A New Challenge
-By: Chiba Hiro
*Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma ½ or any of its contents, it all belongs to Rumiko Takahashi and Viz media.*
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Chapter 3: Going back to China
"I'll take the job offer, Old Ghoul. Just tell me what to do next." Ranma stated.
"Oh, goody! Now we'll be leaving first thing tomorrow morning!" Cologne exclaimed.
"But why does it have to be so soon? Can't he just spend at least one more week here before he goes back to China?" Akane asked.
"Heavens, no. When Ranma decided to take the job offer, he is needed immediately in Jusenkyo." Cologne said.
"But…" Akane protested, but Soun interrupted.
"Darling, Ranma has to do this. It's for your future together. He'll be back again some day." Soun stated.
"Um, unfortunately, Mr. Tendo, he cannot return here." Cologne stated.
"Well, why in the world not?" Soun exclaimed.
"Once he becomes a Jusenkyo guardian, his position is for him to stay there for as long as he is able, in other words, he cannot leave the waters for any reason." Cologne explained.
"You mean he has to stay there for the rest of his life?" Genma asked.
"No, he is to stay there until he is beaten in battle. The laws of Jusenkyo clearly state that once he accepts the position, he must stay there until a worthy opponent surpasses him. You know that once a person ages, he becomes weaker, and as a result, the person who defeats him will become the next guardian, and the cycle never ends, you see." Cologne explained.
"Then how will Ranma get to marry Akane if he is not here to wed her?" Soun asked dramatically.
"The only way for a wedding to occur is to have the girl fly to Jusenkyo with him." Cologne answered.
"Then it is settled, Akane will go with Ranma first thing tomorrow morning!" Soun declared.
"But Dad, I still have to finish school!" Akane protested. "And I don't wanna go with Ranma to Jusenkyo for the rest of his life! I have my own life, you know!"
"Then we'll have you transferred to a school in China! Is that fair enough?" Soun proposed.
"That's easy for you to say! I don't speak Chinese, you know!" Akane argued.
"That's how you'll learn though." Soun put in.
"Yeah, after all, you're a pretty fast learner, Akane." Kasumi added.
"I don't wanna go to China like this." Akane complained.
"Well, whether you want to go or not, Ranma's decision to go is final, and if time serves us right, you won't get to see Ranma here for another fifty years!" Cologne jokingly explained.
"Fifty years?" they all said in unison.
"Who knows if we'll even remember Ranma by then, after all, I'd want to marry someone who's not an old geezer!" Akane exclaimed.
"Anyway, Ranma, please meet me at the airport tomorrow at no later than nine o'clock. Do you understand?" Cologne said, and hopped out the front door before anyone could ask any questions.
"But why, son?" Soun cried, and dropped to his knees in front of Ranma, and Genma followed suit.
"Why did you accept the job?" Soun cried out.
"Why are you going to leave us?" Genma cried.
"Hey, stop slobbering all over my feet! It's gross!" Ranma shouted.
"Ranma, what if you don't come back in fifty years? Who knows what might become of our dads." Akane lectured.
Just as they started their argument, Genma and Soun left them to bicker.
"Akane, you take things way too seriously." Ranma said with no humor in his tone.
"What do you mean?" Akane demanded.
"The old hag forgot to tell you that once I did my fair share of work in Jusenkyo, the chiefs will agree to cure me of my curse forever, and once that's over, I'll run loose and say good bye to that place for good! I won't be stuck there for fifty years! Don't worry." Ranma boasted.
"Yeah, but what if that takes fifty years to cure you?" Akane asked.
"They ain't hold me without a cure forever. I'll do whatever it takes to get cured, even if it takes ten, twenty, or even thirty years for them to agree to cure me. By then, they'd be old guys, and they'll be dying of old age!" Ranma reassured her.
"Well, excuse me for thinking of the possibilities!" Akane shouted angrily.
"Cool it, Akane. I said I'll help them keep potential dangers from emerging from Jusenkyo, and I would. Even if it takes half a century, maybe I'll have meant something to you!" Ranma shouted.
"Well, how about I make proposal for you?" Ranma suggested.
"Yeah, what is it?" Akane blushed.
"If…or when I come back as a whole man again some day, will you promise to wait for me by then? I'll come back as soon as I'm cured, even if I have to beat the cure out of them, and then we'll agree to live together again. Right? Whadda ya' say about that?" Ranma proposed.
