Chapter 3: Genma
Genma sat beneath the bridge by the canal, near where he stashed his camping gear. Ranma had come looking for him a few times, but the father was still good enough to hide from the son. The boy was getting stronger though, no doubt about it. Genma was going to have to move on before Ranma managed to break the Umisen-ken and beat the crap out of Genma for draining the family bank accounts. The Amazons were also looking for him because he had attempted to place a second mortgage on the Cat Café – Nabiki had known and told on him once she found out what happened between Nodoka and himself. So were half-a-dozen other small business men for the same reasons. Unfortunately, one of them had Yakuza connections outside of Nerima, so now Genma was known to the Tokyo underworld. Fortunately, he had managed to intercept the settlement to Nodoka for the loss of the Saotome home, but now the Kuno ninjas were also after him too. All-in-all, Nerima had turned south on Genma. The town had forgiven the Amazons, but now Genma was the most hated man in Nerima. He had to steal anything he needed – trying to buy it would lead to a successful sale but would also unleash the hounds.
**Sigh** He never should have told Nodoka that "she had no honor now". He might have been able to fix things eventually if it wasn't for that childish remark. But he knew now that Nodoka would never forgive him for selling Ranma over and over again – even if he did steal Ranma back. He had talked to Ranma (before Genma stole the settlement), and Ranma said Nodoka wouldn't talk to her son about it, so Ranma couldn't get her to change her mind.
His son then proceeded to beat Genma severely for tampering with Nodoka's medicines. As far as Ranma was concerned, that was Genma's unforgivable sin. Ranma yelled at Genma about finally having a mother Ranma could count on, and how Genma was trying to destroy her. He yelled that Genma was trying to destroy everything good in Ranma's life. Genma thought that the boy had finally broken and was going to kill Genma, but Ranma didn't. When Genma was lying defenseless before him, Ranma stopped himself. He then stopped the worse of Genma's bleeding, and straightened Genma's arm and leg, setting splints on them and knowing that his father would speed heal. Ranma then turned away and started to leave, but spoke instead. "Genma…" he started and then stopped. The boy bowed his head and cursed his weakness. "Pops," he started again. "I think it's time you moved on. You cannot come back to the dojo ever again. Mr. Tendo has made it clear that you are no longer welcomed after trying to sabotage Mom's medicines. You've broken one of the cardinal rules of the household. Besides, Mom will kill you in your sleep. You're not happy staying in one place anyway – you've been ready to leave ever since Jusendo. But, I'm not ready to leave and I never will be. My place is with Akane and I'm happy here. It's time to head south, Pops. Follow the warm weather." With that Ranma walked away.
Genma winced at the memory. The one constant in his life for nearly twenty years was gone. He knew Ranma still cared about him, but the others had taken Ranma away from him. So, Genma sat under the bridge trying to think of what to do next. He thought about leaving Japan, but the Kuno settlement wasn't enough to retire on. Maybe he should work his way south to Okinawa. The weather was warmer there, so he could save some money that way – he didn't really mind the heat. Also, there were a lot of transients in certain parts of the islands, so there were plenty of fresh fools. He'd rather not work at all, but maybe he could get some work at a dojo teaching. He was good enough at several forms for that (easily).
As he lay there, a voice wheezed out at him. "Well, well, Genma Uchida. As I live and breathed, I never expected to find you in Nerima. I wondered who was using my Umisen-Ken. I thought you were dead."
At that name, Genma sat up like he was shot out of a gun. He glanced at the old woman who had appeared to his right. "You must have married and taken her name to escape my wraiths. Amazing – I never would have thought you were that smart," the old woman continued.
"Mara!" Genma exclaimed. Then his eyes grew wary. "I have no disagreement with you anymore, old woman, and you should have none with me. I was punished unjustly by you."
"Is that the spin your little mind put on our adventure together? You break into my shop and steal my scroll, refuse to give payment, and then complain when I extract it from you? Next time, don't shed in my shop. By the way, you'll be happy to know that your hair is a big hit in Hell. Many the demon lord has bartered a soul for it. They pass it around like a cherished doll. Many of them have asked about the rest of you too…" Mara told him.
