Disclaimer: I do not on Ranma. Enough said about that. This story is a collaboration effort between me and Drakuzz. Again sorry for long wait. Real life creeps in every so often and makes a mess of things. Hope this chapter is to your liking. Without any further delay, we hope that you will all enjoy this chapter.
Twin Troubles
By David Knight and Drakuzz
Chapter Eight: Understanding, Conflict, and Reconciliation
Checking the address she had written in the paper before walking out of her home, the young woman confirmed that it was indeed the place she looked for. Taking a deep breath she knocked on the door to the apartment softly. It had taken her a couple of days to think things through, and she knew this was what was needed.
A few moments later, the door opened. Kasumi saw a redhead in a light blue sleeping gown with frazzled hair and a face that at the moment looked very tired, yet her eyes showed she hadn't been getting much sleep lately. Yawning, she raised a hand to cover her mouth. "Morning, Kasumi-chan."
"Ranko-chan," Kasumi greeted, clearly concerned for the redhead. "It isn't exactly proper for a young lady to answer the front door in her sleepwear," she admonished lightly.
"Eh?" Ranko muttered looking down at herself. She then looked back at Kasumi.
As if magic, she became completely awake. Her eyes comically grew as big as a cartoon character's and her jaw dropped. "OH MY... Kasumi! I'm so sorry! I didn't..." She stammered, totally in disbelief she was this messed up. She had never done anything like this before. "Just stay there while... no! Um, come in and have a seat while I go get shower and changed!" she said as she ran back to her room, only to run right into the living room sofa and tumble over it hitting the ground face first. "Not good! Not good!"
"Oh my! Are you alright?" Kasumi asked as she allowed herself into the apartment, instantly going to the redhead's side. She had been worried about Ranma, but right now she realized she should've come to check up on Ranko sooner.
"I'm fine! I am fine! Just let me clean up!" Ranko said trying to scramble to her feet. "I know it's wrong to look like this when guests are here! I'm just..." She let the tears come down now as she slammed her fist against the wood floor. "Kami-sama, I am such an idiot."
Letting out a soft sigh the eldest of Soun's daughters reached out and gathered the redhead in her arms. The Saotomes were all so emotional, she thought to herself. It was because of those strong emotions that they had such a magnetism, but at the same time they felt more strongly when hurt.
"I just wanted so much to for him to treat me like we were equal," Ranko cried. "Why can't he see it? Does everything have to be his way? Is that the only way I can be with him?"
Kasumi patted Ranko in the back comfortingly, something she hadn't needed to do with her sisters for some time now. "Ranko-chan... In the time you've been here Ranma-kun has changed. He's clearly making an effort," she said and smiled slightly. "You can't expect miracles, though."
"You're right," Ranko agreed. "But the look in his eyes when I told him I was training with Ryoga, I thought for sure he was going find Ryoga and beat him until he got him to swear not to fight me. I just said what I did because if he succeeded in doing that, then I'd never catch up to him. I'd never get him to think of me as equal to him... That I'll just be another girl to him."
"And you were right to tell him how you feel, Ranko-chan..." Kasumi said and trailed off. She didn't know if the redhead was ready to hear this, specially not in her current state of mind. She instead decided to broach the subject in a different manner. "Ranma-kun sometimes has a tendency to not see the obvious, but it's not his fault. It has a lot to do with how he was raised."
"... I know this might sound odd coming from me, but is it really too much to blame everything bad that has come from my brother on our father?" Ranko asked.
Kasumi sighed once more at this. "I'm sure Saotome-san had good intentions with what he did, even if his methods were less than... Fatherly," she settled for the word and looked at the redhead. "As I was saying, Ranma-kun does need to have you help him understand your feelings, yet I think you should try and see it from his point of view too."
"How am I supposed to do that? Go to some cursed spring and get a boy curse?" Ranko asked in jest.
"Oh heavens no!" Kasumi said with an amused smile. "That would make your family life truly interesting, but no. Tell me, how do you feel about your brother now that you're reunited with him?"
"He's stubborn, annoying, a rather big men are better than girls type person... but he's got a good heart. He cares about people to the point of forgetting about himself."
Kasumi nodded. "And what would you do if someone hurt him?"
She narrowed her eyes. "I'd make them pay for everything they did..." She trailed off as she realized Ranma would have felt the same way.
The Tendo young woman nodded. "I see you understand. Ranma-kun has always been overprotective of us. Now imagine how he must feel about you."
"It must terrify him... The thought of me getting hurt. Doesn't it?" Ranko asked.
Kasumi nodded, glad the redhead was starting to understand it. "I've been talking to him lately. I don't believe I'm betraying his confidence by saying this," the young woman said and looked at Ranko straight in the eye. "Ranko-chan, he adores you. He's been so happy to have you with him. And yes... The thought of you getting hurt scares him."
Ranko lowered her head. As much as she wanted her brother to understand her, she had not tried to understand him as well as she could have. Her first impulse was to go find him and tell him she understood, but that would not only not work, it would be insulting. He had said he needed time to think. She was going to give it. "Has this sort of thing happened to him before?"
"Never like this, for all I know," Kasumi admitted, thinking back on her conversations with Ranma. He'd been so happy lately, if a little confused about what he wanted out of life. But at the same time, even with all his present confusion, he'd shown interest in her life and offered to help if he could. She sighed deeply and looked at the redhead with a hint of sadness, she loathed doing this but it was something that the redhead needed to hear. "Ranko-chan..."
"Yes. Kasumi?"
"Ranko-chan..." Kasumi started once again, feeling that she needed to air this out so the redhead truly understood what caused Ranma to react like this. It had taken her surprisingly little time to realize why he did, probably because of how he confided in her. "Do you remember the promise you made to your brother?"
"The one I made where I told him I would always be there for him," She said before hanging her head. "And I went about and told him if he didn't do as I said I would leave him."
The eldest Tendo daughter nodded with a sigh, patting Ranko on the back. "I know you were upset and you didn't mean it... But for Ranma-kun that sounded a lot like the many promises he's been made over his life only to have them broken. He probably was shaken and confused that you would do it."