It took several moments for Akane to respond, but Ranma waited.
Akane looked up at Ranma once again, and responded.
"I will." Akane said, and walked past him to go to her room.
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Next morning, at the airport, Genma saw to it that Ranma made it there on time.
"Well, son, if you ever find a cure for yourself, make sure to bring it in a bottle, and share it with me, okay? And remember to always eat well, get plenty of exercise, do regular training regimens, and follow everything that your bosses tell you, okay?" Genma lectured.
"I know, dad. Stop telling me what to do already! I'm eighteen now, I'm not a kid anymore." Ranma stated.
Genma's eyes filled with tears as he heard Ranma declare that he was not a child any longer.
"You're right. I shouldn't be telling you this, but… this reminds me of the time I took you with me on our first training trip, it was by far the hardest part of our journey, and I'll never forget when your mother sent me that letter!" Genma exclaimed through choked tears.
"Now, I know exactly how she felt when you have to part from your only source of comfort!" Genma stated.
"Dad, stop it already! You're embarrassing me!" Ranma shouted.
"I know. But it's because I truly care for you, and not that it's important, but I want you to know something." Genma said darkly. "Don't let anyone beat you, for any reason. You were meant for this job, and I want you to come out on top of it."
"Dad, I'm gonna be a guardian, not a champion wrestler." Ranma reminded him.
"Yeah, I know. But, be careful." Genma warned.
"I know, dad." Ranma said.
"And one last thing." Genma continued. "Keep in touch with us. We want to know how you're doing, and we won't be able to do that if you keep us in the dark."
"Dad, I know already! Now, are you gonna leave, or not? The Old Ghoul's gonna be here any minute now, and I wanna meet her here alone!" Ranma snapped.
"Yes, but one more thing. Why is she going with you to China?" Genma whispered into Ranma's ear.
"How the heck should I know? She's the one who decided to accompany me to China, and as far as I'm concerned, she's the Chinese expert here, not me." Ranma said, and folded his arms across his chest as Genma left him to wait for Colonge alone.
Twenty minutes passed, and there was no sign of Cologne yet.
"Damn it, what could be taking her so long? She said I have to be here by nine o'clock, and now it's almost nine-thirty!" Ranma shouted.
Another twenty minutes passed, and there was still no sign of Cologne yet.
"Damn it, if she doesn't make it here with the tickets fast enough, I'm going home! If she doesn't make it here in another ten minutes, I might just kill someone!" Ranma said to himself.
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"Excuse me, but have you been waiting long?" a young feminine voice asked from behind Ranma.
Ranma turned to face the speaker, and saw that it was a tall, Chinese girl with long, lavender hair, and emerald green eyes, but something about her made her extremely familiar to Ranma, he thought.
"Um, do I know you by any chance, miss?" Ranma asked.
The lavender haired Chinese girl snapped, and whacked him on the head with a familiar walking stick that normally belongs to Cologne. "It's me, you fool!"
"Ouch! Hey, what did you do that for, lady?" Ranma asked, and patted his throbbing head.
"You don't even recognize your own escort! I am Cologne!" she shouted.
"What?" Ranma asked confused, and his face turned a sickly white as he made the connection between Cologne and this new girl.
"But how did you…" Ranma started, but this younger Cologne finished for him.
"I simply used a charm that makes me look, and act younger again." Cologne explained.
"Wow! You look…uh, very…attractive." Ranma hesitated, but managed to compliment her.
"Oh, you like it? I'm very thrilled!" Cologne exclaimed.
"But, what's with the younger look? I mean, what's wrong with what you looked like before?" Ranma asked.
"Because people would treat me better if I looked like a youngster again, and besides, I can move faster now!" Cologne exclaimed, and leaped into the air.
In midair, Cologne did a series of flips, twists, and rolls, and then she landed gracefully on the ground all in one minute.
"Wow! That was cool, Old Ghoul!" Ranma complimented.
"That's Cologne for you. And I better not hear the words 'Old Ghoul' or 'old hag' come out of your lips while I take on this form, if that understood?" Cologne threatened lightly, and led him inside the airport.
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A/N: Well, this is another chapter brought to you by me! I hope you all enjoyed reading this story so far! Please rate, comment, and review this chapter, and tell me what you all think! Thanks!