"Go away, old woman," he told her. "I have no business with you."
"Shut up and move over," she told him. "That was long ago. I got my revenge. This sun is hot."
Genma warily did what he was told. "Why are you here, old witch?" he asked.
She slapped him on the head as she sat down. She was dressed in old sackcloth robes. Other than that, she looked like any other grey haired old woman. "I should be offended that you would lump me in with witches, and witches would definitely be offended to be lumped in with me. I'm an ogress, idiot. You already know that. You've seem my true form. I'm here looking for deals as I always am. You find the strangest things in Nerima, so I like to check by once in a while. I just picked up some hermaphrodite tears of all things – excellent for youth potions. Why are you here, idiot?"
"That's my own business hag," Genma said uncowed.
"Yes, but you look thoroughly disgruntled – I could use a story with a happy ending. How about a bottle of sake to loosen your tongue?" the ogress said, bouncing a sealed bottle of sake on her hand. "Even trade – the untainted bottle for the untainted story?"
Genma looked at the bottle carefully. It had the seal of one of the local stores. "Deal!" he said snatching the bottle.
The old woman laughed as he drank from it. "Now, give the story Genma!" she demanded.
Genma found himself telling the unvarnished truth, starting at the failed wedding and running all the way until today. He found that he couldn't embellish it or put any spin on it. Even to his ears, he sounded like a complete idiot. When he finished, the old woman collapsed in helpless laughter. "Oh, that was priceless, Genma!" she hooted. "That story will warm the cockles of my heart on many a cold night!"
"You tricked me, old hag" he grumbled.
"I did no such thing!" the woman laughed. "A deal is a deal. The sake is everything I said it was. It was untainted, so your story had to be as well. If you don't like the ending, that's too bad – you wrote it. At least you got a bottle of good sake for it," she continued chuckling.
Genma made a face at her and took another drink. "Well, since it's given you such joy, how about a comment on what I should do next?" he asked sourly.
"You already know that part," she said. "Get out of town while the getting is good. If you're determined to cheat your wife out of her share of the settlement, go south to Okinawa before your former son/daughter finds you. You can get lost in the islands down there. The weather's warm enough that you never need fear the cold. You can use your panda shape to rough it if need be. All-in-all, you'll probably be happy, so why not do it?" she asked as she took out a pipe and stuffed tobacco in it.
"Because I want better! I worked hard for better using my worthless son, and he tossed me aside!" Genma snarled.
"That's not what I just heard," the ogress said. "He gave you every chance. He kept hoping that you'd catch on and settle down. Finally he had to make some tough decisions, something that actually caused him a bit of pain judging from his actions. He decided to move forward from there."
Genma paused for a second, and then said "He should have chosen me over everyone else." His voice didn't sound as fierce.
The old woman looked amused. "You have got to be kidding! Choose an abusive father over a loving mother? Reject his true love and become homeless? Leave behind every friend he has to be your servant? Why on earth would he decide in your favor?"
"Because I'm his father!" Genma insisted.
The woman blew smoke rings from her mouth. "Is that what you call it? If that story represents what you did to him over the last eight months, I don't want to think about what you did to him over the last eighteen years. No, you were never his father – you were his Master and the Slave has broken free. He's unlikely to ever return to bondage. Yet, your son loved you despite everything. He gave you every chance to actually become his father. He kept trying right up until the moment it was obvious that trying any further would destroy his life. Even in the end, he never denied he was your son despite the fact he tried to force himself. Now, it's done. He has moved on. Be a big boy and accept the fact that you will not do what is necessary to get him back."
"What's that?" Genma asked subdued.
"Apologize to him. Not just to him, but your wife, your best friend, and your best friend's family. Then make amends. Everyone will be very wary of you at first, and you'll never have the trust you once had, but they will include you again. In time, they will even forgive you, even if they don't quite forget. However, you'll probably actually end up happier than if you went to Okinawa," she told him while she blew smoke figure "8"s.