Ranko sighed. She was trying so hard to change the way he thought of her, she didn't think of the consequences. "What should I do?"
"Well... For starters you need to take a bath," Kasumi said teasingly, wrinkling her nose. Seeing the expression on the redhead's face she smiled warmly. "Ranma-kun might have been upset when he left, but he's one of the most forgiving individuals you'll come across. So give him the time he needs and apologize when he comes back. I'm certain he'll feel bad about hurting you."
"I know I do," Ranko said sadly, knowing she had made a mistake. She wanted to apologize, but Kasumi was right. She had to give her twin his space. When he came back, she'd make amends. She looked at Kasumi, feeling better than she had in days. "Thank you, Kasumi."
The older woman smiled. "No thanks are needed, Ranko-chan. Now about that bath..."
-----
Two weeks later...
Soun finished his morning spar with Genma and took to survey his household. It wasn't exactly a cheerful sight.
Kasumi was depressed, however instead of dealing with it through cleaning, she had gone through improving herself even further in her swordplay. She had taken on Ranko in duels to improve her technique against an actual opponent, as she hadn't had that yet.
Speaking of the red-haired girl, she had not spent a single night here since the incident two weeks ago when Ranma left. She trained with Kasumi, Akane and even Ryoga, as one could tell from her injuries. She still went to school of course but she was pushing herself to limits Soun wasn't sure she possessed, but if she didn't already possess them, he was certain she was trying to make them for herself. She also didn't speak to Genma when they were in the same room, only glared at him and left.
Ranma had left on training trips before, but never on terms like these. Usually it was to improve over a challenger or learn a new technique.
Looking into the Dojo, he saw Akane practicing a Taichi meditation exercise Ranko had drilled into her. It had become second nature to her. The anger he felt within his daughter was becoming less and he knew he had Ranko to thank for this.
When I feel Akane is ready and when I am ready, I will take up her training and do it properly this time, Soun said to himself.
Genma was getting something out of the fridge, then stopped as he saw Kasumi was nearby and almost facing him. Yet she didn't move at all. It was like she was staring out into space... Or in deep thought.
"A yen for your thoughts, sis," Nabiki said as she sat down next to her older sister.
"It's been two weeks now," Kasumi said, letting out a sigh. "He's never been gone like this before."
Nabiki's features softened at that. "He'll be back, sis. Ranma-kun just needs to get his act together." Left unsaid was that it would probably take the pigtailed martial artist longer, since he was inept at anything emotional or social.
"I hope so," Kasumi said, letting out another sigh before noticing Genma eating... "Hey! I just baked that cake!" She immediately unsheathed her katana.
Genma had the good sense to make a break for it. Even if Kasumi had improved, he was still faster on his feet than she was.
-----
"Thanks for lunch Ukyo," Ranko said, enjoying the chef's food, though her face showed her depression as well as exhaustion.
"You sleeping well, sugar?" Ukyo asked with a frown of concern. Out of all the fiancées she was the one that took Ranma's disappearance the better. She knew he would come back, and quite possibly need a friend when he did, so why grieve over something he needed. "You look like you haven't slept in days."
"I am training with Akane and Kasumi everyday and so far I've had nine out of the last fourteen days where Ryoga manages to meet me at the training spot." Ranko stated. "I am not sure if to be annoyed or grateful that he still gets lost even with a GPS."
"You might want to slow down a little, Ranko-chan. Too much more of this and you could hurt yourself," Ukyo warned.
"Yeah... I think you might be right," Ranko muttered, yet gave a grin. "Yet even still, I can feel how much I've improved since he left. I still have a while to get to his level, but I will get there. Someday."
"And how go your studies?" Ukyo asked, knowing that the redhead didn't have enough time to study and train as hard as she was doing.
"I'm lucky that there is stuff I learned from the previous year being taught this year in your school," Ranko replied. "But that can only last for so long. I'm going to need to cut back, I know that if I want to get into a good college." She shook her head as she put it on the table. "How did my brother do all this fighting and not worry at all about school?"
"Have you seen Ranchan's grades?" Ukyo asked seriously. "It'll be a miracle if he graduates from High School."
"Then I must be doing good to keep getting A's. That and being damn lucky."
"A word of advice, Ranko-chan," the chef said as she leaned forward over the grill. "Don't try too hard to reach Ranchan's level. That's mostly how he's gotten so many enemies."
Ranko took that seriously. "... You may have a point there. I was already the best in Kyoto before I came here and I still have enemies back there."
"Ranchan doesn't know any other way to live," Ukyo said with a sigh and then smiled slightly. "Besides, I hate to say this, but none of us is reaching Ranchan's level. Or at least not for very long. Do you have any idea how many times he's improved to defeat a particularly hard opponent?"
"Um... No."
"Trust me on this, sugar. If you want to improve that's fine, but don't get in a competition with your brother. As he so arrogantly announces, 'Saotome Ranma doesn't lose.'"
"Okay," Ranko said, thinking over Ukyo's advice. She had another reason for coming today though. "So, what do you think of Kasumi now? Still a friend or a rival?"
"I... Don't know what you're talking about, sugar..." Ukyo said uneasily.
"You've seen Kasumi when she's got that magic necklace working its magic and you've seen her close to my brother once already," Ranko said, getting to the heart of the matter. She liked Ukyo, she did, but she also felt that her brother, when he did start thinking about the whole fiancée thing seriously, deserved fairness.
"Your brother is my best friend, Ranko-chan. What better way to start a marriage than that?" Ukyo asked.
"If he wants it," Ranko said evenly. "I like you Ukyo. I do like you as a friend and a potential sister-in-law."
"But..." Ukyo knew there was a but coming.
"But I also feel that way with Kasumi... And even Shampoo if she ever learns to get over that over possessiveness of hers," Ranko said honestly.
Ukyo fell silent at that for a moment, before smiling slightly. "At least you didn't include Kodachi in the list."
"You're forgetting Akane and Nabiki too," Ranko smirked.
"The way those two treat Ranchan... They really aren't competition," Ukyo pointed out.
Ranko nodded. "I have to say though, Nerima is a nice vacation spot. Not a single apparition or Youkai in the seven weeks I've been here. How do you have such a place?" she asked casually.
