Chaos Bender

A Ranma ½ and Avatar: The Last Air Bender Crossover

Written by: Konsaki

The lost martial artists had walked the rest of the day, partaking on the rarer tree that bore fruit on the road as they passed. Some idle banter went back and forth as they made their way, but for the most part, nothing new could be hashed out by the pair. They just resigned themselves to walking the traveling beaten path.

As the sun had reached the tree line behind the travelers, sounds crept into their hearing from farther ahead. Ryoga had recognized what it meant first, green eyes flashing as a grin crept to the corners of her lips. "Saotome, come on!" she urged her companion on, as the yellow garbed girl broke into a run.

The redhead kept pace a step behind Ryoga, at first wondering what she was up to. Her ponderings didn't last long though, as once they ran around a large bend in the path the area opened up from the trees drastically. Ranma slowed down to a walk again along with the girl in front of her as she gazed upon the scene. What she saw brought a wry grin to her own face as she thought, 'Finally, something good...'

There amidst the clearing stood a small house which looked to be just enough to contain a small family. The girls knew it was occupied by someone, at least, due to the soft flickering light coming from a few open windows. The small chimney has light wafts of smoke drifting from it to disperse quickly into the darkening air.

To the side of the house, another building was given just a slight glance by the pair, but was quickly dismissed as a large storage shed or barn. Ranma gave more thought to it being a barn due to running her blue eyes over a few pens organized around the area. Her grin gained a more catty appearance when she recognized the sounds coming from the pens.

"Feeling homesick, P-chan?" Ranma purred in a low voice making a verbal jab at Ryoga. The taller girl just let out a warning growl, but said nothing in return. Ranma just continued grinning as she started past the pens and padded towards one of the windows, tried to listen to what was inside the house over the rutting and grunts of the pigs in the pens. Ryoga just stayed back watching, knowing Ranma had a better chance at not being heard.

Ranma lingered there for a few minutes, crouched under the window, hearing voices inside every once in a while. From what she could hear, she figured they wouldn't be hostile... she hoped. Moving towards the door, she waved Ryoga over and waited for the other girl to stand beside her before giving the door a slight rap.

After hearing sounds of movement inside, along with the distinct sound of metal being quietly slipped out of a sheath, both girls took a sideways glance at each other. They relaxed a bit when they saw the door open a crack to show part of a woman's face as she let out a questioning, "Hello? Who's there?"

"Um... I'm Ranma and this is Ryoga. Sorry 'bout bothering you, ma'am." She responded with a slight bow, trying to sound as non-threatening as she could. The green haired girl followed in suit right after. Looking up at the person though the crack in the door, they could see her looking them over in the dying daylight.

After a few silent seconds, the woman turned her gaze to the side and nodded slightly before opening the door some more. The sound of metal scraping on the insides of a scabbard could be heard yet again, but the click of closing left both girls a bit more at ease. The lady returned the looks, speaking up again, "I'm sorry, girls. There have been bandit attacks recently and..."

Waving a dismissing hand, Ryoga put up a small knowing smile, "No problem, we understand." Ryoga had closed her eyes while saying that and, as such, didn't notice the slight look of sadness and want that hid behind the woman's eyes. Ranma noticed though, but didn't say anything as the look passed quickly.

As she opened the door a little more, another figure could be seen. A young boy with hard eyes, no older than eleven or twelve, moved towards his mother. In his hands was the source of the noise, a sheathed dagger; his grip still holding tight to the hilt. The woman patted his straggly brown hair before putting a protective arm around his shoulders as she brought him in close to her.

"Sorry, but what are two young girls, like yourselves, doing out on the road and what brings you here?" the auburn woman asked of the pair before her.

"Um..." Ranma started out, trying to think of something to say, but Ryoga spoke up over her, "We're traveling... performers, but we got lost. Could you tell us where we are now?" The girl just let out a nervous chuckle, averting her gaze and scratching the side of her head.

Two pairs of brown eyes flicked back and forth between the girls as mother and child looked them over at that statement. The woman just wore a smile as she nodded. Just looking over the odd cloths and hair color again had made the information she was given believable. "Oh, my... I'm sorry to hear that. Well, just a few hours that way", she indicated farther down the path they were going, "you will find Quonju. It's the nearest town from here."