"Never!" Genma insisted.
The transformed ogress just shrugged her shoulders and started to blow out smoke squares.
"But I want him back," Genma said quietly.
The old woman rolled her eyes. "Amazing, you actually miss him. You could tell him that, but it won't work without an apology," she stated firmly. "Even so, he won't follow you again. He's in love with your friend's daughter, and he knows that every baby bird must leave the nest and make its way in the world."
Genma laid down on the ground as the words sank in. "There must be a way to get him to come back to me," he thought. The two stayed like that for some time, Mara puffing on her pipe and Genma thinking. Suddenly Genma sat up. "If everyone turned their backs on him, he would have to come crawling to me," Genma said out loud.
"Are you for real?" the enchantress asked.
"All I need to do is lock his curse," Genma stated. "Then he cannot marry. Soun won't let him teach if he can't marry into the dojo. His mother won't accept him anymore either. It's perfect!"
"Not even close," the old woman said.
"Mara, do you have anything that will lock his curse?" Genma asked.
"Are you even listening to me?" she asked in turn.
"He was locked a couple of times in his cursed form. Surely you have to have something?" he pressed.
The ogress sighed. "I suppose a sale is a sale. What do you have to offer for a locking potion?"
"What do you want?" Genma asked.
"The usual will do, Genma. I can see if someone wants your soul," she said sarcastically.
"Fine, fine," Genma agreed. "I can stiff them later."
"You really are an idiot, aren't you?" she asked him.
"C'mon. Make with the magic," he prompted her.
The ogress sighed again and closed her eyes. After several minutes, she opened her eyes in surprise. "There are no takers," she said astonished.
"What?" Genma asked surprised. "What do you mean there's no takers? Did they know I was going to stiff them?"
"First off, I'm not sure how you thought you would stiff the demons," she asked. "Second off, there are no takers because they are sure you're already on the way, and whoever has your hair when you die will get the rest of you."
"Of all the presumptuous morons…" Genma started. He then followed up with some swearing.
"Genma, are you listening at all?" Mara asked. "Hell's sure you are coming to them. Don't you think you should be a little worried? Like worried enough to run to a monastery and swear to a life of helping people? I'm an ogress and I don't want to go to Hell!"
"Ah, I'll just trick someone to go in my place," Genma said confidently.
The ogress reached into her backpack and took out another bottle of sake. She opened the bottle and took a long swig. "Genma," Mara started, "No one goes to Hell willingly. They are either dragged there or they cannot get into Heaven and cannot get re-born. You have to go somewhere though. If the demons are sure you are bound for Hell, it's because they don't think you'll get re-born and they are sure you won't get into Heaven."
"Then I'll just become a gaki," Genma said.
"Oh, and that's so much better," Mara said sarcastically. "Fine, but you still have no takers."
"What about Ranma's soul? Could I sell him to them for the potion? I am still legally his father," Genma said.
Mara blinked. "You want to sell them your son's soul? The son you want for yourself?" she asked.
"Yes, but they can't have him until after I'm dead," Genma confirmed.
Mara just stared at him.
"C'mon, c'mon…" Genma prompted.
Mara closed her eyes again and Genma waited. When she finally opened her eyes, there was a bit of wonder in them. "Well, that was interesting…" she said.
"Any takers?" Genma asked.
"The short answer was 'No'…" Mara answered.
"What? Why the hell not? What's wrong with my son?" Genma asked with wounded pride.
Mara looked at him with curiosity. "The majority of the demons said either you have no son, or that your son was already dead and beyond them. Some gave his death date as 14 years ago, some insisted that he died about 8 years ago, some said he died about two years ago, and others insisted that he died within the last year. The more powerful the demon, the later the death year was. Several of the demon lords just laughed hysterically and said 'No'. One went as far to say that when Armageddon occurs, they want it to be on Earth, not in Hell. Overall, Genma, I'd have to say that those who believe Ranma is alive also believe he's more trouble than he's worth. That's a first for me…"
"Maybe they aren't so stupid…" Genma grumbled. He thought for a minute, and then said, "I know! Promise them my second born."
