would be happy to join them. It would be interesting to compare the main branch against the French branch to see if there were any regional differences, and the food had been delicious.
"You don't want to go see them," Sachiko said.
"Why not?" Rei asked.
"The people there? They all had mouths this big," Sachiko said. She emoted pulling her mouth wide with her hands until they were about a meter apart from each other.
"You're joking," Rei said. She and the others looked to Ranma in a silent request for confirmation.
"That was more their tongues," Ranma said. She emoted using her hands to pull her mouth about half a meter wide. "Their mouths were more like this."
"Eww..."
Youko walked into the room, putting a stop to the tangent the group had taken during the meeting's pause. Everybody was more curious as to what the incoming phone call had been and turned their attention to her.
"It was the headmistress," Youko said, answering the unasked question.
"Really? What did she want?" Sei asked.
Youko resumed her seat at the large table. She said, "It seems that we will be getting another transfer student tomorrow."
"Another one? This late in the year?" Eriko asked.
"Apparently," Youko said.
"What do we know about her?" Eriko asked.
"Her name is Ukyou Kuonji. She grew up denying her womanhood for some reason and is now trying to rediscover it," Youko said.
The name struck Ranma. It sounded familiar for some reason.
"That sounds familiar for some reason," Sachiko said.
Sachiko's echoing of what Ranma had been thinking startled her. She looked around to see that everybody was looking at her.
"What are the chances she's also been to China and has got a terrible father?" Eriko asked.
"She doesn't have a curse, at least. The headmistress checked," Youko said.
A few of the girls nodded.
"Is something wrong?" Sachiko asked Ranma.
"Not really. It's just I think I knew an Ukyou once," Ranma said. She thought harder. She had vague recollections of okonomiyaki for some reason.
"Do you know her?" Shimako asked.
Ranma realized why the name sounded so familiar. Early in her training trip, she had known an Ukyou. They had sparred, as far as children could; it was more playing than anything. It couldn't have been the same person, though.
"Nah. Ucchan was a boy," Ranma said.
24.
"Gokigenyou," Tanezaki said. "Today I have the pleasure of introducing a new classmate. This is Ukyou Kuonji-san." She wrote the name on the blackboard. "She will be joining us in the First-year Chrysanthemum Group. She has been traveling around Japan, training in martial arts, for the past several years. I hope you will all join me in welcoming her. Would you like to say anything, Kuonji-san?"
Ukyou looked uncomfortable in her sailor dress. One of her hands held her book bag, but the other one kept minutely flexing, as if reaching behind her back for something. What that something was, though, Ranma couldn't tell. She hadn't seen anything there, except for Ukyou's long, flowing, dark hair.
"I am Ukyou Kuonji. I've spent the past 10 years of my life training to be a master of Martial Arts Okonomiyaki. Due to a variety of reasons, I threw away my womanhood. However, recently circumstances have changed, and I would like to rediscover it. I hope you all will take good care of me," Ukyou said. She bowed to the class.
The comment of okonomiyaki was certainly an interesting coincidence with Ranma's memory of the Ukyou she had known, but Ranma dismissed it as a mere coincidence. That Ukyou had been a boy, after all.
"Thank you very much, Kuonji-san. Over here is Ami Waki-san." Ami raised her hand in response. "She is the class representative, and you can ask her for any assistance you may need.
"Ranma Saotome-san..." Ranma raised her hand when called, and Ukyou visibly jolted at that point, "... is Rosa Chinensis en bouton petite soeur.
"And Yoshino Sumazu-san..." Yoshino raised her hand when called, but she received much less reaction from Ukyou, who went back to looking at Ranma, "... is Rosa Foetida en bouton petite soeur.
"Both of them of them are members of the Yamayurikai, and I'm sure they would also be happy to assist you as well. Now, there appears to be a free seat near Yume Kohara-san. Can you please raise your hand?" Yume raised her hand. "If you would please take a seat."
Ukyou walked over to the empty desk. As she moved, she continued to stare at Ranma, and notably at her chest and her hair. It was enough to cause Ranma to brush her hand through her hair and look down at herself in concern, but as far as she could tell, there was nothing wrong with her appearance. She had no stains, no rumples, and her neckerchief was properly tied and arrayed.