"With enough high-powered martial artists. We've had run-ins with a ghost or two, even a demon, but they know better than to come after us," Ukyo said.
Ranko raised an eyebrow at that. "That's interesting to know. Still knowing about them became part of my life growing up, what with living in a Shinto Shrine."
The chef nodded, having heard this from Ranko before. "Have you had the time to date at all, sugar?"
Ranko blushed. "Um, no. I was too busy fending off suitors like Mizuki, and you know what he's like."
"You fit into Nerima so well... It's a wonder you didn't come here sooner," Ukyo commented.
Suddenly the sound of glass shattering brought their attention and Ranko barely avoided a ribbon aimed for her head.
"Damn you harridan! Why must you live!"
Ranko spat in disgust. "Kodachi. What hell did I do to you today?"
"Do not pretend to not know, bitch," the insane gymnast cursed. "When I heard your fiancée wanted you, I thought it would be perfect to finally get rid of you."
"What do you think you're doing, Kodachi?!" Ukyo asked in annoyance, already her spatula in her hands, at having the gymnast attack Ranko inside her restaurant.
"I thought that would be obvious, harlot," Kodachi snapped. "I intend to take the pigtail girl's life and show her head to her fiancée and my brother to keep them from that insane plan and then Ranma-sama will be mine."
"Over my dead... 'Fiancée'?!" Ranko's blood ran cold when hearing that. "Mizuki? He's here?!"
"He came to my home, intent on ruining my beloved Ranma-sama, and my foolish brother only happily agreed," Kodachi spat. "Now I must kill you, so that they have no reason to go through with their plans."
"That's insane and you know it, Kodachi!" Ukyo accused as she stepped closer to the redhead to defend her if necessary. "There's no way I'm letting you commit murder."
"A life for a life as it were and Ranma-sama's life is more important than hers," Kodachi said with absolute resolve. "I will not allow my brother and her fiancée's assassin to kill Ranma-sama!"
"For the last time..." Ranko was irritated how the Lady Kuno thought Mizuki was her fiancée but she froze in shock. "Assassin?!"
"Your fiancée convinced my brother to contract out an assassin of sorts, using two hundred thousand yen from the Kuno family holdings!" Kodachi shouted. "I can't believe you despise my darling Ranma-sama so much that you want him dead! You filthy-"
"KATCHU TENSHIN AMAGURIKEN!"
Kodachi had no time at all to even put up a defense, seeing as she had been ranting only a second ago. She fell victim to Ranko's merciless assault, falling to the ground unconscious.
Standing over her was an irate Saotome Ranko, her fists clenched and her eyes narrowed. "I so don't have the time to deal with you now," she muttered in a disgusted tone.
Ukyo was by Ranko's side in an instant. "Calm down, sugar," she said soothingly, trying to appease the irate redhead.
"Calm down!" Ranko snapped. "How can I calm down when the two biggest fools on the planet have joined forces and hired out an assassin to kill my brother!!!"
"I'm not any happier than you are, Ranko-chan. But think for just a second!" Ukyo snapped. "This is your brother we're talking about! And they don't even know where he went."
"No, but knowing Mizuki, he'll have gone as far as getting a Youkai as his assassin," Ranko said, fists clenched. "And if that's the case, even if they don't know where he is, the Youkai will find him."
Ukyo bit her lip in worry now. "Then what do we do?"
"We get backup and fast," Ranko said grabbing her bag. "Go get Kasumi from the dojo, I'll pay a visit to the Amazons."
"But where are we going?" Ukyo asked even as she followed Ranko's instructions.
"My brother went on a training trip and thanks to Ryoga filling me about his fights with my brother, I have a good idea where he is," Ranko said. "I've had a good idea ever since he left... I just chose to respect his privacy ever since he left that note."
"Right. I'll bring Kasumi as fast as I can," Ukyo said and rushed up the stairs.
"Meet us at the Nekohanten. I'd prefer we all leave as a group and that's the closest spot to where we need to start"
-----
Kasumi was satisfied with her performance. She had to transform to do it, but the sight of fried panda was well worth it. "I wonder if I should cook you or not?" She said with a smirk.
Akane shivered a bit before looking back to Nabiki. It had already been a month since Kasumi had obtained that necklace but seeing her changed into her ninja self still made her uncomfortable.
"Is the world ready for panda stake?" Nabiki asked dryly. "I think you cowed him enough as it is, sis."
"Hmm... You're probably right," Kasumi said, sheathing her katana. "Ranko's running a bit late, isn't she?"
"She's had a lot on her mind since Ranma left," Nabiki said, noticing how it affected Kasumi as well.
Kasumi nodded and thought to change when she heard someone open the door. She turned to face that door. "Ukyo? What's wrong? You look distressed."
"Kasumi... We have a problem," Ukyo announced, breathing heavily, as she looked at the three sisters and the unconscious panda in the room. "And I think you're just the person we need."
"What's the problem?" Kasumi asked.
"Kuno and some other guy after Ranko... They hired an Assassin to go after Ranma," Ukyo said somberly.
Nabiki's eyes widened at that. As far as things had gone in the past, she'd never thought Kuno would sink as low as hiring an assassin. An actual assassin.
"Mizuki," Kasumi gripped her katana so hard that her knuckles were white. "That bastard dares to interfere in our lives again!" Her anger and its aura showing brightly.
Ukyo visibly tensed at the display. "Mind saving that for the ones after Ranchan, Kasumi?" It was weird, even after so long of finding out, seeing Kasumi this way.
"Hai," Kasumi said coldly as she relaxed her grip on her katana.
"Kasumi?" Akane asked.
"Don't worry, Akane-chan. I won't kill them," Kasumi promised. "But when I am done with them, they'll wish I had." She walked out the door then.
"... I don't think you should go for this, Akane..." Nabiki ventured. "It might be a little too much for us normal humans."
Akane only nodded. After her defeats against Ukyo and Shampoo, she knew she wasn't in their league. She'd get there, but at the moment, she'd be no better than Kuno and that could get her sister killed. "Yeah," she said biting back how much in her gut she hated staying behind.