"Thank you for the help!" Ranma replied with a smile, happy to hear that they were so close to a town finally. 'Those few hours should take us maybe one with us running!' she figured, turning her head to Ryoga. "Think you can hold up?" Ranma asked with a grin.

Before Ryoga could respond, the woman waved a hand to grab their attention and dispel that line of thought. "Oh, no. I couldn't send you two out like that. It's getting dark out and I couldn't send you two off like that. There's fresh straw in the barn, if you'd like to rest there until morning."

"That would be great!" Ryoga said with feeling, thankful for any chance to sleep under a roof; especially since she didn't have any camping supplies, like she normally would. "You're very kind to us, ma'am!" the green haired girl said, bowing deeply.

"It's no problem at all", she replied as she stepped out of the doorway and into the yard. Pointing, she continued, "Over there's the barn. If you need water, the well is over there. It's not much but I hope you can get some sleep."

Bowing and saying thanks one last time, the pair turned towards the barn and moved away from the doorway. Ryoga couldn't help but see the boy's piercing eyes never leave them until they were around the corner. She just ran a hand though her green hair and sighed as they made their way towards and into the barn.

Flopping down on a pile of straw, Ryoga through her arms behind her head, eyes showing thoughts running through her head. After a bit, she looked over to Ranma, who was lying back on another pile on the other side of the barn. "So... Quonju, huh? Think we'll find out anything there?"

"Maybe... It's just a small town, from what that lady said, remember. If we're lucky, yeah", the reply came. "Anything's better than nothing..." Ranma finished with a yawn.

Ryoga just let out a low, "Hmm...", in response. A few moments later, she just closed her eyes and muttered a generic, "Goodnight." The only reply was soft breathing from a sleeping redhead across the room.

--

"Yo, Ryoga! Wake up!" came the only warning before the fanged fighter was given a rather rude awakening. An instant later, a surprised cry and sputtering echoed off the wooden walls of the barn as Ryoga jerked upright. Looking around wildly, he calmed down only to let out a growl at his assailant.

"Damn it, why'd you do that, Saotome?!" Ryoga demanded, clearly annoyed.

A clearly male Ranma made a look of mock hurt, "Sorry... Guess you're right. I won't wake ya with hot water again..." The act didn't keep up long as a grin broke through.

Ryoga just shook the water out of his hair and stood up, grumbling the entire time. As he brushed the few pieces of straw that stuck to his clothes off, he let out a halfhearted, "Thanks..." Tossing a sideways look at the grinning pigtailed boy, he continued, "You're still an ass, though..."

"Yeah, yeah. You're welcome, P-chan." Ryoga's intended target replied offhandedly as he dismissed the jab with one of his own. Turning towards the door to the barn, he continued over his shoulder, "Let's head out. There'll be questions if we're seen leaving."

Ryoga just kept grumbling under his breath, scratching the back of his head as he followed Ranma out of the barn and onto the road. Things were quiet as they walked; everything asleep since the sun had yet to even show light at the horizon. They made good time traveling, jogging some to reach true civilization faster.

They passed a few more farms on the way, each only slightly different than the last. Mainly, the layout changed more than any physical looks. It seemed like the houses were put together by using the same design. Either way, neither of the travelers gave them much thought other than the fact that they were there.

--

"Hey, Ranma..." the silence broken as the sun was rising in the sky, warming the clear morning.

"Yeah, I see. About time!" the reply came quickly as they slowed their running to a walk. Eyes darted around, taking in the details as they made their way closer.

There was no real town line, but a general feel that they had passed into Quonju, as the farms and houses just kept getting denser until a point. Looking it over as they entered, the town looked to hold maybe two or three hundred people, including the farms they had passed on the way. The buildings finally changed shape and building material, some using stone and/or a little metal, giving enough differences to the structures to keep the town from looking completely carbon copy.

"Sheesh... What's with all the green?" Ranma asked rhetorically, as they passed stores and houses displaying a green flag or banner. It seemed to be the major color scheme of the town, barring any other colored paints on signs or houses trying to be unique.