Halfway to her seat, Ukyou shook her head and stopped staring at Ranma.
In contrast, the others in the class did not relent. They continued to stare at Ukyou as she sat down and directed her attention to the front of the classroom. Tanezaki's beginning of classes put a stop that, though, and forced everybody to limit themselves to only small glances here and there towards the new addition to their class.
Lunch couldn't come fast enough. Ranma was intensely curious as to what Martial Arts Okonomiyaki entailed, and the moment it began, she rose to her feet and started walking over to ask. However, several other girls who were closer had already beaten her there. They crowded around Ukyou's desk, surrounding the girl.
"Which club do you plan on joining?"
"Have you ever been to China?"
"What is Martial Arts Okonomiyaki?"
"What was your previous school?"
"What's your blood type?"
Tsutako had even appeared in the doorway. It was a mystery as to how she had known to come and how she had arrived so quickly, but she was snapping photograph after photograph of the overwhelmed Ukyou.
As curious as Ranma was, she couldn't in good conscience add to the confusion.
Ranma lightly coughed. It caused everybody in the room, in particular those surrounding Ukyou's desk, to turn and look at her. She asked, "Shouldn't we be giving a more modest introduction to our school?"
"Of course, Ranma-san," Natsumi said. The crowd dispersed from around Ukyou's desk.
"Sorry about that. Transfer students are always exciting, and everybody just wants to learn more about you. Go ahead and take your time getting settled. If anybody gives you any trouble, let me know, and I'll make sure it's taken care of," Ranma said. She thought back to her own entry into Lillian. "That includes the members of the newspaper club."
"Thanks," Ukyou said.
Ranma turned away to join the waiting Yoshino. As the weather had turned colder, Ranma, Yoshino, and Shimako had migrated to the Rose Mansion to eat their shared lunches, and Ranma didn't want to keep the others waiting. While she still had questions for Ukyou, they could wait for another time, after Ukyou had had a chance to settle in.
"Wait!" Ukyou shouted. Ranma turned around and faced her again. "Is your name really Ranma Saotome?"
"Yes," Ranma said.
"Did you..." Ukyou faltered. "Are you..." Ukyou tried again before shaking her head. "Never mind."
Author's Notes:
There is an interesting story behind "Finding the Silver." Appropriately enough, it is a crossover of two ideas.
To begin with, I had been looking for a crossover of "Maria-sama ga Miteru" and "Ranma 1/2" for a considerable number of years. I was never able to find one, though.
Additionally, I had been trying to put together an entirely different "Ranma 1/2" story. However, in that story, I kept thinking things like, "Ranma should choose to embrace femininity here," and "and here it is revealed that Ranma has been a girl all along." The problem was that none of those were actually relevant to that different story.
Those are the two ideas which came together as the basis of this story. I thought I could address both of those things at once by writing a quick 5000-word flashfic. Obviously that didn't happen.
Overall, I think that the changing to a novel format was a good thing, too. There is a great deal of emergent storytelling which occurs when you aren't able to just scene-skip over things and have to think through both the setup and consequences of a scene. For example, I had not expected Yoshino and Shimako to play as large a role as they did in this story, and Ranma's decision to reject the headmistress's offer had been the exact opposite of what I had intended.
This applies to large-scale things as well, such as plot and theme. For example, consider the title of this story. I had originally intended "Finding the Silver" in the sense of the proverb "every cloud has a silver lining." This was in regard to Ranma's curse leading him to better circumstances. This was soon expanded to include Genma realizing the larcenous potential of the curse. This later expanded further to include the idea of "silver" representing both tangible things, such as the precious minerals Genma sought, and intangible things, such as the precious relationships Ranma found.
That wasn't the only thing which had expanded in meaning as I wrote this. There are considerably more similes, metaphors, and analogies throughout this story than I had expected at the start. In addition to the idea of "silver," there are also Sachiko's circumstances, Shimako's circumstances, Sei's circumstances, the story of Cinderella, the story of the penitent thief, and numerous other things. I was surprised and happy with how many of them there turned out to be. I'm hoping that if somebody were to reread this story, they'd pick up on more of them than on their first reading.
Regardless, that does bring us to the end of this reading. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.
Gokigenyou.
Last Updated: November 19, 2021