Ukyo shrugged and ran for the Nekohanten. Time to save Ranma.
-----
The moment she walked into the Nekohauten, she saw Mousse already coming to attack her. "Saotome!" he shouted in an angry voice.
Whether or not he was addressing her or her brother since he seemed to dislike both of them equally, Ranko did not know nor did she care. "I SO do not have time to play with you, blind boy." Ranko said coolly as she used the Amaguriken to attack Mousse faster than he expected.
"Why... Me...?" he asked before falling unconscious.
"Nice use of Amazon techniques, young one," Cologne praised as she descended the stairs. "Now why exactly have you come rushing here, I wonder?" The old woman was quick to note the redhead was very agitated, and she'd never seen her like this.
"My most annoying suitor has joined forces with Kuno to hire out an assassin to kill my brother," Ranko spat out. If she ever got her hands on Mizuki...
"That would hardly be a challenge for Son-In-Law, Ranko-chan," Cologne said
"Not even a Youkai assassin?" Ranko said with narrowed eyes.
Cologne instantly sobered at that. "I believe that is more than a challenge for Son-in-Law's skills right now."
"Mizuki and Kuno together would have more than enough money to hire out a Youkai and Mizuki has way too many connections into the mystics for him not know how to hire one."
"Then I would advise haste in our rescue of the boy. I suppose you know where he went?" Cologne asked, though she already had a suspicion of where.
"The place where Ranma and Ryoga fought when Ryoga was doing the Breaking Point training," Ranko said. "That's what I would have done if I were in my brother's place and it sounds like the perfect place to get away."
Cologne nodded. "Allow me to fetch Shampoo and we'll be on our way. Son-in-Law could be fighting a losing battle even as we speak," the old Amazon said and moved so fast Ranko had trouble following with her eyes.
"Think about bringing Razor as well, we may need an experienced healer," Ranko said.
There was no response from Cologne on the upper floor, but she was pretty sure the old woman heard her.
Ranko waited for them to come down when she saw Kasumi and Ukyo come to the restaurant, Kasumi already changed. "What happened?"
"Fried panda," Kasumi said with a smile behind her face mask.
Ranko smirked. "Sorry I missed it."
Three battle-ready Amazons descended the stairs, though Cologne looked the same as always, and greeted the trio of girls. "We should be going as fast as possible," Cologne said, eyeing Kasumi's current state of dress and aura and making a mental note to speak to the girl when this was over. She'd found some... Interesting facts about that necklace.
Everyone in the room agreed with the matriarch's statement.
-----
Mizuki pulled away his binoculars, smiling as he looked to his partner. "You see. I told you he was the best. He's found the bastard. Look and see for yourself." He handed his partner the binoculars.
Kuno Tatewaki took the instrument and saw Ranma in a cross-legged position in a clearing. "Veryly. The fiend Saotome is no doubt strengthening his dark magics."
"Whatever," Mizuki shrugged. "All I know is that once he is dead, my darling Ranko will be mine." He saw Kuno's glare. "I mean, ours, to court."
"Aye," Kuno agreed, knowing that when Ranma was out of the picture Mizuki and his noble person would fight for the lovely goddess' attention.
Suddenly Mizuki's cell phone ringed. "What is it?"
"Sir, we have several people coming close to the perimeter of the clearing. One of them is your 'fiancée'. She has five other people running fast with her."
"What?!" Mizuki shouted.
"Is there a problem?" Kuno asked as he lowered the binoculars.
"Our goddess is rushing to the scene," Mizuki said. Though he loved Ranko-chan, he didn't want her here. "Fortunately, I happened to have planned for such a situation." He went back to the phone. "Get the Five Blades into position. Stop them at any cost. They can kill all of them save the girl with red hair. She's to come out alive and unharmed. Have them knock her out if they can." He gave that last order with some regret.
"Yes sir," Mizuki's subordinate said before hanging up.
"A most unfortunate turn of events. Perhaps we should join the battle against the sorcerer?" Kuno offered, knowing that Ranma had to be stopped here and now.
"No. Our hired hand has told me he wants to keep this one on one. He was rather interested in the sorcerer once you got through with your long speech of his victories," Mizuki replied. "Besides. On the off chance Ranko-chan should break through my perimeter guard and see Ranma dead, I don't think we should give her actual evidence that we were involved in Saotome's death, now do you?"
"Even if it pains me to admit it, you are right. Let us depart from this place and leave the sorcerer to your aide," Kuno said as he handed the binoculars back to Mizuki.
"Don't worry," Mizuki said, getting up from his place. "In all of his life as an assassin from hire, our hired hand has never once failed to kill a target and he's been around for a 'long' time."
"Today the gods weep in joy, as the Sorcerer Saotome meets his doom!" Kuno proclaimed.
-----
He didn't know how long it had been. Days passed and he barely noticed as he concentrated on the task at hand. When he was thirsty he went to the river for fresh water. When he was hungry he either foraged or hunted for food. Being able to fish with his hands sure came handy in the wilderness.
Right now he was finding his center, breathing slowly as he guided himself away from his emotions. What he needed, the state of mind required, was one of lack of emotion. He knew it would cost him dearly. His greatest weapon would be useless in battle now. Yet the rewards went beyond fighting, and that was what he needed right now. That was what he came here for.
"Saotome Ranma."
Ranma turned around to see a man wearing a black jacket and pants come into the clearing. He was seven feet tall, having a good build, no hair, yet the eyes were an almost unearthly yellow.
The pigtailed martial artist, dressed in a dirty gi, assessed the newcomer calmly. Too calmly, for he was just out of his meditation.
"My name is Galich," he said. "I have been contracted to kill you."
Ranma's features remained mostly impassive at that. "By who?"
"I never disclose my employers' names," the man said calmly as he took off his jacket, leaving his chest exposed. "This is nothing personal against you. This is simply a job."
Ranma closed his eyes to return to his meditation. "Beat it. I'm busy here."
Suddenly he was sent back against a tree, feeling a punch sent against his jaw.
"I can't do that. I have accepted the contract. The only way this ends is if I kill you or you kill me," Galich said calmly. "And I've been killing people for much longer than you've been alive, boy."