Ryoga just nodded, looking around as people seemed to be waking up and performing whatever morning routines they normally did. Though the pair saw and felt the people looking at them as they passed, no one bothered the martial artists. By the time they had made their way near the center of town though, that changed.

"You two! State you're names and business!" came a deep gruff voice from ahead of them. At quick glance, a tall man with short cut black hair and a couple scars on his face stood at around two buildings away. He moved towards the younger males when they had stopped at his inquiry.

Ranma and Ryoga glanced at each other before returning their gaze back at the man and the two sheathed swords he wore on his belt. He finally stopped a few yards from the Norima fighters, crossing his arms which they knew would allow him to quick draw if needed. "Well? I'm waiting..." he intoned with a raised eyebrow.

"The name's Ranma." The one in the red shirt replied before the one with the bandana continued, providing a basic answer, "Ryoga."

"And why you're here?" came the even drawl out of the unshaven man's frown. From the questions, they figured he was part of the police for the town or something. He even seemed to be wearing a uniform of sorts, being a green shade near to that of the banners they had passed on the way in.

This was all adding up to equal annoying in Ranma's mind. Plus the tone this guy was pushing was one that just irked the fighter. His emotions leaked through his speech as he replied, edges of his mouth turned down slightly as his blue eyes narrowed, "We need a reason to walk into a town? Got a problem, old man?"

It was quite apparent that the older male did as a growl escaped from his frown as he looked down on the significantly shorter youth. Hibiki just put a hand to his face and sighed in resignation. The three stayed like that, in a stare down, for quite a few moments.

The tense situation was broken as a calm clear voice broke through it like Ranma's Neko-Ken claws through… well, anything. "Gendo, is everything alright?"

Seeing Gendo's eye's flash at hearing the voice, Ranma's mouth grinned smugly. "Everything's good. Gendo, here, was just welcoming us to town. Wanted to make sure we're ok. Right, Gendo?"

The taller man just glared at the youth before turning to the owner of the clear voice and half bowed, half saluted before replying, "Yes... These boys looked lost, Elder Wasuku. I was just asking them where they were headed so I could... assist them in getting there."

An aged man chuckled, eyes almost closed in the wise face of the elder. The bright green robes he wore bore the visage of one in respect and power, but nothing even remotely edging on the level of nobility. Still, the long grey hairs that hung loose of his head and grey beard, along with the wrinkles on his aged face, showed experience and long life.

"Ho-ho-ho", the elderly man chuckled under his breath as he made his way over to the large Gendo. He barely stood, at his tallest point, to just below the shoulder of the younger, but worn hand still showed vitality as he reached up and placed a hand up there, saying "You do much good, young Gendo. Helping other people is a rewarding thing, no? We are proud to have you here doing your best, protecting us and helping those in need!"

A flash of guilt took to the guard but passed just as quickly as he bowed to the bent over Wasuku. As the elder moved past the man to look on towards the young pair with appraising eyes, Gendo moved into a place a few steps behind and to the side of the elder. His eyes still held a hard edge, but it was slightly different from before.

"And who do we have here?" the old man mused as he traveled his gaze from one black haired boy to the other. "Did you come all this way for the festival?" After he asked his second question, both Ranma and Ryoga just blinked in response before glancing at each other.

Ryoga shrugged at his companion before turning towards the green clad men and bowing slightly, "My name is Ryoga Hibiki and this is my friend, Ranma Saotome." After submitting their names again, Ryoga looked a little lost for a second before continuing, "Um... We didn't really know there was a festival..."

Trying to use the philosophy of the Musabetsu Kakuto Ryo of adapting to the situation, Ranma jumped in quickly, "We'd like to learn about it though! Could we stay for it and maybe ask some questions about the history of the town, Elder Wasuku?" He silently added on, 'Maybe we can learn something useful, like where we are in the world...'

While the bladed warrior lightly grunted in disbelief, Wasuku just smiled. "Ah, such energy! The thirst for knowledge is rare in young people these days!" he finished off with a laugh only wise old men can laugh.

Turning towards the bearded man standing tall behind him, the elder spoke again, "Ah, speaking of the festival. Gendo, I was told that Reile needed help moving some barrels." His voice took on an inward musing tone as he continued, "I so do like the taste of her wild berry wine..."