"Genma, your wife won't let you near her and hasn't since you left her all those years ago. How are you going to have a second child? Also, weren't you trying to drive your wife into an asylum?"
Genma just waved his hand in a dismissing gesture. "I'll just hook up with someone later," he said.
Mara looked at him in disgust and debated just leaving. Finally, she closed her eyes and opened them quickly, "You have a taker. One of the weaker demons is willing to gamble. He'll put up the power for the potion. He'll also pay me for brokering the deal."
"Excellent! Do it!" Genma exclaimed.
Mara looked like she was getting a migraine, but held out her hand and a potion appeared. "Here's the deal: you splash this on anyone and it will lock one curse and only one curse. There's only one dose, so don't miss."
"Fantasic! I'll soon have Ranma crawling to me! Then I can take him south and we can earn some money in the Fight Clubs! This will be great!" Genma exclaimed. With that he grabbed the potion, grabbed his backpack, and took off without another word.
Mara watched him run away. A look of rage crossed her face and she pulled a short wand out of her pack, and then pointed it at the retreating Genma. She muttered some angry words, causing sparks to fly from the wand. "There," she said to herself. "At least I know that Genma will never produce any more offspring to harm…"
With a grim face, she put the wand away again and pulled out a small mirror. She tapped the mirror three times, and Henna's face appeared within the glass. "All right, Henna. I sold Genma your potion. He thinks he just sold his second born to Hell," Mara told the image.
"Excellent, Mara. I knew I could count on you. Once Ranma is locked in his female form and the 'Kiss of Marriage' cannot be fulfilled, I can get the Amazon elders to order Shampoo to carry through on the 'Kiss of Death'. Ranma will kill Shampoo and that will be that," Henna said.
"My payment?" Mara asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes, yes…three souls as we agreed," Henna said. Suddenly, three glass spheres appeared on the ground in front of the ogress.
Mara inspected the souls trapped in the glass balls and said: "Done!" Henna was gone without another word.
The old woman got up and carefully put the glass spheres in her backpack. Then she wrapped the mirror carefully and placed it in a secure compartment. "Let's get you three to a temple and send you on your way," she said to the souls in her backpack. As she walked away, she reflected on Genma – he hadn't changed a bit in the twenty-plus years. He was an absolute moron when he crossed her so long ago, and he was still an absolute moron. After all, the verifiable existence of Hell had scared *her* onto the straight and narrow. It should have scared him as well to know that the demons were expecting him.
Mara did have some concerns regarding the locking potion Genma had, but quickly dismissed them. If the demons thought that Ranma was too much trouble to handle, Genma would be a piece of cake for Ranma. Besides, she knew something about that locking potion that Genma didn't. Apparently, Mara also knew something about Ranma that Henna didn't either. Odd that Henna didn't know it though despite the careful attention to detail Henna had shown elsewhere in her plans. It was almost as if Henna had a blind spot. Still, it wasn't Mara's job to correct it...
Henna looked at her perfect image in the mirror after Mara's had faded out. She was laying in her tub, and the Sprite was hiding in her murky tank. "That's Shampoo out of the way now. It's a good thing I decided to do a little research on the Saotome and Uchida families. Fancy that the head medicine woman in the area was actually an Ogress collecting souls and that she actually knew Genma. Now, I just need to work on protecting the Sprite and figuring out how to extend my life," she said to herself. With that, she got out of the tub and threw a robe on, and then she left. Talcum would be by to clean up later. As the door closed, there was a burst of giggling from the Sprite's tank that slowly became laughter, which ran on and on and on…
A/N: I updated some comments regarding Genma and the Amazons in my profile regarding this Continuum. Please use PM if you have comments about the profile. My thanks to Compucles for providing some early feedback!