Ranma shook his head to clear it and slowly stood up. "Nice right cross," he said and smirked slightly. "But I can finish this without killing you."
Galich simply smiled. "Give it your best shot, boy."
Ranma was instantly on Galich's face with a quick sweep.
One the man blocked and then countered with a punch, only to get a kick in the face. He staggered slightly before a smile came on his face. "You are better than a normal human."
"I'm the best there is," Ranma boasted. If he hadn't been training with Kasumi and Ranko he would've taken that hit to the face. This guy was fast.
"For a human maybe," Galich said calmly. "I think I can actually take some of my limits off at this point."
Before Ranma could do anything, the man started to glow with a dark aura that made Ranma feel somewhat ill. This aura had a dark presence. One he had felt before. As he looked at the man, he saw his muscles grow and expand to a much larger size before he stopped.
"Demon," Ranma said with a frown.
"We prefer to be called Youkai. Demon is a term better left for the lesser beings that don't have intelligence," Galich replied.
"Same thing to me," Ranma returned with an arrogant smirk, even if he wasn't feeling as confident as he wanted to project. Good thing his emotions were still tightly under wraps.
"I heard from my employers you were an exceptional martial artist. I initially thought it was nothing to my standards but now," Galich said slowly, eying Ranma behind his shades. "Now I am hoping you give me a decent fight before you die."
Ranma instantly started taking in his surroundings, looking for possible advantages in the terrain and trying to formulate a plan of action. He assumed a defensive battle stance and waited, wanting to test his opponent.
"Take all the time you want," Galich said calmly. "In the end, it will always be the same for me."
-----
Ranko frowned as she felt the Youki coming from the forest. "Shit. That is some strong Youki."
"Indeed it is, child. We are lucky to be here as the fight begins," Cologne said from the side.
"We need to get there and fast," Ranko said, not worrying about anything else but getting to her brother.
"STOP!" Kasumi shouted, halting everyone.
Which was good as a volley of shurikens came right in front of them.
Shampoo and Razor instantly turned to the source of the attack.
Five ninjas each in black clothes stood with their blades raised. "We are the Five Blades. By order of our employer, we cannot let you pass. Leave now if you wish to live."
Ranko snorted. "Let me guess, you can kill everyone but me, huh?" Their silence was enough for her. "I am so going to get Mizuki for this."
"I would advise you to go ahead, child. Son-in-Law doesn't have much time," Cologne said as she eyes the five men calmly, undeterred by their harsh words.
"Are you going to be alright?" Ranko asked. Kasumi unsheathed her katana.
"You have three Amazons, a martial artist chef and a magical girl ninja on your side," Kasumi said half in jest. "Yes. I think you can leave them to us."
"And what makes you think you can escape our sight," one of them said.
Cologne hopped forward and landed lightly on her cane. The ground ahead of her exploded towards the five figures.
"What the?!" They asked in shock.
Ranko took that as her cue to move forward, over the ninjas.
"She's getting away!" one of them said. "Stop..."
"RAIKOU NAMI!" Kasumi cried, launching her chi attack at them, causing them to scatter and face the five women who were at the ready. "You have us to worry about first."
The ninjas drew their swords and charged at the girls.
-----
Galich was locked in a match of strength with Ranma and he was winning, but the boy managed to kick him in the jaw to escape and then followed up with a combo that sent him back a few steps. He then pressed his advantage by landing a kick into his stomach. The boy was in fact much better than his employers had given him credit. "You are by far the best human I've had the pleasure to fight in fifty years."
"For a demon you sure are a wimpy one," Ranma returned, thinking that this demon was a little stronger than Ryoga.
"I am only at fifty percent of my maximum capabilities," Galich said calmly. "If I fought at my full strength against my normal targets, I'd be most likely to cause too much of a scene. Being an assassin is knowing how to gauge your opponent and knowing just how much strength and how much subtlety is needed to accomplish the task."
"You're forgetting something, man," Ranma said with a smirk.
"Oh?"
"You're not the only one that can hold back," the martial artist said and stomped his feet on the floor, cupping his hands to his side. An ominous growl was heard from him as his muscles bulged. "SAOTOME FINAL ATTACK!!!"
Galich stood his ground, eagerly looking forward to what the human had to give him.
Ranma jumped high in the air. Going higher... And higher... And yet higher...
And past Galich, losing himself in the foliage of the trees.
Galich frowned. Cowardly. He smirked then. However, he cannot hide. I have his scent. He held his palm out and growled as a ball of red Youki formed into his hand. He turned around and threw the ball into the woods. "You're it, boy. Let's see if you can avoid being tagged."
Ranma managed to dodge the incoming ball of energy out of sheer speed and continued jumping from branch to branch, trying to figure out how to defeat this foe. For a fleeting moment he thought back to his fight with Ryoga, which happened to be here as well and he used the same technique before winning.
Against Galich he'd have to figure out a good strategy, the Youkai being stronger and faster than he was, so he added an extra burst of speed to get enough thinking time.
He barely managed to avoid it but it scrapped past his shirt, incinerating it and giving a bit of a flash burn to his shoulder before it ended up exploding.
From where he stood, Galich saw Ranma fall to the ground. He's the first one to manage survive not getting tagged by my attack. A smirk came to his face as he felt his blood starting to boil. A human that could be better than any Youkai I ever fought. This is unbelievable.
Ranma let out a soft curse as he landed on his feet and resumed running, hoping the natural obstacles in the way would give him cover long enough to figure out a plan of action.
"You can run, but you cannot hide," Galich's voice was heard, closer than the pigtailed martial artist expected.
He rushed away hoping to buy a little more time and felt yet another energy blast coming his way. His concentration taken on finding a way to dodge he was taken completely off-guard as he felt someone tackling him from the side. Instincts taking over he tried to get free of the hold, yet his attacker turned out to be much smaller than the demon and he couldn't compensate for it.
As they both fell a tree exploded next to them, covering them in splinters.
"Having fun, brother?" Saotome Ranko asked as she got up from atop him, her face and tone of voice showing concern at the situation.