Gendo looked thoughtful for a second, the taste of the wine running over his tongue from last year's event. It didn't stop the swordsman from giving one final warning glare to the two martial artists before giving a slight bow to the elderly man and heading off towards Reile's.

"Please, walk with me. We can talk while I keep my old bones moving." Wasuku called over his shoulder as he headed farther into the town. "So much to do, so much to do", he muttered to himself with another chuckle.

Ranma and Ryoga just followed for a bit in silence before Ranma spoke up, "Uh, this festival, what's it for? I mean, what's the reason behind it?"

"Ah, my apologies... Ranma, was it?" Wasuku replied, receiving an approving grunt. "It's the town's Founding Festival. Every year, we have a festival to celebrate the hard work of our ancestors who founded Quonju. Their efforts enabled the surrounding land to bear fruit, which we share in the celebration."

"There's singing and dancing, of course along with, what should be good food from the latest harvest. Hatoko is even bringing a couple cow-hogs for us, a rare treat. They will go well with Biaca's fish. Hmm..." the elder continued, getting lost in his own memories and expectations for the feast, both food and drink.

The boys following Wasuku could feel their mouths water at the sounds of good food, though they thought the old man must have misspoke when describing Hatoko's offering to the feast. Either way, they both were looking forward to the prospect of food.

The trio walked a while farther with the elder in his own internal musings before he snapped out of it, "Ah, my apologies, again. I'm losing track in my old age." Ryoga just replied, "No problem. It sounds like a good time!"

"Yes, yes it is, young man!" the gray-haired man laughed. "But the night doesn't truly start until the competition of strength happens."

"Strength competition?!" both martial artists brought up, their competitive natures twitching.

A wise smile was the response first response they received from the long haired man walking in front of them as he turned his head to look over his shoulder at them for a second. "Yes, we use it as an token opportunity to revel in the strength and toil it took our ancestors to cultivate Quonju from the bare land it was."

"Ah, here we are", Elder Wasuku said as he strolled to a stop in a large open area amongst the buildings. "This is where it will be held. We still have more preparations till it is complete though..."

Ranma and Ryoga looked around the area, which looked like it could hold a rather large amount of people, and guessed that this was the town square or something. Either way, they could see a couple of tables already set up and slowly filling with food, like fruits, bread and such. They had a fire going and meat being prepared for the spit off to one side. The area looked like it was built specifically to keep the fire controlled and for cooking rather large animals.

The most prominent feature was a statue in the direct center of the square. It was a tall stone statue that displayed three figures in different forms and stances. The one had an axe, which he held in both hands, one on the hilt and the other holding the flat side of the head. Another held a mattock which was resting on her left shoulder while her right wiped at her brow. The last one the odd one of the trio, as he held no tool in his hands, but stood there in a martial artist stance.

Ranma looked at the three figures, who were standing with their backs to each other on the round base, though mainly at the one without any tools. "What's the statue about?"

"They represent those who toiled over the years to bend the earth to their will. The settling group decided that everyone worked for the greater good of the village and the Earth Kingdom so it wouldn't be fitting to have one specific person for the statue", the green robed man replied sagely before putting a hand to his chin in thought. "If I remember correctly, they had a contest. These three won and became the models, one of the reasons we have the competition of strength each year. It just became tradition after that but everyone has fun."

'Earth Kingdom', stuck in Ryoga's mind. He had been all over the place, due to his blasted family curse, but he never remembered hearing that name before. 'Maybe we're just in a different part of the world... it's not like I've been everywhere', he continued as the fanged male scratched the back of his head.

The pair just looked at the statue in silence for a few moments after hearing that before the elder grabbed their attention once more with a clap of his hands. Turning towards him, they heard his voice, "Now, I have a request for you strapping young men, if you don't mind. Would you help set up for tonight's event? There's nothing like being a part of something if you want to learn about it!"

The pair glanced at each other, but agreed to help out. Smiling Wasuku continued, "That's good! For now, the tables and chairs set up..."

--

The day passed quickly, with the pair either moving chairs and tables or snagging snacks off one of the food tables. While they worked, they saw more and more people showing up with food or drink, adding to the tables which filled quickly. Most of the locals gave them odd looks, but were friendly for the most part; offering waves and greetings like they would their neighbors.