"Just dandy, sis," Ranma returned as he took a deep breath and regained his feet. He was both glad and worried to see his sister here.
"Kodachi came to kill me as a way to stop Mizuki and Kuno's plan to hire an assassin to kill you," Ranko said quickly. "I don't know which one is stupider."
"Well... This guy is packing some serious firepower... Not that I can't handle him," he was quick to add.
"You can handle a Youkai who's just saying he's a bad ass," Ranko said rolling her eyes. "Against someone like this, I'd definitely have two to three Hunters as backup, at least."
Ranma frowned as he saw Galich walking towards them. "Well, I don't see those guys around. All I see are rocks and... Trees..." He trailed off, a familiar confident smirk finding itself on his face. He had a plan.
"Care to share?" Ranko asked. "Hopefully this big lug knows not to kill me."
"And why is that?" Galich said calmly.
Hearing the Youkai say that so calmly meant to Ranko that Mizuki didn't think Ranko would get this far in, despite his guards... Which means he didn't tell his assassin not to kill me or he doesn't get paid.
Ranma also noticed and frowned. "Get away from here, sis. I got him." With that he launched himself at Galich, kicking him across the face and starting to deliver blows in close range.
"You think I'm going anywhere then you are nuts!" Ranko snapped as she started to charge up her chi. She was going to put it all into this shot. Focus yourself to be calm. Focus yourself to peace. She felt her energy gathering up into her hands and was almost there. "Ranma... MOVE!!!"
Ranma jumped and used both feet to hit Galich in the face, sending him flying back.
Ranma moved out of Ranko's line of fire as her hands were sparkling with white chi. "Go to hell Youkai... ZAITEN RYUUBAKUHA!!!" She threw her hands forward and a beam of white chi came forward, barely down and seeming to engulf Galich as it sent him flying far back, going with the momentum that Ranma had kicked him into until neither could see him.
Ranko poured on the power for as long as she could. When she stopped her attack, she dropped to her knees in exhaustion.
Ranma landed elegantly on his feet, breathing heavily because of his exertions in fighting the Youkai in close quarters, and turned to his sister. "You okay, sis?"
"Using the Heavenly Dragon Blast... It always takes a bit out of me," Ranko breathed. "I don't fire it off regularly. I use it as a last resort but it's very damn powerful." She looked up to her brother. "How often do you fire off your Moko Takabisha in a fight?"
"When fighting Ryoga? At least a dozen times," Ranma returned as he approached his sister.
"Wow, talk about endurance," Ranko chuckled. She was about to say something else but then saw something coming his way. "RANMA!" She shoved her brother aside, taking a chi blast to the stomach that sent her flying into a tree and she fell to the ground with a thud, unconscious.
Ranma rolled with the fall and turned to see his sister, "RANKO!"
"She isn't dead." Ranma looked up and saw Galich, still standing, his body smoking. His yellow eyes stared at the martial artist. "I don't normally leave witnesses, however that girl did something I wouldn't have expected of a human female. For that reason, I'll let her live." He spared a glance at Ranko's form before looking back to Ranma with a smirk. "However, once I kill you I think she would've preferred I simply killed her too, if that display of affection was any indication of your bond."
Ranma's lips formed a thin line at that. "Let's get this over with."
"Yes. And now I shall honor you by finishing you off in my true form," Galich said, his voice showing his respect for his human opponent. "This is an honor that no human I have fought has ever been granted." He started to channel his Yokai again... And this time more physical changes began to happen. His skin tone changed from that of a human to a dull green, which changed from skin to actual scales. His hands became a set of claws. His clothing ripped apart, leaving him clad in a pair of shorts. He looked very much like a demonic lizardman.
When he was done, he smiled. "Now, we can begin." He held his hand out and started to charge his Yokai. "I suggest you start charging your chi."
Ranma smirked arrogantly. "I don't need chi to defeat a weakling like you."
"Arrogant till the end," Galich said with a smirk as he fired off his blast.
-----
Kasumi saw an explosion of energy, even from where she was. It was rather far away. Damn it! This doesn't look good! She thought as her blade was locked with her opponent's. Mizuki hired rather competent men.
Cologne was the only one having an easy time right now, though she didn't finish off her opponent mainly because she was aiding Ukyo and Razor now and then, their skills not up to par with Shampoo's and Kasumi's.
"Give it up woman! You cannot defeat us!" Kasumi's opponent said.
Kasumi narrowed her eyes as she worked out a new step move she had been practicing. She blocked the slash, kicked at the legs, which was avoided but then rolled with her elbow, striking the jaw of her enemy before slashing him across the chest, cutting shallowly into his body. The sight of blood did not unnerve her as it would have had she not been wearing the necklace. Nor did the splattering of her opponent's blood on her body or face.
All that mattered to her was having the moment where his defenses were down so she could slam the hilt of her katana against the back of his head and then smash his face into the ground.
"Defeated," she said coolly, looking down upon her adversary.
Cologne eyed Kasumi strangely, as if the final piece of the puzzle fell into place for something, and turned to the other three men. "I suggest you run along now."
The remaining blades saw their chances and knew that the kunoichi was being gracious. She intended to kill if they didn't back off. They had been paid to guard, however not enough for their lives to be put on the line.
Without a word they picked up their fallen comrades and left.
"That was surprising," Kasumi said calmly as she over looked everyone. "Ukyo, Razor, Shampoo, are you all alright?"
"We're fine, sugar," Ukyo said tiredly. "... How are you, though?" She asked nervously, never having expected to see Kasumi so callously injure someone.
"I'm fine," Kasumi said sheathing her katana quietly.
"The fight continues," Cologne said, turning towards the forest. "And not in favor of Son-in-Law." She could feel the Youkai's attacks still strong, while Ranma's chi was low. Ranko's couldn't be felt at all.
"Then let's hurry," Kasumi said, rushing toward the sight of the battle.
-----
Ranma skidded on the floor and coughed up blood, having been thrown through a series of trees once more. What was it? The fifth time? He was heavily beat up, now unable to dodge at all with several broken ribs, and struggled to a sitting position. As he did he felt some loose gravel on his hand instead of grass and his left eye opened wide, his right one swollen shut.
Looking to the floor Ranma saw that he was, indeed, in the spot where Ryoga tried to blow him up with the Bakusai Tenketsu.
Galich walked calmly too him, holding his hand up. "What is your game? You were much better before. Do you enjoy being a punching bag now?"
Ranma shakily stood up, smiling at the approaching demon, and spit some blood to the side. "Have you given it your best?"
Galich simply smiled as his Yokai burned all around him. "I think I've played long enough. It's time to end this." He stared Ranma in the eyes with a measure of respect. "It has been an honor to fight you, Saotome Ranma." He then swung his fist, intent on it connecting with Ranma's skull, only this time it would blow up when his fist connected.
Ranma crouched low, getting a glancing blow on his forehead that opened a gash, and threw an uppercut of his own. "HIRYU SHOTEN HA!!!"
The uppercut missed the mark, but even as Galich was about to comment on this a literal tornado pulled him into its violent winds, Ranma at the center.
Normally such technique defeated the opponents, consuming their energy as the winds threw their body around. Galich was too powerful for that, though. And in such power came the success of Ranma's plan. He was powerful enough that the tornado was so strong it picked up even rocks.
The Youkai could do nothing but stare helplessly as stones and broken branches came at him at speeds that would tear his body to shreds.
Upon realizing the situation he was in, the demon stared at his incoming destruction only able to utter a curse drowned by the thundering winds around him. "Damn."
Those were his final words before his body was ripped to shreds by the attack.
Ranma just smirked victoriously before collapsing, his injuries taking their toll on him.
-----
"Ranma!" Kasumi cried, rushing to the pigtailed martial artist. She put her ear to his heart, and found it still beat. "Thank goodness. He's only unconscious."
"Indeed," Cologne said as she gauged the destruction around. "And from the look of things he defeated the demon. Truly amazing."
Shampoo and Ukyo were about to rush to Ranma's side, and hopefully get him away from Kasumi, when the elder turned to them and Razor. "You three go in search of Ranko. She should be around as well."
"But great..." Shampoo started to protest, only to be cowed by a harsh look her way. "Yes, great grandmother."
Kasumi noticed the look the matriarch had and waited until they were gone before she asked. "Something you wish to tell me, Elder?"
"Later, child. For now I believe it would be in Son-in-Law's best interest if his body wasn't fought over. His injuries look serious," Cologne said and knelt by the pigtailed martial artist's side, examining his injuries more closely.
"Later then, but you are right. That is in his best interest," Kasumi said stepping back and letting the elder do her job. "How bad is it?"
Cologne frowned slightly as she prodded his ribs lightly, eliciting unconscious moans of pain. She applied a couple of pressure points for the pain. "The injuries to his face and ribs should heal properly, like usual. It is the fact that he is bleeding internally that worries me. If I didn't know better I'd say he fought the Youkai in close quarters, something he'd know not to do."
"Why would he, though?" Kasumi asked.
"Why indeed?" Cologne asked rhetorically and studied the terrain again. This was the same place where he fought Ryoga after the Bakusai Tenketsu training. She smiled slightly.
"What?" Kasumi asked, picking up on that smile.
"It would appear the boy has made some remarkable progress with one particular technique," Cologne said. Kasumi didn't even need to ask. They saw the tornado as they ran towards the fighting site, and had to dive for cover when the debris came crashing down.
"The Hiryu Shoten Ha," Kasumi breathed out. It was her first time actually seeing it.
"We must make haste and bring Son-in-Law to a doctor. And if Ranko was hurt as well we'll be carrying them both back."
Kasumi nodded and looked at the girls coming back. Ranko was being supported by them, but it was clear she wasn't doing much walking. She was conscious but barely. She saw her brother on the ground but realized that since they were all alive... "It's dead..." She said with a smile. "Someone wake me up tomorrow." She added before falling back into unconsciousness, her body letting go.
-----
Ranma started to come to, looking around his surroundings. It looked like he was in a bed, in what appeared to be the back of doctor Tofu's office.
"Welcome back bro," he heard Ranko's voice. Looking to the left, he saw she was in bed herself, laid up with bandages around her head, her right arm in a sling.
At the sight of his injured sister Ranma tried to get up to check on her. Tried being the key word, as his chest burned with pain and he dropped back onto the bed clutching it in pain.
"Would you just stay in bed before you hurt yourself?" Ranko asked. "I mean, more than you already are, at any rate."
"Yeah, yeah... Love ya too, sis," Ranma grumbled, still wincing in pain as he tried to control the pain he was in.
"... I'm sorry."
"Huh?" Ranma asked intelligently, this time being more careful as he turned to regard his sibling. He winced slightly at the look of her injuries, but still his confusion won out. "What for?"
"For scaring you. For making you think I broke my promise," Ranko said in shame. "I'm sorry, Ranma. I... Just panicked."
"I'm not scared of nothing..." Ranma grumbled, knowing that if he shouted it he'd be in a lot of pain. Previous experience with broken ribs told him so. "And what are ya talking 'bout?"
"I'm talking about the whole stupid ultimatum I gave you that made you go out into the wild to begin with," Ranko sighed. "You were scared of me getting hurt by Ryoga, right?"
With that Ranma remembered what happened and slumped even further into the bed, staring at the ceiling with an emotionless expression on his face. The redhead could feel the lack of warmth coming from his words as he spoke. "Ya can do what ya want, sister. I just needed training." His words, the lack of his more affectionate 'sis' when referring to her and the sudden chill she felt all lead to one thing. He was using that Soul of Ice technique, suppressing his emotions.
"Don't do this," Ranko pleaded. "Don't shut me out like this! Aren't we family? Aren't we twins! I am trying to say I am sorry for what I did without considering your feelings, and you're trying to write it off like it's nothing at all! WHY?!"
Ranma remained staring at the ceiling as he was, because he knew if he saw his sister his emotional defenses would crumble. He could never stand a crying girl, and if it was his beloved sister he'd be defeated without fighting back. "I don't want to hurt you anymore," he said in the same monotone as before. "It... Hurts when I do..."