By the time the afternoon was passing the day, the square was full of children and adults. The children ran around yelling and playing while the parents and adults talked lively with one another. Ryoga and Ranma just sat back and watched the spectacle of the small town celebration.

The area quickly simmered down as the sound of a small hand gong rang through the town square. People looked in the direction of the interruption and saw Elder Wasuku along with a few other people on a small raised platform. The person with the gong stopped rapping it and set it down once a majority of the people had turned their gaze there.

"Thank you all for coming out this evening!" the elder spoke loudly to the crowd, gaining cheers back. He waited for a second before continuing, "As most of you know, we are gathered here to celebrate the founding of our town and the strength it took those before us to keep this town prosperous!" Again a cheer rose up from the gathered town.

"It's with that in mind that we show our will and power to continue on to the ancestors in our annual 'Test of Strength'!" the bearded elder announced, to a long cheer of the crowd as a couple of men brought out a sturdy table and stools. They were placed on the stand as the elder moved to the side. Once the yells had died down some, he sent out a call to anyone wishing to participate to head to the platform.

After a minute, the group stood before the elder who gave a quick explanation of what would happen. Two people would sit on the stools at the table and put their right elbow on the surface. They would then clasp hands with their opponents and, on the signal, would try to push the opponent's hand down towards the tabletop until it touched.

Seeing everyone nodding their heads in understanding, Wasuku quickly counted up the participants and settled the order of matches. Then he announced to the crowd, "One last thing, we will be rewarding our top three winners this year with token prizes of five, ten and twenty copper coins for third through first place! With that, let us begin!"

People cheered, laughed and jeered as the participants got up to the table to play their muscles off each other. Most of the matches were quick, like Ryoga's, where one outmatched the other easily and slammed their hand down in seconds. There were a couple in the first round, though, that took a bit to complete, as Ranma found out when he held back to just his muscle strength and Ranma's opponent resisted for around thirty seconds, until he ran out of energy.

In the second round though, Ranma found himself challenged by Gendo after Ryoga's match. Grinning wickedly, Ranma sat at the table looking across from larger bearded guard. "I'm going to wipe that grin from your face, boy!" the man promised as he set his well muscled arm on the surface while flexing his hand. His frown intensified, though, when the pigtailed youth opposite from him just put his own arm on the table, replying offhandedly, "You won't even make me sweat."

As they clasped hands, Ranma prepared his Chi to flood his arm. On the signal, he let his energy loose in an explosion. Gendo's eyes widened as he swore the kid's arm muscles wrapped around themselves a second before his own arm snapped down to the table like he helped it get there.

Gendo just left his arm there on the table in shock as Ranma let go and stood up. "Impossible...", escaped his lips as he just stared until his gaze was leveled to the winner's reply. "Just be thankful I held back, Gendo..."

As Ranma stepped over to the side, he frowned slightly even through the gathering's applause. He was kicking himself slightly for using his chi like that on the guard, but it did make him feel superior over the man. He just shook his head and watched as the contestants thinned out until it was only him and Ryoga sitting at the table.

"I saw what you did in your match with Gendo. Don't think you can do the same to me, Saotome..." the lost boy warned, with a smirk on his face. Across from him, Ranma wore the same expression as he placed his hand up in the ready position, "I wouldn't dream of it, Ryoga. I'm lookin' for a challenge, not a wuss."

They both prepared for the inevitable showdown as they clasped hands and waited for the signal to start. The people in the square could see the look of determination on the faces of the pair, but wouldn't know how much more than this match it went, not knowing the history between the two. At the signal to start, though, they all heard two loud cries of effort as they pitted not only their physical strength against each other but their spirit as well.

For the longest while, the youths were at a standstill, both straining to keep the status quo they held since the start of the match. Observers saw sweat beading up and rolling down the brows, faces and arms of the pair as muscles strained under the weight of their efforts. More than one person in the audience would swear they saw the very air around the boys shimmer as their Ki pore out to fight against the other's, but they just attributed it to their drink.

Then, with the mass community cheering them on, the arms moved finally. Both looked at the progress with grunts and fierce faces as the stalemate was broken. A second surge of Chi saturated the arms of the duo, trying to reinforce the aching muscles even farther. Even with that, the fall of the hand was a long and tiring process as they fought to bend their wills.