"And you don't think the same holds true for me?" Ranko asked. "Ranma, I love you so much. You are my brother. All I want, all I have ever wanted, is that you don't treat me like I'm just another girl. We are twins. We should be equal... No matter how much better you are than I am at martial arts."
At the admission of love Ranma's resolve started to crumble incredibly fast. By the time Ranko was finished speaking he had turned to regard her with a hurt expression on his face. "I don't want ta see ya get hurt, sis. If that makes ya angry... Then..." He sighed and trailed off, before he said something wrong again.
"And what about you? How do you think I feel when I see YOU hurt?" Ranko asked.
"I'm used ta it," Ranma said with a shrug, which in itself caused him to wince again. "But it's not the same."
"... Is that it? Is that the reason? Do you really have that low of an opinion of yourself?" Ranko asked sadly. "Ranma, you have people that care about you. People that worry about you. Do you know how many of us came to help you once we found out that Kuno and Mizuki had hired that Youkai out to kill you? Ukyo, Shampoo, Elder Cologne, Razor, but most of all Kasumi. She was probably even more ticked off than I was and that's saying something in itself."
The pigtailed young man shifted uncomfortably in bed and changed the subject, trying to get into more familiar ground. "That was some attack you used, sis." He just hoped his little sister didn't press for an answer from feelings he didn't recognize and couldn't very well organize right now. It seemed like he needed to talk more to Kasumi, who always seemed to know what to say or do for him to understand things.
Ranko sighed. She didn't want this. Yet she didn't want to push, she didn't want to do something that would drive him away again. But how? How do I get him to...
"Ranma-kun. Don't do this."
The twins turned to look at who had just walked through the door to their room.
Kasumi.
"All you are doing, is hurting yourself and Ranko-chan." Kasumi said.
It was interesting to see how Ranma, whose resolve was very strong in his stubbornness, seemed to crumble with just a look from Kasumi. He closed his eyes and sighed. "Kasumi-chan... It's hard..."
"Would you rather wish to feel pain for a very long time or a just a few moments?" Kasumi asked as she walked over to Ranma. "Ranma-kun. Nothing worth anything of real value is ever easy. Your dedication to the martial arts, the way you prize that above many other things in your life, that's easy. It may not devalue its worth to you but for you, it's easy to do." She looked at him seriously, but with sympathy in her eyes. "But trying to express yourself with your emotions. That's hard. Yet you do something I know Saotome Ranma would never do in a fight: You run away."
The pigtailed martial artist opened his blue-gray eyes and stared at Kasumi intensely. "How do you always know what to say, Kasumi-chan?"
"Because I know you, Ranma-kun. I know you very well, but not because you've been living with us for some time," Kasumi answered. "But because we are very much alike. We try to deflect how we truly feel for the sake of those close to us. But that's wrong." She put her right hand over her enchanted necklace. "You saw first hand how I acted when I first gained this. Back then, everything I had repressed or refused to let come to the surface came forth in abundance, with no restraint, no control. I nearly hurt the people I care about... And you could very well end up doing the same thing, if you don't open up yourself every once and a while. I don't expect you to change. You aren't the type to let your emotions, the ones that you know I am referring to, show openly all the time, but seriously Ranma-kun... Don't you think it's alright to let them show every once and a while?"
Ranma shifted uncomfortably, clearly because he was being faced with the bitter truth. He also felt like dirt next to Kasumi since she hid her emotions to make others feel better. For him it was because emotions were a sign of weakness, something Genma beat out of him early on in the training trip. He wasn't so noble as to believe he hid his emotions for the sake of others, it was because he didn't know how to deal with other people when he did.
No... Compared to Kasumi he didn't feel like dirt, he felt lower than mud. "... I guess..." He said unconvincingly, but agreeing with the young woman.
Kasumi nodded to him. "So then, isn't there something that you need to say then?"
"... I'm... Sorry...?" Ranma asked dubiously, not even sure why he was apologizing but guessing that was it.
Kasumi shook her head. "When you can understand why you need to say what you say, it has its meaning. Don't ever say you are sorry for something when you don't even know the reason why." She took a moment before speaking again. "Ranma-kun, you want to protect your sister, and I am not saying you shouldn't, but she does have the freedom to do as she pleases. Such as training with Ryoga." She put two fingers to his lips silence him before speaking. "You know Ryoga. Do you honestly think he'll seriously injure a woman, even if she is your sister?"
Ranma frowned at that. "He won't on purpose... But more than once he's gotten carried away..."
"But don't you think Ranko knows enough when to quit, and don't you think Ryoga knows what would happen if he did seriously hurt Ranko what would happen to him, not to mention his own guilt?"
Ranma looked away as he spoke, wincing internally as his voice cracked slightly showing how upset he was over this. "I just don't want you girls to get hurt..."
"Getting hurt is a simple fact of life, whether it be training in martial arts, or playing sports, or doing anything physical. And I am sure Ranko-chan has gotten hurt during her own training before," Kasumi replied. "All you need, is to trust in her decisions, but know to voice your own opinion when you see how things look after sometime."
"... I'll try..." Ranma finally conceded. "I can't say I'll let you get hurt... But I'll try."
For Ranko, it was the biggest victory she had gained with her brother, even if she herself hadn't achieved it on her own but rather Kasumi had done it for her.
Yet looking at how Kasumi was working her way into Ranma's heart, she didn't really think it mattered. Maybe Ranko could only get through her brother in one way or another.
But Kasumi it seemed could get through to him, and get him to see things he'd normally shut his eyes to or turn away from.
"Thank you, brother," Ranko said with tears of joy in her eyes, knowing now that the future looked much brighter.
For all of them.
To Be Continued...
Author's Notes: Wow. It has been over two years since we started putting this story up. Now eight chapters and two hundred plus pages later its our most popular story. It took forever to get this one done but after the reviews of the last chapter, we felt the need to go back and do some rewrites and add in scenes to deal with things that hadn't been resolved in the previous chapter. I hope you enjoyed this chapter after such a long wait. Sadly, I can't give an estimate on when we'll be able to put up the next chapter. All I can tell you is that we are working on it... and its ending will be worth the wait.
Until next time.