Finally, the arms were a hair's breadth from touching the surface of the battlefield. With extreme effort, the fight stayed in for a few seconds more, a last denial of what would be. The effort was for naught as they both heard and felt the pat of flesh on wood. It was over.

They just stayed there in stunned surprise for a few moments as the assembly was silent for the pair. Then, the crowd's ravings broke into the youth's minds and though the shock.

Ryoga let go of his opponent's hand and stood up from the table. Ranma was slack jawed as he traveled his gaze from his own hand to the standing yellow clad fighter. Flexing his arm, to get it working again, he stood up himself and set his face into a slow, but wide, grin.

Shaking his head, he offered his hand across the table towards his opponent, who took it in a strong clasp. "Congrats, man. Just don't let it go to your head...", Ranma said, shaking the sore arm.

Ryoga just grinned in return, "Let it go to my head, Saotome? Is that something you should be saying?"

The pair were interrupted by Elder Wasuku just after, forestalling Ranma's retort. "My, my... What display of youth and power! Well done, you two!"

Ryoga just blushed and scratched the back of his head, not used to praise of any kind, while the pigtailed martial artist just took it in stride. The event closed out with the elder handing both of them small bags with their prizes in them, twenty coins for Ryoga and ten for Ranma. They then walked off the stage to be patted on the back by many people, especially Ryoga for winning, along with drinks being thrust into their hands.

The party then fired off into full swing at that point, with food and drinks everywhere. People laughed as jokes were told in groups, stories flew here and there about times past or lore passed down through the village. Ranma and Ryoga ate, drank and listened to it all.

From what they could figure out, Quonju was right in the middle of path between two bigger cities. Listening to the descriptions of the two, Ranma and Ryoga decided to head to Gyon, which lay two days to the southeast. There seemed to be a library or school of some size there, which would allow them to figure out where they are without sounding like idiots.

"Head out in the morning?" Ranma asked, a slight flush from being unaccustomed to the drink.

The clank of the now empty tankard in Ryoga's hand to the table was barely heard over the rest of the ruckus. "Sure thing! We'll run the entire way!", he replied with a wide grin.

"Damn right!" the red shirted rival yelled out as he finished his own mug. Looking over to his friend, a smile grew wider over his face as he saw one of the local girls refilling Ryoga's mug. The look on Ryoga's face caused laughter from Ranma, as the lost boy blushed fiercely at having a cute girl near him.

It wasn't long after that, Ranma noticed his own glass being refilled by another of the village maidens. The laughter he had exclaimed at Ryoga's antics shifted from mirth to pure nervousness as she gave him a smile similar to one Shampoo would have given him.

Both boys found the same solution to the same problem as they both brought their mugs back to their face to take another swig. It was then, while Ranma was taking a swig that the girl beside him chose to lean over and run a hand across his thigh.

Almost instantly, Ranma's inebriated mind went through a checklist: 'girl, check; cute, check; touching, check... DANGER DANGER DANGER!' With that figured out, Ranma did the only reasonable thing he could think of doing in that instant, he slammed the mug back down to the table and spit the contents of his mouth out.

"The hell!?" a female voice demanded from across the table, followed by a squeak from a different girl's voice. The girl who had been filling Ryoga's mug just stared in shock as the boy she was enjoying the company of was now a green haired girl, who was staring daggers at the boy across from her.

Disoriented due to the situation and drink, Saotome had to take a few seconds and take stock of what had happened. "Shit... sorry...", he apologized. Ryoga probably would have accepted it better had Ranma been able to stop himself from snorting in amusement afterwards. Something about the look the girl was giving him, while dripping from the wine was humorous at the moment.

His outlook, and appearance, changed quickly as Ryoga flung his drink into Ranma's face in irritation.

A second later, there was a cry of anger at the table as the redhead yelled at Ryoga while the girls flanking them both saw a repeat of a boy turning girl. This time, they were well past the shocked and confused stage, moving well into the panicking and fearful stages.

The two shrieks were filled with panic, fear and confusion. Both martial artists paled at hearing them, easily recognizing that the night was still young...

--

End of Chapter 3